There’s a growing recognition in the marketing community of the power that flows from a “maven status”.
Something about human nature is at play here. We all tend to place our trust in “experts”. Given the choice, we’d prefer to have our heart treated by the cardiology professor and our stocks managed by the TV investment pundit and our marriage counseled by the woman who wrote the book.
The marketing implications are that as you build “maven status” in any field of business, your perceived value to potential customers rises.
So where to start? Publishing a book may still bestow the ultimate kudos, but Web 2.0 allows you to jump into the maven game at a much lower level, and still make waves. One baby step is to become a prolific contributor to the various “Answers” services on the Internet.
Here are three to consider: LinkedIn, the burgeoning business network, has one of the most active and valuable “Answers” programs around. Yahoo Answers draws huge crowds from a wider demographic, and then you might take a look at WikiAnswers for more opportunities to play.
There’s really nothing to lose. Go looking for questions pertinent to your field, and seize the chance to flaunt your expertise. You’ll be on your way to a reputation as The One Who Knows.
That’s good for your brand, good for traffic and good for sales — no matter what business you are in.
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James and Jon, another great suggestion! Many people think they aren’t experts in any particular field because they don’t give themselves enough credit. Parents are experts and comment on children, schools and parenting. If you watch a lot of ESPN you can be a sports expert. Play an instrument, or a sport or any hobby gives you credibility. If you’re shy about commenting, just add an IMO (In My Opinion) before your comment and you’ll be ok.