Citizen Marketer 2.1

Aaron Strout

Engaging Your Customers Across the Social Web

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Last night I had the pleasure of speaking to over a hundred of Dallas, TX’s brightest social media minds at the monthly Social Media Club, Dallas meeting. Not only did I meet dozens of new people that I look forward to staying in touch with at the event but I had the opportunity to bounce some ideas, suggestions and case studies off of the crowd. I also fielded some pretty awesome questions like:

  • Should we be paying attention to Google Buzz?
  • Are branded online communities a real trend?
  • How do you let a client know when they are doing social wrong?

Unfortunately, I don’t think anyone documented the occasion with video but I did put my slides up on Slideshare. I’ve also included links to the pictures that Cynthia Smoot put up on her Gangway Advertising Flickr page.

The presentation is here:

Engaging your Customers Across the Social Webhttp://static.slidesharecdn.com/swf/ssplayer2.swf?doc=smcdallas021810-100219123223-phpapp02&stripped_title=engaging-your-customers-across-the-social-web

View more presentations from Aaron Strout.

And if you check quickly enough (those folks at the Dallas Social Media Club are very conversational AND are really good at incorporating the #smcdallas hashtag), you can catch some of the highlights from the crowd. You can also click on the collage below to see Cynthia’s pics.

A big thanks to Mike D. Merrill and Colin Alsheimer for inviting me to speak. Props also go to Jessica Nunez for her awesome intro, Aaron Bollinger of KickApps for sponsoring and kicking things off, the fine folks over at Zoe’s Kitchen for providing an amazing spread and Muroch Partners for hosting. And finally, big ups to Bill Fanning for driving with me for three hours up and three hours back from Austin to Dallas back to Austin. Viva la Genesis!

Other great people I met (I know I’m leaving some out so sorry in advance)… Lauren Fernandez, Jill McFarland, Cosmin Ghiurau, Erica Martinez, Amanda Hawkins,  Cameron Gawley, Kirby Sander, Kathy Catoe, Alyssa Gardina, Tom McCracken, David Swinney, Ivan Leon, Kat Farmer, Scott Duke, Barbar Bhatti,  Kelly Welborn, Connie Hannon, Matt Smith, Kate Aronson, @vsellis, John Langdon, 

Experts in the Industry: Connie Reece (67 of 45)

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Is there a more colorful person in the socialsphere than Connie Reece? I got to find out in person for the first time a few weeks ago at my first Social Media Club, Austin meeting where Connie and I were able to connect in person after following each other on Twitter for a while.

In addition to colorful, Connie is also charming, funny and stoic. If you haven’t met Connie yet, she’s a co-founder & advisory board of the Social Media Club and founder of Every Dot Connects.

So how did such a cool and wonderful person answer the Experts in the Industry questions? Let’s find out:

In one sentence, please describe what you do and why you’re good at it.
I teach companies how to communicate conversationally and how to use social technologies to leverage those conversational skills into relationship building with constituents–both internally and externally. I’m a naturally gifted teacher and lifelong learner who is passionate about using my knowledge to connect people, ideas and causes. (Okay, that was two sentences. Go ahead and count off, but I didn’t want to risk writing a run-on sentence and having the grammar police come after me.)

How did you get into the world of online community, social media or social marketing?
I’m a “seasoned citizen,” not one of the so-called digital natives who grew up in the personal computer era. So before there was such a thing as the World Wide Web, I was using online tools for research as well as connecting with others. My old 300-baud dial-up modem should be in a museum somewhere, along with my Kaypro II suitcase computer (26 pounds) that I lugged self-importantly to clients’ offices to demonstrate my prowess with technology.

My experience as a professional writer and communicator, along with a background in direct marketing and direct mail fund-raising with a bit of PR thrown in, made it easy for me to transition into the world of social media and community building. My skill set is all about connections through communication. Emerging technologies have simply enabled those connections to be made much faster and to a greater scale.

If you had $10 million to invest in one company and one company only based on their use of “social,” which company would it be and why?
Twitter, or another microblogging/presence app I thought had the potential to knock Twitter out of its number one position. I was an early adopter (January 2007) and have watched as users tried out each new service that came along–Pownce, Jaiku, Plurk–and then came right back to Twitter because of its simplicity and because that’s where they have built their network.

Which business leader, politician or public figure do you most respect?
I won’t single one out, but I have a great respect for entrepreneurs. They work hard, take great risks to turn dreams into reality, and they create jobs that fuel the economy. Most of them are overtaxed and underappreciated.

Would you join a toothpaste community? Why?
Yes, if it were a specialty toothpaste. I have Sjogren’s Syndrome, which causes extreme dryness. So I have done a lot of online research and even participated in forums where people discuss various products that help relieve dry eyes and dry mouth. I’ve used about every artificial tear product on the market, and even special toothpastes and chewing gums. So if a toothpaste company built a community that created value for me in terms of information, product sourcing, and cost savings, I’d join.

Freeform – here’s where you can riff on anyone or anything – good or bad. Or just share a pearl of wisdom.
If you guzzle the social media Kool-Aid rather than taking small sips, you’ll contract a bad case of Shiny Object Syndrome and become totally ineffective. Remember that it’s not about the technology, it’s about people. Develop your people skills first, then master the social media tools.

Experts in the Industry: Peter Fasano (35 of 45)

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I only met Peter Fasano, Global Interactive Marketing, Social Media Marketing Manager, The Coca Cola Company a couple of months ago (we started on Twitter) but I had the pleasure of meeting him in real life a few weeks ago. The reason for the meeting was that Peter was kind enough to invite Powered to attend/sponsor the Social Media Club Atlanta’s SXSW Mixer event. Not only was the event a great one (I met lots of other cool social media professionals) but I got to get to know Peter a little bit better and confirmed that he was every bit as savvy and smart as I had expected.
With that as a backdrop, let’s see how one of Coke’s best and brightest answered the five questions from the Experts in the Industry interview series:
In one sentence, please describe what you do and why you’re good at it. 
I am an accidental digital marketing consultant that draws insights from decades of consuming media, creating media and technology. 
How did you get into the world of online community, social media or social marketing?
Through the wisdom of a brilliant co-worker Robert Occhialini / bump. 
He turned me onto Cluetrain Manifesto and weblogs in 2000. Then in practice when I moved into consulting media companies in 2006 when I realized that the balance of media was shifting. Since that time, it has been my passion and occupation. 
If you had $10 million to invest in one company and one company only based on their use of “social,” which company would it be and why?
My biased answer is Social Media Club. I am biased as I am the co-organizer of Social Media Club Atlanta. I have been involved with the club since 2007 when I connected with the group in San Francisco and have been actively involved in the conversations, standards and practices and network of members since then. The charter and growth of the Club has been tremendous – If you get it, Share it. The organization has connected me to friends, thought leaders and geographies in very meaningful ways. The additional funds to further develop education outreach and advocacy would offer a superb resource to both individuals and business to share their wisdom of operating in a social ecosystem. 
Which business leader, politician or public figure do you most respect? 
Jimmy Carter for his life of service, honesty and faith. 
I do not think I would join a toothpaste community but would join a smile community. A toothpaste community sounds like it is about the brand and not the community – the community defines the brand in my world. I remember a few years back the agency I was with, was researching keywords for a SEO engagement on behalf of a toothpaste brand. I recall the keyword analysis communicating a story to me about life events, photos, health and wellness. These attributes sound like the foundation of an interesting community about the ups and downs of having healthy teeth, gums and a smile.   
Freeform – here’s where you can riff on anyone or anything – good or bad. Or just share a pearl of wisdom. 
On Social Media: I am excited by innovation and the millions of ways to currently connect and share. I am amazed how my network and platforms have enabled me to keep my finger on the pulse of innovation and community without being in San Francisco, Seattle, Austin, New York or London. I look forward to the further growth of community outside the social networks through Facebook Connect and Friend Connect to enhance discovery and sharing.
On Marketing: I am shocked by the bewilderment that social media has thrust upon traditional, many digital agencies and there brand clients. The isolation from the consumer or other agencies is not a reality any longer. As marketers, we must seek integration of the community into the brand and the integration of social media marketing tactics and measurement into the overall planning and execution of campaigns to redefine how brands approach modern marketing. 
On my dream job:  taqueria and fruteria owner.

Experts in the Industry: Howard Greenstein (28 of 45)

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My first meeting with Howard Greenstein, principal of the Harbooke Group & co-founder Social Media Club was under some unusual circumstances. For one, it was at the UN building in New York City. Second, Howard was moderating a panel on Web 2.0 meets ICT Entrpreneurs — not your usual SXSW or DMA kind of event. Since then, Howard and I have stayed in touch via Twitter and blog posts. We even managed to catch up for a quick podcast at Stephanie Agresta and Brian Solis TechSet event last fall in NYC.

With that as a backdrop, let’s see how Howard answered the questions in the Experts in the Industry series…

In one sentence, please describe what you do and why you’re good at it.
As a life-long early adopter of technologies, I help people understand the possibilities inherent in these new technologies, and how that translates into opportunity for their marketing and business efforts.
How did you get into the world of online community, social media or social marketing?
I’ve been building real-world communities and networking groups since the 1980s and was one of the earliest people doing online communities as well. In 1994 I started wwwac.org, the World Wide Web Artist’s Consortium, which was an in-person web user group in NY with an online email list. The online list helped develop the community, which met in person regularly. I really saw the power as people formed companies (like Razorfish and Agency.com) by finding people at our meetings. My interest in what we now call Social Media grew out of how I saw people starting to use the web in the late 90s and early 2000 when I was at Microsoft. The early ability to blog, instant message, and form groups online was powerful. My ideas about this phenomenon formalized around mid 2006 after I joined my 4th or 5th Social network.
If you had $10 million to invest in one company and one company only based on their use of “social,” which company would it be and why?
It may seem trite, but I believe Facebook is doing a better job than anyone these days. LinkedIn is a close second.
Which business leader, politician or public figure do you most respect?
I think Warren Buffett is a wonderful example for my kids of someone who made a huge amount of money and gave it away, and his friend Bill Gates, for all the cut-throat business done at Microsoft, is now putting that passion to work fixing the world. These guys can actually buy the change they want to see. That is great.
No. I have no passion around toothpaste. I have limited time, and my online time is spent talking with others around things I’m interested in, and frankly toothpaste doesn’t raise the bar enough for me to spend time on it. Now, a flossing community, well, then we’re talking.
Freeform – here’s where you can riff on anyone or anything – good or bad. Or just share a pearl of wisdom.
People keep asking me for that ‘one thing’ they can can do in social media to make a difference for them or for their brand. It is not a secret. I wrote it up here. I really believe that being generous, useful and most importantly helpful to others online means more than any advertising, search optimization, or outreach you can make. 

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