Have you got the plumbs to give auto-tweeting a try as part of your social media engagement or would you rather be a sheep and follow the corporate crowd, even though you are an SME with a completely different type of business?
If you asked 100 Social Media Directors what they think of auto-tweeting, most will say, “Oh NO, you shouldn’t do that, it’s not authentic.” Ask them have they tried it and they’ll say, “Oh NO, you shouldn’t do that, it’s not authentic.” Ask them why and they’ll say, “Oh No, you shouldn’t do that, it’s not authentic.” All a little repetitive with no original individual thought in sight… which seems to be the pattern, they are more likely to follow others rather than lead the way…
Personally, I like to try things for myself and see the results with my own eyes… this way I can say what I think of a technique from a position of knowledge rather than hearsay.
They may site one or two examples of corporate brands using auto-tweets and a handful of customer’s tweeting their objection, a line being drawn in the sand as it is determined that because it doesn’t work for corporates, it doesn’t work for SMEs… what nonsense! They couldn’t be further from the reality… here a few facts…
Auto-tweets drive 40% of my website visitors, they have been directly responsible for a meeting with a global marketing manager at Microsoft, an opportunity with LinkedIn, a short contract with IBM and thousands of business owners who didn’t know me from Adam are now aware of my existence on the planet…
Corporate brands have fans, they’ve spent many years building products into brands and any Marketing Director on a six figure salary is unlikely to want to be responsible for any drop in share price. Any negative comments that can be easily shared via social media are a brand manager’s worst nightmare and so to avoid any chance of anything happening on their watch they will opt to stay out of the spot light that auto tweets can and will create.
Small businesses really don’t have that issue… will your walls tumble in if you have a negative tweet? Consider another 500 business people, with an interest in what you offer, knowing you exist EACH MONTH… is that worth the odd negative response? Personally I think it is SOOOOO worth it… do you?
I will share my 18 months of experience using auto-tweets and not using auto-tweets to drive traffic to two different websites and the results they have generated. You can then consider my findings, reflect on your own situation and decide that either your ego couldn’t stand any negative feedback or that a few negative comments are more than offset by the positive feedback and new connections you may make on the way…
See you next month…
Thank you.
Jon
Jonathan L Davey
07717 820823
| Article Categories: | social influence,Social Media Directors Events,Social media engagement,Social Media Events,Social Media Strategy,Social Media Thoughts,Twitter |
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Career Development and Social Media for Minority Lawyers
The first seminar in the series will look at the use of social media in relation to building your career, and will be chaired by Gelaga King, Chair of the MLC Planning Group.
Nick Lavender QC, Vice-Chairman of the Bar Council, will open the seminar with a few words, followed by the key presenentation, given by Toby Craig, Head of Communications at the Bar Council, entitled: “Using social media to develop your career”. This will be followed by a panel discussion consisting of Felicity Gerry, a frequent media commentator and social media enthusiast who practices at 36 Bedford Row, Kevin Poulter, a solicitor and social media specialist, and Barbara Hamilton-Bruce from CILEx, an avid tweeter and blogger. The panel discussion will be open to the floor for questions, and will be followed by a networking session.
Find out and more and book your place…
Thank you.
| Article Categories: | Social Media Directors Events,Social Media Events,Social Media Strategy |
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Social Media Competition for Windsor EXPO
Social Media Competition for Thames Valley Business EXPO Windsor 13th June 2013… join in the fun if you can drive attendees… obviously just sit back and watch the pros if you’re a light weight 
Calling Windsor business owners and those planning on attending The Thames Valley Business EXPO… news just in… an opportunity for you to shine in more ways than ONE!
When you attend an exhibition the organisers will hand you a goodie bag as you enter. Mostly full of flyers from exhibitors who have paid for their insertion into the bag… well now is your chance to have your flyer or goodie placed in the bag for FREE… yippee, something for nothing… almost.
The EXPO is on the 13th June and we want to get as many business people as possible registered sooner rather than later… as we stand around 275 are registered to attend, an excellent number 6 weeks out. It would be great to see 500+ pre-registered before the big day…
A goodie bag can only contain a certain number of items… 20 flyers + 5 goodies would make for an excellent gift for the businesses that attend. To make choosing whose flyers & goodies go in the bag fair, we need to run a competition.
What we can monitor is registrations… so it’s a very straightforward competition… those that drive the most registrations get to shine the brightest
• Registrations who say you recommended them score you 20 points
• Tweets containing #WindsorEXPO score 1 point, RTs 2 points
• LinkedIn Updates #WindsorEXPO score 2 points, likes 3 points
I can search Twitter & LinkedIn easily for the #WindsorEXPO, Facebook is not so straight forward but use it and other social media and digital marketing channels, like your newsletter, as registrations introduced by you count 20 points.
Obviously, if you WIN you’ll need to provide a minimum of 500 goodies or flyers…
So let’s get this party started… cut off date is Monday 3rd June 2013… registrations will be counted and verified and the TOP 20 winners made aware of their contribution to the event. The official announcement will be on the day and the actual winner celebrated throughout!
You can register via the link at the top of the EXPO website…
Thank you.
Jon
07717 820823
| Article Categories: | Business Networking,Joined up Social Media Campaigns,Social Media Competition,Social Media Strategy,Social Media Thoughts,Social Networking,Twitter |
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The Future of Berkshire Business
Berkshire businesses will ultimately make their own future, as will all business men and women across the UK. The large media companies have tried to control the roost but their influence is waning… welcome to the new world of shared independent thoughts creating our community reality, not some faceless corporatocracy.
Obviously there are a few major publications that are attempting to create a stink about social media and the power of the people to say what they think because it directly impacts on their ability to control our thoughts. If social is seen as “bad” then folk stop using it and they sell more corporate spin in their papers.
Recently, an article I spotted on Hootsuite talked about how Netfilx CEO shared their latest viewing figures on Twitter saw their share price jump 6.2% in a day… a winner! So what about that £20,000 ad in the Financial Times that wasn’t needed?
Downside, Paris Brown was ripped apart by The Mail on Sunday and resigned her post. Personally I think she should have stood firm but it’s difficult when all around you are concerned with their own positions.
Keith Vaz said he believed her views were “incompatible with holding office”… yeah right, so how did you keep your job after this? Glass houses!
I used Twitter to ask Ann Barnes the question I thought was relevant…
Jonathan L Davey SMD @2020socialmedia 9 Apr
@AnnBarnesKPCC the youth of Kent need to be asked what they think… if they show support would she have the choice to retract resignation?
Ann Barnes PCC @AnnBarnesKPCC 10 Apr
@2020socialmedia Paris’s decision was made after a great deal of thought and we are all now looking to move forward from this.
So that’s that, newspapers win the day…
On Tuesday 16th April the local Berkshire Media Group (BMG) are holding an exhibition at The Madejski Stadium, I’m supporting one of my clients, Verbatim The Phone Answering Service and have been banging the drum to drive awareness that they’ll be in the house.
Last year I had been part of the Thames Valley Berkshire Local Enterprise Partnership business group… but wasn’t asked to re-join after the new chair was announced as BMG MD Amanda Gee. During a conversation with her she had said that she saw me as competition. Me, a sole trader, her part of a Scottish Newspaper Group that want to rule the local media.
When it comes to Keeping Trade Local, an FSB campaign, which I have championed as an FSB activist, I believe that companies need to look to their local communities and support the local businesses who have a vested interest in wider community. Their families live locally, attending local school, spending money with local retailers, the few that are left!
Allowing big companies to tell us what’s what is naive. They juggle their financial legal structures for the benefit of a few shareholders who are probably sitting on a sunny beach drinking tequila.
It’s time to invest in local news created by local people with no bigger agenda, just a local one… long live social media… long live sole traders… long live all the small independent news producers around Berkshire…
Farewell corporate media control, welcome shared independent thought… that’s the future of Berkshire business.
In my opinion anyway, sure the local media will be hoping for a different outcome!
If you want to read what some folk believe is happening to the global financial systems then a good source of current information is the Scientific Democracy GB LinkedIn Group… interesting reading offering another side of the coin. I do like to consider all sides before drawing my own conclusions, how about you?
Thank you.
Jon
What do you get when you blend Yahoo, Starbucks, social media & a Sleepy Skunk?
A brilliant insight into the modern world of job interviews, highs, lows, perceptions & heightened egos… If a sleepy skunk knows you’ve “crashed and burned” then wake up and smell the coffee Mr Interviewee, you’re in Starbucks but you ain’t gunna be a star, better save that buck for the tram home dude
Just watching the Big ReUnion gig on TV and thought I’d check responses to my recent auto tweets… I do love those little chaps pinging notes out around the world just waiting for an insightful response. Today I wasn’t disappointed, The Sleepy Skunk responded and I read his timeline… what fun, listening into an interview at the next table…
This is how all Social Media Director interviews should be conducted… the comments tweeted and the best candidate gets the most RTs… enjoy this timeline and go show The Sleepy Skunk your appreciation by following him on Twitter and telling him what movies you’d like to see next…
The Sleepy Skunk @sleepyskunk 1h
Sitting at a Starbucks and there’s a big job interview right behind me and it’s going horribly wrong! cc @katerbland
The Sleepy Skunk @sleepyskunk 1h
It’s to be a social media director with Yahoo! The guy was giving out ace answers but now he just repeated one of them… twice.
The Sleepy Skunk @sleepyskunk 1h
Inappropriate comment made about facebook being for teenagers or adults “who don’t have a life”. That was followed by an awkward silence.
The Sleepy Skunk @sleepyskunk 1h
Oh shit, she’s wrapping it up already but now he’s got prepared questions and is insisting on them.
The Sleepy Skunk @sleepyskunk 1h
“What are the top ten things that you are looking for in an ideal candidate?” he says. She looks like she needs someone to help her escape
The Sleepy Skunk @sleepyskunk 1h
He now turned his question into an answer and is rambling about “the glory days of email spam”. She just looked at her watch.
My auto-tweet kicks in… Jonathan L Davey SMD @2020socialmedia 1h
@sleepyskunk Are you looking for a Social Media Director? Take a look at http://www.socialmediadirectors.co.uk
The Sleepy Skunk @sleepyskunk 1h
@2020socialmedia No Jonathan. I am live-tweeting a brutal interview happening right next to me in a Starbucks downtown Toronto, Canada.
The Sleepy Skunk @sleepyskunk 1h
Oh shit, he just asked if he can work from home and she said she doesn’t believe in that. The last pin in the coffin!
The Sleepy Skunk @sleepyskunk 1h
Now he sounds completely oblivious to the fact that she has no interest in his answers. The dude is interviewing himself.
The Sleepy Skunk @sleepyskunk 1h
They’re talking about YouTube now. He just brought up the the April Fools prank about shutting down all videos and how he fell for it.
The Sleepy Skunk @sleepyskunk 57m
It’s a wrap! She just left and he’s sitting there alone playing on his phone.
The Sleepy Skunk @sleepyskunk 53m
He’s now talking to his buddy saying he nailed the interview. I thought tweeting about this would be funny, but now it’s just sad.
The Sleepy Skunk @sleepyskunk 52m
Being a social media director at Yahoo… that’s like trying to pick up girls at an undergrad keg party when you’re 50.
The Sleepy Skunk @sleepyskunk 51m
He didn’t say that by the way, that was my personal thought on the position itself.
The Sleepy Skunk @sleepyskunk 51m
Feeling a bit depressed now… tough world out there.
BRILLIANT… cheery up stinky!
Thank you for great content for my first story for April.
Jon
Come on Dan Jacobs enthuse me
We cornered the founder of enthuse.me, Dan Jacobs, at his buzzing office in the hub of start-up Shoreditch to find out more about him, the team and the background of hot new website enthuse.me, which invites you to create an elegant one-page profile showcasing the things that best show-off your expertise.
This office is very on-trend, minimalist and very start-up! Looking around the team seems young, fresh and vibrant, however Dan has been in the industry for a while so can you tell us more about yourself.
Dan: Yes thank you the office look and feel is clean and elegant like the enthuse.me website. It helps that some of the best organic coffee & cake shops are also around the corner. On a serious note I have 18 years experience working in technology, operations, product management and general management roles in companies such as Virgin.com, IDT Global, LineOne, Delphi Internet.
As an entrepreneur, I have also worked in many successful start-up and early stage businesses as well as on new product launches. I’m also a passionate advocate of vegetarianism, having given talks on the subject and more importantly, I make a mean veggie lasagne!
Why did you decide to launch enthuse.me?
Dan: Being a longtime web worker and consumer, I have followed the trend of people selling their products, services and skills online very carefully. I came to the conclusion that a lot of websites that help you sell yourself in one way or another are missing a key component, which is that we are all individual and bring something unique to the table. Examples of this would be people that sell their products on ebay or their time on a freelancer site like elance or services on mybuilder or other vertical sites. They are all good in their own way but often their product or service becomes a commodity i.e. the purchaser is deciding on price and time to deliver as opposed to who is behind it.
I wanted to create a site that really allows each individual to show themselves off as an artisan, you could be an artisan plumber or an artisan tax advisor, the point is that each person brings something unique and special and we want to highlight that.
How is enthuse.me helping people to sell their products and services in a unique way?
Dan: Initially the site is a place to show yourself off, you can pick the best pieces of content and examples of your work that gives people a really great sense of your individuality. In the future we will add the ability for you to sell your time, services and products through your profile and within a market place on the website.
Speaking to the developers here they all seem very passionate about the various areas on the site – the A List, social media buttons etc. What is your favourite part of the website?
Dan: I think the product as a whole is my vision, which is the combination of great existing content, new content like our Insights feature which asks you to give a snippet of insight into your expertise and our social presence module which highlights your social stats in one place. The overall package gives the end reader a really great sense of what you can do and how you do it.
The site has only been available in beta for a few months and you already have a strong user base, what type of people have you got signed up?
Dan: I am astonished at the wide spectrum of users we have with profiles – we have actors, photographers, students showcasing their work, stylists, home-working moms, small businesses and even an etiquette expert. Of course we also have lots of techies and designers who are great early adopters.
The online space is rapidly changing and I am sure the enthuse.me site has a lot in store for the near future, can you give us a sneak preview of what we can expect to see in the next twelve months?
Dan: Our dav team are innovation hungry and we have a large feature pipeline based on user-feedback. Within the next three months we will be introducing some classic social networking components suck as connect with (follow) other ‘experts’, and notifications. We’re also bringing in the ability host and contribute to discussions around ‘insights’ and later some of the transactional features such as allowing users to sell their time, products and services through the site.
The beauty about enthuse.me is that we are fanatical about building around our users feedback. We listen and then create. I’d like to welcome everyone to share their thoughts with us on our twitter account, Facebook page and if all else fails email me at dan@enthuse.me
Twitter: @enthusedotme
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/groups/enthusebeta
| Article Categories: | Business Networking,Joined up Social Media Campaigns,social influence,Social media engagement,Social Media News,Social Media Platforms,Social Media Strategy |
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