What is a Maven?  The wikipedia describes a Maven as “a trusted expert in a particular field, who seeks to pass knowledge on to others.”  Although Mavens do a good job of persuading people, their primary goal is not to persuade their audience but rather educate and help their audience. 

What is a Connector?  The wikipedia describes a Connector as “people in a community who know large numbers of people and who are in the habit of making introductions. Connectors usually know people across an array of social, planes, cultural, professional, and economic circles, and make a habit of introducing people who work or live in different circles.”

Finding and obtaining Mavens and Connectors is a critical part of Damage Control and Word of Mouth Marketing. Word of Mouth Marketing requires Connectors.  Damage Control requires Mavens. It begins when one of those friends tells a Connector or a Maven, and then takes watch as  the message spreads all across the internet.
 

To be a Maven, you don’t have to have a celebrity status or tons of credentials under your belt.  Actually, you really don’t have to know what you are talking about.  Mavens obtain a powerful voice not by worldly status and achievement, but by their personal views and the particular stance they tend to take with products and friends. These people inspire others, and never out of envy but rather out of love and respect for the topic in discussion. But Mavens are hard to track, and often times you’ll find yourself wondering, “where ARE all the Mavens?”

There are several “traps” one can do to collect these Mavens.  As Jonathon Greensted points out in Malcolm Gladwell' “The Tipping Point”, one of the most common approaches businesses use to recognize their mavens is placing “Questions, Comments?  Call 1-888-888-8888” directly on their packaging.  These companies know that only a fraction of their consumers would actually call that number, but nonetheless they realize that those consumers who would actually call are passionate about their product.  Once you collect the consumers who are passionate about your product, you’ve begun to build your Social Networking and Word of Mouth Marketing army.

However, I want to reiterate that you do not have to become an expert in the subject to be a Maven, you just have to have a respected following.  Mavens who are NOT industry experts are just as important as those who are, since often times their following looks up to their unbiased opinion. What that really means is a 14 year old boy from Boston can essentially become a maven for BMW just by building a respective following and portraying his opinions towards BMW from an honest, 14 year old boy’s perspective.  Even if he has no prior knowledge of your product and services, what he has to say can influence just as many people as an expert’s opinion since he will be speaking on behalf of all males in his age group.  Therefore, these Mavens must be treated with just as much respect as industry experts.

Lastly, there is a final type of Mavens called “Connectors”.  Often you do not need to worry about finding the Connectors, for they do a good job of finding you. Connectors thrive on bringing everyone together, and love to network.  They have mastered social networking and have built a strong bond through an otherwise weak tie.

It can be somewhat easy to recognize these Mavens and Connectors since you see their name, pictures & comments posted everywhere - followed by HEAVY responses and comments from other users in regards to their posting. Unfortunately, there is no easy way to collect and obtain Mavens since what they are most passionate about is not always your product.  Regardless, companies still need to reach out and engage Mavens and Connectors to blog on their product, company or industry.  These Product Mavens are extremely influential in subliminally soliciting potential customers who find and use Maven sites.  Mavens are looking for information to spread.  Engage these Mavens just as you would try to engage industry press or industry analysts.

My best advice is to be personable, honest and open with who you are and what you are trying to accomplish.  Since no one likes to be “used”, by portraying a high level of respect while gaining the Maven’s friendship (through an honest and personable approach) the Maven most likely will notice and appreciate the respect.  After all, everyone is here to network and stay in the loop, and everyone loves to be respected.

Once you know who your general consumers, connectors mavens are - what they like, and who their friends are - you can really start to cater to them by creating an online focus group for them to interact, share and inspire one another in an interactive environment you can control and learn from.  When building this community, structure it like a family—it helps build intimacy and trust. This will help to naturally create delegation and monitor results more effectively.  It is also best to note that according to Malcolm Gladwell’s “The Tipping Point: How Little Things Can Make a Big Difference”, once membership in a community surpasses 150 it is no longer as effective.

Betty Crocker has done many great wonders in the viral marketing world and by utilizing their audience’s resources, they’re able to make a better product for their favorite customers, the people who buy their product the most.  By pulling them together into an online community, they have provided their users with an environment that allows them to share recipes and learn secrets from other users who love Betty Crocker as much as they do.  Along the way, Corporate Betty’s are able to document, record and analyze the conversations of their dedicated users and perfect their product and service.  They are also able to make their online audience feel special by providing them with exclusive offers, secret tips and first dibs on new Betty Crocker products - which is really meant to allow Betty Crocker to test and improve their new products before releasing it to the masses.  By building online focus groups of their target audience, Betty Crocker has portrayed an ingenius plan of Maven Recognition.

Once maven recognition is complete and your mavens have been obtained, damage control for your company or product becomes no problem - but that’s another blog.  In the meantime, collect your Mavens!  Trust me, you’ll need them.

Anthony

http://msmvps.com/blogs/jonathangreensted/archive/2005/02/20/36506.aspx

http://www.bornentrepreneur.com/2006/12/17/the-tipping-point-how-little-things-can-make-a-big-difference/

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maven

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Connector_%28social%29

http://www.iaocblog.com/blog/_archives/2005/3/17/446864.html