Platforms Change, Marketing is the Same

Platforms Change, Marketing is the Same

This content from: Duct Tape Marketing

The video below, staged by the Business Marketing Association (BMA) during their annual conference, should be shown to every business marketer alive. It’s an update on the classic McGraw Hill ad known widely as “Man in a Chair.”

I saw this a few months ago, but I was prompted to bring it to your attention by a tweet from Lee Odden – @leeodden: Audience Q: Where’s ROI of social media? My A: Wrong question. Social is a platform, not a tactic #pubcon

Marketing is, in my book, getting someone who has a need to know, like, and trust you – social media has become an important trust building platform, but you’ve still got to deliver the goods back at the ranch too!

Getting Bloggers to Write About You

Getting Bloggers to Write About You

This content from: Duct Tape Marketing

I get daily pitches from PR folks and business owners asking me to write about their news, launch, product, or survey. On one hand, I still think it’s awfully cool that people think enough of blogs and this blogger to pitch me. (Can’t imaging what some really big blogs endure.)

On the other hand, I sure see my share of really bad pitches. I mean the kind that would certainly qualify as spam. These pitches come from some of the biggest names in the PR industry (who should know better) as well as fledgling business start-ups (whom I’m more likely to forgive )

Blog, tweet and fan page coverage is great, but there’s a right way and a wrong way to get it. I offer my 5 Tips for Getting More Exposure from Bloggers, Tweeters and Fans (a systematic approach) in this week’s article for AMEX OpenForum

Win a Social Media Marketing Library

Win a Social Media Marketing Library

This content from: Duct Tape Marketing

In a fit of collaboration goodness I would like to gift one set of seven awesome books to the person that most creatively answers the following: I get the biggest return for my business using social media when I [fill in the blank]

I’m the only judge and I’m going to pick the answer I like the best. But, here’s what you’ll get if you win.

One personalized (meaning signed to you) copy of these seven books: Trust Agents by Chris Brogan and Julien Smith, New Community Rules by Tamar Weinberg, Six Pixels of Separation by Mitch Joel, Web Analytics 2.0 by Avinash Kaushik, Duct Tape Marketing by well, me, Whuffle Factor by Tara Hunt and CrushIt by Gary Vaynerchuk.

And, you’ve got several chances to win. These bloggers are also giving this set away, so rush on over and see what they’ve got planned to enter to win: (keep checking if they haven’t posted yet.)

• Beth Kanter
• Avinash Kaushik
• Brian Solis
• Steve Cunningham

Twitter and LinkedIn Finally Sync Up

Twitter and LinkedIn Finally Sync Up

This content from: Duct Tape Marketing

LinkedIn and Twitter announced an integration today that should be interesting.

Starting sometime today, LinkedIn users can automatically feed their Twitter status updates to their LinkedIn status updates. While LinkedIn’s status update feature is right there for all to use, my experience is that people don’t use it nearly as much as they should – or certainly not like Twitter. (Even though LinkedIn has more members than Twitter.) This should be a real shot in the arm to LinkedIn from an exposure standpoint, but it may shake things up a bit too as the volume of status updates skyrockets.

The partnership is significant for another reason. I think this update is a further move towards positioning Twitter as the central content distribution hub for business. Facebook Fan Pages now offer easy Twitter integration and Bing and Google have established official ties with Twitter as well.

The ability to cross post goes both ways.

On LinkedIn

You can post from LinkedIn status and have it update twitter or the other way around. On LinkedIn you will change some setting and then click the Twitter box to have a LinkedIn status update post to Twitter.

On Twitter

The Twitter integration works very much like the popular Selective Twitter App for Facebook, when you post on Twitter and add the hashtag #li or #in the twitter update will also post to LinkedIn.

Here’s the update announcement from the LinkedIn blog: LinkedIn works with Twitter, and vice versa

5 Reasons to Use the New Twitter List Feature

5 Reasons to Use the New Twitter List Feature

This content from: Duct Tape Marketing

Twitter added a new feature recently called Lists. I have to admit, at first I thought this was no big deal. I use desktop twitter clients like TweetDeck and Seesmic Desktop to create groups and lists already, so what’s the big deal.

Once I started playing around with Twitter’s List feature I quickly became hooked and think there are some great reasons you could too. Check out this list of Small Business Experts – you can monitor the entire group with one click!

Quick overview of twitter lists

Any Twitter user can create a list and add anyone that tweets publicly to it. Once you create and name a list you can simply search for people to add using Twitter people search (once you find someone you want to add you simply click on the list button next to them and choose the list), or 3rd party search applications like Twellow or TweepSearch

5 Reasons to Use New the Twitter List Feature

1) Monitor without following - one of the things I like is that you can monitor a group of individuals in a list without having to follow any of the folks on the list on twitter. You may actually want to follow people you find on a list, but you may also want to monitor industry niche lists for a week or two while you’re pitching a new client in that industry. You can delete a list very easily, deleting hundreds of followers is harder.

2) One button list follow - the fact that you can find a list and follow the entire collection with one button makes it very easy to manage. I think this may become the chosen way to find people to follow. If someone you trust tells you about a list of people you should be following and all you have to do is hit one button to do so, you’re probably going to do it. I predict this feature is going to dramtically impact how people follow.

3) Promote your lists – this is such a great way for a group of people to promote each other on Twitter. You can promote your clients, your suppliers, your referral lunch group, you name it. Think about how great it would be to promote an event where you could follow all the speakers prior to the event, or what about all the attendees. You could create a list from sign-up details. In fact, what a great way to create collections of twitter folks that your employees should follow or even employee lists. The fact that it is so easy for people to follow a list by going to a URL – and that list can be edited by the owner at will, means a lot.

4) Filtered by an expert – Every business should consider creating a handful of Top 10 “fill in your narrow niche” to follow on twitter. By being the one that filters and creates easily sharable industry specific lists, you can add to your own credibility in the industry. (Did I mention you can add yourself to a list you create?)

5) Build a bigger following – Many of the ideas I mentioned above will naturally help you grow your own following. Creating a handful of useful list and promoting those lists in public places and to the members on the list will raise your exposure and lead to more follower.

Check out this list of Small Business Experts – you can monitor the entire group with one click!

How Zen Does a Small Biz Need to Be?

How Zen Does a Small Biz Need to Be?

This content from: Duct Tape Marketing

Marketing podcast with Leo Babauta (Click to listen, right click and Save As to download – subscribe now via iTunes

Leo Babauta is the publisher of the very popular Zen Habits blog and author the Power of Less.

Leo is not my typical marketing/business expert type guest but Leo’s personal story and the subject he writes about are important lessons for small business owners.

As business owners we are totally free – free to work 80 hours a week, free to carry the stress of making payroll, free to eat junk food at our desk, and free to blow off any semblance of exercise, because, really, who’s got the time. Essentially, we’re all a bunch of heart attacks waiting to happen, but at least we’re free to have the heart attack on our terms, right?

I’ve been doing this for a long time and I can tell you that an entrepreneur’s diet, exercise routine, and stress release activities are just as important as any marketing plan every devised. Owning a business is not for sissies. Leo’s message of doing more with less is a breathe of fresh air and I count it as a daily.

So, take a long, deep, totally centered breath and have a listen. Namaste

3 Sources of Grammar Inspiration

3 Sources of Grammar Inspiration

This content from: Duct Tape Marketing

About once a week I amuse the grammar troops by torturing some aspect of the language in my writing. Hey, I don’t do it on purpose and I love that I’m able to provide an otherwise cuddly group of individuals with a steady flow of chuckles.

I’ve had this post in the back of my mind for some time, but I was prompted to write it today by a LinkedIn status update I saw yesterday. (Name of victim withheld) – “Excited to attend my first titter conference today.” In the always on, say what’s on your mind, send it, but you can’t take it back world we live in, we could all take a moment from LOLing. (This is not me throwing stones, I am definitely guilty.)

It’s funny how minor mistakes can slow down and even alter the meaning of something we write.

Here’s my A team, all-world, really bad typo story. I was working on an annual report for a very large non-profit agency. In the report there was a sentence that was to refer to the organization’s work and gifts on behalf of underserved families. However, the sentence actually spoke glowingly about their work and gifts given to undeserved families. Kind of different, oops.

I would love to hear your grammar and type horror stories. Seems like a good Friday outlet. Share them in the comments.

Here’s the list of resources I turn to whenever I get the urge to keep the grammar police at bay for a day.

Grammar Girl’s – Quick and Dirty Tips – Mignon Fogerty’s awesome podcast

Elements of Style – William Strunk Jr. and E.B. White – I like this illustrated version with Maira Kalman

Eats, Shoots & Leaves – The Zero Tolerance Approach to Punctuation by Lynne Truss

Image credit: Loopzilla