When you go to a party, some people are interesting, some are not. The ones you want to get to know are shiny. My word for it.

I’ve been watching Twitter and social media and thinking about it, reading blogs and turning over in my mind the ideas of The Wizard of Ads (a hero) and Jelly Helm and Laura Roeder and the Hubspot tribe, the Eisenbros. Cult Branding folks. Michele Miller.

The big question is, why are some blogs, brands, companies, people…shiny? Why do people want to engage with them?

I think all of my heroes have a piece of the answer. But I think the answer is bigger than any one of them. They’re all speaking to the pieces that they’re interested in. They have a piece of the elephant. I’m trying to see the whole elephant.

I think some companies and people are aping others, they have a facade. They aren’t sure who they are. They’re all over the place in terms of brand because they don’t know themselves, or they’re in transition. I think others are authentically shiny …together, have an identity….but have yet to express it. Maybe they do not express it clearly. The top smart ones are shiny and people know it.

Basics. Hubspot says to measure metrics and put out good content. FutureNow says to use the words people are thinking in your copy. Laura Roeder says to engage people on Twitter and give them information they need. The Wizard says to surprise people. The Cult Branding guys say to find others who are like you. Jelly Helm shows me how to surprise people and reminds me to keep my integrity. Michelle Miller says to remember the differences between different types of people and speak to all of them in the way they can receive it. There is overlap in what some of my heroes say. A lot of it really.

Authenticity. Listening. Approachability. Attractiveness. Common Ground. Shared Perspective. Imagination. Understanding. Responsibility.

Gee, that sounds a lot like that being at that party…looking for folks you’re interested in getting to know. And my thoughts on all of this? Maybe the marketplace is all about shiny people, finding other shiny people.

Hm.

I think this person has a grasp on what I’m trying to get my head around.

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I’m not a big basketball fan, despite being married to one. However, you cannot live in the Bluegrass state and not discuss basketball. See basketball. Hear about basketball. Breathe basketball. A lot. And this year? Well, this year Kentucky basketball is bigger than ever, the Big Blue Nation has swelled its ranks to overflowing. There are two reasons for that: John Calipari… and Cal’s Cats.

Not being a basketball fan, I’ve still been interested…. No, I’ve been IMMERSED in what I see happening here. It transcends basketball. And it occured to me that maybe there are some lessons for me about business, marketing and life that I needed to pay attention to. Maybe Coach Cal had some things to coach -me- about. Indirectly.

Turns out he does. I was thinking about it and wanted to sort them out…

1. Pay attention to, and respect everyone around you. You have no idea where the good ideas and breakthroughs will come from.

Calipari had a coach from a smaller school come visit him and he paid attention to him and talked to him and …turns out he learned from him. Cal’s famous Dribble Drive Offense was born out of a conversation with this then-unknown coach.

“Vance’s offense blew me away. It gave every player the freedom to take his man to the hoop on every play. I saw it as something that would unleash players and could potentially be a huge recruiting tool because of its up-tempo, frenetic pace. Scoring opportunities would be plentiful, and it was like nothing I’ve ever seen put into action.”

I’ve learned more from unexpected sources in the past year than I would ever have imagined. It is phenomenal. Following people and listening to people who are just starting out… to established in their fields, they all have something to say and many times, it is worth it to listen. From that I’ve been able to put together my own system of best practices and I’m always looking for ways to improve it. But keeping my ears open and not dismissing others is huge.

2. Don’t be afraid to change.
Because Calipari was open-minded enough to listen and try new things, he grew as a coach. He was humble. He didn’t think he knew it all. ..and.. he was willing to put the time and effort in to become better

This one is hard for most of us I think, and it is even harder to admit. The fact is, change is scary, and why change when things are going okay as they are? But the truth is, the world is not static, it is changing all around us and if you’re not moving forward and growing? You’re really falling behind. Nowhere is this more true than in the world of the Internet. For me it meant learnnig about the world of social media and becoming good at CSS and SEO. Learning how to use content management systems and make mobile friendly designs. For you it might mean changing how you look at your marketing. Looking at a new business process. It’s different for all of us but for all of us it is fundamental.

3. Don’t just jump into something without throughly investigating it.

After Cal’s discovery of a new and better process, he tested it, made incremental changes and measured the results. He had people he reviewed things with, checked in with and discussed his findings with.

Those good ideas I mentioned? They need to be tested. Usually in pieces, usually over time. I can take small steps and make incremental changes to how I do things and that’s okay. Measuring is important. Whether I am using Google Analytics or Facebook’s Insights, I need to take stock and learn from the data.

4. Use the best talent you can get.
Cal doesn’t go out and shoot baskets. He has a team that does that and for that team, he went out looking for the best and brightest and most talented people he could get. I need to do the same, from my vendors to my suppliers, from my subcontractors to my mentors to my software. If I surround myself with the best, I become better. Making sure the right person is doing the right job is important.

5. Have fun.
This is probably the biggest one. Anyone who watches Cal’s show sees that at the end of all his lists of objectives…he always tells the kids to have fun. I think because that remains the core of his program, he is a winner. I need to keep that as my core too, if I’m not having fun, at the end of the day, I’ve lost.

These are just a few things I’ve learned from Coach Cal. There are many many more. But I’m thankful for him as a person and a coach. And I can genuinely say now with as much gusto as the most die-hard fan….Go Big Blue!

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Some people say to use a contest for building your lists. And while that is a great idea, it isn’t always necessary. You can quickly put together a tool to start building your lists today in just an hour. This tool also double duty, it gets you important information!

1. Go to www.SurveyMonkey.com and choose their FREE service. Make a 5-10 question survey about your product or service. Make the questions things you absolutely do want/need to know. Things you want to ask people who don’t use your product or service. For example, you have a salon or spa? Ask what is most important in their choice of where to go…price, proximity, quality of service. Ask what they think of your services…put in a rating, ask if they have heard of you. Ask where the last service they received was from. Realtor? Ask how they choose their agent. Ask fun questions too (remember the Cosmo Quiz?) Gather information. It is important. Make sure to include a comment field on your questions. In the survey, make sure you ask for their email address and ask them to follow you on Facebook or Twitter. My survey looks like this: http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/F9DYLC3 .

2. Send this survey to 10 friends/colleagues/coworkers/people who like you and ask them to forward it to 2-3 other people who will take the survey seriously (this is important). Make sure to include an introductory paragraph about how much you value the insight and opinion of those who take the time to answer. Have a one-time gift or discount ready for those who respond and let folks know they will receive a special thank you in return for their time. Twitter the link to your survey. Put it in your Facebook Status. Do this once a day, every day for 3-5 days. Once a day is not annoying. Repetitive yes, annoying …no. People need to see things more than once. Put different messages to the link each time and make them funny so people will be interested enough to click. You can also ask other people to send out the survey for you more than once, but ask different people!

3. Follow up with those who have given you their contact info. Say thanks and also ask for sales. Here is my secret mystical Toad sales mantra, “Do you know anyone who might be interested?”

You use this phrase because if the person you are following up with is interested, then they will say so. But you’re not being pushy. If they are not interested then they might really truly want to help you still and might give you a contact to follow up with. Be sure to discover if they are really truly thinking that their lead is interested or not, don’t be afraid to ask for a hot-warm-cold rating or why they might be interested, because you really don’t want to waste anyone’s time.

Now remember, if you make the survey public, you will get folks who do not answer truthfully, or take it seriously. Watch for that. But this can be a fun way to get some feedback and interaction and help build your lists.

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