If you’re new to social media, and even if you’re not, attending conferences is a great way to learn about new trends, get inspiration from motivational speakers and gain a fresh perspective on the Web 2.0 world.

And so it was here in Toronto with Social Media Week 2012 .

If you’re not familiar with the event, it’s a week-long global conference about social media. In 2012, Social Media Week, or #SMW as it’s affectionately called on Twitter, was held in 21 cities around the world. For the most part it’s run by volunteers and all events are FREE.

I attended 7 SMW events in Toronto. Of those, 5 were really valuable, one was blatant self promotion and one featured speakers who had little to say and looked like they had slept in their clothes (more on that in a future post).

Two sessions in particular resonated with me.

Project Butterfly: Escaping the net

Project Butterfly is a multi-city research project conducted across the United States by the Palmerston Group. The study compared sociable people in the real world (a group the researchers dubbed “social butterflies”) with their counterparts in the online world (“hyperconnectors”).

What did they discover?

The two bear absolutely no resemblance to one another.

Social butterflies are interesting and interested. They’re accepting, flexible, show mutual respect for others and are sensitive to verbal and non-verbal social cues.

Hyperconnectors, on the other hand, are the exact opposite. They’re good at initial contact but lack the skills to maintain a relationship. They’re afraid to be alone, are longing for a sense of community and tend to overtly promote themselves (follow me, look at me, add me, I am awesome) in order to attract attention.

Take-away: To be more successful online, strive to be like real-life social butterflies—learn, listen, be attentive and empathize with others. 

Social Media ROI: Myth or reality?

The return on investment of social media is on everyone’s minds these days. But it’s elusive.

In fact, one of the panelists compared social media ROI to the Sasquatch: Everyone is looking for it, but no one can find it.

While we didn’t find the Sasquatch, a consensus emerged that social media ROI means something different for everyone.

A few organizations are still counting impressions and advertising value, while others are taking a more sophisticated approach by considering conversation volume, share of voice, sentiment and topics of conversation.

One panelist controversially offered the opinion that you can’t measure social media ROI. Another said social media ROI is like a toilet: You can’t really put a number on it but you wouldn’t want to live without it.

Personally, I prefer the analogy of having dinner with your family every night. You can’t measure the ROI of a meal with the kids but you know it’s really important.

There’s a great summary of the session here that discusses four ways to start measuring results.

Take-away: Not everything that counts can be counted, and not everything that’s counted counts (Albert Einstein).

YOUR TURN

Were you at Social Media Week? What sessions inspired you? If you weren’t able to make it, what conference discussion encouraged you to look at social media in a new light?

It wasn’t that long ago I used to say, “Twitter’s for twits.” At the time, tweeting seemed pointless and foolish.

And then I got an iPad. I loaded it with Flipboard, a fantastic app that lets you read your Twitter feed and other online content in exactly the same way you read a magazine.

That was my Eureka moment when I realized there’s a lot of wonderful content being shared on Twitter.

I was hooked. I now spend far too much time on Twitter, but it’s worth it. I learn a lot from followers and friends about social media, news and trends in communications.

Over the last year I’ve picked up a few Twitter tricks that help me get more out of tweeting. Here are my top 5:

1.       Find the best time to tweet

My colleague Steve Hughes wrote an interesting post about Social Bro a few weeks ago where he took a look at how many of his Twitter followers are “real.”

If you haven’t heard of it yet, Social Bro manages and analyzes your Twitter community. I haven’t had a chance to investigate everything it has to offer but the one tool I really love is Best Time To Tweet.

The free version analyzes your top 100 followers and suggests the best times to tweet based on when they’re online. Other analytics come into play to help you decide when to tweet, but for my purposes the Social Bro tool is more than adequate.

Here’s what my Best Times to Tweet looks like this week:

And here’s the best part.

Social Bro will configure your Buffer schedule (see next point), allowing you to pick the days on which you tweet, the number of tweets per day and the minimum interval between tweets.

2.       Schedule your tweets

Ever wonder how someone can tweet 24/7? Want to know their secret? They’re scheduling their tweets.

It’s not a bad thing to do as long as you can change the schedule if something big happens. You don’t want to be tweeting about Facebook or sharing a funny video if an important public figure has just been attacked.

There are a number of applications that let you schedule your tweets, including Hootsuite, TweetDeck and Buffer.

Buffer has a handy extension for Firefox that allows you to add tweets to your Buffer from any website.  You can also email links to your Buffer when reading an interesting article on your tablet.

My click-through-rate has definitely increased since I started using Buffer and Best Time to Tweet, although it hasn’t impacted re-tweets… yet.

3.       Choose your Twitter check-in times

It’s not hard to get sucked into the Twitter vortex. To avoid wasting time, discipline yourself by checking your Twitter feed only at certain times of the day. I look first thing in the morning while I’m eating my muesli, after lunch and at the end of the day before I leave my office.

4.       Join a Twitter chat

Twitter chats are opportunities to ‘talk’ with like-minded professionals by sharing information and opinions around specific topics. There are hundreds of Twitter chats happening throughout the week on every topic under the social media sun, including healthcare, blogging, PR, journalism and LinkedIn.

A chat schedule was originally inspired by a blog post by Meryl Evans and from there a Google doc was created. Check the schedule to find a Twitter chat that will help you learn new things and meet some new folks to follow.

5.       All work, no play makes for a dull Twitter feed

Tweeting the same stuff day in and day out can get pretty boring for you and your followers.

Plan your tweets by mixing it up a bit using a combination of the following:

• Interesting content that’s relevant to your business
• A funny video from YouTube, especially appropriate at the end of the day or on a Friday afternoon
• A humorous joke or comment. And if you’re not funny, follow someone who is and occasionally retweet them (like @BorowitzReport)
• Snap a photo with your smart phone and share it
• Ask a question, either business or personal, depending on who you’re representing on Twitter

YOUR TURN

What tricks do you use to get more out of Twitter? Have you found ways to reduce the amount of time you spend planning your tweets and reading your feed?

I started my blog last September after debating whether I should or I shouldn’t. I worried about the time commitment and if I could consistently post something coherent on at least a weekly basis.

I finally took the plunge and incorporated a blog into the Polaris website redesign, keeping my fingers crossed it would prove to be a good move.

After 5 months I’m happy to report it was a great move—turns out I actually love blogging.

If you’re wondering whether you should or you shouldn’t, here are the 10 best kept secrets I discovered after starting my blog:

1. A blog introduces you to some great people

I’ve met some tremendous people in the last five months, including those who’ve stopped by to comment, reached out to guest blog, invited me to guest post on their blog and a handful of others who just wanted to help me get the word out.

2. Writing a blog sharpens your mind

I’ve always believed that muddled writing is a sign of muddled thinking. Yet I’ve been surprised at how much writing a blog has clarified my own thoughts and opinions.

3. Blogging is not as time consuming as you think

Starting a blog is definitely time consuming. But once you’ve nailed the focus, design and editorial calendar, maintaining it takes less time than you initially expect.

4. A blog leads to interesting opportunities in real life

In a few weeks I’ll be part of a panel discussion at Social Media Week here in Toronto. If I hadn’t started a blog, that opportunity would not have been available to me.

5. Blogging releases your inner rebel

This one’s a biggie for anyone who works at an agency. I love my clients but I have to confess it’s a real joy to be the one who gives final approval on my blog posts. It allows me to rebel a little bit against client constraints, but in a nice way.

6. A blog encourages continuous learning

When you’ve got a blog you can’t just sit on your laurels. You have to stay up to date on the blogosphere. So if you’re a person who likes to learn new things, you’ll get a real kick out of this particular aspect of blogging.

7. The steak’s just as important as the sizzle

In my book a good looking blog is as important as a well written blog. Theoretically I understood the importance of pictures, headlines and bullet points when I started my blog. But somehow that theory didn’t translate well into my earlier posts. I’m still working on having a blog that looks as good as it reads.

8. It doesn’t matter if no one comments

I definitely want people to stop by and comment on my blog. But if they don’t, it’s not the end of the world since the process of blogging is satisfying in itself.

9. It’s not difficult to come up with topics to blog about

Blogging once a week is a comfortable pace for me. That level of frequency means it’s easy to find things to write about, although some topics clearly resonate with people more than others.

10. Blogging is fun

If you’re a creative person who enjoys writing, starting and maintaining a blog is fun.

YOUR TURN

What unexpected things did you learn when you started your blog? If you’re thinking about starting a blog, what’s holding you back?

Guest post by Tyler Orchard

Businesses once had the choice of whether or not to employ social media and digital platforms as individual elements that supported their communications and marketing objectives. Some would arrive at this decision after wrestling with its possible ROI while others, who may be more risk averse, would be reluctant to see the benefits that were clouded by a heightened sense of fear.

However, there has been a drastic shift with the emergence of PR2.0 and social media. Being involved in this world is now more of an expectation than a subjective business decision. Business development, in its most basic form, is founded on a connection with your audience. This shared relationship is not just a primal manifestation of consumerism anymore. The relationship between consumer and business has been ratified by the ever growing presence of social media.

Businesses operate within a community that is tightly woven making engagement something many companies strive to achieve. Yet, at no fault of their own, they do not understand what that truly entails.

In the past, business acumen and decisions were governed by capitalism’s boundaries. However, there has been a shift in regards to how consumers are viewed by a brand today.

Community Management

Your network of friends is a perfect simile to use when describing the digital community. You have different ages, people from different backgrounds, those who are outspoken and eccentric, those who are timid and distant, people with different tastes and characteristics and competing ideologies. Each one of your friends is also part of another network where relationships are shaped and reshaped on a daily basis. Nurturing those associations is difficult, demanding and stressful.

The digital community is much like that. Businesses have to connect with a plethora of people who hold diverse identities. However, building, solidifying and managing those relationships remains just as difficult.

There is a new business protocol that is simple in context, but difficult in practice. If you can build, nurture and strengthen your community through engagement, dialogue and transparency, then you’ll succeed. In contrast, a company who practices active content filtration or ignores and bypasses engagement for individual convenience, will perish.

Investing in the Community

There are clear and discernible traits of a company who is successful at engaging their audience. Unfortunately, there aren’t any secret formulas or top 10 lists to achieve this. Actually, many of the points I have raised may seem common sense, but understanding how to operate in the PR2.0 world and vigorously practicing those methodologies are two very distinct things.

Success lies in the ability to identify communities and authentically engage in global conversations. It’s important to see social media as an investment that takes time. Being in the digital space does not equate to success.

Creating a brand within a community is not an overnight task. By shifting the focus to your audience through authentic and transparent dialogue, value-added content, creativity and two-way conversation, you can shape your brand into something that resonates with people.

What Does Your ROI Look Like?

In business, your ROI is paramount. Many have and continue to shy away from social media and PR2.0 strategies because ROI is not fully quantifiable. These benefits may not be quantifiable in terms of measurement (to the extent we would like them to be), but they can mean everything to your brand and its ability to evolve:

• Trust
• Solidified community involvement
• Content consumption
• Engagement
• Relationships that can be leveraged
• A branding forum
• An intimate connection with your consumer
• Sentiment shifts
• Awareness

We all discuss true engagement with our consumers, but is it even possible? Will we see further integration between businesses and communities or will there always be a buffer?

Tyler Orchard is a Toronto-based Director of Communications and PR in the political world. He also provides social media community consulting to MarketShare Communications Inc. Tyler holds a Masters degree from the University of Guelph and McMaster University in public policy and public relations. However, he will be a lifelong student of social media. Follow him on Twitter and check out his blog, Talking Points.

Some are born to shine in the spotlight while others arrive after a lot of blood, sweat and tears. If you’re one of the latter (and most of us are) your stomach likely does back-flips at the mere thought of a media interview. But with the proper coaching, preparation and practice, it doesn’t have to be that way.

Here are 5 tips to wrangle your butterflies and become a successful media spokesperson:

1. Be prepared
It sounds cliché, but preparing for media interviews beforehand is absolutely essential. Preparation gives you confidence and helps ensure you communicate effectively.

Before media come calling, develop key messages, or 20-second information “nuggets” that tell your story in an interesting way. These messages become the foundation of your interviews and ensure consistency in your communication to the media.

2. Make it meaningful
Responding with a litany of rehearsed key messages that have no relevance to the question being asked won’t score any points with a journalist. Back up your messages with anecdotal information, real-life examples, analogies or research.

3. Take control
Never jump into an interview cold. When a journalist calls for an interview, convey your availability and ask about theirs. Get a few additional details and agree to call them back in 20 minutes. Use the extra time to prepare.

4. Set the tone
Media often start an interview with an open ended question. If that’s the case, it’s important to set the tone right from the beginning. Your very first response will play an important part in establishing the rest of the agenda. Here’s what I mean:

Reporter: How is the company doing?
You: Things are great. We’ve got a new product….

This response will almost always lead to more probing about the product.

5. Focus on the positive
A simple way to keep things on the right track is to listen carefully to the question then pick up on a word to form your response. Here’s how:

Reporter: What will you do if the product bombs?
You: We’re feeling very good about this product because all our research indicates….

Instead of responding with denial—it won’t bomb because—you’ve effectively used the word “product” in your answer to move the conversation forward in a positive direction.

Keeping an interview on course can be tricky business. But if you prepare, listen carefully to the questions, pick up on the right cue words, and avoid some of the distractions that may be thrown your way, you’ll be a media star in no time.

YOUR TURN
If you’re a seasoned spokesperson what tips have helped you to shine in the spotlight?

www.news.nationalgeographic.com

My husband and I love to travel.

Over the last decade we’ve visited Australia, New Zealand, Alaska, Europe, South Africa and the Caribbean, as well as destinations closer to home including Chicago, Washington and New York City.

When we need a completely stress-free holiday, a cruise is at the top of our preferred destination list. In fact, we’re booked on a cruise this March.

I have to admit I’m pretty nervous about taking a cruise right now. Along with the rest of the world I’m watching with astonishment and horror as the plight of the shipwrecked Costa Concordia unfolds off the coast of Italy (if the video doesn’t open in your browser, click here):

My husband keeps telling me, “Don’t give it another thought.” The Costa disaster is an anomaly in the cruise ship industry, he says, and media reports seem to confirm his perspective. But I’m a worry-wart, as well as a PR pro who’s interested in the communications surrounding the crisis.

So, I called Carnival (the cruise line we’re booked with as well as the parent company of Costa) for reassurance. For good measure I also called two other cruise lines to see how they’re dealing with customer uncertainty.

Carnival’s customer service rep sounded genuinely upset about the tragedy. Her voice shaking, she told me, “Our hearts and prayers go out to everyone on that ship.”

Next, she told me how important passenger safety is for Carnival and explained that emergency drills are held before going to sea. Carnival crew ensures that every passenger attends.

I had a couple of technical questions about crew and officer training, as well as the construction of their ships, that she couldn’t answer. But she did provide me with the contact information of someone who could help.

The call ended with some reassuring words. Apparently, my husband is correct. Carnival has only had four calls about the tragedy and ships leaving port today are sold-out. She explained that people realize the disaster in Italy is an exceptional situation.

The responses from the other cruise lines were mixed. Celebrity Cruises was the most professional. The call centre was able to answer all my questions, including those about officer training and ship construction. Until the Costa Concordia, they told me, it had been over 20 years since a cruise ship has sunk. [Update: This information is not correct. The MS Sea Diamond sank in 2007 off the coast of Santorini, Greece.]

Disney, surprisingly, gave the weakest responses of the three. The rep sounded like he was winging it, although he did tell me safety is a priority on their ships and muster drills are mandatory.

While there are many lessons organizations can learn from the Costa Concordia tragedy, here are a few from a communications perspective:

1. Anticipate worst case scenarios in advance and prepare appropriate messages.
2. When a competitor is faced with a tragedy be sure to dust off your crisis manual, develop a strategy for your organization and move forward from there. Chances are high that media and other stakeholders will call you for a perspective.
3. If faced with a disaster that causes loss of life, your first message should convey sympathy for the people affected.
4. Depending on the situation, provide examples of how this kind of tragedy is mitigated at your organization.
5. Don’t forget about front-line employees. Call centres and receptionists should be prepared with appropriate scripting to either answer enquiries or promptly forward them to someone who can.

Overall the cruise lines handled my enquiry very well. Bottom line: It’s anchors a-weigh in March.

YOUR TURN
What do you think of the communications surrounding the Costa Concordia? What’s good, bad and down-right ugly? Would you feel safe on a cruise ship today?

Frank surprises and delights his customers at Lion Sands Game Reserve, S. Africa

A few weeks ago, I wrote a post about customer service where I listed 25 ways to surprise and delight your customers in 2012. The post resonated with a lot of people so a follow-up is definitely warranted.

But instead of simply telling you more about customer service, I want to actually show you what I mean.

Here’s where Frank comes in.

Frank is the gate-keeper at Lion Sands Game Reserve in South Africa. He greets guests as they arrive or depart, including every morning and afternoon when their safari begins and ends. Frank embodies great customer service—he truly knows how to surprise and delight.

So without further ado, meet Frank. If the video doesn’t open in your browser, click here:

YOUR TURN
Have you had a great experience with customer service recently? What made it special?

It’s actually pretty simple. Or is it?

A publicist gets ink, or earned media, for their clients. It’s not an easy job and it requires strategic thinking. Typically their work generates short term buzz and doesn’t go beyond media coverage.

A public relations professional may also get ink for their clients.

In the process, both PR pro and publicist ask a lot of questions. Why do you want media coverage? What do you want it to say? Who is the audience? What does success look like to you?

The difference? The PR pro will ask how ink will help you achieve your business goals.

Publicists and PR pros watch and read the news. If they’re good at their job, they have a sense of the key headlines of the day and how a client’s story fits into that landscape.

An experienced PR pro sees beyond the headlines. They help clients change the channel, reposition an issue or even tell a brand new story in order to better inform a client’s stakeholders.

Here’s a good example from Canadian news this week: The Harper government is escalating attacks on critics of the Northern Gateway oil sands pipeline, a project opposed by environmentalists and first nations. On Tuesday and Wednesday the story was above the fold on the front page of the Globe and Mail. According to the paper, Ottawa is suggesting that “foreign-funded radicals are plotting to derail the project,” the operative words here being “foreign-funded.” It’s unclear if the strategy will work but it’s a blatant attempt to take attention away from legitimate environmental discussion.

But I digress.

A publicist and a PR pro both have extensive media contacts. The publicist is proud of their connections—their bread and butter—as is the PR pro.

The PR pro also says: “Yes, we have good contacts, but what’s more important is that we know how to position your story so it’s appealing to a wide range of media, even if we don’t already know them.”

The PR pro helps your spokesperson gain confidence. They’ll suggest improvements to body language, as well as verbal communication. They’ll anticipate tough questions and work with you to develop the best response.

A PR professional will also help you stay out of the news by developing messages and strategies for mitigating a negative story.

And a PR pro can do so much more than secure earned media. They may also help with internal communications, government relations, investor relations, blogger outreach, writing, event organization, public affairs, issues management and crisis communications.

YOUR TURN
What do you think are the key differences between a PR pro and a publicist? Have you used either or both? What’s your take on the services each offers?

But this post isn’t just for people on the front lines dealing with customers on a daily basis. And it’s not just for business people either. Colleagues that we work with every day, whether in a school or museum, factory or office, are just as important as customers who pay the bills. If internal colleagues don’t pull together and work effectively as a team, how will an organization ever achieve its goals?

Perhaps our most important ‘customers’ are family members. As the saying goes, “I don’t care how poor a man is; if he has family, he’s rich.” As busy business people we sometimes need to be reminded to nurture relationships with children, parents and extended family members.

The following was inspired by “Life’s Little Instruction Book” by H. Jackson Brown, Jr. The book is a collection of fatherly advice written for his son Adam as he leaves for his first year of college. Brown wanted to pass on “a few observations and words of counsel” to help Adam lead a successful and purposeful life.

I chose some of my favourite pearls of wisdom from Jackson’s book and compiled a list of 25 ways to surprise and delight your customers in 2012:

1. Admit your mistakes
2. Swing for the fence
3. Learn to disagree without being disagreeable
4. Be open to new ideas
5. Be a leader. Remember, the lead sled dog is the only one with a decent view
6. In business and in family relationships, remember that the most important thing is trust
7. Remember names and take an interest in knowing about the people behind them
8. Become the most positive and enthusiastic person you know
9. Remember that a successful partnership depends on two things: Finding the right partner; and Being the right partner
10. Practice empathy. Try to walk in other people’s moccasins
11. Do business with those who do business with you
12. Laugh a lot. A good sense of humour cures almost all of life’s ills
13. Be the most fun in your customer’s day
14. Promise big. Deliver bigger.
15. Give your customers your enthusiastic best
16. Do more than is expected
17. Regardless of the situation, remember that nothing is ever lost by courtesy
18. Don’t work for recognition, but do work worthy of recognition
19. What you have to do, do wholeheartedly
20. Let your word be your bond
21. Be passionate
22. Be committed
23. Don’t forget that your attitude is just as important as the facts
24. Work diligently
25. When facing a difficult task, act as though it is impossible to fail. If you’re going after Moby Dick, take along the tartar sauce.

YOUR TURN
How important is customer service to you? What suggestions do you have to deliver exceptional customer service? Where do you find inspiration to go above and beyond the call of duty when dealing with internal, external and family ‘customers? ‘

2011 was a big year. We certainly had our share of PR and social media bloopers. Charlie Sheen’s public meltdown inspired speculation that he is mentally ill, possibly suffering from manic depression.

More recently, Chiquita Brands Company said it would boycott Canadian oil, then changed its mind when public opinion didn’t go its way. You can read a good analysis of this story over at Tyler Orchard’s PR blog.

The biggest PR blooper of the year? In my mind it belongs to Toronto city councilor Doug Ford, brother of Rob Ford, and half of the city’s so-called ‘Twin Ford Mayors.’ I didn’t use a lot of criteria to pick Councilor Ford for Polaris PR Blooper of the Year (I didn’t really need that many). Since Polaris is a Canadian company, it helps he’s a Canuck. That aside, in considering the biggest faux pas of the year, I simply picked the one that made me shake my head the most and say, “I can’t believe he just said that.”

I’ve written about the Twin Ford Mayors before. In that post I alluded to Councilor Ford’s altercation with Margaret Atwood, a respected writer recognized internationally for her work.

The Atwood incident happened back in July. Like many jurisdictions around the world, Toronto is struggling to balance its budget. Nothing was sacred as city council turned its eye to the costs associated with running the city’s libraries. Of course, controversy ensued with petitions circulating like wild fire protesting proposed cost cutting measures.

Margaret Atwood took up the cause, sharing links to the petition on Twitter and expressing concern that Toronto’s reputation as a cultural centre was being damaged by the suggested cutbacks. She encouraged the people of Toronto to contact their city councilor in order to fight the proposed measures.

Here’s where we get into the blooper aspect of the affair.

When asked about Atwood’s comments, Doug Ford commented: “She could walk right by me. I wouldn’t have a clue who she is. Tell her to go run in the next election and get democratically elected and we’d be more than happy to sit down and listen to Margaret Atwood.”

Are you kidding me? If I didn’t know who Margaret Atwood is, I certainly wouldn’t proclaim the fact (rather proudly, I might add) in a public fashion. Even more disconcerting is Ford’s belief that one must be elected to have an opinion heard by city hall.

Perhaps the most humorous response to Ford’s audacious statements came from one of Atwood’s 200,000 Twitter followers @BrendaCossman who quipped: “Doug Ford not knowing who Atwood is…isn’t that kind of an argument in favour of more public libraries in his area?”

YOUR TURN
What PR or social media bloopers will you remember from 2011? Which one represented the biggest blunder for you? What criteria did you use to determine the most serious bungle?