No one else was going to do it, so why not me. Check it out.

Here's what I'm thinking the blog will offer you, the reader:

- First hand experiences with sales technology as a sales technology director in a major company
- The impact of sales technology on the mobile workforce
- pros, cons, how it helps/hinders getting the job done
- The migration from standalone application based SFA and CRM system to web-based tools
- The trials and tribulations of sales technology adoption
- The use of effective marketing in driving adoption of SFA & CRM tools
- Emerging trends in SFA, such as handheld & voice activated SFA, and the new security concerns surrounding wireless.
- Side-by-side comparisons of available SFA tools such as Siebel, Sales Force.com, Sales Net, etc...

Anything else that matters? Let me know!

A couple of weeks ago, the American Marketing Assn. Internet Marketing SIG invited Biz Stone, the Genius blogger, to moderate our discussions on blogging for a week. Biz was a super resource, and outside of having an already great book on blogging, he left us these additional bullet points to ponder. Thanks again to Toby Bloomberg for putting this together.

Following is a recap of key points:

-Incorporating a blogging strategy as a component of a marketing plan can support relationship building by "breaking down barriers between business and customers."

-While blogs are still on the peripheral for most organizations, some companies understand that blogs can provide a valuable "window on what people (customers) are thinking and talking about."

-Business blogs are used to publicize new products, demonstrate product features and answer customer questions.

-Blogging is useful as a knowledge management tool.

-Blogs are a natural to support branding strategies. Great for consultancies to reinforce expertise in targeted areas/sectors.

-Consider using blogs in qualitative brand or product research where respondents maintain a blog on a proprietary intranet

- Determining ROI is still difficult. Biz suggests defining "success" in terms of quantity and quality of comments, measuring page views, trackbacks (what people say about your posts).

-A successful blog requires dedication to daily postings. Post must be of perceived value for the target audience.

A few more resources:

- An example of B2B blogs. Jupiter Research - company analysts each have a blog. Provides an opportunity to connect with their audiences on a regular basis. Interesting idea for companies that have a model that includes segmentation by sectors or areas of expertise. http://weblogs.jupiterresearch.com/

-Mircrodoc News. News blog about blogs.
http://microdoc-news.info/home/BloggerNews/2003/04/03.html

Business blog
http://blogs4business.com/

April 2003 SFAMA Market Watch

In today's world, there's little room for argument that such a repository should be web-based. The technology for managing, protecting, and distributing the numerous digital files that make up a brand through the web - and for keeping close track of them - is well in place. Companies that fail to take advantage of such technology and leave their brands vulnerable to misapplication - and to inconsistent recognition - do so at their own peril.

Brain Brew Radio | Creative Business Thinking

These guys are dynamite! They talk to small business owners, entrepreneurers, and all the like, and answer all of their business questions. It's kind of like the Car Talk for business people.

We don't get this on Wisconsin Public Radio, but thankfully these guys post their shows on the web!

Check em out!!! www.brainbrewradio.com

Not being a master of several languages (maybe a little Spanish), I was really stumped when I tried to read this TrackBack link from a .nl (Netherlands) website written in Dutch.

Here's a nifty little tool that I found. World Lingo has a website that will translate damn near anything. Yeah, I know Google does the same for some sites, but World Lingo does it way better.

Check out the online tranlator here.

How's this for Just In Time local marketing.

I just got an email from The Velvet Room, and new nightclub in Milwaukee with the following information:

Subject: VELVET ROOM PARTY TONIGHT!

Who wouldn't want to get an email like that at quitting time on a Friday afternoon? Simple, yet brilliant.

Check out this email. Beautiful. Simple. Black, and White. Rock on.

More to the point - check out the people behind the Velvet Room site. ENV Designs, which stands for "envy", as in you're site will be the envy of all other restaurants. These guys a smokin. They've found a distinct niche, and exploited the hell out of it. If I were opening a resturant, these people would be a "must talk to."

marketingterms.com has a nifty little definition of what a blog is along with an arm's length compendium of links to articles on blogs back to 1999. Pretty cool for those of you nostalgic types who want to revisit the history of blogs.

My personal favorite was this article from The Guardian in the UK on how "liberating" blogging is.

* Thursday, October 9, 2003
* 5:30 p.m. – 8:30 p.m.
* S.C. Grand, 1250 Mid-Valley Dr., De Pere
** Download the PDF invite here

Agenda:

5:30 – 6:30 p.m. Registration, cash bar and buffet – eat as you come in and program will begin promptly at 6:30 p.m.

6:30 – 7:45 p.m. Highlight video of Dr. Richard Florida’s speech on 9/18/03

Active discussion of World Café topic: How do we actively involve young people in the creative new economy of NE WI? The room will follow the “World Café” format of having a topic at each table and moving & mixing tables every 10 minutes so participants interact with everyone in the room by the end of the night.

Business and Community Leaders will be at each table to work with young people in a team atmosphere.

7:45 – 8:30 p.m. Social reception, cash bar, coffee and dessert

Hosted By:
Young Professionals Network
Pulse Communications Inc.

Sponsored By:
Arketype Group Inc.

Background:
An event was held 9/18/03 entitled “A Creative Future: Shaping our Regional Economy”. Over 400 people attended from business, education, government and the community to hear from Dr. Richard Florida, author of The Rise of The Creative Class. (See www.creativeclass.org) They were looking for ways to spark our economy and ensure a brighter future for our region. At the event, Richard Florida and his colleagues utilized interactive technology to lead the room through a process of “holding up the mirror” to determine crucial issues and identify ways to implement changes.

The prevailing message from the event both from the experts and looking at ourselves? ENGAGE YOUNG PEOPLE and create a community open to diverse people of all ages, races, and backgrounds to ensure economic success and a vibrant future for our region. We need to make NE Wisconsin a place where all people feel valued, energized, and empowered. WHY? Because the key to success in any realm is PEOPLE. Creativity sparks innovation and productivity - and needs to be actively sought, cultivated, and rewarded.

The September 18th Creative Future Event was a catalyst – and the October 9th Creative Future Café will build upon that momentum. On 9/18 we held up the mirror and heard from respected experts who helped us define work we need to do in our region. We participated, voted, and determined our direction.
On October 9th… we move forward in that direction.

$5.00 for Members of either YPN or Pulse; $7.00 for Non-Members
To register: Online at www.acreativefuture.com or call Sue Gerrits at 920-435-4540 x 102

Registration Sponsored by the Green Bay Area Chamber of Commerce

John Porcaro pointed out some interesting posts by Laurie Sefton, tonight that underscore some tensions going on in the blog-meets-employer space which have yet to play out to their fullest.

Here I am, smack in the middle of said corporate dilemma. As the leader of the E-commerce/web group, I feel that the responsiblity is ours to take for crafting an intelligent yet easy to implement corporate policy, similar to what Ray Ozzie has done with Groove Networks, which outlines our official stance on employee weblogs and websites. However, when I've approached people about this topic the answer that I've received has been that our "code of ethics" policy covers all such instances. I don't think so, but who am I to say.

Nevertheless, I did draft some bullet points which could one day comprise a fairly comprehensive policy on employee weblogs and websites. I don't think we'll be using this information, so here it is. Maybe one of your companies needs it.

Eliyon has apparently built up a 15.7 million profile database of business people profiles simply by scraping publicly available information on websites and in press releases.

It's being called "The Recruiters Encyclopedia."

Mike @ TechDirt first alerted me to this one.
http://techdirt.com/articles/20030922/022235.shtml

http://prstudies.typepad.com/weblog/2003/08/index.html

A New Kind of Revolution in the Dorms of Dartmouth

Now, the college is venturing into the world of "voice over Internet protocol," also known as VoIP, which essentially turns a computer into a telephone.

This week, as classes begin, the 1,000 students entering the class of 2007 will be given the option of downloading software, generically known as softphones, onto Windows-based computers.

Using the software together with a headset, which can be plugged into a computer's U.S.B. port, the students can make local or long-distance telephone calls free. Each student is assigned a traditional seven-digit phone number.

We're coming up on another subtle convergence point in the realm of personal technology where the PDA is combining with the cell phone to make 'smart phones'. Smart phones signal the dealth of the PDA as we know it, according to Bill Bennett in the Austrailian news article on the topic.

Personally, I can't wait for the day, and I'm betting that there are a large percentage of sales people out there who are saying the same thing. Imagine the following scenario:

Your client leaves you a voicemail "Hey Bob, just wondering where we stand on getting those machine parts in...".

The connected sales rep pulls up the client's information from his local address book in his phone, based on the customer's phone number on the caller ID, and connects to the company's XML enabled order status system to check on the client's request. The sales person then takes that data, and through an "email this information" link, submits exactly what's in the order status system, to his client, via email.

Problem solved - next voicemail please. Better still - this entire process could have taken place in a voice activated manner, or via a keypad, the system doesn't care.

More quotes from the article...

Hand-held computers were always meant to be mobile communications devices. Almost a decade ago Apple's marketing for the original Newton PDA showed young professionals sitting in cafes, wirelessly transmitting data to and from each other. The Newton came and went, however, long before that dream became a practical reality.

...Mobile-connected computing won't really take off until 3G networks are in place... In theory, 3G networks can run at 2Mbps, though few users will see anything like that. More realistically, users can expect to see a few hundred Kbps.

A while ago, I posted an opening for an e-marketing position at J.J. Keller in Neenah, WI. I was really puzzled that they were having such a hard time finding a body for that position. (as of last week, there are still looking)

However, I'm quite convinced that *part* of the reason that a qualified body cannot be found is that someone who is up to speed in e-marketing would not likely want to be physically located in North Eastern Wisconsin, at least not in the N.E.W. that we have *today*. (based on the analysis from the Richard Florida seminar on Thursday about the Creative Class) I say this because of that I've heard from Seattle, San Diego, and New York - they have no problem filling jobs like this becuase they have the "cultural infrastructure" to support members of the creative class. In Richard's assesment, CC workers migrate to a place not of *a job*, but of MANY jobs in and around their field of specialty. And that's important, because CC workers are specialists. They've worked very hard to get to their place in the world and typically get there as a result of being better than many others in their specific disciplines.

Perhaps what comapanies need to do is also sell the area and its potential to those considering the job, but not the area, as a potential place to work. OR - open up positions like this to telecommuting so that the best person can live where they want, and perhaps travel to the *home office* on an as needed basis? Just a thought.

So, once again...if you know anyone....

Larry K. at J. J. Keller & Associates , Inc. is currently searching for an experienced E-Commerce Marketing person to round out their marketing team. Keller, is a leading supplier of regulatory and compliance information products. They are located in the Neenah, WI area.

Here's a link to the job posting on their site.

If anyone might know of someone, post a comment or send me an email at dana @ danavan dot net.

Career Exploration at St. Norbert - De Pere, WI

Here’s an answer to the question that was raised yesterday, “You say that we need to engage youth and reach out the college students to stem the ‘Brain Drain’ from the state of WI, well, how would you suggest I start?”

Call you local college’s career services office, business school dept, or whatever your fancy, introduce yourself, and go in to talk with them. Better yet, if you happen to be anywhere near De Pere, Wisconsin, call Maureen Huffer of St. Norbert College at 920.403.3040, and ask to volunteer for the Career Exploration Day Fair on Nov. 6th, 2003. This fair allows professionals like you to engage with students, provide insight and advice, or better yet, get some insight into the mind of this generation!

Remember, the most important thing you can to do foster a creative class economy in North Eastern Wisconsin is to “Fully engage and involve young people/professionals in all aspects of the community and civic engagement.”

Check out the SNC Career Services page for more info.
Call Maureen Huffer of St. Norbert College at 920.403.3040

Yesterday I had the great fortune to be able to attend Richard Florida's seminar, "A Creative Future." According to this morning's GB Press Gazette article, there were about 400 attendees. It was a veritable "Who's Who" of Green Bay. Leaders, presidents, CEOs, and the like were all in attendance.

All in all, it was a pretty powerful, and sobering presentation on the state of North Eastern Wisconsin, and the state as a whole. Florida, and the entire Creative Transformation team were absolutely astounding. Governor Jim Doyle, however, was not. Doyle made a guest appearance, totally unbeknownst to probably anyone but the organizers, as he was not on the agenda, to discuss his economic plans for the state of Wisconsin. You’ve got to give the guy a modicum of credit, it was certainly the right audience to pitch, but it was undoubtedly the wrong message. Doyle was preaching about programs, plans, platforms, and agendas on how to bolster the manufacturing sector and keep our young college grads in the state, basically promising a bunch of money for a host of yet-to-be-determined initiatives. He did not, however, put any meat on his plans. Thus, the majority of the attendees viewed him not as part of the solution, which we were all striving to craft, but as part of the problem, which we are trying to eradicate. Nice job Jimbo.

My mantra for 2004 on the Sales Technology front is to "meet our reps in their medium." Simply put, any application or applicance that you can use to access electronic information shall be used to access relevent sales data.

I'm not alone in thinking this. Look what the folks @ IBM are saying:

"With the added capabilities of IBM's WebSphere Everyplace Access, salespeople, for example, can wirelessly access enterprise sales applications, such as Sales Force Automation (SFA), via their BlackBerry handheld to request prices, enter orders, determine available inventory and confirm shipments. Salespeople can also check calendars, make phone calls, send and receive e-mails, and use instant messaging applications such as IBM Lotus' Sametime Everyplace, allowing them to respond more quickly and efficiently to their customer needs. Field service groups and executives can also benefit from push-based, timely access to relevant information from back-end corporate applications, including service requests and sales reports, thereby helping to minimize the need to be in the office and enabling them to be in the field with customers and colleagues."

There are times that I really wonder if everyone has forgotten about sales force automation as a topic. Am I behind the times in not getting everything roped into the CRM corral, or is specialization the key in this field? There are so few of us doing pure SFA (not that it's that pure anyway - SFA is about communication and collaboration with other depts, not silo building) that I find myself explaining SFA and its benefits to nearly everyone.

One thing that tells me that SFA is a discipline unto itself is the recent announcement that salesforce.com CTO Dave Moellenhoff has been selected as a Top '25 Innovator' by CMP Media's CRN.

"Salesforce.com has replaced software with low cost, low risk software-as-service for more than 100,000 subscribers worldwide," said Moellenhoff. "Everything we have achieved -- from Web services breakthroughs to profitable operations -- is a direct result of our total focus on customer success.

Steve Kayser, of Cicncom, wrote a super article for Cincom's Expert Access newsletter on self promotion and getting "Slightly Famous".

Being a self proclaimed, self promotion maven, this is one of the more detailed and insightful pieces on self promo that I've seen in a while. Here are a few salient, paraphrased points.

1. Maintaining Your Visibility - Visibility is a cornerstone of every slightly famous business strategy, and it begins by placing your core marketing message in front of as many of your target customers as possible, as often as possible.

2. Enhancing Your Credibility - Visibility is nothing without the credibility to back it up. The surest way to make a credible name for yourself is by becoming a "recognized" expert. (If you're an author, speaker, consultant, business owner, manager and professional, you may qualify)

3. Establish Your Brand and Reputation - Visibility + Credibility + Word-of-Mouth = REPUTATION

Check out the whole article here.

Christian Crumlish has been blogging Seybold, along with several others, at least according the Technorati. Sweet. Glad to see we're all on the same page here.

Also, props to Christian for his well above average presentation on blogs and RSS (XML, RDF, whatever...).

I recently got an email from the SIFE (Students in Free Enterprise) group at a local college seeking ideas on promoting SIFE and acquiring new members.

Rather than create these in a vacuum, I'm posting these ideas here in case other colleges are searching for ideas on promoting SIFE within their schools.

1. Get a dedicated SIFE website where students can learn all about the organization
   and communicate with the organization leaders.


2. Have your college IT dept change all of the screen savers on campus computers
   to a SIFE screensaver. Point prospective members to the SIFE website


3. Add a weblog (similar to this one) to the site. Update it regularly with
   SIFE happenings, local business issues, topics for discussion, member bios,
   etc. Keep it fresh


4. Ask your business/communications/xyx dept. professors to speak in each of
   their classes and hand out some info on SIFE. Take signups on the spot. Develop
   your pitch, and go for it.


5. Develop a compelling value proposition/one page flyer for SIFE - Focus on
   features, advantages, and benefits of joining SIFE at your school. For example:
   1. Valuable projects to help global community, brilliant students to work
      with, sense of accomplishment
   
   
   2. Networking opps, expand opps. in local marketplace, real world experience
      through SIFE projects
   
   
   3. Enhance you public speaking skills, explore your passions, etc...you
      get the point.


6. Have one of your members (or several) write regular "SIFE issue focused"
   columns in the school newspaper, or local newspaper city paper if you are
   so inclined.


7. Publish press releases to the college paper, as well as to the local papers
   and business journals to get exposure for your organization and build your
   presence.


8. Try for a college TV station spot, or better yet, a community television
   spot to gain exposure and spread your message


9. Have a SIFE sidewalk chalk day. Get all of your current members to write
   'pro-SIFE' messages all over campuses. Leave the SIFE web address.


10. Start a series of discussions w/ local business leaders in the evenings
    to draw out potential members. Offer food - that will really get them out.
    Be sure to pitch membership during the sessions! Topics could include:
    1. Marketing yourself in a tough job market (doing something different
       to get the job).
    
    
    2. Staples of a successful business career. What to do, and not to do in
       your first job.
    
    
    3. Career 'Face-Off'. Invite someone from the financial sector, marketing/creative,
       or and a non-profit to debate the pros/cons of various career paths


11. Make a SIFE movie about the cause, the members, and how great it is to be
    in SIFE. Set it on your website, tell all your friends, and try to get it
    to 'go viral'.


12. Evangelize SIFE to everyone you know!

I have but few gripes about Seybold, but the fact that this is supposed to be a publishing and Internet conference, there was a pathetic showing on the connectivity end of things!

1. Where the hell was the Wi-Fi? Someone said that it was there, but it was not advertised. Not that we can have it on our laptops anyway (security Nazis in there you know) but hell, there are a lot of other more liberal orgs. that let their employees on. Felt sorry for those wired souls.

2. Dropping Internet access in the speakers room. On top of an already pathetic connection, (my DSL in Dyckesville, WI is faster), it was unreliable. Come on people, this is not hard stuff.

3. Usability of the Seybold Program Guide. With all of the brains at Seybold, you'd have thought they'd have consulted with one of their usability friends on the design of the 150 page program guide. Yes, it was hard to navigate, but my biggest pet peeve was that there were no room numbers listed next to the session descriptions. I had to use the other "conference at a glance" palm sized guide to find my way around. Just annoying...

4. Lunch being held in the Pavillion from Tuesday on. Not only did I have to wade through a crapload of vendors, the system was not anywhere near as efficient as Monday's system. I was not about to wait in line for 30 minutes for my free lunch. I went across the street & had a muffin. Why didn't they hold it on the 2nd floor??? It was vacant!!!

OK. Enough bitching.

The Seybold SF2003 conference rolls on until Friday, but I'm out of here today. Having made it through my 2 sessions, and having listened to a few others, I'm convinced that this is one of the most influential conferences in the pubishing and new media space today. I was inspired and humbled by the cadre of experts here, this truly is the conference of the best and the brightest. Chief Scientists, Worldwide Evangelists, CEOs, Senior Analysts...they were all here.

Here's a wrapup on some of the sessions attended and their substance.

Mike Wokosin, a friend of mine at Warner Bros, just gave an interview for IMedia Connection. Mike talks about some of the recent online b2b and b2c efforts that Warner engaged in to promot Harry Potter and The Matrix.

The amazing thing about Mike, and Warner Bros. (having worked there...) is the globalisation/localisation strategy that they have employed to leverage online in over 15 territories that speaks to the needs of its retail, distributor and business partners worldwide. This strategy was also common thread in cross-media publishing discussions at Seybold this week. By using things like OpenType, XML, XMP, and adopting intelligent workflow tools like the Adobe InDesign sweet (a plug for Peder Engrob of Adobe), web shops can roll out multi language print, web, and multi-channel communications in significantly less time.

Looks like WB is already on the way! Check out Mike's article here.

The first 2 sessions of the day have been enlightening. Everything from the presentation by Richard Ballard, the Chief Scientist at Knowledge Foundations, on semantic networks and innovations in network publishing. Pretty heavy stuff! Dr. Ballard discussed the differences between information held in the 'genes' of an environment (on the same level as the Windows OS) programmed, logical, unlearning and non-changing, vs. the information/knowledge held in the brain. The brain can learn, change, adapt, as should our knowledge networks of the future.

The following presentation titled "Speaking in Tongues: A Modern Guide to Understanding Today's Web Languages", was a supreme overview of the migration from HTML to XHTML to XML with a primer on how CSS drives the whole bus. The takeaway for me was that I am still leading in the HTML 4.0 mindset, and we need to be developing (and I need to be leading) in a XHTML 1.1 w/ CSS and XML mindset. I found it interesting that the XHTML standard allows for NO presentation elements - only structure - in the document code. ALL presentational elements are handled by the Style Sheets (CSS). This is a significant departure from when I learned to code (and taught) HTML back in 1996/97/98.

All in all, this is a supreme conference so far. The level at which the speakers and other professionals are operating is mind-blowing. These are people that are truly obsessed with the craft! I can't wait to take this stuff back to the office.

Well, it's off to Seybold San Francisco! Back Thursday.
Stay tuned for blogging from Seybold. I can only imagine that given the level of technorati that will be at this conference, there will be a lot of blogging going on from the conference!

http://www.seybold365.com/sf2003/conference/

Last year when we were selecting a new email marketing campaign tool(ASP), I created this spreadsheet to help me evaluate all of the criteria that were important to me when selecting a vendor.

We ultimately went with EmailLabs, which we have been totally satisfied with for some time now! I've had many questions about EmailLabs and how we made the decision that I thought it was time to post the spreadsheet.

Thanks to the fine folks at Balance Studios here in Green Bay, WI, the new danavan.net site is live and ready. Done in record time too!

Thanks guys!

Larry K. at J. J. Keller & Associates , Inc. is currently searching for an experienced E-Commerce Marketing person to round out their marketing team. Keller, is a leading supplier of regulatory and compliance information products. They are located in the Neenah, WI area.

Here's a link to the job posting on their site.

If anyone might know of someone, post a comment or send me an email at dana @ danavan dot net.

I just finished reading Halley Suitt's HBR Case Study on blogging in the September issue of the Harvard Business Review. I was so excited to finally get my copy & read the article because I know that many of the top execs at our company read this publication, and I can now go to yet another group of stakeholders and pitch the idea of blogging knowing they the topic has been covered in a publication that they respect. Really, I think that the HBR piece will only add to the credibility of blogging as a vehicle for corporate communication! HBR is a respected rag, and many discussions have ensued in our company as a result of something we've read in HBR.

While I'm on board with the ideas posed in the case study, and for being fictional, the case study does not stretch the truth in the least. Everything that Halley wrote could happen, or is happening in some company somewhere.

(You'll have to have read the piece for the copy below to make sense)

Personally, if I were the CEO in this situation, I would have used the Glove Girl example to develop a policy around personal websites or weblogs that mention the company or associate an employee's work on their own site with the business of their employer. I've not asked yet, but I'm betting that KI does not yet have a policy on weblogs, personal websites mentioning the company, or on corporate employees publishing works mentioning KI. Considering that I'm the "Internet Director" here, I'd better get w/ HR and start working on that little detail. I am very impressed by the Employee Guidelines for Personal Website and Weblogs that Groove Networks has posted on their site.

Further, I disagree with Erin Motameni's analysis when she said "By identifying herself as a Lancaster-Webb employee, she has probably cause other to believe mistakenly that she represents the company's official positions.” I think that’s a load of crap. Let’s consider the demographics here. Web users > Potential Customers > Someone savvy enough to find the weblog of an employee…. I think the odds are pretty slim that Glove Girl’s site could be mistaken for a corporate property or as the official position. But what do I know, stranger things have happened.

There was a point in the article where I would have fired the Glove Girl however. When someone posts potentially sensitive competitive or damaging information on a public website, before the company releases that information to the public (or does NOT WANT that information released to the public), I believe that a breach of confidentiality has occurred and reprimands should follow. However, as the story unfolds, the breach is rectified, but I am of the opinion that the breach should never have occurred.

All in all, a great piece! I truly hope that this piece helps elevate the level of discussion of weblogs within the corporation!

Eric Sink has a superb piece on marketing and positioning in his weblog. This is a great take on marketing from a techie!

This is one of the reasons that blogging is so powerful. Where else would I get a full dissertation on marketing from a supreme techie, and be able to find it! That's key really - being able to find it. I mention this because someone wrote into the AMA listserv this week asking how blogging is different from the threaded discussion message boards of old. I say that blogging is different and evolutionary in that it is more permanant (archive links), community based (the blogroll and blogosphere), and accessible (Google LOVES blogs - find anything you want in seconds, even if posted yesterday!).