1. Companies will expect ROI from their Social Media efforts.

2. The Social Media Specialist (Community Manager) position will become mainstream.

– As a Social Media Specialist you will be responsible for link building and socialization of our client’s online content. Familiarity with the internet, social media sites, search engines, discussion boards, blogs, video sharing sites and podcasting is an asset but a willingness to learn is essential. You must possess excellent written and verbal communication skills in order to write and edit high quality content. A background in interactive marketing or public relations is considered a plus. The ability to find solutions in order to generate measurable results for clients is necessary as well as the generation of reports on those efforts.

Job Accountabilities:
• Contribute strategy and solutions to new business efforts
• Proactively introduce new ideas for client initiatives
• Develop online outreach strategy
• Work with clients to identify the most appropriate blogs
• Establish relationship with key bloggers
• Monitor social networks for potential threats or opportunities
• Leverage social networks to build affinity with either a company, product or issue position
• Leverage video sharing sites like YouTube to advance a client’s message or image
• Conduct online research to identify Web sites and online influencers for outreach
• Conduct one-to-one outreach to site editors, writers, and other influencers
• Develop and manage online strategic partnerships for client projects
• Concept and manage paid placement opportunities, including sponsorships and search engine                  and banner advertising (organic search engine marketing)

3. Cultural shift inside of companies.

4. Social Media Monitoring will be a necessary component

5. Agencies and companies will hire data analysts:
Detailed Description of Role
Ownership/Responsibility
* Campaign set-up
* Structuring, maintaining and evolving accounts across all search engines
* Keyword Research: using a variety of research tools and own initiative
* Ensuring efficient bid management strategies to maximize campaign potential
* Testing & Optimisation – regular testing on different aspects of PPC campaigns
* Performance monitoring – keeping a check on all key performance parameters
* Identifying opportunities for improvement/growing revenue and sales

Reporting
* Daily Logging of Client Stats and Supplier Spend
* Ensuring budgets and targets are met
* Preparing weekly reports and analysis

Troubleshooting
* Ensuring campaigns are functioning correctly
* Addressing poor performing campaigns
* Ensuring visibility of key terms on the engines
* Identifying/spotting irregular behavior on the adspace/performance data

Person Specification
A highly analytical and motivated individual to join the existing Search / Social Media team. The ideal candidate must be able to perform well under pressure within in a fast-paced environment.

Skills / Experience
* Degree educated, ideally in a scientific/technical discipline
* Knowledge/experience of PPC desirable
* 1 or 2 years professional experience within a technical/analytical field is desirable
* Highly Analytical – able to absorb large amounts of data quickly to make quick decisions/provide solutions and ideas
* Exceptional attention to detail
* Driven & Motivated; we are looking for someone who is very performance driven
* Fast learner; able to quickly grasp all key tools/technology
* Innovative & creative; able to think outside the box, this role will require someone able to carry out testing and optimization across our client accounts
* Hungry to learn & enjoys a challenge
* Able to take ownership/responsibility
* Well organized, efficient and ability to meet strict deadlines
* Advanced Excel skills
* Passionate about online marketing

6. Integration of platforms and processes will be critical.

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Ann Charles is Founder and CEO of BRANDfog, an NYC-based company offering Social Media Branding and Corporate Social Responsibility Strategies for C-Suite Executives.

In December, I read a story about social scientists who believe that humans have evolved to become more compassionate and collaborative in our quest to survive. This was called “Survival of the Kindest.” The theory states that sympathy is our strongest human instinct, and helping others is critical to the survival of the whole species. These days, corporations are starting to have the same realization.

Thanks to a social media culture that reveres transparency and demands accountability, companies today are seen through the critical lens of the Triple Bottom Line: People, planet and profit. Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) states that businesses should act as stewards of society, the environment, and the economy. The social media spotlight brings accolades and new business for companies that give back, while brands behaving badly are pilloried in online communities like Twitter and Facebook, followed by the mainstream press.

Creating a CSR strategy has become a primary challenge for CEOs. Fortunately, social media can be an invaluable resource for companies willing to commit to becoming better corporate citizens.

Here are 5 steps to develop a CSR culture using social media.

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7 Takeaways From #BDI: Social Media As a Marketing, Branding & Service Platform

by Sarah Caminker

This week, I had the pleasure of attending a seminar in New York City on Social Integration: Harmonizing Social Channels into the Marketing, Communications & Service Platform. The Business Development Institute put on this fantastic event that included case studies and roundtables for social media marketing, PR and communication professionals. Top-notch speakers included:

Michael Mendenhall: CMO, HP
Joshua Karpf: Digital Communication Manager, PepsiCo
David Patton: VP & EIC, Waggener Edstrom Worldwide
Brian Kenny: CMO & CCO, Harvard Business School
Lynn Mann: Director of External Communications, Michelin
Richard Pesce: Social Media & Digital Communications, Sprint
Michael DiLorenzo: Director of Corporate Communications, National Hockey League

They all stressed the importance of not seeing social media as a separate entity, rather viewing it as an integrated part of your marketing, branding and customer service. The list below details the top 7 takeaways that were discussed during the seminar.

*Note #BDI stands for Business Development Institute and is the event’s hashtag on Twitter that you can search for real-time insight from attendees.

1. Technology is NOT Social. People Are!
Twitter, Facebook, Youtube and other social media sites are just tools. They are only *SOCIAL* if you engage and interact with people on them. Technology is great, but it is about the relationships. Note: these tools are intended for two-way communication and not as a megaphone for your next sales pitch.

2. Feeding the Beast: An Insatiable Appetite for Content
The beauty of the social mediasphere is that anyone can publish, edit or distribute content. We are going through a renaissance of how consumption of information and content is being managed and distributed. Social media has enabled a constant mobility meaning that people expect to receive information 24/7. There is a never-ending hunger for quality content, hence the expression “feeding the beast.”

3. The Era of the Advocate
Mass communication is dead, rather it’s about building personal connections with consumers. The more you serve and support your customers, the more likely they are to recommend your brand to their network (both offline and online). It’s more credible to have an outsider toot your own horn than to have the CMO do it. Remember to thank your “advocates” and make sure they know you appreciate them taking the time to support you and your brand.

4. Digital Newsrooms Are No Longer a Resource For Just the Media
We’re all content creators, and it’s unrealistic to assume that journalists are the only ones seeing your content. Company and industry news needs to be integrated, aggregated and curated for a broader audience. Press releases are just the tip of the iceberg. Begin incorporating multimedia like podcasts and videos and re-purpose content (in the form of white papers, E-books, articles) to tell your story.

5. Transparency and Authenticity is the Only Way to Go
Whether you’re a small business owner, entrepreneur or marketing professional you must communicate who you are, what you do and who you serve right off the bat. It’s also critical that you are upfront and transparent about the content and advice you are giving. If not, people will see right through you, run screaming in the other direction and land on your competitor’s virtual doorstep.

6. Social Media as a Listening Tool to Feed Innovation
Take a step back and listen. Whether that’s monitoring a dialogue on Twitter, following a blogger in your industry to see what conversation they’re sparking or hosting a focus group, you never know when you might get the next big break from just LISTENING to your fans/customers. The #NHLTweetUp is a perfect example. Guess how they got that idea??? By listening to their followers on Twitter! Bottom Line…. Stop, Look and Listen. Then Respond.

7. Crossover From Online to Face-to-Face
Twitter and Facebook are excellent relationship building tools, but there’s something to say about in-person communication that makes that connection even stronger. Take the time to go to industry events, conferences and networking groups to put a face to the avatar. On the business end of the stick, host tweet-ups in different cities, so your can connect with your followers.

I’m interested to hear your feedback and any trends/topics you think could be added to this list. …read more

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A great list of 45 musts in Social Media…read more

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Check out Coke’s Expedition206! Wow!

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Why Digital Agencies Are Indeed Ready to Lead

They Understand the Technology, the Speed of Iteration and Analytics
By Jacques-Herve Roubert on 11.12.09 @ 10:14 AM at AdAge

Over the past 18 months, a great debate has consumed our industry: Are digital agencies poised to sit at the head of the advertising table? Depending on whom you ask and what you read, the answer seems to flip flop — with a majority of people still having reservations and making claims that digital agencies aren’t ready to lead.

So why does the debate continue? Does offline or online really matter to an oblivious consumer who’s only interested in “no-line” communications? Are we spending too much time focusing on who should lead and not enough asking: What’s next?

Ana Andjelic’s DigitalNext post, provocatively titled “Why Digital Agencies Aren’t Ready to Lead,” mentions several reasons why digital agencies aren’t ready to lead, one of which was their lack of experience in the business (as compared with the “decades of experience” that traditional agencies are known for). I’m sure there are instances where decades of experience can directly translate into success, but there are certainly instances (uh, Lehman Brothers?) where deep roots had no bearing on their ability to produce — and produce well. Furthermore, a certain percentage of the individuals now working and thriving in digital agencies came from traditional agencies.

Additionally, most of the world’s most ingenious inventions were not created overnight, but took years of hard work, research, observation, trial and error, and collaboration to fine tune. The digital ecosystem has required much of the same exploration — and, in most cases, into technologies that are new to all of us. As James March himself said, “Exploration involves being an amateur for a while, but only as a step on the way to being a professional.”

And while the structure of an interactive agency may often mimic “one big crazy family” (by the way: Whose family isn’t crazy?), how could making sure everyone’s opinion is heard be a bad thing? Most interactive agencies subscribe to the notion that you never know where the big idea or concept will come from. Sometimes the big idea can come from the exploration of a new technology or method that enhances consumer connection.

Here’s why:

That was then, this is now. Like it or not, the days of the ingenious, 30-second TV spot are over. Today’s creative ingenuity lies within the idea, the technology, the concept, the innovation and, perhaps most important, the Holy Grail: consumer connection. Word of mouth is more prevalent than ever and interactive communities have an increasingly louder and more influential voice and are stronger (and sometimes the only) sources of breaking news stories. No one understands this better — nor is better equipped to handle the swift demands required — than the digital agency.

Teaching an old dog new tricks. The “new trick” is immediacy. It’s about faster response times and the concept of immediacy. E-mail, IM, Twitter, Facebook, cellphones — all of these technologies set the stage for consumers wanting and expecting immediate responses, not to mention, immediate access to products and services. Traditional advertising agencies are not adapting to this mentality because they are still working with processes and organizational structures that were developed in a time when the internet and the concept of immediacy simply did not exist.

Digital agencies understand that brands are being held to higher-than-ever consumer expectations. The plethora of data we can garner from a $50,000 media buy can leave traditional agencies’ heads spinning with insight and analysis. The truth of the matter is: Interactive agencies are forcing traditional agencies to integrate with digital media to better track and measure campaign results through custom URLs, short codes, etc.

Kickin’ it old school. Not only are the days of the 30-second TV spot gone, so too are the traditional advertising agency gurus like David Ogilvy and Bill Bernbach. Today, those figures have been replaced, instead, by financially backed entities. Rather than exploration and exploitation, digital agencies need their own gurus and legends that can lead by example.

Five or 10 years ago, I might agree with the argument that digital agencies weren’t ready to lead, but after sitting at the table with other agencies for the past decade — traditional, branding, public relations, marketing — it’s clear that digital agencies have proven their value, not to mention their ability to innovate, inspire, and create the big idea.

Perhaps the synergy and balance between exploitation and exploration is off kilter for digital agencies, but more and more we’re starting to see the agency structure itself change with new hires in technology and social media. And marketers are noticing:

According to Media magazine, AKQA was named the lead agency for Nike India earlier this year.

Precor named Ascentium its agency of record in October 2009. According to Forrester’s Q2 2009 Interactive Agency Wave, Ascentium “received the highest client satisfaction scores in this year’s review.” The assignment with Precor includes strategic planning and execution of all offline and online campaigns.

McAfee hiring Tribal DDB as its agency of record in 2008. This assignment included all TV, print, outdoor, and digital.

The balance may not be there today, tomorrow or next month. The truth of the matter is digital agencies have earned their right to sit at the head of the table because they’ve brought what consumers and marketers are looking for: new innovations in measurement; flexibility and nimbleness; and, most importantly, ideas that bring what a magazine spread or 30-second TV spot cannot.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Now president-CEO of Nurun, a global interactive marketing agency, Jacques-Hervé Roubert began his career in advertising at Havas Conseil and subsequently held senior executive positions with BDDP and Young & Rubicam.

Popularity: 4% [?]

If you are an advertiser who wants to drive large volumes of traffic to your site, there are two important things you are probably looking for: reach and ease of implementing your campaign. Facebook meets these qualifications. It is currently the third largest site online with 125MM visitors in September and it is quickly approaching parity with the #1 and #2 publishers, Google and Yahoo.

In terms of implementation, Facebook has made it very easy for anyone from a well known brand like Starbucks to a mom and pop shop to a student to create an ad campaign. Creating an ad campaign happens all on one page and takes just three steps including designing the ad (picture, title and description), selecting your targeting and setting a budget. This simple process makes it easy for companies to dip their toes and test advertising on social media sites. …read more

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Facebook’s Big Changes: Action Items for Marketers
Social-Media Site Streamlines Apps Before Fanning Across the Web

Facebook’s latest round of updates announced this week will affect everyone: marketers, developers, publishers, consumers and anyone else remotely connected to their site and platform. And some of the changes will especially impact marketers.

In a rare move for any company, Facebook not only announced what changes will take place, but it publicly offered a timeline for when it will happen. Of course, the timeline may shift, and some specifics have yet to be ironed out — I’ve found in consulting both with Facebook executives and analysts covering the announcements that, many of the details aren’t yet known and a number of important questions cannot yet be fully answered. However, marketers should still appreciate the wealth of information Facebook has provided on these changes, including a gallery of screen shots. …Read more

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Charles Nelson, president of Sprinkles Cupcakes, doesn’t have a Facebook profile. Nelson, who works seven days a week, has no time for chatting online with Facebook friends.

But Nelson is logged on to Facebook all the time. That’s because more than 70,000 people have declared themselves fans of Sprinkles’ Facebook page, which is at facebook.com/sprinkles.

Each day on the site, Sprinkles announces a secret word, such as “ganache” or “bunny,” and the first 25 or 50 people to show up at any of its five stores around the country and whisper that word get a free cupcake.

“On Facebook, we can ask our customers what’s the next location they want,” Nelson said. “What do they think of our next flavor? It’s an amazing way to communicate with our fans.”

Facebook is not just for friends anymore. The free social networking site — blocked in some workplaces as a potential time-waster — is increasingly becoming an inexpensive marketing tool for small businesses.

Sprinkles is among a growing number of small businesses taking advantage of a relatively new program on Facebook, one that allows them to claim their name, become visible even to folks who aren’t on the site, and stay in close contact with their customers. The business, in effect, can act like any other person on Facebook, posting status updates and seeing what its fans are doing. …read more here–>

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Jane’s video below demonstrates some important possibilities in SMM:

1. If you have a niche, begin marketing to it via short, punchy, informative videos NOW.
2. Don’t wait to get it perfect. You are already an “expert” in something. Get yourself out there.

Watch Jane here for inspiration: http://bit.ly/video_converts_to_fans

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Go Graham and Lorrie! http://bit.ly/2Fca0o

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Howard Brown of Circle Builders attended a presentation last evening from the Midwest director of ad-sales for Facbook – Tom Chisholm

He covers 5 Midwest states and accounts for advertising like 3 autos, PG, Kellogg’s, Compuware, Quicken Loans

Social graph (you at center then family, college, work) of connection, sharing and conversations:

•92% of ALL college students have a FB account
•1 million new registered user a DAY (1/3 US / 2/3rds International)
•74 languages (more native tongues on the way
•324 million total users up 100m this year (1/3 US / 2/3rds International) (intense infrastructure to handle this never been done before bandwidth, storage, processing power…)
•70 million photos posted a day (largest photo sharing site in the world – all others combined do not equal FB)
•4 times the amount of events than evite
•Avg stay time (stickiness) 19.6 minutes
•Analytics – 200 data points per user profile (data is Trojan horse to revenue with advertisers)
•40% of all user profiles public ally list cell phone #
•FB connect has been a game changer
•Best advertisers – Virgin, Addidas, Starbucks
•No plans to charge users – FB will monetize by acting as ad agency:

national accounts
regional / small biz
online

FB considers:
Web 1.0 = static
Web 2.0 = interactive
Web 3.0 = sharing

Just became cash flow positive last month

FB is content to become the worlds largest monopoly / utility

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Turning the Social Web Into Real ROI

Today the social web is essential to how we live our lives and how we stay connected. We use it to keep up with friends, family, colleagues, and even public figures and businesses. But does it really present an opportunity to marketers? The social web has proven to be effective in helping marketers reach the right audience at the right time. The way we stay connected has moved beyond email to a world of real-time reciprocal communication. With more time spent on Facebook than email these days, marketers are able to reach a large and interested audience and engage in a two-way dialogue with consumers.

This session will explore best practices in how marketers can leverage the social web as a simple way to quickly build and manage effective campaigns. Our panel of experts will share their first-hand experience and help marketers gain a better understanding of what they can do to maximize their success through the use of these tools.

Moderator:
Tim Kendall, Director of Monetization, Facebook

Speakers:
Sean Heywood, Managing Partner, MR Barber Shop & Urban Lounge
Claudia Virgilio, Vice President Western Region, Performics
Rogelio (Ro) Choy, Chief Revenue Officer, RockYou

QUOTES FROM THIS SESSION
(these are all direct quotes from these leaders)

Conversions 11% higher with social media properties involved in campaign

Campaigns typically double ROI when social media is involved

Virality is the driving force in Social Media
But how you measure it?
Click throughs on notification and then whether that person forwards it

More focus on fan pages vs. web pages….dynamic, growing, community….value of fan page vs. web site (fan page FACEBOOK hands down better due to MULTIPLIER EFFECT!)

52%-58% higher ROI through Facebook in a targeted test of online marketing of different web properties – Claudia Virgilio

3 to 1 ROI on FB for my clients on average – Claudia Virgilio

If we reach a 30% forward rate, we know it is viral and we get really excited. -Rogelio (Ro) Choy, Chief Revenue Officer, RockYou

There was much conversation during this talk about the Facebook fan page vs. traditional landing pages and other web properties in terms of ROI. All agreed the ROI due to the MULTIPLIER EFFECT was huge).

FB and social media in general offer businesses super niche , super specfic campaign opportunities. Again, conversion is 11% higher through a FB fan page than a landing page. – Claudia Virgilio

More focus on fan pages vs. web pages….dynamic, growing, community….value of fan page vs. web site (fan page FACEBOOK hands down better due to MULTIPLIER EFFECT!)

52%-58% higher ROI through Facebook in a targeted test of online marketing of different web properties – Claudia Virgilio

3 to 1 ROI on FB for my clients on average – Claudia Virgilio

If we reach a 30% forward rate, we know it is viral and we get really excited. -Rogelio (Ro) Choy, Chief Revenue Officer, RockYou

There was much conversation during this talk about the Facebook fan page vs. traditional landing pages and other web properties in terms of ROI. All agreed the ROI due to the MULTIPLIER EFFECT was huge).

Popularity: 8% [?]