Content is still king in 2015, but how do you generate meaningful social media that provides VALUE? By focusing on creating content that will be: Visual Amuse             and by making sure you Listen Unify Engage with your audience.   VISUAL A picture is worth a thousand words, and sometimes a thousand clicks. When you scroll through your news feed on your smart phone, what catches your eye? Photo posts account for 93% of the most engaging posts on Facebook. Photos on Facebook generate 53% more likes than the average text only post (Hubspot 2012). Use pictures and video to your advantage by creating compelling images that share the story of your brand and its impact, your brand’s history, and celebrate your customers. AMUSE Even the most conservative brands and organizations can have fun. Show your wittier side and your fans will love you. Think about the unpredictable humor behind…

Content is still king in 2014, but how do you generate meaningful social media that provides VALUE? By focusing on creating content that will be: Visual Amusing       and by making sure you Listen Unify Engage with your audience. VISUAL A picture is worth a thousand words, and sometimes a thousand clicks. When you scroll through your news feed on your smart phone, what catches your eye? Photo posts account for 93% of the most engaging posts on Facebook. Photos on Facebook generate 53% more likes than the average text only post (Hubspot 2012). Use pictures and video to your advantage by creating compelling images that share the story of your brand and its impact, your brand’s history, and celebrate your customers. AMUSE Even the most conservative brands and organizations can have fun. Show your wittier side and your fans will love you. Think about the unpredictable humor behind such…

Sometimes you are not in your best game. Things go wrong, and you know what just happened is in no way close to your best effort. You or your team fail your customer, client, or audience. So what should you do as a leader? Recently I ate at a restaurant where everything went wrong. Horribly wrong. From the moment my party arrived to the time we left, the entire experience was a disaster. Sometimes we have an off day. And rarely, an off day can turn into a truly awful day. It happens even to the best. But as I watched my dinner experience deteriorate with every course and exchange, I had hoped that management would at least try to “right” some of the “wrongs,” that in my opinion, were many. But that’s not what happened. After giving the manager a run down of the list of grievances, from poor…

I was listening to a discussion today about people’s online identity. Years ago it was taboo, and even considered unsafe to have your own name in forums and chat rooms–the precursors of today’s social media. And a lot of people still create user names that allow them to be anonymous. I’m looking at my Twitter feed right now and see names such as “Shoemoney” and “Angelcollector.” Creating pseudonyms online is web 1.o thinking. Intuitively I have always used my first and often last name in chat rooms, forums, and now Facebook, Twitter, Google+, and whatever comes next. The main reason I use my real name online is because, for me, the web is not a place where I go to hide, but I place where I go to connect,  share my voice, and engage clients and potential clients. It’s a place where what I do and who I am intersect…

As a general rule, we do not want to spend more money than we have to.  But for those of us who love a bargain, chasing the “best deal” can ultimately cost us a lot of more. I know. I have done it several times. It took a good friend to say, “Are you willing to lose a $250,000 deal over $1,500?” as I got caught in the trap of the haggling game I had created. Since then I have tried to wise up and get to the bottom line of every major purchase, construction project, or service contract. The question I try to answer is “What’s the true cost of my short cut?” That’s not an easy one to answer. Before I can come up with the true cost of my decision, here are some variables I have to consider: How much more of my time will this less…

I love the instant and concise nature of Twitter as well as the quick feedback and the community I’ve enjoyed being a part of it. However, I have seen a lot of people misuse and even abuse Twitter. So here are my top 5 Tweeves (Twitter Peeves): Twittarrhea: An unstoppable string of running Tweets for no reason. If you have 12 tweets within an hour, something very important, dangerous, or extremely cool should be happening. Otherwise, don’t punish us for your boredom. Twitteralogue: A long Twitter dialogue between two people. If you want to text your best friend, then great…text him, but please don’t have a long private conversation on Twitter. I really don’t want to know that you use Yukon Gold potatoes for mashing. Remember, you can use the direct tweet option for your personal, confidential, and or boring conversation. Twittertising: Uncontrolled self promotion of goods and/or services. Ok,…

The proliferation of customer satisfaction surveys is taking its toll on me. Once I was inclined to answer them. Now, I immediately dismiss the many requests for my feedback. According to an article in the NY Times, the exponential growth of the satisfaction survey is annoying consumers world wide. In the past, these surveys were an expensive proposition. Market research firms charged a lot of money to define, craft, and administer polls and to find a good representative sample of the target group. There is a lot of science and experience that goes into good quantitative and qualitative research. But with the advent of easy-to-use survey tools like SurveyMonkey, anyone can create a quick one and throw it online. What once was viewed as a privilege is now seen as a nuisance. So should you give up on getting feedback from the stakeholders in your organization? Of course not; but…

If you’re going to lead anything you need to learn to communicate across generations. Most of us have no problem communication with those are older than we are, but we often stumble when dealing with the younger generations. I have studied, worked with and watch e generation that prefers learning in a non-sequential, mosaic way–no doubt influenced by the a culture saturated with endless sound and video bytes. I have experienced that first hand in the lives of my own children whose world is one large media bucket where they both learn and interact with information in a much more informal and yet dynamic way than I did at their age. We no longer search for information, but information seeks and finds us whenever we are. Between my Twitter and Facebook feeds I’m constantly aware of news, trivia, the important and the ridiculous searching for me every second of the…

“And let’s also add a blog to the new site design,” he said as if it were an afterthought, which I was sure it was. Knowing his propensity for delegating, I probed further, “That’s great. How often are you planning on blogging?” “Oh, I’m not going to write the blog myself, ” he said assuredly, “my secretary is going to take care of that.” Unfortunately, I find myself having this conversation with Pastors and business leaders more and more often. What ensues is usually a long argument about what a blog should or shouldn’t be. Here are some thoughts on the matter: Your blog should be your voice. It’s telling your story or the things you’re passionate about. No one else can do it for you. Are you sure you want your assistant speaking for you? If you have a corporate blog than, it’s a different matter. You can even…

Lately I have spent time with several friends on their careers. The tough economy, life transition and leadership issues have forced some of my friends to reconsider their current employment.  It’s not uncommon for what you thought to be your dream job turn into your living nightmare. Over the years I have heard plenty of times, “I was hired to do one thing and now my job is doing something completely different.” It happens–more so these days than ever before.  While I empathize with their pain ( I have been there before)  I usually tell them: Don’t run away from a bad situation. Instead run toward the future you want. Every time we run from a job, we risk of ending up in a similar situation later down the road. Before you search for another job or decide to make a career move, take time and do some honest soul…