april-randi - Tumblr blog

[april-randi]

Activism or Slacktivism?

  An interesting discussion broke out in the FaceBook group for my Social Media class about the image below and the #BringOurGirlsBack hashtag campaign. 

The discussion focused on whether social media activism is just a vanity or if it has an impact on events. I went on the hunt for more perspectives on the issue and found wide ranging opinions.

 What is "slacktivism"? Geoff Livingston defines it as "doing good without having to do much at all" in this Mashable article "HOW TO: Turn Slacktivists into Activists with Social Media". The perception seems to be that lazy activist sit at their computers and Tweet about things they know nothing about and that this has a useless, or even harmful, effect on the situation.

 It made me think about the many stories over the past few years of the role social media has played in the overthrow of dictators in Africa and the Middle East. Frontline's excellent program on the April 6th movement in Cairo that eventually launched the revolution and ousted Mubarak is an excellent example.

 So it seems to me that people get to participate in activism in ways that suite them. Some will spread misinformation while others will spread the call to action. This has always been the case, even before social media existed there were leaflet's and booklets, traveling evangelists and pundits spreading their opinions like the gospel. It's up to us to listen to them or tune them out. This is an important skill in our highly social society.

 Anytime repressive governments, including our own, attempt to suppress a media outlet it's a sure sign that an impact is being made. Perhaps you agree with the tactic or the outcome, perhaps you don't but sparking a discussion is a positive in my book. Who knows, a single tweet could turn into a movement.

 What do you think? Will #BringOurGirlsBack help bring them back?

[april-randi]

What You Don't Know About SEO Can Hurt You

Search Engine Optimization is a popular phrase these days but what does it mean? As I learned in my Social Media Marketing class with Michael Brito, you can also think of this as search marketing. By maximizing the tools search engines use to find relevant content for keyword searches you can increase the cases in which your content rises to the top of the organic search results and drive more traffic to your sites.

 Lots of people know the tricks of using meta-tags and search terms on their websites but fewer know that this represents only 10--15% of the relevance assigned by the search engines. Others on the Internet need to reflect your relevance.

Elements of an SEO strategy include:

On-Page Optimization - 10-15% of the relevance ranking by Google’s search engine is based on “on-page optimization”. “On-page” content includes embedded code called meta tags, the title tag that is the title of each webpage, description tag that provides details on the page content and keyword fields. You can maximize SEO by using relevant descriptors and search terms in your titles (i.e. puppies-for-sale), image names, keywords, URLs and text.

Off-Page - accounts for 85-90% of relevance ranking. Google knows that websites are often optimized by professionals to draw the attention of search engines so they consider conversations that others are having about you to be more authentic, more relevant. Generally speaking, the more links and keywords others use about you on their pages the more relevant Google thinks it is. These links are known as “back links” - links to your page from other websites,

  So, to increase your relevance in Google's organic search results get busy building relationships with your advocates and partners to increase the number of mentions, posts and links to your brand information.

[april-randi]

Blogs are Not an Essay

So I've been blogging for six weeks or so and I want to become better at it. Like all good kids in the Internet age, I searched for "blogging best practices" and started to read. Here are some of the tidbits I found and want to share with you.

1- Create interesting titles - I'll need to work on this a little more (lol) but it makes sense. pick something that will catch the eye of the over stimulated social media addict and you've got a reader.

2- Know your sh*t- pick subjects that you already know a lot about or do your research thoroughly before you start stating your opinions. Your readers will respect you more.

3- This is not a 5 Paragraph Essay - don't worry a lot about grammar or formal writing styles. That Oxford comma you were debating about using? 3 people care about that and they are not reading your blog. People will read blogs that are written with sincerity and authenticity. Of course your writing has to make sense to everyone so don't abandon good writing practices, just to focus your efforts there.

4- Promote Effectively - How will you get followers if you don't know where to find you? Promote yourself and your writing for sure but you should also consider inviting people who command attention in social media circles to be a guest blogger or have an interview with them. Their social media fame will draw readers to you.

5- How Long Should a Blog Be? - My research says between 450-600 words will keep a reader in the age of ADD engaged, If your topic is longer getting closer to 1,000 words consider splitting it up into multiple posts and create a series of posts. It worked for Dickens, why not you?

[april-randi]

Week 4 - Social Media and Leadership

Social media is rapidly changing the way people communicate, collaboration, research, interact and process information. Savvy leaders are adapting their styles and the tools they use to stay current on thought leadership, changes in markets, strategic goals and dissemination of information.

 So, you want to be one of these savvy leaders but the world of social media is big and confusing. How do leaders decide what tools to use and how to use them? In The @wsj article "Better Leadership Through Social Media", Dr. Samuel of the Social and Interactive Media Centre at Emily Carr University of Art and Design in Vancouver, British Columbia provides a tactica approach for leaders. Highlights include:

1- Create a Leadership Dashboard - Dr. Samuel recommends setting up easy access to your chosen social media platforms so you can quickly and easily access them.

2- Join a CEO-cial Network - choose 5-15 leaders to follow and follow the across platforms such as LinkedIn, FaceBook, Twitter, Google+, etc. Make it a habit to consult the list to see what issues they are addressing and how.

3- Amplify Your Voice - Use a blog, twitter, FaceBook and other platforms to send your message to the people you lead. Record your speeches and post the on Youtube.

 What other ways might social media benefit leaders?

[april-randi]

Week 3 - Living in a Multi Screen World

At the NAB Show (NABShow.com) last week the topic of multi-screen use came up several times. It's clear that broadcasters are trying to understand and adapt to our changing relationship with TV.  At the session titled "Adapt or Die: Facing Changes & Challenges in Content Consumption Head On" a panel of professionals wrestled with the question of the "1st and 2nd screen". As the panelists argued if the TV was still the 1st screen and your tablet/laptop/smart phone the 2nd it was clear that they are still a step behind. Research is showing that simultaneous use of multiple devices is increasing.

 Evidence of this is growing. In his book "Your Brand: The Next Media Company" Michael Brito (@Britopian) explains one of the effects of living in this new world. He calls it "Customer Attention Deficit Disorder" or CAAD. He references data from a report Google published titled "The New Multi-Screen World: Understanding Cross-Platform Consumer Behavior" that shows that 77% of people watching TV are multitasking and using other devices simultaneously.   Lastly, I want to note a study that Pepsi did during the 2013 VMA awards (reference that article here - http://ow.ly/vUtqD). Using biometrics they monitored viewers' use of a "second screen" device during the show. What they found was that viewers 18-26 were using social media during the event while those 27-34 didn't start posting to social media until after the show was over. As a result of this study Pepsi will likely change the way they advertise during this event in the future.

The bottom line is that our relationship to information and media is changing. Younger people are able to multi-task and use multiple devices simultaneously. To stay relevant, brands must address this with a change in the way they advertise and promote their products and services.

[april-randi]

Week 2 - Disruptive Media and Innovation

This past week I was in Las Vegas for the NAB Show. This is a gigantic tech show with over 60,000 professionals in the broadcast technology field. While I learned a lot about the future of such geeky things as, 3D sound systems using 24 speakers and wireless HDMI technologies, one of the most interesting sessions was called the "Disruptive Media Conference"

 Disruptive Media is any media or innovation that helps create a new market by "disrupting" old markets. One example they gave was the invention of the iPad. That device forever changed the way people consume content and created many new markets.

The keynote was the most interesting part of the conference, IMO. Roy Sekoff, the co-founder of Huffington Post News and create of Huffington Live. He talked about the way HuffPost Live evolved to include every day people as content "experts" into the news program via social media. He painted a picture of a world where users interact with live television broadcasts in this way ... an evolution from "presentation" to "participation". The bottom line, social media is changing content and what we choose to consume.

In the end, social media increases the opportunity for engagement but what is 'engagement'? What are participants in social media looking for? Share your thoughts here.

[april-randi]

Week 1 - Social Media Onslaught

Got Social Media? Before last Thursday I thought I was pretty savvy about social media. Then I started a Social Media Marketing strategies class with #Michael Brito and ... WHOA! It seems there is a lot I didn't know about social media and how to use it. Fortunately I love learning, am quick to pick up on new technologies and am very interested in the topic.

 FaceBook, Twitter, tumblr, blogs, Instagram ... how do humans keep up with all this information?

 Powerful fact from the first class - 90% of all media is consumed on a screen these days.

http://extension.berkeley.edu/search/publicCourseSearchDetails.do?method=load&courseId=1450426