Twitter As Part of the PR Process

Twitter as Part of the PR process
March 30, 2011

What is Twitter?
Twitter is an information network comprised of 140-character messages used to communicate information from news outlets, organizations and individuals.

Let’s Get Social
While some companies have been hesitant to invest in social media, it’s clear that social media is here to stay.
To stay abreast of the latest industry trends, share information, and communicate with your customers/members/stakeholders, it’s important to build an online presence using the social networks they’re already utilizing.
Find out where your key audiences are engaging – are they on Twitter, Facebook, Foursquare, or all of the above?
Chances are, most are on Twitter – Twitter reports that 572,000 accounts were created on March 12, 2011. 460,000 new accounts were created each day on average in February 2011. (That’s nearly 12.9 million accounts created in February alone.)

Social Media Management Takes a Village
Social media management is not just a one-person job, especially if your organization is large.
Identify groups within your organization that already interact with your customers, particularly those with a knack for connection.
Then, organize your social media team based on company culture (e.g., assign the Communications/PR department to develop strategy and educate your team on tools, and use customer service reps to be on the front lines, engaging and monitoring).

Integrating into the PR Process
Once you’ve committed to using social media (Twitter in particular), you’ve got to do your homework.
Establish a framework and goals, and ask yourself (and your team):
Which messages do we need to communicate?
What are the information needs of our target audiences?
What are they talking about in online (and offline) communities?
How can we contribute and provide value?
What are our communication objectives, and how will they be measured?

Developing Your Brand
After you’ve decided how your brand or organization will be represented, set a single social media policy for everyone in the company, but make it simple because tools will evolve (e.g., 3 Great Social Media Policies to Steal From).
Consider the tone of voice in messaging, and disclosures regarding employees’ affiliation with the company for individual accounts.
Create a 140-character mission statement and set social goals (e.g., listen, amplify customer voice, reward loyalty, showcase real people, inspire, educate, entertain, convert sales).
Establish key performance indicators (KPIs) to demonstrate the ROI of social media. Use the number of followers as a base, then identify the number of conversations generated online, including retweets and mentions, for further measurement.

Cultivate a Community
Provide information that encourages people to communicate, collaborate and share.
Engage target audiences in online conversations for authentic, meaningful two-way communication.
Be open and transparent; give your company brand a personality and “human” voice.
Focus on your target audiences, listening and responding.
Let the audience lead the way.
Create and share content that is valuable to customers, prospects and other stakeholders to drive conversation, and build a community of fans and supporters.

How to be Awesome on Twitter

10 Social Media Tips from Kodak’s Chief Blogger
Know what you are talking about.
Always be transparent.
Be yourself.
Post often (but don’t be obnoxious).
Add value.
Respond.
Listen to what others have to say.
Learn from your mistakes.
Be external.
Have fun.
Follow Jenny on Twitter:
@KodakCB
Find Kodak’s Social Media Tips online at: http://bit.ly/KodakTips

Evaluate Your Progress
Is the information newsworthy and/or meaningful to your target audiences?
How will audiences use the information? (Is there a call to action?)
Who will directly benefit from this information, and who are the influencers that will share this information with others?
What is the best way to convey the information so our audiences understand and use it?
Is there an increase in followers, retweets, and/or mentions?
Have customer issues been resolved successfully?
Has the customer/member voice been amplified through their stories?

Prove the ROI
Measure your progress against the KPIs set prior to implementation.
For example:
Number of followers
Click-thru counts on shortened URL links
Number of retweets and mentions
Tone and sentiment of retweets and mentions from target audiences
Information shared among target audience’s other networks (e.g., Facebook, blogs)
Share of voice (number of company mentions versus competitors)
How the audience was influenced (i.e., sales lead conversions)

Fine-tune Based on Results
Use a blend of free and paid subscription tools to monitor online conversations by setting up automatic keyword searches to find mentions of your company, products, services, or key topics.
Google Alerts and Social Mention are two free search tools that send email or RSS notifications.
Paid subscription tools like Radian6provide more comprehensive monitoring and reporting that enable companies to refine searches and analyze results.

Twitter Tools
Incorporate multimedia in your tweets using free Twitter tools.
For example:
Bit.ly – Simple URL shortener that provides ability to customize, share links
Twitpic – Photo sharing site that supports uploads via Web, email
TwitVid – Video sharing site that supports upload via Web, email (and eventually webcam)
TwtPoll – Social media feedback tool that allows users to create polls and surveys

Thank You!
Brittany Dorfner
C. Blohm & Associates, Inc.
411 West Oak St., Cottage Grove, WI 53527
608-839-9800
brittany@cblohm.com
www.cblohm.com
www.twitter.com/CBlohmAssoc
www.twitter.com/Brittany_D

Twitter As Part of the PR Process

by C. Blohm & Associates, Inc. on Mar 31, 2011

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Twitter As Part of the PR Process — Presentation Transcript