There wasn’t a tweet to be heard from ESPN employees last week after the company joined the NFL in announcing a new policy that restricts staffers’ use of social media platforms. The policy takes aim at on-air ESPN talent, and effectively bans employees from maintaining “personal website[s] and blogs that contain sports content.” Moreover, according to the policy, “[a]ny violation of these guidelines could result in a range of consequences, including but not limited to suspension or dismissal.” more »

As social media and social media platforms increasingly become promising targets for marketing professionals, the question of return on investment (ROI) of social media campaigns is gaining in prominence, specifically in comparison with the returns generated by alternative marketing initiatives and tactics that can be employed.

The case for ROI

Social media is obviously a relatively new phenomenon, and therefore social media measurement models are still undeveloped, but a number of individuals in the social media arena have made attempts to address existing confusion and lay down some basic ground rules. While many in the field have compiled lists of key performance indicators (KPIs) by which the success of social media initiatives can potentially be measured, Olivier Blanchard and Jacob Morgan, among others, quite correctly emphasize that ROI is by definition a financial equation that specifies the correlation between an investment and its financial return. more »

So much for the ‘boring’ month of August. During the past two weeks, we have been treated to a verbally violent culture war which flared, seemingly, out of nowhere. It is ostensibly about health care, but that was merely the spark, not the root cause.

How did the Obama Administration, just months ago lionized for its deft handling of the media, fail to anticipate the crisis, so ineptly frame the issues and, to date, mismanage the debate? If the President’s recent, belated intervention is too late, this could become a classic case study of how NOT to win a public policy battle.

As we shall see, a toxic stew of complacency about early victories, miscalculation about opponents’ despair as well as supporters’ loyalty, misinterpretation of demo and psychographics, ineffectual communications and leadership deficiencies all played a role. more »