Blog | Pierpont Communications, Inc.

From everyone here at Pierpont, we wish you a safe and happy New Years!

Check out this great video reflecting on 2009 in Google Wave. If you have not experienced Google Wave yet and would like to learn more about it, email bblock@peircom.com with your interest in receiving a Google Wave invitation.

Posted: 12/31/2009 2:26:22 PM by Brian Block | with 0 comments

It Takes a Village: Communities in Facebook

Facebook will be making a change soon as to how its Fan Pages work. (Fan pages, for those of you not familiar with them, are essentially a Facebook profile for businesses or organizations created to help your fans share their experiences with you, each other and their own networks.) In the past, when an update was made to a Fan Page, it appeared in all of the fans’ news feeds. But starting soon, Facebook will be changing the posting policies of Fan pages to better promote community involvement. Now, thanks to some fancy algorithms, a Fan Page post will be more likely seen if there is greater interaction within the page from its users. In other words, if you don’t give your community a page that engages them and makes them want to contribute, then they won’t see your updates. Think of it in terms of the “tree falling in the woods” idiom. If you update your status and your community is not around to see it, does updating your status really matter?

I’ve seen several Facebook Fan pages rely solely on name recognition to bring in new Fans. These companies and organizations do nothing to provide any useful content or engage their fans. Huge opportunities are missed to create a network of people who promote their love for a brand.

So how can you keep your fans engaged – and keep your updates in their live feeds? First, your company has to know what purpose their online interaction will serve. Here are a few questions we like to ask our clients when discussing engagement:

Why do you want to create a community around your service, industry, brand, etc? Communities are groups of people who are connected. Providing a common ground for others to learn about you and each other makes you an asset. Organizing a discussion and providing guidance or structure shows that you are a leader. Demonstrating your knowledge and experience makes you an authority. But in order to become these things, you first need a community in place.

What can you offer to keep people interested in being active in your community? Some people offer links to useful information. Others offer an insight into their corporate culture with pictures, videos and stories about their company and customers. Make sure you’re offering your fans something worthwhile so they stay engaged.

Do you plan on encouraging your community to share their stories publicly? When you allow others to post comments to your Fan page, you invite them to share their experiences with your community. If you keep them from contributing to the community, they may find no reason to remain a member of it.

You may already be doing most of these activities through lectures, hosting networking events for clients, writing articles, sending educational information through emails, etc. We believe it’s worth evaluating if you are ready to do this online as well. Don’t you?

Posted: 12/23/2009 2:27:21 PM by Brian Block | with 0 comments

Branding with Bite or Branding that Bites?

If you watch Mad Men — or even if you don’t — you can appreciate one of creative director/hero Don Draper’s comments to Conrad Hilton this past season. Hilton asked Draper’s opinion on some ad concepts for his hotels, which showed a cartoon city mouse and a country mouse. Don’s reply was, “I don’t think anyone wants to associate a mouse with a hotel.”

Over the weekend I happened upon a similar branding blunder on the shelf of our local pharmacy. My favorite shave gel is the store’s own brand, which they re-named “Blade” and sell in three formulas. They kept my favorite, “Sensitive Skin,” but instead of “Cooling Mint” and “Aloe,” there was “Viper” and “Scorpion.”

I swear I’m not making this up.

Now if you want a close shave, “Blade” has a ring to it, and “Sensitive Skin” counters any collateral damage. But the sting of a scorpion and the bite of a viper don’t exactly connote comfort. I think the creative department thought they were naming speedboats or sports cars.

So I scooped up the last two cans of Blade “Sensitive Skin.” Not surprisingly, stock of the other two formulas looked like they hadn’t been touched. A lesson here for all marketers to engage their customer and tell a story that carries a benefit. Beware the sting of shallow branding concepts.

Posted: 12/15/2009 6:08:25 PM by Martin Miglioretti | with 0 comments

Pierponters in the News

At Pierpont, we work hard to secure successful media coverage for our clients, but we also understand the value of expanding our own thought leadership. Over the past year, several Pierpont leaders have made headlines. Whether it’s through regularly commenting on Houston’s Mayoral race or shedding light on crisis communication, Pierponters have been prevalent in the news in 2009. See some of the coverage for yourself:

· Phil Morabito (Chief Executive Officer)

Phil had the opportunity to comment on Pierpont Communications’ employee retreat tactics in order to highlight how a creative incentive can be used to jump start a new year.

April, 6, 2009: Forbes, "Corporate Meetings and Incentive Destinations: The Secrets of Lower-Cost, Higher-ROI Meetings" View full article here

· Nancy Sims (Senior Vice President)

Nancy has been a prominent voice for Houston’s politics as the race for Mayor continues to draw controversy and media attention.

November 3, 2009: USA Today, “Some cities may be in for shake-ups” View the full article here

October 30, 2009: New York Times, “Tight Race for Houston Mayor, With History on Line” View the full article here

August 17, 2009: Texas Monthly, "White Elephant: Can the candidates vying to be Houston’s next mayor shake the outsized reputation of their popular predecessor?" View the full article here

· Terry Hemeyer (Senior Council)

Terry’s approach to thought leadership in 2009 involved insight on crisis management as well as predictions for the University of Houston’s Tier 1 status as Houston’s elections came to a close.

October 02, 2009: Houston Business Journal, "Recurring ACORN aches Acorn International" View the full article here

September 28, 2009: Fox 26 News, "UH Win May Make School More Competitive" View full article here

· Chris Wailes (Vice President)

Chris’ take on the importance of interview preparation and influence manifested into a contributed article for the Bulldog Reporter’s Daily ‘Dog as well as a blog post on the Pierpont website.

November 5, 2009: Daily ‘Dog, “Sound-Bite Advice to PR in our Age of Populist Rage: Circle the (C-Suite) Wagons with a Contrarian Approach to Interview Preparation” View full article here

November 5, 2009: “Interviews are no place for amateurs”- view blog post here

· Eric Whittington (Vice President)

Eric successfully contributed a bylined article in one of San Antonio’s largest newspaper outlets highlighting specific and universal PR tactics that can be applied to help non-profit business succeed.

July 14, 2009: San Antonio Express News, "Even in Tough Times, Nonprofits can Grow" View full article here

Posted: 12/11/2009 2:13:53 PM by Emily Bernard | with 0 comments

‘Tis the Season to Be Geeky

The holidays are fast approaching, which means it is time for gift buying! Here at Pierpont, we’re obsessed with all things social media, so Jen Pearsall and I have been adding social media themed gifts to our wish lists for the last few weeks. ‘Give the gift that keeps on tweeting’ is the saying, right?

A few of our favorites are listed below.