Business Book Summary #19: “The Whuffie Factor” by Tara Hunt

dang - such a great summary - are you defeating your purpose? read it for (dot) me?

how could someone not go buy it?

steve - you rock. thank you for caring enough to keep getting better. the world benefits.

My goal is that you ALWAYS go out and by the book. The name is to get you there in the first place. Thanks for the kind words Monika! PS - perhaps your students could use a copy of the book? You know how they can win one :)

Hi Steve,

Another thought provoking summary. Thanks!

As you and I are both seeking out the interconnect between the wide range of business books, I am beginning to think that the Whuffie Factor is one of them. There are traces of Stephen Covey, Seth Godin, Chris Brogan, Peter Sheahan and others appearing in your summary so many that I ordered the book immediately!

The summary clearly sets out a roadmap for companies already out there in Social Media Land, those with an identifiable community, an audience of participants/lurkers and a tribe looking for a leader. They are already "one of us". But what of those new entries to social media? To paraphrase the movie strapline: "In hyperspace, no-one can hear you {blog/tweet/etc}". How do these companies create Whuffie? Like the example in the Wikipedia definition of Whuffie, those with a million point Whuffie score are potentially more likely to "trade" more positively than those down and outs on the bus. How can you turn your company from down and out to up and on?

Looking forward to reading more on Whuffie and finding the answers, and to the insights from the others in Social Media month both authors and community,

Bill

Look's like Chris Brogan has answered my query in his blog for today! Serendipity or what!

Bill - I think Chris' post certainly will help clear up your question. You'll also find some great answers in my interview with Chris that will come out in the next week or two. You are right though - there is a lot in this book to digest, and it really is much more than a "social media" book.

Steve, once again thank you! No one is splitting the atom when it comes to strategies on this stuff but that truth is universal. Also, thanks for being on iTunes. I've shared it with all my friends. I love the fact that you drive business to the authors. You are a shining example!

Emmauneul - you are welcome, and thank YOU for spreading the word. I hope it helps encourage your friends to pick up a few more books this year.

You are right - nobody is splitting the atom. But what these social media books are doing is paving the path. If we are lucky, it will be the path that most people take.

Steve,
You provide such a great resource. I am telling friends about this site everyday. I wish I could get all my friends to listen to this one about Wuffie. Ms Hunt's answer to the million dollar question, starts out a little slow, but then she hits a grand slam with the testimonial. I think her answer to the million dollar question is the best I've heard so far. Plus you get extra bravery points for putting her karaoke background track in there. I'll be back again next week. I am hooked.

Dee - I'm not sure I get many bravery points - those go to Tara. Like all of the people I have on for social media month, she's the real deal. If there's anything I can do to help get some of your friends to listen to this episode, let me know - it's worth the effort.

This is an Awsome business book club book! I am going to tweet you now!

Thanks for spreading the word, Robin!

In a world where social media books start to be a lot a like, this one brings some nice and fresh perspective to the table. Really like it a lot. Maybe it's that old science fiction geek oozing out of me.

Mike - you are right. There is a lot of "noise" out there, and I think Tara has done a great job of bringing some different views to the table. And it's probably the old science fiction geek oozing out of you :)

Everything about this book is just "right". I've had the pleasure of knowing Tara for many, many years. It's been amazing to see her progression and watch it all culminate in Whuffie Factor. I was just in a Barnes & Noble on 5th in NYC and recommend her book to a total stranger. How often do we really look beyond the almighty dollar at the many ways that we can really build capital? I enjoyed this book from the start to the finish... now, I just have to wait and see what she does for book #2.

Mitch - I think your example about the book recommendation is a great one. We don't often look past the almighty dollar, and there are so many ways to build capital these days. It just takes a longer view on the payback. Book #2 should be a great one, and I'm looking forward to it too. Thanks for your thoughts!

Não sei escrever em inglês mas fiquei extremamente curiosa para ler o livro depois de ver os comentários. Creio que este é um bom motivo para ganhar o livro!
I am from Brasil.
I need to learn English!

And I need to learn Portuguese!

Here's the translation, courtesy of Google's translation tool:

I do not write in English but I was extremely curious to read the book after seeing the comments. I think this is a good reason to win the book!

Make happiness your business model >> Exactly! Since businesses play such a huge role in our lives (directly and indirectly), it’s time that companies see that investing in not just the short-term, but the long-term happiness of its customers is the way to go. This part reminds me so much about Tony Hsieh and what he has done at Zappos not only for his customers, but his employees as well.

The good news is that for all those who are just jumping into the online social sphere and those who are already immersed in it, the possibilities are really endless; I belong in the former category and I’m finding that the more I learn (and understand) social media, the more I’m able to see what everyone’s been talking about all this time, everyone from Seth G to Mitch J to Gary V to all the passionate folks on Twitter.

So Steve, thank you for this! As I’m watching your videos (specifically this one and the last one), I’m incorporating the tips and insights into a project idea I’m currently working on and I’m excited because I think that this could be my way of joining and contributing to the online community in a sustainable and meaningful way.

One last thought: Being a good and decent human being both online and offline = more whuffie in the bank account. Warren Buffett said, “It takes 20 years to build a reputation and five minutes to ruin it.” We don't want to ruin it.

Snow - great thoughts here. I'm glad you are incorporating the thinking in these particular books into your work. When the dust settles and "social media" is just a way of communicating to those around us, these authors are the ones who will still be relevant. You picked a great bunch to take your lead from. And YES, YES, YES to the Warren Buffet quote!

Steve, Thanks for the great overview. After watching the summary I realized that I need to scale back the shouting and jump start the listening. If I can become part of the community I serve and Integrate feedback into my business, I can add value to our R&D and to the customers we serve. 3 Ways to Make $ online.... porn, luck, whuffie, I need to start opening up my ears! Thanks again. -Michael

Michael - good luck jump starting the listening! It's the only way to truly find and deliver value with these tools. Thanks for your thoughts!

Tara is an amazing person, and someone you can definitely learn from. Her book isn't mutually exclusive of other books out there either -- with a primer for social media marketing, you can really understand exactly WHY it's something to be considered after reading Tara's compelling examples. She bolsters the importance of these business practices and makes a great argument as to why it's something that must be considered. And with her experience in this space, it's no surprise that she had the opportunity to write the book and that she rocked it. I'm glad that I met with Tara this past April, albeit briefly (I was 7 months pregnant) but I truly hope I have the opportunity to meet with her again. :)

Awesome read.
Thanks again. I love your site and mention it often on our Twitter account

Tara's book is a great summation of something that's so very hard to explain appropriate to corporations. WE all seem to get it, but it's so hard for companies to look at Whuffie instead of numbers. And yet, it's real.

Tara's a superhero. Her passion and conviction show through in the book.

Whuffie is definitely a "what causes sales" type of thing. It's a little hard to measure, unfortunately, but so are plenty of other things that "old school business" types seem to love.

We have a learning group at work that's working to build both online communities and offline action- I look forward to sharing this with them, and making sure we're getting FEEDBACK from the user groups we serve!

Laura - that's awesome. I hope you'll check back in and let me know how it's going with your group.