Marguerite Reardon. (2009, March 23). Skype gunning for business call-cost assault. Silicom.com.
Monday, February 1, 2010
The US says hello world - Alex Huxol
Marguerite Reardon. (2009, March 23). Skype gunning for business call-cost assault. Silicom.com.
PR is about relationships says Solis
By John Fisher
In chapter 5 of "Putting the Public Back in PR", Solis and Breakenridge write that PR is about relationships. And "only active engagement and listening can lead to meaningful relationships." The new PR is not about broadcasting and selling pitches. The new PR is about "one-to-one" relationships rather than "one-to-many."
Reporters and analysts are on one end of the media spectrum while A-list bloggers are at the other. It's the magic middle where we can find our customers and so its in the middle that we want to develop relationships.
The first thing to do in developing relationships is to find out the people's preferred forms of communication. We can do that by listening to their conversations. Solis gives the example of Robert Scoble, and A-list tech blogger. Scoble wrote, "It's amazing that in the age of Twitter that people still send email. I hate email. I hate direct Tweets. I hate Facebook messages."
By going to Technorati, Blogged.com, Google BlogSearch and the blogrolls of bloggers we can see what bloggers are writing. A google search will allow you to see the latest twitters to and about someone. For example, search "twitter scobleizer" and you can see his latest tweets. What you read is a conversation that is taking place. "You need to watch and listen to the people with whom you want to interact.," write Solis and Breakenridge. The most effective campaigns start with listening, reading, watching and observing.
They recommend that we become sociologists and market experts. "This is a shift from pitching to participating, from selling a story to telling a story." The best way to do this is to become a participant observer. Here the observer doesn't hide his identity and is truthful about his goals and objectives.
I like the following analogy. Watching a conversation from the outside is like "engaging in cultural voyeurism." This is like "setting up camp next to a village ... and expecting the village to integrate you into its society."
What traditional marketing and PR consider harmless activities is discouraged in social media. For example, one of the most annoying things a marketer can do is put sales information on my blog as a comment. Or spam me on twitter with products they are selling.
As Solis and Breakenridge write, "In PR, relationships are the currency required to prosper. For these relations to increase in value over time, they must be cultivated from both sides."
In chapter 5 of "Putting the Public Back in PR", Solis and Breakenridge write that PR is about relationships. And "only active engagement and listening can lead to meaningful relationships." The new PR is not about broadcasting and selling pitches. The new PR is about "one-to-one" relationships rather than "one-to-many."
Reporters and analysts are on one end of the media spectrum while A-list bloggers are at the other. It's the magic middle where we can find our customers and so its in the middle that we want to develop relationships.
The first thing to do in developing relationships is to find out the people's preferred forms of communication. We can do that by listening to their conversations. Solis gives the example of Robert Scoble, and A-list tech blogger. Scoble wrote, "It's amazing that in the age of Twitter that people still send email. I hate email. I hate direct Tweets. I hate Facebook messages."
By going to Technorati, Blogged.com, Google BlogSearch and the blogrolls of bloggers we can see what bloggers are writing. A google search will allow you to see the latest twitters to and about someone. For example, search "twitter scobleizer" and you can see his latest tweets. What you read is a conversation that is taking place. "You need to watch and listen to the people with whom you want to interact.," write Solis and Breakenridge. The most effective campaigns start with listening, reading, watching and observing.
They recommend that we become sociologists and market experts. "This is a shift from pitching to participating, from selling a story to telling a story." The best way to do this is to become a participant observer. Here the observer doesn't hide his identity and is truthful about his goals and objectives.
I like the following analogy. Watching a conversation from the outside is like "engaging in cultural voyeurism." This is like "setting up camp next to a village ... and expecting the village to integrate you into its society."
What traditional marketing and PR consider harmless activities is discouraged in social media. For example, one of the most annoying things a marketer can do is put sales information on my blog as a comment. Or spam me on twitter with products they are selling.
As Solis and Breakenridge write, "In PR, relationships are the currency required to prosper. For these relations to increase in value over time, they must be cultivated from both sides."
iTunes by Justin Yates
In today’s highly-advanced and technologically dominated world, fewer devices have become more iconic than Apple’s iPod. Millions of people now have access to countless media right at their fingertips. Today, you can literally carry a library in your coat pocket.
What makes the iPod so revolutionary is not what it does, but what it can do. Since its creation, millions have used their iPods for more than just playing music. Students, executives, teachers, children, and many more are capable of having a plethora of information—not just music, at their fingertips. And with the emergence of iTunes, these capabilities are endless.
The iTunes website/download is the iPod owner’s central nervous system. The program can manage and edit music, download countless movies, television programs, audiobooks, podcasts, applications, and more. (apple.com/itunes) And with newer, more advanced versions of the iPod, the iPhone, iPod nano, iPod touch, and the newly-presented iPad (scheduled for release later this spring), the iPod is becoming a handheld computer. Through the iTunes website, users can redeem iTunes gift cards or create an account with any credit or debit card to directly charge purchases. Users can purchase music (legally—no more worrying about illegal “pirating” of music). More than that, iTunes also provides a ratings forum for users to rate and comment on their favorite media. If a movie stinks, they say so. If an album rocks, they say so. Users can even create their personal “favorites” playlist, and upload it to the iTunes website to be put on sale for others to enjoy. The emergence of iTunes as a commonplace social media is extraordinary.
One of the newer, most popular elements of iTunes is the “Apps” section. This is where iPhone/iPod touch/iPad users can download various applications for use on their device. There are hundreds of thousands of applications on the iTunes website already, and the number continues to grow exponentially. Some apps are free; some are not. But their practical, and sometimes fun use, are becoming commonplace in today’s society. “There’s an app for that,” has become synonymous with iTunes. Users can now check their Facebook profile, read their favorite newspaper, play games, or countless other possibilities due to the ease and availability of iTunes applications.
iTunes is not limited as far as it’s practical use. In fact, some universities have used podcasts as a valuable teaching supplement. A podcast is a downloadable “mini-broadcast” that can be downloaded from an iTunes account. Many professors are now able to record classes/lectures, and upload them to the iTunes website for download by students who may have missed the class (for whatever reason). The student can download the podcast, and watch it on his/her iPod.
Results from these podcasts have been positive. In a recent study, students who downloaded podcasts of lectures actually performed considerably higher than students who attended the lectures in person. (Callaway 2009) Does this mean we can go to college through our iPods? Probably not. But as a part of the recent “iTunes university” program, podcasts are finding their place in students’ hearts and minds.
In conclusion, writing a summary of iTunes is nearly impossible due to its ever-changing growth and evolution. Apple has caught on to a major social medium and we’ve not heard the last from iTunes—in fact, I believe the opposite is true. With iTunes being so simple and easy to operate, yet so diverse in its practicality, it will continue to be prevalent and relevant in the distant future as well.
Sources:
Callaway, E. (Feb. 2009). iTunes university better than the real thing. Retrieved from:
Wiggio Blog
Wiggio: Making it Easy to Work in Groups
Wiggio is a site that allows working in groups to become like no work at all. This social media site allows group members to stay connected. Wiggio, from the acronym WIG (Working In Groups), sends mass text messages, e-mails, and voice messages to group members. Wiggio also allows groups to host conference calls, webinars, keep a common calendar, and share documents in a common folder. This tool is totally free and the best part is that you do not have to have a Wiggio account to join a group!
The first step is creating a profile. There are links available to your Facebook, Twitter, and Skype accounts. Once you have created a profile, you can create a group. A group name and e-mail addresses of potential group members will be required here. Once you have created your group, you can get started by adding names, phone numbers, and e-mail addresses of potential group members. I created a group called Current Topics for this class. You can also join existing groups that other members have created. You will need the group name and password. In this group you can share a common calendar, upload and edit common documents, and conduct video conferences.
Wiggio was created by Dana Lampert and Lance Polivy, two programming students from Cornell University. Several test runs were conducted on campuses such as Harvard and Brown University. As students, they found it hard to communicate with group members and friends when everyone used different methods. So these graduates wanted to put the services from other popular sites such as freeconference.com and Google Calendar all together.
“We were in many different business organizations, bands, sports teams, fraternity councils, and living in apartments with different housemates, and we found that each group was using different tools,” says Lampert. “Some were using Google Calendar; others were using Yahoo’s calendars. Some just sent e-mails out, others used listservs. For polls, they’d go to Survey Monkey, and for conference calls they’d use free apps like FreeConference.com. When Lance and I put our heads together, we thought we could put all these things in one place.”
-Dana Lampert, Co-Creator
This software is specifically targeted toward college students who are busy with multiple jobs, classes, clubs, and friends. This is a great way to stay connected with all groups students are a part of. The creators are constantly creating updates and new features. You can learn more at blog.wiggio.com, the site’s blog.
Lampert, Dana; Polivy, Lance. (November 6, 2009). Wiggio Blog. Retrieved from http://www.blog.wiggio.com
Roush, Wade. (September 11, 2008). Wiggio Offers Free Groupware for Harried College Students. Retrieved from http://www.xconomy.com/boston/2008/09/11/wiggio-offers- free-groupware-for-harried-college-students/
BlackBerry Mobile Applications
By Mandy Sevitts
Mobile applications are an up and coming trend when it comes to the public relations fields and social media outlets all over the country. People are no longer relying on their phones to just make a phone call to a friend, relative or colleague. These handheld devices are now miniature laptops that allow people to work with ease, as well as having the capability to send pictures, listen to music and browse the internet. The possibilities seem endless when it comes to mobile advertising done within the public relations department as well. With cell phones coming in a variety of types, sizes and colors, it allows the owner to have the freedom to pick out a personalized device as well (Wintour 2008). Phone companies utilize all of these advancements and see them as a chance to branch out to their consumers, in order to ensure their satisfaction with the product and loyalty to their company.
When the use of payphones quickly became unnecessary and the success within the mobile phone industry continued to grow, it became very noticeable that cell phones were here to stay. Within ten years, the capabilities of a cell phone have drastically changed. Text messaging was introduced to the public and had a tremendous amount of success. Being able to send a typed out message to another person’s phone, without actually calling them, was the first big step that was taken to make cell phones more useful. Within the last five years, our society has watched as the ever popular BlackBerry has swept our country with a high customer demand. BlackBerry products consist of Smartphones, which are integrated with software that enables access to a variety of data and communication services (Blackberry, 2009). The popularity of BlackBerry cell phones has been on a steady rise for quite some time now, and isn’t showing any signs of slowing in the future. Being able to access the internet on cell phones is the latest advancement that has taken consumers by storm. Out of all of the people in the US that have a cell phone, on an average day, 58 percent of adults use their phones for at least one non-voice application. These applications can be in a variety of forms, such as; text, e-mail, photos, looking up maps or directions, or recording a video (Perez, 2008). This allows for more opportunities with advertising, planning and customer service on behalf of the public relations departments of companies all over this country that are striving for success.
The trend of mobile applications is growing within the PR field for a variety of reasons. People in general are becoming more mobile when it comes to work as well as their personal lives which is the main reason why the mobile application trend is emerging. Cell phones are compact and provide a convenience for people with a busy schedule. By having more mobile internet users, it has caused a decrease in the usage of desktop personal computers, or PC’s. Mobile access to the World Wide Web has given more people the opportunity to work away from a stationary computer (Perez, 2008). Public relation departments have been known to have close ties with the advertising departments as well. This is because a lot of the time ads are one of the main ways that the companies reach out to the public. The growth of mobile applications can also be seen within the advertising field as it relates to public relations. Mobile and online advertisements have finally achieved their ‘places at the table’ in mainstream media plans, as they continue to prove their importance to traditional styles of media (Butcher, 2008).
Public Relation Professionals are addressing the emerging trend of mobile applications by simply utilizing all of their capabilities and putting them to use. For example, a company could utilize the ‘BlackBerry solution’ for its employees who own a BlackBerry Smartphone.
According to BlackBerry.com, the BlackBerry solution supports leading enterprise email platforms, and can be customized to meet the needs of one person or an entire enterprise, to any scale, in any industry (BlackBerry, 2009). PR professionals could utilize the BlackBerry solution in a variety of different ways, but its main purpose is clear. PR Professionals also see the financial benefit of investing their time into mobile relations and advertising. Total spending on mobile advertising by companies in 2008 was $530.2 million, which Gartner expects to grow to $7.5 billion in 2012 (Gartner, 2009). To invest an amount of money that large into a form of public relations is obviously going to provide companies with an extreme advantage in return, by being ‘in-tune’ with their consumers.
Mobile applications can be integrated into the global marketplace in a variety of ways for many different reasons. However, I found that the main reason why mobile devices prove to be the most beneficial is because of their speed and reliability. One major company that is known for incorporating mobile use across the globe, and affordable costs, is iPass. iPass is a company that combines world-wide remote and mobile broadband access with comprehensive management control over connectivity, devices and cost (iPass, 2009). This makes it possible to unify mobility management for the global marketplace. Having the advantage to communicate on a global level, gives PR professionals an even bigger range to work in. Being able to access people, companies and information all over the globe, is truly remarkable. Millions of people and companies choose to invest in iPass because of its ease and overall global capabilities within the marketplace.
When it comes to mobile applications and the various challenges and opportunities that they create for PR Professionals and the social media field, the results can be seen in numerous ways. The main opportunity that stood out to me was that of the many choices that people are given. By having a personal mobile device, it presents itself with so many choices and settings, that it can be overwhelming (White, 2008). However, by embracing the fact that the mobile application field is still growing and will continue to do so, it opens up a lot of doors for PR Professionals everywhere to utilize.
Trackle Application in an Organization
By John Duncan
Trackle is a good tool for companies to not just use but for them to observe. Trackle allows users to follow any material they may find important through different widgets for total customization. Trackle makes it easy to share this knowledge with other people by allowing it to be social media friendly which means we can post the alert itself on any social media outlet (Guy). This makes it easier for marketers to follow and track their customers’ wants and interests and allows the company to interact with the consumer with a more personal intent. Trackle sends news and information which the user finds important. They can choose from: books, classified, crime, events, finance, fun stuff, health, information, jobs, local and movies (Perez). These widgets can be customized even further to get rid of unwanted information. Peoples’ trackles are private but like I stated earlier, sharing is done very easily through the uses of Facebook, Digg, Twitter and other forms of social media (Perez). All major companies and even smaller companies should look into trying to spread the word of trackle because it is only going to grow and get better. Understanding how it works and how to find your customers’ interests will benefit these companies greatly.
Trackle
By John Duncan
Trackle is a new social media tool that allows users to track any information that may want or need without having to dig through pesky unwanted articles. Trackle is like google alerts in a sense considering that trackle sends the user all the information though email. It is a little more advanced than that though. They have created different widgets which can be added onto your trackle. For instance, trackle offers apps finding when a favorite band and keeping in contact for tour dates and CD releases, news on the latest sports scores and also can track crime rate in your town (Perez). You can also go more in-depth for instance, if you want to just know about burglary and not all forms of crime in your town you can set it just for that. Trackle also is smart because it remembers the information it has already sent you and will never send that piece of information again unless you request it to do so (Perez). This is a tool for companies as well because your trackle topics of interest can be posted on Digg, Facebook, Twitter, etc. which can allow marketers to track their customers interests (Guy). Trackle is completely free with over 100 widgets ranging from health to real estate and everywhere in between (Guy). Trackle constantly updates itself with new material once it comes available so this tool will be beneficial to everyone using it so I would recommend everyone to check into it if they already haven’t.
Search on trackle.
Trackle is a new social media tool that allows users to track any information that may want or need without having to dig through pesky unwanted articles. Trackle is like google alerts in a sense considering that trackle sends the user all the information though email. It is a little more advanced than that though. They have created different widgets which can be added onto your trackle. For instance, trackle offers apps finding when a favorite band and keeping in contact for tour dates and CD releases, news on the latest sports scores and also can track crime rate in your town (Perez). You can also go more in-depth for instance, if you want to just know about burglary and not all forms of crime in your town you can set it just for that. Trackle also is smart because it remembers the information it has already sent you and will never send that piece of information again unless you request it to do so (Perez). This is a tool for companies as well because your trackle topics of interest can be posted on Digg, Facebook, Twitter, etc. which can allow marketers to track their customers interests (Guy). Trackle is completely free with over 100 widgets ranging from health to real estate and everywhere in between (Guy). Trackle constantly updates itself with new material once it comes available so this tool will be beneficial to everyone using it so I would recommend everyone to check into it if they already haven’t.
Search on trackle.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)