The Social Impact of Friendships and Lies

Do you trust me? Social media relies on the premise that we’ll believe what people tell us more readily than if we were told the same thing by a nameless, faceless company. That’s why brands go to great lengths to humanize themselves on the social Web. But, a new study by Edelman (whose digital arm [...]

Crushing the Myth of B2B Social Media

In nearly every speech or Webinar I conduct, someone in the audience asks “But all this social media stuff doesn’t apply to B2B right?” Yes, social media applies to B2B. In fact, social media can be MORE transformative for a B2B company than a B2C company. This is because B2B has a smaller potential customer [...]

Crowdsourcing Your Dog Food

One of the most overlooked benefits of building or facilitating an online community around your brand is the market research opportunities. Your brand community – even if nascent and emerging – consists of hundreds or thousands of customers that are familiar enough with your company (and care enough about it) to self-identify as a fan/friend/member. [...]

Clients Are Hot for Social Media Teachers

If you’re a PR firm or any sort of professional marketing services organization, I have an assignment for you. Before the end of this week, make an organizational commitment to educating your clients on social media basics. In the scramble to establish social media service offerings, and to win the struggle for social media control, [...]