This is the third article in a multi-part interview with Rod Brooks, VP and CMO of PEMCO Insurance. You can access [part 1 here] and [part 2 here].
3. Social Media
As we are talking about how Rod through the Word-of-Mouth Marketing Association started exploring the social tools like Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn, he addresses the value it gave him that made him so active with online activities.
Rod Brooks
“What I got from it personally and professionally came first, what I got organizationally came later. It was the ability to identify and find all those connections that after 30-35 years in this business, I had built and lost track of. I’ve probably had 50 lunches and coffees with people that I either used to work with or went to high school with, and so it has become very real.”
Rod also talks about the need of finding out what is good use of the social tools versus not very valuable connections.
“Today we have the tools that allow for much more efficient networking, but it’s not going to replace being there in person. It’s nothing to have 500 connections on LinkedIn if you never shook their hand at a conference. I get a number of people who say, ‘I think you’re in the same group that I think I might want to be in, shouldn’t we be LinkedIn?’ ”
About Information Overload and the Conversation
Given that Rod and I made our first connection on Twitter, I knew he was very active online and we got to the topic of information overload; I took the opportunity to ask how a senior business leader gets the time to participate online.
“Well, it is a little bit like trying to drink from a fire hose. I don’t try to filter everything or to read everything. Someone told me – I was in disbelief and thought it was an exaggeration – but the person said: ‘once you have been using this tool, you will find that what you want to know finds you; that what you’re searching for, and other relevant topics, will find its way to you.’ ”
“I found that to be true in my personal and professional life, where the news that I’m most interested in somehow either hits me in a newsfeed on Facebook, shows up on LinkedIn, or someone contacts me about something I might be interested in. So I don’t really manage the torrent of information, I make myself available to it and I try to catch what I can. “
Then Rod turns the problem upside down by shifting the focus away from the tools and the information flow to the opportunity to have a conversation.
“Social media is a noun. Think of that! It’s a place, it’s a thing, and it’s mostly a thing. And it means it’s a tool, like a hammer is a noun; like a screwdriver is a noun. ‘Social engagement’ is a verb. People need to focus on social engagement and decide which medium to use as a tool.”
However there is one tool Rod is using to catch the conversation when it matters and while it happens. He uses an alert tool that notifies him anytime anyone says something involving PEMCO. Even though he has a whole team that monitors what is said online he still keeps a tool running that allows him to personally engage in the conversation.
“Many people say, ‘Wow, I didn’t even know anybody other than my mom was reading this blog! I certainly didn’t expect an executive of the company I wrote about to say Thank You!’ So that’s a part of it, and the first thing I say every time I respond is: ‘Thank you for the mention of our company’ and if there is criticism, I say to them, ‘That doesn’t really sound like us, I’d like to know more.’”
Being in Transition
As we talk about networking I ask what advice Rod may have for people in transition between jobs.
“First of all, did they build a decent network before they were on their own? If you’re only focused and thinking about where you’re at right now, it’s great for your employer in the moment and it’s good for you in the moment. But it’s even better for your employer if you are continually learning and pushing yourself to a new level, and it makes you more valuable if in fact something does happen within your current employment.“
“If you’ve built a good network, then embrace the idea of continuous learning and sharing – you can flip the situation and you can say ’I’d like to reach out to my network and I’d like to learn from you. I’d like to understand what you might know.’ “
“But if you find yourself in the situation of having the need with no network to draw from, then what you can do is conduct part of your search in places of learning and networking.”
Rod uses a conference he recently spoke at as an example; during a quick poll he learned that four individuals were in transition. Rod’s point is that they were actively seeking new knowledge and networking at the same time. While that is key, he reminds me that you start any engagement with asking how you can help!
As our meeting is coming to an end, I ponder what Rod has shared with me. There are three things I will make sure to remember, that I will add to my own portfolio of career tools:
- Build my network to grow and sustain my career and business aspirations. And always start a new conversation with asking how I can help!
- Nurture my network and have it be ready when I need to call on it. Rod’s strategy of sending Thank You postcards is something I will adopt.
- The Conversation goes before the Tool, meaning: don’t get too focus on Twitter or any other tool but focus on having a meaningful interaction with your customers.
That concludes the third and last article in the interview series with Rod Brooks. Feel free to add your comments and questions in the Comments area below.
This interview was conducted by Håkan Söderbom, social media advisor at Konsult Partners.
