#28DaysofDiversity: @GwenPeake of @Ford
As we all know, February is Black History Month. It’s a month where we honor those who have made an impact on American culture for equal rights, those who have invented, those who have a helped others and those who have inspired everyone to be the best they can be. Not only as a person of color but as a human.
As someone in the technology/web/social space, I often travel and attend various events in the industry and notice a huge lack of diversity, and when it comes to getting attention from mainstream media/tech blogs it’s almost impossible. That said on Day 2 of 28 Days of Diversity I would like to introduce to some and present to others: Gwen Peake. Find out more about Gwen on SocialWayne.com
Category: News | Tags: 28 days of diversity, ford, gwen peake, Social Web, wayne sutton
About the Author Angela Benton is the Founder and Publisher of BlackWeb20.com. Her experience spans a variety of industries including consultative relationships with companies such as UPS, Bizjournals.com, Realestate.com, and Lendingtree.com.
See all posts by Angela.
Right! I'm just really glad to see more people being brought out of the woodwork. All this sass and vitriol about who's done what for whom is absolutely pointless. If this is how black folks (I'm assuming Lacie is black) do on the web, then no wonder we're not creating the next Facebook or Google. I always say this and I'll say it again: slavery is over. We don't need to fight for massa's attention or approval. Let's stop tearing each other down. Seriously.
Better yet, go learn to code and create stuff. Google search for “how to program” –> http://bit.ly/cUSPgD
THIS IS GETTING RIDICULOUS! Ya'll know I love comments and engagement but this discussion is getting extremely negative especially since it is still continuing nearly a week later. It needs to stop. Period.
I applaud her accomplishments as a young woman of color, but not in the space and not in the black web community. That's all.
Best to you.
Thanks for your comment
I won't try to justify cause I am fine and happy with my comment(s). No hating, but observing and analyzing.
Best to you.
Jess: I understand… big company… two different departments…. not a whole lot of communication… but wouldn't someone championing for blogs from the inside be more effective than the poor little ole bloggers? If someone from communications can't communicate to another team member, than how do you expect us too?
I see where much of the confusion lies. I, too, work in social media at a large corporation and find myself often having to defend my job duties to bloggers. It is a common misconception that if one works in social media, they also handle ad placements and revenue-generating initiatives. This is completely false.
Every large, global corporation has a digital communications division, in addition to a digital marketing division. Digital communications’ job is to communicate. Digital marketing’s job is to market.
It is evident that Gwen works in digital communications, if you read her bio and research her position. I also work in digital communications/social media. We work to “humanize” the brands we work for, engage with customers, build relationships and ideally create a sense of trust between brand and consumer. Everything we do in the space involves NON-PAID content and communications. We are hired by companies because we are good communicators, great networkers and we know how to develop relationships with people. Basically, our job in social media is to be “social”. We also work hard to strengthen those online conversations by taking them offline and turning them into solid relationships with customers. This is why we invite bloggers to events we sponsor, such as Steve Harvey and Essence Music Festival events Gwen mentioned, and why we speak at conventions and such. We do NOT touch online ad placements or revenue-generating projects with bloggers. That is the job of digital marketing and digital marketing only. To simplify: corporate communications/social media professionals spend their day being “social”.
Conversely, digital marketing spends their entire day working to place ads with online media, including blogs, websites and web magazines. They develop ads for mobile applications, websites and blogs. Again, their job is to market their brand on websites, thus providing ad placements and helping site owners to generate revenue for their blogs. They are hired because they are good marketers, and they know how to sell their brand to consumers and online influencers. They do not work to “humanize” their brands, as the communications folks do, or invite bloggers out with the intention of cultivating relationships with them. That is the job of digital communications and digital communications only. To simplify: marketing spends their day selling the product however they can.
Lacie and Pawnye West, I would advise you to seek out the digital marketing departments of the companies you are interested in working with, if you are wishing to seek ad placement and other ways to generate revenue for your blogs. You will never get anywhere by seeking out ad placements from digital communications professionals. We will provide you with products we sell and build a relationship with you. We may even allow you to keep our products, but again, everything we do is NON-paid, which seems to be where your frustrations, and confusion, lies.
As a Hispanic-American, I often get the same backlash from Hispanic bloggers harshly questioning why I, personally, do not work to provide them with ad placements that will generate revenue for their blogs. However, that is not my job, and it’s clearly not Gwen’s job either, if you read her bio thoroughly and do not assume she is responsible for marketing duties. It seems I am incessantly defending myself to my people and explaining that I am not a part of the marketing department, and therefore cannot help them in that area. It is nice to know I’m not the only one battling this struggle, yet disheartening to see another corporate professional having to deal with this sort of thing.
I must say I too am a bit troubled by Gwen's assertion that inviting a few bloggers to see Steve Harvey, speaking at a few conferences, and supporting the same crappy black companies offline ie “Essence Music Festival” and “Steve Harvey”, means she's doing something for bloggers of color. I am also troubled by the line “… we do not always seek out the best bloggers of color. We seek out the best bloggers, period. ” Its been my experience that Ford's AD dollars don't go to the best bloggers of color nor do they go to the best blogs… normally they go to the same high traffic, low impact, BS websites that everyone else’s AD dollars go to. When will someone think outside of the box, and make a high impact campaign with a small but influential group of websites, instead of chasing the same highly trafficked ignorant websites everyone else seems to chase. If given the opportunity, I’m sure these smaller black blogs would reinvest the money into their product and help over take some of these ignorant websites that seem to plague this community.
Not to say that any of this is Gwen's fault, but I hope and pray she’s a champion of black blogs, in particular as it relates to Ad Dollars.
Ethnic bloggers need to quit tearing each other down. If Gwen were out here pitting black bloggers against each other, undercutting us and ignoring us, I'd say, “sick 'em @lacie!” But I've seen no such evidence of that.
What I do see in Gwen Peake is a woman who's earned her opportunity at a mainstream corp and folks tearing her down before she gets started. She's not the CEO and she's not the go-to spokesperson for black/ethnic digeratti. @Lacie, make your voice heard beyond dumping on folks randomly.
As a black blogger, no one owes me anything but a fair opportunity to consider my competence. All i fight for is to see black folks taken seriously as human beings and as professionals. but it's up to us to be as professional as possible and show our humanity. In short: “show me the door, don't block the door and i'll figure out how to get thru it.”
My message to all would be to try before you fry. Don't rip folks apart when yo haven't done your due diligence and don't have any proof of actual injustice.
@Lacie – I have been lurking around this post for a few days and noticing the back and forth. It seems you have some kind of personal vendetta against Gwen. Here's a question for you: what have YOU done to help African Americans in social media?
It seems that a continuous problem with us (black folks) is that we are always looking to stand on the shoulders of another black person who has seemingly “made it” without doing any of the legwork ourselves. And if that person can't give us all what we want all the time, they aren't “keeping it real” or they are reduced to being a “sell out”. I, for one, am proud to see a sister in a position of power at a Fortune 10 company.
I have to disagree with your comments about Gwen being a “pawn for the white man”, when the comments you make sound as if you suffer from the “crabs in the barrel” mentality. I am pretty positive this young woman was not brought on board at Ford simply because she is black – they do have a multicultural marketing department for that, you know. Or did you submit a proposal that got rejected? Somebody sounds bitter.
Let's not forget, she's one person amongst a 500,000+ employee company. She's not the CEO or Chairman of the Board, you know. There are channels one must swim through in order to get things taken care of. Heck, even the CEO needs approval from the Board of Directors. Ford isn't some little fly-by-night company where people can just say “I feel like playing the female version of Al Sharpton today” and suddenly all the black folks in the world are getting cars and singing Kumbaya.
Instead of trying to break her down, why don't you help her out? Let's be reasonable: her focus cannot be 100% black, 100% of the time, lest she get canned for not focusing on the bigger picture: ALL PEOPLE. Then what would you be complaining about? Something else, I'm certain. In my opinion, she has done quite a bit in a very short period of time. Again, what have YOU done? I doubt that her job description calls for her to play the 2010 version of Angela Davis at Ford.
It seems to me that this woman has a hell of a career, and a burgeoning one at that. Let's be proud of the fact that we are now in a place in this country where black folks can hold down positions of power at global corporations, let alone a woman of color in a position of power. Let's celebrate the fact that this woman was probably one amongst hundreds who were considered for her job, yet shined through the masses.
I'd like to say, Go Gwen! Keep doing what you are doing, Sister! And Lacie, chill out or better yet write a better proposal next time. Who knows, Gwen may approve it. But it I were her, I'd tell you to kick rocks.
I'm sure you'll have some kind of come back to try and justify your comments or call me a sell out too, Lacie, but it sounds like you're plain old “hatin'” to me.
Thanks Gwen for your rundown – but again you have done nothing for the advancement of bloggers or publishers in the space.
1. All of the things you mentioned though are opportunities for “bloggers” they are more so press impressions for Ford. You know – bragging rights to say of “we love bloggers – we invite them to our events”. Though you may see this as helping Gwen – it's not. You are aiding in the major problem of brands and companies wanting to use bloggers and publishers for free. You want them to talk about you and give energy and word of mouth to your brand but you NEVER once think about them as a valued media partner – if you and your company really did we would see more Ford ads and Ford sponsored events by these same people you like to mention that you helped.
2. For Blogalicious – that's great that they are allowing you to speak at events — but can you list 5 blogs that you met from the conference that you can say Ford plans on working with this upcoming ad quarter or event quarter. You need to stop confusing your speaking opportunities as something that's helping others. Ok – you took some bloggers out to eat – can you tell me if you have followed up and helped push them up and coming properties to your bosses. Have you been successful? I don't think so. Ford and you did what every other company does – wow us with dinner and give us your card and disappear until next year then do it all again. No movement, no progress – just broken promises.
3. Essence is not a blog or as we say in the blogosphere —- “a member of the family”. We expect you to work with Essence. As you do make sure they get some of your budget every year — right?
4. Loaning out cars is not helping in the space – that's the least you can do when a large number of AA purchase Fords every year and some of your consumers are bloggers. Know this – ask any one those people you are so happy about loaning a car too if they would much rather have an ad campaign or partner with Ford for a revenue generating opportunity. And can I note you are not loaning the car for long periods of time – what 1-7 days and do you comp gas? Right….
In Conclusion, while I understand you have been at Ford for only 6 months – you and your company do not deserve to be listed as someone helping new media/bloggers. You want to seem like you are really doing something when really – if a proposal comes across your desk from one of the people that you mentioned or anyone of color in the space you look at it and call it a day.
You really need to learn what the difference in being someone who is really trying to help and putting your money where your mouth is from someone who landed a job and just trying to keep it.
As the person in the position you are you could be doing a lot more. Or maybe you just don't have the power and are just a puppet. And Gwen if that is the case – stop acting like you are really doing something for us and just continue to work with the non-blacks pushing their agenda and blogs. As we already know they get a piece of your budget way easier than us. As Chris Rock said – the black man has to fly to what a white man can walk to — and you Gwen are walking right along that white man.
Well – I hope you got the attention you wanted. Since you are that social media trailblazer you would like to be. (Not).
Take care and this was fun.
Ooooo…..
Awesome BURN Ms. Peake….
Nice. =]
@Lacie & Justme – Very interesting comments and thank you for your opinions. However, allow me to share some facts with you to put some things into perspective:
I have been on staff at Ford for a little under five months. Within those five months:
1. We invited a number of bloggers to the Steve Harvey Morning Show national tour events, which we have a long-standing relationship with. Every one of those people have been bloggers of color.
2. We partnered our charitable breast cancer organization, Warriors in Pink, with the Martha Stewart Show. We had the opportunity to invite up to eight women bloggers to attend the live taping of her Breast Cancer Awareness show in New York. Four (half) of those bloggers were bloggers of color.
3. I spoke at Blogalicious – a blogging conference for women of color. We did not arrive with the intent to market our vehicles or show up with a slick sales pitch. Instead, I spoke as a representative of a global corporation providing strategic tips to bloggers of color on how the successes Ford has had in the social media space can be emulated by anyone using many of our strategies. These tips and carrots of advice were incredibly well-received and widely circulated on the web for weeks after the conference ended.
4. While at Blogalicious, we invited a number of high-impact, high-influence women bloggers of color to an informal brunch where, again, not one sales pitch was presented. We genuinely invited these women to brunch to connect and build a relationship with them; find out what their joys, as well as frustrations are when it comes to social media. Again, this was very well received by all these ladies.
5. We activated a program entitled “Taurus Game Day Challenge”, to correspond to our launch of the newly redesigned 2010 Ford Taurus. During this initiative, we worked with BlackandMarriedwithKids.com – a very high influence and widely respected parenting and relationship blog run by an African American husband and wife team.
6. We are looking forward to continuing our relationship with the Essence Music Festival again in 2010, just as we did in 2009.
7. I am speaking at the Blogalicious Meet-Up event in Washington, D.C. this month. We are partnering Warriors In Pink with the Meet-up as an in-kind sponsor. This is a perfectly organic connection, as women of color are disproportionately affected by breast cancer and statistically are not being tested and diagnosed as quickly as Caucasian women.
8. We have loaned vehicles out for test drives to many highly trusted and influential bloggers of color and look forward to continuing to do so when and where the fit is organic and natural.
When the facts and numbers are considered, I'm sure you will agree that within a five month period of time, we have done a considerable amount of work with this group.
Furthermore, we do not always seek out the best bloggers of color. We seek out the best bloggers, period. Bloggers who have cultivated and developed communities on their blogs and elsewhere. Bloggers who are highly trusted and influential in their space. The fact is, a large amount of the best bloggers are indeed bloggers of color, and we work with them on a consistent and continual basis.
Additionally, we field hundreds of proposals monthly, and obviously cannot support every one that falls into our laps. Therefore, we do our best to be as selective as possible, as we are not in the business of loaning out vehicles for the sake of loaning out vehicles. Our strategy is to connect consumers with employees and our products in the digital space, and to provide value along the way. “Value” being the operative word. As stated previously, the connection must be organic – we will not force any relationship – because the relationship must provide value to both our consumers, as well as the blogger and his/her audience. You are welcome to view our Rules of Engagement with bloggers here: http://bit.ly/9a8Giq
Lastly, if publications are interesting in knowing what Ford is up to in the social media space, I am always eager to share our story and strategies with them.
Yes I do agree with you… This is all talk, and NO ACTION…
Gwen and Ford DOES NOTHING for bloggers/websites of color. She is a pawn and does nothing in the space to help others. I haven't seen Ford do anything with websites and blogs/publishers. (loaning out a Ford car 2 times out of 100 for bloggers is not enough – I guess that why Wayne has her on this site)
Gwen/Ford = Lots of talk no action. Let's get some real professionals that really go out there way to help us get some of the massive multicultural budgets and not some one who wants press cause of her job title.