The Mayo Clinic is currently the most poplar medical provider channel on YouTube. The organization has more than 80,000 Twitter followers and nearly 30,000 connections on Facebook, as well as hundreds of blog posts on mayoclinic.com. I was excited to see the organization sharing their social media knowledge via their new Mayo Clinic Center for Social Media.

The philosophy for this initiative is as follows:
“Mayo Clinic believes individuals have the right and responsibility to advocate for their own health, and that it is our responsibility to help them use social media tools to get the best information, connect with providers and with each other, and inspire healthy choices. We intend to lead the health care community in applying these revolutionary tools to spread knowledge and encourage collaboration among providers, improving health care quality everywhere.”

The Mayo Clinic Center for Social Media, led by Lee Aase, currently employs eight people and will offer workshops and host conferences to train hospitals and other health care organizations to use social media such as Twitter and Facebook to connect patients and doctors. The Social Media Health Network, a service of the Mayo Clinic Center for Social Media, will provide organizations and individuals wanting to apply social media to their health care strategies access to tools, resources and guidance. Organizations interested in one-on-one consultations can meet with a Mayo Clinic expert for a fee.

Kudos to the Mayo Clinic for embracing social media. I look forward to seeing how this group will impact the future of health care.

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For some, collaboration represents the act of two or more people working together toward a common goal. Others, with a more cynical view, see collaboration as simply increasing the risk of “too many cooks in the kitchen” or  “approval by committee.” Here at Go East, we believe collaboration is a necessary part of the creative process. It’s one of our core traits. True collaboration makes us effective at helping our clients solve their marketing communication challenges.

Here are some of the things we’ve learned in fostering this collaborative environment:

Identifying stakeholders
For true collaboration to occur, it’s important to get the appropriate stakeholders involved in the project at the right time. At Go East, we pull in the full team at the onset of a project to get all parties on an even playing field. This helps save time down the road because it limits multiple briefings and allows the full team to listen, ask for clarification and raise concerns/objections before diving in. From there, team members are assigned roles, which leads me to my second tip: “Knowing your role.”

Knowing your role
It’s important for all parties to know each others’ role and what each team member will bring to the table. This can vary, depending on project needs and the skill set of the individual.  At Go East, our meetings generally consist of one person leading and facilitating the discussion, with others adding their point of view (and believe me, we have lots of them). This is an important step. It makes everyone feel their voice is heard and eliminates the possibility for anyone to say they didn’t have a chance to participate. The person leading usually recaps what the expectations are to avoid having multiple people doing the same thing. This is critical for any project that requires collaboration. In some cases it is also important that expectations be documented to further ensure that everyone is in agreement.

Checkpoints
When team collaboration within a group is encouraged, it is important that the person managing the project develop a timeline that fosters daily or weekly checkpoints, again to ensure that the direction of the project is in alignment with the objectives. We do this almost daily at Go East through our internal review process. These reviews allow the team to come together and review the work, which in many cases is the creative concepts.

It is important that the person leading the project make sure team members have a clear deliverable and are functioning as a team since so many people have interdependent needs. As such, each discussion or meeting should allow for team members to identify roadblocks and work to solve them. During checkpoint meetings, it is also important for team leaders to establish an environment that encourages creative thinking and problem solving.

At Go East collaboration is evident in many ways, from how we brainstorm to our three-pronged approach to every project. Collaboration is key to how we operate — it affects how our workplace is set up — and critical to how we deliver. At any point during the day you may walk in to find a team in a brainstorming session discussing a complex client challenge or working to develop creative concepts. It’s just in our nature and if you haven’t seen it in action, you’ll have to stop by and ask Ric for a tour.

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We are proud to have partnered with Fairview Clinics to launch the “Care That Fits Your Life” campaign. The fully integrated campaign includes TV, radio, print, outdoor and web banner advertising. Check out the TV spot on YouTube and let us know what you think.

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It’s hard to believe that Facebook has been in existence for six years, which is also the age of my oldest son. I think back to what I was doing six years ago and how great it would have been to share with others the milestones I was experiencing with my first child and to have that history recorded so I could look back on it.

It’s crazy how Facebook has impacted my life and those around me. I’ve used it to connect with old colleagues, high school and college classmates and people I see all the time, like family and neighbors. I am also guilty of occasionally talking to my husband using the chat function of it.

It’s also interesting to think about how it has brought together generations of people. My mom is on it and many of my friends’ moms are on it. It’s become a must-have communication tool for my mom to stay in touch with her own friends and also see pictures of and stay connected with her grandkids.

Has Facebook impacted  your life? How?

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Businesses of all shapes and sizes are jumping on the social media bandwagon and justifiably so. Many no longer view social media as simply a “nice-to-have,” but rather a “must-have,” and are incorporating social media plans into their 2010 marketing efforts. But, as exciting as social media seems, many businesses still wonder about the best way to approach it. They question which social media is the best fit and wonder how they can leverage it to engage their customers. Many experts have blogged about 2010 social media trend predictions, but one in particular caught my eye.

Business Week recently featured an article by Dave Armano, a respected social media expert. He identified six social media trends for 2010. Here they are, along with some of my personal thoughts around his insights.

1. Social media will begin to look less social because users have the ability to filter out clutter and get more value out of their networks.
I think this is an interesting trend for businesses to consider as they begin to engage, or continue talking to, their customers through social media. It’s more important than ever to deliver compelling messages that are relevant and provide value to the recipient. This sounds cliché, but you really do only have one chance to make a first impression.

2. Corporations will look to scale their social media initiatives beyond the norm.
As more and more big companies leverage social media, they will enlist their most passionate employees to take on implementation and management tasks. Social media will no longer be the responsibility of one person, but rather many people — if not everyone — will get involved. I think it will be important that companies not only empower their employees, but also guide them by setting measurable goals and objectives, and give them the right tools to meet them. Organizations will benefit from enlisting those with their eyes open and ear to the ground; people who are keeping tabs on new and developing trends. Ultimately, this can help an organization grow organically at a much faster rate than it would had it built  and followed a roadmap. One project I hear a lot about is Twelpforce (@Twelpforce), an initiative by Best Buy. It’s essentially an online team of over 2,300 Best Buy employees that offer tech support and advice via Twitter.  They have done an excellent job of getting their employees involved and, to date, have answered over 18,000 customer questions. (Full disclosure: My husband works at Best Buy and leads the project.)

3. Social business becomes serious play.
New networks, like foursquare, are bringing some friendly competition to the game. As new social network sites are born, it will be important for businesses to leverage what they can. The challenge for businesses in 2010 will not only be to figure out how to play nice in the sandbox, but also how to monetize and determine the ROI of their investments. To play for play’s sake will not cut it any more.

4. Companies will outline and enforce a social media policy for their employees.
Guiding behavior online is a tricky proposition, but when an employee is participating in social networking they often become a voice of the brand. They need to understand that it can’t just be a free-for-all. Policies might outline which social network sites can and cannot be viewed during work hours, or companies could simply explain what type of behavior is expected, especially if current or prospective customers are within the network.

5. Mobile becomes a social media lifeline.
With many businesses and organizations banning personal use of social networking (kind of like banning use of the Internet a few years back) employees will find new ways to talk to their social networks. It will likely be via their smartphones. Sales of smartphones have significantly increased recently and adoption is steadily on the rise. This should be a consideration for 2010 as more people in the U.S . invest in smartphones. More user-friendly and innovative mobile versions of our favorite social networks will evolve in 2010. Using mobile marketing tools can be an effective and creative way to reach an audience anywhere and at any time.

6. Sharing no longer means email.
As we’ve already begun to see, Web sites are supporting the function to easily broadcast articles via Twitter or Facebook. We will see more of this in 2010, to the point where consumers will expect it. Today, a shopper is likely to email a product of interest to a friend, but very rarely do you see an option to post that information to a network to share with your all your friends. Businesses that either sell products online or publish information online should consider implementing this option in 2010. If not, they could lag behind.

I think 2010 will be an interesting year as it relates to social media and how people are engaging in and embracing it. I would love to hear what your 2010 social strategies are and how they fit into your full marketing plan.

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Those of us who work in the design industry often hear this phrase when we propose new marketing ideas to clients: “Yeah, that would be great — if we had the budget.” For some reason, marketing efforts are the first to go when budgets are tight (which is ironic, since marketing should generate sales). At Go East, our clients understand the importance of relevant marketing initiatives; but they face shrinking budgets, especially as 2009 comes to an end. They must choose between spending money on things that drive profits or are specifically requested by an account, and activities that are a bit riskier and generate less of a return on investment.

As 2009 comes to an end, here are a few tips to help stretch your marketing budgets: (more…)

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Ever wonder how companies that sell most of their products during a specific season survive the remainder of the year? Selling Christmas ornaments in July, sunblock in February or cold medicine in August is likely a challenge. It requires season-specific companies to be innovative and to think continually about how to generate off-season revenue.

Consider H&R Block. I suspect that it generates much of its revenue during tax season. I see a ton of TV spots pushing its services in the early part of the year, but as soon as the public pays Uncle Sam, the TV spots wrap and you know longer have “people.” The company’s Web site, however, does very much the opposite, pushing other financial services such as tax and financial planning and banking. Perhaps some off-season PR and nontraditional advertising could help to generate additional buzz during non-tax time.

Another company to look at is Linder’s Garden Center, based in the Twin Cities. It has roughly 50 Flower Marts — all selling annual flowers, hanging baskets, plants and shrubs — located in the parking lots of retail stores. These marts are only open June and July. In addition, there is one garden center that is open year-round. Linder’s sponsors some local events throughout the year, which helps to get its name out there, but is it enough? Would offering FREE pre-spring gardening classes — with tips and techniques — help to build awareness? Could selling Christmas trees in the same retail locations as its Flower Marts impact revenue? How about a Twitter page tweeting daily gardening tips to all Linder’s followers?

Peeps — yes, those sugary-filled, yummy marshmallow treats — knows how to get people to interact with their brand. When they first introduced their product it was only available around the Easter holiday. Now they sell the treat during Christmas, Halloween, Valentine’s Day and, of course, Easter. In March of 2007 and 2008, The Washington Post hosted a Peeps Diorama contest encouraging entrants to get creative with their favorite Marshmallow brand. The first year brought in a handful of entrants, but in 2008 there were more than 800. It doesn’t sound like a ton, but when you add in all of the PR that was gained through The Washington Post, the impressions really added up. What a great way to get people to make incremental purchases and get playful with a fun brand!

Businesses that sell most of their products and services during specific seasons should make an effort to keep their brands top of mind throughout the year. Not only will this save money on future advertising, it will make the marketing executed during the seasonal times of the year even more impactful.

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Last week, I packed a snack for my 5-year-old to take to school. His snack of choice that day happened to be applesauce. When I asked him to clean out his backpack, he walked over with five used plastic spoons. I asked him to throw the dirty spoons in the garbage, and he looked at me in complete shock, saying, “Mom, we can recycle these.”

As a child of the 70s and 80s, I didn’t learn much about recycling or the environment until I was much older – other than occasionally hearing that aerosol cans (e.g., Aqua Net) could be depleting the ozone layer. So, while our family recycles glass, newspaper and cans, I was surprised by his response; it made me wonder where else he was learning about recycling and its impact on the environment.

So I asked him.

(more…)

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