Win Gary Vaynerchuk’s Crush It!
I’m giving away 15 copies of Crush It! the forthcoming new book from Gary Vaynerchuk. Will one of them go to you? I’m interviewing Gary live on Twitter on Thursday, October 8 at 11am eastern. It’s part of my Twitter 20 series of interviews of social media luminaries. Previous interviews of Jason Falls, Scott Monty, […]
Olivier Blanchard – The Twitter 20 Interview on Social Media ROI
A passionate advocate for the ability of social media to fundamentally transform brands, Olivier Blanchard is on a mission. Based (like @spikejones also a Twitter 20 subject) in Greenville, South Carolina, Olivier has moved his Brand Builder consultancy into the social media realm, with a focus on smart strategies and sharp measurement. His series of […]
Are You Cherishing the Wrong Trophy?
I have been the champion of my fantasy football league two of the past four years, and while I’ve had a rough start to this season, I’m still the defending champion. And while I appreciate the winner’s check, having the trophy on my desk for a year is much, much sweeter. Trophies are important. They […]
Free Social Media Worksheets Worth Every Penny
Convince & Convert is all about hype-free social media. Practical, achievable advice you can put into place in your company or organization today. To that end we’ve developed a series of free social media worksheets that you can use to help keep elements of your social media program on track. We’ll keep adding these worksheets […]
Imitation and Obsolescence – Facebook Guns for Twitter
Join me and 21 other speakers for Facebook Success Summit 2010, a Webinar series with everything you need to know about Facebook for business. Sessions start October 5. Go to http://bit.ly/facebooksuccess to save 50% for a limited time. Revenge is a dish best served via status updates. When you look in the rearview mirror, you […]
Panic in the Aisles – Airborne Social Media Lessons
I was on a flight home from Kansas City last week when a bit of condensation apparently emitted from the air conditioning as we were preparing for take-off. A passenger shouted “there’s smoke in the plane” followed by a second passenger, then a third, etc. The flight attendants were a bit stunned and immediately got […]
Let’s Mix It Up in Chicago
If you’re looking for perhaps the most useful online marketing conference of the year, read on. October is on the horizon, which means it’s time for MarketingProfs’ annual Digital Marketing Mixer. In Chicago October 21-22. (use code DMSPK09 and get registered for $200 less than the already low early-bird rate). The Mixer is truly one […]
Make it Bigger – The 4 Types of Corporate Blogs
Is your blog broad enough? Despite all the hoopla and teeth gnashing about micro-blogging like Twitter, and medium-blogging like Posterous, the good old blog isn’t going anywhere. For many social media objectives, the blog just works better. It’s more searchable, more convincing, and more flexible. But often, it’s also too narrow. Yes, I’ve advocated strongly […]
When the Face of Your Brand Goes Splitsville
Are you putting all your eggs in the basket of a single person? I talk a lot about social media being about people, not logos. And as more and more communities find success by emphasizing their humanity, the sensibility of that approach is taking root. But without fail, every time I speak about humanization and […]
Social Media is About People, Not Logos
How will you be human? The people of your company are far more compelling than the company itself. Why they work for the company. Their dedication. Their interests outside of work. All of these provide “personality hooks” for your brand, and combined with a regular focus on your customers’ humanity, they are foundational elements of […]
Finding New Blood With Your Social Media Presence
Guest post by Eric Reid (@ciaoenrico) an SEO, blogger and social media marketer from Tempe, Arizona. He writes about these subjects on his own blog, Ciaoenrico. In his spare time, he writes plays and posts minutiae to Brightkite. There is a wealth of advice on how to get your company to go “social.” But people […]
Who’s Watching Now?
Social media doesn’t close at 5pm. Or take weekends off. Or go on vacation. I’ve been watching today’s very successful Labor Day-only Chick-Fil-A promotion. If you wear any sort of sports team shirt or hat to a Chick-Fil-A today, you get a free sandwich, driving awareness of the company’s Chicken Wave fan group and contest. […]
Spike Jones – The Twitter 20 Interview on Word of Mouth Marketing
Marketing is about campaigns. Word of Mouth is about movements. So says Spike Jones, Firestarter at Brains on Fire, the Greenville, South Carolina agency that has been lauded in a shopping cart full of articles and books. A director of the Word of Mouth Marketing Association (WOMMA), Spike has an incredibly clear picture of how […]
Incinerate Your Social Media Checklist
Yes, there are holdouts, but social media adoption is as fast as anything I’ve ever seen. It took at least 7 years for companies to stop asking “why do we need a Web site?” We’ll have nearly universal social media usage at a corporate level long before then. If you believe Forrester’s predictions on interactive […]
Can Social Connectivity be Taught? My Thoughts on Trust Agents
Trust Agents, the new book by Chris Brogan and Julien Smith is storming the bastille of business wisdom, shooting up the NY Times bestseller list. (A rarity these days for a book not about vampires). The book has been reviewed by a ton of smart people, including Christopher S. Penn, Amber Naslund, Jason Falls, Eric […]