Engage.  Social Media is no place for snobs!

There is a reason that Social Media mentions the word social.  It’s about sharing, networking, and appreciating others.  All those things we learned about in grade school.  How to play nice.

It amazes me to see people hurt their personal brand by coming across as if they don’t care about other people.  Twitter isn’t about how many people follow you, or how many people you don’t follow.  In fact, if there is one place that you don’t want to come across as a snob — I’d say that would be Twitter!  So for goodness sake (literally) you simply must respond to people who communicate with you.  Whether that person is a customer, stranger or colleague.

Give a little – it doesn’t hurt!

The people you connect with here are left with the after-taste flavor of your brand.  Make it sweet!  Even if you do happen to be highly successful and a question someone asks you seems too trivial to be bothered with, that one person can have a very viral effect on your brand.  Part of online reputation management is to be proactive, and that means listening and responding.

So Thought #1 for Engaging on Twitter: Listen and Respond.

Thought #2: Lend a hand. Someone who only has a few followers may still have something of value to say.  Give them some consideration.  Help them out, even, with an RT or a supportive comment.  Why not make a friend today?  Think back to times in your life when you felt new or insecure.  The person who reached out to you is probably someone who gained your loyalty – am I right?  One loyal newbie can be a pretty powerful ally, because people aren’t new forever.  And you never know what connections someone has either — so even if you can’t be nice for the sake of being nice, consider the ramifications.

Thought #3: Stop selling already. Talking about yourself and your services all. the. time.  might be fine on say… your website.  But in a social media environment it really isn’t all about you.  It’s about connections.  In order to truly connect with people you need to interact with them.  Otherwise you’ll either be unfollowed, or simply ignored like banner ads.  Nobody wants to be sold to.  What people want is to feel a connection.  When you feel a connection to a product, it’s not being sold to you — instead its something you organically desire to possess.  That feeling of connection is the fabric of brand loyalty.

As a fellow Twitterer – what advice do you have on successfully networking using Social Media?

How many tweeps should I follow?

It took me some time before I delved into Twitter.  So — although I’m fairly active in the Twitter community, I still consider myself a newbie.

One of the first and ongoing quandaries we’re faced with on Twitter is who to follow, and who not to follow.  Or possibly more poignantly – how many to follow. I’ve struggled with this, but have fine tuned my philosophy.

Following too many people for certain lowers your capacity to interact.  But frankly, I find it rather elitist when someone is following just a few people – especially when they are being followed by thousands.  It’s a symbol of status to be sure — but it’s also a symbol to me of how much you value other people.  Seriously – of all the thousands of people following you, you can find just a handful that are of any interest to you to interact with?  It just seems pompous.

Personally I find it difficult to not follow people who follow me.  That’s because so many people seem so darn cool.  But following many has it’s drawbacks… your Twitter stream quickly can become overwhelming.  Which is why I love to make use of Twitter Lists.

By utilizing Twitter lists I can check in on certain types of people that I’m following at any given time depending on my mood and interests that day.  Some examples of lists that I keep:

PR-Pros – My work as an SEO who focuses on ORM (Online Reputation Management) makes me very curious about the Public Relations community and in particular how traditional PR is changing in the age of Social Media.  So I check on this list quite often!

I also obviously love my SEO and Fresh Social Media lists!

SAHM-WAHM – I love keeping in touch with the Work at Home Mom community, it keeps me sane!

And I have many more…  you can even follow lists that other people have made.

I don’t check on these people every day.  But I value them enough to follow them, and love to network with them from time to time.

I’m a lover of coincidences and so most often I just open up TweetDeck and check in with whoever is currently in my stream.  It’s fun!  I love to engage with a variety of people that are of interest to me in one way or another.  I love to help them out when I can.  Whether it’s an RT for someone who has something of value to say but not many followers (yet!) or a technical problem on wordpress that I happen to know the answer to — or simply to add to conversation someone tries to drum up.  It’s all good.

I know many people will argue that I’m diluting my followers too much to really build a strong community.  That might be so to some degree. But I’ve made so many excellent  social and professional connections on Twitter that I know this way works for me… most importantly it works for me ethically!

What are your thoughts on WHO and HOW MANY to follow on Twitter?

I’m off to enjoy the next couple of days.  Unplugged.  But before I go, let me share this truly inspiring (deserves to go viral) video with you.

Hopefully you’ll be left with the same warm and energized feeling that I was :-)

One of the more interesting tactics I have heard implemented in pursuit of a ‘dream job’ was when a woman sent in her resume to a company, along with a barbie doll with only one arm.  In her cover letter she wrote, “I’d give my left arm for this job”.  Had I been in that HR department I might have thought it was a little bit creepy… but it worked!  She got their attention, and landed the position.

While I understand professionalism is obviously necessary when job (or client) hunting, I also think its absolutely critical to stand out from the masses, especially with the competition out there today.  Being unique is key to standing out in their inbox, or on top of a pile of resumes.  Gimmicky resumes may not work the majority of the time – but being original and finding ways to effectively showcase your genuine originality are critical.

If you’re actually physically mailing in a resume — what are some thoughts on how you can stand out?  Obviously, paper is key.  So many of your competitors will send in their resume and cover letter using plain old white paper.  How about a splash of color?  In the cover letter – get real, don’t drone on and sound like the rest of the letters they need to sort through.  Tell them specifically, “Here are 5 reasons why I’m perfect for this job.”  Show your personality, ingenuity and intelligence!  But – be authentic.  Enthusiastic, but authentic.  Don’t lay it on too thick and at the same time use that valuable space to highlight what is perfect about the position and what is perfect about you.

Have links to your social media profiles, like linkedin and twitter (if what you tweet about is related to the industry you’re applying for).

Definitely have an online presence.  Work at optimizing your name in search.  Write articles in your niche, blog, tweet, get on facebook — but do it smartly.  Always think about the client that will look you up, or stumble upon you.  How do you want to come across?  If I was looking for a partner in social media and seo, for example, I’d definitely be looking for someone who immersed themselves in the industry.  I’d be looking for the majority of their tweets to relate to our field interspersed with original thoughts, triumphs and general excitement about the work.

Have an online portfolio, or testimonials to direct them to.  Acquire your own domain name (johndoe.com) and build a website/blog that highlights your skills, portfolio, client testimonials and personality.  Check out some of these examples of fabulous resume/portfolio sites:

Cabedge – I love the landing page on their site which to me speaks of confidence.  The design is minimal, bold and pleasant without cramming showcasing all of their skills onto the homepage itself.  It’s also direct and concise, speaking immediately to their potential client.

Gwen Bell – When you visit Gwen’s website you immediately get the feeling that this person knows what they’re doing, is comfortable in their own skin and you’re intrigued.  She’s both professional and amiable – inviting you to get to know her while her call to action is immediately present for potential clients.

New Marketing Labs – It’s important to identify with your visitor immediately.  I love how New Marketing Labs achieves that right from the get go.  They talk to the clients needs and invite them to take action.  Tastefully, below the call to action they highlight the caliber of clients they have worked for – and that they want to attract.  It’s key to identify who it is that you want to work with, and what exactly it is you want to do for them.

We’ve all had the frustration of working for clients with whom we don’t resonate with creatively, so why not get to know them before a contract is signed and see of your ideas are going to be appreciated, or disregarded.  Always remember that you’re interviewing them, too!  The goal is to get your dream client, not the next client.  So the next time you’re approaching a prospective client — get creative and don’t be afraid to share ideas.  Get specific about the strengths and weaknesses you perceived to be in their business model (on the level in which it relates to the position at hand), and what steps you personally would take to bring their business to the next level.

Leverage your connections.  When attempting to land a client, check to see if you have any secondary connections to that client in LinkedIn that could send a recommendation or introduce you.

By far the most impressive, ludicrously simple experiment I’ve seen in attracting your dream job was Alex Brownstein’s ingenious ploy to attract the attention of key Google employees by optimizing landing pages with their names and running a google adwords campaign:

For more helpful tips to help you reveal your own inspiration to attract the perfect client check out these resources:

Job Search: Four Ways to Stand Out in Today’s Market – SEO Your Resume

Easy Ways to Stand Out when Applying for Internships

Making Your Mark: Five Unusual Ways to Impress Finance Recruiters

Please, tell me it’s not just about headstands and running

I’ve recommended @LollyDaskal in the past for inspiring tweets that always come across as heart-felt which in my experience usually means that was the intention.  I mention her again today because I just happened upon this recent tweet that I liked:

lead from within: the way you react to the world only reflects how you feel about your self

You can sign up for Lolly’s newsletter on her website.

—————————————————————————————————————

One fun thing about Twitter is meeting some of the wittiest people on the web that otherwise you might never have encountered, Like @barefootfoodie – who totally cracks me up with her unpredictable humor.  I love it when I run into her tweets in my stream, it always brings a smile.

Don’t just follow her — check out her website: barefootfoodie.com for some seriously funny stuff — for example, a recent, hysterical gondola ride…

—————————————————————————————————————

If you haven’t read The Happiness Project by @gretchenrubin yet, you really ought to.  I love her inquisitiveness and introspection as she pursues a happy life.  Check out her blog over at The Happiness Project where the project doesn’t end which is a fabulous find once you’ve finished the book and didn’t want it to end!

An example of Gretchen’s insight from a recent post highlighting the importance of holiday traditions:

Studies show that family traditions support children’s social development and strengthen family cohesiveness. They provide the connection and predictability that people crave. They help us mark the time and the seasons in a pleasant way. My Third Splendid Truth is The days are long, but the years are short, and I find that this kind of festivity helps to slow time, and at least to make time more memorable. It brings the family together in happy circumstances.

—————————————————————————————————————

I hope at least one of these fabulous women is new to you!  Who are your #FF picks this week?  Leave a comment and let me know :-)