Politicians are used to getting socked by the public. Most often they're attacked, belittled and made fun of by people who disagree with their political views. When it comes to local politics, many put in far more hours than they will ever be compensated for.
For me, social media isn't as much a way to persuade people of your views or to get votes. It's more a way to build relationships with constituents and to keep people who want to know informed about issues they care about.
A recent Pew study said “only 16% of social media users say they’ve changed their views about a political issue because of their activity on social sites.” Also, Democrats are more likely to become more active in a political issue because of their interactions on social media.
Utah blogger Holly Richardson of “Holly on the Hill” is one of my heroes. She blogs about politics and because of her blog, ended up becoming a legislator. We recently talked about recognizing the good work politicians do. Just like with the media, showing that you read/care about their work is important to building good rapport and relationships. With a politician it's vital to getting what you want (persuasion on an issue you care about). It's much more effective than staging another protest at the Capitol, (as fun and feel good as that can be).
In that spirit, Holly recognized Utah politicians for their use of social media in various categories. She recognized individuals and organizations for their political activism. Plus she gave a nod to Utah media, including:
Ben Winslow, from Fox 13 and who tweets insanely often at @BenWinslow
Billy Hesterman, Provo Daily Herald, tweeting as @BillyHesterman
Dave Montero, SL Trib, @DaveMontero
Robert Gehrke, SL Trib, @RobertGehrke
Michelle Price, AP, @michellelprice
Dennis Romboy, DNews, @dennisromboy
Lisa Schencker, SL Trib, @lschencker
KVNU For the People, @KVUNftp
Eric Peterson, City Weekly, @EricSPeterson
This will be an annual award and I can see it getting much bigger if that's what Holly chooses to do. Recognizing other's work is smart marketing. Anyone can use this example in their industry or niche. For example, Small Business Trends has an annual award for the best entrepreneur and small business books. The year my book about online press releases came out, it was nominated for this award. I'll never forget that and it built so much goodwill because it was great publicity for my book with the very community that is a perfect fit for my book.
Recognizing other people's work by giving awards is not a new idea for PR, but it's one that still works. This is a great idea for content. Who could you award on your blog and bring recognition to the people and organizations in your niche?