This is how I define a successful post.

You give an idea a lot of thought. Put time into it. Plan it. Post it. It generates discussion â?? some are comments by people whoâ??ve never commented before (welcome, Mike). The post gets picked up by another blogger. And then another. And it generates outrageously active conversation over on those blogs.

Thatâ??s what happened when I wrote about The Early-In Loop last week. Douglas Walker from Venture Communications in Toronto and Alison Byrne Fields over at Olgilvy Public Relations Worldwide (see “outrageously active conversation”) picked up on the post, built on its premise and now have people talking about what motivates individuals to pass information along.

They both posted six reasons â?? and Doug is challenging others to do the same. So Iâ??ll play along. Here are the Six Reasons Why I Forward Stuff. First, though, I feel compelled to mention that I donâ??t just forward stuff to forward stuff, my filter is pretty tough to get through.

• Add value: If Iâ??m sending it, it must add value to that person. No time wasters, old viral stuff, things I suspect they may have seen before. This may vary by person, of course. Itâ??s important to know what the receiver likes and dislikes â?? it shows that you r espect their time and intelligence.
• Make someone laugh: A good laugh is always appreciated, if you send the right laugh to the right person. Also, the same joke a thousand times still isnâ??t funny if it didnâ??t make you laugh the first time. Know the receiverâ??s sense of humour and play to it.
• Same page: There are some people out there on my list of contacts who I enjoy being on the same page with. Like-minded people who I know will validate my thoughts and opinions.
• Appreciate the tip: Some people just like a good tip, pointer or help. Could be that Iâ??ll be reading something that makes me think about a colleague or their business. Cut and paste, hit send and Iâ??ve just informed someone of content relevant to the world they live in.
• Generate conversation: Nothing like starting a great debate. Find a stat, article, something, anything, choose the right mix of people to forward it to and Iâ??ve got myself an instant conversation.
• Stir things up: Whatâ??s wrong with starting a little controversy now and then? Iâ??ve got two buddies I used to work with and the three of us go this route all the time. Works well because weâ??ve all got different personalities, so we usually have a person arguing each extreme and the third person right in the middle. The results are often quite funny.

Forwarding stuff fits right into Give + Take. The trick is to finding the right balance â?? no one wants to receive material that wastes their time or just doesn’t fit with their personality. You’ve got to send the right info to right person at the right time.

So there here there are my six, where are yours?

Again, and I don’t want to beat this to death, but check out the conversation generated by Alison’s post. Really, itâ??s an unbelievable dialogue. And, remember, itâ??s never too late to join in.

UPDATE: Just want to point you to Greg Krauska’s list. It’s in the comments below, but I think it’s worth a visit over to his site.

This entry was posted on Thursday, May 31st, 2007 at 12:31 am and is filed under Give + Take, Being Meaningful. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.