10May 2010 by Bob Cargill
10 Ways to Succeed in Social Media, Parts 1-10

10 Ways to Succeed in Social Media, Parts 1-10

Blogging, Facebook, LinkedIn, Social Media, Twitter, YouTube
If you've been reading my blog for a while, you already know about the  "10 Ways to Succeed in Social Media" series of posts I started writing on January 13 of this year and recently concluded on April 5. But what you wouldn't know is how much I've been looking forward to stringing these posts together into one exhaustive guide on how to communicate effectively via the blogosphere, Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, YouTube and other such Internet-based platforms. In this 2,700-word series, I took a long view of social media, focusing on the principles that people in this space need to keep in mind, not necessarily the day-to-day tactics. After all, despite the widespread adoption of social media, it's still very misunderstood. As I wrote in the introduction to this series... ...social media isn’t rocket science. But it’s definitely a BIG departure for those who have been dependent on traditional marketing, advertising, PR and communications methods up until…
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03May 2010 by Bob Cargill

Blog Post on Video: Don’t Just Scratch the Surface of Social Media

Blogging, Facebook, LinkedIn, Marketing, Social Media, Twitter, YouTube
This “blog post on video” was recorded on May 1, 2010. It’s the video version of a post I wrote and published on February 23, 2010 called “10 Ways to Succeed in Social Media, Part Six,” which you can read in its entirety here. If you can’t see the video on this page, you can check it out on my YouTube channel by clicking here. Bob Cargill is a copywriter, creative director and social media marketer who helps brands to strategize, develop and implement successful new marketing programs. He is always interested in new speaking, consulting and freelancing opportunities. To contact Bob, click here.
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26Apr 2010 by Bob Cargill

My Upcoming Presentations on Social Media for NEDMA

Blogging, Direct Marketing, Facebook, Fundraising, LinkedIn, Marketing, Social Media, Twitter, YouTube
          It's that time of year again. The New England Direct Marketing Association's annual conference is just around the corner -- May 12 and 13 at the LaCava Center at Bentley College in Waltham, MA. And just like year, I'm happy to have the opportunity to speak not just once, but twice on social media, this time around on "Understanding Social Media, from Theory to Tactics" (9:00 AM-3:30 PM, May 12) and "10 Ways to Succeed in Social Media" (8:30 AM-9:45 AM, May 13). "Understanding Social Media, from Theory to Tactics" In my all-day workshop on May 12, I'll show participants how to attract attention, pique curiosity, stimulate engagement and develop new business opportunities via Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, YouTube and the blogosphere. From the mechanics to the principles…
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05Apr 2010 by Bob Cargill

10 Ways to Succeed in Social Media, Part Ten

Blogging, Facebook, LinkedIn, Marketing, Public Relations, Social Media, Twitter, YouTube
10. Don't take yourself too seriously. Your success in social media may be dependent in large measure on what you have to share with others, but how you come across – your online persona – is also very important.     Whether you're on Facebook or YouTube, tweeting or blogging, you need to be as affable as you are knowledgeable, as charismatic as you are smart. You need to lighten up. Sure, many of the most effective social media practitioners are opinionated and authoritative, natural born leaders at the top of their fields. But if you take a closer look, you’ll find that they’re also easygoing and deferential, not afraid to share some of their personal lives with their professional peers. They’re approachable and responsive, people who are comfortable having impromptu, informal conversations with a diverse range…
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29Mar 2010 by Bob Cargill

10 Ways to Succeed in Social Media, Part Nine

Blogging, Facebook, LinkedIn, Marketing, Public Relations, Social Media, Twitter, YouTube
9. Measure the results of your activities. If you’re serious about using social media, not just in it for fun, then you need to measure the results of your online activities so you know where you stand. If you publish a blog, you can use such tools as Technorati to see how it compares to others in your industry or Google Analytics to find out which posts people are reading, where they’re coming from and how long they’re staying on your site. But that’s not all you want to analyze. You also want to look at how many readers are subscribing to your blog, how many comments you’re receiving, how many other blogs are linking back to yours and how often it’s turning up in search engine results. And that’s just…
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22Mar 2010 by Bob Cargill

Blog Post on Video: The Importance of Content in Social Media

Blogging, Facebook, LinkedIn, Marketing, Public Relations, Social Media, Twitter, YouTube
This “blog post on video” was recorded on March 20, 2010 in my own back yard in Sudbury, MA. It’s the video version of a post I wrote and published on January 27, 2010 called “10 Ways to Succeed in Social Media, Part Three,” which you can read in its entirety here. If you can’t see the video on this page, you can check it out on my YouTube channel by clicking here. Bob Cargill is a copywriter, creative director and social media marketer who helps brands to strategize, develop and implement successful new marketing programs. He is always interested in new speaking, consulting and freelancing opportunities. To contact Bob, click here.
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15Mar 2010 by Bob Cargill

10 Ways to Succeed in Social Media, Part Eight

Blogging, Facebook, LinkedIn, Marketing, Public Relations, Social Media, Twitter, YouTube
8. Educate others more than you promote yourself. A big mistake many organizations make is to use social media the way they use traditional marketing vehicles such as direct mail, email, print and broadcast. Instead of listening to their constituents, they’re tooting their own horns and focusing on ROI. They’re doing everything they can to force one-way, top-down, interruptive marketing messages into channels that were built for permission-based dialogue that doesn’t necessarily conform to a preconceived agenda. What they're doing is like trying to place a square peg into a round hole. Their efforts are futile. But that’s not to say you can’t generate leads and sales in social media. In fact, if you conduct yourself appropriately in these spaces and places, chances are your efforts will result in a multitude of new business…
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08Mar 2010 by Bob Cargill

10 Ways to Succeed in Social Media, Part Seven

Blogging, Facebook, LinkedIn, Marketing, Public Relations, Social Media, Twitter, YouTube
7. Overcome the social media "dip." A common mistake made by many business folks is to think that social media will be an instant cure for what ails their traditional marketing activities. And while in many cases it can and will have an overwhelmingly positive effect on an organization’s ability to connect with its constituency, it’s not a panacea for an inferior product, poor PR, inept communications or a lackluster brand. The truth is that it’s a long and winding road to social media success. And as anyone who’s been blogging, tweeting and the like for a long time knows, it’s often an uphill climb, too. But if you can tough it out – listening, creating, engaging and opening up to others – for an indefinite period of time, making sure…
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01Mar 2010 by Bob Cargill

From the Twitterverse to Twitter In-Person

Social Media, Twitter
The following guest post was written by Kristin Dziadul, a recent Graduate of Western New England College who already has her own blog, YouTube channel, Twitter account and a large network of friends in social media, including myself. The idea for this guest blog post all stemmed from this direct message that I received from Bob Cargill on Twitter... Kristin, I signed up for this event tonight -- http://soxup.eventbrite.com. Check it out. Maybe we could meet up for a chat there. -- Bob (11:14 PM Feb 3rd) Bob and I then kept in touch purely via Twitter up to the day of the event on February 25, while also finding other people on Twitter who would be in attendance simply by using the Twitter hashtag, #soxup. Yes, the nature of networking has…
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