Disqus - Latest Comments for elizabethsosnow

Re: Critical Thought Is Endangered

elizabethsosnow — Wed, 27 Jun 2012 11:39:04 -0000

Thank you for that challenge. Timing is everything and I needed to hear that thought as a writer. Thanks, Amber.

Re: Our Comfy Corners of the Internet

elizabethsosnow — Fri, 16 Mar 2012 10:19:23 -0000

Thanks for the bravery of this post -- it's why I continue to subscribe.

Re: Social networking for business benefits, YES it works!

elizabethsosnow — Thu, 18 Aug 2011 08:23:22 -0000

The best part of this video is how your warmth and professional generosity shines through. It's not hard to see why new business follows...kudos!

Re: How do you REALLY build a blog community? A love story.

elizabethsosnow — Thu, 05 May 2011 07:57:39 -0000

Congratulations, Mark. The idea of the hand-written notes blows me away. Love how far you are willing to extend your friendship to those in your community.

In fact, if I had to sum it up, I'd say it was a "friends, not fan" mentality that has helped grow become such a special place.

Re: Is PR stuck on “social” and missing the bigger picture?

elizabethsosnow — Fri, 29 Apr 2011 09:18:33 -0000

Glad you liked that idea, Erica. Keep in mind we use SMALL glasses for the tasting...otherwise the party might get a little rowdy ;)

Re: Is PR stuck on “social” and missing the bigger picture?

elizabethsosnow — Fri, 29 Apr 2011 09:17:27 -0000

Billy:

Thanks so much for those kind words. The feeling is entirely mutual and I hope to get a chance to connect with you in person soon.

I had to chuckle at your reference to the White Board - we decided it looked shiny but I must also acknowledge it looked...quite white ;) As for saying "Sosnow" correctly, I will tell you that there is actually a lack of consistency within my own family. An odd story for another day, but the bottom line is, pronounce it any way you want. I'm just excited that someone as smart as you would want to pronounce it all ;)

Re: Is PR stuck on “social” and missing the bigger picture?

elizabethsosnow — Fri, 29 Apr 2011 09:13:01 -0000

Hi Robert:

Those are all fair conclusions. "Tools vs. opportunities" is a good way to sum up the mindset. That frustrates me, because social is an amazing entry point to a much more robust, broader dialogue about digital marketing that is 1) more beneficial to clients and 2) much more interesting work.

I also like the point you raise about "all personal." It's a strange but important truth that what we do for a living has become intensely personal. As PR professionals, we are now our own digital brands. In our work for our clients, we are required to use empathy and even demographic insights in order to build deeply customized marketing strategies that will truly resonate with audiences.

When I met with Mark on Tuesday, he observed that we are now P2P (person to person) instead of B2B or B2C. I thought that was a great way to put it. Then the question becomes - are you using that POV to judge the success of your client programs? And, if you're not, how long can you afford to get away with that?

Thanks very much for your thoughtful comments!

Elizabeth

Re: Is PR stuck on “social” and missing the bigger picture?

elizabethsosnow — Wed, 27 Apr 2011 20:54:40 -0000

Mark, our firm was so thrilled by your visit yesterday. Thanks for showing everyone at Bliss exactly what a master marketer looks like. You are a gracious, insightful teacher and a wonderful friend.

Re: How Teenagers Would Re-invent Facebook

elizabethsosnow — Thu, 20 Jan 2011 13:31:53 -0000

I love the ideas you are suggesting, and particularly agree with Jacob that Facebook makes it very hard to easily access your data. That's something that will only become more of an issue in the future.

But, just because I like to ask questions...here's one for the students. When you speak to your parents about Facebook, what do you think *they* need Facebook to do for them? Do you think they have different pain points? Why or why not?

Happy learning!

Re: How to Prepare for Your Performance Review: Top 10 Review Mistakes & How to Fix Them

elizabethsosnow — Wed, 01 Dec 2010 16:05:35 -0000

Hi there:

You are absolutely right. At our firm, we speak about the idea that nothing in your review (good or bad) should be a surprise.

As communicators, we owe it to ourselves to communicate - if not over-communicate -- about individual performance and progress. A great team requires continuously improving individuals.

If that's true, then the ideal review isn't about delivering news at all. It's a thoughtful discussion about how, given your own strengths and weaknesses, you can achieve your personal "road map" for the coming year.

Bonus points if you can map that out in advance. That will allow you to better drive the conversation towards your desired outcome.

Re: How to Prepare for Your Performance Review: Top 10 Review Mistakes & How to Fix Them

elizabethsosnow — Wed, 01 Dec 2010 15:56:50 -0000

Hi Jamie:

Personally, I feel it would be strange if you weren't nervous. I think "nerves" are a useful compass for your preparation. If you stop and think about what's worrying you the most, you're likely to hit upon the performance area that you most need to discuss in your review.

Thanks for visiting with me virtually :)

Elizabeth

Re: High-Tech PR Blog >> Beyond the Hype: What defines 'news' in the new age of PR?

elizabethsosnow — Wed, 01 Dec 2010 09:14:41 -0000

Hi Ted:

Thanks for mentioning our blog. It's funny that you mentioned the importance of writing for search, because I almost put in a section about that in the post.

I heartily agree that a major benefit of a good press release is highlighting key search terms. But I'd offer a refinement: focus on developing great *content* that includes the right search terms. Sometimes it's a press release, but very often it's not?

Re: How to Grow a Content Creator: A 3-Month Boot Camp (The First Month)

elizabethsosnow — Wed, 03 Nov 2010 12:41:42 -0000

I think you raise a great point about templates, Katie. From my experience, people do appreciate a "checklist" that I can use to evaluate their work.

On the other hand...creative content does not always match the checklist. As teachers, I guess it's our job to figure out what approach works best for each creator?

Re: How to Grow a Content Creator: A 3-Month Boot Camp (The First Month)

elizabethsosnow — Wed, 03 Nov 2010 12:38:57 -0000

Hi Tracy, thank for your comment. I'm a huge believer in 1) the need to read and in 2) the need to read smart people. In fact, for your further reading pleasure, here are 2 posts I wrote on those subjects:

http://blog.blisspr.com/201...

Who are your favorite content creators?

Re: Putting Your Best Avatar Forward – When To Switch

elizabethsosnow — Thu, 21 Oct 2010 11:47:21 -0000

Glad you brought it up, Mark. I'm always looking at my boring photo avatar and thinking I should change it to entertain my peeps. But just yesterday, I met an online business acquaintance for the first time. She said that "you look just like your avatar." This has happened more than once. So, I guess that's the point?

Re: The Skill that Many in PR Are Missing…and Better Find Quick

elizabethsosnow — Wed, 13 Oct 2010 16:44:05 -0000

I love folks who want to learn -- good for you for taking on the challenge. There are lots of teachers ready to help you...until you start to teach us! That's the best part of our socially networked "brave new world."

Re: The Skill that Many in PR Are Missing…and Better Find Quick

elizabethsosnow — Wed, 13 Oct 2010 16:42:18 -0000

Appreciate that feedback, Jo-San. I'm not sure I'm ready to write a "Dummies" book, but I definitely can see the need for some more "basics" posts...and will try to do a few in the coming months.

I really agree that using our brains to do "new things" is the best part of web 2.0. Change is good, even if it feels scary sometimes.

Re: The Skill that Many in PR Are Missing…and Better Find Quick

elizabethsosnow — Tue, 21 Sep 2010 11:32:01 -0000

Thanks, Constance. The "Math love/hate" concept still rings true to me. I may be really excited about analytics, but I'm not *that* different from when I was 17 ;)

Re: The Skill that Many in PR Are Missing…and Better Find Quick

elizabethsosnow — Sat, 18 Sep 2010 14:27:42 -0000

Davina, I congratulate you on your smart "life" preparation. I suspect that your 21 year old college self was much more evolved than mine was ;)

It's also true that we if just instill a system that forces us to look at the analytics regularly, we'll almost automatically start to see the patterns. I find that client reporting is a helpful trigger for that!

Re: The Skill that Many in PR Are Missing…and Better Find Quick

elizabethsosnow — Fri, 17 Sep 2010 20:59:56 -0000

Ah, I love it! "The mathematical form of dyslexia." I'm convinced I have a similar disease :)

SEO is absolutely a required skills these days...sometimes little tools like WordTracker can "ease" you in, though I have also found SEOMoz blog to be very helpful. SEOMoz has a good mix of beginner and advanced posts and it's worth looking at their archives. Lots of 101 type posts for you to peruse.

While SEO is extremely important, I treat web analytics differently. There, the key is to isolate patterns. As a starting point, try this:

1. Have we done an online audit to see what our targets care about? Can we distill those trends into actionable insights for our company?
2. How do those insights affect our business objectives? Elaborate and then refine objectives.
3. What marketing goals/programs can best support those objectives? (Hint: Are you aiming for better sales, awareness or loyalty?)
4. What online metrics would be the best benchmarks to gauge our progress before & after implementation?
5. Then you pick the right milestones to monitor, from inbound links to bounce rates to "more information" click-throughs, etc. Tools like Klout or Authority Labs can help, too.

You've inspired me - maybe I'll write another post :) But in the meantime, don't give up on Avinash, 'cause he's never failed me yet. Try:

Web Analytics 101 -

http://www.kaushik.net/avin...

Viral, Social, Sentiment, Mobile: 4 Delightful Web Analytics Solutions -

http://www.kaushik.net/avin...

Good luck!

Elizabeth

Re: The Skill that Many in PR Are Missing…and Better Find Quick

elizabethsosnow — Wed, 15 Sep 2010 14:58:28 -0000

Hi Amanda:

Um, you had me at "mathy." And I agree we need more free tools to help us learn/leverage measurement - that's a market opportunity for someone. Wonder who will grab it?

Re: The Skill that Many in PR Are Missing…and Better Find Quick

elizabethsosnow — Wed, 15 Sep 2010 14:40:52 -0000

Yes, if we each tell some folks...and they tell some folks...we'll have a groundswell! Oh, wait. I think someone already wrote about that ;)

Seriously, that's what we need. Hopefully, over time, the community will learn together.

Re: The Skill that Many in PR Are Missing…and Better Find Quick

elizabethsosnow — Wed, 15 Sep 2010 14:10:51 -0000

Thanks, Stacey. Those are compelling benchmarks. You know what intrigues me even more? The new opportunity to develop a much more complete picture of the customer/target. "Math" actually gives you a chance to truly understand your audience is...and what excites them. That could well be the "secret sauce" for PR and marketing folks of the future.

Re: The Skill that Many in PR Are Missing…and Better Find Quick

elizabethsosnow — Wed, 15 Sep 2010 14:05:49 -0000

Hi Nikki:

I couldn't agree more. While it's always been true that the key to being a good PR professional is "reading," this is a new self-education requirement. I listed a few of the folks that I've learned from in the post, particularly Avinash. He is a generous teacher...and it doesn't hurt to have insights from the key Google leader, either!

I hope PR schools start to catch on, but I can tell you they don't seem to have done it so far. I have never, in 20 years, had an entry level interviewee mention web analytics. But you can imagine how happy I would be if they did...it certainly would "vault them up" as a candidate!

Re: The Skill that Many in PR Are Missing…and Better Find Quick

elizabethsosnow — Wed, 15 Sep 2010 13:59:11 -0000

I think you hit the nail on the head. As a PR professional, I'm tremendously excited to get a chance to prove how much more value we can add, if given the chance. This is light years beyond the very tired "Advertising Equivalency" conversation.

This is actually our ticket to the Boardroom - I hope we are collectively brave enough to grab it.