Social Media Is For The Dogs!

I finally get social media.  No, I didn’t just acquire 500 linkedin connections, or get my twitter account up and running. Like 3/4ths of the human population, I have been a user of social media for years. It is only now that I finally get it. Like most facebook users over thirty, I segment my friends into those I went to high school with, college buddies, professional acquaintances, local friends, and cyber hookers with 46 friends who slip through the cracks undetected. I usually post witty remarks, photos, or videos about my life, business, kids, accomplishments, or challenges. I send it out into the universe hoping that my thousands of friends find me as interesting as I do. I am all things to all people.

      Yesterday I had a pure social media experience that gave me my AHA! Moment. My three year old was standing at the door yelling goggy, goggy. I was working in my office placating her with “that’s right dear, doggy, good doggy”. She became more animated so I got up and walked to the glass door. She was nose to nose with a black, wolfish looking dog that had wandered onto our porch. It turned out that the dog was very friendly, very thirsty, and very lost. Its tag had fallen off, so after giving it water and explaining to my daughter why we don’t put our face next to strange dogs, I took a picture with my Iphone and posted on my facebook page. My post simply said “lost dog. If you live in Burlington and recognize this dog, get in touch…before my kids get too attached”.  Within ½ hour, the dog was back home safe and sound with its grateful owners thanks to one of my facebook peeps who live next door to them. I now realize that this is what social media is all about. It is certainly what the 25 year old twitter users with 150,000 followers have understood from the start. Social media is about more than connection, it is about connecting on common ground.  It is about having a conversation with like minded souls on a specific topic. Did my 1500 plus facebook friends who do not live in my town respond to my post? No! because I wasn’t talking to them and they knew it. Most of us are like the guy on the off ramp with the sign that says “will work for food…God bless”. His message is generic and displayed without purpose. Thousands pass him daily with little interest in his message. When we start joining conversations based on topic, geography, ideology, brand loyalty etc., we can then make connections with individuals on a personal level. They will buy our products, align with our beliefs, and drink our kool-aid. By the way, if you happen to pay someone to tweet, post, or manage your social media, you have missed the point. In order to effectively use social media, you must be authentic and be willing to participate in a conversation. If you are the only one who is doing the talking, you are talking to yourself.

ARE YOU TWEET WORTHY?

Sitting in the office of the A&R director of Curb Records many years ago, I thought "this is it". This was the magic moment I had been waiting for. The tipping point that I had worked for since I first picked up a guitar, strung three chords together, and sang my own homegrown lyrics. With eyes closed, I played what was sure to be Tim McGraw's next chart topper. I hit every note, added the appropriate amount of emotion and Pathos, mixed texture with melody and envisioned the excitement building two feet away in the expensive smelling leather chair. I opened my eyes expecting to see a face full of jubilation and exuberance, but was instead confronted with crossed arms and an expression devoid of emotion. I was stunned. How could this person not see the songwriting brilliance that my mother and her bible study were so quick to acknowledge? I was instead told something that changed my thinking for life. "Patrick, your song is good. However, hundreds of good songs come through my door every week. A hit song has a quality that will make the listener get up off his butt, drive to the record store and pay fifteen dollars just so he can hear it again. Your song doesn't have that" 

Even though the relevance of mainstream record stores has disappeared, the relevance of that statement has not. I call it being tweet-worthy. My concept of tweet-worthiness developed not long ago after a speech in Charlotte, North Carolina. I was speaking on the topic of customer loyalty and had just tried out a new bit of material that I had written specifically for this audience. It was a five-minute poem that illustrated the creation of a peak customer experience. I was a little nervous because I was out of my comfort zone, but after much rehearsal and memorization, it came off better than expected. After my speech, a woman excitedly approached me asking "what is your twitter address?" "Why?" I asked? She told me that she enjoyed the poem so much that she was tweeting during my speech and wanted to let people know how to reach me...WOW! an AHA moment if there ever was one.

I now create presentations with tweet-worthy moments in mind. As I am preparing a talk, I visualize impact moments throughout the speech that will make audience members reach for their smart phones and tweet to their followers about what they just heard. Are you tweet-worthy? Are you engaging your customers, clients, and co-workers in a way that will make them stop what they are doing, pick up their smart phones, and share with the world how wonderful you are? Who will testify on your behalf?...Your customers will.  Jeffrey Gitomer says "when you say it about yourself it's bragging. When someone else says it, it's proof".

Three ways to create tweet-worthy moments:

1. DO THE UNEXPECTED. Observe what the competition is doing and do something different. Delivering gourmet cupcakes to the office staff is nice, but hardly original (unless you have their names written on them in frosting) 

2. PROVIDE VALUE. Do you spend every moment in front of the decision maker detailing your product? Look for opportunities to help their business succeed by sending articles, blogs, and resource links that help them achieve their goals. When you become a person of value to the customer, you create a buying atmosphere.

3. BE SINCERE. If you become known as slick...you are finished. If you treat your customers the way you treat your friends, you will soon be tweeted to prosperity. Just don't get your tweet caught in your twitter.