Fellow Mediators, Help Promote Respectful Communication Online

If you read ACResolution, ACR’s quarterly magazine, then you may already know about RespectPledge.org, a creation of the National Center for Technology and Dispute Resolution at UMass-Amherst.

The genesis of RespectPledge was a series of frightening, anonymous threats made to prominent blogger Kathy Sierra, which ultimately left her living in so much fear she stopped blogging and may never return. Kathy’s awful experience was the fodder for much debate and conversation in cyberspace, with an outcry of support for her and an equally loud outcry about the cowardice and human failings of her threatener.

Now, in his most recent ACResolution column, Colin Rule discusses a new resolution adopted unanimously at the 5th International Forum on Online Dispute Resolution [Read more]

ADR Blogging and the Comment Spam Problem

Over time I’ve written a lot here about how blogs help you market your mediation services.

All well and good. These days, if you’re going to blog, you need a good spam prevention plan to go along with your ADR blogging. Spammers use computers and hire real people to fill out the comment forms at the bottom of your posts, flooding your site with spam. I know some bloggers who have become so overwhelmed by it that they’ve either disabled their comment box or prevented anyone without a Blogger account (if they use Blogger themselves) from leaving a comment.

It need not be so dire a solution. Disabling your comment feature diminishes the dialogue-building potential in your ADR blog, because your readers can no longer start or contribute to the conversation you begin with your blog posts. [Read more]

Success leaves clues: william warters

I’ve always thought of Bill Warters as a kindred spirit because he works in higher education, is an ADR professional, and loves and writes about innovative technologies to support our work. He blogs, too. Bill is way ahead of me on the tech front, though, which means I learn something interesting or useful every time I visit one of his sites. And when I attended his workshop at last fall’s ACR conference, I came away with head spinning from all that Bill had to offer. Bill has kindly agreed to an interview for my Success Leaves Clues series.

If you’ve not yet had the good fortune to cross paths with Bill, here’s a bit about him: Dr. William Warters is an Assistant Professor in the Master of Arts in Dispute Resolution Program at Wayne State University. His work explores innovative ways to support conflict resolution knowledge and skill development, and his training and research experience involve using qualitative research approaches to explore the lived experiences of research participants. Bill’s also the author of Mediation in the Campus Community, a terrific book I most recently recommended to someone just yesterday. When I finally met Bill in person last fall, I found him to be the kind, very smart and innovative soul I had always supposed him to be. [Read more]

Success leaves clues: diane levin and geoff sharp 2

I’ve been pondering Geoff Sharp’s response to my first question in this new interview series, Success Leaves Clues. In reply to my question about the intersection of technology and the marketing and management of an ADR practice, Geoff noted that he’s seeing some practitioners who are great with flashy websites but whose skills don’t yet make the cut:

“We all need to remember that…you’ve got to have substance for what you’re selling. The intersection of managing a business, technology and marketing starts with what you do at the table…be good at the table first.”

As I listened to Geoff, I was reminded of something I’ve seen and again and again from business development coaches selling their services to people like us: [Read more]

Success leaves clues: diane levin and geoff sharp

Last week I announced a my new interview series, Success Leaves Clues. The series shares wisdom from mediators and other ADR professionals who are successful, respected, and know a thing or two about leveraging technology and the Internet to accomplish their work. I’ll post new additions to the series as I interview mediators in coming months.

It seemed fitting to start the series with two mediators whose work I admire, whose use of the Internet is leading edge, whose generosity of spirit is noteworthy, and who are just great fun: [Read more]

Success leaves clues: the mediator interview series

Success leaves clues. It’s a great phrase. Personal success giants like Tony Robbins and marketing authors like John Stanton have been using it for years.

And it seems a fitting name for a new series of interviews I’ve begun with mediators around the globe. Starting next week, I’ll share wisdom from mediators and other ADR professionals who are successful, respected, and know a thing or two about leveraging technology and the Internet to accomplish their work.

And I’ll add to this series periodically. You can find the most recent interviews anytime by clicking the “Success Leaves Clues” link under Topics in the site’s sidebar.

I’ll begin the series by asking five successful ADR professionals to consider the following questions: [Read more]

Prospective Clients Are Googling You: What Are They Finding?

Earlier in the week I shared a past article I wrote about building a credible online presence to leverage your mediation marketing efforts. In that 2006 article, I said,

“A web presence is important because your prospective clients will probably research you on the web. Mine certainly do. And the more references there are to your good and valued work, the greater sense clients can get about exactly who you are and how you work. And the seed of a connection is planted in that moment.”

Not sure that applies to your prospective client base? Check out this data I just heard in a podcast: [Read more]

Mediation Marketing and Management Vault, July 2007

The Mediation and Marketing Vault is a monthly feature that dips into the archives and shares still-relevant articles from one year ago. If you’re new to Mediator Tech, I hope you find these helpful!

Your Online Presence: What Clients See When They Research You: How a web presence is critical for your mediation marketing efforts and how to begin to create the right one for your ADR business.

Building an Online Presence: Ways to Expand Your Internet Profile: More ways to build the right online presence to leverage your mediation marketing efforts.

Mediation Marketing Isn’t About Convincing: No Raggedy Andy wigs for you! [Read more]

ADR Resources Roundup, July 2007

My monthly roundup is a short list of links to services, ideas, and articles that help make marketing and managing your ADR practice more effective and efficient.

Re-charge multiple gadgets at the same time and with minimal cords with Chargepod. Good for road warriors, too.

Recover from the “oops” of a deleted file on your PC with Pandora, a free file recovery program. Thanks to Bob Ambrogi for the find.

Save power and make your office greener with Smart Strip, a surge protector that allows you to turn off all your electric-guzzling peripherals with a single button.

Send a simple fax without a fax machine with TMC and your email software or web browser. [Read more]

Avoid the Top Ten Headshot Mistakes on Your ADR Website

Suzanne Falter-Barnes is a platform builder. She’s a media packaging specialist who helps small business professionals create an online presence that conveys greater credibility, instant authority, and more impact. I think of Suzanne as the E.F. Hutton of platform…when Suzanne speaks, we should listen.

So I’m thrilled that Suzanne has given me permission to share her article on getting a terrific professional headshot photo and avoiding the most common mistakes. If you don’t yet have your smiling face on your ADR website, it’s time. If you do but it’s not a professional-grade photo, then keep Suzanne’s guidelines handy when you pick up the phone to call photographers.

Top Ten Headshot Mistakes

by Suzanne Falter-Barnes

So … it’s been a few years. Your headshot still shows your aging Dorothy Hamill do from 1992, and has a rather, well, young quality to it. Not only that, you show up to do presentations or talks, and people say “Wow. You really look nothing like your picture.”

Sounds like it’s time for a new headshot. So allow me to guide you in the right direction, as headshots are a critical piece of creating the online credibility you need to build platform. Yeah, appearances ‘don’t count’ in the larger scheme of things. But they sure do when you have exactly 1/20th of a second to impress your Net visitor with your message.

Here are the mistakes most commonly made that make a headshot less than it can be. [Read more]

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