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Encouraging Community with Strategic Engagement

Posted on August 31, 2010 by Jeff

Whether you own a small business, are interested in furthering your own personal brand or work for a media company, navigating the social media waters can be daunting and confusing to say the least.  If that’s the boat you’re in, I invite you to click the link below.  I believe you’ll find some valuable information and resources to make your job a lot easier.

I recently had the privilege of presenting to my company‘s group of radio station operations directors at our recent 2010 Summit held in Nashville, TN earlier this month. This presentation is exactly what they saw and, from what I can tell, it was very well received.

While much of the content  and examples speak to our stations specifically, I strongly believe the methods, techniques and tools I use are applicable to you no matter which of the categories mentioned above you fit into.  I hope you find it useful and would love to get your feedback in the comments below if you can spare a moment.  By the way, it renders much better in full-screen mode.  Just click the “More” button to select that option.

What tools are you currently using that have proven invaluable to you?

Strategic Engagement: Fostering Community on Prezi

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Filed under: Facebook, Social Media, Tech, Twitter, Web 2.0, YouTube | Leave a comment »

The Social Annie-versary Experiment

Posted on July 28, 2010 by Jeff

Today, my wife Annie and I celebrate 9 years of wedded bliss.  Okay, so it hasn’t been all bliss, but if I had it to do over, I wouldn’t change a thing.  And hey, that’s more than a lot of people can say these days (my wife included, I think).

Photo courtesy KC Brock

As the saying goes, opposites attract.  That’s certainly true in a lot of areas for us.  One of those areas is the internet and social media.  I’m heavily involved in both while my wife may occasionally send a friend an e-mail.  She could certainly do more in the space, she just chooses not to.

Still, sometimes I find myself wishing she’d stumbled upon my latest witty comment or random musing on her own instead of having to ask her to pause the DVR long enough so that I can read them to her out loud.  Sort of loses a bit of its magic that way, you know?

In comes the Social Annie-versary Experiment, an idea I came up with just yesterday (far be it from me to avoid last minute anniversary ideas now).

Watch the video for the whole scoop. And let me know your thoughts regarding social media and the experiment itself.  Is she better off staying away from Facebook and Twitter, et al?

You can help by commenting and/or spreading the word on Facebook and Twitter – use the hashtag #nothings – when you tweet/update ‘sweet nothings’ to your significant other.   I’ll peruse them throughout the day and may use my favorites on my honey (feel free to do the same).  Maybe before the day is over, you and I will have a crowd-sourced list of great ‘sweet nothings’ we can save for just the right moment.

Oh, and I may as well kick off the sweet nothings right here:

Honey, I love you more and more every day I’m alive.

Filed under: Facebook, Social Media, Twitter, Web 2.0, YouTube | Tagged: , , , , , | 2 Comments »

No Size Fits All: Video Book Review No. 2

Posted on March 31, 2010 by Jeff

I first became aware of this intriguing new book at Mark Ramsey’s blog Hear 2.0.  If you’re so inclined, I highly recommend you take some time to read his analysis of what the book has to offer.

If you’re in the business of figuring out your industry’s or company’s digital future, and are fascinated by the psychology behind the popularity of social networking – or for that matter, why some marketers are welcomed to otherwise closed communities with open arms while others aren’t – then I highly recommend you give it a go.

There’s a bit of nostalgia where this particular video is concerned.  It was shot at my parent’s home in the room I grew up in as a boy.  Unfortunately, the Farrah Fawcett posters are no longer a part of the room’s decor.  What a shame.

Filed under: Books, Marketing, Reviews, Social Media, Web 2.0, YouTube | Tagged: , , , , , , | Leave a comment »

Changing Facebook’s News Feed Default Settings

Posted on February 28, 2010 by Jeff

It’s been a few weeks since Facebook launched its recent round of changes.  Those changes not only included a slight face lift (no pun intended), but some under-the-hood changes as well.  If you’re like many, you’re still getting used to them.

In fact, it you spend time on Facebook daily, you may have noticed that what you’re posting isn’t being commented on at the same level you’re used to.  Part of the reason for that, I believe, is due to the changes Facebook made to some of the personal profile default settings.

First, it’s important to note that this won’t change, necessarily, by making the simple adjustments I describe in the video below.  For that to happen, everyone else you’re connected with will need to do the same.  To put it simply, you need to spread the word.

However, if you feel – as I did – that you’re just not seeing near the activity in your Facebook stream that you once did, the simple adjustments outlined in this screencast should help change that.  I hope it helps.

Photo credit, Photos8.com

Filed under: Facebook, Social Media, Web 2.0, YouTube | Tagged: , , | 3 Comments »

The Only Book on Social Media Marketing You’ll Ever Need

Posted on November 30, 2009 by Jeff

Several months ago I promised Tamar Weinberg I’d do a video review of her book The New Community Rules: Marketing on the Social Web.  My apologies to her for taking so long to get around to it.  After all, how hard can a video book review be, right?

After being sidetracked with other projects shortly after reading the first two-thirds, I finally got around to finishing it recently.  If you buy one book on social media, do yourself a favor and make it this one.

For the ultimate review of Tamar’s new book, check out this video from Polar Unlimited.

Filed under: Books, Marketing, Reviews, Social Media, YouTube | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment »

Sales and Social Media: PB & J or Oil and Water?

Posted on November 4, 2009 by Jeff

Yesterday, I had the pleasure of delivering a presentation to our company’s Business Development Directors on the benefits of considering certain social media tools to reach their goals.

My First Prezi Presentation

Mixing sales (or marketing) and social media is, of course, done by companies and individuals all over the world every day.  But, if your social media approach is lead by what you’re going to get out of it (ulterior motives) as opposed to shining the spotlight on other people (altruistic motives), make no mistake that people will see right through it.

My main point then was two-fold.  If you’re not participating, that doesn’t mean the conversations aren’t happening, they simply go on without you.  And, once in the game, are you there for the right reasons?  If it’s primarily to add value to whatever community you’re in and to help whenever possible, then the answer is yes.

Thanks to Brian Solis, Olivier Blanchard, John Haydon, Chris Brogan and everyone else who inspires me every day to aide those around me in their quest to make sense of all this stuff.  By the way, I tried embedding the presentation here but apparently wordpress.com doesn’t like Prezi.  At least they’re not playing well together.  Instead, I’ve included the public link.  I hope you like it.

Sales and Social Media: PB & J or Oil and Water?

Filed under: Business, Marketing, Social Media, Twitter, WAY-FM, Web 2.0, YouTube | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments »