Bottom's Up! The Art of Building Social Networks

A colleague of mine asked me this morning what social networking systems I could sell right off the shelf. He was preparing to meet with an organization that is keen on finding ways to connect with their membership, and they think that building a social network will do the trick. It's a very good idea, but one that hundreds of thousands of organizations around the world are doing....and failing at, largely because they simply buy 'off the shelf'.

Social networking is not a simple collection of interconnected applications, or even something you can buy off the shelf (don't tell NING that;-)). Social networking is a way of life. It truly is a paradigm shift that has seen the balance of power and control move from the top of the establishment to be dispersed and shared amongst all the individuals. Progress and success are shared by all, and ideas and solutions come from the 'bottom up'.

The goal now is 'how do I harness this power'. The fact is....you cannot! You have to attract it, and in order to engage with individuals it takes a true understanding of their needs, offering something others are not, building trust and being authentic. Taking 'Off the Shelf' social networking tools and throwing them at the membership does little more than reinforce the 'old ways', or in other words pounding down solutions from the top down.

There is no doubt that social networking and social media are the keys to success for any organization. Just look at what Cisco has done. They have converted themselves into a ‘socialist enterprise’.... with $26 billion in reserves! Check out Ellin McGill’s article in Fast Company’s e-magazine. This transformation took incredible cultural changes that were strategically and methodically implemented and supported fully by the leadership.

In an excerpt from the article, 'John Chambers, CEO of Cisco puts it this way, ‘"We want a culture where it is unacceptable not to share what you know," he says. So he promotes all kinds of social networking at Cisco: You can write a blog, upload a video, and tag your myriad strengths in the Facebook-style internal directory. "Everybody is an author now," he laughs. Blog posts are voted up based on their helpfulness. There are blogs about blogging and classes about holding classes -- all gauged to make it easy for less-engaged employees to get with the program.'

I’m not saying you have to go to the same extent as Cisco to transform your organization, however, recognizing the value of freedom of contribution and identifying ways that make it easier to collaborate and engage can have powerful outcomes....and it all starts from the Bottom Up.

Traditional Media Just Can't Keep Up

It has been a fascinating journey over the last fifteen years to see not only the evolution of the Internet, but also the dramatic shift in traditional media and those that live in that world. We now live in a society where we get news within seconds of it happening....well before television, radio or newspapers can get it to us. We now get our news in a format we choose, at a time that we want and in a manner that we can control. In the wake of the demise of one of North America's larger newspapers, what was being predicted as the death of traditional media is now painfully evident...digital has taken over and traditional media cannot keep up.

A point that hit home for me came in an article regarding the closing of the Seattle Post-Intellegencer, David Lonay, 80, a subscriber since 1950, said he'll miss a morning ritual that can't be replaced by a Web-only version. "The first thing I do every day is get the P-I and read it," Lonay said. "I really feel like an old friend is dying." And I don't blame him. I feel the same way about our local paper, but sadly though, I'm finding that the content of our paper has already hit me well before the paper is delivered.

Coincidentally, the initial report on the newspaper's possible demise came out through the social networks. One such post was made on January 30th by Sarah Gilbert. Sarah refers to getting the 'rumor' through her 'twitter'. The eventual news came out on March 16th.

In another example, my 18 year old son started recieving posts in a number of social networks he belongs to regarding a moronic display on Fox News regarding our Canadian Forces. It spread like wildfire! And it wasn't until the following day that the traditional media players caught up.

In another case, a local friend had accumulated enough votes in the International promotional search for an Island Caretaker to place second among 34,000 entries, strictly through social media and well before the traditional media jumped on it.

Unfortunately, traditional media are stuck in a paradigm of top-down pushing and processes that restrict the speed of delivery. Simply moving content online is not working either. The demands of social media including open dialogue, free speech and unrestricted interchange are contrary to the mindset of traditional and over regulated media players. Frankly, it's almost an unfair advantage that Social Media players have.

Don't get me wrong, I love the traditional media. The integrity, the people and the commitment to our community are amazing. What is evident though is that the world of information is changing and the old ways are fading....like an old friend.