Be a Hero

by Jenn Bailey on April 9, 2009

Be a hero.

Know someone who could benefit from Social Media Marketing training? Could you? The Social Lites is very excited to be involved in a Social Media Marketing Boot Camp. We’re joining forces with two other companies – Aspire Business Development and Brandworks to offer this 4 Sessions in 4 Weeks training program. Cost? $395.

So, how does that make you a hero? Because we’re offering a scholarship to two deserving people and you get to help us find them. We know there are people out there who could benefit from this training. We also know that, with our current economy, the person who might benefit most, might not be able to afford it. We’re asking you to nominate yourself, or nominate someone else to take part in this in-depth, small group seminar for FREE!  Social Media is all about sharing and empowering the individual. Our three companies have encountered the generosity of this community and we are thrilled to pay it forward.

All you have to do is let us know how you or your candidate would benefit from this training. Comment here, or contact skinkade@aspirekc.com, alicia@thebrandatwork.com or jenn@thesociallites.com by End-of-Business on Friday, April 17th. Scholarship winners will be notified Monday, April 20th and announced here on The Social Lites blog.

Thanks for joining the fun and spreading the word. We can’t wait to give somebody . . . hang on! . . . two somebodies, an awesome opportunity!

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Social Media and ROI

by Christina Maki on March 4, 2009

business-catLori Howe posted this comment today on one of our older posts on blogging mistakes, and I thought it was so good, we’d do a whole post on it:

I get that blogging is part of an integrated social media & web marketing strategy and that it takes time and patience to see results. and that it’s difficult to compare to how PR or paid advertising is valuated. However, I’m curious to know if there is any measurement that represents the value of blog posting for a company’s product/service on relevant industry blogs? Like it on not, we live in an ROI-driven business world and some business folks simply need a measurement. Perhaps they’re not a good fit for social media?

ROI is always a hot topic when you’re pitching social media to businesses, especially if the business in question is used to dealing in traditional media marketing with traditional, measurable results. However, this doesn’t necessarily mean that social media isn’t a good avenue for that business to take. Any business can benefit from social media interaction, if it’s done correctly. The hardest part is often selling the idea to the people at the top of the company heirarchy.

So, how can your ROI be measured when you’re dealing with social media? [click to continue…]

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Old Man Stewart Shakes His Fist at the Twitterverse!

by Christina Maki on March 3, 2009

For those of you who missed it, here’s The Daily Show’s segment on Twitter.


You know you’re doing well when Jon Stewart starts making fun of you.

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Obama announces New Media Team

by Jenn Bailey on February 23, 2009

It’s all here, folks. President Obama’s promise to change the look and sound of Government is realized.

http://tinyurl.com/ck84d3

Cheers.

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They see it, but still don’t “Get It!”

by Jenn Bailey on January 30, 2009

I read this article today and wanted to bang my head against the computer screen. I find it incredible how advertising companies understand the importance of targeting audiences and yet still go about it so badly. They see it, but they don’t get it. The new advertising brain child is called Gaze Tracking, although some are calling it Face Counting, and yet the majority have dubbed it Face-Based Audience Measurement. Gosh, those names make me feel all warm and fuzzy as a consumer. Obviously they care deeply.

So what is face-based audience tracking? It’s video screens. Video screens that, while showing me an ad at places like malls, health clubs, airports or grocery stores, are also watching me. Why? To determine what kind of ad I’ll be interested in. Of course they’ll know, just by looking at me, that I own a dog, enjoy the beach and am in desperate need of chocolate donut. I mean when you gaze over a crowd of people, don’t you know what their interests are? What their needs are? NO?!? If you looked at a group of people on Facebook would you? Yea. Why? Because they’re telling you what their interests are, what their needs are. And that’s my point. Why complicate something that is relatively simple? Why replace systems that exist and work?

AdSpace, one of the companies that works with these face-based audience measurement systems, charges $765,000/month for a 15 second ad to run on its national network. They charge so much because they promise to bring companies “rigorous information about those who see the spots”. How rigorous can they be? While watching crowds of people in a crowded space, the screen is gathering data to three criteria – age, gender and ethnicity. The machines accurately guessing gender only 85% of the time. Rigorous. And the other two criteria, age and ethnicity, suffer from even lower accuracy percentages. I love the researchers response to this. “Even the human brain can’t always determine gender, age or ethnicity.” True, but if someone was giving this human brain $750k/month, I’d darn well go up to people and ask them.

The inaccuracy and expense of these systems aside, there is another problem being raised – one of privacy. As of this posting, the kiosks do not have to tell the watcher they are being watched. Hello, Mr. Orwell. Two organizations, the Electronic Frontier Foundation and the Center for Democracy & Technology, have already voiced concerns and are taking an active and opposing interest in the technology.

Why, oh why, would a company dip its toe into such turbulent waters for such flawed information? Aren’t there better ways to “rigorously” quantify your audience? Sure there are. So, companies, if you want to know what your customers want, if you want to know it they’re interested, if you want to know if they even like you, Ask Them. Don’t spy on them. Ask Them. Then Listen for the Answer. We’ll tell you.

FYI: The author of this post is female, does own a dog and occasionally splurges on donuts, but not chocolate.

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What a Headache

by Christina Maki on November 17, 2008

motrinPoor Motrin. They dip their toes into the pool of Social Media and truly end up sticking their foot in it. Now other large companies will surely point to their failure as an “I told you so” tale and shy even further away from the use of Social Media in their marketing and messaging. Exactly what we advocates for SM don’t want to see. But was it really Social Media’s fault?

Motrin devised a little YouTube ad campaign. It was in recognition of National Baby Wearing Week. The video was to be a sneak peek of a larger traditional media campaign now launching – a media campaign Motrin is already apologizing for. If you watch the video (if the link works, it is still up) you will see an animated road map of how and why moms “wear” their babies and that any ensuing pain from this practice can be alleviated with Motrin. Sounds fine, so why the fervor? It’s in the way the message was pitched. The ad told Alpha Moms they wear their babies as a fashion statement for reasons that may, someday, be considered legitimate. The ad basically says these moms are only suffering through baby wearing so they can “look like an official Mom” in the eyes of society. That message is so wrong on so many levels for the audience Motrin was reaching out to, that you’ve got to wonder if they did any research at all.

Alpha Moms are educated women who take pride in caring for their families. They are savvy enough to poke fun at themselves, and don’t need companies to do it for them. Motrin could have garnered the favor of this economically powerful group by aiming at their hearts rather than by pricking their egos. How’s this for a story line: “You thought the pain would be over after childbirth? How could it be when you’re still carrying that baby? But you carry her because you love her. Let Motrin help ease the aches.”

Unfortunately, the viral backlash Motrin is now suffering gives them every reason to pull out of future Social Media usage and that is a shame, because that is the wrong lesson to learn from this episode. Why? Just look. Everyone is talking, tweeting, blogging and podcasting about Motrin. There is a definite buzz so, from a Social Media view, the campaign has worked very well. It is Motrin’s message that was bad. It’s Motrin’s message that has caused controversy, not the way that message was delivered. Regardless of how companies reach out, they still need to know their audience, and Motrin didn’t.

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Pics or it didn’t happen! (A little Highlight Midwest picspam.)

by Christina Maki on October 30, 2008

As promised, here are a couple of photos from the Highlight Midwest reception last night at the Kauffman Center here in Kansas City. Due to the fact that I lack a *real* camera (well, one that doesn’t suck, anyway), and a lot of my iPhone shots didn’t turn out, there aren’t many. If you want more photos, go bug Zach Cobb. He’s got all the good shots.

Our panel made of awesome, from left to right: Zach Cobb, Bo Fishback, Dusty Davidson, Jeff Slobotsky, Matt Secoske, Zena Weist, Adam Coomes, Aaron Webb, Nathan T. Wright, and Jason Walsmith.

Bo Fishback asks the panel a question. Look how serious and pensive you all look!

Adam Coomes answers a question, and everyone looks on with rapt attention.

Adam Coomes answers a question, and everyone looks on with rapt attention.

Zach Cobb talks very animatedly about social media. (But then, Zach ALWAYS talks animatedly!)

Zach Cobb talks very animatedly about social media. (But then, Zach ALWAYS talks animatedly!)

The panel looks on as Dusty Davidson answers a question.

The panel looks on as Dusty Davidson answers a question.

I’ll get the video of my presentation up as soon as I get the link. :)

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Highlight Midwest 2008

by Christina Maki on October 29, 2008

So I have a meeting tomorrow morning at 10, and I really should be getting ready for bed so that I can get a good night’s sleep, but I’m just SO jazzed about today’s event that I have to crank this post out now. Highlight Midwest was just too awesome for words!

The un-conference portion of the event was held during the day at Kansas City’s Record Bar. I have to say, I was skeptical at first about it as a venue for a conference like this. But I’d never been to a barcamp-style meetup before, so I also wasn’t really sure what to expect. After having experienced it though, I can now say that I really like the format and will be looking for similar events like it in the future.

[click to continue…]

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TBS Strikes Out in Game 6 Coverage

by Jenn Bailey on October 18, 2008

I don’t know what technical, broadcasting, unfortunate hiccup happened tonight during the first inning of the ALCS. The reason I don’t know is because TBS never told me, until it didn’t matter any more. Dutifully turning on my TV at the appointed time I am greeted with a rerun of some obscure sitcom disaster from the 90s instead of my much anticipated Red Sox vs. Rays match-up.

Was this my fault? Did I have the wrong time? The wrong day? Could I have erred? Going back to the cable menu I am assured this is where the game is being nationally televised. I’ve got the right station and the right time. Yet I am not watching Dustin Pedroia slap a grounder to left. I am not reveling in the slippery mastery of Josh Beckett on the mound. Instead I am watching a show I never bothered to watch in prime time.

I scramble through the trash for the sports section. Print media concurs. Rays vs. RedSox on TBS at 7pm cst. ESPN.com agrees.

Since the laptop is open and awaiting my next command, I move to the ever immediate, ever responsive realm of Twitter. Surprisingly, after 3 minutes, no one has answered my query. Where is ALCS game 6?

Returning to the TV, I click back on TBS. The same banal sitcom continues to harsh my squee. Now I’m peeved. I grab the laptop and go to TBS. com as well as their sports specific web page. Nothing. According to the TBS websites, I should be enjoying their stellar coverage of the game.

I return to ESPN.com, knowing they will at least have updates of the game. Not only is ESPN giving me a much desired play-by-play, they have moved my side screen to their “chat” section. I never “chat” during a ball game and I wonder why ESPN isn’t remembering that. They’ve put up a screen that I never participate in. But then I begin to read the chat. It is all about TBS’s broken feed. Someone from TBS is texting, explaining their frenzy and frustration, begging for our patience, letting me know they are aware and working on it.

So here are my questions to TBS:

  • Why didn’t you tell me this in a TV crawl at the bottom of your insipid Sitcom?
  • Why didn’t you tell me this on your website?
  • Why didn’t you tell me this on your other, sports specific, website?
  • Why wasn’t somebody monitoring Twitter to give me an explanation?
  • Why did I have to learn about your problem on ESPN.com?

For all of your promise, TBS, that you are a sportscasting powerhouse, I had to get my sports information, and my information about your problems, from somewhere else. Thanks ESPN.com.

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Can Something Called “Twitter” Really be a Threat?

by Jenn Bailey on October 17, 2008

DevCentral is espousing Twitter as the next big data security threat. Leaving aside the truth that to Data Security personnel, everything is a security threat; I’m not following DevCentral’s logic.

For those who may not know, Twitter is a micro-blogging application that allows its users to “Tweet” or write text-based broadcasts of up to 140 characters in length. Besides broadcasting messages, you can also direct message anyone who is “following” you. How this makes Twitter a darker security risk than email, forums or travel drives, I don’t know. Unless you are using a secret code, the broadcasting nature of Twitter seems an unlikely place to pass along proprietary information. Using a simple Twitter Search would land whoever is sending inappropriate material/information in the soup due to the transparent nature of the network.

In my opinion, it is Twitter’s transparent nature that makes it an ideal social media platform for businesses. Twitter is a way to monitor customer attitude and opinion, a way to create and support brand evangelism, and a way to broadcast your own corporate messages. Why should companies hesitate to jump in? True, corporate competitors can easily find your following fan base and directly target them to “change sides.” But, if you are courting your followers properly, they are more likely to be offended by such a tactic than tempted.

Let’s look at those followers from the other side of the ice. If your competition can find them through you, the friends of your follower’s can find you through them. That’s what we call a “win” folks. Recent studies have shown consumers are 83% more likely to take purchasing advice from people they know rather than from traditional advertising campaigns. And 93% of consumers are asking, no, begging companies to meet them in the social arena. Twitter can satisfy that need for connection without requiring a large investment of corporate time.

So what about a company’s own employees? Should they be allowed to Twitter? Might they let slip with proprietary information or paint an ugly picture of their workplace on the blogosphere? Rest assured, if employees wanted to do those things, they would be already, whether Twitter was in their lives or not. Some psychologists even think that Twitter may be a much-needed safety valve, helping employees relieve stress. A few minutes taken out of the workday to check in with our emotional support systems, i.e., friends and family, could be just what we need to keep us from “going postal.” I think when companies weigh the real benefits of a social networking platform like Twitter against any perceived threats to data security they will determine that Twitter poses no real risk at all.

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