By most accounts, success is all about “who you know.” And, yes, we’ve all been told that opportunity’s about being in the “right” place at the “right” time.

Well, Susan Boyle (or more correctly, social media) has blown the doors off these clichés… and, by my watch, has done so in just under six minutes. (In case you’ve missed her performance on Britain’s Got Talent last month, we are talking about a 47-year-old unemployed charity worker who lives with a cat named Pebbles in a remote village in Scotland.) Her one performance of “I Dreamed a Dream” from Les Miserables has garnered Boyle a level of notoriety that took Elvis (no disrespect intended) nearly one decade to generate.
Her video on YouTube has been viewed tens of millions of times all around the world. In the span of little over 30 days, she has been on television shows, written about in newspapers, talked about around the globe and is currently in negotiation with SONY BMG over a recording contract. Yes indeed, Elvis would be dazzled.

So what is it? What is that magic overnight star quality that shines so brightly upon her head? People argue that her success stems from her frumpy appearance and devil-may-care attitude.  I, on the other hand, would rather consider her looks and earthy demeanor to be part and parcel of her specialized “brand.”  The super-stardom that came her way did so not because of luck,  skill or even from years of pavement-pounding hardwork.

To be sure, Boyle has always had talent. She processes now very much the same voice that has sung karaoke in the Happy Valley Hotel tucked away in Blackburn, Scotland, each and every week. People have heard her sing before, and she was even featured on a charity album in 1999. How did she get so famous, so fast and with so little (and I say this with effection) effort?

Quite honestly, the difference between Boyle and Elvis is not the music, the jumpsuit or even classic good looks. The difference is the era. Today’s very fast, inexpensive distribution of media (through no great effort of her own) is Boyle’s most powerful advantage.

Assuming this is true—and not to deduct anything from Boyle’s charming performance or skill—then anyone, from virtually anywhere in the world, has a chance to succeed with a unique product, skill or service –so long as marketing and social media are part of the start-up mix. In fact, Boyle also proves that expensive, fancy packaging is quite optional for success. It just goes to show you, “who you know” is not as important as where you go. So if you are looking for any measure of success, get yourself (your company, your product, your name, your skill) on the Internet.

Thoughts? Comments? I’d like to hear from you. To see Boyle’s performance, click on the below link.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RxPZh4AnWyk