Digital Perspective Blog

We’ve changed things up a bit with our About B-M profile– this month’s profile will feature a video interview!  Learn more about Burson-Marsteller’s healthcare practice with US Chair for Healthcare, Chris Foster, as he explains the influence healthcare reform has had on the communications industry and the healthcare practices’ recent success stories. 

To coincide with the Digital Newsletter’s “Green” theme, I recently interviewed Eric Biel, Manging Director of Corporate Responsibility in DC, about Burson-Marsteller’s own efforts to go green.  To see past About B-M interviews, view the archives.

Digital Perspective: What role do you see promoting eco-friendly efforts and sustainability playing in the marketing communications industry this year?

Eric Biel: Working with our clients to help them communicate their “green” efforts has become a significant piece of our work at B-M – cutting across practice areas and geographies.  As the Managing Director for Corporate Responsibility, I’ve had the chance to work with terrific colleagues in the Issues and Crisis Group (where our CSR practice is housed), as well as Media, Public Affairs, Corporate, Advertising, Digital, Technology, and other areas.  What that illustrates is the many facets of what clients are looking for from us – and our competitors, of course – when it comes to communicating about their environmental programs and platforms.

But the truth is that it’s about more than “just” communications.  Companies are looking to us to help identify what they should be doing in the “green” space – what kind of projects, what forms of reporting and disclosure, as well as to tell them more about what their competitors are doing, industry “best practices,” who the key stakeholders are and what they care about, and so on.  We’re often working with them at the intersection of policy and communications, which makes it that much more interesting.  Sometimes they just want us to help them understand what “sustainability” is all about – given that it’s a word with a lot of different interpretations and that cuts across environment, social, and economic performance.

Although we’re busy promoting “green” to the press and other audiences, it’s actually a lot more than that.  It cuts across a wide range of companies and industries as well.  We’ve worked with a leading chemicals company on its first-ever corporate sustainability report.  We’ve helped two of our largest clients – neither of which has a huge “carbon footprint,” but both of which face growing pressures to step up on environmental performance from their own employees, clients, and others – with their own sustainability reporting in various ways.  At the same time, we’ve done a lot of promoting of different clients in the renewable energy space – where B-M has a tremendous amount of expertise and is doing cutting-edge work for leaders in biofuels, solar, wind, and other technologies.  So it’s a huge area for us, and across the PR and communications industry – and we’re always looking for new opportunities to grow our business globally.

DP: Are there specific types of ‘green’ campaigns that are seeing greater ROIs in an economy like this?

EB: That’s a challenging question, and you might get different answers depending on who you talk to across B-M.  As a general matter, though, I think the companies that are able to tie their “green” efforts and activities to their core business – those that are able to demonstrate that “green” matters in the C-Suite and is a key organizational priority.  I think of some of the “classic” campaigns like those launched – some still going strong – by GE, BP, Toyota, and others that really created some distance from their competitors.

These days, it’s especially important to be able to demonstrate that “being green” is good for the financial bottom line as well – it’s not a costly luxury, but actually adds to economic return.  I think of a company like SAP, which has strong programs of its own but also is an “enabler” through its products and services for how others can take on green initiatives more efficiently and at lower cost.  I also think of Growth Energy – a group that has helped reshape the battle in Washington and beyond about bio-fuels, after the industry was put on the defensive last year just a short time after it was flying high.  It has a powerful message about green technologies but also green jobs – including in some areas that had been hit hard by the recession.  And finally, I think of the terrific B-M work on the Clear2Go roll out earlier this year – highlighting how an innovative new product enables users to protect the environment while saving money at the same time.

DP: Can you share any other success stories where B-M has involved going green?

EB: In addition to the ones I’ve already highlighted in my previous responses – from working with big global firms to launching a great new product like Clear2Go,  another “success story” in my view is our work with one of our largest clients over the past 2-3 years.  We’ve had the opportunity to help them ramp up their efforts across the board on the environment – from helping craft their first written environmental policy statement to framing employee initiatives to greatly expanding more detailed reporting and disclosure.

And that brings me to B-M itself.  These days, you have to “walk the walk” because current clients, new prospects, suppliers, and others increasingly are choosing to do business with companies that are committed to being green.  The good news is that we’ve taken some significant steps to reduce our own carbon footprint – cutting energy use, increasing our recycling, and so on.   We’ve seen real progress across geographies – and we’re continuing to get pushed to do more by our parent company, WPP, which of course is a good thing.  And here in the U.S., we had the chance to bring these efforts together back in April through “Green Week” – which highlighted both some of our successes to date and how much more we all still can do to make B-M an even greener place.

I recently chatted with Erin Byrne, Burson-Marsteller Chief Digital Strategist, about the introduction of Burson Digital. To see past About B-M interviews, view the archives view the archives.

Digital Perspective Blog: What is Burson Digital?

Erin Byrne: Burson Digital is Burson-Marsteller’s in-house digital media capability. We are a global team with digital strategists available to every office in our network and a full team of designers, programmers available through regional hubs. The team focuses on four core product and service areas to help clients meet their needs. They are:

Digital Reputation Management – given so much information is gleaned online, it is critical that company’s manage their online reputation. We provide digital check-ups, blog monitoring and influence assessment, blogger and social media outreach, search marketing, and online dialogue development, among other digital reputation management services.

Interactive Experience Design – this is all about creating experiences that deliver desired messages and drive to measurable business actions and includes website design, online advertising, online video, Flash animations, digital advocacy tools, and CRM to name a few.

Social Media and Community Development – it is critical that organizations participate with their constituents in online communities. We work with clients to contribute to their communities and do social media monitoring, applications development, community management and content development.

Mobile Marketing – mobile allows an opportunity to have a persistent presence with stakeholders and we facilitate that through text messaging programs, mobile advertising, mobile application development, and promotions/mobile events.

DP: Why a digital practice?

EB: Communications have dramatically changed and the way people get information has shifted to digital media. From major decisions like who to vote for to simpler buying options, people seek out information online, often through interactions with other people. Mark Penn’s recent InfoShopper study [WSJ article and PDF study] showed that as many as 23% of people even research which shampoo to buy online! Digital media also helps clients reach key audiences with important messages more cost effectively than every before possible. For both the reasons (and many more), we believe that every successful communications program must have a significant digital component. We have made a significant investment over the last three years in ongoing digital competency training and are proud that all of our employees are delivering value for clients via digital media. But, there are still specialty areas where have people who are digital experts and work in the space all day every day is critical. These people live in Burson Digital and partner with colleagues in all of our other practices to help clients generate business results.

DP: What is unique about the new practice and Digital as a whole?

EB: Burson-Marsteller in general is differentiated by our global footprint as well as our integrated approach to client problems, especially given our sister firms including Penn, Schoen & Berland for research, Direct Impact for grassroots, BKSH for lobbying and Marsteller for advertising and print design. Having a global team and broad expertise to draw on lets us bring perspective to digital strategies that make the recommendations more meaningful and ultimately more successful. Also, we are an agency of hard working, hands on executives. We are comfortable with complexity. Organizations today face difficult challenges and we have strategic bench strength in Mark Penn, Karen Hughes, Don Baer, Gary Koops, Josh Gottheimer, Pat Ford and others (I could go on and on!) that is unrivaled. Lastly, we truly believe in education as a platform to meet client needs and grow our business. Digital media is so frequently changing that providing clients with ongoing digital education is critical to their success and ours.

DP: Can you share any plans for Burson Digital in 2009?

EB: We have big plans for this year that are already well under way. We will be launching several new products and services and will introduce new partnerships as well. You’ll have to stay tuned to hear more. In the meantime, you can check out a recent project we unveiled tracking, aggregating and visualizing Twitter discussions for the European Elections. Stephanie has more information on TweetElect09.

Every day is digital day at Burson-Marsteller, and for that reason we are excited to launch our newly formed global digital practice, Burson Digital. We’ve always had a global digital capability but our new structure will allow us to apply a laser-like focus to solving our client’s digital challenges and helping them ensure a fair share of voice online. I’ll post more in the coming days, including a new website, but in the meantime wanted to explain our new logo on the blog.

While it is beautiful (thanks Jose and Tony), it is also meaningful. The plus sign signfies for us our commitment to Digital Plus… Digital plus Burson-Marsteller’s global footprint. Digital plus our integrated sister companies that allow us to provide a full suite of communications services. Digital plus deep and rich knowledge of our clients’ industries. And digital plus a passion for excellence that is evident in everything we do.

I recently chatted with JP McCaffrey, who has spearheaded development of a mobile capability at Burson-Marsteller, about the role of mobile in today’s economy and what he sees as key next steps for adoption and growth in 2009 and beyond. To see past About B-M interviews, view the archives view the archives.

Digital Perspective Blog: What role do you see mobile playing in the marketing communications industry this year?

JP McCaffrey: Mobile should become more of a connector between multiple communication channels and not just a stand-alone application or campaign.  Although a mobile campaign can survive on its own, I think it’s exciting to consider integrating it into a larger communication mix.  We know consumers carry their mobile devices 90% of the day so consistent message delivery becomes a huge benefit to our clients in conjunction with the other ways they are receiving information.  This is especially important for businesses or brands whom are seeking innovative and cost-effective methods for increasing revenue and raising brand awareness.

DP: Are there specific types of campaigns that are seeing greater ROIs in an economy like this?

JP: Consumers are getting more a more comfortable with digital consumption, especially on their mobile devices. With approximately 2.4 billion mobile subscribers worldwide, the timing is right for most businesses to go mobile, even in a down economy.  In fact, if we’ve learned anything from our most recent election, President Obama built and maintained his reputation through a heavy amount of digital programs.  He delivered messages that motivated people to act or respond – via web and mobile.

Almost 70% of mobile phone users have responded to a marketing driven text message, whether it is a direct response or redemption driven SMS campaign.  The most successful campaigns, in my opinion, utilize point-of-purchase, on-packaging, or other marketing programs to encourage consumers to opt-in for SMS promotions along the lines of coupons, prizes or simple product updates.

DP: Can you share any success stories where B-M has involved mobile?

JP: I am hopeful that everyone at BM has texted GoGreen to 484848 at this point! The Clear2Go SMS campaign was truly a connector to all facets of the launch program the Burson pulled together for Applica to build awareness of the impact that bottled water has on the environment.  Consumers were able to and still are able to add their individual pledge to help reduce disposable bottle use. We are providing weekly updates on goals attained and are also using the platform to send product updates as appropriate to keep raising awareness of the Clear2Go brand.

This is the first in a series of monthly interviews about Burson-Marsteller, its employees and its practices. I recently chatted with Paul Gallagher and Karen Doyne, co-chairs of the Crisis Practice and the Issue & Crisis Group about the role of digital in their practice and in a tough economy.

Digital Perspective Blog: What have you seen in the Issues & Crisis Group since the onset of the financial crisis?

Paul and Karen: Of course every company and association is under budget pressure these days. Interestingly, though, we’re seeing continued — and even increased — commitment of resources to crisis and issues management.  When there’s a make-or-break situation, or the threat of one, a company must take the necessary steps to communicate effectively with its stakeholders, now more than ever.  We are also doing a lot of crisis preparedness work, which has long been one of our strengths. You might expect crisis planning and readiness to be seen as expendable in a bad economy, but to the contrary, clients understand crisis planning is the only way to be sure they avoid missteps or delays in crisis response — and in today’s environment there’s no margin for error.

DP: What do you think is the most important digital element when managing a crisis?

PK: It has to start with the company’s own web presence.  Their website is the face they’re showing the public, and it’s increasingly the first stop for all stakeholders, including traditional media, bloggers, employees, consumers, and regulatory and legislative staff.  Especially in a crisis situation, you want to drive traffic to a website because that’s the most efficient way to deliver information, so those who go to the site have to be satisfied with what they find there. The first issue is the right level of visibility and accessibility: Should this be something on the company’s existing website or on a separate site? That’s why virtually all of our crisis plans for companies include creation of standby dark sites for use in a crisis situation. If it’s on the regular company site, should it be on the home page or in the media or consumer FAQ area?  And we need to be sure the site provides the right information — or links to others that will provide it — and that the language and tone are appropriate.  We’ve found that getting the website issues right, and very quickly, can make an enormous difference in the ability to manage and contain a crisis situation.

All that said, it is also very important that clients monitor blogs and social media and conduct outreach to ensure that a company’s point of view is reflected in content published. This can be a critical mechanism for driving traffic to a website and is key to ensuring that company’s influence conversations to reflect their side of the story.

DP: Can you share any success stories where you have involved digital?

PK: Most of our crisis work is kept confidential to avoid perpetuating any issues the company was facing, but we have seen many examples of digital playing a significant role in helping a client manage issues and crisis situations. For example, we used a secure workspace to help a government entity manage potential issues to ensure they didn’t escalate to crisis situations. We helped another client in the consumer packaged goods industry use digital media to sway public opinion around a frivolous lawsuit. And we recently used blog and social media monitoring to understand perceptions of stakeholders as we developed messaging for a large financial institution.