Blog - Virtual Way Station, LLC

January 27, 2014 by Holly

My Thoughts On Twitter SMACK

I recently had the pleasure of catching Scott Stratten from UnMarketing, live and on fire, tackling the subject of social media, and I must say, this is one presentation you do not want to miss! I do not — repeat, do not — advocate skipping any of the points he makes (in fact, I recommend listening multiple times!), but if you must, advance to 42:30 and then start taking notes. It’s there that you may come to better understand my thoughts on Twitter SMACK — Social Media Active Conversation Killjoys.

But first, you should understand Why I Didn’t Originally “Get” or Enjoy Twitter…

I am one of those who tried Twitter, didn’t like it, left, and came back, this time with a different brand and focus. And like many, I started out following a number of big, influential social media names.

I’m still exercising my Twitter fledgling wings, but after a few months of being back on the platform, here are some of the observations I’ve made, disappointments I’ve experienced, and choices I now exercise to feel a bit more empowered when it comes to dealing with Twitter SMACK.

Post after post of scheduled self-promotion from disinterested social robots is actually quite a bore. What I’m preparing to say might raise an eyebrow or two, but each time I receive a new follower notice, I now scroll through their feed with one assessment in mind: Do they routinely engage in conversation. If their feed doesn’t show at least three or four interactive posts in a full-screen scroll (you know … you scroll down the page ‘til the scroll bar reaches the bottom), it’s likely s/he won’t make my “Following” list, no matter how good the content might be.^*

For those who are so busy (and, honestly, who of us is not?), here’s my suggested solution to scheduled posts: Consider regular live online sessions wherein you provide followers a sense of access, along with insight on the spontaneous you. Who knows, with both scheduled posts and live conversational sessions, you may just net yourself a lot of goodwill, with a bit of business on top!
An @mention is often worth noticing because you never know what you might otherwise miss. If someone makes the effort to reach out to you with an @mention, do what you can to ensure at least some form of acknowledgment, even if it means a quick “Favorite.”

Twice I have reached out to others (yes, @ tag mentions and all) with comments or queries meant to start a dialog for business I hoped to send their way. As these individuals had authored blog articles on the functions and management of a Twitter account (and were presumably capable of practicing what they preached), I remain perplexed by their silence, but steadfast in my decision to never bother them again.

You never know what you might have missed if you never even tried.
Washing your hands of the unworthy by unfollowing the inactive may just leave you leaner on multiple fronts. As an introvert who was new to and uncertain about Twitter, I can still remember the crashing jolt of that first person who had apparently read the “unfollow” suggestions and then announced that they’d pared down their list (and they had; I saw less than 1,000 Following and Followers, and I no longer saw “Follows You”). I was most disappointed because just the day before I had given their new business Facebook page a shout-out and had planned to do the same on Twitter, with thoughts of directing a local person their way. It may seem selfish, but when they pronounced their disinterest in my being part of their social team, I lost all interest in being their social cheerleader.

For those who have yet to reach their Twitter follow threshold but subscribe to the numbers game of unfollowing, consider this: Someone who’s inactive may have a reason. Today’s quiet voice may be tomorrow’s loudest supporter, so long as they feel there’s something or someone to support. If you must thin the Twitter flock, be mindful of the how and why, considering a preliminary “may unfollow” private list to later monitor and ultimately decide. (On the remote chance you forget to mark such a list as private, you might also consider an obscure list name, just in case an individual were to check what lists they appear on.)

I’m still a self-proclaimed introvert, but I’m giving it what I’ve got — walking the walk and talking the talk, investing, as he says, in the social currency of Twitter. It’s my hope there will be somewhat of a social media movement back toward being more “social,” because otherwise I fear all we’ll have left is a sad state of Twitter SMACK.

January 17, 2014 by Holly

Making The VoIPo – Zoiper SIP Softphone Connection

Okay, I’ll make a confession right off the bat here: A year ago, I would not have been able to even venture a guess as to what that title means. I mean, I’d heard of VoIP service, so the first part I probably could have guessed, but from there, all I would have been able to give you is a long, blank, I-don’t-have-a-clue-what-you’re-talking-about stare.

Not certain yourself? Here’s a quick rundown:

VoIPo – provider of VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) service
Zoiper – provider of softphone app, to use in conjunction with VoIP service
SIP – Session Initiation Protocol, communications protocol that requires more coffee than I’ve had for a clear, complete explanation
Softphone – software program that allows users to make telephone calls over the Internet

So, now that we’ve got that out of the way and we’re all clear (or at least clear enough) on the various parts, let’s get into the reason for this post…

One of the final pieces in setting up my business was acquiring a phone number and a means of forwarding calls to my (iPhone) cell phone, wherever I may be. VoIPo’s service and rates were quite reasonable and the Zoiper SIP Softphone app was free, but I soon discovered that setup could be a bit of a challenge to an end user who is operating blind — neither service provider had provided instructions. (In speaking with a VoIPo rep, I learned that the absence of instructions was largely due to the variety of softphone services available, with each setup presumably somewhat different.)

Following are some points to be aware of and understand ^* — points that I only learned from trial and error and asking questions:

From the VoIPo end

The hardware you receive from VoIPo is not just for “normal” telephones, but is also necessary for fraud/security purposes, to authenticate service that is ultimately routed to you through a softphone interface. Even if you plan to use only a softphone app through your cell phone, you will need to temporarily plug the unit into your Internet connection.
Assuming the device you receive from VoIPo is a Grandstream HT502 (you’ll find the model information on the underside), make sure the ethernet cord is plugged into the WAN (input) and not the LAN (output).
Once the device is plugged in, your credentials will then be communicated back to and registered with VoIPo.
You can unlock the softphone option and complete the setup in your VoIPo vPanel by going to Features > Preferences > Softphone / BYOD Devices.
Prior to complete, proper setup, you will see:

Unfortunately we have not verified that your device is currently provisioned and registered to VOIPo’s network, please ensure your device is currently connected and registered in order to retrieve your softphone SIP credentials!

The system will confirm, at the vPanel, once setup has been successfully completed, at which time you should also receive a “VOIPo BYOD Information” email confirming that “You have successfully activated your BYOD credentials” and providing you with the password for softphone service use. If you don’t receive an email right away, be patient until you do (unless, of course, it’s been a few hours; then reach out to VoIPo through their online chat). Each time you attempt to register the BYOD device, the VoIPo system will generate a new email along with a new password.
The hardware does not need to be left plugged into your Internet connection, just long enough to enable and register the credentials.

From the Zoiper end

I found no actual iOS setup/installation instructions for Zoiper, but following is the registration setup I used:

SIP options
Account name:	[VoIPo phone number]
Domain:	sip.voipwelcome.com
User name:	[VoIPo phone number]
Password:	[password provided by VoIPo, in the “VOIPo BYOD Information” email, mentioned above]
Caller ID:	[name or business name]
Advanced settings
Auth Username:	[VoIPo phone number]

All other settings were left at default.

Once registration is complete and the VoIPo / Zoiper connection made, your Zoiper SIP Account screen will show as “Registration Status: OK”

NOTE: In setting up the Zoiper account, make sure you provide the password associated with your BYOD credentials, not the password you use when logging in to the VoIPo Vpanel. Any changes made to your account at either end — VoIPo or Zoiper — will likely result in the need to re-establish a connection, and thus a new password.

^*If you are using another softphone provider (and not Zoiper) or your operating system is other than iOS, please note that only some of this may be applicable.

December 29, 2013 by Holly

Don’t Give Them What They Don’t Want

I recently received a Groupon notice for a restaurant that had fallen off my radar but a cuisine that I absolutely love. All excited and thankful for the reminder, I clicked on the email, fully expecting to buy into the Groupon. And then I didn’t.

While I love Thai food, the prospects of duck stew noodle soup, pineapple fried rice, or spicy frog legs seemed far from enticing, and the thought of all three making one meal … it just wasn’t going to happen.

The takeaway that I filed away as that email evaporated into thin air: When striving to draw traffic to your site or door, make sure your offer has broad appeal. It is far better to have 10 customers say “I’ll take that!” than to have 20 prospects say “I’m glad I didn’t.”