Over at Duct Tape Marketing, marketing guru John Jantsch suggests that online social networking just isn't worth the trouble:
[from Online Social Networking is Really Neither Social or Networking]Here's my belief on this fad - online social networking is neither social or networking. Hey, I'm as up on the whole Web 2.0 thing as anybody, but social networking, over a computer, for a business can be a grand waste of time and a crutch that allows you to stay behind the monitor when in fact you should be picking up the phone, taking someone to lunch, writing a hand-written note or shaking some hands.
I am all for f2f communnication, but I think Jantsch is going too far. While LinkedIn, Spoke, Ryze, and Tribe have all turned me off, and while none of them has taken off in the business world like MySpace seems to in the personal networking area, that doesn't mean that the right combination of factors couldn't all coallesce into a winning solution.
I am particularly keen on what I am seeing with Imeem and AIM Pages, which are based on the buddylist. The buddylist is the center of the universe, and whoever figures out how to ride that pony has a real chance for something big.
Stowe,
Thanks for the mention and discussion - note that I'm really referring to business to business social networking like LinkedIn - as you point out, lots of members not much really happening in terms of results. Although I did receive several very passionate comments on this post from business folks who have had some positive results using LinkedIn and Ryze. Oh, and add me to your buddylist any time!
John Jantsch
Posted by: John Jantsch | May 09, 2006 at 06:58 AM
He's right in as much as most of the sites he mentions have implementation problems. He's wrong that social networking is a fad. Social networking services are redefining how the 13-23 year old sect communicates and interacts on line; they are learning how to use a valuable tool just like the youth bloc before them learned IM. It's called social learning, and the fact there are 100 millions people doing it - it proves we're not dealing with a fad here.
The important thing to understand is that the youth bloc doesn't view these sites as "social networking." These sites are games, or mini attention economies - they are anything but social networking. That's the reason they succeed, and any site that is being overt about social networking doesn't have enough of a nuanced understanding of the space to shake out.
Haven't we learned enough from our users and the web that 100 million users voting together means something extremely valuable? (Even if we don't necessarily "get it") And that these things that look faddish are the poorly implemented exemplars? There's huge opportunity in the social networking space - for those who can deliver the solutions that this consumer bloc wants and needs.
Posted by: Fred | May 09, 2006 at 07:42 AM
Fred - I'm with you.
John - I'm stoweboyd on all the services, so IM me sometime.
Posted by: Stowe Boyd | May 09, 2006 at 07:59 AM
You should check out the rankings of social networks sites on Alexa. The unknowns are doing very well (www.hi5.com and www.bebo.com). Its amazing how much free traffic you can create just by building it in.
Its viral marketing.
Posted by: David Quiec | May 09, 2006 at 08:31 AM