Tag Archives: Social Media

Jeff Bullas’ Top 5 Posts…

Posted on September 1, 2010 by Tim Kocher| 1 Comment

I’ve sung the praises of Jeff Bullas in past posts.  If you’re not following him on Twitter, it’s your loss.  Pound for pound, it’s the best social media direction I’ve found out there.

Here is an interesting post of his from this summer.  It is from his blog readers’ perspective.  The focus is what they have found “most newsworthy and topical in the last 90 days.” 

Summary:

  1. 30 Things You Should Not Share On Social Media
  2. The 7 Secrets to Ford’s Social Media Marketing Success
  3. 20 Things You Should Share On Social Media
  4. Twitter Reveals 11 New Facts on its Traffic and Usage
  5. How To Use Twitter For Business: 5 More Incredibly Interesting Case Studies

As usual, great stuff.  Thanks, Jeff!

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If We All Had These Core Values…

Posted on August 19, 2010 by Tim Kocher| Leave a comment

While reading another fantastic blog post by Jeff Bullas  (who if you don’t follow on Twitter you must – as he highlights and summarizes some of the most interesting concepts in social media marketing today)   I ran across this summary of the 10 core values driving the online shoe retailer Zappos.  Jeff’s focus was linking these values to  ways in which social media reinforces the culture and the success of Zappos, and it’s a great post. 

I’m still just processing this list (for the first time) on a simpler level.  I am simply struck at how different these values are from most of the generic, boring, homogenized core values in corporate America.   While reading them I asked myself (and urge you to do the same) how much better would my (or any) company be if we focused on these unique values?

Have a look and let me know your thoughts.  Here is a link and the list:  

  • Deliver WOW Through Service
  • Embrace and Drive Change
  • Create Fun and A Little Weirdness
  • Be Adventurous, Creative, and Open-Minded
  • Pursue Growth and Learning
  • Build Open and Honest Relationships With Communication
  • Build a Positive Team and Family Spirit
  • Do More With Less
  • Be Passionate and Determined
  • Be Humble

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    Posted in Social Media

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    Jet (Black and) Blue Pushes Back…

    Posted on August 13, 2010 by Tim Kocher| Leave a comment

    Fresh from the front pages…

    Unless you’re dead or off the power grid, you may have heard the story of the flight attendant turned emergency-ramp-escapee Steven Slater, a huge PR fiasco for Jet Blue exploding all over the internet.

    But, as covered in a Fast Company article by David Zax this morning,  in a sign that major companies are learning to flex their new social media muscles to leverage perception in the marketplace and not just be ruled by it, Jet Blue responded in a simple blog entry that many are crediting for turning the tide on their perceived role in this mess. 

    Think of it – for virtually NO COST – and in a few pithy sentences, a major up-and-coming airline changed the prevailing winds of public perception fueled by a (albeit completely overblown) major news story.

    That’s an interesting power that did not exist even 24 months ago. 

    Please lower your tray tables, fasten your seatbelts, and prepare for takeoff…

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    Are You Doing This Yet? You should b: RT

    Posted on August 10, 2010 by Tim Kocher| Leave a comment

    Are You Doing This Yet? You should b: RT @AskAaronLee: Twitter: The New Customer Service For Businesses http://bit.ly/9s6Grp

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    Neuroeconomics – Social Networking “Feels” Like Falling in Love

    Posted on July 30, 2010 by Tim Kocher| 2 Comments

    Fresh from the July issue of Fast Company comes this fascinating article that should make all marketers think when it comes to their use of social media in their marketing mix.   Citation: This post is a direct summary of Fast Company’s excellent article by Adam L. Penenberg (who’s other work you should check out immediately).

    Paul J. Zak, a.k.a “Dr. Love,” is a professor at Claremont Graduate University who popularized “neuroeconomics,” an emerging field that combines economics with biology, neuroscience, and psychology. 

    His angle? Some best-selling behavioral economists such as Dan Ariely (Predictably Irrational) and Steven D. Levitt (half of the Freakonomics duo) ponder how we make economic decisions.  Zak wants to figure out why we do what we do.                                    

     In a word - ”Oxytocin.”

    “…Known for years as the hormone forging the unshakable bond between mothers and their babies, oxytocin is now, thanks largely to Zak, recognized as the human stimulant of empathy, generosity, trust, and more. It is, Zak says, the “social glue” that adheres families, communities, and societies, and as such, acts as an “economic lubricant” that enables us to engage in all sorts of transactions…”

     ”…Your brain interpreted tweeting as if you were directly interacting with people you cared about or had empathy for,” Zak says. “E-connection is processed in the brain like an in-person connection…”

    “…In a world of social networks, then, this much seems clear: Companies that can connect with us and raise our oxytocin levels should prosper. Those that can’t, won’t…”

    Very interesting…

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    Posted in Marketing, Social Media

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    Social Media David v. Goliath…

    Posted on May 5, 2010 by Tim Kocher| Leave a comment

    This is an excellent example of fighting a PR conflict using social media.  Who looks like the cool victim here and who looks like the big, cold corporation?  Method will even let YOU DECIDE!  Check out the microsite they stood up which includes the video above. 

    Talk about making lemonade from lemons – AND they simultaneously take on a giant competitor and reinforce their brand story!  Smart!

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    “…Dealing with Haters…”

    Posted on May 1, 2010 by Tim Kocher| Leave a comment

    Nice post in Mashable last week.  Main idea is that you can benefit from discord and negativity around your social media efforts out there as well as the positive.  Idea is from Tim Ferriss, autor of “The Four Hour Work Week.”  So, what do you do with haters?  Here are some gems from Tim: 

    “…you only need to pick your first 1,000 fans — and carefully. “As long as you’re accomplishing your objectives, that 1,000 will lead to a cascading effect,” Ferriss explains. “The 10 million that don’t get it don’t matter.,,”

    “10% of people will find a way to take anything personally. Expect it…”

    “The bigger your impact, explains Ferriss (whose book is a New York Times, WSJ and BusinessWeek bestseller), and the larger the ambition and scale of your project, the more negativity you’ll encounter…”

    The slogan “Keep Calm and Carry On” was originally produced by the British government during the Second World War as a propaganda message to comfort people in the face of Nazi invasion. Ferriss takes the message and applies it to today’s world. “Focus on impact, not approval…

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    The POTUS and PPC

    Posted on April 22, 2010 by Tim Kocher| Leave a comment

    Caught this from @EyeTraffic on Twitter…

    Dallas Lawrence of BulletProofBlog reports in Forbes.com that President Obama and his team are leveraging social media to make their case for financial industry reforms – and they’re using social media (namely PPC advertising, Facebook and Twitter) to bring it to the people.  Check out his article in Forbes.com. 

    Here’s a quote:  “…The strategy of going after Wall Street may seem obvious in a midterm election year dominated by economic concerns, but the tactics being deployed at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. are anything but–especially for issue advocates and corporate reputation managers, who have yet to fully embrace what our president and his aides learned some time ago, that the Internet is now the strategic high ground of the political battlefield, and that therefore whoever controls it controls the debate…”

    Are you more like the POTUS and team or like the “slower-on-the-uptake corporate reputation managers,” who “…have yet to fully embrace [the internet and social media]?”

    Wake up!

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    Today on LinkedIn – A New Way to Share Ideas…

    Posted on April 21, 2010 by Tim Kocher| Leave a comment

    Logged in to LinkedIn today to share a post and found a great new feature that we can all use to connect more deeply with our networks.  You can now embed links inside of your status updates to more directly communicate web content to your contacts.  Here’s a YouTube link that explains.

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    How big is Social Media?…How big is Google?

    Posted on March 17, 2010 by Tim Kocher| 1 Comment

    Big news.  I just got this from a friend at 7Summits.  According to Fast Company Magazine (a must subscribe if you don’t already), Hitwise analysis says that as of this month, “…Google lost its crown as the most-visited Web site in the U.S. last week. The new king of Web site traffic is, of course, Facebook…”  That is how important social media has become.  Just a year or two ago this would not have seemed possible.   Fast Company predicts an Ad War.  Be looking for more ads in your Facebook pages as companies start to divide their spend amongst these two giant aggregators.  How seriously are you focusing your marketing plan on either of them?

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