SKEETER HARRIS - Social Networks Work! Workshop

TwitterView - SkeeterHarris 050409In this TwitterVIEW, Ryan Yee of NerdBoyTV talks with Skeeter Harris of Mac Village Productions about his upcoming workshop, "Social Networks Work!" Skeeter talks about businesses using social media in an effective way while others fail to harness the true power of social networking.

SOCIAL MEDIA ADVOCATE TwitterView with @SkeeterHarris William “Skeeter” Harris founded Mac Village Productions (Upstate NY’s premiere full service provider for innovative Web 2.0 website design work) in 2008. His production team of graphic designers, developers, and innovators push the envelope of creativity to deliver more value with minimal investment. http://www.socialnetworkswork.com http://www.macvillagepro.com/ NerdBoyTV: TwitterVIEW starting: Please follow @SkeeterHarris & @NerdBoyTV and let's begin. Talking today with sponsor of "Social Networks Work!" NerdBoyTV: Are you there, buddy? Ready when you are... SkeeterHarris: Absolutely It is a great place to connect with people. NerdBoyTV: Thanks for joining me on this TwitterVIEW; what exactly is the "Social Networks Work!" Seminar? SkeeterHarris: Well, this seminar focuses on Social Networking and how to leverage these mediums to increase your brand and reach your customer. NerdBoyTV: What do you think is the biggest misconception about social media for the newbie who has yet to take the plunge? SkeeterHarris: I would say (the biggest misconception) is that these media outlets are just for hanging out, sharing goofy pictures and that there is no real biz value. NerdBoyTV: Was just trying to explain to co-worker this morning; total confusion. How would you explain the benefit of say Twitter to a business? SkeeterHarris: I hear you and have had that conversation a lot! The benefit is this — it allows you to reach and establish a relationship with… 1 “I would say (the biggest misconception) is that these media outlets are just for hanging out, sharing goofy pictures and that there is no real biz value.” SkeeterHarris: …someone that you may never have the ability to speak or interact with. For example: I had never met @AuctionDirect , yet thru… SkeeterHarris: …Twitter, I was able to tweet with Eric (AD) and discuss how Mac Village Productions might help them and was able to start a new biz opportunity! NerdBoyTV: You and I met in a similar fashion; you're obviously East coast and I'm West coast. Living proof . NerdBoyTV: Why do you think so much of the public is STILL resistant to available social media? I hear even Oprah has tired of Twitter. SkeeterHarris: I think there are two perceptions out there: 1. This Social Media stuff takes too much time with little benefit. 2. People try… SkeeterHarris: …Twitter for say 30 days and think it’s a waste of time. They never have the "aha" moment of its real power! NerdBoyTV: @oliver12 just said that people don't like change either. What does your seminar do for those new & unfamiliar? SkeeterHarris: What my seminar is going to do is cover the big Social Media sites and give people real solid take away best practices… SkeeterHarris: …on how to use these sites to both market themselves and their brand(s). Then attendees are going to get to hear how Rochester comp… SkeeterHarris: …like Kodak, Brian Nuedorff (News 8) and Techrigy are using these technologies to be leaders in their industries! NerdBoyTV: Can you share your observations on businesses that use the new social media WELL and those who just plain out use it WRONG? SkeeterHarris: The best example I see locally is Kodak — they are using Twitter and Facebook to get instant feedback from their customers… “People try Twitter for say 30 days and think it’s a waste of time. They never have the ‘aha’ moment of its real power!” “What my seminar is going to do is cover the big Social Media sites and give people real solid take away best practices on how to use these sites to both market themselves and their brand(s).” 2 SkeeterHarris: …allowing two-way communication and doing a great job on re-branding themselves as a digital company! In terms of bad examples... SkeeterHarris: …sorry but I only focus on the positives! :-) NerdBoyTV: Okay, I'll take the bait then...hehe. I really don't like how some don't take the time to build a relationship here. NerdBoyTV: Some forget the simple courtesies that work in person ALSO work in the social media world. I do get tired of sending… NerdBoyTV: …replies or direct messages that just get ignored. Reminds me of being a customer in a store and being ignored by the salespeople. NerdBoyTV: I think biggest problem is thinking social media somehow allows one to minimize human interaction; I have found the opposite. SkeeterHarris: I will give you one comment on that topic. SkeeterHarris: A bad example is the Tweeters that only promote products on every tweet — basically spam for Twitter! NerdBoyTV: Ok...stepping off soapbox ;-) How about giving the specifics on your terrific workshop? Date/Time/Place/Format/Cost/Line-up ;-) SkeeterHarris: LOL Sounds good! Here goes... Social Networks Work! on May 20th at the Brio, in Pittsford NY 8am–4pm. SkeeterHarris: Guest speakers are Kodak, Brian Neudorff (News 8), Techrigy — includes breakfast, great hot lunch and lots of social networking!! SkeeterHarris: You can also see me interviewed by @brianneudorff on 5/13 at noon about this event! You can learn more at http://socialnetworkswork.com/. NerdBoyTV: BTW, Tweeple, if you wanna checkout Skeeter's brochure, you can download HERE http://bit.ly/HTs2j. Has ALL the specifics “A bad example is the Tweeters that only promote products on every tweet— basically spam for Twitter!” “Guest speakers are Kodak, Brian Neudorff (News 8), Techrigy — includes breakfast, great hot lunch and lots of social networking!!” 3 NerdBoyTV: In closing, let me ask you this: If you had 60 seconds to pitch social media to maybe a home business, what would you say? NerdBoyTV: Really...what's in it for me? Benefits? Time required to develop? Easy first social media services to use? Hit me with it. NerdBoyTV: How much time should I expect to spend on developing this and which social media is best for the beginner? SkeeterHarris: I would say Social Media allows you to connect with your customers directly where they are spending 85% of their time when online. SkeeterHarris: For the beginner, start with Facebook — easy to setup, not so "real-time" like Twitter — allows you to target specific… SkeeterHarris: …audiences. A beginner could spend say an hour a day to promote their company and brand. NerdBoyTV: Sounds doable ;-) Hey everyone, if you’re in Rochester, NY area (and even if you're NOT), checkout http://socialnetworkswork.com/. NerdBoyTV: I think Skeeter has put together a dynamite group of experts and this may be the jumpstart some newbie might need to start. NerdBoyTV: Hey buddy, thanks again for tweeting back-and-forth like this. Let's do it all again AFTER the workshop too ;-) SkeeterHarris: That would be great — I could share a lessons learned and common questions from the attendees! SkeeterHarris: Ryan — thanks so much for the interview today on Tweeple on Twitter — what a great concept my friend! NerdBoyTV: De nada. Have a terrific day. Well you're East coast, your day is almost over. We Cali folk are JUST beginning — not lunch yet. SkeeterHarris: Thanks again Ryan — Hope your day goes well and I know we’ll tweet soon! LOL “For the beginner, start with Facebook — easy to setup, not so "real-time" like Twitter — allows you to target specific audiences.” 4 NerdBoyTV: Terrific. Consider it on the calendar. Take care and best of luck with "Social Media Works." Cya SkeeterHarris: Your welcome and thank you! Great new format you have come up with You can check it out here! http://TweepleOnTwitter.com. RYAN YEE is the host of www.NerdBoyTV.com, a weekly show on technology, gadgets, and Internet services that’s a video broadcast on YouTube and a podcast on iTunes. Ryan has grown up with the Internet; he actually remembers Netscape Navigator (before Firefox), Columbia Music House and Napster (before iTunes), programmed on IBM punch cards (before JavaScript and C#), owned a Timex Sinclair 1000 (before current Dell Precision M6400), and used 5.25 floppy disks. He has a very unique perspective of today’s technologies and shares his wisdom in a very user-friendly manner. He is the creator of TwitterVIEWs, a unique interviewing format in 140 characters or less. Follow him on http://twitter.com/nerdboytv. 5