Sandy Wilson, Public Relations, Media Relations, Communications in Jacksonville, Florida

We're just back from the National Speakers Association 2010 Conference.

It was an excellent conference with a plethora of valuable workshops and seminars covering a variety of topics - social media, networking, marketing and speaking resources (of course). 

I attended to gather ideas on how to best market a client's Speakers Bureau.  I walked away with a lot more than that.

There is a welcoming attitude that is palpable in this great group of folks.  Family was a word that was repeated often.  Check them out whether you're looking for a speaker or want to grow your speaking career.

I'm perplexed by LinkedIn's customer service strategy.

What customer service policy you ask?

Exactly.

After my friend, Cathi, asked me for LinkedIn's phone number because she could not log in to her account, I jumped on Google to search for an answer and quickly discovered that there isn't a phone number for LinkedIn Customer Service.

There isn't an email address either. And forget about a Chat option.

I'd love to read their Social Media Policy but I suspect that it, also, doesn't exist.

The irony is that, without a visible customer service contact on their website, LinkedIn continues to grow as a platform for virtual business networking.

This is an interesting comment on the general business world's technical proficiency and desire to leverage online communication.

For what it's worth, here is what I found yesterday through search: LinkedIn's Customer Support Center: How do I contact LinkedIn online?

I also ran across this on a blog: I'm Mario, the community evangelist at LinkedIn. Let me find out what exactly is the problem with your account. Moving forward, you can also ping me at msundar@linkedin.com with any questions or follow me on twitter (twitter id: mariosundar).

I haven't confirmed that Mario is a real person because I want to hang on to the notion that he exists for as long as possible.

So, like a lot of folks, I'm on Facebook. I use Facebook to catch up with friends and to stay connected in an increasingly disconnected world.

I created my Facebook Wilson Communicates. LLC Business Page today.   I'm going to post social media and green resources there. 

We all have a lot to learn about online privacy and safety.  With that in mind, I found some interesting articles about Facebook Privacy to share:

Facebook Privacy Settings: How To Fix Your Profile In 2 Minutes (VIDEO)

Price of Facebook Privacy? Start Clicking

March has been a busy month for me! Working on client websites and building strategic social media channels has been great fun and sometimes challenging - however, in the process, I've neglected my little blog. 

March Tip:

Need help managing your Twitter account? Here's pretty much everything you could possible need to move Tweetward: The Only Twitter Application List You'll Ever Need.    I really love Twitter Keys, though I wouldn't use this for business Tweets. 

A lot of folks have asked me recently about the value of using Twitter for business.  Twitter is not for every person or business so the value of leveraging  Twitter truly must be determined on an individual basis.

That said: in almost all cases, Twitter is a great way to connect with targeted media.  In fact, you can identify some of your your media sources by researching the directories listed in the link above. 

This process also requires good old-fashioned research.  Identify your target media outlets.  Visit their websites.  Discover their Twitter identities.  Follow them.  Pay attention to their posts.  Does your business have information or services that appears to be a good fit for their readers?  Begin conversations.  Post resources.

It's a simple process that requires time, research, & thoughtful planning -  which brings me back to my little neglected blog. 

So, I've been busy but I'm back.

Yesterday,  I discovered a couple of great online resources - Evernote and Fill Any PDF Form.  Both services are free and easy to use. 

Evernote is an online, visual bookmark service. You can also email quick notes to Evernote and access these notes from virtually (excuse the pun) anywhere.  

Fill Any PDF Form  is THE free service I've needed.  I anticipate that FAPF will save a lot of time and eliminate the need for a fax service along with the time involved in printing a document, filling it out manually and then faxing the document back.  With Fill Any PDF Form, you just pull up the document, fill it out onscreen, save it and email it back.  There is a signature function as well.  Did I mention that it's free?

If only I could find a free service to clean my garage on a Sunday afternoon. <smile. sigh. head out to the garage.>

Over the weekend, I discovered My Punchbowl, which is an online invitation and party-planning resources.  They also offer great quality e-cards. 

Check it out and save some paper! I signed on for the Premium level.

I've noticed a trend on Twitter lately where folks post an article link that supposedly drives readers to an article but the link actually drives readers through a Facebook page that only displays the article "teaser"and where the reader finally accesses a link to the article in question.

I'm tired just writing that. What in the world are you thinking? Are you actually trying to use Facebook as an aggregator?

If you want to drive folks to your Facebook page, then DRIVE FOLKS TO YOUR FACEBOOK PAGE and let folks know that you're driving them there.  Most folks use FB to drive folks to their content pages not the other way around. Which social media genius sold you this bill of goods?

It's extremely annoying to land on a basically useless page to finally access an article that may have been interesting. It's a virtual bait and switch and is not good for your business because regular old folks like me eventually quit clicking on your links.  More important, folks like me quit trusting you.

I'm not a ranter, but consider this a rant.

I stumbled on this very cool Elon University website:  Imagining the Internet: A History and Forecast this past weekend.

"The Imagining the Internet Center's mission is to explore and provide insights into emerging network innovations, global development, dynamics, diffusion and governance. Its research holds a mirror to humanity's use of communications technologies, informs policy development, exposes potential futures and provides a historic record. It works to illuminate issues in order to serve the greater good, making its work public, free and open."

I especially enjoyed reading the 2008 Survey.  Air-typing, ever evolving mobile platforms, and virtual integrity and forgiveness?  (Read the survey.) We still have a lot of work to do to produce the 2008 Survey's anticipated results by 2020.

Communications professionals have been circling around virtual conversations for over a decade and three elements remain constant:  To communicate successfully online requires independent thinking, thoughtful action and the ability to write well.

On Twitter, I observe a ton of folks who seem to automatically Re-tweet posts and suspect they don't investigate the linked content contained therein.  Readers often click through those links to a sales/marketing landing page with an introduction to the article and another link that directs the reader to the actual article or web page.

I'm still forming my opinion of "content aggregators" and will Re-tweet posts from a variety of news sites because they offer free valuable resources for readers. That said, several "content aggregator" sites seem to be managed by folks whose main focus is to filter  readers through a website designed to sell something/anything and I do have an issue with *that* as my time - like yours, no doubt - is precious.  I often wonder how others feel about being manipulated in this way?

I guess this leads us back to Elon University's prediction of  virtual  integrity and forgiveness : )

Today, I learned that another "Social Media Expert" held a workshop recently in Jacksonville, Florida where this expert advised her paying attendees to Twitter/Tweet at least three times a day if they want to be successful.

One young paying attendee of this "Social Media Expert's" workshop now sincerely believes that a company 's Twitter/micro-blog strategy MUST include three posts per day for that particular communications channel to be successful for that particular company. Simplistic Social Media Workshop take-away? Sure, but that's me, speaking for me, that's my opinion - for me and for my clients.

How do I put a positive spin on my reaction to this "expert's" workshop dictum of three posts per day for Twitter success? Ummm... I can't.

Social Media Rules" are evolving even as I type this little blog post and I'm sincerely appalled by these "Social Media Experts" who scare people into following whatever THEIR particular "Social Media Rules" happen to be at that particular moment. (I've posted about this subject and, undoubtedly, will post about this subject in the future.)

There's this "thing" called critical thinking, people. 

According to Wikipedia, the free online encyclopedia built by real time, real live contributors, critical thinking is " the purposeful and reflective judgement about what to believe or what to do in response to observations, experience, verbal or written expressions, or arguments."

As you investigate Social Media channels to support your company's communication strategy, ask yourself: What works for you?  What works for your company?

In my experience, it's a huge mistake to ask yourself: What was I advised to do by that regional academic workshop expert?

 It's your choice, right?

I love Jacksonville.com - the Times-Union online paper.

They added me to their Twitter Business List.

What's not to love?