Stay Classy

Stay Classy is what every social organization and non-profit should be using. Use the power of social networks to increase your reach, donations and involvement!

We are all connected, but who are we connected with?

As the social media and social networking landscape is increasing the number of ways that we can “connect” with people, is it taking away from people actually connecting?

Having lived in the days before pagers, cell phones, the Internet, social networks, social media, etc, we remember the days when to meet people, one had to actually meet them. Aside from pen pals and phone calls, there wasn’t too much interaction with people you hadn’t actually met in person.

We see people with 10,000 friends on Facebook or 10,000 followers on Twitter, but do they know all of these people? Unlikely. At some point, the relationships are no longer genuine and the person with all those connections starts to view people as fans rather than friends.

Friends or fans?

We may know what they do, but would we actually want to hang out with the person in person or are they only marginally as interesting in “real life” as the persona they have created online? Social networks, blogs and online communities allow a person to create an image for themselves that is worlds apart from the actual person, but being able to control the message, comments, people make, who can view certain pictures, information on a profile make it so anybody can become a rock star. At least online. People often times connect with as many people as they can because they feel like it raises their actual social status or worth. Have we gotten to the point where we are valued based on the number of connections we have on social networks?

We sure hope not. We do we believe that all people are connected and that we should use social media as a means to spread messages of positivity and positive change.  Arin Vahanian wrote on Super State,  ”Believing in the theory of connectedness brings us: fruitful discussions with others, an avoidance of violence and wars, believing in the goodness of oneself and others, creating and keeping good friendships and relationships, and ultimately creating a better world for oneself and for others….You can be your own person, have your own interests, desires, and goals, but also realize that you are in some way connected to everyone else on this planet. This way, you can have your own life, and also ensure that others have their own lives, but also contribute to a safer, more peaceful, more accepting, and more positive world.”

We couldn’t agree more. So keep connecting and keep sharing.

The social revolution?

The quintessential question for marketing departments and small business owners globally.  With the rapid integration of social media into daily life for anybody who is even remotely using technology for business, the conundrum becomes, how much focus/importance do I put on social media?

The thing to look at now for marketers is how to reach the people that you want to buy your services/products.  People are getting smarter and more savvy in seeing through traditional forms of advertising. Consumers have millions of options of at the click of a mouse, touch of a fingertip or through a personal recommendation that businesses are being forced to change their marketing strategies from talking to their clients to interacting with their clients.  In order to evolve and keep pace with the way people receive messages, the companies that embrace social media are the ones that will thrive in todays business world.

Two-thirds of the world’s Internet population visit social networking or blogging sites, accounting for almost 10% of all internet time, according to a new Nielsen report “Global Faces and Networked Places.” If data captured from December 2007 through December 2008 is any indication, that percentage is likely to grow as time spent on social network and blogging sites is growing more than three times the rate of overall Internet growth.

“Social networking has become a fundamental part of the global online experience,” commented John Burbank, CEO of Nielsen Online. “While two-thirds of the global online population already accesses member community sites, their vigorous adoption and the migration of time show no signs of slowing.”

Turn on the radio…no antenna needed!

Traditional radio has been slowly dying for a long time.  It’s sad to say, but when people started listening to vinyl, radio was in trouble.  Even in the last 30 years, we’ve gone from vinyl and 8-tracks to tapes and walkmans to cd’s and portable cd players to mp3′s and portable mp3 players to Ipod’s and satellite radio.  With modern cars being equipped with a combination of  cd player, mp3 capable receiver, bluetooth technology and satellite radio as a standard, the future of traditional radio is looking bleak.

In a matter of seconds, you can get on any number of websites with their own radio stations and find new music, hopefully purchase the songs, transfer the files to their phones, Ipods or whatever device you have at your disposal.  A lot of the better sites like Pandora even have an algorithm that will find and suggest other artists and songs you like just by typing in an artist’s name, song title or genre.  It’s a great way to find new music and artists you’ve probably never heard of.

Seeing that music is the universal language that connects us all, we think that sharing music is a beautiful thing.  In the spirit of connecting with you, we created a few radio stations we thought you might like.  Don’t worry the DJ is on 24/7! Our musical tastes are as eclectic as the groups of people we connect with through The New Radar and we like everything from 2Pac to Bach. Share them with your friends, tweet the stations, put them on your facebook, your blog or whatever you do.  Finding a station you like should be no problem, but if you don’t find one that strikes a chord with you, make your own!

Listen to The New Radar Radio on Pandora!

Are consumers more likely to support socially conscious businesses?

In this day in age, people are becoming more socially aware and are making purchasing decisions based on this awareness.  In fact, two-thirds of Americans report a greater trust in companies that support social issues and would be likely to switch brands or retailers to one associated with a good cause, when price and quality are equal.

Socially conscious companies garner loyalty from US Customers,Employees

In so many instances, we by products and support companies, events, etc. that we probably wouldn’t have just because a portion of the proceeds go to a special cause.  We don’t even blink twice because it makes you feel good to support something that is helping those less fortunate.  To us it seems like a no-brainer for companies to align themselves with socially conscious initiatives and to support causes.  Not only is it good for company moral, but it is also a great, newsworthy PR opportunity to show your future customers that you are taking an active role in the global citizenry.

A particular case that immediately comes to mind is The Girl Scouts.  Nobody needs the calories or the guilt that comes from eating the cookies themselves, but eating that sleeve of cookies becomes less of an issue when you can justify the purchase based on knowing the organization helps build character and is a positive influence on young girls lives.

A recent case we came across on the other end of the spectrum was with a client who is trying to break into the Midwest market with a wine product.  We suggested sponsoring a Cystic Fibrosis Foundation Wine opener.  To us it made perfect sense for them to sponsor this event 1) because the event had a captive audience of wine consumers 2) it is a good cause and good public relations 3) many of the other sponsors involved in the event were venues or companies that would have carried the product 4) it’s would have been a great way build relationships with the organization itself who would then be able to spread the message virally to all their supporters.  Needless to say, they didn’t sponsor the event and now they are having a hard time getting in contact with the organization.

Does this mean that we think companies should support a cause for PR or the business relationship? No.  But it is generally a nice bi-product.  Aligning your company with organizations is not only smart business, but it’s something you should do because it helps the world be a better place.

What’s on your radar? The NEW Radar!

What is The New Radar?

This proverb may help you visualize, “If spiderwebs unite, they are strong enough to tie up a lion.”

Applying that proverb to modern society, we believe that if spiders (people) use our webs (internet, social networks, connections) to unite, we can and will tie up our lions (social issues, environmental issues, health issues, etc).

The New Radar is a project to create a network of socially conscious people and businesses working toward the common goal (collective consciousness) of making the world better.  Utilizing various online social networks (Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn), events, mobile technology, our website, and more we will show the world how a little effort/energy from a lot of people can change the lives of the less fortunate.

With that being said, this is not a preachy, you have to be a saint kind of company.

We like to have fun…. You’ll find all kinds of content and links to the latest music, art, entertainment, events, business, fashion, health tips, news, technology, financial tips, restaurants, homes, cars, DJ’s and more!  You can add your own content and suggest people, links and businesses that are on your radar.

We also understand that commerce drives our global community!  The businesses on The New Radar will be able to offer discounts to members, be featured on the website, in e-newsletters, demo their products at events and SHOW what they do.

We’re based in Indianapolis, so we obviously want to promote local businesses and things going on in the city and surrounding areas initially, but we will definitely promote national businesses.  We have plans to expand to other cities and in time internationally.

We have to get back to work on the site, so for now, we leave you with this question, “what’s on your radar?”