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Social Media – An Executive Decision

Social media: an executive’s best friend or worst enemy. While it’s true that most businesses should maintain a presence, there’s debate as to whether or not the CEO should be involved in content creation and postings. When done correctly, a CEO with an active social media presence can drive sales, empower employees, and produce results. When done incorrectly, that same individual can cause embarrassment, controversy and negative press.

When it works

Here are a few winning examples:

When You Show Personality: There’s a reason why 4.53 million (!) people follow John Legere (T-Mobile) on Twitter. He’s creative, fun-loving, collaborative and competitive, albeit irreverent. Through his use of hilarious memes, interesting articles, and ability to connect with customers, Legere’s page has helped to boost his company’s image. Likewise, Aaron Levie (Box) knows a thing or two about making friends. With just over 2 million followers, Levie keeps folks in the loop on new product development and collaboration while sprinkling in humor and note worthy content.

When You Inspire: When you invent cool things like electric cars and rocket ships, people get pretty excited. When you take said people (12.8 million twitter followers) along on the journey, people buy in. Thanks Elon Musk!

When You Help Others: In the face of tragedy, CEO’s have the unique ability to unite, mobilize relief efforts and raise funds. Mark Zuckerberg (Facebook) is the perfect example. He has repeatedly used his personal Facebook page to raise money for those in need, most recently the Hurricane Harvey Recovery Fund and to promote Facebook’s “Crisis Response” tool. Brian Chesky (Airbnb) reached out to his 252,000 Twitter followers to promote his company’s Disaster Response Program and to encourage Airbnb hosts to open their doors to those affected. And when AirAsia flight 8501 crashed in 2014, killing all 162 passengers, Tony Fernandez, CEO, took to social media to offer condolences to the victim’s families, boost company morale and update the public on recovery efforts.

When it Doesn’t

Here are a few that missed the mark:

When You are Offensive, Derogatory, Misogynistic, Racist, Sexist, Etc.: For obvious reasons, companies do not take kindly to CEOs alienating or upsetting customers with their personal social media rants. When you’re the CEO of say, the entire country, it’s no different. President Donald Trump has had his fair share of Twitter snafus this year, most notably re-tweeting a meme showing him hitting former First Lady, Hillary Clinton, with a golf ball. Additionally, Hootsuite CEO Ryan Holmes came under fire recently for tweeting an offensive sex hotline to a reporter that he was unhappy with.

When You are Not the Only One Managing Your account: A CEO needs to be able to trust staff members with social media login credentials. Senator Ted Cruz learned this one the hard way when a staffer “accidentally” liked a pornographic video on his official page. And don’t even get us started on Anthony Weiner…

The long and short of it: CEOs need to recognize if they don’t have the right temperament or voice to carefully and effectively communicate on behalf of their company and to positively project their company’s brand. If they are not the right person to handle communication, that’s okay! On the other hand, if a CEO has a proven track record of great social media connection, they can be an incredibly effective voice for their company. Every organization should have a different social media strategy tailored around the mission of the organization and the strength of its individuals and communication experts.

If you think it’s time for a social media audit, give us a call – we do that and we’d love to help.

Where Have We Been All Your Life?

Hello old friend. Remember us? You’ve probably noticed that we’ve been a little absent on the blog as of late. You know the whole analogy about how the cobbler’s kid has no shoes? Guilty as charged. So what have we been doing? We’re glad you asked. Gallivanting throughout Europe, of course. Kidding…we’ve been busy! 2017 has brought a diverse client base, exciting new challenges and opportunities for growth across the board.

We’ve recently fielded a lot of questions about blogging and since we’re back at it, we thought we’d share our thoughts. Whether you’re the CEO of a Fortune 500 company or an entrepreneur just starting out, a blog can be an enormously helpful tool for building your business – if it’s done right. Here are our tips:

Ask Yourself, “Do I Need a Blog”?

A blog might not always be the best use of your company’s resources. Consider your audience and the product or service you offer and analyze whether or not a blog would resonate. It’s helpful in these instances to talk to someone who understands the industry and can point you in the right direction.

Be Realistic and Consistent.

We realize this is rich coming from us right now, but if you want your blog to work, consistency is key. That being said, you’ll need to set some realistic goals. Blogging takes time, so figure out what you’re capable of before diving in headfirst.

Outsourcing does not mean selling out. It’s important to recognize that your time might best be spent at something else, like selling your product, performing your service, caring for your clients or obtaining news ones. Practically speaking, blogging requires good writing, which might not be your bag, and that’s okay. In this instance, hire someone who knows what they’re doing (like, for instance, us…) and get back to business. A great writer will quickly pick up on your company’s voice and the type of material that is of interest to you and clients, making for an engaging and effective communication tool.

Share Strategically.

Your blog will be of no value to you if it goes unnoticed. The strategy behind how you share and promote this platform is as important as the content it contains. Whether your using social media channels, e-blasts, or SEO, you’ll want to determine the most effective methods for sharing. Again, this is where outsourcing can be very helpful. With social media changing on a daily basis, we are constantly tweaking our techniques, researching best new practices and making sure our clients see results.

As always, we’re here to get the conversation started, so let us know what you think and what you’d like to see on the blog. Feel free to leave a comment or drop us a note. Thanks for stopping by and happy blogging.

New Year. New Name.

Nearly a decade ago, I entered the world of public relations and marketing communications. As a former TV reporter, it was an easy transition. Stories were my passion and, because I had been a journalist for so many years, I knew exactly what reporters needed to tell a good story, and do it effectively.

In the beginning, I worked alone, out of my house, on my trusty laptop. Panera and Starbucks were my go-to for meetings, and I went by MBF Communications (the B is for Beth, my middle name). That lasted for a couple years. Thankfully, my business grew, and eventually I shifted to Fleisher Communications Group. The “group” became increasingly important as I added professionals who could offer clients the full array of mar/comm services. It became very clear, early on, that our agency differentiator would be our people, communication experts with the experience and expertise to deliver the results our clients deserved.

Fast-forward to 2016. Team Fleisher has grown across the board. We have more clients, more offerings, and, yes, more team members. So when I took a look at our brand last spring, I decided it was time for a refresh. The first, perhaps the most important, consideration was the name. We debated long and hard over a name that would capture the personality of our agency. Did Fleisher Communications Group still reflect who we are, why we’re different and what we deliver? At the end of the day, the team was split. Half said yes, let’s go for it. The rest, were not so sure.

Enter the founder, me. Believing that more often than not, the status quo benefits from a bit of a shake-up, I pulled the trigger on the name change. Sure, it’s not a dramatic departure. In fact, our emails have always been Team Fleisher. But today I’m proud to say we are more than a group. We are a team of talented, dedicated, experienced pros working together to deliver communication solutions that truly stand out.

New Year. New Name. Still one mission. We’ve Got This.

2016: The PR Tactics We Focus On

Just as each of our clients is unique, so, too, are the PR strategies and tactics that will deliver the results they deserve. The start of a new year is a good time to evaluate the latest PR trends and methods. Here are a few Team Fleisher is watching (and practicing) in 2016.

Real-Time

From SnapChat to Periscope, news is king. How we plug in PR and deliver content in real time (or as close to it as possible) so it is timely, relevant and on target is still key. As PR pros, we must monitor trends, topics and events for in-the-moment opportunities. Think ‘Oreo’s tweet’ during the Super Bowl blackout a few years ago.

Thought Leadership

Team Fleisher has emphasized thought leadership for years because, quite simply, positioning a company’s leaders as the experts in their space can be a great basis for almost any PR strategy. In addition, establishing thought leadership can “elevate” the collateral content. After all, if you’re the expert it only makes sense that your content is valuable, educational and worth the time.

Content Amplification

Quality content is a terrible thing to waste! Leveraging and amplifying content can lead to more eyes on it and, thus, fuel PR efforts. The quality of the content—whether an infographic, white paper or by-lined article–is more critical than ever. Remember, a company’s content is an extension of its brand. It must be consistent and of the very highest quality.

True Engagement

Creating social media influence can be tricky for many companies. There are ways to “buy” followers on social media. It’s our experience that these followers don’t amount to much in terms of influence. They’re just not the cult evangelists who can really build your brand. Instead, developing a network made up of your target audience is far more valuable, and leads to more meaningful engagement. Building influence among an engaged audience is also more likely to deliver results.

What tactics and trends are you considering in the year ahead? Shoot us an email. We’d love to hear.