October 2009 Archives

The team was chatting about the fact that Leeds, founded in 1906, is one of the oldest business schools in the country. That's over 100 years old, which in this digital age might as well be a million. I'm sure back then the only tweets heard were birds up in the trees, and poking your neighbor, unlike today's activity on Facebook, might get you a swift kick in the shin. But "back then" people still communicated, and while slower and more localized, it had many of the same functions/purposes as our technology today. I can imagine that:

• They made announcements at large public meetings or on street corners (like blogging and twitter in that you send it out to whomever to read/hear, and other people "re-tweeted" in the same way)
• They had conversations one on one (email)
• They stood on the street with sandwich board signs around their necks (blast email)
• And, they always looked for new ways to do all these things which leads us to today and all the things we do.

My point? With all the wonderful innovation, the twittery, bloggery, shiny technology, don't lose sight of the basic human and institutional needs: Tell compelling stories, engage your constituents and make them nod in agreement, comment on a blog post, write an email, or call the school to get more involved.

What do you think, was communication really so different today than it was 100 years ago?

A year ago, there is no way we could have filled the room with faculty interested in knowing more about social media. Fast forward to today and every seat in our conference room was filled with faculty who want to know just why they should care.  It's like Malcom Gladwell's "The Tipping Point", suddenly we have their attention.

This was a basic Social Media 101 presented by Mitchell Ashley who provided a window on the world of SM. First he had to dispel the myth that it's just a youth movement and only their students are "doing it."

Next he had to distill the broad swath of online opportunities into a short two hours. He began with the strategy of a blog. It was very quiet around the room. We couldn't tell if any of them were getting it. There were a lot of questions like"why would I and why should I and who is actually going to read all those millions of blogs and which ones are best to read? Why should I blog when I can just email my students?" To these  questions Mitchell did stress that Social Media is a contact sport and that you have to do it to understand it. And, he reitirated the interactive nature of these mediums and that these days you must communicate with people the way they want to be engaged whether that's blogs, Twitter or something else. Blogs and blog strategy are pretty straightforward and not so hard to comprehend, but then we got to Twitter.  That presentation and reaction to it are a whole 'nother post.

On Sept. 25, 2009, we hosted the Boulder area Tweetup at the Leeds School. Here are some photos from the event posted on our Facebook Fan Page. (if you're not a fan, become one now! do it!)

Now .... when we agreed to host, I heard this a lot:

Q: What's a "tweetup"? 

A: Twitter+meetup = tweetup

 

Really. It's that simple. But a lot of people asked what exactly a tweetup was all about, and that answer didn't satisfy them. I wondered if people were overthinking it. Now prior to playing host, I'd only been to three of the previous Boulder area ones, which had started earlier this summer out of desire to meet locales who are also on Twitter and that you may or may not know IRL (in real life) or perhaps would like to know IRL.

And what I understood it to be was a simple gathering of local people who dig social media. The Boulder tweetups have had 1. a host, typically a local business which was either also the event locale 2. freebies or discounts. For example, July host @zoloboulder had an array of free and delish appetizers set out for people; there was also a bar. August sponsor @happynoodle gave the tweetup group, who met at a local park, some free food for guests to try out AND tweeps who RT'd the event info were eligible to get a free bag with their next order of takeout. Original host @thecupboulder offered at the June event $1.40 drinks for tweeps (get it?) and then brought out free slices of delish lime cake for us to devour.

Just tweeps hanging out. It was fun and we made connections which deepened the Twitter conversations afterwards.

Now the Denver tweetups, I've heard and read, can draw hundreds of people and, hence, are using this for a good cause (ie social media for social good, #rabbleforacause to name a few examples of tweeps getting together for a good time and doing something to raise awareness and funds for a wortwhile cause). Bravo! Perhaps one day ...  

But our first attempt at a tweetup went smoothly, thanks to the support and guidance of my more experienced event-planning cohorts. Thank you! We had free @MadGreens salads and wraps (the founder is an alum which is something we wanted to highlight), free beverages and free T-shirts. We even had a giveaway (Leeds swag - a coffee tumbler and flash drive, two geeky things a tweep is sure to love). More than 20 people came, a good mix of Leeds School students and staff new to Twitter, as well as seasoned tweeps from Boulder.

I had a few nonTwitter folks though, who saw our signs for the tweetup in the building and our free t-shirts, stop by the office or the event wanting to know 1. no really, what is a tweetup all about? 2. if they could get a t-shirt (they're cool, right?) 3. what's a tweet? what's Twitter?

oh my gosh... they have a lot to learn.

But one swag-seeking person also suggested that a tweetup could be better used to entice people to join our social media platforms, ie raise awareness of our brand online and not just be an exclusive event for those of us already on Twitter, Facebook, etc. That made me stop and think. Is a tweetup just for the tweeps, the people who already get it? Or is a tweetup a chance to educate people about what they're missing out on (our news, programs, people, and more)? Are we missing out by missing them?

oh my gosh ... I have a lot to learn.  

One of the concerns I hear from newbies to social media, especially by organizations who would like to try a form of it in a professional sense, is that they worry about being too transparent, too out there and available, too open. I imagine them creating an online venue for themselves and then, here's a metaphor, someone comes along and sucker punches them in the gut before they know what happens, much like the new kid at school who has a run-in with the bully on the playground.

But in social media there is nothing wrong with being available, being open to the masses. However, how you manage that transparency is a key to your success in social media.

One of the wisest things I've heard about social media, and ever since I've tried to keep in mind, was uttered by Josuha-Michele Ross in a webinar the Alum/Comm staff sat in on a few months ago: Social media follows social rules. He then used the example of someone looking for a new job: that person would be considered rude and out of line if he or she went up to someone at a party unbeknownst to them, handed out a business card, and then asked the VIP person for any job leads. They have no relationship, no investment in each other. That wouldn't fly in real life, yet people commit this kind of taboo and more online via social media.

Buy my product.

Read my book/blog/review.

Vote for me.

What gives? Now me, I'm a manners person. *Love* manners: please, thank you, how are you?, have a nice day, etc. Even in social media. Perhaps even more so in social media. Why? Because there's a chance that I've never met you in real life (IRL for those on Twitter), and you've never met me. I'd like you to get the impression that I'm polite and ready to help. I am not a bot. And I remember those who've reach out to our Leeds School social media accounts seeking information in a timely fashion or have input on something we've done. I notice which ones were polite and even enthusiastic and appreciative and which ones saw us only as a means to an end. You want your social media reputation to match your in-real-life one as well, right?

Consider this: we all know those pet peeves personalities - the people who only contact you when they need something, the people who don't respect your time or process, the people who only show up for the free stuff and then take more than is acceptable, the people who don't give credit when credit is due, the people who give out TMI, the people who never are wrong or don't need to apologize, etc etc. In real life, it's a no brainer: Don't be That Guy. Or That Gal. Same philosophy applies to social media, and your online reputation will spread because of the good you do and not for the "good lord, can you believe this person?" #justsayin 

So *thanks* for listening. I'm happy you stopped by.

For a good laugh, check out this YouTube video  called "Facebook Manners and You." Granted it's about a 1940s spoof on the quirks of personal relationships on Facebook, but it serves as a satirical warning to your behavior online. Something to think about the next time you get on your computing machine and your choice of electric friendship generator.     

It's been a bad two weeks. Things seem to be crumbling around me: sink cracks, mattress dies, flat tire and.....the Dean is leaving. The basics I can handle. Sinks can be ordered, mattresses can be acquired, tires patched. Replacing a dean? Not so much. One does not just snap ones fingers and presto, dean delivered! Things move slowly in academia and perhaps that is a good pace for our research focused academic colleagues. The aumni and communications work that I do benefits from having a leader at the helm. Historically, dean searches do take a bit of time. So, I predict that by the time I have a new dean, my tire will be repaired, sink installed and mattress replaced. I think it is a fairly safe bet.

 

Reading the WideFoc.us post on Content and Conversation: The Only Things That Matter, I am again reminded how ephemeral the technology we use to communicate with each other, and how important and lasting the actual conversation.

Whether it's Twitter, blogs, Facebook, whatever, WideFoc.us says,

"You should use social media tools to propagate your content and to engage your audience(s) in meaningful interactions--conversations that you start, but also ones already occurring that are relevant to you. It really is that simple."

Simple, yes. But that kind of simple is real work. So we continue to ferret out, understand, and hone our stories. Our care and attention in this area is what sets us apart and gives value to our constituents. Not how many "friends" or "followers" we have.

So we work hard on finding and telling the interesting, compelling, and sometime flat-out jaw-dropping stories of the people and events shaping lives at the Leeds school.

Earlier this month I posted a blog about networking, and the challenges I faced as a newbie to the game, and how my ideas of networking were shaped through personal experience and insight from others.

Networking is no longer just a gathering of individuals looking for 'whatever', it's everywhere people, and it's coming after you! Networking has stepped up its game, and changed the face of what we perceive it as.Networking has moved into the technical world, and suddenly you've moved from networking on the occasion to networking 24/7.Be afraid, be very afraid!One woman uses her knowledge and experience to go at it head on in a technical sort of way.

For the past month I have been working with Carol Ross of Carol Ross & Associates, LLC to put together a program, offered to universities and people around the country, to learn how to network the natural way!She calls it the Networking Naturally Program: Less Stress, More Joy, Better Results.Well, I'm no networking guru, and I won't ever claim to be, but Carol is a trained professional and she's taught me a lot!She's seen it all (good and bad) and knows firsthand how to take networking by the reins and train it, not let it train you.Carol created a sheet outlining some of the networking mistakes we all know we're guilty of!Warning: May Cause Slight Embarrassment!

When Carol pitched her program to us here in the Alumni Relations/Communications Office, it became a no brainer that we would participate in the October 2009 delivery of Networking Naturally.Phrases like 'opportunities in a down economy,' 'create connections,' 'thrive in hard times' are those that had us sold!Keep an eye out for registration opening up the week of October 5!

All this Networking Naturally Program talk got us excited and we were well on our way to offering it to our alumni, current MBAs and seniors!In this networking program gone technical, we offer three teleseminars geared to get better results from networking in a way that is more natural to you.C'mon people by the end of the program we want to hear you say "I love networking and I'm good at it!" With a program like Networking Naturally and a lil de-stressing I think we'll have you saying that in no time...hopefully.Participants are also given the opportunity to network within the community site for further engagement and practice.Here, listen to Carol tell YOU, yes YOU, why her program guarantees results!

By defacing networking from face to face interaction to letting a username do all the talking, we are more inclined and more likely to engage in network-like conversations with others via social channels.It is strange how taking the face out of the game changes the entire game plan.But, if we are more willing to 'network' in ways which are more comfortable to us then why not just do it.When there are no set rules to networking just guidelines to follow, then we're not doing anything wrong. Because let's face it people, networking is changing, and you don't have to be physically present to do it.Sites like Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, MySpace are telling us it's happening now.So if networking is a changing, then we should too!