TheDigitel, founded by Ken in 2008, is currently based in Charleston, S.C., but headed to other cities soon. It’s a site that connects readers to news from local media outlets and also produces its own stories, while integrating social media tools like Facebook and Twitter in a helpful way. They’ve also created an innovative ad model integrating real time social media content from their advertisers.

TheDigitel, which recently secured funding for expansion, has its finger on the pulse of news in the 21st Century. We once heard Ken say that citizens will become the gatherers of news and the journalist’s new role will be to provide context. We think he’s right!

Ken wears many hats at TheDigitel.com, acting as Web master, information designer, owner and editor in chief. To keep the site up to date, he spends four or more hours a day on social media sites, monitoring news and events.

Here’s what Ken had to say about social media:

What is your job/company/profession/title?
Web master/info designer/owner/editor in chief/guru for Giant Hawk Media — that’s TheDigitel, an online Web-optimized newspaper. There I more or less do information design and journalism.

What was the first social media technology you used?
First. Hrm. Would probably be Friendster or Flickr. The first I really used was MySpace and Twitter (I think my Twitter account goes way back into ‘06.)

What is your favorite social media tool?
Most certainly Twitter.

How have you used social media for your business/company and how has it benefited?
While social media has been useful to us by offering more efficient communication channels with our readers and customers, it has been eminently useful to us in an information-gathering capacity. Twitter allows us the ability to gather real-time news reports and feedback from readers, while Facebook allows new ways for members and businesses of the community to pass along info about an upcoming band performance or restaurant opening.

Twitter has been doubly interesting, as advertisers that use our Dynamic Ads can both inform their followers and instantly update their advertisement message.

How much time would you say you spend a day engaging social media?
I’d say 1-2 hours actively corresponding, but perhaps 4+ hours monitoring news and events.

How do you incorporate it into your day so it’s not a time waster?
What’s your best tip for using social media for business?
I’ll lump these two together. I maintain one set of accounts for business identities and one for personal. It’s something professionals have done for ages with phones and desks, but many don’t do it for social media.

Is there a social media tool/technique that you think is underutilized that you would like people to know about?
Too many people use Twitter to hammer out a message or go onto bizarre sidetracks with their business accounts — more than anything Twitter is a chance to grow business relationships. Be social, but stay on topic.

And outdated blogs/Web sites with inadequate information drive us nuts as a local media company.

Where can people find you online and via social media?
http://www.twitter.com/TheDigitel
http://www.twitter.com/khawkins98
http://thedigitel.com
http://allaboutken.com/work

Anything else?
Thanks for featuring me. And, fun factoid, TheDigitel.com receives almost as much traffic from Twitter+Facebook as Google.

For our latest promotion, we decided to take the idea of silly/fun hashtags (a way to categorize tweets on Twitter) that often pop up and turn that concept into a contest, as well. Since they’re a telecommunications company, we thought what if we asked people who they would call – past or present, living or dead – if they had a magic phone. We turned #magicphone into the hashtag.

A blog post on the company’s site noted that at two random times during a 24-hour period we would choose the person who had tweeted #magicphone closest to that time and award them a Kindle, thus, the contest.

Well, as you may or may not have seen, #magicphone really took off. However, after a staff post-mortem of the promotion and conversations with several Twitter buddies, we realize we may have created an unintended annoying side effect especially for locals in Charleston (where #magicphone got started): filling up your Twitter account with a lot of #magicphone posts.

So we wanted to issue a #magicphone apology on behalf of Step Ahead, Inc. We realize now that the way we chose to select the winner (by selecting a random time) encouraged people to spam #magicphone over and over in the hopes they would land on the right time. Creating a bunch of spammy repeating posts was certainly not our goal.

We wanted people, if they were interested, to tweet it once or twice, tag two others, and be done with it. But instead, lots of people just posted the same tweet over and over and over again. If you were following multiple people doing that, your Twitter account quickly filled up with #magicphone.

Sooo…. we’ve decided that for future promotions like this we’ll allow folks to enter once per day only via Twitter and hopefully reduce the spammy tweets so it’s a bit more manageable – and fun, like we intended. We’re all learning as we navigate the ever-changing world of social media and we feel like every time we do a promotion and tweak and refine, we’re helping our clients have the best social media presence they can have.

Overall, though, Magic Phone was a success, sending more than 4500 people to our client’s Web site and exposing them to their products. Heck, I even got Trista Sutter (oh come on, you know she was The Bachelorette!) to tweet it!

I hope that helps make up for our mistake, Charleston Twitterers. Please know we did not intend to be annoying and never want to aggravate our best Twitter buddies.

So if you see #magicphone again, don’t worry. Hopefully, you’ll only see it a couple of times and you can choose to participate or not without a disruption to your Twitter day.

Thoughts? Suggestions?

FourSquare is a location-based application that you run on your smart phone that allows users to “check-in” when they are out and about. Headed to Publix? Check-in. Out with the guys at the neighborhood pub? Check-in. It definitely appeals to the exploratory and competitive nature of people. It’s like a combination game + communication tool.

FourSquare not only sends out a message on Twitter every time someone checks into a new location, it rewards users by declaring the most frequent traveler to a particular location the “mayor” and awards fun “badges” for checking in often. Additionally, FourSquare allows users to see which of your friends have checked in recently near your current location.

Some smart business owners are beginning to see the benefits already, especially restaurants, retailers, attractions, etc., of driving traffic to their business. With a few simple techniques, you too can use FourSquare to your advantage. Here are a few ideas to get you going:

1. Reward the Mayor – Offer the current “mayor” of your business a perk of holding that position. Maybe it’s a free dessert with every entrée they purchase or half price on all haircuts. To retain their position they will have to come in often, spend money and hopefully bring friends. And maybe others will “check in” more often to try to become the new mayor.
2. Encourage New Clients – The first time a customer “checks in” to your location, offer them a deal or special as a thank you for stopping by.  Something like a free coffee refill the first time they try a new café would encourage new business.
3. Build Traffic – Need your booth to look busy at the next big trade show? Enter everyone who stops by and “checks in” into a drawing for a great prize.
4. Work Together – Gather a few local organizations and create a Scavenger Hunt for the FourSquare crowd. People enjoy using technology to have a good time, and bonus if there’s a prize at the end! You may even get a little local attention!
5. Work the Tips – Use the tips section of the FourSquare app to announce specials and promotions. Users feel like they are being let in on a special deal.

The best part is that FourSquare now supports these “check in” offers. They want you to use their service to build your business, so they’ve invited you to submit your special offers to them and they’ll show them to people who “check in” near you. Here’s a great example from a Coffee House in North Carolina who’s offering a special to anyone who checks in at their location.

If you have a business and still have questions visit FourSquare’s Business page or give us a call to help you make the most of FourSquare.

What creative way could you use FourSquare to promote your company?

Di Maggio and Bogstad will be overseeing client accounts for the company and serving as the primary client liaison. Di Maggio has worked extensively in traditional and online marketing in the hospitality and travel industries. Prior to joining Step Ahead, she was director of marketing for Charming Inns of Charleston for seven years. Bogstad brings a background in graphic design, strategic advertising and event planning. She previously owned Mostly Graphics, a design and promotional marketing company, where she developed and executed marketing campaigns for local Charleston organizations.

Angermeier, who started with the company two years ago, manages social media tools for Step Ahead clients, including Facebook pages, Twitter accounts, blogs, YouTube channels and more. By adding trainer to her title, she will now be responsible for keeping Step Ahead employees and clients up to date on the latest social media tools and trends, as well as training new employees on the company’s approach and processes.

But sometimes that brings up a hairy question: Do we want our employees on social media saying they work for us? What if Sally’s wild night out reflects badly on the company? What if she publicly says something negative about a client on Facebook or Twitter?

So we sometimes help companies draft an internal social media policy. But before I go into the meat of those policies, let me first and foremost say I am a big proponent of the more people participating in social media on your behalf, the better. I believe in openness in social media, and that means taking a risk sometimes that someone will do or say something negative. And believe me, they will! But to me, the positives of being on social media and the goodwill and customer service and awareness it fosters are way worth the couple of negatives.

Now, that being said, I still can’t convince some companies of my views, soooo … we help them craft a policy to help them feel more secure that they’re protected in the event that negative post happens.

What should you put in an employee social media policy?

What information shouldn’t an employee share on social media? Company financial data, trade information, internal documents?

Can your employees mention that they are employed by you? If they do mention that, do they need to share that account with you?

If they do mention an affiliation, provide some guidelines for good social media etiquette. They might include:

• Remember that whatever you do or say is in some way representing your company for good or bad.

• Never post any information about the company unless you have seen it released publicly by the PR/marketing department or on the company Twitter account or company blog.
  

• Post the following disclaimer: “The opinions listed here don’t reflect those of my employer.”

• Speak in first person to indicate you are speaking your opinions and not those of the company.

• Avoid insults or inappropriate language.

• Remember that everything you post is publicly indexed online; don’t post anything you wouldn’t want the world, including your boss, your clients and your mom, to see.

• Contribute intelligent, thoughtful material and be professional!

• Be authentic, transparent and truthful.

• Social media, unless it is furthering your work, should not interfere with your work time and should be done on personal time.

I think we can find a happy medium here to satisfy employers without majorly restricting employees, and then you can give your employees the chance to support the company’s social media efforts. And if they support you, by gosh, reward them!

http://www.charlestoncurrents.com/issue/10_issues/10.0225.htm

Sometimes it pays to be a follower.

Twitter and Facebook have been a marketing godsend for all kinds of companies, which increasingly are using social media to build loyalty with shoppers. Now, retailers have even begun to tout sales and exclusive discounts to customers who interact with them through social media. For example, Banana Republic recently offered shoppers an invitation to an exclusive spring preview event, as well as a printout coupon good for 30% off a purchase of $100 or more at the event.

Developing a social-media presence lets companies more effectively manage what customers are saying about their business online by developing a following, says Lyn Mettler, the founder of Step Ahead, amarketing firm in Mount Pleasant, S.C. “They might as well get in on the conversation and offer something to reward the loyal customers,” she says.

For the best freebies, hunt for businesses located in your area, as well as nearby locations of major chains. They have more need of brand recognition and customers than a big-name company, and so are more likely to offer exclusive discounts for followers, says Sara Dunham, a spokeswoman for Savings.com.

Finding deals is as simple as registering for the free networking sites and conducting a search for your favorite companies and brands. Many even have coupon-specific feeds or pages that put deals all in one place.

http://articles.moneycentral.msn.com/SmartSpending/blog/page.aspx?post=1651240

Just tweet about your troubles, and the airline, car rental company or hotel will fix it. At least that’s the conventional wisdom. And while it’s true that travel companies are spending a lot of time online listening to their customers, they’re not necessarily paying attention to all of us.

“Travel companies pick and choose who to respond to in social media,” says social media expert Ryan Goff of the advertising firm MGH, Inc. “You better believe that a Web celebrity with 100,000 Twitter followers is going to catch a company’s attention over the casual Tweeter with only 10 friends.”
Even online, some travelers are more equal than others. Question is, how to become a somebody?

You should care, because even today, as social networking applications like Twitter and Facebook have come of age, being online can be the most effective shortcut to getting great customer service.

I see it every day on Twitter, as customers with questions are sent to the front of the line (sometimes literally) because they had a respectable social-media profile. Online travel agencies such as Orbitz have an entire team of employees dedicated to monitoring online chatter and helping customers.

I asked several social media experts about how to boost your online profile. Here’s what they told me:

1. BE INTERESTING

Boring people don’t get a lot of followers. “Be engaging,” says Lyn Mettler, the founder of Step Ahead, Inc., which manages social media campaigns. “Don’t just talk, talk, talk about yourself all day long. Read what other people are posting and respond to them. Ask questions, answer questions. Truly interacting with people will help build your followers.”

2. GET A BLOG

One of the fastest ways to raise your online profile is to start blogging. “If you blog, that helps tremendously,” says Tim Massie, an adjunct professor of communication at Marist College. It helps if the subject matter is travel-related, but anyone with access to a credible blog is likely to come to the attention of a travel company faster than someone who doesn’t have one. Massie says being an active participant in online forums can help, too. “If you go the extra mile, posting photos, helping others understand the amenities of hotels, and providing insider information that a typical tourist would overlook, you will earn your reputation and be an influencer in the travel industry,” he says.

3. JOIN THE CONVERSATION

“Post and tweet frequently about your experiences,” says Rick Gardinier, the chief digital officer for the advertising agency Brunner. “This will increase your relevancy and authoritativeness which in turn will boost your following.” How often? I try to tweet and post a few times a day, but you should be able to keep a respectable profile by publishing something a few times a week.

4. OFFER GOOD INFORMATION

Building trust — and followers — takes time and work, according to experts. “Travelers can increase their social media influence by creating good content, consistently, for an extended amount of time,” says Chris Harrington, the technology director for the communications firm Luquire George Andrews. He says he’s likely to follow users who have positive things to say about the subject matter. “Negative comments can hurt the traveler’s social capital as much or more than the company in question,” he adds. That way, when you go negative — when something happens to you while you’re traveling that you need resolved — your followers will pay attention.

5. CHECK YOUR MOTIVES

It matters where you’re coming from, say the pros. “Motivation behind using social media extensively will drive the behavior of travelers,” says Philippe Duverger, an assistant professor of marketing at Towson University. For example, if people think you’re trying to sell something, they may be less likely to include you in the network. Also, if you’re branded a “complainer” then that can be a turn-off. Being in it for all the right reasons is one way of attracting lots of followers and building your online credibility.

6. SPEAK UP

The best way to get noticed by any company is to openly discuss your experiences. “If the company has an interest in social media as a marketing outlet, then they will be monitoring all conversation about them, both positive and negative,” says social media guru Dan Healy of Mason, Inc., in New Haven, Conn. Acknowledging an experience that you had on an airline, for example, on a public forum is important to the airline because it gives them insight about their customers, and the public’s opinion. Be sure to use proper shout-out etiquette by linking to the travel company’s blog (which is monitored by the company) or using their Twitter handle — (at)Jetblue or (at)Marriottintl — when you tweet about them.

7. MAKE A PERSONAL CONNECTION

Travelers tend to follow people they can relate to. “People trust contents from somebody they can identify with personally,” says Iis Tussyadiah, an assistant professor at Temple University’s school of tourism and hospitality management. Often, it’s as simple as posting a picture and a brief biography on your blog or Facebook profile. People are likely to read your tweets and posts when they feel they know you than when you’re a faceless, anonymous voice on the Internet.

Even if you only have a small number of followers, you can still make a difference. “The squeaky Twitterer still gets the grease,” says Dallas Lawrence, the chair of the digital and social media practice group at Levick Strategic Communications. “Like most travel related stories in the online space, companies have focused their efforts towards addressing critical commentary posted by dissatisfied customers who have posted damaging comment to the online space about a particular airline, hotel or travel provider.”

You’re probably wondering if these strategies can really work for you. They can. I’ve used them myself. (You can follow me on Twitter at elliottdotorg, Facebook, Google Buzz, or on my blog.

Along the way, I’ve made some terrific friends — people I’ve never actually met, but that’s beside the point — and had lots of interesting conversations.

Next time you have a travel problem, you’ll be glad you did.

http://articles.orlandosentinel.com/2010-02-24/travel/orl-travel-troubleshooter-2-022310_1_social-media-online-travel-agencies-travel-companies/3

The weather was a bit chilly, but the sun was out, and it was a beautiful day to be outdoors. You may have noticed a color theme in our group photo. Three of us showed up in the same shade of purple, completely unplanned!

Developing a social media presence lets companies more effectively manage what customers are saying about their business online by developing a following, says Lyn Mettler, the founder of Step Ahead, a marketing firm in Mt. Pleasant, S.C. “They might as well get in on the conversation and offer something to reward the loyal customers,” she says.

For the best freebies, hunt for businesses located in your area as well as nearby locations of major chains. They have more need of brand recognition and customers than a big-name company, and so are more likely to offer exclusive discounts for followers, says Sara Dunham, a spokeswoman for Savings.com.

Finding deals is as simple as registering for the free networking sites and conducting a search for your favorite companies and brands. Many even have coupon-specific feeds or pages that put deals all in one place.

http://www.smartmoney.com/spending/deals/discounts-in-140-characters-max/

Chad Norman, the interactive communications manager at Blackbaud, has been a pioneer who’s extremely innovative in his use of social media to help keep his company connected, improve customer support and drive traffic.

We picked Chad as February’s social media star, because he has developed a mature social media program at Blackbaud that’s been incredibly successful and he’s constantly on the look-out for new tools and new ways to improve their program. Here’s what Chad had to say about social media:

What is your job/company/profession/title?
Currently, I’m the interactive communications manager at Blackbaud, the leading provider of technology for nonprofits.

What was the first social media technology you used?
OK, since I’m old, I can remember the BBS days, not to mention Classmates.com (boy, did they blow it!). In the modern era, probably MySpace and YouTube.

What is your favorite social media tool?
Twitter is by far my favorite social media platform, both from a professional and personal standpoint. Though SlideShare.net is a close second and is great for sharing knowledge and SEO. FourSquare is a great one that is up and coming.

How have you used social media for your business/company and how has it benefited?
Over the last two years, we’ve been using social media at Blackbaud to increase engagement, support customers, promote initiatives and thought leaders, and drive traffic to our various Web properties. We’ve definitely seen increased engagement and support – social media has allowed us to communicate in ways we never could before. We’ve probably seen the most benefits by using social media to promote and drive traffic. Our metrics are telling us that a double digit percentage of our traffic is arriving via social media, and that is a lot of growth for a B2B company like us.

How much time would you say you spend a day engaging social media?
Around one hour, and that includes everything like updating/tweeting, collecting metrics, reporting, and planning. Keep in mind that we have a mature program, and that early on more time was used. I always remind people that most of the time investment is up front (learning how the community works, developing a strategy, training staff, etc). Once it is integrated into your overall communications plan, you’ll find less and less time is required.

How do you incorporate it into your day so it’s not a time waster?
I do a couple things that help me save time on a daily basis. The first is to actually set aside time in the morning. 20 minutes on Monday to collect metrics, 10 minutes each day to write tweets, 30 minutes on Friday to recap the week, etc. Put those things on your actual calendar. Second, I try to use as many helpful tools as possible. Build a listening dashboard in iGoogle (rather than scouring the web manually), use Tweetdeck to manage your daily work flow (monitoring and responding), and roll out CoTweet to your staff (pre-write tweets, assign responses, etc).

What’s your best tip for using social media for business?
The best tip is to forget about the actual execution and focus on the bookends: Planning and Reporting. You must develop a strong strategic plan and stick to it. Your strategy will determine which tools to use, what to say and who should be saying it – not the other way around. On the back end, you need to collect metrics and actually analyze them. Don’t just count how many times you were retweeted – look at what was retweeted, and who passed it along. These collected metrics will also help you benchmark your efforts against other orgs and help you adjust your plan. Remember, you can’t just collect, you have to measure!

Is there a social media tool/technique that you think is underutilized that you would like people to know about?
Social media does wonders for search engine optimization, so I always tell clients to use anything that can help tell your story – because Google is listening. Do you give presentations? Load them on SlideShare.net. Do you take a lot of photos? Share them on Flickr. Does your audience hang on LinkedIn? Start a group to help them discuss things. All of those things will rank on page 1 for your business

Where can people find you online and via social media?
www.echohive.com/blog
www.gogreencharleston.org
www.twitter.com/chadnorman
www.facebook.com/chadnorman
www.slideshare.net/chadnorman