Designing for Social Sharing

I have been eagerly awaiting one set of slides from Webvisions and now they’re available: Rashmi Sinha’s Designing for Social Sharing. Her talk was referenced in three other sessions that I attended, so this is thought-leader kind of stuff.

Unlike many sets of conference slides, these are easy to read (like last year’s How to make a zillion dollars and not lose your soul) without attending the talk. Her talk had so many wonderful things, it’s hard to digest them at once. I’ll probably have to revisit these slides several times.

Here’s a sneak peak of some of it…

Why is now the time for social sharing?
1. The Web has become a social sphere. There is over 50% broadband penetration in the U.S., and 65% of people use the Internet to maintain friendships.
2. Massively multi-player online games. You’re playing and interacting.
3. Rich interfaces enable richer interactions. Sites can provide a stream of real-time content, as opposed to a snapshot of some prior moment.

Some principles for social sharing
(including some of my social website rules)
1. Make system personally useful
2. Identify symbiotic relationship between personal and social
3. Create porous boundary between public and private
4. Allow for levels of participation
5. Let people feel the presence of others
6. But design for moments of independence

To find out details on any of these points, or see other great stuff I’ve left out, check out her slides.