A SOCIAL MEDIA GUIDE FROM THE EDGE ppt

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Hi.
IthinkIknowwhyyou’rehere.Letmeguess?
You’realong‐timemarketer,andyouareherebecauseyou’veheardalotofrumorsabout“thatSocialMediastuff”and
wonderifit’stimetoexploreitforyourcompany?
Or,you’realreadywayoutinfrontoftheSocialMediawave.Youarehopingthatthise‐bookeitherhassomethingnewinit
foryou,orisatleastgoodenoughtoforwardalongtoyourcuriouscorporatecolleagues?Maybewithapersonalnotealong
thelinesof,“Checkthisout…weshouldtalkaboutsomeofthepossibilities?”
Yes,TraditionalMarketer,youshouldprobablybeexploringSocialMediaforyourcompany.Andyes,SocialMediaSmarty‐pants,
theremaybesomechoicenuggetsinhereforyou,andyoucandefinitelyforwardalongthise‐book.I’lltrynottoletyoudown.
MygoalistotouchonsomeofthefundamentalconceptsrelatedtoSocialMedia,butinatacticalwaythatwillhelpyougetyour
handsdirtyrightaway.Allinunder40pages.(YouprobablyjustskimallthoseSocialMediaMarketingbooksanyway,right?So
we’lljusthitthehighlights.)
Beforewegetstarted:whoamI?MynameisToddDefren.IamabloggerandaprincipalataPRagency,SHIFTCommunications.
I’mcreditedwith“inventing”theSocialMediaNewsReleaseandtheSocialMediaNewsroom.AndSHIFTisa100‐personagency
thatworkswithtechclientslikeQuantumandwithconsumerbrandssuchasCanadianClubWhiskyandVirginMobile.Allofour
clientsengageSHIFTforahybridofPublicRelationsandSocialMediaMarketingdesignedtoengagethemedia,theircustomersand
prospects.Theytrustus.Youprobablycan,too.
Ready?Let’sgo.
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Firstlet’stalkaboutthebasicprinciple:"ParticipationIsMarketing"
Ifyounoticedthatacompanythatwasknownforitsbarelynavigablewebsiteand/orhellaciousphonesystemwassuddenlytaking
anactive,helpful,humanroletowardsconsumers,wouldyoubeimpressed?Wouldyoubemorefavorablyinclinedtotheirbrandif
youcouldtelltheywerelisteningtoyou?Ofcourseyouwould.
Butbeing“human”towardscustomerswas,ifnotimpossible,thanatleastnot
lucrative:beforetheSocialMediaera,being“human”didnotscaleverywell.Ifa
bigcompanyofferedsuperiorservice,theirhappycustomerswouldappreciateit,
butthey’dbeunlikelytospreadthegoodwill.Onlyunhappycustomersare
particularlyvocal.Butinanonlineworld,acompanycanbeseenandnoticedas
beingresponsive,evenbynon‐customers(a.k.a.prospectivecustomers).This
makesthepursuitof“goodkarmathroughgoodservice”moreworthwhileand
lucrative.
AndthesamegoesforMarketing.SocialMediaMarketingisultimatelyabout
creatinganenvironmentwheregoodkarmaprevails.Thisisanunprecedented
opportunitytobeveryvisibleinyourcare&feedingofyourcustomers.Howhelpful
canyoubetothepeoplewhocareabout,detest,or,arejustbeingintroducedtoyourbrandforthefirsttime?
Thisisanimportantquestion.Intheonlineworld,yourbrandisexposed.Youractions,interactions,andreactions(nottomention
inaction)arebeingwatched,critiqued–andcatalogedforeverbyGoogle!WhenFrankEliason(alsoknownas@ComcastCareson
Twitter)helpsoutacustomer,hedoessoinaverypublicforum:hispatienceandsticktoitivenesshasengenderedinfluentialfans
worldwide.Likewise,whenalocalvideographerdocumentsratsscurryingacrossthefloorofaTacoBelloutlet,theproblemsofthat
singlefranchisecanbecomeaphenomenonthatwallopsthefastfoodcompany’sglobalreputation.
Butdocompanies“getit,”yet?Lastyear,Idecidedtodoaquickspotcheckononemajorbrand:ifIcouldidentifyasituationin
whichitwasobviousthatthebrandwouldbenefitbyparticipatingwithengagedconsumers,wouldtheyalreadybedoingso?
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IchoseBMWatrandom.Herewastheprocess…
Atthetimeofmyresearch,aGooglesearchon“BMW”broughtuporganicsearchresult#8:AutoBlog.Specifically,“Postsfromthe
BMWCategoryatAutoBlog.”(Pleasenotehowsurprisingitisthatablogpoppedupinthefirst10Googlesearchresultsforamajor
brand.Thisoccurswithincreasingfrequency.)
Regardlessofitsimpressiveorganicsearchranking,isAutoBlogworthpayingattentionto?Let’scheckTechnorati.“There
are285,004linkstothisURL”(rank56).Outofover50,000,000blogs,AutoBlogis#56?That’sprettydarnedgood.
Atthetimeofmysearch,themostrecentpostintheBMWcategory
atAutoBlogreferredtoa“spyshot”regardingtheBMW1‐Series
Coupe.Thearticlehadover20comments,andseveralinboundblog
links.Notavastwaveofconsumerinteraction,but–given
AutoBlog’soverallsitetraffic–it’snottrivialvolume,either.Aquick
scanofsomeoftheotherBMWpostingsatAutoBlogshowedafairly
consistentamountofuserinteraction…
ClearlythereisanactivecommunitycongregatingatAutoBlog’sBMWsite,
evenifatfirstglancethenumberofactiveusersisrelativelysmall.Wecan
extrapolatefromthesite’sexcellentGoogleplacementandTechnorati
rankthatanyonesearchingfor“BMW”onthewebmightquicklyfindthis
site.
Thustheopportunity.Ireadthroughseveralpostsandcomments,anddidnotnoteanyonefromBMWparticipatingin
thiscommunity.Buthowcoolwoulditbeforthesebrandenthusiaststointerfacedirectlywithareal‐live‐humanBMW
representativeonaregularbasis?HowgratefulwouldregularvisitorstoAutoblogbe,iftheyoccasionallyscoredsomeexclusive
content,tosharewiththeirfriends?Wouldn’tthisnotonlycementtheloyaltyofcurrentfansbutalsoshowthethousandsof
randomvisitorstothehighly‐traffickedblogthatBMWtrulycaredaboutitscustomersandprospectivebuyers??
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Ofcoursetherearechallengesforanycompany–evenofBMW’ssize–to

scaleandtrainandmonitoragroupof“communitymanagers”thatcould
serveasadjunctstothemarketinggroup.AlsoIacknowledgethatthiswasan
unscientificapproach.ForallIknow,BMWisengaging“big‐time”inother
partsoftheblogosphere.
BMW’s“failure”inthisexperiment,wasnottakingadvantageofaneasily‐
identifiedopportunitytoengage,consistently,inaplacethatissoprominently
impactingtheirbrand.
Ifyou’renotpayingattentiontowhat’sbeingsaidaboutyourbrandwithintheTop10searchresults,howcanyouclaimtobe
“engaged?”
Googleiseverybrand’snewhomepage.JustaskSpiritAirlines:the#5organicsearchresultatthetimeofthiswriting?Ablogpost
thatsays“DoNotFlySpiritAirlines,”whichwassopoorlyhandledbythecompanythatitspawnedallkindsoftrouble.
ParticipationisMarketing.Thebettertheparticipation–intermsoftone,responsivenessandfrequency–thebetterthemarketing.
Thinkaboutwhatthecustomerswanttohear,notwhatyouwantthemtohear.(Andcertainlynotwhatyouwantthemtobuy.
SocialMediaisnottherightforumforasalespitch.Ifyouworkonbuildingloyaltytoyourbrand’spersonality,saleswillfollowin
duecourse.)
So,if“participation”isthegoal,howdoyougetstarted?
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MakinganEntranceintoSocialMedia
Itusedtobethatconsumerstriedtoimpactbrandsvialetter‐writingcampaigns,boycotts,etc.Notethattheseactivitiestendedto
beactivistandnegative:that’sbecauseittookaconcertedefforttogainanyattention.Thus,onlythetrulydisgruntledgaveitago;
happycustomerstendedtojustkeepquietandgoabouttheirbusiness.
ButintheeraofSocialMedia,everyonehasasay.Thiscanbegoodorbadforthebrand…it’snowjustaseasyforfansasenemies
togetinvolvedonline.Eitherwaythebrandhasnochoiceinthematter:whetherthebrandmanagerparticipatesinthe
conversationhaslittlebearingonwhetherornotaconversationisgoingtohappen.
Smartcompaniestendtodecideit’sbettertoparticipatethannot.Someofthese

companiesdecidetogetdolled‐upfortheconversation;ratherthanengageconsumers
inalow‐key,value‐orientedway,theirOldSchoolmarketingmindsetsuggeststothem
thattheyneedimmediateawarenessandROI.Thustheytrytoenterthefraywitha
strategythatturnsheads.Maybeit’swithabrandedsocial‐networkingsite;oraglitzy
FacebookorMySpacepage;oraswarmoffreshly‐mintedcommunitymanagers…
Theproblemwiththisapproachisthatitbegsforimmediateattention,andanyone
who’swatchedablowhardburstintoacocktailpartyknowsthatsomefolksare
attractedtothealphapersonality,andsomefolkscringewithdistaste.
Whenyou’reonline,thosereactions(goodandbad)areinstantlyvisible.Somefolkswillapplaudthebig,noisySocialMediadebut.
Butsomewillcarpabout“whattookyousolong?”…“whysofancy‐schmancy?”…“whothef**doyouthinkyouare?”…“wholet
thefreakin’marketersin?”…etc.
Areyoureadyforthatkindofunbridledcriticism?Wouldyoubedisappointedtofindthatyourgoodintentionswerecompletely
lostinthefrenzyofcommentsaboutyourwayward,self‐interestedSocialMediapolicies?
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ThisisnotacallforbrandstodefertheirentryintoSocialMediaspheres.Therearemanylargecompaniescurrentlyresearching
anddevelopingplansforSocialMediacampaigns.Iapplaudtheirenthusiasm.
But,goslow.Listenfirst.Then,listenagain.UsefreetoolslikeBlogPulsetoascertainwho’stalkingaboutyourbrand(andsimilar
industrytopics).YoumayfindthattheBigPlandeveloped6‐monthsagoisnolongerrelevant,sincethisspacemovessodarned
fast.
Findoutwhereyourlikelyfriendsandskepticsare…figureouthowtheir
opinionsandtonechangedoverthepastfewmonths…takeaninterestinwhat
theytalkaboutwhenyou’re(ostensibly)notaround.
Figureouthowyoumightaddvaluetotheircommunities,withoutexpectingan
immediateReturnonInvestment.Itmaybeanathemaforamarketerto
discountROIconsiderations,but,it’spoisonoustoyourplansifregularfolks
figureoutthatthatROIequationisallyoutrulycareabout.

It’snotaboutmakinganimpression.Andit’snotabout“impressions”intermsofwebsitetraffic.It’saboutmakingfriends.
Friendswhowilltellyouthetruth.Friendswhomightsomedaybuyyourproduct,andtelltheirfriendsaboutit.Friendswhomight
rallytoyourdefensewhenyouhitaroughpatch.
Listen.Think.Listen.Act.(Slowly.)
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ThoughtsonBlogging
Alongthosesamelinesof“makinganentrance”inSocialMedia,Igetalotofquestionsaboutblogging.“Shouldweblog?”isthe
mostcommonquestion.Thesecondmostcommonquestionis,“ShouldourCEObeblogging?”
Theanswertothefirstquestioniseasy.Asyou’llseelateroninthise‐book,IamahugefanofContentMarketing,and“blogging”
easilyfallsintothatbucket.AsforCEObloggers?That’strickier.Therearepoliticalissuestoconsider.MaybeshowtheCEOthis
“openletter”below,first;seehowtheyreact,thendecide?
OpenLettertotheCEOWhoWantstoBecomeaBlogger
DearCEO,
IttakesalotoftalenttorisetotheCEOspot.Youneedtobeconfidentandcharming,smartand
articulate.Theseareexcellentqualitiesinablogger,too!
AsaCEO,Icanunderstandwhyyou’dbeinterestedin“joiningtheconversation.”It’san
conversation–afterall,it’saconversationabouttopicsofinterestto
interesting
youandtoyourcompany,
andthepeopleyou’llinteractwithwillself‐identifythemselvesasbeinginterestedinwhatyou’ve
gottosay.

Donewell,you’llgetbothpersonalsatisfactionandbottom‐lineresultsfromyourforayinto
blogging.
Ha!!Caughtya.Wereyounoddinginagreementallthewaythroughmyli’lspeech?Sorrybutit’snotthateasy.Youneed

toexploreyourmotivationsandtimecommitmentsbeforeyouconsideradualcareerasaCEO‐Blogger.
Toomanywould‐beCEObloggerstreattheirnewtoyaslittlemorethanaweeklynewsletter;awaytobroadcasttheir
thoughts,ratherthanawaytocreateadialogue.Theyexpectthatsimplybecause
theyaretheCEO,naturallypeoplewillbe
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magneticallydrawntotheirwords.Andthentheyarecrushedtosee“Comments(0)”aftereachpost,andaremortifiedto
seeawanTechnoratiranking…
Andthentheygiveup,poo‐pooingtheballyhooedblogosphereastheymunchonsourgrapes.Becausetheycouldn’ttame
theblogosphere,theylostinterest.Now,allotherblog‐relatedprojectsatthecompanybecomesuspect–afterall,ifTHE
CEOcouldn’thackit,whodaresthinkthattheycoulddobetter?
Andthusacompanylosesagoldenopportunitytoengagewiththeircustomersandprospects.
Butyou’renotlikethat?Youtrulywanttoengage?Cool.StartbyNOTblogging.
Don’tblogforatleastonefullmonthfollowingyourdecisiontostartblogging.Instead,spendthattimefindingOTHERblogs
inyourindustry.Readthem.Commentjudiciously.Leaveyour“agenda”onthecoat‐rack.Justgettoknowafewfolks.
Introduceyourself.
AstheCEO,you’reprobablyaccustomedtobeingnoticedwhenyouwalk
intoanindustryfunction.Youmayevenhavehandlerstosquireyouto
thecentersofpowerinaconferencehall.But,youwouldn’tpresumethat
levelofrecognitionandcloutifyouwalkedintoablockpartyinanew
neighborhood,eh?You’dhangbackalittle,insertyourselfmildlyintoa
wedgeofconversation,andingratiateyourself.You’dbeagentleman.
Andyettheremightstillbemomentsofawkwardness.Alltheneighborsalreadyknoweachother.Therearecliques.
There’scontext,politicsandin‐jokestofigureout.Youwouldn’texpecttobethelifeofthepartyrightaway.But,youknew
thatgoingin…so,tohelpgreasetheskids,youbroughtsomenicebottlesofwineandsomeofyourkillerBBQribs.
Samewithblogging,Chief.Thinkofbloggingasanextendedblockparty.You’recertainlyinvited,butpleasedon’texpectto
beMr.Popularrightaway.Givingfreelyofyourattentionintheformofcommentingandlinkingliberallytoyourpeers’

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blogsistheequivalentofhandingoutyourBBQgoodies.ItcouldtakeYEARS,butsoonerorlateryourneighborswillcometo
respect,expectandloveyourcontributions.
Upforit?Awesome.Coverupthekeyboard,layasideyourambitions,startreading,andjointhefun.

See,theCEOtookitprettywell,eh?ThegoodnewsisthatthesameadviceofferedtoyourCEOisjustasapplicabletoanyoneelse
inthecompanywhomaybeuptothebloggingchallenge.
Butwhataboutreachingouttoexternalbloggers?That’swhatMARKETINGisallabout,right?BloggerRelations!Gettingsome
virtual“ink!”
OK,sure,fine,yea–wecandothat.Buttherearesomerulesoftheroad.Thoserules
willbediscussedinthepagesahead,butFIRST,doyourselfthefavorofmakingsurethat
your“BloggerRelations”programisacoordinatedone.
Inlargecompanies,“outreachtothebloggers”mightmeandifferentthingstodifferent
people,andyouruntheriskofaverypublicembarrassmentifyouallowBloggerRelations
programstospringupwilly‐nilly.Itiscoolthatyou’rereadytoengageinBlogger
Relations.Butareyousurethatnooneelseinthecompanyisn’talreadydoingit?
Forexample,it’snothardatalltoimaginetheounceofnaivetérequiredforamarketing
managertoconsiderapaidBloggerRelationscampaign.Theymightnoteventhinkto
check‐inwiththecorporatePRdepartment–theymaygivesuchacampaignnomore
weightthaniftheywerecraftinganewpieceofdirectmail!Totheunsophisticatedmarketerwho’sbeendoingCorporate
Marketingfor20years,this“bloggingstuff”maysimplyrepresentanewchanneltoexploit. 
Doesthatprospectmakeyoufeelnervous?Good,itshould.Soherearesomequestionstogetyoustartedinyourinvestigation:
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Haveofficial“rulesofengagement”re:bloggersbeendocumentedanddisseminated?
Haveallmarketingemployeesreportingtocorporatemarketing(and/ortoabusinessunit)beeneducatedonthe“rulesof
engagement”re:externalblogs?
Isthereachancethatanyofthebusinessunitmarketinggroupshaveengagedinapaidorunpaidbloggerrelationscampaign
already?
Ifanyofyourmarketingmanagershavepaidbloggerstowriteaboutourproducts/services,didtheyrequirepublicdisclosure
oftherelationship?
(Ifyoudigupunsettlinganswers,starttheprocessofdisclosinganypaidbloggerrelationshipsASAP.Youcanworryabout
“whatwentwrong”later.)
Bytheway,doyoutrulyalreadyhave“rulesofengagement”whenitcomestooutreachtobloggers?Thetipsonthenextpagewill
getyoustarted.It’sintheformofabookmark,soyoucanprintoutthepageandtakeascissortoit.AtSHIFT,thereisalaminated
versionofthisBloggerRelationsBookmarkoneveryemployee’sworkstation.
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HClickheretodownloadthe
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What’sitlooklikewhenyoudoagoodjobwithBloggerRelations?What’sthevalue?Herearesomegoodexamples:

BloggerRelationsCaseStudy:Mommybloggers
Justwhenyouthinkthatmostagenciesarestartingto“get”BloggerRelations,awaveofbad
examplespop‐up.
Luckily,manyconscientiousPRbloggershavehadthepatiencetoexplainbestpractices,and
asanindustrywecanonlyhopeforpositivechange(and/orsomeforbearancefrom
justifiablycrankybloggers).
Meanwhile,weallcryoutforcasestudies,eh?Here’soneofours:
Ourclient,TheNEATCompany,makesahandyportablescanner.Mostofourworkontheaccount,asyoumightexpect,hadbeen
focusedonbusinesspeopleand,specifically,roadwarriors.“Gotoabusinesslunch,thenscanthereceiptonthefrontseatofyour
rentalcarbeforeyouleavetheparkinglot;buildyourexpensereportas‐you‐go.”Wegottonsof
inkforthisstraightforwardpitch.
Butonereporterwhomwe’dbeentalkingtohappenedtoleaveherpostatatechieoutletto
MarthaStewartOmnimedia.Wonderofwonders,NEATreceiveda
join
hahigh‐profilehitwithMart
Stewart:whichpromptlycausedtheNEATscannertohit#1onAmazon.com,swampingthe
company’se‐commercesystemforaday.
BetweentheMarthaStewartcoupandafewsubsequent“lifestyle”hits,wequicklyfiguredout
thatthissleekli’lscannerwasahitwithstay‐at‐homemotherswhoneededaneasywayto
capturetheirkids’drawings,theirhouseholdreceipts,familyrecipes,etc.Lo!Anewmarketwasborn.
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SHIFTsetitssightsontheinfluential,ever‐growingnicheof“mommybloggers.”Theproblemwasthateveryoneandtheirmother
(punintended)seemedtohavediscoveredthebreadthandpowerofthisbloggingniche.Asaresult,manyofthemombloggers
werebeingswampedwithinanespamfrompushyPRfolk.Weneededtobeespeciallycarefulandconscientiousinouroutreach.
Afterseveralweeksofresearch,weidentifiedaniche‐within‐the‐niche.Whereasmostmommyblogsare,appropriately,about
“beingamom,”thereisanarrowsliceofsiteswrittenbysomeseriouslygeeky,gadget‐lovingmoms.Ratherthanhit‐upall
mombloggerswidely,wenarrowcastedourapproachtoahandful.
StageOne–“listening”–wasacorecomponenttotheresearch.Ourlistof10+“gadget‐lovin’mommas”waswhittleddownto3,
oncewerealizedthat7outofourtop‐tendidn’tseemlikelytoappreciateourtypeofgadgetorapproach.
StageTwoincorporatedrespectfuloutreach,eitherviaemailorviatheCommentssection
ofthemombloggers’sites.Intheend,eachofthethreebloggersdraftednicereviewsof
theNEATscanner.
ButStageThreewaswhatdifferentiatedthiscampaignfrommostotherprograms.
MostPRagencieswouldhavebeenjustifiablyhappywiththeseinitialsuccesses,markingit
asasuccessfulBloggerRelationseffort.Wedecidedtopushtheenvelope.
Were‐approachedthethreemommybloggerswithaproposition:we’dgiveeachofthem
10scannerstogiveawaytotheirreadersinacontest.Toqualify,theirreaderswould
needtoeither:
a)leaveacommentabout“whyI’dlovetowinaNEATscanner”atthemombloggers’sites,or,
b)writeapostonablogoftheirown,withatrackbacktothemommyblogger’spostwhichhadinspiredtheirentry.(Thiswas
generallypreferred,asitcontributedtothemommybloggers’ownTechnoratirankingandoverallsearchengineresults.)
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Ourhumblescannerlitupthemommysphere.Duetothissinglecontestrunningon3sites,wegeneratedover80follow‐onblog

postsabouttheNEATCompany’sscanner,andalmost1,200readercommentsabout“whatI’ddowithaNEATscanner.”
Thisinformationwaspuregoldtoourclient–whohadnotonlyrecentlydiscoveredanewmarketopportunity,butnowalsohad
accesstohundredsofpages’worthoffree,user‐generatedcontentandmarketresearch,whichtheycouldusetoinspirefuture
productdevelopmentandmessagingideas.
Beatspayingthousandsofdollarsforafocusgroup.

Here’sanotherexample ofsomegreatresultsfromBlogger
Relations:
InJuly2008,ourclient,acompanynamedMobileSphere,plannedtointroduce
anewproductnamed“slydial”tomarket.Slydialisafreeservicethatallows
youtodirectlyleaveavoicemailmessageonafriend’scellphone,without
generatingaringtone.Agreatserviceforavoidingawkwardconversations!
Asbefitssuchanappealingservice,thebloggertargetsrangedfrombusinessandtechbloggerstolifestylebloggers,teen,andgossip
bloggers.Wecreatedcustomanglesforeachofthesedistincttargets,andindividualizedeverysinglepitchtomeettheproven
interestsofeachwriter:thetypicalTechCrunchreaderisadifferentanimalthanaPerezHiltonreader,afterall!
Wealsodistributedasocialmedianewsrelease(SMR)thatincludedmultimedia(videos,etc.)toallofourbloggercontacts.The
SMRincludedenoughstandalone,richcontentthatbloggerscouldpostdirectlyfromtheSMRwithoutneedinganinterview,ifthat
wastheirpreference.
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Theresults?Inonemonthofbloggeroutreach,slydialwascoveredin381blogposts.Theseresultswerethedirectresultofour
outreach,combinedwiththeviraleffectthatthoseinitial,high‐profilepostshadintheblogosphere.Thesehundredsofpostswere
justasvariedasthemanypitchesthatweresentout.
ThediversityandinfluenceoftheresultingcoveragerangedfromTechCrunch(techblog)andPerezHilton(gossipblog)toAsylum
(men’sblog)andPopgadget(atech‐focusedwomen’sblog).WeevengotsignificantmentionsofslydialonTheTodayShowandThe
View!Andlastbutnotleast,becauseHowardStern’sbrideisaPerezHiltondevotee,theradioshockjockdiscussedslydialaswell,to
hismillionsoflisteners!

Thesemyriadposts(aswellastraditionalmedia
coverage)hitconsumersfromallangles.Thecombo
ofmainstreamPRandSocialMediaresultsboosted
slydial’sbaseof5,000privatealphauserstomore
than200,000publicbetausersinlessthantwoweeks.
ThissignificantlyexceededMobileSphere’sgoalsfor
theprogram.SinceMobileSpheretrackednewusers
onadailybasis,itcouldcorrelatethecoveragespikes
tothespikesinnewusers–showingthedirectimpact
theprogramhadonitsbusinessgoals.
Hopefullyyouarenowconvincedthatreachingoutto“thosecrazybloggers”mightindeedbeworthwhile.Butwhenyouthink
aboutSocialMedia,rememberthatit’snotallaboutblogs.Infact,yourcompany’sonlineparticipationcanpossiblybesuccessful
withoutanounceof“outreach.”
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Empower&InspirewithContentMarketing 
YouworkinMarketing.Let’ssaythatamongyourtasksisnettingafewjuicyspeakingopportunitiesforyourcompany’stop
executive.
Youfillouttheforms.Follow‐up.Nailthegig.Akeynote,noless!Yay!
Priortotheevent,youdraftaMediaAdvisoryabouttheCEO’supcomingspeech.Youpingmembersofthe
mediawhowillbeinattendance:“wanttohookupwiththeCEOforlunchafterherspeech?”
YouattendthekeynotewiththeCEO.Youtakenotesonherspeakingpoints:thesecouldbethecrumbsofa
newtrendpitch…
Immediatelyafterherspeech,youscurryabouttheauditorium,scanningforgreenpressbadges.Maybeyoucan
drumupanextrabriefingortwo–orthree!
Afterit’salldone,youhaveadrinkandrubyourachingfeetintheairportlounge.Jobwelldone,mission

accomplished.
Sure:yesterdaythatwouldhavebeenenough.Yesterdaythatwouldhavenettedyouan“attaboy”
fromtheCEO.
Tomorrow,though,thatplanofactionwillnotbeenough.“Tomorrow”youwilldoALLOFTHE
ABOVE,plus,inthedawningageofContentMarketing,you’llwantto:
• InterviewtheCEOinthecaronthewaytotheevent,withyourFlipcam.
• HustletheCEOintoaquietconferenceroomforanimpromptupodcast.
• Documenthallwaychatterandinterviewtheconferenceattendeesbefore/aftertheCEO’s
keynotespeech(“Whatareyouhopingtoheartoday?Didthespeechmeetexpectations?”).
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• Filmorlivestreamand/orliveblog/tweetthespeechitself…whilemonitoringandrespondingtoothertweetsbyfellow
conferenceattendees.
• Sharethiscontentallalongtheway,andmonitorresponses;interactingdirectlywithusers;answeringquestions,etc.
Noteagainthatthese“tacticsfromtomorrow”arenotnecessarilytargetedto“themedia.”Theyareaimedatsharingfresh
content,usingittoempower“passalongsharing”andspurconversationandreactionsacrossallsortsofinterestedstakeholders.
Sucha“contentengine”createsongoingopportunitiesforattentionanddialogue,plus,theconstantly‐updatedcontentstreamaids
inSearchEngineOptimization.
Tomorrow’scoming.
ThinkMULTIMedia
OneofthebenefitsoflivinginaBostonsuburbisthatyoumeetsmartpeoplewhereveryou
go.Evenontheneighborhoodsoccerfield–whereIsharecheeringdutieswithFrank
Cutitta,theGeneralManagerofIDGConnect.Ourtalenteddaughtersareonthesame
soccerteam.
IDGConnectisan“informationtechnologyresourceforthelatestresearchandproduct
informationintheITIndustry.Thelibraryincludestechnicalwhitepapers,webcasts,
podcasts,casestudiesandproductinformation.”

AccordingtoFrank,IDG’sfiguredoutho andwtohelpmarketersmeettheexpectationsofprospectswhoareseekingvariouslevels
typesofinformation,aboutindustriesandproducts.
“Youneedtounderstandthebuyer’spreciseknowledgeneeds.Whatdoesyourbuyerexpectateachstageofthepurchaseprocess?”
Frankexplains.“Onceyouknowthat,youcanoptimizecontentinthebestformattomatchthebuyer’slearningstyle.”
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Inotherwords,youmayneedtocreateawhitepaperand/orapodcastand/oravideoblogand/orawebcastofthesamecontent
becausedifferenttypesofprospectswillhavedifferentengagementpreferences.
Itallstartswitha“contentassetaudit.”Withanaveragetenureofjustundertwoyears,mostcorporatemarketingexecutivescan't
evenfindmostofthecontentonfileatthecorporation,muchlessmapittoastrategy.Think,“randomactsofcontent.”

“Oncecontentassetsarecataloged,marketersneedtomapassetsintoasequentialleadnurturing
‘curriculum,’i.e.,movingprospectsthroughaseriesofcontent‐focusedengagements‐eachofwhichsignifya
higherdegreeofcomplexity/valueandacloserproximitytosale,”Franknotes.

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Here’sanexampleofthat“sequentialleadnurturing”…

Ratherthancreatea45‐minutewebcast(zzzz),whynotcreatesmallercontentbundlesdeliveredin"chapters?"A2‐minute
introductorywebcastcanleadtotheprospect“graduating”toamorein‐depth10‐minutevideodemooraslideshow,andsoon 
Eachrequestforthe“nextintheseries”signalsadditionalmovementthroughthesalesfunnel,andcanbetrackedaccordingly
(whichvideosworkbest?whichareresponsibleforthemostdrop‐offs?).
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Let’sgettactical.
SayyouheadupmarketingforaCAD/CAMsoftwaremaker.Varioustypesofbuyertypes(and
purchaseinfluencers)cometomind:designengineers,CTOs,CEOs,pencil‐pushersfrom
purchasing,etc.
Whatcontentmarketingstrategycanyouemploytomeetthehighlyvariableinformationneeds
oftheseaudiences,acrossdifferentstagesofthepurchaseprocess?
Well,designengineersandCTOsareatechnicalaudience,right?Theyarelikelygoingtowanttoseewhitepapersanddemo‐style
webcasts.But,thesefolksarealsoon‐the‐goandofmanydifferentindustries,soyoumightalsowanttodevelopapodcastseries
thatliterallytalksthemthroughyourproductdemo,inchaptersthatsynch‐uptotheprospects’needs.Youcanalso“verticalize”
thecontent,bymakingtweaksthatspeaktospecificindustries.Spiceitallupbyaskingacoupleofcustomerstosubmitto
interviewsthatyoucanspliceintothedrystuff.
Now,you’vegotthosecustomerinterviewson‐hand,andyourealizethatCEOsandPurchasingexecswhodon’tunderstandwhat
yourproductdoeswillstillappreciateassurancesofyourproductquality,viabilityandcustomer
support!Ifyou’vegotthosecustomerinterviewsonvideo,thesesnippetscanbecomepartofavlog;
theycanbeemailedbysalespeopleduringthecourtship;etc.
Andifpartofyourstrategydoesincludewhitepapersandothertext‐basedcontent,besuretooffer
bothprettifiedPDFsaswellas“atomized”HTMLversions.Theformercanbeprintedorforwarded
toold‐schoolexecutives,whereasthe“atomized”versionensuresthatbloggersand/orprospectscan
pointtheirreadersandcolleaguestospecificdatapointsthathelpthemmakethecaseforyour
CAD/CAMsolution.
Therightcontentdeliveredtotherightpeople,attherightspotinthesalescycle.Soundssosimple,right?
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Produce,Propagate,Promote:GreasetheSkidsforYourContent
Areyouwithmesofar?

NowIwanttotalkaboutthespreadofyourmessage.It’snofuntotalkto
yourself,right?
WhendiscussingContentMarketing,orthebroaderrealmofSocialMedia
Marketingforthatmatter,oneofthemajorbenefitsisrelatedtothe
propagationofcontent.
Byatomizingthedifferentcontentelements(offering“smallchunks”of
multimediasuchasgraphics,video,podcasts),youempowerpeopletoappropriateandre‐usethatcontentastheyseefit.Ideally
thisleadspeopletoseeyourcontentintheirownonlinehang‐outs,“socialized”bythefactthattheirfriendsand/orfavoritesites
aremakingtheintroductions.Andiftheyre‐mixyourcontent,allthebetter:they’llbefurthermotivatedtoshareitonline.
But,they’renotalwaysgoingtodothat:soitisentirelyconceivablethatyou’llspendaboatloadoftimeand$$$creatingcontent
thatstallsoutinyouronlinenewsroom(whichwouldstink).
Thatmeansit’suptoyoutospreadthewordbyspreadingthecontent.
Someprinciplesandideastoconsider:
Makesureyourcontentisnotsolelypostedinyouronlinenewsroom.
• Ifyouaremakingphotosorshortvideosavailable,whynotpostthemtoFlickr,aswell,withtagsthatmaymakethecontent
readilydiscoverable?
• Ifthevideosarelonger‐form,howaboutpostingthemtoacorporateYouTubechannel?
• MightsomeofthephotosalsobeworthyofsharingwithyourTwitterfollowers?–Twitpic‘em!
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• IsyourpodcastseriessyndicatedviaiTunes?
• Haveyousavedyournewsreleases–alongwitheachofthecontentelementssharedacrossothersocialnetworks–to
del.icio.us?
• CanyousharethatamazingkeynotepresentationorcasestudyonSlideShare?
• Don’tforgettheCreativeCommonslicensing:youdon’twanttoinadvertentlyblocksomeonefromsharingthecontenton
theirownblog(norlosecreditforthesourcematerial).
• Ifthenewsrelayedinanewsreleaseissuperimportant,maybeconsiderusingNewsAdstodriverelevanttraffic?Alittle

SearchEngineMarketingneverhurts.
Yourcontentmaybelively,butit’snotalive.Helpitalong.Evangelize.
Unlessyourcompany/clientalreadypossessesabaseofrabid,highly‐networkedandvociferousfans,thensimplypublishingapress
releasetoyourwebsiteand/orviathenewswiresisjustnotenoughtogetanyattention.Yourfabulouscontentwillliefallow.A
corporateRSSfeedwithpaltrysubscribernumbersain’tgonnabringthefame.
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WhataboutSocialMediaReleases?
Idon’tsupposeIcouldwriteane‐bookaboutSocialMediaMarketingwithoutmentioningmy“baby,”theSocialMediaRelease
(SMR).
WhatisaSocialMediaRelease,inessence?ASocialMediaReleaseconvertsthe100‐yearoldtext‐heavypressreleaseintoablog
post,withallofthecoolfunctionsofablog–includingmultimedia,theabilitytocommentandaggregateinboundlinks,etc.SMRs
canpoweradirectconversationwithstakeholdersaboutyournews,andgivethemthecontentelementstocarryyourmessage
forwardontheirown.Cool,right?
Buthere’saradicalsuggestion:don’tputanySocialMediaReleasesoutoverthenewswires.
WhileIsincerelyapplaudhowfarthewireservices(BusinessWire,Marketwire,PRNewswire,etal.)haveprogressedinall‐things‐
social,Iamunconvincedthat“distribution”istheBigIssueforSocialMediaReleaseadoption.ThepoweroftheSocialMedia
Releaseisnotaboutdistribution,it’saboutempowermentandconversation.
 
SocialMediaReleasev1.0SocialMediaReleasev1.5
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SoIrecommendyouputoutawell‐written“traditional”releaseoverthewires,withabuilt‐inlinktothe“socialmediaversion”at
thecompany’sonlinenewsroom.Thusyoucanbypassthewireservices’outsizedSMRfeeswithoutgivingupontheirdistribution
platform.
Todothis,however,youfirstneedtocreateaSocialMediaNewsroom,usingabloggingengine.
Thesocialmediaversionofapressrelease,postedtoasocialmedianewsroom,canallowfor
everythingfromrippablemultimedia(video,audio,graphics,etc.)tomoderatedcomments.
Additionally,witheachnewsitempostedasablogentry,youcanaggregateallconversational
elementsaboutthatnewsinonespot,viatrackbacksandothersocialmediatrackingtools.
Thisapproachofferstheaddedbenefitsofbeingalotlessexpensive;maintainingfullcontrolof
brandidentity;andturnsyournewsroom’s“version”ofthereleaseintothetrulyofficialversion.
Withsomuchpotentialactivityhappeningaroundeachrelease,it’smorelikelythatanyonewhowritesaboutyournewsonlinewill
linkdirectlytothenewsroom,versuslinkingtotheheretofore“official”releasethatcomesfromtheprofessionalnewswires.This
boostsSEO.(Infact,youmightalsoconsideranAdWordscampaigntodriveadditionalwebtrafficdirectlytoyourmostimportant
newsreleases.)
Socializednews,socializedcontent.It’sjustsomuchmorefriendly!
Needexamples?HereareSocialMediaNewsroomsfromGeneralMotorsEurope,Cisco,Ford,Electrolux(andSHIFT)!
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Edgework.
Thescarystuff.
WhatdoImeanby“edgework?”
“Edgework”isafancynamefordirectinteractionwithend‐users.Thisisrisky.Proceedat
yourownrisk.Yourmileagemayvary.
“Traditional”PR/marketingprostendtodealwithanarrowbandofprofessionalinfluencers(i.e.,themainstreammediaandthe
better‐knownbloggers)‐withwhomthereareunstatedbutwell‐known“rulesofengagement.”Operatinginthismedia‐filtered
worldislikeworkingatazoo.Followtherulesandyou’llbeokay;butpokethebearandyoucouldloseanarm.
But“edgework,”directcontactwith“thepeople,”carriesalltherisksyou’d

expect.You’reinthejunglewheretheWildThingsAre.Inthisrealmyou
treadlightlyandleaveyourbigstickathome.Thisisaboutsubtlety.
Forthepurposesofthise‐book,we’lltalkaboutthe twoextremesofonline
consumers.Thereare“DigitalNatives”whocreatecontentandengagedaily
viaFacebook,Twitter,etc.Andthenthereare“Spectators.”Forrester
Researchsuggeststhatthislattergroup“readsblogs,watchesuser‐generated
videos(YouTube)andmaybelistentopodcasts.”(Butiftheydoallthose
things,it’sprobablyduetoGoogle,i.e.,becauseablogpoppedupinaGoogle
result,orbecausetheyfoundtheirwaytoYouTubetowatchafunnykitten
videoandwoundupsurfingforothercontentofinterest.TheseSpectators
likelydon’tthinkofthemselvesas“blogreaders.”)