RonAmok!

When in the course of human events it becomes necessary for people to dissolve the business relationships which have connected them, it requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation.

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that in the age of ubiquitous access to digital content distribution methods such as blogs, podcasts, online video and social networking, that all Media are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.

Let these Facts be submitted to a candid world.

• Traditional Media is expensive to maintain due to print costs, radio towers, and FCC licenses.
• Advances in Internet, Web, and mobile technologies combined with free products/services such as Wordpress (blogging), iTunes (podcasting), and YouTube (online video), have lowered the barriers to delivering content to audiences.
• Search engines such as Google, Yahoo, and Bing, have become the modern matchmakers,  helping to match consumers with the businesses that can satisfy their needs–a method consumers prefer over being assaulted with non-relevant, commercial interruptions.
• Consumers are turning away from content delivered on physical media, preferring digital forms.
• Consumers are changing their content consumption habits, consuming content on their schedule–not that of the broadcast networks. They’re choosing to use real-time sources such as Twitter and time-shifting technologies such as DVRs and RSS.
• In this new digital world, consumers have also become publishers, creating Facebook pages, blogs, podcasts, and online video. As a result, their “user-generated-content” is competing for the same eyeballs that were once under the monopolistic control of traditional Media.
• Businesses are no longer beholden to the third party message-delivery offerings of traditional Media. Instead of renting other people’s audiences (advertising) or begging journalists to write about them (public relations), businesses now have a third alternative: to communicate directly with their own audiences.

Therefore, We the New Media, solemnly publish and declare, that we are absolved from all allegiance to print, broadcast, and physical media; and that as Free and Independent members of our digital world, have full power to create and publish our own content, consume it on our own schedules, build our own audiences, and do all other Acts and Things which we may of right do. And for the support of this Declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of Divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes, and our sacred Honor.

Photo Credit: The National Archives

So, you’re an executive who is considering adding social media into your communications mix. Now the big question: who do you turn to for advice? Your first impulse will be to call the traditional PR and marketing folks that you’ve worked with for years. It’s a good first step, but you need to be careful. Social media and traditional media are different species, requiring very different skills for success. You must determine whether the vendor really understands the fundamental differences between the two, or has simply added social media garnish to their plateful of traditional same-old same-old.

Thankfully, a simple language test exists to determine whether or not your vendor is trying to pull an Iron-Chef move on you. It’s called The Drunk at the Party test.

The Drunk At the Party

You know who I’m talking about, right? He’s the guy who rolls into a party with an agenda. He backs unsuspecting people into a corner, then pummels them with message points. He’s the one making value propositions such as, “Hey baby, are your legs tired? Because they’ve been running through my mind all evening.”

The drunk at the party has one agenda: to spew his messages, oblivious of the social impact that he’s having on the people around him.

Now, let’s compare and contrast “Mr. Value Proposition” with the other guy at the party–ya know, the one with the crowd gathering around him willingly. Instead of backing them into a corner, the crowd has playfully backed him into one, attracted by what he has to say as opposed to being repelled by it.

When choosing your social media advisor, keep these garnish words in mind:

• Social media is not about making propositions. It’s about helping people.
• Social media is not about crafting impactful messages; it’s about listening and responding accordingly.
• Social media is not about preaching to your customers, its about having faith in them. Take care of your customers and they’ll take care of you.

Instead of hiring someone to examine their navel while molding the perfect social media value statement, consider using these wonderful new media tools to reach out and talk with real live customers. A conversation controlled isn’t a conversation at all. It’s a monologue.

Oh, and if your vendor only responds to 1990s phrases such as best practices, suggest these and see if he reaches for his lampshade:

• listen more than you speak
• deliver more than you promise
• and give more than you take…

…or risk being the drunk at the party.

Photo Credit: WillamBrawley

We can talk about the value of social media forever, but sometimes, the best lessons come from just using it.

I was in a foul mood last Thursday morning. I had just read a series of blog posts from a former client who was using the ideas I taught his company to build its social media business. Normally, I’d be ecstatic about such an event, but the fact that the company owes me a considerable sum of money tempered my enthusiasm. I felt as if someone had stolen from me.

My first testosterone-fueled-caveman-impulse was to write about it, to expose the company’s business practices to the online world. But that’s when a more sane idea emerged. What would my social network say about the situation? So, I posted the following question to Twitter:

“If a former client was using your work to expand their business, yet they’ve owed you money for six months, when would you blog about it?”

Within 11 minutes, five people who I really respect (and their collective 35,000 followers respect them too) offered their advice.

My mood changed instantly upon reading these rapid responses. I loved how each person cared about one of two things: 1) me and my reputation and 2) the poor soul who may fall prey to the company in the future.

In eleven minutes, I had a totally different perspective on the problem. Had I taken the caveman route, I may have done something stupid that limited my options. Instead, subsequent conversations have yielded plenty of them to choose from. Presently, I’m weighing those options.

I am so grateful to my social network board of advisors who care enough about me to offer such good and timely advice. Thank you Kirsten, Shel, Eric, C.C., and Adrianne.

So, who’s on your board of advisors?