How authenticity elevates social media

There's an image etched into my brain, and it's the sight of the road ahead rising up to Sunwapta Pass as our group of 16 riders pedaled towards it.

After climbing slowly for hours, we came around a corner and saw the final approach to the pass. The road turned 90 degrees and got dramatically steeper. Impossible, I thought. My legs were already toast. Flagging down the support van was always an option, but everyone kept going.

Fate smiled on us. As we turned up the steeper incline, the wind shifted to be at our backs. The ride was still hard, but it was doable. We all made it.

Let me be honest. This was no amazing feat. Real athletes ride further without even blinking. At the top of the pass, we had covered 65 miles since morning. But we were all just decent athletes, and I'm convinced that what kept us going was largely social influence; we were, as a group, committed to reaching the top of the pass.

Social influence vs. social media

Social influence is the power of people interacting authentically with other people.

It can be a wonderful force for good. It can help you work harder, persevere through tough challenges, and find comfort when you doubt yourself. But this mostly happens when the people involved voluntarily embrace what's important to the group.

Social media is a category of services developed by companies. It sometimes - but not always - involves social influence.

You might call the difference the Authenticity Condition, which means that 'liking' is only powerful when people authentically like something. It's why the social media efforts of so many companies are lame beyond belief. Although people will "like" lots of things to get a chance at winning a prize, they don't actually care. That's not social media, that's old-fashioned advertising online.

But if you can harness social influence behind something about which people deeply care - say, regaining their health or helping others in need - then you have a magnifying effect that boggles the mind. This is why I urge companies to use social media with discretion, which generally means when the benefit to others outweighs the benefit to the company.

Remember, to elevate social media to the heights of social influence, you must speak with an authentic voice. When a company spends more money crowing on social media about their gift to charity... than they do giving to the charity itself, that is not authentic. Even worse, when companies employ software - rather than actual people - to post on social media, that is the antithesis of authentic.

To enjoy the benefits of social influence, start here:

Be generous: Help others in a meaningful manner. Whether you are posting for yourself or your company, use whatever influence you have to benefit others. Start with your readers or customers. Then look around and see who else you can offer a helping hand. You'll gain credibility, and it will feel wonderful.

Be reliable: To influence others, you must be trustworthy and dependable. (No, I am not telling you to act like a dog.) Check your facts, don't pass along hearsay, and think carefully before you share your messages.

Be aware: Pay attention to the mindset and circumstances of the people with whom you wish to interact. It's all too easy to become so obsessed with your own goals ("we need to close the quarter with some big sales") that you miss entirely what concerns other people. Intelligence is not only having something of value to say, but also knowing what would be of value to each person.

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Get your free copy of Simplify the Future, Bruce Kasanoff's short guide to a more successful career and rewarding life. He and Michael Hinshaw wrote about social influence in their book Smart Customers, Stupid Companies.

Image credits: Backroads (active travel company)