Capulet Communications

As Jane Goodall discovered, the best way to learn about a species is to live among them. The social web can be a bit like the “wild west” of online communication. But there are some key communication protocols to be aware of before striking up conversations with the locals.

If you understand the social web’s code, you’ve got a better chance of breaking into the inner circle and getting mentioned or reviewed by online influencers. They can send thousands of visitors your way. Remember the golden rule of the social web is this: Listen First.

By emulating the behavior of influencers and learning their dialect, you can become more confident when approaching them. Begin by finding blogs and online communities that focus on your product, organization, or industry.

You can start by doing a search for [your company] blog and you’ll probably find references to your company. Poke around any associated blogs to find more references. Then, start reading them regularly.

If you can’t find blogs dedicated to your company, try searching for [your competitor’s] blog. Start reading these corporate blogs and the third party blogs that cover your competition.

You can certainly find blogs dedicated to your industry. Don’t believe us? Try searching “funeral blog” and you’ll find dozens. Now try searching for [your industry] blog. If your industry has newsletters, conferences, and magazines, it has bloggers. Find a few and start reading them today.

With just a few clicks, you’ve got a virtual stack of reading material that will help you get to know the new influencers in your industry. Find out what they are talking about, and which companies they’re watching. Perhaps most importantly, find out what they’re not talking about. You don't want to pitch bloggers irrelevant stories because that wastes both your time and theirs.

If you do your homework and read the right blogs weekly, you lay the groundwork for future, positive interaction with these influencers.