A MN Blogger Conference Recap: Coffee, Directions and 20 Other Lessons

This past weekend I was among the 130+ extremely lucky people to be a part of the MN Blogger Conference. I initially didn't get a ticket because they sold out almost immediately. Then I missed another shot when I didn't win Top Rank's contest for a free pass. Finally, conference co-founder Arik Hanson took pity on me and let me volunteer my labor in exchange for a seat at the event. And after all that effort to get in, you bet I'm going to blog about my experience at the first-ever MN Blogger Conference.

If you were there Saturday, you probably saw me either directing foot traffic towards the CoCo entrance before the event or in the kitchen brewing coffee for the caffeine-craving blogging crowd.

If you think about it, I couldn't have asked for a better assignment from the impeccably well-organized Arik and his conference coordinating partner in crime, Missy Berggren.

Between the complete havoc that was the road construction on 4th St. in downtown Saint Paul and the fact that most bloggers love a good cup of fair-trade organic coffee in the morning (courtesy of Don Ball), I ended up thanking Arik and Missy  for the one-way street to a bunch of new friends and a chance to be a part of the MN Blogger Conference!

The Big List of Lessons Learned from the MN Blogger Conference

My head is still spinning from Saturday's event. I'm not sure there was a definitive theme, but there were countless perspectives, tactics and points of view that no doubt left everyone with a lot to think about. Let's come up with a list of all the lessons we learned. I'll start with this list of 20!

(I was only in 1/4 of the sessions so I'm going to need your help with this list. Make sure to leave any blogging tidbits of knowledge that you gained down in the comments.)

1. Blogging is about "unbridled narcissism," according to James Lileks. This joke got a huge laugh from the crowd in the opening keynote panel featuring popular Minnesota bloggers. What's that old saying about there being some truth in the best humor?
2. Clockwork President Nancy Lyons suggested that bloggers must think carefully about how much personal information they want to share because "the Internet is forever." Just exactly how much information is that? See #10.
3. Nancy also highlighted your blog's ability to help you establish credibility, regardless of how saturated your market may be.
4. It's practically a given that people will blog on Wordpress, which I think is a crying shame. Wordpress is a great for some, but there are many excellent blogging platforms out there. For example, I'm a user of and evangelist for Squarespace. I was particularly encouraged by Julio Ojeda-Zapata's breakout session, which featured a live Skype session with Leo Laporte (tech pundit/legend and advocate of Squarespace). If you're sick of Wordpress or still haven't picked your platform, make sure you consider Squarespace (You can hit me up with questions if you have them.).Julio Ojeda-Zapata talking about Squarespace!
5. Julio also pointed out the importance of being consistent with your personal brand. Use the same avatar/image and username across platforms/channels.
6. There are incredible deals on hand bags on the internet. James Lileks, you crack me up.
7. Bloggers are writers. There is no way around it. And writing isn't an ability, but rather a journey towards finding your voice and creating something that makes you proud. This point is thanks to my new friend and prolific blogger, Patrick Rhone. (I ordered On Writing by Stephen King this morning. Thanks for the tip and inspiration!).
8. And on that note, anyone can write. Teresa Boardman said it and she has a serious learning disability. Matt Logelin said it and he is a single dad, widower and self-admittedly types like a third grader. Anyone can write. Especially you.
9. Tony Saucier gave us this great quote to think about: "The next big thing in social media is journalism."
10. Affiliate marketing can be a great way to make extra money as a blogger, but it's important to consider moral and legal responsibilities when doing so. Each blogger is probably a little different in how they choose to participate and disclaim their involvement. For example, I chose not to embed an affiliate link to the book reference above because I haven't read it yet and can't recommend it. That's my stance on linking to products on Big Picture Web.
11. Jen Emmert added that she always asks for a giveaway for her readership if she's offered a product to review. I thought that was a great way to give back to your audience while still making a little extra on the side.
    A packed room at CoCo as the panel discusses compensation for blogging.
12. Heather King of The Extraordinary Ordinary suggested that you should share as much as you would tell your sister on your blog. 
13. Heather also suggested to listen to your heart's gut to know what to share and to how find your voice as a blogger.
14. The best blogging is a balance between niche and personality.
15. Bloggers are craving information on Google Analytics. Aaron Landry's session on the free web analytics platform attracted a ton of the conference attendees, all of whom were taking notes furiously as Landry spoke. (As it just so happens, friends, I also write about Google Analytics. Hit me with your questions and I'd be glad to help you out.)
16. 20% of conference attendees are building on rented land. According to the list of conference attendees put together by Ian Schwartz, 15 of the 72 unique blogs on the list are on a sub-domain instead of their own domain (e.g., <name>.blogspot.com instead of <name>.com). I can't think of a good reason not to be on  your own domain. Just saying.
17. Diane Kulseth will probably never need a resume or Careerbuilder.com. Diane's still in college and yet has a social media internship, blogs and attends industry events like the MN Blogger Conference. I wish I would have had the sense to do all these things ten years ago. If you're not engaged with your professional community, you're missing out... big time
18. Conferences are a great place to meet your online friends. After months of trading tweets and blog comments with the likes of David Erickson, Rick Mahn, Adam Singer, Joel Carlson, etc., etc., etc., I finally got a chance to meet these fine folks. Social media is great, but nothing beats a handshake, a good laugh and a great,synchronous conversation.
19. The human struggle is universal and you are never alone on the Internet. Thanks to Heather King and Matt Logelin for that point.
20. Volunteering is an underrated. Being a volunteer for the MN Blogger Conference felt like having a back-stage pass for the simple price of moving some chairs around and helping folks out throughout the day. Consider me signed up to volunteer at the next one too. Dibs on brewing the coffee. The coffee setup at CoCo on 4th St. in Saint Paul.

I could probably keep rattling off takeaways, but I'd like to hear your thoughts too. What was your favorite moment of the conference? What are you most happy to have learned/experienced? Also, how can Big Picture Web help you with future blog posts about Squarespace, Google Analytics or SEO? Leave a comment below and keep the excitement alive from the MN Blogger Conference.

Video Entertainment and the 3 Minute Favor

Big Picture Web has always tried to be about giving. Each week I put out a post on Internet marketing, blogging, web analytics... you  name it. My hope is always that someone, you, will arrive and be entertained or educated, at the very least find something remotely engaging. That hope is truer than ever this week and I think I have just the trick: entertaining Youtube vidoes! And if you enjoy them, I'd like to ask for 1-5 minutes of your time -- market research critically valuable to me -- in return. (This is a marketing blog, after all.)

So here's the deal. I happen to know this extremely talented videographer/post production genius named Emily. She goes out and gathers HD footage, edits the best parts, adds some effects and then puts everything together with music, a voice-over, or both. Emily's been making these entertaining or informative videos for friends and family recently to build upon her craft and experience. I happen to think the videos are very good. So good, in fact, that I think there's a solid product here.

I suppose I should also mention that Emily accuses me of being biased because I'm her boyfriend. She says I have to tell her that her work is awesome in that how-do-I-look-in-these-jeans kind of way. And so today I'd like to take the opportunity to use my blog post as a true litmus test for her videos' market potential. That's where the 1-5 minutes of your time comes in.

When you're done checking out this blog post, I'd be so grateful if you would do one (or both!) of the following things:

• Leave a comment in the comments below with your thoughts on Emily's videos as a marketable product. What demographic would be most interested? What would you pay for a video such as the ones below? What potential challenges do you see? Any thought that occurs to you will be really valuable.
• Tweet about this article or link to it from your Facebook status, encouraging others to lend a hand as well. Although Big Picture Web's readership has been growing, I'll still need your help getting a critical mass of eyeballs on it for feedback.

The best products are a result of tons of market research and a strong dedication to the experience of the customer or end-user. Thanks so much if you decide to help strengthen Emily's product offerring. Here are a few examples of her work:

• Here's a video of Emily's family vacation out to West Virginia:

• Here's one she made over the 4th of July up with my family:

• Here's a how-to/showcase video she made with our friend and owner of the best Twin Cities hardwood flooring company:

Thanks again for your thoughts, tweets updates and tweets!!!!

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The Public Victory - 7 Habits of Online Marketers, Part 3

Over the last few weeks here at Big Picture Web, we've been taking a look at Stephen Covey's The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People, a classic business professional's guide to becoming a productivity powerhouse in the workforce, and translating the core messages for online marketers. Last week we covered the first three habits necessary to achieve the private victory. This week, we'll take a look at the public victory, as well as the habit that ties them all together, in part three and the last in our series on the 7 Habits of Highly Effective Online Marketers.

The private victory was about mastering your own effectiveness. The public victory is about working with others to achieve not only your goals, but their goals as well. Habits 4-6 are:

• Think Win/Win
• Seek First to Understand, Then to be Understood
• Synergize

Mastering these three habits move you from independence to interdependence on the spectrum of effectiveness. Let's take a closer look and explain the public victory of online marketers.

Habit #4: Think Win/Win

The first step in the public victory is to understand the concept of win/win. The main idea is that the most success occurs when your goals genuinely and rigorously align to those of your audience. Create a flood of free blog posts, articles and whitepapers answering these questions throughout the buying process. Help people by educating them and empowering them to accomplish their own goals. You win when a small, yet significant portion of these folks take the next step and hire/buy from you.

It's important not to approach win/win with quid pro quo in mind. Give liberally now and in the end, your kindness will be rewarded by continued patronage and stronger relationships. These concepts apply to both customers and co-workers. 

Habit #5: Seek First to Understand, Then to be Understood

Effective online marketers know that launching a new product or website without evaluating the needs of the customer is a recipe for disaster. I recently picked up a copy of Vanessa Fox's Marketing in the Age of Google (Yep, it's an affiliate link). Fox, a former Googler,  maps out an effective online marketing strategy in great detail. The first step isn't building a website. It's doing research.

What problems do your customers have? What issues do they need addressing? What concerns do they have about your product? Smart online marketers research all of the questions buyers have about their products. Then they create content that speaks to those issues.

Habit #6: Synergize

This is one of my favorite habits. Without synergy, 1 + 1 = 2. With synergy, 1 + 1 > 2. In my post about the modern economics of Trust Agents, Linchpins and Ninjas, I demonstrated the math of how effective people can have multiplying effect on the productivity of their entire organization through leadership, experience and knowledge.

To synergize, simply think of success more like a plant than a pie. Plants grow quickly and without bounds when all their inputs are at their most effective. Pies are finite and there's only so much to go around. Synergizing with co-workers and customers is fun, exciting and leads to great things.

Habit #7: Sharpen the Saw

Now that you've mastered both the private and public victory, you have all the tools you need to be effective. The last habit of highly effective people (and online marketers) is to Sharpen the Saw. Sharpening the saw means you always look for ways to advance your knowledge, skills and experience. Moss doesn't grow on a rolling stone and all that jazz.

Just by being here you're sharpening the saw, so good on you! And now that we've reviewed all 7 habits, it's your turn. What's your favorite habit to ensure your effectiveness? Do you adhere to Covey's habits or do you live by an code all your own? Leave a comment and your thoughts below.

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The Private Victory - 7 Habits of Online Marketers, Part 2

Last week, we introducedThe 7 Habits of Highly Effective People in part 1 of our 3 part series on Stephen Covey's self-help masterpiece, translated for online marketers. We previewed the 7 habits and examined how they are much more of a set of guiding principles than a get-rich-quick system. This week, we'll take a look at the first three habits, the Private Victory, in much closer detail.

You have to crawl before you walk. Then you can run. The same is true with effectiveness. Before you can lead large online marketing initiatives, you first have to master you own devices. That's why the first three habits focus on only personal aspects over which only you have control:

1. Be Proactive
2. Begin With the End in Mind
3. First Thing's First

Covey describes the first three habits as the Private Victory because they involve no one but yourself. Master these habits and see your individual productivity sky-rocket. It's as simple as that. Who wouldn't want that? Let's take a closer look at what constitutes the Private Victory for online marketers.

Habit #1: Be Proactive

We spend way too much time putting out fires and settling for less-than-ideal outcomes in our day-to-day activities. We spend far less time figuring out how to keep the fires from happening in the first place or better yet, how to achieve perfection. To be proactive, by very definition, you must take action. Map out a better process and propose it to your team to remove inefficiencies. Read a book or blog (or both!) to gain insights on why everyone is leaving your home page in droves. Become personally responsible for making things better.

Being proactive is a choice, not an ability or personality type. It's a decision to acknowledge when something isn't perfect and then to take action to fix it. Measure, grow, improve, read, create, learn, test, play. These are tools of proactive online marketers.

Habit #2: Begin With the End in Mind

Online marketing tools and channels are cheap. All too often we find ourselves creating presences in every social media channel or using every online marketing tool just because we can. We get excited because we have 400 likes, 5000 followers and 10,000 page views! But what about revenue? Profit? When you begin with the end in mind, you determine business objectives, create metrics, then set goals. Only then will you select the tactics necessary to move the needles you've selected.

You're saying, "What if I don't know how to set the objectives? What if I don't know what my goal should be?" See habit #1. 

Habit # 3: First Thing's First

Not everything is going to get done at once. And there are many distractions along the way. First Thing's First is the habit of defining and prioritizing tasks for yourself along the way to meeting your business objectives. You want to spend your time on the activities with the highest value.

To embrace Habit #3, you must learn to understand and how to deal with both important and urgent tasks. Find time now for the mission-critical project that isn't due for three months. Tame the flood of constant-yet-unimportant daily emergencies by plugging efficiency leaks in your day. Be committed to knocking out the important milestones along your project's time line.

Win the Private Victory

By being proactive, beginning with the ending in mind and taking first thing's first, you'll achieve the private victory, meaning you have moved from being dependent to becoming independent along Covey's spectrum of effectiveness. Next week, we'll take a look at the remaining four habits that empower online marketers to unlock the Public Victory.

What do you do to improve your personal productivity?

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The Secret to Modern Economics: Linchpins, Trust Agents and Ninjas

Seth Godin calls them Linchpins. Chris Brogan and Julien Smith call them Trust Agents. Avinash Kaushik calls them Ninjas. Essentially, they're all talking about the same type of person. These are people that get things done. These are passionate people that care about the customer. They're willing to go beyond due diligence to measure, learn and improve. And in reality, Linchpins, Trust Agents and Ninjas are the secret new drivers of modern economic value.

Before we get started, let's take a closer look at how the authors/marketers/experts above define these "personality types."

 (book links go to Amazon and are affiliate ads, of course)

• Linchpins - A Linchpin is an indispensable person. Linchpins possess a magical combination of charm, talent and perseverance. Linchpins stand out, exert emotional labor and produce interactions that organizations and people care about deeply.
• Trust Agents - Trust Agents are power users of the new tools of the Web. They learn quickly by trying and connect with more people than anyone else and are therefore able to spread influence faster, wider, deeper
• Ninjas -  Used by Kaushik in the context of web analytics in Web Analytics 2.0, Ninjas cut through mountains of data, reports and noise to produce just the few precious nuggets of actionable insights. Direction. The path to profit, customer satisfaction and glory.

So how do Trust Agents et al. translate into economic value? For that we need to review a few basics concepts of production in modern economics.

The basic production model:

Y = A x Lα x Kβ

• Y = Total Production
• L = Labor Input
• K = Capital Input
• A = Total Factor Productivity
• α and β = Output Elasticities

Huh? Let's break that down a bit.

• Y = The total value of products or services you produce. Generally, this is as much as you can sell.
• L = The cost of labor
• K = the cost of "capital." Capital includes computers, cubicles, offices, iPads, etc.
• A = Believe it or not, a total factor productivity is like a modern economic je ne sais quoi, or intangible quality that multiplies production. Good weather leads to increased total factor productivity when growing crops. Education of the labor force leads to increased total factor productivity as economies develop.
• α and β = Think of output elasticities as indicators of ROI for additional investments in the variable they modify. For example, if α > 1, then every 1% investment in labor (L) will result in a positive ROI. If α < 1, you're wiser to invest in something other than labor.

In recent years, modern economic math has expanded to include the concepts of human, intellectual and social capital as additional total factor productivity variables in the productivity model. Which brings us to the punchline: these are all qualities of - you guessed it - Linchpins, Trust Agents and Ninjas!

With this realization and given an appreciation for the realities of our modern economy (i.e., post-recession), three advantages emerge:

1. Ninjas have an multiplying effect on output because they add a "Linchpin total factor productivity variable" to the equation (similar yet distinct from "A")
2. More Ninjas is your best possible investment, as the output elasticities are incredibly high
3. Most of production these days is a commodity - α and β continue to drop. Being a Ninja is one of few remaining differentiating, and thus profitable factors.

And what happens when your Ninja/Linchpin leaves your company? Suddenly there's a drop in efficiency. A particular group or whole departments just don't seem to produce as much. Enthusiasm dies down. There's no one volunteering to lead new efforts and projects. You've lost so much more than just another body. You've lost the human, intellectual and social capital too. Losing your Linchpins, Trust Agents and Ninjas leads to significant drops in production relative to the monetary costs associated with the labor lost.

Are you a Linchpin, Trust Agent, and a Ninja? If you left your organization, would anyone notice? Would the corresponding dip in production be in line with everyone else or could your departure be fiscally palpable? Leave a comment below advance the conversation of the new modern economics.