WINTER 2008/2009

SOMETIMES IT'S OKAY TO BE ANTI-SOCIAL

Being anti-social – or not – is up to you. As for me, I think social media is here to stay. Whether you opt in or out, you should understand the role social media plays in communications. It can improve your organization's bottom line. Social media is accessible to everyone, and can be used to communicate privately or very publicly. Your choice. BOB

Famous names
A star-studded list of companies and organizations uses social media to communicate with their audiences: King County, Starbucks, Dell, Nike, General Motors, Comcast, Whole Foods, Apple, Office Max, Intel, the American Red Cross, Accenture, Boeing, the Obama campaign, the Securities and Exchange Commission, and many, many more.

New tools, same rules
It may help to think of social media as the hottest new tools for relationship management. Staying in touch has always been one of the first rules to achieve professional success. We've moved from using letters and telephones to email, cell phones and instant messengers. Social media ups the ante with methods that make keeping in touch easier and more dynamic – and a lot of fun, to boot.

Speak up or shut up
Online conversations are happening all the time about every topic under the sun. Sooner or later, one of those topics is bound to affect you, your company or organization, or something you feel strongly about. By not participating, you opt out of contributing to any final outcome. The choice is yours. Speak up – or let the chips fall where they may…

Our own definition
Here's how Matt Smedley, Frause's own social media guru, defines the subject:
Social media (SO-shul MEE-dee-uh) noun: Two-way online communications that allow users to share written, audio and/or visual information – really fast and at any time.

Something for everyone
A recent column in Seattle Business Monthly notes that social media networks have sprung up for professionals interested in communicating with their industry brethren.
www.ActiveRain.com real estate professionals
www.iMedExchange.com physicians
www.avvo.com lawyers
www.TeachStreet.com teachers
www.AdGabber.com marketing professionals

Dismiss at your own risk
Remember when "sustainability" was a novel concept and "green" products and services were hard to find? Today, green is the new black – in everything from food (Whole Foods, Wild Oats) to construction (LEED), cars (Prius et al) and shopping bags (paper's better than plastic, reusable's best of all). Social media is on the same track! At minimum, your organization should understand the potential opportunities it presents.

Blasting a few myths
No big surprise, there is a lot of hyperbole surrounding the topic of social media. Misperceptions, too.
Myth #1: Any hot story/idea/project will take off like wildfire once it's in the social media-sphere (not true).
Myth #2: Traditional marketing is not long for this world – soon to be replaced by social media (yes, and computers have eliminated paper documentation).
Myth #3: Social media is just for Gen Y'ers (Bob Frause would beg to disagree). Myth #4: To be effective, you should use every social media tool available (start small – like in the kid's pool with arm floaties – and expand as you feel comfortable).
Click here for other mistaken beliefs about social media.

No silver bullet
Social media isn't the solution for every business issue. It's not for every person, either. So yes, it is okay to be anti-social. However, social media does offer great opportunities to enhance communications and marketing efforts. If you are interested in exploring the opportunities, your best bet is to talk with an expert – someone who will help show you where value and opportunity might be hiding.

Who comes up with these?
Ever notice the seemingly arbitrary names attached to many social networking sites? We have. Here are a few examples – some more obscure than others…
  • Twitter
  • Digg
  • Reddit
  • StumbleUpon
  • Technorati
  • FohBoh
  • Greenopolis
  • Biznik
  • CrunchBase


    • Factoids
  • 75% of CEOs use social media, with 43 percent using it at least a few times each week (Burson-Marsteller/PR Week 2008 CEO survey)
  • 42% of bloggers are in the 35- to 54-year-old age category (Technorati's "State of the Blogosphere" report)
  • 49% of connected consumers have made a purchase based on a recommendation through a social media site (FEED: Razorfish Consumer Experience Report 2008)
  • 87% of executives report they are using Web 2.0 applications (including social media) to interface with customers (McKinsey's "Building the Web 2.0 Enterprise" survey)


    • Bombarded by buzzwords
    If you're feeling overwhelmed by the never-ending influx of social media-related jargon, you're not alone. Wikis, widgets, Web 2.0, blogs (okay, most of us know blogs – but what about "micro-blogging"?), hyper-local media, mash-ups, RSS feeds, podcasts, tweets, content discovery, netiquette, cloud computing, vlogs – and let's not forget "social media" itself. Try online encyclopedia Wikipedia the next time you run into one of these eye-crossers.

    Frause news
    A big hurrah for sister company Frause Visual, which officially launched October 1 with a full suite of video and audio production, graphic design and broadcast production services. The Frause Visual team includes managing partner/executive producer Jeri Vaughn, senior producer Erika Sunmark, editor/director of photography Matteo Bava and graphic designer Susan Lamb. On the Frause front…welcome to account executive Lacy Bronson, office concierge Georgi Jenkins and intern Kirsten Wattenberg, all in the Seattle office. Congrats to newly promoted senior account executives Matt Smedley (Portland), Nicole Phelan and Laura Gese (both Seattle). More congrats to Bob Frause, recipient of the 2008 President's Award for Volunteerism from the Puget Sound Chapter of the Public Relations Society of America. And adios and buena suerta to Portland intern Heidi Gill and Seattle intern Sarah Essary.
    		 
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