The day-to-day of maintaining a social media account can take its toll on the manager - connecting with a fan isn’t as fun as it used to be, the idea of using Facebook in your free time no longer appeals, and tweet after tweet after tweet only add to your social media malaise. If this is you, it’s time to reclaim your zest for all things social.  Here is the first of three steps to revamp and revive social media efforts that have become lackluster.

Step 1: Get Unstuck
If it’s the same old, same old, turn the whole thing upside down.

In our whatcanbe sessions with clients, we ask the question “How would you solve this if you were someone else?” Oprah?  Abraham Lincoln?  Snooki and JWow? This challenges you try on another pair of shoes and see things you miss when you’re in the day-to-day.

You can also do this by eliminating your go-to excuses and problems:  Lack of resources, lack of time, potential legal run-ins and so on.  Facing these issues can mean getting stuck in them.  These problems are often ingrained in your organization, and end up more personally exhausting than productive. 

If you have had any role in bringing social media to your company, you know these brick walls well, and have hurdled over a few of them. 

Or perhaps you used one of these.

Instead of conquering them one grueling problem at a time, avoid them altogether with bright spots problem solving. (See also, the serenity prayer.) 

Switch: How to Change When Change is Hard by Chip and Dan Heath recommends “bright spots” problem solving as a means of overriding your institutionalized, brick-wall problems to make something happen despite them. Using bright spots means you find something that works and try to duplicate it. 

We’ll cover a bright spot worth duplicating tomorrow.

(If you’re ready to get thinking, we’re giving away a deck of Whatcanbe cards to the first 10 people who request them.  Tweet @crttanaka with your request, and tag it #whatcanbe)

By Jeff Wilson, APR (@wilson0507)

Last night, Tina Fey and the gang at “30 Rock” celebrated the show’s 100^th episode. The episode was full of the standard anniversary clip montages and the ubiquitous lineup of guest stars including Michael Keaton, Rachel Ray, Matt Lauer, Brian Williams, Tom Hanks and Dean Winters, the actor who stars as Mayhem in the cool series of Allstate commercials and formerly of “Oz” and “Law & Order SVU” fame.

It was a pretty good episode, which got me to thinking, why do we place such emphasis on anniversaries and other milestones?

Art Markman, Ph.D., a cognitive scientist at the University of Texas, says that we impose a psychological order on the world using numbers that doesn’t really exist.

“Numbers are a mathematical construct,” Markman writes. “Yet, our perception of numbers is affected by our experience with them.”

He goes on to say that focusing on round numbers gives us a reason to mark landmarks in our lives by those numbers.

“We measure the performance of new Presidents by the activity in their first 100 days in office. We go to class reunions after 10, 20 or 25 years. In fact, many of the days, weeks and years in between landmarks may feel like a blur,” according to Markman. “We mark landmarks in time like birthdays and anniversaries as a way of remembering what we have done in that time period. They make the passing months and years more memorable.”

Given that we inherently find comfort in round numbers, it makes since that major numerical milestones, such as 25^th, 50^th or 100^th anniversaries can be important occasions for reflection and celebration for companies and other organizations.

My agency, CRT/tanaka, has considerable experience helping companies and organizations make the most out of anniversaries. We helped Mount Rushmore commemorate its 50^th anniversary in 1991 and the U.S. Centennial of Flight Commission celebrate the 100^th anniversary of the Wright brothers’ historic first flight in 2003. We even helped Eskimo Pie celebrate the brand’s 75^th anniversary in 1996. Currently, we’re working with the Council of Better Business Bureaus to mark the organization’s 100^th anniversary in 2012.

So what are some of the rules for making the most of corporate or organizational anniversaries? Here are five simple tips to consider.

1. Tie the anniversary to business goals. While milestone anniversaries can be wonderful opportunities to throw a great party for employees and other stakeholders, companies also should use the anniversary as a chance to re-enforce strategic business goals and objectives. Announce future growth plans or new initiatives. Carefully plan what strategic messages about the company will be conveyed in anniversary celebrations.

2. There is no substitute for meticulous planning. As the old adage goes, “the devil is in the details.” Planning for a major anniversary takes time. Some companies begin planning a year or two in advance. Remember that anniversaries are pretty commonplace. Everybody has one. So when planning, consider the types of corporate stories, information and events that will capture the attention and interest of the media in order to generate positive media coverage and engage stakeholders. Often, companies will tie anniversary celebrations to cause-marketing efforts, as an extension of their overall corporate social responsibility initiatives.

For example, as Eskimo Pie approached its 75^th anniversary, CRT/tanaka helped promote the company through a partnership with the Smithsonian Institution. CRT/tanaka orchestrated a formal donation of more than 500 items to the Smithsonian amid a news conference and ceremony that became part of an exhibit on the history of ice cream titled “America’s Romance with Ice Cream.” Along with garnering major national media coverage, an estimated 10,000 people visited the National Museum of American History the day of the event. The Smithsonian requested that the Eskimo Pie artifacts be made a permanent addition to its archive collection, thus sealing Eskimo Pie’s place in history.

3. Don’t think of the anniversary celebration as just one day. Use the anniversary as an opportunity to plan commemorative events throughout the year. For the Centennial of Flight celebration, we used the year leading up to the actual anniversary to plan and promote events across the country. The actual Centennial celebration – which included a reenactment of the Wright brothers’ first flight in Kill Devil Hills, N.C. – was used as the culminating event of a year of celebrations.

4. Carefully consider appropriate commemorative marketing material for the anniversary. Is it feasible and cost effective to create a special anniversary logo to be used on all marketing material throughout the year? The commemorative logo should adhere to the already-established brand standards of the organization, and if possible, incorporate the existing logo into it. This anniversary logo can be used on collateral material, the company’s website and other commemorative items and gifts. The logo also should be incorporated into any company advertisement throughout the year. Some company’s even commission books or documentaries to commemorate significant anniversaries.

5. Money is an object. It’s very easy to get caught up in planning anniversary events and thinking of elaborate gifts for employees, investors and other stakeholders. Establish an anniversary budget as part of the planning process and stick to it. Remember tip #1 and make sure that everything planned and all expenditures allocated for the anniversary re-enforce strategic business goals and objectives.

When planning milestone anniversaries, it’s okay to celebrate and commemorate, but remember that an anniversary is just as much about the future of your organization as it is the past.