m-cause

Below is short post just to let you know what I am thinking about at the moment.

Crowdsourcing is hot right now & it is on my mind.  I just picked up a copy of the highly anticipated Crowdsourcing book by Jeff Howe.  I also like his blog which continues to examine the crowdsourcing topic in real time…indeed, it seems that as technology progresses, more & more activities in more & more categories can now be “crowdsourced”.  Jeff even had his own book cover design “crowdsourced”, which I find pretty cool (you can find the designs that didn’t win his contest in the back of the book).

Here is a quick definition of crowdsourcing:  The act of taking a job traditionally performed by agencies/employees & outsourcing it to an undefined, generally large group of people in the form of an open call or contest

Jeff mentions in the book that one of the interesting things about crowdsourcing is that it provides answers to questions you didn’t even know you were asking.

I intend to write more on this topic at a later stage, however, I will leave you with Jeff’s 10 rules for crowdsourcing.  Some are obvious, but others are pearls of wisdom.

1. Pick the right model (crowd wisdom, crowd creation, crowd voting, or crowdfunding)

2. Pick the right crowd

3. Offer the right incentives

4. Keep the pink slips in the drawer (e.g. don’t fire everyone just because you can outsource it to the crowd)

5. Remember the benevolent Dictator Principle (crowds can turn into mobs…someone needs to provide guidance & strongly lead the activity)

6. Keep it simple

7.  Remember Sturgeon’s Law (90% of everything is crap)

8.  Remember the 10%, the antidote to Sturgeon’s Law

9.  The Community is always right

10.  Ask not what the crowd can do for you, but what you can do for the crowd