“Are Tribes Dead, Or Is A New Day Dawning?”

RIP Tribes?
After all the rush and hubbub about marketing syndication tribes, are they already starting to fizzle out? After all, internet marketers by the hundreds joined tribes last year and early this year, sometimes several tribes. Syndication and traffic was the pot of gold they sought. But one-by-one many a tribe member lost momentum and their enthusiasm for syndicating waned. Oh there were some cool automation tools that came along and still have a lot of people excited, for a while anyway. But all-in-all the interest level in syndication has peaked. So are tribes dead? Are tribes too 2009?

Tribes Revisited
Before you pack up your laptop and delete your tribe’s group from your Skype contacts, think about why you joined a tribe in the first place. Was it to get traffic? Sure it was. Was it to meet new potential JV partners? You bet it was. And it was also to learn from best practices, to build a panel of advisors who could help you trouble-shoot your business, and to bring a bit more warmth into a technology focused profession! So before you give up on tribes, ask yourself whether they delivered any of these other benefits!

In my case tribes have more than delivered. My website traffic grew. My panel of advisors was formed. I met friends who have become JV partners. And I’ve had a lot of fun along the way.

The Death of Syndicating
I recommend we re-purpose our tribes. Syndication and backlinks are great, but if you’re going to invest time and energy into a tribe, don’t you deserve to receive more than a bunch of backlinks? Syndicating is the moral equivalent of factory work. The fact is, syndicating can be virtually automated now. Tribes are much too valuable to relegate to mere syndication drudgery!

Getting More Out of Tribes
I can understand why some people are dubious about tribes. After all there have been enough people who looked at tribes as little more than an arcade game. . . put in an hour of syndicating and get 10 hours of backlink play in return. People joined multiple tribes, and frankly, some people abused their privileges with tribes.

My tribe is The Daily Crushers. From the outset we did things a bit differently. For one thing we attracted people who wanted something different. In fact our recruiting slogans were “World Domination” and “Change the World Into a Better Place”. One thing we did differently was to form permanent small satellite tribes, called mini-tribes. Each mini-tribe was essentially a permanent tribe licensed to use the Daily Crusher name.

Because we created stable groups, relationships grew strong and deep. Trust was developed and three of our seven tribes actually started joint ventures and began developing their own products to be marketed by the greater membership. Infrastructure began to go into place such as affiliate tools and webinar software to support the entrepreneurial efforts of these tribes. And we noticed something else. Syndication was no longer the focus. Lifelong friendships and business partnerships were born.

“Tribe 2.0”: The Awesomeness of Tribes in the Future!
But if you’re a cynic and wonder whether tribes have a place in 2010 and beyond, I’ve got an idea that might just turn the tide for you. I call it “Tribe 2.0”. In my vision of the tribes of the future, the tribe becomes much more customized to your needs and focused on helping you become a success. We’re probably dropping syndication all together! In a word tribes are getting PERSONAL.

“Tribe 2.0” is a re-purposed and seriously improved version of the original. In “Tribe 2.0” we strip the requirement for syndication as a condition of membership. Instead of syndicating or promoting each other’s business, tribe members are going to be supported and mentored by the tribe. “Tribe 2.0” will have as its core purpose to grow the members’ skill levels and help them become crazy-successful in their business!

Incubator for Masterminds
“Tribes 2.0”builds on these experiences. I believe “Tribe 2.0” will become a mastermind incubation movement. Tribe members will be able to rely upon their trusted tribemates to help them build their businesses and thrive. I propose to completely change the mission of tribes to specifically focus on each member’s businesses. In “Tribe 2.0” members will work together to set meaningful business goals. They will hold each other accountable for achieving those goals and their commitments along the way. Members can brainstorm together. They can help each other with ideas, recommendations, and if necessary, labor. Checklists and benchmarks can be created to help assure that each member’s business is achieving all it can. Folks, that’s what masterminds do. That’s what “Tribe 2.0” will do. But “Tribe 2.0” will do it with all the options open for lifelong friendships, business partnerships and joint ventures, large groups of people joining together to share overhead costs like GoToWebinar accounts, Nanacast subscriptions and other support tools.

Oh, tribes can still syndicate if they want to. And tribes can develop products if they want to. But from now on tribe members can be assured that somebody’s in their corner to help assure that their business is a success and that they meet their objectives. And yes, in that corner will be tribemate lifelong friends!

So are tribes dead? No. They have only just begun! If you’re not in a tribe, join one. It’s one of the smartest business decisions you can make.