Anyone who operates within the social media space knows all too well “the bandwagon effect” that new platforms and pundits’ prognostications can have on the entire ecosystem. A new tool is released, a different approach to a standard procedure is introduced, predictions abound of what direction the industry is headed in, and advice on how to maximize your social media efforts are as common as spilled popcorn on a movie theatre floor. Those that blindly follow advice without critical examination or thinking of the nuances of their own communities are often referred to as “drinking the Kool-Aid.” Continue reading
Category Archives: John Trader
PR Flubs, Missed Opportunities, and the Human Touch
If you haven’t heard of Health Management Associates (HMA), that’s ok, few would probably know who they are. That is unless you watched the 60 Minutes segment this past Sunday on how they are allegedly encouraging administrators and physicians at hospitals they own to admit as many patients as possible, in order to boost profits. The public company, headquartered in Naples, FL and whose shares are traded on the NYSE, “through its subsidiaries owns and operates (15) general acute care hospitals and other health care facilities in non-urban communities”, as reported on their Wall Street Journal company profile. Continue reading
What Will You Do in Your Next Term?
Watching the presidential race unfold over the last year and a half has taught me that there were two sides of the fence you can be on when discussing the candidates and their plans for the future of our country:
A. You support one candidate, understand what their plan is, and offer your own opinions on what additional ways we can solve problems that face our country & communities
B. You support one candidate
If voting has taught me anything, it’s to pay attention what people are saying, internalize it, and then form my own opinion based on personal beliefs of what can and can’t work to improve our country. John Adams once said:
“Always vote for principle, though you may vote alone, and you may cherish the sweetest reflection that your vote is never lost.” Continue reading
How to be a Content Curation Intellectual Thief
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Last week while on a business trip, I struck up a conversation with a gentleman seated next to me on the plane (who also happened to be a tech marketer) about content curation and how difficult it can be at times to keep up with the barrage of information flowing through the Web. We discussed all of the curation tools available, what we liked and didn’t like about them and successful ways to organize consistent, timely, and relevant information updates to our respective communities that kept them active and engaged. During the discussion I asked him what he thought was the key to successful curation that helps a marketer create their own meaningful, innovative content. After all, successful content curation requires the right mix of original content to help maximize SEO potential.
“Learn how to be an intellectual thief,” he said. Continue reading
The Summer Week That Was – July 28th – August 3rd
Welcome to Friday and another edition of “The Summer Week That Was.” Aren’t we lucky to work in a profession where news is always plentiful? Here are this week’s top five news stories:
5. Shannon Eastin To Become First Female NFL Referee With An Asterisk
Everyone knows that the NFL is practically bending over backwards to appeal to their female audience. Can we attribute the decision to put the first woman referee (well, technically she will be a Field Judge) on the field as part of their massive and well-targeted PR campaign to women? Or is the decision to let Shannon Eastin participate due to the NFL referee lockout caused by a collective bargaining agreement dispute? I suspect it’s a little bit of both. In my opinion, a savvy PR move by the NFL.
4. CIOs reject social media for news gathering
Hold up there social media cowboy (or cowgirl). Are you telling me that IT-decision makers, a demographic you would logically think gathers information from social media resources, considers other sources outside of social media to be more valuable for news gathering? Looks as if this survey may turn conventional wisdom on its head about the shift towards social for information and research prior to making a purchase. At least for some demographics.
3. How Twitter talked about the Olympics (Infographic)
Holy rapid fire tweets. There is no doubt that Twitter has stole the show as the social media platform darling of the 2012 London Olympics. 2,000 tweets per minute? Over 28 million total tweets about the games? Insane numbers. And the 2nd half of the Olympics is just getting into full swing.
2. Alaska Airlines responds to ‘worst of humanity’ viral backlash
I thought this was an interesting story not from the perspective of how quickly Alaska Airlines responded to the criticism, not because social media fanned a firestorm of complaints and negativity for the brand and not due to the fact that an airline ranked #1 in customer satisfaction can experience a problem of this magnitude. My interest was how people flew off the handle without knowing the whole story and how industry regulations and gut perceptions that consumers are unaware of often drive decisions. Before you complain about something, make sure you know both sides of the story.
1. Rover Curiosity Sticks the Landing for NASA’s Public Relations
In case you hadn’t noticed, NASA has sort of become the red headed step-child of taxpayer angst over government spending. Mired in a two year slump and with a dearth of projects on its plate coupled with public disdain over its budget, NASA needed a little PR shot in the arm. They are after all, more focused on successes than PR campaigns but at this point in their history, they needed the Rover Curiosity landing to pump up perspective, which as you know, is the bread and butter of PR.
That’s it for us on this Friday afternoon. Enjoy the weekend and do something fun with family or friends. Before you know it, the sun will be going down at 5pm and we will all be slogging through the dreary winter longing for days like this where the warm sun shines and the ice cream tastes just a little bit better.
The Summer Week That Was: July 28 – August 3rd
Is it really August already? Wow, ½ a year in the books and still so many things to accomplish this year. I overheard someone say that school starts next week for a lot of kids? Whatever happened to being able to bike ride and swim the whole month of August?
Hope you have been having a good summer with time to rest with family and friends. Here’s this week’s top five news stories: Continue reading
“Like Us” vs. “Find Us” on Facebook
It’s certainly no secret that Facebook is one of the most powerful marketing and social media tools of the modern digital era. Just about every major brand has a presence on Facebook and most do an outstanding job of actively listening and engaging as they build their communities and “likes” so their messages can resonate with an increasing pool of customers.
A lot of brands are obsessed with achieving a high ranking through Facebook’s EdgeRank algorithm to govern what is displayed (and how high) on someone’s newsfeed and with good reason. Today’s consumer factors peer review, image, and transparency into their buying decisions more than ever before so remaining front and center within a person’s newsfeed is priority #1. This, most of us have already figured out. Continue reading
The Summer Week That Was:June 25 – 29, 2012
Thankfully, Friday has arrived. Setting aside for a moment the landmark Supreme Court decision that upheld Obamacare as truly the news story of the week (or perhaps the year, or even decade), let’s dip our toe into the PR, social media, and advertising pool for a look at some of the stories that caught our eye this week which you may have missed. Not necessarily listed in their order of importance, here are some stories that we felt were worth passing on to you, our loyal readers, as significant for our industry: Continue reading
Sensitivity Training is Key For Effective Interviewing Skills
Spurred by this week’s post over on PR Daily about when should a PR pro interrupt an interview, I was motivated to write something about last Sunday’s interesting and rather amusing interruption by “Jungle Bird” during the Bob Costas interview with U.S. Open Champ Webb Simpson. In case you live in a cozy apartment at the bottom of the Marianas Trench and missed this video clip, it is rather amusing.
Here is a link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7z00nX1zqo4 Continue reading
Strive for Diversity in Your Content Consumption
Years ago, I had a job working the front desk at my local YMCA and it afforded me the opportunity to truly understand just how important it is to appreciate cultural diversity in the world around us. Over the 10+ years working there, I interacted with a host of different ethnicities, races, and cultures, all with their own unique perspectives, ideas, and opinions. Living in a country founded on the principles of multiculturalism, I often felt privileged that at a young age I had the opportunity to view life through a cultural prism, respecting ideals and beliefs that may have been contrary to my own but helped to mold the way I related to others. Continue reading