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Students will tell you that there is a subtle yet absolute difference between knowing how to do something and knowing how to EXPLAIN how to do something. The ability to share knowledge requires that you have an additional layer of experience and know-how.

To be a really effective trainer, you need to be able to impart the how, the why, and the proper and effective application of techniques being taught. This deeper knowledge supports the trainer during Q&A where attendees query whatever comes to mind and the right answer has to come off the cuff. Without an intimate knowledge of the topic, there is no open Q&A.

As we wrap up another intensive workshop retreat, this one two full days in Langley, WA, I am reminded of how deep our knowledge of social media is, as well as how much we have yet to learn.  What Mike and I shared was so extensive, but there was much we didn’t share because there just wasn’t enough time. We feel as if there is lots of unexplored territory.

The cool thing about the approach of The Langley Center for New Media is that they are bringing in real experts in related fields to – over time – provide comprehensive coverage of all things new media: from content strategy to social media implementation to new journalism.  In the retreat-like atmosphere of the town of Langley on Whidbey Island in the Pacific Northwest, learning takes place in an intimate and relaxing environment. Still, for a two or three day event, the tuition is affordable and access to the instructors is intensive.

Many social media multi-day workshops announced by industry insiders over the last year have not happened, most often for lack of attendance. What was different here? The Langley Center is unique and different in the talent they bring in to impart knowledge and in their approach to learning. They understand that it’s not just content or strategy or implementation, but a whole new way of thinking and acting that take time and preparation to engage in.

After some very intensive interaction and time with them, we believe they truly “get it“. So, to the folks of Langley Center for New Media about to Rock The World, we salute you!

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Excerpt from Rock the World with Social Media coming October 2010

For anyone serious about social media, a basic understanding of and activity in Twitter is a requirement. At the very least you need to understand the issues. The only way to understand the issues is to be a user.

If you are new, we recommend you setup a personal Twitter account and build out your BIO as a hybrid of 80% personal and 20% business text. Your 160 character bio should be keywords rather than sentences. It is a good idea to group keywords visually and separate difference sets with a vertical pipe or some other symbol like this:

Creative genius | photographer – commercial, advertising, editorial | love to hike & ski | dedicated family man | into cartoons and comedy

The BIO above is only 138 of an allowed 160 characters. You should use as many of the 160 characters as you possibly can. It will help you be found in searches both on Twitter search as well as on related sites such as Twellow. (Twellow.com is the yellow pages of Twitter, sorting entries based on keywords found in BIOs and locations as entered by users.)

A background image is highly recommended; for personal accounts, it can be slanted mostly toward the personal side of you. Still, we suggest you look at what other people in your same demographic are doing when you create a look for yourself. You are branding yourself, after all, and there is no better place to create a visual and “instant” brand for yourself than Twitter.

Unless you have the skills to do it yourself, be prepared to pay an average of $150 for a good personalized background page. If you need assistance, we recommend you use someone who understands the nuances of building a background that will fit for a variety of screen resolutions. You can find information to contact our graphic artist on our site RockTheWorldBook.com/extras.

Consider tools like HootSuite to organize your Twitter communications, especially on a Smartphone. Twitter and Smartphones are like Lennon and McCartney. They just go together brilliantly!

For more information about Rock the World with Social Media, our second book in the “Rock the World” series, please email training@integratedalliances.com. We’d love to talk with you! Or, post a comment here and we’ll respond promptly to your thoughts and ideas.



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So many people are jumping on bandwagons these days, so many trying to find their next gig, trying to do something to pay the bills. And so the issue comes up that anyone can do anything for anyone if they just know a little more than the next guy. But is that good enough?

I received yet another notice in my inbox from a new social media “expert” that purports to have figured it out. When I looked at the facebook video link, it was of such poor quality that it was sad to watch. He’s sitting on an old couch in a wrinkled shirt with bad audio (making it hard to hear) on a dim webcam so the only feature I can really pick out against the background is rather large ears.

Mike at HyperThreat StudiosAm I dissing this guy? No; not at all. I am being honest about how he is portraying himself in his quest to “sell” social media training to small business owners. Maybe he will find success; perhaps he will help some people go further than they are going themselves. In the meantime, he doesn’t understand that he comes across as someone who’s not in it for the long haul, someone who will leave the side of his client the moment a job offer comes in.

Contrast that with the quality product a real training company or professional strives to provide and you’ll see a huge difference in the potential return on your investment. Here’s a real life example: Mike and I were recently at HyperThreat Studios to record a CD-quality audio companion to our first book Rock the World with your Online Presence. The picture attached to this post is my partner, Mike O’Neil in front of the microphone.

The point is, when people come across so much poor quality, they stop looking. They miss the real professionals who can help them navigate this new world. There are tons of people who are in the field, where good enough is just good enough, sort of like our friend described above. There are fewer real veterans who will someday (perhaps sooner than later) find themselves being inducted into the Social Media Hall of Fame. Those would be the likes of Guy Kawasaki, Jay Deragon, Chris Brogan, Joel Comm, Dean Holmes, Mike O’Neil, Ron Davies, Lewis Howes, Patrick O’Malley, JD Gershbein, and others.

The above is by no means an exhaustive list. Rather only the first who have come to mind. If you know someone who really knows their stuff, feel free to drop a comment below. We’d love to recognize real experts in the field who maintain a level of quality not because they have to, but because they are just that authentic.

So many people are jumping on bandwagons these days, so many trying to find their next gig, trying to do something to pay the bills

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I get this question about once a week through email and other sources, so here’s the post I’ve written often but never published.

To have your Twitter update feed your LinkedIn update you must first add your Twitter account to LinkedIn.  You can do this from the “Edit My Profile” Tab or from your Settings (top right of the screen).

When attaching your Twitter account, you have the option of having your entire Twitter stream feed your LinkedIn updates (BAD IDEA!), or you can share selected tweets by including “#in” in the tweet. That means you get to use your brain instead of an automated system to post everything.

Those posts might be appropriate for Twitter, but not LinkedIn. LinkedIn is a different environment where people pay more attention to everything they read on your profile. It’s way too much exposure if your status, which feeds the home pages of your connections, is updated several times a day.

Already have Twitter connected to LinkedIn? Here’s how to change your settings.From your home page, click the drop down box beside the Twitter “T” and select settings. Of, you can access your Twitter settings from your Settings link at the top right of any LinkedIn page.

Again, if you adjust your settings to share only selected tweets (those that contain #in), you’ll be fine.  When you tweet and want it to show up on LinkedIn, #in is all you need. It will update your profile status within a few minutes.

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Three Bad Career Moves to Avoid on LinkedIn

July 20, 2010

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#1 – If you find it annoying to attend a networking event with people that bring their resume with them, consider how it appears when you do this:
On LinkedIn, you send your resume directly to the email address of all of your first level connections, asking them to pass it along if they [...]

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More about this changing world

July 19, 2010

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Last week after I spoke with Adrian Lurssen, VP of Strategic Business Development at JD Supra on Friday, my heart was pounding and my skin felt like it would just melt off my bones.  I haven’t been so excited in years!  What LinkedIn announced on Friday with the new applications is a game [...]

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Winning with Twitter Contests

July 17, 2010

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About this time last year, as we were preparing to publish Rock the World with Your Online Presence, my partner and co-author Mike O’Neil posted a question in the Answers on LinkedIn. What are some creative ways to promote our new book?   He received over 35 responses including one from Tony Eldridge about [...]

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LinkedIn Changes the World

July 16, 2010

There is nothing new under the sun.  For LinkedIn that means, now that they have reached a certain level of success measured by number of users and a certain level of engagement, it’s time to focus.
For LinkedIn, that means niche applications.  They now have 16 apps; the new ones today are game changers.
Legal Updates
Consider how [...]

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Winning with WordPress

July 15, 2010

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Where does WordPress fit into the social media space? Well, in the real world, we gain credibility and recognition by participating in projects, showing our skills, doing our jobs. If you want to learn a new skill or become known in the community, a quick and surefire way (if you’re all that), is [...]

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Mad About Meetup!

July 14, 2010

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Meetup as a social networking platform is a powerful tool for connecting our online world with the real one.  Chances are you haven’t checked it out yet. According to Meetup.com, there are 7.2 million members with over 6 million monthly visitors, 79,000 local groups in 45,000 cities. They host 250,000 monthly Meetups attracting [...]

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USA Today portended social media saying: “Best Friends Good for Business”

July 13, 2010

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December 1, 2004, USA Today ran an article “Best friends good for business: Employees with buddies at work more ‘engaged’”. At that time, 29% of employees said “they had a best friend at work, and mounting research indicates that the word ‘best’ makes the difference.”
LinkedIn had been around a year, Myspace and Facebook [...]

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Winning by Integration with Microsoft, LinkedIn, Facebook and Outlook

July 12, 2010

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People have always been told that their vote counts, that one vote makes a difference. Nowhere is that more obvious today than in the social media space. People vote with the click of a mouse: Like, Share, Send, Forward, Digg, email, etc.
And companies listen to consumers and vote with their investment [...]

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