I always love a good demonstration of the measurability of social media – any marketing really. So when I came across the video “Social Media ROI: Socialnomics”, I settled in for 4 minutes and 15 seconds of fascinating social media ROI statistic goodness.

Then, I came upon about the 30 second mark. (*Gasp*) According to the video, Gary Vaynerchuk found 1,800 new customers for his family-owned business on Twitter for $0. (Compared to the 200 for $15,000 via direct mail and the 300 for $7,500 via a billboard.)

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I already knew Minnesota interactive marketers were a smart group. After UnSummit3, though, I realized – hey?!?! That did exactly what it was supposed to do!

With a theme of what’s next, UnSummit3 was attempting to uncover just what we’re all getting ourselves into as we embark on our grand journey as interactive marketers. Several statements were made in the discussions I was a part of that stated some great possibilities. And, more importantly, they left my mind reeling with even more possibilities.

So, here are my top four takeaways from UnSummit3. An “alternative” conference can’t have a nice, neat top five or ten, after all. (more…)

Exciting! Inspiring! Thought-provoking! Oh my!
Yes. Another MIMA Summit has come and gone.

Most attendees could talk about any one statement from any one session for hours, but in the interest of brevity – a favorite with interactive (web) after all – I’ve combined my top ten takeaways from the Summit. (Or at least the sessions I attended.)

Some of these points are overarching ideas I heard throughout the day and others were just some ideas I found extra-profound in specific sessions. (more…)

Forget everything you’ve ever learned.

What a comforting statement – especially for those of us that went to college for four years…at the very least.
But really, when it comes to writing for the web, this statement is a good rule of thumb.

Of course, forgetting everything is an overstatement. Grammar and some writing basics are always important. But, a lot of what we’ve learned, we need to work to overcome each time we write for web.

Writing more – with big words and flowery sentences – does not make you seem smart. It just makes you annoying.
Writing a lot doesn’t make you seem knowledgeable about a topic. It makes you forgettable – because no one is ever going to get to the end of your piece.

With all things web hurtling toward us at the speed of light, it’s clear that the web is the way of the future. Actually, it’s already kind of the way of today.

So, when are we going to stop teaching fluffy writing? When will we have educated people who don’t have to unlearn and who can just get better at doing? (more…)

At Friday’s SMBMSP 19 (Social Media Breakfast – Minneapolis/St. Paul), much of the meeting’s discussion centered around the use of social media as an internal communication tool. How to convince management to implement it? How to get employees to buy into it? How to maintain compliancy and legal requirements with it?

The variety of experience represented in the audience created an excellent discussion with valid points and even more valid questions (which, in the end, related to big organizations as much as small; internal use as much as external).

Anyone could probably write for pages and pages about each of the points discussed. So, I’m choosing a few points, that together, made me think about larger implications. (more…)

A social media what?

The social media guru. Full of mystique, glamour, a hip vocabulary, and…wait… what’s a social media guru?

There’s a lot of discussion about these elusive creatures within the Internet marketing community. What makes a guru? What doesn’t? How do you become one?

Google “social media guru”, and you’ll find listings including:

• “Biggest Mistakes Made by Social Media Gurus.”
• “How to Pick Your Social Media Guru.”
• “Expulsion of the Social Media Gurus.”
• “UK’s Female Social Media Guru 2009.” (Not necessarily defining a guru or how to get one, but a pretty funny listing, I thought.) (more…)

One of my last posts discussed an MRM Worldwide slogan: “Useful is the new clever.”

This advice pretty much goes for any type of marketing today; it’s a fair estimate that no matter who your target audience is, they’re stressed out and over stimulated. The advice is especially useful for – believe it or not – website usability.

When designing a website, it’s a common recommendation to maintain certain conventions:

• A log in box is in the upper right.
• The logo is in the upper left.
• Privacy policies and terms and conditions are in the footer.
• A shopping cart icon takes you to a page where you see the items you’ve decided to buy.
• A magnifying glass denotes site search.

Of course, if everyone maintained every convention, websites would get stale quickly. Other than color changes and imagery, you wouldn’t recognize one site from another.

Some conventions go for anyone – like the shopping cart and search. But sometimes, the conventions for an industry are nothing more than “the way we’ve always done things”. And in most of these cases, this way isn’t a good one.
Just because your audience is accustomed to something doesn’t mean they like it. It just means they don’t have an alternative. (more…)

Trite and true.

We already know the web has revolutionized the way we do things. As trite as the term “digital revolution” can be, it’s a very accurate description of the last few years in our society.

It’s definitely revolutionized how we travel – from finding directions via Google Maps to buying plane tickets on Expedia.

It’s revolutionized the way we shop. Can’t get it locally? No problem – when we can shop anywhere, globally.

Examples could go on forever. From online activities to the very way consumers are in control now, rather than companies.

All of these ideas are discussed in circles everywhere online and offline.

Recently, though, a few articles made me think about some even bigger shifts in our society – the next big things to be revolutionized, if you will. (more…)

We’re all familiar with the deserted phone book left outside that no one ever bothered to pick up. There’s the Internet. Does anyone really expect you to lift, let alone use, that huge book? As a paperweight or some added height on your chair, maybe. To look up a phone number, please. There are easier ways.

It’s easy to look at “traditional” media like the yellow pages and see how they’ll need to be very creative to keep up with all things digital.

But what about those of us working in digital industries? (more…)

While taking care of some of my most important industry research of the day, I came across this brilliant read that reminded me of the balance needed in marketing.

Of course, this example is an extreme. But sometimes, after getting absorbed in some intense competitor research, we might find ourselves a bit closer to this scenario than we’d like.

No, we’re not going to blatantly rip off a brand name like Coke. But what about “borrowing” just one piece of a competitors’ overall strategy?
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