Joshua Porter, wrote a post at the end of September about improving online sharing. Very useful for anyone trying to develop a participatory community. The first step is to provide something worth sharing - a video, a picture or a URL, namely good content. He also mentions usability (making it easier to share) and creating a popularity (’most shared’) list.

If we see the blogosphere as a vast collaborative project, where ideas and thoughts are constantly exchanged, Joshua Porter’s list could be very useful for every potential blogger.

But we should not only see participation from the perspective of the administrator. A successful community does not only depend on the way information is shared. It also depends on the intentions of the participators.

The administrator should consider why people are willing to contribute - then it will become easier to improve online sharing.

The reasons people edit in wikipedia, can be a starting point. Information about such researches can be found at Brian Bex’s Blog and a poll he conducted and at oreilly’s post “what motivates wikipedians”

I don’t say adjusting your content to people’s needs. But understanding the social needs of the blogosphere is a step towards a more engaging and collaborative community.