JMPR Communication

BlogWorld was the muse I needed to push my practices forward.  I want to share everything with you all, but I think you’d fall asleep before I got very far.  I like lists, so I present you with the Ultimate (high-level) Top 10 list of BlogWorld lessons for the non-attendee.

1. Don’t be afraid to be awesome.  You are awesome.  Own it.  Now go do something with your awesomeness.
2. We all know content is king.  It still is.  If you don’t have great content, no one will care about your blog.
3. More than content, a blog should drive your end-user to take some kind of action. Maybe that action is to enter a contest.  Maybe that action is to answer a question.  Perhaps the action is to purchase your product.  But the main thing is that you want to sustain your visitors.  Think about how YOU can do that.
4. We can’t forget that social media is an “us.” Your blog isn’t about you or your company.  Blog to build a community, not an audience.  In fact, if you pay attention, your community will control your content- and this is good.
   1. Speaking of which, go and meet some of “us” face-to-face.  Old fashioned networking is still awesome.
   2. Listen before you sell, and maybe don’t even sell at all: The phrase “you wouldn’t walk into a networking event and yell at the crowd, “HI! Read my book!” came up in almost every session.  You know why?  Because we all really need to learn how to listen better to all of “us.”  Even online.
5. Use social media for good.  This might mean that you work with attendees at a conference to #beatcancer and raise money.  Maybe you introduce two people who have collaboration potential to each other.  Maybe you blog about why someone else/some other company rocks. Whatever you do, help people.
6. Businesses- you get a few bullets.
   1. Let go.  People that are not your top executives may want to blog, and they should.
   2. Stop worrying about negative comments.  People leave negative comments because they care enough to have their problem fixed.  These folks like giving praise when their issues are resolved.  Why hide from this?
   3. Don’t just arm your bloggers with a list of don’ts.  Why not give them some dos?
   4. Don’t assume your end-users will come to you.  Find where they are and talk to them there.
   5. Show your personality.  Mix your business posts with human posts.  People buy products from people.
7. Search is important.  Use keywords to drive people to your site. People might visit your site to solve one problem one time.  That’s ok.  And if you think about it, your search terms are the only thing you really can control when you blog.
8. E-mail marketing is back.  But now, it’s a forum to be personal, build relationships and generate conversation.
9. There are a ton of tools you can use to make your job easier.  (I will post about these tools separately.)
10. PR people:
    1. The journalists don’t care about your press release.  They care about the story you are trying to tell.  Send them the story.  Only the story.
    2. Bloggers don’t care how many people you have been ordered to pitch.  But they REALLY care that you follow their pitch rules and send targeted, concise information.
    3. Build relationships with bloggers before you ask a favor.  Maybe e-mail and say “hi” and thank them for an article they have recently written?

So there you have it.  My top 10 take-aways from BlogWorld 2009. Oh, and it was FUN, too!  Where else can you pose for a picture with Captain Morgan?

JenMitch and Captain Morgan: BlogWorld 2009

Did you attend?  What makes your list of take-aways?

For those that didn’t attend, did any of these resonate with you as something you should be doing better?

Thanks, as always, for stopping by.

BlogWorld 2009

I am headed off to BlogWorld today.  I have been awaiting this day for months, and am so excited to hit the road.  But let’s face it, going to a large conference all by yourself can be extraordinarily intimidating.  I am definitely nervous and I don’t think I am alone.

Instead of focusing on my nerves, I thought I’d create a list of the top 5 reasons I’m excited to go to BlogWorld.

1. I will be attending 20 sessions ranging from “B2B  Social Media” to “How Social Media is Changing the State of News” to the “ROI Smackdown.”  I will have the opportunity to hear about 20 relevant issues for me and my clients, from 20 different perspectives.
2. I will be able to learn… from everyone who attends.  It’s nice to step out of your own box as often as possible.
3. I have the opportunity to sit in on sessions with some of my social media heros like Chris Brogan, Brian Solis, Robert Scoble and more.  I have read books by all three, and it will be enlightening to hear them speak in real-time.
4. I will be making connections, some new, some previously existing on Twitter, all valuable.  Some of these connections will be made at the event itself.  Some will be made at the parties (which are sure to be amazing) wherein I will have the opportunity to connect with folks in a personal way.
5. It’s in Vegas!  Really, being in Vegas alone is reason to be excited.

For all that are going, I look forward to meeting you there.  For all who miss it this year, I look forward to sharing what I learn.

When I was a kid, my grandfather gave me a piece of advice (over and over again):

The more you know, the more you know you don’t know.

It's ok to learn from others

My grandfather was truly brilliant- the most brilliant person I have ever had the opportunity to know.  He had weathered The Great Depression, WWII, and was a (multiple) patent-holding engineer. He was exceptional. And yet, kept telling me he didn’t know anything about anything.

I don’t think I truly understood what he meant until he died.  After the funeral, I went into his room, and on his nightstand was a book about the decision to drop the atomic bomb during WWII.  My Grandfather was one if the men on Tinian- the island used to launch the first atomic bombs.  He was a “radio guy” and was the first on the island to learn the bomb had been dropped. But even though he had been a part of it, he was interested in learning about his experience- from all angles.

Everyone’s (not) an Expert

When it comes to social media, way too many people have anointed themselves “experts.”  All the discussion about people who think they are experts, coming from others who are also NOT experts is totally played out. (So I won’t do that.)

In my mind, there are only 5-10 people that can be considered TRUE social media experts.  We all know the social media landscape can (and does) change every day.  But these “gurus” are the people:

• That crowdsource, and don’t assume they have the right solution all the time
• That filter through the noise by listening, and build relationships of quality over quantity
• That are always striving to learn more, better themselves and share their progress/set-backs with others
• That as a result of treating life as one big university, can infer what trends are going to happen before they do

I’d go as far as to say:

The more these “experts” know, the more they know they don’t know.

Ok, So Everyone Can’t be an Expert… But (Almost) Everyone Offers Value

Want to provide value to yourself?  To your clients?  To others?

Stop looking at life as though there are two sides to every story, look at everything you do from a perspective of infinite possibility.  Even if you are a seasoned professional, be willing to assume there is always a lot that can be learned and work to seek that knowledge everywhere.

I admire passion.  I think passion is everything.  Those with passion and drive can make anything happen.

I admire the way@JenMitch started JMPR Communication, deciding it was time to branch out and “start her own thing”.  I am grateful that I am now a part of her dream because watching someone with so much passion put heart and desire to work, it’s truly something to behold.  I know there are others out there just like @JenMitch – in many different fields of work.  For the last month or so, I have been listening and watching as another individual I find quite interesting shows how passionate he is about his product.

Perhaps you have heard of Tucker Max?

For some, the name Tucker Max will illicit a cringe. For others, it will bring about a wry smile.  Tucker Max is a self-admitted crude, rude, womanizing, lewd individual.  His stories are true, and yet somehow he is almost likable.

One thing is for certain.  No matter what the public thinks, Tucker Max believes in himself, and his “brand.”  His brand, is his persona- the “character” of himself in the 2006 book, and soon to be released movie, “I Hope They Serve Beer In Hell.” (IHTSBIH)

Tucker Max believes his movie is a product that the general public will enjoy. Unlike highly promoted and anticipated blockbuster movies, Tucker Max is putting HIS money where his mouth is.  (The very same money he earned in book sales.) The book IHTSBIH has been on the NY Times Bestseller list for three straight years, and continues to hold strong.  The movie IHTSBIH is set to be released this Friday, September 23, 2009.  I am not promoting the content of this movie, though personally I find @tuckermax quite hilarious, but I am promoting the process he has gone through to make this movie a reality.

Leveraging the money he made from book sales to promote the movie is a gutsy move. To me, this is the epitome of passion.  Passion is something that many will search their entire lives for; the desire to find a purpose in one’s life.

Tucker has to work on a budget that was far less than ANY other motion picture release.  He hand selected the lead character that is playing him, and he talks about the struggles of getting the actor to truly bring out the “persona” of Tucker Max here:

Tucker also blogs about how the movie will be released here.

Tucker has a total budget totaling around 1/8 of the budget the movie “The Hangover” had.  Tucker will be releasing this movie on 125 screens the first week.  Then the second week it will be 300 screens.  If after two weeks, the movie is popular enough, he will then be able to release it on the 2,000 screens nationwide.  However, if it doesn’t generate enough revenue the first two weeks, Tucker Max will be left holding the bag.  How many individuals nowadays take the leap of putting themselves out there on a venture?  It’s rare, and it’s to be admired.

@TuckerMax has spent the last 30 days on tour for his new movie screening it for free in 30 different cities.  This is old school public relations folks, getting out there and meeting people and promoting your product.  Don’t get me wrong, @tuckermax is on Twitter, he’s on Facebook, and he is doing social media promotion for his movie. But he is also out there banging on doors to get people to check out his movie.  Honestly, he probably doesn’t even need to do this, but he truly loves his product (himself), and promoting it to his fans.  He could be a really good actor, but I doubt it given his attitude about pretty much everything.

Given what Tucker Max is risking, it’s hard not to root for a guy who is willing to lay it all on the line because he believes in himself and his product.  I think what he is doing is fantastic, and quite remarkable.  I may not see eye to eye with some of the things he has done (even if they are quite hilarious). But I am rooting for Tucker Max and the movie version of I Hope They Serve Beer In Hell.

Will you see this movie? What do you think about Tucker’s promotion methods?

One of my first posts was about the importance of relevancy when Tweeting.  (Ironically, this was exactly a year ago.) While I had previously used Twitter on behalf of my then-employer, I relativity new to Twitter on a personal level.

As you know, Twitter is not about the numbers.  Twitter is about building relationships with relevant people.  I found that when I started, finding people, listening and generating conversations via @replies was the best way to connect.  But Twitter has grown in leaps and bounds in the last year (1,444%!) and the way I tweet today reflects that growth.

Twitter: Build Relationships. Image: MichielGaas

Broadcasting or Information Sharing Platform?

It is my opinion that Tweeting via your Twitter-stream to your followers is a very effective means of broadcasting both your own messages and messages that inspire you. A year ago, few were talking about Twitter as a broadcasting platform.  Twitter was strictly seen as an information-sharing/collaboration platform.

But over the past year, as the number of valuable tweets increase in volume, how much of what you say really gets read and/or digested by those in your network?

The truth is, people are probably missing your tweets.  But if you build a solid network of related people, even a few eyeballs per tweet can provide immense value.

I made the decision last month to engage with Twitter in a different way in order to continue to utilize it as an information sharing/collaboration platform with a focus on building relationships.  Today I use Twitter as follows:

1. I use TweetDeck to group important conversations so I never miss a beat.
2. I am very careful with who I follow, focusing on those who most closely relate to my business.
3. I broadcast messages through the Twitter-feed, on a limited basis.
4. I re-tweet articles/blog posts/interesting opinions on my stream each week.
5. I make a concerted effort to engage more people in conversation.
6. MOST IMPORTANTLY: I have joined a few niche Twitter groups specifically related to my business.  Because I follow relevant people, I was able to find these groups through my regular Twitter stream by following hashtags such as #solopr and #prstudchat.  By adding these hashtags to my TweetDeck search, I never miss a chat.  This is a great way to learn from others!

So, is Twitter a Broadcast or Information Sharing Platform?

Both, and more.

As Twitter continues it’s growth spurt, try new tactics to determine the best way for you to build meaningful relationships and share your thoughts with others.  I use Twitter as a broadcasting platform, a venue to share information, a place to learn best practices, and most importantly, a forum to build relationships with like-minded individuals.

How do you use Twitter?

I find it ironic that yesterday@CongJoeWilson (Joe Wilson) shouted “You Lie!” to Obama during his congressional address.  After all, Joe Wilson is active on Twitter, YouTube, Facebook, Flicker and more.  You would think that this guy would understand- what you say in Congress lives on the Internet, no?

Within minutes of Mr. Wilson shouting at the president last night, my Twitter-stream began filling up with requests to call Joe Wilson and tell him what you think. I was seeing phone numbers before Obama’s speech was over.  Not only was the news fast, but it provided something a network news team never would: personal contact information.

Check this out:

Joe Wilson Trends on Twitter

I have to say, I was surprised.  I expected people to be angry.  I expected people to trash him.  I even expected people to refer to him by Twitter-name.  But distributing his phone number and cell phone number (and later his fax number)? WOW. “Joe Wilson” is still the number one trending topic on Twitter as of 4:00 pm the next day.

I shouldn’t be surprised.  When we as people get upset about anything nowadays, we shout it to the rooftops, and we post post post as much as we can.  We want everyone to know we are upset!  Most want to both vent and protect others from their misfortune.

And in this case, people even stepped in and altered the message telling folks to call Mr. Wilson to show their support.  That’s a lot of phone calls between the angry and pleased, don’t you think?  (And I hear the phone lines were all busy last night.)

Joe Wilson put out an apology on YouTube today wherein he acknowledges that his outburst was wrong and that he apologized to President Obama immediately after his speech.  Mr. Wilson then goes on to ask for a donation to support his stance on the Health care option.  I don’t know about all of you, but I am tired of these YouTube apologies that aren’t REALLY apologies.  (See Chris Brown.)

All this to say:

In 2009, everything you say and do in real life could easily show up on the Internet.  Think before you speak, and be prepared to apologize and/or defend your actions.

If you communicate on behalf of a corporation remmeber, bad things may be said about your company, but it’s how you respond that matters.

Oh, and if you set out to apologize- actually apologize.

As many of you know, my daughter started kindergarten today.  It strikes me: There are a few things those of us in business can learn from the act of going to kindergarten for the first time.

What can you learn from your kids? Image by: Jennifer Mitchell, JMPR Communication

1. Being scared when starting something new is normal.  It’s how you react to your fears that matters most.
2. Making new friends is always important.
3. It’s nice to be nice.
4. Listen to your teachers (mentors).  There is always room to learn something new.
5. Always be prepared.  Bring supplies even if not required.

For those of you with kids in school, what lessons have they learned that could cross-apply to your business?

And, THIS is a good morning?

This morning I was at the gym.  My particular gym has a long line of televisions with which you can distract yourself from whatever cardio torture you’re doing at the time.  Most days there is something entertaining or sportsish to watch, but this morning, each channel was on a different news station.

I remember when I first got into social media, I used to say: “I love reading blogs and online news sources, because I have all the news hours/weeks before everyone else. ” I still get the news before everyone else (who don’t have social media networks or feeds set up) but this morning, I was really enlightened as to why social media is gaining so much steam.

The News- really a good way to start the day? Image by: gsbrown99

One hour at the gym:

• Three news shows (showing on six television sets).
• TWO positive news stories one where Colbie Caillet sang a new song, and one where the Rockettes performed.
• Everything else within the hour was a negative story, or had a negative slant.  My “favorites” included:
  • The story about the little girl saved from drowning, complete with video of her drowning/rescue. (Who needs to watch that?)
  • The piece about how going to college and living in the dorms increases your possibility (to inhumane levels, apparently) of contracting a deadly communicable disease.
  • Of course, and very important (seriously), the story about how the US thwarted an impeding attack from the Al Queda, and also, how we are never safe and should all be very afraid.
  • At least one missing child story, the most memorable of which featured a forensic expert who has just written a book about children who have been abducted.
  • A minute-by-minute breakdown of  the drugs administered by Conrad Murray to Michael Jackson, resulting in MJ’s death.
  • Oh, and a thrilling update on the reality show star/killer Ryan Jenkins.

By the time I left the gym, I felt like we were seconds away from the demise of EVERYTHING.  I mean, how could you not?

So I got to thinking aside from building relationships, which is a given,  is one of social media’s main benefits REALLY about knowing the news first?

Heck no.

Why I prefer online news:

I mean, it’s nice to know news quickly.  And I especially enjoy those days when you say “hey, was that an earthquake?”  And one second into looking at your Twitter feed you confirm there was a natural disaster, and you learn all the stats.  That’s still cool.

But today, I read feeds for the following reasons:

• I’m looking to learn something industry related that I’ve never thought about.
• I’m looking for various opinions around a subject of debate or a subject of interest.
• To research best practices.
• To find “lessons learned” from fellow practitioners.
• To get the basic, high-level news of the day.
• And I won’t lie, I love the gossip blogs.

So now, I amend what I like about obtaining my news online:

• Negative news is really positive.  Social networkers generally take negative subjects, and turn them into “lessons learned.”  I gain value from reading about the solutions of others.  No one wants to hear about the “problem” over and over.
• There is a place for everything.  If you want primarily negative news, there are sites like that. There are blogs for every hobby in the universe.  Heck, there’s even a place for happy news only.  Only read what you want to read.  (But don’t be afraid to explore.)
• News is better when it comes from the real source. We don’t have to rely on the media to tell us what’s important anymore.  Citizen journalists provide a real, and more interesting take on daily events. (The Iran Election Protests come immediately to mind.)

So why do you love reading your news online?  Or, if you still prefer the news and the newspaper over online media, why?  I’d love to hear from you.

Four weeks of tweeting like a madman have come to a close and I had a great time!  Some close to me said that I became a celeb stalker, but what do they know, right?  My “stalking” was all in the name of quasi-science.

So what did I learn from this experiment?

Visibility is Important

Next time I tweet a celebrity it will be one that I think has a reasonable chance of seeing my tweet. For example, Ashton Kutcher and Demi Moore are sent 8 pages a minute when they tweet.  The chances of them seeing your tweet are about 1 in 400. Not very good odds.  Others though, like Lamar Odom, Kirk Morrison, and Andy Bloch receive around one page of twitter responses when they post, so your chances are much better.

Be Relevant (Duh)

Don't be a crazy fan on Twitter. Image: Paul Nicholson

Don’t confuse what I am saying about visibility. Just because a celebrity has a limited number of responses when they tweet doesn’t mean they will definitely respond.  Quite the contrary.

The most important thing I learned during this experiment: RELEVANCY wins out.  If you respond to a celebrity, whether an actor, comedian, poker pro or athlete, the content of your tweet is of the utmost importance. A “yo Lamar, I am your biggest fan! Say hi to me! won’t elicit a response very often because celebs get that kind of comment on a daily basis. Instead, something they can relate to will yield a much higher chance of a successful response.

Each of the responses I received were on topics that the tweeted individuals cared about (see previous blogs for exact tweets). One was regarding the Chris Brown incident, while another one was regarding a side bet made by the particular person.  So remember, be smart and ask a relevant question!

I have had an amazing time tweeting the selected categories, and I hope you had a good time following this experiment. I know I was able to learn a few things about twitter and I hope that you were too.

Build Relationships to Gain Trust: Image by: notsogoodphotography

This morning, I was quoted in the San Diego Union Tribune in the article: Social Network Put to Work.  This was especially exciting for me because after years of placing articles for clients, this was the first time I’ve had an article placed for ME. And even cooler, the media came to me.  I didn’t pitch anything.

I don’t know about the rest of you, but it’s hard for me to go out and proactively promote myself.  Promoting clients is easy- and fun.  But right or wrong, I haven’t taken the time to push my own messages to others.

Call Them to Action with Inbound Marketing

This is the beauty of inbound marketing.  Inbound marketing is the idea that all the marketing you do is with the purpose of being found by potential customers.  This isn’t to say that outreach isn’t still relevant, just that you also have to provide content that drives people to action.  The actions could be visiting your blog, sharing your news, or scheduling a meeting with you.

Be Passionate

I have a passion for social media and public relations.  I believe nearly every corporation and individual should be sharing best practices via social networking.  We are living in a time of amazing opportunity.  We can collaborate and share information with strangers turned trusted allies from our living rooms! Passion speaks, and passion sells.  While I have never pitched my business to the media, I’ve still been found.  I’m my own case study: social networking works!

Social Networking: Fear Not

Corporations should not fear blogging or social networking.  Social Media is 100% about building relationships through participation.  Relationships are built upon trust.  And when people trust you, that’s just good for business.