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Posts Tagged ‘technology’

Manchester’s (the) digital future

Thursday, May 9th, 2013

Sometimes you can’t help but be proud of where you live. This week we’ve stumbled across two articles about Smoking Gun PR’s hometown, and as they both involve major developments on the local (and international) digital media frontier it seems only right to share our newfound knowledge.

First of all then, whilst no longer the top team in England, Manchester City has cemented its place as the nation’s most technologically advanced club following the decision to implement a Wi-Fi network in its stadium at Eastlands. Not for nothing, the Cisco equipment will have all the obvious benefits of reliable, fast wireless Internet in a situation where- 4G or not- there’s every chance if all 47,000 people tried to re-buffer a web page at the same time they could experience a little slow down.

Better yet, 02, who will be delivering the service, also intend on installing kit to boost mobile reception for everyone inside, eliminating the same problem when it comes to making a call (or sending a text). Whether you believe football should still involve standing on terraces and waiting for Match of the Day highlights or not, there’s no denying this is a first for any Premier League side.

Apparently, the Wi-Fi will also facilitate Stadium Vision Mobile, which allows business owners- in this case the stadium bosses- to co-ordinate content between big screens and the mobiles logged on to the network. Even more impressively, they can also filter this down to individual devices, meaning it would, technically, be possible to receive a direct personal message from one of the players, coaching staff or similar whilst at a game. Needless to say, there’s marketing potential there in spades.

Improvements to Manchester’s digital infrastructure haven’t gone unnoticed elsewhere, either. As we read in the Financial Times, the city is now something of a ‘magnet for tech pioneers‘. Out in Newton Heath, The Sharp Project- a development of affordable, creative office spaces that is fast becoming another TV and production hub- has some prestigious new neighbours, with EON Reality setting up its European headquarters in the area. The 3D tech giant already has bases in Singapore and Sweden, with this new address set to boast a Virtual Reality showroom, and Entrepreneurial Coding School, which will welcome 500 students every year.

The same article also references the growing cloud hosting industry Manchester has managed to develop as further signs of the region’s healthy future prospects. EON Reality chairman and founder, Dan Lejerskar, explained to the FT: “No other city in Europe has invested as much in its digital media and content operations- with billions being spent on creating a global hub for creative industries. Manchester is perfectly placed to be the UK’s digital city.” Needless to say then, whilst the warm weather may have subsided (hopefully only for a short while), the skies are grey and the rain falling outside our window, there’s plenty to be upbeat about from our perspective.

 

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Don’t waste time fighting the Google regime

Thursday, March 28th, 2013

It’s never good for business if one company controls the market, hence the Competition Commission. Evidently, though, things work a bit differently when you trade online.

As our Blagger’s Blog quoted recently, some experts claim Google has contravened several legislative measures that safeguard competitiveness. By no means the first accusations of this kind, despite this the firm continues to expand its influence, often causing a minor furore amongst smaller rivals in the process.

Of course I’m not saying this is a monopoly. When a critic rounded on Google Play recently after it emerged that highly sensitive data about users is being given to developers for no good reason, the firm made him tone it down. As such I’d prefer to avoid rash statements, especially given a U.S. court absolved the world’s biggest search engine of antitrust back in January, and the UK is a libel hotbed.

John M. Simpson of the American advocacy group Consumer Watchdog feels differently, mind. Following the legal ruling he told TechCrunch: “Google clearly skews search results to favor [sic] its own products and services while portraying the results as unbiased. That undermines competition and hurts consumers.”

Elsewhere, Business Insider ran a story on forced Google+ sign ups to access services like Gmail and Docs. Whether David Beckham would have 4,846,384 UK followers, more than any other celebrity on the network, without the gun-to-head incentive is unclear, unlike the reason for this policy. Google-dominated online advertising increases in value as public targeting gets more accurate. The best way to do that is by cross-referencing search habits with online social behaviour.

Google’s Penguin algorithm update, used to rank pages, has also been the subject of controversy. By actively penalising sites that fall foul of Google’s Webmaster Guidelines with ‘black hat SEO’ tactics, the hard and fast rule seems to be fall in line with what the search giant wants or drop off the world wide web altogether. Plummeting traffic and absence in results being terribly bad for non compliant businesses. That said a push towards better quality content on websites and more naturally earned, relevant links makes sense for general internet users.

So we need Google more than Google needs most of us, and at least for now we’re stuck with the status quo. This means trying to fool the monolith with unapproved optimisation tricks or opting out altogether aren’t viable options. Instead, on-brand digital storytelling via regular creative content- built for people rather than machines- is the only policy I ever advocate. Unless, of course, you want to play an expensive, perpetual game of cat and mouse with the powers that be. Trust me, there can only ever be one real winner.

 

Image (C) Jokeroo

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Broadcasting to the 1billion

Thursday, March 28th, 2013

If YouTube was a country it would be the world’s third largest by population. Culturally it’s just as significant, helping launch the Arab Spring (along with Justin Bieber and Psy). Which isn’t bad, for an eight year old.

Needless to say, plenty has changed since it launched. Not least Google’s acquisition, for $1.6billion, within months of go-live. A shrewd investment, the network is currently thought to be worth 45 times that amount, with video content becoming the most sought after online content between then and now.

Two years later, the American TV broadcaster NBC was amongst the first to be concerned about pirated recordings, demanding content be removed. A direct precursor to official terms and conditions regarding royalties and intellectual property, ironically the television station quickly u-turned, entering into a deal to screen promotional clips for forthcoming shows on YouTube. The first of many similar agreements, and another sign of things to come.

With Virgin Media subscribers and Apple TV owners now having the network wired into their package, and firms like Red Bull streaming live events on the platform (like that record-breaking stratospheric skydive) the original video social network is more like a multi-medium content channel these days. Mobile devices, PCs, plasma screens, and interactive sets all offer access to the website and its filmed treasures.

From amateur enthusiasts to major corporations, by the time U.S. Congress and Vatican City YouTube channels opened- in 2007 and 2009 respectively- the mainstream potential of the platform was more than evident. The popularity and perceived value of video began to increase exponentially too; everyone wanted to watch something, and businesses wanted to exploit that demand.

Having grown alongside the demand for video YouTube’s position as number one isn’t surprising. However, it’s no longer a one horse race. Rivals like Vimeo are slowly gaining ground, with 5million new members joining in the last 12 months alone. The closest competitor here in the UK, it still has plenty of catching up to do but exclusive deals with bands, brands and events prove those in charge understand what incentives will get people tuning in. And then there are the niche networks.

Twitter’s Vine lets you work with six seconds of footage. Similar to Keek’s 15-second idea, along with a host of other Apple and Android integrated equivalents (from Socialcam to Viddy), these short and sweet mobile options probably don’t pose an individual threat to YouTube. But collectively they could. There are only so many hours in the day, and the more people spend on rivals- most of which come with far less intrusive advertising- the less they have for the biggest fish in this saturated pond, meaning much more work will be necessary if it’s to stay in pole position.

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A valuable acronym: SoLoMo

Tuesday, December 18th, 2012

Social and mobile media are familiar terms to most people with a business interest in marketing and PR. But the emphasis is increasingly falling on localised access and information, meaning these concepts are now vital if your business is to remain competitive in the modern marketplace.

You don’t need me to tell you about the launch of EE, the UK’s first 4G service, currently available in the country’s largest cities. Kevin Bacon has done a decent enough job explaining the ins and outs of high speed Internet on the go during the organisation’s no-doubt phenomenally expensive TV campaign.

What this means for the British public is those irritating buffer symbols, and default ‘Failed to open’ screens will soon be a thing of the past. Crucially then, consumers and customers will become less inclined to surf the web from their desktop or laptop. Not that browsing has been confined to computers for some time now.

Over the last three years State of Search contributor Neil Walker has been studying 402 Google Accounts, 70% of which were linked to B2B websites, with the majority therein small to medium sized enterprises. According to the statistics, since 2010 the percentage of visitors to participating URLs using mobile devices like tablets and smartphones has leapt from 1.6% to 20%.

More importantly, actions on mobile devices, i.e. when a person buys something via their phone, also increased exponentially, and currently account for over 10% of all online transactions made on the sites involved in the study. As such it’s not surprising SoLoMo is a term on everyone’s lips right now, not least fellow attendees at the recent SAScon media conference in Manchester.

Social, Local, and Mobile media is set to be the focal point for progressive British business in 2013, which quite simply means an amalgamation of the three platforms. Google+ accounts, for example, now have a Local tab, giving users area-specific information whenever they are logged in. It’s another step down the route pioneered by the likes of Foursquare and Facebook check-ins, and also indicates how Google sees SoLoMo as imperative for continued success.

The impact on PR of our improved online access and the proliferation of GPS programming will be pronounced. The same goes for sales, marketing, and advertising, as more geographical campaigns are launched to target specific people in particular places. In addition to the social networking aspect, ‘geofencing’ also offers much potential, namely by automatically issuing promotions to mobile users when they are within the vicinity of a business. Certainly food for thought, it should also be impetus to invest in innovative, customer focused ideas based on these concepts, if you’re not already doing so.

 

 

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Five PR and marketing predictions for the future

Tuesday, December 18th, 2012

As is customary in December, media professionals try to identify the key trends set to emerge in the following year. We’ve gone one better, and compiled the opinions of five experts, who each offer their own thoughts in brief on the matter.

“I think 2013 will be the year that we wake up to the commercial possibilities of collaborative consumption – I can’t wait to see where concepts like Freecycle, Zopa and Netflix take us next.”
Duncan Slater, Director, Original Creative
www.origincreative.co.uk

“Google’s ownership of the search space is an issue we have accepted for now. It’s quickening manipulation of the commercial trading space favouring itself and brands that spend cannot sensibly be ignored by Government for much longer.”
Simon Wharton, Managing Director, Push On
www.pushon.co.uk

“I think we will see a steady year of modest growth for most digitally-enabled marketing organisations. If you have survived this year you should be in good shape to profit next.”
Mike Carter, Managing Director, Orchard Recruitment
www.orchard.co.uk

“In 2013 responsible brands will need to be totally transparent about their social responsibility and not just pay lip service to it. I can see more and more of these ambitious and responsible brands partnering really closely with charities to increase fundraising activities. And not just one-offs, but sustained activity.”
Tracey Collinge, Client Director, WRG Brand
www.wrg.uk.com
“Personally I believe we will begin to see a shift from the brand loyalty displayed towards Apple and its devices. I think 2013 will mark the end of the honeymoon period for Apple’s customers, with economic conditions also dictating consumers shift to other platforms and hardware.”
Peter Cobley, Commercial Director, homejames
www.petercobley.com

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Four business benefits of 4G

Thursday, November 29th, 2012

We knew it was coming, and now everyone has seen the adverts. The UK has joined the select league of nations with access to super fast mobile Internet, meaning understanding the potential therein is an absolute essential.

As Kevin Bacon, self-professed centre of the universe, has explained to us all- 4G is here, bringing with it the ability to take full advantage of all the web’s wonders, whilst on the go. Stream movies, share large files, and unless you still haven’t sorted out your iPhone 5’s mapping issue, find out where you want to go and how to get there faster than ever before. The list of possibilities is long winded, but basically the slowest thing about this technology is the human responsible for tapping instructions into the handset.

At face value then it’s all very consumer focused. Which is unsurprising, as EE (the new name for Orange and T Mobile), along with all other telecomms providers, is heavily concerned with private custom from individual users. But the plus sides to a 4th generation of phone networks stretch far into the corporate world too, and don’t stop with big business. Here are our four key reasons why every organisation should already be investigating.

*Productivity- When 4G arrived in the US one construction firm began using it to transmit vast amounts of data through a specialist application, dropping completion times by 30% per day, and saving up to $5,000 a week. Similarly, 40% of companies involved in a Stateside survey by Arthur D. Little and EE reported sales staff completing more deals out in the field, reducing transport costs.

*Competitiveness- According to the same research, 73% of small businesses in Britain will implement a 4G strategy within the next year. Keeping up means joining them. Of course your ideal position in the pack is in front, so drawing up a plan that focuses on your company’s integral message, customer base, and individual requirements is essential too, avoiding unnecessary and expensive bandwagons.

*Sales- Mobile commerce is big business. eBay expects 55% of users to browse and order whilst out and about in the run up to Christmas. Consumers who were once put off by connection reliability will no longer avoid this kind of purchasing process thanks to more stability on 4G, and as such companies should be improving and perfecting their mobile domains in readiness for a rise in demand.

*Brand presence- In the past the way in which mobile visitors to websites and social media pages could be treated by a firm was limited with technology. After all, nobody wants to wait an age for a fancy HTML5 site to load on their phone. 4G’s lightning fast browsing speeds means more capacity for high tech, interactive aspects within the corporate-to-consumer web-based offering.

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Simply unmissable 10

Wednesday, October 31st, 2012

Statistic of the month
The internet reaches 70% of Western Europe’s population.

Cult Clips
Fans of the X Factor may have noticed repeated use of the word ‘cabaret’ in a derogatory manner, i.e. ‘it’s a bit too cabaret’. Here’s the response to Gary Barlow’s comments, which pushed the filmmakers one step too far.

Open-eyed Twitter users will recognise the #firstworldproblems which is being used as part of the Water Is Life campaign. Here’s the video to accompany the charity’s push, which has made over 1million people take a step back and think.

Thanks to our new client The Kennel Club we’ve been privy to some rather impressive dog action in the last few weeks, including this social documentary about a typical day in the life of a loyal hound. Insightful stuff to say the least.

God bless perfume advert parodies, what with the strange nature of scented TV commercials. The latest Brad Pitt stint for Chanel  is a classic example, and this spoof treats it perfectly. That it also features a dog is pure coincidence. Honest.

Infographic of the month
As it’s All Hallow’s Eve and all we thought it only fitting to draw some attention to this terrifyingly interesting (ahem) image based explanation on the growing industry surrounding the spookiest day of the year.Source: Moneysupermarket.co.uk

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How to post a video response to negative Facebook comments

Tuesday, October 16th, 2012

As a public relations company in Manchester we’re more than accustomed to the highs and lows of communications, not to mention the mundanely average everyday concepts that are perpetually rolled out by less inspired practitioners. Then something comes along that makes you stand up and genuinely acknowledge at least some mild genius at work.

Such was the case today when we happened on this Bodyform video, made in response to Facebook comments regarding the company’s use of metaphor and positive imagery to portray what, for many people, can be a slightly unpleasant time of the month. The complainant, one Richard Neil, suggested the brand had given him an unbalanced image of periods, with adverts suggesting they are wholly positive experiences for women, a time in which they skydive and rollerblade. Needless to say he was almost certainly joking, but it’s hard to remember when the reaction came in the form of this comedic suckerpunch.

We’ve embedded the video below, which sees the fictitious CEO of Bodyform explain, in no uncertain sarcasm, how the content of their adverts is actually symbolic, and that they were created in order to protect men from the truth behind one of the most natural processes in humankind. Take a look for yourselves and see what’s what, from our perspective this represents a great exercise in reactive marketing, and one that has allowed a company that works in a notoriously rigid industry, advertising wise, to come up with something out of type and memorable. Far from easy achievements.

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The Blagger’s Blog 12th October 2012

Friday, October 12th, 2012

A weekly roundup of talking points, sans effort

Thought for the week

“If anyone still believes he was not doping, then they believe in Santa Claus.” Professor Jordan Kobritz, chair of the Sports Management Department at SUNY Cortland, on Lance Armstrong’s drug scandal.

Worth the paper it’s printed on?

Light news success stories in the papers this week included…

…X Factor, with 280 articles focused on something to do with the hit show, in contrast the funerals of Fiona Bone and Nicola Hughes, the two murdered police officers, only featured in 55…

…Strictly Come Dancing, according to 104 headlines, whereas Abu Hamza, the radical Muslim cleric, was extradited to the U.S. and only made it into 85 …

…and, finally, The Only Was Is Essex, completing a trash T.V. triptych, which grabbed 39 stories, far more than the 5 focused on a Belfast bomb that was defused by army experts.

(Source: Journalisted)

Weekly high

Call us suckers for babies, but this latest advert for Cow & Gate couldn’t help but make us smile. Ah, look at their tiny faces… and the track’s not the worst choice either.

Weekly low

Rumours abound that Burnley FC manager Eddie Howe will up sticks and leave for his old club, AFC Bournemouth, along with back room staff and potentially a player. It might not be true, but silence from the Lancashire club hasn’t helped dispel fan fears, leading to this week’s #fail.

Three things that may happen next week…

On Wednesday the former US Federal Reserve chairman will appear before the Parliamentary Commission on Banking Standards as a result of the libor rate rigging, Wayne Smith and Julie Anne Skelding, Britain’s most wanted couple, could be in jail following a trial today after their return to UK shores, and questions will be raised over German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s involvement in the failed merger between BEA EADS.

Dates for your diary

Thursday 18th October, Manchester- Some Comms Awards @ Radisson Blu Edwardian; Annual ceremony celebrating some of the best work in PR and marketing.

If there is a success story, blunder, or tweeting town you’d like to see included email helloATsmokinggun.co.uk or tweet using #blaggersblog. Happy Friday!

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Social media insurance- now there’s a thought

Thursday, October 11th, 2012

In many ways it was bound to happen sooner or later. From a completely different perspective, everyone at this particular Manchester PR agency is preparing to open a new section on the Smoking Gun blog, categorised as ‘what will they think of next…’

Suffice to say though it’s interesting news regardless of your opinion. As reported on The Telegraph, a UK firm called ALLOW (specialists in safeguarding people against identity theft) has now begun offering social media insurance, for those times when companies misjudge, misfire, or simply set themselves on fire by way of poorly targeted tweets and foolish Facebook posts.

Apparently 4,500 organisations have signed up, with the payout for a claim not coming in cash, but instead delivered as reverse search optimisation (i.e. the suppression of negative online content), legal advice and deletion of unwanted statements. All of which will sound rather appealing to any business that has come unstuck in the real of social media, and it’s no surprise people in the corporate world seem to be viewing the offer favourably.

An individual policy also exists- as reported on Digital Trends (with more than a hint of cynicism)- and this arguably makes more sense. Offering to monitor and protect the information being banded about online about a person seems to make sense with the rising risk of hackers accessing vital information.

But just like most things there are two sides to this story, namely the potential ethical grey area surrounding reparations to a brand reputation. Social media is supposed to be a soapbox for opinion, more so public opinion. Already plenty of evidence exists proving how commercial users breach or at least stretch the guidelines- false accounts, paid for posts etc- meaning the information on offer isn’t necessarily without bias; staff and sponsored representatives go some way to balance out any criticism. What then for a system that specialises in silencing, or at least making those voices all-but inaudible if and when they do speak out? Needless to say then, here’s hoping the firm has some strict moral guidelines about what clients they can viably take on.

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