A micro-manifesto on personal branding for practice professionals

Personal branding is one of the most important marketing strategies for practice professionals in an age of social media. Business has always been built on relationships – especially in professional services where your client is buying your knowledge, your reputation, and your commitment. Your personality informs your brand.

The proliferation of social media spaces and tools are changing the business communications landscape and how we market ourselves.  Here are two significant changes:

• Access to our target markets is more direct and less mediated through established media platforms with every passing day. That is not to say that traditional media platforms are not important, but rather that you should use these channels to build your own direct channels to your clients and prospects.
• Success in social media is measured in terms of influence – number of followers, reach, size of network, etc. – a concept that has evolved out of the mass media notion of celebrity. Yet, at the same time, social media tools allow you define communities of interest on a smaller scale, thereby lowering the bar for what constitutes celebrity or influence.

In other words, there are more tools available than ever before to build and extend relationships. And those relationships can have a greater impact on your business success than ever before.

(more…)

Your business needs YOU to have a personal social media strategy in 2011

I remember the day I purchased my first Fast Company magazine. The cover story featured a piece by management consultant Tom Peters called: The Brand Called You. That article inspired me to build and sell a web development company and invest in several other businesses.

Almost 15 years later, Tom Peters’ call to action is more relevant than ever before.  Social media tools coupled with wireless mobile technologies are revolutionizing our communications landscape. And it’s changing how we market and advertise our businesses, as well as how we engage, support and retain our customers.

Business has always been about relationships and it is no less so today. What is changing profoundly today is how and where we conduct those relationships.

(more…)

Why the Investment News web site is not friendly

I received an email today from Investment News. They were suggesting some “Best of 2010″ tech articles I might be interested in.

I found one I liked called: 10 signed it might be time for a web upgrade. Stuff like: the copyrights are older than 2008, the site was built with tables or frames (shudder), or the design features chess pieces (or boating imagery) made me laugh. So I tried to share it…and that’s where the trouble began.

1. There was no “share’ functionality. No “Tweet this” link, no AddThis widget, nothing.

2. So I tried to copy the URL to my LinkedIn status update, but the specific page title and excerpt did not appear. Instead there was a generic “Investment News” title and boilerplate marketing-speak about the publication. Nothing about the specific article I wanted to share. It looked like I was promoting Investment News instead of sharing some of their content. Not interested in that.

3. I also didn’t like the 10-screen layout of the story. Instead of an article, they take the stories and make them into 10 screens and you need to click to advance from screen to screen. This is annoying, plus I can barely read the small, non-serif, grey font on the shaded background below the huge picture. Seems like a poor layout decision.

4. So I tried to view the article in traditional “article format”. At this point I was met with a huge barrier: a subscriber screen. Seriously?

I just wanted to share an article from which the publication, but at every turn I was thwarted.

To the folks at Investment News, so far you’ve done nothing to make me think you get the whole social media thing and you clearly need to upgrade your web site. I’m not sure why you think I’d be interested in subscribing when there are so many good publications out there that get it.

If this is your business model, start counting your days – because they’re numbered.

Rules of trust apply whether pressing the flesh or a keyboard

I read Trust Agents (by Chris Brogan and Julien Smith) recently and it continues to exert an important influence on my approach to social media. In particular, I liked the authors’ take on the concept of trust – it rings true with my own feelings on this topic.

The authors borrow and then rearrange the following trust equation which comes from The Trusted Advisor (by Maister, Galford and Green):

T = (C x R x I)/S

where T is Trust which is a function of

C (credibility) multiplied by R (reliability) multiplied by I (intimacy)

divided by S (self-orientation).

Trust is the foundation of good business relationships and most business activities are built on winning and maintaining the trust of your clients and colleagues. This trust leads to repeat business, referrals, flexibility, tolerance and respect. So how do we build it?

First, be credible. Provide quality information and add value. Help people by connecting them. Engage in discussions in a respectful and thoughtful way.

Then, be reliable. Communicate regularly. Be a consistent presence in meaningful fora so people get to know you. Respond when people reach out to contact you.

And don’t be afraid of sharing your personality, what moves you and how you feel. Connect with people by being interested in them. Don’t rant – rave instead. Talk about what you like more than about what you don’t.

Finally, be a giver, not a taker. Don’t be that guy or gal who is only interested in passing out their business cards. Consider recommending your competitors for their strengths – especially if you think it might be a better fit for your prospect/client.

Trust is built on being perceived as “one of us”, being “self-less” and promoting others. First, be part of a community, then sell.

These rules for building trust are universal and apply to any practice professional – whether you are pressing the flesh or the keys on a keyboard.

What eye-opening, game-changing business books I read last summer

Back in the summer, I asked the following LinkedIn question:

What eye-opening, game-changing business book would you recommend I read while on vacation next week?

Of course, a few old farts scolded me for reading business books on vacation. (It was a driving vacation and I wanted compelling audio book material to pass the hours.) But I also got a lot of good suggestions. Here is the list in the order that I am working my way through them:

1. Trust Agents (Brogan and Smith) – This is a must read for anyone wishing to get into the social media space. Whether you are a practice professional, consultant, writer, etc. – whatever you are – if you want to build influence online, this is the book for you. (Thanks, Penelope.)

2. What the Dog Saw (Gladwell) – A collection of essays and articles covering a wide range of topics, Gladwell is an exceptionally entertaining and though-provoking writer – if you like to think about things and why they are as they are. While his insights tend to be presented in particular social and economic context, he is fascinated with disruptive, category-changing ideas and the complex processes that give rise to them. In many ways, this is a business book in disguise.

3. Think and Grow Rich (Hill) – Back in the 1930s, Napolean Hill wrote this classic of business thinking and, in a way, gave birth to the modern motivational speaker/guru movement. The book reads like it was written last year which is such an incredible accomplishment in itself. Yet, it also contains nuggets of wisdom that are universal in their truth. Think of “growing rich” in the broadest possible sense when you read this one. (Thanks, Anne.)

Basically, this is all I got through so far this summer. But the list recommendations continues and I’ll be working through some of these others over the coming months:

• The Game Changer by Al Lafley, recently retired CEO of P&G.
• Re-Imagine by Tom Peters. (I have to admit, my first reaction to this one was to wonder whether Peters still has it. I guess I’ll have to read it to see.)
• If I Ran the Circus by Dr. Seuss. (I never under-estimate the wisdom of the doctor.)
• Bounce by Matthew Syed.
• Six Pixels of Separation by Mitch Joel. (Already read it and it’s really good.)
• 7 Habits of Highly Effective People by Stephen Covey.
• Linchpin by Seth Godin.

My eyes have definitely been opened. Now, on to changing the game.

So, what have you been reading lately that has shaken your world?

B2C businesses need to wrap their heads around social media

You may run a restaurant, a cafe, or a bar. You may be in retail clothing or home wares. You may run a gym, a dry-cleaner or a car dealership. Or an insurance brokerage. Or a travel business.

If you offer consumers a location-based service experience, whatever it is, you need to wrap your head around social media. Or it may rap you on the head.

Here’s what I mean.

1. Online review sites like TripAdvisor, Yelp, UrbanSpoon, and Epinions are becoming more and more important to retail businesses. As consumers and apps become more mobile, their choices will become more influenced by consultation with social media review tools like Facebook Places, Google Places and Foursquare. Your business needs to be monitoring these spaces and encouraging your best customers to add their reviews. In the case of the more recent location-based services, more than ever you need to stake our your place on the internet.  For some good suggestions on how to do this, read 3 Steps to Turn Happy Customers into Cheerleaders.

2. Good reviews are great to have – lots of them create a sense of “consensus” among the crowd. But the good will come with the bad. And bad reviews carry more weight and can have a disproportionate impact – especially if your  response digs a deeper hole. It takes considerable thought and energy to respond effectively to a negative review or comment. But investing in this process is critically important  because when you effectively respond to a negative review, you earn the trust of others and deepen your relationship with existing customers. And you may even turn your critic into a loyal customer. For some excellent guidelines on how to handle negative comments and reviews, check out How Companies Should Respond to Negative Reviews.

Finally, if you’ve read all this and need some help, drop me a line and I’ll see if I can help.

Real estate social media strategies to attract first home buyers

Real estate is a notoriously tough business. Sellers want to ask for more than the market will bear. Buyers can be fickle and neurotic. The hours are long and creep into your personal time. And then there are all those flyers…

An increasing number of real estate professionals are getting into the social media act and extending their marketing efforts with great results.

If I was a real estate professional, here’s exactly how I would use social media to promote my brand:

1. Start blogging regularly. Focus on topics like local market conditions in areas that you are familiar. Establish your knowledge of the market and the housing inventory. Use Twitter to promote your blog posts and build followers.

2. Use your blog to promote listings. Promote your listings using a blog and engage readers to offer their comments.

3. Focus on first home buyers. There are many benefits of doing this:

• You can present  basic information about a real estate transaction in simple terms – a format that may, in fact, be helpful to and attract other than first home buyers.
• First home buyers are a younger demographic that will be more comfortable using social media.
• First home buyers typically are upgrading their home as their family grows, so you are well-positioned for a second and maybe third transaction.
• First home buyers are often assisted by their parents who may also be prospects for a real estate transaction as their needs change.

4. Offer a free seminar. Partner with other specialists (mortgage broker, real estate lawyer, home inspector) and offer a free seminar to first home buyers.

5. Use Twitter 90-10 rule. Simply stated, you should be using Twitter to provide information or promote others 90 percent of the time. Self promotion should be kept to a minimum, say 10 percent of the time. Your tweets should focus on market conditions and real world learning situations. Promoting your free seminar once in a while is a perfect self-promotion because you are offering information.

Wow, this sounds exciting – maybe I should get into this business. Oh wait…dealing with sellers that want more, buyers that want to pay less, evenings and weekends. I think I’ll stick to consulting and raising a family. Not that the hours or the customers are less demanding ;-)

For more information on social media uses for real estate professionals, see:

• How Real Estate Pros are using Social Media for Real Results
• Social Media Starter Moves for Real Estate
• Top Five Real Estate Social Media Blunders
• How Real Estate Agents can use Social Media
• Check out Mulholland|Ross‘s use blog-style listings and Facebook promotion