I had an awesome conversation on IM this morning with Sara from SuburbanOblivion about networking and bloggers and with her permission I’ve shared this gem of segment with you guys.
Sara: who says we have no power? 😉
me: nobody did
The problem lies with the definition of “we”
Sara: ?
do tell
me: We is a collective term
99% of individual bloggers have no power
Sara: very true
me: So really.. that 99% have no right to the term we
It’s that 1% that they latch on to 😉
LOL
Sorry.. just taking a provocative stance here
Sara: lol
nothing new
me: because it fits with what’s going though my brain at the minute
Sara: and I will say, one this this ‘collective’ is good at is networking and community
its not a matter of latching on, its a matter of building relationships
me: LOL.. 90% of bloggers do not build relationships
They latch on
Like junk floating in space
they latch onto the nearest big object that stays still long enough
Sara: maybe in your experience
me: The problem is that most bloggers just want to be heard..
They do not want to do the networking
they invest neither the time nor the work needed
The people who attend conferences and actually network are the minority
Sara: that doesn’t have to be done at conferences
me: No it doesn’t I never said that
Sara: I have a buttload of bloggers I email back ad forth with on a personal basis regularly
me: Yes you do.. and so do I..
get the point yet?
Networkers tend to network
Sara: and sites like Facebook and twitter make it even easier to get to know and keep in touch
me: They tend to be connected to other networkers
It doesn’t matter that the tools are there to be used..
Look at facebook, twitter, myspace, linked in..
friendfeed etc..
Look at your contacts
Sara: ok..
me: I’d wager that 75% or more of your contacts are the same on all of these networks
Networkers tend to network with other networks
er.. networkers
You have to look beyond that sphere
Sara: to a degree
me: You’re a networker and are connected to other networkers
Sara: never thought of it that way
I’m a blogger, and I like to get to know people
readers, potential readers
other friends too though 🙂
me: Yeah I know..
At the end of the day it really comes down to that old saying .. “birds of a feather flock together”
Sara: it IS networking, and I swear moms are a natural at that, but I’ve always thought the term ‘networker’ more as a business thing
if that makes any sense at all
likely not
me: Yeah I know
Sara: lol
At the end of the day, those of us that are part of the conversation are those of us who have the mind-set to network with and converse with others.
Everybody else, no matter what title they assign themselves is just another piece of flotsam washed up on the shore of the community they claim to be a part of.
Paul O'Flaherty 
That is a lively conversation. I believe that the word networking has lost all its original meaning or intention. It has now become a cacophony. There are just too many networking sites and opportunities, that you do not really find any sincerity, except in the very rare instance. I think, blog communities offer more scope to communicate effectively.
LikeLike
Can you run that past me again? – thanks
LikeLike