Category — SocialMediaMarketing

For the last four or five years I’ve been writing blogs and doing social networking and have joined or connected to over 300 internet groups. When I Google my name, I’m surprised at the things that pop up and am amazed at how far my name and messages have reached. This is not to thump my own chest, rather to set the stage for something which never ceases to amaze me. I wonder and am surprised when others comment on how strong they consider me to be.

My readers’ perceptions make me wonder to what exactly is that strength attributed? Is it the time I’ve spent at the keyboard pecking away; or it is starting, deleting, uploading and downloading pictures and videos? Is it using the Thesaurus to express the same words in different ways to vary my content; or is it reading and re-reading, checking the spell-checked text to be sure I’ve caught all the errors? Is it arranging, rearranging, placing and displacing sentences, clauses, phrases, titles, paragraphs, punctuation marks, or whole topics?

Is it the subject matter I write about; the opinions I confer, the arguments in which I take a determined stand, or the information about my experiences I choose to share? Or could it be my resolve to write even when I wonder if what I am saying is making a difference?

I have come to accept that my being strong is not a power that I particularly possess. But my strength comes from the perception of my readers. If those who read my articles can derive some measure of understanding, enlightenment and inspiration, I believe they are made stronger. Their strength is then reflected back to me in encouraging comments they send which in turn makes me stronger.

Without receiving responses, the posts I write are merely me consuming time and effort. Instead they have become more than expressions of my point of view and a sharing of my life’s journey. Our ongoing communications have become a source of reciprocal strength, and I wish to thank all of my readers for making me strong.

This is my first video blog. I have met so many great friends and have received such wonderful comments, I wanted to let you see and hear me. Take care.

As an entrepreneur, how do you measure success? Is it measured by the amount of money you’re able to generate? Is it the ability to duplicate your idea or get the greatest acclaim? Can it be your staying power in the marketplace or your brand building? I believe there are as many different ways of measurement as there are entrepreneurs, and success is an individual determination. 

For me, having dabbled in the game of self-generated income, I am reconsidering my idea of success, as my current situation is causing me to feel some conflict. Although I have had the ability to be self-supportive from revenues garnered from my gifts and talents through the years, I have not been able to sustain nor excel to the point of what others may think is success for too long. 

Many ideas, time and effort have come and gone. My interest was piqued for while, but eventually waned and I moved on to something else. Nevertheless the time I’d spent and the pleasure derived from my performance of the activity was thought of by me as positive measures of my success. 

When I published my first book after waiting 18 years for the pleasure, the congratulations and love shown me by my family, friends and business associates made me feel on top of the world. Before I sold one copy, I felt like a success. I had accomplished a great part of my mission. But the work to sell the book is ongoing and difficult, and sells have slowed. Do I measure my success, not in selling books, but in having a book to sell? 

The conflict I am having is in trying to gather the same level of enthusiasm and excitement into marketing my product as I had in getting it made. I am in a new arena and a new game in which the measure of success is different. I am wondering if making money is the most concrete, important evidence of a successful entrepreneur. 

Some of the elements of entrepreneurship I’ve decided to consider are: how willing am I to risk being a failure? Am I learning things of importance as I go? How much more do I know about business or life? How much personal growth can I claim? Have my values changed, or do I view my products or customers or my responsibility to my customers in a different light? Is my attitude or my level of patience or consistency to my expression of quality the same? Do I feel that I am doing and being the best that I can be at what I do? 

For me and others struggling with our definition of success or feeling disappointed in not being what and where we think we should be, perhaps we should consider using another yardstick of measurement. I’d like to read any comments on the subject you care to share.

For the last three years, I have been doing online social networking. To date I belong to over 250 different networks and groups. I also have three groups of my own: iAmerica, The Seniors of Society and the Cultural Arts Network.

Getting on the internet was a somewhat frightening idea for a 60-plus year old great-grandmother, but my late son, Tracy, would tell me almost daily, “Mama, you can do it.” If it had not been for me losing him too soon, and his encouraging me before he died, I doubt I would have ventured forth. But now that I have, I find great joy, fulfillment and a greater sense of worth for my efforts.

In the beginning, having little more than knowledge of word processing, I was limited in knowing the terms being used or how much of an education internet social networking would require or give me back. I knew how to ask questions and articulate my needs from my pre-retirement days as a secretary and administrative assistant. Soon I was blessed with knowledgeable people placed in my path who have helped me along each step of the way.

I have learned how to upload pictures, download information, and send comments and videos. I was soon adding friends, chatting back and forth, sharing stories and engaging in discussions. Now I am a blogger who is also learning the art of “tweeting.”

Through my friends from around the world, I have seen art, pictures and places of interest, heard and enjoyed music of every kind, and learned about many cultures, personal triumphs and tragedies.

Merging the medium of social networking with the magic of computer technology has given me international exposure of my business venture, The Oodles Company. The launch of my children’s book, The First Trip, and rag doll character, Bubba Oodle, garnered many congratulations and is bringing in online sales. It seems that Tracy was right…Mama is doing it!