MackCollier.com

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Content Marketing World Review – The Bar Has Been Raised

At least a dozen times this week in Cleveland someone remarked to me that they could not believe that this was the first Content Marketing World.  The event was exceptionally well run and executed.  Then in the final goodbyes, Joe thanked his CMI team for ELEVEN months of work on the conference.

And it definitely showed.  The event boasted THREE keynotes that most other branding/marketing/social media conferences would have loved to have on its agenda.  Add in an opening reception at the Rock N Rock Hall of Fame (with a LIVE #Blogchat) and a closing keynote by Kevin Smith (yes, @ThatKevinSmith), and you’ve got the recipe for a truly memorable conference.

Another thing that really struck me was how polished the speakers were.  As a speaker myself, I can tell when another isn’t prepared.  Every speaker was ready, in fact the conference kicked off with Sally Hogshead and literally as soon as she walked on stage, she jumped right into presentation.  The delivery from the speakers as a whole was exceptional, and coupled with the presentation, it really made you feel like you were at a $1,000 conference.  It really felt like a more prestigious experience.

Another thing that struck me was how few attendees left during the second day.  Normally for a 2 or 3 day conference, on the final day you’ll see attendees leaving throughout the day to catch flights home.  Normally by the end of the final day, up to half of the attendees are already gone at most events.  On Thursday I ‘hosted’ the social media track, so I attended 4 sessions from morning to afternoon.  There were over 200 attendees in each of the 1st three sessions, and probably 175 in the final one.  That is truly the litmus test of how valuable attendees perceive a conference to be, and the majority of the attendees stayed until the very end.  And making Kevin Smith your closing keynote is another good way to encourage people to stick around!

Finally, the event kicked off with an opening reception at the Rock N Roll Hall of Fame.  This was a genius move on the part of CMI.  One of the aspects of a great conference is that it has a lot of networking opportunities and chances for the attendees to connect with each other.  Now let’s be honest, networking with strangers isn’t always the most exciting way to spend a few hours.  So to make this process a lot earlier, why not hold the event at a  venue that people WANT to be at?  Like say, giving your attendees total access to the multi-floor Rock N Roll Hall of Fame?

And I would be completely remiss if I did not tell y’all about the wonderful Live #Blogchat we had as part of the opening reception at the Rock Hall (Thanks again to ON24 for sponsoring!.  We had another fabulous discussion, even though most of us were meeting for the first time at the event.  I keep telling event organizers, but it’s amazing how attendees respond when you put them in an environment where THEY are the stars of the show.  Everyone wants to be heard and to have a chance to participate, and that’s why #Blogchat Live works.  Thanks so much to everyone that came!

Thanks again to all the team at Content Marketing Institute for a truly amazing event, can’t wait for 2012!

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#Blogchat this Sunday Co-Hosted by @SheilaS & @BeckyMcCray!

We have a special treat in store for this Sunday as we’ll be joined by TWO co-hosts!  Sheila Scarborough and Becky McCray from TourismCurrents will both join us and help us discuss how bloggers can connect with companies and vice versa.

We’ll be discussing two many areas:

1 – How do bloggers that have publishing and content-creation skills find companies and organizations that are looking to hire them?  And when they do find the companies, how do bloggers pitch themselves?

2 – How do companies and organizations that want to hire content creators find them AND how do they vet their skills?  Also, how do they determine an acceptable compensation rate?

 

And as always, #Blogchat will start at 8pm Central on Sunday night, with ‘tailgating’ starting at 7pm as always!  Please follow Becky, Sheila and Tourism Currents in preparation for this Sunday, and cause they rock!

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What story does your content tell about you?

You can learn a lot about someone and how they use social media by the content they create.  Pick a blog, any blog, and look at the last 10 posts.  Is the content instructional?  Inspirational?  Self-promotional?  Educational?  All of the above?

The same thing applies to companies, and that will be the topic of the LIVE #Blogchat on Tuesday at Content Marketing World (Did I mention it’s at the Rock N Roll Hall of Fame?).  We’ll be talking about companies can tell their story via the content they create on their blog.

One company that I think does a fabulous job of telling its story via the content it creates on its blog is Patagonia:

With The Cleanest Line, Patagonia does a fabulous job of creating content that isn’t focused on the company and its products, but rather the ideals and beliefs that are core to it, and its customers.  It’s a wonderful example of focusing on The Bigger Idea.

From The Cleanest Line’s About Page:

Build the best product, do no unnecessary harm, use business to inspire and implement solutions to the environmental crisis.
– Patagonia’s Mission Statement

The goal of The Cleanest Line is to further Patagonia’s mission by encouraging dialogue about the products we build, the sports we love and the environmental issues we’re concerned about. By talking openly about the products we build, Patagonia users can help us achieve ever greater standards of quality and functionality. By spreading the word about specific environmental issues, we can increase awareness and take action as quickly as possible. By sharing field reports, we can inspire one another to keep experiencing the natural wonders of our precious planet. And like any good conversation, there’s always the possibility for pranksters and poets to direct the conversation towards territories lacking any seriousness whatsoever.

Patagonia is clear to let the readers know that the content it creates will be focused on issues larger than simply its products.  In fact, most of the content is focused on environmental and wildlife stories and issues that are important to the company, and its customers.  And by taking this approach, I think it also makes the content being created far more interesting.

Look at your company blog; what story are you telling?  Which company blogs create posts that you actually ENJOY reading?

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Thank you, Trey

Social South was held in Birmingham in 2009, and it will always be a very special event to me, for many reasons.  One of which was that it was where I got to meet Trey Pennington.  I remember Trey attended my session ‘What Rockstars Can Teach You About Kicking Ass With Social Media’, and he tweeted to Collective Soul that I mentioned them in my deck as a case study.  And five minutes later, the band tweeted back to both of us!

The next time I met Trey was in Greenville last year at Brains on Fire’s F.I.R.E. Sessions.  To be completely honest, I started not to go to this event.  As an introvert, I am very uncomfortable when I’m in a room full of people that I don’t know.  There was a pre-event networking event the night before it started and sure enough, I knew no one there other than Robbin and Geno.  I honestly did NOT want to be there, but after a while Trey arrived, and we started chatting.  I think he must have noticed how uncomfortable I was because he said ‘Here, let’s introduce you to a few people’, and then he went around the room introducing me to a few of the many people he knew there.  It was a very kind gesture that helped put me at ease and made the entire event much more enjoyable from that point forward.

I’ve spent a lot of time reflecting on these two meetings with Trey today, because earlier this morning I found out that Trey took his own life.  I won’t claim to have any idea of what issues Trey was facing, because I really didn’t know Trey, and he really didn’t know me.  But despite this, during both our meetings, Trey went out of his way to help me and to attempt to improve my situation.

As I was reading the outpouring of response to Trey’s death on Sunday, I learned that my experiences with Trey were completely typical.  Trey simply went out of his way to give to others, and to spread kindness to them.  He left people in a better place than where he found them.

Goodbye, Trey.  Thanks for being kind, compassionate, a fellow Crimson Tide fan, and an inspiration.  I’m sorry we didn’t get to spend more time together, but I am a better person for the time we did share.

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#Blogchat will be LIVE at Blog World Expo in Los Angeles!

Whenever I announce on Twitter a new Live #Blogchat, a few people always have the same response: “But when are you coming to the West Coast?!?”

This November.  In Los Angeles.  At Blog World Expo! 

I am beyond excited about this announcement, as this is the conference that EVERY blogger wants to attend.  It’s our Super Bowl, and I cannot wait to see #Blogchat become a part of it.  We are still fleshing out some of the details, so I will be talking more about the Live #Blogchat at Blog World Expo here in the coming weeks.

For now, please go over to the Blog World Expo site, and check out Deb’s post on it, and also, you can vote on the topic you want for #Blogchat!  We’ve given you 5 options so pick your favorite topic, and that might be what we discuss when #Blogchat comes to Blog World Expo!

Finally, Blog World Expo has given us a special discount code for registration!  Use code BLOGCHAT20 to get a 20% discount on a conference pass!  As you might expect with Blog World, the speaker lineup will be the Whos-Who of this space, with Amber Naslund, Peter Shankman, Liz Strauss, Jason Falls, C.C. Chapman and David Armano some of the people that have already been confirmed.  It’s Blog World, you know it’s going to be huge 😉

Cannot wait to see y’all in a couple of months.  If you’d like to see a full schedule of where #Blogchat Live will be around the country, click here.

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If you want to be a great blogger, you have to develop your blogging voice

Last night during #Blogchat I asked my friends what was the ONE thing they believed made a blog great.  The vast majority of the answers were associated with content.  Creating amazingly, great, valuable content.

I disagree.  In my mind if you want to be a successful blogger, here’s the secret: You have to believe that you have a voice worth sharing.

A few weeks ago I went back and read some of the very first blog posts I ever wrote, almost 6 years ago.  I literally cringed at some of the logic I used, the points I was trying to make.  A lot of it was wrong, but the thing about it is, I wrote from a place of conviction.  I believed that I was right, and that I deserved to be heard.  And as a result, people responded to what I wrote.

People want to read bloggers that are passionate about their ideas, that believe in what they are saying.  For example, one of the common worry issues for bloggers is the idea of blogging about a topic that ‘everyone else has already covered’.  Or blogging about the ‘hot topic of the moment’.

How many times have you read a blogger mention a topic that other bloggers have covered, and just link to those bloggers and add ‘check them out’.  Ummmm…..no.  We don’t want that, we want to hear what YOU have to say about this same topic.  Don’t just point us toward those amazing blog posts, if they are truly amazing, then we’ve probably already read them anyway.  Your job is to tell us what YOU think.

“But what if someone says my post stinks?”

Then you know you are REACHING people.  Not everyone is going to agree with your ideas.  In fact you WANT some people to disagree with your position.  That’s how you learn, by looking at different angles to the same topic.

You have a blogging voice that deserves to be heard.  Even if only one person reads your blog.  We all want to feel good about the content we create on our blogs, and we all want to feel like we are making a difference and connecting with others.  How can you truly connect with anyone if you don’t put yourself and your opinions out there?

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Facebook ‘Fans’ are NOT the same thing as Brand Advocates

I was having a discussion on Twitter the other night and we were discussing a brand’s fans.  A passion topic of mine, but after a few minutes I realized something: The other person was talking about FACEBOOK fans, I was talking about Brand Advocates.

They are completely different groups.  That’s not to say that someone that Fans your Facebook Page can’t also be an advocate, but we know that the top reason people Fan a Facebook page, is to get discounts.  Brand Advocates aren’t looking for compensation or incentives in most cases, they want acknowledge and empowerment.

Yet I fear that Social Media in some ways is corrupting how brands view its customers.  We are teaching companies that ‘Fans’ on Facebook are something to be collected like baseball cards, and that they should target ‘influencers’ like bloggers and power Twitter users.

Brand Advocates are special customers that are motivated by a love of your brand and a desire to make sure that everyone else sees your brand in the same light that they do.  The amount of motivation that a Facebook Fan has for your brand is usually directly proportional to the value of the ‘prize’ they receive from Fanning your page.

Which would you rather have?

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The three blogs we’ll be reviewing tonight at #Blogchat are…

Thanks again to everyone that submitted their blogs for review.  Here’s the three that we’ll be reviewing, starting at 8:00 PM Central, Sunday (the 21st).

1 – Campfire Song Thanks to Lindseyfor submitting her blog, we’ll review it from 8:00-8:20 PM Central:

Here’s Lindsey’s feedback for us:

“I blog at http://campfire-song.com. I’m targeting women in the 25-35 age range, probably with kids. (Mommy blogger?)

I’m interested in a review of

1. post titles

2. effectiveness of a blog on WP.com vs. WP.org (I’m considering a switch in the near future to self-hosted with a custom template)

3. info/widgets (i.e. sharing buttons) etc. that I should remove or add to enhance the look and usefulness of my blog”

Also, please follow Lindsey on Twitter.  We will review Campfire Song from 8:00-8:20 PM Central on Sunday the 21st.

 

2 – Patrick’s Place.  Thanks to Patrick for submitting his blog, we’ll review it from 8:20-8:40 PM Central on Sunday the 21st.

Here’s Patrick’s feedback for us:

“My blog is “Patrick’s Place,” at http://www.patrickkphillips.com. I’ve been blogging for about seven years now, and I’m trying to build a larger audience. My key topics are television, politics and religion and my audience tends to be adults 30+. I’m looking for feedback about the presentation and how easy it is to find those key topics, as well as tips for better interaction and SEO. Thanks for considering me.”

Also please follow Patrick on Twitter.  We will review Patrick’s Place from 8:20-8:40PM Central, on Sunday the 21st.

3 – Poet on Poetry. Thanks to Sheree for submitting her blog.  We’ll be reviewing Poet on Poetry from 8:40-9:00pm Central.

Here’s Sheree’s feedback for us:

“I’d like my nonprofit blog reviewed. It is 4 months old and has had good traffic (over 25k views from 77 countries) but it I would like to evalaute

1. How to increase that traffic
2. Why I am not getting more followers
3. Why I am not getting more comments.

Thank you for this opportunity. My blog is ar http://poetonpoetry.blogspot.com I write for poets and poetry lovers. I started the blog as a place to promote my own poetry book once i have one but it seems to have mushroomed rather quickly into more. I enjoy promoting other poets. I would like to explore being able yo make money from the blog.”

Also, please follow Sheree on Twitter.  We will review Poet on Poetry from 8:40-9:00pm Central on Sunday the 21st.

Thanks to everyone that submitted their blog, and if yours wasn’t picked, please submit it again next month!  See everyone tomorrow night!

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Get your blog reviewed during #Blogchat! – August

It’s that time again!  Once a month we review the blogs from 3 participants during #Blogchat, and we’ll be doing it again this Sunday!  The idea is that you get a ‘fresh set of eyes’ to look at your blog and give you some ideas and pointers on what you’re doing.

So if you’ve just launched your blog, and maybe you want some feedback on the visual look of it, we could help you!  Or if you want some advice on the type of content you are creating, etc, let us know!  If you want your blog to be considered for one of the THREE review slots at the next #Blogchat then leave a comment to this post giving us the URL of your blog, and exactly what you are concerned with and the areas you want feedback on.  If you want to know what everyone thinks of the information on your sidebars, let us know that.  If you want to know what you should be writing about, tell us who you are trying to connect with.  If you want feedback on your post titles, let us know.

Again, if you want to have your blog be eligible for being reviewed, please LEAVE A COMMENT to this post and please give us as much information as possible about what we should be looking at on your blog.  Please don’t just say ‘I would like to have my blog reviewed, thanks!”  Give us 2-3 things we should be giving you advice on, and please tell us WHO you are writing your blog for, and what its focus is.

That’s it!  I’ll select the 3 blogs that will be reviewed and have that post up by Saturday.  Good luck!

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Should Social Media/Marketing Consultants List Their Prices?

I am totally piggybacking on Marcus’ post over at Spin Sucks, but this is a question I have been pondering for a LONG time.

The two most popular posts so far this year (by a mile) are this post on How Much Social Media Costs in 2011, and this one on How Much Social Media Costs in 2010.  Also, three of the top 7 keywords that send search traffic to this blog are associated with the price of social media services.  So I only have to look at my Google Analytics to tell that there is a HUGE interest in the price of social media services.

And yet, most social media and/or marketing consultants don’t list their prices.  Or if they do, this information is usually buried on their site, in doing research for both of the above posts on the price of social media services, I found several ‘name’ consultants that did have prices for their services, but it was like hunting on their site for a needle in a haystack to find the numbers.  It seems that the few consultants that do quote prices are quoting prices that are so far and above what most of their peers charge that it seems to simply draw ridicule from their peers.  Which might be the plan, cause it also draws a lot of attention to their prices!

I did start listing prices for my Social Media Strategy and Blogging Strategy Audits, but that’s really all I have solid prices down for.  And I also offer a Satisfaction guarantee on both, which is something else I am experimenting with.

But really I want to know what y’all think about this issue.  And I can completely see both sides:  I can see why it would be better to list prices, but I can also see why it would be hard/impossible to quote exact prices for some services.  And to further stump me, I have very good friends and business professionals that have told me I should absolutely list my prices, and others that tell me I absolutely should not!

What do you think?  Should every consultant/agency list prices for their services, or nothing?  If you are a consultant or work for an agency, what’s your policy?

Should consultants list what they charge for social media and marketing services on their site?  Yes or no?