When it comes to Internet Buzz, are your careful, fearful or full throttle?

If you make the argument that the Internet does not matter to your organization, then you are just in denial.  The three options above are your only real choices with how you approach your online image.

Careful:  Careful companies control internally who can say things and what they can say.  They plan for worst case situations and they do not enter into the wild world of social media without a lot of preparation and a solid game plan.

Fearful:  Fearful companies are afraid of what customers and employees will say, so they have a basic website and avoid attracting attention.

Full Throttle:  Full Throttle companies fully expect some negative comments and reactions.  They try lots of things and see what works.

You might think that I favor Full Throttle, and I do for my own business.  But my business is the type that people expect to have that attitude.

What businesses should be careful businesses and why do they still need employee evangelism?

Careful businesses are usually businesses that have a long and established brand identified.  They need to first do no damage, and if they get a little buzz, great.  These organizations should have a core team of employees that act as evangelists online.  They should be trained to carefully represent the core message and brand of the company while still putting a personal touch to what they do.  This will help companies create a more personal connection with the public.

Fearful Companies - These companies are probably afraid to get publicity because they know that their product, services or support are not as good as advertised.  Another type of fearful company could be one that would easily attract negative comments and publicity.  Maybe a heavy polluter or a controversial service.

Limited employee evangelism is still critical to these companies.  If there is going to be negative publicity at some point, you can proactively (yet quietly) be publishing the good things associated with your name.  The more good things that are out there, the less damage a bad story can do.

Full Throttle companies are going to be your start up companies or trendy companies.  They can make a mistake or get some bad publicity and will laugh it off, because it is a small part of who they are.  People will forgive a full throttle company faster because they feel like they know them, are connected to them and they are the little guy taking on the big (careful) guns.

- Not that I am saying anything goes – You still have to be smart about it.

These companies can get every employee involved with evangelism.  You should be everywhere you can and stirring the pot.

There is no right answer here.  The question you have to ask yourself is: Do the negative risks to the company and brand outweigh the positive benefits of big time Buzz?

For those of you that are thinking about going to Buzzoodle Employee Evangelism in January in Las Vegas, please use the PDF Brochure to help convince your boss.

The best choice of people to send to this are enthusiastic employees that would create buzz but do not know where to start or are intimidated by the 1000s of options out there.

Andy Sernovitz - The former head of WOMMA and a great advocate for word of mouth, has a post about Employee Evangelism that you will want to check out.  It is a little simple in treating everyone the same – something I used to think as well.  However, it is a good an interesting post.

Instead of treating everyone equally, identify which people are the most enthusiastic – regardless of title – and work to make them super advocates.

Are you tired of hearing about Web 2.0, Blogging and new media?

 When we started doing Buzz Marketing a few years ago, it was fresh and new.  Now every web developer says they offer innovative Buzz Marketing and social media services.  This is because it is easy to do.  The hard part of Buzz Marketing is that it takes time and passion.  That is why I only work with a few clients at a time – I cannot shift passion every hour.  There is a better solution than hiring me to do it.

Employee Evangelism is a better bet for most companies.  Sure, you can hire someone to go out and get links and create relationships for you, but you cannot buy the passion that SHOULD BE within your organization. 

Employee Evangelism Training
Las Vegas – January 24th and 25th – 2008

Employee Evangelism Event >>

Buzzoodle builds resources and conduct workshops that help you improve the Buzz you are getting from your exceptional team members.  The return on investment when you create employee evangelists is huge.  They generate interest, generate website traffic, generate visibility and stronger brand awareness, and they develop a broader network of people they know and influence.  One exceptional evangelist can change the face of your organization.

Click here to read the details of the event.  If you want to get the ball rolling, send a great employee or two and we will help then see the benefits to them and the organization – as well as introduce them to the how.  Basic computer skills and communication skills are all that are needed. AND ENTHUSIASM – Can’t forget that!

Expect those people you send to come back charged up and infecting the people around them with enthusiasm for creating buzz on a regular basis.

Hurry – There is a DEEP discount if you register in November!

The heart of good employee evangelism is getting employees to understand they are a brand and to care about cultivating that brand.

My good friend Phil Gerbyshak is part of a fantastic group putting on the personal branding summit .  I strongly suggest you go take a look and get as many people involved in this within your organization as possible.

The payback to getting more people to build their personal brand is the organization gets tons of visibility as well.

I am not going to tell you who yet, but last night I saw a CMO of a Fortune 50 company speak.  I was uncertain if I should wait in line after and ask to interview him for this blog.  There was a crowd and it took a while for me to get access, but I got up the nerve to ask him for an interview – thinking a few questions on the spot.

Instead, I got an invitation to corporate and access to the studio where I will be able to interview him and later add it to this blog.  Big companies understand and respect new media.  This guy goes to the Oscars and flies all over the world talking about his products.  Knowing we have a marketing blog that is above average in popularity gave me access to him.

It is going to be especially interesting because of the companies strong commitment to Employee Ambassadors.  We call them Employee Advocates and Employee Evangelists, but we were talking the same language.

Keep an eye out for his interview in the coming months.

My goal by 2010 is to have a majority of my income via speaking and workshops – and to have spoken in all 50 states and internationally.  Currently I have spoken in 6 states: Ohio, New York, Georgia, Florida, California and this week in Nevada.

In case you want to have some fun and see if I make it, I created this Google Map that shows where I spoke, usually down to the building, and who I spoke to.  All new ones will be updated with more comprehensive information.  In the past I did no always keep track.  If you know someone that needs a speaker on Employee Evangelism and Buzz Marketing, let me know.

If you are using internet explorer, you might have to right click the below map space and choose refresh.

 Handshake HQ

We have not fully launched Handshake HQ yet.  It is fully functional but we continue to look at ways to improve the interface and marketing.  That said, give it a try if you would like.  You can sign up at http://www.handshakehq.com/ and there is a free account as well as a paid version.

What is it?

OK, long story short.  I wanted a better tool to follow up with people after I met them, so I tossed together the first version of Handshake HQ to help me by templating my emails so I could craft better messages with better goals.  Then I could power through a stack of cards in seconds and send each person a highly personal email. – No SPAM, these had to be sent one at a time.  It just helped me write better emails and not have to retype the whole thing.

I started using it with a great deal of success, and as soon as I told the first person about it, they wanted it for their organization. Handshake HQ is the commercial version of this simple solution.  Better Messages Faster with Better Results is what it boils down to.

Give it a try and let me know what you think.  It is an attempt on our part to share tools we find useful and profitable with other people that may benefit from the same strategy.

Growing up, I was just a really ordinary kid.  Not popular, not very good grades, not athletic, …

I went to school because I had to and I tried to have some fun.  I had some friends and a few really good friends.

A few years after High School, I was waiting tables and still in college and I had the chance to wait on a parent of an old friend.  I’d not seen him for years as he was not one of my really good friends, but we’d spent time together and even gone on a trip together.

I remember I was not especially nice to him.  Nor especially bad, just a bit uncaring.

So I was shocked when I met his mother after years and she told me how influential I was to him.  How he held me is such high respect and had always looked up to me.  I remember thinking, “I was not even very nice to him.  Why did he think that?”

Had I been a little kinder I am sure I would have had a life long friend.  What is more interesting though is that you may talk about influential people, but you may also be influential people without realizing it.  And some simple kindness and generosity could put that influence to good use.

Where might you have a big influence without realizing it?

• The community – Even if you have a small, struggling business, to someone that has always wanted to have a business but been afraid, you are a hero. 
• Kids – Yours, those that come over, kids you mentor or teach…
• Spiritual – If you are involved in a faith based organization, other members could be looking at you as an example of strength.
• Work – Do your co-workers follow your lead?  Do they feel unhappy with the things you complain about?  Do they like the things you like?
• Family – are you held up as an example for the other people in the family (Of what to do, or what not to do?)

When I talk about buzz on this blog, I am talking about doing little things regularly that have some influence.  Everyone has influence to a lesser or greater extent.

Recognizing the influence you have and using it to build better relationships, have a more positive impact, and yes, to create a little buzz, is an effort worth making.  You are Influential People.

We talk about creating a buzz culture with employees and getting them to use buzz to promote where they work.  Now with the book, we are seeing small businesses with 50 or fewer employees successfully transforming into a more excited group that is actively helping grow the business.

One accounting firm with 7+ employees recently bought several copies of the book and passed them around the office and discussed it at the staff meeting.  Guess what happened.  They are forming friendly competitions to see who can create more buzz and more clients, and they already have one new client in the first week.  I think those books paid for themselves.