Tool Tuesday - TweetStats

Today, I'd like to share a simple but effective tool for all you Tweet-hearts.  It is deceptively simple, yet very telling and informative.  May I humbly introduce you to, TweetStats.

TweetStats, is as it's namesake implies, a place the provide all of us analytically minded folks with more data than we can shake a fail whale at!  Starting with a tool has never been easier, it is as simple as adding your twitter username into the front page, hitting "Graph My Tweets" and you are off and running!

One of my personal favorites is looking at your daily Tweet Density, or in layman's terms, "what times do I tweet?"  As an example, here is mine, which tells me I'm doing a lot in the afternoon and evening.

Now, this may not matter to you, but to me, it lets me look back at the last week and start to push myself to do things differently.  As an example, I try to NOT be on computers between 6 and 9, or connected to anything other than my kids, their homework, and their needs.  Sure, sometimes that involves computers, but I don't think my 4 year old cares about the latest chip release retweet from Intel I did, nor honestly, should he.  It does however remind me, hey SocialMo, refocus in the evenings and try and shift those times to when the kids are in bed or earlier in the day.  Level setting, it's a wonderful thing.

Additionally, another great graph they provide (have I mentioned this is all free so far too?), is this one on who you ReTweet.  Sure we all "think" we know who we ReTweet, but this can tell you quite a bit about who you follow, and who is Tweeting things you want to tell your world about.

Finally, not to be outdone, if you click on the very top of the graph page, where there are three small buttons (Tweet Stats, Tweet Cloud, and Follower Stats) you can see your Cloud.  For wordsmiths, this is something to behold.  For example, I have a colleague who is adamant about not using the word "great" in any tweets or Facebook posts.  As you can see by my cloud, I use that a bit much so I'm sure it drives him batty.

Yes, TweetStats has a lot of information... well, actually, the web does, and they are just serving it up in a unique, and free, way, that provides value to you.  Whether you are looking for validation, recalibration, or just plain information, TweetStats is a must have tool in your Social Tool Box!

The Power of the #Tag

As most of you know, while I consult on Social Media, I also hold down a day job as a Global Sales Operations leader at Dell, inc.  Today and tomorrow, we're hosting the Dell Annual Analyst Conference.  As you can imagine, industry analysts in high tech are power users when it comes to social media!  Interestingly enough though, I had a question poised to me today I didn't expect.  "Do you just use hashtags randomly or how should they really be used?"  

This took me by surprise, but not for the person asking or how they asked, more that I realized I took for granted the smallest and yet coolest tool we use on a day to day basis, the #!

Most of you who follow me realize that my answer to that question is no, I don't use them randomly.  I personally use them to add context and tone to my tweets.  I feel 140 characters is a very minimal amount of space and the correct utilization of a properly included hashtag can easily change the receipt of your message.

For example, let us say the message I'm about to tweet is this, "What a time at the event today!"  I know, I'm not the cheerleader tweeter so I'd never really post this, but roll with me on this one.  For starters, most people will take that simple line as it was a good event.  But, let's expand it and see how we can change it:

Example 1: "What a time at the event today! #Sarcasm"

Example 2: "What a time at the event today! #PraiseToTheStaff"

Example 3: "What a time at the event today! #TGIF"

Example 4: "What a time at the event today! #ExcellentDiscussions"

See how things change so quickly?  Example one now looks like the event was terrible and I'm being smarky.  Example two now looks like the event's facilities and logistics took precedence over the content.  Example three meanwhile implies I'm more interested in the weekend's activities than the actual event and could be construed as smarky again, or just aloof.  Then finally, example four clearly spells out the benefits of attending.

All saying the same thing, but with added context, flavor and meaning behind them!  Now, there is something to be said for utilization of hashtags when it comes to the consistency part of personal and professional branding.  If all you do is insert sarcastic hashtags to comments, the times you do use genuine tags, they more than likely will be seen as veiled sarcasm.  Conversely, if you aren't witty or good with quick jabs, adding that snidly hashtag may be seen as almost rude since your audience may be so used to your good nature and often informational tags!  As with everything social, while your content is King, your consistency is Queen!

When wrapped up in the Twitterverse, we may not take the time to think about hashtagging and how it can impact our tweets, but if you do, you can easily set yourself apart, both in your immediate tweet, but in your consistent approach.  Hashtagging opens the door to a bigger picture on your comments, and one that allows users to see a personal side of you if done right.  I challenge you to be creative with your hashtags, but not so much that no one knows was #WJLKFHPIT stands for.

Oh, and for the record, "What a time at the event today! #SuperbChats #CantWaitForTomorrow" :)

Tool Tuesday - About.Me

In February I was at a conference where LinkedIn marketing professionals were showing everyone how to "Pimp your profile."  It was a lighthearted review of your LinkedIn page with suggestions and tips to make it better, along with a nice professional photo.  Ironically, when one of the marketing pros sat with me, the first thing she said was, "What's this about.me link you have here?"  Our discussion then went on for 15 minutes of the benefits and advantages of this lovely tool, which she had not seen before, but I'm happy to share with you today!

About.Me is quite simple, yet amazingly great!  It is essentially a hub, or central spot to point everyone to, for all your social and online profiles and, or, properties.  Mine for example, is a mixture of personal and professional flare with links to my Twitter and LinkedIn profiles along with, of course, this blog.  I have it on my business cards, and I use it as the primary link I provide folks so they can reach me.  It's a great central area, where you can use beautiful imagery the site has, or be very creative and artistic given the depth of your talents.

When logging into About.Me, you'll have the options of connecting with a new account, or linking to your Facebook or Twitter.  As always, especially with Facebook, I always suggest thinking about this, as when you log in like this, you not only grant access to the account but you also add a new layer of management to ensure postings are displayed as, and to whom, you want them to.

After logging in, you'll have the simple options of adding a bio (which you can add HTML to if you are knowledgeable on it), you can choose a background or upload your own (I designed my own in photoshop), change colors, fonts, and the most powerful, "add a service."

Adding a service means you can then link any of your social properties you would like.  Today, you can add  naturally any of the following:

In addition, you can click the "Add a URL" button and add any custom URL, like your web site, team's site, or other social platform not shown above.

Once added, anyone can then click on the icon of these items in your About.Me profile, and viola, they have your latest updates, information and can link directly to you on these platforms.

After set up, there is a great dashboard providing you insights into views, clicks, and links to you, along with historical views, time spent on page, and new visitors.  Above those details, you also get Klout integration (our tool from last Tuesday), showing your Klout score, total reach, amplification and your network!

In addition, About.Me is partnered with Moo.com to provide business cards that are like your new, beautiful About.Me profile as well!  Finally, you can even have an email address if you like, ending in "@about.me".

All together, it's hard to find a more flexible, customized front end to send all your online friends and visitors too so they can find out more about you, connect to you in all the places you want to share, and provide a great service!  About.Me should definitely be in everyone's social tool box when it comes to displaying your brand!

Mob Mentality

If you haven't heard about the Spike Lee tweet involved in the Trayvon Martin shooting take a second and read that link.  Don't worry, this isn't about to get political or anything of the sort.  In fact, it's a much different post than most here, but one that this story has me thinking deeply on.  I pose this question today, "Is social media just a digital mob?"  

We hear every day about people getting news from Twitter or other online sources faster, and in more real time, than ever before.  In most cases, people see the news happening instead of reading about it after.  Think back to the Egyptian situation last year or the Libyan battles being told in real time.  The masses hear something, make a judgement call, and move on.  I personally, as mentioned in my "One Word" post, tend to lean towards truth and honesty, with integrity above all in my postings and online activities.  I'm the skeptic, the one who reads and asks "how" or "why" before making a judgement call.  Sadly, not everyone ever even wants to get to either of those.  They are happy being informed, be it truth or rumor, and moving forward with their initial assessment.

If you have never been involved in a "mob mentality" type situation, believe you me, they are frightening and amazing at the same time!  They've been like that since the days of the Roman Colosseum, and it's with that thought that I ask, has anything really changed other than the medium?  Are we still making judgement calls as they did so many years ago in those arenas, just through Twitter or Facebook providing the "cheering" to egg us on.

One of the nice and amazing things that LinkedIn has done is make us honest about our work history.  No more fiibbing and fudging saying that you graduated top of your class or that you held a vice presidents job at a manufacturing company (no one has ever heard of).  If you do that today on LinkedIn, someone in your network will cry foul.  The same goes for pretty much every social platform out there actually.  The "green curtain" that may have been up for some is now down, and everyone can see "your inner wizard".

Yet, for all the good that can come form this level of transparency, the same level of malice can be wrought as well.  This is why I stress so heavily that it is a great differentiator to have, and manage, a personal branding strategy.  If I post something filled with malice and malcontent, similar to me saying I was VP of Ford, most people would cry foul and not believe it.  Most would, and should, call me crazy.  In addition, they would immediately call me out publicly on it through my social networks.  

In this case, this post doesn't appear to have done any damage initially, but in the long run, who knows?  Is this any different than someone running into a theater and yelling "Fire!" at the top of their lungs?  Some people, believe it or not, believe everything they read, even on the internet.  I know, it's shocking.  Yet centuries removed from the gladiator battles, we still tend to give that which we read the "Caesar Treatment" of "Thumbs up or down" at first pass.  Heck, we're even prompted to do so on almost every page of the internet in print, with the famous "like" button staring us in the face.  Add into that the potential size of the mob being ten fold with someone's social reach and the results could be staggering.  

The only question left, is will your actions and strategy lead you to do good things with this kind of power?  With that, I leave you with a famous quote from someone well aligned with this article: 

"Men are nearly always willing to believe what they wish." - Julius Caesar.

One Word

Truth be told, today's post will be a lot more than one word, but at the root, the goal from our "conversation" here will be for you to find your "One Word".

I talk a lot about personal branding.  Actually, it seems like a lot of people do.  However, I find not many people really take the time to stop talking and actually think about it.  Let's face it, no one just creates a brand, they develop over time.  If I could snap my fingers and be the perfect person in everyone's eyes, I'd be selling that in a bottle, somehow!  In fact, in most cases, people "end up" at their brand, rather than strategically designing it, let along understanding how they got there.

With that, today, I'd like to challenge you on something that may sound very simple, but trust me, can be a  challenge, albeit, one worth completing!  Today I would like you to think very hard, and very deep internally, as to what you stand for.  What do you want to project as a brand?  What are the beliefs that you want visible in your brand?  Then, I want you to think about what one word, a singular word, that describes that brand, those values, and that image.

Sounds easy right?  Well, mine took me almost a decade to figure out, so don't think this challenge is a one time, one session, sit down and crank it out thing.  No, this is more of a starting point, with the journey really being the joy, and yet the destination being just as rewarding.

My brand?  I focus it around my one word.  Trust.  I manage all my communications, all my discussions, all my interactions online, and in person for that matter, with one thought in mind, "Am I being honest and received as trustworthy?"  

This one question is something that runs through my head every day, in every meeting, blog post I write, topic I discuss, everything.  I've developed it over time as I said, in fact my original word was 'Dedicated'.  Over time I started to realize that I never liked posting in what I call "Clintonisms", which is where you give only enough info to lead someone in a specific direction.  I also realized I never liked giving out so much information that it may impact anyone involved.  It was slow, and I have had several different words, none bad, but all increasingly better than the last, to help focus me as a person, but also as someone interacting online.

Social Media extends conversations and networking opportunities.  If we try and "act" like someone online, sooner or later people will see through that and see who you really are and what you really stand for as a person or brand.  If you are not true to yourself in these cases, well, frankly, not many will be true back to you and you'll find your image, your brand, and your reputation hurting for it.

Finding your "One Word" will help you more than you think.  It'll become the basis for you your interactions online.  It'll make you think about what you are posting and if it would be perceived as that word.  It'll then bleed into your interactions in person, and soon, it'll be truthfully, who you are, what you stand for, and how other's perceive you and your brand.

Existentially, sure, this could be a discussion on "find out who you really are", but as most people tell me, "I still don't know what I want to be when I grow up", and they are in their forties!  Take time today to think about what you would like people to describe you as, what you would like people to say about you, and then think, if they were asked what your "One Word" was, what word would they choose for you?  If it doesn't align with what you think today, then the question is how can you change that?

If it does, bravo to you, as you are well down the path to perfecting your personal brand!  Believe me, while I feel I'm in a good place with mine, I know I'm not even close to done evolving, as a person, or as a perceived brand.  It is a lengthy journey, but with a singular focus of "One Word" to keep you on track, it's a journey worth taking!