Cause-marketers face a serious problem: “Slacktivism.” As noted on Huffington Post:

Slacktivism, usually the signing of online internet petitions, Facebook and social media campaigns, and often commercial efforts including T-shirt, bracelet or ribbons sales, is often defined as merely a feel-good measure that requires little personal effort or sacrifice on the part of an individual that has little practical impact in actually helping the involved cause. That common perception perhaps does a disservice to online activism, which is about grassroots communications. After all, the Arab Spring that was celebrated a year ago was created by the same technologies of Facebook, Twitter and the tools of traditional slacktivism.

If we agree that the tools aren’t the problem, then what is?

My dad always told me that the right action leads to the right result. Apply that theory to marketing and it starts with making the right ask.

Some PR pros, social media strategists, cause-marketers and others integrating online tools into their communication toolbox still struggle to show value. It’s hard to measure changes in behavior, a frequent cause-marketing goal. So, campaigns are judged on metrics more easily quantified, including likes, retweets, and clicks, etc. If these “engagement metrics” determine a campaign’s perceived success or failure, then the campaign’s strongest call to action will focus on driving online engagement. And, that’s the problem … which brings us back to slacktivism.

Instead of complaining about lazy slacktivists and a generation of people who aren’t willing to do more than “like” or retweet something, marketers need to look in the mirror: If we’re not providing a strong call to action equipping online audiences to contribute in a more meaningful way, then aren’t we to blame?

Technology has the power to scale social good. We saw it with the Arab Spring and Japan earthquake. I experienced it in Haiti and with a homeless shelter. But, for us to realize the potential of technology as a real driver of change, we must be smarter. Marketers need to think beyond likes. If we’re limiting our ask to something as generic as “Please Share,” we shouldn’t expect impactful action.

Marketers: To excel in the social wold, understand that better asks will lead to better action. Give it a try and see how technology can scale social good.

From blogging and pinning … to creating videos, tweets, status updates, ebooks, enewsletters and white papers — content marketing has become a catch-all term that encompasses all kinds of information marketers are creating, disseminating and tying to objectives.

But, how do you know what kind of content to share? And, is it actually working?

Jason Falls offers the “Holy Smokes” test:

He says the idea is anytime you are engaged in marketing, you want your audience to consume the message and think, “’holy smokes,’ this message is: incredible, sad, awesome, beautiful, intelligent, informative or some other declarative response.”

More often than not, brands are so focused on posting X tweets a day, or updating Facebook X times a week that they get sucked into the day-to-day minutia and lose track of the strategy driving content. That’s why you end up reading post after post about the latest product development, or some totally random quote or photo. That’s not effective content marketing.

“Look at This” vs “Look at Me”

I find myself spending more time on Instagram lately than Facebook. Why? Huffington Post’s Bianca Bosker summed it up when she wrote this about Pinterest (which I think also applies to Instagram):

Twitter and Foursquare screams, “Look at me,” Pinterest posts urge, “Look at this.” At least for now, the site offers a refreshing haven away from the boosterism and boasting that plague so many sites.

If people are craving less “look at me” updates (hence the popularity of Pinterest, Instagram, Tumblr and similar sites), why not apply the “Look at This” approach to your company’s content strategy? It will attract people to your brand’s online presence, while piquing  their interest in ways that can’t be accomplished with the narrower “Look at Me” focus.

If you commit to the “Look at This” approach to content creation, then you have to figure out how to incorporate that into the right kind of content — content that makes people say “Holy Smokes” that still strengthens your brand’s positioning, conveys key messages, drives engagement, and syncs up with your overall communication goals (whether that’s changing behavior, shaping perception, driving sales, generating leads, etc.). That’s when the magic (read: results) happen.

Time spent online needs to be time well spent. By committing the extra resources and creativity to develop “look at this” content that aligns with your big-picture goals, organizations can establish a more compelling, effective online presence.

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Headquartered in Columbus, OH, Nationwide Insurance does a lot of good for my home city, but that doesn’t mean they’re protected from online backlash. This week, The Candle Lab posted a photo on Facebook with the following caption:

So…it was brought to our attention today that Nationwide Insurance took an image of our candle with our logo/label on it, removed the text, and dropped in new text to use on a coaster advertisement. I try to not to be too sensitive about this stuff, but this is so clearly a rip-off of our logo and trademark and a shot at our scented candles that its hard not to be pissed. Its not too much to expect that one Columbus-based big company wouldn’t steal a likeness and take a cheap shot at a small Columbus-based company.

93 comments and 27 shares later (of just that original image), this had the potential to turn into a David vs Goliath battle. However, Nationwide acted quickly — responding to comments on The Candle Lab’s Facebook page, as well as other Facebook pages from the Nationwide corporate account. Additionally, the VP of Corporate Communication responded from his personal Facebook page.

Both companies acted like grownups. Posting his email and phone number in the comments, The Candle Lab’s owner invited Nationwide to contact him directly to come up with a fair solution. Then, he continued to share updates on Facebook to let people know that Nationwide reached out to him and apologized. This morning, The Candle Lab posted that Nationwide has offered to donate $500 to a charity of their choice.

When an online controversy starts to bubble to the surface, a company’s poor response can escalate a “situation” to a crisis. After all, in crisis, if you’re not quick, you’re not relevant; however, the swift response needs to make sense for situation. As Elissa Freeman wrote, brands should consider these three filters when facing an online outcry:

1. Consider the demographic. Do they affect my business? Are they an organized entity?
2. Prevent knee-jerk reactions. Do we need to respond? Now or later?
3. Implement good crisis communications. The rules still apply depending on the severity of the situation.

The speed at which people can mobilize can catch companies off-guard, which sometimes leads to questionable decisions. The blogosphere likes to mock companies that #fail at crisis communication; however, in this case, Nationwide should be applauded for responding quickly — and,  just as importantly, responding in a manner befitting the situation.

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Already dubbed by some as the breakout social network of 2012, Pinterest seems to be everywhere — which inevitably leads marketers to wonder if and how they can (should?) market amongst the avid pinning crowd. (But, remember, before infiltrating any niche network, brands should start by asking themselves these three questions.)

Whether you need a Pinterest 101 to get your boss up to speed on the pinning phenomenon … or if you’re wondering what all the fuss is about — I hope you’ll find this Pinterest introduction helpful. We’ve included a general overview, recent stats, and links to 10+ articles and resources. Feel free to download the document, share with your colleagues, or “borrow” from it to assemble a Pinterest briefing document of your own.

On Pinterest? Let’s connect there, too. Here are my “Reminds me of Team Geben” and “Meat-Free Food Ideas” boards. Happy Pinning!

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My company, Geben Communication, is a boutique PR firm in Columbus, Ohio. Along the way, I’ve made decisions to ensure that we can work with small- to mid-sized businesses, startups and nonprofits — organizations that typically can’t afford the rates of the larger agencies. As a result, we’re typically charged to “do more with less.” (A challenge we LOVE, by the way!)

So, when we discovered this morning that our client, the Nationwide Children’s Hospital Columbus Marathon, was selected as a finalist for the PR Daily Awards, we were thrilled. But, we were ecstatic when we realized the other finalists include Major League Baseball, American Airlines and GE — operations whose budgets are far larger than what we work with.

Normally, this isn’t the type of thing I’d share here on prTini.com, but I do think it makes an important point:

You do NOT need a massive budget to excel in today’s social world.

I’ve blogged about some pieces of our work with the Columbus Marathon before (here | here). We don’t need an award to tell us that we’re doing good work. (After all, we track how our efforts sync up with measurable outcomes.) But, it’s nice to be reminded that the quality of work and the ability to deliver results isn’t always dependent on budget.

Congratulations to all the finalists and thanks to PR Daily for including us in such amazing company!

Have you incorporated blogger outreach into your PR 2.0 toolbox? I’ve written extensively about blogger relations as a key tactic for brands looking to excel in a social world. An extension of this type of outreach, brands are creating experiences that bridge the digital/physical divide. For example, the Cleveland Indians are now accepting applications for their social suite. Outback Steakhouse surprised a loyal fan with an incredible birthday gift. Outback also asked me to be a “social media correspondent” for the Outback Bowl earlier this year — using social channels to convey the bowl-game experience to those following along online.

Personalization is key to effective blogger outreach, whether you’re trying to engage bloggers online or in the “offline” world. A general rule of thumb: The more personalized a campaign — and the more opportunities for bloggers to personalize their participation — the better the campaign will be.

Brands looking to engage bloggers in brand ambassador-style campaigns spend a significant amount of time researching bloggers to ensure they’re the right fit, in terms of reach, audience, alignment of values and interests, etc. Until recently, much of that research took place on blogs, Twitter and Facebook. Maybe even YouTube, Flickr and Instagram. Now, add Pinterest to the list.

People are sharing all kinds of personal items on the site, creating dream boards, identifying motivators and inspiration, revealing details about the kinds of food they like, movies and books they enjoy, and even details about their families. This info is like gold when trying to identify and establish relationships through virtual channels.

Want to take it to another level? Check out this brilliant blogger ambassador campaign from Kotex. The use of Pinterest to identify and engage online influencers is so smart:

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Today’s Follow Friday recommendation and guest post highlights my friend Matt Russo. In addition to working with my husband at 30 Lines, Matt is co-founder of ChatterJet, a soon-to-be-launching service that helps a business’s ”social media accounts take flight by offering a unique blend of current topics, conversation starters, and content ideas based on your industry and location to help you grow your fan base and expand your reach to new audiences.” Plus, Matt can sing and dance. And, his home renovation is beyond impressive. Combine all that with the fact that he’s just smart and it’s easy to see why I’m suggesting you go follow Matt. But first, read about his recent trip to New Orleans and what he realized about online monitoring  …

This past weekend, I took a trip to New Orleans for my college roommate Zach’s bachelor party. As a way to document (let’s be honest, remember) where we went and what we did over the course of the long weekend, I decided to track our whereabouts using a dedicated hashtag – #ZekesBP.

During the day, we hopped from bar to bar watching the first and second rounds of the NCAA tournament, and at each location I checked in using FourSquare. When I saw something fun or interesting about the city, I captured it using Instagram – all the while using #ZekesBP in my updates.

The morning after our first night out, I was pleased to see that a hotel I had tagged in an Instagram shot (@hotelmonteleone) had seen my tweet and shared it with their followers.

From a technical standpoint, they did everything right: they listened for their brand online, they identified me, they engaged, gave me credit for my photo, and shared it with their followers.

But here’s where they fell short…

That specific social media interaction isn’t going to lead to more revenue. Why? Because the contact point was too far into their potential customer’s lifecycle.

To be fair, this was a special weekend because the NCAA tournament AND St. Patrick’s Day were both happening at the same time, so there’s a great chance they didn’t even have any rooms available. But had they been listening differently, I could have been a guest at their hotel that weekend.

Tip #1: Listen Earlier

Give potential customers a chance to act on your social media efforts. This means you might need to listen for things long before a transaction takes place.

Months prior to our trip, I published multiple tweets along the lines of: “Heading to New Orleans for a bachelor party. Any good suggestions? Hotel recommendations?”

The responses from my friends and followers who had visited the city were very helpful. But none of the nearly 200 hotels in New Orleans ever reached out to me directly. And by the time we arrived in town, we were already checking into their competitor’s suite.

As our trip progressed, I continued to check in and was pleasantly surprised with the responses I received from various establishments. Both Pat O’Brien’s (@patobriensbar) and The Old Absinthe House (@OldAbsintheHouseNOLA) retweeted me or thanked me for stopping in immediately, a timely gesture for two extremely busy bars in the middle of Bourbon Street.

The missed opportunity, in this case, was not from the two bars mentioned above (they had already earned my business and did a nice job following up); the big loser was every other bar in the city.

Had anyone been monitoring the names & check-ins of their competition, they could have easily identified  us and coaxed a party of six paying customers into their bar for a round with a simple tweet like, “Bring the bachelor here for a free shot!” or “Show this to your bartender and get $5 off your order.”

Tip #2: Listen Better

Listen for terms that lead you to people who need your product or service. (Tip: This is probably NOT your company’s name.)

Today, we live in a world where people are publicly sharing gobs of information about where they are, what they’re doing, and who they’re with.

If you take the time to think like your customer, identifying prospects becomes easy. And when you are able to present those people with an actionable offer that fits their worldview and timeline, you greatly increase your chance of driving more sales.

Overview

Brand monitoring is a must, but companies that subscribe solely to a geocentric perspective of social media are missing out on a plethora of revenue-producing opportunities. The goal of social media isn’t to add something else to our plates; it’s to make money. But until it is used properly, the debate over its value and ROI will undoubtedly linger.

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Today’s Follow Friday guest post is from Mike Schaffer, blogger and director of social media for iostudio. In addition to being a sharp guy, Mike is also a sports fan, pop culture fanatic, and according to his Twitter bio “always striving for awesome.” Who wouldn’t want to be friends with someone like that?! If you’re not sure what to do with your company’s Facebook Timeline, read on for some ideas that will get the creative juices flowing …

By now, you’ve heard about Facebook implementing Timeline for Brand Pages.  And if you manage a page or three, you’ve probably played around with it a bit – or even published the new format. Cover photos, new app placement, it’s all pretty cool stuff.

But here is the biggest change: Under Timeline, the past is as important as the present.

Social media marketing, to this point, has always been about the now. But with Timeline’s functionality, brands can develop their history, retroactively filling in every major milestone they’ve ever had.

In a word: Whoa. (For prime effect, say that like Joey Lawrence in “Blossom.”)

Just a few weeks ago, Facebook’s value proposition was connecting people and companies based on who they are and what they like. Now, though, Facebook owns the past and the present. And you can be assured owning the future is not far behind. Populating the actual Timeline itself can be labor-intensive – like building a museum of your company. But doing so will add huge value to your brand’s Facebook presence.

Let’s Get Started …

1. Launch Date. One of the most interesting facts about a brand is when it all began.
2. Logo Updates. When did you change? Show the old and the new. To create a rich visual history of your brand.
3. Key Personnel. Insert dates when key leaders joined the company.
4. Old Advertisements. Warning, though: A trusted source within the industry told me that brands can’t post their former celebrity-driven ads on Facebook unless the contract permits it
5. Corporate Responsibility Initiatives. Do you staff an annual Habitat for Humanity build? Or collect canned goods for a local homeless shelter each year? Archive your charitable work on your Timeline!
6. Grand Openings. Do you have multiple locations? Log each office or location’s grand opening date, complete with a quote for leadership, or, better yet, a ribbon-cutting photo.
7. Business Wins. Chronicle major business milestones in your company’s history, from new clients to stock surges.
8. Favorite Projects. What are the projects/products you are most proud of? Or the ones that paved the way for your biggest successes? Example: Nobody misses the Apple IIe, but it was a major step that led to MacBooks.
9. The First Dollar. How many thousands of establishment have the first dollar they ever made framed on the wall? To see how far you’ve come, commemorate that moment early on your Timeline.
10. Inspiration. What fuels your machine? Movies, music, books, TV shows, sports – don’t forget to add some of the things that helped define your brand over the years. These items can help you translate your brand to outsiders.
11. Media Hits. Make sure to include key media mentions – be it links, photos or videos – to see how the public responded to your company over the years.

What else do you want to see brands display on their Timelines?

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For businesses, time spent online needs to be time well spent. In today’s social world, companies are flocking to Facebook. While each page’s specific  goals are different, the success of their efforts are dependent on the strength and size of their community. That doesn’t mean a page requires 1000,000 or even 10,000 “likes” to be deemed successful, but you do have to achieve some kind of critical mass to ensure you’re not just talking to yourself.

There are a number of ways to grow a page’s Facebook fan base, but posting interesting content is only one piece of the puzzle. We’ve found that highly targeted Facebook ad campaigns can deliver a major boost to a page. Plus, by targeting the ad based on specific likes and interests, you can attract the right audience — people more likely to buy what you’re selling (whatever that may be!).

How can an ad campaign work? There are a few types of campaigns, but if you’re on limited budget and want to grow the number of page “likes,” you should consider a  “Sponsored Page” or “Sponsored Story” ad. For example, if I were to place an ad for the Geben Communication Facebook page, I could advertise the page, or I could promote a recent post (like this B2B social media case study). See how to select either option and a sample ad:

Small Buy, Big Rewards

We recently managed an ad campaign for a client that far exceeded expectations. This was the organization’s first time using Facebook ads, so they wanted to test it with a small buy. To give you some context, this client averages just over 100 new “likes” a month. (We typically post content twice a day and are very focused on generating likes, comments and shares to help grow the page organically.)

Knowing that we only had $250 to spend, we wanted to maximize the investment by creating a highly targeted campaign:

• The ad was set to reach people in the state of Ohio (it’s a client with statewide reach), in our key age demographic.
• It targeted people who were friends with at least one other person who already “liked” our client’s page.
• We also spent a fair amount of time profiling personas, trying to understand what other pages or interests they’d share. The campaign ended up targeting around eight interests (such as politics, travel and education).

The results? That $250 ad campaign generated 1,000+ new likes. That’s less than 25 cents a like. But, even more importantly, because the ads were so specifically targeted, engagement numbers are way up, and the Facebook page is a meaningful component of the organization’s overall marketing strategy. Having built this kind of quality audience enables the client to be more effective with their other efforts, like adding social elements to launch new initiatives and promote existing programs.

If you’ve tested Facebook advertising, share your experience in the comments. And, If you want to learn more about how to build and manage online communities, email heather [at] gebencommunication.com.

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