Schneider Associates (SA) is pleased to announce the hiring of John Jowers as account supervisor to the Corporate, Education and Nonprofit Practice.

As account supervisor, Jowers works closely with practice leaders to develop and implement comprehensive public relations, social media, marketing and creative programs that build brand awareness for corporate, nonprofit and education clients. A graduate of Brunel University in London, Jowers is responsible for day-to-day client management, supports account strategy development and conducts media outreach.

Prior to joining Schneider, Jowers worked at Cone Communications in the Corporate Social Responsibility practice, serving a range of clients that included Hilton Worldwide, AMC Entertainment, Philips Electronics, Education First, Sierra Club, SunTrust Bank, Rebuilding Together and the Lawyer’s Committee for Civil Rights. Jowers was responsible for developing branded platforms and cause marketing campaigns to help corporations achieve social and business objectives, and build brand equity among key target audiences. He also provided marketing and development counsel to major nonprofits, to build effective corporate partnerships, improving visibility, and deepening stakeholder relationships.

Jowers was also featured in the Ticker section of the Boston Herald on April 29.

Earlier, President Obama flew about a dozen family members of Newtown massacre victims to lobby lawmakers on Capitol Hill. The families met with opposing senators and, according to reports, stayed away from policy debates, instead simply sharing their stories of loss and heartbreak. Parents like Francine Wheeler, who stood in for President Obama during his weekly radio address, took to the airwaves to call upon Senators to come together to pass “common sense gun responsibility reforms.”

The procedural vote buoys the confidence of gun control advocates who view any win against the gun lobby, however small, as a powerful statement. Longtime gun control proponent Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) stated, “With the vote that we take today, we are turning the page against the NRA’s dominance.”

What the legislation would actually accomplish is still very much in doubt. There is no provision to ban assault weapons or limit high capacity magazines. And although it enjoys some bipartisan support in the Senate, passing through the GOP-dominated House will be far more difficult. In fact, experts have warned that House Republicans could carve so many holes in the limited restrictions the bill does provide that it could actually benefit the gun industry.

As Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) put it, “The hard work starts now.” The debate will be emotional and contentious. But at least it will be had. Without the inspirational efforts of these families to share their stories and demand a voice, the issue would probably not have come this far. It remains to be seen whether meaningful legislation can be passed, but with these families engaged and out-front, it has a fighting chance.

Explaining their dramatically scaled-down proposals, the speaker and Senate President Therese Murray both cited a lack of public support for the revenue increases required to fund the governor’s ambitious plan. DeLeo and Murray call for a 3 cent hike in the state gas tax to generate $110 million this year, as well as a $1 increase in the tax on tobacco products, generating another projected $165 million. An expansion of the Computer Services Tax Code would bring in $161 million, and eliminating the Utilities tax would raise another $46 million.

The governor is expected to respond to the proposal in a press conference at 1 p.m. on Thursday, and the Ways and Means committee is expected to release its budget proposal on April 10.

Sources:
http://boston.cbslocal.com/2013/04/03/keller-large-time-for-patrick-beacon-hill-to-cut-a-fair-deal/
http://boston.cbslocal.com/2013/04/02/legislature-to-unveil-transportation-financing-plan/
http://www.wbur.org/2013/04/02/deleo-murray-transportation-funding-plan

The many takeaways from the event included:

Congress is Unlikely to Regulate Online Learning This Year

Online education and MOOCs present issues that members in Congress would rather avoid. In fact, despite recent coverage in national outlets, MOOCs remain largely unknown in the halls of Congress. When the Higher Education Opportunity Act is reauthorized this year, there are unlikely to be any changes in the status quo on these fronts. Congress will probably punt the issue to 2014, which offers institutions a window of opportunity to shape the opinions of members now.

Firsthand Experience and Constituent Anecdotes Form Congressional Opinion

The main players in Congress on higher education often make decisions based on their own experiences and those of the constituents that happen to grab their attention. In an institution where the average member is older than sixty-two, relying on firsthand experience can lead to a lack of understanding of current issues. Powerful representatives reference working through college that cost $7,000 per-year and graduating debt free in the 1960s, without understanding how the model has changed.

Moreover, members latch onto stories they observe or hear from constituents and draw generalizations when forming their opinions. Institutions need to proactively share stories of success and struggle to penetrate the narrative taking hold in Washington.

Constituent Demographics and Geography Inform Mass. Spending Priorities

On Beacon Hill, transportation and education are the main topics at issue in the governor’s budget proposal.  Elected officials in districts far from Boston are more likely to push for dollars in education, as transportation issues affect their constituents far less. Speaker DeLeo and other powerful city legislators prioritize transportation, and will likely continue to make that the top priority.

Pivotal Response from Mass. Legislature Coming Soon

Members of the Mass. state legislature have reviewed the governor’s budget and currently await the response proposal by the Ways and Means Committee, expected on April 10. The governor’s budget likely represents the ceiling of what will ultimately be passed, but the degree to which those numbers will be reined in remains to be seen. Much will depend on that initial response by Ways and Means.

Online Education Can Play a Role in Mass. Higher Ed.

Other states have begun to use online education to ease the burden on public institutions trying to close the degree gap, and to offer free courses that can draw students in. Regarding the disparate ways online education is being used in other states, Rep. Mark reflected on his own experience, and indicated openness to allowing online education to play an expanded role in Massachusetts. As Massachusetts addresses many of these issues, online education and MOOCs may have a role to play.

 

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It’s never been more difficult to launch a new product. Consumers are more fragmented than ever.  With 40,000 products launched each year, how can marketers make sure their launch will stand out?Join us in this Google+ Hangout with brand experts from the 11^th Annual Most Memorable New Product Launches who will share how they leveraged earned, owned and paid media spend to create a launch that captivated consumers and led to incredible sales.

Launch Expert and Author, Julie Hall, Behavioral Research Expert Aaron Reid, and moderator the Founder of The CMO Club Pete Krainik and brand representatives from Taco Bell, Pepsi, and McDonald’s will talk about the 2012 Most memorable new Product Launch findings, like:

• How “Men Are The New Women’ on Madison Avenue
• Why “Made in the USA” is more important than ever
• How social media may not be considered “earned media” anymore
• Don’t launch your new product in an election year, and
• A look back on the best launches of the past decade what marketers can learn from them

It’s the middle of your junior year and you and a friend are looking for that one great internship to complete your nearly perfect résumés. You have the grades, the work ethic, and the writing chops, and you’ve whisked cover letters and CVs into the inboxes of every internship coordinator in a 50-mile radius. Your friend is called in for an interview, but you’re still waiting for a response. What gives? It could be something as simple as your Facebook photo.

As the Intern Coordinator at Schneider Associates, I told my current interns, “When I hired you, I wanted to know you before I met you.” Internships are an investment by the company and the student and it’s important for both parties to be sure the investment is worthy, which is why both company and intern should check each other out. A candidate may have the chops, but their social media activity can be the deciding vote when it comes to being picked out of the position-seeking crowd.

We’ve asked our staff and star interns to recommend their best social media practices, which include:

The Good:

• Inquiry is the best form of flattery. Send a private LinkedIn message or utilize your university’s alumni database to connect with those in your target career field. Don’t post publicly on a potential employer’s personal pages. Ask to meet for coffee and come prepared with thoughtful questions.
• Be one with your surroundings. Share current events and industry-specific news on your active social pages. When trying to land an interview, frame a company’s struggle or success within a current event or find some interesting industry news and speak to your insight on the topic in your inquiry. This will help you stand out from the crowd and peak their interest.
• Use privacy settings, but don’t shut us out. When we look at your profiles, we should have an idea of your personality, interests and what you’re talking about, but we don’t need to see the photos from your friend’s 21^st. If you do keep your profiles (especially Facebook) open, keep it PG.

The Bad

• Personal space. Only connect on social channels with hiring managers if you’ve interacted previously. If you are going to reach out, stick to LinkedIn or a company email address; we like to keep our personal and professional lives separate, too.
• Research is a two-way street. Hiring managers can research you, but that doesn’t mean you can’t find them. Do some digging to identify the right person and avoid using “Dear Sir or Madam.” Also avoid the “one-size-fits-all” approach by ensuring your cover letter is personalized for the company to which you are applying.
• Don’t be a fair-weather fan. You may follow a company on multiple platforms, but are you retweeting, sharing and commenting on their content? Show you’re involved before you join the team.

The Ugly

• Typos. We expect you to proofread and use correct grammar in the office, but it’s always a bummer to find sum1s profile dat luks lyke dis. Your profiles and materials represent your first test, so use spellcheck and proper grammar and go through word by word – “if” looks like “of” looks like “off,” but none will trigger that little red line.
• Say my name, say my name. If you’ve found the hiring manager’s name, be sure you spell it correctly. This seems obvious, but I (Jamie) have been called everything from Jaime to Jaimie to Janice.
• If you don’t have something nice to say, don’t say it. It’s frustrating to be turned down for that dream position, but keep it off social media. Taking unfortunate developments in stride is a benchmark of professionalism, and you never know – maybe you’ll meet the intern coordinator again down the line. Don’t set yourself up for an awkward situation.

Don’t be afraid to get creative. One of my favorite examples of savvy social media use is Rachael King’s living resume. If you’re just starting out, you may still be working up to your own personal living resume, but these tips and tricks will give you the necessary head start.

Jamie Berman, Account Coordinator, Consumer Group

(Photo courtesy spinechillinghorror.files.wordpress.com)

By Don Martelli, director of Digital Integration and Social Business

Internet memes are fun, crazy, out of this world and sometimes just unexplainable. In terms of their popularity, it is usually gained and lost in a blink of an eye, i.e. the proverbial 15 minutes of fame.

The Harlem Shake is one such meme that some say jumped the shark, a phrase commonly used to signify when something has lost its popularity.

Well, we at Schneider Associates wanted to test a theory: what if you took a dying Internet meme like the Harlem Shake and injected it with social media hype and let word-of-mouth take over?

The answer?

#BostonShake

To get people in Boston to take part in the video, we went to Twitter, asking online influencers such as @BostonTweet and @UniversalHub to promote a flash-mob style Harlem Shake. We used the hashtag #BostonShake, driving consumers to a Facebook events page.

The rest was history.

Not only did we have over 50 people participate, but there were just as many onlookers, including media representatives from WBUR, WHDH-TV (NBC Affiliate), WBZ-TV (CBS Affiliate) and Boston.com.

Guess the Harlem Shake hasn’t jumped the shark yet.

Social media has become the soapbox of the 21^st century, a swift and efficient vehicle for the world to deliver complaints 24 hours a day. When those grievances involve a specific company, they’d better be ready to quickly face the music or they may lose valued customers. In fact, according to Talk to the Manager, 58% of customer complaints voiced through Twitter never receive a response and by 2014, ignoring a complaint logged through social media channels will be as harmful as ignoring an email or phone call.

As PR practitioners, we love that social media allows us to easily and freely communicate with our audiences, but what happens when they communicate back? Here at Schneider Associates, we offer three basic rules – a code of conduct, if you will – for our clients in the social sphere. Using a recent personal incident, let’s walk through these top three rules to turn a complaint into a positive experience.

First, some background: As a recent college graduate, I’m saving money by commuting from home and chose to streamline my day by paying my MBTA commuter rail parking fee through my phone using Parkmobile. In theory, this should be efficient, but one unfortunate week I received THREE ‘nonpayment’ tickets from the MBTA despite having the digital receipts to prove otherwise.

On the evening of my third ticket, as the social media savvy often do, I took to Twitter to air my frustration. With this first “Tweet-plaint,” we will see where good social customer service can make or break your brand.

Rule #1: Scan For Potential Issues. Parkmobile had a great start; their community managers were actively looking for customer feedback and criticism, and when I woke up the next morning, I found this waiting for me:

Rule #2: Be Timely and Informative. Parkmobile representative Dee Q had responded to my inquiry overnight and within two hours of her initial tweet, my problem was resolved. I also had a nice email in my inbox with an explanation of exactly what went wrong, how Dee was fixing it, and next steps to appeal my ticket.

Rule #3: Take Proactive Measures. Dee Q could have told me how to appeal and sent me on my way, but she reached out to the MBTA and resolved the issue once and for all – for me and future customers. By doing so, she eliminated future similar complaints and kept more MBTA and Parkmobile customers happy.

Overnight (literally), Dee turned me into a brand advocate with her attentive social customer service skills.  Social media is king in this digital age, and using these three rules as a foundation, you can expect to see increased brand loyalty and customer satisfaction.

Oh, and the best part…every ticket was dismissed! As they should be.

Jamie Berman, Account Coordinator, Consumer Group

Rockland Trust launched its Facebook and Twitter platforms in 2009 to promote its programs, services and community initiatives. It was a big step for the bank, as other institutions hesitated to test social media because of compliance issues and heavy regulations. As Lisa van der Pool mentioned in her recent Boston Business Journal article, social media managers at area banks face a daunting task when seeking content approval, since a Tweet or status update may need to be reviewed by multiple people.

Despite these concerns, Rockland Trust has found that the benefits of using social media outweigh the challenges.   Fostering and nurturing one-to-one connections and conversations with customers has positively impacted business and complements the bank’s traditional marketing.

At Schneider Associates, we believe social media should be a component of every integrated marketing and communications campaign.  For our client, Rockland Trust, social media has enabled them to:

1.)   Give customers a portal to share their feedback.

Customers can ask questions, make suggestions and share anecdotes on Rockland Trust’s Twitter page.  As noted in the BBJ article, Rockland Trust corresponded with one of its customers who was expecting via Twitter.  When she had her baby, Rockland Trust sent her a Rockland Trust “onesie.”  This kind of personal interaction is invaluable and allows the bank to create, develop and sustain relationships.

2.)  Create mutually beneficial relationships with customers.

Fostering trust with customers is critical when you are a bank. Engaging with customers on Facebook and Twitter allows Rockland Trust to personalize its service by providing information and customer service that is useful and accessible.

3.) Build a community that extends beyond customers.

Rockland Trust’s Facebook and Twitter profiles also serve as platforms to communicate about its charitable initiatives. For example, this holiday season, Rockland Trust is donating $1 for every new like on its Facebook Career page to the Urban League of Eastern Massachusetts, which provides education and job training to Roxbury residents.

As the social media landscape continues to change and companies develop new ways to market and communicate with consumers, financial services brands like Rockland Trust will have to continually monitor and leverage social media channels while being cognizant of the complex compliance and regulatory environment. By ensuring that its marketing, social media and legal teams work hand-in-hand, Rockland Trust can continue to build its brand in social media, engage with its target audiences and deepen relationships with customers and influencers.

Carolyn Tillo, Account Coordinator for the Corporate & Nonprofit Practice