@richsullivan

A Disclaimer Only Takes You So Far

They are all over Twitter and Facebook. Short lines in people’s bios claiming that “retweets do not equal endorsements”, or “opinions are my own, not my employer’s.” Disclaimers serve their purpose but they do not make one exempt from accountability. 

Many people are proud of where they work and include this information in their public profiles. It’s a big part of their identity. And they may be in a public-facing role with the company. But whether you know it or not, whether you have your employer’s name in your online bio or not, you represent them. Your opinions do reflect those of your employer’s. They do. 

Now, you’re not likely to get called into the office for posting a bunch of sarcastic tweets during some awards show, but you should be exercising caution. The disclaimer in your online bio separating yourself from your employer will only carry you so far. Remember that it takes only one wrong click to completely derail your professional life. Just ask Anthony Weiner. 

Follow me on Twitter: @richsullivan

Your definition of breaking news factors into your brand’s reputation

Social media has an influence in nearly every type of information we consume. Weather related school closings, bills being passed in the U.S. Senate, results of sporting events and more are reaching people on mobile devices though social media. Many companies and big brands are publishing news themselves. Social media has given them the means to communicate with both media outlets and large amounts of consumers simultaneously. 

Selecting information to publish on social media can be a tough task for businesses. When companies start publishing information with little value to its audience, the brand’s engagement and following is likely to dwindle. This makes the intuition and integrity of a community/social media manager critical. 

A business offering customers an incentive is not ‘breaking news’ and should never be labeled as such. While there are many varying opinions on what breaking news is and isn’t, the offer you’re about to make your consumer surely doesn’t qualify. 

Here are a few things to think about: 

Leave the big news to the big boys - Many people are getting their big news from sources they’ve come to know and trust. Don’t try to convince them that you’re now a news source. This can impact your credibility with your audience. 

Product offers are not breaking news - The words ‘breaking news’ are watered down enough. Attaching them to a 20% off deal just furthers  this. 

Occasionally retweet/post news - I believe a business enhances its reputation by periodically delivering news - specifically local news. Just make sure there is a value to your online audience.

Stay focused on your business/brand - Stay engaged with your audience. Listen to them and respond to them. 

Know when to “go dark” - Recent events such as the Boston Marathon bombing serve as a good reminder that occasional pause in social media output in deference to breaking, specifically tragic, news, is imperative. Your reputation with your a big portion of your audience could very well be determined by this. 

Your online voice should be consistent. Keep it local and focused on your audience. Each post you make should have specifications to meet. These should be carefully planned and adhered to rigorously. News is important. And social media is a conduit for it. A business is wise to have a well conceived policy in place for all of its digital output. 

Follow me on Twitter: @richsullivan 

My favorite stations on tunein

Tunein is one of my favorite apps. They have radio streams from all over the world - over 70,000 terrestrial and internet stations are featured. I have come to really like a few stations and listen to them regularly. Here are some of my top stations on Tunein.

Hit West - Hit West is based out of Nantes, France. It’s a pop station that hits some other genres as well. I don’t speak French, but the on-air staff comes across as warm and friendly. They have a series called ‘Backstage’, where they have artists come into the studio and perform in front of a small group of listeners. Their playlist is focused on a mix of American and European pop. Check out Lucas 20h30/00h weekdays. That’s 2:30 - 6pm Eastern time.

The Dan Patrick Show - I’m not big on sports/talk radio, but I listen to what I like. The Dan Patrick Show is live weekdays 9am - 12pm and simulcast on the NBC Sports Network and DirecTV’s Audience Network. Dan is sardonic, genuine, cynical and does a great interview. I’ve come to like the show a lot, along with the cast of characters he has with him, Seton, Paulie, Fritzy and McLovin. What I like most about Dan is that he comes to the microphone with something to say, but never overdoes it. Tunein offers many different streams of the DP Show.

DI’s Chillout Dreams - There are many online radio stations playing ambient music. This one is pretty solid. Playlists can wander in a few different directions. Three songs might play that are perfect for getting a massage in a fancy spa. Then the playlist shifts and you might feel as if you’re in a hotel lobby in Berlin. There are many other stations in the DI family too. Check them out at http://www.di.fm/

WABE, Atlanta - Sure, you can listen to any NPR affiliate, but there’s something special about your NPR station. Even while visiting my hometown, Boston, a mecca for public radio, I find myself listening to WABE on Tunein. I’m often there over a weekend but enjoy hearing All Things Considered and Denis O’Hayer in the afternoon on a Friday. And of course, always love hearing Jim Burress narrating NPR’s Weekend Edition taking it up to the irreverent Peter Sagal and Wait, Wait Don’t Tell Me on Saturday morning.

Check out Tunein online at http://tunein.com/ and download the free app. Whether you’re listening to the station down the street from you or an internet or terrestrial station from the other side of the world, you will certainly find something you like on Tunein.

For more, follow me on Twitter: @richsullivan

Is your business new to Twitter? If so, read this!

If your business is just starting out on Twitter, there are a few things you need to do. Some of these are basic things that should be done when you set up your account. The others address the beginning of learning how to tweet. 

Upload an profile picture - Nothing screams “I don’t have a clue” on social media like not having a profile picture. The default ‘egg’ doesn’t cut it. If you’re running a business’ Twitter, its logo typically works. If it’s your presence you’re maintaining, you’ll probably want to use a picture of yourself. 

Don’t neglect your bio section - If you want people to know who you are and what you’re all about, fill this section out. You have 160 characters to work with. A few words about you or your business, maybe some interests you have. Check out other people’s bios to see how they’ve written them. Use the link field to include a link to your website. 

Tweet regularly - It’s surprising sometimes the number of dormant Twitter accounts you run across. Don’t be one of them! Use a scheduler and make sure that you’re posting at least a few times a day. When you go long periods of time without tweeting, people can forget about you. 

Respond to your @ mentions - The bigger and more popular your business becomes, the more time this may take, but it’s imperative to respond to your customers. A simple ‘thank you’ often does the trick. But sometimes customers ask questions. Answer them;  knowing that from time to time you’ll need to take the conversation away from Twitter for the sake of space. Some questions need more than 140 characters to give a solid answer to. 

Don’t crowd up your tweets with hashtags - #Too #many #hashtags #in #a #tweet #make #it #difficult #to #understand. One or two hashtags are fine, but using even three begins to turn the tweet into something very visually unappealing. There’s no rule saying you have to include a hashtag.

Those are just a few things to think about as you make your start on Twitter. One thing that puzzles many new people on Twitter is what to tweet. My advice would be to tweet about things that interest you, that you’re passionate about. And while you’re passionate about your business, do NOT let your Twitter feed turn into a big commercial. Nothing sends people running faster.

Be funny. Be original. Try new things. Watch what others do and use some of their methods. It takes a while to get used to Twitter, but I promise you, once you get hold of what’s going on, it will quickly become your social network of choice. 

Follow me on Twitter: @richsullivan 

Show support for our police

This Monday, April 29th, several Atlanta restaurants will honor the victims of the Boston Marathon bombings, stand in solidarity, showing support for our law enforcement officials. 

Participating restaurants include: 

BB’s Bagels in Alpharetta

Mama’s Pizza in Alpharetta

Meehan’s Public House at Atlantic Station

The Rose and Crown Tavern in Atlanta

Hudson Grille in Midtown

Each restaurant will be donating a portion of their sales. Proceeds will go to the families of slain MIT police officer Sean Collier, injured MBTA officer Richard Donohue and 8-year old Martin Richard. In addition, a portion of money raised will go to Humble Heroes. Humble Heroes is a 501(c)3 nonprofit based in Atlanta which assists injured and sick police and fire fighters in the metro Atlanta area. 

Full details on the event can be found here: http://www.humbleherosatlanta.com/Upcoming-Events.html

Please support one of these restaurants on Monday, April 29th. Join others to pay tribute to the victims. Help raise money for their families and come together to show our appreciation for the brave men and women who protect and serve us everyday. 

If your restaurant would like to participate or would like to donate directly to this effort, or supply a few gift cards for the raffles we’ll be conducting at each site, please contact either Rich Sullivan (richsullivan2001@gmail.com) or Pat Apoian (papoian@bellsouth,net)

My social media after the Boston Marathon bombing

When the news of the bombings at the Boston Marathon broke, I began to contact my family. One of my brothers was downtown that afternoon, just a few blocks from the sites of the blasts. Very scary. Unlike others, I am able to say that my family was safe. My heart goes out to the victims, their families. And I am grateful for law enforcement and first responders who went above and beyond, as they do so often, in keeping order and the public safe during a week like no other before in Boston. 

I could not concentrate or think straight the entire week. It was clear from the first reports that this was bad. We had been hit. Many, many people had been injured and a few had died. The week had only just begun. When the photos were releases of the two suspects Thursday afternoon, the manhunt began. Then, tragedy struck again. An MIT police officer shot dead in his patrol car late Thursday, setting off a stand off in nearby Watertown. I got only a few hours of sleep Thursday night into Friday. I woke up Friday to a text from a friend asking “are you watching this?”. That’s never good. 

The entire city of Boston and much of its surroundings were on total lockdown. The Governor asked citizens to “shelter in place”, meaning not leave where they were. Law enforcement combed the area where they believed their suspect was. Shortly after the shelter in place order was lifted, authorities got the tip they needed. They soon had their suspect. Crowds gathered in the streets in celebration and in praise of local police departments who had been working tirelessly all week. One of the hardest weeks in Boston’s long and storied history had come to an end. 

Another huge part of this tragic week was social media. People were getting lots of information from Twitter. And many learned the hard way that just because it’s on Twitter - from a reputable source, doesn’t mean it’s true. I’m not going to make this blog post a critique the news media. That’s not my place. I wanted to relate what I did on social media during this week. 

On Monday when the news broke, I immediately deleted all of the items I had scheduled to post on Twitter for the day. Sadly, by day’s end I decided to jettison all posts for the week. Everyone knew that this was abject tragedy. No way would I want some random article or YouTube video to be emanating from my account during this. It would be disrespectful. 

Like many others, I changed my Facebook profile picture and cover photo. I also changed my Twitter AVI. I occasionally retweeted news items related to the events in Boston. I posted the positive and encouraging images that began circulating on social media. I basically shifted gears entirely, posting only news/information and good thoughts for Boston. 

I tried my best not to go overboard. I wanted each item I posted to have a purpose and to be respectful of the situation going on in Boston, my hometown.

Friday night, when the long week came to a close, I posted this on my Facebook page:

My profile picture there is a shot of David Ortiz addressing the crowd at Fenway on Saturday afternoon following the bombings.

Our personal social media output is a reflection of who we are as individuals, as people. I hope I demonstrated good form. Please continue to keep Boston in your thoughts, along with the victims and their families. They may have hit us wanting to make us weak. But they have only made us strong. Boston Strong. 

Why I follow bad tweeters

Why do I torture myself following people I don’t find to be good tweeters? Short answer is this: I have a lot to learn and can learn as much from a really poor tweeter as I might from someone who I consider to be very skilled. But why do I follow people I don’t enjoy? What’s the point?

Most of us have good intuitions. We can look at a few tweets from a person and immediately form an opinion about the person. And usually we’re right. When we find accounts/people who are authentic and genuine, we begin to notice things not just about what they post, but how they post it. The lessons they teach us are valuable. In their tweets, we notice good form, appropriate tone, well written sentences with concise and often information and more. So we can certainly learn from the good. But what about the bad? 

Poor tweeters are pretty easy to spot. A quick look at their timelines will usually reveal some moderate to heavy narcissism accompanied by slight or blatant negativity. I find it so fascinating that many of them are quite content to perpetuate this. But I follow many of these accounts for the purpose of learning how NOT to tweet. Bad tweeters are everywhere. Some are celebrities with nothing better to do. Others are big brands and small businesses with no social media street smarts or strategy at all. And then, I must admit that I am one too.

I have a lot to learn about social media and realize that I can gain knowledge from both good and bad. I’m constantly paying attention and learning. In the end, it’s almost entirely about becoming a better writer. You know I need a LOT of help with that. 

Follow me on twitter: @richsullivan 

NHL’s You Can Play partnership sets great precedent

The NHL is implementing initiatives that will combat bullying and promote equality across the league - on the ice, in the locker rooms and in the stands. Its new partnership with You Can Play is bold and important. And it’s about time. 

In recent years, many individual athletes and teams across all sports have spoken out against anti-gay bullying and discrimination. They have demonstrated courage and strength. Now an entire league will implement policies promoting equality, fighting bullying and incorporating these ideas into their culture. You Can Play and the NHL’s message is simple; everyone is welcome here. 

Change doesn’t happen overnight, but this move is monumental in so many ways. The NHL and its partners should feel proud of this new initiative. If You Can Play changes even one person’s heart, or helps just one gay man or woman not live in fear, then this effort is a complete success. 

For more, follow me on twitter: @richsullivan 

"Our deep spiritual confidence that this nation will survive the perils of today – which may well be with us for decades to come – compels us to invest in our nation’s future, to consider and meet our obligations to our children and the numberless generations that will follow. - JFK, 1962"

Thank you, Georgia State SPJ and Signal

This week, I had the opportunity to speak with some communications and journalism students at Georgia State University. I had been invited by the GSU Society of Professional Journalists to give a short presentation and answer questions. I am very grateful to Sabastian Wee and especially Chris Shattuck for the chance to visit and share some of my experience.

I got to meet some really great young people who inspired me with their enthusiasm. A mom brought her 8th grade son to the talk as well, as he is interested in journalism. There was some great networking going on in the room! Good to see Andree Grogan, whose class at GSU I visited a few months ago. She shared about the importance of students working with (and impressing) their professors to build their networks. Lauren Berkley, who I have known online for many years, but never met in person attended as well. Her insight on major media corporations and the massive shifts (i.e. layoffs) which take place was an important message for everyone to hear.

Perhaps the biggest theme of what we discussed was one of the main things I preach on this blog: being positive. It’s a commodity that potential employers are looking for, along with many others. But relentless positivity can often set us apart from the pack, better positioning us for landing that job. We also talked about how imperative it is to monitor our social media output, keeping it an adequate snapshot of who we are, but also having it ready for scrutiny by potential employers.

It was a productive afternoon and I’m posting this really to just say thanks to the great students and staff at Georgia State, the SPJ and GSU Signal for inviting me. I hope you got as much out of it as I did, because I learned a lot and made new friends!

Follow me on twitter: @richsullivan