kenekaplan Marketing, Media, PR, Socialmedia

Exploring Media Myths Uncovers Sound Advice

A communications pro pointed me to a 2006 media research paper by Ketchum.  You can get more details inside the slideshare document, but here are a few paragraphs I liked best:

ROCKLAND:  What do you consider the best practices for affecting word of mouth through public relations?

MARGARITIS:  Focus on cultivating emotional appeal — trust, admiration and respect — and build reputation capital — your workplace and culture, reputation, stewardship, the quality of your products and services, and your integrity and ethics.  Your corporate character and value system must take on a more prominent role in storytelling, but it also must be authentic.  Find credible ways to get stories out that showcase all of these characteristics, and they should include local stories.  It’s about focusing within your organization on cultivating service, and it serves as a way to earning your way to the word-of-mouth channel.

ROCKALND:  This probably is the hardest question facing public relations practitioners.  We know that influencers generate a great deal of word of mouth.  However, not everyone is an influencer, and all conversations are not started by influencers.  Maybe it comes back to basics, a good messenger with a “sticky” message at the right time in the right place.

ROCKLAND: How would you advise a company about its media communications as a result of this study’s findings?

MAFFEO:  Deploy more personalized communications through diverse communications through diverse communications channels and platforms that effectively communicate your message among target audiences and in a way that best suits the audience and the medium.

SCIBETTA:  Develop a highly customized and fragmented media mix.  The intersection of new media, traditional media and the human element is the key for creating effective and strategic media relations.  It enables companies to engage with consumers while also providing surround sound for their messaging.

SWERLING:  Media is not one-size-fits-all.  That’s the easy answer.  People use different, multi-channel models when considering different types of purchases and issues.  And those models are changing at lightening speed as new, technology-based resources become available.  As a result, communications must have a thorough understanding of their audiences, and they must stay very current with the media being used by those audiences.  The harder answer is that everyone in our own profession needs to be thinking about constantly reinventing what we do.  Ours always has been a mass-media-centric business that has focused on building relationships.  That models now must accommodate these new and emerging channels.  And if communicators don’t build relationships with them, they do so at the risk of their organizations and their  career.

kenekaplan Marketing, Media, PR, Social Media, Socialmedia

Collecting, Managing & Measuring Content with Dow Jones EVP Clare Hart

Someone smartly reminded me today that I recently said “I run” when people ask about measuring success of Podcasts and social media efforts. No apologies. I run…at the mouth. I share Web 1.0 “download numbers” when I can, but I’m more drawn to Web 2.0 wonders of impact and involvement. Impact of telling a great story and later building on it. Involvement of Intel sharing insight and involvement of interested audiences.

This smart person — and others — rightfully point out that we will need to better manage, collect and measure our Podcasting and Social Media efforts. After all, Intel is a company owned by shareholders. If we’re investing resources, we ought to try and show real benefits. Better management, collection and measurement of our efforts in a replicable way will help all of Intel grow and improve relationships with our audiences.

Here’s a Robert Scoble interview with Dow Jones’ Executive Vice President Clare Hart from February 28, 2007. Possibilities for improving.

[podtech content=http://media1.podtech.net/media/2007/02/PID_010375/Podtech_Clare_Hart_interview.flv&postURL=http://www.podtech.net/home/technology/2252/talking-search-with-dow-jones-vice-president&totalTime=2163000&breadcrumb=2e3be1ce-bf62-4faa-a3d9-8112850821e9]

kenekaplan Marketing, PR, Social Media, Socialmedia

Social Technographics

I first saw this on Steve Rubel’s Micro Persuasion.Understanding audience is always interesting, and the audience changes over time. Today’s Tech Novice becomes next year’s Tech Interested becomes Tech Enthusiast two years later.

This is interesting because the report tries focusing on the social media participation. One thing’s for sure, interest has never been higher. More people are keen with their toes on the line, ready to test the waters. There is a new next wave of novices joining in the next few months. That will push all the other participants up the latter. See you on the way up!

clipped from www.micropersuasion.com
Charlene Li from Forrester gave me just the starting point? I needed. She is out today with a new fascinating report on social technographics.
Forrester segmented the online audience into several different stratas – what they call a ladder of participation. They found that “Inactives” are by far the dominant group (52%). They’re followed by spectators, joiners, critics, collectors and last but not least creators. This last cluster, according to the analyst firm, dabbles in lots of different activities but few do all of them.

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kenekaplan Media, PR, Social Media, Socialmedia

Blog as Resume, How About Video Resume?

As resumes move from paper to online profile to blogs, the video resume could soon become a new norm. 

“The blog is your resume,” Jeremiah Owyang told me this week over lunch, refering to his recent blog post. A few weeks ago, I wrote about Rohit Bhargava’s story on the Social Media resume.  NY Times’ Abby Ellin on 4/21/07 talks about video resumes, which could make “the blog is your resume” even richer, more meaningful and impactful. 

TV news reporters, anchors and producers have always kept a “reel” of their best work. Their reel was their resume or ticket to getting a new or better job. Other media industry pros do the same. Now since “we are the media,” it seems that short video resumes might be right for anyone with a blog and a career under construction. 

Why not create a good self-made video interview where you answer/address thoughtful questions any potential employer may ask?  

Something related to note, HR Magazine March 2007 cited a study on web conferencing by global consulting company Frost & Sullivan shows this market jumping nearly 300 percent between 2005 and 2011, to $2.9 billion. 

Seeing yourself on video allows you to see how other people really see you. You can see any mannerisms you’re not aware of. Saying the right words with good delivery is important – especially for audio-only interviews (i.e. phone), but seeing your body language immediately triggers trust, confidence and personality. 

First, bone up on “media training” techniques…which really means, think about your audience, what is important to them, how they like to be talked to, and how can you make your story interesting and meaningful to them? Sounds like common sense, but when it comes to you telling your story it might help working with a trusted friend or someone who is media savvy — professional or otherwise.  Or simply find examples you like and emulate, but tell your authentic story while being mindful of your audience. 

Here are some quotes from Abby Ellin’s NY Times’ story:  

  • “We live in an on-demand world where people want the most detailed information to make a decision, as well as the ability to make that decision quickly,” said Nicholas Murphy, 27, the co-founder of WorkBlast.com, which aims to help users create online video résumés. It also allows employers to videotape themselves so they can advertise to prospective employees. (Now that’s “two-way”) 
  • “Executives fall into a trap of speaking business-speak,” said Karen Friedman, a media trainer. “While they might speak the language of their subject, it’s like listening to someone who’s stuck in a tunnel. They’re in a fog. The point they really need to get across gets muddled, lost and unfocused. What is it you want the listener to remember about your message when you’re done communicating?
  • Debra Benton , media trainer: People will soon forget what you have accomplished and long remember how you made them feel. That’s true on a date, in a job interview, even in Congress. You can get more of an emotional response if you can tap at the heartstrings.”  Do everything purposefully, and slow down. “Not to the point where you look like you’re dragging with energy, but most of us go too fast; we hurry; we look anxious. The more time you give yourself, the more status people give you. If you slow down, you look calm and make others calm around you. For instance, when shaking hands, pump two and a half times instead of one. You only have seconds to set yourself apart.”

More video interview tips from Karen Friedman: Ace Your Next Media Interview, Every Number Tells A Story, When Bad News Happens to Good People, Just Say It!

Debra Benton offers tips on how to be a good self-coach.  In her article Traits That Make Good Lovers Make Good Leaders, she suggests: “Ask questions. Know what people need and want. Use humor. No one will fault you for lightening the mood. Touch. Figuratively and literally pat people on the back. Initiate. Don’t wait to be asked or prodded. Slow down, shut up, and listen. When you play hard to get they want you more.”

kenekaplan PR, Social Media, Socialmedia

Social Media Club, Silicon Valley 4/4/07

On April 4, a group of us from Intel joined the first Silicon Valley chapter meeting of the Social Media Club thanks to our good friends at KNTV-TV NBC11.  It was an interesting mix of broadcast, corporate tech PR and enthusiastic social media folks.  I got to catch up with some friends from my KRON-TV days (1991-2000), former Intel employees and I even got to meet some new friends likeMike McGrath, who’s interested in Intel’s Suite Two.  I was impressed by the audience’s desire to get new/social media more intertwined with mainstream media, and that spirit of working together shined brightly through our presenter Chris Heuer.

kenekaplan Media, PR, Social Media

Less Distinction Between Blogs and Mainstream Media

In his New Rules Communications, Tom Foremski looks at Technorati CEO David Sifry’s latest quarterly report on the state of the blogosphere.

The report shows the number of blogs or posts per second — 1.4 blogs and 17 blog posts created per second. But consider the distinction between blogs and mainstream media:

…information not shown in our data but revealed in our own user testing in Q1 2007 indicates that the audience is less and less likely to distinguish a blog from, say, nytimes.com — for a growing base of users, these are all sites for news, information, entertainment, gossip, etc. and not a “blog” or a “MSM site”.

Link to Sifry’s Alerts: The State of the Live Web, April 2007

Two things:

  • If you take a look at the top “blogs” they are all written by media professionals, so do they qualify as blogs? I use a blogging platform to publish, but I don’t think of myself as a blogger–I am a professional journalist.
  • Mr Sifry points out that users distinguish less between mainstream media and blogs–then why is Technorati still making this distinction? It’s all mediasphere…

Tom’s New Rules Communication sponsor http://blog.cohnwolfe.com/boomerang/

kenekaplan Marketing, PR, Social Media, Socialmedia

ROI of Engagement

A link to Paul Dunay‘s blog came my way from friends who hear this a lot — what’s the ROI for podcasting and blogging?  Every day it’s getting easier to answer.  Today we say there’s a price for not doing it.  Tomorrow, we’ll be able to better show the value of engaging people…of alloing people to engage on their own terms and time.

Hightlights from Paul’s post on Calculating ROI on Web 2.0 tools:

But there are ways to calculate return on your Web 2.0 investment. For example, for your blog, first get some highly targeted CPM numbers, such as you would when buying ad placements in any homogeneous community. Second, think about what it would cost to hire a dedicated company to just do WOM advertising for you. Next, think about the relative change in Net Promoter Score (NPS), and how that might be valued. Add these up, and it’s a compelling figure.

Another way to think about it is to start thinking less about ROI and more about Engagement. My theory here is I only care about 2 measurements: conversion events (like a registration, download of podcast, post to a blog or wiki) and the path a customer or prospect takes to get there. That’s all I care about right now. Why you ask? When a customer participates they become more engage and invested in your brand.

kenekaplan Marketing, PodTech, PR, Social Media, Socialmedia

Top 150 Influencial Marketing Bloggers

Nice to see our friends Jeremiah Owyang and Rohit Bhargava next to each other in the top 40!  Lots of great people on this list are helping many people like me learn a lot.  Thanks!

Here’s the list of 150 most influencial marketing bloggers by Todd And and here’s Todd describing the list, which is now updated live in real time!

kenekaplan Intel, PR, Social Media, Socialmedia

Podcasting Power: Intel’s Innovative Use of Social Media

It’s been about nine months since Bill was interviewed by PodTech’s Jennifer Jones. She’s asked us to give her an update in April. Here’s Bill giving his snapshot of Intel’s Podcasting and new media efforts.

Text from PodTech: Bill Kircos, Consumer and Enterprise Communications Manager of Intel, explains how Intel’s passionate personalities and experts use podcasting to share stories about Intel’s newest technologies. Kircos discusses how social media has recalibrated the perception of Intel’s brand.

[podtech content=http://media1.podtech.net/media/2006/07/PID_000747/Podtech_Podcasting_072006_Marketing_Voices_Bill_Kircus_Intel_PodTech_2006-07-31___home.mp3&postURL=http://www.podtech.net/home/technology/902/podcasting-power-intel%e2%80%99s-innovative-use-of-social-media&totalTime=834000&breadcrumb=CRparent.1175490677.81]

kenekaplan PR

Too Much Talk, Fat Briefing Docs Sink Ships

Spending time to write up a two or ten-page briefing document is a waste!  Talking then encapsulating topics into talking points is enough!  Then connect the dots when talking, rather than writing huge briefing documents that never get fully read unless they land in the wrong hands.  In this case, confidential documents landed in the email box of a reporter.

Maybe this is a mistake that could encourage others to appreciate the art of not talking or writing down too much, especially when it’s related to competition or fear.

I first heard about this today in San Francisco over lunch.  Here’s another story of PR mistakes and MSFT’s heavy handed/overbearing approach.

http://blog.wired.com/business/2007/03/enough_about_me.html

Maybe these thoughtless mistakes would be fewer if we were more thoughtful about how we communicate.  “Anything you say” or do or write can be used against you so it helps being mindful from the get go — before saying too much, before writing down too much.  Maybe this blog post will come back to bite me:).