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Blogging In A Safe Community

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This is a great reminder that blog posts get seen by the whole world. It’s easy to forget that when we’re blogging in our safe communities. Let me share a story that may help you edit a little more, or less, given the topic…

Shakirah Dawud is one of the most fantastic writers I know, and her blog at Deliberate Ink covers a bunch on writing, words, copywriting, and other topics. She asked me to guest post on a topic I couldn’t address, and it took me weeks to stretch my thinking to come up with a topic relevant to her audience, her blog’s theme, and something I thought I could speak to.

The post I wrote was along the lines of whether marketing can write for PR. It’s not something I ever think about, but I stuck my neck out to write in Shakirah’s safe community and promoted it within my network.

The post was well received with in-depth discussion in the comments, lots of questions, lots of friendly debate, and more RTs than I’ll ever see at my house. (Very cool.)

Then, an editorial assistant from Ragan.com sent an email at the end of the day asking to re-publish my post. Ragan Communications is a national company delivering PR, marketing, writing and other content, products, workshops, training courses, etc. to our industry.  I gave my approval, and the post went live at 5 p.m. last week.

The next morning, the first two comments were negative from anonymous folks, called trolls, who are keen on negating most of what they read but never add their name to their statements. That didn’t feel good, but I thanked each for their heartfelt negativity and said something like “all comments welcome.”

The next eight or so comments were more in-depth; some negated the writing, the concept, the “blanket statement” and even argued, in not so many words, I was full of it. A professor of public relations made some decent remark in a neutral way.  I took my time responding to each person and thanked them for their comments.  All the while, I was hoping for no more responses.

Why?

That community on Ragan.com had no idea who I was, had never seen me, didn’t know my qualifications, had never seen my blog, etc., etc. It was really easy for them to negate me, rag on me, call me stupid, or whatever, because they didn’t know me.

Think about that…when you write a blog, people in your community begin to get to know you, your traits, quirks, personality, tonality, and they form opinions. They determine whether to come back and keep reading or whether you truly aren’t the flavor of the month. When a post is published as a one-off in a community accustomed to who knows what and there’s been no prior engagement, the opportunity is ripe for the bombs to fly. Not saying I got bombed over there at all, but I can say it felt uncomfortable, for sure.

What I learned from this experience:

>>I am more grateful for YOU, this community we’ve developed.  When people disagree, it’s obvious, yet daggers aren’t sharp and pointed.

>>When you launch a blog, there’s safety in obscurity. Don’t hope for stardom before you’re ready; in fact, I’d like to hide under my rock a bit longer (not that this single blog post is going to change my life).

>>The tonality and ‘raderie are what make blogging fun for me. Upon reading those comments from complete strangers, I was cringing, although no one really fired any bullets. It was just uncomfortable, and I wasn’t used to it!

>>The content we write as bloggers can go anywhere — on portals, on other blogs, on ‘zines, be fodder for reporters/media, employers, and more. This story is a reminder that anonymous eyes read our material.

>>I’ve lurked on a few occasions when a guest blogger writes malarkey on a national business blog, like Forbes or Fortune. I watched as she/writer was taken to task so strongly that I felt badly although I agreed with the comments. The funny thing was the writer was nowhere to be found…she never responded to anyone’s comments.

If you’re going to take a position in your writing which could be construed as other than mainstream, stand up for your beliefs. It’s more damaging to let commenters control the message than it is to be front and center engaging people in comments as you protect your brand.

Thoughts?

 

 

 

Creative Traits Scorsese & Xerox Style

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What are the traits of creative people? Not sure I can nail this, but I’m going to present and discuss characteristics of two people, one a Hollywood producer/director, and the other a CEO of a Fortune company. These two respected professionals come to us direct from my fave ‘zine you all know, Fast Company.

Let me introduce you to some of the personality traits of Ursula Burns, CEO of Xerox and the “first African-American woman to lead a U.S.  company of Xerox’s size and influence,” according to Fast Company. Extracted directly from Fast Company, these are the words and phrases written to describe this accomplished woman:

>>She has the courage to tell you the truth in ugly times.

>>Being direct is her calling card.

>>She’s not a protocol kind of person, and is always willing to push the button herself.

>>She had an early aptitude for math; has guts and intelligence with outspokenness and keen business insights.

>>She has radical honesty she doles out, but with an overlay of Zen.

>>She has become a listener-in-chief, and she’s had to learn to temper her outspokenness with the help of good coaching.

>>Her mother influences her to this day, and Burns tells of the woman who washed and ironed clothes for money and bartered for services to provide healthcare for her three children. She says she recalls her mom as supremely confident and someone who expected great things from her kids.

You may wonder if Ms. Burns is really creative or just a #RockHot business woman. She has obvious traits that support that premise. In my earlier post this week, Thinking About Creativity, I ponder whether creativity is instinctual, innate or intelligent. With the example of Ms. Burns I’m thinking YES. (I could’ve featured Conan O’Brien here, too; another poster child for creativity.)

FROM HOLLYWOOD

Martin Scorsese is the December/January cover story for Fast Company, and upon reading half his story (How To Lead A Creative Life) he inspired this post.  After all, who else  can be labeled the most consummate creative and greatest film director ever? Interestingly, from the story on Ms. Burns it was easier to extract her exact character traits; however, this list, about someone  undoubtedly creative, is more esoteric about character. It ought to get you thinking, though.

(Again, these words and phrases are extracted directly from Fast Company.)

Martin Scorsese was interviewed on the eve of creating his first 3-D kids film, Hugo, and here are some of the things he and his colleagues were quoted as saying about him:

>>Panicked about hitting a deadline and has to tame the neurotic beast of self-doubt and frets every little detail.

>>Can’t make up his mind, still gets obsessed, still gets crazed by the same kinds of things that make any creative type nuts.

>>He’s in the business of crafting a creative life, and he adheres to a few rules:

………….Respect the past.

………….Trust your confidants, (a director’s creative process is largely collaborative) but not too much. (Important to know when a collaboration has run its course as well as when to accept criticism and when to say no.

………….Play the corporate game (Sometimes you have to give in to the system.)

………….Defy them when you must.

………….Find another outlet, or eight.

………….Give back and learn.

>>He was never interested in the accumulation of money and never had a mind for business (direct quote).

>>He is a generous mentor; a regular guy and finds something positive with everything.

If I didn’t know which list belonged to whom, I’d pick the Scorsese list for Burns and vice versa. My observation is that Scorsese adheres to a set of survival guidelines for his creativity to thrive, and Burns’s personality and character are from where she derives her creative business style.  After reading about Ms. Burns, she reminds me more of marketing or PR type (we’re often labeled as creatives).

This could be a royal stretch in futility, but it was fun — to quote my fave Aussie curmudgeon Leon Noone.

Certainly creative traits for “creative” (who says) people cannot be nicely packaged, yet there may be a common thread and I’m going to call that…(please complete this sentence…what word describes the common thread?).

 

 

Marketer Alert: The Un-Coupon Campaign

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What’s in your mail every day? If you’re like me at this time of year, you’re (not your) being inundated with coupons — lots and lots of coupons. Every retailer is gearing up for Black Friday and the big box brick and mortars are even fighting about it with employees up in arms about having to report to work at 3 a.m. or stay until midnight.

The offers are amazing — free panties from Victoria Secret; 40% off at The Gap and its sisters; 20% off all weekend at Kohls and $5 off at Target if I buy its toys; LL Bean; JC Penney, Sears, Eddie Bauer, Fannie May, and the list goes on and on.

Exasperated

I am overwhelmed. Are you? As a consumer, I’m saturated with coupons, discounts and BOGO offers. I can’t even look at a catalog without wondering about which deal is best; heck, at the checkout, it’s the battle for the best deal, and you better hope the sales clerk knows how to navigate splitting your order so you can get the lowest price. The coupons I do bring in often don’t work because there’s a cheaper deal in the store. It’s astonishing, and I’m wondering how these companies will make revenue numbers?

I’m sick of discounts! And now consumers won’t shop without them, but I’m ready for a change — something like deleting all your Twitter followers, and it goes like this…

Marketer Alert

Here’s what I propose — the un-coupon campaign. Tell me, marketers and advertisers, that your retail and consumer products company:

>>Has no coupons

>>Has no deals

>>Has products of only the highest quality

>>Your customer service is off the chain

>>You value my business and appreciate me

    I cannot spend enough money to take advantage of all the deals walking through my door. In fact, because I’m drowning in coupons, I keep them and never use them. They  get lost on my cluttered table; I forget them on the counter, and then they expire. My over stimulation for deals means I don’t care any more.

    I’m ready to pay full price if you just guarantee the quality of your product and the customer service that goes along with it. Anyone else feeling a bit of coupon malaise?

    Nine Social Marketing Tools From Inc. Magazine

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    Two of my favorite magazines for blog fodder (and learning, of course) are Fast Company (hands down) and Inc. I read the latter less, but it offers more small-business tips and case studies about entrepreneurs.

    I’m  using the November 2011 issue of Inc. to provide you with this expansive list of social marketing tactics by six companies. After reading the six case studies (Inc. always has amazing business case studies), it became apparent that marketers need to be thinking creatively to reach goals. This material comes from the article called Social Smarts with several links from it provided below.

    >>Celebrity Tweets. We all know celebrities get paid to tweet, and there is a platform called Sponsored Tweets “that connects advertisers with celebrities and offers online analytic tools for gauging the success of campaigns,” according to Inc.

    CampusLive is a website that lets college students earn rewards by playing online games. It used Lindsay Lohan and rapper Jim Jones in two campaigns. The company checked Klout scores (boo) before deciding to hire Lohan.

    It paid her $3,530 to publish a tweet, and the rapper earned $1,950 for his tweet.

    >>Wildfire. This is a DIY app “that lets you create interactive campaigns, publish them on social networks and view real-time results and analytics. Savored, an online reservation service in New York offering restaurant discounts, chose the Wildfire program costing $3,500 per month. The internal team created a sweepstakes promotion tying in with Facebook. The campaign goal was to sign on new members and gather emails for direct marketing.

    >>Offerpop. Birchbox used this platform to help companies create and run promotions including quizzes and photo contests on Twitter and Facebook. There is an unlimited monthly plan which costs $750 for companies with 10K to 25K Facebook fans. Important to mention, Birchbox uses its customer service reps to comb social media for discontent among customers (i.e. product shipping delays) and respond to them immediately.

    >>Foursquare. Many of us already sign in to location-based services with friends, but Luke’s Lobster wanted to launch its new location with Foursquare users. It created a Loyalty Special with Foursquare to give repeat customers a change to attend an exclusive launch party the day before the restaurant opening, according to Inc.

    >>Twitter Followers. Recently, my friend Robert Dempsey ran an article on Tweet Adder. He provided a tutorial on how to automatically increase Twitter followers. In comments, I shared my disagreement with this tool, yet many bloggers are all about it.

    >>eBay. The Inc. editorial team wanted to know how easy it was to buy Twitter followers, so it headed over to eBay and searched for a package. They got into a bidding war with someone else for 11,000 followers for $80. Instead, the research team “settled on a  Buy It Now option promising 1,000 followers for $20.”

    (Goes without saying, I’m against this practice; hands down. This, however, is what some businesses are relegated to if they’re late to the party. Probably some similar tactics happening over at Facebook, too.)

    >>YouTube. I’m not going to share the merits of this channel. We all know the advantages of a video going viral. Probably about 90 percent of the time, though, the viral video campaigns with more than 1 million views are often produced by creative shops and more than just a flip cam.

    >> Traditional PR. EZ Grill launched a media relations blitz using public relations agency services; however, the results (appearances on national media) didn’t garner the ROI in sales the company wanted. (And, nor should it have…my $.02 coming from a PR perspective.) Instead, the company engaged in a video (using some smart creative) coupled with press release that went viral. Alas, sales did not impress.

    I have to wonder…how many people need a disposable charcoal grill? Especially when the small metal ones are very portable? Maybe it’s a niche audience of campers these guys should market to?

    >>Blue Calypso. To secure paid referrals, The Sweet Spot in Dallas wanted new customers in its hair removal salon specializing in sugaring (what’s that?). It used the mobile marketing platform that rewards people for sharing ads via Twitter, Facebook or texting.

    The Sweet Spot owner paid $2,500 per month to get 230,000 impressions. Blue Calypso helped her design an ad offering a discount on treatment. When a member posted the ads on social media channels or texted it, Blue Calypso paid them up to $.30 onto a Visa debit card. The campaign included coupons (a LivingSocial deal went sour),  complimentary services, and rewards to first-time customers.

    Conclusion

    PR and marketing teams need to be highly creative with clients’ and companies budgets. There are so many tactics and tools to meet objectives in social marketing, but  sometimes it takes trial and error to find the best strategy.

    You can be sure, no campaign will succeed without a solid creative foundation. When this kind of money is involved (note the costs detailed by these companies in the case studies) to work with these social apps and platforms, there should be money in the budget for experimentation. Or, have a thick skin when the first attempt fails to reach goals and money goes down the drain.

     

    Six Ways To Challenge Best Practice Plus Measurement

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    Check out what Robert Rose, founder and chief troublemaker at Big Blue Moose (who helps marketers become storytellers), has to say in Chief Content Officer…I am so blown away because it’s making me think, think, think, and the below is merely a reaction to pages one and two of the article!

    His headline had me at the top — “Why a hyper focus on measurement and incremental gains makes marketers average.” Really? That’s awesome.

    If you know me, you’ll know I kick and scream all the way to analytics, and that includes measurement. Now, don’t tell Shonali, Rebecca Dennison or Neicole Crepeau I said that.

    What Rose says is that everyone is striving for best practices and that’s about it.

    Can I repeat that? Here’s what Rose said in Chief Content Officer, and it’s all appropriately attributed:

    “Content marketers in particular seem to be in the grips of ROI monomania. …What we’re really looking for are best practices; they’re safe. Whenever we’re trying something new like content marketing, we become so focused on following best practices that we forget our real job is to be innovative.”

    I love this insightful approach to best practice. When I worked in a hospital, each service line was oriented to best practice. Put the solution into action, perfect it, and then travel the country lauding its inner workings so others can emulate it.

    Think about how that works — you get the recipe for a best practice, execute on it while following the formula, and call it a day. Infrequently, do people exceed or push the limits of the best practice because really all that’s required is to meet expectation.

    WOAH.

    In this day and age, when status quo has eroded, it’s imperative we always push the boundaries and exceed comfort levels to earn a level of excellence not previously attained. That’s the essence of what Rose is saying, “…we are saying that we’re satisfied with being average.”

    Do you agree?

    Rose offers a list of six tips that help you turn the status quo on its head, and I’m not going to recap them because they’re really good and I have to come up with my own. Basically, here is what I recommend to heed Rose’s counsel and buck the average:

    >Stand on your head. What’s north is south, and what’s south is north. Change up the bird’s eye view and put on the rose-colored glasses.

    >Delete all your followers; how’s that working for you @ChrisBrogan? When you make an extreme change with gusto, you’re bucking best practice and changing it up.

    >Stop commenting on the same blogs day in and day out; in fact, stop commenting. What will happen? Will you have an epiphany that you really do like the social webs and can’t wait to get back? Or, will no one miss you at all, and you’ll burrow deep into depression and hibernate for winter? You’ll certainly learn about personal behavior if you do this exercise.

    >Find a new hang out. There are groups and cliques and alliances and networks; doesn’t matter how they’re labeled. If yours is inactive and you’re bored to death, then switch on outta there and find some new energy! Align with those who boost you up and not with those who bring you down!

    >Get zany creative during a campaign. I read somewhere a young ad agency account rep actually brought kitty litter and her cat to the pitch (they were pitching kitty litter). When her cat used the product, the client was turned off but the agency VP thought it quite clever.

    >Go out on a limb and then break it. If you stick your neck out, and you’re really heading out on a limb, keep going until you push the boundaries a few times. Get comfortable and then do it all over again.

    Measurement

    Another final observation, and this one may have me going out on a limb…heh. is about measurement. I’m going to blame Chief Troublemaker Robert Rose for this ramble:

    When peeps are so focused on proof of campaign smarts, they need tried-and-true deliverables with measurable tactics.

    If a new tactic is incorporated into a best practice, can it be measured immediately? Won’t new metrics have to be established and proven over time? I’m asking…

    So, maybe content marketing programs aren’t required to have direct ROI. With best practices and average innovation, measurement has a solid place to do its thing; when new concepts are added to the mix, measurement gets thrown a curve ball. Time is required to clock and tick and tally to incorporate innovative ideas into an even better best practice.

    So…maybe, just maybe…measurement should be relegated to the sidecar for awhile? Just sayin’ and askin’ all at once…what say you?