Archive for the ‘search marketing’ Category

After discussing the inauthentic nature of PR in my last post, I hope you know that I do respect and enjoy being part of the PR profession (well, except those PR areas that are broken) and truly believe that most PR folks are engaging in PR in a way that is effective. That said, I still believe that ghostwriting from PR pros (or profs) isn’t necessary or authentic (I am not sure that there’s much that can convince me…but I’ll keep an open mind, I promise).

I thought it might be a useful conversation to discussion how PR 2.0 will keep you SO busy providing strategic services/counsel for your clients or employer you won’t need to worry about ghost blogging and tweeting as a source of income or a way to show value for one’s job. And I know for a lot of PR agencies and pros that might not truly understand the nature (dare I say, culture) of social media, those are areas of concern. I get it, I really do. 

While this might not be as interesting as a debate, perhaps it will prove to be more useful. 

Today’s typical and traditional PR person does a lot of the following tasks: 

• Builds relationships with third-party resources (usually the media, sometimes bloggers)
• Maintains existing relationships
• Does research
• Listens/Analyzes (usually online/print pickups)
• Writes plans
• Provides counsel
• Creates targeted messages
• Conveys timely news with constituents (but typically media and maybe bloggers)
• Builds a brand’s reputation
• Maintains a brand’s image
• Deploys crisis communications
• Clips or tracks pickups or mentions
• Provides measurement of campaigns
• Handles some marketing communications (including collateral, website content if a marketer isn’t part of the team)

 With PR 2.0 you can add the following to your skills, deliverables and job description:

• Monitors brand in real-time
• Listens/Analyzes online conversations or mentions in real-time
• Responds promptly
• Conducts primary research in real-time
• Engages in two-way conversations with ALL constituents (in-house PR folks)
• Participates in social networking in a value-add way (in-house PR folks)
• Develops new online skills (blogging, wikis, RSS, etc.)
• Understand the importance of building relationships with all constituents (media, bloggers, employees, investors, fans, friends, followers, detractors, etc.)
• Responsible for Search Engine Optimization
• Identifies & engages with influencers and brand evangelists (in-house PR folks)
• Manages communities of constituents (in-house PR folks)
• Integrates new technologies into PR plans
• Shares industry information, not just key messages
• Builds communities
• Engages evangelists to help create word of mouth
• Understands that engaging in PR 2.0 will help at time of crisis
• Stays up-to-date on trends
• Trains management, co-workers and/or clients constantly 

I don’t know about you, but to me that looks like a pretty busy job to me! All without having to ghostwrite or tweet (sorry, I couldn’t resist).

I cannot take complete credit for these lists. While I have been engaged in PR for a long time, some people just say things more succinctly than I do…and I like to give the credit they deserve. So, please, seriously, if you haven’t read PR 2.0 by Deirdre Breakenridge, add it to your reading list. She makes the transition to PR 2.0 crystal clear, easy-to-swallow, and provides a lot of proof points (i.e. some of the list information is from her book). John Bell at Ogilvy is another source of great information when it comes to the PR pro of the future (be sure to read John’s post when you get a chance). He’s the guy behind this post’s image and some of the items on the PR 2.0 list. 

I am sure that I am leaving things off of both lists, so please be sure to add where necessary if this is too simplified.

Thoughts? Opinions? Objections?

[Image: John Bell]

I have been thinking about this for a while because I keep bumping into the same situations (well, people) over and over… This won’t be a lengthy post because I am more interested in seeing if you are having the same experiences as me. If so, I am really interested in your thoughts.

What are the four faces of social media? Well, as I have encountered them…I have settled on:

The Social Media Purist: The person who truly embraces social media as the conversation that the tools allow people to engage in from day-to-day. The tools might change, but the ultimate goal is to listen, learn, share, and converse with customers and prospects. For the purists, it’s about the conversation and the strength of the relationships that lead to strong business relationships. And the relationships affect all departments within a company because everyone employee is responsible for a great interaction.

The Marketer/PR Professionals or Ad/PR/Interactive Agencies: For the most part, a lot of these folks (for now, I hope…fingers crossed) see social media tools as just that…tools. They are tools that are used to push one-way messaging. It’s not about the conversation, it’s about the medium and more places and people to share the message when traditional marketing like advertising, PR, direct mail, events, etc. aren’t working or delivering. It’s what most are comfortable with, and I get that. While this mindset might work in the short-term…it won’t work long-term.

The Search Engine Optimization (SEO) Gang: Social media is about the tools that help generate the links. It’s about getting clients on Digg or StumbleUpon. It’s about stuffing keywords into every nook and cranny. It’s rarely about the conversation. Because SEOs are typically paid on results, they aren’t paid for helping clients engage in conversation. Or, it’s because they are making money for themselves by selling off highly ranked sites or by monetizing social sites…it’s purely business, not conversation. And yes, there are some SEO’s that get the mix of social media and SEO…I’m thinking about Lee Odden or Li Evans or Wil Reynolds.

The End User (that would be the customer): In the end, they are the people who are stuck combing through all the blog posts, tweets, and Internet links to find information that’s truly relevant to them and right at their fingertips when & where they need it. They want information or feedback that can help them to make a sound purchasing decision or the information that can help them do their job quicker, easier and better. They are the ones looking for conversation, but are the influencers that are most often forgotten by the marketing/PR/agency/SEO folks.

What’s going to happen here? And by here, I mean the world of marketing. I don’t know about you…but I don’t think social media isn’t going away any time soon. You all know me, I am obviously a purist. I enjoy conversation and I think it has many indirect and direct benefits to business and revenue.

So, should we find a way to get everyone to work together? Or will the social media purists eventually be pushed out by the marketers who continue to try to control the market and the SEO folks who are just looking to fill Google full of irrelevant links? Or, does it not even matter? What do you think?

[Image: iStock]

This post is for the attendees (and anyone else who stops by) of the March 20, 2009 IABC meeting on Writing for the Web. My portion of the panel discussion is writing for social media. And instead of having boring handouts, I wanted to share the information via a blog post and hopefully get attendees to engage in conversation…because that’s what social media is all about!

Social media is surely the buzz word these days and perhaps you’re ready to tip your toe into the social waters. Before you do…Ask yourself the following:

• Can I comprehensively write in 140-characters?
• Do I know the best practices for blog writing?
• Am I prepared to change how I write news releases?
• Do I know how to write with the unwritten rules of social media in mind?

Twitter and Facebook

On a basic level, Twitter is a microblogging and social networking that allows you to share your daily events (microblogging) and have conversations with other people (social networking) in 140 characters. Facebook, another social networking tool, also lets you connect with people and share ‘what’s on your mind’ in 160 characters. Marketers and communicators tend to be verbose, so how can you chat in 140-characters without sounding like a 14-year? (u know what I mean, kthxbai.)

Shorten your words and say exactly what you mean. Sounds basic, right? But you’d be surprised how hard it can be at first. Writing in 140 characters has really strengthened my writing skills and I have heard the same from other marketers. Also, it’s okay to shorten common words…for example:

• About – abt
• Great – grt
• Good – gd
• Thanks – thx
• And – &
• People – ppl
• Social Media – SM
• Social Networking – socnet

You get the drift…

Best Practices for Blog Writing

Because everyone blogs for their own reasons, styles and mileage will vary. But since we are talking, for the most part, about corporate blogs here are some quick tips:

• Always write your own posts (i.e. don’t outsource to a ghost blogger)
• Don’t use a blog as a vehicle for collateral or news release delivery (that’s what websites are for)
• Use a blog to expand on your news and have conversations around it
• Find and have an authentic voice
• Write about something interesting to your audience
• Use your search engine optimization (SEO) keywords in your copy (but not overtly)
• Always use outbound links to other blogs and sites (just like I did here)
• Ask questions that generate conversation
• Consider having multiple bloggers (Graco’s corporate blog is a great example of this!)
• Write often (1-2 times a week is a good start)
• And don’t forget to have fun

Want to get more information on blog writing? Check out Debbie Weil’s awesome book, The Corporate Blogging Book and be sure to subscribe to her blog too. Another good source to get you started is Naked Conversations by Robert Scoble and Shel Israel.

Writing a Social News Release

The Social Media News Release (click on the link to see the format) was introduced in 2006 by Todd Defren (the principal of SHIFT Communications). Todd is truly a pioneer because people are just starting to use this format in varying formats. What’s different? The Social Media News Release focuses on less writing and more concise, targeted content. But better yet, it includes information that can be viewed (videos), listened to (podcasts) and shared! Because these days, public relations isn’t just about the media…it’s about putting the ‘public’ back in PR.

If you aren’t quite ready to dive into a Social Media News Release, try an optimized and shareable release that is social without giving up the traditional format. Services like PitchEngine, PRX Builder, PRWeb, Business Wire’s EON, MarketWire, PR Newswire offer the ability to optimize your releases for search and come with the option to make your release shareable (i.e. Digg, del.icio.us, Newsvine, etc.). As well some provide multimedia features that let you add collateral, videos, podcasts, etc.

The Unwritten Rules of Social Media

As a company [or non-profit, agency (government or creative), university, etc.] engaged in social media you’ll find that a community starts to develop. They’ll be the ones to let you know how they want to how they want to be communicated to/with. In other words, there aren’t any hard and fast rules to social media or writing for social media…just guidelines and best practices.

Here are a few tips to keep in mind as you engage (and write) in social networks:

• Be real
• Be nice
• Be respectful
• Listen then talk
• Give then take
• Try to be consistent
• Apologize when you make a mistake
• Say thank you
• Don’t broadcast (i.e. self promote)
• Don’t stalk
• It’s not a numbers game
• Don’t publicly or privately unfollow/unfriend

Seems like basic etiquette, right? You’d be surprised how often companies [or non-profits, agencies (government or creative), universities, etc.] get off track and then have to deal with fixing their snafus. Try to keep Emily Post in the back of your mind.

What would you add to this information? If there are any questions, don’t be shy and be sure to ask…we’re all here to help!

[Image: BioJobBlogger]

Last night I had the opportunity to hear Bill McDermott SAP’s President of Global Field Operations (and member of the SAP AG Executive Board) speak at Villanova University’s 3rd Annual Marketing Professionals Showcase, a showcase for two student groups to present their marketing projects to local companies.

Bill kicked off the night talking about today’s economic crisis and how in his life he’s seen and worked through three others: the oil crisis (70s), the Wall Street crisis (80s) and the dot.com crisis (early 2000). During his keynote, Bill mentioned transparency as part of corporate culture (although in this sense he’s referring to Sarbanes-Oxley). During the Q&A portion his advice to the companies attending was that excellent customer service is what would help them to stand out and help them to survive…nothing new or earth shattering there, right? But then he said something that made me smile. He said that business is about people helping people.

I took that as an opportunity to ask Bill how he felt about social media and how it “pulls back the covers of a corporation so that ‘people’ were the face of the corporation, not the brand.” To which he replied (and not verbatim at all) that he embraced social media, social networks, etc. Of course, he also said that there are negatives. As an example, he went on to say that he’d rather have relationships with people online so that they got their information correct vs. someone writing something that wasn’t totally true (i.e. bloggers). He also mentioned online communities and how it’s important to be a part of them. And let’s be clear, SAP is walking the walk when it comes to implementing social media.

Next were two student teams that were presenting their findings after a semester long (I believe) project. One team presented a new product they developed for kids and the other a new marketing campaign for a company. The students did a great job and their marketing research, plan and presentation were really well done. However, when it came time for Q&A they really struggled with these questions:

Q: How would you use web 2.0 and Internet marketing in your promotions?

A: We have a website and a link to it so people can buy.

Q: How could you use social networking to spread the word of your new product?

A: We will have kiosks and the game at a camp and will use word of mouth.

Can you see the dichotomy at play here? SAP embraces online marketing and social media and I am sure if you were a new marketer looking to get on board, you would most likely be expected to understand it too. And yet, the kids who have lived in this “social” world all of their lives don’t understand what’s being asked from a business perspective.

It’s like convincing kids that a playground can be used for business and adults that business can be done on a playground.

I have blogged about this before…if marketers (apparently new & experienced) don’t take the time to learn how marketing is being changed forever by online marketing and social media in a few years they will be extinct.

So, how can that gap be bridged? Education, a renewed passion for marketing…and online marketing training.

And by “online” I don’t mean take an online class. By online I mean learn how online marketing is affecting how marketing and business is done today.

The Online Media Boot Camp

I hope you all know me well enough by now to know that I am passionate about marketing, communications, social media and education. The opportunity to combine it all to help fellow marketers (and companies) get a leg up in this horrible economy is important to me.

On April 9^th Liana (Li) Evans and I will hosting and speaking at the Online Media Boot Camp in King of Prussia, PA (right outside Philadelphia and convenient to NJ, NY, DE, MD).

The Online Media Boot Camp is limited to 65 attendees and offers the following online marketing training sessions:

• Social Media Fundamentals – Li Evans
• Selling On-Line Media Internally – Shashi Bellamkonda
• Corporate Blogging – Valeria Maltoni
• Public Relations 2.0 – Beth Harte
• Social Networking & Community Building – Mack Collier
• Online Marketing Workshop (Just to make sure that attendees confidently hit the ground running at the end of the day!)

Why the limited number of seats? Because as speakers we all want to make sure that we can spend as much time as possible with attendees to help get their questions answered, to help them bridge that gap I spoke about above, and to make sure that they leave with a new competitive advantage.

Online marketing and social media isn’t just for large companies with budgets. In fact, that’s not true at all! If you are a company, non-profit, agency (creative or government), college/university, etc. who wants to engage customers, prospects, shareholders, students, constinuents, etc. online, the Online Media Boot Camp is for you! Let’s face it, the Internet isn’t going away and even if you aren’t there…everyone else just might be. Why miss out on that opportunity?

To learn more about the speakers and what they are engaged in, check out their blogs:

• Liana (Li) Evans, Key Relevance
• Shashi Bellamkonda (The Social Media “Swami”), Network Solutions
• Valeria Maltoni, Conversation Agent
• Mack Collier, The Viral Garden

Registration is open and the Online Media Boot Camp is $349 per person. After 3/16 the registration is $449.

If you are already embracing online marketing and social media, how about passing on this information to a marketer that might be looking for a leg up or who gets it, but wants to learn how to implement it? You have my appreciation and thanks in advance!

If you have questions, please e-mail me at beth [at] onlinemediabootcamp [dot] com. Looking forward to hearing from you!

I am a fan of microbrews. Why, because they are homegrown, fun, unique, tasty, and… more interesting than the average bottle of suds.

Perhaps it’s these wonderful qualities that get them in trouble when it comes to their websites. What’s the trouble? All-Flash sites! I have nothing against Flash, in small doses.

The main issue I have is that an all-Flash site makes it hard, if not impossible, to find new microbrews to try. Why? You know it…lack of search engine optimization (SEO). I am not an SEO expert (those of you that are please chime in, there’s a beer in it for you!), but I know the basic rules. If the site doesn’t utilize text, links, keywords, tags, etc. search engines won’t find it. If search engines can’t find the beer—then I can’t find the beer. Unless I dig, and well, I’m lazy and I don’t want to do a bunch of digging. I’d venture to guess that the average beer consumer doesn’t want to dig either.

Check this out, two microbrews that both have pale ales: Magic Hat #9 and Roosters Polygamy Pale Ale [sorry, as you know, I can’t provide a specific link for either brew]:

Now, a Google search for pale ale:

Do you see Magic Hat and Roosters? Neither do I! [Note: there weren't any ads either.] If it weren’t for the kindness of friends (word of mouth works again!), I wouldn’t have found out about Magic Hat. And that would be sad…because it’s really great beer.

So, why would SEO be great for microbrews? The Search Engine Guide offers up the following:

• Obtain Increased and Higher Quality Sales
• Increased Search Engine Visibility
• Brand Recognition
• Enhanced Credibility and Legitimacy
• Investment in your Domain Name
• Competitive Edge and Research Advantage
• Ad Spend predictability and High Return on Investment (ROI)
• Passive Business Development

And I get it…they are “micro” and perhaps searchability, brand, competition, etc. really doesn’t matter and they are happy with where their revenues are. But the truth is…Flash sites are sometimes just not very nice to look at, lack functionality, and are just plain hard on the eyes.

I’d ask microbrews to keep in mind when thinking about their cool, all-Flash website how many people won’t be finding them…and the lack of beer happiness for us.

Tip: Here’s a really great article from Search Marketing Gurus that discusses the disadvantages of an all-Flash site.

This is just my opinion, what do you think? Are you a friend or foe of the all-Flash site? Have any tips or best-practices for SEO that I am missing?

[Image: Purchased from iStock]