It’s time that businesses stop thinking of social media as a separate function and instead view it as a part of the entire organization! I couldn’t agree more with this statement from

During Leslie’s webinar “Social Media Success Starts with You!” she shared how to bring social media into your organization and, more importantly, how to support it.

When talking to people about incorporating social media in their overall marketing strategy, I often like to play off the famous “Field of Dreams” quote and tell people ”just because you build it, it doesn’t mean they will come.” This is exactly what Leslie was stressing in her presentation. Setting up your multiple channels such as a Facebook page, Flickr and Twitter accounts are a great first step, but that’s it. It’s just just a first step and the easiest one. The hard part is managing those accounts and, as Leslie pointed out, you have to nurture them and help them grow or success will be hard to come by.

Along with discussing some huge hurdles many organizations are faced with, other key takeaways from her presentation which can be viewed below include: 

• Stop tripping over the social tools; focus on a handful and master those before moving on to the next shiny thing
• Social media is not new; its the same thing we used to use for business, but with prettier, more attractive packaging that is easier to use
• Did you know that social media was born in 1978?
• Social media buy-in from the top down is crucial for its success in any organization
• Companies need to give their employees flex time to use social media tools to help promote their business
• The customer is not always right
• How do you manage it all?

The slides including the additional links Leslie added post webinar can be found on her Uptown Uncorked site here: http://uptownuncorked.com/2010/06/29/social-media-starts-with-you/

Video and slides can be downloaded here: http://www.awarenessnetworks.com/learning/webinars/poston

I was recently asked to keynote the final presentation at the NH Travel Council’s Governor’s Conference on Tourism in Portsmouth, NH. My focus was (shock, surprise) social media. But instead of just talking about social media, which frankly, I think there is too much talk about social media and not enough doing,  I decided to share some real examples of organizations within the travel & tourism space who are doing social media and doing it well.

I have to admit, I was really nervous about this presentation. I mean, I have spoken before, but never as the “keynote” and certainly not for a whole 60 minutes! So, in preparation for my big keynote debut, I leveraged my network and put a call out for some great examples of travel & tourism organizations having success with social media. I got several responses, one of which was from The Children’s Museum of New Hampshire.

Being familiar with The Museum from working with them for one of my NHTweetUp events and because they are local, I chose to include them as one of my featured case studies. So, I took my kids and my video camera and made my way to The Children’s Museum to speak with Heidi Duncanson, director of marketing for The Museum.

I was impressed. Really impressed with how Heidi was spearheading The Museum’s social media efforts. With their Facebook Page and Twitter account combined with their email newsletters (what BlueSky Factory calls the “Social Glue”), The Museum is able to connect with its members while building and nurturing their community.

During my video interview with Heidi (click below to view), she shared the Museum’s social media strategy along with some great examples of how just simply listening resulted in a visit from an out of town travel blogger who then wrote about her experiences within her blog that caught the attention of several other travel writers.

In later posts, I will share some other great examples from my presentation including my talk with Taste of Portsmouth about their social media efforts including their involvement with Foursquare Day in Portsmouth.  Please check back for that.

Hope you enjoy my video interview with Heidi. In case you are wondering who those two little cuties popping up in the porthole of the submarine are – they are my girls!

Know any organizations actually jumping in and doing social media and doing it well? Shoot me a note here or on Twitter @cmajor to let me know. I am always looking for great examples to capture and share.

TechKaraoke SXSW Photo Credit: Wayne Kurtzman @WayneNH

Despite the fact that I completely lost my voice during the conference, I did manage to sing with the help of my pal, Margot Bloomstein, who carried the vocals as we belted out The Violent Femmes “Blister in the Sun” with the live band. Not sure how great we sounded, but it was pretty awesome to have the fans blowing our hair in true “80’s big hair” fashion. Hey, I felt like a rock star for a good 3 minutes!

So, here is the video with Jen where I found out a bit more about her company Pinqued why she colored her hair pink.

Thanks Jen and Kate!

Want to learn more about how USATODAY.com is using social media to connect with its readers and share content?  Brian Dresher presented “More than just the news. A social media case study” during a recent AwarenessInc webinar. The complete recording can be accessed here.

Networking at The Social Media Breakfast Boston Photo credit: Joselin Mane @joselinmane

You’ve heard of a fair-weather friend?  You know, those people that go MIA and once in a while they rear their heads when they need something from you. Well, I want to talk about what I call the fair-weather networker. 

Like the fair-weather friend, the fair-weather networker typically takes action when there is a need. But the difference here is that when it comes to a friend, I am always willing to help them out because they are, just that… a friend. I don’t care if I haven’t heard from them in a year, I will do what I can to help them out. 

Recently, I was contacted by several people who I don’t even know asking to talk to me about positions at my company or asking for favors to help them out. While I applaud them for taking the initiative to reach out and having the guts to come right out and ask, I am also turned off by the mere fact that they didn’t try to get to know me first or allow me the opportunity to get to know them before asking me. 

I often liken proper networking etiquette to the early stages of dating. In most cases, (and I qualify this statement with most because this is not the case for every date…so I have heard ) when you go out on a first date, you start things off slow. You wouldn’t go pick up your date and immediately lay a big fat wet kiss on her/him before getting to know them just a little bit, would you? Well, I guess it depends on the chemistry, but like I said, most people just wouldn’t do this. 

The same applies to business where honest, authentic networking, in my opinion, is so important to a successful career.  You have likely heard the phrase to network before you need it, and I couldn’t agree with that more. But I want to take that a bit further and say that you need to network not only before you need something, but all the time. 

Social networking has changed the game of networking. It certainly has for me. I am no longer confined to purely face to face communication to make connections. Social networks such as Twitter and Facebook have rapidly expanded my network not only locally, but globally. The barriers to start a discussion with someone I don’t even know are low for these tools make it easier to get to know someone on a more personal level.  And, if you can combine the power of the online interaction with the offline, then those connections are now even stronger. 

So what are some things you can do to avoid being labeled a “fair-weather networker” 

Make the time 

Set aside the time to get out and network in person. I am a big believer in connecting the online with the offline and have made a commitment to try to get out to attend networking events relevant to my career. There are so many events taking place on a weekly basis across all industries that you are bound to find something that is a fit for you. Not sure where to go to find out about events in your area? Go to sites like Yahoo Upcoming, MeetUp, or follow people that are typically in the know about local events such as @bostontweet or @Bostontweetup in my area. I always refer to the BostonTweetUp calendar or NH Events calendar for local events in my area.  

With the help of social networking, the connections you make at these events continue on well beyond the exchange of the business card or handshake. You are now able to instantly connect via Bump or you can Poke them if you have your own Poken or follow them on Twitter to be instantly connected and continue that conversation. 

You can’t build a network overnight 

Understand that building your network takes time. It doesn’t happen overnight. Take the time to get to know people and let them know who you are. Don’t try to pitch me on your business or ask me for a job immediately after meeting. I typically don’t dig that sort of behavior and I will be immediately turned off. 

Be a connector 

Give back. I truly believe the world of networking, what comes around goes around. You’ve got to give to get and what better way to build trust and loyalty among your network than to help others grow and succeed by helping others connect. If you know that your friend Joe is looking for some help with a design project at his company and your friend Sarah just happens to be an awesome designer looking for work, then get those two together! Because one day when you need something, Sarah and Joe will be the first to help you out. 

Networking is hard work. It takes time and dedication, but when done right, opportunities will be more readily available to you as your network knows you and understands who you are and what you are capable of. You can also help those in your network connect with others. That is the sign of a good networker – one that pays it forward with no expectations in return. 

Do you have any great networking advice or examples you would like to share? Please do so in the comment section below. 

Know any networking rock stars?? 

Are you or do you know anyone that is a networking rock star?? Please contact me. I would love to talk to you for a series of Q&A’s with successful serial networkers.

According to OurCompassion (OC), the community, which was launched in June 2009,  is “a place for all of us to come together and get organized on behalf of children living in poverty.”

This is an amazing organization that serves more than 800,000 supporters who are sponsoring more than one million children worldwide. The OC community serves as a place for supporters to share, organize and speak up on behalf of children living in poverty.

During our discussion, Katie shared how the OC community was instrumental during the Haiti Earthquakes as it played an important role in facilitating communication with supporters around the world. Through this tragedy, the community went from being a new, young endeavor into a key player in the grand scheme of Compassion’s social media strategy as it became an integral part of their disaster response approach.  With the community, they were and continue to direct Compassion sponsors to the community for further support and information.

What they also found was that through this, the community naturally displayed new levels of “social maturity” (commonly looked for on social networking environments) as members showed deeper levels of friendship and honesty as they all worked through this tragedy together.  

My video interview with Katy is below. Please take a moment to hear what she has to say about OurCompassion.org and please check out their community for more information on how you can get involved.

I recently had the pleasure of working with Brian Dresher, marketing manager for USATODAY.com for an #AwarenessInc webinar he presented with us yesterday afternoon. It was a great session that showcased some of the innovative social media initiatives the USATODAY brand is working on including:

• The transformation of the news brand from macro to micro – a news brand traditionally represented journalists, but with tools like Twitter, journalists now represent the brand. This macro to micro transformation has an impact on breaking news, news curation, and audience engagement.
• Social Blog – USATODAY.com is one of the first mainstream media organizations to have a blog about social media. This is aimed to share and communicate with advertisers and its audience about what they are doing in social media and to share best practices. http://social.usatoday.com
• Fark – learn how this deal came together and why it benefits both brands, http://fark.usatoday.com
• Twitter Index Page, general, http://twitter.usatoday.com, and for Olympics, http://content.usatoday.com/twitter/Olympics.aspx
• Internal social media training to generate awareness and educate staff
• Learn how USATODAY.com evaluates ROIII (yes, three Is! Investment, Interaction, and Influence)

If you were not able to join us for yesterday’s webinar or want to watch it again, we have provided the recording below for you to view. You can also view Brian’s slides via Slideshare here.

Continue the discussion!

Just because the webinar is over doesn’t mean the discussion has to end. If you have any questions for Brian Dresher or myself, please feel free to ask away in the comment section or if you feel like tweeting your question, tag it with #awarenessinc #usatoday and we will be sure to respond.

This is among the preliminary results of a multi-client research study undertaken by Paul Gillin Communications earlier this year.

These and other findings were shared by Paul in a recent #AwarenessInc Webinar below. During the webinar Paul also highlighted several case studies with brands such as Coca-Cola, Ford Motor Company, Cisco Systems, Dell and Sodexo discussing the value each achieved from individual platforms, the metrics they each used to judge success and the insights businesses have learned from their early experiences.

The complete webinar can be viewed below. If you want to go deeper into the research, a copy of Paul’s report can be downloaded for free here.

Enjoy!

And I was right.

The premise of the session was that in business, we all use metaphors of one kind or the other to drive home a point. The problem with doing that is in most cases, those metaphors – no matter how cool or relevant they seem to you, might mean absolutely nothing to the person you are speaking to. It’s important to remember, if using metaphors to explain a concept or topic, that you first make sure the person you are speaking to knows what they hell you are talking about or it will go right over their heads.

Tim, Aaron and Kyle all shared their personal sports metaphors and explained how they related to business and then opened up the floor to the audience to share their own sports metaphors.

Tim shared with us his bowling metaphor and how a professional bowler, in order to succeed, needs to consistently bowl a strike or spare in every frame. Deviate from that pattern and that bowler will drop down and ultimately lose the game. In business, to be successful, you must push out consistent, quality content. Tim used David Armano and Chris Brogan’s blogs as examples of this consistent quality and recommended that others observe and emulate them.

Kyle Flaherty’s metaphor – “Break Four Minutes” was a mystery to me at first and apparently was to him until his boss at the time explained what that meant. The break four minutes analogy was in reference to Roger Bannister, who in 1954 was the first person to run a mile in under four minutes – he did it in 3′59.4. Up until Bannister came along everyone thought it was impossible to run a four-minute mile. Once he broke that barrier, 16 other people attempted and achieved what was once thought to be physically impossible.  In business, and more specifically in sales, once someone goes and “Breaks four minutes” then others will soon follow suit.

At the time, I didn’t have any sports metaphors to share, but have since come up with one that I am sure many are familar with.

“Be The Ball Danny”

This, of course, is from Chevy Chase in Caddyshack.

How does this sports metaphor relate to business? Well….you see “There is a force in the universe that makes things happen. All you have to do it get in touch with it and stop thinking. Let things happen and be the ball.”

Just be the ball…

I recently wrote about Erik Qualman’s #awarenessinc webinar titled ”Socialnomics: It’s a People-Driven Economy, Stupid.”

Well Erik had so much content to cover during the hour long webinar that he didn’t have time for Q&A at the end. I asked Erik if he would take a moment to answer some of the questions that came through via Twitter and, the nice guy that he is, he graciously agreed to do that for us.

We received many questions and Erik went through and picked out the top three questions that he felt the audience would benefit from the most and provided answers to each. Those top three will also receive a copy of Erik’s book, Socialnomics, provided by Awareness, Inc.

Here you go!

Q:  @woodarml: “Ravelry” Do you think niche social networks are equally impt/worth your time as larger ones like Facebook?

A: Great question.  Some of it depends on what you are selling.  If you are selling Yarn or knitting patterns than Ravelry will be near the top.  For most, it’s analagous to when the search wars were going on.  You’d start with Google and than work your way to Yahoo, MSN, Ask, Excite, Looksmart, etc.  So, always focus on the ones that give you the greatest return and once you think you have a good handle on that go to the next one with the most potential and so forth rather than trying to boil the Ocean all at once.

Q: BuckLLC: How do B2Bs use Twitter effectively? Harder than B2C, yes?

A: A good use of Twitter for B2B is to see and capture insight into your customer’s customer.  Hence, if you are Intel and sell chips to Apple and Dell you will want to know of any issues or benefits the customer is experiencing from your product.  Whatever it is you sell having insight into what pain points and benefits your customer’s customer is experiencing will always make you a more valuable supplier.  This is particular true if your customer isn’t very savvy on social media so they may not even know this type on “intel” is possible.

Q: aharbourne: Quality vs quantity of followers? How targetted/niche should SM activities be? Multiple strategies per segment?

A: It’s all about quality of followers.  Quantity may look good, but if they aren’t active they aren’t going to do anything for your business.  This is similar to e-mail from this standpoint.  Good companies constantly update their e-mail data base to purge inactive accounts rather than “fool” themselves with an inflated number of e-mails.