Social Geek Radio

This week on Social Geek Radio, the fabulous tiarra wearing Lorri Wyndham will be filling in for Deb to help AK discuss tips, tricks, and tools to help you get on the radar of your taget audience using Facebook and Twitter.  We'll address questions such as: How do you get people to 'like' your Facebook Page?How do you get people to follow you on Twitter?What's the number one thing businesses fail to do after they have set up Facebook and Twitter?How can you turn your email into a social showcase? We will be using a slideshare presentation that AK recently put together as a basis for our discussion. To follow along during the show, you can view the presentation at: http://slidesha.re/HVOcs9. 

Join AK and Deb as they chat with Liz Anderson, Founder of E.H. Anderson Public Relations. Liz is a member of the  IFA (International Franchise Association)  Supplier Forum and attends the annual convention faithfully. This year she and husband Bage developed a video marketing campaign. Liz will share her campaign strategies and how they use UStream as part of their social marketing toolkit. twitter: @ehandersonpr

What REALLY makes social media work? These days, engaging customers and franchise candidates takes more than just having an online presence on popular social networks. It takes the perfect social media campaign! Join us as we talk to Todd Leiser, Director of Franchise Sales at Valpak Direct Marketing Systems. He will give us a sneak peak to his FranCamp presentation on the topic! Connect to: Todd's Blog: http://ht.ly/a8VR8 LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/toddleiser Google+: http://bit.ly/HORtYp Pinterest: http://pinterest.com/toddleiser/ Twitter: http://twitter.com/valpaktodd 

  Our guest this week is Melinda F. Emerson, SmallBizLady. Melinda is America’s #1 small business expert. She is an author, speaker and small business coach whose areas of expertise include small business start-up, business development and social media marketing. As CEO of Quintessence Multimedia, Melinda develops audio, video and written content to help her Fortune 500 clients engage small business customers.  She publishes a resource blog, www.succeedasyourownboss.com and hosts a weekly talk show on Twitter called #SmallBizChat for today’s entrepreneurs.  She reaches 1.5 million small business owners each week on the internet. Forbes Magazine named Melinda Emerson #1 Woman for Entrepreneurs to follow on Twitter. Melinda has been featured on MSNBC, Fox News, NBC Nightly News and in The Washington Post, New York Times,Fortune, Essence and Black Enterprise.She is also the author of the bestselling book “Become Your Own Boss in 12 months; A Month-by-Month Guide to a Business That Works.”. Melinda is a gradua

Have you always wanted to join Twitter but not sure how to get started? Do you know how to join the conversation? Do you have a Twitter profile but not making connections? Ever wonder what a hashtag (#) is and how it should be used? Then join  AK and Deb as they share their Twitter tricks and tips. Even if you are currently using Twitter they have a few things to share. Call the show and share your tips or ask your questions!

  Our guests this week are Joseph Pascual, co-founder and head of product development at Dotstudioz and Phoenix Gonzales, co-founder, owner, and head of brand integration at Dotstudioz. Joseph has led development teams around the world and is fluent in 5 languages. He has spent the last few years developing a video management solution for the entertainment industry. Phoenix has led the company’s efforts to further relationships with the entertainment and investment worlds. Having managed multiple aspects of the company operations, she has been able to put the company in front of the likes of Sony, UTA, NMA Group, Warner Brothers, etc.   DOTSTUDIOZ is an entertainment technology company based in Los Angeles, CA and Vancouver, British Columbia, servicing the needs of brands and entertainment professionals seeking ways to monetize online. Through its software as a service (SaaS) Dotstudio Pro and (Fan Incentive Engine) Viral Swagger, Dotstudioz introduces an intuitive workflow that integrates the latest brea

What's it all about? How many social platforms does one person need? What platforms are best for business purposes? Which ones relieve the stress after a long day? How can you be business social or is it all fun and games? Join us as we "Decode Pinterest" , discuss OMGPOP Draw Something craze and why the movement of Words With Friends has replaced Farmville! Still need an invite to Pinterest? Contact AK or Deb and they will be delighted to invite you! If you are a Pinterest user, check out their boards! http://pinterest.com/debce/ http://pinterest.com/akstout18/

Our guest this week is Michele Price, aka @ProsperityGal. Since 1982 Michele has looked for creative and innovative answers giving her businesses the edge over competitors. Having gone toe to toe in multiple male oriented industries in 2008, she started an online-internet radio show Breakthrough Business Strategies radio which grew into the media company Breakthrough Business Strategies bringing straight forward advice for business today.  She was recognized as one of the top ten influencers at Blogworld LA and advises her clients how to get that kind of media coverage. Michele will share what she believes are missed opportunities to leverage social media in business. How do businesses think and miss opportunities to leverage their media coverage whether it is traditional or social media. What are untraditional solutions in these untraditional business times?   Social links: http://www.twitter.com/prosperitygal http://www.linkedin.com/in/micheleprice https://www.facebook.com/#!/SocialMediaForSmartPeople htt

Join us as we discuss how to prepare for what is to come in social media! Social networks, blogs, email, portals, instant messaging, crowd sourcing...oh my! Follow along by opening AK's slideshare presentation via this link as we discuss social media developments in the real-time economy. Call us and share how you manage all the platforms and what you believe is next!  

We are thrilled to have special guest, Kate Groom, Partner at Smart Franchise and Owner of Starfish Consulting, joining us this week all the way from Australia! Kate is an experienced and insightful business consultant, faciliator, and speaker with over 20 years of leadership, business and coaching experience. Her experience includes benchmarking, franchise operations, marketing and business strategy and she knows what it takes to get things done in the real world! Kate has established benchmarking and performance improvement programs in franchises, helping lead through periods of growth and change. During this week's show, we will tackle topics such as how to manage time, money, distractions and all of the obstacles that may stand in the way of effective social media use.

Nicole Plescher, Digital Catalyst for 919 Marketing will join AK and Deb this week to discuss building a socal strategy that's right for your franchise. How to manage and encourage franchisee adoption, control/influence, franchisee engagement and how to measure success/return on the social engagement. Twitter: https://twitter.com/nicoleanne

The IFA (International Franchise Association) convention was a huge success  in Orlando FL. Deb was joined by 3k other franchise industry attendees and returned home with a renewed passion for the use of social media in franchising.  Join AK as she speaks with Deb and guests Al Lautenslager and Lorri Wyndham.  Find out what they enjoyed most from Guy Kawasaki, who was the closing speaker for the convention. What will it mean to have Facebook and Google as the newest IFA members? Al Lautenslager: Speaker, Best-Selling Author and Consultant at Guerilla Marketing. Lorri  Wyndham: Operations Manager for Computer Explorers.

We are excited to have a self-described "Gagetista", Bonnie Sharon as the guest of Social Geek Radio this week! Bonnie also known as "Cellular Chloe" provides straightforward reviews of wireless devices and "how to" videos which have made her a favorite on the Web. Her popularity is simple to understand: she knows her stuff, respects the audience, listens to them and tells the truth. Bonnie is the Director of Social Media for Wireless Zone. Wireless Zone has become the nation's largest wireless retail franchisor and was ranked #1 in its category by Entrepreneur magazine. Every store is independently owned and operated, exclusively offering Verizon Wireless products and services. Many computer and cell phone operating systems are using cloud computing now, making it easier to access your data anywhere, anytime. Bonnie will talk about the benefits of using the cloud, the dangers involved, and what users should keep in mind. http://www.linkedin.com/in/bonniesharon http://blog.wirelesszone.com/http://www.cellula

  Joining us this week is Brent Alvord, President of Lenny’s Sub Shop Brent will share how social media continues to be such an integral part of their company strategy for 2012. If fact, Lenny’s constantly hosts unique contests and giveaways via its social media channels, which is why they have grown to more than 62,000 fans on Facebook.   Lenny’s continually reaches out to their networks to show worth in remaining a fan of the brand by launching referral programs, such as its new Cash Rewards Program that will pay its Substantial Rewards members, Facebook fans, or anyone else for that matter, $10,000 for each referral that decides to open a new shop.     ABOUT LENNY’S SUB SHOPS Lenny’s Sub Shop features AWESOME half pound subs with premium meats sliced to order and Authentic Philly Cheesesteaks served hot off the grill.  Lenny's commitment to quality and fast, friendly service has helped Lenny's to become one of the most admired sub sandwich chains.  Lenny's Sub Shop continues expanding with great fran

We have the pleasure speaking with Liberty Harper, Director of Business Development at Aviatech. Aviatech is an interactive and digital marketing agency to direct new business development in the franchise industry. Liberty is experienced as both a franchisee as well as a franchisor, and understands all aspects of the franchise industry. Previous to founding and managing the 65 unit Liberty Fitness franchise until 2007, Liberty served as a double franchise co-owner with Curves International alongside her parents beginning in 1998, receiving the prestigious Franchisee of Year Award in 1999. In today's modern marketplace, it takes exceptional creativity, uncompromising passion & infallible instincts to get noticed. Liberty will share tips on how to rise above the clutter.  Liberty will also share her tips on how to maximize attendance to conferences and conventions. http://www.aviatech.com http://www.linkedin.com/in/libertyharper https://twitter.com/libertyharper

Our guest this week is Anita Wehnert from ReadyTalk.ReadyTalk provides audio and web conferencing services that are highly reliable. affordable and best of all, easy to use!  As Director of Product Marketing, Anita is focused on talking to customers about their needs and translating these into priorities for the ReadyTalk product roadmap. Before joining ReadyTalk, she gained first-hand experience with the challenges of running a webinar program while serving as director of marketing at an IT analyst firm. When she's not thinking about conferencing, she likes to do yoga and spend time with her dogs. Twitter:  @AnitaWehnert. ReadyTalk: http://www.readytalk.com/about      

This week we welcome Allison Shaw, Social Media Specialist for Qdoba Restaurants. Qdoba offers fresh, made-to-order Mexican food. The company operates Qdoba Mexican Grill, the #2 quick-casual Mexican chain behind market leader Chipotle Mexican Grill, with about 500 locations in 40 states. The eateries offer a selection of signature burritos, along with tacos, salads, nachos, and breakfast items. More than 150 of the restaurants are company-owned, while the rest are franchised. Allison will share how she manages 107k likes on Facebook and 5k followers on Twitter and the social marketing strategies of local Qdoba Restaurants. http://www.linkedin.com/in/allisonshaw http://www.facebook.com/QdobaMexicanGrill Twitter: @qdobamexgrill

Part 2!

Our first guest for 2012 comes from Australia! Diane Leonard is an online marketer and social media enthusiast. She has 15 years experience in marketing having worked in a wide variety of industries including franchising. In late 2010, she started Social Franchising, a networking group to encourage people in franchising to get started and get better at using social media. The group meets monthly at a local pub in Sydney to celebrate social media success stories, learn from guest speakers and get inspired by their franchising peers. http://linkedin.com/DianeLeonard http://twitter.com/SMinFranchising http://www.facebook.com/SMinFranchising

  Join AK and Deb as they recap what happened in social media in 2011. What will the trends be for 2012? What conference should you be aware of? What platforms are still active and where should you be connected? What tools should be in your toolkit. This will be the last show of the year and the last time AK can “Geek It Out”, She has some really cool sites to share! The World of Social Media 2011 video link here Conferences for 2012:  http://jackmonson.com/pr-social-media-conferences-calendar/