In his 2000 book The Tipping Point, author Malcolm Gladwell describes what he calls “The Law of the Few.” According to Gladwell, not all people in a network are equal. He identifies three types of people who are important for the spreading of ideas: Connectors, Mavens, and Salesmen.

a.) Connectors are people who know a lot of other people, have a huge acquaintance set, and actively build new connections between people.

b.) Mavens are people who live on information and have the power to influence other people. When they speak, others listen. When they recommend, others believe.

c.) Salesmen are the easiest group to understand. They are people who have the ability to persuade other people.

The ideal chain would then go something like this: Convince the mavens, make sure they talk to the connectors, and have the salesmen spread the idea beyond the initial few. Though Gladwell, didn`t call it, but these people are subsets of the larger group which can called as Evangelists.

Dictionary meaning: Evangelism is about sharing the love of Christ with everyone.

But for you, it’s about sharing the love of your product/site/portal/community with everyone.

How do you build a Network of Evangelists

Tell them a story, and make them a part of that story. A story which they want to share with their friend and peers. A story which they are proud to be a part of. A story they really believe in.

For e.g. Starbucks have build a story of its evangelist seeing it as a place where they can gather, get together, talk, chat and, yes, buy coffee as well. So think what your story would be.

Some steps.

1. Draw an outline of the story. Define a cause. You don`t need to figure out the middle or end.

2. Lose control. Be ready to let the community take over.

3. Set a direction not objectives. Twitter developer never thought that it would have used in its current way. They just laid down the initial rules of 140 characters per message, but the community around is using in all different way what its founders could have imagined. (Source)

4. Make tools which will help your community to spread the word easily, coach new members and invite their peers.

5. Reward and recognize your best evangelists.

6. Help them collaborate and co-produce. Working in a team is more fun.

7. Don’t be afraid to give challenges to your users.

8. Publicize the existence of your evangelist’s network. Your network of evangelists should be the most important part of your showcase.

9. Do realize that they own the effort and content produced. Let them take it anywhere they want.412898