Rant on “Gurus” and “Experts”

In Marketing, Technology by J Michel Metz21 Comments

I gotta vent. I just gotta. I’ve long been annoyed as hell by those people who call themselves “experts” or “gurus” on any particular subject, simply because they have an obsession that they wish to rationalize. Among those I think have carved out their own special corner of hell: Life Coaches Motivational Speakers Personal Shoppers Change Agents Feng Shui Experts …

Yet Another Social Media Misunderstanding

In Academia, Customer Service, Marketing, Technology by J Michel MetzLeave a Comment

Today I saw an article float by in the Twitter river: “Why do only 7% of managers consider social media skills most important for employees?” Go ahead and read the article, because the attitudes are pretty interesting. The author, however, conflates a couple of things and winds up 180 degrees from the direction he should be facing. First, “social media” …

Technical Conferences and (In)Appropriate Behavior

In Philosophy by J Michel Metz10 Comments

This past week there have been two major technical conferences in Las Vegas – EMCWorld and Interop. Both of these conferences have provided enormous highs for me in the form of technical whiz-bangery (I think I coined a word) and some incredible feedback from attendees to my presentations. (I’m truly humbled and grateful for the enthusiasm and feedback – thank …

M-A-M™: Understanding Presentation Media

In Marketing, Technology by J Michel Metz8 Comments

Recently I went to a technical conference and, as was to be expected, found myself subjected to the classic “Death By Powerpoint.” I found myself getting frustrated and insulted by the lack of respect the presenters – and by extension, their presentations – showed their audience. There are a lot of places on the Intarwebs that can give you directions …

M-A-M™: Identifying the Message, Step 1

In Marketing by J Michel Metz2 Comments

Okay, so you’ve seen that your Facebook Fan Page doesn’t have many fans, your Twitter followers are anemic, and you’re starting to think that people just. don’t. like. you. Of 400 million Facebook users you can’t seem to grab 40? Maybe it’s time you re-examine your assumptions and learn exactly what message you’re sending (or, more importantly, they’re receiving). After …

Announcement: Google Buzz Market Report

In Marketing, Technology by J Michel MetzLeave a Comment

I’m proud to announce that Mind Commerce has just published my market analysis of Google Buzz. “This report is one of the must-read reports for people who want to understand and evaluate the importance of Google Buzz within the Social Media/Networking space. These include – but are not limited to – social media planners, marketing decision-makers, and strategic advertising professionals.”

M-A-M™: The Social Media Hammer

In Marketing by J Michel Metz4 Comments

There is no question that using Social Media can be a fantastic tool in your arsenal for delivering your message. One of the things that I have seen, however, is that the Law of the Hammer applies with social media: once you get ahold of the social media hammer everything looks like a nail.

M-A-M™: Misunderstanding Social Media

In Technology by J Michel MetzLeave a Comment

So, last time I spoke about some of the best ways to think about using social media (SM). I gave some examples about how different companies are trying to use social interaction to gain affiliation with its customers, but we need to take a look at the darker, realistic side of SM. “Field of Dreams” has a lot to answer …

M-A-M™: Understanding Social Media

In Technology by J Michel Metz4 Comments

Way back in 1993 I started my doctoral dissertation on what was then known as “Computer Mediated Communication.” Nowadays it’s better known as “Social Media,” and even though I may have been 15 years too early with Web 2.0, before Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, or MySpace, human nature hasn’t changed at all.