Hotchkis & Jay Leno

We set client John Hotchkis up with Jay Leno for a segment on Leno's garage, and Jay had a great time showing off in the Hotchkis Challenger. Check it out:

New Land Speed Record!

Kahn Media client Spectre Performance has just done the near-impossible: finished an all-new racecar mere hours before it was set to debut, taken it to the famed Bonneville Salt Flats and set a new world record.

In this case the car average 330 mph over two runs, making it the World's Fastest Cadillac and the World's Fastest Blown Gasoline Streamliner. Quite a feat for a new team and new car. We not only provided PR for the effort, but also promoted it in advance with a newsletter and created a a dedicated blog page, where we liveblogged the entire four-day event with photos, videos and info posted real-time from the salt.

The PR story is spreading like wildfire on the web, including on the following sites:
Top Gear
Wired
Autoblog
Jalopnik
WebRidesTV

Kahn on Comm.

Wow, it's been nearly two months since my last blog post and I've barely posted anything on PR. I'm a bad, bad marcom blogger. Things have been very very busy lately: new office, expanding the Kahn Media team with several new hires, new business and more. All good stuff and I'll explain more soon.

In the meantime, SEMA News has a fantastic story in its latest issue about the importance of marketing to Gen Y, how to reach them and why manufacturing companies should care. Yours truly was quoted extensively in the story - even though I'm a few ticks too old to be in the actual demographic.

You can read more about it here.

Thanks to Alysha Webb for doing a great job on a much-needed story.

Autoblog & Performance Therapy

Speaking of racing videos, Jonny Lieberman at Autoblog posted a cool story about client Mark Hotchkis from Lifeline Fire & Safety Systems winning the Monterey Historics in his Porsche 962. If you like the sound of a 230mph Porsche racecar at 9,000rpm, check it out.

Also, the Performance Therapy Contest is up and running. Basically this is a social media car show concept developed in-house at Kahn Media for Hotchkis Performance as a means to drive brand awareness, promote the hobby, let gearheads know that even in this economy its ok to have fun with their car, and drive traffic/SEO to sponsor sites. Co-sponsors include Hot Wheels, Yokohama, Red Line Oil, Rushforth Wheels, Baer Brakes, Lifeline Fire & Safety Systems, Flowmaster and MSD.

All entrants have to do is submit a picture and a short caption explaining how they enjoy their car. Click a photo to vote, and feel free to promote yourself on Flickr or Facebook. Top vote getters will receive a T-Shirt or gift certificate. The Grand Prize winner (determined by a panel of sponsors and journalists) will receive nearly $40k in free parts from the sponsor companies. Autoblog, Motorator and several forums have already written up great pieces about it.

Time Flies...

Wow, I can't believe it's been nearly a month since my last post. I apologize if anyone out there reads this thing on a regular basis, but life has been a little crazy. Two new clients, several client events, a SEMA internet symposium and a NEW office all in the past three weeks. That's right, Kahn Media HQ is expanding.

I've got lots of info to share, including notes from a few of the more interested SEMA lectures on SEO and Video Production. In the meantime, here's a bit o'entertainment.

Wired Autopia just put up a fantastic list of their favorite car commercials.

My favorite of the list (and one I've never seen before) is this killer homage to Ferrari Grand Prix racing from Shell:

Do I need to worry about BING?

As anyone who watches prime time TV knows by now, Microsoft recently launched a new search engine called Bing. The site is still relatively small, but the official numbers vary. I've heard it's in third place behind Google and Yahoo (according to Microsoft), but I've also heard it's in 17th place according to Pew research.

Regardless, Microsoft is putting serious muscle behind the engine so some clients are asking if it's worth worrying about SEO for Bing. The answer is "sort of." After analyzing traffic data for client's sites and my own, I can tell you that we're all getting about a 5% referral rate from Bing. Not bad for a startup, but pretty lousy for a major project backed by the biggest company in the world with a $100 million ad campaign.

The reality is for the time being we really don't have to worry about Bing-specific SEO. Microsoft loves to tout all its new features, and even put up an SEO guide for web developers. You can download it here. But if you're even remotely prone to falling asleep at the computer, I'd avoid reading past page two. It's pretty dry. The gist is this: most of Bing is carried over from MSN Search. The main differences are in the way it categorizes results with tabs and the fact that it learns from repeated searches.

The same basic rules that apply to SEO for Google and Yahoo apply here: use page titles and tags to explain the contents of each page, caption and tag photos whenever possible, include as much useful and relevant information in HTML copy as possible, etc. One thing I have heard about Bing is that it tends to favor new and/or freshly updated sites over older static ones, so keep that in mind.

In the meantime, relax and keep pushing forward with a Google-centric SEO campaign, because unless Larry and Sergey make some radical missteps, Google will still be the 900 lb gorilla for many years to come.

Grassroots Marketing

This past weekend we had an open house at one of my client's offices. We promoted it to a very specific niche - Los Angeles based Chrysler owners - and pulled in nearly 100 cars. That's enough to max out the parking lot and the building. My client couldn't have been happier about the results. I promoted it using a combination of old-school tactics (calling all the local club presidents on the phone) and new-media strategy (posting flyers in major forums, asking blog moderators to write stories). Hopefully we influenced the influencers, and they'll spread the word for us.

Is Facebook Runnin on Empty?

Since he just settled a lawsuit with the GOP I thought it appropriate to kick this post off with a little Jackson Browne. Hope he doesn't sue me. Sorry about the long delay, I've been workin' hard hustling media for a few new clients and I've neglected my little corner of the interwebs.

So here's the deal... I've mentioned in a few previous posts that an uncanny number of my aged-challenged friends and family have been hopping onto the Facebook bandwagon. Even big media outlets have noticed. In a way, that's a fantastic thing because it means all demos are becoming comfortable with social media. However like most trends of the past few decades, where the Baby Boomers go, big business will follow. And, like MySpace before it, Facebook is in the process of revamping its advertising program to accommodate new ad packages.

Facebook actually only became the reigning traffic champ about a month ago, but most marketers started shying away from the platform as far back as a year go, when the NewsCorp buyout caused a seismic shift in who was actually using the site. Until Rupert got his hands on it, Myspace was essentially a gathering place for young people. After the massive ads went up and started alienating people, waves of users started shifting towards Facebook. For a short time record labels and movie studios Myspace pages helped bolster the site's traffic, but the magic is gone and Myspace is essentially a trade show hall filled with companies showing their wares and exhibiting their hipness to a non-existent crowd. So Myspace is essentially dunzo.

Now it looks like Facebook might be going the same way. According to recent PC Magazine/MSN story, people are flocking to Twitter from Facebook. I can't say I blame them. Facebook is still an excellent platform for reconnecting with old friends and promoting companies and/or clients. The problem is the new site design bombards people with so many updates and such a deluge of information that any self-respecting page with more than a few hundred friends can't effectively keep news or updates on the front page for more than a few minutes. So.... unless you're literally sitting at your computer checking your wall all day, you'll probably miss a load of info. Twitter essentially takes the update portion of Facebook and throws away the rest.

Now I'm not a huge fan of using Twitter for PR purposes unless you have a dedicated tweeter that knows what they're doing and only broadcasts relevant, interesting info. It will be interesting to sit back and see how things play out, but my gut instinct tells me that Facebook will be irrelevant in two years, and a new platform will have taken its place. What do you think?

Kahn Media in the News

From the latest issue of The Green Sheet, the weekly trade newsletter for the automotive aftermarket:

RED LINE OIL RETAINS KAHN MEDIA FOR PUBLIC RELATIONS, OUTREACH

Red Line Synthetic Oil Corp. (Benicia, CA), which manufacturers a line of motor oils, gear oils and additives, has engaged Kahn Media of Woodland Hills, CA, to provide Red Line with North American media outreach and P.R. assistance. This includes targeted media outreach, social media marketing, new product debuts, events and special projects.

More specifically, Kahn is working with Red Line’s management on strategic planning initiatives, as well as the development and implementation of a social media marketing campaign. Kahn also will promote Red Line’s motorsports initiatives, including drag racing, sports car road racing and more.

You can read the whole issue here.

State of Social Media

The research gurus at Nielsen released some interesting info last week about where Americans are spending their time, specifically regarding social media.

Top Social Networking and Blog Sites (April 2009 U.S. Home and Work)

You can get all the details in their press release, but this is the gist:



April was the fourth month in a row that Facebook held the top spot in both unique visitors and total minutes, but Myspace has been winning in online video with 120.8 million video streams. Myspace visitors spent 384 million minutes viewing video on the site, with an average of 38.8 minutes per viewer. In comparison, Facebook visitors spent only 113.5 million minutes viewing video in April, with an average of 11.2 minutes per video viewer.

Twitter is growing by such huge proportions its staggering, but that might not last as the medium becomes saturated. In the meantime, it appears that Myspace shouldn't be counted out yet, particularly if you have video to promote.

Direct Email Mistakes to Avoid

Let's face a reality here: direct email marketing works. If it didn't I wouldn't get 20 messages a day promoting everything from 600 horsepower crate engines to business card printing services. The key is to build a tight list of readers who want your information, create a list big enough that even if your open rate is 20% you're still reaching a significant number of people, and then managing your content so its interesting and not a blatant sales pitch.

I've had great success with clients building email newsletter campaigns that essentially mimic what magazines did in the past: provide an interesting, entertaining and informative blend of feature stories, company news and product information. Done correctly, your database will grow and the newsletter will not only drive traffic to your site, but also increase brand awareness.

My friends at MailDog recently put up a fantastic list of direct email marketing mistakes and how to avoid them. Check it out below:

Ignoring CAN-SPAM Requirements - The CAN-SPAM Act of 2003 and other Federal Trade Commission regulations require that email marketing messages be permission-based, in addition to having a true identity in the "From" line, an accurate subject line, a valid postal address, and unsubscribe link in the email.Failure to do so could result in a significant fine from the FTC (up to $200 per complaint) OUCH!

Sending to Non-Opt-Ins - Sending email without having the recipients permission is one of the quickest ways to alienate prospects and customers... not to mention goes against the CAN-SPAM (see above) and Mail Dog's permission-only policies (bad dog!). Having customers sign up, keeping accurate opt-in records and providing a quality email newsletter makes subscribers happy and keeps you out of the hot water!

Linking only to your Homepage - If your email links just send subscribers back to your homepage, you could be losing major impact points with your subscribers. Instead link to specific products or pages and don't make subscribers hunt for the information.

Large, Image-Based Emails - Images are overrated, plus they are suppressed by more than 50% of emails subscribers' software, so the key is to craft an effective offer and feature it using both text and graphics. And always remember to use ALT-tags on images.

Writing Whatever - Pay attention to your copy. It should be short, yes, but not at the expense of quality... and always have someone else proof read to make sure it all makes sense.

Lazy Subject Lines -A good subject line is the most important indicator of open rates. Be short, sweet, and specific. Good rule-of-thumb - spend the same amount of time writing the subject line as it takes to write the copy.

Only Using Email Marketing - Don't treat your emails campaigns as one-offs, or segregate them from the rest of your marketing. If you have video on your website, be sure to include links to previews of that in your emails. Also, link to your social media pages like Twitter and Facebook to keep your customers engaged.

Sending Before Testing - Always send test emails! Check subject lines, copy, offers, and any other content you are including. Then double check and check again. Once an email is sent it is gone!

Center for Media Research: Internet is Now Dominant Media in People's Lives

According to a recent report by The Media Audit, in the past three years, the average U.S. adult has nearly doubled their daily use of the Internet as the average U.S. adult spent 2.1 hours per day online in 2006, compared to 3.8 hours in 2008, an 81% increase over three years.

As a result, the Internet now represents 32.5% of the typical "media day" for all U.S. adults when compared to daily exposure to newspaper, radio, TV and outdoor advertising.

Even those who are considered heavy newspaper readers spend about as much time online today as the typical U.S. adult. According to the report, heavy newspaper readers, those who spend more than an hour per day reading, currently spend 3.7 hours per day online. In 2006 the Internet represented only 18.4% of a heavy newspaper reader's "media day," but today it represents 28.4%.

Chris Deam @ TED Conference on Airstream Design

25k Views & Counting!

Post Recession: The Shift to Grass Roots Marketing

We've all known it for a while, but now a study by the Association of National Advertisers clarifies the point: as the country slowly claws its way out of recession, marketing budgets will be primarily focused on high-ROI efforts including Social Media, Public Relations, grass roots word-of-mouth campaigns and direct customer education, rather than traditional print advertising.

According to the survey, 47% of marketers studied are planning "pricing deals" as the initiative most likely to be increased in the current economic environment. 26% say social networking and word of mouth activities are currently most important, while 23% say public relations efforts.

Other info:

68% say media budgets will be increased
41% will increase social networking/word-of-mouth
40% will increase budgets for innovation and testing/learning
73% of respondents said they would ideally implement these increased marketing activities three to six months before the recession ends, and an additional 16% as soon as it ends.

From a quote on Mediapost:

Roger Adams, Chair of the ANA Brand Management Committee, notes that "Marketers have increased their emphasis on gauging consumer sentiment and brand health trends... with the proliferation of instant feedback... marketers can... quickly gauge brand equity, health and signs of deterioration."

Finally, in the report summation, it is noted that traditional media channels have declined in importance since the first survey was conducted in February 2007:

Television (down to 64% from 80%)
Magazines (down to 51% from 67%)
Radio (down to 30% from 36%)
Outdoor (down to 26% from 35%)
Newspapers (down to 19% from 36%)

Welcome

Welcome HARO users. This is my tiny little annex where I bounce ideas about digital marketing and PR around. Hope you find a few things interesting before you surf back to eBay or TMZ. Let me know if you have any questions you'd like me to tackle and enjoy!

New PR: Become Your Own Publisher

I was interviewed a few days ago by a reporter writing a story on "How to Connect With Gen Y." She writes for a trade magazine, and was basically looking for tips on how small and mid sized companies can connect with younger buyers.

Over the course of the conversation two things occurred to me. A) I'm closer to middle age than youth, and B) How much the communications business has changed since I started.

Print PR is still fantastic. In fact, a story in a major paper is one of the best hits a marketer can get. However now you can be your own publisher. Start a company blog. Create a monthly newsletter or magazine and send it via email to your database with links going back to your consistently updated website. The client now controls the message, which is fantastic and terrifying at the same time. There's a lot of risk there.

Done correctly, a program like this can result in boosted Search Engine Optimization, fantastic customer feedback, viral spread of your marketing message and boosted sales. Done poorly, you can irritate your potential customer base and create a negative message that is permanently cached on the internet for all eternity. So how do you avoid the latter? As I told the reporter, tread slowly. Don't try to do everything yourself. Be open, honest and transparent. They will respect you for it and business will follow. Most importantly, be consistent. Nothing is worse than clicking on a blog or facebook page that hasn't been updated in six months.

Here are a few of my favorites you might find interesting. It's a mix of corporate, new media and traditional media takes on the digital publishing game.

Southwest Airlines Corp. Blog

The findingDulcinea Blog

LA Times Up to Speed

and of course my daily haunt, Autoblog

Let me know if you have any questions: Dan@KahnMedia.com

Twitter, Social Media & Korean BBQ

This is a story about Burritos with Korean flair, Twitter, and how the "social media crazy" traditional press loves both.

I was born and raised in L.A. There are many terrible things about living in the City of Angels: earth quakes, exclusionary property values, paparazzi, terrible drivers, etc. There are also some excellent benefits. Namely, restaurants offering virtually every type of ethnic food - from hole in the wall Cuban and Pho fair to Nancy Silverton's insano Pizza - within walking distance of my house. L.A. is also home to the ubiquitous taco truck.

Catering trucks are normal in these parts, and "roach coaches" actually kept me alive during my first few years of high school, before I had a driver's license. The food it better than you would imagine. Just think NYC food cart, on a big rig chassis and with a fancy horn. However one particular such roaming palace of Good Eats has been making HUGE waves in the traditional media thanks to its wildly successful use of new media.

The Kogi Korean BBQ Truck does an INCREDIBLE job at PR/Marketing. Here's the breakdown. First, a guy named Mark Manguera started Kogi with the idea of offering a hybrid of Korean BBQ flavors and traditional Mexican street food. He brought in a business manager from the Omni hotel chain, a CIA trained chef who worked at Le Bernardin and a PR guru who also works as a food blogger. They also have a two-man new media team in charge of twitter, blogging, etc. That's right... this crew has more communicators than cooks, and its working. The buzz is INSANE.

The team cranked out a killer menu, lots of hype and name recognition and a key element all of L.A.'s hottest eateries must have to survive: exclusivity. Except unlike Katsuya + Starke or Mozza, this restaurant changes locations every night! They announce locations via Twitter, and the hipsters, lawyers, foodies and other L.A. ilk flock. If you want the grub, you have to pay attention... some even call it stalking. The trad media LOVE this story... which is where it gets kind of crazy.

First local "ist" blog LAist ran a piece back in December 2008. Then in January Pulitzer Prize winning food writer Jonathan Gold wrote a story for LA Weekly. Then LAist ran a story about LA Weekly's article. Then the always-thorough-but-usually-tardy LA Times ran a long piece in the Thursday "guide" section in February. The New York Observer jumped into the Korean Burito fray in April. Then the motherlode: On May 15 the Associated Press ran a story about the tweeting taco truck that got picked up in dozens of papers across the country. The editors at CNET must have been motivated by the AP because three days later they ran a story about the tweeting food truck trend. Finally, none other than Gourmet Magazine ran a story about Korean Tacos (yes, they wrote about the food, not the media trend - thankfully).

So what's all this mean? Well, apparently people realllly like Korean tacos. And since human nature is to want something you can't have... people really like chasing a gourmet restaurant on wheels. But the lesson for me is that even in a down economy in a city so spread out most people rarely leave their 'hood, a social media savvy PR team can drive huge consumer interest and then leverage that interest into traditional media coverage which only drives more customers. So the truck is the story for the consumers, and the consumers following the truck is the story for the media. This model won't apply to every business, but I offer a deep bow and hat tip to Mike Prasad.

Oh, and for my car friends, you can check out the new Camaro AND eat a Koji Korean Taco at the same time. More info here.

Promoting Yourself/Clients Through Facebook

I'm not going to spend time in this post talking about "web 2.0" or the importance of leveraging social media as a means to market your brand. I've said it all before, and frankly if you're a)reading this post, or b)anyone born after 1980 you already know it.

Instead I'm just going to point out a fantastic article Charles Hull from Archrival wrote for MediaPost about developing Facebook apps to promote your brand. He's right-on, if you can develop a fun, easy-to-use app that promote your brand without bombarding people with constant updates and notifications, it will become viral and produce the desired effect.

I can't tell you how many brand-promotional apps I've tried that ended up making me angry because they either harvested my profile info to push content to my friends that didn't opt-in, or slammed my inbox with junk. Those have the opposite effect and should be avoided. In any case, a good article so enjoy!

Killer Firefox Apps for PR/Marketing/Web Developers

If you're not using Firefox, you should be. Compared to internet exporer or any of the other browsers, this program offers incredible easy to use features, fantastic spam filtering and lots of cool plugins. Plus, it's free!

They just released a new version, and it has some really hand features, including Fontfinder (helps you identify and grab fonts you like on a website), Colorzilla (an advanced eyedropper that helps pick photos. My favorite is ScreenGrab, a tool that lets you select and copy any section of a screen shot.

You can get the entire list here.