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A guide to lurkers.
In Internet culture, a lurker is typically a member of an online community who observes, but does not participate. The exact definition depends on context. Lurkers make up a large proportion of all users in online communities. Lurking allows users to learn the conventions of an online community before they participate, improving their socialization when they eventually “de-lurk”. However, a lack of social contact while lurking sometimes causes loneliness or apathy among lurkers.
Lurkers are referred to using many names, including browsers, read-only participants, non-public participants, legitimate peripheral participants, vicarious learners, or sleepers
Source: Wikipedia: Lurker - Wikipedia
Lurkers are members who tend not to interact. Their habits are one of observing.
Lurkers are often not given enough credit. Often they do the unmeasurable work behind the scenes. They learn from the outputs of community, share them discreetly, or even better implement them in the real world.
We should see them as real people who don’t have the time or energy to participate visibly in our community, but we should still find ways to connect and keep them informed.
Lurkers are people too
Resources on lurking for community
- The 90-9-1 Rule for Participation Inequality in Social Media and Online Communities - NN Group
- Lurkers are people too - Rosie Sherry
- Write for the Lurkers - Animalz
- How to deal with lurkers - Katerina Bohle Carbonell
- Simple Ways to Turn Community Lurkers into Active Contributors - Hivebrite
- The Best Way to Think About Inactive Members - Jerod Morris
- [CASE STUDY] How DigitalMarketer Activated 44% Of Previously Silent Community Members In 5 Days - Digital Marketer
- 11 Ways To Get Lurkers To Participate - Richard Millington
- Finding value in the lurker - Rachel Silvano
- Reaching Out To Inactive Members - Richard Millington
- Why you need to think about lurkers differently in your online community - Todd Nilson
- Do’s and Don’ts for Engaging Lurkers in Community - Higher Logic
- How to measure lurkers - Katerina Bohle Carbonell [
Paid resource] - Let the Lurkers Go - Bri Leever
Research
- Understanding lurkers in online communities: A literature review - Science Direct
- Shedding light on lurkers in online communities - Research Gate
- The top five reasons for lurking: improving community experiences for everyone - Elsevier
- What lurkers and posters think of each other [online community] - Research Gate
- From Lurkers to Workers: Predicting Voluntary Contribution and Community Welfare - Informs
- From Help-Seekers to Influential Users: A Systematic Review of Participation Styles in Online Health Communities - National Library of Medicine
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