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Archive for 2010

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You career is only a piece of the pie

In marketing, media on March 7, 2010 at 10:51 pm

“Your life is a pie,” told me at a networking event today a Mount Holyoke alumna currently working for Nielson Media Research. One share of it is your family life, another one is your personal health, a third one is your career. And while you can make each piece bigger or smaller, your pie’s size will remain the same.

Currently working for Nielson and pursuing her part-time MBA, the alumna has mastered the skill of multitasking. Being able to switch between projects, she noted, has become a powerful tool in every industry. After all, it is the skill that enables you to relish each piece of the pie.

Coming from a sales and marketing background, the alumna first talked to me about current pressures the advertising industry is facing. Measuring return on investment in TV advertising, for instance, remains an unknown variable.

Yet, the industry is opening for innovation in other fields, such as internet and mobile marketing. The alumna was intrigued by the changes taking place in the media landscape and said she looked forward to seeing the next big thing that will attract advertisers.

While her passion for marketing fills the career share of her cake, it hasn’t dwarfed the other aspects of her life. Working out in the gym and cooking, she noted, are also important for one’s health. Spending time with family and friends deserves a big share of the pie, too.

But there is only so much space in the pie. So you’d better become a good multitasker.

Photo credit: cobalt123

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Pair the right media with the right message

In media, social media on March 6, 2010 at 10:48 pm

When youth unite to bring social change in their communities, it feels like spring is coming. You see a new life rising from the hard land to blossom into florets of fresh ideas. Today, spring came at the Youth Media Summit in South Hadley.

One of the workshops at the Summit showed a movie of unprivileged youth from Bronx, NY advocate for their rights to high-qualtiy education resources. The students are demanding a good home for their loved school, the Leadership Institute. Naturally, media strategies play a critical role in their initiative.

Juan Antigua, the workshop’s facilitator and also a member of the youth advocacy group, explained the importance of pairing the right media with the right message. Media should be used in accordance to one’s specific goals, not just dumped in the public sphere.

“What type of media strategies to use for specific issues?” Juan asked, pointing to a list of opportunities—press releases, blogging, social networking sites, films, music, art. For recruiting purposes, for instance, social media lends itself an effective platform to organize youth. Popular blogs, on the other hand, tend to capture the attention of local media. Longer video projects will connect the specific community with a wider network of organizations with similar goals and interests.

Ultimately, multiple media channels complement one another and thrive in an ecosystem. That is why executing them in isolation cannot bring sustainable change.

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Professionals play well with everyone

In communication, professionalism on February 25, 2010 at 7:47 pm

In my tennis class today, the coach said that professionals can play a good game with everyone—strong and weak partners. “It means you are in control of the ball,” he said.

As soon as he shared this piece of advice, my mind drifted away from the tennis court to test my coach’s words against different social situations. I smiled at the realization that his advice was not tennis-specific, but a life lesson.

In tennis, you hit the ball with partners whose levels of experience differ. Those who have played tennis as kids are good at the game and confident in their positions. Others, with little experience, are less comfortable with their grips and more insecure about themselves. As playing with partners at your own level might be a rare opportunity, you should learn to make the most of every game.

Similarly, life meets you with people who share your academic and professional backgrounds and others who are less in sync with your approach. To successfully communicate with all, you have to make your conversation partners equally comfortable in your company. As my coach said, you should be “in control of the ball.”

Communication is not about picking and choosing partners who you inherently get along with. It is about being in control of the conversation and making it equally enjoyable for all.

Photo credit: David H-W (Extrajection)

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Be transparency-driven, not ideology-free

In journalism, media on February 19, 2010 at 7:02 pm

Imagine you are a newspaper reporter who just got assigned a story. You put your journalism hat on and start doing research, interviewing sources and taking notes. Your focus sharpens as you pick and choose from the information you have gathered. So how objective can you really be in your reporting?

To author ideology-free reporting, one has to be completely removed from personal values. Ideology isn’t just about politics—it also reflects one’s traditions, beliefs and social experiences. Despite efforts to achieve complete objectivity, one will inevitably project certain ideologies in one’s creative work.

“Transparency is the new objectivity,” said David Weinberger in 2009. He introduced this notion as a juxtaposition to early 20th-century journalism’s obsession with objectivity.

Media carry the values of people who create or influence them. As Edward S. Herman and Noam Chomsky pointed out in The Propaganda Model of News, media reflect the “economic and ideological conditions in which news is produced.”

The information reaching audiences might serve the interests of certain parties, such as media owners, reporters, sponsors, sources and public figures. If a charitable foundation for women empowerment funds a newspaper, for instance, it will most likely demand coverage that reflects its goals. Thus, media can never be completely objective or free from ideology.

Instead of developing an obsession with the notion of objectivity, media should encourage transparency. Audiences will become more empowered to build educated opinions about the information they are receiving if they can openly see its sources. Some online newspapers like the non-profit Texas Tribune, for instance, make publicly available a list of their founding donors.

Being open and transparent about the ideologies of owners, advertisers, sources and political figures involved in the production of media can better serve the public interest. At the very least, it will demonstrate trust in the judgment of readers.

Photo credit: gromgull

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Expecting parents to become tech-savvy as kids: fair or not?

In new media technologies on February 11, 2010 at 2:30 pm

Since my mom joined Skype our long-distance conversations shifted from me discussing my weekly course load to me giving instructions on transferring files and making smiley faces. As this transition has been anything but smooth, it makes me fear the expanding generational gap in technology usage.

A recent infographic by PSFK showed a difference of only 23% in Internet activity between users in the 18-29 age group and those in the 50-64 age group. These stats, however, fluctuate as one adds factors such as education level and location.

Based on my age, education and current location, for instance, I fall in the most active Internet usage group. My parents, on the other hand, are placed in the opposite category, that of most dormant Web users. What exactly does this mean for us as humans? An expanding communication gap as a result of totally different lifestyles.

Each morning during my summer vacation, for instance, I would check Skype to make plans for the day. That was my way of coordinating with friends and scheduling meetings. My mom, however, perceived my behavior as irrational and unnecessary. Why would I tire my eyes sitting in front of the laptop during my break? Needless to say, our interactions suffered due to our different needs and habits.

Tech lingo has also limited my communication with people from my parents’ generation. As my relatives are no native English speakers, I am constantly introducing to their vocabularies words like online, link and click. My family sometimes pretends to know what I am saying and other times gets frustrated with these “tech” terms.

It is a learning process, I tell myself, knowing that my parents will eventually pick up the new software and the lingo that comes with it. But then I wonder—what right do I have to ask of them to be as tech-savvy as people from my age group, eduction level and location?

Photo credit: elisfanclub

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Recall the Beauty of Face-to-face Interviews

In journalism, media on February 5, 2010 at 4:34 pm

The difference between holding a flower and holding its picture is the difference between conducing a face-to-face interview and an email interview. In the first case you can see the flower from different angles; in the second case you can only see it from the angle the photo was taken.

Increasingly in the field of media, writers send out interview questions via email, receive well-written answers and craft their stories in less than an hour. Though there is nothing wrong with this practice and it often keeps your writing focused and structured, it can also take away from the author’s learning process. Here are three immediate advantages emerging from the traditional face-to-face interview:

Drawing Vivid Images
All good writers draw vivid images and present details in their pieces. The source’s hand gesture and facial expressions, for instance, often tell more than his or her words.

Directing the Conversation
When you are conducting a face-to-face interview, you have the power to direct the conversation. If your source doesn’t have much to say about question number one, rephrase the wording and find a different angle. If your source gets super excited about another subject you didn’t think of beforehand, let the conversation flow in that direction, or subtly move away from it. It is your call!

Feel Enriched
Meeting a new person and learning about someone else’s story is always an enriching experience. A face-to-face interview puts you in your source’s shoes and leaves you thinking about his or her life. What’s more human than that?

So, writers, feel free to mix up your face-to-face interviews with phone and email inquiries. But, please, come back to holding the flower, not its picture.

Photo Credit: jannemei

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Why the Times’ business model is worth the wait

In business model, media, newspapers on January 25, 2010 at 3:42 pm

As I read about the New York Times’ decision to build pay-walls and start charging for its content in 2011, I couldn’t help but laugh a little. The newspaper is making plans for 2011? No rush, I guess.

Come on, guys, there are even predictions that the world will end in 2012. The debate about a sustainable business model for journalism is happening now, not in the future. Shouldn’t we just go ahead with our decisions even if sometimes we have to accept failed experiments?

It was only today that the brilliance of the Times’ announcement hit me—the company just engaged its competitors, the blogosphere and the social mediasphere in a conversation about its business model.

Today Google offered 105,000 results for the keyword phrase “ny times paywall.” Some of the posts, I am sure, are only remotely relevant to the topic at hand, but one could also try other keyword combinations. What I am trying to say is that people have been actively discussing the Times’ decision.

What is more, the online community has been pointing out loopholes in the pay-wall plan. Some of the smartest financial analysts and technology writers spent their time addressing problematic issues in the revised business model. To list a couple that impressed me the most, Tom Foremski of Silicon Valley Watcher published a post titled A Massive Hole in New York Times’ Paywall Plan and finance blogger Felix Salmon wrote a series of articles about the paywalls.

In a way, the Times hired an army of thought leaders to help them out in making an important decision. How smart is that?

Photo credit: paalia


What do college students think about Twitter?

In Twitter, college, students on January 23, 2010 at 2:52 pm

Recently, I asked a couple of college friends to share their thoughts about the micro-blogging platform Twitter. They are in their early 20s, come from different ethnic backgrounds and pursue different academic careers. Based on my observations, they adequately represent the common college student opinion about the platform.

What are the facts?

  • All knew about Twitter.
  • Most were confused about the way it works.

Why don’t they use it?

  • They think it is celebrity-oriented.
  • They see it as an intrusion to their personal spaces.

What could change?

  • Smart phones
    When smart phones become ubiquitous to the extent that college students can afford them, the use of Twitter might expand in these communities.
  • Friend influence
    Twitter will become more popular if college students who are early adopters exercise influence on their friends. One is more willing to join a space that serves familiar faces.

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Replace predatory advertising with philanthropic publicity

In marketing, media, technological innovation on January 20, 2010 at 7:16 pm

I am afraid that one day the Internet will echo the  predatory advertising of Times Square–neon billboards approaching from all corners like a pack of wolves, with dark distorted bodies and flashing eyes. If you, too, share my nightmares about interruptive, self-centered ads overtaking the digital ecosystem, shake off your fears.

New approaches to advertising are, thankfully, emerging on the Web. DoGood, a company I recently read about on GOOD, demonstrates well how advertising can fundamentally change its character online. The company offers a browser plug-in called DoGooder that hides generic ads and shows philanthropic calls to action instead. DoGood donates half of its profits to charitable organizations.

So how exactly does it work?

The algorithms of the plug-in detect generic ads and replace them with these of green initiatives and non-profit organizations. According to the site’s FAQs, the plug-in won’t save your personal information or track your web browsing history. It simply increases visibility for good campaigns. The DoGooder doesn’t really  block the original ads, so if readers want to see them, they can simply right-click on the page.

Why is it so fabulous?
  • Participatory culture
    This entire model runs on the idea of public participation. Readers choose to download the plug-in and opt-in to see the ads. The community can also suggest charities and organizations for which they want to raise awareness.
  • Destination Philanthropy
    Helping out and contributing to good causes are much more compelling incentives to shop than merely making purchases for oneself. In this way, DoGood introduces a truly innovative idea that can transform the advertising business.

Photo credit: Tambako the Jaguar

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For inspiration, stop the machine

In creativity, technological innovation on January 18, 2010 at 6:15 pm

“Are you writing?” I asked a friend who was holding a pen and paper. I couldn’t hide my surprise at the idea that she didn’t  just type her article on the computer. Pen and paper, she insisted, sparked her inspiration. “You should try it sometime,” she said.

When was the last time I used pen and paper to produce creative work? I couldn’t remember. Now my inspiration comes from online conversations and instantly takes the form of a tweet, blog post or a video. For new ideas, I subscribe to my friends’ Google Reader accounts and other RSS feeds. Frighteningly, this dynamic reminded me of the science fiction short story by E. M. Forster, The Machine Stops.

The advanced society Forster wrote about in 1909 is obsessed with automation and efficiency. They have no time to loiter because they are busy generating new ideas. They communicate with friends and family remotely, merely to share ideas. They don’t leave their cell-like rooms because the outside world doesn’t give them any ideas. They avoid the sun and see the dawn as an “unfamiliar glow.”

We are, hopefully, far from achieving their technological “progress.”

I still believe inspiration comes from our direct interactions with nature and other humans. It is fascinating that fresh ideas emerge not from academic readings and latest news, but from classic works of literature. Our imagination feeds on live music performances as opposed to downloaded mp3s. In other words, one thinks creatively when in contact with the outside world, not when closed in a cell-like room with a super fast lap-top. For inspiration, I would suggest, turn off the machine.

Photo credit: tilaneseven

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Beach weddings that fail or how the digital ecosystem crushes deceptive marketing

In marketing, media on January 15, 2010 at 6:49 pm

Think: beach weddings. Your mind wanders to an exotic island, where a tan couple kisses in a white wedding gazebo, surrounded by palm trees. They smile and listen to the sound of the ocean with toes buried in the sand. Then, they shift their gazes away from the  sunset to see a crowd of bored tourists, watching the wedding take place and itching their sunburn arms.

Wait, what? I bet this last image wasn’t part of your fantasy. Nevermind, because it can reflect the reality accurately.

A series of photo fakeouts by Oyster Hotel Reviews exposes the false promises of hotel marketing. Oyster’s wedding photo fakeout called A classy, intimate beach wedding for everybody! definitely struck me as the funniest and potentially, the most unpleasant experience. After all, it showed a real threat to one of the most precious celebrations in a lifetime. Yet the fakeout series also demonstrated the importance of honesty in the digital age.

If a hotel offers you the perfect wedding package, it should better reveal the entire picture of its advertised product–not just a close-up on the smiling faces of the married couple.Treating your customers with respect is a fundamental marketing principle. If a business lies to its customer base, how is it going to improve customer satisfaction and create a positive brand for itself?

Marketing fabrications could, more or less, work in print or on TV. In the digital ecosystem, however, typing a brand name in Google can show you a whole lot of different perspectives and product reviews. It is an environment that thrives on transparency and honesty. And if you don’t abide by these standards, someone like Oyster (and, ultimatley, the public) will hold you accountable for it.

Photo credit: Camlin Photography

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National Geographic’s hard drive: A great gift for passive consumers

In journalism, media on January 8, 2010 at 5:50 pm

When I first heard that National Geographic sells its back catalogs—from 1888 through 2008—in a 160GB hard drive, I got excited. Then I saw a YouTube video of someone who had made the $200 purchase and I got disappointed.

National Geographic’s idea of offering a collection of  well-written articles and mind-blowing photographs in a high-quality format undoubtedly deserves praises. Plus, the copies take up only 60GB of the entire hard drive, which leaves you 100GB to use for your own needs. But the lack of interactivity in this product seems fundamentally wrong to me. I thought we had established this–merely digitizing print content, even though in a brilliantly high resolution, isn’t suffiecient for readers. We want to go back and forth, to communicate, to share–to feel like active participants in a vibrant environment instead of passive consumers.

What’s cool about the National Geographic Hard Drive?

  • Searchability: A tool called Geobowser enables users to search articles, photographs, and maps.
  • High-quality: The high resolution of the text and pictures makes it appealing to readers.
  • Fun: The product can be personalized and features trivia games.

What’s wrong about the National Geographic Hard Drive?

But in the end of the day, the product is no different than a collection of print copies stored on a shelf in the attic (except for the additional 100GB you get to use).  It doesn’t encourage users to truly enagage with the content.  It is a ready product for you to consume. Because it is not “clickable,” you are not supposed to navigate out of the platform to learn more about a subject. You can’t give writers feedback. You can’t share fun facts with your friends. You can just read and search within the product. I am surprised that the social media guide Mashable covered it and didn’t criticize it for its lack of sociability.

Different Platforms Require Different Approaches

Newspapers and magazines fail to innovate in the digital era because they just dump their content on a website, on a Facebook page or on a hard drive, for that matter. But different platforms require different approaches. People want to become part of the newsgathering and, most importantly, news interpretation process. Innovation doesn’t just mean using new technologies, it means  using a new mindset.

Photo credit: Daniel Y. Go

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The double standards of blogging: Report like a journalist, respond like a citizen

In blogging, journalism, media on January 3, 2010 at 6:31 pm

There must be something wrong with asking bloggers to report like journalists but respond like citizens. They are increasingly held to the same standards as professional reporters; yet they are not offered the same legal privileges journalists enjoy. Here is why:

Same standards

Journalists comply by a professional ethics code that promotes integrity. Independent reporting is critical for the credibility of news organizations and winning the public trust. That’s why reporters must remain autonomous from business interests—they either don’t accept freebies in exchange for coverage or are transparent about it.

Since October 2009, bloggers have to abide by the same standards. In order to prevent corruption of public trust in the digital era, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) recently revised its guides to include a clause obliging bloggers to disclose “the material connections they share with the seller of the product or service.” Bloggers now have to announce their endorsements openly or pay a fine up to $11,000 per post for violating the new rule.

Different rights

Because journalists comply by a set of professional norms and work for news organizations that serve the public, they enjoy certain legal privileges. The shield law, for instance, protects them against revealing confidential information and sources. This enables reporters to keep their promises of confidentiality in exchange for valuable information.

These same privileges, however, are far from reaching bloggers. The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) recently requested that bloggers Steven Frischling and Chris Elliot disclose confidential sources in their individual posts about the new flight security measures. In response to the attempted Christmas Day terrorist attack, the US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) increased its inspections. Frischling and Elliot confidentially received the TSA Security Directive and published it on their blogs, here and here.

As the two writers blog about latest travel news and tips, they wanted to give their readers heads up about the increased security measures. Their posts quickly crawled news sites and the social mediasphere. Soon enough, the TSA special agents knocked on Frischling and Elliot’s doors, with subpoenas in hand, asking each of the bloggers to reveal their sources.

Double standards

So, in terms of receiving freebies, the law has high expectations of bloggers (similar to those of professional journalists). The public trust can’t be compromised. But when it comes to giving bloggers special rights, the situation is different. Then, the public trust can be compromised.

How are we going to settle this?

Photo credit: an untrained eye

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Why not Conversation Rate Optimization for media?

In marketing, media on January 2, 2010 at 4:33 pm

In seconds I close web pages with tacky red headlines, flashing ads and inauthentic images. The page’s content, product or service might be worth the read, but I don’t linger. Like many other users, I make the decision quickly and the site loses a potential reader, customer, or a follower.

So how does a marketer eliminate the website elements that create an unsatisfying user experience?

Conversion Rate Optimization (CRO) seems like a great way to achieve this goal. A recent blog post by Rand Fishkin mentions the rising trend of incorporating CRO in online marketing initiatives. CRO is based on a set of testing techniques that minimize bailout rate and increase the chance of converting visitors into customers.

The tool includes before-and-after tests that tell you which website changes have been beneficent or harmful in capturing a target audience. (So maybe you will finally get rid of the red headlines that give me nausea.)

Though CRO is part of the eCommerce conversation, I don’t see a reason why it shouldn’t be incorporated in the media debate as well. It is a model that can help news organizations design a working template to retain readers. If you run two versions of the same page, for instance, and measure a high “bailout rate” for only one of them, then that’s a lot of insight right there. If  the rotating ad script in the right-hand corner makes your readers flee, then maybe you should remove it.

I see three main benefits in adopting this technique in media:

  1. You will remain loyal to your readers and show them that their opinions count.
  2. You will develop more data-driven reports to help your other marketing strategies and overall business plan.
  3. You will push advertisers to be more creative and humane with their ads.

In short, I think there is a lot of potential in CRO for businesses as well as for media. Aye or nye?

Photo credit: Oberazzi