Author: Courtney Hunt
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Assessing Social Media Sophistication: The Social Media Quiz (SMQ), V4
The Denovati Social Media Sophistication Quiz (SMQ) has been one of the most popular SMART Resources we have created. Now in its fifth year of use, the fourth version generally represents the universe of social media sites and tools and can be used to quickly capture people’s knowledge and experience. This article provides an overview…
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Social Media Engagement: 7 Rules for Working Smart, not Just Hard
Written for both individuals and organizations, this post provides high-level guidance for rookies who are just getting started with social media, as well as those who are looking to add more structure, focus and discipline to existing initiatives. Maximizing social media engagement requires setting goals, assessing the operating environment, conducting a communications audit, developing a…
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The New Digital Divide: Thoughts for Leaders and Laggards
The digital divide has increasingly become about knowledge and adoption of new technologies rather than access. Which side of the divide are you on – are you a leader or a laggard? This post offers insights into the factors contributing to the growing chasm between those who have embraced and leveraged new technologies and those…
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The SAPLING Approach to Leveraging Social Media
The SAPLING Approach provides a general guide for individuals, groups, and organizations to establish and manage a strong digital presence. SAPLING is an imperfect acronym, but a useful mnemonic for remembering the necessary steps to developing and executing a social media strategy.
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5 Main Barriers to Digital Engagement
There are five main barriers to digital engagement by organizations, their leaders, and other senior professionals. This post describes those barriers – including lack of knowledge and understanding, framing that leads to risk aversion, poor/no roadmaps, and inadequate resource allocation – as well as the factors that will help break them down. Additional insights are…
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Digital Leadership: Opportunities for Cities, States, and Regions
What does it mean for a city (or state or region) to be a digital leader? This post provides ideas to stimulate thinking and discussion by promoting a focus that is broader than the technologies themselves, specific applications like consumer marketing, high-tech start-ups, and the digital sector. Advocating a more strategic and holistic approach, it…
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Twitter Changes in 2014: 5 Strategic Cautions
Recent and forthcoming Twitter changes may serve the company’s short-term interests, but they may not lay the best foundation for long-term success. This post offers five strategic cautions that remind Twitter to think of itself as a utility rather than a novelty, capitalize on its unique strengths, minimize existing prejudices and points of resistance, and…
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Social Media Management: From Novelty to Utility
Social media is still a novelty to many professionals, especially those in leadership positions. Rather than viewing social and digital technologies as a radical departure from traditional communication approaches, however, it’s better to think of them as “new tools for doing old things” and to remember they are facilitators and enablers, not an end unto…
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Phone Etiquette in the Digital Era: Think before You Dial
In the Digital Era, new definitions of acceptable and unacceptable behavior have to address not only new ways of communicating, but traditional forms as well. This post offers three reasons why unsolicited, unscheduled phone calls are a generally a poor practice and reinforces the idea that we must constantly think about the best ways to…
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Logo Design in the Digital Era: 6 Critical Factors
Logo design in the Digital Era requires attention to a unique set of factors to ensure the logo renders well in a range of applications. These considerations include simple design, strong colors, scalability, complementary fonts, monochromatic renderings, deconstruction and reconfiguration. Additional suggestions are welcome. (December 16, 2013)
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Twitter Best Practices: 11+ Tips for Tweeting Well
Targeted primarily to rookies, this guide offers a set of Twitter best practices that helps people maximize their ability to maintain a strong signal/noise ratio and avoid making mistakes that can hurt their individual professional and/or organizational brands. More experienced Tweeters – including mavens – may want to consider the advice and reconsider some of…
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Social Software Platforms: High-Level Guidance for Organizations
This article offers high-level guidance for organizations looking to acquire and implement a social software solution to facilitate communication and collaboration in a secure environment via a private digital network (e.g., an enterprise 2.0 or social business platform, a social intranet, a digital community). It provides considerations for getting started, selecting a social software product…
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Private Social Networks: Every Organization Needs Them
This article highlights the risks associated with public social media platforms and describes how private social networks (aka private digital networks) can reduce those risks while also enhancing communication and collaboration among organizational stakeholders. It counters the main points of resistance offered by organizational leaders and articulates the importance of being prepared to establish a…
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Reducing the Role of Email in Organizations: Change is Overdue
Although social technology advocates have been calling for the death of email for several years, it’s still the dominant digital channel by which people in organizations communicate and collaborate. The role of email in our work lives should be reduced, however, both because of its own inefficiencies and the increased availability of better tools. Effective…
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Digital Engagement: 12 DOs and DON’Ts for Rookies (& Others)
Effective digital engagement is a never-ending challenge, and it’s especially difficult for social media rookies. This post describes 12 practices – 7 DOs, 5 DON’Ts – that individuals and organizations trying to optimize their own approach to digital engagement should and should not employ. Additional suggestions and questions are welcome.
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Twitter Hashtags: 7 Tips and a Decision-Making Flowchart
Though Twitter hashtags have been around almost as long as Twitter itself, many people still do not understand what they are – or more importantly, how to use them appropriately. This post offers seven tips – plus a decision-making flowchart – to enable Tweeters to not only avoid looking like a Twitter rube, but to…
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Digital Era Ideas: 21+ Images
More than twenty Denovati Group images convey a variety of Digital Era ideas in simple and memorable terms. These images are available for use by others, with proper attribution. We will continue to add images as they are developed.
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Twitter for Business: 21+ Tips
Many people still don’t “get” Twitter – especially from a professional perspective – or are uncertain whether there is any value in using it. Many others have set up an account but feel overwhelmed and/or unsure about how to maximize the potential benefits. Still others think they’re using it properly but really don’t know if…
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Social Media: Old Wine in New Bottles?
We often refer to social media as “new tools for doing old things.” In fact, it was the tagline for The Denovati Group’s predecessor, Social Media in Organizations (SMinOrgs). Like many simply stated ideas, it can be subject to (mis)interpretation, including equating the idea with “old wine in new bottles.” This post explains the concept’s…
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The Early Bird Gets the Worm, but the Brave Bird Gets… the Fries?!?!
Using a bird metaphor, this post discusses the importance of taking calculated risks to achieve goals, as well as the costs associated with risk aversion. The lessons offered are both timeless and uniquely relevant to the adoption of social and digital technologies. Additional lessons are welcome. (September 25, 2013)