digital pr - pr news · measurement reputation crisis management seo video mobile pr media &...

measurement

reputation

crisis management

SEO

video

mobile PR

media & influencer relations

financial communications

customer relations

public affairs

internal communications

social media, including best practices in using Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Pinterest, Google+ and more

Foreword by Diane Schwartz, senior vice president, PR News

Published by PR News Press prnewsonline.com

VOL. 4

DIGITAL PRGUIDEBOOK

guidebookdigital pr

volume 5

Published by PR News Press • prnewsonline.com

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digital pr guidebook • Vol. 5

Table of Contents:Editor’s Letter: Index of Companies & Organizations:

Chapter 1 - Overview7 Principles for Building Buzz Equity, And Don’t Forget the 3 S’s — by PR News Editors ......................................

As a Sales and Employment Tool, Don’t Sell Your ‘About’ Page Short — by PR News Editors .................................

Facebook’s $tock Takes a Hit, But Not Social Media’s Value to PR — by PR News Editors ....................................

PR Pros Must Deliver the Right E-Mails at the Right Time — by PR News Editors ...............................................

14 Ways that SMBs Can Create Impactful Social Media Content — by Kathleen Brommer ..................................

Key PR Ingredients for Serving Up Tasty Results — by Drew Gerber ..................................................................

3 Ways to Improve Your Brand’s Social Media Presence — by PR News Editors................................................

Why Your Boring Brand Might Need Some Social-Media Spark — by Hugh McMullen ...........................................

PR Pros Embrace The Living, Breathing Digital Ecosystem — by Nathan Rice and George Mayer ..........................

#Write_on: How to Write For Social Media Networks — by Allison Hersh ..........................................................

4 Ways You’re (Probably) Not Using LinkedIn for PR — by PR News Editors........................................................

Chapter 2: Storytelling for Business: How to Be Effective in 140 Characters — by Deborah H. French ..................................

Twitter Paid Products Can Supercharge Social Outreach — by PR News Editors .................................................

6 Tips for Using Twitter’s Promoted Products — by PR News Editors .................................................................

Hashtags: Your Event’s Viral and Vocal Best Friend — by Nichole Lunat ..............................................................

Twitter’s 3 “C’s”: Chat, Customer Service and Conversation — by Erin Boudreau .................................................

Chapter 3: Facebook8 Tips to Boost Engagement on Facebook — by PR News Editors .....................................................................

5 Tips for Measuring Your Facebook Efforts — by PR News Editors ..................................................................

Facebook Empowers Brands to Target Specific Fans — by Lauren Hopkins .........................................................

How to Respond to Customer Service Comments on Facebook — by Jennifer Spivak and Lorraine Tran ..................

Chapter 4: Emerging Social Media: Pinterest, Instagram and Beyond Turning Visuals into Revenue: Pinterest Opens for Businesses — by PR News Editors .........................................

Expand Your Brand on Pinterest — by Dan Moyle .............................................................................................

Instagram Picks Up Steam as an Engagement Tool — by PR News Editors .........................................................

Pinterest for Brands: Now the Real Work Begins — by PR News Editors............................................................

Using Pinterest to Advance Business Goals — by Sarah Solomon Byrkit .............................................................

Pin-ching Pennies? 10 Pinterest Tips for Small Businesses — by PR News Staff .................................................

Instagram Gets the Picture for PR Opportunities — by Lynford Morton ..............................................................

How to Be a Social Media Rock Star on 6 Platforms — by Kent Lewis ................................................................

Gamification: Where Psychology Meets Communication — by Miguel A. Cano .....................................................

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Chapter 5: Legal Concerns and Social Media Policies in Digital PRCopyright and Fair Use Issues for PR Professionals — by Dawn Conway .............................................................

Assessing and Managing Social Media Risk — by Jim Satterfield ......................................................................

Zuck Soup: Investor Relations Tips to Avoid a Facebook-Style IPO — by PR News Editors .....................................

Getting a Customer Price Increase Right — by PR News Editors .......................................................................

Chapter 6: Digital PR MeasurementAchieving Success Through the 5-Step Methodology — by Jessica Payne ...........................................................

Don’t Underestimate Social-Media Monitoring — by Elisabeth Korody.................................................................

The Golden Nugget in Google Analytics — by Chip Hanna ..................................................................................

Communicating Social Media Metrics to Your CEO — by PR News Editors ..........................................................

How Data Can Dramatically Change Your PR Practices — by Ellen Lanse ............................................................

Re-Tooling Social Media Metrics to Provide Real Insights — by Kent Lewis .........................................................

PR Myth: ‘CPM’ Does Not Apply to Public Relations — by Mark Weiner ..............................................................

Social Media ROI: Placing Value on Customer Engagement — by Elisabeth Korody ...............................................

Chapter 7: SEOUsing Online Press Releases for Lead Generation — by Nicholas Pandiscio, P.E. .................................................

The Importance of Online Executive Positioning for SEO — by David H. Rosen .....................................................

The Secrets to SEO Domination on Google — by Manny Sarmiento ....................................................................

A Public Relations Approach to Multilingual SEO — by Donald L. Dunnington .......................................................

5 Ways to Drive Traffic to Your New Website — by Tomeeka Farrington .............................................................

The Importance of Keyword Difficulty Screening for SEO — by David Viniker ........................................................

SEO Best Practices for Getting the Most Out of Your Content — by David Viniker ...............................................

Optimizing Your Web Site vs. Your Google+ Business Listing — by Julien Brandt ................................................

5 Tips for Writing News Releases Humans and Google Will Love — by Andrew Hindes ........................................

Chapter 8. Content CreationChanging Content: Marketing and PR Strategies for 2013 — by Kevin Pike and Steve J. Scearce..........................

Turning Traditional Marketing Collateral into Online Content — by Nathan Burgess ..............................................

5 Keys to Making Your Business a Content Powerhouse — by PR News Editors ..................................................

Chapter 10. VideoInnovation Drives Video Success on Anchor Platform YouTube — by PR News Editors ..........................................

Tip Sheet: Make the Changing Media Paradigm Work for You — by Dave Armon ..................................................

Beyond YouTube: Learning The 3 Ps of Online Video — by Mark Manoff ..............................................................

Long-Form Videos Boost YouTube Viewership — by PR News Editors .................................................................

Employ Interactivity to Your Video Strategy — by Kriselle Laran .........................................................................

Video Marketing: The Ultimate Guide to the Future of Storytelling — by Kent Lewis .............................................

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Strategies for Enhancing PR Initiatives with Mobile Video — by Miguel A. Cano ...................................................

Video and SEO: Where Two Powerful PR Strategies Meet — by Justin Handley ...................................................

Chapter 11. Media & Influencer RelationsHow Social Media is Changing the Media Relations Landscape — by Stephen Hunton ..........................................

The New Paradigm: How to Navigate Through Media Relations — by Kathleen Boylan ..........................................

The Easy Way to Effective Influencer Identification — by Eric Koefoot and Chris Bolster .......................................

For Journalists in New Beats? Focus on The Opportunities — by PR News Editors ..............................................

Keeping Your Clients in the News—Sans any News — by Lydia Howard ..............................................................

11 Media Relations and Pitching Tips from HuffPo’s Nate Hindman — by PR News Editors ...................................

5Tips for Better Serving Journalists and Media — by PR News Editors ..............................................................

Media Watch: Journalists Demand More Visuals — by PR News Editors ............................................................

6 Reasons Why Grammar Still Matters in the Digital Age — by Andrew Hindes ..................................................

7 Tips for Communicating With Journalists via LinkedIn — by PR News Editors ...................................................

Chapter 12. Crisis CommunicationsCultivate Communities Now to Mitigate a Crisis Later — by PR News Editors .....................................................

5 Tips For When a Social Media Crisis Strikes on a Weekend — by PR News Editors ..........................................

10 Tips for Handling a Crisis on Twitter — by PR News Editors .........................................................................

Making Sure Social Media is Your Ally in a Crisis — by Andy Castagnola and Dustin Hoffmant ...............................

Social Media is Another Way Of Saying ‘Crisis Communication’ — by Karen Masullo ............................................

When a Story Goes Viral, It’s More than Just Numbers — by Beth Schlesinger ...................................................

Chapter 13. Public AffairsFor PR PRos ‘4 More Years’ Doesn’t Means the Status Quo — by PR News Editors ............................................

Key PR Takeaways from the First ‘Social’ Election — by Jennifer A. Moire ...........................................................

How Social Media Can Help Sway the Public — by Bill Paulos and Todd Wolfenarger ............................................

Harnessing the Influence of Social Media to Educate, Inform — by Rachel R. Hawley ...........................................

How to Use Twitter to Make Voters Love You — by Marshall Maher ...................................................................

How to Assuage a Hostile Audience: Dignify the Boos — by PR News Editors .....................................................

#pinkslime in the Spotlight: Hashtags Take Center Stage — by PR News Editors .................................................

Chapter 14. Customer Service and Brand ManagementCustomer Reviews, Testimonials Can Beat Ads in Effectiveness — by PR News Editors .......................................

10 Ways to Energize Employee Bloggers and Boost Your Brand — by Maggie Scott and Michael McManus ...........

Understanding and Preventing Brandjacking in Social Media — by Tina McCorkindale, Ph.D. & Marcia W. DiStaso, Ph.D. .....

How PR Can Forge Peaceful Coexistence With Wikipedia — by PR News Editors.................................................

Digital Watch: Editing Wikipedia Posts a ‘Sticky’ Business — by PR News Editors ...............................................

How to Match Celebrities with Your Brand’s Personality — by Deborah Sierchio .................................................

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How to Play the Business Naming Game and Win — by Andrew Bogucki ............................................................

How to Identify Attributes That Help Drive Rebrand Research — by PR News Editors ..........................................

Chapter 15. Internal Communications

Incorporating a Call-to-Action in Internal Communication — by Lisa Nicole Chen ..................................................

Minding the Gap: Engaging a Remote Work Force with Video — by Kai Fawn Miller .............................................

Room for Growth Keys to Retaining Top Talent — by Kimling Lam ......................................................................

Chapter 16. Case StudiesESPN Takes Fans Behind the Scenes And in the Huddle — by PR News Editors ...................................................

Clorox Uses Social Media to Make a Healthy Difference — by PR News Editors ..................................................

Big Scoops of Content Propel Talenti Gelato e Sorbetto — by PR News Editors ...................................................

Cartoon Network’s Anti-Bullying Messaging Inspires Millions — by PR News Editors ............................................

Bloggers Send Infantino’s Test-Drive Campaign Into High Gear — by PR News Editors .........................................

Duke’s Virtual Campout Contest Turns a Slam-Dunk — by PR News Editors ........................................................

Embracing a Multi-Channel Communications Environment — by PR News Editors ................................................

4 Chapter 15 Case Studies ® PR News

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the scenes and in the huddleBy PR News Editors

Since 1979 ESPN has established it-self as the voice for the sports fan. Having begun as a fledging network airing slow-pitch softball and wres-

tling, the Bristol, Conn.-based sports media network has, in more than 30 years, trans-formed itself into one of the most recogniz-able brands in the world—and at times one of the most criticized.

With its immense broadcast, radio and digi-tal media platforms, and an estimated worth of $40 billion (according to Forbes) ESPN has become the 800-pound gorilla of sports media. Because of its resources, ESPN has kept with the ever-evolving digital landscape by integrating Twitter and Facebook sharing into its content and making fans voices a part of their daily television programming.

But for all the sports content ESPN was delivering to the masses, how were they han-dling their own external-facing websites? That was the ques-tion facing ESPN VP of com-munications, Mike Soltys.

The thinking was that with numerous options now avail-able to deliver content, ESPN needed to make sure it was do-ing all it could to stay ahead of the curve.

With that in mind, ESPN’s public-facing corporate blog, Front Row, would be launched to give an inside look at ESPN, its culture and its people while

encouraging two-way conversation with us-ers.

“When there’s a perceived lack of transparency, it doesn’t bode well for your brand from a PR perspective and consumers may be reluctant to buying your product, which in ESPN’s case would be watching TV and consuming content. Launching Front Row allowed ESPN to get out in front of the criticism, which would help in its PR efforts.”

Front Row would be the source of record for ESPN’s perspective on topical issues and breaking news that relate to the company. The internal philosophy behind Front Row would

ESPN’s Front Row blog is designed to take its millions of fans inside the storied sports network, and at the same time serves as a platform to respond to public criticism of its practices. Photo: ESPN

prnewsonline.com Chapter 15 Case Studies 5


be simple and straightforward: Whenever you are sending out a press release, think of ways in which that release could be expanded upon with a post on Front Row.

Specifically, ESPN Front Row was created •with the following objectives in mind:Use the vast resources of ESPN’s many •tentacles as well as that of the existing multimedia communications team to gen-erate compelling content on a daily basis.Serve as an issue management interface •when needed in order to get ahead of po-

tential problems or to minimize damage.Initiate outreach to old and new media •alike to introduce them to Front Row and the tagline, “Telling Our Story from the Inside Out.”Maximize the press releases that exist on •ESPN Media Zone (a sister site to Front Row) to create stories that go beyond the release and add additional dimension to standard releases.Aggressively deploy social media, specifi-•cally Twitter, to raise awareness and direct people to individual posts on Front Row.

under the ‘scope’When you’re the self-proclaimed world-

wide leader in sports, every move you make is constantly under the microscope. As ESPN’s brand continued to grow, so did the number of critics. And with the growth of social me-dia and blogs, that criticism began to come at a rapid pace. Blogs such as Deadspin and The Big Lead, among others, became the leading critics of ESPN and some of its practices.

Whereas traditional media critics came from major newspapers, “Joe Sports Fan” now had a platform in blogs to create an in-fluence online and discuss that criticism with other fans who devour sports content—espe-cially ESPN’s—and offer immediate reaction to what they watch, read and hear.

“We recognized with the growth of social media and blogs that were popping up,” Sol-tys says. “We needed to be in this space and take people inside ESPN.”

Prior to Front Row, there was a one-way street between ESPN and consumers. Here is a massive sports programming network that outsiders felt was too big to have to answer to critics. What really goes on in those offices? Why is this game being aired in my area as opposed to this other game? How does ESPN balance its journalistic practices when it has partnerships with the leagues it makes mil-

Casting a Corporate Comms. Net: 3 tips for Better Blog integration

If you look at the strategy of corporate com-munications, it hasn’t changed much, says Gordon Benzie, director of public and ana-lyst relations at Apriso. What has changed is that the competition among voices—tra-ditional broadcast and newspapers, blogs and other social/digital platforms—is fierce. “You must evaluate each of these compet-ing mediums to best understand how much presence you need,” Benzie says.

Here are three tips from Benzie to better integrate these voices to reach your com-munications objectives:

Start a corporate blog: Having a plat-1. form to present your perspective on how to address the common chal-lenges your target audience faces is invaluable.Direct future prospects to your online 2. presence: Lure visitors to your blog who seek solutions to the problems you can solve; “fish” for these prospects with social media outreach.Integrate official external communi-3. cations: As product launch and as company announcements are officially communicated via press releases make sure the message is also communicat-ed on your blog, as well as other social media platforms.


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lions off of and covers?“The objective in corporate blogs is to de-

liver a message that resonates well with your target audience so as to positively impact fu-ture buying behavior,” said Gordon Benzie, director, public & analyst relations at Apriso, and leader of the company’s blogging efforts.

When there’s a perceived lack of transpar-ency, it doesn’t bode well from your brand

from a PR perspective and consumers may be reluctant to buying your product, which in ESPN’s case would be watching TV and consuming content. Launching Front Row allowed ESPN to get out in front of the criti-cism, which would help in its PR efforts.

“Any ESPN views would have been a blog item from somewhere else,” Soltys said. “Now it’s a blog item from us.”

Making it WorkESPN’s vast resources and multimedia com-

munications team, including Soltys, Laurel Daggett, Sheldon Spencer, Rich Arden and David Scott, would oversee production of compelling content on a daily basis. To help tell ESPN’s stories from the inside out, one of the goals for the site was to maximize the press releases that exist on ESPN Media Zone while aggressively using social media—specif-ically Twitter—to raise awareness and direct

people to individual posts on Front Row.A posting schedule of three original posts

per day was established, aiming for two pieces of new content daily, with the hope that users start their day with the site; share lunch there and check in before they leave work.

Under the editorial leadership of Spencer, who, according to Soltys, gives Front Row a news sense because of his journalist back-ground, Front Row operates with staff mem-bers who continue to work on their “regular” jobs while helping contribute to the blog. “The miracle of the blog is that sometimes it can seem overwhelming, but the buy-in has been great,” Spencer said.

In addition, audio podcasts and compelling images have been added to the blog mix, pro-viding more opportunities for interaction.

“I’ve been really surprised at the success of the podcasts,” Spencer says. “I wish we could have thought about and incorporated them earlier.”

‘Linsane’ test In early 2012, an issue management crisis

at ESPN put Front Row’s role to the test.On Feb. 18, 2012, in the midst of what had

been dubbed “Linsanity,” ESPN was faced with an unfortunate situation involving three different people associated with the compa-ny.

Over the prior days and weeks, the emer-gence of New York Knicks guard Jeremy Lin, an Asian-American, had captured the sports world like few stories in recent memory.

When the mobile site’s inappropriate head-line about Lin, “Chink in The Armour,” was posted in the early morning hours of Satur-day, the 18th (and removed less than 30 min-utes after appearing on the site), several blogs had seen the headline and taken screen grabs of it. By 9:00 a.m. that morning, the story had spread to new and old media alike. In PR parlance, it was a crisis situation and all hands needed to be on deck.

Caption Caption



At 9:32 a.m. a statement was issued on both ESPN Front Row and on ESPN MediaZone. Publicists, as well as the main ESPN Twitter feed, tweeted out the link to the statement and the Front Row URL was shared with any media that requested comment.

An important part of the transparency ini-tiative undertaken by Front Row is to allow two-way communication, and the Lin inci-dent proved to be a vivid example of the ben-efits of allowing users to share opinions and ask questions.

Big NumbersSince launching in April 2011, the blog has

exceeded expectations on all of its objectives. It’s also racked up some impressive numbers:

A Google search of “ESPN Front Row” •yields 2.5 million results in.12 seconds 1,250 total Front Row posts (between •March 31, 2011 to July 11, 2012) 1.4 million visitors (Visitors went from •

49,353 in April 2011 to 102,620 in April 2012; unique visitors went from 36,099 to 91,714 over same period) 1.9 million total page views •50 Front Row audio podcasts produced •(posted since Oct. 2011)

What’s Next?With growth in visibility, the expectation

for new and fresh content on Front Row also increases. Spencer says ESPN is up for that challenge.

As the digital communications landscape continues to expand, brands have to stay ahead of the curve, or face being left behind. ESPN and its Front Row blog is a prime ex-ample. PRN


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Make a healthy difference

By PR News Editors

The power of the Internet, specifi-cally social media networks such as Twitter and Facebook, has changed the way brands approach PR cam-

paigns.The potential reach social media can pro-

vide gives organizations opportunities to spread their message to large audiences, pro-mote their brands and engage directly with consumers.

That was the thinking when The Clorox Company wanted to take its commitment to helping families lead healthier and happier lives to the next level by creating Check-in for Checkups. With the target audience of moms between the ages of 25 and 54, Clorox teamed up with the Children’s Health Fund to launch a six-month, social media-based campaign that would encourage consumers to “check in” and submit their daily healthy habit, or select one that they were already practic-ing. When those check-ins occurred, Clorox would reward those healthy habits by pledg-ing to donate 10 cents to CHF every time a user shared or checked in their healthy prac-tice to checkingforcheckups.com.

At the time of launch, Karen Redlener, ex-ecutive director of the CHF said: “Without access to comprehensive health care, children are at increased risk of developing life-long health issues. We are thrilled to partner with Clorox again this year to bring vulnerable kids the care they need and deserve so they can live healthier lives.”

In order for this campaign to pop, Clorox,

with the help of PR agency Ketchum, needed to create a strategy that would use the power of social media influencers, engage moms who are involved and user their influence in social communities and use Facebook, Twitter and YouTube to drive awareness via outreach and SEO tactics.

“More and more PR pros are seeing the benefits of relying almost solely on social media for selected campaigns. Twitter, Facebook and other networks provide a direct connection to consumers and allow everyone a voice to share opinions on any subject.”

“When we thought about health and well-ness, we tried to figure out how we could ele-vate the campaign and factor in healthy habits we could do every day,” says Molly Steink-rauss, associate manager of PR for Clorox.

With the objectives set to secure one mil-lion check-ins to provide 500,000 check-ups to kids in need, create social media discus-sions about the campaign and drive traffic to the website, the following tactics were put in place:

Collect and activate a group of high-profile •social media celebrities and influencers to create online awareness, discussion and participation.Launch the effort with a high-profile •health event in a top media market. Then



recreate those events in other markets across the country.Generate awareness and buzz through in-•person engagement with a celebrity social media influencer and via national media outreach.Roll out the program through a video •series posted on YouTube, blogs posts, and Twitter and Facebook posts.Increase searchability of the campaign •through online directory outreach.

social Media influenceIn working with the Ketchum PR team, re-

search revealed that 82% of moms are always looking for ways to lead healthier lifestyles. Ketchum’s research also revealed that 63% of those moms are active on social networking sites and most share information they feel is worthy of passing on.

With that in mind, it was decided that in-

stead of going through bloggers to spread the word about the campaign, the most effective way to bring about awareness was to target specific influencers on social media to get others involved with the campaign.

The Children’s Health Fund was a great partner to work with,” says Carlisle Campbell, VP, group manager of Ketchum. “They had a lot of similar ideas and our goals matched perfectly.”

With the objective being to secure one mil-lion check-ins, Clorox reached out to several key influencers who could spread the message to their own large audiences and get others involved.

“We spent a lot of time finding the right people who were relevant to the topic and the cause involved,” says Steinkrauss.

Bethenny Frankel, a New York Times best-selling author, was selected to lead the social media influence component.

A new mom herself and a health advocate, Frankel was considered ideal and someone who the target audience could identify with. And with more than a million followers on Twitter and 800,000 “likes” on Facebook, her social media reach was a perfect fit to help spread the healthy message.

The campaign was officially launched at a “Random Acts of Wellness” social event at the Chelsea Piers in New York City. It was Frankel’s chance to get started in her role to encouraged New Yorkers in attendance to check-in their healthy habits.

social influencing In conjunction with the launch a series of videos on YouTube featuring Frankel helped Clorox drive its message. The videos, featuring healthy tips presented with a unique theme, were shared via Twitter over the course of the campaign to increase engagement and drive more traffic to the website.

On Twitter, the hashtag #checkinforcheck-ups was the central point for users to share

The Clorox Check-In for Checkups campaign al-lowed moms to go online and submit a daily healthy habit, resulting in a donation to Children’s Health Fund. Image: Ketchum


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their experiences with their followers. On Fa-cebook, check-in “events” were created peri-odically to provide support to others and to increase engagement opportunities.

According to Steinkrauss, the combined Ketchum/Clorox team of 15 monitored the

social media discussion to make sure every-thing stayed on course.

Melanie Edwards, author of the Modern-Mami.com, a popular blog from the perspec-tive of a Latina working mother, hosted Fa-cebook events, using her online influence to bring even more awareness to the campaign.

“Twitter and Facebook were great tools for us as they enabled conversation among those who were getting involved,” Steinkrauss says.

Checking inThe success of the campaign exceeded agen-

cy and client expectations. More than one million check-ins had been secured by Nov. 2011, which put the campaign nearly two months ahead of schedule in terms of goals.

The most important outcome: 500,000 chil-dren received viral health checkups because of the campaign. The campaign also drew 953,400 Twitter impressions and 1,395,954 Facebook impressions.

Other campaign results include:Generated more than 1,800 tweets •Reached more than 13 million people •through Facebook and Twitter Earned more than 12,000 video views, far •exceeding the original goal of 1,500 views Captured 90 million media impressions •“The most surprising part of the campaign

was the heavy involvement from the people who were checking in,” Campbell says. “It was really amazing to see. They were very in-spired to give.”

What’s Next?The success of Check-In for Checkups

should eliminate some of the uncertainty other brands have with completely putting the success or failure of a PR campaign in the hands of social media.

With the success, the door will be opened to future campaigns led from a social media perspective. “Everything we do, we’re look-ing at how we can use it better in the future,”

Keeping the Buzz humming: tips For a top-Notch social Campaign

When Clorox wanted to create a program rewarding consumers for practicing healthy habits, it teamed up with Ketchum and the Children’s Health Fund to create Check-In for Checkups, a social media-based cam-paign that encourage consumers to “check in” and submit their daily health practices. Here Leslie Schrader, partner and director of Ketchum’s Washington, D.C. brand and marketing practice, offers the following tips for executing a successful social media campaign:

Activate all assets: Use traditional media •and on-the-ground events to drive social and vice versa. This creates stronger and more substantial engagement than either one alone.Engage the right partners: Choose the •right mix of influencers to help drive engagement, conversation and create unique content. Make sure the partners have an authentic connection to your brand and campaign.Go where your audience is: It might be •tempting to ride the wave of popularity when new social media platforms are introduced, but it is still important to ana-lyze where your target audience is going online. No matter how innovative a new platform may be you won’t achieve your business objectives if your audience isn’t using the latest platform.Deliver good content: Bring your brand •or cause to life through original content that is easily shared. Think about ways to engage your audience so that they are telling you what types of content they want to see more of, and then deliver it.



Steinkrauss says.More and more PR pros are seeing the ben-

efits of relying almost solely on social media for selected campaigns. Twitter, Facebook and other networks provide a direct connec-tion to consumers and allow everyone a voice to share opinions on any subject.

“The influencer approach really worked for us, as we were able to find the right people to share our message,” Campbell says.

How true: Clorox found an issue it was pas-

sionate about, chose influencers who shared its vision, and made it work. PRN

influencer Measurement tools: they drill down, But how Far?

For its Check-In for Checkups campaign, Clorox, with Ketchum, identified key online influencers—targeting moms—to get the word out about healthy habits. There are plenty of tools out there to find your key ambassadors online. Jason Falls, social media consultant and author of the Social Media Ex-plorer blog (www.socialmediaexplorer.com), has compiled a list influencer measurement tools. Here’s just a small sampling of tools—both free and paid—on the list:

Alltop – Blog RSS aggregator organized by topic. Lists feature top blogs in each category edited by the Alltop staff.

Klout – Score-producing application measures an individual’s ability to move his or her networks to action.

mPACT – Dashboard shows top 10 influencers by default, but allows drill downs with no limits on what you can find.

ReSearch.ly – Offering from PeopleBrowsr allows array of topics and search-based filters to identify mentions of search terms on Twitter.

Traackr – Custom topic influencer research tool. Produces dynamic top 25 list by category. Re-search model that factors reach, resonance and relevance to produce a numeric ranking.

TweetLevel – Edelman project that produces overall Twitter population list that can be filtered by influence, popularity, engagement and trust.

Twendz – Waggener Edstrom tool that identifies Twitter influencers around searched-for keywords.

Twitalyzer – Twitter analysis of network, reach and impact. Individual profile page displays a per-son’s Twitter network and cursory bio information.

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