Business Action Ideas from Terry Brock
Social media can help you in more ways than you think. Yes, it is great for connecting with people and engaging with your customers and being a part of today’s highly-mobile community.
Here are some ninja-level tricks that can help you to get above the competition by knowing what can be done with tools you use regularly. Some of these secrets are used by the masters in the business to gain a strong competitive advantage.
Ninja Trick #1 – Use Twitter For Searching
I’ve often said in my seminars that the best use of Twitter is search. This amazing tool not only is used to sent out messages to the key people, but when used as a search tool it is nothing short of amazing.
Many people know about the ability to use http://search.Twitter.com to search for any references to their company or competitors. Here is an advanced-level search option you can also use. It is found at: http://twitter.com/search-advanced
Notice how I did an advanced search on my name and I purposely used the term “singer” in the “None of these words” area. That is because there is a wonderful guy, who I haven’t met yet, but look forward to meeting someday, named Terry Brock (yes, his real name). He is a great singer and formerly with the amazing rock group, Kansas.
By excluding any reference to the word “singer,” I’m able to find out what others are saying about those not in singing named Terry Brock. I love the option (see the bottom of the search) to look for positive or negative attitudes expressed about search terms. This is amazing!
Ninja Trick #2 – Google Advanced Searching
Recently I attended a conference at the National Speakers Association’s annual convention and had a chance to hear the very talented Sam Richter (http://samrichter.com/). He shared a number of search techniques that are available from a variety of sources.
Here is a variation on one of Sam’s illustrations which you can use immediately. Suppose you want to reach those involved with marketing at The Coca-Cola Company with a position of vice president or director. Pretty tightly-focused, huh? Well, by using this Google Search term, you can find them:
“Coca-Cola” + (“vice president” OR director) + marketing
You could also look for all events coming up as featured on a specific website. This is useful for associations and companies who have public events where you want to attend for marketing, networking, etc. Here’s the Google search term you would use:
“Events” Site:ISSA.org
(of course, substitute the name of the website you want instead of the ISSA.org)
Ninja Trick #3 – Google+ Hangouts To Collaborate
“None of us is as smart as all of us.” That’s an old Japanese phrase that is used often in Silicon Valley today. One of the best ways that we can collaborate with a group that is scattered geographically, is to use Google+ Hangouts.
I’m using this now with some key groups. We get a lot done seeing each other on the screen and sharing ideas. Each meeting has the normal office humor and camaraderie and that helps bond the group. We always cover some very salient points about marketing and I find it a meeting that I look forward to attending.
These three Ninja Tricks can help you be more effective in your use of social media. Experiment with other possibilities using terms that are relevant for you. Remember that the way we learn to use these tools is by playing with them. Have fun!
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© Copyright 2013. Achievement Systems, Inc. and Terry Brock. All Rights Reserved. Terry Brock helps organizations leverage technology like social media and mobile devices to connect with customers and increase productivity. He is the Co-Author of the McGraw-Hill upcoming book entitled Klout Matters which is about succeeding in social media and generating business. Visit his website for a free report on how Twitter can help you boost sales – http://tinyurl.com/twitter4sales. He can be reached at www.TerryBrock.com or on Twitter – @TerryBrock
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