What can you learn from Ello.co?
Just 8 weeks ago, no one had ever heard of Ello.co, but today it stands as an increasingly popular social network that might just be the death of Facebook.
In an article for Tech Page One by Forbes staff writer Kashmir Hill, Ello creator Paul Budnitz says, “We see Facebook as an advertising platform not a social network… Users are products at Facebook. They want to know as much as possible to advertise to you.”
Ello’s promise to its users is simple: no ads, no data mining or tracking, and they won’t decide which content you should see. So far, so good, apparently, because interest in the site is skyrocketing, with more membership requests every minute. So, what entrepreneurial lessons can we learn from Ello?
Find Weaknesses In Existing Models
Every new business venture needs a driving idea, but it can be difficult to come up with the right idea at the right time for your industry. If you can’t think of something new that uniquely solves a problem that your customers have, then look at the existing solutions for your customers’ problems and figure out where their weaknesses are.
In Ello’s case, Budnitz noticed that more and more Facebook users had problems with Facebook’s cavalier attitude toward privacy and data mining. Users don’t like advertisements, and they don’t like being told what they can and cannot see.
Shortly after word got out that Facebook had been conducting a psychological experiment on a selection of its users by excluding certain “emotional” words from their news feeds, Ello arrived on the scene with the promise that it would never violate users’ trust.
In short, Ello isn’t a new product, but, for people who care about their privacy, it is a major innovation on an old model. If you can find out what you’re customers are most unhappy with when they use your competition’s products, you may have the key to a successful new business venture.
Market Your Exclusivity
Another driving factor in Ello’s success has been its request-based platform. If you don’t already have an Ello account, you can request one, but it may take months for the good folks at Ello to get back to you and grant or deny your request. According to Budnitz, the site is now getting several thousand requests per hour.
Fortunately for those who don’t want to wait weeks or months for access to this new social media outlet, Ello gives its users a number of invitations to send out to their friends. With an invitation code, you can join immediately.
This request and invitation model for signing up creates an air of exclusivity to Ello. It lets people feel like they know something that others don’t, and it’s actually driving more sign-ups than the site would get if it were open to the public.
Admit You’re Still Working On It
Finally, Ello’s makers have very openly stated that the site is still in beta. This excuses a lot of bugs and errors that users have encountered. For example, in the first weeks, the search tool wasn’t entirely functional, and users would have to type their friends’ usernames into the URL at the top of the page to find them.
If the site had been launched claiming that it was complete and fully functional, this kind of glitch would be unforgivable. As it is, the response is generally, “Well, it’s in beta, but there’s a workaround, so…” Customers will forgive a lot if you openly state that you’re still working on the product and that they’ll get full functionality and benefits with no added cost in short order.
These are just a few of the lessons we can learn from the anti-Facebook. Keep an eye on Ello as it grows, and you’ll be sure to learn more important entrepreneurial lessons.
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“What’s a Tweet?” – Twitter for beginners
By now, everyone has heard of Twitter and it would seem as though everyone has their own account.
This is just as true for businesses who have taken to Twitter, even more than Facebook, to reach out to their customer base. Twitter makes it extremely easy to not only get the word out to your market, but listen for what they say back (for better or worse).
However, being successful with 140 characters is harder than it looks.
The first rule of Twitter is to use it often.
People have been saying content is king for years and that hasn’t changed now that it is processed in smaller chunks. If your company’s Twitter account goes stale because you’re not using it enough, you’re missing out on a golden opportunity.
While it’s important to use your company’s Twitter account to make important announcements and advertise new products and services, you can be doing so much more with it. Speaking to individual customers or even tweeting something humorous or non-business related now and then will go a long way. Just be sure you keep it professional and don’t get sucked into conversations or arguments that won’t help your business.
One of the biggest challenges everyone faces with Twitter is getting recognized and being heard. With hundreds of millions of users, this is no easy task. Interacting will certainly help, so aside from tweeting, be sure you favorite and retweet certain messages, too.
However, Twitter will also provide you with plenty of opportunities for strategic partnerships. Find other Twitter accounts that could use some growth just as much as you could and negotiate a deal to both help the other by mentioning them in tweets. If you can do this with a company where you share customers, this will be especially potent. Sometimes there are Twitter accounts that won’t gain from your added exposure because they already have hundreds-of-thousands of followers. Find contact information for them and see what they would charge you for some mentions.
Don’t expect immediate results with Twitter. Those accounts with impressive followings are usually the result of hard work or starting back when Twitter was still a small platform. Stick with the simple advice above and you’ll get there soon enough.
No business these days should exist without a Twitter account. More and more, it’s becoming a feature customers expect. So start with Twitter today and begin implementing these tips for a respectable following you can concert into revenue.
Facebook to crack down on click-baiting
* BIG announcement for online advertisers:
Facebook has announced an update to its News Feed feature to diminish what the site calls “click-baiting.”
In a “News Feed FYI” blog post, Facebook defined “click-baiting” as “when a publisher posts a link with a headline that encourages people to click to see more, without telling them much information about what they will see.”
These are the kinds of stories “people frequently tell us are spammy and that they don’t want to see.”
But like it or not, click-bait often succeeds at its primary goal of getting a lot of people to click on it, and that means that under Facebook’s previous algorithm, such posts appeared high up in many News Feeds.
Facebook provided its own example of a click-baiting post:
Facebook said a survey found that 80 percent of the time, users preferred headlines with more information “that helped them decide if they wanted to read the full article before they had to click through.”
And so now Facebook says it’s changing its algorithm to give factors beyond the number of clicks more weight in determining how news items are ranked, including measurements that indicate whether a news item is likely to interest users. When users click and take a while to return, Facebook ranks that new item higher because they believe people valued the information enough to actually read it.
“If they click through to a link and then come straight back to Facebook, it suggests that they didn’t find something that they wanted,” the blog post said. A news item also will increase in status based on whether friends discuss or like the post.
The Right Way to Share Links
When people share a link on Facebook it often appears in News Feed with a large picture, a headline and some text that gives context on the link. These are the kinds of posts Facebook (and its users) prefer:
Michael Miller: Malibu Mastermind with Kevin Harrington “One Of The Most Awesome Programs Out There”
Social media in your business
If you still haven’t come around to the idea of using social media for your business, you’re not alone.
Many can’t reconcile the “social” component with conducting business and turning profits. Well, it’s time to get past that hang-up because all your competitors are using social media and quickly passing you by. Here are the best sites to join immediately for better business success.
By far the least “social” of the social media platforms is LinkedIn.
While plenty of business is done on other sites, LinkedIn is only for business. So this is a great website for getting your business out in front of all types of people in all kinds of companies, many of whom may be key decision makers. The more you network on LinkedIn, the more likely you’ll be to end up in front of the right pair of eyes. Of course, when it’s time to hire, LinkedIn will make it easy for you to find the candidates your company needs.
Twitter is certainly used for plenty of reasons that aren’t remotely professional.
However, spend some time on this popular social media platform and you may soon realize yours is one of the only companies in the industry without a presence. This platform is exceptional at publishing information at the speed of light and using inbound marketing to bring in customers. In addition, you can’t do any better than Twitter for eavesdropping on your customer base. They’ll have conversations right out in the open and, if you play your cards right, you can make them about your company or product.
Although YouTube may not seem like a social media platform, strictly speaking, it’s crossed the boundary and nowadays most people consider it under the umbrella.
In many ways, YouTube may offer you the best possible option where social media is concerned. It does away with any confusion that can be caused by the written word thanks to the most popular medium currently available, video. Furthermore, unlike, say, Twitter, many companies still don’t have a YouTube channel. So, you may find none of your competitors are providing you any competition on YouTube, giving you an excellent opportunity to establish yourself as an authority and capitalize on the results.
There are countless other options where social media is concerned, but start with the above three for your business. Learn them; master them; and then move on from there. Other platforms like Facebook have plenty to offer as well, but you’ll have your hands full with the three above and they’ll provide plenty in return. Trust me, everyone’s on Facebook and some focus on it too much. So it’s best to hone in on the 3 above, as Facebook will come naturally to you and your team.
The Golden Rule
The last couple of weeks we’ve been talking about using Social Media Marketing as a tool for building your Cash Machine. I hope you’ve taken time to do your own personal research on where your target market is hanging out online. This week is the end of my three part article series on Social Media and I want to close with some basic rules for conducting yourself properly in this arena.
When you’re ready to create your accounts and begin your Social Media journeys, remember the Golden Rule… treat others as you would like to be treated. Remember when we first started using email and Instant Messenger and we often wrote in all caps? That was the equivalent of shouting and could get you in trouble with those self proclaimed internet police. Social Media also has some basic rules of engagement.
Think about how you would approach someone on the street or at a function. For example when I first meet someone I say hello, tell them my name and then tell them about my company. People like to know who they’re talking to –not just a business.
Creating a Twitter, MySpace or Facebook account for marketing purposes can be a tricky thing as these users tend to share more personal information rather than professional. So don’t be afraid to add content that tells users who you are and how you got started doing what you do. Be careful of wording. People don’t want to be “sold to”. Making your content fun will inspire them to learn more when you invite them to view your site or be part of your own communities. Create discussions centered on your product or service that engages your followers. Ask questions that provoke a response and not just by saying “Respond to this post…” The point here is to make it their idea.
Stay involved with your social community friends. Put in your two cents. Be respectful. In other words, if you don’t have something nice or helpful to say, don’t say anything, but if you do have something postitive, this is your opportunity to connect with your audience. That’s the whole point.
When marketing your product or service on these sites, be straight forward. The old bait and switch routine has proven counter productive and can even cost you. You don’t want to create a bad reputation on these sites. The last thing you want is for your online friends to bad mouth your marketing techniques to everyone else.
Another rule for Social Media Marketing is to be a giver. Give more than your receive with your content and posts. What you offer to conversations should be valuable. If it doesn’t apply, avoid posting it. Timing is everything. So if plugging your newest ebook or product isn’t applicable, wait for a better time.
I’ve seen people completely sabotage their online marketing efforts by bad mouthing the competition. Don’t do it. If your product or service is superior, find ways to point out the differences without being negative. Your followers want to learn the benefits in more subtle ways. Put your mind to it. Think of how you make buying decisions regarding your own choices.
Last, if you want Social Media Marketing to work for your Cash Machine you have to stay involved and connected. Make it a part of your routine. Remember this is a tool to find out what your target market is up to. If you stumbled across a great post, comment on it and recommend it to your followers. Show recognition to your people! The more you pay attention and stay involved the more they will too!
Ready Go,
Loral
Social Media… What’s In It For Me?
What do you do when you’ve failed at something?
How do you react when your vision has turned south?
What do you tell yourself?
For most people those questions are sure to get some sad and depressing answers BUT for an entrepreneur the answer will be immediate and simple…
What’s next?!
Creating a successful Cash Machine is not an exact science with predictable outcomes. There’s a ton of trial and error that goes on when diving into owning a business, big or small. There are times when things look great on paper and sound good in conversation but fail miserably in the marketplace. It happens. Not every successful entrepreneur hits the ball out of the park the first time around.
What makes an entrepreneur an entrepreneur is not the amount of cash in their pocket (although that’s a good indicator). It’s their resilience and ability to figure out, before it’s too late, what’s working and what’s not. This is a cornerstone in entrepreneurialism. You must be able to recognize when something is not going to fly.
If you have a Cash Machine that is headed south, you need to dissect each component and re-examine your process. Look at things from all angles and different perspectives. It might just be a matter of making adjustments to your plan. If you find a fatal flaw, cut your losses and ask yourself “What’s next?” Believe me there’s always something next.
If you’re finding yourself in a Cash Machine that isn’t moving forward, this is a learning opportunity. This is your chance to study the outcome of the decisions and choices you made. Life’s biggest lessons are learned this way.
Entrepreneurs know that the failure of a business means new opportunity and it’s not something to take personally. It’s business. They ask themselves “What’s next? What am I going to do to create, generate, and expand?”
True entrepreneurs don’t allow setbacks to distract them from the ultimate goal of success. It’s natural to be emotional when something doesn’t work out, just remember this is only a fork in the road. There is another path ahead if you just keep moving.
Here are some things you can do if you have or are facing a meltdown…
1. Dig in and find out why!
2. Learn from your mistakes. Write them down and commit them to memory.
3. Don’t play the blame game. It’s done.
4. Be confident and give yourself some credit. You made a go of it!
5. Ask yourself, “WHAT’S NEXT?”
To be a true entrepreneur means to be tenacious, resilient, and open. As cliché as it sounds, the old adage is true, “When one door closes, another opens.” Pick up the pieces and get back on the path. The journey of entrepreneurialism is a windy road. You’ve got to take the good with the bad. If you’re up for it, it will be the ride of your life!
Ready GO!
Loral