Is Facebook Cooking Its Own Goose?

When it comes to Facebook, I’m generally a realist. Whatever complaints I, and many others, have about the site, for now the social network is the primary way that diffuse and extended webs of casual friends, colleagues, past classmates, and the other random people we meet (and generally like) in our daily lives have to stay connected without too much effort. 

But I have to wonder when the tipping point will come.  For a few, it has already.  When Facebook changed privacy settings last month in a way that required users to opt out of rather than into privacy protection, users across the board were irritated.  A few were angry enough to delete their profiles, but most of us grumbled then made the necessary changes.

That experience wasn’t the first, however, and it has made users increasingly distrustful of Facebook and its willingness to do right by users’ privacy. As it is, I already see users disengaging from the site.  Of my friends, I would estimate that only 10% post with any regularity and I’d guess that only 25% check it regularly.  Maybe that’s because many of them are older and busy with their circle of real-life family and friends, but in all honesty, I don’t think habits differ that much with age. I’m friends with a number of former students (yes, I was an English teacher in a past life), who are in college or their early twenties, and I sense that they are on less frequently than many of my peers.  In truth, the people who seem to use it the most are in business and marketing—not just because they’re doing business all the time, but because they seem to be the only people who check the site regularly and feel interested in keeping up with how people are using it.  So, even if they’re not doing business, it is at least the cause of their regular interactions with the site.

Then yesterday the news broke that Facebook had yet again compromised its users’ privacy.  This time, it was apparently accidental—a glitch allowed users access to other members’ private information—and Facebook worked quickly to fix the problem.  But how much more will users put up with?

Despite the fact that I am a marketer and should, therefore, be among those who want to throw privacy to the wind in order to collect any and all information about people, the truth is that I am insanely private and I wince at most public displays (for myself, at least).  So while Gretel’s busy sharing all kinds of things (I’m not saying she’s oversharing, she just likes an audience and likes to entertain people with the funny/bizarre/random/interesting goings-on in her daily life.), I, on the other hand, don’t like to update my Facebook status, I mostly find Twitter irritating, and even posting to our blog can feel like putting myself out there. What can I say, I like to fly under the radar.

And I kind of thought I was alone in that.  In fact, I recently advanced my theory (in the privacy of our office, of course) that a whole generation raised by helicopter parents [who think that it’s okay to read their kids’ journals (!!!!!), eavesdrop on their phone calls, attend their job interviews, and more] actually hadn’t been raised with the same concept of privacy and therefore weren’t aware of their right to it and/or didn’t feel the same need for it as previous generations.  (Good theory, right?)

Well, it turns out I might be wrong.  I just came across a study released on April 15 by researchers at the University of California, Berkeley and the University of Pennsylvania that found that young people (18-24 year olds) are as cognizant of privacy issues as older Americans (like me and beyond).

Some of the findings (read a complete article on the study by the AP):

• Eighty-eight percent of people of all ages said they have refused to give out information to a business because they thought it was too personal or unnecessary. Among young adults, 82 percent have refused, compared with 85 percent of those over 65.
• Most people — 86 percent — believe that anyone who posts a photo or video of them on the Internet should get their permission first, even if that photo was taken in public. Among young adults 18 to 24, 84 percent agreed — not far from the 90 percent among those 45 to 54.

 

So if the generation raised on technology and by overly-involved parents still value their privacy, why aren’t they more up in arms about Facebook? And why do they continue to post embarrassing photos of themselves and their friends on a site that might just allow for lapses that would allow their parents, future employers, and who knows who else to see them?

According to researchers, a couple of factors might be worth considering.  From the AP: “Although they grew up in the digital age, young people know surprisingly little about their rights to online privacy, the study found. They seem more confident than older adults that the government would protect them, even though U.S. privacy laws offer few such safeguards.”  Furthermore, “There is also some evidence that, by virtue of their age, adolescents and young adults' brains are hard-wired toward risky behavior, the report said, citing past psychological studies.” In other words, they cede their privacy not because they want to, but because they can’t help themselves.  But only for so long…

All of which suggest that in the end the future of Facebook will likely lie with Facebook.  If Americans are actually pretty consistent about their desire for privacy, continuing breaches and lapses will likely raise hackles and drive social networkers to look for options elsewhere. In a constantly evolving digital landscape, there’s no reason to think that something even better isn’t just around the corner.  At which point, much like the friend you stop sharing personal stories with because she just can’t keep them to herself, Facebook will find itself with no secrets to share.

What Do Marketers Think? You Tell Us...

Last year, our inbound marketing partner Hubspot teamed up with our client King Fish Media and content marketing company Junta 42 for the first in a series of three studies on media and measurement. This year the three are teaming up again for the second study in this series: Social Media Usage, Attitudes and Measurability: What do Marketers Think?

Whereas the 2009 survey asked marketers about their use of custom content, the future allocation of marketing dollars, and whether they planned to ditch traditional marketing methods for shiny and new social ones, this year's survey launches from a very distinct vantage point: marketers are most definitely investing in social media. But while we may know that many companies have jumped on board, there's still a lot to learn about the usage habits, attitudes and future plans of marketers and other corporate executives.

That being the case, the questions this time around revolve around how marketers are measuring social media's effectiveness-qualitatively, quantitatively, or otherwise-as well as the design and management of their social media programs, and the different social media services/networks they're engaging with.

Needless to say, there's still a lot to learn, and we hope that with your collective feedback, they'll end up with a lot of useful information to share with you. In return for your time, Hubspot, King Fish Media and Junta42 are offering participants exclusive access to the survey for one week prior to making it available to the general public and media. The results will be compiled into an e-book format and will be supplemented by an in-depth analysis.

So, without further ado, we introduce you to Social Media Usage, Attitudes and Measurability: What do Marketers Think? Please take a few minutes to offer your insight and feedback: www.kingfishmedia.com/socialmediasurvey.

From Grain to Green: Marketing A Once-Conventional Farm

 

 

If you haven't yet heard of our grass-fed meat client, U.S. Wellness Meats, you will soon. John Wood's Missouri-based farm has been making the round on foodie blogs and in green mags (look for him in the May/June issue of Sierra!) and the meat is getting quite the rep for its gourmet taste, healthfulness and sustainability. Everyone at CVM can attest to the quality of the U.S. Wellness Meats grass-fed meat, grass-fed dairy and free range poultry. We even tried the jerky.

John was featured most recently on MediaPost's Engage:Green when yours truly wrote a post on how CVM made over U.S. Wellness Meats' image. With a little creativity, ingenuity and elbow-grease, we turned the collective of grass-fed family farms into a force to be reckoned with. Check out the original post on MediaPost here.

10 Marketing Resolutions Every Company Should Make in 2010

 

Well, here it is, practically the middle of January, and your New Year's resolutions may have already taken a beating. (Chocolate cake, anyone?) If you're searching for a way--any way--to make good on at least one set of resolutions, try making some that you have a powerful incentive to keep-resolutions for your business.

1. Make 2010 the year you and your company master the art of social media and mobile marketing. Facebook, Twitter, Foursquare and iPhone apps can be powerful ways to reach your audience--as long as you have good indications that your audience exists on each. If you're not yet active in social media, don't dive in headfirst. Figure out why you want to be on each site, and what distinct strategies and goals you have for each.* Another element to consider: whether you'll have the time and resources to devote to these, long-term. Not every company and brand needs an iPhone app. Where will you get the most bang for your social-media buck?
* May we recommend: "Going Social: 12 Key Things You Must Consider When Developing a Social Media Program for Your Business, Brands, or Clients"?

2. A corollary of #1: If you're using multi-channel marketing, make sure the content is varied and compelling on each channel. Die-hard fans will follow you to the ends of the earth (or at least to both Twitter and Facebook), but no one wants to read Twitter updates that end in "#fb." Determine who your target audiences are for each site and offer them solutions that fit their needs. United Airlines, for example, interacts with customers regularly on Twitter via special offers and air-travel advice--but United doesn't seem to have figured out what it's doing on Facebook: despite having over 13,000 fans, the company has not posted anything since setting up the fan page.

3. Social media listening. So you're on Facebook and Twitter, updating, retweeting, interacting, and generally being a rock star. Congratulations. Guess what? If you plan to treat your online activity as more than an echo chamber, you're also going to need to listen to how people respond to what you're putting out there. Monitoring what people are saying (tweeting, blogging) about your company, and tracking your company's reputation online, can be critical in positioning your business and its brands. You can do this via real-time search results from Twitter (now featured alongside Google search results), or--if you need more complex feedback--via a web-based application like Scout Labs. (Previously on CVMonologues: "Have You Searched Your Brand Recently?")

4. Online video. Take a good look at whether online video could offer a significant return on your marketing investment. One advantage? It's cheap. A Flip cam and basic editing software aren't going to break your budget. (Bloggers, take note.) Hip publishing house HarperStudio issues each of its authors a Flipcam and sends them off into the frozen tundra of the writing life with the expectation that the authors will send back video epistles chronicling their progress on that 80,000-word novel. For HarperStudio, this decision was a marketing bonanza. Whether you're an author, yacht manufacturer, or power-broker CEO, giving your customers a behind-the-scenes look at the creative processes at the heart of your business can be a serious (not to mention fun) way of connecting. Sites like Viddler and Vimeo offer a good idea of what you can accomplish.

5. Switching from website front-end matters to back-end ones: vow to take a hard look at your web analytics. Dig into yours to see what works. What content encourages visitors to visit--and linger--on your site? Which sites drive the most traffic to yours? (What's that? You don't have any web analytics, you say? Get thee to Google.)

6. Make sure your website encourages interaction with visitors--and that you're set up to support that interaction. Is your site the 2010 online equivalent of your great-aunt's living room, complete with plastic-covered lampshades? Does it say, "Look, but don't touch"? (If you're interested in changing your site from a brochure-style presentation to one that generates visits, have we got a blog post for you.)

7. Trim down. (Not you, your company.) When building a brand strategy, companies often throw everything at the wall to see what sticks. While this may work if you have endless funds and infinite hours in a day, you're probably better off honing the strongest and most cost-effective aspects of your strategy.

8. Put yourself in your customer's shoes. Since nearly every company has a presence online, the only way to distinguish your brand is through its quality (and let's assume yours is top-notch) and--perhaps more importantly--the way you treat people interested in it. Put in writing your commitment to customer service, and live it. There's a reason why the first five pages of hundreds of Google results for Zappos are full of adoring prose.

9. But that's not enough--you've got to be authentic in every interaction with customers. Could the last five people who interacted with your product or service identify what your company stands for? If not, it's time to close the gap between what you say you are, and how customers perceive you.

10. Become a trusted source of recommendations. Customers expect you to recommend your own product, of course, but demonstrating your awareness of the market can also be advantageous. Maybe the question to ask is not "How can I help my customer buy my product/service?," but "How can I help my customer?"

There you have it: 10 ways your company can kick off 2010 in smart-marketing style. Put one of these on the calendar for the next 10 business days and at the end of two weeks, you'll have formulated a clear set of online strategies that will help your business strengthen its relationships with customers and clients. Let us know what worked best for you...and, hey, are you going to eat the rest of that slice of cake?

New Study Confirms That a Shift to Social Media and Content Simply Means a Shift in Focus.

 

Need fuel to get the green light on a social media or content marketing project you've been pitching? Or maybe you're looking for backup in your plea to increase your customer retention budget. A new marketing survey conducted by King Fish Media, in partnership with HubSpot, Junta42 and Upshot Institute, might be exactly what you're looking for. (You can skip the overview and download the complete study here.)

The 2009 Survey on Marketing, Media and Measurement offers hard data that confirms our collective hunch that companies are focusing on communicating directly with existing and prospective consumers with methods made ubiquitous by the social media and content craze. At the same time, it shows that traditional advertising is alive and well...but that its usefulness is limited to certain initiatives. And if you're wondering how to gauge "usefulness" in the first place, well, the study's got an entire section on metrics and how they're being used by marketers to make important budgeting decisions.

As recently as a year ago, companies were diving into social media and content not always because they wanted to or believed it was effective, but because they thought they were supposed to. According to this study, however, nearly two-thirds of marketers-in-house and agency-believe that content from a brand or company is perceived as having the same or more value than content from a media brand. Also, they're moving dollars toward direct-touch platforms such as company Web sites and social media.

But traditional advertising does still have a part in the overall marketing mix; the difference now is that it, just like any other marketing platform, has been assigned a specific purpose(s). For instance, advertising is seen primarily as a tool for reaching prospects, but is used far less to talk to customers. Custom content and media are used by over 70% of marketers to communicate with current customers, and 70% use custom media to attract prospects. Social media is used heavily for both.

 Among the key findings of the 2009 Survey on Marketing, Media and Measurement:

• 44% of respondents' are increasing their customer retention budget over the next 12 months.
• 50% of people can't get funding for a marketing project if it doesn't have metrics built into it.
• 86% of respondents' companies are currently creating or plan to create original content for their customers and prospects in the coming year.
• 81% believe that brands and companies can create content that is as engaging and informative as content created by media companies.
• 74% feel that original content and media are most effective for generating marketing ROI.
• 70% are spending more today to reach customers and prospects directly with branded content than they did three years ago.

About the survey: The survey was created by King Fish Media and hosted online from June 15, 2009 to August 25, 2009. King Fish Media and its three co-sponsors-Hubspot, Junta42 and the Upshot Institute-attracted participants through a number of different media, including newsletter blasts, multiple blog posts, twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn and personal email invitations. The survey was completed by 230 respondents primarily split between corporate management and marketing/sales management.

To download the complete study, please visit: www.kingfishmedia.com/2009research/index.php

Social Media Is the Ultimate Focus Group. RFPs Suck. Two New Resources

Social media listening and RFPs have a lot in common. Okay, maybe not, but both are topics covered in two new incredibly useful resources--one free, one not. If you're a sales or marketing professional, a hands-on entrepreneur, or if you work in business development, take note.  

FREE E-BOOK:

Storylistening Through Social Media:
Using Narrative Techniques to Create, Measure and Optimize Social Media Programs That Ignite Meaningful Consumer Conversations

Social Media is the ultimate focus group but how can you apply what you learn online to your brand strategy?

This free e-book from Story Worldwide takes readers through a broad background of social media and ends with actionable steps your company can take to embrace the power of what they call the "mass amateurisation of publishing" (in a good way, of course).

The main takeaway from this e-book is the ammunition it gives you to introduce your brand's social media strategy (and to get the support you need to make it happen on a large scale). Here's a quick overview of the content for you:

• Audience: Those who were once voiceless now have the ability to shout.
• Influence: Your brand is perception is now in the hands of an army of strangers
• Traffic: Nurturing your community rather than detaining the uninterested.
• Case studies: Audience Generation, Customer Service, and Direct Sales
• The 4 Steps to Talking to All of Your Customers at Once:
• Listen Carefull
• Analyze What You Hear
• Join in and speak up
• Measure and Maintain

>> Download the e-book here: http://ebooks.storyworldwide.com.

 

RFPs Suck! How to Master the RFP System Once and for All to Win Big Business
By Tom Searcy

As someone who despises RFPs, I learned a ton while editing this book. (Yes, our publishing division Channel V Books published this, but I'm not cheesy enough to recommend it only for that reason. Give me some credit.)

While working on this book, we were simultaneously knee-deep in the RFP process for a huge account that we had absolutely no business bidding on. Our main objective was simply not to make fools of ourselves and Tom's book allowed us to impress the socks off of the large consumer brand we were after.

A few a-ha moments that stuck with me came from these particular lessons:

• Companies tend to spend a lot of time educating the prospect instead of giving them the tools they'll need to sell the proposed solution to their team. Yep, this is exactly what we were doing...for about the first half of our proposal. Do you know how silly we would have looked if we had gone in and wasted this company's time by teaching them a little lesson? I am so glad we didn't.
• By focusing primarily on your services, you're really just positioning yourself as a qualified contender, not as a standout. In other words, everyone bidding on the RFP can do X, Y and Z--that's why they were invited to respond. But those things are really the lowest common denominators among you and your competition. You want to set yourself apart as the one who can do all that but also A, B and C, which are things that you've identified as unique to your company and important to the prospect. By closely analyzing the RFP, you can gain this type of telling information.
• There are many RFPs that you should run, not walk, away from. All too often small businesses get overly excited about being asked to respond to an RFP from a big company. They waste tons of time and resources responding to something that is clearly just a source of free consulting for procurement. It's really not fair--you, the small company waste your limited resources on giving a large company with tons of resources free work. But, if you learn how to read between the lines, you can avoid this situation all together. Likewise, you can also figure out if the RFP is worthwhile and if you've really got a shot.

So, if you don't have the time, patience or desire to spend hours responding to RFPs that amount to nothing more than free consulting, this book is for you. Invest in a copy at Amazon or Barnes & Noble.

10 Steps to Writing an eBook for Lead Generation

If you've read this blog before, you've already realized that we like telling you what to do. A lot. This serves a few purposes. First, we get to be the bosses, something we relish. Second, you learn something, which can't hurt. And third, it establishes us as the "thought leaders" we are. You know, people who know what they're talking about. That's us. We've done everything from teaching you how to write a cover letter to explaining why LinkedIn is actually a good thing for lead generation. So now, we'll tell you how to write an ebook. A not-boring ebook.

Ebooks are a great way to give your clients, prospects or customers valuable information that's relative to your business without being promotional, bland or self-serving. As an inbound marketing tool, an e-book's main purpose is to increase site traffic and act as a source of lead and audience generation. They're essentially a savvier version of the ol' fashioned white paper and serve as a vehicle for offering your expertise to your prospects, clients or other target audiences. They also differ from white papers in that they are (or should be) less pedantic and dry. In fact, they should be basic (and interesting) enough that non-experts understand and learn from them (because, hey, experts don't need your help). And with the right mix of content, language and design, they will.

Here's how:

1. Like any undertaking in life, an ebook first demands you answer the question: What is my goal? What is your goal in writing your ebook? Clearly you want to generate leads and increase your database, but you should also have an audience takeaway goal. What impression are you trying to convey for your company, brand, or product and what response do you want from your audience? Are you looking to position yourself as the expert in your industry? Are you offering tips on a niche topic in hopes that your prospects will contact you to learn even more? Are you looking for a more interesting way of sharing your story or trying to establish your profile in the business community? Or maybe you're looking to create awareness for your brand/product in a way that is helpful to your audience rather than promotional. Knowing your objective will help you set the tone for your ebook.

2. Figure out what will be of most interest to your audience and develop an understanding of how they consume information. Remember, you aren't writing a sales manual or company promotional material; instead, you are writing to capture and engage readers. With that in mind, don't write in over-complicated jargon when things can be explained simply. If you know your target audience likes lists, charts or case studies, consider including these of immediately capturing their attention. Also, address topics that will appeal to your audience now and try to anticipate those that might be of interest in the future.

3. KISS. Keep it short, stupid. No one wants to read your 300-page ebook, and keep this in mind as you decide on a topic. Identify narrow categories and subjects that will limit the scope of your writing. Fifteen to thirty pages should be more than sufficient for most ebooks.

4. Name your ebook. Done in tandem with identifying your goals and settling on a topic, choosing a title will give your ebook some structure. You won't be tempted to go too far off message if you've already figured out your very clever title. And don't be afraid of subtitles, especially if this is a business ebook. Subtitles boost your SEO and better describe what the reader is in for.

5. Be prepared to write quality content. Yes, ebooks are downloaded for free (or in exchange for your reader's email address), but people are coming to your site for a reason. Give them the goods and show them that you're as smart as they think you are (or you want them to think you are).

6. Begin writing. Well, duh. But seriously, it's easy to get so caught up in the strategy that you're nearly paralyzed when it comes to actually starting to write. Some jumpstart ideas: It's always helpful to start your ebook off with a story or anecdote that is relevant to what the reader came to read. Stories grab the reader more readily than a business-speak introduction and can serve to humanize the author or company. Another one? Start in the middle with the chapter or subsection that is clearest in your mind. It's easy to get hung up on the perfect opener, but it might make more sense to come back around to it once you have more of the book written.

7. Keep the tone light. Remember that your goal is to connect with members of your audience, so don't use a tone that distances you from them. This doesn't mean you have to be folksy or slangy, it just means writing in an accessible, open, and somewhat conversational way. For inspiration, check out some of the blogs that are most popular with your target audience. This will give you a good sense of the writing style they enjoy and help you hit the right note.

8. Hire an editor. Though an ebook may not seem as "official" as a white paper, you want to be sure to edit it thoroughly. A professional editor can check for consistency of tone, grammatical errors and anything else that might make your reader dwell more on the writing than the content.

9. Design. E-book design is just as important as--and sometimes even more so than--ebook copy. A text-heavy, badly-designed ebook is likely to turn off your online readers, who have grown accustomed to stimulating, interactive online content. In order to engage them, look to a professional designer to establish the look of your ebook. Some important tips: Put your ebook in landscape, rather than portrait, format, make good use of graphics and images in addition to the text, and don't try to pack too much text onto any given page.

10. Add a Creative Commons license to your finished ebook to let your audience know that they can share your copyrighted material.

Now your e-book is done and ready to go up on your site. But wait... One final question.... Do you want to generate leads with your new ebook?

If so, include a form on your site that readers can fill out with their hard-to-get contact information like name, email address and company. You may even want to ask a question about your readers' top concerns or interests so you can get a more complete sense of how to better serve your audience.

If you'd prefer that your work of genius go viral, eliminate all barriers to entry (like forms or large file sizes) and make the ebook as accessible as possible. Links to the ebook should be clean and simple.

Either way, you should promote your ebook anywhere and everywhere that you can. Tweet about it, post it on Facebook, share it with your LinkedIn groups, blog about, and send it out to your established network. Exchange links with bloggers in your field to access their networks.

Now pat yourself on the back for your completing (and promoting) your first ebook. Well done!

Online Brand Complaints: Accountability or Entitlement?

I am a shockingly lazy consumer.

Well, not really, but the Internet can really make me start to feel that way. I don't, for the most part, blog/comment on/tweet about my brand experiences. I rarely am so moved in any direction that I'm motivated to contact customer service. Before the dawn of the web (or at least the dawn of a truly interactive web), I can think of only one time when I actually bothered to go out of my way (in this case to complain): On a flight to Caracas, American Airlines lost -- for three (3!) days -- my backpack with all of my clothing and camping equipment, basically ruining all of my carefully-laid vacation plans. I had to pay for a hotel in Caracas for two nights and cancel an entire leg of my trip, but never received so much as an apology from AA, let alone any reimbursement for my expense. When I got home, I sent a long, ranting -- though very articulate, if I do say so myself -- letter to the airline and had a long, ranting  -- a lot less articulate, if I do say so myself -- phone call with some random AA customer service rep. And I got exactly nowhere. Not one to make taking on companies for bad service my life's mission, I ended up letting the whole thing drop. (Though clearly I still have some unresolved issues since I got annoyed just thinking about the whole thing again. Damn you, American Airlines!)

Now with social media, blogs, and even the ability to easily design an entire blog/website dedicated to bashing a company, it seems like it's become a whole lot easier to take dissatisfaction to a whole new level. Which is why I often feel lazy. Even when I'm really annoyed, I might put out a feeble Tweet vaguely conveying my frustration, but I'm unlikely to do much in the way of wave-making. Partly because, in the end, I feel like I have bigger fish to fry, and partly because I feel weird about closely intertwining my personal identity with complaining -- and about a product/service no less. I mean, if I'm going to use space to complain, maybe I should take up things like the toxic swill in my neighborhood (I live near the Gowanus Canal) or advocate for social issues that really matter. There's something that starts to feel really cheap to me about using my voice and the little online capital I have to complain about not being treated respectfully by a flight attendant or about getting fat on my skinny latte. Obviously, companies are answerable to consumers and they should be held accountable for bad service or shoddy products, but it can start to feel like a lot of entitlement when people make a habit of complaining. And sometimes it feels suspiciously like people are angling for some special treatment -- a gift certificate, an upgrade -- rather than really venting about something that is a legitimate grievance.

So here's the real point of this post -- a question (and one that I don't necessarily know the answer to -- shocking, I know...):

Where is the line between accountability and entitlement? And how accountable should brands be, especially now that just about anyone can do some damage with a little time and a computer?

I am genuinely curious about the line between using social media, networks and communities:

• to hold companies accountable for shoddy products and services, misguided marketing campaigns, or offensive or exploitive practices, and

• to complain incessantly -- and very publicly -- about the littlest inconveniences, to make unfair and excessive claims in the hope of getting something free.

Thoughts? Anyone, anyone?

My new lead generation-fueled love affair with LinkedIn

 

There was a time—not too long ago—when I firmly believed that LinkedIn was just one big job-seeking and networking love fest. And if you've been reading this blog for a while, you know our collective feelings about business people "networking" (in the most traditional and nauseating sense), and that this isn't something I say fondly.

But recently the tides have changed, and I've become somewhat of a LinkedIn junkie. What changed? I discovered how active the community there really is, the quality of the discussions and the incredible amount of traffic and leads it was bringing to our clients. Yep, LinkedIn is an inbound marketing machine. (Did I really just say inbound marketing machine? Oy.) I only wish it hadn't taken me three years of using it to figure it out.

But first, to clarify, I don't believe that "So and so sent me a message on LinkedIn and now we're talkin' business" qualifies as a case study on using LinkedIn for lead generation. The event must be uniquely limited to the platform at hand, whereas in that example, the same thing could have easily happened over email (or Facebook, or Twitter, or...you get it). Now, if the person got a hold of you on LinkedIn because they happened to see your contribution to a discussion in a group there, or arrived as one of your shared connections, well, that's another story altogether.

Anyway, I'll cut to the chase and tell you a few ways we've used LinkedIn to generate leads and other business opportunities for ourselves and for clients.

"Answers"
Obviously one of the great (and sometimes, not so great) things about social networks is that people can emerge (or just pose) as experts in their industries. Given a soapbox, many people will use it to spew advice or request it, and that's exactly what happens in the Answers section on LinkedIn. People in your network post questions-provocative, thought-provoking or purely inquisitive-and other users answer them. Of course, many of these questions can lead to opportunities, whether you present yourself as an expert by starting an engaging conversation, or if you provide someone with a solid answer (or point them toward another source who will offer them that answer) and start the dialogue that way.

We've used the Answers section several times to connect our clients with opportunities. For example, we were able to get Bank of America's Annual Report (produced by our client Story Worldwide) featured in the book The Writer's Guide to Annual Reports by Robert Roth. We've also used it to secure speaking engagements, radio interviews and identify business opportunities.

Still others, as pointed out in an article by Copyblogger, use Answers to identify sources for articles they're writing, which could mean media coverage for you...especially if you're in a niche industry where experts are hard for journalists to track down.

Groups
There are thousands of active groups on LinkedIn and I guarantee there are at least a handful that cater to your interests (whether work-related or personal). I currently belong to nine groups, and have elected to get a daily digest (email) of the day's activity from about five of them since I, like many people, don't have the time to hang out on LinkedIn all day to see what's being discussed. These groups and digests are not only a great way to keep up with relevant conversations; they're a great way to get your conversations out there.

I first realized this when our client at Hunt Big Sales posted a link to his e-book Landing Big Sales with an RFP into one of his active groups. Within two days, he got 300 downloads (or leads) from simply making the book known to this one group. Considering his book requires a registration (albeit a free one), this was a welcome outcome.

Needless to say, when we launched our new e-book last week, we took our audience generation campaign over to our LinkedIn groups (as well as Twitter, Facebook and other outlets). And as expected, 49% of our downloads so far have come from these groups.

The Obvious: Connecting with people you don't know
There are a few ways to use LinkedIn in the general networking sense. My favorite example of using LinkedIn to generate new business comes from our partners over at Hubspot. Hubspot allows you to collect information about your leads when they download your thought leadership content (such as e-books, research, white papers, etc.). One of their clients noticed that Bank of America* was particularly active on their site, so they headed over to LinkedIn to attempt to make a subtle and professional connect with the person at hand. As it turns out, by simply opening the floor to further conversation by making this connection, the company was able to secure Bank of America as a client. And not just any client—the biggest client in the company's history.

Of course, this doesn't mean you should just begin connecting to people who you want to work with and start pitching/stalking them. It means you should integrate LinkedIn into your overall sales strategy. After all, because of its professional nature, people are more open to talking shop here than they are on, say, Facebook. There's also something more appealing about receiving a business inquiry over LinkedIn than by email. People, including myself, tend to feel a bit violated when they get a random pitch in their inbox. Email is becoming the 21st century's cold call...and we all know how popular cold calls are.

Updates & Applications
You'll hear a lot of people telling you to stick to just one or two social media platforms. Our philosophy is to use as many (or as few) platforms as necessary to connect with the entirety of your audience. Basically, you need to be where your audience is. And if you make that commitment, whether to one platform or several, you need to do it right. On LinkedIn this means taking advantage of their newish applications, such as posting an RSS feed to your company or personal blog, and sharing presentations with slideshare, as well as posting regular updates and making sure to flesh out your profile as much as possible to show your qualifications, etc. You want to make sure that when people do find you and/or connect with you, you offer them as much ammunition as possible to start a dialogue with you. This may not be your first choice in platforms, but if this is the only place you're going to be found by a certain portion of your target audience, well then, put a little bit of effort into it.

Okay, are you still with me? If so, thanks for reading my coffee-fueled dribble and feel free to connect with me over at LinkedIn...

*This example is unrelated to the previous Bank of America example. Just a coincidence...

New e-Book: "GOING SOCIAL..." Developing a Social Media Program for Your Business, Your brand or Your Clients

 

 

We're just as sick of reading about social media as everyone else out there, but despite all of the available literature, we can't help but notice that people are still in need of some serious coaching in this space...

In our new (and free) e-book—GOING SOCIAL... 12 key things you must consider when developing a social media program for your business, your brand, or your clients—we set out to answer the following question once and for all:

What's so difficult about social media anyway?

The short answer? The "social" part...

Look strictly at the traditional offerings of the different types of marketing agencies out there, and it's quickly apparent that it's more than hierarchy and bureaucracy making it difficult for traditional marketing agencies (or even in-house marketing departments) to roll out their "social media programs." It's the fact that they have to reorganize and learn new skills in order to offer something they've never offered before.

In this glorious e-book, you will learn:

Why bad social media happens to good brands

What it takes to get noticed

The unique functions of social media

Where social media falls in the traditional marketing mix

The difference between a social media campaign and a social media program

And, as promised, 12 things you must consider when creating a social media program for your brand, company or clients:

1. Audience Identification
2. Platform Development & Design
3. Brand Campaign Integration
4. Content Creation/Coordination
5. Goal Mapping
6. Brand Identity/Purity
7. Audience Generation
8. Social Media Listening
9. Community & Social Responsibility
10. Internal/External Community Engagement & Response
11. Brand Advocacy
12. Customer Service

Did we mention that it's glorious? Also, beautifully designed and accessible. Ahem.

Download Now!