How many social media channels should you use for business?

In a nutshell - only the ones that are going to make a difference to your organisation.

With so many social networks out there it is easy to get caught up in a number of them, spread yourself thinly and not achieve the results you want. Wasting valuable time and money. I’ve seen this a number of times with organisations dipping their toes into the ‘social media ocean'. Setting up a number of social media channels because it’s what everyone else is doing or what they think they should be doing and then being disheartened when ‘social media just doesn’t work’.

If you have attended one of my social media workshops or training sessions you will be fairly familiar with the conversation prism - a visual map of the social media landscape developed back in 2008 by @briansolis. Not only does it inject some colour into my presentations, it also does a great job of demonstrating how vast the social media landscape is and the importance of having a strategy in place. 

As with anything, you get out what you put in, but it is important to understand where you should be dedicating your time. Having a clear integrated strategy linked to your business objectives, with well thought out channel selection and content plan will help you do just this.

So why am I sharing this? Version 4.0 of the conversation prism has just been released and it includes a number of additional social networks worth considering and according to its website, can be used in a number of ways:

• Show your executive team that social media is not a fad and that it’s bigger than Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, and Pinterest
• Share with your team to motivate them on new ways to think about social media
• Celebrate that you’re on the map!
• Study the landscape as you plan your next social media strategy
• Show the world that you appreciate art
• Give as gifts to everyone you know who loves social media or who needs to learn to love it

For those of you who want more check out the conversationprism.com have included a list of categories that have been updated below:

• Social Marketplace
• Enterprise Social Networks (shortened to “Enterprise” for formatting, companies included here were previously grouped under “Nicheworking”, which was redefined.)
• Influence
• Quantified Self
• Service Networking

PS For the geeks out there you can now buy the poster…

@lyannatsakiris

The power of Twitter as a PR too

Twitter has revolutionised the way we operate within the comms industry – 140 characters at a time.  Whether it is being used for tracking, monitoring, live-reporting, journalism, crisis management, political communications, networking, relationship building – the list goes on, there is no doubt that this social network has become a staple in the PR toolbox. 

Relationship building/insight

It is also particularly important when dealing with the media.  Breaking news happens on twitter and is also an essential tool for news journalists.  With increasing time pressures on reporters it is a great platform to get quick responses and pitch ideas in 140 characters. 

People are using twitter to build relationships/network as part of the changing nature of business and this is very much the case with journalist engagement.  Relationship building between PRs and journalists that traditionally would have taken the form of desk visits, long boozy lunches and a number of calls over the course of the year (not forgetting the follow up calls and emails to see if a press release will be used), now often equate to a few @ mentions and DMs. 

Through twitter people share a lot of personal information that you would not have had access to in the past.  Whether it’s the fact that they like white wine, go on surfing holidays or hate Sundays – all this information helps to build up a picture of what they are like and what they are interested in.  A lot of this information, which may seem mundane to some, can be very helpful in shaping your communications with an individual, creating talking points or even just ensuring that you have the white wine on order when you meet for lunch!

Twitter dominating the news

A report produced earlier this year looking at the value of social media to journalism by Polis, the journalism think-tank at the LSE, highlights just how Twitter has come to dominate news.  The report demonstrates the important role that Twitter plays in newsgathering and telling comments from journalists reinforce this:

Joanna Carr, editor of BBC Radio 4′s news programme ‘PM’, said she “wouldn’t hire anybody who doesn’t know how to use Twitter” and Lyse Doucet, BBC’s chief international correspondent said:

“There is no question, if you are not on Facebook and Twitter, you are not getting the full story”.

Stuart Hughes, world affairs producer at the BBC says that the way he uses social media has completely changed the way he gathers news. Until three years ago, Hughes relied on wire services and the internal BBC news production system for fast information. Not anymore.  He says: “Now, very often I will only glance at that”. Instead, Hughes uses Twitter.

Reporting is now in real time Hughes says:  “Social media allows me to get much closer to the story. There are journalists and other people on the ground reporting in real time and sharing it in real time, so by the time a story actually appears on the wire, very often I will have already spotted it through social media”.

Social media as a channel for communication has grown in popularity and importance for journalism of the last few years and with statistics likes these you can see why:

• The BBC has seen a consistent increase to referrals to its news website via social media -  500% between 2010 and 2012
• At the end of 2012 @BBCBreaking Twitter account had more than 4.5 million followers - it now has 6.2 million

Twitter and other social networks have become the norm in terms of how many of us consume news.  Online channels and the advent of digital media has opened up our choices and in a time when many are so short on time being able to pick and choose your information and where you get it from is crucial.  Across the globe people are living via smartphones and are used to doing things on the go, fitting in news consumption with busy schedules, sharing their own news and reporting on things that they witness. It is very much a two-way street.

So with a wealth of information at our fingertips and the number of choices available it is important that organisations as well as individuals make sure they are making the most of the opportunity and increase their visibility.

UNLOCKED - Ri Ri 'Talks That Talk' So Socially

I am really liking Rihanna's new album launch mechanic - an interactive Facebook app 'UNLOCKED' that lets her 'Rihanna Navy' fans uncover exclusives from a new album little by little.  Brilliant social engagement that I'm sure will keep her fans coming back for more.  How does it work?  Fans basically 'Like' the page and go on 'mission's' to unlock new content that is released.  Some of the content made available so far includes Rihanna’s 'R' logo, her new website and single 'We Found Love'. 

The app has helped boost her following online (with over 45 million people liking the Facebook page and more than 8.5million twitter followers to date) - and there is clearly a tremendous amount of interaction with her fans on a number of social media platforms. The app has obviously boosted awareness and ticks the loyalty box but will be really interested to see how RiRi's digital team integrate this with traditional promo tactics as well as how they keep engagement and momentum going, particularly with newly garnered audiences.  There must be so much data to crunch/digest - oh to be a fly on the wall in one of their planning meetings :)

Charities getting social

In the current economic climate where many businesses are struggling to stay afloat it is no surprise that donations for many worthwhile charities are at an all time low.  

So, in a tough environment where brands, including charities, are having to compete even harder for market share as well as a share of consumers’ attention and hard earned cash, it is more important than ever for them to think outside the box when it comes to engaging with their audience.

And with the advent of social platforms, many already have - as the Charity Social 100 Index reveals.  Charities are increasingly harnessing online opportunities to engage with their audiences with a range of social platforms so readily at their fingertips.  By shifting from a one-way to a two-way dialogue with a more emotive,  personal approach, forward-thinking brands are really starting to reap the rewards of 'getting social'.

UNICEF and Dulux invite you to own a colour and help save a child's life

There is some great work out there and one of the most recent campaigns that I think is brilliant is the partnership between Unicef and Dulux. They have come together to sell off the naming rights for the 16.7 million colours that the average monitor, laptop, tablet and smartphone screen can display.  The money goes to Unicef for bringing clean water, education, medical assistance and other aid to children across the world.

You can buy your own colour for a donation of at least £1 and get to choose what the colour will be called as well as explaining why you chose it.  This genius campaign also allows you to gift a colour which I think is a lovely idea for those difficult to buy for or in memory of a loved one.

To pick your colour you like you can type in a hex code or RGB values or simply use a colour dropper. Celebrities have started showing their support with Duncan Bannatyne choosing Saltire Blue in honour of his Scottish roots.

The donation mechanic allows you to give by SMS or by credit card. 

With so many colours to choose from at the moment I feel spoilt for choice - better get my skates on before my shade of turquoise gets snapped up!  What will your colour be?

KLM - A 'helpful' brand in the social space

Loving the social work by KLM Royal Dutch Airlines. Great stunt to help illustrate their 'helpful' social media service by replacing normal Facebook and Twitter typed responses with a living alphabet made up of 140 KLM employees. Check out video below:

Past campaigns have included:

• Putting fans faces on a plane
• 'Surprising' passengers and giving them gifts
• Hosting the world’s first in-flight dance party because of a tweet

Halo Boys - Kelly Brook fronts Lynx Excite's new campaign

Absolutely love the new Lynx Excite Fallen Angel campaign. The brand has enlisted Kelly Brook, taking a brilliant integrated approach including TV ads and a Facebook app in which players attempt to lure the last remaining angel (Kelly) down from heaven by completing a series of tasks. At various stages players receive personal messages from Kelly and the overall winner gets the chance to party with Kelly herself.

TV Ad

What I really love is the augmented reality experiential activation of the campaign which took place last week at Victoria station. Extremely engaging!

Social Lovin For Valentines Day

There have been a lot of fun social media campaigns recently that tied in with valentines day including:

• asos' most-loved campaign where consumers could win their most loved asos item every hour on valentines day
• Anchor's 'every flirt deserves a squirt' campaign - a Facebook game in which fans are challenged to lick cream off a model of their choice in return for vouchers

I however particularly Loved this - a digital/social media campaign to reunite one of American’s most famous couples — Barbie and Ken.

Since their controversial split on Valentine’s Day seven years ago, the two plastic celebs led separate, but successful, doll lives.

The campaign, which marked Ken’s 50th anniversary came just in time for the release of 'Sweet Talkin’ Ken' which is described as the ultimate boyfriend because he says whatever you want him to say!

Like the campaign's solid engagement strategy which centred around barbieandken.com where users voted on whether Barbie should “take Ken back” or not and was seeded through Facebook, Twitter, Foursquare and YouTube to get the message out.

Mummy Bloggers and their role in PR

What motivates mummy bloggers – why do they blog? What do they get out of it?

Mummy bloggers are motivated by many different things. However friendship, unity and the notion of sharing are probably the most motivating factors for them. The internet has opened up a whole new world for parents and the raft of online communities now available helps lessen the isolation that some people feel while spending more time at home. Mummy bloggers write about everything from serious subjects such as post-natal depression and the challenges of raising a child with autism or merely sharing their favourite cup cake recipes. By being able to speak to others who are going through similar experiences, mummy bloggers are able to get the reassurance and social interaction they seek.

In what circumstances would you target a mummy blogger – what is their use to PR agencies?

Newspapers and magazines have always featured parenting columns but the growth of social media and online communities has meant that the dialogue has now become two-way. As a result, many more people can get involved in the conversation. So, from a PR perspective where we would have targeted features editors or columnists in the past to raise brand and product awareness, we now talk to mummy bloggers too. They have become very influential and are increasingly playing a larger role in product launches and product development. We would treat them the same way as we would a journalist by inviting them to launch events or sending them products to review. Mummy bloggers are a massively influential group who can help get your message out to a well targeted audience.
How you would target a mummy blogger – what have you found works well, and what should PR professionals avoid?

The biggest mistake a PR could make when trying to work with mummy bloggers is looking at them as a channel for mass communication and trying to target them as a whole. It is really important to find out as much as you possible can about each individual blogger that you want to engage with and tailor your approach accordingly. The best way to do this is to actually read their blogs – sounds obvious but many people still do not practice this common courtesy and look at mummy bloggers as merely a means to get their messages or products out. Once you have done your research you will have a greater understanding of what they are like and what resonates with them. Not every mummy blogger will be interested in what your client is selling so don’t think that you can ‘buy’ them. The best way to communicate with mummy bloggers is to be honest from the outset about what you are trying to achieve, take an interest in what they are doing online and engage with them. Direct them to information that helps them in their own blogging and build a two-way relationship. Keep in touch with them and ensure they have everything they need – in the same way that you would a journalist.

@lyannatsakiris

Skoda's Social Experiment

Skoda Social Experiment: The more you like on Facebook, the less you pay

We have seen some very clever things on Facebook by Skoda Belgium recently. Their current‘Generous Skoda’ Facebook campaign which is supported by a microsite utilises group buying power to drive fan growth and brand awareness.

Essentially for every Facebook ‘Like’ the campaign gets, the price of the Skoda Fabia drops by 2 euros making it a compelling shareable idea – upon liking you are encouraged to invite more friends in the interest of driving the price down.

This simple yet powerful idea makes great use of Facebook’s functionality and appears to be the first time that a brand has attributed a monetary value to this feature. The only catch with this campaign is that only one fan will get the car at the ‘Facebook Price’.

So what next? Although this campaign has clearly had a great impact so far on brand awareness/generating fans, it will be interesting to see if this concept will be taken on as part of a longer term campaign to reward fans with the ‘Facebook Price’ on a regular basis.

Is there such a thing as PR anymore dahlink?

So much more than PR
Times they are a changing… if you asked me a few years ago what I did for a living. I would have said I’m in PR. Ask me today and you’ll get a different answer.

So what do I do today? I work in communications.

It’s not just the old PR vs. marketing debate but with online/digital having entered the arena I believe that for quite some time now there is a bigger, better industry that has been bubbling away, growing and refining itself. Yes – communications. Forgive me if I am stating the obvious but have talked about this at length with colleagues and other industry professionals and I don’t know that everyone can see it as clearly as maybe I do. I suppose it’s a bit like the EU debate. Some want to be part of it (and are), some will not and still see themselves as individual member states and others will be in it to make the most of the benefits.

Integration and understanding are key
Ultimately for me communications is about understanding and engaging with people in the most appropriate way and thus finding the right solution for the client. Many people are still trying to fit a square peg into a round hole and it’s not just wrong in an ethical sense but it’s a big waste of time for everyone involved. People who do this are just setting themselves up for a big #FAIL.

Don’t get me wrong, I think there will always be a need for expertise in different areas of the traditional marketing mix, however I think that the future holds integration and collaboration for PRs and marketers, a place where people allow themselves to see the bigger picture, doing away with tunnel vision and having the courage to admit that there is not always one solution.

So do you see yourself as a member state or will you embrace integration?