News

I posted a blog after Michael Jackson passed away about how fast the news had spread across the world and that people used social media as a means of first learning about this breaking news.  At that point, most of the breaking news first heard about via social media had been broad-reaching in nature, such as natural disasters (or the passing of MJ).

Reading Mashable this morning I came across an article that caught my eye. It says that within the past 24 hours two major news stories have been broken on Twitter. Why is this unique?  Because the stories are relatively of small importance compared to a natural disaster and that they were broken not be individuals, but by main stream news sources.

I feel we will see this become the norm as apposed to the acceptation over time as the media becomes more comfortable with this new media. Instant news has become a relative term based on the type of distributing source. With social media, instant, is being redefined once again.

NBC will stream all of its 17 “Sunday Night Football” games live on the Web this year. The broadcasts will also be available on NFL.com. With four camera angles, in-game chatting and fantasy football tips, this option will be more interactive.

Do you think this is a good move? Will this create more or less ad revenue for NBC?

NBC To Stream ‘Sunday Night Football’ Live

Mary Grimborg
www.kmkmedia.com

A new campaign from Puma called, “Puma Employees Only” will roll out this holiday season. The campaign features photos and random thoughts from employees.

Puma wanted to personalize their brand and decided to feature the uniqueness of their employees, “From proclaiming their love for chicken nuggets and asking for cupcakes, to date-seekers and ex-girlfriend rants, the PUMA Employees cleverly share a little insight into their random thoughts or secret wishes. What better way to get to know the brand than through the young, creative and fun employees on the ground at The PUMA Stores?”

Puma will follow up with special events at different locations. These events will include guest appearances by the employees featured in the ads, scavenger hunts, and an opportunity for customers to write their own thoughts on poster board and be photographed. The customer photos will be part of a contest with the winners featured in an ad of their own.

To find out more about Jorge (above) and the other featured employees, head to www.facebook.com/puma

How personal can your brand be? Are you willing to take a risk and put your story out there?

Related Articles:
MediaPost – Puma Employees Become Ambassadors
Puma News Release

Mary Grimborg
www.kmkmedia.com

I posted a blog after Michael Jackson passed away about how fast the news had spread across the world and that people used social media as a means of first learning about this breaking news.  At that point, most of the breaking news first heard about via social media had been broad-reaching in nature, such as natural disasters (or the passing of MJ).

Reading Mashable this morning I came across an article that caught my eye. It says that within the past 24 hours two major news stories have been broken on Twitter. Why is this unique?  Because the stories are relatively of small importance compared to a natural disaster and that they were broken not be individuals, but by main stream news sources.

I feel we will see this become the norm as apposed to the acceptation over time as the media becomes more comfortable with this new media. Instant news has become a relative term based on the type of distributing source. With social media, instant, is being redefined once again.

Doug Burton
www.kmkmedia.com

More and more companies are exploring social media marketing. According to forecasts from Forrester Research, spending on social media marketing will increase from $716 million in 2009 to more than $3 billion by 2014.

We looked last week at strategies for social media marketing and I found these cutting edge examples from Charlotte Russe and Petco. Both companies have embraced social media, but Charlotte Russe has teamed up with Red Door Interactive, a San Diego marketing firm, and Petco’s strategy is to allow employees and customers to drive their efforts.

Highlights from a recent SanDiego Union-Tribune article, Social network put to work:

• Charlotte Russe added a social networking tool called “ShopTogether Friends” to its Web site. It allows shoppers to chat with each other in real time about the merchandise.
• Charlotte Russe has seen indications that social media are driving sales. The company used Twitter to link to an article in Star magazine that plugged sunglasses from Charlotte Russe. The customer response was impressive. – “The sunglasses were essentially gone within 24 hours,” said Karin Toranto, director of marketing for Charlotte Russe.
• On Petco’s Facebook page, the community of more than 3,000 fans can post pictures of their pets, swap tips or ask questions. Some contributors even post content as if written by their pets.
• Petco uses social networks to respond to customer complaints. A perusal of its Twitter and Facebook accounts reveals postings from dissatisfied shoppers — and quick responses from Petco.

 What’s your strategy?

Mary Grimborg
www.kmkmedia.com

Mashable recently posted an article outlining the inevitable search war between Google and Facebook. You can read the full article here. From a marketing perspective, I feel Facebook wins hands down. Imagine being able to tap into Facebook’s massive soecial network and target all those who have an interest in the Tour de France and own a Trek bike. Not a problem. Google’s model on the other hand places relevant ads based on anonymous search quieries (AdWords). Not very personal and does not utilize the power of social relationships.

Doug Burton
www.kmkmedia.com

Twitter users are again rising up and storming the gates of Izea, which today launched it’s Pay-Per-Tweet application.

Basically, Twitter users use Izea’s application to select the type of advertiser they’d like to shill for and the amount of pay (about $25-$35 per tweet if you have 10,000 followers) they require per Tweet. Advertisers then go into the database and select those users who fit their goals and audience parameters.

Tweets are sent out either with the advertiser’s specific language or users can craft their own message. Izea requires certain disclosures  that are supposed to make it more transparent than other types of paid content (or “spam,” as it’s normally called).

The initial reaction has been: “I will immediately unfollow somebody who spams me with sponsored Tweets.” I can respect that position and its intent to keep social media pure and organic.

But let me play devil’s advocate here, take a step back and analyze that position. If you genuinely enjoy and learn from the tweets of those people you follow – and you should, otherwise why would you be following them -  are you willing to throw that useful content away just because they happened to let you know they like AAA Hardware’s new paint selection? You already trust their content and, if you’re ever in the market for paint, maybe their opinion could (or should) hold some weight.

At the end of the day, social media in a marketing model is word-of-mouth advertising online. If a mom finds a great sippy cup for her kids at Babies R Us, she might tweet that gem out anyway since many of her followers are also mothers of young children. Why shouldn’t she get paid for that if she so chooses?

I’m just sayin’.

At the end of the day, these sites simply must find a reliable way to monetize their sites or their usefulness will certainly be limited when they’re forced to shut down completely.

What do you think? Would you immediately “unfollow” someone if they sent out a sponsored Tweet, even if they wrote it personally?

Cindy Harris

www.KMKMedia.com

Recently, buzz surrounding social media policies has highlighted those of ESPN, the NFL, and The U.S. Marines.

According to New York Times writer Richard Sandomir, ESPN issued 12 guidelines to its employees about social networking on Tuesday, Ric Bucher, one of its N.B.A. writers and analysts, wrote on Twitter, “The hammer just came down, tweeps: ESPN memo prohibiting tweeting info unless it serves ESPN.” Although, ESPN claims this is a misrepresentation on the policy as a whole.

The NFL has not officially released a social media policy, but they have said one is in the works. New York Times writer Judy Battista , players started camp this week and were told that the same rules that apply to the information flow to reporters applied to Twitter. In Green Bay, players were told that they will be fined if they tweet from team meetings or coaching sessions.

Mashable’s Pete Cashmore reveals that, The U.S. Marines issued an order Monday that bans social media sites including Twitter, Facebook and MySpace on its network, stating that issues of National Security may arise from the use of these sites. Meanwhile, the Marine Corps Facebook page has more than 75,000 fans.

While these policies are the extreme, there are several companies that have embraced social media and created more light-hearted policies. Zappos, for instance, had made social media part of their culture by encouraging employees to communicate using social networks. Obviously there is quite a difference in the culture at Zappos and that of the U.S. Marines. So how can your company determine what your social media policy should be?

That depends on your social media strategy. We always suggest that our clients take time to plan their social media strategy. You must decide how social media will work for your company and what goals your company wants to accomplish with social media. Once you have established your social media marketing goals, it will be much easier to decide how and where to implement your social media presence.

This Week in Twitter Censorship, Starring ESPN, the NFL and the United States Marines

Mary Grimborg

www.kmkmedia.com

According to a recent study from PR firm Burson-Marsteller Twitter is the top Social Media platform of choice for Fortune 100 companies.

Adam Ostrow of Mashable states, “According to their findings, 54 percent of the Fortune 100 have a Twitter presence, 32 percent have a blog, and 29 percent have an active Facebook Page. Moreover, at companies using only one of these tools, at 76 percent of them, the tool of choice is Twitter.”

Granted these are Fortune 100 companies, but how does your company compare to some of the stats below? Please share your stories.

• 17 percent use all three mediums: Twitter, Facebook, and a blog.
• Of the Fortune 100 companies on Twitter, 94 percent use it for news/announcements, 67 percent for customers service, and 57 percent for deals and promotions.
• The average Fortune 100 Twitter account has 5,234 followers. The median is 674 followers.

Doug Burton
www.kmkmedia.com

If your corporate site is front-loaded with a Flash intro, you might want to re-think your choice. Today’s websites should be optimized for the Web 2.0 world we increasingly inhabit, with its “user-generated content,” “brand conversations” and “social media.”

What does this mean for you specifically? Some things you could try:

• Adding live feeds from your blog or Twitter stream.
• Letting visitors to your site choose what they want to see.
• Posting your work in YouTube and then “consuming” them on your corporate site.
• Ditching the Flash intro and the “we’re so great…let us tell you why” copy
• Providing a mobile option.

So let me pick on a Flash intro again. It’s not so much that Flash is bad, but rather a Flash intro on your site is too long and too self-important. People are realizing, in the online world at least, what they choose to read and spend time with is their choice, not yours.

Some of the first to go with the social feed approach to web sites are, of course, ad agencies.

Here’s one – BooneOakley in North Carolina – that literally posted their corporate site on YouTube.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Elo7WeIydh8&annotation_id=annotation_800806&feature=iv[/youtube]

Other examples:

• Crispin Porter + Bogusky – CPBGroup.com
  
• Ignited

Cindy Harris

www.KMKMedia.com