Social Media and Real Business

March 22, 2012 by Leave a Comment

 

An example of the share buttons common to many...

An example of the share buttons common to many social web pages. Thanks to http://www.nouveller.com for the free icon pack image. The author (Benjamin Reid) releases the image into the public domain, with the following text available at the source page: "You can use them anywhere you like, absolutely anywhere, anything. No attribution, 100% free.". (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

The lure of social media is everywhere today. (I watched my Twitter stream all day yesterday to see the fate of Tim Tebow.) Nearly anyone can be found online and in the social media world. As recently as the last couple years the largest segment of growth online were Boomers and Seniors.

 

Businesses of all shapes and sizes are being inundated with “gurus” who are insisting that no business can survive without a social media marketing plan. Yet, thousands and thousands, and thousands, and thousands (you get my point) of businesses don’t really know what to do with social media or how to do it.

 

Let me give you three quick tips on how to use social media in a real business:

 

  1. Create a social media plan that is heavy on the social. The point of social media for business is to build relationships and to actually carry on conversations with your customers and prospective customers. Most companies believe that if they just send out enough information to enough people they will gain enough customers. (That is really just “old school” marketing in a new medium.) Social means social, so talk!
  2. Create a social media plan that allows your customers and potential customers to ask questions that then get answered for everyone’s benefit. The more you can answer questions before and after the sale, the more people will buy from you again and refer you to others.
  3. Create a social media plan that allows you to monitor your brand and respond quickly to any negative comments. People today are more apt to take their anger with you and your company online these days than they are to talk directly to you. If you are monitoring your name and the name of your company, you can usually respond to and defuse most complaints in real time. This kind of open and thoughtful response will go a long way in repairing relationships with an existing customer and showing potential customers the kind of effort you will make with them should an issue arise!

Real businesses (not the shame groups teaching you to make money online by teaching people to make money online to teach people to make money online) need to have an online presence these days. But, don’t let the lure of the online cause you to loose sight of the rest of your business planning, marketing, and efforts. Social media is one tool in the tool box. Essential …YES! But, not to the expense of all others!

 

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Filed Under: Social Media Tagged With: , , , , , , , ,

Building from the Real You

February 29, 2012 by Leave a Comment
Social Media Cafe

Social Media Cafe (Photo credit: Cristiano Betta/Flickr photo)

When I first started developing an “online presence” I, like most newbies, thought that everyone who ever put an eBook together must have had something unique to say. I wanted to know everything I could about the ways of social media and more than anything wanted to make a big splash for myself.

What I found over time was that most people writing eBooks are just re-purposing the same set of “must haves/must reads/must do’s” and that making a big splash online wasn’t really me in the first place. I found that what really made me happy was building my business from the real me.

Having gone through this experience, I would like to make three suggestions for anyone trying to build an online presence for either fun or profits (or both):

  1. Start by understanding you! Social media and the internet allow for you to present yourself in anyway that you like. Lasting success online will come by building from the real you.
  2. Build organically! Great conversations with people who know, like, and trust you are always better than “spitting in the wind.”
  3. Learn the proper blend of life and business. I really don’t care what you had for lunch, but do want to know enough about you to suggest your favorite quiescence when we meet for a business lunch. I want to do business with the real you!

What lessons have you learned in your time online? How to you share the real you in the online world? What suggestions do you have for new people/businesses trying to make there way in social media?

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Filed Under: Designing Success, Social Media Tagged With: , , , , , , ,

When Social Media Turns Ugly!

February 22, 2012 by 13 Comments
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I spend a lot of time on social media channels these days and I have found that since we”marketing experts” have discovered them, they have really lost their desire for simple people like me. I will admit openly and without reservation that I embraced these channels of communication and considered with glee the great opportunity they provided for business growth and expansion. However, after becoming the victim of the insanity, I finally came to understand that these wonderful opportunities for small and quiet voices to be heard had been overtaken by the loud voices of “the market” and their ability to control the whole system.

 

Everywhere you go (from Facebook to Pinterest to LinkedIn to Twitter and beyond) the social stream is less and less social and more and more another channel to inundate the public with more and more “stuff.” Even the concept of “inbound marketing” where content is supposed to be free and limited so as to create a greater sales cycle.

 

I am not against the use of social media for business purposes, but I am dismayed that nearly everything you read these days is a “not so veiled” sales pitch. This post marks a change in thought (as well as direction) for me. I am still going to provide what I hope will be great and informative content to my friends and readers, but I am going to let the decision to work with me professionally be entirely yours.

 

The result may be a lessening of readership, a fewer numbers of “lead captures,” and maybe even less income for our company as well as for me, but I am ready to do the right thing. How about you? What do you think would bring you to such a decision? Is it important for your company to be seen in this kind of light or is money and growth all that is important? Would love to hear your thoughts!

 

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Filed Under: Social Media Tagged With: , , , , , , ,

Writer’s Block and Thursday Thoughts

January 26, 2012 by 2 Comments


I am having a “writer’s block” kinda week. I have written two posts, but after I read them, I thought that probably several hundred other bloggers have probably written the same thing this week so why should I just clutter the blogosphere with more of the same?

Maybe I’ve just got a bad attitude this week!

So, here I sit on Thursday morning with just a few thoughts that I would like to pass on:

  • Every blogger, writer, entrepreneur, and business owner goes through times like these. Just keep your eyes, ears, and heart open and the ideas/words will return.
  • Writing nothing is often of greater value than writing something that is either copycat or is just something to get a post up. If a post doesn’t reflect you and you concern for your clients, don’t post it!
  • Remember the passion that caused you to write in the first place. Too many times writer’s block is the result of a perceived responsibility born not of passion but of sense of duty. Your clients and potential customers would rather see your passion than your duty!

Owning a business and writing to benefit your clients is a tough job. When the ideas dry up for a time, don’t make things worse by trying to fill your space with fluff. Your clients will better respond to the best of your thinking a little less often spoken than just more noise!

How do you get beyond writer’s block? What ideas can you share with the rest of us?

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Filed Under: Small Business, Social Media Tagged With: , , , , , , ,

The Trap of the Internet and Social Media

January 9, 2012 by 5 Comments


Starting a new business in the current business environment is as exciting as at any time in history. With the ability to be “seen” not only in your local market but also in every market around the world via the internet and the use of social media is just incredible.

Yet, with such powerful tools available, new businesses can also fall victim to the trap of the internet and social media. What I mean by this is that new businesses can easily get mesmerized by the power and reach of both the internet and social media and come to believe that if they are simply “out there” that success is guaranteed.

I remember having a conversation with a business owner who was in the second year of her business. She was a very savvy business woman who had used her internet and social media skills to launch her business a year prior to our conversation. What stunned her though was that now in her second year of business things weren’t going nearly as well and she was not getting the new business that had seemed to come so easily to her in the first year of business.

She recognized that her internet and social media efforts, which had been a large part of her first year success, were not bringing the same return as in the first year. As she considered her options, she began to reach out to her personal network and developed new products to make available to her local market. She continued with her online efforts as well, but learned that being online alone is not enough. You need to have a balanced approach to marketing that is strong both on as off line.

Don’t fall into the trap! The internet and social media can play a very powerful role in the success of your business, but for most businesses they cannot be your sole efforts.

What have you seen in your business? What other marketing efforts are you using to maximize your success model?

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Filed Under: Internet, Social Media Tagged With: , , , , , , , , ,

Tired of all the “gurus”!

November 29, 2011 by Leave a Comment

When I first started blogging and working in the area of social media, I read everything that the “gurus” were saying about social media and how to get noticed online.

After several years of reading and following these “gurus” I have come to the conclusion that I am tired of all the “gurus”! It seems that, for the most part, they are self-serving and only want to sell their wares. I’m not opposed to “selling your wares” as long as they have real value to individual clients. I struggle with so many people calling themselves “gurus” when all they have done is “parrot” what everyone else is saying.

For we Boomers who are looking for ways to reinvent retirement, these “gurus” can hook us early and we end up trying to create businesses that look like everyone else. These bland and unimaginative businesses fail as often as the averages suggest. And the “gurus” just keep on “teaching” the same worn ideas to another set of honest, hard-working people.

What Boomers need as they consider creating retirement businesses is for those who would be business/life coaches to consider them first. To help them think through and investigate what they want and how they want to do things. They don’t need “gurus” teaching tired systems, but rather they need honest people looking to help them find the business that makes their retirement years all that they have hoped for them to be.

So, if you are tired of all the “gurus” then take time to look for the right help that will help you help you reinvent retirement in the way that makes the best sense to you!

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Filed Under: Boomers Helping Boomers, Social Media Tagged With: , , , , , , ,

Changing the Face of Business

October 11, 2011 by Leave a Comment

One of the most difficult things for me to do is to change! I enjoy my routine. Yet, I have also come to understand that without change there is no growth and without growth there is stagnation. (Not a good word for a successful business!) So, I set out to change, to learn, to grow no matter how hard it seems to be.

However, I don’t want to do all this changing and growing alone, so I have come up with a little experiment that I want others to join with me. The experiment involves changing the face of business as we know it. I am speaking particularly about how business is conducted in the online, social media world.

When the business community invaded the online world and specifically the world of social media, we did so with the same bluster and bravado (and junk mail I might add) as our entrance into all other types of media. Suddenly every email, every website, every blog post, every tweet was an advertisement for some product and/or service that I didn’t know I wanted or needed.

Businesses are being swept into such tactics by the promise of a worldwide audience and the thought that if just .01% of all their posts become sales then they would be rich beyond imagination. So the posts come, the tweets are made and the email offers are non-stop. It is so bad now that I am ready to shut it all off and actually talk to my clients in person again (what a concept!)

Thinking about this makes my head spin! So, I have decided to do an experiment. The goal of this experiment is “changing the face of business.” The way that the experiment works is that I want to establish a business relationship (more about what that means later) with 100 people. This relationship will be one of mutual respect, and one of mutual benefit, driven by the sense of value that such a relationship can bring to all involved. I am not looking for people who necessarily want to sell me something, but want to know who you are, what you do, and how you bring value to your customers/clients. I want to share my value with you as well. Then, if we need something from the other, we would certainly feel comfortable hiring the other and/or recommending each other to our spheres of influence. No pressure, no hype, and no more quotes from dead people just to fill our twitter stream (my pet peeve!)

If this is something that might strike your fancy, you can check out my new twitter account @dwellmanonline. It is a social/business place where I talk business, root for the Cardinals, and talk with my business partners. This experiment will last as long as it has value to all involved. If you get too salesy I will let you know, if I get too salesy please let me know (PM’s please, not news stream flaming.)

In the end, I hope to find that changing the face of business is not only possible but also rewarding personally and professionally!

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Filed Under: Social Media Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , ,

YouTube Scares Me!

October 5, 2011 by Leave a Comment
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The second largest search tool on the internet is YouTube and yet most businesses don’t even have a YouTube Channel. When asked why, people say things like “YouTube scares me – or – I don’t want to be on a video – YouTube isn’t for serious businesses!”

The truth of the matter is that as businesses we need to get past things like this and embrace the possibilities that video offers. Getting found online involves making use of every avenue available. With a computer, a video camera, and a free YouTube account (along with a relatively short learning curve) you can make yourself known in this area of the internet world as well.

Let me try and help you with five thoughts about using YouTube to make your online presence soar:

  1. YouTube makes it easy to create, upload, and promote your videos. The process is very simple and if you are at all creative it can be fun as well! I have a friend online who says that he does all his videos in one take and no editing. It can certainly be that simple and should be (at least in the beginning.)
  2. Do a search on YouTube for the name of your industry (Real Estate, Insurance, Speakers, Car Sales, etc.) See what shows up and watch these videos. You will notice that most of the are not professionally done and that they are getting views anyway. You will also find that nearly every industry has people making videos. People searching online for your industry will likely find these folks before they find you.
  3. Study the videos that are industry specific and find out what is being said, what is being taught, what is being done badly and then improve upon them or create innovations that will set yourself apart from them.
  4. Don’t be discouraged. Just like everything in social media, it takes time to be recognized. Stay at it, set a schedule and make videos. As people begin to watch, your message will be heard and you will gain position in your industry.
  5. Make your first video!

 

Don’t let “YouTube scares me!” be your excuse to keep you from one of the most powerful tools available to you?

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Filed Under: Social Media, YouTube Tagged With: , , , , ,

Tell the Truth and Tell it Fast!

October 3, 2011 by Leave a Comment
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I watched a great interview done by one of the men that I respect most online (Mark Schaefer). Mark was interviewing Amy Howell of Howell Marketing Strategies. (See the interview here!) Mark and Amy were talking about the changes that have occurred in the world of Public Relations with the onset of social media. The point that struck me the most was that Amy said because of the speed at which things occur online these days you, as a business owner must, “tell the truth and tell it fast!”

I couldn’t agree more with Amy’s assessment of the online business climate. Tell the truth and tell it fast ought to be a mantra that is driven home in every business small, medium, or large in our world today. Not only does this kind of transparency avert bigger problems down the road, but it also helps you become more real to your clients today.

There are three things that make telling the truth and telling it quickly stand out to me (and I would suspect to a lot of others as well):

  1. Telling the truth in a crisis acknowledges your humanity and your fallibility. I have worked with businesses in the past who, for whatever reason, would not acknowledge an error when it was obvious that one had occurred. (Several auto repair shops will go unnamed at this time!)
  2. Telling the truth, quickly shows clients that you are on top of your business and that your companies reputation is important to you. This level of importance gives current and prospective clients the confidence that you will do all that is necessary to protect your reputation by protecting theirs as well.
  3. Telling the truth, even when you are to blame, makes it difficult for even your staunchest critic to cause long-term damage to you or your company. While every mistake causes short term damage to a client and/or those that they can influence, acknowledging the mistake and fixing the problem can also make for loyal customers and a life-time of referrals from someone who could have been a critic for life.

 

My thanks again to Mark Schaefer and Amy Howell for stirring my thoughts with this great interview. You can follow Mark (@markwschaefer) on Amy (@howellmarketing) on Twitter.

What do you think about this kind of transparency? Has it helped your business in the past? What do you think now?

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All Blogged Out – Getting Your Blog Read Amidst the Noise!

September 30, 2011 by 4 Comments
Clark Stanley's Snake Oil Liniment. Before 1920.

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I was talking with a friend the other day about the way social media was going. I was speaking from the perspective of someone who see social media as an essential and exciting tool for doing business, she from the perspective of someone who is inundated with blog posts and social media sales pitches to the point that she is tired of them all. In this conversation, my friend told me that she was all blogged out!

The truth is that my friend is right! Everyone has a blog these days and businesses with the proper view of blogging and who have taken the right approach are being drowned out by the plaid panted, white shoe wearing, snake oil salesmen who have discovered social media. The influx of these folks has turned many an interested blog reader into an uninterested blog hater. The are simply all blogged out.

So, how does a blogger with the right intentions (producing real and valuable content, asking real questions, and engaging their clients in the processes of innovation and improvement) create and grow the readership of their blog in the midst of all the noise?

Three quick thoughts:

  1. Be true to your business and its purpose. Too many blogs these days build readership with wild claims and crazy ideas that rarely if ever create lasting results. Your blog should be built just like any successful business platform: Satisfied customers who know you, like you, and refer you to their friends!
  2. Build your readership organically. This is simply the best way to guarantee a solid and continual readership. As you gain the respect of your audience with good articles that set you apart as a true thought leader in your field, they will begin to pass your good information and advice on to those who they influence as well. People sharing your content has a far greater effect than if you try to force it down someone’s throat.
  3. Build a level of consistency that people can count on. When you start blogging, the question of when and how often to blog is always a question that you must answer. While the answer is based on many factors, you must determine what is going to work for you and your customers and then stick to it. If you are going to have a blog that has an integral place in your companies overall marketing/sales strategy, you must make time for it and the content you share. A lack of consistency will make your posts part of the noise and not considered worth reading.

 

So, if you are really interested in sharing your knowledge with your current and potential clients through a blog, you have got to be able to cut through the noise and reach people who otherwise are all blogged out. Take this advice, build consistently, and watch your readership and your reputation grow your business!

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Filed Under: Blogging, Social Media Tagged With: , , , , , , ,
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