Yes, that is me with Southpaw, who represents the Chicago White Sox on twitter, at games and community events. Taken at the Eat.Drink.Tweet. event at US Cellular Field in June 2010, this picture is one of many from my Chicago White Sox Tweetup Album. Thanks so much to Amy Jensen Martin of Digital Royalty for inviting me to represent Social Media Club Chicago on this panel and to Alana Golob, also of Digital Royalty, for being the event coordinator.
Another question was about a social media success story. As the other speakers before me quoted numbers and great success – you would expect that from @nhlblackhawks – right?, I wondered what I could add. After all, the numbers from my client’s success stories didn’t add up that high and SMC Chicago’s members spill over into the 2100s, not into five or six digits. So, I brought the numbers down, way down into the smallest, most personal interaction: one to one. Because, to me, it’s the smallest of interactions that can have the biggest effects.
When I traced how I wound up sitting between Brad and Amy, the source came back to an invitation on Facebook from Sarah to attend a party at The Wit on a rainy January Saturday night in Chicago. I wasn’t planning on going. I emailed the invitation to a friend and suggested she go. It sounded like fun, but I had other plans. She called me right away – what time do you want me to pick you up? I went. I met Amy and two other moms from my town, which is 22 miles west of Chicago. The image I’m using now on my social networks is from that night. Five months later, Amy called. Six months later I was on the Eat.Drink.Tweet. panel. Today I’m writing a post about it.
How can the next social media interaction you take lead to a success story for everyone? Where do you get your social media inspiration?
Image gallery: Southpaw with Barbara Rozgonyi; social media moms including Xan Pearson and Amy Hesser at The Wit tweetup – and Barbara Rozgonyi, Amy Jensen Martin, Sarah Evans and Duong Sheahan – also at The Wit.
Flash back to 2000. . .. that’s the year I bought http://wiredwriting.com. With plans to use the site as a space to teach people about how to communicate more effectively online, I knew that writers would need to upgrade their skills – even if they were A+ students offline.
Today, I teach wired writing workshops to train companies and writers how to communicate more effectively online. That’s why I’m excited to see a new online, and hard cover, style guide.
Polished and expanded for its public debut, “The Yahoo! Style Guide” covers the basics of grammar and punctuation plus a multitude of topics with a Web-specific focus. Yahoo! editors discuss effective writing and editing for an online audience, techniques for streamlining copy, basic Web codes, Internet law, search engine optimization, and more. Before-and-after examples of how to clean up problem copy abound.
. from http://styleguide.yahoo.com
Whether you’re a novice or a pro, you can search to find the information you’re looking for. Can’t find the answer? You can always ask an editor. Here’s a look at a few sections that jumped out at me.
Voices, tone and content vary inside companies. A style guide resource steps in when a call is in question. I like the way Yahoo! offers downloadable word lists. That way you can add your own and change their guide to match your preferred usage.
How about you? When do you or your company use a style guide?
Need a wired writing workshop speaker for your company or your group? Let’s talk: corywestmedia @gmail.com or 630.027.7530.
Last night, Social Media Club Chicago met up with attendees in town for TN2020, an international summit hosted by The British Council. Pictured here: Oli Barrett our emcee, Barbara Rozgonyi and Andrew Kneale of The British Council. Attendees heard perspectives from a variety of viewpoints, including NASA, Ireland, Epic Fu, New York State Senate, American Cancer Society, Twestival, HartoDel.com and Chicago. Check out these images from TN2020 meets up with Social Media Club Chicago to talk about Social Media for Global Good. If you attended the event, please feel free to comment and add a link to your site or event coverage. We’d love to hear your take!
Held in the Wolf Point Ballroom at Holiday Inn Mart Plaza, over 200 attendees gathered to network, socialize and listen. Thanks to Sarah Evans of Sevans Strategy who brought the program idea to Social Media Club Chicago. The event was live streamed and recorded. If you missed it, you can watch it on the Social Media Club Chicago ustream channel.
Social Media for Social Good Speakers
Emcee, Oli Barrett, the most networked man in Britain, who brought the concept of ‘Speednetworking’ to the UK, and has hosted literally hundreds of events in over a dozen countries and for numerous organizations.
Andrew Kneale, event co-host, is the Transatlantic Project Coordinator at the British Council, the UK’s international organization for cultural relations.
Zadi Diaz @zadi
New Media Producer, Smashface Productions | Host of Epic Fu, web culture series
TN2020 Member, USA
Michelle Gallen @michellegallen – also tweeting a daily helping of the Irish language through @talkirish
Social entrepreneur
TN2020 Member, Ireland
Title: “Using geolocation for social good”
Noel Hidalgo @noneck / @NYSenateCIO
Director of Technology Innovation, New York State Senate
TN2020 Member, USA
Title: “In Code We Trust – How social media is transforming one of the most corrupt state legislatures.”
Chris Johnston @ChrisJMCE
Account Director, MCE Public Relations
TN2020 Member, Northern Ireland – UK
Title: “Doing well, by doing good through integrated communication”
Raul Ramirez Riba
@raulramirezriba
Independent Film Director and Chief Editor of Mexican emagazine HartoDel.com
TN2020 Member, Mexico
Title: “Internet Necesario (or how to stop the mexican congress by using twitter in twelve easy steps)
Sami Ari @samiari
FlashMob with MJ Tam @mjtam
“Maybe you do one thing alone, but then inspire others to do so much more.”
Sami showed this video.
Social Media for Global Good Event Partners
Note: this content is directly from the program partners.
The British Council [ @BritishCouncil ] is the United Kingdom’s international organisation for cultural relations. Operating in over 100 countries around the world, we build engagement and trust for the UK through the exchange of knowledge and ideas between people worldwide.
About TN2020
The British Council’s Transatlantic Network 2020 [ @TN2020 ] is a network for action which brings together incredibly talented, young influencers (roughly 25-35 years of age) from business, civil society, the arts, science and media to revitalise transatlantic and global links for the future. Importantly, TN2020 reflects the changing demographics and dynamics of Europe and North America. Our members, who come from more than twenty countries, focus on three areas of international importance – sustainable living; building resilience in communities; and creativity & innovation.
The TN2020 summit is the annual flagship event of TN2020. This year’s Chicago summit – running from June 20 -25 2010 – explores the theme “the use of technology for positive change” through Chicago’s inventive approaches to issues falling under the three TN2020 focus areas. You can join the TN2020 community and follow the summit at http://blog.tn2020.org, TN2020 on Facebook at http://facebook.com/TN2020 and via #TN2020 on Twitter.
Social Media Club Chicago
Social Media Club [SMC] is a worldwide organization, with local chapters, that serves as connecting organization for anyone interested in social media. Membership is free and open to all levels, including beginners. Chicago’s SMC chapter, launched in October 2008, presents events that mix socializing, networking and learning. Barbara Rozgonyi [@wiredprworks], founder and Jeff Willinger [@jwillie], president, lead the Chicago SMC chapter. Amy Korin [@interactiveamy] coordinates volunteers; Tim McDonald [@tamcdonald] manages communications; and Jeannie Walters [@jeanniecw]. Event attendees include entrepreneurs, corporate communicators, journalists, business professionals, publishers, marketers, media creators, citizen journalists and technology types. For more information, visit http://smcchicago.org, email smcchicagonews@gmail.com, follow @smcchicago on twitter.com or call 630.207.7530.
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Your turn: How do you see social media working for global good?
One way to get attention is to talk in new places. That’s what guest posting is all about. Here’s a post that first appeared two years ago today on Word Sell Inc.
While writing a press release is not rocket science, the effects you get from releasing one can propel your visibility from obscurity to getting noticed almost overnight – especially when you distribute your news online.
How to Make News Checklist
Who is the story about?
Hint: your clients or your market first, then you.
What is the issue or problem that needs to be solved?
Make a list of how you save the world, stop pain, cut costs or add value.
When – is there an event, an anniversary, a national observance?
Tie into something bigger than you.
Where is the story taking place?
Locally – let your local reporters know you’re an expert
Industry-wide – talk to your association publication about writing a feature story
Nationally – release your story via an online distribution service like PR Web
Why does this story matter – to reporters, consumers, the public?
You have to be able to explain your answer this question. If you can’t, your story isn’t newsworthy.
How will you call for action?
You need a call to action to measure results and inspire movement. Offer a free white paper, a complimentary analysis or subscription to an information source.
What about you . . .
How do you fit public relations into your marketing plans?
Thanks to my friend and seminar marketing pro, Jenny Hamby, I can now say, “I co-authored a book with social media superstars.” Today’s post features an excerpt from my chapter. I’m the book’s LinkedIn expert.
Jenny’s the one who suggested I talk with Mitch Meyerson about contributing to his book, Success Secrets of the Social Media Superstars. Published by Entrepreneur Press, the book includes about 20 social media authors and will be in bookstores this summer.
Mitch is the author of eight books, including Mastering Online Marketing and Guerrilla Marketing On The Internet. Featured as an expert on The Oprah Winfrey Show, Mitch has trained and certified over 350 coaches in his acclaimed Guerrilla Marketing Coach Certification Program.
1. Use Keywords to Help People Find You.
Keywords are the search terms people use to find information online. The keywords people use to find you and your business might point to your profession, service, location, area of expertise or even the problems you solve. Optimize your LinkedIn profile with keywords in your headline, summary, expertise and your job title and descriptions.
2. Upload a Flattering Profile Photo that Matches Your Image
Worth at least 1,000 (maybe 100,000) words), a LinkedIn profile picture conveys your business image to the world. Are you casual, relaxed, authoritative, intellectual?
3. Write a Catchy Headline that Grabs Attention
Your headline describes who you are and what you do. This isn’t necessarily the title on your business card. Sort of a personal tagline, your headline stands out when people see your profile.
4. Summarize Your Talents into Sound Bites
The summary section is the place to make your personal brand statement. Given that attention is shrinking down into text-message and tweet-size sound bites, it’s important to be concise, informative and engaging. Use bullets to make your main points.
5. Cover Every Position for Maximum Exposure
Expand your connection potential by listing all relevant former companies and positions. Break up your current experience into categories like speaker, consultant and author to broaden your skill set. Then, people can recommend you for each individual position.
6. Route Traffic to Three Destinations
In addition to a place for your twitter ID, LinkedIn lets you list three websites. Consider including your company website, a link to your Facebook page and another to a landing page that collects database information. Use the URL or, better yet, a phrase that describes the site.
Yes, that is me with Southpaw, who represents the Chicago White Sox on twitter, at games and community events. Taken at the Eat.Drink.Tweet. event at US Cellular Field in June 2010, this picture is one of many from my Chicago White Sox Tweetup Album. Thanks so much to Amy Jensen Martin of Digital Royalty for inviting me to represent Social Media Club Chicago on this panel and to Alana Golob, also of Digital Royalty, for being the event coordinator. 
