Pssss – Follow me over here – My new home

I had a great meeting yesterday with Linda Hughes and I learned a lot about little details. I am usually good with the details from an operational standpoint but by golly… that Linda is like a machine. That is my compliment of the day… there will be one every day moving forward as I try to promote a happier environment.

Why Linda gets the compliment…

I have switched over from WordPress.com to WordPress.org. I thought it was simply a move from .com to .org and as I go deeper and deeper into the switch I realize why everyone else’s blog is cooler than mine. I feel like I have done a good job at holding it together but this is what just happened when the switch occurred…

Remember math class?

I remember sitting there learning all of these math rules and tactics and whatnot just to be shown that you can solve the problem in an easier way. There are two schools of thought on this and both are valid so I will write two sentences about each, show you the new blog and we can call it a day.

Learn the Hard Way- The benefit is the ability to fix what is broken when it breaks and that is a valuable skill. The problem is the time it might take to self-teach so efficiency is built through practice.

Take the Easy Way and Hire Out – The benefit is the opposite initially because you pay to have something done and hopefully it gets done while you are working on your part. The downside is the lack of control, understanding, and time that it takes to get up to speed.

The solution, at least for me…

Just like math class; learn the fundamentals and then if you love keep going. If you find tasks to be more under the umbrella of a co-worker, partner, etc. then feel comfortable with the fact that you have done it before. “Yeah, I built a blog and I never want to do it again. You walk away with two things… the ability to build a blog and a better idea of how to manage someone else next time. I enjoy learning and part of the process is finding out what to pursue and what to manage or even hand off to someone else. There is that collaboration thing again.

The blog swap

As I stated about I am now on wordpress.org taking the www.jwconsultingco.wordpress.comsite and integrating it into my website. I never thought it was important and now that I have messed around in the .org side I have seen the light. Better plug in and more information, the ability to use Google analytics, and just an overall easier experience. With all that being said, if I did not spend time on the .com side of WordPress, it might have been harder to jump right in. Now I feel like a power user that did not realize there is an extra turbo on that engine.

My Blog’s New Home @ www.jwconsultingco.com/blog

Of Course Jon Has Something to Say – The End of an Era

The best part is the Japanese Signature

It is over and I have been made whole. Sony did it and I have no ill feelings based on the result of my long drawn out laptop problem. Do you see that check above? Sony paid the difference between my old machine and the replacement because it was the right thing to do and they did it.

Thank you to Sony, my readers, and anyone else that has learned a lesson from my problems.

Twitter is a customer service resolution tool and I have proven the point.

Lobby of the Building Chat

I have a meeting in a few minutes with someone else I met at the Angel Capital Summit. I have a few minutes to kill so I fugured why not get in a quick blurb. Well it is a nice lobby and there is a comfortable couch camp out on when waiting.

Today’s Topic…

These phone sure are smart. I just downloaded an application called “Where did I park my car?” It uses the GPS to mark my parking location and then seems to use a walking direction functionality to get you back to your space eventually.

Opinion

Good application and I would like to see one thing added. Put a timer on there for the parking meter.

Off to the meeting…

Of Course Jon Has Something to Say – Support the Important Things!

I have found out a lot about Social Media and have drawn a few conclusions based on tactics and results. In my previous blog I wrote about how twitter is a great customer service tool and I now for the next test. This is one of those tests that even a tiny response is successful because it mean that there is support.

This morning I went about my normal routine of starting the computer, checking email, signing on to Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and so on just to see the landscape for the day. Jim Burnett, a former co-worker and hopefully once again at some point had a posting that struck a nerve…

I remember sitting in my house that day and seeing this on the news. Denver is a small place and run into people everywhere but don’t always realize that it also means being connected to others that are connected to misfortune. Today I am trying to see how many people read my blog, not for my benefit, for that of this cause.

This is worth 3 minutes of your time…

Watch the video below and see what Ellen and John-Michael Keyes have created and see how you feel about the initiative. I have kids and everyone knows some, or a teachers, custodian, administrator, or anyone else associated with the school system. Safety is the first thing we need and much like what I carp about in data.. consistency is key. If everyone knows what to do then there is a better chance for a good outcome.

Find our more here

Of Course Jon Has Something to Say – Twitter’s Purpose (to me)

Twitter is this and that and can make the world change and blah blah blah. Well I did not know too much about Twitter a few months ago and now I think I found the best use. As a core member of the team that put on another successful Angel Capital Summit, I learned a lot about Twitter due to the amount of use by team members. Those of you that know Linda Hughes know that she is a Twithlete. Linda can get the word out, over, in, and around anything you need. I don’t have a huge following and that is partly user error. I was given the opportunity to learn more and I stopped being a good student as I became busier with other aspects of my role.

FYI, I love this movie and the guy dancing around in the background in a bunch of scenes reminds me of Mr. Paul… my high school accounting teacher.  

Collaboration again…

I retweeted a number of different tweets from people like @iempoweru, @intlentreprenr @LynnKoves @blkdogstategic and many others. There are a lot of people with a lot to say and that leave everyone reading and writing and so on… The point is that Twitter is another means to an end for communicating and should in no way replace anything. It is actually a nice enhancement, sort of like a turbo. Punch it if you need to and a well build machine can produce a nice spike in traffic. So that’s me on Twitter marketing.

The point… Sometime it takes me so long

Twitter is an amazing customer service tool, both on the consumer and industry side. My issues with Sony gave me a great case study on Twitter and the new consumer power. I did not sit down and accept the rules put into place by the manufacturer since they are not fair to the consumer. I do not want to go into the details and you can feel free to read all about it in earlier posts. The reason for the blog is the great response and resolution that occurred once the right people had their feathers ruffled. I owe this to Twitter because once I diplomatically tweeted about my disappointment, @SonyListens responded. When they over promised, which probably would not have been a problem if I was not already ticked off with the handling of the situation, it might have been different. They do not like bad press and Twitter is apparently press these days.

There you go…

Twitter is part of the new press, Have good customer service because people will talk and as they say… The lunatics are taking over the asylum. The press is no longer the press and even the so-called legitimate news channels and programs include some sort of Twitter segment. Jimmy Fallon does a good one and CNN does an interesting job of telling people what the tweeters at home are saying… PRESS.

It’ll Be Done Real Soon – Parking Lot Chat

Good ideas come from smart people that have proven success and I met a lot of them earlier this week. I have put my workshop up with mood music and a few people have watched but I think you l deserve more…

Well I don’t want to ruin anything by making you read more because I just recorded my first

Video Parking Lot Chat…

 

The Workshop Day is Behind Us – Did You Miss Anything?

Thank you to all of those that attended my presentation yesterday, I hope everyone walked away with a little more information than they had before the workshop. There were a few presentations that I was not able to see because of the timing and I thought it would be a great idea to post all the decks or even something more if the presenter chooses.

One side note… I would like to apologize to anyone that went to my session thinking that I was going to hand 10,000 contacts. I wish it was that easy but as many things in business, there is some work involved in lead generation.

Please Click below for the Database Marketing Presentation:

This is what I did and I can do it for you…

For ease of use and viewing enjoyment, I turned my presentation into a movie and put some mood music behind it. If you don’t like mood music you can certainly turn off the volume, the big idea is the movie part. I have also attached a couple worksheets one of which helps define a company’s target audience and the other asks some thought provoking questions about current processes.

As I stated earlier, the point for me is to educate people on the power and effectiveness of using data to glean information, which feeds better decision-making. Click the picture below to open up pdf versions of the worksheets that you can print and fill out if interested.

Other Presenters…

If you would like to have your presentation turned into a video, let me know. I am planning to create a movie with a YouTube link that will go on either the ACS YouTube page or the ACS website. This way you can see what you might have missed and reference the information for future use. It would be nice to have a virtual classroom of workshop deck so let me know if you’d like me to post one for you.

Enjoy…

People Know When They Get Your Best – Parking Lot Chat

On Monday the show starts. There is a lot to prepare before the doors open so I need to get some things done and I am sure many others do as well. While getting them done I want you to think about this…

Whatever you do, do it the best you can

I have heard that a lot and as I put the last touches on my presentation and overall readiness for the ACS, this reminded me to do so… I was listening to Rush Snakes and Arrows Live and I love Passage to Bangkok as do many Rush enthusiasts. Well there are some great drum fill in that I have always said… wow Neil, nice. This unfortunately is not the case in this performance because Neil, come on, you did the absolute minimum to make the song sound great but, no dadada da da, da da daaaa on the cowbell, no fill ins, nothing, just straight accurate play.

The point is that people deserve your best so make sure to give it to them.

On that note, this is certainly the band giving it their best and then a lengthy drum solo where Peart more than redeems himself. (No Solo but feel free to look it up, I just couldn’t find a good quality version. It’s a great one though and Rowen loves it because the horns an Monkey playing a trombone in the synth horn part)

Click this for some fantastic bass work…

You Might not Know Sam Smith Yet – Another ACS Workshopper

 

I have the pleasure of knowing Sam Smith for some years now and he is a smart one for sure. The Angel Capital Summit is lucky to have another great professional teaching a workshop and the nice thing about Sam is that he is a professor. You know, a real one that is currently teaching at the University of Denver, University College. Sam has also taught a CU, St. Bonaventure University, and a couple others.

You can learn more about Sam and Black Dog Strategic at http://blackdogstrategic.wordpress.com. I am happy to have Sam on board after an opportunity popped up for him to be involved in this year’s ACS. I made a list of some important things to keep in mind about Sam and why you should listen to him…

• If you are reading this you must listen to me at least a little and I listen to Sam
• Sam and I have proven to make good things happen when working together
• Again, if you read what I write, you will certainly enjoy Sam’s writing… he is actually a professional writer

Here is a snippet of the workshop Sam is putting on and with any luck, I won’t be in a slot again both Chris Roberts and Sam. I am already missing Chris’s workshop and I had my Bluetooth all set up for the show.

A STRATEGIC Approach to Building a Winning Marketing Operation

 The array of marketing, research, promotion and communication technologies, programs and practices has exploded in recent years, as has our understanding of how audiences and markets can be evaluated and segmented. It’s always good to know as much as possible about those you’re attempting to reach, but not every business out there is fully equipped to understand or manage the complexity of the process, especially when each new day finds somebody else hyping the latest and greatest marketing fad.

Entrepreneurs who need clear answers and solutions can easily get lost in the noise, losing focus, wasting time and squandering precious resources on techniques that aren’t suited to their specific challenges.

 A successful entrepreneur’s marketing operation begins by strategically aligning with your business model. What do you need to know about the market? Who do you need to reach? What does your resource budget look like, short term and long term? At what stage of development is your business? How long do you have to get the enterprise profitable? What’s your exit strategy? What core competencies exist in your organization and does it make sense to in-house or outsource?

These are just a few of the questions that a strategic marketing program needs to address, and failure to do so can undercut your success in a number of significant ways.

 This workshop will walk you through the foundational process of tailoring a marketing program that serves your specific requirements.

Upstream/research functions to strategic development to downstream/promotional strategies and tactics – you’ll come away with a clearer idea of how to turn your vision into a reality in the marketplace.

You can learn more about Sam and Black Dog Strategic at http://blackdogstrategic.wordpress.com.

The ACS Workshop Schedule is HERE and Sam will be in one of the empty slots. Updates Coming Soon

Thank you Sony – The Changing of the Pancake (twitter works)

 

Sony has done what they needed to turn the sad pancake happy

The Result… 

Sony is sending a box and I am giving them back the old computer. Sony will then send me a new computer that is the updated model of my current unit. This is all I wanted and unfortunately it was an uphill battle, however, the battle is obviously worth it since I will be made whole as a result of the effort.

Thank you for the response and the final decision once I started dealing with the right people. Also, thank you to those that read my rants, supported the cause, and respect the customer service process.