There’s no easy answer, but in this case, in many industries such as entertainment, high-tech and cleantech normal communications activities resume quickly. However, in others such as sports and healthcare, reporters were quickly consumed in Marathon-related stories. This means that PR pros had to be more sensitive to the scope of the news. PR pros and their clients in those fields were best served by erring on the side of caution.

The Marathon tragedy also presented an opportunity for some public relations representatives to offer assets to reporters. This is no time to push for a product or company feature, but there are people with expertise who can help reporters bring perspective and new insights to the public. For instance, trauma physicians or experts in limb amputation can offer important insight. The same can be said for terrorism and security experts. However, the line between helpful and insensitive is narrow. Pitching a product or service to reporters with the positioning that “XYZ could have helped save lives” would be in extremely poor taste. The sensible approach is to proceed with caution, and the paramount concern should be helping the public, selflessly.

The events of last week created an interesting dilemma for one of Schwartz MSL’s account teams. Our client markets a treatment for blocked arteries caused by peripheral artery disease (PAD) and recently launched a campaign that centered on the prevention of limb loss (if left untreated, PAD often leads to amputation). It is a noble and important effort, given that PAD is strongly linked to diabetes, a condition whose prevalence is rising rapidly among U.S. residents.

However, more than a dozen of the injured spectators at the Marathon lost one or both of their legs. In the immediate aftermath of these events, could we justify pitching a story on a treatment to prevent limb loss?

At the time of the tragedy, our media outreach efforts were focused on national consumer freelancers and local health reporters in New Haven, Conn. and Lexington, Ky. We could have resumed our normal activities in short order without tying in the events in Boston, and perhaps we could have generated some interest in a story on PAD. But it didn’t feel like the right thing to do. It was too soon.

We decided to cease all media relations activities for the week. This week, we are treading carefully and contacting reporters only when we are certain they are no longer covering Marathon-related health stories. We are proceeding with caution. Ethically and professionally, it’s the right thing to do.

1) Paid search (PPC) is very hard for B2B companies. The two experts, Lora Kratchounova from Scratch Marketing & Media and Ian Klein from inSegment, agreed that paying for placement in Google search results is difficult for B2B companies. It seems as though it's hard to sort out key words that are specific to a B2B audience against the backdrop of those terms appearing in Google searches for other reasons. 

2) A company *should* bid for PPC placement on its own name. Apparently, Google offers discounted rates for companies to place PPC bids on their own company names (awfully nice of Google to do that). And even though a given company should have excellent organic SEO for its own name, it's a best practice to secure top paid placement for that company name as well. 

3) BIG: For PR people, the little SEO press release tricks no longer matter. My co-worker Mark McClennan publishes an annual report on how PR pros fail to optimize their press releases for SEO. The numbers are stark. Three-quarters of press release headlines are too long, given that Google seems to prioritize terms that appear in about the first 65 characters. Well, as it turns out, the SEO tips and tricks I learned several years back are no longer applicable. Google is smart enough to understand context and to make very good guesses about the quality of writing. In general, PR pros don't need to worry about keyword density, links, etc. 

4) What does matter is good writing. As Ian Klein mentioned, if a PR pro writes a solid press release that is clear and includes appropriate links to supporting content, then that pro will be rewarded from an SEO perspective. It's that simple.

I have experienced this fourth rule a few times. Sometimes, when I read an especially good press release or blog post written by one of my teams, I run a keyword density check on that writing. And I find a near perfect density for the keywords the client cares about. In these cases, the writer is merely trying to write something good; they are not paying attention to the SEO "rules." 

It would appear that Google has improved its algorithms so that it can serve its users best--the best content is given the best authority. I guess that's the way it really should be.

Lora Kratchounova agreed that good content is key. However, she expanded the concept of content to include other deliverables besides writing. It could be visuals or games, even. 

5) Media placements that link to client websites or pages significantly impact SEO. For good old fashioned media relations experts, Ian Klein nailed it. A high-profile placement with a link back to a client's site might take a lot of time and a lot of effort. The SEO benefit from that placement (and link) is equal to the effort that went into the process. 

So the big takeaways for PR people affecting SEO? It's about good writing and media placements that refer to my clients. 

(Caveat: I’m not an SEC or Reg FD specialist, but I’ve followed this for years and I play one on TV. NOTE: we are not an IR firm and we cannot give binding advice about regulated financial matters.)

So here’s a summary. In 2000 the SEC updated its ancient (1934) rules regarding disclosure of information that could impact trading of public company equities. This was a 584-page document usually referred to as Reg FD, or “the aircraft carrier.” With the rise of blogs and social media the SEC updated some of this in 2008 to address the trend of companies using online communications to convey material information. This was referred to as the Commission’s 2008 Guidance. This helped, but social media has evolved at a furious pace since 2008.

Then, in July 2012, Netflix CEO Reed Hastings used his personal Facebook page to brag that Netflix had provided one billion hours of streaming content in the month of June. This represented an enormous increase in Netflix streaming, and because previously Hastings had said that hours of streaming was a good metric for the company’s performance, the SEC viewed the Facebook posting as a potentially non-simultaneous disclosure of a key material fact. Hastings has 200,000 Facebook followers but the information took a few hours to spread and the stock rose 13% during that time. Netflix did not make an SEC filing of this information. So the issue was: did this violate SEC rules by being non-simultaneous, or is social media now so widespread that you could view this Facebook posting as simultaneous disclosure of material information?

On April 2, 2013 the Commission’s Division of Enforcement issued an eight-page report that reviewed all of this. To boil it way down: social media channels like Twitter, Facebook and company blogs are now acceptable ways for a company to disclose this type of information, but there’s a big “If.” Which is: a company must announce its social media disclosure strategy, specifying the channels it may use, so investors will know how to follow the company’s announcements. Also, a company must be consistent in using these channels, and if it changes its approach it must announce that change. Basically, if a company says something like: “we might use our Facebook page, Twitter or blog to announce material information” then interested investors can follow all those channels and the disclosures will be simultaneous.

Interestingly, the wire services that distribute press releases are all making the case this week that disclosure through social media is still is still too spotty and inconsistent, and there’s nothing like the good old-fashioned press release. They’re probably right, but now the SEC has cleared the way for companies to make social media channels a key element of their financial disclosure strategy.

Here are two useful sections from the Commission’s April 2 finding:

Specifically, in light of the direct and immediate communication from issuers to investors that is now possible through social media channels, such as Facebook and Twitter, we expect issuers to examine rigorously the factors indicating whether a particular channel is a “recognized channel of distribution” for communicating with their investors. We emphasize for issuers that the steps taken to alert the market about which forms of communication a company intends to use for the dissemination of material, non-public information, including the social media channels that may be used and the types of information that may be disclosed through these channels, are critical to the fair and efficient disclosure of information. Without such notice, the investing public would be forced to keep pace with a changing and expanding universe of potential disclosure channels, a virtually impossible task…

There has been a rapid proliferation of social media channels for corporate communication since the issuance of the Commission’s 2008 Guidance. An increasing number of public companies are using social media to communicate with their shareholders and the investing public. We appreciate the value and prevalence of social media channels in contemporary market communications, and the Commission supports companies seeking new ways to communicate and engage with shareholders and the market. This Report is not aimed at inhibiting corporate communication through evolving social media channels. To the contrary, we seek to remind issuers that disclosures to persons enumerated in Regulation FD, even if made through evolving social media channels, must still be analyzed for compliance with Regulation FD. Moreover, we emphasize that the Commission’s 2008 Guidance, though largely focused on the use of web sites, is equally applicable to current and evolving social media channels of corporate communication. The 2008 Guidance explained that issuers must take steps sufficient to alert investors and the market to the channels it will use for the dissemination of material, nonpublic information. We believe that adherence to this guidance will help, with minimal burden, to assure compliance with Regulation FD and the fair and efficient operation of the market.

At Schwartz MSL, we employ a “hub and spoke” model to execute global PR programs for some of our largest technology and healthcare accounts. It works like this: One country is identified as a global coordination base, usually the country where a company’s corporate leadership is headquartered. Our PR leads would work closely with the corporate team, in this hub, to identify additional countries that require PR outreach. The hub PR team will define strategic direction, manage overarching PR activity and develop content, from news releases to creative campaigns and thought leadership collateral. The hub then coordinates with PR resources in other countries. A single path of communication between a team lead at Schwartz MSL in the U.S., for instance, and his or her peer at MSLGROUP London, or MSL China in Beijing ensures that a client’s corporate strategy is effectively pushed through to other regions where messaging and content can then be customized by local PR resources.

What does the hub and spoke model deliver to our clients?

1. Control – With a centralized team in place, companies can control messaging and activity from country to country, making sure that campaigns roll out at the same time and key players in each region, including spokespersons and customers, are on board and available.


2. Consistency – Whether it’s the details of a global news pitch or the way results are measured and reported, consistency is critical to PR program success. Working with top decision makers within an organization, the PR hub can refine goals and objectives as well as messaging. It’s then up to regional teams to customize activity.


3. Cost Efficiencies – Understanding that companies are often strapped by the tightening of corporate purse strings, hub and spoke global PR execution enables Schwartz MSL to deliver cost efficiencies. Developing unique content or campaigns from the ground up in each region would require significant resources in each country. Instead, our colleagues in the "spoke" can quickly adapt content and focus their efforts on securing on-message coverage in each region.

Schwartz MSL, as a part of MSLGROUP, has a truly global network in place to accommodate companies’ communication needs around the world. The key to harnessing the power of the MSLGROUP network is to work with a team that understands your unique business needs from country to country and can develop a strategy for global success. For more information about global PR programs, contact us here or give us a call at (781) 684-0770.

Researchers showed a group of 69 people a cover letter that was badly written and asked them to provide honest feedback to the writer. After they did this the letter writer sent a note to half the group simply saying he had received the feedback, and sent a note to the other half thanking them sincerely and expressing gratitude for their advice and suggestions.  Of the group that received gratitude, 55 percent reported an increase in their sense of self-worth. Just 25 percent of the no-gratitude group reported an increase.

So, that’s pretty obvious. If someone says “thank you” in a sincere way, even if you’ve criticized them, you feel better about yourself. But in the next part of the experiment a different letter writer asked for feedback from the same two groups. Just 32 percent of the no-gratitude group said they’d help while 66 percent of the gratitude group said they would help.  Meaning, when you show gratitude you are setting the stage for the next person who needs help to get it. Now that’s a virtuous cycle.

This has lessons for PR and communications. When your company or products are criticized it’s a natural tendency to get defensive, even to return the criticism.  Years ago I worked for a communications executive who didn’t like the way an IT magazine was covering our products so he declared a total freeze on interacting with the publication. Wrong!  Try it the other way – when you, your company or your product face criticism, say thanks to your critics. Say you’re grateful that they took the time to let you know, and say that you’re carefully considering their opinions. Ask them if you can have a more detailed conversation about it.

That’s not being wimpy and it’s not being a pushover. It’s strengthening the bonds between your brand and the market. And by the way, thank you very much for reading this post. I really appreciate it.

Well in 2008, the NCAA Social Media Power Rankings were one of the few to predict Davidson's tremendous run deep in the tourney - so mock it at your peril.

All the other basketball pundits tell you that you need to pick your teams based on the standings,  guard play or how far they travel. None of them work all that well. So instead, which of the schools in the dance would win a social media shoot out?

Each year, we refine our methodology. This year, we looked at a school’s official athletics Facebook, Twitter and YouTube following (based on a protest from Duke last year) to see how engaged its fans are. We divided that by a school’s student population to keep it fair for the mid-majors and come up with a school’s Social Media Power Ranking

Do we encourage wagering on games or any other activity which may take this as anything other than entertainment - no.

Without further ado: The Social Media Power Bracket

(Click on image for larger version)

We also went multimedia this year for the first time ever: 

Schwartz MSL Basketball Madness 2013
by: McClennan

In the end, Duke (SMPR: 34.30759) is too much for UNC (SMPR: 24.82998)

The 10 Academic Social Media Powerhouses:

1. Duke
2. Notre Dame
3. UNC
4. University of Florida
5. Oregon
6. Miami
7. University of Oklahoma
8. Wisconsin Badgers
9. Syracuse
10. Missouri

Biggest Facebook Powers:

1. University of Florida
2. UNC
3. Oregon
4. Wisconsin
5. Ohio State

Strongest Twitter:

1. Ohio State
2. Florida
3. Duke
4. Kansas
5. University of Oklahoma

YouTube Drive:

1. Oregon
2. Duke
3. Notre Dame
4. Miami
5. UC Berkeley

What do you think? Who do you think will win?

There was an interesting session on Sunday that looked at the future of identity 30 years out. The presenter was Sam Lessin, the director of product for Facebook. While many of his ideas are up for significant debate (the death of property value, in the future only poor people will own things, Harvard will crater) it sparked an interesting discussion. We need to look at identity as more than just a person. Identity will continue to expand to include who a person is, what devices they use and what they have said and done for the past 20 years. This has positive and negative effects, especially with the industrialization of fraud.

The other session was “Brands, Bloggers and the Future of Social Commerce” by Lisa Stone, a co-founder of BlogHer. She highlighted the growing power of blog communities and the effectiveness of blogs vs. Twitter, Facebook and Pinterest for driving purchasing decision and brand equity today.

These two sessions both dealt with the rise of social capital. Its importance is increasing and globalizing.

A few key points that public relations pros should keep in mind:

• In the past, trust had been time based, not tech based. Tech is now substituting for time. Some platforms (such as blogs) are much more suited for building trust than others (81% of people today who read blogs trust what they read on them)
• Social capital accumulation is slow. Debiting is usually very rapid – The social capital that people build up takes a while to build, but one ethical misstep can destroy it faster than ever before. This means that transparency and ethics will be even more important in the future.
• Sponsored and editorial content will blend even more – Moving forward, more brands will likely tap bloggers, and other social influencers, for sponsored content. But even as sponsored content grows, it is more important than ever for the bloggers to call out visually and in text that the posts are sponsored. Hiding it doesn’t help bloggers or brands.
• The death of trolls – Lisa Stone drove the point home that people (especially women) do not stay around in toxic environments. Even more important for brands, the more effective blogs for sponsoring are those that have a positive, happy outlook, rather than those that are full of snark. These two things may spell the movement of Internet Trolls to the endangered species lists as brands and bloggers become more active in policing to keep a positive community.

While there was a lot of focus on the future, there were also some surprising absences at SxSW this year. For the past few years, payments, banking and financial services had a small but compelling track. ISIS was a huge sponsor last year. Aside from LevelUp, finance seemed to be missing this year. Those of us that deal in the space missed it – for the revolutions there are just as important for business and consumers.

What were the best future thoughts you saw at SxSW?

• Social innovation is leaving no crab pot unturned - The quest for new ways to communicate is relentless. Capt. Coburn is expanding his attention from Twitter to Instagram because of the power of the visuals and its usefulness of a storytelling platform, and he has started experimenting with Vine.

Question: Do we regularly take a step back to understand where our audience is and if there are new channels and tools we should leverage to engage them?

• It’s PR in the ER - NGO first responders can no longer just think about treating patients and logistics. According to Dr. Diamond, they are thinking about how to use social to publicize their work and needs during disasters. Without awareness through traditional and social channels, they do not get the sustained funds they need to treat the disaster victims.

Question: Do we think beyond the immediate event and support legacy initiatives and users enough?

• Brand ambassadors have boundaries too – It was chilling to hear how people are friending the Captains’ children to try to get close to the captain. Others are sending family members inappropriate things via social channels. Capt. Coburn stated that “Twitter can be more personal than you would like. To be successful you need to give a piece of your personal life, but you need to keep a wall up as well.”

Question: Are we thinking through all the negative implications and advising those we engage of some of the risks?

• Trust but verify – Captain Hilstrand was touched by one of his fans, a young child with cancer, He used social media to shine light on his family’s plight. Another fan found out, promised to help the child out, and was praised by many. It turns out, the fan lied about her identity, no help was forthcoming and the family was even more devastated. Beware. Some trolls live on blogs and some Twerps live on Twitter.

Question: Are you taking what I said by your brand’s fans at face value? Be sure to apply a skeptical eye to engagement or promises that seem too good to be true.

Experts from the United States Coast Guard (Semper Paratus) and the Air Force shared practical advice on how they handle communications via social channels during crisis. Thankfully, most of the issues we deal with as communications professionals, while significant, don’t encompass the devastation of an area. But there are lessons and best practices we can apply to our daily activities.

Two of the main takeaways for me were:

1. Plan ahead. Seriously. We counsel it all the time, but just having a plan isn’t enough. Run drills. Make sure the communications team knows their specific responsibilities. This is crucial if, say, you have corp comm, legal, and product marketing all in the mix. Sorting this out during a crisis means you likely have failed before you begin.
2. We now live in an era of “permissionless information.” There are no gatekeepers and many organizations are using every channel possible to get out information. Some of it is wrong. Consumers are turning to more channels than ever before. Make sure you have adapted to the 24 second news cycle and can monitor, engage, communicate the right information and quickly correct incorrect information.

Following are a few other key takeaways from the session. None were groundbreaking, but they are good reminders:

• In crisis communication, in the long run, you look good by being honest, not by trying to look good.
• Know the influencers and engage them. A local blogger may be more important than a national reporter (it is in many cases for the Coast Guard). In B2B tech that may mean a security blogger trumps a national newspaper.
• Numbers are a huge issue (In San Francisco, they once reported an oil spill was 150 gallons. The real  number was 53,000 gallons). Always use the worst case scenario so folks don’t accuse you of fudging numbers and lose trust.
• Don’t feed the trolls. Don’t worry about the fake twitter feeds. Get the right information out.
• Avoid channel fixation. Don’t obsess over individual channels. Keep your crisis plan aligned to whatever best reaches your key audiences.

The Coast Guard shared a great resource – its Joint Information Center Model . You can get it here: http://www.uscg.mil/hq/cg092/cg09225/docs/JICManual.pdf Mind you, it’s 154 pages, so I haven’t read it all yet but there are good processes and practices. The expertise and advice given by Lt. Anastacia Visneski, USCG; Captain John Visneski, USAF; and Brandon Brewer were outstanding.

How good was this session? I looked at social share of voice for this session, and one on spreadable content – and #crisiscomm won hands down.

Let’s start with some back story, shall we? For years, the Macworld Conference & Expo was known as the annual event where Apple unveiled its next game-changing technology. Over the years, iTunes (2001), the original iPhone (2007) and the MacBook Air (2008) all debuted at the show. In 2008, following several monumental shifts in the tech world—including the expanding social web, a continuous shift to mobile and growth of its own retail chain—Apple announced its decision to forego all trade events. As a result, Macworld found itself at a crossroads: should it stay the course with a tried and true format (trade show plus conference) or evolve into a lifestyle event?

Last year, Macworld answered that question, rebranding itself as “Macworld/iWorld: The Ultimate iFan Event.” While 2012 tested the waters, in 2013, the new formula took hold. While the event still caters to the diehard Apple fanboys and fangirls who made the event what it is today, an expanded focus on the many ways that Apple technology drives creativity and innovation now aims to bring in new audiences. This year, the show floor and a variety of education sessions and live experiences showcased the impact of Apple technology on how we live, work and play. And nothing brought that intersection to live more than some of the celebrity talks. Here are just a few of our highlights:

Film
“Playing Steve and Woz” – JOBS, the feature film set to explore the legacy of Apple, will be hitting theatres April 9. What better place to preview the film than Macworld/iWorld? The stars of the film, Ashton Kutcher and Josh Gad, spoke to a packed house about what it was like to play Apple founders Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak, respectively, and what Apple means to them in their own lives. Steve Jobs was a pretty mysterious guy, so buzz surrounding the film was sure to be off the charts in front of his biggest fans. You could even argue that like the Continuum Transfunctioner, Jobs’ mystery is only exceeded by his power. Movie lovers at this year’s show were also treated to the iPhone Film Festival, which highlighted films made entirely on iPhones.

Television
“Fred Armisen Talks Tech” – With over ten years under his belt as an SNL cast member, Fred Armisen is without question the heart and soul of this year’s cast. Anybody who watches Armisen on Saturday nights can tell you that his passion for Apple shines through his characters, having recently played a Foxconn factory worker, and previously, Steve Jobs himself.  Armisen’s talk gave an entertaining look into the many ways he uses Apple devices in his everyday life, and as a co-writer/co-producer on IFC’s excellent series, “Portlandia.”  Still no word on the overwhelming number of birds scattered around the Expo Hall after his presentation, though.

Design
“Futurehunting” – Black Eyed Peas musician will.i.am is a futurist. Just read the cover story in last month’s Fortune, and you’ll learn all about his visions for the future of technology. Big brands are taking note too- several of the world’s biggest companies are tapping will.i.am’s mind to help them explore what’s next in the tech world. At this year’s Macworld/iWorld, will.i.am made us say “Boom Boom WOW,” stopping by to give an hour-long Tech Talk with Intel Futurist Brian David Johnson, discussing how the merge of tech, culture and fashion will challenge and expand traditional thinking in the tech world. “Don’t think outside the box,” he suggested, “Kick the box and make it a circle.” The singer also showed off his extremely cool tech meets fashion device, the foto.sosho. Unfortunately, Taboo couldn’t make it. Crossing my fingers for next year.

While an emphasis was placed on celebrity this year, don’t let this fool you- the stars of this year’s show were, and always will be, the coolest apps, software and technology that makes the life of every iFan easier, more stylish and more fun. Some of our favorites include JAM (they brought a monkey), Bowblade (A bow-and-arrow accessory that helps you prepare for the inevitable zombie apocalypse) and Double Robotics (an iPad robot- seriously.)

Interested in learning more about Macworld/iWorld? Make sure to follow the Expo on Twitter at @MacworldExpo, and free up February 1-3, 2014 on your calendars- we’ll see you next year in San Francisco!

 

The traditional B2B engagement model is shifting. Buyers are initiating much of the contact with vendors, so while outbound marketing efforts continue to be important, if you provide readily available assets entices prospects during their online search you’ll boost your results A recent survey indicates that less than 10% of buyers were contacted cold by vendors, while more than 80% made the initial communication. Video is one of the most effective methods for sharing your information and you need to be ready for your website visitors.

Beyond the evolving sales paradigm, video can boost many PR and marketing efforts. For instance, media outlets are increasingly turning to third parties for content to feature on their websites. Thirty percent of journalists and digital media editors indicate that they use externally-produced video with their news content. That’s up 200% from the previous year.

Organizations that ‘get it’ are bolstering their digital libraries by using video to supplement thought leadership programs, announce new products, services or processes, share customer and patient testimonials and case studies, offer BRoll to news organizations, etc.

Getting started with video can seem overwhelming, but it doesn’t have to be. A staged approach can make the process manageable. Check out our B2B Video Marketing Handbook to learn why video matters, what kinds of videos to consider developing and where video can be integrated into your existing PR and marketing plans.