Twitter: Inane Chatter or Powerful Conversation Channel? Our Ford Story in 140 Characters
by Anne Deeter Gallaher

The power of social conversation and social networks in creating fresh marketing approaches is illustrated by a Deeter Gallaher Group case study that follows a car dealership’s foray into the stream of social media.

With the support of our innovation-game clientele, we are honing the two imperatives for anyone wishing to pursue successful social media campaigns: significant investment of time and dedicated people and financial resources.

To be effective in social media you must — engage people in two-way conversations, share ideas and information, measure results and opinions—there is no way to circumvent the huge investment of time and resources on the public timeline. These media platforms might be free for now—Twitter, LinkedIn, YouTube, Facebook—but the man hours and agency hours to create strategies, engage customers, and measure feedback is far from free. Tempering our insatiable desire to learn and absorb all this information with the economic realities of billable time is a Herculean struggle. I know we are not the only firm working to achieve this balance and trying to define the elusive ROI.

Do a quick search of the #marketing, #IABC, or #likeminds hashtags on Twitter, and you’ll find lively debate on social media’s ROI. Whether it’s Return on Investment for the CFOs, Return on Influence for the CMOs, or Return on Information for the CIOs, every client wants and deserves a measurable return.

Business owners and agencies alike wonder, What’s the best social media engagement for us to follow? Should we begin with a 10-page strategy or a one-page blog decision tree like the US Air Force? The good news is that there is no one prescribed methodology for social media success. Listening is not scientific, and it doesn’t take a degree in marketing to glean results from your efforts.

For us, we have created a blend of traditional and social media that is producing impressive returns for our clients. Our latest case study involves Pennsylvania Ford dealer LB Smith Ford Lincoln Mercury, Ford Motor Company, and social media marketing. This is our version of The Ford Story:

1. Engage in social media first by listening to people of influence. Ford’s Global Digital Communications Director, @ScottMonty, tops our list of communicators who provide highly informed, highly valued tweets. His Social Media Marketing Blog is a perfect place for businesses to learn the art and influence of social media.

We engaged with Scott on Twitter and have learned an MBA’s worth of strategy and networking just from listening to him. Soon our listening turned to talking (that’s happened on several occasions with our Twitter friends like @HowellMarketing, @TrendTracker, @CMEGroup).

More important, On June 24, 2009, we brought him to Harrisburg for a professional development seminar on Social Media and Business co-sponsored by Deeter Gallaher Group, LB Smith Ford Lincoln Mercury, and the Harrisburg Chapter of IABC.

Ford’s success in the social media realm has attracted international industry attention and a branding award by the Society for New Communications Research, as well as a recent surprise $1 billion profit announced in the WSJ.

2. Communicate to all your audiences. The printed word is not dead, declares Tyler Cowen in his opening sentence of Three Tweets for the Web. But how can you garner the greatest media mileage from an article that’s in print? A perfect meld of traditional and social media can begin with the op-ed or an 800-word column “opposite the editorial” in a publication.

More over, On May 29, our client Richard E. Jordan II (@RichardEJordan2) wrote an 800-word op-ed that was printed in the Central Penn Business Journal’s transportation issue. Rick Jordan is CEO of LB Smith Ford Lincoln Mercury, in Lemoyne, PA, the number 1 dealer in the Philadelphia region. As part of a campaign that includes full-color ads, targeted event sponsorships, and public relations, Rick’s op-ed offered timely C-level insight in his own words. Teamed with social media, the op-ed packs a strong communications punch.

3. Take it into the social web. As soon as the Central Penn Business Journal ran the article and posted it to their Web site on Friday, May 29, we began tweeting it (which drives traffic to the business journal’s site as well) and linked it to Rick Jordan’s two company Web sites: www.LBSmithFord.com and www.SmithLandUSA.com.

It’s wise to tweet articles using a measurement tool like bit.ly so clients and agencies have an accurate analytic of the force of social mentions. Within a few hours, ““Is Ford at a Competitive Disadvantage? PA Ford Dealer Responds” was tweeted and retweeted across the public timeline.

It caught the attention of @ScottMonty and @Ford. The quality and value of the conversation on Twitter is what propels retweets, so in blog postings or guest columns be careful not to minimize the credibility of powerful language and clear writing. The influence from retweets is vast and deep, forming simultaneous media channels. In addition to Ford dealers on Twitter who retweeted Rick’s op-ed, the article was retweeted by @riGMBlog, @DrivenMediaComm, @nadaguides, @dtdbob3 and throughout central Pennsylvania.

4. Capture the serious attention of C-levels. Knowing how authentic and innovation-focused Mr. Mulally Ford’s CEO is, I felt he would appreciate reading what Rick Jordan had written as “a Ford foot soldier on the front lines of American car manufacturing.”

The day the op-ed ran, I sent an email to Ford’s CEO Alan Mulally with the article link in it. Was this a long shot? Perhaps. Do CEOs really care what people say about their brand? The great ones do. Rick Jordan had quoted Scott Monty, Alan Mulally, and Bill Ford in his fresh perspective on the automotive industry from the dealer’s viewpoint.

5. Never underestimate the power of conversation. The following Monday morning, Mr. Mulally sent a personal email with genuine remarks and appreciation for the “PA Ford dealer” viewpoint. He sent Rick Jordan a personal email as well. Astonishingly, our email exchanges were in the midst of GM declaring bankruptcy on June 1. As a Fortune 10 executive, Mr. Mulally certainly has global concerns that demand his attention, but his willingness to listen and respond to a Ford dealer’s first-person perspective defines his leadership style and successes.

The lesson is that social media conversations are extremely important to a company’s marketing and branding strategy. It’s also an opportunity to carry timely, unfiltered business information straight to the corner suite.

Is Ford listening? Absolutely. Are your customers listening? Yes. Are you telling your story? Social media demands a top-down mandate. If the CEO of Ford Global deems it valuable to sit with his Social Media director Scott Monty and engage consumers in two-way conversations, then certainly it’s a wholesale embrace of new media channels by Ford. Mr. Mulally has invited the “empowered consumer” into Ford’s product decision-making through blogs, the Fiesta movement, and The Ford Story video collection. Clearly the public has responded with renewed brand enthusiasm.

What did the LB Smith Ford CEO Rick Jordan think of our traditional and social media marriage? “I am a social media believer, and although I’m not in my 30s, you’ll find me on Twitter (@RichardEJordan2) and below on YouTube.

“I understand my role as the CEO involves communicating with our customers and the community in many different channels.”

Beginning on Twitter, Rick’s conversations with @ScottMonty evolved into a conversation with Alan Mulally, and he has now achieved a social media Grand Slam. Mr. Alan Mulally will be the first honoree at The Second Mile’s “Celebration of Leadership 2010” event in Hershey, PA, sponsored by LB Smith Ford Lincoln Mercury.

“We are thrilled to invite and honor Mr. Mulally to tell the Ford story of turning the Ford ship around to 1,200 people in our business community,” says Rick.
“Our social media investment and commitment to a conversation has yielded more Return on Investment, Influence, and Information than we have ever imagined.”

The Deeter Gallaher Group, a Harrisburg-based marketing firm, has always taken pride in its tagline: “Powerful language. Smart marketing.SM” The advent of social media, however, has caused us to internally recognize a new ethos: “Powerful conversation. Smart marketing.”

Anne Deeter Gallaher is owner and CEO of the Deeter Gallaher Group LLC, a marketing/ad/PR firm in Mechanicsburg, PA, delivering Powerful language. Smart marketing?.

She can be reached at ADG [AT] DeeterGallaherGroup.com and @AnneDGallaher on Twitter.

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We Care: 5 Easy Steps to Make Listening a Form of Activity

By Anne Deeter Gallaher

Are you tired of reading and hearing about Twitter? You’re bombarded by social media seminars. And now your clients have started asking whether their businesses should have a LinkedIn account, a Facebook fan page, a Twitter profile, or all of the above. (For a complete social media platform base, you’ll also need a blog, a YouTube account, Flickr, and Digg!) It’s time to conquer social media anxiety and join the conversation.

Where should you begin? With the same basic communications protocol @DaleCarnegie explained in 1936. In chapter four of How to Win Friends and Influence People, “An Easy Way to Become a Good Conversationalist,” Carnegie writes about former Harvard president Charles W. Eliot, who said, “There is no mystery about successful business [conversation]. Exclusive attention to the person speaking to you…Nothing else is so flattering as that.” Carnegie observed that “Dr. Eliot’s listening was not mere silence, but a form of activity.”

For a business owner, the thought of paying employees or agencies to listen in silence in social media channels seems wasteful. Businesses need customers, not conversation monitors. Or do they?

The most successful businesses understand their markets, their customers, and their suppliers. The best companies are futurists, trendseekers, customer-centric, and great listeners. The quickest way to forge connections in all these areas is the public timeline, and the ROI can be immediate. By following Ford’s @ScottMonty or @comcastcares you’ll quickly discover the value they bring to their companies just by listening.

Although it’s hard to convince management and clients that being productive now includes listening to hundreds of 140-character tweets or reading industry blog posts from consumer bloggers, that’s precisely the truth. New media has snatched new mindshare, and business media channels no longer cater to the elite. Consumer opinion rules.

To ease into the conversations, here are some simple steps to help you find and listen to people in the social media sphere:

1. Choose one or two platforms to engage in. While you are “doing” business—producing, servicing, selling—smart companies are listening to conversations about their competition and searching the public timeline for opportunities to create their own Blue Ocean Strategy. Listening on Twitter, YouTube, Facebook, and reading blog posts from consumers in your industry provides enough data to develop a competitive landscape. What’s your competition doing? Who are their customers? Is there a need being unfulfilled? Is there a weakness? Is there a service delivered unsatisfactorily, hence an opportunity? You’ll find your answers in social media channels.

2. Choose what topics to listen in on. Dedicate at least one hour per day to explore conversations of interest and consequence. On Twitter, use the Search function to find people talking about your products or to discover wholesale conversations on your topic—energy, analytics, IT, commercial real estate, non-profits. On Tweetdeck, you can organize your columns by topics and listen to real-time, continuous conversations. As a branding firm, we listen to @Wegmans, @Ford, @comcastcares, @JetBlue, and @Gevalia. We listen to streaming topics which are connoted by a hashtag—anyone talking about #IABC, #marketing, #PR, #likeminds, #entrepreneurs, and #CEOs is noteworthy to us. It won’t take long to find pertinent topics to listen to and influencers in your fields of interest.

3. Choose who to listen to within a topic. You can’t possibly listen to everyone who’s sharing online, but you can discern who is sharing the best content and who has valuable connections. Find the industry experts by evaluating their tweets. Unfollow the people who don’t add value. We listen to PR colleagues @HowellMarketing, @MikeLizun, @SueYoungMedia, @thinkBIG_Blog, @AmberCadabra, @demicooper, and @kimschaumann around the world and learn from them. We read their case studies and comment on their blogs.

Who are the influencers in your field? Glen Gilmore (@TrendTracker) has developed such a strong knowledge-flow and group of followers that he is a media channel himself. The quality and value of his tweets attracts more than 60,000 followers who use him as a Search engine. Follow the people he tweets and retweets.

4. Listen to countertrend and divergent views. Try not to follow only like minds. Listen to those who rebuke social media and who have opposing political, trade, and business views. Learn why people feel social media is a fad and from that column, you will discover more influencers. Read a mashup of blog posts and comments from sites not related to your field to make your own product and consumer research richer. Regardless of industry, listen to local (@CPBJ, @andreacecil, @bydanielvictor) and national media (@WSJ and @USAToday) and local and national businesses (@Starbucks, @DunkinDonuts, @JetBlue, @mayoclinic, @Nordstrom). Listen to leaders and CEOs like @CEO_INGDIRECT, @jack_welch, @shelisrael, and @Scobleizer.

5. Build a rich personal and business community by listening. You can quickly discover where @SuzyWelch is on her new book tour, what new fast food account @ThePowerofSmall won, or what @garyvee says about wine. Your community on Twitter will be filled with people who are passionate about writing books, raising children, starting businesses, running governments, protesting governments, training for Ironman competitions, and curing cancers. Listening to them is the foundation to building your community.

Frank Eliason is @comcastcares and tweets from Philadelphia. His job is to “listen” to Comcast customers who seek his advice and tech help or who need to rant or rave about Comcast’s service. His real value is to be the ears of the corporation. The biggest signal he sends Comcast customers is that he is listening to them—Comcast Cares.

By engaging in social media for marketing, knowledge, or friendships, you are initiating a two-way conversation that begins with listening. And that sends a powerful message that says “I care.”

If you missed my first “Featured” article title: “Twitter: Inane Chatter or Powerful Conversation Channel?” just click on the link. It’s a Powerful In-depth Case Study on Ford Motors Enjoy

The Deeter Gallaher Group, a Harrisburg-based marketing firm, has always taken pride in its tagline: “Powerful language. Smart marketing.SM” The advent of social media, however, has caused us to internally recognize a new ethos: “Powerful conversation. Smart marketing.”

Anne Deeter Gallaher is owner and CEO of the Deeter Gallaher Group LLC, a marketing/ad/PR firm in Mechanicsburg, PA, delivering Powerful language. Smart marketing?.

She can be reached at ADG [AT] DeeterGallaherGroup.com and @AnneDGallaher on Twitter.

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Howell Marketing, By Amy Howell — Advice I give my clients often is that you have to tell your own story or someone else will tell it for you. There’s been a lot of focus lately on the dynamic, changing role of social media in journalism and PR and I am amazed by the sheer volume of information on Twitter everyday. Last week I successfully demonstrated to a new client how her iPhone and Twitter could help her advance her business.

She’s committed and is appreciating this newfound leverage which we both believe will yield added revenue to her business. Oh how I love the process of conversion! However, the corporate jury of social media is still out and, for a business to use Twitter, it has to have what I call the 3 Business T’s: Telling, Talented and Tangible.

Telling: PR is about storytelling and to quote a fellow Twitter friend (@TrendTracker) “nothing thrives more in social media than a rich character.” I believe smart companies and organizations (especially non-profits) will benefit greatly by telling their own, unique story through the social media channels.

It’s both what you say (content) and how you say it (style, message). Clients I’m helping use Twitter to tell their story include restaurants, non-profits, and even a real estate professional. We’re taking the strongest, most compelling information about their business and posting it strategically on Twitter. And we’re following the people who want to hear those messages.

Blended with traditional PR and marketing, Twitter is like adding a megaphone to your business’ communication plan. There’s no limit to the number of people who can see tweets and can re-tweet them (like compounding interest).

Talented: The talented are thriving on Twitter! You don’t have to look far down your Twitter “stream” to see real talent right there in front of you. I’m getting direct access to some of the best PR folks out there such as @MikeLizun, @TheRealPRMan, @markwschaefer, just to name a few, and businesses can access these folks too!

If you want talent in the social media world, look no further than @jeffbullas, @socialnetdaily, @trendtracker, @mashable (of course), @treypennington, @Twitter_Tips. So much talent, not enough time to learn it all! I am working now with clients to help them identify talent that’s on Twitter and that is relevant to their business. Once identified, we follow, listen, learn and apply complimentary strategies!

Tangible: In the corporate world, everything revolves around one thing: revenue. As a small business owner myself, you have to financially benefit from Twitter and social media or you can spin your wheels and end up with a lot of wasted time and the doubters who will love to say “I told you so”.

So, here’s what Twitter HAS to do for your business:

It has to provide tangible results. Can you point to a new client as a result of being on Twitter? Have you found a new employee through Twitter? Have you had more traffic in your restaurant because of Twitter? Can you point to news coverage for your business as a result of being on Twitter? The real strategy with Twitter’s tangibility for results is in what you say (content is king), how you say it (strategic style) and how often you tweet (consistent messaging).

For more helpful insights, tips and ‘Breaking New’ you can reach Amy here:

Amy Howell, President and CEO, Howell Marketing Strategies, LLC

408 S. Front Street, Suite 104 Memphis, TN 38103

(901) 521-1453 office – (901) 351-7186 cell

Web: http://www.Howell-Marketing.com – Twitter: hhttp://twitter.com/HowellMarketing

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Like anything, and this is especially true of working with social media, the more you give, the more you get. In other words, the more often you tweet the more activity you’ll generate. Some suggest that you tweet a few times a day, every day. Not every tweet needs to be profound. But they should all be useful.

It’s important that you don’t abuse Twitter for marketing and promoting your products, services or affiliate links. Most of your tweets ought to be about offering your followers useful and valuable information. Only once in a while should you try to use Twitter to promote something. Otherwise you’ll be perceived as a spammer, and no one wants that tag.

Imagine if you had a large number of people following your tweets? Some people have tens of thousands following them. If you had something to promote and you had a large following, you could quickly and efficiently alert a lot of people of your promo. It acts sort of like a mass emailíng blast to your house email list, but it’s a heck of a lot easier and faster. This is the power of Twitter.

One thing that I’ve noticed with Twitter is that it can seem overwhelming at times. The sheer information on Twitter, the ‘how-to’s’, tutorials and all the other ubiquitous advice on how to use and take advantage of it can seem hard to understand and implement. So here’s an easy-to-understand list of the top ten ways in which you can use Twitter to market yourself, your business and your website.

The Top 10 Ways To Use Twitter for Marketing:

1. Use it to promote new pieces of content you or your company create to drive traffic to your site. From online articles to blog posts or from videos to webinars, each time you add something to the Web that is of value, tweet about it and include a link. (Most people on Twitter usewww.TinyURL.com to take a long URL and make it short.)

2. Use it for learning new marketing ideas, strategies and techniques. If you follow the right people, and you have to be picky about who you follow, you’ll get pointed to a good amount of useful tutorials, videos, e-zines and other things that teach you about marketing.

3. Use it to get new customers. Use Twitter’s search to find people who may be interested in your product or service. There are many ingenious ways to search for people on Twitter. For example, if you sell red widgets you could go to http://search.twitter.com and find people who have tweeted specifically looking for red widgets. To do this, type the following into the search box: red widgets?

• You’ll notice a lot of the results will be of others selling red widgets. These ones will all obviously have links in them to direct people to the site they’re selling red widgets on. To weed these people/tweets out, use the negative sign like this: -http red widgets?

• Since every link has ‘http’ in it, using the negative sign in front of it will cause your search results to not include any tweets with links in them.

4. Use it to build your email list. Use Twitter’s search to find people who may be interested in the monthly newsletter you send out to your house email list. Invite these people to join.

5. Utilize Twitter plugins or add-ons such as TweetMyBlog or The Twitter Updater, which both automatically make tweets of every new blog post you publish. Also check out TwitThis. When visitors to your website click on the TwitThis button or link, it takes the URL of the Web page and creates a shorter URL using TinyURL. Then visitors can send this shortened URL and a description of the web page to all of their followers on Twitter.

Finally, look at TweetLater, a service that allows you to write lots of tweets at once and then schedule them to go out over time.

Get The Full Story and (5) Additional Ways Here, Enjoy

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Twitter has two main components. Just like other social networking sites, you can add “followers” and follow other people as well. They’ll receive your updates and you’ll receive theirs. However, your messages are limited to 140 characters, which is why some people call it a “micro-blogging” tool. You have to keep your messages brief and to the point.

I would like to share with you some practical ways to create an instant flow of new traffic to your blog or website as well as how to add brand new subscribers to your mailing list.

Here are some tips to begin receiving active traffic from Twitter…..

1. Establish your Twitter brand: Even though you want to be personable on Twitter, you still want to portray your status as an “authority” in your area of expertise. So, don’t use Twitter as an hourly diary of your life as some do. Mix your posts or “tweets” up with industry-relevant links in addition to your personal activities and opinions. And by all means get a custom graphic background designed that is nice looking and includes the web address of your website and blog.

2. Begin to follow people: All this means is that you sign up to receive their messages. If you follow them, they will most likely follow you. This is the most prevalent strategy being used to acquire followers. Be sure to thank people when they follow you either by @ reply or direct message.

You can use the search feature in Twitter (search.twitter.com) or you can search Google.com (keywords site:twitter.com) and find the people you want to follow – just put in the search terms you are looking for. If you want to find authors in Australia, go for it. If you want to find local people to network with, that’s fine, too. Just search.

Important note: When filling out your bio in your Twitter profile, be sure to include several relevant keywords so you can be found when people search for folks to follow.

3. Be interactive and social with replies. Make sure you ask and answer questions and give value to the community. You don’t have to say anything profound – just relevant. Post a reply. When you type in a regular message, people may reply to your post. You’ll see your user name with the symbol @ before it when someone replies to your message. You can respond to other people the same way. You simply type @ and then their user name directly after that (no spaces) and then your reply.

4. Ask questions and surveys: You can increase your relationship with your followers by asking questions. Ask people for advice, what they think of the latest news story or their opinion on a topic. Survey your followers regarding a hot topic or if they think your latest blog post is accurate.

5. Utilize direct messages: If you want to send a private message to someone that no one else can see, you can send a direct message. You’ll also receive messages from others and be notified via e-mail when someone direct messages you. Use a service like Tweetlater.com or Socialtoo.com to automatically thank new followers with a direct message. Don’t forget to include a link to your website or blog in the note.

6. Take advantage of retweets: A retweet is when a Twitter user copies a twitter message from another Twitter user in their network and shares it with their network, thereby mentioning the author of the original Twitter message (example – Retweet: @originalposter The 15 Best Tips http://tinyurl.com/56f – great tips). Retweets that contain value can impress your followers, help establish your brand, and build a relationship with the original poster.

7. Start “tweeting” right away. The best way to get followers is to say something – your tweets will come up in searches, so make sure you say things that reflect you well. Say things that are relevant and not just sending out sales pitches. Don’t be afraid to give a word of encouragement or a suggestion to someone. Remember to place keywords in your messages.

8. Build your list. When you place a link in a message, make sure your websites and blogs feature free offers. Obviously, you’ll make them subscribe to your mailing list in order to receive the offer. However, don’t send them to a squeeze page designed only to harvest email addresses. Send them to pages that contain valuable, interesting content.

9. Send links as a natural part of the conversation. If you chat with people, eventually they will ask what you do (or you can drop subtle hints) – then you can mention it. Again, only send them content links.

Use links properly. Don’t send a direct link to your product. Send a link to your blog or a general informational website. Don’t be so blatant about trying to get a sale.

For example, if a Twitter entrepreneur complains about not doing well with social networking, don’t send her a link to your ebook on Facebook; instead, send a link to your blog post that discusses social networking ideas (that can include your link to the ebook). You will get a much more favorable reception.

10. Getting traffic to your blog posts: With a simple post to Twitter, you can have lots of readers come to your blog. Even though blog feeds do the same thing, you can often find new readers on Twitter or remind current readers to re-visit your blog or a specific article.

11. Be useful and helpful. Not every tweet has to be about “you”. Take time to tweet about others and be a helpful part of the community.

12. Listen to your followers. Try to help them out. You can get great feedback using tweets. You can get ideas for info products and affiliate products from the feedback you receive from your followers.

13. Don’t send message spam: Let me repeat: Do NOT send spammy messages! If all you do is send out tweets that scream, “Buy from me! Buy from me!” you will quickly lose followers. Just don’t do it!

14. Final tips: Don’t post the same link more than once. If people are really interested in your blog and your links, they’ll visit it the first time you post it. You don’t need to post your link multiple times. Don’t tweet about every single thing you do. (Like “going to the store” – do people really care?) Don’t send direct affiliate links. Don’t toot your own horn all of the time. Let people hear from you, but don’t be too chatty.

Please don’t get discouraged. Learning Twitter is just like anything else – it takes time. Soon you will be twittering and tweeting with the best of them. Just jump in, take action and enjoy the traffic.

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About 230 packed the conference at the Holiday Inn, including reps from Bank of America, Duke Energy and Piedmont Natural Gas. Walmart sent three from its Arkansas headquarters.

Keynote speaker David Armano told a spillover crowd that businesses on social media today are like teenagers experimenting with sex: They don’t know what to do, but they really want to do it. Then they’re disappointed when they finally get to do it.

Armano is with Dachis Corp., a new social media consulting firm in Texas founded with $50 million in venture capital. He closed his talk by telling businesses to look beyond this teenage phase.

“It’s time to grow up,” Armano said. “Social media is here to stay. In five to 10 years we won’t even be talking about this stuff.”

He compared the change happening now to when e-mail became commonplace.

He cited Best Buy’s use of social media to allow sales employees to share expertise and best serve customers in all of its stores. So if a customer in one state has a question about a computer modem, a sales rep in another can help. Representatives from utilities Duke and Piedmont said they are looking at using social media for a variety of customer service needs rather than just alerting them in emergencies.

Charlotte’s Kathleen Hessert – famous for teaching Shaquille O’Neal to tweet – told a crowd that knowing how to post on social media and knowing the right way to represent your company are two entirely different things. Social media have boomed, and many businesses must play catch up, she said. “It took 50 years for TV to build the audience social media has in five,” said Hessert, who runs the consulting firm Sports Media Challenge from her six-person office at N.C. 51 and Carmel Road.

Bank of America vice president Sidney Echevarria, one of several BofA managers at the conference, said he believes social media can help in “flattening the organization,” so expertise can be shared throughout. Many people know how to use Twitter and Facebook personally, but using them within an organization requires new strategies, he said.

Jason Keath, who organized the conference, plans a follow-up event in Charlotte, and is planning events in Nashville and St. Louis.

Read The Full Story Here, Enjoy

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Howell Marketing, By Amy Howell — I have not yet figured out why I love Twitter so much, but the truth is, I do. It’s like music… how do you know “why” you like a certain song? It moves you, it speaks to you, it reminds you of some old high school memory

(Joan Jett, KISS—ok, now you know my age ) or an old boyfriend…whatever.

Twitter reminds me of music: there’s something for everyone, it’s intuitive, it’s fun and it’s timely and informative. I’m a music lover and truth be known, my secret wish in life is to be a famous singer but since that will never happen (and you don’t want it to let me tell you), I leave the singing to the experts.

One fun thing I have noted is all the music on Twitter! Music Monday, all the music follows, all the music blips, all the access.

If you love music as much as I do… I would like to introduce you to Jeff Mello he’s someone you should follow as he’s made his mark (in my humble opinion).

More over he’s smart, savvy, kind and relevant — he not only knows his music but he engages his followers and is gracious as well as fun. So, Jeff (and he has no idea I’m giving him a “shout out here”) you have inspired me to think about music, Twitter and some fun thoughts to “learn” ways to advance the Twitter causes.

Here are my “Music” matches to the “Twitter Guidelines”, Just click on the links below they brought back a lot of memories for me, Enjoy

1. Be Original: “Mustang Sally—Ride, Sally Ride” (I also thought of “She’s a Very Kinky Girl” the kind you don’t take home to Mother…she will never let your spirits down)

2. Be Polite: “A Little R E S P E C T”

3. Be Bright: “Start Spreadin’ the News….New York New York (Frank)” (Liza) which one do you like the best?

4. Be Community Oriented: “We Built This City”…built this City on Rock and Roll!

5. Be Creative: “A Bottle of Red…Bottle of White”

6. Be Compassionate: “You’re the meaning of my life, You’re the inspiration”

7. Be Focused: “827-5309″ Jenny Jenny, Who can I turn to?

8. Be Tough: “I Will Survive”, As long as I know how to love I know I’ll stay alive!

9. Be Engaged: “Whenever I See Your Smiling Face”, I have to smile myself cuz I love you, yes I do!

10. Be Fun: “Slip Slidin’ Away” ah, all along the waterfall with you, my brown-eyed girl…sha la la la la la la la la la la t da, brown-eyed girl, you my brown-eyed girl…”

For more helpful insights, tips and ‘Breaking New’ you can reach Amy here:

Amy Howell, President and CEO, Howell Marketing Strategies, LLC

408 S. Front Street, Suite 104 Memphis, TN 38103

(901) 521-1453 office – (901) 351-7186 cell

Twitter: Amy Howell – Web: http://www.Howell-Marketing.com

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One of the many reasons why Yahoo! 360 and MySpace have increased in popularity is due to the fact that they cover a wide variety of different topics, issues, and interests. MySpace and Yahoo! 360 do not focus on one particular group of individuals or one particular hobby. Instead, they invite all internet users to join. While this may be good, it gives you a wide selection of online friends to choose from, it can also be considered bad. On many of these websites a competition has brewed. That competition has been to see who can get the most friends. This may result in you not really getting an online friend, when you are supposed to be.

If you are looking to join a social networking website that is more focused on creating friendships or partnerships between internet users that have the same interests, you will want to focus on social networking websites that have a particular focus. Many times, these websites are known as specialty social networking websites. Online, you should be able to find a number of these specialty social networking websites. Many have focuses on important issues, topics, and hobbies, such as pet owners, religion, travel, and much more.

When it comes to many specialty social networking sites, many individuals want to know what sets them apart from the rest. Honestly, it is the community. As previously mentioned, specialty social networking sites tend to focus on a particular topic, issue, or hobby. This means that if you are a devoted Christian and you would like to speak to other Christians, you will want to join a Christian networking site and so on. The difference between specialty social networking sites and traditional ones is that you will automatically be paired with hundreds, if not thousands, of other internet users who share the same interests, views, or beliefs as you.

Another one of the many benefits to joining a specialty social networking website is that you are, in a way, safer than those who are members of other networks. Not all, but a large number of specialty networking sites require activation before joining the site. Before activation can occur, many internet users are required to state their reasons for wanting to the join the network or they may be required to fill out a small questionnaire, often pertaining to the social network in question. In many cases, this will help to determine whether or not an internet user really has an interest in the topic focused on by the network in question.

As previously mentioned, specialty social networking websites allow you to automatically be paired with a group of individuals who share the same beliefs, views, and interests as you do. This mean that you don’t have to spend hours researching a person or speaking to them, just to learn what they are or are not interested in. Essentially, this enables you to jump right in and start making friends, almost as soon as you are granted access to the site that you have chosen.

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As previously mentioned, your social networking profile is important when it comes to meeting other internet users. This is because, in most cases, internet users are looking to chat with someone who has the same goals, views, beliefs, and interests as they do. Without a personal profile, it would be difficult or impossible to tell what your interests are. That is why social networking profiles are not only important, but they are needed.

When it comes to social networking profiles, a lot of focus has been placed on what you should include in your profile or display on your profile page. It has been said that pictures produce the best responses, as well as detailed personal information. Although a picture and detailed personal information may help to increase your page views, you may be getting views that you do not necessarily want. Despite what you may believe, most social networking websites do not have restrictions on who can view your personal profile. In fact, internet users, even those that do not belong to your online community, can easily see profile.

Since anyone, literally anyone, can see your social networking profile, on most social networking websites, you are advised to be cautious. Essentially, this means that instead of focusing on what you should put in your online profile, you should be focusing on what not to put. This is one the best ways to protect your safety, both on and offline.

As previously mentioned, pictures are often recommended with social networking websites. If you are interested in positing a personal picture of yourself in your online profile you can do so, but you are advised to carefully choose that picture. While you will want to look your best, you are advised against posting a picture that is too revealing or seductive in nature. Most internet users can look at these types of pictures without feeling a thing, but for others these types of pictures spell danger.

If you make the decision to post a picture of yourself in your social networking website profile, you need to be careful about the rest of the information that you post. Although you may not necessarily think about it, a picture is just a picture, but combined with your name and address, it could be a deadly combination. You are advised to only post your first name in your profile. This will make it more difficult for anyone to try and contact you off of the internet.

It is also advised that you carefully choose your location. A large number of online social networking sites require that you select a city, as well as a state. If it is allowed, you may only wish to list your state and not the city. If you are required to list the city and the state that you live in, you may want to think about using a nearby city or town, especially if you live in a small town. If an internet predator wanted to contact you and you lived in a small town, it could be fairly easy for them to find you. That is why it is advised that you carefully select the answer to the location question.

In addition to the above precautionary measures, it is advised that you do not post detailed information on your children, the location of your home, your income, or when you will be leaving for vacation. By keeping these and the above mentioned points in mind, you should be able to enjoy online social networking without having to always look behind your back.

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When it comes to advertising there are many business owners who literally cringe. Are you doing this now? There is a good chance that you are because many advertising methods cost money. As a business owner you want to make money not spend it, right? Unfortunately, if you believe that all forms of advertising take money, you are sadly mistaken. Although you may have to spend money to make your business what you want it to be, there are ways to promote your business and the products or services that you sell without having to spend any money at all.

Is your curiosity peaked yet? There is a good chance that it is, rightfully so.

One of the ways that you can promote your online business, without having to spend a dime, is by using something that is readily available online. That thing is an online social networking website. A large number of internet users, in fact millions of them, belong to at least one social networking website.

When it comes to social networking, there are many individuals who think of online friendships or online relationships. While these types of relationships are the most common, did you know that social networking is also used for businesses? In fact, that was originally how social networking got started. If you are a small business owner, especially one that operates an online business, there is a way that you can use social networking sites to your advantage.

Although social networking websites are traditionally focused on those that would like to make online friends or develop online relationships, there are networking sites that are designed for business owners. These websites will not only allow you to share your business information with other business owners, but it will also allow you to develop close relationships with those that share an interest that is similar to yours. Essentially, this means that you could not only learn valuable business information, but you could also walk away with a new business partner or a new friend.

Move over, social networking websites with a focus on businesses, are a great way to promote your business. However, this does not mean that you should completely forget about the other online social networking websites, the ones that are designed to make online friendships. Although you may not learn any valuable business tips by joining Yahoo! 360 or MySpace, you may be able to get new customers and new customers is exactly what your business should want and need.

If you are looking to join an online community, you will need to create your own profile or profile page. If you are planning on joining a traditional social networking website, to gain access to millions of potential new customers, you are urged to be careful when making your online webpage or profile. One thing that internet users hate is being solicited for business.

This does not mean that you cannot use social networking to your advantage; it just means that you need to be careful with how you do it. Instead of creating a MySpace page or a Yahoo! 360 page for your business, you are advised to make one for yourself, but, of course, you will want to include information on your business.

By joining a social networking website, especially one that is popular and has a large number of members, you should be able to generate interest in your business, including the products or services that you sell. Who knows, but that interest generated could turn into sales; thus making your social networking experience more than worth it.

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