PR and marketing

Reputation matters- Klout, Kred, and the growth of the social recommendation economy with Kate Carruthers.

How do you measure reputation on social media? It’s so much more than the number of followers you have.

Both Klout and Kred measure influence based on your ability to drive action. The Klout Score uses data from social networks to measure true reach, amplification and network impact. Kred analyses billions of tweets from the last 1,000 days to calculate your Kred. Every interaction you have made in that time is part of your score. It measures Influence and Outreach level.

But are they accurate? Kate will explain the new social recommendation economy and why reputation matters. She will discuss how to make the new social recommendation economy work for you.

About Kate:

Kate Carruthers is an expert and forecaster in online collaboration, social media, digital integration, unified communication, email and search marketing.

With extensive experience in senior executive roles for diverse organisations such as GE, AMP, Westfield and State Government she currently works in business strategy and implementation roles. Kate has also lectured in postgraduate business at Macquarie University and taught TAFE level courses in business and management.

She is Co-Founder of Social Innovation Sydney and was a long standing member of the Institute of Electrical & Electronics Engineers and is a Senior Member of the Australian Computer Society. She is on the Advisory Board for the　Schools of Computer Science & Software Engineering and Information Systems & Technology at the University of Wollongong.

Kate is currently studying law part time as an external student with Queensland University of Technology.

Twitter: @kcarruthers 
Blog: http://katecarruthers.com/blog/

Please note: This month's Social Media Women is being held on the FIRST Tuesday of the month as the second Tuesday falls on Valentines Day.

A not to be missed event- learn about the new social recommendation economy and why reputation matters.

Register now for our February event at

http://socialmediawomenfebruary.eventbrite.com

Date: Tuesday 7 February 2012 (First week in February)
Time: 6:00pm - 8:30pm
Venue: The Supper Club at the Oxford Hotel,
134 Oxford st, Darlinghurst.

(Enter the Oxford St side of the hotel and walk up the stairs. Metered parking is a few steps away on Bourke St, $1.10 per hour)

 

 

Recently I went off the grid. While I do have hippy tendencies, I don’t mean going solar! I went off the social media grid for a week.

For anyone who knows me, I’m pretty addicted to social media. It’s a part of my everyday life, both professionally and personally. For the week I didn’t tweet, Facebook, blog, LinkedIn or Instagram. I didn’t make a phone call, send or check emails or turn on a computer.

I didn’t take a photo on my phone and instantly share it (a photo is so much better shared don’t you think?). I didn’t even turn on my iPhone!

Did I start twitching nervously wondering if I would miss important conversations? Did I have withdrawals?

No. A very big NO. I loved it. It was great to truly have a break from the world.

Funnily enough, I found myself on an island in Fiji on a yoga retreat, teaching the resort owner how to do social media! They now have an up to date YouTube Channel and a Flickr page. Hilarious. I can’t get away from it, even when I try to!

Speaking this month: I am a panelist on the NSW Government’s Small Business September: PR & Social Media - winning strategies for business success on 16 September. I hope you can join me!

I hope you enjoy reading this newsletter.

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What's the real difference between marketing and PR?
As PR professionals we are often asked how public relations differs from marketing. Here are some useful analogies:

1. Activities/tactics: Marketing generally covers promotional, direct marketing and advertising which seeks to return direct sales; whereas PR is focused on reputation management through generating positive media coverage and stakeholder communication.

2. Target audiences: Marketing aims to reach current and potential customers, whereas public relations is all about maintaining positive relationships with anyone who has an interest in the organisation or brand. This covers a broader audience across customers and media, to employees and shareholders.

3. Two separate goals: The goals for marketing teams are to reach consumers and make them think, believe or do some kind of sales focused action. Essentially it is about selling the product or service. Public relations is about selling the company or brand through positively managing the communication channels between a company and its stakeholders.

4. Legitimacy of messages: Messages delivered through PR channels such as articles, conference speakers or reputable bloggers are subconsciously regarded by consumers as more legitimate than those presented through marketing tactics. Generally, people can clearly recognise that advertising and marketing are driven by a company’s desire to increase sales.

5. Business ROI: Marketing is generally defined as a business investment – paid branding and promotional activities with new customers being the ROI. Whereas PR is classified as free exposure for increasing credibility around a company’s image.

6. Longevity: Marketing is a relatively short term activity, whereas PR reaps its benefits over a longer period of time. While marketing seeks to drive instant, tangible sales success, the benefits of a PR program can be viewed as a long term investment that a company would recognise for future achievements.

Read the full article on the Public Relations Sydney blog.

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How to be a good ghost tweeter
Ghost tweeters are teams or individuals who are outsourced by companies to tweet on their behalf. It sounds like a simple concept, and in many ways it is, but tweeting for a client is very different to tweeting for your own company or for yourself.

If you are considering becoming a ghost tweeter for someone, or if you already are a ghost tweeter, here are some tips on how to make sure you do it well:

Get to know their topics of interest
Your client’s online presence on Twitter relies on consistency, as social media is all about connecting and engaging with a target audience. When tweeting for your client it is crucial you understand the topics that they wish to be tweeting about. Find out how they want to be perceived, research their areas of interest and stick to it.

Learn their language
When it comes to tweeting for your client you’ve got to know how to talk the talk...or tweet the tweet in this case! Learn the language of your clients. Read articles written by them, listen to them speak and take into account what industry they are in and who their target audience is.

Don’t do anything they wouldn’t do
It can be easy to forget at times that you are not tweeting for yourself. Before you reply, comment or re-tweet anything always ask yourself: “Would my client want to be associated with that person, company or comment?”

Although you may find the tweet funny, interesting or re-tweet worthy, your client may not – it may even be damaging to their reputation. From the very beginning you should learn what conversations your client can be engaged in and what conversations to avoid.

Read the full article on CP Communications News.

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Upcoming events
Here are some events coming up that we thought you might be interested in:

Brand engagement in a multi-channel environment
It is more important than ever to understand the customer journey across channels and create a brand strategy for the connected customer. At this forum you will gain advice from retailers who will showcase case studies, and hear research conducted with 100 Australians on their route from search to purchase.
7 September – Sydney

Social media applications for business
This two-day intensive workshop introduces participants to the context of social media use for business, strategies for social media application and a practical introduction to the most common and useful social media tools for business.
7-8 September – Perth

Social Media Women September: Learn how to make your real life presence compliment and match your online presence
Today everyone is, in one way or another, digitally branded. Whether it is through Facebook, Twitter, a blog or LinkedIn, your personality and your brand are online for all to see. Mariette Rups-Donnelly will share with you some tips and techniques to make sure that when you meet your contacts in real life you compliment and match your digital personality.
13 September – Sydney

Future of Digital Publishing
Tablets are promising to breathe new life into the publishing industry, with more than 1.5 million tablet devices estimated to be sold in Australia in 2011. At this half day seminar, speakers from the magazine, news and web publishing sectors will discuss how they are preparing for the future of print and publishing.
21 September – Melbourne

Online Retailer Conference & E-commerce Expo
A four-day conference with guests discussing problem-solving solutions and career networking. Learn how to acquire new customers, optimise retail website performance, boost conversions, foster loyalty, improve marketing ROI and maximise business operations and profits.
26-29 September – Sydney

Ghost tweeters are teams or individuals who are outsourced by companies to tweet on their behalf. It sounds like a simple concept, and in many ways it is but tweeting for a client is very different to tweeting for your own company or for yourself.

If you are considering becoming a ghost tweeter for someone, or if you already are a ghost tweeter, here are some tips on how to make sure you do it well:

Get to know their topics of interest
Your client’s online presence on Twitter relies on consistency, as social media is all about connecting and engaging with a target audience. When tweeting for your client it is crucial you understand the topics that they wish to be tweeting about. Find out how they want to be perceived, research their areas of interest and stick to it.

Learn their language
When it comes to tweeting for your client you’ve got to know how to talk the talk...or tweet the tweet in this case! Learn the language of your clients. Read articles written by them, listen to them speak and take into account what industry they are in and who their target audience is.

Don’t do anything they wouldn’t do
It can be easy to forget at times that you are not tweeting for yourself. Before you reply, comment or re-tweet anything always ask yourself: “Would my client want to be associated with that person, company or comment?”

Although you may find the tweet funny, interesting or re-tweet worthy, your client may not – it may even be damaging to their reputation. From the very beginning you should learn what conversation your client can be engaged in and what conversation to avoid.

Don’t let trouble brew
As a ghost tweeter you may be on the lookout for negative comments of feedback about your clients. Make sure, if this happens, to respond in a professional and timely manner.

If, however, your response does not seem to work and the problem is lingering, or if it seems to be escalating, contact your client and make sure they are aware of the problem. In any case do not keep quiet and assume it will all blow over.

The best way to be a successful ghost tweeter is to communicate with your client and make sure you completely understand what they want to achieve. A tailored social media strategy will always be more successful and gain far better results than a general plan used across all clients.

Do you want to see you and your business profiled in the media but don’t know where to start?

Have you sent out media releases and received no response?

When you get the right media coverage, your sales can double (or triple), you gain new customers and you can position yourself as a leader in the market place.

However, if you don't know the tactics of a publicity/public relations (PR) strategy or how to write an effective media release, you won’t get the results that will make a difference.

You'll learn the science behind an effective PR strategy including writing media releases that get results, how to approach journalists, how to write articles and case studies for the media as well as clever online tactics.

In one day, you'll discover the secrets to getting good publicity that you can use for your own business.

This seminar covers:
• the elements of a typical PR strategy
• how to determine your target audiences
• how to structure media releases and what you must include
• who you should quote and what they should say
• how to deal with journalists
• online distribution strategies
• contributing articles to publications
• how to approach bloggers as part of your PR strategy

This seminar is ideal for:
• Business owners, coaches, speakers, entrepreneurs who want to promote their business
• Professionals who have been given PR or marketing responsibilities but who may not have had formal training in this area
• People who are relatively new to a public relations role

This seminar covers all the issues you need to consider before you even put pen to paper - or fingers to the keyboard! Once you have these issues covered, you will have a strong framework that will guide how you write the release.

About Catriona Pollard
This seminar is presented by Catriona Pollard, director of CP Communications. Catriona has 18 years experience in developing and managing public relations and marketing programs.

Prior to establishing CP Communications in 2001, Catriona set up the marketing communications department for a leading software company and managed a diverse range of accounts within PR agencies. She also has extensive experience in managing public affairs and marketing in federal and state governments.

Catriona's blog Public Relations Sydney was shortlisted as media & marketing blog of the year 2009. She is a co-founder of Social Media Women, a formal online and in person networking group that encourages and assists women to participate more prominently in social media.

This seminar is held at the Sydney Writers' Centre.

PR and Media Releases that Get Results with Catriona Pollard
11 August 2011 9.00am - 5.00pm
Fee: $495 (includes GST)

To book, please click here. 

Ground Floor
55 Lavender Street
Milsons Point NSW 2061

Although I have lived in Sydney nearly half my life, I’m still a country girl at heart. At times when I am stuck in Sydney traffic I dream of living somewhere there aren’t any traffic lights (like where my parents live!). But last week, I was reminded how lucky I am to live here. Not only is Sydney beautiful, but we have access to so many great events.

I attended Vivid Creative Sydney, a series of free events about the future of creativity, technology and business. Industry leaders shared their experiences and discussed how to create innovative brands and products. One was an artist who creates ‘unseen sculptures’ using augmented reality. He placed a giant squid above the Opera House that could only be seen through your smart phone. Amazing!

On Sunday it was a beautiful clear winter’s morning and the CP Communications team joined hundreds of people on the MS Walk Fundraiser around the botanical gardens. The walk helped MS Australia raise funds to provide assistance to the 20,000 Australians living with Multiple Sclerosis. It’s not too late to help out a good cause and donate!

That afternoon I found myself sitting next to an Aboriginal woman artist from Tjanpi Desert Weavers who taught me how to weave in their unique way. They are a renowned group of indigenous women artists who work with grass fibres to make baskets and sculptures. They had travelled here from remote desert communities in central Australia for the amazing exhibition at Manly Gallery, KURU ALALA – eyes open. I was so thrilled, I couldn’t quite believe it!

Every event I went to last week was free, and they were all about community – creating, contributing and engaging. So have a think about how your business, brand or you as an individual can create and contribute to your community. The goodwill you create will be priceless.

I hope you enjoy reading this newsletter.
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What journalists are looking for and how to get their attention
Journalists work in a fast-pace, high-pressure environment every day and are only looking for stories which capture their attention right away. They constantly receive media releases, phone calls from PR consultants and emails about the latest and greatest product or business. So to make sure you are noticed there are a few things to keep in mind when contacting the media.

Make them want to know more. Whether you are sending them a media release or pitching an article over the phone, make sure to present the most interesting information first. The information may have to be tailored for different types of media.

Personalise your attempt. Research first and find out which journalist you may wish to speak to. Simply using someone’s name can get their attention and makes them feel like you have a put in a bit of effort.

Pick your time wisely. A bit of research and common sense can tell you when a media outlet's deadline is. Daily papers will obviously have a deadline each day, so get your information to a journalist earlier in the day. Monthly publications such as some magazines have long lead times so don’t call at the end of the month trying to get into the next month’s issue.

Don’t be afraid of journalists. They have good days and bad days and there are ones who will be nicer than others. But don’t be intimidated by them. If you have all your information at hand, know what you are talking about and are polite at all times you should be received well.
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TwitterCue: The new social media idea
In today’s world of 24 hour news cycles and social media channels that never sleep, people across the globe are constantly gaining access to large amounts of information on a daily basis.

It is particularly challenging when communicating via Twitter, when your clearly written and informative media release is reduced to a 140 character line.

How do you express essential and maybe even critically important information in only 140 characters? Enter ‘TwitterCue’ – a 140 character line written at the top or bottom of a media release which sums up the content and can be then spread through social media channels without losing any essential information.

Not only is TwitterCue a great addition to a social media optimised media release – distributed to bloggers, citizen journalists and through services such as PR Newswire – it will also be useful for time-pressed journalists.

The challenge, however, is getting all the information needed into that 140 character line. To help you get the most out of writing a TwitterCue, here are some useful tips:

• Lose the fancy talk and get straight to the point – concentrate on facts only
• Always use a suitable hashtag
• Include a URL that links to the full media release
• Leave space for unedited re-tweeting – 120 characters should be your aim
• Channel the language of your Tweeps – use abbreviations e.g. to = 2; for = 4; you = u 

An example of a TwitterCue is one we did for our client Community Engine when we released their annual survey. We included the hashtag on all tweets:
The Nielsen-Community Engine 2011 Social Media Business Benchmarking Study released 2day http://t.co/6KoQiXt #B2Bsocialstudy
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Upcoming events
Here are some events coming up that we thought you might be interested in:

Social Media Women June: Learn about online business with Shoes of Prey
Social Media Women’s June event features inspirational creator of online business Shoes of Prey, Jodie Fox. Jodie will share how she built her incredible online business and some of the secrets to her success.
14 June 2011 – Sydney, NSW

Nice Girls Just Don’t Get It
Dr Lois Frankel is running a breakfast presentation about her book ‘Nice Girls Just Don’t Get It’. During the presentation Dr Frankel will teach women how get what they want in both professional and personal areas of their lives.
15 June 2011 – Brisbane, Qld

Web 3.0 and the Future of Social Media
New technologies collectively known as Web 3.0 are already providing a momentous opportunity to businesses and marketers.This conference will investigate the web and how it will transform marketing. Key areas to be discussed include the future direction for social networks and progressive social media marketing.
21 June 2011 – Sydney, NSW

PR and Media Releases That Get Results with Catriona Pollard
Catriona will teach you how to construct a PR strategy that gets results. By the end of this workshop you will understand how to come up with a media angle, write a pitch, media release, article, case study and editorial. You will also learn how to strategically use these tools to maximise your chance of achieving your PR objectives.
23 June 2011 – Sydney, NSW

Business in the Social Age
Simon Betschel (Sensis) and Brian Giesen (Ogilvy) will be speaking about the opportunities and challenges that are being presented to Australian businesses in the social age. They will aim to help business owners make more informed decisions about how to use and engage in social media for business.
7 July 2011 – Melbourne, Vic

Macquarie University’s Women, Management and Work Conference
Learn how to become an influential leader at Macquarie University’s 23rd annual Women, Management and Work Conference. This two day conference will inspire and inform women who are looking for insights and key tips to develop their leadership skills. Speakers include CEO of Medicare Lynelle Briggs, Board Director of CoSolve Anna Booth and Director in the Royal Australian Navy Captain Michele Miller.
28-29 July 2011 – Sydney, NSW

With so many social media platforms available, it can be hard to figure out which platform will deliver the best results for your company. However, there are a few things to consider before choosing a social media platform.

Firstly, you need to devote time to it. Maintaining your presence on a daily basis is a necessity and results can’t be generated without a long term commitment. Think of it like a relationship: without your time and dedication, your social media marriage will be sure to fail.

Secondly, what are your social media goals? More traffic? More sales? Are you attempting a viral marketing campaign? Or do you just want people to associate your brand as an expert in its chosen field? It is always beneficial to identify what goals you want to achieve so you have something to work towards.

Lastly, once you have created your social media pages, dedicate your time to creating quality content, getting involved in online discussions and communicating with your consumers by asking questions and answering theirs in return.

To help you choose the platforms that work for you, here are five of the top social media sites and how they can help your business.

• Facebook:  With more than 400 million users, it’s a great site to use for customer engagement, feedback and brand development for your products and services. However, it does not rank high with search engines, so if you are looking to increase traffic to your webpage Facebook is not the way to go. 
• Twitter: Can be used quite successfully to drive organic traffic to your website as the more followers you have the more people who see your tweets and click on your links. The challenge, however, is creating an interesting and quality tweet in only 140 characters. 
• YouTube: With over 100 million views a day, YouTube is a good way to get opinions and information about your business out into the public in a visual and creative way. However, if it’s only an increase in traffic to your website you want, then YouTube is not ideal.
• LinkedIn: A professional site that allows you to connect directly with potential customers. If you want to position yourself and your brand as an expert and authoritative voice in a specific industry – this is the site for you. Take the time to research and only join groups that are relevant to you and your potential clients.
• Blogging: Blogs are extremely easy to use. If your goals are to drive traffic to your website and position your business as an expert in its field then a blog is the number one place to do so. Using key words and phrases will give you better Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) which, in turn, will drive more traffic to your site.

In order to achieve certain goals you may have to adopt several forms of social media platforms. If you take the time to choose the right ones for you, and devote enough time to them, you will find that in the end the benefits and outcomes are worth it.

Just like keeping your elbows off the dinner table and letting pregnant women sit down on the bus, the online world has its own etiquette.

These are especially important to know - and follow - if you are a business with an online presence, as offending potential customers and/or clients is certainly not the right way to go.

When online always keep in mind the following rules:

Interesting content: Whether on Facebook, Twitter or blogging make sure you aren’t just posting for the sake of uploading content. The content should always be interesting and add value to your business or the conversation.

Listen to your followers, don’t just talk. Always follow up and reply to people who have made an effort. Whether they have asked you a question through Twitter or made a particularly interesting comment on your blog, people like it when they know the person on the other side of the computer screen is paying attention and not just posting things for them to read. Social media is a two-way conversation, just like in the real world.

Be professional: You are a business and aren’t gossiping with your buddies down at the local watering-hole. Before posting or replying ask yourself `Would you say these things in real life to a client or customer?’ Because if you wouldn’t say it to their face, do not say it online where it is out there for the world to see. While it can be tempting to become over-friendly with followers online, think about your type of business and how casual you want to come across.

Never bad-mouth anyone or anything. Talking about another business or a customer/client in a negative way online will alienate people and it just looks petty. Like your parents told you, if you don’t have anything nice to say, don’t say anything at all.

If you do happen to make a mistake online remember to be gracious and admit to it. Nobody likes a sore loser and sometimes a simple apology will suffice to get you back into the good books of whoever you offended.

Always keep in mind whatever you put online is there for the world to see.

So you want to start up a social media campaign for your business but don’t know where to start.

Have you ever thought of calling in the professionals? While it all may seem relatively easy with most kindergarten students showing their parents how to connect online, the world of social networking for businesses can be a confusing one.

There are many different types of social media from Facebook to Twitter to Foursquare and blogs. Knowing how to use each one, getting the best results and keeping up with your ROI can be a full-time job in itself. Not to mention keeping up to date with continual, interesting content that your target audience want to connect with.

Experienced social media PR companies will be able to do all the research for you and have you up and running in no time. You will have to accommodate for the cost but you will be able to clearly see what the campaign is doing to boost your business.

Using experts will also mean you will be keeping up to date with the latest in social media, so while your competitors are still playing around with last year’s fad, you’ll be looking to the future and wowing customers or clients with your forward-thinking.

Another point of difference is social media campaign companies will have experienced writers on staff who can utilise their skills for the different platforms from writing 140 character tweets to 1000 word technical blogs.

Social media campaigns aren’t just for big businesses either, all companies from one-man (or woman!) operations right up to international conglomerates can benefit from a well-thought out social media campaign.

Tips for working with an outsourced company:

Do your research before picking a company. Different companies work within different sectors, such as lifestyle and retail, and can be experts in different fields.

Set targets: Know what you want out of the social media campaign and set realistic targets. This can be a certain amount of followers on Twitter, comments on a blog or number of customers taking up an offer from a social media site.

Communicate with the company to make sure you are both on the same page. Social media is an ongoing, probably daily activity and you want to make sure you both have the same idea when it comes to the message and public persona you want to showcase.