Step 1: Turn the Bullhorn Around
Step 2: Become Part of the Community You Serve
If you’re following along, you know that i’m presenting my notes from a recent reading of Tara Hunt’s “The Power of Social Networking”, which i found delightful and refreshing, and helped me form my social media strategies and philosophies in a big way. If you haven’t been following along, you’re now up-to-date. 
The third of Ms. Hunt’s five steps to becoming “rich in social capital” is
Be Notable
This seems obvious, of course, and yet it presents a significant challenge to businesses, non-profits, artists…any and all of whom want to rise above the crowd, to be seen and heard. The humongous world of social media is daunting to many because of the sheer volume of communication…”Where to start, and how to be heard?”, they lament. But being NOTABLE starts well before signing up for a Twitter account: it begins with your product, your business model, and your attitude.
Briefly, 11 items:
- The Dazzle is in the Details
Special touches, the quality of little things, and the element of surprise. - Go Above & Beyond
Figure out what customers expect and where they get amazing experiences…then go beyond. - Appeal to Emotion
How customers feel when they use your product is how they’ll feel about YOU. - Inject Fun Into Your Product
Make customers laugh and enjoy the experience! - Make Something Mundane Fashionable
This can be done for anything routine and unsexy (example in book was Method dishsoap) - Design for Flow
Keep a low barrier to entry, with gently increasing challenges paired with accomplishment feedback. (gamification!)- “Easter Eggs” are off-menu items…fun things to be discovered. Can apply to physical or online environs.
- Let People Personalize
We love the autonomy and self-expression! - Be Experimental
Try new things, test new products, involve customers in innovation. - Simplify
The easier it is to use, the faster people will fall in love with it. - Make Happiness Your Business Model
- Autonomy – Empower people to share, be heard, and customize their experience.
- Competency – Simple, intuitive tools that make the learning curve short.
- Relatedness – Help people connect to one another.
- Be a Social Catalyst
Design a product or service that people can connect around.- Have a compelling story.
- Create something beautiful.
- Make people laugh.
- Help people look smart.
- Appeal to emotion.
Does any of this already apply to your business model, product, or service? Do you see where improvements could be made?
So there you have it: Ms. Tara Hunt’s tips for being notable, as condensed and only slightly mangled by evan austin. For more from Tara, follow her on Twitter.
Next up: Embrace the Chaos.
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