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5 Facebook Fan Pages for Powerful Syndication

Tue, Mar 9, 2010

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Welcome back! If you have a blog, make sure to join my Facebook fan page. Tribe Mastery for Social Buzz. Thanks for visiting, and get syndicated today!

facebookOn the 5th Tribal Day of the New Year my tribe gave to me…

5 Tribal Fan pages

4 Personality Types

3 Social Media Sites

2 Syndication Power Hours

1 Really cool tribe page!

A few months ago my tribe and I created the following fan pages as a way to help bloggers get some serous syndication love. These pages have really taken off… and it’s only the beginning. We like to refer to these pages as business pages as it’s a part of our business model to help others first.

If you’ve been following this series then you know my tribe is all about the syndication concept. The idea of helping people get some exposure, and teaching them how to pay it forward is not only very rewarding, but simple in duplication. The added benefit of leveling the playing field is just icing on the ‘Social Media’ cake.

So take advantage of these Facebook Fan pages by bring sharing your blog posts. Your best content is sure to be syndicated all over Facebook and Twitter. These pages are also loaded with great people to connect with as they are looking for the same syndication love as you. Make sure you comment on their posts and send them friend requests.

Jon Alfredsson created Tribe Syndication Mastermind Jon’s bio:

Tribe Syndication Mastermind is about YOU!

Helping You get Your Content syndicated in Social Media.
If You have something of value to share (blog posts, videos, artivcles) please post it on the Wall!

Kary Rogney created Tribe Syndication for Social Media Kary’s bio:

The Tribe is one of the most powerful models for modern business strategies. Get connected, support others, and reap the benefits…

This page is NOT FOR PITCHING YOUR BIZ OPP OR FOR SPAMMING YOUR LINKS! Read my NOTES to learn about your HOMEWORK.

Ken Pickard created Tribe Mastery for Social Buzz Ken’s bio:

COMMUNITY is the new marketplace. TRIBES is the new medium. This is a place to promote your best blog or website content. NOT a place to pitch your biz or product. Connect with others to learn grow and share.

Build your tribe… Build You…

Michael Feil created Tribe Mastery for Social Media Micheal’s bio:

Put your best blog posts here and get noticed! (Simple yet affective)

Nick Logan created Empowered Tribe Nick’s bio:

The most powerful model for modern business. Get connected, support others, and reap the benefits…
This page is NOT FOR PITCHING YOUR BIZ OPP OR FOR SPAMMING YOUR LINKS! Read my NOTES to learn The Benefits of Being a Fan Empowered Tribe!

It’s bonus time…

If you have a Facebook Fan Page or are thinking of getting one, take a look at the following top ten tips.

10 Fantastic Facebook Fan Page Features

1. Title page

When creating your Fan page one of the first things you will need a good title. If you’re branding yourself you will want to use your name. If you’re branding a business or concept then you’ll need to give a little more thought to it. We wanted to share the idea of Tribes and syndication in our pages. So each page has the word “Tribe in it. Give it some good thought and be prepared for some traffic.

2. Professional picture or tower

A Fan page is a more professional page than your profile. So you may want a more professional image on it. Again, if you are branding yourself you will want an image of yourself, and the more professional looking the picture the better. When you do settle on a picture… keep it there. If you change you picture often you’ll loose familiarity.

You can also create what my friend calls a “Tower” this is a custom picture with graphics. They are very sharp and professional. This will require some coding in the FBTML world and may be better to outsource.

3. Engaging Bio

A good bio is worth its weight in gold. The right words or phrases will allow the new visitor to get the idea of what your page is about. Simple, funny, edgy is good… make sure to keep it clean and professional. You are creating an image for your business. If that business is you, you want to make sure you’re leaving the right impression. Keep on the lookout for some changes coming up later this year. There’s some noise out there that Facebook will change the dimensions for the picture and tab sections.

4. Change the options

After you created your page, go to the front of it and change the options to “post by page and fans.” This setting allows for your “fans” to feel like they can interact with you easier.

  • To do this click on options
  • Click on settings
  • Under default view for wall select “posts by page and fans.”

5. Interactive information

Under the information tab, you’ll want to lead visitors to your blog or website. You can do this by giving them a reason why they should go there. Be informative… don’t’ be afraid to tell them that there’s more goodies in the link below. If people see a weak information section they’ll probably leave just as fast as they got there. So make it interesting.

6. Vanity URL

After you have 25 fans you can create a vanity url. This is very powerful and easier to note on your marketing material. When selecting a name keep in mind simple is better. Go www.facebook.com/username for instance my page is http://www.Facebook.com/TribeMastery. You can also grab a vanity name for your personal profile as well.

7. Custom Landing or Welcome Tab

A custom welcome tab is a great way to greet new visitors. You can use a video, an opt in form, pictures and text. You will need to know some FBTML, again you may want to outsource to someone who can help. You can find a good sample here at my friend Kieran’s page http://www.facebook.com/ExtremeNetworking

8. Content in… Content out

Keep it fresh by adding content often. You may want to have your page updated anywhere from once every 2 days to 3-4 times a day. You don’t want any more than that or the updates will start to go unnoticed. If you’re page is brand new you’ll want to give your fans the option of adding content. Encourage them to share information that’s relevant to your niche or business. Personal stories and ideas are perfect as well.

If you’re page is really buzzing with content and fans then you may want to remove the share feature and have your fans go to the discussion tab. This would start to make sense when the number of fans reaches the multiple thousands.

Content out means sending your posts to Twitter. In the edit my page section you can broadcast your status posts to your Twitter feed. Only your updates go get published to your feed. Your fan’s posts do not. In addition to twitter you can grab the html code for the Facebook fan page box and add it to a text widget on your blog. This cross syndication process really helps your content go viral. Again, only your posts on your page will be seen on your blog.

9. Be Active

It’s called “Social Media” for a reason… be social for crying out load. For instance, when you start a conversation with someone do you leave the room while their talking? Of course not. So make sure you keep coming back and replying to everyone who stops by and leaves a comment on your page or status. You can also reply to your own status updates to keep the thread going. You may need to give it a little time to catch on.

10. Create An Active Fan page.

There’s a difference in being active and create a; vibrant, attractive, active fan page. You can be adding all the great content you want all day long, but if your fans are not coming back, then there’s a reason.

  • Ask questions in your status
  • Tag people when adding their link
  • Encourage people to ask questions
  • Add a poll. http://twtpoll.com is a good free place to start
  • Message you fans. Yes you can still do this. Click edit page, then click “message to fans”
  • Utilize the discussion board. This is a great way to archive posts as well.
  • Thank your fans
  • Announce milestones on your journey

Well there it is. 5 great fan pages to help you get syndicated and 10 useful tips to launch your fan page. Now it’s your turn.

  1. Join my fan page. http://Facebook.com/TribeMastery
  2. Leave a good blog post
  3. Comment on someone else’s blog post
  4. Share this with people who could use some syndication and Facebook fan page strategies.

Ken Pickard

The Network Dad

P.S. You can also share with your Twitter and Facebook friends. This just may be what they’re looking for. As always I appreciate your Diggs and Stumbles.

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4 Main Personality Types

Tue, Mar 2, 2010

26 Comments

4 peopleI’m sure you can see where this is going by now. There’s no fooling you!

On the Fourth day of the New Year my Tribe gave to me…
4 different personality types…
3 Social Media Sites
2 Tribe Tuesdays
1 Really Cool Tribe Page

If you have been around the block a few times I’m sure you’ve heard about the 4 main personality types. A slew of top trainers from like; Dani Joshnson, Jim Rohn, Tom “Big Al” Schrider, Jerry “Rhino” Clark, Jeff Combs and many others have taught on this topic. There’s also been a mirage of studies ranging from Myers Brigs to color charts. The main personality types have been described as precious stones, animals and colors, with the last probably to easiest to remember.

However I just don’t hear this topic being covered very much with regards to online marketing. You do hear a ton of great information when it comes to writing copy. The leading experts say you want to write with the audience in mind. You want to appeal to their thinking and understanding. You want to write as if you are writing to a friend. This is all great stuff to an audience at large. But have you ever wondered what the triggers are for each personality? Having the right words can trigger the right response.

Think about this… what is the biggest requirement for a relationship to work? It’s communication. And what is the biggest cause of conflicts and fights? It’s miss communication. How many times have you heard or been witnessed to some kind of dialogue that went like this…
“That’s not what I meant.”
“But that’s what I heard.”
Sometimes different personality types speak different languages. You need to learn how to identify each type and their specific language. This is a powerful skill in both offline and online relationships.
Have you ever wondered why someone has a messy room or car and they don’t seem to care but it really bugs the stuffing out of you? Or you’ve probably had contact with the person who is always direct and to the point and they make you uncomfortable. Maybe you thought negative about someone because of his or her loud and crazy shirt. Those are all indicators of their personality type.

We all have various levels of all 4 main personality types within us. Sometimes it’s real easy to say, “He’s a ‘Type A’ or ‘Red’ through and through.” But other times it’s a little trickier. This missing link of information is vital when making connections, and once you understand these differences you can really connect with people on a whole new level.

In the videos below I actually portray each personality type. I changed my shirt and speech to look and act like that type of person. If you can lean how to relate to each type, you can eventually sponsor that kind personality into your business. Imagine how that would look of you have several people who were the: driver, support, energetic and detailed oriented. The diversity within your organization would be very attractive.

Below each video are several words and phrases that you will hear or see from the various personalities. You will notice that some words or phrases overlap with each type.

Red / Ruby / Lion / Type A

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Money motivated
Have fun
Family
Going places
Take charge
Challenge
Fast music
Easy
Completion
Be the best
Positive
Action
Leaders
Leverage
Simple plan
Good food
Great time
Sociable
Gifts – Action taker, motivator
Dislikes – Slow people, stupidity, negative, things that don’t work well

Blue / Saphire / Monkey / Type B
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Loves to have Fun
Does not plan well in advance
Trendy hair
Spirit lifting
Life of the party
Not organized
Verbal processor
Travel
Chaos is ok
Often late
Talk all the time
Encouragement
Risk takers
Visionary
Promotions
Large center of influence
Spontaneous
Big loud clothe
High energy
Like to talk to people
Group activities
Popularity
Loves public recognition
Gifts – Inspirational, energy
Dislikes – Details, drama, being controlled

Green / Emerald / Owl / Type C
YouTube Preview Image

Instructions
The facts and figures
Details
Organization
Consistent
Reserved
Does not like to waste
Controlled
Problem solver
Smart
Well educated
Predictable
Slow to change
Factual
Documentation
Steps and flow charts
Perfectionist
Notice everything
Ask lost of questions
More documentation
Debt free
Shop around
Gifts – Discernment
Dislikes – When they think something is wrong, pushy people

Yellow / Pearl / Kuala / Type D
YouTube Preview Image

Loyal
Supportive
Soft recognition
Non-demanding
Dislikes argument
Stay the same / Slow to change
Non confrontational
Tend to give in
Neutral clothing
Very thoughtful
All about the touch
Patient
Great listener
Kind and Gentle
Very trusting
Needs to help to feel valuable
Gifts – Mercy service
Dislikes – slimy slick salesy people, fast talkers

Can you identify with each personality type? Do you lean towards one or the other? Knowing yourself more will also allow you to understand why you do things the way you do. You are just wired that way. When you find your dominant type, embrace it. Celebrate you!

You may also be able to look back on your life and identify specific events that may have helped shape your personality. Maybe you lean to one type because you’re pulling away from someone, or covering up issues that hurt you in the past. You may be leaning to one type because you’re relating to someone you admire or someone who has influence over you. It isn’t until we free ourselves from these issues and really find ourselves, that we can help others.

Please share with the community if you have found any value from this. I would also love to know what personality type you are.

Ken Pickard
The Network Dad

P.S. If you want your comments to pop and the back link to your blog to be clicked on more… get your Gravatar today!

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My Top 3 Social Sites

Tue, Feb 9, 2010

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On the third day of the New Year my tribe gave to me…social-media-landscape

Three top social sites…

Two Syndication Power Hours

And Oooone Really Cool Tribe Page!

I know what you are thinking, this song sounds familiar. But trust me this is nothing like… Ok it’s everything like that other sign. I give, I give. But you have to admit it’s pretty cool huh.

Ok On with the show!

We all know that social media is the all the rage. There are new social sites coming online all the time. If you Google ‘Top Social Media sites’ you’ll see millions of hits.

Some of the top sites boast populations that dwarf small countries.

It’s hard to say which one was the first social media site since even the term ‘social media’ seems to be changing as fast as the weather. But it’s arguable that Myspace was the first to become a household name, as it grew very popular with the 14-25 year range in a rather short period of time.

There are many resources, thoughts and ideas about how to leverage this behemoth of a medium. With all the various top 10 to top 100 sites which one(s) are right for you. This is a question many people really don’t ask them selves

What is social media and how do I leverage it?

For this post we are going to look at the top 3 sites… my top 3 sites. You may have a different favorite three than I do, but if you want to brand yourself and get your message out there to the world you can not afford to skip these sites.

YouTube… got videos?

Ahhh… video marketing. Even though there are many video sharing and hosting sites You Tube is the daddy. At the end of 2009 almost 23 hours of video were uploaded every 60 seconds. Let’s just pause and reflect on that shall we. Almost a full days worth of video, (1380 minutes) uploaded every 60 seconds.

It is no surprise that fortunes have been made from the power of video. Some of the geekiest videos have gone crazy viral. I’m sure you’ve seen the baby panda sneeze and surprised its mother… Did you share that one, like millions of other people around the world? What about the one where the dad makes the 5 little babies laugh and giggle? Yep me too… past that one around.

But let’s not forget that this is a social site as well. You can; rate, comment, meet, email, share, befriend, watch, discuss, and so much more all late into the night on Youtube.

So here’s a cool tip from a tribal friend Katie Freiling. She shares how this one tip can bring in hoards of traffic to your video. Don’t beat yourself up if you have not been taking advantage of this little gem.

YouTube Preview Image

Twitter… What’s with the 140 characters anyway?

If you’re readying this then you probably already know all about Twitter. Twitter has become a household name at 140 characters at a time. But I know there are lots of people who just don’t quite get it. I still hear the questions… “How do you keep up with that many people?” or “it’s to simple, it will never be affective.”

Ok now that YOU’VE picked yourself up off the floor; let’s cover a few issues real quick.

  1. Don’t let the simplicity of Twitter keep you away. I love to tell people my analogy of Twitter and how it relates to the other social media giant Facebook. Twitter is like the front door to a big party. It’s where you do a fast meet and greet and say hello.
  2. Twitter is actually a micro logging site… not a classified ad section. Believe it or not you really want to get to know people BEFORE you pitch them on your business, product, or service. Of course yoyu can through out an money tweet now and then, but the best practice for Twitter is value first, business last.
  3. Be Polite. Do you say hi when you first meet some one. I know that’s a stupid question, but think about it. Take a look at your DM’s sometime. Why do almost all the DM’s say “Thanks… but…” Like here’s a free gift, or check this biz out. The ones I like are the invites to Facebook, or when they tell me a quick joke.

Now were ready to move into a cool tip from another tribe member Michael Feil. Michael shares some great insights on how to sue Tweetdeck.

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Facebook… Why 400 Million can’t be wrong

Facebook is “The Big Kahuna” The grand daddy of them all. With over 400 million accounts and over 100 million in the US alone, this sleeping giant who just turned 6 has awakened.

What is it about Facebook that has made so many people come to just hang out for an average of 55 minutes a day? Connecting… games… business? Yes, yes, yes. You can really do it all on this site. This place gives you everything you need and were afraid to ask for. This little application that started out as a way for college kids to stay connected with each other at Harvard went crazy viral in just a couple weeks.

What I love about Facebook is it’s like the living room or the den of the party. You have more information about yourself. There are pictures on the walls. You can really let people know what you’re about or what you’re doing in a little bit slower pace. People can hang out and get to know you.

There are a couple of key things you want to do with Facebook and my friend Kary Rogney is going to share a cool way of keeping things organized.

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So there you have it, my favorite top 3 social sites. Make sure and subscribe to my Youtube channel, give me an @reply on Twitter and send me a friend request on Facebook.

Ken Pickard

The Network Dad

“TIME SENSITIVE: ‘Tribe Mastery Intensive’… For Those Of You Who Want To Leverage The Power Of The Tribe, Blogging, & Social Media To Syndicate Content And Gain Massive Exposure… You Won’t Want To Miss Out On This Opportunity To Learn From My Tribe…”

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The Aftermath of #TribeTuesday

Sat, Jan 2, 2010

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blog trafficOn the second day of the New Year my tribe gave to me… two Syndication Power Hours and one really cool tribe page! Is this song catchy or what?

There they go again. My tribes just came running through my blog and social media sites and left a wave of traffic in their wake. Comments and RT’s and tagging galore! Tribe Syndication is starting to emerge as a new spin on an old concept… people helping people but with an added twist and #TribeTuesday is just that twist. The law of reciprocity working at it’s finest.

They say that some of the best ideas are born out of necessity. If there is a need fill it. If you can monetize it then you’re golden. You may have also heard that a lot of these ideas and concepts were created by accident. Well this just so happened to be the case when I decided to start a blog and create a hub for my online marketing.

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I started to look around for some blogs that I liked and wanted to emulate, a few things jumped out right away. I saw many professional bloggers and was amazed at all the activity and stuff that was on their blog. Cool widgets (I didn’t even know that that’s what they were called) and graphics. These guys were masters at blogging. You could see a lot of activity. Then I saw many more blogs that were empty or looked like a ghost town. A few posts here and there or maybe several weeks between posts or comments. There was no life to some of these blogs. This brought up a couple of concerns for me.

  1. How could I compete with those who are blogging on a regular basis?
  2. How could I keep a blog going indefinitely?
  3. What value do I have to offer others that will keep them coming back?
  4. How do I get traffic to my blog?

Now there are many great resources, books and trainings on driving traffic, but it really comes down to actually putting these concepts into play. Several factors need to happen at around the same time and if you’re new to blogging or marketing online in general your learning curve is going to skyrocket. Learn how to blog, create content… and build relationships and traffic.

The power of a blogging alliance will assist you in all these areas. A blogging alliance is a small group of people coming together to syndicate each other. There’s a specific method of tactics that we use to create the buzz for each others blogs all over the net. These ‘Syndication Power hours’ have driven more traffic to our new blogs than any other single event before… or since.

What others are saying about going tribal on Tuesdays.

Take a look at Debbie Turners post about creating a checklist for #TribeTuesday Debbie breaks down the importance of staying organized through this dynamic process of syndicating her tribe.

My fellow Tribe leader Kary Rogney shows what’s about to happen to his blog when  #TribeTuesday come crushing through. Do you think Kary is starving for Traffic? Not with over 22,000 page views to his blog since it launched. That’s less than 5 months of being online. That’s the power of a tribe.

Fellow Tribe enthusiast Kathy Jodrey tells you why #TribeTuesday is the next best thing to hit Twitter since #FollowFriday The reason is value and relationships. Unlike follow Friday Tribe Tuesday allows people to syndicate with a. The relationships that are built create a solid foundation for growing any following. Move over #FF #TribeTuesday is here to stay!

Another great master tribal leader is Michael Feil. Michael is pulling back the curtain and share a little of what goes on behind the scenes during our #TRibeTuesday power hour.

The sharing of tips and tricks and knowledge during this time that is set aside for syndication, takes the mastermind alliance concept to new levels. It’s very common for every one of us to share a new little gem that we’ve heard about this week. We also make comments about how we can improve each other’s blogs, or point out an issue that arises. Some of the benefits that come out of the Power Hours have been: accountability,  teamwork, learning and sharing of ideas.

Leave a comment for the community and share what you would do. Did this shed any light on the power of having a tribe for syndication?

Ken Pickard

The Network Dad

You can also share with your Twitter and Facebook friends. This just may be what they’re looking for. As always I appreciate your Diggs and Stumbles.

P.S.S. If you want your comments to pop and the backlinks to your blog to be clicked on more… get your Gravatar today!

“TIME SENSITIVE: ‘Tribe Mastery Intensive’… For Those Of You Who Want To Leverage The Power Of The Tribe, Blogging, & Social Media To Syndicate Content And Gain Massive Exposure… You Won’t Want To Miss Out On This Opportunity To Learn From My Tribe…”

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How to Build a Tribe Page

Fri, Jan 1, 2010

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blogging allianceOn the first day of the New Year my tribe gave to me… a really cool tribe page. Sing with me now… ok maybe not.

Welcome to Day 1 of the 12 tribal days of the New Year.

Just like the 12 Days of Christmas, the 12 tribal days of the New Year will start January 1 and have the date’s number as the set of item numbers in the blog post. So naturally we have to start at the beginning. Trust me this will be fun.

The theme around these 12 tribal days is all about Tribe Syndication, but you probably already figured that out.

Before we get to the ‘how’ of it all we need to cover the ‘what.’ What is a Tribe page anyway? Good question and I’m glad you asked. The tribe page is one of my favorite pages as it’s the section where I can promote other people in my tribe or blogging alliance. These people I look up to as trainers, team members, people who I want to associate with.

Please enable Javascript and Flash to view this Viddler video.

As you can see from the video the benefits of a tribe page with the pretty link plug in is; traceability, visual promotion and mutual benefit. As my blog grows in traffic so does all the clicks through my tribe member’s pages.

Now get out there and make your own tribe page. Leave a link as I would love to check out your kick butt Tribe page. Also leave a comment for the community and share other ways we can promote each other.

Here’s a few examples of some great tribe pages.

Jon Alfredsson

Michael Feil

Kary Rogney

Nick Logan

Ken Pickard

The Network Dad

You can also share with your Twitter and Facebook friends. This just may be what they’re looking for. As always I appreciate your Diggs and Stumbles.

P.S. If you want your comments to pop and the back link to your blog to be clicked on more… get your Gravatar today!

“TIME SENSITIVE: ‘Tribe Mastery Intensive’… For Those Of You Who Want To Leverage The Power Of The Tribe, Blogging, & Social Media To Syndicate Content And Gain Massive Exposure… You Won’t Want To Miss Out On This Opportunity To Learn From My Tribe…”

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6 Reasons Why You Need a Blogging Alliance

Tue, Dec 8, 2009

39 Comments

blogging aliance

Before I jump into the reasons why you need a blogging alliance, let me explain what one is. Quite simply it’s a small group of people who banded together to promote each other. We use social media as our playground and personal blogs as the vehicles of choice to get our messages out. A blogging alliance usually has members from the same niche and similar levels of experience on the social sites. However this is not mandatory, as the group can bring in a new member, and rather quickly that new person can get up to speed.

Another term we use for this alliance is called a tribe. The charter for a tribe or blogging alliance is content syndication. This is the act of ‘buzzing’ each others posts or videos or anything they publish online. Ok… now that we’re all caught up on the ‘what’ is a blogging alliance, let’s dive into some of the benefits.

Benefit #1 is Content Syndication – Even the word itself demands attention. It sounds powerful and full of meaning. Syndicating someone else’s content is a way of showing that they have value. There’s something there you should pay attention to. You are not only promoting that person to your following but your giving that person social proof.

This does so much more than most realize. Next time you’re on Twitter or Facebook look your profile. Are people listening to what you have to say? Are there people RT’ing you and commenting on the information you’re putting out. Even if you’re just starting in social media you can gain so much ground by having an established alliance supporting you.

Benefit #2 is Exposure – This is a no brainier. If you are looking to make a name for yourself, carve a spot in the online marketplace you can not be worried about being over exposed. I can hear you chuckling now. I bet your saying… “That’s not a problem for me!” I need all the exposure I can get.

True… but you want the right exposure. It’s not enough to have a blog or website where you have to promote it by yourself and run the risk of looking spammy. That social proof I mentioned before is key and exposure from others is gold.

Benefit #3 is Relationships – Building relationships is a benefit as well as a requirement for a blogging alliance. You will actually strengthen your established relations as the alliance continues to mature. Just like making friends and connections offline you need to work with your friends online.

You also want to pay attention to the strengths that each person brings to the group. Look at the personality traits and what each offers. Build on this. You will also hear from many leaders that building relationships starts from within. This is a basic success principal that needs to be repeated often.

Benefit #4 is leverage – Ok bear with me on this. Leverage others is another key success. This should not be looked at as a negative thing. We’re not here to use each other for your gain only. That’s why this blogging alliance works so well. You MUST look out for others first. But you can leverage others for group benefit.

You’ve probably heard of OPT (Others People Time) and OPM (Other People Money) By pooling resources and strengths the group is able to learn and grow and share experiences. This happens almost automatically when the group dynamics are in balance. IE not one sided or focused on one person.

Benefit #5 is a quick learning curve or baptism by fire. – We had a new member join our tribe recently, and he is always mentioning how he continues to learn something new almost every time the group gets together. He’s not worried that he’s too far behind because he enjoys the journey. But how cool is it when we continue to learn from everyone else.

I am also learning all the time. Blogging, social media, marketing… there’s always something new coming out or something changing. We all want to keep learning and growing our knowledge. The real take away though is being able to pass that on to someone else as soon as possible.

Benefit #6 is joint ventures – Now we’re getting somewhere… the money! One key aspect to a blogging alliance to how to monetize your blogs and products as soon as possible. Yes it’s great to hang out and be social but if you really want to learn grow and share… make a product together. Put your knowledge to use. Get motivated, help some people and make some money.

This is what my tribe did. We launched a 6 week intensive that showcased; blogging social media and tribes by building communities and syndicating each other. By the way… this is only the beginning.

There it is… 6 of the many benefits for creating a blogging alliance. A tribe if you will. So now ask yourself again…” Do I want to promote my own information, products or services by myself, or leverage the power and massive exposure of a blogging alliance?

Leave a comment for the community and share what you would do. Did this shed any light on the power of an alliance? Have you benefited from one?

Ken Pickard

The Network Dad

You can also share with your Twitter and Facebook friends. This just may be what they’re looking for. As always I appreciate your Diggs and Stumbles.

P.S.S. If you want your comments to pop and the backlink to your blog to be clicked on more… get your Gravatar today!

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Social Tribes on Twitter Lists

Tue, Nov 3, 2009

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twitter_bird_listsSocial Tribes on Twitter Lists Twitter lists are all the rage now and for good reason. They provide a great way to stay connected with your social tribes as well as any other community oriented group. Many people have fully embraced the fact the future of online marketing is in creating communities. We see this in Facebook with the newsfeeds and now in Twitter with the lists.

 

Right now Twitter allows you to make 20 lists with up to 500 people on each list. The really cool thing is that you can control your feed. You have the power to edit your stream how ever you want. Here are some list building ideas…

 

• For your tribes or community

• Real Estate professionals

• Comedians

• Celebrities

• Clubs or groups

• Marketing professionals

• Authors

• Public Relations professional

• Any mastermind group

• Work colleagues

• PR professionals

• Virtual Assistants

• Tech savvy people

• And many many more…

 

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The idea is that you can not follow a small or large group of people in a single niche with ease. You can hang on every word of every tweet of all your closets friends. This is a huge opportunity to stay connected within your communities. This is the future of social media. Creating communities within these sites are becoming more popular than ever.

 

Twitter, Facebook, Linkdin and other social sites realize that it is difficult to follow mass amounts of people all at once. This was actually a big reason why many people do not understand or get Twitter. It’s difficult fore some to wrap their heads around the idea of following so people… believing that you need read or respond to every tweet.

 

The other issue of spam has turned off a lot of people to Twitter. I agree that the main Twitter stream has turned into more of a classified add section than a place for real communication. The original idea behind Twitter may actually start to come back. The idea of actual discussions and brainstorming sessions and staying connected at the speed of a 140 characters.

 

The fake accounts or automatic posting will not be listed nearly as much as the real people who are engaging in dialogue. I’m not saying that the spam will go away completely but think about this… would you rather read what REAL people are saying or watch the never ending stream of ads? Let’s take this one step further. If you are active on twitter right now, what are you reading? The stream or what your friends are saying?

 

The questions I would love to get feedback on are…

 

1. What is your favorite list? I would love to see some great value added lists.

2. Who are the people you believe should be listed in my Social Media All Star List? You can also share this with your Twitter and Facebook friends. This just may be what they are looking for. I always appreciate your Diggs and Stumbles!

 

Ken Pickard

The Network Dad

 

P.S. If you want your comment to pop and the backlink to your blog to be clicked on more… get your Gravatar today!

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Tribe Syndication The Accountability Factor

Sun, Oct 25, 2009

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TribeTribe syndication is quite literally the revolution of online marketing. This concept will allow new emerging marketers to enter the ever growing social media field that has been previously dominated with competition. It is no longer each person for themselves, but a time for people to come together and support each other. This is what being in a tribe is all about.

 

It’s time for… Tribe Syndication.

 

Watch the video and open you mind to the possibilities of what this group dynamic can do for you. Also keep in mind that your tribe should include members in the same niche as you. The reason for this is two fold. You always want to think of who you are connecting with, and who you are introducing your followers to.

 

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Tribe syndication is the action of supporting each other in the social media circles. There are many ways to practice this fine craft. The list below outlines a few of the most popular sites and several ways of ‘buzzing’ each others content.

TwitterTwitter is the fastest growing micro blogging site there is. Almost everyone is on Twitter, but there are many who don’t quite understand Twitter’s power or the proper techniques to using this behemoth of a social media site.

 

Twitter is like the front door to a party. It’s where you do the first meet and greet. You get to know others and find people who you can relate to or engage with. It’s NOT a classifieds!

 

For content syndication via Twitter you want to push the ‘retweet’ button on your tribe member’s site. If the plug-in is installed correctly your twitter account will pop up in a separate window and a message will show the title of the post and the owner’s @user name. The plug in for this valuable step is the ‘TweetMeme Button’

 

YoutubeYoutube is the granddaddy of video sharing. This is not a secret to anyone who has been on the net for any amount of time. But last reports show that over 20 hours of video are uploaded to Youtube every 60 seconds! That’s a beast.

 

Youtube is not the only game in town for video sharing but we’re using this as an example since most people upload their videos to this site. The principals work for any video sharing site. So head over to your tribe’s Youtube channels and comment on each others videos.

 

FacebookFacebook is the biggest, baddest, most treasured social site there is. Facebook just passed the 300,000,000 user mark a couple months ago and is looking to close on the 400,000,000 by early next year! If you’re not on Facebook you are literally missing the boat. More importantly, if you not marketing on Facebook (the right way) you already missed the boat. But rest assured your tribe can help you fix this grave oversight.

 

Comments are a tribe’s best friend. Commenting on Facebook is no different than commenting on their Youtube channel or their blog. Comments are king and continue to provide that ever loving social proof. First you can comment on your tribe’s posts. Second you can add their posts to your profile or fan page status. Or… you can combine the two for a more connected effect by tagging.

 

There is a cool plug in called ‘WP Like’ you may want to add to your blog. This plug in adds the ‘like’ feature on your blog which gives it that familiar look to Facebook

 

Social Bookmarks – Social Bookmarking is a great way to use another free service to gain back links. Back links are the keys to getting ranked in Google. While all the social media exposure is great… if your not leveraging Google to help your website go viral you missing the boat… again.

 

There are a couple of free sites like OnlyWire and SocialMarker that allow you to tap into other bookmarking sites via their site. The setup takes a little bit of time, but the results are worth it. There are a couple of notes to consider when using this method of marketing. Not all back links are weighed the same. The ones from authority sites like Digg, Stumble Upon and Delicious are weighed heavier than those less know sites.

 

The plug ins that you’ll want to use on your blog for your tribe to syndicate are Onlywire Socaible, and Sexy Bookmark.

 

Tribe syndication serves you, your tribe members, and your following. If you are building a following of like minded people around the concept of underwater basket weaving, wouldn’t it make sense to have tribe members that can provide content around this enjoyable pastime?

 

Another point to make is you and your tribal peeps will be creating similar content. This is ok. It’s actually a really good idea. Lets take the “underwater basket weaving” concept. By using Google to search for a few keywords around this topic, I found that there’s not a lot of competition. Side note…I was surprised to see over 4400 hits a month for exact phrase match! Who knew?

 

Ok so let’s say you and your tribe each create a video and blog post about this topic. Maybe you write a couple of articles, and even a Squidoo Lens or Hub page. If your tribe goes after the same keywords using the same top notch social media traffic tips don’t you think you would get to the front page of Google? Do you think that several of your highly coveted pieces of content would crush the competition on Google. Now throw in the social bookmark backlink phenomenon in the mix. How well do you think everyone will benefit from the collective effort of tribe syndication?

 

The power behind syndicating each others videos, articles, and blog posts gives you and your tribe the social proof you deserve. We all know what T.E.A.M. stands for… Together Everyone Achieves More. Ok it’s an oldie but still a goodie.

 

In a tribe is where you want to be… accountability is what you want to have… tribe syndication is what you want to do. Find a tribe and stay committed to each other. Provide value added content each week so everyone can create the exposure and moment you require to sustain a profitable online marketing career.

 

Ken Pickard

The Network Dad

 

P.S. If this post resonated with you at all, please leave a comment below for the community. Sharing any insights or stories you have for Tribe syndication would be greatly appreciated.

 

You can also share with your Twitter and Facebook friends. This just may be what they’re looking for. As always I appreciate your Diggs and Stumbles.

 

P.S.S. If you want your comments to pop and the backlink to your blog to be clicked on more… get your Gravatar today!

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Welcome To My Blog Launch Party!

Tue, Oct 20, 2009

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Blog Launch day is finally here! This is the day I make this blog public. It’s actually been an incredible journey in creating this blog. I’ve had many interesting events happen in the last 2 months leading up to the birth of this bad boy. Let me tell you it does feel like giving birth!

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Before I started I didn’t know the difference between a widget and a plug in, or a page from a post. I really don’t care much for the details and the html code stuff… I just wanted it to work. So spending a few late nights trying to figure out why my picture is 7 times bigger than it should be is a little frustrating.

Some things came easy and some things didn’t. The learning curve is equal to that of learning a new language. But it’s perseverance that brings forth this new medium of information. I started a new saying… “Right or wrong I’m getting it done!” It also took me a little longer than some, but it’s time to kick this little bird out of the nest! Let me tell you… if I can do it… then YOU CAN TOO!

As I mention in the video, there are two people who I want to give a huge thanks to Katie Freiling and Jodie Thompson. If it wasn’t for Katie’s Blog Mastery Intensive and Jodie’s Blog design team, I would have stick figures for pictures and way too many banner ads. Their leadership and guidance have created a revolution in the personal branding arena.

This blog is about building tribes, content syndication and Personal development. Building tribes for content syndication is the future of online marketing.  The concept is real easy, build a network of like minded people and promote each others content. The value is in the law of reciprocation. The mastery is in the learning the many options for promoting each other.

Content syndication is happening all around us as well. We tell others about a good book we read or movie we saw. We mention about how we liked or didn’t like the restaurant we ate at last week. We are always recommending something to someone.

OK… time for the tour.

  • Leave your mark on my blog by going to the “Introduce Yourself” page. Tell us a little about yourself. What is your niche? Promote whatever you want, as long as it’s “G” ratedJ.  Spamming rules do not apply here. I will use this section as a resource guide. So get ready to be promoted!
  • If you have a blog and you want some serious syndication, join my Facebook fan page entitled Tribe Mastery for Social Buzz Post your best content… you ‘Killer Pillar’… The one you want people to remember you by.
  • Check out the “My Tribe” page at the very top. These are members of my Tribe. They are; mentors, leaders and all around great people. They ALL have gold nuggets of value added content dripping all over their blogs.

Lastly… for my blog launch party I’m giving away my time. Anyone who wants a FREE ½ hour session to go over anything from social media to building tribes, just do the following:

  1. RE-Tweet this post. I’ll see it on Twitter.
  2. Ask any question in the comment box below.

That’s it. I’ll connect with you and we will schedule a call at your convenience.

Thank you for coming to my blog launch party!

Ken Pickard

The Network Dad

P.S. If you want your comment to pop and the backlink to your blog to be clicked on more… get your Gravatar today!

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Man Day – Father And Son Time

Mon, Oct 12, 2009

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Webster’s defines success as “favorable result, the gaining of wealth and fame.” I agree to a point, but the definition doesn’t stop there. Success is being content and happy in all areas of your life. A person can be rich and powerful in business but not have a happy home life. Someone else could be a master craftsman and be able to create beautiful furniture from wood, but not financially secure. Is one person more successful than the other?

 
Time being the great equalizer should be valued far greater than money or material possessions. Somewhere between Tim Farris author of “The 4 hour work week” and Gary Vaynerchuk author of “Crush it” is you. Your work ethics and the leverage of time will allow you to be successful. IF… you put your time to good use. Only you know where you hold the value of your time.
“The poor will always trade time for dollars and wonder why there is never enough…The rich will trade dollars for time and live life to the fullest.”

 
A friend of mine holds his time is extreme high regard. In his business he ONLY puts it where it’s going to give him the most benefit… and he is very picky. His team trainings are almost always in group settings and scheduled when he wants. He would much rather pay others to do menial task that doesn’t want to do. This is the mindset of a successful person, whether or not they are making a lot of money. He will have someone else do his laundry, cleaning, yard work and some cooking, so he can spend most of his time with his family. A few may say that’s a little arrogant or too upper classy… is it? Or is it leveraging dollars for time.

 
There are two reasons why someone starts a business. It’s to move towards something or away from something. In both cases time and or money are the big factors. So if we value time so greatly why don’t we put it to use where it’s going to serve us the best? Sometimes our greatest legacy is not our stuff… but those growing up right beside us.

 

Spending time with family is always a hot button for most people. One of the things I like to do is take each of my kids out for a date by themselves. It’s a great way to give some undivided attention they so richly deserve. A few of our adventures have been: bowling, laser quest, mini golf, and the movies. We usually grab some dinner before and maybe a little ice cream at the end.

 

A few days ago I took the day off and went to the car races with my son and a couple of other guys from our family. We went to the American LaMans finals. Let me tell you, those are some cool, loud cars! Because just the guys are allowed to go and the name of the venue is “LaMans”, the all day event is called “MAN DAY.” I believe my nephew coined the phrase.

 

We had a blast. This was the first time my son and I have been to one of these races. We both came back home ready to go again. This will certainly be yearly event for the guys. Below are some pictures of the “MAN DAY.”

 

Ken Pickard
The Network Dad

P.S. If this post resonated with you at all, please leave a comment below for the community. I would love to hear how you value time with your family and what special things you do. Even if it’s little things… the time we spend with our family is the most precious time of all.

 

You can also share with your Twitter and Facebook friends. This just may be what they’re looking for. If you feel this deserves a Digg or Stumble please let me know.

 

P.S.S. If you want your comment to pop and the backlink to your blog to be clicked on more… get your Gravatar today!

 

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