Why & How to Build Social Capital Online – Tara Hunt Interview
on Jun 17, 2008 - 3:00 PM PSTThe full program
This is an audio program. Listen and/or download here.
About Tara Hunt
Have you noticed this:
- Guy Kawasaki launches a site and on its first day his site gets 261,214 hits.
- Jason Calacanis asks for feedback on a design idea for his site and hundreds of people contribute thoughtful ideas.
I can think of a dozens of examples like that where an internet entrepreneur who has social capital uses it to build a better business than an internet nobody.
Tara Hunt noticed this. She wrote a book about it called The Whuffie Factor. Whuffie is the word she uses to describe the amount of social capital you have.
I called her up and recorded a 42-minute interview that you can use as a seminar on how to build your social capital. We went through a set of clear steps that you can follow and I made sure we clarified each one with a real-world example.
If you’re building an online business listen to this podcast. Then get the people you’re working with to come here and listen to it. Your competitors already know this stuff. You have some catching up to do.
Oh, and get the book, because my conversation with Tara is like a seminar, but it’s only an introductory seminar. The details are in the book.
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June 17th, 2008 at 3:14 pm
Great articulation on the power of online networking and its long term value. Thanks!
June 17th, 2008 at 3:15 pm
Wow, I’ve been looking for a word to describe this social capital. Now I’ve got it. Great job Andrew. I love seeing posts like this one, and interviews full of valuable information.
June 17th, 2008 at 3:19 pm
Very helpful. I am always looking for good information to assist me with the social networking information. Sometimes it just seems so overwhelming trying to figure it all out.
June 25th, 2008 at 12:28 am
[...] an interview with Tara on Mixergy.com, she gives a great preview of the concepts. I recommend you listen to the interview. It’s a [...]
June 25th, 2008 at 12:34 am
[...] an interview with Tara on Mixergy.com, she gives a great preview of the concepts. I recommend you listen to the interview. It’s a [...]
June 25th, 2008 at 3:14 am
Hi Tara,
I agree with embracing chaos.
Entrepreneurs and innovators understand that chaos is movement and synergy in the community, and it involves participation.
In reality, it is a great thing.
It is healthy. Embracing chaos also involves embracing change.
June 26th, 2008 at 3:03 am
Great example of Tony, Zappos and pragmatic insights from Tara.
Go Tony !!
August 31st, 2008 at 11:03 pm
Looking forward to the book coming out.
April 30th, 2009 at 3:20 pm
Great podcast. The idea of whuffie makes a lot of sense and as a recent college grad I'm trying to earn it first and then leverage it in finding a full time position. Whuffie is something everyone should take into consideration!
April 30th, 2009 at 3:28 pm
What I love about this interview is how many examples she gave. I need
examples to illustrate points and help me understand them. Tara was amazing
at whipping them up.
Thanks for the comment Chelsea!
May 20th, 2009 at 3:34 am
I have heard Tara speak before and I think this might be the most relaxed and accessible I remember hearing her. Congrats on a great interview.
May 25th, 2009 at 9:48 pm
Great stories. And she introduced me to Tony from Zappos. She really is
amazing. Thanks for pointing it out.
May 31st, 2009 at 2:37 pm
Excellent stuff
May 31st, 2009 at 2:44 pm
Hope to see her in person with Kawasaki?
May 31st, 2009 at 4:12 pm
Thanks. She's wonderful.
May 31st, 2009 at 4:12 pm
Is she doing an event with him? I didn't know.
February 10th, 2010 at 12:38 pm
Excellent interview – you termed it properly, social capital – overlooked and simultaneously the most valuable, especially today – this is at the heart of success in many industries – and at the heart of social success –
Great job to Tara for identifying and expounding on the concept so well – for the socially backwards (like me), this should lead to the consciousness of the idea that can lead to some positive growth and change –
Thanks for the incredibly valuable site and leadership role Andrew -
March 8th, 2010 at 5:50 pm
Ack, a single person can not have social capital. Social capital is a property of a network or community. While there are various definitions, here's a decent working one: It's the connectedness, trust, and reciprocity within the community that gives it the capacity for change.
As individual, you can build social capital, and those actions can benefit you, but the social capital you build is not yours. Rather, social capital is more like a commons. You can contribute and benefit, but it is not your property. It's shared.
Here's the problem with this individualistic and inaccurate framing social capital. It's a linguistic enclosure of a commons. We should not fence off that which is common property in our minds or in real life. If we do, we destroy that which we depend on for our very survival. Our fates are tied by those collective structures which bind us together and give us the capacity for adaptation.
March 17th, 2010 at 10:05 am
Wonderful Summary of her book!
March 17th, 2010 at 5:05 pm
Wonderful Summary of her book!