Attention Small Biz – Get Ready for New Technology & Social Media Tools

I come as a messenger, and I come in peace.

Please remember this as I now announce to you that there is yet more stuff you’re going to have to learn about, adopt and maybe even embrace in the world of technology and social media.  There’re new search engines, communications platforms, gadgets and an endless array of applications on the horizon, some of which you won’t be able to ignore.

I know, I know…

You already attempted Twitter, and the endeavor involved three simple steps:  open account, get confused, abandon quietly.  Maybe you can ditto that cycle for the blog you were briefly committed to for your business.  You can’t even remember the password for your LinkedIn profile, and you’ve decreed Facebook a mind zap for adolescents.  Heck, you may even secretly harbor the opinion that texting is a misuse of opposable thumbs.

Nonetheless, as the messenger it’s my job to provide fair warning that there is more to come.  It’s a Web 2.0 world we live in (yes, there was a Web 1.0, and 3.0 is on its way; at least the chronology is easy to follow), and technology is evolving at he speed of, well, technology.  You’d be well served to invest some brain power on the current iterations; it’ll make for a good prep course for the next round.

So you know how to brace, here’s a quick list of some up-and-comers.  Trust me, there’s more where these came from, but let’s ease into this…

Google Wave:  real-time communication platform from Google; synthesizes and aggregates a bevy of work functions, social media feeds and core communications functions; created to be a one-stop command center; will have its own lexicon of terms and icons; in previews now–coming later this year

Mobile readiness:  setting your sights on standard sites is no longer enough; you’ve got to join the move to mobile technology; plan now for communications and functions that are mobile-device friendly, including site redesign and payment capabilities

Hulu desktop:  the new Hulu desktop-ready interface is not so much about the joys of TV watching combined with computer usage; this newbie spotlights the reality that TV and Internet are melding even more; we’re watching and getting entertained in new, more definable ways—a fact biz people and communicators cannot ignore

Group mentality:  email becomes less necessary as the Twitter model infiltrates the workplace in customized platforms such as Yammer.com or socialcast.com; this allows for real-time interconnectivity within defined environments; we’re breeding new generations of employees attuned to communicate and percolate via microblogs

Even if you averted your eyes or skimmed over those items, your avoidance won’t lead to the list’s disappearance.  This stuff isn’t going anywhere, and if you don’t keep up, you may not be going anywhere either.

But hey, I’m just the messenger.
Thanks!

Use Social Media to “Top of Mind” Your Business

Last night I dreamed I was being chased (and subsequently bitten) by an Indonesian Komodo dragon while at the home a friend from high school.

I’ve never seen a Komodo dragon ‘in person’ (is it even possible to see a lizard in person?…but I digress…), and I haven’t been in the same room with this particular friend for, oh, 20-ish years.  Yet thanks to an online report I read a couple days ago about Komodo dragon attacks in Indonesia and last night’s Facebook posting by that high school friend, I had the mental makings for an interesting dream—starring some unlikely characters.

That’s the power of online content and social media!

Admittedly, this is an outlandish example.  Does a dream about a venomous lizard and a pal from high school really reflect any usable truths about the messaging power of the Web?  Wacky though it may be, I contend it’s a good example of what can happen when we use online communications to make daily connections.

It’s about “top of mind awareness,” after all.

When we’re looking for information, making selections or seeking interaction, we refer to the first few search results, grab the package at the front of the fridge or call somebody in our Top 5.  (Why else would shelf placement at the grocery store be such an issue?  Brands will do what it takes to be front, center, eye-level and easy to reach.)  Sometimes we actively choose what’s placed at the top of our minds; other times, someone or some brand vies for the position, and we award it accordingly.

Social media is the ultimate battleground for attention; it’s ongoing, personal, interactive and accessible.  It puts companies and customers in close range, in tight proximity to invite relationship-building.  Online, we all have the ability to put our message—and our merchandise—within reach of our target audiences.  Yet it’s the effective marketers who’re creating prime opportunities to earn high ranking places in customers’ mental spaces.

Earning—and holding rank—is no small feat.  It’s one thing to make a trumpet call to get attention; it’s a whole other deal to keep customers’ interest and engage them long enough to bring measurable results.  For traditional advertising tactics, we speak of “frequency;” in online advertising, we refer to “impressions.”  In social media, it’s about long term relationships and ongoing conversations.

Remember the fellow who tweeted photos of the airliner that landed in the Hudson River?  He beat the news media to the punch with his instinctive photo-sharing and was hailed as The Example of citizen journalism of the new era.  For a blip of time after that frenzy, I heard tale of people following this guy on Twitter as if he was going to miraculously be present at the onset of every major national news story.  Yet after the moment of glory in the Hudson, the guy went back to tweeting about needing to lose weight and other mundane things of his daily existence.  And the followers trailed off…back to life as usual.  Yawn.

The lesson for small business owners?  Be present; be purposeful.  D on’t be the “Komodo dragon dream” or the Hudson River photographer; aim for more than a one-time run and be more than a single-event sensation. Let some other business try the crashing symbols or speech-making through a megaphone.  Those tactics are not only hard to sustain, they’ll turn customers away.

Instead, use social media to become a daily, reliable, personable presence with your audiences.  Tweet meaningfully.  Blog consistently.  Respond honestly.  Interact sincerely.  Earn your position at the top of customers’ minds, and strive to provide something so useful and enjoyable—ideas, interactions, amusements, information—they’d surely miss you if you weren’t there.

Top o’ the day to you!
Thanks,

p.s. – The dream had a happy ending!

Haven’t You Heard? Great Marketers Are Great Listeners

“It’s not about selling; it’s about conversation.”  “Marketing is a series of conversations.”  “Join the conversation.”  “It’s the era of conversation marketing.”

I read phrases like this all the time in the online banter about social media.  Do a quick search on Twitter for the words “marketing” and “conversation,” and you’ll get an endless bounty of relevant tweets.  There’s certainly lots of conversing about conversations these days.

Nearly everyone acts as if consumer conversation is an original tact for great marketing, as if social media has lowered the veil between marketers and consumers.  Not so.  Successful marketers have always known how to engage their audiences, and effective salespeople have always relied on relationships.

Social media is a tool (a pretty amazing one, no doubt!) that can be used to achieve undeniable results in the hands of capable people.  In the hands of the unskilled, social media is nothing but a vortex of time and energy.

It’s ironic to read about the art of conversation from some people who never stop to listen.  By definition, a conversation is an exchange of ideas between parties, not the conveyance of ideas from one party to another without reply.

I recently encountered someone who was jazzed by social media because she’d have “more ways to get the message out.”  She was poised to use Twitter as a non-stop classified ad, a LinkedIn group as her captive audience and a blog as a means of lobbing selling messages.  In a humorous twist this was her interpretation of “joining the conversation.”  Her ideas were really conversation stoppers, but she was too busy prattling on to realize that fact.

I just watched a clip on AdAge.com about Del Monte’s recent social media success in the pet food realm.  To develop a new product for dogs, the company invited conversations with pet owners—or “pet parents” might be the more operative term.  They asked questions that evoked honest responses.  And from the consumer interaction, they invented and launched a product that’s making bacon, so to speak.

If you listen, your market will tell you what it needs and wants.  That’s why you simply can’t come to social media as if you’re walking up to a podium.  If all you can hear is yourself talking, you’re in for one boring and fruitless conversation.  The best way to get down to business is to listen up.

Thanks!

Car Magnet or Facebook Fan Page? Old School Meets New Technology for a Rural-Based New Biz

I recently took a road less traveled to meet up with two fellows who’ve launched a new business.  I interviewed them for the next webisode of “Small Biz Big Time.”  Scott and Joe want—and need—their business, Eco-Clean, to succeed, and since they’re both go-getting and hard working entrepreneurs, they’re already making strides and booking biz just a couple months in.

Eco-Clean is an environmentally-friendly cleaning service (commercial and residential, primarily for hard surfaces), and Scott and Joe’s initial geographic market is a blend of small city and rural areas.  It’s so rural, in fact, Scott can’t get high speed Internet connection at his own home; he uses a connection through his cell phone to get online at the house.  Not to mention, many of the potential Eco-Clean customers may not tend to be Internet users, even if they’ve got reliable service.

All that said, how can this new business benefit from new technology and social media?  What role does online marketing and virtual relationship-building play for a business located in a rural area, targeting a customer base with hit-or-miss connectivity and usage?

This is a very interesting case study for someone like me.  I live with fingers affixed to computer keyboard.  For eight+ years, I’ve worked from home, successfully serving clients across the country thanks to seamless technology.  With the onset of social media, I’m now absorbed in discussions about web-based communities, and my daily life is a swirl of tweeting, status updating and online marketing.

My interview with Scott and Joe was a reminder that the more things change, the more they stay the same.  Life still happens at a local level.  Scott and Joe are using online and social media tools—most certainly.  Yet they’re also making cold calls, shaking hands and meeting face-to-face with prospects.  Right now, both methods are proving effective; to grow a business like Eco-Clean, online and in-person marketing tactics are essential.

While I was on site for the interview, Joe got a call from a man he’d done an estimate for just that morning.  It was good news.  Eco-Clean won the bid and got the job, and Scott and Joe were ecstatic.  I asked how they’d generated this lead, and Joe immediately got a just-ate-the-canary grin.  A friend of the man who booked the job had seen Joe’s wife’s Eco-Clean car magnet!   The custom car magnet had just paid for itself 25-times over, and Joe’s in-person estimate—at which he cleaned a corner of the man’s dirty marble floor to entice him with the possibilities of a full cleaning—had sealed the deal.

While the old school tactics merited high fives that day, Scott and Joe did go on to report that their Facebook business page had caught the attention of a local facility manager who was interested in some ongoing services.  Obviously, that one lead, earned from a page that cost nothing and took just a little time to create, could also pay dividends down the line.  But the pay-off will only come once Scott and Joe make the in-person connection and sell the value of their services face-to-face.

The more things change, the more they stay the same…

Look for the full story on the upcoming webisode of “Small Biz Big Time!”!  I’ll be editing the story over the long weekend coming up, and I look forward to sharing it with you.

Until then, happy weekend, and as always, thanks!

Social Media – The Harder You Work, The Luckier You’ll Be

I just got an email touting a live webinar on social media.  The message was in my spam filter (which I check occasionally for potential topics for my “misADventures” group on Facebook), which is where it belonged.  For just $69, I can log on later today to learn the “magic mix” for using social media to build my business.  Only a few spots are left, so I should register now!

Magic mix for social media.    $69.
Really?

Ladies and gents, there is not a “magic mix.”  And if more people charge $69 to tell you there is, we’re in the midst of a “massive mix-up.”  Social media, like any PR or marketing effort, comes with a gestation period.  Sure, there are always those businesses that defy the odds and enjoy near-magical kismet.  But for most of us in the work-a-day world, there’s not a social media lotto for which we can spend $69 to get the winning numbers, a.k.a. the effortless “magic mix.”

I’ve only recently had the chance to create social media proposals for some of my clients.  Down in the foxhole, many of the businesses I work with have been intrigued by social media but hesitant to venture out.  Honestly, as strongly as I feel about the need to move forward with social media as part of a full marketing plan, I’d rather coax a company that’s hesitant than try to reign in a company jazzed to gulp the “magic mix.”

Who wouldn’t want magically quick ROI, fast responses, immediate sales, increased market share?  Especially in our present economic state, some clients already known to tap their feet and look at their watches awaiting results are displaying even less patience.  The last thing I want is for those clients to hear there’s a “magic mix” and expect me to hold the wand.

Social media, much like traditional PR, takes time.  The seeds must be planted properly and nurtured consistently in order for fruit to come in season.  Much like I’ve long managed clients’ expectations about the pay-off of PR, I’m now advising the same for social media.  In every proposal I’m writing, I include a statement about the need for long term commitment to make social media truly effective.

Two weeks ago, a client who’d pulled their PR retainer at the start of ’09 due to an economy-related budget freeze called to let me know that she’s hearing great buzz about “the PR I’ve been doing.”  She’s finding that the PR is having a positive impact this year, as customers chime in and sales reps benefit from the good news.  Obviously,  I’ve not done any PR for her since the first of the year.  What this client is presently experiencing is the hard-earned results of a PR campaign that occurred late summer ’08.  Some things just take a while to bear fruit.

The famous Thomas Jefferson quote comes to mind now.  “I’m a great believer in luck, and I find the harder I work, the more I have of it.”

If you’re ready to leap into social media because you believe there’s magic mix, you’re out of luck.  However, if you’re committed to the work it will take, by all means get in the mix.

Thanks!

Numbers Game – When Does Your Count Count?

Is it just me or does it seem like lots of people use social media tools like virtual popularity contests?

Of course, Ashton and Oprah—the cool kids—have their prolific legions of followers on Twitter.  Yet I get tweets all the time from other Twitter users, direct messaging me about how they got “2,000 followers in 5 days and you can, too.”  I click on their heads out of vague curiosity, and sure enough, some of these tweet-masters have upwards of 20,000 followers.  And apparently, I ended up as one of ‘em (because I set up auto-follow on TweetLater.com, back when I was convinced numbers were everything, too).

The head counting doesn’t stop at Twitter.  There’s the friend count on Facebook, the connections count on LinkedIn, the number of fans on business/fan pages or members in an online group and total hits per day for blogs.  I observe some of my LinkedIn connections getting 10, 15, 20 new connections a day.  Other than my colleague whose business is leading LinkedIn training sessions and a few others with nationally known profiles, I can’t fathom how these people are collecting other people with such rapidity—let alone finding any usefulness in it.

Mind you, I write a blog about social media.  I work with some genuine gurus in this realm, and they’ve earned followings of hundreds or thousands because of their consistent offerings of useful knowledge.  But as I observe the growing ranks of count collectors, I’m reminded why I focused this blog on the needs of small business.  Most of us in the trenches are mere mortals who will only have time for social media if it brings legitimate results.

I consult daily with clients who would typically rather have a handful of committed customers than a sea of disinterested acquaintances.  Sure, there are times you need to cast a net in the sea to find the loyal clientele.  Still, most of us can’t realistically grow business while being tossed about in the current; we need to net our catch and bring it on board.

How do we discern when the count counts?  Here are some thought starters.

Numbers matter when
…you are selling a product or service with mass appeal (consumer or b-to-b).
…you are seeking to build a reputation with a very large audience or with multiple audiences.
…you are building a social media-based business, in which numbers of followers validates your status as an expert.
…you are seeking advertising or sponsorship for your online endeavor.
…you are building online buzz that will affect the validity of an offline venture.
…you are casting the aforementioned wide net in order to catch a fresh round of committed customers.

The acquisition of lots of people online is not innately greedy.  But it can be time consuming, and in some cases it may actually intrude on business goals.

In a past posting entitled “Don’t Use Twitter…Until You Know Why or How to Do So,” I recount (pun intended) my Twitter tale.  I ended up following so many people, I diluted the usefulness of this service for my purposes.  Yesterday, I talked about the art of starting a group with a scope narrow enough to target the right people yet deep enough to invite great conversation and variety; a broad-sweeping group often yields less fruit than a manageably sized one with a targeted topic/purpose.

Everybody raves how Zappos CEO Tony Hsieh uses Twitter (621,029 followers as of this morning) and social media so effectively.  He’s getting loads of press for his effective if not obsessive tweeting, and many equate Zappos popularity to Hsieh’s online bantering.  I don’t know about that.

All I know is, long before anybody was tweeting, I emoted old school style to all my friends about ordering a pair of snazzy heels at 6 p.m. on a Tuesday and having them on my doorstep by noon Wednesday.  If Zappos can satisfy my shoe obsession in less than 24 hours, I couldn’t care less about the CEO’s Twitter tally. I know what really counts.

Thanks!

Group Scoop – Do’s & Don’ts for Creating Social Media Groups

Want to create a group on Facebook or LinkedIn?  Groups are a great way to engage your key constituencies in discussion, trade ideas, gain insights and share resources.  We all want to belong—to find places where we fit, and groups in social networking environments bring people with shared interests together.  Group conversations can lead to meaningful connections.

Those who create and administrate groups on Facebook and LinkedIn enjoy some specific benefits.  Most importantly, they have the chance to establish the angle of the conversations, to guide the direction so the resulting interactions provide great insight.  Also, group administrators have access to member contact information and can message those members at their discretion.  This latter benefit should be very secondary because groups are not—and should never be—direct selling platforms.

Of course, LinkedIn groups are typically business-to-business, colleague-to-colleague forums.  Facebook is the better place to start business-to-consumer groups, though it certainly could be plausible to maintain a b-to-b forum as well.  It’s wise to have spent time as a group member before launching your own, just so you know how it all works from the inside out.

Presuming you’ve already determined you definitely need a group over a business/fan page (and if you haven’t, please read my previous blog on this topic to save yourself a step or two) or business profile, here are some guiding do’s and don’ts to help you make the most of the group-making effort.

Ask yourself a few key questions.
Get your bearings before you get going.  Picture your ideal advisory council.  Who would you want to be a part?  Customers and potential customers, colleagues from related industries?  Would you want a national or regional perspective?  What do you want to gain from the group?  Is there already a group out there that meets my need?  If  so, how can you start something equally as useful yet unique enough to stand alone?  Answer all these questions before you launch.

Create a topic that’s deep and narrow.
A group with too broad a focus will easily go off topic and off course.  A group too shallow is limited and will not attract interest let alone useful discussion.  More than likely, you don’t want to start a group that’s so specific it only attracts existing customers or competitors and vendors within your product category.  You want to engage a variety of people for the most useful and fruitful conversations.

Unless you’re dominant in your category (i.e. – Microsoft or Apple), a major player with many offshoots (i.e. – Burger King to brand franchisees, buying groups with regional retailers) or have a vast customer base, you probably shouldn’t start a group under your own business name.  For that matter, you likely need to think deeper than just your product category to attract a variety of people and interactions.

For example, say your business, “XYZ Widget Repair,” can service a 200-mile radius of the company headquarters in Boston.  To start a group under the heading of your business name would be limiting, as you’d likely attract only existing customers and business partners/vendors.  You’d be better off with a fan page or business profile.  Start a group for “widget repair,” and the net will be cast too wide or only attract competitors in your category.  The better tact may be to create a “Widget Care & Maintenance – Boston” to make the topic more inclusive yet regionally targeted.

Commit to being a discussion starter.
As keeper of the group, it’s your job to help it bring value to those who join.  Without some nurturing, a group is inert, an inanimate object that collects dust and is forgotten by those who’ve joined.  In the early stages, you may find yourself responsible for posting discussion topics, posting news stories, etc.  Do this with true commitment, so that you are consistently in front of your membership.  If you fall silent, the group may fall to the wayside.

Guide group dynamics.
One of the age old challenges for group leaders is encouraging good dynamics.  It seems there’s always a talker in the group, the one who always has to interject.  Then there are other group members who prefer to just listen.  As keeper of the group, it’s in your court to observe and guide.  If someone is treating the group as a selling ground, take action to discourage that.  If the same three people dominate the postings, direct some discussion starters to purposely engage others beyond the trio of constant responders.

Share the leadership.
You may even consider adding some customers or colleagues to co-manage the group to spark new dimensions.  If you’ve set the topic deep yet narrow enough, others will also have great insight to gain from being part of the group leadership.  Bringing more into the leadership fold can help expand the potential members list, delegate responsibilities for nurturing the group and multiply the usefulness of the group while staying true to the topic.

Look at the long term.
As with most social media efforts, the return on investment of your time and effort will come in the long term.  You can set up the group and invite the first round of members in no time, but it takes a while to attract diverse participants, set the tone and culminate useful interactions.  Be patient, and your group will grow to be truly dynamic.

Thanks!

…Friday!…

The way to gain a good reputation is to endeavor to be what you desire to appear.

–Socrates

Look Ahead or Get Left Behind

Know anybody who’s ever attempted a newsletter yet never had any news?  What about blogs; ever seen a stale blog on a company’s site?  And I don’t even have to ask about news pages on web sites, as I’m sure you happen upon the occasional page-as-time-capsule in your surfing.  These businesses had the best intentions of keeping content fresh; instead they posted a perpetual press release circa 2005 or hiccuped out 3 issues of what could’ve been a lovely newsletter.

Some day in my vast amounts of spare time (insert rimshot and laugh track), I’d love to try to tally the number of newsletters I’ve helped name and launch…which will closely parallel the number I’ve seen fizzle.  Ditto that for website news pages.  I could start a communications museum with all the well-intentioned projects I’ve seen preserved in amber—locked, motionless, ancient history.

Seems many companies love the idea of communicating but lack the stamina to follow through.  Sound familiar?

I eventually became the voice of reason anytime a client decrees it was “time to launch a newsletter” or “add a news page to the website.”  The term “monthly” or (God forbid) “weekly” often comes with the decree.  Now similar decrees are coming for blogs and other social media tools.  Since I know I’ll typically be responsible for producing said newsletter, web page or blog, I talk the client through the ins and outs of what it takes to sustain these efforts.

Even if the client laments that everybody else has a newsletter, news page or blog and they didn’t want to get “left behind,”  I remind them that they still needed to look ahead.

While I stand to make money anytime a client wants to produce ‘stuff,’ I prefer to guide clients to substantive, long term success.  That’s how we all win.  You don’t get long term success by being reactionary or by placating the desire for a momentary sense of accomplishment.  You don’t sprint a marathon on the heels of competitors, lest you tire out and trip up.  Not to mention, it’s really boring to have nothing to write about.

I rarely advise clients to not get in the game.  I always advise that they get in the game at a manageable pace.

Maybe the monthly newsletter should start quarterly or be a twice-annual mini-magazine.  Perhaps we hold off on the site news section and just create a temporary spot on the home page when there’s a release to post.  Let’s begin a blog slowly without fanfare or promotion, to allow time to establish a rhythm and system for success.

Companies worried about being left behind are typically too busy looking at the backsides of the competition.  It’s more effective to find a good pace and fix the gaze up—and ahead.  The leader has the best view.

Thanks!

Where Is Everybirdy? It’s Time to Fill Your Feeder

I just got a hummingbird feeder.  It’s my first one, and I’m not up to speed on hummingbird feeder protocol.  When should I put it up?  What’s the scoop on filling and cleaning?  Where should I place it?

I emailed a fellow bird nerd this morning to inquire about timing, and he replied that the hummers are already hanging around.  He and his wife have had their feeders out for a little while now.

Gasp.  Here I am, excited about my new form of “cheep” entertainment, and I’m already tardy.  What if the hummingbirds in my zip code have already staked claim on other feeders?  Will they every come my way?  Is there anything I can do to earn their attention once I do get this feeder filled and situated?  And I better keep extra feed on hand, in case they do come.  I wouldn’t want them to trust my feeder as a food source only to find it empty one day.  Time is nigh, or my birds will fly!

So it is with our online marketing efforts.

Your customers are already out there, looking for your product or service.  If your feeder isn’t out—and filled to the brim, they will fly on to a feeder that does have something to offer.  Even if you were planning to serve the sweetest nectar on the planet, your customers need solutions now.  They’ll settle for lesser than wait for nothing.

A website without social media connectivity is like an empty feeder.  Maybe your customers can dine on the content they find on an initial visit to your site.  But that won’t sustain them long term; they won’t keep them coming back in the future if there’s nothing new to savor.

Do you need to make time to tend to your feeder?  Should you ante up and hire some help to get things done?  You could be in the midst of building a reputation right now, instead of fretting over how or when to dive in.

For me, it would’ve been wise to buy the nectar when I purchased the feeder, then I would’ve been ready to host the hummingbirds.  If you’re looking to launch a site or refresh an existing one, you should build in ways to continuously feed that site.  Add a blog.  Include direct connects to your Twitter or Facebook accounts.  Offer a subscription to a newsletter.  Do something to keep ‘em coming back.

I’ll certainly have my feeder up by day’s end; the thought that there’s a hungry hummingbird out there in my neighborhood is motivation.  What’s your next move to attract somebirdy to your feeder?

Thanks!