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I thought I would begin this blog with a series of posts on The Tipping Point: How Little Things Can Make a Big Difference, by Malcom Gladwell. It is an amazing resource for all marketers, whether focusing on the elder market, or any industry. Published in 2005, and considered revolutionary, it is still extremely popular.
While the book has many interesting theories, I am going to delve into one of Gladwell’s main concepts, which he titles “The Law of The Few”. His idea is that a small percentage of the adult population influence behaviors. Gladwell labels these groups as: connectors, mavens, salesmen and later on in the book, includes innovators. As marketers, Gladwell suggests we focus on these four important personality types.
I am going to concentrate on one of the four tipping point personalities each week. My ultimate goal as a marketer, and what I do for all my clients, is to connect their business with all the tipping point segments. Let’s start learning about them so you know how to identify them.
We’re going to start with connector, because that is who I am. A connector is someone who has a wide range of social connections. This is someone who if you are having lunch with them in their “neighborhood” will be stopped by several people, many of them acquaintances. They take the time to introduce people, and remember a unique fact that they can throw out to make the person feel special. Most likely, they can talk to anyone.
So why is focusing on the connector so important? Because they spread the message. They are the ones who know so many people, and have such social power that they are able to start a movement with word of mouth. Because they know everyone, they know people in many different parts of social life, they interact with the young and aging world, and they can bring them together. Remember, the more people you know, the more acquaintances you have, the more powerful you are.
As a connector myself, I can say with absolute certainty this is true. Many of my clients have formed extremely profitable and beneficial business relationships because of an introduction I delivered. It is an influential group, and one that if targeted correctly can initiate what every marketer craves: a word of mouth campaign.
Contact Focus on Aging to find out how I can help connect you with this powerful segment.
Marla Levie, BSW, MA, President and Founder of Focus on Aging, has successfully been providing marketing consulting services to the elder care market and to other service-related professions in the Chicagoland area for over 20 years. Use the contact tab to email Marla for additional information about her services.
