“America is in decline.” This is the idea lodged in my brain, condensed down from the mosaic of sources over the past few years. From political science research to talk radio to online news, the focus on how developing countries are eating our (American) lunch in terms of economic and political importance left me worried … Continue reading America: Decline or Fine? (Part 1 of 3)
Let’s start with Germs Here we are in the midst of a full blown flu season. And cold season. And how many people do you know have bronchitis or pneumonia? It’s ugly out there. Still, even in the midst of news stories about this diseased and sometimes deadly season, people seem to be in denial about … Continue reading Germs and Other Invisible Stuff that’s Real: A Few Thoughts
It’s tough out there. The economy is still struggling, which means that businesses are still struggling, which means people are still worrying about getting or keeping their jobs. If you happen to be one of these people, I have a few things, well, really only ONE THING you should know this year. Okay, so let … Continue reading ONE Thing YOU Should Know for 2013
A post I wrote about the power of social media in relation to customer service (you can find it here) was recently tweeted and commented on by one of my Twitter followers @tomswift. In that post I talk about the power of social media in affecting the reputation of companies with potential customers. With social media, … Continue reading When will social media become the new email?
Over two years ago I started to really talk to people about social media and their job search. It’s funny how things change in two years. Then, people just looked at me like I was a bit daft. Now, people are finally ready to engage social media for job seeking. I know this in part … Continue reading Job Seekers Alert: Your Networking Scope is Greater Than You Think
The tabula rasa of each New Year provides us with one more opportunity to try again, try something new, change what wasn’t working and capitalize on what was. It’s our collective recognition that a clean slate is necessary, that it’s never too late to start again. You might ask why, when social media is still … Continue reading What Social Media/Social Business can learn from Marky Mark in 2011
Most companies seek the “Good to Great” scenario–improving upon their current performance. Still, sometimes things go wrong–and they become teachable moments, touch points for future excellence. The following scenario should be one of them–a story of how things went awry and SNAP! Just like that, a business has someone ranting about them on a blog post. And if the ranters are valued customers, that’s not good. In my case, the customer service meltdown occurred at the heart of where hotels interface with customers: the front desk. Continue reading Business Beware: A Social Media Cautionary Tale
Last night on the Grammy’s the president of the Recording Institute made a public plea for purveyors of music to pay for it. Literally. He posed this question (paraphrased),” if someone said they like the work you do, but then told you they didn’t want to pay for it, what would you do?” So, why the plea to Grammy watchers to keep paying for the music? Clearly we are paying for peeps like Beyonce, since she’s making $80 Million this year alone. It seems to me that what we have here is a failure to communicate about VALUE. The value proposition–a good one–becomes the tangible in an economy of intangibles. And what we all know is this: people will pay for value. Here are 5 ways to ensure your value proposition when consulting in Social Media: Continue reading Where’s the Beef? Finding & Providing Value in a Digital Age
So, you tweet. And you have a few followers. But, even now, you’re just not feelin’ the twitter love…should you keep tweeting?
Nielsen reports that 60% of twitter users quit after the first month.
Does this describe you? Were you hoping for more but stopped using Twitter because of unfulfilled je ne sais quoi? If so, read on. This post is for those who are beyond the basics of sign up and want to become more “tweetsmart” Continue reading Twitter Primer 2: Amping Your Tweetcred & Becoming Tweetsmart
We’ve all heard the song “video killed the radio star” by The Buggles. (If you haven’t, you can see the video here: http://bit.ly/7Kkl ). Released in 1979, the song pays homage to what was deemed a game changer for music: the advent of the music video. (If they had only known about the digital revolution that would really kill radio and TV as we used to know it! )
In a similar vein, social media is doing much the same thing to brand marketers and ad agencies–shifting the conversation–and if the enclosed research is any indication, it doesn’t seem that they like the shift… Continue reading Twitter Killed the Mad Men: Thoughts on Social Media, Advertising Agencies and Brand Management
Life is Messy - Use Your Words by Adrienne Corn 