It’s no secret that aggressive marketing is critical to driving new business to hospitals in the South Florida market. One need only drive down I-95 or the Florida Turnpike and count the number of billboards advertising a service line or ER wait times, not to mention the TV ads, health fairs and lecture series. One cost effective method of getting your message across is the use of public relations, or getting third party endorsement to promote your service lines and staff.

Some hospitals implement a strategy that incorporates PR into their overall marketing plan, while others with smaller budgets, may rely primarily on public relations to get their message out. The question is whether it should be kept in house, outsourced, or a combination of both. A lot of that depends on staffing, budgets and philosophy.

A hospital would partner with a PR agency for various reasons. In some cases, it’s to support the marketing director who doesn’t have the time or expertise to handle the public relations function. In other circumstances, a hospital might have good PR capabilities, but requires extra manpower to execute a specific campaign or temporary help focusing on a short-term campaign.

PR agencies can provide a lot of value. Fees can range from as low as $3,000 per month for several hours of work in that time frame. If an agency is doing its job, it should be able to generate news coverage that is up to three or four times the value of what they are getting paid. And for that fee, you can expect to have a team of people working on your account, all with their own unique media contacts and experiences that generate results.

If you are debating whether to bring a seasoned communications expert in-house or go outside, consider this. It would likely cost you much more for a full-time salary and benefits than what you would pay annually for an outside consultant. Another point to be made is that a firm concentrates on doing nothing but delivering positive media coverage, whereas a full-time employee may get diverted to other pressing tasks, thus taking their attention away from doing the very job he or she was hired for.

Outside PR consultants can also bring value by reviewing your marketing efforts with an independent eye and offering a fresh perspective. Because PR firms represent clients in various industries they generally have more contacts than in-house communications folks, and thereby are able to spread your messages to broader audiences. In addition, many firms offer crisis communications consulting in addition to traditional media relations work, which could prove invaluable if you ever find yourself thrust into a media crisis.

Another area consultants are bringing value is in the social media arena. Many in-house staff don’t possess the knowledge, patience or time to take advantage of this influential communication tool, so partnering with someone who has the expertise and manpower to pull it off can prove to be very effective.

Before hiring a PR consultant, you should first figure out what your PR goals are and then set reasonable expectations. Each hospital is different when it comes to setting performance metrics. Some base the value on how much new business might be generated while others are more concerned with building an image and reputation in the community. Whatever your specific communications goals are, an outside consultant can be a valuable and cost-effective solution in helping you get to where you want and deserve to be.

Todd Templin, Executive Vice President of Boardroom Communications, can be reached at (954) 370-8999 or ttemplin@boardroompr.com.

How to Integrate Social

Media into Your Firm’s

Marketing Strategy

by Julie Talenfeld

President, Boardroom Communications

Law firms find themselves in a much different marketplace than they did just a few years ago. Competition is keen. Rival firms seem to be exploiting every angle, network and connection.

 Add to this new marketing landscape the arrival of social media, and firms are challenged with integrating social media into existing marketing programs. Professional services firms today increasingly are relying on Websites, blogs and social media to help communicate their brand principles, key marketing messaging, and overall firm strengths. Social media, in combination with traditional marketing / publicity outreach, can heighten the firm’s profile, strengthen its outreach, and establish a solid and memorable brand among its target audience.

 Below are some of the social media elements professional services firms are using effectively…

 Weblogs or ‘Blogs’. Law firms that capitalize on Weblogs or “Blogs” heighten their online brand awareness, which can help establish the firm or its principals as leaders in the field. As a point of definition, blogs are content written and posted to the site on a recurring basis. This can be content written specifically for the blog, or content “repurposed” for the blog, like speeches, press releases, articles or other written material. Blogs accomplish several goals. First, blogs establish the firm’s and/or practitioners’ expertise and authority in a given practice area(s). Second, blogs heighten a site’s use of keywords and search terms, which raises its profile among search engines and consumers.

 Social Media / Networking. By creating LinkedIn, a Facebook Fan Page, a Twitter feed or other social media services, the firm increases the “touch points” that reach its audience, heightens its presence across the Internet, and improves search results.

 Audio / Video Posting. A firm also can audio or audio / video record blog posts (as well as speeches or other presentations) for posting to the site, iTunes or YouTube as Podcasts, video broadcasts or other searchable social media.

 An experienced internal social media marketing expert or the right marketing firm can make the difference. The goal would be to supply a continuous stream of strong, keyword-rich, search-engine optimized content targeted specifically to the firm’s audience. Working in a collaborative environment, blogs are written and posted, fed to customized LinkedIn accounts, Facebook Fan Pages and Twitter feeds, and then spread virally to peers and prospects across the Web.

 What is newsworthy in the social media space? The same content found in traditional media. Every time the firm or an attorney earns a legal victory or achieves a professional milestone or award, the news is transmitted from consumer, business and trade media and reposted to the blog, social media and other online media services and destinations. The result: The news is distributed across all media – “traditional,” Web and social media – with each improving the overall impact and reach of the other.

 Julie Talenfeld is the founder and President of Boardroom Communications Inc., a South Florida-based public relations, marketing and social media firm with offices in Fort Lauderdale, Tampa and Orlando.

The world of social is media is growing in size and complexity. How can you best make it work for you?

Boardroom Communications develops and executes social media strategies for its clients From what we have learned, we think these are important rules to follow:

1. Decide what you want from social media: information, product awareness, customer feedback, news media coverage? Some combination of the above? You will not know where to look or where to share your information online until you have a goal.
2. Post online where your customers are. If they spend their time on MySpace listening to bands, build a page for your audio messages. If they browse Photobucket or Flickr for photos, make sure your pictures are there, too.
3. Value quality over quantity. Facebook says it has more than 400 million members. Yes, but how many of them are your customers or potential customers? If you sell swimsuits, you may want to spend your time and money promoting your company on social sites for fashion and travel.
4. Value your time, too. You do not have to read every news story, blog post and comment. Filter content so that you get the best information in the shortest period of time.
5. Network through Facebook and Linkedin. You will find your customers – and your competition – there. These social media make it easier to learn what people are thinking and talking about.
6. Increase your presence through LinkedIn, Facebook and other social media. It’s easy to connect the RSS feed from your blog to your LinkedIn profile. The more places your appear, the most active you are in reaching customers.
7. Subscribe to RSS feeds. It’s easy through Gmail and other Web services. You’ll receive constant updates about what people and companies that influence your business are saying and doing. Their comments can be grist for your blog posts, Tweets and Facebook updates.
8. Schedule your Tweets so that you do not forget them. With interruptions from phone calls and e-mails, it’s easy to overlook your Twitter account. And don’t forget to comment on other people’s Tweets. Show that you pay attention.
9. Work efficiently. Online services such as TwitterFeed, HootSuite and Ping.fm allow you to post updates across multiple sites with one (or even no) clicks. TubeMogul.com will post videos across multiple sites with one upload.
10. Don’t censor the conversation. Social media give customers control over what it said about your business and brand. Take the criticism with the compliments and learn from both.

Florida Gov. Charlie Crist and former state house speaker Marco Rubio “tore into each other on national television in their first debate Sunday with Crist accusing Rubio of misspending political contributions and Rubio positioning himself as the true conservative in the race,” reported the Miami Herald on March 28, 2010.

The Republican candidates for a U.S. Senate seat are going after each other even harder in their political ads and campaign statements. Enter the Florida Truth-O-Meter, a joint venture of the Miami Herald and St. Petersburg Times, two of Florida’s leading newspapers. The newsrooms share resources, such as coverage of the state capital, and collaborate at a shared Web site, PolitiFact Florida.

The Truth-O-Meter rates what candidates and other politicos are saying on scale from true to half-true to “Pants on fire!” The results are posted on a modified voltage meter and explained in a short article. The meter labeled as false Crist’s statement on FOX News that Marco Rubio’s 2007 tax swap proposal was a “massive tax increase.” In the same debate, the Herald said Rubio made a false statement when he said he had not voted for tax increases as a member of the West Miami commission.

The meter spreads it around, evaluating statements from other Florida officials and state political parties. The visuals are fun and the explanations are easy to follow. A potential voter can read something other than what someone has to say about the opposition.

Catching politicians bending the facts is an international sport. The Florida meter is part of a larger National Truth-O-Meter that tracks everyone from President Obama on down. And in Great Britain, there is a “Minister of Truth,” according to a February 22, 2010, article in Wired magazine. The government employee heads his own truth squad that investigates whether British politicians are accurate when they cite government statistics. In England, it seems, people are willing to pay taxes for the truth.

How much is enough? After a career protected by legal, PR and security handlers, Tiger Woods again is again offering public apologies about his private life. Should he be done, or is redemption a 12-step process?

Tiger Woods granted his first TV interview on March 21 with ESPN’s Tom Rinaldi. While it was part of Tiger’s orchestrated return to the public world, he answered the three of the first seven questions by saying certain matters were private. He declined to say what happened in the accident beyond what was in a police report, why he lost control of his car and why he is in treatment. He was willing to talk about golf and the upcoming Master’s Tournament.

From a PR standpoint, no answer is not not enough. When you come forward to tell your story, you have to tell all of it. Maybe Tiger’s second apology will satisfy some fans, but will it be enough for those who are unsure of his sincerity and his rehabilitation?

It has been four months since the accident. Maybe the fans who like him as a golfer are ready to move on. And those who have not forgiven him for his infidelities will remain steadfast in their views. So the PR question is when is enough is enough.

Tiger’s situation is more complicated than most. He has to rebuild a golf game and a public persona, both of which have paid him well. If he hopes to be more than a competitor, he has to make the cut with fans and sponsors.

Tiger may have gone as far as he can go within the tight confines he operates. He is appearing at the Master’s, which closely manages its operations. He is speaking only with cooperative media: CBS turned down an interview when he and his managers would allow only five minutes for questions.

From a PR standpoint, the most important endorsement has to come from his wife. As Tiger says, Elin Woods “she had every right to be and I’m as disappointed as everyone else in my own behavior because I can’t believe I actually did that to the people I loved.”

If Mrs. Woods publicly states statement that she forgives him, his public image will greatly improved.

South Florida Public Relations & Marketing Firm Campaign Reaches Area’s Jewish Donors

Always known for effective public relations and marketing, Boardroom Communications this month won a coveted Addy Award for a television commercial it created for the Jewish Federation of Broward County.

The Silver Addy, from the Advertising Federation of Greater Fort Lauderdale, was for Boardroom’s “Lend a Helping Hand” campaign. The TV spot depicts how the Jewish Federation helps and supports more than 30 Jewish agencies throughout Broward County. It then invites those who need help to call, as well as those who can help to give.

Dozens of faces of those in need were melded into a “mosaic” forming hands that ultimately transform to create a “Chai” – the Hebrew symbol for “Life.” (more…)

Tenet Healthcare hospitals in Palm Beach County received widespread TV coverage for their assistance to the Haitian people following the devastating earthquake in January 2010. Boardroom Communications stayed in constant contact with the newsrooms of network affiliates to supply information on incoming patients and doctors who traveled to the island nation to provide emergency care.

Three doctors from Delray Medical Center quickly mobilized and traveled to Haiti to treat the injured. Doctors from Good Samaritan Medical Center in West Palm Beach and West Boca Medical Center in southern Palm Beach County also went to help with recovery efforts. Delray Medical Center and St. Mary’s Medical Center in West Palm Beach received injured Haitians who were flown for treatment.

In all, there were more than a dozen news reports and newspaper media placements in two languages on local ABC, CBS, Fox and NBC newscasts, as well local print media, during a three-week period. Boardroom generated a majority of the stories, keeping the news flowing to reporters and assignment desk editors. Here’s a rundown on the news reports:

• On Jan. 14, WPBF (ABC-Channel 25) aired a story on preparations at Delray Medical Center for an influx of Haitian medical refugees.
• On Jan. 18, WPEC (CBS-Channel 12) aired a report about three Haitian patients being treated at St. Mary’s Medical Center in which doctors were interviewed.
• On Jan. 27, WPEC and WPTV (NBC-Channel 5) aired a report about Dr. Anthony Dardano, Dr. Louis DeLuca and Dr. Lloyd Zucker of Delray Medical Center leaving for a medical mission to Haiti. Dardano and DeLuca are plastic surgeons; Zucker is a neurosurgeon.
• On Jan 31, WPTV aired a Spanish-language news program, “Con la Communidad,” that featured a report on Drs. Dardano, Zucker and DeLuca’s mission to Haiti.
• Also on Jan. 31, WPTV reported that Good Samaritan Medical Center’s Dr. Jean Monice was headed to Haiti on a medical mission.
• On Feb. 2 WFLX (Fox-Channel 29) ran a story on the return from Haiti of doctors from Delray Medical Center.
• Also on Feb. 2, WPEC aired a live shot on its noon news in front of St. Mary’s Medical Center as part of a report on new Haitian patients that arrived for treatment.
• And on Feb. 2, WPTV led its 11 p.m. newscast with a report on injured Haitians arriving at Palm Beach International Airport and being taken to hospitals including Delray and St. Mary’s medical centers. WFLX also had a late news report.
  
• On Feb. 2, WPTV aired an interview with a Haitian patient at Delray Medical Center and the center’s trauma director, Michelle Sutton-Epps.
• On Feb. 3, WPBF aired a report on the return from Haiti of the doctors from Delray Medical Center, as did WFLX.
• And WPBF reported on the return of Dr. Kenneth Jeffers of West Boca Medical Center from a second trip to Haiti to provide emergency treatment.
  

As for local print media, the Palm Beach Post ran several stories on the hospital’s involvement with treating Haitian victims, collecting supplies, as well as doctors and nurses traveling to provide medical care:

• Palm Beach Post, Jan. 18, “Local employers lend support to Haitian workers”
• Palm Beach Post, Jan. 18, “PBC hospitals treating at least 6 Haitian quake victims”
• Palm Beach Post, Jan. 31, “Florida hospitals handling hundreds of Haiti victims”
• Palm Beach Post, Jan. 31, “Haiti in relief: a reporter’s notebook”
• South Florida Hospital News, Feb issue, “St. Mary’s Medical Center treats 3 victims from Haiti Earthquake”

NAIOP South Florida, on which chief operating officer Don Silver serves as vice president of public relations, received news coverage in the Miami Herald.

Members and news media gathered in late January for the trade organization’s all-important 2010 economic outlook.  Mark Dotzour, chief economist and director of research for the Real Estate Center at Texas A&M University, presented a frank talk on market conditions and whether they might improve this year.

As reported in the Miami Herald, commercial real estate prices have fallen 35 percent to 50 percent from 2007 levels.  “Those prices should never have been paid and those loans should never have been made,” Dotzour was quoted as saying. “The prices are getting back to the reality level where tenants can make a profit and survive.”

Dotzour predicted that market conditions would improve this year, but that some owners would be forced to sell at discounted prices.