Along that vein, Forbes Insight recently released an excellent report, entitled The Rise of the Digital C-Suite: How Executives Locate and Filter Business Information that surveys and analyzes the digital activities of senior and C-level executives. Some of the findings were not necessarily surprisingly (executives under the age of 50 were more likely to use the Internet for business purposes on a daily basis), while others were (streaming business-related video and webcasts are becoming increasingly popular for members of the C-suite).

Diving into the report further, it becomes clear that while senior executives differ in their online behavior depending on their age, the majority of them all use the internet to, at the very least, supplement their information gathering, networking and business intelligence activities.

Other key findings include:

• 74% of executives find the Internet to be “very valuable” in terms of helping them to find information vs. 25% of executives who find print newspapers to be “very valuable” for the same purposes—Further evidence that the newspaper industry may be doomed.
• 63% of executives surveyed indicated that search engines were “very valuable” to helping them to locate business information—Supporting importance of search engine optimization (SEO) initiatives.
• 70% of searches are prompted by something that an executive read online vs. 38% that were prompted by an online advertisement—Editorial content (from online sources) remains more credible and engaging than ads, but these statistics also support the increased visibility and influence of blogs, wikis, and other forums for content dissemination.
• 41% of executives under the age of 50 click on the paid listings on search engine results vs. 6% of the executives over the age of 50—As younger executives move into the C-suite, pay per click advertising could become an even more integral component of marketing campaigns.
• 25% of executives view work-related content on business-related websites (including 33% of executives under the age of 50)—Webinars and other informative videos have grown in significance (perhaps in part due to their ability to convey complex information in a more memorable fashion).

But most significantly, Forbes’ report found that executives under the age of 40  “Generation Netscape”), the same executives that are more likely to fill the most important C-level, decision making roles within their organizations in the coming years, are frequently engaged in Web 2.0 related activities. The findings include:

• 35% of executives under 40 maintain a work-related blog
• 32% contribute to, or read, micro-feeds through sites like Twitter (more than half of those executives state that they use Twitter daily or several days a week)
• 40% subscribe to and read content through an RSS feed

So while the report makes it clear that executives of all ages have found that the Internet is an important vehicle to help them identify and filter important business-related information, it is abundantly clear that the next crop of C-level executives (“Generation Netscape”) already have a firm grasp of the relevance and work-related benefits of new media tools.

These executives, likely to exert scores of influence on the C-level decision making process in the years to come, are using the web to engage, collaborate, network, and consume valuable information. Sales and marketing teams need to act quickly to master these same tools so that can generate leads through the same venues that their future buyers are frequenting every business day.

To read about Mack’s insights into how to launch, manage and grow an effective B2B or B2C blog,  how to target and connect with the “right” audience online, and how to measure the reach and value of those connections, scroll on below.

451:  Your token motto is “Don’t focus on the tools, focus on the connections that the tools help facilitate.”  How would you explain this motto to someone who is new to social media marketing?

MC: It’s kinda like the difference between using a hammer and a drill.  Both are very useful, but for different reasons.  So in the end, the tool itself isn’t what counts, it’s what the tool allows you to do that’s important.  Twitter, for example, is valuable to me because it lets me connect with so many other people, so easily.  But the value comes from those connections.  Other people connect via Friendfeed, or via blogs, or even by picking up the phone and calling someone!  The ability to connect is where the value is.  Not in the tool itself.  I guess the main point is not to fall in love with the tools and become blinded to the fact that it’s the CONNECTIONS and PEOPLE that are most important.

451:  What would you say are the biggest mistakes made by companies when using social media tools, and how can companies avoid making them?

MC: I think one of the biggest mistakes is not having a clear strategy in place from the outset.  Many companies start blogging, for example, simply because they feel the need to ‘do something’ with social media.  But 2 weeks into it they realize that not getting comments or traffic or links really sucks, and they abandon the effort.  Other companies have customers that are actively trying to engage with them via social media, and they ignore them because they believe if they don’t respond to their customers, that no one will realize that they are saying anything.  (Feel free to start the eye-rolling at this point.)  In short, I really think the excessive hype around social media is confusing a lot of companies.  It’s making some companies feel that they HAVE to use social media, when maybe that’s not their best course of action.  And it’s discouraging other companies from using social media that should be, because they feel that the tools are too complicated for them.  At the end of the day, social media are simply a set of communication tools, and the rules that govern effective communication with other tools, mostly apply to social media as well.  I find that most people know more about social media than they give themselves credit for.

451:  It is a bit of a different animal than B2C, so how can B2B companies “create, nurture and grow” connections with their clients by launching a blog? Who should write it?

MC: This is another area where I think people ‘overthink’ social media.  The end rules for effective blogging are the same for B2C or B2B companies.  Who are your end customers, and what type of information will they find value in?  Figure out what type of content has value for them, and create that value.  Lather, rinse, repeat.  That’s it.  As for who should head up your blogging efforts, if all things are equal, I’d place the most importance on the person that has the most passion for blogging.  Because when you first launch your blog, it is probably going to take a while for it to gain traction.  You’re going to spend those first few weeks/months staring at a blog that’s getting few comments, few visitors, and few links.  If your bloggers don’t LOVE blogging, they are probably going to want to quit.  But the passionate ones will stick with it till their efforts start to bear fruit.  And besides passionate, obviously you want people that can write well, and that understand your business and your customers.  Blogging is NOT something you should hire for, IMO.  And do NOT outsource the actual blogging to someone to ghost-write for you.  Hiring an agency/consultant to help you ramp up your blogging efforts is fine, but don’t hire them to ghostwrite for you, as that’s doing nothing for YOUR blogging efforts.  And while I have my soapbox out, if you DO hire a consultant to help you with your blogging efforts, demand that they provide you with training so that you can handle the blogging efforts when the project ends.

451: As a follow up, your blog post “The idea that ‘content is king’ in blogging is total bulls*it” raises some very interesting points. Explain the importance of “leaving your blog” to also help promote it.

MC: I think that post was a bit misunderstood by some people, and that’s probably my fault for framing it in such a ‘controversial’ way.  Great content is absolutely important, but IMO the best way to grow your blog, is to leave it.  Think of having a bakery that produces the absolute best cupcakes on the planet.  If you are in downtown NYC, you are set.  WOM will carry your business almost immediately.  But what if that bakery is in rural Montana?  Fewer people will discover it, and the odds are that those people will be able to promote your delicious cupcakes to fewer people.  So even if you have an amazing product, given your location, you still might have trouble staying in business.  Same thing with starting a new blog.  You can have absolutely amazing content, but if no one knows that the blog exists, it won’t matter.  Growth will still likely be very slow.  You can accelerate your efforts by interacting with people on other blogs and social sites.  As you do that, it helps drive traffic back to your blog.  People see you leaving comments on their blog, and they want to check out YOUR blog.  They see you being active on Twitter, and if you say smart and interesting things, they want to follow you.  Maybe they want to click the link on your Twitter profile and check out your blog.  The bottom line is that when you launch a blog, no one is going to know about it.  The people that you want to be reading your blog are going to be spending time elsewhere.  If you can go and interact with these people in THEIR space, that gives them an incentive to come check out YOUR blog.

451: Everyone is realizing how important social media marketing is, but don’t necessarily understand why. When companies don’t see immediate results they become impatient, and think it isn’t working. What have you developed as your ROI-indicator that helps a company understand if it is getting its time and money’s worth from social media?

MC: First, companies should start tracking everything as soon as they launch a social media strategy.  Let’s say they launch a blog.  Immediately start tracking visitors, comments, incoming links, and track traffic to the main website and incoming links as well.  That way you can watch how these metrics change over time.  If you launch a blog and 2 weeks later your skeptical boss calls you into his office for an update on what’s happening, he wants to see numbers.  You better be able to say that ‘traffic to the blog is up X% and referral traffic to the main site is up X%.’  In other words, you have to put the effectiveness of your blogging efforts in terms that the boss understands, and values.  YOU might want more interactions via comments and emails on the blog, but unless that increased interaction ties back to a larger business goal, and the boss UNDERSTANDS this, then who cares?  But if you can show the boss that increased comments leads to a higher probability of an increase in incoming links, then he will probably understand the impact that has on SEO for his company.  So you have to understand how the pieces fit together and track changes in the metrics that matter.

451: Recently you wrote about social media as being “one big clique” with several “superstars.” Do you think a business’s blog has to catch the attention of these superstars of social media in order to be successful?

MC: If those ’superstars’ are their end customers, then absolutely.  Otherwise, they need to be focusing on connecting with the actual people that will be buying their products and services.  Sure, if your company has created a really cool blog that you think my readers might want to know about, absolutely contact me.  But I think too many people are targeting ‘influential’ people in social media, when they need to be targeting the people that are enthusiastic about them.  Which is why I think companies should target evangelists over influencers.  IMO targeting influencers is about trying to build buzz, and that’s rarely sustainable.  If you reach out to your evangelists, you are connecting with people that WANT to promote you to others.  They have a vested interest in seeing your company succeed.  Embracing and empowering your evangelists is a MUCH better business move than reaching out to ‘influencers’ who probably have influence with a market that has little to no overlap with your own.

451: Also, how important is it for companies, and individuals (including the superstars) to understand the importance of maintaining social interactions and engagements both online and off?

MC: I think ’superstars’ get this, for the most part.  But for companies, they need to treat social media as simply a set of tools that are going to let them better connect with and understand their customers.  Ultimately, you would love to see online connections lead to connections offline, because that just strengthens the ties.  And this is a point that often is overlooked by companies, but as you make these connections with your customers, you better understand them, and they you.  It’s kinda like getting free market research, you can take what you have learned from your connections with customers, and apply it to your marketing efforts, to streamline and improve them.  You better believe Dell is taking all the mountains of feedback they get from submissions made and commented/voted on at IdeaStorm and using that information to improve their marketing and communication efficiencies.

For more background on Mack, check out his consulting site.

To learn more about how to become an advanced LinkedIn user, check out our free webinar on “How to Effectively Utilize LinkedIn for Lead Generation.”

After your viewing, let us know if you have any additional questions about how to make the most of your LinkedIn account.

To these individuals, I ask: “Why is this necessarily a bad thing?” Just because 90% of Twitter members aren’t highly active in posting tweets does not necessarily mean that they aren’t active in some other way. And, it certainly does not mean that individuals and companies still can’t derive quantifiable value from marketing on Twitter.

The survey results are misleading. Who can speculate that the 90% of idle Twitter users aren’t enthusiastically reading Tweets posted by the active 10% of users? Who is to say that these “idle” users aren’t deriving value or enrichment from the active ones? Obviously there is some proof to this, or companies would not continue to utilize Twitter as a marketing tool, blogger’s would not continue to link to their posts and other trends, opinions and ideas if only 10% of users were reading.

Dell actually revealed in early June that in their 2 years of tweeting, the company has earned over $3 million as a direct result of activities and exclusive promotions via Twitter. Not bad. And, an Indianapolis-based marketing firm followed 17 Twitter corporate accounts over a 3 week period in late May, and found a 24.29% increase in their average follower count. None of these accounts were found to have decreased their amount of followers over the 3 week period. Moreover, the survey doesn’t even shed light on the monitoring tools available (Tweet Grid, Twellow, Radian6, etc.) that allow users to search for tweets from people they may not even be following at that time.

Active social media blogger and tweeter Doug Haslem agrees, mentioning on his blog that “the lurkers, the ‘Idle Class’ of social media, are important…who’s to say they don’t pass along the conversations offline?” Good point. New York Contributing Editor,Will Leitch, not a social media expert but someone who knows an emerging online platform when he sees one (he’s the former Editor of popular sports blog Deadspin), offers a different but equally supportive take in a recent post titled, “Why Twitter Is More Fun The Less You Use It.” Leitch finds enjoyment from reading tweets, not writing them, and he certainly has no problem writing about (read: promoting) the tweets that he reads in his blog posts and conversations.

Twitter is also still relatively new. There is a strong likelihood that the “10% of active Twitter users posting 90% of content” will shift to a more proportioned ratio in the near future. Many individuals and companies are still just starting to explore Twitter, and are hiring agencies to help them develop a more strategic approach.

Bottom line: if your company generates just one possible business lead, has a 1% increase in website traffic, notices important customer behavior taking place or finds out just enough background on a potential prospect, Twitter has benefited your company. If you are just an individual on Twitter for the heck of it, then it’s up to you to determine how to make it valuable.

But, when LinkedIn comes up amidst a conversation about social media marketing tools, many are left with only a limited understanding of the site’s potential. From our experience, we have found that LinkedIn is most effective for positioning yourself (or your client) as an expert resource in your industry and network.

Here’s how it works:

To successfully position yourself as an expert, you need to discover and join groups related to your industry and ones that your prospective clients are in. Life sciences consultant? You should join the “Life Sciences Professional Network” group, and if you’re following the latest trends, should also be an active member of “Life Sciences 2.0” (to name just a few relevant groups). LinkedIn groups are places for likeminded professionals to connect, ask questions, post articles, solve problems, and share best practices. If you offer group members valuable information by initiating and participating in discussions, or answering questions, you’ll effectively brand yourself as a knowledgeable expert.

Even better, develop and share informative content (e.g. whitepapers, wikis, webinars, blog posts) that directly addresses your prospective clients’ needs and pain points. Users who view your content will notice your name because they’ll want to learn who authored the resources. It’s likely that they’ll view your LinkedIn profile to see your job title and the company you work for to confirm you are a reliable source. By driving users to your LinkedIn profile, you brand yourself as a thought leader and increase awareness of your company, as well as your other active social media channels (i.e. your blog, Twitter feed, etc). LinkedIn users will make the connection that you and your company are experts in your field, and they’ll reach out to you directly to seek your advice.

The best way to share content on LinkedIn? Follow these steps:

1. To add the LinkedIn bookmark to your Firefox browser, click-and-drag the below “Share on LinkedIn” link to your tool bar.

http://www.linkedin.com/static?key=browser_bookmarklet

2. Once the link appears on your toolbar, pull up the content you would like to share (i.e. a blog post, news article, podcast), and click on it

3. Choose the connections or groups you want to share with on LinkedIn

4. Your content will be posted to the “news” section of the LinkedIn groups you selected and distributed in the groups’ weekly digest e-mails

There you have it. Remember, when used properly, you’ll brand yourself as an expert. As with all social media channels, the ultimate goal here is to engage your target audiences and help your firm or your client to identify and nurture qualified business leads.

So have you had success using LinkedIn or another social media platform to position yourself as an expert? Please, share your experience! What worked? What didn’t?

Read on to learn why a brand’s customers can also be their best salespeople, how service-selling companies can get started with social media, and why Boston is primed to remain the hub of “inbound marketing” activity.

Q: You’ve formulated a great presentation about passion, specifically how “passion is contagious.” Could you give us a high-level summary of why brands should be leveraging the passion that their fans/customers have for their brand, and how the social web is the perfect place to capitalize on the contagious nature of it?

Think about the last time you bought anything. More then likely you went out online looking to see what people had to say about the products. This might be a quick Google search, or reading reviews on a site like Amazon. Either way, what people have to say about a product or service has a direct effect on purchasing.

We also know that each of us loves certain gadgets, tools and other things that we use on a daily basis. Why wouldn’t a brand want to encourage and empower someone who is passionate about their products to talk, share and expound on their passion in whatever way they want? I think this is something that most brands are completely forgetting about. They get hung up in messaging and the layout of a print ad and completely forget that people are people. They are going to talk about it in the way they want to, and not what someone has written up for a press release.

Q: Could you provide an example of a brand that is doing an excellent job here?

Zappos is really doing great in this lately. They’ve asked people to take pictures of themselves with their products. They did a whole series of videos around people opening up their Zappos box when it arrived to capture their excitement.

Don’t forget Zappos doesn’t actually make anything and yet people love the company and are passionate about purchasing from them. There is a lot to be learned from how they are approaching their customers and why it is working.

Q: How engaged should brands be with their customers online? Should they just create the platform (blog, contest, etc.), and let the users run with it, or should there be a system in place to respond to comments/suggestions?

This really depends on the culture of the company. Some companies just won’t be able to deal with interacting with their customers in the way they should online. That being said, if they can’t, then maybe they shouldn’t be doing this sort of thing because it probably won’t be successful.

To be successful, the brand needs to engage with their customers. Yes, setting up the contest, portal or platform is a big step, but the most passionate people will be excited by having someone from the brand talking with them. They want that contact and personalized approach. They crave it.

Q: Should brands be identifying “brand ambassadors” online and leveraging them to keep it up? For instance, what if a very active account on Twitter (with a host of followers), constantly raves about how they love Starbucks? Could there be a paid relationship?

Sure, there could be a paid relationship there, but that depends on the person, the company, and the deal that is made. But, at the same time in that example if the person already loved Starbucks just think what sending them a $100 gift card and a hand written thank you card would do for them as well. They’d love it!

The idea of finding your biggest fans and then somehow making the relationship with them more formal and beneficial to your company is a great idea. Yes, you have to tread carefully and smartly because this isn’t some actor you are hiring to be a spokesperson. It is different and many companies will approach it in that fashion and blow it. Talk TO the person and figure out what works best for them. They may have some strong ideas on how you can work together, but if you come in with an iron fist it could completely turn them off.

Q: What about a company that offers a service, say a law firm or an investment bank. The passion for these brands may be harder to find and difficult to quantify and broadcast. Do you have suggestions for these types of brands that want to utilize social media for their benefit?

Certainly a lot harder indeed. But, start out small and smart. Begin establishing an online footprint using the various and appropriate platforms so that people can find you. Don’t forget that this is not a quick hit solution, and rather it is something you are going to have to grow over time so it may take a while, but people will start coming to you.

There is no silver bullet solution, but consider setting up a Facebook Page for your service and then doing a few weeks of targeted ads to the towns around you to drive traffic to the page. It is a great cost effective strategy to see if your audience is there while not breaking the bank. The key is to think long term and build a strategy that helps you reach your goals. What works for one company is not going to work for the other.

Q: We like to use the phrase “inbound marketing” to classify the shift we are all noticing in marketing (and advertising and public relations). What’s your go-to terminology?

Honestly, I go back and forth on this because it is changing every day and while a few years ago everyone was saying “new marketing” or “conversational marketing,” I feel neither of those truly capture how things are today. Even “social media” is getting a bit old because the nature of how we do everything online is beginning to play along the social graph and becoming more conversational and social in nature. The last thing I want to do is add any new buzzwords to the world. I’ll let someone else decide what to call it!

Q: Boston, as reported in Scott Kirsner’s piece and has been well evidenced, has become sort of the hub for this industry. Why do you think that is? More importantly, did Stuff at Night miss the boat by not including any of the thought leaders like yourself in their “Players” issue?

There was a Players issue? Guess they must not have promoted that well online since I didn’t see anything about it. *laugh*

I’m a life long New Englander so I think it is very easy. People who live here love to talk to other people, help people out, and come from a variety of backgrounds. With all the colleges we have here, people come from all over the world and never leave. That mix match of people makes for not one set of ideas and I’d argue that it mimics the web in that nature.

People seem to forget that this are has always had a strong tech footprint. Rt-128 may be littered with the shells of a lot of companies, but they are being replaced by the new generation and that is exciting. While I love San Francisco and New York City, you’ll never find me leaving New England. We’ve got something really special going on here.

You can read more from this Boston-based “Media Maven” by visiting his blog at http://www.cc-chapman.com/

The contest will run from June 1, 2009 through September 1, 2009. B2B companies that wish to enter the contest must, in an e-mail, describe their company, its mission, product or service, what differentiates their company from competitors, and why and how they think social media marketing will positively impact their B2B business. Upon receipt,  e-mail submissions will be posted on The B2B Social Contest Blog.

Companies are encouraged to ask their clients, friends, and colleagues to comment on their company’s post. On September 1, 2009, 451 Marketing will tally the total number of comments each post received over the course of the 3 month contest. The five posts with the most comments will be considered finalists, and 451 Marketing will select the winner from this pool.

If you have any questions about the submission, nomination or selection process, feel free to reach us at B2Bsocial@451marketing.com, or on Twitter (@451Heat). Thanks and good luck!

Read on for Mike’s thoughts on how social media can help brands build scalable and intimate relationships, the “socialization” of B2B marketing, and the importance of maintaining a stable “buzz” at the social media cocktail party.

451: You have a extensive background of experience working in the ad business. When did you realize that you wanted to make the shift into digital marketing and found Ogilvy & Mather Interactive? Actually, was it your choice?

MT: No, that one actually wasn’t. I was working for Martin Sorrell at the time as a kind of troubleshooter, and he sent me in to fix “a problem at Ogilvy with American Express.” The solution to that problem became O&MI.

451: When you first started the interactive side of the agency I bet you never could have anticipated that the Internet would look like it does today, littered with social media technologies. Am I wrong? Did you anticipate that this would eventually be the web’s next big progression?

MT: Looking back, the signposts were there. It was obvious to us that e-mail and chat were the real engines of AOL, not the “professional” content. But did I envision that leading to YouTube, Facebook, Twitter et al? No way.

451: So tell me a little bit about where you are now, and how you are attempting to make sense of the shift in the way that we all interact with brands and media. Are you 100% invested/convinced in the viability of the social Web to be the central focus of marketing for the foreseeable future?

MT: Yes. I would go so far as to say that while the move to digital media was incremental, the move to social is transformational. At the risk of sounding like a pretentious geek… we’ve reached the end of the broadcast-dominant paradigm. Brands need to make the leap and engage to stay relevant, or – eventually – they’re going to dry up and blow away.

451: You do a great job describing your blog and overall thesis of social media marketing on your blog’s “Manifesto,” but can you give us a high-level overview of what you mean by “Scalable Intimacy” as it relates to social media?

MT: Scalable Intimacy is how I think about the true promise of social media… to enable brands to build the kind of “intimate” relationships that are only possible with authentic dialogue, on a “scale” sufficient to impact the operating results of the enterprise. That’s it.

451: That overview should segue nicely into a question about your blog post on engagement vs. activation. In essence, is the ROI of effective social media quantifiable in measurements like sales, response rates, signups, etc? Could we aggregate all of that and just say, “qualified leads?”

MT: It goes beyond sales and beyond leads. Activation might enable a brand to answer a critically important product question in a timely fashion, or reduce their unit customer service response cost, or grasp the external reality in a way that influences their business strategy. It depends on the business goal, really. Engagement is about creating the means; Activation is about delivering the end.

451: Do you have any examples of companies that have effectively developed marketing content online that is engaging enough to drive a good amount of activation?

MT: The usual suspects… JetBlue, Dell, Zappos, all do both to one extent or another. HubSpot offering a free SEO audit to people who visit it’s content-crammed blog… that’s activation. Tony Robbins interspersing product promo with inspirational messages on Twitter is another. Chris Brogan using his online influence to drive attendance at his shows… It’s everywhere, I think, at least among people who seem to know what they’re doing.

451: It is typically harder for the B2B marketer to be “social” with their brand. Have you found that the social web opens up opportunities for these marketers that may not have existed before?

MT: I guess. If you’ve ever been to a B2B trade show, you know there’s a strong social component in meatspace. When a critical mass of decision-makers in those industries are on the social nets – as is inevitable – it will happen there as well.

451: Where do you see this all going in the next 5-10 years, and what will the typical brand manager/marketer look like?

MT: Wish I knew. What I do know, though, is that brand managers will start to look a lot more like sales guys, and a lot less like MBA-types. It’s time to get dirty and go sell some sh*t. Old school.

451: Lastly, riffing off the “social media is a cocktail party” analogy. What if you’re a brand that has a “drinking problem,” likes to take things to the next level, and is often too edgy or over-the-top? Do you play in the social media marketing sandbox too and risk doing something controversial, or do you stay out?

MT: Social media is about doing stuff that’s worthy of attention. If the attention you get is negative, adjust your behavior. Most attention is good, though – just don’t be more “drunk” than the people you hang out with.

Mike Troiano is the founding CEO of Ogilvy & Mather Interactive and an established tech venture entrepreneur. Currently, Mike serves on the board of Crimson Hexagon, a Cambridge-based technology company that distills meaning from the online conversation. Read his professional blog at http://scalableintimacy.com/ and check out his personal blog at http://troiano.me/

Today’s issue of the Boston Business Journal reports how 451 Marketing

Taking the lead: Interactive marketing agency bolsters position with new media strategies

Boston Business Journal

by Sean McFadden

May 15, 2009

http://boston.bizjournals.com/boston/stories/2009/05/18/smallb1.html

A costly error in judgment can cripple a small organization. It can also be a blessing in disguise if that misstep pushes the business to focus on what it can do best.

That’s the lesson the principals of Boston-based 451 Marketing LLC say they learned from a short-lived division of their company last year.

The ensuing financial crisis, says co-founding partner AJ Gerritson, 32, “was catastrophic and almost broke the back of our company. It was also the single best thing that ever happened to our agency.”

As an “inbound marketing” agency, five-year-old 451 specializes in connecting its clients with their prospects when those prospects are looking online — whether it’s through search engines or social networks, says Gerritson, who serves as one of three partners running the agency, along with Nicholas Lowe and Thomas Lee.

The agency’s value proposition, says Gerritson, is that it can help its clients develop quality sales leads using online channels that are typically less expensive than traditional media: “The one thing people seem to be willing to spend money on right now is what we sell.”

While the 15-employee firm’s niche today lies in online lead generation, its focus wasn’t always so defined. Somewhere around the third quarter of 2007, the agency took a gamble on expanding its service offerings by introducing 451 Promotions, a subdivision of the company focusing on events production and promotion. It seemed like a natural extension of the agency’s in-house public relations capabilities, says Gerritson.

Emboldened by the success of two smaller events, the partners decided to tackle something on a much larger scale: a professional boxing event, dubbed the “Celtic Invasion,” which was held at the Orpheum Theatre on St. Patrick’s Day in 2008. Their intent was to fill the 2,500-seat Orpheum to capacity, but only about 500 patrons showed up.

The result is that 451 lost close to $90,000 on that event.

Admits Lowe, 34, “There are things we did well, and trying to extend it into 451 Promotions, I think, was putting too much pressure on our brand and stretching us too thin.”

So, the agency decided to refocus its services in a way that could better leverage the founders’ expertise as tech-savvy marketers; Gerritson and Lowe have 10 years and 11 years, respectively, of interactive marketing experience (Lee, who came aboard in 2007, had a traditional PR background).

The agency immediately suspended the 451 Promotions division and made three layoffs within that division. The partners also tapped into their personal accounts to help cash flow.

It was a familiar self-funding scenario: Gerritson recalls that when he and Lowe launched the firm in 2004, they used their own financing.

Early on, they were involved primarily with more traditional marketing and PR services, such as Web site design and development, and collateral development. Those services evolved with advances in media technologies.

Today, online lead generation, which would include search-engine marketing and social media marketing, now represents 40 percent of 451’s total billings, says Gerritson. Thirty percent comes from Web 2.0 design and implementation; 20 percent from public relations; and 10 percent from traditional creative work.

After hitting $778,000 in revenue in 2007, followed by around $1.17 million in 2008, the agency is targeting between $1.8 million and $2.2 million this year, Gerritson says.

The firm’s diverse client roster includes Hollister Inc., Healthworks Fitness Center for Women and the Massachusetts Office of Business Development.

Elizabeth Hailer, vice president of client development and marketing at client Caturano and Co. PC in Boston, says, “Their competencies range from traditional new media marketing communications to innovative, cutting-edge experience in this whole area of search-engine optimization. On the technical side and design side, they’re top notch.”

One of Gerritson’s mentors and advisers, Fredrick Marckini, chief global search officer at Isobar, with local offices in Boston, and founder of iProspect Inc. of Watertown, says, “AJ correctly identified the mega-trends in social media, digital media and search-engine marketing. Two years ago, he was already moving toward evolving his communications firm to leverage digital and combine his existing traditional PR practice with social media and search-engine marketing.”

Gerritson himself believes 451 is now better positioned for growth: “Yes, we took a huge hit last year, but that same hit might be the one that enables us to thrive, I believe, while many firms are struggling.”

Tech heads tackle stress, build leadership on the rugby field

By Lynette F. Cornell

Special to Mass High Tech

When AJ Gerritson shows up to Monday’s board meeting with a shiner, don’t assume he got whacked in a weekend bar fight. He was just letting off steam with some fellow executives, all of them pounding each other in a fierce game of rugby.

Gerritson, a founding partner at 451 Marketing in Boston, is just one of many C-level people whose nights and weekends involve props, locks and hookers — the strange yet standard terms for various positions in rugby.

“It takes a certain person to play rugby,” said Gerritson.

That person, he said, is team oriented, a necessary quality for the game and one that carries over into being a successful company leader. Networking with other business leaders, he frequently met other current and former rugby players. The connection was always instantaneous and one he has never experienced with any other sport, he said.

Looking to unite other executives passionate about rugby, he recently created the Massachusetts Rugby Executives, a co-ed group of rugby players in various leadership positions.

The manager of the group, Steven Drew, has been playing rugby since he was a freshman at Babson College. He has also played hockey and soccer but says that there is something completely unique about rugby.

“I’ve never seen anything like the camaraderie and true team spirit as I’ve seen in rugby,” said Drew.

Now in his mid-forties, Drew doesn’t play rugby as much as he’d like. Yet, the 26 years he spent playing still influence his skills as a leader, he said. As the managing director of Hollister Inc., a Boston-based staffing agency, he is responsible for leading a team of employees. The importance of teamwork in rugby, he said, has helped him become a better team member.

For Linda Bourque, owner of B&B Realty Inc. in Watertown, rugby influences every aspect of her life, including her career. She said her 14 years of rugby playing have helped make her a better listener, a skill she greatly used while holding various leadership positions at Norwalk, Conn.-based Xerox Corp. The sport also shaped her thinking, she said.

“It gives you a different mental attitude, that ‘you can do,’” she said.

When she began playing rugby, few Americans even knew what it was. People who pursued the sport didn’t do it for the notoriety, said Bourque. Rugby demands a high level of commitment to training and personal fitness, a dedication that Bourque said requires self-motivated, self-starting people who are secure in what they do.

“It’s not for the faint of heart,” she said.

Those unfamiliar to the sport can expect to see more of it soon. In March 2010 the US Rugby League will launch. Boston is one of six major cities where franchises have been set. Gerritson said he is not worried about the mainstreaming of rugby affecting the special bond he shares with other players.

“At the end of the day a rugby player will always have a special set of qualities that you don’t find in other sports,” said Gerritson. “Because of this fact the bond will always be there whether rugby is mainstream or not.”