Emerging Technologies

We live in an exciting time.  Over the last 50 years technology has progressed at an astounding rate.  With the invention of the micro-chip products have become smaller and faster than ever before.  We can look in even more detail and see how social media is being affected by the advances in computer technology and how these advances are set to revolutionize the industry.

I believe the next biggest social media technology advancement lies with two products.  First it will be with Google Glass, and second it will be the development of Smart Watches.  Both of these technologies will advance social media in the direction of compactness and discreetness.

With Google Glass the opportunity to integrate social media and the internet into your daily life is greater than ever.  With Glass users will basically be able to have a heads up display with them at all times.  It will allow users to get updates on weather, record video, and take pictures among other things.  The social media aspect to this technology is the integration of social media sites, like Twitter and Facebook, to post the pictures and videos you’ve taken.

You might be wondering what is revolutionary about this product.  I mean we can already do that with a smartphone after all.  Well the advantage with glass is that it offers a fluid user perspective.  You don’t have to take your phone out and the pictures and video go directly to your preferred social media site.  Glass has an opportunity here to bring the world even closer together.  People can see angles of life that they may have never seen before, as seen here.

Smart Watches also have an opportunity to make social media more fluid and user friendly.  Like Google Glass it would allow users to receive updates and content from their preferred websites and social media sites discreetly.  This technology at the moment isn’t at a super viable point yet however.  Battery life, number of apps, and a potential user base are all lacking.  But the technology is still in its infancy and has the potential to become a heavy hitter in the tech world.

Emerging technologies are all around us.  At one time the smartphone in your pocket was an emerging technology as well.  Like most products they will have a few flaws in the beginning.  But with enough time and backing they can revolutionize the industry.

Hootsuite Reflection

Over the course of the past few months I have had the opportunity to use a social media program called Hootsuite.  Hootsuite is an online tool that allows users to organize and track different aspects of social media.  For example I am able to track certain keywords or hashtags on separate streams at once.  This allows users to keep things organized for both personal and business uses.

Hootsuite University is an online educational tool that is part of the Hootsuite Pro package.  After paying a fee users have access to videos and lessons on how to use Hootsuite effectively and to integrate it into their business.  After doing several examinations a user can become Hootsuite Certified.  Luckily for my classmates and me we were able to participate in this program free of charge because of being part of the class.  This was the first time I have taken an online course, even though it wasn’t an official college course program.

The Hootsuite University Certification program consists of taking six courses with an exam and finishing by taking the Professional exam.  The first six courses are themed about different social media sites, their uses, and how Hootsuite can be integrated with them and your business.  These lessons consist of watching several different videos.  These videos are very well done.  They are easy to understand and are delivered in small parts to make it easier to watch a few at a time so you don’t get bored too quickly.  After watching these videos you take an exam over them.  You can’t pass an exam unless you get a 90 or 95 percent on them, so passing can sometimes be a bit difficult but with enough effort you can do it.  The final professional exam incorporates all the things you would learn from the other lessons and is much longer than the other exams.

The first two lessons I found were the simplest, but also the ones that most people would find the most useful.  The first lesson was an introduction of the different social media sites.  They covered Facebook, Twitter, Google+, and LinkedIn.  While I was already pretty familiar with Facebook and Twitter the other sites were basically new to me.  I felt that the video lessons did a good job explaining all the basic functions of the sites and their purposes.

The second lesson was on social media etiquette.  This is something that I believe every user of social media should be required to take.  It gets quite annoying when I see a tweet that consists of nothing but hash tags.  Or the same Facebook post five times on the same day from some company page that I liked.  Social media etiquette was a lesson that I enjoyed and found to be the most useful in my day to day personal life.

The Hootsuite University program covered a lot of ground, mainly focusing on using social media effectively and learning the different functions that they have.  One thing I wish they had though was a lesson on developing a social media strategy.  I felt that most of the lessons were explaining parts that would be useful in executing a social media strategy, but there was never a focused lesson on actually developing and implement the plan.  Having a lesson on social media strategy and planning would go a long way in making the overall experience more fulfilling and practical for a business to have their employees participate in the program.

After going through the program the biggest thing I have taken away from the program is how to effectively integrate social media into a business model.  My future career path will involve social media in business so having some educational background in that area. I am sure that not only what Hootsuite University has taught me about the different social media sites but also about social media analytics and the importance of organizing social media using online tools like Hootsuite will also come in handy.

On a more personal level I feel that Hootsuite University has taught me some things, but some I already knew about.  The sections covering Facebook and Twitter for example I had already known for the most part.  However the section covering Facebook from an administrator’s perspective was certainly a view of Facebook that I hadn’t seen before.  Also learning the different tactics and methods to become an effective social media communicator were certainly invaluable lessons.

The biggest thing that Hootsuite has taught me is just how much there is to social media.  Before I started I didn’t really think much of social media.  To me they were just something that I could get my news from and I didn’t interact very much at all.  I very rarely posted things of any value when I did post.  Now however I am more engaged than ever before.  I see that social media is a more than a tool to share pictures of your breakfast.  Rather Hootsuite has shown me how social media can be used to have an impact on people’s day to day lives when used appropriately.

Hootsuite University was a great experience for my first online course.  While in the beginning it lagged a little bit because it was too easy, it quickly came to a point where I learned valuable skills to become a more effective communicator using social media.  The Hootsuite tool is also something that I can see myself using even after the course is over and move onto my professional career.  I highly recommend communication professionals to try it out and become Hootsuite certified.

 

 

The Plague of Fanboyism

I’ve stated before, but I am an avid video game player who should probably cut back on the Grand Theft Auto and put more effort in studying, but choices have to be made.  Right?  Well whether you know or not today is the release of the highly anticipated Playstation 4 (PS4) from Sony.  Next week the equally anticipated XBox One (XB1) will also be released by Microsoft.  If you were to visit online forums you can see that gamers worldwide have taken sides and have gone on a virtual war with each other.  Should the companies behind the brands step in and try to bring about peace in this online war?

From the outside looking in it looks ridiculous.  Here are two groups who have pledged loyalty to a brand that they feel superior and have placed themselves in a throne of superiority above equally enthusiastic gamers on the other side.  Normally you only see this level of loyalty with fans of sports teams.  In fact it is this brand loyalty that companies, like Microsoft and Sony rely on in making their products a success.

These fans are what we know as early adopters.  These adopters are the first ones in line at midnight to buy the newest release.  They provide the first sign to a company on how popular their product might be.  These fans are also more likely to submit favorable product reviews online so later adopters can get a feel on the quality of a product.  In fact the companies behind these brands encourage this level of product involvement because in studies it has been shown that consumers overwhelmingly trust user reviews of products than the company itself.

We can also say that Sony and Microsoft rely on these people as a form of free advertising of sorts.  These people are the ones that will be retweeting every Microsoft tweet, or blogging about their latest experience with the PS4 and praising Sony.  Through this method these companies have to make less of an effort to get a message across than what they had to do 10 to 15 years ago.  We can see that social media has made fanboyism a game changer in the realm of companies interacting with their rabid fanbase of consumers.

While fanboyism is certainly a topic that needs to be addressed as the things being said are becoming more vitriolic and threatening, we can also see why companies might be hesitant in speaking out too much against them.  Brand loyalty is a precious commodity and it would be idiotic of a company to throw away such a precious resource.

 

 

 

 

Crisis Communication

One of the main pillars of business communication is crisis communication.  This is the way a business or organization responds to a crisis situation.  This can be anything from a scandal within the company or organization, to a product malfunction.  The way the organization responds to the crisis is important in maintaining its image and could even prevent the potential loss of profit.

So what should an organization do in order to have an effective crisis communication strategy?

Well first things first they should send out a response.  For example, if the company is being investigated for something one of the employees has done then a response of “No comment” will not suffice.  Rather saying something like “We are investigating this matter fully and are still coming to reach a conclusion” is a much better response.  It let’s the public know that you are not removed and actually working towards a solution.  This also allows you to gather up all the facts in a timely and effective manner before releasing an official press release addressing whatever the issue may be.

It’s also important to not stay silent after your initial press release.  Incremental updates to the public shows that you are working toward a conclusion and not hoping that the issue will be swept under the rug in a couple months.  It is important to make sure that you are the good guy in this situation, not the evil villain.

Finally, probably the most important thing you should do in a crisis situation is to make it up to those who are the victims.  Show compassion to people who have been taken advantage of and follow through with your promises of help and relief.  Don’t go back on your word and ignore cries of help.  Make sure to show the human side of your organization or else the people will be against you and your image is irreversibly mangled.

So there are some quick points on what to do in a crisis communication situation.  It is important to make sure that your organization is seen as being calm and handling the situation in an orderly manner.  Making your organization show compassion to those who are suffering is a great way of improving your image in a situation that would normally damage it.  I hope that these points are taken to heart for they could really mean the difference in a company surviving through a crisis.

Guest Lecture 11/8

The guest lecture today in my Social Media class was held via Skype with Lizelle Lauron (@letstelllizelle).  She is the Social Media Coordinator for the professional basketball team Dallas Mavericks.  She is also a University of Louisville graduate and had taken the same class I am in currently last spring.

Her job as Social Media Coordinator entails many things.  She organizes and monitors all of the official social media accounts of the Dallas Mavericks from different social media platforms.  These accounts range from the basketball team, the cheerleaders/dancers, and more.  She also has to monitor the different social media platforms to measure the public’s feelings about the team.

Her job also involves heavily fan interaction.  She organizes for prizes and giveaways on multiple accounts.  Fan interaction is an important part of a team’s image so it can be considered a vital job that she is performing.  Of course that means that she has to deal with some of the downsides of an online environment, which in this case is mostly trolls and the occasional stalker fan.  While the majority of fans are perfectly decent human beings who are enthusiastic about their favorite sports teams, occasionally one of these fans can cross some boundaries.  Her job is to take care of any problems that may arise with these people online.

It was really interesting to hear about the different social media tools that she uses in her job because they are some of the same tools that i have been using.  For example she says one of her more vital tools is TweetDeck.  This Twitter dashboard is used to help in the monitoring of multiple search keywords, hashtags, and accounts.You can monitor and manage an unlimited amount of accounts, which is vital in a job, like Miss Lauron’s, where you have multiple accounts you are in charge of.  I have mainly used it to monitor multiple hashtags at a time, so I can see from first-hand experience how useful it can be.

I really enjoyed this guest lecture.  The job of Social Media Coordinator is something I am really interested in doing in the future so having someone with first hand experience was really welcoming.  Also the fact that she has only been doing it for a few months made it more easier to relate to her.  I look forward to seeing what she will be doing on social media for the Mavericks in the future.

Hootsuite 2

As of right now I am about three quarters of the way through the Hootsuite University program.  There are two more small exams and then the final exam until I can become Hootsuite certified.  I have to say that I have been enjoying them so far.

The videos have been very informative.  The Do’s and Dont’s of Social Media Etiquette has been my favorite so far.  I feel like those videos are something that anyone who uses social media should see.  I have seen way too many “Dont’s” from that list on my friends’ pages and streams.  You would think some of the things mentioned in there, like using way too many hashtags, would be common sense on the internet 101.  Unfortunately not all people can understand why that would be annoying.

I also really liked the sections on applying social media to an organization. I had never really saw what the administrators of different pages would see when they opened up their Google+ and Facebook pages.  Since I am wanting my future career to involve using social media for public relations, it is helpful to learn about how to use the tools and special features that the administrators and moderators have on these sites.

I am hoping that I will finish the certification process within the next couple of weeks.  It heavily depends on the work load that my other classes will have on my, but I don’t think it will be too difficult to find some time.  So look forward to the next Hootsuite related post to be one about finally finishing it.

Guest Speaker 11/1/13

Today in my Social Media Communications class we had a terrific guest speaker talk for the class.  Communicating via Skype from Phoenix, Arizona Dennis Yu discussed the way Facebook is at the front of effective advertisements in social media.  The conversation offered a small glimpse into the application of data for targeted advertising, data that is easily obtainable for anyone.

First off Dennis Yu is the founder of Blitzmetrics, a social media dashboard company that allows for data from multiple social media sources to be displayed efficiently and effectively.  Like other dashboards out there the goal of the dashboard is to allow companies and businesses to track public opinion on any subject and also makes it easy for the companies to tell what content is the most effective at getting a good reaction on social media.  Tools like what Blitzmetrics offers are integral if a business or company wants to have an effective social media influence.

One of the more intriguing things he showed us was what you could do to find more information about specific users on Facebook.  For example he showed us how if you simply add “graph.” before facebook.com and then followed by a user’s name or id number you can see information about that user.  You can see mine here.  This is a feature that anyone can use for free.  It enables data to be easily interpreted so you don’t have to go hunting down for all the details.  It’s all in one easy to find place for you.

Another really really neat feature he showed us is the lesser known feature on Facebook which is the ability to use the search function and be able to filter out generic searches.  Normally you can simply type in a name of a person or organization and if they have a page they will show up.  The lesser known feature is that you can put in more generic search terms and filter out the results.  For example I can type in “friends of Devin Broell who like Ice Skating”.  This search will produce results that fit the criteria put in.  You can see an example of this here.

Yu’s guest lecture was really thought provoking as it showed me how there are all these free tools out there that can easily be used towards an advertising advantage.  It was great to hear from someone who is a major professional in the industry.

All Your Social Media Are Belong to Us!

I have a not so secret confession to make.  I’m a video game nerd.  That’s right.  I can spend hours talking about Bioshock lore and philosophy, or spend the night inside plugging noobs in the latest Call of Duty.  You can keep your outdoor activities and socializing, I’ve got a (virtual) universe to save.

However something is happening.  The “real” world is coming into my proving grounds.

You see as online gaming has become more and more popular over the years, the introduction of social media integration has gradually come about.  Right now the presence is small.  For example if I am playing my XBox and I unlock an achievement (a reward with points attached to it) I have the option to “share” it with my Facebook followers.  It’s honestly a bit of a cumbersome task at the moment because of the multiple menus I would have to go through just to share it, so I hardly bother with it at all.  But with the advent of the next generation of gaming consoles set to release next month, it seems social media is becoming more important than ever before.

Take the Playstation 4 for example.  In a couple weeks when this console is released, the users will have the option to press a button on their controller, called the “Share” button, and immediately be able to send a post to their Facebook account that could share what they are doing at that moment.  Things like a lap time in a racing game, a newly unlocked trophy, or a call out for people to get online and play with the user are all available with the push of the button.  More info here.

What about the XBox One, the PS4’s main competitor?  While it won’t have a button specifically designated to sharing, it will be able to have Facebook and Twitter integration as well as investing heavily in video sharing.  First the One will have a game DVR that will allow you to record video of you playing and being able to post those videos to your YouTube channel.  Microsoft (the makers of the XBox One) is also partnering up with twitch.tv. Twitch.tv is a live streaming video service used by gamers.  Gamers can live stream themselves playing and interact with an online audience.  This is a powerful social interaction tool that is sure to be utilized heavily by the gaming community.

The gaming industry has come a long way in the last 20 years.  The stereotype of the basement dwelling gamer is being rewritten in favor of a more mature and educated image.  These social media tools being integrated are a great way for the industry to make the next step in immersive technology.

Edit:  Hopefully this will help explain the what the title is referencing.

Social Media Monitoring

I have talked about social media before, and at some length.  Now I’d like to talk about how companies can use social media effectively to focus their product message for the consumer.  By monitoring social media using online tools, they can better see how their image is seen by the public.

These online tools are more than just seeing what your most re-tweeted tweet was, or most liked post on Facebook.  Take Bottlenose for example.  Bottlenose is capable of monitoring brand health, track trends, compare brands, and even give you live-audience insights.  The goal of Bottlenose is to give the users the ability to take advantage of all this raw data like never before.  It’s a great example of how far we have come when it comes to audience awareness for companies.

Before the more traditional manner of gathering data would involve audience surveys.  While this can give you precise data, it was also more time consuming and costly for the company.  With social media monitoring, it’s like you already have a survey up.  The peoples’ natural reaction to your actions and words is the survey itself.  This means that you can have more immediate reaction to the data.

For example let’s say you are in a crisis situation, the CEO of your company made a politically incorrect comment.  If you were to go with traditional data gathering methods (i.e. surveys) then you wouldn’t be able to move in response until enough data has been gathered. With modern social media monitoring the data is gathered almost instantaneous.  The company can then respond in a more timely fashion.

Social Media Monitoring is undoubtedly going to become more and more important.  It will go hand in hand with the growth of social media, which already has a multi-billion person user base.  It is truly amazing at the speed and accuracy one can gather data nowadays.

Washington: The Indispensable Man

This will be my first book review for this blog (and also the first one I’ll have done by choice and not forced by school mandate).  That being said I would have never thought I would do a review of a biography as my first book review.

Washington: The Indispensable Man by James T. Flexner is a biography of the United States first president George Washington.  Flexner takes you through some of Washington’s early years before starting off on his early military career fighting for the British.  It then goes into the meat of the book which is all about Washington as the commander-in-chief of the Continental Army and as the President of the United States.

Going into this book I expected a very dry account of Washington’s life.  I was expecting yet another academically worded account of history that wouldn’t entertain me in the slightest.  I was pleasantly surprised that this was not the case.  Flexner does a terrific job of making his book easy and accessible at an uncomplicated reading level.  He explains the battle tactics during the Revolution, and the politicking that had to be done during Washington’s presidency in a way that was easy to grasp and understand.

Flexner also does a good job of talking about both the private and public versions of Washington.  While most of us today idolize Washington and even put him up to mythic status in our history, Flexner is able to humanize Washington.  He doesn’t shy away from talking about Washington’s faults and military failures.  He even talks about how Washington was even blind to the bitter hatred that existed between his Secretary of State Thomas Jefferson, and his Secretary of Treasury Alexander Hamilton.  This feud between the two made them bitter enemies and leaders of the two main political viewpoints of early United States history.

Washington: The Indispensable Man is a well rounded biography of George Washington.  While it could have provided a bit more detail on certain Revolutionary battles and legislation passed during his presidency, it does provide plenty of detail for the reader to become much more knowledgeable of early American history.  I highly recommend it.