Alan Is Good

“Words have no power to impress the mind without the exquisite horror of their reality.”

- Edgar Allan Poe

Online Communications, You’re Doing It Wrong

Every day I see people violate, misinterpret and mishandle the rules and standards set in both corporate PR communications and social media marketing best practices.  Perhaps it happens as often as it does because there are no concrete and boldly defined principles or laws written in either realm.  I am a public relations professional and I know that my expertise thus far evolved from hands-on experience, not textbooks or manuals.  I’m also an emerging social media specialist who knows better than to call myself an ‘expert,’ ‘guru,’ ‘mogul,’ ‘messiah’ or otherwise because my passion for the field allows me to admit that there are no experts yet.  Yes, I’m good at what I do, but we’re all learning case-by-case what digital PR is all about everyday.  No single person has achieved a status that guarantees them success with any corporate/political social media strategy put in front of them.  With that said, there is still no excuse for the rampant misunderstanding and mishandling of communication when participating in the social media conversation online with consumers.  I’m going to scoot back and review some general PR concepts to preface and then integrate into the cyber realm mad house of social media.

Digital PR As Science, Not Art

Of public relations, people have said that its a B.S. degree in B.S.  Advertising is historically considered more quantifiable and tangible a service than public relations.  I am always perturbed by individuals who claim that PR is an art in which only the most talented artists can understand and succeed.  Digital PR strategy further blurs the line of the profession, falling behind the additional curtain of mystique that technology presents.

The abstraction of PR + the complexity of technology = clients feeling like they are being deceived and sold snake oil services.

I know I speak for Gen Y professionals everywhere when I say that I am not comfortable with any amount of shadiness or doubt concerning the validity of my profession or the services I can provide.  One of the main concepts that attracted me toward the digital PR field was the phenomena of the online conversation.  The social web and online metrics are invaluable to the science of public relations, as it helps us quantify and measure our craft.  The critical concept the internet has with regards to PR communications: the archived social media conversation is logged and indexed in search engines for a very long time. A corporate entity can now respond to a blog post, message board thread, Tweet, or news release as they see fit, and the ensuing discussion is going to be seen by everyone on the internet that will ever care to see it.  With that said, it is extremely important that this interaction be carefully crafted by professionals who not only practice the fundamentals of PR but who also have an intimate knowledge of the new media dynamic.

Not every web-savvy college grad understands the science of online communications as it pertains to corporate PR strategy and the goals of a digital PR campaign. A love for using Facebook does not equate to an affinity for Facebook social media marketing.

Fundamentals of Communication

The biggest mistake made by agencies and clients alike is the blatant abandonment of the basic tactics of effective and influential communications.  Consider what measures you would take in preparing for a traditional press conference or open forum discussion in the event of a PR crisis.  This has always been my approach to participating in the online conversation – I imagine that I’m about to walk out in front of a podium and respond to a sea of rabid internet trolls.

• Know how to address your audience – If you know who, what, when, where,  and why, the ‘how’ will begin to take shape.  The biggest mistake made here is forgetting that the ‘where’ is the internet, which always warrants a more transparent and open strategy.
• Respect the open forum – Be prepared to answer the most challenging questions without using cop-outs like “No Comment” or “Can’t answer at this time.”  People want the inside scoop, so if you aren’t ready to address the issues, be prepared for rumors to surface.
• Do not insult collective intelligence – Press conferences and social media conversations alike, this is not the time to beef up on the company mantra and jargonspeak you’d find on your website.  You will be interacting directly with people who are going to challenge your every word, and they don’t like sugar coated messages.
• Be timely and relevant – Like a press conference, there’s a time limit on the conversation.  Make your points quickly and expect the public interest to hold for a very short amount of time.
• Speak their language – Yes, your marketing speech is well crafted, but nothing will connect you to your audience more effectively than proving that you’re one of them.  More respect is earned from an inside joke or lightly sarcastic comment than from what written on your buzzword-laden spin doctor notes in front of you.
• Don’t feed trolls – There’s a tricky but effective shade of grey to dealing with trolls, and just as with traditional PR expertise, it really can only be resolved on a case-by-case basis.  Ignore trolls who are off topic or obscene, but be careful not to confuse a troll with a passionate consumer with harsh criticism – these are the people you want to address.

I’ve seen far too many agencies and clients hung up on crafting the ‘perfect’ politically correct, grammatically perfect marketing messaging points, only to fall flat on their faces.  This then ignites agency/client tension over who was at fault for the failed marketing communications.  All the while, the folly has been archived, the damage is done and the online conversation goes on.  I don’t like to directly point out the painfully archived social media follies, as I respect the efforts of all agencies and clients alike – but here are a few moments that demonstrate the way social media conversation smells blood in the water.

Wal-Mart  tries to limit criticism on Facebook and pays for it

Unprofessional Twitter update from agency offends client

Agency insults the intelligence of a blogger, company founder himself has to step in (see Peter Thum’s comment)

People on The Consumerist mock Circuit City’s digital PR efforts

CEB desperately tries to limit employee criticism and gets trolled from within (read a few threads)

Twitter founder Evan Williams told he sucks as a speaker on Twitter and YouTube (7:00 mark in video+YouTube comments)

The worst social media faux pas are in the message boards when a brand is called out for spamming or otherwise promoting unsolicited marketing communications.  I have a nice catalog of such moments, but  it would just be too mean to draw more attention to the links.  Unwelcome solicitation is a black eye on the social media presence of any company.  If you want to promote within a community, you have to be or become an established member who is considered influential for non-marketing threads first.

PR Pros Adapting To The Conversation

The key to social media conversation success is knowing when to be an airtight professional, and when to loosen up and relate to the community.  Yes, it is safer to stick to marketing speak and sales pitch jargon.  Yes, it is scary to loosen the reigns on communication efforts online and adapt to the communities targeted.  But no, there haven’t been any successful social media campaigns that did not push the envelope in some way with regard to communications.  Safe has always been sorry.

Gone are the days of the corporate, tinted towers sending out one-way PR  communications to the public.  The brands that prevailing are being open and transparent, strategically addressing harsh criticism, and responding in real time to real people with real messages.  Genuine customer service and socially responsible communications are the way of the present and future.  Adapting the evolving rules of traditional PR to the social media conversation is the greatest step toward making the strongest possible impact in the digital realm.  Says me.

“In the name of the democratic web, and for the professionals of yesteryear who couldn’t quantify their PR efforts – be honest, open and innovative with online comunications so we can prove that this ‘art’ can be a science.” – AlanIsGood

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