Today, our world is both community thirsty and wary of corporate promises. How do we earn the trust of our community, especially as a large corporation or big brand?
Last month I participated in the Intel event Appup Elements 2010. Working with Soma Games and The Code Monkeys, I have seen first hand the development of the Intel Appup Store. This event was a celebration and gathering of Appup developers and partners. Intel made it clear that this was a community event but how serious is Intel about developing real community? How far is Intel willing to go to help talented and innovative developers succeed in the app industry? Will Intel be any different than say Apple?
On the second day Intel took all the attendees on a cruise across the San Francisco Bay that ended at an elaborately decorated warehouse in Berkley where a unique party and event was held. The first part of the event was a fireside chat with the Appup program executives lead by Peter Biddle. My friend Chris Skaggs asked at the open mic a very pointed question. Basically he asked if Intel really cared about the developers in this community, or was it all just talk. Biddle replied that the community will be the ones that will best answer that question, and he is right.
Corporations, like all of us, have to build trust before we can have social capital to move our own efforts forward. It is more about giving and promoting than doing whatever it takes to get ahead. It means spending the time, sharing the tools and offering up your best. In return you gain trust, respect and loyalty. At the end of the event I felt like Intel was honorable in their statements about the developer community. A month later I still feel that way.
Is it ultimately about making money?  Yes, but today’s investments, ones that pay off in the long run, are made through relationships and trust. An that, I believe, will pay off in the end.
