What is a Social Media Linchpin? I don’t know. I was thinking about a number of things about social media.

1. The number of so-called experts running around “training” people in social media.
2. The idea of follower counts.
3. The concept of Fan.
4. Seth Godin’s Linchpin book.

When you combine that, the thought becomes that to be good at social media you need to be a linchpin. I know. What?

The idea of Linchpin is around being a vital part of your organization or community. The same way that you would be vital to your PTA or your School Board or your office in the physical world needs to be translated online.

There have been comparisons about how social media is a cocktail party or dating. Those are good analogies, but I am going to take it one step further.

It isn’t about getting thousands of followers. It isn’t about forcing people to be your fan. It isn’t about being a social media guru. It’s about being a Linchpin.

You can do this online – on Twitter or Facebook or LinkedIn or Yahoo/Google groups or a forum – byb being the tribe leader. Start by being the Greeter. When someone new joins a forum or group or listserv, they generally don’t know the rules or etiquette. Say Hi and point them out. It’s a simple way to “meet” everyone.

Lead discussions – on any platform. Ask questions. Reply to questions. Infact, on LinkedIn this is a great way to become an Expert in a Niche. How many Best Answer awards can you get?

Connect people. On LinkedIn Answers, there is a spot to name experts. What a great way to prop someone up, give a referral, and help the person looking for answers. Recommendations on LinkedIn is another great way to give praise. (Gratitude is circular, btw).

Follow Friday (#ff) on Twitter is about telling everyone who you follow and why. It’s a nice shout out.

The Retweet (RT @theirname) on Twitter is another way to pass along useful info or spread the word. I usually will retweet with a comment if there’s room.

Commenting on a blog post; responding to discussions on LinkedIn, Yahoo or Google groups; and the other networks is a great way to start a conversation – to connect with someone. It allows the person who posted to know that someone is listening.

These seem simple enough, but people get caught up in the whole what-the-heck-is-social-media. Granted that each network has its own quirks and it takes time to figure each one out, but after you figure it out, ignore the platform/network/technology and hone in on the concept of being a Linchpin.

You can help organize, connect, lead, create – make Art – by being a Linchpin – online and offline. The point is to remember that it’s the same activity online or offline. Reaching out. Helping out. Conversing. Connecting. Listening. Engaging.

When you become a Linchpin, the followers will come. Everyone wants to connect with an Artist, Genius, Giver.

Gary Vaynerchuk was in Tampa tonight speaking about Crush It, his new book. He talked about branding your business via online marketing, which is what has made him famous. (On Wine Library TV).

Gary started in retail at the age of 6 with lemonade stands. That’s right: plural. He had others working for him over the summer. He understood early that business is about eyeballs.

We agree on 2 points:  (1) Storytelling is the key to business. (2) Social media is just a marketing tool like the printing press. It isn’t about the tool; it’s all about the story to the market.

Gary says that if you don’t get Twitter or Facebook, get over it because millions are using it. That’s where the eyeballs are, so you better be there. But doing what? It isn’t about Talking. It’s about Listening. (Which btw is a huge lesson in sales. Two ears, one mouth; listen twice as much as you talk

Too many businesses draw a line in the sand. You have to see trends and go with the flow. “Business is  a game of change.” If billions are on FB – but more important, if your target market is on FB or Twitter – then you need to be there to. Listening, engaging, telling your story. The World Wrestling Entertainment is about storytelling. Disney and Pixar are all about stories. Branding is about the story that the consumer has heard about your brand – the sum total of story, experience, WOM (word-of-mouth), and emotional tag. How you feel about Dunkin Donuts or Nike is the branding.

Another point he made has been made by Seth Godin: You have to know what business you are in. During Q&A (which was half the night), Gary kept asking people these questions:

• Who are you?
• What are you selling?
• What’s your story?
• Where are you going?
• What are your expectations?
• What do you expect to happen?
• What do you want to happen?

His answer to most questions was Content. That translates into Personal Branding online. Buy the domain yourname.com. Start a blog. Video, audio, text – doesn’t matter. Start producing content (and stories) about what you are passionate about, what you have knowledge about. But do it in your own voice. This is your online presence, your home on the Internet – just 15 years old but changing everything everyday.

He spoke over and again about Transparency. Basically, be authentic, because if you aren’t, you will be caught and outed. In a similar vein, remember that everything is recorded for posterity today. Cameras are everywhere. Everything you put online is permanent. If you aren’t authentic, it will come out.

When it comes to What are you selling, be Honest with yourself. It’s okay for it to be about the Benjamins. Just make certain that you know what you want and expect, so that you know where you are headed.

Gary Vee’s BHAG is to own the NY Jets. It’s what guides his actions. Having a seven month old child may have changed that just a little bit. He’s all about “Crushing It” – working smart and hard. He works 19 hours per day. (He is cutting back to 15 now). What’s yours? What guides your business decisions? What is  your Goal or Vision that keeps you motivated?  (It’s a key part of the equation).

Note: Lack of self-esteem and laziness is destroying business value.

Gary mentioned that WOM converts to a sale 70% of the time. Advertising converts 12%. Today, with online personal branding your job is to create fans, who will spread the word (re-tell your story) about your business to prospects, who will become customers.

We are becoming more connected and more documented every day. So the days of chasing the quick cash might be coming to an end.

Gary thinks the Wal-Mart Era is almost over and it will become the Niche Era. We will win next. Oops! There will be 2000 to 8000 of Yoga Chicks in your area. You better have the skills and the work ethic to beat them. YOU are the Differentiating factor.

Here’s why Gary thinks the Zappos story is so important: because it is the story about how Culture and Service won (not price). Zappos cost more than other online shoes stores, but the Culture was to make the customer happy. That won out (when its competitor, Amazon bought Zappos for $1B)

The other thing to notice is that customers are going through an Expectation Shift. Instant Customer Service will be expected or you will become a commodity (and lowest price will win).

BTW, that social media thing? It takes time to work, so be patient.

UPDATE:  Fellow Tampa blogger, Deana Goldasich, has  a great write-up about the Gary Vee talk here.

Slate has a list of 50 companies using Facebook well. It isn’t about yelling “Be my fan!” (And any companies doing that should fire their PR/Marketing firm, because being a “FAN” is about want not begging).

One strategy is to use Facebook for contests. That drives traffic.

Another strategy is polls. There is nothing better than customer feedback.

Oh, wait, there is: Customer reviews, photos, and stories posted right to the fan page.

Target used its fan page to let customers determine the charity. If you have a corporate giving strategy, a fan page is a great place to let your customers (and the public) know about it and maybe engage about it. By engage, I mean, join in – dollar matching, blood drives, food collections, etc.

But using Facebook to collect your boring ass posts, blogs, and tweets isn’t a strategy. That’s aggregation of your content.

And for those that tweet to Facebook: you probably tell the same jokes at every cocktail party.