In my previous blog post, I told you my personal story of the natural human behavior to hunt for a bargain.

Bargains are a powerful customer magnet, but may cause a heart attack for the business owner, if not done correctly.

Groupon has capitalized on that psychology, BIG TIME!

After all, they were at one point (and probably still is) the fastest growing company EVER. Period. Yes – faster than Amazon, or Google or Microsoft. (Although, I don’t know how it stacks up against Apple’s recent growth spurt.)

Groupon makes it convenient for the small business owner  to transition from the printed medium to an electronic format. Then they added a unique twist: leveraging the herd mentality.

People find comfort in numbers. When they see other people behaving a certain way, the immediate impression is: “Hey, don’t forget about me. I wanna get in, too.” In other words, the wannabee syndrome.

So if you haven’t even thought about Groupon for your business, you’re missing BIG TIME!

6 Coupon Mistakes To Avoid

However, if you’re ready to jump into the bandwagon either for the 1st time or the 99th time, here are 6 mistakes to avoid in the coupon craze.

1. Not offering any coupon at all

It’s basic human nature to gravitate towards a deal. It doesn’t matter whether it’s a free consultation, a free refill, or a $1 sweepstakes for a brand new house. When you make an offer, you automatically touch your prospects’ subconscious hot buttons.

The only reason NOT to do this, is when customers are lined up in front of the door, and you DO NOT want any more new business.

2. Not tracking coupon results

Tracking can be as simple as counting how many coupons were redeemed. I advise my clients at least 2 things:

• Dig down to the bottomline: return on investment. Understand the specific costs and revenues generated by the campaign.
• Experiment with at least 2 different offers at any time, and statistically determine which one brings in more feet inside your door.

3. Not using social media

Social media marketing is the electronic version of word-of-mouth marketing - the most effective method to attract new clients.

Furthermore, that confidence is turbo-boosted when they see their friends (or even acquaintances), among the crowd of patrons.

This is what makes the night and day difference between printed coupons from the postal mailbox vs. the coupons that are circulating online. Twitter followers see their Facebook friends, and Google Circles buying these coupons.

Note: Don’t forget about other platforms, like Yelp, UrbanSpoon, OpenTable or even LinkedIn.

4. Not obtaining customer contact information

In my opinion, this is the biggest mistake that biz owners make when they use Groupon.

The whole point of a coupon is to attract new people with a magnetic offer – and then hope that they will come back again, ready to pay full price.

How do you get customers back? I don’t recommend that you leave this to chance. Owners should have a proactive strategy.

Are you going to hypnotize them with your charming personality during their first visit? Well, you better!

But that’s just the beginning. You need to capture their contact information and later gently remind them occasionally, of how truly charming you are.

There are a few options for contact info: Facebook fan, Twitter follower, email, home address or mobile phone (for text messaging).

5. Not following up

This is the whole point of point #4 above; so capitalize on that valuable contact you just obtained.

Here is a common concern I hear a lot from biz owners: spamming their customers.

Technically, spam is an unsolicited offer. Obtaining contact information in Step 4 above is implied permission, but it’s always best to tell your customers what you intend to do with the information.

Psychologically, spam is in the eyes of the beholder. If you have an unattractive offer, you are perceived as spam, even though the customer explicitly grants permission.

On the other hand, an irresistible offer is always welcomed with OPEN ARMS, even among strangers that you have truly spammed.

Here’s the secret: people want to buy, but they do not want to be sold to.

There’s an art in making an offer, and there’s a science to making it effective.

6. Not taking ownership of the coupon campaign

Groupon is a great way to jumpstart your online adventures, but I wouldn’t recommend that you rely on them forever. 75% is expensive!

Ideally, a biz owner should plan on running their own in-house electronic coupons.

Realistically, I understand that most owners do not have the time to manage these campaigns. This is where automation tools and 3rd party consultants (like myself ), can help the overwhelmed owner, to strike a balance, and control their own business destiny.

Conclusion

Just do it, before your competition does. If they get an early lead on you, it’s like starting the race with an uphill climb.

Today is always the best day to get started.

Do you know anyone still using this? Seriously?

I just got off the phone talking to a potential client.

He was the first one to admit that he’s been throwing away $500 monthly on advertising costs for the phone book. He realizes that new business leads have been steadily dwindling not only from the phone directory, but also from the traditional newspapers, and even radio.

He wants to take his business to the next level, but he didn’t know how to start. Actually, he thought that reviving his website might be the way to go, and that’s why he wanted to talk to me in the first place.

However, the reality is that in today’s ever-changing world, the website may no longer be the marketing hub for the small business owner. Depending on their target audience, it’s more likely to be Google Places and/or Facebook.

Here’s a case in point.

I was with my wife shopping, and she was looking for a quality pair of walking shoes in the Spokane Valley. I’m not going to disclose the name of the store, but we’ve decided to get a pair of Merrell shoes. It was quite expensive, but we both agreed that it’s worth it at $90 retail.

However, at the back of my mind, I was thinking that there must be a seller out there who’s willing to give us a discount; even 10% would be worth it.

So I pulled up my Android smartphone, and fired up the Google maps application. I entered “Merrell shoes” in the search box … and wallah!

A store’s name came up, and it was within a mile from where we were. Their phone number was already there, so I simply clicked and within a few seconds I was talking to a salesperson. I gave the specific shoe model, color and size that my wife wanted.

She said, “Yes, we do have it, and it’s actually on sale for $45. Would you like me to hold it for you?”

HOLD IT FOR ME!!!!!????? For $45!!!??? I was just about to pay full price for that exact one.

Well, I tried to contain my excitement, and played a little bit hard to get .  I asked the lady what time they were going to close, and simply said that we’ll be there before the end of the day.

To make a long story short, we got there (within 5 minutes), and my wife saved $45 – thanks to Google’s Android.

Maybe if you look closely enough, you might see the $55 discounted price.

But that’s not the end of the story.

A pair of men’s Merrells caught my eye. To my amazement, it was also 50% off at $55.

In the end, I ended up also buying the shoes for myself, and together, my wife and I saved $100 within a span of 30 minutes. That’s the kind of shopping I get excited about!

Needless to say, the store was also very happy about it.

This story may not be mainstream YET here in Spokane. But you know it’s coming.

Actually, it’s more likely to be the norm today for bigger cities like Seattle or San Francisco.

Are you there yet?

As I look back at my failures and successes this past year, as well as the advise from my business coaches, I’d like to summarize the 5 biggest mistakes I did at about this time last year.

But before we get to that, let’s put it in perspective.

2010 has been a fantastic year. As some of you might know, I just arrived in the local business scene in December 2009, when I first offered my Twitter 101 classes. Since then, I have expanded to:

• conduct over a dozen workshops on social media marketing,
• connect with an audience of over 500 attendees, and
• reach an almost equal number of people, while networking at Launchpad, the Valley Chamber, Greater Spokane, the CDA Chamber, SCORE, LeTip, as well as the Filipino-American Association.

Although I’ve been working on internet marketing projects since 2005, they were mainly focused on search engine optimization (SEO) for national marketing campaigns.

I was a virtual unknown in the Spokane business community. Heck, when I first joined the Chamber, I didn’t even know what chambers did!

So here they are: “my bad!”. (Fortunately, I’ve been able to make a course correction very, very early.)

1. Not Defining Success

Even though I’ve been marketing on the internet for 5 years, my business is a start-up for all intents and purposes in the Spokane market. My clients’ business models are different; their understanding of internet marketing is different.

Given that, it’s very easy to fall into the trap of identifying financial goals. So let me pose a different way of thinking.

Recently, I met with a prospective client who got it right. He also just started his business full-time in 2010. He had ambitious, but realistic and very specific definitions of success: he just wanted to “plant the seeds”.

In his case, he went on to make sales calls to show what solutions he has to offer. (Note: There is a distinct difference between a product and a solution.) As a result, he was very successful introducing himself to key organizations, so he looks forward to reap his financial rewards in the coming year.

He’s also thinking ahead: he needs help in planting new seeds, specifically in the online world.

In my case, I went planting seeds both in online and offline social networking. (Being voted as Launchpad’s first ever Member of the Year was a heartwarming surprise measure of success for me.)

The same concept applies to non-startups. Even if you’re a young 5-yr venture, or a mature 50-yr old business, you will have some kind of innovative project that you’ve never done before.

(And if you’re not innovating, then your business is dying – but that’s another story.)

Guess what? You need to plant seeds in your marketplace to successfully introduce your innovation.

So what seeds are you going to plant for your business, and how many are you going to plant?

2. Undervaluing Business Partnerships

My biggest mistake here is not doing enough – not in quantity, but in quality.

Right from the beginning, I knew that I had to establish very good relationships with a select few organizations. Needless to say, it had to be mutually beneficial. Some of these key partnerships are:

• Chris Tornquist from ITT Tech has become a good friend – allowing me to hold my seminars and workshops at their beautiful facilities in the Spokane Valley.
• Sandra McNett, Coralie Myers, Billie Moreland and David McKenzie (all from SCORE), were all instrumental in helping me reach an audience to get started from nothing.
• Bill Kalivas and Allen Battle (Launchpad), supported me as I shared their philosophy of the hybrid online/offline networking.
• Jim Munro, ActionCoach,  who’s early vote of confidence – did boost my confidence!

These are all very healthy relationships, but I feel that I could have done better, had I given more time and attention.

BTW, I hate mentioning names, because I can easily overlook one other person – but all of the above people were really instrumental in 2010.

3. Not Giving Priority to Marketing

I spent my time and energy on marketing my business in one year,  more than the previous 50 years combined. (That may sound like an exaggeration, but it really isn’t.)

Nevertheless, it wasn’t nearly enough of what it should have been. The ideal number is that 60% of resources should be allocated to marketing – which applies to other businesses as well – not just mine.

Here’s what I’ve been advising my clients:

The first priority of any business is to keep the marketing pipeline full. Delivering the product, believe it or not, is 2nd priority.

I’m not suggesting that you sacrifice product delivery to get more customers.

Instead, what I’m saying is that businesses should fulfill their promises, and then turn around to spend MORE time and energy to attract more people to their door.

4. Offering A Product The Customer Does NOT Want

In the beginning, I was trying to find a customer for my service. I learned very quickly (as in a few weeks), to do the opposite. I needed to determine what my target customers want, and then offer the service to satisfy that want.

More specifically, I’m talking about search engine optimization (SEO). This is the technical process of placing a website at the top of the search engine results: Google, to be more exact.

Unfortunately, the Spokane business culture, as a general rule of thumb, does not yet appreciate the value of SEO marketing.

So I adjusted my approach, and focused on social media marketing. Why? Because whenever I meet people, they would ask me questions about Facebook and Twitter, instead of Google and Yahoo.

There was a huge hunger – so that’s what I fulfilled, which leads me to the next lesson…

5. Selling Instead of Marketing

“No matter what your product is, you are ultimately in the education business.” ~ Robert Allen

(Note: Robert Allen was one of my early influencers decades ago, when I first started in the real estate business.)

This is probably the single biggest mistake that I have observed from businesses who are ‘dabbling’ in social media.

All they ever talk about is: “BUY MY STUFF!”, even though they’ve not established any relationships at all.

If you think about, the only time a person gives up their wallet in exchange for your product, is when TRUST is established.

Sometimes, that trust may not be 100%, but it’s sufficient enough to give up their hard-earned dollars for the solution that you’re offering.

You see, education is the perfect vehicle to establish that trust. The more you educate, the more trust is developed.

Your prospect gets to know you, and what your values are;  they get to like you and they get to like your product.

Once that trust is established, then the sale is a forgone conclusion. Marketing is really all about education.

What Lessons Have You Learned?

If we fail to understand why we failed or succeeded, then we’ll never succeed in the long run.

Feel free to leave your thoughts below, and engage in the new order of social media conversations.

In this video, Google CEO Eric Schmidt, declares a gigantic shift in their business strategy: “Mobile First”.  He talks about 3 converging technologies driving their decision:

1. The computing power of the handheld device.
2. The increase in capacity of communication channels.
3. The collective processing capability of the internet (cloud computing).

Are you taking advantage of the widespread availability of the smartphone to expand your business?

Keep in mind that this video was recorded about 10 months ago, and they were showing a few amazing capabilities back then:

• language translation
• speech recognition
• video search

Well, they’re still amazing today. The difference is, it is literally in the palm of your hand already.

Note: Click the title of this post, if you don’t see the video in the multimedia box on the top left (It’s worth watching the first 3 min).

Technology has made leaps and bounds, within less than 20 years of the internet’s recent history. Here’s a short historical perspective:

Web 1.0 (1991 – 2003) – the initial incarnation of the internet, where the flow of information was one way. People surfed the web, and they can only read information, limited by whatever the websites were telling them.

Web 2.0 (2004 – present) – the interactive internet. Visitors have a 2-way exchange of information with the websites they visit. They contribute content, and they provide feedback. YouTube was the first obvious example, where all the videos are provided by the users. Today, Facebook is the biggest example, with a mixed bag of text, photos, audio and video materials.

Web 3.0 (20??) – the “semantic” internet, where computers will understand the meaning or semantics of information. The smartphone will be a major contributor. Real-time language translation is one significant example of the semantic internet: you speak English on your cell phone, and it automatically translates to Mandarin for a Chinese businessman in Beijing. We’re not quite there yet, but it will come sooner rather than later.

Shop Savvy, in my opinion, is another practical example. You scan the product code of an item on the grocery shelf; it then compares the prices for the same (or similar) item, from other stores that are nearby. This becomes practical because of the built-in GPS on the mobile phone. (Note: This technology is NOT quite working ideally yet here in Spokane, because of the limited database of items to compare. It is more reliable in the bigger cities of San Francisco and New York.)

In conclusion, the mobile phone will revolutionize (yet again, even as the last revolution just started!), our day to day lives. Change is coming whether we like it or not, and as business people, we need to adapt and serve our customers in new ways.

What are you doing to move forward? Or what is stopping you from taking the next step?

Nokia3650 - Circa 2005

Right before Thanksgiving, I finally made the plunge to retire my antiquated phone of 5 years.

After waiting patiently for the past 1-2 years, the time has arrived: technologies have converged, the price is right, and more importantly, the consumer market is here.

Chances are, you either have an iPhone, a Blackberry, or an Android device. Or if you’re even feeling lucky, maybe you have an iPad.

(BTW, if you don’t really need an iPad right now, DO NOT put it in your Christmas wishlist.  Wait for the 2nd generation sometime in the Spring.)

If you don’t have any of the above, then your target customer will probably have a smartphone, especially if they’re younger.

The fact is, about 30% of US mobile phones are smart; they’re as capable as your laptop computer. More importantly, market penetration is rapidly on the rise.

Millions of consumers are out on the street, looking for your product or service, on the internet, using their mobile device.

Wouldn’t you like these people to find you?

Take a picture of this QR code, using your smartphone's Barcode Scanner

Let’s take it one step at a time, and for today, let’s talk about Quick Response (QR) codes.

Do you see an image of my business card in the top left side of this blog post? (If not, click the title of this post.) The QR code is the black and white checkered square on the upper right hand corner of the card.

If your mobile phone has a camera, then it most likely will have a bar code scanner. If not, download a free application from the App Store or Android Marketplace.  Blackberry, Windows and Nokia Symbian phones should also have their own scanners.

Now go ahead and scan the QR code on my business card, right from your computer screen.

What do you see? Magically, you have now obtained my contact information: name, phone number, email, web address, etc.

On an Android device, you have 3 options:

1. Save the contact info
2. Call me on my phone
3. Send me an email

Isn’t that cool? No more manual data entry!

So now you ask, “How do I get that QR code on my business card?”

Go to http://snapmyinfo.com/vcard/ to create your own QR code. (Note that it is in vCard format;  you can import it to your Outlook database.)

Download the generated image, and take it to your business card vendor. Or print it on a sticker, and stick the QR code on your phone.

So next time you go to a social networking event, offer your own QR code, instead of physically exchanging business cards. Sooner than you may think, this is going to be the new way of meeting people.

How else can we use this?

Create QR codes for your brick-and-mortar store location.

If you own a restaurant, for example, print a QR code for your web page that displays your menu. Post it by your door.

As people pass by, they can scan the code, and look at your specials from their phone.

But maybe they’re in a rush to get to a boutique store, right before it closes. So they quickly scan your QR code, and then immediately head over next door to buy that dress on sale.

QR codes can pack a lot of valuable information for your customer – including engaging video!

Would a video help you sell more?

With your menu in their phone, they can look it over while waiting in line to pay for the dress they just bought.

Even better, what if you have a video of your sizzling steak, to go along with your menu descriptions?

And speaking of payments, do you know that you can also print QR codes to enable your customer to pay via Paypal or as a debit from your bank account? This is more secure than your credit card.

Mobile payments can eventually take the place of credit and debit cards. PortaPayments is an example of a payment processing application for Android devices.

This is a lot easier than you think.

Think of the QR code just like a picture. The difference is, you don’t have to pose for the camera, and worry about your hair.

Just enter your information. Click the button. Get the QR image. Download it. Print it in your business card. Hang it on your door. Post it on your website.

Use it like any other picture – cut and paste simplicity!

QR codes are just the beginning. It’s easier than you think, so don’t get intimidated. Get your feet wet in mobile marketing.

So what do you think? Leave your comments or questions below.

AT&T, Twitter and Domino’s all have something in common with Josh Wade.

But before we get in to that, let’s talk about their differences first.

• AT&T has horrible customer service (you can check Consumer Reports, but I also have my own ‘inside sources’).
• Twitter still doesn’t really have a solid business plan; i.e. it doesn’t know what it wants to be when it grows up.
• Domino’s Pizza was started with just $500 (business success does not necessarily require a lot of start-up capital).
• Josh Wade – well, who is he? Just a few months ago, he didn’t really have any business at all.

Now let’s look at what’s behind that one common thing that their respective competitors are jealous about:

• AT&T has an exclusive lock on the Apple iPhone (but not for long anymore).
• Twitter defined micro-blogging or instantaneous mass communication.
• Domino’s continues to “deliver fresh hot pizza in 30 min or less – or it’s free”.
• Josh was smart enough to capitalize on social media.

So what is that these 4 parties have in common?

They all have raving fans – eager to hand out their wallets, inspite of their respective shortcomings.

Where is Josh Wade in all of this?

Maybe you don’t know him; but he went from zero to celebrity in the local Spokane wine circle in less than 1 year – without a ton of money.

You see, Josh had a brilliant approach to business: why not develop your customer base BEFORE opening up the business?

In this recorded phone interview, I asked Josh to spill the beans.

Josh Wade interview – 30 min

Executive Summary

• When Josh was layed off a few years ago, he dreamed about opening a wine and coffee bar, but temporarily shelved the idea when he was rehired.
• Then on a plane trip to Las Vegas in Nov 2009, Josh picked up a book Crush It! by Gary Vaynerchuck, which turned out be THE inspiration for him.
• He learned about the concept of personal branding, and the principles behind social media:
  • Content is King (the more the better)
  • Relationships are Queen (develop trust: stay away from selling)
• He brilliantly concluded: “When I open a business someday, if a hundred people know who I am, I’ll be better off, than if I open a business when nobody knew who I was.”
• Josh loves writing, so engaging in the social media communities is a creative outlet for him, especially since he’s passionate about the subject.
• He taught himself mainly by observing and watching other successful people who are actively engaged in social media.
• Twitter is an easier avenue to grow a global audience, but he used Facebook to target local people.
• The true ROI of social media: use it to engage with your customers. This increases the chances of success.

Business Update

• Spokane Wine Magazine is going into print as this blog post is published.
• The Nectar Tasting Room will be opening its doors in a few weeks.
• For the latest information, check out www.NectarWineBlog.com

Note: Today I digress from the usual business or techie stuff that I blog about. A good friend of mine sent me this story from Idaho, and I decided to scatter it all over the social media sphere. My friend asked me to forward this, so here it is …

I was at the corner grocery store buying some early potatoes… I noticed a small boy, delicate of bone and feature, ragged but clean, hungrily apprising a basket of freshly picked green peas.

I paid for my potatoes but was also drawn to the display of fresh green peas. I am a pushover for creamed peas and new potatoes.

Pondering the peas, I couldn’t help overhearing the conversation between Mr. Miller (the store owner) and the ragged boy next to me.

‘Hello Barry, how are you today?’

‘H’lo, Mr. Miller. Fine, thank ya. Jus’ admirin’ them peas. They sure look good.’

‘They are good, Barry. How’s your Ma?’

‘Fine. Gittin’ stronger alla’ time.’

‘Good. Anything I can help you with?’

‘No, Sir. Jus’ admirin’ them peas.’

‘Would you like to take some home?’ Asked Mr. Miller.

‘No, Sir. Got nuthin’ to pay for ‘em with.’

‘Well, what have you to trade me for some of those peas?’

‘All I got’s my prize marble here.’

‘Is that right? Let me see it’ said Miller.

‘Here ’tis. She’s a dandy.’

‘I can see that. Hmm mmm, only thing is this one is blue and I sort of go for red. Do you have a red one like this at home?’ the store owner asked..

‘Not zackley but almost.’

‘Tell you what. Take this sack of peas home with you and next trip this way let me look at that red marble’. Mr. Miller told the boy.

‘Sure will. Thanks Mr. Miller.’

Mrs. Miller, who had been standing nearby, came over to help me.

With a smile she said, ‘There are two other boys like him in our community, all three are in very poor circumstances. Jim just loves to bargain with them for peas, apples, tomatoes, or whatever.

When they come back with their red marbles, and they always do, he decides he doesn’t like red after all and he sends them home with a bag of produce for a green marble or an orange one, when they come on their next trip to the store.’

I left the store smiling to myself, impressed with this man. A short time later I moved to Colorado, but I never forgot the story of this man, the boys, and their bartering for marbles.

Several years went by, each more rapid than the previous one. Just recently I had occasion to visit some old friends in that Idaho community and while I was there learned that Mr. Miller had died. They were having his visitation that evening and knowing my friends wanted to go, I agreed to accompany them. Upon arrival at the mortuary we fell into line to meet the relatives of the deceased and to offer whatever words of comfort we could.

Ahead of us in line were three young men. One was in an army uniform and the other two wore nice haircuts, dark suits and white shirts…all very professional looking. They approached Mrs. Miller, standing composed and smiling by her husband’s casket.

Each of the young men hugged her, kissed her on the cheek, spoke briefly with her and moved on to the casket. Her misty light blue eyes followed them as, one by one; each young man stopped briefly and placed his own warm hand over the cold pale hand in the casket. Each left the mortuary awkwardly, wiping his eyes.

Our turn came to meet Mrs. Miller. I told her who I was and reminded her of the story from those many years ago and what she had told me about her husband’s bartering for marbles. With her eyes glistening, she took my hand and led me to the casket.

‘Those three young men who just left were the boys I told you about.

They just told me how they appreciated the things Jim ‘traded’ them. Now, at last, when Jim could not change his mind about color or size……they came to pay their debt.’

‘We’ve never had a great deal of the wealth of this world,’ she confided, ‘but right now, Jim would consider himself the richest man in Idaho ..’

With loving gentleness she lifted the lifeless fingers of her deceased husband. Resting underneath were three exquisitely shined red marbles.

The Moral: We will not be remembered by our words, but by our kind deeds. Life is not measured by the breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath.

Today I wish you a day of ordinary miracles ~

A fresh pot of coffee you didn’t make yourself…

An unexpected phone call from an old friend….

Green stoplights on your way to work….

The fastest line at the grocery store….

A good sing-along song on the radio…

Your keys found right where you left them.

IT’S NOT WHAT YOU GATHER, BUT WHAT YOU SCATTER THAT TELLS WHAT KIND OF LIFE YOU HAVE LIVED!

This is the 3rd edition of the Social Media Success Series.

In this video, I interview my good friend, David McKenzie, who has just accepted a new job as the Business Development Manager for Manpower Spokane. The interesting thing about this job offer, is that it was entirely initiated via the social media networks, specifically LinkedIn.

Note: If you don’t see Dave’s video to your left, click on the title of this post, to take you to the specific page.

Executive Summary

• David was just offered a job to run  the Spokane office of Manpower Inc.
• He was not particularly looking for a new job, but out of the blue, he got a call from Texas. The hiring team found him via LinkedIn, came to Spokane to conduct the final interview, until David was selected out of 10 candidates.
• David first started in social media back in 2006, when LinkedIn was just getting off the ground.
• He remains active by blogging about business and marketing issues, which was probably instrumental in being discovered in the first place.
• In his new job, David thinks that social media is even more critical to his success.
• At the same time, he sees a challenge because he estimates that about half of his target market is not yet even on board the social networks.
• David is great at what I call “hybrid networking”. He smartly combines traditional face-to-face networking, with the new tools of online networking.
• To get started, he recommends:
  • Start small.
  • Identify your business objectives.
  • Participate consistently, with purpose and intent.
  • Seek professional assistance.
• Dave considers his time spent on social media, as equal value to the time he spends on marketing & sales. (He still strongly believes in cold calling.)
  • Schedules his social media time: 20-min chunks, 2-3 times a day.
  • Uses Ping.fm to keep him organized.

What If You’re Not Looking for a Job?

Are you in search of:

• Business opportunity?
• Joint venture partner?
• Angel investor?
• Fellow dentist, lawyer or engineer?

The principles behind job-hunting via social media, are the same principles in your search for other people. They don’t have to be just an executive recruiter.

LinkedIn is the THE social network for decision-makers. Whether you’re looking to advance your career, or your business, you probably cannot do it all by yourself.

You need to find the right partners, or mentors, or employees to move forward.

Conclusion

David’s perseverance has paid off. Social media has enabled him to have fun, make new friends, advance his career, and simultaneously help build the businesses of other people.

Got questions about LinkedIn? Take the anonymous survey, or leave your comments about this video interview below. If I can’t answer, I’ll ask Dave to respond.

Note: If you’ve been one of my email subscribers, you’ve been invited to post anonymous questions about social media marketing. The Social Media Success Series” is a question & answer forum that is spread across multiple mediums as actual examples (Twitter, LinkedIn, YouTube, Facebook, blog, etc.) of how to effectively grow your business using social media marketing. Here is our next question:

If I become adept at “LinkedIn”, do I still have to deal with “Facebook” and “Twitter”? How do they tie-in and are they all necessary/productive?

The quick answer: follow the money. Find out where your prospects and customers are hanging out.

For example, if you’re a dentist and you want to reach out to families, Facebook as a rule of thumb, is a great platform to engage with moms, dads and their kids. Use the medium to educate your target market, and tell them why you’re different.

If you’re a dentist who has invented a new process or machine, and you want to find other dentists, who could benefit from your product or service, LinkedIn might be a better place for you. Using the search feature with the keyword “dentists”, I quickly find 195 groups, one of which has 3,116 members. Look at the screen capture below:

Note: You can magnify the above image using Ctrl + on your keyboard.

Twitter, on the other hand, is a nimble and light platform, suitable for short messages where timing is very important. The news industry is a very good example. Breaking news of events, such as the death of Michael Jackson, or the gas pipeline explosion in San Bruno, California are effectively conveyed using Twitter. Mobile businesses, such as food trucks or food stands on the street, are also perfect applications for Twitter.

In conclusion, you need to have a marketing strategy. You need to develop a game plan to determine who your target market is, and what tools are most effective in reaching your audience.

Note: Do you have a burning question about LinkedIn Marketing or Social Media in general? Subscribe to my email (in the red box to your left), and I’ll publish your question (anonymously) with my best answer

Malcolm Gladwell is the best-selling author of The Tipping Point and Blink, two of my favorite books on human behavior and how it applies to business.

Gladwell talks about his friend Howard Moscowitz, a consultant in the food industry, who is credited with the reinvention of spaghetti sauce.

Note: Click on the blog post title (in bold red) above, if you don’t see Gladwell’s video on the left.

Executive Summary

• Do not make any assumptions about what your market wants (the “culturally authentic” platonic dish)
• Market research is CRITICALLY important …
  • Do not act on what people SAY, instead
  • Cater your business to what people DO
• Move away from the universal one-size fits all product
• Identify the multiple niches within your market (horizontal segmentation), and
• Select the niche market you want to become known for (extra chunky spaghetti sauce)
• Learn to embrace the diversity of human beings

What about you? What have been your experiences or challenges in market research?