Archive for January, 2010

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My Top 25 Before 25


2010
01.29

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Posted in Life as an AAE | View Comments

A little while ago, I asked y’all how you measure personal success, and your responses were overwhelmingly helpful! So I decided to take a moment and share my goals with you. I’ve come up with my top 25 goals that I’d like to achieve before I’m 25 years old. Because I’m such an organization freak, they’re broken down into categories. :)

Personal Goals:

  1. Adopt a dog to be the start of my new, grown-up family.
  2. Run a second triathlon, this time with my dad, and walk/run a half-marathon with my two best friends (who I did the first triathlon with).
  3. Make my old friendships a priority by setting up phone and Skype dates with my friends and family who I can’t see on a regular basis.
  4. Nurture new Chicago friendships and have a Chicago friend family that can be relied on much like my oldest and dearest friends.
  5. Volunteer at PAWS Chicago at least once each week and find a way to give back to UNC, too.

Professional Goals:

  1. Improve my understanding of social media channels and how Edelman is using them.
  2. Ask questions early and often, and be willing to turn in a project late if it means doing it right the first time around.
  3. Seek out new and different projects where I can help out and learn more about measurement and social media.
  4. Read and absorb anything and everything about social media measurement in order to broaden my skills and to better help clients.
  5. Become the go-to measurement guru in the Edelman Digital Chicago office.

Blog Goals:

  1. Claim my own domain name and begin learning (and using!) HTML coding.
  2. Write blog posts each week about something that I love or am passionate about.
  3. Become a regular contributor on a group blog or a guest post-er on more social media nuts’ blogs.
  4. Find a way to keep DR. WHAW? a regular feature without committing to posting it every single day (with my schedule, I can’t seem to make this work every day).
  5. Increase reader engagement as marked by number of comments, return readers and Tweets.

Chicago Goals:

  1. Move to an apartment in Lakeview.
  2. Attend Lollapalooza in the summer.
  3. Try a Chicago-style hot dog and a sandwich from Lucky’s.
  4. Take the architectural boat tour.
  5. See the Boston Red Sox play at Wrigley Field (I know this may not even be possible but definitely worth a shot).

Travel Goals:

  1. Visit Washington, D.C., for the first time and do all of the typical touristy things.
  2. Visit my older sister in Amherst, Massachusetts, and my younger sister at the University of Minnesota.
  3. Visit Austin, Texas, to attend the SXSW conference in 2011 and find some old friends.
  4. Visit my mom’s parents in Kentucky and see my cousin wrestle in a state tournament (it will happen, Sean!).
  5. Travel to the ACC or NCAA tournament to watch the Tar Heels play their way into history again.

So there you have it. I know that some of these are lame and some may be quite difficult to achieve before I’m 25. Still, I believe these are all quite reasonable (and measurable!) goals for me. Just having written this list has made me happier, and really, isn’t that the real goal?

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Calling all DR. WHAW fans!


2010
01.26

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Posted in DR. WHAW?, Job search, Life as an intern | View Comments

So I’ve come to a decision:

I cannot keep up with DR. WHAW? all by myself.

I haven’t thoroughly planned this out just yet, but I have realized that in order for DR. WHAW to be consistent (and daily), I need some help. Since there were many of you who were glad to see this daily feature return, albeit briefly, I am hoping that there are some out there willing to help me keep DR. WHAW a nightly staple.

Ideally, I’d like to have one or two regular contributors who are willing to help me out a couple nights a week to make sure that DR. WHAW doesn’t fall by the wayside. You don’t necessarily have to love measurement, you just have to be willing to share what you Didn’t Read While Hard At Work. I prefer that you pick one general topic or passion and highlight it, but hey! I’m flexible!

If you would like to help me out in this venture, please send me the following information to denison.rebecca[at]gmail[dot]com:

1. Your Name

2. Previous blogging or writing experience (Twitter handle is OK, too!)

3. Why you want to write for DR. WHAW?

Also feel free to reach out if you have any questions! I hope to hear back from at least a few of you soon! :)

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Brainstorming vs. crowdsourcing – where do you see the most value?


2010
01.25

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Posted in Social Media, public relations | View Comments

In the past, I have been a proponent of crowdsourcing as a good tool for just about anything, and I even would consider it a replacement for good ol’ fashioned brainstorming.

But lately, I’ve realized that each method definitely has a time and a place. Crowdsourcing can be a great tool when you’re just starting out on a project or you have a brand-new interest. When there’s something you need to work on but honestly have no idea where to start, I think crowdsourcing with the right people is absolutely you’re best bet.

For a project for which you have research or background information, though, brainstorming with others who have this information seems to make far more sense. Sometimes you need people with diverse backgrounds to help kick something off or give you a new view on something. But there are also times when you need a more specialized and trained view.

When do crowdsource and when do you brainstorm? Do you make the distinction?

I know that I am making a pretty hasty generalization here, but I’ve found that sometimes it just doesn’t make sense to look to a crowd. Even though they may have varied and wide expertise, without all of the information, their wisdom would almost be wasted. At the same time, brainstorming can be dangerous when you know too much because you may struggle to see outside your own narrow mindset.

It’s a tricky question, but I’m pretty confident that there must be a clear distinction between when these two different methods should be used. What do you think? Where do you stand?

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Are you really measuring what you want?


2010
01.22

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Posted in Measurement, PR metrics | View Comments

In July, I switched my social media mindset to take on a more professional tone. At this time, I set some goals for myself and decided that I would track my own progress and growth. However, at the same time, I knew what my ideal results would be, and in hindsight, I let this affect how I measured. While it’s always important to understand your goals and ideal results, sometimes we get too focused on these and lose sight of the truth.

Think about it. When you measure, are you thinking of the true results or your end goals?

I am guilty of focusing too much on the end goal. During my first month of blogging and Tweeting, I measured myself based upon the number of followers I gained. During the next month, though, I focused more on the number of @replies I got on Twitter, that is, I focused on how many people were responding or talking to me. But why the change?

Simple. I had far more total @replies than increase in followers during my second month. Is this accurate? Technically, yes. But does it really show the whole picture? Does it honestly track my progress? Of course not.

It’s such an easy trap to fall into. It’s easy to track the metrics which paint the best picture instead of consistently using the same metrics to measure your real progress. Catering to true goals and date, not to results, it the key.

This is not to say that sometimes mid-way through a campaign or program you can’t change your metrics or focus. Sometimes we realize after getting started that there are metrics we hadn’t considered which are much better suited to our needs. In this case, switch! Just be sure to retroactively asses your entire progress and not just recent weeks.

As measurement is becoming thrust on more and more of us, I beg you to think about whether you are truly measuring what you mean to be? Or are you just looking for the results you want?

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DR. WHAW? – January 19, 2010


2010
01.21

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Posted in DR. WHAW?, Measurement, PR metrics, Social Media, public relations | View Comments

Very much delayed, and I wish I could explain the reason why! You’ll just have to trust me on this. I was held up by a HUGE monitoring project this week, and I’m thrilled to be so busy. But still, I wanted to share what I Didn’t Read While Hard At Work on Tuesday.

DR. WHAW? – January 19, 2010

1. How Relationships Improve Sales by Chris Brogan — OK. I try not to include posts from the “big guys” too often because their content already gets plenty of exposure without my help. But in this case I wanted to make an exception. It’s a couple weeks old, but I love that this gives a good reason why relationships actually do affect the bottom line, which is what most executives these days are worried about. This is the reason we measure social media and engagement. It really does matter!

2. ROI Measurement: The 4th Stage of Social Media Maturity by Matt Carter — Recently a report was released which, among other things, outline what it called the Social Media Maturity Road Map. I loved this blog post because it highlighted where this report was completely (and disappointingly) lacking: measurement. I am so impressed to see others who share my passion for measurement and insist that it belongs in the discussion.

3. 100 Ways To Measure Social Media by Rodger Johnson — 100?! Can you believe it? This is a pretty good list of 100 ways to measure social media, and I would say it is by no means a comprehensive list. My goodness. You should definitely consult this list the next time you’re stumped as to how you can effectively measure a social media campaign, but also let’s all take a moment to appreciate how far measurement has come in so little time.

4. Simple Social Media Measurement Matrix by Sandra Fathi — This is kind of a cool concept! Sandra has created a matrix for social media that explains what metrics to look for based on what network you’re focusing on. I like this mostly because I think it’s a good way to organize all the different social networks out there, but I don’t think this has to be your absolute guide. Metrics change as projects do, but this structure is a good tool to use.

5. What ROI measurement system do you use by Henry Alzamora — This one I thought was just darn cool because measurement, particularly related to social media, is cropping up everywhere for me these days. Even on LinkedIn! Maybe I’ve missed it before, but I thought it was really neat that someone had started a discussion about measurement (ROI!) on a group on LinkedIn. Awesome!

6. Concrete Social Media Measurement Will Come by Scott Gulbransen — I love this. We’re not quite there yet. As much as I’d love to believe that measurement is ready to take on the world, it’s definitely not true. Not just yet. And this is a great post because it calls that out, but it also gives hope that there will be concrete measures for social media one day.

7. The Great Social Media  Measurement & Analytics Fallacy by Matt Carter — I know, I know! Two posts from the same author. This doesn’t happen! But I think that Matt Carter earned two spots today. I get in the habit of forgetting that measurement (and measurers) can be flawed, too. I love this analytical look at measuring engagement because it calls into questions some assumptions that we make. What do you think about this? Where do you stand?

Better late than never, eh?

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Your audience is the entire world, so show your entire self


2010
01.20

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Posted in Branding, Life as an AAE, Social Media, Twitter | View Comments

Last week on the #u30pro Twitter chat, I remember someone mentioning that our audience in now global, and that really struck me. (SIDE NOTE: Does anyone remember who that was?)

We were talking about how much of yourself you should share online, and whether it’s appropriate to share facts about your personal life as well as professional when blogging or Tweeting. And we were all pretty much in agreement that there was a balance that needed to be struck between professional and personal.

And then someone said that it was silly to not show your whole self because your audience is essentially the whole world. In a time when anyone can use Google or Twitter or Facebook to find you and your thoughts, it seems silly not to share your whole self.

I would never argue that you need to give out all of your information, I still urge you to be safe online. I do, however, urge you to let your entire personality shine through in your online interactions. More and more people are making important connections online, but how strong will those connections be if they’re based only on superficial or professional information?

My closest friends from work and other places are those that I know way more about than just their professional acumen. And it’s these outside connections and personal touches that make me think of them first when a new opportunity arises. I am way more likely to recommend a person or share a job opening with someone who I know as a friend and not just a colleague.

If that does not convince you, think about this: when you work in an office, you don’t stick to shop-talk all day long, right? You talk about your family and weekend plans with those who sit near you, and you develop personal relationships along with work relationships. And which of your coworkers are you more likely to recommend? The ones you have only had professional experience with? Or those who you know inside and out?

If you truly intend to make strong and meaningful connections online and use social media as a networking tool, it may seem counter-intuitive, but it’s important to let your entire personality show through all of your interactions.

What do you think? Is it wise to hide part of who you are online? Do you think it’s best to dive in and show your whole self? Share your thoughts!

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How do you measure personal success?


2010
01.18

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Posted in Life as an AAE, Measurement, Social Media, Twitter | View Comments

Now that I am settled into my new job as mini measurement guru at Edelman Digital, I think it’s about time I thought through some serious personal and professional goals. Because it’s the age of crowdsourcing I figure the best way to start the process is by asking y’all for advice!

For those of you who have written out professional or personal goals, how do you start? Do you have a timeline for your goals? I know that many of the answers may be, “it depends.” But what I’m trying to get at, I guess, is what is really reasonable?

Growing up during this time and with this technology, I have started to wonder whether the goals I have imagined for myself are completely outdated anymore or if they’re still unreachable. And being a measurement nerd, I know that I will want to be able to measure milestones as I go, and I will want to be able to analyze trends. Is that too much? Is that too in depth for my personal life?

At what point do goals stop being helpful and start becoming a burden and weight on my mind? I would love to hear personal experience with personal or professional goals that you have or have not reached. How did you go about setting them? How did you track or measure your progress? At what point did you declare your goal achieved or not?

Please share your comments and ideas with me. I know that I will probably evolve my own methods as I go, but y’all are a smart bunch and will provide a great jumping off point.

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DR. WHAW? – January 15, 2010


2010
01.16

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Posted in DR. WHAW?, Marketing, Measurement, PR metrics, Social Media, public relations | View Comments

Oh boy! I had a great night last night with my old coworkers from StrategyOne, and I ended up coming home much later than I anticipated! I thought maybe one drink after work and then I would head home. Instead, I ended up talking late into the night with two great friends, and I cannot wait to do it again! I finally feel like I’m making some true, good friends here in Chicago. And that feels great.

Early this morning, I met up with Sydney Owen (fellow blogger and new Chicagoan) for coffee before heading to volunteer orientation for PAWS Chicago. It was a great morning, and I’m very excited to get started with training and then hopefully some volunteering this coming week! Also, it was great to meet Sydney IRL!

So now that you know why DR. WHAW? is so late, I bring you what I Didn’t Read While Hard At Work (but wanted to) yesterday.

DR. WHAW? – January 15, 2010

1. Top Social Media Monitoring & Measurement Posts of the Week by Hannah Del Porto — Why feature this post when it could be a replacement for DR. WHAW? Well, I think it’s just darn cool that I’m not the only one on the look out for posts about measurement, particularly in the social media space. Also, I agree with many of the picks that they chose! I don’t think I’ll lose all of my readers just  because I share this link, I know y’all like me for other reasons, too. In all seriousness, this is an awesome digest and I highly recommend it!

2. Social Media Marketing Measurement from Google Socializer — I wanted to share this post with you for two reasons: 1) It’s a good argument for why measurement should focus on actual returns, not clicks, and 2) I saw this post Retweeted all over the place yesterday which was really encouraging. Every time I see that people are not only writing about this, but also sharing it, I am so thrilled to know that this is slowly becoming mainstream.

3. 6 steps to measure social media by Katie Paine — This post was a no-brainer for me because it’s from one of the best minds in measurement today, Katie Paine. More than that, however, this is really one of the first times I’ve seen Katie focusing upon online media in her measurement as most of her work is based on traditional media. I like to see her wisdom being applied in this new space, and I’m excited to see more!

4. Social Media Secrets and Resources Revealed by Dana Oshiro — I thoroughly enjoyed this post because it takes a recent presentation which gave the social media secrets for 2010 and gave concrete tactics and resources to actually improve your social media strategy. And it helped that the first secret was to pay attention to metrics, of course!

5. Start – And Finish! – with a Goal by Cat Lincoln — I like this because it expands on a popular most from Mashable this week which suggested how to create social media contest. Emphasis on a goal is highly important in social media and in public relations (or marketing) in general, and I honestly don’t think we say that enough.

6. London really is the capital of Twitter by Camille Jouneaux — This is a really cool use of social media metrics! The Twitter population was broken down by country and also by city, and guess what they found! Exacly, London has the most people on Twitter. Maybe not a huge revelation, but I still thought it was a cool use of metrics.

7. Public relations in the recession: Good news from The Economist — This post does not really focus on measurement, but I still thought it was worth highlighting because it suggests that public relations is one of the few industries that isn’t shrinking in this recession. In fact, this downturn may have been one of the best things ever to happy to public relations. What do you think about this?

I hope your weekend has started off well, y’all! What have you been up to? What are your plans for the rest of the weekend? And make sure to leave me some comments on how I’m doing!

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DR. WHAW? – January 14, 2010


2010
01.14

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Posted in DR. WHAW?, Measurement, Mobile, PR metrics, Social Media, public relations | View Comments

Another busy day at the office, but I’m so happy to be where I am. If you haven’t  been around the blog lately, check out my post about my new gig and say hello to tell me what’s new in your life. I’m being a super-multitasker tonight and participating in the #u30pro chat while I fill y’all in. Without further delay, here’s what I Didn’t Read While Hard At Work today!

DR. WHAW? – January 14, 2010

1. Why CMOs Need to Instill Better Measurement Discipline… Now by Jim Lenskold — The title alone should tell you why I’m all about this article from MarketingProfs. Measurement is so incredibly important, and I think that it is key to get this into PR mindsets as soon as possible. I learned a little about measurement in college, but absolutely everyone in PR needs to learn early and often how important measurement integration is.

2. Inability To Track ROI Does Not Absolve You From Measuring by Rachel Happe — Beautiful, this is just what I like to see! Measurement does not have to mean ROI. Calculating ROI is really a financial thing, and may not be the best measurement for every campaign or project. This doesn’t mean that you cannot measure anything, though. There is an in between.

3. Twebinar Recap: Xbox by Gwen McIntyre — There is nothing that I love more these days than Radian6, and this is a great case study of sorts from the folks at Radian6. It’s a great look at what you can find when looking at social media chatter and how much you can learn through measurement. Also, it shows what Radian6 can do, and I just can’t get enough of them. :)

4. Catching up to Mobile by Adam Cahill — Just what I was looking for a few weeks ago when I wondered how the heck to measure mobile. This is a great introduction to how we can catch up with mobile technology because there is nothing left to do but catch up! If you’re as interested in mobile as I am, then you need to check this out.

5. Nonprofict Social Media – Integration is Key by Heather Whaling — I know that I don’t focus much on nonprofit organizations, but I should give them more credit. This is a great look at social media (and measurement!) from the view of a nonprofit. This is a great read for anyone interested in social media or nonprofits.

6. Video: The Future of Social Media by Steve Rubel — This is just a great look at the world ahead from one of the greats in social media. It takes a look at why you need to be online, how to send the right messages, how to measure social media metrics and how reputation works in the new digital world. This is absolutely a must-read!

7. I’ll Never Go Back To School by Matt Cheuvront — I wanted to include this blog post because I think it’s an important discussion, and believe me! There is a HUGE discussion already blooming over here (143 comments at time of writing). Matt Chevy explains why he will never go back to get his Masters Degree and what that’s the best decision for him. I have been thinking lately about whether I really do want to eventually go back for my own Masters, and this blog post made me stop and question my reasons. What do you think? Please, weigh in!

And with that, I must get to my Thursday evening TV shows! I’m an avid Bones fan, and I hear there’s some alien funny business on this one! Happy almost-Friday, y’all.

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DR. WHAW? – January 13, 2010


2010
01.14

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This post is going up a little late because I was a bit late getting home from work last night and had to rush how to watch my Tar Heels take on the Clemson Tigers. It did not end well, and I bitterly went to bed instead of writing about what I Didn’t Read While Hard At Work on Wednesday.

DR. WHAW? – January 13, 2010

1. If you do your job right, nobody will ask about social media ROI by Shel Holtz — I LOVE this. Shel brilliantly points out that any marketer worth their salt should integrate measurement into their programs, and there should not be a large outcry for ROI or results only at the very end. I wholeheartedly agree with this.  While I appreciate the push for ROI and measurement lately, it should be something that is worked in throughout and your work should prove it’s own worth without ROI.

2. Measurement is Sexy from The League of Kick Ass Business People — This is not an article, but an event (a first for DR. WHAW). I was so amused by the title and so thrilled with the concept that I thought I should include it. It’s in Toronto, so I know that most of us will not be able to actually attend, but it’s definitely inspiring to see that these events are sprouting up everywhere because it means that measurement has arrived.

3. Avoiding Social Media’s Own “Ad Equivalency Value” by Dave Fleet — If you know anything about measurement (or even if you don’t), you have probably heard of the AVE or ad value equivalency. This metric was once thought to be the only way to measure the value of PR but has become the ugly step-sister of measurement in recent years, and now Dave Fleet warns us of a similar metric arising in social media. What is it and how do we avoid it? Read this article if you’re at all interested in measuring social. It is a must-read.

4. Social Media Measurement: Assets Are Not Returns by Ed Lee — I think this is the best way to put it. Followers and fans are not returns, they are simply assets. You would not count an asset when determining the ROI of anything else, would you? So why include that in the measurement of social media ROI? Brilliant, Ed, simply brilliant.

5. Is anyone talking about you? How to measure social network buzz. by Ron Shulkin — This is a great resource for beginners and not-so-beginners who are looking to measure social networking buzz about a client or brand. There are some awesome Web sites and metrics included at the bottom of the post. I like that this is focused upon social networks specifically and not just social media as a whole because it’s important to make that distinction sometimes.

6. List of Social Media Measurement KPIs by Jeremiah Owyang — This is a great (and growing!) resource from Jeremiah Owyang, a partner at Altimeter Group. This is a great start for finding key performance indicators or KPIs for social media campaigns and programs. I encourage you to take a quick look at this resource and contribute where you can!

7. What Boyfriends And Girlfriends Search For On Google by Dan Ariely — I wanted to share this because it’s a lighter look at measurement and how to use search engines like Google to get a broad sense of something. This is a cute look at the difference between what boyfriends and girlfriends are searching for on Google. How else could you use Google in this way? Could you get a general sense before diving in deeper?

It really feels good to be back in the swing of this, and I’m really glad to know that I have some readers back as well. Keep leaving me comments on which posts you do like and which you don’t (and why!) so that I can keep bringing you more relevant material.

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