Paula Berg

Session: Slashing Through Red-Tape to Revolutionize Corporate Communication [Common Track, Beginner Level]

For more than four years, Paula Berg led Southwest Airlines’ social media efforts, first, with its award-winning corporate blog, Nuts About Southwest, later with tools including Twitter, YouTube, LinkedIn, Facebook, and a series of Employee blogs. Along the way, she has experienced both highs and lows, forcing her to completely rethink corporate communications. From virtual riots and industry crises to employee relations and revenue generation, Paula has learned how to leverage social media to successfully support company needs and meet public expectations. But more than blogging, Tweeting, or Facebooking, she learned how to slash through red tape and outdated corporate infrastructure to truly revolutionize the business of communication. Through real-life case studies from the last five years, Paula will show you how she has maintained successful online communities, redesigned communication infrastructure to fit the current landscape, and share every lesson she’s learned along the way.

About Paula Berg

Paula Berg is the Digital Media Leader at Linhart PR, a national public relations and corporate communications counseling firm based in Denver, CO, where she specializes in social media strategy, integration, infrastructure, and crisis management. Paula earned her social media stripes at Southwest Airlines, where she served as the company’s first Manager of Emerging Media, responsible for the development of the airlines’ now acclaimed online communication and social media strategy. She also led the airline’s six-person emerging media team, with the goal of integrating social media into every internal and external communication efforts to support company objectives and meet customer expectations. Under her leadership, the airlines’ blog, “Nuts About Southwest,” was named Best Blog by PR News in 2007, 2008, and 2009, and has been cited in countless publications ranging from Wired magazine to the Wall Street Journal for providing a community for loyal Customers, serving as a virtual focus group, and influencing several business decisions. Prior to her work in social media, Paula was a company spokesperson with emphasis on media relations and reputation management. Paula also supervised on-location production of Airline!, Southwest’s reality series for the A&E Television Network.