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Intersecting Traditional and Social Media with DIX & EATON and EATON

Hilary Spittle, Tim Zaun, and Christina Klenotic 

On Thursday, May 28, 2009, the International Association of Business Communicators/Cleveland (IABC), hosted Christina Klenotic, vice president of Dix & Eaton (the largest employee-owned, full-service communications consulting firm in the US), and Hilary Spittle, manager, International & External Communications for Eaton.

The Happy Hour occurred at The Greenhouse Tavern in downtown Cleveland from 5:30 pm to 7:30 pm. Light refreshments were served, and at 6 pm, attendees gathered to hear Klenotic & Spittle discuss "How to pitch to mainstream and social media, and the key differences in approach." 

• Spittle addressed the corporate perspective, commenting on the importance of concise, creative, and focused pitches. 

• Klenotic highlighted an agency point of view, noting the new business meaning of ROI as it relates to social media:" Risk Of Ignoring."

On Thursday, May 21, 2009, Klenotic gave an IABC presentation, entitled, How the Game is Changing: The Intersection of Traditional & Social Media.  

Download Klenotic's excellent slides (above link) for an introductory and/or enhanced analysis of social media trends.

Be sure to visit IABC to learn how you can join this career-enhancing organization.

Plain Dealer's Connie Schultz Delivers Keynote at Ohio Professional Writers Annual Meeting

Connie Schultz and Tim Zaun 

On Saturday, May 16th, 2009, Ohio Professional Writers held their annual meeting at the WKSU Radio Building on the Kent State University Campus.

Pulitzer-prize winning author, and Plain Dealer columnist, Connie Schultz delivered the keynote address.

Schultz (a KSU graduate herself), opened her talk by announcing that the Plain Dealer has guaranteed staff employment for the next 12 months. In 1993 when Schultz joined the newspaper, over 400 employees defined its presence. Today, there are 186 workers.

Following are some highlights of Connie Schultz's keynote: 

• Regarding the state of newspapers and journalists: "You are not broken. The business model is broken."
• "Opportunities are unlimited." 
• Schultz stressed the importance of mentoring upcoming journalists. 
• "You never lose the desire to have your story heard." 
• Schultz believes people who leave comments online should have to identify themselves, like print opinion.

Schultz's message resonated with the predominately female audience with these additional comments:

• "What they call you is one thing. What you answer to is another." Lucille Clifton, Poet.
• Schultz told rising women journalists that they'll be asked to do more with less: "You need to take care of yourself. You need down time." 
• The majority of US women were against the Iraq War from the beginning." Where were our voices?" 
• Schultz said women will often leave a voice mail message after hours, guaranteeing that she won't answer the line.  She can sense their uneasiness in their tone. Schultz quoted Maggie Kuhn, Gray Panthers founder: "Speak your mind even if your voice shakes."

Schultz's husband, Ohio State Senator Sherrod Brown, accompanied her to the event (how's that for a high-powered couple spending quality time together?) 

Additional Speakers on Saturday Included:

• WKYC.COM Reporter, Kim Wendel:  Regarding today's changing face of media: "We are still learning our audience and what they want."
• WKSU News Director, M.L. Schultze: "This is the neatest time to be in journalism, as well as the most terrifying time to be in journalism." 
• Author and education advocate, Charlise Lyles.

To learn more about Ohio Professional Writers, contact Vivian Goodman  at Goodman@wksu.org, or by phone: 330.672.2132.

Site Logic's Matt Bailey: "It's Social Media, Not Selfish Media"

Jennifer Evans Laycock , Matt Bailey & Tim Zaun

On Tuesday, May 12, 2009, Matt Bailey, founder and president of Canton, Ohio-based Site Logic, Inc., presented "It's Social Media, Not Selfish Media."

Joining him was recently hired team member Jennifer Evans Laycock. Laycock is the editor of The Search Engine Guide, a weekly ezine that reaches over 18,000 small businesses.  She is also a social media expert.

Bailey and his associates are internationally known Web Development and Marketing consultants.

The pair's workshop showcased social media trends. Following are some highlights:

• Chasing social media's bleeding edge: They call it the "bleeding edge" for a reason-"it hurts."
• The main goal of social media is to LISTEN to your audience/customers. 
• Social media is essential during a recession.

Media Sharing Using Video:

• YouTube is now the second most popular search engine (believable, since Google now owns YouTube).
• Viewers spend an average of 28 minutes on YouTube. 
• Maximize YouTube's settings, including the Description and Channel options (change to Director). 
• Flickr is an engaged community. Utilize the Discussion option which is often overlooked. For $25.00/ year, a Pro subscription provides unlimited storage. (Thursday, May 21, Cleveland Public Library Main is offering a free Flickr class from 3-5 pm, Call 216.623.2800 to register).
• Invest in the increasingly popular Flip Mino video recorder. 

Yahoo Local and Yahoo Travel are excellent resources-make sure you're using them.  

Bailey predicts that Facebook will outlast Twitter regarding popularity. Facebook allows you to move "at your own pace," vs. the immediate stream on Twitter.

 

Why Blogging Matters:

• Blogging is the "900 lb Guerilla" of social media.
• Create Demand (Educate, Build Demand, Build Credibility). 
• Add Personality. 
• Build Community. 

The Power of Blogs (Websites on steroids):

• Allows frequent updates.
• Link currency (outbound/inbound links). 
• Accumulate links, grow content. 

Before You Blog, Know How To:

1. Write.  
2. Engage. 
3. Focus. 
4. Conduct basic SEO (Search Engine Optimization). 
5. Approach basic PR. 

How To Pitch a Blogger:

Take the time to read their blogs.

• Use real language.
• Respect their time. 
• Develop a friendship. 

For a free Blogger Pitching Checklist PDF, email Matt Bailey: Matt@sitelogic.com. 

Matt Bailey and his team are passionate Web Developers. 

Enjoy an online competitive advantage in today's marketplace. Contact Matt Bailey of Site Logic, Inc. His affable, professional presence is A-1.

 

Authenticity, Jim Gilmore and Northeast Ohio

Tim Zaun and JIm Gilmore

Bestselling business author, and Shaker Heights, Ohio resident, Jim Gilmore and I, met in November, 2008 at the Heights-Hillcrest Chamber of Commerce Breakfast Series.

Jim and I conversed earlier this year at his nearby Starbucks about Authenticity: What Consumers Really Want and The Experience Economy: Work Is Theatre & Every Business a Stage.

You can read the 'best of" our talk, entitled "Authenticity, Jim Gilmore and Northeast Ohio," published on GreatLakesGeek.com.

Dan Hanson of Great Lakes Geek, chose not to feature my Download Authenticity Intro, so I'm publishing it here for greater emphasis of Gilmore's accomplishments. 

Gilmore and his business partner, Joe Pine, continue to garner accolades.  

If you're unfamiliar with Gilmore & Pine, reading our conversation will provide some insight. 

 

eMarketing Techniques Conference Offers FREE Web Meetings that WoW! Webinar

Brad Kleinman and Tim Zaun

On Friday, May 8th, 2009, Corporate College East, a division of Cuyahoga County Community College, hosted the third annual eMarketing Techniques Conference.

The event is the brainchild of Brad Kleinman, former associate director of Corporate College, and co-founder of WorkSmart Emarketing.

This year's theme was Social Media and Marketing.

Rick Burnes, of Massachusetts-based HubSpot delivered the keynote address entitled, The Inbound Marketing Advantage: How Your Business Can Modernize its Marketing Efforts.

Matt Dickman of Fleishman-Hillard spoke on The Future of Marketing.

In keeping with the philosophy of the Green Academy at Corporate College, participants received workshop notes on a flash drive, to reduce the facility's paper trail.

One conference presenter, Sheri Jeavons, of Power Presentations, instructed the highly useful Webinars that WoW: Engage and Educate Your Remote Audience.

Jeavons is offering a FREE (a $37.00 value), Top Mastery Webinar entitled Webinars that WoW! Here are the details:

When: Wednesday, May 13, 2009.

Time 2:00 pm EDT.

Enroll Here: Power Presentations.

Enter Code: EMKTG2009.

If you're busy at that time, enroll by June 8 to receive the free webinar recording.

If you missed this year's eMarketing Techniques Conference, visit the above links to learn more, and plan to experience the event in May, 2010. 

As online marketing evolves at a juggernaut pace, can you afford not to attend?

Social Media: Tools of the Trade: Press Club of Cleveland Presents Area Experts

Howard Fencl and Tim Zaun

On Wednesday, May 6, 2009 the Press Club of Cleveland presented Social Media: Tools of the Trade at Cuyahoga Community College-Metro Campus.

Five local media experts critiqued the evolving journalism field, now forced to incorporate social media to achieve success.

Following are the "best of" comments from the panelists. The event was moderated by Howard Fencl (pictured above), assistant news director for WKYC, Channel 3:

Ed Esposito, VP of Information Media-Rubber City Radio Group, and AkronNewsNow.com.  

• "Build up your own brand."
• "It now comes down to having good content that people want." 
• "We're now dealing with an audience as big as the superbowl everyday." 
• "Social networking is a great new form for syndication." 
• "People who don't want to ride this train (social media) need to get off."  

Eric Mansfield. Channel 3 News Anchor/Akron-Canton Bureau Chief. 

• "Know what your competition is doing."
• "Time is not on our side in this business." 
• "You need allies within your organization. The war is won with onesies and twosies (one fan at a time)." 
• Regarding Twitter: "I want to get things out there AND back from you, the viewer,as well." 

Dale Omori-Deputy Director of Photography/Multimedia- Cleveland Plain Dealer.

• "As journalists, we're now marketing our content."
•  Speaking on novice vs. veteran journalists: "As veterans, we're storytellers. We can overcome the tech hurdles faster than most novices can gain the experience as a storyteller."

Denise Polverine- Editor-in-Chief for Cleveland.com.

• "As journalists, we're reinventing ourselves and engaging our audience."
• "I tell my producers, "Don't ever get too comfortable, things are changing every few months." 
• "News is now a two-way street."

Jeff Stacklin, Founder of DigitalEyes Media (left Crain's Cleveland Business in March to start his own company. He was the online editor at Crain's for nine years).

• "Content, promotion and Web strategy will help ensure success."
• "Traffic is what matters with social media." 

Wednesday morning's Cleveland Press Club Breakfast was an enjoyable, and enlightening experience.

If you're still skeptical of social media, take heed from the above industry leaders if you plan to be successful in the current and future media profession.   

Gilmore and Pine Celebrate TEE (The Experience Economy) Party!

Jim Gilmore, Joe Pine, and Tim Zaun

 

On Tuesday, April 28th, 2009, Jim Gilmore and Joe Pine celebrated the ten year anniversary release date of their bestselling book, The Experience Economy: Work Is Theatre & Every Business a Stage.

The event, held at the Ritz-Carlton Ballroom in Cleveland, Ohio, drew 87 attendees from 17 states, including Hawaii.

View photos of Gilmore & Pine's TEE Party.

The Experience Economy:

• has sold over 200,000 copies worldwide.
• has been printed in 11 different languages. 
• was recently named one of The 100 Best Business Books of All Time.

The Experience Economy is based on Gilmore and Pine's Progression of Economic Value, stating that, as time has progressed, consumers have been attracted to economic offerings in the following order:

• Commodities-extracted from the earth.  
• Goods-tangible things manufactured from commodities. 
• Services-intangible activities delivered on behalf of individual customers. 
• Experiences-memorable events that engage individuals in an inherently personal way. 

Gilmore and Pine founded Strategic Horizons, LLP in 1996, as a think studio dedicated to helping companies conceive and design new ways of adding value to their economic offerings.

Are you new to the Experience Economy?

Gilmore & Pine are offering TEE for TEN- a full day of in-depth discussion, peer-to-peer coaching, and creative exploration led by Jim Gilmore or Joe Pine in their home-offices. 

Gilmore and Pine's latest book is entitled, Authenticity: What Consumers Really Want. 

You can read my interview with Jim Gilmore published today at GreatLakesGeek.com.

Levin College of Urban Affairs Presents First Annual Cho Lecture: Technology and Cities: Review and Prospects for the Future

Professor John Kim, PhD, and  Tim Zaun

On Friday, May 1, 2009 the Levin College of Urban Affairs at Cleveland State University, hosted its First Annual Cho Lecture.

John Kim, PhD, endowed professor of urban and regional systems at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign was the featured speaker (email: tjohnkim@uiuc.edu).

KIm's presentation, entitled, Technology and Cities: Review and Prospects for the Future, included:

• The Top Ten Global Challenges Over the Next 50 Years: 1.Energy, 2. Water, 3. Food. 
• The Twenty Greatest Technology Achievements of the 20th Century. 
• Challenges for Cities in Ubiquitous Technology Space. 

After speaking, Kim was joined by three local business leaders for a panel discussion:

1. Michael DeAloia-former "tech czar" for the city of Cleveland.
2. Leo Jeffres, PHD., professor of communications at Cleveland State University.
3. Scot M. Rourke, president and CEO of One Community.

Be sure to view the video of the event which will be available next week at the Levin College site. You're guaranteed to learn to some useful facts regarding the future of cities connected by technology.