Memo To: Smart corporate marketers who are including social media / Web 2.0 strategies From: Your customers
Blogs, podcasts, videos, communities building, social networking, widgets and gidgets and digg and Twitter and the ten thousand other technologies are worth NOTHING if your internal processes are broken.
Forget about how to create, measure and analyze the buzz about your brand. It means NOTHING if your internal processes are broken.
My friend Marianne Richmond details a very frustrating story of how HP is playing games with the education of Sam - a high school freshman - whose HP laptop has been zonked (I think that's a technical word) since November 2007 .. with no resolution dispute hours with tech support, emails to bloggers, on and on. What adds insult to injury is that this is the company that boasts not 1 or 2 or 10 or 15 or 20 but over 50 HP blogs along with podcasts and other social media initiatives. There is even one about social media by Scott Berg. They all mean NOTHING because internal processes are broken.
HP, I'd like to introduce you to two of your customers Sam
and his mom Marianne,
who are about to go MAC. Well, HP you might say, the loss of one high school student and his mom .. no big deal. It's not like they are a Fortune 100 company where you might have opportunity for an account with hundreds perhaps thousands of orders.
Oh, by the way, HP if you or one of your 50+ bloggers happen to be listening to this conversation, I forgot to mention one minor detail. Mom Marianne is a highly respected blogger. Her post - HP: Customer Experience Disconnect might influence as many potential customers as that one Fortune 100 account.
Some times life shows us some unexpected humor this cartoon
from gapingvoid.com was next to Marianne's post.
Lessons Learned:
Social media is more than a well written blog.
Social media changes how we conduct business.
In developing your social media strategy do not neglect a review of internal processes. How will information be disseminated?
In the nano second world of the Internet, internal systems must be developed to ensure rapid responses to questions and problems.
Excellent customer service is not a nice to have .. it's critical.
Listening in on conversations means NOTHING if you can't take corrective action .. immediately.
Diva Marketing Talks
is a live, internet radio show. 30-minutes. 2-guests. 1-topic about
social media marketing. Why? To help you understand how to participate
in the "new" conversation without getting blown-up. Miss today's show?
You can pick it up as a podcast.
Today's Diva Marketing Talks is about an old world communication that meets new world buzz. Seems you can't turn a corner in the blogosphere without a blogger writing a book. I think of it as a side-step going from virtual to paper .. one more way to "time transfer communicate." Bet you thought time transfer was only about podcasts (smile).
Nettie Hartsock, publicist to authors (and more) and Sybil Stershic new author, dish about using social media to get the buzz going. Even if you are not a book author I'm betting a chocolate martini that there will be some hot tips that can apply to beyond books!
Nettie Hartsock is a veteran e-business journalist and PR marathoner! Nettie helps individuals, authors, and companies focus on creating, conveying and connecting their message to the world and creates actionable how-to-programs which establish a powerful base for attracting both blogger and journalists attention. Catch Nettie at her blog Hardsock Communications.
Sybil Stershic
Sybil F. Stershic is a marketing & organizational advisor with more than 30 years of experience helping service providers strengthen relationships with customers and employees. She is the author of the recently released book on internal marketing, Taking Care of the People Who Matter Most: A Guide to Employee-Customer Care, published by WME books.
A graduate of Lehigh University, Sybil began her career in bank marketing. (The banks she worked for were merged into oblivion.) She launched her own business, Quality Service Marketing, in 1988 specializing in internal marketing and marketing/strategic planning facilitation. Sybil also conducts marketing workshops nationwide for business and nonprofit professionals and is a frequent speaker at national conferences.
Active in leadership and professional development, Sybil is a former Chairman of the American Marketing Association.Catch Sybil at her blog Quality Service Marketing
Tips From The Diva Bag
Complements of Nettie Hartsock
Don't blog spam or blogblast to bloggers. Reach out on a personal one-to-one basis. Don't demand coverage.
Be authentic, honest, timely and make certain that the blog you're reaching out to is one you're familiar with and have had the respect to read.
Ask not what a blogger can do for you, ask how you, your book or your product can benefit the blogger and its readership and then approach them in a humble and respectful manner.
Complements of Sybil Stershic
In Taking Care of the People Who Matter Most, I advocate the “3 Rs” – Respect, Recognition, and Reinforcement – as the foundation of internal marketing strategy. This is the same 3 Rs but in a different context.
Apply the “3 Rs” when dealing with prospective reviewers (both online and off-line).
Be Respectful of their time & workload (and understand they may not have the time to review your book based on your timetable).
Recognize their efforts by acknowledging their time to review and comment on your book (e.g., send a thank you note).
Reinforce their helping you with appropriate reciprocity (such as linking to their blog or website on your blog).
Target carefully & respectfully when contacting other bloggers as prospective reviewers, especially as many bloggers are already inundated with book review requests. If the book is of interest to me, and the request is sincere, then I’ll consider it. The one request that really ticked me off is the e-mail that raved about my blog and asked me to review a new book on internet marketing … despite the fact that my specialty is internal marketing!
Start with your existing relationships. I had great response to an e-mail I sent to my network of colleagues, clients, friends & family announcing my book’s release. It wasn’t a “buy my book” announcement, but a sharing of the good news with the folks who supported and encouraged me throughout the process. The e-mail included a special discount that they could pass on to the people in their respective networks who they thought might benefit from my book.
Can't call in but have a question for Nettie and Sybil ? Drop a
comment and I'll ask it for you. Let me know what you'd like Diva Talks
to chat about. Don't forget Diva Marketing Talks morphs into a podcast.
Seems the post that Geoff Livingston and I co-wrote,
about the role/responsibility of journalists who blog under the masthead of their publication, has taken on a life of its own. That is the good-bad-and ugly of taking the risk to put your thoughts out in a world (social media) where conversation and idea exchange is not only encouraged but is the norm.
By good I mean - the opportunity to stretch your thinking through the ideas that others add to the conversation. By bad I mean - if you are not prepared for others to disagree it can be uncomfortable to realize that not everyone thinks like you .. which really is a good. By ugly I mean - sometimes people can misinterpret your concepts and yes, sometimes get snarky and well .. ugly.
Is it worth the risk? Only you can determine that one. For a boutique firm like Bloomberg Marketing/Diva Marketing, or any small company, personalities are usually an integral aspect of the brand since you are "buying the person." (A challenge if you want to grow staff ..but that's another post)
What is going to far? How is transparency defined to ensure that conversations are honest but still maintain the integrity of the company/brand and of the blogger? This was part of a conversation that Elisa Camhort, Carol Krishner and I had yesterday in a session that we facilitated for the Healthcare Blogging Summit in Chicago yesterday. Guidelines are critical of course and hiring people who understand and buy-into similar values and vision help too.
But what happens when the lines of main stream media and blogging merge? This was the underling concept of The Buzz Bin / Diva Maketing cross post; however, that idea seemed to get lost since the example we used hit a nerve with many. Geoff's follow up post also brings the discussion back to the larger issue - the role/responsibility of journalists who blog under the masthead of their publication. Geoff in respond to an excellent question from CK -
CK: Or if Jonah hadn’t blogged on it at all?
Geoff: Ahh, the real issue. Well, if journalists want to blog under a publication masthead then they are still governed under the ethics of journalism. Thus the unwavering point of view. Blogging yes, fine, but clean it up and play by the rules… Or conversely, post it on a personal blog.
Just because a journalist blogs doesn’t mean they lose their role in the conversation. But they have a different tone and ethics — which by the way makes them more credible than the average blog.
As main stream media and social media blur lines "What's it all about Alfie" (sorry I'm writing from NYC) expectations need to be thought through. Is there a difference between an opt-ed piece and a blog post that is published under the guise of a publication's masthead website?
Should each blog post be accompanied with a disclaimer? "This is the point of view of person-who-holds-a-respected-position-in-the-world-of journalism; however, this publication assumes no editorial responsibility over the post which may or may not reflect the positioning of the publication. So even though we have given person-who-holds-a-respected-position-in-the-world-of journalism the platform, reach and by default credibility of our organization please do not assume that this particular work from this person-who-holds-a-respected-position-in-the-world-of journalism meets journalistic standards."
To echo CK's comments I too applaud traditional media companies who are stepping into the world of social media. As we learn together about this ever changing world I'm sure there will be more lessons, questions and exciting ways to conduct business and report the news. I don't expect journalists to be Clark Kent .. wll maybe I would like them to be (smile) but I do expect that they will follow journalist guidelines.
Here's the challenge: What to tell a group of savvy PR professionals about social media .. in 20 minutes. Yesterday I joined my friend SEO expert Stacy Williams, Prominent Placement, on a panel for a Business Wire Client Social Media Luncheon. Thanks to Mark Dunn, Laurie Sturaitis and Yasmine Santos Holmes for coordinating our efforts.
A few weeks ago I saw the John Travolta Hairspray film. Loved it. It's a fun, upbeat, happy flick. There was one song that resonated with me from the first beat - You Can't Stop The Beat! I thought it's about social media .. well really it's about love but hey, there's a lot of that in social media just take a look at the Age of Conversation. I found the theme to my presentation. Click and listen!
You can't stop an avalanche as it races down the hill You can try to stop the seasons, girl, but you know you never will
I wanted to explain - You can't stop the momentum of social media and anyone who thinks it's a fad is living under a rock. Sure it may change .. blogs today .. micro blogs tomorrow .. the entire world on Facebook .. and who knows what is 'round the corner. - You Can't Stop The Beat!
I wanted explain - The three ways that social media can authentically support public relations.
Active Listening - of the conversation through key word feeds from blog search engines. Using the information make a better product/service.
Active Participation - stepping into social media with a bebe step by commenting on a blog. Then developing a social media strategy that includes authoring blogs, a community, vlogs, podcasts, etc.
Depending on the Kindness of Strangers (a la Blanche DuBois, the wounded hero in Streetcar Called Desire)- blogger relations. Bloggers can turn into friends if you develop a relationship.
Sidebar: Toss of a pink boa to Sintya Moreira, TheDeMossGroup, who introduced herself to me after the event and asked if she could send me information - when she thought it might be appropriate. Of the 80 people in the room Sintya was the only PR person to do that.
Let's explore one of the three ways that social media can authentically support public relations - Active Participation. Active Listening and Depending On The Kindness of Strangers to come later.
Active Participation - One of the most powerful aspects of blogs is the ability to tell your stories when you want to how you want to .. you get to do it as Frank would say - your way.
Here's one of my stories. I've written my share of media releases but I'm no way a PR pro. A few years ago, before blogs .. way back in the '90's, I was marketing director of a non profit and with that came many hats including media relations. The agency's mandate was to provide business support for minority small
business owners. We had a great story to tell and didn't have much of a problem getting some pretty good ink.
Any members of the media here? Okay girlfriend, let's dish! How many of you have spent significant
time talking to a reporter that resulted in no mention or one sentence that was taken out of context or the slant of the story was not what you had anticipated?
For the most part the Atlanta media was kind and very generous to us. This article from the Atlanta Business Chronicle was sweet. However, my first interview was a frustrating and disappointing experience. The story wasn't wrong but it wasn't the way I wanted it to be written. I wanted people to hear the story in a different way. There was little if anything I could do. Oh sure I could have sent a few emails but the not with with the reach or the influence as that publication.
Technology has changed that one.Today my stories can be heard, read or viewed globally. And then quickly passed on by hundreds of people who want to help chat it up.
The agency I worked for, was all about helping small business owners.
The staff was committed and passionate. But the perception of an agency
even with people who care can be intimidating. A blog would not only
have allowed me to tell the stories but ripped the Wizard of Oz curtain
down and introduced the community to those people. It would have built
relationships and fostered relationships. It would have made The
Atlanta Small Business Project less intimidating. I would have had one more avenue to listen and learn what prospective clients wanted and how
to develop programs to meet their needs.
Recently Johnson & Johnson made David and Goliath heads when it opened litigation against the Red Cross over the use of the famous red cross logo. However,the JNJ BTW blog gave J&J the opportunity to tell the story their way. Agree or disagree with J&J over the use the logo .. the point here is a blog provided an instant publishing tool. Toss of a Pink Boa to Marc Monseau for allowing negative comments.
And you can try to stop my dancing feet, but I just cannot stand still!
'Cause the world keeps spinnin' round and round
Social Media Benefits For Public Relations
Tell your stories your way
Tell your stories when you want
Help brand champions tell your stories for you (viral and link love)
Build relationships with the people who are the heart of your brand
Listen and learn resulting in a better product and/or service
Yesterday is history [be gone!]
And it's never comin back! [Look ahead, cause...]
Tomorrow is a brand new day, and it don't know white from black [YEAH!]
'Cause the world keeps spinnin' round and round
You Can't Stop The Beat! But I ask you .. why would you want to?
Bloggers are a funny lot. We love to chat it up. We love to build relationships. As we've seen time and again we are quick to come to our own conclusions. Maybe too quick at times. Limited information, not understanding the context and cultural nuances make it so easy to misconstrue some one's intentions. I raise my hand to doing that .. and having that done to me. No one is granted immunity on this one.
Social spaces from blogs to Twitter to Facebook and M-or-e provide easy, free ways to tell our closest friends and friends we don't even know our opinions. That's great for the most part. And no girlfriend bloggers are not researchers or even journalists but sometimes we might want to go an extra step. Especially when it might result in a better conversation.
This week I wrote a post, Blogger Relations: A Side Step To Buy Buzz, and included information and links to several interesting research projects. Part of that information was pulled from a media release from Agency.com about their study, Who Is Driving Social Media, an analysis of what they term influencers - "uploaders." Here's a clip from the post.
The big strategic implication of the Uploaders study is clear – brands need to think of these digital influencers as a resource, not a target. - Dr. Paul Marsden.
That's an interesting concept. Agency.com doesn't say brands should build relationships and expand community with bloggers but instead suggests that bloggers should be positioned as a "resource." And what is a "target?" I've sent off an eMail to Marianne Stefanowicz, Assoc. Director, PR & Marketing Agency.com Worldwide asking for clarification. Ms Stefanowicz was indicated as a contact on the release. Perhaps she'll drop a comment or respond back. If she does I'll let you know.
Marianne Stefanowicz, Assoc. Director, PR & Marketing Agency.com Worldwide graciously responded to my email and agreed to let me post her response. Now we have a better understanding of what was behind Dr. Marsden's remark. And a nice little road map of how to engage bloggers.
Hi Toby - and thank you for your inquiry.
I fielded your question in the direction of James Clifton and this was his response:
The essence of the quote is that we need to treat people as a ‘resource’ - so listen to them, make them brand advisors by involving them in marketing and product innovation. By doing this, you create genuine dialogue and engagement which helps to make them advocates of a brand.
We should NOT to treat them as a passive ‘target audience’ which we simply message at through advertising.
Hope this helps. Please reach out if you want further information or to talk to James directly.
I did a little more digging and followed Marianne's link which led to the book written by Fred Reichheld, The Ultimate Question. The book addresses how to build community and customer loyalty by answering one, seemingly simple question: Would you recommend us to a friend or colleague? By the way, Mr. Reichheld has a blog and Dr. Marsden blogs too. Sweet. I sent Fred Reichheld an email. Perhaps he'll drop by and leave a few words of wisdom. Who knows .. strange and wonderful things happen all the time in the blogosphere.
Lessons Learned: Reach out. You may find someone like Marianne who is happy to help ensure understanding. And if you pass that along to your community .. that's a powerful way to use social media tools.
BBF Tim Jackson, Masiguy, commented on a recent Diva post - "Blogger Relations Strategies are HUGE."
I'd go so far as to say that many brands will take their first dive (or second step after first listening we hope) into social media not by writing a traditional blog but with a side step passive strategy of BR .. blogger relations.
This quote from James Clifton, European Planning Director, Agency.com, reinforces my thoughts.- “We
believe that it is important to look at the people driving social media
and and work out how to engage them, rather than just jumping on the
latest MySpace or YouTube bandwagon."
Sidebar: Last month Agency.com released findings from, Who Is Driving Social Media, an analysis of what they term influencers - "uploaders."The
big strategic implication of the Uploaders study is clear – brands need
to think of these digital influencers as a resource, not a target. - Dr. Paul Marsden.
That's an interesting concept. Agency.com doesn't say brands should build relationships and expand community with bloggers but instead suggests that bloggers should be positioned as a "resource." And what is a "target?" I've sent off an eMail to Marianne Stefanowicz, Assoc. Director, PR & Marketing Agency.com Worldwide asking for clarification. Ms Stefanowicz was indicated as a contact on the release. Perhaps she'll drop a comment or respond back. If she does I'll let you know.
We've seen BR used to chat it up about cameras, computers, retail stores, TV shows. Think about it .. BR provides many of the same benefits as does active participation in social spaces *. The risks associated with BR are different than an active participation strategy. For some organizations they may be easier to mitigate. Here are a few -
Blogger Relations Strategy Risks
No control of a blogger's posts or non posts - negative reviews are very possible
Not understanding the social media cultures - remember each village in the blogosphere and social networking sites have their own unique nuances and social media etiquette
Not paying attention to details - its the little things that will trip you up
Not including over riding benefits to the community as well as the blogger
Sidebar: *Active participation in social space: participation in the conversation: launching a blog or a YouTube video, joining a social networking site a la Facebook or Flickr, and what seems to be an extreme risk for brands -commenting on blogs. Let's take a look at some of the rationale why BR is gaining in acceptance.
Benefits of a Blogger Relations Program (Over Active Participation Social Space Tactics)
Viral buzz - easy linking and pass along .. the echo effect
Search engine key word lift - increased brand mentions from multiple blogs and longevity of website content
Influencer behavior - BBF*, who I trust likes, it so I'll give it a try
Less time commitment - the agency does the work
Less resource drain - no need to dedicate people to write posts and participate in the conversation
Less lawyer involvement - not involved in reviewing (or sanitizing) bloggers' posts
Limited IT involvement - not involved in development or hosting of web pages
While a BRS may build a limited community, based on the program you develop, the downside is it's more likely you'll Not build community. Agency.com suggests that you invite "uploaders" to be brand advisors . Sounds like a vintage marketing strategy called a customer circle to me. Quess what's old is new again.
All well and good you may say, but how does it affect brand equity? Great question Diva and Divo. Glad you asked. Immediate Future, an agency in Great Britain, took a look at how the social media buzz of major brands compared to the Interbrand Top 100. The results may surprise you .. or not. Immediate Future has generously shared results, methodology and offers their conclusions.
Coke Flash! Although Coca Cola was ranked by Interbrand as The Number One Brand in 2006 my friends down the street don't show up in Immediate Future's Top Twenty-five Social Spaces Share of Voice. Google, with an Interbrand ranking of 24 is the #1 Brand when it comes to buzzz.
The data from this study was collected in April 2007 and Coke's virtual coke machine strategy launched mid month. Perhaps the buzz will build and 2007 will bring Coke into the top 25.
Not sure what to make of this except another example that the game it is a changin!
Sidebar: There are talented people who can help you navigate this new industry. It only takes a nano second to become an expert .. not! For some reason there are too many people who after seconds on Facebook or a few blog posts position themselves as experts. Please, please, please if you do choose to work with someone to develop social space strategies .. check credentials.
Toss of a pink boa to the bloggers and marketers who continue to explore how to use social media as a credible marketing strategy. Toss of a pink boa to the people who are not afraid to make mistakes, correct them and try again. Toss of a pink boa to the community of readers, who though you may not write a blog or even comment, are why we fight so hard to make it right.
Sidebar: The opening to this post may seem disjointed. And it is. I wrote it after reading this post and want to start with a thank you. Now on to the post ..
Smile and say cheese and if you are an influencer in your corner of the blogosphere and you just might land a new model Nikon camera. Or perhaps cool expensive shwag like a laptop, a trip to Amsterdam or a visit to the shoot of your favorite Sci-Fi TV show. The Brands (and authors too) having been tapping into bloggers, as a promotion tactic, for quite some time. Without a doubt the benefits are significant ranging from extending reach and awareness, to increasing search engine lift to obtaining the brass ring .. highly sought after peer-to-peer influence.
In corners of the biz/marketing blog world there are heated
conversations taking place. Many people believe bloggers should be transparent about receiving gifts. Others feel strongly that even with prominent disclosure a blogger's integrity is compromised or there is little benefit to their
community of readers. CK says nay. Joseph Jaffe says yea. This Friday they'll come together to talk about the issues on the podcast Across The Sound.
The lines are blurring between post-for-schwag and pay-for-post. Bloggers
who would never take $$ for posts accept expensive products. Perhaps it goes back to the concept of gift cards .. presents are okay but cold hard cash sometimes seems inappropriate as a gift. So we'll accept presents but not payment.
Sci-Fi Channel and Nikon Blogger Relations Programs: Two Different Strategies
Blogger Relations Programs are growing more complex as marketers merge promotion with product feedback and sampling tactics. Quiet on the set. Bloggers Blogging! NBC Universal invited influential sci-fi bloggers to a "digital press tour." In Vancouver bloggers were treated to a behind the scenes visit to their favorite Sci-Fi Channel shows where they live blogged the experience.
You expect to see cameras at these things, but to see all these people
with their laptops open, blogging live from the events -- it was a
completely different use of media than I've ever seen. Dave Howe,
Sci-Fi Channel Ad Age Interview
The Sci-Fi went further than a promotional blogger relations program when they included a research initiative. When you talk to your alpha consumers, you can learn so much. Do they like the plot lines? Do they like the marketing
of the shows? Is there a passion level for certain characters? Pete Snyder, New Media Strategies - Ad Age Interview
Nikon took a very different approach. In his blog post, Blogger Relations Program: My Point of View, Michael Kemper, MWWGroup made it clear that his company (that developed the strategy) considered the Nikon's initiative a sampling program. My comment on the post -
"However, it sure does appear an expensive "sampling program"
especially when you take into consideration that there does not appear
to be a mechanism for feedback from the bloggers. You are not giving
away tastes of King Pao chicken. If it quacks like a duck, why not call it a duck? A blogger
relations program "... where the goals were to desire for coverage,
discussion, testimonials and good word-of-mouth recommendations." (Italics quote from post)
If there had been a formal feeback loop, Nikon could have added value
to the entire blogging community's experience through those reviews and
demonstrated how to build a BRP that embraced not only transparency but
helped in the learning for all .. Nikon and perspective customers." There's been quite a bit of controversy about the program. In my humble opinion, this may stem in part from MWWGoup's misunderstand of bloggers.
The structure of the program is almost identical to how new products are introduced to print and broadcast journalists at The New York Times, Wall Street Journal, NBC, CNN and virtually every other reputable news outlet you can think of. Why? Because we firmly believe that bloggers are, in many ways, journalists. The same ethical considerations that shape a marketer's interactions with print and broadcast reporters should also be respected and adhered to when dealing with bloggers. And that objectivity, accountability and transparency are a must. (Bold is from Diva Marketing)
Bloggers are not journalists. While we do want to be respected and feel that we should be treated ethically and fairly by organizations that are courting our favor we owe no allegiance to an editor, a publication or an organization. For most bloggers, their underling mandate is to be true to themselves .. not to an outside source or publication.
Like it or not brand marketers realize that bloggers can bring reach
and awareness to a campaign. Like it or not bloggers want cool content
not to mention it's some what of an ego deal to be acknowledged by a
major brand as an 'influencer.' That said, BR programs are not going
away. That said let's help this new form of marketing evolve into a tactic that adds value to the blogger, to the community (for CK is right) and of course to the brand.
~Questions Your For Your Consideration~
What should industry standards/best practices be to ensure the integrity of conducting BR programs?
What would an excellent BRP look like?
Let's get into some granular backend stuff .. what defines and how do
you identify the 'influencers' appropriate within a segment?
Sidebar: I don't have a particular concern about the concept of
product placement as part of a blogger relations program (I would
not have been the best participant for the Nikon project .. no sour grapes here.) as long as it is build on transparency and honesty. I have accepted free biz books and coffee. I would gladly accept a free cruise .. I so need a holiday! But I would def let you know (smile).
and his mom Marianne, 
who are about to go MAC. Well, HP you might say, the loss of one high school student and his mom .. no big deal. It's not like they are a Fortune 100 company where you might have opportunity for an account with hundreds perhaps thousands of orders. 
from gapingvoid.com was next to Marianne's post. 
