Time 12:48 A misnomer of social media is how some interpret the definition of transparency of information. It doesn’t mean opening your kimono for all to see your company’s warts. (For some this can be an unpleasant experience both on the opening end and on the viewing end) Transparency does mean to give insight, context, and comment on company strategy, industry trends, global events, internal personalities, and other topics of interest to your stakeholders and audiences. Shel Holtz and John C. Havens thoroughly explore this topic in their new book Tactical Transparency: how leaders can leverage social media to maximize value and build their brand. Social media allows for deeper discussions about a wide range of topics. I liken transparency to a sports color commentator. Let’s take football for example. Forty years ago when I watched football with my dad, it was a Sunday afternoon event. I grew up in New York so it started around noon. Today football has become a daily stream of information, from game day strategy, nickel packages, and counter treys to injury reports, weather impact, and nutrition regimes. Teams are not giving away their plays, signals, or secret weapons, but they are providing or allowing insights to the game that has made it more engaging for the fan. Bottom line, transparency gives more for your stakeholders, customers, and other potentially interested parties to engage your company. You become a more interesting party with which to have a relationship, and business is all about the relationship. Note: If you are interested in buying the book, Havens has created a super deal for Tactical Transparency. www.ttoffer.com – read this first, then make your purchase. _________________________________________________________________________________ Marketing Edge readers and listeners, you are invited to jump in the Provident Partners Social Sandbox. It is a social network where you can test new tools like Ning, see how audio, video, and blogging can be used in a variety of business applications. Plus it’s a place to participate in even greater detail in social media. Just send us an email to Marketingedge AT providentpartners DOT net with the word Sandbox in the subject line. All comments here or to our comment line 206-600-6887 will result in a donation of a food item to a Twin Cities food shelter by Provident Partners. Thanks for stocking a shelf and filling a stomach. Less

startups, marketing, Internet Wade Roush wrote: When you’re listing countries rich in Web development and software engineering talent, you might think of places like Estonia, Russia, Poland, and Romania. Now you can add Costa Rica to the list. That’s the location of the “offshoring” facility where a new Massachusetts-based digital advertising, marketing, and communications firm called digitalArbor will turn for low-cost labor. DigitalArbor launched today with news of a $5 million Series A venture round from Boston’s Flybridge Capital Partners. Led by Robert Willms, a former executive at the international Web marketing firm Digitas, Cohasset, MA-based digitalArbor will specialize in “digital production management”—building and maintaining company websites and other Internet- and mobile-based corporate communications. It promises to keep costs low for clients by drawing on “global labor pools within the time zone,” according to its website. Costa Rica is on the same time as the U.S. Central time zone. DigitalArbor’s offices there are located in La Aurora de Heredia, an industrial park zone outside the capital city of San Jose. The growing variety of channels available for reaching consumers—such as Internet video, mobile advertising, video games, interactive ads, and traditional website display advertising—means that companies have to tap more tools and technologies, which means higher costs. In a statement, Willms said the key to decreasing those costs is combining “onshore producers and offshore technical talent.” “The company is coming to the market at a critical point in the evolution of digital marketing services with a business model that is even more compelling in our current economic times,” said Flybridge general partner Jeff Bussgang in the company’s announcement, which noted that Bussgang will join digitalArbor’s board. “With digital advertising outperforming many other forms of media, there is a huge unmet need for technical resources to fulfill production needs,” he said. A digital marketing firm might seem an unlikely bet for venture investors, who typically seek investment returns of 10x within a three- to seven-year period. However, venture firms have had good luck with Boston-area digital communications companies before; Softbank and other investors profited nicely when Cambridge, MA-based Art Technology Group (NASDAQ: ARTG) went public in 1999, and last year AOL bought Boston’s Third Screen Media, a mobile advertising firm backed by TD Venture Capital (now Fairhaven Capital) and Blue Chip Venture Co. Comments | Permalink | Share |  E-mail Less

Simms Jenkins is the founder & CEO of of BrightWave Marketing, an award-winning permission-based marketing company based in Atlanta, Georgia. Email Marketing delivers a $46 ROI on very dollar invested - but done properly, it’s not quite as easy as it seems. In this interview, Simms discusses some of the benefits, pitfalls and myths involved - all of which are covered in his book, ‘The Truth About Email Marketing’. This is an ideal handbook for anyone that wants to learn about making effective use email or marketing effectively - either for the first time, or as part of an existing campaign. Web Links: The Truth About Email Marketing - Buy the book Brightwave Marketing - Company web site EmailStatCenter.com - Email Metrics Portal LinkedIn find Simms Jenkins on LinkedIn LinkedIn Group - network & interact with other Email Marketers Facebook - find Simms Jenkins on Facebook Facebook Group - network & interact with other Email Marketers Like this PodCast? Then share it with your network - or show your support by writing a Review on iTunes. And don’t be shy - please leave a Comment . Your feedback and suggestions are greatly appreciated. If you’re a Blogger or Webmaster - you can download Embed Code that makes it easy to include this Episode of ‘Connections’ in your web page. Thank you Stan Relihan Expert Executive Search: www.expertsearch.com.au Less

This will be a delightful show! You will love her bubbly personality as much as I do. She has a gifted knack for selling. Her selling tips will enlighten everyone to new ideas and techniques. herbs crafts gifts | ebay powerseller | herb | selling on eBay | silk scarves Less

Recorded 13 November 2008 The time, she is a-flying, just the second full week of November and these are the topics on With A Voice Like This: My first caroling gig of the year this weekend A new addition to the website (in the upper right corner) A question to you about what type of calendar you like to see (Take the poll below) Contest update (and a huge hint how you could be the next entrant) A very vague hint at next week’s show I played A Round for the Holidays from my Christmas EP found at CD Baby. Take a listen and see what you think. It’s a nice gift for the Holidays as well. Links from the Show Come and see me at my first caroling gig of the year EventCalendar WordPress Plugin by Alex Tingle seen at www.WithAVoiceLikeThis.com Gigs Calendar WordPress Plugin by Dan Coulter seen at www.4-AM.net/calendar All the information about the Contest Cyber PR newsletter sign up page View Poll Listen above or download by right clicking and saving. addthis_url = 'http%3A%2F%2Fwithavoicelikethis.com%2F%3Fp%3D390'; addthis_title = '077+-+Announcements%2C+a+Question+%26%23038%3B+an+Addition'; addthis_pub = 'jimgoodrich'; Less

Jack Humphrey is one of the leaders in Social Marketing but Jack has developed software that help bloggers get more traffic. We will be discussing how he developed these. Trackboost Generates Links, Web 2 Submitter Automates Syndication, Utility Poster Builds Links and Content, Video Utility Poster Adds Videos in a Snap Jack Humphrey | Web 2 Submitter | Trackboost | Utility Poster | Video Utility Poster Less

Jennifer MacKinnon, President of Fenix Solutions Inc, a web technology company located in Ottawa Canada specializing in Web 2.0 and social media applications. web 2.0 | online marketing Less

En exclusiva para Sitemarca Tito Avalos*, titular de la agencia “La Cocina” (por eso lo apodamos el cheff de las marcas), analiza las fortalezas y las imágenes de las marcas. Si querés saber más sobre La Cocina podés ver su blog. Sabemos que las marcas valiosas no basan sus fortalezas centrales en satisfacer beneficios de tipo funcional, [...] Less

La Asociación Argentina de Marketing presentó nuevamente a los mejores casos de marketing de 2008 en el mercado local. El premio más importante, el oro, se lo llevó Puma por su acción de los 180 goles de Martín Palermo. La acción fue desarrollada por la agencia DDB y realizó un verdadero despliegue 360º. La plata [...] Less

La productora de contenidos digitales, propietaria del portal DePaginas (www.depaginas.com.ar), mudó sus oficinas a los Silos de Dorrego. Las nuevas oficinas de 180 m2 de la compañía están ubicadas en Av. Dorrego 1940, Torre C, 2do Piso, y el teléfono es: 4776-2056. Dream Designers posee actualmente los sitios webs DePaginas.com.ar, DePaginas.es; DePaginas.com.mx, Revistacanina.com y Criaderosde.com como [...] Less

Recorded 6 November 2008 This is the first anniversary show of With A Voice Like This, it’s been a full year since I started this show and this show comes full circle. Back to where I started with the Christmas EP With A Voice Like This Christmas.The topics on this episode include: What’s happening with the CD Baby listing of my CD both physical and digital download The pricing structure for the CD CD Baby’s e-mail about how to improve your CD sales for the holidays Update of the digital distribution of my Christmas CD All about the Contest running through December 15 A nod to the Podsafe Music Network for making my music available A brief look at what’s up for this show going forward I play We Three Kings from my CD And the return of the I have list as well. I Have: A Holiday CD available on CD Baby in both CD and Digital Download The CD sent out to 10 digital retailers My first Sale through CD Baby Good ideas for the future shows Links from the show The CD Baby listing for With A Voice Like This Christmas The Spreadsheet for all the digital retail stores that will carry the CD (Important for the Contest) My listing on the Podsafe Music Network The details about the contest to win my Holiday CD Listen above or download by right clicking and saving. addthis_url = 'http%3A%2F%2Fwithavoicelikethis.com%2F%3Fp%3D322'; addthis_title = '076+-+An+Anniversary%2C+a+CD+and+a+Contest'; addthis_pub = 'jimgoodrich'; Less

The presentation went well; your customer or prospect is interested in your ability to meet their needs. However, when your product management team presents you with the proposed selling price (or cost), you are confident that they will not spend that much for the requirement. How can you bring the pricing in line with what you believe it will take to get the order? In this episode of the One Goal - Revenue Generation ® series, Peter Kusterer of NvestNtech helps you discover gaps between your customer’s requirement and the pricing within your proposal. Download this episode - “ Getting your pricing in line with the customer requirement .” Click on this link for the Podcast directory that includes the One Goal - Revenue Generation ® series, as well as additional Podcast episodes and related topics. Our podcasts are featured on iTunes, Odeo, and Podcast Alley. Less

Here's a great interview with Seth Godin talking about a new way to get your message out ... by handing your marketing over to your strongest supporters and allowing them to spread the word. The goal is to "empower people who believe in you to speak on your behalf" because you have "created an idea worth spreading." Seems to have some missional Christianity implications as well. Less

Recorded 6 November 2008 This is the first anniversary show of With A Voice Like This, it’s been a full year since I started this show and this show comes full circle. Back to where I started with the Christmas EP With A Voice Like This Christmas.The topics on this episode include: What’s happening with the CD Baby listing of my CD both physical and digital download The pricing structure for the CD CD Baby’s e-mail about how to improve your CD sales for the holidays Update of the digital distribution of my Christmas CD All about the Contest running through December 15 A nod to the Podsafe Music Network for making my music available A brief look at what’s up for this show going forward I play We Three Kings from my CD And the return of the I have list as well. I Have: A Holiday CD available on CD Baby in both CD and Digital Download The CD sent out to 10 digital retailers My first Sale through CD Baby Good ideas for the future shows Links from the show The CD Baby listing for With A Voice Like This Christmas The Spreadsheet for all the digital retail stores that will carry the CD (Important for the Contest) My listing on the Podsafe Music Network The details about the contest to win my Holiday CD Listen above or download by right clicking and saving. addthis_url = 'http%3A%2F%2Fwithavoicelikethis.com%2F%3Fp%3D322'; addthis_title = '076+-+An+Anniversary%2C+a+CD+and+a+Contest'; addthis_pub = 'jimgoodrich'; Less

Recorded 6 November 2008 This is the first anniversary show of With A Voice Like This, it’s been a full year since I started this show and this show comes full circle. Back to where I started with the Christmas EP With A Voice Like This Christmas.The topics on this episode include: What’s happening with the CD Baby listing of my CD both physical and digital download The pricing structure for the CD CD Baby’s e-mail about how to improve your CD sales for the holidays Update of the digital distribution of my Christmas CD All about the Contest running through December 15 A nod to the Podsafe Music Network for making my music available A brief look at what’s up for this show going forward I play We Three Kings from my CD And the return of the I have list as well. I Have: A Holiday CD available on CD Baby in both CD and Digital Download The CD sent out to 10 digital retailers My first Sale through CD Baby Good ideas for the future shows Links from the show The CD Baby listing for With A Voice Like This Christmas The Spreadsheet for all the digital retail stores that will carry the CD (Important for the Contest) My listing on the Podsafe Music Network The details about the contest to win my Holiday CD Listen above or download by right clicking and saving. addthis_url = 'http%3A%2F%2Fwithavoicelikethis.com%2F%3Fp%3D322'; addthis_title = '076+-+An+Anniversary%2C+a+CD+and+a+Contest'; addthis_pub = 'jimgoodrich'; Less

This gal is an unstoppable entrepreneur. She's been powerselling her way through eBay and has launched a new bump site: http://SeasonedWithTime.com . Specializing in puzzles, collectibles and more. seasoned with time | auction bump site | puzzle seller | ebay powerseller | seasonedwithtime Less

Roundup, deals, VC Gregory T. Huang wrote: Heading into Election Day (have you voted yet?), the deal flow has really picked up in the Northwest. Cleantech and energy were the big winners this week, followed by Web software and biomedical hardware. —Xconomy broke the news of Seattle-based EnerG2, a startup out of the University of Washington, raising an $8.5 million Series A round led by Kirkland, WA-based OVP Venture Partners and Palo Alto, CA-based Firelake Capital Management. EnerG2 is an advanced materials company focused on energy storage technologies. We plan to bring you the full story when the parties agree to talk. —Mercer Island, WA-based Napera Networks closed a $6 million round led by OVP Venture Partners, which had provided seed financing for the company as well. The terms of the deal had not been announced previously. Napera develops network-security technologies for businesses. —Ascentium, a Bellevue, WA-based Web design and marketing firm, raised additional funds from WestRiver Capital, based in nearby Kirkland. The amount of the funding was not disclosed, but Ascentium said it’s continuing to invest in talented workers and business expansion worldwide. —Kashless, the Seattle-based startup from ex-Imperium Renewables CEO Martin Tobias, raised a $5 million Series A round from RRE Ventures. Tobias hasn’t said much about what Kashless is doing, but it seems to involve recycling, reuse, and sharing online. He emphasized RRE’s forward thinking in cleantech-meets-software, and said we’re heading into a “nuclear winter” for funding. —Not technically a Seattle deal, but Kissmetrics, a Web analytics startup founded by Neil Patel, raised $800,000 from Silicon Valley-based True Ventures and other investors. Patel, who’s based in Orange County, CA, is an investor in several Seattle-area companies and is on the board of BuddyTV, ICanHasCheezburger, CultureMob, LiquidPlanner, and Optify. —Sonosite (NASDAQ: SONO), a Bothell, WA-based maker of portable ultrasound machines, bought back $60.3 million worth of convertible notes it owes investors, as Luke reported. The notes give investors the option of getting their returns through debt payments from the company, or by converting the notes into stock. —NxtGen Emission Controls, a Burnaby, BC-based “syngas” company focused on reducing emissions and optimizing the burning of fuels, closed a $15.4 million Series B round led by the Altira Group. Other investors included Itochu, an unnamed Japanese auto maker, and returning investors Yaletown Venture Partners, GrowthWorks Capital, BC Advantage Funds, and Polygon Financial Investments. —Seattle-based Second Avenue Partners participated in a $33 million Series B funding of Ice Energy, a Colorado-based cleantech company that helps manage air-conditioning electricity usage. Second Avenue was an original investor in the firm. The Series B round was led by Energy Capital Partners, based in Short Hills, NJ, and San Diego, CA. —InEnTec, a waste-to-fuels company based in Bend, OR, received a $150 million equity commitment from Lakeside Energy and American Securities to build a waste gasification plant in Michigan, as Luke reported. InEnTec’s technology originally comes from MIT and the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory. —Luke also reported that Vancouver, BC-based Yaletown Venture Partners raised $65 million in the initial close of its second fund (which it says will grow to $100 million in the next 12 months). The money will be used for cleantech and info-tech investments in Canada and the U.S. Pacific Northwest. —Glassdoor, the Sausalito, CA-based online job site co-founded by Zillow CEO Rich Barton, raised $6.5 million in Series B funding from Sutter Hill Ventures and Benchmark Capital. Comments | Permalink | Share |  E-mail UNDERWRITERS AND PARTNERS Less

Time 17:44 Who knew that all we needed was a urine cup and syringe mascots with Facebook pages to get people to use the online services of HealthPartners? In this podcast with Larissa Rodriguez, director of care delivery marketing for HealthPartners, we’ll uncover the story behind Petey and Pokey. First major criteria for healthcare marketing – Accepting that doing what everyone else is doing will not get you noticed. HealthPartners has a business objective of driving greater usage of its online self-service options. From scheduling appointments to getting test results, and more HealthPartners made a significant technology investment to improve patient services. However, the benefits of that investment are dependent upon patients using the technology. Creating two characters, a urine sample cup named Petey and a syringe named Pokey, allowed HealthPartners a wide range of creative messaging tactics. For starters, a Petey and Pokey websiteand since each character has their own identity Facebook pages for Petey and Pokey you’ve got to see his favorite songs, he’s a Clapton fan, how can you not like him? Second major criteria for healthcare marketing – In general the more you push the creative envelope, the more receptive the social media community will be. In this case, HealthPartners has a wonderful alignment of business goal (increase online use) and promotion/relationship tactic with Facebook pages (social media users need little education to take advantage of online self-service). The healthcare profession covers every age group and degree of message. Some messages are serious matters of life and death. In others, the message needs to be crafted so that it breaks through the bias or cynicism of the audience. In the HealthPartners case, they are able to capture attention long enough to deliver the message about its online services. The creativity in their profile pages of the characters allows a reader to spend more time with the message. Extending the characters’ presence with in-person events and billboards captures audience in a specific geography, while attempting to drive to a future online connection. Third criteria for healthcare marketing – Identify and reward those senior leaders that provide cover for creativity. In my reporting on social media, I’ve found that many successful social media programs are the result of senior level managers giving cover for their teams to innovate. Whether it’s with an in-house skunk works team or an outside group, there is a senior manager willing to test concepts, even pilot programs. This allows an organization to use social media as the ultimate low-cost market research tool, without trying to engineer perfection. The world moves too quickly for yesterday’s creative process. Fourth criteria for healthcare marketing - The audience is less interested in being marketed to, and more receptive to being engaged. Healthcare is a quality of life issue and as such is about emotion and emotions are engaging. The standard hospital brochure is giving way to human stories, in a variety of formats, audio and video, whether those stories are from a new generation of health related websites like Real Savvy Moms Hospital sites that feature their physicians talking about a procedure, or websites like www.healthcarescoop.com that provide a patient’s perspective of their own treatment – I was a big baby during my kidney stone surgery at St. Joseph’s Hospital, but they were terrific – thanks for the green tea and warm blankets. I view it this way, peer group stories give patients comfort, physician stories give patients confidence, you need both. There is plenty more examples of social media in healthcare that we will cover on future episodes of the Marketing Edge podcast. I’ll also be speaking at the Mississippi Hospital Association Society for Health Care Marketing and Public Relations this week in Jackson, Mississippi. Less

deals, VC, Internet Gregory T. Huang wrote: Bellevue, WA-based Ascentium, a Web design and marketing firm, announced today it has raised additional funds from Kirkland, WA-based WestRiver Capital. The amount was not disclosed. Ascentium said it will continue to invest in talent and business expansion worldwide. Comments | Permalink | Share |  E-mail Less

Making a corporate culture more innovative, and open, so it can listen and share is the advice of Forrester VP and Analyst of Customer Experience, Bruce Temkin. He believes it is time for corporate management to change and adopt his 6 new imperatives. Temkin and Jones discuss how to do this, and describe the best practices of LEGO who Temkin believes is a good example of an open communicative culture. Tags: Bruce Temkin, Forrester, Jennifer Jones, lego, Marketing Voices, social media Less