Susan Finch Solutions

How do you feel about the government deciding who can sing Happy Birthday online?

Governement. There's a word.  When I was in school I was taught WE were the governement, the people, the citizens.

gov·ern·ment/ˈgəvər(n)mənt/

Noun:	The governing body of a nation, state, or community. The system by which a nation, state, or community is governed.
Synonyms:	administration - rule - management - ministry - reign

"The Government" has become this babysitter/boogeyman entity that controls too much, that doesn't always listen if it isn't in "their" best interest.  With the proposed SOPA Bill, there is the potential that smaller start-ups, sites, non-profits will be hunted down because perhaps they actually posted someone singing Happy Birthday on YouTube. Happy Birthday is copywritten. You cannot legally sing it in public in a group - such as a restaurant or bowling alley without permission or paying for the right to sing it.  This bill is along that line.  Learn more here:

PROTECT IP / SOPA Breaks The Internet from Fight for the Future on Vimeo.

Who Owns Your List of Followers and Fans?

Many companies are spread thin, especially small businesses, when it comes to maintaining and setting up social media venues such as Twitter accounts, Facebook fan pages and the like.  Everyone wants to pitch in and help. Or do they? Many times our employees are well-intentioned when they take the initiative to set these accounts up with their email as the contact because it's easier, etc.  I'm warning you - set up company policies regarding the use of the company name, tagline, logo, lists as soon as possible. It's difficult to go back and gain "custody" after a messy divorce.

If an employee sets up a Twitter account for your company using their email address, and then proceeds to represent the company with their tweets and efforts, this is no longer THEIR Twitter account.  People follow with the assumption they are following the company or product. If a list of followers is gained, then the staff person is fired or leaves the company, they can simply change their Twitter username and retain the list of followers. It's similar to stealing a company client list or mailing list of customers.  Don't think that some people won't intentionally do this to gain a big list of YOUR customers and fans with the plan to leave and bring the list with them.

Good Old Fashioned Networking Wins Out Over Social Media Contacts

The problem of finding a way to get over 1,000 quilts delivered to Japan was presented to me yesterday.  The solution wasn't through "connections," "friends," followers," the solution  came from my very first networking group that meets face to face around an oval table once a month.  This group holds my networking heart because they always say, "yes we can" as a group and think outside the box many times each day. These are a group of seasoned professionals who are used to finding a solution and creating true relationships.

Our chapter leaders had originally worked through their local contacts.  One chapter was in charge of coordinating the delivery, the other took  over getting the word out to 5,000 quilters to lend a hand.  The quilters came from an old fashioned newsletter list from a quilt shop in Placentia, CA - Calico House Quilting.  Once I heard that the delivery effort had stalled, panic set in with the quilters and dissent through the group. I stepped in thinking with all of my social media knowledge this would be easy with Facebook and Twitter.  Not the case.  People either didn't respond or had vague ideas or wished me well.  No solutions there.

Then I thought about my local women business orgs in Oregon, that wasn't it.  Then I got smart. The binkies were in Orange County - DUH - my favorite networking group is still South OC PR.  I miss it more than any group I've ever moved away from due to the roundtable format.  Sure enough, I sent an email out to the group. Within less than an hour I had 10 fantastic ideas and contacts.  From there, four were underway. Within 6 hours, I was contacted by the president of Shin Koyamada Foundation, Shoichi Nakagiri. We spoke briefly this morning after the Japanese Consulate referred me to him as someone who could make things happen. He returned my call within 20 minutes and told me he would write at the end of the day.  True to his word, he did and said he could get our 1,100 quilts to Japan.

Our group in Vacaville is still trying to pull it together with Fed Ex who has told her they would also ship her 800 quilts to Japan for her pro-bono.

I was speaking to Doug Erber, president of the Japan America Society in Los Angeles earlier. He said that at the moment there is no infrastructure in Japan to distribute these quilts.  He was hoping to be able to coordinate something in a few weeks. This may work as our group will continue to make blankets.

We have a few people in our group that had put in motion additional contacts to make this happen. I asked them to lovingly put the brakes on for now and thanked them profusely for jumping into action.

THIS is true social networking - true human networking - human relationships. I am blessed.

Twists, turns and bamboozled in LinkedIn

It was bound to happen. It happens to all very cool trends and tools, even in fashion.  Everyone catches on and then starts knocking off the part that works, cheapening the original idea.  Several of my LinkedIn groups have fallen into this pitfall.

When I started with LinkedIn many years ago, it was about helping each other, finding related people, or former colleagues in your industry, and sharing ideas as well as resources.  As more people attend webinars of "How to Turn LinkedIn Into Your Goldmine of Prospects," or some other ballyhoo similar topic the groups have shifted severely.  Up until about a year ago I would freely participate in many seemingly innocent questions posted to the "group" for the "group" to chime in on with their experiences, advice, etc.  In the last year, 90% of these questions were loaded, posted by a lot of "life coaches."  Answering them would result in a pitch sent to you shortly thereafter.  I felt bamboozled. Perhaps I'm naive thinking that professionals can engage in lively conversation without having to get a direct sale from it.

I'm not always a quick study when it comes to recognizing the dark side of networking; mainly because I don't network that way.  I don't want to know your name as you're slapping a card into my hand.  I'd like to know you a bit more before I bother taking one of your cards. But I know when I'm being MLMed, hornswaggled and duped now.  The result, I drop the group and remember your name this time as "one of those" types of networkers that have to be watched, because all that will come of the conversation is another unwanted pitch.

Completely disenchanted with LinkedIn?  It will take more than that.  What can I say, I'm Catholic and am able to separate the Church from the men who mess it up regularly.  I still find LinkedIn a valuable place to meet, stay current with others in my industry and industries I serve on my clients' behalf.  I'm just more particular and wary of the groups I join.

We all know time is precious.  Some measure events they attend and groups they join by the number of contacts they will make at each gathering, online or in person.  I've been in sales for years on an off and think this is a sad way to measure business relationships.  Smarmy, I think so.  If every encounter for you is viewed as an opportunity to pitch or give your 'elevator spiel' I hope our paths don't cross anytime soon.  You wear me out and waste my time with cloaked paths of conversation.

SmileCare: 56 Facebook pages for 56 locations SoMe BLITZ!

SmileCare Family Dentistry has been a client for several years.  We just came off a highly successful dental symposium and moved into a social media blitz with Facebook.  We've had location pages/profiles on their main website, including which dentists are at which office.  Those are updated each month, inculding specialties.

Since a very high percentage of their patients and potential patients use Facebook heavily, we decided to expand their presence from one page to 58 pages - one for each location, their main page and a careers page to pull in current opportunities.