ieSonoma | Innovate and Educate Conference
Posted on May, 14, 2013 by Kerry Rego -I am honored to be asked to speak at the ieSonoma conference at the Sonoma Country Day School on June 10, 2013. The panel of speakers are: Sir Ken Robinson, Darius Anderson, Doug Barry, Dale Dougherty, Jim Glasheen, and Kerry Rego (me!). Sir Ken Robinson, the keynote, is a leader in education, development and innovation. He also gave the most watched TED talk of all time. Darius Anderson is amongst the group of partners to purchase the Press Democrat in November 2012. Doug Barry is an innovator in technology, media, and entertainment. Dale Dougherty, president of Maker Media (produces MAKE) a former division of O’Reilly Media. Jim Glasheen is a leader in the field of biotech and consumer medicine. I am an author and social media consultant. I’m also the only female speaker.
ieSonoma is an emerging partnership between public and private educational institutions and the larger community to innovate and educate for a brighter future. From their website, “We face great challenges and great opportunity as we together prepare all children for the opportunities of the 21st Century. The world has changed greatly due to increased access to technology tools for communication, collaboration and global interconnectedness. The schools we know of the 20th century can’t prepare our kids for the demands of the 21st Century.”
I look forward to speaking my mind and telling educators what they need to know in regards to technology of today and tomorrow, how this effects our students, and how to help them prepare for their lives ahead. I’ve been trying for years to get people to listen and I’m so excited to have the right audience to hear the drum I’ve been beating.
How to Hide Your Birthday on Facebook
Posted on May, 10, 2013 by Kerry Rego -
Some people love to get birthday messages on Facebook.
Heck, the first year I was on I couldn’t figure out why no one wished me a happy birthday when my turn came. I realized I had the setting turned off (knowing a lot about reputation management can have its drawbacks).
And some people don’t.
If you’d like to keep your big day to yourself, here’s how to make sure all 900 of your friends aren’t notified, prompted to write on your wall, or purchase a Facebook Gift.
- Navigate to your profile
- Click Update Info (as of May 2013). It may get changed, so look for any kind of “Edit”.
- Click Edit next to Basic Information
- Click on the audience button next to your birthday
- Choose Only Me
There’s one more drop down that allows you to choose whether it can be seen on your profile at all. The options are: show my full birthday on my timeline, show only month and day on my timeline, and don’t show my birthday on my timeline.
Not showing your birthday to the entire world is a good preventative measure to take against identity theft (dang! I’ve shown you mine). Now that we can piece together more and more about each other based on the sheer volume available about us online, be safe where you can.
How Do You Get Recommendations on LinkedIn?
Posted on May, 01, 2013 by Kerry Rego -
Getting recommendations on LinkedIn is a subject that comes up a lot in my individual and corporate training sessions. Here my advice: Take a look at who you are connected to and pick out those you’ve enjoyed working with either as a volunteer or on the job. Then it’s easy write a sincere review of your working relationship (and it really comes through in the writing). Hopefully, that person feels the same about you, and they will return the favor. That’s not the main reason you should be writing recommendations and it feels good to sing someone’s praises without being asked.
Should I ask for recommendations?
You can ask absolutely ask people for recommendations, if you like, but I like this approach better because you are giving to get. It doesn’t pay off 100% of the time but it’s awkward for everyone involved if you ask and they don’t provide.
A woman I know well socially asked me to write one for her and I had to respond that I would be happy to once we’ve worked together on a project. Knowing someone from networking isn’t enough and I won’t put my name on the line if I have no reference to a person’s working style.
I’m on a committee with a man that’s the least dependable person I’ve ever met. He’s bailed on every project he’s been assigned, he whines about everything, interrupts people constantly, and is always “busy” when it comes to pitching in. He has asked me repeatedly for a recommendation and I simply cannot. At some point he’s going to ask me why I haven’t and I’ll have the opportunity to be honest with him. You’d think he’d figure it out after half a dozen requests but he hasn’t.
I believe that giving to others is the best approach because it creates goodwill and better relationships with your network. and If you don’t expect them to give back, it’s a bonus to your reputation (and your mood) when they do.
Crowdfunding: How to Harness Social Media Tools for Your Agency Fundraising
Posted on April, 15, 2013 by Kerry Rego -This is the Recommended Crowdfunding Resources sheet that was handed out during the presentation.
Crowdfunding: How to Harness Social Media Tools for Your Agency Fundraising
presented at The California Wellness Foundation Convention 4/16/13
The nonprofit world is abuzz with the idea of raising money and reaching new donors through new online strategies. “Crowdfunding” is one of the most talked about strategies – raising financing in small amounts from a large group of people using the Internet – but how can it work for senior service agencies? Come to this interactive training session to learn what tools are available, how to reach your target market, minimize impact on your staff, encourage passionate non-staff to take the mantle to help your organization, create a strategy, and how to set realistic expectations. Learn what it takes to launch an effective crowdfunding campaign and get a roadmap for doing so.
How to Tag Another Page in Your Facebook Post
Posted on April, 10, 2013 by Kerry Rego -
Have you ever wanted to know how to tag another Facebook Page in one of your Page posts? 
First go to their Page, click on the gear under the cover photo, and select Like as Your Page (the Like button is for you as a person). Then go back to your Page, start writing your post, type the @ symbol and the Page name, and it should appear as a link.
This creates a direct link between your Page and their Page. It’s cross promotion and creates goodwill. They will also appear in the box called Likes on your Page. This Like box shows businesses you recommend and want others to know about. If you want to tag the Page but don’t want them to stay in that coveted real estate, you can like them for the post then unlike them and they will not be featured in your Like box.
Blog Content Exercise | How to Plan a Year Ahead
Posted on April, 08, 2013 by Kerry Rego -
My client did her homework and is on track for the next year.
Did you know that much of the traffic to your website comes through your blog? It’s true. Business blogging is a necessity to attract visitors. You are probably thinking, “I don’t know what to write about.” I wrote a blog about good writing subjects called “15 Easy Blog Post Topics” and it’s one of my most popular (the subject matter never gets old). But I’m going to run you through the exercise I do with my clients that will map out for you what you’ll be writing about for the next year.
- Make sure you have 30 minutes to 1 hour of uninterrupted time. I promise that you won’t need that long but you need your brain to relax into this exercise.
- Print out 15 Easy Blog Post Topics, have it nearby, or open it in another browser window so you can refer to it.
- Start with a blank piece of paper, in document software such as Word, or in Excel. On the left hand side of the page, write the months May 2013 through April 2014 (I say this because I’m writing this blog in April 2013, adjust accordingly). See my Sample Editorial Calendar for an example that you can download.
- We are going to write a topic, subject, theme, or title (use any word that works for you) for each month for the next twelve. The reason I’m telling you to start next month is because I don’t want you to feel stressed about writing immediately. You need to have time to think about what you are going to write before it’s due.
- Here are some examples: I just got a great testimonial from a client. I’ll write “Testimonial from John Q. Public” on any of the months (don’t worry about what subject goes where yet) or I could write “History of my company” (why I do what I do). It’s a creative writing process, just keep writing subjects.
- When you’re done with the twelve subjects, take a look at their placement on the calendar. I like to do easy ones like the seasonally appropriate, “It’s January! What are your marketing or social media goals for the upcoming year?” or holiday specific because those belong on the calendar in predictable places. Then adjust the rest of your content to make sense, whether it’s sequential or if it’s specific to your business seasons. Tax accountants are aware of what people need to do to prep for taxes and that content is necessary to publish January-March. Wedding professionals are giving tips to their brides and grooms nine months before their weddings and their high season is June-August.
- Now visit your appointment calendar. Think about whether you write better in the morning, mid-day, or evening. What day of the week is the quietest in your office? Set an appointment on your calendar to write. Writing a blog can take 1-2 hours for writing, editing, research, photo placement, search engine optimization, and social media sharing. After a couple months, you will have to evaluate your success or lack thereof. If you find you don’t write, ask yourself why? Have you not scheduled it? Are you placing it on the wrong day or time? Ask yourself probing questions and you will get the answers. If you are sticking to your plan and things are going well, you can increase your output to twice per month then once a week. It’s rare that people are able to blog multiple times per week unless it’s their only job. This step is about setting up your expectations for realistic goals.
- BONUS STEP: You can do this now or when you are ready to write. Use Google’s AdWords: Keyword Tool to ascertain which words you will be putting in your blog are highly trafficked (hard to stand out in a crowded room) or those that have very little competition. I HIGHLY recommend you watch this short video that not only teaches you how to use it and what the terms mean. Remember, your visitors come to your site/blog based on the keywords you use!
You are all setup to write! Writing down and assigning those twelve subjects usually takes about 15 minutes. How did you do?
Talk To Your Customers Through Video
Posted on April, 05, 2013 by Kerry Rego -Video has the power to influence the way your audience and customers feel about you. A recent example of how you can do this is the new video that Facebook released that explains their NewsFeed redesign. Facebook has never been good at offering explanations about what they are doing and that they are, in fact, listening to their customers.
They have a horrible reputation for not caring and doing whatever they feel like. This may not be true. They might care very much but they have not been good at demonstrating it either way.
I work with a county services agency that has an image problem. Whether or not the press about them is true, I told the executive director that she really needs to get in front of the camera and address the myths and misconceptions that are floating around. By dealing with it personally and head-on, you can reduce the amount of misinformation and rumor spreading about your organization.
Show your customers your face and tell them what you want them to know. It will drastically change what they think when they hear the words coming out of your mouth.
Hootsuite: A Tool to Manage Your Social Media Presence
Posted on March, 29, 2013 by Kerry Rego -
There are so many parts to social media, it can be overwhelming. First there’s strategy, then tools, and editorial calendars. But where I find many campaigns fall apart is in the day after day, week after week, delivery of content. How do you actually manage all of those channels? Lack of time is the number one concern for each and every company or organization I work with. Social media management tools are what make it all gel together.
I recommend, prefer, and use Hootsuite.
It’s a social media dashboard that allows the person or team managing a brand’s social media presence to visit one website and direct content to different platforms, track brand mentions, save searches, create detailed analytic reports, and schedule posts into the future. It has Free, Pro, and Enterprise versions and is available for mobile devices. I use the Pro level ($9.99 per month) because I have more than five channels connected to my account.
The social networks you are able to connect to are Twitter, Facebook (profiles, pages, events, groups, search), LinkedIn (company page, groups, profiles), Google+ business pages, Foursquare, Myspace, WordPress.com, Mixi (Japanese social network), and a host of applications.
If you work for a larger company or organization that requires reporting to a board, the custom analytics feature is excellent. You can port in Facebook Insights, Google Analytics, Twitter profile stats, your shortened click stats, Google+ page analytics and more to create reports designed just for your needs. Visual reports are a great way to communicate the achievements of a social media campaign to those that may not understand the technical details.
Working with lots of people can create headaches. Their teams features include: collaboration, team structuring, custom permissions for access to accounts, private team communication, and the best part-the ability to assign messages to specific team members for followup. This is the future of customer service! Just ask McDonald’s, Hard Rock Cafe, Virgin, Lamborghini, or PepsiCo. They use Hootsuite too.
My favorite part of Hootsuite is the scheduling feature*. You can create a message and send it out at a determined point in the future. Scheduling your posts is useful when you go on vacation, when you have a small team, when you have events that need to be promoted multiple times, when you want to your message to be viewed at different times of day in order to reach multiple audiences. The Pro version of this tool allows you to bulk upload as well (I have not had success using this feature).
*Tip: Scheduling posts ahead of time has risks. Something could change, a previously innocuous post could be viewed differently based on the happenings of the day, it can lead to complacency and a social media manager to believe they don’t need to be present on the channel. I recommend scheduling as only one kind of post. You really do need to converse, to interact, to be organic and present on top of predetermined content. Don’t put your online presence into neutral and walk away. Your audience will know and you will not get the return on investment that an engaged presence can bring you.
I know this sounds like a commercial.
I once signed up for the affiliate program but I don’t actually participate. I’m telling you the benefits of Hootsuite because I like it, I recommend it, and I use it-not because I will get a kickback (I won’t). I am a Certified Hootsuite Professional, in fact I’m the only one in Sonoma County. There are two others listed in the directory. Both have since moved out of the area.
I not only train people to use all the tools that Hootsuite manages but I train on the social media dashboard as well. If you need assistance managing the coordination of posting content to your channels, I’d be happy to help.
How do I use it?
I print out my calendar twice a month and circle all of the public presentations I’m giving, classes I’m teaching, or other events of note. I create posts to promote those events, distribute to appropriate channels, and post them multiple times. I review my blog posts and continue to promote them, on average once per month, to multiple destinations. I also recycle other content such as videos, press pieces, or other valuable links. This ensures that if I’m locked in a session room all day teaching a class, that my channels are evenly filled with useful content, my brand is being promoted, traffic is being driven to my blog, my events are being promoted, and I don’t have to worry about radio silence. I spend about 30-45 minutes on this scheduling about every 2 weeks. I’m lightly scheduled about 6 months out at any given time. I also use it to monitor any keywords of interest such as my name, brand name, industry specific terms, or projects so I can see who is talking about what so I might strike up a conversation with someone.
After every meeting or other period where I’m unable to be online, I check my messages. First thing, I pick up my phone and check email, voicemail, Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. I answer any questions that have been asked of me and make sure that I’m reachable by my audience. I don’t rest on my laurels with scheduling. I am present as much as possible to interact, engage, communicate, and BE SOCIAL.
I’m not a Ninja.
But Hootsuite is one tool that allows me to have, what I call “Social Media Ninja Moves”. I’m asked all the time how I manage it all, how I get it all done, how I seem to be everywhere. I always have an assistant or intern but they don’t post for me. I do it all myself. Hootsuite is my trick and I want you to be able to use it too.
Social Contacts Info Right in Gmail
Posted on March, 26, 2013 by Kerry Rego -
I tested out the Rapportive add-on for my Gmail boxes today. The description on their site is “get rich contact profiles right inside Gmail” and that’s accurate. You hook up your Facebook or LinkedIn to see the contact information of the person that emailed you and you can also see previous emails from that person to the right of the email view pane. You can make notes, edit information, and send new email from the sidebar. Right now, I’m only connected via LinkedIn and it shows me whether or not you and I are already connected. This is a quick way to connect with new people right from your homebase. There are also apps you can use within Rapportive such as MailChimp, Bookingbug, Bantam Live and more. It was easy to install and so far it does what it says. It’s a fairly simple connection between your main form of communication (email) and your social networks.
Install and see if you like it. Do you know of any other great add-ons I should know about? Tell me in the comments.
Pinterest Finally Gets a Scheduler
Posted on February, 21, 2013 by Kerry Rego -
*UPDATE 4/3/13 Pingraphy is back up but is now a pay for service. Boo.
*UPDATE 4/1/13 Pingraphy has been shut down. There really isn’t anything else out there that offers this service for low or no cost. You know of one? Tell me in the comments.
I’m sure my schedule is as crazy as yours. Not only do I teach my clients how to create a social media strategy, populate content on their channels, and train them to maintain those accounts, I also manage all my own social media channels. You probably realize because it’s what I do, that that’s A LOT of social media. I use Hootsuite to manage for the majority of my digital channels and ever since Pinterest came around, I’ve been wanting just one feature – the scheduler. Well, lo and behold, it’s finally here!
I found Pingraphy the other day (how, I don’t remember) and it has this elusive feature. It allows you to disperse your content out over time so that you don’t overload your followers feeds. You can find all the great stuff you want and drip it out slowly and/or post it at optimum times.
You sign in with your Pinterest password and you can see your dashboard with two sections: Manage and Track. Manage includes a scheduler, a view of what you’ve pinned recently and how they’ve performed with pins, repins, and comments as well as the pins waiting to be posted. The awesome part about the scheduler is that if you are pinning from a site with multiple pictures you’d like to include, it gives you the option of spacing out the individual images in minutes of your choosing so that they don’t pile up on each other. You can also upload right from your computer, connect to your Facebook profile (not pages), Flickr, or Picasa. You can even edit and enhance your images!
The Track section gives you account stats. It shows overall account activity, your Top Ten pins (thank you!), the it breaks down stats for each individual board.
With this new discovery, it will allow me to do in-depth research and spend a lot of time reading up on a particular subject because I will be able to pin it all in one sitting.
I think I’m in love.