Social Media in Government Relations: How and Why

Organizations, associations and corporations are asking themselves whether or not they should get involved in social media and if so, how?  Recently, I’ve had conversations with professionals who struggle to understand social media, particularly as it relates to applying those tools to accomplish government relations and business development objectives.  Frankly, failing to harness the immense potential of social and other new media technologies in pursuit of an organization’s communications objectives is short-sighted at best.

Having worked in government, and political and government relations capacities for the last 25 years, I’m fortunate to understand creative and effective messaging in a public policy context.  And, more recently I’ve had the unique opportunity to have been immersed in modern communication tools and technologies as they’ve evolved (and continue to).  If you look close enough, you’ll find talented people on one side or another of that equation.  It’s extremely rare to find those with expertise in both.  The good news is that the social media world in which we operate today didn’t even exist when the Obama 2008 campaign set the (old) gold standard for online communications, so there is time to catch up with some help.

In the last two weeks, I’ve participated in dialogue with two different clients about the role social media can play in driving issues critical to government relations success (as the local, state or federal level).  The two clients are different.  Their needs are different.  But each of their situations affords me the opportunity to not only develop but also explain a specifically tailored program.  Both clients do share one thing in common -- neither is particularly conversant in social media.

The first client is a major state government relations firm with literally hundreds of clients with whom they work across the country.  I’ve worked with that business in one capacity or another for almost 15 years.  The second is a large corporation, in a fast-paced and challenging industry, with significant state government relations operations.  They include representation in all 50 states, and are supported by sophisticated in-house communications and research departments working to provide. I’ve worked cooperatively with this company for many years and know them well.

The two organizations are very different.  What they share is a limited familiarity with social media.  The perceptions they share about social media are extremely common, but not necessarily consistent with reality.  If you have several friends who are not on Facebook or Twitter, there are a couple of themes that will arise consistent with all of them about their perceptions are of those social media platforms.  In the business world, Linkedin is more familiar with many, but often just as misunderstood.

What are their perceptions?  Their hesitation in getting involved often relates to two things.  First, many are private or modest people.  They really don’t want to be social with others beyond their protected social networks in “real life” and they don’t want people knowing their private business.  The second reason is that they think it’s stupid.  They understand that in Facebook you have a limited number of characters and you can post a status update.  They understand the same about Twitter.  And they assume everyone posts every mundane occurrence in their daily lives. Understandably, they're puzzled about why anyone would want to share or have others share with them silly information like “I went over to Aunt Betty’s house today and ate some apple pie.”

I get it.  But let’s be honest, they don’t give the rest of us much credit.  There is some of that on Facebook and Twitter, but there is a lot more too.  In addition to maintaining personal friendships, I maintain, create and strengthen many business relationships.  I participate in many business activities.  And for me, what they are missing, is that both platforms exist as a major clearinghouse and/or clipping service that provides instant and immediate information on the subjects of your choosing.  The clipping service is free of charge (except for time invested) and tailored exactly to your liking.  They are free to take from it and contribute to it.

And, often information comes much faster to Facebook and especially Twitter than it does from TV, radio and newspaper (including online).  How many times have we seen with breaking news (or election results for that matter) when the crew on CNN or FOX are merely sharing what their staff is picking up on Twitter.  Why not get it ourselves and faster (and often more in depth and more accurately and completely)?  These are some of the examples that I used to explain the benefits of participating in social media.  As a business, especially a communications-based business like government or public relations, it borders on insanity to think you aren’t taking advantage of the opportunity to distribute your information in those vast networks with ability to identify and target particular audiences.

My clients are swayed when they learn that 92 percent of Americans get their news from more than one source and that 75 percent get much of their news from online sources like email and social media, it helps them pay attention.  Whether they are promoting their own business or promoting public policy issues, it can’t be done effectively these days without social media, at least not cost-effectively.  I can’t imagine leading any genuine organization and not incorporating a specific social media program into efforts to achieve our goals.

In 2011, companies are expected to increase social media budgets to make up 20 percent of overall marketing budgets.  And separate from social media, companies are expected to spend as much as 15 percent of their entire marketing budgets on online advertising.  It’s where people get the news.  It’s where people network and build relationships and it’s where the news is most efficiently and effectively delivered.

There is another good reason many of these programs are misunderstood.  It’s because they are evolving quickly.  I’ve applied social media tools for both political campaign purposes and issue advocacy over the last several years.  I’ve studied, written and spoken extensively about social media applications in the political process.  As I indicated earlier, the Obama ’08 campaign was clearly the gold standard of online communications.  But times have changed dramatically.

The size of Facebook has more than quadrupled since 2008 and has approximately 600 million users.  The size of Twitter has grown nearly 100-fold since 2008, has over 100 million users and is expected to double or triple in coming years.  Linkedin has more than quadrupled since 2008 and has more than 80 million members with a heavy business focus.  In 2010, Facebook became the most visited website on the internet, surpassing even Google.  To put things in perspective, recognize that when the Obama ’08 campaign was the gold standard, Facebook, Twitter, Linkedin didn’t truly exist in any way resembling what exists today.

If you don’t understand social media and you believe your association, company or organization may benefit from a social media program, let me give you a bit of a warning.  Beware of the snake oil salesman who says his public relations firm have been leaders in all of this for years and years.  You’ll know he’s lying because what’s out here today didn’t even exist two years ago.

This entry was cross-posted at Pundit League in a regular weekly column by Brian Fojtik, President of Brownstone Communications LLC.  You can learn more about Brownstone's work focusing on government relations, coalition building, issue advocacy and specifically applying new/social media in those contexts here.

 

Social Media in Public Affairs and State Government Relations

Most Americans (92%) get their news from more than one source and more people get their news online than from newspapers or radio.  Seventy-five percent of people indicate they get their news from email or updates on social media sites.  That compares with 54 percent who say they get news from radio news programs and 50 percent from newspapers.  While 75 percent of people who get their news from email and social media sites, 34 percent have indicated that they have reported news, commented on a story or shared it on social media sites like Facebook, Linkedin and Twitter.

State legislators are no different and if anything, they are more likely than not to have an active account on Twitter and Facebook.  It is becoming increasingly apparent that if you are an elected official in the United States and you are not utilizing Facebook, Twitter and Linkedin to communicate, you are missing out on a golden opportunity.  And if you work in state government affairs or public relations and don't have your fingers on this pulse of information, you're falling behind your competitors.


Facebook is valuable in large part because it has nearly 600 million users and it’s growing.  44.3% of American users are men. About a third of those, 48.8 million, fall between the ages of 35 and 65.  By far the fastest growing age group on Facebook are those 55 and older.  The second fastest growing segment is those age 35-54.  And an even more impressive statistic is that Facebook passed Google in 2010 as the most visited website on the internet.  If your public affairs or government relations department wants to move forward, they can't do it effectively without an integrated social meda effort.

The good news is that the world changes quickly.  In 2008, the Obama for President campaign was justifiably recognized as the gold standard for online communications.  Competing Democrats and Republicans were light years behind what the Obama campaign put together.  Well, you don't have to climb the mountain that Obama conquered.  That world doesn't exist anymore.  When Obama mastered online communications, Facebook, Twitter and Linkedin didn't exist to the extent we know them today.  Facebook and Linkedin have quadrupled in size since then and Twitter has grown 100-fold.

The link below provides great information about legislators on Facebook and Twitter and this changing world.

http://www.capstrat.com/insights/articles/state-legislators-whos-connected/

Brownstone Communications LLC is the premier niche firm that marries state of the art expertise and experience in social media and traditional communications with unparalleled experience in state government relations and issue advocacy in all 50 states in a high-pressure, fast-paced environment.

Integrate Social and Traditional Media for Effective Communication

It's impossible to have a comprehensive marketing program without utilizing social or new media.  It's also challenging to have a cost-effective marketing program without utilizing the mediums where increasing numbers of Americans acquire information.  After all, in 2010, Facebook was the most visited site on the internet.  Visits to Facebook exceeded even those visits to Google.

Here is a funny little video that demonstrates how new or social media techniques can be integrated with traditional marketing tools.  It's a fun way to communicate an an effective communications strategy.

Pink Ponies

http://bit.ly/gzZPWW

Why and How to Use Social Media in State Government Relations

Organizations, associations and corporations are now asking themselves whether or not they should get involved in social media and if so, how?  I’ve had frequent dialogue with many who are asking themselves questions, particularly as it relates to applying social media tools for government relations related activities.

In just the last two days, I’ve had lengthy dialogue with two different clients about the role that social media can properly play in state (or local or federal) government relations.  The two clients are very different and their current needs are different, but both provided me with an opportunity to explain a specifically tailored program to two very different audiences.  Not unlike others with whom I’ve conversed on this subject, both audiences did share one thing in common -- neither was a participant in or particularly well-versed in social media.

The first client is a major state government relations firm with literally hundreds of clients with whom they do work with at the state and local level across all 50 states.  I’ve worked with that firm in one capacity or another for more than 10 years.  The second client is a major corporation with a significant state government relations operation that includes legislative counsel or lobbyists in all 50 states, and full communications and research departments.  This company has been a client since I started my firm, and I’ve worked cooperatively with the company for many years prior.

In addition to having limited familiarity with social media (and other new media, that is significantly less “social”), like the general public who may not use social media, their perceptions about what it entailed were common, yet not necessarily consistent with reality.  If you have several friends who are not on Facebook or Twitter, there are a couple of themes that will arise consistent with all of them about their perceptions are of those social media platforms.  In the business world, Linkedin is more familiar with many, but often just as misunderstood.

What are their perceptions?  Their hesitation in getting involved often relates to two things.  First, many are fairly private or modest people.  They really don’t want to be particularly social with others beyond their social network in “real life” and they don’t want people knowing their private business.  The second reason is that they think it’s stupid.  They understand that in Facebook you have a limited number of characters and you can post a status update.  They understand the same about Twitter.  And they assume we post every mundane occurrence in our daily lives. They And understandably are puzzled about why anyone would want to share or have others share with them silly information like “I went over to Aunt Betty’s house today and ate some apple pie.”

I get it.  But let’s be honest, they don’t give the rest of us much credit.  There certainly is some of that on Facebook and Twitter, but there is a lot more too.  In addition to maintaining personal friendships, I maintain, create and strengthen many business relationships.  I participate in many business activities.  And for me, what they are missing, is that both platforms exist as a major clearinghouse and/or clipping service that provides instant and immediate information on the subjects of your choosing.  The clipping service is free of charge.

And, often the information comes much faster to Facebook and especially Twitter than it does from TV, radio and newspaper (including online).  How many times have we seen with breaking news (or election results for that matter) when the crew on CNN or FOX are merely sharing what their staff is picking up on Twitter.  Why not get it ourselves and faster?  That is a way that I help explain the benefits of participating as an individual in social media.  As a business, especially a communications-based business like government or public relations, it borders on insanity to think you aren’t taking advantage of the opportunity to distribute your information in those vast networks when you have the opportunity to target specific audiences.

My clients are swayed when they learn that 92 percent of Americans get their news from more than one source and that 75 percent get much of their news from online sources like email and social media, it helps them pay attention.  Whether they are promoting their own business or promoting public policy issues, it can’t be done effectively these days without social media, at least not cost-effectively.

In 2011 companies are expected to increase social media budgets to make up 20 percent of overall marketing budgets.  And separate from social media, companies are expected to spend as much as 15 percent of their entire marketing budgets on online advertising.  It’s where people get the news.  It’s where people network and build relationships and it’s where the news is most efficiently and effectively delivered.

There is another good reason many of these programs are misunderstood.  It’s because they are evolving quickly.  I’ve applied social media tools for both political campaign purposes and issue advocacy over the last several years.  I’ve studied, written and spoken extensively about social media applications in the political process.  The most telling fact about use of online communications in political campaigns is that the Obama ’08 campaign was clearly the gold standard of the time.  But times have changed dramatically.

The size of Facebook has more than quadrupled since 2008 and has approximately 600 million users.  The size of Twitter has grown nearly 100-fold since 2008, has over 100 million users and is expected to double or triple in coming years.  Linkedin has more than quadrupled since 2008 and has more than 80 million members with a heavy business focus.  In 2010, Facebook became the most visited website on the internet, surpassing even Google.  To put things in perspective, recognize that when the Obama ’08 campaign was the gold standard, Facebook, Twitter, Linkedin didn’t truly exist in any way resembling what exists today.

If you don’t understand social media and you believe your association, company or organization may benefit from a social media program, let me give you a bit of a warning.  Beware of the snake oil salesman who says his public relations firm have been leaders in all of this for years and years. You’ll know he’s lying because what’s out here today didn’t even exist two years ago.


Brian Fojtik is the President of Brownstone Communications LLC,  the nation's premier social or new media communications consultants specializing in government relations and issue advocacy in all 50 states.      

Historic Day in Wisconsin Politics

In 1987, a wet behind the ears College Republican and reporter for the Badger Herald daily newspaper on the campus of the University of Wisconsin began reporting to work regularly in the office of Republican State Representative Peggy Rosenzweig.  What to follow was 23 years of work in the Wisconsin legislature, on Wisconsin political campaigns and in the private sector lobbying Wisconsin legislators.  That young man who ventured into the Wisconsin State Capitol twenty years ago and never really left was me.  And the recent swearing in of Governor Scott Walker, Speaker Jeff Fitzgerald and his brother, Senate Majority Leader Scott Fitzgerald on Monday was a surreal experience for me to share with them.

Since working for then-State Representative Rosenzweig, I’ve worked for a Lieutenant Governor, a Secretary of State, a U.S. Senator, a State Senator, a Governor and spent the last fourteen years in the private sector lobbying each of the above and more, the last two as President of Brownstone Communications.  It should be noted that not all the positions indicated above were in Wisconsin.  Most were, but I also worked in Illinois politics and government.  And in 13 years as a regional government relations person for UST, I managed a government relations program in seven different states and developed a national agenda and worked with national organizations of Governors, Attorneys General, Speakers, Senate Presidents, legislators and others.  Still throughout it all there has been Wisconsin, where I was born and raised.

I consider myself fortunate to have had occasion to know Scott Walker before he even entered public office when we were both political operatives working together in Milwaukee County to promote the same ends.  I worked on the campaign of incumbent U.S. Senator Bob Kasten and Scott was the Chairman of the Wauwatosa Republican Club.  It didn’t surprise me in the least when Scott later decided to run for State Representative, later Milwaukee County Executive and now Governor.  He’s extremely well-equipped to handle the job of Governor and he has a great team around him.

I was more than excited, as well, to see other friends of mine with whom I worked in those days, at the inaugural festivities and assuming important positions of power in the Walker administration or with the transition.  Mike Grebe, who served as Chairman of the reelection campaign of Bob Kasten’s so many years ago, served the same position for Scott Walker’s Campaign for Governor. John Hiller who was on our political team back in those early days is finishing up work as Chairman of the the Walker transition team and has been working with Scott since the beginning.

And I couldn’t have been happier than to see my good friends who have worked hard for Scott become Chief of Staff (Keith Gilkes), Administration Secretary (former Speaker Mike Huebsch) and DNR Secretary (former Senator Cathy O’Donnell Stepp).  All three are great leaders, will be great assets to the Walker administration and will be great for the state of Wisconsin.

All the excitement occurring in Wisconsin doesn’t only revolve around the Executive Branch, not even close.

Brothers Jeff and Scott Fitzgerald, in becoming the new Speaker and Senate Majority Leader, will be exemplary stewards of the taxpayer’s interests in each of their roles.  Both Jeff and Scott have been close and dear friends since the days they joined the Legislature.  They are both committed, principled conservatives with a core commitment to the values of limited government, low taxes and reduced government spending.  Not only are those values that I worked for in Wisconsin, but I’m pleased because both Fitzgeralds are such good friends.  Their values are family, faith, Wisconsin. I’ve gotten to know them so well and it will be immensely exciting to see them execute their duties as leaders of both houses of the Wisconsin State Legislature.

Others have also ascended into leadership positions and critical roles within the Legislature and the administration.  Most exciting to me are two folks who I have also known since the beginning who will chair the powerful Joint Finance Committee, which is legislative committee which handles the state budget and all critical issues related to taxing and spending.  Senator Alberta Darling and I had a great opportunity to spend some time together at the inaugural activities and reminisce of her early days in politics when my two oldest children, now 17 and 16, were toddlers who appeared in Senator Darling’s campaign brochures when she ran for State Representative.  And Senator Darling’s, co-chair of the Committee, Representative Robin Vos is a true conservative with whom I had the opportunity to work years ago when were both staffers for Racine County legislators from the same Senate District.  Robin eventually ran for office himself and has been steadily climbing the ladder to more and more responsibility and now he and Senator Darling co-Chair the most powerful and significant committee in Wisconsin.

It’s amazing how things work out.  And I guess one of the benefits of growing older is that many of the talented folks with whom you worked as a committed young operative, eventually assume control of the levers of power.  I’m blessed that it’s happened to me in Wisconsin.  And really, Wisconsin is blessed. Each of the people that I’ve mentioned above is truly a talented, gifted, principled leader that takes his or her work seriously.  I couldn’t feel more comfortable seeing Wisconsin in anyone else’s hands.

New Media Today: Burying Internet Search Results

In just a couple short weeks, the voters will finally be heard.  The steady stream of political rhetoric populating our internet worlds -- email inboxes, Twitter and Facebook news feeds and everywhere we turn -- will thankfully start to come to a close.  It is my full expectation that any objective look into which political or third party issue advocacy campaigns were effective, which campaigns exceeded expectations and which were able to avoid disaster or accomplish miracles will have done so through the effective utilization of new media tools.  The end results will see demonstrated through that process should serve as an example and a warning to those groups and interests that want to impact policy after the elections.

Third party issue advocacy groups interested in impacting public policy, and corporate government relations and trade and professional associations that want to impact policymakers must have a presence in new media.  There are a great number of public relations and other firms more than willing to make that case to corporate and third-party America and separate those entities from their money.  Unfortunately, most of those public relations firms are simply using the same old communication models they practice with traditional media and simply targeting a larger universe by expanding their audience to include the blogosphere and other online entities.

It is better to proceed in that manner than not to proceed at all, but most of those organizations could spend their resources much more effectively and efficiently by operating not with traditional public relations firms, but by working with smaller, more agile, adaptable and creative firms.  These smaller firms are able to create news, build interest in issues to appeal to mainstream media and utilize other tactics to not only develop and drive messaging, but also to fight the efforts of their adversaries to spread undesirable messages about them.

It's no surprise that that business competitors have utilized a wide variety of tactics to tarnish the reputations of competitors or the image quality of their products or services.  The online world provides a myriad of opportunities to do so.  Wisely, current consumer product or service providers are using the internet and platforms like Facebook and Twitter to interact with customers whether those customers are happy or dissatisfied.  Are you having trouble with your particular internet service provider or your cellphone service provider?  Maybe you're having trouble with a particular brand of TV or mass email service provider.  If you are experiencing such problems, it might a lot more effective to simply have a lot of Twitter followers and speak loudly about the problems you're experiencing and have a lot of other Twitter followers be willing to dialogue with you or share your frustrations.

Companies are wisely monitoring dialogue about their companies in real times in places like Twitter and Facebook.  If you were having trouble with your cable TV provider and you commented as described above, you may very well be discovered and get someone working diligently to fix your problem before the story gets spread any further on Twitter or Facebook.  And as someone who has handled new media communications on a political campaign, I can tell you that nothing is as disconcerting as seeing negative comments about your candidate populate the tops of Twitter searches or Google or other search engine inquiries.

One of the more recent, but certainly very real developments in this environment is employing professional firms to monitor those developments in new media and with popular search engines like Google and to work to bury negative information about a candidate, a client or a specific product or service offered by a Company.  Without even getting to the veracity or significance of the actual allegations included in such inquiries, we're all familiar with the idea that perception is reality.  If I do a Google search for you as a political candidate, as a Company or about the product or service your company offers, my perception and willing to invest time, money or a vote on you will be greatly impacted by what I find when I search in Google, Twitter or look you up on Facebook.  

First, it's critically important that you have a targeted and deliberate effort to populate important places with positive information.  You should have a website.  It's probably a good idea to have a blog whether separate or incorporated in your website.  You should have a Facebook business page, a LinkedIn business or cause-related page and a Twitter identity (or several) that regularly populate the internet with favorable information about your company, your products and the service you provide.  That is the foundation where you start and you should ensure that your presence is at least as good (ideally is much better) than that of your competitors.  

Those tools allow you to have the online infrastructure in place to not only populate with favorable information that you can control, but also to allow you in a good position to respond to negative or crisis situations should they occur.  It's as simple as providing your company with insurance.  You may look at things and determine that you serve all your clients well, you have a steady stream of new clients and everyone is happy about what you have been able to do for them.  Well, that's ideal.  But it also means that someone else would like to have your clients whether they be existing or a percentage of your prospective new clients, so there is always incentive for people to spread negative information about you or your firm or organization. In yesterday's world, that simply meant a whisper campaign.  Nowadays those communications can be shared online and they can spread like wild fire.

It's critically important that your name and your reputation be monitored.  And if a competitor does decide to spread negative information about you, your firm or the service your provide (whether accurate or not) it is important that you have the ability to move that information way from the top of search results on Google, Facebook and Twitter with a positive campaign of your own.  Except for very specific researchers, most who search for information don't continue past the first page or two provided by Google.  If you are able to keep negative information on pages 4, 5 or 6 of a search (rather than popping on lines number 1, 2 or 3 of the first page) you will keep those negative perceptions away from millions of interested, seeking, viewing eyes.

Please don't hesitate to take a look at www.brownstonecommunications.us if you would like to learn more about how to drive your messages or utilize online tools to both drive your positive message or protect your company, your campaign, your product or service from the negative perceptions being perpetuated by your competitors.  You can't avoid being part of the online discussion about your company, your product and your services.  You can ensure that the favorable messages you control will be seen in that world.  And you can be sure to create the online infrastructure necessary to put into action if any competitors attempt to disseminate any negative information about you or your business.  It's up to you to put yourself in that position of power.     

Coalition Building is Critical in Attempting to Influence Public Policy and Elections

It is impossible to develop a truly efficient public and/or government relations campaign effort without maximizing opportunities to build coalitions that allow client strengths to grow exponentially. Those who are fighting in the public policy arena gain great benefit by employing experienced and proven legislative counsel. Such counsel is expensive and sometimes out of reach of some organizations. Whether one has the ability to retain that counsel or not, it is imperative for companies or associations to identify, plan and build coalitions that suit the particular company, industry or issue. 


Successful coalition building doesn't happen by accident.  First and foremost, relationships and existing networks are the place to begin.  Brownstone Communications works with a broad network of professionals from a variety of disciplines in all 50 states across the country and in the District of Columbia.  Additionally, Brian Fojtik, the President of  Brownstone Communications and those with whom he works enjoy broad experience in working as active, long-term members of national policy-based legislative organizations, national professional organizations, partisan networks that span all fifty states and the broad span of individuals, corporations, professional and trade associations (retail, wholesale, manufacturing, commerce and others) and with members who make up the core constituencies of these organizations.


The importance of the relationships cannot be underscored enough in building successful and effective coalitions.  Relationships alone, however, will not get the job done.  In addition organizations attempting to impact public policy or elections must rely on professional and creative coalition builders with experience.  Such coalitions start with the organizations and individuals themselves.  They expand to primary stakeholders and secondary stakeholders.  Who is directly impacted by the policies or action of interest?  Who is secondarily impacted from a professional, financial or employment perspective?  How about from a personal perspective?  And which organizations or individuals have the most impact or could potentially impact decision makers the most?  Political donors?  Friends?  Family?  Political supporters?  And what ability exists to reach those individuals and convince them of their stake in the issue?  A thorough assessment by a creative professional is key to maximizing the voice of your movement or organization.

Brownstone Communications clients can be assured that no matter what the level of resources available for a specific program, creative, aggressive and effective coalition-building skills will be put to work to support their programs.  You can learn more about Brownstone and the services they provide at www.BrownstoneCommunications.us   Brownstone represents unparalleled experience and relationships in the coalition- building world that puts your efforts well-ahead of that of your competitors from day one.