What Sort of Social Media Services Should An Online Marketer Offer Clients?
Monday, March 03, 2008
Here are the services an online marketing company can (or should) offer clients:
- Blogging: Providing blog content, including content that has a "real" voice and is calculated to drive traffic/comments/interaction. Metrics to measure the effectiveness of this include # of comments, traffic, link-tos, and Technorati ratings.
- Blogger Outreach: This involves first creating contact lists carefully targeted to the client in question – and having the ability to identify the influential bloggers within a particular niche. Then the bloggers are contacted regarding the client story in question. This is similar to traditional PR, but involves a far more personal hand, and the ability to network and create relationships online. Traditional press releases do not work in this outreach – they must be short, friendly letters. Metrics for this include hits and link-backs to your site.
- Forum Outreach: Similar to blogger outreach. Part of this is identifying in advance what forums might be useful to the client and developing a relationship with them BEFORE making the "pitch" on the site (or else you are labeled a spammer).
- Social Networking Sites: The creating/maintenance of MySpace and/or Facebook accounts for the client, including the creation of Groups, Friending, sending out bulletins, etc. In addition to Facebook & MySpace there are many other social networking sites to focus on, both broad-based (like Bebo) or specialized (depending on client’s needs). Part of offering this service is the ability to tell clients what specific sites will be best for them demographically, and keeping up with trends. Metrics for this would be page hits, increase of hits on referenced URL, number of "friends" and comments.
- Podcast & YouTube: Some clients will be particularly suited for these forms of viral marketing. Marketers should offer very basic services in making simple podcasts & videos with the goal of going "viral" within the social networks. There is also a social networking component to these podcast and YouTube communities that have to be maintained and "worked." Metrics for this would be hits, # of downloads, link-tos from other sites, and increase of hits on referenced URL.
- Social Bookmarking: Interfacing between client blogger and bookmarker to shape content most likely to be bookmarked. Metrics include # of "Diggs" or "stumbles" a bookmarked story gets, and corresponding hit spike on referenced URL.
Within all of this is the need to provide the client a list of metrics to demonstrate that the social networking is creating a result. Companies are more likely, even in the case of budget cuts to their overall online marketing plan, to keep a budget for social networking because it is relatively inexpensive – but because the technology is so new, they want to see tangible results. It will be necessary, then, for a shop to create their own methodology and protocol for collecting data for metrics and presenting them in a convenient and comprehensive manner for the client.Labels: blogger, buzz, Facebook, Myspace, new media, social media, social networking, Stumbleupon, video, Web 2.0, Youtube
posted by Valerie D'Orazio
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i want an iPhone
Friday, June 29, 2007
But not as bad as some, apparently. In NYC, people were lining up as early as Monday morning for the Friday debut of the iPhone in stores. I understand the anticipation, the excitement, and the sheer want of having a new gadget, but it makes me wonder: How can someone sit outside on a New York City street for 5 whole days? Never mind that this week, there were thunderstorms coupled with hot and unbearably humid weather. I hope the iPhone meets these people’s expectations. The propensity of it not meeting expectations, of course, is unlikely. Read any review on the phone, and you will find yourself in the mind of a child in a candy story. CNET reviewers, New York Times’ David Pogue, and Wall Street Journal’s Walt Mossberg all hail the phone to be the greatest thing since sliced bread – or maybe the iPod – while glossing over some of the limitations AT&T, its sole service provider, creates. The utter mania the iPhone has generated reminds me of a time before anything “i”. It all began with iMacs, which came onto the scene when computers were purely functional and void of any artistic characteristics. Its cuteness led us to look at our desktops as decoration or “computer couture”, as my fiancé, the IT guy, calls it. Then came the iPod, which completely revolutionized the way we experience music and so reason would suggest that the iPhone possesses huge potential. The success of Apple’s technologies is of course two fold. It was not only due to great design, but also to fantastic marketing. The build-up for the products is managed just right, the news touches upon all the desired messages and the advertising is right on point. I couldn’t have imagined the iPod experience better than it is portrayed in its ads and the Mac vs. PC commercials created the personalities we will forever attribute to the brands. But while Apple is the frontrunner, articles on the wireless industry reveal a grim reality. Take Marty Graham’s article in Wired. In it, Marty talks to seemingly clueless wireless service providers about their thoughts on the needs and wants of their customers. Brian Finnerty, Director of Device Development for Sprint Nextel, said: "What do customers want? We have no idea. As an industry, we're like robots -- we go toward the light and we pile up on it." What a sad state of affairs. Thank iGod for Apple. Labels: advertising, Apple, buzz, Marketing, Public Relations
posted by Gina Bolotinsky
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PR Buzz
Friday, July 21, 2006
Every day around the office, we toss around PR terms and lingo. One of these terms and one of the most coveted results that public relations outreach can achieve is "buzz." When lots of people are all talking about one piece of news, it has buzz. But how do you get everyone aware and talking at once?
There are a number of ways to create buzz. One way is through traditional public relations, getting the news into print and other media. These news outlets must always be fed with stories and are seen by a lot of eyes who may talk about the articles or segments over the water cooler. Or, you could try to get a viral campaign started, tapping Internet resources and blogs. This is a smaller start but can be just as affective at creating big-time buzz. Another way to create buzz is through an effective advertising campaign, although this can be a costly and time-consuming approach compared to PR.
When working on generating buzz, it has to be the right kind. The tricky part is choosing the right message that will resonate and generate the most positive buzz for the company. It is not always the case that all news is good news and you need to make sure that you're creating beneficial buzz that is not only good for the company now, but will be built upon by future messages for maximum affect and brand building. This is where the expertise of a specialized PR firm like Connors Communications can come in handy.Labels: buzz, Connors Communications, pr
posted by Jessica Ek
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PR Plan
Thursday, July 20, 2006
What exactly is a PR plan and how does this lead to press coverage? It's much more than a matter of calling the media with news about a company. When outreaching, you need to know what news you are going to go out with when, who you are going to take it to, and what this will accomplish. An article here and an article there can get some people aware of what is going on at your company. However, articles carefully placed with messages that build off of one another create a bigger picture and help generate buzz.
It is this kind of PR plan that Connors helps companies create and execute that makes the most impact. It incorporates both print media and online media and then uses the messaging points that will make the news resonate. A carefully built grass roots campaign that gets local interest first has a much different momentum than a news story that makes a big splash in a few major papers first and then trickles down. Connors can see where the news will have the most impact and put together the right PR plan for the right message.
It all comes down to experience. Knowing the publications and knowing the reporters means that Connors can see who will be interested and where the news would be best spread. Also, being a leader in PR for emerging technologies, Connors has a knack for what angle to pitch. Every successful company launch or news outreach starts with a comprehensive public relations plan. Connors can help you build and execute that plan to get the most value out of your news.Labels: buzz, Connors Communications, pr
posted by Jessica Ek
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