Insights

Why Twitter Mobile Apps Don’t Interest Me

I’m a mobile Luddite. I don’t have an iPhone or Blackberry (although I do like the look of the new Palm Pre) and to be honest I’m not too bothered about having a smart phone at the minute.

Now you might say that for someone that is involved in the online world as I am, not having an iPhone or similar makes me some kind of heathen. And maybe it does.

But here’s the thing.

I’m a people person. I like to know people. I like to connect people. My aim is to meet and introduce as many folks as I can, and help make one big interconnected community that can call on each other when needed.

This could be for advice, knowledge, help, charity or anything else. The more quality people I know and can put in touch with each other, the better.

For me to be an effective people person and an effective connector, I need (and want) to know a person. What makes them tick. What makes them laugh. What upsets them. What motivates them.

Basically, I want to know why that person is who they are. Then I can help put them in touch with like-minded souls.

But to do this, I need to offer my full attention to that person at that given time. And maybe it’s just me, but Twitter mobile apps are a major stumbling block to this aim.

The amount of times I’ve been out with friends or connections and they’ve been tweeting merrily away on their smart phones is scary.

Do we really need to be so technologically connected all the time? This is meant to be downtime. Drinks and a meal with friends. Can’t that super important tweet wait until you get home?

Don’t get me wrong – I’m as big a Twitter user as the next tweeter. But tweeting while in company – isn’t that kind of rude and anti-social media?

But what about conferences and events, you might ask? I have a laptop if I want to live tweet and I have a web-enabled cell phone for my email. So let’s flip that around – aren’t you at conferences and events to learn from people as opposed to hearing the odd snippet of info between live tweeting?

I’m not denying that Twitter mobile apps are useful, to some more than others. But aren’t people more important than the tools? Or am I just being idealistic in a technological world?

photo credit: ekai

How Long Do You Let Your Brand?s Reputation Suffer?

You’re a public relations professional or agency. How are you monitoring your brand and those of your clients?

You are actually monitoring, right?

I ask on the back of an interesting story regarding Michigan-based PR firm Tanner Friedman and their current lawsuit regarding a fake Twitter account.

Back in January this year, an account was set up on Twitter that used the name @TannerFriedman. For anyone seeing the tweets from the account, you might expect them to be the latest company or client news from the PR firm.

Not so.

The account had nothing to do with Tanner Friedman. Instead, it was set up by someone who then went on to post a defamatory tweet as the account’s introduction to Twitter, and then subsequently posted negative tweets about the firm.

To keep things interesting, though, the account also took tweets from the Twitter accounts of actual Tanner Friedman employees to make it look more authentic.

Jump forward to March 27, when Tanner Friedman complained to Twitter about the fake account.

That’s more than two months later.

Despite the fake Twitter account posting about the company. Despite the fact that the tweets are said to be damaging and embarrassing to Tanner Friedman. Despite the company being active on Twitter through its employees.

So why so long? Weren’t Tanner Friedman monitoring their own brand as well as that of their clients?

There are numerous tools available to track what’s being said about you. Some are free, like Social Mention, Google Alerts, Filtrbox, BackType and, of course, Twitter.

There are also premium solutions available as well, like Radian6, Nielsen BuzzMetrics, Cision Social Media and Trackur to name just a few.

So it’s not as if the tools aren’t there.

Indeed, Tanner Friedman’s own blurb describes them as, “…an innovative and imaginative communication resource…” with a “…commitment to new technologies…”.

So what happened?

I sent an email to Tanner Friedman to ask their views on the current situation. Kudos to Don Tanner, who was pretty prompt at getting back to me. Here’s what Don had to say about the time lapse:

“We dealt with the problem once we became aware that there was a problem. The problematic tweets did not occur immediately. Once they did and we became aware of them, we acted immediately.”

With regards not having the Tanner Friedman account registered to the company to start with:

“We each had our own Twitter pages along with our own Facebook and Tanner Friedman Facebook pages. Further, as with most professional service firms, we tend to put our clients first. Further (and maybe it is a Midwest thing), Twitter has only emerged here in the past few months.”

It’s never pleasant to be at the centre of negativity when you’re looking after a PR client. It’s even less so when the negativity is about you. Yet one thing you can’t do is let it run.

While it’s clear that Tanner Friedman acted once aware of the account, there still seems to be a time lapse between the first tweet and the complaint, considering more tweets were sent throughout February and March.This is where the obvious problem lies.

Two hours can be a long time when it comes to bad news spreading on social media; two months is a lifetime in comparison.

What this lawsuit shows is the need to be proactive at every turn when it comes to hearing the conversations that are taking place as well as securing your brand early on. Otherwise, you might just find that someone’s been proactive for you.

Of course, Twitter needs to take responsibility as well. Account authorization has to be stepped up (which they are currently looking at) and their customer service currently leaves a lot to be desired. If they really want to take the service to the next level, they need to actually offer a service that looks after its users.

How about you? Do you know what’s being said about you online? How do you monitor the conversations and what advice do you give your clients and employees?

photo credit: Dude Crush

Why Zoompass Could be a Marketer’s Dream

This weekend, Zoompass? was launched in Canada by the three leading Canadian wireless operators – Rogers, Bell and Telus. It’s a money transfer system for mobile phones – yet it could also become a marketer’s dream.

What is Zoompass?

A collaboration between the three leading wireless networks in Canada, Zoompass is a new application that you can either download to your mobile phone or use via both mobile and standard web.

What it then allows you to do is to receive or send money, as well as make purchases, check your balance and more. This is all carried out by the Zoompass network, a secure online transfer system using PIN password access. Because the system uses both Java and Wi-Fi technology, any web-enabled mobile phone can use the system.

So now friends can send each other money, split bills at restaurants, pay for sports events, etc, and it’s easier to split the payments. It uses your existing contacts information to select users easily. And because Zoompass uses its own money account to store funds, nothing need come from your own bank account.

As well as the mobile system, Zoompass also offers a pre-paid Mastercard? that users can top up and use to make purchases in-store and online.

So Why Should Marketers Care About Zoompass?

Because Zoompass is a collaboration between Telus, Rogers and Bell, this means that users of their subsidiary networks can also use the service. These include Fido, PC Mobile and Solo – or, in numbers, more than 21 million users.

21 million.

Imagine a partnership between your business and Zoompass that allows users to opt-in to a recommendation service.

So they’re using their mobile app to browse electronic stores in the area to buy an iPod from, and your sponsored flyer pops up. Or you’re a cab company that’s an official Zoompass partner and not only is your number the first up for cabs in a particular location, you also accept Zoompass payment via your on-cab register.

Another option could be that anyone using the Mastercard option receives loyalty points from Zoompass-enabled retailers, keeping the customer coming back to you and Zoompass offering you (the vendor) priority.

It’s obviously early days for the application but the potential could be huge. And with the pre-paid Mastercard offering international use of Zoompass, it’s not just restricted to Canada – more good news for marketers.

Check out the Zoompass website and blog for more information.

The More We Connect, The More We Lose Touch

?You can?t please everyone, so you?ve got to please yourself.? ? Ricky Nelson.

It?s been an interesting last 24 hours. Abusive emails, character attacks on Twitter and questions about my ethics. Just another day in the life of.

Time is an interesting commodity.

On the one hand, we love it when time passes quickly so we can see a new movie, or buy a new product, or see a new date. On the other, we complain there?s never enough time in the day.

Online connections simply increase this problem. As we connect with new people on new networks, our availability factor goes down.

You don?t mean it to; you try avoid it; but it?s a simple fact that as we connect with more, the less we can offer. This may be less time for people you used to converse with more; less time for generic conversations; and less time for things in general.

Sure, you can use tools to help you manage your time better. Yet at the end of the day, the tools are only as good as the person using them, so perhaps I need to brush up on my time management skills.

Yet the attacks/criticisms that came my way over the last 24 hours would probably have come regardless of time management, by the nature of them. The suggestion of ?having time for some people but not for others? being the main theme.

Again, it comes back to where to try and divert your time. While this isn?t an excuse as such, a lot of my time at the minute is taken up by:

12for12k
Legal clearances for promotional materials for this month?s charity
Conference calls with charity partners
Social change events
Client projects (since all 12for12k efforts are free of charge)

If you add in personal time, offering help where possible to people asking for advice and residency issues in Canada to name just a few, you might see where I can get sidetracked.

As I say, it?s not an excuse but an explanation. I appreciate the connections we have and I?ll try my best to manage them as best I can and help wherever I can. However, there will be times that some people and actions slip through the cracks.

So, here?s a suggestion.

If you?ve sent me something or asked me something and I haven?t responded in a couple of days, send me a nudge. Failing that, email me ? my contact details are on this blog, or my website, or on my Twitter background. I?ll try my damnedest to respond.

And if I haven?t replied straight away, please don?t take it personally.

With regards the ethics question, I certainly don?t always make the best decisions but I always believe that whatever they are, they are for the right and ethical reasons. Of course, it?s anyone?s prerogative to doubt this, but I?m happy to live with my decisions.

How about you? Are you finding yourself with less time for the stuff that needs more time? How are you managing your conversations?

photo credit: Joshua Davis

How PR and Bloggers Can Help Each Other

There’s been a lot of talk about the relationship between the public relations industry and bloggers. I’ve written about it in the past as have others, yet still there’s this feeling of a barrier between the two mediums.

As someone on both sides of the fence, I can understand each side’s views.

Yet I can also see where both sides could improve. So, with no bias to either the PR industry or bloggers, here are some suggestions to help both PR and bloggers help each other.

PR People – Think Like Bloggers

Consider starting a blog if you don’t already have one. Unless you blog yourself, you probably won’t understand the mindset of a blogger. It can be a lonely and time-consuming business – the last thing we want is added workloads through misunderstanding or laziness. If you blog, you’ll have a better appreciation of how we work and how our time can best be used.

Treat us as a bona-fide media source in both your pitching and follow-ups. True, we may not have the name of a New York Times or CBS journalist or reporter. But we often are more visible, thanks to Google and search engine awareness, which means our story could potentially have a much wider audience. Doesn’t that deserve some respect?

Find out who we are and what we do. You have a gardening tool to promote for a client. So why would you send your news release to a tech or music blogger? Don’t just grab a bunch of names from a blogger list – do a little homework, find out what we write about, our style, etc. Trust me, show me you know about me and my readers and you’re almost home dry with me.

Invite us to participate in what your clients are up to. Bloggers love to be involved early on – after doing your homework on who would fit you client base, invite bloggers into your inner circle as your official blog partners. Let us tell your story (without any major interference) and you’ll have a primed marketing team of bloggers ready to go.

Bloggers – PR is Not Your Enemy

Bloggers are wary of PR people. Lazy pitches, poor communication and being treated as second-class citizens are just some of the complaints. Yet there are ways to help yourself be more appreciated by the PR industry.

Have either an About Me page or an area that describes what your blog is about. This may seem like common sense but the amount of reviewer blogs I’ve seen without this simple addition is mind-boggling. How can you expect a proper pitch when you don’t advise on what you write about?

Display a PR-friendly badge to let us know that you’re open to pitching. Todd Defren and the folks over at Shift Communications have come up with some badge designs you can use. Clean and clear, they save both PR people and bloggers a lot of time.

Be ethical at all times and true to your beliefs. This works both ways. Your blog is your voice and your readers should trust that voice. Keep your views honest and untainted by PR pressure. And if someone in PR is pressuring you into a positive spin when their client doesn’t deserve one, don’t be afraid to call them out via your blog.

Contact us and offer your services as part of a PR agency’s blogger outreach program. Many PR firms and professionals are still far behind on the benefits of a blogger outreach program. Use Google, Twitter, O’Dwyer’s blog and other resources to find agencies in your niche. Then send them an email about your expertise and how they could benefit from it. Pro-activity never hurt anyone.

These are just some examples of how the PR industry and bloggers can help each other. I’m sure there are countless more, but it’s a start.

How about you? Are you a blogger? If so, how can PR professionals improve? Or are you in the PR industry? Where would you like to see bloggers improve? Feel free to share your views and let’s get the conversation going.

photo credit:?lepiaf.geo