I just wanted to take a minute to thank friends, family, associates, and cohorts. This past month or so has been a very challenging experience. It’s forced me to disconnect and take a step back and re-evaluate the what and why of life, both personally and professionally. While I want to assure everyone that everything is fine, I will be scaling back my online interactions for no other reason than to insure my continued sanity.

Many people have reached out to me online as well as in person. And I cannot thank those people enough for their continued friendship. I’m honored to live a digital lifestyle in which I get to interact with so many brilliant people. As it will be illustrated in my next post, online interactions are more meaningful if you have people with which to share them.

Thanks –DW

So, I think it’s time for my obligatory Social Media Snake Oil post, per the Social Media Bloggers Union, Local 438.

Seriously, though. It pains me when I read/meet/see/encounter someone who’s been bitten. I hate it. It sucks. And not just for the person bitten, who becomes gun-shy at the thought of hiring someone else. But for the professionals who are legitimately looking to do good work.

If there’s one thing I’ve learned from educating myself about social media is that it’s more than just knowing how to use the tools. Anyone can use the tools. As a matter of fact, I’ve seen trained monkeys using a computer, so I know I’m right.

Here are a few of the things that I have learned that you should be doing to integrate Social Media into your current marketing plan. If all you hear is Twitter and nothing about these things, please hand the person back their snake oil and send them on their way:

1) What did you just say? Current marketing plan? – Yes, that’s right. Social Media is nothing more than a new tool to add to your arsenal, not something entirely new into itself. Don’t have a good marketing plan? There are firms out there who help out with that. And they are pretty good at what they do, too. I’ve worked with a couple. The Twist?

2) The Twist? Say hi to your customer – You see, contrary to everything you may think, that person giving you money actually is a PERSON. And people have thoughts. The even tend to be passionate about those thoughts. and I’m sure they wouldn’t mind sharing them with you. And using tools like Social Media, it allows us to listen to customers. This allows you to become better and create passionate fans.

3) Social Media is not free – Sure, many of the tools are free or are freemium services, but manpower isn’t. If you look to outsource it, then remember this: good knowledge is worth the money. Individuals with proven track records and agencies with professionals respected in the Social Media space.

So, at the poking and prodding of @katchooo, I’ve decided to launch a new blog during the NCAAs about one of my other passions, Mascoting.

Some of you may or may not know that (in a former life) I was once an NCAA mascot. And by once, I mean a 5 year span. That’s not mentioning 2 years in high school and the year after for a AA baseball team. I’ve got a lot of passion and knowledge vested into the art of mascoting and now is as good of a time as any to start to share it.

So, head over to The Mascot Blog (don’t ask me how it wasn’t taken) and check out my other passion as I provide commentary on the mascots during the NCAAs.

Often I get asked the question about how companies should be using social media tools. They get so wrapped up in “corporate image” that they lose sight of the “social” aspect of social media. I tell them that it takes a vested effort, a passionate person/people, and enough leash to scare the management, just a little.

Now, sometimes things happen and in that moment, you just want to bottle the feeling created, because you know that if you could, you’d never have to explain the concept to anyone. Just hand them a bottle and poof, they get it. Well, here’s to hoping this story helps.

Yesterday was Monday. And boy, did I have a terminal case. I woke up late, second one in the shower, and no coffee since I was up late. I jumped into the van and headed to work, with just enough time to grab a couple of gallons of gas on the way.

As I pulled into my normal spot at my normal gas station, I shot out of the van and hurried through my normal routine at the pump. Card in, cap off, pump on, and squeeze. $10 and 3.736 gallons of gas later I shot back into the van to turn the key.

Klick, klick, klick, klick, klick, klick, klick, klick.

My heart sank. I didn’t want to be late to work over a couple of gallons of gas. And then, out of nowhere, aRoto Rooter van pulls in front of me. The driver mouths the words “Do you need a jump”. I nod quickly as I pop the hood and open the trunk to grab my jumper cables. By the time I’m back to the front of the car, the Roto Rooter guy as opened the hood and determined the problem. One of the caps on my battery had built up enough pressure to pop off. It was a simple fix, since I had a gallon of water in the van (don’t ask). We filled the dry wells and jumped the van.

All in all, the entire interaction probably took four minutes, tops. It was so quick, I didn’t even think to ask him his name. He pulled out right in front of me, showing his license plate just long enough for me to scribble it down on a leftover receipt in the passenger seat. I headed straight to work and the Roto Rooter website and filled out a comment form, letting them know about their kind driver.

Social Media isn’t about pitching your wares 100% of the time. All you’ll do there is become the butt of a lot of jokes and disliked (and no, I don’t want your insurance). However, it IS about being there and participating in the conversation, giving your feedback, and adding value to others. In this case, the Roto Rooter guy added value by helping out when I was frankly screwed. Sometimes, it’s making a joke. Other times, it’s making a recommendation (even to the competition on occasion). Either way, those most successful using social media tools usually give more in value than you take in payment.

Seriously? Are we all still in high school?

I guess I’ve been engrossed in all this Social Media stuff that I lose sight of the fact that most people don’t understand that Social Media is most successful when it’s about interaction and not about followers.

Hang on, maybe I should take a step back here. Last week, @ShellyKramer asked if people felt obligated to follow people back on Twitter. My immediate response was “Hell No”. Appearently, I’m in the minority. Now, I’m pretty sure the root of this is based on how people actually use Twitter and Social Media in general. My wife uses MySpace (yes, people still use MySpace) to keep in touch with her cliq and apparently it was a big thing back in the day (2007) to move people around in your top friends. I could care less. However, I remember vividly getting a phone call from her (then, she was my girlfriend) not 10 minutes after I moved her from spot 2 to spot 3. She was audibly upset and wanted to know what she had done to upset me. I believe that was the same time I turned my MySpace login over to her to manage for me.

Social Media, at least for me, is a great way to interact with really interesting people who are outside of my daily routine. Let’s say for instance, John Garrett. I might see John once a month, if I’m lucky and our crazy schedules meld. But, we interact at least once every few days over Twitter.

It’s also a great way to interact with others whom I’d never get to interact. For instance, I by chance caught a Tweet about #innochat last Thursday, so I dropped in to say hello and speak on the subject (Best Conference Experiences). I had a chance to connect with others from around the world. It’s hard for me to grasp it, but this is the first time pretty much ever that we’ve had the tools to do this easily.

So, back to my point, I don’t feel obligated to follow you back. There are many reasons why. Are you “Big Brand A” and just pointing the bullhorn at your customers? Then no, no follow for you. Are you GIECO and put one of your mascots (@GEICOCaveman) on Twitter and he actually responds like a person? Yea, I’ll follow that. Are you “Joe/Jane Doe” talking about your dog’s poop? Nah, I’ll pass. Are you “Joe/Jane Doe” talking about your dog’s poop in between posting really great articles, quotes, or otherwise sharing information? I’ll survive somehow. Heck, even I loosen up my Twitter feed after 5-6pm CST.

And, please don’t offer a “follow back” as value either. I’d rather not have you follow me, or anyone else if you don’t find what they’re saying interesting. Because, if you find what they say interesting, you probably won’t stop following them if they start tweeting a lot because of a conference or a hashtag chat.

I guess the bottom line is that it’s not about the numbers. While they can be used as a gauge, they are not the bottom line. Engagement is the key.

Marketing is really nothing more than just learning to communicate a message to large amounts of people. Good marketing is knowing who are your customers. Successful marketing is know where they spend their time and these days, having a conversation. If you can target a specific group of people, you can customize that information for them. You can make your message relevant to them. FlowTown does just that.

FlowTown really takes the next step in social email marketing by creating a social networking profile of a person from just their email. In a nutshell, simply enter customer A’s email or import it (Gmail, Mail Chimp, CSV) into FlowTown. Then within the FlowTown UI, you can simply organize your customers into specific groups or use existing social network organization for targeted email marketing campaigns. Let’s say you’re a BBQ joint who just wants to invite Twitter followers for a Tweetup. With a few click, you’ve just shot an email out to all of your customers who are on Twitter.

There are lots of possibilities for this tool in the future as well. One thing I would like to see added is to campaign to customers within some of the various social networks. Why? Well, I was talking with a relative last night and she said the words:

I could waste an entire day on facebook and not touch my email once.

I’m pretty sure there are many a soccer mom out there who are just like my Aunt Edna (yes, she’s the cool one).

There’s a great concept going here with FlowTown. And they have received a lot of exposure already with articles on such sites as All Things Digital and Fast Company. And the fact that they have positioned themselves to not be competing with other email marketing companies (MailChimp, for example), makes them a company to watch in the young year.

(image source)

So, looks like there’s a Tweetup forming (thanks to @2fishweb @shiftworkspace @PaintedPerson @rebecca_morrow) this Friday Night (2/26) at ShiftWorkSpace downtown, probably starting around 6pm. Instead of just random, casual SM (Social Media) chat, we’ll actually have a topic.

Amber Naslund (blog) wrote this great post when asked by DJ Waldow asked about professional uses for Twitter and what we got out of it during Twitter’s #SMChat.

Just to be clear (if it’s you’re first time), there’s no charge. This is just people getting together for great discussion. However, bringing snacks or a 6 pack of your favorite frosty adult beverage is encouraged.

Look forward to seeing you there!
–DW

I think one of the major turning points in my social media studies has to be attending Social Fresh Nashville this year. Getting to meet so many great people there who are taking Social Media to the next level was amazing.

One of the sessions I remember most was @JasonFalls talking about Social Media and the Bottom line. Mainly because the #sofresh hashtag blew up trying to find out about the “tree-hugging hippies” in our lecture.

But basically, Jason called out all the Social Media “flower children” and “tree-hugging hippies”. You know, the ones of us who are “you can’t put ads in your RSS or on your site to make money. People hate ads”. As much as I hate to admit it, I was one of these people for quite some time.

But what Jason said struck a cord with me. It’s not People who don’t like ads. It’s us, the social media community. We are tired of being bombarded with banners and flashy flash ads. Normal People, those who live outside the bubble, really don’t mind those ads and may actually find the side banner ad for a bagpiper in Atlanta actually useful and helpful, adding value to their experience on your site.

But how does this relate to experts? Well, mainly because we’re confusing our clients by NOT calling ourselves experts. I can think of no less than 5 so-called “social media experts/gurus/whatever” who are having success in the market with half the knowledge and experience they need. Why? Because their clients know what to expect from them.

An Expert is someone widely recognized as a reliable source of technique or skill whose faculty for judging or deciding rightly, justly, or wisely is accorded authority and status by their peers or the public in a specific well-distinguished domain. –Wikipedia

No where in that description of “expert” does it mention that the expert has to know how to use all the tools effectively. All they really need to know is the main concepts of the techniques and skills they provide to execute the task effectively. Tools are the easy part. Anyone can tweet, create a Facebook fanpage, or blog. It takes an expert to move the needle and get an ROI on Social Media.

This past week, I felt just how powerful social media here in Birmingham can be.

A couple of weeks back, I went to Social Fresh Nashville. It was great to rub elbows with Community Managers and CEOs who are living proof that social media can stay social and benefit a business (ROI anyone?).

In the ROI of Community Building panel, I remember DJ from Blue Sky Factory and Amber from Radian 6 talking about how your community will protect you. Essentially what they were saying is that if something blows up while you’re not around for some reason (sleep, dinner, vacation, sleep, driving, etc), you’re community will step up to the plate for you until you can take care of a situation. Assuming, of course, you’re cultivating a good community, of which Amber and DJ do a great job.

Fast forward to Thursday of last week. I had this very same conversation with Mellanie from Taziki’s (@tazikis_bham) during a meeting. It was more of a tidbit at the end of a conversation, but a serious point nonetheless.

Not less than an hour later (distance from Taziki’s in Hoover to Wal-mart in Roebuck, minus a pitstop to Burlington Coat Factory), I had a chance to run lead blocker for Mellanie.

I was checking my Twitter feed before going to pick up some zucchini (love the stuff) when I noticed that @heydusti had had a bad experience at one of the local Taziki’s. I also noticed that she had used the wrong @reply to get to Mellanie directly. So, I sent a simple tweet saying to @heydusti that I think that Mellanie may want to chat.

Within 5 minutes the entire situation was taken care of. Mellanie caught up with @heydusti and hear what happened. I hear Mellanie even did some followup within the location to get to the root of the problem, which was a simple fix. No one got in trouble and a little education was all that was necessary.

My point is that if you are good to your customers and your customers see that, they can be your most powerful marketing/pr tool of all (adverts, TV spots be damned). How do I know this? Because I have heard from at least from at least 2 people in person they were watching and liked how @tazikis_bham handled the situation (and how fast). Now, I know for a fact that there are a lot more people watching/lurking on twitter than just those two. How many people will now head over to their local Taziki’s for take out dinner than before? This may not be measurable directly, but it added a heck of a lot of brand value to those who where watching, and those who they choose to tell.

I just want to take a moment late on this friday night to say I’m part of #teamcoco and supporting Conan O’Brian in the NBC debacle. Part of his final monologue addressed something I try to run Social Media Birmingham by and all of my social media consulting.

Nobody in life gets exactly what they thought they were going to get. But if you work really hard and you’re kind, amazing things will happen. As proof, let’s make an amazing thing happen right now.

–via Variety

Class act, Conan. Can’t wait to see what you do next. After your 7 month forced vacation, that is. My vote is Revision3…