facebook

Is Social Media More Important than Medical Technology?

May 23, 2012 By lroberson Leave a Comment

Did you know that the seven big Facebook holders, including Mark Zuckerberg, Dustin Moskovitz, and Sean Parker, hold shares totaling $25 billion? By comparison, all the 12 health care billionaires on last year’s issue of the Forbes 400 Richest People in America had a combined net worth of a measly $28 billion.

Forbes’ Matthew Herper concludes, “There’s not really much doubt: if you want to reach the upper echelons of wealth, creating a social networking site is a better bet than inventing a drug.” Sound depressing? Never fear, He had some suggestions as to how the medical device industry could change so that entrepreneurs might break through the glass ceiling and enter the upper stratum of the mega wealthy:

De-emphasize drugs. Right now research in medicine is often centered around medicines. Leland Hartwell, the Nobel laureate who used to run the Fred Hutchison Cancer Institute, used to complain that we could make more progress in cancer by focusing on diagnostics.
Innovate toward disruption: Right now it might cost $2 billion or more and a decade to invent a drug that’s ready to give to people, but does that have to be the case for every drug?
Make more research “pre-competitive:” Too much of the science done at drug companies is locked up inside the silo of a single drug giant, not allowing the free exchange of ideas that leads to real innovations.
Change the way patents work: In the tech business, a device can be protected by hundreds of patents. In the drug industry, you’ve really only got one, and it has a twenty-year life span. Often, by the time it hits the market, half the patent life is gone. In many cases, the true usefulness and the side effects of a medicine are not apparent until after it becomes generic.

I personally love facebook. I use it every day. I post pictures and videos of my kids and keep in touch with people that I probably never would know how to contact if it weren’t for facebook. However, it seems to me that saving lives and making things that improve people’s quality of living should be worth more than the convenience of being able to share a picture of your kid in his Halloween costume with someone you haven’t seen since high school 25 years ago.

Filed Under: All, Medical Device - General Tagged With: facebook, medical device, medical device product development, product development, Technology

March 31, 2010 – Tribeswell Seminar

March 23, 2010 By bderam Leave a Comment

Tribeswell Seminar

The seminar will focus on some new and exciting tactics for using social media to grow your business.

When? March 31 – 10am – 12pm
Where? Bloomington Country Club, Bloomington, IN (map)
What? A marketing seminar that teaches you to use social media tools like Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and Blogs to dramatically grow your business.
Cost? $20 per person, but you may bring a guest for free!

About the Instructor
Colin Clark is the owner of Tribeswell, an interactive design and marketing company based out of Bloomington, IN.Â He has been obsessed with the marketing implications of social media for the past few years and loves sharing his expertise with people like you!

Click here to register NOW!

Filed Under: Events Tagged With: Bloomington, Business, Colin Clark, facebook, indiana, linkedin, Marketing, Marketing and Advertising, social media, Social network, Tribeswell, twitter

Social Media Behaviors That Won’t Win Customers

March 12, 2010 By bderam Leave a Comment

7 social media behaviors that won’t win you customers

(via Conversation Agent by Valeria Maltoni on 2/28/10)

you have a blog, or a Twitter account, or a Facebook fan page and still don’t understand that the Internet or the world wide web is the context, not your brand
you’re pushing your message at specific users without a connection — one thing is being syndicated by people who want to pull your feeds, the other is pushing to them, do you understand the difference?
you’re not prepared to address potential issues in real time — visibility and connections in a two-way medium come at a risk
you’re all over the place, yet there isn’t a coordinated effort behind it — seeing what sticks is not a marketing strategy in 2010
you’re not looking for your fans and evangelists — or you want to make them conform to your idea of social
you focus on changing what people say by talking at them, locking them out, or positioning them as crazy when they aren’t, instead of looking inwards and changing your business practices as appropriate
you want to interact with customers, when all customers want from you is a great transaction — put shopping carts everywhere, and support those transactions

Filed Under: All, Strategy vs. Tactics Tagged With: brand, Business, facebook, Marketing strategy, Mass media, social media, Social network, twitter, Valeria Maltoni

Facebook as a Business Strategy? C’mon man!

February 8, 2010 By bderam 3 Comments

Last week I met with Brooke DeRam of Tomato Fish Marketing and she was giving me a run down of a webinar she had listened to from Duct Tape Marketing, “Facebook for Small Business“. Basically, the gist was that every small business needs to be on Facebook. After looking at her notes, my comment was:

“I get the conventional wisdom: FB = 350M people. But c’mon man!”

Facebook is a great way to keep in touch or reach out to friends, but as a marketing strategy it’s pretty weak.

Read Brooke’s post on FB as a marketing strategy.

Filed Under: All, Connect, Strategy vs. Tactics Tagged With: Duct Tape Marketing, facebook, Marketing and Advertising, Online Communities, Small business, social media, Social network

Twitter is NOT a marketing strategy.

January 22, 2010 By bderam 4 Comments

From the Nonprofit Marketing & PR page on Smaller Indiana:

Comment by Amy Stark on January 6, 2010 at 2:37pm
“If non-profits in Central #Indiana want their mission to be widely known, the most cost effective way is with a rock solid twitter strategy. Yes. I said it. Twitter strategy NOT social media strategy. No one will pay you a donation before they pay you ATTENTION, and I have yet to encounter a non-profit in Indianapolis with a comprehensive understanding of twitter’s influence and potential.

I wrote a passionate blog yesterday, at the end I wrote: “The Internet is far too fluid to predict the popularity of the next hot product or platform with any certainty. Last year’s My Space is this year’s facebook. But I’m 5 Nines Sure* I’ll read about the next hot product or platform on twitter first.”

Comment by Jon D. Speer on January 9, 2010 at 12:36am
“I’ve read some of the previous comments, and respectively, I disagree. Nonprofits need a holistic marketing strategy–not just social media and twitter.”

Comment by Joe Dager on January 9, 2010 at 12:46a
“Jon, I think everyone on this thread would agree with you. Social Media alone is a failed strategy. If I implied anything of the sort, I was wrong. Social Media allows you to extend offline communications online and if you are not allowing your online to be extended offline, more than likely you are in trouble.”

Comment by Chad Pollitt on January 9, 2010 at 1:05am
“Sorry Joe, but I disagree. Everything depends on the target demographic. Marketing on the web is no different that way back in the middle ages when the town crier went to the town square and rang his bell to promote the blacksmith. He went to the town square because that’s where the people were. If your target demographic is on social media than that’s where the campaign should be.”

Comment by Amy Stark on January 9, 2010 at 7:26pm
“Social media platforms come and go, but the basic 140 characters sent via Internet Protocol globally – at the speed of light – at the grassroots level will not go away. Just like the telephone never went away, or microwave ovens.”

As you can see there are mixed messages based on the comments taken from Smaller Indiana above. But I stick to my guns and say, organizations (for profit and nonprofit) need a HOLISTIC marketing strategy–just ask Tomato Fish Marketing (TFM).

TFM has put together a complete marketing system that helps organizations build strong marketing foundations. Once you’ve built a solid foundation through a holistic strategy, you are better equipped to work on the tactical side of marketing such as Twitter, and other social media tools. “Drop them a line” to learn more.

Disagree? Great, post a comment and let’s have an open dialogue.

Filed Under: Catalyst, Community, Planning, Strategy vs. Tactics Tagged With: Amy Stark, facebook, foundation, indianapolis, MySpace, Non-profit organization, social media, Social Networking, strategy vs. tactice, tomato fish marketing, TOMI System, twitter

Social Media Is A Marketing Tactic–Not A Strategy

January 9, 2010 By Jon Speer 3 Comments

I’m tired of reading articles, blog posts, tweets, etc. suggesting that businesses need a social media expert and a social media strategy. I’m sorry, but I don’t agree.

Businesses need a marketing strategy. And yes, the marketing strategy should consider use of social media. But isn’t social media one of MANY marketing tactics?

Filed Under: All, Catalyst, Strategy vs. Tactics Tagged With: Business, facebook, Marketing, Marketing strategy, social media, tiwitter

January 8, 2010 – Embracing Social Media: What, How, Why Not (TechPoint)

December 20, 2009 By Jon Speer Leave a Comment

TechPoint New Economy New Rules

Presented by:

JanuaryÂ 8: Embracing Social Media:
What, How, Why Not.

Type of Event:		New Economy New Rules Series
Event Duration:		Friday, January 8, 2010 8:00 a.m.Â - 9:30 a.m. ADD THIS EVENT TO OUTLOOK CALENDAR
Location of Event:		Barnes & Thornburg LLP 5th Flr Auditorium, 11 S Meridian, Indianapolis
Address of Event:		Other Barnes & Thornburg LLP offices in Elkhart, Fort Wayne and South Bend; and sometimes available in Barnes & Thornburg LLP offices in Chicago, Grand Rapids and Washington DC.
		Also in cooperating facilities in Anderson, Evansville, Hammond, Kokomo, Merrillville, Muncie, New Albany, Switz City/Greene County, Terre Haute, Vincennes, and West Lafayette.
Registration:		There is no charge to attend, but please register for this event! REGISTER FOR THEÂ JAN.8Â EVENT If you register and become unable to attend, please email jodie.daugherty@btlaw.com
Topic:		Twitter and Facebook:Â How young adults are shaping tomorrowâ€™s businessâ€”and why it doesnâ€™t have to just be young adults. For the last few years social media has set the Internet on fire, dramatically changing how teenagers and young adults interact, and now the ways in which corporations are forced to do business. But as the digital landscape now changes to include a generation unfamiliar with such technological advances, it leaves most questioning what they have to contribute. Join us for this first of our three-part series where youâ€™ll be introduced to the rapidly changing world of social media and what you (and your business) can do to include it in your marketing and development strategies.
Speakers:		Kelli Schmith Marketing Strategist Karmic Boom When business owners struggle to get the value of social media, Kelli uses a Will Rogers quote to make it simple to grasp. â€œNever miss a good chance to shut upâ€ frames social mediaâ€™s power as a conduit for customers to speak for you. Â â€œThe aha moment arrives for executives when they realize social media means their own marketing generates less noise, not more,â€ she says. Kelliâ€™s strategic marketing firm, Karmic Boom, helps companies change the way they attract new customers and engage the ones they have. Her 18-year corporate career began in technology publishing, where she served global marketing and sales roles at Macmillan Publishing, Simon & Schuster, and IDG Books. Locally, Kelli served in management roles at Langham Logistics, REVERSE 911, and Sigma Micro. â€œIâ€™m all about grass-roots, love-your-customer mentality. Â Marketers who share that philosophy will be the first to reap the rewards of social technology.â€ You can follow Kelli (@MarketingVeep) on Twitter and connect with her via LinkedIn. She liberally shares ideas, resources and personal lessons on her blog, DigDeepThinker.com.

Filed Under: Events Tagged With: Barnes & Thornburg, facebook, linkedin, new economy new rules, Social network, techpoint, twitter

Another Whiteboard Strategy Session That You Missed

July 31, 2009 By Jon Speer Leave a Comment

Creo Quality and Tomato Fish Marketing have been teaming up by offering FREE Whiteboard Strategy Sessions. This month’s session was on the topic of social media. We talked about common tools like twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, Smaller Indiana, and blogs.

Chances are that you missed it. However, you can check out some videos from the session (part 1, part 2, part 3).

Social media is VERY powerful. If you are new to social media, start small because it’s easy to get sucked in and lose track of time. Develop a strategy (which Tomato Fish can help with) of which social media tools to use, when to use them, and how to use them. Realize that social media is not likely to go away any time soon. Realize that the tools we use today may be gone in a few years, though. Social media is a great way to stay connected and to share your message to a larger universe.

We’ll be offering these sessions every month. Be sure to subscribe to the RSS feed to get updates on these events. You can also sign up to receive our monthly e-newsletter (fill out your contact info on the left-hand side of the website). Check the CQ video page and subscribe to the Creo Quality YouTube channel to see videos from these sessions and more.

People you should follow:

Brooke DeRam

Garth Smitman

Janet Schwind

Filed Under: All, Strategy vs. Tactics Tagged With: facebook, linkedin, smaller indiana, social media, strategy, tomato fish, twitter

Is Social Media More Important than Medical Technology?

Archives

news categories

catalyst enewsletter archives

eNews Sign Up

Creo Quality YouTube

Latest Tweets

Footer #4 Widget