Welcome

We are very pleased to be involved with organizations who offer significant solutions for building a future of growth, economic recovery, philanthropy and prosperity. One new relationship, in particular, is making a major commitment to this effort by providing a very innovative resource for families and young children in Southern California. Pretend City Children's Museum in Irvine will open its doors to the public on August 30.


I am very proud to be serving on the museum's board of directors with a very distinguished group of area leaders including Bill H. Lyon, William Lyon Homes; Hirad Emadi, Innovative Construction Solutions; Ethan Morgan, Wells Fargo; Kari Williamson, CPA; Alexandra Mars Airth, Mars Foundation; and Anne Marie Moiso, Rancho Mission Viejo, whose unique vision is about to become a reality. And KCOMM is supporting the museum with strategic programs in public relations, Internet marketing, social media, and signature events. For more information on this exciting new development in Orange County, visit www.pretendcity.org.


To view Pretend City photo gallery, please click here.

Sincerely,

Sinan Kanatsiz
Chairman / CEO
KCOMM
  
PS...In a down economy, make decisions based on confidence not fear 		Key Contacts:

Sinan Kanatsiz
Founder and CEO
sinan@kcomm.com
(949) 443-9300

Jeff Montejano
President of Public Affairs
jeff@kcomm.com
(949) 542-8954

Dave Holscher
VP of Public Relations
dave@kcomm.com
(949) 295-5515

Resources:

KCOMM
www.kcomm.com

Pretend City
www.pretendcity.org

Internet Marketing Assn.
www.imanetwork.org


IMA Summer Cocktail Party Set for July 29
Focus To Be Social Media and the Economy

A special event on Wednesday, July 29, at 5:00 p.m., presented by the Internet Marketing Association (IMA) and co-hosted by Infinite Communications, will address the topic of "Social Media, Economic Recovery and Next Generation Internet Marketing." The no-cost, invitation-only gathering will take place at the SLS Hotel in Los Angeles.

Featured guests include:
  • Jeff Lampe, Director of Marketing, ARROW Electronics / Sun Microsystems
    (purchased by Oracle)
  • Manny Medrano, KTLA Los Angeles
  • Kelly Yang, Marketing / Communications Manager, Southwest Airlines
  • Honorable Finbar Hill, Consulate General, Ireland and Chief of Protocol for the Los Angeles Consular Corps
The mission of the IMA is to provide a knowledge-sharing platform for business-to-business marketing professionals where proven Internet marketing strategies are demonstrated and discussed in an effort to increase each member's value to their respective organization.

For more information email sinan@imanetwork.org




KCOMM Social Media Services Now Mainstream for Business
New Service Provides Clients Influential Marketing Vehicle

For quite some time now (at least in Internet time), social media have offered a groundbreaking way for individuals to share information in a highly flexible, versatile and enjoyable environment. Now this new medium is moving rapidly into business and organizational communications as a powerful means of building communities with their constituencies.

KCOMM is taking the lead in providing a wide range of social media services for existing clients as well as new clients including Keenan & Associates, Prodigy Law Group and VCorp Services. Here's an overview of those services:
  • Social media audit: In-depth analysis of your site's presence across various social networks and a strategy for ways to improve it.
  • Competitive analysis: Tactics, potential service providers, and action alerts to shake competitors' hold on your industry.
  • Social media marketing strategy: Needs assessment, outline of opportunities, and specific actions for long-term success.
  • Social profile creation: Identification of social networks where you should be participating, plus creation and management of your social media profiles.
  • Implementation guidelines: Brand integrity, compliance with different mediums, and best practices for future development and communication.
  • Software recommendations: Evaluation of the right tools to effectively track performance, opportunities, management, and more.
  • Community building strategy development: Which communities are worth monitoring, what the competition is doing, and how to enter these communities.
  • Community monitoring: Monitoring of communities important to you, tracking of your brand or keywords, and proactively responding to both positive and negative mentions.
  • Badge creation and strategy: Interactive badges that position you as an authority in the industry and have strong link-building benefits.
  • Widget strategy development: Identification of interactive widgets that can work for your web site, their probability for success, and what your competitors are doing.
  • Blog design, setup and/or optimization: Finding the best blogging platform for your needs and helping you to optimize your blog for success from the very beginning.
  • Blog strategy development: Creation of a blog strategy that carves a space for your corporate or personal brand in the greater blog community.
  • New hire reviews: Assistance in evaluating social media staffing candidates to find the perfect fit for your company.
Click here for a recent KCOMM presentation packed with proactive information on the social media revolution.




Chapman Economists Give National, Local Forecasts
2009 Look Focuses on Unemployment, Housing Market

In their 29th Annual Chapman Economic Forecast, Chapman University economists Dr. James Doti and Esmael Adib offered their insights on the national and local economic forecast for the year.

According to the economists, signs of the recession became evident as early as 2007, with the real estate market bubble initiating the economic situation that is being seen today. They indicated that Orange County will probably not start gaining jobs again until the middle of 2009, and an increase in jobs won't happen until after a rebound in the national economy. Government investment in banks as well as an economic stimulus package to help consumer spending will help the national economy right itself, Doti noted. "It takes a while before employment picks up," he said.

A recovery in local housing prices won't likely happen until the third quarter of 2009, according to the forecast. Further job losses and higher unemployment will keep home prices down despite better affordability and a diminished supply of new homes, Adibi said. In 2009, the median price of a home should increase about 1.6% in the county.

If the economic forecast is accurate, it would mark 38 months of recession, the longest and deepest since World War II. So far, this recession has lasted 24 months. The recession in the early 1990s lasted 36 months, while the one in 2001 lasted 10 months.

In unrelated Chapman University news, KCOMM's good friend, Dr. P.K. Shukla was recently promoted to director of the Leatherby Center at Chapman University.