Hey Seth,
I agree with you… but there’s a solution!
I hate to oversimplify, but the answer is Angie’s List! Of course, not for a company as mega-whopper-sized as Apple, but it works amazingly well for a $30 million/yr enterprise like ours.
Confused? Here is Seth’s post: http://sethgodin.typepad.com/seths_blog/2011/03/cascade-of-broken-promises.html
Comments?
Know what people are saying about you online… even if you’re not saying anything?
Would you like to?
Or, have you heard so much about “social media” but are afraid to jump in because you may give a competitor valuable information?
This is where solid business meets Twitter, Facebook, YouTube and blogs.
It’s also full of advice and each chapter comes with an Action Plan for each platform.
The Action Plans are packed with immediate-action tips to keep you from looking like a beginner, even if you are.
They’re also written from the perspective of an executive who has been successful in off-line businesses, but used the internet to augment lead generation.
One tip could save you or make you thousands… or help you combat cyber-squatting and other brand-damaging internet iniquities.
But the key to this book is that it gives you helpful advice to get your team involved and buying in to the concept.
Because if they don’t come along for the ride, you won’t enjoy it nearly as much as you could.
Click the image to order and you will be able to download it immediately. As updates hit, you will receive them automatically. You will also have access to my exclusive newsletter… and this is the only way to get access to it.
All the best,
Chris
Put your social media presence everywhere.
It’s so simple, it never occurs to many.
Look how long it took many businesses to get their website addresses on vehicles, business cards and ads.
And some still have yet to get with the program (very few).
In fact, I haven’t seen a sign like this yet… except at this business outside DC (a business very close to my heart!)
Of course, it’s bigger than this and there is other information on the door, but I know many clients both current and potential who’ve expressed delight at being able to contact this business in so many ways… especially since it’s closed on Sundays unlike many traditional retailers.
But, hey, who wants to be traditional?!
In fact, this business encourages people to friend them, fan them, tweet them, check in on foursquare, and anything else they can think of.
And they offer rewards like Starbucks gift cards, drawings and merchandise.
Give me your thoughts on this one because I humbly think it’s genius 
If you’d like to learn more about social media and real business, even if it’s just to check on your brand, check out the book The Social Media Equation. One tip from it could save you embarrassment or make you thousands!
Click the image to order and you will be able to download it immediately.
All the best,
Chris
These things are second-nature to me, but I often wonder how many managers, trainers and reps don’t realize just how much more effective they could be by using social media (YouTube in this case) to duplicate their message.
Just today I had a lunch meeting scheduled with a rep from a large distributor and one from a manufacturer.
The information was key and we were swamped, so I was the only one (that’s what bosses do) who could make it.
Why?
See for yourself and let me know what you think.
I want to support my team. They had to keep selling and working with clients, but I didn’t want them to miss this training opportunity.
YouTube to the rescue!
… and my iPod Touch with its fantastic video quality and ease-of-use.
I asked the questions my team would have asked. Of course, they’re a smart bunch, so I’m sure I missed some, but it’s still good.
Then, I published the video to our YouTube presence (yes, we’re all there, even though my main field is off-line).
Now, all of them are getting an email with a link to the video so they can get the answers they need for a product and system we rely on routinely.
This, my friends, is a fantastic use of social media for business and represents one of my favorite aspects – duplication of effort.
The rep, although good, won’t need to come back in right away because we have his PK recorded.
The comment section on YouTube will serve as an interactive focal point.
I hope this helps in your business.
All the best,
Chris
Is it any coincidence that Target is the first big-wig to offer Facebook giftcards… and then change the url they show on TV commercials to Facebook.com/…?
Facebook.com/Target in this case.
Well, call me silly, but I’d say no.
Or nope.
Or hell no, it’s so friggin’ obvious that Target actually GETS IT!
You may be thinking “Hey, Chris, what’s this “it” you’re so jazzed about?”
Well, friends, the “it” is that the way business has been spoon-fed to us by ad agencies for hundreds of years SUCKS… to put it succinctly.
Social media represents the missing link for businesses not afraid of transparency, or at least savvy enough to curate their online real estate.
And don’t worry, I won’t say “make no mistake” anywhere in this post… except… ah forget that one.
Seriously, Target may be ahead of the curve in understanding that business is done with people, and we “people” value relationships.
Although I think the movie “The Social Network” is a piece of Hollywood overly-dramatized, soap opera-esque crap, Facebook is phenomenal and I truly enjoy the new connections made, and old ones re-kindled.
So, what are your thoughts on this?
What other businesses have you seen that have implemented the use of their Facebook.com/ url in advertising, if any?
Friends, I think we’re on the cusp of some really big changes and those of you who already get “it” are well-positioned to not be taken by surprise.
All the best,
Chris
Here is my first true “rant” and it’s about a movie I thought I was going to thoroughly enjoy.
It’s also about what it meant to a die-hard geek… and former Marine with a sense of honor.
I’ll mince no words by saying I feel that not one ounce of value was added to my life by watching that movie, and I’m embarassed that I brought my wife to see it. And I’m glad Mark Zuckerberg spoke out in the video below.
But this movie… it has nothing to offer of value other than another glimpse into a back-stabbing, dishonorable way of doing business I want no part of.
Guys, it’s not the bong hits and cocaine that got me… it’s a friend hurting a friend, badly, and that’s never the kind of movie I’ll want to support.
I’ve attained a measure of success and used to think being a millionaire was cool… but now what means more to me, as one, is HOW one gets to be a millionaire.
Add to that the fact that I’m a father of an autistic/Asperger’s child with perhaps a hint of Asperger’s myself, and I can tell you I will do whatever it takes to be as unlike how Zuck is represented in that movie as possible.
I’m going to keep my rose-colored glasses on and believe Zuck is not that bad, and that hurting a friend stung more than some lowlife director let the actor portray.
It should be renamed “The Anti-Social Network” because that’s all it represents.
Again, I’m not saying Facebook or Mark Zuckerberg are bad.
No, what I am saying is that Hollywood still sucks and I should have known better than to even consider watching a movie where Justin Timberlake plays any sort of substantial role.
I’m physically sick.
Chris
Ok, I feel better now that that’s off my chest
I’m going to watch Brave Heart, Patton, Saving Private Ryan and read some Calvin and Hobbes to wash out my brain!
If you’d like to learn more about social media and real business, even if it’s just to check on your brand, check out the book The Social Media Equation. One tip from it could save you embarrassment or make you thousands!
Click the image to order and you will be able to download it immediately.
Maybe you’ve been there… the outside-of-the-box thinker who actually “got it” when it comes to social media -
aka the Social Media Lone Wolf.
Yep, you know what it’s like to look at a business’ Twitter posts and say, “Stop selling, idiots! It’s about relationships and branding first, business second… good, solid business.”
Or, maybe you’re less tactful -
“Cold selling on social media is like sex without foreplay, jackass!”
Guilty here on both counts.
Or maybe, heaven forbid, you share information with people in your field or those who may not know as much as you or be able or willing to pay you for that knowledge!
Mercy me.
Heck, maybe you’ve even brought your smartphone into the bathroom just to connect with your kind (yep, it’s more common than you think).
Hopefully, you’ve transitioned to a new industry and are welcomed among the understood of the pack, appreciated at last.
If not, you’re probably a masochist or you just don’t know how valuable you are.
Well, my friend, if you “get it” when it comes to social media, you’re valuable.
Just go to LinkedIn, Mashable, Monster, and any other employment site and enter “social media” into the search box.
Then hold onto your geeky hat and prepare to smile.
Here’s a hint, do whatever you can to get “social media” added to your business card…
And when “they” finally come around and see how blasted wrong they were to:
- force brick and mortar metrics on you;
- bring up ROI within the first month of a “campaign”;
- sift tweets through a committee of ignorant suits;
just try to hold your fingers down and not smile too broadly… but smile!
You deserve it
Now, watch this video and enjoy, my fellow “new dork”:
All the best,
Chris
Yes, I’m smiling…
If you’ve not heard the term “freemium” you’ve more than likely at least participated in one.
Have a Flickr account?
I know, it’s free… but you can always upgrade once you’re addicted, I mean “acclimated.”
Think of it as a sea change in marketing or the biggest paradigm shift marketing has seen since television.
How so?
Well, instead of getting a piece of bourbon chicken on a toothpick to entice you to buy the entree at the food court, now, you get the meal but the drink or dessert are not free.
Make sense?
You’re reading a post on a WordPress blog right now.
These blogs are free to set up and you can take advantage of 95% of what they have to offer.
But down the road, you can pay for enhanced services like video hosting, which I’ve not chosen yet.
Instead, I like the idea of tying my social media real estate together by hosting video on YouTube and embedding videos in blog posts like this one.
Keep an eye out and you’ll start to see freemiums everywhere.
All the best,
Chris
Ok, so “Crakalicious” is not a user name I would have chosen for a popular blog comment post, but who am I to judge?!
There is a point to this and it’s a good one.
I’ve used interns for years to delegate tasks and provide opportunity.
As a former intern myself, I was given a fantastic opportunity that I ran with… no, I sprinted with, to translate it into an editor-ship with a startup that is still in business after over 15 years.
I’m pretty proud of that.
Oh, right, let me get back to the point.
This post is about interns and one simple way I’ve employed them to get important, but time-consuming tasks, done.
Specifically, commenting on popular blog posts (definitely after reading them!) and linking back to my various web presences.
It’s a great way to build traffic, but it’s a low-dollar/hr task that I just can’t do any more.
Why is it ok?
Because my interns actually read the blog posts they comment on.
That’s pretty important, speaking as a blogger that has to sift through loads of spam comments that have nothing to do with my erudite (humbly spoken) writings, and link back to ridiculous sites, some of which make me sick.
And where did the name “Crakalicious” appear?
Well, I’m still laughing about it because it was on a CNN blog post about drug use.
Of course, junior and I had a talk and that name disappeared.
Then he replaced it with “John Smith” and we had another talk.
Now he uses his real name and we’re both happy
All the best,
Chris
This is a tool I’ve used in business a bit too frequently (in the past).
And keep reading for the part your credit card company may not want you to know.
Before I sold my first startup, I got a lot of practice chasing down COD’s… that pesky fact of business life, the balance-due.
Of course, I had a contract with a collections agency, but I’m Swedish and that’s not how we roll.
I would always, usually , try to go the extra mile before ruining someone’s home life to collect funds owed and caller ID spoofing worked like a charm.
Here’s how it works:
You set up a contract with a spoofer (pick one, any one) and you can have any number you choose show up on the phone of the person you’re calling.
I would call the person/deadbeat/forgetful one who owed the balance (usually in the thousands of dollars) and spoof their own number or a number I knew they would not be wary of.
The end result was that I got to talk to them and we could usually make a plan.
If I could not make it work, of course, I would forward them to my collections agency and go through that silliness, but this tool saved me a considerable amount of capital and time.
Now, for the trick.
Once, on a whim, I wanted to activate a credit card I’d received in the mail (that I asked for).
I did not have time to make it back to my home to call them from my home number (the only way, supposedly, it could be activated), so I caller ID spoofed the Visa company.
Whoa!
Yes, it worked.
Now, I’m not advising this, but it was so easy I got a little nervous.
That was 5 years ago, but it may still work.
All the best,
Chris
