Atypical Virgo in Recovery ~ The Importance of Social Network Lists

Over the years, I’ve built some pretty large communities in social media, both for myself and for some clients. As those communities were built, my HAED (hyper-active-entrepreneurial-disorder) brain neglected a necessary task. Categorizing connections into lists and taking notes on their attributes (friends, careers, interests and relationships).

Now, today, I have a problem. It’s simply overwhelming to pay attention to key relationships, when their social networking is scattered amongst everyone’s activity. I miss stuff that I know is key and relevant, as a result.

Over the last couple months, I’ve been slowly recovering a better footing, making sure to list new folks and spending a bit of time going back and doing this with older connections. My favorite list is Met In Real Life; thanks to @RickBakas for that great suggestion.

I’ve developed broad categories mostly related to professions and interests. I look at connection’s profiles to determine where they fit.

What does putting people into lists allow me to do? How is it better for me? With lists, I can go to a category and catchup with what others are up too. It streamlines my “reading of the news” from others. For clients, it’s a great way to categorize current customers, potential customers and other areas of interest.

Are you using lists in your social networking? What works for you to manage all the incoming content?

First Use of Social Media Marketing in 1886 via Telegraph

In some of the latest social media news, Foursquare has partnered up with American Express to offer sweet deals to consumers. The evolution of social media marketing continues unabated and relentless, driven by creativity, emergent technology and consumer demand. But do you know how all this social media marketing started? Try the founder of Sears, Roebuck & Co.

In 1886, Richard Warren Sears (founder of Sears, Roebuck & Co.) was working as an agent-telegrapher at a railroad line in Minnesota. A shipment of 2500 gold pocket watches arrived at the station where he worked. As no one had asked for them and nobody wanted, he decided to buy them all. He then offered the watches to his railroad colleagues, using the telegraph to market… and sold them all at $14, earning $2per clock.

Here is what a sample message might have looked like:

-… . .- ..- – .. ..-. ..- .-.. / –. — .-.. -.. / .–. — -.-. -.- . – .– .- – -.-. …. . … / .—- ….- / . .- -.-. …. / .-. . .–. .-.. -.– / – — / — .-. / .-. .. -.-. …. .- .-. -.. / … . .- .-. …

Here is an audio file of it:

So.. perhaps the very first social media marketing message – 125 years ago? What do you think?

Oh, and here is a very funny Youtube of “Texting in the 1800s”

Tradeshow Social Media: One-third-way through the #NRAShow – Twitter Analysis

The National Restaurant Show, happening in Chicago this weekend, is by far the dominant restaurant/foodservice tradeshow in North America. The National Restaurant Association website states that this show draws, on annual average, 50,000 attendees internationally over four days. This year, they state there are over 1800 exhibitors.

The Assumption

Tradeshows provide a unique opportunity to bring together industries. They offer community-building in centralized real-time, provide buyers with connective opportunities to meet sellers, provide industry specific educational opportunities and.. most importantly, have the potential to leverage all of this to broad-path long-tail effectiveness via the social web. Leverage through the social web:

• provides exhibitors and attendees greater contact time – before, during and after
• deepens the educational experience for attendees, both in products/services and in seminars
• creates a broad path of micro data points, all search engine optimized, for both the tradeshow and exhibitors (and attendees, for that matter)
• deepens the connective fabric of the industry

We’ve been following the Twitter hashtag for this event #NRAShow, since the beginning and have made some initial observations of engagement by Show attendees and exhibitors.

Before sharing these, a shout-out must go to Paul Barron, for providing a hashtag metric analysis site we could observe. Paul purchased a hashtag tracking service which can be found here for the NRA Show:  http://bit.ly/jOU8JB

»

592  –  Number of Contributors to Hashtag

86  –  Number of Exhibitor Twitter Accounts Using Hashtag

506  –  Number of Non-Exhibitor Twitter Accounts Using Hashtag

»

14.5%  –  Percentage of Exhibitor Twitter Accounts to Total Tweeters on Hashtag

1019  –  Average # of Followers – Exhibitors Using Hashtag

9 – Average # of Tweets During Show – Exhibitors Using Hashtag

»

85.5%  –  Percentage of Non-Exhibitors to Total Tweeters on Hashtag

»

4.7%  –  Percentage of Hashtag Tweeting Exhibitors to Estimated # of Show Exhibitors

1%  –  Percentage of Hashtag Tweeting Non-Exhibitors to Estimated # of Show Attendees

»

Chalkboarder’s Opinions

Exhibitor adoption, as evidenced by the hashtag traffic, is still in its infancy.

Attendees are not using social media to interact with the Show.

Attendees interacting with Show exhibit hashtag useage rate six times that of exhibitors.

Show management could do a better job of marketing the social web interaction to both exhibitors and attendees.

Exhibitors could develop strategies using traditional marketing that drive potential attendees into the social web before, during and after the Show.

The National Restaurant Show has a clear opportunity to exponentially increase exhibitor exposure (sales opportunities) to attendees using the social web in future shows. Effective deployment of a comprehensive strategy should include:

• Year round social web engagement by Show management with exhibitors and existing/potential attendees.
• Provide exhibitors with social web tools to increase engagement between exhibitors and attendees before, during and after the Show. Such tools might include:
• Traditional marketing “pushes” to the social web connectivity with exhibitors
• Marketing promotions to attendees by exhibitors to connect in social media, via traditional and social web strategies
• Provide an online database, searchable by product/service category, for visitors to the Show website to find exhibitor social web accounts – significantly prior to the Show

Wrap-up

Nothing beats getting face-to-face at a tradeshow. Social media, conducted well, considerably leverages the opportunity to bring exhibitors and attendees together during a Show. Exhibitors and attendees who have connected and conversed prior to actually meeting at Show time, make the most efficient use of their time, leading to other potentialities to present to both attendees and exhibitors.

»

Notes on Data

1. List of Identified Exhibitors Using the Hashtag

Top and bottom four not used in calculations.

Twitter Account            # Followers  # Following  # Tweets

nutrilabeling                  0                  0                   67

jamesoneida                 5                  16                 12

epicuredigital                6                  5                   73

hubertco                       7                  0                   0

99apps                         25                 0                   24

vinnyoneida                  25                 85                 28

chicagobuffets             27                 87                 80

pepsicofoodserv          36                 259               24

compelcart                   41                 91                 296

winecrusader                 43                 37                 283

manualsolution              54                 103               29

adstonature                  58                 138               64

getpunchh                    65                 76                 148

mccormick4chefs          76                 80                 103

olo                               80                 63                 70

tlpriest                          85                 121               97

magictradeshows          99                 200               211

smrestaurants               130               218               188

culinitweets                   132               138               94

merchantware                136               302               110

expion                          137               41                 292

vollrathco                     151               101               221

finelinesetting               156               421               503

bungemoe                    169               222               269

hennypenny                  174               217               585

scotsmanice                 210               249               312

wineshowcasemag        233               755               4

squirrelsystems             236               455               156

grecian_delight             240               256               505

nrnjobplate                   241               153               1124

usfoodservicesf            257               516               439

ifanca                           258               300               351

cobblestoneoven          263               1172             98

capitolcups                   267               420               823

hospitalitypads             281               1003             33

intlspices                      295               950               80

chefbigshake                320               199               186

wineshield                     323               761               209

idahoanfoods               358               733               328

hobartcorp                    366               190               617

digitalmenubox             374               1012             440

fishbowljoe                   376               482               594

back2scratch                392               313               1289

thermapen                    428               477               480

heartlandhpy                 433               398               673

peoplematterceo           466               362               1029

tsbrass                         467               471               530

turtletransit                    471               942               91

wasserstrom                 480               676               871

oneida_ltd                    507               273               162

gpprofessional             508               678               960

monkeydish                  538               502               741

ssproducts                   540               1999             397

shomack12                   562               746               2980

rewardsnetwork             675               426               792

loveandquiches             691               1042             1048

socialgrub                    755               1263             163

dietzandwatson             758               996               667

openmenu                    786               1469             2237

fohbohgal                     877               488               4488

laudividni                      879               455               861

anchorhocking              881               885               2003

hospitalitysoc               937               1999             47

hospitalityrew                951               2000             30

graciousgourmet           1068             2003             1320

rubbermaidcomm          1186             325               190

fastcasual                     1307             389               1132

safeeggs                      1344             1676             1620

wileycooks                   1405             921               822

calphalon                      1561             1230             250

nrnmarketing                 1796             697               503

flatoutbread                  1926             1848             4778

viennabeef                    2315             1023             2170

eatsauca                       2343             113               75

fishbowlinc                   2514             1892             364

fohboh                         2721             1392             2767

herbalwater                   3563             3290             1644

activeion                       3653             3190             1144

communitycoffee          5626             2741             1539

wheresauca                   7278             90                 2736

elischeesecake             8404             8549             5598

emmaemail                   8709             1516             2342

googleplaces                28159           26                 924

yelp                              43375           98                 1847

livingsocial                   49668           3611             8958

pepsi                            68496           42227            3190

 2. Identifying Exhibitors that were using the hashtag was conducted by reading the tweetstream. A few of the accounts were not “official” exhibitor accounts, but either identify themselves in their Twitter handle, bio or by tweeting that they were exhibiting for a company they work for and gave a booth number.

Get SMART NW – Social Media Advanced Relationship Training

Just launched and we’re wicked excited!

Get SMART NW was created to solve a problem – a lot of talk about social media, but no actual learning solutions. This program combines hands on learning, worksheet and tips to support your learning process. It’s a big world out there, but you don’t have to face it alone.

We understand that social media is a big ol’ complex world that changes every day. Our nine progressive classes help you learn, enjoy and succeed in social media.

It’s a big online world out there. You don’t have to face it alone. Get SMART NW pairs you with classmates at the same level of social media understanding to create a learning community. Affordable, easy and tailored to your needs.

 

Get SMART today!

We’re very excited to partner with Scene Marketing Group in offering this comprehensive and intensive social media training course.

 

Witticists on Twitter

I monitor Twitter constantly. At 140 characters per message, I enjoy the humor and banter to be found there greatly. A few of my favorite personalities and examples are below:

@RonRuggless

@JeffreyJKingman 35F headed to 40F in DFW. It came. We thaw. We conquer.

@Herbguy

If they’ve got the dirt on you RT @tchwojko: @Herbguy accountants can find truffles?

@royatkinson

Tonight Groaner: Very foamy poet – William Shakesbeer #humor

Who are your favorites?

PDX Food Trucks Experience 80% Growth Via Twitter

I talked with two of Portland Oregon’s leading street food trucks last week, the day after CNN Travel stated that Portland has the best street food in the world.

Check out what they have to say about street food – and how social media, especially Twitter, have empowered them to experience 80% growth.

The rest of the restaurant and hospitality industry might be able to glean some strategy from this.

Jeffrey

PDX Food Truck Owners

PS – Thanks guys!

Client Case Study: Coffee Fest

This past weekend Chalkboarder headed over to Meadowlands NJ to provide social media coverage of Coffee Fest’s first of three 2010 tradeshows. We were fortunate to meet some truly outstanding people within the specialty coffee and tea industry, from growers and suppliers, to roasters, coffee/tea shop owners and baristas. There seemed to be a fair number of folks attending who were planning to open a coffee/tea house.

Coffee Fest NYC Barista Competitor Megan's Signature Drink

Our mission at the Show was to journalize – to capture as much of the activity as we could to share with the friends of Coffee Fest and hopefully – that they would then share the high energy of Coffee Fest with their communities.

We’ve got some blogging to do – some retrospectives of the show. We were able to capture a large number of videos, create a Youtube Channel for Coffee Fest and engage a lot of the attendees and exhibitors through Twitter.

You can find all the videos over here at Coffee Fest Youtube, search the Twitter archives by using the hashtag #coffeefest, and stay tuned for the blog postings over here on Jeffrey Kingman’s Leaf & Berry Blog.

Small Biz Social Media

I’ve become really fascinated with how small independent businesses can take advantage of emergent social web tools. Much of my professional experience has been in the non-corporate world (except for Ritz Carlton, Hyatt, GTE Sprint, and some early career positions); independents generating less than $5 million in annual revenues.

The growth challenges posed to independents are, I believe, much more difficult than that for larger organizations. With larger organizations comes economies of scale. The independent organization manager has so many more hats to wear and not nearly the time or educational resources available.

How can these organizations take advantage of the new tools of the social web? The social web research firm Wetpaint/Altimeter found that organizations with total social media engagement were able to grow their businesses by 18%. It’s no secret that the social web offers organizations opportunities, but these players aren’t able to afford the market rate for social media strategists and community managers ($100/hour and $60/hour respectively).

**Please do not think you can conduct good social media by hiring a kid with a large Facebook account – that will FAIL miserably.

How does an independent restaurant, inn or coffee house effectively compete against the multi-units in social media? This question has been rattling around my brain for the past six months and I think there is a minimum of three answers:

Do It Yourself.  Doing it yourself offers the operator complete control. It also means significant time in learning effective strategies, tools and methods. In addition, it means significant time involvement in maintaining your social media activities (production, distribution, monitoring, engagement).

Outsource To A Large Firm. Outsourcing to a large firm can be attractive because of the automation offered in distribution, monitoring and analysis. In addition, you don’t have to invest time and money in learning effective strategies, tools and methods.  The disadvantage is that your organization will still have to do the content production and the engagement, requiring your time and attention.

Hire A Small Professional Creative Company. I posit that this is the best option for the independent small business. The creative company brings all the resources for production, distribution, monitoring and engagement – crafting and executing a sound and highly individualized strategy. Time requirement for the organization is minimal, requiring meeting in person or through technology for the creative professional to gather some raw content and give reports/feedback. It’s personal and accountable.

I’m going to forecast here that 2010 will be the year we’ll see an explosion of small creative social media providers catering to small business. Market rates will be reasonable, ball-parking in the $500 to $1000 per month range. With small business being the backbone of the American economy, I believe these social media providers will become the norm.

Brave New World

Illustration by Kathy Boake

A great article on how foodservice and hospitality operations can use social media, written for the Canadian hospitality industry by author Lesley Young for Foodservice World Magazine.

FH 01 10_BraveNewWorld

She quotes our CEO Jeffrey J Kingman in several places.

2010 Is About Meaningful Content

Written for and cross-posted on FohBoh.com. I’m one of ten front-page contributors to FohBoh – the largest social network for the restaurant industry with over 13,000 members.

There’s been tens of thousands of conversations this past year about social media:

• what is it,
• how do you quantify ROI,
• how can you compare it to traditional marketing/advertising,
• what is the role of traditional PR/Marketing/Ad agencies with it,
• how do you use it, and,
• what is the most effective strategy?

Have you figured it all out?

I haven’t – social media is extremely dynamic, fluid and changing all the time. I read the leading social media theorists (Mashable.com, Paul Barron, Amanda Hite, Chris Brogan and numerous others) constantly; every day. While I’m not an expert and never want to be called a guru, I am most definitely a proponent, a social media evangelist and power user, both for my business and on behalf of some of my clients.

There’s been a number of pronouncements in the past few weeks – predictions – of what 2010 will bring for marketing, public relations, advertising and social media. I’m here on the last day of 2009 to share my distillation of these predictions with you.

The End of Traditional Marketing & Advertising (Static Announcements)

Let’s face it – have the marketing/advertising/PR strategies of the last forty years worked for you over the last two years?

• Is running a newspaper ad every week with a coupon really working for you?
• Is running a thirty second radio ad like a used car salesman begging people to “come on down” really working for you?
• Is the static “brochure” of a website really working for you?
• Is getting listed on the restaurant page of the newspaper working for you?
• Are the menu pages in the Yellow Book working for you?
• Is your direct email campaign really working?
• How results-satisfied are you with text messaging the special on hot wings and draft beer?
• Did placing an ad in the State Visitors Guide really work for you?
• Did making that 60 second video ad for the local cable network really pay off?
• Are static messages (think: flyers/coupons/etc) on Facebook and Twitter working for you?
• [for the major multiunits] Did that 30 or 60 second major network ad really build relationships in your local communities?

I could go on. It seems there’s countless means to market and advertise a static announcement to the public. Is it really working for you?

2010 Equals Content

Your customers want to believe you are in community with them – for their needs, desires and wishes. Are the traditional strategies listed above really demonstrating how much you value your customer?

So how can you communicate with your customer dynamically, meeting their needs and desires?

• Listen to them
• Comment on their messages – sincerely
• Let them produce content toward you
• Don’t get defensive
• Keep the mantra simple: It’s Not About You : It’s About Your Customer

Paul Barron and I had a conversation last week about the landscape of marketing, advertising and the social web. In an excellent post titled “Real Time Search could impact restaurants – big time!” on his blog Social Coco, Paul states “The point is that real-time is consuming the web in terms of new content that was not there just a few short years ago. This new content will impact restaurants in a big way as consumers not brands post videos, blogs, tweets, wall posts and podcasts more about their restaurant experience. And guess what all this will come up in: real-time search!”

John Jantz, in an article titled “Small Businesses Will Simply Become More Naturally Social” (cross-posted on Social Media Today and Duck Tape Marketing), states: “Social media activity and behavior can help facilitate communication and connection with your entire collaboration universe: prospects, customers, suppliers, partners, and employees and as such should be freed from the limited thinking.”

Free Stuff

We all like free stuff in this industry – free samples from the sales rep, free food and goodies from the tradeshows, etc. The old saying “free is a very good price” is part of our weekly vernacular. How many of you like free positive publicity?

Why not encourage your customers to share their life-stories with you through social media? Maybe a customer’s son or daughter videotaped the parents wedding anniversary dinner at your place. Perhaps a kid on the local baseball team is a regular customer – ask him for an interview that you can share. Take a couple pictures of your favorite businesspeople around town – share them through social media:

“My friend Joe at Zeke’s Auto knows more about foreign cars than anyone else I know. (picture link on web of Joe)”

What I’m suggesting is to use your marketing/advertising efforts to build community instead of standing on the street corner bull-horning the nightly special.

The 24 to 48 Hour News Cycle

I’m not saying never talk about your business – I’m saying make the community needs of your customers take priority in your marketing/advertising. I’m saying that even large multi-units can do this – by being meaningfully engaged in local community through social media.

You have the opportunity to create a localized 24 to 48 hour news channel that benefits and build community. And when you talk mostly about others, when you put others first, when you give to the community – it will reward you.

People will respond – and they will love the occasional story from your crew! You – as restaurant owner, as chef or line cook, as general manager, bartender or waiter, hostess or dishwasher – have the opportunity; the right even… or perhaps responsibility, to connect community together – just as much as the minister, town council member or fireman.

Tell your community’s stories first through your messages and your stories last. People will notice. Make your message revolve around your customers, not you.

Blogpost Fluff: Top 2009 Facebook Statistics

Facebook currently boasts over 350 million users

50 percent of Facebook users log on in any given day

Each day, 35 million users update their status

55 million status updates are posted each day

2.5 billion photos are uploaded to the site each month

3.5 million events are created each month

There are more than 1.6 million active Pages on Facebook

Over 700,000 local businesses maintain active Pages on Facebook

Users

The average user has 130 friends on the site

On average, users spend more than 55 minutes per day on Facebook

The Like button is used on 9 pieces of content on average each month

25 comments are written by users on Facebook content each month

Most users are member of at least 12 groups

International

About 70% of Facebook users are outside the United States

Over 300,000 users helped translate the site through the translations application