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Persuasive Picks for the week of 08/08/11

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LinkedInGetting the Most Out of LinkedIn for B2B (and Beyond!)
MarketingProfs Managing Editor Matthew Grant recaps some great LinkedIn tips for B2B organizations that were part of a “MarketingProfs How2” segment that was originally part of a This Week in Digital Media episode featured on the PJA Radio website. A link to the audio segment is also availble in the post.

How We Approached Social Media As A Brand New Business
Ex chartered accountant turned small business entreprenuer, Tahzeen Basunia shares his story of getting started with social media while starting a brand new business selling natural, vegetarian sweet boxes at the same time.

13 Hot Facebook Marketing Tips From the Top Pros
The crew over at SocialMediaExaminer.com continue to pump out incredibly useful content like this tip packed post from on Facebook Marketing.

How Your Business Should Be Preparing for Google+
David Polykoff provides some food for thought as to why business need to start preparing for the launch of Google+ Business pages and the SEO potential they’ll bring to your brand.

Twitter, Facebook And LinkedIn: Social Media And American Identity [INFOGRAPHIC]
Shea Bennett from Mediabistro‘s AllTwitter blog shares this stats packed infographic from Hasai that goes into great detail about how Americans use social networking sites. Is it just me or do these stats not paint a very positive picture of the average American?

Photo courtesy of Nan Palmero

BravoTV – Making Reality TV Stars Accessible

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BravoHello my name is Claire, and I am a reality TV junkie – and my network of choice is BravoTV.

I can’t get enough of my Bethenny, Real Housewives, Flipping Out, Top Chef, Million Dollar Listing, Matchmaker and Decorators. One might ask what makes these shows so addicting and how is it that Bravo TV continues to runaway with record-breaking viewership ratings.

Here’s why.

Beyond their ability to cast ‘real people’ with larger-than-life personalities (and in some cases, serious issues), which make for amazing television, Bravo has simultaneously created an aggressive social media strategy that feeds into the viewers desire to know more and to engage further with their favorite reality stars.

Andy Cohen

Taking the reality TV obsession to an entirely new level, Bravo and the genius behind the magic, Andy Cohen, provide fans with a 24/7 social media engine that makes our favorite reality TV stars accessible, even when the cameras are off.  (And yes, my husband is thrilled.)

Leveraging the power of Twitter and Facebook, Bravo has not only created a social media presence for its network, but individual programs and fascinating “Bravolebrities”.  Cohen also has a self-titled blog/microsite that features pictures and captions with celebrities, while Bravo TV has a TweetTracker portal that monitors tweets from fans, mobile and iPad Apps, a branded toolbar and The Dish newsletter. Each Bravo personality also has their own blog where they recap show episodes and answer viewer questions.  Bravo has even launched its own Foursquare app where fans can see recommendations from their favorite Bravolebrities!

Taking the engagement offline and on-air, Bravo’s “Watch What Happens Live!” is yet another popular program that features Bravo personalities LIVE in studio fielding questions from fans via phone, Facebook and Twitter.  These 30-minute shows are then followed by a live U-Stream where fans can continue to call-in, Tweet and Facebook their questions – WHEW! Some might say this is all overkill, I say keep it coming – and keep it REAL.  Engagement is what it’s all about and if Bravo continues to provide ways for me to actually connect with the people I’ve grown to love (and hate) this junkie says “Bring it”  – @BravoTV and @BravoAndy Got it right!! MAZEL!!

Are you a fan of BravoTV?  What are your thoughts about their level of fan engagement? Share your comments below.

Persuasive Picks for the week of 07/27/11

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Steering WheelInfluencers
Chris Brogan dives into the true definition of an Influencer – and no, it has nothing to do with your Klout score or the price of your Empire Avenue stock. Be sure to read through the comments for even more points of view.

8 Ways to Maximize Your YouTube Marketing Results
Rick Brooks from Flyte New Media shares 8 great tips for getting the most out of your video production and distribution efforts when posting to Youtube. Each tip is packed full of great information that even seasoned YouTuber’s can benefit from.

Could Social Media Flub Cost You $4.3 Million?
David F. Carr highlights some jaw-dropping dollar figures from a recent Applied Research survey (sponsored by Symantec) that revealed potentially negative and more costly consequences of bringing your brand to the social space.

Number of Corporate Social Media Accounts On Rise: Risk of “Social Media Help Desk”
Altimeter‘s Jeremiah Owyang shares some interesting stats on the number of social media accounts that larger brands are maintaining, along with some helpful advice for Social Media Strategists to help prevent their roles from turning into “the ever reactive sanitation role of social media helpdesk.”

15 Google+ Sites & Services for Power Users
As companies sit and patiently wait for the launch of Google+ features for brands, active users of the service with their personal accounts might like Amy-May Elliot‘s list of Google+-related websites and services compiled in this post on Mashable.

Persuasive Picks for the week of 07/18/11

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EngagementsWhat is Engagement in Social Media?
Angela Hausman explores the definition of “engagement” via this post on SocialMediaToday. Be sure to read through the comment thread for additional definitions and view points from the SMT community.

What does Google+ mean for your social media policy?
Technologist David Reinhardt expands on the potential impact Google+ will have on the way we maintain personal and work relationships and the added complexity this new social platform could add to your organization’s social media policy.

How to Turn Customers Into Loyal, Raving Fans
Mike Michalowicz, author of “The Toilet Paper Entrepreneur” expands on the value and importance of under promising and over delivering when it comes to building the ultimate customer base, via this post on WSJ.com.

Is Social Media Experiencing the Search Engine Consolidation?
Fast Company expert blogger, JD Rucker, explores the idea of a future where social platforms begin to consolidate and morph into new sources of online search.

Email Metrics: Open, Click Rates Highest in the Morning
Gain some insight into becoming a better email marketer in this MarketingProfs post that shares key findings and great statistics from a recent MailerMailer report.

Persuasive Picks for the week of 07/11/11

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circle_c.jpgThe 5 Es of Content Marketing
ConversationAgent‘s Valeria Maltoni shares five inspirational tips to help writers take advantage of the “lazy days” of summer by pushing forward and gaining traction with their content creation and marketing efforts.

4 [Social Media] Failures and a Success
Sometimes the best way to learn is through your mistakes. This time around, IT blogger Peter Thomas share four of his own failures and the lessons he learned along the way. He caps off his SocialMediaToday.com post by sharing one of his personal successes as well.

How the U.S. Army is Using Social Media
ReadWriteWeb‘s Founder & Editor-in-Chief  shares this very interesting look into how the U.S. Army uses the web and various social platforms to share stories, interact with its online community and enhance recruiting efforts.

5 Reasons Google+ Is Not A Facebook Killer
Google+ has certainly been the focus this past week as millions of users rush through the flood gates to kick the tires on the new shiny social platform. However, not everyone is convinced that Google has come up with something that can be in it for the long haul. Dave Davies provides five reasons why in this post on SearchEngineWatch.com.

The Four Fundamentals of Social Media
Digital Media Consultant Dan Taylor shares a ton of great information and advice to businesses that might be trying to do everything all at once when it comes to their social media presence.

Image Credit: Leo Reynolds

Persuasive Picks for the week of 06/27/11

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Google+Google Launches Google+ To Battle Facebook
Google’s announcement of their new Google+ service has been getting mixed reviews around the blogosphere from those who have been able to get an invite thus far. Get caught up with what the service entails, with this overview from Mashable‘s Ben Parr.

Does Social Media Have a Return on Investment?
This Fox Business post on Fast Company takes a look at the topic of ROI from several different perspectives, including Audi’s social success in garnering consumer engagement (but not sales), Joe Fernadez‘s Klout, WildfireApp CEO, Victoria Ransom and online customer social support platform, Lithium.

B2B social media: Treat it as you would any relationship
Sure, B2C brands tend to steal the spotlight when it comes to showing success with social media-based campaigns, but B2B companies can be just as successful if they use the right approach. This interesting post on MediaUpdate draws a parallel between engaging in the social space and the many phases of human relationships – from flirting all the way through marriage.

Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter Hit New Audience Highs
Get a quick overview of the latest comScore Media Metrix stats around the growth explosion being experienced by the big 3 social platforms we all know and love (well, uh… “like”), via this post on MarketingProfs.

The Secret to Making Social Media Work: Get It on a Calendar
Help get your extra busy schedule in check with keeping tabs on all your social monitoring and updating duties with these three practical steps found on Business Insider.

5 ways social media has changed PR

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social-media-poststamps In celebration of Social Media Day today, we decided to take a retrospective look at some of the ways social media has had an impact on the public relations industry. Not only has it changed the way we communicate with each other, but as it gains acceptance and usage among executives, it will play an increasingly-important role in our scope of work on a daily basis as PR professionals.

According to a report from eMarketer, a whopping 63.7 percent of internet users in the U.S. will use social networks in 2011, creating quite the desirable pool of prospective customers (and advocates, ideally). The firm also reported estimates that four in five U.S. businesses (with at least 100 employees) will take part in some sort of social media marketing this year, up from just 42 percent as recently as 2008. This number is expected to continue to rise, especially in light of related surveys that have revealed that as much as 63 percent of small businesses feel as though social networking makes a “significant” impact on their sales and revenue.

So what does this mean for us? Well, not only has social media infiltrated nearly every industry, but PR pros will be expected to ramp up their strategies in order to best engage audiences using the social web. And as much as the occasional rogue Facebook post or off-color Twitter rant from the public can keep us up at night, we’ll be seeking to embrace this form of communication more and more as a mechanism for not only sharing information with key audiences, but also listening to and connecting with them like never before.

Read on for our take on how social has already made its mark on PR:

  1. It’s a two-way street – Not that jumping on your soapbox and simply blasting a message via megaphone was ever effective, but now more so than ever, PR practitioners are connecting with audiences on a human level and inviting conversation. Receiving this invaluable feedback allows for real-time refinement of strategies and tactics, making brand connections with consumers and constituents that much deeper.
  2. 24/7 Engagement – Gone is the traditional 9-to-5 schedule because social media conversations never stop. Now that consumers can connect directly with a brand at any time, it’s up to us as PR pros to play host or hostess at the party, keeping the conversation going, encouraging a good back-and-forth and making new introductions to facilitate constant – and consistent – engagement.
  3. Increased demand for digital Pros – Forget about ‘keeping up with the Joneses’…if you’re in PR, you’re more concerned about keeping up with the latest Facebook feature or location-based app. The advent of social media has shown us that the most successful (and in-demand) PR people aren’t afraid to explore and embrace new technologies, continually adding all sorts of new technologies to their repertoire.
  4. Navigating the new landscape – As this article in Mashable points out, social media has blurred the line between paid, earned and owned media – not only altering their definitions, but also posing the PR challenge about how to integrate all three forms for the greatest success. By focusing on a balanced mix, PR professionals can help spread customer touch points across all functions within a company, and it’s this new approach that will have the greatest lasting impact.
  5. Evolving definition of success – Yes, some of us may have entered PR thinking it was the furthest field from anything math-related, but the fact remains that metrics have been – and continue to be – a PR pro’s best friend. And thanks to social media, we’re continually redefining the measure of success: Whether it’s friends on Facebook or daily of Tweets, we know that quality reigns over quantity, and that a long-term approach garners the most powerful return on investment when it comes to making connections.

What else would you add about how social media has changed the PR industry, and how do you expect it will further change our industry in the future?

The staff here at PerkettPR is also having some fun on Social Media Day by creating a series of videos explaining how Social Media has changed each of our lives and/or what our favorite social media tools are. We will be posting them to the PerkettPR Facebook page throughout the day, so be sure to check them out and leave us a comment!

Persuasive Picks for the week of 06/13/11

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Tony Hsieh9 Questions: Tony Hsieh, Zappos
Get a quick injection of entrepreneurial motivation from this quick and inspirational interview with Zappos CEO Tony Hsieh on the American Express Open Forum.

Take a Twitter Audit
Chris Brogan provides 10 questions for you to answer that will help in determining how effective your efforts on Twitter really are.

Should all your staff be engaging in social media?
Letting your entire staff engage in the social space on behalf of your brand can be a tough idea to grasp, not to mention implement with success. Gain some insight on how to approach allowing this in your business via this eConsultancy blog guest post from FreshNetworks‘ Matt Rhodes.

7 Ways to Gain Leads Through Social Media Networking
If used properly, social media has the ability to help you gain more leads, close more deals and build more business partnerships. The SEO Agency’s Tony B share some basic tips to help start increasing your business’s lead generation in the social space via this post on SocialMediaToday.com.

Social Media Videos: The Custom Creative Paradox
Poptent President Neil Perry encourages brands to continue publishing video to their social platforms, but first urges some careful and creative planning in the subject matter and usefulness of video-based content creation.

Persuasive Picks for the week of 06/06/11

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PieBy the numbers: Social media’s slice of the marketing pie
Get up to speed on how companies with small, medium and large social marketing budgets are spending their money via these highlights of several recent Hubspot, Nielsen and Altimeter reports compiled by Dan Taylor – in this post on TheNextWeb.com.

4 Ways Video Can Help Your Social Media Marketing Success
This Clickz.com post from Liana Evans provides some practical advice for creating useful video for your business rather than shooting for the that virtually unobtainable “viral” brass ring.

How Southwest Airlines Is Connecting With Customers Via Social Media
Last week’s picks featured a look at how JetBlue has been finding success with their social media efforts. This week you can also take a peek at how they’re doing it over at Southwest – via this video post over on SocialMediaExaminer.com.

56% Of Content Shared Online Occurs Via Facebook
Not using Facebook as part of your social marketing strategy yet? You might want to reconsider it. Get a quick rundown of some pretty impressive stats when it comes to sharing content online – via this AllFacebook.com post from Jennifer Moire.

Facebook And Twitter: What If The Real World Was Like Social Media?
This week’s round of picks wraps up with this very funny video from the English National Opera that shows what things would be like if you applied your online life to the real world. Enjoy!

Photo Credit: Salim Virji

Persuasive Picks for the week of 05/16/11

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sm_expert.pngI Will Never Hire a “Social Media Expert,” and Neither Should You
Lets start things off with my favorite post of the week. Peter Shankman provides a wake up call for the so called “Social Media Experts” and the companies that have made the poor choice of hiring them in this entertaining post that puts everything in perspective.

Study: Marketers Reporting Social Media ROI of 100, 200, Even 1,000 Percent
Aprimo CMO Lisa Arthur highlights four key findings from MarketingSherpa‘s 2011 Social Marketing Benchmark Report via this post on Forbes.com.

6 Ways to Boost Return on Twitter
So you’ve found your groove on Twitter, but are your efforts as effective as they could be? Riverside Marketing Strategies President, Heidi Cohen provides “Six strategies to boost your Twitter return” via this post on Clickz.com.

7 Guidelines To Taking Your Global Brand Local Via Social Media. And Vice Versa
Enjoy some great nuggets of advice on how to make your big company more personable, or how to make your small company look bigger, via this post on MarketingVox.com.

Unfollow, Unfriend, Retweet: AP Stylebook Adds Another 21 Words
Keep your writing in check by getting a quick brush-up on the latest social media-oriented additions to the AP Stylebook via this post from Ann Handley on MPDailyFix.com.