Newsweek Covers the We-Wide Web

March 28th, 2006 | Comments: 0

Newsweek’s looks into the revival of the tech scene thanks to the rise of peer-to-peer poster companies like MySpace and Flickr. While Steven Levy and Brand Stone primarily cover both in the article, their lead-in captures the current state of affairs in a compelling and apocalyptic way for those not with the program:

“What makes the Web alive is, quite simply, us. Our presence, most often conducted at the speed of broadband, is constant and mandatory. Thanks to our activity, the Web has replaced phone books, and is in the process of replacing phones. It’s the place that answers our questions in four tenths of a second and ships us funny clips that mix the “Back to the Future” guys with the “Brokeback Mountain” soundtrack. It’s the main news source for the non-arthritic population, and a megaphone for those who make their own media. As we keep offloading our activities to the Web and adding previously unmanageable or unthinkable new pursuits, it’s fair to say that our everyday exist-ence is a network effect. That has made some splendid opportunities for smart, nimble new companies, and threatened the existence of old ones now afloat in the mainstream.”


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Brand Actors Get in on the Fun

March 25th, 2006 | Comments: 0

Adrants reports on an emerging trend – hiring consumers to live lifestyles that embody brands then report back on their experiences. As this 55DSL gig shows, these are nice jobs if you can get them.

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Googling the Event Circuit

March 22nd, 2006 | Comments: 0

Metacool links to Google video along with a thought on forums of the future. Will new video channels disrupt the idea of events as we’ve come to know them?


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IBM On Innovation

March 20th, 2006 | Comments: 0

IBM made available a think-piece on open-source innovation and its impact on society. The report takes a look into many areas, including the unbundled enterprise of the future, the role of reputation capital in shaping a workforce as well the rise of very small, specialized businesses and brands. These subjects alone make it well worth the read. If that isn’t enough there are also deep dives into the future of transportation, energy and environment. It’s a great example of thought leadership and knowledge-sharing by IBM. Business Week covers the program in more detail here.



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Godin: Leave Your Slides in the Office

March 17th, 2006 | Comments: 0

Seth Godin recently suggested an alternative path for effective presentations.  Is the best approach to leave the presentation behind?


The Buzz Around Tracking Buzz

March 14th, 2006 | Comments: 0

There’s a ton of posting going on around the need to monitor the blogosphere to track conversations about your company and brand. Conceptually the idea’s been talked about for some time. In practice it now appears to be finding critical mass. A couple must-reads include Andy Beal’s beginners’ guide to tracking online reputations. It’s an impressive deep dive into the depth and frequency required to be truly tuned in through monitoring efforts. Another is from Tom Foremski on the mania of finding influential voices through a silver bullet tool or site. I wholeheartedly agree with his take that the best way to figure out who important bloggers are (as well as how to best engage) is to go into the communities as a participant versus spectator.


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A New Look for Going Social

March 8th, 2006 | Comments: 0

Many thanks to Josh Hallett for Going Social’s new design. Already getting really good feedback on the new look and feel. If you haven’t visited his site, check it out. Great takes on navigating the blogging universe.

Blurring the Lines Between PR and Customer Care

March 8th, 2006 | Comments: 0

Kudos to Microsoft for showing how to flip customer concern into positive conversation. Similar to Jeff Jarvis’ public plea to Dell, Hugh Macleod put word out to Microsoft on gapingvoid and got quick resolution to his Tablet PC issue. What followed was a glowing post from Macleod and interesting commentary from those weighing in on the effort, especially from Robert Scoble. Microsoft’s proactive efforts represent the big leap progressive communicators are making. They’re not only tuned in and listening to independent voices, but more importantly, they’re empowering employees to act on information as a way to connect with and serve customers.


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Risk and an Era of Uncertainty

February 23rd, 2006 | Comments: 0

A couple weeks ago I wrote up a post on assessing risk profiles and the need to step out of comfort zones as a means of actually reducing risks. Along similar lines, Ad Age ran a Rance Crain commentary under the title, “Risk Aversion is Risky Business for Marketers and Agencies,” (registration required). The problem he says:

“…we are living through an era “where great uncertainty reigns,” and people and companies are hunkering down around their core competencies — which might not be the right ones for the time. If the “old traditional platforms” don’t work anymore, as another M&V speaker said, nobody is sure what is going to work, so the temptation is to stick to what used to produce results.”

That’s where the problem lies. Results are getting tougher to come by through traditional means as the marketplace gets more attention-deficit, time-constrained and skeptical overall.

While his message of taking greater risks was directed at ad agencies, it equally applies to client-side marketers and those of us working in communications firms.


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Crisis Management Musings on Morph

February 22nd, 2006 | Comments: 0

The question triggering conversation on the Morph forum this week is around Cheney media storm and the appropriate measures (or lessons) media followers and communicators should take from it. There’s some good thinking being shared, especially David Vinjamuri’s piece on the shooting issue as a metaphor for the bigger story in play. I weighed in on the code-of-conduct broken that triggered the fallout and how that code translates to communicating in online communities. Here’s how it appears on the blog:

Cheney’s PR misfire is a reminder that in times of trouble today, one’s response is often a bigger event than the crisis itself. The Cheney story escalated not only for the absurdity for the situation, but more for the leak to the media and delayed acknowledgment with media that “needs to know.” It was a potentially a couple-day story that’s now becoming a defining moment of Bush’s second term.

Whether you’re in politics, business or being personally scrutinized, the Cheney incident represents a case study in-the-making on the perils of poor crisis management. The reason – his lack of immediate action to brief the media broke the code with the Washington press corps. Now the administration is paying for it.

It’s a timely lesson because the idea of press corps and related codes-of-conduct are no longer relegated to big government, big business and big media. They apply to everyone. Members of blogosphere share similarities with captive press corps, starting with clear expectations on how to operate especially in times of crisis. The code starts with listening and acting fast, then talking candidly, openly and honestly. It ends with outdated thinking around ducking, dragging, spinning, or even worse, lying about the situation at hand.

The margin for error in times of crisis is razor thin, as Dell, Sony DMG and Kryptonite exemplify as defacto, latter-day corporate cases. Learning from these lessons can not only protect your reputation but foster greater respect from the online community following your business. In the world of a nearly omniscient press corps, you’d wise to understand the code, live the code…or die by the code.

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