Vol. 69: Blog me a river …and start now!

Blogging is the cornerstone of your Social Media strategy

Online product displays are fine; but how are you really making a connection?

“You can have brilliant ideas, but if you can’t get them across, your ideas won’t get you anywhere.– Lee Iacocca

When I visit the websites of many of my Bay Area clients, I often find broad product offerings and detailed product specifications, accompanied by routine background and contact information … but rarely do I find a blog with which the company communicates with its customers.

Social media has exploded

The world of social media has blown the doors off traditional means of communicating with customers and employees. YouTube is now receiving more than one hour of recorded video for each minute on the clock – with over 2 billion page views – and it just celebrated only its fifth anniversary. In just over six years, Facebook has garnered more than 400 million subscribers and continues to grow.

With powerful social media tools like these, as well as LinkedIn, Twitter, Tumblr, Digg, del.icio.us, Buzz, etc., most middle-market companies are overwhelmed by the choices. But most of them are not moving fast enough because – be dead sure of this – these tools, advancing at an increasingly faster pace every day, are here to stay and flourish. If you’re not part of that conversation, (more…)

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Read more about the article Happy Birthday, America!

Happy Birthday, America!

Today is usually a day for hot dogs, parades and festive celebrations of the birth of this wonderful nation we inhabit.

In that spirit, I’d like to dedicate this holiday to a dear family friend, Cpt. Kevin Mott, an Army Ranger who was badly wounded in Afghanistan this week and is returning to the U.S. for treatment. Our hearts and prayers are with him and his family for a rapid and full recovery.

Another day, we can debate the wisdom of our foreign policy and the wars in which we’re currently engaged … but today, I’d like to pay tribute to Kevin and the men and women with whom he serves. We stand straighter because of their bravery and commitment and shed tears for their innocence and selflessness as they put themselves in harms way for the country to which they give so much and from which they ask so little.

They aren’t encamped on a comfortable bar stool celebrating Independence Day. They’re carrying out their mission in the unforgiving terrain of the Korengal Valley and Kunar Province of Afghanistan, without electricity, plumbing or running water, (more…)

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Read more about the article Freakonomics – The Movie

Freakonomics – The Movie

“Incentives are the cornerstone of life.” Remember that phrase?

Many of you have read my posts, or heard me discuss the fascinating insights of Freakonomics, the best-selling book by Steven Levitt and Stephen Dubner about the power of incentives and how often they produce unexpected and unwanted results. The sequel is called Super Freakonomics.

For those of you who may be cast members in the diorama described by the article, “Is Google Making Us Stupid“, you should be thrilled to learn that Freakonomics is coming out soon as a documentary film. Should be pretty cool.

While we’re waiting, try this exercise in your organization. (more…)

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