Successful Blog

Archives for December 2008

SOB Business Cafe 12-05-08

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SB Cafe

Welcome to the SOB Cafe

We offer the best in thinking–articles on the business of blogging written by the Successful and Outstanding Bloggers of Successful Blog. Click on the titles to enjoy each selection.

The Specials this Week are

MZinga’s Jim Storer and Colin Browning talk with Liz.
In this podcast, Liz does what she does best, discussing strategies on how to become a better blogger and attract fiercely loyal fans.

The Buzz Bin talks about elegant communication.
It occurs to me that whether it’s in person, using traditional tools, or here in the echo chamber (a.k.a. social media) that great communications remain difficult. Why? Because it’s not the toolset; it’s not the ability to be friendly; and it’s definitely not a personal brand. On the contrary, simplicity matters more …

The Harte of Marketing talks what’s important as we grow.
But how about when the conversation is no longer touched by the person/company that created it? It could be because they just don’t have the time to engage in the conversation or that they just chose not to.

Biz Coach Deb talks about customer service as the “new marketing.”
Ordinarily when a business drops the ball, we’re not really surprised any more, and it appears to be the general sentiment with American consumers, especially in certain industries.

Train for Humanity talks marathons … again!
After approximately twelve weeks of Train for Humanity and with two events down (read about Dan’s race and Mark’s race), we have one more endurance event to go before closing out phase one.

Related ala carte selections include

Crowdspring hopes you’ll lend some support with a vote!

Sit back. Enjoy your read. Nachos and drinks will be right over. Stay as long as you like. No tips required. Comments appreciated.

–ME “Liz” Strauss

What Do You Want to Contribute as Social Media Community Member?

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Building a Community

The irony is that so many of us work alone, yet we build communities. That thought struck me boldly when this week I heard three people say how much they were looking forward to working in an office with people.

That got me thinking that an essential part of knowing how to built a community is understanding what it means to be a community member.

On Monday when we were talking about how social media can help us build a better business, Richard Reeve beautifully wrote this post for me. He described his contribution to a community “barn raising.” He said …

When asked to come and help raise these boards, it means:

    1. I realize that I need to bring along a team of five other folks I can count on to handle our given task. Wood is heavy.

    2. Ask clear questions not only of what our team will do, but how it will fit into the overall scheme of the raising, so as to maximize the remaining sunlight.

    3. While staying focused on the assigned task, realize that things seldom go as planned, so keep a flexible attitude and be willing to lend a hand when and where needed. The overall goal is more important than the parts.

    4. The only result that matters, that every participant can take pride in the resulting structure…

    oh…and:
    5. Bring your own tool belt. Who has fifty hammers?

Who wouldn’t want those values and motives in every community member … ?

When a business, a non-profit, or an organization builds a space for us and makes all of the decisions without us, it’s like moving into a house that doesn’t have any of our stuff. We don’t own it. We’ll always be visitors. If that business, non-profit, or organization lets us contribute as the house goes up, we become a part of the process and feel ownership. Of course we don’t have time to contribute building to every space in which we participate, but when we do, it changes the the way experience that community in profoundly personal way.

What do you want to contribute as a social media community member? What can we expect from community members before we start?

–ME “Liz” Strauss
Work with Liz!!

How to Share the Vision and the Plan with a Business-Building Community

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Goals, Dreams, Visions, and Plans

Raising a barn is a spectacular goal. Getting a community to help makes it easier and harder. It’s important not to confuse goals with dreams.

A goal without a plan is just a wish.
Antoine de Saint-Exupery,
author of The Little Prince, said that.

Char Polanosky explains what that means.

To raise a barn or build a business with a community is a social collaboration. It competes with all of the other wonderful and pressing things in their lives. To capture their time and attention, we have to offer something that is smart, compelling, and easily fit into their lives — irresistible.

Share the Vision and the Plan

When the time comes to build, we’re not going to find a community who magically knows what to build and where to put their skills to work. A critical stage in social leadership is being ready for the community when they’re ready to help.

We have to be able to explain — what we’re building and what roles they might play.

Share the Vision

We gotta know the vision before we can share it. The vision has to be clear from the minute they arrive. We need to be able to articulate

  • what we’re building — what the parts are
    and how the parts fit together to make a whole.
  • how that whole will be useful and who will use it.
  • how that whole with make that real people’s lives
    better, faster, and more meaningful.
  • how you’ll reach the people who will use it.
  • how you know they will.

Seeing the vision gives a community a reason to do the work.

Share the Plan

We gotta have a plan before the work can start. The value of the work also needs to be shiningly apparent. We need to be able to communicate without hesitation a clear business plan that offers:

  • easily understood standards of quality
  • simple budget rules or a stated source of materials
  • a realistic schedule with an end date for their commitment
  • a clear description of job roles for volunteers

Knowing the plan offers security that the work will be time well spent.

The vision and the plan let the community see what we will be creating. The vision and the plan give us the confidence on which a community can plant their trust, energy, thought, and emotion. On the vision and the plan, we align our ideas and ideals — we agree on the work to be done.

Antoine de Saint-Exupery also said,
Your task is not to foresee the future, but to enable it.

Have you ever helped someone build a dream? What did you need before you invested?

–ME “Liz” Strauss
Want to build barn? Work with Liz!!
Image: NASA Image Exchange

The Mic Is On: We’re Talking About How to Get Blog Comments

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It’s Like Open Mic Only Different

The Mic Is On

Here’s how it works.

It’s like any rambling conversation. Don’t try to read it all. Jump in whenever you get here. Just go to the end and start talking. EVERYONE is WELCOME.
The rules are simple — be nice.

There are always first timers and new things to talk about. It’s sort of half “Cheers” part “Friends” and part video game. You don’t know how much fun it is until you try it.

How Do You Get People Talking on Your Blog?

Social media. Even the name means more than one. It’s about conversation. Of course we want people talking on our blogs. How do we get people talking on our blogs?

  • Is it the way we write?
  • Is it the length of the posts?
  • Is it the questions we ask?
  • Is it the topics we choose?
  • What’s the secret? Is there one?

And, whatever else comes up, including THE EVER POPULAR, Basil the code-writing donkey . . . and flamenco dancing (because we always get off topic, anyway.)

Oh, and bring example links.

–ME “Liz” Strauss
image: sxc.hu
Related article
What is Tuesday Open Comment Night?

How Do You Get a Community to Help Build Your Business?

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Why Would Social Media Folks Help?

Raising a barn needs a leader, a plan, and a community of people with skills.

The beauty of enlisting a social media community from the start is that communities only have time for ideas that will work.

When we reach out — talk to people — about our compelling idea, the social media community responds. They let us know what works for them and what doesn’t.

If the idea we have to offer is truly compelling, the folks we’ve formed relationships with can offer us help more than we’d ever imagine. Why? Social media folks participate for many reasons. Here are just a few.

How does that happen?

How do we get a community to be inspired, to want to work with us, to want the experience our project has to offer, to want to teach what they know, to want to save us from the mistakes they’ve suffered, and to want to help us succeed?

Bring a plan their minds can buy into. Bring a dream their hearts can hold. Bring a reason each one of them will make a particular difference.

Be a leader who’s a learner.

Reach out with head, heart, all the meaning behind what you’re building.
Don’t be afraid to them how and why their part is important to the whole.

Bricks and mortar don’t make a business. Code and design only hold attention for so long. People make a business happen.

We’ve got all the tools. We’ve had ’em. Can you see how to bring the people in we from the start?

–ME “Liz” Strauss
Want to build barn? Work with Liz!!
Image: Haussler Cluster Raising in CA