New York New York .. it's a helluva town the Bronx is Up and the bloggers are all over the town!
Hope to share an appletini or two with some of the nicest divas and divos this week.
BlogHer Business '08
Blogger Social
The book
that was written by 103 global authors last summer is now part of amazon.com listings. Previously available only on Lulu a presence on amazon.com provides an opportunity for increased awareness and distribution.
Bloggy disclaimer - I am honored to be one of the authors of Age of Conversation. That said, I wanted to bring you some of the back story. All profits are being donated to the Variety Children's Charity. No one will profit from sales of the book. For me Age of Conversation is a tangible example of the power of connection and relationship building that is a direct result of social media networking. This book could never have happened without the tools that are creating "conversational marketing."
From the view point of a reader, the breadth of global insights about the emerging industry - social media marketing (yes, social media marketing is an industry!) - are fascinating and bring home that all over the world social media is not only impacting a change in marketing but in how we will/are beginning to conduct business .. which makes this book an important read for every business person who wants to understand why the future is Now and why there is no turning back.
Praise from book marketing strategist Warren Whitlock -
Not only are the authors each experts in their own right, they have used best practices in creating a wonderful example of publishing done right.
I, along with my 102 colleagues, cordially invite you to join us on this exciting adventure into social media marketing or conversational marketing .. where if you listen closely you'll hear answers to your questions about your brand that you never thought to ask.
I would love your feedback on my chapter - "Technology is Recreating Business Intimacies." Age of Conversation on amazon.com. AoC is an easy read and would be a great book to take along on your next trip .. biz .. or if you're lucky .. pleasure.
Two marketing initiatives .. what are your thoughts?
Saw this advertising message at the San Diego Airport . It's an ad in the bin that you place your stuff before walking through security. It's hard to see but the shoe box is sponsored by Zappos. I quickly took this photo hoping that it wasn't against TSA regulations.
Zappos how about shoe boxes for each region.? Like red cowboy boots for wild Texan girl friends Connie and Nettie or plum stiletto mules by Giuseppe Zanotti for stylin' divas like CK and BL in NYC?
This is a new "convenient twist" on a 
regular ol' baking potato. I shot this photo a few months ago at an Atlanta Publix grocery store. Last week an Atlanta Kroger was selling the same thing - baking potatoes in plastic wrap for $1.98 each. The elderly woman who was standing next to me, who almost purchased one, was speechless .. and not with joy.
Friday Fun is Diva Marketing's virtual happy hour from cosmos to Jack to lemonade. A waiting for the weekend 'playground' time to be sophisticated-silly. Or sometimes just plain silly.
On this sunny in Hot'Lanta second day of spring I had time to skip around the blogosphere, read some twits and open some email that I had neglected. In my virtual travels I found some cool stuff. Girlfriend, put your extra secs into shakin' up a dirty martini or putting the 'company' coffee on to brew and then relax for a few and enjoy my finds for you.
Could be this be the first Twitter proposal? If so .. congrats! Looking forward the wedding Twits. Twit from @jowyang
a character blog? "Our" Max is a little rock star for sure with over 10 thousand views on his YouTube video. Thanks to Marlene, from Definition 6, for the tip!.. and with that Friday Fun and just slipped into the wee hours of Saturday!
Annie Peng Cui, a Ph.D. student at Kent State, is working on the final stages of her dissertation on brand/marketing managers' contribution to brand success. Specifically she is interested in identifying what specific types of knowledge, skills and relationships contribute to the success of brand managers and their brands.
Annie is on the 
last phase of data collection and needs your help. She's developed an online questionnaire based on in-depth interviews
with brand managers and responses collected in a pilot study. If you are currently working (or have previously worked) on brand management, she would greatly appreciate if you took a few moments from your day to complete the short (about 5 minutes) survey.
http://www.zoomerang.com/Survey/?p=WEB227KZ49E3GN
To show her appreciation, Annie will share the research findings with you; expected date is the end of April. The study is completely anonymous and only aggregated results will be reported. If you want more information contact Annie Peng Cui at [email protected].
Thanks for your help!
Diva Marketing Talks is a live, internet radio show. 30-minutes. 2-guests. 1-topic about social media marketing. Why? To help you understand how to participate in the "new" conversation without getting blown-up. Miss today's show? You can pick it up as a podcast or listen on your computer.
Today's Diva Marketing Talks with Mary Clare Hunt author of In Women We Trust and founder of Ecolutionary Selling and Ginny Dyson, Sustainability Strategist at DMJM H&N to discuss how to use social media marketing as a grass roots strategy to education and promote a complex topic .. in this case sustainability standards and green marketing.
Topic for March 20, 2008: Social Media Green Marketing
Time: 6:30p - 7p Eastern/ 5:30p - 6p Central/ 4:30p -5p Mountain/ 3:30p - 4p Pacific
Call-in Guest Number: 718.508.9924
Guests
Mary Clare Hunt
Mary is a consultant and author of www.InWomenWeTrust.com and also Ecolutionary Selling: Taking the Confusion out of Sustainable Furniture. She calls herself a very social media consultant matching women’s groups to business opportunities and educating both on a shared vision of Sustainability. She is also the editor for the Sustainable Products Blog the blog for the Institute for Market Transformation to Sustainability. MTS is the non-profit behind the SMaRT Sustainable Standard.
Mary’s background includes a rare blend of consumer goods and intangible services anchored with manufacturing processes. She’s created print, TV and Radio campaigns for a mega Mall, and also managed over 200 industrial accounts while with (now) www.ThomasNet.com. Mary is a “connector” who believes that every woman should have a blog and every business should read it. She debates social issues with her manufacturing engineer husband in Orange County, CA and lives online.
Ginny Dyson, IIDA, LEED AP
Ginny Dyson is an interior designer with 20 years of experience in the Washington, DC market. In addition to projects for financial institutions, government and corporate faculties, she has been an active and contributing member of the sustainable design community.
In December 2005, Ginny completed three years of elected service on the board of the National Capital Region Chapter of the U.S. Green Building Council. She is also the founding chair of the IDA Mid-Atlantic Chanter's Sustainable Design Forum, a group that she started in 1999 to develop programs solely on sustainable topics. Ginny is an officer of the SMaRT Sustainable Product Standard Committee, an initiative of Market Transformation to Sustainability (MTS). In addition to planning and outreach for these organizations, she has spoken to a number of audiences, promoting green building criteria and the LEED Rating System.
Ginny joined DMJM H&N in August 2003 to be part of the Pentagon Renovation Program Office and since September 2004 has been working in the Arlington, VA office in their newly established interiors group. DMJM ROTTET. She is currenty a full-time Sustainability Strategist, guiding all of the projects in the Arlington, VA office that are seeking LEED certification as well as a few projects for the other offices of DMJM ROTTET. She received a Bachelor of Interior Design from Louisiana State University's College of Design, School of Architecture and is a native of Northern Virginia. Ginny is a contributing author of the MTS Sustainable Products Blog.
Tips From The Diva Bag
Complements of Mary Clare Hunt and Ginny Dyson
Three Top Themes
1. Transparency – Can you see the proof? Blogland and Greenland come together.
2. Authentic – Can you prove it? Blogland and Greenland come together again.
3. Getting your message across. – Is your green story repeatable?
Develop A Credible Green Marketing Strategy
Links Mentioned
Big Green Purse
EcoMom Alliance
Can't call in but have a question? Drop a comment and I'll ask it for you. Let me know what you'd like Diva Talks to chat about. Don't forget Diva Marketing Talks morphs into a podcast.
When was the last time you hung out with your customers or clients? I'm not talking about the last time you watched behind the two way mirror: 8 to 10 women, 18-34 years of age, who lived in a metro area and skate boarded to work wearing their Jimmie Choos. Nor am I talking about reading the customer sat report that your research department sent over .. which by the way you really should take out of your "To Read" pile and read.
It's not comfortable to be a brand manager sitting behind the two-way mirror munching on M&Ms and suddenly hear customers bash your latest brain child. It's devastating to read a research report that coldly informs you that 91.27% of your customers believe your service stinks. Don't you sometimes wish that you could drop the formal research strategy and meet Becky or Brian or Betty or Brandon at your neighborhood Starbucks and just dish? (Note: I am not saying disregard traditional marketing research.)
When was the last time you talked, listened, laughed and learned with .. not From .. but With your customers or clients? Divas and divos I'll bet you a chocolate martini that for a few savvy marketers it was your last trade show but for most the answer is - Never.
The concept of conducting business is an odd duck to me. Marketing teaches us the more we know about our target audience the better we can service them. The big however is .. how do you to get to know the millions of individuals that make up the customer base of global brands? I don't know about you but it's damn difficult for me to create new products, marketing programs or service a demographic group that seems more like wisps of vapor than people with hearts. Enter stage left research-based personas that begin to provide some texture and depth. While there is value in these composite profiles, and great fun to build, they've always seemed rather like playing with paper dolls.
The son of the Godfather was wrong .. dead wrong. Business IS personal. However, creating corner grocery store relationships can be as challenging with customers in Madrid as with clients on Main Street. We compete every day for precious moments of time with our customers. There are so many priorities in our lives from family to work to friends to self. Yes Girlfriend self (but that's another post!).
It sure is hard to fit a relationship with your favorite brand into the mix. I'm not sure if I want to anyway. Time spent with my shampoo brand .. time spent with 
Max. No need to flip a coin on that one.
But time to drop a comment on the blog or social network site of the shampoo's marketing manager that I've come to know and like and respect .. that's a different story. Time to even chat with a friend I met online line about how I perceive her newest product. Sure. Of course, I'll help out a friend.
Marketing research pros might argue .. but you are biased because you have a relationship with your-friend-the-brand-manager-of-your-shampoo. Perhaps. Perhaps my feedback will be colored but then again, because I want to help her succeed perhaps my feedback will be even more honest.
Business friendships built online in social media venues? May sound strange to you but trust me on this one Girlfriend, it is not strange for Kinsey and Caroline who are redefining "What Is A Friend." Building those relationships that do morph into friendships over a virtual backyard fence will become are becoming more common and accepted with each click.
Thanks to BBF Ann Handley for the inspiration for this post.
Diva Marketing Talks is a live, internet radio show. 30-minutes. 2-guests. 1-topic about social media marketing. Why? To help you understand how to participate in the "new" conversation without getting blown-up. Miss today's show? You can pick it up as a podcast.
Today's Diva Marketing Talks with Yvonne DiVita, President and Founder of WME Books and author of the popular blog Lip-sticking and Deanna "Dede" Sutton, Editorial/Creative Director of Clutchmagazine.com. Clutch Magazine is the new face of the urban “it” girl appealing to every side of today’s multicultural woman. Join us to find out why when it comes to marketing to women, as Yvonne say, "Social Media: A Match Made in Heaven."
Topic for March 13, 2008: Social Media Opens The Purse Strings .. Marketing To Women
Time: 6:30p - 7p Eastern/ 5:30p - 6p Central/ 4:30p -5p Mountain/ 3:30p - 4p Pacific
Call-in Guest Number: 718.508.9924
Guests
Yvonne DiVita
Yvonne DiVita is the author of Dick*less Marketing: Smart Marketing to Women Online, a book about getting those baby boomer icons Dick and Jane to buy at your website.
She is also the president and founder of WME Books.com, a division of Windsor Media Enterprises, LLC. WME is an Author Services Company specializing in Print-on-Demand technology, blogs, and community building events. Yvonne’s background stretches to those bygone days of the early Internet, where she was a web content writer and worked in several technology start-ups. After publishing her book, she decided to become a publisher. Today her focus is on helping aspiring authors, especially those writing business books, make wise publishing choices, and works to help her authors market their books once they are released.
Yvonne maintains a blog at Lip-Sticking with a focus on the women’s market. Her other blogs include the publishing blog: AHa Blog, a blog about blogging: WME Blog, a blog about her author’s book: Windsor Media Blog, and Beneath The Cover, about the POD (print on demand) process. She also writes and manages a petblog for Purina.
Yvonne is the President of the Rochester Chapter of Women in Communications; she is a past-president of the Rochester Professional Consultants Network, and is the VP of Web Communications at the Rochester Chapter of the American Marketing Association.
Deanna "Dede" Sutton
Deanna Sutton is the founder and creative/editorial director of Sutton Media. Sutton Media is the publisher of Clutch Magazine and Brown Fashionista (scheduled to launch May 2008). Since its relaunch last April, Clutch Magazine has become one of the leading online magazines for multicultural women ages 18-34. With a passion for all things social media, Deanna recognizes the power and opportunity that the new media platform presents. At Sutton Media, Deanna is responsible for business development, marketing initiatives, and editorial and creative direction.
Prior to launching Sutton Media, Deanna worked as an integrated marketing professional where she assisted in media relations, account management and other client activities. Some of her accounts included Sara Lee, Kroger, Starbucks, Wal-Mart, and Philips Consumer Electronics. Deanna graduated from Saginaw Valley State University with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Marketing.
Tips From The Diva Bag
Complements of Yvonne DiVita
Marketing to Women using Social Media: A Match Made in Heaven
Complements of Deanna "Dede" Sutton
Can't call in but have a question? Drop a comment and I'll ask it for you. Let me know what you'd like Diva Talks to chat about. Don't forget Diva Marketing Talks morphs into a podcast.
Update: Don't miss the After Show when Yvonne and Dede talk about the difference in how Boomer and Millennium women connect online.
Links mentioned on the show WOWOWOW Soccer Mom Myth By Michele Miller and Holly Buchanan Dick*less Marketing:Smart Marketing To Women Online
Biz Blog Profiles is a behind the scene look at how corporations, non profits, higher education institutions and the arts are using blogs and other social media tactics to support their marketing goals.
About Richard Binhammer
After a career in politics and government relations in Canada, I moved to the United States to pursue a broader communications career. In the late 1990s I consulted to Dell and helped win a Silver Anvil for the company. I went on to NYC consulting in communications, winding my way back to Dell as part of the public affairs team.
Today, I am part of Dell’s Conversations, Communities and Communications team with responsibilities for listening and learning online. Basically, I listen to bloggers and engage in conversations about Dell.
If you really want to get to know me, join me on Facebook or subscribe to my blog, Around The Web With Richard at Dell, in your RSS reader.
About Dell
From my perspective, Dell is a phenomenal company and has been ever since I first met the people at Dell, Michael Dell and was a consultant to them back in the 1995 – 1998 period.
It delivers great technology connecting people around the world. It’s a young company, just 20 years old, so its still eager to learn. And it does. That’s the hallmark of an interesting, growing company with growth opportunities.
In addition, the premises underpinning the direct business model, known for efficiency and mass customization, are also fundamental to real and realized customer relationships (even with a retail component) and I believe that is still revolutionary in the marketplace…frankly contributing to some of what we do online and forging ahead. Direct To Dell Conversations With Dell
Toby/Diva Marketing: I took this from your blog - “I get to visit blogs, listen learn and converse.” For people who want to be involved with social media you might have one of the most enviable jobs on the planet. How did your job evolve?
RichardatDell: I was part of Dell’s public affairs team involved with building out our presence and involvements in communities around the world. I was then asked to go out and interact with bloggers and online, I suppose because we thought of this a community and conversations with communities. In August of 2006, my colleague John Pope and I started listening and engaging online in conversations
Toby/Diva Marketing: How involved are you really in the space?
RichardatDell: Not quite sure what you mean? John and I visit 100s and 1000s of blogs per week, participate on Twitter, Facebook, Flickr, I have a blog…all part of listening and learning from customers, helping solve technical issues and joining conversations about Dell everyday. I spend at least 50% of my day online, conversing … good and bad
Toby/Diva Marketing: You have a halo of celebrity. Do you find people want to be your “friend” or “follower” (on Twitter) because you are Richard a very cool dude or because you are Richard from Dell? Does it matter to you?
RichardatDell: I don’t think there is a halo to what I do. It’s what any professional communicator should do…listen and learn…then interact to listen and learn some more. And, it is not just RichardatDELL. There is a team of us at Dell, all committed to listening and engaging in real conversations online. We believe social media really is a new frontier and that we can make an impact….we make mistakes and screw up too….so no halo…please.
At one point I always asked people on Facebook, why we should be friends, if I didn’t know them. I find that interesting and puts some rationale around “connecting”. Im sort of out of that habit these days.
I hope people want to follow me because they think we (all of us at Dell together) are doing interesting and good work. I also like to believe that we are also really making a huge global business human … I think that is cool.
Toby/Diva Marketing: Let’s cut to the chase .. does Dell really think that a blog and some conversation with bloggers will counter what some people have termed “Dell Hell?”
RichardatDell: Yes we do believe in the power of online conversations and communities. This is not about countering or changing some artifact or image…its about connecting with people and our customers.
Toby/Diva Marketing: On a high level, what is Dell’s social media direction?
RichardatDell: Keep going growing learning and get better. Experiment some more and keep going.
Toby/Diva Marketing: What are a few of Dell’s innovative programs?
RichardatDell: Ideastorm gets lots of attention. I think our technical support and blog outreach activity is innovative and I don’t see others doing it … but I am biased too
Toby/Diva Marketing: In terms of departments or functions, who “owns” social media at Dell?
RichardatDell: No one “owns” social media, except I suspect the customers and communities … everyone should engage with social media as a means to connect and build lasting and valuable connections … brand loyalty and lust
Toby/Diva Marketing: Does Dell have “success measurements” in place? And if so what are those metrics that determine success?
RichardatDell: We know there are on average 4000 conversations about us everyday. We know we have seen a decline in negative commentary from nearly 50 % to around 20%. However, we are working to move from traditional measurements of awareness and share of voice to conversations, communities and connections and how those can be valued … hard work and constantly fine tuning all kinds of metrics
Toby/Diva Marketing: Are social media tactics integrated into a master marketing plan? If so how do other initiatives support Dell’s social media programs? On the flip side - how do social media tactics support other strategies?
RichardatDell: Increasingly social media and marketing are viewed as integrated or need to be. I think is fair to say that our CMO very much sees the world that way and hence the whole move to design DaVinci. Frankly, as a communicator, after 18 months in this field, social media should be a part of any company’s public relations (two words not practice profession or pr).
Toby/Diva Marketing: Recently Target created quite a buzz when it told the world that it would not respond to “non traditional media?” How does Dell perceive bloggers in relationship to the traditional media?
RichardatDell: I don’t think we distinguish anymore between a blogger and mainstream media.
Toby/Diva Marketing: What are a few lessons learned for companies that are considering entering this space?
RichardatDell: Be honest, transparent, your self, and don’t worry about this control BS you hear about … how can participation with people who are interested in you, your products and services or business be wrong? And some people will never like you, so get over it
Toby/Diva Marketing: Where does Dell go from here in terms of continuing the innovation track it has taken in social media?
RichardatDell: Twitter, more blogs, more “interactive and social” things on dell.com … we will see where our customers want to go …
Toby/Diva Marketing: Richard Binhammer’s view on social media marketing
RichardatDell: I think I’ve said enough and would like to hear more from your readers and friends
Diva Marketing Talks is a live, internet radio show. 30-minutes. 2-guests. 1-topic about social media marketing. Why? To help you understand how to participate in the "new" conversation without getting blown-up. Miss today's show? You can pick it up as a podcast.
Today's Diva Marketing Talks takes the wraps off of Real Simple Syndication - better known as RSS. Our rock star guests Bill Flitter and Lee Feinberg will make RSS simple. They'll share how they used RSS to encourage viral marketing campaigns, talk about ads on RSS feeds, discuss if RSS complements or replaces eMail marketing and lots more. If we're very lucky Bill will tell us what Santa Clause, the postman and the TV clicker have to do with RSS.
Topic for March 6, 2008: RSS: Alphabet Soup or The Power Behind Social Media
Time: 6:30p - 7p Eastern/ 5:30p - 6p Central/ 4:30p -5p Mountain/ 3:30p - 4p Pacific
Call-in Guest Number: 718.508.9924
Guests:
Bill Flitter
Bill Flitter is CEO of Pheedo. Bill is considered an industry expert on syndicated content advertising and speaks regularly on this topic at industry events. Prior to Pheedo, Bill founded Email Shopping Network and directed its sales and marketing activities until its acquisition by eUniverse in 2002.
In addition to Pheedo and Email Shopping Network, Bill has started and helped build numerous early stage companies, developing hundreds of innovative products and services. Bill is also co-founder of Fastlane Ventures, a boutique management consulting firm focused on early-stage investments. Bill is a founding member of the Internet Content Syndication Council and chairs their advertising committee
Raised in Wisconsin, Bill graduated with a degree in Advertising from the University of Wisconsin. He founded the University of Wisconsin Interactive Advertising scholarship to reward outstanding excellence in this innovative field. Bill’s ruminations on a number of topics can be found on the Pheedo Blog.
Lee Feinberg
Lee Feinberg is a business development leader and has devoted his entire career to create and launch interactive products and services. For 20 years, he has guided innovation at Fortune 500 companies in financial services, automotive, consumer hardware, and healthcare. His experience includes Internet marketing and eCommerce, high-volume transaction systems, mobile communications, and interactive TV.
Lee is currently Strategy Director, Avenue A | Razorfish and previously held the position of Vice President/ Associate Director, Digitas. He was the President and Founder of e-thusiasm, inc. an independent interactive strategy consultancy whose clients included Johnson & Johnson, CheckFree, and Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield of NJ. Lee has also held positions with Chase Manhattan Bank, Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce, and AT&T Bell Labs.
He received a B.S. and M.S. from Cornell University. Lee serves on the advisory board of Pheedo, holds a U.S. patent for a PC-telephone interface, is a member of the Marketing Executives Networking Group, the Cornell Entrepreneur Network, and the Sandler Sales Institute Presidents Club.
Can't call in but have a question? Drop a comment and I'll ask it for you. Let me know what you'd like Diva Talks to chat about. Don't forget Diva Marketing Talks morphs into a podcast.
