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For some time I've pointed out the need for the Cisco groups responsible for enterprise collaboration (including unified communications, mobile, WebEx, etc.) to be better aligned with the more consumer-centric, social media-focused EOS group(s). Case in point - below - study released from one side of the house that seems to be disconnected from the broader collaboration message. Eos was not mentioned at the Cisco Collaboration Summit and suddenly it is at the center of a social media social networking storyline that has consumer and enterprise implications. Should be easy to fix ... repeat: "should be" ... I've pointed this out for some time now. That said, this theme aligns perfectly with a recent report (see below) Alice Wang and I authored on social media and social networking that addressed similar issues (e.g., need for governance, decision framework, closer involvement from IT organizations due to issues such as identity and security). Global Study Reveals Proliferation of Consumer-Based Social Networking Throughout the Enterprise and a Growing Need for Governance and IT Involvement Cisco (NASDAQ: CSCO) today released the results of a third-party global study designed to assess how organizations use consumer social networking tools to collaborate externally, revealing the need for stronger governance and IT involvement. The research is the first of a two-part series that Cisco has commissioned to explore the impact of social networking and collaboration applications in the enterprise. The new study is based on extensive interviews with 105 participants representing 97 organizations in 20 countries around the globe. Conducted between April and September 2009, the research was carried out by leading business schools in the United States and Europe: IESE Business School in Spain, E. Philip Saunders College of Business at the Rochester Institute of Technology in the U.S., and Henley Business School in the United Kingdom. The use of consumer-based social networking tools, such as Facebook and Twitter, as collaboration platforms is connecting organizations with the external world in myriad ways. These tools bring technology and business together through innovative experiences, connect people and information, establish potential new routes to market, and enhance customer intimacy and brand awareness. The study findings indicate that the business world is at the early stages of adopting these tools and in the process of identifying key challenges, such as the need for increased governance and IT involvement, which may impact the integration and adoption of these new platforms and technologies. Global Study Reveals Proliferation of Consumer-Based Social Networking Throughout the Enterprise and a Growing Need for Governance and IT Involvement Cisco Eos - Social Networking Branded Online Social Entertainment Experiences Cisco Eos allows media companies to combine social audience features with their high-value, branded content to deliver a higher-value, interactive entertainment experience today's consumers expect. Eos delivers a social entertainment experience where consumers can interact with others around their favorite entertainment content in an environment defined, branded, and monetized by the media owner. Eos enables: Greater online brand visibility and website traffic Deeper audience engagement New revenue opportunities Eos Social Networking Features Over 40 pre-built modules are available to include in each website experience, allowing deeper, more personal consumer connections. Modules include: User profiles Forums and message boards Blogs Content sharing (including YouTube uploads) Commenting and rating Activity feeds and alerts Branded video players Cisco Eos - Social Networking Burton Group Clients Only: Many believe that the main purpose of social media is to improve brand awareness and corporate communications. The result is that marketing groups typically own social media initiatives. Although this approach may suffice initially, as strategies become more comprehensive, the complexity of dealing with different solution providers, and a diverse collection of application scenarios, introduces technology-related issues that marketing teams may inadvertently overlook. IT organizations should have a more prominent role in social media programs to help business management address tactical and long-term implications of governance, social computing, identity, security, and risk management. Social Media’s Cautionary Tale: A Management Overview

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The Two Cisco's...

Social Media impacts every business, every brand, and in doing so, connects a network of distributed communities of influence, making the world a much smaller place in the process.  Small businesses are in fact at an advantage in Social Media Marketing as they can focus on hyper-local activity that can offer immediate rewards or at the very least, the real-time feedback or lack thereof says everything about next steps. A recent survey conducted by Citibank offers a contrary point of view, citing small business executives who believe social networks offer no benefit or promise to expanding their business. This isn’t all that uncommon however. The truth is that without knowledge or direct experience, it’s virtually impossible to envision the potential of something where they’re most likely absent as a consumer themselves. But, if a conversation takes place online and you’re not there to hear it, did it actually happen? Of course it did…and it continues – with or without you. The “I” in ROI does not stand for ignorance. It does however stand for investment and in cases where new media is “new,” it also stands for intelligence. We’re learning together and that’s both an opportunity and an impediment. We need guidance to better understand the promise and also how to reap its reward. Ad-ology published its “Small Business Marketing Forecast 2010″ report that revealed that among the other benefits of social media, lead generation is the biggest benefit of online networking. Other benefits ranked as follows… Keeping up with the industry Very Beneficial: 16% Somewhat: 29% Not Beneficial: 55% Monitoring what is being said about your business Very Beneficial: 16% Somewhat: 28% Not Beneficial: 55% Generating leads Very Beneficial: 16% Somewhat: 34% Not Beneficial: 50% Competitive intelligence Very Beneficial: 14% Somewhat: 29% Not Beneficial: 57% Improving customer experience Very Beneficial: 12% Somewhat: 29% Not Beneficial: 59% Resolving problems Very Beneficial: 11% Somewhat: 22% Not Beneficial: 67% Finding vendors/suppliers/partners Very Beneficial: 10% Somewhat: 28% Not Beneficial: 62% Recruiting for new employees Very Beneficial: 8% Somewhat: 19% Not Beneficial: 73% Background checks – employees, suppliers, etc. Very Beneficial: 7% Somewhat: 20% Not Beneficial: 72% Among those surveyed, Facebook appeared as the most beneficial social network. Perhaps tied the reverberation of activity across social graphs. LinkedIn, while cited less often, ranked just below Facebook, but ahead of Twitter – for now at least. Facebook Very Beneficial: 10% Somewhat: 23% Not Beneficial: 14% Do not use: 53% LinkedIn Very Beneficial: 6% Somewhat: 15% Not Beneficial: 13% Do not use: 67% MySpace Very Beneficial: 6% Somewhat: 11% Not Beneficial: 15% Do not use: 68% Twitter Very Beneficial: 6% Somewhat: 13% Not Beneficial: 12% Do not use: 69% YouTube Very Beneficial: 5% Somewhat: 10% Not Beneficial: 12% Do not use: 73% The study shows that education and awareness are needed among small businesses to better understand the promises, advantages and the commensurate commitments necessary to generate visibility and ultimately the activity necessary to sustain or at the very least, contribute to a lucrative and growing business. 31 percent of small businesses claimed that their primary hurdle was the perception that “our customers do not use social networks.” Equally, business owners complained that they do not have the time or resources necessary to run an effective social media marketing campaign. Sound familiar? While yes, it’s true, small business owners must focus on the core products, services, and values of their business. However, without visibility, customers do not possess the information necessary to connect the dots between their want or need and you. The Top 10 Ways to Monetize Real-Time Conversations in Social Media No story is complete without providing ideas to move forward and compete for the future. By competing for the future, we also cultivate a flourishing state of “now.” One of the primary advantages of social media for small businesses is the relatively low cost associated with uncovering relevant conversations within your geographic or service area. It’s how we can identify and personally connect with customers. It’s how we learn what they’re seeking. It reveals interests and cravings. For example, take a moment to run a real-time search activity search using Collecta to get a feel for the volume and velocity for relevant conversations online. Then, run a local search on Twitter (choose by geography) using a keyword related to your business, but not necessarily that of your business or product name. For example, Pizza, Coffee, and local yogurt shops are searching those words specifically to offer specials and free items to those within proximity to stop in and give it a try. Business owners report that while offers and freebies reflect a notable investment, they always increase clientele and business overall. To help entrepreneurs and small business owners capitalize on the “now” or real-time conversations populating social media, Web 2.0 investor extraordinaire Ron Conway offered his vision for the top 10 ways to monetize real-time conversations. 10. Lead generation 9. Coupons 8. Analytics, analyzing the data 7. Enterprise CRM 6. Payments 5. Commerce 4. User-authentication, verifying accounts 3. Syndication of new ads 2. Advertising – Context and display ads 1. Acquiring followers New mobile social networks such as FourSquare , Loopt , Gowalla are also emerging that connect people within local areas based on where they are and what they’re doing. These services require you to “check in” to a location or an establishment and as such, local businesses are encouraging patrons to do so by offering incentives, “check in here on FourSquare and get a free slice of pizza or a free beer.” Why? Each time someone checks in, their social graph follows the establishments they frequent and as such, brands the venue within a very trusted circle. There are also opportunities for paid sponsorships. Each time I check in to venues in Redwood City, a local wine shop and tasting room, Savvy Cellar , pops up with a “nearby special.” If I pop in and show my iPhone with the special, I receive 50% off any tasting. Brilliant. To learn more about specific examples for increasing awareness and revenue using Social Media, please read Forbes’ piece on 21 Top Twitter Tips ( Story | Through Pictures ) Connect with Brian Solis : Twitter , LinkedIn , Tumblr , Plaxo , or Facebook — Get the new iPhone app! — Click the image below to buy the book/poster : — Image Source: Shutterstock

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The Socialization of Small Business

A friend just sent me this discussion on LinkedIn entitled:” Social Media for Business is CRAP! OK, I finally said it publicly, Social Media for business is Crap!”, written by a guy who has a digital agency – PPC, SEO, Web analytics ...

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Why “Social Media for business is not CRAP!” « Trenchwars Weblog

I could go on all day about the rise of social media at news organizations and why the use of social media tools, if used efficiently, can help almost every aspect of a news operation. The same is true for many businesses, and we've all ...

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Managing social media – Talk And Squawk - Wilmington Star News ...

Guest editorial by Rich Harris While there is a lot of talk about difficulty, social media and business to business (B2B) are indeed compatible. So.

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Social media & B2B: Interactions are opportunities | Social ...

Marketing Podcast with Grammar Girl This content from: Duct Tape Marketing Marketing podcast with Mignon Fogerty (Click to listen, right click and Save As to download – subscribe now via iTunes For this episode of the Duct Tape Marketing podcast I thought I would grab one of my favorite podcasters Mignon Fogarty . Fogarty is known to legions as Grammar Girl and she’s built an impressive empire dishing out Grammar and a growing list of other topics in Quick and Dirty style. On top of finding a way to build an audience for tips about grammar, she has turned her approach and idea into the the Quick and Dirty Tips Network. The Quick and Dirty Network is a platform created for other experts including Dog Training, Nutrition, Sales, Get it Done Guy and Public Speaking. The brand and approach has led to traffic, advertising and book deals for several of the experts. Fogerty’s the author of New York Times bestseller Grammar Girl’s Quick and Dirty Tips for Better Writing and the 365 day long Grammar Devotional . Mignon makes grammar fun and lord knows we could all use a bit of that. Make sure you check out some of the t-shirts she’s created. In this podcast: About the Quick and Dirty Network Secret behind the success of the Grammar Girl podcast Five worst grammar mistakes Grammar Girl vs. The Elements of Style Making grammar and usage discussion interesting Resources from Grammar Girl GoToWebinar is the presenting sponsor of the Duct Tape Marketing podcast. Related Posts: Six Pixels with Mitch Joel 3 Sources of Grammar Inspiration Made to Stick Podcast Tim Ferriss on the New 4-Hour Workweek New Jott Feed Feature Reads Blogs for You Like this post? Share it with others

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Marketing Podcast with Grammar Girl

If you work in marketing or public relations, the chances are you are now regularly being asked to use social media to spread your client's messages. I have met lots of marketers and business owners.

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Social Media Today | The top ten Twitter statistics and analytics ...