Andrew Kaplan Live - Public Speaking, Radio, and TV

Andrew Kaplan,award winning Toastmaster and public speaker, is speaking to groups around the country regarding social media and branding. Kaplan brings a lively and interesting perspective to his talks which can be customized to your group. Kaplan brings his unique perspective of being an early adopter of social media combined with his backgrond working in traditional media. In 1987, Kaplan started a consulting practice to bring sales and mobile computing technologies to with over 200 companies including 30 Fortune 500 companies. If your organization would like to book, Kaplan as a speaker, please contact us with your dates, name of your group and topic.

Andrew Kaplan Public Speaking Biography


Andrew R. Kaplan is the Managing Partner of MediaMensch Networks, a company focused on building brands and communities using social media and traditional public relations. Over the past two years Kaplan has launched LinktoCharlotte which was one of the first and now one of the fastest growing Charlotte groups on LinkedIn. He also launched LinktoMotorsports which has over 700 executives from around the world and includes an advisory board from Motocross, NASCAR, NHRA and Boat Racing.

In 2007, Kaplan started blogging as a facebook branding expert in his blog Facebook Enthusiast. In 2008, MarketingSherpa.com voted an article featuring Kaplan's discussion of Facebook Branding, as #1 in its "Great Minds" series.

Kaplan recently has been involved with the local film industry as what he calls "an accidental actor". He has worked on 6 films from major motion pictures such as Leatherheads to local independent films. In January 2009, he received a "movie credit" as Social Media Marketing Advisor for the independent film In/Significant Others.

Kaplan is also on the advisory board, providing marketing and branding advice, to EVPowersystems which won the "2008 Green Idea of the Year Award" from the Charlotte Business Journal for the development of electric hybrid trucks and the eco-vehicle.

Kaplan began his career in college at WNBC radio at 30 Rock and worked in the early days at Home Box Office and The Movie Channel. After his career took a turn, he became one of the first trainers and certified consultants for ACT! contact management software. His company ARK Sales Automation Group brought sales and marketing technology to hundreds of companies in the NY/New England Market including Gartner Group, GE Capital, Virgin Atlantic, and Colgate Palmolive. He personally trained over 5,000 sales and marketing executives worldwide. He moved to Charlotte in 1995 to start his family and to build the new market around the banking sector and professional sports.

Kaplan enjoys giving back to the community and working with non-profits and received awards for leadership over the past few years including Toastmasters International NC President of the Year, NC Area Governor of the Year and Dickinson College's Alumni Volunteer of the Year. In Connecticut, he was one of the founding leaders and chairman of Corporate Volunteers In Action, a professional community volunteer group serving the Fairfield County area.

Currently Kaplan coaches business executives and creative professionals who are working on their own brands. He has active clients from countries such as Ireland, Germany, and Italy which found him using social networking. He also has a valuable team of coaches and advisors to help him reach his personal and professional goals as well.

Start Up Your Social Media Marketing

Social Media is now the biggest buzz out there. Are you able to understand how to leverage your business and brand. Even if you build a facebook fan page or set up a twitter account, do you have the time and expertise to build the audience.

Here are some of the ways a social media firm can help you.

1) Develop a high level strategic marketing plan to reach your audience and build relationships
2) Guide you and your team to integrate and use complementary tools such as Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and your blog to execute your social media strategy.
3) Provide on-going support, advice and education about current best practices and changes within social media

MediaMensch works with clients who are looking to invest in their future. Old media such as advertising is not working well anymore. MediaMensch can provide you with a plan and the expertise to bring your social media plans into focus.

You can contact us at ewarriorbizdev@gmail.com with the Subject heading "Start Me Up"

Social Media for Realtors

Two weeks ago, I had the opportunity to present social media concepts at a technology open house for the Charlotte, NC realtors. Over 200 realtors attended this full day program taught by a team of instructors on topics such as twitter, facebook, and tools such as use of video and digital photography.

My morning sessions included a panel on social media and a class on LinkedIn for Realtors. Both sessions had standing room only. The morning panel was of interest as three of our panelists discussed the main social media tools and how we use them. Part of the discuss came down to "style" and "personal preference" on areas such as privacy and how much time in the day should one devote to social media. Other questions centered around the creative ways we use social media to engage in "conversation" My panelists included realtors Lori Bee and it moderated by Lexie Longstreet.

My individual morning session was held in the technology room with standing room only for a LinkedIn class. We discuss the history of LinkedIn including how the early days when I was part of a group of early adopters who would converse regularly with the founders. Some of the discussion included how to set up your profile for key word searches, the power of your "friend's friends. We also discussed the basics such as setting up your "elevator pitch". Showing how LinkedIn is the new resume and how clients may come to you because you worked together or went to school together in the past.

The afternoon session was about branding yourself on Facebook and LinkedIn. We started with the class writing down 3 concepts of how they are personally branded. The discussion moved to integrating of twitter and our blogs. The class explored the differences between LinkedIn and Facebook and how to use them together to make a powerful marketing and referal system. Our discussion also showed how systems like facebook learn about you and your interests, so how you are engaging is how the system will figure out how to attract others to you.

The day wrapped up and we received such positive feedback from the attendees that this was one of the best educations days that the Charlotte Area Realtors had ever offerred.

I want to thank Karyn Lindsey and her team at the Board of Charlotte Realtors for putting on such a successful program. With 9,000 realtors in Charlotte, looks like we have a few thousand more who can benefit from this topic..

For follow up for other realtors, here are some classes and training available:
1) One of One Coaching (single session or quarterly)
2) On site discussion, breakfast or lunch and learn
3) Public speaking at a realtor event
4) Brainstorming sessions for real estate firms - We lead a discussion on how to utilize social media for your firm.
5) Branding yourself with LinkedIn and Facebook. This can be held as an in-house session or you can sponsor this event for your clients.

For more information you can contact: Andrew Kaplan, ewarriorbizdev@gmail.com or at 704-293-2151.

Coach Kaplan Tip - Using Twitter Search to Build Your Contacts

As a social media advisor, I am asked all the time about twitter, its value and its return on the investment in time. Where Twitter may excel is to connect you with a knowledge economy or engage you in conversation.

Many of you have set out to twitter and have collected followers. As your list grows some of the twitter conversation may be of interest (could be about today's news, weather, traffic, sports, philosophy, etc). The question occurs on how to expand the conversation and or how to find experts or media sources that are you there.

One way to do this simply with or without a twitter account set up is to go to http://search.twitter.com


At the screen you can type in key words to search for. You can also use what is called a hashtag or a # sign. If you want to see who is discussing gardening, you can type in #gardening. Want to find others in your home town, type in the name of your city. Try it with or without the hashtag. What this will do is help you find those of similar interest to you. Once you have a twitter account set up (it takes less than 5 minutes). You can then follow and engage in conversation with these people who may be experts to media outlets to others around the world.
To connect with MediaMensch on Twitter:
www.twitter.com/mediamensch (journey through media)
www.twitter.com/coachkaplan (social media tips and tricks)
www.twitter.com/linktocharlotte (Charlotte Community Events)

Social Networking Strategies - Your Authentic Self

Today, I was coaching a new client who was looking at ways to use social media for a job search and also to be able to more clearly understand how a public relations professional and writer might be able to harness these tools for themselves and their clients. As we went through our initial session on thing started to become very clear, the more you are true to your authentic self (not your job description, parenting role, etc) but to those things you are most passionate about, the more that social media will help you attract the people who ultimately will be the network to help you find a job in an area you are most passionate about.

My client had built a personal network in another state and had moved here with her husband's career move. We discussed how she could use social networking to not only reconnect with her former "in-person" network but also to attract people who had strong interests for her area of expertise --- in this case, public relations for politicians. As we moved through the coaching session, we also discovered her love for books and writing. I asked, if she has been asked to "recommend books" to her friend and she told me she actually formed and leads a book club. My response was that you could use Twitter and Facebook to influence and attract others who may be interested in the books and subjects you like.

One other thing she mentioned was she wanted to write a book about her mother. We discussed posting from time to time the life lessons her mother taught her. Again this is a way to attract those who may align with you emotionally or spiritually.

Last on the sports front, she was enamored with college football and especially one of the top teams in the nation. (Her son graduated from there) recently. I told her to post and tweet about the team and she would attract other fans and again extend her network with others passionate about the subject.

So at the end of the day if you post, tweet and provide others with information you are passionate and knowledgeable about it will open doors to a new network. In this new network of friends it may lead you to a new opportunity which in many cases was previously hidden from view.

Being authentic to yourself and your passions in social networking can lead to great success in connecting and in your life goals and visions.

LinktoCharlotte Turns Two Years Old

LinktoCharlotte turns two this month. It has been an interesting journey building a community online. We first started out with a small group that grew to about 70 people in our first month and had our first meeting at the Carolina Panthers executive meeting room with 15 people. We have expanded from there to be on Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter and NING platforms. Each platform allows us to add or attract a diverse group of members interested in social media and networking.

About 20% of our members are people who are thinking or planning to move to Charlotte or are interested in networking here using virtual tools.

Today, our community is flourishing growing by 50+ members a week on LinkedIn and now on our new NING Site we have reached the 200 member mark. I have found the 200 person mark is a catalyst for larger growth, so we are now ready to begin to reach out to members with live events, online events, a newsletter and other activities.

We are beginning to talk to organizations who believe in this concept and are willing to sponsor or support this endeavor. We can reach 2000+ professionals on LinkedIn, the creative community on Facebook and all the Twitterverse.

In addition, we are working with other cities such as Phoenix, San Diego, and Las Vegas to begin to build those as well in 2009. In addition we have a significant group for LinktoMotorsports on LinkedIn which overlaps with its membership with LinktoCharlotte, so we have great momentum.

If you are interested in helping with publicity, community management, creation and support of our blog, speaking/sponsoring events or helping us find sponsorships. Please contact me at ewarriorbizdev@gmail.com or 704-293-2151.

10 Tips for Belonging to an Alumni Group on LinkedIn

Over the past few years, my college alumni department of Dickinson College (Carlisle, PA) has utilized my expertise as a social media and networking expert to build a local club in Charlotte, NC and to begin to bring strategies to connect our alumni via the web using social media such as Facebook and LinkedIn. In 2006, we went through approval with the college to set up an alumni group for LinkedIn (The leading social networks for professionals). The challenge was that at the time was that social media was new including LinkedIn, so that many or our alums where not aware of it or its power to connect. Within the last few months LinkedIn has made changes to its environment including newsfeeds and a searchable directory of groups. These two changes have now made it easy for colleges and universities to create groups on LinkedIn and grow them quickly.

Here are a few tips on how and why creating and/or joining an alumni group on LinkedIn is powerful.

1. Connect with Classmates

2. Connect with Alums in your geographic area

3. Connect with Alums in your industry

4. Collective intelligence of your alums

5. Recruit alums to work on your venture/business

6. Daily Newsfeed allows them to see what you are doing

7. Connect to their netwoks

8. Resource for College Career Center and Recent Grads

9. Public relations as an expert for articles for alumni magazine or other media'

10 Promotes recognition of the college or university

We will be expanding upon these topics in future articles, podcasts and teleclasses. If you are interested in participating please contact ewarriorbizdev@gmail.com ..If you have examples of how LinkedIn or other social networks have helped you we would love to have your success stories.