“That was a great post. I can tell you spent lots of time on it.” – recent comment
Well, not as much time as you think and I have Yubby to thank for that.

Back at BlogWorld in Las Vegas, I met Vincent from Yubby [and Amsterdam!] as he and Daniel Honigman were exchanging contact information by bumping their iPhones. After I took this picture, I asked Vincent to do a video about how Yubby works. We used Vincent’s camera microphone. He then uploaded the video to my Macbook and it took me awhile to upload it to YouTube. Here it is . . . .

Although it took me a little longer than I’d like to upload the video, I started using Yubby and set up a KA review channel almost right away. And, everyone who checked out BlogWorld Expo’s site, saw Yubby in action. One person told me that the Yubby videos on the BlogWorld speaker page were the reason they came to BlogWorld.

How do you use Yubby?
1. Sign up
2. Create a channel
3. Search videos
4. Drag icons into your channel
5. Choose a style
6. Grad the embed code
7. Publish

Total time to publish a channel: as little as one minute. Here’s the BlogWorld Expo Yubby channel.

Tip: search for your name or keywords and see what comes back from 30 different video sources. Then, create, publish and promote your video marketing channels.

How do you use video in your marketing?

Disclosure: BlogWorld Expo provided complimentary registration to members of the media.

Note: This post contains dramatic videos – plan to stay for awhile.

My trip to KÀ began with a brief email exchange . . .

ME: Thanks so much for making this offer. Last year I found out about it a few hours too late. I’ve never seen a show in Vegas, but I love theater, magic, dance and drama. Thanks for letting me know what is open.
JESSICA BERLIN [Cirque Du Soleil]: Thanks for your email. Hmm….if you like theater and drama I think we should put you in to see KA. There is a 7 and 9:30 p.m. show. Which do you prefer? Also, will you be bringing a guest? Let me know and I will arrange the tickets for you.

And, that’s how I got my first theatrical review assignment. [No photography is allowed; image copied from KÀ site.]

Disclosure: Cirque du Soleil provided two free tickets in exchange for a review to BlogWorld New Media Expo attendees like me.

This is my first review of any type. Why did I accept the tickets?

1. Although this was my fourth trip to Las Vegas, I’d never taken the time to see a show.
2. I love theater and have always wanted to write a review.
3. This is the kind of freebie I can’t pass up!
4. I wanted to pass on this promotion strategy to my readers: who can you invite to your event that can cover it for you?

Wondering how Cirque Du Soleil manages social media? [via Lee Odden and Online Marketing Blog]

Thanks to Marcia Hansen from Allstate for taking me up on my offer of a free ticket. We met up at the theater at MGM, got in line and walked into a huge auditorium theater. My first thought? What a HUGE venue! [One source I saw tagged the production's cost at $150 million.]

KÀ Production Facts

~ Every seat in the KÀ theatre has speakers built into the headrest for customized sound effects.
~ The video projections in KÀ are an intricate mix of computer-generated effects and human input that turn the performance space into a cinema screen.
~ Approximately 1,300 hours went into the making of each of the human-sized crab puppets.
~ There are 160 harnesses (of 21 different kinds) worn by the KÀ performers.
~ The Spearmen’s shoes are created to look like they are barefoot, with molded rubber toes affixed to a shoe base.
~ For the beach scene, the sand is created using 350 cubic feet of granular cork from Portugal.

Greeters, dressed like KÀ characters, showed us our seats. One had a bright red wig.
I said: I like your hair.
She said: Thanks! I just put it on tonight!

Settling into our seats, we watched the fireballs bursting from the stage.

Having no idea what to expect – after all, this was my first Cirque du Soliel experience, I interviewed Marcia and a new friend we made, Sharon Miller from Qube Global Software, about what to expect. I asked if I could video their review after the show. They said yes – here it is:

My review?

This is a show that blows your mind. To get ready, I watched KÀ’s trailer, but that didn’t prepare me for the live experience.

For me, the show was imaginative beyond belief.

My favorite elements:
• Costumes – there’s something about costumes that draws me to theater. I love seeing how characters play out in the clothing, shoes, hair and makeup.
• Batons – yes, batons. After going to Purdue and watching the All American Marching Band’s post band-camp show, I thought I’d seen every style of baton twirling, but this was different: elegant, smooth, enchanting [maybe the music had something to do with it.]
• Shadow play – enchanting and childlike, two characters and four hands together put on a play within a play
• Acrobatics – known for seemingly impossible moves, this show boasts aerial, wheel and well, multiple, demonstrations of amazing feats that had me holding my breath until the act was over
• Music – bold, dramatic and showy, the music underscored the story line
• Hydraulic Wall – think about a plane that moves from level to angled with people on it and add in a chase scene with spikes – got it?
• Pit – from fire to smoke coming up to people going down, the pit holds a place as a character all its own
• Staging – columns ring the stage as centers for drumming and more aerobatics, archers poised on railings before they rushed the stage, which gave me a close look at the costumes – the slippers had rubber toes
• Pictures – before the show Aurora took pictures of Marcia and me – very nice, but at $44 not a must-buy

This show is not for people who: scare easily, don’t like loud noises, need a story line with dialogue, like literal drama or musicals and fear indoor fire and fireworks. A friend told me she likes to watch Cirque du Soleil clips; a few minutes is enough for her.

Hint: Take the Get Cirqued Quiz to see which Cirque Du Soleil show you’re in the mood for.

Would I go back? Absolutely and next time I’d take my family with me. KÀ is the pinnacle of a theater experience. I can’t wait to tell our high school theater department about it.

Have you seen KÀ? What did you think? How can you compare your business performance to Cirque Du Soleil?

Forget marketing. Forget PR. Forget being a company. Be. A. Publisher.

That’s the heart of the message David Meerman Scott delivered to a group of trade show and meeting planners at the MeetingTechOnline Summit today.

But, if you’ve read his book, The New Rules of Marketing and PR: How to Use News Releases, Blogs, Podcasting, Viral Marketing and Online Media to Reach Buyers Directly, you already knew that, didn’t you?

I talk about this guy – a lot. Every single one of our clients has his book. I mention his book every chance I get. I  even selected David’s book as the course guide for The Academy for Not-for-Profit’s Excellence’s strategic marketing course.

David’s blog, Web Ink Now, is one to bookmark. 

Meeting David was a big moment for me. It was great to see him speak and get my book signed, but I forgot to thank him for sending out a guest code for complimentary conference registration and for mentioning Wired PR Works [one of over 160 blogs] in The New Rules of Marketing and PR.

Twitter Transcript

Here’s a copy of my twitter updates from David’s presentation, ordered from the end to the beginning. Text is as exactly as keyed in with no editing.

how to integrate social media: focus on buyer personas & build out an online media room w/social media links where buyers are @dmscott #mto

tweet about stuff that’s interesting, something you learned, a question somebody asked @dmscott #mto

write news releases to reach buyers who have google alerts, speak directly to the millions of people who read online @dmscott #mto

to a ask question via twitter for @dmscott [David Meerman Scott] use #mto

not playing nice – 3m steals post-in idea won’t pay $2,000 for image rights, play nice in the sandbox @dmscott #mto

emc.com case study via YouTube, flickr, twitter to get feedback right away via @emcworld @dmscott #mto

use tools for social networking to have an event begin [just wrote about this on wiredprworks about @smcchicago:)] @dmscott #mto

the back button is the 3rd most used web feature – @dmscott #mto

on the web, you are what you publish “The money quote for twitter” @dmscott #mto

grateful dead allowed people to record shows [my husband was one of them] @dmscott is a fan #mto

@dmscott now talking about b2b toilet co cws.com’s say no to dirt youtube video 2 million views #mto

case study – Universal studios 1 person told 7 bloggers about Harry Potter theme park reached 350million in 24 hrs @dmscott #mto

consider hiring a journalist – they know how to get the story out there @dmscott #mto

use one word and don’t talk about your product – change, safety & cut the gobbledygook like next generation @dmscott #mto

others people tell and spread your story for you – 7 #mto sign ups w/in 10 mins of @dmscott’s update – I’m one of them

@dmscott now talking about twitter hastags, NPR’s #votereport, @barackobama told twitter about VP 1st #mto

target your buyer personas & get to know them Don’t think like a marketer, a PR person, a corporation, think like a publisher @dmscott #mto

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

After signing books, David was off to speak to the National Association of Realtors, one of his biggest audiences ever.

Right now, you can download David Meerman Scott’s free ebook, The New Rules of Viral Marketing.

On September 2 Google revealed Chrome, its new browser. While most of the buzz about Chrome’s public relations is around the comic book Google mailed to bloggers, the idea that the project started on day one with the team writing a press release caught my attention.

To hear how the team was challenged to write about how they would announce Google Chrome to the world, fast forward 48 minutes into Google Chrome’s announcement video, embedded here.

This kind of forward-thinking impressed me. What if every project began with how you wanted to announce it and then you built it to match your expectations?

For Google, this approach worked and while it would be interesting to compare the original release to the final, today we’ll take a look at the campaign’s components – from a graphic perspective, which means you’ll see screen shots that link to the sites mentioned.

Google Chrome PR Integrates Multiple Components

Comic Books?

Comic books aren’t just for super heroes anymore. Wanting to capture attention and stand out, Google commissioned a novel graphic approach in the form of a comic book by Scott McCloud.

Takeaway: think about how you can use illustrations, graphics and cartoons to tell your story to your community and the media.

Instruction and Informational Videos

Google has its own YouTube channel that houses over 800 videos. Two Chrome videos, a short that tells the story  and a longer 52-minute announcement video [shown here], work well together as instructive and informational tools. Each video features a variety of speakers.

Takeaway

Produce a quick, light overview that gets the message across and a second in-depth presentation with a range of voices.

Dedicated Media Center

Google Chrome Media Center welcomes exploration with a clean layout and larger type. Bullet points outline key messages in a copy panel of less than 250 words. Can you say I get it?

Takeaway

Organize information for the media, keeping in mind that media is everyone, not just journalists. Put the contact information in the upper left hand corner. And, pare down, pare down, pare down.

Online Press Kit

Repeating the simpler is better theme, here the page presents a list of links.

Takeaway

Outline your online press kit first, then develop the pages you want to link to.

Online Press Release

In less than 700 words, Chrome’s  press release delivers the message while a sidebar stands by with extra resources.

Takeaway

Repeat the refrain. Use headlines to tell the story and bullets to break up the text and link along the sidelines.

Live Launch Webcast Press Event

Why hold a press conference when you can host a Webcast Press Event for all the world to see?

Takeaway

Host a live online press event and invite the media and your clients to attend and ask questions with a service that also provides live chat.

What do you think about . . .

beginning a project by writing a press release?

A reader writes . . .

“How much money, lead time, etc is needed to get what kind of “result” – an elusive keyword for PR?

Answer:

Define Result: What does success mean to you?

Where do you want your story to land? Who do you want to write it? Who do you want to see it?

Twitter updates offer free and immediate PR, but be careful to only promote what you think is valuable. You can send out a test update to see what kind of response you get. Or, you can DM a few influential friends with a link to what you want to publicize for their opinion.

Facebook groups work well to promote events and build community.

Press releases are easy to write and distribute yourself. But, if you’re not sure about how to best position your news, consult a professional for advice. Many offer press release editing services. After you write the release, you’ll need to distribute it. Direct contact with reporters is usually the best way to get a story placed, but requires some time and effort to build a relationship. Online distribution automates the process and gets your story out to a broader, less personalized base.

Keep in mind that one of your goals is to get good positioning for your selected keywords.

YouTube videos may be referenced in your release – why not have people watch the story instead of read it? Engaging an agency is an ideal option for those that want a confident, creative and professional approach. Both our clients and the reporters who cover our stories appreciate having a media relations liaison. Because we manage our clients’ creative archives, chances are good that we’ll have everything the reporters need to tell their story.

I can hear you saying: “Hey, you’re avoiding the money answer.” Why yes, yes I am. That’s because this is all so variable that it’s hard to nail down real numbers. What I will say is this: plan on a PR strategy that matches your budget and get your news out on as many levels as you can – the more channels you use, the better your success.

* lead time applies to an event or announcement

Your Turn

What works best for you when you promote something? How do know when you’ve got results?