The Spinks Blog

Too Much Networking Makes Bad Marketers

February 1, 2010

Photo cred: Andy Beal

A marketer’s ability to do their job relies on how well they understand their audience…

Same goes for you PR professionals. You too advertising pros!

…so unless your audience (the one you were hired to understand) consists of mostly marketers, focusing so much time and effort on them will not make you much better at your job.

One could argue that lately, many professionals are equally (or more) concerned with building their personal network as they are with being good at their job.

This is especially an issue for young communications professionals and students.

We’re just starting out, and the first thing we now learn isn’t to start studying people and marketing, it’s to use social media to network and build a personal brand.

When you focus on interacting with other communications professionals all the time, you lose touch with the people that you’re supposed to understand…the ones you’re getting paid to understand.

Learning how to reach out and engage with communications professionals will usually be very different from engaging with other people. If you’re focusing too much on the former, you’ll quickly find yourself failing at the latter.

A communications professionals has to understand what people want, what triggers them, what turns them off, how to reach them, how to build trust with them, etc… and strictly communicating with other marketing professionals will only take you so far.

Is the value of a professional’s network starting to outweigh the value of their ability as a professional?

What happens when we focus more on meeting communications professionals than on becoming a better communications professionals?

19 Comments | Business, Career Advice, Networking, Public Relations, Social Media, advertising | Tagged: advertising, bad, makes, marketers, Marketing, media, PR, social | Permalink
Posted by David Spinks

Stop Begging for Favors

January 27, 2010

Photo cred: GreyBlueSkies

If you find yourself constantly asking for favors in business, you’re doing something wrong.

This spark came when I was watching Alpha Dog the other day. Yes, my inspiration for posts come from some really weird places…

The one guy was pitching a drug deal to Emile Hirsch’s character. When Emile started questioning him, the guy said “I’m not looking for any favors… if it makes sense, then do it. If not, fuck it.”

Whether you’re pitching bloggers, seeking partnerships, looking for funding or seeking any other kind of business arrangement, you can’t go into it with the mentality that you need them, and that they’d be doing you a favor by helping you.

I see it all the time. I’ve even done it myself. You reach out to others to see if they’ll be kind enough to promote your blog post, or your projects. You want them to help you. You need them to help you. How else can you succeed? This causes a few problems:

You come across as needy. It makes you look bad and degrades your image as a confident professional.
You become reliant on others. Always relying on others to help you succeed, you’ll quickly fail as soon as that option is no longer there.
You use up your resources. People aren’t going to help you all the time. You cash in on a favor, and you may not get many more. In fact…
You’re indebted. Asking everyone else for help means that you would now be expected to help them whenever they call.

Instead of looking for favors, look for opportunities to help them. If you can propose a deal that benefits both parties, you’re not doing each other favors, you’re doing business.

When reaching out to bloggers, don’t ask them to review your website. Explain to them exactly why your website will be valuable to their readers, how else you can provide value to them and explain what you would expect in return.

When you’re creating partnerships, make sure you’re identifying value for both parties. They need you just as much as you need them.

I’m not saying you should never turn to others for help. It’s important to know when you can use someone else’s help and be big enough to ask for it. Business can be personal, but it’s still business. It’s exchanging value for value.

Are you focused on asking for favors or doing business?

4 Comments | Business, Social Media | Tagged: beg, blog, Business, favors, need, outreach, Tips | Permalink
Posted by David Spinks

The 3 Stages of Mentorship

January 25, 2010

Photo cred: Chewy Chua

Already three months into the job, the new PR professional sat at her desk uncomfortable and lost. She wanted to ask her manager how to do it, but that would make her look stupid. Putting it off would only make it worse. She knew, if she was going to finish this project, she was going to need some help…but from who?

Mentors continue to be one of the most valuable resources in my career.

Graduating and being thrown into the crazy startup world 2 weeks later, I may have skipped a few steps. The lessons learned in an entry level job provide young professionals with the basics, and allow them to learn from the systems that their managers have developed over the years. I never got those lessons.

That’s why I am so grateful for my mentors, and why I have so many! But not all of my mentors are at the same level.

Depending on who you ask, a mentor can be a lot of different things. I have 3 different levels of mentors.

Stage 1: Passive Mentor

I can ask them questions once in a while.
I’ll always get a response but it may not be prompt.
It’s possible that they have no idea I consider them to be a mentor.
They want to help, but aren’t necessarily concerned about my career.

Stage 2: Committed Mentor

I can ask questions whenever I want and will usually get a prompt response.
I feel comfortable asking for an introduction.
They recognize that I consider them to be a mentor.
They care about my career and like to stay updated.

Stage 3: Mega Mentor

I will get a prompt response whenever I have a question.
I connect with them regularly on a professional and personal level. (They’re a friend too)
I can turn to them for help with pretty much anything and they will help me.
They’re always asking about my career and trying to help. They want me to succeed.

Having mentors in all three stages allows me to find help whenever I need it, whether the problem is big or small.

Up until now, I’ve never broken it down like this. I don’t have a system where I try to push mentors from stage 1 to stage 2. All my mentorships have been developed naturally. Some get to stage 3, most stay at stage 1. Regardless, I’m grateful for all.

Not only can you have different levels of mentors, but you can also have different types. Providing yourself with a support system of mentors will ensure that you’re not going through your career alone.

How do you build your network of mentors?

Are Young Professionals Forgetting to be Young?

January 21, 2010

Photo cred: Davo

Yet another interesting discussion sparked by the bright minds in #u30pro. My friend Jon Klar shared,

“I think social media is making it much easier to grow up too fast. Young professionals need to remember to be young while they can”.

Social media platforms have allowed me to tap into so many resources that wouldn’t have been available to me otherwise. I learn new things from thought leaders, I connect and engage with professionals that I never would have had access to, I’ve developed mentorships, I’ve shared my own ideas with a large audience and the list of benefits goes on...

…but is it a double-edged sword?

I’m 22 but I don’t feel like it. My ‘09 graduation feels like it was a lifetime ago.

I now work full time, run #u30pro, maintain my blog, engage with my network regularly and more… I have more things going on since I graduated about 7 months ago than many people I know who have been working for years. Without social media, I wouldn’t have so many opportunities, but I also wouldn’t have so many responsibilities.

I don’t think I’d have it any other way. I’m in a phase of my life where I am very career focused and I’ve set many high goals for myself. I realize that I have to make some sacrifices in order to achieve those goals.

…and I’m still enjoying my personal life. I still go out on weekends. I still hang out with my friends regularly. I still get my share of video game time in there.

And when I look at many of my old high school buddies and what they’re doing, I don’t feel envious of the extra time they have to “be young”…I feel lucky to be gaining so much experience so quickly. I feel like I’m spending my time wisely.

In 10 years, will I look back at my 20’s and wish I spent less time building my career?

Am I growing up too fast? Are you?

(Perspective of those who have been there and done that are welcome and appreciated)

25 Comments | Career Advice, Social Media, Under 30 Pro | Tagged: fast, forgetting, growing, life, Professionals, young | Permalink
Posted by David Spinks

Home Away from Home: Building Community OFF Your Blog

January 20, 2010

This is a guest post from Matt Cheuvront and is part of the Guest Blog Grand Tour over at Life Without Pants (an epic journey of over 75 guest posts). Want to learn more about Matt & see how far the rabbit hole goes? Subscribe to the Life Without Pants RSS feed & follow him on Twitter to keep in touch!

Photo cred: Poe Tatum

I talk a lot about building community, and then I talk about it some more. David, as the community manager of Scribnia, has probably talked your ear off about community as well. But, you know, there’s always room for just one more “building community” post – and this time, I won’t focus on what you should be doing on your blog – but instead, giving you a few ideas to cultivate community elsewhere.

Get active on other networks

Now we all know the big three (Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn) – those are no brainers. But what about Brazen Careerist, Twenty Something Bloggers, and (wink wink) Scribnia? You’ve probably heard of them, but are you really using them? These networks are out there for a reason – and they’re a great resource to tap into if you’re looking to discover new bloggers and network with new people. Everyone doesn’t hang out in the same place – so if you’re only hanging around Twitter and Facebook, you’re missing out on a huge untapped resource of amazing people. Invest some of your time building relationships around the web and leave some breadcrumbs that will lead folks back to your neck of the woods.

RSS Subscribers

Have you ever thought about this one? We’re all constantly urging people to subscribe to our blogs through e-mail and RSS reader. Why? Because it helps us build “loyal” community of readers. This is obviously an imperative goal (that you should be measuring regularly) throughout the development of your blog. But RSS subscribers can be both a blessing and a curse. They may always read your posts, yet they might not ever visit your actual site – thus missing out on that big ol’ community thing you have going on.

What’s the point? You need to invite and entice your RSS subscribers to click through. How? ASKING QUESTIONS is a good place to start. Make an effort to objectively ask questions in your post that instigates a response from your readers. In other words, force them to come to your “hood” in order to see people’s responses (and hopefully leave one of their own). The only way to get people to click through their Google Reader is if you give them good reason to.

Email

With Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, Skype, and a plethora of other social networks, e-mail seems to be a dying trend. But it shouldn’t be, at least not for a rock star community builder such as yourself. Every time someone leaves a comment on your blog, you are blessed with an email address – or as I like to call it, a “gateway to a relationship”. Use it (wisely – not spammy) to your advantage. A blog can be a great place to start a discussion, but email can be a beautiful way to keep it going. Your friendships and connections don’t have to stop in the comment section – and taking the time to follow up via email (when it makes sense to do so) shows that you are really committed to building a relationship with that person.

IRL

Ah yes, three letters that we are starting to fade away: IRL or “in real life” – there’s still that distinction between our online lives and the ones we live when we’re not in front of a computer screen – but it’s fading fast – the two are quickly becoming one in the same. So when we talk about building community, it would be stupid not to mention the great connections and friendships that can be found over a cup of coffee or an ice cold Black and Tan.

The beauty of blogging and Social Media is it provides a gateway to opportunity – whether it be personal or professional, making friends or finding clients – it may all start with a blog or a tweet, but it doesn’t ever have to end there. Focus on building community and relationships everywhere – and your blog will become a much more fulfilling place for you and your readers to hang out.

11 Comments | Community, Social Media, blogging | Tagged: away, blog, building, Community, home, off | Permalink
Posted by David Spinks