For those of us who spend a lot of time in social media, and especially those of us in the marketing and public relations professions, it has become achingly clear that bald is beautiful and that fewer follicles open the door to marketing blogger super-stardom.
So, what about those of us, like me, who have beautiful heads of hair and are in no danger of joining the ranks of the Bald Gods anytime soon? The answer is obvious: get your picture taken with a bald marketing blogger. Having a photo with any of the shiny-pate set lends you instant social media credibility. To that end, I have been gradually seeking out photo opps with the balderati. Here are some tips:
- 1. Be persistent. It took me a while to track down Greg Verdino, but I finally managed get him this week during the MarketingProfs conference. Bonus points for getting a picture of him where he’s not sticking his tongue out.
(photo by Greg Verdino)
- 2. Be willing to share the moment. Sarah Wurrey and I made good use of Mitch Joel‘s time at PodCamp Boston last fall by sharing the frame. Also, it’s a good idea to buy a round of drinks for Mitch’s entourage.
(photo by John Wall)
- 3. Don’t miss the moment. I had an audience at a Social Media Breakfast last winter with Geoff Livingston, but was too busy giving a sycophantic review of his book (which i plan to read someday) to snap a photo. An undocumented encounter is a lonely encounter.
(photo by Josh Hallett)
- 4. Aim high. Goldie who? One photo with Seth Godin can boost your career more than a season’s worth of botox injections. This is truly the Holy Grail of marketing blogger photo opps.
(photo by “esthr“)
- 5. Make sure the marketing or PR blogger is truly bald. Steve Rubel gets disqualified for refusing to shave off his “Conrad Janis/Gargamel fringe.”
(photo by Octavio Rojas)
- BONUS: Make sure you identify the up-and-comers, whether they be from the brash-but already bald set:
….or they haven’t quite de-follicled to the point of “bald marketing guru” status. Don’t frown, Mr. Monty, someday you will join the ranks of the truly shiny.
(photo by Josh Hallett)
Technorati Tags: mitchjoel, socialmedia, scottmonty, gregverdino, aaronbrazell, geofflivingston, sethgodin, bald, steverubel, goldiehawn, octaviorojas,
Wow, truly inspired. I’m honored and humbled. You seem to have a nose for this sort of thing.
Chris Brogan really throws a wrench into your whole theory. If you can hire a team of ninjas to shave him bald, you’ll be home free. However, his legions of fans (of whom I am one) may protect him from the ninjas so then you’re out of luck.
Chris who?
Had I known you were such a raving fan-boy I might have logged off Second Life sooner. I am psyched to have finally made it into a Social Media Top 5 and even more psyched that you didn’t confuse me for Mitch J.
Scott: What about my nose?
Greg: You need to perfect Mitch’s “happy” look.
So are you saying I have to commit to shaving down to the skin to be considered for this list? I buzz to 1/8″ does that put me within the official balderati range?
You also get points for Verdino without throwing the horns.
That shot of Monty looks like it came out of an action flick – he’s checking the sonar to see if Red October is on to him…
to be fair, my baldness was one of those, “you can’t quit, you’re fired” scenarios… at least that’s what I keep telling myself.
Also, the baldness allows the tin foil hat to grip.
;)
Thanks for the kindness.
John – very astute! I was manning the livestreaming for BlogPotomac, and it was just as stressful as the Hunt for Red October.
And *you* get points for referencing a movie that starred toupee-wearing Sean Connery.
Well done, Doug. Well done. :) What can I say? It’s like magic. :)
Mitch– Thanks for coming by! As you can see, Verdino is totally trying to cop your look
John– I can always count on you for a “cultural:” reference. No comic book one, though?
Scott- if BlogPotomac is stressful, you are in the wrong business :)
Aaron, yes it’s magic, but you still have to stand next to Chris Brogan to get the girls
Don’t forget the importance of thick-framed glasses as in the first photo. Besides adding visual interest to your bald head, they give you web 2.0 super powers like the ability to see microformatting.
Dude!?
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tSocM> Doug Haslam | The Bald Truth: How to be a Social Media Rock Star: An older post I had forgotten .. [link to post]
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