Social media is a new world. In Hollywood, it would be called a Matrix. You might be sitting in a train as I am right now, heading to work, connected, and reviewing what is happening on opposite sides of the world. My thoughts run back and forth between New York City, recently hit by Hurricane Sandy and Central and South Asia, where we are expanding our educational software and business presence.
During Sandy, one of my neighbors was following the storm on Twitter from California. I took pictures on my phone, posted them on a blog, and shared the blog with friends and family. I used Film Annex, Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter and Google+. My business partner Mike Sweeney was monitoring the Jersey Shore from his Upper East Side apartment, and on two recent blogs, shared information, comments, and the secret that deep down, he is a Jersey Shore aficionado. At the same time, I was starting a conversation about Afghanistan's education and development on a LinkedIn group and coordinating thousands of Afghan students entering the world of social media through the Examer Educational Software and its Social Media Curriculum created by Film Annex.
Social media is a new layer of relationship and connection that goes beyond the concept of area code, passport, and nationality. It overtakes all expectations and allows each one of us to make a difference. If you want to make a profit, I invite you to read what The Annex Press is doing. Here is a quick summary:
"The Annex Press is a blogging platform created for professional writers. The writers who are asked to write for The Annex Press get paid based on their BuzzScore. We suggest writers to have a BuzzScore of at least 50 to be a selected contributor to The Annex Press."
On November 19th, Roya Mahboob and I will be traveling to the University of New Paltz to establish the connection between US-based students and Afghan students. This is taking social media to the next level and allowing both ends to benefit from a mutual promotion and execution of ideas.
As you might have read before, I take life 5 minutes at a time. It's my Judo habit and also the reason why social media has a strong effect on me. It's easy to measure and easy to ride, but you need to be strategic in the way you set up your platforms, the way you write your blogs, the keywords and quantification tools you use, and the targets you establish. Once this is done, it all falls into place and what my business partner Mike Sweeney calls “InBound Marketing” starts happening.
The three magic questions are:
Social media is what allows this to be established and above all what quantifies the leadership. Target Marketing Annex was established by Mike Sweeney with the purpose of sharing the tools and strategies with corporate clients. By following his blogs and concepts, you can easily enter the system on your own and at least get off the ground. Nothing is on autopilot. It takes time and dedication, but those are the basis of modern time success.
And now, I am off the train from Westchester. I enjoy the fact that Grand Central is back to life. It will be a nice brisk walk down to 27th street. Trains will not work below 42nd street. I think that by Saturday, the Big Apple will be back on its feet.
