Social media...

What, where and

how to incorporate
your business
Matthew Dollinger
mattdollinger@atproperties.com
facebook.com/mattdollinger
@mattdollinger
www.TheYouFactor.com
 Hi... I’m
Matt
@mattdollinger

And I’m a
Lovecat
What’s a Lovecat?
Share your:

Network

Knowledge

Compassion
 That’s the

of the Social Web

What is social media and how
can I use it for business?
Think about it like this…
Why do people go to
church?

* Courtesy of Todd Carpenter, Twitter @tcar

For the free wine, coffee
and cookies?

* Courtesy of Todd Carpenter, Twitter @tcar

To sell goods and services?

* Courtesy of Todd Carpenter, Twitter @tcar

 If you said yes…
You’re going to hell.

* Courtesy of Todd Carpenter, Twitter @tcar

People are going to church
to worship.

* Courtesy of Todd Carpenter, Twitter @tcar

But… if while you’re there…

* Courtesy of Todd Carpenter, Twitter @tcar

You enjoy some coffee,
cookies, and talk about
your business…

* Courtesy of Todd Carpenter, Twitter @tcar

 That’s ok.
The same thing is true in
social media.

* Courtesy of Todd Carpenter, Twitter @tcar

People are not going to
Facebook or Twitter for
business alone.
Social Media allows ALL of us
to bring a personal side of
our lives to the forefront to
share with others.
 FAQ about Social Media
• We work 24/7 and need to bridge the personal vs.
professional gap
• “Most” People love to be on stage – especially with a
delete button (karaoke anyone?)
• We are social creatures by nature
• We have “nested” for way too long – answering
machines?
• We want to “love” our experiences and share them
• It has given us all multiple mediums to create and
embrace our creative tendencies (video, text,
pictures, etc.)
• It is now mobile and goes everywhere with us.
Three Major Social Media
Networks
(The Holy Trinity of SM)
• Facebook users in U.S. as of 1/04/09

Courtesy of Strategy Labs http://tinyurl.com/8yoccn

Courtesy of the Pew Institute for Online Research http://tinyurl.com/763vaf
Click here to view the entire LinkedIn Presentation
Who’s using it in event planning?

*Courtesy of
www.MCMAG.com
issue June 2009.
What are they using it for?
 Question:
What do YOU, Dell,
Southwest, Tripadvisor.com,
Comcast and Zappos all have in
common?
Answer:
Everything
 Let me Explain:

What business are you in?

 Answer:

You are in the customer service

business…
 Everything that you do comes
down to not just delivering
service, but delivering
REMARKABLE, PERSONALIZED
Service
 What is happening in
innovative companies?
Social Media is supporting
customer service with
LIVE people
Immediate response
to problems that
might arise during the
sales process,
installation, or other.
At the moment of dissatisfaction, when the unhappy
individual has started to tell their network, Comcast
steps in to rectify the situation.

* Courtesy of Mario Vellandi, Melodies in Marketing

 The most passionate and
knowledgeable employees will
become “brand ambassadors”
for their company
 Companies will empower
passionate employees on SM
Companies will become more
“human” because no one is
“in love” with a company.
By becoming approachable online and carrying his message (and more
importantly his brand) online, Tony has engaged his clients throughout
the buying cycle and beyond.
Companies will engage their
clients and encourage them
to participate.
And... Companies will listen to
their clients
 Question:

How could what I just showed

you benefit your business?
(This is where we discuss stuff)
 Here’s a little help:

Transportation problem?
Hotel staff tweets?
How can we make mtg. rooms better?
What type of speakers would you like?
Why are these companies
all successful in utilizing
social media?
Because they all focus on
ENGAGING
The client first, and on
BEING HUMAN
While doing it.
 It is not only the
Social Web...
More importantly
it’s the Human Web.
The Social Web Empowers
Search
It amplifies Word of Mouth
Marketing (WOMM)
 And it can destroy it if used
Wrong incorrectly
Messag
e
So... what are the
new rules?
Be your genuine self*
 *Genuine Self = Personal Brand
5. Make a list of your 5 core values
6. Think about how they are integrated into your
business
7. These are your business “governing principals”
8. Put them EVERYWHERE
9. Ask “Does this <blank> echo my principals
Learn by doing
Provide Value at every
opportunity
Engage your current and
potential clients
 Realize that we are now
EXPECTING each
experience to be
customized and personable
Realize that the Word
SOCIAL is in front of
MEDIA
Or simply put by
David Armano
* Courtesy of David Armano on Twitter @armano
To what your
audience
says.
 Learn from
what you
overhear and
gather.
 Your
communication
Adapt
to provide
VALUE to
them.
How can I do this?
Listen to what
your clients
are saying
about you or
your market
Engage them to discover who they are,
what’s important to them and how you
can serve them better
Adapt through
collaboration
with those
around you
and in your
network
* Courtesy of David Armano on Twitter @armano
 Case Study…

The 2009 National Widget

Convention
 National Widget Convention
• National Widget Association of America
• Needs to boost attendance
• Hotel/Center has made major upgrades
• Trying to appeal to attendee needs
• Wide distribution audience
• Most popular parts of convention:
– food, drinks, entertainment, exhibit hall, hotel
 Goals of Hospitality
• Hospitality
– Create a video that will showcase amenities
– Addressing the “persona” of the attendee
they hope to address their needs
– Discuss “outside” convention opportunities
that are important to attendees
– Highlight NEW convention center
What Hospitality COULD do…
 Goals of Event Planners
• Event Planners
– Create a video to help increase attendence
– Highlight speakers and the facility
– Interviews from different attendees about
what they learned and why they attended
previous years
– Easily distributed and passed on
– Can be used to help secure speakers as well
What planners could do…
Got the video – now what?
 There has to be a strategy
• How do I get them to the video and pass it on?
– Are your people on Facebook?
– Are you people on Twitter?
– Do your people read blogs?
– Will they read their emails?
– Do they read a particular magazine/newsletter?
• Who are the most influential “connectors”
• What media are they most effected by?
 If I was doing an event…
• Pre Event
– Video highlighting last years’ attendees
– Pictures/testimonials/etc. of last years’ event
– Encourage vendors to engage with attendees
– Send video to speakers you want to book
– Build a Facebook page people can join
– Drop tidbits of stuff about event
– Showcase hotel amenities and area activites
– Encourage and organize “unconferences”
– Send a “how to use” SM guide to all attendees
– Use survey software to poll for topics/speakers
– Encourage “top brass” to engage in banter
– Email campaign of “off schedule” activities
– Send “family” information to all those who attend
 If I was doing an event…
• During Event
– Live Twitter stream/hashtag (#) of event
– Use Ustream.com to live stream event
– Video or podcast ALL sessions/events
– Ask speakers to help “unconference” sessions
– Have Dir. Of Mktg from hotel do an after-session
– Flickr photo stream for all photos shared at event
– Give away 25 branded Flip Cameras (split cost w. venue)
– Create an Event-Blog that all could contribute to
– Contest for who contributes the most pictures/video
– Take questions from those that could not attend via
Facebook/Twitter
– Tape EVERY fun session as well as prof. session
– Have scribes write notes on every speaker/keynote session
– Conduct interviews with everyone DURING event
 If I was doing an event…
• Post Event
– Send a follow up poll to attendees
– Post all photos and videos on Facebook and other places
people can see, comment and share
– Roll out videos of sessions on website for the next 3 weeks
– Contest for those who submit ideas to make event better
– Have attendees write “reviews” of exhibitors
– “best takeaway” idea contest
– Encourage ALL attendees to review facitlity on Tripadvisor,
Yelp and Google
– Share what you learn with others in industry
– Collaborate with facility on “what to do better”
– Announce next year’s event ASAP
 Too Much?
All of these
suggestions are
simply ideas to get
you thinking from a
position of
engagement,
understanding and
encouragement.
 Boil Social Media To 3 Things
• Learn from it
– Connect with others and groups in your industry to
share ideas and best practices.
• Engage your clients
– Learn from them, discover what’s important to
them, and encourage them to participate
• Share, Have Fun, and Try New Things
– Social Media’s about being personal, sharing things
about yourself, and no one will fault you for trying
something new or innovative ~ even if it doesn’t
work
 Resources
• www.4hoteliers.com – hotel industry insight
• www.conventionnewstv.com – great examples of how to do event
videos
• www.meetingscollaborative.com – awesome website of meeting
event insight
• www.meetingsnet.com – very forward thinking website dedicated
to meeting planning
• www.tweetchat.com – twitter chat rooms on specific topics –
check out #assnchat #eventprofs #buzz2009
• www.thespeakersgroup.com – excellent collection of speakers on
a variety of topics
• www.meetingsreview.com – events, reviews, thoughts and more
• www.wikihow.com – excellent resource to find out how to do
anything on Social Media (i.e. create a Facebook group, LinkedIn
account, etc.)
Thank you
Special thanks to:
Peter Kim (www.beingpeterkim.com)
David Armano (www.darmano.typepad.com)
Todd Carpenter (twitter @tcar)

Matthew Dollinger
@properties
Performance Coach
773.354.9681
mattdollinger@atproperties.com
www.TheYouFactor.com
 Resources
• Blog – www.TheYouFactor.com
• Video – www.wellcomemat.com/mattdollinger
• Presentations – www.TheYouFactor.com/learn
• Twitter - @mattdollinger
• Web Sites – www.Scribd.com/mattdollinger