I do not limit who can see my tweets and our blog is completely open.  I only limit my LinkedIn account to people that I know, especially from school or professionally, because I think that a LinkedIn connection is somewhat an endorsement in and of itself.  However, on LinkedIn, I’m on my best behavior because that’s what people do on LinkedIn; they sit in their virtual suits with their virtual resumes and they virtually shake hands.  They don’t fist pump, take tequila shots, and wear jorts (jean shorts).

Facebook is another story.  When Facebook started showing business potential, we quickly jumped on the bandwagon with groups and then later with business pages.  However, I always kept my Facebook personal profile for me.  While it will not surprise any readers, there are probably pictures on there that I don’t want broadcasted to everyone and their mother, literally, and I have friends that post things on my wall that I might not want our banker to read.  That’s okay- I use privacy settings for anyone who is not a friend.  As Facebook has become more and more prevalent amongst professionals, I have started receiving many friend requests from people that I know purely in a professional capacity.  I used to never accept these; I made a conscious rule that my Facebook profile was for me and I could share it with whomever I wanted (that would also like to be my friend in return, of course).  A couple of months ago, when privacy settings became more robust, I started accepting purely professional contacts and put them on limited profile.  I broke my own rules.

Is your personal Facebook page under lock and key?

I immediately felt weird about it, but I felt worse denying someone that I do like “friendship.” As a result of breaking my own rules, I paid the price.  It was a minor incident and, for all intents and purposes, a miscommunication.  However, it was my fault and I knew better than to break my rules and boundaries.  I knew what I was comfortable with and I should not have wavered.

Since then, I “defriended” everyone that I previously had on limited profile.  If you are one of those people, I apologize.  It has absolutely nothing to do with how much I like you or a change in the “status” of our relationship.  I feel the same about you before the defriending that I feel about you now.

Is it not enough to connect with someone on LinkedIn and to follow them on Twitter?  Can’t they like our Facebook business page? My Facebook profile is for me, and if it means that my friends get to know me better and end up referring business to us because they like me, then that is tremendous.  Am I still friends with some people on Facebook that I first knew, and may primarily know, professionally?  Yes.  However, I feel comfortable with those people seeing more of my life.  I won’t give you reasons and I don’t have to give reasons.  It is my prerogative.  It usually has to do with how cute your profile picture is.  Of course I’m kidding but if I want that to be my friend guideline, then that is my guideline.  It is not our company rule–it is my rule.

The bottom line that I’m making here is that even the most transparent of us social media people might want to have a sacred online place too.  Don’t be offended if someone that you know does not choose to connect with you on a certain platform.  Everyone has different rules and guidelines and we don’t all need to be hyper-connected.

This is obviously my opinion considering I started about 80% of the sentences in this post with “I” but “I” would be curious to know what you all think.  Do you keep anything sacred or do you let it all hang out there?

You might have heard mentions of our sibling company, OttoPilot Media, through the Twitter grapevine, but perhaps you’re wondering what OttoPilot Media is all about.  Make sure your tray tables are in the upright position– here’s the rundown:

In short, OttoPilot Media helps fly your business to a higher level through non-traditional marketing… but that’s more than just a catchy tag-line.  We work with companies to determine which social media platforms will be best for what they want to achieve.  Once that’s defined, we enhance and customize the necessary tools (blogs, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Foursquare, and more) so each social media platform accurately reflects the brand or business.  We want our clients to look like the experienced pilots they are.

Plus, we take care of the hard part: effectively managing these platforms.  Signing up, refueling and applying a fresh coat of paint to these social media accounts isn’t enough– so we generate content, schedule posts and tweets, and make sure you’re always up-to-date, knowledgeable, and engaged with your online communities. You won’t have to worry about a thing– it’s like sitting in first class all the time!

Now, we all know that if a pilot got distracted while flying, the results wouldn’t be too favorable.  To avoid this, we stay focused and alert while your company runs on its familiar schedule (we know that can be a big distraction)– in order to deliver the best in-flight service and turbulence-free ride for you and your clients.

Moreover, we are specialists when it comes to helping our clients develop ideas and get people talking about their brand (and saying good things, of course).  We work with companies to define a manageable flight plan, and then implement our revolutionary tools  (i.e non-traditional marketing) to ensure our clients are visible across online platforms, and consistently sharing their unique brand with others.

Are the skies a little clearer now?  We hope you’ll get in touch to learn more about how OttoPilot Media can help your business fly to new heights!

Find us here:  and here:  

I’m going to say it, so argue away: having more people “like” your Facebook business page is better.  This does not mean that you can just stop there.  You still need engaging content and someone consistently monitoring and responding so that it is a conversational platform.

When I first graduated from college and worked in sales and marketing for NVR, we were taught that a large part of sales is a numbers game.  If you don’t speak to anyone, and you don’t set any appointments, and then you don’t write any contracts, you’re not going to make any sales.  However, the (qualified) leads that you generated and the more appointments that you had meant that statistically you would be more likely to achieve your sales goals.

Don’t get me wrong- it did matter that these leads were qualified and that I was good at my job.  I wasn’t sitting down with 15 year olds who wanted to buy an $800,000 home.  However, these interactions were one-on-one.  It does not cost you any extra money on Facebook to reach 100 or 1,000 additional people via your page.

With Facebook, every time that you post, the number of people that post reaches is purely the number of people who “like” your page.  If that number is larger, you have a greater reach and reach is an important metric.  If your objective is brand awareness, having more people know about and like your brand is important.  If your objective is more sales, you are more likely to sell something with a greater audience.

I’ve been an interior designer for over 20 years, so I’ve had plenty of time to make these mistakes.  Here’s a startling statistic (and I’ll bet it is higher during this recession) – 62.8% of all new businesses fail within 6 years according to the U.S. Census Bureau, and 96% fail within 10 years.  That means you’re lucky to be one of 4 out of 100 to make it past 10 years…or is it luck?

What if you could avoid the mistakes that these business owners made?

I’d like to see you avoid them, and if you’ve already done a few of them, now you can learn what not to do so you don’t waste your valuable time and money:

1. Not having a written “ideal client” profile – If you don’t know who your ideal client is, how can you tell other people who they can refer to you?  If you’ve ever had the client from &%$&, (or more than once) the key is to know what you don’t want in a client as much as what you do want.
2. Not knowing the lifetime value of your client – If you’ve been in the business even a few years, you can add up your billings and divide by the number of clients to get your current lifetime value.  You should also look at how long they stay as a client.  These two metrics are critical in your business planning and if you have this data as part of your Business Dashboard, it will help you grow your business.
3. Spending your time and effort marketing to new prospects rather than your current clients or inactive clients – Here are the statistics: your chance of selling a fresh prospect is 1 in 10 or even as low as 1 in 13; you chance of selling an inactive client is 1 in 3; your chance of selling to an active client is 1 in 2. Do you want to work less?  Sell more to your current clients, and once you’ve maximized that, work on reactivating your old clients.  Getting new prospects is your most expensive and hardest job. (Harry Mills – The Rainmaker’s Toolkit).
4. Not staying in touch with your clients frequently – Some of you do a really good job of sending thank you notes or birthday cards, but what about offering a special service during a slow period?  There are hundreds of strategies for keeping in touch with your clients without being a pest.  Be sure and share some of your best ones and we’ll compile a list to share with you and our members.
5. Not offering additional services at the end of an engagement – You are more likely to sell additional services to your client if you are in front of them and during the time when they are most excited about what you’ve done for them.  What can you offer them?  Is there a room you can “re-style” for them?  Chances are you’ll end up with new accessory, rug or window treatment sales.  This is like an upsell at McDonald’s – “would you like fries with that?”  You already have your wallet open, and besides, those fries smell really good!  In fact, you can significantly increase your revenues by this one strategy alone, and it is easy.  Even Starbucks knows that most people come in once per day, but if you come back after 2 pm, you can have a frozen drink for $2.  Guess what, that increases their revenue by 66% in many cases, and it is business they would not have gotten otherwise!
6. Inconsistent marketing – I can guarantee that if you are only marketing when business is slow that you are experiencing repeating cycles of feast and famine.  Not having a plan and marketing each and every day guarantees cycles that will make your hair go gray!  If you have a system in place and you work the system (assuming it is the right one), you will weather any financial storm.
7. Paying hundreds or even thousands of dollars for costly magazine or newspaper advertising. Most businesses budget between 3 – 6% of their expenses for advertising, marketing and PR, but this is the worst possible place for you to be spending your money.
8. Not paying for professional photography – if you are serious about your design business, you need to pay someone to shoot your best projects.  Since my projects always took years to complete, I hired my photographer every two years and figured that a full day of photography cost around $1,500.  I used to shoot between 3 – 5 days in a row (which is exhausting).
9. Not having a strong web presence – 75% of designers do not have a website, and today, I don’t recommend spending money on a website.  A better option is a blog, social media and online directories.  Also, creating a digital portfolio and other new techniques of marketing are far more cost and time-effective than the traditional brochures and websites.  Please request a copy of our Internet Strategies for Architects and Interior Designers if you haven’t read it.  It will give you steps you can follow to join your competitors and be found by new prospects.
10. Not asking for testimonials and referrals from every client early and often – It is more effective to ask for both testimonials and referrals at the beginning of your engagement, and for sure, by the end of the project.  The easiest way to do this is have a pre-set list of questions for testimonials and interview your client while taking notes.  Ask them if you can write up the testimonial for them and then forward it to them with a date you want to receive it from them on their stationery.  Even better, get a video testimonial.  Be sure to get a testimonial release, too, so you can use it in your marketing materials.

Marketing and sales are the lifeblood of any business, and if you are consistent and observant about what works best, you’ll find that it gets easier and easier so you can focus on what you like to do best – interior design.

Part of the Channel 4 News Team.

Residents have spotted a turquoise lamp traveling from one Charlottesville location to another.  It’s quite phenomenal, to say the least– a lamp traveling.  How about that?  Does it have feet?  Channel 4 has received reports that this mobile lamp is a part of a contest involving local businesses and Gibson Design Management member, the Shade Shop.  Meteorologist Brick Tamland has responded with: “I love lamp,” offering no further comments when questioned about his devotion to this mysterious lamp.

Authorities have noted that this Shade Shop’s cheerful turquoise lamp has moved to a new temporary residence every Wednesday, waiting for curious Charlottesville locals to stop by, take photos, tweet (@ShadeShop’s #TravelingLight Lamp Giveaway), or respond to the weekly question posted on the Shade Shop blog– all of which were ways to enter to win.  And the outcome? It looks like the word has traveled about this lamp and a lucky winner will bring this charming lamp home at the end of this very week!

Unfortunately this means the lamp will not be gracing our studio with his presence – but hey, I can’t even be mad. That lamp is amazing!  At least someone will be able to enjoy him in his glory.   When I am finished reading this teleprompter, you should go read the Shade Shop blog to learn more about this breaking news story and find out what lucky son of a bee-sting gets to take him home.

For all of us here at the News Center, I’m Ron Burgundy.

You stay classy, Charlottesville.

Too Familiar?

Here is a new system that we created within our company.  I suggest that everyone have the same 3 categories across the team, but that the prioritization is role-specific.

Determine your 3 categories that all of your actions fall under (or should fall under).  In our company, I determined the following as our 3 categories:

1. Revenue producing:  an item on the to-do list that will bring money into the company
2. Service-related:  an item on the to-do list that will make our members or clients lives and businesses better
3. Brand awareness and networking: actions that will help build our brand throughout the industry and beyond

Based on your list, prioritize your categories.  My particular role in our company is bringing in new business and also long-term strategy.  If my role was to service our clients and members more directly, I would prioritize the categories differently.  Therefore, my category prioritization is as follows:

1. Revenue production
2. Brand awareness, strategy, and networking
3. Service

Determine some examples of what each category would entail.  For example, I would use the following examples for our company:

1. Revenue production: sales calls, creating letters of agreement, invoicing, etc.  For your firm, this might also be billable hours or creating proposals.
2. Brand awareness, strategy, and networking:  arranging presentations at design centers, writing blog posts, staying connected with my professional network, etc.
3. Service:  adding functionality to the website that would improve the client experience, monthly member calls, etc.

A few more ideas:

• Establish a “D” category.  There will naturally be things that fall into the “Other” category.  We call those category “D” items.  These will still need to get done but in the prioritization exercise, they will be the items that are least important to your business.
• Every time you add something to your to-do list, make sure that you put a letter next to it or color code it.  This will show you where you need to be prioritizing and what items can be downgraded.

For more great techniques to work smarter, I suggest Gina Trapani’s columns at FastCompany.com. What systems do you use to prioritize your laundry list of to-dos?

Unless you’ve been stuck under a pile of F. Schumacher sample books for the last two years, you have probably heard of the social media phenomenon with the cute bird mascot.  Twitter is a micro-blogging site that allows you to post status updates that range from personal (“Why are there so many crumbs in my purse?”) to educational (“Pantone announces its new color for 2010 is turquoise”) to conversational (“@gibsondm That was a great article about 5 steps to start Twitter”). Your tweets are limited to 140 characters.

While this article is not about why to use Twitter, I must devote one quick paragraph to my soapbox. Twitter has helped grow our business. I’ve hired people that I first interacted with via Twitter, created business relationships, found clients, been interviewed for USA Today, been interviewed for a marketing book, and more. If you still don’t get how it can help your business, email me and we’ll discuss.

Getting your feet wet with Twitter is the right way to start.

Here are 5 easy steps:

1. Go to http://twitter.com. Click on the big button that says “Sign Up Now”.

2. Select a username. Your username will also be called your Twitter “handle”. You’ll want to choose something that is close to your name or close to your company name. Make it as simple as possible. If I could do it all over again, I would have chosen my name “alexandragibson”. Unfortunately, that name is no longer available and I’ve developed a following with my current handle—@gibsonmd.

3. Write a profile and upload a picture. Be sure to do this before following anyone. Your profile is limited to 160 characters; I suggest using a mixture of professional information and personality. My profile is:

CEO of Gibson Design Management; MP for Gibson Design Group; social butterfly; type A (personality not blood); competitive horseback rider; martini drinker

4. Enter your first tweet. We typically write things like “Just getting started on Twitter. Thanks @gibsondm for teaching me! ”

5. Start following people. This will both mean that their tweets will update in your newsfeed and that they will be alerted that you are also on Twitter. If I know that my friend Bob Willywog is on Twitter, I can find him by clicking “Find People” and entering his name. If I just want to start following people in my town, in my industry, or who have similar interests, I go to www.twellow.com and run a search. This will search profiles for your keyword.

If this all seems overwhelming, don’t despair. Contact us about our social media services. We can hold your hand through not only getting your business set up but also on how to use these tools to improve your marketing.

Ondine with Little Bear

We are very excited to be working with Ondine Karady, former set decorator for Sex and the City, finalist in Bravo TV’s Top Design, and acclaimed interior designer.  Ondine was just recently named one of 20 Young Designers by Traditional Home.

We will be working with Ondine on spreading her great design and personality even further through the beauties of social media and online PR.

As part of the 20 Young Designers feature from Traditional Home, the magazine is holding a Reader’s Choice contest.  Please support Ondine and support us by voting for her!

Note:  Make sure that you click on the “Vote!” button and not just the “Like” button to vote!

Also, by voting you are automatically entered to win a complete room design and $5,000 in fabric to outfit the room so there’s some extra incentive…besides your undying love for us.

Domino’s Pizza catering SMC Chicago event from Andres J. DeLeon on Vimeo.

Read more about how exactly DeLeon is using social media and the amazing results he’s getting from this post on SocialMediaExaminer.com.

Way to go Ramon.  We salute you.

For a limited time, we are offering our Social Media Launch Pad at a discounted price

Our Social Media Launch Pad sets up your firm’s presence on all appropriate social media platforms. This starting point allows your company to jump into social media and learn along the way.

The Launch Pad includes:
• Kick-off call to explain the different tools and briefly discuss strategy
• Setting up profiles on Facebook, Twitter, Linked In, Ava Living
• Adding photos, information, and all other necessary details to the above platforms to create pages that will show that you not only have a presence, but have a robust presence and want to encourage engagement
• Creating a blog for your firm, using one of hundreds of wordpress.com templates that work aesthetically with your current web site
• 1 month of “co-piloting” to ensure that you have a resource for questions as you begin using the different tools
• 6 months of unlimited Flight School classes that teach you about how to use Facebook, Twitter, Ava Living, blogging, and LinkedIn for business

Special Discount from December 11-December 31, 2009!

Cost: $695 $595

To learn more about the Social Media Launch Pad, please contact Martha at martha@gibsondesignmanagement.com