As many of you probably know by now that I am very active on Twitter and believe in that medium personally a lot.
As one of my objectives is to bring best practices to make all our Helpers successful with and through the best marketing channels, I requested Nik, a resident of England and whom I 'met' on Twitter a while ago and follow closely, to share his thoughts and best practices with all our Helpers on how he leverages social media as a Helper with a focus on Twitter since I was impressed by his use of it.
MD - Tell us a little about your self and your expertise with technology and what you help with.
NB: I have been involved in IT support and System administration since 1990 where I worked as the HelpDesk support guy at Lloyds Bank Insurance Services. Back then it was supporting DOS on IBM PC XTs and ATs and wordprocessors were Samba printing to dot matrix printers. My Career has covered Application Development of Enterprise systems for a Large highsteet Retailer in the UK and over 9 years ago I went self employed to promote an awareness of Open Source Software. More recently my commentaries on the use of Social Networks and Social Media in business have lead me into a more Marketing and Web strategy role for a variety of marketing, civil engineering and sustainability clients.
In short if you need a developer, a system administrator, an analyst a consultant or just an Answer I have become known as the goto guy to get more than a solution from.
MD: I know you are a big fan of CrossLoop. What makes CrossLoop so attractive to you?
NB: What CrossLoop lets me do is provide a clear indication of the quality of service I can provide. Unlike other packages providing remote support I can use CrossLoop to advertise my services and to demonstrate my 'credibility'. For a prospective client this means they can rate my reliability, my feedback and my response before making a buying decision.
Being able to take the CrossLoop badge into other social networks is,in my opinion, a big tick in the 'credibility' box beyond the mere listing of Certifications and exams passed. I like to think of the CrossLoop badge as a certificate of credibility assuring clients that I have consistently delivered Answers.
Everytime I do a support call with a client and I use CrossLoop I communicate clearly at the beginning and at the end of the call that I want them to answer the Questionnaire at the end of the session since it will adds to my value.
A note here for the CrossLoop guys it would be an excellent incentive to offer a percentage off the bill if the client answers the questionnaire.
MD: Our Helpers would really like to know about some of your best practices in building your brand in social media. Can you share some of them?
NB: Consistency is key, having the same name on every site certainly makes it easier for people to recognise you when they encounter your content be it on Facebook, Twitter, Phreadz or 12 seconds. Your Blog is going to be important as a communication tool but dont forget the reason for your outward communication is to build inward relationships. I have constantly found that work comes to me faster when other people on those networks are singing your praises.
Again the CrossLoop service which allows people to rate my delivery adds to that value.
Here is Nik's 12seconds from July 24, 2008 (and No - I did not tell him to do this :)
MD: Any other insights or observations that you might want to share with our Helpers?
NB: Dont forget that to make use of Skype whilst on the support call after all its going to keep your communication costs lower than being on a phone. I have found I have been able to handle a crossloop session along side a Skype conversation over a 1/2Mbit ADSL Service and experienced no latency issues.
One aspect of Crossloop so far undersold has been the benefit of training. Using screen capture software (I use Camstudio) whilst working on a problem allows you to go back and annotate the issues and explain the answers you can then repost this to your client if they need a gentle nudge.
MD: Finally and very importantly, tell us about Twitter and how you use it along with CrossLoop
NB: If you follow me on Twitter here (http://www.twitter.com/loudmouthman) you will see that as well as being a blogger (http://www.loudmouthman.com) and a support professional (http://www.crossloop.com/loudmouthman), I am an Opinioneer who listens and communicates a wide variety of topics to an even larger community of friends, associates and readers.
Twitter provides the broadcast medium that allows me to listen to trends and influences as well as communicate ideas and answers. Where a Blog post will go into detail or highlight an issue the Twitter format allows me to simulate that over the desk in the office conversation of talking to others. Its an instant idea drop into the ocean of awareness that lets me connect with many, many people who know how to respond.
For me it is an improvement on Forums and IRC ( Internet Relay Chat ) because I can choose whom I follow and listen to and in turn individuals can tune in or out to my own content. Theres no over ruling entity dictating the themes or topics and everyone is free to apply the rule of two feet [1] to the networks.
Through Twitter I have provided a connection to provide support via Crossloop (and other tools) to people connected to me. In turn their praise and comments on twitter create new followers and attract more attention to my content, my blog and my twitter stream. There is something about that moment you see someone say "Ask @loudmouthman He is bound to help" that lends itself to wanting to do more.
Twitters search feature (search.twitter.com) provides an additional tool with which I can identify people who might be seeking support. Just enter some of these keywords to find people asking for help "Help php", "Help Windows", "Wordpress problem" you can grab these results as a RSS Feed and keep an ear to the crowd listening for that one cry of help. [See my prior post SOS: Twitter Users Need CrossLoop Helpers]
Whilst I am just a guy sitting in a shed in the middle of Sussex in the UK. The Internet, via Twitter and Crossloop and Skype has enabled me to reachacross continents and oceans and into strangers Computers to answer their questions and earn their appreciation and their positive comments.
I cant think of a better collection of tools for any enterprising freelancer today.
1] The Rule of Two feet stipulates that if you are neither contributing or learning then you are free to use your own two feet and go elsewhere
Finally - If you read this interview and want to engage my services I am offering a 10% discount if you quote CL-Interview when completing the online questionnaire. Contact me on my CrossLoop profile here
A big thank you from all of us at CrossLoop for sharing this with everyone and the initiative to help others make the most of their expertise.
Good Afternoon, Good Luck and if you want to follow me on Twitter, click here.
PS - Keep an eye on Neil Connors on Twitter who seems to be doing all the right things as a CrossLoop Helper (including using his CrossLoop URL on his profile there). Follow Neil on Twitter here or contact him on his CrossLoop Profile here.
If you are doing some neat things as a CrossLoop Helper on Twitter, or know of one, and want to share it here on our blog, contact me on Twitter, on CrossLoop or via email - mrinal at crossloop dot com
[email protected] U R the man!!!!!!!!!!! Stay in the loop, U Great Tech Wizzard, thanks again, my Brother from another Mother. If anyone needs Technical Computer support, email Harlan above..........
Posted by: mike | March 03, 2009 at 11:32 PM