Hardly anyone knew anything for sure about Apple’s new tablet, the iPad, before its vaunted launch last week.
Within 13 minutes of the word “iPad”‘s first public utterance it was the top trend on Twitter.
But are you sure you have Apple’s reach?
Not The Apple Approach
Last week, something else happened that got less press, but meant a lot more to me and a few hundred thousand like-minded people.
Author Gretchen Rubin‘s book “The Happiness Project” zoomed up to the top of the New York Times Bestsellers list, and she announced it on her blog.
Her readers (me included) got a real jolt of, well, happiness, seeing that post.
Why?
Because we had been there, reading the blog and talking to each other in Gretchen’s virtual kitchen, long before the book was really a book.
We had tweeted and blogged and emailed and reviewed this book for our ‘friend’ because she had been so open with us during the writing process. We felt like we had a stake in this book’s success.
This is not the Apple model.
It is, however, a large part of the reason Gretchen Rubin reached the top spot in her industry within one month of her book’s publication date.
Can You Afford To Be As Secretive As Apple?
What benefit do you gain from guarding your processes?
Do you need to develop new products and services in secret?
How much would you benefit from a more direct conversation with your audience?
In other words:
Do you need a social networking strategy?
If you think the answer is yes, but you’re not sure, email me, or comment below, and we’ll get the conversation rolling.