Category Archives: Business

Business Etiquette For Success

Posted on by
Reply

As a business we all want to succeed and grow but a couple things must be kept in mind. Are you engaging, interacting, and practicing successful customer service skills? Below, I will be mentioning several ideas for you to put into action to help you meet these aspects of business etiquette for success.

- Be open to suggestions from customers of what they want to see. Let’s them know they are valued.

- Have a rapid response time for customer service questions. Show the customer they are valued and you care. By doing so, word of mouth of how great you are goes global.

- Do a short interview video with current clients conveying to others how you have helped them grow. Same goes for consumers who have bought your products.

- Follow up with every client. This shows you never forget them and are willing to keep a built relationship.

- Have a presentation ready showing your company in action doing business. Shows potential customers how you operate and gives them a feel of your business.

- Show you’re listening by responding. Respond to all questions and feedback, positive and negative. Let’s others know they have a voice and are being heard.

- Be willing to build your services or products around clients/customers needs and wants, putting them first. Make it all about them.

- Convey that you are willing to connect globally.

Basically, just ensure the client/customer feels at home and will be successful by doing business with you. Give reason why someone should do business with you. Fulfill what they are looking for by going above and beyond the call of duty. By entailing all I have talked about, proper business etiquette can help mold your business into a success. Does your business or company practice business etiquette? I encourage you to add to my list of ideas and recommendations in a comment. Until next time, Cheers!

11 Ways To Create Awesome On Twitter

Posted on by
Reply

As most of you know, I am a huge fan of creating and helping others become awesome on Twitter. By creating awesome, we are exposing our image and brand in a positive way across our network. If you are not creating awesome on Twitter and wondering how you can, the answer is simple. Below, I will share with you ways on how to make this happen.

  1. Be you. Be Real.
  2. Always remain positive.
  3. Listen by responding.
  4. WOW your followers by sharing their content as a RT but make sure you read what you are sharing.
  5. Go above and beyond by making your new followers feel welcome. Thank them publicly.
  6. Be unique and original.
  7. Remain active.
  8. Embrace your power.
  9. Have a variety in your offering.
  10. Always have good manners.
  11. Be a resource to others and inspire.

As you can see, creating awesome is an easy task. The key component to remember is to create reason and value for others to take action. Are you ready and willing? As you create awesome on Twitter, the awesome spreads to your network like wildfire. As a result of the awesome spreading, your audience, network and brand sees success.

I would love to hear from you on how you plan to create awesome today and everyday. Cheers!

How To Create Content of Value

Posted on by
Reply

Is your content struggling with getting noticed, being shared or acted upon? More than likely the problem is the content lacks value. If so, I have developed a detailed way to help you turn your struggle into a success by defining each letter in the word value.

Vital – Create positive, informational and unique content. By doing so, our content becomes appealing, worthy and one of a kind. Encompassing vitality in our content opens the door for our brand, relationships and audience to grow.

Accurate – Do research to ensure the content you are sharing is correct and updated. Sharing an article from a year ago may share outdated tips or convey wrong information about a topic or question asked. This prevents possible catastrophe, failure and misleading someone. Also, can lead to poor reputation of a brand or individual.

Lead – Use knowledge in content to create a path of success. Knowledge can be in the form of a tip, blog post or response to a question asked. By leading we inspire, help someone create success and make a difference. The key is to be effective in doing so.

Understand – Create content that has a clear meaning.  An individual may not understand content as easy as another individual does. Be detailed, paint a picture with words, and give an example to avoid confusion. Always make it be known in content you are willing to explain if need be.

Engaging – Listen by responding. Let your audience know you acknowledge them. Thank them, share and respond to public content and ask how their day is going. Create a conversation by asking a question. Engaging content shows the audience you value and are there for them.

When we create content of value, we are raising awareness for our brand and our personal self. It is important to encompass this trait to keep a positive image and presence, to see growth and succeed.

How do you define content of value? Do you encompass it? Feel free to leave your response in a comment.

Have a great day,

Jason Houck

 

BlogWorld & New Media Expo in NYC 2012

Posted on by
Reply

It’s that time of year again to start gearing up for BlogWorld & New Media Expo 2012 in NYC. For the past 2 years, I have kept an ongoing list for attendees to network and learn more about each other before the biggest social media event of the year takes place. Below, you will find attendees by state, name and Twitter handle along with a brief description of their blog and link.

 

Competition in Social Media

Posted on by
3

Have you ever been to your child’s ball game or been part of an event where you compete to win? If so, that’s what you are suppose to do.

With that said, I want to focus on a new competition I have noticed in the past couple months. Its Social Media competition. In Social Media, we don’t compete, we unite. We are all in first place. We make this happen by supporting each other whether it be re-tweeting your friends tweets on Twitter, promoting and commenting on each other blogs, or showing support on Facebook and all social media platforms. I like to think of my Social Media audience as my family. The family that supports together stays together.

We shouldn’t be trying to see who can make the best friend, the most friends, or bring someone down. This means we shouldn’t be talking behind each others back. Instead, if you see someone struggling help pick them up, dust them off and lead them down the right path. We are all in this together as one. This is the only way Social Media can win and put us all in first place.

I am not saying to be friends with everyone in Social Media. It’s virtually impossible but make friends with the ones you connect and have something in common with and see value in. That’s why it’s very important to engage and interact with one another.

If we all take what I have talked about and put it into action, we will all be on top and you will see no need for competition. By uniting as one, we create our image, online presence and personal brand. So stop competing and start connecting.

What are you doing to ensure you are not encompassing Social Media competition?

Thankful Thursday – Why Do You Like Infographics?

Posted on by
Reply

Welcome to a new weekly addition of Thankful Thursday here at Weigh Your Mind. This is a day I give thanks to my audience on Twitter by creating exposure of my friends by making you a part of my post. Each week, I create a question, share it on Twitter and use your responses in the post with a link back to your Twitter profile.

To kick things off, this week I decided to create the question, “Why Do You Like Infographics?” I was lead to ask the question because of the growing popularity of this type of content. Below, are the responses I received this week.

  1. @KNDino – Infographics just brings things to life.
  2. @Ava_Jae – Infographics are great because they help us visualize data that can be difficult to fully wrap our minds around otherwise. Plus, they tend to be very creative and fun to look at.
  3. @Efficient – They’re scannable. This is big in an age where content curators sift through hundreds of articles a day.
  4. @ScottTheWriter – Why? Because they’re a short cut form from information to you brain. Plus, why else would I ever look at USA Today?
  5. @SummitMtnMedia – We like pretty pictures.
  6. @CnZDigital – Infographics are fast facts presented in a creative manner. Reading them becomes FUN and engaging.
  7. @JosOrtega – Infographics can make boring/mundane data enjoyable to look at. They also aid in comprehension for us visual learners.

As you can see, individuals like Infographics for many different reasons. From being creative to making data more appealing to aiding visual learners, this defines why Infographics is growing in popularity.

I want to thank all of those that participated and as always I am very thankful for all of you. So, Why Do You Like Infographics?

Fun Fact Friday – 3/2/2012

Posted on by
Reply

Fun Fact Friday here at Weigh Your Mind is a way to end the week on a fun note and also educate those who are not aware about a fact. You will find facts encompassing a variety of topics including business, science, life, body, history and more. Are you ready to learn and have fun?

  1. Disney’s ‘Brave’ musical score was composed by Lanarkshire-born musician and composer Patrick Doyle!
  2. 6 people a year die from water fountains.
  3. Today in 1836 – Texas Revolution: Declaration of independence of the Republic of Texas from Mexico.
  4. Intelligent people have more zinc and copper in their hair.
  5. One out of ten children in Europe are conceived on an IKEA bed.
  6. The average person has over 1,460 dreams a year.
  7. First Lady, Eleanor Roosevelt was so convinced the White House was haunted that she kept a vial of holy water on her night stand.
  8. Ford’s 2011 Explorer launch on Facebook generated a 200% greater return than a Super Bowl ad.
  9. William Henry Harrison was only President for 31 days before dying of Pnuemonia.
  10. The human brain is 80% water.

Which was your favorite? Do you have a fact you would like to share? Happy Friday friends!

Social Media Promotion

Posted on by
Reply

Ever wondered what your audience, friends or followers are up to, do or the reason behind what they do in Social Media? I am doing this post to help you convey those answers and all you have to do is fill in the blank which in return promotes yourself. I will also be including a couple questions not related to Social Media. Have fun and enjoy.

  1. The reason I blog is _____.
  2. My top priority in Social Media is _____.
  3. The top trait I look for in my audience and followers is _____.
  4. I consider ______ to be my biggest fear.
  5. When I expand my network, I _____.
  6. If I had to brand myself using 3 words they would be _____.
  7. My job in Social Media is to _____.
  8. My personality is _____.
  9. My favorite social online game is _____ because _____.
  10. When I wake up in the morning, the first thing I do is _____.
  11. When I think of value in Social Media, I think of ______.
  12. By using Social Media, my business has ________.

Hope you have enjoyed answering the questions by filling in the blank. The purpose is for me to get to know you better and others as well. At the same time, the purpose of the post is a great way to keep you engaged and connected. In a comment, pick at least 1 question and complete. Until next time, happy blogging.

Is Social Media Use During Travel The Norm?

Posted on by
8

Checking into Foursquare, posting a status update on Facebook or sharing in 140 characters or less on Twitter is the norm today for an individual when traveling. Why is it the norm? In a Sun Sentinel article, Jennifer Polaro from Albany, NY states why this is true by saying, “I want to be connected with my hometown. I need to know what is going on. I have friends on cruises who are doing the same thing. You can’t break away.”

The article continues on to give reason why many vacationers use social media by saying, “Many visitors find it hard to disconnect during vacation because they feel social (media) pressure to let their friends and followers know what they’re doing and where they’re doing it.”

I agree with the above statement but their are many other reasons why. In addition to visitors feeling social (media) pressure, the use of social media during travel is a way to grow their travel brand and blog, being loyal to their audience and fulfilling an obligation.

  • Travel Brand, Blog – Sharing content while on vacation is a way to gain feedback from the audience so you know what to share on your travel website or blog resulting in exposure and growth.
  • Being loyal – Months before traveling, an individual shares they are traveling to a certain place. When this is conveyed, their audience expresses interest. Social Media is all about what your audience wants to see or hear about. We must remain loyal and deliver as this is a way to gain trust and influence.
  • Obligation – Often many times, a certain hotel, resort, etc will invite a traveler down in exchange for promotion in real time which means sharing pictures and other content as you experience it. To keep our character and credibility intact, we must abide and fulfill our end of the deal.

Social Media use during travel goes beyond checking in to see what’s going on back home and feeling pressure from social media friends and followers. In fact, it’s a job to 1000′s in the travel industry and a way to live their passion resulting in social media use during travel. Not only is it a job to many but it’s advertising for the place we travel to, a chance to showcase creativity, be authentic and build relationship’s with travel brands.

So, is social media use during travel the norm for you? If so, why?