Sound n' Sight

Engage, Inform, Retweet & you might surpass your marketing goals

A little more than a year ago, I was looking for a way to explain why I recommended certain people to follow on Twitter.  I thought that the hashtag  #EIR, for "Engages, Informs & Retweets," effectively simplified what I look for in people I follow. Very quickly I realized that it was a great strategy to follow for successful marketing on Twitter. Somewhat surprisingly to me, the hashtag and the idea behind it was embraced by many people.

The strategy isn't new. The most effective social media marketers have been doing this for sometime. They just haven't called it EIR. But when I stumbled on these ideas, I was enchanted because they hinge on a strategy for life that I've learned inevitably leads to happiness:the golden rule.

The idea, and try it for yourself if you don't believe me, is that you really can't give to others. Whatever you give comes back to you.  So if you want connections, leads, good karma, business, etc; give, give, give! 

In the EIR world, Alec Baldwin's character Blake in Glenngarry Glen Ross wouldn't say, "A-B-B . . Always be closing." He would say,"A-B-G...Always Be Giving." EIR is a strategy for this and helps to ensure you balance your efforts in three very important areas.

Although the words, Engage, Inform, Retweet, seem specific to Twitter, the ideas can be applied on many other platforms. For instance:

Engage - Talk to people, make friends

You can do this:

* at the grocery store

* at your local chamber of commerce mixer

* at an industry conference or tradeshow

* on Facebook or in online communities

* in the comments section of your local newspaper

* in the comments of your favorite blog.

* by sending a thank you note

* by sending a birthday card

* by sending an email that just asks "How are you doing?"

* always responding to comments on your blog, Facebook or online community profile

Inform - What information have you come across that might help others? Share it!

You can do this by:

* sharing links on Facebook & online communities

* sharing links on your blog

* sharing links on bookmarking sites

* writing guest blog posts

* writing blog posts

* giving workshops or seminars

* submitting articles to magazines, newspapers

* telling people about it

* publishing a book or e-book

* sending an e-newsletter

Retweet - Promote others who have something positive to share

You can do this by:

* introducing people you think can help each other

* recommending products or services you appreciate

* Complimenting people publicly

* Implementing programs, such as awards, that recognize others

* reposting information w/ credit to the original poster

* sharing a link from a friend on Facebook

* always giving credit to anyone who gives info that you are passing on

* always including thank you lists on programs

* writing a a blog post/article about anyone who has helped or greatly influenced you

* putting in a good word for people in conversations whenever possible

I'm sure you can think of many more ways to do this.  The trick is just training your brain to start thinking this way. Three people I know who have this down are my friends Lindsay Fultz (@LindsayFultz @GroshBackdrops), Paul Cook (@planetplanitbiz) and Lindsey Rosenthal (@eventsforgood).  If you are on Twitter, I highly recommend that you follow them.  They are prime examples of this marketing philosophy in action. They are always helping and promoting others and it is paying off for them in spades. 

As for me, my life has changed dramatically and for the better because of these ideas.  Granted, there were months when I couldn't see any financial ROI, but even in the midst of that I got daily shots of friendship and support from people (like @tracibrowne & @ericlukazewski) with whom I'd built relationships on Twitter.  That kept me going through some of the most difficult times of my life. 

And I'm very happy to say that the financial and career rewards are now delightfully surprising me on a daily basis. No, none of it is going the way I had planned. Recent developments that I can directly attribute to my activities on Twitter are EXCEEDING my original hopes. I will keep you all posted. :)

(photo by bnorwood)

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