The Engaging Brand

Show #222 - Obama Leadership and Community Lessons

Show 222 of The Engaging Brand leadership and marketing podcast is ready just for you. To subscribe or listen on your PC now - both for free, you don't need to download anything - all explained at the end of the post and don't forget to try GoToMeeting for your 30 day free trial!

Today I talk Barry Libert of Mzinga who is a pioneer in using communities, web 2.0 technologies to help businesses grow. He has just written a book on Winning Business Lessons of the Obama Campaign and we talk about

• Insights into the leadership style of Barack Obama
• How Obama copes with pressure
• The need to perfect your leadership style
• The importance of empathy and personal leadership
• How to keep in touch with how people are feeling
• The importance of creating a talented team
• How to create an engaged community that will sell the message for you
• Did the internet cause change or was it a way of demonstrating change?
• How the community communication was about building relationships not a pure communication tool
• How Obama used mobile technology
• The idea of customer managed relationships
• The importance of bridging between the past and the future in your communications

If you have feedback for me on the show or topics that you would like me to cover then e-mail me at anna@theengagingbrand.com or join me on twitter !

How you can listen to the Engaging Brand

1) You can listen on your PC now without downloading any software just click here to hear the latest podcast and it will take you to the latest podcast. Then press the play button!

2) You can subscribe to the show via iTunes or

3) If you use a different podcatcher then you can subscribe using the following  http://www.podcasternews.com/feeds/enbr.xml

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Could you build a company on Twitter?

I love twitter, not because it is the best social media tool per se but because it suits my personality...informal, creative, sharing, connecting. As I was driving to a workshop today to deliver a session on how to creatively communicate on the web, I wondered whether you could build a company on twitter?

When you think about how the world is changing surely it won't be long before we could move to a business model purely run through twitter......or maybe there is a company out there. Think of the benefits both internally and externally

• Immediate interaction with customers and employees alike
• Ease of communication
• Working from anywhere
• The ability to express the personality of your brand
• Makes business communication both internally and externally short and to the point...
• Collaboration would be talent based not location based

Mmmm....

Many Happy Engaging Brand Returns

Yesterday was my birthday and it really was a wonderful day. Why? Of course because of my friends and family but also because of all the well wishes that I received via social media. Often people talk about 'real' friends and virtual friends and yes in a way there is a difference but yesterday taught me

1. The power of reaching out and saying that you care
2. The power of the web in connecting people
3. The power of community and the feeling of belonging
4. The power of words  - words can light up even the darkest hour.
5. The power of ensuring that each person never feels alone
6. The power of people. The web is powerful because of the people not because of the technology.
7. It can take a second out of your day, to 'make the day' of someone else

Thank you to one and all for showing me that power and I hope that if there is a lesson in having YET another birthday - gosh they are coming fast now! - it is this...don't wait for birthday's to make someone's day, every day is special, every person is special....and in our words we can make that connection.

Show #221 - Free Market Madness

Show 221 of The Engaging Brand leadership and marketing podcast is ready just for you. To subscribe or listen on your PC now - both for free, you don't need to download anything - all explained at the end of the post and don't forget to try GoToMeeting for your 30 day free trial!

Today I talk with Peter Ubel about Free Market Madness, his new business book which looks at both the economics and the behaviourial aspects of free markets. I ask Peter

• Whether free markets are still great in concept, despite the flaws.
• What are the illogical forces that affect human behaviours
• The importance of helping people with the choices they face.
• How rational sides can win over the irrational sides of our personality
• Is there a danger of the economic crisis preventing free markets in the future?
• What do you need to develop to be able to prioritise better?
• The ability to draw motivation from each other
• Scarcity, novelty and price - the 3 factors that affect consumer purchasing decisions.
• How regular small gains are better than one big gains.
• Which promotional sales strategies work better - small and often or big and infrequent?
• The importance of unpredictability in consumer happiness

If you have feedback for me on the show or topics that you would like me to cover then e-mail me at anna@theengagingbrand.com or join me on twitter !

How you can listen to the Engaging Brand

1) You can listen on your PC now without downloading any software just click here to hear the latest podcast and it will take you to the latest podcast. Then press the play button!

2) You can subscribe to the show via iTunes or

3) If you use a different podcatcher then you can subscribe using the following  http://www.podcasternews.com/feeds/enbr.xml

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The Secret to Happiness....

Over at Widows Quest which is another personal blog that I write, I told a story of how I met a wise old lady on the bus today. In this harsh economic crisis I thought I would cross post it here, as it had a profound effect on me ...Though I cannot remember word for word it went something along the lines of...

“The trouble with the world is that people are looking for happiness, as though it a tangible object that you will stumble across one day. With age I have found that happiness cannot be found, it starts weaving into your life like an unknown stranger when you stop looking for it. Happiness isn’t some…thing, happiness is a way of looking at the world. Happiness comes to people who see the world in all its glory, happiness comes when you enjoy what you have rather than what you haven’t got at that moment.

The secret my dear is not looking for happiness but embracing what is right in front of you”

Wow, that had such a profound impact on me. Why? Because happiness was meeting her, happiness was that moment of sharing, that moment of connection.

Happiness is there when we just take the time to recognise it.

Does your brand stand for some-thing or something?

I held a workshop last weekend when we were talking about strategy. We started to discuss what the brands stood for - if you haven't listened to The Engaging Brand podcast with Roy Spence, that was an excellent insight into what brands stand for by the way! - and I was amazed by the words that people were using from all sorts of industries. Words like

Reliability
Quality
Customer Service

What! I asked them if they would be in business if these words were not present within their business...the answer a resounding NO! So if that is what your brand stands for...then you are in trouble to demand a premium and a loyalty from your customers.

Reliability, quality, customer service are all givens in todays business world, if they are all you stand for then you will compete purely on price...downward prices at that.

Questions to ask to get to the true deep differentiating factors of your brand are

1. In what sense?
2. Why? Why? Why? and keep repeating until you get to the core of what you mean.
3. What was the passion behind starting the company?

These are great phrases to use with your teams...If the same words can be used in any company than see this as a sign that you really need to understand together within your team...what makes you so special that talent wants to join you...that consumers want to buy from you....that suppliers want to work with you.

Be simple! The business world needs more simple people...

I was 14 and went home after school after getting a bad mark in a test. I put on my gloomy face and Dad asked what was wrong.

I said that I felt simple...that I felt stupid. He put his arm around me and said

"Fantastic news, Anna. I always wanted you to go into business and now...now that you are "simple" you are perfect!"

"What on earth are you talking about, Dad?" I asked with a quizzical look on my face

"Life is simple. Business is simple. You sell at greater than your cost, a product that people want. The only complex bit is keeping the human beings running the company, at this simple level.

You need to see simple solutions to complex issues, treat people with simple, straightforward human values, you need simple messages for consumers to understand, you need simple processes for efficiency, what a business needs are 'simple leaders who ask the simple questions to find a simple solution'...you are prime for a leadership role!"

I look back now and smile. At the time I thought he was mad as a hatter...now I realise that the essence of a brand lies in its simplicity, the essence of a leader lies in their ability to see simplicity, the essence of success is doing the simple things right. You see business truly is...simple.

It is us human beings that make it so complicated...just ask the banking sector if you don't believe me :)

Show #220 - 10 Golden Rules of B2B Social Media Marketing Pt2

Show 220 of The Engaging Brand leadership and marketing podcast is ready just for you. To subscribe or listen on your PC now - both for free, you don't need to download anything - all explained at the end of the post and don't forget to try GoToMeeting for your 30 day free trial!

This is the second part of the interview with Jay Berkowitz of Ten Golden Rules Internet Marketing company and if you haven't listened to his podcast of the same name it is well worth checking out - here is the link to the Ten Golden Internet Marketing podcast.

This podcast is in response to a listener asking "Is social media relevant in a B2B marketing context?" For the first 4 social media rules then listen to Part 1 of The Engaging Brand podcast - Show 219.

Today we talk about the next 6 rules which are

1. How podcasting or podcast sponsorship can help your business.
2. Promoting your products and services strategy. Jay mentions David Meerman Scott - here is a link to an interview I did with David on New Rules of Marketing and PR. I also had a conversation with David on Creating Breakthrough Ideas for your consumers
3. How to use search marketing
4. Web optimised public relations
5. Subscription marketing
6. Ratings and reviews and how it can help build business

During the discussion we wondered whether marketing is different B2B and B2C? Here are my thoughts - would love to hear your thoughts.

If you have feedback for me on the show or topics that you would like me to cover then e-mail me at anna@theengagingbrand.com or join me on twitter !

How you can listen to the Engaging Brand

1) You can listen on your PC now without downloading any software just click here to hear the latest podcast and it will take you to the latest podcast. Then press the play button!

2) You can subscribe to the show via iTunes or

3) If you use a different podcatcher then you can subscribe using the following  http://www.podcasternews.com/feeds/enbr.xml

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Show #219 - 10 Golden Rules of B2B Social Media Marketing Pt1

Show 219 of The Engaging Brand leadership and marketing podcast is ready just for you. To subscribe or listen on your PC now - both for free, you don't need to download anything - all explained at the end of the post and don't forget to try GoToMeeting for your 30 day free trial!

Today I interview Jay Berkowitz of Ten Golden Rules Internet Marketing company and if you haven't listened to his podcast of the same name it is well worth checking out - here is the link to the Ten Golden Internet Marketing podcast.

This podcast is in response to a listener asking "Is social media relevant in a B2B marketing context?" Jay gives us 10 golden rules and this podcast is the first 4 rules...watch out tomorrow for Part 2!

Today we talk about

1. Is social media relevant to B2B marketing?
2. The importance of great social media content.
3. How to generate revenue from your business blog
4. The marketing concept of microselling and how it can generate business for you. Jay uses Woot as an example of this marketing strategy.
5. Customer service as the new marketing

In part 2 we talk about product promotion, search marketing, web optimised public relations, podcasting, subscription marketing and the important role of ratings/reviews. If you don't want to miss out you can subscribe to the show which is described below.

During our discussion we wondered whether marketing is different B2B and B2C? Here are my thoughts - would love to hear your thoughts.

If you have feedback for me on the show or topics that you would like me to cover then e-mail me at anna@theengagingbrand.com or join me on twitter !

How you can listen to the Engaging Brand

1) You can listen on your PC now without downloading any software just click here to hear the latest podcast and it will take you to the latest podcast. Then press the play button!

2) You can subscribe to the show via iTunes or

3) If you use a different podcatcher then you can subscribe using the following  http://www.podcasternews.com/feeds/enbr.xml

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Is there a difference between B2B and B2C Marketing Strategies?

Last night I was interviewing Jay Berkowitz from the wonderful 10 Golden Rules Internet Marketing Strategy podcast and blog about whether social media is as relevant for B2B as well as B2C - I will put the interview up tomorrow which you can find at The Engaging Brand podcast site.

During our discussion I started to wonder whether B2B marketing is any different to B2C ? Should there even be a division in the brave new marketing world? Or do we just need to think of connecting with individuals ?

Here are some thoughts about why I don't think B2B is any different from a marketing strategy point of view

• Buyers are individuals, individuals rely on friends recommendations. Is there really any difference between connecting with a buyer than a consumer? They are both individuals connecting with individuals.
• B2B contracts are often negotiated from networking. Social media is a great tool for networking.
• You don't market business to business. You market seller to buyer. It is still a personal connection which can be enhanced by social media.
• Business to business is often based on relationship marketing through business partnerships - just like B2C marketing?
• Whether you are selling widgets or trainers you need to differentiate, you need to create value, you need to create a reason for someone to buy from you. Social media is a differentiating tool.
• Although businesses in some industries are slow at taking up social media tools, the individuals themselves are often using social media at home. If you can create value within your industry, then you can still connect with the influencer's of the buying decisions and create brand awareness.
• If you think of how business to business marketing often operates - catalogs, price lists, direct mail - they are all deliverable at a much more effective cost on the internet. Imagine having a deal of the day in recessionary times for reams of paper for instance, that is delivered straight to the buyers inbox via RSS.
• Key to both true "consumers" and "buyers within businesses" is changing behaviour - education re RSS, education of tools such as wiki's. The barrier is the same for both areas, they are similar not different ?

So what do you think? Do you think the old way of distinguishing between B2B and B2C is over?
Or do you think that they are different - would love to hear your views and I think Jay will be posting his thoughts over at his blog today.