So, I know a lot of people would think I was crazy for giving up a Saturday to go spend 9 hours in a dark conference room, I have to say I thoroughly enjoyed the Social Media Unplugged event this Saturday.

The beginning speaker was Marty Yaskowich(@martyyaskowich), of Tribal DDB fame, and his humorous and engaging 30 minutes was spent relaying the key message that clients don’t need a ‘Social Media Strategy’. Searching for one, he argued, was the equivalent of looking for a ‘cell phone strategy’, its focusing on the wrong element.
The key is to develop an ‘Engagement Strategy’, which tries to ascertain the best way to communicate with the key demographic, be it Twitter, YouTube or old fashioned radio ads.

From there, you must define your key business objectives (more Facebook ‘likes’, increased purchase, etc) and proceed with correct media accordingly.

I think my favourite summary point of his however was defined as below.

The common misconception is that consumers act the following way.

Think->Do->Feel

when, in reality, it’s more like

Feel -> Do -> Think.

People are motivated by the emotional far more often than they are by the rational.. a powerful argument when considering a media strategy.



One of the other dynamic key speakers was Rochelle Grayson (@RochelleGrayson). Her information regarding the monetization of social media (rightly defined as ‘Show Me the Money) had the following informative slides at its completion to summarise her main points.


Slide 1




Slide 2



Slide 3



Answering these questions will help businesses more quickly establish how they will make money from utilising social media.

She also listed several interesting websites that I invite you to take a closer look at..

• Pay with a Tweet - In today's world the value of people talking about your product is sometimes higher than the money you would get for it. ‘Pay with a Tweet’ is the first social payment system, where people pay with the value of their social network.

• Flattr - great tool for non profit outfits.. When you're registered to flattr, you pay a small monthly fee. You set the amount yourself. At the end of the month, that fee is divided between all the things you flattered. Clicking one more button doesn't add to your fee, it just divides the fee between more people!

• Airbnb - Unlocking unique spaces worldwide. We connect people who have space to spare with those who are looking for a place to stay. Guests can build real connections with their hosts, gain access to distinctive spaces, and immerse themselves in the culture of their destinations. Whether it's an urban apartment or countryside castle, Airbnb makes it effortless to showcase your space to an audience of millions, and to find the right space at any price point, anywhere.

• Kickstarter - Kickstarter is the largest funding platform for creative projects in the world. Every month, tens of thousands of amazing people pledge millions of dollars to projects from the worlds of music, film, art, technology, design, food, publishing and other creative fields.

• • A new form of commerce and patronage. This is not about investment or lending. Project creators keep 100% ownership and control over their work. Instead, they offer products and experiences that are unique to each project.
• • All or nothing funding. On Kickstarter, a project must reach its funding goal before time runs out or no money changes hands. Why? It protects everyone involved. Creators aren’t expected to develop their project without necessary funds, and it allows anyone to test concepts without risk.
• • Each and every project is the independent creation of someone like you. Projects are big and small, serious and whimsical, traditional and experimental. They’re inspiring, entertaining and unbelievably diverse. We hope you agree... Welcome to Kickstarter!

• Quirky.com - They make invention possible. See how here.

Though I by no means wish to discount the presentations by the other presenters, the last presenter of the day was Dave Olson (@daveohoots), Community Director of Hootsuite, and he managed to re charge a crowd that I received quite a lot of information already.

His key messages were relayed with incredible charm and wit, and were summarised to the following key points for successful management of any social media campaign or related business

• Begin with listening.
• Participation is everything, you have to BE there, with your audience, if you ever want them to follow you.
• It’s all about the story
• Go where the people are, and hang out with them...on their terms.
• Speak their language.
• Close the loop, bring them back to the main group and become part of the family.
• Measure everything.

All in all, it was a thoroughly enjoyable conference and, despite receiving a Groupon 4 days before the course offering it at half the price I had paid, I wouldn’t hesitate to attend this event again in future with the potential for more valuable learnings.

Tags: Hootsuite, SEO, Facebook, , Rochelle Grayson, Dave Olson, social media, tips, learnings.

I’ve signed up to to head to a social media training session tomorrow to (hopefully) better train myself into the ‘social media arts’. I’ve got fingers crossed that it’ll be worth the entrance fee and I’ll get to meet some great contacts!

It’s probably a bit too late for you to take the course but make sure to follow my Twitter feed and I’ll keep you up to date on how the course is progressing. Also make sure to search under the hashtag #smunplugged.


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It’s a jungle out there right now isn’t it! I don’t know how many of you are in the same boat as me, but looking for work has become my full time occupation as of late last year and I think I’m beginning to tire of my boss.

That being said, there’s always a silver lining to every dark cloud, so below is my stab at the BEST things about being unemployed. Please feel free to comment and add any that you think also deserve to be recognized.

• I’m on a first name basis with all the ‘sample’ staff at Costco. I like to think of it as a cocktail party, and they’re waiters offering me delicious canapes.
• I’ve managed to ‘catch up’ with the Kardashians.
• I’ve done a walking tour of every area of the city.
• There is no better time to ski Cypress, than 10 am on a Tuesday. You have the hill to yourself!

To be cont’d.