February 03, 2010

Kondek Speaks

By Charlie Kondek
Director, New Media Relations

I was absolutely thrilled to be profiled at Bulldog Reporter. I got to sound off on a lot of things dear to me, not just our business but the future of our industry. For example:

Q: What do you make of the whole "who owns digital" debate?

"Owning digital" is probably the wrong way to put it. I'd say in general PR should own social media and advertising should own online advertising and content creation. But, of course, these distinctions are blurring. Honestly, while the lines between PR and advertising are fuzzy, operationally there are still some very big distinctions between the disciplines that make the separations reasonable and determine that PR, in fact, should own digital. PR is the discipline of participation in media, and that's exactly what digital or social media is—participation-based. Advertising is the discipline of disruptive media—and I'm not saying it's a bad thing at all; the best advertising is a welcome disruption. But in general, these demarcations are pretty fair; advertising builds the cool site, PR extends it into social media.

Those hard, fast lines are really malleable, though. Some ad agencies do great "outreach" into social media and some PR firms (like my own) build great content. Expect this to be a constant adjustment in the years to come. In the short term, it's clear the best brands get their agencies working together for the best possible mix.

Posted by staff at 03:45 PM
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August 05, 2008

GM FastLane blog redesign

By Alicia Dorset

WARNING: Blatant self-promotion!

Sometimes a classic needs a new look. After more than three years as the blogosphere‘s "it" example of corporate blogging, the General Motors FastLane blog features a new design by MS&L Digital‘s creative director Jason Julien and graphic designer Josh Weston. Check out this post from Christopher Barger, GM‘s Director of Global Communications Technology, on what to look forward to with the revamped blog.

Posted by Alicia Dorset at 09:33 AM
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February 27, 2008

Our new global digital practice

MS&L has announced the launch of our new global digital practice, jointly led by Jud Branam in North America (here in Ann Arbor) and Michael Pierlovisi in Europe (in Paris). Email Jud or Michael with your digital PR needs.

Posted by Laurie Mayers at 08:54 AM
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November 08, 2007

SEO suggestions aid in contest win for MS&L Digital

By Chris Clonen

We are excited to announce that Adobe.com selected GM.com/education as an official “Adobe Site of the Day,” featuring the cool and creative game we developed, Find-A-Fuel.

Adobe recognizes web sites based on their use of strong visual designs, superior functionalities, and innovative uses of Adobe products.

The MS&L Digital team created GM’s Find-A-Fuel game to be used as an educational tool that teaches students about alternative propulsion systems such as hydrogen-powered fuel cells, E85 and hybrid technology, as well as the environmental impact of a variety of GM vehicles, including the Chevy FlexFuel Avalanche, Chevy Corvette, Chevy Fuel Cell Sequel and Saturn Vue Green Line Hybrid.

The game has been very successful for the site—helping to increase unique visitors. Kai Blum, MS&L Digital’s SEO expert, recommended that the game be entered into Adobe’s daily contest because a link back from Adobe should translate into a big increase in traffic.

Kai is right!

When building sites for your clients, entering your hard work into web contests can pay off. It is a great and FREE way in which to increase your site’s awareness, as well as give you a few laurels to rest on.

Posted by staff at 05:19 PM
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September 26, 2007

Off to Blog Orlando

...and boy, will our arms be tired!

A few of us here in Ann Arbor will be trading in the current rainy weather for (hopefully) some sunshine down in Florida this Friday at Blog Orlando.

Put together by Josh Hallett of hyku, this unconference promises to bring together some of the most-with-it minds in the blogosphere these days. Sessions will cover everything from blogger relations to blogging 101. I'll be speaking on keeping your personal life and digital life separate, and our own Laurie Mayers will cover crisis communication. Checking out the conference with us is Nichole Woodcock.

In case you'd like to know what we'll be covering...

Laurie: "How do you handle a crisis via blog, or created via blog? Laurie Mayers of MSL (think the GM Fastlane Blog) will talk about how GM handles ‘issues’ online, and the limitations of what a publicly traded company can say on a blog."

Alicia: "She’ll discuss how people are learning to blend their work/personal digital lives."

I'm looking forward to meeting the rest of the speakers and participants, so check back next week for thoughts and photos from Blog Orlando.

Posted by Alicia Dorset at 02:46 PM
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May 25, 2007

Seth Godin and "The Dip"

Some of my colleagues and I had the chance to hear Seth Godin speak earlier this week at the Michigan Theater in Ann Arbor. Seth was there to promote his latest book, “The Dip,” and talk to us about when it’s time to quit.

Time to quit?

I promise, it’s a good thing, just as Seth pointed out.

He focused on quitting not in the bad sense, like giving up your paper route as a kid because you were bored with it, but rather, quitting at something to realize a bigger and better goal. We all want to be the best at what we do, but is that really overrated in the long run? Shouldn’t we just focus on continuously striving to improve ourselves? Seth thinks so.

Seth pointed out some famous quitters, such as Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, as examples of people who were ok at one thing (in Jeff’s case, being a financial analyst), but quit that to start something they’re great at (starting amazon.com). We all have the choice to give up or keep going when we hit “the dip,” but in the end it’s really up to us to decide how we want to proceed and realize sometimes we can’t do it all.

I understand what he means. I used to be a pretty good newspaper designer, but I think I’m a much better blogger (I’ll let my colleagues try to argue me on that one!). I think the same is true when trying to deliver the high-class services to your clients. You can always find room for improvement.

I asked Melanie Seasons and Chris Poterala for their thoughts after Seth’s lecture.

Melanie Seasons:
“I'm interested in reading the book. It makes sense from an economics-type standpoint, but these decisions are too often based on emotion. I think his main point (and not having read the book) is how to separate the logos from the pathos in making business decisions.”

Chris Poterala:
“Seth's talk was very timely for me, reminding me that we do not need to try to do everything, and that if we do, we will end up not doing anything well ... it helped me focus on getting things done and doing them well. I really liked the sense that we don't need to be all for all.

What do you think about “The Dip?” If you were at the lecture or have read the point, let us know.

Read all about Seth's visit over at Connect in Ann Arbor.

Posted by Alicia Dorset at 04:46 PM
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May 22, 2007

Don't forget! Seth Godin visits Ann Arbor today

You still have time to register for the Seth Godin lecture this afternoon at the Michigan Theater in downtown Ann Arbor. Doors are at 2 p.m., and the event begins at 3 p.m. Check out these links to get all the information you'll need. To keep up to date on the latest, check out Connect Ann Arbor on Twitter. Hope to see everyone there!

Seth Godin in Lights
Connect Ann Arbor
Ann Arbor Ad Club

Posted by Alicia Dorset at 11:40 AM
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December 05, 2006

Be careful at your next office party...

In case you haven't had the pleasure, and I mean that with the greatest of sarcasm, of watching the Bank of America rendition of U2's "One" to describe a bank merger, you're probably one of just a few. With more than 170,000 views so far, the video, shot by someone attending the merger celebration, has made its way around the Internet quickly. Take a look:

Advertising Age's Jonah Bloom had a great story today, worth bookmarking, on how companies can avoid embarrassing moments like this one. In a world of cell phone cameras, just about anything can make its way online. Our own Jud Branam weighs in on the subject as well.

While this stuff has always gotten out, it will happen more quickly, systematically and with greater effect. Internal rallying-cry stuff should be looked at from the standpoint: 'How will we respond when this hits YouTube?

Posted by Alicia Dorset at 03:41 PM
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June 15, 2006

Word of Mouth on a Platter (or plate)

By David Binkowski

That's the title of my presentation for the WOMBAT 2 conference next week in San Francisco. I'll be walking attendees through our case study for Hefty Serve 'n Store interlocking plates and bowls. It's a great example of how brands can generate word of mouth online; if you're a brand or advertising manager, this is the session for you. You can save on the price of admission by entering...

"welovehass". Hurry, there are only 40 seats left!

Posted by staff at 02:36 PM
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April 11, 2006

5 Business Blogs

We learned today that the GM FastLane blog is a nominee for a Webby award in the business blog category and for the People's Voice Award. There are only five nominees in each category. The other business blog nominees, and their own descriptions of their missions, are:

• 5 Blogs Before Lunch: “5 Meetings Before Lunch is a marketing consultancy working with leaders of companies and marketing departments who want to advance great ideas and catalyze change in their marketing efforts.”
• Gartner Inc.: “Gartner Blogs are frequently updated journals including opinions, news, ideas, commentary and Internet links. Gartner Blogs should not be considered Gartner research.”
• Inc.com: “Fresh Inc. is Inc.com's Weblog. Monday through Friday Inc. writers, columnists, editors, and occasional guest contributors share their thoughts on current events, business issues and news, useful resources, and whatever else might have inspired them to log on.”
• Development Through Enterprise: “Our goal is to identify and discuss sustainable business models that address the needs of the world's poorest citizens.”

MS&L BlogWorks manages the GM FastLane blog, which is where Vice Chairman Bob Lutz and other GM executives talk about GM cars and trucks. So take a minute to vote for your favorite blog in the People's Voice contest.

Posted by Laurie Mayers at 05:31 PM
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March 21, 2006

'When the Boss is Blogging' teleconference

Hey, it’s not too late to register for our WOMMA teleconference tomorrow, when Edelman CEO Richard Edelman, GM blog guru Michael Wiley and I will be talking about executive blogging. It’s the second in a series of Word of Mouth Wednesday teleconferences. It only costs $50 for non-members or $10 for members – a considerable savings over a typical blog conference.

WOMMA is the Word of Mouth Marketing Association , and you can register for any of the coming Wednesday teleconferences here. (Annual membership is $3,000 or $1,000 for businesses with fewer than 10 employees.)

Posted by Laurie Mayers at 08:28 AM
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March 07, 2006

Photos from PRWeek Awards ceremony

Here's a set of photos with the MS&L crew from the PRWeek awards ceremony in New York last week.

Posted by root at 12:52 PM
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March 03, 2006

We won!

PRWeek recognized Hass MS&L and General Motors last night with two top awards -- PR Innovation of the Year and Best Use of the Internet -- for the GM FastLane blog.

GM was one of the first Fortune 500 companies to launch a corporate blog, and the FastLane blog has attracted more than 1.9 million visits and thousands of comments from readers. GM's charismatic Vice Chairman Bob Lutz and other executives author the blog, which focuses on GM's cars and trucks. Hass MS&L is the agency of record. One judge described the blog as "a great new media campaign from a traditional, old-time manufacturing firm. Plus, it used the right spokesman, Lutz, to create a dialogue around product design."

Michael Wiley, GM director of new media, and Jud Branam, Hass MS&L managing director, accepted the two (heavy) trophies at the ceremony at Tavern on the Green in New York's Central Park.

Congratulations to the BlogWorks team, GM Communications and to Bob Lutz, whose passion and authority make it happen.

Posted by Laurie Mayers at 08:49 AM
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January 12, 2006

We're a PR Week finalist

Our agency is a finalist in the following six PR Week Award categories:

Best Use of Internet
PR Innovation of the Year
GM FastLane Blog

Hass MS&L in Ann Arbor developed the GM FastLane blog, which is written by GM Vice Chairman Bob Lutz and other executives about its cars and trucks. The blog attracted 1.3 million visitors in its first year, hundreds of links from other blogs, and has been called “a case study for corporate blogs.”

Best Use of Research or Measurement
Promotional Event of the Year
Take Back Your Saturday Morning (P&G Mr. Clean Magic Reach)
The New York office worked with P&G to launch the all-in-one bathroom cleaning tool by entering the marketplace in a credible and innovative way. MS&L created a strategic platform, which consisted of seeding (influencer understanding and mailing) and the launch (which included a 10-city tour and local promotions). The team connected with its primary prospect (active women) and generated 16% awareness before the start of advertising, 164 million impressions during launch and 98% product believability and purchase intent among the target.

Public Sector Campaign of the Year
Army Medical Department (for Recruiting Command)
U.S. Army Health Care and MS&L Chicago sought to address the recruiting challenge by revisiting an opportunity that has become a relatively low priority in the marketing mix: conventions. MS&L developed an overarching strategy that worked with the Army’s marketing campaign and local recruiters. The results: MS&L doubled the recruitment leads generated at agency-supported conventions from the previous year, while generating more than 585,000 impressions.

Large Agency of the Year
MS&L
This past year has been a year of firsts for MS&L: The agency became the dominant hub of the Publicis Public Relations and Corporate Communications Group; Mark Hass was named CEO; the agency appointed its first-ever global management team and created its first-ever strategic business plan, Five in Five. MS&L has won major, highly competitive new accounts; organic growth has increased sharply; and it has aggressive expansion plans in the U.S., Europe and Asia Pacific. In the words of one of our biggest clients: “MS&L keeps building on its successes.”

Posted by at 08:30 AM
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November 22, 2005

We're right there with Media Guerrilla

PubSub indexed and ranked public relations blogs with help from Constantin Basturea. Constantin has some tips on how the list and rankings work.

Mike Manuel of Media Guerrilla says "Also, I’m excited to point out that Media Guerrilla is making *aggressive* movements up the chart today, I’m currently in a 75-way tie for 67th place…you can’t cage this monkey, don’t even try."

BlogWorks is right up there at 73rd place.

Posted by at 09:06 AM
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September 19, 2005

Global PR Week 2.0 starts today

Our very own Jud Branam is part of Global PR Blog Week 2.0. Jud is interviewed by Jeff Hardison of McClenahan-Bruer Communications in a podcast about product blogs.

Here's the program for Monday, Sept. 19:

* Elizabeth Albrycht - Blogs: Foundational tools for community network building
* Niall Cook - Blogging for our brand: Building a business blogging community for Hill & Knowlton
* Invited Paper | Nancy White & Lee LeFever - Surprising partners: Adding blogs to an existing non-profit community

Business blogs around the world

* Italo Vignoli: Growing a PR blog in a different language

CEO blogs

* Jeneane Sessum - Adding your voice to the conversation — Why CEOs should blog
* Dave Taylor - Why CEOs shouldn’t blog

External corporate blogs

* John Cass - Interacting with customers through corporate blogging
* Robb Hecht - The Freakonomics Blog - PR Machine interview
* Ryan May - Small company? Better blog!

Fake blogs

* Dave Taylor - Fake blogs: New marketing channel or really bad idea?

Internal blogs

* Matias Fernandez Dutto - How to designing powerful conversations that open possibilities for action and colaboration with blogs

Product blogs

* Jeff Hardison: Opening a product’s hood through blogs - Podcast interview with Jud Branam, Hass MS&L, PR counselor behind GM’s FastLane product blog

Posted by at 10:38 AM
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August 10, 2005

New blog on the block

We're happy to announce MS&L BlogWorks' launch of a new blog covering the voluminous news of automotive suppliers, Auto Supplier News. Times are tough for auto suppliers these days, and several are believed to be on the verge of filing Chapter 11. MediaQuotient, the research division of Manning Selvage & Lee, compiles and summarizes the daily news of original equipment and aftermarket manufacturers. Check it out, and let us know what you think.

Posted by Laurie Mayers at 05:05 PM
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July 20, 2005

More about Boss Blogs

Christine Larson of U.S. News & World Report examines executive bloggers this week. While she revisits the best-known executive bloggers, Bob Lutz of General Motors, Jonathan Schwartz of Sun Microsystems, Randy Baseler of Boeing, and Rich Marcello of HP, she also adds Carole Brown of the Chicago Transit Board, who is attempting to fill the crying need for local government blogs we talked about recently.

Mark Hass, MS&L’s CEO, notes in the article that even though only a minority of Internet users actually know what a blog is (but that survey is 8 months old by now), “Blog readers are a small but very influential group of people.”

Larson gives the last word to Bob Lutz, who has an astute observation about which executives are cut out for blogging: “Most senior executives rise to the top by being very analytical and buttoned-up and left-brained. That very careful executive is probably not going to be a good blogger.”

PR practitioner John Wagner writes about the U.S. News piece:

“I think most PR folks would be tickled pink to have a CEO who actually wanted to communicate.

Yes, we've all cringed when the big boss gets away from his scripted remarks and wanders into never-never land.

But blogs or no blogs, it's always easier to work with a CEO who believes in communication and who at least attempts to be human and engaging.”

P.S. I’ll be part of a panel at the Blog Business Summit next month in San Francisco exploring the topic “When Worlds Collide: Traditional Public Relations and the Blogosphere.” I attended the January BBS in Seattle, which was great, but this conference promises to focus more on business issues and less on the basics of blogging. Get a discount if you register for the conference through this web page before Saturday.

Posted by Laurie Mayers at 07:04 PM
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June 22, 2005

Measuring Word of Mouth

By David Binkowski

I will be participating in the AD:Tech panel "Word of Mouth Marketing: Create a WOM Campaign in 5 Easy Steps" on July 12th in Chicago. The list of speakers for the full conference is impressive. AD:Tech even has its own blog.

On the following day, July 13th, WOMMA is putting on a measuring Word of Mouth conference. We have a $50 discount code for the WOMMA conference for our associates/friends/etc.: hassisawesome.

Posted by staff at 09:55 AM
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June 07, 2005

Seeking bloggers who picnic: product review opportunity

By David Binkowski

Want to check out a new product for free?

Pactiv, the maker of the new Hefty Serve 'n Store interlocking plates & bowls (and a Hass MS&L client), is looking for a few good bloggers to try out this new product.

The plates and bowls are free far cooler than your average disposable (every plate's a bowl! every bowl's a plate!) and all we ask in return is that you post a review of the product on your blog. Interested? Drop me a comment or email David.Binkowski@hassmsl.com. Note: We have a limited number to give away so speak up soon.

Is this revolutionary? Nah, evolutionary at best. CooperKatz & Co. is working with Vespa to find bloggers who will talk about their scooters (but alas, no free Vespas). And Pennsylvania's state tourism office has six bloggers documenting their travels throughout the state. (via Strategic Public Relations)

Posted by staff at 12:58 PM
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June 01, 2005

Blogging for Dollars

The Wall Street Journal's Career Journal has an article about blogging becoming a paid, corporate job. Stonyfield Farm has one full-time blogger and plans to add one or two more in the next couple of years.

The Washington Post profiles Jeff Jarvis, who left Advance.net for a life of bloggery with various ventures.

Another pro blogger, Tris Hussey, writes for several blogs and is chief blogging officer for Qumana Software. He penned the hilarious post in Yoda-speak on why you need to blog for business.

I'm a blogworker. My title is Blog/Web Project Manager. I write for BlogWorks, and also work on the General Motors blogs. (No, I don't ghostwrite or anything like that, but I do help review the thousands of comments that come in.)

Writing for a blog is nothing like writing for a newspaper or even a web site. For years, I was trained not to insert myself into my writing. Now, it's anti-bloggy if I don't.

Will more blogging jobs show up in your local classified section? You bet. It's no fad. From stay-at-home-moms to PR firms to corporations, everyone has something to say. And a blog is the easiest and quickest way to say it.

Posted by at 09:42 AM
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May 26, 2005

PR Finding a Niche in Blogs

PRWeek featured MS&L's 2005 Marketing Management Survey (PDF) in a recent issue.

Some nuggets:

• The report notes that PR has made enormous strides "in dealing with audience fragmentation using such tools as influencers, the web, and in particular, blogs."

• Marketers continue to look at alternatives to traditional advertising, and PR is taking a bigger role in helping companies find those alternatives -- quickly.
  

MS&L CEO Mark Hass says: "We've been better at seeing what's on the horizon and adapting that. You can be sensitive to changes – a blog is the ultimate expression of that. Day to day, you can measure where things are going."

Hass again: "It's a challenge for the marketing and PR industry to find out how to influence that discussion in a genuine way, as opposed to trying to get into that discussion by coming in with a beard on and hiding our real intention. Blogs can be a very authentic way for companies to get into that influencer discussion, if they do it the right way. If a company or product understands the rules, participates in the right way and opens itself up to feedback, it can have a positive impact."

Rollerblade is mentioned and quoted as a watcher/monitor of blogs, but the company or executives don't have their own blog. I hope they're considering one because they're missing out on a huge opportunity. If their fans are writing about them on blogs, wouldn't they love to hear directly from people at the company? Blogs are a two-way street – give your customers what they want!

Posted by at 04:10 PM
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May 12, 2005

An Ear to the Ground, An Eye to the Blogs

By David Binkowski

A lot of articles are being written about corporate blogging and the opportunities being created by engaging in a little one to one communication. In particular, Clickz author Heidi Cohen mentions several ways to measure your company's blog marketing strategy.

While I understand that not every company should blog, I can't believe that almost EVERY company isn't monitoring what is being said about them online.

When I was in college I earned a few bucks working seasonal retail at the mall. One of the biggest frustrations store managers have is watching a customer walk into their store and leave without knowing WHY that customer left without buying. Was it a lack of customer service? Sizes? Colors? What?

Unlike the retail setting, blogs DO allow companies to know what their customers are thinking. Whether your company is blogging or monitoring blogs, it's to your advantage to get as much feedback as possible from your customers and potential customers. In advertising, companies pay big bucks to get feedback from focus groups - so doesn't it make complete sense to engage an audience that already cares about your products?

Think of it this way - your company's next big idea, success story, product improvement, etc. might be out there in the blogosphere and you don't even know it.

Let me ask you this - ever Google yourself? Thought so. And you don't even have investors, shareholders or employees to report to.

P.S. Did I mention that our MediaQuotient division monitors blogs for clients?

Posted by root at 01:46 PM
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May 04, 2005

GM's FastLane blog

GM’s FastLane blog was mentioned in a column by Brian Steinberg in The Wall Street Journal recently (subscription required).

The story said:

While at first blush General Motors' fastlane.gmblogs.com looks like a mouthpiece for GM Vice Chairman Robert A. Lutz, critical voices are also posted. An important part of a corporate blog, says Michael Wiley, director of new media in the auto maker's communications department, is a strong stomach for consumer comment. 'A lot of what blogging is about is authenticity, getting beyond corporate speak and PR, and really creating a conversation,' Mr. Wiley says. 'Not being thin-skinned and accepting the negatives, that's key.'

Hass MS&L is the agency of record on GM’s FastLane blog.

Posted by root at 03:57 PM
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