Food Fight On Social Media: Paula Deen Fans and Critics Square Off

Food Fight On Social Media: Paula Deen Fans and Critics Square Off
Small Business News Stories to Help You Stay Current
Is Social Media Still an Enigma?
Healthier Employees May Lead to Bigger Increases Under Obamacare
Connect With Your Employees With a “Crowdsourced Performance Review”

Posted: 24 Jun 2013 02:00 AM PDT

Paula Deen food fight

Celebrity cook Paula Deen has been embroiled in a nasty controversy for the past week. Fans and critics alike have been battling it out on Twitter and Facebook.

The current brouhaha started when a videoed deposition was leaked in which Deen admitted to certain racist remarks.

Outraged critics took to Twitter to express their anger. Using the hashtag #PaulasBestDishes, detractors started a meme making sarcastic comments about Deen and racism. Paula’s Best Dishes is the name of her television show on the Food TV Network, so it also was sure to get the attention of the Food TV Network.

And gets its attention it did. This past Friday, the Food TV Network said it would not renew Deen’s contract for her show.

Then fans of Paula Deen, angry at the Food TV Network for what they saw as overreacting without considering her apology, took to Facebook to fight back.

Facts – Or Unproven Allegations?

Dean admitted to using the “N” word at some point in the past, and to making statements about planning a plantation wedding in which the servers would all have been black. It was done in sworn testimony in a deposition in a civil lawsuit against Deen and her brother. The plaintiff, who is white, sued for sexual harassment.

How much of her comments have been pulled out of context is hard to tell. Most news reports seem to be light on facts. Lots of allegations and innuendo are floating around social media, implying that there’s evidence that racist statements were more recent and the worst is yet to be revealed. However, they don’t include hard facts to back up their allegations.

One report by the Savannah Morning News / Savannah Now suggests the mainstream media has not done its job. The paper accused the mainstream media at the national level of cherry-picking statements in isolation, and parotting tabloids and social media, without getting the full facts or the surrounding context.

The Savannah Morning News took several days to gather and review multiple depositions. The publication points to another deposition in the same lawsuit where the plaintiff admitted she never heard Deen make a racist statement or discriminate based on race. Later, Susan Catron, Executive Editor of the Savannah Morning News, taking the media to task, wrote that fast news doesn’t necessarily make for factual news.

Deen apologized on YouTube videos. Some claimed the videos (three of them) were awkward and took her to task for not being articulate. To others it just looked like she was shell-shocked and near tears, but attempting to be sincere. Wrote the New York Times:

Some who thought Ms. Deen's words were hurtful gave her a pass for her apparent inability to articulate her evolution on race and her awkward apologies, which she offered in a series of three videos on Friday.

"I was wrong, yes, I've worked hard, and I have made mistakes," Ms. Deen said, "but that is no excuse and I offer my sincere apology to those that I have hurt, and I hope that you forgive me because this comes from the deepest part of my heart."

Added one Deen supporter quoted in the New York Times story, “She’s a cook. She’s not a Harvard graduate.”

Paula Deen Fight on Social Media Rages On

It’s not enough for Dean’s detractors, who are still expressing outrage on Twitter where the Paula Deen hashtag bashing is going strong.

And on Facebook? Paula Deen fans have set up a We Support Paula Deen Facebook page which currently has 250,000 followers. Paula Deen fans also have taken over one thread in particular on the Food TV Network’s page – a recipe for zucchini casserole. It features angry fans threatening to boycott the network, and critics of Deen, arguing back and forth. As of this writing there are 13,000 comments.

Lost in the controversy is the zucchini casserole. Scott Travis writes on the thread, “ The poor zucchini. The most controversial recipe of all time.”

Seriously, though, it’s not just Deen going through a rough patch. She runs what is essentially a family business. Her family and her employees will no doubt have some rough times ahead. Losing a big contract often means layoffs. A number of lives could get caught in the crossfire of this food fight.

All of which raises one other question: why was Deen not better prepared by her defense attorney for the deposition, and by her PR team for the news when it broke? It all feels as if Deen was caught by surprise, and — at the very least — did a poor job managing her own communications.

Image: PaulaDeen.com

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Small Business News Stories to Help You Stay Current

Posted: 23 Jun 2013 04:00 PM PDT

Mobile small business news

From the possibility of a new, cheaper iPhone to Instagram getting video capabilities … tech and social media stories dominated the week.

And, because this past week ending June 22nd was National Small Business Week here in the United States, we had a rash of announcements. We covered many of them.

As usual, the Small Business Trends editorial team takes you behind the scenes to show you how these and many other stories may affect small business owners and entrepreneurs.

Tech

Apple may sell $99 plastic iPhones… in 6 or 7 colors. It’s a big departure for the computer, smartphone and tablet leader, but the buzz has been going on for a while. A recent news report quotes industry sources.

Going mobile with Dolphin. As a business person, you know the importance of mobile connectivity. TJ McCue looks at how one browser may improve your mobile experience. The mobile Dolphin browser may also improve your productivity.

Yahoo! Small Business Vice President speaks. In an exclusive live Hangout, members of the Small Business Trends community on Friday sat down with Yahoo! executive Tom Byun. Byun explained how Yahoo! supports small businesses with their online presence, especially those with 10 employees or under.

By 2015, mobile marketing will generate $400 billion in sales. The Mobile Marketing Association’s study projects big rewards for mobile marketing in the future, but how about for the here and now? Well, it’s estimated mobile marketing generated $139 billion in sales in the U.S. last year.

Avoiding BYOD Nightmares. Do you allow your employees to use their own devices at work? Do you understand the practical and security implications?

New McAfee position shows focus on small business. The security software company named former Apple executive Bill Rielly this week as new senior vice president for small and medium-sized business.

Funny smartphone messages. If you’ve ever sent or received a smartphone message, you’ve probably seen the typical “message sent from my iPhone” or “message sent from my BlackBerry” footer. But what if you could make that message a little more creative and more your own?

Social Media

Instagram adds 16 second video. The announcement came this week and seems a clear response to the success of Twitter’s video service Vine. Still there are some interesting differences between the two services. Check out our report on the big announcement with video from the event.

Twitter to Hand out $1 Million in Ad Credits to Chase Small Business Customers. Twitter is partnering with Chase Bank to offer Twitter ad credits if you use certain Chase small business banking products.

Have you used Hootsuite lately? The tool lets you manage numerous social media media channels from the same platform. Small Business Trends founder Anita Campbell does an in-depth review of the service and tips for getting the most out of it.

Entrepreneurship

Can college graduates start a business instead of looking for a job? Richard White suggests answering some important questions before you make the decision. Since entrepreneurship and self-employment both present challenges, consider your options carefully.

A success story to inspire. Sramana Mitra, founder of One Million by One Million, tells the story of Senthil Nayagam, co-founder of RailsFactory. Though a college drop out, something not looked upon favorably in his native India, he has been a success. Here’s what his experience can teach others.

The sunk cost fallacy. As an entrepreneur, you may occasionally invest in bad ideas. It’s part of the game. The trouble comes when you keep investing after knowing you’ve made a mistake. Think you’re going to recover that initial investment somehow? Now you’re buying into the the sunk cost fallacy. Here’s how it works.

A case study in customer service. Customer service is important to every business. But you don’t need to be theoretical when considering what makes great customer service for a business. Jeanne Bliss of CustomerBLISS gives us an example of one business that can serve as a gold standard.

Management

Many small business owners still aren’t hiring. Rieva Lesonsky reviews the Sage SMB Hiring survey. Only about 25 percent of businesses say they either have hired or will hire this year. Meanwhile, 47 percent have no plans to do so.

Getting your company back into good standing. Did you know your business could end up in bad standing in the state where it was created? This can occur in instances when an LLC fails to file certain required reports and payments, for example. Nellie Akalp explains the possible consequences and solutions.

Best ideas for your startup. In a recent Twitter chat sponsored by FedEx Office, members of the Small Business Trends community made suggestions for how to make a startup better. From cutting costs to creating an effective business plan, check out these crowdsourced tips.

Policy

You can’t judge a book by its cover. Unless you’re the IRS. The federal tax collection agency claims to know the age, ethnicity and even the line of business of the most likely tax cheat. Here’s more from Scott Shane, Professor of Entrepreneurial Studies at Case Western Reserve University.

How do you define small business? The answer is important for tax purposes. But there may be another reason this designation matters, reports Megan Totka, chief editor for the website ChamberofCommerc.com. A proposed bill could change the government’s definition of small business.

SBA promises increased lending to veterans. Rohit Arora, CEO and co-founder of Biz2Credit, reports on the initiative. He also tells us what a 5 percent increase in lending will mean to veterans interested in running a small business. Tell us what you think of the initiative.

National Small Business Week

Small Business Week Announcements. There were plenty of announcements coming out during National Small Business Week, from new products and services, to contests, surveys and tips. Here are some roundups breaking down the top news and announcements for you: Roundup #1. Then there’s Roundup #2. And don’t forget Roundup #3.

Shutterstock: mobile news

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Is Social Media Still an Enigma?

Posted: 23 Jun 2013 12:00 PM PDT

"You are here to enable the world to live more amply, with greater vision, with a finer spirit of hope and achievement. You are here to enrich the world" – Woodrow Wilson.

Social media has been around the world for one reason or the other. With the birth of Facebook and Twitter, it remains ubiquitous and the most powerful source of communication. It is changing how the institutions are engaging citizen's right from journalism to business.

However, the key question lies with its effect on global development.

In a Ted talk on how social media can make history, Clay Shirky, an academic at New York University argues that:

The history of the modern world could be rendered as the history of ways of arguing, where changes in media change – change what sort of arguments are possible – with deep social and political implication.

Clay Shirky's work focuses primarily on the increasing usefulness of different networks. According to Shirky, until social media, there have been four major periods where the media has changed enough to be truly revolutionary and social media may be number five:

Printed Media: The printing press.
Conversational and Two-Way Communication Media: Telephone and telegraph.
Recorded Media: Photographs, movies.
Media Over Air: Radio and television.
Social Media: The period with the largest upsurge in expressive capabilities in human history.

Shirky says new technologies are facilitating new sets of cooperative structures to show a way of getting things done in science, arts, business and many other platforms. His biography describes his work.

Jillian York at Harvard University's Berkman shared her viewpoint for Internet and society. In one of her interviews, she talked about how social media became the victim of the Egyptian government. Egypt's government had not only successfully disabled Twitter but also had succeeded in limiting the access to Facebook, Google and Yahoo to crush political unrest.

Although it is not the first time that a government blocked Internet access, Egypt's actions caught the attention of the entire world. Jillian York also pointed out that:

Prior to this incident, the Egyptian government had blocked only minimally: Opposition sites, but no social media or international news.

Jillian also added:

The government does not have a central control point for the Internet, which means it must rely on being able to force ISPs (Internet Service Providers) to comply.

As a result, Egypt had been gradually avoided, especially in the business community. As the Egyptian government also targeted Twitter and shut down the use of mobile phone networks and Internet communications, people were having real-time difficulty in accessing Google or YouTube services.

Access to social networks and mobile phone networks had been completely disabled in response to the growing public protests for the incident in Tunisia, when a 26 year-old graduate killed himself when police seized his fruits and vegetables for selling without permission. Likewise President Hosni Mubarak, former President of Egypt, also disabled the Internet, social network sites and even mobile phone networks when protesters took to the streets in Egypt. The government immediately deactivated Internet service to reconcile the situation.

When Hosni Mubarak resigned, the Observer spoke about the Twitter revolution, they pointed out the use of Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and Google Docs in unprecedented ways. Social networking had played a crucial role during the modern day activism, especially pertaining to Arab Spring.

In Arab countries, activists in the Arab Spring used social media as the primary tool to express their thoughts in relation to the unjust acts committed by their government. Through the social networking sites, the Arab Spring activists not only gained the power to rebel against powerful dictatorship, but also helped the Arab civilian become aware of the underground communities.

Similarly, China confronted a massive earthquake in 2009, which was immediately reported to Twitter and other social media sites before the government knew anything about it.

In countries like Tunisia, Egypt and Yemen, numerous voices of the protests had been organized through social media such as Twitter and Facebook. Check out one such important protest in Arab Spring's cascading effects.

Therefore, social media has successfully torn the psychological barrier of fear by supporting people to connect and share important information. Hussein Amin, a professor of Mass Communications at American University in Cairo, said:

Social networks, for the first time, provided activists with an opportunity to quickly disseminate information while bypassing government restrictions.

Currently, several social media specialists are interested in using social networks for Nation's development:

Silke Von Brockhausen, a social media specialist, New York, USA coordinates UNDP's global social networking community and trains the staff and managers in the use of social media. She is interested to learn about the effective ways to use social media for the development of advocacy and making the international development community more transparent.

Dustin Andres, a social communications specialist in Washington D.C. is currently working on a social media handbook for agriculture development practitioners.

Thus, social media is an incredible tool that should be embraced with an eye towards development – rather than demolition.

Digital Enigma Photo via Shutterstock

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Healthier Employees May Lead to Bigger Increases Under Obamacare

Posted: 23 Jun 2013 09:00 AM PDT

increases under obamacare

Having younger, healthier employees may no longer mean lower health insurance increases for small businesses after next year. If you’re wondering how that can be, thank Obamacare.

According to brokers and other experts, the Affordable Care Act, which goes into effect in January, will have some unanticipated impacts, especially on small group premium plans. These are the kinds of plans often bought by employers with between 50 and 100 employees or less.

Why Healthier Employees May Lead to Increases Under Obamacare

Under the Act, insurance companies can no longer consider the health of employees (except for tobacco use) or the risk in their particular industry when setting insurance premiums, the Wall Street Journal reported last week. And insurance companies must consider age to a much lesser degree when setting those premiums, the Act says.

So what does this mean?

It could signal good news for businesses that employ less healthy or older workers or those in a higher risk industry–think industrial manufacturing.

But for businesses with younger and potentially healthier employees — many tech businesses, for example — or for those in lower risk white collar industries, the new rules may mean trouble.

Costs Spread Around

The Affordable Care Act will have the overall effect of spreading out insurance costs among small businesses. Those companies with a fairly even distribution of employees based on age and health may see little change in their premiums. Those businesses with a larger number of older, less healthy employees may see a lower increase in premiums than they are used to next year.

For instance, a Connecticut hinge manufacturer employing 16 people with an average age in their early 50′s could see premiums increase by just 10 percent next year, the Wall Street Journal reported. That’s compared with 18 percent last year, so a fairly significant change. Compare that to small businesses with younger, healthier employees that will almost certainly see more cost.

How much more?

Well, another Connecticut firm, a 23 employee computer business, anticipates a 25 to 45 percent increase in insurance premiums next year after historical increases of between 13 and 17 percent.

Is the Affordable Healthcare Act going to affect your company’s insurance premiums in 2014? What are you anticipating?

US Healthcare Photo via Shutterstock

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Connect With Your Employees With a “Crowdsourced Performance Review”

Posted: 23 Jun 2013 06:00 AM PDT

crowdsourced performance review When I think of crowdsourcing, I think finance. But can it be associated with other activities, such as our work performance? After all people do have a lot of ways to view you, but how accurate are the views?

The book that best tackles how employees are acknowledged is The Crowdsourced Performance Review: How to Use The Power of Recognition to Transform Employee Performance by Eric Mosley. Mosley combines the latest research with his experience as Co-Founder and CEO of Globoforce, an employment performance firm. I discovered the copy via NetGalley and was impressed with its argument of how much the performance review had become a relic.

A Panoramic Photo of a Career Instead of a Single Snapshot

When I first read the title, I immediately recalled the 360 degree performance reviews from my days at Ford. So I wondered if Mosley was advocating something already available.

But I did not have to read further than the opening chapter for the answer. It clarified the value of the 360 review in Mosley's view - much of the reality surrounding a 360 performance review is less authentic than intended.

In practice 360-degree reviews can actually muddy the waters. According to an authoritative 2012 study conducted by Gallup, a serious problem for multi-source appraisals is that they often present the employee with conflicting messages about his or her performance. . .The result? In the 360 degree environment the input is watered down to the point where it becomes generic. Whenever people have to give an opinion, they become diplomatic in their responses.

The opening chapter also clarifies Mosley's thesis for the book – that the performance review structure is outdated.

To draw that conclusion, Mosley relies on the latest research. He describes how the discoveries increment the current quality of reviews. For example, he notes the degree that review timeliness is out of sync with an employee's current performance.

Typically managers' judgments about performance that will color the next 365 days are based on reactions to the last 365 days.

Mosley advocates social recognition as a remedy. Three trends serve as an influence for the review model:

The spread of crowdsourcing information of all kinds.
The universal adoption of social media.
The rise of culture as a competitive advantage.

The third influence particularly caught my imagination. When I read that I recalled all the small startup firms that tout their quirky team of super-savvy-awesome professionals who miraculously balance work and play. The specific way culture enhances competitive advantages becomes clear.

Mosley goes on to outline the basics for a timely employee performance assessment. He sums how the new influences give social recognition an advantage:

When we bring these three innovations of crowdsourcing, social media and culture as a competitive advantage together for the purposes of talent and culture management, the result is social recognition, a systematic asset of practices in which many people consider and recognize an employee's performance on a daily basis.

The ability to relate performance to larger issues is what makes this book appealing. Mosley's writings and the supporting research connect the results from today's digital landscape to the activities of managing people well.

Your Employees Can Not Improve if Your Measures Do Not Improve

Analytics, while not covered in full-force detail here, takes a secondary undertone. Noting Moneyball, the story of the analytics success the Oakland As had with its baseball roster, Mosley advocates data as a way to explore untapped potential in employees:

Statistics are not the whole answer: Concentrating only on data can blind a manager to other relevant information…HR employees instinctively know that last point but too often it leads to a view that performance management is more art than science. It's both art and science, and the key for using data is separating the signal (relevant but selective data) from the noise (irrelevant but plentiful data).

Data visualization for managing employee metrics is highlighted to explain its value and to drive the salient points regarding employee improvement and proper monitoring of related performance.

I have two interns, my first "employees" since starting my business. The work arrangement is not complex, but I know that when the day comes for more formal reviews, I will have to consider new criteria to evaluate employees. Such considerations will happen for most small business owners who adopt the cloud and incorporate various levels of partnerships.

When owners do reach for more sophisticated evaluation, The Crowdsourced Performance Review illuminates how evaluations should be done.

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