Three Tech Innovations for Shy People in Marketing & P.R.

Posted on Jun 28, 2010 | 5 comments

As business people, we know that networking, meaning meeting new people, is important. We have no doubts. As shy people, however, we cringe at the thought of these interactions even though we know many of these people are absolutely wonderful, fabulous really. Well, it is time to dance for joy because innovation is making our lives easier every day.

Phone calls

I avoid phone conversations to the best of my ability, partially due to my hearing loss, but mainly due to my incredibly shy nature; however, I know there still comes a time when I must pick up the phone and use it for something other than texting. Although I talk about calling people after office hours in my book, “You Want Me to What? Public Relations and Marketing for the Shy Person,” I recently learned of an application for smart phones called Straight to Voicemail. This application allows the caller to call anyone, anytime and go straight to voicemail. Genius. We shy people, or hurried people if you rather, can now leave our important information, being direct and kind thus making the best of impressions, without so much as having to talk to a single live person unless we choose
to. All this for under two dollars. I do love technology.

Hiring help

Sometimes we need ongoing, physical assistance and hire through traditional means: Adverting followed by a myriad of walk-ins and even more phone calls, numerous in-person interviews, reference check calls, etc. There are times, however, when the help we need is more short term or can easily be completed by a telecommuter. If desiring a virtual assistant, for instance, we can hire through outsourcing specialist sites such as
elance.com. Elance.com provides excellent assistants with tremendous skills in all areas of business ranging in the five-dollar to 35-dollar per hour price range. These are professionals specializing in areas such as programming, designing, translating, on-line marketing, etc. It’s amazing what can now be done virtually; no need for face-to-face interaction. Have I mentioned how much I love technology? There is also another little known resource called fiverr.com. A downside of Fiverr is that there really is no guarantee of employee quality, although seller ratings can be easily checked. The upside is that every service costs only five dollars. Want someone to tweet your product or service to his 5,000 followers? Five dollars. Want someone else to synchronize your Facebook fan page with your tweets and your blogs so that your updates can all be done in one easy
swoop? Five dollars. Need a jingle, slogan, voice over, flier design? Five dollars. On a personal note, I’ve even had a song written, performed and recorded for a loved one: five dollars.

Hosting Meet and Greets

Meet and greets, such as the ones hosted by the Chamber of Commerce have always caused my heart to race and my cheeks to burn red. However, this type of networking event has just become easier as well as more efficient and effective through the innovation of technology. If you’re looking to sponsor a Chamber event or host a sizeable open house, consider removing much of the awkwardness by including some fun, new and quite useful Pokens.

OK, I realize that it sounds reminiscent of a child’s game; however, I was ecstatic to learn of this new electronic networking tool while reading the June 2010 issue of “Inc.” magazine. It works like this. Each attendee receives a Poken. This is a small electronic gizmo that when connected with another’s will exchange contact information, a digital business card if you will. After the evening is over, event goers will have plenty of information for traditional networking and access to a social networking site to learn more about attendees via profiles and online contact. The fun Pokens can even be designed with your company’s logo. Although more pricey than fiverr.com at $3,500 for a 200 Poken event, it is a brilliant program.

Post-it Notes®

OK. This is not technology. However, a compliment, affirmation or thoughtful note quickly scribbled on this sticky medium goes a long way in making people feel better about themselves, effectively opening the door for positive communication, motivation and increased productivity. And, Post-it Notes® can be easily shared on the run by placing them on desks, computers or shoulders, no special technology skills required.

Feel free to leave comments below. I’d love to hear from you.