Tag Archives for recommendations

If You Want More Recommendations; then Give More Recommendations


Get More Recommendations

Have you ever seen a business use the message “The best compliment we can receive is your recommendation or referral?”

Although that is a very true statement; it is also true that the statement is not very effective in getting you more recommendations. Yes, it is a call to action; but it is a very weak call to action.

Marketing studies have long shown that a satisfied customer tells one or two people. Today, with Social Media, those numbers be drastically improved; all you need to do is get the recommendations.

So, how does that happen?

It starts with you; with your being proactive and reaching out to others.

The Key to Getting Anything; Is, to Give Something

If you have not noticed the old mantra of “Ask and you will receive” has changed; today the new mantra is “Give and you will receive”! What this means is that if you want recommendations; you are best served by giving a recommendation first!

The UPPROACH: Give a Recommendation First

Don’t wait for something to happen; make something happen! Take the initiative and write a recommendation for that person.

Get a Recommendation

Once you write the recommendation; it is much easier to ask for and get a recommendation. When you give something of value; people want to reciprocate. People do not like to be indebted to someone; therefore they look for a way to pay you back. When they can do it in kind; all the better.

So get started and start writing those recommendations and reaping the results!

Are you at a loss as to how to write a recommendation get our free report The Art of Giving a Recommendation.

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Tom Staskiewicz speaks and coaches on structuring Social Media and Professional Networking to help businesses, organizations, and individuals establish and manage their Social Media presence to increase efficiency, improve decisions, and respond to your audiences. Your Social Media presence doesn’t just happen and will not take care of itself. Tom helps you with those processes so your Social Media efforts will work for you.

If you are interested in learning more about how Tom can you and/or your organization develop your Professional Network or Social Media email Tom for information.

Referrals and Recommendations: Are You Getting Your Share?


Referrals and Recommendations Are Critical to Your Business and Career

Are you getting your fair share of referrals and recommendations? One of the great features of Social Media is the opportunity to collect referrals and recommendations from managers, supervisors, co-workers, vendors, customers, and a host of others.

We can talk forever about our personal accomplishments and experiences, but when you get someone talking on your behalf that is when you start firing on all cylinders. That doesn’t mean that you get thousands or even hundreds of referrals and recommendations, it just means that you get your fair share.

Referrals Can Be Key to Attaining Your Objectives

I believe that although one can do it on their own; referrals and recommendations are key to accelerating your business and career. Modesty and humility are characteristic of most people. While there are many exceptions; when you think of the majority of connections that you have; they are modest and humble about their accomplishments.

What does that mean to you? If you have the characteristics of modesty and being humble; you will not be very effective at self promotion. You will always be reserved in discussing your accomplishments, awards, and recognition; this means that you WILL need someone that will promote you and this is best achieved through referrals and recommendations.

Here are some examples of what referrals and recommendations can do for you:

  • Open doors that were otherwise closed.
  • Tell people what you meant to former co-workers, educators, and even friends.
  • Substantiate and reinforce statements that you make about yourself.
  • Lead to undiscovered opportunities.

If you are not receiving your fair share of referrals and recommendations learn where you get them; get our free report 18 Sources for Referrals and Recommendations.

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Tom Staskiewicz speaks and coaches on structuring Social Media and Professional Networking to help businesses, organizations, and individuals establish and manage their Social Media presence to increase efficiency, improve decisions, and respond to your audiences. Your Social Media presence doesn’t just happen and will not take care of itself. Tom helps you with those processes so your Social Media efforts will work for you.

If you are interested in learning more about how Tom can you and/or your organization develop your Professional Network or Social Media email Tom for information.

What Can You Do with an Email Service


What Email Service Is Right for You

Have you thought about using an email service to stay in touch with your customers and prospects? I’m sure you have, if for no other reason than the intensive marketing being done by Constant Contact.

Before You Select a Service; Know What You Want to Do

The truth is that all email services are not created equal. Some have features that others do not. Some charge based upon the number of emails sent and others charge based upon the number of subscribers you have.

How Many Subscribers Do You Expect?

Knowing how many subscribers you will have and how often you plan on contacting those subscribers can make a huge difference in the cost.

How Many Email Lists Will You Have?

Another factor is how many email lists will you have? Will you have both a list of active customers and prospects? Will it be a single list? Will you have a list for customers of each type or category of product or service you offer?

Are You Going to Do Email Campaigns?

Maybe you are asking what is an email campaign, so I will give you a brief overview. A campaign is typically a series of emails sent to subscribers.

The campaign starts with a letter of invitation to join the list (usually an opt-in or double opt-in) process to make sure you have the correct person.

Following the opt-in there is an immediate follow-up with the additional promised information. A few (7-10) days later there is another follow-up to ensure that they received the information and provide a second promotion. 12-14 days later there is another follow-up typically with some type of incentive to sign up. That may be it or 60 days later there could be one last follow up. It’s really up to you.

Some email services support email campaigns, some do not, and others only limited email campaigns or a limited number of campaigns.

To Opt-In or Not; or Will You Spam

Opt-In basically says do you want to participate and lets the reader know that they can opt-out at any time.

Do you want an opt-in or double opt-in process where the people signing up must go to a sight or respond to an email and confirm that they want to be on your list. If you don’t have an opt-in some, maybe many will report you as spam and can get you blacklisted; opt-ins are preferable to blacklists. Unless you are closely monitoring the service you won’t know that your emails have been blocked.

If the service isn’t offering an opt-in option that can be a problem. Maybe you don’t irritate the users but that doesn’t mean that someone else using the service won’t irritate their recipients and the backlash can hit you!

Opt-ins protect you as much or even more than they protect your recipients.

Will You Have Mini-Memberships?

A Mini-Membership has people sign-up typically paying a fee for a limited-term-membership (compare it to a four – 12 week class and sometimes up to one-year). Each week or month they will have the next part of their course delivered to their email box.

Some email services support this and some do not. Some will support several limited-term-memberships and others will support only one.

Before you select a service know what you services you are expecting them to provide.

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Tom Staskiewicz speaks and coaches on Social Media/Social Networking topics helping businesses, organizations, and individuals establish and manage their Social Media presence. Your Social Media presence doesn’t just happen and will not take care of itself. Tom helps you with those processes so your Social Media efforts will work for you.

Why Your Teenager and College Student Must Network Now!


I Think Your Teenagers and College Students Must Be Networking with Professionals

Your teens and college students are missing a tremendous opportunity if they are not networking with the business people, instructors, teachers, administrators, employers, youth leaders, scout leaders, charitable organization leaders, etc that they meet and those that get to know them. These people are their references and recommendations of the future. These people are you and/or your child’s connections to opportunities.

One of the most important things you can do in networking is connect to people that know you: It Is Who Knows You that Counts! The individuals identified above are people that know you and can attest to your character, abilities, and other characteristics.

The Reality Is

When your student wants to apply to a college, apply for a scholarship, find an internship, look for a recommendation, etc creating the necessary connections today will make their lives easier in the future. It is a fact that connections are important for people to succeed, so now is the time to start building them.

College Applications

If you or your child are attempting to get into a prestigious college; having an inside connection is of tremendous value. When you or they have access to alumni they have a leg up in the process. Alumni and college representatives are critical to the acceptance process. College entrance is just like getting a job an insider is a key asset.

Internships

During the college years if you or your child are seeking an internship, connections are crucial. Your connections will know about or know people that know about opportunities and again the connection is key.

The truth is that people like to help people and people with the important connections like to see those they help succeed. Most want to be mentors it is their way of being able to give a payback for their success.

Target Your Efforts

As you go through this process target they need to target their efforts. If they want to go to Stanford, Princeton, Harvard, the University of Pennsylvania, Michigan, or wherever; they need connections to any that are on their list. If they do not know someone currently by starting the networking process now, today, they can build their connections and then start searching for “THE” connection that can move them forward.

If you/they know what is wanted; the opportunities for success exist. No, it’s not a given, but with effort it can happen.

Don’t wait, start your networking now; then your network will be in place when you need it!

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Tom Staskiewicz is a Social Media/Social Networking Coach helping business, organizations, and individuals to establish and manage their Social Media presence. Your Social Media presence doesn’t just happen and will not take care of itself. Tom helps you with those processes so your Social Media efforts will work for you.

Social Media.. What Site or Sites Are Best for My Business?


Few Companies Take the Time to Select the Social Media Sites that Will Be Best for Them

I don’t know how many times I have read purported experts telling organizations that they should have a presence on LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Flickr, Plaxo, Friendster, MySpace, etc. I have heard them specify up to 10 sites that they state are critical to your business. Do they really know? What is their proof?

If you go looking for sites on your own you will see that Wikipedia lists over 190 different Social Media sites. On top of selecting your Social Media sites; businesses are told they must be blogging and oh, by the way, you should do podcasts in your spare time.

The reality is that there are way too many options and no business, regardless of how well staffed they are, can effectively participate in all these sites or even 10 sites. To make it worse many so-called Social Media consultants or experts spend little or no time understanding your business or helping you develop a strategy. My experience is that their interest is to get you involved in Social Media Sites far more than helping you achieve Social Media success.

What Do You Hope to Accomplish with Social Media and Why?

Before you jump into any site you must first understand or determine what you are attempting to accomplish. You must be able to answer these questions:

  • Who do you want to talk to?
  • Where do members of your audience spend their time?
  • What Social Media sites serve your audience?
  • What is interests your audience?
  • What information can you contribute to meet their interests?
  • How often do you want to talk?
  • What of quality or value do you have to say?
  • What action do you want your audience to take?

I am sure you can come up with other questions that will help to narrow your focus and evolve your strategy.

When you can answer these questions you are then prepared to start evaluating which Social Media sites will best serve your purposes. Certain sites lend themselves better to one objective or another and none are a one-size fits all solution.

The mistake that you do not want to make is to spend time in places where you will not find your customers and prospects or where you have nothing to add to the conversation. My friend, Neal Shaffer, wrote the blog post 5 Reasons Why Your Social Media Strategy Isn’t Really a Social Media Strategy.

Your Social Media Strategy Must Be Evolving

Your Social Media strategy must be evolving. Social Media sites will come and go, customers will redefine their interests, and/or you will change your strategies. You must be prepared to adapt and change as your needs change.

The reality is that businesses must pick and choose their Social Media sites with care. Just like you take care in selecting your product or service lines you must be using the same care in selecting your Social Media sites.

Social Media Has Much to Offer Businesses, but They Must Do Their Homework First

If you take the time to do your homework; your chances of success will increase geometrically.

Facebook “Like” and Comment


Interpreting the Use of the Facebook “Like” Button and Comment Features Is Not Intuitive

Do you pay attention to “Likes” and Comments to the posts on your profile or Fan Page? If the Viral Nature of Social Networking is important to you; understanding these features is critical.

My interest in how things happen causes me to focus on what I am seeing and as I pay more attention; more things come to light.

What I Have Seen

What I have noticed is when I see a post that originated with someone that is not a Friend or Fan; it does not always show up the same. Sometimes the comments have a familiar name attached, other times one or more Friend’s name are said to “Like” the post, and other times I will see names I recognize with both the “Like” and the comment. Does that sound familiar or ring a bell with you?

You May Say So What; If So, Read On

Before I go further I will remind you that “Like”, Comment, and Share are critical to going viral. If you are going to be successful with your Social Networking you must be going viral; which means your Friends and Fans must be “Liking” and Commenting!

Why the Differences in What We See

Facebook is all about the Viral effect and that is the reason for the differences in what you see. If you have a friend or friends that comment; you will see the post plus those comments. If your friend or friends only click “Like” then you will see the post and only that those Friends “Like” the post. If you see both, then you have Friends that are both “Liking” and Commenting. If you do not see the post, then that means your Friends did not feel it was worth “Liking” or making a comment.

Facebook is not going to bother you with information from people that you do not know. That is called spam and Facebook does not want to be a party to spam or claims of spam. The same goes for your posts; if your Friends and Fans do not feel your post deserves an action; it dies with them!

Is There Anything Else That Needs To Be Understood About Likes and Comments?

For you to see any post; it must originate, be “liked”, commented on, or shared by a connection of yours. This connection can be either a Fan Page or a Friend or be a paid advertisement where you meet the target market criteria. If one or more of these criteria is not met, you will not see the post.

Social Networking – Are You Afraid Your Connections Will Steal Your Customers


Do You Need to Fear Your Connections Stealing Your Customers?

There are a lot of networking wannabees that are worried about competitors stealing their customers. They allow this fear to keep them from inviting or accepting connections and friends. Their belief is that by not inviting or not accepting they will prevent competitors from stealing their customers.

I understand what they are saying and where they are coming from; but is this really a legitimate concern or are they doing more harm to themselves than good? The reality is that being a networking wannabee with a few connections makes you more susceptible than if you had a large number of connections.

This may sound ridiculous, but let me explain. Whether you are on LinkedIn, Facebook, or any other Social Network, as far as I know, your connections do not have the ability to directly or indirectly search or sort your connections. This means that someone wanting to search your connections or friends list must go through your connections one-by-one looking for possible customers.

A Large Network Makes Searching Time Consuming and Virtually Impossible

If you have just a few connections, this would be an easy task; if you have a large number of connections this would be a very labor intensive process. To me, this says that the larger your network the more protected you are.

Currently I have over 800 connections on LinkedIn, for someone to identify one of my customers would be a lot of work and I do not know anyone that would have the time to undertake that effort. I doubt that your connections would have the necessary time or inclination to undertake that type of task either. A large network can should include Network White Noise.

Creating Network White Noise

What is Network White Noise? This is a new term that I have coined and is the process of building lots of people into your network individuals that may or may not have an immediate networking value. Some of the people that you can add to create Network White Noise include family members, friends, former classmates, former teachers and professors, and others without a current business connection.

I call these connections Network White Noise because if someone is searching through your connections or friends list; these individuals will not have the value the searcher desires. Adding these people is one of the best things you can do to rapidly add Network White Noise to your network and therefore hide your clients and customers.

One of the best ways to continue your networking efforts, while still protecting the identify of your clients and customers is to create Network White Noise. Are you inviting friends, family, former teachers and professors, and other non-business related connections? If not, then why not start now?

Can Your Organization Afford to Ignore Social Media?


Is Social Media a Phenomena?

Some people think that Social Media is just a passing fad; many are the same people that thought the Internet was a passing fad in the mid-late ’90s. Whether Social Media is a passing fad or not; you cannot afford to ignore it, because it will not ignore you!

You Cannot Ignore the Power of Social Media

Companies large and small are learning the lessons of Social Media. What they are finding is that Social Media provides happy and unhappy customers, clients, and patients with an opportunity to comment about products and services.

Participating in Social Media provides organizations the opportunity to respond to customers, correct misinformation, clear up confusion, and resolve issues. Left to its own device; Social Media can create major problems. Organizations must have a presence and monitor the information on the Internet that pertains to them.

I just read a Blog article by Augie Ray, a researcher for Forrester Seven Things Your Organization Must Do Because of Social Media. The article starts with the statement that when the Internet started businesses asked the question: What can the Internet do for my business? The question they should have been asking is: What can the Internet do TO my business? That second question must be asked today in regards to Social Media: What can Social Media do TO my business?

What is YOUR attitude toward Social Media? Do YOU look at it as a waste of time and a passing fad?

Passing Fad or Not Social Media Cannot Be Ignored

The reality is that Social Media cannot be ignored. Organizations whether they like it or not, have a Social Media presence. That presence can be created by the organization or the organization can leave it to be created by someone else.

If left to someone else the presence may or may not be what the organization wants. If it is not what the organization wants, they must take action to counter the negativity or correct the situation. Being on the defense does not allow an organization to work from its strengths; it is now playing by someone else’s rules.

An intelligent organization wants to play from its strengths and therefore must be proactive in the Social Media arena. Organizations cannot wait until they must respond, they must be building their presence from the beginning.

The world is changing rapidly and organizations must be changing along with the world. Look at the situation with Movie Gallery/Hollywood Video or Blockbuster. These are example organizations that have not changed with the times and have either lost the battle as in the case of Movie Gallery/Hollywood Video or are losing the battle as in the case of Blockbuster. Although these failures are not directly related to Social Media, they are the result of the Internet and new technologies.

Current failures related to Social Media include BP with the Oil Disaster in the Gulf; Nestle/Greenpeace over Palm Oil; or the potential disaster for Toys ‘r Us and the fact they ignore customer comments on their Facebook Page. The cost to these organizations in actual dollars, publicity, and public relations is huge; can you and your organization afford those problems?

LinkedIn Recommendations


Are You Giving and Receiving LinkedIn Recommendations?

Recommendations on LinkedIn are important additions to your profile and completing your story and the stories of your connections. We can say all kinds of great things about ourselves but when we have others giving a testimony about us and what we have accomplished; it is far more valuable.

Recommendations from former managers and supervisors, co-workers, and even subordinates add significantly to your story. Hiring managers and recruiters like to see recommendations because it adds to your credibility and increases the recruiter’s and hiring manager’s confidence in the choice they are making.

Where Some Go Wrong with Recommendations

There are three primary areas where people go wrong with recommendations.

  1. Inviting someone to LinkedIn, solely for the purpose of a recommendation.
  2. Giving and receiving a recommendation simultaneously.
  3. Giving and receiving gratuitous recommendations.

Inviting someone into LinkedIn for the purpose of a recommendation is easy to spot. The person giving the recommendation has only one connection: YOU! Obviously if the recommendation is important you want to get it, but help the person establish themselves on LinkedIn in the process. Provide them with suggestions as to with whom they should connect. Help them through the process and follow their progress.

Simultaneous recommendations look staged and in many cases they are. It is the old adage of you scratch my back and I will scratch yours. You give me a recommendation and I will give you a recommendation. Realize that when you do that it will show up as part of the current status with your connections and the connections of the other person.

I do not know how many times I have seen the so and so was recommended by this person and the next entry is this person was recommended by so and so. Do you get my drift? It looks staged from beginning to end. Yes, you may want each other’s recommendation, but at least separate the process a little bit.

You can even do the reciprocating process, but one of the two should hold off on approving the recommendation until a few days have lapsed.

The last issue is the recommendations that say “He is really a great guy and if I had the chance I would hire him again immediately.” That may be the case, but as a reader of the recommendation I want to know why he is a great guy and what he accomplished to earn my accolades.

Be like Julius Caesar; use the Veni, Vidi, Vici approach…

  1. He or she came.
  2. He or she saw.
  3. He or she conquered.

Tell the reader the situation the person encountered, the actions that were taken, and the results achieved.

Recommendations must have meat to them!

If you have written the meatless recommendations in the past, go back and do the person a favor by writing a meaningful recommendation. Show them that you care and they WILL reciprocate with a meat filled recommendation for you. (Just do not do it the same day.)