Approval Ratings and Influence

Do you listen more to someone who has high approval ratings thinking they have more influence, or does someone with the potential to influence (in your eyes) gain higher approval ratings?

Do recency and like mindedness play a role in that? Does someone you think you know (do we really ever know anyone?) exert more influence over you? What makes you accept authority?

As we go about this conversation of change - for there needs to be change in business (and in individuals) to accommodate for the rise of social - it's clear that the traditional notions of career titles and influence will be put to the test.

Which means that there are also challenges to the notion that the few usual suspects in any environment, including social media circles, need to set the tone for you.

You decide who has influence over you and your thinking.

Comments

[CASUDI]

I don't things have changed too much for me. I try and identify the best people (by my criteria not necessarily by common consensus) in any space or category, who communicate well and are accessible. These are the people I am influenced by and listen to.

[David Spinks]

The trust in titles is definitely fading quick. I trust the people I know. I also trust the people that are trusted by the people I know.

For example, I didn't always know you Valeria, but I trusted your words because I saw that many people that I trusted, also trusted you.

Influence is in the community. People will be influenced by those closest to them, and to the leaders of that community.

@DavidSpinks

[CASUDI]

David, I agree about titles.... not " meaning" too much as a vehicle for influence.

However, I knew no one that knew or trusted Valeria and yet by my criteria I subscribed to her and have been influenced by her.

I do agree in reality People will be influenced by those closest to them, and to the leaders of that community, however often this may not work out for the best :-) and in fact concerns me more often then not.

[Aaron Uhrmacher]

I think trust is still earned the same way as always, regardless of title.

I trust my friends, the people that are recommended to me by my friends/associates and outwards in an expanding ring. The further the degree from the source, the less the amount of initial trust. It's not black and white.

When it comes to social media, I tend to trust the people whose blogs/Tweets/etc. I have read for some time, in much the same way as I trust certain journalists more than others based on the time I've read their respective columns.

You ask some interesting questions. I'd like to read more of your thoughts on this.

[Jamie Favreau]

Interesting.

I thought I had some influence in my small group of people and thought people would have been interested in #journchat LIVE Detroit. Turns out when I invited everyone when I had the date, only 7 showed up. So I began to think I didn't have influence plus #journchat is somewhat controversial by nature.

The three divisions of communications don't seem to want to work together so this just makes my already challenged job a bit harder since I was the ONLY Champion in Detroit who used this chat for constructive ways of learning.

I did ask... Do you have influence or just a bunch of followers? I think this is an important question to ask. Especially, when you are trying to land an entry level position and trying to do something to change the status quo.

[Valeria Maltoni]

@Caroline - from what I observe and hear, you are in the minority. A welcome one.

@David - wish you were around when I was running the Fast Company social network. Seriously, you would have really seen some of the best connecting among the most diverse members. Social media circles are quite small in comparison. We end up meeting the same people over and over at events and online. The sheer diversity of those events was the network's richness.

@Aaron - While trust and influence are related - are approval ratings related to trust or more to performance? I've been thinking about those questions for a while and wanted to put them out to the community to invite more voices than those in my head to it.

@Jamie - I wouldn't take it personally, although for a couple of years, I did. There is a certain degree of "fashion" thinking and herd mentality in communities. Also, when we talk about transferring a spontaneous and opportunistic action like participating in a Twitter chat off line, which involves a deeper commitment of time and effort, well, that's when numbers do not translate. It's like going from awareness and intent to conversion. You may still have influence at the awareness a and intent level, but not yet for the conversion ;)

[Promotional Products]

I think I respond more to the potential to influence and make the decision myself about how I approve of it. Many times we are reactionary and accepts people or products based on approval ratings. However, if someone can persuade me then obviously I approve of it to a certain extent. Very well written article, interesting topic.