Friday, August 30, 2013

Best Post of the Week: Week 216


It's time to link in your best post of the week!

The purpose of this column is to make it easier to keep up with each other's blogs, so that even if we don't have time to read all of the Alabama Blogger blogs every day, at least we get the week's highlights.

So, link up, tell us why you linked that post, and let's start reading! And remember - the best way to get new blogging friends is to comment on other people's posts, so be sure to say "hi" to your neighbors when you visit!

p.s. - please feel free to interpret "this week" as loosely as you like!

Tuesday, August 27, 2013

Alabama Blogger Meet-Up September 6!

After a short summer break, it's time to get back together to talk about blogging!


Our next Alabama Blogger meet-up will be on September 6 at 11:30 at Railroad Park.  Feel free to bring your own lunch, or take advantage of George's Boxcar Cafe like I will be doing. There is covered seating, so we will meet regardless of the weather unless James Spann is telling us to go to our safe place.

Everyone is invited, so please spread the word! The hashtag for the event is #AlaBlogMeet.

We will have a roundtable discussion on how to strategically use Social Media Tools to promote your blog effectively yet without being pushy. Platforms that we will discuss include Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and more, so be thinking about how you use them and questions that you might have on using them more effectively.

Please RSVP on this post or on the invite in the Alabama Bloggers Facebook Group. And if you're not a member yet, be sure to request it!

Thursday, August 22, 2013

Best Post of the Week: Week 215


It's time to link in your best post of the week!

The purpose of this column is to make it easier to keep up with each other's blogs, so that even if we don't have time to read all of the Alabama Blogger blogs every day, at least we get the week's highlights.

So, link up, tell us why you linked that post, and let's start reading! And remember - the best way to get new blogging friends is to comment on other people's posts, so be sure to say "hi" to your neighbors when you visit!

p.s. - please feel free to interpret "this week" as loosely as you like!

Tuesday, August 20, 2013

KEEN Digital Summit - Winner announced!

The winner of the passes to KEEN Digital Summit is Wesley Cline. Congratulations! For those still wanting to attend, tickets can be bought here. I hope to see you there!

Monday, August 12, 2013

Win a Pair of Passes to KEEN Digital Summit!!

Really – who wouldn’t love an excuse to visit Nashville?

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There’s a new kind of conference coming to Nashville in October, and it has something for everyone.

KEEN Digital Summit is a three-day networking, digital media and brand development conference that will serve as the Omni Nashville's grand opening event from Oct. 24-27. It's an official partnership with the city of Nashville, and there are four tracks--family, technology, food/drink, travel--all of which will bring some of the top innovators in their fields to Nashville to share the latest in digital and mobile technologies, while offering a venue for connecting digital influencers with brands.

I love this concept of covering so many topics, because let’s face it: Twitter has ruined my attention span. I’m used to reading 140 characters of philosophy, then seeing a sunset photo, then reading a vaguely angsty statement, then laughing out loud at a witty remark.

And I kinda love it that way.

So with the four focuses of this conference, I can jump back and forth as my attention span demands, learning from the top industry experts of each one. And regardless of how you use Social Media, you are certain to find a track that fits you. Plus, as a bonus, you will get to enjoy the luxury of being one of the first to experience a brand new Omni Hotel!

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They have reps from Ogilvy, Microsoft, HGTV, Southern Living, Expedia, Jeff Corwin's team and other big companies speaking on panels and conducting Q&As. And one of those fantastic experts happens to be Alabama’s own Erin Shaw Street from Southern Living!

Also, students and recent grads can get their tickets for half-price – only $149 for the entire three day event!

I have two passes to give away to one of you. If you would like to win, simply use the options in the Rafflecopter Widget Below:

a Rafflecopter giveaway

This giveaway will be open until Sunday, August 18.  We will notify the winner on Monday, August 19.

Good Luck!

Disclosure: I was not compensated for this post, but was given a two passes to cover the event. All opinions are my own.

Thursday, August 8, 2013

Best Post of the Week: Week 214


It's time to link in your best post of the week!

The purpose of this column is to make it easier to keep up with each other's blogs, so that even if we don't have time to read all of the Alabama Blogger blogs every day, at least we get the week's highlights.

So, link up, tell us why you linked that post, and let's start reading! And remember - the best way to get new blogging friends is to comment on other people's posts, so be sure to say "hi" to your neighbors when you visit!

p.s. - please feel free to interpret "this week" as loosely as you like!

Saturday, August 3, 2013

Y’all Connect: A Social Media Beacon for Birmingham.

By Rachel Callahan

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On July 23, Birmingham hosted the first Corporate Storytelling conference in the world, Y'all Connect Presented by Alabama Power. More than 200 attendees came from as far as Oklahoma to hear a stellar lineup of speakers.

Although the target market was corporate CEOs and Social Media Executives, I quickly realized that the networking opportunities and depth of information available at this conference was not just for the business world. As a blogger, I was able to visit with fellow local and national bloggers, increase my understanding of tricky subjects such as SEO, and glean tips on how to tell better stories.

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Alabama Power's Social Media Genius, Ike Pigott, opened the conference with his keynote address. He provided context for why storytelling is an important facet of communications - because facts are boring. We have infinite facts at our fingertips, thanks to the digital age. But storytelling is about leveraging a story to communicate better. An important point that he made was that stories should not be all about the teller - they are also about listening and understanding what role we play in other people's lives. I especially resonated with this important point, as I find my reader's comments and input equally important to my own story.

Ike also stressed the importance of having a strong social media network. Your network can and will share information with you that you didn't even know you needed, giving you an edge over your competition.

"The dynamic for success used to be based on what you knew, then on what you found. But the dynamic of success is now shifting towards what your network finds for you!" ~ Ike Pigott

He also made the valuable point that because of the closeness of our network to our own lives, we will get much more relevant news from them than from any newspaper headline.

After the Keynote, I attended Mack Collier's session based on his new book, Think Like a Rock Star.

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The premise of Mack's research is that rock stars can easily create and cultivate fans when companies simply cannot, and he set out to discover their secret.

But what he realized is that there was no secret: rock stars simply go out of their way to create a deep and emotional relationship with their biggest fans, with the thought that doing so will create sales. While most companies focus on new customers, rock stars focus on brand advocates, who will market to new customers for them in a much more powerful way than they could accomplish by themselves.

Mack shared four ways to connect and cultivate fans like a rock star:

1. Get in the face of your fans. Understand your fans because you're having constant interaction with them, and reward the behavior you want to encourage.

2. Give up control to get control - Fans look for ways to take control and want control - they want to act on your behalf and help you reach your goals.

3. Find the bigger idea behind the content you create.

    a. Raise awareness of ideas and news that's relevant to your customers.

    b. Be a teacher - share your knowledge. If you have a skill, teach others how to do this skill. This establishes your expertise.

    c. Create inspiring content - create customer centric content, and teach your fans how to use your product better.

4. Love the people that love you! Figure out ways to give your fans special access that isn't available to the general public.

Ultimately, you should strive to have the mindset that your fans are the real rock stars, not you - a concept that is applicable to corporations and bloggers alike. Mack’s ideas were fresh and eye-opening – I hope to find time to read his book soon.

I was also able to hear from Mitch Canter, who discussed how best to tell the stories you own; James Spann, who spoke about the changing Social Mediacentric world and how not to panic because of it; and my dear Twitter friend Jenny Schmitt, who taught us all about the Millennial Generation and how to reach them.

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Wade Kwon, the Conference Organizer, reflected later, “My biggest takeaway was meeting as many guests as possible and learning about what they do and what they were learning at the conference. It was fun just being able to chat with folks as they were in line for the lunch buffet.”

And I agree – the chatting in-between was just as valuable as what I gleaned from the sessions.

9382279756_7a6bcc1a41_bI was able to visit and deepen relationships at the pre-party, lunch, and snacks (although I skipped the after-party to get back to my family.) I left feeling exulted and enriched, excited about my city’s social media presence and leadership. I would highly recommend attending next year, which is currently slated to be June 2014.

The Twitter Transcript of the conference is available here, and videos of all of the sessions will be available soon at the Y’all Connect website.

All photos courtesy of Jack Wyrick/Y'all Connect.

Rachel Callahan is a blogger in Birmingham, Alabama. She writes at Grasping for Objectivity and runs the blogging networking site Alabama Bloggers.

Thursday, August 1, 2013

Best Post of the Week: Week 213


It's time to link in your best post of the week!

The purpose of this column is to make it easier to keep up with each other's blogs, so that even if we don't have time to read all of the Alabama Blogger blogs every day, at least we get the week's highlights.

So, link up, tell us why you linked that post, and let's start reading! And remember - the best way to get new blogging friends is to comment on other people's posts, so be sure to say "hi" to your neighbors when you visit!

p.s. - please feel free to interpret "this week" as loosely as you like!
If you haven't linked up and introduced yourself yet, be sure to go here to do so!