Social Media DIY Workshop » Smart Examples

Get A Dog Snack With A Check-In

Charlene Kingston — Wed, 30 Mar 2011 09:07:51 +0000

Often, seeing what big brands are doing on social media can inspire your business to try new things. While most businesses are not able to create a social media event like GranataPet, use this idea to brainstorm creative ways your business can think outside the box and create a memorable social media event.

Before You Start: You have a business Twitter account.
Learning level: 4 | Creating Solutions
Article Last Updated: Sunday, December 4, 2011

Brilliant Foursquare Check-In Event

German pet food manufacturer, GranataPet, has a clever new promotion that uses social media. They created a street-level billboard that offers a sample of their dog food each time someone checks in on Foursquare at the billboard. It’s an effective way to let pet owners sample their food, and it has increased the demand for this brand in local pet food stores.

Here’s a 2 minute video that explains the project.

The check-in also posts on Facebook, so people are sharing their experience with the Check In! Snack Out! billboard with their friends.

Your business may not be able to create a sampling billboard, but have you thought about ways to reward people for checking in at your business on any of the check-in services?

Your turn: What innovative social media have you seen? Have you borrowed an innovative idea and used it for your business? Share your experience here.

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Columbus Innovates With Social Media

Charlene Kingston — Fri, 18 Mar 2011 08:24:56 +0000

Social media can help local governments connect with their constituents and provide valuable services. Check out this example of how the City of Columbus, Ohio is using social media. Could your business borrow this idea to provide a new level of service?

Before You Start: You have a business Twitter account.
Learning level: 4 | Creating Solutions
Article Last Updated: Sunday, December 4, 2011

City Government Finds A Smart Use For Facebook & Twitter

City governments fight a never-ending battle to keep up with street repairs. Now, the City of Columbus (Ohio) has figured out a smart way to let its citizens report potholes: social media.

That’s right. The City has launched a new Facebook page to collect reports of potholes from the public. It also launched a Twitter account for the same purpose.

The City still allows citizens to report potholes the old-fashioned way, by telephone and through a form on their website.

For each submission, the City staff verifies the pothole and submits a service request. They post the service request number on the social media site. People can check on the status of pothole repair requests at the City’s 311 Service Center online.

A quick review of the pothole reports shows that people are reporting potholes outside of the city limits. For those, the staff responds by telling them which government should receive their report.

Borrow This Idea

If your business, non-profit, or government agency needs to collect input, you can borrow and adapt this idea for yourself. All you need is a basic Facebook business (official) page, a Twitter account, and someone to monitor them (perhaps once an hour) to collect input and post replies. It couldn’t be easier. And it would be much faster than taking the same information over the phone.

Your turn: Is your city doing something innovative with social media? Share it here!.

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Travel Channel’s Social Media Smarts

Charlene Kingston — Thu, 17 Mar 2011 03:55:20 +0000

The Travel Channel has found a brilliant way to reuse information they already have to provide new services for their customers. This is a great example of how any business can find valuable information to provide even more information for its customers. Be inspired.

Before You Start: You have a business Twitter account.
Learning level: 4 | Creating Solutions
Article Last Updated: Sunday, December 4, 2011

Getting More From What You Already Have

I love to travel, so I’ve been a huge fan of the Travel Channel for many years. My favorite show there is No Reservations, the travel/food show hosted by Anthony Bourdain. I love his sacrastic and yet philosophical attitude about life, and his no-nonsense comments about the show’s locations, food, and other celebrity chefs.

In the last year, I’ve been really impressed at the smart social media efforts around this show. While their efforts effectively promote this television show, there are also lessons that apply to other types of businesses. Let me show you what I mean.

Content Strategy & Reuse

I know when I start using terms like “content,” some of your eyes glaze over. But stick with me a minute.

The staff of No Reservations spends a great deal of time planning each show before they hit the road. They research great food options, local food experts, and every other detail of the show. Nothing is left to chance when the production crew and Tony arrive at their destination.

The Travel Channel realized about a year back that they could use some of that research information to provide new and useful information (i.e. “content”) on their website. Now, you can access information about the names and addresses of each location shown in show episodes, along with other places that ended up on the editing room floor or didn’t make the shooting schedule cut. These Travel Guides are a perfect example of a business reusing information it already has to provide value to its online community.

See Your Business With A Different Perspective

What’s so smart about this? Until that moment, the Travel Channel saw itself as a television channel that educates people about travel through television. They didn’t see themselves as an online travel guide sort of business. Now, you and I may look at their No Reservations travel advice and think it is a no-brainer. But it actually was a shift in their online content (there’s that word again).

This restaurant information is interesting to the usual Tony and No Reservations fans, but it also pulls in a new segment of people: people who are traveling to destinations where Tony has visited who are not fans of the show or even fans of Tony. These are just people who are looking for great restaurants on their upcoming travel. But once they start using this travel information, how many of them will take an interest in No Reservations or other Travel Channel shows? And how many of them will recommend this restaurant guide to their friends?

The Travel Channel also publishes a section of recipes from Tony and his chef friends who appear on his show. Again, this is something they do to add value that is related to Tony, but not part of their general business goals (running a successful television channel).

Look around that the information you have laying around inside your business. Do you have information that you can easily publish on your website, through a blog, through podcasts or videos, that would add value to your existing online community and add interest in your business from other people who are currently not part of your online community?

Is there an ah-ha moment for you just waiting to happen?

No Reservations And Twitter

With the new season of No Reservations, the Travel Channel has tried another new social media strategy. They asked Tony to live tweet during the airing of the premier episode. The results were staggering! The number of times the No Reservations Twitter account was mentioned during that evening was impressive. In fact, it went so well, the Travel Channel is going to add more live tweeting with their other shows.

When your business has an event, or when you participate in a professional conference or trade show, why not try live tweeting your experience? In my community, there is a restaurant that gives away free food one day every year. Joe’s Real BBQ uses Twittter on this day to let people know how many people they have served, how long the line is, and includes pictures of some happy customers. How can your business take this idea and use it to promote your own events?

Pay attention to what the big brands are doing on social media. There are always ideas you can borrow and adapt for your business and your budget.

Your turn: Have you borrowed an idea from a big brand’s social media program? How did it work for you? Share your experience here.

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Cherry Street Rocks Facebook

Charlene Kingston — Tue, 15 Jun 2010 13:00:55 +0000

Cherry Street Coffee House in Seattle, Washington, does a great job on social media. They do an especially smart job translating their customer experience to Facebook.

Before You Start: You have a Facebook business account and want to engage your customers more.
Learning level: 4 | Creating Solutions
Article Last Updated: Sunday, December 4, 2011

Cherry Street Coffee House Does Social Media

Cherry Street Coffee House is a local chain in the Seattle metropolitan area that provides coffee, lunch, and pastry items. Each location is full of bright artwork, friendly conversation, and the smells of food and coffee. Started in 1997, the business has grown to five locations, and earns great reviews and numerous local awards.

Cherry Street Coffee House has a diverse social media presence that includes a blog, Facebook, Twitter, Flickr, and YouTube, and embraces Yelp and Urbanspoon. They advertise their social media passport prominently on their website and blog.

Social media allows you to open the doors of your business so people can experience your business online. It lets you move your customer conversations online, but it also lets you show people what your business cares about. At Cherry Street Coffee House, they care about the customer experience, and it shows up in their social media efforts.

Cherry Street Coffee House On Facebook

A quick look at the Cherry Street Coffee House official Facebook page shows that they use Facebook as a central location to pull together all of their social media presence. They have tabs for video, photographs, their YouTube presence, and their Twitter presence. The YouTube and Twitter tabs come from applications they purchased, and showcase the most recent videos and tweets. Pulling all of this content together in one place helps to strengthen their social media presence.

In going through their wall, you see that they allow their community to post items, and they don’t segregate community content from business content. The wall is mostly business content, but if you look through the history, you see items from customers posted as well. This encourages a sense of community.

Borrow These Ideas

Cherry Street Coffee House offers many smart ideas on their Facebook presence that you can borrow and adapt for your business.

Develop and share content that showcases your products and services. They post a wide range of content including photographs and videos. They cross post the content on Facebook and either Flickr or YouTube for maximum community reach.
Simplify your online presence. They have five locations, but rather than have five separate pages, they combine them for maximum impact with minimal effort.
Post frequently. They post on average 1-4 times each business day, and they post a variety of content.
Post timing is important. They frequently post before a meal time with a photograph of something freshly prepared.
Share other people’s good reviews of your business. They add mentions of their business in the local media with links to the media outlet and the associated article, video, or audio file. They make it easy for people to access this coverage.
Include your customers and employees. They mix in photographs of customers and employees. You can use a cell phone for candid photos, but it might be better if you have an inexpensive digital camera at the ready.
Have a sense of humor. They share things that make them laugh. It gives the impression that it’s a fun place to work and visit.
Cross post your blog entries. They share some blog posts, but not all of them. One interesting observation is that they blog about promotions but don’t post them on Facebook.
Be involved in the community. They promote local events and they participate in community service projects. If you allow someone to post a sign in your business, why not also share their event on Facebook?

Your turn: What is the smartest Facebook tip you learned from Cherry Street Coffee House? Share your observations here.

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Write A Great Twitter Bio

Charlene Kingston — Tue, 18 May 2010 13:00:31 +0000

Twitter allows you just 160 characters to describer your business in your profile. You should give careful thought to the words you choose for this important profile feature. A good Twitter bio gives potential followers and customers the basics about your business they need to decide if they want to follow you. Your Twitter describes the benefits of your business and expresses your business personality.

Before You Start: You are setting up a business Twitter account or fine tuning your Twitter profile.
Learning Level: 2 | Getting Started
Article Last Updated: Sunday, December 4, 2011

Twitter Bio Contents

Your Twitter bio is an important part of your business account profile. This is the one place where you can explain a bit about your business and show a little of your personality. Potential followers check out your bio to see what you are about and to learn how to become your customer. It’s a short but critical piece of your Twitter account.

There is an art to writing a concise Twitter bio that tells people what they need to know about your business. The bio should mostly provide factual information, but should have enough flair that it doesn’t sound like a press release.

Here are some bits of information that you may want to include in your business Twitter bio:

What your company provides (products or services) and how they benefit the person reading your profile. Assume that the person has never heard of your company. What do you do and why should they care?
If you company has multiple Twitter accounts (for customer services, sales, etc.) explain the role of this account and point people to your other accounts.
The names of the people who who speak for your company through this account. Many companies give names followed by initials inserted in tweets for each person. For example: Jane Adams ^JA, Tom Stephens ^TS
Your business marketing tag line.
Awards and recognitions.

Twitter Bio Examples

Here are some great and not-so-great examples of Twitter bios with comments.

AZHighways: This is the official Twitter account for Arizona Highways magazine. Our mission is to promote travel in Arizona. | Good example because it is factual and concise, but it lacks personality.
CiaoBellaGelato: The official Ciao Bella twitter profile. Ciao Bella has been dishing out boldy unique gelato & sorbet for over 27 years. Your Tastebuds will Thank you. | Great example except for the mistakes in capitalization.
PooreBrothers: Poore Brothers® Intensely Different™ flavored chips are the alternative to those boring, big-batch potato chips that lack flavor, freshness and a flare for fun. | Great example.
Mashable: The hottest Twitter news, Twitter tips and Twitter help. Plus, the best social media links around! | Good example that could be improved with some personality.
SaundersMFG: We are the clipboard people! | High on personality and helping readers connect with their products, but the emoticon is too much.
JoesRealBBQ: Downtown Gilbert eatery featuring award-winning food in the Heritage District | Good example that lacks personality but communicates many facts efficiently.
The_ASBA: Arizona Small Business Association (asba) can help your business save money, make money and create opportunities. Join asba. Be amAZed®. Call(602)306-4000 | Almost great example that needs just a little editing to have enough room for spaces in phone number.
ArizonaDOT: Driven to get Arizona residents where they want to go. News and information from the Arizona Department of Transportation. (Tweeting and Driving Don’t Mix!) | Great example but lose the parentheses.
AJBombers: Voted Milwaukee’s best new burger joint, smoke free and loads of p-nut bombs. Where everybody knows your name. Well, at least your twitter name. | Great example.
MySpace: MySpace is a technology company connecting people through personal expression, content, and culture. | Bad example because it reads like a corporate mission statement. It doesn’t connect with the reader or explain its benefits for the reader.
Yelp: The official Twitter voice of Yelp HQ. It’s a place for us to talk about press, product and policy at Yelp.com. | Good example that could be great if it explained what Yelp is.
Firefox: I make the web a little faster, safer, smarter, better. | Weak example that could be improved by explaining what Firefox is and correcting the grammatical error.

Your turn: Do you agree with my assessment of these Twitter profiles? What examples of great and not-so-great profiles have you seen?
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Social Media Secret Ingredient

Charlene Kingston — Mon, 17 May 2010 13:00:00 +0000

To really be effective in social media, you have to be flexible and willing to experiment. One of the smartest things you can do is keep an eye on what other businesses are doing to get ideas for your own social media use.

Before You Start: You use social media for your business.
Learning Level: 3 | Building Skills
Article Last Updated: Sunday, December 4, 2011

The Secret To Social Media

If you have been working on social media for your business, you have figured out that it isn’t hard if you have someone to show you how it works.

But here is something that you may not have figured out. To be successful in social media, you have to be flexible. Willing to change. Adaptable. Eager to experiment. Most people like to figure things out, set up a plan, and then move forward on autopilot. That works for many things, but not for social media.

Social media is a moving target. New tools show up, existing tools add new features, and someone makes a big splash with a new strategy or promotion. Suddenly the whole landscape has shifted.

Rather than fight against this, why not embrace it? Add in a little time each week to stay in touch, to make course adjustments, and to learn about new tools, features, and strategies. It’s a really smart way to make sure you are getting the most benefit from your social media presence. It’s the secret ingredient in your social media strategy.

That’s where the Social Media DIY Workshop comes in. We are out there every day looking at what’s new and changing. We are sharing this with you through new website content, tweets, and Facebook wall posts. Add the Social Media DIY Workshop to your list of things to monitor each week for inspiring new ideas, fresh strategies, and the latest tools.

Your turn: Have you been watching what other people are doing on social media? Have you tried something from an idea you adapted from someone else? Share your experience.

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Is Foursquare Becoming Mainstream?

Charlene Kingston — Fri, 30 Apr 2010 13:00:41 +0000

Check-in services are becoming very popular with big brands, especially Foursquare. If your business has a physical location where customers visit you, there are many advantages for incorporating Foursquare into your social media plan. Here’s some ideas for how big brands are using Foursquare.

Before You Start: You use social media for your business. You are considering using a check-in service with your storefront business.
Learning level: 4 | Creating Solutions
Article Last Updated: Sunday, December 4, 2011

Big Brands Using Foursquare

Foursquare, one of the most popular check-in services, has been in the press a lot lately. There are many new business partnerships they have announced, along with enhancements to their product and services.

Here are just a few of the recent tidbits (April 2010):

California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger uses Foursquare to let his constituents know about his activities.
Jimmy Choo is doing a promotion in London to promote their newest shoes.
Foursquare now makes it easy for businesses to claim their business on the service and add promotions.
Wall Street Journal has created three badges for financial related check-ins in New York City.
Foursquare offers window clings and stickers for businesses to promote that they are Foursquare friendly.
VH1 is adding tips to Foursquare locations to provide pop culture background about specific locations. Also, Foursquare tips are starting to show up in on-air programming like What Chili Wants.
Zagat has created special foodie badges for 5 American cities.
Bravo! television has created a series of badges and a special partnership with Foursquare.
The History Channel is providing tips for special locations to support its new series, America, The Story of Us.

I have used Foursquare, Whrrl, and Gowalla, and of these three, Foursquare has the best business owner support (so far). I’m not surprised to see them adding more business owner services or getting public attention.

If you are ready to take advantage of the check-in craze, this is the perfect time to start using Foursquare to promote your business. Learn more about the check-in services the mobile internet revolution, proximity marketing, and Foursquare on my site today.

What are you waiting for?

Your turn: Have you tried Foursquare or any of the check-in services? Are your customers checking in at your business? Share your experience.

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Naked Pizza: The Power of Twitter

Charlene Kingston — Thu, 18 Mar 2010 11:00:41 +0000

Naked Pizza was one of the first businesses to understand how to use Twitter to engage their local customer base. Their business is booming, and they continue to demonstrate smart ways to use Twitter.

Before You Start: You have a business Twitter account. Your business relies on local customers.
Learning level: 3 | Building Skills
Article Last Updated: Sunday, December 4, 2011

Naked Pizza On Twitter

In spring 2009, a small pizza joint in New Orleans has made a splash in the technology news. Naked Pizza (@NakedPizza) identifies itself as an all natural pizza with no preservatives or additives, which makes it a healthier pizza. The moniker “naked’ describes it and catches your attention. But the unusual name is not the reason why everyone started talking about Naked Pizza. What really sets Naked Pizza apart is the way they use Twitter to impact their business.

Naked Pizza was one of the early businesses to figure out how to use Twitter to grow their business. Naked Pizza focused on finding Twitter users within three miles of their restaurant, and use Twitter to engage their customers and neighbors. In a scan of their Twitter timeline, you find them joking with customers, and including pictures of customers in the shop. They mention their specials, but it’s a small part of the conversation. Discounts are not their primary message.

In the last year, Naked Pizza began franchising their healthy pizza concept and local business model. Naked Pizza is starting to show up in cities around the US thanks to investors who recognize the business savvy of the founders.

Borrow These Ideas

Naked Pizza does offer an outstanding example of a small local business that figured out a smart use for Twitter. If you run a small business, check out what they did and borrow some of their brilliance for your own Twitter strategy.

One key element of the Naked Pizza success is finding local Twitter users. If finding local Twitter users would help your business, there are several tools that help you find them.

Another really smart strategy is the way they engage their customers in conversation. Look at the photos of customers picking up pizzas, tweets about the local New Orleans community and rebirth, and the strong sense of personality you get from reading just a single page of tweets. All of this with a slice of (healthy) pizza. What’s not to love?

Your turn: What do you see as a key ingredient of Naked Pizza’s success? Do you know other businesses who have turned Twitter into a community building engine for their business? Share your observations here.

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Staples Goes Social

Charlene Kingston — Wed, 03 Feb 2010 17:15:10 +0000

As more businesses start using social media, you are going to find both great and horrible examples from big brands. Here’s an example of what not to do on social media.

Before You Start: You use social media for your business, or you are considering using social media for your business.
Learning level: 1 | Social Media Basics
Article Last Updated:Wednesday, August 17, 2011

Staples And Social Media

I use Staples for most of my business supplies. I’m part of their loyalty program, and I get a lot of email from them. But today I got something new.

Staples sent me a list of the items I purchased in my last visit and asked me to write a review for each one. To be more accurate, they asked me to check options from the list of appropriate phrases to create my review. I completed the first item review when I hit the new part.

Did I want to post my product review on Facebook? What about Twitter?

Now, I’m glad to see that Staples is embracing social media. And maybe if I had purchased sexier items like a new laptop or printer or other electronic goodies, their offer would make more sense. I really don’t think that my Facebook friends want me to share my opinion of the writing tablets I use. I don’t think they want to wade through the details of my mundane office supply purchases even to read my pithy and sometime hilarious comments. And I’m sure my Twitter followers feel the same way.

I think this is one example of social media gone bad. Just because you can do a thing doesn’t mean its a smart idea.

Your turn: What do you think? Have you seen companies using social media in ways that don’t make sense?

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Social Media Goes Real World

Charlene Kingston — Mon, 01 Feb 2010 17:00:08 +0000

This weekend, I spotted a local business advertising it’s social media presence on its signs. It’s a sign of things to come, and a great example of what you can do with your own business.

Before You Start: You use social media for business. Or you are considering using social media for your business.
Learning level: 1 | Social Media Basics
Article Last Updated: Wednesday, August 17, 2011

Kierland Commons Social Media Passport

On Sunday (January 31, 2010), I spent some time at one of my favorite local shopping centers, Kierland Commons in Scottsdale, AZ. I had a great time hitting all my favorite stores and then spent some time relaxing in the courtyard at the center. But the highlight of my afternoon wasn’t the great deal I snagged in a shop or the yummy tea latte I sipped in the courtyard. It was spotting this sign.

I got excited because it was a first. It reminded me of the first time I saw a web address (URL) on TV and on a billboard and in a magazine, way back when the internet was new (and the earth was still dewy), around 1996. You remember how cute we were, always including the http:// before the address?

Kierland Commons is one of the businesses I’ve listed in my Phoenix small business lists (I have two lists because of the 500 member limitation on lists). I think they do a great job promoting their shopping center and their tenants on Twitter and Facebook. They even include their Twitter and Facebook information on the printed shopping center directory for visitors.

If you are looking for a good example of how to do social media in the retail space, check them out.

Your turn: Have you seen a local business advertise its social media presence? Have you started to include your social media passport on your own business materials? Share your experience here.

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