As a young marketing and PR professional I jump at every chance to learn more about my profession, and to hear from industry pro’s who are doing great work.CCA recognizes the value in this, and sent me to the Convergence conference in New York City. It was a great chance to hear case studies, participate in breakout sessions, and network with others in the marketing, PR, and advertising fields. As the name suggests, the theme of this conference was how the convergence of marketing, PR, and advertising is affecting agencies, clients, and us.

One of the most interesting case studies was presented by Bruce Ertman, corporate manager for consumer generated media at Toyota Motor Sales. Bruce and his team jumped on the social media bandwagon and have seen some impressive results. They harnessed the power of blogging to navigate the treacherous waters of potential product defects in the Camry and FJ Cruiser.

Instead of covering up problems, Bruce’s strategy was to be open and honest with consumers, detailing what was wrong with the cars, and how they could go about getting the problems remedied. Although there were some negative responses, overall it seemed like consumers were impressed that Toyota came out ahead of any news story to admit a problem and help solve it quickly.

To me, this is exactly how marketers should approach any outreach to social media. Blogging communities are often made up of outspoken people with strong opinions on the subject (cars, in this case) and will not react well to typical PR spin. It is important to let them know who you are, who you represent, and then engage them a 2 WAY DISCUSSION as educated consumers. Speak with them, not to them! Do not expect a blogger, or anyone who reads bogs to be especially receptive to your company if you don’t have your own forum for discussion. In other words….start a company blog NOW.

Bloggers can drive brand credibility in a big way. 76% of consumers say a recommendation is the most influential factor in any purchase. 51% of journalists use blogs to help them with story research, and according to Jupiter Research, 26% of top search engine results are consumer generated media. So don’t betray the trust of bloggers; they have the trust of consumers. Listen to discussions, participate, be open, be authentic, and be honest. Consumer generated media has a lot to offer. Listen first, and then dive in…the results may impress you.

New Media is something our public relations team at CCA talks about every day. We’ve looked at our PR accounts and continue to research and make recommendations for how our PR clients can incorporate blogs and other social media into their public relations, media relations, and SEO programs. They are a great way to engage in discussions with potential customers and other partners who have an interest in a particular company, and provide quality information without the “sell sell sell” mantra of other marketing vehicles.

Surprisingly, we haven’t been asked by a client for their company to be covered by a particular Blog or Blogger, though we continue to introduce them to effective ways of communicating on the web. PR clients do ask to be covered in the press by specific top-tier trades, regional newspapers and other traditional media outlets.

So, while new media is important, it is often up to the public relations account team to continue educating clients on the benefits of new media and how it can enhance their company’s PR efforts. We’ve had a lot of success with those clients willing to broaden their PR horizons, and extend their message to new media outlets as they grow in importance and popularity.