Hasta La Creative!

Have you ever had one of those days where everything seemed out of control, and you weren’t getting anything completed? Then, when you finally realized that you made some progress, an itch in your brain was nagging you, saying that you missed something important. You think, “If I could only remember…I just wish I knew wha…It hits you. 
Mine was that I had forgotten my “blogging time.” Maybe that’s why I’m in such a crappy mood. I dig writing…it’s my down time. However, just like of you, ideas are constantly spinning in my head, and when I see something that grabs me, I write it down, email it to myself, put it in my Blackberry, or write a note on my hand. It’s quite a remarkable system. (I wonder if I can direct-tweet myself?)

Twitter was everywhere today! Releasing new apps, getting press, products launches were being announced on Twitter…there were so many things happening, it was hard to keep up.

Is your company embracing Social Media? Are you an early-adopter? You had better be. Where do you stand?:

We  have it and use it daily

We  have an account set up, but no idea what to do with it

We  just don’t get it (it’s all these damn kids today)

To determine the who’s who, I follow businesses on Twitter to see how they engage consumers. And, if you’ve read anything regarding Social Media,this is considered a “good idea”…some do a fantastic job and have real conversations. Engagement.Shhh! Dunkin’ Donuts would be one, with “Dunkin’ Dave Tweetin for the mother ship.” DraftFcb is another, offering insights on their blog, the latest podcast, newest campaign, and HR news. Although not implemented yet, DiGiorno Pizza is planning to use influential tweeters to host tweetups (gatherings) and Kraft will deliver DiGiorno Pizza…but wait, it’s NOT delivery, it’s DiGiorno delivered? Either way, good idea. Unfortunately, Kraft is nowhere to be found. Allstate has a fantastic page and great rapport. Companies that have accounts with nothing going on?  Sear has two accounts, no followers. Krogers, Dominicks, Safeway, Publix–all grocery stores, not a single one on Twitter. Whole Foods? You betcha, with over 400,000 followers. Cleverly, I decided to check ad agencys, but received a measely 155 members using “advertising” as my search term. Then, I decided to enter agency names to see if they had accounts, and for the sake of future employment, I am not going to list them. However, names that I thought would be there, weren’t.

Some Twitter Nuggets
Over the last two months, according to Socialmediaatwork.com, Twitter has exploded. Twitter’s demographic skews  female (53%) and is mainly made up of 18-34 year olds. However, Worldwide, the highest indexing group for users is A45-54. Twitter surpassed the NY Times in unique visitors in April, became the top social network used by hospitals in March, and also recorded that 17% of UK businesses are on Twitter. It seems that Twitter is not only growing up, but expanding it’s reach into business.
Don’t Use Twitter if
As a business, there are certain things that will keep you from using Twitter effectively. The entire list is is on AdAge, but a couple of the funnier entries were, “You have to run your tweets by legal” and, “You think a ghost-tweeter for the president of your company is OK.” For more reasons your company should not use Twitter, check out AdAge.

Jeff Louis is a Strategic Media Planner & Buyer with over seven years of B2B & B2C experience. His interests are emerging media, schweet  ideas, and redefining the status quo (not necessarily in that order.)  He’s passionate about writing and digs great creative that is on-strategy. Follow him on twitter @jlo0312, or LinkedIn, www.LinkedIn.com/in/jefflouis