The Squared Root

Government Affairs and Social Media

mchapman — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 18:31:49 GMT

With the 2008 elections now behind us, even those who are the least enthusiastic about social networking and social media have had to admit its increasing influence. MSNBC ran a story recently about a Dartmouth Student who managed to get elected as County Treasurer in New Hampshire by running Facebook ads worth $50 and riding the coattails of her national party.

I can report to you, with near certainty, that very few candidates will get elected solely on the basis of Facebook ads. All other things being equal, a well run campaign, that uses all of the appropriate marketing channels, is still the most effective strategy. What's forever changed is that you can no longer ignore what many decision makers in government agencies and government affairs shops consider to be "alternative" forms of media and marketing.

With the success of the Obama campaign, it's safe to anticipate the highest form of flattery - imitation - to take place at all levels of campaigning and, even more importantly, in the administration of their duties by federal, state and local governments. Interest groups, agency heads, and future candidates of all stripes, will want to add the same "secret sauce" to their efforts that they witnessed on a grand scale in 2008.

Decision makers trying to figure out how Obama did it will likely spend some of the same effort exploring the wide world of social networking that many of us early adopters did. What they'll find, if they research much, is that a $50 Facebook ad campaign will not meet their needs. Instead, they'll want to keep much of their current communications strategies and then add social media to the mix.

An integrated effort is what the smarter and more aggressive government affairs shop or government agency will settle on. Some are already well on their wa in this regard, and nothing I'm writing here will be new to them. Many are now taking a first or second look, however, and are deciding that they may need to take action after taking a wait-and-see attitude leading up to the election.

It's not a surprise that there would be hesitancy in the corridors of government. Even some avid social media users on Twitter debated with me that an Obama loss would be a repudiation of social media in campaigns. I argued against that line of reasoning because I never saw his campaign as a social media effort per se, but as an integrated marketing and communications campaign that was extremely social media friendly. Social media didn't win the campaign, but it did end up helping.

It's estimated that the Obama campaign now has over 10 million "good" email addresses and a vast array of other contacts in their social graph. Fortunately, state and local efforts won't need those kinds of numbers. Interest groups hoping to affect federal legislation, however, will need something more than a Facebook campaign to have an impact. They'll need a fully integrated effort that includes traditional and social media.

Two key issue areas that are particularly suited to integrated communications efforts are health care reform and clean energy initiatives. Traditional advertising can still enhance awareness of an issue, but consumers will go online to verify what they're being told. They'll consult with their networks, communities, and other trusted online sources to confirm or dispel what traditional media sources are telling them.

If advocates for health care reform or clean energy hope to be effective in their post-2008 election efforts, they will certainly need to employ the same kinds of successful strategies utilized by the Obama campaign. A fully integrated effort, which includes social media and online marketing strategies, will be essential for these kinds of successful efforts going forward.

150 Million Measurable Results of Interactive Marketing and Social Media

mchapman — Wed, 22 Oct 2008 17:23:36 GMT

By now you've read about, and are maybe wondering, how the Obama campaign managed to raise over $150 million in a single month, shattering all previous single-month fundraising records for a Presidential candidate. Their success is, in large part, due to the effectiveness of their interactive marketing efforts in combination with a very aggressive social media presence.

Campaign manager David Plouffe, in an email to supporters, reported the campaign had added 632,000 new donors in September 2008, for a total of 3.1 million contributors to the campaign to date. According to Plouffe, the average donation was $86.

Small Donors in Large Numbers

By creating a user-friendly experience on their outward facing website, the Obama campaign encouraged its supporters to gather in large numbers online and make small contributions. As an alternative to the traditional large dollar donations, bundled and forwarded, the new model broke all previous records set using web 1.0 style fundraising efforts.

It might be tempting to discount the accomplishments of the Obama campaign and give credit to the current political climate instead. That would be a disservice to the interactive marketing success that characterizes what Plouffe and company have built.

The real story behind the enormous dollar amounts started long before September and well before Obama was given much of a chance of being competitive. It centers around an attitude of "bottom-up" empowerment of volunteers, combined with open-minded use of new technologies, generally associated with interactive marketing and social media.

Start Small and Grow

I was first exposed to My.BarackObama.com, or MyBO as it is affectionately referred to among Obama supporters, in late 2007. What I discovered was a highly interactive website that, in many ways, functioned as an online campaign headquarters accessible to anyone interested in participating.

When I later talked with top campaign officials Steve Hildebrand, Deputy Campaign Manager and a former colleague of mine, and Chris Hughes, a cofounder of Facebook who is currently working on the campaign, they confirmed that their intent was to create as much of a working connection between campaign staff and volunteers as possible by using the website as an interface.

The Obama campaign is a textbook example of the development of that connection between their own staff with volunteers, donors and ultimately voters. This real world case study of using the social capital developed though 2.0 connections is of great interest to us at FG SQUARED.

According to Hildebrand and Hughes, the beginning of the planning process focused on concepts inherent in a well positioned social media effort. Authenticity, transparency and adding value were all considered as crucial during early development of their plans.

Online Efforts Compliment Traditional Organization

With every aspect of the website, a consideration was given to how the "on-the-ground" campaign would be enhanced. Not only does the website serve as a tremendous supplement to the fundraising efforts, it has served as a community organizational tool and and central information desk for a wide range of activities.

More than 150,000 meetups and other events have been coordinated using MyBO. Anyone can start a blog. Those who have a blog are free to post their feelings even if they are in opposition to Barack Obama on a particular issue. You can find groups and people in your area to meet and organize with.You can start one of your own if none of the previously formed affinity groups pique your interest.

During the caucus states, in particular, the website served as a virtual campaign office, with fully equipped phone bank capabilities, block walking lists and communications tools. There is much evidence that MyBO played a direct role in the organizational successes of Iowa and the caucuses in Texas and get out the vote operations (GOTV) throughout the primaries.

While the groups have been allowed to proliferate within MyBO, a wide variety of social media and networking tools are encouraged and intermixed with other popular sites such as Facebook, MySpace, Twitter, FlickR and YouTube. In all instances the ease of use and the draw of participation increased the number of times individuals visited and used MyBO.

Personalization Is Standard

Through MyBO you can sign up for text messages on your phone or other handheld device. If you want, you can get regular emails from a variety of campaign officials. You can make calls, from your own home, to battleground states. A team is available to receive comments on improving the site and do so, almost in real time, when it'll make it work better for users.

At every turn, and with every other activity, an opportunity to make a donation is always very professionally presented. Often, a specific and small amount, a micro-donation, is given as a first option. While you can sign up for a regular contribution schedule, there is no pressure to do so.

With a steady contribution from volunteers and a very 2.0 oriented campaign staff, there is always a steady flow of new and interesting content on the site and surrounding it. The campaign neither reached out to the well known bloggers or ignored them. They just did their thing.

Metrics That Are Tangible

With metrics now available, MyBO can be definitely considered a social web 2.0 success story. American politics have been changed by the successful combination of traditional campaigning with the new interactive components.

Metrics in politics are pretty straightforward. First, you need money. Money pays staff, money buys paid media, and money hires lawyers to fight legal battles. Money pays for travel and wardrobes.

Another key metric is media coverage. The new and increasingly important digital and social media coverage of campaigns supplements and influences mainstream media. Money and media coverage have been greatly impacted by MyBO.

Finally, the most important metric is voter participation.

Managing the Message

MyBO, and the other social media tools, have added to the transparency of a the campaign. It's easier for users to know where the campaign currently stands and what it's doing in every state, district and territory. Everyone is an expert. Everyone has access to the materials.

Barack Obama, and his top level advisors, lead the effort. They set the agenda and create the message. But throughout the organization even the most remote volunteer is included, almost instantly, when the agenda and messages are established and communicated to the grassroots and netroots.

Internal communications are utilized by the campaign's high command to coordinate all of the outward facing activities of the campaign. For corporations and large non-profits it's critical to consider whether you can afford to wait before your competition adopts the MyBO model.

When Josh Bernoff, co-author of Groundswell, was in Austin he commented that MyBO incorporates every positve aspect of social media except for listening. Perhaps they will improve even that if the Obama team gets the opportunity to govern. Government 2.0 anyone?

Brand Awareness

mchapman — Fri, 03 Oct 2008 22:46:21 GMT

I am a big fan of business management expert Tom Peters.

Long before the current emphasis on social media, and the individuality in branding it provides us online, Peters was evangelizing that we should passionately be in pursuit of developing our own brand. We should engage in disruptive behavior, break out of the cubicle, and enjoy work again.

Peters has been warning for decades that massive changes were coming to large corporations and to the workers that comprise them. Talented professionals no longer should be dependent on the sponsoring companies for an income. Professional service organizations, PSOs, can perform many of the same functions at lower costs and with better results.

The percentage of workers who will spend an entire career with one company is dramatically lower. Career mobility is an accepted lifestyle choice and job security has been exposed as a myth. Loyalty to an employer is a two-way proposition and is not assumed. Tom Peters not only predicted these trends, he passionately advocates for them.

It should seem obvious that smart companies would look for ways to get out ahead of the new trends, including those made possible and preferable by the new world of 2.0 technologies. To do so would empower their employees, make their jobs more interesting, and encourage them to stick around, and thereby making their companies more competitive.

So it was notable, if not surprising, last week when Susan Scrupski, nGenera's research guru, offered this commentary on where many large enterprises actually are today:

"we find that social, emergent behavior can be viewed as dissent in large enterprises. In the enterprise space, we find the major barrier to adoption of 2.0 ideologies is culture. Even if there is a groundswell of support to embrace social media, corporate cultures can run counter to its actual widespread acceptance. Marketers in large companies are more inclined to recognize the benefits of building relationships via social media sooner, but they run into roadblocks from other, more conservative, areas of the business. It's a huge challenge for some large brands."

At least one very large corporation is leaning into the trends and taking steps to allow employee empowerment on a large scale.

Recently the Social Media Club of Austin met on the IBM Austin campus with Chris Almond, IBM Redbooks Project Leader. He shared some of the innovations in social computing taking place at IBM.

He stressed that IBM has developed specific guidelines for using blogs, wikis, social networks, virtual worlds and social media, and is allowing their integration into the workplace. With IBM stock doing well, they are not making these moves under pressure, but instead to stay current.

Chris didn't give away any company secrets, but he did give us some real insights into steps being taken within the firewall at IBM to tap into their own employee talent pool. By allowing the creation of innovation networks and collaboration between different areas of the corporation, employees are able to take advantage of the newest tools.

They're also considering ways to tap into the social capital they have with the many retirees of IBM using social media and other forms of social computing.

Qualified, former IBM employees might find it satisfying to work on a project from time to time. They already have a vested interest in the continued success of IBM, as pension plan participants, and they could enjoy the work knowing they were not going to be permanently back on the payroll.

By establishing clear guidelines and setting expectations from the beginning, and by accepting and embracing the changes occurring outside the firewall, a large company can adjust into the "groundswell."

Bottom line considerations will always be bottom line. Proprietary information is still proprietary. Employees and, in this case, former employees are empowered. Managed disruption occurs from within and for the benefit of the corporation.

Chris Almond is definitely a brand unto himself. Chris is also a valued employee of IBM. Other large enterprises - and those not so large - would be wise to learn from his example. Chris says he's very happy at IBM.

Please read the social computing guidelines being used by IBM and comment below on them or anything else I've written. You don't have to agree with me. In fact, critical thinking is encouraged.

The Communications Revolution

mchapman — Fri, 26 Sep 2008 17:00:36 GMT

I have sometimes characterized social media as a revolution in communications. While that may be a bit of hyperbole, social media and online social networking are certainly providing a multitude of new opportunities for two-way and multi-directional forms of communications.

These often disruptive and sometimes less than polished online conversations, form the basis of the Groundswell occurring on and around the internet. Marketing, advertising, and all forms of media, including customer and public relations, have been profoundly impacted.

Despite the feeling of newness, however, the basic characteristics of social media are at least as old as the United States. Thomas Paine's pamphlet Common Sense, written in 1776, encapsulated the concepts of the American Revolution in an unorthodox form for its time and was circulated in a purposefully disruptive manner among the American colonists.

The pamphlet served as a call to arms against the King of England's tyrannical rule and offered an alternative approach for self-governing. The ideas in the pamphlet weren't completely original, but the simplicity of the language used was out of the ordinary.

Paine's more casual style of writing was more suitable to the kind of democratic society he and others envisioned. Complex ideas were made intelligible to the average reader in contrast to the more formal style favored by institutions of power. That sounds similar to the authenticity and transparency which are also the hallmarks of modern social media.

Finally, Paine's willingness to openly confront King George III, on the record for all of his fellow colonists to read, was very uncharacteristic among colonists who feared the wrath of the King. His willingness to voice his opinions in the open, and in understandable language, was instrumental in initiating a public debate about independence.

Common Sense Communications Today

Compare Paine's revolutionary pamphlet to what's going on in communications today. Because of the many options that have been created by new technologies, each of us has the opportunity to engage in conversations with other people who share our interests and in a language that can be understood by those involved.

Consequently, proactive companies are instituting new strategies that anticipate the sweeping changes in communications and self-organizing occurring around the internet. Not only can a business or not-for-profit organization get out in front of potential negative communications coming from their various constituencies, they can effectively convert them into brand loyalists with sincere attempts at developing genuine relationships with them

By acknowledging them as being important and then communicating openly with them, it's possible for corporations to foster good will and enhance the organization's social capital among its customers. It's not only possible; it's happening.

There are profound opportunities for large organizations, including corporations, to empower their employees in this new environment by opening new channels of communications to the communities outside of the company. This very natural form of social capital is nothing short of revolutionary. Well, it's certainly a move in the right direction.

Additionally, through effective implementation of an internal communication system, such as an intranet, employees can be empowered to be excellent advocates for their company. With clear internal guidelines in place, an intranet can provide a platform for coordinating teams of goodwill ambassadors who can be available to reach out into the groundswell. I'll write more about how FG Squared is taking the lead in this direction in a future post.

It's a little too late for King George III to learn about the benefits of listening. It might be, however, the perfect time for you and your business to start.

Power Networking

mchapman — Fri, 19 Sep 2008 12:18:50 GMT

The Presidential campaign of 2008 has forever changed the way politics will be conducted in the United States. The current campaigns being waged for the White House are good predictors of the massive changes also coming for businesses, non-profits and other organizations. The use of online social networks, social media, and social commerce to organize, communicate, raise money, and ultimately affect the electoral process, have been so disruptive and effective they will never be absent from any major campaign again.

Without getting into a critique of any of the candidates or their campaign efforts, it's safe to say that most political prognosticators would not have predicted the current match-up between U.S. Senators Barack Obama and John McCain going into November. Through effective use of social networks - including the one his campaign created for itself - to rapidly establish a national presence and a serious fundraising operation, Barack Obama came out of nowhere to defeat a field of formidable opponents and win the Democratic nomination. As proof of concept, John McCain, the Republican nominee, is aggressively working to replicate Obama's online successes in his own effort to leave nothing to chance in this extremely competitive contest.

MyBarackObama.com and McCainSpace.com, the respective online communities for the two candidates, and their extensive interactivity with other social networks, are clear evidence of a developing online reality in politics, business, and every other aspect of our daily lives.

Social networks themselves are nothing new to politicians. Utilizing social capital for the benefit of a candidacy or a cause is standard operating procedure. The Clinton and the Bush families have extensive supporter lists that have been cultivated over decades and which were key to their political successes. What's new this cycle has been the ability to very rapidly grow a social network using online technologies and for them to be extremely effective in supplementing traditional campaign strategies and tactics.

How does any of this apply to the rest of us? The Obama campaign has proven the benefits of using online social networking, social commerce and social media tools to enhance traditional marketing and communications effort along with other key functions of an enterprise. McCain is hoping to do the same. Regardless of the outcome of the election, campaigns will never be conducted without a serious effort to utilize from online social networks to supplement traditional on-the-ground efforts.They can't afford not to. The same principle applies to every enterprise dealing with human beings and who might have any interaction with online social networks.

If your business or organization intends to be competitive going forward, you cannot afford to ignore the lessons of the current election campaign. If you have no competition, then you can continue to do things the way they have always been done. That is, of course, until someone with an online strategy decides to announce against you. Good luck catching up with them after that happens.

A Twitter A Day

beth — Mon, 16 Jun 2008 19:20:07 GMT

Twitter. If you consider yourself in the know of all things tech, than you probably have heard of Twitter. It seems to be popping up everywhere nowadays. Friends letting friends know what they are doing, giving insight to feelings on a certain topic, arranging plans for the weekend or even commenting on the article they are currently reading.

Even though Twitter was created for personal use, friends sending quick micro messages to friends; it is really starting to take off as a business tool. It lets companies update its followers on exciting news, new blogs, schedule changes, or just what the employees of that company are up to that day. Companies are also using Twitter to share and connect with others to listen to what is being talked about, in order to gain business intelligence and consumer insights.

Twitter has also taken off as a conference tool, allowing attendees to update their followers on all the interesting topics and speakers that they are encountering at the conference.

I have personally found myself addicted to Twitter lately, and get disappointed when I am not receiving tweets. Twitter gives me that wonderful “in the know” feeling; that great feeling of knowing that you can intelligently participate in almost all the conversations that are occurring around you. By having carefully chosen who I am following, I have a better understanding of what is going on in the political world, the interactive world and the social world (mostly my social world here in Austin).

If you haven’t experienced a tweet, I suggest you check out twitter and see what have you been missing in the world today.