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Web Ink Now

Online thought leadership and viral marketing strategies using news releases, blogs, podcasts, and online media

I receive a handful of email invitations each week from people saying: "I'd like to add you to my professional network on LinkedIn."

And to each person I send a polite note saying more or less: "Sorry, but I don't do LinkedIn. You can find me at my primary hangouts including my site and my blog and Facebook and Twitter, and you'll see me pop up at several dozen other social networking sites from time to time."

Some people email me back and are either surprised: "Wait! You don't do LinkedIn?" or seem a bit offended: "Why the heck don't you do LinkedIn? Do tell."

Why I am not on LinkedIn

The LinkedIn site says: "Over 30 million professionals use LinkedIn to exchange information, ideas and opportunities. When you join, you create a profile that summarizes your professional accomplishments. Your profile helps you find and be found by former colleagues, clients, and partners. You can add more connections by inviting trusted contacts to

Quit your jobNovember 26

More and more, people tell me things like this: "David, I've tried everything. I've explained why I want to create information online to spread my company's ideas. I've done a top ten list on what my company can do in social media and presented to management. I've asked my bosses to read your books and those of smart thinkers like Seth Godin and Paul Gillin and Larry Weber. I'm pointing out that we all make decisions every day based on what we find online. But they still won't let me do what I know is right by working on the sort of marketing you talk about. And they still insist on blocking social media sites like Facebook and YouTube."

If you face a challenge like this, don't fret. If it just isn't working and you know in your gut that you can do more, I've got news for you. If your company wants to hold you back from implementing the ideas you know are right—after you’ve explained what you want to do and why, then maybe you need to find a new company that will appreciate your talents.

Maybe it's time for you to quit your job. Now. Today.

New marketing at work: BitDefender and the hip new Malware City site reach internet security geeksNovember 24

Regular readers of this blog know that one of the things that I discuss regularly is the big issue we all struggle with: How to convince the bosses, management, boards, sales teams, and other people within our organizations that we should be focused on new marketing.

I've offered suggestions in blog posts such as Answering the ultimate question: "How do I convince my boss of the ROI of new marketing?" and another post The one question to ask new marketing & PR detractors.

However, many people have written me and asked for case examples that show how others have convinced bosses to move forward and then successfully implemented a social media strategy. So here is a terrific example. I hope to have more in the coming months.

Vitor Souza is Global Communications Manager at BitDefender, creator of internationally certified security software, used by tens of millions of people and sold in more than 100 countries. A true global company, Souza works from offices in Mountain View, CA and Bucharest, Romania. This is a particularly interesting example because the market that BitDefender serves is very competitive and product differentiation is not easy to do.

Souza read my book The New Rules of Marketing & PR and the ideas resonated with him so he purchased ten copies for others on his team as well as the BitDefender CEO. Souza then got approval to bring his team to the U.S. to attend my New Rules of Marketing full-day seminar.

"After our seminar my team and I highlighted all the main points and presented to the executive team," Souza says. "We had a Q&A section and with a bit of discussion it was realized that we knew more about what is going on today with the new rules." Souza and his team also put together a series of stories from mainstream media (publications that his management deemed credible) to share. Together with this information, the team presented an action plan to the management team that required very little budget.

What I like about this approach to convincing management is that it was presented in steps over several months and the approach was very well thought out. In particular, an action plan was presented. Instead of saying "we should start a blog" there was a clear plan for how to do it.

"They gave us a 3-month trial on the program," Souza says. "And I made sure we over delivered the results."

Introducing Malware City

A cornerstone of the new marketing approach was the development of a new site called Malware City, launched in mid-2008, focused on key influencers within the IT security community. The new site was not a redesign of the existing company site, but instead was an informational supplement to the BitDefender main site that is used to sell BitDefender products.

"We launched Malware City for people that are interested in the latest information on internet threats," Souza says. "It has a blog from our lab analysts, educational materials for IT guys, and many other interactive tools."

Understanding buyer personas

Souza and his team clearly understood that the best online initiatives are those that deliver specific information tailored to a particular buyer persona. The Malware City site was developed to appeal to three different buyer personas:
1) Information Technology security press (both mainstream press and social media)
2) BitDefender users
3) A group Souza describes as "internet security geeks" -- the most important buyer persona for Malware City.

The Malware City site appeals directly to the internet security geek buyer persona with language such as: "Our citizens are wise warriors fighting malware, willing to share their knowledge in order to breed an army ready to battle security threats. Want to join us? Demonstrate your skills and we will be glad to welcome you into our family."

"Malware City is the property of BitDefender," Souza says. "We didn't brag about it but didn't hide it either. We want it to be a site dedicated to all interested on their online security, and not only to BitDefender users."

An important aspect of Malware City are blogs such as The Spam Omelette. "The Malware City Blog is open to everyone willing to put a post there if relevant for its theme," Souza says.

I asked Souza: How is Malware City different from traditional forms of marketing (like advertising and direct mail)?

"Instead of pumping them with irrelevant messages and interrupt their activities, we offer helpful and relevant information that our visitors are interested in," he says. "And we ask nothing in return. We can see from the subscriber's comments or the emails that we received that they consider Malware City a helpful source of information. Other clear evidence is increasing number of visitors, from the fact that they are talking about the site on their blogs, or they are bookmarking it."

Editorial comment

I love Malware City. It is a terrific example of what excellent information, created especially for buyer personas can do. Unlike product advertising hype, Malware City shows potential customers that BitDefender is a smart player in the market.

BitDefender video channel

There are also a BitDefender video channel that includes BitDefender produced videos such as the funny Guy Goes Nuts In Office!

How David Murray found a new job via TwitterNovember 19

On Monday I posted on something I’ve been thinking about for a long time: The New Rules of Marketing & PR also apply to the job search. In my post Downsized? Fired? Here are the new rules of finding a job I talked about how those looking for a new opportunity need to think not just like the seller of a product (that's what a resume does) but also think like a publisher of interesting information that companies that may want to hire you will find and be eager to consume.

It seems like every article I've read about job search focuses on traditional ways to find a job: write a great resume and network like crazy. While I'm not suggesting that those looking for work should abandon these efforts, there are many really interesting ways to use social media to conduct a job search.

I was particularly excited that David Murray commented on my post, saying that he found his new job via Twitter. Murra

Downsized? Fired? Here are the new rules of finding a jobNovember 17

Company lost its funding. Outsourced. Caught in a merger. Downsized. Fired.

It seems like every day I learn of another person who is on the job market. Usually that's because when they need a job, all of a sudden people jump into "networking mode" and I hear from them after years of silence. Hey, I'm OK with that, it's always good to hear from old friends. And I've been fired three times so I certainly know what it's like to be on the job market.

But is this the best strategy to find a job?

Hell no!

If you're like the vast majority of job seekers, you'd do what "everyone knows" is the way to find a job: You prepare a resume, obsessing over every entry to make sure it paints your background in the best possible light. You’d also begin a networking campaign, emailing and phoning your contacts and using networking tools like LinkedIn, hoping that someone in your extended network knows of a suitable job opportunity.

I got news for you. The old rules for finding a job suck in today's market. Well, OK, I admit that is a little harsh. Sure, many people find jobs the old way. Just like credit card companies may sell you a card via direct mail and you may hire some gutter cleaning services from a guy who interrupts you at dinner with a telemarketing call. But it's increasingly rare.

- The old rules of looking for a job rely on spamming your network. (Spam is email that is sent, unsolicited, to a large number of people in substan