If you think about it, as business owners, we’re creating a network of networks. We have a community that we’re part of with this group, and we belong to this association, and online we may use Twitter and Facebook and other places to build networks. But how often do these networks work together? What we need to think about it how to create an ecosystem where everything supports everything else.
Yes, this is from another UnGeeked Elite talk, this one by Sam Fiorella (did I mention how good this conference was? I love when I get so many great ideas in one place — talk about ROI!). He spoke about why it’s important to build communities, but not just a network of networks, a real ecosystem that is self-supporting .
Why an Ecosystem?
Think about a typical ecosystem — let’s say a coral reef. You have lots of different types of inhabitants, including fish, starfish, coral, plants, plankton, etc. While there’s certainly outside influence, this ecosystem is generally self-supporting: everything can find something to eat in that location. There’s definitely a reason why each member of the ecosystem is a part of that particular community.
Ecosystem in Business
Having an ecosystem in business is important because we all only have limited resources (especially in time). We want our efforts to be as effective and successful as possible. If we can build an ecosystem, then the time we spend in one part of the network should have more far reaching effects than if we just have a network of networks.
Offline & Online
Creating an ecosystem isn’t just about increasing the number of followers on Twitter or fans on Facebook. It’s about building relationships in various places (including offline), that then work together to create a community. Obviously this requires doing some work to connect with people both offline and online, as well as finding out all the different places where you’re connected to a specific person (good social CRM helps!).
How do you build an ecosystem with your business?
(photo by USFWS Pacific, on Flickr)