Another great seminar

We held another successful Social Media for Executives seminar this morning in Lacey. Clay Loges of Yodio lead a great session and discussion, followed by hands on experience in a workshop session with Karyn Whitacre of Konnects.
The BE community has been growing steadily since it's Monday launch. Some tips for creating a successful online profile-

1. Fill in the blanks- make your profile as complete as possible and add some personality to make it feel authentically you.
2. Upload a professional looking photo. If you do not want a photo online, at a minimum pick an image to replace the anonymous head outline.
3. Invite your friends. All social media platforms make it very easy to upload your address book or list of contacts from other sites.
4. Give recommendations and introduce business contacts- give and you will receive.
5. Stay current, update your profile with relevant information and keep it "fresh."

Social Media for Executives Seminar this Friday!

If you are an executive who values your time, yet senses that you need to understand the basics of Social Media you owe it to yourself to attend this 90-Minute Briefing for Executives.

This fast-paced, information-packed presentation introduces you to the "low cost, high impact" Social Media tools popularized on the internet. It identifies specific, practical ways to use Social Media strategies to drive revenues and lead your competition.

This seminar was first held in Tacoma on February 24th, a second event was held April 3rd and has received rave reviews. Click here to read the Social Media and Your Business blog conversation and see reviews and comments here from the first seminar's attendees.

LACEY
Date: Friday, April 24th, 2009
Time: 7:00 a.m. Breakfast
7:30-9:00 Social Media Briefing
9:00-10:00 Questions and Conversation
10:00-12:00 Hands on Workshop (New!)
Bring your laptop- or watch and take notes- as we walk through
setting up or optimizing various social media accounts!

Where: Washington State Farm Bureau Building- Harvest Room
975 Carpenter Rd NE, Suite 301, Lacey WA 98516
Cost: $90
Register on-line

The BE online community launched today!

The Business Examiner Newspaper Group launched an online community today to foster connections between small business owners, managers and supporters in the Sound Sound. Those who complete a brief registration process immediately access the BE network to find business leads, exchange ideas through interest groups, comment on stories, share their thoughts about the business news of the day, post events and share updates.

This social networking feature is a partnership between the BE and Tacoma-based Konnects.com. The BE is the second newspaper in the state to launch an integrated online community, joining the Wentachee World in the Konnect's pilot program. The online community functions similarly to LinkedIn or Facebook, but will be populated primarily with local business people who share connections to the BE.

The service is a free of charge and is the newest addition to the host of no-cost business resources and tools available through the Business Examiner.

http://community.businessexaminer.com

Domino's learns the power of social media the hard way

This makes my marketer's blood run cold, but further reinforces the need to monitor and prepare to respond quickly using social media platforms.

“We got blindsided by two idiots with a video camera and an awful idea,” said a Domino’s spokesman, Tim McIntyre, who added that the company was preparing a civil lawsuit. “Even people who’ve been with us as loyal customers for 10, 15, 20 years, people are second-guessing their relationship with Domino’s, and that’s not fair.”

Video Prank at Domino’s Taints Brand
By STEPHANIE CLIFFORD
Published: April 15, 2009
The New York Times
Link to Story

Organize all your new online tools

I'm a big Google fan because it makes life easier for me. I don't just mean Google search, but the host of Google applications that I use on a daily basis.

As I my list of bookmarks grew for different online tools and cool applications I use, I started to get overwhelmed with all the sites I had to check, monitor or update. When someone suggested I set up an aggragator for the blogs I wanted to monitor, I was excited to know I didn't have to remember to scour different sites for tidbits that interested me (http://www.google.com/reader). While I now had blogs and RSS feeds under control, I still had email accounts, Twitter feeds, my calendar, LinkedIn updates, Pandora, Facebook, Google Alerts for local business news and more coming every day.

Then I heard about iGoogle, which is brilliant. It has allowed me to create a "dashboard," if you will, of all the various tools I use. Each tool has a small widget that you can link to from your dashboard that signs you in and automatically feeds you updates and links.

This idea of tech-overload is a common concern at our Social Media for Executives seminars. Already busy execs get glossy-eyed and a bit frantic when they are told that they, personally, need to engage in social media. They worry about keeping track of things, staying up to date and having an "efficiency tool" become very inefficient as they grapple with getting their arms around it.

So my message today is that there are so many efficiency tools for efficiency tools out there, and while I am a self-proclaimed fan of Google, there are many more coming online every day. Find one that works for you and put it to use, it'll make life easier for you too.

Even Sam Reed has a blog!

Washington Secretary of State Blogs

Even elected officials are getting in the game! I pulled some interesting information from the Secretary of State Sam Reed's blog to share, although the Gov, Attorney General and even WSDOT have jumped in to the social media game. They are using tools such as Twitter, Facebook, MySpace and of course blogs!

"The Washington Office of the Secretary of State’s blog provides from-the-source information about important state news and public services. This space acts as a bridge between the public and Secretary Sam Reed and his staff, and we invite you to contribute often to the conversation here.
http://blogs.secstate.wa.gov/FromOurCorner/"

Blog Use Policy

The Office of the Secretary of State’s blog use policy states that posts and/or comments must not contain vulgar, offensive, threatening or harassing language or personal attacks. Outside comments must be on-topic only. Under state law, we cannot post political statements, such as comments that endorse or oppose political candidates or ballot propositions. We will not post any content promoting or advertising commercial services, entities, or products. Making a comment on this blog does not constitute giving official notice to the agency. For official communication, please contact our programs directly. This policy may be amended at any time.

Other Government Officials' Blogs

• All Consuming Blog (AG)
• Governor’s Office blog
• State Library blogs
• WSDOT blog

Unlock the business potential of Twitter

I received this article today and thought it was worth passing on. - Emily

Putting Twitter’s World to Use

By CLAIRE CAIN MILLER
The New York Times

Published: April 13, 2009

SAN FRANCISCO — The first reaction many people have to Twitter is befuddlement. Why would they want to read short messages about what someone ate for breakfast?

It’s a reasonable question. Twitter unleashes the diarist in its 14 million users, who visited its site 99 million times last month to read posts tapped out with cellphones and computers.

Individually, many of those 140-character “tweets” seem inane.

But taken collectively, the stream of messages can turn Twitter into a surprisingly useful tool for solving problems and providing insights into the digital mood. By tapping into the world’s collective brain, researchers of all kinds have found that if they make the effort to dig through the mundane comments, the live conversations offer an early glimpse into public sentiment — and even help them shape it.

Click here to read the NY Times Article

Article on PC Tools- Beware the Landmines of Social Media Tools

I decided to share this article, not because I'm interested in scaring anyone away from social media tools - but because I think it's important to remember that similar rules apply to using all technology.

1. Much like your parent's taught you about Halloween candy, don't eat/open it unless you know where it came from.

2. If something smells rotten it probably is. If you are uncertain if something is legitimate, check with the source before linking to, opening or accepting a download.

3. Watch out for wolves in sheep's clothes - again, if you are not expecting a file from a friend, check first to make sure they sent it.

A little skepticism can go a long way - here's more from PC Tools-

Article link

Great seminar with lots of energy!

This morning we held our second Social Media for Executives seminar in Tacoma and had great feedback from all attendees. Blaine and Clay provided a solid overview of current communication trends, various social media tools and suggested ways for business executives to leverage them.

Several items I took away from today's meeting:
1. Social networking is not social media. Social media is an umbrella term for things such as social networking, blogging, Twitter and Yodio.

2. It is never a good idea for businesses to just "jump in" to social media. Effective use of the tools can be very powerful, while ineffective use can erode a brand rapidly. Create a plan and monitor the effectiveness over time.

3. Businesses need to identify their master plan for using social media and communicate that throughout the ranks. The example of how the company is represented should be set from the top down - the CEO absolutely belongs in the social media space and should be using tools that help differentiate them from the competition.

4. Social media is as accessible to small business as it is to large corporations. It is the first online tool that helps to level the playing field - and may actually provide an advantage to the little guy who can be far more nimble in using real time communication tools.

5. Comments are your friend. Don't be afraid to get feedback through the web. Look at it as an opportunity to respond publicly to criticism and dispel rumors before they spread.

I know our attendees left with their heads swimming with ideas and questions, we hope they continue the conversation here!

BtoB Story: Combining e-mail with social media

Great article on using Social Media tools!
By Karen J. Bannan on B2B Online

Story posted: April 2, 2009 - 6:01 am EDT

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Story Link: http://www.btobonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2009904019958