+1 for Eric and Barry.<div><br></div><div>Though we can list benefits like better writing skills, networking with similar people, global audience for our content, it is very hard to make someone a returning contributor based on these. Global / Indian education program is a good example. Even after intense and direct outreach, the conversion rate there is less.</div>
<div><br></div><div><meta charset="utf-8">I have done 10+ physical outreaches and the conversion rate is very very less. Outreaches are very much a branding exercise to increase awareness about Wikipedia. Not everyone can and will become a poet or a musician or an environmentalist or a human rights activist even if we do 100s of workshops. The same holds true for Wikipedia.<br>
<div><br></div><div>Wikipedia is a social cause in which the right contributor finds joy instantly. It is similar to the joy a kid feels at seeing a ball. You need not educate a kid about the ball but you just have to introduce it. People asking &quot;what&#39;s in it for me in Wikipedia&quot; are similar to people who ask &quot;what&#39;s in it for playing&quot;. Almost 90% of very active Tamil Wikipedia editors jumped at the project once such a thing existed.</div>
<div><br></div><div>So, we should not worry about the people who ask &quot;Why&quot;. Just spread the message to as many people by mass media ( <b>Even a TV ad campaign will be worth the spending</b> ) and focus on the people who ask &quot;How&quot;. There are many such people who can relate with the cause of Wikipedia but they just don&#39;t know that it exists and they can contribute.</div>
<div><br></div><div>Ravi </div></div>