social media : What do you want to say today?

Posts Tagged ‘social media’

Strategy is as important as execution

Filed Under : PR Best Practices by Debi P.

Jun.12,2010

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I hear time and time again from potential clients that they just need to be involved in social media. Twitter and Facebook are where it’s at. Everybody’s there. “We need to be there, too.”

And I always ask the same question. If you were going to build a house, would you go buy a bunch of wood and nails and start banging them together? Probably not. You would start by thinking about what kind of house you want. You’d likely look around at other houses and pictures in magazines to see what features and styles most appeal to you. You might talk to some friends, an architect, a builder. Finally, you’d draw up a plan. A blueprint to guide your building.

In all likelihood, that’s probably how you built a successful business.

So why, when somebody mentions social media, does all that wisdom fly out the window? We grab our hammer, wood and nails and jump into the social media pool with both feet. And then we wonder why it’s not working.

Ironically, that’s not what most clients want to hear. They want to hear, “Sure. We can do that.” Worse yet, they hear they can’t wait another minute from people who a) have had success in personal branding in the social media environment and are convinced it’s a panacea for all business or b) are technical experts who are great at execution but come up a little short on strategy.

From my perspective, the first questions that must be asked are: Where are my customers? Where are there conversations happening about me? What are my goals in engaging with my customers?

From this foundation, you can begin to develop a strategy in the environments where it most makes sense.

If your market is converging at networking meetings, then that’s where you need to be. If you don’t want to engage (which I don’t ever recommend), you need to be in a one-way push medium like newspapers. If your buyers are heavily involved in charitable organizations, you should be involved in those communities. And, by all means, if they are talking on Facebook, then join in the conversation.

Meet your market where they are. And, please, lay that hammer down until you know what you are going to do with it.

Tags : PR, social media

Logical conclusions. Or not.

Filed Under : Technology by Debi P.

Mar.30,2010

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Well…I started writing an entirely different post today when I got distracted (no surprises there) by a tweet pointing me to this new post from social media thought leader Robert Scoble.

It’s an interesting piece on malleable social graphs, and he certainly makes some good points. I love trying out new social networks like Whrrl, Foodspotting and Miso. I get great ideas about where to go and what to do from people who like the same things I do. It makes sense – birds of a feather and all that.

However, take this to its logical conclusion and I begin to have concerns. Scoble writes “I told Facebook that I’m a liberal Democrat. So why am I still seeing Republican crap in my news feed?” He goes on, “so, its newsfeed is still presenting information to me that I might not care about and, in some cases, might make me angry.”

And here is where I stumble. Are we creating a society that can no longer tolerate differing opinions? By being able to pull only that information with which we agree, are we becoming one-sided, shallow individuals?

Scoble goes so far as to define “REAL friends.” Caps all his. “You know, the ones that are like you.” Yikes. Why would I want to surround myself only with friends who are like me? Doesn’t my life become richer for knowing and enjoying people who aren’t like me? I may not agree with someone, but that doesn’t mean I shouldn’t be his friend. More likely – I should listen even more closely. I might (gasp) learn something.

I want my kids to grow up in a world where they not only welcome differing opinions, but seek them out. And yet, we seem to be going in the opposite direction. Don’t like someone’s opinions? Just block them. Looking for validation of your own viewpoint? Google it. Want to know what shoes to buy? Instead of doing your own research into quality, just check out to see what your networks are doing and follow along. Trust someone else’s opinion. It’s okay. They are just like you, so they are probably right.

Yikes.

Has critical thinking become a thing of the past? That scares me. How about you?

Tags : Big Mistakes, Facebook, relationships, social media, social network, Technology, Twitter

I have abandonment issues

Filed Under : PR Best Practices,Technology by Debi P.

Jan.15,2010

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I value relationships. Authentic friendships. True communication.

So it’s no surprise that the one thing about social media that really makes me crazy is to see companies leap into the network, develop relationships around a product or cause, only to abandon the outreach when they realize they (a) just don’t get it or (b) don’t have the time for it.

I’ve got news for you. You don’t have to be on Twitter. You don’t even have to be on Facebook.

If you feel the need to be present because that’s where your customers are living, working and talking about you, then do your legwork first.

Listen. Find some people you admire and who seem to “get it.” Follow them and see how they do it. Determine if you have something useful (and I emphasize the word useful) to contribute to the conversation. Think long and hard about the time, energy and effort you are willing to put into this venture. Focus on long-term. Will you be able to keep it up for six months, a year, three years, ten years – even as it changes and evolves? Are you willing to commit to staying up with an ever-changing, ever-evolving, albeit extremely exciting environment? Will you work it into your overall business strategy across platforms?

You wouldn’t go find a customer, befriend him for a few exciting weeks and then abandon him in person. Don’t do it online.

Tags : Big Mistakes, Facebook, social media, social network, Twitter

The cobbler's daughter has no shoes

Filed Under : Life,PR Best Practices by Debi P.

Jan.8,2010

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I just missed the boat. Or at least a chance to get on it. Yesterday, I had a record number of visitors to my sister website SABusyKids. And I wasn’t there.

I have been busy. The holidays, you know. Then work and work and more work. So I haven’t had time to update my blog.

And in all liklihood, those visitors won’t be coming back because the last post I have dates all the way back to December 15. That’s like the 1800s in the blog world.

It reminded me of a call I had from a potential client last week. She wanted me to blog for her. Why, I asked? She told me she wanted to start blogging and had to have a twitter account because … well … because she just had to be there. After all, isn’t everybody else?

Stop, I said. There has to be a reason. Why are you there? I mean, beyond because “I have to be there.”

I really have to stop talking myself out of business.

For me, social media works best when it successfully draws a community together around a particular cause or subject or person. When the product isn’t the only one interacting with the consumers, but the consumers are interacting with each other. And to do that well, you have to have a plan and a strategy and a commitment to the conversation.

I’m going to be a better cobbler and make sure my kids have shoes from now on. In the coming days, I’m going to blog about some of the trends I’m seeing from the perspective of a public relations professional who is seeing her industry finally come back to its roots of public…relations.

Let’s talk. Send me your questions. Post comments. No excuses.

Tags : Big Mistakes, Mistakes, PR, social media, Whoops I did it again, writing

Don't forget the basics, You Twit Face

Filed Under : Technology by Debi P.

Oct.10,2009

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I’ve got some news for you. If you’ve bought into social media lock, stock and barrel, you’re not thinking out of the box. You’ve climbed right back in.

This came up today at a meeting I was at. We were discussing how to increase Facebook Fans authentically and organically. I see so many businesses and causes struggling with that. And I’m pretty sure that by the time we figure it out, there’ll be something newer and shinier to play with. But while we’re here, we really do need to find the magic formula for success.

So, I asked The Question. Do you have your Facebook info on your business cards? Your letterhead? Your website? Your brochures?

Um…no.

Look at the friend sitting next to you. Have you asked him to be your fan and to help pass the word around?

Um….no. How do I do that?

Well, you could go to your fan page, click on the left column where it says “Suggest to Friends” and send him a note.

I’m not sure how to do that. (Clearly, he didn’t realized I was messing with him.)

You don’t have to figure it out. How about you just turn your head and ask him? Right now.

Okay, so, I’ve slightly over-exaggerated to make a point. But for some reason, it seems people are jumping on the social media bandwagon and forgetting that it is not the answer to all problems. Nor does it stand alone. We can’t forget good, old fashioned, face to face networking. Or boring old brand standards for all printed materials. Or any of the traditional things we’ve always done that require a little elbow grease, sweat, even tedious work.

We also have to realize that once we get this all figured out, it’s going to change. And we’ll have to start all over. As Conan O’Brien predicted….

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X36ACwwyscY]

Tags : Conan O'Brien, Facebook, networking, social media, traditional, twitface

Crisis communication in the age of new media

Filed Under : PR Best Practices by Debi P.

Aug.10,2009

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At the end of July, I facilitated a dialog on social media policy at the monthly San Antonio Healthcare (#sahc) tweetup that I help organize on behalf of my client, the Ecumenical Center for Religion and Health. It’s an amazing group of individuals with way more brain cells than should ever be in one room together.

As I shared an Air Force flow chart detailing how service members online should respond to blog postings, I mentioned I thought it was a good start on helping non-public affairs professionals know how to respond to negative online mentions. Business reporter Laura Lorek responded that she thought it was somewhat intimidating and probably meant to put some ice on those who might want to venture into social media.

And so the discussion began. How do we respond to crises in the age of social media when one tweet can be retweeted a thousand times over and one musician can post a YouTube video singing about his broken guitar and get nearly five million views?

Having spent nearly half of my career managing disaster public affairs response with the American Red Cross, I find myself pondering whether or not the rules have really changed all that much. I don’t think they have.

I have always structured my planning and response around three key features…

One size does not fit all. Never did; never will. While good crisis communications planning can help avert long-term impact, it’s still a bit of a crapshoot when it comes to whether or not something will go viral with any amount of long-term impact. And no matter how much you plan, there’s always that one thing you never thought of in a million years – like pizza employees posting a disgusting video mishandling food. I’m just guessing Dominos never saw that coming.

When bad stuff gets said about your company, it may be because your other systems failed, and you – frankly – deserve it. Case in point: United Broke My Guitar. Seems like Dave tried plenty of offline ways to get someone at United to respond. And they didn’t. Crisis communication #fail. The best (and often least costly) way to manage a crisis is to prevent one from happening. This means taking a look at all systems within an organization and making sure rules, regulations and poor training aren’t getting in the way of taking care of the customer.

A lack of relationship translates to a lack of support when you most need it. On the other hand, efforts that seek to build a solid foundation of communication and trust can often withstand the firestorm when it occurs. I love this quote from Tylenol’s former CEO James Burke: “Whether people will take one’s word when one badly needs them to do so will depend on how much confidence has been built by the organization over the years before the crisis occurred.” It is important to note that Noah started to build the ark before it started to rain.

For me, social media presents crisis communication’s greatest opportunity. In ways never before experienced, we have the opportunity to….

Authentically build trust and rapport.
See in real time what people are saying about us.
Respond in real time.
Ask friends to show their support and share our side of the story when the you-know-what hits the fan.

So, until someone creates a magical 9-1-1 number we can call when there’s a crisis, proactively listening, engaging, responding, holding conversation, being humble and transparent will help us build the strongest fortress against the storm if and when it comes. Social media is perfectly positioned to help us do just that.

What do you think? How has social media changed the way you think about and respond to crisis?

Tags : communication, crisis, disaster, Dominos, Red Cross, social media, United

Blog: Social network quicksand

Filed Under : Life,Technology by Debi P.

Jul.14,2009

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A recurring theme in my life – and apparently in many others – is how to manage social networks and still get any work done.

Now I’m going to date myself. I remember having these identical conversations when email first came into use. Remember…every workplace was terrified you were going to spend all your time surfing the web and responding to emails and production of any useful work would come to an end. Guess what? It didn’t.

We adapted. Tools became available to help us manage the onslaught of incoming information. Yes, the world moves a little faster now. Yes, the bar has been raised a little higher. Companies and individuals have learned to manage the flow instead of the flow managing them.

I suspect the same will happen with social media. Already tools are beginning to emerge…if you have time to search them out and figure out how to use them. In the meantime, I’m treading water and working on making some changes. Here are some tips I’m trying out as I try to find the balance…

1. Realize that you are not alone. Most people involved in social media are facing the same challenge. To prove it, I sent out a note to my Twitter and Facebook friends asking just how they’ve tamed the social network beast. Only one person answered. Outside of that….vast emptiness.

2. Schedule. Set aside certain times throughout the day to check up on social networks. For me that’s before the kids get up, in between project work and after the kids go to sleep. Set a timer so you don’t get sucked in. When the timer goes off, stop.

3. If you miss a scheduled time, feel like you’re stopping in the middle of something or can’t get on your social networks for a whole day or two, it’s OKAY. The world will not come to an end. You don’t even have to go back and try to reread everything you missed. Let it go. Move forward. Tomorrow, the sun will come up.

Now, true confessions. I’m awfully good at preaching. Not so good at practice. I find it very hard to disconnect. And it does sometimes start to feel like quicksand.

But last night, I found a picture my son had hiding in his drawer. He was probably about 2 years old. Glenn was holding him. I just looked tired. As I held the picture, I glanced at my now 11 year old climbing into bed. In the fall, he starts middle school.

When did he grow up? Did it happen with my head immersed in a press release or a Twitter post? What did I miss along the way because I had to finish that one last blog post that is archived deep in some folder somewhere?

I’m making a change. Hold me accountable, okay? And if you want to make a change, too, let me know. I’ll be right there by your side.

Tags : childhood, Facebook, social media, social network, Twitter

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