Tag Archives: twitter
The Enagaged Mind: 5 Reasons Every Serious Professional Should Use Social Media for Business
Your World Isn’t “The World”
If you want to know the value of social media and social networking for business, you need to be able to agree that your world is limited. That without social media, you live “in a box” – maybe it’s your box, but a box nonetheless. Don’t believe me? Keep reading.
You need to understand that to be the best at what you do, you need to be educated and knowledgeable about what is happening in your field, in the world, with your consumers and your competitors. Surely, you agree with me here.
Take a few moments with me right now, in this post I am going to share with you exactly why social is critical to the leaders in your company. Why taking advantage of the opportunities in social media is critical for you. I am not going to discuss the marketing aspect here. What I am talking about here is personal development, innovation and the tools to always stay on top of your game.
Changing The Buzz Words in Social Business: “The Impact Equation” Delivers #ImpactEQ
The Impact Equation by New York Times bestselling authors Chris Brogan & Julien Smith is set for release on October 25th. I was thrilled to get an advance copy for review and am so honored to be able to share my experience in reading it with you here.
First things first, a little Q&A on who should read this book. In case you’re wondering if this book has something in it for you.
Q1: I’m just a business person, not a social media expert, is this book right for me?
A: Yes. It’s perfect for you. No social media mumbo-jumbo here. Just practical, real life information that you can understand and apply to your life and business right away.
Q2: I’m in the field, I’m already a “social media expert”, why would I read this?
Aviva Empowers Communities for a 4th Year Starting Today @AvivaCF #BeTheChange
The Aviva Community Fund Launches this week for it’s 4th consecutive year. This social media based contest puts the power into the hands of the communities around them to have a vote and make positive change possible with much needed funding. The Fund has given away millions of dollars to grass roots organizations and individuals who have come up with ideas to make positive change in their communities. You can check out previous winners here.
“I wanted to make a difference in my community for all children with disabilities, so how could I pass on the opportunity to enter the Aviva Community Fund?” said Kelly Meissner, idea generator behind 2011 Aviva Community Fund Winner Kate’s Kause. After winning $60,000 Kate’s Kause was able to build a fully accessible playground for the entire Elmira, Ontario community to use.
Starting today, Canadians can go to AvivaCommunityFund.org to submit ideas that will have a positive effect on their local community. After rallying support from friends, family, neighbours and co-workers, the most popular ideas will have a chance to be funded with the $1,000,000 Aviva Community Fund.
In the competition’s first three years, Canadians overwhelmingly answered the call proposing over 6,000 ideas and casting more than six million votes in support of causes from every province and territory.
Speaking about Change
I am really honored to be Aviva’s Quebec Speaker at the Community Fund Launch, where I where I will be highlighting some of the amazing opportunities this project gives business people and individuals to really get involved in supporting their communities.
Not only does Aviva give an opportunity to communities to grow and receive support for their positive change ideas, they also give their brokers an opportunity to support the projects in their areas. A great way for an insurance company to give back on many levels.
This competition not only uses social media to help spread the word, and allow people everywhere to support these local organizations, but it also creates a pattern of engagement that extends far beyond the contest itself. I wrote about this last year on 12 Most, and I invite you to continue reading below to learn about the 12 Most Ways Aviva Community Fund Excels at Community Giving.
You can also check out the ideas starting to appear here, and remember it doesn’t cost you anything to support a cause, just a click of support every day to help your favorite cause make it through to round two!
12 Most Charitable Ways @AvivaCF Excels in Community Giving
by Mila Araujo
What if I told you I had a million dollars to give away, and all you had to do to get part of it was to send me your request and if you could get your friends to support you, I’d hand it out? What would you do?
Well the Aviva Community Fund is doing just that, but they aren’t throwing it at you directly, they are giving it to your community so that not only you benefit, but your whole area can share the wealth, improve your life, your family’s and everyone around you.
What really sets this social good project aside from the rest is that it is not just a giveaway, its a competition. A competition that touches every single area of community in a positive way, and all anyone has to do to make it happen is embrace the idea of community. The true idea of working together and seeing the results of teamwork for social good.
Here are the 12 Most ways that @AvivaCF Excels in Community Giving
1. Its about getting what you need
Want a million dollars? Well you can’t get it yourself. You need your friends, your family, your community to get involved. Doing this instantly creates positive energy in your group. In today’s world we are often too busy to talk to each other, to take the time out to stop and connect with those around us.
Social Media Timing is Everything: Understanding Automation’s Role in Community Engagement
Robot (Photo credit: ewen and donabel)
Are You a Robot?
We have heard a lot of talk lately about the risks of automation in social media. Many people seem to believe that automating tweets, or posts work against social media best practices. In particular, genuine communication.
I think that the key to assessing this is in knowing the objective of your social media activities. In addition, the role that your social accounts are playing for the community they serve.
Manpower is a huge issue in this as well. Do you have a community manager who is dedicated to only running social media, or do you have social media as a “part” of the person’s role?
Automation used right doesn’t mean “impersonal”
There are positive ways that automation can be used which also respect and maintain the human touch. Here are some examples:
1. Scheduling Updates that contain photos, videos or your own posts to strategically appropriate times on both Facebook and Twitter
This content should be generally in line with your objectives, and the message you want to share within your community. There is no reason not to schedule these things. It allows you to be consistent. A huge factor in establishing a strong social media presence.
2. Scheduling distribution of articles via Twitter or Facebook so that the proper exposure is attained on peak hours in multiple time zones.
3. Automation responds to various needs and can help teams work together
Automation lends a Helping Hand in Time Management
Where “Automation Is Anti-Social” – What Not to Do.
It’s all about Balance
- Time for Blogging or other content creation
- Time for broadcasting the content
- Time for dialog and interaction based on the content & Identifying Opportunities for engagement elsewhere (ex: Social Search) <;- The most important aspects
- Time for analysis of interaction and results
The Appropriate Use of Automation
Automation does not Equal Auto-Pilot
- What is the acceptable delay to respond to comments on Facebook, Twitter, Your Blog?
- This will depend on the nature of your business, and the role your sites play.
- Itemize the type of content your organization is willing to automate.
- Example, blog posts, photos, videos, status updates, Direct Messages. Make sure to answer the question for yourself, what value does automating the selected items give your public, and your company. What are the potential risks?
- Ensure that there is a regular check point to follow through on these automated posts.
- Will it be every day, every hour? Set an expectation so you don’t lose yourself in the automated process. You want to respect the whole reason you are using automation – to stay connected. Leaving it on Auto-Pilot is not acceptable, and in theory does not meet the reasons you are doing it in the first place!
Providing Value
Do you use automation to expand your capabilities in social, or were you thinking it could just put your activities on auto- pilot while you head out to the beach?
What do you think?
Do you have any tips to add?
When Search Engine Giants Turn to Print – Your Marketing Strategy
Fading printers sign on an old stone wall – is print a thing of the past?
According to a recent infographic focusing on the demographics of online users, over 66% of adults are connected to a social network. According to Internet World Stats, as of Dec 31, 2011 over 78% of the North American Population is connected online. With information like this, it’s clear why there has been a surge in internet marketing, social media marketing strategy and a rush of forward thinking companies looking to find ways to reach the population in these areas.
The challenge for companies working on marketing strategies is balancing the investment into the online world with traditional media. Many are of the mind set that traditional media is dead, or soon will be. However, we need to consider that although everyone may be online, they still live in our offline world which is scattered with opportunity. When building a brand, or reinforcing one, it has never been sufficient
A Social Media & Digital Property Estate Plan – Till Death Do Us Part or Beyond
According to an article in The Sun, Bruce Willis intends to leave his music collection to his kids after his death, however, the article reports, according to their interpretation of the user agreement even though you pay for the music, the music is for the purchaser’s personal use, they are not selling it to you. So, you do not own it. As a result, Bruce Willis would have a problem – you can’t leave something you don’t own to your kids!
What are we all doing? Are we all downloading and paying for apps, books, music, etc. – yet none of us own any of it?! Surely every site that you “purchase” things from has a user agreement. How many of us are reading the small print and are we even understanding what it means? When I posted the link to the article on my Facebook Page, my friend Merlin U Ward wrote: “What will you do with your digital assets when you die?” Great question, but even more so is the question of what exactly are our digital assets? Do we have any? If the information in this article is correct, then it could be argued that it’s not an investment, and the “purchases” may actually just be loaners. It is definitely something to investigate and learn more about. How much are you spending on digital downloads? An even greater question, how would any company enforce this?
Do You Read Your User Agreements?
I speculate that this all came up because Bruce Willis was doing some planning and in making sure he was dotting all his “i”‘s , checked the agreement.
How many people actually read their user agreements? Most of us aren’t looking for this information as we download things, or even sign up for social media sites.
Every site has it’s own user agreement, perhaps this is a good opportunity to spend some time to understand what it is we are signing on for as we purchase things, or invest in accounts.
What about Social Sites? What Happens there?
This is a great article that gives and overview of what happens to your Facebook page after you die What happens to all my social networking information when I die? . I was pleased to learn that Facebook takes the time to actually give some very considerate options to the user’s family in such a sad and difficult time. They apparently can leave the page as is, or, at the request of the family can turn it into a memorial site. I think that’s pretty “human” of them.
This CNET article from 2010 covers how the Facebook and Twitter policies compare. I am happy to see both provide opportunity for the memorial concept. We invest so much into our social media activity, it’s nice to know it won’t all get wiped away in a flash.
So in the end, is it about you?
The big question is, what do you want to happen with your sites years down the line? Some people might want their entire sites taken down, others may want to keep things up so others could continue the connections. Circumstance certainly would play a role.
What would you do?
Would you leave your sites up so those you cared about could continue to honor and celebrate your life? Sharing stories together “In Memoriam” on your original page?
What if what you want is not what your family would want? How do these things get decided?
Interestingly there are services emerging to respond to this very thing, among them are Legacy Locker which offers free and paid plans, and Secure Safe, which offers a “Data Inheritance” service.
We have a lot to manage and think about when it comes to our evolving commitment to using social media, the information we share online, the investment of our time, and in Bruce Willis’ case even the investment into “buying” and building a music collection.
What do you think of this? The responsibility is on us as users to understand what we are signing on for. In the case of the downloaded music, I think it’s just the tip of the iceberg… and Bruce Willis is going to take it on for us.
Fast Track Marketing: QR Code Driving Fans Closer |Strategy|Engagement
QR Codes are a tough sell in social media circles. Despite this, the average consumer surely sees multiple codes a day scattered on business cards, ads on walls, magazines, newspapers, billboards, TV ads, and even restaurant menus. In recent research from ScanLife, a popular QR Scanning App, the data not only shows consumers scanning when they are on the go, but even when they are at home! If that doesn’t indicate increasing comfort with the convenience of the QR method of communication, I am not sure what does.
Why do so many oppose them in the social marketing field? The QR code may seem “boring” to a graphic artist, or annoying to a social marketer, but to the average consumer armed with a smart phone and a scan app, I’d go as far as say it can be magical. You never know what lies behind the code until you see it.
Go ahead, scan me 
~Wasn’t that fun?
The State of Mobile
According to Cisco‘s Mobile Forecast Highlights, in North America, the number of smartphones grew 58% during 2011, reaching 138 million in number. They further predict, in their VNI Mobile Forecast Highlights, 2011 – 2016 that in North America, the number of smartphones will grow 1.8-fold between 2011 and 2016, reaching 253 million. Why is the potential application of QR coding important? Look at it as your added opportunity to entice the mobile user, to connect somewhere that everyone is becoming increasingly more comfortable.
According to a recent Scanlife report in the second quarter of 2012, the company’s QR codes got 16 million scans, almost 10 million more than what it saw in the second quarter of 2011. in addition the rate of scans per minute Scanlife is seeing has increased by 5 times compared to the same time last year. You can check out a pretty awesome infographic here.
Why Aren’t You Seizing The Opportunity?
QR Codes are one of the easiest ways for consumers to easily respond to an ad, and get the information they are looking for. They allow the
Seduced by the numbers? The Honeymoon is Over.The Value of a Facebook Like {Casestudy}
The biggest challenge faced by social media professionals entering an organization who is at the onset of social media integration will be confronting the popular misconception that “likes” on Facebook & followers on Twitter is the measure of social media success.
When social media first started to gain attention as a new business opportunity, it stands to reason that in absence of true measurement tools, the only number a business or organization could understand easily, and “measure” would be the number of followers, or fans.
Many organizations, due to lack of familiarity or understanding of social, are convinced that there is success in the numbers; that “likes” or followers equal reach, and that if they attain high subscription – whether it be on Twitter, Google Plus, or Facebook – that this will equal success.
The Wrong Numbers.
Social business is still in the early stages, as new technology and strategy intertwine to find stronger measures of success on various levels –
Social Consumerism and The Great Divide | Social Business Values #Custserv #Leadership #Strategy
As more and more brands are learning how to do social business and integrating social mindsets into all areas – the divide between the traditional business (non-social), and the social business is evident. For the social consumer the differences can be intolerable.
Will the rise of the social consumer change you?
In the video short below “Drive Blog: Episode 1″ , I discuss the difference I see in businesses that demonstrate social values, and share the story of what happened when Chris Brogan tried to get some resolution to an issue on a Facebook Page. What would your response have been if Chris Brogan wrote to you on your brand’s Facebook page, and is this how you would treat every customer?
In exploring the attributes of the Social vs. Non-Social Mindset I found several key differences:
