Developing A Successful Social Media Approach

Facebook hit the 500 million mark in July. If Facebook were a country, it would rank third, behind the People's Republic of China and India and around 190 million ahead of the United States. Its growth is staggering, two years ago it had around 100 million users. Its growth is up 64 percent from a year ago, and up 22 million from just February, 2010. Facebook now dwarfs MySpace which not that long ago was seen as the premier site in terms of numbers. Twitter and a professional networking site, LinkedIn, are growing, but pale in comparison. The numbers are constantly moving targets but it was recently that Twitter had 105 million and LinkedIn 70 million users

Social bookmarking sites are also experiencing rapid growth. On these sites users save links to Web pages that they want to share and they share their own information. The more popular sites include Digg, StumbleUpon, Yahoo Buzz! and Reddit.

So, whereas it's clear that social media is a major force in the world of marketing and communications, it still can be a daunting task to figure out exactly how to effectively utilize these various sites. It's often the case that a company spends more time working social media than benefitting from it. It is best used in conjunction with a traditional public relations campaign and although in many ways the forms of communication are similar, in other ways they are markedly different.

For example, although you can use the information from a press release on social media sites, you don't want to send out a standard, traditional press release. Social networking and blogging are about connecting and personal communication (even though it is, ironically, on a mass scale) therefore the style needs to be less formal and more conversational. Where many traditional marketers have trouble with social media, is that in the past they were used to delivering a controlled message. In the world of blogging and social media it can be quite a challenge to try and control a message or the reaction to it. That's not always a bad thing. The feedback received, even when negative, sometimes particularly when negative, can be invaluable. Online PR also often allows for communications between a consumer and a decision-making member of any given organization. That's a shift in the communication world.

Social media and blogging are similar to PR in that content is king. The more informative, educational, amusing or controversial the message, the more effective it is. In this world the most effective messages are short and concise. Also, the way the information is written and delivered is different. In the world of online media you are talking directly to consumers and the public, in the PR world you are addressing the media and journalists.

And speaking of the media, when it comes to the press, not only are more people using social media, but so are more journalists, editors and producers. The media regularly searches on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube. Whereas Google still rules as the main information source, it is reported that 89% of reporters turn to blogs and 65% of journalists use social media.

Just as when pitching the media in a PR campaign you want to pick the media outlets that match and speak to your market; you want to do the same with your social media campaign. Understanding your current customer base will be your best guide to picking the appropriate social media sites. It wastes your time, money, and effort to focus on social media that your customers do not pay attention to, which is one of the points I'll be addressing in an upcoming article.

Copyright © Anthony Mora 2010

I'm Anthony Mora, President and CEO of Anthony Mora Communications, Inc. and author of Spin to Win. We specialize in public relations, image development, media training and Transformational Marketing, http://anthonymora.com

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A Positive Look at Media Interviews and A Prescription For Successful Media Interviews

As you read the headline, I can almost hear some of you asking, "How can there be anything positive about media interviews? I would rather go for a painful visit to my dentist than participate in a media interview." Well, I want to tell you that in more than 35 years of media interviews in my professional career, I remain positive about media interviews and will share some thoughts with you. And just in case you might believe that all those media interviews were fun & friendly, I can assure you they were not.

Many business people, especially corporate leaders, have great disdain for the media and hold the belief that a journalist's job is to find sensational stories and details and then present them in ways to make CEOs and other business leaders look bad. And with this kind of attitude, we witness corporate leaders and business people going on the defensive, when they should be doing the opposite - being proactive ad looking at the interview as an opportunity rather than a crisis.

So you are wondering how to look at media interviews in a positive light and view them as an opportunity to tell your story. Here is my prescription for you.

1. Be positive. Even thought the subject mater of the interview may have negative elements.

2. Be honest. If you do not know the answer to the interviewer's question than sincerely respond that you do not know. Do not try to make up an answer or "wing it" with something that cannot be substantiated.

3. Be prepared. I always advise my clients to know whom they are doing business with before any business takes place. The same advice is appropriate for your doing business (interviews in this instance) with the media. Research the interviewer and his or her background, interviewing style, subjects usually covered by them, format of interview, the physical location of the interview, etc.

4. Develop your key message(s) with 2 to 4 key points and weave these into your interview responses.

5. Anticipate questions you would rather not have asked. Do some "what if" planning for these questions. Prepare to briefly address those questions and then tie back into your main points.

6. Build relationships with the media as an ongoing goal, even before media interview opportunities occur.

7. Capitalize on every media interview opportunity and when you are asked at the end of the interview (which almost always happens) if there is anything else you would like to add, be ready to reiterate key messages and provide a positive summary of the interview.

8. Seek and engage outside counsel and training to develop your media interview skills.

9. Practice, practice, practice to hone your media interview skills.

10. Commit to viewing media interviews as opportunities, not crises.

If you would like to learn more about achieving positive successful interviews and positive media relations, please contact Glenn Ebersole through his web site at: http://www.renaissanceman4u.com/ or by Email at jgecoach@aol.com

Glenn Ebersole, Jr. is a multi-faceted professional, who is recognized as a visionary, guide and facilitator in the fields of business coaching, marketing, public relations, management, strategic planning and engineering. Glenn is the Founder and Chief Executive of two Lancaster, PA based consulting practices: The Renaissance Group, a creative marketing, public relations, strategic planning and business development consulting firm and J. G. Ebersole Associates, an independent professional engineering, marketing, and management consulting firm. He is a Certified Facilitator and serves as a business coach and a strategic planning facilitator and consultant to a diverse list of clients. Glenn is also the author of a monthly newsletter, ?Glenn?s Guiding Lines ? Thoughts From Your Strategic Thinking Business Coach? and has published more than 225 articles on business.

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Tips On How To Strategically Plan For A Successful Media Conference

A majority of information sent to the media today is through media releases. Another very powerful delivery method is the media conference, where your company spokesperson makes important and newsworthy announcements. Please note the words "important" and "newsworthy." Media conferences provide a great platform to reach multiple reporters at the same time and give wide prominence to your story.

It also is critical to remember that there are challenges and risks in planning and conducting media conferences and it is extremely important to strategically plan them. Here are some tips from your strategic thinking business coach to help ensure your media conference will be successful.

1. Confirm that there is a real need for a media conference. There must be a compelling need to use this format for major announcements that will have significant impact on your target audiences.

2. Carefully craft a few key messages that are reinforced by your announcement and presentation.

3. Strategically select your spokesperson based upon who is the most appropriate and who has the best presentation skills before the media.

4. Select the most strategic time for your media conference. Make sure the selected time best suits your targeted media.

5. Select the most strategic location for your media conference. For example, if you have corporate news, then corporate headquarters is appropriate. Consider the physical attributes of the facility, the potential weather impact and the ease of access for the media when choosing the location.

6. Develop a strategic media list for your media conference and make sure you provide adequate advance notice to them in your invitation.

7. Develop a "customized and tailored" media kit for your media conference. Include information that directly relates to the subject of your conference.

8. Ensure that the speakers/presenters at the media conference are succinct and sensitive to a strict timetable for the event.

9. Rehearse! Rehearse! Rehearse!

10. Follow-up with the media who could not attend your conference by sending them information and also with media who have requested specific follow-up.

11. Perform an evaluation of your media conference to identify the positives, negatives and lessons learned for improvement.

Your strategic thinking business coach encourages you to use strategic thinking to plan for your media events. If you would like to learn more about the strategic advantages you can gain by carefully planning your work with the media and how a strategic thinking business coach can facilitate and guide you in that endeavor, please contact Glenn Ebersole through his website at http://www.businesscoach4u.com or by email at jgecoach@aol.com

Glenn Ebersole, Jr. is a multi-faceted professional, who is recognized as a visionary, guide and facilitator in the fields of business coaching, marketing, public relations, management, strategic planning and engineering. Glenn is the Founder and Chief Executive of two Lancaster, PA based consulting practices: The Renaissance Group, a creative marketing, public relations, strategic planning and business development consulting firm and J. G. Ebersole Associates, an independent professional engineering, marketing, and management consulting firm. He is a Certified Facilitator and serves as a business coach and a strategic planning facilitator and consultant to a diverse list of clients. Glenn is also the author of a monthly newsletter, ?Glenn?s Guiding Lines ? Thoughts From Your Strategic Thinking Business Coach? and has published more than 250 articles on business.

To find out more about the benefits & rewards of effectively working with a strategic thinking business coach, please contact Glenn Ebersole through his web site at http://www.businesscoach4u.com or jgecoach@aol.com

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