Flies Carrying Ads

What? Flies carrying ads? Yes, you heard correct, folks. I’m still a little miffed at the ads on my cell phone, so this latest is truly interesting. I have no idea what the company is or what they’re selling, but the concept is amazing. Genius.

To Blog or Not to Blog

That is the question. FaceBook, LinkedIn, Twitter - many have jumped on the bandwagon. Increasingly, many people feel compelled to publish a blog. But how do you know if a blog is right for your company or for your  product? How do you k now whether or not you should publish or post a blog?

Honestly, a blog is not right for everyone. Let’s be frank - it’s a waste of time for you and your blogger to be writing posts that no one looks at.

First, determine your audience - who will your blog be aimed at? Your current customers, or potential customers? Maybe both. Alternatively, maybe it’s an internal blog aimed at your employees. Maybe you have a different audience entirely.

Next, determine your niche. What will set you apart? People are busy - they need a reason to come to your blog, and to come back. What will make them sign up for your RSS feed? How will you stand out, what fresh content will you provide?

Another question to ask is how often will you post? Is a post needed hourly, daily, or weekly? Maybe you just need a few a month! It’s a fine line between inundating your audience and losing them because you don’t post often enough to be relevant.

Determine your tone. Professional, humorous, serious, informative, personal? There are many choices, and who you are writing to will determine it.

Finally, decide who will write your blog. Will you use someone in-house, or find a freelancer? Do you need someone who is familiar with SEO techniques (yes, even for blog postings)? Or do you just need someone with a fresh writing style, or someone who, frankly, has the time to do it?

Don’t feel bad if you decide not to pursue a blog - it’s not right for everyone. But if you do choose to blog, be sure to plan it out beforehand to ensure you’re on the path to successful posting.

10 Questions to Ask when Developing Social Media Strategy

Simply slapping together a FaceBook page, LinkedIn site, and a Twitter account does not a social media strategy make. Per Dr. Sean Carton’s article in InView!, following are ten questions to ask yourself when developing a social media strategy.

1. What are we trying to accomplish?
2. Why social media?
3. What kind of social media will best help us achieve our goals?
4. Are we prepared to let go control of our brand?
5. What will we do to encourage participation? What are you planning on doing to drive people to your social media presence?
6. Who will maintain our social media presence?
7. Do we have the resource to keep this up, or will this be a short campaign?
8. How does engaging users via social meda integrate into our overall marketing/communications strategy?
9. How do we measure success?
10. What will we do less of if we’re spending resources on social media?

All important questions, and all need to be answered when putting together your social media strategy plan.

Krispy Kreme’s Demise

Ever since I’ve noticed that all the stand-alone Krispy Kreme locations were shutting down, I’ve been fascinated with the demise of Krispy Kreme. They sell a great product - cheap, delicious, well-known, everyone loves them. How have they failed so spectacularly?

I found my answers recently in an article by Carol Kopp on Yahoo Finance titled, The Tragedy of Krispy Kreme.

Per the article, it appears that Krispy Kreme fell victim to classic business mistakes: over expansion, too much debt, and rumored management misconduct. Additionally, they weren’t prepared for the increased interest in healthy foods, and many of their franchisees suffered.

However, Kopp also writes that with new management and a rise in both its share price and Standard & Poor’s junk credit rating, Krispy Kreme may be on a bit of an uptick. It will be interesting to see if they can turn it around - if they can utilize their great product and fix their business and marketing missteps.

Twitter and PR

Jeff Davis, a recent speaker at the 2009 Chesapeake Conference, is somewhat of a local expert on social media and, specifically, how to use it for public relations and marketing. He has nicely uploaded the Twitter and PR Resources that he used in his presentation onto his blog and Web site, Sawmill Marketing.

Another great tool is their Sawmill Guide to Baltimore Media on Twitter - an invaluable resource.

2009 Chesapeake Conference

The 2009 Chesapeake Conference and Best in Maryland Awards on Tuesday, October 6 was a great day of learning, networking, connecting, and planning. It was a jam-packed day of multiple same-time sessions, covering topics including Twitter and PR, How to Get Big Agency Results from a Small Shop, Defending Corporate Reputation in the Age of Social Media, and Networking with New Media, among many others.

A keynote speech by Sandy Hillman of Sandy Hillman Communications started the day off - sessions by Jeff Davis, David Warschawski, Dave Imre and his panel, Bill Atkinson, Peggy Hoffman, and Dave Harrison, among others, followed. At lunch, the Best in Maryland Awards were announced and given out - congratulations to all the winners, incluging Best in Show winner Sandy Hillman Communications for their work on the 39th Annual World Series of Poker.

Overall, attendees had glowing feedback - some even calling it “the best conference I’ve been to since 1999!”. Many others raved about the Learning Journal given out instead of the usual binder and bag. The day was packed with learning and networking opportunities - including the happy hour after the sessions were over.

There were a few reporters in attandance for the Speed Pitching sessions, including Liz Farmer (who brought a photographer!) from The Daily Record.

Want to attend the Conference after the fact? Follow up on via the Conference’s Twitter stream under #Chessie09.

Chesapeake Conference

Does your social media knowledge need a shot in the arm? Looking for a way to network with public relations professionals? Want to hear the latest PR trends, tips, and tactics? If you’ve answered yes to any of these, then you should attend the 2009 Chesapeake Conference next Tuesday, October 6.

With sessions like “The Latest in Twitter and PR,” “Defending Corporate Reputation in the Age of Social Media,” “Activating Grassroots PR”, and “Networking With New Media,” among many more, and speakers such as David Warschawski, Jeff Davis, David Harrison, Bill Atkinson, Dave Imre, and Peggy Hoffman, along with keynoter Sandy Hillman, the Conference will have something for everyone.

Visit the Conference site for more information and to register. Hope to see you there!