Everythink Excellent

by Jeremiah Owyang
September 11, 2007

If you’re responsible for the direction of the online strategies for your company or organization, you’ve probably been hearing buzz about Twitter, a next-generation instant messaging tool. Even if you’re new to Twitter, this will—by linking to resources and providing a starting point for your strategy—serve as a guide to educate you and help you make a decision.

Web Strategy Theory to Know Before You Go Forward

If you’ve not already figured it out, the corporate Web site is becoming less relevant, and web marketing (and support) has spread off your domain and Google results. You also know that prospects trust the opinions of customers (who are "like them") far more than marketers, and Facebook lets these communities of practice assemble: Your brand is decentralized—embrace! (If you don’t understand these concepts, it’s hard to move forward; so please refer to posts that the above links point to.)

Opportunities: Why Twitter?

A tool embraced by the early adopter, Twitter users can benefit from thought leadership, connection to the influencers, additional message reach, access to mobile communicators, real-time communication, but more importantly, the opportunity to build relationships through conversations. Who is it good for? Media companies, social-media-savvy brands, those who may already have a blogging strategy, those with frequent updates. High-communication individuals may prefer this tool.

Limitations and Challenges: It’s not for everyone

Twitter is not for everyone. Here are a few considerations: Due to a high degree of micro information, the user will need to self-parse information. Although there is no formal data, I suspect that the audience and user base consist of early-adopter social media folks and influencers, with an average age of 30-45. Although parent company Obvious recently received funding, the product infrastructure is still going through growth pains and error messages are common. Twitter is still in its early stages, and its full value has not been realized.

There are other competitors in the space, such as Pownce, released by Kevin Rose of Digg.com, and Zooomr’s Zipline. Expect Twitter-like features to emerge in many social networks as a feature.

What you should know

History

Twitter began as an experiment inside of Odeo, Inc. by Noah Glass and Jack Dorsey and debuted March 2006 (see Wikipedia’s entry).

Twitter gained traction at the 2007 SXSW interactive festival, where flat panel displays in several places at the convention showed the Twitter activity of attendees. That was a defining moment for Twitter.

What is Twitter

A form of text-based "MicroMedia" (coined by Jeremiah Owyang), Twitter is really much like blogging, but on a miniature scale. The character limit is 140, which requires that users simplify their message.

Twitter has social network features, so users can add or remove friends, for example. An considering that leaders like Chris Messina and others are seeking ways to segment groups, more features will come.

Twitter is a next-generation instant-messaging tool; users can blast messages to their network, send private messages, or search. When users publish messages, those are often called "tweets."

As a communication platform, Twitter exports data (such as RSS) that can be reused in other interesting ways, such as Twitter maps and other mashups (10 top Twitter apps, or this comprehensive list). The Twitter team has now acquired a design team and has launched "Twitter blocks," which show the network activity of a particular user.

Remember that Twitter, like most blogging, is public: What you say can be used against you as well as for you. See this case in point: Steve Rubel’s criticizing his own client and having to retract.

Users

Twitter, till now, has been for the highly engaged, early-adopter, pro-technology user. This is the "influencer" community, meaning they will shape the direction of others. It’s highly likely that these users participate in other forms of online publishing and communication, like blogging, Facebook, and mobile activity.

Content

Having in mind the 140-character limit, users are publishing the following types of content:

Presence information: Users will shout out information related to them, from "eating with Joe" to "heading to the office," or even questions like "has anyone seen the Transformers movie?
Responses to others: Members within a connected network (they must be friends) can respond to each other using the reply symbol "@"—such as "@Transformers was a great movie."
URLs: URLs are automatically shortened by the Twitter application. (Tip: Consider 130 characters the limit if publishing a link. The system will then have enough space to convert your URL to a TinyURL.)
Notable Brands

Several brands are using Twitter:

Carnival Cruise lines
Intel Software
Adaptive Path
PodTech Network
John Edwards
Some publishers use it as an announcement feed, just as Robert Scoble publishes his shared-link feed called Scoble’s Link Blog from his Google reader—all automated. And, recently, Marketing Profs launched its own Twitter account.

Advanced Tactics

Event Integration

Savvy brands and individuals are using Twitter to keep virtual and real-life event attendees up to date. It can be used for live streaming, live blogging, or focusing attention on particularly helpful speeches. For example, during the Web 2.0 expo, I was live event-streaming using UStream; I would use Twitter to tell my network who with and where I was, keeping them up to date. Many other uses have not been documented, such as using Twitter for project management and financial alerts.

Pebble Strategy

Recently, I announced my job change on Twitter. I dropped a series of "pebbles" (tweets) explaining my move. Dozens of users responded, "congrats @jowyang," which prompted others in their network to see what I was talking about (they could visit my profile page to see what I said), building more interest. Finally, I linked to the blog post URL of my announcement in Twitter, and I received 91 comments on the first day. For more information, read "Want Waves? Drop a Pebble."

Best Practices

Savvy Twitter users realize that effective communications isn’t about just pushing content to readers; they also converse with others and otherwise respond to them. I use this tool as a global chat room, responding to others, building relationships, and listening in. Like blogging, the rule of anti-marketing marketing is required for success: Engage your community.

Unlike traditional forms of advertising and marketing, Twitter is "opt-in," meaning that users choose to "follow" a twitter account, and abuse of their goodwill will result in users’ unsubscribing. For the rules of engagement read Brian Oberkirch’s "Advanced Twitter: Don’t Tweet Like A n00b."

Getting Started

While not for everyone, Twitter is a next-generation communication tool that provides the Web strategist several opportunities to connect with online communities.

Understand Twitter. There’s plenty of educational material. Consider watching a video interview by Jennifer Jones with cofounder Biz Stone. Check out Rafe Needleman’s (CNET) "Newbie Guide to Twitter," or Twitter’s own "Getting Started."

Evaluate whether it’s right for your audience: Use the anecdotal demographic information I provided above, or use the search tool for notable individuals within your community and marketplace.

Explore the tool: The best way to learn? Experiment. Try creating a personal account before deploying a brand account.

Publish: Well, what are you waiting for? Try some tweets!

Integrate: Use in conjunction with other tools, providing an "integrated mesh" of cross linking. Use to post announcements, changes.

Advanced: Communicate back with others. This is not just a broadcast tool, it’s also a conversation tool; reply back to followers using the "@" symbol, and engage in dialogue.

Advanced: Mashups. There are many uses (known and yet to be discovered) of the tool, as third-party developers continue to create mashups for Twitter. Build your own, or examine others to get creative.

Measure: From the start, consider measuring the impacts of this tool—amount of followers, amount of replies, incoming links, etc. Look at the referral logs for visits to your Web site from Twitter, and use search tools to gain intelligence. Read "Social Media Measurement Strategy" for more information.

Jeremiah Owyang is a Web strategist, speaker, and blogger/videoblogger focused on how companies use the Web to connect with customers. He is active on Twitter and can be followed at jowyang; if you follow him, he’ll follow you back.

Author: Bill Stoller

Website: www.publicityinsider.com

From time to time, people ask me how public relations has changed during the two decades in which Ive been seeking publicity. My answer: technology. Twenty years ago, the fax machine was a

newfangled novelty. Our primary means of communicating with journalists was the telephone and the US Mail. The advent of e- mail and the web has made life easier in many regards and tougher

in others - namely, thanks to hordes of clowns with money making schemes and software that "blasts" press releases indiscriminately to reporters, its become very hard to get your e-mails through to spam-weary reporters.

But theres another great advantage provided to publicity seekers by the Internet — the ability to create an "online news room".  In the "old days", the press kit reigned. Big bulky folders loaded with press releases, glossy photos and slides were standard. They were expensive to design, costly to reproduce and required lots of manpower and postage to assemble and distribute.  Today, you can simply direct a reporter to a web URL, where all your press materials and high definition artwork awaits, ready to

be used. Its a huge time and money saver.

A quick note: the traditional press kit isnt dead. Its still handy to create some physical kits to use with key journalists, as the very novelty of printed material can give you an edge at times. Also, some journalists still prefer a physical kit. Press kits are an important tool at trade show booths & press rooms,

and special events. However, gone are the days of sending out large press kit mailings. Keep the kits for targeted use only.

Creating a useful online news room is really pretty simple. One of the main things a busy reporter wants is easy access to press releases, corporate and executive info and artwork. A well put together media room should provide a seamless walk-through.

Where Should the News Room Go?

There are two schools of thought on where to put your online news room. Some companies prefer to have it as a section on their main site, visible to all as a link on a menu bar or other navigational element. Others build entirely separate sites just

for the media.

There are pros and cons to each. Putting it as part of your main site allows a journalist to "poke around" your site, absorbing more of the feel and culture of your company and its products. It also makes it easier if the reporter wants more information about

a particular product than can be found in your media materials.  Of course, since youll need to provide clear links to the online news room to help such reporters find their way back, anyone visiting your site can access your press materials. This is

probably not an issue but, if you feel potential customers may become confused if they wander into the online news room, this could be worth considering.

Creating a separate site allows you to tailor everything to suit the needs of the reporter and prevents the possibility ofconfusion for potential customers visiting your main site. The reporter however, will be unable to quickly "poke around" the

main site as described above, so you may consider that in your decision. If you do choose a separate site, give it a name that incorporates your company (if youre the Acme Company, go for acmepress.com or acmeonlinenewsroom.com). Also, provide clear

links to your main site throughout, and code them so that they open in a new window, allowing the reporter to see your main site without having to backtrack to the online news room.

Some Dos and Donts

DONT force journalists to register or sign in for access. Theyre busy folks and may very well decide not to bother. Makelife as easy as you can for them.

DO offer the opportunity for journalists to enter their e-mail address if they wish to be kept abreast of the latest news from your company, but dont link it in any way to the ability to access any portion of the site. DONT confuse non-journalists who may wander into the site. Make it clear at the top of your main

page of your online news room what it and who its for.

DO provide a link to your consumer FAQ page and an e-mail link for customer service to give non-journalists a place to go to get their questions answered. This will save you a great deal of time responding to messages from non-journalists asking "why am I looking at a press release? How do I download a new driver" or some such thing. Here’s what Gateway says, "Gateway press contacts are only able to provide assistance for qualified members of the news media. They are not qualified to respond to

product or technical support needs…If you are not a member of the news media, please feel free to visit our pages for Product Service and Support."

DONT try to lay out the online news room if youre not a talented web designer. Dont use flash, heavy java scripts and other doo-dads. The face you put forth to the media must be highly professional, and the ease of navigation and logical flow of the news room is vital.

DO hire a professional designer who has a portfolio that includes simple, easy-to-navigate, clean-looking sites.

What To Include in Your Online News Room:

Personal Contact Info. The name, address, e-mail, phone number, fax number and cell phone number of your primary media contacts must be front and center. If you have an Instant Messaging ID, put it in there, too.

Press Releases. Place press releases in chronological order (most recent at the top). Keep traditional press release formatting and use easy-to-read fonts.

Executive photos, product photos, charts, graphs, and other appropriate artwork. Provide multiple versions — 72 dpi (lower resolution) for online publications and websites, and 300 dpi (higher resolution) for offline publications. Put instructions

such as To download, right-click and choose "save" next to the graphics. Make sure your pitch letters and press releases provide links to the appropriate artwork on your site.

Backgrounders, executive bios, white papers, investor relations info (if applicable), fact sheets, speeches, awards, streaming media of: press conferences, product demonstrations, president’s

speeches, etc.

Search Tool. Make it easy for journalists to find just what they want, by making all your press materials fully searchable.

Online News Rooms to Study:

The best way to learn how to put together an online news room is to see how some very smart folks have done it. Here are three outstanding examples….

http://www.microsoft.com/presspass/default.asp

http://www.google.com/press/index.html

http://www.crayola.com/mediacenter/

# # #

About The Author:

Bill Stoller, the "Publicity Insider", has spent two decades as one of America’s top publicists. Now, through his website, eZine and subscription newsletter, Free Publicity: The Newsletter for

PR-Hungry Businesses http://www.PublicityInsider.com/freepub.asp

he’s sharing — for the very first time — his secrets of scoring big publicity. For free articles, killer publicity tips and much, much more, visit Bill’s exclusive new site: http://www.PublicityInsider.com

The Importance of Search Engine Optimization/Search Engine Marketing for B2B Marketers – Part 1 of 2
By: Paul J. Bruemmer

Is Search Engine Marketing cost effective enough to increase profits for B2B marketers? You bet, and here’s why. It’s always been conventional wisdom that the fastest and most efficient way to research products and pricing is on the Web. Now Enquiro has documented survey research on the role of search engines in B2B transactions.

As you know, B2B transactions differ from most consumer transactions because these decisions require coordination between a number of different personnel before the final transaction is made. Therefore, the process requires a period of time between researching the product and placing the order. It’s an ongoing rather than snap decision.

“The Role of Search in Business to Business Buying Decisions” is a well-designed study of approximately 1500 participants responding to a 40-question survey that was validated with pre-testing before implementation. You can download the entire report for free, and here are a few highlights:

• When participants were asked to indicate how they would go about making a B2B purchase, 93.2 percent said they would research the purchase online.
   
• When asked if they would use a search engine at some point in this task, 95.5 percent of participants indicated that they would.
   
• When asked where they would start their search for information, 63.9 percent of participants chose a search engine over consumer review sites, e-commerce sites, manufacturer’s sites, and industry portals.
   
• When taking budget into consideration, manufacturer’s sites and industry portals were the chosen starting place as budgets increased. However, 86.9 percent of participants said they would visit a search engine after visiting those sites.

The study is rich with too many details to cover in this article, but following are some important conclusions:

• Search engines play a dominant role in B2B purchases.
   

• Search engines are used in the early or mid research phase in the buying cycle.
   

• Google is favored over other search engines.
   

• Search engine research takes place at least one to two months before the buying decision.
   

• Good balance between organic and paid search is necessary. Organic SEO gets over 70 percent of the clicks.
   

• Position is a factor, with over 60 percent clicking on the top 3 listings.
   

• Most users decide which listing to click on in seconds upon scanning the page.

With all this qualified traffic originating from search engines, it is more important than ever for B2B marketers, wholesalers, and B2B exchanges to ensure their Web sites are correctly optimized for good positioning in search results. There is also great value in SEO/SEM as a user-friendly marketing tool.

The Uniqueness of Search Engine Marketing

Search engine traffic is highly targeted. That’s because potential buyers who find your B2B offerings through search engines are looking for your products and services on their own, so they are predisposed to hear your marketing message. You can’t find a more qualified prospect than that. Here’s what distinguishes search engine marketing from other types of advertising:

1. Non-Intrusive:  Search marketing is a non-intrusive marketing tool. Most advertising, both online and offline, interrupts consumer behavior. If a user goes to a web site for info, up pops an intrusive ad. Reading a newspaper? Ads dominate and force articles to be continued on another page. With search engine marketing, the user is actively seeking your products, services, and information. They are delighted to be driven to your site.

2.      Voluntary: Search marketing is the result of user-originated behavior. Your visitors from search engines and directories have voluntarily clicked on your listing rather than any competitors, thus they are motivated to explore your offerings.

How good is the ROI? How effective is search engine marketing and optimization for B2B? What are the key-points to consider regarding a B2B search engine optimization and marketing plan? Please join me next month for Part 2 when we examine the answers to these questions.