So I was sitting at my local coffee shop this morning reading feeds, Twittering and writing. Not an unusual morning, but like other times a person gets inspired, it came from a comment from someone. This time from Jeremiah Owyang via Twitter. While talking about a the new Egos site created by Guy Kawasaki he Tweeted:
My recommendations to you: somewhere in the middle, develop your own feedreader of high value blogs and alerts everyone is unique
What occurred to me is that I didn’t think much about the a-list much any longer. While the semi-annual meme of beating on the a-list being a favorite sport for many bloggers, something any committed blogger will realize after awhile is that they develop their own a-list. This is simply the list of bloggers that they read and are influenced by.
It becomes less about the celebrity status of the blogger and more about the value of their content. I think it was Chris Brogan who started calling his personal list of favorites “Rockstars“, and it’s an apt title for a list of people who continually influence you on a daily basis. Hey I know good ‘ol Diamond Dave did that back in the ’80s for a heck of a lot of people. 😉
I’m sure a number of people are sitting back saying that I’ve missed the point of “The A-List”. They’d point out that this group of high-profile bloggers control the topics on Techmeme, Tailrank, et al. I don’t see that – I see a *lot* of great bloggers moving that conversation all over the place. At any rate, that’s not the point of this post. I’m really just talking about building your own list of blogs and bloggers that influence you.
Here are some opinions I’ve developed (though some are obvious 😉 )
There is no one definition of the A-List – everyone’s a list is different
“The A-List” everyone talks about are just bloggers – albeit with industry insight
The more time you spend reading in the blogosphere, the more important the content and less the celebrity status of the blogger
Your A-List will include high-profile bloggers, because of the value they bring to you, just like the lower-profile bloggers you read
I guess I just want to people to keep exploring and finding that content that has value to you. Don’t worry about if they are part of “The A-List”, there really are some great bloggers among them and many of their observations are relevant to the conversation that we’re looking for.
So, the A-List stops being “The A-List” when the reader realizes that each blogger brings value to the conversation and you start looking beyond who they are and more at what they say. What’s your take on this?
I’d like to announce the inaugural Social Media Breakfast for Minneapolis & St. Paul!
Originally founded by Bryan Person the Social Media Breakfast is a way for social media experts and newbies alike to come together to eat, meet, share, and learn. Whether your a marketer, blogger, podcaster, IT geek, vlogger, entrepreneur, PR pro, or online social networker – everyone is welcome to attend!
It’s a way for us to connect offline and get to know each other in a real-world casual setting over breakfast and coffee in downtown Minneapolis. When I first read about the “SMB”, as it’s becoming known, I quickly wondered how we could make this happen here in Minneapolis. So after thinking too much on the “should I or shouldn’t I” aspect, I’ve got one set up – we’ll see how it goes! 🙂
Below is a tentative list of topics, just so we’ve got a bit of an agenda to work with – don’t hesitate to suggest new ideas!
New to social media?
Twitter, the virtual village.
Tools – what is most useful/rewarding to you?
Directions in social media, connecting people.
Your ideas here!
Next SMB! What can we do better?
With that said, we don’t have to adhere to anything specific. It’s a dynamic world and our conversations should be as well. Since this is the first (of many I hope) SMB, I’m learning a few things here. I initially am figuring for about a dozen or so people, but we can grow that a bit if interest grows.
Here are the details for our first Social Media Breakfast in the Twin Cities:
Date: Wednesday, February 13th, 2007
Time: 8:00am to 10:00am
Place:Keys Cafe Minneapolis – Located in the Foshay Tower
Address: 114 South 9th Street, Minneapolis, MN 55402 (Directions/Map)
Cost: Buy your own breakfast, and enjoy free WiFi! 😉
As the size of my Twitter Village has grown, the volume of traffic has also had a dramatic increase. There are literally dozens of conversations going on at any one moment. So how does one leverage the strengths of Twitter while being doused with the minutia that makes up a Twitter stream?
Simple. By realizing that you can only participate in relevant conversations. Kind of like walking down a street and hearing random bits of conversations. You don’t always make sense of everything, and most often, you don’t need to. It’s really about being able to join in when you want, or when your wanted. It’s not about “keeping up” at all.
Yes, I tend to skim a bit, maybe one page back at most. All I’m really looking to do is understand what the current conversations are before jumping in. Odds are that my contribution may have already been brought to the conversation and I just like to understand where it’s going before committing some random thought.
Having a larger and larger number of Twitter followers, and following a large number isn’t as hard as I had thought it would be. Moreover, I’m learning a lot more about the community that I’m a part of there. Over the past year, I’ve met a lot of people, and have gotten perspectives that I otherwise would not have had a chance to learn.
Twitter is one of those tools that you really can get value from. It doesn’t replace the blog, or special-interest social networks. Instead it’s an essential tool for the social media explorer’s kit – one that offers much more than it’s simple interface lets on.
What’s your experience as your Twitterverse expands?
Try as I might, there is just nothing of value in Facebook for me. The groups are the only redeeming item on the system, but you have to put up with tons of senseless “apps”. Apps that would’ve been fun back in college when playing quarters or beer bongs, but not when I’m trying to build serious business connections.
While some have made a pretty good case for Facebook, it doesn’t change how it’s viewed by business, or how useful it is for me. I’m astounded at home much time everything takes and how limited everything is. Not to mention the data-ownership question. Just ask Robert Scoble on that one.
I’ve been coming to the conclusion from using many, many different social tools over summer and fall of last year that “social networking” is just an activity. Yep, that’s a “duh” realization, but it’s more than just that. All these “social network” sites are merely a combination of groups on steroids, or worse – simply customizable “home pages” for the masses.
To build real associations with people on a professional and personal level requires interest, dedication, and tools. Facebook could loosely be called a tool, but I think of it as a toy. Tools are designed to do a specific function, and to it well. Twitter is a tool. Blogging is a tool.
I’ve suggested before that my blog is my social network. While that may be incorrect, it is a key tool in my social networking activities. It’s one of three things that are within my control that will never change. My blog address, my email address and my mobile phone number. These are the key pieces of communicating with me that people will never have to re-learn or worry about changing. On these three things, I can build the rest.
The rest is up to me, after all, and how involved in different communities and organizations I want to be. With a blog I can post my views and opinions. With my email address I can interact with just about anyone I share it with, which is everyone, and the same for my cell phone.
I choose to augment this triangle-foundation of my social networking with tools like Twitter, Utterz, IM, LinkedIn, Technorati, del.icio.us, Clipmarks, and several more. I use each for one or two things – the things they do well. None of these are a one-stop-shop for social networking and social media goodness.
Maybe you can point out where I failed with Facebook. I’m always looking to learn – what should I or others be looking for in Facebook? How to approach it? If there really is something there I’m interested in hearing it.
UPDATE: I just wanted to add that I’m leaving the account in place, but will not be active on Facebook. I am interested in what everyone does with Facebook to gain value from it, so don’t hesitate to give my $.02. My Twitter tweets update the “My Status” every time I tweet and I’m notified of Facebook mail if that is the only way you choose to contact me. Cheers!
I’m thinking of putting together the first Social Media Breakfast (SMB) in Minneapolis & St. Paul. Who’s interested? This would be a gathering to brainstorm solutions for our concerns and projects on restaurant social media.
Well, I’m interested in making this happen, but I’d like to know how many would be able to make it. Here are some thoughts and questions – in no order at all.
Do people prefer a downtown location or a suburban location?
Early morning (7ish) or mid morning (8-10ish)?
Is WiFi required?
Depending on location, can folks from surrounding areas of the Metro or out-state MN able to make it?
Any preference on local MN restaurant, national chain, or traditional meeting space?
Suggestions for discussion topics welcome – what do you want to talk about, or learn about?
Interested in a speaker? Suggestions?
Ideas or suggestions on sponsors? This is not necessary of course, but may be useful to some organizations looking for social media talent and resources.
Weekday or weekend?
Well, those are my “random thoughts” on the topic. I’m going to scout some locations to host us, but would like to know the rough interest so I have an idea of size.
UPDATE: If you are interested, simply leave a comment, or if you prefer, email me at rickmahn@gmail.com. 😉
UPDATE II: Guess I should mention that his is an offshoot of Bryan Person’s Social Media Breakfast – Boston series. It’s official website is at www.socialmediabreakfast.com.
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