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Reciprocity is the new karma.

Whether you’re talking about how many followers you have on twitter, or how influential you are in the digital world in general, it’s all about reciprocity. And in fact, within the next few years, reciprocity will become a much more important indicator of media influence than traditional measurements like circulation or subscription numbers.

This is what reciprocity looks like. Thank you Bing images.

So what is reciprocity? It is almost a rewording of the Golden Rule. It is the idea of helping out other people or organizations and, in turn, being helped out by them. In terms of the blogosphere it is linking to other blogs, with the social normative assumption (or hope) they will link back to you (depending on their size), or at least take note of you. When it comes to twitter, reciprocity is posting links to other people’s blog posts and articles. It’s taking interest in their interests, rather than just using the network as a promotional tool for personal gain. And in either case, blogging or tweeting, it is one of the most important aspects of gaining more influence and followers for us non-celebrity types.

Reaping benefits of reciprocity can be elusive. Wayne Baker, Author, describes the paradox of seeking for the rewards of reciprocity:

We cannot pursue the power of reciprocity. When we try to invoke reciprocity directly, we lose sight of the reason for it: helping others. Paradoxically, it is in helping others without expecting reciprocity in return that we invoke the power of reciprocity. The path to reciprocity is indirect: reciprocity ensues from the social capital built by making contributions to others.

So really, if he’s right, we gain reciprocity by not pursuing it, but rather by seeking to make meaningful contributions.

This all ties back to the journalism landscape of Web 2.0.

In the future of media, reciprocity will be a direct measure of how many people are linking to an article and discussing its contents. It will be a much greater measure of influence and of what readers want than anything we have now. Letters to the editor are great, and can spark discussion. Subscription figures tell how many people like the paper enough on a consistent basis to pay for it regularly. But nothing provides the finger on the pulse of what is being discussed and what is important to people like the principle of reciprocity on the Web. The importance of your blog is relative to how many people link to it. The relevance of your story is how many people comment, and pass it on to their friends.

In light of this, Sparxoo recently posted their list of the top 25 most influential digital news and politics outlets. On the list were a handful of examples of those who have risen within the last five years due, in part, to their effective use of the principle of reciprocity, and the trickle-down effects of other people linking to themTop 25

Top 25 influential digital media outlets

When you look at digital influence, The Huffington Post, Google News, Yahoo News, Daily Kos, Politico, and DrudgeReport, none of which existed a decade ago, have become some of the most influential digital news outlets. And, with the switch the market is making from “traditional media” to online media, this essentially means they’ve become some of the most influential people in information dissemination, from scratch, in under a decade. It’s the American dream, in online media form, and it’s reciprocity at work.

As cynical as it may sound, the internet is now becoming one giant popularity contest. With the advent of twitter and blogs, it’s not always about what you know, but who you know, and how many of them you know. Just as social capital exists in real life, it exists online. It may not be easy to cultivate, but bloggers, tweeters, online newspapers, podcasters, etc., will come to spend more and more time investing in social capital to be competitive in a Web-based environment.

So here’s to you in your quest to build online social capital. And feel free, while you’re doing so, to share the love and toss some social capital my way.

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