This week’s reading was about energizing the groundswell, which was particularly interesting to me because I spent some time reading my favorite bloggers’ ‘About Me’ pages, learning about LikeItToKnow.it and its parent company RewardStyle, and updating my own About Me page.
This chapter talks about how energizing via community engagement is the best way to trigger the groundswell. I tweeted out earlier this week about one of my favorite bloggers, Katey McFarlan and her blog tips that totally hit the nail on the head about the five points from Users of the World Unite.
Now, if you’re me you absolutely believe that Katey McFarlan can do no wrong regardless, but here’s a snapshot of what she had to say:
This really has resonated with me all week, but especially when I was reading the chapter it all clicked. It’s not just me that likes Katey. It’s not just that I love her clothes and her writing style, and how she incorporates her faith into her personal brand- it’s that those techniques are genuinely what people respond to. I’m not a weirdo with a thing about a random (albeit lovely) blogger. It’s normal! And when she posts her outfits on Instagram and I want to know what shade of lipstick she’s wearing because I totally need it, I double tap to get that LikeItToKnow.it email because Katey wouldn’t wear a lipstick that wasn’t fantastic (right!?). (sidenote: Katey never lies. The lipsticks she features are always bomb.com)
It’s relationship marketing at its finest except every picture posted on these girls’ Instagram accounts is telling thousands of friends who trust them. And I mean that literally. These people who are writing blogs invite us into their lives realtime through Twitter, Instagram and Snapchat. It’s a more up-to-date version of the BzzAgent idea with a much larger platform with a much more personal spin.
Ok. So before anyone thinks I’m some crazy Chronicles of Frivolity stalker, here are some of my favorite bloggers to follow (because we all need a diversion every now and again, right?)
References:
Charlene & Bernoff. J (2011). Groundswell, Winning in a World Transformed by Social Technologies. Harvard Business School Publishing: 60 Harvard Way, Boston Massachusetts