Category Archives: Fletcher Prince News
Do you spend too much time on Twitter?
Image via CrunchBase
Twitter is fun, fast, and easy.
But is it effective, as a marketing tool? Is it the best use of your company’s time and resources?
I believe most companies and organizations should have a branded presence on Twitter that is monitored daily. But I also observe that many place too much emphasis on Twitter.
When you look at engagement on Twitter, it’s important to keep the facts about its impact in perspective. Twitter is still not representative of the general public. It can be easy for communicators and the media to over-estimate its reach, since communicators and the media are two professions that make up the largest segments of active users on Twitter.
Edison Research found that while most Americans (97%) were aware of Twitter, only 8% of Americans had a profile on Twitter (20 million Americans), and of that 8%, only 3 out of 10 used it every day. Compare that to the 51% of Americans with a profile on Facebook. Only about 40% of registered Twitter accounts globally are considered “active” and of those active accounts, barely half have posted an update, reply or retweet in a month or more.
Most tweets do not get engagement — they do not @replies or retweets. Less than 3 out of 10 tweets see any reaction, and that only in the first hour. Only 6% of tweets get a retweet.
Twitter can be a very useful tool for reaching special interest groups, keeping tabs on legislators, government agencies, and political candidates, and connecting with the news media (use Twitter lists to organize your contacts). It can be a useful monitoring and customer service tool, so maintaining a branded presence on Twitter is important.
But don’t over-rely on Twitter to reach the general public with important messages or promotions. Monitor daily and be responsive; incorporate outreach on Twitter as one element in an integrated marketing strategy, but remember what it’s good for. Don’t neglect result-netting tactics, such as blogs, advertising, email marketing communications, print (and for some businesses and organizations — Facebook.)
Related articles
- To Follow or Not To Follow: Should Small Businesses Follow Everyone Back on Twitter? (mashable.com)
- Top 10 Most Retweeted Brands [REPORT] (contently.com)
Save money on our marketing services: barter agreements
Have you ever entered into a barter agreement? It can be a great way to get the services you need while conserving cash. We are open to barter at Fletcher Prince.
Occasionally, we trade Fletcher Prince services (marketing, public relations, video production, design, social media) for services or other trades we value.
We find this type of exchange works best for friendly, short-term, well-defined barters of goods and services with other small businesses. For example, last year, I traded a logo design for a week in a beach house. Two years before, I swapped video production services for portrait photography services. Both parties were very happy with the arrangement.
If you have something of value to offer, besides money, why not make us an offer? We would definitely consider barters for
- Short-term stays in vacation condos or homes (spring, summer, fall)
- Business services
- Health and beauty services
And for this, we are happy to exchange
- Design services (logo design, brochure design, direct mail, etc.)
- Social media training (e.g., coaching on blogging, Twitter, Facebook)
- YouTube video production
- Photography services
As with traditional paid work, we will feature your project in our portfolio and list you as a Fletcher Prince client. If you’ve got a nice place at the beach, contact me right away 
and let’s make a barter!
Income from bartering is taxable in the year in which you receive the goods or services. Generally, you report this income on Schedule C, Profit or Loss from Business Form 1040.
Related articles
- Bartering and Taxes: Why & How to Report Barter Transactions to IRS (taxdebthelp.com)
- Is Your Biz Cash Low? Use Bartering to Grow! (smallbusinessfinanceforum.com)
Make money with Fletcher Prince: About Referral Commissions
Referrals to Fletcher Prince earn you $$$!
Do you have a friend or colleague in need of our creative marketing, public relations, social media, or design services? Refer them to us!
We appreciate the time and care you take in providing thoughtful referrals and we want to thank you in a tangible way.
We will pay you a 15% commission on projects and contracts when we are paid by a client you refer to us.
Here’s the fine print…
- The commission referral fee does not apply to projects you subcontract to Fletcher Prince, partnership work agreements, or to our participation in group RFPs.
- If we accept the project, the client you refer to us must hire us within 30 days of your referral for you to be eligible for your commission.
- Upon this hire, we will ask you to sign a referral agreement that outlines the terms of your payment, etc.
- The commission is paid for the first project or first invoice only. We do not pay commission on subsequent projects or retainer agreements by the client.
- We pay you your commission fee when the client pays us.
- The referral must be for a company for which you do not currently work.
- The relationship between you (the referrer) and Fletcher Prince will be as independent contractors. No employment, partnership or joint venture relationship is formed by this referral agreement and at no time may the referrer position himself or herself as affiliated with Fletcher Prince, except as an independent referrer.
- Referrers should not enter into any agreements on behalf of Fletcher Prince.
- We will not reimburse referrers for any expenses they incur in obtaining the referral.
- Our referral policy is subject to change or discontinuation.
Thanks for referring your friends and colleagues to Fletcher Prince.
Time to Update Your Facebook Page with a New Cover
Remember back in September when I blogged that Facebook would most likely shift Pages to the Timelines format? Well, that day is here. You can implement the changes right now, or spend the next few weeks getting ready for them, because the changes will go into effect for all Pages on March 30, 2012.
To illustrate, here is what the Fletcher Prince Facebook Page looked like before the changes:
Fletcher Prince Facebook Page -- Former Layout
And here is the Fletcher Prince Facebook Page after the changes that will take place for all Pages on March 30 (you can go ahead and change your Page now).
Fletcher Prince Facebook Page with the new Cover image
Are you ready? The main thing you are going to need right away is a branded Cover. You have a month to work with, and we are ready to help you. Depending on the complexity of your design, we can create a new Page Cover image for your Facebook Page for about $125 to $375, estimated.
The new Page format is visual and wide. The look of your page will change. Photos will be getting top billing, by default, and as you may know, photos are what get engagement on Facebook Pages. The photo that is featured on your Page front is the most recent photo you posted on your wall, in landscape format. So that is something to consider.
The first two “tabs” you have on your Page will be featured most prominently with thumbnails, and the rest of your links will have a click through, so pick the two tabs you like best and move them to the top of the list of your tabs.
Facebook Restrictions about Page Covers
There are some restrictions from Facebook about the Cover image. You may not put a call to action in the Cover image — you cannot say or suggest someone “like” the Page or share the Page. Facebook specifically restricts this. You cannot include price or purchase information, or any kind of promotional wording.
Choose a Cover image — or have us create one for you, because we would love to do that! — that is a creative and original photograph that sums up what your Page is about. For example, if you were a realtor, it might be an image of homes. If your Page was for a restaurant, it might be some menu items or the restaurant interior. If your Page is for a product, it might be an image of people using your product.
While you don’t want to get overly promotional, there’s no rule that says you can’t change your Cover from time to time. So, think about seasonal and holiday versions of your Covers, if that is appropriate for your brand. We will offer that design service for Page owners who would like that option.
Please contact us to update your Facebook Page Cover Image, and your client’s Facebook Pages. And remember: we also create branded Google + Page banner images, LinkedIn Business Profile banner images, new YouTube layout graphics, blog headers, Twitter profiles, and more. We can create a whole suite of branded social media images for you.
Event Report: February Network-and-Lunch
Gumbo and PR networking at RT's restaurant in Alexandria
Our first network-and-lunch event on Mardi Gras Tuesday was lots of fun. We enjoyed getting together for lunch at RT’s Restaurant in Alexandria with independent communicator buddies Vicki Robb, Heathere Evans-Keenan, David Hyson, Robert Udowitz, Susan Rink, and Lorelei Harloe.
Did I mention the lunch was outstanding? Susan and I both got the shrimp and grits special, Vicki and Robert opted for traditional gumbo, David had his favorite Oysters Nezpique, and Lorelei and Heathere were good and got salads
The first question was: is there an agenda for this lunch? Do we have a topic? And my answer was: no there is not. Not for this lunch, or any of them. The purpose of these monthly network-and-lunches is just to get together and get to know each better, and find out what everyone is doing. Everyone is there to share information and help each other. If we hire each other, or connect each other to paying projects or speaking engagements, wonderful. But first — the connection.
We need more of that, right? I go to a lot of networking events, and I always end up feeling a little let down because it seems just as the conversation starts getting interesting, it’s time to listen to the speaker. Not that there’s anything wrong with that. But I think these lunches fill that networking need I was looking for.
Register now and join us in March and throughout 2012
These small group (8-10 people max) networking lunches are going to help us all get to know each other much better, and hopefully we’ll meet some new people, too. So I’m hoping I will see my blog subscribers, Facebook friends, and Twitter followers at our monthly Fletcher Prince networking lunches.
Believe it or not (I sure was surprised) the October one is almost full already! So go ahead and reserve your spot today — it doesn’t cost anything except the price of your lunch — and we’ll see you next time!
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Presidents and Social Media: Reflections on President’s Day
Happy President’s Day! George Washington’s birthday is Wednesday, and Abraham Lincoln’s birthday was on February 12, but who’s counting? Many of us have the day off!
Did you ever think about historical figures and imagine how they might have used social media, if it were at their disposal in their time?
I see George Washington, the father of our country, on Facebook. George Washington and his wife, Martha, played host to hundreds of travelers at Mount Vernon. In addition to being a surveyor, statesman, and general, President Washington was known for his impeccable manners. I think George Washington would have gravitated toward Facebook to keep up with all the friends he made over the years. And he would have had LOTS of online photo albums!
Our second President, John Adams, was an influential person known for his ability to connect with and persuade people to his views. He was sent on diplomatic missions and also served as an ambassador. A LinkedIn man if there ever was one.
Third president Thomas Jefferson would be a blogger. Thomas Jefferson also liked to socialize but he spent many solitary hours alone every day, reading and writing countless letters. He donated his library to form the Library of Congress. And he was a foodie. He brought ice cream and macaroni and cheese to the United States. With these qualities, I think he would take to blogging like a fish to water. And so would have his friend and fourth President, James Madison (but Dolley Madison would have definitely been on Facebook!)
Abraham Lincoln, our 16th president, may have been drawn to Quora. A self-educated man and a lawyer, who also served in Congress, President Lincoln gave one of the world’s most famous and most succinct speeches, the Gettysburg address (only 272 words). He had an interest in addressing and solving problems. Quora would be natural for him.
Theodore “Teddy” Roosevelt, our 26th President, was a former cowboy who went to Harvard and read more than 10,000 books in his lifetime. He loved to travel and went on safari in Africa. He traveled to Europe. He explored the Amazon River in South America. He rode in a plane in 1910. He used to go skinny dipping in the Potomac River in winter time (brrr!). And he loved nature and established five natural parks. He was always DOING something and going places. I think President Theodore Roosevelt would have loved Foursquare. He would have been the “mayor” of everything
32nd President Franklin Delano Roosevelt would have made videos for YouTube. The President who invented the fireside chats wanted to connect on a personal level with his constituents. I think he would have been drawn to the personal nature of YouTube video and the trust-building power of online video communication.
I think our 35th President, John F. Kennedy, Jr., would have preferred Twitter. Twitter has been the platform of activism and the coffee house of journalists (as well as the playground of celebrities!). And he was a young president, who was interested in change and cutting-edge innovations. For those reasons, I believe he would have found Twitter irresistible. He surely would have had a smart phone!
Social Media Week DC Recap, Photos, and Links to Resources
Mary Fletcher Jones, presenter, Social Media Week, DC with Susan Rink, guest speaker, and David Hyson, designer and Fletcher Prince creative director
It was a tremendous amount of work on the part of many people, but I am happy to report that our three presentations for Social Media Week DC on Tuesday, February 14 were a resounding success!
Keep reading below for links to the presentations online, and our report on the results of this presentation…
Thank You, Presenters
Thanks go to our special guest presenters who joined Mary Fletcher Jones at the podium, and who did a fantastic job!
- Susan Rink, Rink Strategic Communications (subscribe on YouTube)
- Brad Simmons and Mehreen Sheikh, The World Bank (subscribe on YouTube)
- Brittany Brown, The U.S. Army (check out the social media strategy here)
- Kristen Milhollin, The GoodSpeaks Project (nonprofit news calendar resource here)
We had a packed room for our Social Media Week DC presentations on February 14
Thanks, too, to Tim Fahey of the Dirigo Agency for capturing some video moments of the day, Thomas Jefferson Library for allowing us to use their room and equipment for the Social Media Week DC presentation, and to iStrategy Labs and Social Media Week for organizing the registration.
Results
We were very pleased that 250 people registered for our Social Media Week DC sessions in advance. By noon, we had standing room only (80+ attendees) in the conference room at Thomas Jefferson Libarary in Falls Church. At one point, 174 viewers were tuning in remotely via our Livestream broadcast. We also increased our Facebook Page friends and Twitter followers.
The feedback we have received has been gratifying — here are just some of the comments
Brittany Brown, Social Media Manager for the U.S. Army, presented an impressive editorial calendar example
we received!
Great session on Creating Editorial Calendars for Social Media. — Kevin Oliveri
Thank you for all the tips on marketing my blog. I’m definitely learning and I’m going to start scheduling my posts. — Rose-Ellen Eastman
Great YouTube presentation. Thanks for all the takeaways! — Frost Miller Group
Thanks for all the useful blog tips! — Annie Chambers
Thanks to Mary Fletcher Jones for three great sessions today. Lots to blog and think about. — Jesse Stanchak
We enjoyed everything we heard today from Mary Fletcher Jones — Carousel 30
Thank you Mary Fletcher Jones and Social Media Week DC — we learned some really great tips from today’s sessions — zcomm
Thank you for your invaluable YouTube, editorial calendar, and blog presentations today. — Jacqueline Leeker
Thank you for a great presentation. I’m putting together my editorial calendar today. — Joanne McAlpine
Sessions Online Now
If you missed our Social Media Week DC sessions on YouTube, Editorial Calendars, and Blogging, or would like to review the content, here are some links to check out
Presentations. All three presentations are on SlideShare (http://www.SlideShare.net/FletcherPrince). Be sure to download these presentations and view them in PowerPoint, on Notes view. You will see additional details that are not viewable on the slides themselves.
Live video clips. We recorded all of the sessions in their entirety, and they may be viewed on our Livestream archive (http://www.Livestream.com/FletcherPrince). Just scroll down to the area beneath the player on that page, and you will see those most recent videos in our online Livestream video library.
Livestream does not allow us to edit these videos (unfortunately!) so please skip forward about 25 minutes for the longer one (the first two sessions on YouTube and Editorial Calendars) to get to the start of the presentation, and skip forward about 14 minutes for the shorter one (to get to the start of the presentation of the third session on blogging).
YouTube video. We also captured some higher quality video footage which we are currently editing into short clips, and we will put those edited videos on our Fletcher Prince YouTube Channel (http://www.YouTube.com/user/FletcherPrince). Thank you for subscribing!
Flickr Photo Set. Check out the photos from the day. We would love to see your photos, as well. You can share those with Mary@FletcherPrince.com
Thank you to all who attended, and most of all, we appreciate your kind referrals for new business and projects in social media, marketing, PR, and design. We are looking for work! If you have questions or leads, or would like a complimentary consultation, please call Mary Fletcher Jones (571) 269-7559.
Thanks for your retweets and comments.
Register for my free blogging presentation, 2/14, Social Media Week
You only have to register for this event if you are attending the event in person in Falls Church, VA. You do not need to register to watch this online. If you need to cancel your registration, please contact MaryFletcherJones@Yahoo.com
REGISTER HERE or watch online at www.SocialMediaWeek.org
Do you blog for your company, agency, or organization? Do you find it difficult to blog on a regular basis? Do you ever run out of ideas? Do you wish you had more readers for your blog?
In this interactive presentation, I will talk about the marketing advantages of blogging for your business, agency, or nonprofit organization, and identify some of the common challenges associated with blogging.
Mary will suggest practical planning and writing tips, engagement strategies, and topic ideas. A question and answer session will follow the presentation.
The content level in this presentation is appropriate for people who are new to blogging, beginning bloggers, and intermediate-level bloggers.
About Your Presenter
Mary’s blogs include The Fletcher Prince Blog, Conversations in Public Relations, Autumn in Virginia, Cool Yule: A Christmas Blog, and You Can’t Make This Stuff Up.
She created the blogs for the National Capital Chapter of the Public Relations Society of America and the DC Ad Club.
Mary enjoys developing blogs for clients and teaching people how to use blogging as a marketing and engagement tool.
Directions
Thomas Jefferson Library, 7415 Arlington Boulevard, Falls Church, VA 22042
The library is located between two complexes of garden apartments just adjacent to Loehmann’s Plaza (shopping center with Giant and other stores), on the same side of Rt. 50.
From the Beltway:
- Take Exit 50B (old Exit 8E), Rte. 50 East (Arlington Boulevard).
- Go through the first light (Jaguar Trail).
- Go 0.4 miles to library on the right, just before the traffic light at Allen Street.
- The library is a new, modern-looking brick building surrounded by garden apartment buildings (there is a service road in front that runs parallel to Route 50/Arlington Boulevard).
From Seven Corners:
- Go 1.3 miles west on Rte. 50 to the third traffic light (Allen Street).
- Turn left on Allen Street, then immediately right onto service road that runs parallel to Route 50.
- The library is a new, modern looking building surrounded by garden apartments; the second brick building on the left.
Public Transportation:
Metrobus Route 1B and 1C travels between the Dunn Loring-Merrifeild station Metro Station and Thomas Jefferson Community Library. For more information, visit the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority Virginia Bus Schedules. Fairfax Connector Route 401 travels between the Dunn Loring Metro Station and Thomas Jefferson Community Library. For more information, visit the Fairfax Connector Home Page.
You’re going to LOVE this: the USPS responds to demand for Love Ribbons stamps!
Remember yesterday when I complained that the USPS wasn’t going to release the brand-new 2012 Love Ribbons stamp until February 14, Valentine’s Day (too late to mail Valentine’s Day cards)?
Well, 3500 people read that post, and maybe someone at USPS did, too. And guess what! They listened! Well, maybe not to me specifically. I am sure it was not because of my blog post. But they did listen to me and other consumers who were clamoring for the new stamp. And, for the first time in its history, the USPS is going to make a stamp available for sale before it’s officially dedicated.
A wise PR AND marketing move, USPS! Kudos to you!
The new Love Ribbons Forever Stamp is on sale today at usps.com and by phone at 800-782-6724. Stamps are arriving in Post Offices over the next few days and will be sold as soon as they are available.
“We are excited to bring this colorful new stamp to our customers in time for them to mail their Valentine’s Day greeting cards and letters,” said Stamp Services Manager, Stephen Kearney. “We will continue selling the Garden of Love stamps too.”
The official dedication ceremony for Love Ribbons will be held Feb. 14 in Colorado Springs, CO.
I can’t wait. I just bought my Valentines last night and I will definitely be sending them with this gorgeous, new stamp. Thank you, USPS!
