Thoughts about social media labels
social media March 31st. 2008, 8:48am- In blogging, people have been classified as A-list (which Dave Winer now seems to refer to as tech industry superdelegates), B-list, C-list, etc. all the way to people who aren’t on a list. And, of course, there are blogs which are spam or otherwise just there to earn revenue and trick people into clicking on links.
- Paul Gillin listed at least two different ways to categorize bloggers in the New Influencers.
- There are the original bloggers from when the term was coined over 10 years ago.
- There are the people who were active on bulletin board systems, Usenet, and other message boards for at least 10 years before that.
- Now there are a lot of people online who not only blog, but who use a wide variety of social media to communicate to the world.
Do any of these labels hold any value any longer?
Should we drop all of the labels denoting hierarchy and instead focus on labels that focus on either the media that we use or the subjects that we like? Surely the best use of labels is to either find experts, enthusiasts, or at least kindred spirits?
Shouldn’t we all just call ourselves creators? Or communicators? Or (and this is tongue in cheek) Broadcasting Brains?
As always, I’m curious to know what other people think about these ideas.
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March 31st, 2008 at 11:37 pm
Hey Mark — thought I’d check you out after your comment on Men with Pens. Glad to meet a New Brunswick Blogger, especially someone with a freakishly similar background (living in the middle of nowhere, stayed with the same company for ever though never planned to, IT guy with many other interests, etc. etc.)
FWIW - Chris Brogan keeps using the term ‘creator’ as in you and I and Chris ‘create media’. I kind of like that. It’s liberating.
Best wishes,
Mark
April 1st, 2008 at 5:37 am
@Mark - thank you for visiting! I like the idea of using “creator” as well, although I’m trying to work out the possible counterarguments in my head.
April 3rd, 2008 at 1:20 am
Very important and pressing issue.
This label distinction (even if we don’t use the label) will unfortunately still exist.
I believe, however, that the quality of your relationships in social media–no matter if they are with a-list or d-list bloggers or social media geeks is where the maximum bang for the buck is. Sure its nice when a Chris Brogan tweets your post or a JD Lasica or Dykeman mentions you on his blog. However, cultivated relationships that add value on a regular basis is far more valuable for the long game.
I like the idea of leveraging the later audience with greater effort and drive. One would think that such folks would be far more likely to enjoy being paid attention and will actually appreciate a quality link on a post (and far more likely to reciprocate).
April 3rd, 2008 at 6:55 am
@Nathan - the unfortunately thing about labels is that they occasionally interfere with communication and relationship building.