The Tipping Point and relationships

What do shoes, fashion, epidemics and smoking campaigns have in common with social networking?




A lot when viewed through the eyes of Gladwell in The Tipping Point.

This is a remarkable read on the power of relationships and networks. By mixing observation on life with hard facts and analysis you are taken on a journey from how epidemics occur, the impact of a few, what makes an idea persist (sticky) and the importance of context.

What makes this book stand out in my mind though is not only does it present the ideas but suggest how it might be applied to current problem (e.g. health campaigns or marketing buzz)

This book is a must-read for any networker, marketer or students of people and relationships. Chapter Two alone on "The Law of the Few: Connectors, Mavens and Salesmen offers a fresh look at what motivates different types of networkers in live.

Beg, borrow or buy a copy. Be warned, you'll never look at a pair of hush puppies (shoes) the same again.


(Expect my thoughts on BLINK, another of Gladwells books in a future post.

Super Connectors and Real-World Social Networks

I was reading Clive Thomson's piece in Wired this month on  Real-World Social Networks vs. Facebook 'Friends' and was struck by two important concepts identified in the underlying research from MIT, the super connector and the strength of links in face-to-face networks.


The tradition image of the super connector as the sales director or charismatic MD did not hold up under investigation and was more likely to be "some random guy"usually over worked and over stressed.  

In a world on LinkedIn, Facebook, BeBo and organisers stuffed with names and numbers it is very easy to think you are building an amazing business network.  The reality is that a business network, be it a project team or business partners, are significantly more affective when the people have met, have an experience or at the very least spoken to each other .  The scientific expression is "the office metabolism tightens", I call it "doing business with friends".


So what to do with these insights from Thomson and the researcher Weber?

• Find that diamond in the rough, the super connector and leaverage their skills inside and outside the organisation.  Maybe you're "that randon guy", go get some credit!
  
• Put the same effort into your face-toface network as you do your online one, quality not quantity.
  

Should I LinkedIn?

I have recently been considering the value of the networking phenomena that is LinkedIn. So what is it and can it really help build stronger business relationships.




Wikipedia describes it as "a business-oriented networking site ..., mainly used for professional networking". If you haven't already done so check it out.

Once you have explored it a little you will no doubt be asking yourself how relevant it is to you and is it worth the effort?

Here are 5 good reasons LinkedIn will help you build and maintain better business relationships:

1. You'll Be Found
Your proper name, once registered with LinkedIn will appear at the top of most on-line searches. This is due to the fact that LinkedIn is a trusted source by all the major search engines and the sites content, including your name, has been optimised for searching. You will also be found by other users because LinkedIn suggests members based on shared college or company histories.

2. You'll be seen
Once someone has found your name they will want to look at your profile, this includes a photo, as much history as you want to include and your websites (blogs, flicker, YouTube posts, etc).

3. You'll be heard
With an easy to find profile, on a respected forum you are no longer an anonymous voice in cyberspace. Now when you post a comment on a forum, blog or other site other users will now be able to associate a

4. You be contactable
Over the years we have all had various email addresses from work, college or other. With InMail you no longer have to rely on a friend or associate knowing your active email address.

5. You can give and receive recognition
Recommendations can be posted by colleagues or associates to your profile. You can also post answers on various topics, again building you credibility.

Resources worth checking out to get a better understanding of this networking tool are:
Blog: Linked Intelligence
Book & Blog: I'm On LinkedIn Now What

Never Eat Alone

This is a remarkable book on the topic of personal networking.

If you are even remotely interested in how to start, nurture and harvest the fruits of great relationships (business or otherwise) you must read this book.


What can I say, Ferrazzi's book hits home on so many levels. I read it about 6 months ago and from the opening chapter I was taking notes or should I say writing all over the margins (the ultimate sign of approval for me). If you want the "how to" guide on business relationship building this is it.

The reviews are at the extremes on Amazon but I would expect nothing less for a book of this caliber and genre. I found the story telling style and personal experiences interesting, others no doubt consider it egotistical.

I challenge you to read it and not be inspired to "connect" with an old friend or colleague.

Network Weaving

Improved connectivity is created through an iterative process of knowing the network and knitting the network

- Valdis Krebs and June Holly



We are all connected. These connections form networks. Some of them personal, some social others business others we may not even be aware of. So how do we take advantage of these networks in business?

Kerbs and Holly in their paper Building Smart Communities through Network Weaving
put forward the idea that it's all about knowing and then knitting your network. The more collaborations among the members of the network the more vibrant and more valuable it becomes.

In getting to know your network there are a number of general patterns that can be observed. The obvious ones being:

• Birds of a feather flock together
• The close by, form a tie

But there are other just as important patterns that strong, effective networks display. For example:

• Diversity maximises innovation (different ideas)
  
• Robustness (more people more connections)
  
• Prominent nodes or hubs (there are always brokers or well connected people)
  
• Many indirect links (don't rely on just one relationship)
  

By actively managing your relationships you can give it direction. Introducing people to each other that would not have normally met creates, knits, even stronger ties.

The paper is a great insight into how you can take an objective view of your own network and then identify areas that need improving.

I recommend you read the paper (it's a short one) and check out the web site www.networkweaving.com for case studies and the blog.

When you know where you are starting from it makes it a lot easier to get to where you want to be.