m-musings

The Seduction of Social Media: Recruiters, Beware

I’ve been one of the main proponents of using social media to find a job and build my own team, especially in this economy.  In fact, our agency dedicated an entire day of service just last spring to the City of Dallas by offering a workshop on networking and how to use LinkedIn to find a job.  What’s more, I’ve recruited using LinkedIn and Twitter.  But as each of these popular platforms matures, I’ve been noting a few troubling trends, something that is making it even more imperative for recruiters to dig deeper, do their homework as it were:

The onslaught of social media experts. Even those of us with a couple decades of marketing experience under our belts would be highly mistaken to place the word “expert” in our vitae when it comes to social media and PR 2.0.  The platforms, most of them, have not been widely accepted as marketing tools until extremely recently.  It’s safe to say that these practices are still “wet behind the ears,” most of them less than 3-4 years old.  Add to this that each of the platforms and others on their heels are consistently changing, and all of us are still learning.  Look for honesty in their responses to questions concerning this area of practice.  Authenticity will yield the best candidates. Flourishes and embellishments are the stuff of caution.

The evolution of miniature emerging media strategists. I’m not sure if it’s the “bubble” that Twitter creates within its communities or if it is the instantaneous connection it creates between its members through web and mobile, but the “faux expertise Kool-Aid” seems to flow a little more freely these days, especially in communities with marketing novices. Read their profiles and they are emerging media or marketing and PR strategists.  Look at their resume and count the years, and they are only a year out of college.  Developmentally, is this even possible? Has the technology even been around long enough for this to be possible? Perhaps attending a couple Tweet Ups does it?  The koolaid spills over into their LinkedIn profiles, but digging deeper a recruiter will find that they’ve set up a Facebook page here, and updated content on a website there, perhaps even posted on Twitter for a brand; but how about actually building the strategies behind the platforms?  Chances are someone with many more years of experience in marketing has actually done that.  But hold on to your offer letters, these little social media moguls will actually ask you for thousands above what they are actually worth.  It’s a peculiar trend.

The rise of the social media snake oil sales(wo)men. Most of these folks come from a background in interactive; ask them about their services and there is nothing that they can’t do.  They will strategize, build, manage, promote, advertise, do the public relations and do magical acts as well.  They are typically the one-(wo)man set up, hosting workshops online and at hotels—doing all the work themselves, claiming to do the same work as a global agency.  These folks have some loyal followers, and it’s pretty amazing.

There is some good news in this state of the mediascape for all concerned, however: the rise of emerging media as a viable marketing tool has leveled the playing field in several ways:

1. There is money to be made by everyone.  Advertisers, public relations and interactive can all have a piece of the pie and somewhat live in harmony (it may take some effort). Consultants also have the chance to build their businesses.
2. Junior hot shots have a chance to shine. Millennials seem to use technology like it is just another appendage. They are awesome super-users.  With some grooming and nurturing, and sometimes a little bit of an ego check, they can grow into polished marketers.
3. Seasoned talent has a chance to apply marketing savvy and innovate.  Applying the knowledge that you already have in the traditional realm will add some sensibilities to the planning process; but this is also the chance to step outside the confort zone and try something new.
4. Finally, brands can build dynamic teams with seasoned talent, junior hot shots and team members from the entire 360 marketing mix.  

If you’re hiring, interviewing or issuing RFPs, I’m sure you’ve come across one or two of the characters above.  I’d love to hear about your experiences.

Why Some Brands Would Fail Kindergarten: They Don’t Like Sharing

Some wise person in the late 80s or early 90s (I forget which) wrote a book that talked about what you learned in kindergarten applies to business as an adult.  You know: be kind to your friends, share and share alike, etc, etc. Today, as a follow up to what has become somewhat of a three-part series on high level concepts in social media, I’ll explore how for brands, the concept of the four C’s—Community and Conversations, Connections and Content—can only be effective through Sharing. That’s right, your mother taught you how to do it, but for some reason, as brands, we fumble with it on social media platforms.  Here are five reasons brands don’t share on social media platforms.  And when I say share, I mean more than just superficial marketing and promotions speak:

1. Brands fear they are giving up a degree of control if they show some authenticity or transparency.
2. Sharing means that the content may not always be about your own brand.  This gives some brands the shakes!
3. Sharing is the exact reverse of what many brands see social media as—an opportunity to take or otherwise profit from their community with every interaction.  Some marketers rule out social media because they don’t see an immediate return on investment or that it does not necessarily impact sales.
4. Sharing means your brand has to give up something and you may not necessarily receive something in return.
5. Some brands fear that they will lose a competitive advantage if they share, even a little bit.

If brands can get past these five stumbling blocks, they can prepare to give their social media strategy the staying power it deserves.  Sharing is key.  It is the glue to the four C’s.

“So, LMS,” you ask. “What can a brand like mine share?”

I’m glad you asked!

Let’s flip the the first two items on the list above on their ear, and you’ve got your first couple answers:

1) Share a personality. Be authentic and offer some transparency by offering a persona that your brand fans can get to know.  Again, you are not to “give away the farm,” but with some planning, you can devise a plan for your persona.  What will s/he say?  What will s/he not say?  Develop a conversation calendar of topics.  Prepare for questions.  Let your brand fans into your persona’s world in order to give your brand some depth.

2) Share thought leadership and point to helpful resources.  Your persona can do this with links that may not always lead back to your brand.  One of the keys to social media is extending yourself.  It’s really suppose to be a friendly place.  If this is a community and not simply a neighborhood, you know that you can knock on your new neighbor’s door and offer a water hose for their parched lawn.  You could wait for them to ask, but if you take the initiative, they will view you as a good neighbor.  You’ve set the tone.

Now for some more practical sharing tips:

3) Click the Share button on your followers’/friends’/fans’ sites.  Take an interest in what your followers/fans/friends are interested in.  If it is relevant, share it with your community.  It facilitates connections around the content, and it makes your followers feel valued.  If you’re on Twitter, the concept is called retweet.  Get busy, and you will see them begin to reciprocate.

4) Drive your community to relevant content with at least 85% of your updates.  Links to content are one way, but consider sharing rich media as well.  Podcasts, video, vlogs, live streams, photos, slideshows, other networks…there is abundance of relevant content out there that will keep your community engaged.  Map out a plan, and go for it.

5) Brands need to begin to view social media as a brand builder first, a money maker a distant second. If you’re only in it for the money, you may want to consider some forms of direct marketing.  You’ll make money faster.  In fact, it may seem counter intuitive, but to build and sustain an effective social media strategy, be prepared to spend for the resources and the know how to do it right.  Your return will likely come over time in the form of dedicated brand fans online who can be called to action to do some amazing things to heighten the awareness of your brand.  Eventually, you may begin to see the dollar signs, but it shouldn’t be your sole motivation.

Finally, a side note: it is so tempting to flip over to your competitor’s social media site and be discouraged by their number of followers if they outnumber your own, or see the way cool applications they’ve engaged that you may not have the budget to develop.  Some brands are giving up on the opportunity to connect with their communities with superficial observations like these, and they are missing the opportunity to speak to the people who are just waiting to hear from them. Ten followers who can be called to action are worth so much more to a brand than a million who will not act on your behalf.

My advice: Plan. Keep it simple. Start the conversation. Share.  You’ll be amazed at how your community will begin to come together and rally around your brand.

LMS

Five Things You can Do To Begin a Reinvention of Your Personal Brand

This post originally appeared in my Facebook Notes, but I decided to repost it here on the m-musings blog because so many people in the media industry, be it PR or Journalism are being forced into considering the “what if” when it comes to their jobs.  The new digital age is driving much of this.  The recession is driving the rest of it.  Since this blog focuses on Social Media and Online Editorial Outreach, it seemed befitting to include this note on the blog because many agencies and practitioners are facing questions of re-invention…even as it pertains to how we approach our work and counsel our brands.  I’d love to hear you thoughts about this, so leave a comment.  All the best to @waynesutton who joined me via Skype for the session, @Hornbucklephoto who joined me live for the panel and @ProfCarol who moderated.  Thanks to DFWABJ, Norma Adams-Wade of the Dallas Morning News and @SharonEgiebor for the gracious invitation.

Are you considering a career change? How about a simple change of departments? Has the changing mediascape caused you to really take a look at where you are today and how you can survive a layoff or restructure? Tonight, I'll participate with three other panelists to discuss "Reinvention" with the Dallas Chapter of the National Association of Black Journalists. Here are some of the points that I plan to highlight.

1. Identify what role you would like to take on. Know what it is you want to do and be exact. Don't assume that you know everything about the role to which you aspire.
2. Research thoroughly the role you'd like to take on. Read trade publications about the role, if there is jargon or concepts that you do not understand, do not overlook or underestimate this.  Speak to people who are already in the role in which you are interested.
3. Honestly assess your professional skill set in relationship to the new role. Talk to people in the business and ask them what they do on a day-to-day basis and ask yourself if this is something you know how to do.  Make a list of the skills that you believe are relevant to that new role and ask someone in the business you are looking to become a part of about them.
4. Honestly assess your passion for the new role. Are you doing it because someone suggested it to you? Are you only doing it for the money? Are you looking into it as a last resort? What sacrifices can you make and are you willing to make to get to your goal?
5. Identify and map out the steps you must take to successfully make it to your goal. Do you need to go back to school? Do you need to take on a lesser role at a company to learn the craft? Is there a financial implication, and are your prepared to take it on?
   

If you take all of these steps and answer the questions honestly, you may find that taking on the new role is exactly for you; else, you will find that it may not be a good fit. Either way, you have accomplished the due dilligence to begin the thought process that will help you arrive at your true purpose. And by the way, your real purpose may not be what you'd orginally thought.

L. Michelle Smith is the President and Chief Executive of m strategies inc. who began as a television news writer and parlayed a stint in marketing and big agency public relations into the successful, nationally-regarded and award-winning boutique agency that specializes in emerging and traditional media strategy, media training and messaging.

Content and Connections

Lately, I’ve been discussing two Cs that are important to social media strategy: conversation and community.  However, in order to create these two necessities, a brand must plan for and deliver great content for these communities to find of interest, enough so that it spurs conversation, connects with them and causes them to connect with others in your brand’s community. 

I was counting the number of social networks out there today, and I ran out of time before I needed to develop this blog.  It’s safe to say that there are scores upon scores of social networks.  A client recently asked me one by one what each of them did, and while I had a 99% accuracy rate,  I told her that it’s nearly impossible to keep up with the new ones that pop up daily and what they do, but that it was safe to say that they all had at least one thing in common—they all use some sort of content to drive the conversation within the communities.

For example, SlideShare builds community around slide shows.  Delicious builds community around bookmarks.  Blip.fm builds community around music.12seconds.tv builds community around 12 second video clips.  Blogs build community around shared topics. The list continues.

The other thing that these networks have in common is that they require some sort of user profile that can amass a following.  In fact, if you do not have friends on Facebook, or followers on Twitter, even subscribers at your blog, your content doesn’t mean a thing because no one is exposed to it.

The key to the content should be that it leverages the common interest of the community.  I posed a question to the team about what a community is, and we agreed that it’s not enough to simply have a group of people to create community.  After all, how many of you live in a neighborhood where no one speaks, no one ever borrows a cup of sugar, no one ever gathers at the neighborhood pool, no one ever gathers for a coop board meeting?  Living like this, you have a gathering of people in dwellings, but no connections, no community.

Connections create community.  Connections are made over shared experiences, values, interests which can only be developed with great content.

So as you are developing your social media strategy, take some time to consider what content you will offer, when you will offer it and ensure that it is rich in media, meaning not just word, but pictures, video, sound, music, slide shows, etc.

The last thing a brand needs is a multiple social networking sites with an abundance of followers and nothing that binds them or spurs them to conversation or action.

So ask yourself:

How is your brand doing with the four Cs: Content, Community, Connections and Conversation?

 

LMS

Fashion Week--Social Media Style

 

It’s official: this is the debut of my first blog post ever! And what better topic to blog about than about my first love—sorry Steven, I’m referring to fashion. I recently ventured up to the Big Apple with a few close friends to experience Mercedes Benz Fashion Week first hand. After reading a post from the The Glamazon’s blog, I was inspired to write about my own experience at New York Fashion Week.

I’d been following a handful of enthusiasts on Twitter prior to my arrival in NYC (@Ms_Andrews, @essencemagazine, @FNOnyc, @HoneyMagazine).  All had tweeted with great anticipation about the various events taking place, whether it was parties, Fashion’s Night Out festivities or rumored celebrity attendance. The girls and I hit the streets for Fashion’s Night Out in our most “comfortable” heels and matching FNO t-shirts (proceeds from the t-shirts benefitted the September 11^th Foundation—very appropriate since the 8^th anniversary fell right in the middle of Fashion Week). After downloading Twitterberry the night before, I was ready to share my highly anticipated trip with the entire Twittersphere.

With all the hype I built around this trip, one would think I had invites to all the designer fashion shows. If you’re wondering how many shows I attended, the answer is zero. As a matter of fact, the closest I got to Bryant Park was when I exited the subway stop on the way to dinner. Long enough to see what appeared to be Anna Sui standing outside one of the tents. The truth of the matter is I didn’t have to attend the shows to get the first glimpse of the Spring fashions to come, thanks to Twitter.

 

 My tweet peeps really came through for me!  Honeymag.com gave minute-by-minute updates of the good and not-so-good fashions as they came down the runway.  I was anxious to see what @Ms_Andrews and @mishobeauty would TwitPic next. In a sense, I had my very own front seat to the Marc Jacobs, Carolina Herrera and Christian Siriano shows. Sure I’d like to have had the experience of being present at the shows, but why would I need to when I had a first-hand look from all the insiders?

We’re living in a time where current happenings can be captured instantaneously and sent out for the world to see.  This was my first real experience of that.  When I really thought about it, I realized I could have just stayed in Texas and refreshed TweetDeck every five minutes to get in on all the action.  But being a true fashion enthusiast, the experience of New York simply made it all the more special.

Until next time, you can follow me on Twitter @justineMSI

 

Five Reasons to Invest in an OEO Strategy

OEO or online editorial outreach is becoming an increasingly important aspect to any public relations initiative.  For those of you unfamiliar with the term, it refers to outreach to bloggers, whether citizen journalists or what I like to call “clicks and mortar” media outlets—like the New York Times, for instance.  The publication has a physical newspaper as well as an online counterpart…so in the case of OEO, you’d be reaching out to the web editor and leveraging social media platforms to reach these influencers (i.e. PR 2.0).   Here are my 5 reasons why OEO is more important than ever to your brands.  There are likely more, but these are the most compelling in my opinion.

1. The media landscape is changing. We’ve seen newspapers and magazines fold in favor of online versions over the course of the past year.  In many cases, if you want to place earned media in a publication, the outlet simply may not exist in the same form that it use to.
2. Citizen journalism is a powerful and real force.  Loved and hated, bloggers are here, and it doesn’t appear that they will be going anywhere soon.  And whether you like it or not, these bloggers have influence.  In the beauty industry alone, citizen journalism has spawned a whole new category of influencers that have a formidable network of followers and friends who turn to them for advice and information.  One beauty blogger can have a blog, a Ning, a Facebook page, a Twitter and a YouTube site where she demonstrates, reviews and launches promotional giveaways.  Ignoring this group of influencers is a big mistake.  To have them on your side is a wonderful thing.  To have them against you, well, then you’d need to invest in issues management, so you may as well befriend them.
3. Your SEO strategy is really just a robot.  Pay-per-posts and auto tweets can only get you so far.  It may raise your brand in Google search results, but what about content and credibility?  What if you had an OEO strategy to undergird your SEO strategy?  Whoa…now, you’re talking.
4. Your budget is likely tighter than you’re willing to admit.  You could buy web ads.  You could do some affiliate marketing. But how are you connecting with your target and creating a relationship?  Taking a look at your audience’s emerging media mix may reveal that a well-placed, dynamic and thoughtful blog, some strategic editorial outreach with web editors and bloggers may make your budget stretch further and win you some brand fans online along the way. On the whole, an OEO strategy will cost you less than an online advertising strategy.
5. Traditional PR alone is nearly a thing of the past. If you take a look at the latest research on media consumption across groups, even the late adopters are online. Many of the segments are using it to get information.  Shouldn’t your brand be online if that is the case?  Not just spewing marketing speech, but creating relationships and providing useful content that is relevant to your audience’s lifestyle or business needs?  Ignoring cyberspace is a no-no.  My 60 and 70 year-old aunts and uncles have Facebook pages.  This should be a wake up call. A layer of OEO with traditional PR strategies can prove to be a winner.

If you’re curious about how you can make OEO work to your brand’s advantage, you should give me a follow on Twitter @mstrategiesinc.  I’ll be happy to point you in the right direction.

LMS

Starting the Conversation. Building Community.

I could have easily named this post, “LMS’ Big Facebook Adventure,” but I realized there was a larger view worth examining.  So yes, I joined Facebook about 4 weeks ago, much to my chagrin. I’d been avoiding it mainly because I am such a busy person that if I didn’t see a real way for it to directly impact the business, it would not be worth my full attention.   But after a few tweets polling my Twitter followers to see if there was a real business case for my agency being on Facebook and receiving some rather enthusiastic yet vague reasons in favor of the agency’s presence on Facebook, I decided to join and launch a personal site.  It made sense since the agency had recommended Facebook pages as a part of a broader social media strategy.  I didn’t want to leave knowing all of the platform’s functionality to the troops—good for the boss to know as well.

So I jumped in, and with both feet.  Many of my friends were surprised to see me on and being an aggressive participant.  Some were prepared to tease, but held back a bit because it was clear that a true early adopter was on the scene, leveraging my mobile and desktop integration apps to quickly build a following and engage in some great conversations.  Before long, I found Facebook incredibly entertaining.  Someone I know calls it “FaceCrack” because it is truly addictive.  In addition to getting close to 80 birthday wishes in one day because the platform plants reminders in your friends’ “walls” and even on their Blackberry calendars (and by default your Outlook calendar if you synch) through the mobile application; I found an incredible way to enjoy the MTV Video Music Awards—through “updates” on Facebook.  Updates are much like the tweets you send on Twitter, only without the 140 character limitation.  I frankly prefer the “always on, up-to-the-minute feel of Twitter for breaking news.  We knew the King of Pop was dead  hours before CNN could confirm it.  Facebook isn’t quite like that.

Now, in less than 4 weeks, I’m a virtual pro at it—I’m reconnecting with high school and college friends, colleagues from the big agencies where I worked in the past, reuniting with cousins, aunts and uncles and even bantering with my pastor, his wife  and members of my mega church family over Beyonce’s Good Samaritan act with Taylor Swift.  I’m completely ‘socialized” on Facebook and enjoying it.

So in all of this socializing, did I receive an answer to my question about whether Facebook is good for my business, or for that matter yours?  The answer I’ve arrived at is this:

If you want to create a community around shared experiences, values and brands, Facebook is a great platform; but the key to having a great experience on Facebook is conversation and continuing them not only to hold your audience’s interest, but to eventually call them to action.  This not only means you must make a commitment to the platform with staff and know-how, it means thar your brand will need to invest in the development of a strategy. After all, the first question to ask before launching your social media strategy is “what is it that I want my community to do?”  Answer that question and you are well on your way to planning tactics that make sense for your brand.  If you can’t answer it, it’s in your best interest not to launch a page.

So will MSI have an official Facebook page?  I’m still considering it.  I don’t know if the platform is a part of the right emerging media mix for our target. I definitely know our call to action.  At this point, it appears that it would be a nice tool for awareness, but investing in the ongoing management and facilitation is not a small consideration.

In the meantime, I’ll continue to build my personal community and continue the conversation, and I’m looking forward to the next big pop culture experience with Facebook. 

 

LMS

PMD FURNITURE DIRECT TAPS M STRATEGIES INC.

DALLAS, Texas-Columbus, Ohio-based PMD Furniture Direct, Inc., one of the most innovative, successful and fastest growing companies in the United States home furnishings industry, has named Dallas-based m strategies inc. (MSI) public relations agency of record.  The agency will handle emerging and traditional public relations initiatives for the company as it moves toward a franchise model.
"We are thrilled to start this business relationship with m strategies because they have demonstrated to us that they have what it takes to navigate the changing media-scape and PR 2.0," said Joe Armetta, Chief Marketing Officer for PMD.  "They also have a proven track record in the franchise sector, so we are looking forward to superb results that will benefit our business."

Read more here…

Rock My Twitter!

Since the tweet heard round the world (@oprah’s tweet in response to @aplusk’s challenge to @cnnbrk to reach 1 million followers), there have been hoards of people and brands trying Twitter on for size.  Following is a primer, especially for brands, that we presented as a Twitter chat back in January to get beginning tweeters on the road to success.  Let us know if we can help you navigate your social media adventures.  We’d be happy to help.  LMS

MSI's Rock My Twitter

View more presentations from mstrategiesinc.

Who’s Afraid of the Big Bad…Social Media?

As I and my team dive deeper into the world of social media, we meet people who do work for brands and even read about brands that are very hesitant about social media.  They’ve heard the horror stories.  They even express that they could or might lose control of their message.  Tight control is what their after, and most social media platforms don’t lend themselves to such.  But social media is seductive, after all everyone is doing it.  So we see some brands diving in…albeit with limited strategy—mostly just tactics.

“We’ll launch a blog.”  And so there it is: some corporate type writing about “their take” on everything pertaining to, what else, their brand.  They place some very benign details about themselves in their bio (I have 2.5 kids and a dog), but that’s about where the personal touch ends.  To add insult to injury, they feel the need to tweet about their blog, and what’s worse, they wonder why no one follows them outside of their company.

Two common elements are missing in most brand social media strategies, and for that matter, even the limited social media tactics—transparency and authenticity.

“Whoa, Nellie!”  You may say.  “LMS, you’re asking us to give up even more control with those two words.”  Allow me to let you in on a secret:  Where authenticity and transparency meet is where social media begins to work.  This approach flies in the face of most classic approaches to marketing.  One is never to “give away the farm” as it were; and thus, many brands will stand on the sidelines and wonder why some brands are seeing success on these emerging platforms.  They watch social media life simply pass them by.  They will say, “it’s just not for our brand.”

Now let me just say, I am not for putting all of your business on front street.  Absolutely not.  However, there is a degree of transparency, a way to communicate openness, that can work for any brand.  It’s a ginger stroll into unknown territory, but once you engage in a way that is a bit more accessible, the social media doors will fling open for you.  Novel thought?  Not really.  A brand that does it well is Dell.  With customer relations types at the helm of their Twitter team, Dell is one of the most approachable brands on the social webs. Follow @RichardatDell.  Even Richard’s cowboy hat in his avatar gives you a clue.  This is the Real McCoy.

Which leads me to another aspect to winning brands on the social webs…authenticity.  Simply put, you must keep it real.  Winning brands on the webs aren’t just pushing huge pitchers of their brand’s Koolaid.  They interact, show some humanity, offer up a personal dimension to their postings.  What’s more, they leave the marketing speak in the marketing suites, and they don’t mind connecting with their followers and friends in a way that truly resonates.  A brand that does this like no other (and in the spirit of full disclosure: our agency is behind this Twitter) is @ChurchsChicken.  From tweeting in Spanish to engaging with tweeters by name who just picked up their two piece in Oakland, CA, to using their brand fans’ favorite musical Blips to engage followers, to expressing real opinions about what good in the community really means through its Random Acts of Goodness initiative—Church’s Chicken is authentic on Twitter.  Sometimes team tweeting photos, video and editorial from three locations at once, the communication is seamless and the personality of the profile is believable and…gee whiz…genuinely FUN and engaging at once.  To add to it, they manage to sprinkle in the marketing stuff and still pull off realness, giving away a ton of free stuff including XBOX and PS3 games and even clues to random, in-store cash giveaways.

There are other brands out there that have achieved the right balance of authenticity and transparency.  Perhaps you’ve seen a blog or a YouTube page of a brands that exudes this.  I’d like to hear about it.  Leave a comment below or follow me on Twitter @mstrategiesinc.  I’m one of the most approachable CEOs on the web. :)

Admittedly, it’s risky being transparent and authentic all while attempting to stay on message.  But if you want to do social media, and do it right, you’ll want to give both a try.

LMS