Think beyond Facebook

For a lot of organizations, the leap into social media begins (and often ends) with this sentence: “We need a Facebook page!” If you hear that said by a colleague—and especially if you say it yourself—take a step back and carefully consider your options. While Facebook’s 300 million members might make you think you have to be there, it’s by no means your only choice. And it may be a waste of time.

Your main consideration should be your audience. Are they on Facebook? If so, can your content compete with all the other content they engage with on Facebook? For some organizations, the answer is yes. But as Facebook grows larger, it will be a good fit for fewer and fewer organizations. While Facebook can be a great business development tool, its members use the site primarily for personal use, so you need to be pretty compelling to get noticed. Just because you build it, there’s no guarantee they will come.

Even if your company says no to Facebook, however, you don’t need to say no to social media as a whole. You could start a blog. You could launch a YouTube channel. You could put a discussion board on your website. And maybe best of all, you could use a tool such as Ning to start your own social network. There’s no one tool that’s right for everyone and no shortage of options. Saying no to Facebook may make it a little harder to get started, but thinking beyond the most popular social media site may be exactly the right way to begin.

--Anthony J.

The Show within the Show

During last Sunday’s episode of “Desperate Housewives,” viewers were teased with a Sprint commercial titled “Another Desperate Housewife.”

This spot was created by the writers of “Desperate Housewives” and was given the same general feel as the program, with a similar setting, tone and narration. It was like a mini spin-off masquerading as a commercial and featured a couple in the throes of suspicion, betrayal and mystery a la Wisteria Lane. There will be seven more of these shorts throughout the season, and the couple from the commercial will casually appear in a real “Desperate Housewives” episode, further blurring the line between the program and the commercial.

“You want to be able to relate to viewers within the property they know and love and that they have a passion for,” said Stephanie Kelly, Sprint’s entertainment media manager.

By incorporating elements of this highly rated program into their spot, Sprint is hoping to pique the interest of viewers and reduce the dreaded fast-forwarding of their commercial.

This is an innovative way of increasing commercial viewership. It makes sense. People who enjoy the campy salaciousness of “Desperate Housewives” will be intrigued and entertained by “Another Desperate Housewife.”

It is safe to predict that this ad will most likely be watched more frequently than a traditional ad and will be better remembered. But will it sell more Sprint phones?

--Tessa G.

Credit if you read it

One of the greatest challenges to buying advertising online is the lack of “ratings”; the data that tells agencies and their clients how effective an ad buy might be.

Search ads—those that pop up alongside your Google search for, say, coffee shops and tell you to get your fix at Café Joe’s in your neighborhood—are more popular, because they are measured by click-throughs. Though that might not be an entirely accurate measurement—some will see the ad but not click, and others will click on it by accident—it at least offers some hard number with which to gauge. And media buyers are really awesome with numbers.

But Facebook just announced today it will be polling users about display ads and sending the data to Nielsen for analysis. Display ads are typically banner ads, across the top or middle of the page, or ads down the side of the page, in the rail. Facebook will begin testing new formats for display ads and asking users whether they noticed the content.

Facebook Chief Operating Officer Sheryl Sandberg credited the company's revenue growth, which is expected to rise more than 70 percent this year, to Facebook’s increasing number of users and the introduction of new ad products. Considering Facebook is expected to generate more than $500 million in revenue in 2009, this could be a big deal.

It will be exciting to see whether this makes Facebook ads more useful and valid in traditional media buys. And just out of curiosity, my own poll: Did you see and link to this blog from Asher’s Facebook page?

--Julianne W.

What Media Buyers Want

I’ve recently been doing some web research for one of our clients, trying to find websites targeting women aged 18-54 who have young children and who live in Indiana. I happen to be a person who fits this demographic, so I can personally recommend a few sites I frequent; but honestly, I may not be your average bear. Ask people who know me.

Another option: to pick the strong newspaper or television websites of major metro markets in the state, which consistently get high traffic because of their local news and weather content. This option will reach a large population and may be cost effective CPM-wise. But it also will expose my message to a bunch of people who may not care, because they are not my core demo.

In a media-buying dream world, here is what I really want:

· A (free) website that ranks other websites based on basic demographic information:
o Geography
o Sex
o Age
· It could go a step further and allow us to target based on other factors such as:
o Education
o Marital status
o Income
o Children in the household
o Whether they ate at Subway in the past month
o Etc

I can see it now. You log in to awesomewebsiterankingbydemo.com, check all the targeting information you need, and up pops a comprehensive list of the top sites, ranked by total number of unique visitors who meet the demo criteria.

Is there such a thing out there? Compete.com is a good start for basic website comparisons, but you have to pay for the really good data. The stuff we really want. And need.


--Tessa G.

Sing-a-long math

The power of a jingle is never more evident to me than when I’m with my 12-year-old daughter.
She hums, she taps, she whistles, she sings. She sings Fall Out Boy, Taylor Swift, Pink and Katy Perry. She also sings the Luna Flooring telephone number we heard so often in Chicago: 773-202-LUNA.

This is a child who might not come up with the result of 7x8 if her life depended on it. But she could get you new wood laminate floors in a jiffy.

Every time I hear her sing some ditty or jingle off a radio or TV spot, I am reminded that setting things to music can be a very effective tool to help consumers remember important information. Especially if it’s used consistently and frequently, as those ever-lovin’ Luna spots were.

I’m writing tunes right now for things such as her morning routine, remembering to close closet doors and turn off lights, and how to pack a nutritionally balanced lunch. I might need a full opera for the multiplication tables.

There’s sound research to support the success of jingles. Professors Graham Hitch and Alan Baddeley at Cambridge University have published extensively on music in the working memory, and language and music as cognitive systems.

There also are some fun lists of the best-worst jingles and songs, the earworms that chew incessantly at your brain, online at How Stuff Works. Do you remember “you deserve a break today” from McDonald’s? What about the baby-back ribs jingle from Chili’s? Yeah, they’re stuck now, aren’t they? Sorry about that.

What’s your favorite? Or your love-to-hate? Share the pain. And let me know if you need some new vinyl tile.

--Julianne W.

Fox Introduces the “Tweet-Peat”

Fox is teaming up with Twitter to give viewers a unique reason to watch repeats of “Glee” and “Fringe” this week. Cast and crew members of the shows will tweet commentary, offer behind-the-scenes information and answer fan questions via Twitter. These tweets will scroll at the bottom of the screen during the repeat episodes of “Fringe” at 9 p.m. Thursday and “Glee” at 9 p.m. Friday.

I am a fan of social media. Both Twitter and Facebook are viable venues for my egocentric need to express myself and my voyeuristic desire to steal a glimpse into other people’s lives. But if I wanted to get insight into a television show, I would do it online.

We have to deal with so much sensory overload on cable news networks with the scrolling news and split screens. We put up with the scrolling commentary on last season’s repeat episodes of “Lost” because, frankly, “Lost” became so convoluted with its constant twisting of time and space that without the commentary, most of us couldn’t remember what happened before the commercial break, much less determine whether what happened was in the future, past or present.

Will fans take the time to go online and tweet their questions? Will these “Tweet-peats” increase viewership, or will the tweets merely annoy viewers? I expect that true fans of these shows will enjoy the inside information coming directly from the cast, but will they care about what the executive producers have to tweet?

To join in on this Twitter/TV experience, follow the two events at: twitter.com/FRINGEonFOX and twitter.com/GLEEonFOX.

--Tessa G.

All the news that's fit to post

Be still my heart—credible, vetted, properly sourced journalism still is valued. And not just by old-school former newspaper writers/editors such as me.

An editorial by former newspaper writer/editor (and now venture-capital firm senior adviser) Larry Kramer describes plans by Yahoo and AOL to not only aggregate content, but to publish original news.

As a former new-media freelance writer, I’m curious to know whether these mega-companies will pay a fair wage vs. the $10-per-500-word-story norm that seemed to be the going rate on many, many freelance writing clearinghouses.

I also wonder how that news will be edited. Newsroom standards are strict—we called every phone number before it was published. Looked up every address. Did the math when something was reportedly 20 percent higher this year. Editing is more than dotting I’s and crossing T’s.

Nonetheless, I have hope. That passion for truth and an open, informed society that motivated so many of my now-jobless reporter/editor colleagues seems alive and well.

“The moves to original content from the former kings of aggregation is an encouraging sign that some companies may come up with the business model that can support serious journalism,” writes Kramer.

That model may differ from site to site, he explains, depending on the type of content. Some may be supported by advertising. Some may charge for access. Regardless, there is a blessed awareness that the content must be credible to build a following.

Newspapers in major metropolitan areas might take heed. Bogged down with print infrastructure costs, many have cut reporters, writers, photographers and editors—content creators—to save money. I am eager to see what happens with those who choose the reverse, who shed physical costs to invest in product.

It might save that essence of newspapers about which I’m truly passionate: the accuracy, the credibility, the thoroughness, the accountability, the quality so essential to our society.

--Julianne W.

Local Spring 2009 Arbitron Radio Ratings

Here’s a quick snapshot of the newly released spring 2009 local radio ratings, including gains/losses since the last survey period in fall 2008:

Federated Media stations top the list, with WOWO continuing to dominate in the market. It should not come as too much of a surprise that the conservative city of Fort Wayne listens to the likes of Glenn Beck and Rush Limbaugh.

Both country stations, K105 (WQHK) and WBTU, had some minor losses in shares, yet K105 remains strong in key demos. While the country format may be declining, the two hip-hop stations, Hot 107.9 (WJFX) and Wild 96.3 (WNHT), showed some gains.

WLDE 101.7 took the greatest hit with a 2.4 share loss. WFWI The Fort is also declining. Is it possible that Bob and Tom have finally run their course?

Although the Arbitron rating system is imperfect, because it depends on written diary entries, it does give us a glimpse into the trends of Fort Wayne’s radio listening habits.

--Tessa G.

But do they make me look fat?

The Gap announced recently that it’s abandoning TV for its latest product launch. Instead, its Born to Fit line of denim will be marketed online, primarily through Facebook. All other media—print, outdoor, cinema and blog ads—will drive consumers to the Facebook page.

The Gap? No TV? Isn’t that like a mall without Coke?

Actually, maybe even that analogy is a sign of the times. TV viewership is declining and growing more fragmented as entertainment and viewing choices multiply. Malls vie for traffic with online retailers, lifestyle shopping plazas and freestanding independent stores. Coke is facing challenges from energy drinks and specialty waters (and is producing a few itself).

And The Gap? If I had a penny for every time I heard someone say “The Gap just doesn’t have anything anymore,” I could buy a truckload of khakis. Is its steady decrease in same-store sales over the past two years a result of poor advertising or a poor merchandising mix?

It will be equally hard to determine whether any bump in sales with this campaign is the result of Facebook or simply a great product. Born to Fit promises a range of style choices, increasing the odds of finding a great-fitting pair of jeans. And I’d buy a pair of great-fitting jeans from the back of a truck parked down the street.

But the Facebook page already had more than 335,000 fans just a week after its launch. Many were wishing The Gap a happy 40th birthday. (And yet its distressed jeans don’t look a day over 39.)

Do you shop The Gap? Do you watch TV? Do you go to the mall? Do you Facebook? Most importantly, where do you go for great-fitting jeans?

--Julianne W.

Social Media Strong Ally in Crisis Communications

We’re all seeing the value of social media as a new set of building blocks for advertising and marketing strategies. Those who are not cultivating this value and embracing these additional venues may not survive in whatever the world of commerce shall be in full economic recovery.

Another use of social media, as a PR tool in a crisis situation, was demonstrated earlier this year by Domino’s Pizza. The analysis of Domino’s response is complete; Domino’s response to the situation was right on target for today’s communications environment. The steps the folks at Domino’s took are truly impressive.

The takeaway from the experience underscores the value of a crisis communications plan for every company. The Domino’s event demonstrates the value not only of social media, but all avenues available, and is a very good exercise in crisis communications.

An article by Amy Jacques, published in the summer issue of PRSA’s publication The Strategist and online at prsa.org, contains a full accounting of Domino’s experience, as told by Tim McIntyre, vice president, communications. I encourage you to take a look at “Domino’s delivers during crisis: The company’s step-by-step response after a vulgar video goes viral.”

--Mike B.

Ozzy + Chimps = Ad of the Day?

The latest commercial from Samsung Wireless features Ozzy Osbourne as we now know him: a sad, lost soul holding on to his fading fame with weak and predictable attempts at humor. Maybe it’s just me, but an aging rock star with a chimpanzee is not a winning combination. The commercial doesn’t make me laugh. It doesn’t shock. It doesn’t make me want to go out and buy a Samsung Solstice phone. Am I missing something?

--Tessa G.

Two days, two presentations, tons o’ fun

On Wednesday, I spent my lunch hour presenting “Social Media for Real Estate Professionals” to the Fort Wayne Area Association of REALTORS®. Yesterday, I presented “Can You Hear Me Now? How the Social Media Revolution is Transforming Communication—and Your Business” to the Advertising Federation of Fort Wayne. You can check out the PowerPoints on SlideShare here and here, but I’d love to present to your group in person. Let me know if you need a speaker on these or any similar topics, and I’ll do my best to make it work.

Thanks to FWAAR and AdFed for inviting me to speak, and thanks to both audiences for listening, asking great questions and adding to the conversation!

--Anthony J.

Is Streamy Dreamy?

I want to sit at the helm of a master control panel. Within that panel I want to find my cell phone voicemail and text messages, my landline messages, messages from my three personal email accounts, my work email, my work voicemail, my work Blackberry voicemail, my RSS feeds, my Twitter account, my personal Facebook page, the Facebook pages and Twitter accounts I maintain for others, my Flickr account, my Shutterfly account, my Walgreens photo account, my iTunes, my blog and my personal website. One massive mass-communication dashboard from which I can receive information and to which I can turn it back out.

Despite what my friend Sam says, I’m not aiming to be Big Brother. I just keep forgetting to check my landline voice mail. (Call my cell instead.)

Until the day someone builds my hub, I’m looking for a simple way to tie a YouTube account, a Twitter account, a Facebook account, a blog and a Digg account. I want to be able to post status accounts in one place and send them to Twitter and Facebook. I want to be able to post blog links to Twitter, Facebook and Digg. I want to be able to post YouTube video links to Twitter and Facebook. I want to be able to post YouTube comments to Twitter and Facebook. I want to be efficient in my social information distribution. Is that too much to ask?

I’ve been looking at Streamy. Now that FriendFeed has been absorbed by Facebook, it seems an even more viable alternative. I don’t really need the news side of Streamy, which sounds as if it could be a big side of Streamy. But I haven’t heard of anything more effective for social communication interrelation and distribution.

Have you? What do you use? What do you think?

--Julianne W.

The difference between social networking, social media, and Web 2.0

This may seem like fairly useless information, but it may help those of you who are confused about the difference between social networking, social media and Web 2.0. Plus, I like making charts. So here goes...

Social networking is the act of connecting with others online. It can happen via Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, MySpace, etc.., but it simply describes the act of engaging in a dialogue in a web-based forum. And the places where those conversations happen are often called...

Social media sites, which simply facilitate the act of social networking. However, social media sites have capabilities that go well beyond social networking. For example, YouTube is primarily a video sharing site, but the comments section is a form of social networking. And just as social networking is a subset of social media, social media is a subset of...

Web 2.0, which represents a new approach to web design and content that encourages interaction. As Mark Cuban (http://blogmaverick.com/2008/03/29/if-the-news-is-important-it-will-find-me/) might say, Web 2.0 is lean forward, not lean back. And lean forward means participating not just via social networking or through social media sites, but by a wide variety of user-generated content.

If you want to hear more about the ways in which social networking and social media are changing the web, join me at one of these events next week. If it makes it any more enticing, I promise more fancy charts. I hope to see you there!

“Social Networking for Real Estate Professionals”
Fort Wayne Area Association of REALTORS®
Wednesday, Aug. 12, noon – 1 p.m.
3403 E. Dupont Road, Fort Wayne
For more information, call (260) 426-4700.

“Can You Hear Me Now? How Social Networking Is Transforming Communication—and Your Business”
Advertising Federation of Fort Wayne
Thursday, Aug. 13, 11:30 a.m. – 1 p.m.
Club Soda (upstairs), 232 E. Superior Street, Fort Wayne
Click here to register online or call (260) 469-3907.


--Anthony J.

Does Bing have the zing?

By now you’re probably familiar with Bing, the newest search engine on the block. It’s the offspring of the recent Microsoft and Yahoo! merger. These two gurus are coming together to try to compete with search engine giant Google.

Competition is good for any industry, but will they make a dent in Google’s 65 percent share of market searches? According to BusinessWeek, Yahoo! held a 20 percent share of market searches. Maybe by putting Microsoft’s fiscal muscle behind the Bing endeavor, it can gain some traction against Google?

As an avid Googler, I would need to find something very unique and compelling about Bing to make me switch. I use a PC at the office, and a couple of weeks ago Microsoft reset my search setting to Bing. Trust me, I didn’t do it. Now when searching, I find myself avoiding the convenience of a search engine in the tool bar. Instead, I will go to Google, then search from there. It’s familiar, has a clean look, and is easy. And frankly, I simply prefer Google as my search engine.

It will be interesting to see how Bing fares this next year. Will the Microsoft/Yahoo! team identify a better search algorithm? Time will tell.

Have you used Bing? What do you think of it?

--Kara W.

Nielsen Offers New Radio Measurement

Nielsen is rolling out a paper diary system to measure radio in 51 small to midsize markets. Similar to diary measurements for TV, this radio version will rely on consumers to log their listening habits. This will be beneficial for small markets who cannot afford the portable people meter offered by Arbitron.

There are pros and cons to this new system. On the plus side, Nielsen’s sample size will be larger than Arbitron’s and will thus offer a more precise measurement. They will over-sample and offer larger incentives to harder-to-reach younger demos and minorities. Also, Nielsen’s diaries will include stickers with station call letters and frequencies, which will help respondents recall which stations they listened to rather than name stations based on their top-of-mind awareness.

On the other hand, the stickers may prompt participants to check off a station they don’t listen to. Another concern is that ratings will only come out once a year. Format fluctuations and local programming changes will make these ratings irrelevant.

The bottom line: Some ratings are better than no ratings. For small markets who are not subscribing to Arbitron because it is cost-prohibitive, Nielsen is a valid and cost-effective alternative. For large radio groups such as Cumulus and Clear Channel, switching from Arbitron to Nielsen seems like a step back, but in these economic times, the pros apparently outweigh the cons.

--Tessa G.

Two questions to remember when creating web content

How often do you think about your website? If you’re like most people, the answer is “not much.” That’s unfortunate, because your website is one of your business’s most important assets—and as the web evolves, the way visitors use your site, and their expectations once they land there, are changing, too. If you haven’t thought about your site in a while, it’s probably time for a tune-up.

Asher recently completed web usability studies for two clients, and the results have led to significant changes in the sites’ structure and content. The major tenets of web usability are well beyond the scope of this post (and better stated by Jakob Nielsen), but the key is to review every page on your site and ask two simple questions:

• What do you want the visitor to do on this page, and
• How do you facilitate that action in as few steps as possible?

That may sound simple, but visit a few sites and consider how few truly anticipate your needs and make it easy for you to interact with the people behind the page.

All of this is becoming especially important as we use the web more often to quickly access information and less often for in-depth reading. As Michel Agger says in “How We Read Online”:

“On the Internet, we hunt for facts. In earlier days, when switching between sites was time-consuming, we tended to stay in one place and dig. Now we assess a site quickly, looking for an ‘information scent.’ We move on if there doesn't seem to be any food around.” In other words, they decide what they want to know, pop in for a quick visit, and then leave. And there’s not a lot you can do to get them to stay—unless you let them have some control over the conversation."

Help your visitors get what they need and move on, and it’s more likely they’ll come back to you the next time they need something. But just like any other communication challenge, if you ignore their needs when constructing your message, it’s likely that they’ll ignore you right back.

--Anthony J.

Would you like verification with those fries?

I thought I spied a clever-sneaky new form of advertising on Facebook yesterday. I was wrong, but the possibility is something to “keep in mind.”

To upload a link to a Facebook account I manage, I had to type in a pair of words for verification. The pair? Coca-Cola. It made me wonder … was Coke paying to have its brand circulate among the random verification words? Were others?

(It also made me want a Coke. I found a Diet Pepsi instead. I did fail the taste test years ago.)
I couldn’t find anything on Google about such an advertising plan. So I went straight to the source and asked Facebook, which has proved quite a helpful entity every time I’ve had a question. Their answer:

“Thanks for your inquiry. We do not sell verification words as advertising. However, we will keep your suggestion in mind as we continue to improve advertising on the site. Let me know if you have any further questions.”

Nice people over there at Facebook. The bigger point, however, is the potential for brand integration into every process. Are you looking for a way to put your brand in front of more people? Find out where those people already are and craft alliances.

If you’re a member of your target audience, it’s an easy thing to look at your habits and surroundings with an eye for brand appearances. If you’re not, spend some time with someone who is. Learn where they already go, then be there.

I like Facebook. I use it all the time. I like soda. I drink it all the time, often in front of the computer while I’m using Facebook. It would be a natural pair. (Whether Diet Coke or Diet Pepsi.) I’d like to keep Facebook free by typing “Coke” or “Pepsi” or “Aveda” while I’m verifying my account, vs. “muddle red” or whatever the program comes up with. Thanks for your time in replying, Facebook. I’ll be curious to see what pops up next.

--Julianne W.

Want Customer Insight? In Real Time?

In the world of social media, it’s a constant conversation. All hours of the day, every day. So, how do you know whether they’re discussing your business? Want to eavesdrop on the conversation and get an insight into your consumers’ perceptions? It’s easier to do than it sounds. Get online and start listening.

Yelp.com, CitySearch.com and local.yahoo.com are good websites. Or set up a Google alert to notify you when your business is referenced in any review, blog or online publication. Run a search on Twitter.

Listening will provide you insight. But to take it a step further and provide good customer service, you should respond to customers’ posts, both good and bad. It demonstrates that you’re a caring and engaged business owner. That said, if you receive a scathing review, it’s advised that you hold off on an immediate response and allow yourself time to cool down before responding.

Whatever you do, don’t post false reviews to bolster your business or badmouth a competitor. It could potentially ruin your reputation and even get you into legal trouble. Not worth it.

Now, go forth and start listening!

--Kara W.

No “Spin” Needed

I’ve worked with the media for more than 30 years, helping companies and organizations share information with their respective audiences. Here at Asher Agency, public relations and media relations planning and execution are just two of the services we provide our clients.

A recent media event we completed for Habitat for Humanity here in Fort Wayne reaffirmed my belief that good media coverage is accomplished most successfully when the activity includes the simple basics of a solid news story. This particular event, a ribbon cutting (we did a “board cutting”) garnered exceptional news coverage—before it was held and after.

Why the success? First, we worked hard on the project, and certainly the folks from Habitat for Humanity and the ReStore worked hard getting things ready. But hard work, a good plan, networking and a strong knowledge of good public relations practices aren’t always enough.

The basics of a good news story with several hooks helped propel this seemingly simple event into the success category.

Habitat for Humanity by itself is an organization with a mission that is good for people and good for the environment. Habitat’s ReStore furthers these efforts by reselling donations of building materials and used items that normally would go to the landfill and recycles them into new lives with purpose. And Habitat invests the proceeds from the sale of donated items into new housing for deserving families.

Those elements comprise news stories with several possibilities: a feature on the environment, a positive economics story in difficult times and a human-interest piece.

No spin was needed!

The word “spin” is often associated with public relations and PR activities. Some stories need more than spin; others, like this new Habitat for Humanity ReStore in Fort Wayne, carry themselves.

The term “spin” has a negative connotation in my mind. I’m not sure why. I’m curious what others think about the term and its application. Let me know what you think.

--Mike B.