Category: Marketing

1. Listen

Twitter is a giant conversation and you get to listen in on any part of it. Several million people are tweeting (talking) day and night, 24 hours a day and you have the opportunity to listen in.
Listen to what people are saying (it’s called trending on twitter), what people are excited about, what’s in the news. Find out what’s important to your readers. Incorporate popular topics in your writing, especially blogs and on-line articles.

Examples of a recent Twitter Session:

@AnneOnline was talking about taking her dog for a walk Took Ivy dog with me. A chicken poked its head out and Ivy tried to get in, but all is well. Chickens are safe for another day. =)

@billwelker quoted Lou Gerig The ballplayer who loses his head, who can’t keep his cool, is worse than no ballplayer at all. -Lou Gehrig

@alferreti mentioned an online article Making Twitter #FollowFriday Effective

@properitygal recommended someone she follows #followfriday @terrywygal cause he knows his itsha in Real Estate investing and puts on great seminars-tell him to put me on his stage

Using the search capability of Twitter, you can research any topic in less time and with more relevant results than with any other online tool.

2. Connect

You can connect with any of the tens of millions people who use twitter everyday. When you follow them, you’re able to see their tweets, what they’re saying.
It’s not necessary for people you’re following to give permission. In that respect, it’s like being on stage and your relationship with your audience. For example, you can follow experts in your field or celebrities like Oprah Winfrey.
Use Twitters search capability to find someone you’d like to follow. You’re able to see who other people follow, so a tip to build a community quickly is to follow all the folks a person of influence does.

3. Communicate

Now you’ve built a community, it’s time for you to dive into the conversation. The same rules that apply at a business networking event apply to Twitter. Rule one is DON’T SPAM. Any form of “Buy my product” is spam.
Safe Twitter message types for the beginner are to
· retweet another user. Copy what they’ve said, giving them credit.
· Reply to what someone has said .. that’s the conversation part. Don’t be shy.
· Tweet your favorite quotes
· Let folks know what you’re reading .. online articles or blogs with a line
Be a giver. Help others by providing good content, tips and encouragement. In the case of Twitter, the good guys do finish first.

Twitter is one of the fastest growing internet applications. It’s so easy to use, anyone can establish an account and start to tweet. Building a community and effective communication requires some concentration, but is easily attainable for those who Listen, Connect and Communicate.

5 Reasons to Network in a Tough Economy by Thom Singer

It seems in boom-boom times many professionals forget that they are not alone in their outstanding success. They bask in the glow of the big deals and high income and start believing that they are the central cause for their own glory.Welcome to the recession.Now people who ignored others and felt invincible are feeling the pinch of hard times. Alas, they are frantically going back to the basics of business, and one of those basics is realizing that nobody succeeds in a vacuum. Seems networking is a hot topic.

Here are 5 reasons that your network is important in a tough economy:

1. All opportunities come from people. Those who were “too busy” to go to lunch or invest time in cultivating meaningful relationships are hungry to network. In a tough economy any and all referral sources become important to survival. If you want more sales, the people you know can be the conduit to discovering new clients.

2. Your network is your safety net. If you get caught in a lay-off it is the people in your network who can help you find your next employer or lead you to consulting gigs. Additionally those with whom you have already developed mutually beneficial relationships are the ones who will be available for moral support if and when you need it. If you have no network, these tough times can seem very lonely.

3. When marketing budgets are cut, word-of-mouth is your only hope. If you cannot afford marketing, PR and advertising, you need to get out and spread the word yourself. But you can only go so far, thus having strong contacts who understand the value you bring can multiply your visibility by telling others about you and your products / services.

4. We learn from others. Being around other intelligent and creative people can motivate and inspire you to succeed. If you have a network of contacts with whom you share information, you cultivate an environment of learning. When you learn you grow. When you are stagnate you die.

5. If you are not networking, remember – your competitors ARE networking! Out of sight is out of mind. If the success of your business in this economy is important to you then you will find a way to make it to the breakfasts, luncheons and “after hours” events. Yes, it is time consuming, but with more people out seeking to make connections, you can rest assured that your competition is trying to meet your customers. If you stay home you are giving them a free pass to begin to build relationships that can and will lead them to future business.

The more times I speak to groups about blogs and the more clients I consult on the subject the more I get asked the same questions time and time again. There is no secret these days that blogs are here, we hear about them all the time. It seems however that Joe Public is still having a tough time wrapping his mind around the concept; moreover, business people always ask me “what use to me is an online chat thingy”. To answer your question yes most people call it the “online chat thingy” this is not me using technical jargon.

I think what is most overlooked in our current economic model is the burning desire for customers to feel engaged in the sales process. The deepest human desire we have is the need to feel important. The number one reason a person leaves a job is not the money, it is because they do not feel appreciated. Blogs allow a company to reach out to their customers and treat them like an individual and provide them with that level of importance they are craving.

I have been heard many times saying that when monumental changes take place such as the emergence of blogs, the companies who act upon the changes are the ones laughing all the way to the bank. Conversely, those companies who are forced to react to the changes are often left standing in line at the food back. I have seen too many fledgling companies who are so scared to open themselves up to the scary outside world they put up a protective wall of privacy. While this may keep the company safe, it is anything but secure. My broker Patrick Britton has a great tag line on all his emails, it says “The rich invest to win; the poor invest not to lose.”

If you find your company in business not to lose money, perhaps it is time to pack up shop and find a new line of work. However if you want to grow and flourish in our new digital world get blogging, you will be glad you did. Remember folks, you heard it hear first. I look forward to seeing the laughter on your face.

Cheers,

Chuck

I had an enlightening experience this afternoon that I thought was worth sharing as I feel it illustrates one of the fundamental problems many sales people face. I received a phone call from a gentleman I met at a trade show last week. I had stopped by his booth to find out what his company did. We had a brief conversation at the show and exchanged business cards.

This gentleman called me today to follow up on our conversation and give me his sales pitch. However he got off on the wrong foot and never succeeded in getting me interested, even though he has a service I think could be invaluable. The reason I say this poor fellow got off on the wrong foot is that he immediately started telling me all the wonderful things his program can do for me, except that he didn’t ask me any questions about my current situation.

I would have been quite willing to give him any information he asked for had he taken the time to ask me some questions. HOWEVER, he did not choose to ask me he instead decided to tell me what I should find useful.

I think too many sales people fall into this trap of talking when they should be listening. This man was very nice and polite (though this was really the only reason I stayed on the phone as long as I did) but he did nothing to grab my attention, or more importantly nothing to give me a reason to part with my hard earned money.

To me the best approach to take is not one of selling but one of educating and providing solutions for expressed problems or challenges. It is amazing the things you can learn if you just take the time to ask some questions remember everyone is tuned into the same radio station WIIFM (what’s in it for me), if you can relate your pitch to what is important to your customer your results will increase dramatically.

Cheers,

Chuck

The first and foremost thing to remember about blogs is that they are a way for a person to express themselves. So with this in mind the first and most important thing to create is a personal profile.

Your profile is a way for people to get to know you a little better as a person. Your profile should include a picture that makes you look human, not a corporate robot. As well as a little bit of information about you personally and professionally. Ultimately your blog profile is a way for people to relate to you. People like to do business with those they know and trust and this is a way to create that trust.

One of the biggest mistakes new bloggers make is they think of a blog as just another website and use the regular company mantra in place of a profile. While it may keep your lawyers and accountants happy, company mantra does build intimate customer relationships.

When posting to a blog you should write as if you were writing a letter to a close friend. Tell personal stories; if you are referring to a product or service say what it has done for you. If you are talking about someone in our group you have done business with, say how they made you feel. The reason blogs are becoming so popular is that unlike the mainstream media they allow people to feel personally involved with the information they are receiving.

Blogs are meant to add the human element to business. Human means that people see it as being real and something or someone they can relate to. Be personal, be creative and most of all be yourself and you will like the results you get.