Social Media Southern Hospitality Style

SOCIAL MEDIA …SOUTHERN HOSPITALITY STYLE

August 2009

Toby Bloomberg is a widely recognized “expert” on social media marketing and author of one of the most highly respected marketing blogs, Diva Marketing (divamarketingblog.com) launched in 2004. In fact, Toby’s blog was required reading for marketing students at the University of Delaware, Bentley College and the University of Missouri-Columbia.

Her consultancy, Bloomberg Marketing, helps marketers join new media conversations, from blogs to social networking to blogger relations and beyond .. without getting blown-up.

Toby organized the first coast-to-coast AMA (American Marketing Association) Hot Topic series on Blog Marketing in December 2004.

She has been quoted about social media in INC magazine, BusinessWeek, Wall Street Journal, Atlanta Business Chronicle. She is profiled in the books about social media Naked Conversations, Now Is Gone, Twitterville & Digital Handshake. Author of the 1st business book written using Twitter as the major distribution channel and content platform http://bloombergmarketing.blogs.com/smgps/

Toby speaks at conferences and works with organizations such as the Chick-fil-A, AMA, 3M, CDC, Healthcare Blogger Summit, Cox Communications, Mayfield Dairy, M/A/R/C, Blog World Expo, BlogHer, PRSA. She was an adjunct Professor at Goizuetta School of Business at Emory University.

Toby holds a BA from Emerson College in Boston, post graduate studies from Emory University and lives in Atlanta with her YouTube rock star Westie Max. Connect with her @tobydiva

Toby Bloomberg

Successful Enterprise Social Media

Authentic Self + True to Brand/Company Values

Your Authentic Self +

True To Your Brand/Company Values

Relationships Values Culture Change

=

What does social media mean to you?

Front porch conversations

develop relationships/community

Or on an urban stoop

Where everyone knows your name

PeopleOrganize

ResponsiveContact

Ho

Hospitality

Porch

When you visit on the front porch, or on a city stoop, you extend your world from inside your house to outside into your neighborhood.

Question: How do you bring that type of interactionand relationship to the digital world?

How Do You Take The Concept of Creating (Offline) Relationships To The Digital World?

• Finding people with similar interests• Being consistent, authentic, human, conversation• Sharing – always make relationships beneficial for both parties• Ask why they’re not online – bridge gap for them• Invite them to connect• Teach/educate• Share content• Prove value• Find their currency/network• Client/customer Advisory Boards• Customer Service• Provide an incentive: community, answering questions,

involvement, show-off expertise

Social South Participants’ Responses

How Do You Take The Concept of Creating (Offline) Relationships To The Digital World?

• Make it safe for both• Minimize fear• Trust• Provide information they can’t get any other way• Make it more intimate• Permission – contact them the way they want to be

contacted/communicated with• Create benefits• Engaging fans, friends to be a part of Facebook, Twitter (and those

you trust)• Have a plan• Use personal relationships to refer counterparts, friends and family

to your digital world/networks• Build a community: blog, email, Twitter, Facebook

Social South Participants’ Responses

How Do You Take The Concept of Creating (Offline) Relationships To The Digital World?

• Advertise/direct people to your social outlets• Must be a part of where the people are online: leaving comments,

posts, etc.• Gather input • Friend people on social media .. Makes it easier to remember, old

friends and contacts• Translating real life - networking into online networking

Follow up with social networking requests after real life meetingOrganic growth with your new friends’ networks

• Geographic networkingsVery different from digital networking with peersSyncing up to other’s schedules (clients, customers, etc.)

Social South Participants’ Responses

Values impact how

relationships are formed.

Corporate values impact the way relationships are formed in the workplace and may alsoinfluence those in the digital world.

Questions: How do your company and/or brand values impact developing and implementing a social media initiative?

What might turn me off from one person's approach just might draw others in.Christy Jordan.

Your personal style

is what makes you unique.

Eating lobster rolls

Fried green tomatoes or Bubba's jokes may not appeal to everyone.Each of us has a unique personality and our own approach to socialmedia. Different styles appeal to various audiences.

Begin with understanding the corporate culture. Clues:

How do people work together? How employees are valued? How are customers valued?

Understand the brand value.

How do your values align?

Challenge is to take your authentic style from offline to online while maintaining the culture of your organization.

Questions:Is it okay to “vanilla down” yourpersonality to fit the culture of yourcompany? How do you remain true to yourself?

How do you stay true to your authentic self and to your company’s values/culture?

• Believe in what you share• Values begets values

What’s in it for them?What’s in it for me?

• Values, ethics, morals, honesty, transparency, listening• Keep part of yourself to yourself• Remember you’re always on the stage• You have to take your company’s culture to represent them in

the social world.• Be an advocate at all times for your company• React positively to good and bad feedback• Don’t work for dicks• Infect corporate culture with (not your) personal style• “Oatmeal world”

Social South Participants’ Responses

How do you stay true to your authentic self and to your company’s values/culture

• Why would you be with any company that doesn’t fit your values and why would a company hire people who don’t share theirs?

• People don’t ask what corporate values are … people are hungry for authenticity, open, honest.

• Reading off of a script … people can tell and don’t want to talk to a robot

• Zappos and Southwest – they are deliberate in who they hire and who fits their culture versus we need a “warm body”

• Different approach from different personalities

Social South Participants’ Responses

How do you stay true to your authentic self and to your company’s values/culture

• Showing personality while still representing the company• Sharing resources that readers would be interested in• Behind the scenes update for followers and fans – How do

you know when it is inappropriate?• Follow your brand strategy• Your personality should be similar to your company’s public

culture if you are the PR guy• Exhibit your personality as long as it stays in the guidelines of

your brand• Do not compromise your personal values• Get creative with ways to express yourself • Easy to work for a company whose values you agree with• Be flexible without losing your personal ethics

Social South Participants’ Responses

How do you stay true to your authentic self and to your company’s values/culture

• Separate personal opinion from company message• Be objective: professional opinion vs. personal opinion• Find a company that shares your values• Differentiate “friendly” conversation vs. “business”

conversation. Different way to present information• Conversation is same but presentation is different• Find shared values• Exercise restraint• Balance social circumstances• Try understanding context• Consistency/Internal-External

Social South Participants’ Responses

How do you stay true to your authentic self and to your company’s values/culture

Social South Participants’ Responses

Interesting things you can’t talk about: religion, politics

Company/Enterprise You

When you invite people in

there may be unexpected influences

Opening the enterprise door to social mediaimpacts the enterprise from the way communication is handled to customer service to hiring decisions.

Question:How do you prepare an organization forthe impact of social media?

7 Tips For Preparing An Organization for Social Media

1. Create cross functional teams2. Identify impact on specific areas3. Are the right communication processes in place?4. Do employees have the right skills and

experience?5. New job descriptions -> new evaluation criteria

may be needed.6. Where does social media reside? Can it have

mulitple “homes?”7. Who “owns” the customer relation? The answer

may hold some surprises.

Thanks to the great people at Social South who played along with me.

@seankelley, @southernplate, @jasonfalls, @ikepigott, @treypennington, @takinpitchas,@bethharte, @mackcollier, @kdrewien, @resultsrev, @kellyecrane, @navistarlpga, @barbersindy, @billpowell, audreypannell, @charityhisle,@annehearnhuff, @sailingbo, @betsyfgray, @sweetsheets, @anwith1n, @thomascook, @dennispillion

Note: there were many more peoplebut unfortunately I don’t have their @s.

Toss Of A Pink Boa

From Diva Marketing To You!www.divamarketingblog.com@tobydiva [email protected]

Y’ALL COME BACK NOW!