Author Archive
Insights on ‘Delivering Dollars Through Data’
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HUNT VALLEY, Md. — Taking a close look at a company’s data and using it in creative ways will likely elevate opportunities to tap into new sources for sales, according to Tom Loveland, founder and CEO of information systems firm Mind Over Machines.
Speaking at the May 8 Knowledge Session hosted by the Baltimore/Washington chapter of Sales & Marketing Executives International, Loveland provided case study examples of how companies strategically “mined” data in search of information that illuminated a path toward their business goals and leading to profits that otherwise might have been overlooked. Data mining can range from intense analytics and repackaging or mashing data, to simply sifting through company email exchanges to identify contacts with prospective customers. A sampling of take-aways from Loveland’s presentation included:
- A key to success in business intelligence and data mining is a cooperative relationship between the marketing and IT departments. Each needs a common understanding on business drivers and, in most cases, these relationships depend on executive management leading the way by recognizing the opportunities and fostering communication, innovation and creativity when it comes to using data.
- Both IT and marketing must know the business, and each must reach beyond the bounds of their typical functions. IT should step into the role of solving business problems with people and for people, while marketing should know how to use the data to benefit sales, create richer stories that lead to sales conversations, and also use the data to help focus and drive the creative process.
- Companies must set themselves up for success by positioning themselves to be in the business of collecting data and train their teams to look at their data in different ways. If you are ever faced with a situation that makes you think “there must be a better way,” then treat that as a flag that there may be an opportunity to turn your data into an actionable opportunity, Loveland said.
About SMEI
Founded in 1935, Sales & Marketing Executives International (SMEI) is the worldwide organization dedicated to ethical standards, continuing professional development, knowledge sharing, mentoring students and advancing free enterprise. For more information about the Baltimore/Washington chapter, visit www.smeibaltimore.org
Are You Ready to Go Mobile?
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NEW ORLEANS – It’s time to get ready for mobile.
During a breakout session during the Counselor’s Academy conference this week, “Mobilizing Your Firm for a Smartphone World,” presenters Linda W. Cohen, APR, CEO of The Caliber Group, Inc., and Michael Barber, director of digital strategy, Cohn Marketing, shared the following eye-opener facts and insights:
- By June 2012 (next month!) more people will read email on their mobile devices than on laptops or the computers at their offices or at home. No longer are they tethered to the stationary computer work-stations of the past;
- In 2012, a total of 58 percent of consumers will buy something using their mobile device;
- By 2013, half of the internet traffic to your site will be via people on their mobile devices;
- By 2015, more people will access the Internet through mobile devices than through PCs or other wired computers;
- To accommodate and promote all of this, the marketing spend has flipped as budgets for mobile now dominate social. Now is the time to plan your mobile marketing strategy, from providing apps to converting your website so people can access your information when they need it.
If you haven’t done so already, grab an iPhone or Android and visit your company’s website. Like what you see? Ready or not that’s the first impression you’re already offering a significant percentage of visitors to your site.
Talking PR and Social Media in New Orleans
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NEW ORLEANS — I’m in Louisiana for the next few days with members of the Counselors Academy, a section of the Public Relations Society of America for owners and principals of public relations agencies. As usual, they have a great lineup of speakers and I’ll be sharing links and nuggets of information from some of the sessions.
With all the talk about social media (and all the so-called experts in the latest tools and tactics), speaker Jay Baer, president of Convince & Convert, delivered this reminder: “The goal isn’t to be good at social media…the goal is to be good at business because of social media.”
That’s a point worth thinking about as we take steps to weave social media into our routines which, by the way, need to be just that – part of our days: “There’s no magic answer to how much time to devote to social media,” he said. “You must commit to doing it regularly versus doing it in-depth. Speed and response time is important so be first, fast and mobile. A minute here, a minute there in the tiny gaps in the day.”
Jay also shared why your online/social presence – in addition to using traditional channels – is so important. A Google study (see the Zero Moment of Truth) shows that in 2010 people needed 5.3 pieces of information to make a purchase decision. In 2011, they sought out an average of 10.4 sources of information, including blogs, websites and social networks, before they decided. “When we’re almost ready to buy, that’s when we call,” Baer said.
“When we want to make a purchase decision, we research first.” So in addition to making sure your sales information is accessible and accurate, be sure that whoever answers that call is ready, because that’s an educated and motivated customer ready to talk!
Media Relations Tip #23: Prep Before You Get the Call
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I was recently quoted in Wearables magazine about how to prepare a company for publicity. Here is a condensed version of one of my answers:
Q: What is the best way for a business to generate and leverage PR opportunities?
A: You need to be prepared ahead of time to tell your story. That means having your company’s key messages and talking points in order well before you receive the phone call or email asking for a comment.
The PR team should help the media do its job by having information about your company and products readily available, and today that means having a current and easily accessible press section of your website that’s stocked with bios, product fact sheets, recent press releases and images. One of the most important elements of a press room is the press contact – not a generic “info@companyname.com” email address, but a real name, an actual person’s email address and their telephone numbers. That’s typically one of the media’s top complaints about press rooms – there’s no real person to contact when a reporter is on deadline and needs to know someone is available and working to get a response.
Finally, you need to keep your press releases up to date. If the date of your most recent press release was nine months ago, it communicates a lot about what’s going on at your company – or not – whether you like it or not.
‘When Handed a Lemon—Make Lemonade of It’
Posted by: | CommentsAfter dinner at Petit Louis Bistro in the Roland Park section of Baltimore on Jan. 31, two women were confronted by a robber who got away with a purse. You could almost script the media coverage and quotes from customers and neighbors, as crime is relatively rare in that neighborhood. But not in this case, as one of the victims was Sally Michel, chair of the Parks and People Foundation, who did not want the incident to harm the reputation of the restaurant or her beloved Baltimore (click the invitation to read the quote).
To “make lemonade of it,” the Parks & People Board of Directors (I am one of the members) moved quickly to organize a “Fill Sally’s Purse” fund-raiser for Feb 28 when Petit Louis has generously offered to donate 20 percent of proceeds that evening to the Foundation. It also happens to be Sally’s birthday!
How Do You Define Public Relations?
Posted by: | CommentsPublic relations has always been difficult to describe, with all kinds of stereotypes and definitions adding to the confusion. You can help shape a new definition by participating in an international crowd-sourcing project led by the Public Relations Society of America.
First, here is PRSA’s official definition that’s been in place since 1982: “Public relations helps an organization and its publics adapt mutually to each other.”
For context, here are the accepted definitions of two related disciplines: “Marketing is the process used to determine what products or services may be of interest to customers, and the strategy to use in sales, communications and business development,” and “Advertising is a form of communication used to persuade an audience (viewers, readers or listeners) to take some action with respect to products, ideas, or services.”
Since last fall the team behind the “Public Relations Defined” initiative solicited ideas and came up with three finalist definitions:
1. Public relations is the management function of researching, engaging, communicating, and collaborating with stakeholders in an ethical manner to build mutually beneficial relationships and achieve results.
2. Public relations is a strategic communication process that develops and maintains mutually beneficial relationships between organizations and their key publics.
3. Public relations is the engagement between organizations and individuals to achieve mutual understanding and realize strategic goals.
Visit the PRSA website set up for this project to be part of the process. After the comment period ends this Monday an international group will convene to modify the three final descriptions that will be put to a final vote.
And some still think PR is all about party planning and publicity?
Remembering an Extreme PR Experience
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Today’s announcement that ABC’s Extreme Makeover: Home Edition will soon come to an end brought to mind Sawmill’s experience working with the Hollywood producers during a 2007 build in Port Deposit, Md.
It was one of those extreme PR assignments that come along every so often, requiring constant caffeine injections as we managed all aspects of media relations while a team of more than 1,500 volunteers built a 4,300-square-foot home and a therapeutic riding facility in less than a week. Actually 106 hours, to be exact, and we wouldn’t trade those 20-hour days for anything.
Sawmill was brought on board to craft messages, help with product placement, provide media coaching and provide round-the-clock management of the onslaught of media coverage that was sure to arrive with Ty Pennington (seen above with the Luther family on “Move That Bus” day) and the rest of the cast of the Emmy Award-winning reality television show, including the always-in-pink Designer/Carpenter Paige Hemmis (below, chilling with Jeff just after the door-knock).
During the course of the build week, results included more than 55 television stories, dozens of newspaper articles, regular live radio interviews coverage in the trade press and one surprised family!
Media Relations Tip #18: Your Op-Ed Needs to ‘Grab’ the Editor
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“The purpose of an op-ed is to make one point — a good point — and make it well.”
That’s a piece of advice from Barry Rascovar, the long-time Baltimore Sun political columnist and deputy editorial page editor, who joined Michael Cross-Barnet, The Sun‘s deputy opinion editor, at the recent PRSA Mid-Atlantic Chesapeake Conference to share insider tips on getting an op-ed considered and published.
Here are just a few insights:
The Sun publishes 12 op-eds a week. They receive more than 100 each week that are “worthy of consideration.” At The Wall Street Journal and The New York Times, the competition is considerably higher.
Good writing is as important as an interesting topic. Use clear prose and concise, simple language. The academic community tends to have trouble with this, Cross-Barnet said. Rascovar suggests that writers dig out their copies of Strunk & White’s “Elements of Style” for a refresher on making every word count.
Your submission needs to “grab the editor” with a piece that solves a local problem. Be creative, imaginative, concise and cogent.
Is it “different enough, unusual enough?” Or is it another bland piece that will get tossed into the rejection heap?
‘Arrested’ and Other Real World Lessons from Social Media
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In recent months I’ve participated on several panels with the media where we discussed using social media tools in crisis communications situations.
Last week I was on a panel, “Crisis Communication in a Social Media World,” with CNN political commentator Maria Cardona and The Washington Post‘s James Buck. Cardona, also a principal with the Dewey Square Group, provided insights into political scandals and the need to be prepared to move quickly with social media as a key part of your crisis PR plan. Since former Congressman Anthony Weiner is “old news” in the Twitter world, we focused on the Herman Cain controversy and the impact of social media.
Buck talked about how the Post uses social media in its reporting, including live-tweeting meetings and events and verifying sources via Twitter by looking at Klout scores and level of engagement among other factors. Buck has first-hand experience with the power of social media. While covering protests in Egypt in 2008 he was detained by Egyptian authorities and placed in a vehicle that was to take him to a prison. In the back seat, he tweeted one word - “arrested” – which triggered a response that eventually led to his release. Twitter’s founders use this as an example of how one word tweeted to a handful of followers can have a big impact.
Still think social media is for following Justin Bieber or Snooki? It’s so much more, and you need to have a plan and tools in place – before the crisis hits.
