Looking forward to meeting up with the #

Looking forward to meeting up with the #Newnan-Coweta Board of Realtors this morning.

Professional Mojo moves blog to ProfessionalMojo.com

That’s right! We have moved all of our blogs to a central location–> http://www.ProfessionalMojo.com.

Please join us there for the latest and greatest nonprofit info, church info and business info about marketing, social media and more. See you there!

Social Media & the Snowpocalypse

Hey, nonprofit friends. I rarely duplicate posts from the other blog, but I think there are lessons here that are worthy to be shared with you, as well. Nonprofits, in particular, are so well suited to be leaders during a crisis. In fact, I would say that the community expects you to utilize every available channel to reach more and do more. Here, then, is my post from the Professional Mojo blog.

Digging out from under the ice.

One of Professional Mojo’s offices is in Douglasville, GA, right outside Atlanta. It’s probably no news to you, friends, that we have been in a deep freeze for almost a solid week. Our clients in Minnesota and Michigan may be prepared for something like this, but the state of Georgia? Not so much.

This snowpocalypse, as some have dubbed it, turned everything upside down. People were stranded on interstates, out of gas and out of food. Folks, like me, trapped in our homes, kids out of school for a week, power outages…you get the picture. Yet, in the midst of this, we have witnessed a perfect marriage: social media’s real-time communication and the public’s hunger for immediate information.

Here are a few of my take-aways about social media and the snowpocalypse:

• Local, relevant information makes a difference: A good example of this is the Douglas County Happenings Facebook page. I’ve watched this page and it has been growing organically for some time, but not at a rapid rate. Thanks to the efforts of the folks there, it quickly became a clearinghouse of information for those in the local area. We may only be 30 minutes from Atlanta, but sometimes it seems like a million miles away, especially when the “major” outlets cover the larger counties. Community is essential in social media and this page delivered.
• Community members expect answers – right now, please: If you are going to use any of the social media channels, be prepared for praise when you do well and for criticism when you don’t. Several pages did not have direct access to emergency divisions and were not able to provide quick answers. Even when they did have a direct line, decisions often take time. The people posting don’t want to hear excuses, they want to see answers. I saw a lot of frustration when answers weren’t immediately forthcoming. Most page admins did a good job of taking the snarks in stride. Others? Well, they snarked back, especially on the Twitter streams.
• Multiple channels reach people where they are: 11Alive Newsdid the best job of this throughout the snowpocalypse. I was impressed by their use of every available channel to distribute information to the widest audience possible. I interacted with them in the following ways:
  • Via their website where they posted DOT road updates, business closings, government closings, school closings and more
  • Via the live chat feature on their website, where I logged in and was able to ask questions, in real-time. I loved this, too, because I could see the ongoing stream from the other people in the room.
  • Via Twitter where they took questions, redirected folks to information and offered a steady stream of news.
  • Via Facebook where they continue to answer questions about mail, roads, heaters, and more.
  • Via their phone bank, which was the only one of its kind I saw during the snowpocalypse. Any one could call in and ask questions of the volunteers about weather, road closings, health issues, etc.
  • Via their ongoing newscast, which constantly reminded folks of every OTHER channel above.

In short, they did an extraordinary job of providing information in every way possible to meet the community where the community wanted to dialog. Me? I personally preferred Twitter and the chat room. My mom? She was stuck to Facebook.

If ever there was a time for social media, it is now. We were able to help our neighbors (because we saw them post), answer questions about the roads in our neighborhood, and offered route alternatives to people who ventured out.

We learned about how others were coping, played online games with people on the other side of the world, and dreamed of warmer days.

The warmer days aren’t quite here yet, but the community I feel in a city of 5 million is quite astonishing. All because we are connected in amazing ways via social media.

From @NPQuarterly: You ever feel like so

From @NPQuarterly: You ever feel like somebody’s watching you “in the cloud”? Could be the FBI. http://ht.ly/3C5lz

How is social media influencing SEO? It

How is social media influencing SEO? It’s all coming together and you better pay attention–>Article here: http://ht.ly/3sWrC

Listen up folks – if you have a “fan”

Listen up folks – if you have a “fan” page, there are new cool options available. If you are our client, look for an update from us shortly.

Just when you thought you had it down…

Just when you thought you had it down…RT @mashable: “5 New Online Services Perfect for Small Businesses” – http://bit.ly/endoXH by @jbruin

Why Press Releases Still Matter

Was it Mark Twain who said that the report of his death had been an exaggeration? Well, the report of the utter downfall of print media has been an exaggeration, too.

Both Mark Twain's and the press release's demises were greatly exaggerated.

An unforeseen consequence of the belief that print is dead (e.g. newspapers, magazines and the like), is the move away from “public relations” and press releases. In fact, we’ve routinely had people ask us why we even include press releases as part of our online marketing packages.

Well, here are a few of the reasons why press releases still matter, especially if you are building your online reputation:

1) Regional and neighborhood papers rock: Yes, the larger dailies have been struggling and many have closed, but your weekly neighborhood rag? It’s probably thriving, as many are. We routinely craft content-rich press releases, complete with photos, for our clients and push them to both the print and online editions of the neighborhood papers.  Why? Because folks read those things! And they pass them along…and it builds credibility…and the online version aids in search results…and we could go on.

2) Monthly publications are still viable: We have several clients (both for-profit and non-profit) who are located in ‘burbs  outside of Atlanta. Their area has a monthly publication that has ALL of the events, school stuff, civic announcements, cool coupons to local eating joints, real estate sales, and a whole lot more. These monthly magazine-type publications are given away by the thousands.  A well-crafted press release can get their attention and get your product or service into these pass-along suburban monthly publications.

3) Keyword-rich press drives “searchability”: Crafting well-written, searchable, keyword-driven press releases gives you a bit of an SEO boost. This isn’t your mama’s press release…this is a new breed of release that is methodically crafted to grab the attention of a print or digital reporter (read: blogger), to grab the attention of your prospect AND to be indexed well by the search engines. That’s a pretty powerful release.

Over the next few posts (and I’m happy to be back…don’t judge…we were writing for clients and forgot about us!), I’m going to be sharing key tips about what a modern press release should include, why and how you can benefit from using them. Until then, the report of this blog’s death was a big exaggeration, too!

Professional Mojo is a full-service marketing company specializing in telling your organization’s story consistently and irresistibly over multiple channels. We specialize in online digital portfolio development and can help you establish and maintain a thriving online community that matters. Ask us how.

Is Your Church Afraid of Marketing?

Church Marketing Mojo

Over the past few weeks Professional Mojo has been blessed with a variety of projects serving the marketing needs of churches – some big, some small, some non-denominational, some traditional, some contemporary.   From websites to print to complete marketing and communication plans, we’ve learned a few things and want to share them with you. 

Do you answer YES to any of the following?

1) Are you reluctant to discuss marketing in your church?: Now, I’m no theologian, but I don’t recall anything in the Good Book about churches not leveraging every tool possible to reach more and do more.  Marketing is a way to take the right message at the right time to the folks who need it most. How else are they going to learn about you and visit? How can you make new disciples of Christ if no one even knows about your church and its programs?  Yet, some church leaders think marketing is not important for a church or that it somehow makes them “less” for making it a priority.  That just doesn’t make sense.  If you are not marketing, you are dying.

2) Do you embrace and understand the importance of branding?: Mhm, your church has a feel, a culture, a vibe, a look, a color…all of those things come together to create a brand that is unique to your church, its programs, its leadership and its members.  If you cannot express in print and online marketing what your church is like and how it feels, you are missing an opportunity to communicate in a powerful way with your community.  These days, people want to get a sense of who and what you are without even stepping foot into your sanctuary. Does your marketing material do that in a powerful and compelling way?

3) Are you caught in the social media procrastination trap?: Listen well – more than 80% of folks go to your website to check you out. Almost 19% of people search social media FIRST to find information before they search anywhere else (even Google). You are what the Internet says you are.  What does it say about your church? Your leadership? Your members? Do you even know? You can no longer afford not to create a well thought out, strategic marketing plan that includes social media marketing and social media networking (they are different, you know).  Putting it off only allows others to create your online presence in your absence. Putting it in the hands of the technologically savvy, but the theologically inexperienced (like your 19 year old intern) puts you at risk.  Be wise, but be in the game.

For more information on how Professional Mojo can update your website, create compelling print material for internal and external marketing, and improve your overall church and visitor communications, please contact us. We’re here to serve you well and cost-effectively. We can be your communications partner at a fraction of the cost.

Twitter Tip: Creating a Custom Twitter Background

Mojo Tip: Custom Twitter Backgrounds

Your digital assets should have a similar look and feel. When a visitor, donor or member checks out your YouTube, Twitter or Facebook pages, they shouldn’t be jolted by graphical weirdness (technical term). They should be met with logos, taglines, and brand consistency.

Rather than reinvent the wheel, here are some great posts that tell you the sizes and steps to create that background. We do custom work, too, as part of our a la carte offerings (specially discounted for churches and nonprofits), so if you need help, just let us know. Otherwise, check out these DIY articles.

From twitip, this article is comprehensive and includes photos, graphics, patterns, and more.

From Mashable, a how-to and some super small business examples. Just think creatively for your needs as a nonprofit.

Remember, it doesn’t have to be fancy, just consistent with your theme, brand and tone. As one of the articles said, generic is for prescriptions, not for marketing.

Enjoy!