Bryan Jones, director of interactive services for CJRW of Little Rock, attended the BlogWell conference last week in New York City.
In Part I of our three-part series on business and social media, Jones tells us why BlogWell is an important conference for him and what businesses what to know about social media.
By Bryan Jones
(Photo: Bryan Jones)
Why I Went
There are interactive/social media conferences on a monthly basis. They all have their own value proposition and unique personality. I need to spend my time working and not conferencing, so I have to be picky about which conferences to attend.
For my needs, Austin, Texas’ South-by-Southwest (SXSW) and BlogWell make the most sense. The difference between the two is:
- SXSW is all about pushing the limits of interactive technology/communication/design.
- BlogWell is all about the social media best practices of large corporations.
As an Interactive designer/strategist, I need to be intimately involved in both sets of issues because my clients need that from me. On a national level, I’m working on social media projects for JC Penney, Toyota and Tyson Foods. Locally, I’m working with the Komen Arkansas Race for the Cure, Gaston’s Resort, elected officials and others.
Each of the projects have their own unique objectives and needs. These conferences keep me informed and connected.
Questions From Attendees
Judging from the questions asked during BlogWell sessions, here is what attendees wanted to gain from the conference:
- Where does social media fall: marketing, public relations or interactive?
- What corporate policies for employees do you have in place for social media?
- For publicly traded companies, where is the line crossed between social media and insider training?
- How involved is your legal department in your social media communications?
- How do you measure your investment in social media?
(Part I of III. Tomorrow, Ed Nicholson of Tyson Foods shares what companies should expect when using social media.)
More
After the jump, Twitter accounts for outstanding presenters at BlogWell.
Outstanding Presenters
@sernovitz
@GE_Reports
@TysonFoods
Also outstanding, Rhonda Lowry of Turner Broadcasting System
Filed under: Uncategorized | Tagged: advertising, BlogWell, Bryan Jones, business, CJRW, communications, Ed Nicholson, Gaston's Resort, interactive, JCPenney, marketing, Media, public companies, publications, Race for the Cure, Rhonda Lowry, social media, South by Southwest, Toyota, Turner Broadcasting System, Tyson Foods
Bryan, so what was the answer to this question: Where does social media fall: marketing, public relations or interactive?
I imagine it depends on the strategy and the scale of the project …
@ghidotti, you are right, the business case variables determine ownership. Interactive’s involvement is a given, but the depth of that involvement is mitigated by objectives and strategy. @GE_reports said that, from their experience, Marketing has been the best home for social engagement.
When they first stepped into the social game, PR was in charge and they were not successful due to established PR policies and interaction with Legal. They moved way too slow, and the messaging was too sanitized and overly-framed. Marketing was handed control after negotiating with legal to only speak about GE issues that had previously been made public. That way, GE is not at risk with the SEC relative to insider trading.
If you were asking for my opinion…I’m pretty sure that I would bore you to tears.
Thanks for the kind hat tip, Bryan. It was nice to meet you at Blogwell, hope to see you again at the next one.
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