The Social Media Marketing & Communications guide for Natural Health and Wellness insiders.

Sweetener Under Fire: How Coconut Bliss Used Social Media to Protect Their Reputation in Real-Time

In early 2010 anti agave syrup sentiment was gaining momentum, led in part by articles by Dr Mercola like this one – viewed 385,958 times at last count.

Mercola article damning agave syrup

Google search “agave dangers” today and you’ll get nearly a million hits.

That could be very bad news if you’re a natural foods dessert company using agave syrup as your sweetener – which is precisely the position Luna and Larry’s Coconut Bliss found themselves in.

Social Media for Sales: Feed the Soil (The Organic Approach)

Social Media supports the matrix of your sales cycle

Experienced sales people tend to agree that “sales” is a cycle, not a one-shot deal. The exchange of money for goods or services is usually the result of many factors. And it doesn’t end when money changes hands. If you want repeat sales, the cycle must continue.

In agriculture, the argument for Organic has always been “feed the soil.” By feeding the soil, you build a sustainable foundation that provides many healthy returns, with fewer required inputs. In a successful Organic system, bumper crops are the natural outcome of wise soil management.

You can use Social Media to help build a Brand Environment that produces healthy sales as the natural outcome. Or you can focus on quick chemical fixes… at the cost of sustainability.

Twitter Your Way to Success: CHFA ExpoWest 2010 Seminar with Justice Marshall

(NOTE: Only CHFA members can attend CHFA Expo West events.)

From the seminar description…

Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, Blogging… Social media is rapidly changing the way customer and B2B relationships are developed and managed. How can YOU use these tools to build brand loyalty, synergize strategic partnerships and ultimately improve your bottom line?

Whichever online medium or strategic approach you choose, there are four crucial principles to observe. This seminar is for social media “newbies” who want to get started right, and for intermediate users who want better results. You’ll come away with a roadmap and concrete examples of how to use these four key principles to participate successfully in the social media arena.

See you there!

How Information Technology (IT) Is Different From Social Media

Do You Have a Social Media Map?

Imagine you’re trying to get to… Disneyland. You’re in a car. You ask a guy for directions. He says, “Disneyland? Oh, that’s easy. Here’s how you get to Disneyland: Press down lightly on the accelerator while you slowly release the clutch. This introduces fuel to the carburetor and engages the transmission…”

Half an hour later you’re getting a pretty thorough understanding of combustion engine mechanics. But you’re not any closer to Disneyland.

Twitter, Facebook, Blogging, YouTube… are all tools with mechanical aspects. Certainly you need to know how to use them, just like if you’re going to drive to Disneyland you need to know how to use a car. BUT – an understanding of mechanics is NOT the same as having clear directions to your destination.