Tag: Shane Rhyne

Majority of East Tennessee CEOs Are Engaged in Social Media

Posted by Amelia Daniels – June 6, 2011

Knoxville, Tenn.  – How social is your company?  The answer may be found within your CEO’s level of activity with social media tools like Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn.  

In a recent survey of more than 300 business leaders in East Tennessee, Ackermann PR found that the scales are tipping toward social media with a majority of CEOs – 61% –using social media for personal use.  Contrast that statistic with numerous sets of data from 2010 that show less than half of CEOs were using social media to engage with the public and other stakeholders. 

“We suspected that businesses in East Tennessee were moving beyond the experimental stage with social media,” said Cathy Ackermann, President and CEO of Ackermann PR.  “And while that’s what the results show, many CEOs are still trying to figure out how it fits in with their overall marketing and communications mix.”

Some of the survey’s key findings include:

  • 46% of respondents are using social media primarily for branding and awareness
  • Facebook is the most popular, with 54% of respondents using Facebook
  • 39% of respondents say these social media activities have had minimal impact on their businesses so far while 27% said impact has been small but noticeable 
  • 40% indicated they are not sure about how to track or measure their social media activities

Ackermann says one of the most significant hurdles that businesses are encountering is employee training and participation.  “The survey showed some concern on the part of CEOs regarding the allocation of resources to social media activities.”

These same issues were raised at the recent Social Slam event, held in Knoxville in April.  Ackermann’s Digital Strategies Manager, Shane Rhyne who participated in Social Slam says, “Upper level participation was a common theme of Social Slam presentations. The businesses reaping the best rewards from social media were also those businesses where the CEO and other senior level leadership had taken an active role in participating in social media.”

The companies whose CEOs are engaged in social media are often more likely to be using social media for business purposes.  “We can help CEOs find the right balance for their company, whether they’re personally involved with social media or not.  Because there is one thing we know – using social media strategically can greatly enhance a company’s bottom line,” says Ackermann.

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Media Contact
Shane Rhyne
(865) 584-0550
srhyne@ackermannpr.com

Ackermann PR Joins Social Slam 2011 Sponsorship Team

Posted by Shane Rhyne – February 23, 2011

Social Slam 2011, Knoxville, TN, April 13. A conference for digital media in business.Knoxville, Tenn. – Ackermann PR is proud to announce it has joined the sponsorship team for Social Slam 2011, a national digital media business conference to be hosted in Knoxville, Tennessee, on April 13, 2011.

The event promises to bring together some of the brightest minds in social media in North America to teach business leaders how to get serious about digital media marketing.

“We support Social Slam 2011 because of the experience represented by the event’s speakers and panelists,” said Cathy Ackermann, CEO and owner of Ackermann PR. “This is not a conference about hypothetical business practices. The participants will be discussing their actual work in the field and sharing their experiences in creating measurable and effective digital media business opportunities.”

The event, organized by Social Media Club Knoxville, is bringing a collection of some of the nation’s best-known experts in digital and mobile marketing to the Knoxville Convention Center for a one-day business-oriented conference.

“This event is a valuable opportunity for Knoxville-area business leaders,” said Shane Rhyne, Digital Business Strategies Manager for Ackermann PR. “The speakers and panelists represent a who’s who of experts in our industry. Having them all together for a single conference is gaining a lot of attention. Business leaders from across the nation are making travel plans to attend this event.”

The event will feature nationally-acclaimed keynote speakers, including:Guest speakers and panelists for Social Slam. Jay Baer, Christina "CK" Kerley, Trey Pennington, Brian Winter, Eric T. Epperson, Amy Howell, Billy Mitchell, Deborah Weinstein, Jeremy Victor, Mark Schaefer, Ryan T. Sauers, Glen Gilmore, Anne Deeter Gallaher

Additional panel discussions will feature nationally-recognized authorities on:

  • Social media’s reinvention of public relations
  • Building a business case for social media
  • Critical digital media mega-trends
  • Social media and business-to-business (B2B) marketing

Seating is limited for the event. Tickets are available from the event website at www.SocSlam.com for $49 through February 28. In March, the price will increase to $59, and in April, any remaining available tickets will cost $69.

For additional information about the event, the speakers and panelists, registration and materials, visit the Social Slam website at www.SocSlam.com.

About Social Media Club Knoxville

Social Media Club Knoxville is a networking organization for Knoxvillians currently using social media personally and professionally, and those seeking to learn. SMC Knoxville is a chapter of the international SMC headquartered in San Francisco, California. SMC is a non-profit organization designed to promote media literacy, support sharing among practitioners, encourage adoption of industry standards, and promote ethical practices through discussion and actions. For more information about SMC, visit www.socialmediaclub.org

Rhyne joins Ackermann PR Digital Communications division

Posted by Shane Rhyne – September 29, 2009

Knoxville, Tenn – Ackermann PR announced that Shane Rhyne has been hired as the company’s Digital Communications Associate. Rhyne brings a background in print, broadcast, and digital media to the company’s expanding services in digital and social media.

“Adding Shane to our staff allows us to continue building on our established leadership in developing innovative branding and marketing opportunities for our clients,” said President and CEO Cathy Ackermann.

The Ackermann PR digital and social media division has represented a rapidly growing segment of the firm’s work during the past quarter. In recent months, Ackermann has added a significant number of new clients, representing a wide variety of industry sectors, including tourism, hospitality, entertainment, sports, healthcare, manufacturing, and nonprofit.

“Shane’s marketing and media background made him the ideal choice as we made plans to expand the division,” said Katie Allison Granju, Social Media Director for Ackermann PR. “Shane is well known in Tennessee’s blogging community for his work on successful social media initiatives, and we are pleased to be able to offer his talents on behalf of our clients.”

Rhyne is a steering committee member of the Knoxville Social Media Association and an active community blogger. He has worked previously as the public relations and marketing director of the East Tennessee Historical Society, and as an online community manager with the E.W. Scripps’ branded social network for pet enthusiasts. In addition, he has worked as a radio news journalist and station manager, and as a freelance writer for magazines and newspapers, as well as on a project with the late Pulitzer Prize-winning author Alex Haley to document the author’s childhood.

Rhyne is a native of Clinton, Tennessee, and studied journalism and broadcasting at the University of Memphis and the University of Tennessee-Knoxville. He lives in Knoxville with his wife, Ruth Sapp.

Ackermann PR is a full-service, integrated marketing communications firm providing strategic public relations and marketing. It is headquartered in Knoxville, Tennessee, and serves clients across the United States.

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Media Contact
Katie Allison Granju
(865) 584-0550
kgranju@ackermannpr.com