Rob's Blog

On any given day, there are several reasons why you might not contribute anything to your online community, your following, your network.

1. You're too busy (with paid work, admin or personal stuff).
2. You're too boring (you've got nothing to say)
3. You're too lazy (you could do someting but you can't be bothered)

Today is one of those days. I'm too busy networking online that I don't have the time to blog about it. Does that seem reasonable? Thanks for your forgiveness!

But you know what? There's no excuse for not sharing some great and relevant stuff with your audience. That's why I've spent some time on YouTube to find this great six minute video on productivity for people who spend time on the internet! Enjoy:

It's part of learning that you make mistakes. I've spent some time on Twitter over the last couple of weeks - listening, learning, asking and dipping my toes in.

Came across this nice article by Sean Ludwig on things you shouldn't do if you want to succeed on Twitter and keep your followers happy. Here are a few I've adopted for any kind of online networking. See if any might apply to the networks you're involved in:

2. Don't post anything that you rather wasn't in the public domain. Stuff can come back to haunt you. Online is 'shooting season' for anyone who needs ammunition against you. If you want to be fired or not hired, say anything!

3. Don't be boring. People want to be entertained and educated. That means relevance and humour. Talking about what you had for breakfast is no longer cool. If you're going to say something, SAY SOMETHING!

4. Don't post or tweet too often. You can over-expose yourself. It can get annoying and crowd out other contributions and observations. Some people seem to tweet all day. The article recommends no more than ten times a day, or more than five times an hour. "If you have that much to say, maybe it belongs on a blog."

5. Don't respond to everything. One reason - you'll burn out. Another reason, you'll get ignored after a while. Pick your topics, your battles and your lane!

6. Don't tell us about something cool or life-changing without a link or picture. With the range of resources and images around, there's no excuse for not adding colour, evidence and value to your contributions!

7. Don't claim other people's stuff for your own. Give credit and references where due. It's only fair. And if you get it wrong, apologize!

8. Don't ignore people who send you a direct message or a reply. Business is personal. Build relationships and build followers. Be polite!

9. Don't moan about how slow things are. This one gets me. there's always someone to compare yourself to who has a better following, a better profile and a better life. Do what you can do and be patient!

Rules is rules, even if they're unspoken. Play the game and you'll reap the benefits. So I've stopped posting so much, put in more pictures and links, given more credit, quit my moaning about those doing more than me and got on with being me!

As I take 90 days out of my life to build my reputation online (my Zero to Hero Experiment), I'm finding a lot of interchangeable words and phrase:

• Social Media
• Personal Marketing
• Career Planning
• Social Marketing
• Online Networking
• Social Networking
  
• Personal Branding
• Online Marketing.

Bottom line, all of these aim to make a brand out of you that you can leverage, exploit and gain influence from.

The online world is powerful - there are so many incredible platforms, networks, tools and applications that you can use to advertise yourself, share your messages and do your business. Here's what I'm learning:

1. It takes time to get familiar with the various 'social media' avenues. You've got to be patient and committed. You've got to want to! In the past I've probably used 5% of what any given social networking site or platform can do. That's not using it well. On Twitter, Ecademy and LinkedIn I'm probbly up to 50%. Beyond that I dare not invest into any other networks until I've mastered those!
2. You've got to contribute. Even if you're just a portal or conduit for the thoughts and ideas of others, you've got to get stuck in! It's still a relationship game. Trust, confidence, contribution, relationships - these are the currency of online social and business networking.
3. It helps if you're at least a little different. There are thousands of people that do what you do. Some will be better. Some will be a lot worse. You've got to be discernably different and better, else why would anybody choose you or follow you?