I’m honored to be moderating a panel of Chicago’s top media, digital, and PR thought leaders making predictions for 2012. Be sure to join us February 21 at PRSA Chicago!

PRSA Chicago Third Annual “Predictions” Panel

What’s Ahead in 2012 for our industry? What can we learn from last year’s events, issues and PR moments? 2012 is an exciting year filled with new and unique PR and communications opportunities. What can we learn from our panel of diverse experts? Please join us on February 21st as industry leaders convene to talk about the year ahead for communicators around the world. Our leaders will dialogue and take your questions. Don’t miss this special, annual event!

Panelists include:

•       Bill Adee, Vice President/Digital Stuff, Chicago Tribune Media Group

•       Laura Chavoen, Senior VP and Director of Digital Strategy, MSL Chicago

•       Anna Rozenich, Director, Communications, SunCoke Energy

•       Jim Motzer with DePaul University

•       Moderated by Jack Monson, Vice President, Engage121 and Board Member, PRSA Chicago.

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Rob Biesenbach is a former PR counselor, actor, and author of Act Like You Mean Business. The book and Rob’s January 17 presentation teach business people what they can learn from actors, screenwriters, and playwrights, including:

• Understand and connect with your audience.
• Find, shape and tell compelling stories that move people.
• Express your ideas more visually and with greater impact.
• Tap into the power of emotion to really break through.

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If you’re looking to change up your typical pitch this year to something that will stand out, please join us for this event. RSVP today via PRSA Chicago.
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The International Franchise Association‘s annual conference is just a few weeks away and the social media discussion is already top of mind for many attendees. With keynotes from top social media influencer Guy Kawasaki and leading broadcast media host Bill O’Reilly, communications and particularly social engagement will bet the biggest topic of the conference this year.

I’m glad to once again be organizing the unofficial Tweetup with my friend Deb Evans to kickoff the first night with some informal networking and discussion of social media with franchise pros. Our 3rd Annual IFA Tweetup will take place in the lobby bar of the Orlando World Center Marriott on Saturday just after the Taste of Franchising. RSVP today below and please share with your colleagues using the hashtag #ifatwtup!

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Everyday, bloggers and other content creators use the device of “The Top (insert a number) Things You (insert topic, advice, or other).” This is an easy way to attract readers who don’t really want to dive deep into a subject but want a quick read.

As we near the end of the year, I’m sure the lists of the best this or that from 2011 will be flying soon. So, as you develop your lists, think about what that number is that you want to us to stand out. Top 100? Too much. Top 40? Too old-school radio. Less than ten? Now you’re talking!  Here’s my list of the best numbers to use for lists, with absolutely no scientific evidence of anything.

The Top 6 Numbers to use for “Top _____” Lists:

#1 – 6

#2 – 10

#3 – 5 (tie)

#3 – 7 (tie)

#5 – 3

#6 – 9

Here’s an updated post originally published last year at this time.

31 years ago today, a major news story broke in the middle of a Monday evening. There was no Facebook, no Twitter, no Social Media, no Internet, and no 24 hour cable news.

How did most of America hear the news? Via Howard Cosell.

Cosell was broadcasting ABC’s Monday Night Football and broke in with an unforgettable announcement:

“AN UNSPEAKABLE TRAGEDY…JOHN LENNON…SHOT TWICE IN THE BACK…DEAD ON ARRIVAL.”

Check it out here

Cosell Interviewing Lennon, 6 Years Earlier on MNF

Here’s my list of the best Christmas songs of the Modern Rock Era, which I’m defining as roughly the mid- 1970s through the early 2000s. You will find no Perry Como, Andy Williams, or Bing Crosby here (wait, we do have some Crosby….see #2…) What are your favorites to add?

10. Squeeze – “Christmas Day” (1979)

9. Captain Sensible – “One Christmas Catalogue” (1984)

8. Slade – “Merry Xmas Everybody” (1973)

7. Weird Al – “Christmas At Ground Zero” (1986)

6. Ramones – “Merry Christmas (I Don’t Want to Fight Tonight)” (2001)

5. Pretenders – “2000 Miles” (1983)

4. The Kinks – “Father Christmas” (1977)

3. Band Aid – “Do The Know It’s Christmas” (1984)

2. David Bowie and Bing Crosby – “Little Drummer Boy / Peace On Earth” (Recorded / Originally Broadcast 1977; Released 1982)

1. The Pogues with Kirsty MacColl – “Fairytale of New York” (1987)

Tis the season … for Mashable Awards voting! My colleagues and I at Engage121 are thrilled that our firm is a finalist for Digital Company of the Year. Other finalists include big guys like Dominos Pizza, Progressive Insurance, and The WWE, so it’s an honor for our 13 year old social media software firm to be recognized. Thanks to all of our friends and clients for their votes!

Vote here for your choice of Digital Company of the Year

]]> http://jackmonson.com/2011/11/27/mashable-awards/feed/ 0 prworkbench mashable_awards_5th.jpg http://jackmonson.com/2011/11/21/wkrp/ http://jackmonson.com/2011/11/21/wkrp/#comments Mon, 21 Nov 2011 20:15:37 +0000 Jack Monson http://jackmonson.com/?p=1565 ]]>

"As God as my witness, I thought turkeys could fly."

Here’s an update from last year’s post about Gordon Jump, turkeys, and a new list of pros for whom I am thankful this year.
But first, let’s watch a clip of the WKRP turkey drop!

Several years ago, I had the privilege of meeting Gordon Jump, aka Arthur “Big Guy” Carlson of WKRP in Cincinnati. He was passing through town on a PR tour for Maytag (he was the Maytag Repairman in the commercial campaign at the time) and did a live studio interview at the radio station I was programming.

What a pro! Mr. Jump was a PR person’s AND a media outlet’s perfect interviewee: he promoted the Maytag event for which he was the guest, and also was open to reminiscing about his WKRP glory days. It was near Thanksgiving, so he gave us his best on-air recreation of his classic quote from the WKRP turkey massacre episode. He was thankful for having such a good run and for still acting and portraying fun characters.

In honor of the late Mr. Jump’s spirit of thankfulness for lasting in his chosen industry, here’s a new list of just a few of the folks in the Franchise industry and specifically involved in Social Media Marketing with whom I am thankful for collaborating in 2011 and recommend following in social sphere:

@debce

@bj_emerson

@brandjournalist

@PaulSegreto

@franchise411

@akstout18

@jennimacdonald

@LorriW

@robin_ce

@joematty

@justinthesouth

@faithfulpr

@pamdemoniumpr

@marketing4mom

@goddardsystems

@johnboyens

@greglacour

@josephcaruso

@jeremyladuque

@davemurr

@jbgrafx

And everyone from #Francamp!

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!
-Jack Monson

Oh, the humanity!
-Les Nessman

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Financial institutions have a new reason to pay serious attention to online rating and review sites, according to a small article with big impact in the Monday, November 7^th edition of Wall Street Journal.

According to WSJ:  “The [audit] manual also encourages its auditors to consider complains lodged not only with the [Consumer Financial Protection] Bureau, but with such political actors as state attorney Generals and “on-line consumer complaint boards such as ripoffreport and complaints.com.”

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) was created with regulatory authority that far exceeds current financial industry regulations.  Banks have long endured regulatory audits for possible “unfair” or “deceptive” practices when conducting business with consumers. However, the CFPB has the newly expanded authority, granted by the 2010 Dodd-Frank Law, to look for “abusive” acts.

The first concern for banks is that the definition of “abusive” remains unclear.  The second and larger concern for banks is the CFPB can source online rating and review sites for evidence of possible abusive acts.  The article mentions two review sites as examples: RipOffReport.com and Complaints.com.  Engage121 monitors these two among the top forty consumer rating and review sites.

Evidence of this expanded authority was first published (buried) in mid-October in an 802 page tome called “Supervision and Examination Manual – Version 1.0”.

Last Wednesday, the brawn of CFPB’s expanded authority came to light when the new head of the Bureau, Mr. Raj Date, addressed Congress.  Mr. Date described how the CFPB is empowered to “focus on the consumer” when regulating the nation’s financial institutions.

Engage121 is a social media management application that monitors all the consumer review sites that impact financial institutions, plus twenty social platforms and blog publishing tools, all in one integrated interface.  The Engage121 application allows our financial clients—ranging from large insurance and financial planning companies to regional and community banks—to engage consumers while maintaining compliance with regulatory institutions including FINRA and the SEC.

For more information or guidance on monitoring social media platforms and review sites for financial institutions, please contact Jack Serpa, executive vice president of Engage121, at 203-849-7246, jserpa@engage121.com, or @jackserpa.

The number of Social Media conferences continues to grow each quarter. What’s growing even faster is the number of conferences, summits, and conventions that are industry-specific that are now completely social media marketing focused. I am continuing to pull together as many as possible into one compiled social media conference list and have updated it well into 2012.

If you are organizing, speaking at, sponsoring, or attending a show that is not on this list, please comment here or email me at jmonson@engage121.com and I will add it!