Show Notes

You may want to grab a grande half whole half skim quadruple upside down macchiato latte extra hot… and breakfast… and maybe lunch, too… because this is what can only be described (if you’ll forgive the cliché) as an epic episode.

Friends and #SuperFreds Jillian Jackson and Dino Dogan join us to talk about the Starbucks #RaceTogether campaign, the good, the bad and things we couldn't have anticipated. We truly enjoyed the conversation and think you’ll gain some valuable insights into business, marketing, how they tie into social issues and whether you should put yourself or your business in the line of fire.

PS: This is our first episode with the explicit tag, in part because we talk about some difficult and grown up subjects but also because an F-word or two may have escaped and we let them live in the interest of retaining the truth of the conversation.

In This Episode We Talk About

• Whether the Race Together campaign was a good idea or bad idea (hint: we don't all agree)
• Whether the conversation about race should be happening in a coffee shop with a barista (hint: we don't all agree)
• Whether Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz is visionary or crazy (hint: we don't all agree)
• The importance of aligning yourself with people who share your values but also knowing the difference between agreement and alignment
• Plus we decide on Jillian's official SuperFred title, start a new movement called #SocialGuac and answer the burning question, "How much guacamole can Jillian eat?"

Links & Resources

• Scroll to the middle of this Business Insider article for the “talking points” memo that was given to baristas
• Read the brief about the recent case where an Oregon man was acquitted of any crime when he was caught taking photos beneath the skirt of a 13 year old girl

Your Marketing Action Item

From Jillian: Talk to the person who interacts with your customers the most and ask them what they think about race (or any sensitive subject) before moving forward with a company-wide brand campaign.

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Show Notes

Today we step into a parallel universe where we explore the world of filmmaking – which in the end is just another form of content creation. We talk with Christopher Leone, the writer, producer and director of the movie (no, the TV series) Parallels, now available on Netflix.

Yes, we talk about making movies (…or is it a TV series??) and have a whole lot of fun. But the lessons can apply to any creative project.

In This Episode We Talk About

• Why it’s getting harder every day to get your content or next big project noticed in a digital world
• Getting your project done even when you don’t have a big budget to add all the bells and whistles
• The power of a good story to compel your audience
• How to market without marketing and build a loyal and rabid fan base… just by being yourself
• The importance of doing something that you feel passionate about rather than simply cranking out content because you’re “supposed to”
• Creating something unique even if it seems like the idea has been done a million times before
• Plus we geek out over sci-fi classics like Land of the Lost, Dune, Star Wars, Battlestar Galactica and confess to calling people “Sleestaks”

Links & Resources

• Find Christopher Leone on his website and learn more about his projects
• Find Chris on Twitter @christophrleone
• Sign the Change.org petition to get more of Parallels made
• Learn more about the movie at IMDB
• Read io9’s review of the movie
• Read Geekscape’s review: “Parallels” is a Phenomenal TV Pilot, Frustrating Movie

Your Marketing Action Item

From Chris: When you start a creative project… finish it! Don’t leave it on your computer. Put it out into the world because you never know what will happen. It’s ok to abandon a project if it isn’t working but especially if you’re just starting out, finish it anyway and learn from it. Commit and get it done.

Your Fun Item

Shoot us an email or leave a comment and let us know what your favorite sci-fi movie, book and TV show are.

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To read the article and get links to the additional articles referenced in the podcast, visit http://www.websearchsocial.com/84

Show Notes

Grab a cup of coffee because we’re not fooling around today! We get serious about some sticky topics like thinking critically, “being yourself” online and issues of race in our current culture. Yes, it’s all about business and marketing, and hopefully we’ll make you think a little harder about the bigger impact of what we say and do online.

In This Episode We Talk About

• The problem with CRM software and why it can be so frustrating for businesses to find the right software
• How you can make better decisions about the software that you use to support your business
• The importance of asking questions and challenging anyone you’ve hired to help with your marketing
• Avoiding scams that could lock you into contracts or siphon off your money or even outright steal your credit card number or personal info
• What to do when you get conflicting advice about what you should/shouldn’t be doing to market your business
• Why the mantra to “be yourself” is too often just lip service and how we deal with the haters
• The “Race Together” campaign started by Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz and the ensuing backlash
• What we think about the campaign and its relationship to the broader context of social media and the idea of being yourself
• Plus we debate adding a position on our podcast for Jillian Jackson as the Chief Executive Strong Black Woman, contemplate how easy it is to take someone’s words out of context and decide that not all backlash is bad

Links & Resources

• Ralph’s video endorsing Ryan Hanley’s Content Warfare book
• A Letter from Howard Schultz to Starbucks Partners Regarding Race Together in which Howard Schultz does not apologize for drawing criticism

Your Marketing Action Item

From Ralph: Look up the movie Parallels – it’s on Netflix right now – and watch it in prep for Thursday’s podcast where we talk to the writer/producer/director about how he created and marketed his work and where the massive outpouring of love on social media came from.

From Carol Lynn: Send an email to cl@websearchsocial.com about a time you found yourself being criticized or “hated on” for something you posted on your blog or on social media. What did you do about it and how did it affect you?

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To read the full article or leave a comment visit http://www.websearchsocial.com/82

Show Notes

It’s the super special palindrome anniversary edition of the Web.Search.Social Marketing Podcast because we celebrate our 18^th wedding anniversary as we record our 81^st podcast episode. Our conversation covers the gamut from technology to photography, Facebook ads to retina graphics, WordPress challenges to wifi nightmares, pop tarts to tapas.

In This Episode We Talk About

• How the "do it" approach worked for us this week and how every business can learn something from it
• What a recent movie experience inadvertently taught about setting expectations for your customers
• The horrifying reality of using stock photos improperly
• The also horrifying reality of web developers who don't properly create a "staging" site for works in progress and the unexpected, far reaching ramifications that can have for your business
• Some important considerations when it comes to "ownership" of the stock photos used on your site
• What you may need to think about in the new age of "retina displays"
• How we solved a business-crippling wifi issue with a new router technology
• Why you need much longer than 5 minutes to build a website... in spite of WordPress's "5 minutes install" promise
• The importance of taking a holistic view of your marketing because you never know when something you do will trigger a response, even if it wasn't what you expected
• Plus Ralph promises to come up with a new quotable phrase every 18 years, Carol Lynn is stumped on the "what did we learn" segment, we wonder, “What would Ian do?” and then decide on peanut butter and jelly and pop tarts for dinner

Easter Eggs

Ralph made some goofy movie and TV references so we decided to play the “name that show” game. You can hear them at the markers below so test your wits against his and see how many you recognize!

• Start listening around the 8:30 mark through the 9:00 mark for a movie quotable
• Listen from 11:30 through 11:45 for a TV character reference
• Listen from 15:20 through 15:45 for another TV character reference
• Listen from 30:50 through 31:05 for a silly TV quotable

Links & Resources

• Visit ContentWarfareBook.com and pick up a copy of Ryan Hanley’s new book, available in digital and hardcover
• A cnet.com review of the Best Wireless Routers of 2015
• Our new favorite WordPress theme, Salient

Your Marketing Action Item

From Ralph: Go to contentwarfarebook.com and get yourself a copy of Ryan Hanley's new book. It will inspire you and help you do better marketing.

From Carol Lynn: Make a list of the things you want to accomplish today. Then set yourself a time limit for doing them. When the time is up, quit. Stop marketing, stop working and do something enjoyable so when you return to work you'll be refreshed and reinvigorated.

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Show Notes

Today we welcome back Ian Anderson Gray, our Chief Executive Research Dude, to talk about ditching perfectionism, taking chances, having fun and calling it marketing!

In This Episode We Talk About

• Why you can't let perfectionism interfere with trying new marketing ideas
• How to stop overthinking your marketing, get past your perceived barriers and just get started
• Whether or not you should be worrying about how many likes, shares, fans, plusses and other "numbers" your content generates
• What Google's “accuracy algorithm” can mean for the future of search
• The sad state of technology reporting
• And more about making customers happy, building real community and having fun!

Links & Resources

• Follow Ian on Twitter @iagdotme
• Circle Ian and get in on some of the great conversations he starts over at Google Plus
• Read the amazingly thorough 7 Reasons NOT to use Sprout Social
• Read the hilarious How to become a Social Media Guru in 20 Steps
• Check out Ian’s Google Plus thread about Empire Avenue and the ethics of social currency
• Read Google's brief discussing the accuracy algorithm: Knowledge-Based Trust: Estimating the Trustworthiness of Web Sources
• Listen to Ian sing Baritone
• Visit SuperFred Tammie Rampley’s Etsy shop, Tramplee Designs, for an awesome selection of hand made purses and bags, and get in touch with Tammie to find out how she can create something perfect just for you
• Check out some of my latest Instagram photos to see the only Hello Kitty bag on the planet just like mine
• Get some great advice from Mike Brooks of Nuclear Chowder Marketing on setting up a home studio to record YOUR video
• Don’t tell anyone about the singing on our guest appearance on the Superheroes of Marketing podcast

Your Marketing Action Item

From Ian: Go and publish something spontaneously... now! Grab your smart phone and post a video to Vine, Instagram or YouTube, write a quick blog post, create a quick list with List.ly of things you want to share with people. Ignore the perceived barriers and have fun.

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Show Notes

What do old video games, trampolines, social proof, creative inspiration and broken websites have in common? Well… not much, actually, except they all make an appearance on today’s podcast. All things considered, we think we segued pretty well! And we managed to tie it all into marketing, too.

In This Episode We Talk About

• How Pinterest is proving to be the “digital tool belt” of the modern guy
• Why your website may appear to be working fine but be in danger of falling apart because of one small oversight
• Whether you’re obligated to “like” or follow someone on social media because they liked or followed you
• Why “social proof” is a thing… but shouldn’t be something you worry about
• What Facebook’s new changes mean to you (and why you may lose a few likes on your page)
• How someone's constructive criticism can be a goldmine of opportunity for you
• Plus high fives, jazz hands and why there won't be any singing on this or future podcasts

Links & Resources

• Games
  • Boxer > DOS emulator for Mac
  • 7 Cities of Gold
  • Karateka
• Pinterest
  • Michael's manly boards
  • Ralph's manly boards
• Podcasts
  • Alisa and Kelly's Superheroes of Marketing podcast
  • How to Get People to Market for You (our guest appearance on their 2nd episode)

Your Marketing Action Item

From Carol Lynn: Test your website form. First, try to break it. If you’ve got a required field, don’t fill it out… and make sure a proper error message is displayed. Then, once you submit the form, be sure there is a visual cue like a thank you page or message to confirm that the form was submitted. Next, check your email. Make sure the form submission actually reached you. Finally, check (or set up) your autoresponder with a secondary call to action to keep the dialogue going. Do this for every form on your site.

From Ralph: Ask your web developer to audit your website and make sure that all the links on your site are pointing to the right place. Make sure there are no copies of your site anywhere, especially on a development server that may be competing with you.

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Show Notes

Did you know that men are the fastest growing demographic on Pinterest? (Businesses, pay attention!)

Today we’re joined by Jeff Sieh, the manliest of Pinterest users, to talk about how to effectively use Pinterest to generate traffic to your website, plus some of the nifty things you may not have known you can do with pins.

Even if you haven’t tried Pinterest yet or don’t think your business lends itself to the platform, you may be surprised by how powerful Pinterest can be and the benefits it can provide.

In This Episode We Talk About

• Why Pinterest isn’t just for girls and wedding dresses
• How to name your boards and pins so they can be discovered on Pinterest and in Google search
• What you need to think about to optimize your pins for mobile
• Why you need a Pinterest business account (and not just a regular Pinterest account)
• What makes a good pin and how you can create visuals even if you aren’t in a visual business
• What else you can pin – because Pinterest is for more than just photos
• Plus we talk about analytics, scheduling tools, promoted pins, rich pins and plenty more!

Links & Resources

• Find Jeff at Manly Pinterest Tips where he adds testosterone, one pin at a time
• Get in on Jeff and Cynthia’s Pinterest bootcamp training
• Learn more about Pinterest rich pins
• Check out the Tailwind app for Pinterest analytics and scheduling tools (This is Jeff’s affiliate link so if you decide to sign up, use this link and share the love!)
• Download the free Ahology Pinterest report
• Read Jeff’s article about how to take advantage of Pinterest for mobile
• Watch Cynthia Sanchez’s Oh So Pinteresting episode where Ralph discusses how to use UTM tracking code with your pins
• Get the Social Warfare plugin so you can create a Pinterest-specific sharing image
• Bookmark Dustin Stout’s “cheat sheet” that gives you dimensions for images on all of the major social networks

Your Marketing Action Item

From Jeff: Do something different. Think about how you can step outside your comfort zone and do something that you haven’t tried yet or that your competitors aren’t doing. Try a podcast, take a video, don’t be afraid if you’re the only one in your industry doing it.

From Carol Lynn: Start a “Behind the Scenes” board on Pinterest then snap a photo with your smart phone or camera of your office or surroundings. Flip your camera so you’ll have a photo with a vertical orientation – it works better for Pinterest! Then post the photo with a caption and put a human face on your business.

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