Last night I was watching this video from Vayner Media front man Gary Vaynerchuck and it really hit home with me and seemed like a no brainer for brands to be looking to expand their reach.

The thought of adding a call to action after a commercial – to a micro-site, Facebook page, Twitter page, YouTube channel, etc. seems too easy. Sharing the commercials on video sharing sites would seem to make sense too, but oftentimes is not the case. Folks seem reluctant to change because they have a system that works.  For every auto company that is embracing this, there are two McDonalds or Stop & Shop’s that are ignoring the free call out. Chances are, unless you are on the Home Shopping Network or hawking a ShamWOW, your product isn’t being sold on the boob tube.

While Gary focuses on commercials in his videos, I would also suggest that companies are missing the boat with their offline and radio ads as well. Radio has the same limitations as TV in selling products, but you could gauge the reach on top of the metrics the stations offer by offering a specific Facebook page with a survey that asks where they heard the commercial along with some interesting content. You could also add the URL to magazine and other print ads because it puts something tangible and actionable on an ad that won’t immediately garner a sale on the john. By adding a link you could also get someone heading to the site if they happen to have a BlackBerry or iPhone handy in their *ahem* office. What could it hurt? A tiny URL or Facebook call out in the corner of the ad won’t hurt anyone, but will add some more bang to your buck and some additional metrics to track.

Before tossing this to ya’ll to see what you think about the proposition, I wanted to share an oddity that I got from a few of the folks I spoke with during the #soxup for the book release party of Steve Garfield’s Get Seen (my review). Now the event was about using video to get seen, so it took me by surprise talking to some folks only to find out that they were terrified of getting in front of the camera or opening their company up to user generated video. I wonder if that has anything to do with the hesitancy of adding new media to traditional media pieces. What do you think?

A quick glance at this post’s title might have you thinking that I have lost it; reality is I haven’t, but had an ah ha moment. Anyone that is a practitioner of social media or SMPR, has faced some kind of obstacle on describing what the value of a Tweet, post or plug on a social network is worth. My friend Keith Trivitt wrote up a two-part post (part 1, part 2) on this subject over at the PR Breakfast Club that got me thinking both times.  While sitting in a bank conference room over the weekend I was thinking about it some more.  While looking for words do verbalize my thoughts, I got a chuckle looking at a fortune that was sitting in my wallet that summed it up for me:

Theories get you thinking. Sweat gets you results.

Now take a minute to look at those words and digest them. When looking at social media and looking for a way to define it for a manager or an executive break it into two separate areas that they can visualize.

Theory – Now there are a number of theories and schools of thought that you can go with, but at the end of the day they are just that. Pick the metric that you want to move the needle whether its sentiment, Retweets, link views (use a shortener to track clicks) or some other metrics – own it and live and die with it. While you might be tempted to look at doing everything, keep it simple and towards a metric that your boss understands very well. Do this even if the metric means little to you; this will help you gain a champion with some weight behind them.

Sweat – This doesn’t mean to break out your headband from high school basketball, but rather showing your manager that the only way to make a dent in social media is by getting your hands dirty. Rome wasn’t built overnight and neither was your company’s brand, so why should your presence in social media? Strong communities are built over time so the toughest battle here is showing your superior that you can’t just throw a bucket of money at it to make it work. For marketers, it is a hard pill to swallow, but as a flack your tool box has some tricks to help the medicine go down smoother. The battle won’t be easy, but its another way that you’ll have to put in the sweat to get the job done.

Have you had a fortune cookie that clicked with you in a similar way?

A six pack of Boston Beer Works' Fenway Ale

On one of my first trips up to Boston to visit my wife four years ago, I was introduced to Boston Beer Works, a microbrew pub with two locations in Boston. They are also home of the best chicken tenders in the city as well. Couple that with my love for craft beers and you have a very happy Jeff.

One of the things that always struck me about Beer Works was that their advertising was always bleh at best, but the locations always had people in them. Their Facebook group was also created by customers not the staff. Seasonally they have the Red Sox (across the street from Fenway Park), Bruins and Celtics (Canal Street location) to thank for putting fannies in the seats, while word of mouth and the previously mentioned lackluster ads take care of the rest of the year.

Being a fan of the restaurant, I was ecstatic for them when it was announced that they were expanding with two locations in Logan Airport. All signs pointed to business being good and that my belly would continue to be filled with chicken tenders. On Saturday afternoon, I made a purchase that made my weekend – a six-pack of their beer from the local liquor store. Granted you could have purchased the beer in Growlers or in a sixer at one of the pubs, but this meant that I could now pick it up on my time and without having to head into the restaurant. It goes to show you that reputation goes a long way. In the case of BBW it overcomes any marketing shortcomings.

So at that I will end my rant on how excited I am for the Boston Beer Works company and that I can get their beers without having to jump on a T. Cheers!

If you can’t view the video, click here.

I don’t want this post to come across as a me being uber-green or a tree hugger, because I am not either of them. It is rather my frustration with the phone company and YellowBook delivering phone books twice a year. Seriously it is a waste – It is 2010 people have the Internet and can instantly get numbers. No need to skim through pages to see the number for Frank’s House of Tacos.

After wrapping up the video, I counted the books and noticed that there were more books than units in the condominium.  The pile is up to my waist and will probably sit there for a month or so when Bernard our building’s facilities guy (who is getting up there in years) has to throw them away. To me it’s just a waste of marketing spend and resources.

I have seen this mural, from Adult Swim,  on the side of a deli for close to a month now in Boston, but finally got a chance to stop and grab a picture in daylight today. The mural is interesting in a number of ways.

The first asking the obvious that in today’s uber-PC world, is there a place for Santa Claus and do you believe in the season.  To that I say the hell with PC – it’s Christmas time.

The second connotation could be a jab at Boston and asking whether they still believe in the terrorist threat that Adult Swim (and Comedy Central) posed to the city while promoting the Aqua Teen Hunger Force movie. Don’t know what I am talking about, check out the PR stunt gone awry here.

What do you think? Do you still believe that this is the season of giving and in Santa? or is this just another let’s stick it to the man moment from the cartoon juggernaut?