A Startup Guy

Here’s a funny irony. I believe technology is forcing businesses to come full circle with regards to service and interaction with the customer. Way back when, the way to address prospects and customers was generally on a one-to-one basis. You had to interact with people individually to sell them your products and then again for any follow-up customer service. Technological revolutions began changing that system so that we could address more people at a time. Newspapers would let you tell groups of readers about your products through ads. Then radio let you address larger audiences, then TV came along and you could reach millions. Cable TV let you reach audiences internationally and e-mail and the Internet let you do for pennies what used to cost dollars. Automated phone systems let you receive and route the increasing number of incoming calls without having to hire a bank of receptionists. Fax blasts and e-mail newsletters let you address tons of people at the press of a few buttons. Amazing!

But something has happened. These same technological wonders have enabled massive fracturing of your audience. No longer can you run your TV ad during the CBS News and reach 10s of millions of viewers. TV networks are ecstatic to pull in 6-8 million viewers now. More than a third of US households with a TV have digital cable, meaning they have hundreds of channels to choose from. You’ve got to be selective about where your ad dollars go to gain the most effect.

Fax blasts? They just end up in the trash. E-mail newsletters? Gone are the days when you could just add filler materials around your ads. You have to invest in time (and people) to really put together good information or readers will simply delete or unsubscribe you. That takes more team members.

Automated phone systems have become so convoluted and frustrating that many companies are abandoning them and going back to good old human receptionists to answer the phones. The Internet may draw in lots of visitors to your website, but these days, they expect personal treatment when you respond to them. And online social media services like Twiiter are all the rage in reaching out to customers, but they also require a highly personalized interaction.

So, it seems we’ve gone from one-to-one interactions through one-to-many (broadcast) and now we’re heading back to more one-to-one interactions. Have you noticed the same thing?

Oh, yeah, one more quick question. Are you interacting personally with your customers or are you just pushing information to the masses in hopes of making a connection?

Bonus: Here’s a link to David Armano’s post which got me thinking about this. Thanks, David. If you don’t read his blog, start now.

Image via CrunchBase

Do you Twitter? Twitter has blown past the three million users mark. People worldwide are checking out the benefits (and drawbacks) of microblogging 140 characters at a time. Yet, even as we begin to find new uses for the service, many people still have little clue what Twitter is and even less about how it can be useful. To help out, I thought I would write a little bit about what I’ve learn in my year on Twitter.

What is Twitter?
Twitter is a service that lets you communicate with other users online 140 characters at a time. The character limitations are a throwback to the old days of SMS when messaging (such as texting by cell phone) had the same restrictions. The hard part is it’s not always easy to say what you want in 140 characters. The good part is that it forces you to be concise in your communications. It also forces you to post comments that take more than 140 characters in more appropriate places, such as blogs. Or even to say nothing at all.

Twitter is social in that you may choose people to “follow” and people choose to follow you. Sort of like “friending” on Facebook. Then, you can choose to read the “tweets” (posted comments) of you and the people you follow. Originaly based on the simple question, “What are you doing right now?”, Twitter has evolved and now fosters not only comments on what users are doing, but conversations, obervations and helpful information.

What is Twitter Good For?
I have to admit that my first thoughts after joining Twitter were, “This is going to be a huge time sink.” and “Does this really have a productive benefit?” After a year online, I can confirm that the answer to the first item is “Yes, if you let it.” The answer to the second question is an overwhelming “Yes!” In the last year, I’ve used Twitter to help me find new acquaintances, meet the people on the cutting edge of the social media movement and get answers to questions. On several occassions, I’ve found my followers have been able to help me with mySQL and ASP.NET code challenges. When I went to Podcamp Nashville in the fall of 2007, I knew about 2 people there from past jobs and about 3 I had met through Twitter in the month or so I’d been on it. When I attended Barcamp Nashville this summer, I knew about 5 people from school and past jobs. I knew more than two dozen through Twitter or other social networks (or events I had learned about through social networks). Through Twitter, I’ve even made new “real life” (sometimes called IRLs or “in real life”) friends and possible future business partners.

Another cool use of Twitter is to observe “back channel” chatter during major technology events, such as Barcamps, Podcamps, Startup Weekends, and even SXSW. Attendees carry on conversation on Twitter to discuss presentations as they’re occuring. They also disseminate information to people who can’t attend, spreading the knowledge and fostering new discussion.

Oh, and the time sink thing? If you’ll push through the learning curve of how to use Twitter, you’ll develop a use pattern that you can use to keep Twitter from being a time sink.

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