The document discusses fostering participation and content creation in online communities through different stages. It argues that participation follows a cycle where people first consume content before feeling confident enough to interact and eventually create content themselves. For communities to thrive, they must deliver relevant content to consumers, make participation easy and meaningful, and facilitate various ways for members to generate and share content. The goal is for every member to feel like a valued part of the community network and take on the attitude of a "generator" who contributes in some way.

1. The Participation spiral
Prepared by Vahid Masrour
Presented to Impact Alliance
June 2010

2. You can find them about here

3. You know where to find
them: around here.

4. Everybody know they’re here

5. Participation is a two way street
2. Creating content
1. Consuming content

6. Consuming, Creating, and in between
Consuming
• Reading
• Learning
• Absorbing
Creating
• Writing
• Publishing
• Sharing
In between, something happens:
Confidence + Trust
Emerges and interaction begins

7. Stairway to Confidence + Trust
Does this community
satisfy my needs?
Will my participation be
well received?
Yay! Somebody actually
replied to my post!

8. Participation as a lifecycle
1. We are all
consumers
2. It’s not that hard to
become interactors
3. We are all
(potential) creators

9. Deliver relevant
content
Make
participation
easy and
meaningful
Facilitate
content
creation,
publishing and
interaction
What’sa(virtual)community
todo?

10. The community as a network

11. Everybody is a valued part of the community / network:
Everybody is/can become a generator

12. The generator’s attitude
“I am but a dot, but this
dot can help make a
difference”

13. The generator’s key attitudes
I have something to say / I can create stuff
that is relevant / I can share stuff that is
interesting
Feeling assured that “Someone is bound to
look at it”
I am (everyone is) a valued part of the
network (mankind)

14. Questions regarding
fostering the community
and its relationships

15. What needs to be done so that
relationships are established
between the parts?

16. What should the environment provide
to nourish relationships?

17. What can the community do to help
each member become a generator?