• Should You Hide Your Connections on LinkedIn?

  By Tracy DiMarino | Posted Aug 31, 2010 | 0 Comment(s) | Filed in: Social Media

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  On LinkedIn, you have the option of hiding your Connection list or keeping it public. This leads some people to keep their Connections private for a variety of reasons, including a need for confidentiality, an unwillingness to make introductions and more.

  However, one common reason — particularly popular among those in sales — is to protect business contact lists that may contain the names of clients, prospects and partners from competitors. You may think: “I have worked hard to create and nurture this contact list, why would I put it out on the Internet for anyone, including my competitors, to see and potentially use?”

  Though these are certainly valid concerns, hiding your Connections on LinkedIn minimizes the opportunities available to you on the platform, and list protection can also be achieved by being strategic about whom you connect with. Below are several reasons why hiding your Connections may not be the best approach on LinkedIn.

  One Goal of Social Media is to Create and Maintain Mutually Beneficial Relationships.

  The key to being successful on social networks is to “create more value than you capture,” as Tim O’Reilly would say. On LinkedIn, part of being a giving participant involves connecting like-minded individuals through introductions. For this to be possible, your Connection list must be visible to those in your network.

  In addition, hiding your Connections can be deemed as “unfriendly” in the community, as some people feel that you are not willing to fully open up, participate and help others. For example, see this LinkedIn Answers discussion on the topic.

  Only Your Connections Can View Your Contact List – Not Everyone on LinkedIn.

  Another aspect to keep in mind is that only those people you’ve connected with on the site can see your contacts. Since not everyone on LinkedIn has the same access levels to your profile information, you have some control over who can view your contact list without hiding it.

  By only connecting with people with whom you have established relationships, you’ll have little reason to worry about your lists being pilfered. If someone you do not trust, like a competitor, wants to connect, simply choose to deny the request, and your list will still be protected. In addition, you can also disconnect with people should you decide you are no longer comfortable with them having access to your Connections.

  Hiding Your Connections Does Not Guarantee Complete Protection.

  Even if someone chooses to hide his or her Connections, users will still be able to see shared Connections that they have in common via LinkedIn search. Therefore, hiding your Connections does not guarantee they are completely private. If someone really wanted to discover your list, with a little digging, they likely could.

  Your Thoughts?

  For these reasons, consider keeping your Connections open, but be thoughtful about who you include in your personal network. If you're connecting to add value and nurture relationships, you get the benefits of helping those you trust and respect, without having to worry about who has access to your list of Connections.

  However, we welcome your thoughts and experiences. Do you hide your Connections? Why or why not? What fears do you have about keeping your list public? What are the pros and cons of each angle? Please share your comments in the field below.

  Image Credit: Chris Runoff

  Tracy DiMarino is an associate consultant at PR 20/20, a Cleveland-based inbound marketing agency and PR firm. Follow Tracy on Twitter @TracyDiMarino.

   Subscribe to receive the PR 20/20 blog by email or RSS feed.

• Picks of the Week: Aug. 21-27

  By Laurel Miltner | Posted Aug 27, 2010 | 0 Comment(s) | Filed in: Marketing

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  This week was all about disruptive innovation. Fittingly, we’re taking a bit of a different approach with our picks of week. Bear with me please, it's a long one. But I hope it's worth it.

  First we'll take a look at Google, the Internet giant that may stumble at times, but continues to innovate and change the way we live and work. On the flip side, we'll examine what — if anything — may force Google to fight to retain its position as the go-to place for information. We'll also look at disruption in the publishing industry in the wake of an announcement from Seth Godin. Lastly, we'll step inside the office where managers responsible for running successful businesses and overseeing employees need to think about how disruptive innovation affects day-to-day operations.

  Google: Ruler of the Web
  

  Several announcements from Google this week showed that although at times the company’s initiatives may not go as planned, its willingness to dare to fail continues to bring new innovation that rocks not only the search market, but web-based technology as a whole.

  Alexia Tsotsis confirmed that Google is testing functionality that updates search results as you type, taking its predictive text one step further. The article includes a video showing the functionality, which depending upon your outlook is either quite efficient/nifty or a little creepy. Or both. Since Google is regularly testing “between 50-200 search experiments,” it’s hard to say if and when searchers will see this on their own screen, but it is certainly a testament to the speed and power of the search engine’s algorithm and server support.

  Another innovation is Google Real-Time Search. This article by Kipp Bodnar shares details about this feature, and what it means for marketers looking to “get found” on the web. It also includes a video from a Google product manager and software engineer discussing both how to use real-time search, as well as some features, including the ability to upgrade Google alerts to real-time updates and view trend data on specific keywords over time.

  Though the Google Real-time homepage mentioned in the video (Google.com/realtime) is not operating at time of publishing, you can test it out here.

  And, as if that weren’t enough for one week, Google also rolled out Voice Calls from Gmail, a service that David Pogue is dubbing as one step closer to “the Internet-as-phone-company paradise that almost certainly awaits us.” With Voice Calls from Gmail, anyone with a Gmail account can download a plug-in that allows him or her to make free calls within the US and Canada from computer to phone (and for minimal per-minute fees if calling internationally).

  Says David, “One day, the Internet, not the outrageous cellphone companies, will connect our calls… What if Google released an app like [the Voice Calls plug-in] for Android phones, or the iPhone?... It would completely change the game.”

  Can Anyone Challenge Google?
  

  According to Alex Rampell, “there are two things for Google to worry about: Vertical Search and Intent Generation.”

  Because Google has already built a search engine that displays accurate results quickly, and has gained enough trust from users to secure more than 80% of the market share, it’s virtually impossible for others — yes, Even Bing — to win in this area. Therefore, to stay on top, Google must keep disruptive innovation from the outside in mind.

  Vertical search, says Alex, is one place where this is already beginning to happen with sites such as Etsy (for handmade goods), OpenTable (for restaurants) and Amazon (for ecommerce transactions).

  The other area for Google to keep an eye on is, according to Alex, “perhaps the more dangerous, because it is stealing purchases from Google’s clutches – bypassing any kind of search.” Dubbed intent generation, this looks at things like Groupon (which pushes out local offers before people look for them) and Facebook (along with its implications in social ads and recommendations).

  A Peek at Publishing
  

  Earlier this week, Seth Godin announced that his most recent book is the last he’ll publish “in a traditional way.”

  Not surprisingly, the announcement spurred conversation that publishing is dead. Shiv Singh, for one, pondered what happens to an industry when one of its most successful abandons ship to go it alone. Because Seth has an established brand, understands his audience and can likely make just as much money (if not more) on his own, it’s likely he’ll succeed in the endeavor.

  Digging deeper into the monetary aspect, Tim Ferriss examined just how much authors make in royalties on book sales, and found that Godin is likely poised to see greater ROI through self-publishing online. Whether or not an unknown author would have the same ability to make money through self-publishing is another debate. However, the fact of the matter is that just as musicians have tested album releases sans record companies, this trend is creeping into the book industry.

  The Death of... Mangement?

  While we're on the subject of the death of things: Alan Murray authored an excellent article for the Wall Street Journal this week, The End of Management.

  Citing The Innovator’s Dilemma, this article examines how, according to Alan, “market-leading companies have missed game-changing transformations in industry after industry — computers (mainframes to PCs), telephony (landline to mobile), photography (film to digital), stock markets (floor to online) — not because of ‘bad’ management, but because they followed the dictates of ‘good’ management. They listened closely to their customers. They carefully studied market trends. They allocated capital to the innovations that promised the largest returns. And, in the process, they missed disruptive innovations that opened up new customers and markets for lower-margin, blockbuster products.”

  So, how can today’s managers stay poised in the volatile conditions? Take some advice from Google — take chances and dare to fail. Alan posits that in order for a business to succeed long-term, it will “have to be more like the marketplace, and less like corporations of the past. It will need to be flexible, agile, able to quickly adjust to market developments, and ruthless in reallocating resources to new opportunities.”

  One potentially dramatic shift that must occur in order for this to happen is that managers must instill in employees an entrepreneurial spirit of creativity and innovation.

  But that’s not all. In addition to “loosening the leash,” managers have to prepare for a workforce with drastically different communication, and even cultural, norms. For example, Dan Frommer reported this week that according to Nielsen research, Americans under the age of 18 text message every 10 minutes when they’re awake.

  Pair this with last week’s Mindset List from Beloit College, which as reported by Nick Bilton shows that “the class of 2014 has never recognized that pointing to their wrists was a request for the time of day” and rarely use email because it is too slow, and we can begin to realize that we are now only at the very beginning of a dramatic shift in how technology is changing the way we do business.

  So, in the words of double rainbow guy, what does this mean? There is no business-as-usual anymore. If you find yourself getting comfortable, it’s time to start thinking about what comes next. Or, as our friend Dharmesh Shah tweeted not long ago, “Don't think it impossible for a competitor to do what you are doing. Think it inevitable and plan accordingly.”

  How are you planning for disruptive innovation in your industry, or being the disruptive innovator yourself?

  Stay updated: Subscribe to the PR 20/20 blog, check us out on Facebook or follow the team on Twitter.

• Managing an Online Video Project: A DIY Story

  By Christina Capadona-Schmitz | Posted Aug 26, 2010 | 2 Comment(s) | Filed in: Content Marketing, Internet Marketing

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  You're one of the millions of people watching online video. Your company has a great story to share that would work on a visual medium. You’re eager to get started creating video for your website, blog or social media channels.
  
  But you also:

  1. Don’t have the time
  2. Don’t have a large budget
  3. Don’t have an internal video department

  You’re not alone, and you’re more capable than you may know when it comes to managing a video project.
  
  PR 20/20 recently launched its first self-produced video series, "Driven by Content," to educate our audiences on the emerging area of content marketing, as well as to document our methdology and activities.
  
  By calling on the fundamental strategic planning and project management tactics that we employ for other creative projects, we were able to put together an engaging video series that was designed for our target audiences.

  The Rationale

  We wanted to make a program that was informative and incorporated several different types of online video features that clients may connect with, like interviews, scripted material, graphics and presentations.
  
  We also experienced many of the challenges that our clients face when incorporating web video in their content marketing strategy, including: limited resources, tight taping schedules, short deadlines for delivery, coordinating a team of professionals new to video, and managing the creative approval process.
  
  The idea was to help marketers work through the barriers to getting started in online video, assemble a team of internal champions and video professionals, and produce and publish videos that support inbound marketing goals.

  The Methodology

  The following is a practical methodology to creating a web video, and includes questions for you to start thinking about for your organization, and PR 20/20 notes from self-producing our own project in the "Driven by Content Snapshot." So take five and read on for more. 

  Step 1. Create Your Concept

  Questions to Get You Started:

  • What story do we want to tell?
  • What audiences do we want to reach?
  • What messages do we want to communicate?
  • What calls to action do we want to include?
  • What goals do we want to accomplish? (Lead generation, brand awareness, customer loyalty)
  • Where will we publish the video online?
  • What type of video do we want to create?
    
  • What format and length?

  

  Christina and Christy discuss script changes for Part 5 of Driven by Content.

  Driven by Content Snapshot

  PR 20/20 is focused on content marketing for our clients as part of an integrated, inbound marketing campaign. However, as a newer concept, with many dynamics, we saw a need in the market to introduce content marketing to the masses at a 101 level, and cover the basics of what needs to be considered when investing in content projects.
  
  With video consumption on the rise, we chose this medium, combined with accompanying blog posts, to publish the information in a strategically sequenced, five-part series.
  
  We wanted to create simple videos that used a personal, interview-style approach, and keep the length shorter without sacrificing quality. This possibly meant that some of the videos would be longer than others, based on the subject matter’s complexity. As our agency relies on the strength of our team, with a wide base of knowledge and content marketing experience, we chose to involve five of our consultants as guests, each with their niche area to discuss in detail.

  Step 2. Build Your Team

  Questions to Get You Started:

  • Who will internally champion the project?
  • Who will be recruited to participate in the video project? (Employees, customers, partners, etc.)
  • What technologies and aptitudes do we have internally for capturing, editing and publishing web video?
  • What areas will we need to outsource to professional videographers, editors, etc.? And, where do we turn?

  

  Keith readies the camera for our first taping.

  Driven by Content Snapshot

  Through a quick analysis of our human resources, we uncovered some untapped talents and background experience in video production and editing, including someone to write the script and host the series, and others to handle the technical details and production assistance. We used our agency’s Kodak Zi8 Pocket Video camera for capturing footage and iMovie for the Mac for editing.
  
  PR 20/20 has connected with several professional video providers that specialize in web video and more sophisticated corporate video projects. However, with time and budgets in mind, we worked with what we had internally. Also, the nature of the videos lent itself to a more raw and simple final product, which could be easily edited and shared. While we sacrificed some in the way of production quality, we were able to focus on the content matter, and control the full creative process.
  
  For more significant video projects, or if you don’t have internal capabilities, it’s important to connect with video providers that understand the full picture of production, publishing, distribution and optimization. It starts with going back to your goals of the video, and investing the time and resources in projects that have the greatest potential for impact.

  Step 3. Work out the Details

  Questions to Get You Started:

  • When and where will we be capturing the videos?
  • What scheduling steps do we need to take?
  • How much lead time do people need that are involved?
  • What preparation or training needs to be worked on with video participants, both from a lead role and support aspect?
  • What backdrop, lighting, sound and wardrobe do we need?
  • Is this scripted, off-the-cuff, or a combination?
  • Are there graphics, audio or other important elements we want to include?

  Driven by Content Snapshot

  Our team worked together to figure out the details: creating a set and backdrop to tape the segments; coordinating shooting schedules that worked for the individuals involved; facilitating early prep with scripts, and full rehearsals to polish the segments; conducting test shoots with the video-capturing and editing equipment we had at our disposal; and the gathering and planning for visuals and other editing features we wanted from our editor.

  Step 4. Produce

  Questions to get you Started:

  • Who can internally tape the videos and assist with production?
  • What is our process for the taping? Are there natural pauses or breaks in the script/segment where we can cut? Or is it all in one take, and will we need to capture multiple takes to get it right?
  • Who will be in charge of the direction of all involved, quality control of the shoot and be accountable for success?
  • How do we keep people motivated during what can be a long process, and remove the frustration and/or jitters associated with being taped?
  • Who has creative license and the decision-making power to authorize changes during the editing process, including final approval of the videos?

  

  Action! Taping Part 3: Content & SEO.

  Driven by Content Snapshot

  PR 20/20 had all hands on deck for the production days, making it a fun and challenging team-building activity. When time permitted, associates lent a hand listening and watching the production with the script in hand for quality control, manning the background presentation, setting up the stage each taping day and of course, serving as the on-camera personalities.
  
  The team effort allowed us the ability to shoot all five segments, including introductions, in one work week, squeezing in taping hours during our busy workloads. We also teamed up to create content for the accompanying blog posts. The director had final say on the deliverable videos, as well as review and approval of the accompanying blog posts and promotion strategy.

  Step 5. Publish

  Questions to Get You Started:

  • Where will the videos be published?
  • How will the videos be linked or embedded to our site, blog or social media?
  • How will the videos be optimized?
  • How will we promote these videos?
  • What metrics (quantitative and qualitative) will we use to evaluate the success of the videos?

  Driven by Content Snapshot

  Due to the nature of the videos, and goal to distribute through the social web, we hosted the videos on a newly created YouTube channel, and embedded the videos in PR 20/20 blog posts. We then posted a blog article each day with the video, for five days in a row, launching the series one video at a time. The videos were shared to blog subscribers, and also through social media channels like Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook. 

  

  The PR 20/20 Driven by Content contributors.

  That's a Wrap

  While the success of the videos can be measured in video views, and the educational uses for clients and prospects in the areas of content marketing, there were also inherent benefits in coming together as a team, and challenging ourselves to create a product that delivers value to the audiences we serve. This is the bread and butter of content marketing, and we look forward to the next phase of video for PR 20/20.

  Resources:

  • Driven by Content 5-Part Video Series
  • comScore's July 2010 U.S. Online Video Rankings
  • PR 20/20's YouTube channel
  • PR 20/20 Content Marketing Blog Posts

  
  

  Christina is an assistant vice president and consultant for PR 20/20, a Cleveland-based inbound marketing agency and PR firm. Follow her on Twitter: @ChristinaCS

   

   Subscribe to receive the PR 20/20 blog by email or RSS feed.

• PR 20/20 Ranked #5 Content Marketing Blog by Junta42

  By Paul Roetzer | Posted Aug 26, 2010 | 3 Comment(s) | Filed in: Content Marketing

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  PR 20/20 has jumped to #5 from #21 in the latest edition of the Junta42 Top 42 Content Marketing Blogs. The top five includes:

  1. Brian Solis
  2. Copyblogger
  3. Conversation Agent
  4. TopRank Blog
  5. PR 20/20

  Since the last rating in April, PR 20/20 has featured a series of content marketing posts, including the “Driven by Content” five-part video series, and a weekly curated post highlighting the top marketing articles of the week from across the Web.

  Our most-read content marketing blog posts include:

  • How to Improve Customer Loyalty Through Content and Community
  • 4 Tips for Giving Your Content Legs
  • Content Curation: Bringing Order to Information Overload
  • Demanding Quality in a Flood of Fast-Food Content
  • 9 Content-Driven Link Building Tips

  View all PR 20/20 content marketing blog posts.

  About the Junta42 Top 42 Content Marketing Blogs
  

  The Junta42 Top 42 Content Marketing Blogs list highlights the best bloggers on the web discussing content marketing. Each blog on the list has been rated by Junta42’s staff in terms of content strength, depth, regularity and, to a very small extent, popularity.

  View the full Top 42 Content Marketing Blogs list, and learn more about how the top blogs are selected.

  Paul Roetzer is founder and president of PR 20/20, a Cleveland-based inbound marketing agency and PR firm. He can be found on Twitter @PaulRoetzer.

  Stay updated: Subscribe to the PR 20/20 blog, check us out on Facebook or follow the team on Twitter.

  
  

• Marketing Lessons from the Grateful Dead: 3 Key Takeaways

  By Dia Dalsky | Posted Aug 24, 2010 | 0 Comment(s) | Filed in: Brand Marketing, Marketing

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  Like many influencers ahead of their time, the Grateful Dead took risks and made sacrifices to pursue their passion and ultimately change the landscape of the music industry. Lucky for us (and them), their struggles paid off and now present an excellent case study that is inciting the rise of a new, niche fan base —today’s marketing professionals.

  Since the mid-1960s, the band has abandoned standards in branding, building a business model, communication style, marketing and performances — all of which are examined in Marketing Lessons from the Grateful Dead by David Meerman Scott and Brian Halligan.

  The book documents the band’s success in creating a unique brand and encouraging a truly engaging fan experience. Scott and Halligan present simple marketing tactics used by the band, apply them to today’s business world and provide examples of companies that, like the Grateful Dead, have found success in going against “the norm.”

  Here are a few marketing takeaways I found particularly insightful:

  Create an Original and Innovative Brand

  From the beginning, the Grateful Dead built a unique brand that set them apart from their competitors and intrigued fans. They did this by selecting an unusual name, constructing a band of unlikely musicians and creating a business model that defied normal success factors (e.g. achieving platinum record sales). As a result, it was able to establish its own category focused on listening to (rather than defining) its audiences’ needs.

  Similarly, Scott and Halligan urge companies to think from a customer standpoint. Forget about the industry norm and ask yourself “What is the most logical way to fill my customers’ needs?” and “What differentiates me from my competitors?” While it’s important to stay in touch with your industry and remain conscious of your competitors, it should never dictate or limit where you take your business.

  To champion the brand and connect with your audiences, you need to build a marketing team with diverse talent. Scott and Halligan encourage companies to build teams with a range of skill sets and experiences, including digital citizens, analytical thinkers, content creators and those with industry reach.

  Attract and Engage Your Fans

  The leading factor behind the Grateful Dead’s success was its die-hard community of Deadheads that supported, listened to and lived for the music. From its beginnings in San Francisco, the band sought to encourage personal connections and open dialogue with fans.

  For example, the Grateful Dead placed a direct call-to-action inside the October 1971 live Skull and Roses album, requesting their fans to connect with them:

   “DEAD FREAKS UNITE: Who are you? Where are you? How are you? Send us your name and address and we’ll keep you informed. Deadheads, P.O. Box 1065, San Rafael, California 94901.” – pg. 70, Ch. 9: Bring People on an Odessey

  The response was overwhelming, receiving 10,257 responses in six months. Within five years, 63,147 Deadheads (in the United States alone) had requested to receive regular mailings from the band. Scott and Halligan relate this permission-based fan connection to a pre-Internet social network.

  With this opt-in mailing list, the band was able to know their audience better, deliver fan communications and establish a community for Deadheads. The list also supported a variety of the band’s marketing activities, including ticket sales, which were kept entirely in-house and generated a majority of the band’s income.

  Share Your Value Through (Free) Content

  

  Deadheads also benefited from premium, or “fremium,” content, which is also the foundation of inbound marketing today.

  By allowing fans to record live performances, permitting entrepreneurial vendors to create band paraphernalia and encouraging the distribution of both, the Grateful Dead removed the usual obstacles for music enthusiasts during the pre-Internet era. This availability of content without barriers makes the Dead’s music and brand “spreadable.”
  

  “The Grateful Dead teaches us that your most passionate fans will pay a premium price for the best quality….The challenge in the upgrade model is to give away something that is considered valuable, and something that people will use regularly and become familiar with. It is the familiarity that grows from regular use…that generates the value and desire for the premium version of the same product or service.” – pg. 122, Ch. 15: Upgrade to Premium
  

  Scott and Halligan have found professional inspiration from a shared interest in the Grateful Dead, the music and the experience they receive from being loyal followers (aka Deadheads). What brands give you inspiration from their marketing mission or core values? What lessons can you draw from them to implement in your own marketing strategy?

  For more information

  To learn more about individual businesses implementing Grateful Dead marketing tactics, watch How to Market Your Business Like the Most Iconic Band in History, a recent HubSpot webinar hosted by co-authors Scott and Halligan. The webinar showcases innovative companies such as Rue La La, Burton Snowboards and the New Belgium Brewing Company.

  Dia Dalsky is an associate consultant at PR 20/20, a Cleveland-based inbound marketing agency and PR firm. Follow Dia on Twitter @DiaDalsky.

  Stay updated: Subscribe to the PR 20/20 blog, check us out on Facebook or follow the team on Twitter.

  Photo credits taken from Flickr Creative Commons (in order): Tony the Misfit; ActiveSteve; Jared

• Picks of the Week: Aug. 14-20

  By Laurel Miltner | Posted Aug 20, 2010 | 0 Comment(s) | Filed in: Marketing

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  Today, we take a look at options for (quality) link building, how to use your Facebook page to reach new audiences, important updates you should make to your Facebook privacy settings and four key ways to develop quality content. In addition, we flash forward into the future with articles on the evolution of public relations, as well as the Internet as we know it.

  Search Marketing

  Investing in Link Building 

  With hypothetical resources of $2,000 and 60 hours, and a great mix of quality information and humor, Mike Pantoliano, explores several common link-building options to determine which approaches may be most appropriate for companies at different stages in their SEO process. Mike looks at: directory submissions, outreach/requesting links (with a bit on what is and is not appropriate in this regard), buying links, and linkbait through viral marketing and content creation.

  Though each option is fairly analyzed, the key takeaway for marketers is that developing linkbait through content creation is far-and-away the best option for a long-term approach. “Call it what you will, but the name of the game here is content. Whether it's a blog post, an infographic, a widget, a video, a funny 404 page, a comic, and so on, if its done well, there's no greater way to invest in link building… One caveat here is that your link building campaign can only go as far as your (social) network will take it.”

  Social Media

  Optimizing Facebook Status Updates for Local Marketing

  In this helpful post, Chris Silver Smith offers some solid tips for marketers looking to improve their business’ reach on Facebook. After pointing out that “most of the people who will “like” you and follow you on Facebook are those who already know your company exists,” he explains how creative and clever use of Facebook’s tagging feature can help you get your updates in front of new, relevant audiences.

  After diving deep into the tagging functionality, Chris also includes a handful of additional tips for improving status updates, such as posting information that isn’t only about your company, and including non-text updates like photos and videos.

  The First Think you Should Do with Facebook Places: Don’t Let Other People Tag You 

  Earlier this week, Facebook released a new feature called Places, a location-based check-in tool to rival Foursquare, Gowalla and the like. However, one feature Facebook offers in an effort to make the service “more social” is that users can tag friends as being at a location with them.

  You may, understandably, be concerned with the privacy implications of this feature. If that’s the case, check out this article by Adrian Chen. It gives step-by-step instructions on how to disable the feature that enables others to share your location, as well as instructions on how to prohibit non-friends from seeing where you’ve checked in.

  Content Marketing

  The Four Key Qualities of Effective Content

  In this article, John Bottom argues that there are four specific criteria that make the difference between good and great content. John says that truly great content must be:

  • Compelling (promise value early, in the title)
  • Fulfilling (deliver the promised value through quality information)
  • Convenient (easily understandable, available in appropriate format)
  • Efficient (planned, managed and repurposed to extend value when appropriate)

  In short, quality content requires an investment of time and/or money. Employ this methodology to ensure that your investments are worthwhile.

  PR and Social Media

  The Future of Public Relations and Social Media

  This article is quite a valuable read for PR pros and students that want to hear their peers' perspectives on the industry today, as well as how it will change as a result of social technologies in the future. Specifically, author Erica Swallow asks questions about the press release, social platforms, current limitations in social media, connecting with others in the industry, budgets and the human/story/relationship side of PR and media relations.

  One thing I found interesting was what the interviewed PR pros said about broadcasting versus listening, “A vast majority of the PR people out there are using social media as a broadcasting tool for sending out press releases and recent client news. The next gen PR pros will use social media as a listening and communicating tool.” In my opinion, you can’t get anywhere in social media without listening first. Then, once you know what is being said, you share information based on what people are already discussing and most interested in. It surprised me to know that many of the experts here seem to go the other way around.

  Money quote: “Public relations and social media are both about creating and fostering relationships. Our PR experts agreed and emphasized the fact that personal relationships will continue to propel the bond between social media and PR.”

  Internet Evolution

  The Web is Dead. Long Live the Internet 

  This article by Chris Anderson and Michael Wolff analyzes the state of the Internet and online business as we know it: How we got to where we are, what's happening now and what's coming next. The two reporters take similar, though sightly opposing positions.

  They both agree that access to online information is rapidly shifting from an open, web-based standard to one in which people choose to go through closed, proprietary systems such as applications, APIs, online games, multi-media streaming software and more. In fact, the article states that "within five years, Morgan Stanley projects, the number of users accessing the Net from mobile devices will surpass the number who access it from PCs."

  However, Chris posits that the lifecycle of the Internet and our evolving methods of accessing information are due to individual user desires and preferences, and that the Internet is simply following a "natural path of industrialization: invention, propagation, adoption, control" driven by the marketplace. Michael, on the other hand, argues that these changes are driven by business titans (in particular, Mark Zuckerberg and Steve Jobs).

  Key takeaway: The Internet has fundamentally changed business, publishing and access to information. However, the evolution is not yet complete, and smart marketers need to keep an eye to the future, in order to stay ahead of the competition.

  What was your favorite marketing article of the week? Share it in the comments below, or tweet it to our attention at @PR2020.

  Stay updated: Subscribe to the PR 20/20 blog, check us out on Facebook or follow the team on Twitter.

• Optimizing Video For Your Website (Part 3 of 3)

  By Keith Moehring | Posted Aug 18, 2010 | 2 Comment(s) | Filed in: Search Marketing

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  Part 1 of this blog series on video optimization discussed hosting options and beginner video best practices. Part 2 focused on optimizing your video on YouTube.

  Part 3 is all about how to optimize video on your website. This information pertains to both embedded YouTube videos as well as those that use your website’s video player. We will detail activities you can do through your content management system (CMS), as well as activities that may require the support of a website developer, or someone with HTML coding expertise.

  The Right File Format

  Make sure that your video content is in one of the following file formates: .mpg, .mp4, .mov, .wmv, .asf, .avi, .ra, .ram, .rm or .fly. Google can index these file types. (Bing does not list the formats it can index.)

  Its Own Page

  When possible, make sure to give your video its own web page or blog post. The content around your video is an opportunity to tell search engines what it is about, so include keywords and be descriptive.

  Optimization Activities With a CMS

  Page Title (less than 60 characters)

  Optimize the video’s page title as you would any other web page. Integrate your keywords, placing them first if possible. At the same time, make sure the title will grab your audience’s attention and entice them to click. This may be your only opportunity to get them to watch.

  Meta Description

  Also similar to standard on-page optimization, create a meta description that details what the video is about, integrates keywords and motivates searchers to click. Keywords in meta descriptions don’t carry much weight with search engines, but search engines often use a page’s meta description as the text under the main link on a results pages, and will bold terms that match the search query. You get up to 150-160 characters, so make them count.

  URL

  Be sure to integrate keywords into your page’s URL. For example, "www.DomainName.com/keyword-and-more-keywords." Keep URLs short and user friendly.

  Description

  The only way a search engine is going to understand what your video is about is if you literally spell it out for them. Create a description that is posted directly above or below the video. This description doesn’t have to be a word-for-word transcript, but it should highlight the main points covered in the video and integrate your targeted keywords.
  
  However, if you prefer, you can include a transcript of the video to integrate additional, indexable content. For this, Adobe offers a tool, SubPly is a free online tool, and YouTube can automatically caption your video using voice recognition software. If you prefer to create your own transcript for an embedded YouTube video, follow these instructions. To add a transcript to a video hosted through your CMS, talk to your developer on the best way to create this file.

  Comments

  Make sure to allow viewers to leave comments. While comments don’t carry much weight with search engines, they are additional text that may get indexed, and a way for users to engage with your content. 

  Rating

  Give viewers the option to rate your video in some manner. Again, search engines look at audience participation as one of the many factors to determine the strength of your video. Embedded YouTube videos can include this feature just by selecting it during the upload process. If you don’t use YouTube, ask your developer about adding this feature to your player.

  Social Media Buttons

  Search engines continue to utilize social media more to identify popular videos, trends and viral content, so make it easy for viewers to share your video. This includes share buttons for Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and social bookmarking sites (e.g. Digg, Delicious, Reddit and StumbleUpon) as well as the ability for viewers to embed or copy and paste a link to your video on their site.

  Advanced Video Optimization Activities

  The following activities are a little more technical in nature, and may require the support of a web developer, depending on your internal capabilities.

  Video Markup

  Google supports two markup formats — Facebook Share and Yahoo! SearchMonkey RDFa — that enable you to add indexable information about the video directly in the HTML code. Here you can include the video’s title, description, thumbnail URL and source URL. The following Webmaster Central blog post provides additional information.

  Video Sitemap Submission

  Google now allows you to submit video sitemaps using Webmaster Central. Video sitemaps are integrated into your website’s XML sitemap, and must include at least the following five elements:

  1. Title
  2. Description
  3. Play Page URL
  4. Thumbnail URL
  5. Raw Video File Location

  I recommend reading the following video sitemap guide from Google. Bing does not offer this option yet.

  Media RSS (mRSS)

  mRSS feeds are RSS (Real Simple Syndication) modules capable of sharing media files, such as video, audio and images. Google enables you to submit your mRSS feed URL instead of, or in addition to, a video sitemap. With mRSS, search engines will automatically be alerted to any new video content you publish. Click here for more information about submitting mRSS feeds to Google (you’ll need to scroll half way down the page).
  
  

  Additional Resources

  For additional resources on optimizing video, I highly recommend reading this resource from Google and subscribing to ReelSEO.com.

  Optimizing Video Series

  Part 1: How to Optimize Video
  Part 2: Optimizing Video on YouTube

  Does anyone else have any advice on how best to optimize video for the web?

  Keith Moehring is business development manager and a consultant at PR 20/20, a Cleveland-based inbound marketing agency and PR firm. Follow Keith on Twitter @keithmoehring.

• Optimizing Video on YouTube (Part 2 of 3)

  By Keith Moehring | Posted Aug 17, 2010 | 0 Comment(s) | Filed in: Search Marketing, Social Media

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  As we covered in Part 1 (How to Optimize Video), if your main objectives with video are to maximize reach, build awareness and grow thought leadership, posting it to YouTube is a wise choice. In May 2010, YouTube exceeded two billion video views per day. 

  While certainly not the only video-hosting option, YouTube is without question the online video leader. As of March 2010, YouTube had a 40% marketshare, with Hulu in a distant second. For this reason, we focused our optimization recommendations on YouTube.
  
  YouTube, and other video-host sites like Vimeo, Metacafe and Squidoo, are extremely powerful from a search-engine perspective, so a video posted to these sites has a better chance of ranking higher and quicker on search engines than if it was only posted on your site.

  YouTube Ranking Factors

  There are a number of ranking factors YouTube uses to prioritize its videos. Some of these factors you can control, while others rely heavily on community engagement:

  What You Control

  • Title
  • Description
  • Tags
  • Age of video

  What the Community Controls

  • Views
  • Ratings
  • Playlist additions
  • Flagging
  • Embeds
  • Shares
  • Comments
  • Channel views
  • Subscribers
  • Inbound links

  The 11th slide of this SlideShare presentation from Mark Robertson, founder of www.ReelSEO.com, discusses other possible ranking factors.

  Optimizing Your YouTube Video

  Make sure to take full advantage of every feature YouTube offers as a way to tell the site, and search engines, what your video is about, while also making it easy for viewers to interact with and share.

  Profile/Channel

  Completely fill out your company’s profile on YouTube before adding any videos. Your profile is also your channel, where people can learn more about you and/or your company. Here you can add:

  • Channel name (your name/company name)
  • Description of the main topic areas your videos will cover
  • Website URL
  • Location
  • Occupation
  • Company
  • Schools
  • Interests
  • And other background information

  For an example, visit PR 20/20’s YouTube Channel.

  Video Title

  Create a video title that includes your main keywords for the topic and is attention grabbing. In many cases, the headline is all potential viewers will see, so it needs to stand out while explaining what the video is about.

  Description

  Be as informative as possible, but make sure that your most important information and keywords go upfront. On YouTube’s search results page, viewers will only see the first 25 words or so. When relevant, include a link to your website (either your homepage or specific landing page) so viewers can easily click through for more information.

  Tags

  Unlike the main search engines, YouTube still uses tags to better identify what your video is about. Be sure to tag it with priority keywords and brand-related terms to help viewers find more videos you’ve done. Keep to between five and 10 tags per video. For tags of more than one word, place quotes around them to signify that it is a phrase. (YouTube automatically removes commas.)

  Category

  Select an appropriate category. There are only a handful to choose from, such as: education, comedy, news & politics or people & blogs.

  Thumbnails

  Every YouTube video includes a thumbnail image of a still from your video. To optimize your video from a user perspective, you’ll want to make sure the thumbnail is eye-catching and drives views. YouTube gives you three options to choose from, which can be selected during the uploading process, and changed at any time.

  Comments

  Make sure to allow comments. While not that valuable from a search engine perspective, they are necessary for community engagement. That being said, some brand strategists advise against allowing comments on YouTube because they tend to be more negative than other sites. Our recommendation is allow them to start, moderate, and if they become a problem, remove the option on YouTube but make comments available on your site.

  Closed Captioning

  Search engines can index closed captioning if you turn it on. The following is a very useful article on getting started with closed captioning on YouTube. YouTube uses Google’s voice recognition software to create a complete transcript, which then scrolls across the bottom of the video. This feature can be turned off by the viewer.
  
  Google voice recognition is not perfect, so to improve the accuracy of your closed captions, you can also submit a “caption file” to YouTube.

  Additional Settings

  To maximize reach, make sure to change your video’s settings to allow all of the following:

  • Public (anyone can search for and view your video)
  • Comment voting
  • Video responses
  • Ratings
  • Embedding (gives others the ability to quickly add your video on their site)
  • Syndication (so that your video can be seen on mobile devices and, in some cases, TV)

  In the next part of this video optimization blog series, we will cover how to optimize video on your website.
  
  

  Optimizing Video Series

  Part 1: How to Optimize Video
  Part 3: Optimizing Video on Your Website

   

  Keith Moehring is business development manager and a consultant at PR 20/20, a Cleveland-based inbound marketing agency and PR firm. Follow Keith on Twitter @keithmoehring.

• How to Optimize Video for the Web (Part 1 of 3)

  By Keith Moehring | Posted Aug 16, 2010 | 0 Comment(s) | Filed in: Search Marketing, Social Media

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  How do you optimize a video so it ranks higher on search engines? The short answer is, you can’t. Search engines can’t index the words you speak or graphics you use.
  
  So how do search engines index and rank video? The same way they evaluate web pages. They look at the content surrounding the video — title, description, tags and any other text — and the number and sources of inbound links.
  
  Another ranking factor, which often gets overlooked by video creators, is community engagement. The more viewers feel inclined to share the video on social media sites, embed it on their own sites, offer a rating, comment, flag it, tag it, etc., the more valuable your video is considered to be by search engines. 

  A Unique Asset

  When it comes to ranking high on search engine result pages (SERPs), video has a unique asset that other forms of content do not — YouTube. YouTube and other third-party video hosts (i.e. Vimeo, MetaCafe, Squidoo, etc.) are extremely powerful websites, and videos posted here have a better opportunity to rank well than they would if they were simply posted on your blog.
  
  For example, I did a quick search for a title of an SEOmoz Whiteboard Friday — “Content Categorization for SEO.” SEOmoz has a powerful site and this search query isn’t a competitive term, but as you can see in the screenshot below, the YouTube version appeared above the actual SEOmoz post.
  
  

  

  Because of this, before beginning any type of video optimization project, you have to ask yourself, “What am I looking to achieve with my video content?”

  Hosting

  If your main objectives are to generate awareness and grow thought leadership, you should host your video on a site like YouTube, and then use the provided embed code to add it to your own blog or website. While search engines don’t issue any penalties for duplicate content, if you choose this option the likelihood of the YouTube video outranking the same video on your blog is high.
  
  For this reason, if your main objective is to drive website traffic, you may want to host your video on your website only. Depending on your content management system (CMS), you may already have a built-in video player. If not, talk to your web developer about options to add video.
  
  The next two parts to this blog series will discuss optimizing video on YouTube and your website in much more detail, but before we jump into that, there are some video fundamentals that need to be addressed.

  Optimizing Viewer Experience

  A viewer’s experience plays a huge role in their willingness to link to and share your video. Some would argue, myself included, that this is the most important aspect to the video optimization process.

  Defining Viewer Takeaways

  What do you want your video to say, and what do you want viewers to take away from watching it? Make sure to consider whether or not video is the right medium for what you are trying to accomplish, and if you have the equipment and internal capabilities to do it well.

  Video Fundamentals

  For those just starting with video, I highly recommend reading How to Use Online Video for Marketing, from HubSpot. It discusses:

  • Determining video calls to action
  • Filming techniques
  • Video editing
  • Lighting techniques
  • Promotion

  Branding

  Take the time to brand each of your videos. While this won’t have a direct impact on your rankings, it will help visitors associate the video with your company.
  
  Start your video with a graphic that includes, at minimum, your company logo. You may also consider adding your website address. Make sure that within the first 5 seconds, viewers know who you are, and if possible, how to find more information about you. You can add these graphics with any video-editing program.

  Call-To-Action Screen    

  To end your video, add a call-to-action graphic that includes your brand logo and website address, as well as information about the next step you’d like viewers to take. If you are active in social media, this would be the ideal place to add links to your social networking accounts. Avoid direct selling unless it is an ideal fit.

  Keep Videos Short and Engaging

  People are more inclined to watch short videos. As of May 2010, the average online video length was 4.3 minutes according to ComScore. Optimal video length is going to vary depending on what you’re looking to accomplish. No matter how long your video is, make sure to keep the content interesting, entertaining and valuable. People have short attention spans and won’t hesitate to stop watching if they get bored.
  
  If you’re looking for more help getting started with video, I recommend you check out www.ReelSEO.com. It’s a great resource for all things related to SEO and video.
  
  

  Optimizing Video Series

  Part 2: Optimizing Video on YouTube
  Part 3: Optimizing Video on Your Website

  Keith Moehring is business development manager and a consultant at PR 20/20, a Cleveland-based inbound marketing agency and PR firm. Follow Keith on Twitter @keithmoehring.

• Picks of the Week: Aug. 7-13

  By Laurel Miltner | Posted Aug 13, 2010 | 0 Comment(s) | Filed in: Marketing

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  This week's articles run the gamut of inbound marketing, with a bit of a focus on the importance of blogging for today's businesses. Read on for: quick-and-dirty (and free!) website analysis programs, the 10 best SEO blogs in the world, expert advice on why your business needs a blog (and why you need to update it on a regular basis), five tips to improve your email newsletter, and an in-depth look at the current and future state of news consumption (hint: it's all about social).

  Happy Friday the 13th!

  Web Design

  3 Tools to Quickly Analyze a Website for Free

  By Alex Pomer, a project manager with our friends and web design firm New Media Campaigns, this article shares three nifty tools for analyzing your website:

  • Website Grader (for marketing performance)
  • GTmetrix (for speed)
  • Browser Shots (for browser compatibility)

  Why should you care? According to Alex, "It's easy to quickly judge a website based on its design and write it off as either 'good' or a 'bad'. But there's a lot more behind-the-scenes information to consider when evaluating a website and how to improve it." 

  For more on each of these tools, see Alex's complete post.
  
  Marketing takeaway: If you haven't analyzed your site's performance recently, use these tools to see if it's up to snuff. And if you know your site is rocking, why not run the URLs of your top competitors to see what you can learn from their tactics, and what shortcomings you might be able to capitalize on.

  Search Marketing

  Best SEO Blogs: Top 10 Sources to Stay Up-to-Date

  If you’re interested in learning more about SEO, this post is an excellent place to find top resources on the subject. Compiled by Rand Fishkin, this comprehensive list of blogs covering SEO also includes helpful information like the editorial focus and publishing frequency of each site.

  What’s great is that in addition to the big guys, such as Search Engine Land and SEOBook, there are some lesser-known blogs in the list as well — like a great one I discovered through this post called Conversation Marketing.

  The article also includes some of Rand’s personal strategies for organizing information, sifting through the daily news and “sorting the signal from the noise” with tools such as browser add-ons. Productivity tools for the win.

  Blogging for Business

  If Your Small Business Does Not Have a Blog, Be Concerned

  Mario Sundar pulls together several credible resources to make a strong case for blogging, and its benefits for individuals and businesses alike. According to Mario, in addition to solidifying existing relationships, a quality blog can serve as "a great repository of well indexed content on the web for future prospects to find you."
  
  Included in his post is a short video in which Seth Godin and Tom Peters discuss the benefits they've personally experienced as long-time bloggers. Tom had the money quote, in my opinion, when he said, "No single thing in the last 15 years professionally has been more important in my life than blogging... It's the best damn marketing tool by an order of magnitude I've ever had."
  
  Takeaway? If you don't have a blog... What the heck are you waiting for?

  What I’ve Learned From Blogging Weekly Instead of Daily

  How important is it to keep a blog regularly updated? Justin Kownacki, a popular blogger with solid readership and reach, did an experiment to see what would happen if he spent three months blogging once per week, rather than five times per week. The results:

  • According to Justin, his "site traffic dropped off a cliff."
  • Counter to what he expected, the single post each week did not necessarily get a large amount of traffic.
  • On the plus side, he was able to devote more "time for all the work [he] should be doing."

  So, what can your business learn from Justin's experiment? Developing more content gives you more opportunities to strike a chord with your readers. Says Justin, "If you only blog once a week, your post has to be stellar, or else your blog becomes a dead zone for a week."

  One thing to consider: if you’re blogging for your organization, share the responsibility by having multiple blog authors contribute (like we do here). Another tactic we’ve found useful is having blog editor.

  Content Marketing

  5 Reasons Why No One is Reading Your Email Newsletter

  Sean D'Souza takes a look at five of the most common mistakes businesses make with their email newsletters. To take a more positive spin on things, I'll turn each of Sean's no-nos into a to-do:

  • Make your newsletter about your readers (not you). Offer helpful, interesting information.
  • Use your voice. Make sure that your personality and excitement come through in your writing.
  • Tell stories. People love stories.
  • Give readers a clear call to action. Tell them what you want them to do.
  • Develop, and adhere to, a publishing schedule.

  For details on each of these, see Sean's complete post.

  Media

  How News Consumption is Shifting to the Personalized Social News Stream

  Vadim Lavrusik takes an in-depth look at how media consumption is changing due to social media.
  
  People are getting their news in new, more social ways than in the past. Gone are the days when you'd sit down with the local paper — or even just read the New York Times or BBC News online for an hour and call it a day. Instead, people are developing personalized news streams, fed through RSS feeds and social networks.
  
  Some media companies are taking advantage of this — for example, by sharing their articles on Facebook, or integrating Facebook plugins on their sites to offer the social element for readers. In addition, software such as Flipboard for the iPad is starting to offer more visual, personalized "social media magazines."
  
  After covering the present state of news consumption, Vadim takes a look at what could be next. Imagine news recommendations, a la Amazon or Netflix, or even a Pandora-type application for news. The concept is, essentially, that if software can understand your interests, the potential for personalized news is endless.

  What was your favorite marketing article of the week? Share it in the comments below, or tweet it to our attention at @PR2020.

  Stay updated: Subscribe to the PR 20/20 blog, check us out on Facebook or follow the team on Twitter.

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