The first site, aimed at the local surfers and skaters, is for Charlotte and Myrtle Beach-based surf shop Wallerbears. It’s rich with cool imagery and gives visitors easy access to the shops via the social network of choice. It also provides product inventory information and helpful links for snow and surf reports. The owners of the shop really know their business and have a need to update product and store information quickly and efficiently. To best meet this need, we built the site using In Context Editing features from Adobe. This gives the client the ability to make changes to their site on their own schedule and without added cost.

The second site we recently launched was for a company named American Boxwood. As their name implies they are a national supplier of boxwood plants to landscapers and nurseries. In addition to redesigning their business-to-business web presence, we also completed a company rebranding including logo redesign. The impressive team from American Boxwoods opened our eyes with their depth of knowledge in this niche market. We certainly relish the opportunity to be a small part of their successful team.

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A simple YouTube presentation – Click here

In attending a few Social Media conferences and events recently, I recognized a trend among many small to mid size businesses. They have a basic understanding of Social Media and the various outposts of Twitter, Facebook, Linked In, blogging, Flickr and YouTube. They are pretty sure employing a Social Media strategy could have a positive effect on their business. But they are fearful of taking that first step.

Granted, there are a lot of very valid “what if” scenarios to consider. There is also a commitment of time that must be made. However, the potential rewards of having ongoing open dialogue with your target market  are too great to pass up.  As a small business owner and a marketer, it pains me to see companies miss opportunities like this.

For some businesses, it’s just a matter of more education on the topic. With learning comes comfort. Likely that is why so many turned out for the recent Social Fresh conference held in Charlotte.  The one-day event was chockfull of useful tips and information and provided an open forum for questions and answers from some leaders in the Social Media movement.

But I am beginning to realize that what many businesses need is a jump-start. At Mindstorm, we believe that the majority of a company’s social media content must originate from within their own walls. That’s why we have developing a custom Social Media Jump Start package for small to mid-size businesses.

How does it work? Basically, we sit down with a business and assess where they are in terms of comfort level. We listen to their objectives and vision for using Social Media and we gain a basic understanding of their target market. Then, we formulate custom recommendations and a simple but thorough plan to execute. We set up the corresponding accounts on behalf of our client and then teach them how to use them appropriately. We monitor and guide the efforts for several weeks, assess the success, and provide feedback. Once a client feels confident, we take off the training wheels and they ride off on their own into the online land of opportunity.

Want to learn more? Have thoughts on our approach that you’d like to share? We welcome your comments and feedback

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Like millions of other people, I am a regular participant of online social networks for a wide variety of reasons ranging from making new friends and reconnecting with old acquaintances  to learning, sharing, networking and even promotion. I’ll admit it.  I love it! It’s fun, time consuming and very addictive.  

What’s more, I truly consider many people whom I have never met face-to-face to be friends. Just as if we would have met at a cocktail party, ballgame or professional engagement,  I enjoy your personal anecdotes, jokes and conversational insights. 

In a recent personal conversation with a colleague,  I was reminded  just how comfortable and potentially dangerous online socializing can be. Not necessarily the criminal brand of danger as much as the ole “foot-in-the-mouth/negative impression” kind.  It is so easy it is to forget the very public nature of online social media in the midst of some witty bantering among friends. It is with this thought in mind that I have written the following reminder for myself for all online interactions. Maybe you’d like to consider them too. 

1. Refrain from using profanity. It’s tacky. There are plenty of ways to express negative emotion effectively without dropping an F-bomb.  Someone once said, “Profanity is the weapon of the witless.”  

2. No bad-mouthing of individuals, competitors or other brands. Negative feedback offered in a constructive way is fine. Negative comments about others who may not be my personal “cup of tea”  or who may be direct competitors, are not. Something about potentially burning bridges goes here. If someone really gets my goat, I know how to use the “unfollow” and “unfriend” options.

3. In retweets, reposts and fowards, reconsider rules 1 and 2. Even if  I wasn’t the original author, the content that I pass along is a reflection of me.

 4. Take the time to answer genuine questions and to actively engage with new users. As my mother used to say, “We were all new once.” Anyway, new participants bring new ideas and new opportunities.

5. Conversations with multiple “inside” references or issuing invitations not open to everyone who can read your posts are best handled with the Direct Message/ Private Message  functions. Never alienate others.

6. Never engage in conflict using social media. A healthy debate is great. Verbal attacks are not. Take it to a private forum or better yet, walk away.

7. Above all, do not confuse being online with being anonymous. Anything you submit, post, or offer on the web can be traced back to you. 

No matter your online objectives, do yourself a favor and always represent yourself well. After all your personal brand is one of the few assets that you will have from cradle to grave. Make it your own but treat it with respect.

Your online friend/follower/connection/colleague,

Kelli

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Yesterday he played in the YMCA Charity Golf Tournament at the Ballantyne Country Club. He has been following the TPI (Titlest Performance Institute) golf fitness regimen under Dr. Buddy Overcash of  Ballantyne Chiropractic  so he was anxious to try his improved skills. I think it’s safe to say that none of us (including Dr. Overcash) were prepared for the outcome.  Jeff sunk a 25 ft putt to advance to the finals of the putting contest at the end of the day with two other contestants. And much to the shock and awe of the crowd, he sunk a 50 footer to win the $25,000 prize! Apparently this has not happened in the previous nine years of the tournament. In the immortal words of Harry Caray, “HOLY COW!”

So does the credit go to karma, good luck, TPI, skill?  Who knows. All we can say is congratulations Jeff!  And…Dr. Overcash…you can likely sign him up for another year!

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About the Communicator Awards:
The Communicator Awards is the leading international awards program honoring creative excellence for Communications Professionals. Founded by communication professionals over a decade ago, The Communicator Awards received over 9,000 entries from companies and agencies of all sizes, making it one of the largest awards of its kind in the world.

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Even in the age of digital marketing, few would argue that there is any substitute for one-to-one face time with customers and prospects. And when you think about it, industry events and shows offer a fantastic consolidation of people in one place. Add to that the opportunity to check out your competitors and to possibly attend some helpful educational sessions and the case for attending builds quickly. Still worried there won’t be enough bang for the buck? Consider these thoughts:

• Tradeshow Weekly estimates most companies will cut about 20% of the trade shows in 2009 over 2008. This could mean that there will be less competition at the show. This could yield higher sales/lead volume per exhibitor.
• Many shows are offering discounts this year. Do your homework and inquire well in advance.
• Along the same lines, register early to take advantage of substantial early-bird discounts and avoid late penalties.
• Know of a complementary or non-competitive exhibitor? Consider booth sharing. It’s hard to beat splitting costs in half.
• Send out digital invitation and follow up literature to attendees when possible. Cutting out direct mail costs can take a slice out of expenses right off the top and it is highly effective in most cases.
• Need a new display, check out used trade show displays that can be updated with new graphics. If you can find a good fit for the need, you could save upwards of half the cost of a shiny new display. If you attend less than 5 shows a year, booth rental might be a good option as well.
• Make sure your graphic files are professionally prepared and thoroughly proofed before they are sent to print. Prepress services drive up output costs and wreck havoc on deadlines possibly leading to rush charges.

If you still can’t manage to foot the bill for all the trade shows this year, consider simply attending and walking the floor. You will still have the opportunity to gain valuable information, network and meet with key customers face-to-face. And in terms of building relationships, there are still very few gestures as effective as the good ole handshake.

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