Event management

While managing risk is important, so to is making the event an experience of positive enjoyment and success for all stakeholders. This will make the greatest contribution towards managing risk.

When risk issues are addressed in the community consultation and planning process, ensure you are also well positioned to include the positive benefits and opportunities. Issues that contribute to enjoyment and success are:

• entertainment and activities
• good information and communications
• positive media reporting
• good coordination
• safe and secure locations
• good health and welfare facilities
• transport arrangements
• sponsorship
• volunteers.

General event planning checklist

Here are some questions to consider when planning your event.

Initial planning

• What are the overall aims e.g. safety, fundraising, entertainment, management?
• Will a specific message be delivered through the event?
• What will the event include and not include?
• Should there be a number of events?
• Will an event coordinator be required?
• Does the plan fit well with activities that normally take place in that part of the town or community?
• Is there a way of spreading the risk and work?
• What is the lead time for organising the event?
• Which state and local government agencies need to be advised about the proposed event?

Cost

• Will the event pay for itself, for example through ticketing or sponsorship, or will it be free?
• Is there funding available from local, state or commonwealth governments?
• Are there any other organisations that could provide funding?
• What sort of financial records will need to be kept?
• What are the accountability issues?

Logistics

• When can the venue be accessed?
• Who is the caretaker for the venue?
• Will there be a contract for specific venue hire?
• What sort of equipment is needed for a successful event?
• Is there enough lighting?
• How will everyone get there?
• What transport should be arranged?
• What if it rains?
• What are the crowd control issues?
• Will security be required? Who can provide security?
• Are there likely to be any noise issues associated with the event?
• What can be done to ensure there is minimal impact on the community and area immediately adjacent to the event?
• Are there likely to be concerns with drug and alcohol abuse?
• Are there any emergency procedures to consider?
• When will police, fire or ambulance services need to be involved?
• What are the health and safety issues and who is likely to be affected by any procedures addressing occupational and health matters?
• Who will look after the management of traffic?
• Will the rate of traffic flow require an application for road closures?
• Who takes away the waste that will be generated at this event?
• Who can supply food at the event?
• How will drinking water be supplied at the event?
• Are there any licences associated with selling or giving away food and’or drinks at events?

Staffing

• What will staff do? What won’t staff do?
• How will everyone know what their role is?
• Will support workers/professionals be required in the team?
• Who needs to apply for a blue card?
• Are there other steps that need to take to ensure appropriate levels of child protection?
• How will volunteers provide assistance for the event?

Insurance

• What are the potential legal liabilities arising out of staging an event?
• What information is required about insurance for public events?
• How will appropriate insurance cover be ensured?
• What are the risks with volunteers?
• What insurance is needed for hired equipment?

Publicity

• Will the event benefit from publicity?
• Will publicity be free or paid for?
• What sort of messages need to be promoted?

Source

A Green Event Policy

The checklist to running an environmentally sustainable event on a sustainable budget

The following people and / or companies supplied the information:

• Clare Donovan of Australian Conservation Foundation
• Jeremy Garling of Great Southern E-vents
• Larissa Moore of Department of Environment & Climate Change NSW

What are we aiming for?

Scientists report that the Earth’s temperature is rising unusually quickly. Climate change has the potential to threaten millions of lives, and to affect the capacity of the world to feed itself, the availability of fresh water, the control and spread of disease, the survival of species, the direction in which our oceans flow and the severity of our weather. Evidence that global warming is happening in Australia today includes rising average temperatures leading to increased frequency of hot days; increasing severity of drought and bushfire; increases in the frequency of intense cyclones; and rising sea levels.

When we talk about Going Green, the ultimate aim is to make our actions sustainable – using less of everything now so that it lasts longer and choosing to use products, suppliers or procedures that have less of an impact on the planet.

This applies to all facets of events management, particularly the areas of water, energy, air, waste, transport, procurement. Many of these areas are interlinked and provide opportunities to make environmental and cost savings.

Australia has the highest per capita emissions of greenhouse gases in the world today, with a significant proportion of these due to our reliance on coal as the fuel of choice to produce electricity. Through the use of electricity for lighting, air conditioning and other systems, events consume a lot of electricity. The ultimate aim for your energy consumption is zero emissions. Another aspect of climate change is alterations in global and regional water patterns. Evidence of this can be seen in the continued drought in NSW. What water is your event using and how could you use less? The ultimate aim for an event’s water consumption is minimal use of sustainable rain or recycled water.

In a world of finite resources, waste management is also a very important issue. Waste or rubbish is generally a sign of inefficiency or poor design. Not only does it waste resources, but landfill gases also contribute significantly to global warming. Recycling, for example, is not only beneficial from a sustainability perspective, it can also reduce the cost of waste disposal because it’s generally cheaper to have recyclables removed than it is to have general waste removed. The ultimate aim here is to have a Zero Waste event, where everything is either reusable, recyclable or compostable.

Remember, it’s not all or nothing. You can start with a single initiative if you choose, and work from there. To better understand where your event needs to do work, it may be a good idea to start by reviewing your event’s energy, water and waste bills to get a handle on where resources are going and waste is coming from. If you Google “Green Calculator” there are over two million hits and they calculate everything from water to food to cars for you instantly and free. There are a lot of tools and resources already developed about Going Green so you don’t need to re-invent the wheel

Travel procedures and offsetting

• Use public transport, walk or ride to the event;
• Have the ticket cover the cost of public transport;
• Set up a car pool for your event;
• If you’re planning a public event, make it easy for people to use public
• transport to get to your venue, and offer an incentive for them to do so;
• Clearly convey information about public transport on the invitation or send out this information when they accept;
• Have bike racks, bike storage areas or bike concierge at your event;
• Have change areas and lockers at your event to encourage bike travel;
• Use shuttle buses to and from your event to the nearest public transport hub;
• Schedule your event to take into account peak travel times, faster travel means less impact which occurs in off-peak times;
• Offer teleworking as part of your event. This includes services like podcasting, webcasting and video conferencing;
• Use hybrid cars or cars that use alternative fuels;
• Supply transport that ensures minimal empty seats but monitoring RSVP’s and attendance numbers;
• Reduce trucks and vehicles going onto sites and pool resources where possible. Trucks that are not at full load is waste, arrange one truck to collect all equipment from suppliers and have their teams wait at the venue to unload;
• Reduce site inspections and use local ‘scouts’ to obtain the information you need;
• If you need to travel somewhere try combining it with other meetings to reduce the number of times you travel;
• Travel only with travel companies that have green policies and are active in their reduction of impacts on the environment;

When considering a provider for air travel:

• Choose direct flights where possible;
• Consider the age of the aircraft (new aircraft are more efficient);
• Fly economy class (business class has higher emissions per seat);
• Choose airlines with higher load factors (ratios available);
• Choose airlines that are active in their green policy

Offset your carbon emissions produced by the plane, boat or car where travel is essential. There are now over eighteen companies operating in Australia where you can offset your emissions (pay a fee calculated on the amount of carbon you will use). Only chose companies that offset your emissions by investing in renewable energy.

Waste management

Implement a waste reduction policy that addresses:

1. Reduction of waste altogether;

2. Reuses waste where possible;

3. Recycles waste where it cannot be reduced or reused.

• Reduce waste in the event by accurately supplying options that are best fit;
• Ensure recycling is in place at the event and monitor the effectiveness;
• Ensure your waste management plan addresses all types of waste;
• Ensure you compost food or get it collected and given to charity;
• Signpost, educate and encourage event reuse and recycling policies, thereby extending the life of resources and products;
• Monitor RSVP and attendance numbers to ensure supply is tailored to the numbers thereby avoiding waste;
• Reduce the amount of printed promotional material used and supply electronically;
• Do not use gift bags at the end of events;
• Encourage the design of your event to be based around standard hire items with minimal construction or an approach that will not be useable in other situations;
• Investigate outlets and avenues for recycling your unwanted or excess items, materials or products to reduce waste;
• Make informed purchasing decisions – research and prioritise supplies and equipment that support the use of recycled materials or has end-of life recycling potential;
• Buy products made from recycled materials;
• Prioritise and consider purchases – refurbish items and reuse rather than replace or discard;
• Ensure that all equipment uses recyclable paper and vegetable ink;
• Ensure all printers and photocopiers are set to double-sided printing;
• Work with your company, industry bodies and government to herald any new waste management concepts and support initiates from key stakeholders and suppliers;
• Keep up-to-date with strategies and recycling industry improvements – adapt, adjust and improve your recycling efforts and strategies;
• Reduce use of packaging material, or where required ensure the material is reused or recycled;
• Make arrangements with suppliers for the return of unwanted or unused products and materials – arrange for the return of printing cartridges, containers and packaging;
• Submit proposals and quotes electronically and reduce hand outs in meetings;
• Ensure the use of non-toxic cleaning products at the venue or with cleaning contractors;
• Find out how to make the most of your recycling policy in your event by going to www.greengoods.nsw.gov.au/index.htm;
• Publish your commitment to the environment.

Power and water supplier selection and consumption reduction

• Ensure your event and event business is buying 100% accredited Green Power. These suppliers are listed here
• Only use venues that offer 100% accredited Green Power;
• Encourage your staff to buy 100% accredited Green Power;
• Ensure you have shower timers in all showers;
• Ensure your toilet suppliers are using ‘grey water’ and correctly disposing of ‘black water’. Ensure the toilets use urinal technology that replace water in bathrooms;
• Ensure your generator suppliers are using modern, fuel saving and environmentally friendly units. Monitor the use of generators to reduce running time, and use Town Power (Power supplied in the ground) where possible;
• Ensure practices are put in place for minimal use of resources – signs help remind and educate people;
• Appoint a staff member to be responsible for ensuring unnecessary lighting and power is turned off and reduced;
• Ensure all equipment is turned off at the switch when not in use.
• Exhibitions are a major sources of excess power by leaving equipment on overnight;
• Don’t use the air-conditioning in venues during the set-up and pack period and see what alternatives are available during the event to air-conditioning;
• Encourage your events to occur during the day to reduce power consumption;
• Ensure your event reduces damage to grass and outdoor areas to avoid waste and impact on the environment;
• Ensure your technical suppliers are using modern technology that is energy efficient and design systems that reduce excess equipment.

Printed material and information communication

• Ensure the reduction of produced printed material at every stage of your event by using technology;
• When printing is unavoidable use recycled paper. This paper must be 50% post consumer waste recycled paper, printed using vegetable inks and double sided;
• Ensure your printed material is produced on the minimal size and requests guests to recycle when finished;
• Encourage replacement of printed menu and programs with information given by presenters, wait staff and event staff;
• To reduce printed material send out a disc after an event with relevant information, presentation, papers and web-site links to all attendees;
• Ensure your events uses electronic communication at every opportunity;
• Ensure printed signage is reusable and reduce the printing of dates on signage;
• Encourage the use of plasmas, projected or electronic signage to reduce production;
• Ensure your event does not lay out pens and paper on tables for attendees.
• Prior to the event communicate that attendees are to bring their own;
• Ensure your event collects and reuses name badges;
• Encourage the reduction of gift bags and satchels at events. Where required reduce information within, ensure bag is durable to extend life and only offer to attendees when asked;
• Encourage the use mobile phones to give seating and registration details, reducing the need for printing.
• Ensure your event communication includes a green message reminding people to think before printing;

Caterer selection and menu choices

• Ask to see the caterers’ green policy, this includes a Hotel situation where catering is handled internally;
• Ensure your event uses water glasses and jugs, and does not use bottled or unnecessarily imported water;
• Ensure your event does not use individually wrapped items, such as mints, lollies, salt, pepper or sugar satchels.
• Ensure your caterer addresses the following areas with each menu and their business as a whole:
• Fresh, local and in season organic food or food that is fair trade;
• Uses minimum animal products (ie. Meat) and clearly offer vegetarian options;
• Uses fish selected from sustainable fish supplies,
• Avoids use of packaging and plastic bags;
• Provides reusable crockery and cutlery;
• Offers reusable or recycled napkins;
• Requires minimum transport to the venue.
• Where disposable cups, plates and cutlery are absolutely required buy ones made from recycled fibres and corn starch that are recyclable;
• Ensure your caterer has reviewed their cooking equipment and procedures to reduce excess equipment and increase efficiencies;
• Ensure your fridge units are used the minimal amount of time required and reduce the chilling of products in cardboard as that lengthens the chilling time;
• Clearly signpost vegetarian food, the recycling and food waste systems and any other initiatives you have put in place;
• Encourage, educate and involve attendees in separating the waste into containers;
• Inform your attendees about these environmental initiatives so they can learn from it.

Venue selection and requirements

• Ensure your venue has a green policy;
• Ensure your venue uses 100% accredited Green Power;
• Ensure your venue is near public transport;
• Ensure your venue has easy access for all types of people;
• Ensure your venue adheres to the catering requirements listed above if catering is handled in-house;
• Ensure your venue uses as much natural resource as possible. This includes natural light, water recycling and catchment and the use of fresh air;
• Take into account the Green Star (accreditation based on construction criteria and running requirements of the building) rating of the venue and what procedures are in place to improve the rating. Currently 6 Star is the highest;
• Ensure your venue has air-conditioning that can be controlled in each room and activity and reduce the use of this during ‘down times’;
• Ensure your venue actively implements changing linen procedures that reduce excess cleaning;
• Accurately plan your event taking into consideration expected numbers, length of days and number of rooms to ensure best fit and minimal use of additional venues or unnecessarily extending the length of the event;
• Ensure your management team works with the venue in reducing power and air-conditioning use when not required;
• Ensure your venue has waste reduction procedures as per the waste section above. There is a lot of waste management in venues that we event mangers don’t see and therefore don’t address.

Tendering for and procurement of each segment relating to an event

Ensure your tender clearly outlines your commitment to the environment and requests all responses to outline their policies. This will be like a spider-web and will result in this becoming standard in our industry.

A good Green Policy will request the following:

• A formal Environment or Sustainability Policy;
• A formal Sustainability Management System;
• Accredited and / or audited systems as listed above;
• Commitment to measure their impact on the environment for the service they are to provide and outline targets;
• A system to ensure their suppliers have the same responsibilities and systems regarding the environment;
• A statement of commitment from all staff towards these policies and help to implement them;
• Policies that address the main headings listed in green in this document.

Ensure when asking for nominations and entries in Award Events or Prizes that all entrants must state their Green Policies and this goes towards part of the Award judgement (weighted accordingly).

Encourage the purchase of products and raw materials based on recycled content. These include toilet tissue, wood and plastic composites, packaging and containers, printer cartridges, office paper and stationery supplies.

Encourage the purchase of refurbished, recycled and reconditioned products as this will save money and also help to support the recycling industry and the development of new markets for recycled products.

The information you need is here. START NOW…

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Traackr Helps Marketers Find Influential Voices Online

September 22nd, 2009 | by Jennifer Van Grove

We’ve crossed an important threshold in press, media, and brand relations. Big companies and brands now know that online voices and bloggers can be just as important, if not more so, than traditional journalists. As such, the demand to understand the space and find the influencers is higher than ever.

Traackr just launched their Online Authority List product at DEMO to make it easier for PR folks, brand managers, and marketers to easily identify the top online influential voices — tracking reach, resonance, and relevance — around their specific campaign initiatives. The idea is certainly familiar, but the implementation offers more detailed analysis than most competitors.

The idea behind Traacker is to find the people with the most clout so that you can target and track them. Using their Authority List, you can define campaign criteria with complex search conditions and keywords to narrow down the right people with the loudest and most influential voices online. The service then works to search the social web for content, sorting by authors and their associated performance data.

The Authority List grades and rates authors by their reach (how far stories travel), resonance (how well they perform), and their relevance (how related they are to the search criteria). You can also view influencers by location and type — activists, reporters, experts.

Users can then view the top ranked influencers and their aggregated stats, and also drill down into individual profiles for detailed bios, recent blog posts, post performance data, and social media metrics, a.k.a their “social media footprint.” You can also add notes to users, as well as track overall campaign performance metrics.

With the social web becoming more and more mainstream, agencies and brands are clamoring to target influential online voices. Traackr’s Online Authority List is an interesting solution to a relatively new problem, and is pushing the envelope to harness web data to identify and track influencers.

Lights, Camera, Upload: Leveraging YouTube for Blockbuster PR Hits

For most people seeking their 15 minutes of fame, YouTube is the best shot they will ever have—and it’s a good shot, at that. Case in point: The video-sharing platform, which launched in 2005 and currently boasts more than 70 million unique users per month, has made everyone from a skateboarding bulldog to a kid doped up post-dental appointment a star—at least for a day.

But these aren’t the only unlikely celebrities shot to fame by YouTube—a growing number of executives across all industries are learning to leverage the platform to get their messages to the masses. And they aren’t relegated to consumer brands, either. Business leaders have used YouTube to communicate everything from a product recall to a sincere apology, to an employee engagement initiative.

Regardless of your desired application, this channel is yet another addition to your communications toolbox, but—as always—a number of best practices are required to make it an effective means of reaching target audiences. With that, the following tips should get you on the road to YouTube success.

? Get started. Launching a YouTube strategy is as simple as signing up for a free account—that’s the easy part.

Then, “You need to understand the technology and the resources needed to launch a video program,” says Anthony Allen, director of digital media for the American Society for Training and Development (for a step-by-step guide to developing and uploading a video, see sidebar, page 6). “Find someone that enjoys making videos, record compelling [footage], then drive a video-reuse strategy.”

? Tell a story. What communications vehicle can convey nuances of body language, facial expressions and verbal intonations simultaneously as well as video can? Keep in mind, though, that maximizing the advantages of video takes a healthy dose of restraint.

“The model [of an effective YouTube video] is a smart television commercial,” Allen says, noting the value of creative messaging in taking videos viral. “Get your boss’ approval to get creative with your brand.”

That, of course, is most relevant from a marketing standpoint, but YouTube is also a great vehicle for engaging media. When doing so, says Southwest Airlines ’ emerging media specialist Christi Day, “Be relevant and timely, provide exclusive content and give them the story.”

? If the viral suit fits, wear it. Viral video—video that spreads rapidly from user to user without a big marketing push—is one of YouTube’s premier features, but it’s not as simple as setting out to “do” a viral clip; rather, it’s up to the viewers themselves to decide if they want to pass it along to their friends, and so on. According to Rick Wion, VP of dialogue at GolinHarris, “Viral is not a strategy.”

The only thing you, as a communications executive, can do is make the content compelling—and, ideally, humorous.

“Most viral marketing videos have a loose, make-believe or comical connection between the product and the video,” Allen says. “Also, remember that videos must be done well, so consider asking a local production company to produce the video [in exchange for] a co-sponsorship.”

Then, if the hope was to go viral but the video falls flat, “Delete it immediately,” Allen says. That said, others could argue that acting so quickly is disadvantageous in the end, as many videos go viral long after they were uploaded; thus, it’s a decision that should be made on a case-by-case basis.

? Use YouTube to manage and protect your brand. A brand’s YouTube channel—that is, the place on YouTube in which all videos uploaded by a specific user are located—is a creative place to build a community of advocates not unlike those found on social networks or blogs. As is the case with those platforms, though, it’s critical to establish parameters for interacting with other users up-front, lest conversations begin turning sour.

“Be open to dialogue, and create a comfortable position for what you will and won’t respond to,” Wion says. “Settings allow brands to ‘turn off’ all commentary; however, such channels miss bigger opportunities for engagement and feel too corporate.”

? Monitor your channel—and all of YouTube—for risks and opportunities. In the same vein of managing and protecting your brand, monitoring is a key component of becoming aware of how stakeholders are interacting with said brand on YouTube.

“Monitoring your page is simple; tracking all of YouTube is not,” Wion says. “[YouTube] should be folded into other monitoring procedures. Tune your monitoring to match the vernacular of YouTube users, and have response thresholds and procedures in place.”

? Don’t forget to include YouTube as a communications tool during a crisis. These days, when the going gets tough, the tough turn to YouTube. A number of top brands, from JetBlue to Mattel to Domino’s, put their CEOs on camera to issue apologies in the midst of their various reputational crises.

If this is a response mechanism that suits your particular situation, then it is important “to understand the role of video in your spectrum of risk,” Wion says. “Pre-planning is key. Create a flexible game plan for likely scenarios, use monitoring tools and thresholds as early alert systems and have production equipment ready. Finally, train your communicators—don’t let this be your CEO’s first time on video.”

? Measure up. Like most social media tools, YouTube comes with a number of built-in metrics that help gauge general traffic and sentiment.

“You must measure commentary and sentiment, in addition to traffic,” Wion says. In terms of the latter, Wion recommends looking at:

• Views;

• Embeds;

• Regional traffic;

• Referrals to other sites; and,

• Pickup through other outreach efforts.

As for sentiment, consider comments, favorites, star ratings and responses.

? Make it part of the whole. In most cases, YouTube isn’t going to be a stand-alone communications vehicle, so make sure you take an integrated approach from the get-go.

“Determine if video is a strategy or a tactic,” Wion says. “If it’s a strategy, YouTube should be viewed as a primary channel and managed as such, with a defined plan, allocated resources, dedicated percentage of staff time, rigorous goals and measurement. If it’s a tactic, YouTube should be viewed as an extension to support various plans.”

Regardless of your chosen approach, just remember to stay true to your audience and your brand. And don’t underestimate the power of the platform.

“YouTube videos offer deeper engagement than they are given credit for,” Wion says.

Source

*Event Name: What will be the name of the event? For eg: ’Auto Expo 2007".

*Food and Beverage Menu: It contains the list of food items and beverages you will serve during the event to guests and target audience. Always consult a caterer while deciding your food and beverage menu as he knows the best which wine is served with a particular course (i.e. meal). Keep event theme, preferences and religion of target audience and guests in mind while deciding the menu. If majority of your target audience are vegetarian, then it is not a good idea to serve non-veg in the event. Similarly if majority of your guests are very health conscious then there should also be some low calories food items in your menu. You don’t want them to go back empty stomach. Also keep climatic conditions into account. Don’t serve out of season food items and beverages. Like serving ice cream/cold drink in winter, food (like spicy food) that provides warmth during summer or food that provides coolness during winter.

*Event Profile: What the event is all about? For eg: This event is an International exhibition on new models of Cars and its accessories

*Guests Profile: Who will be your chief guest and other guests? Your guest list must include organizers, sponsors, partners, clients and specially media people. Use your imagination to create good titles to woo your guests. Like ’Guest of honor’, star guest etc. Never give special treatment to one particular guest or guests’ group.

*Event Theme: Theme means subject. An event can be based on a particular theme like : hollywood, hawaaian, egyptian, balloon, clock, red, white etc. Theme based events are generally parties or wedding. Like we can have party based on flowers theme. Such type of parties are known as theme parties. In a theme party, everything from dress code, decoration, games, music, gifts, favors to food and beverages are based on a particular theme.

*Service Providers: Who will be your service providers? Any professional providing any type of service in lieu of money is a service provider. For e.g.: DJ, anchor, florist, videographer, photographer, make up artist, performers, decorator, models, technicians, usher etc.

*Obligations: These are the compulsions on the guests like dress code or the knowledge of salsa dance.

*Type of Entry: Decide how will be the entry. Entry will be by ticket, pass or through invitation only.

*Favors: These are the gifts given to guests. We can give gifts to guests when they enter a party, when they win a game or when they leave the party.

*Entry fees: What will be the entry fees? If you are going to charge entry fees, then be prepared to pay entertainment tax. Your entry fees should be according to your target audience’s status. If you overcharge you won’t get any audience.

*Event Highlights: These are those activities which you do to catch your taget audience and media’s attention. Like inagrauation of your fashion show by Tom Cruise, performance by Latin singer shakira or display of the world most expensive car etc.

*Promotional Campaign: How you are going to promote your event, organizers, sponsors, partners and clients pre-event, at-event and post-event.

*Programe Menu: It is the list of various activities that will occur as a part of the event. Sample Programe Menu of a Conference.

*Event Budget: To determine your event budget find out what will be the cost for producing and marketing the event. To determine production cost, create a list of logistics used in the event and then sum up there hiring/usage cost. You can determine marketing cost on the basis of historical data like past advertising expenditure for same or similar events.If you are a first timer, then take help from an ad agency. On the basis of production and marketing cost, determine your operating cost (i.e. cost to run the business). On the basis of operating cost decide your own fees and the staff salary. If you are organizing event for a client, then the client will bear the production and marketing cost of the event. If you are organizing your own event then you will bear the production and marketing cost. As an event manager, you must be able to recover your production, marketing and operating costs plus you must be able to make considerable profit also. Developing event budget and managing cash flow pre-event, at-event and post event is quite difficult and requires help from an experienced professional. Better leave this job to an Accountant if you are organizing a corporate event or an event on a very large scale.

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Social Marketing: Who Has the Power, Consumers or Brands? Ella Keeven on February 25, 2009

Sometimes things are just better left the way they were. Lately, through the thousands of social marketing tools that have entered our world, customers are getting a chance to speak out like never before. Here are a few recent examples of how customers have responded and some questions about what is really going on here.

Case Studies

PepsiCo announced this week that they will be scrapping the sleek redesign of Tropicana orange juice cartons that launched just three months ago, and go back to the old style of packaging next month. What gives? Consumers spoke and PepsiCo listened. Although, I tend to be a fan of a sleek and clean design, I can understand where Tropicana fans are coming from. The old packaging included the longtime Tropicana brand image, an orange with a straw in it, which I have to admit, I tried to do with my own orange and straw when I was younger. Customers expressed their views on the redesign in letters, emails and phone calls. Do a Twitter search, and you will find a ton of buzz around the topic as well.

Facebook caused quite an uproar last week when they changed their terms of service, which included language that would allow them to keep user information in perpetuity, even after your account is deleted. Needless to say, FB users were not happy about this one. There were Facebook groups formed, Twitter was blowing up, and people were posting article links about the topic on the FB page and updating their FB status to bring attention to the situation. And as We The People cried out, Facebook responded and went back to the OLD terms of service immediately.

Last November, Motrin posted an ad on their website that caused a big uproar with moms all over the country. It was in reference to carrying a child in a sling or a wrap, rather than pushing them in a stroller or carrying them in your arms. The evening it came out, it was the most tweeted item on Twitter. A Motrin Ad!!! The ad was promptly pulled from the website and Motrin’s VP of Marketing released an apology.

You can see a trend in these three stories and the trend is Social Marketing. Through email, Facebook, Twitter and blogs, these subjects became highly talked about by consumers and they were talked about quickly. So quickly, that these major companies made rapid changes to what caused the uproar.

How Do You Feel About This?

I feel torn on where I stand with having this kind of power as a consumer. First, I think the power of social marketing is shining bright in these situations. Consumers have an opportunity to come together and voice their opinions at a rapid pace.

But, secondly, what does this mean for future redesigns, change or terms, et cetera? I think we have all learned in our professional careers, that there are always going to be complainers; people that can absolutely, positively complain about everything and anything under the sun. And if there is change, whether significant or small, some people will accept it or be happy about it and some will not.

Just a Gimmick?

But, could this also a marketing/publicity gimmick? Something to get the consumer talking about their product? I mean, really, who sits around and discusses OJ? And in an economy like this, I would venture to say that most of us are buying what is on sale at the grocery store. But, if you do a Google and Twitter search of Tropicana people are really talking about this! Ditto with the Motrin Ad and Facebook Terms of Service. We talk about it and tell a friend about it, and the next time our friend is at the grocery store and sees the OJ, they think about your conversation and buy it.
I am not really sure how to end this, except to say that I would love your feedback, thoughts, questions or any other similar situations you have recently heard of (please, spare the comparisons to New Coke back in ‘85 though!) The value of these social marketing tools is indescribable and the voice it gives to consumers is a huge advancement in an era where things have become so mechanized. But at the same time, everyone has an opinion on everything… although, I think I am erring to the former, because we have all been treated inhumanely by someone or a company before (hello, airlines!!) and it is good to know that we as consumers can have a voice and be heard.

http://www.thedailyanchor.com/2009/02/25/social-marketing-who-has-the-power-consumers-or-brands/

Rethinking Public Relation

Weddings go green

Bride-to-be Rachel Newell will slip into her "green" silk wedding dress and take carbon neutral footprints down the isle next month.

Newell and her partner Patrick Lytle have sourced locally grown food and wine and are using potted flowers for decoration. They will have a naturally-lit afternoon garden ceremony and reception in a single location where table scraps will be composted.

The American bride is typical of modern day environmentally friendly couples keeping their wedding day environmentally correct.
Sydney wedding planner Anthony del Col says Australian couples are warming to the trend.

"It’s definitely something that’s starting to become very popular," del Col says, taking a break from preparing for next month’s Ultimate Wedding Planning Party in Sydney.
"Especially because they are starting to incorporate (sustainability) into their daily lives and you can see that it’s starting to unfold in the wedding market."

Del Col, who has worked with celebrity clients like TV host Rove McManus, Australian Idol Guy Sebastian and soapie star Ada Nicodemou, says Sydney, the "capital of the wedding market", is leading the way locally. "A lot of the trends we have here in Sydney sort of span up to the rest of the country," he says.

"There’s definitely a market where brides are saying they’re happy to choose organic foods and wines as part of their menu choice (and) doing outdoor weddings (to reduce their carbon footprint)."
Australian wedding photographer Hilary Wardhaugh has just launched a website to cater to the growing number of environmentally concerned couples.

"I know from experience that when presented with the opportunities to do things in a more sustainable way that they usually take it up enthusiastically," the Canberra-based snapper says.
"I’ve been in the industry for about 10 years and it’s so wasteful."

Her website, green4life.com.au, provides contacts and resources for couples looking for greener options.

In running her photography business Wardhaugh offsets the carbon emissions produced by her car, publishes her pictures on recycled inkjet paper and calls on a local framer and book binder for albums.

She says the hardest thing to source for the site has been environmentally friendly florists. "It’s a minefield because a lot of the flowers that the people want and if they cant’ get locally, they’re flown in … from overseas," she says. "A lot of people want really exotic things."

Wardhaugh believes going green is the only way forward for Australian couples. "I think it’s the direction that everyone’s got to do in the future." Lytle says he isn’t concerned that going green will hamper any aspect of their celebration. "Rachel and I live a fairly green life right now, and planning this event has been a natural extension of what we find appealing," he says. "Being green and elegant, as it turns out, is not that difficult if you are mindful of it. "We’ve been able to hold onto a lot of traditional ideas and looks."SourceIndustry