saintstgospel-CLOW

www.swimspot.com

2009-12-22T10:51:00.000-08:00

New client = new ecommerce site...THE Swimwear Destination...www.swimspot.com.

Great people behind the project. The leader in swimwear manufacturing - Raj Manufacturing - has branched out and created their own ecomm site. Lots of suits, The Spot allows for fun 2-way interaction, and ongoing promotions, incentives, and all things swimwear.

We just launched an hilarious promotion on The Spot - "Make Her Look Fab!" The HER is Britney Spears...who always seems to need a makeover, or some serious counseling.

Great prizes including a VIP trip for 2 to LA to sit in on a Designer Swimwear Shoot. Winners aren't guaranteed to be included in the shoot, but if you win and are smokin in a bikini, you never know.

Have some fun. Check out swimspot.com.

Breathing again...

2009-10-05T14:47:00.000-07:00

So it has been awhile since I last posted on this blog: too much FB and Twittering.
There is some activity with Saint St. Some exciting things about to happen...

I can't wait to share. In the meanwhile, look me up on FB or Twitter @huskylohman.

Cheers.

Chris

The economy and the affect it has on us...

2009-04-08T20:42:00.000-07:00

Well...it's been a couple of months since I last posted on this blog. I thought now was as good a time as any to give you all an update on what's what, and where it's going down.

First off, I wanted to recognize the hardships that many of my friends and peers are having to endure with issues surrounding their personal economies, as they relate to the bigger world economy. Life for many of us has been tough, scary, and elightening. For those of you who are especially struggling, my heart goes out to you and I wish you all the best - with great empathy.

We are finishing up a couple of Saint St. projects and then we are putting the company on the backburner for now. Who knows, maybe in a year, a decade, by the time I lose all my hair, we'll re-launch the company and try to gain better traction the next time around. But for now, the lights are going to be turned off. Too bad.

I'm headed to Irvine to work for enCircle. Good group, doing good work, and the skies the limit for this startup. I finally get to realize my wish of returning to So Cal. It's bittersweet. I'm leaving after 16 years in Seattle, my beautiful house, and dozens of friends behind. I'm hoping to return this fall for a Husky Game and to see familiar faces. We'll see. This has been tough. And surely will continue to be tough over the next few months to say the least.

I will reach out in the future and give you updates. Until then, all the best.

CLOW

How Your Company Can Get the Most out of Social Media Monitoring and Engagement

2009-02-04T18:10:00.000-08:00

Our worldwide online universe, like its real-world counterpart, is vast and reaches beyond simple comprehension. Companies in the world today must be prepared to navigate and engage with this online universe. They must seek and locate certain pockets of opportunity made up of current or future customers and digest their candid opinions. And when appropriate, companies need to engage in the conversation and share their valuable insights with the intent of endearing themselves with a customer base that wants to be heard and have their opinions and questions addressed. The conversation between companies and customers has truly become a two-way scenario and needs to be taken seriously.

Special attention is required when determining the best way to mine and engage the available information and conversations born daily within the dynamic activity of Social Media websites. For the sake of this document we define Social Media sites as those where conversations take place and opinions are shared in an environment that encourages rebuttal, response or comment. Included are Consumer Generated Media (CGM) sites like Youtube and flickr, traditional blogs like perezhilton.com and theconsumerist.com, forums like flyertalk.com and forums.msn.com, social networks like Facebook and Myspace, Q & A sites like answers.yahoo.com and ask.com, as well as the countless other sites popping up and establishing new categories every day. The one thing these sites have in common is that they encourage – many would say demand – that a broad audience participates in the ongoing conversations. The participating public’s voice is heard, respected, and affects the evolution of each of these site’s themes and overall tone.

Saint Street fundamentally believes in the value of deliberately and confidently entering into Social Media conversations. We define this process as Social Media Engagement, where a proactive action is taken by a representative of a company when they enter into a pre-existing conversation or establish a new one regarding any business-relevant topic.

Saint Street also preaches the utilization of best practices for Social Media Engagement as outlined by Word of Mouth Marketing Association (WOMMA). Saint Street believes the most important of these practices is transparency (while engaging). Transparency is achieved when the company’s engaging representative is candid about who they represent. This should be done by all engagers, from a company’s directly employed staff to agency representatives and field marketers. Companies who are not transparent are perceived as inauthentic and dishonest with their consumers and their actions have shown to negatively affect confidence in their brand and product promise.

For more than four years Saint Street staff has worked with numerous clients who have realized positive results from targeted online engagement interactions. Conversely, we have also witnessed negative results from a multitude of ill-prepared companies attempting to connect with their customer base through Social Media. Lacking the science and discipline of how to engage, their loose efforts have backfired and negatively affected the integrity of their brand and the health of a product or service line. The practice of engaging in Social Media should be undertaken only by those with knowledge of the correct communication technique, and after the appropriate research and planning have been completed.

How to get started?

Before any company can proceed with a successful engagement effort they must first work through a few key steps to set realistic expectations. What follows is a basic set of recommendations those who would internalize the effort. However, we encourage you to partner with a firm that has experience in managing engagement programs.

Spend adequate time researching what your company’s Social Media footprint truly entails. This can be done in a wide variety of ways, starting with leveraging free tools like Google Search/Blogs, Technorati, or licensing social monitoring tools like those offered by Visible Technologies or radian 6. Keep in mind that smaller or newer companies or brands are very likely to have smaller online footprints.

Build a database of the key sites and associated personalities who are actively participating (bloggers, forum participants), paying particular interest to those that seem to be instigating and fueling the conversations. This will give you a head start in determining where to focus your engagement resources when the time comes.

Create a running sample summary of the various types of comments you come across about your company. Use these foundationally to start drafting prospective responses or messages for when you begin your engagement process. Don’t be afraid to turn to multiple groups within your company for guidance on messaging. We have seen groups ranging from investor relations to product managers provide the messaging ammunition for responses.

What you learn online should be shared pervasively throughout your company. Build summaries of where and how your brand or product is being referenced inaccurately and make sure that you make this information available to appropriate groups within your company. Product marketing might be able to shift their messaging and targeting. PR could actively drive stories that help clarify inaccuracies. Corporate executives could address any issues openly through a corporate blog or forum created within their corporate site.

No one person should be asked to take on the whole project of managing reputation in Social Media. With the right people proctoring their specific areas of expertise, and in concert with a larger messaging push including traditional media, you can measurably begin to shift perceptions and opinions about your company.

Through the Social Media evaluation process you and your team will begin to establish a list of resources within your company that you will invariably turn to for support, especially in the early stages of the engagement program. The earlier you begin to inform these resources of a need for participation the better the likelihood that they will make themselves available to you. Providing comprehensive summaries of online conversations that directly affect their department or respective job responsibilities will only help in the recruitment effort. And the larger and busier the company or department, the more advance time will be needed to bring them onto your solution team.

As you move through your audit you should start to establish some baseline metrics to use to evaluate engagement campaign effectiveness. At a minimum you should be tracking:
- Total number of online references
- Percentage positive/negative/neutral
- Specific types of messages i.e. products, brand, corporate relations, etc. (free and license-based tracking services will allow you to set up feeds based on particular product titles, proprietary features, etc. which can help in expediting the metric evaluation)
- Associations with competitors (direct comparisons) and how you stack up. Ideally you should also audit your direct competitors.
- References on higher profile sites versus small audience sites

When it’s time to jump in and engage, what are the best tips to follow?

This set of general recommendations and best practices is a starting place for your engagement strategy. As needed, Saint Street can work with you to establish a special set of recommendations particular to your campaign or program objectives. Lead insights to always keep in mind:

1. There is no perfect science to SM engagement. The practice for brands to interact with customers and consumers online via social media channels is in its infancy; thus, best practices are still being shaped by industry leaders.
2. Successful engagement is never guaranteed. What is guaranteed is that your voice will be heard and your message will be delivered to the people most interested – and relevant – at that moment in time. Now this is only if you have done your research and you build a process for tracking active conversations, especially those which you have entered into.
3. Your plan today may need to shift tomorrow. You have to be malleable. There are so many factors in life that affect public perception of your brand, the category you live in and the economic climate as a whole. So the approach you take today, may not be the approach you should take tomorrow.

Recommendations generated from successful campaigns:

1. Be human
2. Accurately state who you represent
3. Fit in: pay particular attention to the tone of the post you are replying to as well as the site that hosts it
4. Short and relevant posts are key
5. When dealing with an issue or customer service concern, acknowledge the importance of the issue. Perceived empathy is paramount to mitigate elevated frustration.
6. Don’t ignore conversation! Make sure that if an author or other comment replies to what you’ve said, you’re there with a timely and salient response.
7. Don’t sell: leave the hard sell and marketing-speak at home.
8. Don’t talk in clichés and canned sound bites: the more informal, the better. Rest assured, when you submit something quotable, it will end up quoted.
9. When replying to or addressing a specific person’s question, reference the individual by name. Delays exist when adding responses.
10. Prior to adding a hyperlink (to a more in-depth promotional or customer service message) in your post, make sure you are adding value to the participants and readers of the thread. Don’t spam, share info you know they will find RELEVANT …and tread lightly*….
11. Always be truthful
12. Positive, positive, positive
13. Never fight back – and know when to walk away
14. Add value: bring new information, inside details, and specific answers, or point users to great resources
15. Play matchmaker: link or reference third party commentary that is in support of the message you want to deliver
16. Don’t promise what you can’t deliver; bloggers have great memories.
17. What you’re typing is going on the “front page,” so represent yourself and your company well.
If you plan on engaging in multiple threads across multiple sites within the same vertical, make certain that you modify your responses to the various sites so as to not come across like a bot. People like to research engagers so don’t provide ammunition for a damning Google Search.

For long threads consider posting multiple posts into them to help further show an interest in their community and particular conversation – rather than just jumping in and never returning.

When you are able to make an investment of time, audit a site to learn (establishing a sense for tone, personalities, influencers), then follow that up by spending some time participating in strategic conversations before you begin to smartly market a campaign or promotion. The “cred” equity is valuable if you want to ensure making the deepest impact possible. And always remember to be transparent if your efforts are promotional in any way.

*Constant monitoring of tactics like this when seeding promotions, events, etc. is critical. Each web site has a different policy around spam and solicitous promotion, thus tread lightly.
If you have any questions regarding the recommendations provided in this document. Please contact Chris Lohman, Saint Street CEO, at 20

Saint St. is picking up steam...sorry the blogging has slowed down

2009-01-21T15:00:00.001-08:00

Well I've returned to Seattle from a great three-week holiday trip to So Cal. I loved every minute reconnecting with friends and family, and making some new friends along the way.

Upon return, my Seattle friends did reaffirm to me that the weather in Seattle was truly remarkable with more cold and wet than what they would have liked. One friend in particular (Jason C. with T-Mobile) informed me that he was snowbound in his house for 10 straight days. He only left to hit up his local supermarket and local pub - two things no sane man could live without. I love Seattle. Have for 15 years. But I can't wait for it to warm up...it's cold to the bone when it is clear. And when it is raining, well, the rain will affect even the most positive of people. Looking forward to spring.

Saint St. is cooking. Here are some highlights that at this time I can share:
1. PACLAND has named us agency of record. This is especially exciting because I supported them and a big branding effort going back a few years that included yearlong planning, a new website, direct mail, interior signage, major event and promotion development/management, PR/CR, trade association mgmt, etc. The new scope of work is still being defined but it does include planning, campaign development, video production, a yearlong DM drip campaign, sports marketing, PR/CR, a new website and a variety of other components to help the regional civil engineering firm better target developers and architect firms to go along with the outstanding work they do with big box retailers, MSFT, and major developments up and down the west coast. Check them out http://www.pacland.com/.
2. http://www.parentorganizer.com/ is a web application that allows for schools and PTSA's to stay connected on a daily basis with parents and families. Launched in 2001 (I was formerly on their advisory board), they have hired and partnered with Saint St. (we have become minority owners) to help develop PO v.2. The new app will do an even better job of aggregating family calendars and all the various activities that kids and their parents do as they relate with schools and local youth groups. Additionally we are going to create tools so parents can interact with one another and teachers, asking questions, offering advice, dialoging about things that affect them every day. These social network tools will provide even great value to those who use PO and ensure the company is positioned well for growth and expansion. After seven years, the company is going strong thanks to the leadership and vision of founder Kathy Cox who is a near and dear friend and associate.
3. After executing a great World Series promotion with Dioner Navarro of the Tampa Bay Devil Rays (thank you Dioner) and the Boys & Girls Clubs, we are continuing our support of the organization, specifically the fundraising and marketing efforts of the Kirkland Boys & Girls Club. Doug Wozeniak - Executive Director, and Brook Eglin - Marketing and Fundraising Lead, along with the whole staff and board work tirelessly to advance the livelihoods of today's youth. I'm inspired just by walking through their doors, which honestly doesn't happen enough. You can learn more about ways to help them out at http://www.onepositiveplace.org/.
4. Old friend Robert A. Christopfel, CPA is looking to evolve his practice which is based in some of the coolest space in Pioneer Square. We are developing a new identity for him and a paper series and will be installing an eco and visually friendly sign for him on his historic building sometime in early February.
5. On the sports marketing front we are working with a local university and their athletic department as well as a leading golf destination in So Cal...but we can't quite share those stories with you as of yet. Soon we hope.

Now as far as the blog goes, I'm working on some feature articles all having to do with social media and the learnings that I have generated having worked at great shops like Wexley School for Girls and Visible Technologies.

The core themes are as follows:

1. Be Brave and Smart When Marketing and Engaging Directly in Social Media
2. Build the Right Foundation Before Your Company Jumps into an Ongoing Social Media Program
3. Key Lessons When Social Media Starts to Bark Back

As these get penned, I will post them here and share with all. Too many good lessons to not share with folks who intend on making a positive impact in SM. Social media is a great place to listen and learn about what resonates with consumers and is a great medium to add to a smart integrated media program. Tap, tap, tap...

Happy New Year.

CLOW

A website development lesson to be shared...

2009-01-05T12:37:00.000-08:00

I was talking with my best friend the other night. Now, just to clarify, I wasn't talking to my favorite ex intern, teammate nor frat bro, this guy was blood.

And he asked me the question: How do I substantiate the need to develop a new website for my biz? I felt it was a good question on a couple of different levels. One, he was thinking in terms of ROI for this expenditure in an effort to gain approval. Good idea. Secondly, he wanted to be better informed before he went in front his peers and superiors and asked for a 40-75k new web presence. I actually liked this more. He wanted to be smart; or, at least he wanted to be perceived as having done his own due diligence that included the counsel of experts (yes, I just gave myself a pat).

So here is what I said:

1. If your company prides itself in having a complete competitor advantage in everything it does, from treatment of employees, to the quality of the product and the delivery of the overall product promise, than you can not have bad marketing materials and messages, especially a website where most customers and experience seekers seek out before making the buying decision. A bad website is a turnoff. Kind of like a bad set of photos on Facebook, or lack thereof of any photos, when you are out there flirting like a mad person (so I tried it out, and guess what...).

2. A well-built website, along with a site side analytics package, allows you to not only track the effectiveness of the site, but also the various conversions which you have built into the site to capture information, close a deal, etc. With this information you can evolve the way you message and campaign. Your promotions will not only get better, they will get tighter. You may even determine that you need to do less of them or are able to spread them out into longer intervals - all saving you money and effort. For a busy or short-budgeted marketer, what a wonderful thought.

3. With a nice, clean, effective website that houses comprehensive, relevant information, your other marketing can become more targeted and packaged in a more moderate size. Just as long as you strongly, with conviction (call-to-action), drive the reader/consumer back to your beautiful domain. You won't need to deliver the first chapter of War & Peace like your current marketing. The book is famous for one reason: don't let your advertising be famous for the same.

If you want to chat further about this call me. There are dozens of other smart reasons to blow up your site and build something new - starting with creating 2.0 or now 3.0 two-way conversations with your customers (and allowing them to talk to one another along the way).

These three reasons are just so straight forward and easy to grasp. And before you ask for 75k in this economy, make damn sure you know your key points. Due dilligence is key.

Happy New Year - this one will be grand.

CLOW

TV: I miss you my little friend...

2008-12-17T13:43:00.000-08:00

First off, my love for you TV runs deep. Not as much as my love for my person, my exes, or my Moms who loves her MEATLOAF, but deep.

I think of you often. Just hanging there on my wall, articulating when I feel like turning you to your good side.

You will all those shows saved up, DVR humming with action. So many good shows and games and final rounds. So much love just needing to be called upon.

Remote control just yearning for a little skin. A touch. Some action. Anything to express more than just admiration. I know, you need affirmation of a commitment. And all I'm giving you today is want. So much want.

Soon. Maybe in a few weeks upon my return. When I'm not working, or talking, or at the WAC, I will show you the attention you need. I promise. I will prioritize.

So hang in there. Keep looking like a million. I'll come back to you.

I always do.

CLOW

Delays handled the right way....

2008-12-04T14:36:00.001-08:00

What to do with an extra 1.5 hrs at the PS Airport...

Two 2o oz Widmer clouded hefers with lovely golden goodness +

CLOW's iTunes Rockya Beatch playlist, smartly shuffled +

Some inspiration for sharper copy for client Pacific Pilates along with the motivation of spending three half-days in the center the past week =

The beginning...

Keep an eye out for the new and improved website and positioning. They are growing - adding Kris was smart, and I'm not just saying that because my knee is stronger and butt(s) are tired little muscles - and they are already #1 in the Valley. Look out.

Making a difference. And as a client and partner, I can attest. Will attest. Have attested.

New site will push around Xmas/New Year's. Fun stuff.

Cheers.

CLOW

PS - does Alaska Airlines do anything well? Anything, ever? And to the haters and naysayers of Saint St. Good luck to you.

Love music? Love it through a jukebox

2008-12-04T09:55:00.000-08:00

The holidays have kept me and Saint St busy. But not so busy where I couldn't meet some new friends and learn of a cool promotion where you can win a jukebox. Chuck Gullo - one of my new friends - and his biz partner Mr. Casey Kasem are running a great promotion with a killer grand prize. Go gettum tiger. Would make a nice gift on my desk!

Here is the info. Have fun and good luck. You'll need it. 'cause I'm going all out!!!

To All Music Lovers,

This is your chance to enter to win your own personal mini-jukebox just in time for the holidays! No purchase necessary - just click on the link below to visit our website and enter to win. Take some time to browse the site and enjoy the music. If you do want to purchase any CDs, be sure to enter the promotion code JUKE at checkout to receive $3.00 off your order!

http://americastoptenhits.com/AmericasToptenHitsJukeboxContest/tabid/278/Default.aspx

Please feel free to forward this special offer on to family and friends.

If you never give back, then now is the time to step up and quit hating on yourself and us

2008-11-23T21:56:00.001-08:00

I've been known to stand up on my soapbox and shout about inumerable topics. Especially this time of year when I always get thinking about others: those in need, those who help those in need and just those who need a little extra love and encouragement. Heck, I personally fall into all three categories. We all do if you think about it hard enough.

So I wanted to shout out to a few orgs and peeps that I feel do a great job taking care of all of us this time of year:

Union Gospel Mission in Seattle
Boys & Girls Clubs of America
Big Brothers/Big Sisters
Treehouse
Seattle Police Department
King County Sherrif Department
Seattle Fire Deparment

It doesn't take a lot of effort or money to help another person, bring a smile to the face of someone who needs a smile, to make a difference.

Try it on. Try it twice. Try it every day between now and Xmas. Try it for eight days in a row and light some candles. Just don't not try it.

Haters go hate. Me, I'm going to help.

CLOW

Fortuitous visit to the great warm tundra

2008-11-20T07:09:00.000-08:00

I'm ending a six-day trip to Cali today. Without argument I enjoyed myself tremendously, reconnected with love ones and old friends, and struck new relationships and unions with some peeps that we at Saint St. are going to keep our EYE on. Prospects of friendships and opportunity, short- and long-term are fortuitous...and maybe just a wee bit serendipitous.

And for those of you who are hating on the miserable blues of a Seattle November, follow my lead and get yourself down to the beach, the desert, a mountain or any and all in beautiful So Cal. Do it. The experience will pay dividends and help clear the mind for the a good run through the winter in store.

New friends:

http://www.waxymusic.com/ - the new album is gonna win over the core of the core...
http://www.pharmacyboardshop.com/ - I picked up some new Emerica's, but stayed 20 ft. from a sure disaster on wheels...check out the deals this XMAS and holiday season...great inventory
http://www.pacificpilates.com/ - fun in a box, stretching and lengthening, 3.5k feet of peace, professionalism and tranquility and some serious "bball better you ol' man" style of rehab. Worlds greatest vibrating happiness in a $10,000 package - Power Plate. If you know, you know...and I would too. Thank you Jo.
http://www.topsailmusic.com/ - Casey Kasem and Chuck Gullo are tapping into our minds nostalgic. Those birds are keeping us all singing along on ridiculously long road trips and unnecessarily anxious reunions...
http://www.oakcreekgolfclub.com/ - Fazio+Lohman+a little Flick core operational principles+ODV customer service=the next great So Cal public experience...a gem of a little sister to the all wonderful Pelican Hill...
She She on El Paseo - Congrats to Kara, Amy and hubbies for having the coolest of the cool...for having a great collection of purple, and for not trading out everything with Pacific Pilates...wouldn't have been nearly as fun if you had...check it out next time you go rockin the boutique boulevard of hallowed El Paseo...73199 El Paseo # HPalm Desert, CA 92260(760) 779-0417....

To all, thanks for the memories:
Scirrocco in PD
Paula Spencer and perfect customer service at the Hyatt Grand Regency in Indian Wells
Priceline - joker smokers
PD to Vista to OC to PD...two tanks of gas and 250 airtime minutes later - Thanks Megs and the G1....
M. Pierce...hold tight young man, Saint St. is coming a calling...

New chapters, old tricks, new ways, and life. Our life.

Saint St. Our life.

CLOW

Brooklyn...is almost as cute as Harper, and possibly cuter than Campbell

2008-11-12T09:42:00.000-08:00

Saint St has a set of interesting employment policies: must bring your dog, have to have fun, when Chris continues to ramble you are allowed to stop him....

But my favorite rule is that you must, must, bring your kids to work. We believe in daycare.

My mom is currently looking after Brooklyn right now so Megan and I can continue to establish systems and processes (fun stuff).

Thanks Mom.

CLOW

A buzz word is a buzz word and makes my head buzz

2008-11-11T08:19:00.000-08:00

I was in a meeting at Visible Technologies a few months back, sitting with a handful of "propeller heads" when Miles Ward, Director of Community Intelligence, floated the term "algorithmic recursive analysis" as part of his stream of conscientious and I swear I started to sweat and think I was unarguably the least qualified Sr. Manager in the room. No one else seemed phased. Leading up to Miles dropping his recursive bomb, terms like KPIs, EMI, ROAS, SEO, SEM, Reverse SEO, PPC, CRM, CMS, were being lobbed around by an extremely smart set of engineers and markcomm leads. Yet I was sitting there stuck on the term that I didn't know: algo something recursed what the? So I stopped the meeting and I asked the group, "What is algo recursive what did you just say Miles?"

After hearing the answer I made a point while at VT to never conclude an internal meeting without fulling understanding the wide sweeping set of acronyms that were being exploited by the propeller set. I also took it upon myself to create a crib sheet for us public school BA-types who needed to understand the full set of terms. My group at VT - Sales, Service and Strategy - needed to be able to translate this info for a much broader and simpler set of key stakeholders and clients. Daunting task. But necessary. If me or anyone else on my team couldn't translate and placate the understanding of our client set, then we were going to set ourselves up to surely fail. We needed to educate, support and make high paying clients not only smarter in the SM space, but we also needed to make sure they understood VT's methodology and technologies. Mr. MIT meet Ms. UW and Mr. Chico St. Daunting task indeed.

Providing clients that basic, intrinsic understanding of all things business intelligence, propagation of messages and campaigns, recursive analysis, algorithm-influenced influencer factors, and how to navigate VT's SAAS (software as a service), became my #1 objective across 35+ clients. So yes, I started sleeping less and sweating more than usual.

The payoff was grand. My evolving understanding led to a broader, sometimes in the clouds understanding of how SM works, why it works, when it works, and a sense of the overarching pitfalls of not obeying the key principles of SM. In my learning, I gave credence to the following key themes:

1. To be successful as a marketer in the world of SM, you have to monitor and learn from SM. If you skip this phase(s), you will lose
2. To be successful marketing in SM, you have to be very careful when you jump into a conversation or into a "skeptical" community
3. To be strategic and to fully maximize engagement tactics in SM, you must baseline everything, before you do anything. And the beauty with SM, is the ability to do just this at a nominal cost.
4. You can not divert from the general public's perception of your brand. NOTICE: I said you can not divert from the public's perception of your brand, not divert from your perception of your brand.
5. To be lucky in SM is to be lucky in life, business, and craps. When you roll the dice, no one knows what number will show and how those around the table (in the community or forum or blog sitters) will react and proact against your position, opinion or promotional message.

Algorithmic recursive analysis = when a math problem begets a math problem a few million times over to get to the very best answer. In essence, the term just means a math-led process ensures that the answer delivered (think of this like a Google search query) is the best answer possible within the constraints of the time afforded.

Yes, SM-talk can be confusing. Make sure you have a qualified instructor lead you through the minefield. A little hand holding and general counsel while you become more educated and competent will pay exponential dividends.

Saint St. was formed by a core group of friends and peers who believe in the power of Social Media. The group also values strategic planning and the need to measure the heck out of every key action or interval associated with a particular campaign or initiative - from beginning to end. And then measuring effectiveness based on a pre-determined set of KPIs and operational metrics. It's the only way you can truly judge effectiveness.

Recursive analysis = not settling for just "ok" ROI

CLOW

Hiring...friends...family...MIT grads...Saint St.

2008-11-09T12:06:00.000-08:00

But the next hire has to, has to be someone who is better at IT than me. Please.

I had to share this note I sent an old friend...it helps to explain the power of Social Media

2008-11-09T10:33:00.000-08:00

You should leverage algorythmic recurssive analysis of your SEO PPC if you really want to play with big buzzy words...Do you have any budget for counsel?

Trade works too. I like fox and mink pelts from France (it's almost Thanksgiving so I thought I would nod to our ancestors...)

Having SEO dialed is good. I'm assuming then when someone on Google types in "Element Victorville" and goes all Boolean on you peeps you all populate in the first five listings, organic that is. If not, we can work on that too.

I think what you are saying you need to do is: - to jump into a predetermined number of ongoing forum/blog dialogs and seed your promo messages, thus driving awareness (1) and then traffic to your community (2)? I believe that is a good start. I would just add the desire to increase sales-centric conversions (thus adding more tangible KPIs). Sales centric conversions include measuring people who you meet in the blogosphere, entice them to visit your eCommerce site or community, they register, and either begin to shop, or add products to their Watch/Wish List, or actually even close the loop and purchase. We can help.

Simply - locate the most strategic people who will purchase via eCommerce channel (you mentioned someone else owns and operates B&Mortar locations).Talk. Talk some more. Tell a funny story. Gain some trust. Seed. Remind them. Talk some more...and then watch them enter into your sites via a vanity URL (the whole transaction path can be proctored through tracking tags and a site-side analytics provider (e.g. Atlas).

As they progress, you monitor. Now here is where the science comes in...The purchaser gets hung up. And you know they are hung up because the metrics and analytics are telling you they stopped the transactional process. That's ok. At that point you go back and talk with them in the community you met them. You tell them another funny story. And you incentivize their continued pursuit of buying a $30 Element hat by offering a 35% discount. The "dude" goes on to buy the hat because the discount is "sweet" and then you make a margin closer to 12% versus your standard whatever...And you then add him to your community, you then drip messages to the guy regularly, and offer him smaller, and smaller discounts...until, yes, he pays almost full price. Because he has become a Maven...That is Social Media Engagement 101.

Science and marketing merge and your company makes more money.

Saint St has access to a team of more than 50 SMEs (Subject Matter Experts who can communicate smartly in SM). We build a team of the following:- Producer- 2-4 engagers (SMEs)- Account Coordinator pilot an engagement program from Nov. 17-Dec 1 around a holiday theme (tone and incentive). And we engage, and we measure.

Then we review successes and failures and build a metrics report. This first campaign helps to establish a baseline for the broader 09 approach.I love Social Media for two reasons: (1) it's where 90% of all consumers live and breath and learn and socialize and shop, or at least some combination of the set of engagement practices. (2) the whole exercise is measurable, whereas TV, radio, billboards, etc. is not as measurable, albeit measurable (through special phone numbers and vanity URLs.

If I were you guys, I would do this. But first, make sure that your messaging, technology (sites), systems, customer service, etc. is perfect. Because if it isn't, the blogosphere will tell that story, and very loudly.

I hope this helps. I had fun writing it out. Probably will drop this into my blog and share.

SO I DID. I just re-purposed this note to a friend. Because you can. It's called syndication in SM.

And I will continue to syndicate this message. And then I will measure how well the core story "propagated." Another big SM word: propagation.

Propagation is what happens with things that TIP (per Mr. Gladwell and his Hush Puppies.). Visible Technologies, my past employer and my current friend and partner is the leading SM monitoring and engagement counsel consultancy in the world. Smart peeps. MIT-level smart (two staff, and both friends of mine).

Wishing you all a beautiful Sunday.

CLOW

UW Athletic Department Story #1

2008-11-08T11:06:00.000-08:00

This past Thursday I stopped working for a few hours and attended the UW Men's Basketball game.

FYI: UW looks very promising, which as many of you know, makes me feel great for I am not only an alumnus of the school, but also an alumnus of the athletic program. For seven years (four as a student athlete, three as a coach) I walked the halls of the Graves Complex (athletic offices and NCAA weight room). I will never forget the day I met Tui in the training room. I was in there with blister issues (yes, golfers are athletes :)) and Tui as a true freshman had two days prior played a key role in a UW loss to Nebraska at Montlake.

Tui was wearing gym shorts, but they were pulled down so everyone in the room could see his backside . He had a bruise that started behind his right knee and it went all the way up to mid-point on his back. Lots of beautiful blacks, blues and yellows made for a mosaic of pain.

Remember, I was in there with blisters. Yes, big boy felt like a little golfer boy...

I introduced myself to Tui, told him I was a first year coach. I told him I was proud of him. Told him that Husky Nation was proud of him. He smiled, said thanks and then told me to "never get hit in the ass by two-by-four unless you want this!" We all laughed.

Seven years later I had a chance to play in a golf four-ball match with Tui as my partner. We beat Jeff Landskov, ex-UW trainer, and a friend of his who was a trainer with the Seahawks.

Having Tui as a partner and me leading the charge was really exciting. Winning made it just that much sweeter...

Tui is a great man. As many of you know, he hails from one of the finest sports families in the PNW, maybe in the world. The Tuiasosopos are a special breed.

There are many great ex-UW Athletes making an impact in our community and beyond. Here is a short list of friends of mine and many who I'm proud to have met and befriended.

1. Chuck Nelson
2. DJ
3. O.D. Vincent III
4. Tara Erickson (Bilanski)
5. Angie Mentink (Marzetta)
6. Kenny Knutsen
7. Mary Lou Morris
8. Greg Metcalf
9. Jason Hamilton
10. Brett Martin (he is my best friend so I had to list him...)
11. Christine Martin (wife of Brett, she earns the recognition :))
12. Softy Mahler (look, I know Dave never attended the UW, but his love and passion are unwavering)
13. Eric Schlepp (if he isn't the smartest football player at ever to don pads at UW, he is top ten, no question - and a great friend to boot)
14. Leslie Galimore
15. Tui

CLOW

Partnering with other agencies...what works, what doesn't

2008-11-07T09:21:00.000-08:00

Now that Saint St. is a whopping one week old, we are moving forward with partner agency talks with new and old friends. These discussions have been productive, and next week we will share the key highlights.

For those of you out there who are looking to partner with Saint St. or any other shop, here are a few things that I have learned along the way while developing partnerships. Keep in mind good lessons sometimes hurt. You just have to make sure you learn from those lessons.

1. Get out of a partnership what you need. Don't sacrifice just to partner. Significant sacrifices will lead to you becoming the partnership's sacrificial lamb.

2. If you don't respect your partner in advance of partnering, don't partner. Your disdain and beliefs will affect the relationship dynamic. As humans we suck at lying. And when your beliefs become palpable, they will present in BIG PRINT.

3. Set up early rules for Straight Talk. If you can't tell your partner they are "wrong," you are "right," or your idea is better, smarter, more creative, etc., then you will not be as succesful as you prospectively could be.

4. You idea doesn't have to win out. You are entering into a partnership, not an ego contest. Ego contests should take place on a bball court, at Chambers Bay or when you're wearing boxing gloves.

5. Only partner if you feel said partnership makes you a better professional being. Money isn't everything. And what you might gain today from a partnership, will definitely affect what you may earn or gain in the future. And, I don't know about you, but I'm looking forward to the future far more than I am concerned about the past and what I have done or not done.

If you want to talk further about this, feel free to call or email me: 206-941-6935, chrisl@saintst.com.

CLOW

Officially...Day #1...10 hours straight and counting

2008-11-04T15:04:00.000-08:00

Wow...if you have never owned your own business, lemonade stands included, it is hard work.

Today has been glorious.

Many people are to thank:

Nate Avila, CD - Saint St., just awesome work.

Brand Wright, Pres - Saint St., way to keep me in check. Hard work.

ELOW, Brother of CLOW, way to be smarter than smart. And bustin my chops. Now go run a golf course and love that niece of mine - hi Laurendo.

Megan Parker, Chief of Staff and Jack of Jacks and mother to Brooklyn - Saint St., thanks for coming on board. Wow...lots of work.

Tim Pilgrim, near and dear friend, awesome guy, average arm at 3rd base - thanks for being the smartest of the group of smarties...seriously smart. Motivatingly smart. MIT smart...take that Rico and BBaker.

DLOW, Mother of ELOW and CLOW and crazy like a fox...you made them, and they are a handful...but we love you and BLOW nonetheless....next time, no club throwing allowed. Also, B's and a 3.0 was a joke. Too low.

The men and woman of 14/Four...for Spokane...it just doesn't get better. Nate and Jared, thanks for letting me finally take that Jeff. Safe travels to the bosses looking for dev help in CR...

And finally, Barack....stay healthy...stay focused....don't let them win....don't let them change you...grow into your role, but fast....you have two years starting tomorrow....run, don't walk...make us proud....leave re-election up to us...run our nation....and please, please...hire only the best...smart, sensible, experienced leaders...leave the friends and family hires for the last two years (7-8). We are here for you.

Saint St. day 1:

1. We launched a website and wrote and designed 80% within 24 hours of launching. So if your agency says, "I need six weeks and 75k," that's a big crock of bullshiz.

2. We pitched a global endorsement deal to Gatorade and Pepsi on behalf of a friend...a new friend...a friend who will win more gold gloves, support his local peeps in Venezuela and continue to rock as a man, husband, dad and all around great chap.

3. We drafted, reviewed and submitted press release #1 - sent it to all the playas...thanks for the editing support....and I'm glad MLOW left for a few minutes so I could turn the 7.1 up to 85%...windows shook.

So today was fun...tomorrow?....

Saintst.com

CLOW

Why Obama?

2008-11-03T09:18:00.000-08:00

Because we as a nation and world are dying a slow death.
We are dying in front of one another.
The MAN has held us down for too long, has made too much money, and hasn't embraced evolution of humanity - just evolution of his pocketbook.

So let's do this. Band together. Even if you are a staunch Republican, do it. You need to. Your parents need you to (Social Security protection). Your neighbors do (protection of health and human services and basic municipality support like having sufficient cops for each beat). I do (I will lose my mind if we continue to nation-build nations that don't directly make us safer, healthier or richer as a nation of all.

Obama. Now.

Awesome when it works perfectly - CLOW's Pot Roast

2008-11-03T07:52:00.000-08:00

First you sear the roast - doesn't have to be Prime, it's a roast - in a pan. But only after you rub that sweet piece of meat with a special rub. For mine, I include:

- Sweet paprika (for a sweet piece of meat)
- Cayenne (careful ladies)
- Chili powder
- Kosher salt (big grain)
- Fresh cracked black, pepper that is
- Dried thyme
- Dried oregano

Place the rubbed meat into a pan scorching hot, bubbling with olive oil or canola oil. Leave it there partially covered for 6-7 minutes. Open the windows, turn on the fan, put on your oxygen tank (burning cayenne is equivalent to freebasing pepper spray...not that I would know). Turn it over, and sear the back side of this sweet, sweet piece of meat. And by the way, the more your burn it, the sweeter she gets. You've got to lock in the beautiful sweetness by burning the outside. Kind of like what a Cougar does on a sunny day in NB.

Once seared, somewhere in the neighborhood of 15 minutes or so, add the rest of the ingredients that will produce god's gift to slow cooking...

-Yellow potatoes
-Sweet onions, preferably from Walla Walla (shout out to Brandon and Crystal and the #1 college in WA St - Whitman)
-Carrots
-Halved button mushrooms (good ol' fashioned nasties - clean them first. Pigs poop.)

Now for the special stuff:
-Pour in two cans of PBRD (if you don't know what this is, you aren't Theta Delta). Any two cans of light, cheap beer will do.
-Add additional pinches of the aforementioned rub
-Add five cloves of garlic, coarsely chopped
-Add five sprigs of fresh rosemary. Tastes better if you steal it from your neighbors bush. Just because.

Through your oven to 350. Wait. Warm up that bad boy. The wait is well worth it.

Now put in your concoction. Covered in a big pot. Let her cook. Good and cook.

After a few hours, open up your oven and smell. If it smells like The Herbfarm, Le Bernadin or your grandma's kitchen in Yreka, Eureka...you've made it A-OK.

If it smells like the Olive Garden, Sizzler, or like anything you cooked between the ages of 18-25, then you are probably still OK, just don't brag to anyone.

The meat will melt. No need for a knife.

Potatoes will taste a little earthier, a little spicier, and just plain perfect if you ask me or Flay.

So go for it.

This whole dish, if you have the core spices avail, costs in the neighborhood of $12 to make.

For two people you can choose: Supersize that dead ass cow patty and never rotting fries; or, you can savor near perfection in a pan.

And this dish would not have come to life in my mouth without the love and support of Mama Lohman herself, in town to enjoy fall in Seattle. Thanks Mom.

CLOW

The new blog, new name, new approach?

2008-11-02T13:19:00.000-08:00

Same site, different domain. I managed to kill my first blog. Nice.

Feel to forward this booger on. It should be shared.

If you have questions, feel free to contact me at chrisl@saintst.com.

And if you are just tracking this blog because you are a hater, ex-boss, ex-girlfriend, or the CIA, go for it. You too could use a little education. But remember, this whole thing is copywrited.

2008-11-02T13:17:00.000-08:00

So I'm at the airport in Philly. Never thought I'd get here, really.

When you work with professional athletes and they happen to be playing in the World Series in their opponent's home city, you have to watch out. For yourself, for your peers, but especially for the safety of your client and their family.

People are crazy. And by crazy, crazy scary hanger-on -ers...

So here is my tip of the day:

If you are famous, rich, and our a combination of the two, don't be stupid. Stay as sober as you can, surround yourself with people you trust and know can handle themselves when the going gets tough. Because every now and then, inevitably, the crazies will come out and you will need to care for yourself, your people and your teammates. And if work with you, I got your back.

Philly...shameful...Koury...shameless

CLOW

Dioner and Sherley

2008-11-02T13:16:00.000-08:00

The Navarro's are class acts. Good people, family people. And I love that they want to start a foundation the right way. Dioner plays catcher for the Tampa Bay Rays (they dropped the Devil).

"Chris, I don't want to do what the players and wives usually do with just setting up a tax shelter thing. I want to really make a difference."

Sherley, Navi...I'm in. We'll take of all that after you guys win the next three games.

And Sherley, no more talking with Philly fans. They're dangerous, and more than a little stupid. I'm a much bigger fan of the Rays. Especially after hanging out with all the family, friends, staff, etc. Great people. The kind of people the rest of the USA should root for.

Thanks a million for supporting the Boys & Girls Clubs. We all appreciate the love and committment. Class act all around.

CLOW

Little budget, but big hopes for media traction

2008-11-02T13:14:00.000-08:00

Not that I'm lazy, but wanted to share this with you all who are seeking some media coverage but have a small budg, lack a big agency (non-retained), or just don't have the quasi-expertise (no rockets need to built).Try this out. It worked for us at Boys & Girls Clubs and we had no budg...but lots of gumption.

1. First make sure what you are saying and how you are saying is compelling and easy to ingest.

2. Invest in a newswire service.

3. Employ someone or an agency who is comfortable and competent with knowing what to say and who to say it to, to go out and directly pitch the story to a targeted list of business/trade editors and reporters.

4. Post your press release to your corp site, your personal site, your blog, LinkedIn profile, Facebook page, etc.

5. Reach out to a biz blog syndication service and get your release posted out "there"

6. Smartly reach out to some local and regional trade/biz pubs and establish some guest ed opps for you. In your articles, reference your new company and the compelling reasons that differentiate you from the competitor set.

7. Cross your fingers!

Chris Lohman Saint St. LLC 206-941-6935

The first week of Saint St.

2008-11-02T13:12:00.000-08:00

Today we helped our friends and peers at Startrust in Tampa generate some great PR and good will for Dioner Navarro - Saint St.'s first client. What a great guy too.

We'll be in Philly on Sunday rooting on Dioner in person. Will be hanging with Mark Sandwith - Boys & Girls Club supporter extraordinaire. He is a great person and I personally look forward to getting to know him better.

Saint St week 1....exciting, scary, and rewarding; everything you need to enjoy working. And when you enjoy work, everyone wins in the end.

Special thanks to Brandon Wright, Jason Chien, Rand Lutomski, ELOW, Brett Hill and the dozens of others who will go unnamed for now.

Saint St. - a place where work isn't all that we do.