Entries Tagged 'Influence & Attention' ↓

Who’s he?

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Around Christmas time last year, I first heard about an amazing young lady. She was making a difference. And doing it in style.

I was blown away by her ‘25 Days to Make a Difference‘ experiment. Blogged about it. Emailed friends. Told others on forums.

Many other people must have noticed too, because within 24 hours, her blog had received over TEN THOUSAND visitors!

The name of this little rockstar is

Little Laura has since become my friend - and my inspiration.

If you know many school-girls, you’ll also know how fickle and short their attention spans are. My daughter is nine. It’s hard to get her to concentrate on anything for longer than a few hours, or at most, a few days.

Laura hasn’t let the spark set off in December fade away. She has sustained it to become a steady flame that has warmed thousands of hearts - and built a following of equally dedicated youngsters to participate in their own ventures to make a difference, to make the world a nicer place.

On the long walk I took yesterday when I came up with the idea of “My IMPACT Factor” challenge, Laura’s project was what I was thinking about.

As children, we all have dreams. Unreal, perhaps, but certainly ambitious. In the innocence of youth, we are fired by the highest ideals, the worthiest ambitions, the noblest motives.

Sadly, however, we grow up. And somewhere along that path to adulthood, we either lose them or make them secondary to other ‘practical realities’.

“My IMPACT Factor” challenge is your chance to revert to childhood for a little while - in a nice way. To go back to the days when we really believed with all our hearts that we can make a difference.

Join the challenge. Make a difference. Change the world.

I have noticed something about myself.

Yesterday, on a whim, I put together something called “My Impact Factor” Challenge. Within a few short hours, I had posted on forums, blogs, Twitter and sent out email to my list about it.

Why?

There were absolutely NO inhibitions. I felt it was something that would benefit everyone who participates. It would do a lot of good to many people. There was no financial element to it.

So I was sure no one could criticize it on the grounds that a. I was benefiting from it or b. I was just trying to make an extra dollar or two.

Now, I am right in the middle of a ‘dual launch’ - two products about being an infopreneur. One of them is “Think, Write & RETIRE” and the other is a high-ticket home-study program, “The Internet Infopreneur SYSTEM”.

Both are very detailed instruction manuals about turning words into wealth, and the information in the courses will benefit many of the people who decide to buy it.

But every time I think or plan of doing something to build buzz around the launch, my mental brakes slam on!

• Will people object because this is a ‘product’ that I am ’selling’?
• Won’t it look like I’m ‘marketing’, not just ’socializing’?
• Is this the right audience for this kind of information?

And those impact what I do. Most of the time, I choose to NOT proceed. And yet, they call me a ‘marketer’!

What’s wrong with this picture?

Having influence is NOT always a bed of roses!

image credit sxc.hu

Along with influence comes a certain unavoidable degree of visibility, where you start living in a kind of fishbowl and are held up to a level of keen observation, and even criticism, that you probably weren’t used to before.

I personally dislike publicity. Have always grown up shielding myself from the spotlight, trying to make a difference behind the scenes. It worked - small time.

Until suddenly, one day in 1999, I realized that the heroes I grew up on, the folks I learned to look up to and learn from, WERE NO LONGER VISIBLE. I’m sure they existed, just weren’t as widely talked about, or promoted, or publicized.

I wondered why.

Today we have unscrupulous politicians, thieving criminals, unethical business-people, immoral stars (movie, music et al) as the ULTRA VISIBLE role models our youth must look up to - because there’s no alternative.

That was the day I wrote a stinging letter to India’s largest weekly magazine, INDIA TODAY. With a circulation of over FIVE MILLION in different Indian languages.

To my shock, they mentioned it in the EDITORIAL - on the first page.

And did a DIFFERENT kind of cover story from their regular style - on people, Indians, folks our youth and country must look up to. Sports superstars and social workers, novelists and entrepreneurs, people worth emulating and dreaming of becoming.

And that was the day I decided it would be IRRESPONSIBLE to let my personal feelings about publicity and visibility get in the way.

I would overcome my natural reticence and shyness, work on living with it, to draw attention to the work I do, the causes I support, the people I admire, the needs of sick children in India and the world.

Do I enjoy it? Absolutely not.

I feel VERY strange when I receive adulatory emails from folks across the globe. When total strangers write to say they’ve been moved to doing things after seeing what I’ve achieved.

But then I sit back and think… what if this encourages THEM to go for their dreams.

That’s when I decide it’s probably worth the trouble. The discomfort.

Yes, influence carries with it some discomfort.

I have to get out of my comfort zone to get this effect. So that others as scared as I once was know there are people DOING this, and so they can get the courage, the belief, the role model to follow on the path to fulfilling their own destiny.

I am not comfortable being praised in public. Would rather hide under a
bushel of anonymity.

But some things are more important.

Being seen as a role model for younger, more energetic but less directed or guided people, is one of those.

It doesn’t make the decision easier or the situation more pleasant - but at least, there’s a purpose to be achieved by enduring the discomfort of influence.

I use Aweber for most of my autoresponders. One of the lists has a bit over 1,800 subscribers. Today, I got an email from someone who tried to subscribe to it. Here’s what it says:

Reading it, I realized this was a wonderful opportunity to share with you some powerful and valuable lessons about working online.

This is NOT to poke fun at a potential subscriber who just might have disabilities that limit him from getting it right. My mother often forgets to dial in to her ISP - and then wonders why she cannot access her email! So… this isn’t a direct or veiled ‘attack’ on the hapless subscriber.

But at the same time, there are just so many things wrong with such an approach/attitude that if you see some parts of it in yourself, make an effort to change - because it could sabotage your level of success, influence and growth.

#1 - “Link wont WORK.”

This accusation/statement stems from placing blame OUTSIDE yourself.

Obviously the link works. 1,800 others have proved it. Maybe there was a temporary glitch, or more likely, maybe there’s something YOU were doing wrong.

Do not start off blaming others - try and figure out where YOU may have made a mistake, and fix it.

#2 - “It comes up with. Error you are already registered…”

And still he kept trying to register AGAIN. Probably because clicking on the link is a familar, easier task than to think about what else needs doing, what the next step should be.

If you’ve taken a step but haven’t reached your destination, check if you need to a) take more steps or b) take a different route/path

#3 - “…which I have done at least 8 times ,but it wont work”

One definition of insanity is doing the same thing - but expecting a different result!

If you want a different outcome, CHANGE what you are doing. Just repeating things over and over does NOT guarantee the outcome you desire.

Got any similar stories with a moral to share?

Amitabh Bachchan at Madame Tussaud’s

As a child, I would have fantastic dreams about meeting
famous people.

Leaders. Performers. Writers.

Film stars.

The fantasy always ended there. I didn’t have any plans
for what to do when that happened!

Those wishful days are long gone. A lot has changed.
I’m no longer a starry-eyed fan hoping to meet a hero.

And I have a CLEAR plan about what to do when it happens.

Today, I really DID meet a SUPER-star.

He is a household name in millions of Indian families -
and even across Asia. He is the ‘angry young man’ action
hero of Bollywood.

Yes, today I met AMITABH BACHCHAN!

It was a very brief meeting. But I did get to shake
the famous superstar’s hand.

You can tell a lot about someone by the way he shakes
hands. Mr.Bachchan has a firm handshake, makes eye-
contact, and draws one for a short little while into
his personal universe.

It felt special

I decided right then that I liked him - as a person.

A few minutes later, he accepted an invitation to be
a patron of a CHD project which funds heart surgery
for poor Indian children.

He also made a donation of Rs.1.1 million - that’s
enough to fund 10 heart operations!

We all have potential to be super-stars.  Most of us
ignore that potential.  Even claim to NOT want that
status.

Yet, one superstar today could touch the lives of 10
children.

And do it in an instant - without it taking a toll on
his life or finances.

That’s the incredible potential to do good that stems
from having influence, fame and power.

Isn’t that a worthwhile reason to be great?

I just learned that Amitabh Bachchan has a blog. It
has EIGHT posts. And each one has HUNDREDS of comments!
One even has 887 comments!

And here I was thinking I’m a popular blogger

Image credit www.sxc.hu

In 2006, FAST COMPANY magazine did a short report about my work online helping children with congenital heart defects. The article was titled:

“Dr.Mani - Spamming for Good”

Interesting headline, isn’t it?

Since then, I’ve also been ‘Social Networking for Good’.

And have come across some amazing human beings involved in wonderful work, in efforts to make the world a better place.

Like Rosalyn Bronstein. She’s not rich and wealthy in a financial sense, but is one of the richest people I know. Every year, on CHD Awareness Day and during the Heart Kids Blogathon, Rosalyn gets in touch with me.

Her request is always the same: “Please tell me how I can help.”

Even when temporarily struggling to pay utility bills, she accessed computers in her public library to help spread the word about CHD Awareness Day. She went around hospitals, posting printed notes on bulletin boards to help tell more people about heart birth defects.

People like Rosalyn are the reason I can continue with my work, with energy and inspiration, knowing that it WILL make a difference.

On the other end of the financial spectrum is my friend - and in a sense, my philanthropic mentor - the maverick real estate multi-millionaire Frank McKinney.

Frank builds luxury mansions for the ultra-rich. Think FIFTY MILLION dollar homes!

He also builds shelters and homes for the extremely poor in Haiti. I’m a proud sponsor of his Caring House Project, and it’s time for my annual contribution to this worthy cause.

Frank McKinney called last November and we enjoyed a 30 minute telephone conversation. One of his core philosophies resonated strongly with me -

“Of those to whom much is given, much is expected.”

And on online social networks like Twitter, Facebook and MySpace, I’ve connected with some amazing people who are doing awesome things.

On Twitter, I met Roger Carr, Beth Kanter and Anne Mitchell.

Beth recently spearheaded a fundraiser to help educate children in Cambodia. With energy and passion I haven’t seen often, she rocketed her charity to the top of the ‘America Giving’ challenge - and won an EXTRA $50,000 donation for her cause.

Anne helped raise money to help the desperately poor in Tajikistan (bet you don’t know where that is, do you?!) - by tying in with a tea-house in her home town.

Roger is currently engaged in helping children with arthritis. You can learn more about his efforts here - and help him reach his goal.

Juvenile arthritis (joint problems in children) is particularly close to my heart. My aunt had severe complications related to a condition called SLE (systemic lupus erythematosus) causing severe arthritis, and rheumatoid arthritis runs in my family.

The pain is compounded many times over when it hits children.

Imagine a youngster excited about being able to hold a pencil and write - because the crippling pain is under control.

Experience the ecstasy and thrill a child feels when riding a bike in the sunshine - after not even being able to step out of bed because it hurts.

Think about a little boy or girl you know who enjoys childhood - and then of another with arthritis who will now be able to do everything the ‘normal’ way.

Those are the dreams Roger Carr is helping make come true through his efforts supporting the Arthritis Foundation.

Won’t you please help him make many more of these dreams come true?

Roger has set himself what I think a very modest goal - to raise $1,000 for the Arthritis Foundation. I’m sure he’ll hit it. But I want to make sure he SHATTERS that target - and gets far more than that for the kids.

So I’m donating $100. And asking you to help, if you can.

And for anyone who donates any amount to Roger’s fundraiser, I’m going to offer a gift. NOT as a bribe, or incentive, or any such thing. As a gift… one that will help you connect with the thousands of others like Roger, Anne, Beth, Frank and Rosalyn - through social networks.

That gift is my guide, the $97.00 ‘Social Media Marketing Plan’

It will show you how to explore social networks - and do GOOD.

Thank you for joining the growing ranks of wonderful, inspiring and generous people who are ‘Social Networking for Good’.

Here’s one way to integrate your activities across various social media properties and networks, so that each leverages another and gets you incremental value from whatever you do in this space.

I use Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, StumbleUpon and blogging as my primary social networking activities at this moment - and here’s how I’ve set them up to work in concert.

On my blog…

I have the Twitter widget on the sidebar, a Feedburner icon (plus email sign up link) for visitors to subscribe, and will soon add the Facebook widget too. A visitor to my blog gets instant news about what I’m doing on FB and Twitter, while reading my longer blog posts… and if s/he likes it, can subscribe for more, through RSS feed or by email.

The blog is also distributed through Aweber, with email notifications along with short summaries sent out whenever I update the blog with new content (not every time, but once every 3 posts or so).

On Twitter…

My profile links back to my blog. Through my tweets, I often link back to posts and other events of interest on my site, forum or blog - and even point to FB, LinkedIn and other social media sites I frequent.

Because my Twitter widget is on the blog and on Facebook, the latest tweets are ’syndicated’ across them too.

On Facebook…

I have the Twitter widget enabled, which means my tweets are shown to my FB Friends. I post Notes about interesting blog posts, leading some FB Friends to my blog, Twitter or MySpace to read more about them.

I have also enabled my StumbleUpon account sharing, so sites that I ’stumble’ will show up on Facebook too. And by ’stumbling’ my recent blog posts, that bit can happen ‘automatically’.

On StumbleUpon…

My profile page links back to my blog. I also stumble posts on my blog, tweets on Twitter and updates to my websites, among other interesting links I discover as I surf the Web.

I could use RSS to integrate SU more intensively into my blog, if I wanted to.

That’s just a brief overview.

It helps maximize my involvement in social media, by spreading the effort across multiple networks. Parts of my audience across these media is the same. But there are some folks who only see me on FB, some on Twitter, others on email - and by sharing and distributing content across the networks, I increase my chances of reaching them through one channel or another.

It’s why in this post titled “Oh, Twitter!” I called it a ‘channel’. In a sense, all social media is a channel - between you and your audience. Maximize it for greater value for your investment in time and effort.

How do you integrate your social media networking? Do you have any helpful tips to share? Please leave a comment explaining how you do it. Thanks.

I hardly ever tell you to try out things I have
not personally experienced, tested and found
useful.

That’s because there’s an ‘opportunity cost’ to
all stuff - even free things.

In the time you take to ‘test’ something, you may
be better off doing something ELSE - that really
works!

Though I haven’t often presented it that way,
THIS is the REAL value you get from being on
my email list.

* Not the products I create or promote to you.

* Not the cool things, events and projects I
write to you about.

* Not the people I evangelize to you.

All that is useful - but the value comes from the
TIME and EFFORT I save for you by directing you
towards what works… and NOT telling you about
the rest that is less effective, or worse, totally
INEFFECTIVE.

Social media marketing is one such thing where I
can honestly say:

“Your Mileage Will Vary”

For some folks, social media marketing will ROCK.

For most, it will be a total time drain.

I’m talking about stuff like Twitter, Sphinn,
MySpace, StumbleUpon and the latest darling of
the IM arena…Facebook!

Yes, the same Facebook that John Reese seems to
have suddenly thrust into the limelight of an
‘eager-for-the-Next-Big-Thing’ IM marketplace.

Social media marketing is something I’ve been
working on intensely, testing actively and
exploring extensively since May-June 2007.

That’s when I tested Facebook - and gave up on
it!

I also found Twitter and StumbleUpon most
exciting, useful and valuable in networking
and generating website traffic.

But here’s the thing… each social network
has potential - for specific purposes.

And like all forms of socializing, the more
you do it, the better you get at it - and
the more value you get from it.

Sadly, most marketers look at the huge crowds
that frequent these services - and see a
herd waiting to be exploited.

Just like mailing lists.

Or forum communities.

Or even blog readers.

But these are folks who don’t have a clue of
the nature of the beast we call SOCIAL media.

It’s like the difference between Web 1.0 which
was about ‘lecturing from a platform’ and even
Web 2.0 which was based on ‘user generated
content’.

Social Media Marketing is the coming Web 3.0

It’s about ENGAGEMENT and PARTICIPATION.

Not merely ‘marketing’.

Or sending out mail blasts.

Even orchestrating a ‘launch’ with JVs.

Social media marketing, to be effective,
DEMANDS YOUR INVOLVEMENT.

It cannot be ‘outsourced’.

It cannot be ‘automated’.

It cannot be ’syndicated’.

And no, you cannot ride the coat-tails, hop
on a bandwagon or piggyback on someone’s
popularity and ‘fame’ the way you can with
joint venture deals or conventional marketing.

It is the NEW MARKETING - and we’re all learning.

If you have the time, interest and curiosity to
want to learn it, and have the analytical skills,
judgement and perspective to see what it can do
for your business - and then, are willing to
COMMIT TIME, ENERGY and YOUR PERSONALITY to test
it out, then go for it.

You’ll have fun - and learn a lot - even if all
you try doesn’t work.

But if you’re looking for the BEST, most effective
and workable solutions because you are starved for
time, have too much to do, and don’t really ‘get’
this whole ‘engagement/participation’ thing -

You’re Better Off Giving Social Media
Marketing A COMPLETE MISS!

Don’t try and pervert or manipulate it.

That could be dangerous and detrimental to your
business health.

I predict quite a few ‘big name’ marketers will
find this out the HARD WAY - and quite a few
will end up with mud on their faces.

Don’t be one of them.

Play the social media marketing game the SMART
and RIGHT way - or get off the field. That’s
safer than doing it WRONG!

No one has the answers. Everyone is learning.
You can join the fun - if you have 3 things:

* Enough time to explore and experiment

* Desire to involve yourself in social
intercourse

* Curiosity to test, learn and change

All success
Dr.Mani

My main social media identities are:

* Twitter -
http://www.Twitter.com/drmani

* StumbleUpon -
http://infopreneurblog.stumbleupon.com

* MySpace -
http://www.MySpace.com/drmani

* Facebook -
http://profile.to/drmani

(I’m not listing my Gooruze, Ning, Gather,
Sphinn, Reddit and other IDs because I
don’t use them much any longer)

I’m teasing my list about a ‘Google Domination’ program that’s due out on Saturday Friday called the “Authority Site Process“.

One of my readers wrote to say this:

“I am more inclined to believe that if Google wants you there it should be their decision to place you where they select rather than beating the odds to out do them. It may be Old fashioned but to me, honesty is still the best practice.”

The implication, clearly, is that trying to get to the top of Google (or any other search engine) is DISHONEST.

In other words, search engine optimization (SEO) is dishonest.

I don’t think so.

But more compelling is the argument often made that SEO is UNETHICAL.

That’s a more intricately delicate accusation, one not so easily brushed off.

And I enjoy ethical conundrums, especially because of my medical background. Medical ethics is very dogmatic and needs to be due to the nature of issues that require handling. Business ethics, I’ve found, tend to be a lot more loose, individually interpreted, and fuzzy in many instances.

Like the issue of SEO being ethical.

Driven by a profit motive, businesses that practice SEO almost always tend towards the view that any kind of SEO is just a business tool that gives them an advantage, and therefore ethical.

I have thought about it long and hard in the past, and have a viewpoint. See if you agree - or tell me why you don’t.

Ethical Theory - a primer

As far as ethics governs the ‘rightness’ or ‘wrongness’ of an action, there are two schools of thought:

Deontologic Ethics can be distilled down to ‘doing your duty’ or ‘following the rules’ - and that alone determines if an action is right or wrong, NOT the consequences of the action.

Teleological Ethics can be described simply as ‘the ends justify the means’. In other words, whether an action is right or wrong is defined by the good or evil generated by it.

Every Day Examples - case studies

This theory is abstract enough that some readers may miss the point I’m about to make. So I’ll use some daily life examples to make it come alive more graphically and in easy to understand terms.

A soldier on military duty attacks a village. He is acting on the command of his officer. Unfortunately, many innocent civilians in the village are killed in the attack.

The soldier’s action is still ethical. He is obeying a command. Following rules. The consequences of his action do NOT determine the ethicality of it.

It makes sense for deontological ethics to apply in some circumstances such as soldiers on the battlefield. It would be inappropriate for someone under those circumstances to be permitted individual choice as to whether or not to follow orders.

Now take the other example of a man pointing a gun at another one - who is attacking him with a knife!

If the man shoots and kills his attacker, he would not be charged with murder, but only justifiable homicide - because he was saving his own life. The consequences of his action make them ethical.

The same ethical theory would apply to a law officer who shoots down a terrorist about to detonate a bomb in a crowded public place. Taking a life, one of the most serious ‘crimes’, in such circumstances becomes an ethical act.

One of the phrases I coined - and love to use when I get a chance - is this:

“The difference between a surgeon’s scalpel and a murderer’s knife is one of INTENTION.”

A surgeon can ethically perform actions which would put anyone else in jail - because the ‘greater good’ of his patient makes the action ethical.

The Ethics of SEO

But what has this got to do with search engine optimization?

Google (and other search engines) lay down rules.

Playing within these rules, a webmaster can ‘optimize’ a site to rank high on the directory or search engine results pages (SERPs).

This approach is called ‘White Hat SEO’.

It is manipulative. It tries to give a webmaster an advantage over competitors. It does this within the rules.

By deontological theory, white hat SEO is ethical.

Most people accept this and agree with it. But there’s another brand of SEO called ‘grey’ or ‘black’ hat SEO - and that raises furious debate whenever the question of ethics is introduced into a discussion.

Can Black Hat Be Ethical?

Every black hat is not the same!

My good friend, philosopher and guide, Paul Myers, wears a black hat. It is pointy, too. He is among the most honest, straightforward and ethical people I know from my decade of working on Internet marketing. (You can sign up to his newsletter, Talkbiz News - click here)

No, Paul Myers is NOT a black hat SEO guy. He only wears a black hat.

But there are folks who use blackhat SEO to gain an advantage in terms of high ranking on search engines, by violating the norms and breaking rules these engines have laid down for fair play.

By deontological ethics, that is unethical.

But what if… let’s take a hypothetical case study.

This guy has discovered a way to prevent cancer. It works. Many thousand people can benefit from the information. He puts it up on a website - and then runs into a problem.

The top 10 (or more) spots on search engines are occupied by websites that employ blackhat SEO to protect their rankings. There is absolutely no way to beat them out - without using blackhat SEO techniques, fighting fire with fire.

What should this webmaster do?

Using blackhat SEO is unethical, by deontology. But by failing to get the life-saving information out to thousands of people who are looking for it, the refusal to use blackhat SEO techniques is ITSELF unethical by teleology - because the consequences of such a choice lead to the death of those people!

What a dilemma to face.

It certainly is possible to make a strong argument for blackhat SEO being ethical in this situation. In fact, if I was feeling particularly argumentative, I might even go so far as to say REFUSING to use blackhat SEO in such a situation is UNETHICAL!

But…

What do YOU think?

I leave that for you to debate with me. Let’s have a spirited discussion about the Ethics of Search Engine Optimization.

And in case you were wondering, there is absolutely NOTHING close to blackhat SEO in my new “Authority Site Process“ program that launches on Saturday. Friday.

I’ve had many beta-testers put the program through the paces, and it has been possible to uniformly replicate and duplicate the results I myself experience at will from following the process.

If you’re interested in hearing about it when I launch, you can either keep up with this blog - or opt-in to my mailing list - click here

But in any case, do chime in on the debate about whether search engine optimization is ethical - or not. Leave a comment and let the sparks fly!