Tag Archives: Axel Schultze

Guest Post, LinkedIn, Sharisax Is Out There

Which Side of Digital Divide Will Your Company Be On in 2 Years?

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Social Media Academy is an online learning experience for an online world, and I was fortunate to have recently completed their leadership training for social media consultants — where many of the classes were conducted by one of my first mentors SMACAD CEO Axel Schultze.

SMACAD sponsors a LinkedIn group, and member Morris Pentel asked:

What do you think the role of social media will be in 2 years time?

Here was Morris’s answer to his own question:

“Customer Partnerships rather than Customer Management will become the new way to deal with customers moving forward as we start to recognize the power that customers have.”

Axel responded with a not-quite-so-optimistic answer, which he has allowed me to use as a Guest Post.

Lack of Relevant Curriculum Will Hamper Majority of Today’s Business Students — and the companies that hire them

by Axel Schultze

As a customer experience fanatic, I understand Social Media to be the single most powerful mechanism to improve customer experience. But social media is not something you “install” and then have it.

Unfortunately, I see the “social divide” widening in two years.

Social Graph Factor

It takes approximately six months to establish a decent social graph. Within those six months many people will give up, make mistakes, and start all over in another six months. In other words, somebody who starts in the social web today can be savvy and have a valuable social graph by end of the year.

Organization Factor

The democratization of knowledge is another current dilemma. The established experts make way to whoever communicates fastest, loudest and with the largest number of followers (not twitter followers, but followers of their direction).

  • Today more people say “You have to grow the number of followers” than those who say “Focus on relevant people in your network.”
  • More people say “Social Media is the new marketing channel” than those who say “Social Media is most successful as a cross-functional customer engagement model.”

The challenge is to identify the most successful way for an organization to create a sustainable success model.

Role Model Factor

In the past, if a company installed CRM, SAP, Local Area Networks, the company or their vendor heavily advertised that fact.

Not so in Social Media. Social Media is a powerful competitive advantage and those who figured it out won’t advertise it. The majority of leadership teams are followers — following the market leader.

But if the market leaders do not promote what they do, the followers will fall back more than ever before.

Educational Factor

The vast majority of business education still teaches traditional techniques. Many of the instructors are business consultants who were pretty successful 10+ years ago and are now teaching their success model to others.

There are only a microscopically small number of business-relevant social media training institutes or consultants with both — sound business experience AND a profound social media background. Look at the major sales training institutes: You won’t find them in the social web; some even require their trainers to NOT use social media at all.

As such – the “social divide” will widen and the distance between market leaders and followers will get bigger in the next two years. In most industries the market leaders are heavily engaged in the social web while their B-Class competitors are still busy wondering if “the economy is coming back.”

Which side of the Digital Divide do you want to be on, and what will you be doing about it?

Social Media Academy’s next Leadership Class begins June 9.

Sharisax Is Out There

Marketing Should Be the LAST Department to Be in Social Media

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Social Media Marketing is the BUZZ these days, and that IS what this article is all about: However, according to Axel Schultze. Chairman of the Social Media Academy, and my instructor for the first Leadership Class of 2010:

“Marketing is only ONE component. We must shift in all departments. Social Media initiatives cannot work without a buy-in from all areas of an organization.”

That being said, the Marketing and PR people in an organization are those responsible for the communication functions, and as such need to be aware that what’s worked in the past just isn’t working anymore:

  • For one thing, Advertising isn’t working because there’s just too much of it.
  • People no longer believe the glitzy productions that advertisers are throwing in our faces. We may be entertained, but we don’t “buy it.”
  • Ads no longer stick with us. Marketers “assume” that consumers are listening.
  • The Push Era is over: Broadcasting one-way messages leaves us out. Marketers today must listen to us, bring us in, and then we will listen to them.

Here are more of my take-aways from our last class session on

“The Changing Face of a Marketing and PR department”

1. Brand “attitude” has changed. It is all about PEOPLE identifying and associating themselves with brands. We are drawn to the people we see in ads.

2. We need to forget distinguishing between B2B and B2C: we are all customers of someone else.

3. When we market today, it is an US to US.

4. Beware of simply adding social media as a new “tool”; you may find you are simply making noise.

5. Companies cannot outsource social media and expect the best results; an agency cannot discuss topics in a forum without involvement of the sales, procurement, and support teams.

6. Planning is critical and should begin with ASSESSMENT, i.e. who your customers are, where they hang out, what they talk about, and what they need.

7. Biggest mistake is jumping in without knowing what you are doing; you need to strategize before you go too far: Goal, Mission, Benefits, Action Programs, Reporting — all need to go into developing strategy.

8. Social media plans must include ongoing research: monitoring, lead generation, internal escalation [responsiveness to leads].

9. Traditional “roll-outs” no longer work. Customers need to be part of the planning and implementation process. Customer Advisory Boards have always been powerful, but today they are HUGE, i.e. your entire customer base can play this role.

10. The distinctions between PR and Marketing are dissolving; the social media marketing team must build relationships with bloggers, traditional press, industry associations, educators, users and key influencers wherever they are to be found.

In this New Era of New Media, if a company does not have a Vision and a Strategy, the tools do not matter. Working with and through the consumer community is the path to success in the New Future.

Anyone hear of any valuable social media planning tools that have worked for your organization?

Sharisax Is Out There

Everyone Is Someone’s Customer: Use Social Media to Reach Them, Listen to Them, and Learn from Them

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Too often companies forget the second part of this scenario:

Firms are in business (1) to make profits by offering products and services

(2) to satisfy the unmet needs of their customers.

Too often they are so immersed in organization-centric thinking, that they don’t even realize their products or services may no longer be in sync with the marketplace, i.e., no one really likes their offerings/brand/support anymore.

This is where Social Media fits into Modern Business:

We are all customers. Everyone is a customer of someone else.

“Social media is important for business because the discussions between so many people bring information to us. We want people to talk and we want them to listen to us.” — [all quotes from Axel Schultze]

In the second meeting of the Social Media Academy Leadership class, Axel discussed how various social media “tools” [ i.e., sites/ platforms] enable businesses to grow their networks.

“If you have products or services, you can have conversations with people who use them. People may not be looking at your advertising, but if you ask someone what they think of your product, you will probably get an answer.”

WHERE DO YOU HAVE THESE DISCUSSIONS

or

Which sites do you use?

The common wisdom is that you go where your customers are. These days, the most popular hangouts are Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn. Business people need profiles on each of these sites, and businesses can have them as well.

“The demarcation between personal selves and business selves doesn’t really make sense any more. We need to take down these walls.”

The key to online presence building is to be deliberate, thoughtful, and very careful about everything you post online – no matter what the site or platform.

Four Social Media Objectives:

1)    Extend reach with tools
2)    Intensify the depth of your relationships
3)    Broaden your knowledge
4)    Revitalize your influennce

“When you do a survey, you get certain types of people who choose to respond. When you make telephone calls, if you have 20 effective conversations in one day, that is a good day. But with social media, you could easily have 200 interactions in a day.”

LEARN FROM YOUR MARKET: Get your hands around the Concepts. The tools may change, but you will be able to navigate the waves of innovation and continue to build on your experience to get the most from each new communication opportunity.

Sharisax Is Out There

Social Media Enables Companies to Become Part of the Recommendation Chain

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Social Media is all about seeing what others are saying


“The snowstorm is over. Everything is white. So now what?”

How do we make social media relevant to company executives? Everyone hears the buzz, but many companies do not understand today’s marketing environment, and they don’t know where to start.

That’s where programs like Social Media Academy fill the void — teaching business leaders all over the world to look, listen, and learn how to implement successful social media strategies.

I’m enrolled in this year’s first 7-week Social Media Academy Leadership session and will be sharing regular reports on what I’m learning.

Social Media: not about its tools, but its implication for business

Company leaders must rise above the “local noise” and buzz about social media, so they can take a global view. Different types of companies have different needs. Whatever the company, though, it is important to understand that Social Media is not a campaign, but it is a State of Mind. It is about empowering employees, not just about having everyone Tweeting all day.

Customers have changed, but sales/marketing has not

Thirty-forty years ago, people had different levels of trust. They’d go to vendors and take their word for it — and their products. People no longer ask experts; they ask their friends.

“I want to see what others say: that is Social Media.”

Now 60-80% of purchases are made because of recommendations. Businesses need to be part of the Recommendation Chain. Social Media is where customers meet customers for experience, skill development, and failure prevention. When a company builds a product or service that people are asking for . . . How COOL is that!

Create a better customer experience

Lay the foundation for your social media strategy– plan by understanding the dynamics of the market before diving in. There is no rush: Look, Listen, and Think before acting.

Social media is personally empowering. It is not just for the elite; anyone can do this. Take care of your connections and leverage them.

If you don’t follow the road your customers are taking, you will lose them.

Guest Post

What Are the Educational Needs of Social Media Marketing?

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Guest Post by Axel Schultze

Axel Schultze was the first social media guru I brought into my Public Relations class at San Francisco State at the beginning of 2009.

He is the founder and CEO of Xeequa Corp. a social media software company, helping businesses to create a better customer experience. In addition, he began Social Media Academy in January 2009 — as well as a number of other successful enterprises.

Axel belongs to many Linkedin groups including “Social Media Academy” where I saw this excellent response to the question:

“My questions are, then, is Social Media Marketing a viable entity, or just a “flash-in-the-pan?” Is there a need for teaching the fundamentals at the post secondary level? How does one achieve expertise in this budding possibility?” — Gregory Stringer

1) Social Media MARKETING is only one aspect of social media.

That said – it is probably the biggest opportunity for marketing leaders to have more saying in a corporate strategy if they understand and appreciate the complexity of a social business. In every successful business somebody leads the charge of whatever needs to be done. Why not the marketing group. There are several reasons why marketing may lead a cross-functional social business initiative, but I’ve also seen other departments to do that including finance.

2) A social business is an organization that leverages the ongoing changes in our hyper-connected society

— in all aspects of their organization, including product management, service & support, sales, marketing, logistics, procurement and more. Often times when I mention logistics or procurement in the context of social media I see lots of question marks and hear people saying “isn’t that too far-fetched?” Well there are examples and I was involved myself in some where the supply chain was the starting point for a social media engagement – in financially very rewarding.

3) Business people will want to learn how to practically apply social media and create a social business.

While some will be OK to explore, experiment and trying to figure it out themselves, others may want to not spend the time but learn best practices, methods, models and frameworks and just execute. As we all know, there are two types of learners: The autodidact who tryes everything themselves. That is a great way of learning and allows to make mistakes in a rather conscious manner.

Typically these are early adopters. So the ones who started in social media in 2003, like me, had to learn things on their own. Then there are the ones who rather acquire knowledge in a very compact way, circumvent obvious mistakes and go apply the knowledge. Mostly in times where the market is advanced and making mistakes is no longer acceptable.

That’s why the Social Media Academy exists.

4) Therefore the educational needs are to learn and understand the following aspects of social media:

  • What is it and what is it good for
  • Learn all about the implications of social media to business
  • Where and how to start
  • Ability to assess the situation of a company and all their respective market constituencies
  • Transform the assessment into a strategy
  • Create a strategy with and for the market
  • Knowing what organizational needs to consider
  • Develop an execution plan
  • Resources, budgets, financial implication
  • Aligning the new strategy with core business objectives
  • Ability to formulate goals and targets – measure model and tune

Learning how to tweet and how to brush up a LinkedIn profile or selecting the right tools are only tactical aspects after the core strategy is defined answering the question:

“What can I do to create a better, more successful business experience for my prospects, customers, partners, vendors, employees and other relevant market constituencies.”

As such it is an obvious coincidence that the Social Media Academy leadership class has exactly that at the core of its class.
Axel   http://xeesm.com/AxelS

FURTHER READING:

Social Media Tools Week report

Sharisax Is Out There

Social Media Tools Week begins: 11 tips to get you started

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The newest and most compelling Social Media tools from around the world — sponsored by Social Media Academy.

Social Media Tools Week – New Date 11/16 – 11/21

Highlights from the Welcome Keynote

Axel Schultze, Founder Social Media Academy

November 16, 2009

Educated purchasing decisions are changing business

  • Networks provide trusted sources of information.
  • Social media is where customers meet customers to share experience, to develop skills, to prevent failures.
  • 80% of purchases are based on recommendations, and social media is the Number One Recommendation Engine.

Two objectives: Be a part of the Recommendation Chain and Create a better Customer Experience

The best salespeople don’t sell — they build relationships

No opportunity is ever lost: someone will always take it.

CHECKLIST for what to do to get started:

  1. Look up your top 50 business contacts and find out where they have a presence in the social media landscape.
  2. Create your own accounts where you find your customers, prospects, partners, and influencers.
  3. Visit your sites regularly, at least every other day, if possible: Read posts; Comment; Care.
  4. LISTEN to what’s on top of their minds and think beyond your product sale.
  5. Be approachable and let your contacts connect with you.
  6. Share your thoughts and interests . . . and get Social.
  7. Take one of the reporting tools and begin to measure sentiments around your brand.
  8. Tell your colleagues what you learn from customers and prospects. Encourage them to listen and learn as well.
  9. Help customers with links; introduce them to existing customers and experts for your products and services.
  10. Stay focused on people who are relevant to you — otherwise you get distracted and will be spending all your time browsing.
  11. FINAL CAUTION: Do not waste time growing followers, editing videos, chatting with everyone who invites you. Rather, follow YOUR OWN business objectives.

. . . and tune in for more news and reports from Social Media Tools Week.