One goal I have with my writing is to try to be fair and objective concerning the things, people or companies I write about on Tyme Said. In order to be fair and objective this means I have to be willing to put my personal feelings aside and revisit things, people and companies I wrote about in the past. Today I am happily writing about someone who I wrote a critical piece about last year….and how much he has evolved.

I am writing about Wayne Sutton.

The Problem

From my previous article:

From a viewer standpoint, Wayne’s show was painful to watch because Wayne and his co-host were unprepared but most importantly, they had no control over the show. Wayne and his co-host are supposed to steer the audience in the direction they want their show to go.

Wayne (literally) is on almost every social network. It was almost impossible to follow what he was doing and saying online because he literally was everywhere. Just as a host has to guide his guest through a video or podcast, a “leader” in a niche or community has to guide their readers/followers. If the leader is all over the place, that leads to chaos.

I understand why people do this. With so many social media sites coming out it is very easy to get caught up in them, especially since they have the potential to be the next “big” thing. Being an early adopter on “the next big thing” has its advantages. Lack a focus is one of the main reasons why companies fail unfortunately.

The Change: Sutton vs. Scoble

To understand the change, I am going to compare Wayne Sutton and Robert Scoble’s presence at SXSW this year. I also wrote a critical piece about Scoble. Scoble recently announced he would not be making videos for Fast Company anymore.

Websites

Scoble: He made an announcement about his new venture, Building43.com, at SXSW during Gillmor Gang. People listening to the live stream or reading about the new venture went to the site, which is live but has no content. One does not need to be a rocket scientist to understand that a more effective approach would have been to make the announcement after the new site had content on it.

Sutton: Wayne started working on his sites before he left. When he reached SXSW his sites were in order and he was ready to go. He launched a new community portal prior to leaving.

Winner: Sutton

Content

Scoble: Robert and his cameraman Rocky are at SXSW. Perhaps they shot a lot of video and they will upload it later. There is nothing available now, while SXSW is going on. Nothing is on their new site.

Sutton: Wayne has been broadcasting panels and he archived the videos for later viewing. He has been taking fun pictures, and making new friends. Wayne seems to understand and grasp the idea of balance between performing and partying. He seems focused on achieving his goals. Wayne is loading his site with content yet still taking time to enjoy himself while interacting with people who reach out to him.

Winner: Sutton

Partners

Scoble: Robert and Rocky do not seem to be accomplishing anything productive to their new venture. Again, perhaps there are videos coming later but does anyone really care what happened at SXSW after it is over? It is hard enough to get people who opted not to go to care while it is going on.

Sutton: Wayne and Kipp seem to make a strong partnership because they have balanced friendship, work and “fun”. They can leave SXSW proud they had fun and accomplished something that will bring them closer to their goals.

Winner: Sutton

Reflection….

Wayne wrote about a conversation he and I had over a year ago. He said that conversation stuck with him along with other conversations he had with others. He took those suggestions and put his spin.

Let me be clear: my article is not about Wayne doing what “I” said. He is making moves that will strengthen his position to reach his goals. I spoke about the Suggested List on Twitter and how the list Twitter implemented skews the “Followers” numbers. The people or companies on the list were not added because of their accomplishments on Twitter. They are on the list due to their accomplishments off Twitter.

Social sites are great compliments to a blog/site. When a person places social media sites over their own, they are making a mistake that will catch up with them later.

In the End…

Let me be clear: I do not buy into Social Media Experts or even strategists because quality content (product or service) has always and will always dominate on the internet. People want to block the noise on the internet and focus on the content (whether it is fun, educational or business) that interests them. Which one you decide to be, the noise or quality, depends on what the decisions you make and your specific goals.

What I do recommend is positioning yourself so, if these third party sites die out, you are not dependent on them. I am looking forward to what Wayne does next. It is truly refreshing to watch the changes he is making. I wish him the best of luck and I hope he continues to have success.