CorePurpose - Joan Koerber-Walker's Blog

Success Tip: See yourself as others do

The key to success is not how you see yourself.  It is how others see you, speak of you and think of you. 

Over the last year, I have had the opportunity to work with some fabulous companies and look at what their social media map had to say about them through their own words and the eyes and words of others. 

As part of our annual CorePurpose brand assessment, I pulled the text of the CorePurpose Blog, CorePurpose website, the @Replies from all five of our primary Twitter Ids along with other online sites and mentions and ran them through a program to get the top words in a cloud. 

What you see is what we got.  If you were to do the same exercise for your company, what words would you find?

Your brand is how OTHERS see you.

Social Media and the wider web is a powerful tool.  Today more that ever, as entrepreneurs, marketers, and individuals, we have the opportunity to help  shape our brands.  What is out there is at the fingertips of every customer, investor, employee and employer. 

Our words and actions shape how others see us. 

What we say, what we write and what we do form a body of evidence that will follow us for a very long time.  What we don’t say and don’t do can have an equal impact.

If you want to succeed in today’s world, here are some things that anyone can do to build an online body of evidence about who they are and what they offer to others:

LinkedIn

Your LinkedIn profile is your chance to tell your professional story.  Make sure it is complete and accurate.  Your LinkedIn connections are your professional network. Guard them well.  Use judgment in making and  accepting connections and keep it professional.  You never know when someone might want to check you out.

Facebook

On the personal side, how you interact with your friends says a lot about who you are.  Are you sharing and caring?  Funny or smart?  Facebook is a great place to let your hair down and interact – but remember to use a bit of tact. Professional contacts just might stop by to see the “real” you. DON’T embarrass  yourself by sharing things you might wish you had not later… and that goes for your photos too!

For your business, project, or group, set up a Facebook page. It’s a great way to share news, ask for feedback and interact with people who have something to share about what matters most to your business or organization.

Twitter

What are you doing, reading or thinking about?  Twitter is a great way to share it and find out what is interesting to others too.  With a wide range of tools and apps to help you find your way around, Twitter let’s you connect to a larger world than the one you may have built face to face.  If you are interesting and willing to reach out and show interest in others, interesting people WILL find you and you can find them too.  Twitter is the place to be inclusive.  Cast a wide net and you just might connect with people that you would never otherwise get a chance to meet and share ideas with.

Blogs

Have something to say or share?  Blog it.  Be creative and consistent.  You might be surprised as to who might be interested and willing to join the conversation.  Let people know when you share something on your blog with a Twitter update or Facebook post.  There are even tools that will do this for you automatically. You have gifts and knowledge to share. Don’t be stingy.  Put it out there.

Websites

Over 25 years ago, a friend shared with me that the day will come when if you do not have a website, no one will believe your company is “real”. That day has definitely arrived and with so many easy and inexpensive  ways to build one, there is no excuse not to.  Whether your website is a simple 5 page brochure on your products and services or something much more sophisticated, your website tells people who you are and what you have to offer.  Don’t make them  guess.  They probably won’t bother.

The power of any tool lies in the hand of the user.

What you see above is a selection of the most common tools you can use to  build your personal or business brand in today’s socially connected world.  There are many, many more. But a tool is only a tool.  It becomes useful in the hands of the craftsman. (Yes, that’s you.) We use tools to build things up and tear things down.  How you use your tools will say a lot about how others see you.  Be remarkable and people will build your brand for you.  Be invisible and your brand will be too.

Don’t assume anything.  Check! Audit your social media presence.  Track what people are saying and be sure to respond with a “thank you” when it’s positive and a solution to the problem when it’s not.  When you do, you just might find that who you or your company have to offer is written in the  clouds.

Thanks for stopping by.  Stay tuned…

Joan Koerber-Walker

About the Joan:

An entrepreneur, author, speaker and corporate advisor, Joan Koerber-Walker's journey has spanned from corporate America to entrepreneurship and non-profits as well as to community leadership and into the halls of Washington D.C.   Beginning on 2009, she decided to learn more about the evolving world of social media.  Today she is connected to a community of over 150,000 and the lessons she has learned have been profiled in The Social Media Bible and The ROI of Social Media.  You can find more posts about what she has learned along the way by clicking here. To learn more about how CorePurpose and the CoreAlliance can help you grow your business in 2011, you can contact her by clicking here.

CorePurpose  is a registered trademark of CorePurpose, Inc.  CoreAlliance is a  service mark of CorePurpose Inc.  All rights reserved

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Using Social Media to Hit It Out of the Park in 2011

I'd be remiss if I did not include social media in the set of tips and tools we can all use to capture more opportunity in 2011.  Research from Jeremiah Owyang and the team at the Altimeter Group reinforces the impact that social media is having on traditional businesses and entrepreneurial ventures alike. 

For me, social media is a tool that I use daily to share messages, exchange ideas, and help people understand how CorePurpose may be able to help them grow their business with a combination of innovation and leadership.  But I am not a master in the craft, I'm just a simple practitioner.  So when I set out to write this post I decided to ask one of the friends who has shared her experience with me along the way to share a bit with you.

Amanda Vega of Amanda Vega Consulting

Amanda Vega began her career at AOL as a chat moderator 17 years ago when she was a student intern. During her tenure at AOL she directly helped to develop and rollout Instant Messenger and Love@AOL (now Match.com’s technology.) She went on to get  an MBA from Columbia University and has also completed graduate work at the Wharton School of Business. After selling her second firm to Ogilvy and Mather in 2000, she moved to New York City and opened Amanda Vega Consulting, which now has over 180 team members in 15 countries and 4 languages. A few years later she made her way West to Phoenix and that is where we met at a New York Style Deli in Scottsdale.  We've been friends ever since and have worked together on projects under CorePurpose's CoreAlliance division when our clients need a touch of "Mandy's magic."

What Mandy and her team does

Amanda Vega Consulting works with clients and agencies alike combining over 20-years of interactive and traditional advertising, marketing and public relations experience  to educate businesses and individuals about how technology fits into an overall business strategy to help them market smarter and more efficiently. She has had a lot of practice. Amanda Vega Consulting is known as the first focused social media company in the world – providing services in this area before it even was called "social media."

Mandy and her team have worked with major media companies (NYTimes, WSJ, and Belo) and many well known consumer brands to help them put  "social" into their growth strategies including  Banana Republic, Eli Lilly, WebMD, iVillage, eHarmony, Betty Crocker, and more, including start-ups and small businesses alike. With office in New York City, Phoenix, and Shanghai, Mandy's always on the move but she's never too busy to help out a friend or answer a client question. 

Last July she shared a really helpful post on making sense of what, when, and how much time is needed to be social effectively.  Since I found it helpful, I am sharing it with you - with Amanda's permission.  It has some easy to follow advice whether you are managing your personal  brand or building a global one...

The Order of Operations in Social Media

by Amanda Vega on July 13, 2010

Do you remember when you were in elementary school and they taught you the order of operations to do math? I am still amazed how wonderful little memorization techniques like this still stick in our old brains. (“Please Excuse My Dear Aunt Sally” for those of you that are coming up blank stands for: parenthesis, exponentials, multiplication, division, addition, and subtraction.) Well, today I, Amanda Vega, was asked if there was an order of operations in social media. Giving it some thought, I came up with the following based on what I personally do on a daily basis.

Never Ever Forget To Chat Loyally

N = news: The first thing you should do in the morning is consume some news. Whether you watch TV while getting ready, or breeze through a printed newspaper, you can only become a better conversationalist (and more interesting person overall) if you know something about the current world around you. Intake some news, even if it’s just a clip or two from your favorite celebrity gossip site.

E = email: Let’s face it, you have to read your email. In your email, you are beginning your social interaction for the day. You are actively communicating in a two way format. Remember that news you read? Well, go ahead and shoot a note to an editor or producer to round that out for the day. (This will be easy for those of us that have RSS sent to email with some topics we actively participate in.) Your email likely contains some interesting newsletters, updates, and the like that give you fodder for the day, even if it’s generating a casual “OMG my day is looking horrible” tweet.

F = facebook (or social network of choice:) It’s wise to check in on Facebook in the AM in order to send some “happy birthday” love to your friends and those you want to build a deeper connection with. It’s also a good way to see what’s going on in other people’s lives (especially those in earlier time zones) so you can interact in an authentic way and build deeper connections.

T = twitter: It’s a good idea to do a quick check on Twitter in the morning to see what is going on in your circle of influence. A “good morning” isn’t necessary, but just so you know, in some European countries they find it rude not to bid your followers and good morning and goodnight. This will also give you a quick glance of any trending topics and may just give you some good fodder to share when you return your morning calls, etc.

C = comment marketing: This is the part of social media that most miss. (And the part that companies tend to pay us to manage for them.) Set up RSS feeds, or pick some favorite sites (news, blogs, thought leaders, etc.) and actually participate in the conversation. Leave your comments. Don’t steal the thunder of the author. And be social. If you have something to say, speak up.

L = linkedIn: I think it’s a good idea to check in (at some point during the day) at least once on LinkedIn. You should pay attention to any updates from those in your network, answer some questions (without pushing your wares too heavily,) and see if you maybe have a new connection to chat with.

So there you go. Not an exact science (or math,) but a good way to manage what seems to be a deluge of social interaction required on top of phone calls, blogposts, and text messages. Oh, and don’t forget: you also use your location based services (Gowalla, 4Square) and tweet on the fly all day long when you are stuck in a line, stuck in traffic, or stuck listening to something that is boring…Best of luck!

#

Mandy's advice has always come in handy.  I hope it helps you too. 

Thanks for stopping by.  Stay tuned....  

I'll be sharing more tips to help you get ready for 2011 throughout the month of December.

Joan Koerber-Walker

About the Joan:

An entrepreneur, author, speaker and corporate advisor, Joan Koerber-Walker's journey has spanned from corporate America to entrepreneurship and non-profits, as well as into community leadership and into the halls of Washington D.C.   To learn more about how CorePurpose and the CoreAlliance can help you grow your business, you can contact her by clicking here.

 

CorePurpose  is a registered trademark of CorePurpose, Inc.  CoreAlliance is a  service mark of CorePurpose Inc.  All rights reserved.

 

Technorati Tags: Amanda Vega,Social Media,Business Tips,Entrepreneurs,Jeremiah Owyang,Altimeter Group,Facebook,LinkedIn for Business,Twitter,Joan Koerber-Walker,CorePurpose,CoreAlliance

You Can't Tweet Your Way to the Top

I was talking to a marketing friend the other day about one of my business projects.  It's a  book we had published with author Amilya Antonetti titled The Recipe: A fable for leaders and teams. 

We need leaders and teams now more that ever and The Recipe is a little book with a BIG message.   It brings together the ingredients, the tools, and the easy to follow instructions for success all wrapped up in a great story that is fun to read.  But for it to make an impact, lots of people need to read it.

With that in mind, we created a set of goals:

1. Get the book to hit #1 on Amazon.  (Don't laugh - yes I know that Amazon fame is fleeting but it's an important proof point.)
2. Get the book placed on the shelves of Major Retailers and Independent Book Stores
3. Get the book placed into mass retail channels - Not everyone buys books at bookstores.
4. National Media Tour and Speaking events to move the books off the shelves of the book stores and other outlets and into the hands of readers
5. Partnerships with other best selling authors and thought leaders to help move things along

If we hit these goals, we'll achieve one of our key objectives  -  to get the book to The Top of the major books lists -  the ones that really count. You know, like the the New York Times.

 Circling Back

That brings us back to the conversation at the beginning of this post.  When she asked HOW I plan to get the book moving faster up Amazon - and I said Twitter - she started to laugh and said ...

"You CAN'T Tweet Your Way to the Top!"

Now I am not totally unrealistic.  I understand that social media is an integrated platform where blogs, tweets, Facebook, LinkedIn, websites, and other tools all work together.  The big question is this:

If you truly are connected into these networks and you put out a call to your friends and team - is anyone really listening and more importantly  - will they act?

Well, I am reasonably well connected so I thought - why not try.  After all, I have been sharing my thoughts on my blogs, articles, and in person.  Maybe it's time to to put it to the test.  Here is a little bit of what I have been talking about:

This video was recorded live in January, 2010.  Since then the numbers have continued to grow.  As of June, 2010 the count was over 100,000 friends on Twitter alone across five different profiles.  Combine that with Amilya's following and other friends, that's a pretty good reach.

So here is what I am  going to do: 

This Saturday, June 12th and Sunday, June 13th I am going to ask my social media friends for help in getting the book to The Top on Amazon.  

Here are the tweets I am going to send.  I am keeping them simple since that is what another friend I GREATLY RESPECT told me to do. 

I'm trying to get #TheRecipe by @Amilya to the Top of Amazon TODAY.  Can you help?  http://amzn.to/cXvaLK

Can you help? I'm trying to get #TheRecipe by @Amilya to the Top of Amazon TODAY.    http://amzn.to/cXvaLK

#The Recipe is a great book for you AND your Team  http://amzn.to/cXvaLK - We're trying to get it to the Top of Amazon Today.  Pls Help.

It's a little book with a BIG message.  Please help us get #The Recipe  http://amzn.to/cXvaLK to the Top of Amazon Today.

#Leadership and #Teams matter.  Please help me get #The Recipe  http://amzn.to/cXvaLK to the Top of Amazon Today. 

We'll see what happens. 

If you see my tweets or Facebook notes on Saturday and Sunday, perhaps you'll do me a favor and RT.

Better yet, you might buy copies for yourself and for your team mates.  It really is a wonderful book.  Don't just take MY word  for it.  Check out the reviews at the bottom of the Amazon Page.  :-)

We are starting out at Amazon Bestsellers Rank: #125,404 in Books (See Top 100 in Books) Let's see how far it can go. If Amazon says they've run out of stock - wouldn't that be nice - don't let that stop you.  More are on the way.  :-)

Thanks for stopping by and for any help you can give.  Stay tuned...

Joan Koerber-Walker

Technorati Tags: Joan Koerber-Walker,CorePurpose,Amilya Antonetti,The Recipe A fable for leaders and teams,business,business books,leadership,leadership books,twitter

Are you an Original?

Do you love sharing original ideas with others?  Have you found that when you do conversations start and collaborations form? 

For over 15 years, one of my favorite friends to talk with and work with is Clay Stubblefield of AZWebcasting. 

Clay is the ultimate professional and so creative.  One of his creations is MeetTheTweets, showcase of videos introducing us to people we hear from on Twitter. 

One of my creations is a little project called #BeOriginal - a place on Twitter where friends share their Original Ideas. 

We thought it would be fun to combine them, creating #BeOriginal Week on Meet The Tweets. So we put instructions out on the #BeOriginal Blog and let some of our #BeOriginal Contributors know where to find them.

And, since I am 'the original #BeOriginal', I created a little video message to kick things off.

Here it is.  Let me know YOUR thoughts. And don't forget to be on the look out for new great videos from other Originals.  Just follow @MeetTheTweets on Twitter so you do not miss any.

 

 

Thanks for stopping by.  Stay tuned...

Joan Koerber-Walker

Technorati Tags: Joan Koerber-Walker,CorePurpose,Twitter,#BeOriginal,MeetTheTweets,Clay Stubblefield,Leadership Quotes,Leadership

Sorry, I'm not a LION.

No, I'm not talking about this majestic lady - Queen of the Jungle, I'm talking about LI-ONs, Linked In Open Networkers.  People who pledge to connect to everyone on Linked In who sends them an invitation.

You can normally tell a LION by a profile that reads LION or by their membership in a LION group.  Some people make the mistake of assuming that someone that has 500+ connections is by default a LION, and that can be a costly mistake.  It can result in a DNK or I Do Not Know this person response.  Get too many of these and your Linked In privileges can be restricted.

The Laws of the Social Jungle are Relationship Based

Successful networking, whether it is face to face, or profile to profile in cyberspace is about creating relationships.  Once the relationship is formed, then you can move on to real conversations whether it is in the business world or the personal realm.  When forming relationships, it is important to understand how the other person chooses to communicate and share information.  It also helps to understand the boundaries or personal space preferences of the other person and adapt your behavior to theirs.

Listed below are my personal boundaries.  That does not mean they will be the same for you, but they might give you some ideas when you form your own.

Linked In

• Inclusive - CorePurpose, my company, has a linked in page to share information.   I also share ideas occasionally on a number of Linked In groups including Lead Change, MIT Enterprise Forum Phoenix, Continuous Innovation, Corporate Planning & Global Industry Segmentation, Forbes Woman, and Marketing Partners
• Exclusive - I limit my Linked In connections to people I actually know and have done business with.  Having been on Linked In from almost the very beginning, I still have quite a few, but every single one is someone I know and can personally recommend to others.  This enables the true power of Linked In - quality introductions.

Facebook

• Inclusive - CorePurpose, my company, has a Facebook page.  On it you can find blog posts, articles, and links that I choose to share.  Facebook pages are highly inclusive.  Like web pages or blogs, anyone can choose to see them or follow them.
• Exclusive - My personal profile by definition is more exclusive.  If Facebook is for friends, then my personal choice is to keep it to friends and not connect to every person who finds my profile and wants to connect.  I want to know what my friends are doing - and to do that, I intentionally keep the group smaller so I can actually find them in the crowd.

Twitter

• Inclusive - On Twitter, I am at my most inclusive.  I look for like minded people and I auto follow back the people who follow me. But more importantly, when people engage and talk to me with @mentions or non- automated DM's, I engage with them and join the conversation. 
• Exclusive - My exclusivity comes into play when people wear out their welcome.  Spammers, scantily clad avatars, porn, and hateful people are quickly unfollowed or even blocked.  I also go in once each month and clean up my accounts,  You can see how I do it here,

 

It was an article on CNN.com,  Defriending Can Bruise Your 'Digital Ego', that got me thinking about all this.  You see, I probably was "this one woman".  The message is one that I use frequently when contacted by people on Linked In that I do not know.  It is not meant to be unkind, or rude,  Just realistic.  If I do not know you, I can not recommend you, and that is how I use that particular tool.  'I only connect with people I know, and hopefully our paths will cross one day.'  I am not that hard to connect with and engage in other areas.  Really - just Google me.

Thanks for stopping by.  Stay tuned...

Joan Koerber-Walker

Technorati Tags: Joan Koerber-Walker,CorePurpose,Networking,Social Media,Social Networking,Linked In,LIONs,Facebook for business. facebook for business,twitter

The Quest- In search of a transformational company

In literature, as in legend, there have been many great quests. One in particular that has captured imaginations, for over two thousand years, is the search for a simple cup used in a great tale of transformation. Yes, The Quest for The Holy Grail.

This quest has been the inspiration that sparked great literature, epic poems, and motion pictures running the gamut from Monty Python to  Indiana Jones.

While my quest is not one of such mythical proportion, as I sat pondering how to share my plans with you, the legend of The Holy Grail leapt to mind. 

My Quest

I am, together with a valued group of friends, looking to acquire a controlling interest in a very particular company.  Our search and the legendary quest have more than a few things in common. In both cases they combine Innovation, Leadership, and Growth to create Lasting Value.  These are my personal passions. There is nothing like the feeling you get when you discover something with true potential and then do what it takes to Make It Great.

What's been happening?

This year, I have been working with a small team of friends and advisors to search out really cool deals.  We've found some great ones, but not the right one. Not yet. 

Along the way, I have gotten much more active in connecting to friends old and new via a range of social media tools. 

However, it all came together when I was having lunch last week with Morris Callaman at a beautiful resort nestled against a mountain in Paradise Valley called Montelucia. 

Morris asked -

"Joan, what do you think about expanding this search and inviting your social media network to participate? You could literally ask for help crowd-sourcing this acquisition search."

And that's how it started.  So, here I am asking if you will help me locate the company I would like to lead next. If so, then what follows are some of the criteria we find necessary to successfully recognize our "grail" when we find it.  Ready? OK. Lets discuss a little detail around what this company is, and perhaps even more importantly, what it is not. An ideal company will be one where we can combine Innovation, Leadership, and Growth to create Lasting Value.

Innovation

Innovation in my book is doing something in a new way to make life better for the people who matter most to us - in this case employees, customers, investors, and strategic partners.  It is a company with a product or service that can transform an industry or niche.  For example, my friend Amilya Antonetti changed the way we look at soap in her quest to save the life of her son and now she is on a quest to help other entrepreneurs ask the right questions, get the right information and the things they need to succeed.

Criteria #1:  A product oriented company that will transform its market by creating new value through a better way of doing something(s). 

Unlikely Fits: Singing pop bottles, Presidential Pet Rocks, the corner store, or the next great social media tool.  While there may be lots of investors looking for these, I am not one of them.

Leadership

A great idea only gets you so far before it needs more.  In this case more is the ability to see the future direction of the company's journey and to predict and obtain what it will need along the way.  Many a great new company has lost crucial momentum when the leader that led the way for the first stage of the journey is not ready for the next stage of that steep uphill path, which many entrepreneurs forecast and yet few would want to travel alone. 

The prize we seek on this quest will have a founder and a team that is looking for a new guide as they begin the climb to revenues and profitability so that everyone, employees, customers, investors and strategic partners alike, benefit from the next stage in the company's growth.

Criteria #2: A dedicated team in search of experienced leadership and resources to help them successfully move along the growth path.

Unlikely Fits:

• If ALL YOU NEED IS MONEY so that you can continue along the path you are already on.
• If your goal is to maintain the status quo.
• If, as the owner, you are not interested in passing the baton to the next runner in the growth relay.

Growth

The company must have solid growth potential and demonstrate how it could scale to provide a more than reasonable return to the investors.   

Growth curves come in all shapes and sizes.  There's the steady incremental growth of a mature business, the graceful leaps of the Gazelles, and the inevitable 'Hockey Stick" that appears over and over at every venture conference I have ever attended.  Yet, in the real world, it's not the pretty charts and pictures that matter, it’s the foundational elements that make a transformational company stand out.  Some Gazelles grow to be great companies, while others rapidly run out of steam after the initial burst of growth.  Hockey Stick Growth Curves can be 'the big pay day' or they can simply be a sign of a business in danger of snapping under the pressure of too much, too fast.

Criteria #3:  The best true indicators of growth potential are not charts and graphs, but rather how does the company (or product) provide a solution that is usable by a large number of people and BETTER than substitutes (or lack thereof)?

Unlikely Fits:

• One more “me too” solution in an already overcrowded market.
• A terrific solution for a very small customer base (since these rarely can scale.)
• Product or services that are not designed to fill a genuine customer need (since customers must ultimately be willing to pay and karma is important to me).
• A 'great idea' that has not ever been built, tested, or sold to ANYONE (since I'd like it to already have at least one customer).

Lasting Value

And in the end, building a great company is more than just creating a widget, jobs, or shareholder value. 

Criteria #4:  It's creating something to believe in, and be proud of, for the people who matter most to us (employees, customers, investors and strategic partners). 

Unlikely Fits:

• Products or services you would be embarrassed to discuss with your parents.
• Products or services that add no value to or potentially even harm the community, the environment, or others (since that just isn't who I am). 
• Any product or service that makes promises it cannot keep (since that certainly isn't me either).

So that's my list.  Have YOU seen this company?

Of course, there are at least two BIG differences between my quest and the search for The Grail of legend.  One, I know that I'm going to find what I am seeking, and Two, this is more than a personal journey, it is also an experiment in the power of social media.  So, if you've seen this company please let me know.   You can always leave me a note here, on my blog or, if you want to keep it confidential, you can also contact me by clicking here.

As long as we are on the subject, if you happen to be looking for a company too, just let me know what YOU are searching for and I'll be happy to pass along what I may find for you along the way. Unlike the fabled Holy Grail, there is more than just one great opportunity out there.

Thanks for stopping by.  Stay Tuned...

Joan Koerber-Walker

P.S.  One of the best parts of this journey is connecting, engaging, and being inspired by fellow entrepreneurs.  On Thursday, November 12th in Phoenix Arizona I will be doing just that at AZEC09.  Who knows maybe I will see YOU there and we can chat.

Technorati Tags: Joan Koerber-Walker,CorePurpose,Really cool deals,Innovation Quotes,Leadership,Growth,Innovation,Entrepreneurship,Acquisitions,Investments,Business,Social Media

Go Forth and Raise Whuffie

In less that one month, entrepreneurs from around Arizona and from other parts of North America are gathering for AZEC09, The Fourth Annual Arizona Entrepreneurship Conference which will be held in Tempe Arizona on November 12, 2009.  

AZEC09 continues the Arizona tradition of bringing together thought leaders in entrepreneurship, technology, and social media together for a full day of sharing ideas, making connections, and even launching new companies and products that started with Jump Box in 2006 continues with another great new idea that emerged from last year's conference and will be debuting this year. 

Each year our lunch keynote is a special treat, someone sharing great ideas that each attendee can take back to the office and put to work in their business the very next day.  Past keynotes have included Michael Gerber author of the best selling E-Myth, Dan Morrison, CEO of IT ToolBox, and Matt Mullenweg founder of WordPress.  This year, at lunch we'll be hearing from Tara Hunt, author of The Whuffie Factor, as she inspires us to raise a little whuffie. 

What - you don't know what WHUFFIE is!  We'll let's get a sneak preview from Tara as she answers the question ...What is Whuffie?

 

 

In addition to learning how great companies are putting Whuffie to work in their businesses, AZEC09 is an opportunity to gain insights from Michelle Robson, the founder of EmpowHER, get the latest from Kevin Surace on the strategies that are helping Serious Materials succeed in the eco friendly building materials space, get the latest developments in Healthcare 2.0, hear from panels of local CEOS who generously share their secrets on how they are building great businesses,  and get the scoop from Howard Lindzon on the state of Venture Capital.

But, like everything else in business, you can't win if you do not show up. 

And since winning is so much fun, we have even decided to liven things up with some great prizes during the day thanks to some of our generous sponsors and partners.

So here's your chance to win.  Register now for AZEC09 and if you do so before 8AM on October 16th you can even save $50 with the $99 early registration rate. (At 8:01 AM on the 16th tickets go up to $150.)

It's your chance to Engage, Connect, be Inspired and WIN.

I know where I will be on November 12, 2009.  How about you?

Thanks for stopping by.  Stay Tuned...

Joan Koerber-Walker

Chairman, OTEF, The Opportunity Through Entrepreneurship Foundation

Host organization of AZEC09 , AZEC08, AZEC07, and AZEC06.

P.S. - You might be wondering who those great sponsors are...so here's the list:  The Business Journal Phoenix and Infusionsoft – who have generously stepped up EVERY year, as well as Mashable, Microsoft, Affordable Image, The Town of Gilbert, Metro Studios, Pour Masters, Gangplank, Stealthmode Partners, CorePurpose, Brent Spore, Chuck Reynolds, The Performance Magazine, and  The Social Media Bible.com, PLUS our great friends and community partners at The Knight Center for Digital Media, EO, TiE-Arizona, and The Arizona Technology Council, Social Media Club Phoenix, The Phoenix Innovation Foundation, PodCampAZ.

 

Technorati Tags: Joan Koerber-Walker,Arizona Entrepreneurship Conference,AZEC09,The Whuffie Factor,Tara Hunt,Entrepreners,Entrepreneurship,business tips,marketing tips,social media

Boosting Your Business Starts with a MeetUp

Do you want to boost your business?  Is connecting with new customers on of your goals?  Are you wondering if your marketing message is falling on deaf ears?  Do you sometimes feel like just another face in the crowd?  If you are in business, to one extent or another, the answer to these questions is probably YES.

The real question is WHAT are you going to do about it.  Well, the person with the answer is probably somewhere around you in the same crowd asking questions of their own. 

Questions YOU might have the answer to. 

Now you just need to find a way to meet up.

In today's business world there are lots of opportunities, via networking events, seminars, symposiums, and even through new media tools like Twitter, Facebook,  and Linked In to find people who are asking questions and looking for partners to source answers in the crowd.  The trick is in finding them.  And it starts with a MeetUp.

It's easy to say, "I'm too busy", "we're short handed", "I just don't have time."  But don't fall into that trap.  You need to get out of your office and connect with others to find the answers you seek. 

Here are a few examples of ways to connect with others - AND if you are in the greater Phoenix area - actual activities you can plan to attend:

• Turn a Twitter , Facebook, or LinkedIn contact into a real connection.  Just this week, I finally got to talk with Patti Dragland  - @StrategicSense - from Calgary.  While we had been tweeting to each other for over 9 months, we had never spoken.  Patti took the initiative with a simple DM - "Time for a Skype" and soon we were chatting away, exchanging ideas and best of all - Patti will now be with us in Phoenix come November 12th at the 4th Annual Arizona Entrepreneurship Conference.  Now that's taking a meet up to a new level. 
• Reconnect with Thought Leaders in your own home town. A great example of this is with Kathy Kolbe - @KathyKolbe - creator of Kolbe Index that IDs instinct, M.O. or natural strengths relative to  work, learning, and actions. I've used Kathy's company for years.  We've sat across the room from each other in meetings, but we've just never had a chance to get together and really chat.  That's ending today - we're meeting for lunch at Olive and Ivy.  We both decided it was time to meet up.
• Kick off you morning at an educational networking event.  Locally, one to try is the monthly AZ Entrepreneurs gathering.  This month the topic is "Marketing and Sales Strategies for Your Business" where seasoned sales and marketing veterans Randy Gustafson, Michael D'Hoostelaere, and Jeff Hanlon are setting aside the normal  panel format and opening it up to questions from the crowd from the very beginning - the format is simple - ASK your key questions - let's find a solution.  They even invited ME to be part of the answer team - so if you want to 'meet up' you will find me there early in the morning on October 13th. 
• Make a Day of it at AZEC09!  Sometimes you need to dive deep and invest a whole day in gathering new ideas and making new connections.  Set your MeetUp engine into overdrive November 12th for the 4th Annual Arizona Entrepreneurship conference where hundreds of local entrepreneurs will gather to learn from and with each other, to connect and re-connect, and most of all to shine a light on what's working for business - even in this economy.

So, want to boost your business?  Get that Meet Up on your calendar. 

You'll be glad you did.

Thanks for stopping by.  Stay Tuned...

Joan Koerber-Walker

 

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What would you do if your friends all disappeared?

Have you ever had a dream where you were surrounded by people and then in an instant you were all alone? As if a wizard waved a magic wand and all of your friends disappeared? 

Hopefully in the waking world, there are no powerful wizards to wave a magic wand and make your true friends evaporate, but in today's wonderful world of technology, it can seem like everything is fine and then... Poof - your Twitter account is gone, or you have lost your email and phone contact list, or worse you have lost EVERYTHING on your computer! 

Suddenly you are looking around saying "Hey - Where did everybody go?!"

It would be great if this too only happened in fairy tales; but, I have heard too many real life stories from friends who have it happen to them.

Perhaps the information was on a work computer and they lost their job.  Or, their Twitter account got taken away for a reason only Twitter knows - and good luck getting someone to tell you why any time soon.  And even if they do the damage is already done.  Oh no,  those little green meanies attacked - a computer virus infects your computer and your phone all at the same time and a lifetime worth of contacts disappear in a puff of smoke.  Now this is the stuff that any business person's nightmares are made of.

It can happen to anybody and happen it does - frequently.  Every one of these scenarios happened to friends of mine in the last few weeks.  So it helps to add a little redundancy to your life.  Here are a few tips...

For Twitter

1.  If you are on Twitter and your Twitter ID is linked to your job, start a personal Twitter account that is not work related and ask you real friends on Twitter to follow you there too.  That way, if you change jobs, you have not lost all your friends across the twitterverse,  You know, the ones you spent all that time developing relationships with.

2.  Use a free service like TweetTake to down load a CSV file in Excel once each month.  I do this regularly after my monthly clean up process.  Another free service, Tweet Back will soon have this process automated so you can do  it every day.  That way if you do have a problem you have list to try and restore your friends list from.

For your personal and business contacts

1.  Connect with friends on multiple platforms like Facebook, Plaxo and LinkedIn.  That way if your personal computer systems fail or your job goes away, you have not lost all your key contacts. An added plus to these systems is that as your friends move around - you get the updated information too.

2.  GMAIL is a great free back up plan, even if you do not use it as your main email address or client.  Simply export your address book from MS Outlook or other program to a CSV file and upload it to GMAIL.  Now you have a free back up on the Google network of servers.

Like it or not - your life is linked to your computer

1.  Have multiple computer back ups!  Back up your computer regularly and have more than one back up file so that if one gets corrupted the other one works.  (This is also critically important if you also keep key personal or financial information on your home or laptop computer not to mention all your pictures and other priceless digital keepsakes.)

2.  Remote Back Ups are like Fire and Casualty Insurance - just common sense.  For your home or for your office and especially if your home IS your office, having everything in one location can be a problem.  Fires, floods and break ins can and do happen.  A remote back up system can be a life saver.  There are a number of systems out there, one that is very reasonably priced (<$5/month) is Mozy by Decho, for larger systems, like an office, I have had also had great results with Data Preserve.  There are lots of services out there, but which ever one you ultimately choose, having a remote backup is not something to WISH you had the day AFTER you have a problem.

Yes, your digital life can change like that - Poof!  It never hurts to be prepared with a little magic of your own.

Thanks for stopping by.  Stay Tuned...

Joan Koerber-Walker

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One Twitter User's Guide to House Cleaning

Is your Twitter account starting to look like the house of that little old man down the road who never weeds his yard and never throws anything out?

Is it full of clutter, empty boxes, things that are broken, or that you never use.

Do you still have people on your Christmas Card List that  sent you a card in 1995 and you have not heard from since?

Perhaps when you read this, you may think I have  taken a page from Oscar the Grouch, but there are times when you need to bite the bullet and Clean Your House.

For me, the whole point of Twitter is to build a community of people to exchange ideas with, keep in touch with, and engage in conversation.  If you follow one or more of my profiles on Twitter or follow my blogs you know that I believe that solid relationships - business or otherwise start with conversations. 

If you are using Twitter for business, another important factor comes into play.  Understanding who you are talking to and trying to determine if they are even listening. 

It's like the newspaper.  They may have a million subscribers - but how many actually read it cover to cover every day.  For all you know your ad or letter to the editor is the happy pad for a new puppy, the bottom of the bird cage, or in a soggy pile at the bottom of the driveway.  If you do not take the time to understand who is actually reading the papers, your time and the money you money spent in putting your message there ends up where the paper eventually does - in the trash.

So a few months after starting to use Twitter, it was time to clean house.  I set up a system for a clean up day once per month.  Here is what I do.

1.  Run my Twitter account through TwitChuck.  This free service will scan your follower base for known spammers and Chuck Them Out.  You can even WHACK them with a block if you are feeling particularly grouchy. (Pay attention when you do this - TwitChuck uses an algorithm and it is not perfect.  Look at the Avatars to see if you recognize real friends that may have gotten scooped up with the trash.)

2.  Run my Twitter account through Twitter Karma (another free service) and look at it with 2 different sorts: 

First I sort by Only Following to see the people who are not interested in what I have to say.  These are people who I may have followed after a keyword search or who followed me and unfollowed later.  For what ever reason - my message is following on deaf ears. 

Then I CHECK ALL using a convenient button, and then un check sources I want to follow anyway like news services or information sources that often do not follow back. Then another magic button - to unfollow - and they are gone. 

I then wait a few minutes for the program to do its work and then do a sort again, this time looking at the last time tweeted.  Sorting this way I can see the people who are not there anymore.  Same process - check the boxes of anyone who has not been there for over 30 days and unfollow them. 

After all - the lights may be on - but nobody's home to visit with.

This is also a good time to do a quick scan of Avatars for folks with no clothes on, the same pic on multiple accounts - a BOT characteristic, or other disreputable folks you may not want to be associated with,

A FEW CAVEATS:  1) Twitter Karma works best with FireFox.  2)I have been told not to use this after you get to 8,000 friends as it can hang up. 3) When looking at last time Tweeted - pay attention to tweets that come up as a NEVER tweeted. Some of these are spammers - but others are people who protect your tweets.  Be careful not to WHACK your Great Aunt Sally.   She may cut you out of The Will.

Your first time can be painful

The first time you do a major cleaning, it can be a bit painful.  You just might find that you have quite a bit of clutter to throw away.  When you do, be prepared.   YOUR FOLLOWER COUNT WILL GO DOWN.  Many accounts will automatically unfollow you when you unfollow them.  So if this is important to you, please don't call me screaming. 

It also takes a little time at first; but after the first time, it goes much faster.  It only takes me about an hour total  to clean up all five of my accounts.

Plus - with a little daily dusting - BLOCKING spammers that send me DMs or @ replies, the process gets that much faster each month.

So what's the ROI on cleaning house?

Remember my goal is sharing quality conversations with people.  Here are the benefits I have found...

1. My twitter spam - that daily annoyance - has gone way down in my stream.
2. When I talk to my publisher or marketing team, I can share with them our count of "ACTIVE Followers".  They may not be listening all the time, but at least we know they are picking up the paper and MIGHT actually read   the message.
3. My brand is less likely to be tarnished by porn or other garbage when others look at who I am following or who follows me - and PEOPLE do!

So if your goal is to engage in conversations that have value on Twitter - and to spend your time (which is money - don't ever forget it) sharing your message with people who might actually listen and respond back, then it might be time to Clean Your House.

Thanks for stopping by.  Stay tuned...

Joan Koerber-Walker

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