I presented this Aug. 3, 2010, as the keynote for the Community Development Institute Central conference at Conway's University of Central Arkansas.

1. Community Development Institute Central
August 3, 2010
The Social Revolution
Building Relationships
in the Digital Age

2. Communicating Today

3. Things are a bit different

4. Arkansas has 896,900 Facebook users (31%
of the population)
Arkansas has more than 25,000 Twitter users
in Little Rock
Small and large businesses and organizations
are joining the conversation every day.

5. Changing Media
Landscape

7. In 2009, more than 290
papers folded and 45
launched (9 of these being
online only).
- Vocus 2010 State of the Media

8. “New technology was more prevalent as a way
for media – both traditional and new – to break
news more quickly. The Web is now clearly the
first place of publication.”
“How News Happens,” Pew Research Center’s Project for Excellence in
Journalism

9. Americans spend nearly a quarter of their time
online on social networking sites and blogs, up
from 15.8 percent just a year ago (43%
increase).
- Nielsen August 2010 Report

10. More than 4 in 5 U.S. online adults (80%) use
social media at least once a month, and half
participate in social networks such as
Facebook, Twitter, etc.
Among adults 35-54, participation in social
media increased 60% over 2008.
- “The Broad Reach of Social Technologies,”
Forrester Research, August 2009

11. Media Types: Owned, Paid, Earned
Forrester Research

12. The Scene

16. Don’t Get Lost in the Crowd

17. What’s Your Goal?

18. Measurable Objectives

19. Measurable Objectives
Specify an outcome (To increase, to
decrease, to maintain)

20. Measurable Objectives
Specify an outcome (To increase, to
decrease, to maintain)
State the level of change (from 10% to
20%)

21. Measurable Objectives
Specify an outcome (To increase, to
decrease, to maintain)
State the level of change (from 10% to
20%)
Set a target date (by December 2010)

22. “Strategy without tactics is the slowest route to
victory. Tactics without strategy
are the noise before the defeat.”
- Sun Tzu, The Art of War

23. Set Your
Strategy: How
Are You Getting

24. Who are you trying to reach? Site selectors?
CEOS? Residents? People who love the color
blue? Fitness gurus? Blue-collar workers?
Where are these people online?
Go back to those goals and objectives. What
spells success for you? What behaviors are
you trying to drive - awareness,
engagement, registration?
What tools can you manage best with your
time and resources? What will be the best
ROI for you?

25. Relationship Building:
Two-Way

26. Two-Way
Communication

27. Two-Way
Communication
Initiate conversation

28. Two-Way
Communication
Initiate conversation
Ask for feedback and response

29. Two-Way
Communication
Initiate conversation
Ask for feedback and response
Maintain dialogue and interaction with your
brand

30. Remember!

31. Long-term relationships
do NOT start with
short-term campaigns.

32. But short-term
campaigns are READILY
supported by
long-term relationships.
- Todd Defren, @TDefren

33. Where to Connect

34. LinkedIn

35. Create a custom URL –
http://www.linkedin.com/in/yourfullname
Utilize professional connections, discussion
and support groups and interest groups
Take advantage of the Applications, such as
integrating your blog, showcasing your
Slideshare presentations and displaying your
portfolio.

36. Build your network by importing your
contacts. Also, make your email address
public on your profile – allowing people to
easily add you to their network.
Use the Groups and Discussions feature to
start and continue dialogue with your
network. Use this as an opportunity to
position your brand.

37. IEDC Group Page

38. Economic Development Professionals

39. Facebook

40. Charlotte Chamber of Commerce

41. Flickr

42. Metro Denver EDC

43. YouTube

44. Nashville Chamber of Commerce

45. Twitter

46. @cltecondev

47. @MetroDenverEDC

48. The New Sales Call

49. Meet (network)
Greet (engage in conversation)
Share (provide something of value)

50. Be Real.

52. Social media is transparent.

53. Social media is transparent.
People can tell when you’re fake.

54. Post frequently and
consistently.

56. When you blog, tweet it, Facebook it,
YouTube it. You name it.

57. When you blog, tweet it, Facebook it,
YouTube it. You name it.
Beginning formula – Daily: 1 @reply, 1
retweet, 1 post/link/thought

58. Be valuable.

60. Think before you tweet or post.

61. Think before you tweet or post.
Build valuable relationships by sharing.

62. Think before you tweet or post.
Build valuable relationships by sharing.
Pass on tips, advice, tricks of the trade,
insight.

63. Think before you tweet or post.
Build valuable relationships by sharing.
Pass on tips, advice, tricks of the trade,
insight.
Ask yourself, will people be better off by
reading/viewing this content?

64. Listen. Listen.
And listen some more.

66. Listening is the KEY to communicating and
building conversation.

67. Listening is the KEY to communicating and
building conversation.
Take the time to truly hear what others are
saying.

68. Listening is the KEY to communicating and
building conversation.
Take the time to truly hear what others are
saying.
Monitor the conversation. When people talk
about you, know it immediately.

69. How Listening Can Help

70. How Listening Can Help
Tracks perceptions and how messages are
being interpreted

71. How Listening Can Help
Tracks perceptions and how messages are
being interpreted
Begins to identify important new influencers

72. How Listening Can Help
Tracks perceptions and how messages are
being interpreted
Begins to identify important new influencers
Lets you determine emerging trends and
what others are doing

73. How Listening Can Help
Tracks perceptions and how messages are
being interpreted
Begins to identify important new influencers
Lets you determine emerging trends and
what others are doing
Helps manage and improve reputation

74. How Listening Can Help
Tracks perceptions and how messages are
being interpreted
Begins to identify important new influencers
Lets you determine emerging trends and
what others are doing
Helps manage and improve reputation
Identifies important conversations to join

75. Then Respond.

77. Let people know they are being heard and
that you value their opinion.

78. Let people know they are being heard and
that you value their opinion.
Whether their comment is good or bad,
respond. When you don’t respond, there can
be no good from it.

79. Let people know they are being heard and
that you value their opinion.
Whether their comment is good or bad,
respond. When you don’t respond, there can
be no good from it.
Ditch “message control” theory. Embrace
conversation and engagement.

80. Think beyond your
doors.

82. Share. Retweet. Become part of the broader
conversation.

83. Share. Retweet. Become part of the broader
conversation.
If you’re an economic development
professional, take part in issue discussions. If
you’re selling your city, discuss what other
communities are doing.

84. Integrate Your Tools.

86. In the immediate future, you won’t find the
content; the content will find you.

87. In the immediate future, you won’t find the
content; the content will find you.
Use all your tools to get your message out.
Tweet your blog posts. Facebook your new
YouTube video.

88. “The days of creating and pushing
one press release are over. These
are the days of reaching diversified
and equally pivotal communities
when, where, and how they choose
to be reached.”
- Brian Solis, PR 2.0 author and speaker

89. Make time to tweet.

91. Designate one person or a team of people to
post content, listen, and engage.

92. Designate one person or a team of people to
post content, listen, and engage.
The ONLY way to be successful with this is to
take the time to build relationships. Isn’t that
how it is offline?

93. Embrace the negative
when it comes
(because it will).

95. When you read negative comments, use these
as a way to positively respond and extend
your customer service.

96. When you read negative comments, use these
as a way to positively respond and extend
your customer service.
If it’s legitimate criticism, thank them for the
feedback and use the information to
improve.

97. Engage. Engage. Engage.

99. You will gain no followers, fans or blog
readers if you don’t take part in the
conversation.

100. Buy a handheld
camcorder.

102. Your connection to the world is immediate.

103. Your connection to the world is immediate.
Don’t save the news for a later post; share
while it’s happening. Your followers will
appreciate it.

104. Your connection to the world is immediate.
Don’t save the news for a later post; share
while it’s happening. Your followers will
appreciate it.
Oh, and these things are CHEAP!

105. Measure.

107. Go back to those measurable goals and
objectives. What is “moving the needle” to
us? What do I need to measure?

108. Go back to those measurable goals and
objectives. What is “moving the needle” to
us? What do I need to measure?
Free and paid tools (Google alerts, real-time
Twitter search, Scout Labs)

109. Go back to those measurable goals and
objectives. What is “moving the needle” to
us? What do I need to measure?
Free and paid tools (Google alerts, real-time
Twitter search, Scout Labs)
Ask yourself: Is what I’m doing adding value
to my community of interest?

110. Website Foundation

111. Content
Content
Content
And make it interactive!

112. Indy Partnership Home Page

113. Indy Partnership Blog

114. Indy Partnership Contact Us

115. Gwinnett Chamber Home Page

116. Gwinnett Chamber Blog

117. Gwinnett Chamber RSS Feed

118. Nashville Chamber Home Page

119. Nashville Chamber Blog

120. Charlotte Chamber Home Page

121. Charlotte Chamber Contact Us

122. Metro Denver EDC Home Page

123. Metro Denver EDC Blog

124. Random Resources

125. Mashable
www.mashable.com

126. Brian Solis
www.briansolis.com

127. Forrester Research “Groundswell” Blog
http://blogs.forrester.com/groundswell

128. Chris Brogan’s Blog
www.chrisbrogan.com

129. HootSuite
www.hootsuite.com

130. TweetDeck
www.tweetdeck.com

131. Slideshare
www.slideshare.net

133. Natalie Ghidotti, APR
@ghidotti
natalie@ghidotticommunications.com