With the success of Apple based on its category-creating innovations like the iPod, iPhone and iPad, companies are focusing more heavily on developing their own innovations. A recent article in The Wall Street Journal reported the following statistics on the growth of innovation:

• A search of annual and quarterly reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission shows companies mentioned some form of the word “innovation” 33,528 times last year, which was a 64% increase from five years before that.
• More than 250 books with “innovation” in the title have been published in the last three months, most of them dealing with business, according to a search of Amazon.com
• Four in 10 executives say their company now has a chief innovation officer, according to a recent study of the phenomenon released last month by Capgemini Consulting.

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On May 16th, The Wall Street Journal reported that General Motors would stop advertising on Facebook since the auto maker felt that advertising didn’t have a major impact on auto purchases. GM’s CMO Joel Ewanick said that “GM is definitely reassessing our advertising on Facebook, although the content is effective and important.”

In a meeting during the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity in June, Mr. Ewanick and Facebook’s Head of Sales Carolyn Everson discussed that Facebook would be willing to provide GM with better data on how its ads could be more effective at producing auto sales, but GM said that it would only return to Facebook advertising if Facebook could better prove the effectiveness of its advertising. (continue reading…)

Social media pages serve as a vital component of the marketing and communications mix for companies. They allow organizations to disseminate company news and deliver exclusive offers and can also serve as a method of customer service. While these are all positive examples of how corporate social media can support a company’s initiatives, there are negative issues that can arise within social networks.

Social media gives a voice to the masses that was once only reserved for the traditional media. With that said, social media now provides an opportunity for the masses to express their individual opinions toward organizations, whether positive or negative in nature. It’s also worthwhile to point out that individuals are more willing to offer negative opinions versus unsolicited positive praise. The key to remember is that not everyone in the world is going to like a company – Google, Apple and Facebook are three of the most popular U.S. companies and they each have sizeable detractors – and negative comments and posts are going to happen; but it’s how a company handles these posts that can make or break a brand. (continue reading…)

It’s not something you can easily say to a client, but “adapt or die” is a very true statement when it comes to social media. Most likely, your client made his or her way in the industry through forward thinking, willingness to change and a little bit of risk. And it shouldn’t be any different now. Social media requires all of those things – and then some. When your CEO balks at the social media tactics you suggest, ask him the 6 questions below from JeffBullas.com. Hint – the current research appears after the question.
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We work in a fast-paced environment that thrives on creativity and inspiration.  At times, it may seem easier and more efficient to bypass established systems in order to get a project completed for a client.  However, the core competency of advertising agencies and other creative outlets is not simply the production of creative work.  It’s the efficient management of that project which requires the ability to carefully control, document and communicate workflow to deliver the best results.  If this cannot be done, even the most creatively successful agency might find itself in a state of chaos. By establishing and adhering to well-established workflow and communication processes, agencies will actually save time in the long run, deliver a better product and satisfy their clients. 

Since each client is unique, Domus develops the most appropriate reporting and communications systems to meet their needs.  This can include any or all of the following:  creative briefs, decision reports, weekly hot lists, weekly status reports, monthly client meetings, quarterly and annual results analysis as well as other customized reports requested by the client.  Many of the above reports we are now converting to a digital dashboard that allows our clients easy access to this information at the touch of a button.

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The most effective way to increase your Facebook and Twitter followers is to provide valid and useful information that your fans may not have seen otherwise. As a PR pro, I’m constantly staying on top of current events and reading the news – on my computer, on my cell phone and in the newsfeed of my Facebook and Twitter accounts. Some of the most interesting news I see only because someone I follow posted it.

By being a dialed-in, finger-on-the-pulse-of-your-industry PR professional, you have the opportunity to share breaking news with your fans first. Post a recent article on a relevant topic or ask your followers a question about a hot topic. The beauty of social media, especially now with all of the changes to Facebook, is that every friend of your followers can now see most of their activity. So if they comment on a post on your wall, it will appear in their newsfeed and will ideally inspire someone else to click on your link, find your page interesting – and voilá – you’ll have a new follower.

This method of attracting followers is not guaranteed – in public relations there’s very little that is – but it’s a way to be recognized as a valuable and forward-thinking participant in your particular industry.

Kate Toy is a Senior Account Manager at Domus, Inc., a marketing communications agency based in Philadelphia. For more information, visit http://www.domusinc.com. For new business inquiries, please contact CEO and founder of Domus, Inc. Betty Tuppeny at betty.tuppeny@domusinc.com or 215-772-2805.

Nothing sells a product or a service better than a satisfied customer. A president or CEO can say their company is the best in the industry, but without third-party credibility, it’s just lip service. That is why services such as Yelp.com, which strictly focuses on user reviews, can make or break a company. These reviews act like mini case studies and can be amplified when they are linked to social media sites such as Facebook and Twitter.

Companies can take the customer review process one step further by including testimonial videos on sites such as YouTube. Domus incorporated this tactic with OKI Data Americas’ customers during the ISTE 2011 Conference in Philadelphia. OKI customers were given a platform to present their story and increase their Internet celebrity through the process. This strategy gives consumers a voice and also puts a face to the name, which lends additional credibility to the testimonial. The reach of these videos can be increased when distributed through social media networks as well. An example of the OKI customer testimonial video can be accessed through the following link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yxHIxhVSFuI.

Not only do these videos provide beneficial information to prospective customers, but they also increase the company’s interaction with current clients, helping to build that existing relationship.

Greg Smore is a Senior Account Manager at Domus, Inc., a marketing communications agency based in Philadelphia. For more information, visit http://www.domusinc.com. For new business inquiries, please contact CEO and founder of Domus, Inc. Betty Tuppeny at betty.tuppeny@domusinc.com or 215-772-2805.

Daily Deal sites like Groupon and Living Social can cause problems for a business due to hurting its’ profitability, brand and relationship with customers.

With a discount offer, the business is probably appealing to customers that purchase on price. It is unlikely customers will come back to the business in the future to purchase products and services at full value. In a column on AdAge.com, Al Ries, the famous marketing consultant, states:

“Presumably, all those consumers who bought products and services for 50% off are going to be happy to return to their local retailers and return to buy those same products and services at full prices. That’s not going to happen. What is going to happen is that those same consumers are going to go back to Groupon and wait for the next 50%-off sale.”

I’m sure many of you have used Groupon, Living Social or one of the other local daily deal sites. Of those of you who have, how many of you have returned to that business to purchase the same product or service at full price? My guess is not many.

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A wise person once said, “We were given two ears but only one mouth, because listening is twice as hard as talking.” This is especially true in our industry, as agencies must be good listeners to understand direction provided by their clients in order to deliver the best outcome. Most of us think we are good listeners, but in reality, we’re not.

Listening requires careful attention. Sometimes people don’t pay careful attention when someone is speaking to them, thinking instead about how to press their point when the other person stops speaking. Also consider that people talk at about 125 words per minute. However, we think at a speed that is four or five times as fast, at 500 words per minute or more. This means that our thoughts move much faster than the words we are listening to and makes it not surprising that we often let our attention wander.
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As PR and social media continue to overlap at a rapid pace, what next? Today, the boundaries between advertising, marketing and PR are becoming more blurred than ever. While PR is all about making announcements that you hope will grab editors’ attention and result in increased coverage and exposure, the goal of social media for business is to gain that loyal list of “followers” whom you must converse with, create dialogue with and hopefully …convert into customers.

Recently, we’ve all seen endless debates about who should “control” social media in ad agencies. And that “someone” should be the PR professional – often the eyes and ears of the agency.

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