an excerpt from The Philadelphia Inquirer
By Jane M. Von Bergen
Nobody in journalism likes to grab a lead right from the press
release, but today we make an exception to turn this space over to
adidas Golf, despite the annoying lower-case first letter in its
name:
"College graduates and social media enthusiasts are facing what
economists are calling 'the worst U.S. labor market since the Great
Depression.' adidas Golf is stepping in to offer a
once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for web savvy golf enthusiasts to
submit their resumes to compete for a chance to become the
company's new social media catalyst," the press release
trumpets.
In this economy, where unemployment has ticked up to 9.9 percent
and 15 million are out of work, it probably is news when anyone's
hiring, but the folks at adidas Golf are taking it a step
further.
And in doing so, they have some interesting company - songster
Alicia Keys and Pizza Hut. All three of these organizations (in
Keys' case, we're counting her entourage) are using souped-up
help-wanted advertisements for social-media communicators that, at
the same time, promote their brands.
Not only do these companies get a copious amount of job
candidates, but they also get points for being so hip that they
need a social-media communicator - yes, even golf; yes, even
pizza.
Keys has been tweeting about her efforts to find her own
personal blogger through Monster.com.
"Phase 1 of the SuperSearch is over, but mk sure 2 follow
@IAASdotCom & visit iaas.com 2 meet final 60 candidates! Tell
me who u like best!" she tweeted on May 3.
It's the kind of advertising that especially resonates now, said
Marc Brownstein, president of Brownstein Group, a
Philadelphia-based ad agency.
"It creates confidence in the consumer's mind that this company
deserves my loyalty," he said. "If a company is hiring, you can
infer that it is a better-run company than its competitors and
worth investing in, whether it's for a $35,000 car or a $10
pizza.
Speaking of pizza, last May, in the very worst year in recent
history for the hiring of college graduates, Pizza Hut held a
much-publicized contest to find a "Twintern," who would spend the
summer twittering (or is it tweeting?) about the company and its
pizza.
The winner, who bested 1,000 other candidates, is the daughter
of two journalists (her father is the editor of the Greensboro News
& Record in North Carolina).
The internship was a paid one. "But I would have taken the
position even if it wasn't paid," said Alexa Robinson, 23. "Having
graduated in 2009 when the job market wasn't stellar, I was very
happy to get a job."
Robinson tweeted all summer, and in August, Pizza Hut offered
her a full-time job. That wasn't all. Another contest, online,
invited Pizza Hut's followers on Facebook and Twitter to weigh in
on her title.
Yesterday, "tweetologist" Robinson was in Philadelphia for
another Pizza Hut promotion, handing out stickers on a miserable
afternoon at 12th and Market Streets.
"%#*& pizza," a street person muttered, as he walked by.
Robinson either didn't hear him or ignored him. Her visit is part
of a road tour with interviews available to discuss either the
promotion (Vote For $10 Pizzas!) or Robinson's career.
By soliciting input via Facebook and Twitter, "they created a
lot of brand awareness for their pizza," Brownstein said.