Independent Thinking » Conversation

The Fastest Way to Shut Down Conversation on Your Blog

Daria Steigman — Tue, 24 Jan 2012 06:01:41 +0000

Want to know the fastest way to shut down conversation on your blog?

Moderate comments.

(And if you’re going to hold comments, you should at minimum have a process for getting them approved quickly.)

Case in point: I followed a link to a terrific blog post the other day. Good information, well-written, and well presented. I left a comment, and then tweeted out the link to my community.

What happened next? Nothing.

“Nothing” is not a good response.

My comment never appeared. Nor did any other comments–which means either no one else tried to respond or their comments ended up in comment limbo as well. So what do you think the chances are that I become a regular reader? Put that business on my radar screen?

Silence isn’t always golden.

First contact can be the start of a beautiful friendship. Don’t squander it by shutting down a conversation before it even begins.

Photo by Katie Tegtmeyer (Flickr).

Have you signed up to receive the Independent Thinking newsletter? Now’s the time! Once a month I’ll send you exclusive, subscriber-only content highlighting interesting articles I’ve found, as well as tips on marketing, social media, and how to grow your business. Sign up today!

6 Sales Questions Every Business Must Know

Daria Steigman — Tue, 01 Nov 2011 09:04:51 +0000

I’ll be the first to admit that conversations about CRM, lead times, funnels, and sales systems make my eyes glaze over.

Maybe it’s because I’m a small business. Or that I’m a fan of paper, pen, business cards, big red desk calendar. Or that every time someone starts talking about sales systems all I hear is jargon, jargon, jargon. Or that it really isn’t rocket science.

Mike Schultz broke the elements down nicely during a Webinar last week on The Art of Sales Conversations. The gist of his message was that it’s all about bridging the “conversation gap” between what you deliver and what your prospect wants. And then understanding how to talk the (right) talk.

Which brings me to the six sales questions every business must know.

Can You Answer These Questions?

My big takeaway from Schultz’s presentation is six questions you better be able to answer about your business:

Who are your ideal customers?
How do you help? (What needs do you address?)
What value do your clients gain from working with you? (How do they describe it?)
What are your core offerings?
What is the proof that you can do what you say you do?
What makes you distinct? (How do your customers describe it?)

If you can’t articulate your target clients, the target need, the business value, your offering, your proof points, and what makes you unique–then how do you expect anyone else to buy what you’re selling?

Photo by Holger Zscheyge (Flickr).

The Problem with Soundproof Rooms

Daria Steigman — Thu, 07 Apr 2011 18:06:32 +0000

Soundproof rooms can be great if you’re practicing the piano or planning a coup. And while they provide you with a distraction-free space to work, if you’re not careful you might just shut out conversations you should be heeding.

In the early 1990s, U.S. agribusiness companies regularly brushed off consumer safety concerns about genetically modified organisms (GMOs). I tracked agricultural policy for several clients, so I was in that room a lot. When safety questions came up, they seemed to think that saying GMOs were safe was enough. Who could possible disagree? They were completely surprised when the European Union, prodded by consumers, started asking its own questions.

See, they had been hanging out in a soundproof room. Are you?

Photo by Becky Snyder (Flickr).

How Not to Start a Conversation

Daria Steigman — Tue, 28 Sep 2010 18:50:24 +0000

I received a two-paragraph e-mail the other day from someone looking to connect with me at an upcoming event. She spelled my name right, told me it’s her second time going to an event put on by this particular group, and said she hoped we’d get to meet.

So far so good.

But then paragraph two, in its entirety, read:

“Advancing organizations and individuals toward clear communication to produce and present best products and services using best practices…” I’ll look for you Thursday to wrap up my elevator speech.

Why?

Please don’t pitch me. Talk to me instead.

I like networking events because I love to meet new people. Find out what makes them tick. Who they are when they’re not in default work mode. Sure, we’re all selling something. But we’re not all buying the same things.

You can’t sell me if I tune you out. So strike up a conversation instead.

Postscript: When I emailed that I was happy to meet her but to please leave out the elevator speech, I got a mea culpa. She’s going to ditch the speech so we can have a genuine conversation.

See, it’s really not that hard.

Photo by Marcin Wichary (Flickr).

Can Social Media Cure Reticence?

Daria Steigman — Tue, 15 Sep 2009 11:20:24 +0000

I was talking with Marc Meyer yesterday about this post, and the conversation expanded as it often does. And I tweeted this–

@Marc_Meyer: Good thing we don’t have reticent personalities.
about 4 hours ago from TweetDeck in reply to Marc_Meyer

–and he replied–

@dariasteigman: Reticence and social media are like oil and water…
about 2 hours ago from TweetDeck in reply to dariasteigman

But are they?

I have a good friend who’s very reserved when you first meet him. But once he gets comfortable, he opens up and his personality comes through. He’s on Twitter, but he’s not in his comfort zone yet. So his tweets have this formal, wall-between-you feel, and I haven’t figured out how to help him break through.

It’s no surprise that many of the people I interact with on social networks are naturally conversational. But what happens when you aren’t? Can you teach someone how to open up online?

Photo by TAHANI al oSiMiY (Flickr).

5 Reasons I Love Twitter (And You Should Too)

Daria Steigman — Fri, 06 Feb 2009 19:30:17 +0000

Have you ever gone through Twitter withdrawal?

I’ve been a bit quiet the last two weeks, and really didn’t mind being mostly offline. But solitude only lasts so long. So I officially re-energized today with what I termed my “social media catch-up morning.”

Friday’s my least productive day for traditional work, so I figured I’d put it to good use digging into my RSS Reader and reengaging with my Twitter community. It’s been a great way to remind myself why I love Twitter:

1. Conversation. Well, duh, you say. But apparently lots of people on Twitter have few followers and talk to even fewer people. Don’t miss this opportunity to engage people.

2. Listening. The Twitterverse is a very organic space, and you can learn a lot about who people are and how they interact by following them for a little while. Many of the people I follow are broadly in the communications world. Yet I know who likes football; who prefers wine, beer, or tequila; and where some of you spent your Xmas break. People are sharing pieces of themselves every day; you just have to be listening. There is also amazing knowledge sharing taking place; I could get lost spending time just following links.

3. Connectedness. We all recognize that Twitter is a great source for breaking news, whether it’s a tragedy (#Mumbai) or a celebration (#inaug09). But it’s also a great resource for reaching out through our expanded networks. I was reminded of this earlier today when Katie Adams sent out a tweet looking for a contact at Memorial Sloan-Kettering. I immediately retweeted it, and it was then retweeted by two more people. Within about 5 minutes, that message had reached about 4,000 people.

4. #followfriday. For the uninitiated, #followfriday is a way for you to give a shout out to people you find interesting, fun, provocative, or otherwise worth getting to know. More than that, it’s a terrific way to make new connections. I’ve met some great people that way, including several just this morning.

My #followfriday list for today included Linda Jacobson, Kim Wells, Marc Meyer, Jeremy Meyers, Charity Hisle, and Adrian Pittman. They make my list for three key reasons: they’re smart, they’re engaging, and they’re authentic.

Which brings me to #5…

5. Authenticity. When you’re conversing in 140 characters, it’s hard to keep your mask on for very long. Twitter’s a great way to filter out the authentic from the disingenuous. It becomes a trust barometer of sorts, a way to jumpstart relationships that may start online but then filter outward and offline.

Have I left anything out? Why do you use Twitter?

Why Social Media is Worth It

Daria Steigman — Tue, 16 Dec 2008 16:51:24 +0000

Whenever I talk about social media, I invariably get asked two questions:

How do you find the time? [and]
Is it worth it?

I’ve been thinking about the question of time a lot since reading Marc Meyer’s Let’s Focus post earlier this month. He got me thinking about how I balance my social media engagement with my client work, traditional business development, workouts, family, friends, and the ebbs and flows of daily life.

My social media strategy has been to pick and choose the forums that work best for me. As a result, I’m active on LinkedIn but barely have a placeholder page on Facebook. I try to write at least three blog posts weekly, although my creativity drops when I’m slammed with client work. I started by reading and commenting on a handful of blogs, and have been adding subscriptions into my Google Reader at what some might consider an alarming rate. I try to do most of my blog reading in the late afternoon, leaving my mornings free for more core business activities.

And then there’s Twitter. If I came to the micro-blogging site later than most, I was lucky enough to join the party after the conversation had heated up. I love Twitter for the stream of conversation, the connectedness. I’ve added those I follow gradually, enjoying the ability to recognize their voices and understand the texture of each one’s unique contributions. It’s rare that TweetDeck isn’t running in the background, even if I’m only eavesdropping intermittently during much of the day.

Which brings me to that second question: Is it worth it? If you’re reading this, you probably already know the answer is of course it’s worth it. Social media is important to me because I’m learning each day from smart people like Chris Brogan, Jason Falls, Lee Odden, Geoff Livingston, Ann Handley, and all the others who generously share their insights and challenge us to think about how we, too, can contribute to the conversation.

Perhaps one day I’ll discover a new business partner on Twitter, or someone who finds me on LinkedIn will become my client. But I’ll leave the broader discussion about metrics and ROI to another day. For me, social media’s great value is the ongoing interaction with all of you–my readers, my friends, my colleagues, my peers–and the new conversations yet to begin.

Reading Blogs

Daria Steigman — Mon, 06 Oct 2008 13:33:49 +0000

I’m constantly amazed by how many of my communications brethren avoid the blogosphere with excuses like “my clients only care about traditional media” or “I don’t have time for that.” Well, you’ll have plenty of time soon enough if you miss out on a business opportunity because you didn’t spot a trend or fail to alert a client to what’s being Twittered and blogged about her company.

The conversation is happening. Are you going to join?

If you’re still wavering, there’s a great post on ReadWriteWeb discussing why more people should be reading blogs at work.

In my next post, I’ll tell you what I’m reading.