Tag Archives: social business

People like Social Media because people are social – People are social by nature

Posted on by Vaughan Rivett

When calling to talk to people about social business,  I very quickly draw their attention to one thing – People are social by nature

Stop and think about this for a moment.  What do people like to talk about the most? Themselves, perhaps?  Not only that but we find that people like to hang out in communities with like minded people.  Have you ever considered how to leverage this sort of thing in a business context?

If you look at social media such as LinkedIn and Facebook, we see people who want to connect with each other both as friends/colleagues or in common interest groups.  They want to share what they are doing and they want to be part of a solution to a problem.

What would it mean to your business if people had the desire to solve problems based on the expertise they could bring to the table?

Recently, I was talking to an IT Manager about Social Business and how they could use it to harness the collective expertise of his organization.  His response was that this was not something that they would need as they already know what everyone in the business had to offer.  The fact is, he is completely wrong.  There is so much that we don’t know about the people we are close to, let alone employees.  People have so much expertise that may never appear on their Résumé.  An employees life experience is bound to add incredible value to an organization.  The best ideas often come from the least likely of people.

Sandy Carter (IBM) Interview on Social Business – Le Web 2011 #SMCH7

Posted on by Vaughan Rivett

I just came across this video of an interview with Sandy Carter being conducted by Chris Heuer.  This is a great video which talks about company culture and the need to “Get Bold” to overcome obstacles to Social Business.  Sandy has a way of making sense when applying social strategies to business.

The question needs to be asked, how do you protect your brand from the savage world of social media?

Posted on by Vaughan Rivett

I don’t want to sound pessimistic, but the truth of the matter is, that your all important brand is not as good as you think, nor is it important.  Today, it is risky business to sit behind an office desk, reviewing great ratings in customer satisfaction, but while your brand is at its best, it could all be destroyed within minutes.  It only takes one person to have a bad experience and it could be all over.

Many companies have experienced trills of having their brand catapulted into the social-sphere while gaining potentially  positive results.  However, over recent months we have seen some of the worlds most well-known brands, come under attack with devastating results.  The question needs to be asked, how do you protect your brand from the savage world of social media?

I talk to a number of businesses about what they’re doing in regards to social marketing and social business.  Too often, the answer is that the business has decided that it is not within their plan and will therefore not engage.  The response could be summed up as burying their heads in the sand.  Today, this should be considered to be negligent business management.  In my years managing businesses, it has been important to identify risks and to either eliminate them or, to sort out a plan on how to manage that risk should a situation arise.

You need to have a plan.  Are you listening?  No, not to me.  Are you listening to what people are saying about your brand on the social networks?  What is the sediment, is it positive or negative?  What is your plan when someone posts something negative or potentially destructive?

A service which I offer to customers, The Social Business Agenda, is a series of workshops which helps businesses to understand the importance of putting in place strategies.  The world has changed and so must your business if it is not only to survive, but to thrive in this new era.  Burying your head in the sand will not make it go away, it is time to Get Bold and Get Social.  Contact me to organize your Social Business Agenda.

User Adoption Strategies – moving second wave people

Posted on by Vaughan Rivett

While on a flight to Christchurch today, I decided that it was high time (that’s a pun) that I read a book which I had downloaded onto my iPad some time ago. Michael Sampson’s book, User Adoption Strategies – moving second wave people, is so far an excellent read.  I have only covered the first two chapters, but what he has to say really makes good sense.

So often I have seen companies put in place new technologies and say to the users “here it is, now use it”.
Nobody likes change, especially when there is no strategy for adoption of the change, whether it be a change in IT systems or a change in process. There are many reasons for this and the business need to consider ways to make any transitional change easy with buy-in from all parties.

Having a “geek” background. I know how easy it is to see how a new technology can help solve what I may perceive to be a problem. I so easily jump on board and embrace the technology, while struggling to put into words the value for someone else. As Michael describes ‘first wave’ users, I felt that he was talking about me.

Michael Sampson has used a technology agnostic approach, for which I feel helps to keep his message out of the technology gutter (so to speak). His straight forward approach is likely to be understood by anyone in business leadership and decision makers.