Spence Smith

Now that I’m walking into being a stepfather, I’ve been noticing a few things about me that I need to shore up. You see, I’m feeling the need, want and desire to be a much better example to these two incredible kids whose lives I get to be apart of. Not just in the real world we live in but the the virtual world as well.

I don’t want them to be embarrassed of my online presence and I want to set the right example for their online presence as well.

I’ve never known what it is to be a parent. I love kids and I love these two kids the most. I look forward to every day I get to be with them because I know I’m always going to experience something funny with them or get surprised with some sweet moments of just being together. We have those moments together where they ask questions and want real answers and there are those moments when I get to ask them questions… to get them thinking a little bit.

As I walk along side these little lives, I’m noticing something…

For all you parents out there, I know you know what I’m about to say…

These kids notice everything. Even the things I don’t think they notice… they notice. It’s eye opening for me, but also a great reminder of the man I need to be… and also the man I want to be.

So, as I have been stepping up things, I’ve been going through my life… like re-arranging my closet so that I know what I have in me that needs to stay or go away. Again… A little eye-opening for me. I’m not single anymore and I can’t live like I’m the only one I answer too. It’s amazing how much has changed in this part of my life in the past two months.

One of the big things I’m paying attention to these days is the example I set for them online.

They are on Facebook with their friends. They sit down and watch YouTube just as much or more than they turn on the TV. They are engaged in community with their family and friends online… and they see what I do, what I say… and ultimately how I live my life… even online.

If the kids are paying attention to what I’m putting out on twitter or facebook, then I figure others are as well right? So, some of the things I used to throw out there won’t be coming out in my twitter stream or showing up on facebook like they once did.

The changes will be subtle and some of you might not even notice, but I will… and so will the kids.

I think it’s important for the online world to be a place where people learn from others and are encouraged to move forward in life. Not a place to bully people. It’s not a place to air out our anger against others or to bring someone down in a 140 character statement or a blog post. I don’t want these kids thinking it’s ok to do that or that it’s even productive for anyone. Honestly, I think when people bring others down online, it’s a selfish move. I’ve seen it happen in these kids lives with their friends and it was devastating, but also an important time teach them how to be with their friends online and how to handle them in real life.

How about you? How do you view your example online and where do you draw the line?

When I first got into blogging, I found the whole experience to be fascinating. I couldn’t believe I could write about anything I wanted and that other people would randomly find it online using searchable words on Google. Then they would actually read and comment. I know, it must sound a little geeky for some of you but for me… it was a new frontier to be conquered.

So I started blogging… almost every day.

In 2007, I joined Twitter and my online life went to another level. The experience, again, was fascinating and I immediately saw the vast opportunity to connect and engage with people on a whole new level. At first, myself and my close friends who started on twitter in 2007 were made fun of and joked about around casual conversations by people who weren’t on twitter … YET … and didn’t understand at all what it’s potential was.
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Google has long been considered the mac-daddy of all things Internet and Search Engine. “Just Google it”… and you can learn about anything you want. It’s why a few years ago Google changed their search engine to scan more blogs for updated and current content than traditional websites.

The most recent content (opinion, news, tweets, etc.) wins. But wins even more if the site posting the content has a good history of posting fresh and updated content. It’s one way we teach clients how to get on the first page of Google.

So if people are searching for an answer. They are searching for answers from trusted sources. It’s in these answers where content becomes King… and who can you trust more than a friend to give you an answer?

A friend you are connected with on facebook or twitter maybe?

Not sure about a movie you want to go see? You can read people’s opinion on twitter or maybe a review they wrote and posted on facebook via twitter… which probably is on their blog somewhere.

What made you become a raving fan of Mumford & Sons? Was it seeing their name pop up in tweets on a regular occasion? Did one of your friends post a picture from their concert or a youtube video posted on a facebook wall? Did someone you like say… ‘OMG!!!! Mumford & Sons freaking rock!!!!’

This is why Facebook and Twitter ARE The Social Search Engine. At anytime I can ask a question and get a very real answer and opinion. Not that blogs or static sites don’t have the answer from a Google search, but ask a question on Twitter or Facebook and the answer will come very quickly.

In fact, Google believes this is very important. Why? Just Google something and after your results come up on the google page, look to the left of the screen and click the Realtime link. There you will see a combined feed of real time content (mostly twitter) where people are talking about what you Googled. Make sense?

The bottom line is this.

Influence comes in many forms and from many sources.

And nothing says influence like word of mouth from a trusted source… a friend on Twitter or Facebook.

How does Twitter or Facebook influence you?

When I engage someone in conversation, I’m expecting to have a… conversation. I say something… the other person responds… I say something again… the other person responds… you get the picture. Sometimes if a person is a master of conversation, I will hear… WOW so-and-so is such an engaging person; I love how they bring me right into conversation!

Engaging people online is much the same way. As much as I’m into teaching people to engage others online, I had to check myself. Am I really engaging people online or am I throwing out thoughts as a monologue and not creating dialogue?

To engage people online ultimately comes down to being willing to have conversation online.

Write a post, get a comment, writer responds to comment. If the conversation needs to continue in that forum, then it does.

Tweet out a message, someone @reply’s to your message, you reply back… and the conversation continues.

Post something on facebook, someone ‘likes’ it or leaves a comment, you reply back… and the conversation continues.

If you want to engage people online, YOU HAVE to be engaging. YOU HAVE to reply and comment back. Even if it’s to just say thanks.

This experience is a two-way street. If you have an online presence and you aren’t taking these steps to engage people (your clients, fans or friends)… then you are missing the point entirely and missing out on a better online experience… and potentially missing out on making a sale or a deeper connection to a better customer service experience for your company or brand.

So lets review:

Reply to comments on your blog. As many of them as you can. I try to reply to all comments these days. Intense Debate or Disqus are great plugins for this. You can replay back right from email.

Reply to comments on twitter. It doesn’t matter if it is an @reply to you or something you see in your stream. Reply.

Reply to comments on facebook. Again, reply back to as many as possible.

Oh… and one more thing. Commenting on other people’s blogs, twitter messages and things they post on facebook is a pretty good idea as well… when you can of course. Get the picture?

Question: How important is engaging others online to you? How does it make you feel? What results are you seeing for experience?

Sometimes I get so much on my plate I don’t know what to tackle first and I feel overwhelmed.

Have you been there?

When I’m advising people on how to beef up their online presence, they tell me the same thing… This feels overwhelming, where do I start?

The first thing we talk about is taking care of the Low Hanging Fruit.

What is low hanging fruit?

WiseGeek.com says this..

“We have Mother Nature to thank for the expression low hanging fruit. A fruit-bearing tree often contains some branches low enough for animals and humans to reach without much effort. The fruit contained on these lower branches may be not be as ripe or attractive as the fruit on higher limbs, but it is usually more abundant and easier to harvest. From this we get the popular expression “low hanging fruit“, which generally means selecting the easiest targets with the least amount of effort.”

Practically speaking… “set a number of easily attainable goals, essentially low hanging fruit, and accomplish them with minimal effort.”

This is generally how I find my way to the big tasks that are going to take a little more time and energy to accomplish.

When I feel overwhelmed I need to step back and evaluate what’s in front of me and realize what my end goal should be.

For example: How do I envision my presence online? What do I want people to do when they visit my site? Then I look at the easiest tasks to accomplish and do those tasks first.

This clears the plate, so to speak, so I can make time for the bigger stuff. Designing the site, setting up SEO (keywords & description) or Google Analytics. Creating content for my site… You get the picture?

In principle, this works in business life and personal life. It’s like the cliff-note version of problem solving. Mapping things out so you take the easiest route to your destination.

Low hanging fruit for your online presence?

Here’s one thing to get you started… (Believe me, there are several low hanging fruits to go after when beefing up your online presence.)

Be consistent with your brand name. For me, my brand is SpenceSmith. Every one of my online profiles center around my name.

SpenceSmith.com

Facebook.com/SpenceSmith

Twitter.com/SpenceSmith

linkedin.com/in/SpenceSmith

SpenceSmith.posterous.com

foodspotting.com/SpenceSmith

dailymile.com/SpenceSmith

Make sense? Sometimes accomplishing the smallest task can ease the most amount of pressure.

It’s a good place to start before you dive into building that cool new site. You can already be engaging people on these social networks while building your new site.

When you feel overwhelmed or don’t know where to start, how do you take care of the low hanging fruit? Or do you?

If you are brand new to the internet and have no idea what it means to have a presence online or maybe you already have a presence online but you haven’t figured out how to make it really work for yourself or you business, then come spend the day with Randy Elrod and I at LifeWork 2.0 Seminar on Saturday, January 9,2010.

We will show you how to start a blog, use social networking sites like Facebook, build a following on Twitter and make it all work together in a way that doesn’t take up every minute of every day of your life, but just becomes one part of life while driving traffic to your brand and increasing loyalty among your clients, customers and fans.

If you are a CEO and you want to learn how to bring employees into your world, put a better face on your company and lead the charge into the new business model of the digital world, then come let us show you how to build a better experience for everyone in your sphere of influence.

If you are a business looking to build a more loyal customer base, we will teach you how to create a conversation with them and get the kind of feedback that gives you the ability to go to the next level in your business.

If you are an artist or author looking to build a larger fan base that is truly interacting with you, we will show you the how to build a strong fan base through authenticity, transparency and conversation.

If you are a leader in the church and you want to learn who to grow your congregation though the internet, we will show you how use blogging and social networking to create an atmosphere that brings people into the life of the church.

If you are a mom who has something to share and wants to be more involved in the mom blog community, we will show you how to get started and build a fun network around you.

We will also give you the behind-the-scenes tools to use Search Engine Optimization to bring traffic to your site without having to pay a dime for a sponsored link or ad.

All of this in one day as we show you how to manage your online reputation. Did you know you have a reputation online? The question is Who is leading the conversation? You or someone else? We will show you how to lead the conversation and rule your online world.

Its a fun day and it’s packed full of useful information. We hope you will join us.

So if you want to sign up… just click HERE for registration and more info or click on the LifeWork banner in my side bar.

One of my favorite things in life is connecting people to each other.

Sometimes I meet a person and hear their story and I inevitably say to them “ hey have you met …? You two should really get together and talk about this. You two have a lot in common in this area.”

It happens a lot.

When I look at my friends, sometimes I look at them through the lens of a series of connections. I’m not one to use my friends to get to others nor do I have an agenda for all of my friends. I think there is a time and place for that and a very appropriate way to do that if the opportunity makes itself available.

What I’m talking about is seeing the opportunity my friends have in them… not me… and making sure they are connected to the right people to see them either grow personally or professionally… or both.

For example, look at Facebook and Twitter and you will find a series of connections within a wide level of relationships. Most people think of Facebook and Twitter as social networks but never consider that the circle of friends you experience real life with are the real life version of a social network.

Why is this important to know?

Some of you have a hard time figuring out what to do with all of this social networking/social media craze. If this is you, I would encourage you to just start here. Build relationships that foster growth. Sounds like a no-brainer I’m sure, but are you surrounding yourself with people that are helping you grow personally and professionally? You should be. We all need friends who challenge us.

My friend Randy says this all the time…. “Rising tides lifts all ships”

Then, if you haven’t joined Facebook, Twitter or some other social network then try one. Hey… try two if you can. For me the most fun ones are Twitter and Facebook.

Try them for 30 days and see what you think about it and see what kind of connections you make. You will find business peers, friends from college or friends you haven’t seen in forever, new opportunities, new technology or pieces of information you never knew existed. It’s all there for.

But remember this. Relationships are about engaging each other in conversation. This is true offline… as well as online.

Ask yourself… What I am doing to foster relationships that help challenge me and create growth in areas of my life that could use a change? Build Relationships… Engage yourself in a social network…

YES! This is what social networking is all about. Someone creates a site that is user to user and the user gets a share in calling the shots. It’s not a free for all and there are boundaries with this move but I’m encouraged to see Facebook take this bold and transparent step.

Here’s a little bit from the article online which you can read HERE.

Users had complained that it appeared Facebook was claiming ownership of their data – even if they delete their accounts.
The founder said: “We do not own user data, they [users] own it. We never intended to give that impression and feel really bad that we did.”
Facebook has announced a new set of governing principles and rights and responsibilities.
Under the changes, users will be able to first comment and then potentially vote on future changes to the documents.
Facebook will enact a vote on changes to its governance when more than 7,000 comments have been made by users on a topic.
Mr Zuckerberg told BBC News: “We think that is pretty reasonable.
“We have designed the votes so a small minority of users cannot create a binding election.”
Facebook is the largest social network in the world, with more than 175 million users.

This is a great example of the kind of thinking we teach at LifeWork 2.0. If you aren’t willing to be transparent enough to listen to the voice of your client or fan and in this case FB’s users, then you will lose out every time with your audience. Your audience will eventually go where they are heard and communicated with. This is what it means to ENGAGE your audience, your fan base, your clients. Listening and responding with action builds your followers and builds their trust in you.

Are there times you feel like you weren’t listening and you could have responded in a way that would have worked better? If so, don’t let the status quo keep you from engaging in a way that makes sense and seems natural.

Go for it… it’s your choice, your career and your online reputation☺

Music Industry. Pay attention to this one. Last week I talked about Engaging Your Fans. Here is a great reminder about the power of building your online brand to Engage Your Fans where they are, which is ONLINE. Lil Wayne and his people know how to build a following and sell some CD’s.

The quote at the bottom of this article says so much… “(It) goes to show you the only thing that can’t be done is what you don’t want to do.”
If you want to build a following like this, you can… you just have to want to. All it will cost you is time and a little now how.

Lil Wayne to perform single live for Facebook
By Mariel Concepcion

NEW YORK (Billboard) – Lil Wayne has announced a tentative April 7 release date for his next album, “Rebirth.” The set’s first single, “Prom Queen,” will debut live Tuesday (January 27) on Wayne’s MySpace page.

In addition, “Prom Queen” will debut Wednesday on the social networking site Facebook as part of a partnership between Lil Wayne and AT&T. The rapper will perform the single for the first time during a concert in San Diego, which will be streamed live on AT&T’s FREEdom of Choice and Mobile Music Facebook pages at 9:40 p.m. PT on January 28.

“We have streamed festivals and shows in the past, but this is the first time AT&T will stream a live performance for our Facebook pages,” AT&T spokesperson Heather Buffington told Billboard.com.

According to Huffington, AT&T customers downloaded Lil Wayne ringtones more than any other artist last year. He’s also the most popular artist with a Facebook page, she said.

Contrary to previous reports that said the forthcoming Universal/Cash Money album would be titled “Tha Carter IV,” the rock-inspired “Rebirth” will not be the next installment in “Tha Carter” series or related to any previous album that Lil Wayne has released, according to his publicist.

Wayne’s move to a rock ‘n’ roll sound isn’t surprising, considering that he often plays guitar at his concerts and has aligned himself with rock artist Kevin Rudolf. He appears on the latter’s debut single, “Let It Rock,” which recently peaked at No. 5 on the Billboard Hot 100.

“I might want to hear a certain sound like Prince, but I can’t pay him to play it. So, I picked up a guitar and learned how to play it,” Wayne told Billboard last year. “(It) goes to show you the only thing that can’t be done is what you don’t want to do.”

Lil Wayne will perform February 8 at the Grammy Awards.

Reuters/Billboard

I get frustrated when I want to find out more info on an artist when I go to their website… (example – www.artistname.com) and up comes a splash page that has a nice picture of the artist with a link that only goes to their myspace page. Why does this frustrate me? Because what you are telling me, dear artist, is that you don’t care about me your potential fan and that you don’t think the internet is the place you will build a following.
In the music economy of the day, myspace is a good place to listen to samples of an artist’s music. But when a myspace artist page is filled with ads and nothing more than a tour schedule and a ‘myspace blog’ written by someone at your label, then myspace is a bad place to connect.

Why?

Because outside of the general comments people can leave on your page, all your doing is creating a one way dialogue. Today there are a growing number of artists who realize that connecting with their fans online with a great blog, twitter and maybe FaceBook will mean the difference between having a career and not having a career. Radio singles are a crap shoot to get on the air and brick/mortor stores are becoming fewer every year.

Wouldn’t you think that if more and more people are buying downloadable music from places like iTunes that maybe you should hang out where the people are going to buy their music? Where are they? They are online commenting on blogs, video blogs, responding to twitter messages and tagging their favorite artists in facebook pictures at last night’s concert. For the amount of money you spent paying someone to put up a lame splash page the redirects us to myspace, you could have a fully interactive site that engages your fans.

Dear Artist…. There is a conversation about you happening online right now as you read this. Do you know who these people are? What they are saying? Why don’t you? Do you know what they want from you? Why not? Why haven’t you made more of an effort yourself to get them to buy your CD or come to your show? Because it’s your manager’s job or your label’s job? Because you are afraid of letting fans in too close? Yes there are stalkers but seriously… you don’t have to give out your cell number or street address. We just want to know you are participating in life as we are and are engaged in the conversation that IS ABOUT YOU. YOU are the best authority when it comes to the subject of YOU.

Stop letting someone else do it for you and jump on the bandwagon… it might actually work in your favor. If you haven’t made millions selling records and playing shows, then one day you are going to wake up and realize the booking agent is getting fewer calls to book you, the label seems uninterested in your career and you will feel like the kid who is getting picked last to be on a team during recess.

Does this make you a little nervous? If you aren’t engaging your fans online… it should. The longevity of our career just might depend on it.