Podcasting

I recorded my very first podcast for the Microsoft CIO Network yesterday, finally joining the ranks of bloggers who have tried their hand at podcasting.

I was initially nervous about the interviewing/conversation, but got over that quickly. On the way back to my office, I started to worry about how I sounded, and how I would edit the audio.

I think I sounded OK, but need lots of work on how I interview and how fast I talk (I need to slow down a bit). I used Audacity to quickly edit the podcast and used the Internet Archive to find a snippit of sound to use as an intro bumper for the podcast. I'll share the final podcast here if I can (not sure I can use it in public).

What I really love about this way of developing content for a community is it's potential to be really authentic and informal. I'd like to continue to develop and refine a format that will result in a 20 minute conversation that really gives listeners some insights into the topic(s) and the persion (CIO) I'm talking with. Ad a model, I love how PBS does it's CEO Exchange and of course, Sundance's Iconoclasts.

Here Comes Everybody

I just finished reading Here Comes Everybody by Clay Shirky (@clayshirky on Twitter). I took a bunch of notes and wanted to pull out some key things are really impact the development of social network and apply them to what I'm working on at Microsoft.

First up is the notion of "publish, then filter" - with the massive amounts of information being published today both online, broadcast and offline, filtering has become the real issue. As I think about my own ways of consuming information, it's the filters that are available to me that make big differences. For example, Tivo's search functionality, wish list/keywords and swivel search has revolutionized what I watch on TV. Similarly, I consume almost all of news and technology data via RSS feeds from a browser. I still read the NYTimes on Sunday, but I'm not convinced that I do it for any real reason other than I think I ought to.

Emerging platforms continue to accelerate the publish then filter trend - sites like Meetup.com allow users to "filter" by looking at participation. Interestingly, this means that publishers are going to fail a heck of a lot more than they are used to - there's just too much out there for groups, content, and information to succeed at the same rate they did in the past. This failure thing is going to be hard for lots of traditionally thinking companies - it's not in their DNA to embrace failure. I've seen this personally so much in my career in both the non-profit and for-profit sectors.

The open source movement provides a pretty good example of this in motion. Open source movements have no employees, no plan, no nothing really. It's not an organization, it's an ecosystem. The book points out in a blow my mind moment, that open source doesn't reduce the likelihood of failure, it reduces the cost of failure. This massive reduction in transaction costs (Coasan theory) is at the core of the book and is affecting companies across the board.

Shirky lays out a very compelling argument around how technology has enabled us to rapidly create new groups, and populate them with people who formerly would never be able to congregate (either offline or online). The top list of groups on meetup.com includes things like Pagans, Witches, Tori Amos and Slashdot. This, as Shirky puts it, is unlike any other group list, anywhere.

My favorite chapter of the book however is "Promise, Tool, Bargain." Shirky lays out a foundation for how to think about constructing communities. He's careful not to call this a recipe, because while every community needs a promise, tools and a bargain, the mix of interactions is simply too complex to prescribe anything other than a framework. That said, the order of promise, tool, bargain does matter.

The promise creates a basic desire to participate. In my case, the Microsoft CIO Network makes both an explicit and implicit promise to users that we'll connect our CIO's to each other, and give them new ways to access Microsoft insiders. Getting the promise right however is quite different than traditional marketers are used to. The distinction is that the marketing isn't done by us for them (our users), but is done with our users in collaboration. That's a trick you shouldn't try at home.

Tools are obviously what allow members to get involved. Here's where things get tricky (and interesting). CIO's aren't generation Y/millennials in how they use online technologies. While we do have a few members that blog and tweet, the majority just aren't contributors to online forums and spaces. We initially chose a message board/blog tool, but have recently started to add things like teleconference calls, interviews, audio podcasts and in-person events. I do believe we're breaking some new ground here in explicitly trying to build an online community of C-level execs - so we've got our work cut out for us.

Bargain is the implicit bargain among users - it's the culture and the expectation. In our case, I believe it's the humanization of Microsoft. That feels odd to say (and is a tricky subject), but I do believe that if we get this right, members will have an unprecedented doorway to us to help us craft products, deliver strategy and have a conversation with our customers. It's also why I took the job. The opportunity to help a company like Microsoft try something like this is a once-in-a-life opportunity.

There is so much more that I want to write about this book but for now, that's it. Get a copy and read it!

Book Notes; Groundswell

I just finished Groundswell: "Winning in a world transformed by social technologies." Groundswell is a much reviewed and commented on book, so instead of my normal book notes, I figured I'd provide some links for you to follow.

The core premise of the book is that much of what's happening in marketing today revolves around creating "conversation" or "social spaces" where brands (er, brand managers) can have conversations with their customers. There's been tons and tons written about this in the past few years, but Groundswell provides a terrific framework that really helps clarify a lot of what many of us haven't been able to articulate to date.

In addition to the framework, the authors have also created a profile tool which allows you to profile your customers to see how likely it is that they are partiicpating in the new world of marketing and online conversations.

As you'd expect, there is also a discussion board where you can jump in yourself to chat about strategy, and marketing tactics.

If you want more.. check out delicious "groundswell" tags and/or "groundswell" on tweetscan to see who is tweeting about the book.

Like most books of this kind, Groundswell includes some terrific case studies and interviews like this one, that one and all the other ones. Like most books of this kind, Groundswell also suffers from bouncing back and forth between trying to please and inform noobs and salty old dawgs.

For my money, the framework alone is worth the price of admission.

And.. here it is:

The post where I briefly return to non-profit marketing...

If you like Seth Godin and/or are interested in non-profit marketing, check out this online chat from the Chronicle.

My favorite question and answer:

Question from Tennessee Nonprofit:
Are brochures dead?

Seth Godin:
and buried

Queue the looney tunes music...that's all folks...

UPDATED: How Does "Social Technology" Affect Business?

I was going to leave myself a comment, but instead opted to update this post (updated 5/21/08)

The panel went really well - but I changed some of the content as I was taking the train down to the city from Bridgeport. I ended up going with 4 broad trends or factors that are driving the use of social networking and tools within the enterprise.

1. Consumers technology is invading the enterprise
2. Employees have an insatiable need for data, self-service tools and the ability to collaborate
3. Technology is fundamentally driving innovation
4. Generational shift

I think it went well and I hope to re-post video once it is available.

Here's the original, unchanged post:

As I mentioned in my previous post and on Twitter, I'm doing a panel this Friday at NYU. I'm on what looks to be a terrific panel titled "The Digital Future: What Social Networking and Marketing Tools Mean for Businesses and Entrepreneurs."

I'm guessing that my take will be slightly different than my fellow panelists, I'm assuming they'll be talking about the consumer space being from big agencies, Meetup.com and MTV. My focus is, and latest interest is looking at how social networking and marketing tools mean inside the firewall. It's a different spin, and one ripe for a lot more exploration and attention.

I've spent some of my day today going over what I'm going to say regarding this topic and have come up with some key points. Let me know what you think.

1. Consumers and web technologies are quickly and powerfully spilling over into the enterprise
Stories in Business Week about Apple's invasion of the enterprise is just the latest, but think back for a moment the last time that you took a new job. I always have that scary moment when I think, "oh man, I hope they aren't blocking IM, Youtube or Facebook." Not because I want to fool around, but because those tools and sites are critical to keeping me connected to my network and to the information I need as a marketer to get my work done. The iPhone is just the latest consumer technology to come knocking on IT and the enterprise door, and this time, consumer adoption is all but forcing a reaction from IT departments. Businesses can no longer afford not to let these tools and technologies inside - if for nothing else, employee mutiny (and illicit workarounds and/or hacks).

2. Insatiable need to access data, self-service and to collaborate with each other
Business Intelligence, dashboards and metrics; can you imagine running a business without these? It wasn't so long ago that deploying these types of system were either too complex or too expensive. Not so any more and not because it's suddenly cheap to develop a BI solution. Employees and their managers have an unquenchable thirst for data these days and it's a trend that is most certainly accelerating.

Meanwhile, self-service is a hallmark of the "new web" and is something that is easy to take for granted. It was just 6 years ago when I had my first non-profit job and was told there was no way in the world that we'd allow donors to manage their own data on a web site. How quaint!

As for collaboration, I read today that Wetpaint is growing like mad and has something like 900,000 wikis. That's a lot of "wiki" going on in a world where I'm guessing not so many of your managers or executives have ever even heard that term.

3. Technology is driving innovation
How dare a marketing guy make such a statement! At least I put it at #3! Seriously though, this one is simple and easy to see. Advances in technology combined with ever more savvy users is driving innovation at astounding rates. This applies across the board in both the enterprise and consumer spaces and is just amazing. The coolest thing you saw 6 months ago is old hat by now.

4. Within the enterprise, social technology is forcing enterprise IT departments to deploy ever more flexible, scalable and complex systems that put people at the core, not systems
As I was thinking about this panel and talking with friends about this issue it struck me that "social networking" or the broader "social systems" within an enterprise isn't what has changed. Organizations have always had complex social systems but have never had tools and technologies that have laid them bare for all to see. This exposure is forcing IT and enterprises to think about these previously hidden hierarchies and relationships. What consumer applications like Myspace, Facebook and Twitter have done is to put people at the core and circle everything else around them. I remember a time not so long ago when IT systems were about data and processes and completely ignored users, profiles, collaboration and reputation.

That's what I have for now... thoughts?

Rare Example of Great Marketing

Great marketing can seem so simple at times. Turning mistakes into big wins seems to me to be the easiest way to impress customers these days (not that you want to make mistakes in the first place).

I got Guitar Hero for the Wii a few months ago - and found out that the disc needed to be replaced because the original didn't have the proper sound capabilities. I filled out a web form and received a self-mailer that had shipping already paid. The note from Activision said a disc replacement would come in 4-6 weeks. Just before we went on vacation, I dropped the disc into the mail and hoped that it wouldn't disappear forever.

About 3 weeks later, I got an automated e-mail telling me that they had received the disc and were processing it. 2 days later, I got a note that it had shipped. Exactly 5 weeks from the day I dropped the disc in the mail, I had a replacement disc, as promised.

A week later, while I was away on a business trip my wife called and told me I had a box from "Red Octane." I had no idea what it was and asked her to open it. To my surprise, the box contained a sweet Guitar Hero faceplate. How cool. I'd never buy myself one of these, but always wanted one - it's like they knew!

Call me impressed. That's one solid way to bring a smile to a customers face and build a brand. As a bonus, my 8 year old flipped out and did her best rockin guitar hero impression after she saw the new guitar.

The lessons for marketers:

• Admit your mistakes publicly and move to make them right
  
• Under promise and over deliver
• Suprise and delight
  

2007 Best Posts

Reposted with my own permission from the now defunct npMarkekting blog...

In no particular order, here are my favorite posts from 2007 - a year in which I again didn't blog enough (or by some accounts, blogged way way too much). It was a tough year and I learned a lot about marketing, myself and the world. I also played a lot of golf (but no where near enough by my count). Ok, here goes...

Favorite Post #1 - Great Marketing in the Oddest of Places A post about the good work that the MTA does with their newsletters and keeping their customers informed, and laughing.

Favorite Post #2 - How the New Web Transforms Your Organziation "Marketers do not have the right to interrupt you."

Favorite Post #3 - Authenticity It appears that it is working for Obama in a big way, eh

Favorite Post #4 - Best Development Resources I still get 7 or so hours of sleep, really.

Favorite Post #5 - Yikes, it's not working! I love failing, because it means I'm making progress.

Favorite Post #6 - Causes vs. Organizations I still think I'm right... yea, definately.

Favorite Post #7 - Leave the Ivory Tower, Now! And wow, the Africa trip really proved my point on this one.

Favorite Post #8 - “Edge”tion – Another Look at Causes vs. Orgs Lots of discussion, comments and goodness from this post... horrible title though.

Half of Google Adwords Traffic is from Worthless Link Farms

Is anyone surprised by this? I have asked no less than 20 people if they ever click on ad words ads and have never gotten a "yes."A couple of months ago I started in earnest tracking the advertising hits that Google generates for me. And what I found is not a happy picture. About 30-40% of the traffic generated - ie. the traffic that I pay for - comes from link farms, that is Web pages that have nothing more than a bunch of links that redirect to Google Adsense links...

read more | digg story

True Names and The Semantic Web

If you've read Vinge's short story/novella "True Names" you'll be familiar with online/offline identity management. I've managed to create quite a collection of public "persona's" on a variety of sites including myspace, linkedin, friendster, orkut, classmates, meez, reunion.com and have been thinking about ways to combine these into a single identity or collection of identities that I can more easily manage.

In addition to social networking sites, I've also got my own web site, blog, professional blog and my own flickr photo sharing site. I've most recently been looking at some very cool new functionality that Yahoo! 360 provides, along with Squidoo.

Continuing the mind numbing madness, I've also started using Del.icio.us to social bookmark concepts, sites and ideas that I want to remember and share. I of course have a Google account which gives me msirkin.googlepages.com, access to base.google.com and just today - access to Google analytics (formerly Urchin).

My God - where does it end!!!

After listening to a talk given by Tim Berners-Lee on the Semantic web in which he talked a lot about linking, URI's and data sharing, I guess I'm trying to figure out how this all applies in both my personal, and business life.

Managing all my personas, protecting my privacy and extending my network all should contribute to my life, but I'm not yet sure how.

Technology is our word for stuff that doesn't work yet

I was reading a very interesting article/posting on Always-On about "Grokking Technology" that got me thinking about the role technology is playing my personal and professional life, and in my kids lives.

While I didn't come up with anything earth-shattering, I did like this chart which clearly shows what is going to happen demographically as we move into the future.


The idea of "digital natives" is very compelling - my daughter for example is 7, has a Gameboy, understands that "binary" is a language and is familiar enough with email that she has one already. She's already owned 1 digital camera (and broken it), and can articulate what Google is better than her grandmother, who FINALLY got a working computer with an Internet connection.

The kicker however to the article can be found in a comment way down at the bottom of the page left by Rich Seidner who quotes Douglas Adams. "Technology is our word for stuff that doesn't work yet." In the context of the article (read it already!) this quote is genius. In the context of my mother - it is reality. And at work.. don't get me started!!