Executive Yak

PEMCO Insurance: An Experimental Tweet-Up Success

Guest Writer: Rod Brooks, VP and CMO, PEMCO

Overview

As Washington’s largest locally based insurer, PEMCO Insurance believes people of the Northwest deserve an insurance company as different as they are. That’s the sentiment behind the company’s “We’re A Lot Like You. A Little Different.” ad campaign, which seeks to celebrate the differences – or quirks – shared by many in the Northwest through profiles of recognizable residents. 

On May 20, 2009, PEMCO hosted a reception at Seattle’s iconic Space Needle to unveil its newest Northwest Profile – the “4-Way Stop, You Go, No You Go, No You Go Guy.”  The event’s purpose was to celebrate the new profile and to debut its 30-second TV ad that would be featured in a story on Evening Magazine, the local NBC affiliate’s news magazine show. 

In anticipation for Evening Magazine’s behind-the-scenes look at what goes into making a PEMCO ad, PEMCO convened a group of internal employees, the company’s creative partners, and a handful of VIP contacts who have been following the campaign and its success. In total, about 65 people attended, eager to view the world premier of the “4-Way Stop” ad. 

Challenges and Opportunities

Invitations to the event were largely extended to guests via Twitter during the two days leading up to the event.  As such, attendees were already savvy to social media tools, but many had not had the opportunity to meet face-to-face. 

As the company leveraged Twitter as a word-of-mouth tool to invite an array of guests, the event evolved into an experimental “Tweet-Up,” or event that largely uses Twitter as a means to plan and promote a social meet-up of people who share a common interest. 

Given the event’s format, the Tweet-Up provided an opportunity for PEMCO to achieve the following objectives:

·         Celebrate PEMCO employees and PEMCO creative partners for dedication and hard work on PEMCO’s “We’re A Lot Like You. A Little Different.” ad campaign.

·         Promote the Evening Magazine segment to a broader audience

·         Incite PEMCO VIPs/social media contacts to tweet/blog/etc. about PEMCO to increase the company’s online presence in the social media realm.

·         Educate the Northwest market on PEMCO Insurance’s presence on Twitter.

·         Introduce PEMCO team members to influencers and relevant social media contacts. 

Strategy

The PEMCO team focused on reaching out to a targeted group of influencers in the Seattle social media scene via Twitter invitations by PEMCO CMO, Rod Brooks (Twitter: NW_Mktg_Guy). PEMCO invited these influencers, PEMCO VIPs, with the goal of building relationships and engaging in meaningful conversations with more experienced social media practitioners in a social setting.

To encourage tweeting, we developed the hashtag #NWProfile, placed signage highlighting the tag throughout venue and included a real-time Twitterfall feed on a big screen to display tweets about PEMCO.

Through interactive activities, such as the PEMCO mobile photo program, the company was able to stimulate positive Word of Mouth mentions across all social media platforms.  Attendees were encouraged to pose for a photo, which they later received as a party favor after the new profile was revealed.

Results

• Raised awareness of PEMCO brand and local values among target audience of social media practitioners
  • Real-time coverage included livestream, twitpics and tweets
  • Post-event coverage included blog posts and Twitter mentions

• Increased the number of relevant PEMCO mentions on Twitter by 100 percent in one day.
  • PEMCO received about 107 tweets between April 21, 2009 – May 21, 2009 according to www.socialmention.com.
  • In less than 24 hours, the #NWProfile tag received 102 tweets by 32 unique authors with a 53:0 ratio in sentiment (positive vs. negative mentions).

• Incited positive blog mentions about launch events and the PEMCO ad campaign
  • Blog Mentions included comments like:

“I salute PEMCO for combining the use of traditional Media, Sponsorships, Social Media and the web to create a well balanced synergistic campaign, that fits well with their campaign slogan, “We’re a lot like you.  A little different.”

– Steve Lawson, Founder, Friendly Voice

What the local NBC affiliate showed during our event.

http://www.king5.com/video/eveningmagazine-index.html?nvid=363721&shu=1    

The finished TV Commercial 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5XdohA-4tQ0&feature=channel_page   

The microsite of NW Profiles / Ads / Interactive options

http://werealotlikeyou.com/   

Example of post tweet-up blog ent

http://friendlyvoice.wordpress.com/2009/05/21/pemco/  

This morning I facilitated a meeting with 25 senior HR executives from a very eclectic group of companies and industries, private/public/not-for-profit; large/small and so on. Topic: “executive compensation.” It was a fascinating and provocative discussion!!!! This group of HR executives ”rocks!” I plan to address several critical questions that emerged in upcoming posts. Today we will focus on “Executive Comp Under Attack: A Blip or Sustainable Shift?” 

Irrefutably we are seeing a wave of change. We  agree that we are finding ourselves in a very unique time. Most companies are implementing cost savings programs and reviewing all pay plans. Generally,  HR executives see and continue to expect widespread declines in all areas of compensation – at least short-term -and many initiatives, ranging from the mundane to the creative, are being implemented.

One of the questions the group debated at some length was whether the changes we are seeing represent a “blip” or are a part of a major and sustainable “shift?”

Can we agree that Americans generally have a short attention span? We go from bubble to bubble. But, is this bubble different and long-lasting? Interestingly more than 50% of executives at the meeting do not perceive that this bubble will cause fundamental and long-lasting change in US executive compensation practices. At the very least not much will change unless the government puts meaningful controls in place. This group believes that once the economy comes back, we will revert to our old ways. Interestingly, however, a significant number of executives believe that the bubble we are in right now is fundamentally different. It is broader and deeper than the technology bubble was. It involves huge social issues in addition to financial ones. This bubble is of a magnitude we have not seen since the Depression and will have long-lasting impacts on executive compensation. What do you think? 

Future blog posts will address other executive comp questions that were disucssed, such as:

1. Are US executives outrageously overpaid?
2. What is the psychology of recalibrating executive pay downward: What’s Right and What Are the Practical Realities?
3.  Are there viable alternatives to compensation as a way to retain and motivate top executives and key talent? 

 More later…

A few days ago I met with my roundtable group of 25+  marketing executives from a very eclectic group of companies and industries to discuss how they are responding to social media.  Some of these executives have barely dipped their toe in the water. Others have taken the plunge and are treading water, while yet others are in the eye of the storm.

Here are some key bullet points from the roundtable discussion: 

• Get clear about why you’re taking the plunge. As marketers, think about using social media in terms of critical strategy and keeping your target audience and corporate business goals front and center. Blogging and tweeting are just activities serving no particular useful purpose unless you know what you are trying to accomplish. The end goal is not to “be on facebook.”  Define your ROI! Are you seeking a reduction in number of calls to your customer service center, are you seeking publicity for a new product, or awareness of your cause marketing initiative? What else?
• Carve out the time to learn the technology and not feel guilty about it. It doesn’t cost anything (except your time). It costs way more NOT to be involved.
• Be open to learning, allow yourself  to “goof”, change your assumptions and have ah-ha moments.
• Make sure that you, your CEO and executive team are “socially relevant.” This may mean having to become clever in your strategy to convince your CEO and peers to dip their toes in the water. Find out what their  passions are and help them get started by monitoring activity in that arena. Perhaps your CEO is a motorcycle fanatic? Perhaps your CFO is a gourmet cook? Show them how they can use the technology by feeding their passion.
• Get help. Find a mentor. Hire an intern. Get a consultant to do some behind-the-scenes social media coaching.
• Be patient. Give yourself time to gradually immerse yourself. No way to take shortcuts. Build your network and expertise over time. This is about engaging in conversation and building community.
•  Find out who else in your company is using social media and partner up. For example, HR is using social media extensively in attracting and recruiting prospects.
• Recognize the potential of social media as a public relations tool as well as a crisis management tool.
• Be yourself or be your brand, but be authentic/transparent either way. Social media allows you to become more authentic in your relationships with customers. Listen to  both the good and the bad, complaints as well as compliments.
• Take advantage of the ability of social media to track trends and listen to the “voice of the customer” in unique ways that supplement your more traditional research methods. Use search functions to track keywords and monitor how folks are talking about your company and industry.
• Leverage the ability to reach your influencers and journalists that cover your industry. These folks, in turn, can carry messages/issues to larger audiences.
• Recognize that the boundary between your personal and professional life is getting blurred (use privacy settings on social media sites such as Facebook).
• Capture the existing passion of your audience/customers. Don’t try to force a conversation.
• Use social media to break up “the arthritis in the joints” in your organization. If you have web sites that are “old” and your IT staff is not very responsive to updating requests, social media will provide you with another venue to communicate quickly, immediately and authentically with your customers.
• Use social media to tie a cause to your brand (cause marketing). For example Tide’s “Loads of Hope” raised $100,000 in four hours via Twitter.
• Use social media as a tool for competitive intelligence and measurement. Tealium was mentioned as a tool that goes beyond Google Analytics.

What other advice do you have?

Do you have stories illustating how social media is providing challenges/opportunities in the workplace. Read what others say and add your own: http://HRUndercover.com

The debate around using social media in the workplace continues. We basically have three camps: 1) those that are 100% “for”  full access to social media sites, 2) those against, and 3) those that want to provide access within boundaries. Here is some of the reasoning I am seeing:

FOR

1.       Productivity is positively impacted. The Hawthorne study shows that happy workers are more productive

2.       Greater efficiency results in dollar savings

3.       It is value-added and relevant in today’s workplace and global economy

4.       Access allows companies to attract, motivate and retain younger workers in all jobs. Social media is how they communicate.

5.       Employees will find a way around rules anyway, so why bother

6.       Allow access for knowledge workers (but block it for others)

7.       It is a non-issue if you focus on performance. Is the employee getting the work done.

8.       It can be costly to set up systems to disallow access

9.       It is a fit for our culture

10.   Your company will become obsolete unless you keep up with changing technology. E-mail is becoming so yesterday

AGAINST

1.       Productivity is negatively impacted

2.       Employees waste time

3.       Social media sites are not relevant for the work that needs to be done.

4.       Heavy social media use slows down the company’s network

5.       Social media creates legal liabilities and security issues for the company

6.       Workers that are not social media savvy or interested perceive that they have to pick up the slack when others waste time on sites

7.       It doesn’t fit our culture

WITHIN BOUNDARIES

1.       Provide access to social media for certain jobs where relevance has been established (for example recruiters)

2.       Generally disallow access to social media sites, but set up a few computers that can be accessed on an ad hoc basis for specific needs

3.       Disallow access to social media sites during work hours, except during break times, before and after working hours

I am sure there are lots of other reasons you have landed in one camp or the other. Please share.