Disqus - Latest Comments for jljohansen

Re: How to Get Demand Generation and Content Teams Working Together

jljohansen — Tue, 15 Jul 2014 15:36:44 -0000

Thank you for writing this post Jesse. Demand Gen needs to realize that content is not just for top of funnel activities. There are so many ways to re-use or re-purpose content that moves people down the funnel. Automation should open up more opportunities to use content as people move through different stages.

Re: 10 Things I Learned In 2013: The Year Of The Existential Speedbump

jljohansen — Wed, 29 Jan 2014 10:17:31 -0000

Nice post Chris.
I had the same experience in 2012 - pursued a career change that I really wanted to do but ended up not working out either time. Would I trade those experiences for something steady but not as interesting, challenging, or exciting? No, no I would not.

Re: Why You’re Not Speaking At That Conference

jljohansen — Wed, 22 Jan 2014 15:27:52 -0000

Just thought I would let you know Russ that this post has inspired me to submit a proposal to a conference. I may not get accepted, but it starts to shift the inertia towards doing these things rather than making excuses for not doing them.

Re: where I’ve been

jljohansen — Wed, 31 Jul 2013 11:06:04 -0000

Glad to hear that you didn't get hurt, though that would still be a frightening ordeal. Take care.

Re: Marketing is Nearly Dead and It’s Partly Hubspot’s Fault but Mostly Ours

jljohansen — Mon, 10 Dec 2012 11:47:34 -0000

I agree with quite a bit of this, Russ. Marketing is (should be?) an actual profession in which skills and experience make a difference. Seeing it as the oft fallback when other career paths seem too hard is discouraging.

You've hit something real with your analysis of the selling of the 4 Ps. Specialization has hit the Org chart in a way that makes people think about "marketing" in the context of promotion, and built silos around the other areas as different departments have absorbed them. I don't have a solution for this, other than to encourage marketers to network within their own companies and try to get some back-channels to at least be informed of these other areas. Maybe with concentrated efforts we can take them back.

I do feel that I should come to the defense of HubSpot. Their products aren't really for marketers. They make microphones (to take your analogy) and hand them out to small business owners that wouldn't otherwise know where to find one. They aren't trying to provide depth, just amplification. There are plenty of companies that can get by at that level. But, if we want to really rock as marketers, we need to go beyond that.

Re: Welcome Sam Eder to the Austin Anthill!

jljohansen — Mon, 20 Jun 2011 11:43:49 -0000

Congratulations Sam. We're going to miss you here at CL. But, I know that you're going to rock over there at Ant's Eye View too. Good Luck with it all!

Re: Filters

jljohansen — Thu, 05 May 2011 13:32:33 -0000

"I’m still considering what this means for companies? Do they show competitor’s products along with their own in their curated streams? Or perhaps highlight the occasional negative review to reinforce their commitment to authenticity? I would love your thoughts."

This is where the conflict inherent is so much of social media rears it's head again. The purposes of the business and the consumer aren't aligned.

The purpose of business curation is persuasion. Maybe not persuading your customer to buy something, but certainly to think of you in a certain way, or associate you with a category or concept. So even if highlighting a competitor, the purpose is to point back to the company in a way that adds to their credibility.

The purpose of the kind of personal curation you talk about in your post is to challenge the way you think. Including information that runs contrary to your inclinations isn't about persuading you to change what you think, but make you think a little deeper. That kind of challenging content works well to make us acknowledge there is another point of view -- even if we don't agree with it.

Coming back to business, the challenge of curation is that companies want to stick with persuasion becoming their own filter bubble for what drives their customers towards a final purchase action.

And so the question becomes: Do companies become the filter through which we explore non-commercial thought?
Do I go to Kodak when I want to consider Photography and expect that they will curate a comprehensive and challenging stream for me to explore?

Re: U.S. Military Blocks 13 Popular Websites on Its Network in Japan

jljohansen — Wed, 16 Mar 2011 13:37:39 -0000

The title for this post sensationalizes the topic and draws attention away from the real point -- the US Military is trying to help the Japanese recovery effort.

CNN has a better, and more accurate, title.

Re: Why I Quit Twitter

jljohansen — Thu, 10 Mar 2011 11:11:04 -0000

What keeps me on Twitter are the clients that let me focus the stream. I don't mind following a fair amount of people overall, but most of the time I'm more interested in what people I know are doing. It gives me a way to keep up with them even when I don't have the chance to see them.

So if you're going off Twitter, I'll have to make sure that I see you around town instead.

Re: How To Nail a Job Interview (And Actually Get The Job)

jljohansen — Wed, 15 Sep 2010 15:06:07 -0000

I like the point about being candid about failure. I've made conscious decisions in my career to focus on areas that I know are my strengths. When I've taken roles that focus on those strengths, I'm able to overcome the challenges and roadblocks that come up.

Showing a positive outcome to a difficult situation, even if it included an initial failure, can be an excellent way to build credibility during an interview.

Re: Greg Matthews - Social Business from the Inside

jljohansen — Thu, 04 Jun 2009 11:11:58 -0000

Having that vision and working towards an ultimate goal is a great point. It helps keep perspective when innovation doesn't work out because you're not doing it as an end to itself.

I'm looking forward to Humana continuing to share what works and how you're able to continue using the town model to change the way you do business.

Re: Chris Kieff - Best Practices for Listening and Engaging in Social Networks

jljohansen — Thu, 04 Jun 2009 11:06:35 -0000

When talking about the human side of social media, that is such a great point. So often we talk in the negative about not being SM robot or spammer.

It's a great reminder that when we are being human, and engaging with other humans, the Golden Rule is one of the first things we should be making sure we follow.

Re: Panel - Listening and Monitoring: The New Way to Market

jljohansen — Thu, 04 Jun 2009 11:04:50 -0000

I'm glad that I made the short trip up to Dallas. It's always good to get a perspective from other people and companies that are doing things in the space.

Re: How Much Bailout Do You Deserve? | About

jljohansen — Wed, 18 Mar 2009 10:58:41 -0000

I can't believe I'm only worth 3 million. I think that you need to work on your "making up numbers" skills.

This is a great concept. Thanks for the fun.

Re: No Video Day 5: Social Medium

jljohansen — Tue, 23 Dec 2008 01:53:12 -0000

Shelly, thanks for the comment. I find your point very interesting that rather than being a social connector you feel television is more of a gloss. It's easier to talk with someone about a show you already know the history of than engage in real conversation about life that would require you to really listen to what the other person is saying.