Crowdsourcing: Why the Power of the Crowd Is Driving the Future of Business

The 1:10:89 Rule - For every given 100 people, 1 will actually create something, 10 will vote on what he created and the remaining 89% will merely consume.

Von Hippel (Head of the Innovation and Entrepreneurship Group at MIT's Sloan School of Management) demonstrated that in fields as wide ranging as scientific instruments and mountain bikes and computer chips, the task of innovation was passing from the manufacturer to the user, who has both a greater need and a greater ability to improve a product's... See more

People will work late into the night on one creative endeavor or another in the hope that their community - be it fellow designers, scientists, or computer hackers - acknowledge their contribution in the form of kudos and, just maybe, some measure of fame.

What makes the online community a more efficient workforce than one managed by a firm? The short answer is that communities are better at both identifying talented people and evaluating their output.

Attracting a crowd is much easier than keeping them. The most important component to a successful crowdsourcing effort is a vibrant, committed community and understanding what motivates people to contribute in the first place. People ned to feel rewarded for their efforts.

- Intrinsic - goals such as creative fulfillment, a belief in the project, the sense of community obligation, the opportunity to enhance one's reputation in the community.

Labor can often be organized more efficiently in the context of community than it can in the context of a corporation.

- Extrinsic - The Carrot (Financial Reward) and The Stick (A scolding from your boss)

- They are donating their leisure hours to the cause.