Reinventing the Rolodex: Why we’re asking our 60,000 members what they know

We love the expertise title, for these 5 reasons: 

• It instantly puts readers in the mindset that it’s all about sharing knowledge, and that we see them as potential experts. 
• Readers no longer have to awkwardly explain why they’re an authority. It’s right there next to their name. 
• The titles show other readers that their peers are taking part, which can motivate them to join in the discussion, too. 
• Journalists and readers alike can easily scan the comments by expertise title. 
• We can use these expertise titles to build our CRM, which brings us to point two. 

When journalists want to quote a member’s contribution in their reporting or interview them more extensively, they verify the title with the member or the members can request verification.

The benefit is that it's visible in the discussion on the platform so the readers know what type of person is contributing.

Editors could create categories for expertise titles, such as: 

• Anthropology 
• Architecture 
• Armed forces 
• Medical professionals 
• Natural sciences 
• Linguistics 
• Psychology 
• History 

The position of the Conversation Editor entails five goals: 

• Invite members to take part in discussions they’re knowledgeable about.  
• Help correspondents enrich their reporting with the knowledge and experience of members.  
• The conversation editor can reach out to people from underrepresented groups.
• The conversation editor wants to steer away from group think by organizing dissent. 
• Transform all the lessons into new features.

The experience and expertise of readers is a great untapped resource in journalism. However, it is available right now. All you have to do is ask. 

It wasn't easy to reach out to readers in the print era. However, in the digital age, readers can be resources if you give them the opportunity to share what they know.