Education Is Flooding the Marketplace and Customers Are Winning

Not long ago, “associations” were the prime purveyors of how-to marketing information. Every industry had multiple trade shows, seminars, and workshops design to help “members” market to their customers. It didn’t matter whether the product was landscaping services or laundry. Every vertical and sub-vertical showed members how to market. No more.

Today, the best educators on the scene are the experts who actually do the marketing themselves: agencies, publishers, SEO experts, website designers, mobile app developers, database pros, research companies, publishers, copywriters, media coaches, PR folks, software developers – everybody is selling directly to the user.

The tools vary, but every channel is both digital and direct-to-the-buyer: blogs, whitepapers, webinars, e-newsletters, podcasts, videos, and apps. This is education when you need and where you want. Mostly, it’s free. That’s what content marketing is all about. And if my email inbox is any proof, many users get 10 to 15 shots per day at FREE “learning.”

It’s a rich time to be in business. But something has still been missing … and that’s the face-to-face, one-on-one, we’re-in-the-same-network dynamic that traditional “association meetings” have provided. Worry not, that, too, is coming for those who want it.

Blogger, writer, and business icon Rohit Bhargava hosted a "likenomics" webinar to celebrate publication of his new book by the same name. Since Likeonomics is a book about why we trust people we like, and how to be more trusted in business, life and work, the virtual event was conducted using a new platform called Shindig. Registrants were encouraged to enable their own webcams so everyone attending the event could see everyone else. Or, as the announcement noted, “Instead of having a one-way boring conversation with powerpoint, the session is fully interactive - with video chatting on both sides.”

Check out shindig.com for any number of fascinating groups to join and chats to embrace. For example, on May 16 at 6:00 p.m., Leslie Poston presents "From dummy to genius, monetizing social metrics,” a session based on her book Social Media Metrics for Dummies.

Cash Mobs: Going from Bad to Good, One Flash Mob at a Time

The term "flash mob" used to have mostly nefarious -- well, okay, criminal -- connotations. But social media changed all that.

Flash Mobs have turned into Cash Mobs .. and that's a good thing.

Unlike groups incited to hit a retailer for an explosion of shoplifting, cash mobs have an altruistic intent: to support local retailers with consumer-supported shopping splurges.

That's the concept behind Cash Mob day organized by Cleveland lawyer Andrew Samtoy. His idea was to get 100 people to gather on March 24, with the goal of spending $20 each at The Nature's Bin, a local organic grocery store. As the happy recipient of Samtoy's spend-a-thon, Cornucopia, Inc., the nonprofit that runs Nature's Bin, couldn't be happier. "The cash mob made us all, once again, realize that we have a great story to tell, which anyone can relate to, and that it is our story that separates us from the competition."

How did Samtoy market the concept? One customer at a time. "We have a very limited marketing budget and [this effort] brought in people who wouldn't have been here. It sounds corny, but we really build a base one customer at a time," he added.

The cash mob concept is growing nationwide. The first on record happened a few months earlier in Buffalo, New York, organized by blogger, Christopher Smith, who calls cash mobs "a sort of reverse Groupon."

Cash mobs are organized via social media sites like Facebook and Twitter: San Diego Cash Mobs, for example, with 798 "likes," and Vermont Cash Mobbers.

Rich with innovation and new chapters on how to organize and motivate people, social media remains a marketing event waiting to happen.

Anxiety: Statistics Say You Probably Have It and It's Probably Growing.

Google the phrase "growing anxiety" and you get 68,200,000 hits. Try Bing and you get 30% more -- that's 99 million references to "growing anxiety."

Interestingly enough, go with "anxiety" alone and the results double in Bing's case and triple in Google search.

From whence commeth this troubling state of mind? Some says it's pervasive and unstoppable, stemming from the very lives we lead -- lives full of stress.

What is anxiety disorder? Many things. Everybody seems to be suffering, say experts, who often have more questions than answers.

Who is suffering? Children, young women, men, dogs, you, me everyone

Workplace anxiety is growing, too. Ann Lemley has written Work Makes Me Nervous, a book about it.

Do we want to get all this anxiety under control? The sufferers do, but I'm not so sure about the those who claim to cure it. Anxiety is big money… colossal money … global money.

Do you have anxiety? There's a test for that. (And yet, does anybody need a 7-minute test to determine whether or not they are anxious? I doubt it).

The solution? Different people offer different cures.

• nature

• gardening in the office

• more sleep

• accupuncture

• drugs

• mind control tactics

• expert advice

• nine natural remedies

Do you have a favorite anxiety calmer? Please share!

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Image: Stuart Miles / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

How "Shaky, Shaky" Could Evolve to "Thought Leadership"

The CMO Council reports that marketers want an agency partner who can "do it all" -- mobile, social, multi-channel, web, search, CRM. Ouch!

Is this demand reasonable? It may not matter, since 58 percent of marketers say they aren't happy -- and disgruntled marketers lead to shaky vendor relationships. It happened suddenly last summer when quite a few big guys switched agencies. United Airlines. Monsanto. S.C. Johnson. Sprint.

Industry observers are taking note of the shake-ups. Some say the shift is away from traditional "advertising" to a marketing platform that emphasizes talking with -- not at -- customers . . . like Facebook, for example.

On Leap Day 2012, Facebook evolved from an advertising to a marketing platform. Central to the switch was Facebook's determination to ramp up engagement with current fans and back-off the push for new fans. Facebook is betting that a deeper focus on "storytelling" can turn content into a word-of-mouth recommendation. They call this switch to storytelling a "sponsored story."

Marketing Prof's February 29 "Marketing Smarts" podcast featuring Mike Levy explains the essential component of this storytelling. Levy says "thought leadership" naturally emerges from the unique experiences, insights, and abilities that set one company apart from another. "The stuff that fascinates you and that you found helpful and the stuff that helps you live your life...there is a population out there that will find the same things fascinating and the same things helpful."

A personal story brought this concept home to me: ifixit.com.

Because I work on a Mac, I discovered this company years ago and fell in love with their dedication to helping me "fix it myself." They posted videos and detailed instructions on how to get inside the Mac to add memory and do other self-maintenance. Ifixit paved this road to repair because the founder believed in it profoundly. A few years ago, they took the concept even bigger, stretching their beliefs to self-repair of anything and everything. Not only is ifixit's philosophy eco-friendly, it's empowering to those of us who are frustrated that simple repairs evoke migraine headaches. I really love ifixit and the people who founded and run it. That's how they've built their business: by being who they are and letting the marketplace "find them" … in short, by exercising "thought leadership."

Erika Napoletano agrees. "Popular is the last thing smart business people should want to be … By pursuing an unpopular path, you are actually narrowing down and refining your notion of the audience with whom you truly want to be popular after all."

Reflection, authenticity, storytelling, outreach: Shaken by the poisonous atmosphere of political advertising, will 2012 move our marketing toward thought leadership? I believe it will.

"Pretty" Social Media Raises the Bar

In late February, Bloomberg reported that some retailers have abandoned Facebook because ROI isn’t there. While some may argue that making money isn’t the purpose of Facebook, the deeper point here may not be the efficacy of Facebook, but the fact that this $6 billion IPO-ster doesn't quite “own the social space.”

Here are two recent developments that suggest consumers are still looking for their perfect socialscape.

Tumblr
Tumblr is a microblogging platform that lets users post content to a short-form site that’s rich with short posts, videos, links, and photos. Nowhere near Facebook proportions (yet), Tumblr may well be the future. The company isn’t new – it launched in April 2007 – but as of February 13, this little powerhouse had some 44.3 million bloggers. Six days later, on February 19, Tumblr had 45.1 million users and more than 17 billion total posts.

Popular with teens and college-age user segments, 50 percent of Tumblr’s visitor base is under the age of 25. Moreover, teenagers age 12-17 are about twice as likely as the average Internet user to visit Tumblr, while 18-24 year olds are nearly 2.5 times as likely. To stay in touch with Generations Y and Z, in October 2011 the Obama campaign launched a Tumblr experiment for 2012. [Note: Obama link format is how you find folks on tumblr; for example, I set up at nancyscott.tumblr.com].

Top celebrities on Tumblr include Val Kilmer, Lady Gaga, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, along with celebrity rip-offs like this paen to Ryan Gosling. Writing for 360 Digital connections, Matt Wurst suggests that Tumblr may be the answer to excessive options marred by short attention spans. “No one wants to sit through 1,000-word blog posts .. because words alone no longer tell the story.” Wurst calls Tumblr “a cross between a blog, a Twitter feed, and a Facebook profile.” Still not convinced? Well, maybe if it’s good enough for the New Yorker, it’s good enough for you. Check out newyorker.tumblr.com.

Pinterest.
Pinterest went live as an invitation-only website in March 2010. By January 2012, the website was a darling of self-expression for some 12 million enthusiasts who can’t wait to share their idea of visual “cool” with the world. In December 2011, Pinterest made#5 in Hitwise’s list of top ten social networks, beating out Linked and Google+.

Pinterest helps users set up any number of “bulletin boards” to which they can “pin” (that is, embed) photo and film urls from all over the Internet, including their own desktop. Does Pintereest have a corporate application? Writing in AmEx Open Forum, Marketing Strategist Ivana Taylor called Pinerest a “big mover” in the social media space that offers a powerful branding opportunity. “Think of Pinterest as a virtual corkboard that says something about who you are and what interests you.”

For consumers who want to know something about “who you are” without an attached sales message, Pinterest has appeal. In addition, Taylor suggests Pinterest for inspiration, exposure, e-commerce and market research. Savvy Blogging suggests that Pinterest is an excellent way to promote a blog. “Add the ‘pin it’ button to every post and page on your site," Savvy says. "This will make it simple and easy for readers to pin your posts.”

Finally, check Hubspot for their free e-book, “How to Use Pinterest for Business.” This report notes that any business that relies on driving a high-volume of website traffic to increase sales should consider joining Pinterest. Early research indiciates that Pinterest is more effective at driving traffic that other social media sites, even Facebook.

Red Alert: Currently, a controversy surrounds whether or not Pinterest activity engages in copyright infringement. The Pinterest Terms of Service – particularly the Limits of Liability section – should be carefully studied and perhaps reviewed by an attorney before you engage in this new social media option. For more information, be sure to read Alyson Shonell’s February 28 posting on BusinessInsider.com.

Welcome to the Reformation of Education and Awe

Are you dumbstruck or numbstruck by programmers -- those "geniuses" down in IT who can do stuff that baffles and bullies? Get over it.

You, too, can code. Moreover you can learn how through practical exercises, for free, online -- and even do it with friends, if you prefer. Codeacademy is your place to learn.

I found out about this very cool enterprise reading the TrendCentral newsletter. I realized that an edulution is afoot.

Learning and training, like everything else, is undergoing an "up-end." That which was arcane, will soon be accessible to the rest of us (if we so choose).

Demystification: Where will it take us?

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Do-It-Yourself Brain Surgery. Yes, You CAN!

Among the many things I didn't know Amazon does, is their forums. Apparently, Amazon is hosting a lot of conversation spots for the diversity of humans (and others) buying their diverse stuff.

Among the forums, I think I've found the best: the forum on do-it-yourself brain surgery. Or as one of the insightful commentators terms it, "cranial correction."

Oh, c'mon. You did look for a writer and a video maker on CraigsList, didn't you? Exactly! So, grab your drill and get crazy!

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p.s. Kudos to T. Johnson who notes, "Might I recommend watching Fox News. It may not fix the problem at hand, but it will suck your brains right out."