Archives for August 2010

When I was a kid, I was obsessed with the Little House on the Prairie books. I had all of them, and I must have read each one 10 times. There’s a little story in one of the books that came to my mind this morning. I can’t remember which book it was, but the general jist was that Pa had gone to town and was expected back that night. He didn’t come, he didn’t come. The family went to bed, waiting to hear the door open. Finally, the next morning, he showed up, perfectly fine and unscathed. But he had a story to tell. He had been heading home in the increasing darkness of evening when a tall black shape caught his attention. He ducked behind a tall rock and assumed that what he had seen was a giant bear. He waited all night for the bear to go away, scared out of his mind. Finally, when the sun started peeking out, Pa saw that he had been held at bay by a giant pile of rocks. He had believed he would encounter danger, and that’s what his mind’s eye created for him.

This story came to mind, I think, because I have been thinking about the whole Twitter phenomenon. Weird segue, right? Here’s the thing. If you sign up for a Twitter account, you’ll encounter tons of people who have 50,000 followers or more. You’ll notice that when they say “The sky is blue,” it gets retweeted by at least 50 of those 50,000 people. If one of these people posts a picture of French Toast, everyone comments on how well the essence of the toast was captured. You start thinking to yourself, “Man, I can do that.” Instead of seeing a bear in place of some rocks, you see your own fame reflected in others’ success. As most great motivators will tell you, if you can visualize success, you’ll find it.

Someone’s telling you you’re right

Pa didn’t have anyone with him to say, “No no, that’s not a bear.” He also didn’t have someone with him saying, “Holy smokes, that’s a BEAR!” But when you sign up for Twitter, you can be bombarded, if you want to be, about how to achieve that very level of success you see. There’s advice on how to tweet, there’s advice about retweeting, there’s advice about promotion and self-promotion. All of the knowledge you could ever want about how to become a major influence on Twitter seems to be at your very finger tips. There are blogs and webinars and podcasts telling you point blank that you can do this.

That’s just a bunch of pebbles in your hand

In fact, the sad news is that most of us are simply not going to achieve that kind of success on Twitter. Even though it seems so easy on the surface, and even though so many people go out of their way to give us information on how to do it, it’s not going to happen for us. The sad masses of us are not going to get any compliments on our photos of French Toast. Why? First of all, we weren’t here first. If you started your Twitter account in a serious way, as I did, three months ago or so, you’re so late to the game it’s not even funny. Those influencers have been on Twitter for probably four years in some cases, when most of us were saying, “What a dumb idea THAT is.” Because we haven’t been here, we are behind in accumulating knowledge. We are behind in learning. We are behind in experimenting. Unless you have real-world fame already, you are probably not going to become a major influence in the world of Twitterville.

So what is Twitter like if you aren’t a pied piper of followers?

I’ve learned a lot about how to use Twitter during the short time I’ve been working with it. So even though this advice will probably not get you to a Fast Company “most influential” list, it might get you to a place where you are content with your Twitter reality, which is still pretty good.

Holy cow, the time! This has been the biggest shock to me. You think about Twitter and the descriptions are always “micro” this and “tiny” that. If you are serious about trying to be a successful Twit (?), your time investment is neither of those things. It takes time to get to know people and for them to get to know you. It takes time to determine who you want to follow. It takes time to find questions or issues that you can comment on. This is not like Facebook where you can post a status and then leave it alone for a day or two. Facebook is to Twitter like a cat is to a puppy.

Holy cow, the pressure! Twitter also comes with a fair amount of pressure when you’re a noob. You want to respond to “mentions” or retweets or direct messages as soon as you can. You want to be there when a sudden big conversation blooms. You want to build relationships. You want to show you’re smart. You want to do all of it in a day.

You’re gonna talk to yourself for awhile. When I first started with Twitter, I often got really frustrated. I’d post something funny (or so I thought anyway), nothing but crickets. I’d post a link to a good article. Nothing but crickets. The really cruel thing is sometimes you see a mention of you and it’s just a spam bot telling you that you can win a free iPad. It can be frustrating to see all of the interaction around you and yet not be able to spark anything. Hang in there. Try to buddy up with somebody just person to person.

Those big influencers are probably not going to respond for awhile. On Twitter, it seems like everyone is on equal footing. This is really not true. Everyone has their own particular patterns of behavior when it comes to Twitter. People look for certain folks or certain subjects. It takes a long time to work yourself into either. In the meantime, you are competing with 49,999 other people who want a little attention just as much as you. Don’t get moody about it. Attention comes to those who merit it (usually). If you call out a person with a lot of influence, at most they will complain about you without mentioning you (they’re too smart to give you attention that way). Meanwhile, you’re alienating people who are actually following you and trying to engage.

If this doesn’t sound like all fun and games, what can I tell you. I have reached a point where all of this time and effort has gotten me to a place of contentment. There were definitely deep valleys and some high peaks along the way, and I’m sure that will continue. Make no mistake, though. I still see the rocks. I still see the pebbles. Though I see influential people all around me, I honor them rather than imagine myself as one of them. I don’t expect Twitter fame, and no offense, but most likely, neither should you.

Image 1: Image Credit: http://www.sxc.hu/profile/Massicotte
Image 2: Image by eila haj-hassan. http://www.sxc.hu/profile/leilahh
Image 3: Image by Hans Thoursie. http://www.sxc.hu/profile/Thoursie

Marketing in the 21st century can seem really overwhelming at times. Every day there’s a new technology, a new way to talk about that technology, a new acronym, and a new expert. This is true. I’ve looked into it. On top of that, there are now all of these marketing junkies (like me) who like to really dig into the marrow of marketing.  Fortunately, I figured out a way to filter all of this information into 20 extremely easy steps. If you can follow all of these rules, you are well on your way to becoming a marketing guru. By the way, purely by statistical happenstance, all of these rules are Twitterable. Tweeterable. Can be tweeted.

1. Be nice. You never know when you’re going to need that person.
2. Be authentic. Nobody falls for fake niceness.
3. Don’t let people think you are using them.
4. Connect to people with more influence than you.
5. Be right on top of the newest thing.
6. Be an expert in everything that has come before.
7. Hope you get complaints. Complaints are the new handshake greeting.
8. Strive for the best quality possible.
9. Be unique, just like everyone else.
10. Talk with freedom and from the heart.
11. Remember, anything you say in Social Media can and will be used against you.
12. Never say print is dead. That makes people think you don’t know about the Kindle or iPad.
13. Share as much information as you can.
14. Position yourself as a thought leader.
15. Be 100% honest at all times.
16. Compliment people and share their work as often as possible.
17. Listen to what all of the experts say.
18. Create your own way of doing things.
19. Prove that your efforts are working.
20. Never, ever try to sell anything!

Image credit: http://www.sxc.hu/profile/arte_ram

A few days ago, Chris Brogan posted a blog that suggested one consider a blog personal real estate. It’s a good analogy and very effective in terms of describing the “care and feeding” of your blog, but I view things in a slightly different way. I like to think of placement on a Google or Bing search results page as the real estate. Your presence on the internet is your house, and each individual account is a room in your house. A blog, a Twitter account, a Facebook page – these all need to be cared for or your house can crumble. But even if your house is in brilliant condition, it won’t do you much good if no one can see it.

Think Outside In

With all of the excitement about Social Media, it’s easy to concentrate hardest on your individual rooms. Some companies are beginning to push hard on integrated marketing, which would be a holistic or “house” approach. I still see a lot of questions, though, that reflect a seeming lack of focus on the search results real estate that can be gained through Social Media and other efforts. Here are a couple of examples.

Should I have a personal blog and a business blog? If your personal blog is very niche to a hobby or completely separate from your business blog, I think it’s fine. However, if you talk a lot about your business in your personal blog, you could run into a situation where you are using a lot of the same keywords, a lot of the same links, and a lot of the same reference points. What could happen? Both blogs, as separate entities, could end up fighting against each other for position on the first page of Google. People searching for you and/or your company will have to make a choice about which blog to visit. Do you want that to be out of your control?

Should a large corporation have individual accounts for each division? This question came up last night during the #custserv chat on Twitter. If a corporation has separate divisions spread across a large region, should each division use Social Media autonomously? Again, the corporation as a whole could end up in a situation where each division is fighting for first page real estate. If a company has five or more divisions, it will be difficult for each division to receive equal treatment in terms of Google real estate. Where possible, it’s beneficial to incorporate divisions into an all-encompassing account. Links to each division’s website from this master Social Media account will optimize SEO for that website, but individual Social Media accounts won’t be knocking each other out.

D-Fence, D-Fence

Social Media can also be used as a defensive measure when it comes to search results pages. A LinkedIn account, a blog, an optimized website, a Facebook page, and a Twitter account could fill out most of the first page for your company. As far as real estate goes, you could be the Donald Trump of that search term. Not only is this excellent news for your company, but this also means that wherever you show up, your competitors aren’t showing up. They say that the best offense is a good defense, and in this case that can certainly be true.

Who is in charge of your house?

Another question that comes up a lot is “who should handle my company’s Social Media account?” An argument for grabbing “real estate” is an argument for integrating as many people as possible into your efforts. Everyone should be cognizant of important keywords, powerful links that will help optimize your accounts, and what kinds of search terms your competitors seem to be focusing on. This is information that everyone can use, from customer service to PR to marketing to sales. It should become part of the lifeblood of your company. Think of it like the staff of a huge manor house. Everyone has their job, but they all work together to make sure things run smoothly.

Are you keeping an eye on your real estate as well as your rooms? If you aren’t, I can guarantee that someone else is. It’s time to think big picture.

1st image: Image Credit: http://www.sxc.hu/profile/ayeshasood

2nd image: Image by Miguel Saavedra. http://www.sxc.hu/profile/saavem

I like to call myself an idea person. I am one of those people who will wake up at 3 AM with a fully formed idea stuck behind my eyeballs. Often, I share these ideas with friends and family to see which ones stick like cooked spaghetti or, alternately, which ones bounce like a big rubber ball. I keep presenting ideas to these people because I know two things. First, they will be absolutely honest. Second, they will not be swayed by my own personal excitement or emotional investment. These are signs of a truly good consultant.

A Growing Field

It seems like there are new consultants every day, doesn’t it? There are a lot of Social Media consultants. There are business consultants, new business consultants, marketing consultants. Lots of expertise, lots of specialties. These people, in order to grow their consulting business, have to be very positive, energized, upbeat, and they have to always demonstrate that they are expanding their knowledge base. They are after the case studies, the testimonials. They are after big risks that pay off. Such is the stuff dreams are made of.

How can you tell a flower from a weed?

Lately, there have been a lot of questions circulating about who exactly should be using this or that new tool, whether it’s technology or Social Media or something else. New tools and new technology are extremely exciting. Trying new things is like an adventure. It’s like embarking on a journey on the Oregon Trail. We are in an era of “go forth, person!” You should be trying things, you should be inventing new things.

I agree with all of this to a point, but there’s an often overlooked caveat. 

Sometimes, trying a new tool or a new technology doesn’t make a wit of sense for you or your company. Sometimes the adventure can have serious, dangerous ramifications.

To me,  the difference maker today among consultants would be the person who thoughtfully analyzes your unique situation and says, as my friends often say to me, “You are out of your mind for even thinking about trying this.”

Saying no can be a real buzz kill. It can mean delaying a business opportunity. It can trample someone’s excitement. It can be disappointing. But it can also be wise, analytical, and customized to a particular situation. It also creates a relationship where a “yes,” especially an emphatic yes, is not taken for granted. It builds trust.

It’s okay to say no or “maybe later”

There are a few things right now that seem to necessitate an affirmation. “Should I join Facebook?” Of course!! “Should my business invest in mobile apps?” Yeah, yesterday!! I think sometimes these positive responses are given because we are being told that those are the correct responses. But there are actually situations where a company Facebook page might not make sense. There might be an individual who would not benefit from a Twitter account even though Twitter is the hottest thing ever. If you are a consultant, it’s okay to say no to your clients. If you are running things yourself, it’s okay to say no to the big trends and out-of-control buzzwords. In fact, I just might advise that you say yes to saying no.

Have you said no to something lately? It may not be as exciting as saying yes, but it could be more meaningful.

Image by Colin Brough. http://www.sxc.hu/profile/ColinBroug

When I was a little kid, I was a complete tattle tale goody goody. I admit it. When kids would try to pull a prank on a teacher, I’d take the teacher aside after class and say, “I just wanted to let you know that so and so is planning on putting jello on your chair. Just thought you should know.” I never did this because I was trying to kiss up to anybody, nor did I have it out for any of the nitwits who thought it was fun to be mean. I just felt that making a teacher sit in a pile of jello was wrong, and I saw a way to prevent the wrong from happening.

I doubt the other kids saw my big mouth in a similarly pragmatic way.

This phase of my life is on my mind because of quandary I have in my Social Media world. No, I’m not tattling on people, but I sometimes wonder if my intentions are misunderstood. I wonder sometimes if people think I mention certain people or promote certain people just to be a kiss-up. I know I don’t, but is that enough?


The tricky thing about authenticity

You hear all of the time that the best approach to Social Media, be it a Blog or Facebook or Twitter, is to be yourself. Be human. Be authentic. In real life, I am generally a nice person (unless you keep driving across a pedestrian cross-walk when I’m trying to walk there) and I also am generally sociable. For me to be authentic and myself in the world of Social Media, this means that I chip into conversations regardless of who might be participating (if I think I have something to contribute). I’ll retweet you whether you have 500,000 followers or 50. I’ll comment on your blog whether you’re a New York Times best seller or whether you just started writing consistently.

Last week, Lisa Barone of Outspoken Media posted a blog about “the 8 new kinds of links.” Basically, she was talking about different ways people try to grab attention or self-promote on Twitter. I started to wonder if that’s how people perceive of me. Do I reply to or mention Chris Brogan or MarketingProfs or other thought leaders at various times? Yeah. Do I retweet posts from Denise Wakeman and Seth Godin? Uh, yeah. Do I sometimes say nice things to or about Jason Baer and Mari Smith? Guilty as charged. This is not all I do. I talk to everyone equally. I try to promote equally. But still, I wonder if my being authentic actually makes me look like an attention grabber. Does this last paragraph seem like an attention-grabbing list or just a set of examples?

So maybe being authentic is…bad?

I’m not really sure what my alternative is. I suppose that in the end, if people perceive me as being the opposite of authentic, there’s not much I can do about it. I suppose I could consciously opt not to reply to or mention certain people. I  suppose I could also refrain from offering what are hopefully helpful tips when someone asks a question. And I could probably just lurk during chats. These don’t really seem like reasonable solutions, however.

Do you have genuine facets of your personality that you think others in the world of Social Media might translate as game playing? How do you deal with that potential perspective problem? Do you just keep plugging away? Do you qualify all of your statements with an explanation?

I’m open to advice and suggestions…from anyone!