Today’s FundRaising Success e-newsletter features an article from Nathan DeVault, Costa DeVault’s vice president. Using the K. Hovnanian Homes Orlando Facebook page as an example, he discusses how nonprofits and corporations can work together toward a mutual social media goal. You can view the article using the following link:

Translating Fans, Friends and Followers into Funds

At Costa DeVault, we’re happy to support XL 106.7 and the City of Orlando’s PinkTober initiative for breast cancer awareness. To see last year’s photo, click here.

Yesterday, I had the pleasure of guest presenting at Jennifer Wakefield’s PUR3100 class at UCF. Using my most recent blog post (Writing for the (Social Media) Medium) as a guide, I discussed traditional writing fundamentals and how they often overlap with the nontraditional. We also talked about our favorite brands that use social media (for me, Southwest Air and DKNY) and tried our hand at making an Ocean Spray Facebook update a tweet and a McDonald’s advertisement a short, compelling post.

Thank you to Jen for hosting me – and to her students for the thoughtful questions and discussion. Here’s a link to the presentation:

As most of us know, the Hispanic population is the second largest and fastest growing ethnic group in the United States, currently consisting of 50.5 million people. I read an article in the St. Petersburg Times this summer that discusses how Hispanic Americans originate from many different countries and backgrounds. Although the universal language for this group is Spanish, it doesn’t mean their tastes and cultures are the same – so we shouldn’t take a “one-size-fits-all” approach when targeting them in marketing and public relations efforts. For instance, you wouldn’t necessarily use the same marketing strategies when launching a new product in America as you would in England just because people in both countries speak English.

Here are some examples of how Hispanic countries differ among themselves:

• Culture – Although many people assume Cinco de Mayo is a Hispanic holiday, it’s actually Mexican – not Puerto Rican, Colombian or Venezuelan. Dia de los Muertos is also a Mexican holiday that many other Hispanic countries observe. However, Mexicans celebrate this holiday by visiting cemeteries where their loved ones are buried, while Guatemalans set themselves apart by constructing and flying giant, decorated kites, traditionally believed to guide souls back to life.

• Language – While most people know that the Spanish word for “friend” is “amigo,” the slang term in some areas of South America is “parcero” or “pana,” and in Central America it can be “pasiero” or “vato.”

• Other – Baseball is a popular sport in Cuba and Venezuela, but not in Bolivia and Argentina, where soccer is preferred.

I’m from Brazil, the only Portuguese-speaking country in South America, and while we are often categorized as a part of the “Hispanic” population, we are actually classified as “Latinos” due to our language differences and historical background. So remember: before launching a major marketing or public relations campaign – or even prior to sending out a press release – faça sua pesquisa (do your research).

Are you aware of any other cultural differences among the Hispanic population that you feel PR and marketing professionals should be aware of?

Vanessa is Costa DeVault’s newest PR team member. She’s from Brazil and will be bringing some Latin “flavor” to the table – and our department.

When I “like” a company … I really like a company – which is why, often times, I’m a fan on Facebook and a follower on Twitter. My feeling is that if they take the time to engage on both platforms, I want to support them as much as I can. But when an organization’s Facebook feed is a mirror image of its Twitter – or vice versa – it makes me rethink my social media loyalty. Maybe it’s the social media nerd enthusiast in me … or perhaps it’s just the PR professional. Let me explain.

As professional communicators, we’re taught to “write for the medium.” Tone, style and format change drastically from one context to the next, so the same should be true for social media. You wouldn’t take web copy and just drop it into a client’s letterhead and call it a press release – so how can a tweet double as a Facebook post?

@’s and #’s mean nothing to a non-Twitter savvy Facebook user … and tweets with more than 140 characters that require a click-through to see the rest? No thanks. This is social media 101 – but all the talk about “integration across platforms” has been misunderstood as a shortcut, rather than an opportunity for brand consistency. (And I’m not alone in this notion – a recent study found that Facebook pages that automatically push tweets receive an average of 70% fewer likes and comments.)

Sure, there’s something to be said for a company that, in theory, wants to engage on both platforms, but simply doesn’t have the manpower or time. But for them, I share a quote that’s more ingrained in me than “write for the medium” – and that is “it is better to be master of one thing than mediocre at many things.”

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Jenni is an account executive at Costa DeVault and lover of all things social media. She’ll like your Facebook page and follow you on Twitter … as long as the content is fresh and different.