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January 28, 2010

foursquare, my new favorite game on the social media playground

I had a sad realization in the past few weeks…I’m slowly growing tired of twitter. It’s been four years since I became @chelbycat. It’ s been a great four years on twitter, but the shiny newness has worn off. Enter foursquare. I signed up for an account earlier this morning, and I’m already addicted. It’s fresh and exciting and intrinsically intuitive to those of us used to being on twitter.

foursquare is a location-based mobile social network that allows users to “check in” at their favorite hangouts–restaurants, bars, stores, etc. Using an app for your mobile phone or sms, foursquare determines your location and posts the check in to your profile as well as to twitter and facebook. Each time you check in, you can offer a tip: I’m @ Food Dudes – Thursday nights are the best dollar tacos in obx. It’s a little bit like Yelp meets twitter, in the sense that you are providing a tweet-sized review of an establishment. Once you’ve checked in, you can see who else is nearby. You can also use foursquare to see where your friends have checked in and keep track of places you’d like to visit.

Add to this the game aspect that each time you check in you earn points towards badges. I’ve earned my “Newbie” badge (so will you when you join and check in for the first time). If you check into a place more than anyone else, you become the Mayor (until someone else tops you). The gang at foursquare knows just how to stroke an early adopter’s ego!

I’ve only checked in twice now (work and Starbucks) and already I love it. I’ll post more as I get using and enjoying foursquare. For now, I’m already seeing tons of opportunity for marketing and public relations. I’ll be including foursquare my social media plans for clients. As the site explains, foursquare is a great way to run a customer loyalty program. By offering coupons and giveaways to your establishment’s Mayor, you encourage customers to check in and tell their friends what they like about your place. By encouraging customers to check in, you can get the equivalent of “word-of-mouth” exposure for your business. And, I can imagine as they monetize the site, there will be lots of room for advertising.

If you sign up, please friend me: foursquare.com/user/chelbycat


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Posted in Social networking, Twitter, Uncategorized, Web/Tech | 1 Comment »

January 1, 2010

Tech and social media New Year’s resolutions

With the holiday hustle bustle, I have gotten completely behind on being productive online. Aside from shopping, I haven’t had much time to network, stay updated on the latest tech trends or share content online (updating this blog or my Tumblr, for example). So, I’ve made some resolutions to help me be more productive online as well as some overall tech resolutions that are just good practice. Here’s what I’ve come up with.

1. I will get a handle on my e-mails. Personally, I hate dealing with e-mail. I would prefer friends to Facebook me, everyone else out there to tweet me and subscribe to RSS feeds rather than e-mail newsletters. Still, everyone uses e-mail, which means I need to be better at handling the inbox influx. I remember when I was in graduate school at Syracuse University, my professor Brenda Wrigley guaranteed to her students that if you e-mailed her, she would respond within 24 hours. In my eyes, that made her amazing. Just think, she was making everyone happy while at the same time, never getting behind on her e-mails. I’m going to follow her example. The trick is, keeping your responses short. I like the three.sentenc.es idea of treating your e-mails like sms messages or tweets and limiting them to only three sentences. That would seem to work well, especially if you are checking e-mail on your phone. I’ll experiment and let you know how it goes. I also plan to unsubscribe to unnecessary e-newsletters and notifications.

2. I will share create and share good content on a regular basis. With all the time I’m saving by not writing long e-mails, I’ll be able to spend more time sharing content and updating my Web site, blogs, Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, YouTube, Vimeo, etc. It’s takes a lot of commitment to have a blog and create content. Admittedly, I end up doing that more for my clients and neglecting my own blog. This is a tough one…just gotta find more time.

3. I will use Twitter lists. Twitter lists allow you to create your own categories of the people you follow. What a great way to manage Twitter, especially if you are following thousands of people. I haven’t taken full advantage of this feature. But I know if I max it out, it’s gonna be another time saver!

4. I will clean up my hard drive, back up regularly and run updates. This is nothing new, and it’s so simple. Yet, I always give everything else priority. I remember when my iBook hard drive failed a few years ago, I vowed never again to be left in a lurch without a back up. But I honestly can’t say that I’ve backed up regularly. In fact, I have turned off scheduled back ups and updates many times because they’ve gotten in the way when I had something timely to work on. Very bad!

5. I’ll review,  update and reorganize my RSS feeds for blogs and podcasts I consume. My feeds have gotten out of control. I remember the time when I was addicted to my Google Reader. Now, I can’t find the blogs I want to scan each morning because I haven’t kept up by categorizing them with folders. So I’ve abandoned my feeds for the most part, which causes me to miss out on so much information. Time to get organized.

These are my tech resolutions for 2010. Wish me luck, I’ll need it. I hope these will inspire you to make resolutions of your own. Happy New Year and all the best in 2010!


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Posted in Twitter, Web/Tech | No Comments »

November 2, 2009

Getting started in the social media space with GumdropLane.com

Reina Communications is helping Gumdrop Lane step up its social media marketing efforts. Gumdrop Lane is an online children’s clothing boutique, somewhat new to the social space. Here are some tips I offered Gumdrop Lane to get social. Hope they help you as well. Also, please check out Gumpdrop Lane’s twitter and facebook pages as well as their new blog. Let us know what you think!

  • People should tweet, not businesses. Twitter is about personal communication. Consumers know there is a person behind each business, and we want to see who they are. While you are representing a brand, tweet about personal experiences — those experiences are what make your business unique! Just make sure the people representing your business have fun personalities and you can trust them to represent your brand.
  • Share information and promote interesting finds, even if it doesn’t directly relate to what you’re selling. You want to be an information resource for your customers. Read other blogs and seek information your customers would seek. If you see something that would be helpful for them, blog about it or retweet it without the expectation of sales in return. You’re building a relationship, and that’s a two-way street.
  • Don’t underestimate the power of blogs. Good bloggers know their audiences and can recognize when your products or services are a good fit for their readers. Word-of-mouth advertising can be as effective as Google Adwords in gaining exposure for your business. Identify the influential bloggers in your market and use sites like Alexa to see what kind of traffic they get. Bloggers love hosting giveaways for your products, but if you have limited resources, you need to be sure you offer products to the most influential blogs first.

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Posted in Best Practices, PR Strategy, PR Tactics, Twitter, Web/Tech | No Comments »

October 15, 2009

Planning New Media Conventions for April 2010

I’m excited to announce I have joined the New Media Conventions team and plans are in the works for another social media conference in Hampton Roads for April 2010. I was privileged to be a speaker on “The Role of Public Relations in Social Media” and attend their first event in September at the Cavalier Golf and Yacht Club in Virginia Beach. The next New Media Conventions is going to be even bigger, and I’m looking forward to planning the program with many talented, social media savvy professionals from throughout Hampton Roads.  We’re going to put Virginia Beach on the social media map!  Be sure to follow @NewMediaConv on Twitter as well as the hashtag for the next event, #NMC10. Also, check out the New Media Conventions blog for more information as plans for the big day are announced.


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Posted in New Media Conventions, Presentations, Web/Tech | No Comments »

March 9, 2009

Twittles: Taste the social marketing rainbow

I’m loving the new Skittles Web site. Launched last week, it’s simply a rotating look at the live Skittles entries on social media sites, such as Flickr, Wikipedia and Twitter. It certainly generated a lot of buzz for Skittles in the last week on Twitter. With a completely user-generated website, Skittles gets kudos for learning how to relinquish control. Continue Reading…


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September 22, 2008

Don’t forget about podcasts

I’ve been reading the book Groundswell by Forrester Research associates Charlene Li and Josh Bernoff. The authors point out that podcasting has yet to catch on compared with other forms of social media, citing only 11 percent of Americans online listen to podcasts.

I’m not sure why this is, especially because podcasting is one of my favorite forms of social media. I listen to at least ten weekly podcasts and many more on a less frequent basis. I think podcasts offer an efficient way to stay informed and consume content when you have a busy lifestyle. I love to listen to podcasts while I’m driving to work, cooking, cleaning or working.

So, here’s a quick 101 on podcasts and how to make the most of them.

What is a podcast?
A podcast is audio content that listeners download and play back on a computer or portable device. Podcasts differ from traditional broadcasts and other online media (e.g., streaming, webcasts) because podcasts are available by RSS subscription. Podcasts can be audio or audiovisual files (the latter referred to as video podcasts).

What makes podcasts unique?
While podcasting has a lot in common with other audio media, it possesses unique characteristics that set it apart from other types of digital audio:

Timeshifting -Timeshifting describes a scenario where content can be played back at the user’s convenience. Time shifting allows podcast consumers to listen to programs on their own schedules.

Portability- Files can be played on-the-go with a portable media player. Take it with you, wherever, whenever.

Niche programming – Users have more choices and can opt for programming suited to their individual preferences. This means podcasts are most effective in reaching those already interested in a particular topic.

Easy to create – To produce a podcast, one only needs to have a computer and microphone, software to record and edit files, access to a Web server for storing audio files, and access to a Web site that will post the files for subscribers to download.

No rules (yet)
Podcasting is currently unregulated. Podcasters are free to speak their minds in “shock jock” fashion without concern of an FCC response.

How do you listen?
Podcatchers, such as iTunes, are RSS aggregators of podcasts that distribute content to subscribers. To subscribe to a podcast, search the thousands available in iTunes and click “subscribe.” Easy enough. Really! And, most are free.

In conclusion, practitioners should not only consider listening to and developing podcasts, we also should communicate with podcasters as members of the media. Podcasting’s niche programming offers communications professionals targeted reach and distribution. Get familiar with podcasts and don’t overlook them as part of your social media strategy.


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September 4, 2008

Back to basics: What is Web 2.0?

Since this is a blog for PR practitioners learning the ins and outs of new media, I thought it would be a good idea to go back to the basics and explain exactly what constitutes Web 2.0. This also is in response to a request from my friends at the City of Virginia Beach.

Whatisweb20

There are many different terms for the concept of Web 2.0: social media, new media, the new Web, on and on. Whatever we call it, Web 2.0 can be narrowed down to five basic characteristics. This is my simplification of O’Reilly’s definition combined with several other definitions referenced in my capstone project. A Web 2.0 service embodies the following:

RSS
The backbone of Web 2.0 is RSS (Really Simple Syndication), which enables users to be updated automatically whenever there is a change in content. RSS feeds are sent directly to the end user whenever there is an update to a Web site, blog, podcast, widget, etc. I find many practitioners are confused about this aspect of Web 2.0. For example, RSS technology is the essential difference between a blog and a regular Web site. Just because you post a daily entry to a Web page does not make it a blog. A blog is not a blog unless there is a feed readers can subscribe to. The same is true for a podcast. An mp3 file offered on a Web site is not a podcast, even if you can play it on your portable device. There must be an RSS feed for it to be considered a podcast.

Collaboration
Community is key to Web 2.0. Web 2.0 services are designed to harness the value of collaboration among users. Consider Wikipedia as the perfect example of crowdsourcing, or what Tapscott and Williams call “wikinomics.” Wikipedia has only a handful of employees. Without the collaborative effort of its users, Wikipedia would not be a comprehensive, up-to-date source for information. This collaboration is seen in all types of Web 2.0 applications, but especially in wikis, tagging and mashups. Collaboration also comes into play with blogs and podcasts when users are encouraged to leave comments and participate in the discussion.

Open platform
Without getting technical (because I am not that geeky), Web 2.0 services are designed in a way that content can be shared and used in a variety of formats. There is a shift in how developers control content and information. Because collaboration is valued, Web services are designed in a way that others can improve the service with additional coding and data. Twitter offers a great example. There are hundreds of tools developed for use with Twitter that are user generated. Another example is Google Maps, which can be found on many Web sites mashed up with other databases.

Online social networks
Again, it’s all about community. Online social networks are online meeting places where users interact, create, post and share content. Social networks have two distinct purposes: they can connect people online who already have an offline affiliation or they can connect strangers
who find each other online through similar interests. The latter is what makes Web 2.0 different than other forms of mass media.

Multiple devices
Web 2.0 is not limited to computers and laptops. Web 2.0 services must be formated to work on a variety of devices, including TVs, mobile phones, ipods and other portable media players and wireless devices. Users want the freedom to chose how, when and through what device they will access a Web 2.0 service.


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August 13, 2008

Think beyond blogs and podcasts, mashups deliver breaking news

I thought I would share my favorite way of keeping up with the Olympic medal count and event results.Google Map’s Olympics mashup offers the most convenient live coverage of events.

I love this service because it’s quick, comprehensive and fun. Even better, it’s offered in a variety of formats. For example, I selected it as a widget in iGoogle and embedded it on my Tumblr site (and here as well).

A mashup takes advantage of Web 2.0′s open platform. In other words, the backend architecture of Web 2.0 is such that two services with two separate databases (in this case Google Maps and Olympic results) can be combined to provide an enhanced user experience. This can only occur when the independent services are open to collaboration.

This also illustrates how Web 2.0 can offer breaking news and information. Often people only think of blogs and podcasts as news media, but the Web offers much more. Mashups and widgets can be just as effective in disseminating information.


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July 2, 2008

Different uses and gratifications of Facebook

Facebook is enjoying tremendous growth, now up to 80 million users and adding 250,000 new ones each day. Many of these users are older than the college students the platform originally was designed for. As Facebook becomes a more diverse community, users have different uses and gratifications for belonging to the online social network.

I personally use Facebook for many of the same reasons it was originally intended: to keep in touch with friends and share content with them. Still, I’ve noticed others use it to network professionally. Often, I receive friend requests from these users and am uncertain how to handle them, given that my uses and gratifications of Facebook are much different. I have no desire in being in touch on Facebook with colleagues I have a strictly professional relationship with. I recently agreed to participate in a panel discussion for a conference through a Facebook contact, around the same time I posted photos from my Sex and the City cosmopolitan party. For me, that’s a bit awkward. While I was happy to have made the contact and benefited from the networking, I felt much more comfortable once our conversation moved to e-mail.

The local PRSA chapter I belong to has created a Facebook group and intends to use Facebook to communicate with members. While I can join the group and still have the option to keep my profile and photos set to friends only, this function does not fit into my uses and gratifications for the service. I’m wondering how many others like me are out there? I prefer to keep Facebook for personal use and LinkedIn for professional use. Certainly, I can’t be the only one who doesn’t want to mix business with pleasure. And if there are more of us, will we all end up fleeing to Bebo or some new platform as the professionals encroach?


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May 5, 2008

Clear skies for cloud computing

As we are getting to understand the implications of Web 2.0 for public relations, it’s important to look ahead at trends on the horizon. A concept that has generated a lot of buzz in the last year is cloud computing.

Cloud computing refers to a data infrastructure where software and services are hosted on the Internet, rather than on a computer. Simply put, most of us currently use software that resides on our computers. With cloud computing, we would access these same types of applications through a Web browser. An early example of cloud computing is Google Docs, a free Web-based word processing and spreadsheet service similar to Microsoft Office.

Cloud technology, also referred to as “software as a service” or “SaaS,” is backed by the biggest names in the technology industry — Google, IBM, Microsoft and Amazon, to name a few. To learn more about cloud computing, check out this New York Times article.


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