- Photo credit: miamism
Each Friday I collect the five articles I found most useful during the previous week. Here are the pieces I think are worth your time, complete with a preview and a brief description.
1. My Biggest Social Media Mistake So Far
Robert Caruso (@fondalo), the founder of Bundlepost, wrote a wonderfully reflective piece about the pitfalls of being too wary about pitching too hard to potential clients. A lot of us worry about being spammy, but how many of us have thought about what happens if we go overboard…and forget to market in our social media marketing?
{An interesting recurring situation has happened to me over the last week and a half. In demo’s, telephone calls and face-to-face meetings, I received comments from folks I actually have built relationships with. People I know well, engage with frequently and have relationships with. The more than four comments were all something like this… “OMG, I had no idea this is what you do. This is amazing, I wish I would have known sooner. Where do I get it?”
I just have one word to say at this point. OUCH!}
2. What Zappos Can Teach You About Becoming Irresistible to Customers
Jeff Goins (@JeffGoins) posted on Copyblogger this week about what any web-based business—big or small, retail or service-based—can learn from the almighty Zappos. He breaks down three key tips in an easily digestible format.
{Stay nimble. Stay flexible. And as you reinvent and redefine yourself, communicate with the people who need to know about it — your customers, and your employees if you have them.}
3. Pinterest: Everything You Need To Know Is In This Massive Post
Francisco Rosales (@socialmouths) isn’t kidding. This post is a beast. But he does a phenomenal job of breaking down what Pinterest is, which demographic most users fall under (you’re gonna wanna know—believe me), and how to use it to promote your business. The man loaded this post with useful data and infographics, so if you’re busy (ha!), at least give this a skim.
{And now you’re thinking, “should I jump on the wagon too?” or “another social network to keep up with?” and on top of that, everybody is talking about using it for marketing and getting tons of traffic and, you just don’t see it.
Alright, I hear you. I’ll give you everything you need to know about Pinterest and a bunch of resources so you can decide if you or your business are ready to join the hottest trend online.}
4. Newsletters, blogs, and breaking the clutter cycle
The lovely Laura Simms (@LauraSimms) calls on the wisdom from her first year as a coach for creatives and gets real about valuable content, letting go of “shoulds,” and honoring everyone’s time in a meaningful way. This video is short and sweet, and I have a feeling you’ll want to tune in every week.
{I never want my stuff to be your busywork. In fact, I don’t want any communication of mine (oh, yeah–blogs and newsletters are meant to communicate!) to be busywork.
I’ve tried to bring this mindfulness to my all my communications. I’m not perfect. But no more talking to my sister on the phone while I look at Pinterest. No more watching Hulu and trying to actually listen to my husband.}
5. What If Game – Rock It Thursday
We’ve all fallen into those evil “What if…” spirals that leave us feeling overwhelmed and impotent. Share Ross (@ShareRoss), the force behind Rev It Up, will not stand for that. She turns that spiral right on its head and teaches you how to (no surprise, given that it’s the tagline on her site) release your inner rockstar. Sounds good, right? Right.
{From time to time, everyone hears that voice of doubt, the thoughts of uncertainty creep in.
“What if I’m silly to think I can handle this?”
“What if I fail at this?”
“What if my big idea is a big loser?”
Let’s play a different version of the “What If Game”!}
What articles did I miss this week? Go ahead and brag a little if you wrote something awesome, and share the love if you came across another writer’s words that really moved you. And what did you think about my top 5 picks from the week? Did they deserve it? I’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments, or you can let me know at @LivBowen.