Out-Smarts Internet Marketing

The sun is shining, the daffodils are blooming and Spring is in full swing.  If these weren’t enough reasons to be cheerful then here are some more on the Internet front.

The main reason to be cheerful this month is the release of the latest WordPress blog software - version 2.5.  I only started using it today but so far so great - my spacing problems have been resolved as have my cut and paste issues.I am looking forward to finding out what other goodies version 2.5 brings.  

Another discovery this month was the ThoughtFarmer knowledge sharing solution.  Aimed at providing organisations with an Intranet portal that enhances knowledge sharing and collaboration, ThoughtFarmer combines the best of wiki technology with social networking to allow organizations to deploy a unique and highly usable portal.

Suitable online invoicing systems are few and far between.  Some are good at handling expenses, others good at tracking time but I haven’t found one that does both well, one that is easy to use, customizable and can link to Paypal. Canadian online invoicing provider Freshbooks may just be the solution.

Looking for any easy way to involve your visitors on line?  PollDaddy is a great code generating tool that allows you to create a poll on your site (you define the question you want to ask and the answer criteria). Simply cut and paste the code to your web site and start polling your audience.

Another easy way to enhance your site and make the user experience more enjoyable is to add forms. Wufoo simplifies this by giving you a catalogue of templates to choose from (everything from customer surveys to registration forms).      

Facebook hysteria is hitting new heights. The media is abuzz with Facebook horror stories, sensationalized stories of how Facebook can threaten our very existence.

Perhaps its the cynic in me but frankly this is just the next example in a long line of innovations that have been seen as threats by the mainstream. Even the phone was described as a tool of the devil when it was first introduced.

Why this hysteria ? Because, like all new ways of doing things it challenges what people perceive as the norm. Its a new way of doing things and in good human nature fashion we see it as a threat because its something new that we don’t yet understand.

Get with the programme peeps! Rather than viewing Facebook as something to be afeared of check it out yourself - go online and see what its all about.

You have a choice, no one is forcing you to have a Facebook profile or interact with people in that forum but before you go spouting off about what a threat it is to society understand what a social network is and the potential benefits of using one and first and foremost, use your common sense.

Here are some common sense tips to bear in mind on social networks.

1. Every one of these sites has privacy settings that individual users can apply. Before doing anything in these forums, check what these are, the level of control you have and decide in advance how transparent you want to be. Use the privacy settings to your advantage.

2. Understand that yes, social networks do, by their very nature, cast a wide spotlight. Be aware if this and act accordingly (i.e. like the teacher in BC, don’t post naked pictures of yourself - thats just common sense).

3. Just like in the real world where there are things you wouldn’t do, online has the similar boundaries. Apply the same rules as you would in the virtual world. For example, don’t talk to strangers, don’t trust people you don’t know and don’t walk down the street naked.

4. Outline in advance your reasons to be on Facebook or other SNs. If it is to keep in touch with friends then only add friends you know in the real world. If you want to be a Facebook slut and add every one and anyone then be aware that every one and any one can see your personal details and use them accordingly.

5. Always think twice about what you post and do the Granny test. Be aware that once something is out there, its out there so stop and ask yourself is this appropriate do I want strangers to see it before you post anything. And never do anything rash in the spur of the moment.

6. Develop a policy for adding friends and stick with it. If you don’t think its appropriate (perhaps because of your profession) to add someone you know then tell them why and stick with your principles. Its a good thing to have principles and by standing by them people will only respect you more.

7. Never let Facebook consume your life (it can be tempting). Schedule time for it and use it as a tool - don’t let it use you.

A sensible approach to social networks should soon have you seeing the potential networking (both for business and for pleasure) benefits rather than the perceived unknown threat. Don’t get sucked in by the hype, keep the head - use your common sense and you should be good….

Social media for marketing and business development is the hot topic on the networking circuit in Vancouver these days and today’s SMEI event was no exception. With expert panelists from BCIT and Oracle bringing their unique experiences in SM to the panel, the event proved to be insightful.

It started off with a brief intro to Web 2.0 described as being “Tech, Process and People - but most of all collaboration” then went on to a 101 of web 2.0 terms such as RSS, blogs, podcasts for the real newbies in the audience.

Once the panelists got started the true value of the event became apparent. Justin Kestelyn, Director of Development Programs at Oracle discussed their web 2.0 adoption and the benefits they have gained from using a more transparent strategy and involving their customers and partners more. He made a great point in that by involving their customers and allowing them to have a voice these invariably become evangelists at little or no cost to Oracle. He points out that Web 2.0 is an attitude, a new way of doing business and not just an Internet term.

Next up was Robert Duncan from BCIT whose presentation centred on LinkedIn as a means of developing relationships (a topic close to my heart). He focuses on LinkedIn in particular of the social networks available and has over 800 contacts that he uses extensively to spread awareness of what he is doing at BCIT and in his work with innovators. He pointed out that by joining groups in LinkedIn you have access to all other members of that group - a great way to extend your network further. Its easier to do business with people you already know something about.
The last panelist to get up was James Wells also from BCIT and a founder of Lendary Social Financing a company that uses web 2.0 technology to build trust online and to put investors in touch with entrepreneurs looking for money. “Word of mouth is vital to growing any business these days”, he pointed out - “go out and do it - if you fail you learn”.

The conclusion - if companies don’t embrace web 2.0 then they face failure or a steep catch up. It costs very little to adopt these technologies and the benefits in terms of buzz are profound.

Interesting to see Vancouver mega blogger Miss 604 there. I am looking forward to her take on proceedings too.

An article on Collective Thoughts about raising your Twitter profile got me thinking about the social media wave that is upon us. The article discusses why Twitter is a viable marketing tool and how the writer went about increasing his Twitter profile in 30 days. It has many valid points and yes Twitter can be a great marketing tool but so can blogging, social networking, wiki’ing and forums - to mention but a few. If you spend time marketing in each and everyone of these as the buzz out there would suggest, you would have very little time to spend on actual revenue generation or traditional marketing efforts (woe betide you would do those).

Its important (as with any marketing project) to do some research and planning up front when considering these new collaborative web 2.0 technologies. Don’t just rush out and start Twittering your head off just because its the latest in thing. Take time to consider your client and determine whether they are Twittering. If they are then its great to use Twitter as a marketing tool but schedule the time you spend Tweeting and set goals so that you can monitor the effectiveness of your efforts. Same goes for the other Internet networking hubs, always ask yourself first and foremost if your customer is active in these and how they are using these technologies. Plan your marketing campaign up front: time spent, strategy, goals and measures. Otherwise you might find that you get to the end of the day and Twitter has sucked up all your time and nothing else on your list has been done. Take it from me I am talking from experience!.

Here’s blog post 2 in the series following up on my Building Valuable Business Relationships in the Virtual World presentation.

The Internet is an ideal way to grow your business and expand your network but their are risks that you should be aware of. Here are 10 tips that will help you do it safely:

1. When networking on Facebook or other social forums always use the privacy controls to limit access to your information (usually you can find these by clicking on “account”).

2. Use Facebook, LinkedIn and other networks to make people aware of what you do or want to do.

3. Google yourself to see what’s being said about you and do the Granny test on the results - if Granny wouldn’t approve then perhaps the content isn’t appropriate to enhance your business profile.

4. Don’t put up any photos, videos or images that compromise your image.

5. Portray yourself professionally as appropriate to your industry in all forums.

6. Be true to who you are, transparency leads to trust. If you have a good reputation people are more likely to do business with you.

7. Remember that you have a valid and unique opinion. Don’t be afraid to voice it.

8. Always be respectful of others, its okay to disagree but be polite about it.

9. If you are young and looking for a job be aware that a party boy or girl image may seem cool to your peers but it won’t help you get a job or grow you professional network.

10. On-line networking is a vital tool for anyone trying to build a career but don’t get sidetracked or sucked in. Avoid this by scheduling time for on-line networking and sticking to it.

11. Don’t make friends with everyone and anyone. Be selective. It will help you manage the volume of information and will also expose you to less risk.

I had the pleasure this evening to present at an event co hosted by the Professional Women’s Network, the YWCA Mentoring Program and the Downtown Networking Association aimed at introducing mentors and mentees to professional growth strategies to help you realise career goals. My topic: “Building Valuable Business Relationships in the Virtual World”.

As promised, I am going to blog over the next few days about some of the issues I touched on at the event, the first of these being Internet networking hubs.

Internet networking hubs are great forums to expand your business network and extend your reach. Obviously those you use will depend on what it is you do. For example a photographer would likely use photo sites like Flickr to showcase their experience. Someone in the music industry is likely to benefit more from MySpace than Facebook. And a lawyer might is more likely to join a law forum than a web development forum. Its up to you which you choose but Internet networking hubs are great places to grow your on line network and in turn your business. Here the handout I gave out tonight:

Back by popular demand is our monthly reasons to be cheerful post where we share the new media discoveries we have made over the last month so that you too can feel the joy!

Process and operations have been a big focus lately - getting our shop in ship shape as it were so you’ll see a bit of a pattern in this month’s reasons - they all help us do business a little more effectively:

Toggl - allows you and your project managers to track their time effectively over the Net. Because its all done on-line it allows your managers to track their time even when they are at customer sites. Simple yet so powerful.

Ta-da Lists - our friends over at BlueLime Media tipped us off to this one. Here at Out-Smarts we are always writing lists for everything from sales targets and marketing to-do’s to lunches. Ta-da provides a great way to keep track of these on your desktop and to share them with colleagues. No excuses now for forgetting those 2008 resolutions.

BlogFuse - recently launched with their first app which makes it really easy for you to create a Facebook app based around your companies blog. In about 5 minutes (or so!) we were able to launch Out-Smarts first Facebook app using this sweet technology - thanks to the folks over in Kansas for that and also for their unparralleled support.

Reasons Archive:
Nov 2007
Oct 2007
Sept 07
Aug 07
Jul 07

Here’s a quandary: you have something valuable to say, you set up a blog and set about sharing your ruminations. The blog begins to attract visitors and subscribers but they trickle in at best. What do you do to attract a larger audience? Check out how other bloggers do it thats how! Here are some great success stories with vital tips you can take advantage of:
ProBlogger has a really detailed post from the writer of ThinkSimpleNow sharing the detailed strategies they used to go from zero to 2000 visitors in the space of 3 months.

Dosh Dosh celebrated 10,00 subscribers by sharing the reasons why people subscribe to that blog.

Entrepreneur Magazine featured an article from John Chow a local boy who makes huge amounts of money from his blog.

Out-Smarts has already started to implement some of the ideas these bloggers were kind enough to share and our visitor count has gone up by about 50% in just a few days. I guess the results speak for themselves.

Thanks guys!

Local new media aficionado and funny girl Monica Hamburg known for her hilarious “Your Dose of Lunacy” posts and the more serious “Me Like the Interweb” blog, wrote a great piece recently on Facebook for business. Here it is in it’s entirety - you can’t fail to learn from it:

Behold the Power of Facebook For Business

With Facebook’s more than 55 million active users, it would be a tragic oversight for a company not to have a public presence on the site in some capacity. Facebook offers more than a way to keep up with friends – it has the ability to keep you in touch with your clients, gain attention for your brand and provide a more personal face for your business.

The nature of Facebook is entirely viral, and users can garner information from their friends and their interactions. Facebook can be an unintrusive way of making people aware of your business.

Recently, the social networking website has allowed businesses to create profiles for free, and innovative companies are fast employing the tool. Kris Krug, President of Raincity Studios, added the “fan page” application for his company, commenting that such an option “means companies can have a place of their own in the FB empire allowing them to send out announcements to “fans” and build up yet another presence to promote their projects, give details and promote events.”

Mhairi Petrovic uses the profile page for her company, Out-Smarts, to “extend our brand reach and reinforce it. When people become a fan, our logo appears on their website and in turn is seen by more people. Having a page and encouraging fans to join establishes Out-Smart as an innovator in social marketing (one of the services we provide).”

Utilizing this particular tool to its full capacity is the Palo Alto restaurant, Junnoon,
whose page contains essential information such as hours of operation, payment options and parking and further entices customers by prominently displaying pictures of the interior of the establishment, the food and posting its culinary philosophy, accolades and reviews.
(more…)

Here for your Friday enjoyment is a funny little clip found on YouTube all about the social networking tech bubble.  Blog in the womb indeed!