From the TENNESSEAN.com About 50,000 people have picked up on the Facebook buzz over Blue Like Jazz, a movie that opens today in 25 cities including Nashville.
An additional 1,600 people have joined in its “street teams,” around the country, which do everything from putting up posters, to posting on Facebook, to dressing up like characters and handing out fliers.
It’s that type of grassroots action that got the film going in the first place and is now working to market it around the country. And for faith-based or indie films, this kind of marketing could be the key to success.
“Big-budget advertising is like a loud megaphone,” says Bob Hutchins, owner of Buzzplant, a Franklin-based digital marketer handling the social media and street teams for the film. “But now we’re into sitting down, talking at dinner. And you wouldn’t bring a megaphone to dinner.”
Blue Like Jazz is the story of a 19-year-old from Texas who leaves his religious world for Reed College in Portland, which is called one of the most progressive campuses in America. Donald Miller’s experiences made him question his faith and ultimately understand what he truly believes. Miller’s book by the same name became a New York Times best-seller.
Street teams deploy posters
If you’ve seen a poster about the movie, some of which was filmed in Nashville, chances are one of the 40 local street teamers put it up. The movie’s premiere Tuesday night in Portland was, of course, on Facebook with lots of photos, video and comment.
Friend-to-friend advertising isn’t new, it’s called word-of-mouth. But what’s trending here is the strategy behind it all.
Buzzplant, which has been in the digital marketing business since 2001, pulls in Facebook, Twitter and street teams to get the word out and then tracks success. For Hutchins and his team, marketing a film like this is about helping people connect to the story and to each other.
Buzzplant has marketed other faith-based films such as Passion of the Christ and Soul Surfer. It also markets brick-and-mortar businesses, books, ministries and other products.
Blue Like Jazz is a struggle story of faith. And sometimes, the story isn’t pretty.
“It’s uncomfortable,” Hutchins says. “And not family-friendly.”
In other words, possibly not what most Christian-based movies often project. It’s not clean and tidy.
“It leaves you with questions,” says Rebekah Markowitz, who heads up street teams at Buzzplant.
Small grants made film possible
The process to make the movie, appropriately enough, wasn’t clean and tidy either.
Miller’s book was about to be made into a movie right about recession-time, 2009 or so, and funding fell through. A post by author Miller on his blog saying it wasn’t going to happen caught the attention of two local fans, Zach Prichard and Jonathan Frazier.
The two put the idea out there on kickstarter.com, which helps fund creative projects by connecting people on the Internet. Quickly, small donations from about 4,500 donors poured in and the film was alive again. Blue Like Jazz was filmed last fall in Portland and at Nashville sites such as Belmont and Scarritt-Bennett.
And today, it opens at Thoroughbred 20 on Frazier Drive in Cool Springs, and in Green Hills and Hendersonville. Want to learn more? Guess where to go: Blue Like Jazz the movie on Facebook.
Contact Vicky Travis at vtravis@tennessean.com or find her on Facebook.
“Civil Disobedience” Street Team Doubles Expectations with over 1000 sign up’s in 48 hours
Nashville, TN. March 13, 2012 – One of the largest crowd-sourced creative projects in American history thanks to a fan-generated Kickstarter campaign, BLUE LIKE JAZZ will hit theaters on April 13, 2012. The grassroots support that helped get the film made is now proving to build momentum for the film’s release through the “Civil Disobedience” street team, which received over 1000 sign ups in the first 48 hours of the website going live. Presented by Roadside Attractions, the film, one of PASTE magazine’s “most anticipated films of 2012” is based on the New York Times best seller by author Donald Miller, which has sold over 1.4 million copies to date.
With a desire to take the traditional street team concept to the next level, BuzzPlant and Rhetorik Creative have partnered to help BLUE LIKE JAZZ street teamers an experience like none other.
By signing up, fans are given the rank of SuCCer, an acronym used throughout the book and the film. From there they are encouraged through a plethora of assignments, some very simple, such as blogging and hanging up movie posters on their college campus, while some a bit more outgoing, like dressing up in a bear costume and showing up at a screening. For each assignment completed, street teamers will be awarded points, as well as other rankings with terms related to BLUE LIKE JAZZ (“Reedie,” “Bear,” “Astronaut,” “Tall Biker,” “Sexy Carrot” and “Robot”), and at the end, everything from gift cards, movie posters and having lunch with Steve Taylor and Donald Miller in person are included in the prize packages.
“We know that it’s important to be be accessible and available to make the street teamers feel like part of the team,” said BuzzPlant Owner and President Bob Hutchins. “We keep in regular contact with our street teamers, emailing them weekly, offering screening tickets in various cities when we can, and responding every one of their questions and comments. It’s been an exciting process to see their response and enthusiasm for this film.”
Directed by Steve Taylor, BLUE LIKE JAZZ centers around Don (Marshall Allman, TRUE BLOOD, PRISON BREAK), a pious nineteen-year-old sophomore at a Texas junior college, who impulsively decides to escape his religious upbringing for life in the Pacific Northwest at one of the most progressive campuses in America, Reed College in Portland. Upon arrival, Reed’s surroundings and eccentric student body proves to be far different than he could possibly imagine from the environment from which he came, forcing him to embark on a journey of self-discovery to understand who he is and what he truly believes. BLUE LIKE JAZZ features a cast of rising stars including Allman, Claire Holt (THE VAMPIRE DIARIES, PRETTY LITTLE LIARS), and Tania Raymonde (LOST).
Currently, Taylor, Miller and Allman, are hitting 27 markets via tour bus throughout March for sneak peak screenings, including a premier at SXSW this week, in hopes to excite and engage the fans who helped fund their film.
“The team that wrote, directed and filmed BLUE LIKE JAZZ is living on a bus, traveling around America screening the movie for the thousands of backers who invested in this film,” comments Miller. “It’s our chance to show off what we believe is a terrific movie.”
BLUE LIKE JAZZ was filmed last fall in Nashville, TN and Portland, OR.
Nashville’s Belmont University has been a leader in recognizing the important role social media plays in business, with the Massey Graduate School of Business currently offering the first local MBA course in social media taught by local business owner, Bob Hutchins. In addition to the new course, Mark Schenkel, Associate Professor of Entrepreneurship at Belmont, will be hosting an upcoming panel entitled “It’s Personal: Using Social Media to Engage with Customers”.
“Social media has clearly produced change in the economic marketplace, but a key question for entrepreneurs and business leaders is how it can it can be engaged to create new opportunity”, says Schenkel. The panel discussion will be moderated by Buzzplant Founder Bob Hutchins and will emphasize the importance of “truly connecting” with customers. The panel will also feature the expertise and opinions of three prominent tech-business leaders in Nashville: Colin Polidor, COO of Cell Journalist; Drew Burchfield, Co-founder of Aloompa; and Dave Delaney, Digital Marketing Consultant.
The community is invited to this unique discussion at no cost on March 14 from 5 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. in the Massey Business Center Boardroom at Belmont University. To RSVP, visit http://www.sitemason.com/form/e1C1XO.
About the Massey School
The Jack C. Massey Graduate School of Business began in 1986 out of a vision from Mr. Jack C. Massey, one of the world’s most creative and successful entrepreneurs. Today, Belmont University offers three graduate business study options—a part-time (Professional) or full-time (Accelerated) MBA program, and a Master of Accountancy program. Each program is flexible and rigorous, with classes offered on weekday evenings to also meet the needs of working professionals. Belmont University and Vanderbilt University are the only private universities in Tennessee to maintain business accreditation by AACSB International—The Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business. For more information, visit Massey’s Web site at www.belmont.edu/business/graduatebusiness.
About BuzzPlant
BuzzPlant is a local Internet marketing agency based outside of Nashville, in Franklin, Tennessee, specializing in social media and online marketing strategies for both national and local projects. As a national award-winning creative marketing and branding firm, their clients range from local businesses to national films and campaigns. Offering services such as developing social media strategies, social media execution and management, web design and development, consultation, web based application development, handling online publicity, SEO maximization, and more, BuzzPlant’s team is dedicated to helping clients tell their story and connect to a listening audience with authenticity and creativity. For more information, visit www.BuzzPlant.com.
FRANKLIN — Bob Hutchins is turning to Facebook, Twitter and other social media outlets to get the word out about old-school journalism.
The owner of Buzzplant, a digital marketing agency that has been in Franklin for 10 years, is in charge of marketing for a new movie, Deadline, starring Steve Talley and Eric Roberts.
The online campaign for the fictional story about investigative newspaper reporters working to uncover the identity of a killer is an expansion of Buzzplant’s previous promotions, which mostly focused on “faith-friendly” films including Mel Gibson’s The Passion of the Christ, The Chronicles of Narnia series and Soul Surfer.
But targeting a message among certain groups who will be excited to see the new movie isn’t much different. For this film, the company is marketing directly to those interested in cold cases, social-justice groups and newspaper fans.
Movie goers are savvier about marketing than in generations past. That’s where social media can play a role in connecting people together and engaging them in the process.
“We as a society are on a whole leaning toward more social discussions and not blatant advertising,” said Hutchins. “Now you’re getting in front of them in the middle of a conversation on a more authentic and transparent basis.”
Hosted by The Tennessean where several key scenes were filmed in the newspaper’s offices in downtown Nashville, the world premiere of Deadline is scheduled for tonight in the Regal Green Hills Stadium 16 at The Mall at Green Hills. The 7 p.m. event benefits Family & Children’s Service.
Shot completely in Tennessee, the movie by Nashville-based Film House includes scenes from Rippavilla Plantation in Spring Hill.
The film opens for a nationwide release April 13.
Hutchins, who teaches a social media class at Belmont University, sees a future where eventually mobile devices and television will merge as one, making it easier for viewers to interact with their favorite shows while tweeting.
“That will lead to an interactive experience in the media we consume. Any event will have to have a social component,” he said.
In addition, he’s growing Buzzplant to promoting nonprofits such as a recent marketing campaign for the Franklin-based Mercy Children’s Clinic and local businesses. The company is involved with the promotion of Bible study materials as well.
I recently attended a social networking panel discussion at Belmont University. Sharing their opinions and expertise on social media were panelists Gerry Gorman, CIO of Cat Financial; Bob Hutchins, CEO of BuzzPlant; Clint Smith, CEO of EMMA; and Christi McNeil of the Social and Emerging Media team at Southwest Airlines. While some panelists took a more conservative approach to social networking than others and each company uses social networking in various ways, they each made some great points worth remembering.
1. Social media is different than mass marketing. It is important to remember that individuals are behind the technology you’re using. When using social media, remember to speak to an “audience of one” and focus on the individual.
2. It is dangerously easy to make noise via social media, but difficult to listen. To utilize social media successfully, it is vital you listen and respond to what your audience is saying, both the positive and negative.
3. Each social media channel serves a different purpose, so use them to achieve different objectives. For example, LinkedIn is a great tool for recruiting new employees; Facebook can be used to update organizational news; Yammer is used for collaboration between employees; and, as Christi McNeil pointed out, Twitter is a great way to quickly respond to customer service concerns. Be aware that your company may not need to use each of these social media channels to achieve its objectives.
What social media services does your company use? Do you have any other tips to share?
Franklin, Tenn.— For over ten years, Mercy Children’s Clinic has created many opportunities for the community to support their mission of providing quality pediatric care to lower income families in surrounding Franklin areas. When it came to creating the next event, the intentions of the Development team were so heartfelt, but the design communication ideas were at a stand still.
Buzzplant, a national award winning online marketing agency, stepped up to create that meaningful design for the upcoming fundraiser, Fairy Wings & Pirate Things. Based out of Franklin in an office not far from where the clinic began, the design team brought all of Mercy’s ideas into reality.
More than just another fundraiser for the clinic, Mercy hoped to bring families and kids together in a safe, healthy environment where they could have a fun-filled evening. As the project began, Mercy began with keywords such as “magical” and “dimensional”, hoping to speak to a child’s sense of wonder and get the parents excited.
“We knew how we wanted people to feel when they came to the event, but we didn’t know how to show it,” says Development Assistant at Mercy, Tracie Dycus. Merely two weeks later, they had a poster design.
“Our goal is to help our clients connect with their audience on a deeper level and tell their story with our designs,” says owner of Buzzplant, Bob Hutchins.
With an abundance of local events, creating a poster that stands out is just as important as ensuring that all of the details run smoothly that night. Buzzplant was able to create a design for their marketing materials and website so that at first glance, families know what they are invited to.
Fairy Wings and Pirate Things is scheduled for Saturday, November 12 from 6pm to 8:30pm at Sodium, 1725 Columbia Avenue, Suite 100 in Franklin. For more information visit www.fairywingsandpiratethings.com.
About Buzzplant
Buzzplant is a local Internet marketing agency based outside of Nashville, in Franklin, Tennessee, specializing in social media and online marketing strategies for both national and local projects and clients. As a national award-winning creative marketing and branding firm, their clients range from local businesses to national films and campaigns. Offering services such as developing social media strategies, social media execution and management, web design and development, consultation, web based application development, handling online publicity, SEO maximization, and more, Buzzplant’s team is dedicated to helping clients tell their story and connect to a listening audience with authenticity and creativity. For more information, visit www.buzzplant.com.
About Mercy
Mercy Health Services is a non-profit organization comprised of a pediatric clinic, Mercy Children’s Clinic, and a mental health division, Mercy Family Services. The mission of Mercy is to provide healthcare for all children regardless of ability to pay. While 30% of their patients have private insurance, 70% are either uninsured or on TennCare and it is their standard to provide the same compassionate, holistic care to all children and support to their families. They believe that no child should have to go without quality healthcare, and no parent should have to struggle to provide this care. For more information, visit www.mercytn.org.
Local Business CEO & Author Bob Hutchins to Teach Spring 2012 Course
Nashville, Tenn.—For the last twenty-five years, the Jack C. Massey Graduate School of Business at Belmont University has been an avenue for practicing professionals to develop the tools and strategies necessary to advance to the next levels in their chosen careers. Acquiring an advanced business degree through coursework that is practical, ethical, and entrepreneurial has facilitated the professional development of over 1,800 business leaders in Nashville and beyond—but talented business faculty are a key to delivering this education.
According to the Associate Dean of the Graduate School of Business, Joe F. Alexander, the graduate business professors are chosen with two goals in mind. Currently, most MBA professors are full-time, doctorally-qualified individuals who have earned their Ph.D.s in business—many from the top academic programs in the U.S. Just as importantly, the faculty are recruited based on their significant level of professional experience they are able to bring back into the classroom.
Occasionally, an adjunct faculty member may be hired in those situations where the marketplace or technology is changing so rapidly that a full-time industry professional is the most up-to-date professional to manage that topic.
Earlier this year, as the graduate faculty and administration at Massey identified a gap within the marketing concentration of the Professional MBA Program, a decision was made to recruit Bob Hutchins, local author and owner of BuzzPlant, a marketing agency specializing in social media and online marketing. Beginning in the spring semester of 2012, Hutchins will now be leading a course entitled, Social Media Marketing Strategies and the Recommendation Age. “We see Bob as a pioneer in the industry and believe he will greatly impact the learning experience of our MBA students,” added Alexander.
As industries continue to cut back on their marketing budget, recent solutions have been anchored in the realm of social media. Hutchins defines this new era as the “Recommendation Age”—consumers are once again taking recommendations from their fellow consumers and where are these conversations happening? Online.
“I’ve spent twenty years working on marketing campaigns and strategies for clients, and only in the last five have I seen how great of an influence social media has on the business world,” said Hutchins. “As much as we’ve tried to resist it, it has ultimately brought people closer together. I’m proud to be involved with Belmont and help our arising industry leaders see the opportunities social media has to offer.”
Hutchins also firmly believes in authenticity being revealed within one’s marketing strategy, and the importance of developing an honest reputation both on and offline.
“How to stay transparent, respectful, create high quality products, give feedback, face negativity, learn from mistakes, and stay authentic—these are the topics we must address in the era of recommendations,” says Hutchins. “I hope to offer Belmont’s emerging leaders some ‘rubber meets the road’ advice.”
The graduate level course in social media is the first to have been developed in Nashville area universities. To learn more about Belmont University and read the course description, visit www.belmont.edu/graduatebusiness.
About the Massey School
The Jack C. Massey Graduate School of Business began in 1986 out of a vision from Mr. Jack C. Massey, one of the world’s most creative and successful entrepreneurs. Today, Belmont University offers three graduate business study options—a part-time (Professional) or full-time (Accelerated) MBA program, and a Master of Accountancy program. Each program is flexible and rigorous, with classes offered on weekday evenings to also meet the needs of working professionals. Belmont University and Vanderbilt University are the only private universities in Tennessee to maintain business accreditation by AACSB International—The Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business. For more information, visit Massey’s Web site at www.belmont.edu/business/graduatebusiness.
About BuzzPlant
BuzzPlant is a local Internet marketing agency based outside of Nashville, in Franklin, Tennessee, specializing in social media and online marketing strategies for both national and local projects. As a national award-winning creative marketing and branding firm, their clients range from local businesses to national films and campaigns. Offering services such as developing social media strategies, social media execution and management, web design and development, consultation, web based application development, handling online publicity, SEO maximization, and more, BuzzPlant’s team is dedicated to helping clients tell their story and connect to a listening audience with authenticity and creativity. For more information, visit www.BuzzPlant.com.
BuzzPlant, the industry leader in online marketing to the faith and family market, has just released their newest service offering – Buzz Defense.
Franklin, TN April 28, 2010 — BuzzPlant, the industry leader in online marketing to the faith and family market, has just released their newest service offering – Buzz Defense.
Having been more on the “offense” for the past 10 years, BuzzPlant has been a part of some very large and successful online marketing campaigns. Their clients include Thomas Nelson, Time-Life, INO Records, Warner Brothers, as well as several major movie releases, concert tours, and events.
As Bob Hutchins, the founder, expressed in an interview, “We have always been on the forefront of helping our clients establish themselves online and helping them tell their story in the most creative way possible. But we are also very aware that we are not the only ones talking about our clients. Just a few comments on a few sites can cause a lot of damage to a company’s reputation and brand.”
No one is immune. Ministries, Churches, Schools, and Businesses can be attacked with just a few key strokes, not to mention the thousands of negative postings about individuals. With 80% of consumers now looking for a local service or product through search engines and most people rarely going past the first page of results, a few negative results can be devastating.
“That is where Buzz Defense comes in,” says Hutchins. “ We actively monitor hundreds of sites for the clients and report what we find. We then go to work on their behalf to deal with any negative indexed pages.”
Buzz Defense complements the offense that BuzzPlant can offer their clients. By working on page rankings and postings, clients report seeing higher rankings for their websites, and solid retention of their customers.
