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Open Mic 7pm Chgo Time: Let’s Talk About Pirates!

Filed Under Comments, SOB Business, Successful Blog | 4 Comments

Join Us Tonight

Captain Hook, Bluebeard, Swashbucklers, and the rest.

Playing pirates is always my favorite Tuesday Night Open Comments.
Tonight it’s about playing pirates like we did when we were kids. We might talk about pirate ships, jolly roger, pirate treasure, Captain Hook… you get the idea, and whatever else comes up, even flamenco dancing.

Oh, and bring links to share — about pirates.

The rules are simple — be nice.

Do be nice. :)

–ME “Liz” Strauss

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What is Tuesday Open Comment Night?
blog_promotion, discussion, letting_off_steam, living-social-media, Open_Comment_Night

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Confession: My Big Brother Used Permission Marketing to Get Me to Do His Chores

Filed Under Marketing, Successful Blog | 6 Comments

I Was a Little Kid

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I used to say that my big brother — he’s 8.5 years older — should have been an entertainer. He was particularly adept at entertaining me. Before I could walk, he had me trained to look (and then answer) to his whistle. Yeah, he had my attention from the second he saw me.

Now I realize he was a natural-born permission marketer. He got buy in like this. Notice the upsell at the end.

My big brother: [He’d whistle. I come running from another room. He’d make me laugh with something he’d say. Then he’d give the call to action — it might be an errand or one of his chores.] I’d sure like a glass of milk but I don’t want to miss this movie on TV. Tell you what. I’ll trade you a toy in my junk drawer, if you’ll get it for me. Are you up for that? . . . unless you’re too busy.

I was a kid. How busy could I be? [My brother’s infamous junk drawer had every trinket, dead pen, and carnival toy that he’d ever collected.]

Me: Do I get to look go look first?

My big brother: You’re a smart dealer. Sure kid, have at it. Let me know, if you see something you want.

Something?!! From his broken chop sticks to his scratched-up, plastic magnifying glass, that drawer was a treasure chest of the unforeseen and unexpressed needs of the small child I was. Inevitably, I’d choose something I couldn’t live without.

My big brother: Whoa, kid! Where’d you find that?!! That doesn’t belong in my junk drawer . . . Oh well, fair is fair. Get me a glass of milk, and I’ll part with that valuable object. Still, I’d hurry if I were you, because I’ll change my mind if I think about parting with what you’ve got there.

He’d have his milk in seconds. Then, I’d disappear to my room with my prize.

Minutes later, my brother would whistle again.

My big brother: How’s my favorite thing?

Me: [glowing, grinning with achievement] It’s my favorite thing now.

My big brother: This milk sure would taste good with some of mom’s cookies. . . .

By the time I was 10, I had an outstanding junk drawer of my own.

My big brother had my opt-in with the whistle and got my permission at every step. The chores and prizes got larger as I grew up, but he never asked for too much. I didn’t opt-out until I was nearly 12.

That whistle still makes me look.

Have you ever known a natural-born permission marketer?

Disclaimer: As in all stories about my brothers, every word of this story is true except for the ones I made up.
–ME “Liz” Strauss
Work with Liz!!
Get your best voice in the conversation.

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Listening to Crowds — Gathering Wisdom One at a Time

Filed Under Marketing, Successful Blog | 2 Comments

The Wisdom of Crowds

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It’s only human nature to want to name things. Names are the first step to a definition. A definition is the first step to knowledge. Knowledge leads to understanding.

Yet the names we choose can limit our thinking as much as they shape it.

Writers, Readers, Teachers, Sales Reps, Users, Customers, Marketer, Bloggers, Vendors, Workers, Managers, Employees . . .

All of those words refer to people. Individuals grouped together as a crowd.

The wisdom crowds is the aggregate of independent decisions by the individuals who form the crowds. To get the whole story when we listen, we need to the group, but we also need to listen one at a time.

Gathering Wisdom One at a Time

To get the rich context and detail, we have to listen to individuals talking — not a whole group shouting. Every person has a different story. In those stories are the reasons people care; why tell their friends about us or move on by. Individual views and experiences put the heart in the data.

People share wisdom one at time.

To listen actively, picture the person and the experience, and consider questions like these . . .

  • What’s the message of this person’s story?
  • What’s surprising about what this person is saying?
  • In what ways, is this person like me? In what ways, is this person unique?
  • What might this person want or need that I never expected?
  • What might this person want or need that everyone wants?
  • What can I learn from this person’s story that I didn’t know or always knew but forgot?

You get the idea. If we hear — really hear — individual stories, we can sort to find the universal truths we share.

Would you tell me a listening story that you’re thinking of right now?

–ME “Liz” Strauss
Work with Liz!!
Buy the ebook. Be sure the message you send is the one received.

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Social Networking: How to Keep True Direction Down Trails of Connections

Filed Under Motivation/Inspiration, Successful Blog | 15 Comments

Passion, Connections, and Directions

The Living Web

When I was a kid, I wasn’t looking for my direction. No one said to follow my passion. I was a kid. I was on a quest to do extraordinary stuff.

When I was a kid, I wasn’t bombarded with information from every dimension. My social circle was small. The proportions between my size and that circle have changed since then. My life is replete with relationships and complex connections. Now I have more social network passwords than the number of friends I had when I was kid.

Conversations bifurcate, trifurcate, and splinter off in bit and pieces. They move like a soccer ball on this field where I hang out. I’m following echoes down weblike trails of plurkshops and twebinars to hear what my friends are saying now.

Underneath all that, the kid I was still has dreams, still wants to do extraordinary stuff. Here’s my recipe for getting back to what I’m about.

  • I turn it off.

In a minute or so, I remember my quest.

Passion needs direction, or it gets lost.

How do you hold onto your true direction?

–ME “Liz” Strauss
Work with Liz!!
Buy the ebook and find out the secret.

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Bloggy Question 84: Social Networking and Reputation — What Should Doostang Do?

Filed Under Bloggy Questions, Successful Blog | 8 Comments

Reputation Management

For those who come looking for a short, thoughtful read, a blogging life discussion, or a way to gradually ease back into the week. I offer this bloggy life question. . . .

It’s a real-life question tonight. . . .

In March, I wrote a post in response to a bad experience at an “elite” social networking site. I’ll wait while you check it out. . . .

3 Reasons I’m Sorry I Joined Doostang . . .

In a day or so, two things happened.

  1. My post made the first page of Google for the keyword doostang.

  2. My LinkedIn account showed that someone from Doostang had visited my profile. No one attempted to contact me.

Mid-May that post started to draw 5% to 10% of my daily search traffic. As you can see by the comments there, it can’t be helping Doostang’s elite self-defined profile as social network for top tier talent.

This week, I saw traffic from The New York Times article by Andrew Ross Sorkin, called Social Networking on Wall Street. The comments were less than favorable. Someone named John had left a link to my original article there.

I’ll wait while you take a look.

Doostang just launched a new look targeted at college elite.

If Doostang asked for your advice, what would you tell them to do?

–ME “Liz” Strauss
Work with Liz!!

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Bloggy Question 81: A Nice Gesture
Bloggy Question 80: Internet Business Isn’t Credible?
Bloggy Question 79: What’s a Social Media Expert?
Bloggy Question 78: Like an Intriguing Blog Post Headline

The Insider’s Guide: Start a Conversation on Your Blog!

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