JMPR Communication

Archive for January, 2009

Nothing warms my day like an article filled with social media statistics. (I’m being serious.)  I know that 82.4% of all statistics are made up on the spot, but I’m inclined to believe the findings of Ketchum’s recent Traditional Media vs. Online Media report as reported by Mashable.

Bottom line:  more people are getting their news from network news (local and national) and local newspapers than blogs, the Internet or social media sites.

I’m not surprised.  How about you?

Here’s where the good news comes in.  According to Mashable:

- Blogs are now used by 24% of Internet users, up from 13% in 2006

- Social networks are now used by 26% of Internet users, up from 17% in 2006

- Videocasts are now used by 11% of Internet users, up from 6% in 2006

Also growing, RSS feeds and Podcasts.

So what do we do with these statistics?

Blogging:

I am a big proponent of Corporate blogs and suggest that nearly all of my clients start one.  Not only do blogs allow for Corporations to control their own message, but they also have the opportunity to give a corporation a human-feel.  The best Corporations understand how to disseminate their news in a fun-to-read manner.

Sometimes, a Corporation shouldn’t blog.  If a Corporation doesn’t have the ability to post updates consistently, has difficulties with the approvals process, or can not answer comments in a timely manner, I do not suggest blogging.

With the rise and public acceptance of blogs as legitimate news combined with usage of RSS feeds, will we as a society ultimately prefer to receive our news from Corporations themselves?

Social Networking:

Pretty much everyone participates in a social network on a personal level in one way or another.  Even my mom listens to Pandora radio both at home and on her iPhone.  (My mom is not very tech-savvy, but I love her anyway.) What should businesses do to reach the 26% of Internet users partaking?

Social networks are not one size fits all.  In other words, while MySpace might work for a band, LinkedIn might be best for a company looking to focus on expanding their sales efforts.  Likewise, Twitter might be best for a marketing organization.  There are many social networks to choose from and they should be chosen wisely.  It is better to be effective in one social network than participate poorly in many.

For a decently comprehensive list of Social Networks, and to see if your username is available, check here.

Videocasts:

Videocasts (or podcasts with video), are on the rise.  I can’t figure out a reason why I would create one for me YET, though I am starting to find lots of compelling reasons for my clients to create them.  If you are speaking at workshops, trying to have a more personal connection with your followers or just want to take your podcast to the next level, this is a growing area worth considering.

RSS Feeds:

It does surprise me that MORE people don’t use RSS feeds. I subscribe to everything I find interesting and by using RSS feeds, my life is simplified greatly.   I never thought it would be possible that I could read all my news on one page, share from that page, and talk about the news.  If this doesn’t stick as the number one way of receiving our news as a society, I REALLY wonder what will.

Traditional Public Relations:

Most importantly, we can’t yet forget about traditional public relations.  We still need to build relationships with our local newspapers and broadcast journalists and pitch them with compelling, interesting news.   There is no such thing as one size fits all public relations.  Our industry is growing.  I will continue to get all my news online, and in all likelihood, my mom will get three newspapers delivered every morning until the newspapers are cancelled.

Public Relations is about delivering the message to EVERYONE.  And while Social Media is certainly rising, it’s not time to forget where we came from just yet.

My Dad approached me last week and asked me about my Seven Things post.  He thought maybe I was sharing TOO much.  He asked me:  Do I ever have apprehensions about anything I share on this blog?  Do I worry about posting my picture or my name on the Web?  Perhaps I (we) share TOO much in the age of Social Media.

“Daaaaad,”  I said. “This has been hashed over a million times.  This subject is talked out.”

And then we had the Twitter Phishing scam and Celebrity Hacking fun of 2009.

So MAYBE my dad was right.  Maybe we should talk about this some more.

As far as social media is concerned, do we trust too much?

Many of us, me included, have become far too comfortable handing out our passwords.  We click on link after link on Twitter to see how we rate or to see how exciting our tweets are and we provide our Twitter passwords to obtain the results.  But are these safe places to hand out our passwords?  And why do we so freely type our passwords out?

Dan Tentler speaks about the security risks involved giving passwords in his AtenLabs blog. When typing your password, always look at the URL, and make sure the url matches the site you believe you are on. In the Twitter Phishing scam, folks were taken to a screen that looked like Twitter, but was not actually Twitter.  We should ALL be more careful about looking at our URL’s on a regular basis.

I never share anything I wouldn’t want a future employer or client to read.  I never click on something without looking at the URL first.  And now, I don’t share my password unless I have examined the site I am on. I’m sure I have more to learn about protecting myself online.  But there is no way a little phishing and hacking is gonna scare me away from the social media world.

What do you think?

Should we as a community be more concerned about posting our pictures online?  How about the small bits of personal information that some of us share? Are there ways that hackers and phishers could exploit that information as well?

As this post deviates from my usual social media/PR topic areas, I thought it best to provide some background before diving in.  “Seven Things You May Or May Not Know About Me”  is a game that has been circulating around the blogosphere.  Bloggers are asked to both reveal seven things about themselves others may not know, and to tag seven other bloggers.

I was tagged by Dirk Singer over at This Is Herd. Dirk is a social media guru across the pond.  He not only runs an award winning agency (Cow), but he has an outstanding blog that is updated daily.  I subscribed to his blog about two months ago.  I think you all should, too.

7 Things About Me

1. I am a classically trained violinist.  I played for nine years when I was a kid, but had to give it up when I went to college.  I still play now and then but am not half as good as I used to be.  My mom, coincidentally, is a violin teacher.  She was never mine.
2. Speaking of music: I hate video games but am currently, stupidly addicted to Guitar Hero and Guitar Hero World Tour. In one week alone, I have beaten the drums and guitar on easy and am halfway through the medium level.  I am now restricting myself from the game until after my daughter goes to bed.  (I know, sad.)  BTW, the drums are more fun.
3. I used to compete in speech and debate on a national level in both high school and college.  My events were Lincoln Douglas Debate, Team (college), and Impromptu.  After I was done competing, I spent two years coaching.  I still live for a good argument.
4. I read every night before I go to bed.  Reading helps me relax.
5. I believe life is what you make of it.  If you choose to be happy and put one foot in front of the other, good things will come.  If you choose to stay in bed, life will be harder.  I live in the land of positive thinking.
6. When I was very little, my Grandpa used to tell me “The more you know, the more you know you don’t know.”  I know now that he was very right.  Whether talking about social media, being a parent, or any subject, there is always so much to learn.  I am always seeking knowledge.
7. I moved a lot as a kid.  I lived in 3 states, 5 houses, went to 19 schools!!!

Now it’s your turn!  I want to hear from you! My seven are:

Lindsay Maines: http://rockandrollmama.com/

Sean Percival: http://www.seanpercival.com/

Dan Tentler: http://atenlabs.com/blog/

Christine Putnam: http://somedayistoday.wordpress.com/

Jillanne Emerson: http://nycmoments.wordpress.com/

Rebecca Rose: http://asgideajournal.wordpress.com/

Tina Wilmott: http://tinawilmott.com/

Here are the rules:

* Link to your original tagger(s) and list these rules in your post.
* Share seven facts about yourself in the post.
* Tag seven people at the end of your post by leaving their names and the links to their blogs.
* Let them know they’ve been tagged