Jennifer Pino

Here we are, nearly a year later from my original post on pharma’s struggle to stay committed to social media, and it appears trust issues are still at the forefront of relationship resolution. Apparently my advice for couples therapy was lost in translation.

A recent survey by PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) found drugmakers have failed to gain the trust of most consumers on social networking sites. While the survey found only 37% of consumers trust information from drug companies on social media venues like Facebook, a third of those consumers did say that information from social networking sites influence their decisions about medicines - proving that pharma just can’t ignore its transparent, outgoing partner completely.

So, what’s a girl to do?

Tightly-wound, regulated, top-down, Type A, one-way, controlled, structured lady, Miss Pharma thought she was finally really letting loose and embracing Mr. Social Media. She employed his free-wheeling, bottom-up, conversational, unpredictably evolving, current, wide open misfit spirit and setup that Facebook page, joined LinkedIn groups, tweeted what she had for breakfast, alerted the masses that she checked-in to CVS, and even pinned some corporate history.

But, no, it’s never enough, is it?

“Health organizations have an opportunity to use social media as a way to better listen, participate in discussions and engage with consumers in ways that extend their interaction beyond a clinical encounter,” PwC’s Kelly Barnes, of the company’s U.S. health unit, said, as quoted by InPharm. “Savvy adopters are viewing social media as a business strategy, not just a marketing tool.”

It looks like Miss Pharma (and her Life Sciences Sisters and Biotech Babes) need to take it another step further and really dig into the wealth of consumer data from social networking sites.

She needs to communicate better with Mr. Social Media and find out what really makes him tick. Maybe treat him to a candlelight dinner downtown. Order the surf and turf and a nice bottle of Rosé. Learn about the hot topics among target patient groups and what is influencing decisions.

Maybe then, the divorce papers will be traded in for hashtags; the ballpoint pen for a pin, and the dotted line for a broadcasting hangout.

A girl can dream, right?

I recently read Steve Farnsworth’s (or @steveology for all you Twitter fans out there) article, Is Social Media Beyond a Public Relations Professional’s Skill Set? Steve was responding to an article by Howard Sewell, Is Social Media Wasted on PR Agencies?

My first reaction to just the titles of these articles was an emphatic, near defensive, NO. I think of social media as just another artillery in the PR Pro’s arsenal of communications weaponry. But then Steve-O and Howard got me thinking.

Perhaps the question should be, Is Lead Generation Beyond a PR Professional’s Skill Set? Or is Media Relations Wasted on PR Agencies? Let me explain…

Both admit PR’s traditional foundation and dynamic has put blinders on some very smart PR pros, segmenting out variables of PR plan (specifically, social media) rather than integrating, and often leaving lead generation to fend for itself by the wayside.

For example, a social media plan authored by a client’s PR agency was recently shared with Howard. The stated objectives of said plan were:

• increase awareness amongst bloggers, influencers and prospects
• enhance company’s image by delivering insight to key online communities
• promote company’s approach to [company’s technology & product category]

Not horrible, but, as Howard points out awareness and thought leadership represent only a fraction of the potential return from social media, and there’s no reference to lead generation and lead nurturing. He goes on to say that his plan would have also included:

• drive search-generated traffic and net new sales leads
• use targeted, insightful content to attract and engage with qualified prospects
• expand company’s leads database and community of followers
• educate, cultivate, and nurture existing customers and prospects

While I think both Steve and Howard make some excellent points in their discussions, what struck me the most was not the social media conundrum, but that these PR “plans” are just that. Plans.

I think the most important part of PR is understanding your client, the space they are in, their audience, and most importantly; their goals. Not necessarily how you get there.

Maybe lead generation isn’t important to your client in the beginning stages of your PR relationship. And that’s okay. Your plan should reflect that, and work towards meeting their other goals, such as brand awareness or market disruption. A good PR team should be able to guide the client through ways to meet those goals, and how to measure if activities are working. Sure, social media may be a part of those PR action items, but only if it makes sense towards meeting goals and getting the kind of ROI your client is after.

Yes, you can have your social media cake and eat it too.

Bottom line is, a PR professional wears many hats, and nothing should be beyond your job description if it makes sense for not only the client’s, but also agency’s success (within reason, of course, i would think ‘panhandling’ for example would be outside of an expected job responsibility for a public relations team, but hey, maybe that’s just me…).

I’d love to hear your thoughts as well. Share a comment below!

Are you a LION? And, no, I don’t mean in the “rawr” giant-cat sense of the word, I’m talking about a LinkedIn Open Networker.

The basic idea behind LIONs is that open-networkers are LinkedIn users who are willing to establish connections with people with whom they’ve had no previous relationship.

LIONs to me are kind of like the Patti Stanger of the online networking world. “I don’t know you, and you don’t know me, but I think we’d be a great match. Maybe we could talk about it over wi-fi and a bowl of mashuga nuts.

For some, this may sound like a plan. I can see many of our clients in sales salivating right about now. [I’ll just advertise myself as a LION and pretty soon, I’ll have so many connections, there won’t be enough time in the day for wi-fi mashuga nut business dates!]

Not so fast, fast-cats.

First of all, this breaks all the LinkedIn “rules” about users limiting connections to those they’ve known and worked with in real life. In addition to this caution-to-the-wind attitude, LIONs also experience excessive connection requests, many of which end up being spam from internet marketers creating fake LinkedIn profiles.

It really poses the quality vs. quantity dilemma. The connections made as a LION are typically more about quantity than anything else, and while sure, being in the right networking circle at the right time could mean success, most of the time you’re just another profile in a sea of PhDs and MBAs.

A better way to approach this might be simply adding a few strategic LIONs to your network, rather than becoming one yourself, and see if you can facilitate additional connections that way.

Or, you could get out there and actually physically meet people (say wha?). Get retro and ask someone for coffee or lunch. How else are they supposed to see your winning fashion sense and green sensibility when you drive up in an electric car? You can’t do that on LinkedIn.

Roll out the welcome mat for new client, News Over Wireless!
                               
About News Over Wireless (NOW)
Founded in 2004 and headquartered in Raleigh, North Carolina, News Over Wireless works with broadcasters and wireless phone carriers to provide news and information on mobile phones through video channels, applications and mobile websites. NOW assists partners with quick launches and full support of mobile solutions to help them build their own applications by customizing content, menu structure and their brand. The company helps extend newsrooms, increase customer loyalty, maintain their technology leadership and add additional revenue stream for partners.

NOW is ahead of the game as one of the few providers with extensive expertise in the mobile application and advertising space, with a number of innovations under its belt. NOW enables customers to take an advantage of multiple platforms with a breadth of offerings, giving industry partners the ability to add-on new features as their needs change.

NOW came to Crossroads PR…
to establish themselves as a key player within the mobile applications and advertising industry. Crossroads PR will help educate the market, media and key analysts on NOW’s mobile applications and advertising technology and build thought leadership for the company.

Roll out the welcome mat for new client, Valencell!
                               
About Valencell
Founded in 2006 and headquartered in Raleigh, North Carolina, Valencell develops physiological monitoring technology for the growing mobile
fitness market and licenses this technology to industry partners for integration with brand-name accessories such as audio earbuds and mobile fitness applications used by consumers each day.

With over 25 patents pending, Valencell’s V-LINC™ sensor technology is the only solution on the market that allows you to capture accurate, meaningful, actionable, and personalized health and fitness data such as metabolic rate and cardiovascular fitness (VO2max). Moreover, V-LINC™ technology comprises the only earbud-based continuous heart rate monitoring technology proven accurate during virtually any exercise in virtually any physical environment or condition.

Valencell came to Crossroads PR…
to establish themselves as a key player within the mobile fitness technology space, as well as build brand awareness and their tradeshow presence. Crossroads PR helped Valencell build industry buzz at CES and is now focused on educating the broader market, more media and potential partners on
Valencell’s unique technology.

That Cyndi Lauper was ahead of her time.

Caught up in circles confusion—
Is nothing new
Flashback—warm nights—
Almost left behind
Suitcases of memories,
Time after…

How many of you are confused or ‘caught up in circles’ by Facebook Timeline? Remembering the days of yore when you had finally figured things out (kinda, sorta) and were feeling good about your personal profile and company page?

Sure, for months on my personal Facebook page, I had seen the top-bar indicator, enticing me to take a ride on the Timeline pony. “Look how many of your friends are already trying it,” it pursued. Yet, I chose to “x” out that indicator box and ignore, ignore, ignore. Facebook and I had finally gotten to a good place, and I didn’t want to unravel our relationship (again).

Then news broke that Timeline for Facebook brand pages was about to unveil. A dark cloud formed over my Macbook.

After my picture fades and darkness has
Turned to gray
Watching through windows—you’re wondering
If I’m okay…

I’m okay, Cyndi, I’ll be okay.

I decided to educate myself a bit before diving into Timeline headfirst. Here are some great articles/resources I read to help get started, and some high-level takeaways:

• Timeline for Facebook pages: a complete overview of new features

What differs is the ability to pin a post to the top of a page and a friend activity box that makes pages more relevant to each user. Page tabs still function, but there is no longer an option to set a third-party tab as default. A new admin panel, activity log and direct message feature will help page owners manage their communities.

• Facebook to Brands: “Start Acting Like People”

Develop a personality around your brand. A good social strategy starts off with the question “If your brand were a person, who would it be?”

• 5 Ways B2B Companies Can Use Facebook Timeline

B2B companies who want to succeed on Facebook must now develop and share content that doesn’t just provide value, but that catches peoples’ eyes. A recent study has already shown that many large brands don’t get that much fan engagement on Facebook, so this can be even more challenging for many B2B companies.

• Lessons You Can Take from The New York Times Storytelling

When Facebook rolled out the Timeline for businesses, they [NYT] were one of the first to roll out, not only a cover photo that shows their employees on two levels of the organization’s building, but also historical data, going back as far as the 1850s.

• How to Build a Business on Facebook: Brand Networks, Nanigans, & More

Facebook’s advertising strategy is being unified around the notion of storytelling; dedicated to the creation and amplification of stories through advertising…this philosophy—together with new advertising features Facebook has announced, such as the inclusion of ads within news feeds both on the web and mobile devices is a watershed moment for the social giant - the biggest advertising innovation seen in years of working on the platform.

• What Happened To Facebook’s Spam Filter On Timeline

After you upgrade a page to timeline, it might look like the spam filter has changed, when in fact it has simply relocated — or rather, posts flagged as spam are aggregated in the same place rather than strewn all over the wall. Facebook puts all your spam in one place under your admin panel.

• What will Timeline format mean for businesses using Facebook?

No longer will visitors to a business’ Facebook page be greeted by a landing tab to entice consumers to “Like” them. Now the previous conversations on the business’ timeline – which are more easily accessible under the new format – will have to attract new subscribers.

The idea makes some sense. Since social media emphasizes two-way conversation (as opposed to the one-way shouting of an advertisement), wouldn’t you want your conversations to be the focus of your Facebook page?

So, with this knowledge under my belt, I’ve been plugging away at updating Crossroads PR’s Timeline.

You said go slow—
I fall behind
The second hand unwinds…

And yes, with Cyndi’s tutelage, I’ve been going slow and taking my time to make it right. It’s actually been really fun to think back to past milestones and humble beginnings. Since many Crossroads “firsts” were before my time, I’ve enlisted the help of my coworkers to fill in the gaps.

Stay tuned for more updates, (sing it with me), time after time…