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	<title>Cindy W.  Morrison</title>
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	<link>http://www.cindywmorrison.com</link>
	<description>Cindy W. Morrision - Social Media Strategist. Join the SOCIALVENTION!</description>
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		<title>How Social Media and Spark &amp; Hustle Landed Me At A-list Celebrity Party</title>
		<link>http://www.cindywmorrison.com/blog/social-media-in-hollywood/</link>
		<comments>http://www.cindywmorrison.com/blog/social-media-in-hollywood/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Fri, 27 Apr 2012 16:21:09 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>cindywmorrison</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Blog]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.cindywmorrison.com/?p=1687</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[How did this Oklahoma chick end up at an A-list Hollywood party with the likes of Kelly Preston, Vanessa Lachey &#038; Jenna Elfman? There's no doubt in my mind: social media strategy and Tory Johnson's Spark &#038; Hustle. Here's how these things can change YOUR life and business as well.]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<div><span style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms', helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-large;"><strong>There&#8217;s no doubt&#8230; Social Media and Spark &amp; Hustle are the reasons I&#8217;m hanging with the stars:</strong></span></div>
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<div><span style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms', helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: medium;"><a href="http://www.cindywmorrison.com/blog/social-media-in-hollywood/attachment/img_5217c/" rel="attachment wp-att-1747"><img class="alignleft size-large wp-image-1747" title="IMG_5217c" src="http://www.cindywmorrison.com/wp-content/uploads//IMG_5217c-600x398.jpg" alt="" width="600" height="398" /></a><br />
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<p>That&#8217;s right.. I got the chance to hang out with Jenna Elfman (&#8220;Dharma &amp; Greg&#8221;), Kelly Preston (just named on <a href="http://www.people.com/people/package/video/0,,20360857_20589831,00.html" target="_blank">People&#8217;s Most Beautiful List</a>) &amp; Laila Ali (&#8220;Dancing W/ The Stars&#8221;)! There&#8217;s no doubt in my mind that social media and Spark &amp; Hustle got me there. How? Here&#8217;s the Reader&#8217;s Digest version:</p>
<p>I met <a href="http://facebook.com/Tory" target="_blank">Good Morning America&#8217;s Tory Johnson</a> through twitter three years ago. It&#8217;s something I call &#8220;Strategically Stalking W/ Excellence&#8221; &#8212; making connections &amp; networking with powerful people through social media. Tory and I hit it off&#8230; so I ended up speaking at her first Spark &amp; Hustle in 2010. By 2011&#8230; I was on the <a href="http://sparkandhustle.com/" target="_blank">Spark &amp; Hustle National Tour</a> w/ Tory teaching social media strategy to women across the country. Someone else on that tour that I got to know? Party Planner to the Stars &#8211; Marley Majcher. (She&#8217;s in the green dress.) Known as <a href="http://facebook.com/thepartygoddess" target="_blank">The Party Goddess</a>&#8230; Marley also met and hired PR guru (&amp; long-time friend of mine) <a href="http://facebook.com/dianewhitepr" target="_blank">Diane White</a> (far right). She invited Diane and I to help her with this month&#8217;s fundraiser at Jenna&#8217;s home in LA. (<a href="http://celebritybabies.people.com/2012/04/18/kelly-preston-breastfeeding-best-for-babes-healthy-child-healthy-world-event/" target="_blank">People article</a>)</p>
<p>Strategically using social media DOES pay off and so do the connections you can make through Spark &amp; Hustle. I can&#8217;t recommend these two things highly enough! S&amp;H definitely changed my business (and my bottom line) by showing me where to put my hustle to make money&#8230; but it&#8217;s also the contacts you make that are also invaluable. And this year its even more than content and contacts&#8230;. It&#8217;s CASH! LIfetime Moms is giving away $10,000 worth of prizes to one lucky attendee in each of the 20 cities!! Talk about a return on your $77 investment!!</p>
<p>Will I see YOU at <a href="http://sparkandhustle.com" target="_blank">Spark &amp; Hustle</a>? Tory, her team and I will be making a stop in a city near you starting next month. I will once again be teaching social media strategy for small business&#8230; so you too can be strategically stalking &amp; staying in contact with all your new S&amp;H friends. Don&#8217;t delay&#8230; sign up today!<br />
<a href="http://sparkandhustle.com/" target="_blank">SPARKANDHUSTLE</a></p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
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		<title>5 Things You MUST Know About The New Facebook Timeline For YOUR Brand</title>
		<link>http://www.cindywmorrison.com/blog/5-things-about-new-facebook-timeline/</link>
		<comments>http://www.cindywmorrison.com/blog/5-things-about-new-facebook-timeline/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Wed, 25 Apr 2012 17:08:19 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>cindywmorrison</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Blog]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.cindywmorrison.com/?p=1689</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Are you confused &#038; overwhelmed by the Timeline changes on your Fan Page? You're not alone! Facebook's quick change has a lot of business owners scratching their heads.
Here's what you need to know to be running your business Fan Page like a pro in no time. It's more than a "how to"... it's a "how do". ]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>Many of us made the switch to Timeline on our personal profiles a long time ago. In fact, I liked it so much that I worked w/ the folks at Facebook to combine my Profile and Fan Page into one <a title="SOCIALVENTION Blog: Why Timeline and Subscribers Could Be The BOMB!" href="http://www.cindywmorrison.com/blog/new-facebook-subscribers/" target="_blank">Timeline w/ subscrptions</a>. (I&#8217;m told the average Facebook user will have this option later this year. To learn more, check out my blog: <a title="SOCIALVENTION Blog: The New Facebook Timeline and Why Subscribers Could Be The Bomb!" href="http://www.cindywmorrison.com/blog/new-facebook-subscribers/" target="_blank">The New Facebook Timeline and Why It&#8217;s The Bomb</a>.) But while there was lots of time to learn the Facebook Timeline for personal Profiles, the switch to Timeline for Fan Pages was a little more than a month. Eeks! Even I had stuff to learn &#8211; STAT! And this is my JOB!</p>
<p>So, what do you need to know about Timeline for your Fan Page that will help you better engage with customers and build a loyal following? Let me count the ways&#8230;.</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<h1>1. Your cover photo</h1>
<p><a title="Cindy's Facebook" href="http://www.cindywmorrison.com/blog/5-things-about-new-facebook-timeline/attachment/timeline1/" rel="attachment wp-att-1690" target="_blank"><img class="alignleft size-large wp-image-1690" title="Timeline1" src="http://www.cindywmorrison.com/wp-content/uploads//Timeline1-600x340.png" alt="" width="600" height="340" /></a></p>
<p>Instead of the photo strip w/ 5 of your latest pictures&#8230; you now have a cover photo. This is a HUGE photo across the top and is a way to market your brand. For instance, I just changed my <a title="Cindy's Facebook" href="http://facebook.com/CindyWMorrison" target="_blank">Facebook Timeline</a> to a photo of a recent celeb event at which I tweeted.</p>
<p><strong>Bonus:</strong></p>
<p><strong>DON&#8217;T</strong> use a photo w/ someone else&#8217;s watermark. (Plenty of websites offer to help you make  a cover photo w/ the proper dimensions, but in exchange they put their name on it).  If you&#8217;re a professional&#8230; don&#8217;t brand someone else. Either use the dimensions (<strong>851 x 315 pixels</strong>) to make your own photo or pay a professional to do it for you. I think this photo is THAT important. Would you put a less than professional photo front and center on your website? NO! Don&#8217;t do it for Facebook &#8212; where 850 million people spend their time.</p>
<p>Also, <strong>DON&#8217;T</strong> &#8220;sell&#8221; in this picture. Facebook frowns on price, web info, asking people to &#8220;like&#8221; you or making a call to action (for example &#8220;tell your friends&#8221;). In other words, keep it classy.</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<h1><strong>2. The &#8220;About&#8221; Section</strong></h1>
<p><a title="Cork's Facebook Page" href="http://www.cindywmorrison.com/blog/5-things-about-new-facebook-timeline/attachment/timeline2-2/" rel="attachment wp-att-1692" target="_blank"><img class="alignleft size-large wp-image-1692" title="timeline2" src="http://www.cindywmorrison.com/wp-content/uploads//timeline21-600x353.png" alt="" width="600" height="353" /></a></p>
<p>Don&#8217;t blow off this section b/c this is a WONDERFUL place to tout your wares! It needs to be short (155 characters) and should go along with your branding. Here&#8217;s one of <a href="http://facebook.com/corktulsa" target="_blank">my client&#8217;s Timelines</a>&#8230; you can see it&#8217;s a great sales tool and is searchable. Plus, if you put a hyper-link to your website (start with <strong>http://</strong> to make it clickable), folks are a lot more likely to actually go to your website.</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<h1>3. Your Tabs/Apps</h1>
<p><a title="Just Between Friends Facebook Page" href="http://www.cindywmorrison.com/blog/5-things-about-new-facebook-timeline/attachment/timeline3-2/" rel="attachment wp-att-1696" target="_blank"><img class="alignleft size-large wp-image-1696" title="timeline3" src="http://www.cindywmorrison.com/wp-content/uploads//timeline31-600x349.png" alt="" width="600" height="349" /></a></p>
<p>The apps you can add to your page&#8217;s Timeline are now located right below the cover photo. You&#8217;ll want to put the tabs you want to highlight in the first four b/c (as you can see above) they will always be front and center. For instance, for my client<a title="Just Between Friends Facebook Page" href="http://facebook.com/jbfsale" target="_blank"> Just Between Friends</a>&#8230; right now we want to show off their April Giveaway contest ($1,300 in prizes), their fan base and a recall app we just added. (Currently, the Facebook &#8220;photos&#8221; tab is always first one and can&#8217;t be changed.)</p>
<p><a href="http://www.cindywmorrison.com/blog/5-things-about-new-facebook-timeline/attachment/timeline2-2-2/" rel="attachment wp-att-1697"><img class="alignleft size-large wp-image-1697" title="timeline2.2" src="http://www.cindywmorrison.com/wp-content/uploads//timeline2.2-600x281.png" alt="" width="600" height="281" /></a></p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p><strong> </strong><strong>Bonus:</strong></p>
<p>These tabs are a great way to brand. Not only did we pick apps for JBF that would be relevant to their fans, we customized the wording and pictures (on tabs that allow changes) to make the JBF brand consistent. You can change placement, pictures and wording by pulling up all the tabs (click the arrow at the end of the tabs to the far right that lists the number of tabs on your page). Then, if you roll over the tab, you&#8217;ll see a pencil in the upper right corner of that app and you can choose if you want to swap spots or edit. Bingo!</p>
<p>Looking for a good place to find basic apps? I always tell my clients about this: <a title="Great Facebook App Resource" href="www.facebook.com/Fanpageapps/app_4949752878" target="_blank">Facebook Timeline Ready Apps</a>.</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<h1>4. Pin &amp; Highlight Important Stuff</h1>
<p><a title="Just Between Friends Facebook Page" href="http://www.cindywmorrison.com/blog/5-things-about-new-facebook-timeline/attachment/timeline4/" rel="attachment wp-att-1703" target="_blank"><img class="alignleft size-full wp-image-1703" title="timeline4" src="http://www.cindywmorrison.com/wp-content/uploads//timeline4.png" alt="" width="421" height="382" /></a></p>
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<p>Much like you want your most important stuff at the top of your website&#8230; you can <strong>&#8220;pin&#8221;</strong> an item to the top of your posts. It&#8217;ll last for 7 days. Just hover over the upper right-hand corner of a post and click on the &#8220;pencil&#8221;. Click &#8220;pin to top&#8221; and voila!</p>
<p>If you click on the star (next to the pencil)&#8230; then you can <strong>&#8220;highlight&#8221;</strong> an item.</p>
<p><a title="Just Between Friends Facebook Page" href="http://www.cindywmorrison.com/blog/5-things-about-new-facebook-timeline/attachment/timeline5/" rel="attachment wp-att-1704" target="_blank"><img class="alignleft size-large wp-image-1704" title="timeline5" src="http://www.cindywmorrison.com/wp-content/uploads//timeline5-600x442.png" alt="" width="600" height="442" /></a></p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Do you see how the top post goes all the way across the page? Timeline is set up in two columns&#8230;.the left is basically a chronological timeline in reverse (thus the name &#8220;Timeline&#8221;) and the right is basically your fans, things you&#8217;ve &#8220;liked&#8221;, posts where people have tagged you, etc. When you &#8220;highlight&#8221; an item&#8230; it makes it bigger, breaks up the page and draws attention.</p>
<p><strong>Bonus:</strong></p>
<p><strong></strong>Pinning is great for contests, something that&#8217;s gotten a lot of comments/likes or big news that you want to stay at the top of your Facebook Fan Page for a week. Highlighting is awesome for for pictures and video. It can really add some pizzazz to a page that might look bland otherwise.</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<h1>5. Create Milestones</h1>
<p><a title="Just Between Friends Facebook Fan Page" href="http://www.cindywmorrison.com/blog/5-things-about-new-facebook-timeline/attachment/timeline6/" rel="attachment wp-att-1705" target="_blank"><img class="alignleft size-large wp-image-1705" title="TIMELINE6" src="http://www.cindywmorrison.com/wp-content/uploads//TIMELINE6-600x384.png" alt="" width="600" height="384" /></a></p>
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<p>Creating milestones is a great way to show off professional and personal accomplishments. Maybe you want to call attention to when your company was founded or your first national conference. You can post a picture with these milestones and put the date to fill in what happened before we were all on Facebook. I use JBF as an example again because I&#8217;m working on it this week. We&#8217;ve posted when the consignment franchise started (in a living room in 1997) and we&#8217;re working through events leading up to today (122 franchises nationwide making it the <a title="Just Between Friends Website" href="http://jbfsale.com" target="_blank">largest children&#8217;s and maternity consignment franchise in the country</a>). See how that REALLY gives your fans a feel for who you are as a brand, what you&#8217;re about and what you stand for. So think outside the box. Maybe it&#8217;s not a specific milestone for your business, but maybe it&#8217;s the start of your family or if you&#8217;re a non-profit, maybe it&#8217;s a milestone in research for a cure.</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Now, keep in mind that this is all Timeline info for your Facebook Fan Page. Your personal <a title="SOCIALVENTION Blog: New Facebook Timeline and Why Subscribers Are The BOMB!" href="http://www.cindywmorrison.com/blog/new-facebook-subscribers/" target="_blank">Facebook Timeline</a> has some different applications and the apps are more personally driven  (pintrest) than business driven (contests). I&#8217;ll have more on personal Timelines coming soon&#8230; <img src='http://www.cindywmorrison.com/wp-includes/images/smilies/icon_smile.gif' alt=':)' class='wp-smiley' /> </p>
<p>What are YOUR thoughts? What do you like and not like about the new Timeline for Fan Pages?</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
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		<title>Are Your Biggest Fans Raving About You And Your Brand On Social Media?</title>
		<link>http://www.cindywmorrison.com/blog/create-raving-fans/</link>
		<comments>http://www.cindywmorrison.com/blog/create-raving-fans/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Tue, 13 Mar 2012 18:52:13 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>cindywmorrison</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Blog]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.cindywmorrison.com/?p=1649</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[No one loves your brand/product/services more than you, your mother and your satisfied customers. Are you letting those not related to you spread the word? Does that idea make you giddy (love it!) and yet break out in a cold sweat (how does it not appear forced?)? Well, you're not alone. We all hear from satisfied customers, but helping get that word out w/out appearing self-serving is a fine line. But it CAN be done. I know because I've done it... and it WORKS! I'm going to show you 3 steps to letting OTHERS help grow your brand.]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>No one loves your brand/product/services more than you, your mother and your satisfied customers. Are you letting those not related to you spread the word? Does that idea make you giddy (love it!) and yet break out in a cold sweat (how does it not appear forced?)? Well, you&#8217;re not alone. We all hear from <a href="http://www.cindywmorrison.com/blog/petershankman/" target="_blank">satisfied customers</a>, but helping get that word out w/out appearing self-serving is a fine line. But it CAN be done. I know because I&#8217;ve done it&#8230; and it WORKS!</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Here are 3 steps to letting OTHERS help grow your brand:</p>
<h2><strong>1. Video</strong></h2>
<p>When you have a satisfied customer&#8230; grab your smart phone and get video. For instance, I have a number of clients who sell the wonderful jewelry called <a title="Stella &amp; Dot" href="http://www.stelladot.com/sites/CindyWMorrison" target="_blank">Stella and Dot</a>. Recently, I was brought to a Director&#8217;s Retreat in Austin to teach social media strategy to some of the company&#8217;s top leaders. We talked about tons of strategies including what the new <a href="http://www.cindywmorrison.com/blog/new-facebook-subscribers/" target="_blank">Facebook Timeline format</a> will change their Fan Pages. Once we were done&#8230; I asked if they&#8217;d be willing to speak on camera about what they learned. Here&#8217;s the result&#8230; and I couldn&#8217;t ask for a better video testimony!</p>
<p><iframe src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/VjMnY1DE5p8" frameborder="0" width="560" height="315"></iframe></p>
<p>Folks are becoming so used to using videos that it&#8217;s really not awkward or unusual to ask them to shoot a quick video. Now, mine is longer because there were a number of ladies and this felt comfortable and natural. But just a few sentences from a satisfied client is awesome to highlight or edit with others. Don&#8217;t think fancy&#8230; just get it and go.</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<h2><strong>2. Social Media </strong></h2>
<p>Just like the video element, you don&#8217;t want social media posts by folks to feel forced (READ: someone held hostage). For instance, I just had breakfast the other morning with a gal named <a href="http://mystrategicmarketer.com" target="_blank">Misty Williams</a> who was in town to talk about creating <a title="My Strategic Marker" href="http://mystrategicmarketer.com" target="_blank">Virtual Marketing Teams</a>. (I LOVE her ideas and plan to put several things into virtual practice!) Anyhoo&#8230; we finished talking all things geek over eggs&#8230; I dropped her off at the airport to fly back to Nashville. Before she flew out&#8230; she posted the following on her Facebook:</p>
<p><a href="http://www.cindywmorrison.com/blog/create-raving-fans/attachment/misty-williams/" rel="attachment wp-att-1650"><img class="alignleft size-full wp-image-1650" title="Misty Williams" src="http://www.cindywmorrison.com/wp-content/uploads//Misty-Williams.png" alt="" width="423" height="458" /></a></p>
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<p>Misty is an awesome marketer and she knows the power of  &#8221;tagging&#8221; others in her post. My followers see her, but more importantly she thought enough of me to share my name with HER followers. And it wasn&#8217;t forced&#8230; it was very natural. I thank her for that and believe that is a PRIVLEDGE (not a right). So engage with your fans through <a href="http://facebook.com/CindyWMorrison" target="_blank">Facebook</a> and <a href="http://twitter.com/CindyWMorrison" target="_blank">Twitter </a> and encourage them to tag you or talk about your product/service/brand when it works naturally. Think of it as a &#8220;high tech Girlfriends Grapevine Network&#8221; where we want to share our best finds, secrets and tips with our peeps.</p>
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<h2><strong>3. Personal Touches</strong></h2>
<p>I&#8217;ve always been such a fan of Stella &amp; Dot that I think I&#8217;ve worn the jewelry in almost every promotional picture I&#8217;ve done since leaving TV news. It wasn&#8217;t intentional&#8230; I just liked the pieces they designed. Then I met <a href="http://www.stelladot.com/sites/tracey" target="_blank">Founding Director Tracey Schwartz</a> while I was on Tory <a href="http://SparkandHustle.com" target="_blank">Johnson&#8217;s Spark &amp; Hustle Tour</a> last year. Tracey (1) noticed I already knew the line b/c of the picture on my business card, (2) she made sure stylists in my area followed up, and (3) she eventually hired me for social media strategy. After that.. I INTENTIONALLY started wearing the jewelry and even became a <a href="http://www.stelladot.com/sites/CindyWMorrison" target="_blank">Stella and Dot Stylist</a> because I often sell pieces right off my body after a speech! The point? Video, blogs, social media, etc are wonderful.. but nothing beats making a personal connection with people who already know and like your product. By the way, personal touches go both ways. Check out what I posted on <a href="http://facebook.com/cindywmorrison" target="_blank">social media</a> after teaching at the Austin Retreat:</p>
<p><a href="http://www.cindywmorrison.com/blog/create-raving-fans/attachment/img_3868-2/" rel="attachment wp-att-1656"><img class="alignleft size-large wp-image-1656" title="IMG_3868" src="http://www.cindywmorrison.com/wp-content/uploads//IMG_38681-418x600.jpg" alt="" width="418" height="600" /></a></p>
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		<title>Featured In The Washington Post On Whether You Should BUY Facebook Fans</title>
		<link>http://www.cindywmorrison.com/blog/shouldyoubuyfacebookfans/</link>
		<comments>http://www.cindywmorrison.com/blog/shouldyoubuyfacebookfans/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 01 Mar 2012 00:14:21 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>cindywmorrison</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Blog]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.cindywmorrison.com/?p=1592</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[It's the biggest trend in social media right now: Buying Fans, Friends and Followers to make your "sphere of influence" on the internet APPEAR to be bigger than it really is. Bigger is better, right? Not necessarily. In fact, my very strong opinions on this were just featured in a Washington Post article. I'll show you 5 reasons why BUYING friends is a BAD idea.]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p><a href="http://www.cindywmorrison.com/wp-content/uploads//2012-02-29_1501washingtonpostlogo.png"><img class="alignleft  wp-image-1593" title="2012-02-29_1501washingtonpostlogo" src="http://www.cindywmorrison.com/wp-content/uploads//2012-02-29_1501washingtonpostlogo.png" alt="" width="335" height="295" /></a></p>
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<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>It&#8217;s the biggest trend in social media right now:</p>
<p>Buying Fans, Friends and Followers to make your &#8220;sphere of influence&#8221; on social media APPEAR to be bigger than it really is. Bigger is better, right? Not necessarily.</p>
<p>Here&#8217;s what I think: JUST SAY NO! In fact, my very strong opinions on this issue were just featured in this Washington Post article:</p>
<h2><a href="http://wapo.st/wGvliz">Buying Facebook Friends: Should You Do it?</a></h2>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>I believe there&#8217;s NOTHING worthwhile in appearing to be something you&#8217;re not. But almost as important as the &#8220;honesty&#8221; aspect, is the idea of getting <a title="Top 10 Ways To Be A Facebook Fan Page Rock Star" href="http://www.cindywmorrison.com/blog/rock-facebook-fan-page/" target="_blank">TARGETED Facebook fans</a>. You can use social media to make an impression, gain LOYAL followers and (hopefully) affect your bottom line? (If not.. then we need to talk!)</p>
<h2>Here&#8217;s 5 reasons why BUYING fans, friends and followers ISN&#8217;T the way:</h2>
<h2></h2>
<h2>1. You Don&#8217;t BUY Relationships</h2>
<p>As I mentioned before, you don&#8217;t BUY your friends. You do nice things for them and they do nice things for you. It&#8217;s mutually beneficial and then over time, you build a bond. If you give your followers things of value (for instance tips in your field of expertise), then they will follow. Much like buying followers, being needy (FOLLOW ME PLEASE?????!) or desperate (GIVE ME.. GIVE ME.. GIVE ME!!) will only turn people away. Now, I&#8217;m not talking about giving away the recipe to your secret sauce, but by giving them a taste of what you do, you&#8217;re building the foundation to what could become a real relationship.</p>
<h2>2. Trust Is Key</h2>
<p>When it comes to business these days, <a title="Why Peter Shankman Believes Customers Now Call The Shots" href="http://www.cindywmorrison.com/blog/petershankman/" target="_blank">people want to do business w/ those they know and trust</a>. As you continue to freely give things of value, people will not only begin to follow but they&#8217;ll begin to like and (maybe) trust you.  It&#8217;s not magic or smoke and mirrors, but instead it&#8217;s simply &#8220;good business&#8221;. But if, at any time, these trusting souls feel you&#8217;ve been less than honest with them, you&#8217;re goose is cooked. And believe me, they&#8217;ll figure it out if you gain 1,000 or more fans in a short period of time&#8230; there&#8217;s nothing authentic or transparent about that! And here&#8217;s the REAL kicker! You can actually do MORE damage to your brand by trying to fool people on social media than by not using social media at all.</p>
<h2>3. Engagement Is Also Vital</h2>
<p>Social media gives you a chance to engage with your biggest fans and potential customers. I&#8217;ve written a number of blogs recently about the power of giving customers immediate <a title="American Airlines Gives Great Social Media Customer Service" href="http://www.cindywmorrison.com/blog/americanairlines/" target="_blank">customer service through social media</a>. So, if you have a bunch of bogus followers who don&#8217;t engage, then you&#8217;re missing the point. Or worse, your &#8220;fake fans&#8221; constantly flood you with direct messages like &#8211; &#8220;How are you, friend?&#8221; &#8220;What do you do?&#8221; &#8220;You&#8217;re so pretty.. want to meet?&#8221; EEKS!! (And not to mention CREEPY!) Don&#8217;t waste your time, but instead make contact with people who might REALLY want to know more about you and your business.</p>
<h2>4. It&#8217;s Quality&#8230; Not Quantity</h2>
<p>I know&#8230; I know&#8230; it&#8217;s frustrating when you have 50 fans and your competition has 5,000. But look at their fan page, are those fans engaging? Are they the target audience? I would defend 50 TARGETED fans any day over 5,000 fake fans. Those 50 people are interested in finding out more about you and maybe even doing business with you. Also, your biggest fans are your biggest asset b/c QUALITY fans will attract more quality fans through referrals, tagging and comments. With this formula you&#8217;ll be amazed at how fast your network can grow. Now, it might not be overnight (VERY SUSPICIOUS), but it&#8217;s like losing weight. Unlike a fad diet, slow and steady life style changes give you the best results in the long run. Before you know it, you have something you&#8217;re so proud of because you genuinely put some elbow grease into it.</p>
<h2>5. Fake Fans Come&#8230; And Fake Fans Go</h2>
<p>Just like the friend who only shows up for free beer and football on your big screen, remember these &#8220;fake fans&#8221; have only liked you because some company offered them something for free (a prize, coupons, etc) to entice them to &#8220;like&#8221; your fan page. Once they&#8217;ve gotten what they want, they could all go away no matter what YOU do.</p>
<p>So, instead of using your money to trick people (when the trick might actually be on YOU), why not put your energy into gaining real fans through social media strategy:</p>
<h3>*<a title="Create A Facebook Fan Page Contest To Build Your Fan Base" href="http://www.cindywmorrison.com/blog/facebook-contest-video-howto/ ‎" target="_blank">Run brand related contests</a></h3>
<h3>*<a title="Increasing Your Facebook Fans By Asking A Simple Question" href="http://www.cindywmorrison.com/blog/increasing-you…imple-question/ ‎" target="_blank">Ask questions</a></h3>
<h3>*<a title="What YOU Can Learn About Branding From A $500 Blender" href="http://www.cindywmorrison.com/blog/geniusbranding/ ‎" target="_blank">Engage with your followers</a></h3>
<h3>*<a title="Top 10 Ways To Be A Facebook Fan Page Rock Star" href="http://www.cindywmorrison.com/blog/rock-facebook-fan-page/ ‎" target="_blank">Strategically tag and engage with those who have a big sphere of influence</a></h3>
<h3>*<a title="20 Ways To Make $ At Home Through Facebook" href="http://www.cindywmorrison.com/blog/20-ways-to-mak…rough-facebook/ ‎" target="_blank">Freely give things of value (like your expertise)</a></h3>
<p>Besides the links above, here&#8217;s a blog I recently wrote about how to <a title="Get More Twitter Followers" href="http://www.cindywmorrison.com/blog/get-more-twitter-followers/" target="_blank">get more Twitter followers</a>. But I&#8217;ll certainly be doing more blogs, articles and videos on this in the future! So stay tuned!</p>
<p>What are YOUR thoughts? (See&#8230; that question is posed so you&#8217;ll hopefully engage with me!)</p>
<p>Would you BUY fans?</p>
<p>Is getting REAL fans too hard?</p>
<p>Do you have a strategy that works?</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
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		<title>Featured In The Huffington Post about Social Media Strategy on FourSquare &#8211; Business</title>
		<link>http://www.cindywmorrison.com/blog/featured-in-huffington-post-about-social-media-strategy-on-foursquare/</link>
		<comments>http://www.cindywmorrison.com/blog/featured-in-huffington-post-about-social-media-strategy-on-foursquare/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Wed, 22 Feb 2012 20:38:05 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>cindywmorrison</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Blog]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.cindywmorrison.com/?p=1587</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Recently I was featured in the Huffington Post talking about FourSquare and how businesses can use this social media platform to get customers in the door. What is this FourSquare? How can you strategically use it for business?]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.cindywmorrison.com/wp-content/uploads//huffingtonpost1.png"><img class="size-full wp-image-1588 aligncenter" title="huffingtonpost" src="http://www.cindywmorrison.com/wp-content/uploads//huffingtonpost1.png" alt="" width="518" height="239" /></a></p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Recently I was featured in the <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/eric-yaverbaum/foursquare-business_b_1076595.html" target="_blank">Huffington Post</a> talking about <a href="https://foursquare.com/" target="_blank">FourSquare</a> and how businesses can use this social media platform to get customers in the door.</p>
<p>What is this <a href="https://foursquare.com/" target="_blank">FourSquare</a>?</p>
<p>How can you strategically use it for business?</p>
<p>Check out the article:</p>
<h2><a title="Huffington Post Article" href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/eric-yaverbaum/foursquare-business_b_1076595.html" target="_blank">Watch Your Step:</a></h2>
<div>
<h2><a title="Huffington Post Article" href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/eric-yaverbaum/foursquare-business_b_1076595.html" target="_blank">How Foursquare Can Get Customers in the Door</a></h2>
</div>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
]]></content:encoded>
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		<title>New Facebook Changes &amp; Why Subscribers Could Be THE BOMB!</title>
		<link>http://www.cindywmorrison.com/blog/new-facebook-subscribers/</link>
		<comments>http://www.cindywmorrison.com/blog/new-facebook-subscribers/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Fri, 03 Feb 2012 21:08:20 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>cindywmorrison</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Blog]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.cindywmorrison.com/?p=1557</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[If you're not quite Kim Kardashian or Zappos but you're getting friend requests from people you don't really know... then you're in good company. I'm guessing millions of us who use Facebook have outgrown our Profiles, but it still feel a little silly to have a Fan Page. That's what makes the latest Facebook news about "Subscribers" so exciting. It's more genuine than a Fan Page, but you can truly limit your "friends" to people you truly know while still making all kinds of new connections. It may sound confusing, but it's not. This is why I like social media strategy. But when it comes to social media, it's not one-size-fits-all for differently individuals, brands and businesses. Here's yet another way you might be able to customize it for your needs. ]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p><a href="http://www.cindywmorrison.com/wp-content/uploads//2012-02-03_1349iceberg.png"><img class="alignleft size-thumbnail wp-image-1561" style="border-width: 4px; border-color: white; border-style: solid;" title="2012-02-03_1349iceberg" src="http://www.cindywmorrison.com/wp-content/uploads//2012-02-03_1349iceberg-150x150.png" alt="" width="150" height="150" /></a> Let&#8217;s face it&#8230; social media is still in it&#8217;s infancy. Think about how far telephones &amp; televisions have come! (Hello, iPhones and big screens!) Well, right now, we&#8217;re all experiencing just the tip of the social media iceberg. Add in the speed of technology these days, and <a href="http://www.cindywmorrison.com/blog/monitor-brand-on-social-media-for-free/" target="_blank">social media</a> is a constantly moving and improving target. That&#8217;s just one of the many reasons I love my job! And the latest Facebook news about <a href="http://www.facebook.com/about/timeline" target="_blank">Timelines</a> and <a href="http://www.facebook.com/about/subscribe" target="_blank">Subscriptions</a> is uber exciting on many fronts for you and your brand&#8230; but I do suggest you proceed with cautious optimism.</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<h1><strong>The No Brainer: Facebook&#8217;s New Timeline Update</strong></h1>
<p>Plain and simple, <a href="http://www.facebook.com/about/timeline" target="_blank">Timeline</a> is a new look for your <a href="http://www.facebook.com/CindyWMorrison" target="_blank">Facebook Profile page</a>. It&#8217;s kinda like your Profile on steroids. There&#8217;s a cool new BIG picture at the top&#8230; called a cover photo. Your timeline now goes all the way back to your start on Facebook. And where apps have been available on Fan Pages, now there are Social Apps for your Timeline &#8212; music, movies, pictures, etc. At first all this was a little ADD for me&#8230; and I&#8217;m totally ADD&#8230;. wait, there&#8217;s something shiny!!<br />
(dramatic pause&#8230;) But after a few days.. the new Timeline profile has really grown on me. Now, I think this update is a no brainer.</p>
<div id="attachment_1565" class="wp-caption alignleft" style="width: 862px"><a href="http://www.cindywmorrison.com/wp-content/uploads//2012-02-03_1406FB3.png"><img class="size-full wp-image-1565" title="2012-02-03_1406FB" src="http://www.cindywmorrison.com/wp-content/uploads//2012-02-03_1406FB3.png" alt="" width="852" height="476" /></a><p class="wp-caption-text">My Updated Timeline</p></div>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<h1><strong>Lots of </strong><strong>Promise But Proceed W/ Caution:</strong></h1>
<h1><strong>Facebook&#8217;s New Subscriptions</strong></h1>
<p>If you&#8217;re not as popular as <a href="http://www.facebook.com/KimKardashian" target="_blank">Kim Kardashian</a> or <a href="http://www.facebook.com/ladygaga" target="_blank">Lady Gaga</a>, but you&#8217;re <a href="http://www.cindywmorrison.com/blog/petershankman/" target="_blank">using facebook to network </a>AND getting A LOT of friend requests from people you don&#8217;t necessarily know&#8230; then you&#8217;re in good company. I believe there are millions of us on facebook who have outgrown our Profiles, but still feel a little silly having a Fan Page. In case you&#8217;re not sure of the difference between the two&#8230; let me give some definitions:</p>
<p><strong>Profile </strong><br />
This is your personal <a href="http://www.facebook.com/CindyWMorrison" target="_blank">Facebook Profile</a> where you accept (or ignore) &#8220;friend requests&#8221;. Yes, I know&#8230; many people feel like their profile is their personal space and they&#8217;re not comfortable connecting it w/ their work life at all. I totally respect that. I just enjoy using my profile to connect with people because it feels more genuine than a Fan Page. Plus, Facebook is all about making personal &#8220;connections&#8221;, so Profiles generally have the most &#8220;rights&#8221; &#8212; post on friends&#8217; walls, send messages and tag people. The downside of a Profile? <strong>You can&#8217;t accept more than 5,000 friends.</strong> (While I agree with facebook that no one really has more than 5,000 true friends.. it&#8217;s a catch 22 for those who feel guilty NOT accepting a friend request or who find their Profile a great way to increase their &#8220;<a href="http://www.cindywmorrison.com/blog/get-more-twitter-followers/" target="_blank">sphere of influence</a>&#8220;. 5,000 may seem like a big number.. until you hit it. Then, you can&#8217;t accept ANY friend requests&#8230; even if it is your best buddy since 3rd grade! Been there&#8230; done that&#8230; did NOT buy the t-shirt!)</p>
<p><strong>Fan Page</strong><br />
<a href="http://www.facebook.com/cindywmorrisonfans" target="_blank"> Fan Pages</a> were created for businesses and companies. On these Pages, people click the &#8220;like&#8221; button to follow the updates. It&#8217;s best for businesses (from you local <a href="http://www.facebook.com/YaleCleaners" target="_blank">dry cleaners</a> to <a href="http://www.facebook.com/zappos" target="_blank">Zappos</a>) or brands w/ raving fans (like the <a href="http://www.facebook.com/KimKardashian" target="_blank">Kardashians</a>). Like it or not, I&#8211; like so many&#8211; found myself with no choice but to create a Fan Page to engage with new folks because I&#8217;d hit the 5,000 &#8220;friend&#8221; limit on my Profile. The upside of a Fan Page: customized apps (newsletters, videos, contests), <a href="http://www.facebook.com/insights/" target="_blank">Insights</a> (so you know WHO likes your page and what postings trip their trigger), and no cap on the number of fans who can &#8220;like&#8221; your page. So, what could possibly be the downside? While facebook has worked VERY hard to make Fan Pages more user friend and acceptable (not feel so pompous)&#8230; a Fan Page still isn&#8217;t as personal as a profile.</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>So, again&#8230; many of us are caught into the middle&#8230; not knowing where we belong. THAT&#8217;S why I think I&#8217;m going to love the new Subscriptions option!! Here&#8217;s the world of subscriptions according to Cindy:</p>
<h2><strong>Subscriptions</strong></h2>
<p>Basically Subscriptions allow you to have &#8220;friends&#8221; on your Profile (up to 5,000) AND add an endless number of people who &#8220;subscribe&#8221; to your updates. You can give these &#8220;subscribers&#8221; the same rights as &#8220;friends&#8221; (posting, messaging, etc) to create more engagement or you can limit what they can do. I feel like this is awesome because you can keep the people you truly KNOW as your &#8220;friends&#8221; and customize posts, pictures, etc to them privately (well, as private as the internet gets). You can un-friend (as opposed to de-friend) those &#8220;friends&#8221; you really don&#8217;t know personally and yet they will still stay subscribed to your timeline. PLUS&#8230; there&#8217;s no limit to subscribers! It could be the best of both worlds for many brands!!</p>
<p><a href="http://www.facebook.com/journalists" target="_blank">Journalists are TOTALLY embracing Timeline and Subscriptions</a>. They&#8217;ve updated their Profiles to the new Timeline and offer Subscriptions to their updates. Here are a few examples: <a href="http://www.facebook.com/samchampion" target="_blank">Sam Champion</a> from GMA, <a href="https://www.facebook.com/KatieCouric" target="_blank">Katie Couric</a>, <a href="https://www.facebook.com/anncurry" target="_blank">Ann Curry</a> from The TODAY Show, and <a href="http://www.facebook.com/note.php?note_id=278570912154930" target="_blank">more</a>!  (You may wonder why they don&#8217;t have a &#8220;friend&#8221; request button. Once you hit 10,000 subscribers, you switch to a Subscription ONLY platform. Check out this WONDERFUL article from my new friend <a href="http://www.facebook.com/vadim" target="_blank">Vadim Lavrusik</a> &#8211; who heads up Journalists On Facebook. <a href="http://www.facebook.com/note.php?note_id=352565928088761" target="_blank">Here&#8217;s one of his articles</a>.)</p>
<h2></h2>
<h2>The only bummers I&#8217;ve found so far?</h2>
<p><strong>1. No analytics.</strong></p>
<p>On your Profile, you can&#8217;t track Insights to see from where subscribers come or what posts get the most interest. Remember&#8230; I&#8217;m an Emmy winning investigative reporter&#8230; GIVE ME THE COLD, HARD FACTS! But, that doesn&#8217;t mean you&#8217;re totally in the dark with your subscriptions. You can tell when people comment and engage with you on a topic &#8211; which is the whole point of social media. (When I posted pictures of my face mangled by a cat a week and a half ago, I got 300+ comments on my Profile and Fan Page. I don&#8217;t need Insights to know THAT was a hot button! Here&#8217;s my newsletter about it.)</p>
<p><strong>2. Facebook hasn&#8217;t yet combined the Fan Page apps into the Timelines.</strong></p>
<p>With a Fan Page, you can add a tab that let&#8217;s folks sign up for your newsletter, watch videos straight from YouTube and enter contests. But that&#8217;s not to say apps aren&#8217;t available for your Timeline. They are! But the Timeline apps more social and not as marketing driven &#8211; which is both good (more genuine) and bad (the right contest can really boost the numbers of your target audience).</p>
<p><strong>3. Spamming is apparently very easy on your Profile/Timeline.</strong></p>
<p>Unlike your fan page, there are no profanity filters. (By the way, please don&#8217;t test it and make me block you, k?)</p>
<p><strong>4. You can&#8217;t have multiple admins on a Timeline account.</strong></p>
<p>Since this is your PROFILE&#8230; it only represents ONE person &amp; can&#8217;t have multiple admins like Fan Pages.</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<div id="attachment_1569" class="wp-caption alignleft" style="width: 836px"><a href="http://www.cindywmorrison.com/wp-content/uploads//2012-02-03_1429reach1.png"><img class="size-full wp-image-1569" title="2012-02-03_1429reach" src="http://www.cindywmorrison.com/wp-content/uploads//2012-02-03_1429reach1.png" alt="" width="826" height="64" /></a><p class="wp-caption-text">FB Insights: One Cat Scratch Picture REACHED 2,130 People</p></div>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>With all this said&#8230; remember, <a href="http://www.facebook.com/timeline" target="_blank">Timeline</a> and <a href="http://www.facebook.com/subscribe" target="_blank">Subscriptions</a> are NEW and only available right now for Profiles. I expect kinks to be worked out and many of these personal touches added to Fan Pages in the future. Plus, remember how I said we&#8217;re in the infancy of social media? You can bet your bottom dollar that Facebook will continue to change. <img src='http://www.cindywmorrison.com/wp-includes/images/smilies/icon_smile.gif' alt=':)' class='wp-smiley' />  We&#8217;ve only just begun!</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p><strong>The bottom line?</strong></p>
<p>Those looking to connect with their high school classmates and look at their grandkid&#8217;s pictures are probably good with a basic Profile. Business and companies are probably best served with a Fan Page. For the rest of us? Well, before you rush into ANYTHING&#8230; you might wait a month or two or three to see what shakes out. In the meantime, I&#8217;m going head-first into the Timeline &amp; Subscriptions so I can give you more information. I&#8217;m working with Facebook and Subscriptions were added to my Timeline last night. (Before you get mad at me&#8230;. <strong>I DID NOT SELECT WHO STAYED A FRIEND AND WHO MOVED TO A SUBSCRIBER!</strong> Facebook has an algorithm that moved 5,000 &#8220;friends&#8221; over to subscription status last night &#8212; except those who engaged the most w/ my Profile. <strong>PLEASE NOTE:</strong> I&#8217;ve given the same rights to Subscribers as my closest friends. But if your feelings are hurt&#8230; please let me know. I don&#8217;t want to lose your connection b/c I&#8217;m test driving stuff before I suggest it to my social media strategy clients. Better for me have an epic fail, right? LOL&#8230;.)</p>
<p><a title="Cindy's Timeline" href="http://www.Facebook.com/CindyWMorrison" target="_blank">Click here to Subscribe to my Timeline</a><br />
<a title="Cindy's Fan Page" href="http://www.Facebook.com/CindyWMorrisonFans" target="_blank"> Click here to &#8220;Like&#8221; my Fan Page</a></p>
<p><a href="http://dragon.ak.fbcdn.net/cfs-ak-ash4/84990/263/222098794536698_56659819.pdf" target="_blank">Facebook&#8217;s PDF &#8211; 9 Subscription Tips For Public Figures</a></p>
<p><strong>Strategy is all about finding what works best for YOU!!</strong><br />
What do YOU think?<br />
Have you updated to the new Timeline?<br />
Are you going to add Subscribers?? Or is your Profile too personal?Does it bother you to be a &#8220;Subscriber&#8221; and not a &#8220;Friend&#8221;?</p>
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		<title>How Do You Update To Facebook&#8217;s New Timeline?</title>
		<link>http://www.cindywmorrison.com/blog/facebook-new-timeline/</link>
		<comments>http://www.cindywmorrison.com/blog/facebook-new-timeline/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 26 Jan 2012 16:38:53 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>cindywmorrison</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Blog]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.cindywmorrison.com/?p=1551</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Over the next few weeks... everyone will get Facebook's new Timeline. What is the new profile layout &#038; how can you test drive it now?? Even as a Social Media Strategist, I'm not always sure about all the latest changes until I try them myself. Let's watch and learn together as I change my profile and find out what all the hubbub is about. Step-by-step video....
]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>Over the next few weeks, everyone will get Facebook&#8217;s new Timeline. What is the new profile layout &amp; how can you test drive it now?</p>
<p>Here&#8217;s how&#8230;.</p>
<p><iframe width="560" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/UU6iaw_OgcY" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe></p>
<p>Alright, it already seems a little ADD for me&#8230; and I&#8217;m totally ADD &#8211; oh, wait&#8230; something shiney!</p>
<p>And we&#8217;re back&#8230;</p>
<p>As a Social Media Strategist&#8230; I&#8217;ll test drive it w/ you on my blog and facebook over the next week so we can see what apps enhance it.</p>
<p>I&#8217;d love YOUR opinion! What do YOU think of the new Timeline?</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
]]></content:encoded>
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		<title>How To Monitor Your Brand On Social Media FOR FREE!</title>
		<link>http://www.cindywmorrison.com/blog/monitor-brand-on-social-media-for-free/</link>
		<comments>http://www.cindywmorrison.com/blog/monitor-brand-on-social-media-for-free/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Mon, 23 Jan 2012 18:42:44 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>cindywmorrison</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Blog]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.cindywmorrison.com/?p=1517</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Social media is changing our world and the way we do business. Period. Even if you don't believe me, you better be keeping an eye out for what people are saying about your brand online. A valuable reputation can be torn to shreds in record time if you ignore something that goes viral. This blog will show you HOW to monitor what people are saying about your brand.]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p><a href="http://www.cindywmorrison.com/blog/5-ways-to-use-social-media-for-customer-service/" target="_blank">Social media</a> is changing our world and the way we do business. Period. Even if you don&#8217;t believe me, you better be keeping an eye out for what people are saying about your brand online. A valuable reputation can be torn to shreds in record time if you ignore something that goes viral. (For example.. check out my blog about <a href="http://www.cindywmorrison.com/blog/5-ways-to-use-social-media-for-customer-service/" target="_blank">Dominos</a> and how their <a href="http://www.cindywmorrison.com/blog/5-ways-to-use-social-media-for-customer-service/" target="_blank">social media strategy</a> has COMPLETELY changed after a viral video melt-down.) By reacting to customers and engaging with them on the good, the bad &amp; the ugly, you have a better chance of turning the tides. (Yep&#8230; I&#8217;ve got an example of this too. Check out my blog on how <a href="http://www.cindywmorrison.com/blog/americanairlines/" target="_blank">American Airlines Tweets Good Customer Service</a>.)</p>
<p>So, how can you easily listen to what people are saying about your brand if you don&#8217;t have a <a href="http://www.cindywmorrison.com/blog/petershankman/" target="_blank">social media strategy</a> or the budget for a social media team? Well, here are five easy and FREE ways to do it:</p>
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<div><strong> <a href="http://www.google.com/alerts" target="_blank">Google Alerts</a></strong>: You can set up alerts for key words (for instance your brand name) within minutes &amp; they&#8217;re delivered to your email inbox. Easy peezy!</div>
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<div><a href="http://www.cindywmorrison.com/wp-content/uploads//googlealerts.png"><img class="size-medium wp-image-1522 aligncenter" title="googlealerts" src="http://www.cindywmorrison.com/wp-content/uploads//googlealerts-300x99.png" alt="" width="300" height="99" /></a></div>
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<div><strong> <a href="http://www.twilert.com/" target="_blank">Twilerts:</a></strong> A simple way to monitor tweets about your brand. Like Google Alerts, Twilerts emails you results of your search terms.</div>
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<div><a href="http://www.cindywmorrison.com/wp-content/uploads//twilert.png"><img class="size-medium wp-image-1523 aligncenter" title="twilert" src="http://www.cindywmorrison.com/wp-content/uploads//twilert-300x197.png" alt="" width="300" height="197" /></a></div>
<p><a href="http://www.tweetdeck.com/" target="_blank"><strong>Tweetdeck</strong>:</a> LOVE this tool! You can set up search columns for terms, twitter hashtags and groups. (Hint: I not only search my clients but also their competition!)</p>
<p><a href="http://www.cindywmorrison.com/wp-content/uploads//tweetdeck.png"><img class="size-medium wp-image-1524 alignleft" title="tweetdeck" src="http://www.cindywmorrison.com/wp-content/uploads//tweetdeck-300x181.png" alt="" width="300" height="181" /></a></p>
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<p><strong><a href="http://www.socialmention.com/">Social Mention:</a></strong> This is also one of my faves b/c it gives you real-time social media search &amp; analysis. It aggregates information from many social media platforms.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.cindywmorrison.com/wp-content/uploads//socialmention1.png"><img class="size-medium wp-image-1527 alignleft" title="socialmention" src="http://www.cindywmorrison.com/wp-content/uploads//socialmention1-300x162.png" alt="" width="300" height="162" /></a></p>
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<p><a href="http://addictomatic.com/" target="_blank"><strong>Addict-o-matic</strong>:</a> A real-time social search engine where you create a custom page on the latest buzz on any topic on just about any social media platform.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.cindywmorrison.com/wp-content/uploads//addict.png"><img class="size-medium wp-image-1529 alignleft" title="addict" src="http://www.cindywmorrison.com/wp-content/uploads//addict-300x142.png" alt="" width="300" height="142" /></a></p>
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<p>Let me just warn you: these are the tools I like THIS WEEK. Lol.. things in social media change almost daily. For instance, I used to use the free tool <a href="http://www.backtype.com/" target="_blank">backtype</a> all the time to analyze social media reach. Well, now it&#8217;s been acquired by twitter so the backtype website isn&#8217;t working right now. But I&#8217;m sure we&#8217;ll see the benefits soon on the twitter platform.</p>
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<p>Now that you know <a href="http://www.cindywmorrison.com/blog/geniusbranding/" target="_blank"><strong>HOW</strong> to monitor your brand</a>,  you may be asking <strong>WHAT</strong> to monitor. Here&#8217;s a list:</p>
<p><strong>Your Company Name</strong> (even misspellings &amp; twitter handles)</p>
<p><strong>Your Competition&#8217;s Name</strong> (even misspellings &amp; twitter handles)</p>
<p><strong>Company Domains</strong></p>
<p><strong>Products and Services</strong></p>
<p><strong>Names of Key Employees</strong> (including twitter names)</p>
<p><strong>Industry Terms/Keywords</strong></p>
<p><strong>Conferences, Events and </strong><strong><a title="The Power Of A Hash Tag" href="http://www.cindywmorrison.com/blog/hashtags/" target="_blank">Hash Tags</a></strong></p>
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<p>Also, if you want something more indepth, you&#8217;ll need to pay for it. I personally use the twitter management tool <a href="http://www.tweetbig.com/" target="_blank">Tweet Big</a>, but there&#8217;s also <a href="https://www.socialoomph.com/" target="_blank">Social Oomph</a>, <a href="http://www.trackur.com/" target="_blank">Trackur</a>, &amp; <a href="http://hootsuite.com/" target="_blank">HootSuite</a>. Each of these offer bells and whistles the free ones don&#8217;t. So, feel free to check them out and see if they&#8217;re worth the money for you. In the meantime, don&#8217;t overlook the freebies.</p>
<p>I know I listed a lot of stuff here. DON&#8217;T GET OVERWHELMED! I just want to give you an idea of everything you CAN monitor for FREE. The bottom line? Listening to real time conversations about you, your competitors and your industry can keep you not only in the &#8220;the know&#8221; but can help you <a href="http://www.cindywmorrison.com/blog/americanairlines/" target="_blank">provide great customer service</a> AND help you <a href="http://www.cindywmorrison.com/blog/geniusbranding/" target="_blank">protect your brand</a>.</p>
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		<title>Don&#8217;t Wait On Hold! 5 Ways To Use Social Media for Customer Service</title>
		<link>http://www.cindywmorrison.com/blog/5-ways-to-use-social-media-for-customer-service/</link>
		<comments>http://www.cindywmorrison.com/blog/5-ways-to-use-social-media-for-customer-service/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 19 Jan 2012 22:25:27 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>cindywmorrison</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Blog]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.cindywmorrison.com/?p=1503</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[I really don't call 1-800 numbers anymore. I absolutely dislike being left on hold &#038; a recording telling me the company is "experiencing a high volume of calls at the moment". Ya think?! No... I try to skip 1-800 numbers when possible and utilize social media. I've found it to be highly effective and product results. Here are 5 ways you can FIND companies on social media and get some immediate customer service.]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p><a href="http://www.cindywmorrison.com/wp-content/uploads//phonepic.png"><img class="alignleft size-full wp-image-1510" title="phonepic" src="http://www.cindywmorrison.com/wp-content/uploads//phonepic.png" alt="" width="206" height="229" /></a>I really don&#8217;t call 1-800 numbers anymore. I absolutely dislike being left on hold &amp; a recording telling me the company is &#8220;experiencing a high volume of calls at the moment&#8221;. Ya think?! No&#8230; I try to skip 1-800 numbers when possible and utilize <a title="Make Money At Home Through Facebook" href="http://www.cindywmorrison.com/blog/20-ways-to-make-at-home-through-facebook/" target="_blank">social media</a>. I&#8217;ve found it to be highly effective and product results. (Check out last week&#8217;s blog about my <a title="American Airlines Tweets Good Customer Service" href="http://www.cindywmorrison.com/blog/americanairlines/" target="_blank">tweet to American Airlines</a> &amp; their latest customer service avenue.)</p>
<p>So, how can you use <a title="American Airlines Tweets Good Customer Service" href="http://www.cindywmorrison.com/blog/americanairlines/" target="_blank">social media for customer service</a>? Let me count the ways.</p>
<p><strong>1. No 800 #? No problem!</strong></p>
<p>Before <a href="http://www.cindywmorrison.com/blog/get-more-twitter-followers/" target="_blank">social media</a>&#8230; we were a slave to being left on &#8220;hold&#8221;. Now customer service numbers are nearly impossible to find on many websites. (Ebay anyone?) So instead of feeling helpless, take control and find them on twitter or facebook. To find the company&#8217;s twitter user name, just google it by searching the business and the word &#8220;twitter&#8221;. To find a company on facebook, just search for their fan page through the search box on your facebook profile.</p>
<p><strong>2. Don&#8217;t post when you&#8217;re angry</strong></p>
<p>Recently, I was unhappy with a big order I got from a national printing company. I wanted to call&#8230; but, alas, no number on their website. But I didn&#8217;t <a title="Online Stupidity" href="http://www.cindywmorrison.com/blog/onlinestupidity/" target="_blank">tweet the company</a> right away b/c I wanted to make sure my tweet wasn&#8217;t &#8220;angry&#8221;. After deep breaths and some thought, I posted that my order wasn&#8217;t correct and I wanted to &#8220;chat&#8221; with customer service. They immediately Direct Messaged (just between the two of us&#8230; not public) a number to call &amp; they quickly reprinted my order. DON&#8217;T <a title="Online Stupidity" href="http://www.cindywmorrison.com/blog/onlinestupidity/" target="_blank">POST WHEN YOU&#8217;RE ANGRY</a> b/c whether you have 5 followers are 50,000 you&#8217;re messing with someone&#8217;s <a title="Branding Genius" href="http://www.cindywmorrison.com/blog/geniusbranding/" target="_blank">brand</a>. Don&#8217;t post something you&#8217;ll regret later b/c (1) it lasts in cyberspace forever and (2) you certainly get more flies with honey than vinegar.</p>
<p><strong>3. Don&#8217;t post only when you need something</strong></p>
<p>Companies like to take care of <a href="http://www.cindywmorrison.com/blog/americanairlines/" target="_blank">loyal customers</a>. If you&#8217;ve tweeted good things about them or helped their business through <a href="http://www.cindywmorrison.com/blog/americanairlines/" target="_blank">social </a>media referrals, they&#8217;re much more likely to help you. <img src='http://www.cindywmorrison.com/wp-includes/images/smilies/icon_smile.gif' alt=':)' class='wp-smiley' />  It&#8217;s that whole honey and vinegar thing again. I&#8217;m a big believer in spreading compliments all over <a href="http://www.cindywmorrison.com/blog/americanairlines/" target="_blank">social media</a> for a job well done or <a href="http://www.cindywmorrison.com/blog/americanairlines/" target="_blank">good customer service</a>. A sincere &#8220;thank you&#8221; is never overrated.</p>
<p><strong>4. The customer isn&#8217;t always right</strong></p>
<p>Sometimes you&#8217;re too close to the issue to realize YOU ARE WRONG! (I know&#8230; banish the thought, right?)  Seriously, before you publicly make accusations or try to get your way through social media, take a step back and look at the big picture. The customer is not always right. In fact, let me even take this scenario a little further. I&#8217;m constantly amazed at folks who use their <a href="http://www.cindywmorrison.com/blog/onlinestupidity/" target="_blank">social media</a> following to get anything and everything they want. THAT IS WRONG! Don&#8217;t be a <a href="http://www.cindywmorrison.com/blog/onlinestupidity/" target="_blank">social media</a> bully and please don&#8217;t &#8220;use&#8221; your followers to get your way. Remember, it&#8217;s not a right but instead an honor and a privilege for someone to think you&#8217;re worth listening to. (I know&#8230; a tad preachy, but definitely words to live by.)</p>
<p><strong>5. If at first you don&#8217;t succeed&#8230;</strong></p>
<p>Alright, so you&#8217;re unselfishly using <a href="http://www.cindywmorrison.com/blog/onlinestupidity/" target="_blank">social media</a> for good not evil, but that doesn&#8217;t mean you always get immediate results. For the most part, <a href="http://www.cindywmorrison.com/blog/americanairlines/" target="_blank">Corporate America has resisted social media</a> because it puts the power back in the hands of consumers. But whether they like it or not,  social media as a movement that can&#8217;t be ignored if brands want to stay relevant, competitive and in business. Even company&#8217;s that openly ban social media are now actively monitoring what&#8217;s being said about them on social media &#8212; if they&#8217;re smart, they are! (For example, <a title="Dominos Employee Video" href="http://abcnews.go.com/Business/story?id=7355967&amp;page=1#.TxiGtJj2iME" target="_blank">Domino&#8217;s</a> stock dropped 10% in one week after a delayed response to a video that went viral in 2009. Now the pizza giant has a dedicated social media team to respond daily &amp; <a title="Domino's Time Square Campaign" href="http://more.dominos.com/wp/2011/07/times-square/" target="_blank">posts instant customer reviews in Time Square! </a>) So, companies that weren&#8217;t paying attention yesterday may be actively listening today and have no choice but to be fully engaged tomorrow. So, if you feel like the crickets chirp when you use social media for customer service, don&#8217;t give up. Try, try again&#8230;</p>
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<p><img class="alignleft size-medium wp-image-1512" title="pizza" src="http://www.cindywmorrison.com/wp-content/uploads//pizza-300x206.png" alt="" width="300" height="206" /></p>
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		<title>American Airlines Tweets Great Customer Service</title>
		<link>http://www.cindywmorrison.com/blog/americanairlines/</link>
		<comments>http://www.cindywmorrison.com/blog/americanairlines/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Tue, 10 Jan 2012 17:27:29 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>cindywmorrison</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Blog]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[branding]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[customer service]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[social media]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[social media strategy]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.cindywmorrison.com/?p=1484</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[If you don't believe social media is changing the word we live in... think again. Customers are gaining power and a voice through social media that Corporate America simply can't ignore if it wants to remain relevant and competitive. That includes the airline industry that hasn't offered REAL customer service in decades. But here's proof positive that social media is a game changer... even to the most stubborn of industries.  Here's why my hat is off to American Airlines....]]></description>
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<p><a href="http://www.cindywmorrison.com/wp-content/uploads//2012-01-09_1405AA.png"><img class="alignleft size-thumbnail wp-image-1488" title="2012-01-09_1405AA" src="http://www.cindywmorrison.com/wp-content/uploads//2012-01-09_1405AA-150x138.png" alt="" width="150" height="138" /></a></p>
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<p>If you don&#8217;t believe <a href="http://www.cindywmorrison.com/blog/petershankman/" target="_blank">social media</a> is changing the word we live in&#8230; think again. One of my fave articles from 2011 is a Forbes cover story about <a title="Forbes: Social Power &amp; The Coming Corporate Revolution" href="http://www.forbes.com/sites/techonomy/2011/09/07/social-power-and-the-coming-corporate-revolution/" target="_blank">Social Power and the Coming Corporate Revolution</a>. I couldn&#8217;t agree more that customers and employees are gaining power and a voice through social media that Corporate America simply can&#8217;t ignore if it wants to remain relevant and competitive. In fact, my recent experience with <a title="AA on Twitter" href="http://twitter.com/americanair" target="_blank">American Airlines</a> is a perfect example of how even Corporate Giants can use <a href="http://www.cindywmorrison.com/blog/twitterrockstars/" target="_blank">twitter</a> to not only listen but turn a &#8220;heat case&#8221; into an opportunity.</p>
<p>My love/hate relationship with <a href="http://www.cindywmorrison.com/blog/americanairlines/ ‎" target="_blank">airline customer service </a>began when I flew back to Lubbock, Texas for my 10 year high school reunion. My husband and I missed a day and a half of the festivities b/c of mechanical delays. On top of that, I ended up wearing my mother&#8217;s clothes &amp; buying makeup b/c the (unnamed) airline lost our luggage. (D&#8217;oh!) For the first time in my life, I wrote a scathing letter. The response? (Feel free to insert the noise of crickets chirping here&#8230;) No apology letter or phone call. Nothing. Nada. Apparently, no one cared whether I was happy. And honestly, what was the real incentive to even pretend to listen to me? I&#8217;d fly again anyway, right? Yep.</p>
<p>As a<a href="http://www.cindywmorrison.com/bio/" target="_blank"> TV consumer reporter</a> at the time (1994), I was well aware that I wasn&#8217;t alone. Airline customer service&#8211; especially concerning complaints&#8211; was almost non-existant. If you weren&#8217;t making a reservation, they weren&#8217;t interested. Nothing much had changed even as late as 2009 when Time Magazine wrote about <a href="http://www.time.com/time/business/article/0,8599,1920121,00.html" target="_blank">Bad Airline Customer Complaint Lines: No Answer</a>. It seemed like we were simply destined to take what the airlines were dishing out &#8212; good, bad or indifferent.</p>
<p>Well, maybe not anymore&#8230;</p>
<p>For my first blog of 2012, I&#8217;m pleased to report things are changing DRASTICALLY with the introduction of <a href="http://www.cindywmorrison.com/blog/sense-of-humor-on-social-media/" target="_blank">social media</a>&#8230; even when it comes to the Airline Industry! Now, I&#8217;m not sure if all airlines have gotten on board but American Airlines has truly stepped up to the plate to not only use <a href="http://www.cindywmorrison.com/blog/get-more-twitter-followers/" target="_blank">twitter</a> as a listening tool&#8230; but actively use it to make customers happy! (Insert angels signing here.) How do I know times are changing? Here&#8217;s the Reader&#8217;s Digest verson: I was having troubles booking a trip w/ my frequent flier miles. I tried to book online but had &#8220;issues&#8221;&#8230; and customer service told me it would cost $85 to book through them even though I&#8217;d just paid to reactivate some expired miles. ARG! So, I did what I usually do and <a title="Cindy's Twitter" href="https://twitter.com/CindyWMorrison" target="_blank">tweeted</a>&#8230; hoping someone might listen. Check out the thread:</p>
<p><a href="http://www.cindywmorrison.com/wp-content/uploads//2012-01-09_1640AA1.png"><img class="size-medium wp-image-1491 alignleft" title="2012-01-09_1640AA1" src="http://www.cindywmorrison.com/wp-content/uploads//2012-01-09_1640AA1-300x52.png" alt="" width="300" height="52" /></a></p>
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<p><a href="http://www.cindywmorrison.com/wp-content/uploads//2012-01-09_1644AA2.png"><img class="size-medium wp-image-1492 alignleft" title="2012-01-09_1644AA2" src="http://www.cindywmorrison.com/wp-content/uploads//2012-01-09_1644AA2-300x54.png" alt="" width="300" height="54" /></a></p>
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<p><a href="http://www.cindywmorrison.com/wp-content/uploads//2012-01-09_1652AA3.png"><img class="size-medium wp-image-1493 alignleft" title="2012-01-09_1652AA3" src="http://www.cindywmorrison.com/wp-content/uploads//2012-01-09_1652AA3-300x61.png" alt="" width="300" height="61" /></a></p>
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<p><a href="http://www.cindywmorrison.com/wp-content/uploads//2012-01-09_1653AA41.png"><img class="alignleft size-medium wp-image-1499" title="2012-01-09_1653AA4" src="http://www.cindywmorrison.com/wp-content/uploads//2012-01-09_1653AA41-300x51.png" alt="" width="300" height="51" /></a></p>
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<p>I&#8217;d been messing with these dang tickets for a week and American Airlines&#8217; social media department had me taken care of in mere MINUTES!! Even if they hadn&#8217;t gotten me out of my self-induced mess&#8230; they LISTENED and ANSWERED. THIS is what I preach to my clients!! No matter how big or small your company&#8230; customer service isn&#8217;t an option. You MUST listen and interact with the folks who chose to spend their hard earned money with YOU. And since <a href="http://www.cindywmorrison.com/blog/petershankman/" target="_blank">Social media</a> is all about engagement&#8230; it&#8217;s the PERFECT place help your customers and build a loyal following.</p>
<p>There&#8217;s little doubt that <a href="http://www.cindywmorrison.com/blog/get-more-twitter-followers/" target="_blank">twitter</a>, <a href="http://www.cindywmorrison.com/blog/20-ways-to-make-at-home-through-facebook/" target="_blank">facebook</a>, <a href="http://www.cindywmorrison.com/blog/is-google-plus-the-next-big-thing/" target="_blank">Google+</a>, etc IS a game changer. Still not convinced of that? Then try this on for size: Social media is not only the perfect place for your customers to get help but it also provides a place for your biggest fans to brag. For instance, the following tweet not only went out to my almost 15,000 twitter followers, but it had 60-THOUSAND impressions! Now THAT is a big &#8220;thank you&#8221; for a job well done!</p>
<p><a href="http://www.cindywmorrison.com/wp-content/uploads//2012-01-10_0939PFAA.png"><img class="size-medium wp-image-1497 alignleft" title="2012-01-10_0939PFAA" src="http://www.cindywmorrison.com/wp-content/uploads//2012-01-10_0939PFAA-300x51.png" alt="" width="300" height="51" /></a></p>
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<p><a href="http://www.cindywmorrison.com/wp-content/uploads//2012-01-10_0939PFAA21.png"><img class="alignleft size-medium wp-image-1500" title="2012-01-10_0939PFAA2" src="http://www.cindywmorrison.com/wp-content/uploads//2012-01-10_0939PFAA21-300x85.png" alt="" width="300" height="85" /></a></p>
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<p>Can your company afford NOT to be on social media?</p>
<p> <img src='http://www.cindywmorrison.com/wp-includes/images/smilies/icon_smile.gif' alt=':)' class='wp-smiley' /> </p>
<p>In my next few blogs, I&#8217;ll give you some tips on HOW to tweet in order to get companies to listen to you and how YOU can monitor your own <a href="http:///www.cindywmorrison.com/blog/geniusbranding/" target="_blank">brand on social media</a> so, like American Airlines, you can turn every post into an opportunity.</p>
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