What is PodCamp NH?

PodCamp NH is an innovative gathering of new media enthusiasts, professionals, and anyone curious about what comes next in blogging, social media, podcasting, video on the net, and so much more. It’s called an UnConference because the attendees themselves present the sessions, workshops, and panel discussions. Get ready to connect at Podcamp NH!

Can I still attend?

Yes. We raised enough money through YOUR donations and the support of several sponsors to keep PodCamp NH free for 125 attendees! You can still sign up at this attendee registration page.

Can I still be a micro sponsor?

We would love it if you would help us keep raising money. We have covered the cost of the venue, AV equipment, breakfast and lunch but we are still trying to cover the cost of the shirts and other basics. At this point we are not accepting checks, so the Paypal button found on this page is your best best for contributing.

Can I still propose a session?

We have one session slot left. You can get with Leslie via Twitter if you’d like to claim it. You can see the sessions on this session page (and there are some GREAT ones, including a live taping of NOMX3, a NH Media Makers on Sunday, Battledecks, Creating a Twitter App, making a video from start to finished edit and promotion in 45 minutes, Beer, sessions for authors and musicians, ROI, time management, web development, and so much more.

Is there anywhere for me to stay over for both days?

Yes, there is information on accommodations and any discounts being offered on this page, and you can use hashtag #PCNHROOMIE on Twitter to see who else needs to room share.

Is there parking?

Yes

What else should I know?

You can find everything else on the official PodCamp NH blog and Twitter. The official hashtag of PodCamp NH 2009 is #PCNH. The slogan is “Learn Free or Die”

As part of the book, we want to feature your real world stories of how having (or not having) an online profile has affected your life, matters of the heart, friendships, health, and career.

Did you get engaged on Twitter? Meet your best friend on Facebook or FriendFeed? Find a job online using your network? Start a company using online connections? Help fight a disease or fight for a cause? We want to interview you on how social media and the online world has touched your life.

If you study this trend, we want to talk to you also! We’re seeking industry experts and global thought leaders to talk about their research into this new online world and how it translates to the offline world in fields like psychology, sociology, medicine, science and more.

If you would like to be interviewed about your research or tell us your story, please comment below and we’ll reach out to you for the book!

Let me catch up on sharing with you all another of the many, many people who inspire me. This time I’d like to highlight David Armano. A forward thinking social media presence, David writes the blog Logic+Emotion and works with Dachis Corp. He is constantly helping others find their way in this space with good advice, like this:

He tends to have well rounded, forward thinking, unusual ideas that merge disciplines. He also has a big heart. After years of helping others and asking nothing in return, he also made a woman named Daniela’s life much better by reaching out to his network on her behalf. He is one of my favorite people to listen to online (and he’s a really nice person in real life, and a kick-ass karaoke singer to boot).

Most of us make contracts on a daily basis without even knowing it.  If that mooching friend of yours says, “Can I bum a cigarette, and I’ll get you back when I buy my next pack,” she’s making an offer.  If you give in once again to her moochiness, you just accepted her offer and made a contract.  It’s that easy.

In social media, many of the offers that are made, accepted or rejected are communicated by way of the tools we use so very often, such as Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, etc.  Just because it involves a keyboard and Twitter, not pen and paper, does not mean that the deals you make aren’t valid.

So, as you probably know by now if you are reading this post, there are but three types of tweets: general tweets, tweets to others that can be seen by all, and direct messages visible only to parties between whom the messages are being exchanged.  I will briefly highlight how each of these forms can be construed as an offer or acceptance.

GENERAL TWEETS:

Generally speaking, a tweet that is directed to no one cannot be construed as an offer.  In contracts, there are basically three broad categories under which contracts fall: sale of goods, sale of property, and services.

While the ins and outs of how offers are made and accepted differ between these three categories, all you need to know is that there’s really only one way a general tweet to the world can be construed as an offer, and that is if you, in a clear, definite and explicit manner, leaving nothing open to further negotiation, make known your position to render service or exchange goods.  This is akin to an advertisement, which in most cases is not binding for the reasons stated previously.

If you tweet, “selling my unlocked iPhone 3Gs for cheap because #AT&T blows, DM me if interested,” you haven’t made an offer that someone can just accept, forever locking you into selling your iPhone.  You’ve merely advertised your intent to negotiate or barter.  However, if you were to say, “I have 1 iPhone 3GS new, still in original packaging, and I will sell for $99 U.S. to the first person who DMs me before 4pm” you have made an offer.  The first person to comply with that offer in accordance with your terms has rightfully accepted, and you can kiss your iPhone goodbye (at least legally).

Point is, you don’t really have to worry about your general tweets being construed as binding offers unless you are so clear that nothing would be left open to negotiation if someone complied with your terms.

TWEETS TO OTHERS/DIRECT MESSAGING:

This is where the bulk of your contracting is likely to take place.  Unlike general tweets, when you extend an offer to someone or a group of people specifically, your offer is significantly more viable, and can be taken more seriously by the person(s) to whom you extend your tweet.  We’re no longer in the realm of advertisements, kiddies.

Let’s say you notice that a fellow blogger or social media personality tweet that she really could use a hand improving her site design.  Proud of yourself for remembering that her tweet doesn’t constitute an offer, you reply “hey @_____, I like some of your design elements; check out some of my work (insert link to work).”

If all goes to plan, for argument’s sake let’s say she sends you a direct message saying, “Let’s talk shop…what would your rate be for the redesign?”  This, too, is not an offer.  It functions more as a price inquiry.  If you respond in a way that reflects your intent to render your services to her, perhaps saying, “I think I could do the whole project for $1,000 start to finish,” that IS an offer.

At this point, things get a little sticky with the law.  Though there are quite a few rules on the issue, unless you revoke the offer directly or indirectly, she then has the right to accept your offer.  The exact wording isn’t so important, so long as she makes clear her intent to reasonably accept your offer.  If she does, you have a contract.

If you’re thinking that you can play off your offer and her acceptance like it was meant to be a joke, or that you weren’t serious, think again: in the good old days, the “meeting of the minds,” or each party’s intent to contract mattered.  Today, the communications you exchange with her are as good as ink on the paper with signatures at the bottom, according to the objective theory of contracts.

The examples provided aren’t to be taken as God’s truth, and the only situation in which one might contract with another.  You could sell off 500 acres of land in the same manner, or trade a mold of Robert Plant’s unmentionables for an autographed poster of  Lady Gaga.  The courts won’t care how absurd you think the exchange might be.  What counts is that one person offers, the other accepts, and both parties offer a consideration (I give you the Robert Plant mold, you give me your signed poster).

With all that swirling around in your noggin, here are a couple quick things to keep in mind as you go about your lives on Twitter (or anywhere else for that matter):

1. A general tweet may usually not be construed as an offer; rather, it tends to function like an advertisement, unless the terms are so clear, definite and explicit that nothing is left open to negotiation.

2. Tweets are entirely viable means for communicating an intent to buy or sell goods or property, or render services; if an offer is made by one person, and accepted by another, then you probably have a legally binding contract that can be enforced.  If either of you breaches it, the non-breaching party has the right to file a suit against you.

3. Generally speaking, once a contract has been formed, if one of you wants out….tough luck.  Your unspoken intent won’t matter where there are actual expressions reflecting your intent to contract.

4. Contract law isn’t intended to stick it to the breaching party, meaning you aren’t going to get punitive (punishment) damages for someone breaching a contract.  But, in the case of our website designer above, if the offeree (person who may accept the offer) can demonstrate that the next highest bid for a job like that you would have done would cost $1800, the court might very well order you to pay the difference.

5. Do yourself a favor and act with integrity and character.  Nobody wants to endure a legal battle.  Don’t take negotiations in a joking manner, and honor your word.  Because unless you’re clinically crazy or under the age of 18, the court just might enforce that contract you didn’t take seriously, and then you’re out whatever damages you’ve caused to the person with whom you contracted…and a reputation.

Triston McIntyre is a former Uptown Uncorked associate, now studying law in Maryland. He may be popping in from time to time to share what he learns with us as relates to social media. You can find out more about him under the Company menu above.

That’s right, she’s kicked cancer’s butt THREE TIMES. Not only that, she fights tirelessly for cancer awareness for cancer sufferers, cancer survivors and the families of people who suffer from cancer and all of the incredible difficulty that journey entails. You’ve probably seen her name on this blog before – Uptown Uncorked is a frequent supporter, whether via time or money, of local efforts to help her cause.

If you want to hear more about (and from) Alicia, you can follow her on Twitter. You can hook up with one of her projects, like the recent Staley Riders. Or you can ask her about her foundation, The Staley Foundation.  She’s more than just “the cancer crusader” around these parts, though (as if that wasn’t enough!). She is a wonderful friend for many people, and brings a lot of knowledge and interests to any conversation – you should really get to know her.

What’s an Achilles heel list? It’s a list I keep of personal things I need to work on that changes often. Everyone can use improvement in something. Last year the top of my list was my phone manner – being much more comfortable with writing or in-person communication, I couldn’t wait to get off the phone, and it came across to the people on the other end loud and clear. So I worked on it, and it got better. The phone is still my least favorite method of communication, but I don’t want to run screaming after five (or even 50) minutes on a call anymore, and the people I talk to know I really want to hear what they say. I learned to focus and listen in a better, more active way on the phone.

Basically, I just like to confront issues I have head on – I’m a no-nonsense person like that. You can’t improve if you don’t self evaluate (or at least I can’t). So, this new issue to tackle is email. More specifically, rushed email. So, I’m retraining myself. I’m no longer replying right away or under any sense of urgency. If I feel rushed, I’m trying to make myself get up and do something else, then come back to the email later. I’m also reading the email out loud to myself. Recently an email I sent that was intended to offer help came off as critical, and made the person not want to work with me! That sucked, as it was a genuine offer of assistance (and hit me in the bottom line, so to speak), but when I went back and read that email out loud, it was easy to see how it had hurt their feelings. What sounded “efficient” to me in a hurry, sounded “brusque” at best later on and was absolutely deserving of apology.

It pains me that this is an issue, because I love people, and normally, writing is my strong suit and that passion for people comes through. So whatever the reason behind this very recent issue, no one deserves to receive a rushed or insensitive email. Hopefully I can nip this weird issue in the bud quickly with a little retraining and few deep breaths. And occasionally the help of my friends, who aren’t afraid to call me on my horse-crap if they see it.

What’s your Achilles heel? What are you doing to make it better?

He and I first met when I was on the Blogger Board for his start up CreateBuzz. CreateBuzz was a great idea, but it didn’t go quite the way he had hoped. You’d think he’d be discouraged, but instead he picked himself up, dusted himself off, and came up with more ideas that took lessons from the one that didn’t work as planned. I like that kind of pluck and staying power, that ability to look at life’s fumbles as a way to learn.

Jim and I kept in contact after CreateBuzz, and started exchanging ideas. I’d give him a little social media counseling here and there, or help him get unstuck in the social media space, and he’d give me sales advice. It turns out, taking his sales advice made all the difference in the results I was seeing. He pointed out my weaknesses, and let me know simple, effective ways I could change from within to see results. Now my sales process takes a bit longer than I was spending before, but its worth every minute. I went from closing roughly 30% of my pitches, to closing roughly 85%, and I’ve only been doing a few simple additional things at his suggestion. Can I close more using his advice? I think over time as I get better at it, that I can.

The great thing about Jim is he gives you the same advice every day over on his blog, so you can do a little reading and see how to improve your sales technique as well. When Jim came to me with his idea for a book (Online Profile: Asset of the Future), I was more than happy to team up with him on it. If you want a preview of the kind of content and information you will get out of it – watch his blog for that also. We’re uncovering some pretty interesting information and case studies about the intersection of online life, real people and the future of worth.

She actually gave me the best scheduling advice ever, before she even came on board with me. She asked why I was so frazzled, and I told her about my schedule. she pointed out my desire to help everyone who asked and my tendency to schedule while I was traveling (on my phone, for example) was causing me problems. She gave me a few pointers on how to break both habits while still being helpful – and they worked like a charm. My stress level dropped back to normal, and I still felt like I had time to help people. So thank you, Michelle!

Not only is she a big picture thinker, she is a great communicator. That’s often the hardest part of what we do – telling others about it in a way they understand. Tara does that very, very well.

I thought I’d post my slides here for any of you interested. The panel decided to wing it without slides to promote the concept of communication and get the attendees more involved, and it seemed to have everyone engaged throughout. I expanded on all of the points in the slides, though they don’t show the additional remarks I made specifically for the grocery/shopper loyalty program industry.

The biggest point I stressed for the VRMS attendees was the importance of listening. You don’t have to have a brand presence in social media to listen to what is going on in social media as relates to your brand. Listening is free. It’s simple to implement. It doesn’t take a lot of corporate bandwidth to get going. Every brand should have as many ears to the virtual ground as possible, soaking up information so that they can begin laying the foundation for their eventual foray into this often overwhelming medium.

I also stressed how you listen as well. Listen without defending. Listen without agreeing. Listen actively, but just LISTEN. You are listening to make sure you understand what people are trying to tell you or say about you and brand. The engagement part, the part where you can try to interact with the brand’s perception online, comes later. Engagement comes after understanding what you have listened to.