Marc recently wrote about the progress Johnson & Johnson has made in engaging with people in the social media realm (such as the Kilmer House blog, the Johnson & Johnson health channel on You Tube, and the Twitter account) and lessons learned along the way. As Marc says:

“As a company that sells not only consumer products, but also prescription medicines and medical devices, there were numerous legal and regulatory hurdles that needed to be taken into account. But we realized early on that it is only by jumping in that you can learn— and we are learning every day.”

Many of our operating companies have also found ways to get involved in social media initiatives. When I found out that DePuy Mitek is using Twitter to reach golf players and fans with health and fitness updates, I had to check it out. I was also interested on a personal level, because my husband loves to golf, but I don’t know much about helping him stay in good shape for his game beyond slipping sunscreen in his bag when he heads outside.

DePuy Mitek is the official mobile health and fitness provider of the PGA Tour and Champions Tour, which means they provide players with on-site rehabilitative and preventive care and educate fans. From their unique position at the tour, they are using Twitter to inform attendees about events, such as opportunities to have a photo taken with a replica of the Charles Schwab Cup or the FedEx Cup. They share with their followers on Twitter the same tips they give to on-site pros and fans: techniques to improve your swing, how to find the right golf shoes, and other info to keep your body and your game in prime form.

For those of you who don’t golf but stay active in other ways, they also tweet about maintaining joint health, preventing and treating knee pain, and how to detect the early symptoms of osteoarthritis (which I’ve learned from a recent tweet is the number one cause of disability in the US).

You can follow on Twitter at NSM_GolfTour

Read Marc’s article on social media here

Many of you know that my colleague Margaret blogs about Johnson & Johnson’s history at Kilmer House. But what you may not know is that Kilmer House was also the company’s first foray into the blogosphere in July 2006. In honor of the 3^rd anniversary, and with the same trailblazing spirit, Margaret created the first history vlog post for Kilmer House.

Margaret gives viewers a chance to see some New Brunswick, New Jersey landmarks and shows us what Johnson & Johnson looked like more than a century ago. I was surprised to learn that I am actually looking at some of these existing landmarks every day on my way into work.

My favorite part is Margaret’s tour of the Kilmer House museum that houses some of the products from the early days of the company. You’ll have to watch the video to see how a roll of adhesive tape saved a man’s life in a most unexpected way…

After days of cold, rainy weather, this morning the sky over New Brunswick is a rich blue and the sun is shining. As I walked off the New Jersey Transit platform and into our offices to get ready for today’s Annual Meeting of Shareholders, I thought to myself how this yearly event always seems to fall on a beautiful April day. But, according to our resident historian and blogger, Margaret Gurowitz, this wasn’t always the case. As she explains in her latest post on Kilmer House:

Margeret goes on to provide a wonderful recap of some little known facts about the Annual Meeting of Shareholders that is well worth checking out.

Margaret has a great post on Kilmer House that I thought of interest. In it, she examines how the company managed through difficult economic times in 1893, 1907 and 1929.

As she explained:

…while the past may have little or no bearing on current or future events, I thought it would be interesting to take a look at the difficult economic cycles in 1893, 1907 and 1929, and how the Company steered through those times…by looking at the bigger picture and managing for the long term.