Social Media

Equal measures of confidence and self awareness can help those with drive achieve success.  The road isn't smooth; the map is even creased.  Knowing what you're capable of - willing to learn and work for - along with an honest grip on your strengths will help you resist those beguiling shortcuts.  People who take the easy route rarely get where they need to go, anyway. Mitch Joel wrote this line in a recent post on the Six Pixels of Separation blog: “You have to believe in yourself and what...

Need some thoughts on social media integration?  Yesterday Mark Smiciklas of Intersection Consulting published a post with an embeded video [see below] on Social Media Explorer.  The video addressed best practices for companies to follow as they look to integrate SocMed into their business.   A fellow contributing author on SME, I've enjoyed Mark's posts and deeply appreciate his visual thinking skills.  He has a talent for translating an idea or concept into a visual design that's simple to grasp....

Over at Social Media Explorer, Ike Pigott recently dug into the business value of social media.  He discussed the common struggle of gaining upper management "buy in" of social media in context with a traditional analog marketing tactic like a corporate membership with the Chamber of Commerce or Rotary club.  Social media adoption can be slow to categories like banking, insurance, and utilities where the image of the trade calls forward visions of starched collars and below-the-knee skirts. The...

No two competitive teams are alike in their strengths, weaknesses, training styles, values or character.  Similarly, any given business, large or small, will approach the act of integrating social media philosophy, methods and tools differently from another. I just finished watching my 8-year old son play his first games of the travel season. We visited a neighboring city and played two intense games of mite level hockey. As a mom I love watching my son (who is also a good student) play competitive...

Facebook shouldn't be used as a broadcast messaging service, or as a tool for your prospecting process. This isn't a rant.  It may have some of the climactic build-up and emphatic narrative commonly found in a rant, but make no mistake. This isn't a rant. If it were a rant, I'd exclaim how sick and tired I am of "social media marketers" that ask to connect with me (under the auspice of digging my blog content, knowing so-and-so whom I also know, or being a member of the same LinkedIn group)...

Sometimes, you gotta answer the tweet.  That's what I did a couple of weeks ago when Jason Falls, owner of Social Media Explorer and digital strategy trailblazer made an open call for fire starters.  See, Jason's changing the format of his blog to include additional writers. His idea is to create a unique mix of content by allowing a larger group of voices contribute to SME.  Jason will still write for SME (just as I'll still write for I&I), but this way we get to shake things up a bit.  Plus,...

Change can be tough for a lot of reasons.  Changing can mean we have to endure some tedious tasks or dedicate time and resources already stressed thin.  Change can also force us to acknowledge unchartered waters and force us to take those first wobbly steps before we can become more sure-footed and thus, more comfortable.  Change presents the risk of error, embarrassment, or worse, failure. Fear of the unknown - the unproven, unmeasured, and unmastered - can inhibit the flow of good ideas....

I’ve been diving into a Forrester blog post made by Augie Ray in July, and I’ve found some fascinating stuff. In his post “The ROI of Social Media: More than Dollars and Cents,” Mr. Ray sets forth a balanced scorecard method for evaluating social media programs. The method incorporates four perspectives critical to determining the value of social media for business. As we all scramble to answer the ubiquitous question “How can we validate social media?” the post solidifies some of my own opinions,...

Recently I reflected on  the myriad ways I personally consume and disseminate information. I wrote about how I think brands should be adapting their channels, content, and even formats to better correspond with their consumer's lifestyles so that the brand may resonate more strongly and potentially surpass the competition, if only on an awareness level (it's a start).  I think of it as having a multi-channel life because I'm many things to many people, offline and off.  This includes my interactions...

A few years ago, all-stars Drew McLellan and Gavin Heath brought forth a new book titled The Age of Conversation, 100 Voices, 1 Conversation.  It was a fabulous collaborative effort edited and coordinated by the two men and written by a host of contributing authors.  The book was so well-received that the guys published a new installment the following year featuring even more authors.  Now we're up to Age of Conversation 3: It's Time To Get Busy, slated for release in mid-April. This project...