we will never forget

I take this time out from all the business talk, the tech talk, the healthcare talk, the reality shows, and all the social media talk to reflect on a day that I will never forget. I remember this day of infamy that will haunt me for the rest of my life. It was a disaster on a scale that was un-imaginable to any 21 year old at the time.

I had just moved into my new place, started working as a customer service rep at a local skin care manufacturing company in Carlsbad, and going to Mira Costa College full time. Things couldn’t have been going better for me.

I woke up that morning around 6:30am i think to my daily alarm which is the news station on my TV (though now I usually check twitter first) to a picture of a burning building. My first thought was “am i watching a movie clip or something?” I was still trying to wake up all the way (I’m not much of a morning person i must admit) so it takes me a few minutes to get myself going and become alert. After a couple of minutes, i started switching to some of the other local news stations and the same picture was on the screen. This cant be real! I turned the volume up to listen attentively to the reporters as they start to repeat timelines of incidents unfolding, the plane that hit the first building, and on-going concerns of planes being un-responsive. After a couple more minutes into the events, i see right in front of my eyes the second plane collide into the other tower. At this point, my heart has sunk to the floor. I am absolutely beside myself. I call my mom immediately to express my shock and emotional distress. I then call into work and they say everyone has the day off and should be spending time with their family. I did just that.

It was one of the most depressing days our country has ever experienced, yet the events that followed would be ones that came to a shock to me as well. The days ahead caused Americans to act very differently. I have never experienced strangers holding doors for other people going in and out of convenient stores. I had never seen so many people just going out of their way to be nice or strike up a conversation with a stranger. It was as if our country united around this tragic event and caused people to appreciate their lives more, have a certain respect for others, and really come together as Americans. This collectiveness lasted quite a while, but as we know, people heal over time and forget over time. I guess in a sense I have never forgotten that tragic day and still try to look through all of the pain and suffering in the world, the hurt, the bad economic times, the depressing news, and try to be optimistic in our future. I must say that after getting onto Twitter, it really gave me back that sense of collectiveness on a global scale, forming relationships with strangers on common interests, networking, helping others, and it seems to have given people their own personal communication tool. It allows others to provide their opinion of the news, discuss topics openly and thoughtfully, and even add some positive and inspirational news for once.

A country can only take so much negativity before it really starts getting to people and something needed to be done. I say Twitter in a sense is bringing people together again not amidst a tragedy, but one of the worst economic crisis’s we have seen in a very long time. We will prevail through these tough times, just as we did as Americans after September 11th 2001. This is my reflection.

Please reflect on what you were doing on September 11th 2001 I am very interested in hearing others stories.

Also, if you’d like to use the hashtag on twitter #Reflection i will put together a series of posts of other American’s reflecting on the day. I look forward to your reflections
Justin

Many business and marketing people keep talking about social media and social marketing and how businesses can get into this new online marketplace, but I have some actual non-theory lessons from ACTUAL consulting on about 12 client projects we have worked on over the last seven months.

Social Networking for business is hard stuff. You have to be both technical, psychological, sociological, business savvy, marketing savvy, sales savvy, a good communicator, good writer,…… The list goes on. 1 full time employee or college intern handling social media marketing will not cut it I guarantee it.

My TEAM (together everyone achieves more) of Business consultants and I have been doing workshops, tweet ups in Carlsbad, tele-seminars, conference calls, coaching, training, blogging, strategy building, assessments, webinars, and consulting on social media and social networking for business for the last 7 months. (I have been doing various business and technical consulting for about 10 years)

I remember my first blog post on how i predicted that social media and social networking will save small business and STILL stand by that prediction and remember it like it was yesterday. I also remember each and every client experience, where WE went wrong, and what changes we made in our “process” to improve. I must say right off the bat that I could NOT be in this “Social CEO” position with out my twitter network. I learned more on twitter in 2 months from just listening, paying it forward, and helping others achieve what information, resources, or knowledge they cared about which in return they taught me what I needed to know to help formulate Social Networking San Diego. Consider it a PHD in internet marketing from twitter for FREE just 20 days a month on-line till 4am investing my time (video proof here).

I laugh at the colleges now trying to charge thousands of dollars for certificate programs for social media marketing and internet marketing (even Masters Degrees) when all people would have to do is just apply themselves a little bit, spend some time doing internet research, and start LISTENING! Also, we are in a HUGE recession, and colleges are in fact a BUSINESS too trying to stay on the trends and make MORE money off students. But I digress…..

Here are some tips about what to be careful of in the trenches of social media and social networking consulting for businesses:

1. ROI– If they ask you “what will be my ROI”, ask them, “what is your CURRENT ROI on marketing/ advertising?” Tell them to give you a fraction of that (at least 10%) show them some results in the first quarter or six months, and then ask them for a larger budget (if you can perform)

2. Don’t under charge– Your time is valuable, and just because they might not see the REAL value in social media and social networking for business development purposes and lead generation, you still want to attract the clients who have a “perceived value” in social media. This can be hard, but where are you looking??? Our first couple accounts we did FULL SERVICE for less than 1000$/ month AND worked on these accounts probably 80 hours per month. Talk about hustling! And you know what, they left because they didn’t want to “spend the time” in social media because they were too impatient and wanted overnight success. And they felt the training was something an intern could do. Do you really want an intern handling your corporate message and controlling your brand perception online???? Let me stress to you that being in the trenches now for 7 months, this will require your client to commit to 9 months to 1 year to make it worth your time. That is if you provide a comprehensive and holistic approach to social media and social networking for business. This is VERY time consuming and a lot of work I assure you but the BEST practices approach for building a lasting community around your client’s products and services.

3. DON’T DO PAY BY PERFORMANCE– Do you like working for free? I sure as hell don’t, and we tried that and learned NOT to do it again! On a few clients, we agreed to pay by performance model and you know what happen, we worked our A$$ off, did the research, the set-up, got them leads, and they still weren’t happy. (we don’t work for the company, we get you leads, its up to you to close your deals, we are not your sales team) I would advise AGAINST bartering as well, tried that too 🙂

4. Social Media and Social Networking is not for EVERY client– Every business is different so be sure you analyze the prospect in depth BEFORE taking them on as a client. If they have a 4 year old website, why would we want to drive traffic to it? So we recommended a new website FIRST, then we will drive the traffic. (they thought they could get a good site done for 500$ so I said be my guest, then they came back for a full word press site from us)

5. Make your deliverables clear– Make sure you specify where the hours will be allocated for the project so the client is clear about what THEY will bring to the table, and what YOU will bring. We ask our clients to commit to X amount of training per month, X amount of content submissions, articles, etc.

I hope this helps clarify what life has been like for the non-theory preaching social media enthusiasts (I used to be one too, and still am a little, but businesses need help so we are rolling up our sleeves and helping what businesses we can, and who have the budget of course)

Any thoughts on your experiences? I know we have many readers who are in this industry, so feel free to leave some insight or feedback on your experiences in the trenches of social media consulting,
Thanks
JustinRFrench
CEO Social Networking San Diego
Have any questions- hit me up on the G-Voice 760 – 576 – GOLF oh yeah!!

P.S. Get a copy of “Social Media Survival Guide for Business” The FAST TRACK
$9.95 Click Here to order: (if you have time to read it) But this will be a helpful guide for you and your business as you journey into Social Media and Social Networking for Business. Enjoy