A critical component of any successful public relations, branding or marketing campaign is research.

In a down economy, businesses attempt to cut costs wherever they can. Surprisingly, one of the first items offered up for the chopping block is research. Research can be costly, but it’s a critical item.

1) Would you give an industry or customer presentation with zero preparation or important details?

2) How about purchasing a car without knowing the first thing about the brand or model you are about to fork over $30,000 for?

The answer to both these questions is probably no, but we’re amazed at the number of business leaders that propose limiting or completely eliminating research from their project budgets.

Most often these decision makers feel they already have a complete understanding of their target audiences and what they want. Others don’t feel it is necessary to thoroughly look at what the competition is doing. And the scariest of all are the ones that don’t think there is any value in the research process.

Without research you are essentially operating in the dark. Good research, both primary and secondary, gives you a baseline from which to measure success. If you skimp on, or all together eliminate, this critical campaign component you are setting yourself up for failure.

Research is never a waste of time or money. Even if the results of your research confirm what you already know, it is validation well worth paying for. Chances are you will learn surprising things you weren’t expecting. And sometimes the results can be downright dramatic.

What is your take on research? Is it fundamental to all your marketing efforts or have you done without it successfully in the past?

So you are all ready to jump on the social media bandwagon. Visions of thousands of Web hits and unsolicited leads dance in your head. Social networking services are free, easy to use and can yield tangible results – if you have a plan.

Once again it all comes down to the fundamentals of public relations – understanding your target audiences and building meaningful (credible) relationships with them. All the fancy tools in the world will get you nowhere without a strategy in hand. So before you play with social media ask yourself these basic questions:

• Do I have a basic understanding of what social media is and what it is not?

• What are the objectives I hope to achieve through my social media program? How do those objectives support my organization and my bottom line?

• Who am I trying to reach through my social media program?

• Are my target audiences engaged in social media? If so, how and where? What is relevant to them? And, just as important, what is not.

• What, if anything, are people saying about my organization online?

• How can I reinforce my organization’s key messages through social networks? What will work? What won’t?

• How am I going to gauge the success of my social media program? What benchmarks do I hope to achieve and in what time frame?

These basic questions are just a starting point. Remember your social media strategy should NOT simply be a corporate Facebook Page or Twitter account. With a little bit of planning, and a strong understanding of the medium, social media can open new doors for your organization.

Are you one of the millions out there that still thinks Twitter is a fad? Most commonly we hear “I just don’t have time” or “I just don’t get it.” Regardless of your hang-up, it’s time to start Tweeting.

For most active Twitter users, there is an “ah-ha” moment that gets them hooked. But for almost every active Tweeter out there, there is an inactive one. These are individuals that signed up to see what Twitter was all about, but haven’t engaged the medium. The majority of these users probably have done little to make Twitter relevant to them. If you are one of them, consider taking these basic steps to tap into the power of Twitter.

• Use Twitter’s “Find People” page to see who you know on Twitter and follow them.

• See who people you know are following to make new and relevant connections.

• Use Twitter’s search function to find contacts Tweeting about subjects relevant to you and start following them.

• Start Tweeting!

• Pick a topic or two that is of interest to you and/or your customers. You must be passionate about something – make it easy on yourself.

• Post useful links to articles that interest you or resources that may be helpful to individuals following you.

• Don’t be too promotional. No one will want to follow you if all you Tweet about is how great you are or your company is.

• Take 10 minutes out of your day, once or twice a day, and dedicate it to Twitter. Use this time to    make a relevant Tweet, comment on a Tweet that interests you, re-Tweet information that might be of interest to your followers, thank new followers for following you, and search out new contacts to follow.

• Consider using an application to help manage the ADD that often develops around Twitter. TweetDeck (http://tweetdeck.com/beta/) is a fantastic free app that helps you categorize and manage your Twitter account right from your desktop.

• Keep your personal and/or company brand in mind. Remember your Tweets are available for all to see. If it’s something you wouldn’t share with your competition or most conservative client, please don’t Tweet about it!

Okay 140 characters or less GO!