The Blog Watcher writes...

The blogosphere is where it's at you know. In every issue we recommend recent entries on PR-based blogs from around the world. This week, some Twittering, and some social media v social marketing ponderings.

From PR Warrior: 10 Reasons Why PR People Need to be on Twitter

“As Twitter continues to grow in stature and credibility, it’s important that public relations practitioners (as well as other professionals in marketing and corporate communication fields) develop a deeper understanding as to what all the fuss is about. If you need reasons why you should be involved on Twitter, here they are – two bunches of fives, right between the eyes!

1. Twitter is an influential medium

2. Meet clever people

3. Build your network

4. Keep up with trends

5. Pitch journalists

6. Pitch bloggers

7. Tactical execution

8.. Get info…fast!

9. Build your personal brand (and sphere of influence)

10. Have a laugh”.

PR Warrior Trevor Young talks a little about each of these reasons for using Twitter on the full blog here

From the Wolfstar blog: The difference between social marketing and social media marketing

“You can always rely on the national media to spin positive stories into negative ones and get the facts wrong. The latest is the Telegraph getting worked up about ‘Health officials to spend £30 million on Twitter and Facebook marketing campaign.’ The Telegraph has wheeled out the usual suspects to condemn the NHS, so we have quotes from Lib Dem MP Dr John Pugh and Susie Squire of the Taxpayers’ Alliance.

I’d agree with them and be aghast if indeed the NHS was wasting £30 million of taxpayers money on PR and marketing on Twitter and Facebook. However, as you’d expect, the Telegraph has got the story totally wrong and has made the fundamental mistake of confusing social marketing with social media. The two are entirely different things. As Wolfstar specialises in both social media and social marketing we know exactly what the difference is.

The correct definition of social marketing is:

“the systematic application of marketing, alongside other concepts and techniques, to achieve specific behavioural goals, for a social good.”

Health-related social marketing is:

“the systematic application of marketing, alongside other concepts and techniques, to achieve specific, behavioural goals, to improve health and to reduce inequalities”. French, Blair-Stevens 2006

Social media is the collective name for a plethora of user-generated online content that could include blogs, podcasts, YouTube, Twitter and social networks such as Facebook, MySpace or dozens of other similar examples. It would never be used in isolation and always needs to be part of a public relations plan within an overall corporate communications strategy.

As I’ve said before social marketing is media neutral and could include media relations, word of mouth marketing, events, advertising, experiential, literature and indeed social media. It all depends on the audience you’re targeting and what you want to achieve, you use the right tools for the job. Wolfstar has just completed one of several national pilot social marketing projects for the NHS. Ours was particularly challenging as it was to try and check the growth in obesity amongst students. Basically what happens is that when students leave school and start college or university then their weight increases largely due to no longer doing as much exercise and existing on a diet of fast food takeaways and contents of the student union bar.

It’s absolutely right that the NHS should be investing in social marketing. It’s just part of a strategic government policy to contain the growth of the overall health budget by getting people to take more responsibility for their own health and look after themselves better. In the long term investing in social marketing will save the NHS money. Nor is the £30 million as much as it sounds as it’s over three years, more than 50 separate organisations and a multitude of health issues including healthy eating, smoking, exercise, sexual health, drugs and teenage pregnancy.

It’s also amusing to see that despite the fact that How-do is a specialist marketing magazine the first two comments on the story make the same mistake and try to defend the use of social media, despite the fact the NHS is investing in social marketing. It’s probably not too surprising as lots of people who just do social media, but don’t fully understand public relations and marketing communications, make the same mistake”.

Read more from the Wolfstar blog here

Posted Monday July 27 2009