It's been a big week for me. On Wednesday Social Media Today hosted an hour-long, interactive webinar, "The Art and Science of Forming Successful Online Communities." I moderated a panel which included Gina Bianchini, CEO and Co-Founder of Ning, Rohit Bhargava, Vice President Interactive Media of Ogilvy 360, Julie Wittes Schlack, SVP for Innovation at Communispace, and Craig Cmehil, Evangelist of SAP's SDN. (Read Luis' excellent post for got to download the archive.)
Yesterday, I had lunch with Debbie Galant, founder of Baristanet.com, recently voted by PlaceBlogger at the number one local leading blog in America.
Debbie and I talked about a theme that also kept recurring in the discussion on Wednesday. How do you repeat the passion and quirky authenticity of social media across platforms? Is it like trying to go from couture to prêt a porter? Can you really have a "conversation" with millions of people? Or does the one-to-many model break down at a specific number? Does the voice that works for a few get corrupted when it is broadcast to so many people that the authenticity comes across as insulting?
What happens when the long end of the tail gets a lot fatter, and starts wagging the dog?