When we’re little, one of the first lessons our parents teach us is the importance of sharing. Young minds are initially suspicious of this concept…Why would I want to share my awesome toys with someone else? I don’t want to let Cindy play Barbies with me. Her stories probably aren’t as good. What if I let Mikey borrow my Legos and he never gives them back? It wasn’t until we had our first few mutually beneficial sharing experiences that we started to believe the hype. So, if I play nice with Rachel and let her do my dolly’s hair, that means I get to try out her sparkly new crayons? Cool!
This desire for mutually beneficial sharing has manifested itself in the social media world. We create something and share it with others, hoping they will share something in return. The sharing is awkward at first, and a little hesitant, until we see that we are in a place where everyone helps each other share and is generally happy to do it. Our sharing has gone beyond Barbies and legos, but the process and the feelings attached to it are the same. We are proud and slightly protective of our words, pictures, products, and brands. Taking the control of these things out of our hands can be scary, but if we develop the right relationships, it’s totally worth it.
This development is key to forming a social media community or network. In order to establish real, worthwhile connections, you have to put in the effort. If your feeds are endless streams of one-sided sharing, you’re not going to make many friends. But, if you share things of your own and things of others that you find valuable, you’ll find that those people will share right back. Foster interaction and conversation and see just how powerful sharing can be. Think of the smile on Cindy’s face when you finally let her play Barbies with you, and try to replicate that feeling among your friends, fans and followers. Create an experience that is rewarding for all.
Note: It took me WAY longer than it should have to find a normal-looking Barbie and Ken.
