Part 8 in a series introducing my new book, The End of Business as Usual…this series serves as the book’s prequel. Social media says so much and so very little at the same time. First, social media implies that media is just that, social. But when you study many of the best practices or test the advice dispensed through popular “top 10” posts, you find that at the heart of notable social media successes is simply brilliant creativity and desirable…
I think we need some time apart, it’s not me, it’s you
Part 5 in a series introducing my new book, The End of Business as Usual…this is not content from the book, this series serves as its prequel. What do people want? If you don’t know, why not ask them? Seems like a common sense question to ask. However, when it comes to customer engagement and relations, common sense appears to be an uncommon virtue. The good news is that asking customers what they need is now easier than ever before….
Social CRM – Getting Down to Reality
Guest post by Paul Greenberg, author of CRM at the Speed of Light. Follow him on Twitter, please read his blog. First things first. Thank you, Brian. I am truly thrilled that I’m getting the honor of addressing your friends and I’m more thrilled even to be able to call you a friend. You know, I’ve spent a lot of time looking at the CRM market, as an analyst, consultant, journalist, blogger and whatever other chameleon-like title you can give…
In Social Media, Failing to Plan is Planning to Fail
I’ve received many inbound requests for comments based on a report from Gartner, an IT analyst firm, that estimates as many as 70-percent of social media campaigns will fail in 2011. There are a series of discussions hitting the blogosphere and the Twitterverse exploring this very topic, some elementary and others on the right path. I contacted Gartner earlier this week and the problem is, that this data isn’t new at all. In fact, these discussions are fueled by information…
Best of 2010: The Future of Business is Social
Social media and marketing have become synonymous over the years. At the same time, social media is placing the customer back in customer service. Each movement represents important and overdue (r)evolutions within business, but this is just the beginning. With every step toward progress we make in social media, we uncover what’s necessary to make real headway in the progress of progress. The future of business is social and as such, every aspect of business affected by outside activity will…
The Beginning of the End of Business As Usual
Listening is only the beginning. Engagement is the beginning of the end of business as usual. Once we hear, truly hear our customers and the people who influence our decisions, effective engagement is inspired by the empathy that develops simply by being human. We start to see things through the eyes of our consumers. We feel their pains, frustrations, and also happiness. We sense what it takes to encourage positive sentiment. Once we put “people” back into the mix, a…
The Great Brand Dilution
For decades brands basked in the glory of control, control over consumers’ perceptions, impressions and ultimately decisions and ensuing experiences. Or better said, business leaders enjoyed a semblance of control. While businesses concentrated resources on distancing the connections between customers, influencers and representatives, a new democracy was materializing. This movement would inevitably render these faceless actions not only defunct, but also perilous. Fueled by the socialization of media, content and connections served as the foundation for this new democracy and…
The Most Influential Consumers Online are on Twitter
Twitter is a human seismograph and it represents a transformative channel where everyday people possess the ability to affect actions. The cloud of collective consciousness that houses our thoughts, experiences, and conversations is also a data trove for experts to measure and mine serendipitous and organized behavior and events. Twitter is less of a social network in its design and operation and more of a series of interconnected social nicheworks. It brings together disparately connected personalities linked through friendship, admiration,…
The Socialization of Business: Your Dirty Little Secrets are No Longer Secrets
If a conversation takes place online and you’re not there to hear it, did it really happen? Conversations do not fall into a black hole never to be heard again. And, there is no event horizon preventing their escape. The social effect is more powerful than we realize. The truth is that if one voice or a chorus of voices finds the right audience, not only will businesses realize that conversations are taking place, they will find a miraculous cure…
Social Media: It’s All Part of a Master Plan…or Is It?
Twitter presence…CHECK Facebook Brand Page…CHECK YouTube Channel…CHECK Socialized Business Strategy…TBD While showing up to the party represents a noteworthy effort, a bona fide social media strategy this checklist does not make. Creating presences, listening to conversations tied to keywords and superfluously responding to updates and questions creates a facade of engagement that is at best trivial. And, quite frankly, without a true investment of intention, attention and conviction (I.I.A.C.), we minimize the opportunity before us as well as the thoughts,…
