Reading Paul Chaney’s book “The Digital Handshake” I came across the 90-9-1 Rule for Participation Inequality. Basically it states that:
90 percent of users are audience member
They are consumers of online content. Surfing, reading and viewing online content that others have created. They are listening but are not participating.
9 percent of users are editors
They are listening and casually participating. They will comment on, share, vote and tag items. They will express their preferences and opinions and occasionally post to blogs or social media. They view blogging and social media a low priority, however they are engaged and adding value to existing conversations.
1 percent of users are creators
They are driving new content and starting the conversations. They encourage others to contribute.
I found that a surprising breakdown and realized that a casual commitment to online content moves one from an audience member to an editor. With solid commitment and meaningful content one can become an influential content creator.
With an estimated 1,733,993,741 internet users, that is one large potential readership!
Sources:
www.useit.com/alertbox/participation_inequality.html
www.90-9-1.com
www.internetworldstats.com
www.thedigitalhandshake.com
Finally…something that doesn’t support the 80/20 rule! While I find this information refreshing, I don’t find it surprising. Well perhaps just a little. I actually thought that the number of people that are considered to be “editors” higher than I would have expected.
Based on the number of comments I see on blog posts, responses to Tweets and consumer feedback on products and similar reviews, I would have expected “editors” to be in the three to four percent range. I’m quite happy that I am part of a group that is twice that size.