Showing posts with label Social Media. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Social Media. Show all posts

Saturday, November 13, 2010

Are you ready for Podcamp AZ 2010?

It's almost Podcamp AZ time once again. I'm looking forward to Podcamp AZ 2010 even more than the three that came before because I'm not helping to run it this year! A great group of volunteers has picked up the reigns and is busy putting together a kick-ass event that we'll all enjoy. It's happening soon: November 20-21 2010 in Tempe, Arizona. So get registered now!

[caption id="" align="alignleft" width="450" caption="Podcamp AZ 2010"]Podcamp AZ 2010[/caption]Podcamp AZ is a relevant media unconference. I rather like that title, particularly the word relevant. There is no more "the" media. Some of the biggest media from the perspective of impact is ran by the smallest number of people. The media giants of yesterday continue to speak to a disinterested audience. Print is dead or dying. My media is not your media, and that's a Good Thing.

I'll be a part of two events at this year's Podcamp AZ. The first is a "genius panel" (their word, not mine). It's a special Podcamp session that is 100% dedicated to questions from the audience. I'll join fellow podcasting thought-leaders Debbie Walker, Dani Cutler, Jack Mangan, Teel McClanahan, Marc Spagnuolo, & Nicole Spagnuolo on the stage. You'll come with plenty of questions. Sounds like fun!

I'm giving a solo-session as well, continuing my focus in the new world of publishing. Here's the description:

Podcasting for Authors
For almost six years now, some “underpublished” authors have found success behind the microphone. Some record their own serialized audiobook and release it as a podcast. Others hit the podcast interview circuit. Many have found themselves video darlings. But they all share one thing in common: a do-it-yourself mentality. I’m the co-founder of Podiobooks.com and the author of Podcasting for Dummies. I’ll walk you though those who have done it well, how to avoid pitfalls, and teach you how to rock this on your own. If you have the drive and desire, that is.

Get registered. Get here. And get podcasting!

Wednesday, October 13, 2010

Social Media 101 – Social Media Mistakes

Tonight is another Social Media Club Phoenix meeting, and once again I'll be leading the Social Media 101 class before the main meeting. In case you've forgotten the details:

When: Second Thursday of each month, 5:30 SHARP!

Where: Jobing.com, 4747 N. 22nd Street (between Indian School and Camelback) in Phoenix

Cost: FREE to attend.

Of course, you're welcome to hang out for the regular #SMCPHX meeting that kicks off at 6:30 and goes until 8:00. Their topic: Social Media Strategy – If you don’t have a plan, how do you know if you succeed?

But back to me and the class I'm leading. We'll be talking about the biggest mistakes you can make in social media, and I hope to make it an interactive class. I have 10 examples of major faux paus, some of which I've made myself and all of which continually crop up as new people discover the supreme coolness that is social media.

Do you have suggestions? Leave comments here. Or better yet, come to the class and share! While it's designed for beginners, there's plenty of room in this session for others to share, too. See you at 5:30, SHARP!

Tuesday, July 20, 2010

Social Media for Authors a smash success!

Tonight I taught the Social Media for Aspiring Authors class at Changing Hands bookstore in Tempe. Not to toot my own horn (again), but I think it was smash success. The audience really seemed hungry for the content, and kept leading me right to my next point. And I only had to pull the "It's 2010" card once! Based on the feedback, I'm certain that Brandon and I will be working on a more formal workshop schedule. Excellent!

For those that made it: thank you. I truly enjoyed all of your comments and feedback. Thank you for being such an attentive audience.

And for those who didn't... well, it's hard to convey what we covered. I considered posting my outline, but I don't think in complete sentences. And I sure as heck don't outline that way. But here are the broad strokes:

  • We spent a good deal of time talking about the power of free. This is always a contentious topic, especially when talking to authors. And while I received a few questioning looks when I started, I think I won them over. Not that I attempted to convince them to give their stuff away for free. Not at all. But I did convince them that some authors are finding ways to use free to gain readers, book deals and real sales. They also walked away understanding this trend isn't a flash in the pan -- it will continue. And they have to try and work in that world.

  • I introduced my "Three Tees that Plague Underpublished Authors" concept. It went over well and I think made my further points hit home that much stronger. They are:

    1. Quality -- Can you hire the rest of the production team to make your book exceptional?
    2. Quantity -- You need more where that came from. Period.
    3. Obscurity -- By and large, people aren't waiting to steal your work. Because they don't know your work exists.

    Who said anything about them starting with "T"?

  • Done is better than perfect, great is better than OK, but success comes when you create something that is truly remarkable. Those terrible books that are terribly popular? They are so because they are remarkable. How do you create something remarkable? [Insert Your Answer Here]

  • Yes, we got specific on social media properties. But it wasn't the focus. Nor should a talk like this ever focus on tools. Tool-specific talks can, but not a survey class. We covered Gmail (there was and is a purpose, trust me), Google Alerts, Facebook, LinkedIN and blogging. Notice anyone missing?

    One common misconception I had to correct at least twice -- updating once a month. That's not nearly enough. How much is enough? Well... more is better than less. If you're trying to do weekly, someone is successfully doing it daily. YMMV.


[caption id="" align="alignleft" width="200" caption="Evo Terra signing Anne's book, courtesy of Nick Bastian"]Evo Terra signing Anne's book[/caption]And then suddenly, the two hours were over. Yes, like that. And someone brought a copy of one of my books and asked me to sign it! Thanks, Anne!

But not to worry. I'll be back. Based on the questions during the class and the feedback I heard afterward, there's a great need for more of this. Let's do it! Keep watching here and the Changing Hands website. I'm sure you'll see more -- and more formalized -- classes with me starting up quickly!

Quick question: do I stick with "for Aspiring Authors" or switch over to my personal favorite " for Underpublished Authors"? I'm obviously biased, and much of this depends on what CH wants to do. But your comments would be helpful to steer us in the right direction...

Sunday, July 18, 2010

Workshop: Social Media for the Aspiring Author

[caption id="" align="alignright" width="240" caption="Changing Hand Bookstore crowd"]Changing Hand Bookstore crowd[/caption]I think the writeup for this workshop I'm teaching says all there is to say:

Social media is often touted as the Holy Grail, a sure path to publishing success. But what about aspiring authors who don't have tens of thousands of fans waiting in the wings? Can social media help boost a budding novelist's career? Yes. And no. For nearly a decade, Evo Terra has been helping "underpublished" authors approach the world of new media. The co-author of Podcasting for Dummies, he's been a nationally syndicated radio show host, and is an influential social media practitioner. He's as jaded as he is excited about the opportunities offered by new media, and brings real-world examples germane to any author with dreams of publishing success. FREE.


The workshop is entitled Social Media for the Aspiring Author, and I'm teaching it at Changing Hands Bookstore on Tuesday, July 20 2010 from 6:30-8:30p. Changing Hands is an independent bookstore in Tempe, Arizona. They do an excellent job of introducing authors large and small to the general public and are probably the most frequented bookstores in town when authors are making their rounds across the country.

My friend and occasional co-conspirator Michael A. Stackpole teaches there regularly, often covering the topic of building a career as writer in a digital world. My approach (and hopefully my audience) will be a bit different, as I plan on addressing the foundational elements before the word "career" comes into play. Sometimes it works. Sometimes it doesn't. You know. Just like everything.

So if you or someone you know might be interested, tell them about it. This first class is a free one!

Monday, April 12, 2010

Effective SEO: The ONLY 5 Things That Matter

Buring Money
Image by purpleslog via Flickr
Don't run away just yet. I promise not to turn this blog into one more place where some SEO1 expert moron spews out stuff they know nothing about. In fact, this will probably be one of the few times I talk about SEO. I promise.

But it's an important topic: The SEO "industry" has convinced everyone that this stuff is hard. Sorry, but it's not. I'm a firm believer that the most effective approach is to teach your designers and developers the basic and fundamental concepts behind good website design, architecture and implementation. Done properly, your web pages will get the rank they deserve. And you can worry about running your business instead of wasting money trying to find ways to subvert Google. Because you're never going to win that game.

Below is a talk I gave at Social Media Club Phoenix last week. I typically lead a "social media 101" discussion prior to the meeting. My class was about double the size from months prior. I have to assume that at least some of it was the topic: Dispelling SEO Myths -- something you wouldn't typically hear spoken about at Social Media Club. And because of that swell in attendance, I decided to post it here. Seems like lots of businesses are struggling with this. As usual, I have a simpler way to handle it.

Yes, just those five things. No, I'm not kidding. You could go deeper, but you're wasting your time if you haven't done those five things. You're also wasting your time if you can't do those things so are considering hiring an outside firm to do something else for you. That's wasting your money, because "something else" won't work. Do the things I tell you. If you can't, spend your money trying to get that changed so that you can do those things. Or if you want, give half of that money to me. I'll at least be upfront with you and tell you nothing will happen. Your expectations will be properly set and you'll know you're wasting money, rather than finding out what a waste it was six months from now. I'm kidding, obviously. Save your money until you can spend it on something that will work.

Preemptive strike for you SEO-types -- Don't bother. You may have examples upon examples of how your trick or technique works. I don't care. You and I both know the tricks you try have limited chances of working and only work for a limited time. You and I also know that every time it doesn't work, you blame it on the client's inability to implement your plan. I get that. See above. I'm trying to fix that. But no, I don't think you should be able to charge stupid amounts of money each and every month to unsuspecting clients who haven't the foggiest how your efforts actually help them sell more stuff. Because they probably don't. You can't argue me out of my position. I can't argue you out of yours. Let's just agree to disagree on this, OK?

Preemptive strike for those who want to hire me for SEO work -- If you want me to help you come up with a strategy to dump your outsourced SEO firm and bring it in-house, I can help. But if you're looking for someone to "just do the work", that's not me. I know plenty of very nice, very smart and very fair people who do SEO work and am happy to make a referral. That is, if any of them are still talking to me after reading this post.

1 - Search Engine Optimization. I hate the term and much prefer "SEF", or making your pages Search Engine Friendly.

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Monday, March 29, 2010

What I'm learning from my Give Evo an EVO campaign

Man vs. Machine 1
Image by otherthings via Flickr
Can one man really influence a large telecommunications company? Sure. Am I that guy? Hard to say. But I'm going to find out.

In case you missed the news, Sprint has a new smartphone coming out by HTC called the -- of all things -- the EVO. As I'm a customer of Sprint and a sucker for new gadgets, I obviously want one. Read up on the "why" here.

For the past five days, I've been producing a video a day on YouTube. And of course I've been tweeting and chatting it up on Facebook. Contrary to the evidence of those last 5 days, I'm a pretty lousy self-promoter. So I'm learning a lot that may be of some use to the readers of this blog. I don't think my actions as an individual make a direct parallel for businesses, but some lessons may be applicable. Like this:

  • Respond to comments. No big secret here. Conversation begets conversation. I asked my friend iJustine to spread the word on one of the videos. She did, and I got a load of comments, mostly from her fans. And mostly -- not surprisingly -- addressed to her. I blew it by not responding to these folks right away, but have since corrected my errors. If they took the time to comment, I should take the time to respond. And maybe they'll become a fan of mine, too.

  • Enlist those who do self promote better than you. Last night I roped Tyler Hurst into helping. He didn't need a lot of convincing to jump in front of the camera. And since he's part of the content, he's going to talk about it, too.

  • Don't neglect the backchannel. Not everyone wants to tweet, facebook and generally help a social thing spread. But some have connections and are happy to send emails. I'm getting some traction there, so maybe my goal will be realized!

  • Experiment! I didn't have much of a plan when I started this. That's OK. I'm refining as I go. Also OK. If you have discretionary time -- and I have only a little -- it's OK to take this route. But note that I didn't go out and spend a thousand bucks on new equipment or start paying people to help me. That needs a touch more planning.


A lot of folks are asking me about my end-game. Simple: I want that phone. But I also want to see how this process works and how it might be applied in other directions. Welcome to the experiment. I'm going to start a daily log over on FunAnymore.com that covers all the stuff I'm doing, and how I feel about it any given day. Watch over there if you like.

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Friday, March 19, 2010

5 Simpler Ways to Lead Your Business to Social Media

Desert Leader
Image by Hamed Saber via Flickr
Getting your business started in social media isn't hard. But considering the amount of businesses that stink at it, maybe it should be harder. Or maybe businesses deciding to take the plunge into social media need to have a leader with a plan. What a concept.

Takeaways


  1. Monitor your brand. Google Alerts is a good place to start. Go wider with socialmention. Get serious and use Radian6 when you need to.
  2. Find employees who care. I'll be shocked if you don't have someone on staff who gets this stuff. This is their new job. Tomorrow.
  3. Let all departments play. This isn't one person's dominion. Social Media touches every aspect of your organization. Embrace that.
  4. Education matters. You're new to this. We aren't. Why make the same mistakes all over again?
  5. Demand results. If your team can't show you how this impacts your business, you may have the wrong team. Although you need to give them the tools and time to succeed.

    Juicy Details


    My friend Jay Baer suggests that your company make a commitment to do more than just do social media. He says -- and I agree -- that a truly successful company has to figure out how to be social. In the first, you're just going through the motions. Trying out one more new thing. And probably shuffling it off fast as you look for something else to try in passing. But the latter, actually becoming a social company, is something entirely different. It will change your organization -- for the better. But it won't do it by itself. It takes you, the leader of the company, to make the commitment. To see it through.


    Skeptical? You should be. So don't go off half-cocked. Here are five simpler ways to getting your business involved in Social Media. Do them right, and you'll see the changes I'm talking about.


    Up Periscope. You know all those conversations and all that engagement various pundits have been talking about for the past three years? Yes, that advice and information you've been ignoring. Guess what? It's happening. And the people having those conversations and engaging with one another don't really care if you are listening or not. They're having conversations about your brand. They're engaging with other people -- some of whom may be your employees. You're blissfully unaware. And they don't care.

    Or maybe that isn't happening. Maybe your product or service is so utterly unremarkable that no one is talking about it. No one is engaging. No one cares? Sure it's possible. It may even be likely. But you'll never know if you don't stick the periscope above the water line and take a look.

    Better said, you should start listening. The social web is inherently discoverable. Sharable. Social, if you will. Because of that, anyone can jump in and join the conversation. Or just listen. And that's where I want you to start -- by listening. Not engaging. Just listening. Listen first. Evaluate the landscape. Take the collective temperature. Then, and only then, can you take the next step.

    Listening to the social sphere starts out free. You can learn a lot by setting up Google Alerts on your own brand. You'll get emails sent to you every day when matches are found. When you're ready to broaden your search, give socialmention a try. Steve Farnsworth has a list of dozens of other similar free services. At some point, you'll want to graduate from free tools and do it like the pros. That would be me. I like Radian6, but selecting the right tool depends on the unique needs of each company.


    Let Your People Go. No, don't fire them. Well, maybe some. But I'm talking about the people who work for you who are already involved with social media. And if you don't think there are any: you're wrong. Someone in your organization has created a facebook group. Someone is tweeting about what they had for lunch. And someone has just checked in on Gowalla. It's happening. I promise. Right now, they're doing it under cover of darkness, because they think you'll flip out when you discover that they don't spend 100% of the 40+ hours you ask them to put in on strictly business-related work.

    But you can change that. You can find that person -- those people -- and understand that they are better at this stuff than you are. You have the power to give them the power to make their current clandestine operations a part of their jobs. Maybe their only job. Because you can't hire out for this stuff. We'll get to training and education in a minute, but you have to have the people responsible for being social for your company an integral part of your company. And why wouldn't you promote someone who's already intimately familiar with your company and is an active social media denizen? Yes, they currently perform valuable jobs for your company. No, they can't do that job and become the social springboard for your company. But you can always find someone else to do their current job. Do that. Now. Before your competitor comes along and offers them a job.


    Break Down Walls Between Departments. You don't get to have a Social Media Department. Sorry. This doesn't work like anything else you've tried before. Social media touches every aspect of your business. Marketing, PR, Customer Services, Tech Support, Operations, Biz Dev, HR... even Accounts Payable! The last thing you want to do is develop a formal inter-departmental policy for sharing of information up and down the chain. That way lies madness! And huge inefficiencies that simply won't be fast enough to allow you to respond at-speed in the social media world.

    Ultimately, you need social media team members in all of those departments! No, you're not going to make a new position within each one. You're going to let communication inside your company develop as naturally as communication develops outside of it. You're going to keep your lawyers and training staff at bay and busy drafting communications guidelines that clearly provides guidelines -- not rigid rules -- for how they should represent your company. And then you're going to tell the lawyers and training staff to relax and cut it down to a one-pager. This isn't about process. This is about providing a framework to allow your social employees can get their job done at the speed of social. And keep you out of hot water.


    Look Outside for Thought Leaders. The social world is changing fast. And no, it's not going away. Just like the internet didn't. And once you start letting your existing staff become internal social media experts, they are quite naturally going to start refining their social media skills as they currently relate to your organization. They are going to become the best experts in your industry... if you let them. Unfortunately, the world of social media is going to keep evolving outside of your industry. They won't have the bandwidth to keep up with everything new and learn how other industries are leveraging tools, techniques and tactics to increase efficiencies. Many of the strategic advances taking place elsewhere won't trickle down, and your company could be missing out on better opportunities.

    Combating this from the inside is hard. If not impossible. Your best bet? Go outside for strategy and realignment sessions. No, I don't think you should outsource your social media efforts. Yes, I do think that your company needs a frequent "sanity check" from independent and active social media practitioners. Things change fast in this world. That doesn't mean you should adopt every trend. Far from it. But you need someone you can rely upon to bring innovative ideas to your business. And unless you want to free up an employee to spend half their time pontificating, blogging and attending every possible social media conference, you're better off looking to the outside for this. I know a guy...


    Set Expectations and Demand Results. You're a business owner. You understand the business success metrics. You understand your goals. A big part of your up-front job is effectively communicating these to your social media staff so they can define hard measureables that you both agree upon. It's no good having you define those measureables. You don't know what can be measured! And it's no good having them come back to you with charts that show how many times a coupon was re-tweeted. But together -- probably with the help of the person above -- you can figure out what you should expect out of those conversations and engagements.

    Yes, social media can and should have a positive ROI. With real numbers you can take to your CFO and have him embrace. Easy? Nope. Critical? Absolutely.


    So... that was a long post. As much as I'd love to hear your feedback on the contents, I'm also curious what you think about the format? I rather like the idea of putting the takeaways at the top of the article. That way you can decide if you care enough to keep reading. But maybe I'm giving away the ending. Though... it's not like this is fiction, right?


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Thursday, March 11, 2010

Don't forget about the basics: My talk to the AZ Assn of REALTORS® today

Logo of the National Association of Realtors.
Image via Wikipedia
Today I'm driving up to Prescott to speak at the Arizona Association of REALTORS® 2010 Winter Conference. It's the same talk I gave to the National Association of REALTOR® late in 2009. And yes, you have to capitalize REALTORS and add the ® mark!

The talk is called Digitally Expose Yourself : Building Your Web Presence, and is aimed at those who are very brand new to the digital space. In fact, if you have any online acumen at all, you'll watch the presentation below wondering just who the heck needs this extremely low-level information.

Well, judging from the 350+ people in the room in San Diego a few months ago furiously taking notes, a lot more people than you think. And that's a good lesson to just about anyone in the digital space -- don't assume that your audience is at your level. Chances are, they aren't.

When I gave the talk the first time, I went to great pains to explain how basic the info was and gave my express permission for anyone to get up, walk out, and enjoy one of the other presentations going on at the same time as mine. Three people did. Three hundred and fifty stayed. And about a dozen had more questions after I was done. People are hungry for this information, and I'm happy to provide it to them.

How basic? See for yourself. Below is my dry run of the talk in SlideCast form. Not quite the same as seeing me live, but it's a close approximation.



And I hope someone turns the heater on before I get back to Phoenix. I hear they've just got a fresh batch of snow in Prescott. Yikes!

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Thursday, February 25, 2010

Starting a Blog for Your Business? Start With a Business Case

Longleat Hedge Maze
Image by Howard▼Gees via Flickr
"Blogging is easy. Every business should have one."

That's often the only argument you'll hear consultants give when advising clients on the merits of blogging. After that, they wax poetically on a litany of benefits you'll get from blogging. Increase search traffic & better engagement with customers usually top the list. And while I agree with the last two, you lost me at "... is easy".

Relative ease does not a business case make.

A business case for blogging? You must be mad. It's easy!

Didn't we just cover that? And just so we're clear, strategic blogging for a business is certainly not easy. The mechanics alone are daunting to a the vast majority of people who don't let words spew forth from their keyboards naturally. It's a tactic that takes time and understanding to develop the necessary skills. And that's just to learn how to write. Now do it frequently. Against a schedule. On plan. And fit it in with the dozens of other things a business owner has to do every day to keep their business a going concern.

OK, Ok... ok. It's not easy. But a business case?

Yes, a business case. Listen: anytime you invest time or money in something for your business, you need to understand what you're getting yourself into. Don't get me wrong; I'm a sucker for spontaneity. Some of my best ideas were crazy "gee, I wonder if..." ideas that were launched shortly after the concept germinated. But the ones that are still going all -- without exception -- had at least a rudimentary business plan. I'm not talking about a 60-page document that needs to be ratified by the Board. The last business case I put together for a client was a simple spreadsheet.

But to my initial point, "it's easy!" isn't a business case.

Here are 3 questions you need answers to before you jump on the blogging train:

  • Do we have the content? If you're a retailer that relies mostly on your vendors to supply you with information about the products you sell, this may be a problem area. By and large, you can't repurpose collateral and have that be blog-worthy content. You need original material, written from your company's point of view and in your company's voice.

  • Do we have the time? If you're working your employees at close to maximum, they won't have a lot of bandwidth to dedicated to blogging. And the time it takes you to read a blog post has nothing to do with how long it took someone to write it. 2 - 3 hours per post isn't an unrealistic numbers. How will you balance that time against other productive work time from your employees?

  • Do we have the dedication? Every new blog starts out with the same number of readers: zero. Almost every blog grows at about the same rate: incredibly slow. Even with gangbuster content right out of the gate, you shouldn't expect any sizable audience for 6 - 12 months. Maybe 18. Are you committed to generating exceptional content on a schedule that entire time and accept slow and steady progress?


And for fun, here are 3 questions you should never ask yourself about blogging for your business, for the answers are abundantly clear:

  • Should we outsource our blog to someone else? Oh hell no. Yes, there are professional writers out there who perform copywriting services on a consulting basis. I'm one of them. But you do not want to outsource your blog content. There are many ways in which you can use these services to help your blog be better, but don't ever think you can hand the reigns over to someone else. The best business blogging comes from within. Hire, train or allow for personal development. Don't outsource.

  • Is our business interesting enough for a blog? Oh hell yes. You obviously think it's interesting or you wouldn't be doing it. And if the whole thing isn't all that interesting, there are some parts that are. Focus on those. If you can convey the interesting parts of your business in a blog, you've just made inroads with potential customers when they discover it. And isn't that what your sales people try and do anyhow?

  • Is there an audience who cares? This goes hand-in-hand with the last point. Don't assume your business blog has to appeal to tens of thousands of people. It doesn't! Interesting content will attract the right audience to it, and that will expose people to your business. Key words include interesting and content. No one cares about a blog full of posts about products. Blah.


So... ready to blog now? It may not be for you. Yet. Don't feel pressured. But don't ignore the question. Keep asking it. Some day, you may be ready.

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Tuesday, February 16, 2010

Social Media 101: Stop Hacking and Phishing With Good Password Habits

This is a SlideCast version of a talk I gave last week prior to Social Media Club Phoenix. Each week I lead a session called Social Media 101. It's a safe place for newbies to learn one aspect of social media and to get their questions -- on any topic -- answered in a friendly environment.

"My account got hacked!" How many times have you heard someone say this, usually after they've sent you 5 "here's how you can make a gazillion dollars by blowing your nose!" tweets? Of course, they didn't send that to you. Some nefarious hacker gained access to their account, sending out spam messages to everyone -- including you.

But they have their facts wrong. They didn't get "hacked". They willingly gave up their password to some website. That's not hacking. That's phishing. Or maybe the site they gave their password to got hacked. Or maybe they left their computer unlocked, and all sorts of bad things happened.

Being smart about selecting and securing passwords is about as 101 as you can get. And we -- I'm lumping me in here, too -- do it wrong/bad/without enough forethought all the time. This Slidecast presentation will walk you though the basics of setting up and securing passwords in today's social world. While it was aimed at the social media beginners, more than one seasoned maven picked up an idea or two when I gave the talk last week.



You'll notice also I'm starting to rebrand some of my talks. This one uses the new naming: A Simpler Way to be Safe and Secure Online. Hope you enjoy it!

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Is Social Media Bookmarking for Etailers BS?

DSC_0081
Image by holisticmonkey via Flickr
I've just spent 8 hours of my life -- wasted, some may say -- investigating the efficacy of social bookmarking for large etailers. Social bookmarking sites -- Digg, reddit, StumbleUpon and literally hundreds of others -- have a variety of uses. I'll even grant you that they may have some value in increasing traffic and helping search rankings. But here's the punchline: the amount of bullshit artists touting bullshit advice on how to use social media bookmarking is of astronomical proportions.

Yes, I know. Bad advice on the internet. Go figure.

[sigh]

So is social media bookmarking worthless?

No, not at all. Millions of people use sites like those listed above to not only save interesting sites and web content, but also to discover and share new and interesting content. It's the social part of the name that's important. And often forgotten about in a rush to gain the oh-so-powerful backlink.

So let's start there: Social media bookmarking is a complete and utter waste of time without compelling content.

If you're an etailer selling the same stuff available at any number of other online -- or offline -- retailers, even if you're selling it for a lower price than anyone else, understand this: the fact that you sell something does not constitute compelling content. To be blunt, we don't care.

Ok, smartass. So is social media bookmarking worthless for online retailers?

Maybe not. But it does require a strategy to develop the content worthy of sharing. Compelling content. Remarkable content. And if you're not willing to do that, then you might as well stop reading. You won't like the rest of this.

Here are a few tips on building compelling content as an etailer that may be worthy of sharing:

  • Interesting packages - Just because you don't make something doesn't mean you can't pair that -- or triad that -- up with something else to make it interesting. Smoking deals are always relevant. And it's often times better to discount a group of items with a mix of profit points than to slash everything by 25%. Create pages that feature deals that your customers want and your competitors can't touch. And for the love of peat (I like scotch), hire a copywriter to convey the awesomeness of the deal without sounding like a used car salesman!

  • Copy from Groupon - This rapidly growing site features city-specific, super-discounted deals that only kick in when a certain number of people sign up. To get the deal, interested parties share the deal with their network, and it's not uncommon to see Groupon deals all over the various social media bookmarking sites. Offer up the same idea, but base it on the number of times your site's offer page is Dugg, for example. Or even easier: put a coupon code on the offer page and add in "share this" type links loudly to encourage sharing.

  • Data mine and publish quirky behaviors - We've all seen the funny "those who bought this also bought..." suggestions Amazon often makes. Chances are, you have some real gems in your database, too. Or maybe you see a spike in orders of one type of product during the year that seems a little odd. Mine your data looking for patterns people might find interesting or funny, then build content around those patterns. If it's compelling, share it!

  • Go ahead and list your "special" pages - You should submit more than just your home page. Just make sure the pages are good entry points and have good content. No one wants to see your "here's all the brands we sell" page. But someone may want to see the special storefront you made for Doodiddly Diodes. Be smart about using this, and always ask yourself if the new page you've created is worthy -- in the social bookmark users' eyes -- of being included on those sites. If the answer is "I'm not sure", then it isn't. Move along.


That'll get you started. Once you've figured that out and created the content, you've got the lion's share of the work done.

But what about that "share this" button I've placed on every page of my website?

It's probably a waste of time. Even worse: it may be impacting your conversion rate. Ouch! You won't know until you test, but anything not directed to get someone to buy on a purchase page is diverting attention. A better approach might be to send that "share this" button along to the customer a few days after the sale with a "if you loved it, share it!" message.

Your turn now. Did I go too far?

I'm certain that a fair number of "seo experts" will jump in with stories of how they've managed to boost rankings, build boatloads of traffic and generally refute my initial arguments. If that's you, can I ask one question? Please provide specific examples related to the business of etailers. I'm trying to be specific with my lambasting. I hope you will be, too.

Now for that worthless "share this button". No, wait. I'm not an etailer. Different rules apply, see? ;)

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Sunday, February 14, 2010

Measuring ROI for Social Media

Weeks ago I gave a presentation at SMAZ -- Social Media for Business in Arizona -- that was all about measuring ROI for social media. This is a topic that gets bandied about quite a bit. It's also something that gets made up, brushed under the table or completely ignored. And that's a shame. Because, yes, there are ways to measure ROI -- real ROI -- for social media efforts. It's not easy. It's not glamorous. But it's growing more necessary all the time.



Special thanks to Olivier Blanchard for helping shape much of my thinking about ROI and social media. Even more special thanks to all those in attendance at my talk for the outstanding questions. I love that so many of you realize the need to understand this piece of the puzzle. Thanks for the great ideas you gave me and the audience during the talk.

For those new to me, no... I usually don't dive this deep. But this is a growing trend, and even CFOs need a simpler way of thinking about things, right?

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Monday, January 25, 2010

Finding the value of social media conferences

Classroom at the Old Site
Image via Wikipedia
The Social Media for Business in Arizona -- SMAZ for short -- has concluded. Once again, it was a great event. And yes, my presentation on measuring the ROI of social media will be up on Slideshare soon.

As the day was winding down yesterday, I was asking various attendees -- many of which I had met for the first time at the event -- their opinions on the day. Their answers were universally positive, even though each person took away something different. In an interesting twist, I was asked by one of those people what I learned that day.

That was an interesting question. While many new to the social and digital marketing scene walked away with their brains overflowing with information... this isn't my first rodeo. I speak at a variety of events, including this one. I knew many of the speakers and am intimately familiar with the topics on which they presented. I've been doing social media marketing for more than a few years, so was there anything I could learn?

Duh. That's an obvious and great big yes!

What did I learn? The same thing I almost always learn from events like this: that there are plenty of things I'm not doing as well as I could be. Things that I advise clients and compatriots on all the time, but neglect to do myself. There are a lot of moving parts to figuring out the right digital business strategy for a client. All too often, I neglect to fully implement the tactics that support those strategies for myself.

So for me, events like SMAZ provide me plenty of notes with "You know this, dumbass" in parenthesis behind them. And that's why I'll keep going to events like this: I sure could use that constant reminder to keep toiling away and to keep doing better.

Your turn...

What is your takeaway on this idea? Do you got to events as "the expert", or do you find ways to learn something along the way?

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Saturday, January 23, 2010

Speaking at SMAZ II

On Monday, I'll be presenting at the Social Media AZ conference in Tempe. I've attended a fair share of social media conferences -- this one is a bit different. It focuses on the business side of social media.

That's an important distinction. While many of us "get it" right away, lots of people -- not just business owners, but people -- still don't get the point of social media. I know a few of these people, and their hesitation always comes down to the cost/benefit equation. They're looking for the upside of spending all that time being... social. You can answer that question -- where's the upside? -- a few different ways. With SMAZ II, those answers will be focused in on the business case.

I'm leading a Social Media 101 talk simultaneous with registration. Hopefully the newbies will show up early, get registered fast and drop by to ask their questions in a safe environment. If the last SMAZ is any indication, there will be lots of people new to or confused by social media in attendance. I like helping them take their first steps. This is similar to what I do before each Social Media Club Phoenix meeting.

Then I finish off the day by talking about the ROI of social media. That's real ROI. Not some new made-up term that your CFO scoffs at while looking for your replacement. That should be fun.

While the advanced tickets are gone, they will be live streaming the event for those who can't attend. The access fee is a simple donation, and all proceeds go to charity. Sign up to watch live here.

And for those going, I'll see you there!

Monday, January 4, 2010

Participate or die

"If you don't participate and take an interest, you'll always be outcompeted by those who do."

I stole that line from Cory Doctorow's Makers. Great book. You should get it.

It may not seem that there is much insight in that phrase. After all... it seems pretty obvious. But if you'll reflect on it a moment, I think you'll find many areas that you have consciously chosen to ignore. The older we get -- OK, the older I get -- the more likely we are to fall into the trap.

When is the last time you paid attention to your Facebook account? You probably missed that the "News Feed" on your home page doesn't include all of your friends. Nope. It only includes the most active ones. The same goes for everyone else's profiles. Are you active enough to show up to them?

Google's been dropping relevant and real-time results from the social sphere in their search results pages. I've said before that social will become one of those things that business simply can't afford to ignore. Google made it a reality faster than even I thought.

It's a wake-up call to you experts, too. Sure, you've got plenty of business supporting your outdated language or platform. But for how long? Switching costs are dropping. Data will only get more portable. Are you going the way of the cobbler?

And being outcompeted isn't necessarily about real competition. It's about being informed, having experiences and not worrying that you'll wake up one day and find the world around you has changed. I'm OK with getting old. I just don't want to be outdated.

Saturday, January 2, 2010

It's OK to make money with social media

If your company gets involved in social media this year, will you make money from it? If not... don't bother.

Yes, I realize that your customers want you to get involved with social media. Many of them would also like you to give away free beer, but you probably don't do that.

Yes, it's true that your customers are having conversations about you that you aren't aware of. But do you think that didn't happen before social media? Please.

Yes, your competition may have hundreds of people engaging with them in the social sphere. But are they doing anything truly remarkable, or are they just chatting? More importantly, are those people buying more stuff because of those conversations?

You won't succeed at social media on accident. And success probably isn't measured by mentions and followers. Success for your business is measured in dollars, not sentiment. In sales, not conversations.

Social media playtime is over. Business just getting involved today don't have the luxury of figuring it out as you go along. It's time to stand on the shoulders of those who've come before. Time to learn from the mistakes of others. And to extend on the wins many have made.

Three questions to think of:
  1. Is your social media crew up to the challenge? The right crew will have a blend of business acumen and real-world social media skills. Balance is important.
  2. Does your agency talk in the language of your business? The only metrics that matter are the ones you care about.
  3. Are you demanding return and payoff from your digital marketing efforts? If it costs money, it should return more money. Period.



Your answer to all of those should be an emphatic yes. If not, put those responsible on notice.

Thursday, December 31, 2009

Connect with communities to build your brand

I learned today that I've been listed as one of Roost’s 50 RE people you should follow on Twitter. No, I'm not a real estate agent. Yet I'm on the list, and it's not on accident, I've been assured.

My involvement with the real estate industry is two fold. First, I've been fortunate enough to have been asked to speak twice now at the National Association of Realtors® national convention. The topics I speak about to their members are the same topics I cover here -- doing business in the digital world. My first talk from 2008 -- New Media Business Strategies for Real Estate Professionals -- is up at SlideShare. It's my goal to create a slide case out of this year's talk -- Digitally Expose Yourself: Building Your Web Presence -- but I haven't made it that far. It's on the list!

My second connection comes from the friends I've made here in the Phoenix area who are involved in real estate. Phoenix has been blessed - or plagued -- with some of the most prolific social media-aware RE folks in the country, and I'm proud to count many of them as my friends. They've even been so kind as to keep inviting me to talk at RE BarCamp Phoenix, which I'm happy and excited to do.

There's a lesson here. There are communities everywhere you look. If you can add value to that community with your knowledge, presence and involvement, do it. The RE community is rather tight-nit. I've received so many referrals -- and not just from my friends -- to do work that I've had to turn many away. That's a good problem to have.

So if you're lightly involved with a community, consider shoring up that relationship. No, don't show up at meetings passing around business cards and stories of what a great expert you are and how much they need you. Show up at meetings, make friends, join conversations, add value and get involved. Then you'll be showing them what a great expert you are, and they'll quickly realize how much they need you.

Monday, December 7, 2009

Strengthen your connections

Melting Ice
Image by vitroid via Flickr
Don't underestimate the value of connections. While we (and by we I mean I) sometimes get caught up looking for ROI and hard, measurable facts, some things are more esoteric. Yet just as valuable.

When Google bought YouTube, they thought the asset was the impressions the videos would deliver. What they found more valuable was the connections and conversations people were having around and because of those videos.

Today, you can't have a network without the connections. Some connections between you and others are incredibly strong. When you start noticing the same people at events and see the same names on email, comments or other outreach, that's an indication of a strong connection.

But strong connections aren't conducive to growth, either personal or the growth of the network itself. And while it can happen, strong connections make it difficult for others to join in the connection. So instead, we tend to keep increasing the strength of our own connections, since that's easier than breaking in. I think that approach misses the mark.

Spend less time strengthening strong connections.

If your connection with another person is truly strong, it will survive a bit of neglect on your part. I know that people will tell you that relationships take work. I've found that not to be the case. At least, not a significant amount of work. And if it does, then it's probably a relationship I'm probably not going to miss.

Rather, spend your time shoring up tenuous connections. Reach out to those you're loosely connected to, and make those connections stronger. You'll quickly find yourself exposed to new ideas, new people and new opportunities. And those other strong connections? Still rock solid. Now you have even more.

Which tenuous connection will you work on strengthening first?

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New FTC guidelines for bloggers are a bigger challenge for marketers

Gavel2
Image via Wikipedia
Changes to FTC (Federal Trade Commission) guidelines on endorsements and testimonials were made active on December 1. And seven days later, I'm happy to report that I, a blogger, have not been sued. Neither, chance are, have you.

There was a huge stink about these proposed changes a few months back. Mob mentality won over common sense, and the assumption was that bloggers were going to be fined $11,000 if they failed to mention the book they just reviewed was purchased from Barnes & Nobel with a 15% coupon.

Wrong.

What do the new guidelines mean for bloggers?

Probably nothing. The overview by the FTC on this page is pretty good, but I think this short PDF of the revised guidelines is even better. And if you want the whole story, check this 81 page PDF. It's overkill, but for the complete-ists out there; have at it. But back to "probably nothing".

The new guidelines -- the first change to the endorsements & testimonials section since 1980 -- require marketers to be honest, forthright and clear when using endorsements and testimonials. What a crazy concept. If you're the endorser or provider of the testimonal -- bloggers, for the purpose of this discussion -- then you have an obligation to do the same and disclose if you were compensated for your endorsement.

Chances are, you already do that. And if you don't; start. It requires you do nothing more than say "Ford let me drive this new car for a week, and here's what I think". Again, you probably do this already.

Marketers are responsible for what compensated endorsers say.

That's the biggest change. If Snapple sends out free samples of a new beverage to specific bloggers as part of an outreach campaign, they have an obligation to make sure the endorsements are real and true. That's an oversimplification, but it's close enough. If one of those bloggers posts about how the drink cured them of lung cancer, the marketer is on the hook. The blogger is on the hook as well, and probably by more than just the FTC.

My advice to bloggers is simple:
  1. Don't lie. If your really didn't think it was the best ever, don't say it was. Don't shill.
  2. Disclose received compensation. Getting it for free for the purpose of blogging or tweeting about it is compensation. Getting a free sandwich because you bought nine others is not.


My advice to marketer is even more simple:
  1. Don't try and deceive. "Results not typical" will be a thing of the past. Finally.


And yes, the fine for infractions can be up to $11,000 per occurrence. Will you get caught if you break the new laws? I sincerely hope so.

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Tuesday, August 4, 2009

The Next Big Thing

What's Next?Image by Crystl via Flickr

On Sunday, I was interviewed by a reporter for the Phoenix New Times. I've done a fair share of interviews over the years, and you never know how the final piece will turn out. Sometimes the journalist has a slant, sometimes things get edited down to just sound bites, and sometimes quote are taken entirely out of context. All of that has happened to me in the past. But I don't sweat it. It is what it is. Not to say I think that the PNT piece will be anything other than spot on. I'm #justsayin'...

During the interview, the following question came up:

"What's going to replace Twitter".

I think that question has an unknowable answer. And not just because we can't predict the future. But because we don't know what we need -- yet. Before Twitter, none of us knew we needed an web/SMS/IM mashup that limited you to 140 characters.

Before Flickr, we assumed you had to know HTML and FTP in order to share your photos with family and friends.

Before Facebook, we didn't know that we needed private profiles, or that value was to be had allowing fellow students and co-workers access to said profiles.

Before YouTube, we didn't know we could create mini-movies and get them to our friends with ease and speed, so they could spread them around for us.

So the question of what's going to replace Twitter is as silly as it is unknowable. I use all of the networks above. Neither one replaces the other. Sure, I could use Photobucket, MySpace, Vimeo, or Dodgeball, but I don't. Yet plenty do. They don't need to switch to my tools, and I don't need to switch to theirs. They get the same benefits I get with my preferred tools.

So don't try and build a "twitter killer". Try and build something entirely new that lets me do things my current toolbox won't. That's going to be The Next Big Thing.

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