New World PR

New World PR Blog Has Moved

lmettler@stepaheadwebstrategies.com (Lyn Mettler) — Sun, 21 Jun 2009 15:20:00 +0000

Hi New World PR readers! I should have posted this a long while ago, but I am now blogging about all things PR and social media on our company Web site. You can subscribe to the blog feed here.

I hope you'll come find me over at Step Ahead, Inc. and I promise to give you insightful comments on the world of PR and social media. Thanks for reading!

Lyn Joins TwitterMoms as Featured Contributor

lmettler@stepaheadwebstrategies.com (Lyn Mettler) — Tue, 06 Jan 2009 18:14:00 +0000

I'm so excited that I was selected from some 250 applications to become one of 15 featured bloggers on TwitterMoms.com. TwitterMoms.com is a social network of highly influential and "networked" moms who are very active bloggers and Twitterers.

View my page on Twitter Moms: The Influential Moms Network

Twitter and being a mom definitely sum up two of my biggest passions in life and how great to be able to combine the two in a space with other like-minded individuals! Each of the selected contributors will blog on different topics and guess what mine is? You guessed it -- social media!

So for my first post I tackled the infamous Twitter phishing incident and offer some tips on what to do if affected and how to avoid these types of scams to start with.

Were you "phished"? If so, weigh in on what happened and if you got it fixed. And feel free to join TwitterMoms. It's a great network!

lmettler@stepaheadwebstrategies.com (Lyn Mettler) — Tue, 06 Jan 2009 02:59:00 +0000

Twitter Moms: The Influential Moms Network

5 Easy Ways to Use Twitter for Business

lmettler@stepaheadwebstrategies.com (Lyn Mettler) — Wed, 24 Dec 2008 14:41:00 +0000

A new report from HubSpot confirms that Twitter, as many of us have suspected, is indeed a major player in the social media realm, and in my opinion, in the business world.

Let me hit you with a few stats:

70% of Twitter users got started this year
5000-10,000 new accounts are opened daily
Public estimates of the total number of Twitter users are between 4 and 5 million
Traffic has grown over 600% in the past 12 months
Twitter.com became one of the top 1000 Web sites by traffic in May 2008

Now, assuming you are convinced that Twitter is not just some silly little program where you can update "what you are doing" (don't get me started on that, cause that's not what it is at ALL), where do you begin to use Twitter in your business?

I've put together 5 simple things you can do RIGHT NOW to start engaging Twitter for business (this is after you've set up your account):
1) Find 10 people a day for the next week to follow that would bring value to you or your business. Check out Twellow.com to get started.
2) Start "tweeting" your more interesting blog posts or news releases to expand their reach and readership. Be sure to use a URL-shortening program for your links like TinyURL.com.
3) Use TweetBeep.com and set up an alert for mentions of your company and interact with those people as appropriate.
4) Add Twitter to your email signature and Contact Us page of your Web site.
5) Use Twitter to seek media coverage by following @skydiver and @profnet.

There's lots more you can do, but so as not to overwhelm you, I'm offering you five things to get started. Make it your goal in the New Year to knock out these five things in the first month and see where it takes you. Let me know!

Just Give Me Something to Blog About...

lmettler@stepaheadwebstrategies.com (Lyn Mettler) — Thu, 11 Dec 2008 02:12:00 +0000

Been blogging for a while and running out of ideas?

Here are some thoughts to stop writer's block and get you back on the path to blogging!

Subscribe to newsletters related to your topic. Pick a hot story of the day and offer your unique take on it.
Post an interesting article you read or even better, help another blogger, and share one of their blog posts that you enjoyed.
Recycle existing content
Provide helpful, step-by-step, information on how to do something (like this post). People want help and tips and this will keep them coming back to your blog.
Share the love -- give your spin on someone else's topical post with a link.
Interview people and include them as profiles. This will help build your readership (because they'll tell everyone they know to read your post about them) and gives you a break. All you have to do is send them a list of questions and let them answer!
Ask a question or post a poll. Let your readers weigh in on a hot topic.
Post a photo from an event you attended with a quick one-liner or share a video.
Keep a notebook with you always to jot down ideas as they come to you. This way, you'll never run out of topics! I've got a list a mile long of things to blog about. Hope that becomes your problem too.

Any other ideas out there about what you can write about or how to brainstorm topics?

Target and Moms, Not a Match Made in Heaven

lmettler@stepaheadwebstrategies.com (Lyn Mettler) — Sat, 06 Dec 2008 15:32:00 +0000

Target and moms go together like peanutbutter and jelly, don't they? Well, we always thought so, but I guess Target does not.

I'm sure many of you read my blog post about my disappointment (that's putting it mildly) that they advertised a Britax carseat for $40 and then canceled all orders after they discovered it was "incorrectly priced."Not a great way to get in with moms, thank you very much.

Well, I initiated an effort to lobby Target to honor their $40 price via Facebook and Twitter with not much luck. I chose the hashtag #target moms to flag all messages on the subject. A week or so later, I noticed another group of moms using the same hashtag, but they were all big Target fans (I used to be) and wanted them to start a panel of mom bloggers to weigh in on marketing and products and avoid such fiascos like the carseat incident.

They were all excited and when I interjected my note of being wronged by Target, I was pretty much ignored or shut down. That's OK, I know they were excited about Target, and like the rest, I'm very disappointed to be disappointed in a store I loved so much too.

Sooo, turns out Target summarily dismissed their pitch to create a mom panel with one email.

Now, Target, come onnnn!!! You had a group of enthusiastic moms who wanted to get involved and spread the word about Target. Do you have no idea the value of that these days? Moms are probably your biggest shopper and spreading the word virally online would have been a great way to try to counteract the decline in sales all stores anticipate this year, not to mention setting yourselves further apart from other retailers who are not so savvy or who don't even have such a dedicated group of moms.

Now, maybe they didn't have to create a panel, but they could have taken advantage of this group in some way. The email linked above is pretty dismissive and discouraging.

The worst part is Target probably is not monitoring any of this stuff online or on Twitter, so had no idea how much excitement and buzz was going on out there about this group (not to mention the customers disappointed about the carseat). Clearly they are not, or they would jump on this opportunity.

So, now they've ticked off moms with the carseat thing and ticked off moms who were their biggest fans.

Target, you just don't get it. Call me if you want to PR advice on how to smartly use social media, but it might be too late...

Turns out some of the moms still are trying to love Target anyway. I know, I know, it's hard to walk away from. I guess that's why Target can get away with this.

Oh, and they did offer me a $25 gift certificate after the carseat incident. What do you think? Should I take it? Am I overreacting to this whole thing? Tweet with #targetmoms or post a comment and let me know.

Happy Birthday 2.0

lmettler@stepaheadwebstrategies.com (Lyn Mettler) — Wed, 26 Nov 2008 02:08:00 +0000

The ol' birthday came around recently, and wow, was it a different experience. No, there were no suprise parties or wild nights I'll regret; instead, it was social media that turned my birthday upside down.

It all began the day before when I started to get a few Happy Birthdays on Facebook in advance. Then before my work day even got going, I'd been wished happy birthday a few more times by email, Twitter and instant messenger.

At school, when dropping my son off, another mother, whom I'm friends on Facebook, but who otherwise wouldn't have a clue it was my birthday, surprised me with a birthday wish as well. It shocked me at first, but then I realized "oh right, Facebook gives you birthday reminders..." as do many other social media tools. My colleague, Simon, noted Plaxo had been sending him reminders that it was my birthday for a week! Geesh!

So you get the point. I have NEVER received so many happy birthday wishes EVER. How delightful.

And this drives home one of the biggest benefits of social media -- helping you stay top of mind with your chosen friends/followers/connections. Whether they read about your latest work achievement, check out an interesting article you've shared -- or simply see it's your birthday. People are remembering you. And that can be good for business and birthdays!

Motrin Moms, Target Too

lmettler@stepaheadwebstrategies.com (Lyn Mettler) — Sat, 22 Nov 2008 15:46:00 +0000

There are lots of good uses for social media, but I'd like to highlight consumer power today. Social media tools give us the ability to share a message far and wide in near real time. Companies, beware. If you make a misstep, the world is going to hear about it fast and you'd better be listening and prepared to get in on the conversation fast!!

Have you heard about the Motrin ad that got moms across the country in a tizzy? Maybe not, because this amazing incident took place in about the span of 72 hours.

Let me give you the story. Motrin posted an ad on its Web site (watch it above) that used the voice of a mom, citing how while the use of baby carriers and slings made her feel like "an official mom," they sure made her body hurt and, thus, had to take Motrin. Well, moms across the Internet, bloggers and Twitterers and more, took offense to this seemingly shallow and not very well thought out depiction of moms who carry their babies. And frankly to me, they missed the point. I mean, carriers and slings are supposed to take some of the strain OFF your body. They HELP, not make it worse. But that's beside the point.

Moms on Twitter created a special group called MotrinMoms just for talking about this topic. They blogged about it, emailed Motrin, called them out on Twitter (read their discussions) and spread the word far and wide. In fact, for a couple of days, it was one of the most popular things discussed on Twitter.

Within 3 days, Motrin posted an apology on its Web site and pulled the ad completely. I think we can thank social media for this quick response. I'm sure it would have happened eventually without Facebook and Twitter and blogs, but moms would have had to write letters, emails, make phone calls -- all of which, are not as instantaneous and viral as social media. Kudos to Motrin, however, for listening and doing the right thing. Best thing they could have done in this situation.

Now, on to Target. I hope you will help me spread the word about this as well. Earlier this week, a Mom blogger who writes the "Deal"icious Mom blog, posted a fab deal on Twitter. A Britax carseat, normally $280 now on sale for $42. We really needed a second car seat for our youngest and had been looking for a deal, so as soon as I saw this, I had my husband hop on and buy it. Done, no problem.

Well, two days later, Target sends us an email "canceling" our order because the item was "incorrectly priced". Here's what else the email had to say:

"We're sorry, but we are unable to offer this item for the incorrect price. The correct price is $279.99. We have canceled your order for this item. If you would like to order this item at the correct price, please visit Target.com to check for availability.

Despite our best efforts, a small number of items on our site are occasionally mis-priced. We do, however, verify prices as part of our shipping procedures. If we discover that an item's correct price is higher than our stated price, we will either contact you for instructions before shipping or cancel your order and notify you of the cancellation. This pricing policy is posted in the Help section on Target.com."

This is such an example of poor, poor customer service, which I would not expect from Target. In these times of economic uncertainty and predictions of poor holiday sales, do they really want to alienate more customers, a lot of whom are probably moms, their biggest customers?

They have seriously underestimated the value of word of mouth here, as well as the viral abilities to spread this horrible service online. I have started my own group on Twitter - #TargetMoms. See the discussion thus far. Please join me in lobbying Target to correct this grievous mistake. Please blog, Twitter and email them here.

Power to the people man! Thank you social media!

Web 2.0: Connecting Us on Election Day

lmettler@stepaheadwebstrategies.com (Lyn Mettler) — Fri, 07 Nov 2008 01:11:00 +0000

This election was one that will go down in history for a multitude of reasons, but the one I'd like to highlight is the role of the Web, not just in campaigning, but on Election Day itself. For the first time, people had access to tools online that allowed them to share in real time their experience and their feelings and emotions, good or bad.

Watching Twitter on Tuesday, I saw people all across the country detailing their experience in line, how long they had to wait, problems that were happening in different districts, and much, much more. Facebook was similar. Status updates expressed people's frustrations, pride, excitement... People shared videos, articles and news as it appeared about the election.

Personally, by watching locals on Twitter and Facebook, I got a great feel for what I was in store for when I went to vote and how long I could expect to wait. When I stood in line with nothing to do but read a magazine for an hour and a half, I instead chose to "tweet" my experience, even posting a photo taken with my iPhone of the line. Even better, while Twittering, I discovered another Twitterer who was in my line and introduced myself. Very cool.

Did you share your experience online? Please share how!

Folks also posted videos of their experience, with one guy even posting a video with supposed Black Panthers outside a polling booth with a billy club! True or not, this is a perfect example of citizen journalism, people putting the information about their experiences out there for unfiltered consumption, no media to choose what gets through or doesn't. Course that also means that a lot of junk gets through.

This election brought a lot of people together (and a few people apart, but that's par for politics) behind a common cause, and the Web and social media helped accelerate that process. It enabled us to connect, explore our common bonds, our shared experiences (waiting hours in line) in real time, connecting us in ways we've never experienced before during an election. No matter your politics, that is surely a good thing.

What Media SHOULD Be Doing Online

lmettler@stepaheadwebstrategies.com (Lyn Mettler) — Mon, 27 Oct 2008 19:52:00 +0000

Recently, I've come across several Web sites which are doing a great job of offering up news in a way that's compelling and smartly engages social media as part of the experience. None is associated with a traditional media outlet, and sadly, I think they had to come along because traditional media wasn't getting the job done online.

One is TheDigitel, a site that is local to Charleston, and produces its own content, as well as highlighting the best of news from other sources across the area. They describe themselves as "a Web outlet that 'gets it,' [that] provides the Web integration and savviness that is demanded by young adults who grew up during the Internet revolution."

TheDigitel.com strives to have good relationships with local media outlets. "We know that only through working together on the local level can we achieve the goal that we’ve set for ourselves: a comprehensive view of the community for everyone," they say.

I had the privilege of meeting the founders Ken Hawkins and Chris Gigante at an event I helped organize for the Charleston Parks Conservancy and these are smart guys who I think have done something the Post & Courier should have along time ago. If traditional media don't "get it" soon, they're done for in the not too distant future, I fear.

Here's what TheDigitel does right:

Focuses completely on local content and on doing it right
Has multimedia components; shoot their own video or use others' video when appropriate
Has a most popular stories category
Allows you to search by topic and location
Provides links to related coverage at other media outlets -- TV, newspapers, radio, etc -- and related stories on their site, making it a true resource for ALL Charleston news
Allows for comments
Very clean site, easy to read

What else it could do:

Offer ability to share articles on popular social media sites with one click
Allow others to embed video so long as it credits TheDigitel
Add RSS feeds by topic

This is a fairly new site, however, and I'm betting these things are in the works.

Now, let's compare to the Charleston Post & Courier site, the local paper of Charleston, S.C. Here's what the Post & Courier does right:

Ability to share stories on social media sites with one click
Ability to post comments
Starting to include some video with stories
Offers some RSS feeds
Offer some audio clips

Here's what else it needs to do:

Unclutter the pages; very distracting and difficult to read
Add reporter blogs
Improve search function; very clunky right now

In looking at these two lists, it appears the Post & Courier is not too far off TheDigitel, but visit the two sites and I think you'll see the difference. I believe the key here is for traditional media to incorporate social media in a way that is unintrusive and helps organize the news experience instead of adding to the clutter. TheDigitel gets this right.

Any other suggestions out there for how traditional media can "digitize" itself into maintaining an existence?

Get Your Pizza on Facebook

lmettler@stepaheadwebstrategies.com (Lyn Mettler) — Thu, 16 Oct 2008 18:57:00 +0000

Who wants to sit on hold waiting for the person at the pizza place to get your order wrong? Not me. Well, now you can order your pizza, if you like Pizza Hut, on Facebook! Hooray! Now I can see the latest pictures of my friends and order a pizza too.

But all kidding aside, I do think that's a pretty smart use of Facebook. It gives people a reason to go to Pizza Hut's page beyond just getting general information. They say that they are one of only a few restaurants to have ordering capabilities via Facebook and the only pizza chain to do so.

And of course, the phone isn't the only way to order pizza these days. There are text messaging options, ordering via a Web site, and using your cell phone. But, personally I think Facebook is the coolest.

Would you order your pizza via Facebook?

Kodak Lets You Supersize Yourself

lmettler@stepaheadwebstrategies.com (Lyn Mettler) — Sat, 11 Oct 2008 01:09:00 +0000

If you were a superhero, who would you be? Spiderman, Superman, The Flash? Well, Kodak is giving you the chance to be "super" -- well sorta, on their terms, I guess. They've come up with a very funny, and smart, campaign online to drive traffic -- and sales.

Remember ElfYourself from the last two Christmases? Well this is very similar, but a little smarter. Log on to MakeMeSuper.com, put in your sex, your name and upload your photo and they insert you into a grainy, 70's looking superhero video doing "superhero" things. It's not quite as funny as ElfYourself (the dancing on that one just killed me), but the song that accompanies it actually includes your name, which add a new funny element.

Now, the smartest part here is, unlike ElfYourself, which had nothing to do with OfficeMax that I could tell, this one relates. I mean Kodak is all about photos. And once you create your "super" self, you can then buy products with your new image on them. So they directly tied it to sales.

And, they're not even targeting traditional media with this campaign, instead focusing on bloggers and sites that can help this spread virally. But, you'd better bet, traditional media will hear about it and be all over it. Maybe even better they didn't hear about it directly; makes it more of a "scoop."

Check out "Super Lyn" and get a good chuckle. Send me yours or post them here so we can all have a good laugh.

Off I go to save the world!

Where Did You See the Palin Skits?

lmettler@stepaheadwebstrategies.com (Lyn Mettler) — Sun, 05 Oct 2008 15:13:00 +0000

Alright, so most of you have probably seen Saturday Night Live's skits featuring Tina Fey as Sarah Palin. They've been a big hit so far. I mean, how could they not? Tina Fey looks SO much like Palin and she does a great impression to boot. But, the question is, where did you see it?

As much as I hate to admit it, because it makes me feel like I am definitely no longer cool (well, not sure I ever was :)), but I never stay up to watch Saturday Night Live any more. OK, I haven't stayed up to watch it since my first son was born 4 1/2 years ago. I used to love SNL, but Mommy hours just don't allow for 1 a.m. nights anymore. I'm guessing I'm not alone in my un-coolness.

Thank goodness for the Web. Now, this mom, who, admission No. 2: does not have a DVR either, can watch the funny skits online at my leisure. The best part, I don't have to suffer through all the un-funny ones either.

A new survey came out recently that confirmed my suspicions: 51% of people who saw at least one of the Palin skits saw it on the Internet. They watched it either on YouTube, NBC.com or Hulu.com. Those of you who don't know about Hulu should check it out. It's one of my favorites. They have shows from NBC, FOX, Comedy Central, Bravo, Sci Fi, E!, FX and more on there, including tons of classic SNL skits (see: d%&* in a box with Justin Timberlake and Andy Samberg - caution: not family friendly), in a format that is actually appealing to view. Very high quality, not the grainy YouTube look. It's lovely.

I think this is a turning point for Web video and a real advantage that online can offer over TV. Sure, you can record your shows and watch them later, but for something short like an SNL skit, it's so much easier just to pull it up on your computer -- and even easier to forward it around, share it on Facebook, "tweet" it on Twitter and more.

Where did you see one of the Palin skits? Answer below:

Quizzes by Quibblo.com

Microsoft Ad Nails It

lmettler@stepaheadwebstrategies.com (Lyn Mettler) — Fri, 19 Sep 2008 20:06:00 +0000

Well, after all the hullabaloo about the Microsoft Seinfeld ad and my criticisms (see post and Brand Bandits Podcast), it seems that Microsoft got smart and did it right. I'm sure it was after they read my wise comments.

So, the new ad takes a shot at the very successful Mac vs. PC ads and defends those of us who work on a PC as not being the nerds portrayed in the Mac ads. As my colleague Simon Ashton pointed out, compared with the Seinfeld ads, Microsoft came out looking better in the Mac ads! So very smart that they latched on to the success of the Mac campaign.

What they've done is given a voice to all the cool people who use a PC and through that, given a personality to the PC that is not nerdy (All the Seinfeld ad did is reinforce that, I thought). It's people from both political parties; it's scientists, it's enviromentalists; it's teachers, it's students... You get the point. I have to say it even gave me the warm fuzzies a little. Loved the part of the people who work for both Obama and McCain.

So, two thumbs up Microsoft. Glad you heeded the negative banter and fixed your mistake.

Though I must quickly add that the whole backlash over the Seinfeld ads got so much attention that it really set this second round of ads up to be noticed. Do you think we'd be talking about this ad otherwise? I think not. Think they planned it that way? If so, I have to give them way more credit.

Pranks as Promos

lmettler@stepaheadwebstrategies.com (Lyn Mettler) — Thu, 18 Sep 2008 13:32:00 +0000

I was intrigued with an article in the Wall Street Journal over the weekend entitled "The New Pranksters" about young people across the country who are gathering and participating in silly stunts to break out of the daily monotony and enjoy a sense of camaradie. Things like sets of idential twins mirroring each other on each side of a New York City subway car, bursting into song at malls, standing like statues in a public park.

What does this have to do with Web 2.0? Well, it turns out these things make great fodder for YouTube and online video, as well. Which brings me to how it relates to public relations.

It's always been a standard in public relations to create an event or "stunt" that will get the media's attention. Well, these are just the kinds of things that do it. It's almost sad how easy the media is to manipulate if you just know the types of things they are looking for. I mean, shouldn't they be covering serious news instead of a bunch of people dancing to music no one can hear at a park? But, alas, that makes for good TV, doesn't it?

So, lesson here, sad though it is, if you can dream up a stunt that's funny, quirky and ridiculous, yet that underscores your brand or involves it as a key portion -- and get it on video -- you're likely to have a media hit and a viral hit online.

Think about something that people would enjoy watching, that fits the old journalistic standard of "man bites dog" instead of "dog bites man", that's in a place that's easy to get to at a time that people and the media are more likely to be available (ie don't hold it during the first presidential debate).

In the article, they cited as an example Taco Bell, who hired a group to help them perform a stunt to promote their new Fruitista Freeze drink. The group posed as employees and patrons in one location and "froze" in place, much to the surprise of real customers. The video has been viewed more than 500,000 times online. Pretty good exposure for Taco Bell, I'd say. Oh yeah, the twin/subway prank? More than 700,000 views on YouTube.

Who's Watching You on Twitter?

lmettler@stepaheadwebstrategies.com (Lyn Mettler) — Wed, 10 Sep 2008 13:35:00 +0000

Although in theory I understand that anyone in the world can see my Twitter posts, I tend to forget that on a day-to-day basis as I reveal my thoughts to the world. Well, my friends, don't forget. I was reminded today in a very funny, and shocking, way!

Sure, you realize that anyone can "follow" your tweets and read what you say, but did you know that by going to Twitter's search function (formerly Summize) you can find what anyone is tweeting about? Additionally, tweets now come up in the main search engines. I have a Google alert set up for myself and my companies (something everyone should do), and every day it shows me some of my tweets from the day before.

Well, apparently, a New York Times blogger who was writing about the new game show "Hole in the Wall" searched on Twitter to see what folks were saying about it. He found my tweet about what a crazy concept it is, but how I was still compelled to watch and used it in his blog post.

So not only is Twitter great for business, apparently it can get you media coverage too. Pressure's on now to say something clever and insightful, huh?

I was also reminded how transparent I am making myself on Twitter the other day after I met someone I follow and who follows me on Twitter at a presentation I was giving. I regularly tweet about a hip hop dance exercise class I go to. He said to me "The whole time you were presenting all I could think about was your hip hop moves." Which, believe me, is probably not a pretty image. Anyway, I thought that was really funny, as I do forget how much I am putting out there to people, many of whom, I've never even met.

Anyone had a similar experience with something you posted on Twitter?

Twittering the RNC

lmettler@stepaheadwebstrategies.com (Lyn Mettler) — Fri, 05 Sep 2008 22:50:00 +0000

Well, I had just about the most fun ever Twittering the last two nights. I love it anyway, but really saw how cool it can be to twitter with others during a live event.

I decided to watch the Republican National Convention the last two nights on my computer, so I could do some work during down moments. Because Twitter was up on my computer, I started offering up my thoughts as Governor Palin spoke Wednesday and Senator McCain spoke Thursday. I had great fun chatting with others live as the speeches took place, laughing at funny moments (Palin's daughter licking her hand and swiping the baby's hair), discussing the issues they raised, weighing in on how they were doing and a lot more.

It truly made the experience all the richer to share in the moment with others watching it and demonstrated the power of Twitter. I can really see how this would be a nifty tool to use at a conference, a sporting event or any other live event.

You may ask, how did you pay attention to the event and Twitter? Well, that's the thing about Twitter. It seems like it would be a distraction, and it is a little, but it takes only a millisecond to read 140 characters of copy and not much longer to write 140 characters of copy. So you can glance down, take in the latest comments, jot out one every so often and still pretty thoroughly pay attention.

Anyone else Twitter a live event with success? Or hated it? Please share!

Microsoft Seinfeld Ad Debuts

lmettler@stepaheadwebstrategies.com (Lyn Mettler) — Fri, 05 Sep 2008 18:29:00 +0000

So recently I noted that one thing that Microsoft was trying to do right to improve its image was a new ad campaign with Jerry Seinfeld. Well, folks, it's debuted and well, it sucked... at least to me.

Why? It feels like Microsoft, despite being the resident aging geek, is making a last ditch effort to be a part of the cool crowd. Wow, the effort shows and it's painful. Take a look at the video.

Find more videos like this on AdGabber

I mean first off, Bill Gates is TERRIBLE. How stiff and awkward is he? That's exactly what they should be trying to get away from -- stiff and awkward -- and all they did is magnify it here by bringing so much attention to the ad.

And poor Jerry, his stuff just doesn't make any sense. I mean, I'm all about off-the-wall comedy, but this just misses the mark and isn't just off the wall; it's out of the universe completely. Hopefully, this is not Jerry's doing, but Microsoft's. Microsoft, in their defense, says the ad will make more sense as the campaign moves forward.

What does this have to do with Microsoft? They're going to invent something really cool down the road? Well, enough already. Invent it now, or really gosh darn soon, or the game may be over kids.

I hate to be so hard on Microsoft and Bill Gates. He is an amazing man and it is an amazing company that took computing forward in huge ways. I just want to see them adapt and be successful, and this just ain't the way.

What do you think?

What Microsoft is Doing Right

lmettler@stepaheadwebstrategies.com (Lyn Mettler) — Tue, 02 Sep 2008 15:56:00 +0000

Per my earlier post, I railed on Micrsoft for not keeping up with the times and being reactive instead of proactive. But, that said, Microsoft is doing some things right and it's important to share that side of the story, as well.

One of these things is the image above: Photosynth. Dreamed up by Microsoft Live Labs, an arm of Microsoft whose mission it is to "advance state-of-the-art Internet technology and products," Photosynth lets you take a group of photos and essentially "synth" (in English: paste or join) them together to create a 3-D image that allows you to sort of virtually walk through the scene.

Here's how it works according to Microsoft:
"Using techniques from the field of computer vision, Photosynth examines images for similarities to each other and uses that information to estimate the shape of the subject and the vantage point each photo was taken from. With this information, we recreate the space and use it as a canvas to display and navigate through the photos."

So, they're trying. Keep it up.

Secondly, they're trying to "hip" up their image. How? Well, wonder where Jerry Seinfeld's been since Seinfeld (besides "Bee Movie")? It looks like he's got a new gig: the spokesperson for Microsoft. The company is investing $300 million, according to MSNBC, in a fall ad campaign featuring the comedian.

Not sure just plugging in a seemingly "cool" person (is Seinfeld really cool anymore?) into your ads is going to solve the problem. I think it starts at home and the type of products they're developing, but if they keep paying more attention to LiveLabs and less toward creating operating systems that don't work, they're on the right track at least. What do you think?

Ho Ho Ho, Merry Twitter!

lmettler@stepaheadwebstrategies.com (Lyn Mettler) — Wed, 27 Aug 2008 01:55:00 +0000

That's right kids, even Santa has joined Twitter. Follow him at @santaclaus25 and the Mrs. too at @mrsclaus25.

When you check the Web site they list in their Twitter profile, it goes back to WelcometotheNorthPole.com, which appears to mostly be a site of forums where you can discuss everything from elves to reindeer to holiday treats.

I figured when I clicked on the site it would be some kind of money maker. After all, if you had a holiday site, wouldn't that be a clever way to drive business there? Set up Twitter handles for Santa and Mrs. Claus with updates on what the Jolly Old Elf and his first lady are up to in prep for the holidays? I think so, but no money maker that I can see. Could someone be doing this out of the goodness of their heart?

Here are some of Santa's "tweets":

Shhhh the elves are tucked in and finally sleeping. @mrsclaus25 and I are off to bed.
Early dinner and then @mrsclaus25 and I will be starting to make lunches for all 932 elves. They want traditional PB&J for the first day.
Elves back at school tomorrow. They (and @mrsclaus25) are VERY nervous.Please send words of encouragement and we will read them to the elves.

And you can "tweet" Santa and he'll answer back! Now, I've got to go find Rudolph on Twitter. I mean can't Santa show Rudolph how to type?

(By the way 121 days till Christmas)

What Microsoft and MySpace Have in Common

lmettler@stepaheadwebstrategies.com (Lyn Mettler) — Mon, 25 Aug 2008 11:43:00 +0000

So I blasted MySpace in my last post, maybe a little too harshly, but as you can tell, it's not my favorite site. Well, this weekend, I was the proud recipient of my dad's old iPhone (he upgraded to the new 3G), and while I was excited, I was not prepared for how amazing this piece of technology truly is.

What's that got to do with Microsoft? I found myself marveling at my iPhone and thinking, "Wow, if this is so incredible, imagine what it must be like to have an entire computer by these folks." I mean, I've worked on Macs before, but it's been years, and at the time I didn't care for it. I remember frustratingly trying to take a disk (remember those :)) out of the disk drive, but could not find a way, as there was no release on the drive (OK, Mac users you know you have to eject it on screen, maybe still do). It did not seem intuitive and I am definitely a fan of intuitive/user friendly (thus my allegiance to Facebook).

If the iPhone is anything like a Mac computer, it's the most &@#* user-friendly piece of equipment I have yet to run across. Brilliant.

I've been growingly disappointed with Microsoft over the last couple years. To me, like MySpace, they are becoming reactive in keeping up with the times instead of taking the lead and setting the pace. Apple and Facebook are both good examples of companies who have been the leaders in innovation, creating products that match the way people interact and function.

Microsoft seems like a stodgy old guy who just won't stop arguing his point, even though everyone else in the room, except maybe a few of his longtime comrades, has moved on to another point entirely. I guess Apple pretty much nailed it in the Mac vs. PC commercials.

I mean compare Firefox to Internet Explorer. There's a world of different. Microsoft has missed the boat on open source code, which allows for third-parties to create applications to work with its systems. Facebook was the first (I believe) to welcome this idea with open arms, Firefox did the same. Now, iPhone has followed suit (albeit after initially not allowing its code to be open source, but kudos to Apple for listening to people and changing course). This is the way of the Web and computing, so get on the bandwagon, or better yet, come up with some cool ideas of your own that makes living, and computing, more fun and functional.

Now, before I close, Microsoft is taking some steps in this direction, which I will discuss in my next post. We'll see if you think it's enough or if Microsoft will eventually go the way of the floppy disk.

MySpace Just Won't Die

lmettler@stepaheadwebstrategies.com (Lyn Mettler) — Tue, 19 Aug 2008 14:03:00 +0000

I keep thinking MySpace is on its way out, especially with Facebook overtaking it in unique visitors earlier this year, but good grief, it just won't go away.

New numbers from comScore show that MySpace had its highest number of unique visitors to date in the month of July: 75.2 million. Come on, people, who's still going there instead of Facebook? If it's you, please tell me why. I just don't understand...

I guess it does look some better since they upgraded the design. I can stand it just a little more, but it's still no Facebook.

Die, MySpace, die...

Promoting a Facebook Page

lmettler@stepaheadwebstrategies.com (Lyn Mettler) — Sun, 17 Aug 2008 18:13:00 +0000

Sounds easy, doesn't it? Wow, it's not. Facebook has made this a tricky task to accomplish. Geesh, they should offer a class in it.

Because our friends at Facebook have for whatever reason decided to make this more difficult than it should be by 1) burying Pages under the Info tab in the new design 2) not having changes made to Facebook Pages show up in its fans newsfeeds (come on, this is so simple, why can't you do it, Facebook?), I am offering a 101 class here in how to successfully promote your Facebook Page.

If possible, choose someone besides the most visible face of your business be the administrator of the page. Why? Because anytime they do something to the page, it is not associated with their personal profile and only shows up as if the business has made the change. This means it does NOT show up in any newsfeeds. So pick an intern or something to do all the admin stuff.
Then, have the person who IS the most visible face of your business be sure they are "friends" with all "fans" of the page and then engage in a lot of activity on the page. That will then show up in their friends' newsfeeds that they have engaged in activity on the page and hopefully drive them there to comment, post photos, watch videos, read content, etc.
Anytime you do something to the page that is halfway interesting, note that in your Facebook status. Again, this shows up in your newsfeed and makes it more likely for people to see it. Try to come up with a compelling question, invite people to submit photos, create a contest or ask them to check out some fascinating new content on the page.
Anything you post on the page, post it in your personal profile as well with a comment to check out more on the business' page.
Easiest way: Send an update to the fans of your page. Try to provide them with useful or interesting information, though, and a reason to go to the page (see No. 3 for ideas).
Anytime you make a new friend on Facebook and they are remotely related to your business, ask them to be a fan. When they become a fan, it will show up in their friends' newsfeeds and hopefully, spread virally, encouraging others to do the same.
On that same note, nicely, with no pressure, ask clients and colleagues to submit a review of your business if they are so inclined. Again, all the (hopefully) wonderful things they had to say about you shows up in their newsfeed.
Include a link to your Facebook page on your Web site, in your email signature, in your email newsletters, in your social media profiles, anywhere you can think of.
If all else fails, I guess you can buy an ad on Facebook. I'm not a big fan of paid advertising, but Facebook does allow you to target your ads pretty specifically and I like that they only have no more than two ads per page. If you try it out, let us know how it works for you.

Any other ideas out there? Let's hear them.

Social Media Failing You? Here's What to Do

lmettler@stepaheadwebstrategies.com (Lyn Mettler) — Wed, 13 Aug 2008 14:13:00 +0000

I recently had a colleague, whom I'd presented a Web PR plan a few months ago, come back to me to say she just wasn't getting the clients she expected from her social media efforts. So what gives?

I really put some thought to her dilemma, because for me this stuff works great, and thought you could benefit from my suggestions to her, as well.

So if social media ain't working, try these tips:
1) Start Twittering!
As I have uttered many a time, Twitter has pretty much taken all the other Web 2.0 tools I use and put them into overdrive. It's a perfect way to choose your target audience (follow who you want to hear you and who you want to learn from) and promote your blog, your events, and overall position yourself as the expert you are.

2) Cross-promote.
All these things work best together, not as isolated entities. Link to your Facebook page on your blog. Promote your blog posts on Twitter and in your Facebook status. Ask people to follow you on Twitter on MySpace. Link to your blog on your YouTube Channel. You get the picture. The more you cross-promote, the bigger this stuff builds.

3) Put the pieces together.
Use programs like FriendFeed that help you manage all this stuff under one roof. Link to your YouTube channel, your RSS feeds, your podcast, your blog, your Facebook page, Twitter, blah, blah, blah, here and people can truly follow EVERYTHING you're doing.

4) Make time for this stuff.
I know you all are not the type to just set up your profiles and never go there again, but I'm betting you're still not spending enough time on a lot of these tools to seem like you're really "present." If you don't seem present, people will stop paying attention to you. Set aside 45 minutes to an hour each day and dedicate yourself to engaging this stuff. It seems like a lot, but you want it to work, don't you?

5) It goes both ways.
Want people to comment on your blog? Comment on theirs every so often. Be active and interact. Leave a note on someone's Facebook wall, add a video comment to their YouTube video, be a fan of their Facebook page, write a positive recommendation on LinkedIn. I promise they'll pay you back in spades. Listen and you will be listened to.

6) Check your stats.
Make sure you have some analytics tool like Google Analytics so you can check to see what's working for you and what isn't. If you're getting loads of referrals everytime you post a blog entry in your Facebook status, keep doing that! Pay attention to what key words people are searching that send them to your page. Try to do more blog posts that use those words.

7) Remember this is a PR tool, not a sales tool.
So the goal here is really to build awareness and position yourself in a certain manner, not directly drive sales. That's up to you. This stuff will drive people to your Web site, your blog, your Facebook profile, but once they get there it's up to you to close the deal.

Got any other tips? Let me know if these work for you.

Six Degrees = Social Networking Success

lmettler@stepaheadwebstrategies.com (Lyn Mettler) — Mon, 11 Aug 2008 19:27:00 +0000

You may have read a week or so ago the big news that scientists actually proved that like the oft-played game "Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon," any person is indeed only 6.6 degrees separated from any other person. While that is truly an amazing fact, I can't say it surprised me. I cannot believe how often I come upon someone my husband or I know or who knows someone we know.

Shortly after I read that, I had a really weird, but really cool, six-degree moment. I found a former colleague from many moons ago on LinkedIn and made her one of my connections. Well, one of her connections saw that, checked me out and came to realize we've followed the same geographic path throughout our lives. When I was in high school in Kentucky, she was in college there. When I moved to Cincinnati to work, she had too. And now she lives in South Carolina working as an independent PR practitioner and knows some fellow PR acquaintances of mine up in Greenville. And even though we were on parallel life paths, we never would have met each other had it not been for LinkedIn.

Which brings me to my point. Why does social networking work? Because we are all so closely connected anyway. We may just not know it. Social networking makes it apparent. There's a quote from Mark Zuckerberg, founder of Facebook, about social networking "digitizing your social life." It does that and it also makes it more efficient. Instead of hearing about a friend of a friend and having to remember them or make a mental note to call them when you need their service, now you can always be connected online with all their info. right at your fingertips and their Web site or email one click away.

It is a small world after all.