Kristin Magette, Communications Director at Eudora School District in Eudora, Kansas discusses how and why the district embraced social media both in the classroom and as a powerful tool for connecting with parents and students. Kristin discusses how concerns over the adoption of social media were overcome, training and guidelines that were implemented, appointment of select teachers as "social ambassadors," growth and management of online communities, and reviews what the impact of social media has been on the district. She concludes with a call to action for any school districts currently holding out against social media adoption, and offers words of advice and encouragement for those ready to take their first steps.

Part of a series of conversations with leaders and innovators in the social business space, hosted by Social: IRL Principal Ben Smith, and Expion VP of Strategy, Zena Weist. Learn more at:http://smartsocial.biz.

Frank Eliason is Senior Vice President of Social Media at Citibank and author of @ YourService. Frank became well known for his pioneering work at Comcast in bringing customer service to the social web under the @ ComcastCares Twitter handle. This work has been recognized by many news organizations, including ABC News, New York Times, and Business Week.

In part four of this interview via Google Hangout, Frank answers the question "what does smart social mean to me" with some valuable advice: if you want to win in social, concentrate less on social itself, and more on creating remarkable customer experiences.

Part of a series of conversations with leaders and innovators in the social business space, hosted by Social: IRL Principal Ben Smith, and Expion VP of Strategy, Zena Weist. Learn more at:http://smartsocial.biz.

Frank Eliason is Senior Vice President of Social Media at Citibank and author of @ YourService. Frank became well known for his pioneering work at Comcast in bringing customer service to the social web under the @ ComcastCares Twitter handle. This work has been recognized by many news organizations, including ABC News, New York Times, and Business Week.

In part three of this interview via Google Hangout, Frank expands on his recent post: http://bit.ly/AreWeAsProfessionalsKillingSocialMedia. In particular, Frank discusses real-time marketing trends and the need for brands to be part of the social media community in a way that delivers value and not detract from user experience.

Part of a series of conversations with leaders and innovators in the social business space, hosted by Social: IRL Principal Ben Smith, and Expion VP of Strategy, Zena Weist. Learn more at:http://smartsocial.biz.

Frank Eliason is Senior Vice President of Social Media at Citibank and author of @ YourService. Frank became well known for his pioneering work at Comcast in bringing customer service to the social web under the @ ComcastCares Twitter handle. This work has been recognized by many news organizations, including ABC News, New York Times, and Business Week.

In part two of this interview, Frank shares events from July 26, 2008, and his realization about the more personalized nature of the social media space - "human connections, not brand messaging."

Recorded: March 5, 2013

Part of a series of conversations with leaders and innovators in the social business space, hosted by Social: IRL Principal Ben Smith, and Expion VP of Strategy, Zena Weist. Learn more at:http://smartsocial.biz.

Frank Eliason is Senior Vice President of Social Media at Citibank and author of @ YourService. Frank became well known for his pioneering work at Comcast in bringing customer service to the social web under the @ ComcastCares Twitter handle. This work has been recognized by many news organizations, including ABC News, New York Times, and Business Week.

In part one of this interview, Frank shares the backstory of how @ ComcastCares came about and social customer service was born.

Recorded: March 5, 2013

More than 150 people attended the Social Media Club of Kansas City’s January 2013, breakfast, featuring a special conversation with Altimeter Group analyst and Engage and The End of Business as Usual author, Brian Solis. Hosted at Google Fiber Space in Kansas City, the conversation took place via a specially orchestrated Hangout, with Brian being interviewed by Social: IRL principal, Ben Smith.

Brian's latest book, Whats the Future of Business, has a March 2013, release date: http://bit.ly/BrianSolisFuture

Recorded: January 4, 2013.

Part of a series of conversations with leaders and innovators in the social business space, hosted by Social: IRL Principal Ben Smith, and Expion VP of Strategy, Zena Weist. Learn more at http://smartsocial.biz.

Mark Fidelman is the Managing Director of social business agency, Evolve, and the Socialized and Mobilized Columnist on Forbes. He's also Conference Director at premier social business conference, BusinessNext Social. His experience includes more than two decades of technology sales and marketing with organizations including A.T. Kearney, EDS, CT Space and Autodesk. Mark draws upon his experience as a Chief Social Strategist where he led numerous social initiatives and programs while working in partnership with companies like Microsoft and IBM.

Recorded: February 21, 2013.