My First Anniversary With Social Media – Now What?

A couple of days ago marked my first anniversary with Social Media. February 8, 2009 was the launch of this site and my commitment to dive in head first into something that I had literally no concept of. Well, that is not exactly correct. I had a concept alright and that concept was that all of this was about as stupid and useless as the teats on a boar (smile). Still, there was no denying that it was there and it was something that people were talking about and they were discussing this in the same sentences with terms like “networking” and “connections” and these are words that have always held my attention. So, for the past 12 months I have lived and breathed all things Social Media and I have yet to scratch even the surface of this subject and it’s uses. It’s freakin’ endless (smile)!

I have been engaged in business to business sales and management for the past 33 years. These have included the positions of sales manager, regional sales manager, national sales manager, district manager, and ownership. The past 18 years have been spent to the larger degree in the electric sign industry. However, my true passions have always been selling, networking, and helping others to be successful.

NetWorks! Boise is a direct reflection of these passions as it does merge all three elements. My background also includes a time that was dedicated to consulting, training, workshops, and seminars primarily in the areas of selling, communication skills, and understanding and implementing a variety of tools based on the DISC system of methodologies of personality analysis. This included instructing salesmanship at the university level. Of course, this was some 20 years ago and much as changed. The flip side to this absence is that I am one heck of a lot smarter now than I was then. I have made the determination that it is now time to return to these pursuits on a full-time basis effective March 1.

I should probably define what “full-time” means to me at this my present stage in life. While I am given to work 60 hours or more per week as the norm (and this is likely to continue), I will make every effort to limit my weekly recurring commitments to Tuesdays and Wednesdays only. This means that NetWorks! Boise’s fourth group will definitely be a Wednesday breakfast meeting. If a fifth group is started, it will need to be a Tuesday or Wednesday evening group but a Monday noon group may be considered. While an evening group is something that I have not seen before, I believe that it may appeal to a certain segment of my target market. There also remains the possibility that either the fourth or the fifth group may be in a format that I designed a few years ago but have not yet introduced and this would be unlike anything I have yet seen.  Thursdays and Fridays will be reserved for fishing, camping, or any other recreational pursuit when I see fit to do so (smile). My goal is to create a life style, not a life of work.

This past year has provided me with a phenomenal education and has allowed me to discover and identify what I like to call a “target rich environment”. Many many people have helped me greatly along the way and I do thank them! I’d like to take a moment to name but a few: all of our NetWorks! Boise members who have placed their continued faith in our services; Jen Harris who encouraged me to get started with social media, provided me with the 5 Step Quick Start Guide to Social Media,  and has shouted words of encouragement along the way; Brandon Wright who recognized the value in NetWorks! Boise, helped to accelerate our expansion, always has great ideas, and has been a huge supporter both privately and publicly; Justin Foster who has quietly educated me in the ways of patience, expectations, and transparency; Neal Schaffer who has demonstrated all of the characteristics that I consider to be the epitome of how to utilize social media and who has taken the time to engage with me regularly despite our geographical distances;  Jamie Lynn Morgan who is always there to share and bounce great ideas off of; Chris Lott who is somebody that I watch closely and who is always willing to share; and, finally, many others who will soon be elevated to this uber status. As a side note, each and everyone of these relationships have been created and/or nurtured as a result of my activity with Social Media.

Do I aspire to become the next Social Media Expert or Guru? Hardly. I am not even remotely qualified for either of these titles and the road well traveled seems to be littered with the corpses of others with far superior experience in these fields when compared to my own. However, I do have confidence that I can offer unique value in certain arenas and, historically, I have never concerned myself with what others offer choosing instead to concentrate on what I can bring to my client’s table. Both time and financial stability are also on my side. I am fortunate enough to be able to do this because I want to, not because I have to.

This coming year will see NetWorks! Boise continue to grow and evolve. These groups remain my primary focus. Workshop and seminar materials are under development and will be introduced within the next six months. I am currently collaborating with three other firms on other projects and I find that to be extremely exciting. I am completing the first draft of what will likely be an e-book. A new website will be introduced and dedicated to Sales Results LLC. A technology product may be on the horizon. My “opportunity list” grows daily.  2010 is going to be a great year and a wild ride. It almost makes me feel 50 again! LOL

Thanks for visiting and please stay tuned!

Craig

NetWorks! Boise Continues To Evolve

This is going to be a very short post but I did want to share with you some things I saw today that literally blew me away. I am being forced to re-examine many of my core beliefs as it relates to face-to-face networking groups. You know, those same groups that I own and run as a business.

I have always been one who finds a tremendous amount of security in conformity. I like everything painted the same color. I like my groups to march to the same beat. After all, I do know what makes these groups work. Oddly, when it comes to using new technologies to carry out our goals, I am very much open to that and quick to evaluate and embrace those tools that will make our groups even better. Mess with the basic group format, it’s core principles, and that’s where I have traditionally drawn the hard-line.

Here’s what works. You get some really great people together, they share some great leads, and strong relationships naturally form as the result. Simple. And, I see it work and work well everyday. With two of my groups. My third group, Business Minds, has essentially flipped the last two components. Sure, they talk a little about leads but, with some exception, that is not the focus. With even less exception, they will write these leads down so that I can enter them into their CRM. They march to the beat of a different drummer and no matter how hard I have tried to establish the correct rhythm, they continue to go their own direction.

Well, today I saw something incredible. Everybody went around the room and as opposed to the typical 60 second commercial, each shared their passions. Some of it was work related but a lot of it was very personal. We have discussed this topic before but I have never seen folks jump in like they did today. Mind you, this core group has now been together for close to four months so I am sure that has a great deal to do with it. I had absolutely no idea of most of the fantastic causes that these folks are involved in. I do now (smile). I feel honored to just be associated with them. I left the meeting with a new appreciation for each as an individual as well as a member of our group. But, the meeting did not stop there …..

For several weeks now, many of the members have stayed after the regular meeting to conduct round table discussions on areas of business that likely affect them all. While It may be constructed around an issue that a particular member is having with their business, fact is, most of us share these same challenges. What this has transformed into, however, is much more than just a round table. It has become a peer board. I’d like to take credit for this great idea but it sure wasn’t me. This credit goes to Brandon Wright of Ultra Clean and Wright Stuff Radio. Brandon called me after the meeting and we shared some feedback. I told him how my jaw had dropped at what I had seen and how I was seriously taking it all in and now examining how best to put it to work in our other groups.

Brandon and I did agree on one other thing. It would be nice if people would write their leads down. Someone had a great one for him the other day but he could not remember what it was. Of course, it’s not in the CRM. I had to smile because I know the system does work. Leads and relationships are not mutually exclusive. How we approach them may need to evolve.

Thanks for visiting!

Craig

Postscript 1/20/10: At our Wednesday meeting today for NetWorks! Boise Bing!, we asked each member to share his or her passion and obtained equally amazing results! Sweet! Oh yeah, and we also managed to post 28 leads to their CRM. Yes, you can do both (smile).

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The Evolution of Face-To-Face Networking Groups

My very first blog post on February 8, 2009 featured this same image and it is only fitting that my first post of 2010 do likewise. More importantly, the topic of this entry is the “Evolution of Face-to-Face Networking Groups”. The times, they are a changing.

If you have previously been to this site, you will know that I am a huge proponent of all forms of business networking and actually run B2B networking groups as a business. We began with one group in November 2007, added another in the last quarter of 2009, and launched our third group at the beginning of this year. I am planning at least one extra group for this year and will then decide whether to continue the expansion. Only so much “Craig” to go around.

What we do at NetWorks! Boise is traditional face-to-face networking. Every networking or leads group that I have ever been involved in does pretty much the same thing: share leads, get to know each other, network. What makes us different is that we do everything better. Way better. Our members are more committed. The quality and quantity of our leads are better. We use technologies that I have never seen introduced into any networking group environment. Our dues are double what the average group charges yet, we have over 10 member companies who have insisted that they need to be represented in more than one of our groups. I would guess that what we do … works.

Still, we always strive to be better. Technology plays a huge role in these efforts and that would include our use of a web-based CRM, dedicated group websites, and the employment of social media tools like Twitter, FaceBook, and LinkedIn to push member and group information out to the public. As these technologies continue to improve, what effect does that have, if any, on the evolution of the traditional face-to-face networking group? Are not FaceBook and LinkedIn, in reality, actually virtual networking groups? I’d have to say “yes”.  Do they replace face-to-face networking? While some may think that they do, I would argue strongly that they do not. Relationships are developed face-to-face. Like everything else, that may change. For now at least, I consider this to be a universal truth.

What started me thinking heavily about all of this is the fact that my two more established networking groups have two entirely different and distinct personalities. The older of the two, “Bing!”, is everything you will find in a traditional networking group but one that has been juiced up on heavy does of steroids. This group is very strong on business intelligence (information is power) and has close to 3,000 leads in its CRM database. My second group, “Business Minds”, focuses entirely on relationships and flat refuses to write information down so that I can update that to their CRM. They see little value in what I would consider a networking group staple. What is up with that!!?? (smile).

In retrospect, I saw this coming but blew off any concerns that I might have had. When I was first approached about starting this group I was told .. “But, we can’t call it a leads group”. “Okay, then, what is it?” Seems to me that, if it walks like a duck and quacks like a duck, it’s probably… a duck.  Furthermore, as I have a strong personality and am typically able to convince, or even manipulate, others to coming around to my way of thinking, I did not see this as an insurmountable challenge. However, I severely underestimated the fact that there are 20 of them and only one of me and that they are just as stubborn about refusing to conform to my will. I have whined, cajoled, scolded, sold, pleaded, and begged and have done all of these without achieving anything even close to my desired results. In fact, the more I do it, the worse they get. Bummer (smile).

This has caused me great consternation. I have a very strong belief that I know what it takes to make these groups work. “Business Minds” is running counter to this belief. My biggest concern has been that the members are not getting out of the group what I envision that they should be getting. And, there lies the answer. My perception of what works and their perception of the same is entirely different. And, frankly, it is their group. If they are perfectly satisfied, and I am told that they are, why would I want to change that? Maybe because I am…. an idiot (smile).

I have come to view this situation as a huge personal growth opportunity for me. I have always had difficulty with managing my expectations for both myself and of others. This forces me to address these challenges more directly. I will become more the listener and the learner and less the talker and the persuader. Is not the most important aspect of any networking effort the development of relationships that lead directly to personal introductions and referrals? Yes, it is. A warm call still beats a cold call but taking me and introducing me to your best client still trumps all other hands.

I continue to believe that business intelligence leads and relationship building are not mutually exclusive. What I need to do is figure out a way to do both and to make some determinations of how best to facilitate each activity. As previously stated, relationships are face-to-face. Business intelligence is really nothing more than data. Our weekly meetings are face-to-face and we already use technology to store data. What we need is better technology that will facilitate collaboration on-line amongst our members. Presently, we utilize no less than 5 different technology platforms to accomplish our goals. They do work but they can be cumbersome. As I was the one who researched, adopted, and adapted all of them … I am pretty comfortable in using them. Our members, I know, are not. But, hey, they are the best available low cost solutions that are out there that I have been able to find that will fulfill our needs. What we really need is one platform that combines all of our tools in an easy-to-use format. Is it out there already? Maybe. I continue to search. Perhaps I won’t have to look too far but that, my friends, will hopefully be the topic of another post (smile).

Thanks for visiting! Goodbye 2009. Hello, and thank God, for 2010!

Craig

RSS Feeds – “Really Slick Stuff”

I’m quickly developing some sort of “love affair” with RSS feeds and here is why. There is just so many darn things you can use them for and there are a couple of tools out there that help me to accomplish three of my major goals: my education; sharing great content with other folks through social media outlets like Twitter and FaceBook; and they are now allowing me the capability to further promote our groups, our members, and their companies. Sweet!

My Education: Whenever I encounter a site or a blog that I find interesting, I’m always looking for the “RSS Icon” as shown above. Click on that and I am immediately taken to a screen that allows me to automatically load this feed to my Google Reader. If you don’t see the icon, look for something that says “Subscribe” or words to that effect. Failing that, you can still try to manually feed the URL to your reader and see if it can find the feed from that address. I’d guess that this last-ditch method will work better than 50% of the time. Now that the feed is in your reader, you can peruse articles at your leisure and read the ones you find to be of interest. There are probably well over 500 such articles that go to my reader each day, perhaps closer to 1,000, and it takes me maybe 1/2 hour per day to sift through those. I also use a tool called ReadTwit that takes the links from Tweets of those that I follow and converts and loads them into my reader. In other words, that obscure shortened URL actually converts to something you can read and understand.

Share Content With Followers: From my Google Reader, once I have selected an article to read, I can also choose to send that article out via Twitter or post it to FaceBook. There are other sites that you can share it to as well. If this article was generated by a Tweet, I will typically follow that back to the person who sent the link and then RT (retweet) their update. The only shortcoming with using the reader interface is that it needs to be a separate action for each site you wish to share to. No biggie.

Now, let’s say that I find a site that consistently puts out quality articles. A site that I trust implicitly to be both professional and interesting. Enter Twitterfeed. Twitterfeed allows me to take any RSS feed and set up a system whereby the app will automatically scan each feed on a set schedule to look for new content. When it finds said new content, a tweet is automatically generated along with a content header and a link to that article. It’s a win-win. I am credited with generating and sharing good content and the person who wrote the article is promoted at the same time and it generates hits to his or her site. You can also add standard prefix and suffix language to the tweet not to exceed 20 characters per each. Got to love that!

Promote NetWorks! Boise, Our Members, and Their Companies: I used to have Twitterfeed scan this blog for new articles however, a few months ago WordPress.com added a “publish to Twitter” option that sends the article out immediately. And, I’m an “immediate” kind of guy so I took this off that service. However, I did create a new Twitterfeed account for NetWorks! Boise and added it to that. Follow me as I try to make sense of all of this for both you and me (smile).

NetWorks! Boise is committed to showcasing our members and their companies via any legitimate avenue that we can either find or create. This site, as well as our individual group sites, are examples of this commitment. Social Media is another tool that we have used on a limited basis to accomplish this goal. The goal being … push member information out. So, here are the steps being taken:

1. I have created a new Twitter account, @NetWorks_Boise, for this purpose. At least for now, this account is pretty much going to be fully automated.
2. I have encouraged the members to provide me with links to their, and their company’s, blogs and have been loading those into the new Twitterfeed account along with the feed for this blog.
3. At the same time, I have been also loading these feeds into my existing Twitterfeed account and the reason for that is .. right now @NetWorks_Boise has about a grand total of 5 followers (smile). Once the follower count rises to a reasonable level, I will likely remove these feeds from my main Twitterfeed account.
4. Each of the feeds is prefaced with the member company name or member name and has a suffix reading “NetWorks Boise Mbr”. Remember, a 20 character limitation for both the prefix and the suffix. We promote both the member and the group.
5. Guess what? Our dedicated group pages also have those cute little RSS icons on them. And even in multiple places (smile). I am testing these out now for one group and using two of the separate feeds available: events and group activity. Actually, I learned this trick from Jamie Morgan who runs NetworkInCDA up in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho who is also the individual who introduced me to the Ning platform that we are using. Thanks, Jamie! Follow her @jamiemorgancda. Very smart gal! The result of this will be that whenever new member activity is created on the site, a tweet goes out. Should a member post an event on the site, you guessed it, a tweet goes out.

I’m pretty pumped about all of this and can’t wait to monitor the results. I do know that our member blogs are already getting hits as a result of  this and that’s the goal that we hoped to achieve.

Hey, it’s a Saturday! Don’t say I never gave you anything! (smile). Thanks for visiting!

Craig

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Your First New Investment Should Be In “You”

The economy continues to languish and, if you are like me and a lot of other folks, whatever investments you did have prior to this recession took a major hit. Suddenly, your plans for early retirement have been …. “modified”. Certainly, there are signs of life and we all know that things will someday be back to “normal”.

Personally, and I tend to be very conservative, I am watching the economic indicators climb back up and am awaiting the right time to jump back in. The real question is … “Jump back into what?”. I’m a little queasy on stocks and not that much more comfortable with real estate. Precious metals are interesting, I just really wish that I had bought gold when it was at $400. Regardless of what I choose to do, I have this agonizing feeling that whatever that may be, I’m going to get slaughtered. Again (smile).

There is, however, one investment vehicle that has never abandoned me. Me. I am what I have to carry me up to, and into, retirement.  It is going to be what I choose to do now that is going to generate the dollars needed to see me through those, hopefully, golden years. I am my most valuable commodity and it only makes sense that I need to devote the largest percentage of my investment efforts into seeing that this asset performs to its maximum potential.

While by no means a complete list, we can divide your investment into four major categories: family, health, spiritual, and professional. I am by no means even remotely qualified to discuss the first three. Suffice to say that those three houses all need to be in proper order. Being of poor condition in any of these will without question affect everything you either want, or attempt, to accomplish. As to the fourth …..

1. Does this economy find you laying back or aggressively moving forward? If you find yourself to be “coasting”, you are likely headed downhill.
2. What have you done in terms of your professional education and development? Are you taking the steps necessary to get better at what you are paid to do?
3. Do you view books, seminars, and workshops to be expenses that you cannot afford or investments that you cannot afford not to make?
4. Are you taking this opportunity to network with other professionals like you have never done before in the past?
5. Will you be properly positioned to take maximum advantage of the inevitable “recovery”?

Of course, we can’t finish this topic without a more in-depth discussion regarding networking. Networking and referral business is, without question, the most profitable type of transaction you can ever hope to be a part of. Consistently. I am always both puzzled and amused by those who view any costs associated with this activity as expenses vs. investments. Sure, I know that times are tough. If I spend $25 per week on networking activities, that’s $25 that I will not be able to spend at Starbucks, McDonald’s, or Joe’s House of Beer. Pretty tough to argue with those compelling examples. Doesn’t much matter that your $25 networking investment will quite likely generate a return of 10 fold vs. a gain of 10 lbs. (smile).

Short post today. My Monday gift to you (smile). Thanks for visiting!

Craig

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