Here are my best discoveries for the first quarter of 2010 in social media for business. Actually, it’s just one incredibly valuable idea…

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The Best Sales People Aren’t Working for You (Yet)!

The best sales people don’t work at your company. Fighting words? Read on and decide for yourself.

The Internet recently marked its fortieth birthday. For the first, say, thirty-eight years, it brought us an exponentially increasing tsunami of information with one big caveat. The source of much of that information was unknown, suspect, or worse.

I recently learned that 63.2% of statistics are made up. That stipulated, it turns out that only 14% of us trust the advertising and marketing being trumpeted by businesses. Shocked that people aren’t buying as soon as they discover your website? You are among the 14%.

We know what companies’ motives are (there’s no shame in capitalism) and this makes their information, well… not necessarily objective.

On the other hand, 78% of us trust peer recommendations. Some of us probably have lying, cheating friends, but on balance, apparently they’re a good lot.

During the last two Internet years we’ve seen an explosion of social networking. What’s different is that people are using their real identities now and they’re connecting principally with people they “know”, and only when there’s bidirectional agreement. Facebook has recently surpassed 400 million members (making it the world’s third largest country), while LinkedIn is approaching 60 million business professionals. Read the rest of this entry »

Here are my best discoveries for fourth quarter 2009 in social media for business. Not every discovery necessarily originated during the quarter; that’s just when each hit my radar…

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Best Employee Training Program for Social Media

Telstra, the 40,000 employee Australian telecom company has definitely set the bar for training its employees in social media. If you don’t have the resources to go this far, at least visit SocialMediaGovernance.com and develop a policy for your company based on your favorite model (click image to read):

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Best Example of Twitter IRL (In Real Life)

Very funny but if this approximates your company’s Twitter strategy, you’re on the wrong track. FYI, this video is not embeddable (yes, that’s a YouTube option); just click the image to view it there.

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Here are my best discoveries for the month of October, 2009, in social media for business. Not every discovery necessarily originated during the month; that’s just when it hit my radar…

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Best Perspective on Negativity in Social Media

In speaking to more than 50 CEOs each month, one of the most common worries I hear is about giving voice to detractors. This post by David Cameron provides a great perspective and advice on how to handle it. The post also contains links to posts by Erik Qualman and Jeremiah Owyang on the same topic — well worth reading (click image to read):

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Best YouTube Ad of the Month (So Subtle, it’s Barely an Ad At All)

VW and their ad agency continue to innovate offline and online (click to play):

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2lXh2n0aPyw&w=600&rel=0]

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Best Advice about Using Social Media: “The Cocktail Party Rule”

Drew McLellan crafts a rule that is so simple, it’s brilliant (click image to read):

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Best Obituary: The Wall Street Journal on Email

If you’re still using email in an attempt to connect with Gen Y, read this (click image to read):

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Here are my best discoveries for the month of September, 2009, in social media for business. As I say every time, not every discovery necessarily originated during the month; that’s just when it hit my radar…

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Best Flight Safety Briefing (AKA Ad for Southwest Airlines)

In social media, it’s “PIE” that counts: (P)ersonality that’s (I)nteresting and (E)ntertaining (an old radio DJ adage). Not only will you watch, you’ll pay attention and remember Southwest:

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yiXGm_TiRVQ&feature=PlayList&p=1706F78EC592A432&playnext=1&playnext_from=PL&index=2&w=600&rel=0]

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Second Best Flight Safety Briefing Ever (AKA Ad for Air New Zealand)

Did I say that in social media, it’s all about “PIE”? To that, let me add “Authenticity”. Watch closely; very, very closely:

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7-Mq9HAE62Y&w=600&rel=0]

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101 Best Companies Ahead of the Curve in Setting Social Media Policies

Granted, this may be boring but it’s important for business leaders and HR types. After all, your Gen X and Gen Y employees now equal your Baby Boomer employees in number and we all know where that trend is heading. Now is the time to establish your internal and external social media use policies (click image to read):

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Best Blog Post I’ve Read – Social Media Requires Time Investment

“Debunking Social Media Myths” in Harvard Business Publishing (click image to read):

Be sure to read some of the other social media stories here too. This is a fabulous blog! Read the rest of this entry »

In August, I presented “Social Media for Business; Why You Need It, Why You Can’t Ignore It” to 7 Vistage CEO groups in a span of 12 business days. After a typical three-hour presentation in Philadelphia, Harry Halloran,  Chairman / CEO of several companies suggested that I publish an update each month covering the newest and most interesting for business. So here it is…

Introducing the BEST of Social Media for Business – August 2009. Not every discovery necessarily originated during the month; that’s just when it hit my radar.

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Most Compelling Case for
Social Media for Business, ASAP!

Eye-opening stats and engaging video presentation by “Socialnomics” (click to play):

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sIFYPQjYhv8&w=600&rel=0]

To build on one reviewer’s comments, Facebook may be the fourth largest country, but it’s also the poorest save for Twitter.

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Best Blog Post I’ve Read

“Should Your Business Use Twitter?” by BusinessBrief.com (click image to read): Read the rest of this entry »