The fine line between overwhelmed and inspired

These days, I am much more selective about the events I attend. There are so many great options in the Seattle area and I tend to overdo. (I know I'm not alone on that one.)

This week, I attended two events specifically that had me feeling on that line between overwhelmed and inspired.

The first was a Social Media Club event about moms and blogging. Such fantastic information, amazing people to meet and a HUGE to do list when I left.

Friday was my weekly meeting with BizEnrich where one of the members did a presentation about SEO, a very basic presentation, but one that still left me feeling like I need to do more.

How do you deal with those feelings of just too much to do? I want to stay inspired, but hate the feeling that I just have so much more to do.

I would love to know your thoughts...

Facebook Edgerank and What It Means for Your Business | Social Media Today

Facebook Edgerank and What It Means for Your Business | Social Media Today

5 Ways to Add Value to your Social Media...

Imagine this. You go to a party, an ordinary social function and you see “that girl”. The one you would rather avoid because she absolutely never stops selling. Everything that comes out of her mouth has something to do with how she can solve all your problems with her product. Annoying, right? Don’t you avoid her at all costs?

Well, try thinking of facebook as a party.

Just like that real life party – if you never stop selling, it will change the way people view your business (or choose not to) online.

When you are at a party, meeting people, you actively contribute to the conversation with useful information. You don’t walk around telling everyone to buy from you, buy from you, buy from you. So, why is it that so many people do that on Social Media? I am guessing it’s because that is all they know. I would like to help in changing that.

I worked with a client last week who paid me the best compliment. Not only did he say that I did a good job with the work I provided, but that I “added value” to his site.

With that, I thought I would provide 5 simple ways that you can add value to your Social Media experience. And, when you add value, you will gain more fans and followers!

1. Provide relevant, timely information. Like it or not, over 1 million people spend time on facebook everyday. If you can provide articles, videos and links that help them, they will continue to come back. For example, you are a catering company and it’s just after Thanksgiving. Maybe you could find an article that gives interesting uses for leftover turkey. Or you are a dog care company and can provide tips for keeping your pets healthy and safe during whatever season we are in.

2. Be a part of the conversation. I am all for tools that make social media easier and less time consuming, but if we go back to the cocktail party analogy, they don’t really provide for conversation. It’s most definitely a two way street. If you aren’t active on facebook itself, your “fans” will notice and realize you are only there to sell, which could be a huge turn off.

3. Promote other people’s businesses. What a great way to promote your power partnerships and the people you recommend. This makes you valuable as a “go-to” guy or gal. It will create the assurance that if someone needs something, even if it isn’t related to your business, you will know someone and be able to refer them to someone you know and trust.

4. Don’t sell all the time. I think this point speaks for itself. No one likes anyone who doesn’t stop selling, and if all you ever do is talk about you and your product, “fans” will un-like your page or hide it from their feed. Either result takes you out of their “top of mind”.

5. Keep the conversation going offline. Social media is just that…social. When you create relationships through online venues, be sure to take them off the computer. Meet for coffee or lunch. Get to know one another and how you might each help one another.

What are some other things you have observed?

What do you want to know?

My daily Facebook frolicking and Twitter trolling gives me lots of blog fodder. And, I am well aware that I have many thoughts and opinions that I would love to talk about. But, more than that, I would like to know what you need help with - what you would like to know more about. I post lots of short tips and tricks on my facebook page http://www.facebook.com/readysetgrowmarketing if you would like to stay up-to-date there. I also post some great, relevant articles from other reputable sources.

Would you like to know how social media can help YOUR particular industry? What else would you like to read about? Post your comments here and we can keep the discussion going!

Here's to more connections, followers and fans!

Stand Out when you Stand Up

How often does this happen to you? You go to a networking event and one-by-one, every attendee stands up and says, "My name is Joe and I do _________". It's what everyone tends to do, so everyone follows along. If I am not in the market for _____________, Joe may have just given me permission to tune him out.


Let me give you some simple tips to help you stand out in those networking crowds.


1. Paint a mental picture. If you are a travel agent and you live in a cold climate - tell the group to imagine themselves digging their bare feet into a sandy beach. Be creative. Try different scenarios and guage the reaction.


2. Ask an interesting, interest piqueing question. Be original. If you are a financial planner, don't ask something trite, like "Who has all the money they need?" Obviously, the answer will be no one. I have a friend who is a financial planner who asks questions about planning a vacation...then at the end of her "commercial" she brings it back to how we are planning for the longest vacation of our lives, our retirement. I hope you see the difference.


3. Sell through the room, not to the room. (credit to BNI for this one) It's not usually about who you know, but who they know. If you focus on the outside of the room people, it takes the pressure off those who are actually in the room listening to you.


4. Nobody likes to be sold, but they all want to buy. For some reason, we like it when it's our idea. :-)



5. Focus on one specialty. If you focus on one thing you do for your clients, it's much easier for the people in the room to think of that one thing and someone they might know who needs that. If you have more than one business - as many people do - choose one to market.

What items would you add to this list? I've just listed a few!

Protecting Teens on Social Media

All of this media attention recently regarding Teen Suicide really has me pondering...and considering what I can do to protect my kids from not only bullying, but from the attacks that can come more subtly, like on Facebook, text messaging and gmail.

I cam to an interesting realization that may or may not ring true with other parents of teends.

Teens use facebook with reckless abandon. They post everything from how much their parents suck for making them do homework (duh!) to how much they like this person or that. While they believe they are well on their way to adulthood, they still have much to learn about life and while what they may perceive as an innocent comment in their status can easily come back to haunt them.

One of the challenges as I see it is most of them have fairly open profiles - meaning they are very easy to find and they give out far too much personal information - even to people who are not friends. And, I believe this makes them vulnerable.

I also believe than many of their parents may be oblivious to what their kids are doing on facebook at all.

Personally, we have our son's password. That doesn't mean we go snooping on a regular basis - if ever. But, we do have access to his account and if we see something as a problem, we talk to him about it and changes can be made.

We also have an 11-year-old daughter who is begging to have a facebook account. Many of her friends already do (many of those without their parents knowledge) although the "rule" is you must be 13. We have already experience bullying on gmail and cell phones and are in no hurry to enter this new realm with her.

So, what is my point in writing this at all? Children are precious and while they may feel invincible, they still need protection from time to time. I understand completely that we cannot possibly keep them from all potential hurt and harm, but there are some very simple things we can do when it comes to Social Media.

1. Be aware of what your teens are doing on Social Media - who their friends are, who and what they are talking about, etc. (a little lack of privacy now could reap rewards long into their future.)
2. Make sure their birthday does not include the year. (That is actually a good rule of thumb for all facebook users. It protects from identity theft and other online predators)
3. Change their privacy setting to allow only "friends" to see their personal information.
4. Know how to block people. If necessary, you can change their settings to block specific people from finding them at all.

Technology has made many things in our lives so much more convenient...and complex. Empowering our kids to handle their privacy through this technology will pay dividends long into the future.

You lost me at "And I also do..."

I love networking and am out meeting people on a daily basis. I love when people speak from their passion. You can see it in their faces when the talk about business. They just light up!

I recently heard someone just like that speak about a nutritional company they are a part of. They spoke from their heart as they talked about how their product benefits them and the impact it has had on the people around them. It was a fantastic presentation and the audience was engaged.

But, all of that changed (for me) when the presenter took out a piece of paper and started reading from a list of what they also do...which included everything from cleaning products, to cell phone service, to cosmetics.

How does it make you feel when someone starts listing "what they also do?" Am I alone in feeling a little put out? I would prefer to do business with someone who does one thing and does it really well than someone who tries to do many, many things.

I would love to know your thoughts as well!