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A Better Place to Live, Work, and Play |
Whether it's improving roads or enhancing community programs for our kids, we all have a vested interest in the future of our city. The plans local government set forth have a tremendous impact on our way of life. So shouldn't we have a say?
In Oakland Park, Florida and New Orleans, Louisiana, citizens are getting their voices heard, as their respective cities develop a "roadmap" for the future. Cities traditionally do this through a citywide master plan that articulates a vision, sets goals and priorities, and identifies the path to success.
Neighborhood America's solutions have historically enabled the public sector to successfully reach out to citizens through the Web, and Oakland Park and New Orleans are no exception.
Oakland Park's focus is one of fun - literally. The City wants to maximize parks and recreation opportunities by having citizens tell them what they'd like to see in the future. During this time, Neighborhood America's solution enables the planning team to gather public feedback online, which is attributable and reportable. The comments and surveys will help Oakland Park better understand the needs of citizens. The goal is to provide everyone places for exercise, camaraderie and outdoor exploration right in their own backyard -- making it a city they wouldn't want to leave!
In 2005, Hurricane Katrina forced New Orleanians to leave their city. Since the hurricane, the town has been working hard to recover and rebuild after the devastation of the hurricane and flooding. Now it's time to look beyond the rebuilding process and chart a course for the longer term, making New Orleans even better than it was before as a place to live, work, play, and visit.
The New Orleans Master Plan will balance the many interests and perspectives of neighborhoods, organizations, and more to determine an action plan for the future of the city. This includes a vision for its physical development, as well as helping the City save money through orderly investments and preserving the sense of identity that makes it unique. The public comments the team will gather through Neighborhood America's solution will insure the final plan meets the needs and desires of the citizens.
Two very different cities, both utilizing our services and the Web, for a common goal.
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Featured MOVO Customer: Nexxus
Learn how you can leverage mobile by visiting MOVOmobile.com
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Nexxus Gives the Gift of Unforgettable Style
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Every woman wants to feel beautiful, but especially during the holidays… hitting the party circuit can be stressful picking the right dress AND the right hairstyle.
If heading to the salon isn't an option, most women just do it themselves at home.
This holiday season, Nexxus Salon Hair Care and its agency of record Carat teamed up with Neighborhood America to launch a mobile marketing campaign promoting holiday hairstyles.
Fashion magazines like Allure, Vogue and Glamour featured the print ad campaign, which encouraged consumers to text a keyword representing the style, like "curl," to the short code "Nexxus," or 639987, to receive styling tips. Consumers linked to a website on their mobile phone that featured a step-by-step guide for each style. Besides acting as a resource for customers, Nexxus wanted to promote its products and drive traffic to their website.
"Carat and Nexxus have done a great job using print ads in the latest fashion magazines with a mobile call-to-action to get people to interact with the brand," says David Rippetoe, Sr. Dir. of Business Development, Neighborhood America. "A consumer can see the hairstyle in the magazine and send a text message from their phone to get to the mobile website where they can see how to create the featured hairstyle and what products they need to replicate."
Neighborhood America has repeatedly worked with Carat to support its clients' mobile marketing efforts. In 2007, the companies worked together to launch a similar Nexxus campaign around Fashion Rocks, which used Neighborhood America's MOVO Mobile to interact with consumers and provide style advice as well.
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How Woodworking Reveals an Important Lesson in Social Media
By Mark Emery, Director of Business Development, Neighborhood America
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I am an amateur woodworker (heavy emphasis on amateur). I've always been a bit of a do-it-yourself type of guy as there is a significant delta between what I want and what I can afford, but I also simply enjoy the creative process (note: it is certainly not because I have any natural prowess).
So last year, when we needed planters for the front yard, I jumped at the chance to turn a simple project into a new hobby.
Woodworking is not easy. Not only is it not easy, it's not something you get good at quickly.
I have made incremental progress in my shop, but a lot more progress outside of it; there are loads of life lessons in woodworking.
The foundation of sound woodworking is precise planning. From accurate measurements to proper tool configuration to building/using the right jigs... woodworking rewards preparation. In fact, I think proper preparation is probably 40% of the total effort. 10% is actually executing - cutting, trimming, fitting and assembling. The other 50% is finish work, and it's here where stuff can really come to life, or not. It is also, tellingly, the most arduous, not fun part of it.
Sanding. Cleaning. Coating. Sanding. Cleaning. Coating. It takes hours and hours of determined manual labor, a commitment to detail, and the ability to deal with ennui. Haste truly makes waste.
I think it is analogous to the world of social media. The difference between a digital community that thrives and one that merely gets by (or worse) may very well be in the finish work. The fun parts of creating a digital community may be developing the strategy, designing, and executing, but the mundane care and feeding are likely greater indicators as to the sustainability of the community.
Take Verizon's digital community (RIP: http://community.verizon.net). Having worked with several of the nation's largest carriers, I have no doubt there was an inordinate amount of preparation involved in launching their community. A case can certainly be made that the community suffered from a lack of focus (it wasn't clear what exactly the community was built to do), but I think the larger point was that it didn't evolve. And that falls squarely on community managers.
In contrast, take a look at Starbucks' community, My Starbucks Idea. The site has purpose - it is designed expressly to solicit feedback from the masses on how to improve the Starbucks experience. The care and feeding is built right in - instead of simply ingesting all ideas, Starbucks built the community so that it governs itself - the best ideas simply bubble to the top. Perfecto.
Social media is just as difficult to excel in as woodworking, I'm learning. On the plus side, you probably won't lose a finger honing your craft.
Like what Mark had to say? Read his blog entries on The Circuit at http://community.neighborhoodamerica.com/blogs.
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The Circuit Energizes Neighborhood America
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"What does your company Neighborhood America do?"
It's a question many of us employees often get asked. And it's hard to put your finger on it. The easiest way to explain it is by showing them one of the online communities we've built for our customers and sharing the success that accompanies it, or a magazine ad for a text messaging campaign we executed.
Whether it's Men's Health attracting readers online to stay fit or Adidas reaching out to consumers on the go through their mobile phones, Neighborhood America makes it happen, makes that community come to life. It's our technology software, coupled with our services that create a place for you to interact with others around a brand, a company, or a political issue. Accessible online, 24/7/365.
And after nearly 10 years of successfully enabling our customers to leverage digital and mobile communities, it's time we do it for ourselves. Neighborhood America is reaching a milestone in the history of the company with the rollout of OUR new community, The Circuit.
The Circuit is the lifeline of our company. It's where we turn to our customers for feedback and ideas that help to improve our products, our services and our company to meet their needs. Partners will have the opportunity to identify new business opportunities with other partners, and leverage tactics to successfully generate revenues through the solutions we offer.
When you join The Circuit, you'll have the opportunity to share insights, contribute content and learn how others are succeeding with social media. Not to mention stay up-to-date on upcoming events, and suggest topics and agendas - your participation determines the events that you want.
This community, our community, will become a fabric of our foundation. A showcase for our solution, including the latest and greatest developments in social media technology. A place we can finally point towards to show people what our company does and what we have to offer our customers and partners.
We are happy to invite you to join in the conversation on The Circuit. Visit us at http://community.neighborhoodamerica.com/.
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Top Business School Invites Neighborhood America to Share Insights
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Wharton School Visiting Associate Professor Sandy Jap is preparing her students for a career in marketing with the latest information on how online communities have changed the playing field for Customer Relationship Management (CRM). There's no doubt that businesses need to adjust current models to meet the needs of this emerging medium.
On January 29th, Professor Jap's students are in for a treat. The Wharton School invited Neighborhood America's Director of CRM and Social Media Strategy and President of the CRMA, Michael Thomas, to speak to three classes. The students, many seeking their BA and MBA degrees, will learn how social media impacts CRM - and gives consumers a stronger voice.
"The companies these students will work for in the future will need to understand what's going on in the social media space," says Michael. "I look forward to sharing fresh insights on how other companies are leveraging these types of strategies to engage their current and potential customers."
The Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania, is America's first business school and one of the top business schools in the world. Neighborhood America has been working with staff and faculty to drive thought leadership. Not to mention, our solution powers the Wharton Interactive Media Initiative, a part of the School's goals to establish Interactive Media as a part of the curriculum. Our solution enables teams to collaborate online, manage projects and timelines, and gather feedback on the initiative.
Neighborhood America is proud to have a voice in the curriculum of this world-class institution. Our role ensures that tomorrow's business leaders are aware of Neighborhood America and view our company as a leader in this emerging industry.
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Neighborhood America Makes ad:tech New York 2008 a Social Affair
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A round of drinks. A crowd of marketing executives from big brands, agencies and PR firms. And a topic everyone is talking about - social media.
Roger Hollander, Heidi Culbertson and Mark Emery - all Directors of Business Development for Neighborhood America, hosted a get-together for select ad:tech attendees during the October event in New York to talk about the swirl of issues surrounding social media in the marketing and advertising arenas.
On the heels of an auto bailout, an economy in tatters, and a Presidential election, the room was buzzing with talk about what is and what isn't working in social media. Discussions centered on how brands are leveraging Web 2.0 and how the Obama campaign has brought attention to a new world of online communities and mobile technology.
Among attendees were executives from the New York Times, Dow Jones, Carat, AT&T and other firms interested in incorporating social media into their larger sales and marketing initiatives for 2009. Many talked about using mobile to reel in skeptical consumers and how business networks can be utilized to create value, with businesses brokering the discussions as the hub.
For more information about ad:tech New York, visit http://www.ad-tech.com/ny/ and make sure to check us out next time we're in your town.
[Pictured above: Roger Hollander of Neighborhood America, John Moser, CMO of Denihan Hospitality, Brook Jennings, Manager of Public Relations & Brand Development at Affinia Hotels & The Benjamin, and OZ Sultan, Chief Strategy Officer at We Are NOM Social Media]
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Newsletters
Kodak Gallery Turns the Idea Center into Profitable Partnership with Betty Crocker
What comes to mind when you think of Betty Crocker?
For most of us, it's the sight of a freshly baked yellow cake sitting on the counter, delicious chocolate icing oozing overtop. Or maybe it's mom throwing together a last minute meal with Hamburger Helper. For more than 80 years, Betty Crocker products have helped families create convenient, delicious meals and desserts.
Now the household name is helping Kodak Gallery visitors create uniquely tasty gift ideas online. The joint promotion with Betty Crocker leverages Kodak Gallery's Idea Center, built by Neighborhood America.
The Idea Center provides a destination for people who want to do something creative with their pictures and interact with their peers. They can share projects; comment, rate, and submit their own ideas; and easily turn their pictures into one-of-a-kind creative projects.
Recently, Neighborhood America implemented a new 'Kitchen' category in the Idea Center, as well as a promotional banner to attract those interested in making sweet holiday moments with gift ideas from Betty Crocker.
"Neighborhood America is proud to support Kodak Gallery in their efforts to turn its social media initiative into a profitable partnership with one of America's favorite brands," says Matt Vacondios, Customer Account Executive, Neighborhood America. "With nearly 60 million members, Kodak Gallery offers Betty Crocker a targeted audience online, while jointly promoting the companies' products, making it a win-win situation."
According to a January through May 2008 study by Ogilvy, Kodak's agency of record, the Idea Center visitor spends on average 50% more than all visitors on Kodak Gallery. Typically these visitors are repeat customers willing to engage and buy. Data shows increases in percentage of new visitors and usage - not to mention conversion.
So what's in store for Kodak Gallery and the Idea Center in 2009?
Later this month, the Idea Center will include a 'Baby' category under the 'Occasion Projects' section for expectant and new moms to share projects around their pregnancy experience and those first few months of a newborn's life. Besides projects, the Center will include 'Inspirational Stories' that will feature professionally produced videos by Ogilvy.
Kodak will sharpen its focus on this important consumer demographic -- one with undoubtedly lots of buying power.
Haven't visited the Idea Center yet? Check out what you're missing at http://www.kodakideacenter.com/SNC/. Valentine's Day is right around the corner (hint, hint).
A Better Place to Live, Work, and Play
Whether it's improving roads or enhancing community programs for our kids, we all have a vested interest in the future of our city. The plans local government set forth have a tremendous impact on our way of life. So shouldn't we have a say?
In Oakland Park, Florida and New Orleans, Louisiana, citizens are getting their voices heard, as their respective cities develop a "roadmap" for the future. Cities traditionally do this through a citywide master plan that articulates a vision, sets goals and priorities, and identifies the path to success.
Neighborhood America's solutions have historically enabled the public sector to successfully reach out to citizens through the Web, and Oakland Park and New Orleans are no exception.
Oakland Park's focus is one of fun - literally. The City wants to maximize parks and recreation opportunities by having citizens tell them what they'd like to see in the future. During this time, Neighborhood America's solution enables the planning team to gather public feedback online, which is attributable and reportable. The comments and surveys will help Oakland Park better understand the needs of citizens. The goal is to provide everyone places for exercise, camaraderie and outdoor exploration right in their own backyard -- making it a city they wouldn't want to leave!
In 2005, Hurricane Katrina forced New Orleanians to leave their city. Since the hurricane, the town has been working hard to recover and rebuild after the devastation of the hurricane and flooding. Now it's time to look beyond the rebuilding process and chart a course for the longer term, making New Orleans even better than it was before as a place to live, work, play, and visit.
The New Orleans Master Plan will balance the many interests and perspectives of neighborhoods, organizations, and more to determine an action plan for the future of the city. This includes a vision for its physical development, as well as helping the City save money through orderly investments and preserving the sense of identity that makes it unique. The public comments the team will gather through Neighborhood America's solution will insure the final plan meets the needs and desires of the citizens.
Two very different cities, both utilizing our services and the Web, for a common goal.
Featured MOVO Customer: Nexxus
Learn how you can leverage mobile by visiting MOVOmobile.com
Every woman wants to feel beautiful, but especially during the holidays… hitting the party circuit can be stressful picking the right dress AND the right hairstyle.
If heading to the salon isn't an option, most women just do it themselves at home.
This holiday season, Nexxus Salon Hair Care and its agency of record Carat teamed up with Neighborhood America to launch a mobile marketing campaign promoting holiday hairstyles.
Fashion magazines like Allure, Vogue and Glamour featured the print ad campaign, which encouraged consumers to text a keyword representing the style, like "curl," to the short code "Nexxus," or 639987, to receive styling tips. Consumers linked to a website on their mobile phone that featured a step-by-step guide for each style. Besides acting as a resource for customers, Nexxus wanted to promote its products and drive traffic to their website.
"Carat and Nexxus have done a great job using print ads in the latest fashion magazines with a mobile call-to-action to get people to interact with the brand," says David Rippetoe, Sr. Dir. of Business Development, Neighborhood America. "A consumer can see the hairstyle in the magazine and send a text message from their phone to get to the mobile website where they can see how to create the featured hairstyle and what products they need to replicate."
Neighborhood America has repeatedly worked with Carat to support its clients' mobile marketing efforts. In 2007, the companies worked together to launch a similar Nexxus campaign around Fashion Rocks, which used Neighborhood America's MOVO Mobile to interact with consumers and provide style advice as well.
By Mark Emery, Director of Business Development, Neighborhood America
I am an amateur woodworker (heavy emphasis on amateur). I've always been a bit of a do-it-yourself type of guy as there is a significant delta between what I want and what I can afford, but I also simply enjoy the creative process (note: it is certainly not because I have any natural prowess).
So last year, when we needed planters for the front yard, I jumped at the chance to turn a simple project into a new hobby.
Woodworking is not easy. Not only is it not easy, it's not something you get good at quickly.
I have made incremental progress in my shop, but a lot more progress outside of it; there are loads of life lessons in woodworking.
The foundation of sound woodworking is precise planning. From accurate measurements to proper tool configuration to building/using the right jigs... woodworking rewards preparation. In fact, I think proper preparation is probably 40% of the total effort. 10% is actually executing - cutting, trimming, fitting and assembling. The other 50% is finish work, and it's here where stuff can really come to life, or not. It is also, tellingly, the most arduous, not fun part of it.
Sanding. Cleaning. Coating. Sanding. Cleaning. Coating. It takes hours and hours of determined manual labor, a commitment to detail, and the ability to deal with ennui. Haste truly makes waste.
I think it is analogous to the world of social media. The difference between a digital community that thrives and one that merely gets by (or worse) may very well be in the finish work. The fun parts of creating a digital community may be developing the strategy, designing, and executing, but the mundane care and feeding are likely greater indicators as to the sustainability of the community.
Take Verizon's digital community (RIP: http://community.verizon.net). Having worked with several of the nation's largest carriers, I have no doubt there was an inordinate amount of preparation involved in launching their community. A case can certainly be made that the community suffered from a lack of focus (it wasn't clear what exactly the community was built to do), but I think the larger point was that it didn't evolve. And that falls squarely on community managers.
In contrast, take a look at Starbucks' community, My Starbucks Idea. The site has purpose - it is designed expressly to solicit feedback from the masses on how to improve the Starbucks experience. The care and feeding is built right in - instead of simply ingesting all ideas, Starbucks built the community so that it governs itself - the best ideas simply bubble to the top. Perfecto.
Social media is just as difficult to excel in as woodworking, I'm learning. On the plus side, you probably won't lose a finger honing your craft.
Like what Mark had to say? Read his blog entries on The Circuit at http://community.neighborhoodamerica.com/blogs.
"What does your company Neighborhood America do?"
It's a question many of us employees often get asked. And it's hard to put your finger on it. The easiest way to explain it is by showing them one of the online communities we've built for our customers and sharing the success that accompanies it, or a magazine ad for a text messaging campaign we executed.
Whether it's Men's Health attracting readers online to stay fit or Adidas reaching out to consumers on the go through their mobile phones, Neighborhood America makes it happen, makes that community come to life. It's our technology software, coupled with our services that create a place for you to interact with others around a brand, a company, or a political issue. Accessible online, 24/7/365.
And after nearly 10 years of successfully enabling our customers to leverage digital and mobile communities, it's time we do it for ourselves. Neighborhood America is reaching a milestone in the history of the company with the rollout of OUR new community, The Circuit.
The Circuit is the lifeline of our company. It's where we turn to our customers for feedback and ideas that help to improve our products, our services and our company to meet their needs. Partners will have the opportunity to identify new business opportunities with other partners, and leverage tactics to successfully generate revenues through the solutions we offer.
When you join The Circuit, you'll have the opportunity to share insights, contribute content and learn how others are succeeding with social media. Not to mention stay up-to-date on upcoming events, and suggest topics and agendas - your participation determines the events that you want.
This community, our community, will become a fabric of our foundation. A showcase for our solution, including the latest and greatest developments in social media technology. A place we can finally point towards to show people what our company does and what we have to offer our customers and partners.
We are happy to invite you to join in the conversation on The Circuit. Visit us at http://community.neighborhoodamerica.com/.
Wharton School Visiting Associate Professor Sandy Jap is preparing her students for a career in marketing with the latest information on how online communities have changed the playing field for Customer Relationship Management (CRM). There's no doubt that businesses need to adjust current models to meet the needs of this emerging medium.
On January 29th, Professor Jap's students are in for a treat. The Wharton School invited Neighborhood America's Director of CRM and Social Media Strategy and President of the CRMA, Michael Thomas, to speak to three classes. The students, many seeking their BA and MBA degrees, will learn how social media impacts CRM - and gives consumers a stronger voice.
"The companies these students will work for in the future will need to understand what's going on in the social media space," says Michael. "I look forward to sharing fresh insights on how other companies are leveraging these types of strategies to engage their current and potential customers."
The Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania, is America's first business school and one of the top business schools in the world. Neighborhood America has been working with staff and faculty to drive thought leadership. Not to mention, our solution powers the Wharton Interactive Media Initiative, a part of the School's goals to establish Interactive Media as a part of the curriculum. Our solution enables teams to collaborate online, manage projects and timelines, and gather feedback on the initiative.
Neighborhood America is proud to have a voice in the curriculum of this world-class institution. Our role ensures that tomorrow's business leaders are aware of Neighborhood America and view our company as a leader in this emerging industry.
A round of drinks. A crowd of marketing executives from big brands, agencies and PR firms. And a topic everyone is talking about - social media.
Roger Hollander, Heidi Culbertson and Mark Emery - all Directors of Business Development for Neighborhood America, hosted a get-together for select ad:tech attendees during the October event in New York to talk about the swirl of issues surrounding social media in the marketing and advertising arenas.
On the heels of an auto bailout, an economy in tatters, and a Presidential election, the room was buzzing with talk about what is and what isn't working in social media. Discussions centered on how brands are leveraging Web 2.0 and how the Obama campaign has brought attention to a new world of online communities and mobile technology.
Among attendees were executives from the New York Times, Dow Jones, Carat, AT&T and other firms interested in incorporating social media into their larger sales and marketing initiatives for 2009. Many talked about using mobile to reel in skeptical consumers and how business networks can be utilized to create value, with businesses brokering the discussions as the hub.
For more information about ad:tech New York, visit http://www.ad-tech.com/ny/ and make sure to check us out next time we're in your town.
[Pictured above: Roger Hollander of Neighborhood America, John Moser, CMO of Denihan Hospitality, Brook Jennings, Manager of Public Relations & Brand Development at Affinia Hotels & The Benjamin, and OZ Sultan, Chief Strategy Officer at We Are NOM Social Media]
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