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Archive for the ‘Twitter’ Category

Small Business Blogs, LinkedIn Generate Leads

August 7th, 2009 by Erin Posted in LinkedIn, Small Business, Twitter | 1 Comment »

Here’s more proof that social media CAN work for small business.

According to a new DemandGen Report of business-to-business marketers, business professionals claim social networks are a powerful source for driving leads.

So which are the top social media channels?

Leading the pack was, of course, LinkedIn (58%), followed by company blogs (36%). Surprisingly, Twitter came in third at 31%.

Sites like Facebook (17%) were found to be basically useless – and MySpace wasn’t even on the radar.

More nitty-gritty:

- Small business users say they’ve generated 10 to 15% new leads using social media
- Other small business departments joining the social network fray include: Sales – 41%; Product Management – 21%; Engineering – 13%.
- Top 3 most useful social media tactics: Joining industry groups – 25%; Starting conversation threads – 25%; Answer questions, participating in forums – 23%.

If you have the time, and a little know-how, social media can help ramp up a small business.

Look into lead generation on LinkedIn.

Send out some tweets.

Post to a blog.

It’s all about sharing your brand and spreading the word – just make sure to leave out the sales pitch.

No one wants to read that.  No one.

 Tags: business to business marketing, small business blogs, small business linkedin, small business twitter, social media marketing

Twitter Hoopla Over Windows 7

July 29th, 2009 by Erin Posted in Technology, Twitter | 1 Comment »

This is more of a clarification than a rant.

Lately I’ve noticed a lot of hatred being spewed on Twitter about Microsoft. Even before its tanked Q2 2009 earnings were revealed –  negative tweets were swirling about everything, from Bing to Windows 7.

Windows especially.

Put it this way. People are not very excited about MS Windows 7.

Case in point.

Read what some anonymous Twitter followers have said recently about Windows 7:

Microsoft recommends XP users buy a new computer to get Windows 7 over upgrading. http://is.gd/1Is6H You’ve got to be kidding me!

Microsoft Corp says Windows 7 will be generally available to ppl around the world on October 22. this DOESNT mean ppl will want to buy it

Reuters: MSFT says Windows 7 will be generally available to customers on October 22. (RT @BreakingNews) “generally available” – what the hell does that mean?

The first tweet is just plain funny – and so incredibly Microsoft’s style.

But my issue is with the second and third tweets – more specifically the term “generally available”.

On the outside it looks like a shady use of words to cover an unknown release date. But in truth, “generally available” means products are being shipped out to the general public.

From my trusty source, Wikipedia:

General availability (GA) is the point where all necessary commercialization activities have been completed and the software has been made available to the general market either via the web or physical media.

Commercialization activities could include but are not limited to the availability of media world wide via dispersed distribution centers, marketing collateral is completed and available in as many languages as deemed necessary for the target market, etc. The time between RTM and GA can be from a week to months in some cases before a generally available release can be declared because of the time needed to complete all commercialization activities required by GA.

So there you have it.

Generally available is a legit term even if it is coming from Microsoft.

Windows 7 will be made available to everyone on October 22.

I know you and the rest of the world will be waiting on bated breath.

 Tags: microsoft and twitter, ms windows 7, Twitter, windows 7 generally available

Bypassing Iran Censorship Through Social Media

June 18th, 2009 by Erin Posted in Twitter | 1 Comment »

The face of social media changed this month.

Twitterers. YouTube watchers. Flickr glazers went to their prospective sites not for work or leisure – but to get involved with a powerful, hot-bedded election in Iran.

This election was supposed to ignite – and implement – a revolution. A “green revolution”.

Alas, that did not happen.

Mahmoud Ahmadinejad beat Mir-Houssein Mousavi with 63% of the vote.

Mousavi supporters cried fowl, claiming the election results were tampered.

The world watched. Listened. Then got involved.

On June 13, the day after the election and Western journalists were sent packing, Iran saw the writing on the wall and pulled the plug on all Internet traffic. For 45 minutes there was no way to access the web through Iran’s only telecom company – Data Communications of Iran (DCI).  When service did resume, it was at a very low level – and remains so to this day. DCI also tried to cleverly throttle back the total amount of Internet data entering or a leaving the country, installing new filtering systems that block politically sensitive websites.

Twitter. YouTube. Flickr. All of them were unscathed.

And so began this new chapter in the life of social media – a sidestep to censorship.

When enraged Mousavi supporters couldn’t make their voices heard around the world – social networks did the talking for them. Cell phone snapshots, text messages, and incredible videos were uploaded and shared on these Web services  - essentially undoing what the Iranian government thought was an iron-clad spin control plan.

Word of the violence unfolding in Iran, restrained by just 140 characters, spread like wildfire on Twitter. We received minute-by-minute updates and images; an unprecedented turn of events considering the lack of information we were receiving from traditional television news sources.

Now as the dust begins to settle, it’s time for us to step back and take a look – and appreciate – what the Internet has now become: a real time voice for the world.

Imagine how we would have seen 9/11 unfold through today’s social media?

Or how about the fall of the Berlin Wall?

Or when Saddam Hussein was captured in 2003?

Now, sit back and think about what we’ll likely see in the future.

Kind of tough to wrap your head around, isn’t it?

This is obviously just the beginning of something big – very big.

 Tags: election in iran, iran censorship, twitter iran

Want To Hear About Your Business Complaints? There’s An App For That.

May 29th, 2009 by Erin Posted in Business, Small Business, Stature Projects, Twitter | No Comments »

We live in an app-crazed, social networking world folks.

I thought I had heard it all last week when the “drunk dial” app was unveiled for the Apple iPhone. Now comes word of a yet another new app –  one that could really help small businesses.

Introducing “Salesforce CRM for Twitter.”

When people talk about you and your business – Salesforce let’s you know.

Here’s how is works:

Salesforce plugs into the Twitter API, and customer care reps can start Twitter searches from within Salesforce’s service, bypassing search.twitter.com. If a company discovers someone tweeting about them (good or bad), a button click can import the entire Twitter thread into Salesforce’s software. From there the Twitter user is notified via software, giving them the precious opportunity to respond to the original Tweet.

This is a brilliant idea, given that Twitter users can’t possibly monitor what is being said about them in real time and respond to people’s questions. Twitter is just too large now. Too powerful.

Thankfully, Salesforce can help business owners sleep at night by giving them the tool they need to track complaints – and compliments.

This is beyond better customer care. This is could very well be the life jacket that saves many of our small businesses.

Twitter.

What would businesses do without it?

 Tags: business complaints, salesforce for twitter, Small Business, Twitter

Small Business Networking|A Sure-Fire Solution In A Down Economy

February 20th, 2009 by Erin Posted in LinkedIn, Small Business, Stature Projects, Twitter | 1 Comment »

Even with a comprehensive government stimulus plan in place – we still have a long road to hoe.

Things won’t turn around overnight, and it seems small businesses have caught on to the notion: When the going gets tough – the tough get networking.

I’m not just talking about social networks – I’m talking all networks : Blogs, forums, Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn.

They’re all being used by small businesses to their fullest advantage and  - for some – business couldn’t be better.

Case in point:

The Charlotte Observer recently featured the story of specialty food maker Donya Schweizer.

When Donya had trouble getting her line of gourmet foods off the ground she turned to blogging and social networking.  A quick WordPress setup and her blog was up and running in a day. She then used the power of Facebook and Twitter to kick start a word-of-mouth campaign. 1,300 Twitter followers later, Donya can’t get her chocolate-infused meat rubs out the door fast enough.

Wait.

Chocolate-infused meat rubs?

I digress.

Bottom line –  Web 2.0 platforms have reached a social tipping point. They’ve transformed the way we communicate and how small businesses operate.

In fact, corporate spending on Web 2.0 software – including blogs, social networks, mashups, podcasts, RSS, widgets and wikis – is expected to climb by a whopping 43% annually.

The networking revolution is here and any business that does not take full advantage of it is – well – not doing good business.

 Tags: small business networking, social networking, web 2.0 platforms, wordpress blogs