SMBME #23 – Social Media in Highly Regulated Industries

This was one of those breakfasts that we could have had for a full day! I was really honored to have two strong panels to tackle some serious concerns our local businesses have. We had a smart and engaged audience with a lot of new faces in the crowd.

We started the morning with Scott Whytock, CFP® – Principal, August Wealth Management, LLC and Susie D. Stone, MS – Marketing Manager, Maine Medical Center as our first panel. They both spoke of their first hand experiences.

Susie talked about the challenges that face a large organization with many parts. When they first started, Facebook pages and groups had already been created by fans of the hospital and some of their foundations. They formed a social media committee that drew from many different departments in the hospital, drafted policies and procedures.

Scott talked about the planning and goals he has as the sole member of his business and how he uses social media, Facebook especially, to connect with current customers. Scott’s business is pretty new but he knows social media is a great way for him to market himself. He can use this platform to establish or generate trust with his current and future clients.

Our second panel was Trevor Hughes from International Association of Privacy Professionals – IAPP and Alfred Frawley from Preti Flaherty. They spoke about the issues they help their clients with. This panel was moderated by Carissa O’brien from Red Box Communications.

Trevor started the second panel by talking about privacy and what the term privacy means. He showed us a few works of art that moved us toward a conversation of what privacy means to us. Privacy means a lot of things to a lot of people. A major takeaway I got from Trevor was that no matter the industry, the same rules you have always had apply to social media. Brad Lawwill from Pierce Promotions hit on this too, when he came to talk to us. Whatever compliance control you put in place, has to include social media as well. As we lead these private and public online lives, we face a lot of challenges.

Last up was Fred Frawley who had the difficult task of following Trevor. Fred began by emphasizing that having s social media policy isn’t nearly as important of how you implement it. He went on to tell us that he knows businesses need to be ‘out there’ for branding purposes and trust building purposes but you need that to compliment your organization and its ethos.

This breakfast is sponsored by The Internet Educator, The Cohen Tracy Team, Global Power Merchants, Mainebiz, Mainely SEO and Hall Internet Marketing.

You can view a recording of the full breakfast on Livestream, thanks to Filmosity.

United Way’s Preble Street Pantry Project

This month Bob O’Brien from Noyes Hall & Allen Insurance offered to make SMBME a pickup for the United Way of Greater Portland’s Pantry Project. SMBME attendees filled boxes of food for this special project. Thank you to everyone involved!

As a company-wide effort to fight hunger in Portland, Noyes Hall & Allen Insurance is participating in United Way of Greater Portland’s Pantry Project. The Project is an effort by United Way to collect food for Preble Street and other food pantries in Greater Portland.

The latest numbers for Maine show that one in five households (20%) in Greater Portland suffer from food insecurity, meaning families are unsure where their next meal will come. More than half of these families are actually hungry. That means 10% of people in Greater Portland do not have enough food in their houses to create meals and their children go to school hungry and may go to bed hungry.

We can help change this. Please bring canned or boxed food to the Social Media Breakfast at the Eastland Hotel on Friday, June 24. Bob O’Brien from Noyes Hall & Allen will collect the food and deliver it to Preble Street. Together, we can make a difference.

Pantry Project Wish List [PDF]

Speakers

Alfred C. Frawley of Preti Flaherty

Alfred C. Frawley brings to the firm nearly thirty-five years of experience in a wide range of legal fields, with particular concentration in complex business litigation and intellectual property law. Fred serves as the Firm’s Chair of the Intellectual Property and Technology Practice Groups. He practices from the firm’s Portland office.

Fred is one of Maine’s most experienced attorneys in intellectual property, antitrust, trade regulation and employment law. He has extensive experience serving international legal and business clients and is recognized for his ability to analyze, negotiate and resolve complex legal problems before litigation becomes necessary. He is a frequent speaker on trademark and employment issues.

J. Trevor Hughes, CIPP

J. Trevor Hughes is the President and CEO of the International Association of Privacy Professionals (IAPP). In this role, Hughes leads the world’s largest association of privacy professionals.

Hughes is an experienced attorney in privacy, technology, and marketing law. He has provided testimony before the US Congress Commerce Committee, the Senate Commerce Committee, the Federal Trade Commission, the Home Affairs Committee of the British Parliament, and the EU Parliament on issues of privacy, surveillance, spam and privacy-sensitive technologies. He is a member of the first class of Certified Information Privacy Professionals (CIPP) and recently completed, with co-author Reed Freeman, “Privacy Law in Marketing”, published by CCH.

Hughes has previously served as the executive director of the Network Advertising Initiative, a leading online privacy trade association, and the Email Sender and Provider Coalition, a trade association working on email policy and practices. Prior to these roles, Hughes was director of privacy and corporate counsel for Engage, a leading online media and software company. Before that, Hughes worked as corporate counsel for UnumProvident, where he focused on legal issues associated with advertising and online insurance transactions.

Hughes is an adjunct professor of law at the University of Maine School of Law and has lectured on privacy at Harvard, MIT, the London School of Economics, Boston College Law School, Georgetown University, and Northeastern University. He is a frequent speaker on privacy issues at conferences around the world. Hughes has been featured on National Public Radio’s “Morning Edition”, the PBS “Nightly Business Report”, BBC Radio, and in the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Forbes, PC World, Washington Post, Boston Globe, and Business Week.

Hughes also has significant experience as a media official at the 1994 World Cup, 1996 Olympics, and the 1999 Women’s World Cup. A native of Canada, Hughes holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in political science from the University of Massachusetts and a Juris Doctorate from the University of Maine School of Law.

Carissa O’Brien

President Carissa Caramanis O’Brien has been a communicator and content creator for fifteen years. Specializing in healthcare, EMS/Fire, non-profits, and technology, Carissa applies her broad experience and customer insights to create effective strategies and tactics that generate results

Susie D. Stone, MS

As a marketing manager at Maine Medical Center, Susie is responsible for service line-specific and overall hospital brand communication and marketing initiatives. She started the institution’s social media presence and leads a multi-departmental committee which monitors and enforces the social media policy and strategy. Susie earned her bachelor’s degree in Communication from the University of New Hampshire and her master’s degree in Marketing from Southern New Hampshire University. She is currently the president of the Public Relations Society of America Yankee Chapter.

Scott Whytock, CFP®

Scott Whytock is the owner of August Wealth Management, LLC, an investment advisory and financial planning firm located in Portland, Maine. August Wealth Management is built on a staggeringly simple idea that is lost on many in this industry which is, to provide sound, purpose-based advice on a client by client basis. There is no “one size fits all” philosophy that can be applied to multiple clients. Each of us brings out own set of highly unique hopes and fears, needs and wants, and strengths and weaknesses to our financial lives. It is important to accept and appreciate how these differences can shape planning for the future, which is the reason that this firm is unique compared to others.

Scott is a Certified Financial Planner, which is a highly sought after designation in the financial services industry. Becoming a CFP is typically a process that demands roughly two to three years of study and rigorous testing, combined with high standards of continuing education that must be maintained on a regular basis. By attaining what is considered to be the gold standard or professional certifications in the industry, Scott has demonstrated his commitment to his profession.

Location

Eastland Park Hotel
157 High Street
Portland, ME 04101