Social Media Webcast Handouts 10.2.09

Social Media Webcast Handouts 10.2.09

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  Social Media forProfessional Success Tina Lambert, CAE, VSCPA Vice President VSCPA Webinar October 2, 2009 What the heck is Web 2.0 & social media? BlackPlanet.com, Flickr.com , Reunion.com, aSmallWorld, Bebo , Blue Dot, Bolt, Broadcaster.com, Buzznet, CarDomain, Consumating, Couchsurfing, Cyworld, Dandelife, DeadJournal, DontStayIn, Doostang, Ecademy, eSPIN, Facebook , Faceparty, Flickr, Flirtomatic, Fotki, Friends Reunited, Gaia Online, Geni.com, GoPets, Graduates.com, Grono.net, Hyves, imeem, Google , Infield Parking, IRC-Galleria, iWiW, Joga, Bonito, Last.fm, LibraryThing, LinkedIn , LiveJournal, LunarStorm, MEETin, MiGente.com, Mixi, MOG, Multiply, My Opera Community, myYearbook, Netlog, Nexopia, OUTeverywhere, Passado, Piczo, Playahead, ProfileHeaven, Pownce, RateItAll , Reunion.com, Searchles, Sconex, Shelfari,Soundpedia, Sportsvite, Studivz, TagWorld, TakingITGlobal, The Doll Palace, The Student Center, Threadless, TravBuddy.com, Travellerspoint, Tribe.net, Vampire Freaks, Vox, WAYN, WebBiographies, Windows Live Spaces, Woophy, XING
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  The Social MediaLandscape SOCIAL MEDIA IS AN UMBRELLA TERM THAT DEFINES THE VARIOUS ACTIVITIES THAT INTEGRATE TECHNOLOGY, SOCIAL INTERACTION AND THE CONSTRUCTION OF WORDS, PICTURES, VIDEOS AND AUDIO. http://www.wikipedia.org More simply put: “Social media is people having conversations online.”
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  The conversations arepowered by… • Blogs • Online Chat & Listservs • RSS • Widgets • Wikis • Social Networks • Social Bookmarks • Message Boards • Podcasts & Videocasts • Video Sharing Sites • Photo Sharing Sites • Virtual Worlds Why should I care about Web 2.0 & social media? Is Social Media a Fad? Socialnomics.net (Qualm)
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  Reason #1 SOCIAL NETWORKING SITES ARE MOST POPULAR SITES NEXT TO GOOGLE AND YAHOO – AHEAD OF PERSONAL E-MAIL. Social Media Usage is Exploding! 75% of all Americans have joined a social networking site (MySpace, Facebook) > 99% of 18-24 year olds 7 million users > 1,382% increase in one year > largest age group is 35-49 200 million blogs in 2009 > 77% of active online users read a blog > 45% have started their own blog Social Media Usage is Exploding! YouTube has 100 million videos (65,000 new videos per day) > 83% of internet users watch video clips 39% of internet users subscribe to an RSS feed 55% of internet users have uploaded photos online
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  Social Media Usagein the Workplace 69% of businesses allow employees to use social media for business 63% use social media to build and promote their brand 61% use social media to improve communication and collaboration REALITY: IT’S A MOBILE WORLD>>> Social Media is a Business Changer Social media is changing the business of employers, long-standing industries, marketing and communications People trust the opinions of other people as much as, or sometimes more than the “experts” – and definitely more than spokespeople RELATIONSHIPS ARE CRITICAL TO TODAY’S COMMERCE>>> What about Social Media and CPAs? • 54% are on LinkedIn • 48% are on Facebook • 21% are on Twitter • 61% attend webinars • 36% read blogs • 28% listen to podcasts
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  Reason #2 IN 2008, IF YOU’RE NOT ON A SOCIAL NETWORKING SITE, YOU’RE NOT ON THE INTERNET. IBM, April 2008 IT’S NOT A FAD. IT’S A FUNDAMENTAL SHIFT IN THE WAY WE COMMUNICATE. The old communication model was a MONOLOGUE. A >>> B The new communication model is a DIALOGUE. A<<<>>>B
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  Reason #3 SOCIALMEDIA HAS BECOME A FUNDAMENTAL PART OF GLOBAL BUSINESS AND WILL CONTINUE TO ALTER THE CONSUMER EXPERIENCE. John Burbank, CEO of Nielson Online, March 2009 Welcome to the future… McCann Study on Social Media Trends, April 2008 By 2010, MILLENIALS/GEN Y-ERS will outnumber BABY BOOMERS. They already wield $350 BILLION/ YEAR in direct spending power.
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  Meet your FUTUREEMPLOYEES. Over 64% of students in grades K-12 are online and accessing the internet regularly Downloading music is #1 recreational activity by middle and high school students What are some of the advantages of Web 2.0 & social media? Old way… New way… • Controlled • Transparent/open • Organized • Inclusive • Exclusive • Authentic • One sided • Vibrant • Product-driven • Consumer-driven Only 14% of 78% of people trust people trust RECOMMENDATIONS ADVERTISEMENTS. of other consumers. A >>> B A<<< >>> B
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  For the firsttime, it’s all about ME! • What I want to talk about • Who I want to talk to • What I want to say… about them And it’s also about US! Our relationships! What we want to say! Some more ADVANTAGES… • Cheaper than traditional media • Stickier than traditional media • Viral nature • Highly interactive • Highly visible • Global • Can quickly change, morph and respond to environment and feedback
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  And more ADVANTAGES… • Enhance your professional networks and competency • Get information faster and in more digestible formats • Connect to other CPAs • Connect to other business colleagues • Connect to your professional associations The NEW MATH… Social Networking (OLD) + Social Media (NEW) ------------------------------------------------------------ = A change in the way we BUILD RELATIONSHIPS Perceived BARRIERS… • Fear of “the negative” • Legal • Time • Return on investment • Measurement
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  Overcoming BARRIERS… • The negative conversation is happening WITH you or WITHOUT you • “Direct” response in crisis • Start slow and build – monitor at the very least • Set goals for followers, friends, etc. • Set goals/plans for social media tool you are using How do I get on the Web 2.0 & social media train? A. Listen • Immerse yourself in conversations • Visit social sites to observe • Ask your coworkers, kids who… B. Participate • Remember it’s a dialogue not a monologue C. Getting Started • Set up a profile • Friend 25 people you know • Begin to converse
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  D. Traffic Signs • Privacy: Customize what the public and your 'Friend' lists can see about you (professional v. personal) > Create ‘Friend’ groups > Edit privacy settings • Etiquette: Once you’re riding the social media highway, remember to obey common internet traffic rules of thumb • Policy: Obey or set company guidelines for participation www.facebook.com www.facebook.com
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  www.linkedin.com www.twitter.com www.mystarbucksidea.com
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  www.amazon.com How is the VSCPA involved in Web 2.0 & social media? New MULTIMEDIA & ONLINE OFFERINGS to enhance membership > RSS > Podcasts > Blog (CPACafe.com) > Microblog (Twitter) > Photo sharing (Flickr) > Video, Videocasts (YouTube. Coming Soon!) > Social networking (LinkedIn, Facebook groups) > Online communities targeted to different practice areas, including e-mail listserves > And more! Visit “Social Media” section of www.vscpa.com
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  VSCPA RSS Feeds:www.vscpa.com/rss VSCPA Podcasts: www.vscpa.com/podcasts VSCPA Blog: www.cpacafe.com
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  VSCPA Twitter Account:@VSCPANews VSCPA Flickr: www.flickr.comphotosvscpa VSCPA Facebook and LinkedIn Groups Once logged in, visit “groups” and search for “Virginia Society of CPAs”
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  VSCPA Online Communities: www.vscpa.comin “Members Only” OTHER social media for CPAs • Wiki: www.wikicpa.com • Blogs: www.cpacafe.com > www.cpablogger.com > www.cpasuccess.com > http://bigfouralumni.blogspot.com/ • Videos & Media: www.financialfitness.com > www.aicpa.org/Media+Center/ > www.feedthepig.com • Learning: www.cpalearning2.com RESOURCES on social media Blogs •www.TypePad.com •www.WordPress.com •www.BlogLines.com Microblogging/Tracking •Twitter: www.Twitter.com •TweetDeck: www.TweetDeck.com •TwitterBerry: www.orangatame.com/products/twitterberry/ •HootSuite: www.HootSuite.com •Tweetie: www.atebits.com/tweetie-iphone/ •Hashtag: http://hashtag.org •Google Alerts: www.google.com/alerts
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  RESOURCES on socialmedia Social networks •Facebook: www.Facebook.com •LinkedIn: www.LinkedIn.com •Plaxo: www.Plaxo.com •HubStreet: www.HubStreet.com (a new one for CPAs and lawyers) Multimedia sharing sites • YouTube: www.YouTube.com (videos) • Flickr: www.Flickr.com (photos) • Picasa: Picasa.Google.com (photos) • SlideShare: www.Slideshare.com (slidedecks) RESOURCES on social media Podcasting • iTunes: www.apple.com/itunes (for finding and listening to podcasts) • Audacity: audacity.sourceforge.net (for recording / editing podcasts) Wikis • PB Wiki: www.PBWiki.com • WikiSpaces: www.WikiSpaces.com Virtual worlds • Second Life: www.SecondLife.com CONNECT with me/us Tina Lambert, CAE VSCPA Vice President, Member & Public Relations • Phone: (804) 612.9416 • E-mail: tlambert@vscpa.com • Web: www.vscpa.com • LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/tinalambert www.linkedin.com and search for “Virginia Society of CPAs” • Facebook: www.facebook.com/TinaLambert1 www.facebook.com and search for “Virginia Society of CPAs” • Twitter: www.twitter.com/TinaLambert www.twitter.com/VSCPANews
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  THANK YOU very, verymuch!
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  100 th Anniversary Virginia Society of Certified Public Accountants VSCPA Social Media The Virginia Society of CPAs CPA Café Blog RSS Feeds (VSCPA) is now using social media The VSCPA blog is a great way Subscribe to the news you to make it easy for you to gener- to learn about and comment on need on a variety of topics in ate important networking con- recent VSCPA news and profes- one easy step, and receive alerts nections and stay up-to-the-min- sional issues. that your favorite websites have ute on VSCPA and professional new content with the VSCPA RSS news! Online Communities news feeds. Packed with practice-specific Make new relationships with peers and colleagues, discuss resources and opportunities to Podcasts connect with peers, VSCPA Online Listen each week, on your com- professional situations, get the Communities include an RSS feed, puter or .MP3 player, to expert absolute latest professional news, e-mail listserve, announcements, analysis and insight into what is recruit new talent into your firm upcoming events and more. happening in the area of federal or company and much more. taxation. Social Networking E-mail Listserves Practice- and interest-specific Check out the “Social Media” The VSCPA helps you Connect section of www.vscpa.com to e-mail listserves facilitate online with past, present and future explore these options and sign dialogue among members. Ask colleagues. up today! your colleagues questions and get helpful answers by joining a VSCPA e-mail listserve. Get Active! The real value of social media will come when you “drive the bus.” As you — Virginia CPAs — begin to post content, questions and replies to discussions, our social media will become an invaluable source of consultation and commentary on issues that you are dealing with at any given moment. Get active on VSCPA social networking to keep yourself and your profession ahead of the game.
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  VSCPA Online Community& Social Networking Website Participation Guidelines From Mashable.com… Things to consider in following a social media policy. These tips will help you steer clear of pitfalls and allow you to focus on what’s important: engaging the customer. Be responsible for what you write Oren Michels, CEO of Mashery, explains that “people tend to interpret having the ‘right’ to express themselves online as implying a lack of consequences when they say stupid things.” That’s not the case. Your organization and its representatives need to take responsibility for what they write, and exercise good judgment and common sense. “Dooced” is an Internet expression that means to lose one’s job because of things one says on one’s website or blog. No one wants that to happen, of course, so using common sense and being responsible is important. Be authentic Include your name and, when appropriate, your company name and your title. Consumers buy from people that they know and trust, so let people know who you are. Consider your audience When you’re out in the blogosphere or Twitterverse or other social media channels, remember that your readers include current clients, potential clients, as well as current/past/future employees. Consider that before you publish and make sure you aren’t alienating any of those groups. Exercise good judgment Refrain from comments that can be interpreted as slurs, demeaning, inflammatory, etc. The Internet is full of varied opinions, and it’s okay to share yours, but you never, never, never want to be branded a racist or narrow-minded or an unstoppable hot-head. Employees should understand that companies can and will monitor employee use of social media and social networking web sites, even if they are engaging in social networking or social media use away from the office. Bottom line: good judgment is paramount regardless of whether an employee’s online comments relate directly to their job. Understand the concept of community The essence of community is the idea that it exists so that you can support others and they, in turn, can support you. You need to learn how to balance personal and professional information, and the important role that transparency plays in building a community. Your community shouldn’t be an environment where competition is encouraged or emphasized, but rather a platform where your customers or users feel comfortable sharing, connecting, and receiving help.
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  Respect copyrights andfair use This should be a no-brainer, but just in case: always give people proper credit for their work, and make sure you have the right to use something with attribution before you publish. Remember to protect confidential & proprietary info Being transparent doesn’t mean giving out the Colonel’s special 11 herbs and spices used in KFC chicken or the recipe for McDonald’s Big Mac special sauce. Transparency doesn’t give employees free rein to share just anything. Therefore, employees who share confidential or proprietary information do so at the risk of losing their job and possibly even ending up a defendant in a civil lawsuit. Bring value Social media will more likely pay dividends for you if you add value to your followers, readers, fan, and users. Many use social media as a means to frame the conversation around specific issues and make sure that our position is heard and commented on, or as a way to build buzz for upcoming products or services. Productivity matters Your social media usage won’t get you very far if you don’t execute on the core competencies of your business. Remember that in order for your social media endeavors to be successful, you need to find the right balance between social media and other work.
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  Getting Started inthe World of Social Media By Brian Swanson As a new or young accountant there are a number of responsibilities and challenges on your plate. Much of your time is dedicated to training on regulations (such as GAAP, tax codes, etc), internal firm processes, the studying for the CPA exam, CPE courses if you are credentialed, not to mention the day-to-day tasks associated with client service and delivery. And you still need to consider how you will develop your professional network. As you know, services like accounting, auditing and tax work are relationship driven. The stronger the relationship the more likely they are to turn to you when an issue or opportunity arises. As a result, the challenge as you progress through your career is to meet and build strong relationships with clients, prospects and referral partners. It’s a straightforward strategy that seems easy enough, but is it? How are you going to manage all the responsibilities of your position while finding additional time to spend on network development? In the past, network development focused on being active in community organizations, associations and other groups. This required time outside of the office meeting people, establishing and nurturing relationships and building trust. Only once trust was established would the contact share the details about professional issues, challenges and opportunities. This was a very time intensive process that has to be repeated over and over again with every contact. The task of building and maintaining a professional network to a lot of energy and required a high level of hands on care. The emergence of social media has transformed all that. While you will always have to spend time going out and meeting new people at events and other programs, there has been a change in the way relationships are developed. Social media programs have created a process where interactions occur in real time and the entire process of relationship development can be quickly increased. These changes are good news for young accountants as these tools will allow them to develop relationships and create connections in ways their predecessor could not have imagined just 10 years ago. Social media sites like Facebook and LinkedIn are wonderful tools to drive network and relationship development efforts. There are a number of ways to meet new people, learn about their interests, share relevant information and ultimately develop a meaningful relationship. They are also applications which can be used to make the process more efficient and effective. The challenge is understanding the most effective way to use these social media tools for relationship and network development. With so many social media tools to pick from it is difficult to know where to invest your time and what activities will yield the highest return. It can be a time- consuming task figuring out the best way to use these sites. As a result, outlined below are four steps to get you started in the world of social media: Develop an information-rich profile. No matter what tools you decide to use, do this. Simply providing basic information about your firm, position and where you went to school is too basic. All too often there are professionals using these services that spend a minimal amount of time on profile development. They offer basic information about themselves but don’t personalize it. This puts them at a disadvantage z Source: WebCPA, www.webcpa.com/acto_news/51153-1.html July 28, 2009
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  because there isnot enough information for others to decide if they would be appropriate in or add value to their network. As a result, they are often not given careful consideration and potential opportunities are missed. To avoid this add as much information as possible about yourself. If you have have written articles, developed presentations or are involved in professional activities or events let people know. The trick is to keep it professional. Avoid including very personal details about your life or what you did last weekend. This is not an appropriate forum for that information. Focus on professional interests that others might be able to relate to. If you are an auditor who is interested in IFRS, GAAP changes, the most recent FASB pronouncement or other issues make sure you add that information to your profile. The more people can learn about you the greater the chances you will have something in common. The commonality will drive interest in you and your firm. Build your network. Once your profile is complete it can be discouraging if at first you have a few connections. When launching your network focus on ”real life” professional relationships you already have. Whether this is just the professionals in your office or existing client relationships, seek them out and add them as a connection. This will not only allow you to build your online network, but also provide access to what groups and activities your peers and clients are involved in. To maintain inertia whenever you meet someone new find if they have a Facebook or LinkedIn profiles. If so, obtain permission to add them as a connection. This will help to build your network, allow you to learn more about them, and provide another avenue of communication for relationship development. There is a large amount of information available that you might not have otherwise discovered from the brief meeting you initially had with the contact. Join online groups. There are a number of interest groups in both LinkedIn and Facebook where professionals with common interests come together. The options include professional development, networking and charity/special interest groups. A few examples of professional development groups include the Employee Benefit Plan, Audit Quality Control Center group, Governmental Audit Quality Center, Young CPA Network, and CPA Exam Candidates. There are also a number of young professionals groups including Detroit Young Professionals, Denver Young Professionals and Chicago Young Professionals. You can also join industry focused groups such as the Texas and Chicago Construction Groups. In addition to joining the groups that most appeal to you, determine which of the groups your network members belong that are appropriate for you to join as well. This will allow you not only to stay current on the topics and issues important to you, but also open the door to the issues and topics relevant to your network members. Participate. Like most things in life what you put into this is what you will get out of it. If you don’t spend much time with Facebook or LinkedIn it is unlikely you will realize a meaningful return. There are a number of accounting professionals who use these tools and don’t participate beyond a few comments or discussion topics. They are likely getting very little out of social media and are missing crucial growth opportunities. This may seem like just another demand on your time but it is a worthwhile task. Every post, piece of information or conversation you join the more exposure and credibility you are building with members of online groups and your network. To make it easier, schedule some time every day or every other day to interact with your network. This does not have to be a time consuming task but it does make sense to spend 90 minutes a week diving into content, and interacting with members of your network. The more you interact the more others will interact with you. This is the key to the entire process interaction, engagement and discussion. The value of all of these activities is that it will strategically position you with colleagues, prospects, clients and potential referral partners. It will keep you in front of them and aware of their interests, challenges and ongoing concerns. As a result, you will have access to critical information that can help develop the relationship while positioning you and your firm as a Source: WebCPA, www.webcpa.com/acto_news/51153-1.html July 28, 2009
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  potential solution provider. Whilethe task of network development and relationship building still requires you to leave the office and spend time at events, social media can help you accelerate the time it takes to develop these relationships. The opportunity it provides to learn about your network, develop a repertoire and position yourself as possible solution provider is unmatched. As you progress through your career in accounting invest time in social media. It will not only help build your network but it will serve as a critical relationship development tool. Brian Swanson is a partner with Flashpoint Marketing- http://www.flashpointmarketing.biz His firm specializes in providing business development strategies and practical marketing solutions for CPA firms. He can be reached at bswanson@flashpointmarketing.biz. Source: WebCPA, www.webcpa.com/acto_news/51153-1.html July 28, 2009