Posts Tagged ‘Virtual community’

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Why do you participate, or avoid, social networking? I believe it depends on how you view it.  Do you see it as an opportunity, or an obligation?

I had an interesting online conversation yesterday. A friend of mine IM‘d me to tell me that he probably won’t see any replies I make to his tweets.  Apparently he posts to Facebook via text messages on his phone,  and those posts are automatically posted to Twitter.  The weird thing about this conversation wasn’t the content.  I’ve had this conversation with others. What was interesting was the tone. (more…)

US Postal Service Wake-up Call

While the US Postal Service struggles against a $7 billion deficit, they seem to think they can regain their footing when the recession ends.  In the meantime, this NY Times article talks about all the businesses that are moving from mail-based billing to the web.  Last year record numbers of people filed their taxes electronically.  The handwriting is on the wall.  If the USPS doesn’t make some serious changes, they will go the way of the Pony Express.

On the other hand, the Swiss are instituting a service to intercept your mail and have it delivered to you via the web.  They are not the first to do this, nor the last.  Read this BBC news service article I saw on today.

Instead of complaining

Instead of complaining about the situation that caused the problems you face, it is always best to analyze the situation and get down to the root causes.  Once you identify those issues, address them.  In the case of Snail Mail, asking people to mail more, or simply raising prices, is not going to solve the problem.  People are seeking to be more “green” and they are using the web more and more.  In addition, many large businesses have found it is less expensive, less complicated, and much more efficient to go electronic.  While the Post Office may not close next year, they will continue to find themselves in trouble unless they can find a way to use the Internet for their benefit – rather than consider it their competition.

Don’t go the way of the dinosaur

Where is your business in the sea of change?  Are you doing the same things, over and over?  Or, are you adapting to the currents, culture, and challenges?

The key is to adapt early and often.  If you wait until you’re in crisis, it is often too late to make the necessary corrections.  Stay abreast of the culture, stay attuned to the needs/wants of your stakeholders, and stay fresh.

I would love to hear your thoughts on these issues – not necessarily the Post Office, but the need to stay current.

• http://www.nytimes.com/2009/08/29/business/29postal.html
• http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/programmes/click_online/8226296.stm
• http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/-/2/hi/programmes/click_online/8224573.stm

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• Have Your US Paper Mail Scanned (unopened) and sent to your Email Inbox – Digital Mail Services (ducknetweb.blogspot.com)
• USPS publishes proposed Post Office closure list (inquisitr.com)
• Commentary: About that Saturday mail … (cnn.com)

One night, you woke up with an incredible epiphany – isn’t that fun!? After thinking about it for awhile, talking it over with a few trusted friends, you launched your new project. But now the realities of the situation have caught up to you. This is hard!

Well, you knew it would be hard when you started. You’re not an idiot. But you didn’t know it was going to be this hard. You’re not ready to give up…yet. The thought does cross your mind sometimes though.

You’ve probably already noticed that most of your friends do not make good mentors. They are smart, creative, and supportive, and they are great cheerleaders – but they don’t have the answers. What you need is a reliable conversation with someone who doesn’t always tell you what you want to hear.

That’s where we come in. With extensive experience in leadership, mentoring, coaching, and successful multi-disciplinary management, we can help you reach the next level. We can help you get past the plateau you’ve discovered.

Anyone can connect the dots when they are out in the open. It takes an intuitive, practical understanding of the current trends and opportunities to successfully chart a course in a dynamic world of change.

No matter your focus, we can offer various approaches to your situation. We specialize in analysis of the current situation, identifying potential solutions, and defining your best approaches to the future. In addition, we have the connections to the people who can best make this all happen. We will happily direct you to people who are better suited to your situation and issues.

If you would like some assistance connecting the dots – especially the invisible ones, contact us. We’re happy to meet with you at no charge to discuss your situation. Sometimes, that initial consultation is all you need – and we’re fine with that. We’ll never push more on you than your want or need.

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[slideshare id=1745672&doc=theopensocialwebworkshop-090720171244-phpapp01]

Presented by Chris Messina (OpenID Foundation), David Recordon (Six Apart), Joseph Smarr (Plaxo). As evidenced by Barack Obama’s successful presidential campaign, we have clearly entered the age of the social web. This developer-oriented workshop will emphasize the use and application of free, open building blocks for enabling social networking features on your site or service, and provide illuminating insights from some of the key figures creating these technologies.

http://en.oreilly.com/oscon2009/public/schedule/detail/8575

The other night I attended a gathering of Portland’s online community managers.  I like nothing more than getting together with a bunch of smart people to explore new ideas, concepts, and issues.  This turned out to be one of those nights.

One of the issues that came up was in relation to the ROI (return on investment) – I wrote about this last week.  My question is, how do you help a small business owner that they need to put their money into social media and online networking?  Why would a business with less than 100, or less than 50 employees want to pay someone to develop a presence for them online?  And even if someone agrees that they need an online social networking presence, how could anyone quantify their return on this investment?

It turns out that this isn’t just an issue for the small businessperson, but for the Fortune 500 companies also. Some of my colleagues do consulting work for these companies, and it is a hot topic in all sectors right now.

There were two things I took away from this conversation:

• At this point, no one can guarantee that you will see a direct return on the dollars you spend.  For instance, if you pay a social media consultant $5000 to develop your online presence, you won’t automatically see $10,000 more revenue next year.
• The conversation has moved out of the town square and onto the Internet.  People are talking online, and they’re talking about your business, your products and services, and your company.  It’s up to you whether you want to join that conversation or not.  Either way, the conversation is happening – and your traditional advertising dollars are not going to influence the conversation, and the resulting purchasing decisions, as much as a person’s online community.  It is imperative that you become a part of that community.

Years ago, before the age of huge metropolitan centers, people lived in villages, and they shopped in the town square. Everyone knew everyone else and it was the center of social networking.  Because refrigeration hadn’t yet been invented, people went to the market fairly frequently.  Those who offered superior products and friendly service were the most likely to succeed.  In the real-world of the 19th-century marketplace, you couldn’t fake it.

20th century marketers and the companies they represented, were very removed from their customers. We saw a backlash to this in the last few decades when people began to advocate buying locally.  There has always been back channel conversation, but businesses had to hire market researchers and employ focus groups to discover what was being said about their products.  But, with the advent of online social media, businesses and regular people can interact directly.

Here’s a real life example:

Last year, a friend and I engaged in a short online discussion about Comcast. My friend was in Amsterdam, and I in Portland. Within moments, we were joined in our discussion by one of Comcast’s vice-presidents.  It was very impressive.  My attitude  towards the company changed course significantly.

A few months ago, I mentioned Verizon and their lockdown of the GPS device on my Blackberry.  Several friends jumped on my comment and we all commiserated the shortsighted decision on the part of Verizon.  There was considerable discussion about switching to ATT and an iPhone, so we would have better access to geo-location social networking capabilities.  I’ve never heard anything from Verizon on this issue. (By the way, I’ve gone on to post messages on Verizon’s website, sent them emails, and talked to customer service over the phone – but I’ve never heard anything in return.)

So, you tell me, who is winning more customers in the online community? Verizon, or Comcast?  Can we really afford to not participate in this conversation?

Last week, a friend of mine posted a comment on Twitter about being refused service when she tried to order food in the drive-thru lane at a local Burgerville restaurant. I’ll let her tell the story in her own words:

http://www.cafemama.com/2009/aug/12_to_burgerville_a_more_bikethrough_future.html

What do you think? Can you afford NOT to participate in this conversation?

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