What’s a friend worth to you?

John Reese is inviting you to become his friend. Jack Humphrey thinks it’s a great idea.

It’s a nice marketing stunt, and I’m sure John has a well thought-out plan for the likely 5000 people who add him, but that’s all it is: a stunt. The long term value is not pending for most of us (John will probably pull a miracle out of it).

For the rest of us: You might be my friend on Facebook or MySpace or Friendster, but if we’ve shared no significant interaction together (dinner, solving your problem, you solving one of mine, a roof shared during a trip, etc), then that stat isn’t worth much. To me or to you.

And no, meeting for 12 minutes doesn’t count either.

So the question, then, is not how many friends you have, but how many significant interactions you have with customers, prospects, partners, and colleagues. How can you share 1 more today?

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