tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-80815865382863351212024-03-05T18:25:31.231-08:00The CMS4i Social Media and Web Presence BlogUseful web and computer information for businesses in process control, industrial instrumentation, valves, valve automation and process heat. Courtesy of <a href="http://www.cms4i.com">CMS4i</a> | <a href="mailto:info@cms4i.com?subject=Inquirey%20from%20CMS4i%20Blog">info@cms4i.com</a><br>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02800300739664587061noreply@blogger.comBlogger52125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8081586538286335121.post-32700551181111961542017-09-10T19:34:00.002-07:002017-09-10T19:36:52.304-07:00Computer Security Advice for Process Control Reps, Distributors, and Manufacturers
Fourteen years ago, a man named Bill Burr wrote a book on password security on behalf of the U.S. government. In the book, Burr suggested that to keep them from being guessable, passwords should include capital letters, numbers and non-alphabetic symbols like question-marks. He also advised that computer users change their passwords often.
Since then, corporate security watchdogs have insistedAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02800300739664587061noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8081586538286335121.post-53432354721680961952017-06-03T06:18:00.002-07:002017-06-03T06:20:12.188-07:00Industrial Companies: Look to Your Employees for Fresh Ideas
Innovation and its inspirations aren't really as mysterious as they seem. The really great performance-enhancing ideas don't come from the research lab or the executive suite. They come from the people who daily fight the company's battle - those who serve the customers. Successful corporations that have developed a culture and reputation for innovative ideas have found ways to harness the Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02800300739664587061noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8081586538286335121.post-57733104875899850062017-04-17T10:55:00.001-07:002017-04-17T10:55:06.884-07:00Industrial Technical Sales - What Is The Purpose of Your Blog?
A blog is an important part of a social media marketing plan
Does your company or organization have a blog? If so, do you know why? What is the purpose of the company blog? What is it supposed to accomplish?
Before you deep dive into this article, let me stake out the corner of the universe for which I am writing. You are a technical sales representative, with problem solving, personal Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8081586538286335121.post-55278825722269456882017-02-13T09:48:00.004-08:002017-02-13T09:48:50.137-08:00Advice I Gave to a Young Entrepreneur
No do-overs in this universe.
We don't get do-overs in this universe. What's done cannot be redone. Your successes and not-quite-successes stay on your private resume throughout your whole life. A young friend of my three sons, whom I refer to as my fourth son, is an engineer and approached me about getting some advice and guidance on starting his own business providing engineering and Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8081586538286335121.post-49163922452633332012017-02-10T17:34:00.002-08:002017-02-10T17:34:49.863-08:00While You Are In Pursuit of Success...
This image is actually related to the article.
Often enough, I catch myself pounding away at my business pursuits with that "I've got to get this done" attitude. For many of us, business takes up a big part of the day. In my work, I frequently rummage through articles and other content generated by others. This is mostly a quest to build and maintain my level of familiarity with the industriesAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8081586538286335121.post-23557949582349918352017-01-20T07:40:00.001-08:002017-01-20T07:40:04.239-08:00Hey Industrial Manufacturer's, Rep's and Distributor's: Consider Web SEO When designing Your Literature!
Bad Web PDF SEO (click for larger)
Just about every company we deal with makes the same mistake with their online literature. SEO titles and meta information is commonly overlooked.
Literature is always done on some form of desktop publisher (Word, InDesign, Quark) and generally always done by people with print publishing backgrounds (not web design). The nicely designed brochures, line cardsAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02800300739664587061noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8081586538286335121.post-68541110044936875702017-01-19T11:57:00.001-08:002017-01-19T11:57:39.944-08:00What is the Purpose of Your LinkedIn Company Page?
LinkedIn Logo
So, Small Business Owner, your marketing people or your nephew that's a computer wizard told you to get a LinkedIn page for your company. Without full understanding, or maybe with what you think is a full understanding, you have your internet marketing provider create a page for you. Check the box next to that item....done.
No, not done. While you may have completed the task, Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8081586538286335121.post-88889825514095500952016-11-15T08:29:00.004-08:002016-11-15T08:29:56.574-08:00Should You Promote a Legacy Brand Name, or Move on with the New One?
How to promote a legacy brand name
Consolidation, acquisition, and merger activity among corporations can create a challenge for local marketers, such as a distributor or representative. The dilemma concerns the value in continued promotion of the legacy brand name.
Here is the scenario. You represent the small, specialized, successful manufacturer of a product. A large company with an Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8081586538286335121.post-73136423517496970172016-10-13T05:27:00.000-07:002016-10-13T05:27:41.752-07:00Should You Blog About Products You Don't Sell?
Sometimes, going against your long held beliefs can be helpful.
The relationships between you, my technical sales representative and industrial distributor friends, and your principals can be convoluted. Manufacturers prefer that you not handle products considered competitive with theirs, but it is inevitable that some overlap will come into play. As a work-around solution, it is common for a Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8081586538286335121.post-43161971401486725612016-09-10T07:55:00.001-07:002016-09-12T03:04:48.084-07:00Should You Keep Your Employees Off LinkedIn?
Encourage your employees to use LinkedIn, or not?
I have been a proponent of having employees on LinkedIn. From my viewpoint, there is value associated with a network of industry invested individuals providing social network connections between their employing company and other industry related individuals. Creating and nourishing pathways for your company to be discovered is a very positive Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8081586538286335121.post-18677435247869152652016-08-29T14:15:00.000-07:002016-08-29T14:15:09.842-07:00Do It Today! - Review Those Inbound Links!
Let me quickly establish, once again, the target audience for my articles. I write for technical sales professionals and marketers, modest in size, that operate in the commercial and industrial arenas. A more focused description can be found in my previous article Signs You Might Be On The Wrong Social Media Marketing Track.
Two primary functions of your social media efforts are:
Discovery, Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8081586538286335121.post-13737412415633328962016-07-05T05:46:00.000-07:002016-07-05T05:46:15.573-07:00Signs You Might Be On The Wrong Social Media Marketing TrackA small departure before I get to my subject for today...
Marketing is not as glamorous as many believe it to be. Many of my business schoolmates leaned into marketing because they thought it would not involve much of the math that tortured them all through school. Surprise! Marketing, at least beyond the smallest scale operations, involves lots of math. How else are you going to determine if Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8081586538286335121.post-90595984275739226462016-05-19T10:01:00.000-07:002016-05-19T10:01:19.419-07:00Are You A Marketer?
The spark of a new idea
I write for a somewhat limited, or should I say targeted, segment of the business world. Technical sales firms and professionals conduct their business with a high level of personal contact. The products sold by these professionals generally require consultation between buyer and seller to establish the suitability of the product for its intended purpose. Technical Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8081586538286335121.post-40137860723045561242016-05-02T07:38:00.001-07:002016-05-02T07:38:58.454-07:00Work Your Company's Social Media To Make It Work For You
Let me set the stage for this article. This post, while generally applicable for all interested in social media marketing, is mostly for smaller firms engaging in technical sales. My definition of technical sales...
Technical sales is the art and practice of promoting products requiring consultation between buyer and seller to assure that the delivered product or service will meet the Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8081586538286335121.post-33817415394887008652016-04-26T10:32:00.001-07:002016-04-26T10:32:46.555-07:00Social Media Marketing: You're Not There Yet?
Social media marketing has many moving parts
Social media marketing can be an amorphous and vexing subject for many small business operators. After all, it's probably not your trade, along with tuba playing. You have specific skills which, combined with an avid pursuit of success and your own secret business sauce, move your business forward, day after day. Staying current within the business Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8081586538286335121.post-84254804029133204622016-04-01T17:45:00.000-07:002016-04-07T01:45:11.927-07:00Social Media Marketing DIY Tip - Do You Ever Look at Yourself?
Social media allows you to "touch" your network
I had cause to conduct some business with a real estate agent recently and stumbled upon some social media phenomena that gave rise to this article. My experience with Molly (not her real name, of course) was entirely positive. I would recommend her highly to anyone and hold her in high professional esteem. You need to keep this in mind as I Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8081586538286335121.post-90261082596256705192016-03-26T10:12:00.000-07:002016-03-26T10:12:51.167-07:00Social Media Marketing for the Small Business - The Data Dilemma
Social media marketing is a continually evolving beast. New avenues of contact and exposure for your brand keep emerging, with promise of being the next big thing that will bring your company legions of followers and a wave of incremental business. Mark me down as a skeptic. It can happen, but the probability is not likely to be in your favor. Innovation, which is what adopting a novel social Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8081586538286335121.post-12023456534717085682016-02-26T13:59:00.000-08:002016-02-26T13:59:54.855-08:00Let Go of Your Business and Let It Grow
Business success requires a willingness to change
I deeply respect and admire small business owner/operators. It
takes more than an average amount of grit, determination, and smarts to get a
business going and keep it alive and growing. One could also probably make a
reasonable case for those same entrepreneurs being some small degree of nuts,
too. The risks are high. The time commitment Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8081586538286335121.post-58563150865058738702016-02-20T09:34:00.001-08:002016-02-20T09:34:32.259-08:00Workplace Reality Check - "It's not about being right. It's about being successful."
Nobody gets things done alone. Make allies, not adversaries.
I originally wrote this article for one of CMS4i's customers and posted on their blog. It was written for a target audience of engineers, but it occurred to me that we can all benefit from a review of how we fit into the larger picture, and how our behavior might make things better for ourselves and everyone around us in our Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8081586538286335121.post-5746545123458498432016-02-10T19:59:00.001-08:002016-02-10T19:59:58.721-08:00Meetings - Some Tips on How to Make Them Worthwhile
Coworkers gathering to discuss project progress or business strategy
Even in the sometimes diffuse work spaces of modern organizations, where much of our contact with coworkers might be via email, chats, messages, or specialized apps, there are still significant times when collaborators must congregate as a unit. There are some things that cannot be effectively accomplished without Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8081586538286335121.post-1802476476447431632016-02-01T13:31:00.000-08:002016-02-01T13:31:58.094-08:00LinkedIn - The Value You May Not Realize
LinkedIn is essential to your profession
Welcome to any first time visitor, and welcome back to returning technical sales professionals. I specifically target those in the process measurement and control industry, but anyone in tech sales will likely find some value in this article. The CMS4i blog has, for a few weeks now, been moving in the direction of providing an understanding of how Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8081586538286335121.post-80558870135200314052016-01-28T06:31:00.000-08:002016-01-28T06:31:48.762-08:00Making Twitter Part of Your Success - You Gotta Do It
Twitter....What?
Ever wonder how it seems like some of your contemporaries are really successful with social media platforms, and you can't seem to get any traction? Welcome to the club, my friend....and the clubhouse is full of people just like you. Social media is an area where many otherwise confident professionals stumble around aimlessly, often abandoning their effort out of frustration Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8081586538286335121.post-32499395995350227672016-01-19T13:20:00.000-08:002016-01-19T13:20:20.951-08:00Video Content for Social Media - DIY But Do It Well
Use video in your content marketing
It is well known in marketing circles that video is king, or at least a very powerful medium for delivering a message. Video presentations can attract and maintain the fullest attention of a target audience. They also allow producers to communicate information in a dense and effective format, generally unattainable using text descriptions or still images.
Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8081586538286335121.post-14902290767378933112016-01-18T11:20:00.000-08:002016-01-18T11:50:21.428-08:00Tweet, Tweet...What You Should Be Doing With Your Twitter Account Everyday
Twitter logo
Let me set the environment for this article.You are a technical sales professional. You have, among several social media accounts, a Twitter account. You want to use the Twitter account to increase your personal and company brand presence, with two goals in mind:
Grow your contact base
Develop your brand image as a serious, knowledgeable, engaged individual in your industry
Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8081586538286335121.post-77867622049121542422016-01-16T09:52:00.000-08:002016-01-16T09:52:06.317-08:00Making the Social Media Investment Work - The Data Obsession
How applicable is your data to real decision making?
As small business operators, we continuously look for
answers, confirmation that we are doing the right thing. In today’s climate,
metrics are ubiquitous. There is a push to assign a number to every aspect of
the business, compare some measure of performance to a benchmark or goal. When
it comes to digital marketing and social media Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com