Introductions and Requests: Rhetorical Strategies That Elicit Response in Online Communities

Abstract

Conversation is a critical element to the success of online communities, both for the communities as a whole and the individual members. Yet conversations often fail: Forty percent of potential thread-starting messages in Usenet groups receive no response. When this happens, those who are trying to get information, support, or discussion from a group receive no benefit from their efforts. This paper presents a multi-method series of studies into community responsiveness to two rhetorical strategies: self-disclosing introductions and making requests. Introductions signal legitimacy and commitment, and requests reduce community effort by making clear what is needed. An analysis of a longitudinal sample of 40,931 messages from 99 Usenet groups shows that introductions referencing lurking and a personal connection to the topic of discussion increase the likelihood of getting a reply. So does making requests. Machine learning detects introductions and requests automatically within the text. A pair of experiments in which introductions and requests are added or removed from previously posted messages and reposted to Usenet groups shows that introductions referencing the group history cause an increase in reply counts, but requests do not. The research will inform the design of an automatic intervention triggered at the time messages are written that makes suggestions for strengthening rhetorical strategies when the community is unlikely to respond.

Email subject lines and response rates to invitations to participate in a web survey and a face-to-face interview: the sound of silence

“…The existing research examining the role of subject lines has generally been undertaken in the context of messages posted to online discussion forums but has yielded inconsistent results. An analysis of over 40,000 messages posted to 99 Usenet newsgroups found that inclusion of a question mark in the subject line increased the likelihood of response (Burke, Joyce, Kim, Anand, & Kraut, 2007). However, ten experiments by Callegaro Kruse, Thomas, and Nukulkij (2009) found no difference in public affairs survey completion rates between emails with customized and those with generic subject lines.…”

Bending opinion: essays on persuasion in the public domain

“…The very first thing they crave for is a reply. Getting a reply, let alone generate a discussion is quite an achievement in itself: in a study of 40,931 messages in 99 Usenet newsgroups it was found that 43 percent of the topic starters never received a reply; similar percentages were found in other studies (Burke et al 2007). Using introductions and making requests raised the likelihood of receiving replies.…”

“…Using introductions and making requests raised the likelihood of receiving replies. This in turn has important group cohesion effects: posters who received a reply, particularly if they were newbies, were more likely to post again (Burke et al 2007).…”

Motivation for Participation in Online Neighborhood Watch Communities: An Empirical Study Involving Invitation Letters

“…One focus has been on the effects of introductions and requests on the level of participation of the invited user, and the success of subsequent online conversation [11]. Harper et al found a significant increase in participation from users who received a personalized introduction, and one that emphasizes social interaction [12], and Freyne et al found a similar increase when appeals to add friends and take other actions were included early in the signup process [13].…”

“…Based on Burke's findings [11] , the author believes that invitations that offer a more personal use case will be easier to understand and more immediately affecting than those that present more abstract ideals. Furthermore, the author believes that invitations which emphasize the recipient's personal safety, as well as the safety of his or her individual friends and neighbors, will be more effective in recruiting potential members.…”