The Popcorn Principle of Social Media

Posted by gussvendsen - 12/02/09 at 07:12:39 am

Since Social Media is based on establishing and cultivating relationships, it’s a big picture endeavor. There is no instant gratification. It takes time to start seeing the benefits in a quantifiable way. I call this the Popcorn Principle.

When you put popcorn in the popper, it doesn’t start popping immediately. It needs to heat up. For a while nothing happens. But when enough time and heat has been put into it, a single pop breaks the silence. Soon, others follow suit. The next thing you know, you’re flooded with the chatter of over-heated kernels.

Keep the heat on. Keep adding new kernels. Savor the buttery goodness of the ones that have popped.

@gussvendsen

December 2, 2009 | In Social Media | 7 Comments

7 Comments »

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First off, thanks for the invitation, Gus! That was nice.

Second, I think you’re dead on with how this works. It’s certainly been my experience. I genuinely believe that if you care about your community, that you season the pot, stir things up and, as you say, savor the “buttery goodness” (love that, btw), you’ll have success. You just have to be patient. Social media is a food of love.

Pop on!!

Comment by Melissa DelGaudio — December 2, 2009 #
"Savor the buttery goodness!" RT @gussvendsen: The Popcorn Principle of Social Media http://bit.ly/8a1cwB

Trackback by Honeybee Consulting — December 2, 2009 #
Gus,

Thanks for the request to check out this post. Can’t disagree with anything you’ve written.

Building a profitable (how you define that is up to you) social media presence requires an investment of your time. Time spent listening, responding, creating, and refining.

The one question I ask people first and foremost is, “What are your goals?”

Once the goals are clearly understood then the whole popcorn process can begin in earnest.

Nice words, thanks for sharing.

Comment by Joe Mescher — December 2, 2009 #
Thanks Melissa! Patience is key.

Comment by gussvendsen — December 2, 2009 #
Joe – Good stuff. Agreed. I am writing a SM Guide and one of the first sections is about defining goals. There has to be purpose. Goals provide purpose.

Comment by gussvendsen — December 2, 2009 #
That’s a great analogy for the social media process, it fits perfectly.

Comment by Josh Peters — December 2, 2009 #
Thanks Josh!

Comment by gussvendsen — December 2, 2009 #

Gus Svendsen