the crowd at Social Crush Columbia

Here’s the crazy thing. My biggest takeaway from Day One of this large and impressive social media conference, called Social Crush, is such a simple thought:

Listen. And respond.

We already knew that, didn’t we? And yet how easy it is to forget.

It’s like going to a cocktail party and feeling out of place. You get a little nervous, and before you know it, to be charming and interesting, you start blabbering on and on and on about Every Little Thing You’ve Ever Done and the stranger in front of you nods mechanically and quickly makes a move for the cold hors d’oeuvres.

Listen.

Do you know who you are talking to? What do they care about?

And respond.

Where do your interests overlap? How can you make a connection?

We need more creative farmers, it's true

I made a note in my very fabulous We Need More Creative Farmers sketchbook, made ‘specially for me by my friend and former art director Larry Thacker.  (I interviewed him when he was a young VCU grad just because I liked his name. Seriously.) Anyway, I made a note with a big ol’ star to remind me every time I find myself in social media the-toolbox-keeps-expanding overload: (whew) Just listen. And respond.

Here are the other Big Takeaways for me.

2. There’s a difference between being a social brand (one person’s job) and a social business (5 percent of everyone’s job). ~ Thanks Tim Moore

3. An advocate is someone who talks about your brand when you’re not listening. ~ Tim Moore, again

4. Offer real value. And use Farmer English. ~  Thanks Ty Downing

5. Follow local influencers. And wear great shoes. ~ Victoria Harres

6. Promote other people in ways that don’t benefit you.  ~ Victoria, again

7. Humanize the brand. (There is so much to say about this! Another post, another day.) ~ Victoria

8. Inspect your audience, and your content, frequently.  ~ Victoria

9. Work the phrase “That would be hot!” into my presentations/client conversations. (Oops. That was a note to myself. Just liked it. Tim? Ty? Skeeter? Kip? Not sure.)

10. There is no control in social media. There is only training. ~ Mike Brito

11. To coordinate your efforts, have a hub and spoke model. ~ Brito

12. The platform doesn’t matter. The content does. ~ Glen Gilmore

13. (on the future of social) Keep your eyes on the customer and understand their behaviors. You’ll be fine. ~ Brito

Looking forward to Day Two.

*Editor’s note: There was so much smartness flying so fast around the Columbia Metropolitan Convention Center that some, or all, of the comment credits in this post may be wrong. The author accepts full responsibility for such matters and begs the forgiveness of any offended party. Particularly @glengilmore.