Does being over-networked mean having a low quality network?

In my quest to understand who and how we use social networking website, I’d launch the conversation with heavy users.Definition:

To put it in a nutshell, I’d define a heavy user in term of number of contacts in the profile. One could consider the number of visits, time spent, or other criteria but I arbitrary chose the number of contacts in Profile.

Arbitrarily, I would say that a heavy user has more than 250+ contacts (a lower number would give sens as well)

Question: What does it mean having a lot of profile in your profile?

Let’s be frank. How many persons you really keep in contact? 100-150 persons?

I said frankly!!!

Hmmmmmm, 60-70?

So what does it mean when someone make of his network profile a Xmas wish list of names?

The persons I know and that are really good in networking are not using online social networks. They are social networks.

Of course, if your job is to develop your network for professional reasons, I see recruitment professions for instance, the question is different. But for the others?

I made a test. I tried to contact persons in my network in order to obtain a contact. I’ve tried those who are very (over) networked on online social networks and those who are reasonably networked.

The result is that the heavy users do not answer to telephone or do not pass contacts… Sad, no? Or maybe I am not a person one can introduce?

For non-heavy users, they answer to the phone and pass contacts…

So. Taking into account that I am still the same person when I am calling these two kind of network users and that there is not difference of hierarchy in the persons I contacted, is there some consequences to take from this short experience?

Without studying too long this issue, I would say that heavy users are wanna-be networked persons but are not really, or persons that didn’t really understood the interest of these kind of services…

Online social networks are made to facilitate the exchange of contact, aren’t they?

Being networked is global and time occurring, i.e. in real life, your are networked at one moment. Social networks of a person changes, moves, grow but also diminishes according to the time and the space.

This is not the case for online networks. With online networks, you add contacts like pearls and keep it all the rest of your life (who is really deleting contacts from his profile when is not anymore in contact with a person?).

In a normal life, you meet always the same persons. And you learn to know and respect these persons by meeting them again and again.

When you have 250+ contacts, you don’t really know the contacts you have.

And when you need to introduce some of your contacts to another contact, you have a problem as you need to introduce two persons you don’t know…

So do Heavy users = Low quality networks?

Well, let’s think about this…

 

Social network or Asocial networks?

When I want to add a new contact in my network, I have to send a request. This looks quite logical.

There is a default text generated by the software saying something like: Hi, its frank, I want to add you to my network, Bye.

I nearly cannot remember anybody who didn’t send me this message as an invitation. Isn’t it a little bit sad?

Let’s imagine any other situation in real life and use the same kind of introduction: You meet a girl in the street and say: Hey, I am Frank, I want to add you to my list of girl friend. Bye…

Is it rough?

or try online dating: it would be: Hello (Hey is too strong), I am Casanova, I want to add you to my list of conquests. Accept my request…

No, No, NO!!!

Adding contacts doesn’t have to be done this way. You can send a real introduction, write a real message with your little fingers. This will not damage your keyboard or cost you higher connection cost to internet.

This has a name: courtoisie.

Online as offline: their is minimum rules. We should not forget that in the term Social network, there is the word SOCIAL. so let’s act as such, so that we do not transform this nice technology in Asocial network…

Brand new marketing or brand marketing?

The push of Brand communities is steady with new websites controled by brands or simply branded blowing every week.

Does a Brand need to open a blog in order to be fair play and start a real two-way communication with its costumers? Starbucks (http://mystarbucksidea.force.com/home/home.jsp), as many other companies, ask the same question: Are U satisfied? Starbucks only follows what its Canadian concurrent did in Canada long time ago with… nothing more :+)

Do a brand need to keep its community inside the boundaries of the Brand when creating a community? Is it the right strategy?

Looking back to the history of social network, there was dating website. As for every new technology, sex is the main driver for early adopters.

With the huge success of online dating websites, all news papers adopted a dating on their website. What news paper’s website do have a dating service today? Huge firms as meetic.com, match.com took over the market.

So will it be the same for Brand communities?

This is a question I had to ask myself while creating www.hairmust.com community, the Loreal Professionnel community.

Is the interest for the brand wide enough to lead a sufficient traffic so that the community will be alive? And if yes, will it be sufficient to survive next wave of absorption (that will surely happen in the future)?

I don’t think so.

This is the reason why I decided to open the community to a larger public than only Loreal Pro admirers. I was also lead by the last researches showing that brand admirers are not, as we used to think, the target persons we have to reach with our community. Brand consumers are the right targets as brand admirers are not word-of-mouth white flags as they are so extremists that they are not trusted more than the brand itself is. In add, they are so focused that they are not meeting other stratus of the population.

I decided to focus the community on hair dressers and beauty lovers.

This mix seems to me the right one as hairdressers are motivated to produce content (photos in our case) and beauty lovers are interested in choosing the right hair dresser or discovering the new trend (not in catalogues, but in real). The brand in this story? The brand is the guarantor of the quality, the initiator of the new trend. In construction, we would say the Quality control.

This structure solves somehow one of the most complicated question of online communities: 1. how to motivate users to generate content and 2. what is the remuneration of users generating content.

In our case, Users generating content will be hairdressers. Their remuneration: free marketing for their business.

We will see if this logic will function. I strongly believe that yes.

Issued by Loreal Professionnel CZ to press on www.hairmust.cz – March 11, 2008

HAIR MUST – PRESS RELEASE

HAIRMUST-CLOSE TO YOUR HAIR

L´Oreal Professionnel announces the new „big bang“ in the universe of hair beauty. Through modern internet technologies, brand community HairMust will give the opprotunities for haidressers and brand´s fans to be closer of world best haidresser´s and beauty trends and the brand itself. Instead of one way commnunication you can help us to built our community and be part of it. We want meet you, we want hear you, we want advice you!

OUR AIM

We know that only the qualitative developpement of our salons will issue to satisfied customer of our brand. That´s why L´Oréal Professionnel brings to its haidressers several marketing, merchandising and education tools which enhance their business. Existing tools are following:

Ø Education & trainnings

Ø Merchandising items and trainnings

Ø Marketing and discount programs for salons

Ø Shows promoting the best practises

AND NOW!!! HairMust on-line brand community transfers all mentioned into a new dimension!

BRAND COMMUNITY IS MAINLY SOCIAL COMMUNITY

The concept of brand community come out from the basic human needs like socializing, sharing great ideas or finding a close friend. You can perhaps know these social networks, already existing on internet:

The concept of barnd community is also very young, based on the article of two american sociologist – Muniz and O´Guinn-from 2001. Their definition of BC is the following: „A brand community is a specialized, non-geographically bound community, based on a structured set of social relations among admirers of a brand.“ (Dixit Brand community by Muniz and,O’Guinn 2001 by Journal of consumer research, Inc. ● Vol. 27 ● March 2001).

Since then, there was no real try to create an online brand community, branded directly by a brand.

L´Oréal Professionnel is one of the first brands to really try the experience!

IT WILL WORKS !?

Due to the nature of the project as real small revolution we don´t know if the reality will reach our expectations. Nevertheless we are strongly convinced that the expansive offline community already exists and that for following reasons:

· Hair profession is a very dynamic profession where hair professionals

o Attend to training

o Participate to fairs

o Organise contest between themselves

o Are passionated by their work

· There is a demand from hair salon clients on:

o Advices

o Trends, inspiration

o Contacts with „good“ hairdressers

· Brand Loreal Professionnel is famous and is a reference in the industry

So it just have let to put them on-line and spirit our brand!

WHY TO REACH OUR COMMUNITY

New community HairMust of L´Oréal Professionnel is type of UGC network, living from the activity of all membres. More it has members, more powerfull and animate our community will be. The strategy is based on the principle EVERYBODY WONS! Let´s check the motivation for all target group visitors:

· Hair professionnals:

o Show their work (photos, advices)

o Motivate their team

o Be visible from potential clients

o Organise and promote events

o Find jobs

o Find material for their salon

o See what is the trend/make the trend

o Be informed in real time

o Networking (chat, discussions, blogs)

· Anybody

o Choose a hairdresser based on his work

o Obtain information on trends, products

o Be advised on hair/style questions

o Find inspiration for hairstyle or special occasions (wedding, social events, …)

o Find informations

o Vote for best hair dresser

o Networking (chat, discussions, blogs)

WE WAIT YOU ON-LINE ON HAIRMUST.CZ!

Online brand community – hairmust.com

We are now working hard to launch a L’Oréal professionnel online brand community. We had a look around and we didn’t

find any similar social network around.

The magic of doing something new is that you loose your time convincing yourself that something similar should already exist somewhere.

I didn’t find yet. But I will keep on searching ;+)

There was the Muniz article in 2001. Then nothing during a long time.

And for the last months, some new articles on online brand communities.

We see some examples of companies trying to use their corporate websites and add blogs (what is the point?). We see here (in Czechia) some telecom companies creating communities around … Music (I have to come back to university and study strategy once for good)!!! But no brand creating a real dynamism around their brand in using social networks.

Even Harley Davidson’s one didn’t convince me. The unofficial community seems to be more dynamic than the official one.

Of course, there are the online brand communities that Hide there brand (Sun type on Java language).

So my question is: Is there a reason why brands do not play the game of online brand communities or hide their brand? Is infiltration in Myspace or facebook the only way?

Maybe we’ve been very lucky to meet the right person (sure, we were) who shared our vision of what the community can bring to the brand.

Now we are looking at the calendar. In one month, we will start to test the site.

Too much to do. No time to think.

I reckon this sentence of an American author: “the innocents didn’t know that it was impossible. So they did it…”

It is our second social network website. I didn’t remember for the first one that it is such a pain…

Social network i.e. treat me right, my Lord

It’s only these last days that I finally understand what is, I believe, a corner stone of online social networking websites: scaring your employer!!! 

I am a curious participant of professional social networks: Linked in, Xing for example Curious because this is an advanced use of community websites and curious as I always had doubts on the evolution of this kind of sites. 

There is basically two kind of persons using these networks: the soft users (those who registered and will not come back after the used this server 3 or 4 times) and the heavy users (those who will develop their list of contact and will follow who added who to the list). 

I am right in the between, wondering why these servers are not so attractive even if thousands of persons are registered. The traffic is there, but the retention is not. I had problems to understand the logic (as I think that I understand the motivation) of having a list of dozens of contacts. This may be useful between persons that are playing the game: Contact me if you need a contact – you’ll help me in return next time. I met many singular example of persons accumulating contacts (and they are no head hunters) but not willing to share them. 

These is in thinking at a particular person that I found out the new application of online social network. You are publicly claiming the fact that you are looking for a job. 

Often, the employer and colleagues are in the network. As a result, they know when you are adding contacts of competitors, head hunters, recruitment agencies, potential employers, … And this is a way to tell to the employer: “look, I am in contact with all these persons.

So treat me right or I leave”. Before, the confrontation was not that clear. No names or companies quoted. Now, we list them publicly. Business is tough. Employees reacted. 1/1 

PS. One funny thing still: If someone found out a non-ridiculous way to send the message of invitation to join one’s network, please let me know: the sentence of Linked in: I would like to add you to my network (because What?) is so bad…

Traditional media and internet traffic

More and more often, I have the feeling that Internet makes us idiot.

I will not loose so much time defining the term „Idiot“ and will consider that all of us has his own (fully personal) definition of what is an idiot. I will also take into account that my neighbour is an idiot and accept the fact that he believes (and may be right as well) that the idiot, it is me.

The new internet revolution is not so much technologic but directional.

This is what “old” media (News papers, tv, radio …) players have problem to understand.

1.  Today, we do not consider what is written by a journalist or a president as more important (or true) than what is written by an unknown writer in front of his computer. Mac’s claim “for the rest of us” could fit perfectlyInternet is for the rest of us who may have an opinion but didn’t have the possibility to speak in front of a micro.
2. Programming and launching an internet site is inexpensive (at least the second site as for the first one, you pay what you are told to pay …). Access to technology is no more a barrier. The real barrier is the access to traffic.

I was in contact with a world wide frog speaking Media Company and was amazed to see the psychological problems they have to choose a strategy, a product, a positioning…

I can only compare this to a woman having to choose a dress for an evening party where the dressing style wouldn’t be written on the invitation card.

Internet and media in general are not intellectual. Those who succeeded are those who tried. There are no guru or magic rules. You try, and you make it better, and better, and better …

Look at Murdoch and so many others who started in their garage.

And if you already have traffic? You can only win. You try, you win; You try, you win.

Once you have traffic, you plug-in new products and you win.

A product is not so successful? You unplug.

Internet sites that are purchased usually loose their traffic not because the purchasers try to make money from the site, but because they stop the traffic progression in refusing new plug-ins or applications.

As I have failed myself in accessing to traffic I know what small (innovative) websites dream of, I can only look sadly at this new nonsense where big media fails to purchase new successful internet sites (who is fool enough to sell cheap something that works and is promising?) and small websites dream of traffic.

Big media internet site often look like dead end streets. What is the future of your traffic if you limit its access and its move?

There is no cost for them pluging-in other sites and negotiating media representation fees or options to buy a stake in this site in case of success.

Even in football teams, they are doing this kind of structure (if we can call this a structure). And sorry if I don’t consider football as an intellectual field.

You would say that I am frustrated? You may be right.

But try to prove me that I am wrong!

I am their idiot, and vice versa.

And, god saves the queen.

  

Where is the money on Internet?

Huge exit price paid, some IPOs (few IPOs), a crack, a deficit of business models that make money. Is there any reason to go to internet except the dream of Eldorado? Is internet real? 

I looked at a video on www.bnet.com this morning (http://www.bnet.com/2422-13721_23-175943.html) and once again, a very clever guy was explaining how successful his (internet) company is going with more than 1 million daily uploads.

Congratulation. I didn’t manage to have 1% of this traffic. But at the end, we are in the same situation, this guy and I (I should say ‘my company’). We are not making money… 

Look at the clever guys and see where they are going. MEDIA AGENCY. Being an intermediary has always been the good job: being in the middle. No risk, nearly no responsibility. Big money. 

The last example I reckon is Richard Rosenblatt’s one (Sold iMall to Excite@Home for $565 million in 1999 and Myspace for a bit more this year). Two successful exits in Internet and what does he do? A Media agency (at leats, it’s what I understood – if you understand better than me, let me know). See www.demandmedia.com. Rosenblatt is surely one of those who understand the potential of UGC (users’ generated content websites). Just wonder what demandmedia will be. 

To me, the immediate future of UGC is online brand communities. Articles on Brand communities are blowing this last time after a long blank since 2001 reference article. For sure, brands should go to this direction. Reasons are multiple even if no real model exists yet. Maybe we will the first. I’ll try to put online our presentation on Brand communities later on. 

I have the feeling that I am far from what I wanted to write. This is the magic of Blogs.

Next time, Brand communities and sysiphus.

One crack after… we are back

At university, one of our Professors was a successful lawyer. A French lawyer based in New York.

I remember how important we felt to have this person flying from NY, NY for us.

I remember also his eyes when he was speaking about Internet and his personal investment in Internet start-ups. This was the first time I heard about Business angels.

He taught us the passion of Internet. The enthusiasm of discovering a new West.

“If you don’t go to Internet, how will you explain this to your children in 20 years” he told us.

This was in 1999.

I don’t know more about this person today, but I still remember his passion and what he taught us.

It took me a crack and 6 years to come back to Internet. But once I was back, the question was: “Where to go?”

There is Internet from outside and internet from inside; there are the gurus who explain you how great it is and that there are rules for every thing and those who just tell you that you have to try (btw: interesting to see that those gurus are not often those making million dollars exits).

You have huge portals with no profitability, others with huge profitability.

You have business angels investing millions in strange business models and some good products without financing.

So we decided to take the road of users’ generated content.

Welcome at Born Community

It took me a long time to open my own Blog.This is some kind of arrogance to start editing thoughts that can be read by anybody. This is also a challenge.My Blog is to be a Blog on:

• Internet,
• Media,
• Internet strategy,
• Online communities,
• Brand communities as well as on
• my business experience.

During these last years, I’ve been launching few internet websites, advised international companies on their internet strategy in the Czech Republic.  I believe that there is a direction where to go on the Internet.I’ll try to share with you my experience and my researches and expect to inspire and be inspired by your comments.Wish me good luck!!!