While building a community around a brand is viewed by many as a business tactic, the manner in which you build your community has very little to do with business. Building a community has a lot more to do with people.
In order to build a strong community, a business must treat their community members like friends. Here’s the why and how: Continue reading →
Let me just start by saying that I don’t like conflict. I’m a people pleaser. So I often watch with a strange mixture of trepidation and admiration when I see controversy brewing in the blogosphere. Twitter is full of folks who aren’t afraid to speak their minds, even if it means incurring the wrath of others. And then there’s me. Sure, I have my opinions (Nike…what the heck??) but I am not what you call a pot-stirrer. Truth be told, I just want everyone to get along. Continue reading →
Before I get chased out of my profession by my superiors, I want to make a few things very clear:
I have great respect and admiration for the arsenal of long-standing media relationships PR veterans have built and maintained.
I willingly admit there is much that I can learn from my superiors’ successes (and, admittedly, from their struggles as well.)
Now that we’ve laid some ground-work. . .or covered my backside, whichever you find more appropriate. . .let’s get to the reason for making myself perfectly clear (other than abiding by the Co-Communications mantra, ‘Make Yourself Perfectly Clear.’) If veterans of the PR industry don’t evolve, can they survive? Or will they die-off like the newspapers we sorely miss?
This week I had the pleasure of chatting with Arik Hanson. Bringing brand loyalty to a new level, Arik is willing to drive 10 miles out of his way just for some Caribou Coffee. I guess it tastes so good once it hits your lips. Arik’s free time is spent with, wife (Angela) and kids (Matthew and Amy), play ing golf and riff on the guitar (emphasis on riff). His musicial taste ranges from Green Day to Johnny Cash to Tesla. Top 3 current movies include, The Hangover (best comedy in last 5 years); Madagascar 2 (thanks to my son, Wag the Dog (one of my all-time faves and also a great movie from a PR perspective); The Dark Knight (just a tremendous movie). Professionally Arik, is principal of ACH Communications,and also long-time PRSA member, serving on the Minnesota PRSA board for the past three years and is a frequent speaker at local colleges and universities. His blog is a must-read within in the PR/Social Media industry. Especially for a newbie to social media, like myself, his blog sheds light on the industry and introduces readers to other influential people. And so I give you Arik Hanson…
No, seriously, you don’t. You might have a clue about the ballpark range of my age because of my photo here, you know where I work (because I’ve told you), and you know that I at least have a degree in Public Relations.
So why are you still reading this post? Who says I’m the authority here?
Brands and marketers are rapidly leaving the orbit of “paid media” dominance and entering the gravitational pull of the age of “earned” and “social media.” But first a definition, compliments of Wikipedia: