social business

Becoming a social business isn't as easy as adopting a few tools and making a few status updates.  Designing an innovative company around disruptive technology means more than taking a shallow swipe at establishing a service line and chalkboarding a "sometime, down the road" SaaS. Work the room Last week I attended a networking event coordinated by the Technology Association of Iowa.  Dubbed Pitch and Grow and well attended by University of Iowa types, the event centered around entreprenurship...

Listen up.   Grab your AmEx and head on over to Amazon.  You’re about to buy a book. That is, unless you win a free book (and I have one to offer some lucky duck). But you’ll probably want multiple copies, so you still need that shiny green card. Share the knowledge wealth. Once you dive into Jay and Amber’s book, you’ll be flooded with warmth.  The clouds will part, and someone, somewhere will sing.  You may even be bathed in golden light if you’re sitting near a south-facing...

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...

Here most of us are, trying to explain the value of cultivating connections with our customers and forging a community of users built on solid product, stellar experience, and authentic communication. For the average marketer (and the average business), the road is a long one full of incremental baby steps and the occasional delay or detour. Still, that beacon of social business shines brightly and encourages us to travel on. But what if you're Ashton Kutcher? An acclaimed actor whose charm and charisma...