Dive into the archives.
- Where Has The Art Of Customer Service Gone?
Call me old fashioned, but I have this crazy idea that businesses should provide at least a minimal amount of human element in the customer service they offer to their paying clientele.
- Social Media Strategy Minus Human Engagement = Business Fail
Last night I went to my daughter’s first Freshman Chorus concert. Of course, my little girl’s voice stood out among the pack, but the beautiful sound of angelic voices blending perfectly together was wonderfully soothing and enjoyable, even though the majority of the songs they were singing were remarkably antiquated and, in my opinion, emotionally sterile. As a musician myself, I am admittedly a bit of a snob, but this was more about a lack of connection with and passion for what the songs were about. Each selection, including the big finale splattered with corny unison hand claps in what I guess was an attempt to display enthusiasm, left me disappointed for my daughter’s personal musical progression. Afterward we discussed the differences between singing well and singing with a passionate desperation from the depth of your soul. This is a perpetual rant for me, and one my family is probably exhausted with. But every time we sit through an American Idol show, or hear another sticky sweet pop song on the radio, or encounter anything else that pits passion against perfection, I can see that they get it, and that’s important to me as their father. If there is one thing I most want my children to carry with them throughout their lives, it is an intrinsic understanding that the pursuit of their passion is primary and that without it they will not only never be completely content, but they will also fall short of giving the world their very best.
At this juncture you are probably wondering what any of this has to do with the title of this post. Don’t worry. I didn’t use the title to lure you here to listen to me rant about musical integrity and passion, or how proud I am of my children. The point is this: whether it’s your own personal endeavors, or your business pursuits, or your new social media strategy, I believe you can only get so far on just doing it well. Without real, personal, passionate human interaction, your end result will always be limited.
- I Ain’t No Followback Girl (or Boy)
Just the other day I saw this tweet in my @replies column on Tweetdeck. I have to admit that right at first I was a little angry, offended and irritated. Not because this person chose to stop following me, but because they thought it was necessary to make a public statement about it. It felt a little bit like an attack on me and all because I had not automatically followed this person back after they followed me. Of course, in a matter of seconds my emotions came back to reality and I replied with an apology, explaining that I was weeks behind on going through people’s profiles to determine if I was going to follow them. I have explained my process in further detail in a previous post, but in a nutshell it goes like this: whenever I have time I go through the list of people who are following me and check out their profiles, looking at their bio, background, avatar and recent tweets. If it seems we have something in common, or they seem funny or engaging or interesting in some other way, then I will follow them back. But I don’t automatically follow people simply because they chose to follow me.
I ain’t no followback boy.
- Exploring The Oxymoron of Automated Social Media
In this post I want to focus on the oxymoron of automated social media. An oxymoron is the combination of two normally contradictory terms, in this case “automated” and “social”. Webster’s definitions pretty clearly demonstrate the contradiction of these two terms. Yet automation in social contexts is becoming more and more the norm.
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