Some of this new quest for higher-level measurement results from the now-famous Barcelona Principles, which were established by the International Association for the Measurement and Evaluation of Communication (AMEC), PRSA, the Institute for Public Relations and two other industry associations at the 2010 AMEC European Summit in Barcelona, Spain. Utilizing much of the language and ideas found in PRSA’s The Business Case for Public Relations™, the seven Principles primarily mandate the importance of setting measurable goals and objectives, and moving toward linking outputs to outcomes.

All that is great, but PR pros have been left wondering how to execute these mandates. They have plenty of guidance on objective-setting, but not as much on how best to measure outputs — and then, how best to link them to outcomes.

Fortunately, the founders of the Barcelona Principles didn’t stop there. A special taskforce was deployed to develop what has become the AMEC Valid Metrics Guidelines, a set of practical frameworks that guide PR pros through developing a holistic, meaningful measurement process. I have found the Guidelines to be of enormous help to my clients, so I hope the following brief overview will be helpful to you.

The AMEC Valid Metrics Guidelines

The Guidelines are essentially a series of frameworks (matrices) that provide suitable metrics for a variety of campaign types, which will be discussed later. To simplify the process, the Guidelines first break public relations into three basic phases:

1. A message or story is created and told.
2. It is disseminated by a third party (such as the media or influencers).
3. It is consumed by the target audience (which ideally results in behavior change).

These three phases are then translated into measurement terms:

1. PR Activity — metrics reflecting efforts to produce and disseminate a message.
2. Intermediary Effect — metrics reflecting third-party dissemination of the message to target audiences.
3. Target Audience Effect — metrics showing that the target audience has received the message and is considering acting on it. or has acted on it.

For those who are used to the “outputs, outtakes, and outcomes” terminology, here’s where they fit:

1. PR Activity — (New)
2. Intermediary Effect — (Outputs)
3. Target Audience Effect — (Outtakes and Outcomes)

These three levels are then used in the vertical axis of the master framework below:

Next, on the Horizontal Axis, you’ll see the five stages of the Communications Funnel: awareness, knowledge/understanding, interest/consideration, support/preference and action.The idea is to see measurement on a multi-dimensional continuum, leading from the campaign’s initial effort to its outcome by moving toward the bottom right-hand corner: the ultimate organization/business result.

The Taskforce created eight different frameworks full of metrics for each type of campaign or PR effort, which focus on Brand/Product Marketing, Reputation Building, Issues Advocacy/Support, Employee Engagement, Investor Relations, Crisis/Issues Management and Not-for-Profit, Social/Community Engagement.

For example, take a look below at some of the suggested metrics for an Issues Advocacy/Support campaign:

Now, please don’t feel overwhelmed. This looks scary, but it is quite simple. Here’s how to get started:

1. If you haven’t already set measurable objectives for your campaign, take a few minutes and read “Guidelines for Setting Measurable Public Relations Objectives: An Update” from the IPR Measurement Commission. A measurement program is meaningless unless it starts with objectives.
2. Then, use a blank AMEC template and plot the metrics you use now. This will help you see where your focus has been, and where it needs to shift if objectives are to be met. Don’t be surprised if you learn most of your metrics focus on the simplest areas — outputs and awareness!
3. In a new AMEC template, choose at least a few key metrics in all three of the vertical PR phases.
4. Across the horizontal axis, choose metrics from the stage that is the focus of your campaign. For example, if your campaign is focused on “knowledge,” be sure to include measures that reflect “key message alignment.” However, also include metrics from the earlier stages, such as from “awareness,” so you’ll have the data you need to diagnose where things went well, and where they did not. In other words, say you don’t meet your goal regarding “knowledge.” It could be that your audience reached declined and have nothing to do with key messages.
5. Once you’ve completed your AMEC template, look for the tools you’ll need for implementation. The template will force you to think beyond your comfort zone and perhaps find require your finding new vendors or tools!
6. Finally, do not try to measure everything. Just pick a few key measures in the areas that matter most, but make sure they move as far as possible toward the bottom right hand corner.

For more information on how to use the Framework, go to: AMEC Valid Metrics Guidelines. To ensure that your measurement is methodically sound and follows the seven Principles, check out Part 1, Part 2 and Part 3 of the PRSA On-Demand Webinar, “Demonstrating the Value of the Work You Do.”

 Angela Jeffrey is senior counsel to CARMA International, a leading global media analysis company, and president of MeasurementMatch.com, a high-level consultancy helping clients create PR and social media measurement strategies. She is also a member of the Institute for Public Relations Measurement Commission. Find her on Twitter @ajeffrey1 or at angie@measurementmatch.com.

The discussion during the webinar was rich. It’s clear that today’s public relations professionals are already incorporating blogger relations into their marketing mix. But many are curious about how to identify the right bloggers, how to disclose your relationship and how to measure the success of your efforts. Here is a recap of some of the most frequently asked questions.

Tools of the Trade

Finding the right bloggers for your engagement is critical to success. Remember, don’t invite just anyone. You have the right to be picky, especially if the information or experience you are providing is valuable. Building a successful blogger list is part science, but also part art. Use tools like Cision and Marketing Cloud and Compete.com to develop an initial list for consideration. These tools will yield large blogger lists. However, not everyone on these lists will be relevant for you. It takes a layer of human research and intuition to build the perfect blogger list. Once you’ve narrowed the list to your top prospects based on the criteria you set (reach, engagement, content focus), follow the bloggers for at least two weeks to get to know them and their readers. This valuable information is what will set your brand apart from the many others demanding their attention.

More information on the tools

Cision – Cision’s media database contains the “who’s who” of today’s top influencers, which allows you to build lists containing your industry’s most relevant influencers who write about your topic.

Marketing Cloud (formerly called Radian6) – Now owned by Salesforce, Marketing Cloud pulls from more than 400 million sources, allowing you to listen to the social Web in real time and build robust lists.

Compete.com – Compete.com is a tool (you pay a fee for additional benefits) you can use to get initial site traffic for almost any blog. Just simply copy and paste the URL into the search function on the site and you will receive instant information on the blog’s unique monthly visitors, UVS rank and competitive ranking (which is also good information for list building). Tip: Use these metrics just for a baseline. Nobody knows the blogger’s site statistics better than the bloggers themselves. Once you’ve built a relationship with them, don’t be afraid to ask. You can also find similar information by looking at the “About” pages on the blogs.

Bloggers and FTC Guidelines

Bloggers must disclose, per the FTC guidelines. Most bloggers will automatically disclose in their own way. However, it’s our job as marketers to ensure each and every blogger you work with is properly disclosing. And remember, disclosures must be “clear and conspicuous,” meaning the disclosure statement must be as close as possible to relevant claims. Disclosure statements that have historically been buried in terms and conditions or on a disclosure page are simply not enough.

For more information on FTC guidelines and the latest additions to the policy, check out a summary blog post my colleague, Rachael Powell, wrote. In addition, download the PDF of WOMMA’s Social Media Disclosure Guide for additional disclosure information.

Pay to Play or Earn Your Coverage

Oh, the great blogger debate over whether or not to pay bloggers. Here’s our take: There’s a time and a place for both so don’t limit your thinking to one or the other. If you have compelling content or an experience that the bloggers can’t get anywhere else, that’s a sign you should take an earned approach. If you’re simply looking for a product review and you’re limited to a sample and a press release, you should consider a paid approach. Other considerations for paid include unique, one-off sponsorship opportunities (e.g., holiday gift guides, special editions) or leveraging the blogger as a thought leader or expert on your brand’s owned platforms (e.g., if you ask a blogger to contribute content or want to use their name and likeness in a mass media campaign).

Measure Your ROAS

Proving your blogger campaign paid off is important, especially when marketing spend is being dissected into dozens of different areas (we do love multi-channel marketing). Before you send one pitch email, make sure you set your success criteria. If it’s simply awareness, impressions are easy to measure. But if you’re interested in business goals like increasing sales, you’ll want to put tracking in place to capture those important metrics.

If your blogger outreach campaign is part of a larger media mix (TV, print, digital display), consider executing a marketing mix model to determine your ROAS (Return on Ad Spend). This will allow you to statistically attribute sales to each effort. For Rust-Oleum, this study proved that their blogger campaign was the most cost-effective sales driver and netted a 260 percent return on ad spend. These metrics are important to the leadership team and can help you secure additional funds to sustain your blogger network.

Thanks to everyone who joined the webinar live or downloaded the podcast version. We’d love to hear from you. What questions do you have, what challenges are you facing? Any other tips to add to the Eight Ways to Fail at Blogger Relations? If so, let’s start the discussion here.

Ashley Walters, APR, is director of Powerhouse Factories’ Word-Of-Mouth Marketing team.

My “self study” syllabus included:

• Chapter readings — “Effective Public Relations,” 10th edition.
• Using social media tools (blogging, tweeting, pin boards, etc.).
• An online study course (for group study).
• Audiobooks (of myself) reciting the APR Study Guide to listen to.
• Commissioning a graphic artist to create two “one-pager” infographics to help prepare (Readiness Review, CBE).

What to Expect at the Readiness Review

• Be comfortable, yet be powerful.
• Think 50 percent job interview, 50 percent big presentation.
• Just because APRs are leading it, they don’t know everything about public relations. You can teach them something new and/or give them a new strategy/tool/tactic to employ.
• Remember, you have a shared vocabulary (the KSAs), but we all bring something unique to the table.
• Shine!

What to Expect From the Computer-Based Examination for Accreditation in Public Relations

• Three hours and 45 minutes can seem like a long time and a short time (weird).
• Your mind will wander because you’ve been reading voluminous amounts of text.
• You may begin to wish the Examination was “over already” so you just get your score.
• You will begin to wonder, “Why didn’t I study that more?”
• After you submit your Examination, the screen will go blank; and those are the longest 30 seconds of your life. (I felt my heart beating in my chest waiting for the results.)
• Finally, if you’ve lived the APR Examination, you will pass. If you went at it half-heartedly or you aren’t humble, you will fail — it’s as simple as that.

When I saw that I’d passed, the first thing I did was send a tweet … seriously — then I called my husband. Crazy, I know. But I’d made this process so public that I felt that I should share my results publicly as soon as possible.

APR in a Nutshell

• My process took almost two years from the moment I decided to take the APR until the moment I obtained it.
• I studied in the way that worked for me. You should do the same.
• I took the opportunity to learn while doing; it’s the best way to study.
• I never felt bad for saying, “Well, the textbook said …,” while at work. Trust me, that is how you know that the information has sunk in.
• Get support from those closest to you; you’ll need their help and encouragement.

Good luck with your APR journey!

Accredited public relations professional and award-winning educator, Jenifer Daniels “friendraises” for candidates and causes.

McDonald’s struck an excellent balance this week when reacting to the benevolent neighbor who rescued the three abducted Cleveland women. Charles Ramsey mentioned McDonald’s in both his now-famous initial TV interview and his 911 call, which also went viral. He was the top trending topic on Twitter for almost a full day. Many in the Twitterverse hailed him as a hero and called on McDonald’s to figuratively shower him with Big Macs.

But the company showed appropriate restraint in its eventual tweet. First, they expressed support and sensitivity to the victims. Then, a subtle hint that they would “be in touch” with Ramsey. McDonald’s reps didn’t return calls asking for further comment — another wise move to avoid being perceived as exploiting the sensitive situation.

More often, sudden newsmakers won’t spontaneously mention your company by name in interviews seen by millions. However, there are steps you can take to inject your brand into the events you know the media are already planning to cover.

Take the NFL Draft, for example. When the fifth pick of the first round took the stage in New York, sharp-eyed viewers noticed defensive end Ezekiel Ansah, on his way to the Detroit Lions, was wearing lensless, 3-D glasses.

Alert staffers at Detroit eyewear retailer SVS Vision were paying attention, too, and hustled to take advantage. They sent a new set of rims with faux lenses to the Lions’ facility, so the next morning, when Ansah arrived for an introductory news conference, he proudly donned them for the assembled media. SVS earned mentions in several articles as a result.

Not to be outdone, the IMAX Corporation also took note. A few days after the draft, they sent Ansah a letter offering him free 3-D movies for a year. They released the letter to the media, earning coverage in the Detroit Free Press, ESPN.com, NFL.com and many other outlets.

But you aren’t always at the whim of the news cycle. You can anticipate in advance what will shape the media agenda and frame your pitches accordingly.

For example, corporate training firm, VitalSmarts, was releasing a book about how to have difficult and painful conversations. “Crucial Confrontations” happened to be published during an election year, so PR manager Mary McChesney pitched reporters on how the tips in the book could help people have civil discussions when disagreeing over their favorite candidates.

Connecting the non-political book to the ongoing political chatter earned Mary’s CEO a live interview on NBC’s “TODAY,” and propelled the book onto The New York Times bestseller list.

So, for your next pitch, make a list of the obvious items that will already be on the media’s agenda, and then brainstorm ways to make your story angle fit.

Learn more about tying into the media agenda and nine other strategies to boost the newsworthiness of your pitches — and much more — at my Pitching Boot Camp next month in New York.

Michael Smart, principal of MichaelSMARTPR, has been landing top-tier coverage for 15 years. He also has trained more than 4,500 communicators across the globe on how to boost their media and blog placements, including pros from Allstate, Disney, Verizon, Hilton, Honda, Edelman and many other organizations, large and small. He has been among the top-rated presenters at the PRSA International Conference three times.

Some people earn their APR to impress their boss — or the boss they want to have. I did it to impress my students — to encourage them to be the public relations professionals I want them to be.

I have taught public relations full time since 2007. An APR after my name, I believed, would allow me to speak more authoritatively to students about their need to keep exercising their minds long after they walk across the stage at graduation.

But first I had to go back to school myself. I attended a daylong APR preparation course offered by my local Chapter. I took the online practice examination. I drafted and redrafted my Readiness Review questionnaire before submitting it. For my two-hour Readiness Review, I created a bound book and multimedia PowerPoint presentation in which I carefully noted each phase of my “campaign for the future of public relations” via my Communication Campaigns capstone course. I didn’t feign perfection though: I included slides showing my response to problems. For example, when my students lacked proper respect for history, I showcased relationships: Ed Bernays’ Ivory Soap carving and Redbull’s Art of Can contests, and security campaigns in World War II and at Amazon.com. To conclude, I anticipated questions from panelists and had a slide after my “final slide” with answers.

But the real work toward my APR began once I got the letter permitting me to take the computer-based Examination for Accreditation in Public Relations. I bought yellow highlighters, took a few days off work and huddled over a printout of the APR Study Guide.

I arrived early to the testing center. My hand shook as I clicked through the tutorial. As questions flashed by, I reflected on the preparation session, Readiness Review and studying. They all came together — I passed! When I received official documentation, my department chairman publicly congratulated me, as did many students.

Now, when I talk about lifelong learning in public relations, students often nod and ask, “You did that by getting your APR, right?”

“That’s part of it,” I answer. “There’s going to PRSA meetings, there’s keeping current via PR news sources. But, yes, the APR should be a goal because it tells the world I can do it.”

“I want to do it, too,” my students say. Inspiring that yearning, that appreciation for knowledge continuing outside that classroom — that’s why I earned my APR, and I’m so glad I did.

Robin Rothberg, APR, is a full-time lecturer in public relations at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte.  Her work in public relations and journalism has been local, national and international in scope, but she considers herself most fortunate to have fused her public relations and journalism passions early in her career as a reporter at PRWeek in the early 2000s.

Whether we work in-house or on agency teams, PR professionals know that everything that affects clients affects us too. . . eventually. We can be reactive and wait for the ACA dust to settle  or we can proactively help clients navigate the new landscape.

Now, there’s a huge opportunity for us to be proactive and to expand the range of internal and external stakeholders with whom we work.

Historically, health product companies have been organized around departmental “silos” – e.g., Patient Safety, Advocacy, Product Management and Access. For decades, health care PR and marketing teams focused on product/service promotion. Our goal has been to demonstrate clinical outcomes; our opinion leaders have come from academia and science.

In the wake of Medicare reform and the ACA, a new mandate has emerged: to help health decision-makers understand the relative outcomes and costs of available treatment options.  The goal is now to demonstrate total value as our opinion leaders include health economists, payment authorities and policymakers (in addition to clinicians).

To help clients succeed in this new environment, PR teams need to make five key changes:

1. Build internal bridges between our clients’ Product Marketing and Reimbursement (or Access) divisions.  Often, studies that are designed to show clinical outcomes are commissioned by a different department than studies designed to demonstrate cost benefits.  PR teams need both and must find smart, relatable ways to communicate total value to audiences.
2. Strengthen external alliances, too.  Now more than ever, PR teams need to ID and develop strong partnerships with patient groups for whom relative treatment value is high.
3. Focus on health care costs as well as benefits.  Value is a function of outcomes divided by costs.  Work collaboratively with Product and Access teams to calculate this ratio.  Then, help patients, payors, physicians and policymakers compare it to other available treatment options.
4. Reach new opinion leaders and influencer groups, including insurers, policymakers, health economists and relevant advocacy groups.
5. Get real. Build marketing campaigns based on behavioral insights that help physicians and patients work together to make smart choices and adhere to treatment plans.

PR professionals who make these changes will position clients to succeed in the shifting environment.  In the process, we’ll increase the value of our contribution and the impact of our services.

What are your thoughts on this topic?  Weigh in below.  Then, join the blog post’s authors — Bliss Integrated Communication Managing Director Meg Wildrick and nD-Insight President and CEO Rouhan Coutinho — for an interactive discussion at the Public Relations Society of America’s 2013 Health Academy Conference on May 3 in Indianapolis.

As April 3 became April 4, the site, as if sensing my anxiety, refreshed and the content — which we had spent countless hours meticulously editing, proofing and polishing — appeared in bright, bold colors illuminating the darkened hotel room. For a few hours, I could rest.

On the morning of April 4, 2012, the ABIM Foundation, along with Consumer Reports and nine medical specialty societies launched the Choosing Wisely® campaign at a standing-room-only event at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C. The ABIM Foundation, long a leader in advancing medical professionalism, created the campaign to encourage physicians and patients to engage in conversations about unnecessary tests and procedures that may provide no benefit, and actually could cause harm. To help begin these conversations, the nine societies created lists of “Five Things Physicians and Patients Should Question.”

The event marked the official unveiling of these lists, and while we were hopeful they would be well-received and embraced by physicians and patients, we were surprised, and, quite frankly, a bit overwhelmed by the response.

In addition to a story in the Associated Press, the announcement was covered in the Washington Post, The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, Reuters, Chicago Tribune, The Boston Globe and NPR. Every major network — ABC, CBS, and NBC — did a piece on it that night.

The website, which 196 people visited the day before, was flooded with 60,000 visits and hit 100,000 within 72 hours.

While the volume of coverage could certainly be counted as a measure of success, what is more telling is how the story was covered. Here were nine organizations representing more than 300,000 physicians telling the world that there were certain tests or procedures that were being done too much and could be causing harm.

In a world of more, more, more, they were saying less, less, less.

And that was how the story was covered — not with the hysterics of rationing or that people were being denied care they needed — but that too much care was being delivered and it was wasteful and harmful.

The announcement was so successful that 17 more medical societies joined the campaign and announced new lists in February 2013. And, later this year, 20 or more will follow suit.

The Choosing Wisely campaign is helping change the way physicians and patients talk about health care, and provides them the opportunity to talk about what care they really need. More than 100 articles have been published in peer-reviewed medical journals referencing the campaign and the recommendations from the specialty societies in just 12 months.

Why was this young campaign so well-received? How has it helped generate a growing conversation about resource use? My colleague, Nick Ferreyros from GYMR Public Relations, and I have a few ideas. We look forward to sharing them, and the great work of our colleagues at GYMR and the ABIM Foundation, with all of you at PRSA Health Academy in Indianapolis. We hope to see you there.

John Held, APR, director of communications at the ABIM Foundation, will be presenting at the PRSA Health Academy Conference in Indianapolis on May 2.

For the last 20 years, I have seen how successful policy and campaign workers use technology to transform outreach and activism. Those who embrace the effort, become early adopters, build their critical mass and consume the environment like a tidal wave.

At first, it’s overwhelming, but eventually you find your groove. Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Pinterest, Groupon — initially, it did not occur to me to join them. However, for career insight or to get a better deal on frozen yogurt, it is essential to be plugged in. Patterns definitely emerge, and information management becomes key.

I’ve seen the impact firsthand at my organization, the Oncology Nursing Society. We’re engaged in a multitude of membership advocacy efforts that educate decision-makers on nursing and cancer.

For example, ONS annually brings cancer nurses to Washington, D.C., to advocate for healthcare policy issues. As part of our key objectives, we seek to organically expand and amplify our members’ efforts through social media.

What complex initiatives top the list in terms of outreach? The legislative environment, the current economic situation and federal funding levels for the National Institutes of Health (NIH), the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid (CMS).

ONS seeks to facilitate online advocacy, that is shareable, “personable” and invites response. We offer opportunities for our nurse advocates to snap photos with their senators and representatives, while instantly tweeting their thoughts; upload policy issues to Facebook, and then “friend” Congressional staffers to expand their networks.

In the day to day, breaking through the clutter also requires content, clarity, and consistency. ONS tries to be specific in our posts. We stay focused, provide expert insight from cancer nurses, and comment on organizationally relevant topics. This provides ONS with a level of credibility important to government leaders and elected officials.

We “like” and get liked on Facebook, tweet about the latest health reports from the government and in only one year have rebuilt a grassroots army that is pushing legislation on Capitol Hill. I am excited to share more in-depth information on ONS’ experience mobilizing members at the upcoming Health Academy Conference.

ONS Health Policy Director Alec Stone is presenting at the PRSA Health Academy Conference in Indianapolis. Register today and join us at the PRSA conference.

Realistically, how do you map out your yearly PR plan when communications is the department everyone turns to and assumes will get the great hits because “press coverage is ‘free media,’ right?”

I’ve been there, and want to let you in on a little-known secret that will help you wrangle the many, varied communications messages, audiences and events into a seemingly unrealistic, but actually quite workable, plan. First, let me set the stage and explain where I’ve seen this done exceptionally well.

My partners at the American Diabetes Association (ADA), are consistently successful connecting with a variety of audiences on many different, complex messages tailored to age groups, ethnicities, salary scales and geographies. How can the ADA make sense of all that and still come out with a sound communications plan?

The ADA has strategically used radio as an integral part of communications outreach for many years. In fact, in 2012 alone, ADA spokespeople completed 141 radio interviews, with listenership totaling 58,211,481. There were 11,664 airings on 8,218 stations. The cost per reaching each listener was $0.0009568. How is that for doing it all?

Again, radio. Yes, radio was the lynchpin of the communications plan. In today’s dynamic world of on-hand, mobile media access, this may seem old school. However, did you know that 94 percent of Americans report that radio is an important part of their daily lives? Or, that radio consistently reaches 92 to 96 percent of virtually every demographic group? And, how does radio stack up against other media?

Radio actually has a higher penetration than television, magazines, newspapers or the Internet. Radio has stood the test of time and routinely gets called in for duty when there’s some sort of crisis. What does everyone pack in their hurricane kit? A radio, of course. Radio plays a huge role in the aftermath of every major storm, particularly when there are mass power outages, connecting people to vital information and to each other.

And, across America, there’s a good deal of talk right now about the impending sequestration. And where is most of this discussion taking place? On talk radio, because this topic in particular really plays to the political extremes, which can be found in abundance among the many different offerings of radio. Beyond complex issue dissection, radio offers tremendous flexibility for quick-turnaround projects, geographic priorities and audience targeting.

In May, I’ll be moderating a panel on this topic at the PRSA Health Academy Conference in Indianapolis. We’ll be presenting with our partners at the American Diabetes Association who have successfully accomplished the seemingly impossible. I’ve personally been a member of PRSA for 13 years and a communications professional for 17 years. I know with budgets and time as tight as they are, we all choose conferences with far greater scrutiny these days. I hope you will join us as I’m confident our panel will be well worth your while.

News Generation President and Co-Founder Susan Matthews Apgood will be presenting the session, “Dramatically Simplify Your Communications Strategy Yet Still Do It All” at the PRSA Health Academy Conference from May 1-3 in Indianapolis. Register today and join us at the conference.

Social media training is now as important as conventional media training was a decade ago. Yesterday’s corporate spokesperson is today’s social media manager.

For social media marketers, it’s become increasingly important to actively manage company Facebook pages, branded Twitter accounts and other social media channels.

As communicators have focused on building out these channels independently, it has become clear that social marketing by itself isn’t enough. Social media is unlike mass media; distribution alone doesn’t penetrate the social filter. In order to reap gains, conversations or action must take place. With no clicks, the whole exercise is for naught.

So what do you do? Involve your team and broader organizational stakeholders. Scaling social media engagement through enterprise-wide social media training is about mobilizing everyone to collaborate transparently.

Assuming your organization has a fair, responsible social media policy (i.e., one that doesn’t scare everyone into complete silence), the easiest next step is to scale engagement.

Employees have a vested interest in the organization’s overall success. However, we also know that external communications — particularly when they’re driven by those unskilled in the art of public disclosure — can easily be taken out of context by competitors or critics and quickly spin out of control.

When you’re ready to bring colleagues together to start playing as a team, and perhaps even discuss the prospect of securing a portfolio of social media training online with your boss, here’s what you need to know about how online social media courses can help prepare the organization for greater success:

1. Social media is a team sport. On social media, reach is a factor of engagement. The more people like, comment, retweet and +1 a share on a social network, the broader and further it travels. Posts that attract the most engagement are also the most visible. When someone interacts with a post on a social network, they do so in front of their online friends. If any of their friends engage, that message gets passed along. If you train the whole company and teach how to engage in company communications, the result is social media marketing at scale.

2. Policy isn’t enough. A social media policy is a critical component of any social media strategy. However, a policy only provides value if people actually read and understand it. “Probably as important as the policy itself is the training and the guidance that you give people around the policy. The best policy in the world is kind of useless if it sits on a shelf or it’s on your intranet and either people don’t look at it or really understand the nuances,” Daniel M. Goldman, general counsel at the Mayo Clinic, told me in a recent episode of the social media podcast On the Record…Online when discussing HIPPA compliant social media policies.

3. Official channels are less trusted. As much as digital natives have the impulse to share, most organizations have the impulse to channel communications through a public relations representative or their leadership. Now that everyone’s on social media, that strategy doesn’t work as well. Here’s why: there’s an increasingly wide gap between the degree of trust we have in institutions versus their leadership. It’s even wider for government than it is for business, and it shows that relying exclusively on CEOs and official spokespeople for external communications is a losing strategy. We trust subject matter experts more than the PR of the C-suite, research shows.

4. Industry leaders are tech savvy. Digital leaders in business outperform their peers in every industry. Businesses that invest in technology-enabled customer engagement and internal operations initiatives are, on average, 26 percent more profitable, and enjoy 12 percent higher market valuations, says a new report from CapGemini and MIT. Given the ease with which it enables collaboration, social media has the potential to supercharge customer and employee communications.

5. Training helps minimize employee turnover. Over the last two years, nearly half of all employers have had to deal with the misuse of social media by employees (or former employees). During that same period, nearly half of all employers have allowed access to social media sites at work, and these numbers are steadily rising. But less than one-third actually train personnel on the responsible use of social media at work, according to a recent report by Proskauer International. Providing access to social networks in the workplace without offering social media training is an ineffective way to achieve compliance.

Your colleagues are already using social media in the workplace to stay current on industry trends, collaborate with their coworkers, and to source and procure suppliers and service providers. Search tools and social media make it easier for them to get their jobs done. Why wouldn’t they take the shortest path to achieving their objective, and why wouldn’t you encourage them to do so? Remember, the by-product of all those online discussions is an arsenal of tweets, status updates and posts that become a trail of digital bread crumbs that lead back to you.

About the Author

Eric Schwartzman is CEO of Comply Socially, an online social media training provider, and best-selling co-author of “Social Marketing to the Business Customer.” His “Social Media Bootcamp” is available to readers of this blog for 50 percent off through May 1, 2013.