I went on a kick a couple of years ago, trying to use public transportation to commute to work. It lasted about two months - I tried, it sucked, and I quit.
There's usually at least one homeless person on the train, asking for handouts. One of the things I noticed was that if they walked through the train and couldn't get the first couple of people to give them any money, they were out of luck. No one else did either, throughout the rest of the ride. But if one person reached for their wallet, at least 3 or 4 other people would immediately follow suit. A lot of people are on the brink of giving money, but they need that first person to show them it’s OK.
First thing that this tells me is that people, all of us to some degree, are basically sheep. We're wired to move in the herd, looking to others to determine how we should behave. Psychologists call this social proof and marketers have been using forever to get us to do and buy stuff that we don't want or need. There's a classic book on this by Robert Cialdini.
I think this concept applies in social media too. For example, I look at a lot of blogs of all stripes - news, corporate, individuals - and notice that many of them are relatively comment free. (Back off, I've got a couple). If a few people get involved regularly - influencers - pretty soon there's an active and ongoing conversation.
Usually, the liveliest ones are helped along by the author, who solicits comments and opinion directly or through the writing style. I see a lot more journalists getting used to the concept that the audience can talk back. The smart ones are welcoming it.
Sports reporters, especially, are jumping into the fray and actually replying to readers in the comment sections of their own blogs. I think this is pretty cool. It creates a tangible bond between writer and reader. That’s important as brand loyalty for specific outlets is falling.
Of course, 50 percent of those commenting will be crackpots. That's the nature of the medium though and their presence is probably a sign of a healthy (in numbers, at least) readership.
Tangible bond?
I try to avoid those sort of things.
No eye contact.. no eye contact.. no eye..
Damn it Wade!
Posted by: david gerulski | March 09, 2009 at 07:58 PM