Invitation

One of the easiest patterns, simply invite users to interact with the wiki.

Inviting people to use a wiki is a good way to guide their first interaction with it. Early adopters are by nature eager to try new tools, but most people don't for a variety of reasons. Some are risk-averse, others prefer training at the start of using something new, and others are simply too busy. An invitation creates an opportunity to dedicate time to trying the wiki, and gives people reassurance that someone knowledgeable is there to help them get started.

When you invite people, you could:

• Include an offer of brief, informal training. Whether you're meeting one-to-one or with a team, a brief training session is a good way to introduce the wiki, discuss how it can meet peoples' needs. With a team.
• Specify briefly what is needed in the wiki, and which valuable information can the newcomer add or modify better than you, if that is the case.

• Wikipedia: Larry Sanger, co-founder, asks the firsts subscribers of the Wikipedia-1 list to have a look at the “How to edit a page” page. KDE Project's mailing list archives.

• Seed it with content (adoption pattern) - Since modifying initial content can be more easily done by early adopters of a wiki than facing a blank page, and also a better way to learn how to edit (like when editing in a sandbox).
• StartingPoint