SMIATL Recap (September 17, 2011)

Kennesaw State University’s Center for Sustainable Journalism (http://sustainablejournalism.org/) hosted its annual Social Media Integration Conference (http://smiatl.com/) this past weekend, September 16-17, 2011.  Law2sm founder Deborah Gonzalez, joined over 100 participants in a series of panels, workshops, keynotes and presentations.  Members of Atlanta Social Media Women (http://www.atlantasocialmediawomen.com/) were prominent as presenters and facilitators throughout the event.  Kudos to Barbara, Jacqui, Tobey; Kellye and others!

Three take-a-ways to share with all of you:

• 7 Business Drivers of Social Media Marketing, by Jason Falls, founder of Social Media Explorer Blog (http://www.socialmediaexplorer.com/) and co-author of No Bullshit Social Media (www.nobullshitsocialmedia.com).  His drivers include:
  • Enhance branding and awareness
  • Protect Your Reputation
  • Enhance Public Relations
  • Build Community
  • Enhance Customer Service
  • Facilitate R&D (Research & Development)
  • Drive Sales

• How to Reach the Media with Social Media by Jeff Cutler (http://jeffcutler.com/),a social media journalist.  Jeff discussed important points such as:
  • The difference between citizens reporters and journalists
  • Help journalists out by giving them stories that are timely and will engage their audiences – so get to know the journalism (what they write about, where they publish, etc.)
  • The important of “derivative” stories to help you stand out.
  • Some key web sites to bookmark for engaging with journalists:
    • HARO – Help a Reporter Out – http://www.helpareporter.com/
    • Muck Rack  – http://muckrack.com/
    • Addict-o-Matic – http://addictomatic.com/
    • Duck Duck Go — http://duckduckgo.com/

• Dell’s Listening Command Center by Lionell Menchaca and Michelle Brigman (http://en.community.dell.com/dell-blogs/direct2dell/b/direct2dell/archive/2010/12/08/dell-s-next-step-the-social-media-listening-command-center.aspx).
  • They monitor over 25,000 conversations across 11 languages with an official team of 15 members – but the real key – everyone in the company listens!
  • To ensure that their reputation is protected online, Dell has a Social Media University for its employees who can then become certified through this internal program.  (http://www.cmo.com/social-media/listen-dell-lends-its-ear-social-media).
  • The first required course – Understanding Dell’s Social Media Principles. (http://content.dell.com/us/en/corp/d/corp-comm/social-media-policy.aspx).
  • Dell believes and Law2sm endorses, that employees need to be empowered AND educated about social media and its impact on the company.

Deborah Gonzalez, @law2smdeborah, ended her day at SMIATL by joining a group of highly experienced professionals for a guided discussion on the unique challenges that face expert level executives and consultants in the social media arena.  This session was facilitated by Kellye Crane of Solo PR Pro (http://soloprpro.com/).  The other discussants included Jeff Cutler, social media journalist, @JeffCutler; Eunice Nyandat, The Errand Managers (http://www.errandmanager.com/); and Marissa Stone, social media and technology specialist, @Marissa_Stone.  Three core challenges came up during the conversation:

• How do we keep clients in compliance with social media in heavily regulated industries such as medical, pharmaceuticals, insurance, legal, etc.?
  • Work with a professional who knows the ins and outs of compliance and regulations (like Law2sm).

• Do we need certification for social media professionals?  Who would certify and what would they certify?
  • There is a lot of debate, especially over who should be doing the certification and what will it mean.

• What are the most effective tools and techniques for listening to a population you are not allowed to connect with directly?
  • Sometimes the backdoor or good old fashioned “bumping” into someone and speaking to them outside of the social media/online environment is the way to go.

There is so much more in terms of these three.  What are your thoughts?  Did you attend SMIATL or a similar conference?  What key take-a-ways can you share with all of us?