Confederate: United in a league, alliance, or conspiracy (image by Geoff Livingston).

Creating social media strategies for large organizations can be unwieldy. Disparate divisions, brands, product launches, autonomous departments, budgets and line items can give corporate communicators a tough time as they bridge their companies into the social era.

Some organizations can manage their organizations well enough to federate their social media efforts under one roof. Now some very basic best practices are arising. According to the Fortune 500 Business Blogging Wiki, 62 of the country’s largest companies are already engaged. But others cannot, and they must look to create a different model, one we have started calling the confederate model.

There are many organizations that simply cannot get all of their parts to agree on a unified strategy. For example, consider national non-profits that have local autonomous chapters. Other corporate structures where this problem can arise include partnerships like large law firms, franchise models that feature local owners and undefined marketing structures, and automobile dealerships (Star Alliance image by Nergiz).

For all intents and purposes, these loosely organized bodies can do what they like. This creates enormous challenges online, in large part because of the disparate efforts can confuse customers, as well as fracture brand conversations. Indeed, a communicator needs to acknowledge that there will always be a healthy majority of internal stakeholders who will never engage in the larger social media stratey.

Building a Confederated Model

Instead of trying to control the social media effort under one roof, confederated models try to empower individual stakeholders in the larger organization. A confederated model for a company or non-profit assumes and includes the following:

In addition to building the actual framework, a great deal of the effort involves internal alliance building and communications. Local stakeholders need to be made aware of and convinced about the effectiveness of the social media tool sets.

Of course, what would a proposed stategic model be without a case study? One needs to go no further than the Obama campaign’s social media efforts. This is an ongoing effort.

Partisan politics aside, Obama’s campaign communications involves intense grassroots activities using social media tools. Tens of thousands of Obama campaigners, advocates and even casual voters are enabled to spread the message.

At the heart of the effort is activism on more than a dozen social networks, as well as the Obama campaign’s web site. Bloggers using the Obama platform have even posted negatively against policies or Obama actions.

Not your average political campaign, but one that does fit into the confederated model. The Obama campaign is less concerned about individual flare outs and control, and much more oriented towards word of mouth and viral grass roots activism. The results have been self-evident.

The much anticipated Microsoft ads (part two) earn a big FAIL from the general public and bloggers alike.

With hundreds of millions in their marketing and advertising budget, it’s amazing that their recent “I’m a PC” ads were not better.

The new ads may be a simple case of a company scrambling to REACT to the popularity and buzz of Apple’s ads, while responding to criticism of the Bill Gates and Jerry Seinfeld ads. But the problem here is not necessarily in their reaction, but in their lack of PROACTIVE advertising.

A major problem with Microsoft is the general perception of their products and the fact that they have not clearly established their brand persona. Sure, they have 90% of the market and everyone knows who Bill Gates is, but what does that really mean? Mac users may only hold about 10% of the market, but with that, they have an almost cult following and top influencers. From Dan Lyons (aka “fake Steve Jobs“):

Apple users tend to be the kind of people marketers refer to as “influencers” or “tech elites,” the in-the-know folks who adopt the coolest new technology and set trends. Apple’s highly effective “I’m a Mac” ads have done a great job of positioning Apple as the machine for hipsters, and Windows-based PCs as the choice for dorks. Remember how AOL used to be cool, but then became the service used only by people who didn’t know any better? Microsoft is heading down that path.

Why Apple Works

Apple’s ads work for two reasons that complement each other.

• They have an established persona and brand.
• The ads are clever and hip, but at the core address key issues and frustrations with PCs that consumers can relate to.

People identify with Apple products. iPods are commonplace, iPhones are coveted, and the products are easily recognizable. Users and prospective buyers can go to a store and test out products. (Although Microsoft is said to be contemplating a store of their own.) The iPod and iPhone  you already own are more compatible with a Mac than a PC. Your Mac can also work with Microsoft Office and is compatible with other devices (digital cameras, etc.), where varying operating systems on a PC may fail.

Microsoft is often simply uploaded to a PC and delivered to you. You may have multiple OS versions running on home or work computers. Vista at work and XP at home leads to quite a headache. Not only that, but there are multiple OS versions to choose from. Apple is simple. Apple is compatible. And hey, Apple is “cool”. Macbook Air anyone?

(Photo credit: The Mac Lawyer)

Why should people use PCs when they are not shiny and new, unreliable, incompatible, and difficult? Mac offers sleek designs, features that are compatible and the “cool” factor. It’s a product problem, easily addressed with Apple’s jabs at PCs being difficult to use.

We thought these ads were supposed to tell people why Window’s isn’t wack, but they don’t even mention Microsoft or Windows, let alone any of its features. WTF? Who cares if astronauts and animal trainers use it? You’re supposed to be telling the people who want to look cool with a Macbook why they should stick with Microsoft.

Microsoft’s New Ad Campaign

The main problem with Microsoft’s new ad campaign is that it only addresses the first part, a clever people pleaser, and ignores the critical second part addressing key problems users have with PCs.

Microsoft does attempt to mirror the snarky creativity (and even Mac tools) of Apple’s ads, but does not have the bite of Apple. In fact, it’s hard to figure out what the point is of “I’m a PC”. From the Inquisitr:

There’s no angle other than normal people use PCs, there’s no PCs work, PCs are reliable, Vista doesn’t suck, Microsoft is cool message….yet.

Another problem is that the new ads are clamoring for change while keeping the same formula. Saying that your product is “different” while piggybacking on past campaigns from Apple (and maybe Coke with a “we are the world” feel) doesn’t leave a fresh taste in your mouth. Maybe Microsoft does need to invest in something moist and chewy like cake.

One positive point for Microsoft, according to Sizlopedia, the ‘I am a PC’ campaign is much more interactive than other ad campaigns in the sense that it allows users to make their own ‘I am a PC’ video and upload to the official Lifewithoutwalls site. Even so, the videos are open for parody, which is both good and bad. People are definitely talking about the ads, even if the talk is overwhelmingly negative.

What Now?

Microsoft could have copied the vibe of Apple’s ads while still addressing the perceived product problems. For example, if Microsoft wanted to portray themselves as reliable, trustworthy and familiar, why not set up a “date”? Channel the good energy from this ad of the “advertiser vs. consumer“…

Picture this potential ad:

• Girl meets Guy #1 (”Apple”) for date. Guy is hipster. Cool. Talks a lot. Speaks in slang terms and unidentifiable jargon to be trendy. Has fancy technology, always talking or texting on iPhone. Not listening to her. Speeds off in flashy car. Lame “point and shoot” goodbye with a wink and “I’ll call you”.
• Girl meets Guy #2 (”PC”) for date. Guy picks up girl right on time. Opens the door for her. Pulls out her chair. Asks her questions. Shares a funny, personal story. Makes her laugh. Listens to her. Drives luxury but sensible car.
• Girl on phone with girlfriend saying “I really like “Guy #2″. He’s reliable. Smart. Just what I’ve been looking for. We’re just…compatible.”

From that example, what picture of Microsoft are you left with?

Microsoft needs to stop following and start leading. There’s great value in the brand already, it just needs a soul.

This week’s lipstick incident demonstrates The GOP has brought back the smear in earnest, a tactic reminiscent of the Bush campaigns from 2000 and 2004 (image by Mae Li). Personally, this kind of abusive use of communication powers — while effective — should be condemned.

This kind of manipulation should not be a surprise given these recent events:

Using our powers for good remains one of the consistent things we talk about at LComm. In reality, great communication prowess can be used for good or evil. Society has demonstrated that it is susceptible to misinformation. That’s why it was great to see the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA) stand up against the manipulative communications tactics used recently.

In a letter to Robert Gibbs (Obama for America) and a letter to Jill Hazelbaker (John McCain 2008), PRSA Chair & CEO Jeffrey Julin, on behalf of the PRSA Board of Directors, asks the campaigns to sign a formal pledge obligating them to abide by the PRSA Code of Ethics in all communications, stating that:

The use of innuendo, incomplete information, surrogate messaging and character attacks, whether in political discourse or other forms of commercial free speech, raises serious concerns for our organization and its 32,000 members, each of whom signs a pledge to the PRSA Code of Ethics. In fact, ethical practice is the most important obligation of PRSA membership, and we maintain that our obligations extend not only to those we represent, but also to the publics they serve.

Many will question the effectiveness of PRSA’s message. Five generations of Livingstons ago, in 1913 my Great, Great, Great Uncle Sigmund Livingston took a similar step, starting the Anti-Defamation League. The League’s purpose is stop the defamation of the Jewish people. Its ultimate purpose is to secure justice and fair treatment to all citizens alike and to end unjust and unfair discrimination against and ridicule of any sect or body of citizens. Says the ADL:

Founded on one man’s iron will to achieve social justice and to eradicate hatred, ADL has invested nearly a century in influencing, educating and effecting reform.

A generation later Nazi Germany arose, and from a communications perspective, smeer tactics and hatred were deployed by Propaganda Minister Joseph Goebbels. Goebbels is often credited with creating Nazi Germany’s Kristallnacht program. The end result: A country drunk enough to allow the genocidal extermination of six million Jews. This country helped liberate those left standing, and in an outcry against anti-semitism, became a champion of Israel, in large part because people like Uncle Ziggy (as he is known amongst the older relatives) beat the drum.

I’m not saying McCain is Goebbels, but the GOP’s use of smeer inspires fear in my heart about what could be. We must stand-up against abusive use of communication powers.

If anything, the past eight years has demonstrated that this country will vote with religious zeal rather than informed decision. Education, and the resulting intelligent decisions that it often inspires, has fallen to the wayside. Our population has become susceptible to manipulation.

As a result, communicators — particularly those in political campaigns — have a moral obligation to use their powers for good. And we as communicators with a voice need to start standing up and saying, “No, this is not right!” I tip my hat to the PRSA for a good action.

This weekend I will be a part of five different sessions at SearchCamp Philly, an unconference coinciding with PodCamp Philly. Like many events, I am sure there will be skeptics who will decry the usual self congratulatory echo chamber back slapping. In fact, I’ve often criticized the star stuck uber-attendee. Yet for the business-oriented, events can yield great value.

Normally, I try to speak at or attend events where prospective clients will be, association conferences or private and public business-oriented events. My second preferred type of event is often university-based — preferably local — both for giving purposes and for recruiting. Last comes the echo chamber events. While I try to avoid intra-social media crowd events, sometimes business takes me there and that’s OK. Regardless of event type there’s always some positive benefit of going.

First of all — regardless of Internet fame — speaking can yield great business opportunity. Speakers often receive a halo of subject matter expertise, unless they muff their session. In turn, such events can yield leads, additional earned media opportunities, or just great contacts. Speakers bureaus have been a hallmark of well designed PR programs long before the latest 2.0 craze.

Secondly, we are so dependent on the Internet social scene to find like minds and thought leaders. Yet, my experience has been that events like these deliver substantive relationships. If you don’t act like a tongue-tied, star struck babbling fool, what was an admiration for someone can turn into a substantive contact or acquaintance.

For example, BlogWorld Expo in Las Vegas on September 20-21 can be viewed as an echo chamber event. Or it can be viewed as a business opportunity. For me it’s the latter, and I have a significant project taking place there. In fact, I’ve already got more than 15 meetings set up for the weekend with some of the Internet’s top minds. I’ve admired several of these people for a long time, and look forward to meeting them in person, and seeing how I can build value for them. At Gnomedex, I had three new business meetings.

Lastly, the educational content can be very good at conferences. Personally, I find that most of my time is spent in the hallways networking. But there are always sessions I plug into just to learn. Beth Kanter’s session at Gnomedex was a great example of a worthwhile 40 minutes.

There’s always something to learn, and those who can’t see that, well, that’s too bad. You cannot underestimate the value of remaining teachable.

Exciting 2008 Brands: Barack Obama and the 3G iPhone

On Saturday night my wife and I bought an Obama stand-up photo and walked around the mall with the Democratic Nominee. The effect was stunning. Entire stores turned around and applauded us, people stopped to get their photos taken, and the Apple store turned into something like the FAO Schwartz scene from “Big.” Barack Obama has superseded your average candidate to become an uber-hip brand, partly because of his intelligent communications strategy and partly a product of the time.

It’s hard to argue how powerful the Barack brand has become. A Democratic nominee who struggled to get non-urban, lower-middle class white party members to support him has stormed the nomination. He has struck a chord, igniting a wave of fervor surrounding the need to Change. The strong fervor caused the opposition to try and co-opt the candidate of change meme with moves like the Sarah Palin nomination.

At the heart of the Barack Effect is a deep seated dissatisfaction with the current administration and the state of the nation. Obama’s young, exciting style, minority voice, and message of change serves as a lightening rod for the left and those most down affected by current policies.

But great brands rarely fly without brilliant marketing and communications. And Obama’s campaign gets word of mouth. From the traditional community meetings to cutting-edge social media, Obama’s campaign utilizes viral principles to create change evangelists and a resulting pop appeal… The Barack Effect.

For those of us on Communications Edge, perhaps the most remarkable aspect of this phenomena has been the first successful mass usage of 2.0 tools. As the Wall Street Journal notes, the Obama campaign has used social networking technology to ignite his supporters. The resulting wav of support and micro-donations has created a powerhouse campaign that triggers word of mouth with direct messages, RSS feeds, text messages and emails. Conversely, McCain has suffered through stops and starts.

A presidential campaign has many dynamics that cannot be oversimplified: Religious right versus the liberally educated, conservative radio versus free social networks, female veep candidate versus minority presidential candidate, mavericks versus agents of change, support versus ending the Iraqi war, etc., etc. It’s a wide open battle that will shape the United States’ future.

Yet one must wonder if intangibles like the Barack Effect will carry the day. In his monograph, “Good to Great for Social Sectors,” Jim Collins said:

…a key link in the social sectors is brand reputation — built upon tangible results and emotional share of heart — so that potential supporters believe not only in your mission, but in your capacity to deliver on that mission.

One candidate has long-term legislative experience, the other emotional mindshare. Neither has delivered a turn-around. Inspiring faith in the ability to deliver that change we so desperately desire may be the secret sauce to attain the White House.

P.S. As a company, Livingston Communications will not openly endorse either Obama or McCain. Individually, I felt compelled to endorse Obama on my personal blog. This is an important election, and we all need to openly discuss the issues that matter to us. Don’t turn a blind eye in 2008!

Some of you may have been following the PR Week Blog Competition. In a nasty twist of fate, the Buzz Bin got pitted against friend and PR Prodigy Todd Defren and his PR Squared blog.

Well, I can tell you we are not too thrilled at this pairing! Upon reflection, we decided to pull a classic Washingtonian PR move and endorse Todd to win the PR Week Blog Competition. Here’s why:

And by the way, you can do more than just vote. You can support Todd with your own “In Todd We Trust” apparel! Visit the Todd store here!

Original Todd Image by David Alston. If someone actually buys something, we’ll give him all of the profits.

Cross-posted on Social Media Group.

Recently, Network Solutions engaged Livingston Communications (soon to be Social Media Group) to engage in a reputation monitoring and social PR. Phase one began on July 1, an effort to directly engage generators of negative commentary on blogs, Twitter and forums in a listen and respond conversation. Just one month into it, we’ve already seen some incredible conversations and results:

Consider the following commentary:

Maybe this Social Media Thing Works After All: “It takes a certain level of complete and utter dissatisfaction for someone (or at least me) to blog about it. It’s unfortunate that a blog entry (NOT our letter to customer service) caught the attention of the uppers at Network Solutions, but it’s smart of them to monitor the chatter. And it’s appreciated, as a person who had a situation that needed rectifying.”

Michael Arrington’s Network Solutions post clarification: “Network Solutions says I got at least part of the story wrong, since they’ve been talking about this issue for three years. My response: Then why engage in the practice? And will they now voluntarily stop?”

NetworkSolutions.Com Account Number Follow-Up: I am very happy to see a quick reaction to this and thank David for taking action.

And on Twitter, responses like these:

At the heart of the reputation management program is a serious long term commitment from Network Solutions to identify, listen and attempt to promptly resolve problems. We believe just saying we care isn’t enough, and do everything we can to resolve problems, and use the Voice of the Customer as a catalyst to evolve Network Solutions offerings. In some cases, we can’t always provide the answer people want to hear, but they know we are engaged. And it’s clearly making an immediate difference.

Our end goal is to significantly decrease the company’s 58 percent negative commentary ratio (as of June 30) by more than 20 points, effectively positioning the company as more reputable solutions provider. This is very similar to the Dell reputation program, but in our case, we will try to catalyze a faster decrease in posts with Phase II: Social PR (Sorry, details are under wraps).

The reputation process was forged by Kami Huyse, Qui Diaz, Larissa Fair and myself from the Livingston team, and Network Solutions’ Susan Wade and Shashi Bellamkonda. In addition, the program is continuing to be refined by all of us as well as team Network Solutions team members Connie Bensen and Gerry Rosso.

August. It’s upon us (image by jurvetson)… The dead of summer, often known as the “Dog Days.”

Business slows down. Campaigns are put on hold. The world seems to take a deep breath, resting before the mad rush of business from Labor Day through Thanksgiving.

August can deliver more than that.

The word august finds its roots in the word augustus (you know, that emperor that followed Julius?), a word that means sacred or grand. In that vein, august means venerable or eminent.

Similarly, companies and bloggers that choose to ignore the smaller audiences during the August vacation period, and decide to proactively market have an opportunity to generate unusual traction. They can become august in their positioning by exploiting an unusual lack of marketplace noise.

Last summer many bloggers took a break. Other newer, hungrier bloggers like Valeria Maltoni and myself kept blogging through it. While traffic remained flat in August, if you consider the amount of people on vacation, it was actually increasing… And RSS subscribership proved it.

In other facets of marketing, similar results can be achieved. Influencer relations campaigns can leverage the relative lack of stories. In some cases, the stories may not reach full impact until September by the time the media finishes coverage. I’ve had several campaigns that were waged in August with outstanding coverage results in September.

Slow is a mindset, and while there may be vacations, there are also opportunities. So what’s it going to be: August or august?

The recent iPhone 3G release brought together broadcast media, bloggers, vloggers, and trade publications. Find me a mainstream blog or newspaper that didn’t cover the release. Traditional media and bloggers shared photos and video footage at this launch and many other events.

This means that more and more, traditional media and new media are in sync. Eventually it won’t be a question of how to interact with traditional print media and journalists or bloggers and online publications. It will become a question of best practices across the board for any communications professional.

Tom Foremski of Silicon Valley Watcher shared ten basic new media skills journalists need to know. John Bell shared skills for the public relations practitioner of the future. But what about skills for new media evangelists?

We talk about "getting it" and understanding how cutting edge Web 2.0 technology works. However, I think there are some basic lessons from PR professionals that new media folks should take note of to truly become well rounded communications experts.

Cross your "T"s and dot your "I"s. Strong writing is a key skill for any communicator. New media professionals should not expect anything less. Although blogs are generally more conversational, writing should still be eloquent and clean. Be mindful of grammar, punctuation and style. In fact, read The Elements of Style. It will do wonders for your blog posts.

Media relations=blogger relations. We talk about it over and over, how bloggers should be treated like media professionals and PR people should pitch them as such. Well, how about we take our own medicine and be extra aware when pitching other social media professionals? Make sure that you’re treating them how you want to be treated, considering how they like to be contacted (e-mail, phone, Facebook, Twitter), understanding exactly what they want/need/cover, and for Pete’s sake, avoid sending a form pitch.

Tailor messages to your audience. Just like PR firms have to consider their audience and the right medium for their message, social media pros need to understand where their audience is participating and communicating. Political campaigns that once solely focused on traditional media (print, radio, TV) have had to change their structure to reach out to voters through text messages, IM, Facebook and other non-traditional means. Social media experts should evaluate their campaigns the same way. Not everyone can benefit from engaging on Facebook and Twitter, some valuable communities may be on Ning and Squidoo.

Understand the value of earned media. The structure may be different, but the end result hasn’t changed. Traditional PR is considered earned media through editorial influence. Social media is very often a grassroots effort, based on trusted relationships, word of mouth and reputation. But in the end, blog placements in top ranked blogs (think TechCrunch or Engadget) should be given the same kudos as traditional media superstar hits (think WSJ, NYT). Earning placements in smaller blogs (say with a Technorati Authority of 50-150) also plays a critical role for influence and reputation (the "magic middle"). In the end, it’s all online, and all contributes to Google ranking and reputation.

These are just a few tips that social media experts can takeaway from traditional public relations professionals. These are tips that apply across the board, because the board is increasingly, and will become, the same.

What other PR rules are out there that can translate into value for social media?

Advisory: Spam is not dead. It’s evolving like a super strain of influenza, thriving just fine in the social media ecosystem. Larissa covered mobile spam in April, FriendFeeders were perplexed by a recent onset, and I’m about to have a fit with all the Twitter spam (”Twam“) that’s springing up.

Splog Hell

When it comes to counterfeit content, the true bain of PR’s existence is still the spam blog, or splog. A third of all blogs are splogs, according to Matt Mullenweg, founder of Wordpress. This toxic sludge of continues to drift past Technorati, Blog Pulse, and Google blogs. PR pros must make the call: Spam or not spam.

Clients/coworkers are fooled every single day, and it’s up to you to save them from false hits and spare them the embarrassment. Having a strong radar will protect the integrity of earned media mentions (blogs coverage is earned media!) and protect the integrity of your work family at large.

I thought we were past this, too. But recently a couple clients - different accounts - excitedly sent me links to spam blogs thinking they scored a great hit. In one case, someone wanted to comment in response.

All that to say, the spam smackdown ends up providing decent job security. In order to educate others, you have to educate yourself. Let’s review the process:

What is this crap?

Spam blogs are fake blogs that exist only for the sake of getting revenue from Google ads. They do this by sucking content from other people’s blogs, and tricking Google into thinking they’re real blogs. (Don’t ask me why Google hasn’t figured out how to squash this issue.)

Sploggers are also gifted at leaving comments on blogs - particularly defunct blogs and older posts. Comment filters have helped ameliorate this issue.

Red flags:

These black holes get more clever every day and are therefore increasingly tricky to identify. Even so, here are some tell tale signs of a spam blog:

1. No author or “about” info

2. No comments

3. Bad writing

4. A bunch of ads all over the place

5. Poor, cookie-cutter design – after a while you can tell them apart just visually. (Quoting a friend: “It’s like porn - you know it when you see it.”)

Specimens:

• This is a spam blog. The content categories are nonsensical, the archives are whack, and sentences drop off (see at the bottom there? “Brand Pile Courtesy of” and it cuts off. No human blogger is that sloppy). Oh, and, there’s no title on this blog.
• This is a post on a spam blog. Note the particularly awful header and really lame intro to the post: “It took great skill and will power to complete this article on fire and safety. We also request you to use your skill and will power to understand this matter.” Seriously?

When in doubt: check the blog at SplogSpot. And if you identify a new spam blog, add it to the list.

Please friends, beware the splogerrific spamerino. Don’t be fooled and accidentally send a spam blog to a client. And if a client sends one to you, help them understand the issue. Of course, if you’ve got a funny (or nerve-wracking) incident to share, the floor is yours.

(Image credit: cursedthing)