But where are we going as businesses in social media, what’s the next way we should utilize this space? The Vandiver Group sees one of those next big things to be micro-social networks. Social networks like Facebook operating at a smaller, more topic driven level. A micro-social network for a specific brand, product or issue.

The platform Ning.com is a way consumers have been creating these micro-socials since 2005. Now we are seeing more and more businesses and brands create the networks for employees and customers.

The micro-social network is a way to approach corporate web sites and consumer interaction. Check out my article from the most recent issue of Enterprising Women magazine to learn more about micro-social networks and the changes taking place in social media.

Most of us are looking at fourth quarters that are pretty slow, especially if our clients have had their budgets cut. But, perhaps like us, you are seeing an unprecedented number of RFPs issued for January start dates. (If only they paid us to write these wonderful proposals!)

The Council of PR Firms released their third quarter survey. It indicates that most firms thought their revenues would be lower or flat against 2008, but also indicated they expect client budgets to be higher in 2010. Leading economists say the recession is already over and that’s good news for everyone, so I’m passing that along as much as I can and believing in the power of positive thought.

A couple of years ago I authored a piece on success for members at Pinnacle Worldwide and I think it still holds true, so with your indulgence, I’ll reprint it here:

Success

“I think all of us who are successful in business share common traits. First, we have a vision of what we want our companies to be and we stick with it. Second, we stay committed to the concept of lifelong learning for everyone in our companies. It makes employees better at their job, moves them along the education curve, and encourages them to grow as professionals. Third, we are pioneers. We go above and beyond what everyone else is doing. We create cultures and workplace environments that break the mold. Finally, we have made a commitment to doing business responsibly and ethically.

Mixing Good Work with Good Works

Success in business is only a part of true success. There is added satisfaction if we also make our communities better places. In that spirit, we participate in numerous causes that are important to our employees, our companies, and our communities. We serve on boards, we give money, we loan our executives and employees to good causes and we try to make a difference.

The Three C’s

We all understand that our competition is not only other PR and marketing firms in our respective areas, but the national and international companies that play in our space. We need to think and act globally so we can get our piece of the action, and we need to innovate to create new action. To effectively do this we have three “C’s”:

Communicate – we need to know what types of work we are all doing and how we can better work together to snag big clients, share best practices and share information with one another quickly and easily;

Consult – we all have experiences – both positive and negative – as well as different areas of expertise that we should share so we collectively get better and smarter individually, and as a network; and

Cooperate – we should be looking for opportunities to pass on leads and potential work to our peers in other markets and to find ways to collaborate.
A successful industry is a benefit to all of us. It’s in our collective best interest to make it work.”

I am President of Pinnacle Worldwide (PWW), a group of independently-owned PR and advertising firms from around the world. PWW as an organization has always been about helping one another. And, our partner in the Phillipines—Romeo Virtusio of Virtusio Public Relations along with his staff, friends and neighbors– has endured a typhoon and torrential rains that have caused loss of life and property. Although Romy reports that his family and staff are fine, we recently announced we were collecting money to send to Romy to use to help his fellow countrymen rebuild. If you haven’t already, please click here to donate.

We have major challenges and opportunities in the coming year. We won’t know what a recovery will look like and how our clients will respond. But, one thing we can be sure of…it’s going to be interesting.

Although on the other side of the world, this disaster has hit close to home for TVG and Pinnacle Worldwide (PWW). Our PWW member in Manila has been impacted by the disaster. PWW is a global network of public relations firms. I am incoming President. We support one another in our professional endeavors, but now we are coming together to support a colleague in need.

Our colleague was hit with chest-high flood waters, but he is counting his blessings as his family is safe. As he works to rebuild, he hopes to help the others who are now homeless and less fortunate. Our colleagues shared his generous thoughts with us, stating:

“[My family and I] hope to be able to do even a little something for the thousands of others who are worse off from this disaster. Life is too precious to spend doing nothing for others. Just to share this with you, knowing that things like this do not happen to everyone, nor every day, and that the human heart understands. Thank you!”

Pinnacle Worldwide is collecting donations to aid the victims of the Philippines typhoon and flooding. To make a donation online, visit: Pinnacle Worldwide.

Now, the FTC is proposing regulations for online endorsements and testimonials. The PR and social media world is buzzing with news of the guidelines. A final ruling is expected later this year. The proposed guidelines place personal liability on bloggers and marketers for false testimonials and require clear disclosure of any relationship between bloggers, advocates and marketers.

The Word of Mouth and Marketing Association (WOMMA) recently reviewed and amended its code of ethics that addresses some of the issues surrounding endorsements and testimonials. This review was to ensure WOMMA members and industry leaders follow and understand ethical practices, as well as abide by future FTC guides.

TVG is a member of WOMMA and I serve on the WOMMA ethics committee that helped review the codes. In order to most clearly address the upcoming FTC guides, the committee amended the WOMMA code to read, “We stand against marketing practices whereby the marketer or its representatives provide goods, services or compensation to the consumer to make recommendations, reviews or endorsements without full, meaningful, and prominent disclosure.”

To learn more about the practical applications of current regulatory and legal events surrounding word of mouth, including the FTC’s proposed endorsement and testimonial guidelines, visit WOMMA’s new blog, DiResta the Law.

I would like to thank all of our clients who completed the survey and provided us with valuable feedback on our performance over the past few years. Our team utilizes your input to constantly improve our services and address any areas of concern.

This year TVG was pleased to receive exceptional results, with an overall performance rating of 92, based on a scale of 1-100. For all nine areas measured we received a score of 90 or above, with Business Relations (97), Personnel (98) and Responsiveness and Reliability (95) receiving the highest scores. Additionally, our Quality and Customer Support feedback was one-hundred percent positive. All other categories received positive or neutral ratings, with no negative feedback in any area.

We encourage all of our clients to continue providing us feedback so we can best meet your needs and offer the highest quality services. If you have any questions regarding the survey or any of TVG’s practice areas and services, please contact me anytime by phone at 314-991-4641 or email at dvandiver@vandivergroup.com.

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The opportunity to get away for a couple of days to think is a luxury for many of us, yet it may be one of the most critical things we do.

Dr. Nanda uses the learning by “case method and discussion” model, and I never fail to come away with a notebook full of new thinking about our practice and on a larger scale, about life.

One of the case histories this year was “The Parable of the Sadhu” which tells the story of a group who are on a 60-day hike in the mountains and villages of Nepal, when they encounter a dying Sadhu—or holy man. How they react as a group and as individuals makes for an interesting study in human behavior.

Do the goals we set for ourselves, outweigh everything that might get in the path of achieving those goals? What is our individual and our group responsibility to a person in need? Do we know how we would react if presented with a similar problem? Would we be satisfied with how we did react, or surprised by it? When do we take a stand? And, what stand do we take?

What do they recommend? First of all, they talk about just slowing down, in general. Try paying attention to your own breathing when you stop at a red light. Or, before going to sleep and upon waking, take a few slow, deep breaths and focus on the effects of your breathing on your lungs, nose and abdomen.

Many people find meditation works for them, or just try to sit quietly for 20-30 minutes. (Yes, it will feel like an eternity!) But, that’s the point. Slow down. Increase your mindfulness. Do one thing at a time and enjoy the here and now.

First, I am excited to announce the launch of our newest Web site, www.vandivergroup.com. If you have not already done so, I encourage you to explore the new and updated information on our practice areas and case studies. The launch of our TVG web site is part of a rebrand for TVG that we started last year. Since we do this kind of work for our clients, made sense for us to practice what we preach. We encourage you to share your thoughts on the site at our Twitter account @VandiverGroup or by email to info@vandivergroup.com. Our blog will be open for comments soon, so stay tuned for more opportunities to share feedback.

In addition to our brand, TVG has been significantly evolving over the last year. While maintaining our strong team culture, we have made some great additions to the staff, adding or promoting Practice Leaders for our core areas of expertise. And, we have continued our vigorous professional development to ensure our TVG team can continue to present and deliver leading edge solutions for our clients.

With a struggling economy, it is important to maintain strong business development initiatives, and our solutions team can help you select the best strategy and tactics to move your business forward. TVG has been in the social media and word-of-mouth space for six years. We are charter members of WOMMA (The word of mouth marketing association) and I serve on the ethics task force. We continue to find new ways our clients can use social media to deliver powerful communication solutions. Additionally, we are excited about the continued development of our sustainability, branding, web development, graphic design and employee branding services. You can view a complete list of our services at www.vandivergroup.com/services.

We are truly energized by the changes we’ve made and we look forward to serving our present and new clients in 2009. Thank you for your support and call us, twitter or email us to talk about how you’ll be positioned coming out of the current recession. Happy to offer our insight and counsel.

TVG has received “Best Place to Work in St. Louis” awards from the St. Louis Business Journal and St. Louis Magazine. TVG has been named one of the fastest-growing PR firms in the United States by the Council of PR Firms. Likewise, the firm was named to the St. Louis Business Journal’s lists of “Fastest-Growing Independently Owned Companies.”

It has been an honor to work with such dedicated and wonderful clients in a variety of industries. Our work is rewarding thanks to the teams we become part of with our clients. Thanks to all of our clients and supporters who have been a part of the journey throughout the last 15 years.

Even the definition of sustainability is still emerging. When The Vandiver Group sent out our recent global sustainability strategy survey, several people wrote us to say they couldn’t answer questions about how they are approaching sustainability, unless we could define the term for them. The best definition we have found is simply – an economy that can be sustained indefinitely.

When sustainability is defined that way, we see trends that transcend climate change and challenge our ability to be sustainable. While practically everyone agrees that it’s important to minimize pollution and do more with fewer resources, the trends we’re tracking say it’s time for a new conversation in business – a dialogue about moving beyond greening. For example:

• We see a global population that continues to grow, while relying on limited natural resources. Here in St. Louis it’s easy to take good soil and water for granted, but those are scarce resources in some world areas.

• We see consumers in China and India and around the world increasing their use of fuel. As a result, there’s more pressure on limited fuel supplies, and more demand for alternative fuels. This has created a new and very complex balance between the need for food and the need for fuel.

• Another sustainability challenge is our increasing use of energy. As demand increases, we’re seeing increasing costs, political instability in regions that supply fuel; and the profound impact on the economy as gas surpassed $4 per gallon.

• We also see grave challenges with poverty. More of the 4.5 billion people who live directly off the land in other world areas are driven to cities because of habitat destruction.

Amidst all of these alarming trends, the study we conducted found that most businesses still lack a sustainability strategy. After all of the media coverage of greening topics such as climate change, that surprised us. The same study found that improving public perception is one of the most important drivers for those who do have a sustainability strategy. Perhaps, if more companies focused on genuine sustainability challenges instead of just improving public perception, both outcomes would happen. What better way to improve perception than to help solve the greatest challenges around energy, food and human health?

Whatever our views on any given environmental topic, we can all agree that change is upon us, more change is needed, and a greater focus on sustainability is in our collective future. The only real question a company faces is the degree to which it will be reactive – and merely repeat whatever environmental topics are trendy today – or proactive, and set the environmental agenda based on meeting real-world human needs. At The Vandiver Group, our commitment is to be proactive about sustainability.

For more information, email us at info@vandivergroup.com