Work
Izeafest
I’m speaking at IZEAFest in October! I’m pretty excited for this – not because I’m sharing a panel with great people I respect and admire like Zena Weist, Scott Monty, Joseph Jaffe, and Brett Bumeter. Not because I get to hang out with Ted Murphy – who always makes me laugh. Not because I get to meet some great bloggers and connect IRL with some people I’ve been working with online. Nope – I’m excited to go to IZEAFest because I get to go to Sea World.
Seriously – this is probably going to be the most exciting thing I do all year. Since I haven’t taken a real vacation since I went to Europe over 7 years ago, I’m looking forward to checking out Sea World even if it’s under the auspices of work.
I’ll probably write more in detail about the event as it gets closer. When I’m there, you’ll probably end up seeing lots of posts with pictures of Shamu – or whatever whale they have there now!
Addressing the Queen: Thoughts on Blogging and Marketing
I read a lot of blogs. A lot of them. I’d offer up a screen shot of my Google Reader but the +1000 unread posts is giving me anxiety that I just don’t have time to deal with. Blogging to me is an art, a science, and something that I hold so very close to my heart as a person. One of the blogs that I’ve been reading the longest is Erin Kotecki Vest’s (aka Queen of Spain.)
I’ve been reading her blog since sometime in ’06 when she wrote for the Huffington Post about the barrage of phone calls that she was receiving during the election cycle. I loved it. It made me laugh and yet engaged in an intelligent way. That’s the Queen – and that’s how she rolls. She writes amazing content even when she’s not writing about anything that specifically appeals to me. Often times, the posts really get me thinking. This happened the other day. She wrote an article that offered brilliant commentary on blogging that hit very close to home considering my job and my love affair with blogs.
Read “I’m Calling Out the Carpet Bagging Mommy Bloggers.” It’s a great editorial piece and the current state of affairs in this section of the blogosphere in regards to the role of marketing in the blogging world. There are bloggers like Erin who, through talent, will, perseverance and probably a little luck – created their corner of the web. Then there are the others do it differently. Or as she puts it: “You’re hosting a giveaway, selling all our souls for a new mop, and lowering the bar for the next to come along.”
It’s an interesting thing for me to read because my opinion lays somewhat in the middle. While I never have had the success that Queen of Spain Blog has, I have always been far more interested in creating content. Sure – it’s my content: drifting from those lost days of young adulthood to the sometimes even more lost days of real adulthood – blogging has always been about the words that appear in front of you. Yet, as someone who works in marketing – I’ve used the non-content producing blogs. Blogs of people interested only in my product. Bloggers who care very little for building the community I want, for building the brand that I love, and for all the steps in between.
Why do I do it then? I believe in community and the power of social media to bring people together far more than I believe in marketing, metrics, and all those other numbers that allow me to do this for a living. I do it because of those numbers and because there is something to gain doing this from a business perspective. There is that ROI. There are those metrics and numbers. It works.
“You know there is a beautiful old dinosaur of an idea that traditional media has taught us. You clearly separate ads from editorial. Ads and editorial are not the same and you don’t blur the lines.”
The quote above stuck in my head as I read and re-read Erin’s post to create my response (after a little back and forth with her and another blogging favorite Mr. Lady) and it struck me: for me, those review posts ARE advertisements. They are straight-forward, unauthentic advertisements that work like print and television ads do. They create a little buzz, they create brand impressions, and they die shortly thereafter. The sophisticated avoid them. The masses will shortly follow and the bubble will ultimately burst and, George the marketer, will find another avenue for the quick hit buzz.
I think the internet as a whole understands the difference between the content producing blogs and those that function solely as giant advertisements: much like people understand the content differences between US Weekly and the New Yorker. As the internet, blogging and other user-generated content continues to grow – these differences will continue to arise. I will be interested in how they are responded to culturally, from a marketing perspective, and all points in between. For blogging to succeed, we need Ombudsman like Queen of Spain to continue to question how things are, why they are, and exert an opinion that may be wildly unpopular or, with the masses in line, change the standing order of business.
As for me, George the community guy still exists – as it was pointed out on Twitter (thanks!). George the community guy will always exist because the greater return is there. When false rumors of my company’s demise circulated the internet, I tried to cut it off when it got a bit out of hand. When I was responding to posts, what did I see? I saw Erin there. Erin was there defending the company. It was an authentic voice. Something I needed as I waded through the sea of negative rumors – both for the help in stopping the rumor and for the inspiration that people out there do care. If I had to quantify the return on that, I probably couldn’t. No excel spreadsheet, no formula, nothing would show how much that meant to me and how much that type of activity means to Crocs. I thanked Erin and she said she likes to help out “cool” people. My “coolness” aside, I knew she did it for one reason: she meant it.
As this field matures, I would rather be unemployed than to have someone not understand the return on that authentic kind of communication, but that’s also the blogger in me. At the end of the day, there are still spreadsheets to fill out, numbers to calculate, and return to prove. I’m enjoying being somewhat of a trailblazer in this in-between existence – but that means being somewhat centrist and doing some things for numbers and other things for community. As long as corporations have to tow the line, there will always be the “non-content” blogs. It’s the nature of the beast and I just hope that I do things in a way that honors these medium that I love. I think I will – especially when I have blogs, tweets, and interactions with people like Erin that will never let me forget my roots.
Just Being Myself
I started to think about my job today because of Dave Taylor – and the fact that he wrote a blog post about…well, me. His post painted me in a very positive light and it spread, without my help, to the various powers that be at my work. As I received acknowledgment from the higher ups, I couldn’t help but think it was strange that I was receiving kudos for this. I didn’t think I did anything. I kind was just being myself….
Recently, Mashable had an article about the “Five Essential Traits for Community Managers” – a list that I found great interest in since one of the many hats I wear at work is that of a Community Manager. Here’s a summary of the traits on the list:
- Loving your job
- Ability to promote others as well as yourself
- Ability to empower and support your community
- Transparent, Fun and Engaging Personality
- Extensive Knowledge of the Company
After reading that list, I can see why Community Management is one of the hats I wear at work. By “just being myself,” I act out those five traits. While I won’t critique my own personality (Editor’s Note: I think I’m awesome!), those other traits are the values that I believe motivate people around any idea or brand. The social web is both communal and selfish – with the best people navigating that line with a dash of humility and enough ego to have their voice heard. If you examine what I did with my interactions with Dave – there is that humility and ego. I am humble enough to know that I could never ask someone like Dave Taylor – someone who has crafted an authentic and powerful voice on the internet – to be a spokesperson for my product just because he received a few pairs of shoes. Yet, I had enough ego – and faith in my company and our products – to believe that he would be creative enough to craft an authentic and compelling reaction on his own based on his experiences with the product (or in this case – me). Will it always play out positively? Probably not. But when it does work out, it builds for stronger relationships and the potential for stronger returns based on the creation of trust and understanding.
As corporations continue to communicate in the social web, it will be interesting to see how this develops. It will also be interesting to see how my personal opinions develop, as I can see both sides as a blogger and as the corporate entity. I think that’s what makes me have trait #1 from above. How can I not love a job that is so exciting!
Arctic Monkeys
I can’t help it, it’s funny.
What is Culture?
I’ve been thinking a lot about Culture since Zappo’s Tony Hsieh’s keynote address at South By Southwest. In my career, having worked at a bunch of different companies in different regions of the country, corporate culture is a topic that intrigues me. Afterall, most people spend the majority of their days ingrained into their corporate culture so therefore it has to be an important aspect of our society to understand. I am brainstorming a blog post on this subject and I just wanted to throw up the keynote address from Tony and ask you this question: “What is culture?”
SXSW: Talk Social News
On Day One, I was Ustreamed on Talk Social News with Wayne Sutton and Kipp Bodnar. It’s funny to watch this because little did I know that I would spend most of my time with the two of them and that a solid foundation for friendship would form. The video is below. I appear around the 36 minute mark. The volume seems to peak a bit – shoot Kipp a tweet and yell at him for that – but it was a good show. Even gave a shout out to the Boulder Tech Scene and the people that live here in town that inspire me daily. I plan on pinch hitting from time to time on their show whenever they need it, or just call in for a few laughs. Anyway – here’s the video:
SXSW: Chris Brogan Flash Panel – Conversations on Conversations
At SXSW, I was able to be on a flash panel hosted by Chris Brogan at the Pepsi Podcast Playground about Brands that blog. As a brand, it was an honor to be a part of the panel with some people who I truly admire – people from Jetblue, GM, AMD, Best Buy Pepsi, and myself (Crocs). It was somewhat of a last minute thing – an email arrived the morning of, but I wasn’t quite sure exactly what the panel would entail. In fact, it was somewhat weird that we were all there because we were from so many different industries. And, as I looked around the conference, there were just so few brands really engaging. Thanks to Kipp Bodnar from TalkSocialNews.com for the video. Audio only is also included after the cut.
The panel was great – even if Chris called our Crocs Mammoth the “Shoe-pei.” There was some great reception afterward, as I connected with people who were really interested in the things that we’re doing, our new diverse product lines, and the way we want to engage the consumer. At the end of the day – the benefit is being able to serve what our consumer needs as much as we can.
SXSW Flash Panel: Corporations & Social Media from Kipp Bodnar on Vimeo.
For those audio only people – the link from Blog Talk Radio is after the cut:
Crocs-o-Dials
The best part of working in social media is the social part. So many fun and intelligent people to interact with. You also get to really see how everyone is different and want different things.
Take the Crocs-o-dial for example. Honestly, it’s not my cup of tea. Yet, a bunch of people that I truly respect seem to really love it. The latest entry to that list is @Geekmommy. She had been begging me for one since Chicks who Click and I finally was able to deliver her one at Twestival. Since then, she’s been preaching it’s virtues – including this post:
I love her enthusiasm. I told her if there is a significant bump in sales, that I’ll buy her a round of drinks. So, if you want me to buy – go to Crocs.com and buy one!
Of course, I can’t talk about the Crocs-o-dial without mentioning Wayne Sutton. His Flickr Tour is at 7 and he promised me he’ll wear it wherever he goes. I have the utmost faith that he’s a man of his word so pay attention as the tour grows!
It will be interesting to see the people that Wayne and Lucretia introduce the Crocs-o-dial to. Passion is the fuel behind Social Media – it’s just word of mouth with technology. Those two are some of the best out there!
Denver Twestival
Today, in over 175 different cities, people will gather to give to charity. Calling it a “Twestival,” people organized their local communities through the power of word of mouth and social networking sites like Twitter. This combination of technology and community is something that gets me excited and the impetus for getting me interested in the sociology behind this manifestation of the internet.
I’ll be heading down to Littleton, where I will get together with like minded individuals and help raise money for Charity:Water. My employer Crocs offered to donate a few things for the silent auction that is going to take place there. It’s a little thing that they can do to help the cause – especially considering the somewhat last minute nature of our involvement. It will be nice to show up and know that I did everything I could to help raise money and awareness for this issue.
There may be an event in your location – check out twestival.com to find out. Also take a look at Charity:Water to find out more information on the desperate need for water worldwide. Or take a look at the videos below to learn more about it.
Social Wayne
The Monday after the Chicks Who Click conference, I was interviewed by Wayne Sutton. We met Monday afternoon at Lijit’s offices (thanks to @tarable) to do the interview. It was great meeting Wayne and I am honored that he wrote such a glowing review of me as a person and as a new voice in the realm of Social Media.
Wayne, if you have a chance to meet him, is one of the nicest people you’ll ever come across. He’s intelligent, soft spoken and loves to laugh. After talking with him for a bit, he promised me that he would wear the Crocs-O-Dial cell phone carrier for the entire year – and he’s keeping a record of it on Flickr. Not a bad thing to happen simply from a small bag of swag that I brought to the conference.
Check out the video interview on his blog and, if you don’t already, make sure you follow Wayne on Twitter. He’s always up to something and always provide great content. The best part of Social Media is the social part – there are so many great people that these technological advances bring into our lives.
