The link between social media, crowdsourcing, creating targeted audiences, generating buzz, and greater online distribution of media assets is beginning to transform the PR and Media Relations industry. While this has been in a growth mode in the US, its rare to see it being acted upon in Europe.
Yesterday, Usain Bolt the fastest man in the world, took part in a charity event on the organised by watchmaking brand Hublot, for whom he is an ambassador. He was on the starting line in front of the Hublot’s Headquarters in Nyon, Switzerland pitting himself against 10 child athletes. Hublot had agreed to donate 10,000 US dollars for each child who reached the finish line before “Lightning Bolt”, and ended up paying $100,000 USD to the Usain Bolt Foundation. LABEL vigorously supported the event in creating new channels and online communications through social media channels, assisting the WorldTelevision ENG, video streaming and media relations team to further the reach and awareness event.
Nestlé launched the Creating Shared Value concept at the United Nations in New York in 2009, and on Thursday 27 May 2010 Nestlé is co hosting the second Creating Shared Value Forum with the International Business Leaders’ Forum in participation with the UN Office for Partnerships. The Forum gathers world’s leading experts in the areas of nutrition, water and rural development to discuss the serious global challenges facing all of us in these three areas, and the role of business in solving them.
While the Forum is being webcast live on www.nestle.com ( from 09:45 to 18:00 CET ) the live audience has the opportunity to ask questions to the panelists or participate in parallel debate online. LABEL is assisting the Nestlé Creating Shared Value Forum and its team in hosting the debate on www.creatingsharedvalue.org
Companies and brands have been quick to adapt to social marketing principals and delve beyond the banner advertisement. Online communities present a significant opportunity to engage people around a topic they care about. Whilst many brands are building their own communities online such as Nike+, BeingGirl and Lego, human beings will spend their time and attention across multiple communities. So how does a brand capitalize on their own community and participate in other like minded communities?
The video was made by netinfluence at Lift 10 where Maria was giving a workshop about the challenges brands face to edge their way into the sacred space of conversation. Download her presentation on Slideshare and retrieve the pictures of her workshop on our Facebook.
Engaging in a social media strategy is both an opportunity and a risk. As always, when a situation is complex and produces fear, people who doesn’t understand it and use general fear of a catastrophy often know better how to make themselves heard. The lines that follow should help you demonstrate these opposing people that real opportunities exist and that risks are well manageable. Therefore let’s review the main issues:
Amongst the daily exchange, promotion, and web of connections woven into the fabric of the online movement of social media specialists, yesterday I read a post by Jason Falls, on his blog the Social Media Explorer. It extolled that the social media pragmatist would prevail over the social media purist.
It is one of the most sensible commentaries I have seen in this space cluttered by the usual virtuous publishings – listen first, stop shouting, transparency, need for spontaneity and speed of action , or the big question on how to measure Social Media ROI. Why does it standout as a poignant comment when all we hear is the importance of engaging in conversations and building relationships ( they still are of pivotal importance ) ? For me it’s the action associated to doing and making an impact on the bottom line that Jason is highlighting. You have take notice of the old direct to consumer or relationship adage – “Call to Action “ – what do you want your consumers to do now? ( it is an interactive environment after all ) Buy, learn more, fulfill a service or need, or be entertained?
It’s a frenzy! After some hesitations finally almost every web user realize that the rise of social media is changing their behavior. We won’t repeat it enough: it’s not a revolution but an evolution. Social media should definitely not be treated in a separated silo but we should have a good understanding of how they influence and change all communications and marketing jobs. We should not repeat the same mistakes as at the beginning of the web, when some brands found themselves with two types of communications: an offline and an online.
Last week LABEL, in collaboration with Starfish Community Group, launched its very own Social Media Roundtable: SM@RT. This initiative aims at gathering companies’ communication, marketing and social media representatives around a table (which in fact was square and not round) to discuss actual topics concerning social media. With presentations and debates animated by social media adepts (let’s not call them gurus or experts. As one speaker said, we all learn everyday about social media so no one can pretend to be an expert), the participants have the occasion to share their opinions and experience and learn best practice methods.
As the digital shift continues to move marketing communications to more direct and dialogue driven channels companies should adopt a simple methodology in identifying what will work for them and their consumers. The dialogue idea is as unifying concept that aligns relationship or socially driven programs with other communications as a part of an integrated marketing approach. As more participatory channels for consumers are developed the need to establish consistent, non-campaign driven dialogue points becomes critical in the marketing mix. These are not just limited to the direct channels, as we know them; (CRM, DM, email, websites), but really extend across any personal contact that can be associated to the “ brand experience”; customer and consumer services, in store demonstrations, events etc.
A real world experience with a brand is only mirrored in the participatory platforms online and this mirroring reflects the sentiments it arouses in real world conversations. (more…)
n. The Twitter social networking service and the people who use it. Also: twitterverse, Twitter-verse. [Blend of Twitter and universe.]
The word Twitterverse entered the lexicon of social media in a big way in the past few months. Its appeared on NPR (National Public Radio ) in the Washington Post, spawned a blog by Emily Chang, of Ideacodes in SF and the 1st or beta edition of a Twitterverse map.
I think the map is the best and possibly the least abstract representation of a fast emerging world and was produced by Brian Solis, Principal of FutureWorks, PR and New Media agency in Silicon Valley. He released a beta version of what he calls the Twitterverse v 0.9 last week ( see Gazing into the Twitterverse). What he and partner Jess3 have produced is a spiral universe that begins to place an order to a complex set of relationships surrounding Twitter from search, communication, mobile, analytics, relationship management, advertising and events. The spiral representation seems to be like that of solar system revolving around a central star in long tendrils representing a map of tools and applications for conversation management and measurement emanating from the vortex of Twitter.
After 50 years of mass advertising have we reached such a level of cynicism that the magic of the message fails to impress unless it entertaining or funny? It is unerringly clear that as the speed and ubiquity of digital touch points grows, controlling the message has become increasingly difficult for marketers. When it comes beginning to understand the influencer landscape there a number of consumer truths that have to be reconciled to understand why this has become so important. The marketing messages in mass media, even in the most cleverly devised campaigns, seem to be dismissed by consumers as missing an element of the truth or transparency, as if too say, they have worn out their welcome.
From advertising and brand identity (brand management) to development of information technologies solutions (business intelligence), via web, multimedia & social media, LABEL delivers a fully integrated services offer.
With 60 experts based in Geneva, LABEL not only advises more than 100 customers such as Nestlé, Baume & Mercier, Tag Heuer, CIO, Swissquote, Veolia, Hayek, ..., it conceptualizes, develops and implements business solutions.
Brian Solis, l’un des auteurs de référence dans le domaine des Médias Sociaux, introduit dans son dernier livre, intitulé «Engage», le concept du SRM (Social Relationship Management). L’article qui suit s’inspire fortement d’un article lu récemment sur son blog – www.briansolis.com et que je vous recommande. […]
