What newsletters do you feel compelled to read regularly? Tim and Roger take a look at six newsletters that keep pullin’ ‘em in. Interesting and compelling stories and articles keep us coming back.

In no particular order, they are… (you may click while listening to our podcast: all links open up a new tab or window):

• BNET
• Paul Castain’s Sales Playbook
• Valeria Maltoni’s Conversation Agent
• Michael Stelzner’s Social Media Examiner
• LinkedIn (Groups)
• SpeakerNet News

Where’s the best place to finish your sales pitch and close a deal?  Well, for a company looking to sell to Tim and I recently, the “best place” was a classroom; an online classroom.

Tim and I were looking at several tools to help us “datamine” the social media for a new client.  We wanted something that would give us a comprehensive look at the clients presence in social media: if and how their company was represented there, what was being said about them, and whether the on-line conversation included talk of a specific area of the clients operation.  Later, we would use that tool to track how our efforts were changing that conversation.

The Internet offers a lot of different ways to begin “datamining” for that kind of information.  And, some of digging tools are free.  But we wanted sophisticated results; and, because of that, were looking at high-end products we’d have to buy or rent.  One of those products was a tool called Radian6.  Tim’s initial research indicated it might be just what we were looking for.  But, we weren’t certain.  At least, we weren’t until we sat down in front of our computers; Tim and I across town from each other, and went on a virtual tour together.  Radian6 hosted a “webinar” for Tim and I to teach us what their product could do, and how we would use it.

A webinar, short for “web based seminar” would allow a representative of the company to talk to us about the product, show us how it would look on our computer, actually allow us to see it in action and answer our questions.  All from the privacy of our own offices.

The day of the webinar arrived and Tim and I were looking forward to the tour.  Tim had no problem logging on to the webinar “host.”  I had a glitch.  It wouldn’t let me in.  A phone call to the company fixed it quick though.  The rep sent me a new link, via email, that worked perfectly.  Once the computers were all logged in, we used our phones to dial into to the audio portion of the presentation.  Phones on “conference” and sitting in front of us, and with Ben, from Radian, controlling what we’d see on our screens, we were ready to begin.

The webinar went like clockwork.  Ben opened Radian6, showed us how it would look, and how we’d use it to begin to find the information we’d need.  Before our eyes, he plugged in our search parameters and search terms, and we sat back while his product began browsing the known cyber-universe for the information we wanted.  Seconds later, the results were in, and Ben showed us how his tool would organize the data for analysis.

The on-screen portion of the presentation was slick.  What’s more, the webinar format allowed Tim and I to ask questions and get immediate answers since the three of us were “conferenced in” via phone.  After about 45 minutes, we’d seen what the tool could do and had our questions answered.  And Radian had made a sale.

Of course, not every product can be sold this way.  But this experience is a superb example of how the interactive internet can help your company make sales and develop clients.  Reaching your prospective customers in their offices, at their convenience, with a representative who can address their questions, is a powerful sales device.  Through the “webinar” all the decision makers can be brought together at once.

Radian6 turned out to be just the tool we need to provide a wealth of information, and real value, to our client.

Social media is now the back-yard fence, the office water cooler, the front porch swing, the global cocktail party.  It’s the place where people gather to exchange pictures of their kids, swap recipes, talk about the news, and, of course, it’s a place where people do business.   Now, social media can add another job to the long list of things it can do: crimebuster.  Yes, it’s true, as a story that recently appeared in my local newspaper makes clear.

Not long ago, the Salem Statesman-Journal, an Oregon newspaper, told the story of a Medford, Oregon man attempting to escape the law.  He fled the state, running from charges that he had sexually abused an Oregon girl for four years, beginning when she was just eleven.  The victim’s family started a Facebook page.  A tip to that page led investigators to Michigan; and from there to Pennsylvania, where the fugitive was arrested.

Every day, creative people find new uses for the interactive internet; which we here at Communication Steroids believe includes things like blogging, internet chat, and, of course, the social media.  Some of those uses can catch criminals.  Others can help you stay in touch with your customers; provide them human contact to answer their questions, handle their complaints, and talk to them about new and exciting products.  The interactive internet has the power to reach out to people from coast to coast and beyond.

Savvy business leaders understand the power of the interactive internet to build profitable relationships.  But, even if you find someone who’s still skeptical of the net’s power to make money, you must certainly understand its power to undermine your marketing and damage your reputation.

That power was recently underscored by another story; again from Oregon.  It seems a football player at the University of Oregon (a very successful program that just last year won the PAC10 championship and a berth in the Rose bowl) was disappointed at the coach’s handling of a disciplinary matter involving another player.  He went public with his criticism, lambasting the coach in a four-letter-word filled diatribe.  That Facebook posting was, apparently, the last straw and resulted in the players’ dismissal from the team.

The U of O’s problem is a very clear example of why every business leader must pay careful attention to the social media.  Thanks to the social media, your marketing department just expanded.  It now includes every single solitary employee you’ve got.  For good or ill, every person on your payroll is now a public representative of your organization.  What they say online has the power to bring a fugitive to justice, or to tarnish the sterling reputation of a quality and successful enterprise.

The United States Air Force gets it.  They’ve published a handbook on social media for their PR officers.  They warn, “If the Air Force doesn’t tell it’s own story (online), someone else will.”

Are you keeping track of what’s said about your company or your industry online?  Are you using the social media to build relationships?  Are you telling your own story?  Or are you letting someone else do it?

photo credit: Xhanatos

Roger and I both use LinkedIn as a way to connect with people, start up communications, and participate in group discussions. But when we sat down and talked about how we each use LinkedIn, it was apparent that we both approach the useful tool from different sides.

Give a listen to the podcast and find out how we use LinkedIn.

The following is a guest post by Anthony Tham, the Public Relations Manager for Travel Salem. We met Anthony at our recent presentation on the Social Media Landscape to the Salem PRSA in early November. It wasn’t long after that Anthony found himself giving seminars on social media. Here are his thoughts on that series of presentations:

Public speaking, one of the most feared things people have to do, got added on to my  list of things to do a couple of weeks ago.  As the person responsible for the social media strategy at Travel Salem, I was called upon to present social media seminars/trainings to local small businesses and organizations aimed at helping them promote themselves. Naturally, I imagined myself in front of a group with a PowerPoint presentation using social media lingo such as “tweets” and “RSS feeds.” Isn’t that what public speaking is all about — standing up and broadcasting information to a group of people? I quickly realized I needed to take a break from the traditional “presentation” to create an atmosphere of collaboration and information sharing.

Unlike traditional presentations — usually a form of one-way communication — the seminars I created strived for interactive, two-way communication. Social media is all about sharing and generating dialogue. You share by interacting; you interact by speaking; and it is through speaking where information is learned. The same concept applies online via various communication tools such as Twitter or Facebook.

The seminars were split into two categories; novice and advanced. Attendees had the option of attending one or both seminars and there were two sessions daily for three days with a combined session on the fourth day. I intentionally kept group sizes small to foster more dynamic participation among attendees, with the average size being about 11 people.

Many social networking tools fall under the umbrella term called social media. The seminars focused on the major players; Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, Flickr, and blogs.

With such a wide range of skill levels, many different questions about social media were thrown at me:

• What’s all the hype about?
• How can I use social media to attract more business?
• How do I do all this without wasting a bunch of time?
• How to reach journalists, bloggers and influencers?
• What are effective strategies to reach my goals?
• Which tools should be used to network with potential customers and other networking opportunities?
• Where do I start?

What I learned:

1)      Adjust teaching style to audience. People familiar with social media use words and phrases like “tweetdeck” or “search engine optimization” like its part of their everyday vocabulary. When you’re leading a conversation with individuals who are new to social media, it’s important to rephrase and explain not just key terms, but any language specific to the topic. For example, you have to explain that people “follow” you on Twitter whereas people would “fan” you on Facebook.

2)      Facebook is pretty popular. Each session lasted an hour and a half. Unintentionally, the majority of the time was spent on Facebook. With 350 million users worldwide, I completely understand why we were “stuck” on this topic for so long.

3)      More time please! It didn’t matter that I decided to split up the sessions based on skill level. Both novice and advanced sessions ran over time – there were just too many things to talk about. I realized I needed to either add more time or divide the sessions based on topic (e.g. just Facebook or just blogs).

4)      “Build it and they shall come.” So how does a quote from the movie “Field of Dreams” tie into the social media seminars? No, I didn’t build a baseball field. However, what was built was a community of individuals who are all interested in learning about social media and how to use it to enhance their businesses, nonprofit organization, startup company, etc. That was the message we focused on as we promoted the seminars to local businesses and organizations. We wanted to encourage open dialogue among participants; where knowledge is shared among the group, not just by me the “presenter.” Each person brought different social media goals to the table. As we shared our goals, our ideas, and creative ways to use social media, the community that we built grew stronger and more equipped to tackle each individual goal after the seminars ended.

Public speaking isn’t so bad, at least when you’re speaking with, and not in front of, your audience. The seminars brought together a community of individuals representing businesses and organizations looking to learn about social media. As I led the groups in discussion, I quickly became aware that I wasn’t giving them a presentation; I was just a member of a community collaborating and sharing information. Just like social media.

Travel Salem’s mission is to attract meeting, convention and tourism business to the region, and to enhance and contribute to the overall identity and economic well being of the region. Travel Salem’s  social media efforts on  Twitter and Facebook , combined with other tools  such as posting photos on Flickr and videos on Youtube, allow Travel Salem to extend its reach to regional, national and international travelers, as well as local consumers. Working with local and regional partners, and those involved in social media, Travel Salem is able to leverage each other to create a community that shares information globally about the Salem region; which will ultimately lead to economic impact for the region.

I’ve been reading a lot about how social media is the answer to the old mainstream media and the ‘one-way’ communication that used to exist.

Here’s a clue: the ‘old media’ is still there, and in fact, the old media was more than ‘one-way’ communication, as a lot of people seem to characterize it:

www.youtube.com/watch?v=vYvU8kkjQ4E

Public relations professionals, marketers, ad executives and visionary business leaders see it coming.  Every day consumers become more dependent on information they get on-line.  A lot of that information, and soon most of it, comes through social media.  People are asking their friends what they should buy.  And folks are blogging, tweeting, and posting to their Facebook page their reactions to products, and the service they get when they go to buy.  It’s adapt or get left behind, for, in the immortal words of Bob Dylan, “the times, they are a-changing.”

Great challenges lie ahead, though, because, even those who recognize the growing relevance of the interactive internet often approach it’s idiosyncrasies with a traditional mind-set. Unfortunately, the new game will be played by new rules.  It’s time to leave some of our preconceptions behind.  Social media marketing is different, and companies and entrepreneurs must think differently to use social media effectively.  Here are some of my thoughts regarding the brave new social media world.

1)   It’s personal. Traditionally, it’s about brand…and creating the link in peoples minds between that brand and good results.  But in the new interactive world it’s more about relationships. Social media is about reaching out and touching someone, personally.  People won’t pay as much attention to your company logo in your social media effort, they’ll see YOU.  Yes, branding still matters, even in the social media.  But not as much as in the past…and certainly not as much as the personal touch.

2)   Everybody tweets. Social media marketing is different than traditional efforts because EVERYBODY represents your company.  The guy in the back you hired for exceptional accounting skills is just as much part of the company image as that fresh scrubbed young marketing rep you hired for their people skills.  EVERYBODY tweets, or at least, can tweet, so, in a sense, your marketing department just got a whole lot bigger…for better or worse.

3)   Pay Attention at all times. Traditional campaigns did their market research, chose the strategies to reach their demo, designed the campaign, launched…then sat back and waited for the metrics.  Now the response from your clients is ongoing.  You can tweak based on the reaction you get instantly through the social media.  So, LISTEN, really listen.  Don’t just say your going to listen.  Do it.  Really.

4)   Start now, begin anywhere. The old strategy relied on the “tried and true.”  But it’s a brave new world.  You can’t afford to sit on the sidelines on this one.  You’ve got to get into the game.  Big, small, young, or old the social media is the town square of the future.  It’s where people talk, it’s where a huge and growing number get advice.  It’s where they decide.  Conversations about your brand and products are happening all over the web.  You need to go hard or go home.

Learn a new meaning for ROI.  Everyone knows ROI means “return on investment” and the suits make traditional ROI the centerpiece of their decision to refuse a commitment to social media.  Let’s adopt a new definition for the acronym.  Let’s call it “risk of ignorance.”  Ignore the social media at your peril.

photo credit: Ed Yourdon

What’s your investment on social media? Seeing any return on that investment?

Probably hard to tell.

Maybe you’re not looking at it the right way or not doing the right things in your company’s social media world.

Some companies get it. Others don’t. The rest of us are flapping our wings in between, trying to get some loft out of this new entity.

Here’s a short video -- about 4 minutes long -- that is thought-provoking. Especially considering that your competitors may already be three steps ahead of you…

www.youtube.com/watch?v=ypmfs3z8esI

Nothing like a little statistic to get us going! What was that stat? The one we’ve seen recently that the fastest growing segment of Facebook users are women 56 – 65.

Tim also tells the story of ordering two books from Amazon on Sunday night and receiving them on Tuesday afternoon.