Part Two: 4 More Gurus and Their Books Helping Marketing and Communications Graduates Land that First Job


Huge Banner Asking What Are You Reading?

What Books Are You Reading to Land Your First Job After College?

 

How Confident are YOU in Finding a Job After Graduation?

A College Degree Is No Longer Enough.  There are no guarantees of employment for new college graduates or current students in today's brutal economy.  A college diploma is now a minimum requirement.  This November 2011 New York Times direct quote describes the current situation:


"A bachelor's degree on its own no longer conveys intelligence or capability."

 

Suggested Authors / Books to Help Undergraduate Marketing Majors Land that First Job After College

These suggested authors / books are not of the "cookie cutter" or "10 easy steps on how-to land your first job out of college / summer internship in a lousy economy" variety.  They share creative ideas to show a potential employer "you're more than a resume and the grades on a college transcript".  Their teachings maximize the Internet's global reach and leverage search engines to your advantage.

In my opinion, if you graduated with a marketing and/or communications degree (or are currently studying these undergraduate majors), the following authors and books are REQUIRED READING.

Note: I am not an Amazon Affiliate Program Member.  I respect the following authors because of their invaluable advice on how to develop a credible and professional online presence.

David Meerman Scott

 

The new rules of marketing and pr book 2

I am eternally grateful for the generosity and mentorship of David Meerman Scott.  It's no exaggeration to say his blog and books ignited my passion to study and write about how The Internet continues flipping marketing and public relations strategy upside down.  His influence, blog, and books forever transformed my marketing strategy thinking.

David Meerman Scott is a marketing strategist, advisor to emerging companies, bestselling author of eight books including three international bestsellers, and a professional speaker on topics including marketing, leadership, and social media.

Why The New Rules of Marketing & PR Matters

The New Rules of Marketing & PR is in its 4th Edition, has sold 300,000+ copies, and is translated in 25 languages.

Marketing and communications students will learn from this book the value of:

  • Thinking Like a Publisher (e.g. managing and creating content as a valuable asset)
  • Tactfully and Skillfully Informing the World About Your Expertise
  • Creating Varieties of Content Demonstrating That Expertise
  • Building, Understanding, and Targeting Your Audience Via Buyer Persona Profiles
  • Commenting on Other Blogs to Build Online Credibility and Relationships
  • Giving Away Your Expertise by Publishing and Distributing Free E-Books

Here's David discussing the latest release of The New Rules of Marketing & PR:

 

And, Speaking of Giving Away Your Expertise …

David published the following e-books to promote The New Rules of Marketing & PR, Real-Time Marketing & PR, and Newsjacking.

He defines an e-Book as:

"An e-book is a PDF-formatted document that identifies a market problem and supplies an answer to the problem.  E-books have a bit of intrigue to them — like hip younger sibling to the nerdy white paper."

If you click on the image captions, the hyperlinks will take you to the respective, eBook PDF download pages.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


BONUS:
 Here are my book reviews for Real-Time Marketing & PR and Newsjacking.

Ann Handley and C.C. Chapman

Content Rules Book Cover

If I've said it once, I've said it 43 other times.  Ann Handley is the best writer and storyteller in the New Media Business.  Her writing and storytelling makes you:

Think …
… Laugh
Cry …
Think Some More ...
… Want Some More

Ann is the Chief Content Officer for MarketingProfs, a phenomenal resource for marketing and business professionals.

Her thoughtful and respected new media, A-List, co-author is C.C. Chapman.   Almost 15,000 Twitter followers can't be wrong (and I'm proud to be one).  C.C. is a trusted advisor to global brands like American Eagle Outfitter, Coca-Cola, HBO, and Warner Bros.

Why Content Rules Matters

Ann and C.C. share clear, actionable advice built on two (2) governing principles:

Thinking and Acting Like a Publisher

Publishing Helpful, Remarkable Content


Content Defined.
Words, images, videos comprise content and can take the form of:

  • Web Pages
  • Videos
  • Blogs
  • Photographs
  • Webinars
  • Whitepapers
  • eBooks
  • Podcasts
  • Presentations
  • Social Outposts (e.g., Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, YouTube, Pinterest, etc.)

Learning Through Great Storytelling and Writing. Great writing makes reading Content Rules enjoyable.    And, studying it helps you ask the right questions about content strategy execution:

  1. Goal Setting: Who is Your Audience? What Metrics Will Determine You're Succeeding (or Failing)?
  2. Defining: What Content Type(s) Should You Publish?
  3. Publishing: How Often to Publish (by content type)?  What are the Platform Considerations (i.e., blog posts, tweets, Facebook updates, LinkedIn Group discussions, etc.)?
  4. Promoting: How to Share Content (without the cologne of a used car salesman).

More importantly, they share practical advice for budget-constrained marketing teams wondering:

  • How Do We Start?
  • What's the RIGHT Content Strategy for US?

Pages 22 to 24 to the Rescue. The Content Rules of Why & Who (or Grab Your Colleagues, Tons of Sticky Notes, Lots of Paper, and Thrash Through the Following Questions):

  1. Whom are you trying to reach (e.g., your audience, clients, customers)?
  2. Where does your audience spend their online time?
  3. How does your audience access the Web? This may be your team's most important discussion because of mobile-world implications. Your audience's ability to easily and quickly access mobile content (or not), makes or breaks your ability to access increasing mobile content consumption via tablets and smartphones. Mess this up, and your thoughtful answers to questions #1 and #2 may no longer be valid.
  4. What does your audience crave (e.g., content that informs, entertains, something else)?
  5. What do you want your audience to do (e.g., motivate it to do X, figure out the calls-to-action)?
  6. What content do you already have (e.g. take a content inventory)?

Wake Up (because this is a long post, and I can hear you snoring)! How about re-imagining those boring bullets into something differentiating and remarkable:

 

 

How About Some FREE Content Rules SWAG?  Here are two (2) PDF downloads from the Content Rules Website:

  • The Content Rules Blog Post Template
  • The 12-Point Content Rules Checklist

Please email me at tony [dot] faustino [at] gmail [dot] com if you experience downloading problems.  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


Content Rules Video Update with C.C. Chapman and Ann Handley.
 C.C. and Ann made this September 2010 video before the book's release.  It's a great example of practicing what they preach and seeing the human side of great content marketing.  

Content Rules: September 1, 2010 Update from C.C. Chapman on Vimeo.

 

Brian Halligan and Dharmesh Shah


Inbound marketing book cover

Inbound Marketing: Getting Found Using Google, Social Media, and Blogs by Brian Halligan and Dharmesh Shah

 

HubSpot is one of the fastest growing, innovative companies in North America.  Brian Halligan and Dharmesh Shah founded HubSpot in 2006.  These two MIT Sloan School Fellows and MBA graduates lead this 600 employee powerhouse in an honorable mission:  Level the marketing, digital, and sales strategy playing field for small to medium sized businesses. HubSpot epitomizes why the Davids can flank the Goliaths (even with their higher funded marketing budgets).  

Google, Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter may be sexier, mainstream media stories, but HubSpot earns attention by passionately practicing what it preaches. And, they've cultivated and activated a loyal tribal following by publishing remarkable content, teaching analytical rigor, and "firing" their best employees.  

 

 

 


  

 

Why Inbound Marketing Matters

Walk-the Walk and Talk-the-Talk.  Inbound Marketing is the second book I studied about digital marketing strategy (The New Rules of Marketing & PR being the first).  If you're a serious marketing and communications graduate (or current MAR-COMM undergraduate) and want to "rock it" in your interview, you have to study and learn Inbound Marketing's principles COLD.  Published in 2010, Brian and Dharmesh's teachings preceded much of the current and future implications of marketing and digital strategy:

  • Understanding Inbound Marketing fundamentals (versus interruption marketing)

  • Remarkable content — what does that mean?

  • Foundation principles and relevance of inbound links, SEO, Google Authority, Page Rank so potential customers/clients find you (instead of you interrupting them)

  • The underlying principles behind “closed loop” marketing (CLM)

Inbound Marketing provides clues to what a genuine, 21st century digital-driven organization looks for in employees.  Hubspot utilizes its DARC framework when evaluating potential hires:

  • D = Hire Digital Citizens
  • A = Hire for Analytical Chops
  • R = Hire for Web Reach
  • C = Hire Content Creators

If you can't answer the following HubSpot interview questions while simultaneously providing real-time "show-them-the-money" on-screen, digital evidence,  YOU'RE HOSED.  Here are example interview questions from pages 170-171 and page 173 of Inbound Marketing (within the context of your interviewer verifying your answers on her/his laptop, tablet, or smartphone):

Interview Questions Evalutating Depth of Digital Citizenship:

  • What RSS reader do you use?  Can you show it to me?
  • What blogs do you read?
  • Do you rank first for your name in Google?
  • Do you have a blog? Can you show to me?
  • Do you use Facebook or LinkedIn?  When was the last time you updated your profile?
  • Do you have a channel on YouTube? Can you show it to me?

Interview Questions Evaluating Web Reach:

  • How many subscribers to your blog? Do you talk about our industry on your blog or about personal stuff?
  • How many Facebook followers do you have?  Do you talk about our industry at all on your Facebook account?
  • How many LinkedIn followers do you have?
  • How many Twitter followers do you have?  Do you talk about our industry on you Twitter account?

Closing Thoughts

My apologies for not finishing / publishing this post by the originally stated timeline.  My "day job" is crazy/hectic especially as the 2013 4Q ticks away.  That's okay (because that's the job).

Please tune in for the this series's next post: a comprehensive list of online resources (i.e., websites, blogs, blog articles, etc) to help recent college graduates and current college students land full-time jobs or internships.  The HUGE list will easily comprise "20+ Resources."    

Please give me a couple weeks to consolidate this list, provide context, and hit "publish."

Your Turn: What is your opinion of the books listed here?  Have you read any of them?  If so, how did the book(s) content create an opportunity for differentiating yourself either before, during, or after the interview?  What books did I leave off? What additional books would recommend?

Please let me know.  It would be great to hear from you!

 

Tony Faustino is a marketing and corporate strategist.  He writes about how The Internet reinvents marketing strategy for organizations and individuals in his marketing strategy blog, Social Media ReInvention.  Follow his tweets @tonyfaustino or circle him on Google+.

 

Note: This is post four in a series sharing resources to help new college graduates and current students land full-time jobs or internships.  If interested, here are links to other posts in this series:

 

Photo Credit: by Pop Culture Geek via flickr

 

 

 

Part One: 4 Gurus with Books Helping New College Graduates Build a Professional Online Presence

 

Big Banner Asking What Are You Reading?

What Books Are You Reading to Land a Job After College?

 

How Confident are You in Finding a Job After Graduation?  


There are no guarantees of employment for new college graduates or current students in today's brutal economy.
  A college diploma is now a minimum requirement.  This November 2011 New York Times direct quote describes the current situation:


"A bachelor's degree on its own no longer conveys intelligence or capability." 

A Professional Online Presence Provides Differentiation Among a Sea of College Graduates

A Resume and Diploma are NOT Enough.  Recent graduates (and current undergraduates) need more to catch a company recruiter's attention.  LinkedIn Grad Guide Video #2: Building Your Professional Brand revolves around this concept.   Here's a key fact about how company recruiters now evaluate future employees (particularly college graduates and current students):


"It's no longer enough to simply have a resume. Students now need a professional  online presence."    – Holly Paul, former US Recruiting Leader, PriceWaterHouse Coopers (now Chief Human Resources Officer, Vocus).

 
Do You have a Professional Online Presence?   Is Your Professional Online Presence Differentiating?  If you said no to either of these questions, I hope you'll continue reading a little longer.  Developing a professional brand / presence requires work, time, patience, and discipline.  If you make the commitment, this investment increases the probability a company recruiter (or your first boss) will:

  1. Find you online
  2. Select you for that crucial first interview  

Seeking a Job in Marketing, Public Relations, or Communications?  Majoring in these Fields)?  If you nodded "yes," the authors / books described in this two-part post are MUST READ content.  These gurus are driving the future landscape of digital marketing, public relations, and communications.  

Note: I am not an Amazon Affiliate Program Member.  I tremendously respect the following authors because of their invaluable guidance in developing a professional online presence.

Turn Your Non-Working Time Into a Competitive Advantage

Read. Read. Read.  The following suggested authors / books are not "cookie cutter" or "10 easy steps on how-to land your first job out of college / summer internship in a lousy economy" resources.  

These authors share creative ideas to show a potential employer "you're more than a resume and the grades on a college transcript".  Their teachings provide suggestions in maximizing the Internet's global reach and leveraging search engines to your advantage.
 
Reid Hoffman and Ben Casnocha

Hoffmanreid_thestartupofyou

Read The Start-Up of YOU First.  

Reid Hoffman and Ben Casnocha wrote The Start-Up of You with the following principles in mind:  

1. You were born an entrepreneur.

2. Succeding professionally in today's economy means people of all ages need to adopt the same strategies of successful entrepreneurs.  

Why?  Successful entrepreneurs excel at:

  • Adapting all the time (e.g., permanent beta and pivoting)
  • Dealing with uncertainty and information gaps
  • Understanding their competitive advantage(s) (plus identifying quickly what is not)
  • Building and nurturing lifelong networks and relationships (both personal and professional)
  • Asking their lifelong networks and relationships for advice when confronting problems
  • Managing risks intelligently

Why The Start-Up of YOU Matters

So what does entrepreneurship have to do with building a professional presence (and ultimately in landing that first job out of college)?  Here are some direct quotes referencing Ronald Brownstein's NationalJournal.com article, "Children of the Great Recession:"

"For the last sixty or so years, the job market for educated workers worked like an escalator.  So long as you played nice and well, you moved steadily up the escalator, and each step brought with it more power, income, and job security."

"But now the escalator is jammed at every level.  Many young people even the most highly educated, are stuck at the bottom, underemployed, or jobless."

The Start-Up of YOU's principles describe the entrepreneurial strategies and career tactics traditional liberal arts undergraduate classes overlook.  Understanding and applying these entrepreneurial strategies and career tactics can guide you in the current job market.  

I published a series on The Start-Up of YOU when the book rolled out last year.  The second post, Start-Up of YOU Book Review, Part 2: Five Game Changers in Career Competitive Advantage highlights several key takeaways.   

Here are a few more helpful links to The Start-Up of YOU Resources Page to get started:

If you have difficulty with these links, please email me at tony[dot]faustino[at]gmail[dot]com, and I'll send you the PDFs.

The Start-Up of YOU Resources Page also contains this SlideShare presentation: Start-Up of YOU Visual Summary:

  

Dan Schawbel

Me 2.0 CoverDan Schawbel wrote Me 2.0 and Promote Yourself.  The New York Post selected Me 2.0 as 2009's Number 1 career book.  Promote Yourself (his latest book) is a current New York Times bestseller.  Dan's also the Managing Partner of Millenial Branding, a Gen Y research and consulting firm.  He is the personal branding authority for millenials.

Great Insights Relevant to All Professional Ages.  In my opinion, Dan's professional branding teachings apply to ALL professionals and job seekers.  I studied the 2009 first edition in my early-forties. 


Why Me 2.0 Matters  

Me 2.0 provides easy-to-understand suggestions for creating a professional brand online by:

  • Evaluating blog hosting options (if I could go back, I would select WordPress)
  • Starting, writing, and marketing a personal blog 
  • Participating wisely in social networks
  • Developing relationships with influential bloggers in your targeted industries
  • Understanding search engine optimization's (SEO) impact on your professional career

Dan published this free PDF presentation, Blogging Your Brand: A Complete Guide to Your Success, to support the book's launch.  It's a great primer for seriously publishing a personal blog and creating a professional brand.

Stay tuned for a future review of Promote Yourself (it's on my reading to-do list).  Here's Dan's blog post, Promote Yourself Excerpt – Chapter 10: Start Your Own Business While on the Job, if you'd like to learn more.
 


Mitch Joel

Six Pixels CoverI am a HUGE Mitch Joel FanMitch is President of Twist Image – one of the largest independent Digital Marketing Agencies in North America. When Google educates the top global brands about digital marketing, they call Mitch to speak at the Googleplex.

Why Six Pixels of Separation Matters


Chapter 7: You Are Media and Chapter 10: From Mass Media to "Me" Media.
  These Six Pixels of Separation chapters, along with Tom Peters' classic Fast Company article, The Brand Called YOU, explain best why cultivating a professional online presence should be a career priority.

Key content generously shared in these chapters include: 

  • A Personal Brand Questionnaire (for evaluating your personal brand and how well you are digitally communicating it)
  • The Essential Components in Building a 3D Personal Brand: Giving Abundantly, Helping Others, and Building Relationships
  • A Personal Brand Audit of Online Tools (such as a personal blog, Facebook, LinkedIn, Google Search, and Google Alerts)
  • Building and Targeting a Niche for Your Professional Online Presence

A Bonafide Visionary.  Here's a direct quote from Mitch Joel in Six Pixels of Separation "predicting" why a professional online presence matters more than ever for new college graduates (this was in 2009).  

Mitch framed his insight within the context of the following quote cited in Six Pixels of Separation from Michael S. Malone's May 2008 Wall Street Journal article, "The Next American Frontier:"

 "The most compelling statistic of all?  Half of all new college graduates now believe that self-employment is more secure than a full-time job.  Today, 80% of the colleges and universities in the U.S. now offer courses on entrepreneurship; 60% of Gen Y business owners consider themselves to be serial entrepreneurs, according to Inc. magazine.  Tellingly, 18 to 24-year-olds are starting companies at a faster rate than 35 to 44-year-olds.  And 70% of today's high schoolers intend to start their own company, according to a Gallup poll."

(from Mitch a few paragraphs later):  

"Here's what he's really saying (e.g., Mr. Malone): Without noticing it, we have once again discovered, and then raced off to settle, a new frontier. Not land, not innovation, but ourselves and a growing control over our own lives and careers.

Mitch Joel's Latest Book is Ctrl Alt Delete.  My biggest personal mistakes/regrets in understanding and building a professional online presence are:

  1. Not publishing this personal blog at least 10 years earlier.
  2. Not reading Six Pixels of Separation upon its initial release.

Mitch recently published Ctrl Alt Delete.  I'm studying it now (and I love it).  The lifelong career advice is invaluable.  To preview Ctrl Alt Delete, please watch this thoughtful conversation between Jonathan Fields and the humble maestro: 


 

Closing Thoughts

This concludes post three on helping recent college graduates and current undergraduates build a professonal online presence.  I hope you'll return for post four (e.g., Part 2) sharing six (6) more authors and their respective books.  Post 4 should be published in two weeks. 

Your Turn: Have you read any of these books?  If so, how useful do you think they are to recent college graduates and current undergraduates.  Are there other books you think would be helpful? Please let me know in the comments.


Tony Faustino is a marketing and corporate strategist.  He writes about how The Internet reinvents marketing strategy for organizations and individuals in his marketing strategy blog, Social Media ReInvention.  Follow his tweets @tonyfaustino or circle him on Google+.  

 

Note: This is post three in a series sharing resources to help new college graduates and current students land full-time jobs or internships.  If interested, here are links to other posts in this series:

 



Photo Credit: by Pop Culture Geek via flickr

The State of SEO and Internet Marketing in 2012 Shows Blogging Is Not Dead

Blog On

Rand Fishkin (CEO of SEOmoz) and Dharmesh Shah (CTO of HubSpot) gave a great presentation this past Monday titled: The State of SEO and Internet Marketing in 2012. The presentation is filled with numerous insights and tips from both speakers.

Here's a copy of the slides:


If you missed the webinar, here's a link to the on-demand recording from the HubSpot website.  You can also get an additional look at the data from this SEOmoz post: The 2012 SEO Industry Survey.    
Blogging Is Relevant to Search Engine Optimization (SEO)
The data shows blogging is still an important SEO tactic according to the 6,491+ global respondents participating in the survey.  This news contradicts an ongoing theme that blogging is losing relevance relative to other online platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn (particularly among the Inc. 500).  
On slide 10, almost 90+% of the respondents reported that individual marketers or their teams work on writing / blogging:

The State of SEO and Internet Marketing in 2012 Pic 1

Slides 14 and 15 described "What Tactics Do Marketers Employ."  Of the 26 tactics measured, respondents cited these SEO tactics as the most employed:
  1. Social: Set up / ran a Facebook business profile
  2. Analytics: Analyzed / tracked site speed and page-load times
  3. Competitive: Analyzed competitors' back links
  4. Competiitive: Analyzed competitors' content
  5. Content: Started a new blog or invested heavily in blogging



The State of SEO and Internet Marketing in 2012 Pic 3

Blog Posts Are The Number One Type of Inbound Marketing Content Produced
On slide 15, "blog posts" received the highest % of responses as the type of inbound marketing content produced.  Social media (e.g., tweets, statuses, etc.) ranked second:

The State of SEO and Internet Marketing in 2012 Pic 2

Blogging Isn't Dead (Especially If You Love Writing)
Mitch Joel states it best (from his post, What's Next? It's You):
"We've come to a place where those who were never going to stick it out with blogging for the long haul are busy on Twitter and Facebook, where they can share without the burden of having a passion for writing. So, in the end, maybe what's new for blogging is a place where the real bloggers step in and create a new type of copy for the world to consume. A place where more and more creative thinkers get to tinker with words in new and interesting ways. It's a place where you (and everyone else who wants to write and have a voice) gets to be free to try it out and see what kind of audience their words, images and even video connects with. Blogging – as a platform – may never have anything new to show for itself. Blogging – as a creative white space – is still in its early days."

 

Tony Faustino is a marketing and corporate strategist.  He writes about how The Internet reinvents marketing strategy for organizations and individuals in his marketing strategy blog, Social Media ReInvention.  Follow his tweets @tonyfaustino or circle him on Google+.   

 

 Link to Photo Credit: by futureshape via flickr

HubSpot 2012 State of Inbound Marketing: 7 Reasons Blogs ROCK!

HubSpot Logo

Every year, HubSpot publishes and conducts my two (2) favorite deliverables:

  • HubSpot's 2012 State of Inbound Marketing Report AND
  • HubSpot's 2012 State of Inbound Marketing Webinar

Here are the report and the webinar slides from HubSpot's Inbound Marketing Channel on Slideshare:

 

 

A HUGE shout-out and thank you to HubSpot Team Members Mike Volpe, Melissa Miller, and Maggie Georgieva, for a phenemonal webinar presentation last week!

Last year, I published a post on  lessons I learned from HubSpot's 2011 State of Inbound Marketing Report.  It became one of Social Media ReInvention Blog's most popular 2011 posts.

Blogs Are Not Dead.  Long Live Blogs!  Every year, we hear about blogging's continuing and expected demise in the social media universe.  But, HubSpot's 2011 and 2012 research say otherwise.

Here's a direct quote and Key Conclusion #5 from the 2012 State of Inbound Marketing Report:

Businesses are increasingly aware their blog is highly valuable. 81% of businesses rated their company blogs as “useful,” “important” or “critical.” An impressive 25% rated their company blog as “critical” to their business. 


And, there are more fact-based conclusions in the 2012 State of Inbound Marketing Report.  Here are seven (7) reasons from HubSpot's data supporting the continuing relevance of blogging.

1. Blogs Are and Remain the Most Important Marketing Channel


Hubspot SOIM 1

59% of Respondents Say Their Blog Is Either "Critical" or "Important" To Their Business.  And, 25% say their blog is "Critical" in importance.  Mike Volpe pointed out an important way to increase your blog's business effectiveness is to clearly specify the call-to-action (CTA).  Remarkable content isn't enough.  Clear and specific CTAs converts inbound leads into paying customers.

Blogs Improve Your SEO and Google Rankings.  Another competitive advantage of blogs is the content marketing benefits blog deliver:

  • A blog functions as the content marketing hub
  • Blogs deliver search engine optimization (SEO) from keywords and anchor text
  • Blogs generate inbound links to your site (which increases your Google ranking)

Read this Social Media Examiner post by Jim Lodico: The Fastest Way to Increase Your Google Ranking.  It's a great resource describing why blogging is vital to any business.

2. The Value of Company Blogs Keeps Increasing

Hubspot SOIM 4

Look Who's The #1 Social Media Channel in Terms of Importance.  It's Blogs!  LinkedIn, YouTube, Facebook, and Twitter all ranked in lesser importance.  The hub-and-spoke social media strategy model works with a website or your blog as the center.  Social media platforms like Facebook and Twitter are short-from outposts guiding customers back to your website or blog (the long-form hub).  

Adam Singer says it best: Social Media is More Than Facebook and Twitter.

3. Blogs Have the Lowest Cost-Per-Lead of Any Marketing Channel
 

Hubspot SOIM 2

52% of Respondents Say blogs are "Below Average" in Cost Per Lead.   Blogs are the most cost efficient lead generation channel (inbound or outbound).  Not surprisingly, trade shows are considered the most expensive.

Here's a direct quote from the respondent survey:


"The worst thing we did in marketing last year was attend several trade shows and events with low yield and ROI."

4. Blogs are Second Only to LinkedIn In Acquiring Customers
 

Hubspot SOIM 3

 

57% of Respondents Say Their Company Blog Acquired Customers.  LinkedIn ranked first in customer acquistion.  62% of respondents validated its effectiveness.  Interesting how "the two least sexy social media channels" ranked first and second respectively.

And, Speaking of Social Media Sexy – Blogs and LinkedIn Outdistanced Facebook and Twitter in Customer Acquisition.  Don't believe the hype that long form content is dead. Or, consumer attention spans last only 140 characters or less.  

Competitive advantage in converting leads to real customers doesn't have to be sexy and flashy.  Blogs and social media are all part of the inbound marketing process called "closed-loop marketing."  

But, making money by acquiring customers is sexy.  

5. More Blog Posts Means More Customers

Hubspot SOIM 5

HubSpot's 2012 Data Shows a Direct Correlation Between Post Frequency and Customer Acquisition.  At a minimum, post at least once-per-week.  But, increasing post frequency from weekly to twice per month provides significant benefits:

  • 50 posts a year goes to 100 posts (that's the equivalent of 100 indexed web pages in Google)
  • An extra 50 posts, means double the number of keywords increasing SEO relevance
  • 50 more web pages mean 5o more opportunities to earn inbound links (and increase Google authority)

Be SEO-Smart with your Blog Posts.  Neil Patel recently published a must-read blog post in The Daily SEO Blog describing 12 Things That Will Kill Your Blog Post Everytime.  Ignore these principles at your peril. 

6. Blogs Are Consistently Effective for Either B2B or B2C Companies

Hubspot SOIM 6

At a Minimum, Your Social Media Strategy MUST Include a Blog.  The data shows blogs rank second in customer acquisition for either B2B or B2C companies.  Number 1 for customer acquisition depended on business-type:

  • B2B: LinkedIn
  • B2C: Facebook

A Killer Social Media Strategy Incorporates at Least Three Customer Acquisition Platforms.  The companies succeeding in social media are the ones who view these channels as customer acquisition weapons.  Based on this data, a three-channel approach geared to customer acquistion by business-type would look like the following:

  • B2B: LinkedIn, Company Blog, Facebook or Twitter
  • B2C: Facebook, Company Blog, Twitter

7. Blogs Level the Playing Field for Small Companies

Hubspot SOIM 7

Small Companies Allocate Almost 4x the Marketing Budget to Blogs Versus Large Companies.  Social media or inbound marketing channels are where small companies invest their marketing budget (i.e., social, SEO or organic search, and blogs).  Large companies prefer outbound channels (i.e., trade shows, PPC or paid search, or direct mail).

This data isn't surprising especially in light of Seth Godin's explanation of "mass" consumerism and marketing in his book, We Are All Weird.    Increasingly, companies pursue one of two strategies:

  • Small Companies = Niche
  • Large Companies = Mass

If you're a small company, your products or services are probably part of the niche market place. Use your blog as competitive advantage in the long tail of search.  

Closing Thoughts

  • What are your thoughts on the relevance of blogging? 
  • How does your use of blogging align with or differ from HubSpot's data?
  • How do you use your blog in customer acquisition or retention?

Please let me know with your comments! 

 

Link to Photo Credit by Steve Garfield via flickr 

Social Media Expertise, Part 5: Three Qualities of a Great LinkedIn Answer

LinkedIn Pen

I want to thank Social Media ReInvention Blog Community members for poking around the content in this five-post blog series (sorry if that sounded like an Academy Awards acceptance speech).  

Google Analytics and Feedburner show this series generated noticeable traffic.  Thank you for stopping by — it means a lot to me!

3 Qualities of a Great LinkedIn Answer

I participated in answering the following question on LinkedIn Answers: What Would Be Your Suggestions for a New Joinee of LinkedIn.  Take a look at the first two replies.  Both answers share the following qualities of a helpful and thoughtful response: 

1. Be Helpful. Be Nice.  The conversational tone you choose to take is extremely important.  Your tone is just as important as your answer's substance.  I've participated in answering a number of LinkedIn questions.  And, some of the submitted responses I've seen are self-serving, flippant, and condescending (sometimes bordering on mean-spirited).

That unfortunate behavior is why I think LinkedIn Answers is an often underlooked / undervalued LinkedIn asset.  People are afraid to pose questions because they're scared someone will "call them out."

Don't be one of those people who takes a know-it-all tone.  Be Exceptional. Be Helpful. Be Nice.

2. High Level of Detail.  Both responses share concrete details and examples driving specific actions.  These substantive answers are the exception (not the norm) in most LinkedIn Q&A forums.

3. Share Links and Additional Resources to Support Your Answer.  Whenever possible, provide links to articles, blog posts, Slideshare content, press releases, etc. to support your point-of-view.  Providing additional content reinforces how you're trying to share knowledge (not just your own).  And, that attitude lends more credibility to your response.


6 Benefits of Submitting Great LinkedIn Answers

1. Increasing Your Personal Credibility, Authority, and Visibility. LinkedIn Answers is a great place to start to increase your online visibility and authority in a specific industry or subject. Make it a personal goal to follow through on a daily or weekly basis to answer questions in your chosen categories. 

2. Earning Expertise and Trust Via Best Answer Designations.  LinkedIn Answers is a great example of gamification.  LinkedIn members posing questions have the option to award Best Answer Designations.  Best Answers are social proof personified.  

And, Best Answers designations differentiate your profile from LinkedIn's 150 million+ member profiles! 


LinkedIn Best Answers Badge 1

LinkedIn Best Answers Badge 2

3. Gaining New Social Media Followers (i.e., Blog Subsribers, Twitter Followers, etc.).  When you answer a LinkedIn question, you share personal insights and knowledge.   Crafting and submitting thoughtful LinkedIn Answers (without blatantly selling) is a proven inbound marketing tactic.  It's a classic social media example of giving to receive.

4. Earning a New LinkedIn Connection — Validation From The Person Asking a Question.  Why?  Because, you earn that person's individual trust.  A person posing questions on LinkedIn Answers will usually evaluate both your answer and your LinkedIn Profile (especially if he / she found your response helpful).  The quality of your answer determines if you receive an invite to join his / her network.

5.  Earning a New LinkedIn Connection — Validation From The People Who Answered the Same Question.  Why?  Awarding of a "Best Answer" promotes friendly competition among the respondents.  Remember, the answers are public to all LinkedIn members.  Therefore, the people who who answer questions on LinkedIn Answers are also evaluating both your answer and your LinkedIn Profile (especially if you are awarded the Best Answer). If you impressed one of the responders, you may also receive a LinkedIn invite from him / her.

6. BONUS: Your Answer May Get Published in a Major Online News Publication!  Marla Tabaka,  posed this question two (2) months ago in LinkedIn: How Do Others Successfully Get Your Attention on LinkedIn?  What Intices You to Accept an Invitation.

I and other LinkedIn Members submitted responses.  Marla published selected responses in her great Inc. Magazine article: How To Make Great Connections on LinkedIn.  I'm honored she selected and published my response in her article. 

When you have a chance, check out more of Marla's great content in Inc. Magazine. She personifies publishing helpful and valuable content.

Closing Thoughts

Help Others Because It's The Right Thing To Do.  I've read 41% of The Start-Up of You: Adapt to the Future, Invest in Yourself, and Transform Your Career by Reid Hoffman and Ben Casnocha.

The underlying theme of this great book is how / why we should help each other.  Why?  Because, it's the right thing to do.

That's what participating in the Internet is genuinely about.  It's about helping others.

Pay It Forward.  Answer someone's question and provide him / her the best guidance you can.  

 

 

Link to Photo Credit by Sheila Scarborough via flickr

 

Social Media Expertise, Part 2: Self-Publishing Content Versus Submitting a Resume

Stack of Paper

The Wall Street Journal Careers Section published the following articles on January 24th describing the challenges and sense of futility job candidates encounter when applying to a prospective employer:

Both articles highlight relevant trends in personal brand differentiation and demonstrating digital strategy / digital marketing expertise.  

Bottom Line.  Becoming an expert is one thing.  Demonstrating that expertise online to a potential client or employer is another.  Because, it doesn't matter if you're trying to earn a digital marketing or social media marketing position or another position in an unrelated industry.  

Either way, your online presence must be FINDABLE and HUGE.

Clients or Employers Conduct Online Due Diligence 

Is Your Online Presence Visible or Invisible?  Clients and employers use online search and social networks in hiring evaluations.  Key themes emphasized in both Wall Street Journal articles included:

  • How The Internet Reinforces a "Show-Me-What-You-Got" Mindset
  • Why Clients and Employers Want to Understand How You Think
  • Too Many Job Candidates / Self-Proclaimed Experts, So Little Time
  • How Employers / Clients are Using the Internet Evaluate Talents and Skills

Your Online Activity Represents How You Think.  Your resume does not.  The opening paragraphs of the No More Resumes, Say Some Firms article reinforce this growing notion especially among employers:

"Union Square Ventures recently posted an opening for an investment analyst.  Instead of asking for résumés, the New York venture-capital firm—which has invested in Twitter, Foursquare, Zynga and other technology companies—asked applicants to send links representing their "Web presence," such as a Twitter account or Tumblr blog. Applicants also had to submit short videos demonstrating their interest in the position."

"Union Square says its process nets better-quality candidates —especially for a venture-capital operation that invests heavily in the Internet and social-media—and the firm plans to use it going forward to fill analyst positions and other jobs."

"Companies are increasingly relying on social networks such as LinkedIn, video profiles and online quizzes to gauge candidates' suitability for a job. While most still request a résumé as part of the application package, some are bypassing the staid requirement altogether."

"A résumé doesn't provide much depth about a candidate, says Christina Cacioppo, an associate at Union Square Ventures who blogs about the hiring process on the company's website and was herself hired after she compiled a profile comprising her personal blog, Twitter feed, LinkedIn profile, and links to social-media sites Delicious and Dopplr, which showed places where she had traveled."

"We are most interested in what people are like, what they are like to work with, how they think," she says."

 
Rage Against the Machine

A Two-Front War: Other Candidates and the Company's Online Applicant Tracking System.  The accompanying WSJ video shares why optimizing a resume for keywords is vital.  Your resume can be unfairly weeded out by a machine's keyword algorithm (even with internal referrals). 



 

 

Show Clients and Employers Differentiating Content 

Show Me, Don't Tell Me.  This excerpt from Adam Singer's September 2011 blog post, How to Start a Career in Social Media, bears repeating.  The excerpt validates the WSJ article Union Square Ventures example (direct quote from Adam's blog):

"A friend of mine Eric Friedman tells the tale of his job interview with renowned VC firm Union Square Ventures in New York. During a pivotal second round interview Eric sat down with one of the partners, Brad Burnham and presented his resume. Brad told Eric to hang on to it as he just wanted to chat. When Eric pressed him as to why, Brad responded with something remarkable which went like this: “You can work really hard on crafting a well written, organized, resume with bullet points of accomplishments – but you can’t fake 500 blog posts.” On the web, it’s “show me, don’t tell me.”


Courage, Creativity, and Dedication Produce Differentiating Content.  David Meerman Scott wrote this great blog post titled, Courage.   He states the hardest part is starting:
 

"The tough part is the courage both to begin and to sustain the content creation effort.'
 

Do The Work.  Publishing great content lurks inside all of us.  Here are some examples David suggests pursuing:

  1. Writing (i.e., a blog, eBooks)
  2. Doing Videos (i.e., how-two, reviews)
  3. Shooting Photos
  4. Creating Infographics (i.e., visualizing data)
  5. Speaking


Conclusion

Start It and Ship It.  In 2012, I'm focusing on additional writing not only via this blog but also through creating and publishing a promotional eBook.

It's time to start.  I've mapped out enough ideas.  

And, I have to have the courage to see what happens.

Additional 2012 calls-to-action for execution and experimentation:

  • Publishing mindmaps about how I approach a problem / story
  • Shooting and publishing videos (as part of my book reviews in this blog and in my Amazon book reviews)
  • Networking with social media thought leaders by meeting them face-to-face

Becoming a Thought Leader Requires Courage.  You can't hope someone picks you.  You have to pick yourself.  But, self-proclamations aren't enough.  You have to do the work to back up that claim.  

Therefore, achieving this goal requires more effort.  And, I'm reminding myself to focus on one thing at time.  

Because, starting is everything.

Your Turn.  How are you going to show your expertise / your art to a potential employer or client?  How are you going to differentiate yourself among the masses?

Please share your thoughts in the comments.  And, I hope you'll return next week for Part 3.

Thank You.

 

Link to Photo Credit by striatic Via flickr

Social Media ReInvention Blog’s Most Popular 2011 Posts

Top 10 List

 

2011 was an important year for this blog.  A few months ago, I published my 100th post. And, each post represents an opportunity to learn, improve, and experiment.

 

Social Media ReInvention Blog's Most Popular 2011 Posts

1. Public Relations Strategy: Integrating Digital and Traditional Patient Advocacy Tactics

2. 5 Competitive Advantages in Studying Real-Time Marketing PR by David Meerman Scott

3. HubSpot 2011 State of Inbound Marketing: Long Live Blogs!

4. The Business Value Behind Social Media: Part 6 – Disaster Recovery & Crisis Communications

5. Tom Peters' Personal Branding Lessons, Part 1: Why YOUR Blog Matters

6. 8 Takeaways from Mashable's Mondern Media Agency INFOGRAPHIC

7. 7 Reasons to Study Newsjacking by David Meerman Scott

8. LinkedIn Today Personalizes News With Your Social Graph

9. The New York Times: Self-Appointed SEO Police?

10a. LinkedIn's Maps: A Cool Way to Visualize & Understand Your Professional Network

10b. Using LinkedIn to Land on Google's Front Page

This Blog Continues Steadily Building Credibility 

Inbound Links Citing Social Media ReInvention Blog.  Inbound links from high Google authority sites included:

Comments / Citations From Bloggers in the Advertising Age Power 150.  These bloggers included:

Here's a screenshot from Valeria's post: You do That, Too and the tweet cited in her post:

Valeria Maltoni mention 1
Valeria Maltoni tweet 1

A Life Changing Event in August 2012

Juliana Big Smile

And, She Weighed in at a Happy and Healthy 6 Pounds, 9 Ounces. From mid-August to early November 2012, I literally dropped out of sight from any new blog posts or social media participation (you may or may not have noticed).  The birth of my daughter is the reason why.  My wife and I also have another daughter who's seven (7) years old.

Our family grew.  And, we are so blessed.

But, Little Blessings Can Be Mentally and Emotionally Consuming. Fatherhood with a newborn is both humbling and rewarding.  You learn quickly how sleep deprivation makes it difficult to construct a coherent thought or sentence.  

It took four (4) months / early November to start feeling normal, productive, and effective.


The Epiphany: Blogging Really Makes Me Happy


A Newborn Quickly Imposes Prioritization (Whether You Like It or Not).
  During that four-month time frame, I realized I couldn't maintain my past routines in working on this blog.  And, that frustrated me a lot.  

I Missed the Process.  I felt something missing.  And, I had to keep reminding myself this sacrifice and setback is temporary.  

I missed everything about the writing and blogging process:

  • doing the research
  • recording ideas / thinking of an inital angle
  • mapping out a post's structure on paper
  • typing / revising the drafts
  • learning what content readers responded to

Putting Things in Perspective.  Valeria Maltoni shared Stephanie Booth's post on Google+ titled: Measuring a Blog's Success: Visitors and Comments Don't Cut It.  After reading this piece, I revaluated why I invest the time and energy into this endeavor:

  • It's to share something I really care about
  • It's a great way to practice writing (which is important in my full-time work)
  • It's introduced me to interesting, smart, like-minded people 
  • It's not to make money (because I make no revenue from blogging)
  • It makes me happy

Yes, It Makes Me Happy.  And, I hope the time you spend reading my blog makes you happy (or makes you feel like it's time well-spent). With each new post, I hope you feel the content is improving.  

And, I hope you'll continue sharing the content with others.  When something I write is shared on Twitter, LinkedIn, or Facebook, I'm always surprised (and humbled). 

Thank You.  Thank you indulging me in sharing a memorable year.  Thank you for subscribing to this blog and sharing its content with your social network connections.  And, thank you for sticking with me when I temporarily dropped out of sight.

 

Here's to a safe, healthy, and happy 2012 for all of us. 

 

Photo Credit via Flickr by Sam Churchill

The New York Times: Self-Appointed SEO Police?

Police Car and Siren

 

In February 2011, I wrote a post about how The New York Times exposed J.C. Penney's paid links scheme to improve its Google organic search rankings.  Search engine optimization (SEO) experts refer to this gaming of Google rankings as "black hat SEO" practices.  Google defines these practices in its Webmaster Central General Guidelines.  And, Google looks unfavorably on these practices and describes them as:

 

The New York Times Reveals Major Florist Brands Paid for Links

Another Linking Scheme Exposed.  The New York Times article, Trying to Game Google on Mother's Day Flowers,' says these major florist companies participated in linking buying schemes to improve their organic search rankings during the week of 2011 Mother's Day:

  • Teleflora
  • FTD
  • 1800Flowers.com
  • ProFlowers

Teleflora's Organic Search Rankings Rose from 7th to 4th.  According to the article, Searchmetrics, a seller of analytics software, conducted research showing Teleflora boosted its ranking for the search term "mothers day flowers" which translated into a significant increase in visitors per day to its website.

Teleflora's Site Traffic Per Day Improved 43% Increase.  In March 2010, Teleflora received 20,000 to 25,000 visitors per day.  The week of May 2nd – May 6th, 2011, the number of visitors improved to roughly 35,000 visitors per day.

Searchmetrics believes Teleflora started its link buying in February 2011.  The New York Times quotes Searchmetrics CEO, Horst Joepen: "There is a possible correlation between the backlinks and the increased visibility of the site.  But, without more research there is no way to be sure."

Floral Companies' Responses to Inquiries from The New York Times

Makes Me Wonder.  Here are direct quotes from the article regarding the floral companies' respective responses:

* ProFlowers: "Did not respond to requests for comment."

* 1800Flowers.com: "A spokeswoman said the company would not discuss the links."

* FTD: "An FTD representative said that the vast majority of its links were on Web Sites owned by FTD, adding 'If any of our practices to have moved outside of Google's guidelines, we will certainly address them."

* Teleflora: "Corporate policy is not to pay for any links that would violate Google's guidelines.  After closely reviewing the Teleflora links you provided, we believe are in compliance with Google."

Did Google Punish These Firms For Their Alleged Paid Links? 

The Top 5 Organic Search Results for "mothers day flowers."  As of Sunday morning, May 15th, the page-one Google search results for "mothers day flowers" are:

 

Mothers Day Flowers Google Search
 

Look at Organic Search Result #10.  It's the May 6th, New York Times article exposing the alleged paid links scheme for these companies.  I'm surprised this story ranks below Google's organic search results for Teleflora, FTD, 1800Flowers.com, and ProFlowers.

Even though the article lands on Google's front page, you'd think the search results for the aforementioned firms would rank in pages where you can't find them (i.e., pages 6 through 10).

Mother Day Flowers Google Search 2

Conclusion

Why Isn't Google Penalizing These Firms?  The New York Times sent Google representatives a list of 6,000 links to the floral companies that were built in the last month.  Jake Hubert, a Google spokesman, replied with the following statement:

"None of the links shared by The New York Times had a significant impact on our rankings, due to automated systems we have in place to assess the relevance of links.  As always, we investigate spam reports and take corrective action where appropriate."

Apparently, Google doesn't feel like it has to take any action in this particular case.  And, I find their lack of action and consistency perplexing.    Here are two other blogs commenting on the New York Times piece:

 

Is Google Thumbing Its Nose at The New York Times?  The placement of the New York Times article as organic search result Number 10 with the offending firms ranking at slots 1, 2, 4, and 5 appears more than coincidental.  

Along with the issued company statement, the article's current placement appears to be Google's way of saying, "Whatever."

Or, maybe they're dealing with more important priorities.  And, those priorities rhyme with "How to Address the Facebook Threat."  

 

Photo Credit by davidsonscott15 Via Flickr

PR Newswire Cites and Links to Social Media ReInvention Blog

PR Newswire App

 

Social Media ReInvention Blog Achieved a Major Milestone This Week.  On April 28th,  PR Newswire cited and linked to my post, Public Relations Strategy: Integrating Digital and Traditional Patient Advocacy Tactics.

According to its Fact Sheet, PR Newswire delivers significant online news coverage to a vast audience:

* Number of Members: Tens of thousands of companies, agencies and institutions worldwide

* Audiences Served: Thousands of media points through satellite delivery, tens of thousands more through email and fax delivery, more than 600 television stations, and reporters and bloggers from 27,000 news organizations registered for PR Newswire for Journalists, http://www.prnewswire.com/media, plus the general public and millions of investment professionals through more than 5,500 websites, online databases and financial networks.


I'm Thrilled to Earn this Mention!
  Here's the online press release, Case Study Inspired by AQABA Technologies PR Strategies & Tactics and its screenshot:

PR Newswire Screenshot

Conclusion

 

Search Engine Optimization (SEO) Benefits.  Earning coverage and an inbound link from PR Newswire provides important SEO and Google Rank benefits.  Each one builds authority in Google's search engine algorithm:  

* SEO Benefit #1: The PR Newswire inbound link equates to an influential and authoritative online vote because many websites link to PR Newswire's site.  

* SEO Benefit #2: PR Newswire's inbound link helps increase Social Media ReInvention Blog's online reputation and credibility in social media marketing, social media strategy, and public relations strategy.

* SEO Benefit #3: Social Media ReInvention Blog's exposure to PR Newswire's wide audience increases the likelihood of more people discovering this blog.

What a Way to Start the Weekend!  Achieving this online milestone is both thrilling and humbling.  It's taken hard work and commitment.  And, that hard work and commitment will continue. 

 

Thank You for letting me share this achievement.

 

Photo Credit: by Rob Enslin Via Flickr

Public Relations Strategy: Integrating Digital and Traditional Patient Advocacy Tactics

Pills 2 

Full Disclosure:  My employer provides management consulting advice to the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industry.  The opinions and content published within this blog post are mine only.

The Inspiration for this Blog Post.  The Wall Street Journal published this April 8th article: Resistance to FDA on Avastin Limits.   The article describes Terry Kalley's integrated public relations strategy using social media channels and traditional face-to-face meetings with Capitol Hill representatives.  Mr. Kalley initiated this public relations campaign with the assistance of AQABA Technologies (a global web strategies firm) because the Food and Drug Administration's (FDA) plans to limit the approved uses of the drug, Avastin.  His wife, Arlene Kalley, suffers from advanced breast cancer, and Avastin slows its progression. 

The Challenge.  As cited by the article, the FDA will conduct a hearing on June 28th – June 29th to "focus on competing interpretations of medical data about Avastin's effectiveness in delaying the spread of late-stage breast tumors."  The FDA wants the upcoming hearing focused on scientific data.  However, Avastin's manufacturer, wants patients to be able to testify. 

What's at Stake: Drug Access and Reimbursement.  The Wall Street Journal quotes Avastin's cost around $88,000 for a series of injections.  The article further states: "The Kalley's say that if the FDA withdraws approval for Avastin as a breast cancer treatment, insurers and Medicare might not cover the costs, even though doctors can still prescribe it for breast cancer."

A Case Study in Integrated Public Relations Strategy  

Traditional and Digital Public Relations (PR).  Mr. Kalley's and AQABA Web Technologies public relations strategy aligns the support of influential legislators and policy makers and builds public awareness through social media channels.  These traditional and digital tactics form an integrated public relations strategy that informs, publicizes, and rallies support from important stakeholders:

  • Breast cancer patients
  • Physicians
  • Lawmakers
  • News media

* Traditional PR.  Meet face-to-face with key Michigan legislators and influential Capitol Hill policy makers.  In addition, The Wall Street Journal article references that The Kalleys would be meeting with Avastin's company representatives.

* Digital PR.  Publicize in the online channels when meetings with Michigan legislators took place and with who (readily observable in the Freedom of Access to Medicines Twitter stream).

* Digital PR.  Attract potential supporters to the digital home base or hub – The Freedom of Access to Medicines Home Page.

* Digital PR and Traditional PR.  Promote within the online channels (i.e., Twitter, Facebook) positive media coverage (i.e., the recent Wall Street Journal article appeared on the front page of WSJ's print Marketplace Section).

Building Public Awareness Via a Social Media Home Base

The Freedom of Access to Medicines Home Page.  Mr. Kalley and AQABA created a foundation web page to increase public awareness and build patient advocacy.  The web page acts as the home base for the foundation's public and media awareness activities:

 

Freedom of Access to Medicines Home Page 

Easily Connecting Through Social Channels.  If you scroll further down the home page, you'll find the following social media "buttons" on the bottom right-hand section of the foundation's home page.  Easily finding these social media "buttons" is critical so the foundation can quickly connect with supporters and advocates who can further spread its mission through online word-of-mouth.

Freedom of Access to Medicines Social Buttons 

 

LinkedIn, Twitter, YouTube, and Facebook are Social Media  Content Distribution Outposts

Four (4) Social Media Outposts.  The "home base and outpost model" leads viewers back to The Freedom of Access home page from selected social networks.  The four outposts distribute content that:

  • Describes a physician-patient discussion on drug access and reimbursement
  • Provides real-time updates of important meetings with key legislators/policy makers 
  • Promotes the mission of the foundation
  • Thanks supporters sharing testimonials

For more information on using a content outpost approach as part of an overall public relations or social media strategy, here are additional resources:


How Freedom of Access to Medicines Leverages YouTube.
  By clicking on the home page YouTube button, you are linked to this 7-minute video about a distraught breast-cancer patient on Avastin.  These YouTube videos explains the drug access and reimbursement scenarios without a lot of medical or scientific jargon.

 

 

 
How Freedom of Access to Medicines Leverages Twitter.  Real-time updates about meetings with key government officials and policymakers are part of the content strategy.  Twitter plays a significant role in promoting the foundation's activities with these stakeholders:

Twitter Profile Freedom of Access 
 

Twitter Policymaker Freedom of Access p1 

Twitter Policymaker Freedom of Access p2 

How Freedom of Access to Medicines Leverages Facebook.  The foundation's Facebook page provides more detailed updates beyond Twitter's 140 character limits.  Facebook's status updates provide summaries and links to online articles the foundation wants to share with supporters.


Facebook Freedom of Access to Medicines 


How Freedom of Access to Medicines Leverages LinkedIn.  
 Mr. Kalley leverages the SEO benefits of his LinkedIn Profile because the #1 Google search result for his name is his LinkedIn Profile:

Terry Kalley Google Search 
His LinkedIn Profile describes the foundation's patient advocacy mission and objectives in the Professional Experience Summary Section:

Terry Kalley LinkedIn Public Profile 

Conclusion

The Freedom of Access to Medicines Blog Launched on May 1st.  As of the original publication of this post, the missing piece in the Freedom of Access to Medicines digital public relations portfolio was a blog.  However, The Freedom of Access to Medicines Blog launched on May 1st.
 

Freedom of Access to Medicines Blog Page 2

A press release describing the Freedom of Access to Medicines Blog can be found here.

Adding a blog provides numerous search engine optimization (SEO) benefits that can increase the foundation web site's:

  • Important long-tail search keywords and phrases
  • Number of indexed pages in search engines
  • Number of inbound links (a key metric in search engine rankings) 

Two resources I've studied on the SEO benefits of blogs in building your Google search rankings are:

Initiative and Creativity in Public Relations.   The Freedom of Access Medicines example showcases how an organization can harness The Internet's global scale and reach particularly through social media.  Similarly, The Wall Street Journal article references how Avastin's manufacturer employs Weber Shandwick (a large, global public relations firm) to garner public and media support. 

One Person's Individual Efforts Augmented by Integrated Social Media Tactics Can Make a Difference.  I'm sure other organizations and individuals are taking notice of Mr. Kalley's and AQABA'S combined face-to-face and digital efforts.  I plan on following the results all the way to the June 28th – June 29th finish line.   
 

 

Tony Faustino is a marketing and corporate strategist.  He writes about how The Internet reinvents marketing strategy for organizations and individuals in his marketing strategy blog, Social Media ReInvention.  Follow his tweets @tonyfaustino or circle him on Google+.   

 

Photo Credit by e-MagineArt.com via Flickr