This recession has not been kind to marketers and other communications pros. Especially at the senior level.

Frankly, I’m not surprised.

Just look at how we typically refer to ourselves. Marketer. Public Affairs Specialist. Writer. Editor. Media Relations Manager. Videographer. It’s all task-based.

IABC has the word “business” in it, but our titles rarely do. And too often we haven’t made the case that storytelling is key to selling widgets (or sneakers, politicians, goodwill, or support for your cause). That communications is a core business function, as necessary to organizational success as product designers and the sales team.

We talk about transparency and authenticity. Our bosses care about sales, opportunity costs, and ROI.

I’ve heard a lot of hand wringing about how communicators don’t have a seat at the table. Yada, Yada, Yada. Feel better?

Now, what are we going to do about it?

The comments are yours.

Note: This post originally appeared on IABC’s Communication World blog.

Photo by Randy Son of Robert (Flickr).

©2010 Independent Thinking. All Rights Reserved.

An alert friend pointed out to me that Susan G Komen’s slogan is “Join the Global Breast Cancer Movement.” Uh, no thanks. I’m not partial to getting cancer.

What message is your business sending?

©2010 Independent Thinking. All Rights Reserved.

I was on the receiving end of a push poll on Saturday afternoon involving Washington’s mayoral race. In case you don’t know what a push poll is, Wikipedia describes it as:

A political campaign technique in which an individual or organization attempts to influence or alter the view of respondents under the guise of conducting a poll… The push poll is a form of telemarketing-based propaganda and rumor mongering, masquerading as a poll… They are generally viewed as a form of negative campaigning.

The mayoral race in our capital city is shaping up as a two-man contest between an arrogant mayor with an interesting take on ethics and transparency (can you say paid Dubai junket?) and a  city council chair who’s real claim to fame is that he’s now “the other guy.”

But I digress. The poll asked one question: Which of the two would I vote for? I said I was waiting to see who else was running. Then I heard, “Vincent Gray for Mayor” and a hang-up. Then I got mad–and immediately called Gray’s campaign office to tell them so.

The problem with push polls is that they assume people are stupid. But we’re not, and the insult makes us mad. That’s poor marketing which will lead to bad PR. Plus, in my case, it has me questioning Gray’s judgment and his fitness to lead. How does that help his campaign?

Photo by Steve Weaver (Flickr).

©2010 Independent Thinking. All Rights Reserved.

Oh really? Glad to know I want brake problems.

This turned up in my mail on Saturday. Inside was a shiny brochure about their hybrid vehicles. Don’t you think Toyota should have put off this print campaign until after they fixed their cars?

©2010 Independent Thinking. All Rights Reserved.

Want to know how communicators are using social media? You could pose a question on Twitter or you could do a deep dive. MarketingProfs did the latter, surveying 4,763 marketers and others managing communications for their organizations. That included 3,285 who specifically said they are responsible for social media.

I don’t have a copy of The State of Social Media Marketing, but I did get a peak at some of the findings. There is some great data here:

• 48.2 percent said their organizations have a social media presence. They are typically companies that have “very little to hide.” Companies in industries with strict regulations and major repercussions for leaking information (think drug makers, bankers, insurers) are less visible.
• 60.8 percent who do social media said that it is not part of their job description.
• Social media isn’t cheap: Most of those doing social media are mid- or senior-level people.
• 48.8 percent said their company has no official social media policy; 12 percent said they have a restrictive one.
• There is a correlation between culture and the success of a company’s marketing efforts. Employees who blog (independently) can spark new ideas and increase prestige.
• All the measurement tools are helpful, but incomplete. For example, 52.8 percent of those surveyed said that paid analytics tools are “helpful but incomplete” (versus 66.1 percent of those using Google and other free tools). And approximately one-third of respondents (33.6 percent) said that the paid tools “enable perfect tracking” (versus 28.1 percent for those using free tools).

There is also a lot of data about the disconnects between the tactics people use a lot (i.e., what’s popular) and the tactics that are most effective. For example, the most used tactics on Twitter are driving traffic (72.1 percent) and driving sales (54.2 percent)—how’s that worked out for you lately? In contract, the most effective Twitter tactics cited involved two-way communications strategies and monitoring for PR problems in real time.

Photo by webtreats (Flickr).

©2010 Independent Thinking. All Rights Reserved.

As some of you may know, I joined MarketingProfs last fall. There are two great values about the company/online resource: (1) community and (2) professional development. As a pro member, I have access to a vast store of case studies, reports, how-to articles, and live (and playback on-demand) Webinars. Which brings me to the point of this post.

One of my goals for this year is to participate in more Webinars–and then to pass on what I learn to you, my readers. Yesterday’s Webinar featured a conversation with Seth Godin and Guy Kawasaki about doing business in 2010. Here are a few takeaways:

• Everything Is Not Free–Godin pointed out that lots of things (including personal connections) aren’t free. What is free: ideas, because the  middlemen are dying out.
• Marketing–Kawasaki pointed out that the days of marketing to that one influential voice (think New York Times reviewer) are over. Instead, he stressed the importance of seeding your products as far and wide as possible to “build a critical mass of nobodies.” Godin added that companies must “initiate or die.”
• Portable Tribes–Godin noted that people are increasingly living their lives in public, and that true communities “will follow us in our digital world.” Kawasaki countered that he really wasn’t that interested or influenced by what his friends were buying or liked. (I tend to agree with Kawasaki, but one participant raised a good point, as a marketer, about the value of that awareness.)
• Customer Service–Godin called customer service “a form of marketing far more powerful than advertising.” He added that, if you can delight someone, they’ll tell others. Referring to Comcast and Best Buy‘s Twitter strategies, Kawasaki suggested that “customer service is a weapon, and the social aspect of customer service is the leading edge of the weapon.”
• Passion–Godin pointed out that people are now both workers and owners (i.e., we can create and build), and he suggested that this would be the dividing line between what was and what will be. Kawasaki added that “the time to start innovating is before the recession ends.”

As a labor relations specialist before I was a business owner and communications strategist, I’m fascinated by this concept that we are both workers and owners. Chris Anderson used a similar analogy in remarks a few months ago, and I’m still trying to figure out how I can apply this concept better in my business.

Godin and Kawasaki offered some really good food for thought. Anything here inspire you?

Photo by billjacobus1 (Flickr).

©2010 Independent Thinking. All Rights Reserved.

We’re getting to that time of year when holiday cards start rolling in. And every year I notice the same thing: lots of cards, very little personalization. Sometimes it’s a generic “Seasons Greetings” e-mail blind copied to who knows how many people (no effort); others send paper cards with no note and often not even a signature (marginal time expenditure in running off address labels). If you’re thinking about doing this: DON’T.

©2010 Independent Thinking. All Rights Reserved.

DC Web Women, which runs a listserv designed primarily to enable peer-to-peer support and education in technology and new media, has been in the midst of a brouhaha lately about marketing. Or, more accurately, a few people seem very upset that the listserv guidelines prohibit marketing.

Yes, there are guidelines–and they seem pretty straightforward:

Many of us would like to market to this great target audience, but we can’t allow it because of the size of our membership. Marketing includes postings that ask for a job or job leads, present your resume, promote your company, or doing any of these items for friends, sisters, or boyfriends.

And DC Web Women doesn’t stop there:

However, there are some ways you CAN market to DCWW:

• Attend a meeting, workshop, or social event and pass out your business cards.
• Send your resume to the resume wrangler to be included in our biweekly resume posting.
• When you post a question, comment, or response, include your URL or a one-line description of your services beneath your signature.

In other words: be present, be helpful, and add value.

I really don’t understand why anyone would think that shouting “Me. Me. Me. Look at Me.” is a better way to build a community and a business. What do you think?

Photo by bixentro (Flickr).

©2010 Independent Thinking. All Rights Reserved.

I once gave a talk to a group of independent consultants about how losing a big client can be a good thing. I’ve been thinking about the topic a lot lately as I see more and more people lose jobs or clients, or feel the pinch of shrinking marcomm budgets. As many of us cope with one form of loss or another, it’s a good time to revisit how solopreneurs and small business owners can turn this around and create opportunities for ourselves.

So here are my top five reasons why losing work can work out for you:

1. You have to figure out what went wrong. Unless you screwed up, it likely has nothing to do with you. And that’s helpful to understand (and, if you screwed up, it’s important to recognize that and resolve not to make the same mistakes again). I once lost a great client when her company was bought out in a $9.8 billion acquisition deal; another client, when his departmental budget was cut.
2. It forces you to evaluate your existing client relationships. Are you coasting comfortably along or have you asked your clients for feedback? When things are going well, it is easy to become complacent. Losing work ends that illusion, and reminds you that it might be wise to make sure your perception of the work relationship meshes with theirs.
3. It frees up your time. Okay, stick with me here. I know you don’t want this free time, but what can you do now for your business that you didn’t have time to do before? I focused some time on better understanding social media, and I started this blog, during a slow period last summer.
4. It brings new urgency to business development. If you’re like many solopreneurs and small business owners, your new business efforts are inversely proportional to the time spent on existing client work. There’s nothing like a revenue dip to focus your attention on the business side of your business.
5. You get to test new business ideas. This goes hand-in-hand with #4. Every change in my business strategy has come after the loss of a big client. While that’s probably not a big surprise, here’s what might be: I was relieved to be free to try something new. As a result, I’ve been able over the years to expand my business from public affairs to include strategy and marketing communications offerings.

There’s one more reason why I’m big on loss as opportunity: I started my business after I lost a full-time job.

So what have I left out? How did losing a client or a job help you?

©2010 Independent Thinking. All Rights Reserved.

When I wrote my post about the value of LinkedIn, I called it a “must have” element of every professional’s online presence. I still believe that. So why are so many people devaluing their profiles with endless drivel?

I belong to several LinkedIn Groups, and they are helpful in identifying like-minded professionals and in broadening my network. What they are not, it seems, is a forum for robust discussion.

For an overview of what’s gone awry with LinkedIn discussions, read Craig Peters’ terrific post. In it, he outlines many of the things people are doing wrong, including looking for free advice, traffic whoring, and blatant self-promotion.

I’m personally not so concerned with the free advice component, as we’re all learning every day. Plus providing value to someone else can be a good way to demonstrate expertise without giving everything away. But, like Peters, I’m tired of being bombared with constant come-ons and pleas to “please, please click on my link before answering.”

From a business perspective, I’m not sure why anyone would want their business persona to scream ”bad marketer and I contribute nothing.” From a social media perspective, they’re failing miserably on the engagement piece.

As to LinkedIn Groups, they are not now a go-to place for discussion. I think the smart conversation online has largely migrated to Twitter.

©2010 Independent Thinking. All Rights Reserved.