You Have My Attention, Now What?

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You Have My Attention, Now What?

by Jay Deragon on 04/01/2009 22:18 0 comments , 92 views
Categories: Online Communties, Social Media, CMC Announcements, Twitter, Social Computing, Web 2.0
Tags: social+computing, online+engagement, interactive+communications

/>My google alerts fills my folders with news and articles I tag. My google reader fills contantly with articles from sites I’ve found worthy of my attention. My Tweetdeck pings with content from those I follow. My email fills up with feeds from forums I am a part of and from associates sending me more information. In addition I get alerts from Linkedin, Facebook and other networks telling me of people wanting to connect, alerts from group discussions and friends leaving comments on my wall.

All of these “communications” are vying for my attention to something or someone and the pings, tweets, alerts, diggs, comments and announcement continue 24/7. It is impossible to absorb it all so I can only engage and respond to those things or people that know how to get my attention.

While all this social stuff has significant potential, businesses and individuals cannot possible engage everyone and in everything. One wonders how people who have 40, 50 and 60 thousand followers on Twitter, thousands of friends or connections on Linkedin and Facebook or thousands of readers following their blog can satisfy the demand for their attention and time.

Our Relationship To Information

Everyone has an affinity to information that is in alignment to their interest. My interest is focused on learning the impact social media is having on business relationships with markets of interest. I consume massive amounts of daily information hoping to synthesize perspectives, data and research which enables me to learn more on the fringes of change.

I love learning and sharing so my interest is in people and things that I can help or they can help me learn and in return I share my perspectives on what I think I am learning. As a result I am constantly building relationships with people and information that matches my interest, desires and planned actions. In response to my sharing actions people are drawn to my information because they have a common interest in related information. In the reverse I respond to other people whom share information that gets my attention, interest and desires to learn more and their actions produce new knowledge of interest.

Which Comes First, The Relationship or The Information?

With the proliferation of information we receive daily it is the relevant information we receive from our relationships which gets our attention. In order to provide someone with relevant information we need to understand their interest, desires and actions they are trying to achieve. Building a relationships means serving peoples interest and desires with the appropriate information. A relationship starts with information that is relevant, valuable and in the interest of the receiver. Sharing relevant information is a gift that is likely to be well received. Relevant information given as a gift creates an attraction, helps form an affinity and subsequently an individual or organizations can create the right audience of “receivers“.

Relationships get created from information that serves the interest of others. Information is attractive if it helps others serve their interest, desires and needs.

The end result of helping people with the right information is you get their attention long enough to create an attraction which forms an affinity to you. If you repeat the process to enough people you can create an audience. Once you have a large enough audience a certain percent of them will want to engage with you, your product or your service, and that is the beginning of a repeat transaction. Don’t stop serving your audience because you never know who in the audience will someday want to exchange value in the form of a transaction. So once you get someones attention create an attraction, an affinity and by serving their interest and desires you’ll soon have an audience. Get it?

What say you?