Recently in Social Media Category

Every expert tells marketers that they must listen to customers. Fair enough. My problem is that too many of us misinterpret what customers are saying to us. I think we forget that customers are people too, and while some of them don't mind bluntly giving us a piece of their mind, most are at least trying to be civil and to protect our feelings. When we interpret what customers are saying, we need to keep that in mind.

I've worked with many large companies to incorporate video into their digital marketing, but I am not terribly proficient with a video camera myself. I'm hoping to add more video to my personal Web site over the next few months, but for now have only a handful of clips uploaded. So, while I'm not the most video-savvy person around, I do know one thing. I prefer the relatively unknown video service Vimeo over YouTube.

Are you cutting your budgets because of the economic turbulence ahead? Lots of small business folks are, maybe rightly so. Perhaps this is a time accelerate some things and cut out others, but don't just stop. There are various schools of thought on how to navigate choppy waters, and lowering costs is always good, however just don't let it dominate your every move. During these troubled times do not become paralyzed, and in fact capitalize on your competitors trepidation. 

If you're like a lot of small business people, you've been hearing about social networks (such as Facebook), social bookmarking (such as Digg), and other social media stuff such as blogging and microblogging (Twitter). Perhaps you've dipped your toe in the water, jumped in with both feet, or maybe you're still at water's edge. But newbies and veterans alike struggle with what some people call the "Social Media Split Personality"--the decision of whether to mix your business and personal life, and just how to do that online.

Looking for an edge in today's wacky economy, and simultaneously help you and your employees and team Do the Right Thing? Perhaps a public forum on your web site or a blog may just help nudge you or your company along to "Do the Right Thing" and improve performance. 

As a tag to Beth Harte's twitter post, I wanted to share a story that is from First Hand Information. Not to digress, but my old boss, turned mentor, had one of many sayings, but one that has stuck with me is "Do you have first hand information" and to him, if it wasn't first hand information, it wasn't credible. Well, my story here is First hand Information, so I hope you find it credible.