Now that I’ve finally had some time to sleep, finish up client projects that were out in orbit while I was in Austin, and sort through my notes, I’d like to share some highlights of the big adventure…

Festival Time at Fogo de Chao!

Fantastic people.  I was blown away by all the talented folks I had the opportunity to meet.  I am among the many people I know who scrunch up my face at the term “thought leader,” but it was great to meet and chat with so many pioneers, big thinkers, and intelligent designers, communicators, and artists.  Nokia put together a great, low-key event at Moonshine on Friday that was great for cultivating conversation, and I was lucky enough to get to spend a few nights at the Entrepreneur Lounge at Fogo de Chao, but I also really enjoyed the random conversations that popped up folks at panels, parties, and Austin locals.  I arrived home in Brooklyn completely wiped out, but really invigorated by all the great conversation.

Stellar panels.  It’s really rare to attend any kind of conference and not come away feeling panel regret.  I’m pleased to report that the panels I attended were almost universally thoughtful, challenging, and – most of all – useful.  Howzabout that?  (The big exception to this observation is, of course, the lackluster Ev Williams’ Twitter keynote, but the blogoverse has already weighed in on that a-plenty.)  Here are some of my highlights from the panels, along with links for your reading enjoyment (and learnin’!):

Danah Boyd’s keynote on privacy and publicity.  This was an astonishingly good talk to kick off SXSW.  Boyd called out Google and Facebook on their recent privacy fails and challenged tech companies that claim that privacy is dead as a convenient excuse for violating the privacy of users. Boyd’s conclusions about the ways that everyday users understand privacy and the way that companies (often intentionally) misunderstand privacy are provocative and important.  I really appreciated, especially, the following assertions:

• Taking something public and making it more public is a violation of privacy;
• Our current state is public by default and private by effort; and
• The public-by-default environment is not the great democratizer.

This was a much-needed consideration of privacy implications, and it will have great impact on the way I regard privacy issues going forward.

Crowd Sourcing Innovative Social Change panel with Beth Kanter, Holly Ross, Amy Sample Ward, David Neff, and Kari Dunn Saratovsky. This was one of the best panels I’ve ever gone to at any convention I’ve ever attended.  Not only was the content for the panel thoughtfully crowd sourced (hooray for using your own best practices!), but the audience participation and resource sharing from panel, audience, and twitter stream was first-rate.  Rather than try to summarize all of the awesome content, I’m just going to point you directly to the resources: Beth’s recap of the event featuring the slide show and the twitter stream with abundant case studies and sharp comments.  This is an absolute must for anyone in a non-profit organization (or, heck, a for-profit organization) who is looking for models for crowd sourcing and creative, results-driven examples.  This is also a great example for anyone looking to put together a kick ass SXSW panel in the future.

The conversation at the Duh…It’s Like Tech for Girls panel with Alison Lewis and Syuzi Pakhchyan was also very engaging.  Focusing on the intersection of DIY craft, fashion, and technology as a way to get girls more engaged with technology, Alison and Syuzi facilitated a sometimes heated conversation about girls and technology.  Clay Shirky’s keynote on Sunday morning was well worth it, although the crowd that managed to make it looked seriously zombied out from the Saturday night parties and daylight savings time change.  Shirky explored the idea that abundance breaks more things than scarcity does, and discussed the ways that technology has introduced a really challenging amount of abundance into our lives. And, of course, the always hilarious Peter Shankman provided a useful and entertaining talk on self-promotion.

Ice Cream Man with Bessita

Slinging with the Ice Cream Man.  A huge highlight for me at SXSW was the opportunity to work with the Ice Cream Man and his team of ice cream slingers.  I am super excited to see if he smashed his own record and gave out 15,000 free frozen treats.  And, I have to say, during the few minutes I was actually slinging popsicles at Fogo de Chao, I really felt like a rock star.

Austintatious Food. Well, I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention all the delicious food I consumed while at SXSW: Korean tacos from the TaKorean truck (I’m seriously still dreaming about those), cheese balls from Fogo do Chao (Ehren, shortly after becoming mayor of Fogo de Chao on Foursquare: “I’m going to need to become mayor of my gym when I get home…”), tacos from Gueros Taco Bar, and breakfast tacos from a hole-in-the-wall place called Vic’s BBQ that our cab driver took us to on the way to the airport.  I could go on, but this is making me hungry…

Tripp the cab driver says, “Never eat BBQ at a place where all the chairs match.”

Thanks so much for hosting all of us data-craven nerds, Austin!  I hope I get to see you next year!

(This is a guest post I contributed to the Design Rangers Camp Blog

Linkedin has become a powerful tool for professionals looking to network and find career opportunities as well as companies looking for talent. Linkedin also provides some unique tools that can be particularly effective for small business marketing.

Here are some tips for making the most of Linkedin:

Get Your Company In

Create a profile for your company, and make sure to include relevant keywords in your descriptions. Linkedin can be a great source of SEO links, and your profile will start to appear in Google and other search engine results.

Get Your Team In

Make sure that your principals and team members have Linkedin profiles. They can easily create unique URLs (http://www.linkedin.com/in/name) so their profiles will be easier to find. Individual profiles should also include relevant keywords as well as good photos. Linkedin is a great way to put a face on your team – and your company!

Get In the Conversation

A unique feature of Linkedin is the ability to ask Questions and provide Answers to other members. Providing smart, helpful answers can position you or a team member as an expert, and increase your network of connections. You can also ask thoughtful questions as a way to start conversations. With Linkedin, you can also join or start groups! You can join relevant industry or local groups, or start and facilitate groups of your own. Group discussions can lead to increased connections, industry insights, referrals, and even prospects!

Get In with the Media

Most people get connected with professional colleagues, service providers, clients, friends, and associates. But don’t miss the chance to connect with journalists, bloggers, and other media professionals. If you meet or are introduced to a media contact, invite him or her to connect on Linkedin! Staying connected helps keep you top-of-mind and may lead to PR opportunities.

Keep Your Contacts in the Loop

Use Network Updates to keep your contacts informed about your professional news, and select the News Module to share the latest news about your company. A word of caution: Linkedin is not a micro-blogging site like Twitter and it’s not nearly as personal as Facebook. Encourage your team to be strategic and limit their number of status updates. If you are a prolific tweeter, it’s not a good idea to connect your Linkedin updates to your Twitter profile. Don’t overwhelm your professional contacts!

I’m looking forward to seeing you Linkedin! (Connect with me here.)

Here’s the link for blogging tips and tricks.

Happy blogging!

As you reflect on your marketing efforts in 2009 and prepare for 2010, it’s easy to focus on what you accomplished (or didn’t) and what kinds of strategies will meet your needs going forward. But before you design a plan that’s all about YOU, remember that no marketing will work unless you put your customers first.

Ask yourself the following question: how often do you listen to your customers?

Listening is critical to your business. [Note: it's especially important that non-profits listen to their clients and stakeholders, too!] Listening – seriously – to your customers will not only provide you with key insights about your products and services, but it is essential for developing a strong and effective marketing plan. As you move into 2010, make sure that a fundamental component of your strategy is setting up a listening post to talk to your customers – offline and online.

Listening in the Real World

This sounds simple, but most companies try to avoid actually talking to customers unless they have to. Don’t skip out on your chance to connect personally and get honest feedback about what you’re offering! If you’re a small business, chances are good that you have developed relationships with customers in your target markets. Listening is as simple as asking them how they have experienced your product or service, how they perceive your company, why they choose you over a competitor, and what you can do to improve. This feedback can help you determine if your messaging and design is effective, if you’re using the right marketing channels, and if your performance delivers against your promises.

Listening in the real world can also provide you with key information on how to plan your online and social media marketing. This type of marketing requires a large investment of time and, often, resources, and it’s critical to determine how to make that investment. Make sure to ask customers in your target markets how they use the Web, what (if any) social networks they prefer, and if they feel it would be useful for you to be there, too.

Listening in the Virtual World

You also want to make sure that you’re listening online. Many businesses make decisions about their online presence and social media channels without ever first assessing how their customers use the Web and the sentiment of customers towards products, services and competitors online.

To listen online, start by searching for your company name on broad range of platforms, including Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, Google Blog Search, and general search engines. How large is your online reach, and how positive is sentiment about you? Next, do the same thing for your competitors. Are they reaching customers in ways or places you are not? Take the time to inventory how they are using the Web. Finally, start searching for conversations about the types of products or services you offer. Are there influential blogs you should be watching and contributing to? Are customers even talking about your types of products and services on certain platforms? Remember that you may be able to gain new customers and strengthen your relationships very effectively online and with social media channels – but only if people in your key markets are actually engaged with that channel.

Make online listening an ongoing project! You can automate this in several ways, including setting up Google Alerts to track mentions of your company name, your competitors, and other keywords that are essential to your business.

One More Thing: Be Prepared For Less-Than-Awesome Feedback

If you’re listening, chances are good that you’re going to hear some things that you might not want to. But negative feedback might be among the most valuable feedback you can receive. It represents an opportunity to respectfully and considerately respond as well as to improve! Remember that with social media, your customers are asking you to listen to them. Responding in an honest, authentic and ongoing way is the surest way to support your marketing efforts and build stronger relationships.

Here’s to a 2010 with more listening – and more effective marketing!