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.

Lessons from Network Marketing - Part 1 of 3

"In Network Marketing, the NETWORKING always comes before the MARKETING" - Silke Stahl




I have been exploring the area of Network Marketing recently and in particular the approaches and tools it uses in establishing, maintaining and leveraging relationships to build a sustainable business.

Network Marketing (NM), Multi Level Marketing or Relationship Marketing is essentially the sale of products (or services) directly to customers through a relationship referral . The agents who sell the products make their commission by developing a broad customer base and recruiting other agents (distributors) from whom they get an additional commission from the levels below. Well know examples would be AVON, Amway or EXCEL ( and Euphony in UK and Ireland).

When reading about and talking to successful Network Marketers your are struck by the passion they have for their work and the amazing relationships they have cultivated with both their customers and the people they have recruited (down stream / level below).

Reading Scott Pospichal in Conversations with EXCEL Millionaires he sums it up

Gather a few customers and recruit new representatives and help them gather customers...everyone gets paid.

There is much that other business can learn from Network Marketers about business relationships with customers and especially their partners.

As you'd expect there is a lot of information on this topic out there and separating the "pitch" from genuine information is a challenge. I recommend the book Conversations with EXCEL Millionaires by Litmanand Oman because it is focused on the people not the product. I would also highly recommend Jim Sweeney's blog Network Marketing My Way as he's one of those successful Network Marketers who is willing to share the secrets of his success, he also tells a god story.

As you might have guessed from the title of this post I plan to dig deeper into this topic in the future.

A FREE copy of Conversations with EXCEL Millionaires is available to the first person who comments on this post!