Here's a look at how Silver Oak Cellars uses their visual, multi-channel social media strategy to emotionally connect special moments with their audience.
What Are The Stories You Want to Tell? How Do You Emotionally Connect Your Brand, Your Company, and Your Employees to Your Audience?
When I combed through Silver Oaks Cellars multiple social channels, these visual stories emotionally connected with me. That emotional connection differentiates a brand, a service, a product, or a company from its competition.
And, that emotional connection is unique for each of us. That unique, individual meaning defines special moments.
How do you emotionally connect with your audience? What works for you? Is it images, video, words, voice, or something else?
Please let me know in the comments. I want to connect too.
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The January 2012 Inc. 500 report showed how 37% of these companies published blogs in 2011. This represented a 13% decrease in Inc. 500 company blogs from 2010's figure of 50%.
But Blogging Isn't Dying, Especially Among The Fortune 500
Fortune 500 Corporate Blogging Increased in 2012.
28% of the Fortune 500 (e.g. 139 companies) published a corporate blog in 2012. That percentage marked the largest increase in blogging since 2008:
Telecommunications, commercial banks, utilities, and specialty retailers are the leading users of blogs among Fortune 500 companies. The industry breakdown for use of corporate blogs in the Fortune 500 is portrayed in the table below:
The Higher Ranked Fortune 500 Companies Blog
The Top 200 Publish Blogs More Than The Bottom 200.
Since this study's inception in 2008, it looks like Fortune 500 rank influences blogging adoption. 54% of all Fortune 500 corporate blogs are published by the top 200 firms. 28% of the Fortune 500 blogs come from the firms ranked 300 – 500.
Here's an important direct quote from the study:
"With more than half of all F500 blogs coming from the top 200 corporations, rank continues to be a factor in the use of this tool."
Fortune 500 Companies Who Blog Well Take Comments
90% of the 2012 Fortune 500 Companies Allow Reader Comments.
This percentage actually surprised me. The study said these 90 percenters also have RSS feeds and take email subscriptions. Really! I'll have to check this out.
Your Turn: What do you think about Fortune 500 companies participating in social media with corporate blogs? Is blogging a smart move for Fortune 500 companies? Let me know your take in the comments.
On slide 10, almost 90+% of the respondents reported that individual marketers or their teams work on writing / blogging:
Slides 14 and 15 described "What Tactics Do Marketers Employ." Of the 26 tactics measured, respondents cited these SEO tactics as the most employed:
Social: Set up / ran a Facebook business profile
Analytics: Analyzed / tracked site speed and page-load times
Competitive: Analyzed competitors' back links
Competiitive: Analyzed competitors' content
Content: Started a new blog or invested heavily in blogging
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:
Blogging Isn't Dead (Especially If You Love Writing)
"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."
The Business of Blogging. He describes many business-related reasons why individuals or agencies choose to publish a blog. Here are some:
Attracting clients
Search engine optimization benefits
Sharing links and advice
The Love of Blogging. But, if you want to publish for the long haul, Mitch lists nine (9) reasons to pursue blogging. Here are some of the "real" reasons described:
Because you love to write
Because you have to write
Because if you had more time, you would write even more
Because you have something to say
Mitch's advice comes from his almost decade-long experiences in blogging and writing.
It's the right mindset for long term success and commitment in self-publishing a personal blog. Those four (4) reasons capture why I become frustrated when I can't invest the time in writing.
Otherwise, why do it?
I'm so happy Memorial Day Weekend is finally here. Time to get back to writing ….
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
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).
3. Blogs Have the Lowest Cost-Per-Lead of Any Marketing Channel
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
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.
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)
6. Blogs Are Consistently Effective for Either B2B or B2C Companies
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
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).
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
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:
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 youfeel 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.
Tom Peters is co-author of In Search of Excellence – the book that changed the way the world does business, and often tagged the best business book ever. Keep up with Tom at tompeters.com, ranked #9 among The Top 150 Management and Leadership Blogs.
His globally-respected work on business, leadership, and management includes:
Thank You Mr. Peters and Team! I’m honored by the listing on your website. I jumped for joy when I saw my blog post on your Media Sightings page!
Who Says Blogging Is Dead? The people promoting this message are misinformed. Don’t buy into this noise. Read this direct quote from The Brand Called You about earning recognition and building reputation for your personal brand:
“If you’re a better writer than you are a teacher, try contributing a column or an opinion piece to your local newspaper. And, when I say local, I mean local. You don’t have to make the op-ed page of The New York Times to make the grade. Community newspapers, professional newsletters, even inhouse company publications have white spaces they need to fill. Once you get started, you’ve got a track record – and clips that you can use to snatch more chances.”
Blogging Matters More Than Ever. Take note of this advice from Seth Godin and Tom Peters about marketing your personal brand via writing a blog:
Your Turn. You’ve got something inspiring inside you. Share it in your blog, your column, Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, LinkedIn, or Google+. I want to read about your victories!
Personal Branding is Important. Here are two (2) direct quotes from the article:
“We are CEOs of our own companies: Me Inc.”
“To be in business today, our most important job is to be head marketer for The Brand Called You.”
A Brand = A Promise of Value. Think of personal branding like this:
The distinctive role / niche you create for yourself
The message and the strategy you’ll conduct to promote The Brand Called You
Your Personal Branding Hub: A Personal Blog
A personal blog can be an important component of your personal brand (maybe the most important):
* Blogging provides your forum for demonstrating your expertise about a subject you’re passionate about. And, you get to pick the subject area — don’t worry about your current job description.
* Blogging and personal branding means building community. Community is a key concept in Mitch Joel’s book, Six Pixels of Separation. Building community (online and in-person) includes:
Commenting on other blogs
Attending conferences related to your chosen subject area
Participating and contributing to conversations in social networks relevant to that subject (i.e., LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, etc.)
Developing new relationships inside and outside of your current employer
You’re Not Defined By Your Job Title …
… And, You’re Not Confined by Your Job Description. This is another timeless lesson from Mr. Peters. For corporate employees, his insight brings significant career implications:
“No more vertical. No more ladder. That’s not the way careers work anymore. Linearity is out. A career is now a checkerboard. Or even a maze. It’s full of moves that go sideways, forward, slide on the diagonal, even go backward when that makes sense. (It often does.) A career is a portfolio of projects that teach you new skills, gain you new expertise, develop new capabilities, grow your colleague set, and constantly reinvent you as a brand.”
Mr. Peters explains this concept in the following video:
You Own The Means of Production to Mold Your Personal Brand
Take the Initiative — The Internet Levels the Playing Field. Paraphrasing a key concept from Seth Godin’s book, Linchpin, “employees no longer have to be cogs in the giant industrial machine.”
Why? The Internet provides direct and infinite opportunities in building a personal brand. The only limit is your imagination. On page 24 of Linchpin, Godin states:
“Today the means of production = a laptop computer with Internet connectivity.”
“Three thousand dollars buys a worker an entire factory.”
Godin shares his thinking with David Meerman Scott in this video interview (time stamp 3:48 to 5:12).
You are Responsible for What You Do with the Means of Production. There are two (2) important requirements in leveraging the “Digital Age Factory”:
Initiative — Having the courage to start.
Persisting and persevering to finish.
Career Security Versus Job Security. The means of production can lead to career security. I’ll take career security over job security everyday of the week (and twice on Sunday). To understand the difference between them, read these articles by Adam Singer of The Future Buzz:
Start Your Personal Blog. Select a subject you’re passionate about. Set up a WordPress, Blogger, or TypePad account.
Keep Keeping On. For most beginning bloggers, the writing and creative process doesn’t always flow easily. Don’t worry. It gets better with time and practice.
The Most Important Marketing Tool for Your Personal Brand
Tom Peters and Seth Godin Say Blogging Matters. Check out this video. Both Peters and Godin provide their personal insights on why blogging is a powerful marketing platform.
Mr. Peters says “blogging is the best damn marketing tool by an order of magnitude that I ever had. And, it’s free.”
Blogging = Writing …
… And, Writing is a Vital Business Skill. Thoughtfully expressing written ideas directly impacts your career. Think about it. How many corporate emails do you write on a daily basis for one of the following audiences:
Your clients
Your boss
Your teammates
Your boss’s boss
Outside vendors
Practice Breeds Confidence. I’ve published and maintained my personal blog for five and half years. Blogging allows me to practice writing more than any other business activity.
And, blogging is something I love practicing!
A resulting benefit of consistent practice — increased confidence. Written communications require confidence when:
Summarizing “the so what” to an executive audience
Delivering good news
Delivering bad news (and the plan to address the situation)
Crediting a colleague(s) on outstanding work (especially to upper management)
Gaining consensus (especially among team members beyond your management control)
Framing / Describing a politically sensitive situation (and the plan to address the situation)
Writing and the Link to Your Business Career. Don’t believe me? Listen to what Mr. Peters says about business writing skills and its importance:
Conclusion
You Don’t Have to Make the Op-Ed of The New York Times to Make the Grade. That’s my favorite direct quote from The Brand Called You. Your effort, your passion establishes your personal brand / reputation.
Publish. Connect. Give.
Do these three (3) things regularly and people WILL:
Find you online
Link to your blog
Cite you in their blog posts and articles
Ask you to contribute to their publications
Say you contribute value to their respective communities
It Happened to Me. It Can Happen to You. Here are links to other blogs or content highlighting my personal brand and/or citing my personal blog. My blog posts or other networking activities created these personal branding opportunities:
The survey respondents of various company sizes included: * Marketers * Business Owners * Entrepreneurs * Executives
76% of the companies surveyed said their business sell primarily to other businesses (e.g., B2B).
The report describes how companies are using inbound marketing (e.g., marketing strategies focused on "pulling" relevant prospects and customers towards a businesses and its products).
Inbound marketing influences purchasing decisions by leveraging the Internet and helping consumers make educated decisions on a company's products and services.
Common inbound marketing tools include:
Blogging
Content Publishing
Search Engine Optimization (SEO)
Social Media
Here's the complete report in HubSpot's SlideShare Page:
Three (3) of the Five (5) Key Takeaways Highlight a Blog's Unique Value. These key takeaways summarize blogs' importance in customer acquisition, increasing business use, and overall value:
* Blogs and social media channels are generating real customers: 57% of companies using blogs reported that they acquired customers from leads generated directly from their blog.
* More and more businesses are blogging: Businesses are now in the minority if they do not blog. From 2009 to 2011, the percentage of businesses with a blog increased from 48% to 65%.
* Businesses are increasingly aware their blog is highly valuable: 85% of businesses rated their company blog as "useful," "important," or "critical;" 27% rated their company blog as "critical" to their business.
Blogs are the Most Cost-Efficient Lead Generation Channel
* Blogs, social media, and organic search maintained the top slots as least expensive.
* Blogs had the highest instance of being reported as "Below Average Cost."
Companies are Allocating More Resources to Company Blogs
* Marketers are allocating more of their lead generation budgets to social media and company blogs.
* The average budget spent on company blogs and social media increased from 9% in 2009 to 17% in 2011.
Small Companies Level the Playing Field Via Blogging
* Social media and SEO (search engine optimization) garner the biggest share of small company budgets.
* And, small companies plan to spend dramatically more of their budgets on blogging (relative to larger companies).
Company Blogs Rank as the Highest Customer Acquisition Channel
* 57% of firms using company blogs have acquired customers from a blog-generated lead.
* Survey responses show an 11% increase since 2010 in blog-generated leads.
And, Customer Acquisition is Directly Correlated to Blog Post Frequency
* At a minimum, successful customer acquisition requires a weekly blog post frequency.
* 23% more blog users say a weekly blog post frequency delivers a greater return on customer acqusition versus a monthly blog post frequency.
* In addition, 71% of respondents indicated they blog at least weekly.
B2B Firms Say You Need LinkedIn and a Blog to Effectively Acquire Customers
* B2B companies say the LinkedIn is the #1 customer acquisition channel.
* The Company Blog is the #2 customer acqusition channel for B2B companies.
Blogs and LinkedIn are Top Customer Acquisition Channels for Professional Services / Consulting and Technology (Software / Biotech) Firms
* Three (3) industries had over 50% of respondents say blogging acquires customers:
Higher Education: 72% (Ranked #2)
Professional Services / Consulting: 58% (Ranked #2 barely)
Technology (Software / Biotech): 58% (Ranked #1)
Blogs are the Most Important Social Media Channel
* Blogging Experiences Significant Growth. From 2009 to 2011, the percentage of respondents with a company blog grew from 48% to 65%.
* Responents Cite Blogs as the Most Critical Social Media Channel. 27% of respondents cited blogging as "critical to their business." Blogs ranked highest among nine (9) social media channels.
Conclusion
The Death of Blogs is Grossly Exaggerated. HubSpot's conclusions support the exact opposite of mainstream media speculation (e.g., all you need to succeed in social media marketing is Facebook and Twitter activity). The data shows blogs are especially important in:
Acquiring new customers
Providing a lower expense marketing channel
Driving customer acquisition in specfic industries
Leveling the marketing playing field especially for small businesses
Demonstrating significant marketing value for B2B companies
Blogging's Importance to B2B Firms is Huge. Business-to-business companies say the two most important social media channels are LinkedIn and blogs. I don't find this surprising.
Blogs Provide Content Versatility. More importantly, management consulting firms say blogs play a significant role in customer acquisition. Consulting firms who publish content via company blogs can quickly demonstrate to future and existing clients their creativity and industry expertise in blog posts, videos, news updates, client testimonials, podcasts, and images.
Can You Afford Not to Blog? I wouldn't recommend bypassing the benefits of blogging (especially if you're a B2B company). The data clearly shows your competitors are blogging (and the future numbers are trending upward). If you're a small company (e.g., less than 50 employees), you can level the playing field against more established competitors.
My wife and I recently discovered a wonderful and touching book: Oogy – The Dog Only a Family Could Love. It was a complete accident how my wife and I randomly found Oogy's book in a local Barnes & Noble.
The author, Larry Levin, describes how he and his family fell in love with Oogy and learned about his horrific life as a bait dog in an illegal dogfighting operation. If you're an animal and dog lover like I am, you will love this book and fall in love with Oogy just as Mr. Levin's family did. Oogy's remarkable story is one of redemption and how we can all find love, inspiration, and hope after enduring significant tragedy.
I want others to discover this great book and experience the joy it brought me. So I started thinking, how are Mr. Levin and Hatchette Book Group (the book's publishers)leveraging social media as part of the overall marketing strategy? After doing some Google searches, I learned they are using different social media channels (i.e., YouTube, Facebook, and Twitter) as part of a traditional book tour where Mr. Levin and Oogy make personal appearances at bookstores and various animal protection events in the Philadelphia area.
So here are my quick thoughts on the current use (and maybe some potential future use) of social media to build public awareness of the book, Oogy: The Dog Only a Family Could Love …
Tip #1: Create an Oogy the Book YouTube Channel
I love how Mr. Levin and the publishers are consistently using this YouTube video to promote the book. We get to meet and hear Mr. Levin talk about Oogy, and he shares pictures of Oogy with Mr. Levin's family. The video has currently racked up ~38,000 views!
Video is such a great online medium that I suggest Mr. Levin and the publishers create their own YouTube Channel (i.e., Oogy The Dog or Oogy The Book) and build a big video library showing:
* Mr. Levin speak during the promotional tour or animal protection awareness events * Impromptu interviews with attendees of these events (i.e., what do they love about Oogy?) * Oogy affectionately interacting with children and other dogs at these events
The Oogy Facebook Fan Page has lots of great pictures showing how much children love seeing and petting Oogy. But, wouldn't it be great to see this interaction captured on video?
The book describes in great detail Oogy's affectionate and loving nature, and I think seeing these behaviors in video would have a huge impact for people who can't travel to a Philadelphia-area event to meet Oogy and Mr. Levin. Oogy and Mr. Levin's ability to travel to other parts of the U.S. are limited because Oogy associates being placed in a crate with having his ear torn off. This means any promotional appearances beyond reasonable driving distance of the Philadelphia area (i.e., the Midwest and West Coast) are highly unlikely.
I think giving people "virtual access" to Oogy via videos would expand "the reach" currently limited by where Mr. Levin and Oogy can drive to.
Tip #2: Publish an Oogy Blog to Improve His Google Search Rankings
Blogging still continues to be the Number 1 way to improve your online presence and increase your Google search engine results pages (i.e., SERPs). The creative content Mr. Levin could publish in a blog are limitless, and the search engine optimization rewards (i.e., SEO) would be huge. In addition, I did a quick search on the name "Larry Levin" and it appears there's already another "Larry Levin" who has already built a large and visible online presence through his own online activities. So, publishing the blog provides Oogy another channel for increasing his Google Search Rankings through other keywords (i.e., illegal dogfighting, animal rights, animal protection) beyond his author's name.
1. A blog adds naturally occuring, keyword-rich pages 2. A blog increases the potential for incoming links from high-quality websites
Blog Posts Increase Your Number of Indexed Pages in Google. Over the course of a year, let's say Mr. Levin publishes two (2) blog posts per month (so roughly 24 pages per year). That investment of time is already significant because the average small business website includes anywhere from 10-20 static web pages. By maintaining the blog and with each new blog post, Oogy gets a new indexed page in Google. The analogy that the Social Media Examiner article provides is that every new indexed page in Google is like buying a ticket in a lottery. The more tickets you hold, the better chance of winning the top spot in the Google Search Engine Rankings. That's the big difference between websites that remain static versus those that are more dynamic (e.g., keep adding new web pages for indexing by publishing blog posts).
Blog Posts Increase Your Chances for High Authority Incoming Links. Google rewards websites receiving large numbers of incoming links. More importantly, Google highly rewards websites receiving incoming links from high authority websites such as the New York Times, USA Today, or other high-ranking blogs. What if an Oogy blog post received an incoming link from a news story from one of these news outlets or from a high-ranking blogger who writes about animal protection and animal rights? Essentially, Oogy's Google Search Rankings would skyrocket.
Tip #3: A Blog Gives Oogy an On-Line Home Base With Digital Flexibility
Scott Monty recently wrote a great blog post titled: "We'll Always Have Blogging." Even though Scott's article focuses on the benefits of corporate blogging, his key points are highly applicable to things Mr. Levin and his publishers could do in promoting Oogy online.
A Blog Can Give Oogy an Integrated, Online Home Base. Oogy already has his own Facebook and Twitter pages. This is great how Mr. Levin and his publishers are leveraging popular social media channels. But, a blog could further increase Oogy's online visibility by providing an online home base integrating all of Oogy's social media channels (i.e., YouTube, Facebook, and Twitter). "Sharing widgets" on each blog post can make it easy for readers to promote Oogy's blog posts through a channel of their choice. Most of all, an integrated home base and an integrated content plan will allow Oogy's story and content to spread wherever his current fans or new fans happen to search for it.
Blogs Provide Long-Form Content and Context That Twitter and Facebook Can't. When it comes to telling a story (and providing that story's overall context), nothing online can match a blog. Oogy's story, the people who saved him, and the joy and love he brought these same people are very moving. And, you can't express those ideas / feelings in a tweet of 140 characters or less. As Scott's article points out, marketing is about storytelling (and a blog would convey Oogy's story outstandingly).
Oogy's Blog Could Host a Variety of Content.Blogs can support a wide variety of content (i.e., text, videos, photos , or a combination of all of the above). This variety of choices gives Mr. Levin and his publishers multiple ways to deliver content about Oogy:
* Videos: Oogy with children and other dogs; Interviews of book event attendees; Interviews of other key people in the book who were touched by Oogy
* Text: Excerpts from the book; Observations or thoughts from a recent book event; Dates of upcoming events where Oogy and Mr. Levin will be appearing; Guest posts by other authors greatly impacted by Oogy (i.e., members of the Ardmore Animal Hospital who saved Oogy or Mr. Levin's sons)
* Photos: Pictures from book signings; Pictures of Oogy with Mr. Levin's family that didn't make it in the book.
Conclusion
Like so many other fans of this book, I simply can't get enough Oogy! In my opinion, integrating social media strategy (especially a blog) as part of the current traditional book promotional tour could increase Oogy's current popularity to a new level. I want more people to learn about Oogy's gentle soul and the incredible story behind the team of people who saved him, and the significant impact he's had on these people's lives.
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