Social Media Hour #65

Reputation. Integrity. Loyalty. These three words all lead up to the big one that's gotten quite a bit of attention in the on-line realm in the last week - Influence. Two separate and unrelated Influencer Projects are the focus of this week's Social Media Hour. First up, what was billed as the "shortest marketing conference ever", The Influencer Project took 60 people, asked them each for a one-minute interview giving advice to entrepreneurs, and then ran a 60-minute, on-line broadcast of all the responses. Focusing on telling entrepreneurs what they can do to increase their influence over a 60 day period, the speakers ranging from Guy Kawasaki and Brian Solis to Erica O'Grady and many others (Disclosure: SMH Host Cathy Brooks was one of the 60 people) proffered thoughts on myriad aspects of entrepreneurial influence. The next day, a completely different Influencer Project hit the Interweb with a completely different response. Produced by Fast Company, this Influencer Project, which culiminates in coverage in the magazine's November issue, hit some social media snags. Quite a few people, (including Cathy Brooks) perceiving the project as "link-bait" voiced violent disapproval starting a melee across Twitter, blogs and Facebook. Fast Company Editor Mark Borden, who's leading this project, will join Social Media Hour along with several bloggers who voiced their opinions, for a deep discussion on influence and what they've learned so far.