"Tribes (Seth Godin): Tribe=social network. Anyone can lead a tribe. You should lead a tribe."

One glance at Twitter and you will note that we are moving from a snackable content society into something much smaller. In an effort to keep pace and to bridge Foreword Thinking - The Business and Motivational Book Review Podcast (which has been woefully silent for the past little while) for future plans, I am introducing a new project titled, BizBookReview, which you can view here: Twitter - BizBookReview. The idea is simple: use the existing Twitter platform as a place, community and location to post 140 character (or less) business and motivational book reviews. The one above was about the book, Tribes, by Seth Godin.

Anyone can (and should take part) - not just by following, but by creating reviews as well.

You can simply follow the BizBookReview feed to keep up-to-date on the reviews, or you can take part and write your own reviews. Those can be sent via email or "direct message" to either my personal Twitter account or to the BizBookReview one. Anybody who follows the BizBookReview account on Twitter will be followed back (unless it's pure spam), but the real fun is in creating your own reviews.

This is an experiment.

There are no immediate plans for BizBookReview and there was even less up-front strategy about getting started. I'm still trying to sort out what Foreword Thinking is going to become in 2009 and, in the interest of full disclosure, if this becomes about me agonizing over what to post on a daily basis, it will fail. We all read great business and motivational books (and some not so great ones) and my hopes are that everyone (yes, you!) joins in and creates some (or many). How great would it be to see different reviews of the same books?

What are you waiting for? Head over to BizBookReview, follow along and try your hand at creating some content.

Happy quick reading and reviewing.

Tags: bizbookreview book review business book business book podcast foreword thinking internet culture micro-blog motivational book motivational book podcast non-fiction book online community publishing seth godin snackable content tribes twitter

Welcome to episode #132 of Six Pixels Of Separation - The Twist Image Podcast. Lots of love and insight from the audio community. Enjoy the conversation...

Here it is: Six Pixels Of Separation - The Twist Image Podcast - Episode #132 - Host: Mitch Joel.

• Running time: 32:46.
• Audio comment line - please send in a comment and add your voice to the audio community: +1 206-666-6056.
• Please send in questions, comments, suggestions - mitch@twistimage.com.
• Hello from Beautiful Montreal.
• Subscribe over at iTunes.
• Please visit and leave comments on the Blog - Six Pixels of Separation.
• Feel free to connect to me directly on Facebook here: Mitch Joel on Facebook.
• or you can connect on LinkedIn.
• ...or on twitter.
• Facebook Group - Six Pixels of Separation Podcast Society.
• In a perfect world, connect with me, directly, through Facebook.
• Check out the other Podcast, Foreword Thinking - The Business And Motivational Book Review Podcast.
• Foreword Thinking - Episode #11 featuring Michael Gerber - E-Myth Revisited and Awakening The Entrepreneur Within.
• The Road to Six Pixels of Separation – The Book – coming soon.
• Start A Blog Today
• Greenfields Report – Bernard Goldbach – Inside View.
• Qwitter.
• Twitter is very immediate and very live.
• Audio Comment – Brad at Pharma – www.twitter.com/bradatpharma.
• What should big pharma be doing in social media?
• Audio Comment – Chris Wilson – The Marketing Fresh Peel.
• Which companies are listening best?
• Six Points of Separations – Six Ways To Get Started With Blogging:
• 1. Choose a name.
• 2. Choose a platform – Blogger or WordPress.
• 3. Choose three things to Blog about.
• 4. Set up a Twitter account.
• 5. Get on Facebook and/or LinkedIn.
• 6. Let people know.
• Six Pounds of Sound:
• David Usher – ‘Kill The Lights’.

Please join the conversation by sending in questions, feedback and ways to improve Six Pixels Of Separation. Please let me know what you think or leave an audio comment at: +1 206-666-6056.

Download the Podcast here: Six Pixels Of Separation - The Twist Image Podcast - Episode #132 - Host: Mitch Joel.

Tags: advertising awakening the entrepreneur within bernard goldbach blog blogger blogging business chris wilson david usher digital marketing emyth revisited facebook facebook group foreword thinking google greenfields report inside view itunes marketing marketing fresh peel mass media michael gerber motivational books online social network podcast podcasting six pixels of separation six pixels of separation book social media marketing twist image web 20 wordpress

There's nothing better than a hot cup of coffee on a Sunday morning and some stimulating video.

On a recent episode of Charlie Rose, author, educator and Internet activist, Lawrence Lessig, sat down to discuss his latest book, Remix - Making Art and Commerce Thrive in the Hybrid Economy. They also have a very compelling conversation about what's happening online, how it changes everything and how, in the end, Lessig is moving all of this towards a shift in Government (check out his latest project: Change Congress).

It's about 38 minutes minutes long and worth every second: Charlie Rose - A Conversation With Lawrence Lessig:

Tags: change congress charlie rose hybrid economy internet internet culture lawrence lessig online video remix

It doesn't have to be about Marketing, Communications, Advertising, PR or how to start a business, it could be about one of your hobbies or another personal area of interest, but go ahead and start a Blog now.

While this may run counter to the general thought that you should have some kind of strategy and plan in place for how to roll it out, how frequently to update it and some thoughts around an editorial  or publishing calendar, the sooner you start putting your thoughts down and publishing them to the world, the sooner you will be able to embrace and understand the power of these channels.

Take 90 seconds and watch this video of Tom Peters (In Search of Excellence and Re-Imagine) and Seth Godin (Purple Cow and Tribes) talking about why Blogging still matters and why you need to start writing one now: American Express - Open Forum - Let's Hear It For The Blog.

In this case, it sounds like planning is overrated. You're a smart person, you have something to say (about something).

Right now, most people are thinking about a few major things: Thanksgiving, the Holidays, the economy, the gifts they need to buy, the craziness in Mumbai and more. Nothing is getting easier, in fact - on the business side - things might start getting very complicated. We are already seeing major layoffs and the start of some scary big businesses (and small ones too) closing.

Do you think that the only people affected by layoffs and bankruptcy are people who are not as smart as you are? Doubtful. 

No matter what other channels exist (Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, MySpace, etc...), nothing demonstrates who you are and what you do quite like a Blog. The reason to start one right now is because tomorrow may be too late. While a Blog may not replace the resume or a corporate brochure or a white paper, none of those will ever be able to demonstrate the one thing that truly separates you from everybody else: you - as an individual. Human beings are like snowflakes (no two snowflakes are alike) and, in a world where differentiation and uniqueness seems to be the only competitive advantage, nothing will demonstrate this more effectively than a Blog.

They're also very cheap (to get started).

In fact, you can head over to Blogger or WordPress and start your own web-based Blog for free in about five minutes. If you start there and you really enjoy it and you're building some kind of community and connection with readers, then you can splurge for a more serious software package, hosting, custom design, etc... Starting on the free platforms isn't the ideal way to really grow your Blog and bring it to the masses, but it's the perfect place to play and experiment with your voice and content.

Don't worry about how many comments you get. 

It is always nice to be validated with comments and to use your Blog as a space to build a community (that's what this is), but having no comments does not mean that nobody is reading or that the content you are creating doesn't have huge value. Keep at it, promote it and let people know where they can learn more about you.

One last question: what are you waiting for?

Tags: advertising american express blog blog marketing blog strategy blogger blogging blogosphere business community economy entrepreneur facebook in search of ecellence internet culture linkedin marketing communications myspace open forum pr purple cow re-imagine resume seth godin tom peters tribes twitter white paper wordpress

How would you feel if you got a spam email from a legitimate business with a five meg PDF attachment... twice?

It just happened. It happens all of the time. You didn't give them your email address and you certainly didn't give them permission to send you anything, but they still do it. Where did they get your name? It was either a stolen database, an unscrupulous seller of a sketchy third-party, maybe they went through a physical directory from your trade association, or they could even be scraping it right off of the websites from companies they would like as customers.

Whatever they're doing, it's wrong and it provides another annoying reason why people don't trust Marketers (and maybe why they never will).

We all expect this kind of conduct from the more sketchy businesses out there, but when it comes from a legitimate business that you know, the pain cuts deep. It's bad enough when it's just an email, but to include a 5 meg PDF attachment and also leave the entire list of email addresses that it's being sent to exposed is just plain idiotic. You know what happened next? Because they lack even basic email marketing skills, they sent it through again because their email server probably bounced a bunch of them back.

I called them on it.

Literally. I spoke to someone (who you could tell was fielding irate calls) who said that they didn't know where they got my email address from, but that they would remove it. And, after all of that, they didn't even say "sorry for the inconvenience" or even try to crack a joke about how they clearly don't get it. Nothing. Even after explaining to them that it is unethical to send those types of email (maybe even illegal). Not even a "sorry."

Spamming someone is illegal, but that's not the sad part. The sad part is that we have to tell Marketers that it's illegal and we have to pass a law.

We would all be better off if we just used some common sense. Never send any customers, clients or potential ones anything unless they've either asked you to, or have given their explicit permission. If you really want more and more people that are not a part of your ethical database, try some mass advertising. You can even use the mass advertising campaign to really try to build and nurture your database. It could be a contest, provide them a white paper, etc...

Spam is not going to go away any time soon, unless everybody (and that includes you) stops responding to it. We could also take things up a notch and declare that - as Marketers - we are not going to take part or accept it when this type of practice is done.

A little self-policing in our own industry could go a long way.

Tags: advertising database email email address email marketing ethical marketing ethics marketer marketing permission spam spamming website

Most companies looking at Social Media and Web 2.0 see it as a media channel to broadcast their messages into. This includes most Governments and Associations. This is the wrong reason to do it and the wrong strategy.

If your company is looking at engaging in the social channels, but simply wants to tell the gathered audience about their brands, messages, products and services, here's the one best piece of advice to make that happen: advertise on those channels.

You can do either mass advertising or you can target ads specifically to the types of people who might be more inclined to act on your messages. Companies like Facebook and Google offer these types of targeting. The common attitude is, "let's post our videos on YouTube," or "everyone's on Twitter, we should be on Twitter too," and what comes after is a closed, one-way broadcasting channel that does not engender the shared values of these social systems, including: commenting, being open to differing opinions, responding and - most importantly - making changes based on the feedback and conversation that is taking place.

This is the primary reason why most companies have epic fails on these channels: they're broadcasting not engaging, responding and adapting.

Don't ask for people's opinions or be in channels where that back and forth takes place and not do anything about it. It's insulting and it's a huge waste of both your time and the people who have connected to you.

A lot of companies talk about "opening up" or "letting the information free" but what it boils down to is a couple of inches more liberal than their traditional marketing and communications. Have you seen some of the topics of conversation listed at recent Government, Association, Marketing and Public Relations seminars? They hint at how open the topic will be, but the subtle undertones of the conference description and the speakers asked to present stink of, "how can your company understand what people are saying and how your company can control the chaos and broadcast into it."

It's the wrong way to be looking at things.

Here are the bigger questions your organization needs to be asking before entering these channels:

- Are we willing to not just listen, but to respond and adapt based on the back and forth?
- Are we willing to become active participants - not just in our channels but in the other channels and spaces as well?
- Are we willing to change the focus from being on our company to being about everybody - us, them and the entire community?
- Are we willing to be participants with just as much fervour and passion when it's not good for us, but good for the community or the industry as a whole?
- Are we willing to be open?
- Are we willing to be really, really open and transparent?

Individuals have an obvious and very real reason to be skeptical of brands and companies in the social media sphere. The majority of companies have done a very poor job of changing that perspective because - for the most part - they are simply using these tools to broadcast their messages in a uni-directional fashion. Most companies see these channels as another mass media tool (after all, they are going where the masses are), this forces them to look at the wrong metrics (still), like how many people are seeing their message and what are they doing? Versus, who is seeing their messages, what are they feedbacking and how quickly can the company change their business to adapt and grow?

What do you think companies must do to shift their thinking and really open up?

Tags: advertising broadcast communication conversation facebook google government industry association marketing marketing 20 mass media media media channel open pr public relations social channel social media social system targeting twitter web 20 youtube

TV viewing is the highest it has ever been. The average American watches about 142 hours of TV a month with an average of 8 hours and 18 minutes per day - a record high since Nielsen begun measuring television in 1950s.

That's a whole lot of Lost and Seinfeld re-runs, but that is the news from MarketingVox today in the news item, TV-Watching Rises to All-Time High. The findings are available in the, A2/M2 Three Screen Report, and they also show that the Web is doing quite well (average is 27 hours per month) as is mobile video (average is 3 hours per month). But, still, that seems like an awful lot of television and it makes a fairly strong case for why TV ad spending continues on the way it has been (much to the chagrin of us Digital Marketing folks).

There is still some more good news when it comes to technology and the ever-changing landscape. DVR usage continues to rise and American's spent more than 6 hours per month watching TV that was time-shifted. On top of that 31% of those watching all of that TV were also online at the same time.

Where does all of this net out? Most armchair pundits are going to look at how advertising is performing, but there is a bigger issue. It's the content. How are television studios going to produce really compelling and powerful content in this world of distraction and timeshifting? They are going to have to answer to the advertisers because even as the numbers and usage grows, it would seem that the viewers' attention span is decreasing or being divided amongst many channels (if they are even being watched at all - that DVR usage is up 58% from quarter to quarter).

Wouldn't it be cool to know what percentage of people are online and what percentage of people are also using their mobile devices at the same time?

Wouldn't it be cool to know how many media platforms are being used at once? How many people have you seen who have the TV on but so is their iPod?

The fragmentation of media is going to change advertising. There is no doubt about it and we're seeing it happen already, but the stakes are highest for the content producers. We're going to see hit TV shows that are produced and posted to YouTube only with audiences, ratings and feedback (including how many times it is embeded) that will rival those of the blockbusters. We're going to see the producers of mobile content wise up to these opportunities and cut their own media deals (product placement, sponsorship, affiliates, etc...) to grow their brands and programming. It's going to get a lot more confusing and dirty in the coming years until the platforms have more interoperability and somebody figures out a new model that works in a world that is moving quickly away from one TV show for thirty million people to thirty million TV shows for a billion and a half people.

What are your thoughts on the future of TV?

Tags: advertisers advertising content content producer dvr future of tv hit tv internet ipod lost marketingvox media media fragmentation media platform media usage mobile mobile video nielsen online online video ppvr seinfeld television three screens timeshift tivo tv tv ad tv programming web youtube

If you could only choose one great tip that has helped you grow your online social network what would it be?

There has been lots of talk, Blogging and Tweeting lately around what, exactly, constitutes a strong and vibrant online social network. Some still adhere to the quantity over quality debate, some think it's about how many big named Bloggers you can get to add you as a friend, while others look directly to the ROI and how much business your online activities actually convert into bottom-line sales and business growth.

Once you have determined why it's important to take part in the online social channels, then you can best figure out what you have to do to accomplish your pre-set goals.

If I had to choose one top tip for building my online social network it would be this:

Send a personal message as to why we should connect.

Everyday, all of us get multiple invites through one of the many channels like Facebook and Twitter, and while most do look at every invitation, it astounds me why people don't take that one extra second to either shoot off a quick email, message or direct message to let me know who they are and why they want to connect. Even if it's a simple, "I read your Blog," or "Chris Brogan seems to like you" - that one simple act goes a long way and creates a very human and real connection.

It also makes up for stuff like using a random/weird username (this includes using a company name as your profile name), not having any links to a Blog or something relevant, or simply not taken the time to really personalize your profile so new connections can get a flair for who you are and what you're all about (filling out your profile as completely as possible and customizing your profile page would be a close second for my own, personal, best tip for growing your online social network). 

If someone is trying to add you, but they themselves have not provided any personal reason to connect, or have not even personalized their own page, don't you just feel like you're being asked to connect as one of many (maybe even hundreds) in an online social media cattle call?

What would be your one best tip to grow that you have used to grow your online social networks?

Tags: blog business growth chris brogan facebook lifehack online profile online social network quantity over quality roi social media tip twitter web 20

Welcome to episode #131 of Six Pixels Of Separation - The Twist Image Podcast. This was going to be a quick chat with Shel Holtz of the For Immediate Release Podcast about his latest book, Tactical Transparency, with John C. Havens. It wound up much more than that. Enjoy the conversation...

Here it is: Six Pixels Of Separation - The Twist Image Podcast - Episode #131 - Host: Mitch Joel.

• Running time: 52:27.
• Audio comment line - please send in a comment and add your voice to the audio community: +1 206-666-6056.
• Please send in questions, comments, suggestions - mitch@twistimage.com.
• Hello from Beautiful Montreal.
• Subscribe over at iTunes.
• Please visit and leave comments on the Blog - Six Pixels of Separation.
• Feel free to connect to me directly on Facebook here: Mitch Joel on Facebook.
• or you can connect on LinkedIn.
• ...or on twitter.
• Facebook Group - Six Pixels of Separation Podcast Society.
• In a perfect world, connect with me, directly, through Facebook.
• Check out the other Podcast, Foreword Thinking - The Business And Motivational Book Review Podcast.
• Foreword Thinking - Episode #11 featuring Michael Gerber - E-Myth Revisited and Awakening The Entrepreneur Within.
• The Road to Six Pixels of Separation – The Book – coming soon.
• In conversation with Shel Holtz – co-author of Tactical Transparency - How Leaders Can Leverage Social Media to Maximize Value and Build their Brand with John C. Havens.
• Co-host of For Immediate Release – The Hobson and Holtz Report Podcast with Neville Hobson.
• Special offer for the book, Tactical Transparency (until December 5th, 2008).
• The Naked Corporation.
• Six Points of Separation – Six Ways To Get Started With Tactical Transparency:
• 1. Ask yourself, “is it safe?”
• 2. Figure out what you are going to share with employees.
• 3. Which policies are in place.
• 4. Who’s going to say what?
• 5. Establish what is off the table.
• 6. Assess what tools you have and what you will need.
• Six Pounds of Sound with C.C. Chapman – Managing The Gray, The Advance Guard and Accident Hash.
• Chance – ‘Ambulance Chaser’.

Please join the conversation by sending in questions, feedback and ways to improve Six Pixels Of Separation. Please let me know what you think or leave an audio comment at: +1 206-666-6056.

Download the Podcast here: Six Pixels Of Separation - The Twist Image Podcast - Episode #131 - Host: Mitch Joel.

Tags: accident hash advance guard advertising awakening the entrepreneur within blog blogging business cc chapman chance digital marketing emyth revisited facebook facebook group for immediate release foreword thinking google itunes john c havens managing the gray marketing mass media michael gerber motivational books naked corporation neville hobson online social network podcast podcasting shel holtz six pixels of separation six pixels of separation book social media marketing tactical transparency twist image web 20

Trading "analog dollars for digital pennies" is exactly how the traditional media sees the new online channel. If they focus on selling online advertising, they're only getting a fraction of what they used to get (or are currently getting) when compared to print, TV or radio. The problem with this terrible analogy is that their "analog dollars" are plummeting and instead of looking at the "digital pennies" to add up and add value, most media companies still see it as table stakes.

The lesson is simple: stop comparing this new media with the traditional channels. New media is driven by powerful, interactive and immersive content that the consumer actively navigates verses passively receives. If we've seen anything in the past five years it is that this comparison demonstrates one thing: traditional media channels don't understand new media and that they don't want to (or are afraid to, or they are not sure how to).

What could a traditional media company do to stop this type of shortsighted thinking?

Here are the six major reasons why traditional media is having such a hard time with new media:

1. They would have a hard time opening up due to fears that people might say bad things about their advertisers. In turn, the major fear is that those advertisers would stop working with them. They need to embrace the power of peer reviews and all the trust and loyalty that is does, in fact, bring.

2. They are still trying to optimize the monetization of their traditional channels. The same ones that have been around for more than one hundred years, yet they expect the new digital channel to turn some kind of significant or similar profit even though this new channel is hardly ten years old.

3. Their sales staff and business development team are still struggling with how to understand the channel. The clear value to the advertiser and the complete offering is still murky. It's hard for them to sell something that is different and that falls outside of their level of confidence and expertise. If the sales team don't have total confidence in what they are selling, you can be sure that the advertisers know it, feel it and smell the fear.

4. Their content producers don't want more work. They're not being paid more, but are expected to understand everything from Blogs and Twitter to online video and Podcasting. While the media companies do offer training, the overall vibe that Journalists are giving off is one of resentment. There's a feeling that the Publisher is just trying to get a lot more content out of them for free, while at the same time their photographer friends are being used less and less (or being let go entirely).

5. Their infrastructure is not built for digital. These companies have spent the past eighty years investing in printing presses, newsstands, physical distribution channels and more, a shift to a digital end-product is confusing and messy. It puts everything they have known to date in question and forces them to re-look at everything, including their own value and existence.

6. They gave it away. When online advertising first came out, most traditional media companies offered it for free or as a value-add, or gave it very minimal pricing just to warm advertisers up to the opportunity. While that is a sound business strategy, it's also a dangerous one. Advertisers are very resilient to pay for something that was once free and they have an even harder time paying more for something than they have become accustomed to.

Here are six questions that traditional media companies can answer and brainstorm on: 

1. What more can you offer than just online advertising?
2. What can your digital properties do to enhance your client's traditional advertising?
3. What can you - as a media company - do to make your advertiser's online property more efficient and effective?
4. What if you could not offer your clients any form of advertising on your property, but instead had to look at alternate ways of bringing them online from a Marketing perspective?
5. What kind of existing online channels are working, and is there a way for you to partner with those spaces to bring a more holistic online program to your advertisers?
6. Who is going to do this type of work in your organization? Can people either be trained or do you need to find new people?

Final thought: why don't traditional media companies create a new physical area (how about an office space away from everyone else) and set-up those interested in the above challenges and questions. Let them spend a few months tinkering and experimenting. Let them make mistakes, try out new models and be dramatically different. Bring together the content producers, the sales team and the business development folks (bring in some Digital Marketing people too). Let someone from IT play with them as well. The final result can't be any worse than the current state of the industry (check this out: Forbes - The Newspaper Guild's New Pitch: Survival). At best, they'll discover how much real work will be needed for their company to grow, adapt and turn some real profit in the new media world.

What other questions do you think traditional media companies should be asking and brainstorming on?

Tags: advertisers advertising analog dollars digital pennies blog digital marketing forbes interactive it journalism journalist media media channel media company monetization new media newspaper newspaper industry online advertising online video peer review podcasting publisher publishing publishing industry traditional media twitter

It doesn't really matter how many people are following you on Twitter. What really matters is how many people actually see your tweets. The two are not at all related, and this one major factor is why Twitter should never replace a Blog or anything else you are doing in the online channels. Twitter is a live channel and once that moment is gone, it's gone. Just like that radio program you just missed.

This seems to be one of the biggest challenges that most Marketers don't want to discuss about Twitter. Even though all tweets are archived, searchable and indexed by the search engines, the amount of people that actually dig into the archives or search for past tweets is probably smaller than minimal. On top of that, the only way to look back on someone's Twitter history is by date. There are no categories, tags, etc... The value of this content is low because it is staggered, messy and not all that search friendly (and even if it was, the context is all but lost if you are not in that moment of when it was first created).

This does not mean that you should not use Twitter.

It just means that even though someone is following you, there is a big chance that they never see any of your tweets simply because when they are on Twitter, you may not have posted a tweet in and around the same time that they are there. There's something else: Twitter works best when the people following you are actually not following that many other people. The more people they are following, the more likely it is that your message will get lost in the shuffle (if they even see it at all).

Here's the Twitter tragedy: the content is live, short, fast and has no long tail.

Many people have abandoned their Blogs and other channels for the immediacy and ease-of-use of Twitter. It is, without a question, a different type of communication, way to connect and place to build community, but it is not an alternative and should not replace anything else you are doing in these social circles. If you're looking for a quick and easy way to keep consumers in your loop, answer individual questions or post quick blurts about what's going on, then Twitter makes it easy to publish. But, the content is next to useless for any other consumer who is searching for the same answer at a later point in time.

Twitter is cool, fun and a very interesting place to post, follow and engage in some great chitter chatter, as long as you remember: on Twitter people don't see you because you've left messages. They only see you when they are there. Also, unlike like Blogs - where posts that are older get more search engine love due to traffic, linking, etc... Twitter is the opposite: the newer and fresher and more frequently updated tweets are the ones with all of the value.

What an amazing Twitter it could be if you could properly archive tweets, organize, sort and search them more efficiently (beyond Twitter Search).

Do you think Twitter is more than an "in the moment" channel?

(hat-tip to Julien Smith).

Tags: blog in over your head julien smith long tail marketer marketing micro blog online channel online social network publishing search engine social circle tweet twitter twitter search

What if you took everything you had and made it publicly available on the Internet? What if you opened up your most secret of secrets and encouraged your customers, friends, family members, peers and, yes, even your competitors to play with, tinker and devise that better mousetrap?

It sounds a little insane. Welcome to crowdsourcing.

"For the last decade or so, companies have been looking overseas, to India or China, for cheap labour. But now it doesn't matter where the labourers are - they might be down the block, they might be in Indonesia - as long as they are connected to the network. ... Technological advances in everything from product design software to digital video cameras are breaking down the cost barriers that once separated amateurs from professionals. Hobbyists, part-timers, and dabblers suddenly have a market for their efforts, as smart companies in industries as disparate as pharmaceuticals and television discover ways to tap the latent talent of the crowd. The labour isn't always free, but it costs a lot less than paying traditional employees. It's not outsourcing; it's crowdsourcing."

That's how Jeff Howe first coined the term, "crowdsourcing" in the June 2006 issue of Wired Magazine for the article titled, The Rise of Crowdsourcing. He followed up with the book Crowdsourcing - Why the Power of the Crowd Is Driving the Future of Business (Crown Business), and he also blogs where he includes another definition:

"Crowdsourcing is the act of taking a job traditionally performed by a designated agent (usually an employee) and outsourcing it to an undefined, generally large group of people in the form of an open call."

It goes by many other names as well. Some call it "mass collaboration," others call it "the wisdom of crowds," and when money becomes a part of the play, best-selling author and technologist Don Tapscott wrote about it and called it Wikinomics.

And with a new way of looking at and doing things comes with it all of the usual controversy as well. While there are some obvious and inherent benefits to crowdsourcing that include cheap (and sometimes free) labour, the exploration of business problems at a fairly low cost, and payment (if there is one) happening based on results, many feel that there are also many bigger issues with this type of channel. According to Wikipedia:

"The ethical, social and economic implications of crowdsourcing are subject to wide debate. ... Some reports have focused on the negative effects of crowdsourcing on business owners, particularly in regard to how a crowdsourced project can sometimes end up costing a business more than a traditionally outsourced project."

There are even some slight nuances to the nomenclature according to Wikipedia as well: "The difference between crowdsourcing and ordinary outsourcing is that a task or problem is outsourced to the public rather than another body. The difference between crowdsourcing and open source is that open source production is a co-operative activity initiated and voluntarily undertaken by members of the public. In crowdsourcing the activity is initiated by a client and the work may be undertaken on an individual, as well as a group, basis."

Threadless is a new type of clothing company. The wildly popular e-commerce website sells a unique brand of T-shirt. They are designed by you, for you - literally. Instead of working tirelessly with a slew of designers or spending time in Europe trendspotting for the latest fashion craze, the owners of Threadless decided to crowdsource their product. Anyone is welcome to design a T-shirt.

The designs are then posted and voted on by the community on its website. The designs with the most amounts of attention and votes get produced and sold on the website. Threadless does not design T-shirts. Threadless crowdsources the design and then produces and sells them.

Threadless manages a community. The community creates the product. What do you think their annual budget is for new products development and design? How do you think that compares with American Apparel or Old Navy?

Wikipedia is one of the best and most popular examples of something that is crowdsourced. And, what could be nobler than leveraging a vast network of individuals to curate, edit and crowdsource the knowledge of the world?

Wikipedia is the online encyclopedia that anyone and everyone can edit. The technology is based on a wiki - which is a simple Web page that anyone can write on or update. You can type in any kind of information you would regularly find in an Encyclopedia Britannica, and Wikipedia will return an article (or Web page) that has content that has been created by the entire Internet community.

The percentage of contributors pales in comparison to the users (about one per cent of Wikipedia's traffic edits the actual pages), but the spirit of this content is astounding if you consider that no one is paid anything to contribute or edit, and the company itself - created by Jimmy Wales - is a non-profit organization made up mostly of volunteers. To date, there are over 2.6 million entries in the English version alone.

What does all of this mean to business? Everything. Companies as diverse as Dell (Ideastorm) and Starbucks (My Starbuck's Idea) have embraced crowdsourcing on various levels. Both companies have deployed specific websites that are asking their consumers for their thoughts, ideas and suggestions on what the company can be doing better, or what they should be looking at.

In essence, they're using the power of the Internet and the wisdom of the crowds to get immediate, real and actionable insights from their consumers.

If you needed one question answered about the future of your business, what would it be, and could you open it up to see what a crowdsourced answer might look like?

The above posting is my twice-monthly column for the Montreal Gazette and Vancouver Sun newspapers called, New Business - Six Pixels of Separation. I cross-post it here with all the links and tags for your reading pleasure, but you can check out the original versions online here:

- Montreal Gazette - Let crowdsourcing do your R&D.
- Vancouver Sun - Crowdsource your research.

Tags: american apparel blog business canwest community crowdsource crowdsourcing dell development don tapscott ecommerce employee encyclopedia britannica future business human resources ideastorm internet internet culture jeff howe jimmy wales labor labour marketing mass collaboration montreal gazette my starbucks idea old navy online community open source outsourcing rd research rise of crowdsourcing starbucks talent technology threadless vancouver sun website wiki wikinomics wikipedia wired magazine wisdom of crowds

If you had to choose your #1 rule for what it takes to create a successful Blog, what would it be? Mine is: create real interactions between human beings.

Finding your passion is one thing. Uncovering a unique niche is another. Attempting to turn a six-figure income from your Blog might be what drives you, but what will really keep the momentum going and your readers engaged is if you create a platform to not only share your own insights and personal thoughts, but use it as a place to really connect with those readers and enable that to turn the entire Blog into a thriving community.

It's something that will take a lot of internal and personal struggle (especially if it's a business Blog).

There will be moments where you will want to self-promote. There will be instances where you will wonder if you are betraying your clients or your employer for some of the things you would like to Blog about. There will even be instances where you will want to see if you can monetize the property as your popularity and interest grows. It's not a question of ignoring those impulses, it becomes more of an exercise in returning to your roots. Always focus and cherish that first moment where you came up with the name of your Blog and published that first post in the first place.

If everything you do Blog about has an end-game of making you slightly more famous, how does that help, grow and nurture your online community? 

Without question, one of the best quotes recently about Blogging was from Hugh McGuire (LibriVox and The Book Oven). In the comments section of this Blog, Hugh said: "Don’t Blog to get known, Blog to be knowable." It's not about Blogging with a tone of "look at me, look at me!" It's about Blogging and sharing who you are, how you connect to your passion and what you think about that will (hopefully) get others excited and want to contribute, join or (hopefully) even start their own Blog.

The conversations are everywhere.

You can find some gems on Twitter and you can see some flashes of brilliance on FriendFeed. There's something warmly beautiful about a well thought-out editorial piece in the newspaper and real modern literature can be found in some of the best business magazines. Blogs fill another arena of media culture. Blogs give every individual the place, space and environment to really dig down deep or blast something out furiously. It shows a different side of an individual and how they flow into their work. It makes people stand-out and be original.

Blogs are one of the few (and only) places where words do, indeed, become real interactions between real human beings. A great Blog is personal and displays the humanity. A great Blog can move and inspire people and teams. A great Blog takes words and makes them human. A great Blog is not doing it because there is a schedule to keep or ads to sell. A great Blog is published when it is published. No sooner. No later.

What is your #1 rule for creating a successful Blog?

Tags: blog blog marketing blogger blogging book oven business blog business magazine conversation friendfeed hugh mcguire human being internet culture librivox media newspaper online community publishing twitter

New micro-sharing platforms are everywhere. Be it Twitter, your status on Facebook or even FriendFeed, there are many (more places) to drop little notes, thoughts or insights. Couple that with a Blog and/or Podcast and your ability to publish your message is simple, easy and free (if you have the time). But, how are you handling the comments?

Have you noticed that people connected to you on Facebook can now comment on your status updates? It's not that new of a functionality, but it should give you pause to realize just how much your content is constantly and consistently being scrutinized. As one of the ways to manage all of this micro-content, you can even set yourself up so that when you tweet on Twitter that content becomes your status on Facebook. If you thought that might make your life more manageable, think again. With people adding comments on your Blog, on Twitter, on FriendFeed and on your Facebook status, being available to curate and manage all of the comments on top of the content you are creating is time consuming.

Getting lots of comments is a good thing. It means people are interested in the content you are creating. Having said that, the more places and chances that people have to comment, the tougher it is organize from a personal stand-point, but more importantly, the tougher it is to archive the information in some kind of manageable format.

The whole idea behind commenting was to create a story - one that has the thoughts of the content creator and those of the community and audience in the same space. How is one supposed to keep the flow and logic going when the comments can appear in any one-three locations?

How do you manage your comments and keep the flow of the content going?

Tags: blog comment facebook