Today is a major day of reflection for me...but it is more about looking forward than looking back.
Happy 2010!
Buen Provecho
As I am,
George Torres
The Urban Jibaro
Connect with me
Skype: urbanjibaro
Artwork by Malikat Zamany
01/01/2010
11/02/2009
Perfecting Your "Twitter" Pitch...
Why is twitter so successful? Because sometimes less is more...
What would you say if I told you that applying "twitter principles" to your verbal interactions you would get you better results?
Some of you that are expert networkers may chuckle...so I am not talking to them, they are too set in their ways. I am talking to the people with open minds, that are driven to get results and care about really attracting the right client/partner to reach their goals. The same kind of people that understand the dynamic of social media.
so are you ready to find out how?
My first question is...
Do you attend networking functions?
If your answer is yes...my next question is;
Do you know how to pitch what you do in a 12 second time span? **Many will say yes, but few can actually do it. I thought about this after a friend of mine, Robert Fernandez Bucheli VP of Mobile Matters brought it to my attention as we discussed his takeaways from a recent conference he attended.
I started to question myself. Am I losing opportunities to find new clients / strategic partners because I am too busy selling them what I do? I could not honestly answer the question, so I decided to do two things upon attending my next networking function.
The first thing I did was revise my introduction / elevator pitch from 30 seconds to a 12 second personal brand statement.
I used to sound like this...
"My name is George Torres. I own Sofrito Media Group a multicultural social media consulting and event management company...blah blah blah blah....for 22 more seconds and blah blah blah."
Applying the twitter principles to the same message, It now sounds like this...
"My name is George Torres. I help companies improve their brand visibility, I specialize in multicultural niche markets by creating content that connects their brand to the unmet needs of their targets"
It probably was not the best pitch but it was my first and it sure was a departure from what I was doing, and this networking event called for this kind of pitch.
What really changes is that I give them a Unique Value Proposition in one brief soundbyte with enough "keywords" to stimulate a dialogue instead of "reciting a resume".
Next, I decided that I would not elaborate on my business any further than my pitch unless asked. That resulted shorter conversations (mainly because we were not competing to talk) and but I also had extra time to just LISTEN and UNCOVER opportunities with these prospective customers.
The person that really "gets" your pitch and connects with it, will start asking you questions right away, which is a good thing and will probably get you closer to some type of collaboration.
The person who does not get it and decides to talk about their business for 30 seconds is also giving YOU an opportunity to find out more about what matters to them. You still have opportunity, it will just require a follow up when they are not in "networking" mode.
As a result of my experiment, I landed two opportunities after I followed up and referenced some of the talking points they had during the meeting.
Not too bad huh?
I should also mention that I was able to talk to many more people than usual in the allotted time span.
In conclusion, I have decided to test different pitches using different buzz words moving forward to see which get the best responses...or conversion.
I would love for each of you to share your twitter pitches in the comment section. What works for you?
** The 12 second time span was based on the concept of video tweet service http://12seconds.tv/
George Torres
The Urban Jibaro
Sofrito Media Group
Social Media I Branding I Event Management
Chat Skype: urbanjibaro
Skype: urbanjibaroContact Me
--- @ WiseStamp Signature. Get it now
10/30/2009
Rewind...Read my interview with Lori Gama!
REWIND....
So many things have happened over the last few weeks that I felt the need to rewind... Today I will be sharing a great interview I had with my new friend Lori Gama (follow @lorigama on twitter) on her website just a few days before this website launched.Lori Gama's website explores topics surrounding Website development, SEO, (
Aside from all that she does, Lori is just a great person...very active in the twitter and social media worlds. Her "day job" consists of developing brands and web presence at DaGama Web Studio, a company she established in 1997.
10/29/2009
Be The Change You Want To See In The World....
It has been a tough few days for Latinos in the media and I have been very critical of CNN and the Latinos In America series. I have had this website for more than 13 years and I have never let the website dwell on boycotts and political statements. Instead I have pushed harder to promote positive Latinos in our communities. Let's explore why...
Papi has a brand new blog....
Who would have thought? I always said I would never start another blog but here I am, my first post on a brand new blog. This blog "Social Sofrito" is really a solution to a problem that started earlier this year when I started getting really active on the consulting side of Social Media. I used my existing platforms to promote my participation in several events including LATism NY and that did not go over too well with my readers that have been with me for some time.
You see...my existing readers want to connect...but they are using the platform as a means to a connect, they did not like that the conversation shifted to "how to have the conversation" instead of actually having it. As I stated in my blog post earlier today at Sofrito For Your Soul, I have decided to be the change I want to see....
So out of respect for them, and a renewed commitment to helping those people solve the problem of how, where, when and who to connect with to have them fill that cultural need, I have decided to start this blog that will continue the dialogue of people looking to engage with their brand loyalists and discuss trends in new media.
I am open to collaborations and guest posting of people for different cultures and niches, not just Latino. I feel that we truly need to learn from people from all niches. This blog will evolve into what YOU want it to be...if you should choose to take this journey with me.
I would like to thank all of my #Latism friends but especially Nancy Marmolejo from Viva Visibility who continues to be an incredible inspiration for me daily as I continue my journey as a professional.
"Listen" Graphic by Mo Willems
Social Sofrito on Facebook