Four ways to grow your tribe

Four essential ways for growing your tribe:

1. Research is an ongoing expedition, not a static project. It’s the best way you can drive change in your organisation. Read more about the feedback cycle in action.
2. You need to involve everyone in your  organisation when you want to get feedback. They all have a perspective they’re sharing inside and outside of the organisation and shaping other people’s views.
3. You need to find out the words that people use to describe your organisation so you can see if they are the same words you use. If they aren’t the same, then people are getting mixed messages. You can do this easily with a CloudMaker mini survey and then make a word cloud.
4. Find people who can give you a different perspectives and challenge your views.

Kate Tribe had a conversation with Hugh Liney for the Telstra Enterprise Podcast Series that covered these points. You can listen to the Podcast on their website.

The feedback cycle in action

Anyone who has heard me rant before, knows a theme is: you need to explore the views of your tribe; uncover the strengths and areas to improve; then drive change by putting the strengths into your marketing and focus business planning with their ideas.

I recently attended the Huntington Estate Music Festival in Mudgee with the music organised by Musica Viva Australia. It was the 3rd time I’ve been and now see myself as part of their tribe.

Last year they had a paper based feedback survey that festival goers were asked to complete before leaving. I was happy! I naturally looked at ways the survey could be improved, but was happy the initiative was taken.

What really made me excited was that at the start of the festival, Tim Stevens (Huntington Estate owner & winemaker) said in the introduction, how they’d listened and changed as a result of the feedback.

They completed the research cycle and I wanted to describe what I saw of the process and how the crowd talked about it.

Firstly, they listened. They asked for feedback. At events there are two times to do this: at the end of the event and after they have gone home.

1. At the event: has higher response as participants are there and engaged. They are giving feedback on a recent experience, still in their memory. The down side is that it doesn’t give a considered response. In the case of training, this is an important consideration. At an event like Huntington this is a great time.
2. After the event: generally gets lower response rates as participants have returned to their normal lives. If you want to know their considered response, such as in training, then it can be better to gain feedback at this time even with lower response rates.

Secondly, they looked at the feedback. They considered ways to improve from the ideas they were given and had information for marketing.

Thirdly, they changed. A range of initiatives to make the festival even better were implemented. I hear from buyers of research or people who do research in-house, that it isn’t value for money. My response is: what did you do when you got the results? And often hear: we didn’t have time or resources to act on them. Of course, you then didn’t find it value for money!

Fourthly, they communicated the changes as a result of the feedback. They kept communicating how they were seeing ways to improve. This is a great event already, with growing audiences. They have raving fans, who talked about being heard.

They said it was great they improved X, now it would be great if they improved it this way. That would make it even better.

They commented that they saw feedback forms for 2009 and would complete them so the organisers would know their views again. This is an important distinction because declining response rates is a problem. The fact they knew they were listened to, encouraged them to participate again.

The full cycle benefits in building the tribe. That makes the event greater. That makes their business greater.

Do you complete the cycle or just ask for the feedback?

Social Media Club

I really enjoy #SMCSYD (Social Media Club Sydney) and when I realised that, as I’m in New York, I will miss the next event on building and managing online audiences, I searched for #SMCNYC (Social Media Club New York) to see if I could head there instead.  Last night #SMCNYC had two topics – the FTC Guidelines for bloggers & Google Wave.

Similarities

Yes, you guessed it, they were both about Social Media. The audience was a combination of bloggers, public relations, researchers, communications and consultants.

Differences

• SMCSYD is about 10 times the audience size of SMCNYC. It is rare to say that something in New York isn’t greater in size than in Sydney. Maybe there are just too many options in New York.
• The last two SMCSYDs have been at the Oxford Art Factory with a bar, while SMCNYC was at the offices of PRNewswire, which creates different vibes. With the next SMCSYD at the University of Technology Sydney, University Hall and no alcohol once the event starts maybe those vibes will be similar.
• SMCSYD has become a trending topic on Twitter during the event. Matt Hurst and I were the most prolific twitters during the event. Although I’m a quantitative mind, I haven’t done the math, maybe it is just the difference in audience size, but I think Sydney-siders tweet more at these kinds of events.
• The great thing about SMCNYC is that the smaller group allowed for some great discussion, so that the speakers were more facilitators in a conversation rather than presenters that SMCSYD has.  So depending on your preference – speakers get more air-time in Sydney, there is more debate in New York.
• SMCSYD has a Twitter feed behind the speakers during question time, so that questions are a mix of those coming from the feed and those from the floor.  This means there is a conversation on the floor and a conversation on Twitter – everyone can laugh about a tweet in the feed and the speakers can get a little confused about whether it is something they said. It also means that someone not there can ask a question, or someone at the back can ask questions with the same opportunity to have it answered as someone at the front.
• On the personal side, I walk into SMCSYD knowing people, whereas I walked into SMCNYC without knowing or following anyone there on Twitter. The crowds at both are very friendly and it is easy to meet new people. Sometimes starting cold can be an advantage because you don’t gravitate to those you know.

I generally create a word cloud after SMCSYD using CloudMaker in Tribal Tool-Kit, here is a word cloud created for SMCNYC (as of mid-day the following day).

The benefit of CloudMaker is the editing features. This is what I did:

• The words were imported in the TweetWords section. The Twitter API limits the import to the last 100 tweets. There were 307 terms imported with 772 terms in total. After the editing below there were 289 terms with 695 terms in total.
• Applied a pre-saved stop word list of terms so they don’t appear in the word cloud, but they stay in the data set. The template includes: a; the; and; to; in; on; I; with; My; For; of; Be; Am; As; At; When; It; Your; First; Put; -; All; Are; Is; So; That; An; If; Its; No; &; Any; Do; Go; from; have; here; there; this; what; will; with; about; that; was; want.
• Added to the stop word list new terms relevant to this word cloud as their higher frequencies would make the rest of the cloud very flat: #smcnyc; @smcnyc; smcnyc; @socialmediaclub; #socialmediaclub.
• Deleted the websites imported so that they were no longer in the list and wouldn’t show in the word cloud. This is easy to do by sorting the list alphabetically. This removed 9 terms.
• Also deleted: 11/16
• I merged similar terms and ones with typos:
  • “1994-5″ and “94-5″
  • “blogger”, “bloggers” and “ftc/bloggers”
  • “blog” and “blogs”
  • “giveaway” and “giveaways”
  • “wave” and “waves”
  • “tonight” and “tonght”
• Gravity and Summit were separate terms with a frequency of 12 so I edited “gravity” to be “gravity summit” and then deleted “summit” so that they became one term together.
• Google had a frequency of 33 and Wave 44. These were edited so it was Google Wave 33 and Wave 11.
• Selected a pre-saved template so the word cloud only had terms with a frequency of 3+, there were 4 terms per row, and Tribe Research colours.

The great aspect to chapters of an international organisation is that they have a common goal or theme, but have their own localised flavour. It was great to be able to attend an SMC in both NYC and Sydney.

Our staff club in Kochies Strap on the Parachute

Earlier this year Alexandra Cain interviewed me for the Strap on the Parachute chapter “If I Knew Then What I Know Now“. Her and David Koch are doing it as part of a series for Business Builders. I had many ideas pop into my mind, but had to narrow it down to one and decided to talk about how a team is a ‘tribe’ in itself.

Being a business owner can, at times, be lonely. Having peers to talk to about business development through mastermind groups and more experienced business people to advise through advisory boards are great, but it is also important to involve your existing team as it assists the business on many levels: they are engaged in the success of the business, they perform their role better as they have a greater understanding of the whole business, they are advocates of the business, and you can form long term relationships with them.

You can read the case study below. I just finished the book and recommend it, as it covers some great points to not only starting a business but also checking you have covered everything  in the one you are already running.

Interview questions

The other day, I tweeted: “Interviewing someone tomorrow. What’s your favourite interview question? Heard some great ones before, but thought I would throw the question out again.”

Twitter is a great resource for questions like this, and fairly quickly I got back several ideas, along with a request to summarise them:

• What is the biggest mistake you have made… and how did you recover / learn from it? Whingeing_Pom
• What are you most passionate about? WorkInColour
• What changes would you introduce in your current position that would make you stay there? dwinter
• Ask them to tell me a story for each core value JHenning
• What are the mistakes you see most people making in this situation etc? KenBurgin
• Reference question: Would you employ this person again? Why/why not?  dwinter

Previously when I have asked this question, I have received:

• At some stage in the interview ask them what they think of Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Although the person who suggested the question, as well as myself, are big Buffy fans, they said, the answer doesn’t matter, what matters is whether they say what they think regardless of your opinion or try to work out what answer they should be saying. I have never asked this question, mainly because I couldn’t do it with a straight face, but it does raise an interesting point. Interviewees can research your website and you (if they know who the interviewer will be) and work out the answers you want to most questions – is that what you want? If they answer what you want, but it isn’t true for them, then that will come out when they start to work with you, and it will cause problems. Often it will impact the whole team, and you have to adapt the team to their style, educate them and change their cultural approach, or find a replacement.  All of which can cost the business quite a lot.
• Ask them to describe their favourite boss. I have asked this one, and it has been very useful. Once someone said I can’t describe my favourite boss, but I can describe someone I really didn’t like as a boss and why. That worked equally as well. After having a team for several years, with some quite open staff giving feedback on my management style, I am quite aware of what I do well, what I need to improve, and what I naturally do and probably won’t change. If someone describes a workplace that isn’t Tribe Research then they are not going to be happy working for me.

This time, I didn’t ask any of these questions directly, although the conversation did ‘circle around’ some of them. They were a great refresher on thinking about what I wanted on the team and whether the candidate would be that.

Visualising rating question feedback

Asking for rating feedback can give you great insights, but only if you look at the data in a few different ways.

Two examples of rating feedback are:

1. Please rate your level of satisfaction on a scale of 1 to 7
2. How likely are you to recommend us on a scale of 0-10?

The average can be similar over time or between aspects that you want feedback. So how can you gain greater insights from the data, if you are not asking other questions at the same time, allowing you to compare the results to other groups, such as demographics?

In the video below we look at the data from 4 time periods when customers were asked, how likely are you to recommend us on a scale of 0-10. There was only 1 batch that had a lower average, making the average result fairly meaningless. However, when the data was put into CloudMaker the results told a different story. Watch the video to see the story…

Read more about CloudMaker, or visit its home on Tribal Tool-Kit.

Register for one of our workshops that will help you understand customer feedback, member feedback, using data in your business, or how to start a tribe, and all show ways to use CloudMaker to grow your organisation.

Launching CloudMaker: the 1st Tribal Tool-Kit tool

After years of development we’re very excited about sharing our software with you.

Tribal Tool-Kit is being filled with tools to help you get to know your tribe. The first tool is CloudMaker.

Visualise the language your tribe uses. Easily.

Uncover language for your marketing and develop business planning priorities.

Idea 1: Words your tribe uses to describe you.

Send an email, or ask in a survey, When you think of us, what are the first 3 words that come to mind?

Tribe Research did this recently. We put the words together and imported them into CloudMaker and developed our cloud.

Idea 2: Words your tribe uses to describe an aspect to your business.

Recently we asked on various social media: When you think of the skills needed in business, what first 3 words come to mind?

We put the words together and imported them into CloudMaker and developed our cloud.

Idea 3: Use existing data about your tribe.

Understand the spatial distribution of your tribe by exporting your contacts and importing into CloudMaker. You might have a hidden group that could use your services that CloudMaker would highlight for you.

CloudMaker allows you to edit your data once you have imported it, allowing you to easily: merge, delete, and edit words. You can export your revised dataset. Your cloud can be saved as an image to be placed in your documents, or HTML code so you can put the cloud on your website. The website option allows you to link the words to relevant pages on your website.

Now you can do the same. Tribal Tool-Kit is at: https://www.tribaltoolkit.com/

To have an account of your own, complete our enquiry form and we will set one up for you. The first 50 accounts we set up will be given 25 CloudMaker credits, valued at almost $100.

Happy exploring!

Training Expedition

In 2008 we started Training Expeditions. They are 2 days in the year (in Apr/May and in Oct/Nov) when I try to create an interactive and fun way for the team to experience research and learn new skills. In November we had our second Training Expedition.

The planning started in September when I decided a good base theme would be: a treasure hunt. The treasure would be the new research skills or insights…

• They would have to explore and uncover (key aspects to our mission)
• They would be going on a range of expeditions
• The stages required them to be observant, resourceful, and problem solving
• Some elements required team work, some individual work
• Timeliness as well as thoroughness is important

Next, I developed a list of things I noticed they needed to improve. Then put them together so it was a treasure hunt.

My followers on Twitter gave me the venue for the lunch session.

On the day, I reported the progress of the team on Twitter:

Tweet 1: is having our Training Expedition, a treasure hunt in Sydney, starting in 6 hours. Looking forward to see what the team uncovers!
Tweet 2: the team are off and running at a Speed Thinking Course run by Ken Hudson (They loved the introduction to Speed Thinking Course)
Tweet 3: Thinking that I made the Training Expedition too difficult. Team not started Stage 3 & so now they’re running an hour late. Doh! (Apparently they were busy networking with people they met at the course! Excellent for branding, not so good for being time efficient)
Tweet 4: Wooo hooo, someone just logged on for Stage 3. Hopefully my laptop battery will last until they get here for Stage 4 & 5. (They went to the Apple store and logged onto their webmail, as the information said the next clue would be emailed to them. They thought if it required them to know something from the walk to the office, which it did, they wouldn’t have to double back – impressive)
Tweet 5: 1 of 3 have finished Stage 3… but will they find me for Stage 4?
Tweet 6: I counted the banks on their Expedition wrong. Me=11. Team=14. The number was in a formula to get to me. Had to text the them the address.
Tweet 7: Stage 5: Wagamama lunch & feedback form review. 3 in Sydney CBD. Went to location they knew, not closest. Google could have saved 3/4hr! (They didn’t go to the wrong location, actually they texted a friend to find out the closest Wagamama, which was resourceful. They then spent 2 hours at lunch which we discussed at the de-brief)
Tweet 8: Team have recovered well and are now on their final stage. Sure to have interesting discussion at Sanctuary Hotel from 4pm.

At our team de-brief, I was interested to hear, not only the first statement, when I walked in ‘that is the best day we have ever had, I can’t believe we got paid for that‘. Throughout the day they worked as a team which was interesting as the incentives were individual based.

The team provided two testimonials for the day (they are not edited!):

“The training expedition at Tribe Research was definitely a unique way to get to know the rest of the team better. It was hands on training with a scavenger hunt using all the skills we put into action at work every day, thinking outside the box, understanding different people’s strengths and weaknesses in a team and effective planning. The great thing about the day was it was fun and different and engaged us instead of a dull lecture, and we found at the end of the day that all the skills we used that day translates to the work we do as well. I’ve found now that I can better appreciate the different dynamics of the team and see that problem solving can be done more than one way.”

“The activities organised for our Training Day were really different and exciting! We were on our ‘toes’ the entire day and still pumped come reviewing time at 4pm. It gave us the chance to really bond as a team and address issues within the organisation in a fun, creative manner. More organisations should try and make their Training Days as creative and as exciting as ours – the outcomes will speak for themselves. It was the best Training Day we have ever had!”

My thoughts after the day, and we have just had our Planning Expedition which discussed the Training Expedition further…

1. I really enjoy organising them
2. The team bonded
3. The team have greater job satisfaction
4. I learnt how the team thinks and works together
5. The team learnt research approaches

At a time when staff retention is really important: it costs more than their annual income to replace; it is important that quality staff grow and stay with you. Developing your team, so they want to stay with you, and when they leave want to maintain a relationship with you, is even more important.

What are you doing to keep your tribe of staff with your business?

We need a Mapper

In 2008 we started a new role at Tribe Research: Mapper.

I’m not a fan of conventional job titles as they have a tendency to put people in boxes which people then try to fit, rather than broad roles that people can use to grow the business with their ideas and individual skills.  You can read more about our roles on our team page.

Our first Mapper was fantastic. She has her own business, Bounce Walking Tours, and learnt so much at Tribe Research that her business has grown too much to stay with us in her Mapper role. So we are now looking for someone as fantastic to fill the hole she left.

Mappers put things onto a map and bring them to the public eye, make them known or prominent and arrange them in an understandable order. In this capacity a Mapper:

• Finalises and distributes our newsletter Tribal Voice
• Proof reads my articles ready for publication
• Organises opportunity appointments and manages my diary
• Organises our Advisory Board meetings
• Organises our annual TRX event and distributes their newsletter [TRX is our previous staff club]
• Keeps MYOB up to date
• Keep the website up to date
• Does random other administration and marketing roles.

Tribe Research is fairly technology focused. We have CRM, wiki, remote working, and Skype. Having a handle on basic HTML will be useful.

A Mapper is a casual role of 8-16 hours per week. Preferably done as a few hours each day over the week.

Work at home, have a monthly meeting with me, need to come to 2 Planning Expeditions each year.

You must have your own computer with good quality internet connection [not wireless]. You must be independent, resourceful, positive and detail minded.

Interested? Please use our contact form

Are you a ‘Whinger’ or ‘Resilient Do-er’?

I was recently interviewed by Julianne Dowling for an article she was writing. She wanted to know how I was being innovative as a market research business owner in the present economic situation and planning for the future.

The focus of the article was the Adversity Quotient developed by Dr Paul Stolz.

Australians scored just one point above the global average on the overall ratings (ie: not as good) and ‘we’ let negative work issues affect other aspects of our lives. On the upside Julianne reports that the research showed: “we also have an innate ability to knuckle down and solve our problems in times of adversity”.

Read the full article

Which tribe do you want to be a part of? The tribe of “world class whingers” or the “resilient do-ers”. I find whinging, exhausting; but doing is energising.

The research also found that training can help you be more positive, resilient and innovative in all aspects of your life.

Running your own business isn’t ‘a walk in the park’ but that is what makes it so rewarding.  Now is a great time to reflect on the year, thinking about where you were in December 2007 and where you want to be in December 2009. Celebrate the highs. Think about what you can do differently for the things that didn’t work out the way you planned.

I have several specific actions that help me be resilient:

1. Support networks: Advisory Board, Great Minds Group, friends, family
2. A 3+ / 3- rule: Think about 3 things I enjoy doing and how I can structure my life & business so they feature more; think about 3 things that I don’t enjoy and how I can structure my life & business so they go away or don’t feature as much
3. Activities to mentally escape: classical music, crime novels, sewing, dinner parties, cricket, cricket, and oh, cricket.

What do you do to maintain your membership to the resilient do-er tribe?

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