Paying for Twitter is in the Best Interest of the Twitter Community

When Twitter suspended my account this week (while on vacation) I was shocked. At first, I didn’t believe it. I almost denied it. But, it slowly sank in that I was without the ability to post (tweet) comments and links to articles, or reply to other’s tweets.

I didn’t realize how dependent I had become on Twitter until my account was suspended. So, I turned to Facebook to ask people who follow me on Twitter to tweet about my suspension. After all, it must be a mistake. I’m not a spammer. And, I certainly didn’t violate their TOS. My hope (fantasy) was that if enough people tweeted about @berniebay being unfairly suspended, that somehow Twitter would notice and reinstate me.

Once I calmed down I learned through a blog article on Mashable that Twitter admitted to a human error that apparently suspended numerous accounts and they were working to restore them. Yes, that gave me some comfort. At least I know I didn’t inadvertently committed some Twitter sin that warranted my suspension.

But, then the light bulb went on. I am so frustrated that I can’t use Twitter that I would be willing to pay for it!

One of my Twitter friends, Peter Rad made the comment on Facebook: “remember that Twitter is free and you have no right to complain when it fails you.” Peter you are correct! Peter also is of the opinion that if or when Twitter starts to charge a fee the uproar will be so loud it will be deafening. I think it depends on their pricing model.

So, here is my proposed pricing model for Twitter usage.

Individuals:

The first 500 users are free. This allows the casual newbies to try it out with no barrier to entry. After 500 followers the monthly fees start. The thresholds I propose are:

501 to 2000
2001 to 3000
3001 to 4000
4001 to 5000
5,001 to 7,500
7,501 to 10,000
10,001 to 15,000
15,001 to 25,000
25,001 to 50,000
50,001 to 100,000
100,000 plus

The monthly fee at each threshold obviously would increase, but until the threshold gets to 50,000 it should not exceed $50 per month. One mathematical approach is a penny per follower with the first 500 free. At 2,000 followers that’s $20 per month. Perhaps above 50,000 followers the per follower fee would drop below a penny to keep the cost reasonable for the Twitter superstars. I also propose a cap so even a Twitter mega superstar would never pay more than a ceiling price.

I like this pricing model for two reasons. First, it provides some revenue to Twitter so support tickets can actually get a response. Second, it provides some accountability. Now, they have no accountability because their service is free. And, third it will dissuade some of the rif raf from spamming us with offers to “grow our Twitter following and make a zillion dollars.”

Brands

Twitter should charge all brands a one time $99 fee. That’s a reasonable amount that any serious brand can afford. A similar fee schedule should apply to brands as the one described above.

Whether or not my model is the right pricing model for Twitter is not my point. No business on the planet can survive without revenue. It’s long overdue. As a Twitter “customer” I have no recourse for my undeserved suspension because I’m not a paying customer.

Dear Twitter - I want to become a paying customer. It’s time!

Would you pay for your Twitter account? How much is it worth to you?

@berniebay

This year I got to thinking, what if Thomas Jefferson and the founding fathers had the opportunity to blog? What if the Internet had been invented in the 18th century. Rather than Thomas Jefferson distributing the scroll of paper (after Congress approved it August 2, 1776) announcing the independence of the 13 colonies, he (and many others) would’ve blogged about becoming independent from mother England.

And, what if the Declaration of Independence was drafted as a document in Google docs shared by the committee of five who drafted it: John Adams, Benjamin Franklin, Robert Livingston, Roger Sherman and Thomas Jefferson.  Jefferson is credited with the authorship of the famous declaration document which was “inked” into an official scroll document to be distributed throughout the land and delivered to mother England by ship.

I don’t need to be reminded of how fortunate we are to have the technologies we have at our fingertips. Reading this historical document on July 4th every year serves to remind me how blessed I am to be an American and how lucky I am to be alive during this time.

Our military men and women serving us bravely in far away lands communicate with their families with webcams across the Internet. The citizens of Iran have been communicating with the world using mobile devices, Twitter, Facebook and blogs. The Iranian authorities have been unable to completely prevent citizen journalists from essentially playing the role of uncensored media to the world.

Similarly, some business executives have not yet awakened to the capabilities available to their customers, employees and competitors using these commonplace technologies.

Just like long haired ponytails were the popular culture for men during the time of our founding fathers, the modern day popular culture is for people to “tweet” their sentiments about your new product announcement, or your decision to layoff 20% of our your workforce, or merge with your largest competitor, or (fill in the blank). Whether your company is public requiring disclosure of every substantial event, or private, the current culture is that everything is public on the social web.

The Internet makes this possible. The culture of transparency makes this popular.

Does your CEO resist this culture? Does your chief marketing executive resist this culture? Does your chief sales executive resist this culture? Does your chief financial officer resist this culture? Does your chief people officer resist this culture?

Are You Swimming Upstream?

You know the cliche “swimming upstream.” What image do you get when you hear that cliche? My visual is a salmon swimming fiercely against a river current. They do it yearly to spawn but you can’t help but wonder why they do it. Only a few make it. The odds are so against them. Why not “swim with the current” and get there faster?

That’s the question I ask when I encounter business executives who resist the new social web. These are the executives who know social networking is here to stay but think it’s a waste of time for them and their employees.

In my book, Marketing 2.0, I refer to this as social media abstinence. I suggest it’s the biggest risk in business today.

Business executives who abstain from engaging their buyers on the web where their buyers want to be engaged are risking their future. If their employees get it, it’s only a matter of time before they seek employment elsewhere, or worse yet their competitors will engage their customers in the culture of the social web and capture market share.

If Thomas Jefferson had access to the Internet I don’t think he would’ve abstained from using it to write and distribute the Declaration of Independence ahead of time. I bet it would’ve gone viral. Don’t you?

@berniebay

The first decade of the new millennium is almost over. As I look at the history of marketing on the web over the past two decades I make these big picture observations, which I discuss in my book, Marketing 2.0.

1990 to 2000 - Most businesses developed their first website. Websites were a one way communication medium from the seller to the buyer. Most businesses had little understanding of organic search engine optimization or pay-per-click advertising to “be found” by buyers.  Websites served mostly as an online company brochure. The strategic value of corporate websites was generally low for most businesses.

2000 to 2010 - Most businesses evolved through their second or third generation websites. Strategic value of corporate websites skyrocketed as 24/7 marketing/selling was recognized. Marketing efforts to be found through SEO and paid search marketing have become prominent among businesses of all sizes. Job descriptions and job titles in some marketing organizations include words like “Internet,” “digital,” “online,” “community.”

The Broad Web Footprint

But, there is one aspect of marketing that is not yet mainstream save a few hundred (maybe a few thousand) companies around the world. To be found by buyers, you must create a broad footprint on the web with diverse content. Since there is still one more year and a half left in the decade, there is still time for sellers to jump on this band wagon.

I want to be found by anyone, anywhere in the world, even though I primarily market in U.S. and Canada. And, I certainly DONT’ want to limit where I’m found to Google or Bing or Yahoo (or any search engine).

Sure, being found in Google through organic SEO is very important to me and most businesses. And, pay-per-click advertising (aka SEM), is a terrific way to be found, as long as you’re using best practices.

But, most marketers still think being found on the web means being found in a search engine either in an organic listing, or in a paid (sponsored) listing (PPC). This is a limited view of effective inbound marketing on the web.

Buyers Buy Differently Than They Did Last Decade

I was contacted by a prospective buyer recently. When I asked him how he “found” us his answer was music to my ears. He didn’t remember exactly where he found me. He told me that during the previous week he visited my website, my blog and listened to one of my podcasts. By the time he contacted me, he already had considerable insight into me and my inbound marketing agency. He was ready to speak with me. He was ready to make a buying decision. He had consumed my content long before he called me.

Search Engine Results are Evoloving

The way search engines deliver search results is changing. Google is providing multiple forms of content through “options”.

Bing’s search results are still pretty traditional with links at the top for other content search results:

Kosmix delivers diverse search results. It’s my prediction that before the close of this decade, Kosmix’ search results model will be the norm. Note the prominent display of search result options: Media; News & Blogs; Reviews & Guides; Shopping; Web Search.

The social web has created a conglomeration of platforms where marketers can be found. Buyers are searching for information and finding diverse options of content across many social media platforms. Along the way buyers get influenced by  what others say about sellers.  Sellers who want to compete in the second decade of new millennium must be prepared to have a strong presence with great content across many relevant web platforms. Sellers must build trust and engage relevant communities there with a broad footprint.

Will SEO and PPC become less prominent as methods for being found in the near future? Probably not. I submit the definition of SEO and PPC is evolving. The influence is shifting to buyers. They are the ones who decide whether to contact you based on how effectively you create a broad footprint on the web.

How broad is your footprint on the web?

@berniebay

This podcast interview with Shaun is about using video content marketing in a Marketing 2.0 strategy. Shaun is the co-author of the video chapter in my Marketing 2.0. social media book. Endavo Media is an Internet TV platform that allows a marketer to easily upload video content, brand it, control it and monetize it. It allows any marketer to create “branded entertainment.” Shaun points out that those companies having the most success with video have fun with it!

A video excerpt of this interview will be posted on the branded Find and Convert video channel.

Marketing 2.0: Content Marketing  & Relationship Building

YouTube is a popular tool. Shaun refers to it as: “YouTube is really their tube.” While YouTube has ease of use and wide distribution in its favor, the reality is that YouTube gets all the branding benefit of your video. Your video on YouTube   brings the audience to their platform, not your platform. Marketers should strive to bring their audience to a branded entertainment destination.

There is some value to uploading video on YouTube. It’s a free video service.  It’s easy. Your videos are  displayed by topic. But, because your video topic is tagged, YouTube will display other videos with similar tags. So, people can easily find your competitors videos or get distracted by other videos because YouTube will display “like” videos. In other words, you can lose control of your audience on YouTube.

In a branded video channel you maintain full control of your video content and give your target audience a branded entertainment experience. You control the calls to action, the links, the messaging, the channels and generally the whole experience.

I refer to the branded entertainment concept as “my corporate tube.”

Examples of Companies using Video Successfully

Rick Short, MarCom Director at Indium Corp., has produced video about their solder paste product. Some of his videos are funny. But the humor is generally only humorous to their target audience. It’s like an inside joke. Outsiders wouldn’t consider it funny. Like the video of Rick giving his wife a present at a restaurant. The present was a tub of solder paste. His wife didn’t think it was funny. But, his audience does…These funny videos strengthen relationships with his global audience by humanizing an otherwise technical topic.

TurfNet: They are an association of golf course administrators.  TurfNet TV uses fun and humorous content. They recognize the importance of ongoing story telling that attracts their audience.

HubSpot TV: Weekly internet TV show on Friday at 4pm hosted by Karen Rubin and Mike Volpe.  They deliver great tips and advice on inbound marketing strategies. I like that they emphasize the low cost infrastructure of HubSpot TV. They use a camcorder and show topics on a plain sheet of paper. They understand that video is important, but it’s a cog in the wheel. They produce a lot of content across multiple social web platforms, blogs, Twitter, forums and video.

Many people in today’s global economy have basic video production skills because the tools are so readily available to the masses. Whereas in years past video was restricted to professionals with expensive gear.

Market Leverage: Affiliate Marketing TV

Market Leverage is an affiliate marketing network. They bring together content publishers and merchants. They promote different offers from publishers to affiliates on their branded Internet TV channel. They have a lot of fun with it. Their audience understands them and enjoys their video.

Strenghthening Your Brand

A weak brand = weak sales. A strong brand can result in strong sales. People buy from people they are comfortable with. Video content goes a long way toward straightening your brand. Video content should be a staple in very Marketing 2.0 strategy.

Video content production is a terrific way to bridge the gap between sellers and buyers.

I have produced a brief summary of my book: Marketing 2.0 on my branded video using the Endavo Media platform. It is MyTube. Check it out.

I hope you’ve been inspired to use video content in your Marketing 2.0 strategy!  Don’t hesitate to share your comments below about how you’re using video or other examples of Marketing 2.0 companies doing it.

@berniebay

I frequently advise “create a broad footprint on the web” if you want to be found by your target audience.  Create content that will be found easily across the entire web. In my book, Marketing 2.0, I harp on this a lot.

When people search by keywords, increasingly the results presented to them are diversified. The conventional search results have been known as “web results.” We refer to them as organic results and paid (or sponsored) results. The latter is also known as pay-per-click advertising. Some refer to it as SEM.

However, increasingly we’re seeing results delivered to the searcher which are not limited to conventional web results. Two examples of the future of search results (available today) are WebMynd (a plug-in for search engines) and Kosmix (a standalone search engine). Let’s look at each one in the screenshots below by doing a search on my name: “bernie borges.” I use my name as the example for two reasons. It is not a common search phrase so you wouldn’t expect to find a bazillion search results. And, there is a diversified mix of content to illustrate my point. You should experiment using your name, or other relevant search phrases.

These search results show several of my organic listings including my company website, my blog, my LinkedIn profile, Twitter profile and other content destinations…

The WebMynd results which display along the right side of a Google search result (but can not displayed that way in this blog post) shows results found in other web media including LinkedIn, Twitter, Amazon, Wikipedia and YouTube.

The Kosmix results also list various types of content ranging from blogs, video, photo images and good old fashion web listings in Google.

The point I want to stress is that the future of search is based on content delivered to the user from various locations across the web! Think of it logically. If you search for a topic, do you want the search engine to limit the content they offer you? Don’t you want the choice of drilling down on various types of content on your search topic from various locations across the web?

The future of search is NOW!  It’s only a matter of time before Google presents search results to us in this manner.

Are you prepared? Do you produce just website content? Or do you offer a diversified mix of content that allows you (your business, your products, etc.) to be found on the web?

The book title is Marketing 2.0: Bridging the Gap between Seller and Buyer through Social Media Marketing. The book is written for small and medium size businesses. It is a how-to book for marketers who have not yet fully developed their social media marketing strategy. The book provides guidelines for developing your strategy and real world case study examples from other SMBs for inspiration.

You’ll hear more about the book soon. For now, I want you to help me select the book cover design. Below are two slightly different versions of the book design. Please use the comments section below to give me your opinion on which one I should select.

I look forward to your input. Thanks!

As a marketer are you a weekend warrior or are you going for gold at the Olympics? The point to my question is more about developing realistic goals, a winnable plan and measuring your results in comparison to your goals.

As you know, Olympic gold metal athletes make up just a fraction of all athletes. Does that mean that all athletes who don’t win Olympic gold are failures? Of course not! Likewise, not all businesses can compete direct against all their competitors.  In fact, in a global economy where almost any business can compete against another, defining the competitive goals means deciding what constitutes victory and how it’s measured.

As it relates to successful Internet marketing, the goals you set have everything to do with how you compete in your market. In a world of long tail marketing, defining your market as specific as possible is critical to measuring success.

An example I’ll share is the success of Global Medical Sales, a client who sells hospital beds throughout the U.S. and Latin America. Selling beds to hospitals is very competitive. Some of Global’s competitors are much larger companies with more marketing budget and larger field sales teams. By comparison Global is a small company with limited budget and sales reach.

So, how has Global created measurable success through its Internet marketing strategy?

Through a long tail SEO strategy that recognizes the reality of its resources.  Global has a narrower focus to be found on the web for less competitive product keywords.

When we developed the SEO strategy for Global, we explained that competing for the keyword phrase “hospital beds” would be very competitive. There are more than 30 million results in Google for “hospital beds.” Setting the goal of ranking on page 1 in Google would be difficult, if even possible considering their resources.

So, we recommended two other primary keyword phrases for Global based on our understanding of their business. Global is very strong in “remanufactured beds” and in “bariatric beds.” Both of these keywords serve a narrower focus, admittedly with less search volume on the web. But, these long tail keywords would be much more realistic to attain rankings on page 1 in Google. Besides, anyone searching for these keywords is likely to be an educated buyer, hence a potentially qualified sales opportunity who could be cross sold into other hospital beds. It’s the old “shoot with a rifle, rather than with a shotgun” approach.

As a small company, Global doesn’t need to compete directly with its largest competitors to succeed. That would simply be unrealistic for Global due to its size. Winning in narrower markets is simply more achievable and makes for a more realistic (and winnable) strategy.

Measuring the results from a narrow SEO strategy allows us to point to ROI starting with search engine rankings:

Global is enjoying the results of ranking in the top 5 rankings in Google for this keyword strategy resulting in more inbound traffic, which results in more sales opportunities.

Just like there are many successful athletes who don’t compete in the Olympics, there are many successful businesses who compete in a narrow niche through a winning inbound marketing strategy. Global Medical Sales is an example of a wise company who understands its goals, its resources and has an inbound marketing plan that delivers their version of gold medal success.

We encourage marketers to set your goals wisely and develop your inbound marketing plans accordingly to achieve measurable success like Global Medical Sales has done.

As a podcaster, I have long been a fan of a handful of other podcasts that cover the topics that I cover, namely web marketing, new media, online marketing, and all related topics. One of my favorite podcasts is produced by Susan Bratton, called DishyMix, a podcast show where Susan interviews interesting and accomplished guests in and around marketing, advertising and new media. So, I invited Susan to be interviewed for my podcast and she graciously accepted…Boy was it fun!

Susan has many attributes I enjoy and I will share them with you in this blog post. But, you should listen to the entire podcast to learn how Susan is making an impact in our economy and how you can too by following her tips. No matter your industry, Susan’s advice can be applied with measurable results.

Susan is the co- founder and CEO of Personal Life Media, a media publishing company for people on the leading edge of culture. Susan is a Silicon Valley exec who knows everybody in new media, advertising and anything marketing. Susan is widely adored and recognized as a “super connector” among interesting and influential people in the web 2.0 and new media world.

PLM is about helping people change their lives. Susan calls it edutainment. Each one of Susan’s DishyMix podcasts make me a little smarter.  She interviews fabulously interesting people. In each of her interviews she seeks to bring her audience “brain science,” personal growth and leadership examples. She brings her guest’s deep expertise to her audience while also about allowing you to get to know each of them as a human being. This combination of professional expertise and human interest makes DishyMix a very engaging podcast show!

From 16 to 40 and Counting

Susan launched Personal Life Media with 16 shows. Now PLM is comprised of 40 shows and growing. Susan recognized that podcasting is a communication platform that allows anyone who views herself as a publisher of content (an individual or a business), to do just that. Publishers have always produced a profit through paid sponsors, paid advertisers and paid subscribers. That’s exactly how Personal Life Media exists in our eco system. Susan has transferred this economic model to the podcasting medium with success that isn’t slowing down.

In addition to the 40 shows PLM is launching a new category called “online information products.” These will comprise ebooks that offer their target audience multiple benefits through a combination of audio lessons, video lessons and text based content. PLM has 15 information products in the hopper!

Podcasting as a Business

In December 2008 Lee Odden created a list of the top podcasts. DishyMix came in first in social media podcasts and my Find and Convert podcast came in third in the fan voting (Susan referred to it as a bake-off).

Susan is quick to point out that podcasting is a medium for marketers to get their message out to a target audience. Susan’s advice to businesses is to consider podcasting when one or more people in their business are comfortable in front a microphone and/or camera and a commitment can be made to producing regular podcast shows. Most businesses have plenty of content which can be re-purposed into a podcast. Interviewing interesting guests is a common approach in any industry. While monetizing podcasts can be achieved through advertising, sponsorships and a subscription model, most often a business can monetize their podcasts by using it as an effective way to communicate to their customers and surrounding community. In short, podcasting is an effective medium to build relationships with your customers and differentiate your business.

Susan’s advice on business podcasting includes the suggestion that a podcast can be better than a blog if the podcaster is one who doesn’t like to write but likes to speak. “You must love it. If you like to talk rather than write and you can sustainably do it, it’s a great communication medium,” says Susan.

Any business can tap into an existing or new audience through iTunes, which is a free distribution channel for podcasts. Businesses who create a podcast show are using new media as a corporate communications vehicle.

Talk Show Tips: 72 Secrets “Master Host” Techniques

Susan’s new e-book was inspired by her rapid success in podcasting. She humbly realized that her success qualifies her as a “master host” and she set out to create a package of information sharing tips. And boy did she ever! Talk Show Tips is packed with audio, video and text based tips that will make any podcaster, no matter how experienced, a more effective show host.

Talk show Tips provides podcast show hosts practical ways to organize a show. It offers awesome preparation tips for each interview so that your guest sees how prepared you are for the interview with killer questions and background. It also offers communication guidelines with your guest so they feel prepared for your interview. The ebook also shows how to conduct and promote a flawless podcast interview.

I suggested that Susan come back on my show in the future after I have finished consuming all the content in Talk Show Tips. I was truly blown away by all the content in her ebook but I didn’t finish it in time for this interview. She agreed to come back to see the difference (before and after)…

Measuring Results

I asked Susan how she measures results for all PLM shows, including DishyMix. Susan uses a service from VoloMedia. This service measures how many people have downloaded a show with ads in it. It measures completed downloads, not just clicks on a podcast file. Their numbers are reliable allowing her to measure the penetration of her shows.  Volomedia allows Susan to say that there are about 1 million downloads per month of her 40 shows on Personal Life Media. Of course, the ultimate measurement is the revenue she produces through her advertisers and soon from subscription sales and online information products.

Memorable Show Guests on DishyMix

I asked Susan to name some memorable guests from her DishyMix show. That’s a tough question with sooooo many fabulous guests. But, here is a short list she mentioned:  Sir Ken Robinson, author of The Element; Dacher Keltner, author of The Science of a Meaningful Life; Linda Resnik, author of a new book, “Rubies in the Orchard: How to Uncover Hidden Gems in Your Business” is half marketing genius and half auto-biography of an amazing billionaires.  Other notable guests include Steve Wosniak, Marcus Buckingham and Bert Decker.

A Memorable Speaking Experience

Susan emceed a conference called Happiness and Its Causes. Susan was a little nervous before the event due to the anxiety from some of the organizers.   A friend advised her to imagine a golden chord extending from her body as a tap root anchored into the earth. She advised Susan to take a deep breath and blow it through the grounding-chord to relieve all the stress. It worked and Susan went on to emcee a very successful event, which is a common occurrence for her.

Susan’s Three Pillars of Social Media Marketing in Business

Listening: The most popular action in social media among businesses. You can learn a lot about your customers, your market, your competitors and your employees by listening.

Appvertising: As Susan explains “Brands who create useful aps or sponsor useful aps for their target consumers are brilliant players at a high-level of sophistication in the social influence marketing sphere.” She cites examples such as ClearSpring, Gigya and RockYou! as well as SocialMedia.com and ContextOptional.

Participation: Facebook fan pages such as the Find and Convert fan page and the DishyMix Fan Club where Susan gives away all kinds of goodies to her listeners (I could learn something from this - huh).  Susan also cites consumer generated content experiences like HP on YouTube described in an interview with Daina Middleton as well corporate Twitter accounts like Personal Life Media’s Twitter account.

Inspiration, Entertainment, Education

My interview with Susan Bratton was inspiring, entertaining and educational. I guess I can say it was edutainment! Susan’s passion and intellect are enjoyable. Her advice is commendable. Her enthusiasm is contagious.

Susan is simply a fun gal with a ton of wisdom and success to share with you and me. I hope you enjoy the podcast. I’d like to hear from you with your comments about this interview including questions for Susan for the next podcast.

Follow Susan Bratton on Twitter.

Follow Bernie Borges on Twitter.

Steve Tingiris is a serial entrepreneur currently working on Enthusem which is his third venture.   Enthusem is a very interesting play on social media marketing.  In fact, it’s a totally different twist on any kind of marketing.  Steve’s premise for creating Enthusem is based on a revelation that came to him during his second venture at ProspectSmarter.

Steve understands that traditional marketing is about filling the top of the sales funnel to get results through the bottom. Historically, marketers attempt to get their message in front of as many targeted people as possible (the top of the funnel).  Usually response rates in the 1, 2 or 3% range would produce respectable results. Steve noticed that even the most creative and compelling marketing campaigns have produced lower and lower response rates in recent years. The problem is (in part) we all get bombarded with so many electronic messages it’s hard for marketers to stand out.

Steve believes that, through the phenomenon of social media, it’s not a requirement to get in front of thousands of people any more. The power of social media allows individuals to get the word out for other individuals and businesses.  The Enthusem model is based on the premise that anyone can reach anyone with a personal message.

Steve created Enthusem to turn the funnel upside down. Rather than marketing to many, Steve believes marketers can create relationships with select individuals met online by creating an offline message sent through a printed postal message. But, it’s not just any printed, postal message.

Here’s how Enthusem works. You visit the Enthusem website, sign in and select “send a card.” You can upload your address book or add an address one at a time. Once you’ve identified the person who will receive your card you select an image from the image library for the face of the card, or upload your own. Then, you type a personal message and attach a digital link (optionally). The image on the front of the card is very important. It’s the first step in personalization. The card is mailed in a translucent envelope so the image is visible through the envelope which makes it stand out. For example one of the most popular card images has an image of the Twitter logo and says “Following you on Twitter.” You can upload any image to place on the face of a card.

When someone receives your card, if they type the link retrieval code provided in the card, the sender receives an email alert informing you the name of the person who retrieved the digital link you included in your card. Many marketers are getting creative with these links. You can include a link to any digital file including URLs, documents, images and video. When I attend tradeshows, I take photos of people and selectively mail a card to them with an attachment link to their photo.

Thinking Outside the “Box”

One of Steve’s colleagues at Enthusem, Marc Fors sent a a card to the CEO of Box.net using an image of their board room which he found online. Through a creative personal message in the card, the CEO of Box responded to the digital attachment. A meeting was set up and within 60 days Enthusem inked a deal to offer Box’ 2 million users the ability to send a personal card through Enthusem directly from Box or from LinkedIn which has Box integrated into it.

Let’s summarize this…Enthusem sent a piece of postal mail to the CEO of a silicon valley company and within 60 days inked a deal. That “campaign” cost Enthsem $4, plus a round trip ticket to San Francisco to ink the deal. Sweet!

At the Inbound Marketing Summit in San Francisco, I showed a sample Enthusem card to Chris Brogan. He was very intrigued by Enthusem’s integration of social  networking and postal mail. The following week, Chris called the Enthusem office to learn more about it in response to an Enthusem card sent to him.  Apparently, other Twitter followers had sent those “following you on Twitter” cards to Chris.

Enthusem has been building a fast growing Twitter following.  By walking the walk, Enthusem’s team selectively mails a card to some Twitter followers and many of them have responded to the digital attachment link. Some have even called Enthusem to become an affiliate or reseller.

Most people are used to getting bombarded by electronic messages, but they’re not used to getting a personalized postal card.

Find and Convert and Enthusem have launched a new joint offering which is called the Twitter Marketing Plan. We build a Twitter following for a client using best practices. As followers build up, we selectively send them an Enthusem card with a digital attachment. The idea is to take the contact offline. As attachments get picked up, a viable follow up can occur to explore a measurable relationship.

The Twitter Marketing Plan is popular because Twitter is popular, and this program allows marketers to use Twitter in measurable ways. The marketer can see a tangible result from Twitter by taking the online contact into an offline conversation which can be measured.

Steve’s insight for Enthusem is premised on the need for marketers to get smarter about engaging prospects. He believes marketers need to focus on true relationship building, not mail merge relationships. And, hitting people up with a sales message in social media isn’t very effective. Steve says “people filter out messages that are not relevant, not interesting and not personal. Marketers must communicate in more personal and interesting ways. Companies who do this well will be more successful.”

We have partnered with Enthusem for a special trial offer at http://www.findandconvert.com/enthusem-greeting-cards/.

To learn more about the Twitter Marketing Plan, call or email us.

Follow Enthusem on Twitter at http://twitter.com/enthusem.

Follow Bernie on Twitter at http://twitter.com/berniebay.

You just may get a “following you on Twitter” card one day…

Murry, who is a long time friend and mentor, told us about a meeting he recently attended at the Googleplex with the Knol team. You see, Murry is quite the Knol master. When you Google the word Knol, Murry Shohat’s LinkedIn profile is one of the search results in WebMynd.  Murry Shohat has quickly earned a top rating as an author in Knol.

Knol is a new project from Google. In August it will have been live for one year. Google calls Knol a unit of knowledge.

Knol is considered by some to be Google’s answer to Wikipedia. There are some similarities for sure. And, there are differences.

Knol allows anyone to author an article. You only need a Google account to be Knol author.  When you write an article in Knol it is intended to be informative, not advertising.  Knol has a social feel to it.  The tagline on the Knol home page is “share what you know and write a Knol.”  When you author a Knol article, the default is a Creative Commons license. If you want to protect your article, you can copyright your article by selecting “all rights reserved.”

Wikipedia has an entry which describes Knol accurately.  One big difference between Knol and Wikipedia is that you  don’t know the author of Wikipedia articles. Whereas a Google Knol article displays the author’s name including a photo and link to his or her profile. According to Jimmy Wales, CEO of Wikipedia, Knol is not a direct competitor because Wikipedia views itself as a community and they are a non-profit. Google gives the author the option of displaying  Adwords links in a Knol article and shares revenue with the author.

Other social attributes of Knol include the ability to share and rate each article.  The author of a Knol article uses a familiar WYSIG content management system (CMS) where you can insert links, pictures, and edit the text as you want.

Knol is still new and I’m still learning it. My early impressions are positive.  First, it doesn’t surprise me that Google has innovated something that is part social networking and part Wikipedia. Knol is another platform to go to search and find content on topics of interest. If you have something to contribute, do it. That’s what Knol is about.

After I published my first Knol article I learned that Knol uses a global “no follow” setting to disallow link authority (Google juice). Too bad, but I’m not surprised. But, there is hope. Google explains their intent to selectively “follow” some “trusted” authors. Their method is not clear. We’ll have to watch this to see how it unfolds over time.

Let’s keep an eye on Knol. I think it’s going to gain awareness and prominence in social content and valid link flow content. But, I’m sure Google will keep a close eye out for abusers. There is already a built-in function to report abusers.

Check out my first Knol article on Twitter and give it a rating, or comment or share it. Just check it out and start learning about Knol.

And, check out Murry Shohat on Knol and on Twitter, and get to know his expertise in using Knol in marketing communications.

Bernie Borges
@berniebay