Euro RSCG Worldwide Leaders Propel NYU Students Into Social Media

NEW YORK, March 18 /PRNewswire/ -- Euro RSCG Worldwide announced today that two of the company's top leaders will be teaching two online courses at New York University: Examining Social Media Networks for Brand Value and Beyond Twitter and Facebook: The Next Platform.

Marian Salzman, president of Euro RSCG Worldwide PR, North America, in New York, and Christopher Hayes, marketing director of Euro RSCG 4D Amsterdam, will conduct the first four-session course beginning on March 20, 2010. Among other topics, it will explore new trialogues — multi-way exchanges of ideas and opinions among consumers, brands and employees, which matter now more than ever — with connected consumers active in the social media world.

"More and more brands are looking for ways to break through the enormous clutter created by the explosion of social networks and nontraditional marketing," explained Hayes. "The development of innovative digital campaigns can lead to word-of-mouth conversations among consumers, bloggers and traditional journalists. Marian and I will share our experience about how to infuse social media into an organization's marketing efforts, which can help a brand communicate a unified message at all vital points in the cycle of a campaign."

The classes will discuss how tomorrow's brands are driving into everyday lives today — through active engagement in the blogosphere and online community, which transcends geography. Salzman and Hayes will teach students how to foster a true exchange of ideas through outlets that feel organic and personal, ensure authenticity and maintain integrity, adapt at lightning speed, and remain compelling enough to hold focus in this drop-in, drop-out multitasking world.

"I have been breaking rules about why to do online since I created Cyberdialogue in 1992 — the world's first online market research company, which used the AOL platform and community, exploiting unreal estate," said Salzman. "Now short-messaging is key, and these classes will show how doing that right invents desire."  

In each session, elites of the online world, from inside and outside the Euro network, will make guest appearances. In 2009, Euro was named digital agency of record and/or social media agency of record for such multinationals as Ikea, method, P&G, sanofi-aventis, Shire Pharmaceuticals and Sprint. It also launched the almost budget-less Tck Tck Tck online campaign for climate justice that gave rise to a focused global effort and the Evian Rollerbabies ad, the most downloaded commercial in history at 114 million views and counting.

The classes will look at PR and marketing communications in real time and cover grassroots activation and campaigns ranging from local politics to multinational brands. Media to be explored include Facebook, Twitter, Delicious.com and YouTube. For more information, visit www.scps.nyu.edu.

About the Faculty

Christopher Hayes is marketing director and head of the social media division at Euro RSCG 4D. He is responsible for the agency's new business, social media, marketing and public relations activities. Recently, Hayes spearheaded a high-profile partnership with the United Nations to support education globally.

In 1999, he created Middleberg 1.2.1, which is known as the first online marketing division of a traditional PR firm. His entrepreneurial approach is responsible for a number of digital milestones, including co-creating the first New Year's Eve online with Yahoo!

Hayes is the founder and director of NYU's Integrated Marketing Institute, where he has taught for the past 10 years.

Marian Salzman is president of Euro RSCG Worldwide PR, North America. Named one of the world's top five trendspotters, Salzman has strong expertise in one-to-one persuasion, family dynamics and influence, the new consumer in China and India, narrowcasting and emerging niches. She has worked at Porter Novelli, JWT Worldwide, Euro RSCG Worldwide and TBWA's Department of the Future. At Chiat\Day, Salzman co-founded Cyberdialogue in 1992 with partner Jay Chiat.

In addition to her closely watched and widely reported-on annual trends forecast, Salzman blogs at eurorscgpr.com/blog, eurorscgsocial.com and the Huffington Post.

Salzman is author or co-author of 15 books on topics ranging from current affairs to the youth market. Most recent is Next Now: Trends for the Future (Palgrave Macmillan).

About Euro RSCG Worldwide

Euro RSCG Worldwide, the parent company of Euro RSCG Worldwide PR and Euro RSCG 4D, is a leading integrated marketing communications agency and was the first agency to be named Global Agency of the Year by both Advertising Age and Campaign in the same year. Euro RSCG is made up of 233 offices in 75 countries and provides advertising, marketing, corporate communications and interactive solutions to clients including Air France, BNP Paribas, Charles Schwab, Citigroup, Danone Group, Heineken USA, IBM, Jaguar, Kraft Foods, Lacoste, L'Oreal, Merck, PSA Peugeot and sanofi-aventis. Euro RSCG Worldwide is the largest unit of Havas, a world leader in communications (Euronext: HAV.PA) (Paris: HAV.PA).

SOURCE Euro RSCG Worldwide