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With many economic indicators pointing to at least the beginning of the end of one of the greatest recessions since the Great Depression, is it finally time to start examining what life might look like on the other side of the downturn? Is it too early to start injecting hope back into your organization? Does your CEO have a new story to tell about the next chapter in your company’s history? Is there an agreement on a growth strategy? These questions are worth asking now, or soon, even if we believe the economic turnaround is still a couple of quarters away.

Why? Well, you wouldn’t think it would be too difficult to get senior leadership to start projecting a positive future, if indeed things are beginning to look a little brighter. But, the fact is that leadership teams find it far more difficult to get focused early on telling the positive story, than they do when the news is all doom and gloom. There is something about a deep dive in financial performance, severe lay offs and waning sales that focus a leadership team with laser like precision. It’s far more difficult, particularly in the early stages of the rebound. Why? (more…)

Last evening, Jim Eustace of VM Foundry guest lectured my class at the University of Texas at Austin.  We have worked closely with Jim and his team to produce many innovations in social media, including some of the earliest and most creative uses for widgets.  Jim shared a number of case studies with the class, each utilizing a different social media innovation.  When asked what is the key to driving success in these online programs, Jim didn’t hesitate, “Great content!”  

We couldn’t agree more.  So many people are getting caught up and even scared by the technology framework underpinning social media.  That is why we believe it is critical to take the mystery out of the technology so communicators can get back to focusing on what they are good at:  producing great content.  So, here’s a news flash; bad content that utilizes great technology will produce a bad campaign.  Great content will always rule the day.  It really takes many of us back to our days of “pitching” stories to the media.  If all we had to offer was commercial hype, we rarely placed the story.  However, when we could provide content that was relevant to the audience and incorporated our client’s interests, it was magic.  

This is precisely why we believe public relations practitioners are at a distinct advantage in creating compelling campaigns for social media.  We understand the importance of credibility, authenticity and dialogue.  That’s not the first time you’ve heard these words on this blog.

As we visit with chief communications officers at Fortune 100 companies, it’s becoming more and more obvious that a confrontation of sorts is brewing over who should “own” the online channel for direct communications with customers and constituents.  Marketing is laying claim, suggesting it is the next wave in efficiently communicating with current and potential customers.  The early attempts by many marketers focused on familiar tactics from traditional media: things like banner ads and well timed “pop-ups” that aimed to capture the consumers’ attention at just the right moments.  The problem is that the people they were trying to engage largely viewed these tactics as commercial intrusions on a sacred social space.  The techniques have evolved greatly over the past eighteen months, as recognition of some of the unique characteristics of the online channel are better understood by advertisers.  Still, even the latest and greatest attempts fail to fully appreciate how to engage consumers in the online channel — on their terms.

This is where a big opportunity presents itself for the public relations practitioner. (more…)

Yes, they are the same guys you call to complain about: e-mail failures, spam, restrictive firewalls, your clumsy laptop, your lazy desktop, your old blackberry, no remote access and slow internet.

Well, say hello to your new best friend.  The digital and social media revolution has ushered in a new era for communications professionals where technology is not just a nice-to-have enabler of more efficient communications.  It is an absolute imperative for all communications (internal and external).  While IT is probably only 20 percent of the total solution (80 percent is people and process), it’s an absolutely critical 20 percent.  Without IT, you are pretty much dead in the water. (more…)