By inmedia
If you’re looking for the latest information from high tech visionaries and influencers, don’t look at these “flogs” (fake blogs) highlighted by Network World.
The Internet presents an incredible opportunity for companies and their top executives to tell their story and share there perspectives on emerging issues but because it’s an unregulated channel, readers should be wary of accepting what you read as the gospel. The advent of flogs is certainly a 21st century problem and although humorous and entertaining, companies and individuals should be cognizant of online reputations and attributions as they could not only potentially damage your reputation both on- and off-line but also present litigious individuals with a solid case for a juicy slander or libel suit. My husband’s grandmother used to say believe none of what you hear and only half of what you see. Strong counsel in this particular instance.
By Danny Sullivan
My colleague, Jill, recently wrote an introductory post on analyst relations, and I felt compelled to augment this with some additional thoughts on the topic.
“Technology analyst firms, there’s no point in talking to them unless you’re prepared to pay them, right?”
Wrong. But it’s not an uncommon perspective among technology companies that have yet to engage with the analyst community.
It is certainly true that analyst firms do very well out of the consulting side of their business, and it is fair to assume that companies who pay their consulting dues probably experience a good level of mind-share with the analysts as a result. But it is a mistake to say that there is no value in speaking with analysts unless you pay them.
Technology analysts are viewed as independent experts in the fields they choose to cover. As such, they have a reputation to uphold. (Granted, some have more of a reputation to uphold than others, but we don’t need to go into that here!) This reputation depends entirely on the analyst being firmly plugged into the industry in which he or she is an expert. And this means they need to know about everything that is going on in that sector – from market leaders right down to emerging players.
As a result, those introductory briefings Jill describes in her post are highly important to analysts, ensuring that they maintain that position of all-knowing expertise that their clients expect.
Of course, the degree to which unpaid briefings with analysts are immediately useful to a company depends very much on the individual analyst. Briefings can be effective testing grounds for messaging around new products and services, but feedback is often at a premium and there will always come a point in the conversation where you are recommended to “have a conversation with our account manager.” How early this point comes in the conversation varies greatly between firms and analysts.
But none of this means you should not be talking to analysts. They are a direct conduit to your market. If they don’t know about your company, they can’t recommend you to end-users or include your products in reports. Ultimately, analysts will give coverage to companies that deserve it, typically through demonstrated, quantifiable success in the marketplace. In most cases, spending money with them will give you access to their expertise, but it does not equate to coverage in industry reports.
In the weeks ahead, I’ll continue to write about analyst relations and explore some of the differences between the big analyst companies and smaller, boutique firms.
By inmedia
This morning, EcoGeek pointed me to a report by the American Consumer Institute, which has calculated the current and future effects that broadband Internet will have on our carbon emissions. The findings are really interesting.
“This study finds that wide adoption and use of broadband applications can achieve a net reduction of 1 billion tons of greenhouse gas over 10 years, which, if converted into energy saved, would constitute 11% of annual U.S. oil imports.”
To read the full Broadband Services: Economic and Environmental Benefits report, click here [PDF].
By Jill Pyle
Over the last few months I’ve had a lot of fun pitching gift ideas to daily news media on behalf of our friends at Help Lesotho. Now that Ottawa is covered in a blanket of fresh snow, I can’t help but feel festive. In the spirit of the fast-approaching holiday season, I’ve decided to pull together a gift guide to help anyone who has a public relations professional to buy for this holiday season.
Students studying PR, young PR professionals and veterans alike should always have a style guide on hand. Some of our favourites include The Canadian Press Caps and Spelling, Eats Shoots and Leaves and Globe and Mail Style Book. If the PR professional in your life doesn’t have one of these or similar titles, you should be able to cross them off your list by visiting a well-stocked local bookstore. Books about grammar fundamentals may not be very exciting but they certainly are useful. Dictionaries are also great to have on hand. For the terminology-saturated person working in technology PR, try Chambers Dictionary of Science and Technology. If you think flipping pages is too low-tech, a subscription to the online edition of the Chicago Manual of Style may do the trick.
For PR pros who frequently travel, there are a wealth of gadgets you can buy to help them stay plugged in. While an iPhone or iTouch may be a bit pricey,
consider springing for a country-specific SIM card or a gift certificate to a phone-unlocking specialist like Warlox Wireless. After reading about the positive experience Francis had with his unlocked GSM smart phone loaded with a pay-as-you-go SIM, I don’t think you can go wrong. Skype credits aren’t a bad idea either. For the earth-conscious gadget lover on your list, Amazon Kindle, a souped-up e-book reader that allows for wireless e-book downloads, would make a great gift.
For social media-savvy PR folks, a bottle of Stormhoek‘s Blue Monster is guaranteed to win smiles. Thanks to Hugh Mcleod, this wine is well known amongst those who frequent geek dinners. Other great gift ideas include flickr pro accounts, tickets to popular conferences like SXSW or cool t-shirts from the likes of Threadless. Grammar gurus are bound to appreciate the They’re, Their, There shirt.
That’s our list. Feel free to share your ideas in the comment section. You can also check out Chris’s gift guide for marketers, which Seth’s Blog pointed me to.
By inmedia
Ah robots, what an endless fascination we seem to have with the silver machines of the future. True to form, the Guardian reports today on the massive growth of the robot industry in the land of the rising sun.
“In Japan, robots can already be found working as home helps, office receptionists and security guards, as well as on the factory floor,” reports Justin McCurry. “Human endeavour is being supplemented – and even replaced – by mechanical efficiency in almost every area, from hands-free vacuum cleaners and golf-bag carriers to a robotic baby who teaches childcare skills to expectant couples, right down to freeing trapped wind and changing nappies.”
There are good reasons for the rapid adoption of robots in Japan (see population decline, strict immigration laws) but how long before we start seeing more mechanical friends in the Western world?
-
Annual reports move online?
November 29, 2007 by inmedia
By inmedia Today’s Marketing daily headlines feature included this piece that caught my eye: “Trees rejoice as Astral creates paperless annual report.” This initiative not only does the right thing by the environment, but also reduces clutter and provides a competitive differentiator for the company that’s doing it. It will be interesting to see if […]
Read more... -
Google gets into cleantech
November 29, 2007 by inmedia
By inmedia The Register reports today that Google’s philanthropic arm will invest tens of millions of dollars in renewable energy. “Cheap renewable energy is not only critical for the environment but also vital for economic development in many places where there is limited affordable energy of any kind,” Google co-founder Sergey Brin said. In true […]
Read more... -
-
Tough decisions
November 29, 2007 by Peter Kemball
By Peter Kemball If you think your business requires tough decisions, you would agree that they are trivial compared to the late President John Kennedy’s during the 13 days of the Cuban missile crises. The world teetered on the balance of massive nuclear explosions and a wrong decision would have killed millions of people in […]
Read more... -
PDFs no longer ad-free
November 29, 2007 by inmedia
By inmedia What used to be a safe haven from the reach of internet advertisers has finally crumbled under the pressure. The BBC reports Adobe has signed a deal with Yahoo! that will see dynamic adverts being displayed in online PDF documents. “Dynamic adverts can be changed for particular audiences or rotated to make sure […]
Read more... -
-
Behind the scenes at Bloomberg
November 28, 2007 by inmedia
By inmedia Bloomberg, a provider of business and financial news, is a regular target for us for our clients who are looking to communicate their business stories and successes. Wondering what is it really like at the head office of this media giant in New York? The company lampoons itself and the popular TV show […]
Read more... -
US marketing in the UK: not as simple as it seems
November 27, 2007 by Danny Sullivan
By Danny Sullivan During the five-year period in my life when I made my home on the Western side of the Atlantic, I was always interested to note the subtle differences in the way that the general population responded to marketing when compared to my native Britain. The UK is a generally more sceptical country […]
Read more... -
-
Fiction: It’s all about relationships
November 26, 2007 by Francis Moran
By Francis Moran We heard this one again last week. Generating effective coverage of a client’s story is not all about the relationship I have with reporters; it’s all about the value of the story I have to tell. This has long been the top-ranked of Francis’s Favourite Fictions, and for two good reasons. First, […]
Read more... -
How may my technology help you?
November 23, 2007 by Francis Moran
By Francis Moran Canada’s national broadcaster, the CBC, is airing a special series on its national radio news programs called, “How may I help you?” I caught the first in-depth piece yesterday evening and I so badly wanted to call in immediately and share my endless stack of customer service horror stories. Many fellow listeners […]
Read more... -
Twitter
Tweets by @FrancisMoranRecent Comments
The Future of A&R – Walabe : [...] http://francis-moran.com/marketing-strategy/top-10-questions-every-strategic-communicator-should-ask... [...]
Traditional Marketing is Dead – Long Live Bikini Waxer Marketing | Scalexl : [...] pointed out by Alexandra Reid on the Francis Moran website content marketing is becoming more and more like journalism. So, it is not just about the content, [...]
It’s Summertime…and the Networking is Easy? | THE MERRAINE BRAIN : [...] In fact, summer is perhaps one of the times least used to network, yet at the same time has shown to be the most productive time to network. People tend to be in a brighter mood compared to during the gloomy winters-especially where I am from in England! Networking needs to be fun and not approached as another chore, like mowing the lawn. (http://francis-moran.com/marketing-strategy/social-media-strategy-why-meeting-in-the-real-world-matt...) [...]