Facebook is really hard for Business to Business (B2B) professionals, aka LinkedIn users, to grasp. It just isn’t second nature for business people, who tend to be a bit older than their Facebook counterparts.  I liken it to the “PacMan generation” vs the “Mario Brothers generation”.  As one who grew up with squealing modems (300 bps then 1200bps), it seems foreign to me as well. I profess I am a fan of PacMan, Galaga, Asteroids and even PONG.

“Growing up LinkedIn” in the Social Media era makes it even harder. Us “Pacmen” and “Ms. Pacmen” are database minded, we recall bulletin boards, character-based systems. People are records in a database that we search on to engage others for business. That idea is turned entirely upside down with Facebook – 180 degrees.

The differences become  so apparent when we teach LinkedIn-oriented people to use 1) Facebook or 2) the Pair of LinkedIn AND Facebook or 3) the triple play – LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter.

The first big things that they must deal with is the Facebook Profile vs. the Facebook Page. I have even heard other Social Media experts slip up in their speaking, and it really throws audiences for a loop.  Profiles are for People and Pages are for business entities and business activities.

This Post will focus more on Profiles. The next will focus more on Facebook Pages.

Here is the simple, straight, abbreviated scoop:

Facebook Profiles are different than LinkedIn Profiles, although they are both share the “1 to 1″ principle. Every person on Facebook MUST have a Profile. It is your identity. A profile is like a Social security Number (SSN), there is one per person.

While it is possible to have more than one it is a violation and one does not want to be in violation of Facebook rules. Good luck getting end user support to clear up problems, nor the problems of the “other” 500,000,000 users.

ONLY PEOPLE HAVE PROFILES. Freeway Ford dos not have a profile with First Name = Freeway and Last Name = Ford (nor any variant). Businesses have PAGES and I will cover that in another Blog Post.  Do NOT use a Profile for a business, unless you don’t care if all your work is simply gone someday.

The LinkedIn profile is fully searchable, both within LinkedIn and via Google. Repeat – The LinkedIn profile is fully searchable, both within LinkedIn and via Google.

The Facebook profile CANNOT BE SEARCHED for content in any similar way. No need repeating. It just isn’t for that, it was designed by a college student for other college students. LinkedIn was designed by business people for business people. In fact, the investors in Facebook are all ON LINKEDIN and were early adopters of LinkedIn.

See related story on The Social Network Movie

Facebook was started by Mark Zuckerberg in college, as we see in the hit movie “The Social Network”. In fact, Facebook was originally called “The Facebook”, which in turn was based on a student photo book used in Residence Halls at Harvard. Original users of Facebook were required to have an @Harvard.EDU email address to even participate.

Soon one school wasn’t enough, even one country wasn’t enough, the .EDU email requirement was lifted and so the story goes. In fact the movie indicates that it was the infamous Shawn Parker, Founder of Napster and Plaxo, that took Facebook international and suggested the name be simplified to simply “Facebook”.

In came the investors, there were some shake-ups and it is now a great movie, one that The LinkedIn Rockstars, Mike O’Neil and Lori Ruff, watch over and over. We learn something new each time.

Why?

The Social Network is about ENTREPRENEURSHIP. The company is a social networking company, but it could be Apple or Microsoft or Google or one of any number of other companies.

Watch the movie from THAT perspective and it opens entirely new parts of your brain. It’s not ABOUT Facebook, but rather the CREATION of company that became Facebook.

Related post – Why business people have so much trouble with Facebook

Warning

…there will be a little bit o’ rock & roll here like all things Rock The World^TM.

Technology professionals have it both good and bad on LinkedIn. For the good, there are all those great people that can provide the opening to the next client, the next job, the next friend. LinkedIn is loaded with peers and clients for technology people. Lots of great music out there, you could say.

The bad part of LinkedIn for technology professionals is that everyone and his uncle is out there on LinkedIn and it is harder than ever to STAND OUT. How many people need a T1 nowadays? One call can get you 20 bids! It’s a tough business.

An irresistible tip right from me – “Fit In and Stand Out”. If you must wear a tie, make it a Jerry Garcia tie and a colored shirt. Make sense? Read on…

LinkedIn Recommendations Set You Apart

For the bad, there are so many people just like us out there that it’s easy for us to get lost in the shuffle. There are so many bands that all sound the same.  The LinkedIn Profile and specifically, the LinkedIn Recommendation can help a LOT. It can help show the Rockstar that you are in your line of work.

You don’t have to be a LinkedIn Rockstar to understand the importance of LinkedIn Recommendations. Chris Brogan (@ChrisBrogan) did an excellent write-up in a recent Blog Post.  See the post. Some of our readers have reached out asking for my to jump in on the conversation, specifically since the topic has great application to my fellow technology professionals, whom I now train to use LinkedIn. Why?

First of all, a recommendation shows that you were there, it is proof that you DO the things that you SAY you do. It is a way to “Back it up” as Kid Rock might say. A good book is like a good album isn’t it. Songs are chapters.

We were in the studio cuttin’ a record, oops I mean writing a LinkedIn book, and it came out pretty good.  Rock The World with your Online Presence is 188 pages devoted entirely to LinkedIn Profile development and SEO optimization. Over the last year, readers have contacted me and suggested that I share some of the material and the LinkedIn Recommendations part was suggested. I couldn’t resist the request, so here is the single best LinkedIn Recommendation tip we talk about in the book.

This tip is particularly well suited to technology professionals with whom I most closely relate, but it really works for just about everyone. One should speak from what one knows and you can see that 250 LinkedIn Recommendations (from real customers, co-workers and partners) can show you a nice array of what this looks like in action. Notice that they are spread out so that they paint a broad, yet detailed picture.

I suggest that most business professionals have 10-20 LinkedIn recommendations from customers, partners, co-workers and maybe even investors. This is your 3rd PARTY VISUAL PROOF. Spread them out.

My Best Recommendation advice…

…for technology professionals: Ask others to describe projects you worked on together and say some nice things about the result of your contribution. Ask them to use numbers where it makes sense.  It paints a picture of what it is like to work with you in business. LinkedIn is about business after all.

The LinkedIn Rockstar

A recommendation that is not specific has deflated value. Should it say: “I really like their music” or: “Once I heard that 7-minute guitar solo on Free Bird, I had to go to the show, get the album, join the fan club, play it for all my friends”. You decide!

Describe Project Results

LinkedIn Recommendations cater especially well to projects and that is where technology professionals can benefit especially well. An example:

“Franklin and I worked on a 20-city telecom roll-out. He helped us design it and was with us all the way through the turn-up including the ribbon cutting ceremony. This project was a success because of Franklin. I suggest you reach out to him!”

The advice of friends

Sales professionals everywhere know the power of testimonials. For those in sales roles, we suggest you check out our partner Townsend Wardlaw’s wisdom on the subject - Top 10 ways to Use LinkedIn for Sales Success. Townsend rocks the sales world but he’s into a bit more modern music than the “analog-driven” vinyl-recorded LinkedIn Rockstars.

About me and why I can write this particular focus

I spent 20 years in technology sales and started training on LinkedIn over 4 years ago, showing others how to become accomplished with LinkedIn by following our LinkedIn Business Methodology.

I lived the technology sales life: I carried a monthly sales quota, went to President’s Club, worked in a cube at a branch office, worked at Corporate HQ, home-officed, VPN’d in, got LAID OFF (more than once). I did it all.

Networking for me was Twisted Pair, DS3, Servers. Now my networking is all LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, WordPress, Meetups and everything that goes with it.  You might call what I do now Layer 8 networking.

The closest thing to Pink Floyd (Roger Waters) is in town and I almost didn’t make the show. A really important Oracle presentation came up that I just had to attend. But, a few handshakes at the end of the Cloud Computing presentation, and I ran for the door, headed to downtown Denver. I knew it was underway when I got there. I knew exactly what I missed too as this tour is PINK FLOYD’S THE WALL, END TO END, with a nice long intermission.

So, I did not see the very start – a SIN for any show but for a Rock Opera it is extra bad; I know. But I DID make it and it was everything one could ever imagine (I have a VERY BIG imagination).

The take-aways? The Wall is DARK, scary, complex, a form of rock opera, a masterpiece, yes. It lends itself well to Pink Floyd level super-production and it was all that one wouldexpect.

I sat right at the top of the wall in obstructed view, 90 degrees from dead center. Very good for a little while, very bad overall. You could see both sides of the wall at one time. Here is the view above the Wall.

I got restless and did my usual “walkabout” to look at options to settle in for the show. Cool people to be around. It wasn’t hard. People around me were “hi 5-ing”, hugging, sharing things, almost like a Grateful Dead show (except with a slightly different type of audience).

So, I ended up watching the show from a hallway dancing and air guitaring. Of course there was plenty of tie-dye action and lots if Pink Floyd prism shirts.

To miss something like this is to live with regret for the rest of your life. I have such regrets – The Police Reunion, Madonna, one-time shows like Fagan-McDonald-Scaggs. I am pleased to report that Roger Waters is NOT among them. I have some iPhone Video on my Rockin’ Facebook page. We’ll see if it stays there. I was one of 10,000 people shooting video. iPhone was definitely the tool of choice.

I always knew that music brought together a team of individuals in a way that is truly magical. I remember the concerts that my employer in the 1990′s, Random Access, knew so well. Management bought big blocks of tickets to shows like The Rolling Stones, Phil Collins, etc. The people we took with us became our best customers if they were not already.

We strategically invite business partners to join us in our Rock Band called “School of Rock”. Playing music together on stage using SIMPLE instruments is amazing business bonding. We’ve been doing Rock Band at restaurants and bars for over a year we really like how SIMPLE it is to participate.

I am at Rock ‘n’ Roll Fantasy Camp in San Francisco learning to create, play, record and perform classic rock music with other “campers”. The “counselors” at the event are real rock stars and I see that they each have business acumen. You will see why.

There is this whole other level beyond Rock Band that I am being exposed to and it is rampant with business overtones. These musicians are small business owners and the company sells a service (their playing, instructing, appearance at events, etc.). Their marketing is based on their brand and the brand of their “past employers”. This is the life of a Rock Star, at least one that is no longer out touring and playing “with the band”.

It was Rudy Sarzo of Whitesnake, Ozzy and ??? that brought these ideas out. Picture the scene – 5 musicians of all kinds of ability thrown together in a room to find a way to jam together – the herding cats principle. He’s the boss and everyone treats him like he’s E.F. Hutton, a very cool E.F.

It made me think of the similarities between the Band and the Business. After all, this is why I am here – to find new influences that we can share with our clients.  It’s a real eye opener.

Band                       Business/Company
Brand                      Brand
Players                   Employees
Lead Singer             Chief Executive Officer (CEO)
Lead Guitar             Chief Marketing Officer (CMO)
Hit single                 Hot Product
Booking Agent         Sales Rep.
In the studio             Product Development
On Tour                   Product Deployment
Downloads               Sample product
Radio Interviews        Marketing
Free Records            Schwag
New CD                    Version 2.0, 3.0…

Follow me as I explore new territory in this mix of LinkedIn, Social Media, Social Networking and Live Rock Music. See all my links.

Integrated Alliances Founder Mike O’Neil, The LinkedIn Rockstar, is in San Francisco taking in Rock ‘n’ Roll Fantasy Camp and he is taking LinkedIn and Social Media to new levels in the process.

Mike is the #25 most connected person in the world on LinkedIn at nearly 30,000 direct LinkedIn connections. He has the maximum of 5,000 Facebook Friends and enjoys almost 50,000 Twitter Followers.

Here, he talks about how to identify your local contacts and reach out to them using LinkedIn. This helps travelers get ROI from their business trips. Mike has over 1,000 direct LinkedIn contacts in San Francisco so issues of “scaling” become important. After all, you can only send 50 messages at one time using LinkedIn!

In my trek to Rock ‘n’ Roll Fantasy Camp I am promoting myself, my brand, my business and I’m using all the arsenal of Social Media to do it. In this video I discus how I am using my Facebook Page (www.facebook.com/mikeoneildenver) to support my LinkedIn Rockstar Brand.

I specifically discuss BandPage and the iLike Music Facebook applications and point out their multimedia capabilities.

I talk about building an event on Facebook and promoting it through Shares, Status, Video and more.

In other posts I’ll talk about using LinkedIn to promote the brand and events, using Twitter to promote the brand and events, using EventBrite to promote the events.

I am spending 3 days this weekend at Rock ‘n’ Roll, Fantasy Camp, learning how to create, play and perform classic rock music. This is part 2 of my journey. See Part 1

Where’s the parallel?  (There will be many so stay tuned to The Journey.)  You only get to join 50 LinkedIn Groups so you have to be careful how you invest your limited resources. You only get to wear a few concert T’s at Rock ‘n’ Roll Fantasy Camp so it too is a careful choice as well. Who are the rockstars working as counselors for the event?  Who did they play for? Who where they on tour with? Where did I see them play?

As a Social Media specialist who rocks, I am often in a Rock T Shirt. It is a daily routine to pick out the “T of the Day”. No problem usually. I have 50 or 60 concert T’s (down from over 200 at one time) and some other cool options like Tie-Dyes, Mountain Dew, Cars, etc.

But, what do you wear when you are spending 3 days with members of Grand Funk Railroad, Aerosmith, Foo Fighters, The Wallflowers, Ozzy Osbourne, Winger, Pat Travers Band, Joan Jett and KISS?

This is what I am planning. What do you think?

Kid Rock (2007), Lynyrd Skynyrd (1994), The British Rock Symphony with Roger Daltry (1997), Jimi Hendrix Tribute (2010).

The LinkedIn Rockstar is on a trek to San Francisco for Rock ‘n’ Roll Fantasy Camp with Dickey Betts of The Allman Brothers Band and past and present members of Aerosmith, Ozzy Osbourne, The Wallflowers and even KISS.

I am there to learn to create, play and record classic rock music from real rock stars. These are the individuals that write the biggest songs, lay them down and then hit the road to play in front of huge sold out crowds.

The Rock Stars are called “Counselors”.  I am a “Camper” and I am in for one heck of a weekend.

More on that as it gets closer but the festivities peak with a performance from the Rock Stars and the likes of me on stage on Sunday night, Nov 7.  Tickets are available.

Here is the line-up of real Rockstars that will be teaching The LinkedIn Rockstar the art of crafting, recording and playing live classic rock  music, all in a weekend!

I am looking for inspiration and ideas to be a better LinkedIn Rockstar when I speak or train on LinkedIn and Social Media on our Rock The World tours.

My first homework assignment is to get to know the songs we will be learning and playing at the Camp. I had to hunt them all down.  Have one only on vinyl (The Ocean from Led Zeppelin)

Beginner:
Surrender – Cheap Trick
Mississippi Queen – Mountain
I love Rock and Roll – Joan Jett
Pretty Woman – Van Halen
Rock and Roll All Night – KISS
Who Do You Love – Bo Diddley
Brown Sugar – Rolling Stones
Livin After Midnight – Judas Priest
You Really Got me – The Kinks

Intermediate:
Shook Me All Night Long (AC/DC)
White Room – Cream
My Hero – Foo Fighters
Schools out – Alice Cooper
Day Tripper – Beatles
Bad To The Bone – George Thorogood
Vertigo – U2
Call Me – Blondie
Here I Go Again – Whitesnake
Sweet Child – Guns N Roses

Advanced:
The Ocean – Led Zeppelin
Livin on the Edge – Aerosmith
Foot Stompin Music – Grand Funk Railroad
More Than a Feelin  – Boston
Headed For A Heartbreak – Winger
Highway Star – Deep Purple

It’s different listening to a song when you know you are going to be learning how to play it.  There will be lots of great business and social Media parallels to be learned.  Stay Tuned!

Lori Ruff and I have been a part of CouchSurfing.org now for almost a year. In the last 6 months we have ramped up to the point where we had three individual Couchsurfing visitors at ONE time this week.

Couchsurfing.org has a process to certify individuals in the program and it costs a nominal amount to get setup in the system. Check it out!

If you’ve seen the movies “The Big Chill” or “The Breakfast Club”, you know how strangers are not strangers for very long when couped-up with one another. Such is the case here.

You never know who you might have request to “crash at your pad” or where you might stay. Here’s who we’ve met: a Guatemalan diplomat, a German filmmaker, a family from Poland, a National Geographic scale photographer, global travelers, an IT manager, those in town for the Widespread Panic concert, those considering a move to Colorado (a good idea).

It is a bit like a Grateful Dead concert where you don’t actually go in to the show – you just explore “The Village” outside for hours and hours, meeting people every few yards. Lori Ruff and I did just that in 2009. It is a highlight of the concert year for both of us. You meet the darndest people and some you would just NEVER expect (i.e., a high school football coach).

I felt this was such an interesting and powerful series of experiences that I actually put it on my LinkedIn Profile as a current position – Couchsurfing Host & Guest at IA Social Media. A quick LinkedIn search on the Boolean search term “Couchsurfer OR Couchsurfing” yielded over 800 hits just now!

See Mike O’Neil’s LinkedIn Profile with Couchsurfing listed: http://www.linkedin.com/in/mikeoneil

Want to see the AMAZING work of our German Filmmaker friend Chris Dahm ( @crisdahm ) before he completes his documentary-style footage of Lori and I?

.

At Integrated Alliances HQ                                With Lori                                        With Mike

See Cris’ Video Diary as he travels the world – WOW!

www.youtube.com/user/crisdahm or  www.crisdahm.com

One last thing before I leave you today…

We just finished up our second Rock The World Social Media book, Rock The World with Social Media. It’s “The Ultimate Social Media Guide for LinkedIn Users”.

Find out more and pre-order at www.RockTheWorld2.com. $21.95 gets you a Signed First Edition copy.

We are trialing 2 designs for our Rock The World North American Tour 2010 T-Shirt design.  Can you help us with your comments?  Tell us what you like, what you don’t like, which you prefer, things we might not be thinking of, etc. Estimate price point is $20.

                  Option #1                                             Option #2

These shirts will be available along with our book, Rock The World with your Online Presence, as we inspire, educate, and entertain professionals on LinkedIn and Social Media across North America. They will also be available for online ordering in May.

The current published dates for our IA LinkedIn Roskstar Profile Clinics^© thus far (dozens more to come):

Denver, CO April 21 – Info and Registration

Chicago, IL May 5 – Info and Registration

Charlotte, NC May 15 – Info and Registration

Atlanta, GA May 21 – Info and Registration

Interested in bringing the tour through your town or for a private speaking/training opportunity?  Call us at 303-683-9600.  We are planning the remainder of 2010 NOW, before we take this  tour International in 2011.

Want a Who shirt like Mike’s?  The Hard Rock Cafe has them available as a charity fundraiser.  Sorry, Lori’s Def Leppard was at the concert only!

INFO/ORDER

Our Old Chicago Rock Band night location in Denver is done for a while and we are seeking a new location in or near downtown. Perhaps The Blake St. Tavern. Looking for ideas, open to all nights.

See some of our rock band action on video at Rock the World Facebook Fan Page