Category Archives: Social Media

15 years to make a referral: The long reality of word of mouth (and “social”)

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I’ve spent a lot of time talking about how social media shouldn’t be looked at overnight, how it’s anything but a direct path towards the sale. It’s a message made by most every “social strategist” but, despite us all shouting the point, most businesses simply still look to take things back to fans, clicks and sales… the so called “ROI.” So today I thought I’d share a quick story to remind us how “viral” really works. Think about what you can track along the way.

Photo from Lone Mountain Ranch <http://www.lonemountainranch.com>

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Does a tweet change perception? No, but it’s a start.

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In the airline world half the variables are simply out of the carrier’s control so reputation is really more about how they handle something than avoiding it but flying around we all know the sad reality: just about no one is doing it right. For me this hits home most with United. The airline I put my time on, built up with, and yet wait weeks to hear back from via email… social channels? There’s hardly a single response from their accounts, let alone one directed to something I’ve asked. Continue reading →

Selling Social Media Up the Chain: Drop the Buzz, Talk About the Benefits

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We all know the conversation: some executive or high ranked colleague starts talking about how Twitter is all about your day, Instagram photos of your food, Facebook who you’re dating, and next thing you know they’re asking how any of that could be related to business. While it sounds ridiculous, if we want to be taken seriously, we need an answer… anything that uses resources does.

Since the days of forums, I’ve tried just about every argument to get past this point and make social stick. From case studies to stats customer adoption and big world news, there’s a lot to say, but to someone who isn’t a common user, it’s still just buzz words… the hot trend of the day and that doesn’t tend to get you far.

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