You can tell Jeb Blount loves what he does. Like most hyper-energized people, he just can’t sit still. Last year he started a social site dedicated to sales people, and has over 100,000 registered users today. Not bad for someone who’s just doing something he calls fun.

Jeb has taken a smart and strategic approach with SalesGravy.com. He didn’t set out to make it financially successful right away, so the site isn’t crammed with ads. It’s focused on people. When you join and set up a profile (which is generally a way to promote yourself and your skills), your picture is posted on the front page. People quickly find you, and friend you. And you immediately feel a part of this group.

There’s a bookstore, sales resources, podcasts, blogs, member chat, and a dozen additional services provided on the site. Jeb encourages users to write articles that offer helpful information to other readers, making user-generated content a core part of the site. All in all, it’s one of the better social sites with a clear audience, focus, and great services.

Popularity: 19% [?]

Several people have asked me lately if they should implement social Web tools for their sales force. I can think of few organizations that would reap more reward from social media than the sales group.

There are several different ways to look at this. First, it’s difficult for sales reps to have any real-time knowledge about what’s happening in marketing and with the products they’re selling. Second, sales reps provide a treasure trove of information and feedback for marketing and product development but rarely have a good outlet to get their ideas heard.

Internal and secure blogs, wikis, and social networks can help. An internal blog can be used by product marketing to keep sales reps up to date on new features, product delays, and product issues in development or in the field. Commenting allows both organizations to understand each other better and as well as the impact of their decisions.

A product wiki enables sales reps to provide input early on a product or have an impact on the evolution of the product. Good ideas can come from anywhere, and sales reps who spend a great deal of time with their customers just might have some innovative thoughts.

Implementing a Web site with social profiles enables sales reps to determine where expertise exists in the organization so that they can tap into it. It also allows for an easy exchange of ideas of what works and doesn’t work in specific types of accounts. The social conversation can be monitored and mined (using text-analysis) so that themes, issues, and best-in-class ideas can be analyzed and acted on.

Popularity: 24% [?]