Saving Private Innovation

Usually, books by policy wonks aren't my thing.  

But I just had to read The Comeback: How Innovation Will Rescue the American Dream, because I know the author, Gary Shapiro.

I urge you to read it, too.

The Comeback will help you sort the smart from the stupid as you try to make sense of the national debate that surrounds us all the time.

Shapiro paints a grim picture of America's near-term future, in plain and powerful language we need to hear.

“America is faltering” he writes.  Within a few years, “the United States could find itself a second-rate economic power.”

We're faltering because ill-conceived government policies and wreckless spending have put a deadly grip on private-sector innovation—the very thing that's made America "exceptional."

The latter, in my view, is The Comeback's "big idea."

Lots of people claim the US is “exceptional,” but few can define why. 

Shapiro does.

He ties America's exceptionalism to its history as a nation of innovators; and links that history to America's unique status as an immigrant nation.

Innovation is all.

"If we want to guarantee our children the chance to live the American Dream," Shapiro writes, "then we have to protect what is best about our nation: We have to save American innovation."

The bulk of the book comprises his complex prescription for saving innovation.

Some recommendations are familiar.  Reform immigration.  Cut corporate taxes.  Curb entitlements.  Embrace free trade.  Fix the schools.  Quit regulating businesses.  Kill all the trial lawyers.

Some recommendations are novel.  Take spectrum away from broadcasters and give it to other companies.  Let independent commissions select our infrastructure projects.  Ban the passage of any new regulations for the next three years.  And collect income tax from the working poor on their tips; from small business people "living out of the business;" and from corporate fat cats who abuse their expense accounts.

Unions don't come off well in book.  They're blamed for federal, state and local government deficits; the failure of our schools; and trade imbalances.  Shapiro recommends that the protections unionized workers enjoy be removed and that governments rescind their unionized workers’ pensions.

Strong medicine.  All in the interest of protecting innovation.

"Innovation is America," Shapiro writes.  It is our special sauce, our destiny, and our best and only hope for escaping the economic malaise, which decades of excessive government spending and intrusion have created."

It's hard to argue against innovation. 

But, if after ingesting The Comeback, you want an equally well-written antidote, I suggest Robert Reich's Aftershock: The Next Economy and America's Future.

Unleashing LinkedIn

With 90 million users, LinkedIn has become a darling of B-to-B marketers.

With a LinkedIn Company Page, you can put the social network to the ultimate test.

Adam Kleinberg, who runs a social media firm that "aligns psychology with technology," points out the features he likes best:

Banners.  Company Pages lets you create products and services pages and place big banners on them.  The banners can rotate and link to specific URLs; the latter can be landing pages designed to capture leads.

Video.  You can also embed YouTube videos on your Company Page and each products and services page.

Endorsements.  You can solicit testimonials from customers for each of your products and services.  The feature works like the Recommendations on an individual LinkedIn Profile.

Customization.  You can customize how you present your products and services to distinct target audiences.  LinkedIn lets you create audience segments; select their attributes (job title, company size, industry and location); and post an edited copy of your pages.

Offers.  Each product and service has a placeholder for a unique offer, such as a white paper or discount coupon.

Ads.  You can create targeted ad campaigns to drive traffic to your Company Page.  The system works like Google AdWords.

Analytics.  LinkedIn provides charts that let you track your results and compare them to those of similar organizations.

Are you unleashing LinkedIn?

Social Media Secrets of a Fast-Growing Firm

First, Inc. lists the firm among its "Fastest Growing Companies."

Then Crain’s Chicago adds it to its "Fast 50" roster.

And social media marketing helped make it happen.

How?

B-to-B marketer Drew Hawkins shares his secrets on Social Media Today.

Hawkins works for Hinda Incentives, which markets employee recognition and loyalty programs to businesses.

His secrets are pretty simple:

Devise a strategy. "Our social strategy boiled down to one goal: drive traffic to our Website—our largest source of lead generation.  Our theory was, if people liked what we had to say in our social outlets, they would be more likely to visit our Website."

Narrow your options. "We narrowed our 'voice options' down to a few select channels. Our emphasis went toward content development for our blog.  We generated traffic to our blog using Twitter and LinkedIn, and some relevant, B2B-friendly networks."

Build a community. "After building online relationships with a couple key influencers through blog commenting and Twitter conversations, we began to build our own community around the strategies of recognition and loyalty programs."

Hawkins' results are impressive:

• Followers on Twitter and LinkedIn doubled in 6 months
• Blog traffic grew to 1,000 visits a month in 12 months
• Website traffic increased 15 percent in 12 months
• Lead quality measurably improved in 12 months

And what's he learned along the way?

Be patient.  "We’ve been working for over a year and a half on our efforts and are just now reaping the benefits."

Focus on quality. "We’ve learned that there’s more to social media than just having a ton of followers.  It’s converting to meaningful relationships that counts."

Know your audience.  "Flying by the seat of your pants in social media isn’t strategy.  Before starting anything, you should research who you need to target, where they hang out on line and what they talk about."

How to Create Social Email

Social media has changed email marketing, says Gail Goodman, columnist for Entreprenuer.

Persuading readers to share your emails has become critical.

You can prompt readers to share your emails by providing content that signals you understand their priorities; entertains them; and asks for feedback and participation.

Four additional things you can do to create a “social e-mail experience:”

1. Include a social icon in every email. The "Forward to a Friend" feature lets readers share your content with another person. But by adding social icons to your email, the same reader can now share it with her entire Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn networks.
2. Include links to your Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn pages in your emails. Be sure to give reasons why readers should join you on social media destinations.
3. Entice readers with a link to a conversation you want to continue on Twitter or to an exclusive contest or survey you're featuring on Facebook.
4. Always post your email content on Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn. Keep conversations alive by reposting snippets on different social media destinations.

A VC's View of PR

In a recent post on his blog, venture capitalist Mark Suster shares what he's learned about PR. 

His advice is meant for startups, but it's good advice all round.

PR is a process, not an event.  Patience and perseverence are essential.  It takes months, if not years, to build relationships with journalists.
 
PR can't be delegated.  You need help to research journalists, arrange meetings, pitch stories and write copy.  But you cannot delegate media interviews.  "If you want PR coverage, you’re going to have to dedicate a non-trivial amount of time to it."

If your budget's limited, don't hire a big PR firm.  You won’t get the senior team’s focus; instead, 22-year olds will do all your work (and won't have enough billable hours to do it justice).  If you need outside help, go to a small firm or an individual; or hire a part-time PR intern.

Be authentic.  Don't conduct interviews as if you were running for office.  "Talk like a human.  Give real answers.  Show a sense of humor and humility."

Have a viewpoint.  Too many executives avoid controversy.  That’s fine for the executives at Apple; they'll get coverage anyway.  But you need to go out on a limb and present informed opinions.

Don’t cry wolf.  "Make sure you’re not spewing out meaningless reams of press releases."  And don’t spam people.  The good stuff will get lost.

Get media training.  Media training will help you keep interviews on track and focused on the story you want to tell.