Dec
2
Back before the tech bubble burst, and people and companies had lots of cash to throw around, any type of marketing strategy could be promoted. Just throw in a new tech word and you had a sure winner on your hands.
I attended a meeting last 
week with a variety of business owners. We were all in the B2B realm, with everything from insurance and financial representatives, to IT and promotional products.
After I gave my 60 second commercial on creating an online marketing strategy, the social media conversation started.
“I just signed up for Twitter.”
“I visit Facebook every day.”
“I use LinkedIn all the time.”
So I asked the next question.
“How are you using these tools to make money for your business?”
And of course I got exactly what I expected. A ton of blank stares.
Jun
23
Last week I attended the Affiliate Convention here in Denver. It was the first year they’ve held it here in Denver, and for a first event, with attendance approaching 1,000, it was very well received.
The hot topic in every training class I attended was social networking. “How many of you have a Twitter account?” was the first thing mentioned in every class. 
In one class, the questions became even more controversial, and started a lot of discussion.
Should you run more than one Twitter account? And if so, should Twitter accounts be all about you, or can they also be designed as a promotion tool?
Ultimately the purpose of social media is to build relationships, and let people develop a comfort factor with you and your products/services before they become customers. When you use Twitter as your own personal name – @LoriOsterberg for instance – than you can talk about a variety of things, and let people see your personality through the multitude of posts you create.
Jun
12
What’s the most popular marketing strategy around at the moment? Twitter. Every networking group I attend, every show I watch, even at my daughter’s softball games, everyone is talking Twitter.
So if you run a business, you have to be on Twitter, right? 
And if you’re on Twitter, the best thing you can do is get a ton of followers, right?
So these promises of 5,000 Twitter followers in 5 hours for $50 is a great deal, right?
Think again.
If something sounds too good to be true, it probably is.
First, if anyone is promising a ton of followers for a low fee, your first question should be “How valuable would these followers be to my business?”
Just like everything, the best way to get followers is the good old fashioned way. Go out and find people who you have something in common with.
- If you are a mommy blogger, find moms.
- If you are an accountant for small businesses, find small business owners.
- If you are a realtor, find people who are interested in buying property within your area. (A Colorado realtor can find a ton of people to follow in Colorado very easily.)
So let’s say your goal is to add 50 new followers every day. That’s 350 a week. If you add 50 a day for three weeks, that’s more than 1,000 people you’re connecting with every time you Tweet.
Jun
3
The Future Of Twitter – How Long Will The World Be Tweeting
Filed Under Social Sites | Leave a Comment
It seems like the whole world is Tweeting. You watch television and they mention Twitter addresses. You head out to a networking group, and every speaker is talking about social media and Twitter.
But is it really the way of the future? 
The key to making it an integral part of our society is to have people embrace the technology.
According to the Participatory Marketing Network and reported on Marketing Charts, even though 99% of Gen Y consumers (18-24 year olds) report being active on at least one social site, only 22% of this group said they were currently on Twitter.
So it’s not the younger generation who is using it.
It seems if you’re using social to follow friends, Twitter isn’t a choice. Yet.
Where Twitter does well is for those of us already established in our careers, and out there looking for a new way to market our business, connect with people, and build relationships that will ultimately lead to new business, careers, or even friendships.
Once people are on Twitter, they tend to use it in several ways.
May
14
It’s All About Me
Some people just don’t get that Twitter isn’t about self-promotion. It’s about building a relationship. Sure it’s okay to occasionally send out a Tweet about your new product or service. As long as you’re filling in with quality information and resources that make you a value to the community. 
Bull Horn Approach
Imagine standing on a street corner screaming out your message at 4am on a Sunday morning. Will a few people hear it? Maybe. But you’re missing a huge opportunity. Don’t head out to Twitter once a month and Tweet out six messages in a row. Spend 5 minutes per day adding one or two quality Tweets, and spend some time re-tweeting and making conversation.
A Glamorous RSS Feed
Twitter is more than a resource for you blog posts and RSS feeds. Simply feeding in your RSS is a surefire way of getting your followers to quickly unfollow. Twitter is all about relationships first, content second.
May
7
The Simple Life Gone – Why Social Is Changing The Way We Live
Filed Under Social Sites | Leave a Comment
Remember the simple life?
- You did something crazy with your friends, and it became a memory you talk about at high school reunions.
- You did something embarrassing, it circulated at school for a few days, and it disappeared forever.
Ah, the good ol’ days. 
Thanks to blogging and social media, your business is everyone else’s business forever. If you do something crazy, it will circulate online forever. If you do something embarrassing, the photos will be around forever to prove it.
A recent report by the National Association for College Admission Counseling says that one fourth of colleges surveyed indicated they use web searches or social networking technology to dive deeper into prospective students backgrounds.
More than half monitor the online social buzz for their school.
And one third maintain a blog for their college.
In short, they know how to use social media and they aren’t afraid to use it.
Mar
30
Building Your Business Using Twitter
Filed Under Social Sites | 1 Comment
Suddenly the world is talking about Twitter.
Head to a networking group and chances are someone will mention Twitter. Twitter “experts” are popping up all over with new business services (can you really be a Twitter expert with 100 followers?)
It seems to be the only way to do business these days.
Even just a few months, in order to have access to the press, you had to type up a press release, send it, and hope for the best. If you had a personal relationship with someone, you could contact him or her directly.
But now with Twitter, you can connect with a variety of different news and media sources.
MediaOnTwitter is a database filled with journalists, media sources, bloggers and reporters. You can browse through the sources, sort by columns, and easily follow someone through the Twitter follow link.
Mar
16
What Happens When Twitter Goes Away?
Filed Under Blog Marketing, Social Sites | 2 Comments
Facebook is now the number one social networking site.
Twitter is taking the Internet by storm.
It seems everything in the media is about s
ocial networking, and how you can use it either in your personal or professional life. Just this past weekend I found stories about Twitter in 3 mainstream magazines, and “What The Tweet Are We Doing?” was a full page article in Sunday’s The Denver Post.
So with the sudden rage that’s exploding all around us, its natural for everyone to wonder what Facebook and Twitter are, and how they can use them.
But does it REALLY matter how to use Facebook and Twitter? Or is the more important question, “How is this technology going to impact me in the future?”
I have been speaking throughout Denver to PTCO groups on security issues for teens. And at the middle school level, a large amount of parents have no concept of Facebook, social networking, or what any of today’s top technology tools do.
Yet technology will have a huge impact on our children’s lives. And without the support of parents, many children today will become lost in the possibilities. Or worse, lost in the “wild west” and getting into all kinds of trouble.
Feb
20
Having been on Twitter for well over a year now, I use it daily and understand its relevance. I understand how to use it to attract new clients, and how to use it to build my business. Could I be doing more with it? Definitely. I think there’s always room to grow. But if you’re just starting out and still struggling with the question of “Why do I want to use Twitter?” use these tips to start out in the right direction.
1. Build your Twitter account with quality people that you truly want to follow. Many people say they follow everyone that follows them. After following several people that filled up my conversation with information that didn’t apply to me, I took a different stance. I watch my conversations, and follow people that I have something in common with, or that I want to try and build relationships with. In many ways it is a two way street – I follow them and they follow me. I just use discretion when choosing who to follow.
2. Don’t build too quickly. You don’t want to go from 0 to 2,000 following’s in a one week period. Likewise, you don’t want to be following 500 people and only have 10 following you. Build slowly at first to learn more about Twitter and start developing relationships. Show people you provide quality content, and give them a reason to follow you.
3. Create a theme with your Twitter posts. I like to add links to quality content I’m reading in the blogosphere every day. I’ll purposely head out to find quality links I can share with my followers. A lot of social networking is about having a system and following it every day.
Feb
18
Facebook Does An About Face
Filed Under Social Sites | Leave a Comment
A couple of weeks ago Facebook revised their terms of use hoping to clarify some parts of their website and the way they do business. Instead of clarifying, they ended up causing an online riot.
As of this morning, they’ve done an about face.
Due to the backlash that swept through the blogosphere, they had two choices: retreat back to the old terms, or rewrite them again. As of now they have chosen to revert back to the old.
Facebook still wants to change the terms and put them in a language that better suits the reality of being online. But they will be will be doing it with the help of the 175 million people that currently use Facebook (if you want to take part, join the Facebook Bill of Rights and Responsibilities group).
So what does all this mean? Here are a few thoughts.
- Facebook is a free service. And its on the Internet. By putting any information onto a source like Facebook, you’re giving them certain rights to the information. If you put it online, you lose certain control. Period.
- With the Internet, people have control (as opposed to the big corporations). Look what a few bloggers can do! The Facebook change was announced Sunday and in a matter of hours, it swept through a ton of blogs and through every industry. Because of the fast action, Facebook was forced to make a change – fast. That’s really the power of the people.
- It’s all about give and take. If you want to have 100 percent control, you cannot play online. If you want the exposure and the ability to market your business to the masses, you have to be willing to play in the sandbox with other players. And that means losing some of your control.
- Facebook is not alone. I guarantee if you read the terms of use of any other type of social or information sharing site, you’ll find similar phrases. As a company, they have to have some rights over the material you place on their sites. And with the viral atmosphere of being online, things take on a life of their own.
So, what’s your opinion? How will this change the way you play in the online world?
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