Rohit is able to share wonderful stories on why companies need to be taking social media seriously.  His book, Personality Not Included, is packed full of them.  And he’s also a great speaker, having kicked off the conference using a very interactive and engaging style.  A very social media friendly style.  Here’s my interview with Rohit at MarketingProf’s Digital Mixer in Arizona (and he’s got cool sunglasses too

And, oh yeah, Rohit was one of my first interviews and the location was less than ideal for sound quality.  I didn’t want to erase the interview because Rohit covered some great stuff.  Sooooo, I want you to close your eyes and imagine you are at a Zamfir concert (background music on the hotel speakers).    Ok, now imagine a sandstorm blowing through like the one in The Mummy with Brendan Fraser. Are you there now?  Perfect, let’s start the interview.

“So Rohit, companies are looking to figure out whether social media spending is something discretionary or if it should be core to their marketing strategies.  How should they figure this out?”

Response (1:28 min.):  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7tiqjY9pMRQ

“People have become used to thinking about marketing in the traditional sense.  They are focused on how I reach millions of people.  So then the option of using social media to reach potential consumers comes along and they ask, how can I scale this?  Thoughts?”

Response (2:19 min.): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gVRwte5gsFA

“Imagine the possibilities of brands taking say, 10%, of their million dollar media spends and allocating it to hiring a team to listen and engage in social media.  That could be a great way to get scale wouldn’t it?”

Response (1:27 min.):  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_xwueUsb1jk

Rohit is the Senior VP of Digital Strategy & Marketing at OgilvyPR (Note: Radian6 is proud to be working with OgilvyPR on a global scale) I was fortunate to be one of the lucky ones to attend Rohit’s book signing as well just after the Mixer finished.  If you haven’t already, pick up a copy of his book on Amazon.  And thanks again for the interview Rohit as this was the second time in one year.  Chris Brogan and I had a chance to interview Rohit previously as part of the Radian6 Twebinar series last summer.

What do you think of Rohit’s advice?

* This interview is one of 15 interviews done with various leaders in social media at the MarketingProf’s Digital Mixer in Arizona at the end of October.  The theme of the interviews was around why social media is a smart investment for any marketing, PR or community support professional, regardless of the economic climate.  Thank you to all those who agreed to be interviewed.  Sorry it took me so long to get the edits done