Social Media and the 'me too' society

We live is a wonderful world, full of fun and great experiences. But look again and you'll see a profound lack of originality. Creatures mimic other creatures, fashion copies fashion and artists emulate other artists in an effort to show their skills. And the same could reasonably be said about the online industry... where words like 'best practice' and 'conventions' are typically uttered by us all. When what we really mean is... "This is what everyone else does, says or thinks; so we're gonna do the same".
Sound familiar?

Perhaps the online problem is exacerbated by social media. Do social networks like Twitter and Facebook encourage the herd mentality and actually stifle original thinking?  Quite possibly.

Social Media has been described as the ultimate echo chamber, a place where thoughts uttered are repeated (or retweeted) and bounced around until some become folklore and even cited as fact.
I see it with my own eyes all the time when posts are 'curated' (In other words: stolen, passed off as someone else's or just made to look like the poster has found the work & shared it... rather than simply removing the name or Twitter handle of the originator).

It seems that in the 'me too' society, nobody wants to be left out and everyone wants to claim the credit for everything. And quite frankly... This gets my goat. Social Media has a lot going for it, it's able to be a great source of original thought and innovative ideas. It's just a shame that so many people act like virtual sheep on sites like Twitter. Perhaps that's why they call it 'following' after all.

Abandoned basket emails... one thing I forgot

Isn't it always the way? You write a nice long posting on a specific subject, giving some useful tips along the way.... and then once it's written and published you remember something else that will be obvious to your readers.

Well, it's happened to me (again) with my latest opinion piece on optimising Abandoned basket emails. As it was only after I listed out my 6 suggestions for improving these emails and committed it to publish last night, that I realised I'd missed and obvious one.

So as well as: Experiment with subject lines, Experiment with the time of sending, Send more than one email, Use your email service provider, Experiment with layout, imagery & palette and Track links... I forgot to include "make sure your email is mobile compatible".

You see that although a lot of people just shop on their PC's and tablets, with mobile eCommerce lagging a little way behind.... they still carry their mobile with them. So if you're going to send an email reminder to them several hours later, to let them know they have left an item or two in their online shopping basket, there's a good chance they are out and about, or at least not in front of their main terminal. So if you want them to read that email and then go on to buy the product(s) you need to make it as compatible as possible for all devices.

How to get your mobile application right first time

I get asked quite a bit these days for advice on mobile platforms & applications. So I have asked Mark Walsh from Nation of Apps to answer a few questions on developing and delivering the right mobile app for businesses.

Once I have an idea for a mobile app, what’s the best process to follow to get it right first time?
There are a number of things that need to be thought through in detail. This starts with defining your mobile application requirements.
- What do you want your mobile app to do?
- What do you want to achieve with your app?
- Who is the target audience? Personas, Demographics.
- Do you have branding requirements?

How should I decide what platform to build for?
One of the key drivers to answer this question is regarding who will be using the app. It is important to understand your target audience and what mobile devices they use. Analytics from websites and apps that your target audience currently use can help with this. If you find the trend to be specifically more Android orientated, or iPhone orientated then there’s your answer.
If the app is targeted for specific business users, then it may well be that Blackberry should be the choice. It has been a common strategy for companies to develop mobile business applications first for iPhone, however this approach has often been flawed and the target audience found to be predominantly Blackberry users.

Mark's details:
company site: http://nationofapps.co.uk/
blog : http://www.nationofapps.co.uk/news-mobile-application-development.html
Twitter: @nationofapps

Dear PR person: the basics of blogger outreach

I’m not going to name-names (yet), but I have recently been sent several online pitches “For Immediate Release” that almost defied belief. Clumsy, unprofessional and badly-written emails are being sent all the time to blog writers in an attempt to get them to write stuff and get the word out in the blogosphere.

I know I’ve previously covered some of this topic before, but here are some further examples of what really hacks me off about bad blogger outreach:

1. Stop trying to be my buddy
Whilst most bloggers like to be treated as humans, we’re not daft enough to fall for your ploy that you’re our best friend divulging a secret, when you’re just touting a new product or service. Using a very informal tone and being sycophantic is less likely to endear us to you. “Hey there, I thought you’d like to be the first know about ….” just doesn't cut it.

2. Stop writing huge amounts of content
If you have to take over a hundred words to describe your client’s new offering, then either you can’t write succinctly or your client is doomed to failure with an overtly-complex product. Better still, write a clear summary of the features and make sure the link to more information on your website is obvious and works. If reading your press release is hard work…. There’s less chance I will continue read it.

3. Provide a link to more information
How am I supposed to learn more or even provide a link to your client’s site if you don’t include it? Yes, there are online press releases sent out that still don’t include a link to the client’s website or other online resources that could be of interest (e.g. Flickr product gallery, independent reviews, etc.). Links in blogs help your client SEO efforts.... and this is something you should even be advising them about.

4. Don’t send attachments – ever!
Not everyone is on a broadband or company Internet connection; some of us are on our mobile devices. This also includes any imbedded images or even your agency logo which we have no interest in downloading.
 
Rant over

Why PR needs to understand search and social media

Communications Convergence, a big term used by a few knowledgeable people to describe the gradual merging of the different roles done by communications professionals. As you will have seem from previous postings, I believe that the old roles of marketing and public relations are now so closely intertwined that they have become indistinguishable from each other. Awareness, interest, desire and action via digital channels are all now all part of a continuing path of online customer acquisition that defies traditional communication job roles.

Typically it has been the marketer (or marketeer, if you wish) that has been the more aggressive/assertive in online promotion areas… possibly fuelled by hard sales targets or other drivers. They were also the early adopters of social media... but as soon as consumers started asking questions back it became a problem for them.

But with existing of expertise of bringing together messages and audience (as well as being used to answering those difficult questions) PR and communications professionals are in just the right place to understand and utilise the new tools & methods of customer engagement and brand messaging…. that of online search and the social web

Ok, it is not a particularly revolutionary thing to say, but its fairly obvious that an understanding is needed of how search engines use content (notice I didn’t say “how search engines work”) and how to leverage the way that people connect with each other as well as brands & organisations. What is perhaps more challenging to those who have already got their heads around the previous two online tools, is the fact that search and social aren’t actually distinct functions, but two sides of the same arch that meet over the head of the PR pro sat underneath.

In my view the intersection of where Social Media and Search Engine Optimisation meet is the PR digital sweet spot. It’s this point that’s the true online communication convergence point. It is here that news meets searcher and where potential customer meets a shared audience with the same voice. It is therefore this point that the PR person must understand, adopt and learn to wield with all the effort and rigour that they have previously applied to their traditional role.

Blogging bad habits

I've just recently read a decent concise book about blogging for business called “Blogging to Drive Business” by Eric Butow and Rebecca Bollwitt, due out on 28th February next year.

Disclosure:
I got sent the chapters by the publishers who were after a quote for the notes on the cover. So hopefully my comments are there when the book arrives on bookshelves (if there are any physical bookstores left in 2010)

Anyhow, this book explains the "who, what and how" of this art-form.
Note: I've called it this, rather than a science, as the: subjects, measurement and quality are completely subjective.

It has therefore got me around to thinking about blogging best practice and I think it's time to mention, not the good things I find about blogging... But the mistakes that are made so often.

1. Writing badly
   Yes, i know I'm guilty of it sometimes (I use an iPhone blogging app sometimes, so I don't get the chance to correct my spelling before I post), but this has to be a major reason why I stop reading blogs. Not everyone is a great writer... so if you're not, take time to read your entire posting again before you submit it. If you can wait a bit beforehand, even better.
2. Blogging in anger
   Submitting a post just to vent your spleen is the equivalent of drunk-dialling. However unlike a midnight call to an ex-lover... your post can be up on the web for a very long time and you can quickly regret doing it. Always remember that everyone on the web can read your post, not just you. In particular, if you mention a person or company in a particularly nasty way.... consider NOT doing this and then consider it again! (I'll not even venture into the legal nightmare of defamation and libel for more vitriolic posts)
3. Not replying to comments
   So someone has taken the time to read your blog and even write something in response. Now assuming they are not a spammer or a mad person.. what reason or right have you got to ignore them? Blogging is a platform for a dialogue, not a monologue. Even a "thanks for the posting" response goes a long way to building a relationship with your audience, so whether you are a company or personal blogger... you have a brand to consider
4. Intermittent blogging
   Yes I know that writing a daily blog can be a huge investment in time, so if you can't maintain a daily blog... don't do it! (consider writing a weekly blog instead). Its understandable that we take holidays or time off, but if you know this is likely, why not write a post or two in advance and schedule them to go live when you're absent - most blogging packages allow this functionality these day.
   Note: I've yet to see a headline of a dead blogger continuing to post thanks to this feature, but I bet it has happened!
5. Writing posts that are too short or too long
   If you wanted something fluffy that goes "meow" then you wouldn't buy a dog and try to train it to do it, would you? (you'll be disappointed or on TV/YouTube very quickly). So don't blog if you are only going to post a few words (use Twitter) or a huge amount (write a book/ebook). Statistics from back in 2006 from ProBlogger showed that the average time visitors spend reading a blog post is 96 seconds. Now, potentially these times have decreased as people have got used to Twitter's 'microblogging' format, but the general consensus still to keep your postings between 200 - 500 words.
   Note: If you have a much longer piece, consider breaking this up into two or more articles

So... does anyone have any more?

Twitter for PR

Today HTC announced via Twitter that it was launching its new phone in North America:
(Thanks go to Neville Hobson (http://twitter.com/jangles) for pointing this out)

This is not the first use of the tool for PR purposes. Company PR team such as JetBlue's have been using Twitter for a while now.

So how many UK companies are currently using Twitter as a PR tool? (Note: I can't find any right now, but I'm still looking)

podcasting success

So why isn't podcasting more popular?

I was asked this question of my friend Steve Green over at http://www.audiochef.co.uk/, a startup that is looking to create a suite of virtual cookbooks aimed at the 20-something generation, who are far more familiar with the circular ipod interface than a halogen hob.

Now there are thousands of podcasts in existence, many focusing on niche topics that most people aren't interested in or that it is relevant to (In effect, podcasting has become the epitome of The Long Tail of Broadcasting) however a lot of people believe their should be far more.

Its an interesting question though, as its becomming increasingly cheaper and easier to create and produce podcasts. There is also a lot of guidance out there to help encourage best practice in podcasting, such as this recent article from Alex Nesbitt:
http://www.digitalpodcast.com/podcastnews/2008/06/01/best-practices-in-podcasting


For home users, podcasting is still viewed as the domain of the 'media geek', those tech-savvy types who understand terms such as: codecs, XML feeds, MP3, etc. There's now a dedicated market evolving to cater for the needs of these podcasters, producing decent software and equipment for the home industry, the prosumer.

However for companies, there is little excuse for producing a decent podcast on a fairly frequent and regular basis. These episodes can be produced for just a few thousand pounds, hardly TV commercial budgets, but still there seems to be a reluctance.... why?

Mat Zuker at Adage recently stated that:

My suspicion is agencies (and many marketers) are lazy. Agencies and marketers
are still more comfortable with hit-and-run advertising, viral videos and campaign sites and far less interested and impatient with recommending or executing content that sustains a campaign like a video or audio podcasting series or webisodes.

He may have a point. A podcast, like a blog and a Christmas Dog is not just a short term commitment!

New business blogging presentation

After discussing the production a corporate blog with a current client, I've redeveloped a presentation I had previously put together and posted it up to Slideshare for my new client and everyone else to see.

View Upload your own

This presentation covers the basics of setting up and maintaining a company blog, including the benefits to be had and potential issues faced.

As always, I'd welcome comments on ways to improve my work.