NEW BRIGHTON, MINN. (Oct. 12, 2010) – A social media monitoring initiative by Risdall Advertising Agency (RMG) on behalf of McNally Smith College of Music has been profiled in the new book Empowered: Unleash Your Employees, Energize Your Customers and Transform Your Business. Other Twin Cities-based companies profiled in the book include social media leaders Best Buy and General Mills.

In Empowered, Forrester Research’s Josh Bernoff — co-author of the pioneering and New York Times bestselling book Groundswell— and Ted Schadler explain how to transform your company by unleashing the mighty force of these HEROes: highly empowered and resourceful operatives.

“It is an honor to have the agency’s work included in a book that is going to become the blueprint for the way all organizations will be engaging with employees and customers through social media in the near future,” said Ted Risdall, president of Risdall Marketing Group.

The McNally Smith College of Music example was selected to illustrate the power of “social media listening” to gain insight into target audience attitudes and current discussions prior to becoming part of the conversation.

According to the book’s authors, the McNally Smith example “shows two things: first, listening is not enough, you must engage to make an impact. And second, you have to keep listening to see if it’s working.”

For McNally Smith College of Music, RMG created a social media optimization strategy to distinguish the music college from other large, well known music colleges in the United States. This involved first identifying which channels of influence online where conversations about music colleges and music degrees were occurring, then mapping out the conversations and channels. McNally Smith internal staff then strategically engaged and followed up with prospective music students in online conversations.

As a result:

• Brand mentions of McNally Smith College of Music in user-generated content surrounding music college conversations increased from 2.7 percent to 12.1 percent; and
• McNally Smith College of Music has gone from not being mentioned in any online conversations to being mentioned alongside top music colleges in the nation “Social technologies are indeed changing the face of communications and business,” said Risdall. “The McNally Smith project is an example of results that come from following a process rooted in research and driven forward through ongoing listening/dialogue.”

In 2009, Forrester Research named the McNally Smith College of Music project a finalist in the “B2C Listening” category in its prestigious Forrester Groundswell Awards. The awards, which are named after the bestselling book Groundswell, recognize outstanding applications of social technology that result in successful business performance.

About Risdall Marketing Group
Founded in 1972, Risdall Marketing Group has annual capitalized billings of $190 million and more than 80 employees. Headquartered in New Brighton, Minn., Risdall is a full-service agency with 14 specialized divisions and is heralded as one of the oldest and most successful agencies in the Twin Cities. A variety of Twin Cities business media rank RMG as the largest Web developer, the third largest PR agency and the sixth largest advertising agency in Minnesota. For more information, visit www.risdall.com.