Posted 1 day, 10 hours ago at 10:40 am. 0 comments
John Naughton at The Observer gives Twitter a mention in his 2009 predictions;
“On the web, we will see whether Twitter, geeks’ beloved microblogging service, can find a viable business model. Given that Jonathan Ross and Jeremy Clarkson have just discovered, and signed up for, the service, it has clearly peaked. When boobies like that are using it, all persons of taste flee.”
Whilst some of us may not be interested in whether Jonathan Ross is on Twitter, it is another step towards the mainstream. Whilst the Daily Mail’s take on
Celebrities signing up to Twitter may not be entirely positive, the site has attracted, a not so shabby, six million users since 2006.
Will 2009 be the year that Twitter starts to make businesses pay for the service? And, if so how? Surely, subscriptions won’t work?
Posted 1 week ago at 12:18 pm. 0 comments
Darren Rowse’ post on ‘Why Twitter Will Go Mainstream’ In 2009 has secured 61 active tweets and will reach an estimated 44,686 followers, according to Twitt(url)y.
His reasons as to why he thinks Twitter will take hold in 2009:
Mainstream media is starting to pay attention
Important news worthy events are well documented and break on Twitter
Early adopters who lost interest will return
The next president of the US has been using Twitter
CNN is using Twitter for input in News reports
Twitterbots are becoming big through adding value
Twitter has become the dominant communication method on conferences
Through Twitter you can actually get your complaint resolved, fast!
More services build on Twitter get funded
Companies start to communicate PR messages through Twitter
Whilst, there is no doubt that Twitter made its mark in 2008. The array of Twitter tools now available is testament to that (just take a look at Brian Solis’ post on ‘Twitter Tools for Community and Communications Professionals’). The term ‘mainstream’, might be a little over ambitious.
However, when it comes to the b2b technology sphere there is no doubt that more news stories will be broken and discussed on Twitter, more PRs will be tracking journalist tweets and journalists will be feeding their news in the Twitter ecosystem in 2009.
So, for 2010.. an established and reliable measurement tool?
Posted 1 week ago at 10:40 pm. 0 comments
A typical newsjack for a business-to-business technology client used to be about getting your client mentioned in its trade, business and national media targets. Pick up the phone; send out email comment; set up an interview or two; collect press clippings; job done. Well, the essence of newsjacking hasn’t changed in 2008. But, it has evolved to include an array of digital considerations.
A good example of newsjacking comes from Susannah Wyeth, director at Lighthouse PR. The story: ‘sub-sea cables carrying more than seventy five per cent of traffic between the Middle East, Europe and America have been damaged’ broke on Friday 19th December 2008.
Lighthouse PR client Interoute was offering comment.
The story secured coverage across broadcast, national and trade media, including: BBC News 24, BBC World News, Radio 5 Live, FT.com, Sky News, The Guardian, BBC News Online, Bloomberg, Computer Weekly and Broadband Reports.
And, then the digital…
- BBC News, The Guardian, Times Online twittered about their news stories
- Interoute was mentioned in over 50 blog posts - including this piece on the Times Online blog which then led to the news piece!, The Times blog post attracted 311 comments
- 19 Tweets on the story mentioned Interoute
Posted 1 week, 1 day ago at 4:54 pm. 1 comment
The call centre worker that got caught out by his employer for pulling a ‘sickie’ after changing his status on Facebook to ‘not going to work, f*** it I’m still trashed SICKIE WOO’, was a clear indicator that any information you place online can quite easily be fed into your professional life.
In fact, Xobni, a productivity enhancer for your inbox, is making it even easier. Taking your profile picture from Facebook, your contact details from LinkedIn and corporate profile from Hoovers, it provides an easy snapshot of information on the email sender. If that is not enough, it offers an excellent search facility for those that have forgotten to file that all too crucial email. It can pull up an old email conversation, retrieve an attachment or provide some analytics on who emails you the most and at what time of the day.
The downside? It can slow down your inbox slightly.
Posted 1 month, 3 weeks ago at 12:28 pm. 0 comments
Microsoft has given its Windows Live application a makeover in a bid to make inroads into social networking. Bearing similar functionality to Facebook, users of Windows Live applications can now create a platform to communicate with their friends, colleagues or business partners. Whether it is updating their profile, adding photos or sharing videos, users can synchronise their online life from one point.
Microsoft isn’t just attempting to break into social networking again, it is planning to connect people to all their favourite sites such as Flickr, Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn and Photobucket. Okay, so Microsoft might not see flocks of Facebook activists jumping ship in the near future, but if its integration feature proves to be impressive, a fair few Hotmail or MSN users might standardise on the new platform.
Integration will no doubt win a few hearts as social networking matures. And, we hope it will help a few of the time-poor business execs embrace some of the new platforms.
Posted 1 month, 3 weeks ago at 3:05 pm. 0 comments
Tim O’Reilly, who coined the term ‘Web 2.0’, has warned a summit in San Francisco that Web 2.0 must grow up and focus on real problems, according to BBC News.
Whilst everyone has engaged with one or two of the Web 2.0 fads over the years, most are getting bored with the pointless applications and are looking for tools that will either help them communicate or improve their business.
With analysts predicting a huge amount of growth for social networking, online video, and voice over IP, here’s hoping this growth will bring some stringent measurement tools.
Whilst businesses have started communicating with their stakeholders in new online communities, budget holders (or marketing departments) will soon be asking for proof of how influential these sites are – especially in a recession.
Posted 1 month, 3 weeks ago at 4:20 pm. 0 comments
Rainier PR client ntl:Telewest Business won the Technology award at the 2008 Public Relations Consultants Association Awards (PRCA), for its brand repositioning campaign Telecoms 2.0. The campaign was also runner up in the New Media, Digital and Broadcast category.
The campaign used digital channels to provide a platform for customers, analysts and the company’s senior executive team to bring its proposition to the wider market and generate debate. The digital content included two webcasts with Computer Weekly and ZDNet; a vodcast with VNUNet and three podcasts on the company’s microsite. The online conferences took 1,200 registrations and the micro-site attracted 3,981 page views over a two month period.
Posted 2 months, 1 week ago at 1:58 pm. 0 comments
As the line between our professional and personal lives continues to blur online, it is important that all web users are aware of the legal implications of generating content online. From Twittering, to posting comment on blogs, and images on Facebook, many popular Web 2.0 sites cover content from both our personal and professional lives.
Peter Whitehead, Digital Business Editor, FT, picks up on this point and ponders: “Am I just me or am I representing the FT? Can I say outrageous things? Can I use it to promote Digital Business?”
The answer isn’t very clear. And, such online uncertainties are proving a barrier to firms wanting to embrace social media. If you are unsure about the content you or your company has created online take a look at the legal chapter of our eBook.
Posted 2 months, 1 week ago at 1:36 pm. 0 comments
It will be some time before a definitive guide to marketing within a network can be written. In the meantime iCrossing’s Antony Mayfield has firmly planted a marker in the ground with his ebook Brands in Networks.
Publishers, journalists, PRs and marketing professionals that are looking for a pragmatic analysis of the fragmentation of the media industry should download the 50-page eBook immediately. Antony’s thesis is that the so-called Gutenberg era of channel media is firmly behind us and that it has serious implications for anyone seeking to promote an organisation.
“We ignore the reality that people don’t fire up their web browsers and spend time on MSN or The Guardian accessing content. […] Search engines and social media have set our attention free”.
That Antony studied history is obvious from every page as he seeks our anecdotes and models fro yesteryear. The result is that complex issues are presented to the reader in a straightforward manner.
While the first half of Brands in Networks is an analysis of the emergence of web publishing, SEO and social media, the second half examines the opportunity for businesses to operate in the new ear of networks.
I read Antony’s book a month or so before receiving a copy of Seth Godin’s new book Tribes. Many of the themes and lessons for communications professionals are common to both pieces of work.
In Brand in Networks Antony presents the three fundamental start points that iCrossing users as the basis for forming a strategy for clients.
1) Understand your networks
2) Be useful in your networks
3) Be live in your networks
There’s a lot to like about this ebook. If I have a criticism it is that many of the case studies are focused on Google, but then Google is phenomenal operator. In his conclusion Antony promises to update the ebook as new case studies and analysis emerges. I look forward to downloading future versions.
This story was also posted on Wadds’ Tech PR Blog.
Posted 2 months, 1 week ago at 1:32 pm. 0 comments
So we won. Rainier PR is the Flackenhacks PR agency of the Year. We’re chuffed to bits. Much needed celebratory bacon sandwiches all round. Thanks to Fullrun and its sponsors.
Competition in the PR industry is critical to drive it forward and innovate. That it doesn’t exist within the media that reports on us is a shortfall.
PR Business went out of business. Spin Bunny was shot. The Worlds’ Leading retired. Marcom Professional shows promise as a community vehicle but has yet to stamp its mark on the PR industry.
The Fullrun should be applauded for developing Flackenhacks as an alternative format to the big ticket industry awards events. After two events I hope that it continues as a series. The industry needs it.
Here’s what Captain Earl has to say.
This story was also posted on Wadds’ Tech PR Blog.
