By Clemens Rettich, on January 11th, 2012 
Thinking from the back of the envelope…
Sometimes It’s Not Enough to be Unique
Sometimes the value we offer just doesn’t match a need in our market or community. As the common wisdom once went, “There’s no selling coal in Newcastle.” They’ve already got lots, thank you!
We call that a market without white space. It’s all filled with lots of shapes and colours already, and doesn’t need any more.
It’s also a sponge. When a sponge is full, shy of wringing it out, nothing you can do is going to make room for more. Changing up your . . . → Read More: Find a New Sponge
By Clemens Rettich, on December 20th, 2011 
Lend me your ears
When Shakespeare penned the words “Friends, Romans, countrymen, lend me your ears…” in Julius Caesar he did his share to perpetuate the tradition that confuses great oratory with great communication. That tradition has done more to damage our understanding of good communication than almost anything else.
Check out Google. Enter the search term “communication”, and click on the “Images” search tab. Count the number of ears that are featured as opposed to mouths, megaphones, speakers, etc. We say “I’m all ears…” but you wouldn’t know it from the walk we walk. It’s all talk! It . . . → Read More: The Ears Have It
By Clemens Rettich, on November 15th, 2011 
What are you selling?
If nothing, then you are not in business. If only commodities, then you won’t be in business for long.
“But wait,” you say “I am a service provider. I don’t sell commodities. So I guess I’m safe.”
Sorry. A service alone is still a commodity. In the brave new world of social business, anything is a commodity to the extent to which it is a) a transaction that consists only of the exchange of a good or service for money, and b) reproducible in every important way.
So a service which is repeated over . . . → Read More: The Social Market: Relationships, Stories, and Desire
By Claudia Waitman, on October 27th, 2011 
By: Claudia Waitman, President & CEO of Junction International
When I introduce myself to small businesses and explain what Junction International offers in terms of translation and cross cultural consulting services, I often get the response: “That’s great. But lucky enough for us, one of our employees speaks Spanish.” Or worse yet, I’ve even heard, “We used an online free translation site and then I tweaked it thanks to my high school French classes.” While all too common, these responses still make me want to scream!
Translation is the communication of the meaning of a source-language text by means of an . . . → Read More: Hola Equals Hello… But It’s Not That Simple
By Clemens Rettich, on October 26th, 2011 
The Goods
Xobni is add-on software for Microsoft Outlook (and other platforms). After installing Xobni, connecting it with your various social accounts, and letting it do its data-gathering thing, it sits to the side of your Outlook window.
Xobni can store all of your data in the cloud where you have syncing capability with almost every device and platform you use (Pro version). It puts any other form of contact data syncing to shame.
When you click on an email in your inbox, in a sidebar Xobni shows you:
The social media accounts that person has (including their most . . . → Read More: My Favourite Social Tool: Xobni
By Clemens Rettich, on September 23rd, 2011 
Facebook is experiencing seismic shocks as it tries one more time to find the perfect fit between our lives and desires, and the larger social (and social business) community.
Unlike various software platforms, Facebook has never really adopted the public version number (beta, 1.0, 1.x, 2.0…) game. It has been more organic and idiosyncratic than that. Certain changes do seem to have been on the ‘new model’ level however: news feeds (that introduction was interesting), fan pages, Facebook chat, the appearance and disappearance of tabbed profiles (Facebook ‘beta’), all might have been seen as new version numbers.
What about . . . → Read More: Facebook 3.0? New Feature Round-Up
By Claudia Waitman, on September 21st, 2011
A guest post by Claudia Waitman of Junction International
The world is shrinking. Meanwhile, companies are growing and expanding. However, no matter the size of your business, you’ll likely cross paths with a customer from another culture. To be competitive and one step ahead of the competition, true business professionals need to be culturally savvy.
Not only is it important to be culturally aware when competing for new business and attracting new customers, but it’s also critical within internal business culture at companies – especially when the business is growing into new markets.
A perfect example is India, where people . . . → Read More: Kisses & Bows: Cross-Cultural Consulting
By Clemens Rettich, on September 9th, 2011 
As humans we seem to be wired for games and keeping score. Even when there is no material reward, we want to know how we did compared to others.
Perhaps that drive is connected deep down to some kind of evolutionary imperative where competition for food, mates, offspring, or just the number of people watching our backs for saber tooth tigers meant the difference between walking upright or remaining a threatened knuckle-dragger. Accountants and comptrollers aren’t the only bean counters out there. We all are.
Whatever the root of the counting instinct, it is the cause of much distraction . . . → Read More: Vanity, Vanity – What Social Media Metrics Don’t Tell You
By Maeve Maguire, on September 7th, 2011 
Guest post by Maeve Maguire
I have a client who owns a cooking school, and for whom I am helping write website content. Her customers are mostly women, between the ages of 35 to 70. They hear about her cooking classes from friends who are current or past students, and they usually attend in pairs or groups. Here is a conversation we had:
Me: I see your web designer has included a Twitter icon on your banner. Are you planning on using Twitter as a communication tool?
My client: Yes, I was planning on using Twitter. My web . . . → Read More: If You Must Tweet, Choose Your Tweeter Wisely
By Clemens Rettich, on September 2nd, 2011 
I really want one of those guys they get on certain AM radio stations to announce the title of this series in that super-manly-EQ’d-for-testosterone voice they use for monster car shows.
That would be fun.
This is part 2 of my totally subjective series on tools and techniques that make my online work easier. I am not a full time social media/blogger person, but I use social media to support my work and relationships as a coach, speaker, and teacher. These are the tools and approaches that help me do that in my ‘spare’ time, and still be effective.
LinkedIn Groups. . . . → Read More: Nitro Pack 2: 4 More Social Media Power Tips and Tools
|
Is Your Business Growing with Social Media?
15 Weeks Working with Me Online, and It Will!
Watch the Video
|
