Thursday, March 20, 2008

Social Media Connects Firms with Clients

A recent article, “New Media Helps Firms Connect with Clients,” written by Ted McKenna, a Washington bureau chief for PRWeek, provides a great example of why social media skeptics should at least experiment with new media tools like blogs and podcasts if they want to connect better with current or potential clients in this new media realm.

While McKenna believes that not all agencies should feel obligated to use every new media tool that’s available just because everyone else is, but rather to find one or two that fits their company’s needs. For example, McKenna quotes Arketi Group principal, Mike Neumeier on his company’s new implementation of using Podcasts, “what we found is basically about 15% of Web site traffic is coming in through our podcasts,” and Neumeier adds that, “clients mention it (podcasts) and we certainly showcase it when we sell our clients. We encourage them to go out and look at what we’ve done for ourselves.”

Here are some key points McKenna gives in his article:
  • Agencies shouldn’t use new media tools just because they can, but because they help market the firm in meaningful ways
  • Podcasts can give a quick, personal overview of how agencies address communications issues
  • New media’s impact is measured mainly anecdotally, though client’s viewing of blogs and podcasts can be easily tracked

For more informational, here is a link to the “New Media Helps Firms Connect with Clients” article written by Ted McKenna.

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