Thanks for following me on Twitter and telling me about your great blog!

I have a question on the value of one’s network. I’ve found that people form tighter bonds and communicate more effectively in person. How do you account for this when building networks based entirely on the internet? How do you establish rapport with only text, lacking social cues and nonverbal communication? Is the answer simply “great copywriting” as you mentioned in your other post, or is it something more complex?

I strove (too much, apparently) for brevity in explaining why I misread Jim’s initial statement about LinkedIn. I took his wording for a negative when he didn’t mean it that way, and merely added my own opinion about some value to be found in LI. I appreciate his gracious follow-up comment.

In response to another comment, I clarified the meaning of my first comment about how I connect with people.

Nowadays I routinely give my Twitter name in signing off, and I appreciate it when others do the same, or provide a link to a blog or another piece of their online presence. That is a courtesy from others that allows me to get more information if I’m interested, and I see it done everywhere.

You would only follow me if you had interest in Spokane civic life, a bit on social media and public relations, higher education and health care, bike commuting, and my personal caffeine habit.

Personally, I’m not keeping score, attracting people to my blog, or seeking millions of followers on Twitter because that’s not my primary purpose for being here. For some people it is, and that’s the beauty of social media: that it allows for all types of interactions, purposes, and relationships. I’m here to learn from those who are willing to engage and teach, and appreciate the resources Jim and others make available.

For another discussion of Twitter use, people may be interested in this guest post on @ChrisBrogan’s blog: http://www.chrisbrogan.com/guest-post-twitter-to-converse-or-to-broadcast-that-is-the-question/

@BarbChamberlain

I find it objectionable for her to come here, be offensive to Jim and then use his blog to try and attract twitter followers. Whose going to follow someone as rude as that?

Thanks for your comment. I’m glad you find your current approach to networking is effective for you.

Helen,

Thanks for the comment.

Everyone is welcome to express their opinion here, they don’t have to agree with me.

I also don’t think the number of ‘followers’ a person has on Twitter is a very accurate way to determine their networking knowledge or abilities.

For example, although I set up my Twitter account months ago, I only decided to ‘develop’ it about 3 weeks ago, when I had just 160 followers! I attracted the additional 4000 people in the past few weeks.

It’s hilarious, reading someone telling you that you are wrong about how to build a great network, especially when they themselves are only commenting here because they found you through one of your networks, twitter!

They may also have noticed how many people are in your twitter network compared to them? (70 compared to jims 4100)

Ralph’s restatement of my comment doesn’t capture what I meant.

My first answer is that I meant what I said–every person I meet has unknown potential in his/her network value. Time getting to know them may lead to valuable connections and if nothing else, treating people well brings good karma.

Of course there are people I’d like to meet and I seek them out. The more people I know, the easier that is, particularly in my community which seems to have about 2 degrees of separation from one end to the other.

The second answer, on more reflection, is that I’m really not that strategic much of the time. I just like meeting people and connecting them with other people and information that may help them. It’s not the least bit calculated and I’m not tallying anyone’s potential network value, let alone checking someone off in my mind as being on any kind of list.

So it’s not really what you’re writing about at all. Yet I know a long list of influencers in my community, people who know me know good things about the institution I represent, and people come to me to get connected to others, so sincerity apparently works just fine.

@BarbChamberlain

Thanks for the comment.

I don’t think anyone would see Twitter as a tool to conduct business with. It’s in a totally different space to Skype.

It’s just a great way to meet new people and find answers. I appreciate that I have quite a few followers, but I can ask just about any question and get 100 answers inside 5 minutes. This has proven invaluable to me, when seeking people’s opinions. I have also directly generated around £15,000 ($25,000 US) in new business over the past 30 days, from people who ‘met’ me initially via Twitter.

It’s still just a status update tool.

In the context of marketing, it’s a means of initiating a dialogue — one of several — and not the dialogue itself.

If the relationship progresses, then things to move towards proper chat clients, like Skype, where the real business is done, certainly for me anyway…

John’s name is Jim