Co-creation or crowdsourcing? A psychological approach

Co-creation and crowdsourcing are two technical terms that are frequently confused with one another. Both concern involving a group of users or readers in the creation of a piece of content, but when is it best to use which one?

Psychological perspective
Co-creation and crowdsourcing activate different processes in the brain of the target group (I use the term 'target group' for the 'participants' or 'contributors', and 'readers' for the ultimate consumers of the content).

Crucial is the psychological principle of commitment and consistency: the human tendency to be both internally and externally consistent in our thinking and acting. Who says A, also says B. Marketers who wish to make use of psychological influencing strategies employ this principle by first asking for a small commitment from their target group, after which follows a bigger request having to do with the same theme. In sales this is also called the "foot-in-the-door" technique.

In addition, the principle of consensus also plays an important role: the inclination, when in doubt, to rely on what other, similar persons do or think in the same situation. This principle is particularly prominent with crowdsourcing, where a larger volume of participants is usually involved.

Taken together, these insights pinpoint a difference in exactly what co-creation and crowdsourcing mean. With co-creation we ask the target group to actively participate in the development of knowledge/product/content, while with crowdsourcing we ask more for input rather than active participation. The advantage of crowdsourcing is that you can mobilise larger volumes of people, because co-creation asks for a more active role on the part of the participant. This can put a limit on participation.

On the other hand, the commitment that is given in co-creation is many times greater, since this commitment entails some real effort, is often set down in writing, and is sometimes even publicly visible. And these three factors serve as ´amplifiers´ of the principle of commitment and consistency.

The advantage of co-creation is thus that we can use it to open up our target group for a larger, more comprehensive request in the future. The advantage of crowdsourcing is that we can communicate the 'consensus of the crowd' in order to lend weight to our content or even to steer the behaviour of readers.

Know what you want
The involvement of the target group offers interesting benefits and sometimes even reduces the burden that content creation imposes on one's own people. But it is important to know the psychological consequences before choosing a strategy. To put it in a nutshell: co-creation is useful in order to influence the 'contributors', crowdsourcing is useful in order to influence the 'readers'.

Do you want to actively involve the target group and thus increase the chance that it also continues to engage in the same activities in the future or even says yes to bigger requests? 
Then choose co-creation and actively involve your target group. Don't forget to make the second (bigger) request later.

Do you want as much input as possible for your content and steer the behaviour of your readers? 
Then choose crowdsourcing and communicate that it represents the opinion of 'other people like yourself'.