This three part series is written by ForeSite Insight guest blogger, Thomas Clifford…

Thomas Clifford is a Fast Company “Expert Blogger,” speaker, three-time co-author for the “Age of Conversation” book series and an award-winning multimedia producer. Tom is passionate about speaking, writing and helping organizations use digital media to communicate with a personal touch.

In 2010 and 2009, Tom was awarded Hartford Business Journal’s Strateg-e Award for “Best Use of Blogs.” Many of Tom’s articles and his highly popular LinkedIn article can be found on his blog. You can follow Tom on Twitter at @ThomasClifford.

Social Media Isn’t for Business. Yeah, Right. Pt 3

Let’s say your heart wants to dive into social media.
But then your brain steps in and says, “Whoa Nellie! Not so fast!”

Your heart is saying one thing.
Your brain is saying something else.

Your brain is telling you people don’t care what you have to say.

Hmmm.

Ever send out a proposal solving a client’s headache?
Check.
Ever give some helpful advice to someone on the phone?
Check.
Ever tell your colleagues over lunch how you’ve solved certain challenges over lunch?
Check.
Ever share your ideas in a presentation?
Check.

Well, then, look what we have here
Two things:
1.    Looks like you do have something to share with others, and;
2.    There are people eager to hear what you have to say.

We learned in the first article how an egg timer and nine minutes a day empowers you to understand how the social media landscape works. And in article two, we debunked the idea that social media doesn’t work.

So what’s the third social media misconception?
The third misconception is thinking that you have nothing valuable to say. And if you think that you have nothing valuable to say, then it’s only natural to think that no one would care about what you say.

Misconception #3: “No one cares about what I say”
Hang on, partner! You really think no one cares about your ideas? Um, how about your customers? You have customers for a reason, right? And what about the times you spoke to a group? Or were interviewed by a newspaper or trade journal?

Fact: You, and only you, have a unique perspective. You see, do and hear things like no one else.

That brings us to a turning point.

Why do we think we have nothing to say?
Fear. That’s right, fear. What kinds of fear?
1.    Fear of writing.
2.    Fear of feedback.
3.    Fear of trying something new.

Let’s tackle these fears one at a time
1. Fear of writing.
Ever email a client with ideas? Ever write a proposal? Ever write a brief presentation?
If you answered yes to even one of these, guess what? You can write. Heck, Twitter only allows 140 characters. You certainly can share some neat ideas in a sentence or two, right?

Have a Linkedin profile? Great, you can share your ideas in a Group you belong to or update your status in approximately 140 characters, just like Twitter. And if you expand into blogging, you can share lengthier articles where you can really dig into an idea.

2. Fear of negative feedback
Fear of negative feedback is a natural feeling, too. Positive feedback, of course, isn’t usually an issue. But negative feedback? That’s our real fear. We wonder: What will someone think? What will they say? Trust me– you want feedback in social media. Why? Because you can turn that feedback into new ideas or new insights to share. Think of it this way. If everyone contributes ideas that are one-way ideas, um, how boring will that be? So welcome feedback. Most feedback isn’t negative. It’s more likely to be ideas we missed or angles we didn’t cover; the feedback actually expands the conversation into new areas. Feedback is the fuel to keep your fires going.

3. Fear of trying something new.
Remember first using email? Now it’s a no-brainer. Remember first using your new cell phone? Yup. Now it’s a no-brainer, too. The same is true with getting your ideas out to people through social media. That’s why the first article stressed starting out in social media by closely watching others. Observe what works, what you like and don’t like. Observing others erases the “newness” factor so you feel more comfortable starting off.

But even when the newness factor is erased, you might still have a voice in your head.

What’s that voice in your head telling you?
You might have that little voice in your head wondering how to get started.
Try this little experiment. It’s part of your 9-minute social media routine, anyway.

Start a conversation somewhere. Get on Twitter, search for your area of interest and comment. If Twitter isn’t for you, try LinkedIn. Just share one small idea on a topic you’re passionate about, then see what happens. Do it again the next day. And the next day. Don’t be too surprised to find people hungry for more of what you have to share.

Here are a few more easy-as-pie ideas:
•    Begin commenting on blogs in your industry
•    Ask to write a short article for someone in your industry
•    Answer industry-related questions on LinkedIn’s “Answers” forum
•    Open a free Twitter account and start tweeting

Bottom line?
•    People do care about your ideas.
•    Fear of sharing your ideas is a natural feeling but once examined, quickly falls apart.
•    If you have customers, you have an audience.
•    Don’t have customers yet because you’re just starting out? Your ideas and insights can turn passive readers into paying customers.

Now it’s your turn
So go ahead and turn that helping phone call into a short status update on your LinkedIn profile. Your audience is waiting, remember?

To read guest blogger Thomas Clifford’s first part of this three part series, click here.  To read the second part of this three part series, click here.

This entry was posted on Tuesday, June 22nd, 2010 at 3:48 pm by Michael Giuffrida and is filed under CEO, Marketing, Operations, Solutions, Technology Tips, Website Development. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.