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Kevin and Debra Rollins Center for eBusiness - The Influentials
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The Influentials

The Influentials

One American in ten tells the other nine how to vote, where to eat, and what to buy.
Edward B. Keller and Jonathan L. Berry

Reviewed by D. Richard Dance, CPA, President/CEO of UPchannels and Ann H. Jenkins, Office Manager

April 2003

Richard Dance reviews the book The Influentials. The book talks about the tremendous influence 10% of the population has on the other 90%-with regards to purchasing, voting, eating, and other routine decisions. The book answers the following questions: Who are the "influentials?" What makes them tick? How do they spread influence? What are they saying today?

Introduction

"This is a book about the people in America who exercise influence . . . who shape opinions and trends in our country." At 1 in 10 of the U.S. population, that is 21 million people. The purpose of this book is to map out a route that explains who these people are, how they exercise influence, and how they can be targeted. This book serves as an intellectual adventure and a hands-on marketing manual.

Ten Questions

This book aims at answering these ten questions:

  1. Who are the people leading America's trends?
  2. How can I better understand them?
  3. What makes them stand apart?
  4. Are there certain demographic markers?
  5. What makes them tick?
  6. Do they have a different mind-set from other people?
  7. How do they spread influence?
  8. What are they saying today?
  9. Where are they pointing tomorrow's society?
  10. How can I apply their insights and ideas to my company, nonprofit organization, or political campaign? Can I persuade them to spread the word for my product, service, organization, or idea?

An Example

Influentials can be used as an early predictor. Years before most people had heard of digital still cameras, Influentials were aware of them. By early 2001, one in six Influentials owned one (double the rate of the public as a whole).

Why Are Influentials Important to Business?

Before Americans buy products, they talk, listen and ask friends or family members what they think. Influentials can be far more effective, or at least equal to traditional media.

Who Are The Influentials?

Most of the book is devoted to answering this question. They are not who you would expect. Influentials are typically not the richest, most educated, or most accomplished, although influential Americans do share certain characteristics. There are five characteristics:

  1. They are active: publicly, personally, and religiously. They also travel extensively.
  2. They are connected to people, groups, and different things.
  3. They are twice as likely to be asked for advice and opinions on a variety of topics.
  4. They have active minds, high levels of education, continuous learning, broad range of interests, and reading is their leading hobby.
  5. They are pioneer consumers: cell phones, personal computers, e-mail, ATM cards, the Internet. They are assiduous experimenters.

What Are Their Personalities Like?

  1. They have a clear sense of what matters.
  2. They believe in growth and change.
  3. They value family first and are engaged in life.
  4. They have idiosyncrasies, which means they make their own mix. This adds an element of unpredictability, quirkiness, richness and style to their personality.

What Do They Have To Do With E-Business?

E-business captures the imagination of Influentials. It also works for them because it is convenient.

What Do They Believe Are 7 Trends?

For most of their life "it has been at the edge where the past, present, and inspiration blur together to create visions of the future." Where will they point to in the future?

  1. Toward a focus on the legacy the boomer's children will leave.
  2. A globally connected lifestyle that will piece together this from one part of the world and that from another to create a best of both worlds.
  3. A high pace of life will continue, but with demands for high pace accelerating which could be a vacation, weekend trip, spa, massages, church, yoga, meditation and coffee breaks.
  4. Towards the PC which is poised to expand its presence in the home in the coming decades--even in an integrated way.
  5. Towards living longer and being stronger while getting older—still wanting to do things that excite them.
  6. To a future with no "big brothers," or at least parity between people and institutions in the currency of information.
  7. Towards acknowledging trade-offs that convenience demands may not be worth it, especially trade-offs in quality. Faster, more efficient products and services may not become bestsellers.

Side Note
Where Do Influentials Save Time?

The leading response among Influentials (and Americans as a whole), is in postponing household cleaning. Apparently, a little dust is not that important in the grand scheme of things. About seven in ten people (Influentials and the general public) postpone household cleaning chores at least sometimes to buy themselves time. For the majority, in both groups, it's more of an occasional practice than the routine, with only about one in four saying they clean often.

What's Your Influential Strategy?

This question is answered in the closing chapters in the book—devoted to making sure you are reaching the decision makers who are influential in others decisions.

The authors suggest six rules for those who want to listen in on Influential's consumer decisions:

  1. Be where the information is.
  2. When critics come knocking, invite them in.
  3. Get out into the community.
  4. Make things easier (people are willing to spend more on stuff that makes life easier).
  5. Know the "exceptions" and keep up with them (Influentials are utilitarian in many areas, but they make exceptions to the rule).
  6. Be a brand and tell the world. (Influentials are skeptical of marketing, but hold a high opinion of brands.)

Conclusion

Now that you have a reasonable summary of the points that Ed Keller and Jon Berry make, you can evaluate whether to buy it. Purchasing the book adds emotion, feeling, and creative ideas to the outlined points above. For example, I learned more about myself in the process and picked up enough business ideas that I have this book on my bookshelf and recommend it.

Where to Obtain the Book

It can be purchased directly from the following sources:

  • Amazon.com Web site (www.amazon.com) [Hardcover] | $18.20; [Digital Microsoft Reader] | $19.99; [Digital Adobe Reader] |$19.99
  • Barnes and Noble store or Web site (www.bn.com) [Hardcover] |$20.80, Readers Advantage $19.76; [Adobe Acrobat eBook] |$19.99, Readers Advantage $18.99
  • Booksamillion wWeb site (www.bamm.com) [Hardcover] | Regular price $18.20, Club price $16.38

Standard Information about UPchannels

UPchannels focuses on delivering six primary services:

  1. Provides hope for information overload through Personal Knowledge Management (PKM) training and seminars for individuals, families, and organizations.
  2. Offers the CRM Researcher's Directory through Bob Thompson's CRMGuru.
  3. Serves as Knowledge Management editor for the Open Directory Project on the Internet.
  4. Creates XBRL Financial Reporting knowledge bases and training for CPAs and companies.
  5. Works with One-to-One Web Sites to create personal Web sites for doctor's patients, and other vertical industry information needs.
  6. Does special projects and marketing whitepapers for growth oriented software vendors, such as Microsoft.
All of this is provided through channels of information. For more information, visit www.upchannels.com

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