Posted by CindyAE under
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There really are people who notice and discuss shoes. Today I wore shoes my daughter got as a gift and comments all day. More shoe talk than I’ve had …. maybe ever.
Most association executives likely serve on Boards or committees of other groups too. When I’m a volunteer on a committee or Board (and not the paid staff person) I’m sometimes stunned to find what other groups or staff might believe is okay with reporting information in minutes, in handling procedural details, or in accurately reflecting votes.
When we put on volunteer shoes instead of staff shoes, do we remember or forget we’ve walked many miles as staff and know the right way to do it.
Or to alter famous Bob Dylan lyrics, if you could stand in my shoes you’d know what a drag it is to see [it].
Walk the walk when you’re a volunteer too.
Posted by jeffpi1@gmail.com (Jeff De Cagna of Principled Innovation LLC, the association community's leading voice for innovation!) under
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Lots of enthusiasm, and many questions!
Posted by Ann under
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In the last four weeks, I have participated in three different conferences on social responsibility. The first was for those interested in responsible property investing, both real estate professionals and social investors. The second was the Corporate Citizenship conference. The…
Posted by Kevin Holland under
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It’s official: I am getting old. I find myself changing designs on a regular basis now to increase the type size. In fact, I just changed the stylesheet for this blog to make the text bigger. No glasses yet, but they are coming. Sigh.
Posted by AEM under
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Crain?s Chicago Business reported the Gatorade? brand is Pepsi), would gain consumer acceptance.
No business or association should assume it can maintain a virtual monopoly forever. Competitors are bound to enter the marketplace, hoping to unearth the same opportunities that led to your success.
It?s fine to strive for dominance in your field. Just be realistic about what can be achieved.
Posted by bkmcae@gmail.com (Ben Martin) under
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You can get this column and others from the expert consultants at McKinley Marketing by subscribing to their monthly newsletter. Customary disclosure: I’m a paid freelance writer for McKinley.
Great marketing starts with a great service or product, which can only come from a culture of innovation. Last week at Digital Now, a cutting-edge technology and strategy conference for associations, TrendHunter.com’s Jeremy Gutsche appeared as one of the keynote speakers. Jeremy spoke at length about recognizing trends early, creating products and services to address the trends through innovation and getting people to spread the word about them. Check out these two summaries of Jeremy’s speech at Acronym and at the Digital Now blog.
Frank Eliason is an employee with Philadelphia based Comcast. Comcast has a reputation for burning money on glitzy multi-million dollar ad campaigns while basic customer service goes horribly wrong and technicians sleep on customers’ couches. Eliason is trying to change the company’s image. By monitoring the text-messaging micro-blogging site Twitter and replying to frustrated customers using the handle ComcastCares, Frank is converting Comcast haters into advocates. ReadWriteWeb covers the story along with the Houston Chronicle.
Here’s some practical advice: Try sending dues invoices (or any kind of invoices) with nothing but a return envelope. Kevin Holland’s experience is that letters get filed; invoices get paid.
It’s not enough to just have Really Simple Syndication (RSS) feeds on your association website or blog. You have to explain this most useful and time-saving technology to ensure that it gains wide adoption among your constituency. “It’s time for marketing people to step up and save everyone on the planet a boatload of time by making RSS digestible for the 98% of people that don’t spend their days drowning in techie acronyms and buzzwords.” This post on Mashable will inspire you to take that step.
If your association is planning social media initiatives, how will you get started? How will you measure success? What should you do if someone leaves a negative comment? Jeremiah Owyang’s social media FAQ area at Web Strategist is the perfect place to get the answers to those questions. As always, if you have feedback or a tip for Ben, e-mail him at bkmcae at gmail dot com.
Posted by Kevin Holland under
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Associations love to do “big” things. We love to launch “major initiatives.” I think it’s because we love making a big announcement. You know, sending out the press releases, maybe holding a big launch at an annual meeting, proudly announcing a major new program that is going to revolutionize our sphere. Associations love to do […]
Posted by admin under
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Left the office after 8pm last night. Heading back in already. Starting to think my work-life balance has reached a tipping point. All work! #
This week is already shot. Day 2 of 4 straight days of days full of meetings 8 to 5. Really struggling to actually get work done. #
How do you get things done with a schedule like that? How do you create balance? My only free time is my ride to/from work- 1.5 hrs each way #
@maddiegrant I hear you. Fortunately for [read more]
There really are people who notice and discuss shoes. Today I wore shoes my daughter got as a gift and comments all day. More shoe talk than I’ve had …. maybe ever.