by Cheryl Tieken

So I read this interesting article today by Peter Shankman, founder of Help A Reporter Out. In it, he pretty much bashes social media experts, saying that “if you have a social media expert on your payroll, you’re wasting your money.” And while I didn’t quite agree with the tone of his message, he did hit some valuable points.

As it seems that hiring a social media expert is a now subject of much debate, let’s go over Shankman’s points – the good, the bad, and the ugly.

Shankman starts out by saying that “being an expert in social media is like being an expert at taking the bread out of the refrigerator. You might be the best bread-taker-outer in the world, but you know what? The goal is to make an amazing sandwich, and you can’t do that if all you’ve done in your life is taken the bread out of the fridge.”

It’s a cute analogy and I get it. Yes, there are a ton of people out there who assume that just because they use Facebook and Twitter all the time they can now call themselves experts. And maybe this is who Shankman is referring to. He goes on to say that “we’re making the same mistakes that we made during the DotCom era, where everyone thought that just adding the term .com to your corporate logo made you instantly credible.” Yes, social media is trendy and when something is trendy, everyone wants to get on board. And there will always be people and companies that try to make a pretty penny on the next great trend by selling it themselves. Unfortunately, many of these people care more about making money and less about providing a good service for their customer. And as a customer, it may be easy to fall into their hypnotizing clutches. However, not all social media marketing companies are full of it.

Shankman goes on to say that social media is just a new trick in the hat of marketing. And, I couldn’t agree more. Social media is just another avenue to spread your marketing efforts. It just happens to be an avenue that allows messages to be spread at rates no other avenues can ever compete with. His point here is completely true – Social media marketing is “about generating revenue through solid marketing and stellar customer service, just like it’s been since the beginning of time.” If your target market is active on Facebook and Twitter, why wouldn’t you use this to your advantage?

He says next that social media marketing is “about transparency. It’s not about lying to your customers…” I couldn’t agree more. Set up a Facebook page merely to sell to your customers and you’ll lose them. Trust me – IT WON’T WORK. And social media experts who are worth your time and money know this and will tell you this. Be genuine. Show your target audience that you care about them and they will care about you.

Shankman’s next important point is about relevance. Anyone with marketing savvy knows that you have to understand your target audience – who they are, where they are, and what they want to talk about. If your target audience isn’t into social media, you are not going to see the same results as a business whose target audience is constantly tweeting away.

Unfortunately, Shankman jumps to the conclusion that all social media experts just try to push the sale of a Facebook and Twitter page, without ever trying to strategize the best methods for online and social media marketing. A good social media marketer will understand that they must invest time into researching a target audience and planning an effective strategy.

So that’s it in a nutshell. His argument that social media experts have simply jumped on the newest trend and will soon be deemed a waste of time and money is in my opinion, very narrow-minded. If you hire a talented and savvy social media marketer, you will never feel that way. Social media is here to stay. Marketing will always and has always been here. There are people out there who understand both concepts better than others. Social media marketing is too powerful a tool to ignore.

So don’t bash social media marketers. Find one who is a multi-faceted and savvy businessperson that understands the power of social media. Trust me, it will definitely be worth your time and money.

If you have not heard already, MDC Partners Agency Crispin Porter & Bogusky is lending a hand to the Carrot industry to launch a $25 million campaign to position baby carrots in “sleek, junk food packaging” in order to boost sales and interests in healthy snacking in the U.S.

Though fighting the obesity epidemic that is plaguing the United States’ youth is a genuine enough underlying goal in this whole effort, I’m not sure it’s taking the most direct route. I mean come on, what about the fact that carrots are also an excellent source of beta-carotene, the key ingredient not only in it’s nutritional value and orange color, but also one of the substances most easily converted to vitamin A, raising the effectiveness of the light-sensitive area of the retina and improving eye sight….Zzzzzzz

Here, a recent TV spot was released by the Agency that depicts a gorgeous female model, cradling the beta-carotene filled sticks making them sexy, futuristic and attractive. Let us know how you’re feeling about the carrot ads, because I for one am very intrigued. If CP+B pulls this one off they’ll have conquered the same challenge Goodby, Silverstein & Partners did with their “Got Milk” campaign.

As a follow up to our respect for Old Spice’s most recent campaign featuring Isaiah Mustafa, we’ve taken interest in (along with everyone else in the industry) where Weiden and Kennedy’s creative design forces will take the brand next. Problem is, after watching this 30 second spot featuring Baltimore Ravens’ Linebacker Ray Lewis, the only feeling you’re left with is the residual sensation from scratching one’s head. Of course it’s not made to replicate the initial Isaiah Old Spice spots but has Weiden and Kennedy “jumped the shark” with this concept? Our personal suggestion… don’t fix it if it ain’t broke! They had some mileage left on the Mustafa treads. What do you think?

In a city best known for its manufacturing, tourism, defense and agriculture industries, you would be hard pressed to find a concentration of innovative, creative, and inspiring professionals looking for way to change minds and spread good ideas, right? Wrong! At Jacob Tyler Creative Group, just one of many great agencies in the heart of downtown San Diego, we jump at any opportunity to positively influence the exchange of creative ideas and facilitate effective collaboration.

This explains why our office has been beaming with excitement since the announcement of an independently organized TED event coming to San Diego and the opportunities that come along with it. We are not only looking forward to listen, learn, and collaborate with this great independently organized not-for-profit design and technology based discussion, but we are hoping become more involved as well.

For those who aren’t in the know… TED prides itself on this core foundation: “We believe passionately in the power of ideas to change attitudes, lives and ultimately, the world. So we’re building here a clearinghouse that offers free knowledge and inspiration from the world’s most inspired thinkers, and also a community of curious souls to engage with ideas and each other (Source).”

Visit, Tedx-sandiego.com, to nominate an inspired San Diego thinker to speak, share and influence the spread of ideas and the power of collaboration at the upcoming Tedx Conference. TED is a small nonprofit devoted to Ideas Worth Spreading. It started out in 1984 as a conference bringing together people from three worlds: Technology, Entertainment, and Design.

“In November 2010, San Diego will host its inaugural TEDx event, The Next Wave at Anthology. Participants from throughout southern California and Baja are invited to interact in a sea of change of new ideas and shared passions. TEDx San Diego brings together innovators, explorers, teachers and learners in an environment that encourages collaboration, conversation and interaction. Join us at TEDx San Diego and come prepared to be the change that makes a difference. TEDx San Diego is a not-for-profit event organized entirely by local, unpaid volunteers (Source).”