WHY MAKING FRIENDS ON FACEBOOK MATTERS

 

Last week our guest blogger, Kasey Crabtree, talked about several reasons why B2C businesses should have a Facebook page. While Shamrock is primarily a B2B company, we're also B2C. Actually, every B2B company is a little bit B2C. We're all trying to reach our target customers -- who are -- consumers! We woo them, and, hopefully, begin a long, meaningful relationship with them. Building relationships is the essential reason why Shamrock is on Facebook.

Actually, we're on Facebook for several reasons. First of all, we've got to walk the talk. After all, if we tell our customers to build a Facebook page and make it relevant to their customers, we better have a presence on Facebook, too.  Unlike other marketing tactics (including e-mail marketing, direct mail, and other great tools), Facebook is the best instrument in the marketing tool box to provide immediacy and a personalized response to a question, a remark or a suggestion.

Secondly, Facebook is a place where you can show your stuff so people will "like" you. We've built our Facebook page so that people can get to know us better -- and hopefully, "like" us. How? Well, those who know us well know that we're a big supporter of our community. We enjoy creating, and participating in events that help make our Westlake, Ohio neighborhood a great place to live and work. We plan to use the immediacy of Facebook to invite friends to join us at these events.  And quite soon we'll be starting a promotion Q&A community hosted by Tim Berry, the strategic genius behind our promotional team. Friends will be able to ask Tim a question about their upcoming event, tradeshow or incentive program, and he'll have a qualified answer within a day.

Finally, we're on Facebook because it's good business. It's a more personal way for you to get to know us. How we think, how we work, even how we play. It brings us closer to the people who work and do business with us; but, perhaps they don't know us as well as they might if we were next door neighbors. Facebook allows businesses to not only be more social, but to be "friends" who are there when you need a question answered, or a problem solved.

ONE FINAL THOUGHT...

If you've checked us out on Facebook lately, you've seen that we recently gave our website a complete overhaul (http://www.shamrockcompanies.net/). I'd love your feedback on our new design, and how we present ourselves. Leave your remarks on our Facebook page and I'll quickly respond.

WHAT'S ON YOUR SOCIAL CALENDAR?

Blog Alert! -- Bob has handed this week's post over to a guest. Kasey Crabtree is our own social media expert, as well as one of our finest sales executives, with extra duties as Shamrock's social media specialist. This year Kasey has the honor of being the City Lead Organizer for Cleveland's Twestival 2011, a one-day Twitter Festival that uses social media for social good.  As a social media maven, Kasey has volunteered some serious social time to The Cleveland Clinic, Malachi House, and Westlake Junior Women's Club. Her Twitter name is @KaseyCrabtree, and she has more than 2800 Twitter followers.

This guest post all started when I sent an email to co-workers at Shamrock about a recent Twitter event I attended. I kind of bragged that the event was picked up on WEWS - TV 5 (you can see the TV spot here: http://www.newsnet5.com/dpp/news/local_news/cleveland_metro/twitter-users-gather-for-cleveland-tweetup-event"). Hosted by cleveland.com in conjunction with the Cleveland Indians, this "tweetup event" is basically a big networking/drinking/ eating gathering where everyone shares their Twitter handle and talks about their participation in the world of social media. This is a great way to meet people in person after only interacting with them online.

So now, my default function here is to talk about what's on the horizon for social media marketing. First, the simple stuff. We should all know that each social media platform has a different audience and serves a different purpose. The three most common social media platforms are Facebook (very social but also a great resource for Business-to-Consumer businesses), LinkedIn (strictly business, rather than social), and Twitter (the cocktail party of social media -- a great way to meet people and decide if you want to get to know them better). It's also a good way for businesses to check and see what people are saying about them, and respond in real time.

So, what's new in the social universe? Right now, everyone's talking about Google+. Some are saying it will overtake Facebook. Since this is a post rather than a thesis, I won't over-explain the differences between Google+ and Facebook, except to say that "early adopters" are extolling the virtues of Google+, mainly because it's new, and there are some features, such as setting up circles (of friends, acquaintances, family, etc.), which can make it easier than Facebook to catch up with others. The downside to Google+? So many people have adopted Facebook (more than 750 million), I don't know how many of those people will feel compelled to essentially duplicate their Facebook experience on Google+, which currently has about 18 million users. I'm not among the folks predicting an early demise for Facebook because of Google+. If you'd like to know more about Google+, you can "google" Google+, or check this out:
https://plus.google.com/up/start/?sw=1&type=st.

Finally, if there's just one message I'd like this post to leave you with, it's this: If you are a B2C business, set up a Facebook page. Make it work for you. Post new products and trends. Be a resource for your audience. Become the go-to place for answers relevant to their needs. Drive people from Facebook to your website and your website's blog. Be the resource! Be social (in today's tough market, it's a good way to maintain contact, and build your brand). I have many more ideas. If you'd like to chat, give me a call at 440-250-2243.

WHAT DO STEVE JOBS, SHAMROCK, RAVING FANS AND TECHNOLOGY HAVE IN COMMON?

I have an entrepreneur's admiration for Steve Jobs. Despite setbacks, despite illness, he is still among the most vivid and interesting entrepreneurs of our time.

While Shamrock's been around a lot longer than Job(s) (yeah, the pun's intended), I believe that, if he had taken a slightly different path, Jobs could've worked here as an intern, and been a major part of our cultural growth.

I'll even bet you that Steve, once upon a time, read Raving Fans by Blanchard and Bowles. The book, a brilliantly simple story, illustrates how to define a vision, learn what a customer really wants, institute effective systems, and make Raving Fan Service a constant feature in your everyday contact with customers, are the basis for how Shamrock does business.
When Jobs said, in a 1998 Fortune interview, "Innovation has nothing to do with how many R&D dollars you have. When Apple came up with the Mac, IBM was spending at least 100 times more on R&D. It's not about money. It's about the people you have, how you're led, and how much you get it," he seems to have swallowed Raving Fans, whole. (If you're interested, here are some more outstanding Jobs quotes: http://www.wired.com/gadgets/mac/commentary/cultofmac/2006/03/70512)

Not unlike the above quote from Jobs, our teams live every day with the ideals of Raving Fans in mind. Shamrock utilizes an internal system that allows us to track how we exceed client expectations, identify areas for improvement and address and prevent problems before they impact our customers.

The foundation of Raving Fans is simple: (1) Decide what you want; (2) Discover what the Customer Wants; (3) Deliver, Plus One (i.e., exceed customer expectations). Jobs, too, would be proud of how we developed innovative technology and wedded it to the concept of Raving Fans.

For example, our company is driven by Baan, the third largest ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) system in the world. It's a stable, all-in-one platform of information that replaces the silos of technology (including finance, manufacturing, etc.). Our flagship is a web-based marketing portal that attaches to Baan, which allows customers complete control over their brand, including the capability to initiate print, print on demand, variable printing, as well as order stationary, tweak a promotion or packaging, review warehousing distribution, review items sent out, down to discovering how much was spent on postage -- from one interface system. All this, based on each individual customer's needs, and developed, not by an IT programmer, but with marketing and design expertise.

ONE FINAL THOUGHT...
Shamrock does not use new technology for the sake of just using it. We apply it to help our customers monetize their brand with it – and to make their product or service even better than before.

HEADING TOWARDS A MANAGEMENT STYLE- Part One

A person's management style is driven by time, learning from others and what just feels right.

When I became CEO at Shamrock I had already learned what I thought was my best management style. Then, it was based on books I'd read, people I'd learned from, and people I had talked with. Now, I'm not sure if my management style has a "type", but I thought I'd check Wikipedia (because, if something exists, it will be in Wikipedia).

I searched management styles (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Management_styles) and found the four basics, including Autocratic ("My way, or the highway"), Paternalistic ("Watch how I drive, and learn how I do it"), Democratic ("Business is a two-way street, so we all agree on where the stop signs go"), Laissez-Faire ("You drive your car; I drive mine, and let's hope we arrive in one piece").

Today, I think my management style changes based upon the business situation. But, overall, as a manager, I want what's best for my company, our employees and our customers.  For example, a customer once said to me, "I won't give my business to a company that has an automated receptionist." I know this is a trend that saves companies a lot of time and money, but I listened to this customer, and agreed with her. It just feels right to me that, when someone calls us at Shamrock, they will speak with our Director of First Impressions, a live person who takes an interest in each caller's needs.

I've actually lost count of the number of people who've told me how refreshing it is to get a real, live person on the other end of the telephone when they call Shamrock.

I'm not interested in changing management rules for the sake of change, unless there's a sound reason to do so. For years, when someone made a business call, they got a reassuring voice who helped them get answers to their questions. Why change something that's worked for years?

ONE FINAL THOUGHT...

The longer I manage, the more I believe in a Benevolent Dictator. Far from being feared by staff and customers, a benevolent dictator is driven by success  and passion for what is best for all concerned. It's likely this type of manager is also a person who encourages others to move forward and find their personal success. Let me know what you think makes for a benevolent dictator, and I'll include it in my next post.

MENTOR ME - Part Two

There's an old Mexican proverb that says, "One must learn how to lose before learning how to play." If I hadn't met Neil Bennett, the founder of Shamrock Companies, this proverb might have been nothing more to me than meaningless words. Neil taught me that losing was the first step in learning how to win in the game of my business life: sales.

You may not believe this, but I was a raw, shy kid when I started working at Shamrock. Neil helped me learn and develop a winning sales style. But not before I had racked up my share of losses.

Mainly, I was poor at sales because I was uncomfortable making face-to-face calls with potential customers. I was losing more sales than I was winning -- maybe, less than a .250 batting average in my early years. But, Neil showed me how to learn from my errors, and develop an inner confidence that got better with each success.

Neil said that first, I should learn everything about the products we sell. He taught me to know each product backwards and forwards -- what it does and what it's capable of doing, before selling it to a customer. Neil said, "Once you have personal confidence that you understand the product, you will have the confidence to go out and meet with customers. And once you meet with customers, you have to learn about each customer and his or her and problems and requirements."

Neil was like a benevolent dictator. He made me work hard, but encouraged me along the way. I learned to make sacrifices and promises that were sometimes hard for a shy kid to keep. But, his mentoring paid off. Once I knew everything there was to know about the product, and once I understood the needs of my customers, I was able to find my confidence, and gain the confidence of customers. I became a partner to each customer. Not just a salesman interested in making a sale, but a trusted business associate who would help solve my partner's problem.

ONE FINAL THOUGHT... I learned from Neil that a good salesperson, or a good leader / entrepreneur / business person /spouse (you name it, because in one way or another, we're all "in sales") is someone who understands that negotiation is all about win/win, and that a win/win strategy will create an unbreakable bond between a salesperson and a customer. Even today, I continue to apply Neil's instructions to help me understand and lead Shamrock, our employees, and our customers.

MENTOR ME - Part One

Zig Ziglar (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zig_Ziglar) is one of the best salesmen our world has ever known. He's quoted often, but one of his quotes sticks with me as I go about each business day. Ziglar often said, "Rules are important, but example is the great stimulus."  I learned that observing by example is among the greatest teachers from my earliest mentors. My family.

My grandparents worked hard. My dad's father worked at two demanding jobs. During the day, he was an auto mechanic. In the evening he tended a working farm. My grandmother sold the fruits from the farm at a stand near their home. This grandfather taught me the discipline to work long and hard and enjoy the benefits of your labor.  My dad's parents benefited from their hard work by becoming world travelers throughout their lives. My grandfather was a strict disciplinarian, but a kind teacher.

My mom's dad was a true character. He so believed that work was salvation and reward that, if there were no chores to be done, he would create one. One day he mixed a huge can of roofing nails into his cinder driveway, and promised me a penny for each nail I found. I was 5 or 6 years old at the time, and with hard work, I earned a whopping dollar and 5 cents that day. This grandfather taught me that for every chore there must be a reward, or why bother?

The elders of my family were the first, and in some ways, most important mentors in my life. This  includes my dad. Dad was a very conservative, hard-working, blue collar factory man. He worked at Lincoln Electric. If you know anything about Lincoln Electric, you know the company was founded on hard work and was driven by profit as an incentive to perform. One summer, I worked with dad and got to see him in action on the company's production line. The line was solely dependent on teamwork. Your income was driven by the guy behind you and the guy in front of you. If they performed well,  you were paid well.  Needless to say, they all worked as a team to achieve a higher profit for the company, and for themselves. My dad taught me the importance of teamwork, productivity and managing with fewer, trusted employees for the long haul.  And making sure they're treated with respect and reward for a job done well.

ONE FINAL THOUGHT... A good mentor is generally a good leader. Good leadership starts with being willing to work hard yourself. That's a philosophy I learned from my early mentors, and something I believe I carry with me to Shamrock. No one will be asked to do something I wouldn't do myself. Including washing the dishes after a meeting.

POSITIVE YOUR ATTITUDE: 7 EASY WAYS TO IMPROVE YOUR DAY AT WORK

There have been days when I've wanted to chuck everything, call in sick, and play a slow round of 18 holes with just a flock of fairway birds cheering me on. And I'll admit, sometimes I've given in to this wishful thinking, and it helped me recharge my workday batteries. But, if I did this too often, my work ethic and my personal goals would suffer. Here are a few simple alternatives that may help ease the pain of getting out of bed on a workday morning:

7. Have a ridiculously comfortable desk chair: The nicer your chair, the longer you can stand to sit in it before having to get up because you're antsy. And of course if you're antsy and walking around the office with a general aimlessness, you're not working.

6. Make a To-Do List: Lists are great because the simple act of making the list gives you something to do in those moments of lost energy when you don't actually want to be working,  but, you'll find yourself doing something remotely work related, and you may simply motivate yourself to tackle on task on the list.

5. Set up Google Reader or Technorati: You can tell yourself that you're just taking a brief time out to keep up to date with the latest industry news, but what you're really doing is reading a few industry (non-industry?) blogs. You may actually learn something, and the industry stuff may stick, so you'll be able to rattle off interesting relevant factoids in meetings.

4. Use Supplies as a Self-Motivator: If you're running out of paper clips and staples, get some. If a certain program would increase your productivity, ask for it. It's much easier to do the job when you have everything necessary. Once you get into a position where there's not much else for you to ask for you'll be able to apply all these tools to hone your skills and do a better job.

3. Monetized Incentives: Money is still the primary objective of work. Don't be afraid to ask for a raise every year if you've seriously been rockin' at work. But first, make sure you've really been above par.

2. Respect for the Team: If you have a vested interest in the people around you, that comes with a vested interest in how work goes for them. This act of supporting the team is as contagious as a virus, so it's likely your coworkers will reciprocate by making something easier for you and it will become a productive cycle that makes work more productive and fun for everyone.

ONE LAST THOUGHT:

1. The 100/90 Rule: Give your job 100% effort 90% of the time. You'll do great. You'll feel good. About yourself, your job, and the people you work with. The other 10%? Take a break from the ordinary, and do something extraordinary; something that is really special to you.