PR Communications

Mobile Technology Marketing Insights From Tamara Gruber

When I think of mobile, I think of Tamara Gruber, who specializes in marketing mobile technology companies here in the northeast. I first met Tamara at an AMA Event (I’m a past president of the Boston chapter) and we started chatting about the challenges mobile technology companies face in marketing their services. I thought an interview on Mobile Technology marketing strategy would be interesting, so here’s the result:

John: How are mobile technology companies different from other start ups?

Tamara: Frankly, I think mobile technology companies face greater challenges than an internet service or enterprise software company.  To start, you have such disparate technologies that you need to bridge…be it a thousands of handsets, various operating systems, or multiple network protocols.  That requires a tremendous amount of expertise and support.  Next, there are many factors that you just can’t control.  For example, we are still dealing with carriers that want to create “walled gardens” of content and make it challenging for companies addressing the mobile consumer or business needs.  Then, you have the lifespan of a mobile phone.  As hot as it was, a year after the launch of the Apple iPhone, Blackberry was still the number one device used for accessing the mobile web.  It takes time, and a number of pricing factors controlled by the network, to achieve critical mass. 

You may be the hottest thing in mobile and still only address a fraction of the audience.  First mover advantage is still important but it is not at all unusual to see a disruptive technology or policy, change the landscape dramatically, making it actually easier for new entrants to gain market share.

John: What’s different about marketing within the mobile industry?

Tamara: Probably speed.  I know we are all used to working at a pace that was unheard of a decade ago but even still, as I hinted at earlier, the landscape and ecosystem of this marketplace changes so rapidly that your messaging needs to constantly evolve. 

Staying close to your customers and marketplace is crucial and keeping your ear to the ground to anticipate how moves from device manufacturers and carriers can affect your business is critical to your survival.  Just look at how Verizon’s move to increase SMS rates sent so many companies into a tizzy – that announcement may not have meant much to the average consumer but it could drive some companies out of business.  All in all, the mobile space is actually a fairly small and incestuous community so someone with good business connections brings a lot to the table. 

John: What marketing advantages does your expertise in the mobile technology industry give you?

Tamara: When I talk about the “mobile industry,” that brings to mind many different things depending on who you talk to and I’ve worked in just about all of them.  Generally I split the industry into three categories: 

1) Carrier/infrastructure – which would be the carriers and companies that sell to carriers;
2) Enterprise – which includes devices from Blackberries to rugged handheld devices, and software like sales force automation, mobile workforce management, fleet management, pick up and delivery applications, field service, and more;
3) and finally, what most people think of, Consumer – consumer includes phones, content like ringtones, mobile applications, mobile websites, messaging services, and mobile marketing. 

Mobile marketing is another marketing channel but a very complex one.  If you want to put together a mobile marketing campaign, you may need to work with a dozen vendors.  First, you need to buy advertising inventory, which can be done directly from a publisher or through a multitude of ad networks.  In fact, you many need to work with multiple publishers and ad networks to reach your target audience across various wireless networks.  If you want to incorporate a messaging component to provide a direct response mechanism and incorporate the campaign with the rest of your marketing, you need to obtain a short code and work with a messaging provider.  Plus, you need someone to create a mobile optimized site for you, as well as design and serve the ads.

Understanding the landscape, having established relationships, and being able to discriminate between the various players and business models helps someone hit the ground running that much faster. 

John: Who are the important people and associations in the industry?

Tamara: MobileMonday (http://www.mobilemonday.net/) is an organization that has grown to have chapters around the global, including a very active community here in Boston (http://www.momoboston.com/).  Depending on your focus, a few other important organizations include Mobile Marketing Association (http://www.mmaglobal.com/main) and CTIA (http://ctia.org/).  Developers might want to check out Wireless Developer Agency (http://www.wirelessdeveloper.com/).  Kim Dushinski over at MobileMarketingWatch just did a post with a list of groups to join in various social networks that is a good resource.

John: What’s the timeline of marketing history within the industry?

Tamara: If you are referring to mobile marketing as an industry, it really came it being with the advent of the mobile web and SMS.  The Mobile Marketing Association was formed in 2002 and has since grown to become a global organization with over 700 members.

John: When did you get involved with the industry and how can people find you?

Tamara: I first started working in mobile in 1997 when I joined a wireless middleware provider, now MobileAware.  After that, I served as VP of Marketing for an SMS-based application, shopping, ticketing, and game service provider, Scan Mobile.  In 2003, I founded Red Giant Consulting, a strategic marketing and communications firm that focuses largely on mobile/wireless companies.  You can find out more about my services and client list on http://www.redgiantconsulting.com but the best way to connect with me would be through Twitter (http://www.twitter.com/tgruber) or LinkedIn.  If you are heading to an AMA or MobileMondays event in Boston, please drop me a line at tamara@redgiantconsulting.com, I’d love to chat.

John: Thanks Tamara!

Short url for tweeting:  http://snurl.com/9ymzl,

The Interview: Kevin Micalizzi

I first met Kevin P. Micalizzi @kevinmic at a tweet-up I organized for Boston Tweeple in August. Chatting with Kevin at John Harvard’s he described his background with Avid Technology and the work he did there kick-starting social media. I thought it would be interesting to interview Kevin for the PR Communications, especially when I learned he was looking for a job. Kevin is taking a blogging approach to job hunting; he is building his resume online and is featuring the resume for comments on his blog. http://kevin.micalizzi.com/

Here's my interview with Kevin:

John: Please describe your background with some of the companies you’ve worked at, how you started in the IT and then migrated more over to web marketing because of necessity?

Kevin: My work in the web space started in 1995 at Sybase doing electronic support.
About a year later, I took over the role of webmaster and continued there until 2000. At that point webmaster meant many things. In my case it was mostly web operations, administration (system and application), and developing software for the web. There was still a strong IT focus at this point.

In 2000 I went to work for Rational Software (now a part of IBM's Software Group) as the web engineering manager. It was at this point in my career my focus started to shift from "what do we need to build" to "what are we trying to solve". Much of my time was split between managing the projects we had and meeting with stakeholders across the company to talk about what challenges we weren't addressing. My team was a part of Marketing through most of my time with Rational.

In 2005 I joined Avid Technology in a project management role. Over time my responsibilities increased, with a promotion to Manager, Web Strategy & Development in 2007. In my time at Avid I started focusing more on understanding the marketing challenges as well as introducing social media.

We re-launched our community forums with customer moderators, created blogs, launched a podcast series, and created a video sharing service (now http://community.avid.com). Just before I left Avid we redesigned the corporate web site to reflect the company's new market focus and make it easier for customers to navigate.

John: You moved to web management and social media, there's been a lot of discussion in the wider community about where the responsibility for social media should sit in the community, from your experience at Avid, what's your opinion about the responsibilities of managing social media and web marketing, and which disciplines should be involved?

Kevin: I found at Avid that we got the most out of social media (especially forums) when we had three disciplines represented: online marketing, customer support/advocate, and web technology.

To answer your question about where it should live, I think you need to have the marketing expertise, technology expertise, and some representation from service or customer advocates--if it's a cross-functional team driven by marketing (like a number I've worked on and with,) it's still an effective way to tackle having the right representation.

If it's purely a marketing function, there may not be enough substance behind the contact to make it worthwhile for the customers to maintain.

If you don't have experts on web technology involved, its very possible you'll miss opportunities to make more available to customers -- or at a minimum make the job of marketing easier.

If it's purely a service/support function it may not support the overall online objectives the company has set.

John: I understand you are looking for a new job at the moment, what would be your dream job?

Kevin: That's always been a tough question to answer--and the primary reason I started blogging about my job hunting process.

The technology is fascinating, but being at the point in the process where you're the one who just "makes it happen" is extremely limiting. I've developed a strong understanding and good instincts from the years I've been working with the web and I want to be in a position to use them. I'm not sure if that means a role in web strategy or director of online marketing or something in product management.

I want to be able to work with customers to better understand their needs, balance that with the business objectives, and develop the roadmap(s) needed to get there. It's tough, but I think I'm even willing to give up ownership of the "how" it gets done side of the process to ensure that I'm better positioned to be making the decisions on "what" needs to be done.

Part of the fun in working with the web is everything is constantly being redefined. Some days I wish the discipline was more mature so I could point to a well defined role and say "that's what I want." But if we were at that point, I think the magic and excitement would be lost. So I'll just have to keep redefining what I want.

John: Thanks Kevin for your insights, and the opportunity to learn more about your background. Check out Kevin’s blog at http://kevin.micalizzi.com/

Andy Palmer Talks About Start Ups, And Leadership On The Interview

While searching through some of the most linkedin people in the Boston area I found Andy Palmer's profile in linkedin.com. He is current CEO & Co-Founder at Vertica Systems, a database company that is revolutionizing the way databases are built, Andy has an extensive start up background and is a veteran of the industry, I thought I'd spend some time asking him about his experiences with start ups, marketing, social media and Vertica.

John: Tell me a little about your background.

Andy: I am a start up veteran, I am working on my 5th start up, and four were software and the other a biotech company. I was always attracted with working with scientists and technologists, and wanted to help commercialize their ideas.

John: What makes a successful start up?

Justin Abbott From Blogads: The Interview

Justin Abbott is a vice president at Blogads.com the advertising network for blogs, he and I had a chance to talk about some of the issues surrounding blog ads and blogs.

John: What is your background in Internet marketing?

Justin: I used to be an investment analyst, before I joined Blogads back in its early days. I've been bushwhacking through the world of Internet advertising ever since.

John: Please describe how blogads works?

Justin: Blogads connects bloggers and advertisers, and automates the upload, payment, and tracking of the ads. It's a one-stop shop for DIY online advertising.

John: What's the economics of the blogads system? Is it a viable system for the participants, advertisers and bloggers?

Justin: Bloggers set their own prices, and advertisers choose blogs based on their target/topic and budget. Bloggers have low overhead and benefit directly from great writing - and advertisers get access to influential decision makers, at a fraction of the cost of traditional media. So yeah, it's highly viable - it's where the world is headed.

John: Blogging is about conversation, and two-way communication, advertising is one-way communication, and how do you reconcile the two?

Justin: Advertising doesn't have to be one-way communication. Advertising can take advantage of its medium - traditional advertising was mono directional, but blogs and the Internet open the world up to multiple connections. Great blog advertising takes advantage of this conversational aspect to create highly relevant and timely ads.

John: What makes an effective blog ad?

Justin: Just like an effective pickup line it really depends on the audience, place and time. Brian Clark (from indieWIRE.com) has a great ditty on how to make a killer blogad here:

John: What makes an effective blog?

Justin: The best blogs are written by bloggers with incredibly unique voices.
They put amazing spins and ideas on everything they touch. Think of bloggers like PerezHilton.com, Meg from CuteOverload.com, or Markos from DailyKos.com.

John: Why is advertising more effective when displayed on blogs?

Justin: Most advertising is just throwing a net into the sea. You might catch something, but a lot of it is going to be junk that has to be thrown back in. Blog advertising lets you target exactly those influentials you want to catch - those people who are intimately active in a community that you want to reach, who live and breath in the same mind-space that the advertiser inhabits..

John: New Journalism is about combining the objective approach of news reporting with the subjective approach of fictional writing. Tom Wolfe and other writers pushed the envelope when it came to journalism. I was thinking that blogging in many circumstances is new journalism in action. Here's an example of a blog that I think really illustrates new journalism at work. http://drgreiver.blogspot.com/ Dr. Greiver is a doctor who writes her blog about her practice implementing an electronic medical record system. Many bloggers attempt to be objective but also express their opinion, except with blogging instead of the journalist reflecting and reporting on subjects. The subject and writer are one and the same. Do you think I am accurate in characterizing some blogs as new journalism?

Justin: Blogging is a kind of New Journalism, using techniques that are unconventional in traditional media, and working in a sphere/with a method that supercedes traditional journalism. But I would hesitate to call it something-journalism, if just because of how hard a break it is with the journalistic past. Newspapers and even New Journalism operate on the top-bottom model. Journalists with editors with publishers with owners, passing everything up and down the chain, getting rubber stamped and revised. Blogging is the complete opposite, with bloggers responsible for the whole of their work, and connections that are as numerous as a neural network.

John: Thanks Justin for a great interview and answers.

Michael Rubin From The NetFlix Blog Interview

Michael Rubin runs the NetFlix Blog and I recently had the opportunity to ask him about how he uses the blog for product development and customer feedback. I thought he wrote and exceptionally well written answer.

John: I really wanted to focus on how you intend to use the blog for product and service development. What content strategies do you intend to use, or have used that you expect will get feedback from customers?

Michael: The blog feels like a high bandwidth line of connectivity between people who use the site and we - the folks building the site. It bypasses Customer Service, it jumps over Public Relations, it plugs right into engineering and development. That makes it very pure.

We have many ways of building our intuition about what to build and how it should work. We do lots of more formal research and testing, we have a lot of experience to bring to the table. We're also all really big movie fans who like talking about movies. It all swirls into a dynamic team who have one goal and that is to make the site as good as it can be, and listening to customers is our obligation and joy.

Statistically meaningful testing is important, but there is something quite powerful about the idiosyncratic experience of our blog readers.
They catch our mistakes sometimes. They articulate problems or wishes -- often items we ourselves have been thinking about for some time, often items we are debating internally, but sometimes all it takes is a different vantage point, a phrase, a hint of something that makes an idea click -- that either helps us in our thinking or, in some cases, is a kind of deciding vote when we're on the fence. More information is always better, and we listen to our customers in a wide variety of venues -- and the blog is simply one more. I think it's a good one.

We do have a filter we must process everyone's comments with: the blog readers are not a random sampling of our millions of subscribers. From a data standpoint they are self-selected, and very much unlike the bulk of our users in many ways -- they are more interested, they may be more technically savvy, they may be younger or bigger movie fans... or whatever -- but all that is to say they are not a representative sample.

This isn't bad. It just means they don't always speak for everyone. But they do know a lot, and care a lot, and provide very good debate and information. I value their input and we simply have to remind ourselves each day they are one point of data and not the only point of data.

Sometimes this group sort of "gangs up" on you, they all agree with each other about some feature or another and it is dangerous to be swayed too much by their clear strong voice. We must always remind ourselves that their ideas are good for people like them, but may or may not be good for everyone. This is hard, particularly, because WE are like them.

We who work here are Netflix power users. We know the site well, can handle lots of complexity, LOVE movies, and so on -- just like our blog readers. But we have a business and social obligation to consider the
experience of those who don't read the blog, don't have 100 movies in their Queues, and still love the service. It must work for them too, and they aren't always represented among the majority in the blog comments.

We are the ones who must change hats constantly. It takes discipline and sometimes a thick skin. In the end, power users and novices alike need the service to work for all of us to "win."

When you say "content strategies" -- wow, that feels awfully formal. The blog isn't strategic in that way. It's not a company tool. It's MY tool. I'm the blogger. I don't communicate with the marketing or PR or communications parts of the company. I just ask questions I want to hear answers to, I talk about what's on my mind, what is going on, and what my experience is. I suppose as an employee it can seem like I am a spokesman, but I'm not -- not close. I am a writer and an educator before all other things, and I can't stop this thing that makes me want to communicate about what is going on. It makes my job both easier and more enjoyable. So I blog.

The team who make the website (and I think I will speak for my partners here), we get data EVERYWHERE. Talking with friends, standing at parties, sitting on planes, wandering around the Sundance Film festival and at Web 2.0 conferences. We talk about what we are doing, but more importantly, we listen to people who have their own story to tell about
Netflix. In that sense, the blog is just one more avenue – highly efficient to manage, data-rich, mutually beneficial and kinda neat. Until it becomes a chore, or produces no useful dialog, I will continue to employ it as my "strategy" to help in the design of the site.

Barry Rubinstein: Journalism And Blogging

Journalism blogging is a developing discipline within the profession of journalism. I believe that journalists are at a huge advantage when it comes to blogging because of their approach to writing. However blogging does require some new skills that today's journalist's need to acquire to get up to speed in the world of social media. Journalism was one of the professions I carefully considered in my book, how journalism can help a company blogger become more effective at blogging. For this reason I was delighted when I had the chance recently to chat with Barry Rubinstein at the Boston Social Media Club about blogging and journalism. I enjoyed the discussion so much that we decided to conduct an interview on the subject. Here's an introduction to Barry and what he is planning to do next.

Barry Rubinstein has decided to trade in long nights on the sports copy desk and in the press box for a position in the similarly frenetic world of public relations, and has relocated from New Jersey to Massachusetts in hopes of achieving that goal. He has covered every pro sport at the Newark Star-Ledger, spent most of his four years in media relations at the NBA craning his neck at the likes of Shaquille O'Neal, and contributed to the legend of wacky headlines at the New York Post.

John: In thinking about journalism and blogging, I see some parallels and differences between the profession and the medium. While journalism aims to be objective in many circumstances, and its techniques systematic, bloggers do not always follow the same path in producing posts. Yet some bloggers can be even more disciplined than some journalists. What do you think that bloggers can learn from journalism and what can journalists learn from bloggers?

Barry: I think in some cases, journalists get a bad rap for several reasons (so-called tabloid journalism, accusations of complicity with the government regarding the Iraq war and incidents of fabricating stories -- which made Jayson Blair rather infamous as a result of the NY Times scandal -- being three examples). But one of the factors going against bloggers is they don't have to substantiate their sources and material. I've worked for newspapers that insisted on verification from at least two sources before publishing a story. Ostensibly, bloggers don't have to answer to an editor (or three), so they can, in essence, publish whatever they want -- a point "old-school" journalists are quick to make. Perhaps the biggest advantage bloggers have going for them is speed; They can write and publish a story almost instantaneously; a newspaper article -- even those that appear on-line -- are subject to be read by at least three editors, sometimes more, and even on-line content is rarely "raw copy." Perhaps the new wave of social media can inspire journalists and their editors to conceive newer, quicker ways to get the news out there ... just so long as it's done so accurately.

John: There certainly is a school in blogging of asking for forgiveness when it comes to accuracy. Though I have also seen greater care taken by bloggers than journalists in fact checking their stories. As you point out with the Blair story, even the strongest editorial review process can fall down. How do you think the instant nature of the web and the collective nature of social media affects the approach that most bloggers use in making sure their facts are correct the first time?

Barry: One of the great things about the internet is the amount of research tools available. Given the assumption that most bloggers are likely to be more tech- and net-savvy than the general public (including, perhaps, journalists), it would seem to follow that bloggers may know quicker and better ways to fact-check. Trust me, I've worked with some damn lazy reporters. I can't tell you how many times I've had to look up basic information on deadline (statistics, spelling of peoples' names, etc.) that could have been done in less than a minute by the reporter before the story was filed. And as you mention, the turnaround on feedback time is much faster in the blogosphere than it is in journalism -- in most cases, almost instantaneous, given the nature of social media being much more participatory than conventional journalism. Bottom line, whether a blogger or an old-school journalist, it's paramount to get your facts right. And in this age of instant information, I don't think there's any excuse for getting things wrong -- no matter who you are.

John: Linking, putting comments on other websites, these are all elements of how blogger relations works. Newspapers have always communicated with readers, but the new world of the web means that you can communicate with readers instantly and even on other websites. Do you think journalists should communicate with readers on their own website or on other websites where readers make comments about posts?

Barry: There are a couple of different schools of thought on this; while more and more newspapers furnish readers with reporters' e-mail addresses in print and on the Web, the concept of linking readers and reporters is in many cases flawed. I know of reporters who rarely if ever respond to readers' questions or comments, many times because they don't want to subject themselves to or put up with with negativity or hate mail, thinking it counterproductive and a waste of time. I think some newspaper editors would agree that they'd rather see their reporters concentrating on interviewing sources and "working their stories" instead of engaging dialogue on their blogs. But the times are changing; more and more, newspaper reporters are being featured on television where they can wax poetic and expose themselves to a different audience. Several shows on ESPN and NESN -- where the Boston Globe writers can be seen regularly -- are two examples.

Another aspect is that newspaper editors are reluctant to see their writers posting unedited stories on their blogs, for the same reasons they would be against the same in print; misspelled words, botched grammar and questionable content are, in theory, all corrected by editors before the paper is put to be. While blogging delivers the news much faster, it bypasses the traditional safety valves which, if instituted on blogs, would slow the process, making the whole point of blogging counterproductive. Also, some editors would be against reporters blogging information that does not appear in the paper, in essence "giving away" the news before the reader spends the money to buy the paper in the morning.

John: New Journalism is about combining the objective approach of news reporting with the subjective approach of fictional writing. Tom Wolfe and other writers pushed the envelope when it came to journalism. I was thinking that blogging in many circumstances is new journalism in action. Here's an example of a blog that I think really illustrates new journalism at work. Dr. Greiver is a doctor who writes her blog about her practice implementing an electronic medical record system.

Barry: It's an interesting concept if handled and executed correctly. While the doctor's Web site is certainly thorough and gives a blow-by-blow report of the day-to-day operation of her practice, I'm not sure visitors to the blog are going to be enlightened by ongoing discussion of the temperature of the doctor's fridge or the tribulations of the office filing system. It's kind of like the guy who posts a video on You Tube of his dog sneezing; it may interest no one except the one doing the posting and the guy's brother. With so much information available out there and peoples' senses being bombarded constantly from so many different directions, it can be questionable if blogging -- in some cases -- adds to the problem rather than streamlining it. I suppose the best way around this is for bloggers to be competent writers and story-tellers. But again, without the safety net of editors, it can sometimes be difficult for bloggers to know exactly how good -- or sometimes bad -- their writing can be. We're not talking about Tom Wolfe here; in these days anyone can put out a blog ... often with varying results.

John: Many bloggers attempt to be objective but also express their opinion, except with blogging instead of a journalist reflecting and reporting on subjects. The subject and writer are one and same. Plus instead of one article or a series, a blog is a series of new journalism articles. Do you think I am accurate in characterizing some blogs in this way?

Barry: I agree. One of the attractions of blogging is the ability to post your opinions and feelings about anything you want. The conventional journalist rarely has such an outlet; even a column under his or her own name is subject to being edited and questioned for content. Only when a journalist reaches a certain level of stature do such constraints loosen up. But for the most part, someone can decide they want to post a blog and immediately catapult their views into cyberspace without anyone else having anything to say about it. That's why some forms of blogging have to be taken with a grain of salt; because of the immediacy of the internet and the blogger's ability to be a one-man-band, it can sometimes be difficult to discern what the blogger's agenda might be. As is sometimes the case in "conventional" journalism, sometimes you have to just "consider the source."

John: What's the future for journalism in the light of blogs?

Barry: I think the "time-honored" way journalism works is under scrutiny these days -- not only because of blogs, but because of our lives in general. People in general are busier and being pulled in many different directions due to family, work, etc., and have less time to read the news or spend time trolling the internet to find, in some cases, the "real" news put out by bloggers that the "mainstream media" can shy away from. There is also the issue of the expense of advertising, and newspapers in general suffering economically these days. When I first started in the business back in the day, we were told there would always be newspapers because "the guy on the train wants something he can hold in his hands." Well, now, with internet access common on laptop computers and cell phones -- neither having existed 25 years ago -- some of the old arguments in favor of newspapers are being compromised. So there is definitely somewhat of a vacuum the bloggers can fill, unless the old-time journalism community chooses to open its mind and think of newer, better ways to compete. But the first step would be to admit there is, in fact, a competition -- something I'm not sure they're willing to do. But time will tell.

John: Thanks Barry, I really enjoyed the conversation, and wish every success in your search for a new role in the Boston area. If anyone wishes to contact Barry just let me know.

The Interview: Jerold Gelfand

Jerold Gelfand is the president of JG Productions, a colleague of mine in the Boston chapter of the American Marketing Association and a video production vendor for my company IMO Independent Mobile. His company produces marketing, training and on-line videos for technology, manufacturing, medical device and medical service industries at www.jeroldgelfand.com. I first came across Jerold’s work at the AMA through his video taping of the AMA networking events as a volunteer for the chapter, here’s an example of his work with the Boston AMA, and there’s a video on my company’s website that Jerold re-shot on the IMO home page.

I decided to interview Jerold for this blog and ask his opinions about marketing and video production.

John: Tell me a little about your background in TV and Video.

Jerold: I have been in the video production business for about 20 years. I started my career in the trenches shooting local news for a variety of network affiliates up and down the east coast. My roles ranged from videographer and editor to writer and director to special program producer. After shooting one too many nor’easters I decided to start producing commercials and corporate videos. At this time I started JG Productions where I produce marketing, training and on line videos. Doing this allowed me to utilize all my skills all in one package including videography, editing, directing and producing. During my career I have been recognized by a number of industry awards but the most important part of my business is having clear communication with my clients. I pride myself on taking the time to fully understand my client’s needs. Some of my clients include: Mass General, MIT, United Electric Controls, and Evergreen Investments.

John: What are you currently doing?

Jerold: Right now we are working on a number of projects. IMO Independent Mobile hired us to create a video describing the company’s services and visually capturing its unique offering in the wireless marketplace. This video is now shown on their website and displayed at events and trade shows. We are also creating a video for Munters Corporation. This video will demonstrate the company’s capabilities in document and property restoration following the Katrina disaster. We are also working on a virtual tour video for a division of Parker/Chomerics in Beijing, China. This video will give prospects an overview of the company’s services and capabilities without physically touring their facility.

John: How do you use marketing in your work with clients?

Jerold: My clients use video to enhance their overall marketing efforts. Videos will never replace brochures but sometimes a product needs demonstrating to fully communicate its capabilities. Also a service organization might want to show an interview or client testimonial to illicit an emotional response. They might want to create a product demo for a trade show event or produce a video to compliment a new product launch. Clients also realize that technical manuals are hard to follow so they use video to educate their end users, employees, and sales reps to better comprehend product information.

John: How are you using social media in your work?

Jerold: My clients realize that websites such as YouTube have revolutionized the transmission of the video message. Why just have your video sitting on your website when it can be searched and watched by countless viewers.

John: Can you give the readership some tips on how to develop a usable video?

Jerold: When creating a video that will entice your audience, there are a few things to keep in mind. Why should they watch this video? Are you trying to educate your audience? Are you trying to promote a product or idea or are you simply looking to entertain? I know this sounds simplistic but if your final product does not meet the intended goal, your audience will loose interest.

There are so many different formats out there. There is Digital Video, Beta SP (not to be confused with the old Betamax), DVcam, DVC PRO as well as compressed and uncompressed HD (High Definition). There are advantages and disadvantages to each of them. If you have a big budget and want to impress a live audience with vibrant color, HD is a great choice. If you want to reach a mass audience on the web or traditional DVD, digital video would be the way to go. Why spend HD money when your audience will only see a compressed version of the original digital video format.

Here are some technical concepts to keep in mind when shooting video. Sound can be more important than the pictures. You could have the most beautifully lit shot over looking a spectacular background but if you can’t understand your subject, your audience will loose interest very quickly. The microphone built into your camera does an adequate job of capturing background sounds but is rarely the right choice for speech. In order to capture quality sound, either use an external lapel microphone or a handheld stick mic. Always use headphones to monitor your audio because your camera microphone is much more sensitive than what the human ear actually picks up.

A properly lit shot will make a big difference in the quality of the picture. Even if you don’t have a professional lighting kit you can still improve the overall video quality. When possible, shoot outside during a cloudy day. The clouds act like a big soft box. It minimizes shadows and allows for easier subject placement. If you have to shoot indoors try to avoid florescent lights. Even though these lights give off an even tone, it creates flat facial features. Instead use a traditional floor lamp. A number of these will minimize shadows and give a warmer feel than a florescent light.

Thanks Jerold.

Managing Marketing Departments With Aprimo: Interview With Michael Emerson

Looking back over the times when I’ve been managing a marketing department, I am struck by how much of my time was spent in financial budgeting and vendor management. When you think of marketing, most people think brand messaging or TV commercials. Those tactics are definitely a part of marketing, but when it comes to managing a marketing department; marketing has less to do with creative and more to do with planning and implementation.

That’s why I was pleased when I had the chance to interview Michael Emerson from Aprimo; his company develops, sells and installs software that automates the core functions of marketing. Aprimo software automates marketing processes in some of the same way ERP systems automates the financial systems within a company.

Aprimo’s software has four main areas of functionality.

· Financial management
· Creative assets management
· Production management
· Campaign/lead management

I asked Mike to describe what each module of their software can do for a marketing manager.

Mike: The first pillar of the Aprimo software is financial management, and it enables marketing managers to set up budgeting. Managers can build budgets and plans and also collect extensive information on an ongoing basis. This allows marketing managers to track if their budgets are running according to plan. Many of Aprimo’s clients are large public companies and it’s very important for them to be able to be transparent in their financial reporting to stakeholders inside and outside of the company. The CFO of a large company particularly needs access to such financial management data from a marketing department, to determine if marketing is spending according to plan. The Aprimo financial management module also allows a company to reconcile marketing budgets against other corporate financial systems of record.

John: How are does Aprimo integrate with other online applications that provide marketing data?

Mike: Our application is all XML based, a company can put data into their software by XML. A lot of our clients will build software systems that allow data to automatically flow into the Aprimo software continuously. By far the most common integration is with SAP. However, we have a lot of flexibility and will work with Excel.

Many of our customers integrate Aprimo into their vendors software systems, including a creative agency. Often a large portion of marketing’s budget is consumed by agencies. Aprimo has integrated software and data flow many times between an agency and a client. We integrate a company’s purchase order system, automatically linking with a PO number. This integration is one reason many of our customers work with us, their strategy is one of commitment to automating the marketing budgeting management process and following through on oversight. A lot of public companies need tighter scrutiny today; they need to be able to document spending, and needed to understand how such marketing is spent from a corporate compliance state.

The second pillar of management that Aprimo’s software provides is creative asset management, including digital assets. The Aprimo system enables a company to manage all of its creative assets across many divisions and with outside vendors. Asset management includes managing all photo related materials, sales materials, and anything a marketing director would use.

The third pillar of Aprimo management is production management. Here marketing departments can manage projects such as managing a creative process. Companies have the ability to manage the review and approval process for creative projects with multiple parties in and outside their company. From the point of producing content, right the way through to final approval. We work with a number of health and pharmaceutical companies, where tracking and documenting is an extra dynamic because of regulated authorities such as the FDA. There’s a huge need for tracking and auditing clients’ projects. They really need to be able to track and document any marketing project in case regulatory authorities need to audit the process. Aprimo provides a means for documenting how a marketing project management process occurred.

John: Mike, a lot of my time as a marketing manager was spent managing vendors. I’ve also been on the vendor side and experienced dealing with marketing managers, they always seemed so stressed. Having been on the client side I can say the vendors were part of that stress, but also, sometimes managing a number of vendors was a highly complex process. I know you deal with larger companies, and therefore a great deal of complexity, how does Aprimo help with the vendor management process?

Mike: When it comes to providing marketing managers with help for selecting or managing vendors Aprimo’s production management module provides a lot of support. It deals with vendor selection, RFP processes. The module gives you a specific set of steps to follow, and even allows you to set up your own rules and processes within the software. We even have a module on preferred vendor relationships. Companies can set up preferred pricing plans; we help with enforcement, to discourage the use of a local supplier, rather than a preferred vendor.

The vendor management process highlights an important underlying capability of the Aprimo software, we have a workflow engine, its one of our core technologies that gives marketers the capability to put together a workflow project successfully. What’s interesting about Aprimo software is that we looked at the marketing management process from the marketing manager’s perspective. Technology people, using very rigid processes, put most existing workflow software together, and that did not reflect the dynamic of the marketing operations management process, we see marketing as being much more dynamic, more random even. Marketing managers want to set up their own workflow for their campaigns and program, in the way that works for them. Marketing managers need to be able to include outside resources in their processes. Aprimo allows them to set up a workflow to include inside and outside resources, it includes deadlines, key deliveries, and the resources needed. The software sends alerts when appropriate to a marketing manager, and that information is automatically delivered to staff and agencies responsible for running a project. When vendors accept any requirements, the marketing manager will receive key notifications back informing them of the vendor’s acceptance. The marketing workflow process is an important aspect of the marketing operations management process to consider, and something we’ve worked hard to model within our system. Different issues always arise in marketing; marketing managers need to make adjustments based on things that happen. If a vendor is not able to meet their commitments on time, and it becomes an issue, the software will let you easily adjust the schedule. In fact workflow management is the fastest growing area of our company. Marketing managers it seems really need help with automation of complex marketing processes.

Lastly the fourth pillar of the Aprimo software system is campaign /lead management. Where marketing departments create campaigns, and our software will route any leads to sales people within a company from a marketing campaign. Aprimo integrates with many of the CRM systems out there. We really try to differentiate ourselves from CRM vendors. We focus on the marketing process squarely, print ads and advertising etc.

John: I was wondering if you could explain in detail how Aprimo integrates with advertising vehicles like Google Adwords? And for that matter do you have any clients using the system for this?

Mike: Many of clients to use Aprimo to integrate and give overall management of their Google Adwords advertising network. In fact we are doing work with the worlds largest online auction place. That company uses the software to manage their Google Adwords marketing. There are two issues with online marketing, one is the financial aspect, and the other is the brand consistency. For online marketing, companies want to ensure there is brand consistency in their keywords across all of the multiple channels that are now possible on the web. In addition the Aprimo system allows marketing managers to manage traditional definition of colors and size, and what is the brand message. We are also talking with many of the companies that have developed keyword management automated software tools. And we are looking at integrating with several companies so that data from their systems will pass automatically into Aprimo.

However, we don’t just focus on online marketing, as a company, our focus is more on cross channel marketing, the integrated viewpoint. We are less interested in the tactical reporting, and much more interested in helping marketing managers assess the value of different advertising investments such as keyword and email campaigns. Aprimo software provides the hub that gives marketing managers the marketing execution and insight they need to run their marketing departments successfully.

Another big part of Aprimo is helping to ensure everyone is keeping to the same protocols, a client, one of the world's largest consumer packaged goods companies has divisions in thirty five countries and we are currently launching a fifteen thousand user implementation within that company. So it’s very important that management can ensure brand consistency across the entire enterprise. The company is so large the roll out will take three years, starting in Mexico, Venezuela and Chile.

John: Lastly, what solutions are you providing for social media marketing and word of mouth marketing?

Mike: We’ve added functionality for viral marketing this year. A client can set up call forwarding to friends; and keep track of that of email forward. Many companies have expressed a lot of interest in this area. I definitely think that there are new emerging channels of marketing such as WOM and viral marketing. This is one tactic that enables a company to get through to customers who are otherwise very hard to reach; it’s a key emerging trend.

John: One last comment, Mike and I were chatting at the end of the interview and he described how his software really provided support to the core of the marketing function in an interesting way, Mike said, “Even with all of the new ways to market today. We develop technology for all of the things marketing has always had to do.”

Interview with Tim Kelleher

When I was at 48hourprint.com I worked with Tim Kelleher, he has a lot of experience in marketing and business and I was lucky to have him work with me. He did a super job. We keep in touch and talk about marketing and online marketing on a regular basis. I thought it would be great if we conducted one of my occasional interviews on this blog. Here’s the result.

John: Let’s start off by asking you to describe your career background? How did your career lead you to marketing?

Tim: I would say that marketing was just a natural fit. After graduating from the University of Vermont with a degree in English, I attended business school at Boston College, and concentrated in marketing; I think one led to another because of the shared communications aspect. In my second and last year at business school I interned at an advertising agency in downtown Boston, and then did some freelance advertising work in collaboration with some graphic designers I knew. We produced mostly direct mail projects, but realizing I still had a lot to learn, I went to work at NYNEX, which is now Verizon, in their yellow pages division and eventually became a marketing communication manager. After over 10 years there, I detoured into antiques and design, which has always been a great interest of mine, and which provided great entrepreneurial experience. I decided to come back to marketing for a variety of reasons, the interaction, the structure, and the growth opportunities. Chance led me to meeting you as a prospective client, and an opportunity to put my old skills back to use and catch up on Internet marketing developments at 48hourprint.

John: What is marketing to you?

Tim: To me marketing is telling the story of your company, product or service, and finding the right marketplace within which to tell that story.

John: What is brand to you?

Tim: I find brand is one of the more exciting parts of marketing. In some ways, defining a product’s brand identity or personality is one of the more glamorous aspects of marketing because it involves mass media and high visibility. At NYNEX I was fortunate to work with the incredibility strong NYNEX Yellow Pages brand, which was supported with large amounts of TV, radio and out of home advertising. In that context, branding reinforced that image of our product which was in the consumer’s mind and which directly related to their perceived need for the product.

John: How have you developed and implemented marketing campaigns in the past?

Tim: I consider myself something of a purest when it comes to strategy and planning. I believe that the marketing and advertising plans should be driven directly from the corporate mission and the corporate plan so that the potential to meet those corporate objectives are maximized. At 48hourprint.com I was able to draw on my prior corporate experience, to develop a comprehensive plan from start to finish using traditional marketing media with incredible new media tools such as paid search advertising and search engine site optimization for the best possible results.

I initiated a direct mail program from scratch. I refined our print advertising and implemented a more structured process of market research and product development. I started using some online surveys. We also brought in outside resources to help us optimize our site for organic search as well as to help us improve our paid search ROI. We really got more involved with market research and product development while I was there also.

John: What are your plans for the future?

Tim: I am currently looking for a position in marketing in the Boston area. Marketing communications is definitely what I have a passion for and although working for a start up company in many ways is very exciting, the resources of a larger company allow you to engage the market within a larger scope.

John: What skills does a marketing manager need to successfully run a marketing department?

Tim: I think the most important skills for a marketing manager are of course, great communications skills, the ability to think strategically, and the ability to identify and implement innovative solutions. Also, to have a facility with every traditional and emerging tool available within the marketing mix, is paramount.

John: Tell me about your experience in managing agencies as a marketing manager?

Tim: My favorite part of the job is working with agencies. Years ago, I took a seminar in managing creative people. It was one of the most important experiences I’ve had in that I learned that much more can be gained by allowing creative people the leeway to create rather than by over directing them. If you provide a creative person with just the right amount of background information without “art directing” them, they will typically return with solutions that far exceed what you could develop on your own. Let a creative person know basically what your objectives are without giving them too many other stipulations and you will get back much more.

John: What are the biggest challenges in being a marketing manager?

Tim: Well managing to get a strong ROI on each project, of course, has been the biggest challenge - especially now that Internet marketing has created an expectation of immediate and measurable results across the board in advertising. This has led to a demand for greater accountability from other, more traditional media communications vehicles. It’s a tougher job now in some respects because everything is being measured more closely, but at the same time, the decision making becomes a lot easier when you know what to expect from your investment. 10 to 15 years ago at NYNEX, Milward Brown conducted yearly brand awareness studies for us, but other than that we did not do a lot of results analysis beyond looking at gross revenues and direct response rates. It was very hard to delineate where your results were coming from then; now with instant clicks, you have the measurement tools, and it has put the onus on other advertising medium to be more accountable.

John: How should a vendor approach a marketing manager?

Tim: The most successful relationships I’ve had with vendors are those where the vendors have understood the larger objectives and strategies I’ve been charged with. When the vendors help come up with solutions that address those needs, rather than look at each project individually, then everybody wins. And having ongoing relationships with vendors, rather than project by project arrangements, has always added enormous value to the work we were doing together.

And though technology has created a new marketing environment, vendors still need to know that, when waiting for direction, as always, it is usually a case of hurry up and wait, that’s just a fact of life. Due to the pressure for results, people move cautiously – as do the people above them - vendors need to be aware of that age-old reality.

John: What do you think marketing will be like in 5 years?

Tim: Let me get my crystal ball. Inevitably, marketing will find more and more direct ways of reaching the consumer and cutting out the waste of reaching market segments that are less likely prospects. I think lead generation; sales conversions and identifiable return on investment will drive the use of new telecommunications features, entertainment developments and emerging internet technology (such as blogging, for instance). Although I’ve always enjoyed working with the traditional marketing media tools such as print and direct mail over the years, it’s exciting to be part of this changing new world of marketing.

John: Thanks Tim, good chatting with you, if you want to connect with Tim you can email him at kelleher DOT Tim AT gmail DOT com.

Interview With Kevin Kosh: PR Professional

It's been a while since I conducted an interview on PR Communications.  Recently I attended the annual MITX awards ceremony and met Kevin Kosh, a PR professional at CHEN PR.  Kevin was kind enough to agree to an interview by telephone and e-mail about his experience in the profession.

John: Tell me a little about your background, how did you come to work in PR?

Kevin: I always like to joke growing up I was a smaller kid so PR, or at least diplomacy, was a method of self-preservation. Really though, when I went to college, I knew I wanted to get into the creative area, so I took creative classes, I quickly learned the reality that the creative industry was not for me.  When I signed up for a PR class I was hooked, and then started an internship with an agency.

I've been in the industry for fourteen years, and yet I've only been with two companies.  I was with the first for four years and then I moved onto CHEN PR, I've been with them for nine years.   My tenure within companies has been influenced by two things.  First loyalty was a strongly encouraged trait in my household.  Second, in the early 90's, when I got out of college, there was a recession.  At that time jobs were seen as a privilege, not a birthright. This of course changed in the late nineties where there was a lot of job-hopping,

PR has also changed a lot over the past decade; in the early days I remember faxing press releases out to people, and lots of calling people on the telephone before the days of the active use of the Internet and email.

John:  Would you give me some sense of the relevancy of a PR internship for those students thinking about the value of such jobs?

Kevin: An internship is only as good as the company you are working at.  I'd say largely from a task perspective, a lot of the work is administrative, a lot of data entry.  Where the value of the internship is found is the environment in which you work, and what you can take in from what goes on around you.  In my experience, at smaller companies an intern will get to do more interesting work, out of necessity since the teams are smaller and not necessarily defined along hard functional lines.  They get to partake -- or at least be party to -- a broader set of activities.

That being said, I don't want to minimize the research and administrative functions in PR.  They are arguably the most critical functions, since success or failure starts with lists.  As the media is a moving target, PR and pitching is all about timing -- the right people, at the right time, with the right hook. Accurate lists ensure we have the right contacts in the media.  The time spent in adjusting an errant pitch or chasing down an alternate contact often is the different between success or failure.

John: From listening to your answer, I think it’s important to emphasize your points about list generation.  How do make sure your list is up to date? 

Kevin: Your team has to make sure the list is up to date, it's important to monitor the reporters, and determine what they are doing.

John: Do you think it's easier to track people today than before the Internet?

Kevin: My gut feeling is that it's easier to keep track of people today, but also from my perspective people didn't seem move around as much before. 

John: How do you develop a PR strategy for your clients?

Kevin: First and foremost, knowing a heck of a lot more than you need to know, to have a better context to develop a good strategy.

CHEN PR's process is divided into three stages - we assess the situation, rationalize and prioritize the situation and then translate it into action.  Here's how I frame that process:

Assessment

* The Client - what do we actually have, their products, partners and customers?  What's working and what's not working? What's unique? And what's middle of the road or lagging? Lastly, what's coming in the near/mid term?

* Audiences - Prioritization/Segmentation; Drivers/Needs - in business terms

* Market - Trends - real vs. hype; Competition - perceived vs. direct

Rationalization/Prioritization

* What UNIQUE business value do we provide

* What are our competitive strengths/weaknesses

* Where can we/do we want to stake a leadership claim - prioritization of the most strategically important

* What is our long term vision

Action

* Define major milestones

* Create rolling 90-day plans -- follow them closely, but DON'T be married to them

* Be flexible and opportunistic

* ENSURE CONSTANT COMMUNICATION -- for brainstorming, on-the-fly adjustments, and to keep everyone focused

Having said this, I am always on the look out for the quick hit, plenty of opportunities out there to be visible; in the end the goal is not building successful plans but visibility.  We make sure we are in constant communication with our clients to ensure we can capitalize on these opportunities.   We set a standing weekly call, and track our progress every week.

John: Why do you think a longer-term perspective is so important?

Kevin: Journalists want to know what's next, the most successful pitches identify trends, and attach the client to them in a unique way.

John: What are the critical elements needed to build a successful PR campaign?

Kevin: I'll give you my top four

* Clear and prioritized messaging

* Executive commitment to and involvement in the program, this ensures fewer "false starts" and mid-course corrections, and projects confidence and respect to the press/analysts.

       "Big Picture" thinking -- trends, fresh perspectives, aggressive ideas

* Constant idea/information exchange

John: What do you mean by aggressive ideas?

Kevin: Oh that can mean a variety of things, to be controversial, or to stick with your convictions, don't waver, don't set your self up for failure, don't be vanilla.

John: Can you recall any examples of crisis communications moments in your career and describe how you and the PR team handled those incidents?

Kevin: I really haven't had any major crisis events in my career that jump to mind.  However, to my point earlier about being opportunistic in a PR program, as crisis communications is about rapid, coordinated and decisive responses to point-in-time events, every truly strategic PR program should have a well defined "event response" component.  This requires clearly defining, in advance, key content owners, decision makers, spokespeople and a streamlined process for action.  And most importantly, the process must be repeatable and require only minor customization from event to event.

As a company, we are constantly watching the news for our clients and when we see an article or event of interest, it is immediately sent to the client with a quick summary, call out of major points and ideas for potential response  -- be it to offer further commentary if it's a major event, or to just offer alternative angles or ideas that may be the basis of future stories. 

The most obvious examples of this are in the security marketplace and the ability to comment on breaking news.  For one of our clients, we put the wheels in motion on a late breaking Friday story, and put the story, pitch and plan in front of our client on Saturday morning, and were off to the races.  In the end, our client did an on-camera interview with the Boston ABC affiliate for segment that led evening newscasts in which he was the first and longest interview subject.  He was also quoted in/on USAToday, National Public Radio, CNET, Computerworld and eWEEK.  The best part was that five days after the breach, still only one of their competitors was quoted in one trade media article. 

John: In your experience how do you get the most out of the wire services like PR Newswire, and Business Wire?  Any tips for the reader? And lastly will press releases disappear?

Kevin: Regarding if press releases will disappear.  First, no, I don't think that press releases will disappear.  They will most definitely will evolve over time, but I think the concept of a general public messaging document will live on for a long time.  That being said, I think the role of the press release has changed drastically. 

There are obviously differences between press releases for public companies vs. private, but overall, a press release over the wire is an effective broad and general visibility vehicle.  People live on the Web. From portals like Yahoo, to the targeted distribution lists the wires have relationships and reach that PR teams don't have.  And in the case of tradeshows, being the organization of record is very important; they effectively are the news portal to which many people go.  That being said, it's a shotgun, not a pistol. 

To me, press releases when issued - at least the significant ones - are the punctuation mark on the end of a news event.  Since the vast majority of our clients reach out to their most important media in advance of the release crossing the wire, the release is the company's official statement that supports - if we've been effective - a number of news stories on the topics/trends involved that have been published around the released date.  And hopefully, the combination of the two will drive additional interest in speaking with the company from customers, media, analysts, etc.

John: What do you think about the idea of open source press releases?  Letting your readers help write a press release before you release it for distribution.

Kevin: It's a really interesting area, and obviously time will tell, that being said, I haven't had direct experience with it and my gut reaction is that there are some obvious areas where challenges may exist.  In my experience, press releases by committee tend to become diluted in trying to satisfy all audiences, and in the end may lose the messages you're trying to communicate - or at a minimum, not be differentiated.    Maybe more effective to get feedback on the high level messages and things that you'd like to highlight in a more general sense, and not have people worry about the actual text and phrasings.

That being said, a company should be well aware of the views, biases and perspectives of all potential press release audiences - press, analysts, customers, partners, etc. before a press release is ever written.  That's where a good PR firm can add value. 

John: Does it really matter if you make an error in spelling and grammar?

Kevin: Absolutely.  Beyond the most significant fact that some errors can change the message, pitches, press releases and the like are product we produce, and we should deliver nothing less than the best product possible.  Not to mention that the ultimate buyers of that product - the press - are held to standards of quality in the articles they write and so should we.

John: What do you see as the biggest ethical question facing PR professionals today? And is it different from what you believe the main ethical dilemma was in the 90s, 80s, 70s, or earlier? How/why has it changed?

Kevin: My experience doesn't extend beyond the 90s, but the biggest ethical dilemma I see today for PR professionals is where to draw the line on the opportunistic front.  With 9/11 in particular, and the level and immediacy of information the Web provides, there are events and topics that in my opinion should never be fodder for promotion.  I think such efforts do a huge disservice to the profession.

Additionally, not to get on a soapbox, but in a more general sense, PR people should always be careful of "spin."  PR people will be the messenger who gets blamed for spin. While we obviously want to paint our clients in the most positive light, the truth in the end is always your best friend - and mistruths will always find a way to the surface.  And if the truth won't work, as mom always said, "if you've got nothing nice to say..."

This is of course more true now than ever with the Web's ability to open words and messages up to unprecedented scrutiny - and also give those same messages near immortality.  PR professionals need to ensure that the actions they take on behalf of their clients, and the counsel they give to their clients, adhere to high standards.  In the early 90's individual journalists might berate you, but today you are open to unprecedented scrutiny. You don't want to be responsible for putting something on the Web that will live in infamy.

John: Any last thoughts about PR in general?

Kevin: PR is an interesting beast, PR is more of a personally trait or personality make up.  There are of course learned skills like writing, but the core is all about communication, and that's more inherent than learned in my opinion.  It also encompasses traits such as ethics and integrity. PR is not about cover up and spin, but making sure the good gets told and bad does not get out of control.

John:  Thanks Kevin for taking the time to chat with me and write up some of your perspectives on the industry.  If my audience has any additional questions for Kevin, let me know and I will pass them onto him.