Content Explored...Not so much sharing, more of an Entrepreneurial Exchange!

The 3rd in our series of "Content Explored" blogs

At recent presentations and speaking engagements, I've been talking a lot about the power of sharing and how much you get back by simply giving away information and sharing knowledge. As author of "New Rules of Marking and PR", David Meerman Scott said in a video he very kindly did for me, "The more you give, the more you get". This advice is also shared by other luminaries like CC Champan (Content Rules), Mitch Joel, (Six Pixels of Separation) and Chris Brogan (Trust Agents).

I certainly concur with their beliefs. Through the New Media Breakfast and our Social Media Podcast, fatBuzz share information and knowledge that leads to engagement, enquiries, referrals, and ultimately more work. The New Media Breakfast, the Social Media Podcast, our blog, and some other speaking engagements are the only real form of marketing we do at fatBuzz - all of them involve sharing knowledge. It is true, the more you give, the more you get.

However, after speaking at an Entrepreneurial Exchange Supper Club event this week it occurred to me that what we get back is much more than referrals and new business. The format of these events is a short presentation by the speaker (in this case me) followed by a round table discussion over dinner about the speaker's topic (in this case Social Media Defined and Proving ROI). Therefore, I get to engage with 15 entrepreneurs about social media; I learn their views, fears, experiences, concerns, expectations, perceptions and much more.

How valuable is that for me? These Entrepreneurial Exchange members are experienced and successful business owners, their opinions matter to me because they are relevant and probably representative of many other businesses. By listening to them, I have a much clearer understanding about what people want to know and what they want to achieve through social media marketing. So, I reckon I finished the evening learning as much, if not more, than they did, so in this case I got something back immediately. 

One of the first things I tell people about content creation is to look at your FAQs; what do people generally ask you? This is a great starting point; create content that answers the questions people normally ask you. By listening to the 15 Entrepreneurial Exchange members I have a clearer idea about the issues and concerns they have about adopting social media, I can now create content that addresses these points and I'm sure it will be relevant to many more than the 15 business owners in attendance.

So, the next time you're asked to speak to your local business networking group, careers meeting, industry conference or, graduate's boot-camp don't think of it as a chore, think of it as an opportunity. The questions they ask you are relevant to that community, they will help you understand what it is they need to know about you and what type of content is likely to engage them.

To the Entrepreneurial Exchange members who were present at the Supper Club meeting, thank you for open and frank discussion, I learned lots, and I hope you did too.

Our recent fatBuzz Social Media Day for Charities

NOTES:

• If you would like to find out more about social media marketing please think about coming along to our Monthly New Media Breakfasts - Details of the next one are here
• You can learn more about Entrepreneurial Exchange membership here
• CC Chapman has just published his new book entitled "Amazing things will Happen", if it's anything like the first book it will be well worth a read.  More details here 

If you would like to discuss your content strategy please give us a call or drop an email to hello@fatbuzz.com, we will be delighted to have a chat.

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November New Media Breakfast - Social Media Defined

The term “social media” is bandied around on a daily basis yet, more often than not, it is misinterpreted or misunderstood. We will define social media and how it relates to marketing and promoting brands.

We will also provide real examples that prove a healthy return on investment is possible when social media is fully understood and used in the proper manner. Likewise, we will provide examples that explain why so many organisations are wasting their time, and ultimately failing, with social media.

The November breakfast will explore what social media actually means. We will define social media in a business context and try to dispel some of the myths.

Most people understand what social media is on a personal level however, when it comes to business, the definition is less clear.

How do you apply the principles of social media to your business and how do you get a return on your investment? Hopefully we will be able to help you understand what social media marketing is all about and how you might be able to use it within your business.

We will also explore how you choose what tools to use and how you can become 'trend proof' if you adopt the right social media strategy.

THE SPEAKER
Gordon White, Managing director of fatBuzz Ltd will present the November New Media Breakfast.

HOW TO BOOK
Venue: 29 Member's Club, Royal Exchange Square, Glasgow
Date: Friday 30th November 2012
Time: 7.30am for 8am
Cost: £10 +VAT

BOOK FOR NEW MEDIA BREAKFAST GLASGOW HERE:

No.29 MEMBERS GO FREE 

If you are a 29 Member you can attend the breakfast free of charge. Please email malcolm@fatbuzz.com with you membership number and he will add you to the attendance list.

We hope you can make it along to this event. If so, I look forward to seeing you on the day.

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Crowdfunding for Charities

Fundraising is tough at the best of times, but it’s increasingly difficult to raise money during a recession.

Which is why crowdfunding is shifting the paradigm, away from the usual sources of finance.

We all know it’s no longer enough to shake a tin and count on the patrons that have supported us in the past. We need to move away from this traditional route to fundraising to a more innovative, creative, wider reaching and longer-term approach to raising money.

Crowdfunding enables you to get creative to stand out from the crowd, extend your reach, encourage a new conversation with your supporters.

So, what is crowdfunding?

Crowdfunding is simply a new way of using technology to help people with an idea raise money to bring it to life, whether that’s a business idea, a startup, a community project, a charity or a social enterprise.

Did any of you do a sponsored event when you were at school – take the form home and ask your parents who asked their friends? You collected the money and took it back to school.

That was crowdfunding.

Do you remember your history studies? The Darien scheme back in the late 1690s, when a quarter of the money circulating in Scotland was pooled in what became an unsuccessful attempt to make Scotland a world trading nation by establishing a colony called New Caledonia in Panama.

That was crowdfunding.

Crowdfunding is a global phenomenon that provides an alternative route to donations – from an extended audience – it’s all about community and that truly lends itself to charities.

It’s the explosion in the use of social networking sites that has brought crowdfunding to the fore; as users of Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn grow, so do the opportunities to reach out for support.

Crowdfunding is simply an extension of what people have been doing for centuries – patronage, supporting family and friends and the local community.

Millions of pounds, dollars and euros are donated every day to support exciting, innovative and life-changing ventures around the world. The impact on businesses, individuals, communities – and the economy – is significant.

But it’s not just about business and entrepreneurs, crowdfunding works for communities, social enterprises, charities, youth groups, schools and more.


Charitable crowdfunding – it’s not just about the money

Money is obviously important, but it needn’t be the only driving factor behind a crowdfunding campaign. Crowdfunding delivers more than just money.


Donor fatigue is a real issue, local communities will have regular supporters of charitable activities in the area, but it’s important to widen the donor pool.

Crowdfunding enables you to reach out to the diaspora, people who have moved away from the area but who maybe still have family there, or memories that keep them tied and supportive.

It means you can engage with young people more easily – Gen Y are not only engaged in social, they live it, breath it, dream it.

And then there’s the Corporate Social Responsibility opportunity for you to engage with large corporates to help them with their CSR – if you can come up with ideas or projects that could be crowdfunded, you could get their employees involved in the campaign, then ultimately ask the corporate to match the money raised. You get double the impact and a terrific community legacy.

Crowdfunding can often trigger matched funding, so it’s important to explore these options.

And even if your crowdfunding campaign is unsuccessful, you will have an up to date database of new backers to reach out to, and a significantly raised profile beyond your immediate location.

The legacy is a much more engaged community of supporters, and for those who haven’t engaged with social media effectively in the past, this is a great starting point

So how does it work?

Bring your community and build interest in advance of your campaign. Do your research, find out where your target market is consuming their data, spending their time, and go there, start to engage before you launch your project.

Create your project – it’s simply an online pitch, so tell your story, engage people, choose the amount of money you want to raise and a time limit – 30, 45 or 60 days. Upload images and video to illustrate your story.

Create rewards – a series of compelling, unique, exciting rewards will make it a much quicker and easier decision for strangers to your project to back you. So be creative, ask your patrons and backers to donate things, use any celebrity connections you have. They’re bound to be on social media and will happily publicise anything they’re involved in. You’re reaching their followers each time they tweet, ultimately extending your own reach.

Then the hard work starts, reaching out to your community and asking them to support you. It takes time and it takes effort.

Create a mini campaign plan and work hard. It’s not a one-off activity, this is all part of building your supporting community for the future.

At the end of the day you get out what you put in, there’s potential to raise much more than you initially ask for, and you can post as many different projects as you like.

Images courtesy of siteorigin.com and harrods.com)

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