Speed Blogging: A Networking Tool
First there was speed dating where a group of singles got together to play a kind of kind of round robin. The idea is to chat one-on-one for a set number of minutes with as many other individuals as you can. Hopefully a love connection can result from the sheer volume of individuals you encounter in an evening’s time.
And now, as the New York Times reported on Monday, business groups are getting in the act with speed networking. The goal is not marriage, but an opportunity for professionals to meet, exchange cards, and identify jobs or business prospects.
In the same spirit, perhaps it is time to engage in “speed
blogging.” I am not talking about how quickly or how often you can post an entry. Rather, it goes back to the “5 things you don’t know about me” meme that was circulating on the Internet last month. Speed blogging attracts me because it brings together bloggers in a somewhat structured, but free flowing way to share ideas and network.
To me, speed blogging is viral communications. It broadens the conversation by making connections, facilitating introductions and possibly directing you to lesser known and newer blogs that were completely off your radar screen. And let’s not forget exposure for your blog.
Like speed dating and speed networking, speed blogging is perfect for an economy where attention is currency and impressions are formed in a Malcolm Gladwell Blink of an eye.
So yesterday for perspective, I reached out to Social Media Club co-founder Chris Heuer to talk to him about what he was doing with BrainJams and get a sense of what others have done and how we might start a speed blogging event. He mentioned that we could learn a little bit from looking at Dave Winer’s idea for HyperCamp in addition to learning from the work he did with BrainJams and the in person “speed networking” he has done with “12 Five Minute Meetings." Chris likes calling this ‘swarming’ ala Howard Rheingold’s Smart Mobs.
One possible way to start is by picking 10 bloggers who then each select one other blogger to participate. So you have 20 bloggers in total.
Each blogger should post a speed blog entry on his or her blog site within a specified period of time (say 3 days). These postings would describe who they are, why they blog and what they blog about. This posting should be tagged with “SpeedBlogging”
Then everyone has one hour of their choosing per session to visit at least 6 participating blogs. To network, each participant can comment directly on the posting, create a posting on his or her blog linking to original post, or create a posting tracking back to the original post. You can use this opportunity to share your impressions of the blog, offer links to other blogs or individuals that may be of interest or anything you want.
If you create a posting, make sure it is also tagged with “SpeedBlogging.”
For subsequent rounds, these 20 blogs would still be available for review by any new participants.
Finding participating bloggers can be done through delicious bookmarks and/or technorati tags.
What do you think? How might we best socially engineer an experiment like this to try it out? Are you willing to participate?
Now I would hardly suggest these sessions are the web 2.0 equivalent of My Dinner with Andre, a movie completely devoted to two friends musing, opining and reminiscing over one dinner, but it does suggest a yearning for connections that is often lacking as we sit hunched over our key board sharing our thoughts with the world.
Let me get back to you.
Technorati Tags: SpeedBlogging; Social Media Club; Blink; Chris Heuer; BrainJams; Dave Winer; HyperCamp; Malcolm Gladwell; Howard Rheingold; Smart Mobs;
I was browsing around looking for blogs on speed networking and found this entry. I think it's a fantastic idea. I run a company who organise speed networking events and have done for the last 3 years. As you correctly pointed out with the speed dating concept, the volume of people you meet simply means that companies do more business (I've measured it - £500/attendee/event).
Anyway - the structure and the pace make speed networking (and speed dating effective). With a suitable purpose, I'm sure speed blogging could be just as effective.
Let me know when you've got your punters - I'm in.
Antony Vila
Director
Contact25 (Comment this)
Maybe we can work together
Dan (Comment this)