"What is it that you do as a social media manager?" " What type of social media do you do"?

I get those two questions equally from people outside the social media industry and from my social media peers as well.

I think those questions are fair and give me an opportunity to offer insights into my role and responsibilities as a social media manager at a large entreprise organization.

If you still have questions for me, I would love to discuss further. Catch me on Twitter @KarimaCatherine or leave me a comment here.

I attended Deloitte Canada's 50 Best Managed companies symposium.

One of the takeaway from the long-day event was Malcolm Gladwell's keynote. 

He addressed the first-movers' advantage and essentially looked at innovation through the lenses of inventors, implementers, and tweakers.

Source : http://adage.com/article/adagestat/demographics-retail/233399/

Women and mentoring 

Source : Linkedin 

A Comscore report revealed that only 6% of smartphone users scan QR codes. That equates to approximately 14 million users in the United States. 

Marketers and businesses are constantly trying to find new way to gain visibility with their audience. This, in the hope to be the chosen one when there is a transaction. The consumer buying process is complex and requires more than a series of isolated and silloed tactics. 

Below, numbers that will illustrate QR codes adoption:

Figure 1

What are your thoughts? Do you think QR codes can go mainstream at all? Do you think QR code can actually be reserved to a specific segment of the businesses and brand? What about customers, are they ready to start scanning away?

Image1:

Source image 2:  Not sure but I borrowed it somewhere.

Below, are presented a few of Netflix management philosophy :

• No vacation policy (take as much as you want, as long as you're doing a great job and covering your responsibilities).

• "Outstanding" employees only--doing an "adequate" job leads to your getting a "generous severance package," so the company can hire an A-player in your place.

• "Freedom and responsibility" vs command-and-control: Good managers give their employees the right context in which to make decisions--and then the employees make the decisions.

• No "brilliant jerks" -- Star performers who also happen to be hell to work with are sent packing.

What do you think? 

Source : http://www.businessinsider.com/netflix-culture-management-presentation-2011-7

A new logo and new products, Starbucks is displaying its colours just in time for Spring.  Sitting at my favourite Starbucks in Montreal (more precisely, in St-Laurent), I have witnessed, first-hand, the changes in branding, I've read about on the Web. The "solo" siren logo on the cups and merchandising, the mini cupcakes, the tribute coffee and the launch of Howard Schultz new book. 

I love my Starbucks. It has definitely been a 3rd place 

- a corner stone -  in my daily routine. Everything from the delicious green matcha tea to the fun and friendly staff is appealing to me. 

Why I chose this Starbucks and no other:

This location won my business over the 36 other Starbucks I could go to. It won my business over all the Second cups and Tim Hortons in the area. Not because of social media, although Starbucks is cons

tantly topping the lists of best companies in social media. Social media for Starbucks is part of their customer relationship strategy. Social media does not replace quality and delivery of the promise.This Starbucks place delivers an amazing experience. Every time.

It took me a long time to wrap myself around paying $4.50 for a medium latté. I would occasionally get green tea at Second Cup and Tim Hortons. Until a cold winter morning when I needed a warm tea to try to sooth my cold. That was IT. that place was everything I thought Starbucks should be and I quickly got hooked on the place. The staff works tirelessly to make it my favourite work and hangout place in Montreal. I attribute this new holistic addiction to one factor:

SERVICE !  

Customer experience is Achille's heel of most brick and mortar and online stores. Although an impressive 85 % say they would be willing to pay more over the standard price of a good or service to ensure a superior customer experience.   

Customer service is how Starbucks won me over. Simple and basic in concept but complex to actually successfully implement. Frontline staff professionalism and generosity. Forget the scripted robotic verbatim that is taught over training sessions. The staff here takes it personally to do well their job and satisfy clients. Every time.

What generally pushes customers away is the lack of consistency between staff members. Whether brick and mortar or online, customers like to connect with staff. We like this relative sense of familiarity where we're recognized, acknowledged and valued. 

Business efficiency is important. Numbers count and are crucial to the financial survival of any business. Being friendly is probably not in the job description of the typical barista but it drives loyalty and thus, repeat sales. The Sales district manager must be freaking out when he comes in and sees the "community" of regular customers chatting away with the staff. If I were the Sales district manager, I would reward this Starbucks team.  They manage to bring in the same people over and over. The new ones come back. Some customers come over 3 times a day to get a coffee. Some drive 30 miles and more to spend the day working here. 

We can get coffee or tea anywhere. But the warmth of this place is unique and this is what keeps me coming back! Every time

Thanks to Marcel and team! (I've included a few snapshots of the stars of the place)

Diversity, fun and relevance!  Great to watch it evern after the real wedding!