Today is Book Lovers Day and is celebrated each year around the world on this date. It is an unofficial holiday that celebrates reading and advises people to put away their smartphones and all other tech distractions, and instead, pick up a book to read (of course, people CAN read books on their tablets). Closely aligned with books is the world of communication, and thus, this appropriately-themed Q&A.
To quote Matthew Kobach (@mkobach), "Twitter is a key that unlocks thousands of doors, some of which you never even knew existed." As a member of the Twitterverse for almost 13 years, I always enjoy meeting new people and learning from them. I recently connected with Rich Perry and invited him to appear here on my Blog in a Q&A format. Highlights of our conversation follow a brief introduction.
Rich Perry is a Communication Strategist. He helps to build brands that customers will trust. He co-authored Bankroll Your Mind (an International #1 Best Seller) and was a contributing author in three books focusing on personal development. He is currently writing a book for Freemasons that will focus on leadership and personal development; and he's also a writer for Entrepreneur and other online publications.
QUESTION: What attracted you to the field of communications?
RICH PERRY: I’ve always been interested in communication, as far back as my teenage years when I was an active Boy Scout. I was the one volunteering to take speaking roles at camp, train the new scouts, or create a presentation. In college, I became active in the college radio station, which took on a different mode of communication. It has continued to grow from there.
I love being able to connect with people to share ideas, meaningful messages, or inspiring stories. I also like helping people to share their important messages with others. This could mean helping someone launch their branded business blog, provide tips that enable someone to rock their first podcast interview, or offer coaching to empower someone to deliver an impactful presentation in a professional setting.
There are so many forms of communication. There’s the spoken word or a message written down. We can communicate through video or podcasts. Plus, social media and its many new features allow us to connect and share ideas in ways that weren’t possible just a few years ago.
QUESTION: In a post for Entrepreneur, you explained five ways to build digital trust. Of the five, which do you consider the most important, and why?
(Read the full post here: https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/379903)
RICH PERRY: I consider them all to be important, each for a different reason. But if I had to choose just one, then I’ll go with the first item which is to be trustworthy.
Spend a decent amount of time online and you’re sure to come across internet marketers and so-called gurus or experts who want to show you pictures of luxurious homes, fancy cars, and of course, snapshots of impressive bank accounts. But if you do a little digging or you’re in the right social circles, you learn that it’s just smoke and mirrors in many cases.
Being trustworthy is an important part of establishing and building healthy relationships. This is especially important in business. It’s the same whether we’re talking about relationships with customers, employees, colleagues, stakeholders, or viewers in the digital world. We should always conduct ourselves properly in word and deed to earn and maintain the trust of others.
QUESTION: What are your favorite brands, and why?
RICH PERRY: Here are two:
(1) Star Wars: This brand has not only created its own universe for fans to find enjoyment but its own culture as well. On the surface, the masses in the general public loved the movies. But below that, the die-hard fans had an ever-expanding world of content that included novels, comics, and games. Once acquired by Disney, the brand has been creating even more content for the Disney+ streaming service that has had fans sitting on the edge of their seats waiting for the newest installments.
(2) Marvel: Much like Star Wars, this brand has decades worth of content that has kept fans coming back after each new story and asking for more. One of the things I love about this brand is the amount of attention they put into their releases, the level of detail, and the fan service paid to their loyal supporters. Marvel knows what it takes to make their fans smile, and they’re willing to go the extra mile (and even farther!) to please the people.
QUESTION: What's your favorite social media marketing campaign, and why?
RICH PERRY: I’m not sure if this would classify as a campaign, but a few years ago the “ice bucket challenge” took social media by storm. It had everyone participating, and soon afterward, everyone was hopping on the bandwagon to create their own challenges. While they didn’t create the idea of online challenges or interactive campaigns to raise money, they absolutely made an impact, and everyone wanted to duplicate that level of virality and success. This is proof that you don’t need a huge budget to create a successful campaign or movement.
QUESTION: Which social media platform is best for brand-building, and why?
RICH PERRY: That all depends on the brand, where their audience spends the most time, and how they want to communicate information to the intended audience.
If you’re a B2B brand, then a good choice would be LinkedIn. But if you’re B2C or your brand is more fun and visual, then something like Instagram or Snapchat is probably the better option.
The most important thing is knowing where your audience is spending time online and understanding how they like to receive information. Then communicate your information accordingly and encourage them to join the conversation.
Remember the first word in “social media” is social, so it’s important that you create engaging content that your audience will want to interact with. Treat social media as a two-way conversation when you design and execute an online marketing strategy.
TWEET THIS: Know where your audience is spending time online and understand how they like to receive information. ~@CoachRichPerry #SMTips #DebbieLaskeysBlog
How will you celebrate Book Lovers Day? What book will you read today - and what is your fave book of all time? Chime in and share.
Image Credit: AbsolutVision via Unsplash.
Check out Rich's sites:
Website: https://richperry.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/CoachRichPerry
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/coachrichperry
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/coachrichperry
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/richperrycoach
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/coachrichperry
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