I feel as though I left home without my cell phone.

Be sure to use it as an opportunity to build customer loyalty by enhancing the experience, and maybe even gain market share.   The Bisons get it.

We have opted not to participate in this recession. There I said it, or wrote it, for all the world to see. Feels good. Kevin Eikenberry had a great post about this a few weeks back. And then I came across this post, by Jeff Cornwall, about the recession -

Even though budget cutting is part of getting ready, do not cut back on marketing efforts. Now more than ever you need to stay front and center in the minds of your customers. Competition is going to get even tougher, so you need to keep your competitive edge by reminding the customers that you want their business. Many of your competitors will slash marketing budgets to save money. That will give you an advantage if you keep getting your message out there.

During the last recession, in which we participated fully (thus allowing us to pass this time), the first thing to get cut was the marketing budget. Slash, cut, pummel. I think some lessons were learned and people realized that may not be the smartest tactic in maintaining revenue. You can only cut overhead so much folks. At some point, you have got to focus on growing revenue. That takes targeted marketing, effective sales people, great customer service and delivering what you promise.  If we all keep focused on those issues, instead of the bad news, we can get through this recession thing without too many bumps or bruises.

And let me tell you, it’s intimidating.

I am practicing my twittering technique and thought I’d follow a few inspirational tweeters to see how they update–Tour de France, CNN, social media club, green living and Barack Obama, among others. And then I got this email:

And with that one simple move by Barack Obama’s campaign, the presidential candidate said more to me than any of his advertising dollars to date. Two minutes ago I had no relationship to the politician and now he’s listening to every thought I have 140 characters at a time.

And that connection cost him nothing.

As Pedal Powered and Lizzie have shared here, Seaport Village threw a very fun and successful event the other weekend- the 2nd Annual Spring Busker Festival. In addition to coordinating a spectacular event that was even more successful than the year before, BG was tasked with getting the word out so San Diegans and those visiting San Diego would come by to enjoy the busking spectacle. The team did just that. We scored TV segments on every station in San Diego - NBC 7/39, KUSI, CBS ch. 8, KGTV and Fox - and numerous inclusions in blogs and print publications. Not only did we provide our local media with great visuals and content for their stories, which is key in getting air time and maintaining the relationships, we also drove tons of traffic to Seaport Village. And hopefully provided a lot of mom’s with an entertaining Mother’s Day.

It is our personal mission to create marketing messages with impact. We want our clients to standout from all the clutter and competition. A recent onsite campaign for Seaport Village has garnered more pictures than a Kodak Photo Spot.

And now it lives on the blogosphere.

Just a few months ago I was introduced to the crazy and influential blogosphere, and now, here I am, making my blogging debut. Although I once considered myself a social media expert (coming of age in the time of facebook, myspace and aim) I have since been humbled by the plethora of social media tools. Pre-BG, I thought blogs were nothing more than someone’s online diary, and I had never even heard of twitter, del.icio.us, digg or StumbleUpon. Now I spend my evenings compunicating with my roommate via aim, facebook, twitter, and digsby while we surf the web for a great new blog post or an interesting tweet. It is the most fun I’ve ever had “researching.”

I wanted to address two good questions my fellow BG’s had posed at our social media meeting and offer possible solutions I have come across:

First, many of you have wondered how one would have time to manage all this social media. Meet Digsby. This great site manages all your email accounts, your aim, g-chat, facebook, myspace and twitter all at the same time and alerts you with updates by a small pop-up at the bottom of your screen. It is nothing short of amazing.

Second, while most people got how twitter might be beneficial for their clients, some wondered how their own personal twittering could really benefit them. A truly proud moment for me was when one of the San Diego bloggers I secured coverage with for Seaport started following me on twitter. I am now getting the opportunity to build a personal relationship with her, while also learning about her interests. Could you ask for anything more?

I still have tons to learn about the complex world of social media and welcome any and all insights. I am hoping that by taking this next step and becoming an official blogger, I will expand my knowledge. The insight I gain can only make me more effective in the blogs I pitch and the relationships I build.

In PR we put a lot of effort into crafting the perfect, most intriguing, all inclusive…yet brief… email subject lines.

We used to be clever, “Soak up the fun with SpongeBob Squarepants at Del Mar 7-23.” That’s ineffective. Then we became concise: “Tiffany & Co. in studio for holidays.” This is working. But how boring is that!?

There is one subject line in my inbox that gets me chuckling every month. It’s the Southwest Airlines Click n’ Save Email Updates. Some are clever, some are just so un-corporate that they make me smile, as if it’s some kid at a laptop who decides on it, doesn’t run it by anyone, then just clicks “send” to however many thousands that receive it. No biggie. It’s a simple matter, but something a subject line-whiz can appreciate.

A sampling:

Fly Away With These Special Deals!

Low Fares Get You Basking in the Sun!

Lucky You! Fares Priced From Just….

A little google search behind Southwest’s marketing takes me to a site I had forgotten about when it first launched with quite a bit of buzz that followed: Nuts About Southwest. I like how casual it is. I like whoever the kid is behind Southwest’s email subject lines, I like that that Southwest tells jokes over the microphone before takeoff and I like that I was just able to vote for the honey roasted peanuts on their blog.

Please. Vote for the honey roasted peanuts.

My partner Indra is at a conference in Florida for PRSA Counselor’s Academy, learning how to be an even smarter professional in today’s whirlwind marketing arena. She rocks.

What doesn’t rock is how few professionals in the marketing world really GET IT, especially when it comes to branding. With the advent of social marketing, the essence of a brand is now even more ethereal, and requires strong brand management across multiple platforms in order to stay focused and true. I’m glad Indra is a leader in this field, because she is correct in her thinking — and our clients benefit from it.

I was reading a cool article in the New York Times this weekend about zombie brands, and it made me think about how much intellectual equity a brand can earn. Equity that remains valuable even after a brand has retired. Equity that begins its earning process from Day One, whether you like it or not. If it’s not too late for Brim and Underalls, then smart marketers should realize they need to start building their brand equity now — while they still have a living, breathing brand to nurture.

A few years ago, we did some work with Proctor & Gamble, Corning, Harrod’s and a few other worldwide conglomerates who were dusting off old heritage brands that still had equity but had left the shelves. It was fascinating work, as these brands were licensed to holding companies in the US and overseas with the intention to resurrect or redirect the power of those brands.

As we work with our clients now we are planning for present and the future, as we help them build equity and value for their brand — dead or alive. It’s cool work. I love what we do, especially when clients GET IT.

Yesterday I wrote about one aspect of Pete Blackshaw’s keynote. Click on this link to read my colleague Matt Kucharski’s blog about this other important aspect of social media reputation.