According to Tech Flash, Wetpaint and Altimeter Group today unveiled a new report that attempts to measure the companies that are best using social media, tracking how 100 companies from the 2008 BusinessWeek/Interbrand Best Global Brands survey utilized Facebook, Twitter, wikis, and discussion forums.

While the summary is good. The actual report is loaded with some interesting information. To download, visit here.



-posted by Justin

Tags: wetpaint, altimetergroup, facebook, twitter

It's no secret that the economy is causing many companies to rethink their marketing budgets. This isn't necessarily a bad thing, since tighter budgets can force companies to take a more creative approach to their communications strategies. Here are just a couple ideas to help boost your company's visibility -- all of them are easy to do and can positively impact the bottom line.

1) Create a company page on LinkedIn (www.linkedin.com). You're probably already a member of LinkedIn (and if you're not, it's easy and free to join). But you might not know that the site recently added a "Companies" section to its offerings. If you're a member, you can follow this link.

And if you want to see what a company profile is, you can follow this link (whether or not you're a member) to look at the one for VOXUS.

The site is still in beta, but it looks promising and would be especially useful for recruiting purposes or, since there is a companies search function, it might even be used by potential customers looking for vendors.


2) Create a company profile on Businesswire. If you're using Businesswire to distribute your press releases, did you know that you can issue a company profile for free as a membership benefit? This profile is sent across the wires to media, investors and consumers with basic facts about your organization. It's also stored in a databank for quick retrieval by reporters on deadline. You can learn more about it and find the link for submitting a profile here.

3) Do a customer survey -- and publish the results. There are any number of free websites that are easy to use to create a survey (we like Survey Monkey http://www.surveymonkey.com/). If you ask your customers a few controversial questions, so much the better! You can put the results on your website or, for even more impact, write a short article and submit it to a trade journal or your local business publication.


4) Are you using the back of your business card? If not, you're missing an opportunity. At VOXUS, we use it to reinforce our brand and image, but there are any number of other things you could do. You could place a special offer or a product description there, or even repeat the information on the front of the card so that it's always face-up for the recipient.


5) Take another look at radio. Most companies think print or online publications are their best venue for publicity, but sometimes the stories lend themselves well to radio. One you might try is "Into Tomorrow, with Dave Graveline." This is a nationally-syndicated radio show covering consumer electronics and technology. The show airs a daily "Into Tomorrow" feature that you can write and submit yourself on any topic that would be of interest to the general audience. It's a simple 55-second script (about 140 words). Details can be found here.

-posted by Rachel

A recent study finds that when it comes to embracing new technology like blogging and social networking, the country's top CEOs have significant room to improve.

According to the study from UberCEO, an online publication focused on CEOs, only 19 of Fortune 100 CEOs had a Facebook profile, 13 had a LinkedIn page, two had Twitter accounts and get this NONE HAD A BLOG. But those top-line results may not be reflective of what's really going on with UberCEO reporting that the Twitter feeds of Warren Buffett, CEO of Berkshire Hathaway, and Alan Lafley, CEO of Proctor & Gamble, have not posted anything of significance since being set up.



UberCEO says CEOs being social media slackers leaves the door open them appearing disconnected, especially with a growing number of people using tools like Twitter and blogs. Writes UberCEO's Sharon Barclay:

We're not suggesting that every CEO should participate in every aspect of social media. That's a decision each CEO needs to make as part of an overall company marketing strategy. But we are recommending that every CEO examines their online image and reputation.

UberCEO goes on to speculate that the reasons CEOs aren't using social media is because of fear, lack of knowledge and time constraints.

Although a daunting task both in time and resources, utilizing these avenues to connect with current customers, potential customers, business partners and the public at large seems like a no-brainer especially for CEOs whose corporations still have a stockpile of resources to support such activities (i.e. cash and employees). Are CEOs above such forms of communication?

-posted by Andrew

Tags: facebook, twitter, linkedin

Andrew Wilson is a Seattle-based serial entrepreneur and a principal at Lamonti LLC who has experienced the highs (and lows) of building several companies. He had some success with Strata8 Networks, a service provider that offered cellular services over licensed spectrum for the enterprise, only to eventually realize that there were fatal flaws within the organization. After Strata8 shut down, he started 4thwith, a company that develops social media programs for businesses that want to build closer relationships with their customers. As part of VOXUS's continuing series of interviews with local entrepreneurs, VCs and marketers, we asked him to share some lessons learned during the shutdown process for Strata8, and what we might expect to see from 4thwith going forward.

1) You recently shut down startup Strata8. To pull the plug is always a painful decision – do you have any lessons learned that you could share with other entrepreneurs?

The primary failure of Strata8 had to do with execution, and execution failure falls squarely on the team. Unfortunately the founders did not know each other very well so there was no existing mechanisms for conflict resolution and decision making. As the company grew, we quickly found employees (including founders) who were under-qualified. All the miss-steps that occurred were the direct result of this lack of executive execution. The founders were not alone in their poor execution. The investors and board also bear much of the weight. It was 3 months after initial funding before the board and investors came out to headquarters to meet the team, and the only communication mechanism was between the CEO and the Board. Overall, it was very disappointing. Lesson learned: know who you're climbing into bed with.

The secondary failure of Strata8 had to do with technology risk. We did not have the primary technology product until a year and half after initial funding. This product was manufactured by a third party who we did not have control over. We increased our burn as if the product was going to be ready 6 months after funding and we simply ran out of runway. Lesson learned: focus on the product until you have the product. Then you can build the operational components to sell and support it.

The third failure was market planning. The undelivered product's cost was double what was initially communicated and the market rate for services based on this product dropped significantly. Although this falls somewhat into the technology risk section, it also leads to poor target market selection and poor market needs analysis. Lesson learned: thoroughly understand the product cost, target market and market demand.

2) Your latest venture, 4thwith, is in a totally different market than Strata8. Tell us a little about it, and why you believe the social networking niche still has room for new players.

Everybody on the Internet is suddenly a Social Media consultant or expert. The problem with almost all of them is they tend to believe Social Media is a marketing cure all. Social Media is simply one tool in the marketer's tool kit. Yes, it is efficient marketing if executed properly and if executed as a component of a well thought out strategic marketing plan. As I speak with clients, they are interested in Social Media, but they are more interested in growing their brand, their sales pipeline and their revenues. Having one arrow in your quiver does not make you an accomplished archer. I've also noticed many of these Social Media consultants are trying to sell (pimp) rather than establish meaningful dialogue and hence a true relationship with their customer. There is still room for new players because the existing players aren't true marketers.

3) You are a huge proponent of business networking. Local to the Seattle area, what groups have you found the most useful for making connections?

Business networking is a delicate issue. Is getting a business card truly networking? Is grabbing a beer after work going to establish a relationship? I've been disappointed with most organized networking events. My networking philosophy is based on "pay it forward." Meaning, try to help out anyone and everyone you meet. Try to make them successful. In my experience this builds true relationships. Then utilize these relationships to meet new people. It's interesting to keep track of who appreciates a giving relationship and who simply wants to take. Probably the best Seattle groups are the investor groups such as the Keiretsu Forum. Investors are entrepreneurs, understand the value of relationships and know how to get things done. I refuse to attend the breakfast networking groups where all the legal, insurance and banking folks are trying to pimp their wares.

You can reach Andy at Andrew (at) Lamonti.com.

Tags: andrewwilson, strata8, lamonti, 4thwith