Day: May 18, 2010

Greyson Chance: What A Sixth Grader Teaches Us About Social Media

In a matter of days, a sixth grader from Oklahoma, twelve-year-old Greyson Chance, has become a YouTube sensation, garnering over 15 million views, an appearance on the Ellen show, and a recording contract. In the process, this kid from Oklahoma has given a few lessons for students of social media:

1. Find and learn from a model of success. Greyson chose for his inspiration Lady Gaga. Not a bad choice considering the fact that she is the first entertainer to achieve one billion views on YouTube.

2. Find your voice and sing. Greyson Chance has never had a voice lesson, yet he has a voice that has propelled him to stardom. What made all the difference in the world was his decision to sing.

3. Share your passion. Ah…just watch the video that follows.

4. Be authentic. Be yourself. Chance chose to sing an extremely popular song from an extremely popular singer. Yet, he made the song his own. His version of “Paparazzi” is not an imitation of the original: it is an original, new version of the original.

5. Don’t give in to skeptics: convert them. As Greyson began his performance at his sixth-grade talent show, the expressions of his classmates seemed to convey disinterest at best: his performance visibly transformed skeptics into fans.

6. Content is still king. All the search engine optimization in the world still has a tough time trumping raw talent. Content, really good content, whether it’s a song or story, is still the best way to be found.

7. With compelling content, video is a viral rocket. YouTube is celebrating its fifth-year anniversary with two billion daily views. Twelve-year old Greyson Chance is one if its users who decided to upload a video from his sixth-grade talent show. 15-million views later, the video shows no signs of slowing down in its viral trajectory.

8. Give your friends more than one forum to connect. Greyson first uploaded the video of his performance to his Facebook page, then to YouTube. He has since added a Twitter account.

Greyson Chance’s 6th Grade Talent Show Performance

Ford CEO Shares Executive Leadership Lesson in 140 Characters

Photo courtesy of Flickr Ford APA

One of the most valuable shifts in business communication is taking place on Twitter: a global audience can now learn from industry leaders and apply high-level advice in real time. At Amazon.com, there are 28,242 books written specifically on business strategy. Since it’s impossible to read and filter all that advice, there are competitive advantages to connecting with executives and learning from a primary source. And even more valuable to have access to a Fortune 10 executive’s insight.

On March 31, Ford Motor Company CEO Alan Mulally joined members of his management team at the New York International Auto Show for 30 minutes on Twitter. Pictured with Digital Communications Director Scott Montyand fresh from co-chairing the prestigious China Development Forum (CDF) in Beijing, Mulally was available for conversation and questions. Named one of Barron’s World’s Greatest CEOs in March, Alan Mulally’s accessibility defines Ford’s corporate culture.

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Hey, Small Business, DON’T build a website… build a Marketing Platform!

The more I talk to small and medium-size businesses, the more I hear – we need to build a better website!

Don’t do it!

In the age of Social Media and ‘doing more with less’ you don’t have to build a website anymore, nor do you have to improve it. You have to, and you CAN, build a marketing platform. So, what does this mean?

Well, for starters, as a business you need to ask yourself – “What is it I want to do next? Grow my business? Generate Leads? Or establish or improve my brand?” Once you are able to answer this question, establish who your audience is and then select the appropriate marketing strategy – Social Media comes to the rescue!

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