by Fronetics | May 25, 2014 | Blog, Logistics, Marketing, Social Media, Strategy, Supply Chain
Some companies within the logistics and supply chain industries have chosen to participate in social media while others have not. Why have some companies chosen not to participate while others have decided to participate? What social networks do companies within the logistics and supply chain perceive to provide the most value to their business? What challenges do companies face with respect to social media?
Fronetics Strategic Advisors aims to gain insight into these questions and more. We are conducting a survey on social media within the logistics and supply chain industries. The objective of the survey is to learn about the participation and use of social media within the logistics and supply chain industries.
The survey is aimed at companies within the logistics and supply chain industries, and takes only about 5 to 10 minutes to complete.
This survey is confidential. Responses will be reported in aggregate and no individual- or company-identifiable information will be shared with anyone.
If your company is part of the logistics or supply chain industries please take the time to take the survey.
by Fronetics | May 21, 2014 | Blog, Talent
According to R.J. Bowman, author of The Secret Society of Supply Chain Management, demand for supply chain professionals exceeds supply by a ratio of six to one. Looking forward, it appears that demand for supply chain professionals will only increase. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics estimates that demand for supply chain talent will increase by 26 percent between 2010 and 2020 – a growth rate that is twice as fast as 14 percent of all occupations.
In response to the demand for supply chain professionals, universities have introduced undergraduate majors, M.B.A. concentrations and even entire degree programs dedicated to procurement, inventory management and global supply-chain strategy. The Wall Street Journal has even gone so far as to declare supply chain management the “hot new MBA.”
The University of New Hampshire Peter T. Paul College of Business and Economics is one university which offers MBA courses focused on supply chain management. This semester Fronetics has had the opportunity to work with students in one of the school’s supply chain management courses. Students in the school’s Supply Chain Management MBA course learn how to design, plan, and operate supply chains for competitive advantage; develop an understanding of how the key drivers of supply chain operations can be used to improve performance; and develop knowledge of logistics and supply chain methodologies and the managerial context in which they are used.
Over the next several weeks Fronetics will share topical supply chain management articles written by several of the MBA students. The students are inclusive of full-time graduate students and professionals who attend the MBA program part-time. The articles point to the diversity of this group of students as well as the student’s breadth of knowledge on supply chain issues.
A full list of the students’ articles follows below:
by Fronetics | May 19, 2014 | Blog, Content Marketing, Marketing, Social Media, Strategy
The internet is a fire hose stream of content. Being able to navigate the deluge of content and identify the content that is valuable to your customers and to your business is essential; it can also be incredibly time consuming. Content curation tools can save time and increase productivity.
Here are 11 content curation tools that will help you establish your business as a thought-leader and trusted resource.
Bundle Post
With Bundle Post you connect and control Alerts and RSS feeds based on keywords. Bundle Post saves the content from your feed channels as a social media post, allowing you to view, edit or delete the content within the channel, all in one place, then merge selected curated content with scheduled posting times you create for each of your social media accounts and networks. Bundle Post offers a free 30 day trial. After that subscriptions start at $19.99 per month.
ContentGems
ContentGems monitors more than 200,000 news sites, blogs, and social media accounts. With ContentGem you can filter content a number of different ways including: custom keywords, sources, and media types. With ContentGems it is easy to share content via social media (one-click publishing and the ability to schedule posts). Freemium and premium options available.
feedly
feedly enables you to organize, read and share the content of your favorite feeds, blogs and news sites. If you liked Google Reader, feedly fills that gap. Free and premium versions available.
iFlow
iFlow allows users to discover, create, and curate ‘flows’ on any topic. Flows are topic-based streams that let users stay connected and updated with selected topics. These ‘flows’ may be followed, which results in users being continually updated with content relevant to selected topics. Flows can be set up to include detailed filters to provide for high quality of content curation. iFlow also allows users to create their own private flows. Users may invite others to contribute on their flows or can even keep their flows private. iFlow is free.
Individurls
Individurls is quite similar to feedly. One of the strengths of this content curation is how easy it is to use on your mobile phone. Individurls is free.
Netvibes
Although Netvibes is one of the original content curation tools, it remains a solid (and not outdated) solution. Netvibes offers a number of ready-made feeds and widgets. Both freemium and premium versions are available.
Newsle
Newsle is a great tool to keep you on top of what is happening with people within the industry and within your social network. It is also a great tool if there are specific writers or journalists whose content you want to keep track of. With Newsle you identify the people and Newsle sends you an email when those individuals are mentioned in the news.
paper.li
paper.li enables you to create your own online newspaper based on content you select. You add various sources and specify filters on these sources and a paper is produced. You can then add or remove “articles” from the paper. While paper.li can be used for free, the paid version allows you to brand your newspaper.
Post Planner
Post Planner is a solution for those who are avid Facebook users; PostPlanner is a Facebook app. With PostPlanner you enter in keywords and search for trending content within your niche. You can then sort this content to view the content with the most likes or shares so you can see the most popular content. While PostPlanner does offer a free version, to get the most from this tool you will need to upgrade to one of the premium packages.
Scoop.it
Scoop.it offers users a great experience and a constant stream of content. Scoop.it automatically finds and features comment from places like Twitter and Google blogs based on your target keywords and interests. It is also customizable, allowing for additional sources to be added to your stream(s). In Scoop.it you create boards of content around specific topics and then add content to these boards. Scoop.it allows for one-click publishing to your blog and social networks. Scoop.it offers a free trial, after that plans start at $12.99 per month.
Trapit
Trapit positions itself as a “smart” curation tool, increasing in intelligence and relevance the more you use it. It features more than 100,000 vetted content sources and includes “hidden gems” that have the potential to make your presence stand out. How does it do this? Trapit uses the same Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning Technology from which Siri is derived.
by Fronetics | May 15, 2014 | Blog, Consumer Electronics, Content Marketing, Marketing, Social Media, Strategy, Supply Chain
Curating content is an essential component of your content strategy and to demand generation. Content curation can help you grow your business by establishing your business as a thought-leader within the industry and as a trusted resource.
Here are four factors to doing content curation successfully:
Know your audience
Identify your audience. In many cases your target audience is your company’s buyer persona.
Take the time to know your audience. For example, take the time to understand what type of information and/or resources they are likely to be looking for, learn what platform(s) they are most likely to use (e.g. Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook), learn their interests, and learn their passions.
Be relevant
Curate content that is relevant to your audience. The content you curate should provide your audience with value and knowledge.
Quality, quality, quality
Content can be stuff. Content can be clutter. If you want the content your business curates to stand out, you make sure the content you curate is quality – every time. Quality is a differentiator.
Be consistent
Share content on a regular and consistent basis. This will not only increase your visibility, but it will also establish you as a trusted resource – as the go-to resource for information and for knowledge.
This article also appeared on DC Velocity.
by Fronetics | May 12, 2014 | Blog, Content Marketing, Marketing, Social Media, Strategy
Adam Robinson of freight logistics company Cerasis wrote a series of posts which outlined the company’s social media and content marketing strategy and the successes the company has achieved through the execution of their strategy. The series also included how-to guides: how to create a social media and content marketing strategy and how to execute a social media and content marketing strategy. Robinson’s series is a must read for companies interested in learning the potential business value of a social media and content marketing strategy and for companies wondering the steps they need to take to create and execute a successful strategy.
Two sentences in Robinson’s series stand out:
“It all comes down to strategy!”
“Now, if you have the resources to be on every social media platform, you should, but only if you do it well!”
Sage advice.
Without a strategy it is unlikely that your company will be successful. Social media and content marketing can be effective tools for attracting new customers and retaining current customers; however, it is unlikely that your company will reap these benefits if you do not have a strategy in place. A 2014 study shows just how important strategy is. The study found that 60 percent of companies with a documented strategy in place consider their efforts to be effective as compared to 11 percent of companies with no documented strategy in place.
A successful strategy takes into consideration your company’s strengths, resources, limitations, and goals. Another component of success – doing things well. For some companies it is possible (and makes sense) to be on every social media platform. For many companies a well-executed strategy means focusing on one or two platforms. Don’t spread yourself thin, make your company show up strong!
It is also important to remember that if you need help, there is help available. It is possible to obtain training in social media and content marketing and it is possible to outsource these functions.
This article also appeared on DC Velocity.
