Just a quick post this morning about some twitter resources
Don't forget to download my article on Top 10 Tips For Twitter In Business if you haven't already & here's a nice little video from Mark Shaw on using twitter in business
Finally, don't forget to follow me on twitter @christina_jones
Friday 31 July 2009
Saturday 25 July 2009
A really positive impact
I read today about a really fabulous initiative called Colalife. Here's how the website explains it:
ColaLife is a campaign to get Coca-Cola to open up its distribution channels in developing countries to save lives, especially children’s lives, by carrying much needed ’social products’ such as oral rehydration salts and high-dose vitamin A tablets. For the latest on the campaign, please visit the blog. ColaLife is an independent and purely voluntary movement backed by thousands of supporters on its Facebook Group. ColaLife is not an organisation.
It was launched by Simon Berry, who had an idea while working on the British Aid programme in 1988:
What about Coca Cola using their distribution channels (which are amazing in developing countries) to distribute rehydration salts? Maybe by dedicating one compartment in every 10 crates as ‘the life saving’ compartment?
Having made no progress with the idea for 20 years, Simon decided to try once more but this time using the convening power of the internet. Since floating the idea on his blog in May 2008, he has managed to create a huge community around the campaign, through a Facebook group and appearances on Radio 4’s iPM programme. He is now in discussions with Coca-Cola and is looking to engage with an international NGO to move the project forward.
I think it's a great idea & am sad that it's taken 20 years for Simon to make an impact with it but the power of social media has finally started to make some noise. Please take a moment to visit the colalife website & join their facebook page.
ColaLife is a campaign to get Coca-Cola to open up its distribution channels in developing countries to save lives, especially children’s lives, by carrying much needed ’social products’ such as oral rehydration salts and high-dose vitamin A tablets. For the latest on the campaign, please visit the blog. ColaLife is an independent and purely voluntary movement backed by thousands of supporters on its Facebook Group. ColaLife is not an organisation.
It was launched by Simon Berry, who had an idea while working on the British Aid programme in 1988:
What about Coca Cola using their distribution channels (which are amazing in developing countries) to distribute rehydration salts? Maybe by dedicating one compartment in every 10 crates as ‘the life saving’ compartment?
Having made no progress with the idea for 20 years, Simon decided to try once more but this time using the convening power of the internet. Since floating the idea on his blog in May 2008, he has managed to create a huge community around the campaign, through a Facebook group and appearances on Radio 4’s iPM programme. He is now in discussions with Coca-Cola and is looking to engage with an international NGO to move the project forward.
I think it's a great idea & am sad that it's taken 20 years for Simon to make an impact with it but the power of social media has finally started to make some noise. Please take a moment to visit the colalife website & join their facebook page.
Friday 24 July 2009
Reflections
As my baby brother hits the job market as a freshly minted engineering graduate & engages in a whirl of interviews it makes me reflect on my "career" so far. Both my siblings are heading the more conventional route, gainfully employed in a corporate structure with an easily defined job title, unlike their older sister!
I'm firmly in the slash category (which is getting more common for generation Y according to this article) or as Ian Sanders would put it, a juggler.
Although it causes endless confusion at family gatherings & networking events (I have a nifty "elevator speech" but the general consensus is often that I play on facebook all day) for me it is the strength that underlies everything I do.
It means that every day is different, no danger of being bored & offers a wider take on things than normal. The fusion of a very traditional wholesale business & a new media consultancy is great. I have my own lab to test new ideas & projects on a daily basis & it also means that underneath all the fun web stuff is a need for effectiveness, increased sales & staying in business. Not very web 2.0 I know in the land of the crazy valuation but I would say more realistic for 99% of companies.
I'm firmly in the slash category (which is getting more common for generation Y according to this article) or as Ian Sanders would put it, a juggler.
Although it causes endless confusion at family gatherings & networking events (I have a nifty "elevator speech" but the general consensus is often that I play on facebook all day) for me it is the strength that underlies everything I do.
It means that every day is different, no danger of being bored & offers a wider take on things than normal. The fusion of a very traditional wholesale business & a new media consultancy is great. I have my own lab to test new ideas & projects on a daily basis & it also means that underneath all the fun web stuff is a need for effectiveness, increased sales & staying in business. Not very web 2.0 I know in the land of the crazy valuation but I would say more realistic for 99% of companies.
Tuesday 14 July 2009
twitter - positives & negatives
Interesting article in thelondonpaper about the instant effects of twitter. The film Bruno saw a big slump in sales between the first friday of release & the saturday. Negative twitter reviews are being blamed. The real time effect of twitter & social networking in general means that they can have a very quick impact on sales, in a positive or negative way.
Sunday 12 July 2009
quick update
So the website www.leathertherapy.co.uk has been live for 10 days now, orders are coming in steadily. Zero advertising or media coverage so far (that will be kicking in next month) & the site isn't hitting the search engines yet either so 100% of the traffic is coming in from social network marketing.
What's great is that customers are contacting me via niche social networking sites such as ravelry (find me here on the site) to let me know their thoughts on the product, request that larger sizes are stocked etc. This is what I really love about social media, it takes retailing & customer interaction into a different league! They are also blogging themselves about the product - thank you!
What's great is that customers are contacting me via niche social networking sites such as ravelry (find me here on the site) to let me know their thoughts on the product, request that larger sizes are stocked etc. This is what I really love about social media, it takes retailing & customer interaction into a different league! They are also blogging themselves about the product - thank you!
Tuesday 7 July 2009
oops, but I do have an excuse!
Long time no blog again, finding twitter is my mode of choice at the moment so please add me to your follow list via the widget to the right of the page.
So what's been going on in blacktype land? More practice than preaching as it happens ;-) My other company has been busy sealing the deal to bring a fabulous new range of leather care products into europe. I'm going to shamelessly plug it & say that anyone with motorbike leathers, horse tack, shoes, handbags, leather furniture or leather car interiors should immediately go to http://www.leathertherapy.co.uk & buy some now!
We don't have a huge advertising budget to launch this into the UK so our main focus is definitely on web2.0 marketing. I figure it will also make a nice case study over the summer months & those of you attending my seminar courtesy of FSB South Glos on the 26th August will hear a lot more about all this!
I have a wonderful summer intern, Brielle, who this week is having a crash course in web marketing & is doing sterling work.
So one week in, where are we at?
We have a youtube channel http://www.youtube.com/leathertherapyuk, twitter pages http://twitter.com/leathertherapy & http://twitter.com/UnicornFibreUK, facebook is having the final tweaks to the page & key niche social network sites for the different markets are being targetted.
Results so far? Good! Sales are coming in from the website & google analytics is showing this is clearly attributable to the marketing efforts.
So to return to my last post, does this stuff work - YES!
So what's been going on in blacktype land? More practice than preaching as it happens ;-) My other company has been busy sealing the deal to bring a fabulous new range of leather care products into europe. I'm going to shamelessly plug it & say that anyone with motorbike leathers, horse tack, shoes, handbags, leather furniture or leather car interiors should immediately go to http://www.leathertherapy.co.uk & buy some now!
We don't have a huge advertising budget to launch this into the UK so our main focus is definitely on web2.0 marketing. I figure it will also make a nice case study over the summer months & those of you attending my seminar courtesy of FSB South Glos on the 26th August will hear a lot more about all this!
I have a wonderful summer intern, Brielle, who this week is having a crash course in web marketing & is doing sterling work.
So one week in, where are we at?
We have a youtube channel http://www.youtube.com/leathertherapyuk, twitter pages http://twitter.com/leathertherapy & http://twitter.com/UnicornFibreUK, facebook is having the final tweaks to the page & key niche social network sites for the different markets are being targetted.
Results so far? Good! Sales are coming in from the website & google analytics is showing this is clearly attributable to the marketing efforts.
So to return to my last post, does this stuff work - YES!
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