Digital London

You know it’s the beginning of the year when you’re hit with an overwhelm of opinions and insights on future trends and innovation on social media, digital PR and online marketing. I still have to catch up with what happened in 2008!  January is the month whereby we’re going to look closely at what really worked and what didn’t in 2008, for both the agency and the industry at large. Then, taking a deep breath, roll out 2009. 

However, in light of the title of this blog post, I felt the urge to keep up with the current conversation and at least reflect on Econsultancy’s outlook on 2009. I attended their Online PR roundtable in December 2008, amongst a variety of people in the industry including clients / brands, PR agencies and specialists. Not many answers but at least the understanding that we are all in the same boat when it comes to a) who owns the space - social media / online PR (if anyone, as it seems all sectors within marketing are fighting for it; b) most importantly, measurement, which still stands as a combination of sentiment, level of influence, share of voice and advocacy. The findings of the report are here if you are interested in further reading - Online PR Industry Benchmarking Report.

Back to the exciting bit - challenges for 2009. As PR agencies,  we do not necessarily own the social media space, however we must define clearly what we offer in order to deliver both client and audience impact. What’s more important and raising our game is the ability by which we can measure ROI. Notwithstanding the significance behind the correct level of skilled resources. To be honest, that sums up my goals for 2009. Producing results that are consistent with clients’ objectives. In terms of technology, that’s a completely separate discussion which I need a few pages for!

Take a look at Econsultancy blog post on Social media marketing and Online PR challenges for 2009.

And another one - Peter Kim Assembles a Band for 2009 Social media predictions (with some high flyers’ predictions)

We’ve been talking for some time now (since perhaps the internet emerged) how technology is changing and perhaps even evolving how we as human beings communicate and will do so in the future.

I came across this video recently, Did you know? created by Shift Happens in 2007 (you may have seen it already) which really puts this conversation about web 2.0, the change of marketing with the rise of technological innovation in a completely broader perspective. I’m tired of doing the same social media workshop, trying to explain how this affects everyone, and in fact will use this video from now on to make the point should there be a few who still argue.  The perspective, is an enlightening one, the ‘human’ perspective. Although some detail is outdated i.e. the $100 laptop for Africans fell through, the message is clear to all of us, parents, children, educators, employees and enterprises.

My only challenge to this video is that the over-arching sentiment doesn’t entirely reflect the developing world, mainly Africa. A South African myself, only 20% of the South African population use the internet. However there is a vast comparison to mobile, where about 99% of South Africans own a mobile.  Banking facilities are available in Africa, amongst other broader marketing opportunities, which make us, the 1st world look archaic in comparison. Mostly due to leapfrog technologies, developing worlds have a greater opportunity, although seemingly unequipped!

I could go on…questioning the human race and what role we play! But for now, I’ll limit myself to the marketing and communications point of view…are we truly taking advantage of this new form of communications that truly inspires and engages with people than ever before? And if you don’t think it’s relevant to you, I would highly recommend you think again. So sit back, relax and enjoy…click here. 

Greenbang is today launching a report on some of the UK’s most impressive clean tech start-up companies.

The study reveals that some of the UK’s major innovators in this space could move offshore to attract investment.

“There is a danger that some very smart technologies could move offshore to places like the US where investors are happier to take a risk,” says Greenbang Editor Dan Ilett. “Some of the companies we selected for the index said they had to jump through hoops to get investment in the UK, particularly to grow from small to mid-size. It shows that while there is a lot of noise about around clean tech and green business, innovators in the UK are simply not getting the cash they need.

“While there are some universities and government departments helping companies, the research showed that not all companies are finding it easy to get such support. Saying that, the research highlighted some inspiring clean-tech business ideas in the UK. The range of ideas and the potential for some of these companies is astounding.”

The Greenbang Clean Tech Start-up Company Index, a snap-shot of the UK’s clean tech market, profiles young companies innovating in carbon, construction, energy, resources, technology and transport markets. It also asks how these start-ups think businesses and consumers could cut their dependency on fossil fuels.

Green innovation and business news website Greenbang produced the Index, which was sponsored by the University of Bath and PR company Hill & Knowlton.

Other major findings include:

• Getting seed capital from investors is relatively straightforward but moving products from the prototype phase is tricky
• Transparency around new technology is key to avoid greenwash
• Alternative energy technology is the way forward, people are unsure of the carbon cost
• Energy security is essential – another driver for looking at alternatives

With global temperatures and the price of fossil fuels showing no signs of cooling, a target has been set to reduce carbon dioxide emissions by between 26 – 32% by 2020 in the UK. Combined with the growing awareness of an environmentally savvy consumer, there has been an explosion in innovation, which is a crucial step forwards for the environment.

Currently the UK leads the way in tidal and wave energy research, but it could risk its current advantages to overseas enthusiasm. Aquascientific, a two-year-old company which designs tidal turbines commented on the threat, “We are focused on environmentally attractive and reliable designs which give a high return on investment. As we can see from this report, the UK is home to some great innovators in the cleantech space. However, growing overseas commitment to tidal energy in particular, means without greater funding in the UK, we are in real danger of attracting technology away from the UK.”

Political and regulatory uncertainty was found to be a risk and a deterrent for investors. High capital expenditure puts off investors even though the cost of renewable energy is falling as oil costs are rising.

Some investors have been quick to realise this. One example of success in the index is Onzo, a start-up that produces real-time energy displays.

Joel Hagan, Founder of Onzo, comments: “Scottish and Southern Energy were impressed by our products and services and placed a £7m order to secure exclusive distribution rights in the UK and Ireland. The simplicity of the design means that it can fit through a letter box for delivery and return for recycling, and has the sort of interface anyone can understand.”

Universities remain keen to help move the clean-tech industry along. Simon Bond, Director of the University of Bath Innovation Centre said, we are excited about collaborating with start-up clean tech companies - the UK has a strong research base in this sector and, with the proper support and funding, we have a real opportunity of taking this world class technology into global markets.”

Amanda Groty, Hill & Knowlton, Global Client Services Director & Vice President of Technology in EMEA, comments on how communication is vital for these innovators. ”For start-up companies in general, but especially those in a relatively ‘new’ industry like clean tech, PR and marketing is crucial. Targeted communications helps these companies raise funding, drive awareness of environmental issues, influence government regulation and supports the overall business plan for growth. Clean Tech is a priority area for H&K and we have built up considerable experience working for clients such as Better Place, BrightSource Energy, Poweo and Solar Century. It is an exciting area to be working in.”

But the question is how much does the UK want to lead in this?

It’s been all over the news…or rather, tech gurus have been talking about its release on twitter and blogs…the release of Google Chrome. It is a browser that combines a minimal design with
sophisticated technology to make the web faster, safer, and easier.

Apparently, everything you search or type is sent back to Google, and Google will make suggestions on what you are looking for in the URL.  Joe Wilcox questions the Google’s privacy issue as he read the terms and conditions and highlights a few key points you may want to consider prior to downloading.

“Your copy of Google Chrome includes one or more unique application
numbers. These numbers and information about your installation of the
browser (e.g., version number, language) will be sent to Google when
you first install and use it and when Google Chrome automatically
checks for updates. If you choose to send usage statistics and crash
reports to Google, the browser will send us this information along with
a unique application number as well.”

Apparently if Microsoft had to do this, everyone would be over it like flies!  If you’re interested in finding out more about Google Chrome, have a look at this comic book like guide.

8 September 2008 - Looks like Google made a mistake with their Terms i.e. copy and pasted their standard terms and applied it to Chrome. Thankfully, the uproar highlighted the issue and they have now downloaded it…now so am I:-)

I’m finding it increasingly interesting how more and more people within PR are starting to look at the future of digital. What’s interesting is that we are looking at what is the best way to structure digital practice within a digital agency, how to increase digital knowledge amongst all PR professionals.  The same question was posed on LinkedIn, and now I’ve picked up a few blog posts.

One that is worth a read, is Sally Falkow’s blog post titled, UK PR companies missing out on digital opportunities…”According to a survey of Britain’s 100 leading press and public relations
agencies, 79% of the industry’s major players have yet to develop a set
of online and social media services. Perhaps not surprisingly, over
half of the agencies that do offer online PR are based in London”.

The difficulty we’re finding is that not all PR professionals see the true value of digital for clients and the impact it has on deliverable results. Additionally, the client does not always understand or have the backup to support these initiatives.  I think the days of PR vs Marketing or PR vs Advertising are coming to a head as we cannot keep talking about digital PR vs online marketing…they are synonymous and should be looked at with an integrated view point by all parties.

Any suggestions or insights would be much appreciated, from both evangelists and cynics! 

Ofcom, the media and telecoms regulator released a report today, discussing the state of communciations in the UK.

“Consumers spent 429 minutes, or more than seven hours a day, watching
television, listening to radio, surfing the internet and making
fixed-line and mobile calls in 2007, compared with 423 minutes in 2002.”

FT.com reported it and mentioned although we as a nation thrive for novelty of the digital age, old habits die hard. 

Have a look here for all the detail on the FT article.
 

Lately, I’ve been quite frustrated with some of the tools we use for monitoring.  With the rise of social media and web 2.0 tools I felt the need to explore further. My aim is to ensure that our clients receive the best that there is to offer and that our research, as well as analysis are as in depth as possible. The one disadvantage to most monitoring tools, is that they are too linear.  As we are based in the UK, most of our clients are interested in either UK or European mentions. As you can imagine, it’s a hefty job and very time consuming. We have to comb the entire internet - which is global, as we all know - and filter through relevant mentions. 

I posted the question on LinkedIn and Twitter. I was not surprised to see that through LinkedIn, I received about 10 answers!  I recently stumbled upon www.silobreaker.com, and awesome trend monitoring tool. It shows networks in relation to entities as well as related topics.

I thought I’d share with you some of the recommendations:

www.andiamosystems.com
http://www.techrigy.com
www.serph.com
http://www.radian6.com 

I’ve just been introduced to VoxSwap, a great way for those who are wanting to learn a language and connect with people who can teach you.

It doesn’t matter if you are a student needing help to get better language grades, a former student who doesn’t want to let their language skills go rusty or a business person needing to speak another language for work. VoxSwap’s premise is to ensure you can talk to real people and offer one another pointers on how to excel in a language.

This is another example of the beneficial uses of social networking, an alternative to Facebook! Whereby you can actually do something useful and stimulating whilst socialising. 

To have a look and register go to http://www.voxswap.com/

To understand the role of reputation in the global War for Talent, Hill & Knowlton commissioned Penn, Schoen & Berland to conduct a survey of more than 500 students from some of the World’s leading business schools.

We wanted to understand the role of reputation in this war for talent. How important is corporate reputation in
attracting today’s brightest and best?
 
We interviewed MBA students at some of the World’s leading business schools and some very clear trends appear.

– Reputation matters, and the reputation of the company is based on far more than just its financial performance
and the quality of its products and services.

– The employee experience matters deeply. Talent is not prepared to sit and wait for the golden opportunity
of 20 years hence; they want it now.

– Values matter too - everything from ethics and corporate governance to environmental policy and social
responsibility. The reason it matters so much is that the leaders of the future have a clear understanding of the
link between reputation and financial performance. 

You can download the survey research results from our website -

http://www.hillandknowlton.com/crw.

The article posted by FT.com columnist Michael Skapinker has been a hot topic within Digital lately.

He asks the question, “How will consumers respond if they sense the companies’ hand – or that of their PR advisers – behind future campaigns?”

As a company, we work with many brands and look at innovative and creative ways of engaging with their audience. In the past our services have predominantly focused on traditional media. However, with the change in our social behaviour, which seems to rely more and more on the internet, no wonder as communications agencies we are looking at other avenues of conversation. If we weren’t, we would be out of business in the very near future.

However, I do feel that it’s more a question of where is the world of marketing leading.  How are brands adapting to this phenomenon of social media and how are we as a society communicate and influence each other? That is the real question, from there it leads us to a world of opportunity of creativity and conversation!

What I do find interesting about his article, is that here he is working within a Web 2.0 world, blogging about his opinions expressing them openly, which is great. He speaks about how brands want to control this medium, however should his readers want to send comments one needs to email them through. What happened to user-generated content and open forum of discussion?

My colleague Guy sent him an article which has not been published as yet and took it upon himself to blog about it…He is definitely a more eloquent writer than myself. Have a read…and let me know what how you feel social media is affecting the PR industry or perhaps how PR is influencing social media…