Cyber Monday Extended, Google+ Vs. Facebook, Twitter in Kansas, Michael Jackson’s Doctor, Apple Siri, Jets, Giants Lose: What your business can do to increase sales and save face

Posted by Romain Malaganne on Nov 29, 2011

Let me start off today with a quote from Dick Jauron (defensive coordinator for the Cleveland Browns of the National Football League) – courtesy of Successories motivational posters: http://bit.ly/u28isL

“I believe (the NFL) is the best sports league in the world and it has the most passionate fans. Every place is a little distinct in their passion and when you lose, they’re going to let you know. The bottom line for us is working as hard as you can, working together, and working to create a winner again. We do that and the fans will be passionate in a positive way.”

It’s funny to be inNew Yorkwith all of our sports teams. Whether they win or lose, it’s definitely NOT how they play the game. Because the fact is that if they lose, fans care. And that is passion. So don’t worry about selling tickets to your sporting events. Plenty of people will pay for a seat in a football stadium. Just exist!

However, if you are a sensitive nation and a politically correct National Football League, then don’t celebrate a touchdown by acting like a JET and then crashing and burning. Some people might get offended or insulted and think you are talking about 9-11 when you are just referring to getting a touchdown. And if you want to make fun of Plaxico Burress shooting himself, that’s another story: http://sports.yahoo.com/nfl/news?slug=ap-jets-johnsonsantics

So now let’s say that you score a touchdown or are offended by a celebration. Well, the main thing we do in 2011 is tweet about it. http://fox4kc.com/2011/11/28/social-media-experts-talk-twitter/. In this particular instance though, some high school student tweeted that the Governor of Kansas sucks. Well, good for the student for expressing her freedom of speech. And even better for theKansasgovernor for having a staff that monitors social media. Apparently the staff asked for an apology but then rescinded the request and now the Governor is apologizing. I can totally see how this thing got out of hand. Literally a he said/she said situation. So the Governor’s staff thought they were doing the right thing by demanding an apology. The better thing would’ve been to embrace the Twitter remarks and make her even more of a public figure by asking her publicly how he can be a BETTER governor. Even though the situation was blown out of proportion, it proved to be a fantastic news media lesson. When kids are telling you you suck, try to change. After all, kids today, constituents tomorrow.

And along the lines of news media, guess which Internet company is going public with a valuation of $10 billion dollars? http://mashable.com/2011/11/29/facebook-april-ipo-att-t-cyber-monday-youtube/ That’s right folks. That’s BILLIONS with a “B”! (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EJR1H5tf5wE) I am glad Marc Zuckerberg didn’t take my advice a few years back when I told him to take the money and run! (http://www.raphisalem.com/microsoft-offers-446b-for-yahoo)

But if you ever lose a camera while on a boat and use social media to find the owner, then you will think that Google+ beats out Facebook.https://plus.google.com/104277202662943073951/posts/MH4ZjS8fi2q. I can’t argue that Google+ worked better in THIS case, but overall I am still a fan of Facebook when it comes to social media. Maybe Google+ should be renamed Google Lost and Found? http://shine.yahoo.com/work-money/camera-lost-sea-returned-help-social-networking-215800650.html

I love the fact that Black Friday has turned into Cyber Monday which has turned into Cyber Week, Cyber Month and Cyber all the time! It just goes to show you that retailers with Brick and Mortar MUST have an internet strategy. You can simply make a greater profit from online sales due to the fact that with no overhead and employees dealing with a retail crowd, you can offer discounts and get people to buy without human interaction. Sure, it is a challenge for people who need to look at and feel a product before they make a purchase, but for things you already know you want, there is no substitute. http://www.upi.com/Business_News/2011/11/29/Retailers-extend-Cyber-Monday-throughout-week/UPI-89471322557200/

And if you are one of those millions of Apple and iPod and iPad users and you haven’t seen this Siri video: http://www.collegehumor.com/video/6648229/siri-argument or http://www.informationweek.com/news/telecom/unified_communications/232200265

Lastly, bad news of the week, Michael Jackson’s doctor might have wanted to get a second opinion. Apparently, he did something wrong or was wrongfully accused (not starring Leslie Nielsen). Conrad Murray faces up to 4 years in jail for what he did or didn’t do. Michael Jackson may have been one of the greatest entertainers of his generation and the King of Pop, but he was surely challenged to live in this world! http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1675011/conrad-murray-sentencing-today.jhtml

So what does it all mean? It means that there is only 25 days left until Christmas. It means you need to get your website back up and running. Or make those edits. Or put those eye-catching graphics to work. Or get your meta data set up. Or call your business the king of cyber deals during the holiday season. SalemGlobal can help you with all of these aspects and more. We will help you get setup and then sell more online with internet marketing advice you can count on. Want to come to one of my networking meetings or just give me a call? Call Raphi Salem at SalemGlobal Internet Website Marketing and Lead Generation today at 212-222-3292 or email him at info@salemglobal.com. Let’s come up with cyber deal for your audience!

Groundhog Day, Super Bowl 45, Hair Transplant Contest, Quit Facebook, Valentines Day: What your business can learn from oversized rodents and football players

Posted by Salem Global on Feb 4, 2011

Well, its that time of the year again. Bill Murray and Andie MacDowell Day. I mean Groundhog Day. I mean one of my all time favorite movies days. The day where if a groundhog leaves its burrow and sees its shadow, it retreats back into its burrow signifying another six weeks of winter. Well guess what folks. Its been raining, snowing, sleeting, freezing, cloudy, overcast and no sign of the sun anywhere except maybe Florida for the snowbirds. So the whole idea of an early spring is just plain insane in the membrane. But according to legend, since it didn’t see its shadow today, expect an early spring. Crazy – right?

Well, the reason why I love that movie and why I write about it year after year (I can’t find my old posts) is because its a movie about hope and perseverance and positive attitude and despair, and love and people and it will make you laugh and cry and feel good and self improvement and 2nd chances and 3rd chances and I could go on but there are lots of other things I want to write about. So my message here is see the movie regardless of your personal or professional life and where you are. You can apply the message to anything, anyone, anywhere, anytime, and anyhow.

Now as I understand it, this Sunday is Super Bowl Sunday. What’s that you ask? Ha ha. Its only the biggest game in the country. American football rocks this coming Sunday February 6, 2011, at Cowboys Stadium located in North Arlington, Texas. The American Football Conference Champion Pittsburgh Steelers will battle the National Football Conference Champion Green Bay Packers in what promises to be one of the most exciting football match ups in recent years. But as you know, I am all about the commercials. Here is a sneak peak of what I could find so far on Youtube:

<disclaimer> I don’t drink soda. I think its terrible for you, your teeth, your heart, your gums, your stomach – shall I go on? I also think that if it has no calories its even worse for you. But as a self-proclaimed advertising maven, I still can spot the good commercial that is worth spending $3 million dollars at the super bowl.

Doritos Pepsi Max is running the same campaign that everyone should be running. User generated content. Duh! Here you can see people making fun of themselves and having fun: http://www.youtube.com/user/2011DoritoCommercial at Walmart and everywhere else in the world. Here are some finalists:
This one made me laugh: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1mjRU6b4ecw as did this one http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GE0KIDZnJ9gBut the funniest of them all: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AZRdr1PiyPQ and another one: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q8D3qvQCP0Y . But the smartest guy out there reserved this domain name and put up advertising so I hope he makes some cash from Google AdSense off of it: http://www.superbowlcommercials2011.com/

Lets see what happens this Sunday. I think there are over 110 commercials this year. But the best contest and YouTube, blog, Facebook campaign out there is certainly by former tight end two time Super bowl champion NFL san Francisco 49er Dr. John Frank who actually retired from the NFL and went to medical school to become a plastic surgeon and hair transplant specialist. Dr. Frank is running a contest and sweepstakes to see who comes closest to guessing this Sunday’s final score. Whoever it is will be eligible to receive a free hair transplant. Now with 110 million viewers out there, there have got to be some balding guys that might want to change their appearance a bit. Check it out: http://www.prweb.com/releases/hair-transplant/superbowl/prweb5016224.htm

But wait – Valentines Day is coming up. And what better way for a homeless couple to celebrate by going to the Super Bowl. Huh? Why would people who can’t afford to pay rent go to a game that costs hundreds if not thousands of dollars to see live and in person? And what about getting to the game? If you don’t live in Texas and can’t drive to the game, its going to cost you. Well not if you are this lucky couple who WON their ticket by being in the right place and the right time. Oh – and transportation included! http://sports.yahoo.com/nfl/blog/shutdown_corner/post/Homeless-couples-in-Green-Bay-wins-trip-to-Super?urn=nfl-315407

Hey – did you hear the one about the high school kid that closed his Facebook account because he was being harassed by recruiters and colleges because of his stellar football skills. Read about it here… Basically, every high school and college kid has a Facebook page. But when you get unsolicited advice from the world about what to do with your life and then people comment about your mother, its time to go offline.

http://rivals.yahoo.com/highschool/blog/prep_rally/post/Top-recruit-quits-Facebook-following-living-nig?urn=highschool-313954 This is very similar and related to our reputation management services. Some people get into trouble every now and then. Sometime lawyers and doctors like to go out for a drink and someone takes a not-so-flattering picture and posts it on Flickr or Facebook. Sometimes Charlie Sheen likes to party with drugs and hookers. So if your business hasn’t woken up to the fact that word of mouth media is here to stay and is the best way for bad news to travel fast, you better get online with a positive message and combat the negative. If you are in high school though, play sports and watch TV a little more. There will always be time in the future to get online. Plenty of time for you to do something a little off color and have your friends document it on their blogs and on YouTube.

And on the opposite side of the Facebook track, billionaire Mayor Michael Bloomberg has decided that fellow billionaire Marc Zuckerberg, the founder and CEO of FB might be able to help the city of New York with its own social media. Come on Mike, I am right here on 45th street. Did you really have to hire a billionaire to help with the city’s social media strategy? Tell you what, I know you want to hire an in-house person for $110,000 annual salary but my firm will do it for half. Click on http://www.SalemGlobal.com for my resume. I look forward to your call.

Ok – just one last thing. Did you all see that Jesse Eisenberg the actor that hosted Saturday Night Live last week? The opening was brilliant. Andy Samberg dressed up in the famous Zuckerberg hoodie sweatshirt and matted down his hair. And behind the scenes the real Marc Zuckerberg was talking to Lorne Michaels about the fact that he didn’t love Eisenberg in the movie the Social Network. How they got the Z man on SNL we will probably never know but clearly someone knew someone.

One final final thing. My local bowling alley called itself the super BOWL in an email blast to local fans. Great play on words. Great message. Funny and to the point. Want to know more about social media and how you can take advantage of the super bowl to help your business? Call Raphi Salem at 212-993-5828 or email info@salemglobal.com and we can talk about it. Its February 2011. You need to change your marketing plan to get with the times. Help me help you

Super Bowl Advertising, No Cheerleaders and Reputation Management Using Social Media: What your business can learn from the NFL

Posted by Salem Global on Jan 25, 2011

I am outraged! As a fairweather fan of the Jets or Giants – depending on whichever New York team is winning at the moment – I am incredibly disappointed that the NY Jets didn’t make it into the Super Bowl. Sunday night was the first NFL game of the season that I actually watched on TV (as opposed to the Internet replays) and I saw the fumbles, the interceptions. The safetys, The touchdowns. I saw the running plays. The completed passes. The incompletes. I saw the out of bounds. I saw the clock tick. I saw the head coach pull off his headset, throw it down and curse. I saw the faces of my friends as all these things were happening. And I heard the sounds of grown men weeping that their beloved Jets would not be going to the Super Bowl. Again.

But nothing compares to what I saw this morning in my weekly review of sports and what to write about for this blog.

On Yahoo! Sports (http:/sports.yahoo.com/sportsminute;_ylt=AsUNjyyJjnwOMN3Y0onwX5E5nYcB)  I learned that there are six NFL teams (do you know which?) who don’t pay women to shake their booty and get as close to undressed as possible for American men for money. Two of those teams are going to the Super Bowl. And in the words of the ESPN blogger Gregg Easterbrook, “THIS IS AMERICA!” With both teams being built around defense, the trophy might go to whichever’s offense is least frustrated. But since scantily clad cheer-babes propitiate the football gods, and neither team has them, how will the football gods know whom to root for? http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/page2/story?page=easterbrook/110125_tuesday_morning_quarterback&sportCat=nfl… I wonder what Michael Lewis has to say about no cheerleaders?

While talking about football and the Super Bowl, did you know that there were more Super Bowl commercials airing over more time in 2010 than ever before? http://www.crainsnewyork.com/article/20110118/FREE/110119868#

Shout out to Rob Levin of the NY Enterprise Report for bringing this to my attention… They also sold out faster this year than ever before. True it takes millions to create a great commercial. True it takes more millions to air it. But it’s all worth it. I keep on meeting with potential clients who only want to spend X amount on testing Internet marketing. For some it will work. For most it won’t. And therefore it is a waste of money. Young companies still don’t get what a marketing budget is. I prefer to educate people over the phone but if it takes a meeting then so be it. It still gives me a good reputation when I warn people up front that they are wasting their money. So hopefully they pass on my good name and reputation and I get clients with budgets out of goodwill.

And speaking of Reputation Management, this Thursday I will be speaking at the Tarrytown Sheraton with the ACW – Advertising Club of Westchester. Social media can be a tremendous business booster for you. But, what can you do when your business is under attack on the Internet by competitors or disgruntled ex-employees or even angry customers? Competitors can defame you, your products and services. They may even attempt to use your trademarks as keywords or copy your intellectual property. RSVP here: http://www.acw.org/ACW26.html and check us out on Facebook:

http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=31259938519#!/event.php?eid=162642450427421&index=1

As for Chicago Bears Quarterback Jay Cutler, in the words of Dan Wetzel from Yahoo Sports,

http://sports.yahoo.com/nfl/news?slug=dw-cutlersocialmedia012411

“Twitter has allowed a voice to emerge from the couches – be it the average Joe or the NFL pro. Everyone is empowered.” Basically now every sports fan and blogger and twitterer and social media facebook using know-it-all can give his or her two cents about everything that’s going on in the world. Jay Cutler and his torn ligaments might not mean much to you as a non-football and sports fan, but if someone tweets something negative about your business or your own reputation, you might get into trouble professionally or personally. When people google your name, you want to have control over what comes up. I say start with your own domain name and website. But also get your own twitter account and fill out all of the top social media profiles. You not only want to have the top spot when someone googles you, you want to dominate the first few pages. Write some articles, send out some press releases. Do some good community work. Get your name out there in a positive light and tell the world about it.

Want to know more about defending your reputation or brand online? Come hear me speak this coming Thursday night in Westchester, Tarrytown NY. Can’t make it? Call Raphi Salem at 212-993-5828 or just email info@salemglobal.com and we can talk about the different ways to improve your reputation and your company’s bottom line this year within a few weeks.

Internet Marketing, Facebook Email, Conan Obrien, World Series Of Poker, NFL Giants Stadium: Your Business Needs To Know About Competition and Comebacks

Posted by Salem Global on Nov 16, 2010

First of all, let me congratulate myself publicly for winning $12.00 (That’s TWELVE WHOLE US DOLLARS) in Atlantic City this weekend. I had been in Baltimore and decided to stop off in AC on the way back (it’s only an hour and a half out of the way.) So I step into the poker room and got that feeling that every gambling fool gets when they walk into a casino… THIS is MY night!!! And so, I played it cool. Sat down. Got dealt my cards. Threw away the losers. Kept the winners. Doubled up and raised on the sure things. Ordered myself a bottle of water from the hostess. And walked out of there. That’s right. Quit while I am ahead. Now let me tell you that parking cost $5.00 at the Tropicana self-park and a cup of mocha coffee costs $3.00 at the rest area so I really only made $4.00 (minus the $1.00 chip tip I gave the hostess.) That $3.00 went straight into my pocket yesireebob!

Oh – and another player who was NOT sitting at my table won $8,944,310.00 and goes by the name of Jonathan Duhamel and hails from Montreal, Canada. He won the 2010 World Series of Poker. Duhamel is only 23 years old. He beat out a field of 7,319 players and got his real feet wet playing online. Someday when I am at the final table I will tell him that I started up my company when he was 10 years old and have not made eight million dollars yet so he is doing quite well for himself. You can read the full story here: http://www.wsop.com/news/2010/Nov/3150/HABS-AND-HAB-NOTS-JONATHAN-DUHAMEL-WINS-2010-WSOP-MAIN-EVENT-CHAMPIONSHIP.html

Poker is not about winning. It’s about winning, and losing and winning and losing and all the while, keeping your eye on the prize, your emotions in check and keeping a straight face. Similar to business, there are going to be ups and downs, good economies and bad economies and well, issues and headaches that come and go. In a poker tournament, you win some hands, you lose some hands. The difference is when you do win, you make sure it counts. Meaning, you can win 1 hand worth one million dollars and lose five hundred thousand, but if you lose a dollar for every bad hand but maximize your winnings, you will come out over the top. In poker, you need to be in it to win it. You can “limp in” with a dollar or two, get to see your cards and then the “flop” and then decide whether to make your move. There is a lot of psychology involved as well as math and decision making. It’s not like chess where there are smart moves and smarter moves. There are no bluffs in chess. The board is open for all to see.

Speaking of being able to see at a game, were you at the new New York Giants Stadium (in New Jersey of course) this past Sunday night? My associate here at SalemGlobal was. And guess what happened. The lights went out. How much did that stadium cost? http://www.nj.com/giants/ index.ssf/2010/11/lights_go_out_at_new_meadowlan.html You would think that when you spend $1.6 billion on a product, that it works. But apparently, even the most expensive toys need to be tweaked.

And that’s why Conan O’Brien has his own show on TBS now (www.TeamCoCo.com) Because he was doing a great job at NBC or ABC or wherever he was, and then he grew a beard and then he gave out some T-shirts (http://teamcoco.com/blog/10000-free-conan-t-shirts) by the way – the same associate at the Giant’s game also has a Conan t-shirt. Coincidence? I think not…

And finally, guess who told me about the new Facebook email. Yes. Same associate. Yes. It’s good to have him around http://www.facebook.com/pages/email/114776451868604. Everyone is commenting about the new Facebook email. That’s right. No spam. Great filter. Even better than sliced cheese! My favorite comment was that Facebook email is just another email for you to check. But here is the truth. Email for Facebook is a NO-BRAINER!!! Email has always been and always will be the KILLER APP. Everyone has and or needs and email address. And while mostly everyone has one today in 2010, guess what? There are still billions of people that are going to come into this world. And guess what else, 500 million people on Facebook today means 1 billion people in 5 years from now. And guess what else. All of those kids who are in elementary school right now and are getting email addresses can go to Hotmail, Juno, Gmail, Yahoo or whatever. But why not go to Facebook. It seems the obvious choice. Good for you Facebook. May you make the same amount of billions that Yahoo, Microsoft and Google are making. I am one proud user.

So what can your business learn this week?

1. ANYONE can win the world series of poker. And any business can win business. Companies and competition come and go. Salemglobal has won accounts and lost accounts. But we ante up and try to win every day. You have got to be in it to win it.
2. It’s never too late to start.
3. You are never too old.
4. You are never too young.
5. Winning $12 is better than losing ANYTHING
6. My SG associate is a really fortunate guy for having a Conan shirt.
7. Thanksgiving is next week already.
8. That means Christmas and the holiday season is a month and a few days away so if you want to sell your products for the season, you better get a move on

Did someone say 33 Days till Christmas? Did someone say poker? Did someone say Facebook and social media and email are the killer app? That’s right folks. I said it. We are deep into 4th Quarter and your business can gain a little ground if you do some things right, right now. In addition to SEO search engine optimization, my company helps other firms use social media, LinkedIn, Facebook, Google and all online strategies. Are you sending out newsletters yet? Need help with Internet promotion for your business? We have been helping doctors, companies and businesses strategize online since 1997. Call Raphi Salem at 212-993-5828, email info@salemglobal.com or check out www.SalemGlobal.com for more information about us. Next week, Sir Richard Branson and Lance Armstrong… Stay tuned

Internet Marketing New York, Perfect Baseball Games and Dave Matthews: What your business can learn from human error vs. technology

Posted by Salem Global on Jun 8, 2010

I grew up playing little league and was a pretty better than average baseball player until I started missing and dropping balls. In business we experience learning from our mistakes all the time. We try our hardest to please our customers and clients. Do mostly everything we can to try and get new clients. Sometimes we succeed. Sometimes we fail. But when the sun is in your eyes or you aren’t sure where the fence is or another outfielder calls it but you don’t hear it. The ball falls. But when it’s not so clear whether you caught the ball or you tagged out the guy or your foot was on the base, we enter into the human zone where team one argues with team two whether he was safe or out. But when human emotion gets in the way and clouds our decision making, we need to call upon an UNbiased third party to decide who is safe, who is out, who is right and who is wrong. And then sometimes even THEY get it wrong. Question is whether it was due to foul play <pun intended> or did they honestly not see the activity from the correct angle.

So last week on June 2, 2010, Detroit Tigers Pitcher Armando Galarraga was robbed of a Perfect Game by umpire Jim Joyce’s terrible call. Even though the year is 2010 and instant video replay exists, Major League Baseball still relies on humans to make the final decision. As of this writing, there is no dispute at all. He was 100% out. See for yourself: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b3OE8iA621s

(And of course here is the Hitler movie spoof related to the incident if you have been following the story that YouTube has been taking them down left and right http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ixKidAhVtW4)

I mean – we use it in tennis and the NFL. Why not in the MLB? Maybe this will be the straw that breaks baseball’s back.

Clearly, technology rules in sports and it rules in the business world as well. Of course – that’s why I have chosen a career and vocation based upon an exact marketing science vs. the whole guessing game. When I started out in the advertising industry in the late 80′s, the Internet was not commercialized as of yet. No one had email. No businesses had websites. We had Nielsen Ratings that developed audience measurement systems for the television industry. Basically, a sample of people in America would get an electronic box attached to their TV and that would send a signal back to a big server and database that measured what people watched at what hour. But we all knew that there was a tremendous margin of error because plenty of people left the room with their TV on while they went into the kitchen to get a beer or a snack. Some people even left their TV sets on while they left the house. And then there were people who actually played with the electronics because kids and parents were all paranoid about Big Brother even back then. (Boy if they knew back then about wiretapping, the government and Facebook privacy issues, George Orwell would have a 1984 field day!)

And that’s why I got into the Internet. Most people don’t know how to block their IP address. (It’s a bit more complicated than removing a wire from a set top or cable box.) But most people also don’t care. So now that we have established that the general population is not hiding anything (even their porn usage), we have a pretty solid measurement of IP addresses and website visits, hits, impressions and clicks. That means that you can REALLY measure ROI from Internet Marketing vs. trying to measure ROI from a print ad or a :30 second television commercial. People lie and make errors. And sometimes computers make mistakes too and break down – but they are a lot more accountable than humans. Go ahead. Try your hand at a PPC, SEO or email marketing campaign. With the tools available today, you can see how much money you are actually spending per person or per thousands of people, how many people SEE your ad, click on your ad or your website and ultimately how many people call you, send you an email, fill out a form and of course, buy your products or hire you.

Had a pretty AMAZING weekend that included seeing the Dave Matthews Band (now that I am in the know I call them DMB) at SPAC (Saratoga Performing Arts Center). I went with three other good friends who knew a lot more about DMB than I thought. The venue was mostly filled with college kids, beers in hand, perhaps some illegal substances as well but hey – they could’ve been legal cigarettes – who knows?… So my friend Ezra tells me that DMB fans blog about the concerts all the time. How Dave played this song and that song. What he was wearing and how cool the venue and setting was. Then my associate Aryeh tells me that people twitter during concerts all the time about what song he is playing and people compare notes on sets and songs and versions at what concerts in what cities etc. etc. (Check out www.DMBAlmanac.com) If Dave Matthews is using technology and his audience is using it, don’t you think you should too?

On a final note, as a result of this weekend, I have added a new song to my favorites. We will see how long it stays in my head. Enjoy: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kD9CrZODlNA (Here is the Grammy Awards version http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A6t78OW-yhM.) Last funny note, after showing my super cute and adorable six year old daughter the original version she couldn’t understand how the people appear in the video and then disappear at the end. I said it was magic but she will soon figure out its all about the technology of video editing…

If you want to know more about Internet marketing and using technology to gain more exposure, get more clients and sell more product, give me a call at 212-993-5828, email raphis@salemglobal.com or check out www.SalemGlobal.com for more information.

Internet Marketing NY, Privacy & Seven Foot Basketball Giants: What your organization can learn from growing quickly

Posted by Salem Global on May 25, 2010

So Mark Zuckerberg, the founder of Facebook, “sort-of” apologizes this week for the “lack of” privacy controls that basically “missed the mark.” You can read it for yourself here: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ytech_gadg/20100524/tc_ytech_gadg/ytech_gadg_tc2204 …but the truth is that I agree with the camp that says that if the website is free and you choose to use it, you BETTER read the fine print… When we started commercializing the Internet back in the 90′s, it was a great marketing ploy to give stuff away for free… and then sell advertising based on traffic etc. etc. So sometimes the model worked, sometimes it didn’t. And along the way, some businesses modified their business models and some went out of business and some made money. Millions in fact.

But years ago I wrote an open letter to Zuckerberg and told him he was an idiot for not taking the 1 BILLION (that’s Billion with a “B” my friends). I said that anyone in their 20′s that can get an offer for a billion should take the money and run. Invest it and live off of it for generations and generations. But Mark wrote back and said that he thinks Facebook (and he) are worth much more than a measly ONE billion. And he has proven himself CORRECT. So much for my advice….

Do you, dear reader, have any concept of what 400 MILLION users on Facebook represents? Do you know the old saying “if I had a nickel for every time I _________?” Well basically Facebook says that 400 million multiplied by a nickel equals BILLIONS. True there are naysayers out there who don’t think there is any money behind the traffic but what they don’t realize is customization, personalization and keyword targeting. Let’s compare Facebook with 400 million users to a television event/ program that only 100 million people watch every year usually at the end of January. Yes – it’s an American Football game otherwise known as the Super Bowl. Super Bowl commercials go for around 1 million to 5 million dollars per :30 seconds. So if you add up the 90 or so commercials that get aired for the 3 hours of the game, we are talking about $500 million dollars in revenue generated from advertising alone. Now, let’s take that number and multiply it by EVERY DAY OF THE YEAR!!! (That’s 365) And what do you get? Yes. A GAZILLION dollars.

So who would like to ask me if I think social media is a worthwhile investment? I can also break down this number for you and show you how each and every one of us, whether you are in B2B or B2C can benefit from Facebook and LinkedIn and the scores of other social media websites and opportunities out there.

And speaking worthwhile investments – here are two more stories for you this week…

I was having lunch with a friend of a friend this past Sunday who owns some real estate properties as well as a building and lumber supply company. Smart guy. Anything he needs for his commercial and residential business he buys from his other business. Gotta love making money on both ends of the deal. Anyway, his son graduates from college with an accounting degree and starts interviewing around. His father then makes him an offer and says he will double his salary if he comes to work for him under two conditions. First is he lives at home and doesn’t move into the city and second is he wakes up at 5 AM and commutes with him. Son says he will do it under one more condition, that his father joins him at the gym. Long story short, father loses 30 pounds and is in the best shape of his most recent life due to his son’s motivation. Did it work out for the father professionally? Well after the son comes into the company he tells his father that they should buy all of the domain names associated with his business and industry for real estate and building supply. Within one month he rents out 60 residential and commercial units that his senior salesperson wasn’t able to do in this economy. Using Internet marketing skills, social media and domain name strategies, the green college grad turned the biggest profit his father has seen in years. Was it worth it to offer his son double anything he could find?

Last story – Growing up in India can be hard. Read or watch Slumdog Millionaire and Water. This story is straight out of fantasyland. http://highschool.rivals.com/content.asp?CID=1087336 Basically, two brothers who are each seven feet tall emigrate to Canada where the family has a better life opportunity. But then the kids get into basketball and become superstars. Headed to high school in the USA and then if they don’t hurt themselves will have stellar careers in the NBA. Check out this video of them playing: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g1Y04AMkvdg

Final message of the week – use social media, the skills given to you and while you are growing, be smart, take it easy and don’t listen to anyone who tells you that you have limits. Oh – and read the fine print… If you want to know more about Facebook and how to market your company on the Internet and in social media, call me at 212-993-5828, email raphis@salemglobal.com or check out www.SalemGlobal.com for more information. Free website consultation to the first 5 people who read this whole post