PR Pro Bono Day- Session 3

Social Media For the Short-Staffed
Kerri Goldsmith of HBK Sorce Financial presented some tips and pointers for people to get the most bang for their social media efforts.
Social media is particularly important for nonprofits because internet users, especially social networkers, are more likely to be active in volunteer associations.

But how can you do it right?  Goldsmith offers four basic suggestions for starting your social media efforts:

• Define your goals (awareness? donations? volunteers? events?)
• Identify your resources (yourself? volunteers? an agency? your audience/supporters?)
• Know your target audience (and in particular, what social media platform are they most likely to gravitate to?)
• Start small and grow into social media

Once you've analyzed your situation, she offers more suggestions:

• Don't be overwhelmed by your options.  Pick the medium you think will be most effective for your message and audience, and start there.
• Use time-saving tools such as Hootsuite, Tweetdeck, or Seesmic.  You can also utilize these tools on your smartphone.
• Plan ahead!  Schedule your messages in advance.
• On Twitter, keep messages to under 120 characters so you can be easily retweeted.  Make sure to shorten URLs, and utilize hashtag/keywords to make it searchable
• On Facebook, take advantage of static content, post longer messages, and use photos or video whenever possible.
• Remember, communication works two ways.  Reply, comment, and thank your audience.
• Build "lists" of people to follow... media, constituents, organizations with complimentary missions, so you can more easily communicate with them.
• Measure your results by tracking links, clickthroughs, retweets, mentions, etc.

Mei-Mei Chan - The Road Ahead

Mei-Mei Chan, (pronounced "me-me") became President and Publisher of The News-Press in March 2010.  She has a broad knowledge of the media industry holding positions in news, circulation, and advertising. 

She shared a little about her history and transition to living in Southwest Florida.  Mei-Mei was born in Canton, China to the first woman in the village to go to school and an uneducated father.  When she was two, she and her mother and father escaped to Hong Kong, and eventually to America when she was 7.

Professionally, she's worked throughout the country, including Idaho, Illinois, and across the country in Seattle, and started out as a cub reporter.  She said that Southwest Florida has a wonderful quality of life.  She especially loves wearing sandals and no socks - which garnered a chuckle from the audience. 

She believes leadership is also a lifelong journey, with many tools and lessons learned along the way.   Mei-Mei discussed navigating a changing landscape, pondering how to stay ahead of the curve.

Changes in landscape... remembering our journey from the first PCs, the first ebay and Amazon purchases in 1995,  first cell phones, to today when 25% of homes don't even have a landline phone.  We also remembered the start of YouTube, where there were 32 billion videos watched in March 2010.  All these changes have occurred in just 15 years. "Ceaseless, creative chaos."

Changing consumer... rising to the chaos, consumers are in control with 24/7 demand, content and access.  People can and will say anything and are no longer naive regarding pricing.  The younger generation is the "D" generation - digital.  If it's not online, it didn't happen.  There are over 100 million blogs today, combined with Twitter and other social media - this has changed society. People are connected all the time.  The new landscape is all about social sharing and social currency.  Consumers are fragmented, fickle and fluid.  They trust their network more than so-called experts.

Implications for communities, businesses and professionals... How strongly are we performing in the social ecosystem in terms of digital differentiation, loyal followers, authenticity, guiding/bridging/leading, reaching wider and deeper to a more challenging audience.  Another factor is considering access for individuals to these social communities, and also what content to provide.  You need sophisticated campaigns across the media to reach consumers throughout the buying process.  Embrace and lead with authenticity.

New media effect on traditional media... The effect of this on traditional media has been a survival of a cataclysmic storm.  Secular changes include classified categories changing, content ownership and have created perplexed advertisers.  Mass media has been redefined.  For newspapers, their unique challenge is their gigantic existing cost structure, including printing and distribution.  Newspapers are adjusting.  Only a handful have actually closed and major metro newspapers are still dominant in their cities.  Newspapers and their web sites remain the strongest of any media in their markets.  Traditional newspapers are trusted, respected brands with a wide portfolio of content and advertising. 

There's room and space for everyone.  Although traditional media still powers the world with 67% of top news sites tied to legacy media (50% of them newspapers), at the end of the day, it's about content and storytelling and using devices to fit your life.  Traditional media is in transformation and still powering the world.

Locally - The News-Press... has been around for 126 years.  3 of 4 adults read their portfolio of products each week in print and online.  Sunday circulation is growing.  April page views to News-Press.com were 12.86 million, and unique visits spend an average of 25 minutes on the site.  The cornerstones of free press are connecting, reflecting, challenging and leading. Chan assures us The News-Press is healthy and staying ahead of the curve.  

Blogger:  Kerri Goldsmith, FPRA SWFL Emerging Media Chair 

Crisis Management: What GM did in SM

Chris Barger of General Motors gives 5 important lessons to consider when handling crisis management through social media.

By: Samantha Scott

Lesson #1 – You can’t over Communicate

• For general engagement and “normal” business, it’s better to strategize and choose right channels for your goal.
• In a crisis, answering as many questions as possible and letting people know you’re listening is vital – both because those affected expect it, and because it introduces your perspective into the conversation – so a broad, all-platforms approach is most effective.

GM reached out to influencers by sending out the complete social media/communications plan to the likes of Chris Brogan, etc. telling them it was coming out the next day and telling them to watch. ALL of them wrote about it because it was a great case study, happening live.

 Lesson #2 – Let others tell your story

• Others will be interested in how you handle your crisis from a social media perspective. So tell them, and let them tell others.
• We didn’t contact anyone in hopes that they would turn into an advocate. We just wanted them to tell the story – and knew that the story would drive people to us.
• Perceived loss of control is terrifying, but especially during a crisis. Do it anyway. You never really had control anyway.

 Lesson #3 – Measure, and report

• Keep track of all the positive comments, conversations, etc.
• Share them with your boss/client.

 Lesson #4 – Follow Up Matters

• Community will expect continued engagement.
• Reputational repair begins with demonstrating change, and the sense that you value the relationships forged during the crisis.
• Absent significant follow up, community could see your reputational efforts as PR/marketing.

 Lesson #5 – Reputate

• Ray Jordan, Johnson & Johnson – “reputate” as verb rather than “reputation” as noun.
• “Get caught doing the right thing.”
• Google search your company name with “wish” in front. See what consumers wish you had or did.
• Apply principles of community. Actually listen & respond.

 There is someone in every digital community who has the “Oprah effect” for their group. Find them, talk to them, listen to them. If they get on your side, then everyone else in the influential circle will be too.

 When you’re recovering from a crisis and trying to rebuild a reputation you’re trying to win people over one at a time. It’s one at a time that matters.

Lessons Learned: Final Thoughts

• Open, candid engagement can win admiration, mitigate negativity.
• Need to be engaged prior to crisis to have earned credibility.
• Engagement during crisis only goes so far; you have to back it up after the crisis with sincerity and action.
• Social engagement CAN sell your product, even when your product is something as big as a car.
• Success is only half in executing your program; the other half is TELLING people about what you’re doing (social, traditional, bloggers, etc.) If you have a good campaign or are doing something good, but no one knows, what good is it?
• There is no “over.”
• It’s not a campaign. It’s a commitment. You are promising to be there.

*Editor's Note: Learn more about crisis management and thriving in the Auto industry from Ford Motor Company at Annual Conference in August. Scholarships available through the SWFL Chapter; applications due Friday, March 26, 2010.

Fresh take on Social Media: Watch your Mouth

By: Samantha Scott

Earlier this month Tampa was the host for a social media conference called Social Fresh (see Twitter @sofresh for info on this and other events they are coordinating around the country).

The relatively young organization/event host gathered speakers from GM, InterContinental Hotel Group, Brains on Fire and more. These are some of the major engines running successful social media (from a marketing perspective) and they were all together for one enlightening event.

Overarching Theme

It’s about communication not advertising. Spike Jones of Brains on Fire put it brilliantly, "Advertising is the tax that you pay for being an unremarkable brand." This is not to say that advertising is bad or unnecessary. His point was, advertising had a job – to keep the company in front of it’s consumers, but if the brand/company is interesting, engaging, dynamic and creates passion then buzz/viral will happen organically. Social media is about communication and Word of Mouth, or WOM. Bottom line - advertising is for awareness. WOM is for credibility.

Supporting information for the statement, average ROI for advertising is less than 4 percent. It’s no wonder, because as Spike pointed out, if you talked to people in real life like you do in advertising, you’d get punched in the face.

The Facts

90 percent of WOM is offline and 80 percent of Twitter accounts are inactive. This is crucial when considering how to leverage social media in communication efforts. We should already be thinking about our target audience and where they are online, but this adds a different dimension. Likewise, we have to remember social media will never replace face-to-face interactions.

Watch your Mouth

Are you preaching and selling or are you talking and having a conversation? The difference could mean your success or failure. Spike explained our perception of the interaction as the first place to start.

So often the term campaign is used to describe an effort or plan we’re enacting. Why? It’s war vocabulary. No wonder people don’t trust us. Spike recommends the term movement instead. Relate to fans, inspirations, kindred spirits, grassroots, passion, love, etc.

The content you’re putting on these platforms becomes editorial. It’s not advertising anymore. It has an expiration date. It will have high read-through’s and clicks for a while, then it will drop off. You need to plan fresh material regularly, keeping in mind what readers/consumers want and need – not necessarily what you want to sell them.

The Buy In

The core concept in using social media for business is relationships. We have to offer added value to our client’s consumers. This could be special offers or just useful information. If they wanted to be sold to they’d watch commercials and study magazine ads. This requires a buy in on their part. For a movement to really take hold it has to engage the consumer and stir a passion within them. Passion drives action.

The Art and Science of Scaling Social Media

Maggie Fox of the Social Media Group, a Canadian firm with international clients, hit the nail on the head. Social media is a science. You don’t just throw it all out and see what happens.

Understanding this, we have to create a strategy. We have to remember that brands are now capable of being their own media. They have channels, communication tools at their disposal – i.e. Websites, blogs, Twitter accounts, etc. Sometimes hard to swallow, be sure to acknowledge your social media ecosystem, where everything about you is not necessarily created BY you.

Use What You Have

It’s easy to be overwhelmed by the time it takes to be active in social media. It’s equally easy to forget to use what we have on hand. Cassandra Jeyaram, PhD, with InterContinental Hotel Group reminded the group that sometimes user-generated content is best – for more than one reason.

Using what you have, or what your fans, followers and consumers have not only engages them in your efforts, it also saves money. IHG’s use of members’ pictures increases revenue… They used pictures from IHG Confidential members in promotional material and on their site, leading to a 24 percent incremental lift in revenue for these promotions. Plus, they saved money by not having to hire photographers and set up shoots.

Factoids and a Reminder for Filing Away

• "Above all, find a way to be RELEVANT to your consumer."
• Movement - All the rules of friendship should apply. You don’t MAKE your friends do anything. They will tell you the truth.

Social Media Ethics with Butch Ward

Managing Director and a member of the faculty of the Poynter Institute in St. Petersburg FL, Butch Ward is a seasoned journalist, having spent 27 years at The Philadelphia Inquirer. Follow him on Twitter @butchward.

Case Study #1: Let's Be Friends
Are you representing a client on social media? There's an expectation that if a public figure sets up a Facebook friend page, you are communicating with the actual person. The word "expectations" is important because people have different expectations for different types of social media interactions. You might be in someway deceiving your audience with a friend page run by proxy, but the same expecations of a site run by the actual person is not inherent in a Facebook fan page.

Consider the Values: How do you make ethical decisions
A few of the values listed by the group as part of their ethics "policy" apply to social media: accuracy, honesty, transparency, clarity and accountability.

Listen to your gut, but don't stop there. Then...

• Name the issue. Is it a conflict of interest? Is it a misrepresentation of the truth?
• List your ethical concerns. When you talk something out, you begin to see solutions.
• Identify the stakeholders.
• Find at least three alternatives. We usually ask only one question: what should we do, asked in an either/or format. There are almost always more alternatives, but we're not trained to go there. The issues are generally simplified to an either/or.

Case study 2: Yelp Reviews for Advertisers
Should you review a product on a public site without disclosing you are involved with the company? What if you are a paid advertiser? Should you expect an enhanced presence with more postitve reviews posted to the top? There was a recent story that positive reviews are rising to the top for site advertisers (versus non advertising customers) as a result of Yelp's algorithm. How can Yelp address this accusation? Use fine print for a disclaimer? Be bold and upfront about it? What ethical dillemmas arise when you consider that Yelp is not presenting itself as an advertiser-driven site.

Be transparent. This means:

• Be accurate
• Be clear
• Include a working link (and test it!) - a dead link casts disparity on the legitimacy of the story

One word to remember - choice.We may start out wanting to be true to the values we hold dear (see above for some examples). But what happens is that we are challenged to make value-driven, ethical, angel-on-the-shoulder decisions in the face of very compelling reasons to chose the other path. Many people like to say in these circumstances that they "didn't have a choice." As we face these pressure points, rather than rationalize, we need to remember and uphold our values.

What if we're wrong?
Have you ever posted incorrect information on your social media networks? Perhaps you shared info that was a hoax, wrote the wrong date, or just made a mistake in general.  What do you do? Do you laugh or make a joke about it? Delete it? 'Fess up? Make excuses? Deny it? Point the finger at someone else?

This goes back to realizing who your stakeholders are, and what you are really trying to do for them. For example, if you are setting out to treat your audiences with dignity and respect, wouldn't you want them to have the facts straight. It's important to correct misleading information, particularly when you examine your decision in the light of this value.

As more people are getting on board with Social Media and using it both for personal and professional activities, we should be having discussions about policies and ethical guidelines before a crisis situation arises. Be proactive and  have these conversations about social media ethics with your employees and partners now.

You now have access to the public discourse in this country in a way you have never had before. But with that comes responsibility. There is a bigger reason that ever before to think about the ethics that guide you. This is a tremendous opportunity to communicate effectively.

Social Media: Tips and tools for integrating Social Media into PR Campaigns

Michelle Catin is the Digital and Social Media Manager of rbb Public Relations.
You can follow her on twitter:  @mimi2point0

What we know of social media is just the tip of the iceberg-- there's so much more to come.

• In 2008, Internet passed newspapers at a source of national and international news.  
• In 2007, Social Networking sites became more visited than porn sites.
• We should all use Facebook for business "If you're not on Facebook, you're not on the internet."
• Every second, a new member joins LinkedIn.
• Twitter use increased 1000% in February 2009.
• YouTube:  100,000,000 videos are viewed per day.
• Anyone can be a reporter on "Wikipedia."

When Maurice Jarre passed away, a student penned a fictitious quiote on the Maurice Jarre's wikipedia entry.  This quote was repeated in numerous newspapers and media outlets-- even though it was factually incorrect.  The media is using the internet for their research... just like the rest of us.
(read more about it here)


Social Media is "Not a fad-- but a fundamental shift in the PR industry.'

The Fundamentals of Public Relations can and should also be used in Social Media!
Research
Planning
Implementation
Evaluation

Research:
Listen.  Set up Google alerts, social media alerts utilizing socialmention.  Research the topics being discussed, the sentiment of these posts, the outlets being used to discuss your business, etc.
Other tracking sites:

• radian6
• converseon
• biz360
• trackur
  
• Use services like Tweetdeck to monitor your twitter mentions.

Survey your audience.  Find out how they're communicating about you.

Strategic Planning: Walk, don't run.  If you build it, they won't come.  You can't expect people to just find you.

• Build a foundation. Use familiy and friends to be your followers
• Use existing assets to promote your social media channels.  Use signature file, website, etc. to promote
• Establish critical mass
• Don't expect results overnight.  Social media is a commitment that requires a full-time commitment.

Implementation:  How to use different social media campaigns in your planning:

• Use Facebook for community events.  Create a virtual invitation.  When people say yes, it will show up on their profile.
• Use ustream to upload video of any event with your iphone. (other phones may be compatable)  You can also upload from your computer.
• Use Flickr to link photos to relevant keywords, which is ideal for Search Engine Optimization.
• Use cross-platform applications (example, set up your Flickr to automatically post to Facebook)
• Use press release distribution services to create links, SEO for your website/organization.  (She does not reccomend the expensive pay services... she beileves that their releases don't live as long on the internet as other services.  She prefers pressreleasepoint.com)
• Use Twitter to build relationships with reporters.  Find them using tweepsearch, which searches twitter bios.

Evaluating: An important process that we sometimes dismiss.  How do you show results?
Measure results using socialmention, bit.ly (which measures clicks to shortened links)
YouTube and Facebook all provide "insights" for measurements

Question:  How do you convince a client that they need to be involved in social media?
1) Measuring their current mentions in social media platforms to determine their online reputation.

2) Looking to see what their competitors are doing.
3) If they're afraid of losing control... they should know that they never really had control to begin with.

Question:  How does Google's recent search algorithm change my web approach?
Yes... they use "real-time" search now, which means that more social media, particularly Twitter, are indexed.  Recent mentions will put you higher in search results.

Question: How do you determine what keywords are most relevant for people looking for you?

Google Keyword tool.  You type in  bunch of phrases, Google generates a list of similar phrases, and tells you which ones are most used.


Question:  How can you take advantage of hashtags and trending topics on Twitter?
Use existing hashtags or keywords (or make up your own) whenever relevant.  She does not know of a tool which tracks the popularity of particular hashtags.  Yes, a lot of hashtags are spam... but they can also be a great tool.

Question:  What is your crisis plan for if your twitter account is hacked?
You can work with Twitter to repair situations like this. She recommends changing facebook and twitter passwords every month.

Question: How easy is it to get things like that repaired at Twitter.  Do they have "Operators standing by?"
You can leave them a message on the twitter forums, but it will take a long time to resolve.  You can also send a public tweet to twitter's administrators. 

Utilizing YouTube for Community Engagement: Michelle K. Gardner

From her official bio: Michelle K. Gardner, John Scott Daily Florida Institute of Government (IOG) at the University of Central Florida (UCF), Utilizing YouTube for Community Engagement. Michelle K. Gardner lives on the World Wide Web. Michelle has a background in management, but her passions are for all things online. Through the IOG, Michelle is able to conduct direct research on how local governments engage their citizens, particularly through technology. Not content with her MS degree in management, Michelle is currently enrolled in the Texts and Technology PhD program at UCF. Primarily focusing on how we are using digital media tools and the World Wide Web. As a wife, mother, full time employee and PhD student, Michelle is grateful the World Wide Web is available 24/7!

And she's a self described "true geek." Love it! Her day-to-day work involves teaching people in government and non-profits how to engage citizens with social media tools. You Tube has been widely known for its entertainment purposes, not to mention "viral" videos, but there are ways to harness it for engaging your communities, measure results, and other business purposes.

YouTube is the leader in online video and the premier destination to watch and share original videos world wide through a Web experience.

YouTube is a part of our cultural change – no matter what your industry, social media resources are a new way that our culture is sharing and receiving information. This format can have a huge impact on your brand and company perceptions.

Benefits of YouTube:
• 24/7 availability
• Dynamic content (not “text on a page”) that is engaging
• Multi-viewer video (many people can watch it at the same time without hold-ups)
• Doesn’t eat up your server space, no paying for storage

YouTube is a great source for research! YouTube features about 40 percent user-generated content, including “vlogs” or video blogs, that you can watch to tap into ideas and opinions people are sharing. YouTube can also be highly useful in motivating a group of citizens by arming them with knowledge, and interesting, easy-to-share material.

A fun video example for your viewing pleasure:
“Forever” wedding dance down the aisle

This video spread like wild fire, prompting magazine articles, TV spoofs (on "The Office") and guest appearances. the song the "dance down the aisle" to is Chris Brown’s 2008 hit "Forever." With the viral spread of this homemade video posted to YouTube, Brown's song made a come back on the charts in July 2009.

As an intentional business example: This is UCF is a 1:42 video that serves as a commercial through YouTube and simple video technology. They have their own “channel” and people can see all your available content. To create your account, or channel, you only need your name password and basic settings, and voila! Easy right?

Creating content and getting started

All you need is a camera, tri-pod, video editing software, staff for video content…but you could even use videos shot from your mobile phone or device! You don’t have to spend a lot of money to incorporate these tools; it just takes a little learning or an extra hand. Getting extra staff to help out can be as easy as getting interns from local colleges or even engaged citizens or volunteers. Some of them may even have the video tools you need to get started.

Practical tips:
• HD video is great, but it ideally suited for less than 10 minute-long videos.
• Creative Commons, copywright licensing for social media content that ensures people get credit for the content they are sharing.
• As a side note in general about all things social media: Clarity of thought is important. You should know why are getting involved and have policies in place.
• Keep your logo on your video the whole time near the bottom of the screen (called a “bug” in the broadcasting world).
• Promote by sharing the link everywhere: company Web site, Facebook, Twitter, etc.
• Use Google Analytics to track your results.

And a final video piece from You Tube: Phil’s Phirst Philm

You can follow Michelle on Twitter at @oneperson2.

FPRA SWFL Chapter joins Facebook!

There's a new group out there in Facebook-land for the Southwest Florida Chapter of FPRA. Search for it and join in the next time you log on.

What's that? You don't have a Facebook account yet? Defintely check into it again. These days, it's becoming much more prevalent, and it's a great way to find and network with others who share your interests. Plus with privacy settings and plenty of other options along the way, you can customize who sees what and how much information you share through your profile.