The PMN Blog

Why B-to-B Companies Are Embracing Social Media

Tue, 08 Jun 2010 03:15:00 GMT

The growth and influence of social media is unprecedented. However, while the need for consumer-facing brands to aggressively pursue a social media presence has been quite evident, many B-to-B companies have been slower to embrace the medium.

Well, now that seems to be changing. A recent Forrester Research study found B-to-B marketers are expected to increase their spending on social media activities by 490 percent between now and 2014. Why are B-to-B marketers spending so much? For starters, many have realized the enormous benefit of leveraging the power of the crowd to drive innovation. For more examples and other ways B-to-B companies are driving a competitive advantage using Social Media click here.

How To Spark A Conversation Revolution!

Sun, 11 Apr 2010 02:46:00 GMT

Creating conversations is hard, despite all the knowledge and tools at our disposal today. It should be easier than ever, right? Not quite. As is all too often the case, fear can get in the way. More specifically, fear of the social media unknown.

For many marketers, that includes the biggest “what if” of all: What if someone talks badly about your brand? The simple fact is consumers are already talking. Therefore, learning how to spark and manage conversations isn't only essential on today’s social internet, but it might just save your job or, better yet, get you promoted.

To do it right, marketers must abandon their comfort zone of hiding behind their marketing efforts, including crafting and delivering messages, measuring sales, and then hitting the rinse and repeat button. Instead, they must be open, transparent, adventurous and unafraid. So what’s the formula for sparking and facilitating a great conversation? Here are a few suggestions from my recent blog on eM+C. More.

Stefanie Nelson of @DellOutlet Shares Her Twitter Secrets With The PMN

Mon, 08 Mar 2010 15:44:00 GMT

In a span of 2 ½ years Dell's Stefanie Nelson helped build a following of over 1.6 million users and a $6 million dollars revenue stream for Dell through Twitter. The effort is perhaps one of the most widely covered case studies of how a Fortune 2000 brand used social media to drive sales – appearing in the WSJ, Inc. USA Today, Bloomberg and more. Now, Stefanie shares her secrets with the PMN membership detailing how @DellOutlet did it. Her advice includes:

Start with a clear strategy and objective – i.e. “Help move inventory bubbles quickly.”
Identify a target audience – i.e. “Price-conscious US residents in the market for a computer.”
Post content that is relevant to your target audience, but also helps you achieve your objectives - “Use this coupon code for 15% off…”
Get support from the top – social media is not only accepted at Dell, but encouraged.
Look for quality followers over quantity.
Start with existing customers – Tell them you are on Twitter & why they should follow you.
Listen and respond – RT and build awareness among non-followers.
Cross promote among partners, divisional efforts to grow audience.
Be relevant and regular – post a minimum of once a week so you stay top of mind.
Don’t forget the social in social media: Start a conversation and engage. Answer questions…people get really excited when you respond.
Add additional objectives over time – i.e. “building customer advocacy.”
Try something new or unique – Dell was one of the first and was innovative.
Be flexible & willing to change direction based on trial and error.
Track, Track, Track – determine the best time of day, frequency, and offer types that drive response. Also look at ROI metrics and sentiment.
Stick to it – it doesn’t happen overnight.

Stefanie answered many attendee’s questions including – how big a team Dell needed to support their Twitter effort, Dell’s social media & employee engagement policy, Dell Outlet’s multi-channel integration and cross promotional efforts including the email/social media connection, what offers work best and Stefanie’s ah ha moments that highlighted the potential of the medium. To download the presentation or listen to the replay click here.

Once again, special thanks to Stefanie Nelson for sharing her thoughts with our PMN members

‘Til Next Time

Kicking Traditional Marketing Habits & Embracing Social Media: A 12 Step Program

Mon, 08 Feb 2010 13:56:00 GMT

I’ve got a new gig. A blog on the newly designed eM+C website called Conversations. Why Conversations? Well, I’ve been in the communications business for over 10 years now -- first in email marketing and now in social media -- and the one thing that has stayed true over all those years – a marketer’s desire to build an ongoing dialogue with prospects and customers. The power of building a true conversation cannot be underestimated. When done well, conversations have the ability to not only drive engagement and sales – but create a whole new army of advocates for your brand. That is why I believe conversations will be the single most powerful word in marketing for the next generation. It’s also why I’ve named my new company Conversa Marketing.

Conversa Marketing’s mission is to help marketers build marketing programs that ignite conversations, cultivate relationships and drive commerce on the social internet. The meteoric rise of the social web for many marketers is new ground. Consequently, the thought of engaging customers and the fear that those conversations may not go as intended often causes the most experienced marketers to cling to the traditional marketing channels they’ve become most dependent upon. So, how to break free of old habits – to build a conversation in this new error of marketing? Like any good rehab, it starts with a solid 12-step program – the topic of my first eM+C column. Click here to read the blog and start your recovery.

How Mint.com Made A Mint By Socializing Their Email

Fri, 15 Jan 2010 03:40:00 GMT

According to a recent Mzinga and Babson survey, 84% of professionals worldwide do not currently measure the ROI of their social media efforts. Pretty shocking considering today’s economic environment and the enormous pressures placed on marketers to deliver more with less. However, as is the case with any new medium, many marketers are experimenting with social media and are still, for the most part, trying to figure out how social media fits into their overall marketing efforts. As a result, measurement is often overlooked.

Therefore, when a company creates a unique and interesting program and takes the time to measure its success, it is important to share the inside scope so we can all learn. One interesting example is what Mint.com recently did by combining the power of email marketing with social media.

Launched in 2007, Mint.com has quickly become America’s No. 1 online personal finance service. Mint’s intelligent and easy-to-use approach to money management has quickly attracted more than 1.5 million users to date. Given its online audience and technologically savvy user base, Mint.com recently turned to the power of email marketing and socialized it to further drive new customer acquisition.

So what did they do? Working with StrongMail (disclosure – I currently sit on the board of directors at StrongMail) Mint.com took the time to understand user motivations and tested a series of incentives to encourage existing email subscribers to “invite” others within their social network (email, facebook, twitter, etc.) to join Mint.com. The winning campaign – one that not only encourage the most sharing but drove the most conversions -- appealed to Mint.com’s existing users by providing them “insider status” through access to beta features and products prior to their roll-out to general users. In the end, the campaign drove one new user/customer for every 2.6 invite clicks – impressive. While the testing of various offers was insightful, the ability to drive new users/customers and to tag existing users as “influencers” (based on their sharing activity, conversion rate and desire for insider knowledge) was even more impressive.

If you’re interested in learning more about the Mint.com case study check out my column or you can register for the upcoming DMA/PMN Social Media Spotlight event where StrongMail will be presented the case study in-depth. Details about the event can be found on our website. Space is limited so act now.

‘Til Next Time

2009 Social Media Case Studies & Lessons

Fri, 11 Dec 2009 04:32:00 GMT

The New Year is quickly approaching and it seems fitting to take some time to look at a few of the key learnings from the past year. What better way to do that than to highlight some of the key take aways from some of 2009’s most successful social media marketing efforts. While we all may have different definitions of what “success” is, my look back on 2009 will focus on those social media campaigns that opened our eyes to the opportunities in social media or taught us new things about marketing.

Microsoft – I’m a PC:
After taking a beating from Apple, Microsoft finally responded with an innovative TV and multi-channel participatory marketing program that ended with two simple words – “Upload Yourself.” The campaign demonstrates that all media can be social/participatory and the importance of involving customers or the community in defining and defending your brand.

Ford - Fiesta Movement:
Ford invites 100 Gen Y’s to drive a Ford Fiesta (not available in the U.S. until next year) for six months and report their experience on various social media sites and blogs. The program demonstrates how social media and “Buzz” is the fifth ”P” --People-- in the classic four “P”s of marketing (Product, Price, Promotion, Place). It also demonstrates the continued acceleration of product launch cycles and that “pre-launch” is the new product launch with today’s social web. Special congratulations to Courtney Force who was recently awarded the Favorite Fiesta Agent title.

Nike – What Do You Play For?:
Nike calls on teens to share their sports stories. Participants are encouraged to upload photos of them playing the sport they love and to share their inspirational stories. Visitors then voted on their favorites and winners received prizes. While Nike is a brand that was built on showcasing the talents of unattainable superstars like Michael Jordan and Tiger Woods (who are not without their faults), this effort demonstrates the company’s evolution by leveraging the power of participation and real people to inspire other. . In today’s social web, advertising and promotion needs to be relevant, personal, identifiable, authentic and trusted. I believe this is the start of a major shift in advertising – bottom line: celebrities are out – real people like you and I are In.

Starbucks - I'm In:
Starbucks encourages vistors to Starbucks.com and over 11,000 Starbucks locations to pledge 5 hours of community service. In exchange Starbucks is giving those that pledge a free cup of coffee. Participants also receive a pledge card and an "I'm In" badge that can be embedded on their websites to help spread the word. What's so great about the Starbucks program is how it demonstrates the power of participation, and how organizations can be a catalyst for doing good. The program has recieved national recognition and over 2.3 million hours have been donated between consumers and Starbucks employees. Just goes to show you how marketers who think out of the box and add a little participation sweetener to their marketing efforts can not only build their brand and sales, but change the world.

1-800-Flowers.com Mother’s Day:
Using an innovative outreach program, 1-800-Flowers targeted 24 “Mommy Bloggers” filling eight archetypes (On-the-Go, etc.) of motherhood to help spur Mother’s Day sales. Chosen bloggers received a bouquet of flowers and discount codes to share with their readers. Additionally, they were recognized by 1-800-Flowers’s blogger, encouraged to write their own blogs and attended a cocktail party in their honor with CEO Jim McCann. The program was significant for several reasons – first it highlights the importance of transparency and trust on the social web. In October, the FTC published its final guidelines requiring bloggers to disclose freebies or payments. Next, the innovative program incorporated unique tracking codes allowing 1-800-Flowers to measure success of the program including redemptions by blogger/site. For the 53% of you still struggling with measuring the ROI of your social media efforts this is a start.

Westin – Want to go for a Run:
Westin’s want to go for a run is an innovative participatory marketing and social program. Within minutes of checking into my room I received a voicemail from Westin’s running concierge inviting me to join him and fellow guests to refresh my mind and body with a 3 mile running tour of the city. Not only did the program reinforce Westin’s brand positioning and messaging (relax, renew, refresh), but the program showcases the fact that the best participatory marketing programs involve your employees and are operationalized to create unique differentiated experiences.

American Express – Shine A Light:
At a time when we could all use a little inspiration, Amex hit a home run with a program that shines a light on small business and serves as a powerful and positive reminder that the American Dream is still alive and well. While the program, which invited the public to nominate, “spotlight”, and vote on the small business that most inspired them, leveraged social media the real story is in the success of the small businesses themselves. More specifically the story is about what they teach us about the importance of customer relationships management (CRM). While social media may be in the spotlight right now, we all need to remember the importance of understanding our customer’s needs and interests and mastering the marketing basics like building great products and providing exceptional service and value before we jump on the social media bandwagon.

Lots of great lessons and congratulations to all the brands who pushed the envelope and built innovative marketing programs that got us all thinking – you’ve made us all better marketers for it. For more case studies visit our case study page. Looking forward to showcasing more great stories in 2010.

‘Til Next Time.

Gen Y Would Abandon Social Networks Before Email or Texting

Thu, 12 Nov 2009 02:29:00 GMT

Gen Y has spoken once again. In the latest PMN and Pace University survey we explored Gen Y’s usage and attitudes toward texting, mobile marketing, email, social networks and more. The results were enlightening. While Generation Yers do indeed spend considerable time on social networks, when asked what they would least like to give up for one week, only nine percent said social networks! In fact, the media Gen Y apparently can’t live without was…drum roll please….yup, old-fashioned email and texting.

So what’s going on here? Could it be that there is a clear division across media that includes “nice to have” non-essential sites (like Twitter and facebook) and “must have” productivity and communication tools (like email and texting)? Should Twitter and facebook be worried given they are considered less of a necessity? While no one is asking Gen Y to choose, the question is an important one for every social network and/or community player – what should you be doing now to avoid becoming just another community causality like GeoCities. For more information about our latest survey, visit the PMN website or check out some of the news coverage and let me know what you think.

Gen Y Holds Tight To Email And Texting
eMarketer: November 4, 2009

Probing GenY'ers
MediaPost: October 27, 2009

Tech Additions: Email and Texting Top Social Media In Gen Y [Study]
Mashable: October 20, 2009

‘Til Next Time

Frank Eliason of @comcastcares Shares His Twitter Secrets With The PMN

Fri, 30 Oct 2009 14:38:00 GMT

He’s been called “the most famous customer service representative in the U.S. and possibly the world” by BusinessWeek and now he is sharing his Twitter secrets with PMN members. As Director of Digital Care at Comcast, Frank has been credited with reshaping Comcast’s customer service with a brilliant effort on Twitter that focused on listening to customers and then actively participating with them. So what are those secrets to his success? Here are the top 10 points that Frank made on the recent PMN webinar.

Don’t be afraid to try new thing – be open to the possibilities of the social web
Be everywhere your customers are
Be, find or encourage an evangelist in your organization
Invest in listening and ultimately participating with customers
Be honest, transparent and responsive – adopt a “Make it Right” mentality in the customer service department
It takes a village. Be a team player and work with your internal teams. You may even want to consider creating a cross-functional team like Comcast did.
Find an executive sponsor/advocate – support is critical, particularly if you need to change the culture
Measure success
Communicate success
Always be learning and sharing

Some great advice – thank you Frank. To hear a replay of the webinar, visit the membership section of the PMN website. Stay tuned for some more great speakers – up next how Dell made millions on Twitter…just confirming the details!

'Til Next Time

New Research: Engaging Gen Y & Dispelling Myths About Money

Tue, 13 Oct 2009 12:55:00 GMT

We’ve recently partnered with Aite Research to tackle a hot topic – marketing financial products to Gen Y. It’s a top priority for many banks who for years failed to develop strong relationships with their bread and butter – boomers. Now given the tough economy, banks are turning their attention to Gen Y and asking – how are they different and how do we not mess it up this time?

Survey Surprises

While, Gen Yers were alot like older consumers in many respects there were a few surprises. For one, our survey results dispelled one of the biggest myth about Gen Yers: That is the belief that Gen Yers care less about making money than other generations. In fact, 6 in 10 Gen Y respondents indicated that making money was just as important to them as their parents and nearly a quarter indicated it’s more important. Two other surprising results were the fact that one in five Gen Yers have met with a bank representative to get help with a financial decision in the past year, and the high rate in which Gen Yers recommended their bank to family /friends – 35%. Overall, very good news for financial institutions if they can figure out how to cultivate these relationships.

The Must-Dos To Cultivate Gen Y Relationships

In perhaps the most important section of the research report, Aite senior analyst Ron Shevlin shares his thoughts and recommendations for cultivating Gen Y relationships. He begins by creating 3 distinct segments (highly engaged, moderately engaged and not engaged) of Gen Yers based on their activities. For example, among the highly engaged users 94% get email, 85% bank/pay bills online, more than half use their debit cards 15 times or a more a month, and nearly half moved money between accounts at least six times in the past 6 months. Not surprisingly, highly engaged users who account for 35% of all Gen Yers were more likely to download iPhone financial apps and use online financial related websites. In addition, highly engaged users were more likely to trust their bank, recommend their bank and were twice as likely as lower engaged users to expand the relationship they have with their banks – all compelling reasons for banks to get it together.

Ron notes, “Arguably, banks have done a poor job of developing strong, lasting relationships with their customers. As a new generation of consumers comes of age, banks have an opportunity to start fresh and avoid the relationship sins they have committed in the past.” To cultivate these relationships – Ron recommends banks:

Develop Gen Yers’ interest in managing their financial lives
Encourage cross-channel interaction
Engage – not just educate
Provide dedicated advice and guidance
5. Make it a family affair
6. Measure engagement levels

For additional survey details or to order the complete report visit Aite Research. For more insights from Ron Shevlin - visit his new blog - The Marketing Tea Party.

Want To Help Give Away $10,000,000?

Thu, 01 Oct 2009 03:29:00 GMT

Well it took some time, but Google has finally narrowed down the list. Last November, I blogged about Google’s Project 10 to the 100th – an innovative global participatory marketing effort established to celebrate its 10th anniversary. Touted as “a call for ideas to change the world by helping as many people as possible,” Google garnered over 154,000 entries, and is now ready to invite consumers to vote for their favorites – the ones that they think will help the most people the most. While the process took a little longer than expected, Google whittled down the entries to sixteen “big ideas’ and is ready to write a big check as its advisory board looks to choose up to five projects to fund based on the votes.

Google’s Project 10^100 demonstrates the power of participation and takes cause marketing to the next level with a huge prize that has inspired some great thinking that just might change the world.

So where do you think the money should go? Do you want to help provide quality education to African students, drive innovation in public transport, enhance science and engineering education, create a genocide monitoring and alert system, or promote health monitoring and data analysis? Well – it’s all up to you and let the voting begin.

To cast your vote before the October 8, 2009 deadline visit the website.

Social Media Is An Adventure

Wed, 23 Sep 2009 16:30:00 GMT

So no doubt you’ve heard about the enormous popularity of JetBlue’s $599 All You Can Jet Pass announced last month. As was expected, seats sold fast – so much so that JetBlue had to end the program earlier than anticipated! Mission accomplished, right? Well maybe - in the old world that is - but not today. You see the All You Can Jet Program is just getting started. Ever since the pass was announced, eager travelers have been busy at work planning routes (traffic to the JetBlue route map has increased over 700% since the announcement), arranging for time off to travel like mad, and connecting with other members of their elite community of lucky travelers. A simple promotion to move seats has now become a social movement whether JetBlue planned it to be or not.

So what exactly happened? Well, JetBlue tapped into a passion shared by millions – Travel, with an innovative program that inspired thousands of lucky participants enough to establish whole new communities. In fact, it such a movement that even travel agents are getting involved. According to Jaunted.com, new micro-social communities and offerings have been quickly established around the program including blogs – Where We Jet and Twelve Hours in a City, dedicated twitter accounts like @599club to share experiences, and even special travel packages built exclusively around JetBlue destinations and All You Can Jet travelers. Amazing!

The big lesson learned here is that great marketing is great marketing and when you can tap into a communities’ needs and passions, the possibilities are limitless. For those of you trying to figure out your social media strategy – spend less time thinking about the medium and more time thinking about the message and the potential that message has to start a dialog or unite a community. Once you nail that, you can think about building an integrated marketing and communication program that helps you spread the word – and if you are lucky, like JetBlue, your customers may even do that for you.

‘Til Next Time

Participatory Marketing - Pull Marketings New Push

Fri, 18 Sep 2009 03:37:00 GMT

It’s planning season again and social media is not only top of mind but dominating the conversation. After a series of strategic discussions around social media with some of my top clients I’ve decided to take another look at the PMN case studies with a key question in mind – what can these programs teach us about marketing and the future of marketing? The findings were very enlightening -- so much so that I’ve written a feature in this month’s eM+C Magazine highlighting some of big take aha’s. While the article showcased four big brands, there is a ton more. That’s why I’ll be showcasing some of those additional insights here as well as at future webinars and speaking engagements. In the meantime I invite you to check out eM+C Magazine. Here is a quick summary along with the key learnings:

Ford’s Fiesta Movement shows us the growing importance of creating “pre-launch” buzz and may forever changes the way marketers introduce new products.

Nike’s What Do You Play For campaign teaches us the importance of building marketing programs that are not only inspirational but identifiable – celebrities no longer need apply.

1-800-Flowers’ Happy Mothers Days demonstrates the importance of transparency and tracking and

Starbucks’ I’m In proves cause marketing is not only good for the world but can be very good for your brand and sales.

Let me know what you think and be sure to check out the more than twenty PMN case studies on our website.

‘Til Next Time

American Express Shines A Light

Tue, 08 Sep 2009 17:59:00 GMT

Amex is turning the spotlight on small business and they’re using social media to do it. At nearly 30 million strong, small businesses are the heart of the U.S. economy and will play a vital role in driving our economic recovery. Therefore, it should come as no surprise that American Express, in partnership with NBC, is making a move to position itself as the card of choice for new and existing small businesses ready to spend. With it’s new campaign, Shine A Light, Amex is inviting the public to nominate a small business that “inspires them.” Written nominations will be voted on by the general public and the winning small business will receive a $100,000 in grant and marketing support from American Express. In addition, the individuals who nominated the three small business finalists will each receive a $3,000 American Express Gift Card.

So what’s so great about American Express’ Shine A Light program? First and foremost it is a very positive and inspirational program. At a time when unemployment is reaching 10%, the American Express program and its ads featuring restaurateur Tom Colicchio reminds us all that the American Dream is still very much alive – that is if we work hard and want it bad enough. For the many millions of the unemployed struggling to find their way or contemplating their next move as an entrepreneur this is an important message and option.

Next, I think perhaps most importantly, it shines a light on the importance of building a solid foundation and business strategy like so many small businesses in our own neighborhoods do so well. While the American Express program leverages new marketing tactics like social media to help spread the word and increase nominations, the success of many of these business are built on the marketing basics we should never forget. Basics like offering great products at a great price with exceptional service – something Joe’s deli or your local coffee shop may have perfected. In fact many of these operations have achieved a level of CRM that would make some of the world’s largest brands turn green with envy – they not only know their customers first name, but they know their favorite products and what makes them tick. Take my local butcher, Town Meats. What we love so much about Rich, Andy or Nick at Town Meats is that they sometimes know us better then we know ourselves – our favorites, the cuts we prefer, how much we order and even the kinds of things we would probably like if we gave it a try (that’s up-selling at its best). And if that’s not enough... heck they will even deliver - customer service is not dead. The point here is that small business is not only the key to our economic recovery, but most successful small businesses also hold the key to marketing success. In fact, they remind us that before we jump on the latest hottest trends -- be it social media or whatever is next -- it critical to get the basics right: clean your database, understand your customers, build great products and service the hell out of them. Once you do that, you’ll be ready to leverage the power of social media to shine a light. For more information or to nominate a small business (like Town Meats) near you, visit the Shine A Light website.

‘Til Next Time.

NCL Does Social Media Freestyle

Tue, 18 Aug 2009 02:57:00 GMT

I love the fact that brands are now conscious about building communities. They’ve finally realized that the social internet matters and that these communities have and will continue to have an enormous impact on their brand, sales, and future success -- whether they like it or not.

The latest to announce a new online forum/community is Norwegian Cruise Lines (NCL) with their new Freestyle Voices website. The site officially makes NCL the first cruise line in the industry to allow guests to connect and participate with each other. It gives users the ability to post their own opinions, reviews, pictures and personal stories about their NCL cruise vacation. And it seems to be working. In just a short period of time NCL’s Freestyle Voices is a vibrant community with more than 3,500 questions submitted, 200 stories posted and over 770 shore excursion reviews. But what I like best about the NCL Freestyle Voices is the following:

It’s not a separate community/url: Freestyle Voices is part of the NCL main website and heavily promoted on the homepage. This allows NCL to take advantage of the close to one million unique individuals who visit the NCL website each month. Furthermore, quotes from happy cruisers help NCL do the selling. In a world where people are turning to other people for the things they need rather than brands, this is great marketing.
It’s flexible and fully integrated: Users of the Freestyle Cruise can not only share their stories amongst themselves but also have the ability to link to those stories, photos, etc. to other social networks like Facebook -- so that people who don’t visit NCL, can view the experience. This also enables the customer and NCL to reach a larger audience.
It’s a database & viral tool: NCL doesn’t stop the conversation there. NCL encourages visitors to Freestyle Voices to sign up for the Inside Scoop, their company newsletter offering the latest updates on cruise specials, hot destinations and vacation planning. Visitors can even share the page/site with others across a multitude of destinations including delicious, newsvine, Twitter and more.

What the NCL site (and others like it) demonstrate is that it is not just about the popular social networks (i.e. Facebook), its about being and building community everywhere your customers are, including your own web site – especially your website since that is where you'll likely to find your best customers.

‘Til Next Time

@comcastcares: Turning Lemons into Lemonade

Tue, 18 Aug 2009 14:26:00 GMT

Riding around my suburban neighborhood this summer, I will occasionally see an enterprising youngster set up on the sidewalk selling fresh lemonade in the afternoon sun. It gets me thinking about how challenging and satisfying it is to take an adverse situation and turn it into a positive – particularly in the world of business. Wouldn’t it be great to take negative chatter about your brand and convert it into something that promotes it? Well, Frank Eliason from @comcastcares has done just that by “socializing” customer service. By embracing Twitter and using the micro-blogging service Frank and his team respond to customer problems and issues in a timely and efficient manner. The result has been amazing - what could have been a legion of frustrated customers is now just the opposite – Comcast brand advocates. Many have sat up and taken notice, including BusinessWeek, which has called him “the most famous customer service manager in the U.S., possible the world.”

That’s why I’m really excited to announce that Frank has agreed to lead the PMN’s next webinar on October 21, 2009. In this interactive session, Frank will share his thoughts on the importance of listening and participating with customers and how you too can leverage interactive tools like Twitter to converse and ultimately convert customers into brand advocates. The addition of Frank to the impressive line up of PMN speakers -- including Charlene Li, Ron Shevlin, Steve Rubel and Dave Evans -- continues our mission to provide marketer with the very best know-how necessary to start marketing with customers rather than at them. We hope to see you at the Webinar and for those of you wanting to learn more about how to leverage the power of Twitter for your business check out TWTRCON DC the following day, October 22, 2009 where dozens of other leading brands will be sharing their thoughts, advice and stories.

To register for the PMN webinar on October 21, 2009 featuring Frank Eliason from @comcastcares click here. To register for TWTRCON DC Early Adopter pass, just $395 on October 22, 2009 click here. Til Next Time.