The answer is yes, if you choose the right platform. You must find the platform where your
target market hang out. Where they are doing business and not discussing their weekend.
There are a number of platforms to choose from. But, here’s the easy part: you sell B2B, so there really is only one platform. Continue reading “Can Social Media Generate Valuable Sales Leads?” »
In fact it’s hard work. Bloody hard work! Even though I often tell my audiences it isn’t. Why? Because the rewards are high. If they knew how hard it was to get good results on LinkedIn, to make serious money, many would never start. Never have the opportunity to change their business. Continue reading “Social Networking isn’t easy – though I’ll shortly be saying the opposite at a conference!” »
In today’s world, spamming is just too easy. Not only does technology now allow us to spam other Internet users, but it also provides us with an audience of sitting ducks.
What happens when something is so easy to do? Everyone does it!
And what happens when everyone does it? People get annoyed and start to actively resist.
In the world of social networking we are going back to the rules of traditional customer networks where instead of constantly trying to promote ourselves, we share and connect with our community members in a mutually beneficial way.
Continue reading “Spam in the Social Networking Era: Why a New Definition is Needed” »
Australia was initially slow in its take up of social media, but in the last couple of years, we have come to lead the world. The main growth is coming from Generation X and Baby Boomers as they catch up with the youngsters. And they have approached social networking and social media with a very different mindset – it’s all about generating value for their business or to do their job better.
One of the main drivers of business value is the attention Google now gives to content on social media in its search rankings. Continue reading “Social Media and LinkedIn – Why Should I Care?” »
Marketing and its new tools have changed everything. We now have huge leverage. The ‘levers’, the giant ‘crow bars’ we control are now much longer for us all – we can move the world with these giant levers.
Everyone, not just marketers, can now be leaders. Continue reading “The Leverage Era” »
Seth wrote the bible of customer network building which, funnily enough, he called Tribes. Seth has the ability to see things differently and clear away the fog; to put complex ideas into simple words. And this is what he has done with the theory of ‘Tribes’.
But he seems to have missed one major implication of social networking technology. He has built his own customer networks in ‘isolated’ technology like Ning. And while such technology delivers the tribe owner complete control, there are significant reasons why social networking platforms are better. With LinkedIn for professional customer networks and Facebook for more social or consumer-oriented networks, there are various benefits to social networking: Continue reading “‘Tribes’ Guru doesn’t use LinkedIn!” »
Great online customer networks, such as LinkedIn, need a narrative about what they are building, how they are doing it and why. This is so others can learn what made them successful and emulate that success.
Professional customer network builders and members need to share the stories of successful collaboration. This narrative might include some or all of the following: Continue reading “Why stories win Groups on LinkedIn” »
Hundreds of AssNabs (Absurd Strategic Social Networking Articles and Blogs 1) have been published. These articles typically lead off by asking: “Is Social Media a fad?” “Has it gone too far?” “Have we wasted money?”
Their answer is universally the same: that people have wasted money and that social media and social networking are just additional tools in the marketing tool box. Part of the marketing mix. That they are not a substitute for an integrated multi-channel strategy. And that geriatric media still has its place. Continue reading “Absurd Social Networking” »
Historically, there has been little leverage in people’s lives. There was leverage within the wandering tribes of Africa and within the villages that formed later. But just simple leverage from people specializing in particular functions. And the leverage that did exist was fully exploited, and there was not much of it.
Leverage today is limitless. The only limit is our imagination.
In fact we don’t fully understand the size of our ‘levers’, and how their use can impact our lives and our businesses. Continue reading “The Age of Leverage” »
So many articles and blog posts about social media say how we are becoming less tolerant of interruptions on such platforms -LinkedIn for example. And they assume that people will simply filter out the annoying messages and ignore the brands that do it.
They assume that this is the sort of marketing that people will continue to do, without understanding that it is just a ‘way station’. That smarter marketers have already evolved from ‘One-Stop Tell and Sell’ to long term engagement strategies. And some short term ones that engage quickly!
It’s much better to just disallow interruptions from the beginning. Always. Continue reading “Start with the End Goal in Mind – Spam Free Customer Networks” »
