prsa volunteer chapter presentation jan. 2011
DESCRIPTION
The advent of social media and many diversifying forms of online communications have led companies and organizations to try to identify ways to incorporate these new tools in their marketing communications.However, according to a recent survey of communications professionals from across Tennessee, significant gaps exist between social media’s potential and how well Tennessee businesses and organizations actually are utilizing it to achieve results.The survey also found that professionals believe their own organizations are underutilizing or underperforming with social media compared to the importance of using social media for particular needs, from crisis communications planning and employee relationship-building to new product development.Interactive Springboard, a joint venture between Blue Media Boutique and Mary Beth West Consulting, with research insights provided by Bryant Research, will provide an informative overview of the survey results as well as recommendations for overcoming common challenges of effective social media adoption.TRANSCRIPT
NO COOKIE-CUTTERS ALLOWED:NO COOKIE-CUTTERS ALLOWED: Making Social Media a Driver of Genuine Relationship BuildingGenuine Relationship-Building
WelcomeWhat We’ll Discuss:
Overview of Recent Knoxville Area Survey Results fromOverview of Recent Knoxville-Area Survey Results from PRSA Communicators about Social Media
Customer CommunicationsEmployee CommunicationsEmployee CommunicationsCrisis CommunicationsProduct Development and Testing
Key Take-Awaysey a e aysRationale for Customized Strategies and TacticsObservations and Landmines AssociatedObservations and Landmines Associatedwith the Cookie-Cutter Approach in Social MediaDo’s and Don’ts
Q&A
Our Team• Mary Beth West, APR
– www.marybethwest.com y
• Tori Rosebl di b ti– www.bluemediaboutique.com
With independent research provided by:With independent research provided by:
• Rebecca Bryant– www.bryant-research.com
Survey Methodologyy gy• Part of a larger Tennessee statewide survey
of PRSA members conducted summer 2010• 62 respondents from the Volunteer Chapter
listservWid f b i t ith• Wide range of business sectors, with government, health care and educational organizations making up nearly half the
lsample.• Over half of respondents reportedly from
companies with:companies with: • More than 500 employees• 2009 revenues of more than $10 million
9 out of 10 believe Social9 out of 10 believe Social Media is an important
t icomponent in any communications plan.p
SURVEY RESULTSSURVEY RESULTSSocial media is an important component in any
i ti l ( 67)
75
100 communications plan. (n=67)
57
3350
cen
t To
tal
4 60
0
25Per
c
Very true Somewhat true Not sure Somewhat untrue Not true at allPRSA Volunteer Chapter
As important as it isAs important as it is, however, 7 in 10 say it’s hard t lt fto measure results from using Social Media.g
SURVEY RESULTSSURVEY RESULTS
It's hard to measure the results from using social
75
100
gmedia. (n=67)
58
50
75
cent
Tot
al
12 12 126
0
25
Perc
0Very true Somewhat true Not sure Somewhat untrue Not true at all
PRSA Volunteer Chapter
Still very few – only 4% –Still, very few only 4% regard Social Media as a
i f dpassing fad.
SURVEY RESULTSSURVEY RESULTS
Social media is a passing fad. (n=67)
75
100
Social media is a passing fad. (n 67)
4950
75
cent
Tot
al
04
13
33
25
Perc
00
Very true Somewhat true Not sure Somewhat untrue Not true at all
PRSA Volunteer Chapter
Social media is changingSocial media is changing the face of both customer
d land employee communications.
SURVEY RESULTSSURVEY RESULTS
Social media is changing how organizations
73
100
g g gcommunicate with [customers / employees]. (n=67)
73
31
4950
75
cent
Tot
al CustomersEmployees
24
3 0 0
31
10 90
0
25Perc
Very true Somewhat true Not sure Somewhat untrue Not true at all
PRSA Volunteer Chapter
Still, there is a serious learning curve: ¾ of respondents expressedrespondents expressed difficulty knowing what
bi ti f i l dcombination of social and traditional media to use.
SURVEY RESULTSSURVEY RESULTS
It's hard to know what combination of social media100
It s hard to know what combination of social media and traditional media to use. (n=67)
61
50
75
ent T
otal
159 12
3
25
Perc
0Very true Somewhat true Not sure Somewhat untrue Not true at all
PRSA Volunteer Chapter
Perception regarding how p g gclearly Social Media impacts their companies’ bottom linestheir companies bottom lines varied among the respondents.• Most respondents reported seeingMost respondents reported seeing
some degree of clear impact.• However one-in-threeHowever, one in three
characterized the impact as unclearunclear.
SURVEY RESULTSSURVEY RESULTSIt's unclear how social media can contribute to our
75
100 organization's bottom line. (n=67)
3650
75
cent
Tot
al
10
21 18
36
1525
Perc
0Very true Somewhat true Not sure Somewhat untrue Not true at all
PRSA Volunteer Chapter
Though nearly a third areThough nearly a third are uncertain, 2 in 3 say i ti i S i l M di iinvesting in Social Media is worth it.
SURVEY RESULTSSURVEY RESULTS
The return on investment in social media is well 100
e etu o est e t soc a ed a s eworth it. (n=67)
57
50
75
ent T
otal
9
31
1 1
25
Perc
0Very true Somewhat true Not sure Somewhat untrue Not true at all
PRSA Volunteer Chapter
1 in 4 view the cost of1 in 4 view the cost of investing in Social Media as too great for mosttoo great for most organizations.
However, the majority do not.
NOTE: one-in-five are uncertain in this regardg
SURVEY RESULTSSURVEY RESULTS
The cost of managing social media effetively is too
100
The cost of managing social media effetively is too great for most organizations. (n=67)
50
75
ent T
otal
4
21 19
37
1825
Perc
e
40
Very true Somewhat true Not sure Somewhat untrue Not true at all
PRSA Volunteer Chapter
Many are uncertain about how to reliably measure the bottom-line impact of Socialbottom line impact of Social Media.A significant portion of those in theA significant portion of those in the Volunteer PRSA chapter doubt there is a proven way to quantify impactis a proven way to quantify impact.
SURVEY RESULTSSURVEY RESULTSThere is no proven way to measure the bottom-line
100impact of social media. (n=67)
50
75
ent T
otal
6
2230 27
1525
Perc
e
0Very true Somewhat true Not sure Somewhat untrue Not true at all
PRSA Volunteer Chapter
Very few firmly believe federal regulations havefederal regulations have hindered Social Media adoptionadoption.
H l h lfHowever, nearly half expressed uncertainty about this statement.
SURVEY RESULTSSURVEY RESULTSFederal regulations have negatively impacted
adoption of social media (n=67)
75
100adoption of social media. (n=67)
4850
rcen
t Tot
al
49
2415
25
Per
0Very true Somewhat true Not sure Somewhat untrue Not true at all
PRSA Volunteer Chapter
Social Media should be i l d d i i iincluded in crisis communications planning, p g,according to the vast majority of those in the Volunteerof those in the Volunteer PRSA chapter.
SURVEY RESULTSSURVEY RESULTSCrisis communications planning should include
social media (n=67)
7375
100social media. (n=67)
50
rcen
t Tot
al
22
40 0
0
25
Per
0Very true Somewhat true Not sure Somewhat untrue Not true at all
PRSA Volunteer Chapter
Survey Methodologyy gy
Age (n=62)g ( )
75
100
otal
1026
37
15 1325
50
75
erce
nt T
o
10 15 13
0
25
18-24 25-34 35-44 45-54 55-64
P
PRSA Volunteer Chapter
Survey Methodologyy gy
Gender (n=62)Gender (n 62)
7975
100
tal
2150
75
rcen
t Tot
21
0
25
Male Female
Pe
Male Female
PRSA Volunteer Chapter
Survey Methodologyy gy
Management Level (n=62)
5575
100
Tota
l
27
55
1825
50
Perc
ent T
0Senior Management Middle Management Other
P
PRSA Volunteer Chapter
Survey Methodologyy gyType Organization (n=61)
16 15 15 235075
100
nt T
otal
16 15 15 10 8 7 723
02550
ent
on are
fit,
ng cial sm herPe
rcen
Gov
ernm
e
Educ
ati
Hea
lthca
Non
-pro
fot
her
Mar
keti
Fina
n c
Tour
is
Oth
G
PRSA Volunteer Chapter
Survey Methodologyy gy
Number of Employees (n=61)y ( )
75
100
otal
13 13 11 10 11
41
25
50
75
Perc
ent T
00-5 6-25 26-100 101-500 501-1000 Over
1000
P
1000
PRSA Volunteer Chapter
1/3 of Respondents’ Organizations Centered Around Downtown Knoxville and CampusAround Downtown Knoxville and Campus
Organization's Zip Code
Percent TotalZip Code Total (n=61)
37902 16%37996 10%37996 10%37916 7%37830* 7%3 909**37909** 7%37922** 7%37923** 5%Other 43%* Oak Ridge
** West Knoxville
The Take-Awaysy• The power of social media as a tool to
build communications relationshipsbuild communications, relationships and reputations is practically undeniable.
• However, confusion persists about which strategies, tools and tactics can be effective particularly given manybe effective, particularly given many organizations’ limited budgets and resources.
Resulting Challenges We Have Observed in the MarketplaceObserved in the Marketplace
• Failure to use the proven research / pplanning / implementation / evaluation approach in social media
• Customization viewed as too time-consuming and too expensiveconsuming and too expensive, resulting in a cookie-cutter route– Can pose many problems in effectiveCan pose many problems in effective
communications and relationship-building for the brand
Examples
• Social media tools driving gan organization’s interactive presence, rather than the targetrather than the target audience’s known needs and expectationsp
• Template-dominant websites and interactivewebsites and interactive tools
Resulting Problemsg• Target audiences don’t experience
what they wanted online; brand loseswhat they wanted online; brand loses traction
• Failure to develop monitoring and p gtracking on the front-end results in no reporting / ROI data . . . furthering the false notion that social media isn’tfalse notion that social media isn t measurable.
• Budgets wasted on creating andBudgets wasted on creating and developing tools that miss the mark, either technologically or experientially
Customizing Your ApproachCustomizing Your ApproachHow-To’s
What NOT To Do, and WhyyDon’t SPAM.• Your social media content is consumed voluntarily, so it has to be valuable enough to pay attention toenough to pay attention to.
• Limit your “advertisements.” • Think in thirds:Think in thirds:
• 1/3 grow your network• 1/3 engage one-to-one with that g g
network• 1/3 share fresh and exciting content
What NOT To Do, and WhyyDon’t focus solely on your
ticonnections.• Your social media end goal should
always be to convince your network that something is share-worthy.It’s not just about your page or channel• It’s not just about your page or channel. Your content can be delivered by other people on your behalf which is muchpeople on your behalf, which is much more likely to have a profound impact.
What NOT To Do, and WhyyDon’t drive traffic to the wrong place.• Create a funnel. Always drive traffic to a
central place, like your website or blog...not to someone else’s.
• Don’t just share what someone else has done or said Share what you thinkdone or said. Share what you think about what someone else has done or said.said.
What NOT To Do, and WhyyDon’t forget about SEO.• People will most likely discover your
content, including your social media content, through search results.• Facebook pages are typically listed in
the top five resultsthe top five results.• You should have a focused SEO effort and
make sure your social media outreach is amake sure your social media outreach is a part of that effort (pay attention to keywords, titles and phrases).
What NOT To Do, and WhyyDon’t just post...engage.
If you want more comments comment more• If you want more comments, comment more often.
• If you want more Twitter followers, followIf you want more Twitter followers, follow others.
• If you want a blogger to comment on your company, write a blog post about him/her.
• If you want people to watch your YouTube id b ib t th i h lvideo, subscribe to their channels, or even
better, consider posting a video response to one of their videosone of their videos.
What NOT To Do, and WhyyDon’t ignore the power of UGC.• Instead of always trying to convince your
audience to share your content, ask th t t th i ( tlthem to create their own (greatly increasing the likelihood that it will be shared!)shared!).
• Social media is, at its core, a self-centered thing. If someone has been ginvolved in producing it, it’s likely they’ll “brag” about it and pass it along.
Parting Thoughts• Today’s audiences want a unique, genuine
experience from a brand.experience from a brand.• While the full range of interactive capabilities can
be a bit confusing or overwhelming, taking an g g, govertly cookie-cutter approach is not the answer.
• Research, planning, implementation and evaluation is still a tried-and-true process.
• Taking this process and making the execution real and relevant to the user is the critical task.
THANKS!THANKS!
Questions?Questions?
www.interactivespringboard.comwww facebook com/interactivespringboardwww.facebook.com/interactivespringboard