MattHaupt

I am definitely an introvert.

You know how I know I am? Because I re-wrote this blog entry probably 15 different times because it just didn’t seem “right”.  You might think that is being a perfectionist, I think that is just because I never truly put my thoughts together before I started typing away.

But you know what? That’s okay, because in the online world, you get to think about what you want to say before you say (type) it.

It is funny how our online and offline personalities seem to match a lot more than some people say. I know there is this whole tendency to think that just because you have more conversations online than in real life, that you become more extroverted, but if you take a closer look that isn’t always the case.

Yesterday I asked my sister, who just received her masters degree and is going to be one hell of a academic counselor someday, how she compared her online personality to her offline, and if she sees her introversion in both. I remembered her saying that she didn’t comment too much on blogs, she just liked to read them, and I thought that might be due to her being introverted.  She answered me, even past her bedtime (she has 3 young ones, so she really needs the shut eye)…

“…when I stopped and thought about it, I realized that my lack of participation is still a bit due to my introvertism, just not quite in the way that you thought. See, one of the things that seems to be typical of introverts on the internet … is that they love the internet because it allows them the time to stop and think things through — to process their own thoughts before being forced to comment. I read somewhere that introverts tend to think, then write, then think some more, then re-write….even doing this for simple things like emails and blog comments! I definitely think this is true for me. Whereas an extroverted person might be comfortable whipping up a random blog comment or email in seconds and sending it into cyberspace without a second thought.”

After reading her email, it all started making a lot more sense to me. (Thanks Sis!)

The online world isn’t making people more extroverted. It is just a place that is a little more tailored to the way introverts behave!

Think about it.

You receive a tweet from a friend on Twitter asking you more of a in-depth question. You know you know the answer, but you need some time to think about it, form the right words, and then you can send something back to them. You think about it for a few minutes (maybe hours if you really want to make sure you are saying the right thing) and then you send it away.

And what does your friend think? Well, they definitely are not feeling awkward that you are not answering right away. I mean you could be busy doing something else that is more important at the moment. All they know is that you did end up sending something to them.

In the real world, that might not work out so great. Say you are at a party and somebody asks you an in-depth question. Are you allowed to say ”Excuse me, let me go think about this for a second and then I’ll come back to you with my answer”.

I mean you could, but you might get a lot of weird looks.

And you can definitely pick the introverts out in a crowded room, but what about online? The line between extroverts and introverts begins to get a little fuzzy. All human beings want interaction at some point. Extroverts are energized by a lot of interaction, and introverts can get drained. So is an introvert with thousands of followers on Twitter and friends on Facebook an oxymoron? I don’t think so…

Introverts just have the opportunity to gain friendships and connections in a way that fits their personality. And what is great about social media is that just because introverts can think about what they want to say to others doesn’t mean extroverts need to. They can type away their thoughts quickly and send to whoever is willing to listen. Social media works with everyone!

“But aren’t introverts less open about their feelings?”

Actually introversion has nothing to do with openness. I’m an introvert and I wear my heart on my sleeve half the time. It’s just, if I want to tell you how I feel, I have to think about how I feel first.

If you want to learn a little more on the true definition of introversion and extraversion according to the Myers Briggs Type Indicator, check out their website.

Photo by Ruth L on Flickr

It is funny how much things have changed over time. In the last 5 seconds, 10 new blogs were created from ordinary, everyday people. In that same time, 18.6 blog posts were published, ready for the wandering eyes of the online world to gaze upon them.

But, how many eyes actually see that particular post? In my case, and many others, the number can be as close to zero as you can get.

That doesn’t change the fact though, that these blog posts can be JUST as important as other information you can gather online. Sure, these bloggers do not have journalism degrees and maybe some do not write “well”..

What they do have, more importantly, is their emotion and heart in their writing.

And that’s more than I can say for a lot of professional journalists out there; even if you are one of the lucky journalists who have the privilege of writing in an opinion column.

This is why it is important for you as a company to realize that there are far more people to impress than the professional journalists from your national newspapers or magazines. Although these “professionals” have access to a publication with mass appeal, there are a bloggers throughout the online world who are talking about you and your products/services.

And let me tell you large fortune 500 company…it’s not all good. It’s not all bad, but DEFINITELY not all good.

If the short history of blogs have told us anything it is this…people are attracted to the opinion and thoughts of the general public, and not necessarily the big shot from the New York Times. And definitely not a company’s PR agency.

With everything that has happened over the past decade, from the controversial war in Iraq, to Enron (remember those guys), to the Wall Street meltdown and bailout, to the Big Three and their request for government loans (noticed I said LOAN and not BAILOUT), people are beginning to see corporations and their products as opaque as opaque can be.

They see deception, not straight-talk.

They see power, not humility.

In an age where the masses demand transparency in how the inside of a company and brand work, when people are looking for answers, they will soon turn to the only people (as for now) that they know are harder to manipulate than the general media…

Themselves

Their family

Their friends

Their next door neighbors

Their favorite blogger

Because if one of them says your product or service is terrible, guess what? They are not going to buy anything you throw at them. Not with funny ads. Not with integrated “advertorials”. Not with anything.

That is why each company should treat their own customers the same, if not better, than the journalists they’re afraid of doing anything in wrong in front of. We should be treated better than stockholders, because we are the ones that are keeping your company around.

Reach us, and we might have something good to write about you. And trust me, our opinion matters.

But until then…