Enhancing diffusion of consumer innovations on knowledge sharing platforms

In the past decade, studies showed that many consumers innovate for themselves. Sometimes their innovations are useful to others and potentially enhance social welfare. Unfortunately, diffusion fails as lack incentives inform others. Online knowledge sharing platforms (OKSPs), which can be stimulated with government support, may alleviate this problem. Platform communication trigger passive into active contributors. It is however uncertain if how platform affects who never shared designs before. We conducted a randomised controlled experiment 715 members of an OKSP in 3D printing. Our intervention included series general personal messages, tailored various motives share knowledge: altruism, status, ideology, learning community. uploaded before positively influenced by our intervention. Specifically, messages ideology made upload more designs. Hence, improve availability innovative potential adopters, step failure consumer innovations.