Meanwhile, if you do not like personal blog posts, now would be a good time for you to go ahead and close this browser tab.

The Cornerstone

Putting it simply: I am abundantly blessed! I’m a couple weeks shy of celebrating 24 years of marriage with a wonderful woman who I adore. Krista Vickery’s smile and laugh still make my life better every day. She “took a flyer” on me when friends advised her NOT to marry me! You could understand their concerns – my father died when I was 4 years old, but not before my mother divorced him on her way through 4 marriages. I had little faith in the marriage institution as I witnessed the hypocrisy…adultery…and abuse that went with the “modern day” marriage. Why would I ever want to enter that type of relationship by choice (versus shotgun), and WHY ON EARTH would I bring kids into this world of deceit and abuse?!?

But my wife-to-be could see that I adored her, and I became a changed man the moment I laid eyes on her. We soon dreamed of having children.

The Vickery Girls

Boys grow up wanting to be doctors, lawyers, and Indian Chiefs. I wanted to be an assassin. I was going to be different – I was going to remove evil from the world…my way. After meeting Krista, I went from wanting to rid the world of evil…to choking up at Disney Movies with my Vickery Girls (Krista, Alexis, and Savannah). And you should see me get riled up when watching Man On Fire or Taken (Daddy wants to protect his girls)! I still enjoy watching the videos I put together for my daughters’ graduation parties, alone, so I can privately celebrate how much they mean to me.

I can’t explain what it does to me when my girls call me Daddy. I love my life, and the Vickery Girls are my foundation. I will always treasure their Father’s Day wishes on Facebook this year because Alexis is now a Mommy starting her own family, and Savannah is getting ready to leave for college in the Fall.

New Beginnings

Everybody has watched the Grinch, right? Whether you prefer the animated version, or Jim Carrey’s, there is the scene where the Grinch experienced unknown sensations as his heart “grew 3 sizes that day.” This was my first Father’s Day as a Granddaddy – and what is this grandkid doing to me?!? When Ethan smiles, I tear up as I feel my heart trying to explode out of my chest. When he cries getting into his car seat, I want to yank him out and protect him against the world. My Vickery Girls laugh as they see an even softer side of me they never saw when they were kids.

I don’t get it – but then, I don’t have to get it. I just need to enjoy every moment of being a Daddy/Granddaddy!

I am my family’s Patriarch, Provider, and Protector. This family is my life’s work! However, I understand there is a new Provider and Protector in town: my future son-in-law is doing a wonderful job as Ethan’s father and Alexis’ husband (in about 6 weeks). He understands and cherishes his role, and he knows it all started with the love for a girl. By keeping that “First Love” strong, he will be blessed abundantly and experience incredible joys each day – with a double dose of joy every Father’s Day!

Happy Father’s Day from the Vickerys – Young and Not As Young

I hope your Father’s Day was a blessing. Whether it was celebrating your own father/grandfather – celebrating being a father/grandfather – or everything in between, I hope there were plenty of smiles to go around. For those who painfully remembered the loss of loved ones, remind yourself that the pain is because you loved them so dearly. For those who would rather forget, choose to “Be The Difference” going forward. Be the best man YOU can be for the people you cherish most.

Happy belated Father’s Day…from my house to yours!

The post Vickery Father’s Day Roundup – This Grumpy Cat Becomes a Softie appeared first on Brian Vickery.

Mantis understands software development and delivery – Mantis understands data integration, text/sentiment analysis and data visualization – and Mantis understands BIG Data, HANA and Cloud implementations. And Mantis Pulse Analytics is the shining social media monitoring tool that showcases all of those competencies. Hey, we’re good…you should check us out!

But enough about my personal, and very biased, perspective. Timo Elliott recently attended a Mantis presentation at SAPPHIRE NOW and ASUG 2013. He should get a double gold star because his blog post shows he paid very close attention! Read his outstanding summary of our SAPPHIRE presentation to better understand the science and technology behind Mantis Pulse Analytics. Sentiment analysis will never be 100% accurate, so get a glimpse on how Pulse Analytics intelligently adapts to suit each customer. And check out how SAP HANA allows Pulse Analytics to run sentiment analysis on millions of documents (tweets, Facebook/Google+ statuses, blog posts, product reviews, etc.)…in seconds!

Here is Timo Elliott’s blog post: Customized Voice of The Customer Analytics using SAP HANA

And of course, drop me a line on any of my social profiles if you want to see a live demo of Pulse Analytics – perhaps even using your brand’s data!

The post Pulse Analytics Social Media Monitoring – Independent Look Under the Covers appeared first on Brian Vickery.

1. Beaming

Mother Teresa said that “Peace begins with a smile.” Meet your team with a beaming and sincere smile each morning, and see how productivity and morale increase.

2. Believable

Believable leaders exude both sincerity and high integrity. How can people follow you if they cannot trust you?

3. Beneficial

We all want to succeed in life. Great leaders convince their teams that it is beneficial to follow their vision. They remind the team of the company goals and the tangible benefits of achieving those goals.

4. Benevolent

Let’s get back to that smile. Some leaders use fear as a motivator. I prefer the benevolent leader who shows kindness while still exhibiting both confidence and competence.

5. Better

We live in a competitive world. I do not agree with tearing down the reputation of a competitor. However, I am completely OK with proving that our company is BETTER than the competition! Teams want to follow winners, so great leaders prove they are the better… no, the absolute best… option for teams to achieve success.

6. Blessed

George Eliot said “Blessed is the man who, having nothing to say, abstains from giving us wordy evidence of the fact.” Great leaders know when to speak. Better yet, they know when to be silent when they can add no additional value to the discussion.

7. Bodacious

Sorry folks, I’ve loved this word since I was a teenager… and a man should take every rare opportunity to use the word bodacious! Webster’s definition that gets me in less trouble is to be remarkable or noteworthy. Great leaders are remarkable. Great leaders are noteworthy. Great leaders are BODACIOUS!!

8. Boffo

Boffo means to be extremely successful or sensational. Great leaders guide their teams to extreme success and sensational results.

9. Boisterous

Boisterous can mean downright rowdy and rambunctious, but it also means being exuberant and in “high spirits.” A positive and enthusiastic attitude is contagious — get viral!

10. Bold

Virgil stated “Fortune favors the bold.” Teams want bold leaders. This does not mean the leaders take inappropriate risks or gambles with no preparation. However, leaders should not be paralyzed by fear of failure. Use fear as one of many counselors without allowing it to become shackles.

11. Bountiful

A bountiful leader is “liberal in bestowing gifts or favors.” Recognize team member achievements, bring in pizza on a Friday, or take the gang out to see a 3-D movie. Let the bountiful moments be consistent yet refreshingly unpredictable.

12. Brilliant

Great leaders do not need to be brilliant all the time. Consistency and stability go a long way to establishing trust with team members. However, the great leaders do have moments of brilliance and innovation. No Peter or Dilbert Principles here!

What do you think is the most bodacious quality in a great leader? Remember, you have to stick to the letter “B”, so do not jump ahead with an incredible “C” adjective!

As usual, I like to end this type of post with “what not to be.” Great leaders are never babbling, baffled, baleful, ballistic, bashful, beastly, belligerent, bitter, bizarre, boring, bossy, or brutal.

Now, GO BE BODACIOUS (I love that word)!

Republished with permission, courtesy of 12 Most. Photo via Kristina Alexanderson on Flickr.

The post 12 Most Bodacious B Behaviors of Great Leaders appeared first on Brian Vickery.

DISCLAIMER: I am mentioned in the Acknowledgements of this book, and Pulse Analytics is mentioned as a viable alternative in an influence marketing strategy. I count both of these gentlemen as friends; however, I am not a “homer” and I challenged them on several points as they wrote the book (how to “scale” their methodology…how to apply to B2B opportunities versus the more natural B2C scenarios…influence scoring algorithms are NOT going away).

Definition of a “homer” via the Urban Dictionary

In fact, this book mentions several competing products even more prominently than Pulse Analytics because Mantis is relatively new to the social media monitoring and sentiment analysis arena. I *am* grateful that Pulse Analytics is part of this influence marketing conversation.

So how were the Influence Marketing guys (Sam and Danny) wrong? Well, they come right out and tell the readers in the first chapter! The MV-1 Canada case study takes readers through an iterative process where the initial sales results failed to meet expectations. But here is what makes Sam and Danny special: they are willing to adapt their methodology based upon measurable results! They are then willing to share their learning curve with the readers. In fact, they invite their critics before they get to Chapter 1. They are willing to be thought leaders, debate facilitators, and opinion collectors, as they strive to develop an influence marketing methodology that is both reproducible and measurable for marketing organizations – with metrics tied to financial performance versus simply engagement and brand awareness.

Rather than give you an exhaustive book report, I am going to hit the highlights that should compel YOU to go read the book:

• In the MV-1 Canada case study, influencers “had their eyes and ears, they did not necessarily have their hearts and wallets” when it came to prospective customers. Here is another great quote from that detailed case study regarding influencers: “Their influence was one-dimensional; relationships without depth, amplification without action, and recommendation without comprehension of the audience’s need.”
• We learn how the modern “Connected Consumer” prefers pull marketing techniques. They want to research their own purchasing decisions (I know I do), and this leads to the “IKEA Effect” – they become emotionally invested in the decision because they contributed with their own labor (the research).
• Once a brand establishes “emotional resonance”, and creates true advocates, then negative scenarios are seen as “road bumps in the overall success of the business”. In fact, “true success comes from advocacy – when loyal customers refer friends”. Think about it – we will always put higher trust in recommendations from friends versus any form of paid media and interruptive advertising.
• One of my favorite stories was how the music community tried to manage the current trend when Napster was sharing copyrighted music for free. Meanwhile, Apple adapted to trend currents which in this case was observing how people changed how they wanted to consume music. So Apple created iTunes, and we ALL know how that decision turned out (CHA-CHING, Apple). The current trend is now influence scoring, but perhaps the trend current is how we should “create, manage, and measure brand influencers in the future.”
• Enjoyed the comparison between the Fisherman’s Influence Model and the Customer-Centric Influence Marketing Model.
• The Influence Marketing methodology “works backwards” from the customer versus forward from brand through influencer to the customer. In fact, the book introduces us to the concept of micro-influencers, and then shows how to “scale” these personas to develop a strategy to reach prospective customers WHEN and HOW they want to be reached in the purchasing lifecycle. This is the real “meat” of the book, and the middle chapters are devoted to exhaustively explaining the process. In addition to understanding relationships between PEOPLE, influence marketing also appreciates how situational factors, lifestyles, and perceptions provide CONTEXTUAL environments that can DISRUPT purchase decisions.
• Social influence score-based campaigns try to engage a broad audience based upon influencers’ reach and perceived influence for certain keywords – with no regard for where prospects are in the purchase lifecycle and how to move them along to the next stage in that purchase lifecycle. Throughout the book, the authors do not “hate on influence scoring”. On the contrary, they acknowledge social influence scoring can still be used to identify macro-influencers. However, additional “work” should be done to narrow the list of influencers to those who can truly impact purchase decisions due to emotional connection with the prospective buyers as they are putting out “buying signals”.
• Several of the case studies for successful influence marketing include strong social monitoring components (something near and dear to my heart due to Pulse Analytics and a belief in the power and leverage of good monitoring, measurement, and informed action). As the Influence Marketing guys point out: It helps your brand message “reach the right person with the right message at the right time”.
• Influence Marketing understands the concept of Customer Lifetime Value. In fact, Sam and Danny would like to see the word “campaign” removed from influence marketing efforts because it “suggests a beginning and end when, in fact, influence marketing is conducted along the full customer life cycle”.
• Another one of my favorite graphics was in Chapter 11 – the Customer Life Cycle Continuum. It is an elegant graphic that describes a recurring cycle of steps (versus linear steps) through Customer Acquisition and Customer Development. The goal is to get natural brand advocates providing that most powerful of brand messaging: the referral based upon personal, rewarding experience.

Influence scoring platforms will tell you I am an influencer in regards to social media, strategy, and measurement. I am not here to claim I am an influencer beyond my immediate family (which provides all the Perks I need). However, I am here to say I am an advocate for Sam Fiorella, Danny Brown, and their Influence Marketing methodology. Their continued willingness to adapt, based upon performance metrics and input from their own readers and clients, ensures the long-term viability and success of their Influence Marketing approach.

Good job, boys…but don’t let the good reviews go to your head. There is work to be done!

Photo Credit: Book Cover via Influence Marketing. No affiliate links here…remember, I’m an advocate vs an influencer.

The post The Influence Marketing Guys were WRONG – and Then They Made it RIGHT appeared first on Brian Vickery.

1. Libraries are the Hubs of Strong Communities

Walk into your local library and observe the diversity. In one corner, you have kids’ story time. Along the back wall, you might have high school and college students studying in  small reading rooms. There are classes down the hall teaching social media or tax preparation. Oh look, the mayor is here to casually discuss local civic issues, an older couple is reading the newspaper by the fireplace, and tutors are still trying to teach students how to find “X”. You can feel the strong pulse of community.

Community managers should strive to build a diverse online community. Make your community a destination where people come to learn, relax, feel safe, or simply “belong”.

2. Libraries Must Be Contextually Relevant

Modern libraries have rows of desktop computers and strong WiFi signals for patrons who bring their own devices. They allow you to download eBooks and checkout Blu-Ray DVDs. You can find a few newspapers for the current day, and you can browse consumer guides for current products. Walk the software development aisle, and you will see books on Java, C#, PHP, how to build a blog on WordPress, and Agile project methodologies.

Community managers must captivate their audience DAILY. Poll the community for reaction on the latest news, technological advancements, or social issues. Crowdsource ideas for the next product release. Share pictures that capture the best moments of TODAY! Go ahead and put away your presentation on how to login to Compuserve – it is no longer contextually relevant.

3. Libraries Must Cross-Sell Their Programs

A young mother who shows up for kids’ story time might be interested in those free “interior design on a budget” classes. That high school kid, who might be using the library computers because his family can’t afford one, could really benefit from the weekend career fair and “how to apply for college scholarships” seminar. The elderly gentleman reading the newspaper would love to be a mentor for the young adult outreach program you are starting.

Community managers are tasked with informing their communities about ALL of their company’s offerings – in an unobtrusive manner that informs and educates without slamming a sales pitch down their throats. Community members want to do business with you, but they first have to know your offerings.

4. Libraries Must be Accessible to ALL Patrons

I love libraries! As a kid growing up on the wrong side of the rural tracks, with no money to buy books, the local library was my salvation! I used to check out 5-6 books on each trip to town. I am now a grandfather that has lived in six communities as an adult – and I applied for my library card within a month of moving to each of those communities. I enjoy walking the stacks, and I still get excited discovering new authors.

I was not a “high value” patron as a kid. I didn’t pay taxes, and perhaps I was occasionally in the company of some shady characters (small towns love their gossip). But that library was of highest value to me! It was a place to go to dream…to begin to wonder “what if”…to start making those dreams a reality through reading. Those librarians were some of the kindest, non-judgmental people I ever met. They would help me find any resource, and then they would take an interest and supplement my findings with new resources.

Libraries and librarians were foundational in making me a law-abiding, tax-paying citizen…now supporting his local library!

Community managers need to maintain that same non-biased kindness and willingness to serve. Do not just cater to the “paying customers” or those who you view as high-value prospects. The lurking window-shopper may prove to be your strongest brand advocate if you just show that their place in the community is as secure and important as everybody else’s.

5. Libraries Must Appeal to Wealthy Patrons

All patrons are high value – I once read a book that said your intrinsic value is always 10 on a scale of 1 to 10 – but not all patrons have high value in their wallets. Library improvements are still driven by available tax revenue, so their tax base needs to know about library outreach programs, seminars, and upgrades that include new computers and media choices. Then wealthy patrons need to take the “long view” and realize they are part of a community that is bigger than themselves. I am a definite capitalist, but when it comes to education I think that the well-off should embrace providing educational resources for the community. That student on free-and-reduced lunch that is using the library computer…could be the next Mark Zuckerburg if given the opportunity. At the very least, that student will be casting votes for elected officials that determine the entitlement programs you might be counting on in your golden years!

Community managers must be inclusive for all community members. However, mind-share and resultant revenue drive the bottom line. Use your online communities to find ideal candidates for product development focus groups and beta offerings. Offer “free trials” in return for permission to include the prospect in a case study.

Did you grow up loving a local library? Do you still use the library, or have you moved on to downloading books from Amazon onto your mobile device? Do you see parallels between your local library and good online community management?

Here is the YouTube video from the referenced #cmgrhangout.

Photo Credit: Andreas F. Borchert [CC-BY-SA-3.0-de, CC-BY-SA-3.0-2.5-2.0-1.0 or GFDL], via Wikimedia Commons

The post 5 Community Management Lessons Learned in a Library appeared first on Brian Vickery.

I will try to throw some curves — some “reaches” — just to keep the readers guessing. So let’s get started with the “Awesome A Attributes” shall we?

1. Androgynous

I’m starting out with a little humor. Androgynous means to possess both male and female qualities. So before you start cross-dressing or calling yourself Androgynous Pat, this is what I mean: you should cultivate sensitivity regardless of gender, ethnicity, age or any other demographic attribute. Not every employee may respond well to “rub some dirt in it” or “let’s all hold hands and sing ‘We Are the World’” attitudes. We should adapt to support our employees as much as possible. Personally, I balance my love for contact sports with participating in #FunFoodFriday and #Caturday on Facebook and Google+. I am not ashamed!

2. Avuncular

Avuncular leaders treat their team members with kindness while indulging in their individuality to the point where it contributes to a positive team dynamic. The key is to keep that avuncular attitude open to all versus developing a divisive or preferential environment.

3. Accessible

Team members need to know their leaders are accessible to them. Strong leaders keep an open door policy and invite input on several channels like email, conference calls, all-hands meetings and one-on-one meetings.

4. Appropriate

Leaders should exhibit appropriate behavior at all times. Discrimination and harassment are reprehensible. True leaders seek to live their professional and personal lives above reproach.

5. Adamant

Leaders are unyielding in their commitment to team goals and morale. When projects go through a “rough patch,” team members need to know that their leader is a strong foundation they can rely upon to weather the storm.

6. Agreeable

Leaders should be agreeable when team members present new ideas. They should also be open to critiquing from both team members and clients. Unbiased critiques can be the best drivers for professional growth.

7. Ambitious

It doesn’t take a strong leader to maintain the status quo. Strong leaders encourage new ideas as well as establish an ambitious long-range vision attainable through the accomplishment of short-term, incremental goals.

8. Astonishing

Even the alphas — the superstar employees — want to be astonished. Whether astonishing through generosity, innovation, or flexibility regarding work/life balance, leaders separate themselves from the pack. Never make it solely about compensation because then the superstars simply go to the highest bidder. Be astonishing!

9. Agile

Have you heard the expression “Best laid plans of mice and men?” Requirements change, markets fall, and personal obstacles crop up faster than you can say Murphy’s Law. Rather than becoming the manager with three letters, strong leaders do not become defensive and look to place blame. Instead, they use mental and emotional agility to adapt for the changing conditions.

10. Altruistic

Good leaders are generally successful. Great leaders achieve resounding success shared by their team. Good leaders always seem to achieve enough to pad the resume to land the next job. Great leaders show interest and nurture talent from within their team that becomes capable of sustaining success indefinitely.

11. Appreciative

This gets back to ensuring that compensation is not strictly monetary for team members. Great leaders show appreciation for valuable contributors. Providing awards and recognition in front of their peers builds strong loyalty among team members. I actually had a partner who helped an employee buy a transmission on Craigslist, and then he spent the entire weekend helping him replace that transmission. That type of sincere appreciation is hard to copy!

12. Authentic

Employees want to know you are the same person every day and in every circumstance. They want to know they can look you in the eye and see no guile or hidden agendas. They want to know that when they turn their back, you’ve “got their back.” Great leaders are “as honest as the day is long.”

I will end each of these posts with adjectives you never want associated with your name. For the “A-List,” you never want to be abhorrent, abrasive, abrupt, abusive, amorous, apathetic or arrogant!

Which Awesome A Attributes best describe you? Which attribute do you hope to attain in your own leadership journey?

Republished with permission, courtesy of 12 Most. Photo by Dave Morris from Oxford, UK (Flickr) [CC-BY-2.0], via Wikimedia Commons

The post 12 Most Awesome A Attributes for Great Leaders appeared first on Brian Vickery.

Story of the 3 Letters

A young manager is going through a job transition with an outgoing manager. The outgoing manager cryptically imparts his wisdom in the form of 3 letters. The instructions are simple: The first time “stuff hits the fan”, open the first letter. Open the second letter for the second incident, and open the third letter for the third incident.

The young manager gets a great start on his new job, but then reality sets in – and problems come up. As the pressure starts to mount, the manager remembers the three letters. He goes back to his desk and opens the first letter – which reads…

Blame Your Predecessor!

This sounds like a great idea to the young manager. Heck, the old manager isn’t even around to defend himself! Company management buys the excuse, and the young manager is back to smooth sailing…for awhile. But business has a way of getting complicated, problems arise, and the young manager finds himself in hot water again. In desperation, he goes back to his desk and opens the second letter – which reads…

Blame Your Employees!

The young manager is reluctant to do this, but this is his neck we are talking about here! Either the employees take the fall or he does, so he tells management that he doesn’t have the right resources. Management buys his story, and he cleans house and hires new employees. This reorganization buys him a lot of time because he has brand new employees to ramp up. But the young manager never addressed the root causes for a lot of his problems, and “stuff hits the fan” again. The manager goes to the desk for his salvation and opens the third and final letter – which reads…

Prepare 3 Letters!

The moral of this story is that you eventually run out of scapegoats! If you always look to blame others, or blame extenuating circumstances, you eventually run out of targets for your finger-pointing.

Who is YOUR Scapegoat?

Denver had two likely scapegoat candidates within the last year:

• The Denver Broncos rolled through the 2012 regular season, and they captured the #1 seed in the AFC playoffs. They then lost to the underdog Baltimore Ravens, in Denver, because of their fear of failure. Fans demanded that Coach John Fox be fired because his ultra-conservative play-calling contributed to the playoff loss.

• The Denver Nuggets had a special basketball season in 2012/2013, and they won the most games in franchise history. They secured the #3 seed, and home-court advantage, only to lose the playoff series to an incredibly hot-shooting Golden State Warriors team. I avoided listening to sports radio for a week because I knew what the average fan would be saying. Sure enough, they are still talking about how they want George Karl fired,and they will beat that drum through a long offseason.

In both of these cases, the teams lost in the playoffs – not individuals!  To date, cooler heads prevail in both organizations, and both coaches deservedly retain their jobs.

Who is YOUR scapegoat? We’ve all had them. Perhaps we blame our parents, our spouse, our kids, our boss, our friends and neighbors. At some point in our lives, situations go off track, and we look around to find out who or what is to blame. Maybe you had the worst possible scenario: YOU became the scapegoat for someone else. It’s a terrible feeling, right? In some cases, it can be hard to recover both reputation and confidence.

Let’s hear your stories, your case studies, and perhaps your success stories as you either (1) chose to remain team-minded vs pointing a finger, or (2) recovered after someone set you up to take the fall.

Meanwhile, enjoy the story-telling below.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zCHcW4qpLGY

Photo Credit: William Holman Hunt [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons

The post Who Is YOUR Scapegoat – Story of the 3 Letters appeared first on Brian Vickery.

Here are some brief case studies to generate the discussion…

1. Double Standards – In Sports

The Denver Nuggets and Golden State Warriors play Game 6 of their playoff series tonight. The Warriors coach just called out the Nuggets as sending “hit men” after his star player, Stephen Curry. Ironically, he is on record a few weeks earlier as saying he would play “rough” with Curry if he was still in the league. I was at Game #5, and I’ve watched the other playoff games along with a lot of regular season games. Nuggets guard Ty Lawson gets mauled every time he goes in the lane, yet he rarely gets the call. He drives the lane aggressively, and he is built like a tank. He can take the abuse and still score, but why isn’t the foul still called? Curry frequently initiates contact, and then scores and gets the “and one” foul shot. This same double standard applies to every star player like LeBron James, Dwayne Wade, Kobe Bryant, and Kevin Durant. The refs, and the league, do not look through objective lenses when calling the game.

Double Standard advantage goes to the superstars.

2. Double Standards – In Professional Services

I am a principal for Mantis Technology Group – a software solution provider. When we commit to a schedule, or “service level agreement”, our clients will hold us accountable to that schedule. If we win a “fixed price bid” for work, our clients will hold us accountable for all deliverables for that price. Extenuating circumstances outside of our control are rarely considered. We made a commitment, and clients do not want to hear about our problems. I understand and accept those conditions.

Is it unreasonable for me to expect the same level of professionalism and accountability from my own service providers? As a home owner, I’m always contracting services for painting, remodeling, landscaping, etc. Most of my contractors have done exceptional work, and I would recommend them in a heartbeat based upon the quality of their work. However, timely communications and response times to inquiries, adherence to committed delivery dates, and acknowledgement that a “fixed bid” means you do not add expenses if the work is within scope – seem to be my unreasonable expectations. I frequently have to call contractors multiple times, sometimes to get the appointment to bid on the work, and I’ve had “no-shows” for appointments. I heard a sports talk show guy recently describe the same scenario with a landscaping company. He said “wow, I thought we were in a recession”. These people are turning away work, and they are not helping their reputations where good “word of mouth” is crucial for referrals.

Double Standard advantage goes to nobody because there are no winners in this situation…just disgruntled consumers who will not recommend the contractors.

3. Double Standards – Consumer vs Brands

Our Hecklers’ Hangout discussion with Shonali Burke yesterday touched upon our potentially unrealistic expectations for corporate brands. In our digitally connected world, we expect to express our frustrations on the social channels and review sites of our choice – and then have the brands find those comments (like needles in haystacks) and immediately respond to us bearing gifts and apologies. We can be impolite to the point of becoming abusive, yet we expect the brands to not become defensive or indignant. Instead, they must remain calm and resolve our issues to our complete satisfaction. And if they delete our abusive comments, then we can lead the trolls that will gleefully charge out from under all of the bridges with the promise of taking down a brand’s reputation in the very public eye – on the internet that never forgets. In fact, we can hold the brands accountable for every misstep of individual employees…and then we can have troll camps lying in wait to see what decisions are made. Did they fire the employee – Wrongful Termination!  Did they defend the employee – Big, Evil, Uncaring Brand must be held accountable at all costs!! Now, where did I set my torch and pitchfork?

Didn’t our parents raise us better? Do unto others as you would have them do to you…If you have nothing nice to say, say nothing at all…

Double Standard advantage goes to the consumer – to the point where the advantage can be abused to take down respected brands.

Shouldn’t we give brands the same 2nd and 3rd chances we would ask for ourselves? Listen in to the Hecklers’ Hangout below to get more context for this discussion (especially around the 20:00 min mark).

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mKWkHyNSGm0

Please do weigh-in on the discussion. Where do you see double standards? And if you are a brand that is subject to Double Standard #3, then consider checking out Mantis Pulse Analytics. We can’t alleviate the double standard, but we can help you find and measure those conversations!

Photo Credit: By Keith Allison from Owings Mills, USA (Ty Lawson) [CC-BY-SA-2.0], via Wikimedia Commons

The post We ALL Support Double Standards appeared first on Brian Vickery.

Nope! Denver lost Game #2 of the 2012-2013 Playoffs by letting the Golden State Warriors score 131 points on 65% field goal percentage!

You Gotta Defend to Win!! Here are three crucial aspects of basketball defense that the Denver Nuggets failed to execute in this game – and their parallels in business.

1. On-Ball Defense

This is the simplest defense to understand, but it is the hardest to execute against a superstar. The goal is to keep a defender in front of the dribbler at all times. and try to get them to pick up their dribble. The defender should contest any shot attempts by keeping their hands up to block the shot or at least obstruct the view to the basket. Throughout the night, the Warriors’ players drove to the hoop or got wide open jump shots.

Brand Protection:

On-ball defense requires agility and endurance. You are often back-pedaling while trying to keep your hands up. When your brand is under attack, you are often back-pedaling and trying to get enough distance to gain perspective on the source, context, and severity of the attack. Stay in front of the threat, so they do not get a free shot at your brand reputation. “Keep a hand up” by keeping the consumers engaged. Let them know you are aware of their issue, and you are actively trying to resolve it. Finally, basketball defenders get called for a foul when they become too aggressive with the ball-handler. Do not pick up a foul with the consumer by becoming aggressively defensive about your brand.

2. Pick and Roll Defense

The well-executed pick and roll play is one of the toughest to defend in basketball. Let’s say you are a little guy trying to defend your opponent. All of a sudden, your opponent dribbles to the side – where a much bigger guy is doing his best impression of becoming an insurmountable brick wall obstacle to your progress (the big guy sets the “pick”)! Do you…

Pick and Roll (Photo credit: Nathan Wind as Cochese)

• Splatter yourself against the brick wall and crumble to the floor (it happens in the NBA)
• Try to squeeze between the guys and cover your original man
• Go around the brick wall which takes precious time and gives your original man “space” to shoot the ball or pass
• Switch to defending the big guy while his big defender takes your much smaller – and quicker – opponent

Defending the pick and roll requires a more mature understanding of the game. It also requires teamwork and hustle. The pick and roll punishes defensive laziness.

Brand Protection:

When your brand comes under attack, it is quite possible that other consumers will jump on the bandwagon. Critics will come out of the woodwork! Some of the concerns will be legitimate, some will see the opening as an opportunity to bring up unrelated issues, and others will simply be trolls who relish the power of taking down a brand’s reputation on a public forum. You will need teamwork to survive! Have Response Guidelines in place to know WHO on your team can help with the threat. Just like different players on a basketball team fill a role (e.g. point guard or power forward), different role players on your company’s team may need to step in and defend. Is this just a customer service issue, or is there a product issue that may require getting a product engineer involved? If the customer complaint is due to inappropriate behavior by one of your employees, you may need to involve Human Resources.

It is imperative that you avoid defensive laziness! If you do not have a plan on how to handle obstacles and objections, or if you are simply slow to react and give the consumers “time and space” to have their complaint take root and go viral, you will be run out of your own building!

3. Weak-Side Defense

There are several examples in basketball where weak-side defense can “save the day”. This usually involves a defender leaving his own responsibility to help cover a teammate’s responsibility. A good example is that brick wall that set the “pick” in the pick and roll play mentioned earlier. Once the ball moves past him, he “rolls” to the basket while his defender is occupied with the ball handler. A savvy defender will leave his own man to cover the open guy that has a free run at the basket.

Good defenders in basketball need to have “eyes in the back of their head”. They need to know when another player is getting ready to pick them off, and they need to know when an opponent is getting a free run at the basket. Good defenders also work as a team, and they are constantly talking/barking at each other to setup the defense.

Brand Protection:

As a company, you never want a complaint against your brand that goes unnoticed. You do not want a discussion about your brand – good or bad – that doesn’t grant you the opportunity to get involved and best represent your story. You need to monitor all channels for brand mentions! People are talking about your brand right now, and it is not in a survey or to your customer support. At a minimum, you should have active Twitter Accounts and a Facebook Fan Page where consumers can engage you directly. Then add Google Alerts to pick up mentions of your brand in blog titles, news articles, or review sites.

Basketball players like to “scoreboard watch” to see how other teams in their division are doing in their games. You can monitor your competition by following their social profiles and keywords associated with your industry and products. Hootsuite is a nice starting point for doing this kind of monitoring. However, if you want all of this monitoring to provide actionable intelligence in one place – tracking your brand mentions, your competitors’ mentions and keywords, tweets, Facebook and Google+ statuses, Pinterest, Instagram, review sites like Yelp and TripAdvisor, and so much more – then you need me to demonstrate Mantis Pulse Analytics for you!

Find those brand conversations, understand the context and sentiment of your consumers, and then engage for a winning strategy! You Gotta Defend To Win!!

Enjoy the NBA playoffs…I’ll enjoy mine much more if the Denver Nuggets get out of the first round!

The post In Basketball and Brand Protection – Gotta Defend To Win appeared first on Brian Vickery.

I rarely write consumer reviews, but I will tell a story. This story starts out sunny with verdant green fields, goes through trials and tribulations, and still has the possibility of a happy ending. Let’s see if customer service proves to be the white knight.

I recently started parking at Canopy Airport Parking at Denver International Airport (DIA). I drive a Camaro, and I do not like “leaving it to chance” that I could come back from a trip and have the car buried in snow or with significant hail damage. C’mon, I’m 45 years old – I like my sports car! My previous parking choice went to “monthly parking” only, so research sent me to Canopy. I detest the rising costs of airport parking in general, but Canopy had the best pricing to go along with an assortment of reward/coupon possibilities. I’m also very impressed that they are actually LEED Certified Gold facility that leverages solar, geothermal, and wind power. Throw in the options for open-air parking, covered parking, and valet parking – and you have a winner in my book.

My first experience with Canopy was exceptional. Wide and plentiful parking spots under a large canopy, and courteous and helpful bus drivers running shuttles every 10 minutes. I did not print out my coupon to save $3/day, but the attendant gladly accepted me holding out my iPhone with the coupon displayed from their site. My experience led me to start recommending Canopy as an ideal parking facility.

Then I had my second experience! My trip out of DIA had the same exemplary experience, but the return trip proved disastrous. Here is my story…

• Our flight got into DIA at around 1:15am. Canopy proudly claims on their website that they are open 365 days a year – 24 hours a day – and shuttles run every 10 minutes. If between the hours of 12am – 7am, clients should call the Canopy office, and a shuttle will be there within 10 minutes. I start calling at 1:26am.
• Raise your hand if you like automated messages. Wow, no hands – go figure?!? The Canopy automated message sent me in an endless loop. It immediately picked up, gave me options, reached the point of saying “leave a message” – and then immediately stated it could not perform that action at this time. This is where I had my first tweet…

• I finally reached a real person at 1:48am. I was not foul; however, I did vent my frustration with the attendant. Did I mention it was snowing and the wind chill was probably close to zero degrees? His response: take it up with management in the morning.
• The shuttle driver finally arrives. We get on the shuttle, and a family of four gets on after us. The adults are not wearing jackets, and the two boys do not even have jackets. The shuttle driver tries to block their way because he says he is beyond capacity, and the mom goes Momma Bear and says she refuses to get left behind since they’ve been waiting in the near-zero temperatures for 45 minutes.
• My daughter and I encourage everyone to cram together, so we could get the family on and “behind the white line”. The driver literally slouches in his seat and disengages. We eventually ask “why aren’t we moving”, and he says he can’t drive with more than 14 people (we had 16). We state that everyone is seated, and we are not going to put anyone out on the curb in freezing temperatures considering their poor response time. He refuses to move. Rather than make the “last ones on” – the family that sat in the cold for 45 minutes – get off the bus, my daughter and I did. Time for another tweet…

• The next shuttle driver drove like a maniac! He switched lanes multiple times while tailgating cars between lane changes. To put this in perspective, it took me about 90 minutes to drive home on a route that normally takes me about 35 minutes – because the ice had me driving sideways half the time! Several cars were stranded on the road…many of them pointing opposite of traffic because they ended in uncontrolled slides.
• My last tweet went out at 1:58am. Canopy’s first response to that tweet does not come until 1:34pm that afternoon…almost 12 hours from my first tweet.
• To their credit, Canopy’s response was apologetic and courteous with a sincere effort to seek resolution satisfactory for the customer. I think it is important to note that the follow-up tweets, email, and resultant phone conversation came from their Director of Marketing. Their frontline employees on the night shift may not have understood the power of customer service, but you can bet a Director of Marketing does!

A good story always has a “moral to the story” and hopefully a happy ending, right? Here are my morals, and Canopy will determine the extent of the happy ending.

• A brand is only as good as its most recent customer experiences. You can have great products or services, but you are frequently judged by the emotions of the customer experience. Make sure your frontline employees are knowledgeable and courteous. When a bad situation arises, these employees should rise to the occasion and actively engage the customer. A simple “sorry – here, let me help you” can defuse most situations.
• In addition to these frontline employees, your website, phone systems, and social profiles are front doors to your brand experience. If these systems are inconsistent, contradictory, delinquent – or worse, BROKEN – you may not get that second chance with the consumer. Battle test these systems, check for inconsistencies, and establish acceptable responses and response times.
• If you are committing to social profiles, you must be prepared for the “near unreasonable” expectations that socially-savvy consumers have for response times. In an era where Delta Airlines recently won an airline response time to Twitter survey with an 11 minute average, a response time of 12 hours is not acceptable. Better that you have no social profiles rather than unresponsive social profiles – so actively monitor and engage with your consumers.

In conclusion, I’m not a consumer that burns a brand for one bad experience. In this case, the epic failure came from a night crew during extenuating circumstances – it was after midnight on a crazy, snowy night! Canopy has too many good attributes, and I really appreciate supporting a brand that “puts its money where its mouth is” when it comes to sustainable design. Based upon their final efforts to seek customer satisfaction, I will give them another try at retaining my business for the long haul.

What would you do?

Photo Credit: Ringling Brothers Circus by Bob n Renee, on Flickr

The post This Canopy Needed a Customer Service Safety Net appeared first on Brian Vickery.