As I sit here, back home in Cleveland for the holidays, I reflect on what’s been a very interesting year for me - actually, the most interesting than any in the past. I’ve learned a lot about myself, on personal and professional levels, as I’ve gone through a lot of changes this year with family, friends, and my career - with most recently, my lay off. But even with all the highs and lows, I’ve enjoyed every second of it and wouldn’t change it a bit.
There’s no hiding from it. Everywhere you go, you’re bound to hear someone talking about the recession and more specifically, the recent record breaking numbers of unemployment in the U.S. Yours truly wasn’t even recession proof - but there’s got to be some sort of light at the end of tunnel, right? Well, there’s no reason to wait until you get to the end of the tunnel. With the staggering number of people that are getting laid off, we all need to remain vigilant on what could happen and take the necessary steps to be ready if it does. (more…)
Community Manager. It’s a role that has evolved into a must-have position for any company wanting to connect on a deeper level and communicate directly with their consumers. With today’s new media technologies, it’s the perfect way to find brand advocates, solve customer issues and ultimately, build meaningful relationships. There are many qualities and skills to be had by a Community Manager and I could easily list them out myself. Instead, what better way to find what makes a CM valuable than by asking my own community on Twitter.
The first part of this short series related to one of the takeaways I had from the MarketingProfs Digital Mixer, people and the deep connections I made with many folks at the conference last week. The second takeaway that I’ll be touching on is passion.
Gary Vaynerchuk is as passionate as they come and if anyone is going to give you a kick in the butt about passion, he’s the man to do it. I’ve always watched his videos on GaryVaynerchuk.com & even on WineLibrary.tv (and I barely drink wine) and am able to take his energy from the videos and into my professional and even personal life. Seeing (and gratefully getting to speak & hang out with) him in person definitely multiplied the force of his words as I’m sure majority of the people at the keynote felt. Summing it up, he makes you want to get out and do 1,000 things. Powerful, to say the least.
A couple weeks ago, I wrote on how to pre-tackle conferences and specifically related it to the MarketingProfs Digital Mixer that took place this past week. All I can say is - WOW. The event, people and venue were simply amazing. I expected a great event in Scottsdale as MarketingProfs had a stellar line up of speakers, as well as two big keynotes by Arianna Huffington and Gary Vaynerchuk, who undoubtedly ‘brought it.’ If you’ve ever watched one of his videos, you’ll notice his passion right off the bat for what he does and how much he truly believes in his community, which leads into the biggest takeaways for me from this event; people and passion. I’ll break this up into two parts so I can better explain both.
Communities coming together to unite for/against a cause has always been prevalent in society. We’ve seen it for the O.J. Simpson case, the Elián González custody battle and the Terri Schiavo case. Those are pretty mainstream examples, but the common theme is people banding together for what they feel strongly for. The emotional connections to these cases were apparent, thus creating strong community voices for each. Tying that into the new media tools that we have now to communicate and get messages across, the scope of these communities have the possibility to multiple tenfold.
Just this afternoon, I, among thousands of others, have witnessed a similar community form before our eyes. The community is taking shape on Twitter right as we speak and is reaching out to thousands of folks across the network about a young girl, McKenzie Church (@genochurch’s daughter), who has been reported missing from her home this past weekend. The report made headway on Twitter as Rob Williams (@orangejack) tweeted an Amber Alert with a post he made on his blog. Before he and anyone else knew it, it’s been retweeted hundreds of times and is prevalant through a Twitter search and the number of results that you’ll see pouring in.
The other week, Chris Brogan had a couple of insightful (when are they not) and timely posts regarding conference etiquette, how to get the most out of them and how to overcome your shyness. For most that know me IRL, I’m a pretty outgoing, sometimes crazy/random, person. I like interacting with folks and being a part of the conversation. Translate that into a conference setting and you have the same, but also come with new challenges.
Later this month (Oct 22-23), I’ll be attending the MarketingProfs Digital Marketing Mixer in Scottsdale. I’m SUPER excited to go as there’s a ton of great speakers and tracks set up that’ll greatly benefit me and my knowledge in the social media space. The part that I’m really pumped about is meeting so many great folks I’ve connected with this past year through Twitter and Plurk.
Chris pointed out some great tips on how to handle yourself at a conference but you may be asking yourself, “What can I do before then?” About a week ago I asked my Plurk friends what their ‘best practices’ are when attending conferences. I got some great ideas through our discussion and came up with a list of things to do before heading out:
In the social media world, we talk about building community and conversations all the time. Well, Matt Harding has definitely taken it to the next level and in 42 different countries:
This amazing video shows how simple creating a community can be. It just takes is a little effort and giving people something to talk about. In this case, it was Matt spanning the globe to spread the joy of dancing.
While I was washing my car this morning, I got a little free time to reflect on my past week before a hectic and fun weekend begins as my family is coming into town later today. There were several moments during this week that have stuck with me, though.
First, to give everyone a better understanding of myself; I enjoy helping people. That simple four word statement reflects my being and outlook on life; to treat everyone that I come across with respect and care. I’m no Mother Teresa but I do believe in Karma and how you treat others will, sooner or later, have an impact on your own life.
Moment 1: I was on Twitter Tuesday morning (shocker huh). An online friend of mine that I’ve gotten to know more in the past few weeks, Reem Abeidoh, had published a great interview, that morning, with a Yelp reviewer who was threatened by a restaurant owner. For whatever reason, her blog had been marked as ’spam’ on Digg for quite awhile, subsequently no one was able to submit her story and give it the recognition that it deserved. She told me that she’d tried to contact Digg numerous times, but to no avail. I’ve spoken with Digg support in the past (with quick response, might I add) and wanted to help her out and try to get her blog unbanned. Lo and behold, with numerous emails later, we were able to get it unblocked and her post actually made it to the front page. Win-win.
Moment 1.1: Now, cut to the end of my day - I was driving home and had to get my glasses fixed because I apparently love to sleep with them on and then proceed to roll over them. I stopped by a local repair shop, ASAP Eyeglass Repair, to get it fixed while I wait. It took all but 15 minutes and I was ready to pay the guy until he stopped me and said ‘Ah, don’t worry about it!’ and handed me my glasses. Albeit a fairly cheap repair, I was caught off guard and asked him a couple times if he was sure. Nonetheless, he let me go on about my day, which left me with a smile on my face.
Moment 2: Again, I was on Twitter and began conversing with my Austin Twit buddy @LaniAR. (If you follow her, be forewarned, she is known to keep you entertained) Being in the real estate industry, she tweeted about a gorgeous home that was up for sale in the Austin area. Now, as some of you may know, I am actively looking to relocate and mentioned to her (in half-seriousness) that I’d take the house if I were in Austin. This little blurb and my explanation to her about my career plans, led her to communicate and get me in touch with local SM professionals on Twitter. I was super appreciative of her help, more than she knows. I haven’t landed a new job or anything like that, but her willingness in helping me grow my Austin network blew me away.
What’s this even have to do with social media? It doesn’t…directly. It deals with everyday life, personally and professionally. Don’t get it twisted though, this isn’t a self-help post lol - it’s merely an observation of my past week and how connecting with and helping those around me has seemingly impacted the happenings in my life.
Conversation isn’t just a way of social media, but a way of life. Conversing and actually listening to those around you, while taking action, goes a long way. Not to mention, it further builds your personal and professional relationships.
Do something good for someone this weekend, no strings attached. See how it feels!
The other week, 
