The Development of Successful On-Line Communities

Virtual communities play an increasingly important role in economic, information, and emotional exchanges. Furthermore, some of them have become so large that their social and economic impact can be considerable. At the same time, not all virtual communities seem to flourish, and some perform better than others. This study seeks to examine the main design criteria underlying successful communities, and to identify principles for the design of successful communities. The article is based on a review of the literature, and the study of several communities. As such, it is exploratory in nature. All of the principles will require further in-depth research to test its validity and generalizability. Among the studies of the interesting observations are the (almost) non-sustainability of hub-type (1:N) communities, and the attempt of many communities to reposition themselves to take advantage of community interaction and the social capital that exists in tightly integrated communities.