Unwinding the cable Jay Baer hits the stage and utters his first words of the night “This is so very Mick Jagger”. Instantly he has my attention. Let me take a step back and give you some background information. I attended The NOW Revolution event put on by Jason Baker, Teri Conrad from Red Barn Group and Kemp Edmonds, hosting Mr. Jay Baer as well as a local panel at Caprice, February 15th.
I have to admit; I have never read Jay’s blog or his book and honestly didn’t know who he was before the event. After you go to so many events they all tend to run together. This on the other hand was an exception! The venue Caprice Nightclub on Granville Street is great for larger speaking events, sound quality was good, visual effects were easy to see, the chairs were even comfortable. These guys knew what they were doing with the set-up! Now back to Jay.
He was funny and witty with a very powerful message including visuals, excellent case studies and some bold quotes, for example “If you don’t love social media, you suck at social media” and “Hire for passion not for resume”. My favorite case studio is about a hotel with the most hilarious bad review. You will have to get the book for the full details.
The part of the message that got my attention as a Public Relations specialist is that twitter is a tool and NOT a strategy, I wholeheartedly agree! He conveyed the importance of building a culture within your business and how connecting with your audience is the key to successful business practices. Stressing the importance of brand management through answering your public as well as taking accountability through apologizing and he delivered his message with clarity and humor.
I am really excited to read the book that came with our ticket that night, another really solid move by this planning committee to learn more about the NOW Revolution. It was refreshing to hear someone eloquently speak on using the tools as part of building brand awareness and sharing culture and not just pump you with scores and numbers.
After Jay finished his portion there was a break and then the panel had a turn to add value. Kemp Edmonds did a really fantastic job of keeping his 4 panel members engaged and giving them questions that allowed them to showcase their particular skills. My two favorite tips came from Erin Gerrity “Take a step back and do an assessment of the big picture” and Shane Gibson “Social Media is not a video game”. There were questions from the audience and some good banter. All in all it was well done!
I would recommend events planned by this committee in the future as well as taking the time to check out Jay online (which I now do) at http://www.convinceandconvert.com/
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