What are the risks to social media?

Living in a reactionary society, most of our actions are reaction to the stimuli. No wonder that most organisations worry about how people will react to their presence on any social media network. Their foremost concern is that individuals will use social media to say things that could prove harmful for them. Now, I must concede that this fear is not completely unfounded. But this is not a risk, this is a certainty. When employees are allowed to use social media, someone or the other is sure to do something mind-numbingly foolish. You simply cannot avoid it, so better take it as a certainty and prepare to deal with it.

Another issue that rankles the high ups of any organisation is the security threat that social media presents. What if someone from the organisation decides to use a trade secret to spice up their next tweet? We have seen this happen often enough to safely assume that such fears are not unfounded. Other things that organisations agonize over are employees making fun of clients or making a politically incorrect joke and worse still, sexually harassing someone.

But you see the problem here is not social media. It's the people. If people are not mature enough and lack the self-control to avoid such obnoxious behaviour then problems are bound to happen whether it’s in social media or any other place that they operate in.

The biggest risk of social media worth mulling over is quite the opposite. The nightmare of every company taking a plunge into social media is that nobody will notice and participate in their social media network. It’s quite heartbreaking to see beautifully designed and unmistakably expensive online communities that are now lying deserted. Even those who manage to attract some debate soon either recede into violent arguments or steer off the course. The fate of others is even more pathetic as they fail to upgrade and just fade away. Most embarrassing is the failure of some organisations to handle technical snags because of which they fizzle out.

So what can you do to avoid this risk? Think why you are on social media… it’s for your clients and audiences. So put them first… what interest them and what is useful for them? Placing enough staff to keep the site crackling while taking care that no rivalry shows up also helps, but the most important thing is to get a feel of social media yourself. Understand the media so you are in a position to take the right decision.

We perceive social media or for that matter anything new thing as a risk because we are wired to maintain status quo. However, just because we are accustomed and comfortable with something does not mean that risks disappear. We are forced to face them and tackle them sooner or later. The risk of social media is none other than the risk of stepping into hitherto unknown. You always have to work hard doing it against not doing it.

Questions…..More

Sometime back I started a series of Questions that a picture ask. Hence collected a new set of pictures that was asking questions.  Ralph Waldo Emerson once said “We are always getting ready to live but never living.”, hence we need to ensure that we start living rather than just live.

Can I Get my World Back?

“Yes you Can”.

Do I Need Weapons or Books?

“Books”.

Can we survive this?

“Yes”. 

What Earth is Saying back to us?

“Please Change”. 

Should we love animals?

“I guess so”.

 

Can you hit the President of USA?

“I can”.

Have a Happy Week!!

Push me down…….

And then I would know how many times I can get up….

In today’s global economy, most of the academia and business leaders teaches you to do one common thing…….INNOVATION….OR INNOVATE…..I am always mesmerize by this small word. Innovation is to think out of the box or thing beyond your foreseeable limits. Very good to preach ….but extremely difficult to implement. Why….I am sure most of us know why…..as I believe that deep down somewhere we all are afraid of new things and afraid due to our own insecurities or lack of actual competence.

The one thing that was very much common in all great leaders, globally, is the - Belief. They believed in something and it was fuelled by passion to ignite a new way, a new product, a new economy, a new technology, a new freedom etc. Google, Facebook, Mac, Cellphone, and so on all have common gene pool made of focused belief and passion to achieve.

Of course they all very not hiding behind the so called “Process(s)” as what they did…..made into processes later on for others to follow. I believe processes are there just to facilitate people and not the other way round. But then most of the companies unfortunately are suffering from process syndrome and hence the natural attack happens is on innovation trickling down to those who are igniters of innovation.

Many people find themselves in leadership positions without ever having consciously made the choice to become a leader, let alone a great leader.

The 'Peter Principle', (named after it's originator L. Peter)  states that in modern organizations, most bosses rise to the level of their least competence, like the specialist (e.g. accountant, engineer, lawyer etc.) who is so good at their craft that they get promoted to a management position in 'charge of people' without having mastered any real leadership skills. And then they bomb. It's not their fault, they were promoted into the position with little or no training or mentoring...it's sink or swim.

When you become a leader, you take on a great responsibility...you promise to change the world for the better. But if your reaction to this statement is ‘I’m only managing an organization, or department, or project, I’m not out to change the world’, then I respectfully suggest that you learn to be a good manager, but not a leader. Leadership is something that you exhibit and other see not something that you’re visiting card suggest.

Leadership is not to ensure that people work for you….but rather to ensure that people work with you. “Its not about growth…its about welfare”…where true leaders think of collective growth of not only him/her self but the team, company and community….making it a welfare for all.

The other important quality that leaders exhibit in pursuit of innovations is to face the challenge and open for failure(s)…. Failures not only by them but by their team(s)…At many occasions’ leaders are pushed to the ground and there emerges a great leader to come back to his/her feet. "Success always leaves its footprints"….and True Leaders ignites the power of collective success.

Brian Wood in his book “Lead People…Manage thing” has suggested the FACET Leadership Model:-

1. FOCUS: How focused am I? How much of my time do I spend communicating and inspiring people about our mission, vision and strategic goals? How much focus do I create in my team and organization?

2. AUTHENTICITY: Am I viewed as authentic? Do people see and hear the real me? Do I wear a mask at work, and remove it when I leave each evening? How much trust do people have in me?

3. COURAGE: How courageous am I when my values, vision and goals are challenged? Do I stand firm and only change my position when I know that I am wrong? How well do I manage change?

4. EMPATHY: How empathetic am I? Too much/too little? Do I create enough opportunities for open and candid dialogue? Do I ever find myself getting bogged down in consensus building, or leading my team to false consensus? Is there a feeling of inclusiveness and engagement amongst the members of my team and organization, and with other stakeholders, including customers?

5. TIMING: Do I make and execute decisions in a timely fashion? Do I know when to 'fish or cut bait?' - do I demand well coordinated and timely execution from others?

Something seems too simple to read and talk….but humanly possible by a limited league of extra ordinary gentlemen. Hence don’t worry when you are pushed down…work on to get back up…..

Happy Reading!!

Steps to Increase Your Social Media ROI

A great article by my friend and Mentor Louis Columbus. Sharing a great read.

It’s enough to make any Marketing VP ( or CFO) …

… think they’ve found the Promised Land.

Online global communities with easy access, no cost to participate, and literally millions of people and companies joining every month, driving traffic estimates to the stratosphere.  Social networks and their blistering growth is everything a marketer could ask for.

Yet is it?

Social networks are re-writing the rules of relationships between customers and companies every day.  Their impact on marketing, selling and service strategies is significant and growing.  The fact that customers have a voice and can share their opinions instantaneously makes social networks too powerful to ignore.  Social media strategies that can scale to the unique needs of individual prospects are where the growth is happening today.  Re-orienting your company’s mindset about social media needs to start with how these social networks can contribute, not detract, from attaining your marketing, selling and service goals.

Social Media: Distraction or Deliverer of Results?

No doubt the stories of companies achieving exceptional success using social media strategies capture the imagination and attention of many.  On the surface it looks like all that is required is a Facebook, Friendfeed or Twitter account, a few months of well-timed and pithy messages and voila! Sales are up and so is customer satisfaction because the company is listening, responsive and visible.

Look at the success stories close enough and maybe you can hear the Marketing VP, Sales VP or CEO talk about the hard work of deciding just what role social media would play in marketing, selling and service strategies.

In that decision to not just jump on the bandwagon of social media but to stop and ask,

“How can our existing marketing, selling and service processes be strengthened by social media?

Can they be strengthened or is this a distraction?”

The more successful companies are thoughtful about this; they look at their existing processes, systematically, and decide if social media can contribute.  If social media can make the process more efficient, more customer-focused, as is the case with customer service for example, then they make the commitment to bring social media into their strategies.

Where companies have challenges is when they jump into a social media strategies, complete with Facebook fan pages, Twitter accounts and executives blogging with very broad, difficult-to-measure goals if they have any at all.  With so much potential to improve each marketing, selling and service process, it is better to take the time and define a set of goals first.  The following strategies have proven to be successful at helping companies do just that.

Steps for Increasing Your ROI on Social Media

Dedicate a person to making social networking work for your company.

The bottom line is that making social media strategies pay off is hard work, takes constant focus, and requires that relationships be strengthened all the time, either online or in person.  If you want to succeed with social media, give someone the role full-time.  This is not a task that can be spread across a cross-functional team or given to someone to do only a part of the time.  If you want measurable results get a person dedicated full-time and give them the authority to make decisions for customers quickly too.  Set them up to win in this role and your company will come across as much more focused and responsive as a result.  Social networking is also all about connecting with people.  Make sure your company is presenting a person, not just a logo, to interact with.

Benchmark the strategies that you plan to integrate social networking with.

This will give you a baseline of how each strategy is working prior to integrating them into social networks.  Common approaches to do this include creating landing pages that have specifically been designed for social networking sites.  Isolating the effects of Facebook or Twitter for example on a landing page optimized for the audience your company has on these social networking sites will quickly tell you if you are converting clicks to prospects.

Match up individual social networks to strategies based on compatibility to goals and markets.

Twitter has found a home in many company’s customer service strategies due to its rapid conversational pace and ability to take discussions  private through direct messages if needed.  Facebook fan pages work well for those brands that have a strong fan base – like Apple for example.  Services companies are using Facebook to put more of a human face on their customer service, to make themselves more approachable and easier to buy from in the future.  Choose which social networks best compliment a given strategy for best results.

Create a social media roadmap that shows when and how each will be used in each strategy.

This is important because it will be another data point you can use to measure performance of having social media involved in each strategy.  Trending of each strategy’s results will show if social media strategies are paying off or not.

Use Google Analytics to get real-time results of strategies using social media.

Once a given social media platform has been chosen to match the unique needs of a given marketing strategy or campaign, it is time to measure the results.  Google Analytics is excellent at this.  Using this free analytics service you can measure landing page performance by craping, tying back to the original social media platform you chose to use.   Google Analytics provides free codes that are inserted in websites, microsites or landing pages to evaluate overall performance.

Never stop adding valuable content to your microsites, websites, blog and Facebook pages – offer free advice and over-deliver value.

The companies excelling at social media strategies and generating prospects do this with a passion.  Just as it takes a dedicated, full-time person in your company to make social networking happen, consider how you can get your most prolific writers and content providers motivated to deliver content regularly.  Be generous in the content you give away, and get the annoying opt-in screens that have so many options out of the way.  Be a thought leader and freely share knowledge and insight; don’t force prospects to fill out a massive opt-in form, it no longer works.

Don’t fall for the popular metrics including follower counts or just looking at Web traffic alone, both are incomplete.

Influence is based on trust, not popularity. The ability to change a person’s perception, then action is really what influence is.  Follower counts, if anything, are a measure of churn.  Pay no attention to this metric; it is really irrelevant to actually building a connection with customers and prospects. The same is true of Web traffic. Taken in isolation, it is meaningless, but in the context of landing page analysis based on a targeted strategy, it means much more

Lead nurturing in social media needs to focus on engaging and helping a prospect to solve problems, not sending them more white papers or collateral.

This is why having someone dedicated full time to social media is so critical.  The segments or groups of followers your company interacts with on each social media platform will change over time, often becoming uniquely different from each other.  Staying on top of this and devising ways of keeping your company relevant can be an excellent way to keep these target segments focused on what your company has to offer.

Use Google Analytics link opt-in pages by strategy and campaign to lead conversion.

Tracking the landing pages that are dedicated to each specific media platform being used in your strategies (say for example the Twitter-specific landing page promoting a 15% discount on any follower who downloads the coupon in 24 hours) can in turn be linked to lead conversion rates.  Using lead management and escalation systems, it’s possible to make this link between landing page opt-in and lead conversion.  Tracking this shows the effectiveness of the promotion in each social media platform too.  From that, it’s clear to see which social media platforms, running which promotions, are generating the greatest potential sales.

Bottom Line:

Look to how the unique strengths of each social media platform can accentuate and strengthen your marketing, selling and service strategies, setting goals that capitalize on their contribution first.

He Just said – “Arrested”……

James Karl Buck helped free himself from an Egyptian jail with a one-word blog post from his cell phone. Buck, a graduate student from the University of California-Berkeley, was in Mahalla, Egypt, covering an anti-government protest when he and his translator, Mohammed Maree, were arrested April 10.

On his way to the police station, Buck took out his cell phone and sent a message to his friends and contacts using the micro-blogging site Twitter.

The message only had one word - "Arrested." You can read the entire story by clicking here  to know how he got out of jail within 24 hours of this single word tweet.

In another incident a small post on twitter led a situation of chaos and panic at Robin Hood Airport in Doncaster. Of course the frustrated air passenger arrested under Terrorism Act after Twitter joke about bombing airport <Click the link to read the complete story>

So what does the two examples implies…..No brainer…..The power of social media has grown beyond anyone’s best or worst dream. Does the impact you…..YES…..if you spend anytime in the universe of internet….then it is quiet evident for you to visit the planet of social media.

When the big bang of internet happened, no one realized that social media may one day become the centre of its universe, at least of now. Of course at that time these two words were stranger to each other – Social and Media.

So for the time being I can safely say that social media has formed a centre of the Internet Universe. Be it Linkedin or its 4 LinkedIn Tips to Help You Stand Out <Link> or Facebook along with How To Build Your Facebook Landing Page <Link> or even Corporate Social Media or Twitter with its 50 Ways To Use it.

I am sure Google can yield much better results on great links than I do. So why I am wasting my time to write it. One answer may be that thought of writing a new post and another could be had some free time, etc, etc. No matter what the reason could be the importance of social media is evident and especially for marketer.

But equally it’s great to know about what a hash you can make of it. That is what I will cover in my future post. So with its (social media) evident importance, I would like to highlight on great examples on how effective or innovative you can get with it.

With courtesy of Eric Brantner, a freelance business copywriter from Houston TX, and his published work at Houston Search Engine Marketing and Optimization Services Site, following are 10 great examples on how creatively company’s have utilized a small but a great tool - Twitter:

1. Laundryroom- The laundry room Twitter account helps residents at Olin College’s West Hall check on the availability of washing machines at the campus Laundromat. Anytime a washer or dryer is available, a Tweet is automatically sent out to the local residents following the Laundryroom account. Not only is this pretty neat, but it also improves the overall efficiency of the Laundromat.

2. Coffeegroundz Fundraiser- The Coffee Groundz is a Houston-based café that uses Twitter to interact with the local community. However, they recently had a very creative use for their Twitter account when they asked their followers to donate non-perishable food items to the Houston Food Bank. Their Twitter-based fundraiser helped them collect over 260 pounds of food to donate to the Houston Food Bank.

3. Askastripper- Yes, even strip clubs are getting on the social media bandwagon. This Twitter account is linked from a blog of the same name. Essentially, users have the opportunity to ask a stripper anything. Whether you have a question about the intricacies of their job or you just want their opinion on a random topic, the stripper will answer all of your questions.

4. JetBlue- This is another great example of businesses getting the most out of their Twitter account. This airline has different employees man their Twitter account throughout the day. If a customer has any question—whether about potential flight delays or how big their carry-on can be—the JetBlue account will Tweet a quick answer.

5. Missingchildren- But you don’t always have to use Twitter for personal gain. This profile sends out Tweets any time a child goes missing. The Tweet usually includes the child’s name, city, and a link to a picture with more information. They also send updates whenever a lost child is recovered.

6. TvGuide- When’s the last time you actually flipped through a TV Guide? It’s been years for me. This Twitter profile sends a Tweet out each day of all the new shows that will be on that night. You’ll never forget to watch your favorite shows again!

7. Liver4carole- It really is amazing to see all the great causes that people use Twitter for. This account is trying to accomplish exactly what its name implies—to get a liver for Carole. They regularly Tweet links to stores whose proceeds go directly to Carole, as well as updates about Carole herself.

8. GoodCaptain- I must confess, the writer in me is torn on whether this is really cool or a disgrace to literature. Whatever it is, it’s certainly creative. The Good Captain is a book written one Tweet at a time. Simply click back to the beginning, and you can read the entire book, Tweet by Tweet, online.

9. ProjectVino- For the most part, the Project Vino account is just like any other. It’s filled with chats to various friends, and there doesn’t appear to be anything unique about it. However, this social wine site holds wine tastings over Twitter occasionally. They send wine out to various popular Twitter users, and the testers microblog their thoughts live as they taste the wine. Where can I sign up?

10. Amazon- When you first land on the Amazon Twitter page, you might think the account is inactive. It’s not. The point of this profile is for followers to DM a book title or ISBN number, and then, they’ll receive a Tweet with the average price range on Amazon at the moment.

Have a Happy Reading!!!

@shirazdatta

Mothers on Social Networking

Mothers have found a new friend in social networking sites… It may appear strange, but studies show that mothers are quiet active on these social networking and community sites. As per a survey undertaken by eMarketer, mothers seek out their online peers for support and advice. Also, they like to keep track of what their kids are doing online by being present on these social networking and community sites.

Various social networking sites have dedicated groups for mothers, both working and stay-at-home mother members. Such sites not only help them find mothers with similar interests but also provide them with a platform to seek support and share information. The number of increasingly tech-savvy mothers using social media is on rise. And they are not restricted to PCs and laptops to take over the cyber world! Our mothers are savvy enough to use their cell phones to go online.

Today’s moms are a social lot. They use social media such as Facebook, MySpace and BabyCenter Community regularly to connect with their old friends and to find a new lot. And their number is increasing significantly with each passing day. Sites focusing on specific mom-like interests such as parenting websites are attracting cyber moms like magnet. They use social media for word-of-mouth recommendations on brands and products. What is surprising is that mothers, also the decision makers most of the time, trust the information that they get on such online communities. It also goes true for products and services they might be interested in. Social Networking and community sites offer these mothers a medium of socializing and entertainment themselves. By connecting with other moms going through the same experiences at a given time, mothers get to enjoy the content-rich environments of these mom-centric communities while being at home or running their numerous errands. The latest Uma Thurman-starrer Motherhood treats the subject with a stark and groping humour.

Apart from getting information and connecting with peers online, mothers also see their time online as an escape from daily household chores. This is especially true for new mothers who are going through a life changing phase after childbirth. By interacting with other mothers going through the same phase, they learn how to cope with the situation calmly. They discuss recipes and ways of tackling problems that they face with their newborn. It has been observed that children’s health issues are the leading topic of interest in online communities followed by childhood development tips and product reviews. Unlike earlier days, mothers today play the role of a key decision maker in the health and well-being of her family. They look for opinions online and also do not hesitate to seek mom-to-mom wisdom using the internet and social media.

These social networking sites provide them direct contact with medical experts, famous chefs and people from the fashion fraternity. This gives them a chance to interact and find solutions for their problems with just a click of a mouse. And, the educated and tech savvy mothers of today make full use of this arrangement for their own benefit. The rise in the number of mothers on social networking sites can also be attributed to the fact that moms want to give their child the best that they can. So, they themselves can’t afford to be left behind in this internet-driven world!

Social Media Lessons and Strategies for Sales

Social networks are re-writing the rules of what best practices in sales and marketing are.

• Listening is in, shouting is out.
• Targeting is in; carpet bombing via e-mail is out.

Responsiveness is the new black and trust is the new currency.

Brands are laid bare in front of millions daily. It doesn’t take long for just one customer to make a major statement about how they feel about a brand and make a major impact on sales too.  Using Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn,  blogs or YouTube, customers can make their voice heard immediately.  United Airlines’ wake-up call last year is a case in point as is the recent controversy Southwest Airlines faced.

So Many Social Networks and So Little Time

With so many powerful social networking platforms, applications and tools available why are marketers still not getting to their lead generation and sales goals?

Why do companies who have such a strong passion for their customers lose their way to delivering exceptional experiences?

Why does their sales collateral promise so much and at times fail to deliver?

Because product marketing, product management and marketing teams fall into the trap of believing you have to inundate the prospect with features, in-depth data and tons of documents to prove you know what you’re doing.  Carpet bombing prospect’s in-boxes with e-mails to send the message you know what you are doing is ironically proving fatal.

Why?

Because you and I respect people so much more when they listen to us and talk with us instead of talking at us. Too much technology marketing, specifically in software, talks at the prospect, instead of with them.  That is the heart of the potential of social networks – to engage and talk with prospects instead of at them.  And it takes hard work to make relationships count. You can’t earn sales through a deluge of content; it has to come from being genuinely interested in helping a prospect over a major problem.

Find the Passion of your Company

There are dozens of excellent software applications out there for managing lead generation and follow-up but unless it reflects the soul – the passion of a company – it is meaningless. What makes all these lead generation apps really work?  It amplifies, projects, makes more visible the passion a company has for owning a problem prospects and customers have.

No software application can compensate for a company that has not decided what it is passionate about.

But for those companies who have chosen a mission – a vision of what problem they will own for any prospect or customer – then lead generation becomes real for them.  Companies struggling to produce leads may not have a software problem; they may have a passion problem.  Defining that passion for service will go a long way to finding good leads, not those captured through attrition from lists. How much more powerful passion is for solving a problem over just endlessly listing off features and data.  Passion puts all that intelligence into motion and makes it relevant.

Lessons & Strategies

Social networks and the customer immediacy they provide make it imperative that marketing focus on what they have a passion for and what a company can deliver in terms of products and services.  From that vantage point consider these lessons learned:

Sales communications, both in-print and online, must have a very clear customer it is aimed at.

Surprisingly so much is produced aimed at the “enterprise buyer of IT solutions”.  I have never met anyone who called themselves that.  Get real and if you can’t define the customer, consider canceling the collateral.

Urgency to own the customer’s pain now and provide a proven solution.

Marketers who are making social networks generate leads get this and get their company’s passion for owning the problem out loud and clear.  Features matrices don’t come close; re-think that strategy and go own a problem to gain leads and sales.

What is the collateral’s goal and how does it fit into the marketing strategy?

An excellent question to ask when there are many, many open projects in a marketing department and there seems to be little shared messaging.  Collateral, both online and offline needs to resonate the passion a company has to serve.  It has to be so strong that there is no doubt your company intends to be the global leader in solving the problems and pains you target.

Answer the question of how your products and services are different and proven.

Differentiating at the benefits level, not at the speeds and feeds or features level is critical. What odes your company’s passion make it especially good at?  That is the most powerful differentiator there is.

Does your collateral teach or preach?

Go after teaching, and share your insight and intelligence freely as a company to gain thought leadership over time.  Your company will get what it gives when it comes to sharing insight, intelligence and knowledge.  Blog regularly. Give away insights from studies free.  Be open.  All of these tie back to a passion to own a customers’ problem.

Are your sales material evangelist-compatible?

Consider that if you are selling a complex system or service that your sales cycles often involve dozens of people in a variety of roles.  Is your collateral designed to make it easy for those championing you inside a company to carry forward what makes you unique?  Can the online collateral move quickly through social networks?  These are all relevant questions to this point and to evaluate your collateral on.

Design to Inspire and Educate.

The simplicity and clean layouts of social networks are the result of years of usability testing in some cases.  Make sure your offline and online collateral reflects these design criteria.

Bottom line:

Social networks are making companies confront what they really stand for and what they are the most passionate about. It’s best to start thinking about these issues and make your collateral all coordinate to what your company truly stands for.  Owning a problem and being passionate about it will generate far more leads than any other strategy.

Courtesy  - Louis Columbus