Brian Devine, has been fake tweeting as Frank Luntz for more than a year, and doing it in the subtle, nuanced, and understated — the sort of way that neither raises suspicion nor created controversey — until now (but, IMHO, in a good way), ‘Frank Luntz’s’ Tweet Nothings:

For more than a year, a couple thousand Twitter fans tuned into the musings of political consultant Frank Luntz. Like the microblogs of many chattering-class types, the Luntz tweets were a mix of mild political commentary (“bummer about Sanjay Gupta stepping aside”), horn-tooting (“the Hill offers an article on my speech last night”) and banal oversharing (“could definitely go for chicken francaise tonight”).

But ha! The joke’s on all of you who thought you’d found a real-time pipeline into the cranium of the former boy wonder of Republican polling. For Luntz’s Twitter account … was a fake.

Turns out it was written not by Luntz but by Brian Devine, a 20-something staffer at Rosslyn marketing consultancy New Media Strategies. A co-worker of Devine’s, Simon Owens, unmasked him in a blog post last week after a follower of the mock-Twitter raised suspicions.

Devine explained to Owens that he pulled off the hoax for so long because his postings were deliberately non-outrageous. Which raises the question of … why? Fake Condoleezza Rice Twitters or even fake Chuck Norris Twitters you can see the fun in, but Frank Luntz? Devine, who used to work for Luntz, told us it was an inside joke with other Luntz veterans. Not “a statement about anything — just a gag.”

“It’s actually kind of scary,” Luntz, 47, told us from L.A., where he moved last year. He was most bothered by the fact that Devine-as-Luntz tweeted about his actual news clippings and TV appearances, which he said he would never have done: “It’s tacky.” Though flattered that so many people, including major politicians and journalists, were following the fake account, “the idea that 2,000 people would care about what I was doing on a daily basis is kind of absurd.”

He’s not a Twitter fan; he finds the 140-character limit unable to “communicate passion or intensity.” And no, he won’t take up Devine’s now-abandoned account. “Why the hell do I want to be twittering in D.C when I can drive the Pacific Coast Highway?”

Gorgeous Defender, originally uploaded by Chris Abraham.

This is one hell of a gorgeous Land Rover Defender 90 in my neighborhood.

David Mullen popped me a Twitter DM (@dmullen) to let me know that he mentioned me as someone he would recommend to a Twitter newbie as part of his Twitter Starter Pack: 50 People You Should Follow:

You know how some things you buy – gaming systems, golf club sets for kids, etc. – come in starter packs that give you the goods you need to get started right out of the box.

Consider this your Starter Pack for great marketing, advertising, PR and social media people to follow on Twitter. Whether you’re just starting out or you’ve been tweeting for a while, I’d highly recommend making sure each of these folks is on your list.

In completely random order…

Amber Naslund (@ambercadabra) Matt Batt (@storyassistant)
Scott Meis (@scottmeis) Arik Hanson (@arikhanson)
Beth Harte (@bethharte) Shannon Paul (@shannonpaul)
Edward Boches (@edwardboches) Narciso Tovar (@narciso17)
Rachel Kay (@rachelakay) Lauren Fernandez (@cubanaLAF)
Jason Falls (@jasonfalls) Geoff Livingston (@geoffliving)
Jack Wojcicki (@prjack) Danny Brown (@dannybrown)
Ari Herzog (@ariherzog) Adam Needles (@abneedles)
Brad Mays (@bradmays) Chuck Hemann (@chuckhemann)
Dave Fleet (@davefleet) Patrick Evans (@patrickrevans)
Rick Liebling (@eyecube) Heather Huhman (@heatherhuhman)
Justin Levy (@justinlevy) Kelley Crane (@kellyecrane)
Sonny Gill (@sonnygill) Kirk Phillips (@kirkphillips)
Todd Defren (@tdefren) Lisa Hoffmann (@lisahoffmann)
Libby Krah (@libbykrah) Lara Kretler (@larak)
Sarah Evans (@prsarahevans) Mack Collier (@mackcollier)
Ann Handley (@marketingprofs) Terry Morawski (@morate)
Richie Escovedo (@vedo) Linda Jacobson (@quepr)
Amybeth Hale (@researchgoddess) Jen Wilbur (@rockstarjen)
Rohit Bhargava (@rohitbhargava) Scott Hepburn (@scotthepburn)
Susan Isk (@susanisk) Kathleen Moriarty (@trendsaddict)
Scott Stratten (@unmarketing) Lauren Vargas (@vargasl)
Olivier Blanchard (@thebrandbuilder) Chris Brogan (@chrisbrogan)
Mandy Vavrinak (@mvavrinak) Lisa Dilg (@pprlisa)
Christine Perkett (@missusP) Chris Abraham (@chrisabraham)

Ron Bronson scores full points with his article dedicated to the need for more instead of fewer social media experts. Experts and not “hucksters trying to make a fast buck on the backs of unsuspecting people in the field.” Be sure to read the entire article, We need more social media experts, as this is only an excerpt:

Social media expert, town crier, blogsmith or whatever your title de jour is…we need more of you. Because lots of folks are simply not aware of how fast the media is shifting and the flow of information traffic is going against the flow of those who are leading us. People want to stay plugged in and there are tools for that. Does it take time? Sure, it does. No such thing as a free lunch.

Juliana Serafini just popped me a comment over at Marketing Conversation in follow-up to the guest lecture I presented to Chris Boesen’s COMM 437 class at American University last week.

I am very happy to see her note, especially after what I said in Guest Lecturing on digital PR at American University, “if Chris Boesen’s students reach out to me via a blog post, a tweet, via email, or via phone, I will follow-up with a very positive and adoring post (a total of two for American) but if it ends up being a dud (sorry Chris), then I will have to be more lukewarm in my follow-up review.”

Well, these kids are no duds.  First there was Advice to a PR Professional of Tomorrow, where Kari Elam proved her mettle, and now this comment from Juliana Serafini!

I love when we have guest lecturers in my COMM 437 class because my teacher is a colorful man so the guests we have tend to have that same colorful personality; Chris didn’t disappoint. Besides being funny and talking to us like we are adults, he was informative. Many of my fellow students and I had no idea there was even a division of our soon to be (let’s hope) PR profession that was dedicated to bloggers and online activity.

Chris’s blunt statement of, “I’ll help you in any way I can, but if you aren’t blogging, then I’ll just delete your email” definitely made a few of us think twice about our lack of blogging.

Honestly, I don’t blog because I don’t think I have anything interesting to write about…but after seeing Chris’s long, long, LONG list of blog posts, I’m sure I can come up with something!

Since so many of us are blogging virgins I wouldn’t mind having Chris come back to our class and going a little more in depth into the intricacies of blogging and digital PR. It was so much information to absorb in that one class.

Chris, I might be emailing you with some questions!

Warren Brown wrote an article about the 2009 Chevy Cobalt SS this morning for the Post. His review of the Cobalt tangented into some of the most important lessons that Detroit’s big three need to learn, Zippy Affordability Blazes Better Trail for GM.

General Motors should stop trying to please everybody. It’s a strategy that embraces the lowest common denominator. It’s hard to make a favorable impression when your primary objective is to avoid offending as many people as possible. You wind up pleasing no one, or next to no one, or so it seems. You are relegated to second-class status. Or worse, you are forgotten.

[...]

That told me that the Cobalt SS was the car that Chevrolet regarded as the real Cobalt, the one the company regarded as the most representative of that compact economy car line. That being the case, I wondered why the company wasted so much time, money and marketing muscle pushing lesser Cobalts — disparagingly regarded as “rental cars” by the automotive media.

[...]

No one regards the comparable Honda Civic, Hyundai Elantra, or Toyota Corolla as a “rental car,” although all of those models can be found on somebody’s rental car lot. A Civic is a Civic. An Elantra is an Elantra. A Corolla is a Corolla. All are compact economy cars with good road manners and excellent quality. Their reputations are so strong, their names speak for themselves.

[...]

I suspect it’s because of GM’s dedication to the lowest common denominator — the company’s tendency to take a good idea, such as the Cobalt, and dilute it as much as possible in pursuit of maximum affordability.

The end result is a line of cheap, forgettable cars. That’s too bad because as demonstrated by the tested SS, the Cobalt is so much better than that.

And I can’t help but think that the Cobalt would be even better had GM not squandered money and reputation spreading the car’s value over a broad field of less-than-impressive materials and mediocre performance in pursuit of more sales.

GM needs to abandon that practice, even if it means losing aggregate sales. It should consider trading volume for memorability, which could lead to an increase in higher quality sales — cars and trucks sought by consumers more for likeability than price.

[...]

But they all said they would strongly consider buying the Cobalt SS, although it comes with two fewer doors and a substantially higher price than the workaday Cobalt sedans flooding the rental fleets.

“I don’t get it,” said a Virginia friend after taking a spin in the Cobalt SS. His first experience with the Cobalt was via a car rental agency in South Carolina.

That rented Cobalt was so ordinary, “it was depressing,” he said. But the Cobalt SS was “a boss little car, something I could see myself owning,” he said.

“I don’t get it,” my friend said. “Why doesn’t GM put this one [the Cobalt SS] in the rental fleets. It’s like GM wants us to have a bad impression of its products. That doesn’t make sense.”

Enough said.

It all comes down to producing cars that work too hard to appeal to everyone that they appeal to noone. In my opinion, American car models are too broad and there is too much desire to water brands down to a lowest-common-denominator.

In Germany, Mercedes-Benz is more of a “tool-car” that offers cars at most levels of affordability while still not offering garbage “rental cars.” There is a difference between offering fleet-level vehicles and what people perceive as “rental car quality.” Fleet-worthy vehicles are considered durable. Most European taxis are diesel Mercedes sedans. While not the luxury S-class sedan, the reputation Mercedes-Benz has in Europe comes from the ubiquity of these MB workhorses.

When people think of rental cars, they think of plasticky sub-compact tin boxes, not durable everruns. Do you see what I mean?  American cars (not trucks — American trucks are built, and priced, to be workhorses)  have become associated with being the vehicle you buy until you can afford a Toyota or a Mercedes.  Even Saturn is being shuttered — and rightfully so, since it has long ago lost its novelty and associted nationwide appeal.

And, while this article is about General Motors, the same can be said about Ford and Chrysler, too.  Yes, you will tell me about the Corvette and the Ford GT and the Jeep and even the Hummer and all of these little eddy brands.  Well, when we take the trucks and the sports cars away and you’re left with 2-door coupes, 4-door sedans, 5-door hatchback, and wagons, what’re you left with? Especially when it comes to “tool-cars” and quality sub-compact and SMART-like high efficiency vehicles?  How about resale and reliability statistics?

Around here in Arlington, cabbies are replacing the unquitous Crown Vic with Toyota Priuses and Camry hybrids.  On that note, the Crown Victoria was the last real success story when it came to fleet vehicles: cop cars, cruisers, taxis. Too bad the Impala — an amazing car when it was the real Chevy Impala SS — doesn’t seem to get the pick up the Vic did.

You are not too late to enjoy the benefits of social media — you will never be too late — because the spoils in social media marketing go to the company that can maintain its social media participation over the long haul over the long term. Start now, start later, and I guarantee that if you’re a lion-hearted social media marathoner, you’ll probably best your competition.  Anyway, Joseph Ratliff did a brilliant job getting you motivated in How The Social Media Promotes Your Business:

The great thing about social media marketing is it offers a place to talk about your business in a new setting that is a lot less threatening than many other types of advertising. Social media is not about the hard sell. Instead, it focuses on creating relationships with people. Social media allows business people to share some of their personal lives with others. This helps to overcome any fear or reservations connected to buying from people online.

If you’ve started a blog for your business, you already have your foot in the water. The next logical step is to begin commenting on other blogs related to your business. Spend some time searching for a few blogs that you enjoy and subscribe to them via an RSS feeder to manage your time. This will allow you to follow several blogs without having to go to each one every day. When you find a post you can contribute a useful comment to, go to the site and offer your thoughts. Leave a link, if you can, so the audience can link to your own blog. Make this a part of routine at least three times a week.

Next, choose one or two social media communities to join. There are dozens and dozens out there, so do not try to become visible everywhere. Two of the most popular social media communities for business networking are Twitter and Facebook. Both of these are effective sites to increase your relationship building skills with prospects. Combine some personal tidbits with some business information until you discover the perfect mix of both. Do not just focus on building big numbers of friends or followers. It isn’t all about the numbers. Instead, build a little slower and spend your time interacting with the people you meet.