What the heck kind of heading is that you're asking. It's the shortened version of saying that if you're a small business owner or entrepreneur who isn't using social media, then you're missing out on a huge opportunity. I don't want to write yet another post talking about the benefits of social media, but the facts pretty much speak for themselves. 350+ million people are on Facebook, there are Twitter users with millions of followers and just about everyone I know (yes, even my mother is racking up Facebook users in the US - and she isn't even from this country) is using the Internet to seek information and make connections.

And you, Mr. or Mrs. Small Business Owner, all you need to do to bring new customers to your business is find a way to make a connection with some of those millions of people. How...you ask? Offer them information, answer some of the questions they might have for you, make them laugh, inspire them or just give them ideas on how to use your products or services. The possibilities are endless.

I spend most of my days trying to help big corporations find their social mojo, dealing with dozens of different product managers, stakeholders, bosses and one approval after the other. If you're big, it's really hard to do something in social media.

So, if you are a small business owner or entrepreneur with little or no budget but the ability to make decisions, then please make the decision to get smart about social media and use it to your advantage. The only thing that's hard about it is, is to get started.

Training for an Ironman has given me a lot of time to think. Actually, every marketer should be training for some kind of long-distance sporting event. There are all kinds of hormones that get released and you obviously have plenty time to think. I also have all kinds of ideas, most of which make no sense at all once I get back home. But that's not why I am writing this post.

One thing that I have been thinking about is the future of this site. Scrappy Marketing started as my philosophy about marketing, turned into a presentation that I gave to organizations and Universities and then it became this site. We now have a very respectable reader base, lots of Twitter followers and some of our posts got some awesome traction on the net (see: what being a shitty boyfriend taught me about social media).

Yet the philosophy of Scrappy Marketing remains as relevant as ever. It's all about innovative marketing ideas that don't cost a whole lot of money but deliver a whole lot of results. It's probably not the right approach for a huge corporation but perfect for startups and entrepreneurs.

With that being said, my professional situation continues to evolve quite rapidly. Things have been going really well, and in conjunction with my Ironman training, I am finding less and less time to write on here. I usually still post a couple of times per week. But I want more. Because you guys want more. I really care about publishing content for our readers on a very regular basis.

What I don't care about is from where that great content comes from. It doesn't have to come from me, as long as it's good and teaches people on scrappy ways to market products, services, companies, people and organizations.  It could be search engine marketing, affiliate marketing or it could be about posting fliers on traffic signs. All I care about that it achieves marketing results without breaking the bank.

So, over the coming months, I would love to get more and more different people writing here on ScrappyMarketing.com. If you're in the business of marketing, know how to write and have some scrappy stories, news or insights to share, I want to hear from you.

I will be putting up a submission form in the coming days, but feel free to contact me via our contact form until then.

As my spring semester class load takes over the larger part of my life, I am  pleased to be enrolled in General Botany.  As a business student, I appreciate the chances to take unique classes outside of my major.  Along with my newly, unwrapped, Plant Biology book, This semester's class load includes conducting an experiment, creating a marketing plan for The Mineral Chamber of Commerce, participating in a negotiation, and presenting on a few different topics.

Having a well rounded liberal arts education can:

Develop your intellect and improve your employability

Using "more eyes," gives you a greater understanding of people and knowledge of the most effective forms of communication.

Having "more eyes" allows for multiple perspectives and greater understanding of a variety of  potential audiences.  You can build common ground with people and develop relationships that may open up opportunities

Uniquely inspire you

Inspiration creates the opportunity for great ideas or for a great brainstorming environment.  When you have a unique thought, idea, solution to a problem, write it down and take the time to reflect on it later.

I keep a small moleskin notebook with me at all times where I can jot down just about anything, including ideas for different dishes I can cook.  Having a variety of outlets for inspiration in your life is essential.  I am not just talking business either.  We cannot be creative non-stop, this would be impossible, but when we are feeling thoughtful, and full of random ideas and thoughts why not write those down, and reflect back on them.  They won't all be good, but by having a variety to choose from, you end up picking the best one.

Expand your network

Knowledge is the currency of business and the more access you have to a broader variety of news, stories, leads, possible business transaction ect. the more prepared you can be.

A professor of mine explained what he called the 90/10 rule.  This rule states that 90% of the information you need and should know is in the public domain, available to anyone who wants it.  10% of the information you need is not in the public domain, and is much harder to come by.  This is what separates those who are good in their fields from those who are great and successful.

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Over the past few weeks, we have had a myriad of conversations at work about social media. There is so much buzz out there, sometimes it's easy to get lost amongst all the different tools and tactics.  Plus, if you don't have an overlying strategy - your social media initiative is doomed to fail anyways. But regardless of all that, I wanted to take a minute to explain the three (very basic) elements of social media. It's a framework that should help in organizing and prioritizing your social media plans.

Listen

Listening is the simple practice of observing the different conversations that people are having about your products and services. You can listen to Twitter, Facebook, blogs, forums and really any type of online content. Try to make sense of those conversations, analyze trends and then see how you can improve your marketing and product strategies based on what you learned. If people are asking you questions, try to answer them. If there is a social media emergency (hello Dell Hell,) quickly figure out a strategy to respond.

Participate

You should always listen before you start participating. But once you've learned a bit about your part of the social world, you can begin participating in conversations. You could start a Facebook group,  launch a Twitter stream, be active in forums, pitch key influencers or write guest blog entries. There is no shortage of opportunities to participate.

Create

Now that you've listened and participated, it might be time to create something yourself.  There really is only one rule. It should deliver value to your audience. To me delivering value means that you're either informing or entertaining.  You could start a blog, record a weekly video series, you could write a write a whitepaper or maybe come up with an entertaining viral site such as toogoodforthisshit.com.

If you think about social media marketing in the framework of these three elements, it really makes it pretty simple.

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Seth Godin is a genius. That's why I tell you guys about a different idea or piece of writing of his every week. Here is how he launched his latest book - Linchpin. He completely ignored every traditional channel out there. No pitches to newspaper, magazines or television. He went directly to his readers and online thought leaders. He just sent review copies as requested by his readers. Here are some of the people who wrote about Linchpin, as copied from Seth Godin's blog.

Michael Hyatt: Over the top generosity from the head of one of the largest book publishers in the world. Michael interviewed me about making a difference. Visit his site if you'd like to win a free copy of the book.

Tom Peters: A guest post on the blog of one of my role models and heroes. I take on the idea of 'excellence' and what it means now.

Good Experience: Mark practically invented the science of simplified web design. I do a guest post about why artists break things.

Gaping Void: Your favorite cartoons-on-the-back-of-business-cards provocateur generously asks me ten (hard) questions, and I generously answer them.

Pilgrimage of the heart: Jeff and I talk about breaking rules, technology and art.

Art of Non-Conformity: Chris is at the forefront of rethinking work. We talk about the courage needed to do it. And plumbers. It keeps coming back to plumbers.

Behance: I first launched the ideas in Linchpin at their conference last year, and here's a guest post about shipping.

Steve Pressfield: The godfather of the resistance, the five-star general in the war against fear, Steve takes on the ideas in Linchpin and asks me some hard questions about my personal creative habits and the idea of making a ruckus.

White Hot Truth: Danielle takes on the burning questions of pushing yourself to do art that matters.

Ruzuku -Another Step Forward Rick is leading a tribe of entrepreneurs. We talked about why I wrote the book and how entrepreneurs can use it. And I talk a little about golf.

Dan Pink: Dan's new book is really terrific, and he let me interview him about it.

Derek Sivers: The man who re-invented music distribution for indie bands. We talk about good vs. great music and why there's already plenty of good.

Merlin Mann: Merlin is well-known for inventing inbox zero, and we did a podcast together about creativity.

Martha Beck: One of the most well-known coaches, Martha is a leading thinker on how individuals can make a difference. We talk about jazz and writing...

Jennifer Lindsay: What keeps one writing, a video conversation.

B.L. Ochman: I did an interview with BL about what keeps marketers (and people) from being creative.

Richard Pachter: Richard is a regular reader. He tracked me down and we did an interview about curiosity for the Herald.

Cool Hunting: A cutting edge site about the changes driving our culture. A podcast about my take on art.

Duct Tape Marketing: John is the Peter Drucker of small business tactics. In this podcast, that's what we talk about (small business, not Peter Drucker).

The Happiness Project: Gretchen dives into how you can become indispensable (and whether it will make you happy).

WebInkNow: David Meerman Scott is the Charles Darwin of new media marketing, tirelessly chronicling how it works. In this video, we talked about becoming indispensable.

Tonic.com: Where are the good things in life? That's what this site is about, and we talked about making change.

Fuel Your Creativity: On the intersection between digital arts, graphics and becoming someone they can't live without.

Marty Wilson: You can see a picture of me when I was 18. We talk in depth about learning to be a leader, canoeing and how you can choose to make a difference.

Crazy Engineers: Not so crazy, actually. Driven, but not crazy. This is an interview about how a cube-dweller can make a big impact.

IQ Partners is an executive search and retention firm. We talked about the new standard for people worth hiring.

Gail Goodwin: Gail writes about non-traditional thinking and opportunities. We talked about creativity and being remarkable.

Charlotte AMA: Some very sharp marketers in Charlotte. We get tactical on this podcast.

Lee Stranahan: Lee often writes for Huffpo and we discussed (via podcast) the power a Linchpin has to change things. We all live in Detroit now.

Joi Ito: If you don't know Joi, you should. I interview this cutting-edge linchpin on his blog.

Personal MBA: Josh and I did an interview on entrepreneurship and stepping out of the status quo.

Writing on the Web: Patsi and I talked on this podcast about coaching and making a difference.

Ladies Who Launch: Shipping and marketing with the ladies who know how to do it.

Mongezi Mtati: This video interview wins the prize for longest-distance by Skype. Mongezi called in from South Africa to talk about the struggle between giving it away and making money.

Mixergy: A podcast with the always interesting Andrew Warner. (Transcript too)

Twist Image: Mitch is at the cutting edge of what it takes to succeed in new media. He lives it every day (in Canada even!). We talked about What Matters Now on this podcast.

Fearless Business: Mediocre obedience and being remarkable are covered in this video.

Be The Media: David and I use this podcast to talk about how innovative thinking impacts distributed media. And he has a great logo.

Self Growth.com: Brian interviews me on self improvement and becoming indispensable.

Untemplater: Jun and I talk about the value of an MBA and entrepreneurship.Hint: not so much. We do a video chat.

Careerealism: Because every job is temporary.

Site Visibility:  Kelvin and I talk on this podcast about remarkable products and their place in a world of SEO and clicks.

Neville Hobson: A podcast about innovation and marketing.

Mark Ramsey: Mark is a visionary about the future of radio. In this podcast, he's his usual insightful self, and I try to keep up. This is the new normal.

Flowerdust.net: Anne Jackson understands the power of faith, regardless of religion. She's worth learning from--and she was kind enough to give me a guest post.

Sasha Dichter: Sasha works for Acumen Fund and writes a powerful blog about giving and philanthropy. We talked about whether there will be a surplus of linchpins and my early history in working for not much money.

Marketing Over Coffee: Just like it sounds, except I had tea. We use this podcast to talk about the death of the factory.

First Friday Book Review: Robert Morris, an inveterate Amazon reviewer and journalist, interviews me about the book.

John Moore: One of his classic (and very funny) video readings, this time of a little bit of Linchpin. Horrifying.

Personal Branding Blog: The power of applying linchpin thinking to your own brand. This is a PDF magazine for download.

ArtBeat of America: On Rick's podcost, he and I talk about artists who can't draw.

Rethinking Learning: Barbara asked some startling questions about whether higher education has a future.

Book Blade: Randy and I talked about education and the broken school system in this video interview.

Todd Sattersten: We talked about choosing words carefully.

Goose Educational Media: Chris Taylor interviews me on video about changing education and being remarkable.

Pam Slim: Pam wants you to quit your job. I did a short guest post on her blog about why that might be hard for you and how to get started.

Communicatrix: More than communication, insights that turn things upside down. Colleen will make you think.

Innovate on Purpose: Jeff asked some hard questions about mediocre obedience and being a cog.

Church of Customer: Jackie and Ben pioneered the idea of the 1%, and in this interview we cover five questions that matter to marketers (and artists of all stripes).

A really smart idea. And it looks like it's working. Linchpin is currently #27 on Amazon's top seller list. Congrats Seth. I might just copy this idea when I publish my first book, at which point you guys will get to see the difference of Seth Godin's readers (thousands of brilliant thought leaders) and my readers (I love you mom).

You're probably wondering what the heck rabbit amnesty is? Well, let me tell you. It's an initiative by the British sex toy manufacturer LoveHoney to take back used Rabbit vibrators, in return for a 50% discount on a new Rabbit vibrator.  Why, you ask? New EU recycling regulations mean that all electrical equipment - including sex toys - must be disposed of at a designated electrical waste collection center. Meaning you shouldn't throw your dead Rabbit into the trash can.  And most people probably don't feel comfortable to walk up to one of those government waste collection centers with their dildos in hand. So, LoveHoney started a really cool campaign that is making it very easy to send your vibrator back to them in exchange for a £50 discount. In addition, they'll also donate £1 to a green charity.

This is a good idea, will probably sell lots of rabbits and is good for the environment. Plus, it serves a consumer need in the sense that they're making it really easy (and (un)embarrasing) to recycle your old vibrators. And the discount is nice too. Plus, it's viral so the folks at Love Honey won't have to pay a bunch of advertising dollars to get the word out about it. This is really smart marketing.

No other tool or software has been beneficial to me in my career than Wordpress. I was fortunate to fall into blogging right after graduating college and have been able to more or less keep up my personal blog ever since.  I believe the blogging software that started it all for me was Radio Userland and since then I have dabbled around in just about every content management system out there.

About five years ago, I started using Wordpress. And I have never looked back. I have used it to build dozens of blogs, campaign landing pages and even sites like IdeaMensch. Wordpress has allowed someone like me (who is neither a designer nor a developer) to build a website in a matter of hours. I can have a website idea and then go live with a beta version shortly thereafter. Once I have reached my design and development limits, I can bring in a design expert to help me put on the finishing touches.

While this process probably sounds like any creative's ultimate nightmare, it works.

So, what is Wordpress?

Wordpress is an open source content management system that is used by a ton of different people and hence comes with tons of both design and development resources.

How do I use it?

Just ask your hosting company to install it on whatever sites you're planning to develop. It doesn't cost you anything, and is something that should be expected of any hosting company.

Once that is setup, you will be able to login and start playing around with Wordpress. It's very intuitive and if you can find your way around Microsoft Word, you can use Wordpress. You can start by creating some pages or posts which will push content live on the web for you. At this point your site probably looks pretty bad (or at least basic), but there are some quick fixes for such. All you have to do is search the web for some pre-designed themes which you can upload to make your site look nice. There are a ton of free themes out there, but I personally have grown to appreciate paid themes which tend to offer better support and some added functionality. I used to be a big fan of the Thesis theme ( How To Complain For Fun and Profit is built with that theme) and it's still a great theme. Also, check out WooThemes which are producing some really good looking themes. This site, by the way, is built on a WooTheme.

Anyways, here are six reasons why I think every online marketer needs to know how to use Wordpress:

1. It's easy to use, and allows even fairly novice users to build good looking and functional websites.

2. There are a ton of resources available, including tutorials, designs and a ton of extra functionality.

3. Wordpress is a content management system, which makes updating your site really easy. Both users and search engines like fresh content.

4. You can buy great themes/templates that are easy to customize rather than spending lots of money on professional help.

5. Wordpress sites are naturally search engine optimized. They tend to rank really well on search engines.

6. Lots of people use it. So if you need help, there's a big user base for you to learn from and or to hire.

To get started, go check out the Wordpress website. There is plenty of instruction, as well as a really neat showcase of sites that have been built with Wordpress.

I used to be a person that made just about every decision based on what I would call emotional intelligence. I'd try to follow my intuition and then use a good mix of passion and determination to make things happen. Over the years, I have grown more and more accustomed to instilling data into my decision making process. Thanks to free tools like Google Analytics and all kinds of published researched, data has just become too hard to ignore. With that being said, I could never make decisions based on solely data. That's probably a bad thing, but if data really would be driving all my decisions then where would I draw my passion from? When it comes to ideas, I tend to have a hard time having people tell me what to do.  The same holds true for a computer or set of numbers telling me what to do. While Google's success (lots of which is based on the brilliant use of data) probably proves me wrong, I was happy to see Seth Godin's take on the issue.

I work on dozens of different marketing campaigns every week. Some seem really easy while other times we're trying to overcome ridiculous hurdles to do something that works. Every day I try to think about what and why worked in the past, and how I might be able to apply such for whatever I am working on. There are a ton of tactics, consumer trends and of course new technologies that can come into play, but come to think of it, if the three things below hold true then your marketing is going to be easy and successful.

1. You have a great product. Or at least a really good one. Don't advertise or market a product or service that you wouldn't want to use yourself.

2. You are customer focused. Answer your customers' questions.  Participate in conversations about your product and category, listen and then act on the feedback you get.

3. You love what you do (and so do your employees). If you love what you do, then you're going to be enthusiastic about building a great product and telling people about it. Marketing will come easy because it will feel just like having a bunch of conversations about a topic you love.

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