By Hilary Montgomery, Research Associate

One of the best ways to broadcast your presence on social media in an organic way is to find and connect with influencers--people who have a large following and who can direct those followers to you. (Think Alton Brown as a major influencer in the cooking and dining industry.) But how do you make connections with these influencers?

By Jeff van Booven, Production Associate

When creating content, developing credibility is a key aim. There are three main areas for building credibility: logical, ethical, and emotional--or respectively, logos, ethos, and pathos. By attending to all three of these areas, your content will have better viability and engender better trust with your end user. 

Logos, or logic, is the most important of the three. At a bare minimum, it calls on you to get your facts straight. Nothing will turn off a reader quicker than factual errors. Logos is more than that though. It calls on the author to apply logic properly, avoiding logical fallacies—a simple Google search will introduce you—and to make a fair attempt at both gathering and applying evidence fairly. Showing the reader that other arguments and concerns have been taken into consideration helps to build their trust in you and your product. 

Ethos, or ethics, is about building your own credibility. It asks, why should anybody trust you? Developing credibility through logos and pathos helps to build personal credibility, but more than anything, demonstrating a clear grasp on the matter at hand is key. The reader is looking to you to present them with information they don’t have and subsequently desire. For example, if you’re buying a car, do you want a veteran mechanic from an independent shop or the marketing guy for Chrysler? Think for a moment why you might prefer the mechanic over the marketer. For one, the mechanic clearly has better credibility to evaluate the product, but he also is free of conflicts of interest. Lastly, a basic command of the medium is an important step to building your own personal ethos. 

Pathos, or emotion, is perhaps the most conflicted forms of credibility when it comes to marketing, particularly as it is practiced today. While good writing and emotional credibility would suggest you avoid using emotional appeals, particularly of the sentimental variety, I assume most of us know the power of the emotional appeal in order to promote a product or cause. Spend enough time watching television and you’ll see the sad puppies set to sad music. You can’t get much more sentimental than that, but most advertising does tend to rely on such tactics of cheap emotional appeals to some degree—what is technically called sentimentality. While I would argue to avoid using sentimentality to manipulate the audience, doing so would be disingenuous when we all clearly can see how effective it is in marketing. However, from time to time, your audience may surprise you with their ability to see through such manipulative attempts, so it may be best to use it sparingly and in tempered manners. 

By Victoria Stoklasa, CEO 

On April 4, 2014, Bon Visto Media gained our first client. I was, admittedly, pretty terrified. As the founder of the company, I had no idea of what success (if any) I would have with a social media management company. But with each new client who hired us, our footing became surer, and our expertise grew deeper. So, where are we one year later? Join us in your preferred method of time travel--TARDIS, Delorean, hot tub--as we look back on the past year.

When I initially set out to start this business, I contacted my longtime friend Jenn Halbhuber to work with me on development and operations. Although she was unable to stay on board due to an intense personal and professional schedule, she was a key figure in the creation of Bon Visto Media, and I am grateful for that. I am also grateful for our current team. Jeff has brough creativity and insight (and sarcasm) to the process of content creation. Hilary’s boots-on-the-ground attitude assures me that she can always handle whatever research task is thrown at her. Don, who originally joined us as an intern, has juggled the hectic task of managing money with effortless grace. And of course, I’ve loved working with and educating our interns: Amanda, Taylor, David, and the aforementioned Don.

You may be wondering, what’s next for Bon Visto Media? (You also might not be wondering that, but I’m going to tell you anyway.) Our goals for our second year, while modest, will form the foundation we need to stay in business for years to come. Along with maintaining the high-quality services we give our current clients, we intend to develop new contracts (either long- or short-term) with businesses that value progress, innovation, and bettering the world. Additionally, we look forward to bringing on a new member to our creative team this year. 

We are excited to see what happens during year two. To keep up to date with our goals and progress, please continue to follow this blog. And, of course, follow us on your favorite social media platform!

By Victoria Stoklasa, CEO
 
When Trevor Noah was announced as the new host of The Daily Show, replacing the retiring Jon Stewart, the internet erupted. The excitement led to the discovery of some less-than-savory posts on his Twitter account. Arguments fired back and forth: "He's a racist and an anti-semite!" "He was just young and stupid and making jokes that fell flat!" Whichever stance you might take, we can all learn from Noah how to prevent and manage social media fiascos. 

One of Noah's big problems with his Twitter was that he was still developing his comedy--he didn't have a clear idea of his act and message. When a company knows what they want to say to the public, it becomes far easier to develop a content strategy that has little chance of offending. Before getting on any social media platform, sit down and develop your company mission, vision, and goals. Then, ask how social media will foster these. Do you want to deliver bare facts? Create heated conversations? Uplift and inspire? Knowing what you want to say and how you want to say it will help to maintain consistency and show who a company really is.

Rather than handing all social media management immediately to a single person or an outside company, it is beneficial to approve any posts that might be scheduled. In his New York Times article on the Trevor Noah controversy, Guy Branum wrote, "The glory of Twitter is that it’s unmediated and direct, but the absence of gatekeepers also means that everyone is free to put their worst work up as easily as their best." Serving as that gatekeeper, at least for the first few weeks or months, ensures that your company image and message will both sound how you want and remain consistent.

Amid the controversy, Noah tweeted, "To reduce my views to a handful of jokes that didn’t land is not a true reflection of my character, nor my evolution as a comedian." Comedy Central also came to Noah's defense, saying he "is provocative and spares no one, himself included." Regardless of whether a company stands by its comments or issues an apology, the issues must be addressed. Sweeping it under the rug and hoping the issue will go away all but promises that it will not go away as customers start to demand answers. Remaining silent unintentionally shows that the business doesn't care.

What do you think of Trevor Noah's tweets? Should he and Comedy Central have handled the situation differently? Let us know in the comments!