During the discussion with the brewers, one comment got me thinking. A question from the audience was posed to the director of marketing for 612Brew: “How do you differentiate your brewery from all the other craft breweries in town?”

His response: Laughter. Then: “Our beer is better.”

It was a tongue in cheek response, but it speaks volumes about where this industry sits right now from a marketing perspective.

Times are good in the craft brewery business in Minneapolis. Breweries are seemingly popping up everywhere. In fact a whopping 18 breweries have opened in the Twin Cities since Jan. 1, 2012. And a number are slated to open new tap rooms in the next year (including Surly’s big new destination brewery near University Ave. in Minneapolis).

But what happens when this industry hits its maturation point? When people aren’t clamoring to visit tap rooms and pick up a six-pack of the latest brew at their local liquor store? Won’t brand differentiation play a mighty big role then?

I think so–but craft beer marketers don’t seem to be paying attention. One look around the Twin Cities beer scene and you see much of the same, in terms of marketing strategy and tactics, including:

Social accounts all have the same feel (some even have the same darn cover photo!)

They all target the bicyclist/hipster crowd (cyclists/hipsters aren’t the only ones who drink good beer)

Partnering with food trucks is all the rage (literally almost every one of the local breweries is doing this)

They’re clearly NOT using paid social tools (a big miss–specifically on Facebook)

They all sponsor local beer events at restaurants

They all have a guy with a beard (joking…kinda)

OK, OK, Arik, so what are these breweries supposed to do? Stop ragging on them and offer up some suggestions, for crying out loud.

Oh man, I thought you’d never ask. Here are 3 ideas I would explore if I were marketing one of these breweries:

Organize events targeting middle-aged parents

Seems to be the breweries spend an awful lot of time targeting younger, single people. I get it. They drink a lot of beer. But you know who also likes to drink beer? Parents. We have to take the edge off, yannow And who do you suppose has more disposable income: A single 25-year old or a 40-year-old with two kids? I can guarantee you I spend WAY more on beer than I ever did when I was 25 (even though I drink far less beer). Why not make it easier for these people to come to your events? Organize events with events for kids. Or better yet, find a way to bring the events to US (beer delivery service anyone?)!

Focus more on email–less on social media marketing

This seems to be the one big mistake I see the bulk of the craft beer marketers making–minimal focus on email and a tremendous focus on social marketing. Again–has to do (most likely) with targeting the younger demo. But, I would argue the email list is still the holy grail of online marketing–and craft breweries are no exception. With an e-newsletter, you would have the ability to share: 1) Upcoming beer events, 2) New releases, 3) Tap room specials, and 4) Other misc. items. In a timely manner. In their inbox–something they check EVERY day (especially that older audience who has more discretionary dollars).

Think bigger than the tap room

Right now the problem with all the tap rooms is that they’re all the same. They all have cool interiors. They all have food trucks outside. And many feature music. Super cool (I love them–make no mistake), but they offer absolutely no differentiation. When most people are zigging, I say zag. One thought I had: Why limit yourself to a tap room? What about a combo tap room/pizza joint? Couldn’t a craft brewery partner with an up-and-coming pizzeria (think Pizzeria Lola for Minneapolitans) and create an urban brewery/pizzeria that would be one part hangout spot, one part brewery, one part pizza joint (but higher-end pizza)? Think “Piece” in Chicago.

Those are just a few ideas. I have more. But, I don’t want to give them ALL away for free. Craft brewer marketers: Feel free to call me for the rest

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Are craft breweries doing enough to market themselves differently? is a post from: Communications Conversations

That’s because the darn things aren’t even rolling out to all users for a while (see Facebook’s formal announcement last week).

But, that time will come eventually. And when it does, there will be substantial implications for marketers and brands.

For now, it’s mostly a user experience issue. Users can now search Facebook more easily (combined with Graph Search, Facebook is making strides here). And, obviously, this move makes content discovery much more easy on Facebook.

But, a few months from now, when more (or all) users have the ability to use hash tags on Facebook, what will the rub be for marketers? Here’s a few things that come to mind:

Easier to track “campaign” conversations on Facebook

You know those campaign hash tags brands use on Facebook? The ones they listed on all those Super Bowl ads this year? Well, those will actually be useful on Facebook once the hash tags are rolled out. Obviously, the volume won’t be as great on Facebook for most brands (far more tweets than their are status updates), but this should help brands looking to more accurately track conversations around campaigns down the road (especially those without access to paid monitoring tools).

Your Twitter chat potential just expanded

Brands that either sponsor or organize Twitter chats will be able to open up a whole new door to Facebook–again, arguably a more engaged (and larger) community. Of course, brands can do this now with tools like Shoutlet, but again, many brands don’t have access to paid tools like that. With hash tags, brands that participate or organize Twitter chats will now be able to have those same chats on Facebook. Of course, coordinating that might be a bit of a bear, but I’m sure a too will emerge to fit the need.

You will be able to pay to trend. Eventually.

Trending topics/hash tags will most likely be coming to a Facebook page near you soon. They’re not there yet, obviously, but I’m sure it’ll happen. Trending topics on Twitter are so popular–and it’s another great way for Facebook to enable content discovery. And, when they do institute trending topics, you most likely will have the opportunity to pay to be included (just like on Twitter). Whatever they can monetize, they probably will.

Once they enable mobile usage, possibilities expand

The curious thing: Facebook didn’t enable mobile usage of hash tags at the outset of the launch. That’s funny, because as we all know mobile phone usage is exploding. And capturing real-time conversations largely means capturing conversations on the go–not just in front of the TV (which is what Facebook is most likely after here). But those mobile conversations are key for brands. Customers at events. Customers near their stores shopping. Customers IN their stores shopping. With hash tags, they’ll all be easier to track–and respond to (again, provided customers actually use the hash tag, which as we know is a big leap).

What do you think? What are the major brand implications (eventually) for marketers with hash tags on Facebook?

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What Facebook hashtags will mean for marketers (eventually) is a post from: Communications Conversations

Since the interns of today will be the PR leaders of tomorrow, I thought I’d use this post today to highlight just a few of the interns that are destined for stardom–nominated from the people they work for! These folks aren’t all current interns–some are, but some have been hired full-time by their (happy) employers (but were interns within the last year). Let’s take a look at 9 interns destined to be the PR leaders of 2022 (or so)…

Samantha Schaitberger, Edelman

Nominated by Brianne Brewer, Edelman

Samantha Schaitberger (Sam) started as a digital intern in the Edelman Austin office late last year. After relocating from Atlanta for her internship, she immediately blew us away with her ability to write, think strategically and jump in on any project with very little guidance. She has generalist abilities far beyond her years and her background in film and journalism give her natural storytelling abilities a foundation that translates into helping our clients tell their stories. She became client-facing almost immediately after a few internal brainstorms proved that her creativity was something that we couldn’t keep to ourselves. I rarely ask interns to speak directly with clients since it’s hard to know if they will become fixtures of our team or if they will move on to another position at the end of their time with us. Her manager and I knew within a week that she was on a path to getting a full-time offer to work with us in Austin. In addition to her creativity, she does everything with a smile. She committed to the internship and became an indispensable part of our team by taking over some complex daily analytics reporting and allowing us to take in more revenue by freeing up her other team members’ time. We aim for our interns to be at least 60 percent utilized on client work and by her third month, she was 110 percent utilized and never missed a beat. She became a full-time Assistant Account Executive last month and hasn’t slowed down a bit. She is eager and incredibly dedicated, which I believe are two key ingredients for any successful communications person. Since being hired full time, she has taken a large role on one of our major technology accounts and works directly with the client-side lead to keep a litany of projects, meetings, content and social channels going at full speed. She even serves as backup for the client internally when our client is traveling.

Courtney Howell, Identity PR

Nominated by Nikki Little, Identity PR

Courtney Howell was the first intern we hired for our social media team at Identity. I met her at an event, and I remembered her when she applied for the internship. She impressed me immediately during the interview. She is very young, yet I could tell her strategic thinking and understanding of how PR/social media could and should be tied to business goals was impressive. She was working at a startup and trying so hard to get a social program up and running, but the leadership team was stalling her because they didn’t understand or want to give social a chance. So she was ready to move on. Even though she didn’t have as much hands-on experience, I had faith that with a little guidance and teaching, she would be an excellent professional one day. She more than exceed our expectations within the first 30 days of her internship. We were ready to hire at that time, so we decided that at her 30-day review (some time last summer) we were going to hire her. She hasn’t let me/us down since! Courtney has really had to step up her game since I went on maternity leave in mid January. She’s doing work that normally someone with 2-3 years experience would be doing, yet she’s proving that sometimes the years of experience really doesn’t make a difference. She has learned so much and come a long way in six short months. She is going to make an excellent manager and leader one day. She knows the right questions to ask, she knows how to think strategically, she’s a super quick learner, she’s an excellent writer and most of all, she has the passion and drive needed to excel in this type of career.

Lucas Anderson, Weber Shandwick (Seattle)

Nominated by Scott Meis, Weber Shandwick (Seattle)

Prior to Weber, Lucas was a photographer for the Seattle Met and remained an intern for all of about two months. He arrived with a deep visual storytelling background and has quickly evolved into an incredible digital production coordinator. I hesitate to even mention that title because Lucas does so much more. To have a photographer on staff that focuses on editorial shots is amazing enough, but Lucas’ skills set runs deep. From shaping up social strategies to community management, video editing to photography, Prezi design to microsite mock-ups, editorial planning to SEO strategy – he’s a new world marketing hybrid that is driving agency work in this new communications environment. What I love most about Lucas? He’s proactive and jumps at the opportunity to lead a project, raise his hand in disagreement and challenge the core essence of a strategy or tactic if it doesn’t map exactly back a core campaign insight. If I could, I would clone Lucas 10X over.

Shruti Saran, WCG

Nominated by Damion White, WCG

Tim Holtz, Fast Horse

Nominated by Mike Keliher, Fast Horse

You asked about rock-star young pros, and I mentioned Tim Holtz. He’s an associate at Fast Horse, and he joined us after last year’s Summer Intern Search. After a six-month internship, he was hired on for a full-time position. Well deserved, to say the least. Right off the bat, when Andrew Miller and I sat down with him during his first interview at Fast Horse, it was one of the most impressive discussions I’ve had with an entry-level candidate. Lots of great experience for someone who was just about to graduate, for sure. But to me, what was more impressive, was the natural, comfortable and intelligent way he spoke about his studies and his work experience. Having a knack for thoughtful, easy-flowing conversation is surprisingly rare in younger pros, but when you find it, it’s often an indicator of good things to come. Tim’s a very dedicated, hard-working dude. He’s confident in taking on new tasks, and he’s always eager to get involved in a new project or with a new client. And for good measure, he’s smart, funny and has great taste in music. What more can you ask for?

Dan Brandt, Padilla Speer Beardsley

Nominated by Curtis Smith, Padilla Speer Beardsley

Dan Brandt is our current business development and marketing intern. He’s a bright kid with a good future and is learning at a rapid pace. He’s had some pretty impressive internships before deciding to pursue an agency career. He works with our agency leaders executing the firm’s prospecting outreach and assists on a lot of our marketing duties. He’s been handling the Padilla social community for the past five months, too.

Zach DeBlaey, Exponent PR

Nominated by Keith Negrin, Exponent PR

Before moving to Minneapolis and coming to Exponent, Zach was a part of Teach for America, teaching high school English in Mississippi.  He actually interviewed with Colle+McVoy for a job in planning/strategy, and although he didn’t fit their need, they liked him so much that they sent him our way.  He didn’t have much in the way of formal PR training, but has been an absolute sponge since he arrived here about a year ago.  He was a summer intern in 2012, but wowed everyone he worked with and was so eager to take on any and all assignments and, quite frankly, just learn.  His initiative, curiosity, smarts and skill made our decision easy, and he was hired full time at the end of the summer.  In the ensuing 9 months, he’s kept up that same level of enthusiasm, eagerness and quality of work, and has become an integral part of the fabric of the agency.  Unlike the stereotypical Millennial, he doesn’t expect anything to be handed to him, and his hard work is matched only by his passion for taking on more, expanding his knowledge and experience base, and delivering the highest quality work for his clients.  Although perhaps untraditional, his few years as a teacher have prepared him well for interfacing with clients and professional service – he has a natural charisma and personable style that makes putting him in front of clients (not always the easiest thing for young professionals) a no-brainer.

Abigail Fredenburg, Hager Sharp

Nominated by Mike Schaffer, Hager Sharp

While completing her Master’s of Public Communication at Johns Hopkins University, Abigail Fredenburg has been working as a Fellow at Hager Sharp in Washington, DC. Two key items come to mind when analyzing her work: 1) a complete dedication to solving problems and 2) a thirst to learn and improve. She re-imagined high-level client reports. She live-Tweeted from Congressional meetings. She influenced national government health communications campaigns. Her successes earned her a full-time job as an Account Executive from Hager Sharp. If an internship or fellowship is a game, Abigail has clearly won it – and is poised for continued growth.

Shay Quigley, Buchanan PR

Nominated by Emily DiTomo, Buchanan PR

Shay Quigley is a rising senior at East Carolina University.  Skilled in writing, social media and computer-based design, she is working as an intern with Buchanan PR  this summer.  Only one month into her internship, she has already become a tremendous addition to our team, writing media prep sheets, drafting news releases and serving as a sounding board for various digital media projects.  As our agency becomes increasingly social media-focused, Shay’s expertise in photography has also been a vital asset.

Serving as our agency’s internship coordinator for nearly three years, I have observed that the one overarching characteristic of a stellar intern is enthusiasm:  enthusiasm for the practice of public relations; for all duties assigned (everything from answering the phones to interacting with the media); and for the opportunity to practice and refine the tactical skills that are integral to a successful career in this field.  Shay displays this quality in spades.  As a boutique agency, Buchanan PR relies heavily upon its interns to become extended team members.  I am thrilled to say that Shay has blended seamlessly into our agency , and we all look forward to working with her more closely as the summer progresses.

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9 (recent and current) PR interns destined for greatness is a post from: Communications Conversations

You recently won the MN PRSA 2012 Young Professional Award given to a young pro with ”an extraordinary contribution to the professional’s organization, the public relations profession and local community.” Tell us a little bit about why you won that award (your work, your contributions to the community, etc.)–and what it’s meant to you.

It was such an honor to win the Young Professional Award, and I have to thank my colleague Abra Williams for drafting up a stellar nomination (she’s good!). Receiving the award at the Classics banquet was magical. It’s a humbling experience that reminds me hard work pays off!

I have been very active in the MN PRSA community over the years as a member and currently as co-chair of the membership committee. I believe strongly that communicators must possess the foundational public relations skills upon which PRSA is founded. And, as demand increases for social media, those writing and strategic communications skills transfer. The “new age” of communication channels, so to speak, is where we’re headed, but we’re not going to shake the tried-and-true disciplines, such as internal communications, press releases (gasp!), tradeshows and events. Young professionals need a broad understanding of all of this.

You’ve been at Maccabee PR in Minneapolis for a few years. Before that, you worked on the corporate side. But you worked in social media in both roles. What are the challenges, as you’ve experienced them, on each side when it comes to social media consulting?

I think there are pros and cons to working in-house and agency and I encourage every counselor to strive to gain experience in both. While working in-house at a legal company, I was able to get my feet wet with SEO (working alongside TopRank), the legal blogosphere (I started a company blog) and the gratification that comes with building our social channels to support it all. I liked honing in on one brand and attaining the “client” perspective that now helps me on the agency side.

I’m coming up on four years at Maccabee later this summer and I’ve found the agency side to be very meaningful. I’ve never worked harder than I have now and I’ve learned that I need to be continually challenged. From a social standpoint, you can have a broader understanding of it as a consultant. Challenging has been the openness and acceptance of social media that varies significantly by client industry, type of company, and size of project. The fun is in prescribing the channels and strategies that are most relevant to each, unique client – and helping them bring it to life.

What’s the most interesting project you’re currently working on at Maccabee PR right now?

Right now, a great deal of my time is being willingly consumed by leading our agency’s inbound marketing efforts. What’s particularly interesting about inbound marketing (aka content marketing, lead generation, content strategy) is the implication for PR. At the epicenter is quality content and who better to manage that then practitioners schooled in journalistic standards? Delightfully, it marries social media, content writing, website and SEO strategies, and email marketing into one integrated strategy. The power!

Maccabee signed on to HubSpot about a year ago and has since explored all of the bells and whistles and strategies and tactics necessary for the inbound marketing model. We’ve seen the power first hand – site traffic is up, we’ve launched the MaccaPR blog, and we’re connecting with business prospects in new, engaging ways. Plus, this project has given me the hands-on experience to translate the strategy for clients.

You’re currently pursuing your Masters at the University of St. Thomas (good for you). My theory has always been that the MBA does much more for you on the corporate side than it does on the agency side (I’ve seen it first-hand). Why did you decide to get your MBA? And, what do you hope to achieve as a result?

Pursuing a masters in business communications (technically an MBC) has been one of the most impactful moves I’ve made in my life. The spark you get from sitting in a classroom and collaborating with your classmates (or finishing your homework just in time) is unmatched in the workplace setting. At St. Thomas, MBA and MBC students often share classes, allowing me to learn alongside and from working professionals much different than me – engineers, accountants, HR benefits managers and medical device sales reps.

As to what I want to achieve, more knowledge and to feed my drive to keep on learning. Still, I know there are practical implications for my work with clients. I’ve learned a solid understanding of what makes corporations tick – ultimately, the bottomline – and its invaluable from an agency or corporate side. Ultimately, I’d love to earn the respect of business owners and professionals by being seen as a business and PR counselor.

You’re also active in the local PRSA chapter. Why do you spend so much time with PRSA and how has it helped you in your career so far?

In addition to PRSA’s focus on core knowledge for communicators that I talked about early, I’ve most loved the networking. There’s a lot of opportunity to get to know fellow PR practitioners in our community through chapter events. Minnesota PRSA members are so welcoming and smart.

I also see you’re a new homeowner. And a Minneapolis homeowner, which I like to see (we live in the Hale/Page neighborhood in South Minneapolis). Why did you choose to live in the city and what have you enjoyed most so far about being a homeowner?

My husband Nick and I chose to buy in South Minneapolis because we love the city. Minneapolis has a great vibe and it’s been awesome to both work and live here. Maccabee is in the Warehouse district, so I can easily bus in the winter, bike in the summer-like months, yet still drive and park on the street, if need be. I particularly love biking to work – all five days last week, woohoo! In Minneapolis it’s so accessible and oftentimes a far better option than driving. Since becoming homeowners two years ago, we’ve most enjoyed our own backyard, adopting a rescue puppy (Ayza!), and having easy access to the lakes, restaurants and great people in the city.

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PR Rock Stars: Christina Milanowski is a post from: Communications Conversations

Katie interviewed me on the topic as well as friends Lisa Grimm and Karl Pearson-Cater. Largely, the article was focused on the decisions people face when posting during a national tragedy like the Boston Marathon bombing, or the Oklahoma City tornadoes.

As you know, during these kinds of national events, virtually everybody participates in one way, shape or form. Many simply say: “My sympathies to the victims”–or something similar.

My take: Why even say that?

In the article, I allude to the fact that I don’t share my opinions on two things: Politics and religion. But, these national tragedies are an add-on to that list. It’s not because I don’t feel terrible for the victims. But, as Humphrey quotes me, “It’s not because I don’t care. I don’t feel like I have that much to add.”

And, that’s the rub for brands, too.

Over the years, a number of brands have been burned for posting and trying to sell during one of these national crisis. That huge backlash has prompted brands to take the opposite stance: To publicly show their sympathy.

But why? Do people in Boston really care that Chick-Fil-A extends its deepest sympathies? (keep in mind, there are only two Chick-fil-As in all of Masssachussetts so it’s not like they employ a sizably chunk of Bostonians)

Or, that Macy’s is asking us to stop and take a moment to appreciate those in our lives?

Or, this uber-generic notion of sympathy from Sony?

Who cares that brands care? Isn’t this akin to the corporate news release from the CEO with standard boilerplate language? Almost like a robot–instead of an actual human being–said it?

On the other hand, look at the engagement numbers on those posts. Pretty solid, right? I’ve seen similar numbers from similar posts from many different companies. Huge.

So, maybe I’m in the wrong here. Maybe it’s all about results and engagement.

But, I stick with my viewpoint. I don’t see a compelling reason here for brands to participate in these tragedies–even if it is just to say “our sympathies.” Yeah, it shows your brand cares. But, when every other brand on the planet is doing it (as well as EVERYONE in your newsfeed), the message kinda gets lost, don’t you think?

What are your thoughts? Should brands be making these sympathy posts during national tragedies? Do they make a difference in any way?

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Do brands really need to demonstrate sympathy during national crisis? is a post from: Communications Conversations

But, that may all be changing with LinkedIn’s recent beefing up of its publishing platform.

And, “beefing up” may be an understatement.

For many, LinkedIn is the social network they only visit when they’re looking for a new job.

But, for a growing number of people (including this guy of late), LinkedIn is becoming one of the de facto sources of professional and business information.

What am I talking about?

In 2011, LinkedIn rolled out LinkedIn Today, it’s new publishing platform. The idea: To give LinkedIn members curated news by industry and from the people they conceivably trust most–their professional peers and contacts.

Great idea, right? But, then in October 2012, LinkedIn launched another new feature: The ability to follow influencers (similar to how you follow people on Twitter and Facebook) on LinkedIn. At the time, “influencers” really meant people like Barack Obama and Richard Branson. But today, as promised by LinkedIn, that list has expanded substantially. For example, people like Dave Kerpen and Pete Cashmore have now been added to the queue in the marketing/social media world.

And then in 2013, LinkedIn launched its new channels functionality. Channels gives you the opportunity to follow different industries and areas–while also giving you the chance to customize the way you consumer your news on the network. Now, you can view “Your News”, “Influencer Posts you Follow” and “All Channels you Follow”.

All those changes have reshaped LinkedIn from a network you visit haphazardly when you need something (new job, new vendor, an introduction, etc.) to a network you potentially could visit every day (multiple times a day).

And that’s exactly what I’ve been doing of late.

Not just as research for this post–but because I’m getting pretty solid content there I’m not getting anywhere else.

Now, you’re probably saying: “No one else is really using LinkedIn this way, right? I mean, how many people are actually reading these posts and stories from influencers?”

Well, let’s look at the numbers. Just this past week, we’ve seen the following posts by “influencers” along with their stats:

Dave Kerpen’s How to Sell Anything Using Social Media

Stats: 24,412 views, 203 likes, 75 comments, 352 retweets, 310 Facebook likes, 1,883 LinkedIn shares

Tony Robbins’ Throw Out your Business Plan and Create a Business Map

Stats: 34,040 views, 240 likes, 87 comments, 171 retweets, 232 Facebook likes, 3,284 LinkedIn shares

Loic LeMeur’s We All Spend Too Much Time On Small Ideas

Stats: 20,594 views, 213 likes, 52 comments, 166 retweeets, 309 Facebook likes, 848 LinkedIn shares

Great numbers, right? Not exactly out-of-this-world impressive when you look at bigger sites like Mashable, Buzzfeed, HuffPo and the like, but pretty darn impressive for a site that’s just starting in the publishing game.

For me, lately, LinkedIn is becoming more of a content resource. For my blog. For my client reports. And, for my weekly e-newsletter. It’s now part of my daily reading regiment–right up their with my Feedly account. I couldn’t have said that a year ago. Heck, six months ago.

What about you? Is LinkedIn Today part of your daily reading regiment? And if not, what’s holding you back?

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Is the new LinkedIn Today on your list of daily reads? is a post from: Communications Conversations

Since I’ve been using Instagram now for almost three years, I thought I’d take a look back at some of my favorite shots. My 40 favorite shots, in fact. I’ll be honest, I’m doing this as much for me, as I am for you

In the top 40 you’ll see a mix of:

* Shots of my kids (the majority, really)

* Shots of our vacations (where I take the bulk of my pics)

* Shots of beer (I like my craft beer, but I rarely drink more than two in one sitting any more, just to be clear)

* Shots of locations around Minneapolis and St. Paul.

Here goes–my 40 favorite Instagram pics. I’d love to see yours, if you’re so inclined. But, since I know 40 pics can be daunting, perhaps we start with something a bit more attainable–like #10BestIGpics.

One of our many trips to the North Shore of Minnesota.

 The camera always comes out at birthdays, and I try to capture more impromptu moments like this.

 This is one of my favorite shots of my kids in recently memory because it just captures their personalities so well (always laughing and smiling).

 This was my screensaver on my big iMac for a while. You can see why.

 I routinely document our pilgrimmage to the Minnesota State Fair each year. One of my faves from our recent trip.

 I had a phase where I’d take random shots of our house/neighborhood two summers ago. This was one of my faves.

 One of the best shots I took at the local pool we frequent in the summer months.

There’s nothing quite like a beautiful summer afternoon at Target Field (THE best stadium in all of baseball).

Used to love to take pics of flowers–and these are right outside our window.

Love me some beer pics! And, nothing says summer like Oberon, quite possibly the best beer ever made.

The views from Lake Harriet near our home in South Minneapolis are near perfect…

The first time my kids saw the ocean–great moment (and I love this shot).

Probably my favorite Pacific Ocean shot of my daughter from that San Diego trip in 2011.

OK, I stand corrected. These sundown shots are off-the-charts good…

Took a lot of shots in the summer of 2011 as I traveled by bike that summer. This was among the best.

Just love the sky in this pic–taken on the Hiawatha bridge in Minneapolis.

Somewhere…on the North Shore…

Wonderful sunset on the shores of Gull Lake, where I play golf with a group of guys each fall.

This one’s even better. Same lake. Same night.

So many pics of sunsets–but this has been one of the best sunrises I’ve captured over the last two years. While walking my kids to school.

I still remember the way the sky looked this night over my son’s soccer field. Incredible.

Mmm….donuts…with gummy worms…and Oreos…and Fruit Loops…

My daughter skating for the first time!

Lots of camping pics on file…

Hate to see my kids in pain, obviously, but this one was just too good to pass up (and, truth be told, his teeth didn’t hurt that badly–he did great!)

My brother and my son on the ice jump. Who looks terrified and who looks like they’re having fun?

In case you haven’t noticed by now, I love mid-air photos…

The iconic sign from our Seattle trip in June of 2012.

I’ve risked destroying my iPhone multiple times getting these pics.

Beer flights anyone? From my favorite micro-brewery in Minnesota (Fitgers in Duluth)

The REAL Pebble Beach (on the North Shore)!

#skygasm

This is why I love my son. Who would have thought of this?

The wonder of turning 5…

The best shot I took on our camping trips last summer (this one from Willow River State Park in Wisc.)

SPLASH (from the wave ride at Valleyfair!)

Great view from just outside Grand Portage on the North Shore.

I’ll always remember this photo: The day I took my daughter to her first Gopher game, and also the day I put a good friend to rest (the range of emotions that day was off the charts)

Boxhead for Halloween (I helped, but it was his idea…)

Just something about this one I love (plus, I love those little Coke bottles).

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My 40 best Instagram shots (#40BestIGPics) is a post from: Communications Conversations

Not THAT FML. In this case, Jello’s campaign is dubbed “Fun My Life” and it’s obviously having a little fun with the #FML hash tag and acronym that’s become so popular among texts, Twitter and everything in between (if you’ve never heard of FML, Google it–I don’t want to share profanity in this post).

But, as I looked into the campaign a bit more, I wondered: Is this a brilliant marketing move to play off a wildly popular hash tag/phrase among a younger audience that may not be prime Jello consumers just yet? Or, is it a completely bone-headed move in an attempt to hijack a hash tag on Twitter?

I’m leaning toward the latter. Here’s why:

Associating your brand with “FML” is a risk

That’s an understatement. Even for the most risk-embracing brands, the decision to proactively affiliate yourself with an acronym/hash tag that includes vulgar language is a risk. A BIG risk. In terms of reputation management, I’m not sure this is the best move, but time will tell how this plays out.

How do you measure success?

Since the #FML hash tag is SO prevalent on Twitter (and other social networking sites), how on earth will they track this? I mean, they can’t count ALL the FML references as mentions, right? How do they discern between those that “count” and those that don’t? I know they can look at the actual replies and sift through things a bit more easily using some paid measurement tools, but this seems like they’re climbing an uphill battle from the beginning to me.

How will consumers respond once Jello has engaged them?

The idea of the campaign is simple: Respond to people posting about the real #FML hash tag and give them something to laugh about. In essence: Fun their lives up a bit. I get it. But, I’m not sure consumers will. And, I’m just not sure how they’ll react. So far, it’s been a mix. Some are surprised by the response and react positively. Others have not. I just think they might be setting themselves up for some unwanted discourse here… (keep in mind, the people talking about #FML are not exactly in the best mood)

It’s an awful lot of effort for…

I’m just not sure what the payoff here is for Jello. Mentions? Volume? I guess. But, from the outside looking in, it seems like a whole lot of effort (and money, I’m guessing, judging from the fact that Crispin Porter + Bogusky is their agency in this instance) for a smaller payoff. I mean, I’m sure Jello has a team of folks staffing the responses to these tweets. And, someone’s developing all those pieces of artwork they’re sending people. And someone designed that micro-site. That’s money. Lots of it. I’m just wondering if the effort is worth it, that’s all.

Everyone who tweets #FML registers for the sweeps?

That’s right–according to Jello, anyone who tweets the #FML hash tag between now and June 14 will be entered into a giveaway for For My Life prize packs “specially created to get their lives back on track”. Um, what? So, ANYONE who uses the #FML hash tag is entered–whether they even know about this campaign or not? That seems to be the case, but I hardly believe it’s true. Typically, when companies run sweepstakes, they’re looking for their target audience. They want to use the sweeps as a lead driver. Now, oftentimes, they don’t get all people from their target audience to register since there are a number of deal-seekers out there. But, this just takes that to a whole new level. Again, I’m just not sure the payoff is worth all this effort (and it’s not exactly precise).

I’m not saying this is the worst campaign in the history of social media marketing. Far from it. I do, actually, like the fact that they’re taking a risk. Doing something different. And, I like the idea of flipping #FML on its head a bit. But, there’s too much here that has me scratching my head.

What do you think? Brilliant campaign or bone-headed move?

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Jello FML social media campaign: Brilliant or bone-headed? is a post from: Communications Conversations

But, we’re hooked now (currently just starting season 5).

Mad Men is a great show. I love the period references, clothing and language. But, what I enjoy most is the insider-baseball advertising/agency references.

The new business conundrums. The inner-office politics. The ineptitude of the partners (at times). The dynamics of an agency meeting. Love it all.

But, most of all: Don Draper. One of the most iconic TV characters of the last 10-plus years. Much has been written about Don Draper (heck, “Dear Abby”-like Tumblr blogs are devoted to him), but one thing continues to linger in my mind as I watch the show: What if Don Draper were transported 50-some years in the future and worked in the PR industry instead?

Well, I actually gave that some thought (yes, I do think about these things). Here’s a list of 15 ways Don Draper would be different if he were working in PR in 2013:

Ad man Don Draper drink of choice: Canadian Club, straight up.

PR man Don Draper drink of choice: Coffee (that’s an easy one).

Ad man Don Draper communication technology: Black office rotary desk phone

PR man Don Draper communication technology: Apple iPhone 5 (with Don’s sense of style, there’s no doubt he’d be an Apple guy–question is, would he use this case?)

Ad man Don Draper tagline: “I want 10 taglines for that ad by 5 p.m.”

PR man Don Draper tagline: “I want 10 ideas for that status update on the client’s Facebook page by 5 p.m.”

Ad man Don Draper afternoon pick-me-up: Afternoon siestas on what appears to be the most uncomfortable couch ever in his office.

PR man Don Draper afternoon pick-me-up: Starbucks iced coffee.

Ad man Don Draper exercise of choice: Swimming in the New York Athletic Club pool.

PR man Don Draper exercise of choice: Yoga.

Ad man Don Draper vehicle of choice: Ford Thunderbird

PR man Don Draper vehicle of choice: BMW 5 series

Ad man Don Draper agency location: New York City (the epicenter of the ad world)

PR man Don Draper agency location: San Francisco (close to Silicon Valley, and many tech and Fortune 500 companies and a wealth of creative talent)

Ad man Don Draper agency partners: An over-the-hill veteran, a raging alcoholic, and a over-organized Brit.

PR man Don Draper agency partners: Nobody. Don is definitely the kind of guy who runs his own firm–his way (and to be honest, I find it hard to believe he would put up with the partners he has for more than 10 minutes).

Ad man Don Draper holiday party: Held in the office, oodles of alcohol, key clients invited with the party going late into the night.

PR man Don Draper holiday party: What holiday party?

Ad man Don Draper management style: Strict, top-down and domineering style

PR man Don Draper management style: Open, empowering and collaborative (OK, this might be a little wishful, but still…)

Ad man Don Draper agency marketing tactic: Writing an op-ed letter to the New York Times declaring his agency is forever done with tobacco companies as clients.

PR man Don Draper agency marketing tactic: Creating a ‘viral video’ (Don’s fatal flaw–thinking he knows it all; it shows up big time here)

Ad man Don Draper office crisis: One of Don’s many girlfriends showing up in the office at the same time as his wife.

PR man Don Draper office crisis: Photos of Don’s “escapades” with one of his many girlfriends surfacing on Facebook.

Ad man Don Draper book to read: Olgilvy on Advertising, by David Olgilvy.

PR man Don Draper book to read: Lean In, by Sheryl Sandberg (just kidding)

Ad man Don Draper client approach: Sell, sell, sell.

PR man Don Draper client approach. Listen, listen, listen.

Ad man Don Draper fashion statement: Skinny tie and the Fedora hat (tie)

PR man Don Draper fashion statement: Allen Edmunds shoes, Brooks Brothers suit (as much as I want Don to be a jeans and jacket guy, he’s just not…)

OK, what did I miss? Add your ideas in the comments below.

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What if Don Draper was a PR pro? is a post from: Communications Conversations

Give a gift.

It pops up when you see a story posted by a friend who might be celebrating an anniversary, a graduation or a new baby.

It also, obviously, pops up when it’s someone’s birthday.

In theory, Facebook Gifts gives you an easy way to send a quick memento to a friend or family member with a few simple clicks.

You can choose from gift cards (Starbucks, iTunes), wine, chocolate chip cookies, salt shot glasses, and moustache lip balm. Yes, moustache lip balm.

The question is: How many people are really doing this?

Judging from my friends, a decent amount. I asked if people were actually using Gifts yesterday on my Facebook feed (definitely more people using/receiving gifts than not):

According to Facebook, the company sold $5 million worth of “gifts” in the fourth quarter of 2012. Might seem like a big number, but given Facebook’s user base, that’s miniscule.

But, Facebook’s just getting started. It’s far too early to call this a failure.

And brands are just starting to discover the opportunity here.

So far, it seems like mostly big brands involved: Starbucks, Fandango, Olive Garden.

But, it seems like there’s probably an opportunity for smaller to mid-sized brands, too. You’re already seeing that pop up in Gifts.

Cookies from The Protein Bakery. Wines that Rock from the Mendocino Wine Company. And soap from Duke Cannon.

I could easily see:

* Smartphone case manufacturers offering up unique cases for under $50.

* A Kate Spade passport holder for under $75.

* Fragrance companies offering up a rollerballs for under $50.

* Or, a gift card to your favorite local restaurant for $50-75.

There are many possibilities, and brands are just starting to scratch the surface.

But, the key is: Will people use Gifts on Facebook?

That remains to be seen.

What about you? Have you used Gifts yet? What’s been your experience? Do you think they’ll become popular enough for more brands to get involved?

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Facebook gifts: Does it have a future for brands? is a post from: Communications Conversations