I can’t count the times that Exec Directors, CEOs and PR personell come to me and ask me to be their Blogging Butler…

It’s like asking me to attend a party for you, dress impeccably and say all of the right things to the people that matter, serving them delectable morsels of your sugary wisdom, and then, do it over and over again, making sure not say the wrong thing, but being extra careful to come up with on-topic conversational fodder about your business or cause… I’m so sorry, but, I can’t do that for you.  I can’t be a surrogate blogger for your org because it’s unethical and potentially problematic for both of us.

I will help you set the scene at your website to entertain your Social Media guests, I will even tell you how to get the word out about your message (party), dress for the event and invite all of the right people;  however, I will not attend in your stead.  You need to start your Social Media Marketing Campaign, but not through a surrogate.  Whether you are fund raising for a non-profit cause or developing a small business… I WILL NOT be YOU for YOU

If you are not prepared to spend just an hour a week writing in your “digital diary,” what sort of commitment can you expect me to make on your behalf?!?!  I can teach you how to overcome your time management issues, but, the BEST representative of your business endeavor–your story- is YOU.

Dig deep my friendlies… Tell the truth… Exalt passionately about your cause… and then, realize that surrogate Social Media content is not really social at all; it’s a phantom of your true digital identity ~ a ghost of the substance that made your business resonate with you constituency, your clientele.  Although I am flattered that you would pay me for writing such easy things, I am equally averse to being your Blogging Butler!

One point I meant to get across better to the audience about digital collaboration.  I have been coming to the Council meetings now since Summer 2007.  I was a little late getting settled in there that first meeting and to my surprise a microphone got shoved in my face… I had no idea what the heck I was supposed to say!  So I just spoke from the heart; why I was really there:

“I have a dream,” I said awkwardly.  “…to link all of us together as a community through technology.   Whether your organization prefers email or newsletters, newspapers, websites or whatever, I believe the community is stronger when we collaborate to tell our stories.  When it costs $800 for a quarter page ad in the Sunday newspaper, something has got to change.  My dream is to share our emails and newsletters and websites and all of the printed materials we make and calendared events, in one place where we can talk to a truly engaged constituency, to save money and improve results.”

I passed the microphone and I think the group was mildly stunned if not completely confused.  But the intent of that statement rings truer today than it did that late summer day in 2007.

The economy is in the toilet, cash is hard to come by and an already taxed community is facing increasing cost of living expenses.  So why aren’t more orgs collaborating, if not merging?  Why is Sunshine Kids Club competing for resources with Rainbow of Kids Club?  Why aren’t more orgs teaming up and swapping links to each other’s sites, and swapping newsletter announcements for trade in-kind?  Why can’t we share instead of spend?  Why do we re-invent the wheel instead of hopping on the band wagon?

I didn’t say it pointedly, but in my heart of hearts, why haven’t I been able to compell the local community to collaborate digitally?

Hopefully y’all have some thoughts on the matter.  I look forward to hearing them.  Please leave a comment.  Happy New Year!

First off, let me congratulate you on your foray into these untested waters.  It can be overwhelming getting started and yet you persevere.  Fear not my compadres.  The best is yet to come.  For you may not realize it, but you have the chance to be present in THE conversation ~ It all depends on the conversation in which you intend to participate.

Which brings us to the subject of the subject; the “What” to blog about question.  Its easily answered if you step back and think for a minute.  No matter what your interest, you have a very simple task at hand:  conjure-up content that captivates your constituency.  But HOW?!?!?

The plain truth is, there’s relevance all around you.  I am going to list some key items here that will help you or anyone seeking to market their business in Social Media platforms.  Namely, Blogging, as it is popularly known, is really a throw back to the age-old discipline of Journalism.  And there-in lies your key to unlocking the mystery of solving the “What?” question.

You remember from 6th grade the “W’s,” right?  Who, What , When, Where, (How) and Why?  For this post we are focusing on the “What?”

The “What?” is the issue(s) that surround your business development.  Of course, your main objective is to improve sales or increase revenue but there is another layer to the element of Development that strikes at the heart of every business endeavor:  That is, “What are your customers, clients, contributors looking for?”

The answer is Credibility.

That’s right.  Credibility.  Its a function of Trust but it also goes to the heart of the question:  Do I trust this business to solve my problem?  There are many ways of creating that sense of credibility in a potential client.  In this instance, let’s consider how reaching out to the public in general, through a blog-post, might bridge that credibility gap.   More importantly, let’s list What to blog about to attract those potential customers to your business, so they are interested in you, talking about you and referring you to their friends and family.

1. Current Events.  These are happening Locally, State-wide, Nationally, and Globally.  Anytime these current events impact your business to the extent that it enters the public discourse, blog your opinion!  Don’t be shy.  Say what you really feel.  Sometimes being controversial is good for publicity.  SEIZE that opportunity.
2. Regulatory developments.  If the law is changing, or being bandied about for a potential change, jump in and holler.  Post a blog about your professional thoughts and be sure to visit places where the fevered vent themselves.  Leave a link to your site and encourage discussion whenever possible.
3. Be technical.  If you have an area of expertise that requires you to answer the same questions over and over again, start archiving them in a blog.  Soon you will have a rich help wiki, that can afford you better customer support.  An added value to this is that you will naturally expand your customer base outside of your local zone as customers seeking help in remote areas are likely to find your source helpful.  Be sure to have your online sales support ready because here they come!
4. Celebrity.  Leave it to the rich and famous to keep things interesting and, while you are taking note of what they do, comment on what is right or wrong with it all.  Chances are, if you keep your ear to the ground of pop culture, you will have plenty of reasons to pipe-up and proclaim your expert opinion to those that follow.
5. Rant — It’s OK.  Spout-off about a thing that irks you.  Whatever you do, be passionate about your point of view.  Sometimes a little salt in the air makes for good breathing, for all of us.
6. Listen to your constituency.  They are just dying to let you know what they really think.  Don’t shy from constructive criticism.  The best ideas win.  Compete with naysayers EVEN IF they say something negative about your product or service.  The old adage “the customer is always right” is malarkey!  Go ahead and educate your public and maybe you can prevent problems from arising unnecessarily.
7. Listen to others in the blog-o-sphere and cast your opinion.  Don’t have nothin’ nice to say?  SO WHAT?!  Just say.  If you are right, they will love you for it, if you are wrong, you learned a valuable lesson about what your public really thinks.
8. Invite guest speakers that have clout.
9. Incorporate media into the fray.  You should always have a good photo in all of your blogs ~ A picture says a thousand words, right?  But don’t hesitate to post video and/or audio too.   Its a mandatory element of any blog these days to at least have video once in a while.
10. Above ALL else, blog with purpose.  Don’t write crap for the sake of it.   AT ALL TIMES BE GENUINE.  Write from the heart and you can’t fail, just don’t let it all get too stale.

I am writing this post because I attended a Social Networking seminar and the speaker claimed WordPress was “too complicated…”!  Its been sticking in my craw ever since as I deliver WP as a Content Mgmt System to my nonprofit clients as my preferred solution for most.

I agree that WP is sophisticated, but too complicated?  C’mon!  My opinion matters little, so I am going to pose the question to the blogosphere:  IS WordPress too complicated?  If so, WHY!?!?  If not, tell me that too!  Please don’t get distracted by version releases because I believe WP is getting better all of the time.  And you will be preaching to the choir if you take the stance that WP is getting more sophisticated and/or complex because thats what I love about it.  But complicated?  Compare the lay person’s user experience to Drupal or Joomla and I think WP stacks up nicely.  Tell me what you think, please!

1. How can one be sure that implementing a Content Management System will be secure?
2. How can an organization maintain a consistent layout and yet still allow for CMS updates by non-programmers?
3. Who is going to be in-charge of content editing?
4. Who is going to be granted access to the CMS and how will they know if what they are updating is aligned with organizational objectives?
5. Can an outsider hack the CMS and spam subscribers, thereby besmirching if not opening up the organization to legal liability?

There were other more minor concerns, but these were the most critical in my view.

All of these concerns are valid, IF your coming from a prospective of web programming where the “Company Computer Guy” (ala Jimmy Falon) who wears many hats in the org is unaware of the tremendous progress that CMSs like WordPress have made in the last few years.

Also, when the Company Computer Guy is so busy putting out little annoying fires with hardware and software, its easy to get cynical about the natural ability of the general public to handle content updates at a website with style and grace, let alone competence and efficacy.

So here is what I learned:

1. Even the more tech-savvy folks among us need to maintain a level of personal research and professional development in their trade.
2. Pointed questions ought not to be discounted and rather, embraced to arrive at the full fruit of what the proposed idea’s merit may contain
3. Good ideas ultimately cannot be discounted because if they are truly good, there is always a positive upsides that outweighs the negative

8:30AM – 12:30PM

To register call 530.891.1150 ext 23 ($60) or register online

This half-day class provides volunteers, staff, directors and board members at any level of technological savvy to re-invigorate their charitable mission by improving communications, marketing and fundraising efforts with low-cost, easy-to-use Internet software.  Whether its techniques for research or tools for advocacy the modern state of the Internet provides a multitude of resources that improve nonprofit objectives:

• Learn to integrate your organization’s website with marketing efforts
• Gain confidence in using Web 2.0 web sites for fun and fundraising
• Expand your network ~ Using Social Networking sites including:  blogs, Facebook, Youtube and hundreds of other sites that (when used properly) will become a catalyst for collaboration, improved community outreach and expanded charitable service.

For only $60, this 4-hour class, you will learn to bring people together without the expense of massive ad campaigns, expensive events or annoying telemarketing strategies.  Through innovation and exploration, your nonprofit team will experience a renewed invigoration that comes with using these simple and mostly FREE Internet software tools.

Join Donald Ross Peterson on a journey outside the confines of your office where a fantastic landscape of solutions and inspiration awaits in the world of Web 2.0 Internet software technologies.  The course will offer anyone of any experience level a chance to solve the real issues their organizations face; you don’t have to be a tech-geek to enjoy this class.  All are welcome to attend in any area of philanthropic service.  It should be fun and informative ~ Join us!

Here is what to do if you are a small business with a limited advertising budget:

1. Install Google Analytics; or capture website traffic data in your choice of metric tool (C-Panel or Webalizer)
2. Everytime an advertising purchase is made, match that up to a conversion action at your site (Outcomes are best:  Paid for products, or, Sales Leads)
3. For the given time period of your advertising program equate your website viewer’s behavior to “conversions;” i.e., if you spend $1000 on TV ads for a given period and you receive 10 purchasing clients (purchasing $100 of products and/or services each), the ad purchaser can safely quantify the transaction as break even

There may be more to the story.  You might experience a 1:1 dollar for dollar trade-off (ROI) but the awareness of the public to your good or service may be worth the expenditure now that there are potential customers ready to buy.

Also, you may find that website visitations are way up but “conversion” is slow to follow in a difficult economic period.  By quantifying “interested” consumers, you might consider this a benefit to potential for sales; a key indicator that your advertising was successful.  You reached the audience, they were engaged enough to visit your site looking for more information, but they didn’t purchase (“convert”) due to circumstances beyond your control.  Admittedly, this last example is more “quality” than “quantity” but such a result has merit.  It means that an adjustment needs to be made to the advertising ROI calculation–where intent to buy is less than a confirmed purchase…

Such results might mean that you can adjust content at your site to be more persuasive or more user friendly allowing viewers to execute a transaction in the near future.

Here is my formula for improved advertising results:

• Begin looking at your website analytics with a shrewd eye for opportunities
• Match ad dollars spent to actual consumer behavior (quantity and quality)
• Compare and contrast different ad campaigns to evaluate cost effectiveness in any media platform (print, radio, TV, PPC or SEO)

With this approach, most advertising dollars can be assigned a fairly conservative ROI number.  Holding your ad sales person to account for and demonstrate results will allow the market for advertising to “correct” in such a way that allows greater emphasis on results rather than “pie in the sky” promises (for all of us!).  The jig is up!  Advertising sales is no longer a hit or miss proposition!

The reasons are many:

1. People don’t read ~ they scan text ~ but they will sit through a 2-5 minute video with a latte and danish if the content is relevant. On average, that’s about 400-1000 words of content ( @200 words per page) you probably didn’t want to type anyway, so efforts to reach your audience in the video medium are greatly enhanced.
2. Video is persuasive, visceral and when well crafted, a timeless snapshot of your organizational values, service to the community and mission in general. People relate better to other people (on screen) than they do to text.
3. The cost to produce video is low and the general population has the technological infrastructure to view, send and receive these types of files now. Simply buy a miniDV camera for less than $300, and if you are not lucky enough to have a newer Mac, pick up some simple video editing software (which I found for free at wikipedia’s open source software list ) and BAM you can create video for your website in no time. That means for less than a dollar a day, you can create video! Ads in your local newspaper can’t compete on a cost effectiveness basis!
4. Capturing an organizational event like a fundraiser on video and using that to analyze and evaluate it is a great benefit for planning future events as well as archiving previous ones. In the event of staff turnover, your new event planner will no doubt be grateful to see the evolution of your community events to inspire new growth in the program. PLUS, if your production quality is good enough, put the whole thing on a DVD and you have a low cost give-away OR, you can create a new revenue stream by soliciting sponsors to advertise. For orgs like the Special Olympics or March of Dimes, this is a brilliant way for the community to remain involved long after the event and likely a fantastic resource for further event development. (My brain is just bursting with ideas at the possibilities here!)
5. Posting video content on social sites like YouTube, Google Video, MySpace, Facebook and (if it is super short) Flickr, can help bring traffic to your regular website, thus creating inbound links which are a major component of findability in search engines like Google. Wouldn’t it be great if the introduction to your org by a searching citizen was a short and sweet 2 minute video that asked him or her to join your cause? Chances are they are more motivated by a happy smiling person, than they are to a bunch of dense, if not rambling, text.

So, I know what you are thinking: IF I am such a big advocate of video, why am I not shooting this and posting it in a video podcast? The truth is my camera quality and computer are not quite up to speed with the technology yet. Hopefully, one day soon, I will convert to a hybrid version of video AND text where I draft my content in written form, shoot the video and post them both. That’s coming soon, so stay tuned…

In the meantime, if your organization can afford it, give it a try. Its fun, but more importantly, its really the next level of for your organizational message, and as I said, the benefits are too many to foresake.

Blog = (The contraction of) Web + Log

RSS = Really Simple Syndication (some of you might disagree but hey I am being concise here)

Governmental institutions love Acronyms like the Alphabet Agencies set up by FDR under the New Deal

The disciplines of science, from Anthropology to Zoology developed their own taxonomies to better clarify and classify what the heck they are talking about to one another.

So is it at all surprising that here is another domain, the Internet, that involves more new words? Moreover, is it surprising that those inside the technology realm tend to use these new jargon terms to sound smart and exclude others outside our lil-iverse?

My point is we should try to use jargon appropriately and inclusively. For those of us hoping everyone gets across the bridge (over the Gap of Understanding) we are compelled to make it easy for everyone. So I am gonna “borrow” someone’s Internet Wiki and post it here…  The Winner is Wikipedia and the entry “Web 2.0″

Any offerings are warmly invited.