Inside out

“You’re the most external, internal comms person I know”

That is what a senior colleague of mine said to me a couple of weeks ago. Well I had just been briefing the external comms teams in Europe on an event that we were hosting about how we were going to cover it on Twitter and blogging. I was then asked to do the same for our Latin American teams.

I have to say I felt like a bit of a fraud until I realised the starting point for some of the people when it comes to using things like twitter, but everyone has to start at the beginning. I hate the social media guru title that get’s put about. All I do is use tools such as blogging, twitter and the like in a way that I feel works for me and in all honesty I can only say that others do the same too. Don’t get me started on social media marketing.

So was I doing external comms or internal comms for this event? Well, we were talking to employees, so it must be internal comms.  But hang on, we were also talking with non-employees, so it must be external comms? What about the employees?

We are and have been talking to IBMers in such places as Twitter for ages but it’s certainly not internal comms – it’s people talking to people.  It’s engaging anyone that wants to be involved in a conversation about something. Why would you exclude employees or only talk to them in a public arena to the exclusion of everyone else? For the record, putting your tweets through a protected Twitter id will not keep your “internal comms” hidden for long. Strategic internal comms, will be internal.  You certainly wouldn’t put your HR updates on Twitter, would you?

So what is it then? It’s communications. It’s all communications.  Some things you can share with the world and others you just can’t.

UK Government in shock Twitter update

Little while ago I added a list of 10 reason why PR, Marketing and Comms people should be on twitter and the the Government come up with a rather good template strategy document for depts to use twitter themselves.

Not only is it useful but it is quite realistic about the criticism that one may expect when a dept sets up an account. One of my favorite parts is where it mentions that from time to time Twitter may not work and essentially says live with it, everyone else does.

This document is full of useful tips on how to measure effectiveness and use of the service and indeed how to set expectations.  Just as valid as anything written by a “social media guru” on this stuff. The only surprise is that it came from the Government.

The people who put this together have no future in politics.

You can read more about it on the Cabinet Office blog and follow Neil Williams (head of digital channel, BIS) on Twitter @neillyneil.

10 reasons why PR, Marketing and Comms people need to be on twitter

I’m not one for these lists usually – especially when it comes to twitter as there are so many – but this one is pretty good.  Also it isn’t telling you the way to get 10 gazillion followers.  Just plain, simple, good reasoning.

But you know what, apart from the bit about selling a story to journalists and bloggers, these are great reasons for anyone: (Full details)

1. Twitter is an influential medium

2. Meet clever people

3. Build your network

4. Keep up with trends

5. Pitch journalists

6. Pitch bloggers

7. Tactical execution

8.. Get info…fast!

9. Build your personal brand (and sphere of influence)

10. Have a laugh.

Smarter Transport

Can we drop the phrase “Social Media Marketing”?

More and more I’m convinced that Social Media Marketing is nonsense. What most marketing types call SMM is actually marketing usually on a platform that has some sort of social element.  It has nothing to do with being social.

Communications is the new marketing centre.  Enabling employees to talk about the business and have conversations in public, which could be on Twitter or face to face, is where it needs to start.  I feel like I’m repeating myself.

Hiring in people to blog for you is like hiring a journalist or paying for editorial or a byline in a newspaper. It’s not social. It’s not a conversation. It is still focused on marketing, selling a message in other words.  That idea just went out the nearest window sometime ago.

Think about the phone, we use it to talk to each other, when someone calls you up and tries to sell you something it is bloody annoying.  Same with email.

Great, companies are starting to listen but then it often goes all wrong when they think they have done enough listening and start pushing out a message for services or products.

Twice today people have been talking to me about fitting marketing campaigns into social media as a way to reach more people. Just seems like they don’t get it or they are unwilling to change what they are doing.  Business indeed needs to change what it is doing and how marketing and communications is conducted. That may seem obvious but for TOO many it has yet to be addressed.

You will always be as slow as the slowest person in the team.