Over on the FASTForward Blog, Joe McKendrick has posted some brief thoughts on a new report from Forrester on Social participation on the web. Based on a survey of nearly 10,000 adults and youth in late 2006:

“Creators” (13%): Publish Web pages, publish blogs, upload video to sites like You Tube

“Critics” (19%): Comment on blogs, posting ratings and reviews.

“Collectors” (15%): Use RSS, tag Web pages

“Joiners” (19%): Use social networking sites

“Spectators” (23%): Read blogs, watch peer-generated video, listen to podcasts

“Inactives” (52%): Yeah, the rest of the world.

It’s encouraging to see that nearly half of the respondants are utilizing at least some form of social activity online. The key is focusing on each segment and determining how best to engage the participants. Here’s one possible (obvious) scenario:

1. Your message is seeded to the “Creators” and “Joiners” who can help spread the word.
2. The message is picked up by the “Collectors” (Digg, delic.io.us) who further the conversation
3. “Spectators” pick up on the message
4. Everyone becomes “Critics” and joins the conversation

I would be interested to know how many of those active in one or more aspects of online social activity also consider themselves “connectors” - people who enable members of the “Inactives” to become part of the conversation.

Related Posts

• Why Facebook Advertising is not the Answer
• Can Brands Be Social? Shel Israel says “No.”
• Looks Like We Are About to Get Bum Rushed by the Age of Conversation
• Your PR and Marketing Colleagues Don’t Understand Social Media
• Crowdhacking: 10 Simple Ways Authors Can Help to Increase Sales at Amazon.com