They Came, They Saw, They Tweeted: Hinda’s Official Social Media Week Wrap-Up - Part II

Miss Part I? Read it here.

A particularly interesting and lively session I attended was a keynote by Jay Baer, social media speaker, coach and co-author of “The NOW Revolution: How to Make your Business Faster, Smarter and More Social” (also the title of this session). His blog, Convince&Convert, is ranked number three in the social media world and he’s consulted for 29 of the Fortune 500.

Baer pointed to social media as being the single most transformative of any technological development in the business world, as it has fundamentally changed the relationship between the business and the customer. Businesses are constantly changing to adapt to social media and the power is no longer in the business itself or in its branding – it’s in its network of connections.

Baer talked about social media as your early warning detection system when it comes to buzz about your company, and if you’re not paying attention to what your customers and potentials are saying about your brand, you won’t succeed as a business. Adopting the words “Thank you” and I’m sorry” will go miles when it comes to customer service in the social world, and companies looking to be more social would do well to incorporate these simple but powerful tools.

Finally, Baer brought up the point that social media is becoming a skill as opposed to a job – perhaps to the chagrin of the room full of social media professionals. He said that every person in the company needs to be doing social media and interacting with his or her clients, and it is not the responsibility of just one person or one department.

My favorite session was “Read Anything Good Lately? How WOM, Social Media and Recommendations Drive Media Consumption.” The panel consisted of Stacey Ballis, Carrie Goldman Segall and Nicole Knepper, three sassy, brassy women who all blog and have published books that became known largely due to social media. The panel talked a lot about how to use social media to your advantage as a new blogger or a self-published author.

Takeaways from this session include being a real person and maintaining authenticity on social media. The panel agreed that social media should be “95 percent social and 5 percent media.” Communicate with your followers, comment on others’ blogs and maintain a consistent sense of self.

Also, it’s important to keep things in perspective. Social media is important but it isn’t real life. Don’t become so involved with your fans online that you forget to walk the dog, and conversely, don’t ignore what’s going on in the social media world when it comes to your readers and fans – especially if you’re trying to sell something or promote your brand. And, as in life, you don’t need a million followers, you just need the right ones.

Another key is to write what’s in your heart and be true to yourself. Knepper, who’s blog and Facebook page are titled Moms Who Drink and Swear and who tweets @queenofcussin, probably put it best when she said, “Don’t compare yourselves to others. You will be miserable.” This is a great lesson when it comes to blogging and other forms of social media as well as out in the real world.

All three of the panelists were real, down-to-earth and hilarious. It was a fun session, and I wished it could have gone on much longer. But, all good things (including this post) must come to an end. I really enjoyed my Social Media Week experience, I learned a TON and I can’t wait for next year!

They Came, They Saw, They Tweeted: Hinda’s Official Social Media Week Wrap-Up - Part I

They say the best way to learn about something is to immerse yourself in it, and that’s exactly what over 16,000 social media professionals did as they descended upon Chicago the week of September 24. This year’s Social Media Week consisted of about 95 sessions featuring 250 speakers at 40 different venues around the city.

Personally, I represented Hinda at 12, which felt like a pretty full schedule considering the amount of information that was packed into each session, while still managing to pop into the office for a few hours in between.

I won’t get into the gory details of each session here, but I do want to point out a few highlights from what was a terrifically informative, fun and free week of social media madness.

One factor about social media that makes a lot of sense but that many people (including yours truly) probably don’t think about are the legal implications of hosting contests, sweepstakes or other online promotions that involve rules, regulations and privacy concerns.

At “Pinning and Winning: Activating Social Contests,” we heard from Linda Goldstein, Partner and Chair of the Advertising, Marketing and Media Division of Manatt, Phelps and Phillips, who talked about the legal risks involved in hosting online contests, specifically compliance with lottery laws, disclosure of rules and privacy policies and intellectual property liability for content use.

“The FTC says that limited real estate is no excuse for lack of disclosure,” Goldstein said, with regard to specifically Twitter-based promotions and the fact that a tweet is limited to 140 characters. “Rules are your best defense. You don’t need to police each and every entry, but makes sure your rules are prominent and easy to read.”

(Full disclosure: I’ve spent a few years working in the legal field, so perhaps this part of the wrap-up isn’t as interesting to some readers, but it’s important nonetheless!)

Stay tuned for Part II of our Social Media Week wrap-up this Friday!

Our Social Media Footprint

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A lot of our readers and subscribers are loyal fans via our blog. However, our social media footprint expands beyond just our blog. You may have noticed the links on the right of the page...if you click through to the website. If you're a subscriber, these links may have been lost on you. Below are a few other ways to connect with Hinda online.

Twitter

You can find us as @hinda_incentive on this microblogging site. We are fairly active on here and actually like to engage in conversation with others. It's a great conversational tool for us and we love to chat with anyone willing. This is also a venue where we post new videos, blog posts, and even a few fun photos from inside our own office.

LinkedIn

More of a LinkedIn fan? We can relate. There's a growing audience on LinkedIn. Though there isn't much opportunity for engagement from a brand perspective, anyone can follow our activity online. Simply click here or on the LinkedIn icon on the left of the page to follow us on LinkedIn. On our page you can see our new hires, most recent tweets and blog posts, and even learn (and recommend) some of our services like Custom Packaging or the Warehouse Dash.

YouTube

Want to get a more visual representation of who we are and what we do? Our YouTube page is a great start. The incentives industry has a habit of being hard to understand and our role in it isn't the easiest for many to wrap their heads around. These professionally produced videos tell viewers more about the Warehouse Dash, Custom Packaging, and other better information about Hinda in general. Click here to view our YouTube channel. If you're a registered user, subscribing to our channel would also be a pretty good start :)

Facebook

We've not done a lot on Facebook until recently but now like to hang out here online as well. Recently, we've created a new Welcome splash page for new visitors. The Welcome page shows off how to contact us via QR code, info and links to more info about the Warehouse Dash and Custom Packaging, along with some fun photos. In addition, our Fan Page is where we show off photos from inside the walls of our company, host all of our YouTube videos, and even post content straight from this blog. We've also integrated our Fan Page with our Places page. That way, if you ever have the pleasure of checking-in at our office, you'll link right to our fan page.

QR Codes

Using a service called JumpScan, we've made contacting us through mobile devices even easier. Using a scanner application on your smartphone, you can simply scan the 2D barcode on the right of our home page (will need to click through to see it) and pull up ways to contact us via phone, email and social stream with the simple touch of a button. Doesn't get much easier than that.

Want us to connect with you? Shoot some contact information in the comments below, drop a note through the contact page or send us a message via one of the above social channels. We'd love to hear from you!

Why Social Responsibility? Why Now?

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You know you've got a buzzworthy term when it becomes a widely-spread acronym. CSR - or corporate social responsibility - is one of those buzzworthy terms.

CSR is a widely used hashtag on Twitter and a concept big companies are jumping on almost as rapidly as social media. Consumers, potential hires and even other companies measure another company's worth in regards to its triple bottom line. Why has CSR taken precedent all of a sudden in regards to good business practices?

In many regards, brand image has a lot to do with it. Situations like what has happened with Enron/Adelphia-like companies (and more recently BP) have lowered the level of trust the public has with corporations. Lower trust = lower consumer confidence = lower brand value. Taking steps in social responsibility helps re-establish that trust, raise your brand value and build up that consumer confidence.

So how have some companies jumped in on the socially responsible bandwagon?

Of the bigger brands, Pepsi launced its Refresh Project. The company has sponsored a viral effort to encourage the sharing of good ideas that will help better the world we live in. If the idea receives enough votes, Pepsi donates money to start-up that idea and aid its launch. In this process, Pepsi has given away over $20 million to socially good ideas. This has helped Pepsi grow its digital fanbase and will most likely convert into more sales for the company. 

Other companies are incorporating social responsibility in their corporate gifts. In this Incentive Magazine article, Marriot utilized giving a washer basket from World of Good - a social enterprise helping overseas artisans create more sustainable lives - in their corporate gifting program. The article also discusses how other companies are utilizing products made by social enterprise groups to improve their employee incentive programs and boost their socially responsible practices simultaneously.

CSR promotes better business practices and is becoming less of a novelty and more of a necessity in today's world. More consumers (and employees) are seeking out more than just a good product - they are seeking companies with a solid triple bottom line.

The social responsibility train is moving full steam ahead. Are you on it?