

Back to the Basics with Social
Now that your social media accounts are live, how do you develop a strategy? There’s a general misconception among small professional service firms that you can establish a few social media accounts and, so long as they have your firm’s information and a few intermittent posts about relevant issues, you’re golden. But unfocused or sloppy content creation is useless. Other than establishing that your firm has a digital pulse, it doesn’t help your business. Any content strategy


The Little Dog: Accepting & Accentuating Your Brand
About a year and a half ago, Susan adopted a Jack Russell-Chihuahua, Linus, who weighs in at an impressive nine pounds. Aside from eating, sleeping, shedding and modeling for Twitter pictures, Linus serves as Susan’s service dog. He is her constant companion; wherever Susan goes, Linus leads the way. Since rescuing Linus, Susan’s life has changed dramatically for the better. Linus: Emergency Cute Edition Personal vs. Professional Personas As Susan incorporated Linus into her


Building Smart Social
So you’ve decided your casual approach to social media needs some structure. (Remember: Stick to the “Big Three” for your business’ social media presence.) Using my advice, you’ve created Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn accounts for your business. Now what? How do you ensure consistency in management? You need to create social media guidelines to govern your business’s rules, online branding, and response decisions across platforms. Once you create a framework, you can then de


When a Reporter Calls, or Prepping for Your 15 Minutes
When reporters are on deadline, they want two things: No. 2: A great source. No. 1: A great source who understands their needs and the media in general. Here’s a checklist for how to be that person. Gather the Basics Write down the reporter's name, media outlet, phone number, and story deadline. Ask what the story is about and how the interview will be used. If it’s a TV or radio reporter, inquire about the interview format (live, taped, etc.). If you're not the best expert,