You own a startup with top-notch service capabilities for catering to customers the world over. But you cannot help your location. What would you do? Would you stick to serving just a small restricted customer base by advertising in the local classifieds or get bold enough and spend a fortune for advertising your services to the world in all possible media? The answer is neither. Now you don’t need to even hire a veteran marketer or be an expert at designing marketing strategies for achieving your goal. You just need an internet connection, know your way around the right websites, seize the correct opportunities, aggressively follow the current marketing trends and there you are!
Organizations around the globe are evolving rapidly and embracing distinctive and innovative new methods to promote themselves and amplify their global presence- through the World Wide Web. With online marketing already being established as the most preferred medium of reaching out to clients & customers all over the world, the inhabitants of the IT capital of India are close on their heels too…
So what happens when a group of gutsy young professionals come together with the sole purpose of uniting the brains of all talented online marketers of Bangalore? A bang! Just this time around it is called OMEBang…
OMEBang or Online Marketing Enthusiasts Bangalore- the brave young association that is the result of the untiring efforts of experts Suresh Babu, Shiva Purohith and their team. Since its inception March-April 2010, OMEBang has essentially been an open invitation, a free platform for all the enthusiastic marketers, who are involved with or interested in the online marketing arena. Starting out with a fistful of members, interacting closely in an informal atmosphere, OMEBang now boasts of a 200 plus community who meet every month to discuss the latest trends in online marketing. They aptly call themselves “a community of Passionate Online Marketing Enthusiasts who get together to share and learn from the Online Marketing Experts in Bangalore”.
Specialists from areas like SEO, PPC, Affiliate and Social Media, Web Analytics, Email Marketing and several other topics pertaining to online marketing, have been invited to grace the occasion, so far. The discussions are further enriched with participants providing the intricacies, technicalities and strategies followed as live industrial best practices. Everyone can speak, be heard, suggest and be advised with respect to their queries and areas of interest. It is an immense learning experience for every attendee.
I attended the fourth OMEBang meet during July last month. The topic this time was web / digital media analytics. The presentation by Chaitanya Kumar Pasupuleti was sprinkled with profuse knowledge sharing between all members, be it experts or amateurs. Facts regarding what analytics is all about, why and how should analytics be applied, types and details of analytics being used in the industry, details of the different software-their pros & cons, how analytics affect the marketing efforts, how analytics can be applied on the personal blog to evaluate traffic rankings etc. etc.
As I regularly work on our corporate website to track visitors of email and other marketing campaigns, much of what was said was immensely helpful. Needless to say, I picked countless new tips that I have already applied to my daily analytics monitoring schedule. Apart from the above, I met several other fellow marketers and online marketing experts who were as enthusiastic as me in participating in this event. The camaraderie was infectious as all professionals let their hair down and enjoyed a weekend evening…sharing, learning, networking and of course having tons of fun..[Photos]
I’m eagerly looking forward to the next OMEBang meet which is on Saturday, the 21st of August, 2010 which is going to be all about Social Media, predominantly FaceBook as a tool for online marketing. Mr. Preetham Venkky, Chief Catalyst at Catalyst Labs - a Bangalore based technology media company, who is a technology evangelist for Apple in India and an authority at using Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, Blogs, Wikis etc.- for marketing will be the chief speaker this time around.
If you are also interested to attend this event, please visit: http://omebang.eventbrite.com to register and know more about this event or visit the Online Marketing Enthusiast LinkedIn Group.
Showing posts with label The Social Media Angle. Show all posts
Showing posts with label The Social Media Angle. Show all posts
Friday, August 20, 2010
Thursday, July 29, 2010
Social Media – Just a Click Away?
http://www.chillibreeze.com/articles_various/importance-of-social-media-610.asp#a
A single click is all it takes for me to know what the world around me wants, thinks, enjoys, loves, hates, patronizes, looks forward to, is crazy about, or stays away from! A single click tells me that I have two more fans and five more followers. It tells me that I share basic interests with seven others and that my article has been read by 20 more people of whom 17 have wanted me to know their opinion. My website has been marked as favorite by five scientists; I’m connected to the CEO of a popular startup; my long lost childhood friend has finally found me (his wife and kids say hello) and two communities insist that I should be an active member of their group.
Now those of you not familiar with social media would think that I’m bragging, as someone so popular should have been hounded by the paparazzi and made headlines by now! Admit it or not, social media have made a celebrity out every human being! Facts suggest that 60-70% of the world urban population is already a part of this exemplary tsunami called social media.
Social media has taken over mankind stealthily. Much more stealthily than any other media – let’s say the mobile, the television or radio could ever imagine. The latter have no doubt, created waves during their invention but were available only to an affluent few, even though the whole world knew about them. But by the time the world knew what social media is, it was theirs to take home, right at their fingertips, and totally free of any cost!
Having said that, plunging into social media might seem pretty straightforward in the beginning. All you have to do is open a free FaceBook, Twitter, or Orkut account and you have transformed into that popular luminary overnight. Unfortunately, we all know that it’s not half as easy as that. It requires plenty of patience, persistence, and hard work to get there.
And it is not just about connecting to old friends (or new ones), either. At most times, it might be imperative to connect to people whom we aren’t familiar with due to professional or other reasons. What then? How will you locate that one person on the vast social web and ask him to help you? Or more importantly, why will this person want to connect with you – a stranger?!
Is there a way of proving your mettle to that client in remote New Jersey? Does your newly launched product or service clearly fit in with needs of the industry? Can the social media help a fresh graduate land a well-deserved job in that high-ranking organization? Will your patented technology reach the remote areas which could benefit from it, maximally? Will you be able to sell your (almost) brand new car at the best possible price? And when you have only the web or the social media to assist you, is there an answer to every need you have in mind? Will a single click answer to all those whats, hows, whos, whens and wheres?
Elaboration on what social media is or how one can be part of it, will be of no use at this point. We need assistance at the next level.
Millions of websites, blogs, newsletters, articles, emails, case-studies, books, e-books, encyclopedias (you name it) have revealed at length the art of mastering the social media. “10 Tips to Be Awesome Online, 16 Tips for Successful Online Video Marketing, 42 Top Social Media Tips And Tools, 20 Social Media Tips Under 140 Characters, The 11 Rules of Social Media Etiquette, the list goes on and on.
On an average, I receive almost 50 articles or webinar invites daily that dwell on the ‘million dollar question’ – how to triumph over in the world of social media? I’m also sure that most of you, who have had an interest in this area have also been drowned (and subsequently lost) in such delusional literature.
With due apologies to all who have authored articles on social media, is it actually possible to become an expert after you have read (and implemented) the advice in all these articles? Can one transform into that much sought celebrity by following 5, 10, 20 or even 100 generalized guidelines? And can you follow most of these procedures to the T? Do all those free whitepapers, e-books, portals, and webinars give you a 360 degree insight into the vast world of social media? As a matter of fact …the majority of them do.
I’m sure that every one of those articles must have been penned down or conceptualized based on some real life experience. People have taken years to get where they are now, socially. For giving those 10 tips the author would have attempted some 10,000 ideas out of which 1000 could have been responsive, 100 would have been successful enough to be finally concentrated and framed to form a total of 10 tips. Tips that can be easily attempted without a single thought as to how they might have evolved!
But I beg to disagree. Social media is personal or specific to every individual and organization, just like our personality and purposes in life. It should be not chosen because it’s the in thing and everyone has been doing it. The articulate instructions should be given a careful thought before implementation. The relevance of social media has to be understood at the preliminary level and customized adequately to suit the actual needs.
For example, if you own a small neighborhood retail store that has housewives or domestic helps as its regulars, putting up a glossy website and a fancy FaceBook account will only be an illogical exertion. Paper pamphlets or small handwritten hoardings could easily accomplish your purpose. Similarly if you are an organization offering scientific research as a service, being social media shy and having an old, outdated website is definitely getting you nowhere near that much needed recognition in the industry or for that matter the clients or the big bucks.
And it does not stop there. Once you have taken the plunge, there is tons of work as follow-up. Regular updation of the portals, putting up interesting articles, adding useful facts videos, blogs, webinars, email campaigns, getting the topmost rank on all popular search engines, subtly promoting your cause, waiting patiently for responses (which might take weeks to years ranging on how well you have performed and reached out), monitoring the traffic to your website or portal, getting those responses, handling the negative feedback-not just on your site but other places on the web, follow-up on certain important customers or interested parties, take an interest in what you are doing and respond accordingly, account for the return on investment this list doesn’t stop as easily as opening that first free account.
All said and done, the social media beckon is impossible to resist. After all, the world out there is….just a click away!
A single click is all it takes for me to know what the world around me wants, thinks, enjoys, loves, hates, patronizes, looks forward to, is crazy about, or stays away from! A single click tells me that I have two more fans and five more followers. It tells me that I share basic interests with seven others and that my article has been read by 20 more people of whom 17 have wanted me to know their opinion. My website has been marked as favorite by five scientists; I’m connected to the CEO of a popular startup; my long lost childhood friend has finally found me (his wife and kids say hello) and two communities insist that I should be an active member of their group.
Now those of you not familiar with social media would think that I’m bragging, as someone so popular should have been hounded by the paparazzi and made headlines by now! Admit it or not, social media have made a celebrity out every human being! Facts suggest that 60-70% of the world urban population is already a part of this exemplary tsunami called social media.
Social media has taken over mankind stealthily. Much more stealthily than any other media – let’s say the mobile, the television or radio could ever imagine. The latter have no doubt, created waves during their invention but were available only to an affluent few, even though the whole world knew about them. But by the time the world knew what social media is, it was theirs to take home, right at their fingertips, and totally free of any cost!
Having said that, plunging into social media might seem pretty straightforward in the beginning. All you have to do is open a free FaceBook, Twitter, or Orkut account and you have transformed into that popular luminary overnight. Unfortunately, we all know that it’s not half as easy as that. It requires plenty of patience, persistence, and hard work to get there.
And it is not just about connecting to old friends (or new ones), either. At most times, it might be imperative to connect to people whom we aren’t familiar with due to professional or other reasons. What then? How will you locate that one person on the vast social web and ask him to help you? Or more importantly, why will this person want to connect with you – a stranger?!
Is there a way of proving your mettle to that client in remote New Jersey? Does your newly launched product or service clearly fit in with needs of the industry? Can the social media help a fresh graduate land a well-deserved job in that high-ranking organization? Will your patented technology reach the remote areas which could benefit from it, maximally? Will you be able to sell your (almost) brand new car at the best possible price? And when you have only the web or the social media to assist you, is there an answer to every need you have in mind? Will a single click answer to all those whats, hows, whos, whens and wheres?
Elaboration on what social media is or how one can be part of it, will be of no use at this point. We need assistance at the next level.
Millions of websites, blogs, newsletters, articles, emails, case-studies, books, e-books, encyclopedias (you name it) have revealed at length the art of mastering the social media. “10 Tips to Be Awesome Online, 16 Tips for Successful Online Video Marketing, 42 Top Social Media Tips And Tools, 20 Social Media Tips Under 140 Characters, The 11 Rules of Social Media Etiquette, the list goes on and on.
On an average, I receive almost 50 articles or webinar invites daily that dwell on the ‘million dollar question’ – how to triumph over in the world of social media? I’m also sure that most of you, who have had an interest in this area have also been drowned (and subsequently lost) in such delusional literature.
With due apologies to all who have authored articles on social media, is it actually possible to become an expert after you have read (and implemented) the advice in all these articles? Can one transform into that much sought celebrity by following 5, 10, 20 or even 100 generalized guidelines? And can you follow most of these procedures to the T? Do all those free whitepapers, e-books, portals, and webinars give you a 360 degree insight into the vast world of social media? As a matter of fact …the majority of them do.
I’m sure that every one of those articles must have been penned down or conceptualized based on some real life experience. People have taken years to get where they are now, socially. For giving those 10 tips the author would have attempted some 10,000 ideas out of which 1000 could have been responsive, 100 would have been successful enough to be finally concentrated and framed to form a total of 10 tips. Tips that can be easily attempted without a single thought as to how they might have evolved!
But I beg to disagree. Social media is personal or specific to every individual and organization, just like our personality and purposes in life. It should be not chosen because it’s the in thing and everyone has been doing it. The articulate instructions should be given a careful thought before implementation. The relevance of social media has to be understood at the preliminary level and customized adequately to suit the actual needs.
For example, if you own a small neighborhood retail store that has housewives or domestic helps as its regulars, putting up a glossy website and a fancy FaceBook account will only be an illogical exertion. Paper pamphlets or small handwritten hoardings could easily accomplish your purpose. Similarly if you are an organization offering scientific research as a service, being social media shy and having an old, outdated website is definitely getting you nowhere near that much needed recognition in the industry or for that matter the clients or the big bucks.
And it does not stop there. Once you have taken the plunge, there is tons of work as follow-up. Regular updation of the portals, putting up interesting articles, adding useful facts videos, blogs, webinars, email campaigns, getting the topmost rank on all popular search engines, subtly promoting your cause, waiting patiently for responses (which might take weeks to years ranging on how well you have performed and reached out), monitoring the traffic to your website or portal, getting those responses, handling the negative feedback-not just on your site but other places on the web, follow-up on certain important customers or interested parties, take an interest in what you are doing and respond accordingly, account for the return on investment this list doesn’t stop as easily as opening that first free account.
All said and done, the social media beckon is impossible to resist. After all, the world out there is….just a click away!
Thursday, April 29, 2010
Facebook Seeks To Build The Semantic Search Engine
Face book has also joined the rat race of building semantic engines. To quote the blog,
"That blog believes that if HTML is the way developers get information into Google’s search engine, meta data is the way developers will get data into Facebook’s semantic search engine."
But I believe Google always used Meta data from the sites it crawls, so how can they say that Google uses HTML????
Also, Facebook might not have as stiff a competition as the article predicts. Given its enormous user base, it will take just about a week or so for the Semantic search engine to be popular among all users. Its amazing Social media impact will also make this search engine more famous than most existing ones!!
Great venture by Facebook and looking forward to this application.
Thursday, April 22, 2010
How to Boost Your Personal Brand With Social Media
How to Boost Your Personal Brand With Social Media | Social Media Examiner
I just read this great article about building Personal brands or rather, I'd like to call it, "Branding Yourself" on the Social media. With all due respect to Chris Garret, the Online marketing expert and writer of the above article (and all the people who given their comments)- I would like to add another point that could also help you build your personal brand on the Social Media, outside the web.
"Viral Market yourself to the Social Media"
This could sound like a cliche because it is something we all tend to do instinctively. But "viral marketing yourself" is not promoting yourself by bragging about your last award, best seller, your professional achievements or your personal victories. You need not have to be a walking encyclopedia, either!
Subtle promotion of the principles you believe in (without offending what others feel about the same issue), the recent knowledge you acquired about a particular topic, an experience from which you learnt a good or bad lesson.....all these go a long way in promoting you.
Today everyone is a part of the Social media circle. If one of your anecdotes, pieces of advice or knowledge trivia clicks with someone, he is bound to mention you to one another person at least. That's where your personal viral marketing starts. And as Chris rightly pointed out "as u sow, so shall you reap". Speak out good, informative and positive things and the next thing you know, you have been mentioned on someone's blog, tweet, you have a new fan on Face Book or a great professional contact has added you on LinkedIn.
Thus, I would suggest not to ignore your daily Social circle, as they could also go a great way in promoting you as a brand...not just in Social media but also in your professional/social circle.
Posted using ShareThis
I just read this great article about building Personal brands or rather, I'd like to call it, "Branding Yourself" on the Social media. With all due respect to Chris Garret, the Online marketing expert and writer of the above article (and all the people who given their comments)- I would like to add another point that could also help you build your personal brand on the Social Media, outside the web.
"Viral Market yourself to the Social Media"
This could sound like a cliche because it is something we all tend to do instinctively. But "viral marketing yourself" is not promoting yourself by bragging about your last award, best seller, your professional achievements or your personal victories. You need not have to be a walking encyclopedia, either!
Subtle promotion of the principles you believe in (without offending what others feel about the same issue), the recent knowledge you acquired about a particular topic, an experience from which you learnt a good or bad lesson.....all these go a long way in promoting you.
Today everyone is a part of the Social media circle. If one of your anecdotes, pieces of advice or knowledge trivia clicks with someone, he is bound to mention you to one another person at least. That's where your personal viral marketing starts. And as Chris rightly pointed out "as u sow, so shall you reap". Speak out good, informative and positive things and the next thing you know, you have been mentioned on someone's blog, tweet, you have a new fan on Face Book or a great professional contact has added you on LinkedIn.
Thus, I would suggest not to ignore your daily Social circle, as they could also go a great way in promoting you as a brand...not just in Social media but also in your professional/social circle.
Posted using ShareThis
Monday, December 14, 2009
10 Ways Social Media Will Change In 2010
Quite liked this article, read sometime back. Have tweeted it as well.
10 Ways Social Media Will Change In 2010
[Posted using ShareThis]
10 Ways Social Media Will Change In 2010
[Posted using ShareThis]
Wednesday, December 2, 2009
Social Media- the Hues n' Blues
Just a few months back, I introduced myself to the blogosphere and to Social media. In fact many of us would also have done the same- about the same time, before or after that. My friends & colleagues are into it as well and everyone knows what exactly to do when you are on it. Judging by the number of articles I see daily on how to succeed in the social media market, this revolution is here to stay on and capture the world.
And I plunged into it headlong. I opened an account at Twitter, a Facebook & LinkedIn profile was successfully up, I joined groups & communities, commented on people's blogs, bookmarked my favorite sites on Delicious & of course I started my blog. So far so good. Things were catching up. Friend requests got okayed, senior professionals approved of my invitations, I started getting replies to my personal mail enquiries, I got requests & follows, I posted articles, invited people to my site, advertised a few of my company's products....in short, I was social media active. Rather I was hooked- everything looked right & I was on perfect track. Just then, I went ahead and made a mistake.
I will blame myself for it completely. I've never been good at accepting criticism, when it comes. And especially when it was someone senior from my organization, who made me mentally sore, I made the grave mistake of stopping all my social media interactions. And yes, I am repenting.
But as per one of the saying in my daily quotes calender-" the real failure is not the one who doesn't get his goal but the one who gives up". I still have hope. So I haven't given up and here I am after 4-6 months of absence, trying to rebuild what I had lost. And in the process learn much more than I had.
Social media is still at the heights of being hyped, has every reason to be and will continue be hyped (see: Harvard Business Article) till it becomes a major part & parcel of our lives.
And I plunged into it headlong. I opened an account at Twitter, a Facebook & LinkedIn profile was successfully up, I joined groups & communities, commented on people's blogs, bookmarked my favorite sites on Delicious & of course I started my blog. So far so good. Things were catching up. Friend requests got okayed, senior professionals approved of my invitations, I started getting replies to my personal mail enquiries, I got requests & follows, I posted articles, invited people to my site, advertised a few of my company's products....in short, I was social media active. Rather I was hooked- everything looked right & I was on perfect track. Just then, I went ahead and made a mistake.
I will blame myself for it completely. I've never been good at accepting criticism, when it comes. And especially when it was someone senior from my organization, who made me mentally sore, I made the grave mistake of stopping all my social media interactions. And yes, I am repenting.
But as per one of the saying in my daily quotes calender-" the real failure is not the one who doesn't get his goal but the one who gives up". I still have hope. So I haven't given up and here I am after 4-6 months of absence, trying to rebuild what I had lost. And in the process learn much more than I had.
Social media is still at the heights of being hyped, has every reason to be and will continue be hyped (see: Harvard Business Article) till it becomes a major part & parcel of our lives.
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