Over the last year, we have really taken our focus away from Buzz Marketing and turned it towards lead generation with content marketing.  Why?  Because it is very measurable.  It is a clear lead acquisition strategy that works and it has a great ROI.

But what if you want to do a Buzz Marketing Campaign?

There is absolutely nothing wrong with doing a buzz marketing campaign.  These types of marketing campaigns can be very effective.  The problem with trying to sell it is that people think that Buzz is the outcome.  Actually, just like content marketing, Buzz Marketing must be the way that you drive prospects into the top of your sales funnel.  And that means that before you launch a Buzz Marketing Campaign, make sure you have a great lead acquisition tool and proven sales process.

I know that buzz is way more sexy than talking about lead acquisition.

But proven results with great ROI are much better than lots of buzz and no money to show for it.

Honestly, I am just tired of all the different marketing terminology being created.  Inbound Marketing, Content Marketing, Buzz Marketing, Viral Marketing, Social Media Marketing, Attraction Marketing….

Don’t fall in love with the wrapper.  Build a sales funnel and find creative ways to help people find you and opt to become your lead because you are so nice and helpful.  The only thing hard about this is shutting out the noise and clutter and focusing on results.

WordPress is an Open Source Blog Package.  I write about it occasionally, but really should more often.  I spend a lot of time playing with WordPress, customizing it, setting it up, etc.

One challenge is always to find good Free WordPress Themes.

WordPress Themes are a package of templates, images and style sheets that you upload to a specific folder and unzip.  Then you can activate it and customize it via the admin interface of WordPress.

So via Twitter I found this Free WordPress Theme called Apollo today – please note that I have not installed it yet, but is looks very clean and nice.  I am looking forward to giving it a try.  Go look at all the great layouts and they even provide a bunch of generic logos.

I have paid for good themes in the past.  I do not mind doing that, but with more and more quality free themes coming out, the days of paying for a theme seem numbered.

Over on the Servant of Chaos blog there is a new post about the old z-list.

I am copying that list below this post, but instead of rehashing the old blog meme, I think it would more interesting to start something new that integrates Twitter and Blogging.

So here it is: You may copy this to your blog and add 3-5 people that you think provide the most interesting experience combining blogging and twitter. If they are not active on both, do not add them to the list. Feel free to add yourself, but don’t be a dork and do it if you are not using both tools.

I would suggest you follow everyone on the list in Twitter (since they are all added because of being interesting)

The Z-List TwitBloggers

Add your favorites and pass it along

You may or may not want to copy the blow list as part of the post – your choice.

Originally Started by Mack

Lots of people out there are still asking themselves, Should I blog? Shut up and start blogging – then think about the next steps. If you are still thinking about blogs you are just falling further and further behind the people that are doing it.

Today is election day.  Over the past six months I have had a similar conversation with several potential new clients – none of which I decided to work with.

It is interesting how people see that Barack Obama has raised money online and they think they can easily do the same with a website.

They see the numbers in a news story and decide they are going to raise money online too.  Usually, it is something like this:  I will raise $10,000,000 and only keep 40% for myself and give the rest to a charity.  I have $500 to spend on setting up a website, but only if I know that it is going to produce big results.

If Elections demonstrate one thing, it is that it is incredibly difficult to create massive, sustained buzz.  Especially in a competitive environment where the buzz is being created against an opponent.

What do you need to create buzz if you want it on a grand scale?  Just look at the elections – it is all there.

1. Great Product – Your product has to be great.  It has to be better than others on the market and people have to want it more.
2. Advocates – You cannot create big buzz by yourself.  You need to have an army of advocates willing to go door to door for free for you.
3. Partners – People that quit their day jobs to join your cause and make less money.
4. Endorsements – Big name, respected people that are willing to put their reputation behind you 100%.
5. Commitment – Are you ready to commit to creating buzz every day despite being down in the polls?  Are you able to look people in the eye and ask for money when it looks like your product has no chance of winning?
6. PR – Constantly seeking PR.
7. Hard work – Does anyone work harder than a presidential candidate months before an election?  It seems absolutely insane how much they work.

See what I mean?  Barack Obama did not set up a $500 website and make a bunch of money.  This stuff is hard – and there are probably less painful ways to make some money on the Internet if that is your goal.

Litmos is a training system that for many of you will be a warm, happy relief.  It is funny that no one has done a good job of this in the past, considering how many people are out there trying to build training and learning programs. I have used Moodle and other options to build training systems, and they just have too many options and take forever to customize and make your own.

Here are the key reasons I really like Litmos, and the things I would like to see them add as well.

1. I love simplicity.  You will be building a course in minutes.
2. I love low cost of entry.  Because they are charging $3 per user, you know how much it will cost whether you are doing small audience or large.
3. They charge per ACTIVE user.  So having users in there that never log in do not cost you anything.
4. Litmus has a great, easy interface.
5. Litmus has the option to host big video files (small $ amount more per month)
6. Nice assessments.
7. Incredible support and involvement – they have been emailing me to ask how I like it, what I would like to see added, etc.  They have even made a couple of changes based on my recommendations.

My Litmos Wishlist

Of course, there is a fine line between simple and having everything I would like to see.  Here is my wish list for things that would take it from good to perfect (for me.)

1. API to log in from another location.  Right now user management has to be done from the Litmos system and users must log in there.  I find it hard to build a community of users if they have a bunch of different logins.
2. Messages – It would be great if they built in a message board or at least messaging on each learning module.  Currently it is a one way street.  I think something as simple as leaving comments on modules would work – and it can be turned on or off based on the module setting.
3. Audio Uploads – I know this will be there soon, but currently you can upload Powerpoint, Flash, Video but not an audio as a module.  They did say it will be there soon.  You can currently upload audio as a resource, but not as a module in the course.
4. Ability to sell my course directly via Litmos – It would be wonderful if they would let me set the price of my course and sell it within their catalog.  Then I could create couses and promote them, and they would get $3 from each person that takes the course, and I would get the difference on what I am charging.  That would save a huge amount of work for me.

Long ago I accepted the fact that one application is not going to appear and integrate everything that I could ever want.  Instead, if you find a tool that is simple and takes minimal effort to add users into, then you have a winner.  Litmos is a winner, and I am confident that it will continue to get better.

I have talked about the importance of providing value to people before.  If you are not providing remarkable value, why would you expect people to buzz about you?

If you are providing life-changing value, you get into the realm of Debt and the Law of Reciprocation.

Basically, it states that if you provide exceptional value to someone, they will feel in debt to you and be happy to spend money with you.  This has roots in general networking strategies (helping other people is the best way to network) and in sales (free trial).

There is a broader impact I would like to talk about here.  The Law of Reciprocation works very well, often with a simple email.  And the buzz it creates can be big.

I sent a private email to my list about a month ago.  It was the very personal story of how I have lost over 50 lb and the amazingly easy way I did it.  (No diets, no pills, no cutting and minimal working out.)

In the email I did not sell.  I used it as a marketing lesson on how one simple blog post by someone else changed my life and how they most likely extended my life, and how I would be deeply in debt to that person forever.

A Big Risk?

It was a risky email.  Very personal and no gain for me.  I was not selling anything.  A few people wrote back and said they were confused about the personal email and the lack of a marketing goal.  One even seemed offended.  3 People unsubscribed.

But I also got a huge number of supportive emails.  My personal relationships with some people deepened.  People started sharing their stories with me.  And several said they were inspired and tried out the same thing.

The Big Reward

Before today I felt like it was a success.  However, it became an even bigger success today because I was invited to lunch by a longtime friend that I only see rarely.  She read the email that came at the right time for her and she used it to make big changes.  She is making great progress.

Let me recap.  I had nothing to sell and nothing to gain.  But I knew if I wrote it with sensitivity, I could inspire some people to make similar changes.

That happened.  And the Law of Reciprocity for those people kicked in, not by anything clever but by human nature.  Today that friend not only bought me a thank you lunch, but she also really wanted to give me something in return and she is referring a huge account our way.  I am sure she would not if she did not think we could do a great job with them, but I might not have been the only choice.

Kindness and Giving Great Value are your best Buzz tools.

There is a variety of problems with social media.  I have identified the 7 mistakes that really make you look like a rookie that just learned about the Internet thingy.  Don’t worry if you are making some of these mistakes, you are not alone.

1. Trying to participate in too many tools
   If you are siging up and building a profile on every new thing that comes out, you better be a writer for Mashable.  No one can keep up with all the new things.  Find some you like and do a good job in them.
    
2. Expect that just setting up an account will yield results
   Guess what – you have to do more than just set up an account to get results.  If I had a dollar for every person that has told me they set up a LinkedIn account and nothing happened, I’d be rich.
    
3. Not using the tools to connect with people
   Nearly every site makes it possible to connect with other people (I think that is why they call is SOCIAL media).  If you are not connecting, no one is finding you.
    
4. Giving up after a short time
   Social media is about making and sustaining connections.  The only way you can grow your influence is long term.  Stop crying – if you do not like the fact that it takes time, don’t do it at all.
    
5. Promoting yourself without providing value
   The fact that you signed up for an account does not give you the right to promote yourself constantly.  And it is a sure way to get people to run in the other direction.
    
6. Not using the tools to link to other resources
   Similar to not connection to people, if you only link to your website or blog and never bookmark or link to other interesting resources, you will never gain the respect of your audience.  Nor should you.
    
7. Not intentionally building a target network
   Don’t pick the biggest network or the one that your kid brother said you should use.  Find out where your current customers go and your target audience hangs out online.  Intentionally build value and influence in the right communities, even if they are smaller.

If you are a business person trying to get into this social media thing, I fully expect that you have made all of these mistakes.  I promise you that if you get these things turned around, your popularity and influence will rise online, as will your pocketbook eventually.

All too often, you sign up for a free webinar and you get an idea or two, but the majority of the presentation is a sales pitch.  It is actually very effective and as long as you know that going in, that is fine.

Lee Salz wanted to find a place where he could pay for real training instead of suffer through the pitch.  When he could not find the network of business experts he was looking for, he created one.

Business Experts Webinars is a network of specialists giving (for fee) webinars that have real meat.  No sales and pitching to the audience – real training.

I am really pleased to be a member of this group.  I have watched Lee bring this thing to life with boundless energy.  The great thing is I make a little something from the effort and I can feel confident sending people to this network.

Please go check out the list of webinars and look for mine – I have one each month.

I asked ISHANI MITRA of Outsourcerer.com to tell me the 7 best ways a VA can create buzz for their client.  Here is his response.

Have you ever thought of a Virtual Assistant generating buzz for your business? Here are 7 ways in which the magic works:

1. A virtual assistant located in a remote corner of the world can keep on posting comments on relevant blogs thus generating buzz for your business.
2. A professionally qualified VA can write marketing content for you which can be used on promotional materials of your company.
3. A VA can carry out market surveys and generate reports for further analysis regarding emerging trends relevant to your business.
4. A VA can handle monotonous tasks like posting on forums and sites such as Craigslist on your behalf thus generating traffic for your business.
5. VAs can help create strong relationships with the media and your customers, planning special events and building an image – elements that when combined gain publicity, or “buzz,” for your company.
6. VAs can help you with writing advertisement copies to designing creative media kits based on a theme. It would add buzz to your business without the hassle of hiring a full time specialist.
7. VAs are technically qualified to handle online marketing avenues such as search engine optimization techniques, adwords campaigns and similar other channels.

Delegating all these tasks to virtual assistants would save you valuable time, which can be devoted on other tasks requiring personalized attention. VAs would add more productivity to your business and set it on a steady path of growth. VAs can also maintain your accounts and finances, keep track of operational activities of your team and can handle recruitment and other human resource management functions for you.

If you want a free trial of VA services and what they can do for you, please visit Outsorcerer.com for further details.