Remember when the Academy was against social media and forced YouTube to pull thousands of clips from the awards show in 2007? Well, guess what? The Academy is finally getting with the times and embracing social media for the Oscars.

In 2008, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences created its own YouTube Channel offering behind the scenes footage, interviews, highlights and more. So, did this help? Well according to an article in AdAge, last year’s Oscars was the among the lowest-rated broadcast in its televised history. Ouch.

One reason this might have failed is because social media is about  strategy, and not just the tools.  Anyone can throw up a Facebook Page, YoubTube Channel or Twitter handle, but without a strategy tying these to a traditional marketing campaign, you’re likely set up for failure.

Third time’s a charm, right? The Academy is back with a new social media strategy for the 2010 Oscars. A Facebook Page for the Oscars was created with shiny features like a live stream and a chat on which they streamed the nominees. Taking note of the fact that people love to guess who will take home golden statues that evening, the Academy released an iPhone app allowing fans to make their own predictions to compare against other fans.

Is this a recipe for success? We’ll find out soon enough.

I had the great pleasure of speaking about Social Media at Paciolan’s annual PACnet conference this past week in Newport Beach, CA. The conference brought together Paciolan’s clients from all over the country and Canada to share best practices in the event ticketing industry. Who knew there was so much strategy and methodology surrounding ticket pricing, seating and inventory?!

Most of the attendees were athletic directors and marketing professionals who represented schools like Arizona State University, North Carolina State, University of Colorado and University of Alabama. They gathered to hear the different approaches and products their colleagues are using to get more “butts in seats” at events. The most used phrase I heard throughout the conference was “perceived value of a seat.” If the perception of any given seat in a stadium or venue is high, the dollar value of that seat increases. The goal is to get people clamoring for every seat in the place, including those nose-bleeds most people don’t want to sit in (or purchase because they’re cheap). Pretty intuitive, right?

Besides the fascinating information I learned as an attendee (and the delicious In-N-Out Double Double I consumed), I also heard a lot about how these sporting venues are using (or not using) social media. Most of them have Facebook pages with a handful of fans, but they aren’t using them to full capacity- many have little engagement besides the basic score update or announcement of when the next game is being played. There was a lot of discussion about the possibility of people becoming fans to show their school and alumni spirit, but not necessarily engaging with the content. I quickly came to the conclusion that many of the people managing the social media programs for these schools aren’t giving their fans information to engage with. There is such an opportunity for them to increase an event’s perceived value through social media.

I would’ve liked to spent more time with another Double Double….I mean with each representative to discuss how their social media program could yield better results. I hope to do that in the future. In the meantime, do you follow any sports teams that are doing an exceptional job of interacting through social media?

Yesterday, when Jay Baer stopped by our office to give us a full run down of the latest in SM, one particular discussion stuck out to me.  While we constantly remind our clients of this as we pass the SM torch over to them, it really is essential that companies utilize Facebook and Twitter accounts as an added component to a customer service team.

Jay noted that when  a woman calls a company to reach customer service, she almost expects to basically get no where.  When she emails, she may expect a response within a few days.  But, when an individual hops on Twitter and Facebook and posts to a brand that has so openly requested her to interact, she wants a response/solution to her issues RIGHT NOW.

Below are some simple strategies to implement customer service into your Facebook and Twitter accounts.

Using Social Media for Customer Service

1)  Monitor your social media accounts daily.  Engaging posts are important, but know that you can’t always plan for what a fan/follower may post.

2)  When a fan complains about your product, don’t delete the post.  Let it be an open dialogue where you assure your fan that the problem is going to be addressed.

3)  Respond to questions, concerns, and even positive feedback immediately.  And by immediately, I mean within an hour!  If you don’t generate a response quickly enough, that may be a lost follower forever.

4)  If the issue requires tech support or help from a separate department within your company, respond within the hour to tell them that you are sorry for the frustration, the issue is being addressed and you will respond with an answer/solution within the next three hours.  (And follow up with that guarantee.)

It’s probably a good idea to have some simple responses to questions that tend to pop up regularly on your fan pages and Twitter feeds, but know that you can’t plan the day to day.  Just be confident in your brand and remember that these fans/followers trust your social media involvement as a part of your customer service initiatives.

What brands do you think utilize social media for customer service best?

Perhaps it’s not politically correct for the CEO of a digital marketing company to express his disgust with a strong new entry into the social media consciousness, and yet here I go.  I hate Foursquare.  OK, my kids tell me that “hate” is a really strong word, so let me rephrase – I strongly dislike Foursquare. And I don’t care who knows it.

Advocates of Foursquare say it’s the next big social media marketing platform.  They say that businesses small and large should try to attract members of Foursquare because it will help them promote their business online. Even the New York Times has picked up on the hub-bub, so it has officially entered the public lexicon.

Foursquare is basically a social media game, which requires players to “check in” at various locations they visit as they vie to become the Mayor of that location.  A dubious honor, this mayorship can sometimes lead to – are you ready for it? A free cup of coffee!  Coupons for dollars off a sandwich!  Maybe even a crown you can wear around town to let people know of your superior status.

So why do I hate Foursquare? Because its participants — many of whom reside in this very office and are people I trust and respect — continue to feel it necessary to share with me through their Twitter and Facebook streams exactly where they are at all times, and what they are buying/consuming/eating etc. Frankly, I do not care where you are.  I don’t care that you are bra shopping. And I don’t care that you just unlocked the super-sonic, gold-plated badge level like some Worlds of Warcraft fanboy.

And I certainly don’t care that you are the mayor of the Hillcrest Subway. Or the mayor of Bailey Gardiner for that matter.  What makes you think anyone actually does care, except for you and the owner of the business you are promoting by telling me where you are?

There are a lot of great online business models that already offer geolocation services and popularity ratings – and way better in my opinion. User generated content and public rating systems are not new, and there are great platforms like Yelp, Loopt, Chowhound, and even grand-daddies like TripAdvisor, that allow me to check people’s opinions about all sorts of things. But on my own time and according to my own set of search criteria.

Having people barge into my social media stream with updates about their current location is pretty much spam.  It’s uninvited information from people I actually like, making it really hard to just turn off their Facebook updates or unfollow them on Twitter.

So do us all a favor Foursquare junkies – disconnect your relentless updates from your social media streams so we don’t all have to witness your trips to Subway, Starbucks and Target. Then you can become the Mayor Of Wherever The Hell You Want, and I don’t need to know about it.

Because really, no one cares except for the brands you are helping by mentioning them.

The social media world has erupted with buzz (pardon the pun) about Google’s newest launch - Google Buzz. The new social network is integrated directly with Gmail and allows you to take all of your personal web feeds and create a single stream. Buzz also includes a Foursquare – esq function where you can make updates based on your location and receive tips and reviews based from other Google Buzzers. The overall effect is that every photo, blog post, video, status update etc can all be found in one place where other Google users can view it and comment on it.

So is Google Buzz a game changer? Some are saying this could be the next big social network, but I just don’t see it. I went in and played with mine, and I am not convinced as to why I need this when I am already perfectly comfortable using my existing networks. Furthermore, not everyone I want to connect with has Gmail, making it impossible for this to ever become my preferred social network.

However, within 56 hours of their launch, Google Buzz already had more than 9 million posts and comments. Plus, with 38 million Gmail users automatically hooked up, there is a tremendous potential for growth.

The real question is, will Google Buzz last? Google Wave made a huge splash when it came on the scene, but was dismissed as too complex within mere weeks. Mashable recently conducted a poll asking their readers which they preferred: Facebook, Twitter or Google Buzz. With more than 6,500 votes, Facebook was the clear leader, receiving 47 % of the votes. 26% of the votes went to Twitter, and only 18% went to Google Buzz.

So what do you think? Is Google Buzz going to be the next it thing? Are you using Google Buzz? Let me know your thoughts in the comments.

Dave Taylor, blogger extraordinaire,  came to BG for a visit last month, and I took the opportunity to conduct a short interview with him. In this video he provides background information on his popular tech support blog, askdavetaylor.com and why it continues to attract a growing number of visitors.

Dave’s 2 keys to successful blogging include:

• Help people
• Provide value

He also gave us a few tips on how to monetize a blog using affiliate marketing. These included:

• Crystalize your purpose for blogging (get specific)
• Produce new content frequently to keep people coming back (grow traffic)
• Complete a competitive analysis on bloggers in your space (what works/doesn’t)

Check out the rest of what Dave had to say here:

Why Toyota Is Missing the Social Media Mark

Tiger Woods. Toyota. South Carolina Governor Mark Sanford. The list goes on and on, doesn’t it? The list of people (brands, really) and companies (brands for sure) that have lost their reputation.

Last week, I heard a terrific presentation by Peter Morrissey, President and CEO of Morrissey & Company, professor at Boston College and author of the respected Mount Vernon Report, on reputation. He defined reputation with words such as character, integrity and authenticity. He further postulated that reputation is one of the most valuable assets a corporation can have. And while protecting the asset of corporate reputation is the primary goal of public relations, it is not a goal always shared with corporate marketing, which can have shorter term sales objectives depending on revenues, time of year and inventories.

What builds a reputation? Peter says its a combination of people, products, conduct of business and financial performance. Ultimately, he says, it is simple acts that build the content of character over time.

As I read the latest Associated Press story this morning about Toyota’s recall debacle, I was struck by the news that Toyota has beefed up its public relations support. Of course they have. Once again, public relations is brought in to clean up a mess, rather than being at the table prior to a crisis to provide strategy. (I’m guessing that’s the case, because if PR has been legitimately involved all along, they should be fired).

Public relations is continually sidelined by marketing and lawyers who have the ear of the C-suite and usually the bigger budgets. But that formula is wrong. The advent of online news and the 24/7 cycle, combined with the velocity of social media, has created a situation where public relations must be involved in communications planning at the highest levels of decision making.

Toyota’s engagement in social media gets a grade of C+ at best. While the outpouring of support on Facebook has been huge, there has been nominal posting in response. Toyota doesn’t even have a Twitter account, so their engagement there is a big fat zero. Yet the conversation on Twitter about Toyota is endless. Interestingly, Jim Lentz, President and COO of Toyota Motor Sales, USA, is going on a Live Digg Dialogg today to answer the public’s questions. Digg? Really? They are playing it safe by testing the waters on a relatively small social network to see how it plays before going big time on the mainstream sites. When you have a big global problem, playing it safe is not a winning strategy. There should be teams working around the clock, actively engaging on social networks. Toyota’s message should be clear by this point and those teams should be supporting it every day, every hour. It’s going to take a lot of work, in every media and social channel on the planet to rebuild Toyota’s reputation. These are mistakes that cannot be undone and each day the hole gets deeper. Or in Toyota’s case, several million dollars bigger. Tiger, are you listening?

The short answer is “maybe”. And here’s the long answer….

We’re often asked this question by potential and current clients and we usually tell them that social media isn’t for everyone and having a Facebook Fan Page isn’t for everyone either. People use Facebook as a way to interact with the brands they have an emotional connection to and/or to express their personal interests to their friends.

For example, I’m a fan of Diet Coke, but I don’t make it a point to visit their page to interact with the brand or with other fans. I just like Diet Coke and wanted it to be on my list. I’m also a fan of Scripps Health because I’m a patient and think they are a wonderful health care provider. I often interact with them by answering questions posed to their fans or even posting my own questions. I also love paperclips and appreciate their function, but I’m not going to go out of my way to become a fan let alone post comments on the fan page.

When we advised our client, Vet-Stem, a company that provides stem cell therapy for dogs, to create a Facebook fan page, we were really excited and knew a page focusing on people’s pets and how Vet-Stem has helped them improve their quality of life, would be a success. But, we were not prepared for just how much people wanted to interact with the brand and shocked at how fast we saw results.

Our team set moderate expectations using past experience and industry benchmarks. We created the  fan page with a strategy and compelling content, and when it was complete in January, networked it out within our Bailey Gardiner team. We saw a slight bump in fans, but that was the calm before the storm. Vet-Stem sent an email out to their database which included veterinarians and patients. The email didn’t just include “become our fan”, but told people why we created the page and how we wanted them to interact. We were asking them to share stories about their pets, how Vet-Stem helped and opened it up to questions and comments from dog owners.

Now, Vet-Stem’s Facebook Fan Page has nearly 950 fans and sees several interactions per day on their fan page. Dog owners post pictures of their dogs and write stories about how thankful they are for stem cell therapy. We’ve also use the page to share links to our Arthritis in Dogs blog posts and have seen an increase of click throughs to both the blog and the website. Vet-Stem has also started using their fan page as a way to streamline their customer service protocol and gather testimonials for us to use for traditional public relations pitching.

The point is, if your brand is one that people are passionate about and already has a strong following of brand ambassadors, then a Facebook Fan Page is something you should consider. Remember that interaction and engagement are your two goals for your fan page. Creating a two-way communication with them and making them feel like they are a part of something is key to a successful strategy.

When ordering pizza with friends a few days ago, I was surprised at the level of interaction Domino’s Pizza offered their customers. Here are five of the ways that Dominoes is giving consumers what they want online:

1. Real time tracking of your order. Minute by minute, your order is tracked from “Order Placed” to “Out for Delivery.” The tracker even shows you who is making your pizza and who will deliver! Social media and online ordering has created a real time consumer.

2. Sharing every moment of your life. No matter how boring. Domino’s made it easy for me to connect to Facebook and share that I am about to have pizza. This message is then displayed on my wall and the news feeds of my friends.

3. Domino’s monitored social sites like Facebook, Twitter and Yelp and listened to their critics. They took all of this feedback and re-created their pizza. Then, they went on the road and found the people that were their “harshest critics.” They called this promotion the “Pizza Turnaround.” They showcase their videos on their YouTube channel and on their own website.

4. Notice in the picture just above that they highlight their Twitter stream about their new pizza. They realized they needed to listen to their customers and make things right.

5. They genuinely want to know how they are doing. They make it easy for you to leave comments and feedback about your pizza and your experience.

6. Last but not least. The email follow-up not only confirms your order and tells you that you can track your order online, it also has a “come back” message:

At BG, we have a team where each member specializes in a specific area of the digital marketing field, including mobile marketing, social media,  SEO, PPC and blogging. This team compiled a list of our predictions for 2010 in the five most popular areas in the advertising and public relations world today.

Social Media 2010 Predictions

1. As social networks mature, the value of using each tool (Twitter, Facebook, etc.) for business will become more defined and specialized. Companies will become increasingly strategic about where their resources go and we may see some pullback on tools that aren’t yielding results, while explorers will start testing less mainstream networks such as digg, del.icio.us and foursquare.

2. Company sites will become increasingly social. Applications like Facebook Connect will allow customer engagement within the site while communities, blogs and targeted pages, eliminate the need to jump onto Twitter, Facebook, etc. in order to engage.

Email Marketing 2010 Predictions

1. We will see a simplification in email creative design, to cater to mobile users, while retaining speed-to-market.

2. Expect to see a lot more calls to engage via social media in marketing email in 2010. Around 60% of marketing emails today have no social media elements in them, which is a huge missed opportunity to gain additional brand touch points with engaged consumers.

PPC 2010 Predictions

1. Rapid responses to market news, and the buying up of relevant keywords early, will give marketers an edge over the competition.

2. As search engines get smarter, many SEO techniques will become less effective, making PPC and blogging must-haves instead of nice-to-haves. Shrewd keyword choices that don’t have a lot of competing bidders, and close watchfulness of keyword performance will be the hallmarks of successful marketers in this arena.

Mobile Marketing 2010 Predictions

1. As apps become more popular, advertising within the apps themselves will dramatically increase, especially with free apps. These will become more frequent and the design element will become more savvy, which in turn, will make skipping/avoiding these mobile banners/messages almost impossible.

2. Messaging that is targeted to someone in a specific location (i.e. in Downtown San Diego) will become the new thing. Strategically placed nodes will pick up Bluetooth signals and serve a person an ad relevant to the exact location they are in. They will be given the option to opt-in or opt-out. These preferences that you select will follow you around like a puppy.

Blogging 2010 Predictions

1. Blogs will look more like news sites and news sites will look more like blogs. As bloggers become more sophisticated, blog designs have more functionality than ever. Many top blogs now resemble news portals with featured content and categorization. Simultaneously, as traditional news sites become more and more social with the integration of Facebook fan boxes and tweetmeme buttons, they are beginning to aesthetically look more like blogs.

2. Development of niche blogs will increase. With the plethora of blogs out there, new blogs will have to be extremely targeted and identify a niche audience. While this limits the potential number of readers, it ensures that the blog’s traffic is relevant. It is also a new blog’s only hope to compete for search traffic.

There you have it. Those are BG’s 2010 marketing predictions on where Social Media, Email, PPC, Mobile Marketing and Blogging are heading in 2010. I will be curious at the end of the year to look back and see how on (or off) we were on our predictions for the year. Do you think we missed any key changes?