This blog is a discussion of interaction in Corporate Communications. I examine industry examples of good and bad interaction, how interaction and social media can improve your business, and how conversation shapes reputations (conversation is going on about your company, whether you like it or not).
For more information on me, please refer to the “Your Future Employee” page.
Happy reading!
Annie
The credit for the headline photo goes to my friend, Brandon Bebout.
This summer, I had the fantastic privilege of interning at Profiles, Inc., a public relations firm in Baltimore, Md. I observed many hard-working, driven business-women, and learned a lot. Here are three key things I learned from my summer experience:
1. Always be prepared to roll with the punches. I was given the opportunity to attend the B&O American Brasserie restaurant opening, the Walter Sondheim fountain dedication, and the Carefirst BlueCross BlueShield legislative reception, “The Carefirst Commitment.” All of these events were tremendously successful, but hard work doesn’t make you exempt from Murphy’s Law. While setting up for the outdoor fountain dedication, what better surprise than a thunderstorm and torrential downpour? There’s not much you can do control the weather. But you can, shield yourself (in your white dress) with an umbrella until the rain stops, wipe off the chairs, relocate the podium, and put a smile on.
2. A strong work ethic can get you far. The account executives at Profiles have tireless dedication to their jobs. They work late if they need to, they pay attention to the details, and they do everything in their power to make sure the client gets what they want. This is a hugely valuable lesson, and I hope to emulate this commitment in any of my future endeavors.
3. The skills you learn in Kindergarten are still fundamental to your adult life. For example, cutting a straight line. I never realized how important this is, nor did I realize that my inability to cut a straight line would come back to haunt me. One of my responsibilities as intern was to clip articles about our clients when I came into the office in the morning; there is a very specific formula for this. During my first week, my extremely crooked and unprofessional looking clips just didn’t make the cut (pun intended). I practiced my cutting skills, and by week two I was up to par with every other 20-year-old on the planet. For the record, I would like to blame my poor cutting ability on my left-handed-ness.
Overall, this summer was great— experiencing the glory of Baltimore and the excitement of the PR world. I sampled gourmet food at the B&O American Brasserie test meals, I got to see the behind-the-scenes of the National Aquarium (I worked on part of a media tracking report for them), and I was able to see all of the living mayors of Baltimore in one place! Thank you Profiles for the fabulous opportunities that were alloted to me!
The ladies from Profiles and I at the B&O American Brasserie Grand Opening!
My whole blog thus far, I have been chatting about how crucial conversation and interaction is in corporate communications. However, there are some instances when it is better to hold your tongue.
Make sure when you are tweeting, blogging, facebooking, whatever, that you have a conversational tone, but that you are also not rude. An individual from Ketchum PR posted a tweet for FedEx about Memphis, TN that was found to be offensive and was noticed by the company’s communication department. Peter Shankman wrote about this on his blog, cautioning readers to be mindful of what they are posting. A commenter on Shankman’s post could commiserate, stating that she had lost her job due to her blog.
This commenter was definitely not the first to be “dooced,” which means losing one’s job due to one’s web site. The term was coined by Heather Armstrong after the same happened to her. Armstrong gives advice to her readers also, urging them to not be “stupid” about what they write.
Mark Jen, is another unfortunate example of a blogger who was “dooced” by Google for sharing too much internal company information, says “The Dark Side of Blogging” by Paul Chin. To avoid the leaking of company information and legal issues, Chin gives guidelines on how to regulate corporate bloggers without stifling the voice of the writer.
Companies can be proactive in giving corporate bloggers training on what to say and what to keep private. You might think it’s common sense, but enough people have been “dooced” to prove otherwise.
It is understandable that during this time of recession not many companies are willing to shell out money for new projects. However, social sites (such as Twitter, Facebook, etc.) might be the perfect thing to invest in during this tough economical climate.
Social media sites are significantly less expensive than advertisements but still offer companies the opportunity to interact with its publics. People visit Facebook daily…why not reach your demographic at a site where they visit anyway? Dirk Singer of Cow PR explained why it is still valuable to invest in social media. His powerpoint presentation shows the highlights.
Analyst Josh Bernoff of Forrester Research also predicts that many more people will take marketing online during this recession. Bernoff notes social sites to be the most valuable, as they are very cost effective, and measurable. Bernoff stressed how important it was to invest in media that can provide metrics.
This can be tied into my previous post, which suggests that companies should write out goals for social media before they start. If you do not invest in sites that have some sort of measurable metrics, than it will be difficult to gauge the progress of goals.
“Effective Online Marketing in a Recession”by Adam Boyden from MarketingProfs.com gives similar suggestions to companies cutting back on their budget. Boyden stresses making RSS available so that readers can easily access news updates or blog posts. He also says to continually evaluate the success of the effort and look for ways to tweak your pages.
Just because finances might be tight, it doesn’t mean you need to cut out conversation!
Social media can benefit many different types of groups, but it is essential to cater the use of social media to the purpose of the organization, whether it is a company selling a product, or a non-profit seeking volunteers and donations.
Richard Millington, author of The Online Community Manifesto, took to his blog, FeverBee, to discuss non-profits and how they could alter their approach to find the results they want from social media. Millington explains that most non-profits could utilize more discussion to make outsiders feel included in the good work of the organization. Instead of simply discussing the goings-on of the company, non-profits should form relationships and offer opportunities for involvement.
Beth Kanter blogs specifically about social media and non-profit organizations. In her post, “Just How Smart Are Your Social Media Objectives?” she gives specific items to consider when launching a social media site. One of Kanter’s best points is not to expect a great return if you do not put in great effort. Don’t anticipate a large outpouring of donations or volunteers from a website that was not given 100%. This doesn’t just apply to non-profits, but all companies.
Also, writing down goals for any attempt at social media would give valuable perspective. Not only does this give you direction and focus, but it also provides you with a check point in a few months to see how the project is going. I would strongly recommend this. Additionally, try to identify the target audience and put yourself in their shoes. What would you want to hear about? What would encourage you to get involved?
As I’ve reiterated in several posts, social media can be extremely helpful as long as it is not one-sided. Find direction and start a conversation!
Many companies have adapted to Web 2.0 and launched blogs and Facebook/Twitter accounts. It got me thinking, how valuable is new social media?
Blogs build an online community. The article, “Interactive Online Journals and Individualization” in the New Media and Society journal examines this very idea through a LiveJournal case study. The case study gave valuable information on how online forums connected people with similar interests. Additionally, blogs give people the chance to connect with others in a more authentic way, by allowing free and candid thoughts.
The same can be true of social media for a corporation. Want to hear genuine ideas about products? Take advantage of social media and customers will offer their instinctive opinions.
The next most obvious question when beginning social media is…how do I measure my conversation? Simon Collister, author of Simonsays blog cites “10 Somewhat Immutable Laws of Measuring Conversation .” Two keys laws were relevance and authority. Blogging is not always appropriate. This is where audience analysis comes in—is your demographic online? Would they care to read a blog? Does it promote your brand image?
Authority is also very important. CEO blogs usually create a good buzz and information comes from a trusted and noteworthy source. However, it doesn’t just have to be a CEO, anyone who is knowledgeable on the subject matter and can write in an interesting tone could do well. As I have touched in a previous post, it is also essential that the writer does not seem to be pushing propaganda. It will question the authority of the speaker, and keep people from allowing the uninhibited dialogue to flow. M.L Kent’s “Critical Analysis of Blogging in Public Relations” cites this a potential weakness of blogs–try not to push overly biased opinion on readers, but encourage the sharing of opinions.
In summary, a blog can be a useful tool, if it is appropriate for the brand and it encourages conversation.
As I touched on in my first post, “Social Media: Are You Using it for Conversation?“, many consumers are hesitant to accept the role of major brands in social media when it is used as a marketing medium. Tom Smith, founder of Trendstream, a social media research consultancy, took to his blog, “Mashable: The Social Media Guide,” to explain that the brands that utilize social media to it fullest can prosper in customer relations, authenticity and transparency, and many of other avenues. Most of all, says Smith, social media puts the control in the hands of the consumer, instead of the company and gives more personal attention.
One huge issue in creating more personal contact with consumers is the question of who should be controlling the interaction: should a Twitter or Facebook account feature only the company, or should it feature a company employee representing the brand (also known as a”brandividual”)?
While consumers may find an individual face and name easier to relate to, how much pressure and obligation to stay at a company should be placed on one person? Advertising Age featured the article “For Online Brand Reps, Getting Personal Can be a Tricky Situation” by Abbey Klaassen that discussed this very issue.
Klaassen noted Scott Monty, head of social media at Ford, whose Twitter account is under his name but is also used to promote Ford. Despite the criticism for “brandividuals” like Monty, some argue that connecting a face with a company is the same as connecting a salesman with his/her company.
There is risk involved in using your personal life in conjunction with your professional life via social media, but the human voice may pay off in the end with consumers.
I’ m sure we can all remember a time when the internet was dial-up, and interaction online involved talking to people you didn’t know (and probably never met). However, that initial stage of internet novelty has changed, and social media has become more of an outlet to expand current contacts and relationships. Reid Hoffman, CEO of LinkedIn describes this change and how it relates to his company.
LinkedIn is a social networking site that allows professionals to make contact with each other and create a profile showcasing special skills and experience. It is free to make a LinkedIn profile, but to fully utilize the service it costs money.
What are the advantages of LinkedIn?
LinkedInpromotes interaction between other professionals who could very well be your next best resource. Whether is it receiving a donation for your non-profit or hearing about a job opportunity, if used effectively, LinkedIn can provide opportunities and relationships that couldn’t have been formed otherwise.
Kaye Monty, public relations practitioner and author of a professional blog posted her tips on how to use LinkedIn to find a job. Monty suggests keeping your profile up to date, seeking out alumni, and updating your status to let your connections know that you are looking for work.
Chuck Hester, an expert on LinkedIn and corporate communications director at iContact, has found many uses for LinkedIn, including media relations and job searching. Hester suggests searching keywords to create contacts when getting started and offering yourself as a resource to reporters or other professionals.
LinkedIn isn’t the only professional networking site, and as I’ve touched on in my previous posts, all other social media sites (Facebook, Twitter, etc.) can aid in making business contacts as well . It is always essential to make sure that even profiles that are more casual and social in nature are a positive reflection upon your character and something you would be comfortable showing future employers.
Google, the creator of the e-mail god, Gmail, and tons of other useful web technology (including Google docs, a wiki; Google reader, an RSS feed, and Gchat, Google’s version of instant messenger) officially has a Twitter account. Eric Schmidt, CEO of Google, spoke out about the success of Twitter recently at Morgan Stanley’s technology conference. Schmidt essentially said that he was pleased by the success of Twitter, but in comparison to e-mail, he found the technology to be lacking. I get the sense by some of Schmidt’s comments that he may be feeling a little threatened by the buzz about Twitter. I’m sure it will only be a matter of time before Google creates something similar!
As of today at 5:06 pm, Google has 70, 077 Twitter followers. I was also shocked by how many comments Google responds to. Tweets include everything from new Google applications to interesting and relevant articles. I think I may start following them!
For those of you who may not be familiar, or understand what all the hype is about, Twitter allows its users 140 characters to post updates, also known as “Tweets.” Users can follow others whose updates they care to read, and other users can follow them. Interactivity is promoted by tweeting at other users in response to their tweets. It sounds confusing, but the best way to understand it is to make an account and try it out.
From both a college student and corporate communications standpoint, I think Twitter is the social media to be a part of! It’s very accessible and it’s nice to read short posts. With any social media, there is a good, effective way to use the technology and there is the not so great way that lacks interaction. For some tips on how to use Twitter, see my post, “Social Media: Are you Using it For Conversation?”
Here’s a little more information on Twitter, for all the skeptics!
While interactivity in social media seems relevant to corporation-consumer relations, it is also very important to consider how to interact with bloggers. You may have heard of media relations, but as the channels in which people receive information change, PR practitioners should be seeking to perfect blogger relations as well.
As seen by the Jeff Jarvis “Dell Hell” situation, blogs can have incredible power. One person’s thought can have a profound impact to the groundswell. It is important to cultivate these outlets…if you aren’t a part of the conversation, it will happen without you.
Rockstar PR is a blog written by Jed Hallam, an employee of Wolfstar, a social media consultancy. Hallem cites 5 Things that traditional PR should learn from PR 2.0; one of which is to form a relationship with the blogger. It is important to actually read their blog, and seek out 2-way communication. Bloggers don’t want to hear another mindless pitch.
PR Squared blog by Todd Defren, a principal at Shift Communications, listed a few tips for blogger relations. I found it particularly noteworthy that the tips pointed out that bloggers are not journalists. What is interesting in the blogosphere is much different than what is interesting to The New York Times. This is another reason to read the blog: the content of the posts will demonstrate the blogger’s idea of what is newsworthy. Don’t send a blogger a pitch for a client’s new computer program when their blog is about knitting.
Essentially, it is key to treat bloggers with respect, and carefully consider how to handle relationships with them.
When you think of the online community, who do you think spends the most time online? The tech saavy Generation Y? Wrong. Digital Inequality: Differences in Young Adults’ Use of the Internet says that 29-59 use the internet more often, mostly for research. The younger demographic tend to use the internet for more recreational purposes, but middle-aged adults may being finding a place in that also.
A 2008 Technorati Report highlights the state of the blogosphere. 36% of bloggers are 25-34 and the 35-44 age group accounts for 27% of all bloggers. When getting your company’s name out in social media world, it is important to take these statistics into account.
Additionally, an article in Advertising Age discusses how parents are now finding their place in social media. The article, Technology No Longer Kids Stuff by Beth Snyder Bulik, notes how moms use social media for themselves first and to check on their children second ( I can account to this, my mom recently got a Facebook and calls me with questions on how to use it…”Annie, how do I send an e-mail through Facebook?”).
Moms are looking for their place in the internet also. They join niche groups, search for information, e-mail, and read blogs. 40% of moms also read their children’s blogs.
Why does this matter? Well, social media are used by older audiences also. Don’t be afraid to offer forums and blogs for products that are directed toward middle-aged audiences. It can still be effective as long as it is relevant and user-friendly!
