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Network With Randall
Social Networking - Still not convinced?
I was watching my most guilty-ist of pleasures a little bit ago and it just hit me that it’s really a new breed of television show.
We all have TV shows we watch now, or used to watch, that we’re not particularly proud of…so I’m just saying…don’t judge *laugh*
I’ve been watching Gossip Girl on the CW - I *think* it’s a “tweener” show. But I’m not entirely sure. I know that they’re mostly supposed to be high school seniors, but there is a pretty intricate backstory (and plots!) for all the adults as well. They’re not just “wah wah wah” characters like Charlie Brown used to have. That’s what I tell myself when I’m watching it and thinking about how darn young most of the main characters look!
So, enough about my tawdry TV habits - the point here is that the entire premise of Gossip Girl is a blog. A blog about the “elite of New York” (more specifically Manhattan’s Upper East Side) with all the posts signed (you guessed it) Gossip Girl. The intro and out-tro are both voiced by “Gossip Girl” as well. It’s used very subtly in the show, they don’t say blog or talk about Gossip Girl…it’s just something that “is” in this world of excess on the CW.
Seriously. A blog.
If you visit the site you’ll see even more bells and whistles. An interactive menu, fashions available at Victoria’s Secret, complete with picking a character and getting specific item suggestions (if you want to see how to execute a cross promotion in a world where commercials are mostly optional…this is a good site to check out.) There’s even a video game where you can pretend to be one of the characters. Wait, I’m not sure on that…in the interest of research I’ll have to check it out right quick.
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Ok, I’m back. OH MY GOSH! If you’ve read my previous posts you’ll see that I’ve blogged about the online video game Second Life a couple of times - well guess where the Gossip Girl’s hometown is located in cyberspace?? You guessed it again! Second Life!
Second life had some problems recently, but it really seems to be making a resurgence - this time among the masses instead of geeky gamers (like me) and other Internet snobs that found it a while ago.
I just saw Second life in CSI:NY a while ago (I know, my DVR is filled with shows you’d call [sardonically] “nuttin but class”.) There’s a CSI:NY section in Second Life as well - or so I was told by the eight thousand commercials telling me to go solve the crime now! Wow. Last time I went there were no people (except those trying to get naked - for journalistic purposes I tried to get a job in Second Life but all that was available that I could find was stripper or escort…not my style…so you haven’t seen a blog post about it.)
Maybe I need to log back in and see what’s going on in the world of the Lindens. It seems they may have lost a lot of gamers…but wow…they may just capture the world instead. Interesting, indeed!
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Last but not least, in searching for an image to use for this entry, I stumbled upon something I think is amazing. The show Gossip Girl is based on a series of bestselling novels (written for teens) - and I think we all know how I feel about books…
My guilty TV pleasure may turn into a guilty book pleasure. Strictly for research purposes…of course…
Tech Cocktail - Chicago
Go HERE for more information!
If you’re going to be attending, drop me a line and let me know. We can hang. Or something.
Blogging, Tagging, and Memes
When you’re blogging…even for business…you will occasionally cross the line into the personal. But it’s your choice how personal you want to get. (Your branding plays a part in this!)
Memes are fun little questionnaires, and when someone fills one out they have to pick three people to fill them out as well. That’s called tagging…and the people who are picked have been “tagged” - make sense?
Well this all came out because Tammy Munson over at New Media VA tagged me for a Meme. This gives me exposure on her blog, because she has my name with a link back to my page…and when I talk about her I’ll link back to her webpage…giving her a link and exposure on my blog.
It’s a very non-intrusive way to do the whole “you scratch my back and I’ll scratch yours” thing.
The subject of this Meme is “Seven things you may not know about me”
So here goes:
- My favorite sound is the one a 2400 baud modem makes.
- I’ve been blogging since November 10th, 1999.
- I LOVE football (Go Bears!)
- My local microbrewery was named Best Small Brewpub at the Great American Beer Festival.
- I was raised by my great-grandmother.
- I love planes. I especially love take-offs and landings when I’m on a plane.
- My favorite color is pink.
The reason Memes are great is that when you find one on a blog where you know the author, if you then end up at a conference or networking event together…you have something to talk about beyond the weather and the food. This is valuable information that can enable you to make a personal connection with someone much sooner, and the faster you can make that connection, the more likely they are to remember your name when they have a need for your services (or are looking for someone to invite to the Bears game with an extra ticket.)
This is how friends are made.
I’d like to tag:
Kelly McCausey
Tishia Lee
Patty Dost
Now you wait a few…and they should have their responses up. (That’s how it works in a perfect world. You will find that people won’t always post your Meme…but that’s okay…)
Edited to add: And sometimes you’ll have smarty-pants comments that people have already been tagged and you’re a little too late….so you add someone that you should have thought of in the first place and should IN NO WAY feel like a second choice. In my case, that awesome person is:
LaTara Ham-Ying of Vegan Family Living
Social Networking in Person?!
I’d like to introduce you to my little friend.
While I’m not 100% certain why, when you type my name into the search engine, all these damn meetup groups pop up first. Even before my website.
You know what that means? You need to be on Meetup.com too.
If you’re selling your product or service, there are meetup groups that can help you hone your skills. When looking for groups of people to sell your wares, however, you need to remember that it’s the WHY people buy, not the WHAT.
For example, if you’re selling aspirin…don’t join an aspirin Meetup.com group…join a headache group. Or a migrane group. Or a post-heart-attack-blood-thinning group. I know that’s overkill, but you get my point right?
Because if you don’t already know the ailment or need that brings people to your door now, you won’t get a bunch more clients online that you would have never found offline. Your business online is like a needle in a haystack, and you as a businessowner need to be able to differentiate your business from the rest of the entire Internet.
I know, it’s a daunting task. But not near as daunting if you have the tools and knowlege about your customers! Don’t fret, you wouldn’t have a business if you didn’t have a customer with a problem. You know why they buy. Just take a few minutes and write it down - that will help bring you some clarity as to what groups may be helpful for you to join.
Because not only is it great for the search engine to list you first as a part of Meetup.com, you may want to attend some local meetings and see what they have to offer! From a supportive community of your peers to potential sales for your business…Meetup.com is a great place to spend some time.
Marketing with New Web Tools
BusinessWeek Small Biz Editor Nick Leiber talks to Greg Verdino, marketing blogger and chief strategy officer at marketing firm Crayon, about how small-business owners can use new, low-cost Web tools to market their products and services. Click the image above to watch the video on the BusinessWeek website. (hey…i’m no video poacher!)
I’m not sure why marketing companies consistently need to come up with assinine names for themselves. Crayon? I mean, at that point why not call yourself “All the Colors of the Wind” - well that would violate Disney’s hold on that particular phrase…but seriously….a bunch of guys with business acumen and (I assume) degrees in marketing came up with Crayon?
My two and a half year old daughter would have told me to name my company “Apple” if that were the case. Oh, wait….that’s already been done.
Nothing against companies like Crayon and Naked (another marketing company) - but seriously. Say what you do. Simplicity is a better long term sales technique than a catchy-name-of-the-moment.
It probably wouldn’t bother me if I didn’t agree with most everything he said about small businesses marketing online.
Enjoy the video! Let me know your thoughts on the piece. Also feel free to leave any questions you have in the comments and I’ll be happy to answer them.
Quick and Dirty Online Marketing
I. Find Local Groups
A. People gather NOT for the WHAT but for the WHY (the why makes a good niche)
1. Meetup.com
2. Squidoo.com
3. LinkedIn.com
4. Ojeez.com (maybe…still not sure on this one)
5. MySpace.com
6. Ryze.com
7. Squidwho.com
8. If there are any Yahoo! Groups or Google Groups or other email lists regarding the Whys
II. Get out there! (on the internet)
A. You do have a blog, don’t you…
1. typepad.com
2. wordpress.com
3. wordpress.org (best for SEO)
4. REMEMBER: Write about what your audience wants to hear…not what you want to tell them…
B. Consider recording your own podcast. There are ways to do this for free and get it on iTunes for free. (Yes, I know the ways)
1. See what’s out there already
2. Do it better.
III. Get out there verbally! Be a radio guest on podcasts or radio shows!
A. Podcasts that focus on
1. Your local metro area
2. Product Specifics
3. Any of the “Whys”
4. Anyone else you can think of that might be interested in what you have to say!
B. Give a “special” to get them to have you and then be funny and charming so they’ll have you back
1. Be yourself
C. Have a teleclass or teleseminar
1. Start with online PR and change your resource box in articles and on forums to reflect new teleseminar.
2. Put it out there on lists like Ask Liz Ryan (28,000 members worldwide) in your signature after having answered a normal question.
3. Be subtle, but obvious.
4. RECORD THE TELECLASS AND WE USE IT AS A PODCAST AND PUT IT ANYWHERE YOU CAN SUBMIT IT.
IV. Use Other People’s Resources
A. Post comments in blogs of well known or well traffic-ed sites
1. Use alexa.com to determine popularity as well as other sources.
2. Make comments good, always link back to your site.
B. Forums
1. Do searches on google for the “whys” and find first forum in Google (top ranked) see how many members they have and post!
2. When you change one signature line, they all change, so even old posts will be updated with new information when you need it to be.
Next Steps:
Compile list of “Whys” for more effective searching.
Research actual URLs, domains, blogs, and Wikipedia terms that could be enhanced by your participation
Social Networking - Good Times!
Even if you’ve just seen an evening news report on MySpace, you’ve been touched by relationship marketing. While you may think that MySpace is just for High School kids trying to get into trouble - search for “marketing” or “make money online” and you’ll see thousands of adults on MySpace trying to sell stuff to other adults.
Personally, I’m not a big fan of MySpace marketing. I *do* think every business should have a MySpace or Facebook page, just to have information online in a place where people could find it. You can choose “groups” to network with - which makes it easier for people that you want to find you…to find you!
Squidoo is (by FAR) my favorite Social Networking site. The company owned by Seth Godin (author of “all marketers are liars” and “permission marketing: turning strangers into friends”) and I feel they’re really doing something different from the rest of the social networking pack.
Definition of Squidoo from Squidoo:
Squidoo is the world’s most popular site for people who want to build a page about their passions. Highlight books, blogs, vids, online shops, or just spread the word about stuff you love. Bonus: you raise money (for you or charity) at the same time! It’s fast, free, and supereasy. (Pssst: it only takes 4.2 minutes to get started…)
As with everything, we recommend you have a plan BEFORE you start entering information into any system. The reasons for this are twofold:
1. You don’t want to start something and leave it unfinished. If you do, that reflects on how your company does business.
2. Having all your online marketing efforts aligned with a similar call to action is the best way to have maximum marketing effect.
You can have as many lenses and you’d like. You could use individual lenses to highlight the services you provde and the need for them (You could set it up like a mini-white paper!) Or if you have products you could use lenses for individual products, or groups of similar products.
It’s an easy way to make yourself easy to find. Once you’re found, your visitor has an honest chance to assess your products, services, or company.
That’s what marketing on the Internet is about.
Using LinkedIn
Ok, I’ve had a few people (four to be exact) ask me about LinkedIn in the last three days.
So I’m going to tell you what I know about why you’d want to use LinkedIn and the different ways to get there. Read more
Second Life as a Second Business?
Over at Web Worker Daily there’s a great article about Dana Jones and her business Second Mirage on the uber-popular online game Second Life.
If you haven’t visited the Second Life website yet, be warned, it’s terribly addictive and after two “real life” days I still hadn’t figured out how to make “Linden dollars” beyond mopping a floor. If you know me, you know that mopping a floor is really not where I’m at in my life, virtual or not!
You can be anything from a fairy to a punk-rocker, a human to a frog. It’s garnered so much attention that Mercedez Benz has gotten involved, you can see a commercial HERE for the new C-Class.
I think this may be a perfect example of how business and entertainment online have lines that are so blurred that you can barely tell one from another. The most interesting part? People don’t seem to mind so much. The launch party (some of which was recorded and put on YouTube as well) was well attended and enjoyed by all those who attended.
Back to the business aspect. People are realizing that you can make real money online, but it takes a lot of coding experience to be able to turn around a product in enough time to make the service worthwhile as a second business. Even Dana on Second Life took on a commission for 18,000 Linden Dollars, which is approximately $63 US dollars. It took her a week to complete the project.
I don’t know about you but that is one serious labor of love to work for a week, part time, and make $63. But if she’s working on becoming an expert (and it sounds like that’s happening) what happens when you have multiple stores and start taking on employees? Do these online businesses have business plans? Should they?
I’m tempted to go back online and begin teaching business planning basics to Second Life business owners instead of mopping the floors or sleeping in a magic pool to make a few Linden Dollars a night.
It would make for an interesting second job.
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