On Sunday night after I arrived home from a Father’s Day trip to New Britain, Connecticut for a Rock Cats Minor League Baseball game, I went online and pulled up Google+.  I read with despair of the transitioning of one J.C. Kendall.

For those of you not on Google+, let me give a brief synopsis:
G+ is Google’s response to  Social.  Many compare it to Facebook.  There are SOME similarities, however G+ is building its platform around social search.

J.C. Kendall was someone that understood what Google was doing and we connected so well because after some time being on G+, I also understood what Google was doing.

J.C. spent much time on G+.  I met him online with a post he shared in January 2013:
What is Your Personal Brand Saying.  I re-shared his post here expanding on his comments.  Check it out.  I THINK it was after I re-shared that, that J.C. looked me up and circled me.  In February, I wrote another column discussing the merits of G+ and J.C. re-shared Sharing, Resharing and Circles.

We didn’t communicate often, but when we did, it was with mutual understanding of what we were discussing.  I have a wide array of interests and J.C. and I connected on a few.  Social Media was one such interest that we were simpatico with and when J.C wrote ANYTHING about Social I made sure to read it.  His absence from G+ will leave a huge void that will be felt by many for a long time to come.  There are several people who can take J.C’s flag and run with it but no one will be able to take his place.  He will be sorely missed.

Why am I sharing my relationship and how it developed in the short time I knew him?  J.C. was a power user on G+.  I want to show that if you attract those power users it is MUCH easier to develop a long term relationship with them.  It’s as I said in The Power of Social:
G+ is a place for engagement.
G+ is a place to make new relationships..
G+ is a place to network

You have to attract those users however.  How to do this?  You don’t necessarily have to write about “Social.”  But you SHOULD be knowledgeable about what you DO write.  And you SHOULD share other people’s content, influential people in your circles.  I’m fortunate to be on G+ in its early stages and I’ve developed strong relationships with many of the power users here, because I share valuable content.

I was lucky to find J.C’s What is Your Personal Brand Saying…
…and because I’ve been involved with Social Media for many years, I understand what J.C. pointed out in the article he shared.  I jumped right on the topic and re-shared it, mentioning him in the process.  This from my column Sharing, Re-sharing and Circles:
Re-sharing:
Another advantage to G+ is the opportunity the network gives its users to re-share content. I’ve seen examples of this all the time.  WHENEVER I re-share content, I ALWAYS mention the original person in my re-share line.  How do I do that?  In the content line, I place a plus (+) then immediately next to the sign I add the person’s name.  This way they receive notification that they have been shared.  This is only good etiquette and I believe it is something everyone who re-shares content should consider.

When I plussed J.C. he received a notification that I mentioned him and that began our “social” relationship.  Once he circled me I knew he received all of my content.  He may not have read everything I shared, but I understood that.  I ALWAYS knew when something I shared connected with him because he either left a comment or notified me.

J.C will be missed as he was one of the users that everyone in the early stages of G+ looked to for valuable content.  He wasn’t just a power user.  J.C. helped everyone understand the new social that Google was moving toward.  I was grateful that he saw in me some of the same attributes that he himself had.  And I was grateful to have connected with him for the short time I did.

I wish him safe passage into the next transition.

Be Happy!  Be Well!  Be Positive!
Blessings to you.
And Blessings to all who knew J.C. Kendall.
—
Chris