The importance of networking offline
I network a lot. I’ve even given three presentations on how to network. I always recommend that meeting people in-person will bring you more success than meeting online. Of course, I supplement my networking through social media tools like LinkedIn and Twitter, but nothing beats face-to-face interaction.
That’s because it’s easier to develop the rapport or relationship you need to do business with someone, provide a referral or offer job leads. I can’t imagine doing any of these things without having met someone, just like you wouldn’t marry someone without first going on some live dates.
Put another way, every consultant or business offers essentially the same level of service (don’t kid yourself). When you’re at a networking event, you’re not selling your services; you’re selling “you.” That’s how people decide on which accountant, lawyer, financial planner and yes, PR consultant, to hire.
Welcome Alexis!
We’ve hired Alexis Harrison as our public relations intern for the summer. Alexis, who’s from Branford, Conn., is a strategic communications major at the University of Wisconsin. She also writes for several publications, including the Badger Herald.
When reporters go out on a limb
LeBron James should have been the unanimous MVP this year, but he didn’t get the vote belonging to Gary Washburn of the Boston Globe.
Washburn spent an entire column to defend himself using flawed logic. For example, he stressed that without Carmelo Anthony (for whom Washburn voted), the Knicks would not have made the playoffs. Yet, the same argument could be made about Kobe Bryant and the Lakers, James Harden and the Rockets and so on.
I just wanted to show how easily a reporter can negatively affect someone. Of course, basketball is a trivial example. Think how many times reporters have revealed the names and addresses of victims of crime or written about leaked information of national security?
And then there are no repercussions. Reporters hardly ever apologize and usually don’t get fired for “doing their job,” so to speak, no matter how egregious the error or lack of common sense. In fact, I wonder how many reporters do this just to sell a few more newspapers? One comment to Washburn’s story nailed it:
“This is another writer/media person trying to make the story about them rather than the sport they are supposedly covering. And, again it works. Gary Washburn gets himslf [sic] (and the Boston Globe) some publicity by making an absolutley [sic] ridiculus [sic] pick for MVP. This is exactly why writers shouldn’t pick any of the awards in any sport. They are clearly unqualified and typically have self serving motives.”
You should read the other comments of Washburn’s article. I don’t recall seeing anyone defend him. He should have said, “I was wrong, I know I can’t do anything now to change my vote, and I’m sorry to LeBron James.”
But we all know that would never have happened.
Retargeting: Helpful or Annoying to Consumers?
Ever wonder why after visiting a site just once, ads for the site suddenly seem to be showing up on every other site you visit?
The answer to your question lies in a marketing strategy called retargeting, which focuses on bringing potential customers back to a site after they have already visited it. A javascript tag embedded in the website generates a list of people by placing anonymous retargeting “cookies” in their browser.
Then retargeting companies are further able to segment visitors by tracking what they viewed while on the site. For example, if you looked at shoes, then it would be in best practice to show ads for shoes.
One retargeting company, Adroll, states that retargeting works by “converting window-shoppers into buyers.” While I am all for finding more shoes similar to the ones I have been coveting while online-shopping, I also think there are potential problems with retargeting.
For one, retargeting calls into question the never-ending discussion of privacy limits on the web. While retargeting offers a great way to keep track of potential consumers, it also may be seen as an invasion of privacy by visitors. It is possible that the average shopper will get annoyed that every time they visit a site, they will start seeing numerous ads.
According to retargeter.com, “for most websites, only two percent of web traffic converts on the first visit. Retargeting is a tool designed to help companies reach the 98 percent of users who don’t convert right away.”
While the goal to increase effectiveness of advertising by targeting only those who have already shown some interest in the products or company makes sense, I think the new strategy should be used with some caution. For example, companies should take ad placement and frequency into consideration and avoid annoying potential customers too much.
A restaurant’s last words
What a restaurant owner says “the food will speak for itself” or “we rely on word-of-mouth,” it’s their death sentence. On top of having good operations (pricing, staffing, quality, etc.), you have to do marketing. I know from my experience in restaurant consulting that a very, very small percentage of restaurants can survive on word-of-mouth alone.
Have you ever noticed that the most trendy or successful restaurants in any city still do a ton of marketing and advertising? And that the least successful restaurants continue to do nothing?
Six new apps worth trying
As I was sitting on a bus last week surrounded by students on spring break, I couldn’t help but notice how many of us were on our phones. Not to exaggerate, but nine out of 10 students were on their phone. Then I noticed that we weren’t just using our phones for texting or calling, we were using phones for almost everything else.
Old news? Maybe for some but this got me thinking, what is everyone doing on their phone? Most people were using Twitter or Facebook while some introduced me to other apps. Here is a list of six apps, in no particular order, that I have recently fallen in love with (click on their logo to download app):
1. Sound Cloud: It’s like Twitter, but instead of statuses, they’re songs. I get all my new music here.
2. Relax Melodies: I sometimes have a hard time falling asleep or relaxing. This app makes relaxing easy. There are so many sounds and features to choose from!
3. Hill Climb: This game is addicting! The more levels you complete the more points you have to earn features for your car. Check this game out for yourself!
4. Cultiwords: It’s a cognitive training program developed and tested by the learning club. Expand your vocabulary with this app.
5. Ruzzle: A fast pace word game where you can challenge your friends. You must give it a try!
6. Reddit: User-generated news, pictures, videos, etc. I’ts not new, but it’s one of my favorites.
Social Media as the Dairy Industry’s Advertising Outlet
When you think of the Wisconsin dairy industry, do you picture farmers
milking black and white cows, driving tractors, making cheese, and using
social media?
It should come as no surprise that like many other businesses today, the
next generation of digital natives also is using social media such as
Twitter, LinkedIn, foursquare and Facebook to promote dairy on various
levels, especially the collegiate level.
Across the country, animal science/dairy science undergraduates within major
universities find themselves engaged in dairy clubs on campuses. In a
nutshell, these clubs operate as campus organizations to further develop
young professionals in today’s agriculture industry, create networking and
service opportunities for students and allow students to engage in farm-like
social events (bonfires, dances, hayrides, you name it!).
It’s safe to say that among these dairy clubs there exists underlying, but
friendly, rivalries. The UW Madison Badger Dairy Club is one of many clubs
that host a live cattle auction on its campus where the students perform all
the duties that an auctioning service would provide. The sale average serves
as the final number for measuring the success of the sale, and obviously the
highest sale average gives certain clubs bragging rights. Believe it or not,
much of this success can be attributed to the advertising done using social
media in hopes of keeping potential buyers of the animals updated on the
consignments.
A large portion of advertising and drawing in public interest in these
sales, and other competitions, is done on Facebook. The fact that you can
see what’s going on through real-time picture sharing has created a “buzz”
unmatched by the conventional magazine or newspaper announcement.
These clubs take such pride in their school and achievements that there are
even formal competitions for who can create the best recruitment videos for
their programs on YouTube, best websites and online profiles, the most
retweets and the like. Today, the online presence of a club can directly
correlate with their impact on the community, business and overall relevance
in the dairy industry.
Not only are these students tweeting, posting and sharing content about the
agriculture on their campuses, but are also doing it while doing chores at
their own farms. It’s funny that an industry so highly valued within
Wisconsin’s heritage–one that is assumed to be traditional– is actually
one that continues to embrace new technology and social media.
Here are just a few basic reminders that can truly make a difference in your business/organization’s social media success:
1. When posting anything on the internet through your business or organization, be sure that your message is seen/approved by 2-3 others in your office. Better safe than sorry!
2. Avoid posting content that is meaningless to your friends and followers. Retweet, post and share more than just your typical reminders of “Remember we have a meeting at this time and location tonight”. Try to find a way to add value in what you’re saying and not just stating the facts.
3. Give your audience information that shows the personality of your business/organization, making it easier for your business to be remembered.
4. For organizations where the social media position is consistently turned over from year-to-year, remember that individuals may not all be on the same skill level, so be sure to provide a running list or binder that provides all necessary information for passwords, reminders, successful ideas/tips.
5. Stay relevant. Post content on a regular basis. Otherwise, if you aren’t providing anything new, your audience has nothing to keep up with.
FEED Kitchens Breaks Ground on Facility
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
April 3, 2013
Contact: Ellen Barnard
(608) 576-3734
FEED Kitchens Breaks Ground on Facility
(MADISON, Wis.)—Food Enterprise and Economic Development (FEED) Kitchens broke ground today on its planned food business incubator at Northgate Shopping Center with the hopes of opening its doors to local food entrepreneurs in September.
“We are so excited to have taken the next step in the process today,” Ellen Barnard, FEED Kitchens chair, said. “The groundbreaking signifies that we are getting closer to supporting more locally produced food for the community.”
The 5,400-square foot facility will include five commercial kitchens, with specialized equipment for baking; produce preparation and processing; and deli prep and meat processing.
FEED selected Engineered Construction, Inc, as the general contractor and Iconica as the architect. Construction is expected to begin immediately and conclude by August.
Major donors include The Madison Community Foundation, Madison Gas & Electric Foundation, A Woman’s Touch, Lotions Limited LLC, City of Madison Community Development Block Grants, Pleasant Rowland Foundation, Willy Street Coop and the State of Wisconsin through the Buy Local-Buy Wisconsin.
Currently, Madison College, REAP Food Group, Community Action Coalition, Yum Tum Organic Baby Food, Mad City Fry Guy Food Cart, Polly’s Preserves & Jams, Stubborn Mule Catering and Dean’s Xpress Catering are committed to using the facility.
The Food Enterprise and Economic Development (FEED) Kitchens will provide tools to help youth and adults who are disadvantaged, unemployed or underemployed develop skills that move them toward self-sufficiency. FEED will reduce hunger and increase the availability of healthy local food by providing organizations serving the hungry, gardeners and farmers a place to process excess produce that would otherwise end up in a landfill or compost pile. For more information, please visit www.feedkitchens.org
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Resulting media coverage:
- Wisconsin State Journal (April 3, 2013): Groundbreaking set Wednesday for North Side food business incubator
- WisBusiness (April 3, 2013): FEED Kitchens breaks ground on facility
- Madison Startups (April 3, 2013): FEED’s Groundbreaking a ‘Step Closer’ to Goal
Facebook’s News Feed Redesign
On Thursday, Facebook announced a major redesign of its News Feed. This redesign is the first major change to the News Feed since Facebook came into existence.
Facebook founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg said in a statement, “News Feed is one of the most important services that we build.”
The most noticeable change is that content and pictures will be bigger. Users will also be able to choose different versions of the News Feed they are viewing, by switching between options such as photos, all friends, most recent, etc. Facebook said the idea behind the different versions of the News Feed is to give users more control over what they are seeing.
Personally, I think this change could mean the end of seeing endless updates from “that person you met once four years ago.” Of course, you could just un-friend those people, but the advantage of having several friends is it provides a way to keep connections, even if you are unsure of when you may want to use them.
Facebook representatives said that more than 70 employees have been working on the redesign for more than a year, but they understand that users may be apprehensive to change at first. This means that only a small portion of Facebook users currently have the redesigned News Feed.
One other question I have is how the changes will affect brand pages. If users are given more control over what they are seeing, does that mean they will be able to get rid of ads and brand content? That could pose a serious challenge to marketers.
Experiencing SXSW Interactive
I spent a whirlwind 36 hours at the Interactive portion of South by Southwest, and below is what I learned. But first, no one in Austin says “South by Southwest.” Instead, they say simply, “South By.”
Do I need to buy a badge?
Depends. If you’re really looking to attend the sessions/keynotes, then yes. However, I’ve come to learn that no one ever looks at the photo on your badge to see if it’s really you, so you could always borrow one. I signed up for parties that didn’t require a badge, and believe me, there were plenty. You can still do a lot of networking, hobnobbing and other business at these events.
How do I sign up for these unofficial SXSW parties?
First, you have to find them. You can simply search on eventbrite.com, and/or follow Twitter accounts such as @SXSWPartyList and @SXSWPartyGirls. Next, sign up early, as spaces fill quickly. Sometimes, you’ll be put on a waitlist. That’s okay, as spaces usually open up once the party gets going (for the non-major parties).
I didn’t get into the #openwebparty initially, but I waited in line for five minutes, and it was clear to the organizers that not many of the lottery winners were actually coming, so they let us in.
What goes on at these parties?
These parties usually have open bar, free food and giveways. You become so spoiled that when you attend a party that doesn’t have these features, you get mad. That happened to me when I went to the Crashlytics Boozy Brunch, which hyped itself up with free “Cocktails and apps” (complete with photos) but only served beer, wine and kolaches. Bastards.
Red Hands playing its famous big guitar at the JWT party Saturday night at SXSW Interactive.
What’s the point of these parties (besides having fun)?
I’m not sure. Not many parties were set up to market directly to the attendees, so a lot of the times I didn’t even know what service or product the sponsor sold. Nor did these parties seemed geared toward wining-and-dining clients.
It seemed to me that some companies were simply showing off how much money they had. They weren’t worried about ROI–they just wanted to show the world that they were cool. And you know what, that’s okay, too.
I do want to mention that Bing did a nice job of having staff interact with attendees at its party to show how its search engine was better than Google. I also liked that I had “points” to use toward free snacks from its digital vending machine.
What should I bring?
- Cash for pedi-cabs or taxis and tipping your bartender (it’s the best way to get noticed for your next round).
- Comfortable shoes. You will do a lot of walking, standing in line and dancing.
- A spare cell battery or charger. I bought a portable charger, and it really saved me!
- Business cards.
- An itinerary. It’s nice to have some general idea of your schedule so you know which party/event/session is next. Do not download any of the SXSW apps–they are all useless.