Tech PR / Social Media Advisor / Content Strategist
Last week I received a call from a friend of mine who asked me to to text out an announcement about something to my network on my cell phone to let them know about an event that was happening in our area in South Texas.
I was puzzled not only why she had asked me to do this, but the fact that she had used the term "push out." The email from her read "We're making an announcement about X, and I was hoping you could push this out to your network...."
For starters, I will never text someone else's announcement to groups. I am not saying that's right or wrong, it's just something I don't do.
Her heart was in the right place, and I don't always expect people to understand the nuances of how to work in the evolving world of the social web.
I consider my phone directory to be something that is not only private, but people in my phone book come from a variety of lives in my world. I have friends, family, business associates, clients, suppliers, journalists, analysts, bloggers, vendors and so on. Even the ones in my physical area, I could not see their even being remotely interested in the subject at hand.
My recommendation to my friend was simple: rather than "pushing out a message," trying listening large - that is, put on a stethoscope and see who is involved in the specific area of interest at hand. Who's talking about it on the various social networks and start creating relationships to see if they may want to have a listen and learn more.
This is not the first time this happened, and I don't fault those who ask me to do this. I wrote this post so that the next time I get a request like this, I can tell them to read all about it in my blog.
Listening Large states the obvious, and takes discipline and more than anything, time.
If you are trying to promote a cause, or just trying to get someone's attention, start listening large.
Or follow Chris Brogan's advise on growing bigger ears.
Photo by Alan Weinkrantz - shot on location at Gare du Nortd train station - Paris. (c) 2010This is a great overview of Chris Brogan's Trust Agents.
Watch and listen.
I've read his book twice. I am gonna read it again, just to take it all in. Highly recommended.
Oh yeah- one more thing- he's also a good person.
This video is worth watching, or if you are really, really busy, proceed with what you are doing and just listen to the audio.
Chris Brogan shares his belief sets, which starts off with a focus on listening.
That's a good place to start. He talks about using Social Media to help make companies human again.
That's a good place to go.
He talks somewhat about measurement and accountability, which is a good way for businesses to justify this and justify that.
What's more important in the mix is trying, experimenting and realizing that whether or not you engage and listen to customers, they are already engaging with you or without you.
Worth a listen.
From Chris Brogan's Blog....
I’m grateful for your attention, and happy that we have opportunities to communicate in various places on the web. If you’re interested in having a souvenir of all these interactions, boy have I got the gift for you!
Quick FAQ:
* Yes, there will be a Kindle version.
* Yes, there will be an audio version.
* Your country’s version is for sale. Email me to connect you to the person who manages rights.
* A movie? Let’s be serious.
Where to Buy Trust Agents
in alphabetical order
800 CEO READ (also recommended for bulk orders)
Amazon.ca (Canada)
Book Depository (UK)
Chapters (Canada)
——
Buying this book supports the last year’s efforts from Julien and I to better understand the trends beneath the technology, and how they apply to your communications experience going forward. We believe this book will be more than “interesting,” but instead, that it will be useful to you. We’ve worked hard to make that something we can promise.
So thanks, and I look forward to continuing the conversations we’ve been having at the Trust Agents community and here on this blog. My best to you. — Chris…
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Tagged as: books, buying, onlineshopping, Promotion, trustagents
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Now this is Alan speaking:
I'm in the process of reading "Trust Agents," and highly recommend it.
It's practical, philosophical and comes with exercises you can put to work for you, your brand, your company, and more.
Highly Recommended
"Trust Agents" by @chrisbrogan and @julien just arrived. It's gonna be my weekend reading. Required reading. Highly recommended. These are very nice and very smart people.
The best thing you can do with this book is to read it. Then order a copy or two. Or three. Or twenty, and give them to clients, prospects, or just people you know that think they'll benefit from your being an Agent of Trust.
Mosey on over to the Trust Agents site, and of course the FaceBook fan page.
Date: August 12, 2009 7:43:49 AM CDTSubject: Your Amazon.com order (I removed the order number.....)
Hello from Amazon.com.We have received new release date information related to the order you placed on June 07 2009 (Order# xxxxxx). The item(s) listed below will actually ship sooner than we originally expected based on the new release date: Chris Brogan, Julien Smith "Trust Agents: Using the Web to Build Influence, Improve Reputation, and Earn Trust"
Previous estimated arrival date: August 26 2009
New estimated arrival date: August 19 2009For more details, please visit the "Your Account" section of our web site . You can also reach "Your Account" by clicking on the link in the top right corner of any page on our web site.
Tech PR / Social Media Advisor/ Content Strategist
Alan Weinkrantz is a strategic technology Public Relations and Social Media advisor to American and Israeli companies.
He helps thought leaders establish their message, create visibility, and build credibility via traditional and emerging media channels.
Tech PR / Social Media Advisor/ Content Strategist
Alan Weinkrantz is a strategic technology Public Relations and Social Media advisor to American and Israeli companies.
He helps thought leaders establish their message, create visibility, and build credibility via traditional and emerging media channels.
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Carolyn Chan
