Andrew Lark

Southwest Blog Videos on 9/11

Southwest has integrated a series of video vignettes onto its blog in which employees speak to 9/11. Well worth a look. A great airline with great people.

disclosure: I worked on helping create the Nuts About Southwest blog - but not on these posts. Southwest is a client of Group Lark and we luv them!

Technorati : SWA, Southwest, Southwest Airlines

Chocolate Blog

Paul highlights the blog behind the phone. This is a terrific example of a PR blog. Like Paul, the transparency here is great. It describes the program and highlights their intent. Love the links etc. Great work by H&K.

The blog is definitely a "blogvertisement" or PR blog ("Prlog") that uses blog features to promote the phone. What is missing here is community activation (as far as I can tell) - that is, activating the community of early "chocolate phone" adopters by providing them with a platform on which to engage and participate. It also doesn't link to citizen recommendations on the product.

That said, it's a great example of what it is and not ashamed to be that. It does highlight - in case anyone was confused - that their is a difference between commercial and marketing blogs and citizen blogs.

Is This A CEO First...

Jonathan Schwartz, CEO, Sun comments on Sun's recent earnings on his Blog in what might be a CEO first - at least I haven't seen a CEO expanding on their earnings call on a blog. It really adds good insight for those of us without time to listen in - or in my case - on the other side of the planet when the call took place.

Jonathan is also featured in a piece in the NY Times in a piece on CEO blogging. Steve makes a good addition to the piece, recommending that CEOs don't venture into the blogosphere alone.

Technorati : PR, Participatory Communications, Sun

How Often Should A Blogger Post?

I get asked this question often - and become acutely aware of it when not posting for short periods of time. Last week I was on the road downunder and just didn't have time to get to posting.

For me, the simple answer is, as often as you can and whatever you are comfortable with. Not posting for extended periods of time will definitely cause folks to stray to other things. Will they come back? RSS keeps you on the radar for when you do raise your head - but I am still amazed how many folks are not using an RSS reader.

I'd rather post and read content of some quality than drivel for the sake of posting. So, rule of thumb - shoot for once a week, more if you can.

Thoughts?

Big Trends Done Quickly

Keith over at PRWeek asked for some thoughts on the most important trend, tool, service, company, or whatever will be in the second half of 2006. Here are my quick thoughts done late at night and on the fly. Caveat - when it comes to predictions I am normally wrong... Let me know your thoughts...

1. Trend: Communities and their citizen editors reassembling the fragmented media and conversation space creating powerful micro channels to which millions flock.
2. Company : The one with the biggest community. Think Nike, Apple, VW, Lego. …ok, so I wimped out… Apple if they can integrate the iPod, video and phone fully. And Microsoft - the degree to which key technologies such as RSS is implemented in IE7, Vista and Office 2007 is fantastic.
3. Technology : The Wiki & Community creation platform (think FiveAcross).
4. Service: SixApart, (TypePad, Vox). And, Dabble db - finally we can build our own applications in real-time! And iTunes - what AP/PR Newswire was to the press release, iTunes is to the Podcast.
5. Person: . The blogger, podcaster, vcaster and participatory communicator.

Saying all that… some expanded thoughts... No company matters as much as the community. Communities are ascending as defining force. Nike matters less to me as a soccer fan than the Nike community Joga.com. The companies that matter to consumers will be those with rich communities. Other thoughts on what might happen:

1. Fortune 500 corporations hire their first "conversationalists" - staffers dedicated not to transmitting information (PR) but rather, igniting conversations.
2. Media continues to fragment and reassemble around citizen editors.
3. PR continues its rapid evolution from transmission of content to igniting conversations.
4. Measurement takes a backseat to monitoring as communicators efforts to keep track of the blogosphere and citizen media kick into overdrive. In background mode, measurement practioners start working on new metrics that track participation. (There is an absolute difference between monitoring and measurement).
5. Major agencies launch new press release formats, following hot on the heels of tech boutique Shift. BusinessWire and PRNewswire wake from their slumber and assemble these fragmented efforts into a compelling Web 2.0 offerings.
6. Having discovered the power of technology to add value to their clients, major agencies step-up their efforts with branded RSS readers carrying highly customized content to audiences and customers.
7. As media fragmentation accelerates, media planning starts to raise its head as a critical communications function. Once the purview of advertising departments, communications practioners deliver media planning as a means of hunting and communicating with elusive audiences.
8. More than half the PR profession is still in catch-up mode. They don't listen to podcasts, use RSS readers or blog. Therefore, the most important technology isn't the technology, it's the adoption of it which will continue to accelerate.
9. The Wiki & Web 2.0 technologies such as Writely and Dabble db. They will change the way PR practitioners work internally and share with clients. I'm using Quickbase today - which is pretty expensive but very good.
10. OMPL files finally start getting integrated into marketing offerings.

Big Trends Done Quickly

Keith over at PRWeek asked for some thoughts on the most important trend, tool, service, company, or whatever will be in the second half of 2006. Here are my quick thoughts done late at night and on the fly. Caveat - when it comes to predictions I am normally wrong... Let me know your thoughts...

1. Trend: Communities and their citizen editors reassembling the fragmented media and conversation space creating powerful micro channels to which millions flock.
2. Company : The one with the biggest community. Think Nike, Apple, VW, Lego. …ok, so I wimped out… Apple if they can integrate the iPod, video and phone fully. And Microsoft - the degree to which key technologies such as RSS is implemented in IE7, Vista and Office 2007 is fantastic.
3. Technology : The Wiki & Community creation platform (think FiveAcross). Service:SixApart, (TypePad, Vox). And, Dabble db - finally we can build our own applications in real-time! And iTunes - what AP/PR Newswire was to the press release, iTunes is to the Podcast.
4. Person: . The blogger, podcaster, vcaster and participatory communicator.

Saying all that… some expanded thoughts... No company matters as much as the community. Communities are ascending as defining force. Nike matters less to me as a soccer fan than the Nike community Joga.com. The companies that matter to consumers will be those with rich communities. Other thoughts on what might happen:

1. Fortune 500 corporations hire their first "conversationalists" - staffers dedicated not to transmitting information (PR) but rather, igniting conversations.
2. Media continues to fragment and reassemble around citizen editors.
3. PR continues its rapid evolution from transmission of content to igniting conversations.
4. Measurement takes a backseat to monitoring as communicators efforts to keep track of the blogosphere and citizen media kick into overdrive. In background mode, measurement practioners start working on new metrics that track participation.
5. Major agencies launch new press release formats, following hot on the heels of tech boutique Shift. BusinessWire and PRNewswire wake from their slumber and assemble these fragmented efforts into a compelling Web 2.0 offerings.
6. Having discovered the power of technology to add value to their clients, major agencies step-up their efforts with branded RSS readers carrying highly customized content to audiences and customers.
7. As media fragmentation accelerates, media planning starts to raise its head as a critical communications function. Once the purview of advertising departments, communications practioners deliver media planning as a means of hunting and communicating with elusive audiences.
8. More than half the PR profession is still in catch-up mode. They don't listen to podcasts, use RSS readers or blog. Therefore, the most important technology isn't the technology, it's the adoption of it which will continue to accelerate.
9. The Wiki & Web 2.0 technologies such as Writely and Dabble db. They will change the way PR practitioners work internally and share with clients.
10. OMPL files finally start getting integrated into marketing offerings.

Your Attention Please

BusinessWeek has a terrific piece on how Web 2.0 is pulling the fragmented mass market together. It starts with a look at how we now allocate out attention - less on the media's schedule and more on ours (time and place shifting).

Some nice quotes from Nike who are fully embracing communities with sites like Joga for soccer fans.

"Gone are the days of the one big ad, the one big shoe, and the hope that when we put it all together again it makes a big impact" - Trevor Edwards, vp global brand management, Nike.

Technorati : PR, Public Relations

Dell Launches Blog

Dell is out of the gate with a corporate blog... Like every corporate blog it is looking for a voice and will probably take time to find one. It's a little corporatey - but then its a corporate blog. The bloggerati just need to get over every blog coming out the gate reading like a conversation at the local pub and not rehashing the past trials and tribulations of bloggers. It takes time for a corporate blog to find its collective voice.

Perhaps the best thing we could do to welcome a new corporate blog isn't to critique it (just yet) but rather to participate. Engage them if you are interested. Give it time to settle and grow and nurture it with comments.

PRWeek says they are out to tell a story - if the story is - as it seems to be - "take a look at our really hot boxes" - then I hope they continue down the path of more recent posts which do seem to have more of a narrative.

The fact that they don't address past issues doesn't really bother me - I really could care less about the ranting and raving about Dell customer service - I use an Apple and a Sony... :-)

Anyway - I have a long history with Dell and am a big fan - it's great to see them taking steps in the right direction with regard to their communication. A company that has direct at its core should be engaging in conversations. The do to the tune of about 3 million calls a day so why not here!

Technorati : Dell

On The Road & Back Again...

Been on the road over the last week visiting partners, customers, more customers and speaking at the PRSA technology conference in New York City. Thanks to Eric over at iPressroom for the invite. Also managed to catch-up with a few of my team that are now ex-Nortel. Was great to see them doing so well.

I'm not sure why I don't post as much while on the road - no reason other than the frantic pace of running between this airport and that. Here are a couple of posts that I enjoyed along the way...

• The People Formerly Known As The Audience: Right on. Audiences are for people that transmit. For people that choose to engage, we are people as well (think complete humans, not body parts (aka, "eyeballs"), often living in tribes or communities.
• The New Analysts: Nice post from James. It occurred to me that calling "the new analysts" analysts is kind of stupid. Ok, the analyze, but the moniker has such an overhang that it is limiting.
• And, this piece on the power of the recommenders and conversationalists. "But as angry clients increasingly turn to the Internet to settle scores, companies, independent retailers and everyday wrongdoers are learning that consumers can have the last word -- and often the last laugh. The Web has turned into a place where shame and humiliation are sometimes the strongest weapons in fighting scams and unfairness."

On the flight home this all got me to thinking that we are in an age in which a power shift is occurring from specifiers to recommenders. Specifiers speak from a position of authority and exclusivity. Recommenders speak from a position of experience and participation. I picked-up a copy of PC Magazine - it is getting pretty thin. Once the power specifier in the consumer tech space it really is little more than a catalog. If I really want reviews and insight, I head to Cnet, Engadget, Amazon, Gizmodo... I look at what real users are saying and rating. I read the informed opinions of Redmonk and Alex. Then I filter.

(For those looking for my presentation slides, I'll post them tonight).

Technorati : AR, Analyst Relations, PR, Public Relations

Job Applications...

I've just been working my way through a stack of emails for a range of positions we have open here at LogLogic. It got me thinking that I could probably help all you job seekers out with a few pointers on the things that drive us nuts:

1. Don't ask questions prior to sending a resume. For instance, "before I send my resume over, is this a newly created position?". It is unlikely you will get a response and those that do have a resume in the pipe now have a lead on you.
2. If you aren't clearly qualified, don't pretend to be and don't apply. Your application is a basic indicator of intelligence and comprehension. If a recruiter says "five years of technology sales experience required" they mean five years and technology and sales. Not five years and real estate and coordinator. We might be closed minded but we know what we want.
3. Don't just attach your resume. Give the five most relevant bullets in the body of the email and specifically flag time with relevant companies. Anything more than 2-3 paragraphs won't get read. If you don't think we will have the vaguest idea who your employer was, give us one line on them.
4. In delivering your resume, use the format specified in the ad and if nothing is specified put the body of the resume in the email and attach a .pdf. Avoid word.doc attachments if you can.
5. Name your resume with your name. myresume_2_draft.doc doesn't look professional and will get lost in the filing process.
6. I know it is tricky but when applying using personal email try to use a professional address. It is hard to take an email from "[email protected] seriously - if it even makes it through our spam filter.
7. Avoid puffery in your language. Nothing works better than good, plain English. This kind of thing won't work... "I know very clearly & absolutely before to submit my submissional application for the post-recruited requirements... I will prove my supreme liase abilities, hugely Graymatters-accessible triumphancies... & my superiorated talentedness to do my job at excellent." Ummm, really.
8. Check spelling!

As I said, this stuff drives us nuts. We will take the time to look at your resume despite what seem to be best attempts to cause us not to do so. But at the end of the day you want to be ahead on points before you walk in the door.

Good luck. There are wonderful opportunities out there. Don't start behind the pack with a lousy application.

Technorati : HR, PR