Being a social media strategist at Microsoft, by way of Projectline, involves much more than just tweeting and maintaining a Facebook page. It’s about building community. Our product, one in the educational sector, requires a lot of online networking. I work hard to establish and build trust with educators around the world. Microsoft is a behemoth of a company and while you’d think the MSFT name would give you a shoe-in to any community – it simply doesn’t.
Teachers want to know that you are just as passionate about education as you are about the product you are marketing. To show them this, I usually sign my name at the end of my tweets to help give them a personal touch. Many social strategists and community managers sign only with their initials in this fashion: ^EB. I go the extra mile and sign: -eric. On Facebook, I will send them personal e-mails and comments with my own profile (Eric Burgess) as well with my Mouse Mischief profile. It’s absolutely crucial to be as reachable as possible to your customers. The old ways of conducting customer service through 800 numbers and expensive CMS e-mail software are on their way out. People want immediate access to you, so why not give it to them? It’s all a part of the community building I mentioned earlier. How can you build a community without making you and your product as transparent as possible? You can’t. Below are some important things to consider as you work to build your community.
1. Are you Tony Hsieh’ing it?
Tony Hsieh is the founder and CEO of Zappos.com. Hsieh inspired me to get into social media. He was one of the first people I followed on Twitter and I was completely blown away by the amount of time he spent tweeting. He was so passionate about his customers that I consider him a social media pioneer: He used it to grow his business. And, he was reachable to everyone. I actually received a message from him when I responded to one of his tweets. What CEO does that? How could an online shoe business have nearly 1.7 million followers? Hsieh worked hard at growing his community. You’ve got to Hsieh it to stay in it. Read more…
Tracy and her husband Patrick are the publishers of the West Seattle Blog, one of the hyperlocal weblogs that have proved it is possible to make a living from community journalism in a neighborhood or small town. She has been identified as one of the communicators who is finding ways of making sense of news as a business by people like the Poynter Institute — she is part of their Sense-Making Project — and the News Innovation program at CUNY. Read more…
Recently, a new start-up called Richi Tip Box has grabbed people’s attention in Taiwan. The goal of this service is to encourage blogging by ensuring that bloggers receive financial support. Currently, a popular source of income for bloggers is advertising. However, Richi Tip Box has a different approach: bloggers can use the Richi platform to propose topics they would like to write about and seek micro-funding before publication. Interested prospective readers can then donate money to support the proposed blog post. When bloggers have enough funds, they start working on the projects and publish them by the promised date.
The concept of micro-donations is not new; they have been used as a fundraising tool by charitable organizations. The Richi Tip Box founder decided to apply this funding model to supporting bloggers because he thinks readers should be able to enjoy the content without being distracted by ads. In addition, he felt that bloggers whose articles are in demand by readers should have a chance to earn some income. The spread of the Facebook “like” button may mean that people have become more comfortable with giving compliments online. Richi Tip Box provides something similar to this “like” application: an icon for bloggers placed on the sidebar. If readers click the Richi Tip Box icon, they do not only “like” the article, but also donate money. Before Facebook, this function may not have been well-received.
When thefunds have accumulated to a specific amount, bloggers can withdraw them from their Richi accounts via Paypal. One of the key features of Richi is that it manages the complex cash flow on behalf of the bloggers. The company knows that in order to persuade people to buy digital content, it is necessary to reduce the complexity of the transaction. Readers can simply add money via credit card or Paypal, just like purchasing Skype credits. Bloggers can concentrate on blogging and do not need to worry about dealing with money.
The Richi Tip Box model is different because it makes readers pay before the work of the blogger is done. From my perspective, this model will work best for those bloggers who already have a group of followers. Those who are just getting started will need to utilize the power of social networks to grow their readership. The Richi idea is inspiring — people can pay for their beloved bloggers, knowing that the content will be of good quality. I believe this service is based on the right motivation and concept, and I’m curious to watch it develop.
Like blogging, vlogging (video blogging) is a way to share your insights on a subject with an online audience. However, vlogging goes beyond the text of a blog post, transforming your content into an audio-visual broadcast. If you’re interested in vlogging, but don’t know how to start, here are some tips:
The first thing you’ll need is the right equipment, and the good news is you don’t need much, just a camcorder or a web camera and a good microphone. Also, for a vlog that has a more polished look, you’ll want to learn how to use video-editing software. This will enable you to add music, subtitles, etc. to your vlog. There are numerous online programs like Wax or Zwei-Stein Video Editor that you can download for free. Also, Apple iMovie and Windows Movie Maker are both easy to use and come pre-installed on Macs and PCs.
Once you’ve assembled your equipment, I recommend experimenting. Test the sound quality of your microphone; make sure there is sufficient lighting where you’re recording your vlog and figure out how you want to look on camera. Remember that vlogging is a form of communication, so you want to not only be visible (no low lighting), but also intelligible. Most vlog “episodes” should be one to three minutes, keeping the amount of bandwidth needed to host them to a minimum. Therefore it’s a good idea to rehearse your content. At the very least, I recommend preparing a script or some type of plan before each video so that you can deliver concise, focused content. Finally, don’t be afraid to have fun with your vlog. Depending on your audience, you’ll want to be more than just informative; you’ll also want to be candid and entertaining. Like blogging, it’s important to pick subjects you love and can explore in a series of posts. One episode doth not a vlog make.
The signs of info-exhaustion are abundantly clear. I’ve been flashing them red in my status updates after all.
Hanson HoseinI’m tired of being in a perpetual state of communication (says the digital media journalist guy via Twitter and Facebook). [7 comments, 6 people liked this]
Hanson HoseinHow to restore “contemplative balance” in an info-saturated world. Love that notion, wish I were in town to attend: http://is.gd/4NbSK[my wife liked this]
Graphic by Kim Rosen
I also joked on Twitter: I’m thinking of starting a Master of Communication in Analog Media.
Far too many people expressed interest, leading me to believe that all us tech-lovers secretly despair of our passion for all things digital. I had mentioned as much during a Fireside Chat on Seattle’s NPR affiliate KUOW, which led to this article in the upcoming issue of Seattle Magazine, “Sound Off: Examining the Value of Tuning Out” (in fine analog style, the columnist Karen Johnson, interviewed me in September, a fact-checker contacted me about my quotes in October, and the dead-tree December issue has yet to hit news stands).
And now I’m up late on a Sunday night — having finished grading assignments, and attempted the Sisyphean e-mail push uphill — writing this blog post. Overwhelmed, overloaded perhaps, but forever propelled by anxiety.
Nearly five years ago, my wife and I set out on a road trip across America, armed with a couple of cameras, laptops, and a burning need to tell a story about a growing insurgency against big box stores. What we didn’t have were jobs (I was determined never to work in TV news again), much money in the bank, or any clue what we were going to do with our footage when we got home — it was all “close, but no cigar” with networks like PBS and Discovery, which meant all our effort could conceivably lead to nothing.
But thanks to a pioneering social media strategy, grassroots interest in our film, and really good timing, a lot of people paid attention, and our documentary has been viewed around the world. We continue to get requests to attend community screenings — from Hyannis MA to Port Townsend WA, even as some of the issues have evolved (Wal-Mart has turned over a new leaf, Starbucks is in slow retreat, many Americans now truly mistrust their powerful institutions and believe in “local first.”). We’ve had broadcast deals, and we’ve sold DVD’s. It was probably one of the main reasons why the University of Washington hired me to lead its graduate degree program in digital media. So have we benefited enough? Is it now time to give it away, streaming it for free on Hulu, second only to YouTube when it comes to online video? Isn’t that what you do with your content in the multimedia age?
As go-to sources for innovative content, amateur bloggers have been teaching mainstream media professionals some new tricks. Once considered the sideshow of journalism, blogging has taken the center ring. Even traditional media outlets have joined the fray, bolstering blogging’s reputation. But for amateur bloggers not writing for a trusted brand, establishing a trustworthy reputation remains important. For Justin Carder of Capitol Hill Seattle, consistency is key: “You do the same good stuff day in and day out for long enough, and you become trustworthy. It’s a function of effort as much as anything.”
In addition, here are five tips for gaining your audience’s trust, and writing like a pro—even if you aren’t one:
1. State your credentials: When positioning yourself as a blogger, you must inform your audience of your qualifications. Credentials inspire confidence, and the term does not exclusively apply to professional degrees. For instance, if a blogger is an experienced ballet instructor and writes about ballet’s emotional benefits, her opinion has merit, even though she is not a licensed behavioral professional.
2. Write what you know: When you write about subjects you have in-depth knowledge about, your insights are richer and more authentic than when writing about a topicrequiring extensive research. “Because I care about what I write, I can help my audience by making useful suggestions, interesting observations or just making them chuckle a little at what happens to me,” explains Candy Martin, author of the Seattle P-I reader blog Mother of Style.
Bloggers have long faced repercussions for lacking transparency, but now they could face monetary penalties as well.
In a unanimous vote earlier this week, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) decided to revise its Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising. The ruling comes almost a year after the FTC announced the proposed changes. The update, which goes into effect Dec. 1, require bloggers to disclose any monetary relationships with sponsors. Bloggers could face up to $11,000 in fines if they don’t comply. Read more…
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When thefunds have accumulated to a specific amount, bloggers can withdraw them from their Richi accounts via Paypal. One of the key features of Richi is that it manages the complex cash flow on behalf of the bloggers. The company knows that in order to persuade people to buy digital content, it is necessary to reduce the complexity of the transaction. Readers can simply add money via credit card or Paypal, just like purchasing Skype credits. Bloggers can concentrate on blogging and do not need to worry about dealing with money.
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