Marjorie Clayman’s Writing Portfolio

Professional writing profile of Marjorie Clayman

Archives for March 2012

Myth: Integrated Marketing Means Using Facebook AND Twitter

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Here we are on letter I of the marketing myth series, and we’re going to talk about what integrated marketing means. Now, often times you’ll see folks talking on social media sites about how it’s important to make sure your different social media efforts are “integrated.” They’ll note that it’s important to integrate your blog with your Facebook page. They might note that it’s important to integrate your Twitter presence with your blog and your Facebook page. This advice isn’t wrong, although I think it might be behind a lot of efforts to automatically import tweets into Facebook and the like. But this is actually NOT what integrated marketing is all about.

First, let’s take a look at how our good friend Wikipedia defines integrated marketing:

Integrated Marketing Communications (IMC) is defined as customer centric, data driven method of communicating with the customers. IMC is the coordination and integration of all marketing communication tools, avenues, functions and sources within a company into a seamless program that maximizes the impact on consumers and other end users at a minimal cost.[1] This management concept is designed to make all aspects of marketing communication such as advertising, sales promotion, public relations, and direct marketing work together as a unified force, rather than permitting each to work in isolation.

Now, the concept of “customer-centric” is one that you don’t see bandied about much in the world of social media, so let’s talk a bit about that too. The awesome Beth Harte, whom I was fortunate to meet on Twitter early on in my social media career, offers this excellent definition:

Integrated marketing communications is about connecting with, listening to, understanding, and analyzing (communications) customers and delivering (marketing, product development, operations) on their needs and wants, hopefully in a meaningful way that serves both the customer and organizational goals. Perhaps that seems overly simple, but really, it should be that simple.

You should really read her full post from where I pulled that quote.

So what does this all mean? Well, it’s hard to narrow it all down into nice Twitterable lingo. But the bottom line is that the current buzzword – “Social Business,” is not too far off from what Integrated Marketing Communications has always been about. Your communications across the board, from advertising to booth graphics to social media to the balloons you send up at your party should all give the same line of thinking, it should all be about your customer, and there absolutely should not be any silos.

Why are we not talking about this?

If Social Business as a concept is getting a lot of attention, how come we still see so much ignorance or mythological thinking surrounding Integrated Marketing? Well, one potential answer is that the social media world has really painted itself into a corner. Take, for example, Dave Kerpen’s Likeable Media, which I recently read and reviewed. It’s a great book so far as its social media guidance is concerned, but throughout the book, a very black-and-white scenario is established. You can do social media. You can do traditional marketing. There is no real evaluation on how you could make all of it work for you.

This is pretty typical wherever you travel in the world of social media. Traditional marketing, be it email marketing, direct mail, print advertising, radio, television – all of that is sort of scoffed at in the face of all of this new “social media stuff.”

That’s a real shame.

The other problem may be that a lot of people became “marketers” (the new way we sort of define this word) with the onslaught of social media. They did not have a lot of marketing experience before Twitter started to catch fire. Therefore, they do not have a lot of experience with other forms of marketing, and hence they can’t really properly talk about it. So, as humans do, they focus on what they are good at and exclude the stuff they’re kind of weak on.

Or maybe there is another explanation I’m unaware of (I’m open to suggestions).

The sad thing

Here’s the really sad part about this increasingly common new “definition” of integrated marketing – it’s preventing companies/marketers from trying some pretty cool things. There are now entirely new ways to eliminate silos in your company, learn from your customers, and carry your message from platform to platform. You can develop products based on what your customers are actually saying and then speak to them through different mediums based on how you KNOW they want to be talked to. A press release can now link you to a YouTube video. An ad can suggest that input can be offered on the Facebook page. The possibilities are limitless. But we are missing opportunities to expand marketing as we force people to choose between “old” and “new.”

Do you agree? I’d love to hear your thoughts!

Image Credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/syoung/3955230375/ via Creative Commons

#WomenWednesday Women will never be satisfied

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Near the beginning of this #womenwednesday series, we talked about how a lot of people say, “Women have come SO far. Why are they still complaining?”

As it turns out, this kind of perspective is omnipresent not only in terms of how people think about women but also in how women limit themselves. Indeed, it seems like women might be our own worst enemies because we really and truly are never satisfied with ourselves, what we have done, where we are going, or anything else. For example:

A woman with curly hair wants straight hair.

A woman with straight hair wishes she could have curly hair.

Short women wish they were more “statuesque”

Taller women wish they were more “petite and doll-like”

Some women want to be more skinny. Other women lament that they are too skinny and can’t seem to put weight on.

Some women are outspoken and worry they are too aggressive. Other women are soft-spoken and lament that they are shy or “weak”

Can we give ourselves a break? Where does all of this disappointment and frustration come from?

Maybe society is to blame

Are women so hyper-critical of themselves and of other women because society sort of molds us that way? There is certainly plenty of meat to support that argument. Society at large has created a general idea of what the “ideal” woman is like. Certainly she is 100% perfect at balancing work and home. She is gorgeous all of the time (however society defines “gorgeous,” which seems to be synonymous with utterly flawless). Indeed, society’s ideal woman is impossible – not just in a nice way but like, literally impossible. This sets up women for disappointment right from the start.

Another obstacle in the way of female self-esteem might be that we are surrounded by conflicting messages. I think this is particularly true for women starting in Generation X and on into the present. Our grandmothers, for the most part, are traditional women. They bake, they clean, they come of the generation of WWII, where women worked to support the men during the war and then went home to make homes and babies. Martha Stewart has made her fortune based on today’s woman wanting to reach back to get that “domestic goddess” status, right?

Then we have the generation that came after that-our mothers and aunts. They came of age during the tumultuous 60s and 70s, when protests were the norm and women were rebelling against all that had come before.

What do you do when these two modes of life sandwich you? It gets confusing. When I was in high school and was teaching myself how to crochet, a lot of people made fun of me. “Oh, you’re such a grandma,” they said. Then in college and grad school, when I suggested that there was rampant sexism in the Ivory Tower, I got looks of disdain and rolled eyes, as if I was just too radical for my own good. Like many women, I love the idea of being a domestic goddess who not only brings home the bacon but also cooks a delectable dish made of that very same bacon. But that’s extremely difficult. Again, women may set ourselves up to be disappointed.

Is this really just a woman problem?

Of course, if we talk about the fact that women are never satisfied, we must also note that men seldom seem to be satisfied these days, and for similar reasons, I’d venture to say. Look at the difference in messages between, say, Midnight in Paris and Fight Club. On the one hand, men are supposed to be soft and romantic and in-tune with their lady friends. On the other hand, men need to get back in touch with their masculinity and take hold of that old-fashioned machismo. Men, like women, are pressured to excel at work but also take a lot of flack for not spending enough time with the kids. Society seems to naturally set men up for disappointment, too.

Then again…

Blaming society kind of seems like an easy way out, doesn’t it? It’s like blaming the “guvvermet” for all of your personal problems or blaming “the culture” for your drug use. Maybe the answer is a little more complicated. Maybe we all, regardless of gender, set the standards of achievement so high that none of us can reach them, and so we beat the crap out of ourselves. Now why do we do that? Are we lusting after something we can’t have anymore, like a life without electronics? Is exposure to what is going on elsewhere in the world making us feel guilty for any contentment we might experience?

I’m just not satisfied with any answers I’m coming up with.

Why don’t you give it a try?

Image Credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/27534776@N07/2569248372/ via Creative Commons

Myth: Having a plan is lame

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When I first started at our family’s agency, it was July, which is about the time that we start revving up for something called planning season. I took a pretty steep crash course in what that meant. It meant contacting publications, looking back over what had happened in the last year, and creating a cohesive campaign that would carry the client through to the next year. It’s a lot of work, and it can be very intimidating when you are new to a client or new to the marketing world. After all, this isn’t just a task you are doing. This is your client’s welfare in your hands.

All of this might sound kind of crazy if you have been learning about marketing via the Social Media prism. For some reason, in the online world, the idea of planning has joined the ranks of Santa Claus and the unicorn. You hear about it on occasion but you don’t really see it much, and in fact quite a few people suggest that it doesn’t really exist. Planning is time-consuming. By the time you create a plan, someone else might have already beat you to the punch. You’ve probably heard all of this before.

The main argument against planning that you see in the online world, of course, is that social media is free. Experimenting with something like Quora or Google Plus or Pinterest or whatever the next big thing will be is a no-lose proposition because you aren’t at risk for losing anything big. As we have already discussed, this is a dangerous thought process to carry with you into the online world.

Why planning matters

Let’s use Pinterest as an example. Let’s say your boss (or you if you run your own company) want to start “doing things” on Pinterest. It’s hot, it’s driving traffic, and it just seems like it would be silly to NOT try it out. So, you decide, without a plan, to dump a few product pictures onto a board with your company name as the title. Fine. Easy enough to do.

Then you start noticing that some of your images are getting repinned all over the place and there seems to be a lot of interest in them. You think, “Wow, this is great!” But then another thought crosses your mind.

“Now what?”

Without a plan in hand, how can you make sure that those repins and comments are going to translate into something really good for your company? It’s pretty hard to catch all of the fish if your net is up on the boat for half the trip, right?

Now let’s take a different example. Let’s say you decide to take the initiative and throw up a Facebook page for your company. You have learned all about the shiny new Timeline features, everything looks great, and you’re even getting some conversation on the page.

Then one day, a person starts trolling the page because they had a bad experience with your product. How are you going to react? Not only do you need to react to this online scenario, but you probably also need to wonder if your product is really having issues. Since you acted of your own volition with no plan, you’re going to have to inform other folks of what all is going on. That’s not gonna be too comfortable.

Finally, consider this example. One part of your marketing team has put together an ad campaign saying that your new product is ideal for ant collecting. No real plan was put together surrounding these ad placements, and no other kind of plan was put together either. Later in the year, you start some social media marketing, and you note on your various platforms that your new product is great for collecting ladybugs but not so much ants. That’s something silly the other companies do.

Well, you’ve got yourself a bit of a problem, don’t you? If your left hand isn’t talking to your right hand, they might both be signing completely different things. Without a plan, there is no way to even double check that everyone is on the same page.

While the idea that social media is free can seem like a compelling argument against planning, these sorts of problems are definitely not free of charge.

Finding a middle ground

The thing about planning is that it doesn’t have to be written in stone. Plans can be flexible. Plans can even change. But working out a general idea, even, of what you want to accomplish and how you are going to get there is essential for businesses today. Perhaps it is even more important now because there are so many different tactics that can be used.

Planning can seem like it is too time-consuming, too this, too that. It’s definitely not something that seems romantic, right? But it is a preventative measure. Planning can stave off true marketing and PR problems. That seems worth the time, does it not? That seems worth the energy.

So what do you think? Is planning lame, or is it worthwhile? What are your thoughts on this whole issue?

Image Credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/judybaxter/266826979/ via Creative Commons

A Bit On Slacktivism

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Running rampant through the world of social media this past week has been a 30-minute documentary developed by a group called Invisible Children. Their purpose, as they state it, is to capture Ugandan war lord Joseph Kony by December 2012. Given that many feel the “sweet spot” length for an online video is no more than 2 minutes, the fact that a 30-minute video went viral across YouTube, Facebook, and Twitter is pretty amazing. However, shortly after the video began to spread, questions began to arise about Invisible Children. Were they keeping over 30% of the money they were raising? Are they supporting organizations that may be just as bad as Kony? Are they putting Ugandan citizens even more at risk?

In doing some research about this I found an article from Mashable asking if the whole thing was a hoax. The article said this may be the latest example of slacktivism. As it turns out, a lot of people really don’t like the idea of “slacktivism,” or the concept that “liking” or “retweeting” something is a form of activism. So, let’s talk about this a bit in detail.

Of marketing myths and activist legends

If you read my blog posts on occasion, you know that one of my great concerns is that businesses are being misled as we plod through the 21st century. Companies are being told that “engaging” online is enough to grow their businesses, and they are also being told that there is no way to measure the impact of their social media marketing. “Try to tell me what the ROI is of your mother,” they are told.

Of course, this is inaccurate. Companies need to make money still. And of course, there *are* ways to measure your social media marketing.  You can measure how much time (and hence how much money) you are investing, and you can measure what you get back. That’s ROI in a nutshell. If you are putting a ton of time in and not making any sales, well, that’s going to be a big problem in short order.

I worry that this same sort of mind-block is invading the world of social good. Now, the term “slacktivism” seems pretty harsh. And hey, I believe in online serendipity. I believe that if you can get the right information to just the right person, amazing things can happen. So if you change your avatar purple and someone asks you why you did that, you have a chance to explain it’s for yada yada cause, and maybe that person has just what that organization needs to really jump forward. Social Media makes these types of things possible. But not all of the time. And for some causes, serendipity is too fluffy and it takes too long.

Now, here’s the disconcerting part. If we keep traveling down this path of “raising awareness,” which is very much like the “engagement” that businesses are taught about in the online world, we are going to forget about what these organizations need RIGHT NOW. They need money. They need volunteers. Some need blood or organ donations. Some need blankets and canned goods. Some need people who can dig for water in local villages. It’s really dangerously easy to forget about these things as you immerse yourself in the world of social media, just like it’s really easy to forget that what your business needs is sales, not friends.

Isn’t it easy to think to yourself, “Phew, I shared that video. That’s my good deed for the day!” Of course it is. Isn’t it easy to think, “Well, I “liked” that cause on Facebook and I was the 100th person. So that’s great. They’re on their way.” Of course it is. But just like businesses are in danger of going broke without even noticing it, we are at risk of becoming lazy when it comes to doing social good. I don’t think we’re there yet, but the seeds have been planted. The best of intentions in the world of social media can slowly mold into a sort of hypnotized “Friends and contacts are all I need” mentality. This could mean tremendous problems for all levels of our society, from the individual to the business to the social good campaign.

Back to Kony

So what do we make of the Kony 2012 campaign? Is it good that we are talking about Uganda, a country where children have been raped and abused en masse for years? Sure. Is it good that we are talking about Ugandan citizens and what they are facing? Yes. Is it good that the video went viral? Could be. It’s interesting at any rate.

But is this enough to disprove slacktivism? I’m not sure. How many people shared the video without watching the whole thing? How many people donated based only on the video without doing further research?

Social Media makes it so easy. So easy to feel successful. So easy to feel that you’ve accomplished your business or societal goals for the day or the week. This might be the greatest danger of social media. A lot of voices make a loud roar, but a lot of people only yelling just creates noise.

What do you think about all of this? I’d love to hear your thoughts.

Image Credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/advocacy_project/518031316/ via Creative Commons

Join the fun at #usXsw!

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It’s that time of year again. SXSW is in full swing (almost) down in Austin, Texas. I remember the first time I heard about SXSW. It was back during my Lost fangirl days, and a friend of mine got to meet Dominic Monaghan down there. And Elijah Wood. We’re still friends, but it was rocky for awhile. Little did I know that just a few years later, SXSW time would become a much talked-about social media orgy! I meant…conference. Conference. But here we are.

Sadly, I could not make it down to SXSW this year. Part of it may have been that I didn’t really try. But I know that a lot of people are feeling sort of listless knowing that this weekend is going to be filled with drunken tweets from the heart of Texas, and gosh..what can the rest of us do?

Well, fret no more, my friends. Jeannette Baer and Joseph Ruiz have you 100% covered. The second annual Twitter event – #usXsw – is about to begin!

What is #usXsw?

The #usXsw even takes the heart and soul of the #usguys group and ramps it up to SXSW caliber. Starting on Friday, March 9 and lasting on through to Sunday the 11th, you will find lots of great stuff happening in this stream, including chats led by some of the best people around, trivia games, prizes, and some plugs for charities and social good. And that’s not all. You can do it all from the comfort of your own home. You can even wear your PJs! Now really, what could be better than participating in a SXSW type-event in your jammies? I can’t think of hardly anything.

As for me, I will be heading up a discussion on Saturday night from 8 PM till 10 PM EST. Our topic will be how storytelling brings together communities and and helps businesses. Yep – some things in the online world can accomplish both things. Is that crazy or what?!?

If you want to follow the schedule of events, just keep your eyes glued to the #usXsw stream, and bookmark the UsXsw site for information.

Hope to see you in this virtual realm of awesomeness. If you stop by, make sure you tip your hat to Jeannette (@myagenda) and Joseph (@smsJoe) because they put a LOT of work into this baby. And thank the loverly sponsors, too. Cuz they rock!

Got it? Get it? Good!

Image Credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/omarsc/454707209/ via Creative Commons

What if I actually like you?

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Something has been bothering me for awhile, and darn it all if I need to get it off my chest. It’s like this. Sometimes, lord knows why, I actually like people. I know. It’s a weakness. I’ve tried electro-shock therapy, a frontal lobotomy…everything you could think of, and yet nothing can break me of the habit. Sometimes I like people because they have a great sense of humor. Sometimes I like people because they are kind and warm and giving. Other times, I like people for too many reasons to really verbalize succinctly.

It’s a problem. I know.

Now, here’s the real problem. Here in the world of social media, people are giving those of us suffering from, oh, what shall we call it…humanness? a bad name. For example, have you ever noticed that a person will talk to you and then suddenly drop you like a hot tamale as soon as a person with a bigger following comes along? Have you watched as kind of wicked people turn their charm up to sugar cookie level once a well-known person pops by?

I know you have. Don’t you even start lying to me now. We’ve been through too much together.

The real bummer is that sometimes I like people who happen to have a lot of Twitter followers. Sometimes I even like people who have written books or have been on the telly-vision. I don’t really set out to like these folks just because. There are literally millions of people who have millions of Twitter followers that I couldn’t give a rat’s poopy about. But sadly, I fear that my desire to reach out to folks in a real and genuine way is getting grouped in with the people whom I lovingly refer to as the social climbers. You know…the people who are nice because it helps them get one more step closer to…Twittervana? I’m not sure what they’re going for. But it helps them, apparently.

This ticks me off.

Let’s set the record straight

I realize that my word is only as good as a grain of salt, and probably not even a big lump of sea salt. But here we go.

If I’m nice to you, it’s probably because I want to be nice to you. I don’t care how many followers or fans or books or boogers you have. Well, maybe that last one could cause some problems, but even so!  I have lived most of my life without Twitter, without Facebook. Heck, I lived more than half my life without computers, period. During those formative offline years, I learned what kinds of people I like and what kinds of people I don’t, and social media has not changed these opinions (if anything, social media has solidified them).

To this point, I’m afraid that even though people may view me cynically or with doubt, I’m going to continue being nice to the people I want to be nice to. If I want to write a smushy post about a friend of mine, I’m going to do it. If I want to promote a person’s blog post, I’m going to do that. If I’m going to talk to them about extremely important issues like the state of the world and the fact that there is a recipe for unicorn poop cookies, I will also do those things. If these people have 2 Twitter followers, I will carry on. If they have 2 million Twitter followers, I will carry on. And if people want to scorn me and think that I am a kiss-up or that I am just after linkbait or whatever, that’s cool.

But I hope that people I like know that I actually like them. I’m a simpleton that way. I just like people. Or I don’t. And you don’t have to do a darned thing about it. Numbers really don’t matter to me where people are involved. I’m not scheming. I’m not strategizing all over ya. I just think you’re fab.

Know what I’m talkin about?

Image Credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/moffoys/3553322847/ via Creative Commons