I’ve been a long-time supporter of MediaTemple’s (MT)Residence program along with Gary Vaynerchuk, Neil Patel, and many others whom I respect. I wanted to share my “7 questions to answer to become a social business” with you here.. Social Media is pervasive and is becoming the new normal in corporate marketing. Brands who get this right are starting to build their own media networks rich with customer connections numbering in the millions. Right now, Coca-Cola has over 34 million fans…
They All Laughed – The road to becoming a social enterprise
Guest post by Danna Vetter, VP, Consumer Strategies, ARAMARK People laughed when we began talking about putting resources towards building a social structure for a company like ARAMARK. We heard it all: The standard – “We can’t open ourselves up to this kind of risk.” The mean – “You’re just trying to manipulate company perception.” The ridiculous – “No one wants to read tweets about hot dogs.” If you don’t know, ARAMARK is a private, $13 billion global company that…
The State of Social Marketing 2012
The following report is brought to you by the Pivot Conference taking place in New York on October 15-16, 2012. You can download a full copy of the report for free by clicking here. At the end of 2011, Social marketing stands at a profound crossroads. Some organizations are finally embracing the importance of social networks and, as a result, increasing investments in creative engagement, marketing, and service programs. Others see the future value, but lag behind in execution. At…
You can’t go back and create a new beginning, but you can begin to change the ending
Part 11 in a series introducing my new book, The End of Business as Usual…this series serves as the book’s prequel. There are those who believe social media is the catalyst for a new genre of business and that it will ultimately change how companies engage with customers. Others believe that for the organization to truly matter, it must adopt a culture of customer and employee centricity. Then there are those who study the evolution of consumer behavior and market…
Smart Business, Social Business
I got to know Michael Brito several years ago when he worked on the social media team at Intel. Since then, we’ve worked together in a variety of projects becoming good friends along the way. I was proud when Michael landed his book deal for Smart Business, Social Business and I was honored when Michael asked me to write the Foreword. Smart Business, Social Business is now available and the publisher has agreed to let me share the foreword here….
14 Best Practices for Brands to Grow their Audiences in Social Media
As a consumer, you are blasted with the same request over and over, “Follow Us on Twitter, Like Us on Facebook” As a consumer however it is more than natural to ask why should I or what’s in it for me? These are questions of which a significant number of businesses cannot genuinely answer. Businesses are realizing the importance of establishing a presence on Twitter and other vibrant social networks. In many ways, hosting a branded account is now common…
The Number One Least Asked Question in Social Media…Why?
The number one least asked question in social media is also the most important… Asking “why” in all aspects of business and life in general is unexploited. Day in and day out I help businesses understand the opportunity that lies within new media, not because of Twitter or Facebook. I do so because opportunity is pervasive in the hearts and minds of consumers everywhere. We just have yet to really understand for what reason. Report after report, post after post,…
Is Your Business Antisocial?
I ask with sincerity, is your business antisocial? Take a moment before you respond. I understand you may have Facebook and Twitter presences. Your business may broadcast on YouTube. Perhaps your executives are blogging. If you’re among the more sophisticated organizations, the team is probably subscribing to elaborate monitoring services to listen more effectively. And, with all of the social objects produced inside the organization, it’s come to the point where a content management system or social media management system…
This is a Time for Leaders to Lead not React
If you’re reacting, someone else defines what you’re going to do, rather than defining what people need to do. Your businesses faces great change. This statement is true about customers, competitors, and everyone else affecting market behavior. The question is, what are you going to do about it? Customer engagement, and specifically customer engagement in social media offers many benefits that businesses are starting to uncover, most of it unintentionally. While many champions knew in their gut that social media…
Customer-centricity Begins with Creating a Culture of Change
Customer-centricity or getting closer to customers is often the focus of many executive meetings I attend these days. The question always arises, “how can we use new media to get closer to customers?” The answer is not, develop a social media strategy to start engaging with customers. The answer is, change. Any organization that focuses on operations, margins, and efficiencies over customer experiences will find itself unfavored by tomorrow’s connected customer. It’s difficult to see the customer or empathize with…
