The benefits of having a Rotnem.

I found this great article from the Chicago Tribune yesterday.  It shows how younger employees are teaching more experienced executives how to use social networking sites like Facebook and Delish.  So, do you have a rotnem?

Animoto–Custom videos made easy

A few weeks ago, a friend sent me a link to a video for a charity.  I was impressed with the video and commented on it.  Nice pictures.  Catchy music.  I thought to myself, “that must have taken forever to make.”  While video production isn’t my forte, I know a few who do it and know the time commitment involved.  At the time, I took note that the video was hosted on Animoto, but thought nothing of it.

Fast forward to this weekend, I was reading this article in Forbes magazine discussing the online video boom.  We all know about Youtube.  But what about some of the others?  Animoto was listed, and I got curious.  Well, I signed up for a count to “kick the tires”.  A few pictures here and there, pick a song from their music library and….voila!  I’ve got a 30-second video of the pictures I uploaded of our kids to share.  Pretty neat, huh?

Here’s how it works.  You upload the pictures you want to include and pick the song you want.  You also have the option to upload your own song.  Under normal circumstances, I would definitely upload a song from my music library.  Animoto’s is pretty limited.  After you’ve got the pictures and the music, Animoto analyzes the pictures and sets them to the music you’ve selected.

Animoto does allow you to pull your photos from other sites if you’ve already uploaded them.  You can also easily share your new video creation on Facebook, Twitter, post on your website or email it to friends and family.  By the way, did I mention that this service is free?  There is Animoto for business that charges a fee for an annual subscription or a 3-month trial.

After about 30 minutes of playing around, here’s what I created on Animoto.  Enjoy!

Is anybody out there?

Over the course of this blog, I have looked at why you should use social media to promote yourself or your business.  We know that people from various backgrounds are using it, but who, exactly, is out there?

I found this article today to be quite interesting.  I think that, to a degree, the general consensus has been that younger people were using social media.  This trend continues to be the case, however, take a close look at the numbers that were run between Q2 of 2008 and 2009 of those demographic groups that are using social networks:

The age group under age 35 was up 20%.  Not a big surprise.  However, take a look at the next two groups!  Users age 35-54 has doubled and those users over age 55 has tripled!

Take this into consideration.  Your potential audience through social media is becoming larger and more diverse.  There are more connections to make.  More strategies that you may have to use to connect with these various groups.

Twitter promoting itself as a marketing tool

Is Twitter trying to position itself as a legitimate marketing tool?  It looks like the answer is “yes”.

Guy Kawasaki posted a link yesterday to the Twitter 101 for Business website.  It’s an official Twitter company site and not a third party site.  I’ve talked about using Twitter for Business before, but this is the first time that a social networking/media tool has actually attempted to show business professionals HOW to use their network.  Facebook & LinkedIn both have blogs that you can follow that show you different features of their sites, but neither, to my recollection, have set up a specific site addressing this topic.

So, is Twitter a legitimate marketing tool?  Sure.  Can it be your entire marketing plan, long term? No.  It’s a part of the mix.  As you look through the site, you’ll notice that they take a very “beginners” approach to Twitter.  What is it, how do you get started, learning the lingo, etc.  It also has a section for “Best Practices”.  You can even download slides or print off a guide from the site.

One additional note I would add: if you’re going to use Twitter, realize that you’re probably hitting the demographic group of late 20’s and older.  To this point, it doesn’t look like Twitter has caught on, to a large scale, with younger consumers, yet.  Since Twitter is based on 140 characters or less, the younger generations have yet to see it replacing texting, for them.

This is exciting. It is a bold move on Twitter’s part to position itself, by educating the public about their service, as a legitimate marketing tool.

Got any thoughts on this?  I want to hear from you.  Post a comment below.

Mentoring

The last few weeks and months have been interesting.  It’s been a time of challenges and growth for me professionally.  I’ve moved in directions that I wouldn’t have thought possible more than a year ago. 

One of the constant things over this period have been a group of people that have surrounded me and helped me work through this process of professional development.  Some may call them mentors.  I tend to call them my Stable of Support.  This group of professionals have taken the time to invest their time and energy in me.  I’ve written about mentors and mentoring before, but I never really answered the question of “why” you should seek out good mentors.  The reasons may seem obvious, but let me cover a few of them:

1. Mentors can increase your potential- You have potential.  No one will deny that.  We all have potential.  The question is, “what will you do with it.”  A good mentor can add to your potential by sharing insights and experiences that you may not have had yet.  They can give you wisdom beyond your years.  All of this plays a role in increasing your potential abilities. 

2. Mentors can push you-A good mentor, if they truly believe in you, will push you. They will push you to expand your horizons and can help you take that first step to the next big thing.  While they are pushing, they are also providing a level of support as well.  This mentor affords you access to knowledge and insights that you may not have had.  Oh, and if they are pushing you in a certain direction, it’s because they believe in you and want to see you succeed.  It’s a good thing.

3. Mentors can see what you may not see-We all have blind spots.  The things that are present, but we aren’t aware of.  Having someone who can view you and your skills and abilities from a different perspective, is extremely valuable. Good mentors can actually aid you in seeing yourself differently than you normally would.

4. Mentors can help you navigate the road to success-Mentors, becuase they have traveled a path similar to yours previously, can alert you to opportunities and potential pitfalls.  Have you ever traveled somewhere for the first time and had a friend or coworker who has already visited the place you’re going?  Visit this place.  Don’t waste your time there.  Go there on a certain day for a special event.  Don’t miss this.  You have to do this…you get the picture.  A mentor can do exactly that, only for your professional (and personal) development.

So, now you’re excited and ready to ask someone to be your mentor.  Great!  Now, let me offer a few pointers as you pursue this:

1. Choose your mentors carefully- Remember, you become what you associate yourself with.

2. Pick mentors who have similar values to yours- If you don’t, this will, more than likely, curb the effectiveness of the mentoring relationship.

3. Show and tell: When asking someone to be your mentor, make sure to tell them why you’re selecting them and the things that you appreciate about them.  This will allow that person to be able to key in on items that you may want to develop.

4. Have a diverse group: Make sure to include some individuals that work in the industry you are currently in, or you would like to be in.  This will allow both you and your mentor to relate the information that you’re sharing.  You’ll also want to include some people that may not work in your profession.  They can provide overall professional development to you.

5. Internal vs. External- Should you include only people from your current organization?  No.  They will provide insight into your current organization, however, you’ll also want to include some who work outside your organization, as well.  Why?  Because you can gain valuable perspectives from different backgrounds.  Great ideas can result from taking a concept or idea from one industry and contrasting it agains the canvas of another. 

6. The Challenge: Provide value to your mentor.  As the person being mentored, the greatest challenge in this relationship is to find ways to provide value back to your mentor. 

As for my own “Stable of Support”, I’m extremely thankful for each of them.  Thanks for pushing me, helping me grow and helping me see the things that I, on my own, would not have seen.

“That’s what it’s all about.”

This past weekend, I took my son to our local Home Depot.  The 1st Saturday of every month they have a small project for kids to work on and complete with their parents.  It usually only takes us about 30 minutes, but it is a great time for some Daddy and Me time.  His younger sister is almost old enough to come along, but not quite yet.

On the way there, the following conversation occurred:

Grant: “Daddy.”

Me: “Yeah, buddy.”

Grant: “Do I really know how to build?’

Me: “Do you mean like building blocks?”

Grant: “Yeah.”

Me: “Yeah.  That’s why we’re going to these classes.  You’re learning.”

Grant: “Yep, that’s what it’s all about.”

Profound words from my 5 year old.  I’m glad that he’s aware that learning and education are important to him.  Not just for building blocks or picnic caddies (this month’s project), but for building a life and a career as well.  There’s always new information.  Something new to learn.

What new piece of information or skill (no matter how small) will you learn today?

Social Media Sensation: Susan Boyle

This is interesting.  As I’m beginning this post, the Today Show is doing a spot on Susan.  Susan Boyle is quickly becoming a household name.  She wowed judges on Britain’s Got Talent just a few short days ago.  Now, she’s everywhere.

If you take a quick visit to Youtube, you can simply search for Susan’s name.  That will get you what you’re looking for.  As of my viewing of the video, there were well over 25 million views to the site.  Going by the date the video was posted (April 11), that’s 25 million views in a week, or about 3.5 million views a day!

Now, go to Facebook.  Search for her name.  You’ll find numerous groups, with the official fan page group having over 500,000 fans.  Not bad for someone who just wanted a chance.

I see numerous takeaways from this story, but I’ll share just a few.

1. From a business standpoint, how could social media give your business this type of buzz?  Like Susan’s voice, what outstanding attribute does your business have that could make customers fans of yours on Facebook?  What sets you apart?  That’s more than a social media question.  That’s a fundamental business question.

2. Never judge a book by it’s cover.  Enough said.

3. When you have a chance to show what you’ve got, bring it!  Shine like you never have before because this may be your one shot.  Susan did just that and it has changed her world as she has changed ours.

Thanks, Susan.  Thanks for sharing your talent, your story and for your willingness to shine when you were given your chance.

Twitter apps

So, how can you make Twitter more effective?  Here are a few side applications that I use to make my tweets a little more effective.

TwitterFeed-I use TwitterFeed to automatically post things that I do to a tweet.  For instance, when I publish this post to the web, TwitterFeed will automatically tweet that I have a new blog post.  It will include the title plus a TinyURL link to the article.  Automatically.  I also use this to follow my Shared Items on Google Reader.  When I tag an item as “shared”, it automatically will post a link to that web page to Twitter.  I love automation.

TweetLater- I use TweetLater for a couple different things.  You can schedule tweets to be posted at various times in the future.  For instance, if you’re going to be away from your computer and not have internet access, you can schedule tweets to happen while you’re away.

You can also use TweetLater to search Twitter for certain key word terms that you might want to see what people are tweeting about or talking about.  Want to know if anyone is tweeting about your company or city?  Add these terms to your keyword search list.  You can receive a report sent to your email at various time intervals.  I get one every 4 hours.

You can also use TweetLater to autoatically send a direct message to new followers.  It’s a quick way to respond to those new followers even if you’re not around.  You can also have TweetLater begin to automatically follow those new followers.

TweetDeck-TweetDeck is like your personal browser for Twitter.  You can sort and pull out certain people you are following.  You can search for key terms.  Send direct messages and also post tweets from TweetDeck.

So what’s your favorite Twitter application?  Let me know.

Have a great day!

Twitter for Business

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I think the most frequent question I’ve received regarding social media is the one Naples Girl posted in response to my post yesterday.  How do I use Twitter for my business?  Great question.  I mean, after all, you’ve only got 140 characters to work with, right?  Through approximately 45 words to this point, I’ve already surpassed that number of characters.  So how am I supposed to use this for my business?  I’ve got a lot to say about my business.  The world needs to know what we have to offer them, but I can’t do that in 140 characters!  AAAGGGGGHHHHHH!

Hold on.  Deep breath in……out……good.  Now, let’s move on.  First, remember that your primary goal with Twitter, as with any social media, is to engage your customers.  Engaging your customers is MORE than just announcing you’re open for business, so come and buy, buy, buy.  Sorry, not interested.  And, now I’m offended.  I don’t want to be sold something on Twitter, but I might be interested in finding something that might help me.

One other thing to remember, you may be limited to only so many characters with Twitter, but here’s the question: how much value can you create in a limited space?  What can you tweet about that will provide the most value to your customer?  Just something to think about-you can post pictures, YouTube videos, links to websites and blogs in your tweets.  Take a look at the first sentence of this post.  I gave you 2 links in one sentence.  Those links are meant to enhance your experience with this post because you can see my post from yesterday and you can also check out one of my friend’s blogs.  The link to Naples Girl’s blog kind of makes it more personal.  Not merely just the generic “letter out of the mailbag” approach.  Get it?  Good.

So, how can you use Twitter to help your business?  Let me give you a few ideas.  These are merely general suggestions.  Real life examples would be dependent upon your business and industry.  Here we go:

1. Promote your blog. I’ve seen a few companies that use this to promote certain individual’s blog posts.  For instance, the CEO, company president, IT guy, etc. Please only do this if this person’s blog engages the customer and provides something of value to them.  I’m kind of jumping ahead here, but I’ll let you know ahead of time what I’ll be posting later this week.  I use Twitterfeed specifically for this purpose.  Everytime I post on my blog, Twitterfeed sends a tweet to my Twitter account with the heading “New blog posting:” and then the title with a TinyURL link to the post.  Happens automatically-everytime.
2. Give your customers an inside peek. If you have a fun corporate culture at your company, you could try this approach.  This approach assumes that your frequent customers understand the culture and what your company is about.  And, you probably are on a first name basis with your regular customers.  Let me put this in context: If Twitter were around in the 80’s, Sam Malone could have easily posted about the daily happenings at Cheers! A tweet could have merely read, “Norm!“  In this context, your regular customers will get it, and your prospective customers may dig a little deeper to find out what you’re about and jump in the fun.  Who knows, you may be able to inadvertently recruit a great employee who fits the company culture.  Just a thought.  WARNING: IF YOUR COMPANY CULTURE IS NOT FUN-DO NOT USE THIS.  YOU’LL SCARE AWAY YOUR CUSTOMERS.  NO ONE WANTS TO KNOW YOUR NEW POLICY.  Sorry.
3. Share links to company or industry specific news. Did you find a great blog post or article on something that your customers would find valuable AND interesting?  Post it.  If you use Google Reader, you can do this through Twitterfeed with one mouse click.  If not, you’ll want to utilize TinyURL to shorten the link and make it fit into the space.  Remember, the two key words here are VALUABLE and INTERESTING, both from the customer’s point of view.
4. Post pictures and YouTube videos. Twitpic can help with the pictures.  If you post the URL for the YouTube video in the tweet, it will automatically pull up the preview box for your visitors to watch it right on your Twitter page.  Pictures or videos of events where customers are having fun would be ideal.  Again, trying to show your company culture, if it’s worth sharing.
5. Exclusivity/Insider Access. Ok, this is a direct sales pitch, but it might be a way to engage your customers with something of value.  I’m just throwing out ideas here. How about offering your Twitter customers a certain discount or % off a purchase for a specific period of time?  You can set up the stipulations, mention Twitter, tweet about your experience with our company, tell what you like about us, etc.  Shaquille O’Neal has been known to give away game tickets on his Twitter page.  This will make your Twitter customers feel special and like they have access to something the others don’t.  Oh yeah, make sure that they become “followers” of your feed and vice versa.

So there’s 5 ideas to get you started.  Kick them around.  Try them out.  Let me know how it works out.  Just general ideas.

Stay tuned.  More to come tomorrow!

Have a great day!

Twitter!

For this week, I’m going to focus on Twitter.  Many people I talk to seem to be intrigued by Twitter and how to use it.  Most I’ve talked to seem to feel as if it is a worthless way to tell someone that you’re heading off to work, combing your hair or getting take out for dinner.

It’s actually much more than that.  Well, at least it can be.  As with any tool, it depends on how you use it.  There are some practical uses that you could possibly use for your business and that’s what I’ll cover this week.

Twitter seems to be the “media darling” of the social networking sites at this point, as everytime you turn around, someone is talking about it in the media.  Actually, a lot of the media have embraced this technology.  CNN, FoxNews, & ESPN all have Twitter pages updating breaking news.  Sometimes, the traditional media even find the news breaking on Twitter, as I’ve mentioned before.  So even though it has a funny sounding name, Twitter is a legitimate social network.

I’ve already got some ideas to talk about concerning Twitter, however, I want to hear from you.  What would you like to know about Twitter?  Specific questions-leave a comment below and I’ll address them.

Have a great day!