Bridget Willard | SaaS Marketing Agency

Author: Bridget Willard

  • Automating Friendships

    Friendship isn’t something that can appear by magic, API calls, or automated audience reports. It takes time listening, investing, responding.

    Just like in real life.

    This tweet is the inspiration for this post.

    I know that I’ve talked about relationship marketing before. It takes time.

    If we could automate friendship, there would be a lot fewer lonely people in this world.

    The lure of automation

    Automation is like the siren song to marketers luring them with promises of slick reports, extra time, and better insights. What they forget to tell you is that the rest of us can tell when something is automated.

    There is no software that will replace authentic, real interaction between you and your customer.

    Sure, you can send auto tweets thanking people, auto responders in emails, and even direct messages to people who followed you in the last ten seconds.

    Here’s the thing: we know they’re not real. So, who are you really fooling?

    Auto Direct Messages on Twitter

    I’ve talked about this for years. People are convinced that they work. For me, it’s just one more thing to delete. It’s noise that drowns out legitimate messages.

    If I wasn’t so lazy, I’d unfollow anyone who sent me one of these.

    Read these two examples. If either one of them had bothered to really check me out, they would have known that I don’t like automation.

    Automation and Curation

    Look. Let’s be honest. I have tons of friends who use APIs, RSS feeds, and other kinds of automation. They choose the people they trust then load them into Buffer or whatever. That’s fine. If you’re sure that all of the content is something you feel comfortable tweeting, posting, etc., then do it — with my blessing.

    Curating content is hard. I admit it. It means I read. It means I interact with people. I trust instinct, gut, and messaging.

    I’ve talked about it before. I curate content by curating people. I make friends, put them on Twitter Lists, and read their tweets. If their blog post, video, etc. is something that I agree with, then I will share it on the appropriate social network.

    Hybrid Approach

    Like most things in life, hybrid solutions are usually best. Of course, I schedule some tweets. What I don’t do is auto schedule based on an RSS feed or a hashtag or a keyword.

    I don’t tweet things I don’t read. Why? Because I am responsible for ensuring that the things shared for a brand do not conflict with their messaging. No app can do that.

    So, how do I make friends online?

    You talk to people.

    You can start with asking questions. You can reply to tweets. Take two weeks and spend ten minutes a day on Twitter actually talking to people. Read tweets. Get to know what the person likes.

    We call this providing value.

    You can also share their posts.

    You can comment on their blogs.

    You can step outside of your own world and read other people’s content.

    Invest in people and they’ll invest in you.

    This has been my experience.

    I believe it can be yours, too.

     

     

  • WPblab – Looking back over a year of learning, video platforms, and community.

    Community, friendship, video, learning, guests, oh my! So much has happened since Jason Tucker invited me to co-host WPblab Oct 1, 2015!

    A Day that Will Live in Infamy

    Well, not really. But October 1, 2015, changed my life forever.

    Blab(dot im) came out and Jason Tucker sent me a message. Would I want to co-host a new show on the WPwatercooler network?

    “Did you ask the right person?”

    A developer and a marketer is the perfect combination. And so, Thursday, October 1, a show was born.

    You can watch that episode here:

    Video Platforms are Fickle

    With live video, you learn to roll with things. Seriously. Blab(dot)im was there for quite a while. But when they shut down, we were ready. Jason Tucker had already moved us to Firetalk. But when Firetalk stopped reliably providing video download, we went to YouTube Live in a Custom Post Type.

    Gee. When I started this journey, I had no idea what a CPT was.

    It’s been a great year. But I digress.

    The point is, if you’re hosting a live show — especially on video — you have to have grace and be ready for anything.

    Main takeaways besides that are:

    1. Wear headphones.
    2. Don’t allow anyone to stream in your house.
    3. Be hard wired.
    4. Have a good attitude.
    5. Laugh a lot.
    6. Make friends.
    7. Take selfies.

    Cross-over Opportunities

    Adam Silver of KitchenSinkWP has appeared on our show dozens of times, too. We’ve had tons of people from The WP Crowd, too! They even made me an honorary member.

    Also, Jason Tucker scheduled a cross-over with Jeffrey Bradbury of Teacher Cast that was epic. Be open to these opportunities. They’ve always been awesome.

    *My disclaimer is that we’ve had so many amazing people, I’m probably leaving someone out. Apologies in advance.

    A New Career

    On December 1, 2015, I was offered my dream job doing marketing at WordImpress. You can read all about that transition in my blog post here.

    A theme song is born.

    Jason Tucker challenged me to come up with a theme song. And, so, I did.

    [soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/243111943″ params=”auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false&visual=true” width=”100%” height=”450″ iframe=”true” /]

    It debuted on January 14, 2016. My favorite part is when Jason went “woo” at the end.

    Favorite Episode

    It’s hard to pin down my favorite episode because they all have great moments. That said, this episode with James Laws of Ninja Forms and Josh Pollock of Caldera blew my mind. I didn’t realize forms were that functional.

    Life Happens

    So, when the worst thing could happen — and did — the WordPress and WPblab community was there for me, quite literally.

    You can read about it in detail here.

    My Coral Reef: The WordPress Community

    Accidental Community

    I can’t even start listing all of the wonderful people I’ve met both there and in-person since we started this show.

    Russell Aaron has been a regular regular. Regular regular? Yes. He’s been on the show dozens of times. I finally got to meet him in person this year at WordCamp San Diego and we chatted again in person at WordCamp Orange County. He’s become a mentor of mine. Would that have happened without WPblab? I doubt it.

    https://twitter.com/jasontucker/status/677709022657716226

    I’ve also met Josh Pollock from Caldera and Jacob Arriola from Zeek Interactive.

    I expect to meet so many more people as I attend more WordCamps around the nation. This is partly why I made the GuruSelfies page.

    I can say without a doubt that I feel more connected to the WordPress community than ever before. And I feel invested. And I care.

    We’ve become a virtual meetup.

    People have shared their struggles and triumphs. We’ve chatted. We’ve become friends on Twitter and Facebook. We’ve met in person. We’re planning to meet in person. People have started blogs, meetups, quit jobs, leveled up their careers, and applied to be WordCamp organizers.

    I feel safe to say that Jason Tucker’s gift of hospitality really shines through in this show’s format and I’m proud to play a part in it.

  • Listen to the Quiet

    It’s easy to be busy — busy with people, noise, work, problems. And it’s good to work hard, hustle, and be productive. But we need downtime. We need to listen to the quiet.

    And so, I took a walk at the beach. I was content taking photographs, listening to the waves, feeling the sun on my face, and tasting the salt air.

    “When words become unclear, I shall focus with photographs. When images become inadequate, I shall be content with silence.” ― Ansel Adams

    Writers Need Rest

    Tonight, I knew I was coming up against my own deadline of publishing Saturday morning at 9:15 a.m. And, for my day job, I write.

    Tweets, Facebook posts, point of view documents, persuasive content, informative content, technical pieces, editing, proofreading. There’s so much writing. And that doesn’t even count the conversations I have that are heavily edited. 😉

    And we forget that as creators, we also need to consume. So, I watch Gary Vaynerchuk’s shows and WordPress shows and even comedies on the Internet. I watch documentaries on Netflix, and movies, and even cartoons. I laughed, I cried, it moved me.

    But if we never have moments with true quiet, how can we think? And when I say think I mean to deeply consider, meditate, and ponder.

    Consumption requires reflection. And we’ve already agreed that creation requires consumption. So, it’s logical to presume that creation requires reflection. So, when do we just stop talking and listen?

    Get out of the house.

    Okay, so I live in an apartment, but you get it. Sometimes, I hang with my friends and we go for a walk at the harbor. But that’s not the same, is it? I mean, it can do you a world of good — believe me.

    But I feel like we don’t value being alone — outside — in nature.

    And our times spent at the beach, or riding our bike, or enjoying some other outdoor activity is often seen as frivolous and unproductive.

    So, what if I told you our brains crave nature?

    Science said so.

    What should be obvious to us — taking a walk to give your mind a break — is being heavily studied and written about lately. Of course, getting away from your computer helps you solve problems. We are so worried about our brains being 100% active that we forget what happens when we enjoy our surroundings.

    “A few years ago, for example, in an experiment similar to Bratman’s, Stephen Kaplan and his colleagues found that a 50-minute walk in an arboretum improved executive attention skills, such as short-term memory, while walking along a city street did not.” National Geographic Magazine

    Case in point. I thought I had nothing to say tonight. But just one hour walking at the beach and watching the sunset — without earbuds — allowed my brain to focus on “nothing.” Instead of forcing myself to come up with an idea and work on one of my neglected drafts, It came to me.

    I saw a man, sitting on the beach, alone. He was outstretched. His legs were open to the sea. His arms were open wide. He was still. And it occurred to me — we don’t listen to the quiet enough. How are we supposed to think of brilliant ideas when we never stop the noise?

    “Neural activity in the subgenual prefrontal cortex, a brain region active during rumination – repetitive thought focused on negative emotions – decreased among participants who walked in nature versus those who walked in an urban environment.” Rob Jordan

    Art said so.

    It’s hard not to think of Ansel Adams, Robert Frost, and Henry David Thoreau when we think of art and nature.

    One inspires the other.

    The words, the photographs, the paintings. They reflect nature and nature’s affect on us. And we practice seeing beauty in the ordinary — joy in the routine.

    And so, our minds rest, relax, and consume. It consumes that which many believe is the truest — nature.

    https://www.instagram.com/p/BJUFQDahaOO/

    Take a Walk. Then Create.

    Spend some time alone — not listening to a podcast or music or talking to your friend. Listen to the wind, the birds, the ocean. No matter where you live, you have beauty around you.

    Consume that.

    Consume nature.

    You’ll never regret it.

     

  • Social Media Matters Because Successful Business Relationships are Built Upon Small Talk

    Updated 1/8/23

    The use case for social media to develop business relationships gets a bad rap. Social platforms have the reputation of being where people tweet that they’re going to the bathroom, take selfies in their car, photograph their chicken salad sandwich, and test out the newest dance craze. These posts are viewed as irrelevant at best – foolishness at worst.

    It’s drivel. It’s meaningless. It’s small talk. So why should your business invest in social?

    I mean, who cares what someone ate for breakfast?

    The truth is, we all care.

    Wait. What?

    Business is Built with Relationships

    We all know that we do business with people we “know, like, and trust.” I can hear you saying it out loud while you’re reading it. It’s a cliché because it’s true. In business, this is why we put a huge emphasis on likability.  

    It’s not a fair world. It’s not about the best product. We don’t hire the best candidate. We don’t promote the best person. We promote, hire, and purchase from people we like. It’s changing with the diversity and inclusion landscape – but that’s another blog post.

    So how can you become likable in business? Engage in effective small talk. 

    Small Talk Builds Business Relationships

    Small talk builds business relationships. If you agree, you’re done reading. If you’re in doubt, let’s take a step back. What is small talk? 

    You may think about discussing the weather trends as small talk. Meaning, the talk is unimportant. Does it matter if you discuss whether Aaron Rodgers will retire next season? No. The Packers won’t take your advice and neither will Aaron Rodgers or his agent. What small talk does, however, is determine whether or not the person next to you at the pub, conference or dinner is willing to continue to talk to you. 

    If small talk is bad, what are we supposed to talk about anyway? Are we supposed to solve the energy crisis with a stranger at the Chamber of Commerce breakfast? Do you sit down next to a person at a conference and pour out your latest heartbreak? No. You don’t. Why? Because “big talk” is often inappropriate in public, business settings.

    Small talk’s role in our lives is far from small. People who think we waste time talking about our cat, lunch, etc. fail to appreciate that small talk is the structure upon which business relationships are built. Small talk naysayers are often self-conscious about their small talk skills.

    “One of the hardest things about small talk is finding something to talk about besides the weather. But, pro networkers have figured out that most people like to talk about themselves. Take that and run with it.” Vernon Gunnarson

    Small Talk is an Emotional Bridge

    In personal relationships, small talk is a bridge to an emotional discussion. It’s dipping your toe in the conversation water to make sure its temperature isn’t too hot or too cold. It helps you evaluate the emotional status of your potential conversationalist.

    So what does this have to do with business? All relationships contain a personal element – even in business. If you’re an employee, you need to have an emotional bridge – psychological safety – so that you can have harder discussions – like policy change, promotion opportunities, and even grievances. 

    Dismissing small talk as banal and pedestrian puts you at a major disadvantage in business settings. All team building requires psychological safety. That doesn’t happen without small talk. With regards to business mentorships, cutting off small talk may cut you off from larger conversations and, ultimately,  deeper connections. Keep this in mind the next time someone asks you an annoying question like, “What are you doing?” It may be they’re just testing the waters.

    Do you remember the last time you approached someone with a request? How did you start?

    “Many times, much as in the outside world, family members preface a highly anxious issue with small talk. If you can listen without dismissal to what seems like small talk by a spouse, child, teen or parent, you may facilitate an opportunity for crucial disclosure.” Suzanne Phillips, Psy.D., ABPP

    But Small Talk is Annoying and Difficult

    It was for me, too, before I started. You do it on social media the same way as in real life. Starting conversations with questions helps – especially if they are open-ended questions. This only backfires if you’re talking to someone shyer than you. The truth is that most people like to talk about themselves. It’s just a fact.

    Practice. Read “How to Win Friends & Influence People.” Learn how to actively listen.

    The next wedding you attend, ask a stranger how they know the bride. At your next meetup, ask the person a question about the subject matter. This is a great way to get better at small talk. It will not happen without practice.

    “Small talk can lead to a host of outcomes, from a merely pleasant exchange to the signing of multimillion-dollar business deal.” Brett Nelson, Forbes 

    Believe me, I used to panic while entering rooms full of people I don’t know. With practice, I found that a smile and greeting goes a long way and even people waiting for an elevator can have a perfectly good conversation. Why not leverage that opportunity?

    Small Talk 2.0 – Build Business Relationships Online 

    Enter social media. Specifically, Twitter. I think this is where most people meet others, though I could be wrong. For me, it’s where I’m open to conversations (small talk) with strangers. I could babble on incessantly about how much my life has changed because of the people I met. Let’s settle for one use case.

    While working for a commercial general contractor, I met a Commercial Real Estate broker on Twitter. The good thing is that he also worked in the same geographical area as Riggins Construction. After interacting and reading Allen’s content, I knew he and my boss would hit it off. I had a crazy idea. Let’s all do lunch. At first, I was nervous. After all, this was my very first sales call.

    But when Allen walked into the restaurant, all anxiety disappeared. It was all smiles and handshakes. The awkward small talk wasn’t awkward – it didn’t exist. Why? We did it online. We sat as friends because we were friends.

    “Small talk is not wasted talk. It’s a social lubricant as essential as wine and laughter that allows strangers to make crucial first connections across demographic lines. And it’s far from meaningless.” Ruth Graham

    Now, the next time you see someone you have a basis for continuing the friendship. You no longer need to talk about sports or weather — though you can. You can level up.

    You can ask a question you’ve been dying to ask. You can tell them how you liked the blog post they wrote last week. You can brainstorm, collaborate, and actually become friends.

    Small Talk Builds Trust in Business Relationships

    The value of small talk is this: it builds trust over time. When it comes to business relationships, trust is the intangible element that makes our community stronger. I’m not going to tell you where I live, my first kiss, or my darkest secret right off the bat. Would you?

    The point is this. Humans are social. We create business relationships by communicating. This includes body language, tone, inflection, micro-gestures, laughter, tears, expressions, and, yes, small talk.

    If you want people to like you, be likable. There is no way around that.

    Or, just enjoy your next business dinner for one in the corner. Alone.

  • Is your headline as disappointing as a toy in a box of cereal?

    Big promises on the box. Small on delivery. “Toy inside!” False promises in cereal boxes and in headlines only disappoint your audience. That’s no way to build yourself up as a blogger or a small business.

    Do you find that you have a lot of clicks but low time on site? Or maybe your headlines aren’t getting any clicks at all. Maybe you’re not writing for your audience.

    Clickbait Headlines are Cheap Tricks

    Clickbait. We’ve all seen it. Most of us have clicked.

    The mad-lib formula headline gets the most publicity but is it the most disappointing?

    “[Personal Noun] [past tense verb] into a [location] and you’ll never believe what happened next.”

    Now, we joke about them because they’re often formatted like a joke. But how many times are you disappointed in that type of a headline? (more…)