Persuasive Picks for the week of 10/05/09

2 Comments/in /by

What Do Clients Want Now? Six Top Companies from Tech to Travel Reveal the Biggest Opportunities for PR Firm Work in 2010
Brian Pittman from The Bulldog Reporter contributed this guest post to The Firm Voice, sharing perspectives from 6 top company execs including what they are now looking from their agencies in the upcoming year.

Rubbermaid Social Media Effort Thinks Inside the Container
Douglas Quenqua provides an interesting overview of Rubbermaid’s recent social marketing campaign that was the company’s first experience with “paid” social media.

The tacky techie conundrum
Seth Godin offers food for thought for marketers launching new technologies, hoping to gain the acceptance from the “top-right” demographic.

Integrating Social Into Traditional: 10 Tips For A Remarkable Blogger Event
Christine Whittemore provides some practical advice of what to do and not do when planning a launching for your own blogger-centric event.

It’s people not tools that matter
While its easy to be drawn towards all the fancy free tools for social media and PR measurement that keep popping up each month, KD Paine reminds us that only real human beings can help provide proper measurement in areas like reputation, relationships, brand health and brand strength.

Persuasive Picks for the week of 09/28/09

1 Comment/in /by

Google Wave Hits Shore. Flash Flood Warning In Effect.
This week marked the first round of invites to Google Wave. Just 100,000 invites have been handed out so far – making the topic a top-trend in no time flat. This post from Louis Gray gives a good run-down of his first impressions.

He Said, She Said: Google Sidewiki
We’ll continue with the Google theme with this post from Beth Harte on MPDailyFix, featuring the lesser-hyped Google Sidewiki. Businesses and web site owners should note the paragraph on “claiming your site.”

Social Media Tools that Save Lives
Arnold Zafra from the RotorBlog share some interesting examples of how social media tools have been used to save lives in the wake of recent disasters around the globe.

5 Twitter Tips for Staying Authentic and Transparent
Michelle Bowles shares some tips for adding to your success on Twitter, but these straight forward and useful gems can (and should) be applied to your activity on all social networking platforms that are integrated into your overall social marketing strategy.

Five sure-fire ways to fail at social marketing
Helen Leggatt provides five tips on avoiding failure when you are preparing to take your first dip into social marketing waters.

Persuasive Picks for the week of 09/14/09

in /by

Why corporate blogging is like selling uncut cocaine
Ok, you got me. This post came out last week. But, how could it not be a pick with an eye-popping title like that. Oh, and our own Fred Han interviewed David Spark a while back as well – in case you missed it.

A need for social media etiquette
So you’ve made that first step into the world of social media and it’s beginning to get exciting. AP business writer Barbara Ortutay shares this post on The Tenessean.com that advises readers to use a little restraint and put more thought into what they share on social networks.

Social media – PR’s new BFF
Do PR and Social Media go together like chocolate and peanut butter? The results of a recent study posted on bizcommunity.com seems to point in that direction. Read on for more.

The 10 Myths of Social Media
This post by Mikal Belicove on the Entrepreneur.com blog reiterates “10 Social Media Myths” by Eric T. Bradlow, co-director of the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton Interactive Media Initiative. Bradlow recently presented these myths to B2B marketing and advertising professionals at the Lift Summit.

Why B2B Companies Have a Distinct Advantage Online
Another great post from Valeria Maltoni that includes additional links to helpful information for B2B’s.

Persuasive Picks for the week of 09/07/09

in /by

techcrunch_punked.jpgYeah OK, So Facebook Punk’d Us
Facebook’s PR team gets some fun revenge on TechCrunch by pulling a fast one on Arrington & Company by subtly revealing a new “feature.”

Gaffe by Tweet: Top 10 Social-Media Slip-Ups Musicians, movie stars, professional athletes and now, even politicians are flocking to Twitter. Some use it well. Some don’t. Newsweek shares 10 slip-ups from the political camp.

Social Media for B2B
Socialnomics author, Erik Qualman gives some insight and advice to B2B companies looking to wrangle their social media strategies… by reviewing the way B2C’s have been doing it.

The new PR: Nimble Twitter responses make grass roots easy (or hard)
Sarah Gilbert shares a few stories showing the importance of listening, responding and acting quickly to customer comments on social media channels.

How Customer Support Organizations Must Evolve
Along the same lines of the previous pick, Jeremiah Owyang expands on how customer service organizations must evolve and adapt to survive the rapid changes in customer communication. Slides from Jeremiah’s recent presentation on the topic are included in the post.

Persuasive Picks for the week of 08/31/09

in /by

You Should Stop Sleeping With Your LaptopWhy You Should Stop Sleeping With Your Laptop
B.L. Ochman lends some sound advice to the current generation of web-workers in this entertaining post that serves as a wake up call to unplug and get a life!

Are you a social media addict?
Following along with a similar topic to my first pick, Scott Kleinberg from the ChicagoNow’s Redeye blog shares five fun signs that you might be a social media addict.

A Framework for Branding Through Social Media
Jordan Julien suggests five methods of communicating with your online communities to better map out your social media strategies.

7 Reasons Social Media Is A No-Brainer For Passionate B2C Brands
B2C brands that are still hesitant to make the plunge into social media might benefit from Adam Singer’s seven reasons to jump in sooner rather than later.

Using Classic PR Techniques To Support Brands In Social Networks
Marty Weintraub shares seven existing PR channels that can be leveraged to help feed information into a social media presence on a regular basis.

Persuasive Picks for the Week of 08/24/09

in /by

Twenty-One Top Twitter Tips… from Forbes

Still not convinced of the business value of Twitter? Forbes understands your concern and did some research for you – canvassing scads of businesses and pricey social-networking gurus looking for honest answers on how to make money – if you can make money – with the microblogging service. Their answers may surprise you, as they share 21 ways Twitter can have an impact, and not just as a marginal marketing tool.

College Optional?

Larry Cheng, Partner at Fidelity Ventures wonders aloud if college is necessary for a true entrepreneur. “Sitting in a classroom listening to a teacher every day for four years in so many ways is exactly the opposite of what someone with an entrepreneurial DNA should want to do.” In this post, he outlines what he sees as a “blueprint to success” for those with no degree. First lesson? Take $1.00 and turn into $1.10 by this time next week.

Use Teamwork to Tackle Problems

Of course you know that teamwork is important, but in this Marketing Profs Daily Fix post, Paul Williams outlines in detail – complete with instruction template – how to create a GroupChallenge. Beyond basic brainstorming, a GroupChallenge is a simple and inexpensive way to―on an ongoing basis―inspire creativity and teamwork to generate ideas and solve problems.

Group Challenge Setup - Image from Marketing Profs Daily Fix

Group Challenge Setup - Image from Marketing Profs Daily Fix

Why Waltham Doesn’t Matter

For those on the East Coast, this piece by Scott Kirsner of the Boston Globe has created quite a stir. Will it be the new turf war? Kirsner claims, “The new core of Boston venture capital has moved in closer to the city, toward Copley Square and Harvard Square,” and that “as a group, they [Waltham venture capitalists] represent the worst of the old-school business culture.” He has some great viewpoints on risk taking, the innovation economy and what he terms “the vibrant new culture of entrepreneurship.”

Should PR Professionals Use Social Media to Build Their Personal Brand?

PR Week takes a look at two opinions on one of the hottest debated topics in our office. How do you balance personal brand with your corporate brand? Should you? Two PR professionals weigh in.

Persuasive Picks for the week of 08/09/09

in /by

EasyBake OvenCooking Social Media with an EasyBake Oven vs. a Viking Range
Chip Griffin from MediaBullseye.com shares an entertaining comparison when getting ready to “cook up” some social media.

CEOs Say: How To Be An Executive Blogger
Good stories and advice for CEOs looking to blog or just to become better bloggers.

10 Ways to Archive Your Tweets
Did you know that your Tweets aren’t really searchable forever? ReadWriteWeb’s Sarah Perez shares 10 ways to back them up.

Five ways to help your CEO embrace social media
A little post from “down-under” that gives some advice on how to get the top brass on board with your social media strategy.

Why Facebook Wants FriendFeed
Om Malik shares his point of view on why Facebook’s acquisition of Friendfeed is not about Twitter but more about Google.

Persuasive Picks for the week of 08/02/09

2 Comments/in /by

TechRadium vs. TwitterTwitter Sued for Patent Infringement – and it doesn’t look good
How would your online social interactions change if Twitter suddenly went away? We may soon find out.

The 10 Rock Solid Elements of Effective Online Marketing
Snag this free PDF written by Copyblogger founder Brian Clark, and find out more about the importance of building online authority.

Social Media Marketing Spend to Hit $3.1 Billion by 2014
Forrester‘s new Interactive Marketing Forecast for the next five years shows healthy growth that will out-pace email and mobile, but naturally, still won’t top traditional ad spends.

Time to Replace your Online News Room with Facebook!
The term “online newsroom” was all the buzz a year or two ago. Paul Dunay argues in favor of ditching a home-grown news room to go with Facebook pages, as a free alternative with better exposure. Read his post on MPDailyFix.com

Community Netiquette: How to Avoid Stepping on Virtual Toes
Community Guy Jake McKee shares some of the basics for proper conduct in online communities – especially when representing your company.

Persuasive Picks for the week of 07/27/09

in /by

Three Instantly Effective Social Media Strategies
Alexandra Samuel, CEO of Social Signal, outlines three great options for building a robust social media presence, regardless of budget. Her article in BusinessWeek suggest companies use simple and quick innovations, building on existing tools and established best practices.

Facebook and MySpace: Beware Of The Mommy Bloggers
Mediapost’s Catharine. P Taylor reviews how mommy bloggers inadvertently, perhaps, uncovered a central truth about social media marketing: it isn’t at all about carefully targeted display ads, or search ads, but about relationship-building.

Who is responsible for your social media strategy? This article by Wayne Kurtzman on Media Bullseye debates whether or not you should hire an entry-level person to manage your “dances with the public” and reminds us that “They are speaking for your company on the world wide stage.” Other important caveats: “One: These are not small companies. Two: Nothing personal, but these companies do not understand social media. Three: as a good friend reminded me, this is all too new – there are no experts.”

As a remote workforce, we’re more than familiar with the importance of self-discipline and internal motivation as critical success factors. The Wall Street Journal takes a look at these and other crucial elements of success for future workers facing the disappearance of traditional office environments. Alexandra Levit asks, “What’s in Your Future?”

If you still aren’t convinced that social media is a strategy you should add to your marketing, customer service and sales mix, read “Managing an Online Reputation” from Kermit Pattison in The New York Times. “Your customers are talking about you — and the whole world is listening.”


Persuasive Picks for the week of 07/19/09

in /by

Twitter 101Twitter Launches “Twitter 101″- Step One Of The Business Plan
Still looking for self-help in understanding what Twitter is and how to use it? Now you can get that information straight from the source with Twitter’s new online guide for business.

Nine Marketing Tips from a Six-Year Old’s Lemonade Stand
Jim Lodico guest posts on WebDesignerDepot.com with this great set of marketing tips inspired by his daughter’s lemonade stand.

Why Customer Service Should Be in Your Social Media Marketing Strategy
Tamar Weinberg shares this great post that reminds us how important customer service can be when engaging in social marketing strategies.

Deep social media engagement pays dividends
Sally Falkow provides an overview (with links to the source) on the eConsultancy.com blog of a recent ENGAGEMENTdb study thats shows how companies with the deepest and widest social media efforts gained revenue over the last 12 months.

Amazon Buys Zappos, Gives Press the Boot
Amazon and Zappos show that sometimes you can deliver the news on your own terms without the help of the media. It was certainly an interesting move considering the size of the news – and it has been yielding opinions on both sides of the fence. Here’s the video that Jeff Bezos released on YouTube: