Is Your CEO Social?

Ok, ok I know that I haven’t shared too many job searching tips lately but those who read my blog should know by now that I have a passion for social media and when I come across a hot bed of great articles I just have to share them with you!  Where would we be if no one shared information they came across?  (Also, if you are looking for other job related tips you should check out my Jobs.Ideas.Networking group on Facebook.)

First, information sharing started with word of mouth with the words, “The British are coming!” then we had radio, television, newspapers and now here we are in the age of social media where everywhere you look you are being surrounded by information.

These days, the majority of senior management is still getting their news either through the radio, television, newspapers or online. Simply put, ” None of the CEOs of Fortune Magazine’s top 100 global corporations have a social profile [and there was] no obvious presence [of] any of the 100 CEOs on Facebook or LinkedIn.”  Even Steve Jobs doesn’t have a Twitter, Facebook or LinkedIn profile! In such an up and coming age, how is that possible?  Well, my guess is that these people have “made it” and see no need to interact in this “hip” new way.  Just like my grandfather doesn’t like rock music, these folks could care less about the social media movement.  If what they are doing works, then why fix it?

What about us “hip” kids?  Well, apparently those of us who go online, spend 22.7% of our time on social networking sites!  If this is true, then how can a company with a CEO who could care less about social media, and just wants it to go away, succeed?  I hate to say it, but this is only going to get bigger.  Just like with the growth and innovation of the telephone, social networking will just continue to grow and evolve.  The quicker everyone learns about it, the easier it will be to adjust with the times!

For those CEO’s curious about entering the social age, George Colony, CEO of Forrester Research, offers the following advice:

1. Target the right audience

2. Define a clear reason to be social

3. Set up social expectations

4. Choose the right platform

Good luck and get social!

What did you do today?

Here are the two articles I referenced:

The Social CEO Part One: Most CEO’s Are Not Social

How CEO’s Will Use Social Media in the Future

Tweet to Succeed

First, I’d like to apologize for my lack of blog entries, I plan to make up for that today.  Sometimes life gets away from you and before you know it days have gone by and you haven’t blogged! 🙂

How many times have I written about social media and Twitter?  I can’t even keep the score any more.  Regardless, yesterday I came across a great article about the possibilities through Twitter and since I am a true advocate of adding inbound marketing to your marketing mix I can’t not blog about it.  The interview was with Biz Stone, the co-founder of Twitter, and is titled Social Media Grows Up.  What I have always been saying is that it’s about the content and the pro activity that will allow you to succeed at Tweeting for your business.

A great example of bad Twitter management is the following: I subscribe to a magazine that I am very interested in reading.  Prior to my recent move I made sure to change the address on the magazine’s website but through some glitch in the system the address wasn’t saved and I didn’t receive last month’s issue.  I Tweeted to whoever is in charge of social media there, saying that I was sad about it and hoped the problem would get solved, no one responded.  A couple of weeks later, I Tweeted again and still no response.  It is now the end of another month and yet again I will miss an issue.  I went on the actual website and saw that no matter how many times I save my new address the old one appears.  I have written to customer service and hope the problem gets resolved.  My point? Does anyone read the inbound Tweets?  If not, I am feeling pretty let down and I don’t know if I’ll ever subscribe to this mag again.  Here’s an easy solution: As a business, don’t just use Twitter to get a bunch of people to follow you.  You need to connect with these people and make sure that your customers are actually happy.

This is exactly what Biz is trying to say.  It’s not about the number of followers but about how you treat the ones you’ve got.  “You don’t need a million followers to be successful. If you have 3,000 people who really care about your company and are interested in what you have to say, they’ll share it with their followers, and you’ll gain a much bigger audience.”

Is YOUR company using social media the right way? If not, look for people like me who will turn things around!

What did you do today?

The Power Suit!

Everybody is talking about back to school fashions, well…what about back to work?  I guess I’m more referring to summer ending and those who are working need to think about putting away dresses and pulling out pants and tights to wear under skirts.  Clearly, I’m referring to the women in the workforce.

Regardless of whether you are just heading into the fall season at work or are looking for your next job the power suit is important.  Personally, I hate my suit. I’ve been thinking for months about how it’s time to update my look, especially since it plays so much into the first impression other people get about you.

Since we are now entering our third day of rain, instead of writing a lot I thought I’d instead put together a little collage of what I think is the perfect power suit.  I hope you enjoy and I look forward to any feedback about what you think does or does not work.  And…here is an interesting article I read during my search.  Are you also surprised that wearing a skirt suit is more effective?

What did you do today?

Inbound Marketing, The Gift That Keeps on Giving.

There are three parts to successful Inbound Marketing: SEO, Content and Social Media.

Out of all three, I am most comfortable with the last two.  I hope that all of my blogging has shown that I can deliver content and sharing this content via my blog, Twitter, Facebook and a few other outlets should show that I can successfully reach my readers through social media.

What is all of this leading to?  Well, the importance of adding inbound marketing to your marketing mix!  When the big bucks stop for outbound marketing, such as tv and magazine ads, the leads may stop as well.  However, with inbound marketing you aren’t the one chasing customers, the customers are chasing you through all of your modes of communication. Hence why inbound marketing is the gift that keeps on giving.

As you begin exploring the different sites on which you can share your content, you should also be testing what type of content works for you and your organization.  Not all companies can reach their audience via blogs or Twitter. A part of their audience may still expect brochures or white papers instead.  What’s the silver lining?  Content used for social media should be and can be re purposed!  And to boot, you will be saving money!

Speaking of saving money, here are a couple of great tools, that are free, to help your business get started in inbound marketing.  These are also the tools I used as research for this blog entry.  But don’t forget, in order to succeed, you need people who enjoy inbound marketing and will do anything to generate leads for your company…perhaps someone like me! 🙂

Measuring What Happens in Inbound Marketing

Online Marketing Blueprint

What did you do today?

How to Successfully Use Facebook for B2B Purposes

I have to put a disclaimer on today’s topic right away, although I’ve had and voiced all of these opinions these particular tips are not my own.  I have been downloading some fantastic ebooks from Hubspot and today I wanted to highlight one titled Guide to B2B Facebook Pages.

Here are 5 tips for a successful Facebook page.  Your company can’t succeed without these!

1. Build an active wall: I can’t stress this one enough!  Content, content, content!  You can’t survive without content just like you can’t survive without producing a product or a service.  You also need to market your product or service, so encourage people to “Like” your page.  Lastly, make sure to communicate WITH your audience.  Don’t just put up content.  If someone comments on your wall or poses a question, please answer that person.  There’s nothing worse than being ignored.

2. Use photos: There’s nothing more interactive than pictures and videos.  With the digital age being what it is now, you can upload images from anywhere.

3. Use video: Please see above 🙂

4. Highlight offline marketing: Once you’ve garnered some respect, and a following, bring people to other places where your brand may be featured, at a race or in a certain industry magazine where you are being featured.

5. Use calls to action: This is basically like Google ads.  When you type in what you’re looking for then the ad words get picked up and you are shown similar items you may be interested in along the right hand side.  Why not do this on your Facebook page?  However, this time you know that people are looking for your specific product or service which is an instant plus!

Check out the ebook to see some examples of successful Facebook pages as well as other resources for building an effective page for your business.

What did you do today?

Tweeting for Connections

I’ve written about using Social Media as part of your job search so today I wanted to share some new interesting information I found about using Twitter as one of your job searching tools.

I came across a great article titled, Career Networking Tips: Get Started on Twitter.  Here Charles Purdy of Yahoo! HotJobs shares that only 10% of businesses are NOT using social media as part of their marketing strategy. If that’s the case, then all 100% of us job seekers should be using all these new media outlets to our advantage!  You don’t want to be left behind like the other 10% of the companies out there!

Besides the basic steps of setting up an account and choosing an appropriate user name, the following tips are ones I am most interested in:

Start Participating: Start slow. Get your feet wet by seeing who is out there. If you like the news then look up CNN, The Boston Globe or any other newspaper.  It may even be easier if you go to the newspaper’s website and check to see if they are on Twitter, these days this sort of thing is displayed prominently on the front page.  If you find a story you like, then share it with others.  Twitter, in my opinion, isn’t as fun when all you are Tweeting about is what you’ve done or eaten that day. Share content!  It’s the only way to build a reputation as a reliable source.

Gain Followers and Build Your Reputation: I have been trying to build a reputation for a while now but just recently I’ve really been trying to ReTweet stories I find interesting and share stories I have found that I think might interest others.  Follow me: Linder83

Stay Involved Online:  Just as I’ve said before, consistency and new content are key!  If you start something, then finish it.  Once you’ve begun Tweeting or blogging you have to do it on a consistent basis. Make sure your audience knows what that basis is, once a day, once a week or once a month. You can always do more, but you shouldn’t do less.

Get Back from Twitter: Once you’ve built a solid reputation and have been following some noteworthy sites, expand your search to companies you could see yourself working in.  Begin to follow them and when the time is right, and a position opens up that is of interest to you, jump at the chance to Tweet directly or send a direct message.  There’s nothing better than being front and center in the resume pile!

What did you do today?

Networking

Recently, I was in Manhattan and got a chance to grab a copy of Time Out New York. I love this magazine! I guess it’s an equivalent to our Improper Bostonian but I feel that the New York version has a lot more reading material and has a much more advanced website with more tips of what one can do around town.

Anyway, I was happy to see that this particular issue highlighted some jobs and companies people could get into, such as Tumblr and Elle!  Each article talked about the working culture at the company and how one could find a job there.

The other article I enjoyed was in regards to networking and how it doesn’t stop online.  We should all try to meet as many people as possible, as no connection is a bad connection.  I am even branching out and going to a Brand Camp tomorrow at Jack Morton Worldwide.  If I can’t find a job in this industry then this is the next best thing.  I’m looking forward to finding out how companies work with an ad agency and what a typical day looks like for those working in this industry.  Of course, I am also looking forward to making some great new connections, I plan to cut up my personal business cards so I can give them to people I would like to keep in touch with.

What’s my point?  As I’ve said before, try new things, join new groups or ones that fit into your hobbies and meet new people!  You never know how someone could help you or you them.

What did you do today?

Check out my other Networking tips!

Interview Questions, Continued

Doostang has yet another list of tough interview questions.  Last week I posted three of them and I’d like to start this week off with another set of answers that will hopefully help you land your next big job!

Why did you leave your last position? These days, the answer to this may be easy.  You didn’t leave, but unfortunately due to the economy your position had to be eliminated.  The question is usually followed up with, “What did you like least about your job?”  It may seem like BS but there really wasn’t anything that I disliked.  Had the economy been good I would have stayed at my previous job as I was allowed to take part in a number of marketing activities and I never got bored!

Why haven’t you found a job yet? I haven’t heard this one before but I’m glad it’s listed on Doostang’s list.  I would have easily been caught off guard if I was asked this during an interview.  The easy answer here again is, there are roughly 10 applicants for every job.  As I heard more recently, there were about 90 resumes one hiring manager had to look at before deciding on the top people he would consider for 1st round interviews.  If you are trying to beat out even 50 people each time you apply to a job, then your chances are very slim.  We can apply to as many jobs as possible and just hope for the best. You should also take this time to mention that you haven’t just been sitting around and instead have been learning new skills and taking classes to stay on top of your game.

Has your performance or work ever been criticized? I think I’ve only heard this one a couple of times.  It’s good to know now how I should answer this question if I am asked about it again.  Instead of saying that you were simply marked down or criticized for anything, talk about how you handled and came out of that situation.

Good luck and, what did you do today?

Apologies

I know I always complain about companies who don’t update their blogs on a consistent basis and then I go and pull the same thing!  I apologize for my lack of posts this week.  Time has gotten away from me but I promise to post more interesting content next week.

Have a wonderful weekend and if any of you are looking for some free pilates classes then head on over to lululemon at the Prudential mall on Sunday!

I would also like to leave you with a wonderful Inbound Marketing Game Plan for your company! I plan to talk more about this next week.  Perhaps more ways I can help your company! 😉

What did you do today?

Handling Tough Interview Questions

It’s been a while since I linked my blog over to the Doostang Blog.  Having had some recent interview experience I wanted to approach the subject again and hopefully help some of you as the “summer slowdown” comes to an end and you begin interviewing again.

The Doostang Team talks about three questions in particular:

What Are Your Long Term Goals? These days, or at least when the economy was good, people move on from companies quite often.  A lot of the time the reason may be a general feeling of unhappiness, but I’m sure that even more often it’s because there is no growth.  You get stuck in one position and it’s been made clear that that will be your job until you take things into your own hands.  Tell your interviewer that you’d like to be a part of a company that promotes growth and that you’d like this new job to become your career.

Why Do You Want to Work For Us? The answer to this question can be tied into the one above.  If you have been shown that departments are growing and you know this place would be a good fit for you then express that.  Make sure to also do your homework and if there are some interesting news and events that have happened recently mention that you would like to be a part of such an environment and the company’s future successes.

Are You Overqualified for This Position? I can’t say that I can add any personal anecdotes to this answer so I will hand this one off to the Doostang Team’s experienced writers, “Talk about how the company needs solid individuals, and that your hope is to establish a strong presence in the company that allows you to move up and make a difference in your area of expertise.  A growing company needs reliable, proven people, and therefore you would be an excellent fit for any position.”

What did you do today?

P.S. Check out my other tips from past posts!