Latest posts from Danny Brown

Enjoy the latest posts from Danny Brown, and feel free to add your own thoughts in the comments after the post.

Enough With The Opt-Out BS, Klout

Klout sucks. Not because of what they’re trying to do, in measuring your online influence (although I’ll be the first to admit I’m not a fan of that approach for a number of reasons).

Nor do they suck because they’ve engendered a mindset among people to try and grab Klout Perks, based on that perception of influence. Heck, you’ll always have folks that do nothing but want everything for free, so may as well have somewhere for them to spend their time and energy.

No, they suck because they’re stuck in the mindset that opt-out is better than opt-in.

Meaning, they don’t give you a choice when it comes to having a “profile” of you. It doesn’t matter if you sign up to the service or not, or whether you connect your accounts to grow your Klout score.

Because Klout automatically gives you a basic profile anyway.

No permission – there you are, as bright as day online, with whatever score they deem you fit to have based on their perception of you.

Note: I understand that by accepting the Terms of Service on the likes of Twitter, etc, your information can be shared. I’m not sold on that being turned into a full-on profile on another site, though.

I’ll admit, when Klout first came out, I was curious as to how it worked. As someone who needs to connect clients with perceived influencers for outreach and promotional programs, it seemed an interesting way to find those that could help.

Then the flaws appeared.

Just using my account as an example, I recently disconnected all my accounts from Klout, with the exception of Twitter as it wouldn’t let me disconnect that.?As a result, my Klout “score” (or influence) dropped from 75 to 63.

So, even though I was still active on the networks I’d disconnected; even though I was sharing the same amount of information, and interacting just as much – if not more – on blogs, Klout felt I was less “influential”.

What they were really saying, though, is that because I wasn’t participating by their rules, I was less influential. Never mind the fact I was still getting “reactions”, if you like, for my interactions online – if Klout didn’t see them, they never happened.

Because I’ve written a fair few times about my lack of “trust” in how Klout perceives influence online, I thought it’d be hypocritical to keep an account there. So I went to delete, which is where the fun began.

I followed the instructions on their site to delete my account, and received an email from Lan at their contact centre advising my account had been removed. This was almost a week ago, and I was advised it could take a day to clear their system.

A week later, and I’m still there, even though I have no desire to be part of the Klout game anymore, nor do I wish to be “on display” on their site, since I (initially) never gave permission.

This is where the opt-out bullshit needs to stop.

It’s more than 10 years since Seth Godin wrote about Permission Marketing, and yet here we are, still being added to things we didn’t have a say in. Fair enough, I added details to Klout, but the initial permission wasn’t there. As it isn’t for anyone.

And to remove yourself, you have to go through hoops to get it done? That’s crap.

It’s not just Klout. Facebook is as bad, as are many other social networks. I had the same issue with Hashable, and got into a debate on Twitter with that service’s founder, who decreed, “Hashable’s not the kind of service people leave, hence there’s no need for an option to delete your account.” (This option was later added.)

Yes. There. Is.

You don’t add people to something and not ask them their permission (unless there’s some legal reason to do so). Especially when that information is there for anyone to see, and make a snap judgement on.

For example, some companies are using Klout scores in the hiring process. If someone has a low score because they don’t know they’re on Klout, and get passed by for a job even though they’re the best qualified, that makes your system screwy (it also doesn’t say much for the research angle of the company in question).

So, please, Klout, and anyone else that puts people onto their platform then makes it almost impossible to get off – be smart. Make it easy to leave. I was able to delete my Empire Avenue account with a single mouse click – why should it be any more difficult than that?

After all, it’s not like you’re just looking to have numbers to show off about your platform to possible investors. That wouldn’t be a reason to keep people on there that want to leave.

Right?

Update 26.10.2011: Seems the link to remove yourself from Klout is now showing an “invalid request”. You can try this one instead.?

Note: This post is about Klout and its practices. I have nothing but good words for its CEO Joe Fernandez, who’s always responded to criticism about the service and looked at ways to improve.

~ Update: As of November 1st 2011, you can now?delete your Klout account.?

image: remuz

Your Target Audience Is NOT Generic

There’s a mindset among many business owners that they need to be on social media. Specifically, they need to be on Facebook; or Twitter; or LinkedIn; or have a blog; or look ahead to business options on Google Plus.

This is usually fostered by fly-by-night consultants and agencies who tap into the fear factor so many businesses have about social media, and use blinding statistics and numbers about these platforms, and why a business needs to be on them.

You get the usual soundbites, like Facebook is the equivalent of the third biggest country in the world; or Google Plus has the fastest adoption rate of new users across all social networks; or if you’re not blogging, you’re not reaching your audience.

But so what? All these numbers and stats are doing is taking a generic approach to social media.

The consultants and agencies peddling them are doing so because they know big numbers sound impressive, and that any business owner would be a fool to miss out on 750 million potential new customers on Facebook, or 20 million and counting on Google Plus, or any other millions of potential customers on other networks.

But, again, that’s being generic. And customers are anything but.

The Collective Individuals

Sure, you can segment customers into groups. For example, you might have a product that appeals to women between 25-45, with kids and a sporty lifestyle. Or you might attract gearheads. Or teenagers.

But they’re still individuals, even as part of a collective.

There’s no guarantee that a million sporty moms will all love the same product; or that 500 gearheads will all be tempted by your latest sale; or 1,000 teens will all want to see the same teen movie.

As consumers, we don’t work that way – so why would we approach our business strategy that way to attract our audience? Why would we think generically? Because we’re told that’s where the money is, according to the people with the awesome social media numbers?

Be Your Customer

If you’re a brick and mortar store, and you attract a very niche audience based on location and age, do you think having a generic blog is going to attract new customers?

If you’re a mom and pop business that sells classic 78 RPM vinyl, do you think a Facebook group full of teens talking about video games is going to work for you?

Yes, social media and a solid online presence can – and does – bring in new business. But that’s after research defines where that new business is, not because someone tells you that you could reach almost a billion potential customers simply by having an account.

Seriously, if it was that easy, we’d hear more success stories of how social media is the secret sauce, as opposed to digging in deep and finding out for ourselves what we need to be doing.

You’ve built your success up so far by being smart about your business – why would you want to stop now, just because someone shows you some bright lights and inflated sales potential?

Research. Learn how you can use the likes of Twitter and Facebook (and others) to find out if your audience is there for you and, if so, how you can get in front of them.

Plan. If you find your target audience is in a specific place, make sure you understand the platform and the different approaches on each one.

Strategy. Much like you wouldn’t offer a sale on meat to a vegan, look to use different strategies and promotions depending on the information and statistics your research finds.

Sure, numbers are great (despite what girls tell us guys, size does matter, or so I’m told).

But size only matters when it’s appropriate – make sure you’re not getting sucked in by size, when you should be looking at the overall package…

image: MrWoodnz

Danny Brown Called Me a Dilhole Or How to Find the Secret Sauce

This is a guest post by Howie Goldfarb.

But he also invited me to guest post for which I am flattered and honored. Not sure which I feel more honored and flattered about. Obviously Danny doesn’t care if you like him because he invited me to write this post!

So, this is for you:

Do not follow, read, attend webinars, or conferences by ‘A-Listers’ if you want to learn how to market products, services, or brands.?

There – I said it. Hey A-Lister! I am telling people to ignore you! And I am correct in saying this. You have nothing unique to offer me, or my clients. Because you are an A-Lister, everyone knows your ‘insights’.

How am I going to set myself apart, or my client or brand or product if I am using tips from you? Where is the secret sauce? Everyone is reading you, following your tweets, etc, and thus using your advice for good (or actually often for bad). Your sauce certainly is not secret – it’s just sauce. It’s Ragu vs. what Momma used to make.

First it was about Fans and Followers. Everyone should have a Fan Page. A Community. A Blog. Yet none of these ‘secrets’ have led to Brands or Businesses separating themselves and making a ton of money.

Don’t get me wrong – I am okay with you, ‘ahem’, A-Lister making money for yourself. But you are not the marketing A Team. You are NOT who the CIA sends out to take down Bin Laden. If you want the real A Team, see who comes to this blog, or Spin Sucks, or The Sales Lion?and participates.

Don’t you want insight that only a few people have?? The real secret sauce? The goal is to crush your competitor. Not to be like your competitor.

Do you really think A-Listers would share their secret sauce with you if it really worked? Don’t you think an A Lister would make a gazillion dollars if they could seriously show, say, Pepsi how to trounce Coke vs. telling everyone their ‘secret’?

Don’t people pay big bucks and compete like crazy to get into an Ivy League or similar B-Schools, so they can learn the secret sauce? Thousands and thousands of dollars to have that edge, yet you can buy a book by an A Lister for $25 instead and be just as good? Are you nuts?

Think about what will set you apart. Because you want (need) to set yourself, your brand, your product or your client apart.

Because that is what the secret sauce is about. And you’re not going to get that for $25.

image: All Chrome?

About the author:?Howie Goldfarb?is president and CEO of?Sky Pulse Media, an agency focused on helping clients achieve outsized results in measurable bottom-line-impacting ways. He had a 14-year career in direct B2B sales before deciding to lighten up his dreary work life and move into advertising. Follow Howie on Twitter at @skypulsemedia.

Great Customer Service or Great PR?

So, Morton’s Steakhouse is making waves online at the minute, due to them delivering a steak to HARO founder and social media guy Peter Shankman.

If you’ve not heard it, the story in a nutshell is this – Peter faces a long flight home and is hungry, so tweets to Morton’s that he’d love a steak delivered and waiting for him at Newark Airport. Lo and behold, when he arrives and goes to his car, the steak and a tuxedo-wearing waiter are there waiting for him.

Cue Peter’s post “The Greatest Customer Service Story Ever Told”, and his belief in the awesome way Morton’s looks after their customers.

This would all be great, if it was a simple customer service story. But I’m not sold on that – it feels a great PR opportunity for Morton’s (and nothing wrong with that), but a customer service example? Sorry, not for me.

Average Joe vs. Peter Shankman

In his post, Peter says he believes it’s because he’s a good customer, and that he wasn’t treated any differently because he has over 100,000 Twitter followers. And looking at Morton’s social media stream, it’s clear they do a great job of engaging people, both on Twitter and Facebook. And that’s great to see.

But would they deliver a steak to anyone that tweeted them to, to show great customer service? I’m not so sure. Especially if it’s not paid for (which Peter doesn’t mention in his post, so not sure if it was free or not).

Had Joe Invisible with 10 followers tweeted the same, would he have received the same service? Acknowledgement? Options to have delivery to an airport? Perhaps, though the cynic in me is doubtful (always happy to be proven wrong!).

Great Service Is Consistent

One of the overall takeaways from Peter’s post is that Morton’s is always known for being on the ball. Which is quite a thing to live up to, for any company. While Morton’s no doubt offers a great experience, they’re also guilty of poor ones.?For every positive review, there are a fair few negative experiences.

Of course, this is to be expected for any business, and restaurants in particular will usually have an above average list of complaints compared to many other industries – we people like our food, after all.

But the litmus test for any business is how they respond to their critics as much as how they respond to their fans. Does Morton’s respond – publicly or privately – to each online complaint? Does their customer service team pro-actively engage their critics on forums and review sites as much as they do on Twitter and Facebook, which are far more public platforms to the majority of social media users?

Perhaps, and if so, great, because that would be the sign of “the greatest customer service”, as opposed to a steak to an influencer.

There’s Nothing Wrong With PR for Customers

As mentioned, Peter counters claims in his post that it had anything to do with his Twitter followers, and more to do with Morton’s offering awesome customer service.

But so what if it is down to his follower numbers? Or the fact that his HARO newsletter offers more than 130,000 people to get a story in front of? Or that his site, where Peter posts about his experience, is in the Top 50,000 online according to Alexa?

It’s smart business to see an opportunity like a tweet from Peter, and know that you’re probably going to get a shitload of traffic and positive press for the price of a steak meal.

But, again, that’s great PR, not great customer service.

So, by all means, let’s congratulate Morton’s for a job well done – more companies should take a look at how a relatively small act can result in a fairly big reaction. But let’s also keep in mind who the recipient of the action was, and the reach and eyeballs that recipient has, before we say it’s the norm and not a well-seized opportunity.

Unless, of course, Morton’s wants to spend over $4.5 million and send their lowest-priced steak to all of Peter’s 100,000+ followers, to show everyone gets treated the same…

image: suttonhoo

Why You Don’t Need to Impress Me

No, this isn?t an ego post. It?s not driven by,??Oh, I really need to impress that Scottish/Canadian/Brit (what the heck is he??) Danny Brown guy.?

Screw that ? ego is for chumps (hat tip?Shannon Boudjema?for the phrase).

But you seriously don?t need to impress me.

I?m not your life mate. I?m not your boss. I?m not your editor. I?m not your parents. I?m not your font of all wisdom.

But then, you don?t need to impress these people either (more on why you don?t need to impress your boss in an upcoming post).

Nope, the only person you need to impress is yourself.

If you blog and you hit publish and know that you?re happy with the post, that?s all that matters.

If you?re in business for yourself and you know you?re doing the best you can for your clients, that?s all that matters.

If you?re employed and know you?re doing all you can in your role, that?s all that matters.

If you look in the mirror at the end of the day and know you did every thing you could that makes a difference in whatever you do,?that?s all that matters.

Impress yourself. The others will follow.