Lars Voedisch is an experienced communications strategist based in Singapore. He provides various communications services including communications strategy, social and traditional media relations, crisis preparedness, internal communications, media training, and analytics. His presentation discusses strategies for effective engagement on social media and managing reputational risks in the digital age. He emphasizes the importance of monitoring, analyzing, and engaging audiences while having proper response plans and guidelines.

1. @larsv
Rules of Engagement
Meaningful Communications Strategies in the Digital Age
Lars Voedisch
Communications Strategist
lars@preciouscomms.com
1

2. @larsv
Your reputation is precious…
• Communications Strategy
• Traditional & Social Media
Our services, Relations
Your value! • Crisis Preparedness
• Internal Communications
• Media Training
• Analysis, Measurement,
Research
Lars Voedisch
Communications Strategist
lars@preciouscomms.com

3. Rules of Engagement
Meaningful Communications Strategies in the Digital Age
People • Social Media Today
Processes • The Big Cultural Shift
Policies • Role of New Media
Engagements
• Overcoming
Challenges
• Integrating
Communications with
Your Business Strategy

4. Who is… Lars Voedisch?
International Communications Strategist
• Lars is an experienced global communications and business professional with 15
years expertise in growing, managing and defending leading global brands’
reputation across industry sectors.
Background & Expertise
• Clients include: AT&T, Citi, Coca Cola, DBS, GIC, Honda, ING, Macquarie,
Motorola, Panasonic, Porsche, Procter & Gamble, Yahoo!, VMware
• Companies he worked for: Hitradio Antenne, AIESEC, DHL, Fleishman-Hillard,
Dow Jones, Hill+Knowlton Strategies
• Experience in public relations, internal communications, marketing,
journalism, as well as M&A, crisis and change management
• International working, training and team leadership experience on five
continents
• Sought-after moderator and speaker on social media, public relations and
communications thought leadership
Personal Background
• German by birth; living in Asia (Hong Kong / Singapore) for 9 years
4

5. Social Media affecting our lifes…
5

6. Misconceptions about Social Media
1. Build it and they will come
2. Using Social Media to broadcast, not to LISTEN
3. It’s FREE!!!
4. You have to react to each negative comment
5. No plan or objective
6. Tracking the wrong stuff
Dealing with
Social Media is an ART:
Authentic
Relevant
Transparent
Source: The 7 Misconceptions of Social Media, Mike Lewis 6

7. 7
Source: What happens on the Internet every 60 seconds - Rosa Golijan

8. 8
Source: What happens on the Internet every 60 seconds - Rosa Golijan

9. It’s not about technology,
It’s about relationships!
9
Source: What happens on the Internet every 60 seconds - Rosa Golijan

10. Don’t Panic! Focus on the Influencers
90-9-1 Principle:
The Inequality of the Web
Source: Jakob Nielsen - Participation Inequality: Encouraging More Users to Contribute 10

11. The BIG Cultural Dilemma
• Be (Seen) Innovative –
But Please Don’t Take Any Risk, Use Only Proven Methods

12. Online Engagement? Customers are very demanding!
[Brands] have to surprise me, not only meet
my needs, but anticipate my needs.
By using social media exclusively, I think the
company has to
answer me whenever I have a question,
enlighten me whenever I complain,
and thank me whenever I compliment
them.
Source: The Language of Love in Social Media - Firefly Millward Brown
12

13. The BIG Cultural Dilemma #2
• From natural respect to suspicion
• Are you approachable?
• Why would people want to connect
with you?

14. More pressure than anytime before
“ Make sure
you’re doing stuff
that matters to
the business
and contributes
to its success
”
Source: IABC professional member, www.iabc.com 14

15. Challenge Within Organisations:
Who ‘Owns’ Social Media?
Source: Blurring Lines, Turf Battles and Tweets: The Real Impact of Integrated Communications on Marketing and PR 15

16. Challenge Within Organisations:
Who ‘Owns’ Social Media?
Who Cares?
Source: Blurring Lines, Turf Battles and Tweets: The Real Impact of Integrated Communications on Marketing and PR 16

17. ‘Digital waste’ polluting the online world?
11%
13% 32%
43% of Singapore consumers don’t 45%
want to be bothered in social
networks
Source: Digital Life 2011 - TNS 17

18. What are people saying?
11%
13% 32%
45%
Source: Digital Life 2011 - TNS 18

19. The Paid / Owned / Earned Ecosystem
11%
13% 32%
45%
Source: Paid Owned Earned – Nick Burcher 19

20. Social Media to be leveraged across a company:
Different functions, uses and values
Source: Socialize your organization – Richard Binhammer / Dell

21. The PR Perspective:
Social or not – it’s Media Relations?!
21

22. Social Media Relations: Everything Changes!?
Everything Changes Nothing Changes
• It’s about two-way • You’ve to manage
conversations relationships
• You’ve to deal with more • So it’s wires, print, broadcast
channels – and social media
• We HAVE to listen and • You already: monitor and
understand what’s said! analyze your media coverage
• What about those negative • Not every negative comment
comments and posts? means a crisis
• The game get’s so much • Already forgot newswires?
faster Look at trends over time
22

23. Social Media’s Internal Impact
CEOs Who Tweet Held in High Regard
82% of
employees trust
a company 11%
more when the
13% 32%
CEO and
leadership team
communicate
via social
media. 45%
Source: CEOs Who Tweet Held in High Regard - eMarketer © 2012 by PRecious Communications 23

24. Social CEO Index
11%
13% 32%
45%
© 2012 by PRecious Communications 24

25. Social Media is about Content
What Should We Be Talking About?
Industry…
trends, news,
E.g. Technology, data, advice
Legislation,
Competition
Your… products, offers, service,
people
Source: Developing your conversation sphere - CommsCorner 25

26. Integration is Key – or Waste
ONLINE
BUILDING (DEEPER) ENGAGEMENT
OFFLINE
26

27. Marketing, Editorial… Conversation Calendar
It’s all about planning – On- & Offline
27

28. What happens in Huili county / Sichuan…

37. How to Deal
with Comments –
YOUR Response Plan
• Comment / Blog Post
Validity
• Level of Responsibility
• Level of Respect
• The Commenter is a
Troll / Rager
• The Commenter is a
Spammer by Nature
Source: PR 2.0 Comment Response Chart 37

38. The BIGGER picture:
What’s your engagement plan?
What can/should your staff say – or not?
Do you have a proper escalation path?
How do you get ready for ‘beta’ mode?
38

39. Does every scenario need the same response?
People
Impact
Process
Policies
Engage
Discover
Analyze
Monitor
Time
39

40. Key Learnings
1) Speed is critical (on Twitter)
2) Honesty is a virtue
3) Make your CEO visible
4) Brands have to be on alert in order to
correct any false assumptions before
they reach critical mass
5) Track it
Source: Not So SMRT: A Case Study of Communications Failure - Skribe 40

41. How well are YOU prepared?
CCOs rank
social media
as their top
challenge in
the year
ahead
Source: The Rising CCO IV – Spencer Stuart / Webber Shandwick 41

42. 1. unexpected (i.e., a surprise)
2. creates uncertainty
3. is seen as a threat to important goals
42

43. Reputational Risk:
It’s all about perception...
Establishment:
Full crisis
Erosion:
Spreading: Relevance
Growing declines
interest
Emergence:
Issue gets
Potential: public
Known areas
YOU?
43

44. Reputational Risk:
It’s all about perception...
Establishment:
Time is crucial for managing risk Full crisis
as it allows you to stay in the
‘driver seat’ Erosion:
Spreading: Relevance
Growing declines
interest
Emergence:
Issue gets
Potential: public
Known areas If a crisis happens:
Get it fast,
Get it right,
YOU? Get it out, and
Get it over!
Your problem won’t improve with age.
N. Augustine, CEO Lockhead Martin

45. Crisis Survival Lessons for the
Social Media Age
In a crisis, consumers need honest answers and
they need them fast – and no messaging vehicle is
better suited to meet this demand than those fueling
the crisis in the first place.
Transparent engagements in the online
communities, where your customers already live,
provide a credible and direct channel for the
answers they need.
45

46. Are we too proud?
Sorry seems to be the hardest word…
• Don't RE-act right away
• Acknowledge - Don't be angry
• Admit the mistake and apologize
• Take ownership
• Ask for forgiveness and make the needed changes – use
the magic words: “I’m sorry” and “thank you”
Source: When You're Wrong, Say You're Sorry - SOLUTIONS: Social Media 46

47. Pressing the delete button for comments?
Some reasons that might be acceptable…
• Racism
• Sexism
• Verbal abuse
• Inappropriate language
• Pornographic content
• (Blatant hostile behaviour toward other community
members)
However: It is imperative that you have a policy on your
Facebook page if you choose to delete content!
Source: 5 ways to handle negative Facebook comments - PR Daily 47

48. Time to start or review
Review your current policies for engagement
Do scenario / crisis planning
White-board your process
Draw and distribute
48

49. The world we live in…
49

50. Social Media Disaster “Highlights”
Know your audience, know what’s important for them… and know when you’re
logged in with your company account!
50

51. Social Media Disaster “Highlights”
‘News jacking’ is a nice idea – but be sensitive!
51

52. Social Media Disaster “Highlights”
Timing is everything… and knowing what’s actually happening in your company
52

53. The Inside Look:
How do you WANT your staff to use Social Media?
• Do you have a social media policy?
• Is your policy easy to read? Can you make it an engaging
experience?
• Is it welcoming to employees and customers, or does it sound
like it was written by lawyers?
• In addition to your policy, are you educating your employees
on how to properly use social media in a way that will help
them as well as help tell your brand story?
Source: Is Your Social Media Policy Hurting Your Brand? - MENG 53

54. Social Media Policy - Examples
Transparency
Protection
Respect
Responsibility
Utilization
Respect
Responsibility
Representation
54

55. We heard about the Bad and the Ugly….
Let’s switch to the ‘Good’: The Old Spice Campaign
Source: W + K Old Spice Case Study

56. How Much Time Does Social Media Engagement Take?
Data is everywhere – you need meaningful analysis!
Source: How much time does social media marketing take - Gigaom / Aliza Sherman 56

58. PR and social media trends for 2012
• Engagement over likes
• Your brand needs to be available 24/7
• Harness the power of consumer influencers
• Synchronise web PR with social media
• Quality content worth sharing
• Paid, earned or shared
• Look for opportunities in the now
• Don't ignore mobile
• It's all in the metrics
• Global brands have to be integrated
Source: PR and social media trends for 2012 – BizCommunity 58

59. Future-Proofing Public Relations
Who do YOU want to be?
Critical Analytical Skills
Gamblers Winners
Vanity Strategic Business
Publishing Orientation
Ostriches Bluffers
No Analytical Skills
59

60. Rules of Engagement – Things to Consider
Get your processes right
• Monitor
• Analyze
• Discover
• Engage / Respond People
What you need:
• A PLAN & Resources!
• Scenario planning & Reaction Plans
Processes
• Guidelines
Policies
There is no one-size-fits-all
• Better start small than not at all
• Form a team
• Have fun!
60

61. ‘Classic’ Case Study: Domino’s YouTube Experience
• Domino’s Pizza Chain discovered the power of viral marketing last month:
Who in YOUR organization
two employees in the US filmed "prank" videos of themselves stuffing
cheese up their noses and then putting it into sandwiches.
• The video went popular on go on Youtube? Twitter lit
would YouTube (over 1 million views), and
up with disgusted customer complaints.
• Domino’s apologized and put its own President on YouTube, started a
Twitter response site;
What to wear?
• Still: In just a few days, Domino’s reputation was damaged.
What to say?
Who to talk to?
Are you ready?
Nobody will wait for you…!
61

62. @larsv
Lars Voedisch
Communications Strategist
lars@preciouscomms.com
62

63. @larsv
Your reputation is precious…
• Communications Strategy
• Traditional & Social Media
Relations
Let’s talk!
• Crisis Preparedness
• Internal Communications
• Media Training
• Analysis, Measurement,
Research
Lars Voedisch
Communications Strategist
lars@preciouscomms.com

64. About us…
• Independent, boutique communications consultancy
• Based out of Singapore, at home in Asia and Europe
• Globally connected via affiliation with
+65 - 9170 2470 lars@preciouscomms.com
larsvoed Facebook.com/PReciousComms
229 Mountbatten Road Twitter.com/PReciousComms
#02-41 Mountbatten Square
Singapore 398007