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.

Safe and Secure Social Media Habits

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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!

Is Social Media Bookmarking for Etailers BS?

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? ;)

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.

Measuring ROI for Social Media

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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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Finding the value of social media conferences

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?

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!

Fauxcrastination

You've all heard the phrase "tilting at windmills". It refers to the tale of Don Quixote, a fictional knight that -- among other things -- confused ordinary windmills for ferocious giants. The resulting "battle" with such a creature is rather one-sided and of little consequence to the windmill. When we say someone is tilting at windmills, we mean to say that they are wasting their time on a pointless battle that can't be won.

In reality, most of us wouldn't go charging into battle against a ferocious giant armed with nothing but a sword and trusty steed. Most of us would seek to avoid drawing the beast's attention. That's a much safer path than drawing the ire of the beast. Nor would we fight against a windmill. What would be the point, right? Slam on the shingles all day with your sharp iron stick, and that sucker isn't going to budge.

But what if that perception isn't reality? What if the windmill you see isn't real? What if that seemingly insurmountable challenge is a trick of your imagination?

This happens in business all the time. It's happening in my business today more than I care to think. Hence this blog post. I need a term to describe these people who see obstacles where none are. For those who assume that the effort to fix what is obviously broken is greater than the reward... when a much simpler solution exists.

Enter my friend Encaffeinated ONE. He proffered this gem:

fauxcrastination: \ˈfō-ˈkras-tə-ˈnā-shən\ noun
: putting up false roadblocks
: imagining challenges where none exist^*

I love it. Now where did I put that sword... and my horse!

^{* - Late addition courtesy of Matt Selznick}

My future can beat up your present

In the great rush to take advantage of all the new possibilities the web offers, we often fail to reach beyond the familiar. Our "strategic thinking" looks more replicative than revolutionary. Consider how many of these failed technologies you've seen:

• A "virtual counter person" greeting visitors of a retail site.
  Web visitors do not want the same experience as they have in store. At least, not in that way. That helpful avatar either isn't or is dipping into the uncanny valley. And it's not that "the technology just isn't there yet". It's that people don't want to interact with your site that way.
  
  
• Online magazine forces you to "turn pages" just like an offline magazine.
  Do you know why we turn pages of physical magazines? Because we have to. Not because we want to. You'd be better off putting a screen and a keyboard on a magazine. Oh wait.
  
  
• Business card-shaped CDs.
  Granted, it's been almost a decade since I've seen these. Maybe they're all dead now. The concept was silly, but they sold like hotcakes. Now if we can just kill off physical business cards all together.

The best inventions are transformative. They make use of new technological advances to advance something, often times convenience. There's that pesky arrow again.

There are good reasons why:

• printers aren't powered by armies of miniaturized scribes hyped-up on coffee,
  
• planes don't flap their wings,
  
• submarines don't swim like whales, and
  
• robots WON'T (trust me on this) walk like humans in the future.

But sometimes silly is good. The current implementation of virtual worlds are pretty terrible. They'll stay terrible as long as avatars are controlled by mouse and keyboard strokes. But some good stuff can -- and does -- come out. But for now, silly.

Augmented reality is also rather whimsical. Putting virtual furniture around your living room is a lark. It's also a far cry from how your room will really look when pixels are replaced by upholstery. But the exploration of the technology will certainly lead to some breakthroughs. It's just got to get out of my webcam and into my life.

But I'm not giving up on these new ideas. You shouldn't either. Nor should you be afraid to play with emerging technologies. But be skeptical of those gizmos that promise to make the digital space "just like the real world". To steal a line from a squirrel, that trick never works.