Every 3 months a new issue of Personal Branding Magazine is released, and since I'm a staff columnist for the publication, it's my job to relate search marketing to that issue's "theme". That, in and of itself, is an interesting exercise that I would encourage all of you to undertake now and then. It's a stretch at times to find a relationship between your niche topic and someone else's "theme du jour". Flexing that relationship muscle though can be beneficial in a number of ways, but I'm getting off-track here. I didn't mean to wander into the concepts of search topic relationships, so let me mosey on back to the road I started journeying down.
This quarter's issue of Personal Branding Magazine is entitled "Millennials: Changing The Way We Do Business". Everyone who knows what a Millennial is, quick, raise your hand! For the rest of you, a quick definition is that a Millenial is a Gen-Y youth, born basically between 1980 and 2000. Some of you are Millennials, and some of us haven't seen that young age for a long, long time.
I thought long and hard about the article I planned to write for this issue, and for a while, I was having difficulties with it. So I stopped and thought about all of you...you Millennials that I speak with on a daily basis via forums, Twitter, Plurk, etc. And it suddenly dawned on me that I'd been approaching the topic from the wrong angle (that of pure SEO). Once I flexed those theme relationship muscles a bit, (there I go wandering off the path again), it was obvious what needed to be said. So what did I write about this time? Well, the title of my article is Millennials: The Perfect Social Media Marketing Workforce. Although I'm not allowed to re-state the article here, I'm sure the title alone is enough to get you thinking in the right direction. If you want more details, you'll need to grab a subscription to the magazine, though. (Keep reading to find out how to download a free sample copy of the magazine).
Sure, that's a sales pitch for the magazine, but I don't get any money from it, so it's not a phoney-baloney endorsement. The magazine really rocks, and I think this particular edition is the best yet. It's jam packed with 25 excellent articles, from some really interesting authors. It begins with an interview with the 23-year old CEO of iContact, a talk with Millennial entrepreneur "Johnny Cupcakes" which is now a multi-million dollar brand, and a look at one Millennial who is Living the Brand: Ben Casnocha, who started an e-government software company at the age of 24.
In addition to getting a first-hand look at Millenials who have made it big, there are lots of articles that hit home with search professionals like us. Here's one I particularly enjoyed: "3 Tips on Fighting Your Google Doppelganger" by Rohit Bhargava, who will soon be releasing a book entitled Personality Not Included (a guide for companies on understanding and using their personality to better connect with customers in the social media era). Another example of a great article is one by Jay Deragon, titled "Gaining A Competitive Advantage", which delves into participating in the conversations about you and your company. Other articles include, "Social Media Exploration: Audience", "What's Old is New Again", "Bridging the Hidden Gap Between Perception and Reality", "Are You Guilty of Selling Snake Oil in Interviews?", and lots more.
Dan Schawbel is the Gen-Y publisher of the magazine and his hard work and energy really shows. Each edition of the publication seems to be even better than the last. And as always, 50% of all proceeds goes to the American Cancer Society.
You can download a free 7-page sample issue at www.personalbrandingsample.com right now, but the full issue won't be available until Friday (8/1/08). At that time, you can go to www.personalbrandingmag.com to subscribe to the magazine (if you haven't already), and grab this edition. (Notice that those two links are different). Some other links: If you want to see Dan as a YouTube star, you can check out the magazine promo video here or you can find the Facebook Fan Page here.
Historically, the magazine has only been available as a PDF download, and while that will still be the preferred publication method, Dan is offering a way to purchase it in print format for the first time, which can be shipped to you. At an extra $7, it sounds a little pricey, but since half goes to charity, it's well worth it, imo. Even if you decide not to subscribe or purchase the print version, I still encourage you to download the free sample issue. Good info to be had for free. 🙂
Very cool! I have to admit I never heard of the magazine. Do you write for them often? Congrats on the upcoming article.
I downloaded the sample, and it’s clean and well-written. Will have to subscribe to read your article and looks like money well spent.
Johnny Cupcakes was on Donny Deutch’s “The Big Idea” on CNBC – super inspirational, for all ages!
I do write for them often – every issue actually. I’m a staff member (although that doesn’t imply a job…i’m a volunteer staff member). It’s always packed with excellent articles, and I like donating my time for a good cause, since half the proceeds go to charity. Every issue is a good read.
I checked 1st link after posting comment, http://www.personalbrandingmag.com/staff.htm
Awesome! Thanks for sharing. Subscribed! $12.95 is a small amount for huge value and for charity.
Excellent !
Thanks Dazzlin for upcoming magazine. I have downloaded “Changing The Way We Do Business” sample pdf and I thinks its not a big amount the get the whole copy. Though i am visiting your blog for the first time and feeling glad to read your post. I am stumbling this post here http://lindsayhogan.stumbleupon.com/ so that I can share it with my whole SEO group at stumbleupon
Received the magazine today! Great content.
Liked the comparison between SEO & SMM…”the Millennial generation is entering the workforce and these young adults are perfectly positioned to bridge the gap between the two marketing mediums. They are already firmly engaged in social media, making them uniquely capable of transferring their natural social skills into social media marketing skills.”
Sounds like the older folks need a younger mindset!