A good way to measure the success of an event is how much you end up posting about it after it’s all over. Here we are, a month after the 2014 IBM Connect Conference, and I still have more exciting content to share with you.
In this video, I had a chance to speak with Sandy Carter (@Sandy_Carter), whose contributions to our chapter on social executives in our Amazon best-selling book The Social Employee were absolutely invaluable. Carter doesn’t just understand the value of the social executive, she embodies the process every day, inspiring her fellow IBMers by modeling the mission, vision, and values of their brand.
How do you make social work for you?
In watching this video again, I’m struck by how many great examples Sandy is able to call up at will. Aside from the stories she shared with us for The Social Employee and the great anecdote about her impromptu social executive discussion on her trip to Mumbai, she also discussed the value of making social work for you.
This is a concept Blue Focus Marketing (@BlueFocus) President Mark Burgess (@MNBurgess) and I championed while writing The Social Employee. Social media shouldn’t be seen as an “in addition to” problem of incorporating new processes into an already cluttered workflow. It’s not “one more thing to do,” but rather something that can integrate with what you already do. What many people, and executives especially, often don’t realize is that social media has now advanced to the point where it can be tailored to fit the way you work.
As Carter illustrates masterfully, executives don’t need to know all the tools, toys, and techniques of every social platform, though they do need to foster cultures that feel empowered to explore new tools without fear of undue consequences. Does your social engagement begin and end with e-mail? Great, just have your blog set up to publish your emails into posts! Do you prefer the convenience of dictating your ideas rather than using a word processor? No problem, plenty of tools exist that can quickly translate your words onto the screen!
What excites you?
All of this is the long way of saying something very simple: it’s time to fly your passion flag. The opportunity—or rather the promise—of social media is that anyone can have a voice and a platform to utilize it. You have the freedom to engage on your terms and the freedom to choose what platform will allow you to do that best. If you’re passionate about what you’re sharing and you can demonstrate its value to your community, the rest will take care of itself.
This is what makes business guru Tom Peters (@Tom_Peters) such a force to be reckoned with. Through his social business advocacy on Twitter, Facebook, and his website, he champions new ways of thinking and challenges his community to continue upping the ante. His passion is clear, and so is his sense of humor and play. Just take a look at his always-evolving presentation “Some (more) (really) (REALLY) (Important) Stuff” to see what I mean!
Of course, not everyone needs to, or should, do what Tom Peters does. But the lesson he continues to teach us is the power of advocacy, the power of passionately championing the things you care about. Anyone can be a champion of a worthy cause. No matter what tools you use, by infusing them with you and the things that drive you to succeed, the ripple effect it has on your employees and extended business communities will be well worth it.
So what excites you? Share your comments below!
Please watch our book trailer, “Are You a Social Executive?”
Below are recent endorsements for The Social Employee (McGraw-Hill, August 2013) by Tom Peters and David Aaker on their social networks, but if you want to see more of their endorsements click here.
In The Social Employee, we go behind the scenes with several leading brands—such as IBM, AT&T, Dell, Adobe, Southwest Airlines, Cisco, Acxiom, and Domo—pulling the lid off the inspiring social business success stories that have propelled these companies into the 21st century. These cutting-edge brands have all come to the same realization: the path to social business lies through empowering the social employee.
See what others are saying about The Social Employee and order your copy today!
Please check out @SocialEmployee media buzz!
“Great brands have always started on the inside, but why are companies taking so long to leverage the great opportunities offered by internal social media? . . . The Social Employee lifts the lid on this potential and provides guidance for businesses everywhere.” —JEZ FRAMPTON, Global Chairman and CEO, Interbrand
The Social Employee offers an unparalleled behind-the-scenes look at the social business success stories of some of the biggest brand names in the business world, including IBM, AT&T, Dell, Adobe, Southwest Airlines, Cisco, Acxiom, and Domo. These cutting-edge brands have all come to the same realization: the path to social business lies through empowering the social employee.
The brands that leverage their employee base in order to engage customers and prospects through social media are the ones destined to win the marketing wars. This book not only details the astronomical rise of the social employee, but also outlines the innovative methods that leading companies have employed to foster cultures of enthusiastic and engaged workers.
FOREWORD by David C. Edelman, Global Co-Leader, Digital Marketing & Sales Practice, McKinsey & Company
AFTERWORD by Kevin Randall, Vice President of Brand Strategy & Research at
Movéo Integrated Branding, and a columnist for Fast Company and The Atlantic
Download ~> Free Chapter 3 – “Brands Under Pressure”
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