MidTN Technology

Make a choice: Would you rather spend the December holidays with your crazy Uncle Bob the roadkill taxidermist attached to your hip, or spend the afternoon trying to troubleshoot your computer modem by phone with your cable company? If you’re like most people, you’d ask Bob to pull out the photos of the lifelike armadillos. Let’s face it; these days, customer support can be a pain in the rear, not to mention a huge time suck.

Thank goodness, you can turn to your social network to help you out. Here’s how:

• Tweet first. There are a number of major companies, including Zappos.com and Comcast, who have customer service reps following twitter streams and searching for their brand name in search of unhappy customers. If you can post your issue in 140 characters or less, go for it! Hint: make sure you use the company name – spelled correctly – in your tweet, and employ hashtags where warranted. In other words: “My #HP OfficeJet 5600 won’t print from my MacBook Pro. Anyone have any ideas?
• Take it to Facebook. Many companies have branded Facebook pages where you’ll receive a personalized response within hours, or even minutes. That way you can go about your business instead of sitting on the phone, frantically working your way through the automated telephone tree. Hint: Post a message on their wall rather than trying to contact them via Facebook message. The public aspect of your plea for help will ignite a faster response.
• Try their website.  Bypass the 800 number and email in favor of a live chat. You can get a live person immediately (or within a minute or two) instead of playing hurry up and wait on the phone. Live chat not available? Try the email contact form. You may have to wait 24 hours for a response, but you can use that time productively.
• Record a video. If all else fails, record a video and post it to YouTube. You never know what a visual plea for help, or a bad review, will do for cutting through the red tape. Be calm, though, and leave room for a response; if all you do is spazz out, they’ll just write you off as a nut.
• Record a screenshot or screen video to demonstrate your issue.  I’ve found this to be tremendously helpful, especially with software issues.  Nothing is more frustrating than to describe your problem and hear “well, it works on our end”.  The video evidence often reveals what the true problem is.  Use a tool like Jing which can save your captured video and gives you a hyperlink you can share on social media.

The key here is to take control of your own time rather than letting someone else determine your destiny. Don’t let “them” tell you that you must sit on hold for 45 minutes before you get a living, breathing person to listen to your problems. Save time and take it online.

The post Cut Through Customer Support appeared first on Ken Ivey.

If you’re in search of a great graphic designer, you may want to skip Elance and go directly to Twitter, do not pass go. Finding recommended vendors and freelancers for your business may be as easy as asking the hundreds of folks in your social media network who they recommend. Here’s a breakdown of ways to find trusted contractors, by social media outlet:

1. Google Plus Local. With the recent merging of Google Plus and Google Maps you can now find nearly any type of service imaginable, along with critical contact information and most importantly – online reviews.  Depending on your settings, you’ll find “personalized results” which will give more “weight” to reviews from friends in your “circles”.
2. LinkedIn. One of the most powerful elements of LinkedIn is the “recommendations” feature. You can write, read, and request recommendations from others in your network. It may take a little legwork, but you can use this feature to find a great copywriter, and read what others have to say about him or her. Think of it as a Yelp for people.
3. Twitter. While you’re missing out on the depth of information available on LinkedIn, you can get instantaneous responses. For instance, tweet “Looking for a great online bookkeeper” and you should get a bunch of responses within minutes. Give more credence to those that come from inside your network, though, as often a request for referrals will generate automated responses from a spammer. It looks like it comes from one of your friends, but it may actually be just an ad.
4. Facebook. You can post requests for referrals, just like on Twitter, and you can also search for people with those keywords in their profiles. Beware, though; just because someone is listed as “Penelope Bookkeeper” doesn’t mean they’re an expert. You could also post your request in groups that are associated with the topic (post a request for a logo designer on a graphic artists’ Facebook group wall, for example).
5. YouTube. It might seem a little strange to put out a call for resources via video, but why not? Especially if you have a significant following, you could get a tremendous response. Added benefit: If the project you have in mind has a visual aspect, you can demonstrate it right on the video (think office organization, website overhaul, kitchenette remodel).

Even if fourteen people recommend the same graphic designer, make sure to do your due diligence. Get a written quote and scope of work, ask for a list of projects completed, and confirm that that person will be doing your project personally, not outsourcing to another. With these tips in mind, you should be able to find great outsourcing resources at the click of a mouse.

The post Find Resources appeared first on Ken Ivey.

Everything online happens at the speed of light. Decisions that used to take weeks or months to make are now a matter of mere minutes or seconds. There is no time for a group consensus or “sleeping on it.” But with your social media network, you can still get input from a number of people, quickly. There are literally millions of people on-hand, ready and able to give you feedback in the moment.

For instance, want to know if the font on your homepage is too small? Send a tweet with the page link and ask what the general public thinks. Wondering which header graphic better conveys your business? Post them both on your Facebook page and ask for input.

The benefits of turning to your social media network:

• You’ll get an interesting cross-section of respondents: Friends from high school, curious passers-by, coworkers.
• It’s fast. Depending on the size of your network, you could have responses within minutes.
• It’s free. You don’t have to pay a penny for the input.
• It’s informal. No need to prepare a five-paragraph overview, ten-slide Powerpoint presentation, or other background information. Just ask and wait for input.
• It’s objective. The people you’re asking have little or no vested interest in the outcome.

Of course, this method is better for some queries than others. There are drawbacks:

• You have no control over the responses or who they come from. You could get input from people who aren’t part of your target audience, or who offer goofy suggestions.
• By soliciting opinions, you can make people feel like they have ownership in the process. If you don’t take their advice, they can feel slighted.
• You make some of the inner workings of your business public.

As a result, soliciting fast feedback via social media networks is best for the following situations:

• When the decision is relatively minor. You don’t want to ask the general public what you should do about selling your business, or responding to a law suit, or customer service issues.
• When the results will be public anyway. If the decision is behind-the-scenes, keep it there. Our examples above – font size, header graphics – are public anyway. Don’t post private information, or anything that might breach confidence.
• When you need a variety of opinions from different people. If you need feedback from a certain segment, you’re better off emailing them directly rather than putting out a public call for feedback.

Your social media networks can serve as your own personal focus groups. Asking their opinion can also make them feel closer to your business, and part of the process – both good things!

The post Get Fast Feedback appeared first on Ken Ivey.

When many people think “social media,” the automatic response is “waste of time.” Facebook is the place you go to play Farmville while your boss isn’t looking. YouTube is where you head when you have five minutes to spare and you need a good laugh so you watch the “Jackass” video a few more times. Twitter is where you end up when you want to commiserate about the Titans latest trade decisions, or to catch up on Real Housewives of New Jersey gossip.

Is it possible that these sinkholes of productivity could actually save you time? Yes, and in this article series I’m going to show you ten ways to leverage social media to make your life better, complete your tasks more quickly, and have more time for the things that matter (like a Plants vs. Zombies marathon – just kidding!).

Read on for ways to use social media for good, not just for gossip.

#1: Connect with Customers

These days, business is all about the relationships. We buy a car from the guy our neighbor’s brother recommended. We hire the contractor our mother’s accountant used. We go see the movies that everyone on Twitter talks about. So finding ways to take business relationships beyond transactional is a sure-fire way to cement yourself in the minds of your customers.

Social media – blogs, Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, YouTube, and the like – are all ways to connect with people. And if you can use these tools to establish and enhance your relationships with your audience, you’ve got a leg up on your competition. Here are a few examples:

• The yarn store owner who tweets her new customer to ask how the new sweater is coming along…
• The car salesman who leaves a link for $10 off an oil change on a customer’s Facebook wall…
• The homeschool curriculum vendor who records a short video showing how to set up a classroom in the home in a back bedroom…
• The golf instructor who holds a Skype party during the Masters…

The possibilities are as vast as the world of Internet business. You will notice some similarities between the ideas above:

1. They’re relevant. They are directly applicable to the niche or industry you’re in (the golf instructor, for instance, isn’t sending out oil change coupons; the yarn store owner isn’t hosting a Masters chat).
2. They’re personal. Each interaction connects with the audience in a manner beyond a simple “buy my stuff” way.
3. They’re useful. Each interaction provides value to the recipient. In some cases, it’s a dollar savings (the coupon); in others, it’s informational (the video and the sweater inquiry). And even the Skype party is useful in terms of entertainment. The recipient is better off for having taken part in the interaction.
4. They’re free. They don’t cost anything on the part of the person reaching out.
5. They’re relatively low on the time-investment scale. A tweet or Facebook post takes seconds; the video, a bit longer, but actually saves time in the long run as the vendor is answering a question she receives over and over again. The Skype party takes place during an event the golf instructor was going to watch anyway.

In short, social media provides ways to reach your customers on an intimate level, quickly and inexpensively. People want to be treated as individuals, not as numbers. And social media provides a way to do that without spending your life on the phone.

The post Is Social Media a Time Suck? appeared first on Ken Ivey.