Monday, January 26, 2004
TREND: Community Building and Social Networking
Two topics that are hot right now are “social networking” and “conversational marketing.” I wrote about some of my ideas on conversational marketing on 14 January, The Power of Conversationsal Marketing. This week I want to comment on social networking. Although neither term has a clear definition, I have been working with my clients on both topics since the mid nineties. Further, when applied to channels, both are related topics dealing with creating and sustaining community.
Over the last few weeks I have been invited to join LinkedIn and Ryze. Both communities have something to offer. Ryze is like a coctail party or virtual bar. You check someone out (via thier profile) and decide if they are someone you want to talk to. If so, you leave them a note in thier gusetbook and they can respond. Ryze also is breaking down the barrier between the virtual and the real world with local meet and great sessions. Great for meeting new people, but like any cocktail party, you may not want to meet everyone. LinkedIn is more like a country club. You need existing contacts to vouch for you to meet new people. This cuts down on unwanted conversations, but may exclude the cool new person you need to meet. Both extend the power of your networking efforts.
What about a private version of socal software that takes the best elements of a LinkedIn or Ryze and uses it to drive community and loyalty in a reseller community? In addition to the membership aspect, it would have to have facilitated topics, support and some Q and A. This would be a great place for company employees and channel blogs to be aggregated. Although the software is important, the most vital thing is leadership. Communities do not spontainiously form. They need someone to lead them and to document the accomplishments.
Scott Karren, The Channel Pro
Two topics that are hot right now are “social networking” and “conversational marketing.” I wrote about some of my ideas on conversational marketing on 14 January, The Power of Conversationsal Marketing. This week I want to comment on social networking. Although neither term has a clear definition, I have been working with my clients on both topics since the mid nineties. Further, when applied to channels, both are related topics dealing with creating and sustaining community.
Over the last few weeks I have been invited to join LinkedIn and Ryze. Both communities have something to offer. Ryze is like a coctail party or virtual bar. You check someone out (via thier profile) and decide if they are someone you want to talk to. If so, you leave them a note in thier gusetbook and they can respond. Ryze also is breaking down the barrier between the virtual and the real world with local meet and great sessions. Great for meeting new people, but like any cocktail party, you may not want to meet everyone. LinkedIn is more like a country club. You need existing contacts to vouch for you to meet new people. This cuts down on unwanted conversations, but may exclude the cool new person you need to meet. Both extend the power of your networking efforts.
What about a private version of socal software that takes the best elements of a LinkedIn or Ryze and uses it to drive community and loyalty in a reseller community? In addition to the membership aspect, it would have to have facilitated topics, support and some Q and A. This would be a great place for company employees and channel blogs to be aggregated. Although the software is important, the most vital thing is leadership. Communities do not spontainiously form. They need someone to lead them and to document the accomplishments.
Scott Karren, The Channel Pro
