Size Does Matter

Go Big Or Give In?

We’re told at an early age that we need to think and dream big. Trying hard was important but finishing second wasn't as good enough. Of course we should always have decorum and respect of others and speaking from experience, waiting and hoping is not wise strategy.

Chris Brogan wrote a post about choices and it’s one you need to read. We are going through a time when our choices are more important than our tasks and the two are very different. I believe that we want to live a life of purpose from birth but in our quest to stay busy and climb some corporate ladder or chase money, we lose the reason we’re doing it in the first place.

No One Gets Out of Here Alive

I was on a client call recently and my contact was having trouble with her direct report so the three of us hoped on a call. Much to her surprise, he simply said; “Hey, we’re all gonna die some day so let’s find a way to fix this little blip” and it was done. They got off the phone and worked it out.

The size of our dreams and goals cannot necessarily be measured in dollars or market share. In fact, when we do focus on those metrics, trouble ensues. I spent the summer working on a complete shift of myself and my company which continues to evolve.

Victims and Memes

Brogan writes about how we make choices even when we think it’s not our decision. And he’s right. We play the victim or it becomes easier to think someone else gets to be judge and jury. Millions of people on this marble don't have a choice so if you do, cherish it. I know I've begun to do so much more carefully lately. We have a finite amount of time and we seem to be very good at wasting it on the trivial.

Michael Port has built the Think Big Revolution. Marcus Buckingham focuses only on helping people realize and work where they are strongest. Anthony Robbins inspires thousands simply saying - yes you can. There are people who inspire you and there are people you inspire. That's the stuff we need to pay more attention to and not those who don't know us or don't have our best interest at heart.

New Direction

The next time you are faced with an issue at work or in your business, take a moment and breathe. Then look at two options – doing it the way you’ve always done it or trying it the way you've always wanted. Shoulda woulda coulda is right now.

Let's actually think, dream and do big. Let's actually take some chances. Let's actually help each other get there. Let's actually stop worrying so much and live much more. We're all gonna die some day so what's the downside.

You In?

Kneale Mann

image credit: flickr
I am available for a 30 minute complimentary introduction call to discover how
I can help your business. Feel free to contact me via email and let's chat.

Relationships: Not About The Tools

Friends Are Not Free

I often recall the Dennis Miller classic when he referred to the two-for-one deal and ranted that two of crap is still crap. We are often looking for a deal, yet many get upset if we spend too much time talking about ourselves or our offering. So we want to buy stuff but talking about what we sell is a bad thing? Confusion ensues.

In the social web, you can be shunned if you pitch your wares yet no one I know has a bank that takes Twitter followers in lieu of mortgage payments. Or as Chris Brogan has infamously said, “my kids can’t eat a hug.” Making a living is a good thing and digital media are where we can gain relationships along interests not limited to geography.

Your Opinion is Not Free

I can only imagine the volume of requests some people get but I receive “could you give us your opinion” emails often. They just want me to have a quick look and let them know what I think. However, part of my business is business intelligence and ideas. When I inquire about budget, the request often disappears. Perhaps you can relate.

If a large international coffee chain had no customers in any of its more than 17,000 stores around the world, it would be out of business fairly quickly. Zero revenue for a week or two and the largest retailer on earth would be closing stores in short order. If you gave away your expertise, how long would your bottom line stay in the black?

Finding Customers Online is Not Free

If you're at a backyard barbecue, the conversations range from sports to the economy, the latest with the family to vacation plans. But eventually it gravitates to work, it always does. We spend far too much of our lives working for it not to be a significant part of our conversations. But how welcomed is the guy at the party handing out business cards? You can slam the stream with messages and some will bite. Or you can choose to build your online human network like you build your real life human network which takes longer but the rewards are more lasting. This is true for colleagues, clients, prospects, customers, friends and partners.

Respect each other, value your offer, revere their experience and measure the room. Rich human relationships aren’t born from unsolicited sales pitches, they take time. And over time you can get to know some special people. I am often blown away by the generosity of people I first met online.

Are you missing opportunities to build human relationships 
in your quest to build your business?

Kneale Mann

image credit: weblogcartoons

Reading The Room

Years ago I worked with a sales guy who used to constantly remind me to “read the room”. He felt it was paramount that he knew the dress code of each meeting, who was attending and how the client’s pain was going to be cured.

Room? What Room?

The theory of reading the room or knowing your audience seeps into all that we do. It becomes especially tricky through the digital channels we reside.

Mitch Joel recently wrote a post about the difficulty of scaling your personal brand.

If you build a community then tell that community you don’t have time for them, how long will members remain?

The challenge is that we often want to share information but can’t give it all away for free. Time and money make for a delicate dance.

Defining The Room

I was speaking with a colleague recently who is a VP at one of the major U.S. cellular companies and he shared with me the story of dealing with one of his largest clients. This six figure client owns a big construction company whose world does not include a sales guy in a suit.

My buddy’s boss wanted to meet this client. So he suggested he'd pick him up on the way to the meeting. As suspected, the boss was in need of a wardrobe change. He told him to lose the suit and tie clip in favor of jeans and a golf shirt.

The meeting was held at a construction site - the client’s room - and the language was a tad looser than some would expect.

It Ain't About You

The boss was shocked by the repeated expletives by both men. The client said that his team was very happy with their new digital devices and all was going well. My buddy's boss learned a lesson about clients and suits. Thanks Chuck for sharing that story!

If we pay attention we can often figure out who we want to engage and those we don't, after we read the room.

Is it important to 'read the room'?
What are your thoughts?

@knealemann
marketing and social media strategy

image credit: netmaestro.co.nz

Have You LinkedIn?

"The ability for individuals to build a personal brand
has never been more important."
Mitch Joel

One of the fastest growing sites this year is LinkedIn. If you’re not familiar, this is a business social networking space. Unlike Twitter, you can post your resume and tell as much of your professional story as you want. Unlike Facebook, this is a bit more serious and doesn’t have as many plug-ins and apps.

It’s no surprise that LinkedIn has grown so much lately in lieu of what is going on.

"Your mileage may vary. I will do it my way, as most folks who connect with me eventually come calling to reach someone else that Iʼve added, and I feel good every time I can be helpful."
Chris Brogan

Like Facebook, LinkedIn features thousands of groups which you can join or you can start your own. This is a way to find similar thinking people in similar industries all over the world. It can give you a way to interact with people you would have never met otherwise.

Potential clients, employers and colleagues can educate themselves on you. Clients may want to know how you portray yourself before they let you do their marketing. Someone looking to hire you may want to see what kind of network you have developed or see if there is information you haven’t shared with them.

"Have a strong signal and rise above the noise."
Liz Strauss

One caution, if you have several profiles it is easy for potential employers to access information on you from your other profiles as well. So the pictures of Frank doing a belly flop in the lake at the cottage last summer may not put you in a good light. Then again, they might depending on the client or employer!

Lately, there has been chatter about advertising on LinkedIn and various other social networking platforms. Well it's simple, they need to make money or they will go out of business.

"In the future, social networks will be like air. They will be anywhere and everywhere we need and want them to be."
Charlene Li

Quality online spaces will not survive without cash flow. The venture capitalists need to see ROI eventually. But it is dicey business when the backbone of these spaces is built on community for the purpose of community. These digital spaces are companies. Those involved want to see a profit. Their challenge is to avoid temptation to exploit the users, our challenge it to be aware of that possibility.

"Why people choose to visit online social sites: Who likes me? Is everything okay? How can I become more popular? What's new? I'm bored, let's make some noise."
Seth Godin

We have hopefully learned our lesson from the dot-com bust that it's not enough to have shiny offices and a cool logo. And if you have LinkedIn, here's hoping it has become a valuable tool for you.

Thoughts?



photo credit: ere.net
disclosure: linkedin is not a client

Media Hacks: A Must Listen

I was trying to catch up blogs and podcasts – which is an endless battle – but one of my new favorite spots to visit is Media Hacks.

New thinking on new media from more mouths.

This is a initiative that has been formed by Mitch Joel, Christopher Penn, Hugh McGuire, Chris Brogan, Julien Smith and CC Chapman. Whenever the group gets together on the phone or in person (whist eating large sandwiches) it usually features three to six of the contributors. They add guests as well.

The Hacks discuss marketing, advertising, media, publishing, digital, entertainment, content and social networking. They talk about the real world. They talk about human behavior. And they make you feel included in the conversation.

Real Issues. Real Solutions.

Media Hacks is not another group of talking heads discussing their lofty lives on top of the digital media space. It is six bright people working hard to improve the landscape, to reflect what is going on in the conversation and offer solutions. They don't always agree, they love to make fun of each other and Julien is usually good for an f-bomb or two.

Each podcast is free for download and runs 40-50 minutes. As Christopher Penn mentions, our time is precious. Well, this is well spent.

Social Media Expert: Fact or Fiction?

The trouble with experience is the final exam comes before the lesson.
Author Unknown

As the world changes – because it always does – and we all get much too distracted by bad news and unfocused on trivial minutiae, there is a quite a bit of chatter about the value of social media.

You'd swear someone just poured blood in the pool and the sharks are hungry.

We have been building relationships, communicating, gathering in groups and satisfying our need to belong since the days of clubs and caves. And this is not a human thing, I’m sure the animal kingdom has their version of Twitter.

Good judgment comes from experience.
Experience comes from bad judgment.
Rita Mae Brown

As soon as you call yourself an expert, you run the risk of telling others you have learned all there is to know about a topic. The word 'expert' is misused more than the word 'irony'.

I hope my mechanic knows how to fix my car but I'd like to hope he is always learning about new and better techniques. Whenever you hear about a new wonder pill (the one with more side effects and warnings than benefits) there is always the requisite "call your doctor" mention. So, your doctor better stay on top of this stuff in case you ask her about it.

No one is a social media expert.

I worked in the radio industry for many years, had the amazing privilege of overseeing the launch of radio stations, made countless friends and built lifelong relationships. Does that make me a radio expert? Absolutely not. You may have never stepped inside a radio station, so I may know more about how they operate than you. So what, it means nothing.

Experience is the name everyone gives to his mistakes.
Oscar Wilde

We are all experts and we are all learning.

It matters not whether you have a PhD in Finance or a Masters in English, if you cannot share knowledge and information so others can learn and share with you – letters and degrees and experience means nothing.

Education is when you read the fine print.
Experience is what you get when you don't.
Pete Seeger

Where social media becomes a stumbling block for many people is when they treat it like another advertising medium – that is suicide. I was speaking with a colleague recently about social media and after an hour of explanation he said those five infamous words – “I know what I’m doing”. He then sealed the deal with seven more - "It worked for me in the past."

The world is your school.
Martin H. Fischer

He is looking for a social media expert to guarantee success. This is a horrible time to challenge ROI and metrics though many are attempting to do that. If you attempt to weigh an elephant with a produce scale, the chances of getting an accurate reading are remote - okay, impossible.

If you can guarantee your customers absolute success, buy a money printing machine and send us a postcard.

Everything has been said before, but since nobody listens we have to keep going back and beginning all over again.
Andre Gide 1891

Social media is not the golden bullet to save us from the abyss. But it is for real and it is here to stay. It will continue to evolve but at the core is our human need to build relationships.

Then again, that’s just my opinion. I’m no expert on the topic.

What are your thoughts?

@knealemann

E-Books: Free For The Learning

One of my true passions is music. I fought for artists and publishers in the music industry for more than a decade. This was not some clueless struggle against technology or progress but rather a discovery of how the music industry could remain healthy while giving music fans what they want - and were now taking for free.

At the core of any venture is the need to be good at it. Music downloading did not create better musicians and not everyone in the industry is out to steal from artists. But if you let people know the food on the menu is free every Thursday, the line-up will be quite a bit shorter on Friday.

I have all the data from the "I only download some music" group and the "they already make enough money" group but we can save that for another time.

Download Books for Free?

One of the coolest trends lately is e-books. These are tightly packed 30-40 page manuals jammed with information that can help you. E-books offer practical information for your business, industry and career.

E-books are easy to read and re-read and re-read again. If you want to write your own, you can!

Books Are Cool

While the publishing industry evolves, the web has allowed anyone to self-publish. You won’t make money from writing an e-book but it allows you the opportunity to share some information and most importantly give readers a better chance to get to know you.

Plus, writing an e-book can lead to business for your company in the future. But, like with music downloading your e-book must actually have substance and something people want to read.

Can You Be Trusted?

Trust is one of the biggest topics these days so if you can gain trust through sharing information, the chances of building better business relationships will increase.

As one who has a renewed interest in the publishing industry, we must look at the changes in the music industry throughout the last decade. It is imperative that the creators are compensated and protected.

Some samples

If you travel in the world of media, social networking, marketing, publishing or entertainment, here are some gems that may help you.

Download, digest and do.

Blink: A Social Media Guide from The Edge
Todd Defren
It is refreshing to read Todd’s work. Defren is a principal with Shift Communications – a PR agency with offices in San Francisco and Boston.

Blink is crammed with nothing but meat. Todd mentions in the opening that he is not going to waste a lot of time getting to real useable information and he keeps that promise. I would say there is a lot of common sense here but as I’ve previously posted, that too is rare. You may find yourself nodding your head a lot but your next step is to create action in your own life with this information. This is a fantastic book.

Unleashing The Ideavirus
Seth Godin
This is a classic! Seth wrote this in 2000 and it’s still ahead of it’s time today. If you are even marginally in the marketing industry, you have heard of Seth. His work, his energy, his mind, and his contribution to the industry is well documented.

If you haven’t read “Unleashing The Ideavirus” or it’s been a while – it’s worth a re-read. Congrats to Seth for publishing his 3,000th blog post this week. And check out his TEDTalk on sliced bread.

Fish Where The Fish Are
Using The Social Web to Find Work
Branding for the Business Professional
Chris Brogan
If you are even a casual social media participant, you have heard of Chris. He is the president of New Marketing Labs with partners Justin Levy and Colin Browning. Chris travels the world giving presentations to businesses that include practical applications for marketing and social networking. I had the pleasure of spending some time with him at PodCamp Toronto. If you did the same, you know he is the real deal.

Word of Mouth Manual
Dave Balter
With all the tools and tricks and data at our disposal, word of mouth still holds true as an extremely powerful way for people to find out about you and your business. It can work in your favor or work against you. Building positive word of mouth can take time but negative news travels quickly. Dave is the founder and CEO of BzzAgents – a word of mouth marketing and media network so he knows of what he writes.

Trust Economies
Julien Smith & Chris Brogan
Julien Smith was an early adopter to the social space through In Over Your Head which began in November 2004. He is a writer, designer and entrepreneur. He is also one of six contributors to a new initiative called Media Hacks hosted by Mitch Joel with Hugh McGuire, Brogan, CC Chapman, and Christopher S. Penn.

Along with Brogan, Smith has co-authored “Trust Agents” which will be released in August. He is wicked smart and very funny. He has more energy than an NFL franchise and a warning: he will in fact tell you the truth.

Have you written or have you ever thought about writing an e-book?

@knealemann

Media Hacks: A Necessary Initiative

Thought leaders such as Mitch Joel, Chris Brogan, CC Chapman, Julien Smith, Hugh McGuire, Christopher S. Penn and numerous others have stepped up with a necessary initiative called Media Hacks.

This is an open discussion about digital space, social media, marketing and anything else that comes up. Mitch talked about it this past weekend on his Six Pixels of Separation podcast. The idea is to gather thinkers and share ideas, no rules, opinions are allowed and encouraged. And it’s absolutely free.

The magic of this initiative is that others will be invited to contribute to the conversation.

That is the essesnce of social media – you can have information and thoughts from leaders in industry and they want to hear yours.

The Media Hack blog and podcast is coming very soon.

If you have an idea, start sharing!

km

from cc-chapman.com

Passion and Self-Doubt

Last night, I was re-reading Chris Brogan’s free e-book on personal branding. I refer to it often and if you are feeling a bit lost or looking for next steps, I recommend you do the same. Download Chris’ book here.

In fifteen pages, Chris outlines some steps you can take to improve you, your career, and your brand. The sections that stood out for me were about self-doubt and passion.

I think many of us would have our PhD in both topics and this all stems from one important element – human behavior.

The Network is Social
We have created a network of connections that can blow our minds. I hope you're the same, but I have made contact with people I would never have met if it wasn’t for the social network, blogs and podcasts.

Chris talks about making something of our social media connections. It’s not enough to just collect them like trinkets as they do the same with us. Make a human connection. I sent Brogan an email last night and he returned it!

Passion
You may have experienced this issue. You have great desire and burn in your gut to do something but then self-doubt creeps in and the party is over. We are excellent at sabotaging our own dreams aren’t we?

Self-Doubt
Here’s a challenge. You have five minutes to find someone who will tell you “that won’t work”. Don’t hurt yourself, they’re everywhere. And too often, they are inside us already.

The World is a Stage
Chris says that you must have a great attitude every time you enter the social media world – and I agree! No one likes a grump. But have we created a platform where fears and dreams and passion and self-doubt are allowed to mingle?

We are a network, we are connected. We are not 6.7 billion humans cohabitating. We make mistakes, we lose stuff, we have silly ideas, we have doubts, and we have passion. Let’s celebrate that rather than pretending we have it all figured out.

Thanks Chris for always sharing!

Now, what are your thoughts?

km

"Don't ask yourself what the world needs; ask yourself what makes you come alive. And then go and do that. Because what the world needs is people who have come alive." Harold Whitman

The Power of How

Have you ever received a call or an email from someone ‘out of nowhere’? Have you ever burned a bridge you later regretted burning? Have you ever called someone you haven't spoken with in a while?

I have often said, never burn a bridge despite all temptation and everyone is a contact. The last few hours of 2008 were topped off with a nice gift from a respected colleague. Mitch Joel published his 09 Blogs To Watch In 09.

It is with great honor that I share the list with Hugh McGuire, Sebastein Provencher, the contributors at MediaShift, Scott Karp, Mark Evans, Roberto Rocha, Michael S. Hyatt and Jay Rosen.

Mitch and I met a hundred years ago. We reconnected through Facebook and I’ve been picking his big brain every since. If we had treated each other badly those many years ago, that connection would not have happened – out of nowhere.

And if you don’t read or listen to Six Pixels of Separation, what’s wrong with you? Ha! You should.

# # #

Another regular stop for me is with Chris Brogan. Chris put out a challenge for all of us to find three words that best describe goals for 2009. You can read Chris’ words here. So I will see that challenge and add my three:

Imagine
The human mind’s imagination has no boundaries. What gets in the way, is the human. If you are in a situation where your imagination is stilted, then find a new situation. If we blame the economy, then let’s all give up now and live in tents. Lose the word “can’t” and get used to saying 'can' and 'how'.

Create
Mark Twain said “actions speak louder than words”. 2009 is about action and if you are with people who aren’t helping you do that, run away from them. They are not helping you. They aren’t going to help you. Move on. If you are the one causing the inaction, get going!

Share
If you are a painter who hides your creations in the basement, it’s safe to say your collection will never been shown at MOMA.

If you feel you are sharing your ideas with negative people be warned that they will suck your soul from your eyeballs. Stay away from these people. Share often, share with those who want to share back. Teamwork is alive and well and this time we mean it.

But don't become a closed-minded bully. In order to imagine, create and share you must be open to allow others to do the same. The next time you get a call 'out of nowhere' from someone who enjoyed collaborating with you, don't be surprised.

I will add one more word for 2009 but this one can be added at any stage and that is impatience. It is a sad waste of talent and time when any of us get sidetracked by naysayers and complainers.

I know I used to be both.

So mark it on your to-do list for 2009 to be that "out of nowhere" person for someone else. The results will amaze you.

Tag, you're it. What are your three words?

km

What Will You Do? Complain or Share?

VP-elect Joe Biden was on Larry King Live last night and despite the fact that he gets a shiny new gig and cool mansion on January 20th, no one seems envious about what is ahead for him and his boss.

Biden he has hope for the future. He isn’t living in lollypop land, there is a steep hill for the world to climb – this is not about the U.S. economy – this is about all of us.

But I keep thinking about how we are writing and talking and blogging and podcasting and whining about this all the time. It is overwhelming.

Here are some facts we know to this point.

We know: There are dishonest people in the world. There are crooks in this world. Some people do enjoy scamming you. The planet has no shortage of horrific things. And not everyone tells the truth.

We know: There are millions of creative generous minds willing to share their knowledge every day. True friends are a phone call away when we need them. Abundance is not measured by monetary wealth. And we all have a choice to either complain or share.

If you feel down or beleaguered, here are some places to visit:

Mitch Joel. Joseph Jaffe. Ted. James Arthur Ray. Seth Godin. Chris Brogan. Gregg Braden. CC Chapman. Jack Canfield. Guy Kawasaki. Marcus Buckingham.

Let’s pick share. I think share is a good choice.

Yup, share wins by a landslide!

km

Location Location Location

Amid the housing and mortgage crisis I got to thinking about a mantra this industry has used since the dawn of time – location location location. I asked a real estate buddy once if it was better to tear down a shack and retrofit or rebuild in a good neighborhood or buy a nice house in a lesser neighborhood. His answer was swift and without hesitation – rebuild.

Importance Of Location
Location is important when looking for a place to live. Location is paramount when deciding on a website address. Location is essential when choosing who you work with on projects and initiatives. Location is vital when choosing to be nimble verses stagnant.

Making Useful Media
Chris Brogan wrote a brilliant post today about making useful media. If you work in television, online content, radio, journalism, marketing or promotion – take a few minutes and read this post. Then send the link to everyone you know!

Bad TV
Mitch Joel recently wrote a post entitled Bad TV. It's a great view of something that is dear to my heart - content! Mitch poses the simple question: Would you rather have bad tv or good internet? Read and share as well.

Short-Term Fear | Long-Term Growth
I spoke with a friend who is a senior sales manager at a prominent cell company last night. He has a customer who is worried about spending a few hundred dollars because his budgets have been frozen – even when my friend has shown this customer how he will save thousands in mere months.

The location of your psyche is even more important than the place you reside. Forest and trees are being lumped in with news reports about falling markets and bailouts.

In It For The Deal
My post-secondary life was a time of change in both my thinking and work ethic. I was studying to become a radio broadcaster and despite my complete indignation toward my high school “career” I felt it was time to go big or go home. So along with being the Program Director of the college radio station, a DJ and bartender at the campus pub, I also worked in a sports store selling shoes. We got great deals on the sweetest new shoes on the market. At one time, I probably had 30 pairs.

Deals Are Not Always Deals
I had to take two buses from my place to get to this job, hated the hours, disliked my manager but stuck it out. I finally had to resign because it was affecting all the stuff I wanted to do in my life at that time. When I did it, a friend asked me why I had stayed so long. My response: because I got a deal on shoes.

Location is important but often it has nothing to do with geography.

How is location important to you?

km

Preparing The Preparation

A friend was lamenting the other day that she had nothing to add to the social media discussion. She raises her family and posts insightful and hilarious updates on Twitter and she doesn't even realize it. What I reminded her was, she is adding to the discussion!

If all we do is talk about talking about talking with each other and share stories of how we should share – we are what my dad always calls “preparing for your preparation”. If you've ever been through a meeting where nothing is resolved, where every item is pushed to next meeting, and no one knows who does what by when, that is talking about talking.

I love Chris Brogan's blog entitled Share Share Share or as Jeff Parks says; there are no secrets, just information you don’t know yet. I think most of us had to get our heads around truly sharing because someone in our past stole an idea and took credit for it.

I wrote a media industry article last year that was published in the U.S. and Canada. A former colleague called the day it was published to give me praise. I mentioned that I had included some of the discussions he and I had had over the years and I guess I had stolen some content. He reminded me that he shared stuff he had picked up from others over the years - that's how it works.

James Cridland, Mitch Joel, Chris Brogan, Guy Kawasaki, Jeff Parks, Robert Scoble, Seth Godin, Jeff Pulver, Joseph Jaffe, Leigh Himel, Jeremiah Owyang and countless others share with me every day.

I received an email yesterday from a great friend who reminded me that I need to do my part. I am always better at boasting about my partners and my colleagues all the while they are complaining that I need to share more about me. So here goes ...ahem

...more tomorrow

km