Looking for a 3D speaker, trainer, motivator or engine? Call 630.207.7530.

Turn On Wired PR Works via RSS

Posts tagged: Chamber of Commerce

Chamber of Commerce Community Guide Social Media Feature

Posted on June 20, 2012

It’s that time of year when Chambers of Commerce distribute their community guides.

Thanks to Highland Park Chamber of Commerce and Bohringer Creative, I’m featured in an interview in the Highland Park Community Guide, along with several chamber members.

I enjoyed working with Virginia Anzelmo Glasner, Chamber of Commerce Executive Director, and Carole Mark Gingiss on the “What’s the Business of Social Media?” article.

Here’s why I like the Highland Park Chamber of Commerce’s Social Media Article Concept

Variety: Several social media practitioners share perspectives.

Success Story Profiles: A collection of business owners talk about how they use social media to connect with customers.

Graphics: An infographic displays statistics in a way that makes them interesting.

Images: Eleven images inside, plus a cover photo, bring the story to life.

In-depth: At four full pages, the article shines spotlights on a mix of people, businesses and groups.

Contacts: To find out more about a business, all you have to do is follow the link to their blog or Facebook page.

Design: Gary Bohringer and his team did a great job of compressing all of this into a layout that flows – and even includes ads!

By the way, here’s my clip:

Social media expert Barbara Rozgonyi of CoryWest Media LLC says she feels LinkedIn is the “foundational social network” because of all if offers to employers and job seekers. Rozgonyi also likes to blog. “A company blog acts as a home base that sends information to subscribers, social networks, RSS feeds and search engines. Done well, a blog will raise visibility, increase influence and attract business partners,” according to Rozgonyi.

If you’re interested in ways to market your Chamber of Commerce with social media, check out this 20 point guide.

Need help with Chamber publicity? Check out how to promote a Chamber of Commerce with a press kit.

Image Credit: Bohringer Creative, as clipped from the cover of the 2012 Highland Park Community Guide.

2 Comments - Posted in Marketing Tagged with: , ,

Chamber of Commerce 20 Point Social Media Checklist

Posted on February 29, 2012

chamber-of-commerce-social-mediaThey’re the connectors, the cheerleaders and the calendar operators who keep the character in communities. With a myriad of events, people, places and things represent, for a Chamber of Commerce branding and marketing is a multi-tasking adventure.

Recently, I was asked how CoryWest Media develops our Chamber of Commerce social media marketing strategies. Here’s a 20 point checklist you can use to get started, improve or assess your social media marketing program in action.

Social Media Marketing Strategy 20 Point Checklist for Chambers of Commerce

1. Capture the current conversation online by searching for the name of your community + Chamber of Commerce on Google, Google+. YouTube,  twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook.

2. Assess your current communications to see what can be repurposed via social media. For example, your email newsletter can be broken up into blog posts, sponsors can be recognized in tweets and events can be promoted via a Facebook page.

3. Clarify communications, public relations, marketing and sales goals. What do you want to achieve: gaining and retaining members, raising awareness, forming partnerships? Stay focused so you can measure results later.

4. Identify target talkers and existing communities on established sites. Where do your people congregate? LinkedIn and Facebook will probably be the front-runners. To tap into these social networks, recruit social media ambassadors that have high visibility and strong connections.

5. Evaluate your online social media position. Where are you on your community’s radar? Can and do people find you from your Chamber blog or site? How do you compare to other organizations?

6. Determine your value. What will you bring to the conversation? How do you fit into your community’s life? Will you be a community events aggregator, problem solver or something else?

7. How will you contribute to the online conversation? Set interactive communication goals for each audience [we will watch for ________, respond to ___________ and inform about ___________]

8. Select keywords and craft key messages, based on the conversation that’s already going on out there. Use your town, Chamber, Chamber of Commerce, special events, etx.

9. Design an interactive communications planner by channel, community, frequency, priorities and responsibility so that time is managed well. Consider hiring an intern to support your social media activites.

10. Ensure that someone will [always, always, always, always, always] be watching and responsive. You can set up this service using HyperAlerts.

11. Automate, without being robotic if possible, across multiple channels. Use Hootsuite to schedule your Chamber’s social networking updates and monitor community conversations.

12. Produce and share engaging content that may include success stories, pictures, videos and survey results.

13. Start a group on LinkedIn that leads into a membership site that gets you closer to prospective members.

14. Be the leader that people want to follow because the Chamber is their source for information about the community.

15. Build relationships with champions, ambassadors and evangelists in businesses, education, government and healthcare.

16. Be where they can find you – consider advertising on key sites or sponsoring events that link social media back the Chamber.

17. Measure results and track stats that help you modify your marketing, sales and communications systems with Google analytics, Facebook and LinkedIn insights, or one of the free social media measurement tools.

18. Re-Align communications accordingly to make sure that your posts are engaging your audience.

19. Shift with your people by liking and commenting on their updates throughout social media.

20. Shepherd and follow them everywhere. You represent the community in real life, why not be the keeper of its keys online?

Over to you . . .

How do you commune with your Chamber of Commerce community?

Searching for a qualified and experienced Chamber of Commerce speaker, consultant or workshop leader? Need ideas? Let’s talk: 630.207.7530.

Chamber Social Media Speaker Barbara Rozgonyi

Photo Credit: Barbara Rozgonyi for thesociallens from the 2011 Glen Ellyn Jazz Fest Collection

 

1 Comment - Posted in Marketing Tagged with: ,

Social Networking-Bees or Butterflies|Women in Business

Posted on May 6, 2009

“Suggestion: change butterfly for a picture of bees. Bees provide value, they share, move pollen from one place to another. You are a bee.”  Feedback from my presentation this morning to Naperville Chamber of Commerce Women in Business

This post is a recap of our collective experience. Were you there? Please leave a comment so we can continue our conversation.

friendly-butterflies

One of the joys of having this space is being able to use it as a platform to share my real world experiences. Really, I don’t think I do enough of that often enough. So, here’s a start.

This morning I spoke to Naperville Chamber of Commerce’s Women in Business Group about social media.

Expecting to see 70 or so people, registration rose to 111 – one of their best-attended events. Although I’ve ramped my speaking back up lately, most of the groups I talk to are on the smallish side. As the room filled, I started to get a little nervous.

Yes, I knew my speech. Friends were coming [thanks to Terre Haute of Hursthouse Landscape Architects and Contractors, a friend-former client, and Vickie Austin of Choices Worldwide - scroll down to see Vickie's video], but hmmm. . . . this would be one of the biggest group I’d ever addressed. Or was it? Of course not – Social Media Club Chicago events are bigger, but I’m not the key presenter.

Talking to people as they entered the room, I felt like I had more friends in the audience and more questions to answer in my presentation.

Like all of my presentations, this one includes my photography. The butterfly image pops up after I talk about the rules of social networking, one of them is SHARE. [A few years ago, my business website featured butterflies. Ni-Gas uses one of my butterfly images in their campaigns and District 41 featured a butterfly image on its annual report.]

squirrel-boat-house2

Chris Brogan’s always captivating presentations gave me the idea to insert random images – like this one of a squirrel at Lake Ellyn. I tied it in by saying squirrels are gatherers and today we’ll be gathering information. Thanks to the squirrel for holding an acorn, which I didn’t see when I took the picture.

Here’s my presentation

Twitter Says Hello to Naperville Chamber

Thanks to my friends for saying hello via twitter – with only 30 minutes to cover the entire world of social media, I didn’t get to share the greetings live so I’m including them here. To follow them on twitter, click on their name and you’ll go to their site.

Questions from Women in Business about Social Media Marketing and Networking

Lines form after speakers talk – here are the questions that came up.

Q. How do I find social networking communities?

A. Think about where your people will be and find them. Search groups on LinkedIn and Facebook. Search terms on twitter. Enter ________ + community or ___________ + forum on Google to find them.

Q. We’re scared to go out there.

A. This one comes from a place where I can absolutely guarantee that their fans will LOVE to interact on social networks. How do I know? We created a “why we love our ____ campaign” that raised internal morale, boosted public awareness and snagged some very good press. [Hint and call to action: beloved institutions – get out there! Need someone to hold your mouse? Call me- 630.207.7530]

Q. Should I use my picture in my social networking profiles?

A. Yes, you’re beautiful. And if you think you’re not, visit a makeup stylist, make an appointment with your favorite hair stylist and get a professional photographer to take a variety of pictures that you change up and change out.

Q. How do you find time to know all of those people?

A. Depends on what you mean by “know them.” Every single person is important, but every single interaction isn’t relevant. That’s why having a strategy is so important.

Q. Which social media networking site is best and where do I start?

A. Developing a strong LinkedIn profile with meaningful connections will give you confidence and a spring board. You want to listen to conversations people are having about you-your business-or your industry, go where they are and then start talking to them.

Q. Where can I find out more about social media and BtoB marketing?

A. Watch this video of Social Media Club Chicago’s BtoB panel.

Q. When is Community Media Workshop’s Non-Profit conference?

A. Making Media Connections 2009 is June 9-11 with @coloneltribune as a keynote. I’m on the “New Tools or Toys? Social Networking!” for nonprofits panel.

Q: How can I polish my LinkedIn profile?

A. My most read article, “The Top 20 Ways to Quickly Become a Subject Matter Expert Using LinkedIn” is a good place to start.

Q. How do I register for your Naperville Chamber Women in Business workshop?

A. On May 27, I’ll conduct a hands-on social networking for success workshop. Hope to see you there!

Special Thanks to . . .

Mary Shur of Allstate, Naperville Chamber Women in Business for asking me to speak

Lisa Livingston and Courtney Whitman, Naperville Chamber of Commerce for making it so easy to be a speaker

Brenda Schiszik of Lette’r Rip in Naperville for taking pictures

Video Reviews

 
 

About the bees or butterflies and social media

Your turn: Is it better to be a bee or a butterfly in social media marketing and networking?

4 Comments - Posted in Speaking Tagged with: ,




Cision top 50 PR Marketing Blogs