Month: July 2015

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8 Awesome Apps to Stay Relevant

illustration of a guy on social media content

Best Social Media Management Tools

GUEST AUTHOR: Ankara Krishnamurthy

Today, an active social media presence is indispensable in order to stay above the competition. Unfortunately, most people don’t have time to painstakingly go through piles and piles of content to discover something relevant for their audience. Fortunately, however, there are apps that can do this for you. By cutting down the time you invest in social media management, these apps let you concentrate on your business rather than on what to tweet next.

1) DrumUp:

DrumUp is a FREE content discovery and scheduling app that’s gaining traction among social media managers. The app uses NLP and data mining algorithms to find stories of interest for your audience and queues them for sharing through Facebook and Twitter. You can edit the content before it is posted. Not only is it totally easy to use, but it also lets you manage multiple social accounts.

2) Postling:

Postling acts as a centralized dashboard and lets you post content on multiple social media accounts. Targeted at small businesses, Postling lets you track your presence on Facebook, Twitter, WordPress, Tumblr – you name it. The app sends you an email every day detailing any social media activity, such as a new Facebook or Twitter comment. These are easy to skim through and let you decide what to respond to. The app also informs you about which of your posts are most effective. Pricing starts at $10 per month.

3) Feedly:

Feedly lets you subscribe to a variety of sites based on your interests. Depending on what collection you choose, posts from the sites selected will appear on your newsfeed. You can then share the posts you think are relevant to your business through Facebook and Twitter. It is simple, easy-to-use and has a minimalist interface. The basic package is FREE, and you can upgrade to Pro for a measly $3.75 per month

4) SumAll:

SumAll is an analytics app that assesses your various social media accounts and provides data and insights on them. The FREE version allows you to add unlimited accounts and sends you a daily and weekly update with all the stats and info. It gives you clear access to all the data in a single dashboard. The App supports a wide range of platforms including Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn and Pinterest.

5) Everypost:

Juggling various social media accounts is not only exhausting but eats into time that you can otherwise use more effectively. Everypost offers a solution to this problem by posting your updates across various social media platforms. It comes with a neat tool called a ‘Twitter text shortener’ which basically shortens your tweets and makes them suitable for Twitter. The Personal plan is FREE, and the Pro is $9.99 per month.

6) Tweetdeck:

Deciding which Twitter-centric app to choose, considering the never-ending options, can be a daunting task. But if you are looking for something streamlined and organized, this is the app for you. Tweetdeck organizes friends, trending topics, searches and other activity into columns so that they are easy to manage. Like Everypost, Tweetdeck comes with a ‘TweetShrink’ and makes overly long updates Twitter-friendly. Tweetdeck is FREE!

7) HootSuite:

HootSuite integrates up to three social media platforms, offers basic analytics and reports, lets your schedule posts and manage two RSS feeds on its FREE version. You can post updates to various platforms, track them and reply to comments all from one place. It is comprehensive and systematic in its organization and gives you the ability to monitor the visibility of your business. It also lets you delegate tasks to your social team, ensuring that you don’t overlook a potential customer. Hootsuite’s paid plans start at $9.99 per month.

8) SocialOomph:

The app lets you manage and schedule your Tweets right to the minute. It closely monitors Twitter’s tweet stream and emails you a digest of any replies you may have received, mentions and retweets. You can manage up to five Twitter accounts for FREE. It also has a ‘Tweet purge’ option that deletes all your previous tweets and lets you start with a clean slate.

The struggle for small businesses to stay relevant is slowly, but steadily becoming a non-issue. With apps that discover relevant content and help you schedule it, sometimes right to the minute, social media is longer something that only big companies can use to its maximum potential.

ABOUT Antara Krishnamurthy:

Antara is currently pursuing a degree in media and communication. She is passionate about digital social media marketing and writing blog posts. Connect with her on Facebook : www.facebook.com/antara.krishnamurthy

If you finished reading this post and you think it’s valuable, others will too.

So please take 5 seconds (!) to share on Facebook, Twitter or your favorite social scoop. Thanks!

For more resources, see the Free Management Library topic: Marketing and Social Media.

Lisa Chapman helps company leaders define, plan and achieve their goals, both online and offline. After 25+ years as an entrepreneur, she is now a business and marketing consultant, business planning consultant and social media consultant. Online, she works with clients to establish and enhance their online brand, attract their target market, engage them in meaningful social media conversations, and convert online traffic into revenues. Email: Lisa (at) LisaChapman (dot) com. Her book, The WebPowered Entrepreneur – A Step-by-Step Guide is available at:

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Are Younger Generations an IT Security Risk?

A-young-tech-guy-working-with-his-laptop

They may be more tech savvy, but are they keeping your data secure?

Younger generations may have grown up with technology at their fingertips, but according to a study on U.S. mobile security by Absolute Software they may not be so good at keeping that tech secure. The study found many younger respondents have lower expectations of their own responsibilities when it comes to keeping data secure, and that a full five times as many Millenials compromise IT security when compared to Boomers.

The study’s finding that younger generations’ habits of using work devices for personal purposes, jailbreaking or otherwise modifying settings, and accessing “Not Safe For Work” content on sites of questionable security points to an amount of risk that is likely surprising to those who have been working under the assumption that tech savvy equals tech safe.

There are plenty of amazing younger folk who would make incredible assets to any organization, but when it comes to crisis management you can’t ignore the trend that’s been revealed in a number of recent studies and polls. A scary portion of today’s workforce is putting their employer at risk of a tech-related crisis, and the best way to combat it is education. Make regular reinforcement on the do’s and don’t of tech use as it relates to your workplace a priority, and make sure you include the why if you want anyone to listen.

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For more resources, see the Free Management Library topic: Crisis Management
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[Jonathan Bernstein is president of Bernstein Crisis Management, Inc., an international crisis management consultancy, author of Manager’s Guide to Crisis Management and Keeping the Wolves at Bay – Media Training. Erik Bernstein is vice president for the firm, and also editor of its newsletter, Crisis Manager]

– See more at: https://staging.management.org/blogs/crisis-management/2015/07/09/whole-foods-half-assed-price-problem-explanation/#sthash.kkA7exWK.dpuf

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Top Ten Way to Manage Interactivity in your Next Meeting

group of people in an interactive meeting

engagingSome meetings and training sessions seem to drag because you can’t get a good discussion going. Other times, people start talking and can’t seem to stop, or arguments and conflicts devour precious time. In order to facilitate effectively, you need to know both how to get a group started, and then how to manage the discussion.

Based on my experience as a seminar leader, these are my Top Ten Ways to manage interactivity:

  1. Start with easy-to-answer questions. These questions should be closed ended and not sensitive in nature, so that your audience feels comfortable responding. As you continue to build trust, you can move into more sensitive issues, and ask more open-ended questions.
  2. Call on the group at large, not an individual. Pose your question to everyone, then as you look around, select the person or persons you want to call on. Usually they are the ones who are making eye contact with you. This approach helps everyone stay engaged, and you are less likely to put someone on the spot.
  3. Use the silence. Once you have asked a question, don’t jump in with your own answer. Count to ten, if you need to, before saying anything. Let the group have time to think and respond.
  4. Ask participants to write down their ideas. Have paper or note cards handy. This is especially helpful with a quiet group, when time is short or when emotions are high.
  5. Foster small-group discussions. With a quiet group, ask them to first have a discussion with the person sitting next to them or at tables, and then ask them to report on highlights of their discussions. Do this early in your meeting to set the expectation for engagement without having to state it outright.
  6. Ask for a volunteer to write comments or answers on a flipchart. This will keep you from having to turn away from the group to write, allowing you to keep the group engaged, or to keep an eye on a talkative group.
  7. Incorporate physical movement. Have individuals move into small groups, walk up to the front of the room to post their ideas, or stand beside a flipchart to deliver their findings to the large group. Use games and puzzles that get them physically engaged.
  8. Manage side conversations. Make steady eye contact with those who tend to chat, stand closer to them, or use silence until the room becomes quiet. By using these “silent” techniques, you can usually maintain control without having to say anything.
  9. Don’t shy away from conflict. Disagreement can be a sign of independent thinking, and can lead to better solutions in the long run. When conflict arises, try to disagree with the statement rather than with the person. If the emotional temperature gets too hot, you might suggest a short break before continuing.
  10. Use courteous language. Words such as “please” and “thank you” and inclusive terms like “Let’s look at our next agenda item” or “Shall we check for consensus now?” foster a climate of respect and cooperation.

The next time you host a meeting or training session, try to increase engagement using these techniques or others you feel would be appropriate for the audience. Most likely everyone will benefit from a more engaging conversation.

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Whole Foods’ Half-Assed Price Problem Explanation

A-man-paying-his-bills-to-the-smilling-cashier-in-a-grocery-store.

Grocer in a pickle after overcharging allegations surface once again

Late last month, Whole Foods found its integrity questioned on a national level after an audit of its New York stores by the NY Department of Consumer Affairs revealed rampant mislabeling throughout the store’s prepackaged foods, often resulting in customers paying more than they should have at the register. A combination of the chain’s already relatively high prices, along with the towering expectations of honesty and transparency it’s created among shoppers, resulted in negative outcry across both social and traditional media.

We expected a stellar response from Whole Foods, but instead we got a video from co-CEOs Walter Robb and John Mackey that left us with the kind of bad taste in our mouths usually associated with dipping into expired hummus:

https://youtu.be/UWUn2LYSb6g

Wooden delivery, awkward hand motions, poor excuses, a seeming difficulty with preventing smirks from creeping in and repeatedly pointing out that some errors were in favor of customers as well left us feeling no sympathy for Whole Foods. Fact is, just last year the grocer settled a case in California related to the same type of pricing problems, agreeing to pay nearly $800,000 and appoint “state coordinators” to keep tabs on pricing accuracy in that state. How, then, are we supposed to believe these errors are not only accidents, but also that Whole Foods is doing everything it can to keep things on the straight and narrow? Perhaps more importantly, this was only an apology, not an amends – they didn’t “make things right” with consumers. They should have done something like knocking 20% off all weighed-in-store products for a month – they’d make it up in associated purchases in no time.

Competition in fresh and healthy foods is more intense than ever. While Whole Foods is sitting firmly at the top of that mountain, it doesn’t take much to send shoppers elsewhere, especially considering the market is already saddled with the moniker of “Whole Paycheck” by even the happiest of customers. Beyond the temporary discount, our advice would be to establish a transparent and effective pricing system that either eliminates errors or makes certain they are not in Whole Foods’ favor. Will it cut into the bottom line a bit? You bet. But, considering the main issue here is Whole Foods at least appearing to care a little too much about locking in profits, it’s the right move in terms of crisis management.

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For more resources, see the Free Management Library topic: Crisis Management
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[Jonathan Bernstein is president of Bernstein Crisis Management, Inc., an international crisis management consultancy, author of Manager’s Guide to Crisis Management and Keeping the Wolves at Bay – Media Training. Erik Bernstein is vice president for the firm, and also editor of its newsletter, Crisis Manager]

– See more at: https://staging.management.org/blogs/crisis-management/2015/06/29/what-do-we-do-with-all-this-data/#sthash.IoA5Yaiv.dpuf

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Telephone Solicitation: Some Final Thoughts

Nonprofit representative dialing a potential donor's number

As previously noted, if your phone program is primarily a fundraising solicitation tool, then the goal must be to raise as much money as possible.

That happens when all of the elements in a phone program support/enhance each other. We’ve talked about caller recruitment, training, scripting and pre-call mail or email. We’ve also talked about the “relationship” between the prospects, the organization/institution, and the caller.

Callers must be judged, primarily, on how they deal with and relate to the prospects. They are not evaluated just on the basis of how many calls they make in a session and/or how many dollars they raise. Of course those latter two elements are important, but emphasizing the number of calls doesn’t allow callers to use their judgment and give their attention to prospects who might (now or later) make significant commitments; and, just emphasizing the dollars would encourage callers to end seemingly unproductive calls … without a thought about the future of the “relationship.”

When two people are engaged in conversation, there is a relationship that exists between the parties, a relationship that should grow as the conversation becomes more meaningful. And, even though there is a script to be followed, it’s how the caller uses the script and his/her voice (tone/inflection) that engenders a “connection” between the caller and the prospect.

If the caller uses his/her voice properly, and creates/maintains the relationship with the prospect, then the dollar commitment becomes much more likely.

This leads us to another consideration. It’s easier for two people to establish a relationship if they feel that they have “things” in common … or, at least, don’t feel as if they don’t have anything in common.

For example, how uncomfortable do you feel when you call a company’s customer service center and wind up speaking to someone from a different country/culture? There’s often something missing in that conversation … a connection, a feeling.

Another example relates to generation. When I was growing up I was taught that, when someone says, “Thank you,” my response must be, “You’re welcome.” So, when I thank someone and their reply is “No problem,” there is a disconnect, a discomfort … a minor discomfort, but still, a discomfort. If, then, there are other such disconnects, chances of establishing a “productive” relationship are further reduced.

Speaking with someone whose culture matches or is similar to yours is a major factor in creating the comfort level that allows the creation of a “relationship.” I am not suggesting that callers are only assigned to prospects with identical cultural profiles, even considering the “difficulty” of making that happen, but I am suggesting that some emphasis be placed on that issue during caller training, and some consideration be given to caller/prospect assignments.

We’ve seen movies/tv that showed telemarketing/calling centers where every caller had his/her own carrel, separated from all the other callers. We’ve also seen public television fundraising where all the “operators” are sitting next to each other. I favor the latter arrangement for callers, where they are being reinforced in what they’re doing by others doing the same thing. Callers are working together to achieve a goal.

Callers should be working in a comfortable environment: comfortable chairs, headsets instead of handsets, the ability to take breaks when they need to, with drinks and snacks available.

And, since you want to keep the callers who are “relationship builders,” those who bring in the dollars, they should be paid enough to keep them from going elsewhere where they can be better paid.

Three final thoughts: (1) Telephone fundraising is serious business and should not be conducted in a “party” environment or with a “let’s-have-fun-mindset; (2) There is one person who is as important to the success of a phone program as the caller, that’s the person who trains the caller and provides ongoing supervision, training, and evaluation; and, (3) an effective phone program can get prospects to make multiple gifts during the year … obviating the need for the terms “annual fund,” annual giving” and “annual gift.”

Any thoughts/questions ?? Agree/disagree ??

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
Have a comment or a question about starting, evaluating
or expanding your fundraising program?
AskHank
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
Have you heard about
The Fundraising Series of ebooks?
They’re easy to read, to the point, and inexpensive ($1.99-$4.99)
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

If you’re reading this on-line, and would like to comment/expand on the above piece, or would just like to offer your thoughts on the subject of this posting, we encourage you to “Leave a Reply.” If you’re reading this as an email, and you want to comment on the above piece, email Comments to offer your thoughts. Your comments, with appropriate attribution, could be the basis of a new posting.

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Telephone Solicitation: Caller Training – The Script

Telephone Solicitation Caller Training – The Script

Our apologies. Circumstances precluded our posting last week … first non-holiday week we’ve missed in five years.

We continue, now, with our series on Telephone Solicitation. And, by the way, our use of that term excludes telemarketing, robocalling or whatever you call those intrusive, unwelcome calls that always seem to come at inopportune times. Telephone solicitation for nonprofit organizations is about a personal contact.

Two weeks ago we ran out of space (because we want the postings on The Fundraising Blog to be worthwhile reading, easy to read, and short enough so that you’d not give up on reading a piece that looked too-long-to-read-right-now) and didn’t get to talk about caller training.

Caller training should have, as it’s main focus, the relationship between the constituent and the caller. It is about the connection they both have with the organization; the connection that the “letter-writer” tried to establish in the pre-call letter; the experiences/attitudes they may have in common; and, most importantly, how the caller treats the constituent.

For a call to be successful, both the caller and the constituent must be comfortable. At the end of the call, both participants should be smiling. Their feeling should be that they had just had a nice/pleasant experience.

For the caller, that feeling should make him/her look forward to the next call, to want to make that call, and experience that feeling again. For the constituent, that feeling should reinforce his/her feeling of commitment … to the organization and to follow through with what s/he promised during the call.

An essential element in the training process is the formal script that the caller will use when making contact with constituents. (The reason the best callers are actors is that they can make their use of a script sound like they just thought of what they wanted to say, and not like they’re reading a script.)

The wording must be conversational, not stiff, and must focus on the reason for the call. The script should not get into a “Hi, how are you” format. It should begin with the caller identifying him-/herself as the person that (the first section of) the pre-call letter/email said would be calling. If the prospect has received the letter, the rest of the call is easy … because the caller will then address sections two-and-three of the letter. (In case you missed it, the sections of the pre-call letter were discussed in the posting on June 11th.

Once the caller has identified him-/herself, the next step is to emphasize what was said in the letter about the need for a particular program, and that Mr. Kramden had asked that “you consider a commitment of….” Note, so far, the assumption is that the pre-call letter was received, that the prospect has read it, and has thought about the “support” that had been requested.

The assumptions continue, with the caller asking how the prospect would like to structure his/her commitment – “Will you be sending your check for that amount sometime this month, or would early next month be better for you?” There should be no discussion as to “IF” the prospect will make the commitment. The only question is “WHEN?”

Once the desired result (the commitment) has been obtained, then (appropriate) thanks will be in order, and mention that you will tell Mr. Kramden of the donor’s commitment. Following that, there can/should be chit-chat … conversation that will engender those “good feelings.”

OK, maybe you’re saying to yourself that the above sounds pretty impersonal, but it’s up to the callers, by their tone of voice, inflections, attitude, to show that they care … about the organization, about the program that needs support, and about the person with whom they are speaking.

The first line, the first thought, in our last posting noted that, “The key ingredient of an in-house telephone solicitation program is the person making the phone call.”

Next week we’ll wrap up this series with some varied thoughts about
the process – the callers, the training, and the calling environment.

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
Have a comment or a question about starting, evaluating
or expanding your fundraising program?
AskHank
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
Have you heard about
The Fundraising Series of ebooks?
They’re easy to read, to the point, and inexpensive ($1.99-$4.99)
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

If you’re reading this on-line, and would like to comment/expand on the above piece, or would just like to offer your thoughts on the subject of this posting, we encourage you to “Leave a Reply.” If you’re reading this as an email, and you want to comment on the above piece, email Comments to offer your thoughts. Your comments, with appropriate attribution, could be the basis of a new posting.