One of the main lessons I emphasize when teaching the Introduction to Mass Communication at Linfield College is that understanding the development of the mass media over history helps understand the changes we are witnessing every day. The shift to online, or “digital media” as I prefer to call it, follows the trend started by the invention of written communication. Every time there is a new advance, information distribution accelerates. Consider:

Oral communication to written communication.

Hand written communication to the printing press.

Print to electronic, first the telegraph then radio.

Radio to television.

Television to digital media.

At each step, the existing mass media had to adjust and change in order to respond to the new technology. In some cases, it just died out, like the telegraph.

Advertising Age recently posted a video of Rob Katz, CEO of Vail Resorts, discussing how digital media has changed their marketing strategy. It is an excellent presentation on how they are responding to digital media by changing their ad placement, message development etc. Bottom line is that their decision time has been reduced drastically because of the speed of digital media. Now, they can respond to specific market conditions and target their message.

AdAge Vail Resorts

The use of online tools in your communication strategy is an every changing field. With the rapid changes that occur online, it sometimes seems hard to keep up. OK, I have my website, but now I need web video? I have a blog but now I need to Twitter and employ a Facebook strategy? Help!

One of the best ways to learn is analyze what others have done successfully as well as unsuccessfully. What’s even better is when they analyze their work for you. Engage, a political media firm based in Washington DC, did that last week when partner Mindy Finn posted an extensive look at their online strategy for Bob McDonnell and his race for the Virginia governorship.

While this case study is for a political campaign, there is much to learn in here that can be applied to products, businesses, and non-profits. The most important overall lesson I took away from the case study is that it is imperative that the online strategy be integrated into the overall strategy for the campaign. It cannot be an afterthought or relegated to a secondary tier of the campaign.

Personally, because of my interest in the use of video in campaigns, I was thrilled to read this part of the case study:

“Upon visiting the website, one would be greeted with a lead-off bio video that highlighted the candidate’s record of service, experience and personal character that was produced by the media team.

This video was not of the garage-level production type, but instead a well-produced piece that would captivate those who visited. The idea of investing in video production even when the particular videos will never air on television is still foreign to some campaigns; however, the McDonnell campaign retained early a web video professional who could both shoot and produce video press releases, rapid response videos, feature pieces and campaign updates.”

Of course, when you’re looking for that video professional, we encourage you to contact our sister company, Lyon Films!

Whether you are creating a campaign for a candidate or not, the Engage case study of their work on the McDonnell for Governor campaign is a valuable read.