A Penny for Your Brilliance.

"Give what you have. To someone, it may be better than you dare to think." Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (1807 - 1882)

Everyone has something to give. And knowledge is a powerful currency.

I spent the last several days at the Small Business Marketing Unleashed conference put on by the amazing (did I mention amazing?) folks at Search Engine Guide. I absolutely love that this event is limited in scale to about 100 people. At that size, you can actually meet and interact with people at a level you just can't do at a Big Business Expo.

A powerful theme emerged on day one, and continued throughout the next several days. And it has huge relevance in the business world.

Left and right, people were giving away their knowledge.

Yes, we paid to go to the conference, but as conferences go, even that was a modest investment. But it wasn't just the sessions where information and knowledge was being shared. It was in the hallways. At the lunch table. On the walk from the conference center to the hotel. Over dinner, drinks, even poolside.

People of all stripes - web marketing, search, social media, branding, marketing, business owners, lawyers, technology folk, social media monitoring, video and podcasting - were all too happy to spend time with one another learning, asking questions, sharing, lending a few words of knowledge or experience. And what happens? Everyone benefits.

It's the have-a-penny-leave-a-penny philosophy of business. You're an expert at something, so leave some knowledge for someone else who needs it. And in return, someone is bound to come along to replace that knowledge with something you needed too.

When you're marketing your business, via traditional or social means, contributing your expertise is one of the most valuable things you can do. An e-book. A white paper. An educational video. Or 30 minutes of your time spent with someone to impart a bit of your vast knowledge. Some friendly advice or insight to a new business owner.

Now, before someone freaks out on me for advocating giving away the "secret sauce", that's not what I'm suggesting. But pieces of it? You bet. No one is going to be able to replicate or replace your business by using your PowerPoint slides. But by teaching and sharing, you are cultivating a sense of ownership and learning in others.

I learned so much from my friends this weekend. I have come away richer for the experience, and hopefully left a little something in the penny jar for someone else. Thank you to you all for your intellectual philanthropy, and making it fun in the meantime.

If you aren't out there sharing what you know with someone who can benefit from just a handful of your expertise, please go pick up the phone or send an email. Right now. I'll be here when you get back, counting my pennies.

image by r-z

50 Days (and counting) until SBMU!

Have you signed up for SBMU yet? I'm going, and last month I told you all about why. I hope you'll join us - you've got until August 29th to get the early birdie deal. Go on! I'll wait. (Jennifer is even helping you find airfare deals to get there.)

Done? ok!

So why am I posting again? Because whether you're going or not, your biz might just be right for sponsorship of this super event. You've got a tight knit audience of small and medium business owners and decision makers that might just need to do business with you. And I'm a big proponent of sponsorships that do what they're supposed to do: connect great businesses with the people who need them to solve problems and might not find them any other way. (We all know it's a big pond out there...)

In particular, SBMU is putting on a speed networking event as part of their activities that benefits COSI, the Center of Science and Industry in Columbus. 100% of the proceeds from the tickets and silent auction go to COSI's Community Access program that provides tickets to the center for low income and at-risk families. And the event is open to the public, so beyond just connecting with SBMU groupies, you're reaching out to the Columbus community. My love for a good cause runs deep, so I hope you'll give it a look.

Can your company be a sponsor? Benefits include logos, links, and mentions in Search Engine Guide and Small Business Brief Weekly Newsletters, email connections with conference attendees, a chat with the charity networking event attendees to let them know about you and what you're up to, and the best part: admission to the conference. Go here and have a look at the sponsor packet to see if this or another SBMU sponsorship might be a good outreach for you.

(Note that I mean outreach, not just any old marketing buy. You're reaching and communicating with a savvy audience that's dedicated to investing in their business and in relationships. And you'll get to connect with them personally.)

If you think your company might be a fit, or you know someone who might, drop the Unleashed team a note.

I can't wait to absorb and learn and network and surely have some fun. See you in Columbus!

Small Business Marketing Unleashed: Columbus, OH

Today, I wanted to give all of you a heads up about a fantabulous event I'll be attending in Columbus, Ohio this September (the 22nd and 23rd to be exact) that's focused on small business owners and how they can make the most of their online marketing efforts.

It can be overwhelming to digest all the STUFF that's out there about online marketing, so Jennifer Laycock and the folks at Search Engine Guide have put together this tight knit forum with speakers breaking down the elements of search engine marketing, viral marketing, blogging and local search.

So what can you expect? The conference is limited to 100 attendees, and the workshops are limited to 25 people each to maximize opportunities to ask questions, interact, and learn. And it's not about just piling on the theory; these workshops are designed to give you real, usable ideas that you can take back to your company and put in play right away.

Some of the super duper speakers on the agenda:

Jennifer Laycock, Editor-In-Chief of Search Engine Guide
Matt Bailey, Founder and President of Site Logic Marketing
Matt McGee, Owner of SmallBusinessSEM.com
Debra Mastaler, Owner of AllianceLink
Stoney deGeyter, President of Pole Position Marketing
Heather Lloyd Martin, President and CEO of SuccessWorks Search Marketing Solutions
Mack Collier, Owner of The Viral Garden
Christine Churchill, President of KeyRelevance
Sage Lewis, Founder of SageRock
Christina "CK" Kerley, Founder of ckEpiphany Marketing
Michael Stebbins, President of Market Motive

With such an intimate group, the networking opportunities are second to none. I know I'm looking forward to putting faces to so many of the names I've known from Twitter and Plurk and the slew of blogs I read. Why not come join us so we can meet in person, too?

The $750 admission is a steal for a great conference (register by 8/29 for the early birdy deal). Head to the SBMU website and complete your registration today so you don't miss out on the fun. Hope to see you there!!

Disclosure: Nope, I don't work for SBMU or SEG, I'm not a sponsor, I'm not a speaker. I just happen to think that Jennifer and her work is pretty darn brilliant and think you will, too.

How Plurk Won Me Over

I admit, I wasn't a fan to start with. And I still feel a little hitchy with the user interface. But last evening, I figured out a few thing that Plurk has going for itself and that warrant hanging around and giving them a shot.

Threaded Conversation
At first, the only evidence I found of conversation threads were long strings of people telling each other "Good Night". Snore. But yesterday, I responded to a quick plurk by Mack Collier about what kind of advice us social media folks give to our clients about how much/often to blog. It spawned an impromptu Plurkshop (Connie Reece's witty term) on social media, which several people found helpful, and I think we all took a little something away from that conversation. It's a great demonstration of why Plurk's ability to thread a conversation can be a great group discussion forum. (Read it here)

Unexpected Community Support
There was a young woman on Plurk last night that lost a close friend in an accident. And I thought it was interesting that she chose to share her sad news in that forum. Of course, there was an outpouring of support and condolences, which I'm sure helped in some way, and it was touching to see some truly heartfelt notes of support. And I realized that Plurk's advantage over Twitter in this scenario wasn't a closer personal connection, per se. It was the opportunity to have an uninterrupted thread of support - one unfractured by "my new blog post is up" in the main Twitterstream - that kept it completely focused on the issue (and the person) at hand.

My takeaway for social media in small business was mostly from the Plurkshop and the overwhelming agreement by all of us about the importance of:

• Having a plan
• Starting before it's "perfect"
• Listening before you start
• Practice, tweak, and tweak again.
  

I continue to be amazed by the spontaneous ways that social media, piece by piece, transforms the landscape of both business and interpersonal relationships. It's going to be exciting to see what's next.

Measuring Social Media Effectiveness for Your Small Business

Measuring the impact of using social media to drive visibility and sales for business is still a bit elusive. The big companies have yet to solidly quantify what using social media has done for them, but the anecdotal evidence is overwhelmingly positive. For instance, we know that once Dell started getting its employees involved and participating in communities, there was significantly less negative feedback posted about them on their own site or others. Exactly how that translates into sales for their business is another issue, partially because they have so many avenues to track, and one I’m sure they’re all hard at work on by now. I, for one, cannot wait to hear the results.

For small business, the good news is that it can actually be easier for you to measure the impact of your social media adventures, because you have the ability to personally be out there and communicating with people to get their feedback and input in real time. The social media avenues themselves can be your ticket to quantifying just how much business they bring to your door.

Pick Your Spots and Participate.
For instance, let’s say you’re on Twitter and you spend time there every day chatting with folks. And you use LinkedIn Answers to provide input for colleagues looking for professional collaboration. Perhaps you even have a feedback forum on your website for your products, or allow users to post reviews.

If you’re new to social media, choosing sites that allow you to hold a dialogue can provide a better forum for networking and business development than an ad placement on Facebook, and can make it easier to identify people who move from online contact to prospective client.

And listening is as important as talking. Folks might be talking about you in places you don’t frequent. Chris Brogan sums it up better than I can in this post about how and where to listen online.

Ask Questions.
You should always be asking how your clients and customers find you, anyway. In this case, it’s a straightforward matter of tracking how many people cite these online communities as their conduit to your website (or blog) and therefore, to your company. Sound unreasonably simple? It can be, at least for starters.

If someone replies that so-and-so referred them to you, ask them how they know or found that person, too. It can give you a nice trail of breadcrumbs leading back to the original source. And if you have a new client that found you through other means, ask them anyway if they’ve seen you online, or read your blog. If so, see if that had any impact on their decision to buy from you.

Keep Track.
Small business has a major advantage in social media, especially owners and staffers that are savvy about keeping in great contact with their clients and customers. Pay attention to the people you meet via social media, and make sure to note that in your contact management system, even if it’s just your Outlook contacts. Note the visitors who comment on your blog, and those who sign up for your RSS feed. Flag those email addresses so you know who they are when they come knocking (and they will!).

As a small business owner, you have fewer degrees of separation between you and your customers, and that’s a great advantage when it comes to finding out just how effective your online exploits are. Asking, responding, talking all go a long way. It is called social media, after all!

Photo Credit: Darren Hester

Thanks, George: Laughter As Inspiration

George Carlin was in-your-face, irreverent, vulgar at times. And damn funny. He took serious subjects like war and made them laughable, all while he made a point.

It reminds me that sometimes, you have to stop taking yourself so seriously. That means me, too. I catch myself doing it more often than I’d like.

I’m blessed to be in business for myself, and to be helping small businesses succeed. I work with amazing, smart, hilarious, fun people. I get a great deal of joy from what I do. And there have been so many adventures along the way, many of which deserved a chuckle or two, even when they sucked royally at the time.

So my personal affirmation for the day, and the one I’d like to share in George’s honor, is to inject a little humor into your business. It makes you real, it makes you human. The best relationships are based on trust and affection. And I don’t know about you, but I can’t always trust someone who can’t take their head out of the game for a minute and have a good laugh (especially at their own expense). Sure, there are moments in business to be serious and focused, but not all of them.

There is something exhilarating about peals of good, hearty laughter. Over a cup of coffee, or in a board meeting. Yes, even in marketing. I’ve had some of the most productive and inspirational sessions of my career filled with a little silliness and some great camaraderie over laughter.

So go ahead. Laugh. George would be proud.

St. Peter and the gang upstairs have no idea what they’re in for. We’ll miss you, friend.

You’re Marketing and You Didn’t Even Know It.

I'm fond of saying that marketing isn't just a task you do, it's a living, breathing part of your business. And it sneaks out in the darndest places.

Your Voicemail Greeting.
“Hi, you’ve reached Amber and your call is important to me but I’ll ignore it for several days.”

This is a prime opportunity to give people a 10 second screen shot of your personality. Your voicemail greeting should include, without fail, your name, a thank you to the caller, instructions to leave a name and number, and a timeframe in which you’ll return their call (I like within 24 hours). Infuse some personality. Be happy they called. Then call them back.

Your Business Card.

I know it seems silly, but your business card does not have to be boring. (And unboring doesn’t have to mean that it’s a handheld super video game thing or something). And when you leave one, leave several. It'll be easier for people to pass them along to others and spread the wealth. Cards should always have your name, phone number (direct, please, if you can) an email address, and a website. Don’t ever put generic info@XYZ.com on your card unless it’s supplemented by your real email address. After all, the point is for people to contact you, and if you don’t trust them with your information, why should they trust you?

Your Out Of Office Autoresponder.

This is similar to the voicemail greeting. Be friendly, human, and un-corporate as much as you can. Acknowledge that you’re sorry you missed someone, but that you’ll get back to them in a designated timeframe. If you have an alternative contact they can reach out to, give it to them. And thank them for reaching out. Then RESPOND when you say you will. It’s amazing how much good will a fast response can engender.

Your Email Etiquette

1. Spell check.
2. Double check name spelling.
3. Use proper grammar.
4. Please and Thank You.
5. If sending an email to several people, use the BCC field unless you’re ABSOLUTELY sure they’re all ok with sharing their emails with the other recipients.
6. DON’T USE CAPITAL LETTERS.
7. Skip the emoticons :) in professional correspondence.
7. Remember that email is indeed written correspondence, just without paper. Be open and friendly, but mind the rules of polite letter writing, please.
8. Include a signature that contains your name, phone number, email and website. Keep it concise, and dispense with graphics.

Email is the ubiquitous form of communication right now, and it’s often the only interaction a client or customer has with you for some time (or ever). Take care to make your correspondence professional, open, and conversational so it encourages dialogue. If you have a generic email for inquiries (a la info@XYZ.com), be sure you have a designated real person respond within 24 hours. This whole topic can consume an entire post. Maybe it will someday soon.

Marketing is a perpetual state of mind, really, when you're a small business. Every interaction you have with your customers and prospects is a mini marketing experience, and the small things can do a great deal to elevate your image in the eyes of these people. Be enthusiastic, be human, be polite, and be responsive.

What other small things have you noticed that make a big impact on how your clients and customers perceive you?

More Marketing Miscues for Small Biz

A few days ago I counted off a few of the top mistakes I see in small business marketing. I'm rounding out my list here, and as always, welcome your additions and comments!

#5. Not having a clear objective.
This one may seem obvious. But scatter-shot marketing rarely achieves the results that you need or want, and your customers may even be left totally confused.

To atone if you're aimless: Before you launch any marketing initiative, you need to spell out your goal in 10 words or less. If you can't do that, you're aiming too broadly and your risking dilution. Spend time using the 5 Whys method or something to force you to really get at the heart of what you're trying to accomplish and who you're trying to reach. You might even find that you change your approach or come up with a new, clever one when you're super focused.

#4. Censorship
The introduction of so many mechanisms of communication - both personal and professional - has shown us that sometimes the most amazing advocates for a brand are it's customers, or someone among its ranks that would never before have been given leave to speak about the company "officially". News flash: Your "official" position isn't the one anyone is paying attention to, anyway! It's what's being said about you in all the other conversations. And they ARE happening.

To atone if you're doling out gag orders: Stop and listen. There are people speaking among your own ranks that don't necessarily have titles in communications, PR, or marketing. (The origins of Moleskine's Moleskinerie blog have been well documented in lots of great books. Where would they be if they hadn't been listening?). Hear what they're saying and let their passion for their work help you fine tune your messages, and even be a new voice.

#3. Resting on your laurels.
One great campaign does not a brand make. Nor even one great product. You have to be constantly riding the tide and willing to bend, groove, and shake yourself into new and interesting places. Nothing lasts forever. Ever.

To atone if you're in the easy chair: Get up. Go now, get pen and paper and gather your people and get brainstorming about what's next for you. And for some help, get these nifty cool cards from IDEO. They're masters of breaking down barriers and I love these exercises for fostering new ideas. No, they don't pay me. They're just awesome.

#2. Marketing to yourself.
Don't make the mistake of always vetting things inside your own walls. You drink your own Kool-Aid and you've got your own ideas about how your product/service/idea "should" be talked about. But the people interested in your stuff might be speaking a different language altogether, so it's best to be sure that you're not stuck in a rut by getting some outside perspective. The brilliant Brian Clark talks about Narcissistic Marketing here.

How to atone if you're being narcissistic: Talk to your customers first. That doesn't have to mean fancy focus groups and surveys. It can be as simple as getting a bunch of them together for coffee and talking about your newest adventures to get their perspective. They might point out advantages, exciting benefits, and other cool stuff you never thought of.

#1. Forgetting what you're in business for.
I'm going to admit to already making this mistake. I got so wrapped around the axle trying to get my website perfect and my blog posts scheduled and and and...that I forgot to unleash some of the passion that brought me here to begin with to connect with the people that needed me most. It's easy to get mired in the day to day and forget to tap into the creativity, expertise, and even fun that put you in business in the first place.

To atone if you've lost your way: Go back and read your materials. Do they speak to why you ventured out into the world as a small business, and what keeps you working 70 hour weeks and weekends and putting your all into what you do? If they don't, change them. Passion is contagious.

Non-profit organizations aren't the only ones to have missions. We all have one. To help small businesses communicate better. To deliver an amazing vacation experience. To build the home where someone will raise a family. To achieve what no one thought we could.

Marketing isn't a task you do, it's a living, breathing thing. It's your business' reason for being, but wrapped up in lots of pieces. Remember what you're doing and why, and your marketing will follow.

Related articles

• MarketingSherpa Discusses Small Business and Online Marketing - It's About Time [via Zemanta]
• Brand Personality [via Zemanta]
• Social Media- Talk is Cheap for Businesses [via Zemanta]
• For the Future of Marketing, Look to Social Media [via Zemanta]
• Big ideas, smaller audiences, and too many (or the wrong) metrics [via Zemanta]

Five Small Business Marketing Miscues (and how to atone)

I work with several small businesses, and there are enough miscues out there in the marketing world that they warrant a quick rundown. I'm sure these aren't really just for the small guys, but always talk about what you know, right?

#10. Too Much Jargon
Five dollar words aren't usually worth the price. Even in business to business situations, the most elemental philosophy still holds. You're talking to people - humans - and they're the ones making the decisions about whom to work with. Speak to people professionally but humanly, and use words that feel more conversational than those that come out of your graduate school textbooks. Take a breeze through your collateral and see if the text would make sense to someone outside the industry. Necessary technical issues aside, you'll get much more mileage from your conversations with your people if they really believe you're talking to and with them, not over them.

To atone if your'e a Jargoneer: Pick a page (or a paragraph) on your website full of buzzwords and industry jargon. If you can't be an objective judge, have your husband/wife/teenager/friend read it for you. Cross out all the offensive words. See what you're left with, and start there for a rewrite. And go subscribe to Copyblogger and read Brian Clark and the gang's super awesome insights about writing, and writing well.

#9. Viewing Marketing as an Expense
Especially in today's economy (or recession or downturn or icky point, whichever term you prefer), small businesses have a tendency to panic and pull the plug on all things marketing - even brainstorming. I agree with MarketingSherpa today about using this time as an investment in your business and a great time to find those opportunities to really connect with your clients and customers or explore new avenues like online marketing and some of the cool social technologies out there. The market always, I repeat always, comes back around. And when it does, the time you've taken to have great dialogue with your customers will pay off when you're first on their mind.

To atone if you're a Marketing Scrooge: Spend some time with a few simple strategies that won't break the bank but are super valuable. Find the 25 customers that have been with you the longest and take them to lunch. Pick 50 of your best clients and write them a handwritten thank you note for their business.

#8. Mass Anything.
Gone are the days when you can throw 57,212 darts at a board and hopw that one sticks. Yes, ok, if you blast the world with a bunch of form letters, you might get a bite. But how personal is that? Mass email, mass advertising, mass mailings. They're all just a "toss and hope" kind of tool, and you risk alienating the people who are hopeful for personal and exclusive relationships with your company only to be handed a number and a Dear Friend letter. Small business is, and always will be, personal.

To atone if you're a mass blaster: You're much better off taking the money and time from the paper and envelopes and printing and postage and trade mag ads and doing some really great picking apart of your customer base and finding out who they are and what makes them tick. You may find a great deal of interesting information about clients and customers you never knew you had, how they found you, why they love you, what frustrates them. Understanding is the first step. Then you can talk to them, individually, with messages and ideas that are really relevant to them.

#7. Being Deaf
You're the business owner, which means you know exactly what your customers want, right? Are you sure? Are you sending out surveys or collecting comment cards and stuffing them in a drawer somewhere? Do you have a feedback form on your website? Do you insist on having your employees talk to customers about how they found you or what they like or what challenges they're having with your product or service? And then the million dollar question: What are you doing with the information once you have it?

To atone for being deaf: Start listening closely. If you get comment cards, read them, and don't dismiss the negative ones out of hand. Respond to the feedback emails you get - personally - and thank your site visitors for taking the time to share their feedback. And pay attention to the trends. One person lamenting that your return policy is too strict is one thing. A cadre of frustrated people might be pointing out something you need to fix.

#6. Bandwagon Jumping
There are so, so many techniques and technologies out there that it can be supremely overwhelming to decide which you need to use and which you can safely put aside. Some things will never go out of style - personal phone calls, one on one meetings, a personal letter or email to a valued customer. But launching a loyalty program or starting a blog or having an email newsletter can all be incredibly valuable if - and only if - they truly bring something of value to your customers. Small businesses especially need to look closely at what's out there before deciding where your time and money is best spent. Have a look here to see a few of Social Media Today's recommended starting points.

To atone if you're in a rush to hop the next train to techie town: Start by participating and exploring the technologies that you're hearing and reading about so you get a true sense of what they're really doing and who else is participating. Then, spend some time evaluating what your customers use (asking them is a good start) and how they use them. Are they just lurking on Twitter, or do they find it a valuable source of information about resources for their business? Do they have a Facebook page and look for connections from potential business partners? And most important of all, ask them what they love about your website and what they'd like to see on it to help them. It might be a few simple tools, and you're suddenly engaging your customers like never before.

I'll round out my top 10 in another post coming soon!