Thin crust or thick, Coke or Pepsi, Michael or LeBron, Tiger vs. (okay, no debate there)…these are some of the great debates of our time. In recent days as social marketing has exploded another one is emerging, is it better to start and nurture a Facebook Group or a Facebook Fan page. ((BTW, here’s the THP fan page, please become a Fan. No back to the blog.) When I first dove into Facebook for our business not that long ago, I did it like many…
Read MoreI’ve has so many conversations recentlyabout the intersection of public relations and social marketing, ranging from official presentations to casual chats over lunch, I’ve begun losing count. They have been as helpful for me in helping me crystallize a point of view as I hope they have been for friends and clients who we are either working with, working for, or hopefully will be working with and for in the near future. The ultimate bottom line for me in all of this is that to…
Read MoreOver the last month or so I have been having many conversations about social marketing ranging from friendly one on ones to more elaborate presentations. Some of those were philosophical in nature, others designed to present a base understanding, and other to clients and potential clients to offer our current thoughts as marketing pros so they could decide whether to use social marketing in their marketing mix. As I have spoken or presenting I have been reminded of something I learned during my days at…
Read MoreBased on the number of college students we meet with for internships and jobs I have been concerned about the quality of education being offered by some college public relations programs. Many times the folks we meet with just don’t seem to “get it.” They don’t seem to have the public relations acumen and general go-getter attitude we need at THP and I assume others need as well. One of my other criticisms is that they are often taught by folks who are not now,…
Read MoreBased on our growing but still limited experience, a good rule of thumb when presenting the concept of social markerting to clients or friends is to remember that everyone’s needs and level of understanding is different. As a group we have now done this a number of times and you can gauge the room or the individual you’re talking to by either the glazed look on the faces or the flashes of recognition. Those reactions are usually based on they are using social marketing in their current personal…
Read MoreThis is about to sound like an AA meeting, but I began serious blogging, facebooking and Twittering about two months ago. I am now approaching my first thousand followers on Twitter (nowhere need the social marketing God that is http://www.madisonmain.blogspot.com/tter) and I’m pretty happy about that. Recently some of the social marketing folks that I follow blogged about what their “Day in the life of social marketing” is about and while I don’t think my experience is worth emulating, I have noticed significant changes in my online habits and…
Read MoreOkay, so I’m dating myself but Billy Crystal’s old (very old???) SNL character “Fernando” posed the bottom-line question when it comes to social media content. We have an internal argument at THP (please become an FB fan here) every time we debate things like videos, attachments, pictures, etc. for blogs, websites and social media platforms. There are some in the group who think these should be works of art, and others (me included) who think some of that quality should be sacrificed for timeliness when…
Read MoreTonight (Thursday), we at THP had the opportunity to sponsor our second event in about a week at the public radio and TV studios in Richmond. It was the annual donor appreciation event and the guest speaker was Judy Woodruff, the legendary televison news journalist who currently reports for The News Hour on PBS. (Blogger note: I know the picture stinks but I’m still getting the hang of my Bberry Storm, sorry.) Ms. Woodruff was engaging both up close and in front of an audience. …
Read MoreSo I’m really focusing on events. First because we just did one ourselves. Second, because we have a flurry of them coming up for clients and for prospects. So I’m looking at them with this new filter of the combination of the shrinking old media and growing social media. So here are some thoughts in no particular order, hopefully you can find them helpful. The old rules apply but are on steroids: An event for the sake of an event is a big “no.” Media…
Read MoreOn Sunday, I won’t be rooting for the Steelers, or the Cardinals. I will be rooting for halftime. On Monday, I have already cancelled a meeting and probably pissed off my business partner. You see at 10am sharp I HAVE to be in front of my computer with three browser screens open and and hands poised for action. That’s when tickets for the next Bruce Springsteen & the E Street Band tour go on sale. No, I’m not one of those people who can recite…
Read MoreAs you probably can imagine, I have been thinking a lot about social marketing in the wake of Peter Shankman’s visit and our event. The “thinking” has been helped along by a follow-up presentation by the wonderful Shonali Burke in a presentation to a client in Northern Virginia on Wednesday and by meetings and conversations with others including other clients over the course of the last few days. While the good wishes and good thoughts from others keep coming our way, so does the reality…
Read MoreWow. This has been a pretty incredible morning. We at THP would like to once again thank everyone who braved nasty weather to hear HARO’s Peter Shankman speak this morning. We raised about $3000 and all had our social marketing consciences raised as well. Thanks also to Jen Pounders who sent over the yummy Two Sweet Cupcakes (shameless plug for more in the future) after the event. He ate one and was bummed he couldn’t take the rest on the plane. Now for the good stuff. …
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