Archive for year 2011
How many Twitter accounts should you have?
Nov 2nd
How many Twitter accounts should I have?
I have been asked this question three times in 24 hours, most recently by Edwin Mysogland of Indiana who writes:
I received your book for my birthday last month and I have found it to be a fascinating read. Forgive me in advance if I missed it, but what is your position regarding handles? For instance I have two accounts, business and personal. From what I can gather with the intent of making Twitter so much more personal I assume you would say one?
The beauty of Twitter is that it can be used by many people in many ways. But let’s start with my philosophy about it, which has also served many other people very well.
Twitter is not about being B2B or B2C. It’s P2P — person to person. Twitter is a powerful networking tool and a historic opportunity to connect with people you never would have met before. It’s an incredible opportunity to build a real, emotional connection with people who can lead to substantial new business benefits. And I’m sorry … but it is just really hard to build an emotional connection with a company logo or a picture of your building. I want to know YOU.
We’re all SICK of being marketed to, advertised to, and sold to. But we do want to make new friends who will pay attention and help us get by in this crazy world.
Twitter is no different than any other networking venue. If you attended a chamber of commerce meeting or an industry get-together, you wouldn’t cover your face with a logo and hand out ads. If you’ve done personal networking, you know it takes time, but after the fourth or fifth meeting, you start to recognize people, you know their stories, you find common interests, and you actually look forward to attending the meeting to see your friends.
And then one day, this is what happens. A friend from the networking group calls you up and says, “Hey, my client is looking for some (fill in the blank for your business). I thought this would be right up your alley.”
And the business benefits start to accrue.
I was on the receiving end of these conversations, all of them resulting from friendships that started on Twitter:
- “Would you be interested in working for the UK government?”
- “Rutgers University is creating a graduate-level social media education curriculum. Would you be interested in helping them?”
- “I’m looking for speakers for my national economic development conference. Are you interested?”
All of these calls resulted in significant new business opportunities. Even the seeds of the national Social Slam Conference I founded were planted with Twitter connections.
There are exceptions to every Twitter rule, but generally my recommendation is that to create an organization that is BEING social instead of DOING social you need to get your skin in the game and stop hiding behind corporate pronouncements and logos. That is not easy, which is why so few companies are succeeding in this channel.
The best practice is to have a social media policy that encourages your employees to tweet for themselves and your company. Why not have everyone be a beacon for your brand in some small way? This is a big decision for many companies. Put time into your policy, start small, experiment, have patience.
And above all, be human. It’s OK to tweet about your interests. It’s part of who you are. In most cases, you don’t need two Twitter accounts. Just be congruent and honest. Be you.
What do you think? What differing Twitter strategies are you employing?
Illustration courtesy of www.marriedtothesea.com
Take the Mystery Out of Twitter!
, the best-selling Twitter book in the world! Learn the three elements behind every Twitter success, 22 ways to build a relevant audience, strategies to create personal and business benefits, and hundreds of amazing tips and time-savers.Click on the image for a Special Amazon promotion!
A glimpse of the next generation of social media entrepreneurs
Nov 1st
By Neicole Crepeau, Contributing {grow} Columnist
One of my children attends a private school that is offering a new class called “The Evolution of Society.’ I recently had the opportunity to sit in on this class and if the kids in this course are any indication, watch out! The next generation of entrepreneurs is going to rock the world!
The idea was to create a class that would give students the tools to understand the current baseline for technology and where technology could take society in the next 30 years. As the instructor pointed out, when we were growing up, “The new ideas weren’t so different from what our parents experienced. Now, there are big differences between the lessons our parents learned, the concepts they understood, and the current world.” In other words, what kids see as de facto, we don’t.
Among the topics covered in this class of ninth through twelfth graders:
- The freemium economy. You can get a lot for free these days, like a gmail account or an online game account. To kids, free is just part of life. They still need to understand the hidden costs, like advertising or the inevitable upsell. Likewise, while free, distributed media is their main source of content, ideally, they understand how that content is shaped and what influences the messages it conveys. Why do companies give you these free services? What’s the business model? When and where does it begin to cost you?
- The class went through, in detail, the recent Netflix letter apologizing for their pricing change, to analyze the real agenda behind the letter. They asked questions such as was it preplanned, and what were the business and marketing strategies behind it?
- The history of open source and how open source techniques are being used.
- The new currency of the web: attention and reputation.
- Social media tools. What originally attracted me to learn more about the class is that students were required to open a Twitter account and tweet daily as part of their homework. The last third of the trimester, these kids are exploring social media, including specific social networks like Facebook and Twitter, how they are changing, and how they are used by business.
The final class project is to propose a solution, using social media and technology, for the question “How might we redesign the work students do outside of class time to be more interesting, balanced, effective and engaging?” (a question the kids came up with). To do that, the students work in groups of three to create personas of their target users, do research to understand the users’ goals and needs, and then brainstorm solutions to come up with a proposal.
Let’s think about what these kids are learning in high school:
- That you start designing solutions by gaining a deep understanding of your customers and their goals and needs. That’s a lesson that many of today’s marketers are still struggling to learn.
- How to conduct user research and develop personas: the basics of user-centered design taught in college programs.
- The most current and cutting-edge economic models for online content and programs. I.e. how to make money on the internet.
- How companies target customers, how they gather information about people via their actions online, and how they shape and distribute their messages to reach those customers.
- Social media and the directions the various networks are evolving.
If you could design a class for young entrepreneurs, this would be it. These kids are going to walk into college understanding how businesses design and market products. They’re starting their college career with the basic tools of the entrepreneur. I can’t wait to see what happens when these students hit the marketplace!
Neicole Crepeau a blogger at Coherent Social Media and the creator of CurateXpress, a content curation tool. She works at Coherent Interactive on social media, website design, mobile apps, & marketing. Connect with Neicole on Twitter at @neicolec
OK. 30,000 followers. Now what?
Oct 31st
Back in college I had this hilarious geology professor who told me that “tsunami” was Japanese for “Where in the hell did all that water come from?”
That’s kind of how I feel about life on the web at the moment. I just hit 30,000 followers. That’s crazy.
Two years ago, I started a tradition of documenting my social media journey and at each major milestone, I write a post describing what it is like and how things are going. I just hit 30,000 followers so it is time to reflect on the situation.
When I started writing this post, it started out describing the mechanics of connecting with so many followers but it morphed into a psychological self-examination. I decided to cut out the parts about Twitter tips and expose the raw edge because there has been a significant personal development since my last “journey” blog post.
In a very small way, in a very small niche, I am achieving an element of celebrity. I have a gag reflex even saying that, but I can’t be honest without describing it that way. And I’m not handling this situaiton so well.
The tribe grows
First, the numbers. Friends and followers has grown as I mentioned, but is also escalating. It took me 18 months to get 10,000 followers, a year for 20,000 and six months for 30,000. This is being fueled by teaching, speaking, The Tao Twitter, and the blog.
My virtual assistant and I continue to prune the spammers. If I didn’t do that I would probably have 100,000 followers by now. I love the fact that, to the best of my knowledge, all my Twitter followers are real people. So the number is big, but the tribe is real, and amazing!
Whether it is because of the “social proof” of the numbers or (hopefully) the way I am connecting with people through my speaking and writing, people are starting to describe me as an “A-Lister.” This makes me cringe. I walked into a room last week and somebody said “here’s the superstar.” Some people tell me they are “fans.” Others have said they are afraid to talk to me.
This is a deeply uncomfortable situation. I am just a guy writing a blog, a husband, a father, a friend, a son, a brother, a teacher, a writer, a business adviser. That’s plenty for me. That’s a good place to be.
Celebrity as a mindset
This notion of “celebrity” exists in people’s minds and there is nothing I can do about that, but here is my wish: I want you to know that I am no more worthy than you … or anybody, for that matter. Every person is amazing in their own way.
I know when people use these terms they are meant with affection and I want to handle it with grace but boy I am out of my element with this fan stuff. And it’s about to get much worse.
This situation is going to be profoundly more challenging when my new book comes out in a few months (will be announcing this in a few days when the title is finalized). Here is my promise on the book — It is going to be unlike any other book you have ever read on business and marketing. You are going to love it. And I know that to do a good job for my publisher McGraw Hill, I’m going to have to be in the spotlight. In fact, I will need to seek it.
That “40,000 milestone report” I will be writing for you a few months from now is going to be interesting. How do I promote myself and this book without coming across as a jerk? I am seriously concerned about this. It goes against the grain. I love to write, teach, and help businesses grow, but I don’t seek to be a “celebrity.” Increasingly, that seems impossible to avoid.
The results of the experiment?
Now I know this seems improbable. You may be thinking … “Geez you idiot, how can you expect to write a book and not have to deal with the spotlight?”
I have been simply following what seems like a natural path. Consulting and teaching led to the blog. The blog led to The Tao of Twitter, which took off like a rocket. That book led to more speaking and exposure. New ideas formed and I started writing the next book. And then, I looked up and people were calling me an “A-Lister.” Ummm …. what???
People go into acting to become famous. People run for office to achieve power. I did not start the blog to become a celebrity. It was an experiment.
And here is what the experiment proved. With content and an engaged network, anybody can have influence now. Even me.
So it is what it is. I know that as long as I am engaging and writing, people will have this expectation of me and that’s the way it will be from now on. So I need to view this as a privilege and deal with it gracefully.
This turned into a stream of consciousness blog post, eh? Maybe too weird? Oh well. I decided to let it rip. Yes, this is one of those times I wondered about pushing the “publish” button. I exposed the edge and took a risk but I trust you guys.
Are celebrities made or born? Do you have to have a certain kind of personality to thrive in the spotlight?
I know I can stay centered in my personal life, but is it possible to find joy outside the comfort zone? How do I re-frame this situation so I can stop cringing every time somebody puts me in the spotlight?
Take the Mystery Out of Twitter!
, the best-selling Twitter book in the world! Learn the three elements behind every Twitter success, 22 ways to build a relevant audience, strategies to create personal and business benefits, and hundreds of amazing tips and time-savers.Click on the image for a Special Amazon promotion!
Dear social web, Let’s try keeping it real.
Oct 27th
I hesitate to be drawn into the Klout firing line again but I have had so many requests from the {grow} community to comment on the Klout Meltdown this week that I guess I need to respond. At the risk of adding to Klout weariness, here are a few observations.
- My Klout score dropped from 82 to 64. Who cares? My wife and kids still love me.
- Klout’s biggest competitor is PeerIndex. My score on PeerIndex is 64. Funny. They’re the same level now.
- Nobody complained that their PeerIndex score was too low.
- My friend Elizabeth Reusswig remarked that “60 is the new 80.” It’s true. As I looked at how this affected others, my RELATIVE influence stayed about the same.
- Here is the big idea most people miss about Klout. In the long run, Klout doesn’t give a damn if you’re happy with your Klout score or not. You’re not their customer. As long as they deliver the goods to brands we can go ahead and howl all we want.
- I admire Klout CEO Joe Fernandez but he created a hole for himself by announcing that the new changes would affect most people’s scores very little. If he just would have said most scores will drop for a re-set in the name of accuracy, it would have gone down a lot better.
- Recently Blogger Danny Brown ran some really concerning stuff about Klout and privacy. I agree with him. Klout has got to get on top of that or they’re going to jeopardize their success.
- Some people said that this drop in scores “proves that Klout is on the way out.” Ha! That made me chuckle. This week, Klout received another $30 mm in funding and is already valued at $200 mm. Ummm, no, they are not on their way out.
- Klout is kicking ass. They are getting tens of billions of hits to their API every month. PeerIndex just hit 100 million hits. Klout is that far ahead.
- Disney, American Express, EA Sports and other well-known brands are lined up for Klout programs. Klout said they are nearly “sold out” on Perks for December. You may think Klout is dumb, but these companies don’t. Pay attention.
- Another thing that makes me laugh … people are “heart-broken” because they put so much work into their Klout score only to see it drop. Are these the same people who are incensed when they work so hard to be the Foursquare mayor at Dunkin’ Donuts and get replaced? C’mon folks let’s get real. Go make something. Go sell something.
- I saw another big line of complaints from people who were afraid a score drop would jeopardize their job prospects. When I wrote about Klout and employment opportunities a few months ago, people thought I was making it up. Apparently some companies believe it is a sign that you are adept at using the social web. Or, it might be a sign you have too much time on your hands. Either way, it’s going mainstream.
Here is the big take-away for me over this brouhaha. Accomplishment doesn’t matter on the social web. Social proof in the way of Twitter followers or a Klout score matter more than success on your job or the great charities you support. It’s painful to acknowledge that, but it’s true. That’s the real reason people are so upset. Klout scores DO MATTER. In an information-dense society, it is an easy short-cut to determine worth.
I cover this phenomenon quite a bit in my upcoming book (There! A Tease! Power on the social web. Hmmm … wouldn’t that make a fascinating book?).
People are literally crying over a fake numeric Internet badge. Yes my friends, we are living in a very, very weird world.
Create and curate great content. Nurture a network of people who care about you. Be kind. The influence will take care of itself.
Now I am going to go play tennis with my wife.
Welcome to {grow}
You’re in marketing for one reason: Grow.
Grow your company, reputation, customers, impact, profits. Grow yourself. This is a community that will help. It will stretch your mind, connect you to fascinating people, and provide some fun along the way. I am so glad you’re here.
-Mark SchaeferFollow Mark
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