The Best Way To Fail At Social Media

The Best Way To Fail At Social Media

Recently, a friend of mine approached me with some questions regarding the social media strategy that his company was planning on implementing. The company is in the business of building software for Oil companies, and while I won’t mention the name of the company out of politeness, I will tell you this; they had a lot to learn about Social Media.

Their plan was to begin a company blog to engage their clients, and add value to their website. Which is actually a pretty good start; a blog works very well for both of those things. However, the company was very, very paranoid that their competition would begin to steal ideas from them through whatever information was transmitted through the blog and decided that every article had to be approved by the president of the company before it could get posted. The other caveat was that the blog articles couldnt talk about any of the company’s products or services, again because they were afraid that their competition would steal their ideas. But, hey, at least they had a blog. Thats a start.

Unfortunately, the blog was doomed to failure. While they did want to begin blogging, and had plans to build a complimentary presence on Twitter, the blog articles would only be accessible to readers who were already clients of the company. Which begs the question, ‘what are you going to tweet about?. Because every reader of the blog has to become a client first in order to view the articles, what would be the point of alerting the Twittersphere about new blog posts, or bringing people back to the blog to start a discussion, if only the people youve already sold to can access it? How are you going to entice prospectiv clients into a discussion of your services if you can’t talk about your products? Finally, if its a private blog, why are you so worried about the competition getting access to it?

In essence, this company is hopping on the Social Media bandwagon without thinking it through. Perhaps they do have a legitimate security concern, but if that’s the case then a medium that’s all about the sharing of information and ideas probably isn’t the right fit for them. I’ve been blogging for this little boutique hotel here in Calgary for a little more than a year, and if I had to articulate the single biggest lesson I’ve learned while doing it, it would this; “the more you share, the more you get back”. Where companies like this fail at Social Media is jumping in head first without taking the time to develop a strategy that complements their business. Without taking a candid look at your business, and formulating a Social Media plan that works for it, it’ll be like trying to teach cats to scuba dive by providing written instructions. An exercise in futility.

Find More Media Cat Articles

Fast Friends – mixed media painting by WYANNE

Short fast paced demo of mixed media big eyed girl. Techniques include alcohol drops, collage and wet on wet acrylic painting. Featuring Hector the French Bulldog & Tokyo the Devon Rex cat. wyartjewels.blogspot.com
Video Rating: 4 / 5

Suicide was the 11th leading cause of death in the United States. It was the 8th leading cause of death for males, and 19th leading cause of death for females. More men than women die by suicide.

Does Your Business Have a Social Media Persona?

Does Your Business Have a Social Media Persona?

If your business is online with its very own website then you most likely have a persona online, although you probably did not think about your online persona when launched your website.  You just wanted to get your business on the web.  Your website talks about your business, possibly you, and has pictures.  If you were to describe your online persona that your website puts out… what is it?

I would wager that the word professional came to your lips.

What about fun, hip, cool, classy, kicking, awesome, expert, wow, or generous?

Can all of those descriptions go with a professional look and feel?

All right I will stop with the questions.  You do not need to have an answer for them now, but what you need to do is think about the answers for them, how you perceive yourself, how others perceive you, and how you want to be perceived.  Doing all this thinking will help you define your persona.

You need a persona to attract, engage, and establish relationships in social media.

After I saw Kiss on stage, I wanted my show to look like the fourth of July. The persona of Rick James was wild and crazy, sex, drugs and rock and roll. - Rick James

Authenticity

If you have done some reading about social media online then you have read about “being real” and “being authentic” when it comes to engaging with others.  This is something that you cannot be careless about.  Once other members on the social network sites feel you are unauthentic you will lose the potential of reaching large audiences.  People are on social media sites to network and engage with other real people.

To be authentic you need to know thyself.  This means asking your current customers, your competition, and anyone with an opinion to give you the honest truth about how your business presents itself to the world.  You might not like what you hear but it will be incredibly helpful.

While you might think you are one funny person – heck I’m in stitches thinking about you right now – if everyone around you does not think so then there will be a huge disconnect.  This disconnect will result in confusion, complaints, and lost sales.  Spend the time to discover who you are.

Once you have discovered what your perceived persona by the outside world is, you need to decide if you are going to embrace it or change it.  Either way your work is not done.  You need to do a total review on how you communicate with the outside world.  Does what you say and what you show match?

All of your marketing material needs to match up with the voice you are using in whatever social media platform you are using.  You want your new fans/followers to dig deeper and learn more about your business.  You want them to become experts about your products/services and rave about you to their network.  That will not happen if there is a huge disconnect between your social media account and your website.  You will be seen as not being authentic.

Who does this best?  Take a look at Starbucks.  Their website, Facebook fan page, and their tweets all have a persona that matches with their brand image: hip cool and coffee.  What makes it even better is that Starbucks has individual baristas participate in the social media discussions.  Each of them adds their individual flare to the discussion but it does not break from the overall persona of Starbucks.  Instead it enhances it, making the Starbucks social media experience 100% authentic.

Because we’re actors we can pretend and fake it, but I’d rather the intimate investment was authentic. – Keanu Reeves

Combining Personas

You may have decided that your personal persona – the fun and whacky you – is not business appropriate.  How sad.  Why hide yourself from the world?  Is it because you feel it is not professional enough?  Afraid you might offend someone?

I hate to burst your bubble, but even the strict “professional you” is offending someone.  So why hide the real you from your business?

The first rule that you must understand and repeat to yourself everyday: People buy from people.  Repeat the mantra because it is true.  People love to buy from other people and establish a relationship that is mutually beneficial.  In fact the whole economy is based on people buying from other people.  It is the exact same way in social media.  So I ask you again, why hide the real you?

If your business is considered by everyone who has an interaction with it as being professional, I am not saying that you should burn that persona and become super crazy.  No, because that is insane.  There is some part of you that is that professional persona.  Instead, you can combine your professional and fun side.  It will make you even more authentic.

Think I am crazy?  Look up Jeffery Gitomer.  He is an author and number one sales trainer.  He is both professional and fun.  People want to be around him and he attracts a lot of business.  He made the decision long ago to combine his professional and fun loving personas.  It has been a success!

Like Jeffery, you can do it too!

People rarely succeed unless they have fun in what they are doing. – Dale Carnegie

Social media is becoming more than just cats playing with laser pointers, bulldogs skateboarding, or the latest stupid human trick.  Social media is a medium that allows your business to engage in authentic deep conversations with your clients, potential clients, and your community.  It is a great tool that can result in successful business ventures if you are true to yourself first.

Take the time to understand how you want to interact with the outside world.  Determine how you want that world to interact with you. Be fearless and allow serendipity to be your guide.  You will be amazed about what you learn, who you meet, and powerful business connections you will make.

In order to do that you must be authentic.

Erroin A. Martin is a Business Advocate with the Von Gehr Consulting Group, LLC, a business coaching and consultancy provider for business owners, executives, and entrepreneurs. He has fifteen years experience working within the pharmaceutical, manufacturing, natural resources, medica

Now Pay Close Attention –

Using your Facebook Fan Page to increase your business exposure and revenue is simpler than you’ve been told. Everyone with a facebook fan page faces the same two problems:

[Problem #1] How To Find Interested Facebook Users

[Problem #2] How To Bring Them To Become Your Fans

Facebook Fan Supply has been solving these two problems for hundreds of satisfied customers. The Facebook Fan Supply has been tried and tested and known to produce excellent results.

First: Click Here To Visit Facebook Fan Supply
Facebook Fan Supply always supplies REAL FANS targeted to your specific: Age Group, Keyword and Location.

Second: Order Your Facebook Fan Supply Package of 1,000; 2,000 or 5,000 Guaranteed Facebook Fans
Your new fans will arrive in 3 – 4 weeks and all fans are REAL FANS guaranteed to stick to your fanpage. Buy Facebook Fans today and boost your businesses online presence overnight.

Cat Soup (Nekojiru-So)

Cat Soup (ねこぢる草 Nekojiru-So, lit. Nekojiru Grass) is an award-winning animated short film directed by Tatsuo Sato, inspired by the work of manga artist Nekojiru. The surreal black comedy follows Nyātta, an anthropomorphic kitten, on his travel to the land of the dead and back in an effort to save his sister’s soul. Cat Soup was released direct-to-DVD on February 21, 2001. Nyāko, the older sister of Nyātta, lies very ill in her room. By accident, Nyātta sees his sister leaving the house holding hands with the Japanese version of Ksitigarbha, (known as Jizou in Japanese) and follows them. Nyātta claims one half of his sister’s soul by pulling one arm. Nyāko’s soul gets split in two, and her brother runs away with one half. Jizou sends a clue about a flower they must search for in order to retrieve the missing part, then walks away with the other half. Nyātta returns home to find the doctor telling his parents that his sister is dead. Nyātta gets closer with the half-soul in his arms and puts it back in his sister’s body through her nose. Nyāko wakes up braindead. Nyātta and Nyāko travel together and visit a circus (where god is represented as a magician). The final act causes a flood of water, which covers everything. The two of them end up on an Arc-esque boat with a pig, which they eventually begin to eat (by unzipping his stomach and pulling out butcher slabs). God drains the world of the oceans, leaving the cats and pig stranded in a desert. The pig bites off …
Video Rating: 4 / 5

for PJ. gif by prguitarman www.prguitarman.com song by daniwell-P/Momone Momo UTAU momolabo.lolipop.jp ***used with permission; I own neither*** prguitarman is selling t shirts and jewelry and an iPhone game: www.levelupstudios.com www.heychickadee.com itunes.apple.com
Video Rating: 4 / 5

The Rangers Valentines Day Video.

Hope Everyone Has A Very Happy Valentines Day (: Follow The Rangers and Get Exclusive Content @ bit.ly
Video Rating: 4 / 5

my cat killed it……

Cat Meows Vince & Isabelle – 3 versions

Cat Meows Vince & Isabelle – 3 versions

Price: $ 0.99

JAPAN MEDIA PIN beijing 2008 CAT Doraemon olympic microphone great wall china

US $6.50 (8 Bids) End Date: Friday Feb-03-2012 20:49:23 PST Bid now | Add to watch list

US $30.00 End Date: Friday Feb-03-2012 22:07:48 PST Buy It Now for only: US $30.00 Buy it now | Add to watch list

Civil Aviation Training : Cat

Civil Aviation Training : Cat

Technical magazine covering all aspects of planning, finance, and strategy. Features include an in-depth Airline Training Profile, Corporate profile, regulatory review, as well as the latest industry news and reports.

Price: $ 168.00

Cat wing airplanes: wind piercing aeronautics(Technology demonstrator)

Our vision is for all airplane types from commercial aircraft to militry craft to be fuel efficient wind piercing cat wing aircraft. The inspiration fo the design is based on Cataraman boat. The fuel efficient planes will cut fuel cost and in turn lower ticket prices
Video Rating: 0 / 5

Rottweiler, big dog, a Rottie. Running with the Big Dogs. Presented by Smart Media Pays me

Presented by: SmartMediaPaysMe.com and http Smart Media PAYS & Smart Media PAYS ME. YourBigDog.com .. Big Dog, a Rottweiler, Rottie, Vicious dogs…Mary the Supergranny presents a video on RUNNING with the BIG dogs. Yes, a big Rottweiller. Zac is a BIG dog and he is a big Rottweiler dog..Is he a dangerous Rott? Is he a ferocious big dog? You decide. Presented by Mary The Supergranny . “Cat & Dog Fight” New VIDEO.. http for more videos, photos. Meet ZAC, the beautiful purebred Rottweiller dog. Zac is a very well behaved dog & very gentle with others…except robbers…LOL I’d love your comments. Phone:734 926 1560 (Leave a message if no answer) SmartMediaBrowser.info .. http .. theSupergranny.net http
Video Rating: 4 / 5

Watch as I create an interactive, jointed paper doll flower fairy sitting on a trinket box. I call this piece the Little Winter Fairy.
Video Rating: 4 / 5

Very Funny Video Clips

youtube-spain.blogspot.com Funny video, very funny vido, funny videos, very funny videos, funny vid, funny vids, funny videos…funny videos,HILARIOUS The Funniestvideo, HILARIOUS videos, HILARIOUS vid, HILARIOUS vids, A funny funny funny funny funny funny video…funny video HILARIOUS
Video Rating: 4 / 5

A Cat Begging for Food (HD)