LOS ANGELES, CA--(Marketwire - May 28, 2009) - As its four-part Social Media Roadmap webinar series nears the finish line, Marketwire and Expansion Plus along with guest expert Rebecca Lieb stress the importance for companies wanting to delve into social media to first identify their goals and understand their audiences. Only then will they be able to appropriately select the most effective content and choose their tactics. Presenters at the May 21 event -- the third in a step-by-step series that walks communicators through every stage of building a complete social media strategy -- featured the unfolding social media strategy of Reed's, Inc., a US-based, top-selling natural soda manufacturer. The series, which began with webinars on goal setting and researching, culminates in June with a webinar on measuring ROI. Each session features a different guest expert and includes a companion whitepaper.

WEBINAR HIGHLIGHTS: Choosing Your Tactics

• Too often, organizations want to dive into social media at the tactical level and think that because some individuals within the organization are involved and using social media tools in one way or another -- Twitter, Facebook, blogging, etc. -- it seems like a natural starting point. In reality, this is not the right approach. Organizations first need to identify what they want to achieve from their involvement in social media. They need to determine their goals and clearly outline their strategy. Only then does it make sense to choose the tools that they will use along the way.
  
  
• A "content strategy" is the art of getting the right content to the right user at the right time. Regardless of the kind of content you create, you need above all else for it to be relevant to the people with whom you want to connect. You want your content to be shared, and if what you are doing and saying via your content doesn't resonate with them, it won't engage them. And it won't be shared.
  
  
• Communication professionals today need to see themselves less as advertisers and PR practitioners and more as publishers, entertainment executives and broadcasters who create and share content that speaks directly to their audiences, and satisfies their interests, needs and wants.
  
  
• Not all content has to be generated from scratch. You can take existing media assets and recycle and repurpose them: digital, print, text, PowerPoint presentations. Chances are good that you already have a lot of compelling, rich content that tells a story about your products and your organization. Think about how this material can be repurposed: video posted to YouTube, photos and presentations posted to Flickr and Slideshare; there are many opportunities.
  
  
• Find a unique personality in your organization -- someone who can represent your brand, products and services with enthusiasm. Webinar case study Reed's, Inc. will perpetuate its personality in its social media efforts through CEO Chris Reed, a passionate, fun-loving individual and brand evangelist. A video blog, Facebook and Twitter pages are the ideal channels to share Reed's content, start conversations with existing customers, attract news customers, and promote engagement about the Reed's brand and products.

QUOTES

Rebecca Lieb, Editor and Consultant; Vice President, eConsultancy

• "The content creation and publishing balance has really changed. Instead of being only in the hands of advertisers, consumers create content, and they can create as much content, if not more, as commercial publishers and broadcasters. Marketers can create this content too. This creates an absolutely exceptional opportunity for communications and PR professionals -- you already know how to create compelling content, you know how to pick appropriate media channels, and you know how to tell stories.
  
  
• "It is very important to 'persona'-lize' your content. Think of the personalities not only of your consumers, but of your organization, your brand and your products. This is not a new concept -- we've had personalities like the Maytag Man in advertising for decades. [In the social media space] you need to think long and hard about the product, service or company that you are representing and assign to it, overtly or covertly, who it is. Is it a man or woman, what's the tone of voice, how old is it? Doing that will help you find the 'voice' that your content speaks in."
  
  
• "You want to give consumers a reason to tell your story and to perpetuate the story you are telling. When you look at the products, services and campaigns that you are trying to tell consumers about, it's important to ask yourself what is the story, and what are the channels most appropriate to tell that story. You also need to determine how you are going to get it out there as content, and make it compelling."

Sally Falkow, Social Media Strategist and President, Expansion Plus

• "If you really listen to your audience [in the social media space], they will tell you what they are interested in and what they want. If you research search terms, you can see what they are looking for online."
  
  
• "Once you know what kind of content you are going to produce, and where the online conversations are taking place, picking all your tools is simple. What really overwhelms people is that there are so many of these channels, and the feeling of 'How can I possibly create content for all of them -- I don't have the money, the time or the staff?' If you have your strategy in place, and have done your research, then this becomes much easier because you will know much better what to do."
  
  
• "If you don't put your content into a news feed [RSS] you are missing an enormous opportunity. For every single piece of content that you produce -- video, press releases, news articles, etc. -- you have to put it into a feed. This delivery feeds the social web. A news feed is a marvelous thing -- it's simple and it doesn't cost a thing."

KEY FACTS

"Your Social Media Roadmap" consists of four 90-minute webinars that build upon each other to give attendees a complete, actionable social media strategy. Each webinar includes a comprehensive whitepaper. All webinars are archived. Shortly after the final webinar on June 25, a CD of the series will be offered and made available to the public for sale.

Session 1: Setting Your Baseline and Determining Goals

• Guest Expert: John Blossom, author of "Content Nation"; president, Shore Communications
• Thursday, March 19, 1:00 p.m. to 2:30 p.m. EDT
• Attendees learn to:
  • Benchmark their company
  • Educate the C-suite
  • Gauge their social media ranking
  • Set realistic, measurable goals

Session 2: Researching and Planning

• Guest Expert: Paul Gillin, social media strategist; author of "The New Influencers"
• Thursday, April 16, 1:00 p.m. to 2:30 p.m. EDT
• Attendees learn to:
  • Identify important influencers, including evangelists and detractors
  • Pinpoint relevant communities
  • Know what people are saying, what they want to know and what organizations should do
  • Create a strong online reputation

Session 3: Choosing Your Tactics

• Guest Expert: Rebecca Lieb, editor and consultant; vice president, eConsultancy
• Thursday, May 21, 1:00 p.m. to 2:30 p.m. EDT
• Attendees learn to:
  • Develop their content strategy
  • Take advantage of universal search
  • Choose the best tools for them: blogger relations, microblogging (Twitter), podcasts, video, RSS feeds, social news sites and more

Session 4: Measuring ROI

• Guest Expert: Katie Delahaye Paine, publisher, The Measurement Standard; CEO, KDPaine & Partners
• Thursday, June 25, 1:00 p.m. to 2:30 p.m. EDT
• Attendees learn to:
  • Redefine the "R" in social media ROI
  • Measure the tone of blog posts, video views, search results and comments
  • Analyze the impact of your efforts
  • Translate social media conversations to sales

REGISTRATION INFORMATION:

While social media webinars and seminars typically cost anywhere from $200 each to even thousands of dollars, during these tough economic times Marketwire is subsidizing the cost of its webinar series, and is able to offer the four intensive 90-minute sessions featuring five recognized social media experts, four comprehensive whitepapers, live case studies discussed and tracked throughout, and the downloadable archive of all at $425 USD (single sessions available for $125 USD each). Special non-profit discounts are available.

To learn more and to register: www.marketwire.com/SMStrategy

RESOURCES

• Participate in Sally Falkow's Proactive blog
• View Rebecca Lieb's video interview: How to Develop a Content Strategy
• Join Marketwire's Social Media Corner on Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter
• Review: Press Release from Social Media Roadmap Webinar 1
• Review: Press Release from Social Media Roadmap Webinar 2
• Access Marketwire's PR 2.0 resource center
• Take a "test drive" of a social media press release
• Download Marketwire's white paper: Top 10 Strategies for Boosting ROI Despite Shrinking Budgets and Dwindling Resources

About Marketwire

The only fully integrated North America-based global newswire, Marketwire, Inc. is a full-service partner to IR, PR and MarCom professionals seeking top-tier press release distribution, media management, multimedia and monitoring solutions. Marketwire's customer-centric corporate philosophy focuses on being the best by infusing every aspect of its business with the following core attributes: precision, adaptability, innovation and simplicity.

Marketwire delivers its clients' news to the world's media and financial communities, fulfilling disclosure requirements in North America in compliance with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX), and serving as Primary Information Provider (PIP) with the UK's Financial Services Authority (FSA). With a reputation for technology leadership, Marketwire offers innovative products and services -- including Social Media, Search Engine Optimization, Dashboard Mobile Financial, News Dashboard coverage reports, exclusive access to networks such as the Canadian Press Wire Network, Easy IR and Easy PR workflow solutions, and more -- that help communication professionals maximize their effectiveness while ensuring accuracy and best practices. Having merged companies (Market Wire and CCNMatthews) in April 2006, and enjoying a combined history of 25 years of service, Marketwire is now majority-owned by OMERS Capital Partners, the private equity arm of one of Canada's largest pension funds.

Marketwire distributes the majority of press releases issued by publicly traded companies in Canada and serves more than 8,000 clients worldwide through 20 offices on four continents. For more information, visit us at http://www.marketwire.com/.

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