Notes from the Hive

It takes too much time. There isn’t enough time. I’m running out of time. It’s time to make the donuts.

When I talk to companies or groups about implementing social media as part of their marketing efforts I am always hit with the objection that it takes too much time.

Yes, engaging in social media does take time. There is the time to research and figure out where to put your efforts. There is the time that it takes to set up accounts and profiles. There is time for the learning curve of how to use the sites. There is the time to building up content and time to find things of value to share. There is the time to find the people to engage with and then of course there is the time it takes to keep up the conversations.

Yes, it takes time. There is no denying that fact. So let’s talk about ROI. There are tons of tools out there that allow you to monitor, track, research and update all of your social media from a single point. These tools number in the thousands and while some are more popular and robust than others I will talk about a few of them in the next blog entry.

So let’s talk about ROI. Marketing, no matter how you do it, takes time. It used to be that you needed 3-5 touches before a buyer would engage. Then it dragged out to 5-7 touches. Now with the deafening noise of marketing both traditionally and digitally, it can take 9-12 touches. How many cold call phone calls do you have to make to get to actually speak to a qualified buyer? How many networking events do you have to attend and how many people do you have to meet to make a solid connection? All of this takes time.

So what is the point of social media? There are a couple of home runs with social media.

First is that in an unthreatening environment you can connect to people that you might never have had the chance to meet otherwise. In a more casual way you ‘connect’.

Second is that you become part of a community. Today, more than ever people look to their groups and connections first for resources and you stand a better chance of getting referred or having someone point an interested buyer your way.

Third it reaches further than other methods and is permanent. Think of throwing a stone in a pond. The ripple of water at the point of entry keeps going out further and further reaching beyond the point where the stone landed. And the stone is now a permanent piece of that pond. It will always be there to be found. What other forms of marketing can do that for you?

Another compelling reason to get involved is knowing that everyone is talking about everything and so that means you or your company is going to come up somewhere at sometime and shouldn’t you know about that?
Think about how much time you can save by cutting a problem off before it snowballs. Think about how much time you can save by responding to a need before your competitors catch wind. Think about it and then get started.

If you don’t know where or how to begin it might make sense to hire a professional in this field that can save you time up front to get you started and coach you and your team toward success. Trust me – you’ll be thrilled you did.

I just finished reading The Diamond Cutter by Geshe Michael Roach. If you haven’t read this book, I highly recommend it. Just finishing it, I can’t wait to start over again. The book subtitle is “The Buddha on Managing Your Business and Your Life.

I am not a student of Buddha and I am not a practicing Monk, yet I have read many books on meditating, creating wealth and the latest genre of books that play off “The Secret”. I didn’t experience this book like the others, as this book felt more real and even attainable. I don’t wish to take anything away from the other books; however this particular book is practical in nature and builds from the experience of being in the working world. He eloquently relates the lessons to realistic examples and passes the teaching and lessons on through reality checks that most of us experience.

The major take away right now is his process to create the discipline of understanding how in fact Problems themselves are the highest opportunity we can have. “Problems are not problems from their own side; rather, there is something in our mind making you see the problem as a problem. Every problem can be turned into an opportunity, because no problem is a problem in and of itself.”

If this sounds like hogwash, think about the challenges that you face today. A downturned economy, a recession, depression or what ever the economists are calling our current state of affairs is a problem. And yet, there are thousands of small and large companies alike that are flourishing. Why is that? Because they have seen the challenge, accepted that there is change and adapted by creating opportunity. And trust me, there is a lot of opportunity out there.

The other aspect of this lesson is that getting upset and having major anxiety will not and does not accomplish anything positive, it might however make you physically ill. Roach recounts a famous verse from an ancient Indian Buddhist book that I would like to share:

If a situation can be fixed, Why get upset about it?

If a situation cannot be fixed, What’s the use of getting upset?

Actually, this proverb sounds like something my grandmother would have said in her heavy Russian accent, but the truth is that it is simply a gift in understanding. Understanding this concept that your anxiety and worry will accomplish nothing positive is critical to your shift toward success. It will more likely stifle your creativity, and in times like this, you are going to need a lot of creativity and energy.

So allow me to make a suggestion. Take a piece of paper and create two columns. If you are feeling particularly energized, create a second sheet, one for your business and one for your personal life. You will have two sheets of paper, each with two columns. On the left column, label this OPPORTUNITIES and begin a list of the challenges, or what you might be thinking are problems that you face in your company, and on the other sheet, the challenges or problems in your personal life.

Now on the second column to the right, label this ACTIONS. Actions are the things you can do to turn around a situation to the benefit of all involved. Creating success from each opportunity. Don’t expect to have all the answers right away, but keep these sheets with you and work it religiously. Take 15-20 minutes first thing in the morning, another 15-20 minutes over lunch and so on throughout the day for at least a week.

By labeling them as opportunities, your mind will slowly change its view of the issues and open the creativity flow to find the opportunity within each situation.

Lastly, email me some of your lists as I would love to see how this is working for you. And if you show me yours, I will show you mine!