Blah, blah, blah*, or rather…Blog, blog, blog
My Top Ten Takeaways from BlogWorld 2011

On November 3 and 4, I attended BlogWorld in Los Angeles. BlogWorld is a new media and social media convention, the only industry-wide conference dedicated to blogging, social media, SEO, etc.

One of the most important things I learned was: WE DON’T KNOW YET. That is the answer in response to clients, other marketers, colleagues and friends who ask: what works, what doesn’t, what should I be doing, what shouldn’t I be doing, to build my business, my brand, my bank account? As blogger, author and speaker Amber Naslund said in her keynote: There is no rule book, no case study, no proof yet to what really works. It’s too new. We just have to keep trying, failing and ultimately, succeeding.

Also, is there really such a thing as a social media expert when we still just don’t know? Should we be leery of persons jumping on the band wagon calling themselves so-called experts of this still-developing media platform? Instead – we are separated into the social media savvy – those that will likely become experts once we figure out this whole new market and social media neophytes – those that don’t get it yet, but know enough to hire someone that does.

Here, I share a few helpful tidbits, tips and just plain reminders about new and social media. Sources are cited for the most part; some were just observances made after hearing multiple speakers:

1. Linkbait (my favorite 2011 social media word; definition: content that will hook people into linking to your content and, hence, my first item) includes top ten lists, infographics, quizzes, event coverage, checklists, cartoons and tools (via Jennifer Miner)

2. When working on blogger campaigns, switch your mindset/strategy from “leveraging” influencers to “creating” advocates. Build blogger outreach organically (personally) and encourage them to be open and honest about whatever their relationship is with the brand. (via Shani Higgins)

3. “When did we fall out of love with doing the tactical work? We’re not all strategists. We still need builders.” (via Amber Naslund with a nod to @bgindra’s Tweet)

4. Google doesn’t index anything on Facebook, but Google+ content is indexed right away. (via Chris Brogan)

5. Don’t keyword stuff, e.g. use too many key words in your content (Yeah, we know, but reminders are always good.) (via Peter Shankman)

6. If your blog posts are video-based, tag that video. SEO picks those words up too! (via Jennifer Miner)

7. Bloggers say that only 25 percent of brand marketers (and this can include outside agencies or internal staff) are knowledgeable about their blog. Most are just trying to push their brand information out without reviewing the blog’s structure and content (via Shani Higgins)

8. According to Technorati’s 2011 report, blog traffic is driven first by Facebook, followed very closely by Twitter. (via Shani Higgins)

9. I don’t think we should under estimate Google+, if we are to believe the many social media experts who converged on BlogWorld; lots of buzz for it

10. Dear Brands/Marketers: You’ve only got more fragmentation of social media tools to look forward to. Have fun! Or hire a PR agency to help with your social media strategy:)

*In honor of our 5W’s Blog “Blah, Blah, Blah” section

Sometimes, as PR agency professionals, we get so preoccupied with coming up with the most brilliant tweet ever or how to setup a GPS-integrated iPhone app or what special to offer on Yelp that we forget the most basic social media rules.

Here are five to abide by – at all times:

1) Do not have dormant accounts or multiple accounts for the same company/brand

If you’re not using an account, delete it. If you have more than one account for the exact same company/brand, delete the one that is no longer being used/has less user engagement. (Make sure to alert your followers/fans/“likers” to participate in the account of your choice.)

Even though you’ve forgotten about it, an unmanned account will continue to show up on searches, and people may think that you have neglected your social media.

2) Do include the full name of your business in the description/name of the page (SEO!)

How am I to know who you are or find you if the business name is not provided? Too often I know a page exists, but when I search for it a given social media website, nothing comes up.

If you really want to title your Twitter Account after your tagline, mascot, etc., that’s fine, but make sure the corresponding name and description lists the full name of the business. Note: No abbreviations when it comes to company name – people won’t know what abbreviation you are using when they are searching for you.

3) Do use all the space provided for bio/description of the company (SEO Part II!)

Often, I see a one sentence description on social media profiles for a company. If they give you 250 words or 150 characters, use them. Yes, brevity is key in social media, but so is SEO. Consider it a newspaper lead, so don’t forget your 5Ws and an H.

4) Do include a photo/avatar that easily represents your company (wallpaper, too)

Put up a picture, logo, something. Putting up nothing looks like you don’t care. And once I see this image linked to all your comments/content, I should instantly know who you are.

5)      Do not use excessive punctuation/capitalization or LACK THEREOF!!!!!!

This —- Is just ANNOYING!!!!!! ……. DON’T YOU THINK?!?!?!?!?

And please, I don’t expect your grammar/punctuation, etc. to be perfect (100 percent of the time, but certainly 90 percent of the time), but re-read what you write. Basic spelling mistakes and nonsensical sentences are inexcusable – especially for professional business profiles.

What did I miss?

While we all know the common rules that apply to job interviews (hopefully), like wear a suit, be prepared with copies of your resume and perhaps, most importantly, BE ON TIME – there are a few things practicing PR professionals or those pursuing careers in PR should know NEVER to say.

As public relations professionals it is our job to be creative and to stand out amidst a sea of similar  faces, places and products to present what makes our clients special and worthy of media coverage. So why wouldn’t we look at potential employees in the same manner?

So here’s what we DON’T want to hear during an interview when asked the following:

• Why do you want to work in public relations? “I like to talk to people.”

Yes, while this is an important aspect of public relations (after all, what good would an anti-social PR person be?), it should not be the sole reason you want to get into public relations – there has to be something more … substantial.

• What is PR to you? “Relating to the public” or “Creating positive relations between a business and its clients.”

We work in PR; we don’t need a textbook definition of what we do every day, thank you very much. However, we would like for you to demonstrate that you actually know how to do the job, or rather, explain what tools we use in order to “create positive relations between a business and its clients.”

• What aspect of PR do you like most? “I like planning and going to parties.”

Then become a party planner. Despite what pop-culture depicts, public relations    is not all about parties and events – it’s an office job.

• What kind of clients do you like to work with? “Well, I don’t like…”

We didn’t ask what you don’t like, but while we’re on the topic – don’t highlight what you hate! Especially if what you hate happens to be an industry many of our clients belong to.

• What attracts you to a career in public relations? (I know – this is very similar to item #1 on our list, but we’ve actually gotten this answer more than once) “I want to be like Samantha from Sex and the City.”

I don’t really think this needs any explanation.

Perhaps my biggest task as a Public Relations Society of America (PRSA) San Diego/Imperial Counties board member this year is revamping the organization website. Now, I said revamping, not completely redoing. This is a refresh. What can we do better? What’s the feedback from members? Outsiders? What would make you want to visit it more often?

PRSA SD/IC Chapter Manager Rene Carmichael and I sat down with Elevator Marketing Store’s Frank Cowell in a crowded Starbucks recently (with two toddlers who refused to give us the big comfy chairs until their mothers pulled them away) to review the ideas we had for the website.

Our ideas were solid, including adding more visual elements to the homepage, creating a “Signature Events” tab and deleting unused/rarely used pages. However, Cowell helped remind us of a few things that can often be forgotten:

1) Location, Location, Location: Yes, everyone uses this title, but that’s because it holds true in a lot of scenarios. In this case, I’m talking about where you put the most important information on your website. Can I find a link to purchase your product no matter what page I’m on? How ‘bout a button to take me back to where I started from?

Oftentimes, we focus so much attention on the homepage, we forget that a lot of the time people do not enter websites through the homepage – instead they clicked on a link on Twitter to a blog post you loved (ahem) or someone found your president’s bio through a Google search.

Anything that you want everyone to see who comes to any page on your site should be available on every page. Generally, this means that the important link/tab is part of the header, footer or on a static sidebar that reappears no matter what page I click on.

2) Call-to-action: Another favorite PR buzzword, calls-to-action are exceptionally important. It’s nice that you know how to make knitted jewelry, but what do you want me to do about it? Buy it? Attend a class? Tell my friends to “like” your Facebook page?

It should be immediately evident on every page of your site what you want me to do with this information and what the purpose of your organization is. Note that this call-to-action can and probably should change. Even if you always want people to make reservations for dinner, the call-to-action can include details about an amazing new appetizer or a special for those who book before 6 p.m.

3) The Regular Refresh: Social media seems to be all-important nowadays, at least to many. This includes adding links/icons to your social media pages on your website – to not do so is to waste existing marketing real estate, in my opinion. Many people have also placed Twitter and Facebook feeds to their website. This can be a great way to continuously provide fresh content to the website; HOWEVER, this should not be the only thing that regularly changes on the site.

For example, for this larger PRSA SD/IC website refresh, we are making some major structural changes, especially to the homepage, and adding numerous new pages and tabs, but a regular refresh is something we do on a weekly, if not even more frequent, basis. This includes news items, upcoming events, new job listings, etc.

Whether you use a content management system (which I highly recommend and may be a topic for a future post) or have a company/internal person that inserts the HTML codes for you, please don’t have the exact same things on your site for the entire year. Even a new paragraph or photo can revitalize a website and give someone reason to visit again.

In PR, we know that it usually takes multiple brand exposures for a person to even consider action, and a website is not any different. Why would I go back to your site if it’s exactly the same as the last time I visited?

P.S. Check out what we’ve got now: www.prsasdic.org, and I’ll post a link to the refresh when it’s launched.

Yours, Mine or Ours?

The Ongoing Debate Over Who Should Manage a Company’s Social Media

I know this will make me unpopular with some of my advertising friends and partners, but it’s based on my hands-on experience of at least the last year and a half:

Let me preface this by saying that in a perfect world, a company would manage their own social media, making it more authentic, but it’s not a perfect world and that’s what creates jobs.

Thus:

While there are exceptions to this rule, a PR agency is the best resource for handling social media for clients: not the advertising agency; not the website development team, technicians and designers; not internal people who don’t have the time/knowledge to devote to it.

To quantify, let’s keep this to a discussion to ongoing retainer clients and tools including Twitter, Facebook, YouTube and LinkedIn.

Here’s why:

• It’s our job to know what’s going on with our clients at all times. We know what new products you’re introducing, what events you’re throwing, what your president is doing next week 
• We know what you do and how you do it – we have to – that’s what makes us good PR people. We know the ins and outs of your business: what makes it unique, challenging, competitive, interesting, new, difficult, exciting – on an ongoing basis, not just when we’re developing a new branding campaign or web design
• We are talking to you on a regular basis vs. other creative vendors who are handling projects or only in touch on a semi-regular basis
• We are regularly reading what other key media and industry experts are saying about your industry on and off line; this gives us additional insight and content to post that will educate, inspire and start those two-way conversations with your target audiences
• We think editorially, not commercially – therefore we can execute an engaging strategy for effective social media – without being too promotional. We believe in a 70/30 social media philosophy: 70% of content is informational, engaging, entertaining; 30% is promotional and all about you.

So my mom is on Facebook.

Though she rarely signs in and hasn’t posted anything since the day she opened her account – she’s taken the steps to joining the Social Media revolution by just putting her name out there.

The problem is, if she were a business, her blank page would not bode well for her company. It would signal to customers and the rest of the social media universe that she merely signed on because everyone else had done so, not because she genuinely intended to communicate directly and offer valuable information.

Her lack of posts, interaction and presence are tell tale signs that she jumped into the deep end of the pool before learning the basics on how to swim.

Businesses should not dive into the fast-paced realm of social media without first understanding the rules of engagement:

1. Update your website. Appearances are everything and regardless how the motto goes, people do judge a book by its cover. A businesses’ webpage is its online identity – whatever social networks you join, people will refer back to your webpage to find out more about you. If you wouldn’t go to a social event without first making yourself look presentable, why would you join a social media site without first making sure your website is up to par?

2. Know who you want to reach. Think about it this way, would you go to a Monster Truck Rally to sell medical supplies? While that might not be a bad idea, typically you’re not going to find the type of customer here that will empty their pockets to purchase the latest finger splint. Point is, know your audience and go where they are. Different social media sites cater to different demographics- so do the research!

3. Don’t be a wallflower, join the party! It’s not enough to simply join a social network – you must actually have a presence there as well, otherwise you’re missing out on the opportunity to meet and interact with current and potential customers.

4. Don’t be that Guy/Girl. Everyone knows them, the guy/gal that only talks about themselves. It’s a turn-off. Don’t do it. It’s called social networking because it’s meant to be social. Take the time to interact with people, contribute to conversations without being self-promotional.

Which leads me to my final rule…

5. Have something to offer. We live in a “what’s in it for me” world and let’s face it, if you can’t bring something to the table, you’re likely to be passed aside. Social network sites can and should be used, not only to announce the latest news, but to provide tips/advice, answer questions, etc.