In her 2011 Digital Women: from geeks to mainstream presentation that was given at the WIFT International Women Conference for Digital Women, Dr. Taly Weiss, a social psychologist and CEO/Founder of Trendspotting, concluded that “women are dominant digital users – they breathe and live digital.” Dr. Weiss’ conclusion echoes BlogHer’s 2011 Social Media Matters Study findings:
- Eight-seven million women (18 to 76 years old) are now online.
- Sixty-nine million women use social media weekly.
- Eighty million women use social media monthly.
- Fifty-five million women read blogs monthly.
These facts illustrate the power and presence women have in the digital space. When women marry their power and presence, they give birth to digital sisterhood, the feminine currency they use to create relationship wealth through the connections they make, conversations they have, communities they build, causes they support, collaborative partnerships they establish, and commerce they engage in with women they meet online and offline.
They also become Digital Sisterhood Leaders, ambassadors of social expression who share what they are passionate about online. In her upcoming book, Digital Sisterhood: Fierce Living Online for 25 Years (Fall 2012), Ananda Leeke, founder of the Digital Sisterhood Network, writes,
“Without even knowing it, women have become Digital Sisterhood Leaders as they use their social media platforms to advocate causes; to build communities; to create apps, art, books, businesses, products, publications, services, tools, and webisodes; to curate content; to educate and inform; to give voice to their thoughts as subject matter experts, thought leaders, and brand ambassadors; to share information and experiences; to explore and experiment with new technologies as early adopters and trendsetters; to engage in social good; to influence others with their lifestyles and personal interests; to inspire and motivate; to mentor; to network; to tell their personal stories; and to promote and celebrate the expertise, gifts, and talents of others. Based on my online and offline interactions, I have identified 12 key leadership roles they play: advocate, community builder, creator, curator, educator, influencer, mentor, motivator, promoter, social do gooder, storyteller, and thought leader.”
The Digital Sisterhood Leadership Project was established to explore, document, and celebrate the creative ways social media women express their leadership abilities and experiences online and offline. The Project will have a soft launch in May. Its official launch will occur in January 2013. The soft launch for the Digital Sisterhood Leadership Project began with a Digital Sisterhood Radio interview with Dana Theus, founder of InPower Women on May 1. The interview focused on the leadership roles social media women play and tips on how to establish a personal leadership brand with social media. Click here to listen the audio recording of the interview.
The launch also includes a series of #DSLead Twitter chats on May 2, 9, 23, and 30 from 9:00 pm to 10:00 pm ET. See the list of Twitter chat topics below. Make sure you follow @digitalsisterhd and use the hashtag #dslead to track the conversations on Hootsuite, Tweetdeck, Tweetchat or Tweetgrid.
- May 2 @9:00-10:00 pm ET: The Leadership Roles that Social Media Women Play
- May 9 @9:00-10:00 pm ET: How Social Media Women Develop Their Personal Leadership Brands
- May 23 @9:00-10:00 pm ET: Social Media Women as Community Builder Leaders
- May 30 @9:00-10:00 pm ET: Social Media Women as Social Good Leaders
In addition, the Project will feature a series of guest blogger interviews with Digital Sisterhood Leaders in May, June, July, August, September, October, and November. There will be more surprises especially during Digital Sisterhood Month in December. So stay tuned for more news in the coming months!
Ananda Leeke 