Networking Using Blogs

I moderated a panel discussion today about Blogs and RSS for Profit. All the panelists were well-prepared and gave superb insights into why businesses should have blogs.



There is one special feature I would like to highlight -- I think you will find this most interesting. Valdis Krebs, with help from George Nemeth, prepared a network map showing the core blogs in Northeast Ohio based on which blogs link to which other blogs.



Using terminology from Malcolm Gladwell's The Tipping Point, the map graphically depicts the blogs that serve as connectors (those who know lots of other bloggers) and mavens (those who know a lot about particular subjects).



The map illustrates the powerful networking capablities of blogs. It also illustrates the word-of-mouth marketing potential of blogs.



As George noted, someone needs to let Virginia Postrel know that hers is the only blog outside of Northeast Ohio that has enough links to be considered among the core local blogosphere. Apparently we're big Virginia Postrel fans here in Cleveland. Now we just need to get her to come to town to speak....



Oh, and if you needed any further evidence of the networking power of blogs, how's this: Paul Woodhouse of The Tinbasher blog in the U.K. attended the session! He is in the process of relocating to the U.S., and through blogging, a number of us were already acquainted with him. So when he came thousands of miles to a foreign country, he already had a ready-made group of business contacts. That's networking!