Online Communities And Truth

Online communities like Blue MauMau are getting a lot of attention nowadays because of the tremendous power and insights they provide (read the article The Power of Us , if you doubt this). Peter Friedman, the founder of one of the largest online community developers, LiveWorld, observes this to the StartupJournal. It rings true with our experience here that online communities and the phenomenon of blogging help shake the truth out. There is a power in sharing truth as we individually see it and in collectively sorting it out.

"In the world of marketing, for decades we've said the worst thing for a bad product is a good ad. Everybody will try it and figure it out. If people talk to each other, the reality and truth is in that conversation. The real question is: Is your marketing matching that truth? There is no question that the reality and the truth of what people think is in these communities."

Nothing forces the truthfulness of a franchise better than people sharing their investigations and discussing their observations about their claims. Mainstream media publishers have discovered this over and over again as inaccuracies and spin in certain stories have been uncovered by the blogosphere. A community of people gathered around the water cooler to discuss their experiences helps immensely with getting the truth out beyond a franchisor's or publisher's spin. It is in online communities in which a single individual can yell out that the emporer has no clothes.

That may sound idealistic but it is grounded in practicality. I once listened to an angry franchise owner who said that there were three units of the same franchise in his neighborhood that closed before he even opened his doors. His shop lost money for almost 4 years. He hadn't a clue about the previous franchise shops in his neighborhood and was upset that the franchise development team and the owners whom he interviewed didn't tell him. When people band together in great numbers without the intent of selling you a specific franchise concept, chances are that there will be a member of an online community who knows your neighborhood and would share information. Such knowledge could save you from future headaches, including a bad investment in a bad location.

There's also value in marketers coming to online communities to listen and learn how they are perceived. In the words of Mr. Friedman, here is where a marketer can find out if the consumer leaders, those highly involved with the product, think whether the marketing matches the truth.

There is a new dynamic in business, a social network that needs to be paid attention to. It is the power of us.

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p.s. The photo above is not of me. My hair doesn't stick out and my arms have more.