JoelComm.com

Users Don't All Want The Same Thing

Tue, 07 Jul 2009 08:00:00 -0700

What do users really want?

It's a question that publishers ask themselves all the time. We look at the comments our articles receive. We review our stats. We check the popularity of keywords. We ask for ideas on Twitter. And we do all sorts of other things that try to second-guess what's going through our users' minds so that we can deliver content that interests them most.

But maybe we're asking the wrong question.

Time To Get To Work

Thu, 02 Jul 2009 08:00:00 -0700

You've heard of the "paralysis of analysis." It happens when you think too much. That's not something that many people have accused me of doing very often (the opposite does tends to crop up quite a bit though) but it is something that I know afflicts many entrepreneurs, especially new ones.

The Power Of Your Blog Comments

Sat, 27 Jun 2009 08:00:00 -0700

In Twitter Power, I described blogs as one aspect of the social media revolution. I think that might have surprised some people. Blogs, after all, pre-date the kind of interaction that we can see on Facebook and LinkedIn. They're more like old-fashioned publishing, in which information comes down from a publisher instead of being created and shared by contributors.

But there is one aspect of blogging that's often forgotten by Internet publishers, and it's incredibly valuable.

At the bottom of each blog post is a space for readers to add their own comments to what you've written.

Those comments are as important for the publishers as they are for the readers.

Fourteen Types of Tweets

Thu, 25 Jun 2009 18:13:10 -0700

Apart from Twitter's own terms of service which prohibit obvious things like harassment, transmitting viruses and spamming other members, there really aren't many rules to the site. You can essentially use Twitter however you like.

However, for people and businesses who want to use Twitter successfully (eg: build a following and grow their circle of influence), there are a number of best practices that can be observed. I cover many of these in my book, Twitter Power.

And as I look back on my own tweets, I discover that many of them can be easily categorized. While this list is by no means exhaustive, I think it covers a lot of ground. I present you with my list of Fourteen Types of Tweets.

Don't Believe your Readers!

Sun, 21 Jun 2009 08:00:00 -0700

Have you ever asked a child what they want for Christmas?

They'll tell you exactly what they want, describe it in glorious detail, even point it out to you in the store so that you don't make a mistake and come home with the wrong version.

Then on Christmas morning you get to see their eyes light up as they open the wrapping. It's a thrill... until New Year's Day when the toy is lying forgotten in the corner and the two-buck stocking filler is the game of the moment.

Your users can be a bit like that. It's something that's well-known in the marketing world. Companies will say that they want products that are new, exciting and edgy. They'll say that their focus groups suggest that current offerings are boring and old. Then they'll turn down anything that doesn't look every other product that's already out there.

Twitter is Life!

Wed, 17 Jun 2009 08:00:00 -0700

I love it when academics launch studies of the entrepreneurial world. Sometimes, they come up with truly valuable and fascinating information. I can't think of any off-hand, but I'm sure they must do sometimes.

More usually though, the buffoons claim that their observations have discovered something truly amazing and revolutionary... something that those of us who were actually doing it knew all along. While the prof. is getting another publication and a nomination for a Nobel prize, we're scratching our heads and saying, "Well, yeah...".

Measuring Your Social Media Success

Fri, 12 Jun 2009 08:00:00 -0700

I've been talking about social media a lot lately and one of the questions that comes up time and time again is how effective it is.

It's not an easy question to answer.

Ask me how effective an AdSense placement is and I can open my AdSense journal, look at the stats and tell you exactly how much extra I earned when I moved an ad unit on that page from here to there. I'll be able to tell you the click-through rate, the price per click and the effect of the change on the page's eCPM.

The Right Way To Use Twitter

Sun, 07 Jun 2009 08:00:00 -0700

There's a rumor going around.

It's growing. It's dangerous.

And I think I may have encouraged it.

People are starting to believe that Twitter is a sales tool. They see the site as a valuable resource that allows them to broadcast their sales messages and land new deals.

Past Failures are Fast Failures

Tue, 02 Jun 2009 08:00:00 -0700

When I was working on Click Here to Order, I had a problem. How could I describe all of the accomplishments achieved by the people I was interviewing? Although each of the marketers I spoke to was usually best known for creating one unique model, which they were now sharing with others, almost all of them had hugely rich pasts as well.

What Makes a Business Grow

Wed, 27 May 2009 08:00:00 -0700

The people behind Twitter were incredibly lucky. They weren't lucky because they had a great idea.

They weren't even lucky that no one else had thought of their idea before them.

They were lucky that the system took just two weeks to build.

My staff and I get together for regular brainstorming sessions. We toss out ideas left, right and center. By the time we walk out of that room, we've got a white board filled with great concepts any one of which could bring in a steady stream of bucks.

What Are You Scared Of?

Fri, 22 May 2009 08:00:00 -0700

I'm scared of change.

There, I said it. It's not big news though. Everyone is scared of change. Change is a scary thing. It means giving up what you have now for something better that you can only hope you'll have in the future.

It's risky. It's dangerous. It's disruptive.

It's also thrilling, exciting... and inevitable.

How To Be A Star

Sun, 17 May 2009 08:00:00 -0700

I'm not much of a celebrity-watcher. I don't read tabloids and I couldn't care less who's dating whom in Hollywoodland.

But I'm still pleased to see that so many celebrities have chosen to use Twitter.

I'm pleased because those celebrities are bringing lots of regular folk like you and me with them. Those people might have come to chat with Oprah or Ashton Kutcher but they'll hang around and talk with the rest of us. That can only be good for everyone.

Do good stuff

Fri, 15 May 2009 15:26:12 -0700

Everyone needs a motto to live by.

For some it's "do unto others as they do unto you."

For others it's "get all you can while you still can."

And still for others it may be "eat, drink and be merry!"

I'm good with whatever works for you, but I've been settling into a motto of my own.

The Value Of Face-To-Face Marketing

Wed, 13 May 2009 08:00:00 -0700

I've been doing a lot of traveling lately. I've been from California to New York, to Utah and Seattle, and to Denver more times than I can count.

In theory, none of that traveling should be necessary. Twitter, after all, is the ultimate networking tool. I can be sitting anywhere and by firing up Tweetie on my iPhone, find myself swapping tweets with Tim O'Brien of the New York Times or exchanging ideas with best-selling author David Bach.

The Two Kinds Of Tweets -- And How To Use Them

Thu, 07 May 2009 08:00:00 -0700

In my book, Twitter Power, I describe a number of different kinds of tweets that twitterers are posting on the site. I talk about news tweets and customer service tweets, random thoughts and feedback, and a whole lot more besides. I explain how businesses are using them, why they work and how to make them work for you. You don't have to use all -- or any -- of those tweet models if you don't want to. But knowing about them should help to get any new twitterer up and running quickly.

I'm going to make it even easier.