I've been thinking a lot about influencers lately so this has become another "Erin read good book and wants to learn more by applying it to her life" post. As I stay up for the better part of the night writing a paper related to this very topic, I'm going to throw out some comments (brain vomit) here as well. Might as well make it a two for one right!?
In the real world, influencers are built based on experiences, knowledge, and by having the right resources, but online, we all start at the same level. No one is born into Twitter with 1,000 followers. No one magically has the skills to create blogs that are all of a sudden linked to from all over the interwebs. No one is trusted. No one knows you.
So how do online influencers become, well, influential? For this, influencers are a mix of the types of people referenced in The Tipping Point by Malcolm Gladwell (connectors, mavens, salesmen). Here's what I think matters in becoming an influener, but I'd love to hear your opinions also!
Timeliness: If you are the first one to share a link you are going to have an impact on those that click. You have now earned a point towards becoming an influential person for that particular subject/event/etc. Having the ability to find and share has become almost as influential as writing the content itself.
Relevancy: You need to share the right stuff. I wouldn't come here and write a full post about puppy cam even though I might really want to express how much I love it. I come here to write about advertising, media, branding, and the interwebs. I share ideas that are relevant for me and you.
Friends: Without people to share things with, you're still nothing. You could have the best ideas in the world and if no one knows, they might as well not exist. So uh, good thing we have at least 3 loyal readers. (Thanks Ben, John, Dirk, and Sylvie!)
Energy: I could have said stamina, longevity, or experience, but it's more about being excited about what you're doing and having the drive to continue doing that. If you hit it and quit it you probably shouldn't have even warmed up. Stick with it, establish yourself, and when you have an idea go for it.
Passion: If you aren't truly passionate about what you're doing, people will see right through you. This can mean having strong opinions, battling with other bloggers, or just geeking out about something that you love. Your passion will be shared with those that you connect with. Or in other words, just <3.
Ok that's it, your turn. Comments. Ready, break!
Wednesday, November 19, 2008
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10 comments:
Now I am sure you have more than three readers!! But actually, the old adage of quality vs quantity does apply.
Case in point, I have 700 Twitter followers. I am not saying that to brag because actually the quality of my Twitter interactions were better when there were just 200 and I could actually tune into what people were saying. Right now, I feel I'm sometimes just in danger of broadcasting out.
So...even if it's 3 (or even 30), that's three who pay attention and that's worth quite a lot.
Really great post. I've had some trouble trusting some of Gladwell's ideas (http://www.fastcompany.com/magazine/125/the-untipping-point.html) but I think when we're talking about online, there's definitely a lot of relevancy. You seriously get it. You're my new planning crush.
Is that awkward?
hi erin, what are you're thoughts on people sharing the same NYTimes or AdAge articles over and over? Timeliness is relative to what time zone you're living in right? being out here in the West, by the time it get thru the morning read, inspired, ready to share, i'm already at a 3 hour deficit. so for me, i don't even bother sharing.
and for relevancy, what if you have different types of followers w/diff interests. i'm a fan of F1 racing, so sometime i tweet about that w/some F1 followers. do i risk alienating those that are not into F1? is there tool that can filter our tweets?
this discussion is starting to get twitter-focused, so i'll end it with that.
agree w/you on the energy and passion. very important. sometimes i get much more passionate after a few drinks in me. is that bad? blogging while under the influence?
I agree with windo on the timeliness factor. the web never sleeps, but people do and seven hours can be an eternity. so when i check my breakfast links some of you are not even in bed. sometimes it is just hard for me to decide if i am the first or the last one to know.
Windo, I think E. Lam means timeliness a little less literally. If somebody Tweeted about puppy cam today, for example, I'd say skip it. Same with Gmail themes next week--it would be old news (and apparently it already is for Moni!). As far as NYTimes and AdAge, I might share a few that I find particularly striking, but we almost never comment on them in Yaybia because we assume everyone else has seen them too. Influencers don't just churn out mass media; they analyze it and put their own spin on it. They dig up hidden gems that aren't getting re-blogged over and over. Pure content aggregators are not influencers.
For relevancy: I don't think diversity in interests is a problem. My favorite bloggers are the ones who have distinct personalities, whether or not they're 100% advertising. Again, it's about putting your own thoughts behind what you share, not just Tweeting link after link. Ypulse, for example, provides an amazing Ypulse Essentials link roundup every day. But the site's real value lies in Anastasia's longer commentary when she shares her insights into youth media. If Ypulse were only Essentials, it wouldn't have half the popularity--or credibility.
As for blogging under the influence? Maybe Gmail needs to expand its Mail Goggles to Blog Goggles!
Mark Earls has been doing a lot of research on this subject. You can find a presentation he gave along with Scott Thompson here:
http://www.brightcove.tv/search.jsp?query=ARF_Word
Additionally, here's a report they published recently to add to your thoughts:
http://herd.typepad.com/herd_the_hidden_truth_abo/2008/11/free-gift-influence-and-how-things-really-spread.html
(And if you haven't read his book HERD, I highly recommend it.)
Oh, and Claire, I think it would only be awkward if it didn't involve all the crush perks. Chocolates? Ha.
Windo - I think that being an influencer and having more than one topic that you may want to share is actually a cool benefit. If I knew that I could trust you for information on account planning, and you were also sharing some info on F1 racing, I would believe that it was credible information because it had passed through the Windo filter first. I would know that you were sharing the best from that topic and would be clicking through. People may only ever read an article on that topic because YOU shared it, not some rando.
So YOU are the filter. That make sense?
Paul - Thanks for the links! The comparison between the Herd and Influencer concepts is fantastic! And that book looks like it would make for a great Yaybia review.
@Libby: i hear/agree w/your point re: timeliness and putting your own spin/commentary on the content being shared. what i find interesting is to see the volume and varying POVs on the content being forwarded. bottom line is, if you're gonna share out the same link, make sure you add your POV and make it interesting vs just pushing the stuff out.
@Erin: yep, totally makes sense re: filter. i'm gonna tweet out and geek out on only the very best of F1, vinyl, sushi, booze, and a bit of surfing. :)
side bar: is it strange that the word verification i need to type in is, "phallis"? o_O
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