chrisbrogan.com - Latest Comments in Relationship Building at the Speed of Batman

Re: Relationship Building at the Speed of Batman

Sameer — Sat, 28 Feb 2009 06:47:44 -0000

Hi Chris,

Excellent post on building effective relationships. But I feel that with abundance of social media sites that help you connect with people, it becomes difficult to keep a track on our profiles on each and every site. I guess (as we use it) personal blog and twitter are the most effective ways of establishing connections.

Since we try to explain complex concepts visually at VizEdu we concentrate more on the feedback that our viewers post on our blog and most of the time, they follow us on twitter. This way of building relationships has worked for us.

Re: Relationship Building at the Speed of Batman

Dominick — Fri, 27 Feb 2009 17:20:14 -0000

Actually, I believe that's how we connected. It's funny how general conversations can lead to various types of relationships from business oriented relationships (mentorships, b2b connections, etc.) to friendships or even further. I recall before we were even really acquaintances watching you post about what music you were into. Nearly everyone likes music, so plenty of people had things to say about what you were listening to (love or hate it) including myself. No longer do businesses have to set up meetings to connect. It puts smaller businesses and self-employed individuals on a more level playing field.

Re: Relationship Building at the Speed of Batman

Beth Pinson — Fri, 27 Feb 2009 14:07:43 -0000

Chris, Awesome post. I love the fact that you shared your stories about different relationships that you built and how it influenced you. Relationships is what it is all about right now. Currently the customer is running things and the economy is tight. The key is to meet the customer on a level, that makes them feel like you (as a business) care. A great example of reaching customers on their level can be found in a post by Walter Pinson called Hyundai schools us on Relationship Marketing

Re: Relationship Building at the Speed of Batman

Nikki Massaro Kauffman — Fri, 27 Feb 2009 12:41:09 -0000

(My 3 1/2 year-old son is totally crazy for Batman too, as he looks over my shoulder while I read your post.)

As you noted with the folks at Stadium Comics, sometimes the giving is not about expecting anything in return. Just being the nice person around social media will reap its own rewards without expecting rewards directly.

A few targeted acts of kindness to get something don't make up for scorched earth networking and burned bridges, but if you've sewn seeds of relationships everywhere (not being selective about who can give you what, who is directly related to your field, etc.), your network becomes self-sustraining and you never know what new opportunities crop up.

Re: Relationship Building at the Speed of Batman

Erika Owens — Fri, 27 Feb 2009 10:03:28 -0000

Great post, it really got me thinking.

Re: Relationship Building at the Speed of Batman

Nile Flores — Thu, 26 Feb 2009 04:42:37 -0000

"Batman!?! Did you say, Batman?" :)

A very good experience to convey your point. I agree with you fully on the power of connecting and building relationships with others. My father and I were talking about this line of thought with another business owner who has a lot of investments in the Southern Illinois area. A lot of people who own businesses may not be able to say it like you do, but they know it takes building relationships to get ahead. It is the others who have not caught on that you have made your experience in blog posts like this, relatable. :)

Re: Relationship Building at the Speed of Batman

Matt Mahowald-New PFC — Wed, 25 Feb 2009 17:55:49 -0000

What a great metaphor you've chosen; I'm sure many men can relate to it. I understand what you're saying, because as a fitness and nutrition expert, I have built relationships with people that have the same passion that I do but aren't necessarily in the same industry. You never know where you're going to find that person that helps you get to the next level, or enriches your life in some way. I love seeing creative examples like this. Thanks for sharing it.

Re: Relationship Building at the Speed of Batman

Nicholas Chase — Wed, 25 Feb 2009 15:58:49 -0000

Chris,

It is a fine example, of having your interests known to others in Web 2.0 how to benefit. Without expressing your interests on sites like FriendFeed, Twitter, SocialSpark (ie IZEA's social media site), ) and Facebook, you would have missed this cool opportunity.

I am learning about web marketing, but keeping my focus on relationships-before-sales is certain to keep me in the loop for the long term benefit. I only want to offer things that have value, that I would personally own and endorse, and leave the e-book Make-A-Million-On-The-Internet products to the mass marketers out there.

With the current economy in the USA, value trumps salesmanship every time.

Great video of 'inside DC Comics', thank you!

Respectfully,

Nicholas Chase
www.twitter.com/nachase

Re: Relationship Building at the Speed of Batman

Tom Martin — Wed, 25 Feb 2009 15:45:24 -0000

Chris

Couldn't agree more. The web tools we have at our disposal make it so easy to create a wide variety of relationships based on a common single passion. For you it was comic books, for me it may be cooking or just kicking around marketing ideas. None-the-less, when used and not abused, Facebook, Twitter, etc., are an opening to a world of folks you'd otherwise only imagine meeting.

@TomMartin

Re: Relationship Building at the Speed of Batman

Len Devanna — Wed, 25 Feb 2009 12:51:02 -0000

Nice post, Chris... I've always felt like I was being watched.

One thing that I routinely do is use Twitter search to find others who have similar interests as I do. It's a nice way to expand my network to those who I'm not likely to come across through other means.

As example, I may search Summize.com for "Guitar" or "Drums" (I play both, albeit poorly :). I've come across some amazing people who I simply wouldn't have otherwise discovered. Our commonality is our love for making music (your Batman, if you will), and more often than not, a valuable relationship blossoms.

Just wanted to share one of the ways I find new people to connect with and expand my network beyond traditional means.

Re: Relationship Building at the Speed of Batman

Scott Ringo — Wed, 25 Feb 2009 11:48:40 -0000

I think you are right on. We just published an article on building relationships that stick http://oceangrand.org/build... The article is focused towards nonprofits since we set up lots of them but can be applied in any business.

Re: Relationship Building at the Speed of Batman

Zach Heller — Wed, 25 Feb 2009 10:40:54 -0000

Paul Miser wrote an interesting blog about the combination of different aspects of your life when it comes to the online world yesterday. That, combined with this notion of relationship building, has got me thinking about the positive and negative affects of social media on our relationships. Anyone we meet online tends to have as much access to our personal information as they want. The more we allow ourselves to be "out there" in the social media world, the more information we open up to the public. This causes an interesting clash between privacy and networking. Suddenly we all know too much possibly?

Re: Relationship Building at the Speed of Batman

Tumblemoose — Wed, 25 Feb 2009 09:45:55 -0000

So, I'm thinking that the social media networks have reduced the six degrees of separation down to about three. Through Twitter and other means, I've had interactions and contacts with folks that I would otherwise probably not have contact with.

The Batman story is a great one because it reminds us that if we just work on being ourselves, and we pay just a teensy bit of attention, we can make things happen in ways that until now have been impossible (or at the least, improbable).

Cheers

George

Re: Relationship Building at the Speed of Batman

Eric Sauve — Wed, 25 Feb 2009 09:39:51 -0000

So true, well said, I am so looking forward to your book coming out on the topic soon.

Thanks for sharing!

Re: Relationship Building at the Speed of Batman

Rachel Burkot — Wed, 25 Feb 2009 09:32:35 -0000

I definitely agree that in today's age of technology, a blending of personal and professional life is very common. We can go to job interviews and look up the company and employees on LinkedIn. We can look someone up on Facebook and learn a lot just by their picture. I don't know if these capabilities are good or bad. It all seems kind of wrong, in a weird way. If you barely know someone, you expect that any information you find out will be on a strictly professional level, and thanks to social networking, that isn't necessarily the case. I have a feeling this is just the tip of the iceberg. I wonder if there will be a line at all between personal and professional come a few years.

Re: Relationship Building at the Speed of Batman

Anne Lapointe — Wed, 25 Feb 2009 08:53:36 -0000

It's the Batman title that got my attention on your tweet. I'm not a particular fan of batman or any comics for that matter, but I have a younger brother who is. You mention that people who like comics are usually intelligent and creative. My brother fits that profile, hence the attraction to the title and wanting to read more about what you had to say today. I'm pretty new at all of this social networking phenomena and enjoy reading your comments on twitter so I can better understand how I can apply this one day for my own use. Thank you for this post that led me to read your linkedin profile and your book review of the week. I'm getting it more and more... Thanks!

Re: Relationship Building at the Speed of Batman

Dana Fosburgh — Wed, 25 Feb 2009 07:56:56 -0000

Great post, Chris ! You absolutely nailed it. Thanks for your insight. I absolutely love the "not knowing" who might be listening and/or inspired in some small way by what you may have shared. Ether. Great word!

Re: Relationship Building at the Speed of Batman

Lisa Hickey — Wed, 25 Feb 2009 07:44:41 -0000

Like many people, I had tried Twitter and couldn’t get the hang of it – even Facebook status updates terrified me at first. Then someone said: “Try again. The great thing about Twitter is you can follow people you admire, see what they are talking about that moment, join in the conversation.” A thousand light bulbs went off in my head. There was a half-finished email sitting in my draft folder that I had been writing and revising for weeks, trying to connect with some influential person in my field. What on earth could I say that was interesting, relevant, not annoying? I hadn’t had a clue. Suddenly, it’s easy. If there’s something I can say that will move the conversation forward in an insightful, relevant engaging way, I join in. Otherwise, I wait for some other snippet to float by. Because it always does. Thanks once again, Chris

Re: Relationship Building at the Speed of Batman

Rachel Happe — Wed, 25 Feb 2009 07:40:31 -0000

Nice post Chris - this remind me of an article I read a while ago at Fast Company - Take Your True Self to Work (http://www.fastcompany.com/....

It used to be that we went to work and tried to be just what our role required (ask me about my days in management consulting) and no more. More was messy, more was not seen as efficient or focused.

What I've found as I've gotten further in to my career is that the 'more' is what allows us to make deep connections with people - to create trust and to find people we like...and wouldn't you rather work with the people you like and trust? Yes - everyone would.

I have made what are seemingly random connections because of my interest in cooking, sailing, literature, music, politics...and all of those relationships are fun but more surprisingly some of them lead to opportunities, both personal and professional.

And now, with tools like Twitter & Facebook, we can connect to people who share our interests faster than ever.

Just recently, I made a comment on Twitter that interest in social media seemed to overlap with interest in food/wine and the Red Sox. Diane Hessen, the CEO of Communispace, responded that it was almost time for spring training. Now I've never met Diane but I happened to know that Communispace has a Red Sox themed conference room so I (somewhat jokingly) suggested she have a tweet up for the first spring training game. She thought that was a great idea....so tonight - Diane is hosting a tweetup to watch the first spring training game (want to attend? http://twtvite.com/mggj16). Then I found out she loves a cookbook I do...and then I found out she is on the board of the Boston Philharmonic which I went to see on Sunday. All via Twitter. Still haven't met the woman but you can be sure I'll have a lot to talk to her about tonight!

Re: Relationship Building at the Speed of Batman

deb brown — Wed, 25 Feb 2009 07:32:47 -0000

I have to agree Chris, I have found some incredible connections through online interactions. It's the ability to get to know WHO someone is before you get to the WHAT of your agenda. I have always preferred to do business with people that I enjoy, can have great conversations with and connect to. Yep, this is definitely a new age!

Re: Relationship Building at the Speed of Batman

Jason Finch — Wed, 25 Feb 2009 07:11:18 -0000

The power of instant communication with people all around the globe with shared interests is awesome.

Blending online social/business networking with offline networking, using online networking to boost offline sales, the full blended networking principle is definitely the future... and the past: I'm fortunate enough to have been running an online social network since 1995 that is now fully blending the real world (with social events from 5-500 people) with the online worlds of its users. It's a fascinating development and really works very well.

Props to blended networking!

Re: Relationship Building at the Speed of Batman

CrystalsQuest — Wed, 25 Feb 2009 05:08:40 -0000

J, you got me thinking now. Maybe he's like a dolphin - half his brain sleeps during the day (the Batman half, obviously), and the Bruce Wayne half dozes off at night. What do you think?

PS Wish I could do that. :D

Re: Relationship Building at the Speed of Batman

SusieBlackmon — Wed, 25 Feb 2009 04:33:02 -0000

I love learning and being around people smarter than me so I tend to seek out the appropriate conferences, conventions, etc., that enable me to drench myself in all the teaching/learning venues I can, as opposed to socializing and nurturing relationships. I've noticed I don't crave RE venues! Whoops. You remind me I need to push myself out of my cave and be a bit more sociable ... live and in person.

Re: Relationship Building at the Speed of Batman

Josh Hurlock http://twitter.co — Wed, 25 Feb 2009 01:57:28 -0000

Chris,

Love the Batman connection, providing useful information with some fun. Social media enables meeting and connecting with people you otherwise probably would never meet. This shows how the Internet and social media are making an impact. At the same time, the Internet and social media are helping young entrepreneurs and businesses make an impact by getting their brand out there. Keep up the excellent work.

Re: Relationship Building at the Speed of Batman

Eric Logan — Wed, 25 Feb 2009 00:56:22 -0000

Great post I have always utilized insights gained about my business partners and prospects, by learning as much as I could about their current Interests, educational background. The demographics of the communities in which they operate etc. To build a relationship based on commonality wherever I found It. Your post really illustrates the power of social media to expand and exponentially accelerate this process. Thanks for sharing your experience and insights