Social Media Public Relations

How Social Media Is Helping Small Brands Get Noticed By Big Buyers

2011-10-04T11:51:00.000-07:00

It used to be exceptionally difficult for smaller brands to gain the recognition that would lead to being picked up by large retailer. However one company has shown that by using smart social media strategies targeted at the right audience- these small scale companies can accomplish anything.
Orabrush, a small company that produces tongue cleaners launched a campaign of successful Youtube videos that attracted a lot of national attention-though it didn't necessarily drive sales. Ad Age reports that due to its innovative use of social media, Orabrush was able to land the biggest account of them all- Walmart. In 2010, Orabrush was contacted by a Walmart store manager in Utah, who was interested in carrying their product. The store manager also convinced another 20 managers in Utah to begin carrying Orabrush-who used the sales data from these stores to attract the attention of Walmart executives. Even after all of that, it was hard for Orabrush to get an audience with a Walmart buyer. Therefore, the CMO Jeffrey Harmon bought $28 worth of Facebook ads and targeted them at Walmart employees in northern Arkansas. The ads were attention grabbing, and featured phrases such as "Walmart employees have bad breath. walmart needs to carry Orabrush. It will sell better than anything in your store."
Targeting this small and specific group paid off for the company. Within 48 hours of the ads running, Orabrush received a call from a Walmart buyer who, after seeing a DVD and sales kit, placed an order for 735,000 tongue cleaners.
The use of social media has really leveled the playing field and made it much easier for smaller companies to get noticed. Walmart itself is now looking at social information from various areas of the country to determine what customers want to see in their stores. Orabrush is now being distributed in Walmart locations across the country, all it took was a little innovative marketing and some luck.

If you are interested in Social Media PR, please contact AMP3 Public Relations at 646-827-9594 or info@amp3pr.com.

Not on the List for New York Fashion Week? No Problem!

2011-09-07T10:15:00.000-07:00

Are you dying to go to your favorite designers' shows this fall at New York Fashion Week but you don't have an invite? The fashion gods (and modern technology) have answered your prayers!

Mashable.com reports that in continuance with the trend of the last few years; many designers showing at NYFW will be streaming their shows online. You can see the shows on a variety of social media platforms including Facebook, Youtube, Livestream, and individual designer pages. Many big name designers will be streaming including: Nicole Miller, Diane Von Furstenberg, Marc by Marc Jacobs, Herve Leger by Max Azria and Oscar de la Renta.

This year even fashion enthusiasts who are on the go can enjoy a front row seat. For the first time, most designers will also be streaming shows on a mobile platform as well. These shows will be found at m.youtube.com/liverunway. In addition to the actual runway shows; many designers, fashion bloggers, and editors will be uploading exclusive content, short reviews and images via twitter, tumblr, facebook and instagram.

Instagram is probably the newest social media platform to arrive at the NYFW party. Instagram is an app for iPhones that allows the user to take high quality, beautiful images which can be uploaded to twitter, facebook, and tumblr. Mashable.com suggests a few instagram accounts to follow closely throughout fashion week. These include: Oscar de la Renta's Director of Communications Erika Bearman (oscarprgirl); and senior fashion producer at The New York Times Simone Oliver (simonesoliver).

New York Fashion Week begins on Thursday September 8th and concludes Thursday September 15th. A schedule of designers and show times can be found here. Don't forget, if you're not on the list you can still have a front row seat thanks to social media!

If you're interested in Social Media PR, please contact AMP3 Public Relations at 646-827-9594 or info@amp3pr.com.

What is "retweet" for $400 Alex?

2011-08-19T10:10:00.000-07:00

How has social media changed the world that we live in? We'd be here all day if I really started in on that one, but one of the most recent (and amusing) ways is that it's managed to impact the English language itself. The Oxford English Dictionary recently added an additional 400 words including the terms retweet, sexting and cyberbullying. Next time your watching a stimulating episode of Jeopardy and the clue is, "the sending of sexually explicit photographs or messages via mobile phone", well I think you'll know the answer, "What is sexting for $800 Alex?".

The Oxford English Dictionary now has more than 240,000 words. “Sadly, the new edition has no room for tremendous words like brabble ‘paltry noisy quarrel’ and growlery ‘place to growl in, private room, den’ — what we might call a man cave these days,” Oxford University Press’s Angus Stevenson said. “But the preoccupations of today’s Generation Y have opened the door to some equally colourful vocabulary — how about momo, noob, nurdle, and woot?”

Among the other additions to the Oxford English Dictionary are jeggings, mankini (a term popularized by Sacha Baron Cohen’s Borat movie) and domestic goddess. This year even terms like OMG and LOL were added to the dictionary.

These new words may be in the English dictionary now, but I'll tell you one thing, spellcheck still catches them as incorrectly spelled. What do you think about the way that Social Media and New Technology have permeated themselves into our daily lives? About the fact that it's apparently OK to speak using the terms OMG and LOL? Will kids be finding words like jeggings and cyberbullying on their next spelling test or their SAT's for that matter?

From a public relations standpoint, it certainly just holds strong and true to the belief that Social Media is here to stay and it is now a daily job function of pr departments. Would I use the term LOL in a meeting with a prospective client, of course not, but give it time.

Check out Mashable for the original article.

If you're interested in Social Media PR, please contact AMP3 Public Relations at 646-827-9594 or info@amp3pr.com.

Burberry Streams London Fashion Week Show

2011-02-22T10:57:00.000-08:00

In a move becoming more widely accepted in the industry (usually by young, cutting edge labels), famed fashion house and luxe British brand Burberry decided to stream today's Burberry Prorsum Womenswear show in London through Live Stream. The show was streamed globally in Burberry flagship stores from Boston to Beijing and was part of a "buy from the runway" in store virtual trunk show event that took place in 40 stores across 4 continents. This virtual trunk show event will allow viewers to buy looks straight from the runway for one week following the show instead of having to wait for the collection to officially hit the racks in 7 weeks.

London's Piccadilly Circus even streamed the show live onto the famous 32 metre digital screen (a first for any fashion brand). Additionally, the show could be viewed on demand online at Burberry.com as well as multiple news, music and fashion partner's sites and through the iPhone and iPad. In another bold industry first, viewers on Burberry.com can even download music tracks from the show using iTunes technology.

By streaming the show live, Burberry reached it's widest audience ever, as the label's shows are usually reserved for VIP's in attendance (which this year included over 1000 guests, a who's who of Hollywood, music and fashion industry elite).

Founded in 1856, this is an altogether exciting and bold move for and established label like Burberry. After rebranding in recent years and using notable British celebrities in their advertising (Kate Moss, Agyness Deyn, Emma Watson, etc.) this bold social media move seems to fall in line with the direction that the brand is heading in. As an older and more established label with a dedicated and loyal clientele, it would be easy to stick with the tried and true and to simply follow what the younger labels are doing, but at over 150 years old they're instead proving that they can still push boundaries, break the mold and set the example for their industry peers.

Watch the full show here and attendees talking about Burberry as well as snippets from the show in the video below:

If you are interested in social media pr and/or fashion pr please contact NYC based PR agency AMP3 Public Relations at 646-827-9594 or info@amp3pr.com

Mark Zuckerberg Gives $100 Million To Education

2010-09-24T13:03:00.000-07:00

This story is all the rage right now, ranking right up there with Lindsay Lohan going back to jail and Katy Perry getting pulled from Sesame Street. Mark Zuckerberg, the 26 year old creator of Facebook, officially announced yesterday, the launch of Startup: Education, a $100 million dollar foundation dedicated to improving education in Newark, NJ and around the U.S..

The first goal of Startup: Education is "to transform Newark, NJ into a national symbol of educational excellence." From there, the sky is the limit, or at least the rest of the country. A Facebook page has been created for the new foundation as well as a website where you can make your own contribution.

This is an incredibly generous move with a noble goal made by Zuckerberg, but where all the PR hub-bub is coming from is the timing of the announcement. If you're living under a rock, than you may ask "what does timing have to do with it?". The answer is: THE SOCIAL NETWORK. Yes "The Social Network", the much anticipated Aaron Sorkin movie depicting the founding of Facebook and Zuckerbergs rise from anonymous college student to social network king. And it debuts next week.

Word on the street is that Mark Zuckerbergs story (true or not, that's debatable) may not be portrayed in the most admirable light on the big screen, and many wonder if this big show of generosity is related. Some think it falls write along the old saying, "the best offense is a good defense" meaning that doing something good before anyone see's the bad my decrease any potential backlash.

In my opinion, whether this sizable donation was just great spin born from the brain of a good publicist or something Zuckerberg has been dreaming about doing since he was a wee lad, who cares! Reasons begone! The generosity behind this donation, for whatever reason, can not be over looked, as it will go a long way towards rehabbing a severely crippled public school system. And if it makes me feel a little more warm and fuzzy towards Mark Zuckerberg in the process, well then round of applause for his publicist, a job well done.

If you are interested in Social Media PR services, please contact AMP3 Public Relations at info@amp3pr.com or 646-827-9594.

MTV Promotes "Jersey Shore" With New Facebook and iPhone Game

2010-07-27T11:09:00.000-07:00

I hate the idea of this so much that I've almost come full circle to loving it...much like the show itself. I wonder if that's what MTV was hoping for with this latest Jersey Shore related social media PR stunt.

In promotion of the new season of Jersey Shore, which debuts on Thursday July 29th, MTV is releasing a Facebook game and iPhone app that will feature the show’s cast in all of their fist pumping cartoon glory. The new Facebook game challenges players to battle each other in head-to-head pickle and tanning lotion throwing

competitions with content evolving as the storylines on the show develop over the season. The game is also said to involve managing finances and jobs (2 things we know the cast has major trouble with, does anyone remember Angelina?!?!?!?)

Soon there will be a new iPhone application entitled, “Spread Snooki”. The app is substantially tamer that the name implies, it will simply allow users to superimpose Snooki’s face or fist pump gesture on to iPhone photos they take or have in their library.

The truth is, I wouldn't expect anything less from MTV when it comes to promoting a show like Jersey Shore. The show was a runaway hit, and I admit that I too was an enabler. From a PR standpoint it's all a very clever idea. It's a fun way to keep everyone talking about the show and season 2 prior to the premiere and then keep them talking as the season unfolds. Jersey Shore is a tacky, guilty pleasure and this certainly keeps that spirit alive. The only thing left to say is, GTL baby, GTL!

If you are interested in Social Media Public Relations, please contact AMP3 Public Relations at 646-827-9594 or info@amp3pr.com.

Satirical Social Media King @BPGlobalPR Could Be Out Of Business

2010-07-16T09:24:00.000-07:00

BP recently announced that oil is no longer leaking into the Gulf, they have officially capped the leak. So where does that leave @BPGlobalPR, the anonymous satirical Twitter king that mocked the way BP was handling the PR surrounding the oil spill. He took social media pr to a whole new place.

@BPGlobalPR gained his social media following by calling out and mocking the way that BP was bumbling around the spill, but what will happen now that they are finally taking strides to clean up the mess?

The anonymous Tweeters response was, "Well, we shall see. I’m definitely relieved. As far as BP is concerned, I have a feeling they are gonna be cutting corners like crazy with cleanup and compensation, especially since this will probably slip out of the public eye a bit. In short, I don’t think my job is done, but I am very happy that the new cap seems to be working.”

My question (and the question of many others) is, is there still a place for @BPGlobal PR? In my opinion, corporations are screwing up all the time, with his slicing wit and a new Twitter handle, this anonymous soul certainly has more work cut out for him. He's like a verbal caped crusader, gaining the publics attention and drawing spotlight to major issues until the "culprits" fix their mistakes.

I think that having someone anonymous out there with a witty way with words, calling our corporations when they make mistakes, isn't the worst thing in the world. @BPGlobalPR also worked hard to raise money for healthygulf.org. We could use more @BPGlobalPR's out there.

If you are interested in Social Media PR, please contact AMP3 Public Relations at 646-827-9594 or info@amp3pr.com.

Youtube Takes on BP

2010-07-01T14:01:00.000-07:00

Talk about a public relations nightmare. If you live in the U.S., and especially in the South, it's safe to say that you're pretty frustrated with BP right now. You're probably raging at the water cooler (ahem, you know who you are) or boycotting the BP gas station, and that's fine, this oil spill isn't going to get old for you any time soon, and it shouldn't, if only there was some way you could really let those executives in their ivory tower know just how unhappy you really are.

Well had you known, you could have...sort of anyway. Today the video-sharing site Youtube teamed up with PBS NewsHour to allow users to send their queries to Bob Dudley, president and CEO of BP’s Gulf Coast Restoration Organization. The live interview took place at 3:30 pm and was moderated by PBS NewsHour’s Ray Suarez. If you missed it you'll be able to check out parts of the interview later on, on PBS NewsHour and YouTube.

This isn't Youtube's first foray into live stream interrogation by the people. I sure wish I'd seen it as I'm sure there are some people out there glad to have finally been heard. Youtube is really ahead of the game here. What a great opportunity to act as "The peoples" advocate in a situation that has so many so riled. On the other side, this also offered a great opportunity for BP to speak directly to the publics concerns. From a PR standpoint, that this is even a possibility for a company is crisis, is pretty amazing. I'm curious to see how the interrogation went before I can comment further. There may be a part 2 to this post, staytuned.

If you are interested in Social Media PR, please contact AMP3 Public Relations at 646-827-9594 or info@amp3pr.com.

How to use Social Media for lead generation

2010-06-24T10:57:00.000-07:00

I read this article called "How to use Social Media for lead generation" on Mashable and though the writer had some interesting ideas.

Step 1: Share content that showcases your expertise. A simple social media update usually isn’t enough to convey a full analysis on a topic. Include links with your updates that expand on key ideas. Keep in mind that your goal is to create value.

Step 2: Start promoting your social media presence. Having a Twitter or Facebook icon prominently displayed on your site gives visitors a recognizable channel for connecting with you. Print links to your social profiles on business cards, flyers and letterhead. Most importantly, don’t forget to include links to your social profiles on your website or blog.

Step 3: Instead of broadcasting messages, start conversations and engage individuals. Monitor conversations and respond to leads. Monitor key terms around your business, including your brand names, trademarks, product types and competitors. Use Google Alerts to keep up with the latest news about your company and search mentions of your brand on blogs.

Step 4: Respond to customer questions and feedback. Take action when you come across a useful comment, and make sure you clear up any customer questions when they arise.

Read the full article here.

If you are interested in Social Media Public Relations, please contact AMP3 Public Relations at 646-827-9594 or info@amp3pr.com.

Skinny Cow Snacks Debuts New iPhone Game

2010-06-10T12:20:00.000-07:00

Popular consumer product Skinny Cow has debuted a new iPhone game called "The Skinny Cow™Spread the Love" mobile game. The new game, specifically developed for the iPod Touch, iPhone and iPad, is available now.

So how does the game work? The Spread the Love mobile game features a courageous dachshund delivering tasty Skinny Cow snacks to her Skinny Cow-loving animal friends. Spread the Love is a sky-climbing adventure in which players maneuver a friendly dog, who feeds her animal friends as she moves upwards among the clouds. The goal of the game is to evade potential obstacles and collect points (and lots of love) for every tasty treat successfully shared with the dog's friends along the way. If the player is unable to navigate and deliver new snacks, the balloon will deflate and the player will take a ride back down to the ground and the game starts over.

To keep players interested in the product as well as the game, Skinny Cow has added a special bonus. Players that achieve high scores will be rewarded in-game with electronic coupons for Skinny Cow treats. In addition, players are invited to join the Skinny Cow Spread the Love community network where they can post directly to Twitter or Facebook and interact with fellow gamers to Spread the Love even further.

The Skinny Cow consumer product pr team has developed a great way to combine mobile media with social media to keep players entertained and also aware of their products. With 44,000 Facebook fans and counting, they seem to have created quite a following.

If you are interested in Consumer PR or Social Media PR, please contact info@amp3pr.com or 646-827-9594.

The iPad Is A Hit, Thank You Early Adopters

2010-05-03T07:56:00.000-07:00

I don't know about you, but I don't really get the iPad. I mean, I GET IT, but I also don't. I like my technology just like the next person and I'm always interested in seeing what they will come up with next but the iPad has been one of those pieces of tech that I just haven't been able to wrap my head around. I just don't see the necessity in it, but I guess the bottom line is, who am I?

I am 1 person, and 1 million other people apparently "got it". Apple confirmed that as of this past Friday, April 30th, 1 million iPads have been sold in only 28 days. They magnified this number by pointing out that this is less than half the time it took to sell the same number of iPhones (I love my iPhone by the way). I mean when you think about it, that's insane, 1 million iPads in 28 days at $499 a pop. You do the math.

Here's my problem with the iPad though. I like to use many applications at the same time, I'm a person of my generation, I like to write emails, update my facebook, talk on g-chat, and surf the web for news updates all at the same time. You can't do that on an iPad, only one application can be run at a time. You know what works similarly, my iPhone, and at least with my iPhone I can talk on it and it fits in my pocket. I know this is a silly argument, but I just don't get it, I need more to get on board. The worst part of this all is that I always thought I fell somewhere between the Early Adopters and the Early Majority on the Diffusion of Innovations model, but in this case, I don't even think I'm on the scale, maybe I'll be a laggard a couple years from now, who knows.

The bottom line though is that I don't matter, Apple did their job and did it well. Between the PR blitz and the true Early Adopters out there, the iPad is now a success. There's no question about it.

Check out this Consumer Report review of the iPad

If you are interested in Social Media PR, please contact AMP3 PR at 646-827-9594 or info@amp3pr.com

-Ashley for AMP3 Public Relations

Katie Couric Interviews Twitter Founder Biz Stone

2010-04-21T07:33:00.000-07:00

Katie Couric recently conducted an interview with Twitter founder Biz Stone where they discussed social media and the rise of the popular social networking site. They also discussed things like, how to use Twitter effectively, understanding promotional tweets, and what the future holds for Twiter. If you are currently an avid Twitter user or you want to start becoming one, this might be an interview that would interest you. Check it out below to gain some new insights.

Watch CBS News Videos Online

-Ashley for AMP3 Public Relations

Social Media & PR

2010-04-15T11:42:00.000-07:00

As a PR professional you probably know by this point what a difference social media has made to the field. In fact, you probably use some form of social media PR just about every single day. Social media offers so many new tools and opportunities to promote your client and get their name and brand out to the public. But how exactly are other PR professionals using social media? What are they doing that you should be doing and might be missing?

Check out this article on Mashable to find out: http://mashable.com/2010/03/16/public-relations-social-media-results/

-Ashley for AMP3 Public Relations

Jim Carrey & Jenny McCarthy Break Up....

2010-04-08T08:27:00.000-07:00

And how do they choose to announce the demise of their 5 year relationship, via Twitter. Whether or not it's appropriate to announce a break up over Twitter is one thing but the bigger realization here is just how much Twitter specifically and social media in general have become a way of life. The importance of social media pr is not even a question in this day and age.

No longer are people calling friends on the telephone to let them know about life's big changes, they're Tweeting, Facebooking, or MySpacing them or any of the dozens of other ways people are communicating through social networks and communities. Can't you just picture it, Jenny, packing her boxes to move out of their shared home with one hand, and tweeting with the other. I bet Jim's publicist wishes she'd had a little more control of his blackberry post breakup. Let's be honest though, we've all done some form of the same thing, like I said, way of life.

And now a moment of silence for the demise of what was once a symbol of true Hollywood love. Feel free to read about the breakup and view their tweets in the Huffington Post articles below.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/04/06/jim-carrey-jenny-mccarthy_n_527621.html

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/04/07/jim-carrey-reacts-to-jenn_n_528710.html

-Ashley for AMP3 Public Relations

Too much social networking?

2010-02-17T12:27:00.000-08:00

We've had MySpace, Facebook, Twitter, now Google Buzz and tons of other stuff in between. Is there going to come a point when we have too much social networking to keep up? If you are feeling overwhelmed, check out this article with suggestions on how to manage your time.

http://mashable.com/2010/02/17/social-media-attention/

Ford's Whimsical Social Media Campaign

2009-11-25T13:11:00.000-08:00

Over the past year, Ford has been really embracing the social media aspect of public relations by engaging potential consumers online. Their most recent social media campaign, the Fiesta Movement, gave new Ford Fiestas to 100 social media savvy drivers for six months in an effort to get them to blog, tweet, YouTube, and photograph their time driving it. According to the Detroit Free Press, this campaign has created 60 percent brand awareness for the car – which normally would cost $50 million if traditional media were used for Ford’s product promotion.

The Ford Fiesta, which is a subcompact car already popular in Europe, is to be launched and readily available in summer 2010 in the US. Jim Farley, Ford’s group vice president of global marketing, said that with this campaign, the public is well aware of the Fiesta, even though it doesn't go on sale until next summer. And the amount of money they spent on the campaign was only a fraction of the typical $50 million. Farley went on to say how he has learned a lot about the effectiveness of social media and "grass-roots marketing" through this, which makes him believe that social media is probably one of the best tactics to use in consumer product PR.

“Online has become mass media,” Farley said to The Detroit Free Press. “A Yahoo or Google page takeover actually gets more eyeballs than a network TV commercial now. That hasn’t happened before.”

Aside from the fact that young consumers tend to be the most powerful when it comes to buying influence - which is why Ford targeted their strategy towards them in the first place - this campaign that Ford did further proves the power of social media, as well as the cost-efficient means of it.

Smucker's Uncrustable giveaway

2009-09-29T13:01:00.000-07:00

As part of their PR or promotional efforts, many companies today are launching campaigns offering freebies of their product. And in this economy, the chance to get anything free, regardless of what it is, is awesome. And it is especially awesome when it is food.

In another example of free coupons deriving from the internet and spreading through word of mouth life rapid fire, Smuckers put up a online promotion on Monday morning offering 20,000 coupons for free four-packs of Smucker's Uncrustable Sandwiches - all of which were gone within hours.

Luckily, Smucker's took note of the KFC debacle from a few months back when they introduced Kentucky Grilled Chicken and made sure steer clear of shortages by putting a cap on how many coupons to be distributed. Coupons were given to the first 20,000 adults who registered on www.uncrustables.com and submitted an after-school organizational tip. The giveaway was a promo to show how the product helps busy moms provide their kids with a wholesome and convenient snack.

In New York PR, or any PR for that matter, solid promotion of a product is key. You can get all the editorial placements and media coverage, but what better PR is there than to get the general public and potential consumers to try out the product for themselves? And for free? After all, it is them who will ultimately be spending money on it.

- Sabina for AMP3 Public Relations

Should companies have official guidelines for employees who use social media sites?

2009-08-28T08:40:00.000-07:00

Matt Leonard of the Search Engine Journal wrote this great article about the idea of employees needing social media guidelines when it comes to their online presence on these networks and whether it was needed.

According to multiple studies in the past few months, several companies are seeing the problems of their employees’ social media behavior escalating, whether it is posting inappropriate pictures or bad-mouthing the company they work for. Ultimately, these incidents are slowing down productivity, creating conflict and inflicting a bad image on the department, or the company as a while.

However, more and more companies are starting to implement programs that mitigate the risks of social media, as well as keeping the company out of the spotlight of bad PR. Because after all, your employees ultimately build the image of your company, and the last thing you need is PR suicide because one of your workers couldn’t keep their mouth shut (or fingers tied away from the keybaord) on Facebook about an internal scandal.

Truth be told, I think it is wise that companies are deciding to educate their employees about social media and online communication. While you cannot control human behavior overall, it is a piece of mind for companies to know that they did their part in making it clear what is right and what is wrong in terms of online behavior. In the end, if an employee doesn’t follow protocol, it makes it that much easier for employers to fire them and not have to face a lawsuit because you had already provided them with set guidelines.

Still, it is pretty much a given that if you are employed somewhere and you have connections with other fellow employees or superiors, you have to be a bit more careful about posting pictures from your night out at the bar or posting comments about that pesky co-worker who can’t seem to mind their own business. That’s just common sense.

You can check out the full-length article here.

- Sabina for AMP3 Public Relations

Best Buy's Big Oops

2009-08-18T09:58:00.000-07:00

So last week, the big buzz in the social media universe (as well as the traditional media) was the big pricing error that Best Buy had on one of its HD televisions. The TV, a 52-inch Samsung high-definition screen, is retailed at $3,000 and was to be on sale at Best Buy for $1,700. But what was the listed price on the website? A whopping $9.99.

Anyone with common sense would know that this TV could not possibly be sold at that price – the store and the manufacturer would face detrimental loss. But, hundreds of people tried their luck, and sure enough some people were able to purchase the TV at the listed price. It took less than an hour for Best Buy to realize the error once they were bombarded with orders of the same TV and word started to spread.

Best Buy then sent statements to the media, emailed its customers who bought the TVs and Twittered their apologies – in addition to saying that they will not be honoring the deal, safely backed by their policy terms. Customers who bought the item were furious, with one Twitterer saying, "Down with Best Buy! Burn em down." Others felt that it was pure common sense to know that this was a deal too good to be true, with another Twitterer saying, "So people REALLY thought getting a Samsung 52-inch HDTV for $9.99 at best buy was NOT a typo and thought they'd honor the price...idiots!"

Personally, while I think it is ridiculous for those who did purchase those TVs at those prices to believe that the price will actually be honored, I do feel that Best Buy would have done itself an even bigger (and positive) PR favor if they gave some sort of gift card or coupon that they could use towards the TV or any other item in the store. Either way, the generated buzz for the store – although not all positive – was still free PR for them, and well, in this economy, free PR is better than no PR.

- Sabina for AMP3 Public Relations

Thinking Outside the Bun

2009-08-06T14:20:00.000-07:00

Anyone who knows me knows that I love Taco Bell. I mean, love. So when I heard that the marketing and communications team at Taco Bell want to reach out to their customers via another true love of mine, social media, I squealed with joy. And it’s not because two of my loves are now combined, but mainly because I’ve always thought of Taco Bell having very quirky marketing tactics (i.e. the Taco Bell Chihuahua – may she R.I.P., their April Fool’s joke in 1996 where they said they bought the Liberty Bell, and so on), making social media a potential strength for Taco Bell's marketing campaign on a digital platform.

But it is about time that they do jump on the social media bandwagon – especially since it promotes itself to be a vibrant and youth-driven brand. For that, Taco Bell understands that digital and social media is a vital part in connecting with its customers. Also, in keeping in track with America’s desire to be healthy, they plan to focus a majority of their digital marketing on their lower-calorie “Fresco” menu, which features low-calorie and low-fat tacos. They’ve hired San Francisco/New York based agency R/GA to revamp their website into an “entertainment portal” as a more user-friendly destination for information. Their website is set to relaunch in January 2010.

-Sabina for AMP3 Public Relations

When You Just Don't Want to Deal with the Press

2009-07-24T08:14:00.000-07:00

News broke two days ago that Amazon.com was buying out rival online footwear retailer, Zappos.com for $850 million in cash and stocks. The purchase of Zappos.com further embeds the e-commerce giant’s attempt to gain more success in selling apparel and accessories.

But instead of dealing with the press about the acquisition, Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos took a page out of the social media handbook and created a YouTube video. The video was directed not at the press or the customers, but to the employees of Zappo’s to ensure that they aren’t losing their jobs, but merely gained a partner who will help to continue flourishing Zappo’s ideology of “delivering WOW through service.” CEO Tony Hsieh didn’t make a YouTube video, but he too avoided the press and blogged about his thoughts on Amazon’s obtainment and the future of Zappo’s in Amazon’s hands.

The benefit out of Bezos’s YouTube video was the fact that he didn’t have to get slammed with repetitive, boring questions from the press. Instead, he got to talk about the history of Amazon.com and the fact that he believes their company shares the same ideals of customer satisfaction with Zappo’s - he says, "I get all weak-kneed when I see a customer-obsessed company, and Zappos certainly is that. Zappos also has a totally unique culture...and I'm super excited about that." Not only did Bezo (and Hsieh) get to choose what they want to say, but also they were able to generate PR on their own terms and create hype for what is to come.

The link to Hsieh's blog is here and the YouTube video of Besos's message is below:

Rescued by Twitter

2009-07-07T08:05:00.000-07:00

This past weekend, my brother was supposed to fly to South America with a friend. The friend's first flight got cancelled, and my brother ended up spending the night in the Lima airport, waiting for his pal to arrive so they could start their trip together. I wonder if things would have been different for him had he read this article from NYT:

Twitter Comes to the Rescue

Twitter definitely is an effective means of airing your grievances against a company. The article mentions hotels (Omni) and airlines (Virgin, JetBlue, Southwest) that are utilizing Twitter to reach out to customers. I am really impressed to learn of the speedy response from these companies and how they helped their customers. Now that's how you use social media public relations!

Have you ever Tweeted a problem with a company? What was the reaction?

A Gold medal worthy Social Media Campaign

2009-07-02T07:33:00.001-07:00

Here's an article that I found on prdaily.com:
Going for the gold: a multimedia blitz for the Olympics

As you might recall, Chicago was in the running to host the 2012 games. That didn't quite work out for them, since London got the go-ahead. Chicago has since recovered and is plotting their campaign to host the 2016 games. With a $50 million budget, the Chicago 2016 Olympics pr team is going to tell the world how wonderful Chicago is. The director of PR for Chicago 2016's exact words were "no stone left unturned". They're using some of those millions to infiltrate the media, with ambassadors who will appear at Chicago's summer festivals, a Web site, a YouTube page, blogs, Facebook page, Twitter account, and a iPhone application (counting down the days until the decision). The decision will be made October 2 by the IOC. Other cities in the running include Tokyo, Madrid, and Rio de Janiero.

Perhaps the most valuable reason Chicago will win over the IOC members is one that money can't buy. If the 105 members, all of which who live outside the US, are big Obama fans, Chicago might be in luck.

Would you like a side of social media with that, sir?

2009-06-30T08:46:00.001-07:00

When you think of Denny's do you think of your grandparents eating an early bird dinner and paying with a coupon? Well, that's about to change. Denny's has embraced a social media strategy to promote their restaurants to a younger generation. The article, from today's Wall Street Journal, reviews how Denny's is using music to lure night owls looking for their fix of fries and shakes after a late night out. Denny's has always been a 24-hour operation, but with the advent of "fourthmeal" and fast food chains keeping later hours, Denny's realized it could be a cooler place for hungry party people. For starters, Denny's is playing rock and country music from 10pm-5am. This is music to the youngsters ears. Denny's is also teaming up with a diverse roster of musicians, from Good Charlotte to Jewel to Rascal Flatts, to create new items to add to the late-night menu. The "Allnighter" program is the crown jewel of the social media pr plan. Emerging musicians are sponsored, meaning they get $1000 in Denny's gift cards to use while on the road. Then, Denny's Tweets to let the 18- to 24-year-olds know when the bands' after-parties will be.

Overall, I think this is a really great idea for Denny's. I think the music-food symmetry works really well for the demographic they are targeting. Plus, Denny's has a retro feel to it that I think this age group might find fresh, as opposed to stale. The in-store "AllNighter" performances are creating atmosphere, which is something I think fast food chains tend to lack (although recent renovations in a Taco Bell and McDonald's from home are surprisingly sophisticated). Don't most people tend to get fast food via the drive-thru? The "AllNighter" gigs are open to an even younger set (<18), who might be really psyched to hang out with older, college kids and hear a live band and eat a burger all at the same time.

Plus, this is a win-win for the bands. Eating at Denny's while on tour? Awesome. When you're touring out the back of your mom's van, you want to keep costs low. Denny's is always open and they have locations everywhere. The bands definitely appreciate this when they are driving to the next gig and it's 4:30am and they're hungry. Let's not forget the exposure these bands are getting too. According to the WSJ article, Stereo Skyline, an adopted band, had over 100 fans come to a southern California Denny's for an after-party. Did you know that Katy Perry was one of the early Denny's adoptees? If her success is any indication, then this social media music pr plan could put Denny's at the top of the charts.

Here's a recent clip I found on YouTube from one of their AllNighters:

The Next Big Thing in Viral Social Media

2009-06-01T11:40:00.000-07:00

Our last posting brought you a collective of 2008's best viral videos that swept the internet and glued all of our eyes to YouTube. Well, a new craze has started gaining momentum and requires less work than coming up with your own viral campaign.

It's literal video and is basically what the name implies. Some are really clever and others just downright suck, but hey, grab a mic and see what sort of magic you can do on an old Barenaked Ladies or Nirvana music video.

My favorite? Take On Me by A-ha.

Take on Me: Literal Video Version - watch more funny videos

The Best Social Media / Viral Videos of 2008

2009-05-10T12:27:00.001-07:00

Theres usually a common thread that occurs in each of the videos in VideoGums compilation of the best viral videos of 2008, and thats laughter. When creating a video, especially with Social Media Marketing and Public Relations in mind, its important to make sure that people can associate a good feeling with your video. Thats just Marketing 101, however there seems to be a special blend of creativity and Luck required in order to havea video go viral.

Blip.fm - A music lovers best friend

2009-04-27T22:12:00.000-07:00

Blip.fm is proving to be one of the best web 2.0 tools for muscians, artists and Social Media Publicists. You can basically search any song by any artist and "blip" it. Once you blip it, it can be automatically posted onto your twitter account, with a personalized note and a link to the song or the band that you selected. Do this enough times and pick the right songs, and you just might find yourself as one of the premier DJ's on blip.fm, though I would imagine it would take days and days of hard work to even make a bleep on the radar. Along with sites like grooveshark and last.fm, blip.fm is going to be a very useful tool in the music pr agency world. I know for a fact at least a dozen firms, agencies, and social media publicists will be using this too.

Burger King gets in trouble for its latest marketing mistake

2009-04-15T08:21:00.000-07:00

Burger King got in trouble again for their recent "Texican" Whopper Campaign. This would not be the first time that Burger King got in trouble both with the media and had Public Relations nightmare with Mexico.

They were previously in trouble for an ad showing parts of Mexico belonging to the United States. The chile topped burger does sound delicious, and with this much scandal around it, it seems that it will probably do very well - especially for those of us with an aversion to bland food. Twitter is abuzz with this scandal thanks to the front page Yahoo ad.

Mikeyy Twitter Worm

2009-04-12T11:38:00.000-07:00

This latest Twitter worm is being claimed by a teenager from Boston. The teenager admitted he was just doing it to promote his web site. The Twitter worm is called, Mikeyy. The Mikeyy Twitter worm posts unwanted messages to Twitter users' pages. The "Mikeyy" worm began spreading on the social networking/micro blogging web site early Sunday, posting messages like "Mikeyy I am done...," "MikeyyMikeyy is done.," and "Twitter please fix this, regards Mikeyy."
Seems harmelss enough, and Mikeyy is really providing a service to Twitter. Twitter will need to close this loophole and all the other ones that haven't been exposed yet.

Digg Has New Results Page

2009-04-10T13:34:00.000-07:00

The social media web site, Digg has a new results page. The new Digg results page gives users more options to filter results. Digg obviously hopes that this will improve results for their members. The more information is added to Digg, the bigger the need to be able to filter your results in a better way.
Digg's new Tool bar is also generating a lot more traffic since it was introduced not too long ago.

Face Book New York City Office

2009-04-10T11:08:00.000-07:00

Mayor Bloomberg is doing his best to entice the social media giant, Face Book to open up an office in New York City. With the high speed decline of investment banking jobs here in the city, Bloomberg wants to bring in Tech companies to fill the void.
Bloomberg said that after speaking with the face Book executives, he felt strongly that an office would be opened up here in the city. But the strange things is that Face Book already has a New York office. But the speculation is that Face Book would be moving more operations to the city, other than just the sales office they currently have in NYC.
But, Facebook spokesman, Larry Yu would not even comment on whether or not Face Book actually even met with Mayor Bloomberg.

Twitter Activated Cat Door

2009-04-08T22:00:00.000-07:00

You can now own a Twitter activated cat door. When your cat walks up to either side of the cat door, it snaps a picture and sends the picture to Twitter, for you to view. Then you can activate the cat door. This is handy because you can make sure that you only let your cat inside, instead of a raccoon or rat.

A few people who have commented on this new technology say that there is finally a good use for social media.

Facebook Got Me Fired

2009-04-06T07:26:00.000-07:00

Brian Dawkins, who signed with the Broncos as a free agent after a 13-year career in Philadelphia, is giving two tickets to the 2009 Broncos' game in Philadelphia to a former Eagles employee Dan Leone, who got canned after posting an angry message about Dawkins' departure on his social media networking Facebook page last month. Leone wrote on his Facebook page, "Dan is F'ing devastated about Dawkins signing with Denver ... Dam Eagles R Retarded !!" The Eagles fired him from his job as the west gate chief at Lincoln Financial Field.
Brian Dawkins said he felt bad that Dan had lost his job over spilling emotion about losing Dawkins. Dawkins acknowledged that Dan had chosen to act out of emotion but felt he could ease his pain with some tckets to next year's game against the Denver Broncos.

Google Acquiring Twitter

2009-04-04T14:29:00.000-07:00

So, I just realized today that iGoogle allows you to Tweet or use Twitter from your iGoogle page. Then I read an article that Google may be thinking of buying it. Google tried and failed to buy Face Book. I always questioned that move to not sell Face Book. You know it will only be popular until the next best thing comes out. If I was the owner or owners of Twitter, I would sell the hell out of my social media company. Remember that Google pays in Billions.

1600 Pennsylvania Avenue Canceled

2009-04-04T08:56:00.000-07:00

1600 Pennsylvania Avenue has been Canceled. David Shuster, the host of 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue has been shifted back to Keith Olberman and Chris Matthews fill in position. David Shuster was and still will be a big advocate of Twittering and Tweeting. He will be teaming up with Tamron Hall for the 3 to 5 slot. Shuster and Tamron are the biggest Twitter users the station has, so it is assumed they will be trying to make their television show as interactive as possible. Norah O Donnell's hour will be moved to the morning and Ed Shultz will be taking over 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue's 6 to 7 pm slot.

Social Media Mishaps

2009-04-01T18:53:00.000-07:00

I remember my first major Social Media Mishap like it was yesterday. It's a story about my friend... we'll call him Greg. The last I had heard from Greg was he and his girlfriend were thinking of splitting. It had been two months and I wrote on his wall, "Hey Greg, I heard you're dating an 18 year old, good for you!!" Just screwing around with him. I thought writing on the wall was more of a private, person to person kind of thing. I know, I don't use Face Book too much.

So, in reality Greg and his lady were still kind of together, and it basically destroyed their relationship. I told Greg to just tell his lady that I was an idiot, and it was only a joke.
Social Media can be dangerous. People have been fired from too much information. Social Media can also make you a slave, constantly having to update your status and answer random questions. It's good for business though. Social Media makes you a lot more efficient and available. It's like your office is floating in this realm where your front door is always open and everyone is only 1 step away. Annnyway.

Stephen Colbert Tweets About Facebook

2009-03-30T20:37:00.000-07:00

ON tonight's Stephen Colbert Show, Stephen Tweeted about updating his Facebook status. He updated his Facebook Status by typing in he was updating his Facebook status. Stephen Colbert used the above as an introduction in to subject that Americans are narcissistic. His guest, Emily Yoffe from Slate Magazine, felt that the economy is purging after glutenous and narcissistic behavior. Stephen argued back saying that, "Narcissism is integral to the American character. Thinking people might be better than you makes you Canadian, not American."

Social Media Marketing Strategy

2009-03-30T19:26:00.000-07:00

"Help us Name us" is Image Communications new social media marketing strategy. It involve letting the social media users suggest a new company name. The lucky person who wins will get an Amazon Kindle2!!! Yeah, I had to ask what the F a Kindle2 was as well. It's a wireless reading device. Go Here to enter for your chance to win.

Celebrity Twittering

2009-03-29T13:32:00.000-07:00

Celebrity Twittering has become confusingly popular as of late. I am sure that Twitter is strategically paying celebrities, politicians, News organizations, etc. to Twitter and make it known that theyz-a-Twitterin'. It's either that or I have finally become completely out of touch. I don't get why you would use twitter for anything other than to promote something.
Shaquille O'Neil was Twittering during halftime. Sarcastic Republicans were Twittering during Obama's "kind of" State of the Union address. MSNBC has an hour of Twittering with the hypnotically beautiful Tamron Hall.
The reason I think it has to be a recent Twitter public relations push, rather than the natural evolution of Twitter, is Twitter has been around for awhile. Why is it everywhere all of a sudden?

Social Media Industry Report

2009-03-26T21:06:00.000-07:00

Michael Stelzner at the White Paper Source produced a Social Media Industry Report based on interviews with around 900 Social Media users. The report from that cross section of people found, amongst other things, that most (around 75%) social media users had only been using social media for 2 months. But, does that say that there is a high turnover rate or does it say that the Internet is growing at an exponential rate and since most Internet users are new to the Internet 75% of the social media users are new. Hmmmmm. It really makes you think... for a second.

Technology PR Firm Increases ROI

2009-03-25T12:16:00.000-07:00

Hiring a PR Firm that specializes in Technology PR will increase your ROI or Return on Investment with Social Media Marketing techniques and other Internet Marketing skills such as Search Engine Optimization and placing Contextual based Ads.
As companies look to advertise and promote themselves in other ways than Television and Print Media, the importance of finding a PR Firm that is technology savvy grows.
TiVo and DVR are forcing some advertisers to change or abandon tried and true Television advertising methods. The largest advertisers on TV are paying people like Conan O'Brien for on air characters such as the Fed Ex Pope. Family Guy has incorporated Burger King commercials in a clever way. The Biggest Loser strait up sells you gum in the middle of the show. I'm only guessing when I say that this method of incorporating commercials in to the programs we watch is incredibly effective. But, not all advertisers have the budget of Fed Ex or Burger King.
Print Media, newspapers specifically, are on their way out. Cities as large as Seattle and Denver have had to abandon what used to be popular newspapers. They failed to adapt to the changing market. The changing market which was influenced by one entity... Technology. It was a Titanical Technology Trifecta, made up of the Internet, TiVo's and DVR's.
Hire a PR Firm that specializes in Technology and you will be opened up to a world of cutting edge Internet marketing techniques. The Internet is still in its wild west days, and there are many places to explore and discover.

How Do You Use Twitter

2009-03-24T15:00:00.000-07:00

How Do You Use Twitter? That is a frequent question I get. It's also usually accompanied by What could Twitter possibly be good for?

First, everyone is obviously using Twitter for different reasons. I am coming from a place that only uses Twitter to promote web sites and blogs. I know people use it to spread their everyday mundane details to friends and followers, but that is something I don't understand.

First you need to set up your profile. In my profile, I made sure that I included SEO, Search Engine Optimization and Consultant in the beginning of my Bio because I am an SEO Consultant. You should do the same, but for whatever industry or interest you are representing. This is important because when Twitter users are looking for people like you to follow, this info in your Bio will help them find you.

Next, decide what you're going to Tweet. In my case I usually promote my latest Blog entry. But, you quickly realize you only get 140 characters to Tweet what you wanna. So you must use a URL shortening service. I use Tiny URL. Type in a short but descriptive intro and paste your generated Tiny URL in to the text. Go to Twitter Search and type in a word that describes what you just Twittered, and there you are.

Social Media Budgets Comparitively Small

2009-03-20T10:26:00.000-07:00

Social Media Budgets are still Comparatively Small according to many professional marketers. Forrester Research claims that they have found that 75% of marketers have budgeted less than $100,000 for social media efforts for the coming year. Despite many well-known and successful social media marketing campaigns it is obvious most are still wary about jumping all the way in until there is more evidence that social media marketing actually produces. Read the whole story here.

Jack in the Box Social Media Success

2009-03-19T21:52:00.000-07:00

The Jack in the Box Social Media PR campaign was a Success by any measure. The Social Media PR campaign had plenty of people who hated Jack in the Box's food, saying that their food kills people through submitted Video responses. Usually that would scare any marketing executive. But there was plenty of positive responses and user generated publicity. The videos JITB put out garnered more than 4.8 million views. Read the whole story here.