The “Hidden Who”
By Jason Moriber • Feb 9th, 2010 • Category: Analysis, Strategy & PlanningKevin Berrey, the Writer/Director/Filmmaker and principal of Screaming Panda, posted this question to Twitter this morning:
What happens when you cross this Edelman study on trust (who trusts who) with the Dunbar number (how many friends can you really have)?
My answer is: Nothing, because generalities are irrelevant.
What’s hidden in these studies is the “who.” Who did they ask, what are they like, what do they do, etc. Without this specific information the meaning is moot. My posse of contacts is totally different than your posse. Edelman’s posse could be totally irrelevant to mine.
Paul Jones the Director of ibiblio.org at UNC, chimed in on the topic when I posted a link to the Edelman study on Twitter, “I went to the Edelman study and the drop is much less that this reports. further, the group of respondents is highly selected etc…” Highly Selective!
So, what to do? Do your own study, ask your posse who they trust, where they find their news, how many friends they can handle. Ideally you should be doing this all the time, not by surveying everyone, but by communicating with them and listening deeply.
Make sure you’re finding the “hidden who.”
Jason Moriber is a veteran product/project/marketing manager, underground artist/musician, and online community developer, Jason expertly builds/produces/manages clients' projects, programs, and campaigns.
Follow me on twitter http://twitter.com/jelefant
Email this author | All posts by Jason Moriber
