Foursquare: Social Media’s Dick Measuring Contest

Foursquare is a game, in essence. It has some business viability and some big brands do take advantage.

I’ve been registered for a while and only recently decided to stress test the location-based social media site to the detriment of my Facebook followers who ended up getting a lot of messages around my being where-ever I was, becoming mayor of so-and-so and getting an “overshare” badge, which was testament to my stress-test.

To the point… after a week at it I’m starting to ask.. “What’s the point?” Seriously. Becoming mayor of coffee shops, the gym, checking-in at every mundane point of your existence even the bloody highway. Having mayorships of these places proves what exactly? Anyway… I’ve realised what an absolute waste of time the damn application is.

What’s next? Geo-tagging your toilet while you’re having a crap? “John is the Mayor of the second floor bathroom”. I wonder if Foursquare is going to to start automatically tagging places for people based on their GPS location since it is SO TEDIOUS to keep checking in all the time. Can you imagine that happening? How far is sharing going to go?

And what happens when we start running out of tagging all the known places… will we see “John has checked into ‘the bogs behind KFC’” or ‘the dumpster second to left outside McDonalds’.

It’s a childish game. I guess some people just won’t grow up… they’ll always find new games to play under the guise of business opportunities and professional curiosity. It doesn’t take long to see a waste of time though. In termsof business opportunities, how big is the sample of people using Foursquare? What return will you get from those customers, seriously?

So… how many mayorships do you have? a lot? GET A LIFE.

Thoughts on the Future of Citizen Media #gv2010

The more I think about it, the more I see the future as being driven by citizen journalists, the news of on-the-ground local citizens taking precedent over the ‘professional’ journalism which has been the vanguard of all news since the dawn of the media age.

The structure of technology has changed, become more social and more “share-able” and this has made the dissemination of media far easier and quicker than any major news organisation could ever hope to accomplish with correspondents and all the logistics which go with it.

I’m sure journalists will have their place but I think their role will be much eroded in the coming age. I have no doubt of that, in fact it has already begun where bloggers and citizen news sources are becoming the norm in terms of reporting and gaining media footage. Professional journalists using citizen media for their news stories simply because there is no other footage or access to material covering that particular bit of news.

The only flaw in the plan lies in the question of ‘Access’. Not everyone can afford the modern miracle of simple communication technologies, let alone having any training of using a computer much less using and gaining access to the internet. There are MANY endeavours to close this gap but we are still a long way away from it being anywhere near acceptable levels.

Then there’s the question of priorities. Yes, the news should be reported and people on the ground should have all the resources available to them to make them a part of our global community. But, most of these people are having trouble getting basics like food, water and shelter. Here’s where correspondents will serve a greater purpose of reporting the situation in those areas.

This does, however, open up a bigger opportunity for charity organisations and NGO’s to begin fully utilising Digital Media in order to not only help the people on the ground but to spread information and knowledge world-wide. The platforms are there.

Citizen Media may be the home of the amateur writer, photographer, cameraman but information is information… and a badly taken photograph or video is much better than none at all. People are everywhere, news organisations are not. This us why citizen Media is the future and will most likely make up at least 80% of content from news organisations in the future.

I say this from the current context of cost-cutting by these news organisations (and many corporations in general) as well the rise in citizen journalists who do not ask for anything in reward, only satisfying the impulse to share and have their voices heard.

Buildup to the Summit #gv2010

Day1: We’re sitting in the auditorium, funky Chilean music coming through the speakers, laptops open everywhere, wi-fi being stretched to capacity in the background. There is a definite feeling of excitement in the air as people from across the world who have only ever interacted over the digital landscape now meet each other face to face and exchange greetings and stories from everywhere.

If you didn’t already know… the tag is #gv2010. Follow it. The next couple of days is going to explode with all forms of media as ideas and opinions around Citizen Media are exchanged and processed through the hundreds of minds of bloggers, technology and media professionals.

This will trend on Twitter, Facebook, Flickr, . Almost 10.15am and the auditorium is already three quarters full. Bring it on.

Global Voices Summit 2010 Blog

Touchdown Santiago

Touched down in Santiago at 11.40am local time. Back in the UK that’s 4.40pm. The 5 hour difference is driving my body insane, sleepy but it’s still too early. The trip itself was a blur, 13 hour flight with intermittent sleep, I remember watching The Departed somewhere in between. The flight was via Sao Paulo, I would’ve loved to see Brazil, the airport seems to be in the middle of the city because you can see houses and trees and mountains just outside the airport, and the sun was lovely.

I remember walking through the airport half in a daze with Paris and Public Enemy’s Remixed version of “Rebirth of a Nation” on my iPod trying to find my way to the “Connecting Flights” Section. Met some awesome people, all from Global Voices. Egypt, Tanzania, Macedonia, Fiji, Bangladesh, Japan, China, USA, Pakistan, India, Bolivia, Madagascar… and there’s going to be many more to meet tomorrow at the Summit itself.

Santiago is a big ass city, like all big ass cities, tall buildings with bustling people back and forth. In terms of culture and scenery its like a mix between Johannesburg and Egypt. Everyone speaks Spanish and I constantly chastise myself for not learning the language more. I have worse than basics to work with. I love it though, the city I mean, That constant buzz and noise and life just filtering all around me, I can sit mesmerised by it for ages.

I’m sitting in the hotel room taking advantage of the intermittent wi-fi and buzzing with excitement at the prospect of tomorrow’s Global Voices Citizen Media Summit. It’s gonna be HUGE.

Video: Interviews at the Social Media World Forum #smwf

Huzu, a very innovative London-based Social Media Platform agency had been in charge of the video element of the #smwf and are releasing 12 short videos covering specific topics using interviews of the main speakers at the forum. I have a short cameo somewhere near the end.

“What role does Social Media play in the overall Marketing Strategy”

Huzu at the Social Media World Forum 2010 – Interviews from Huzu on Vimeo.

My presentation at the Social Media World Forum on “Successfully Monitoring and Measuring Social Media Campaigns” is covered here. and is downloadable on Slideshare.

Successfully Monitoring and Measuring Social Media Campaigns #smwf

I presented this at the Social Media World Forum (#smwf)

The event itself was very enlightening, the insights and perspectives were inspiring. Although, I kept seeing on the #smwf back-channel (that is, the twitter conversations using the hash-tag, just in case you didn’t know) as well as on blog postings that some people were calling the event a re-hash and “saying the same thing as last time”, “not adding value”, etc. I would like to wholeheartedly disagree. There was tremendous value even if it was a re-hash, which I don’t believe it to be.

I think “Social Media Experts” who always attend these events have always heard the propositions and presentations and similar ideas floating around and hence are more akin to believing and seeing the same things over and over again. But there are MANY, MANY others who do not.

Coming from a marketing background and working across many departments, even currently, I know for a fact that in most organisations, even though employees are versed in Facebook and Twitter and whatever, they do not even know where to begin when it comes to applying Social Media for Business purposes.

The message still needs to be spread, no matter how many times it is said. The point these “Experts” need to get is that the message needs to get to the right audience. Yes further and new thinking needs to take place and take the entire Study and Philosophy to the next level, but the foundations need to be built before you start constructing high towers. These people, the organisations and their departments, are the ones eventually funding the entire Social Media enterprise anyway.

This is the context in which I made my presentation… Download it from Slideshare and go through it with the notes for a fuller explanation and understanding :)

Social Media Marketing Win: Marmite Cereal Bars

Was offered this on Facebook recently in that little Advertising block on the right hand side of your screen offering a free marmite cereal bar. So I though ‘What the hell… let’s give it a go.’ Well I got it in the post yesterday and I was impressed by how integrated the whole campaign was in terms of Marmite launching the new innovation. The objectives must certainly have been awareness and trial, with a higher focus on trial of the product since the messaging of the campaign encourages feedback on their new product.

The product itself, well, it falls under the general feeling around Marmite doesn’t it? You either love it or hate it. Well, I do like Marmite in general and the cereal bar is pretty good. It’s not overbearingly marmite, but you get the taste and it fulfils all the passport factors of being a cereal bar.

I don’t know if they’ve done any TV advertising around it, but the Outdoor is fairly ubiquitous in London and very eye-catching and engaging. I especially love the twist and the emotion it creates around even thinking of having a Marmite showergel, Fabric Softener or Perfume. In contrast, the cereal bar looks like a great idea.

Check ‘em out…

Ad Agency: DDB

An overall brilliant marketing campaign which fitted Social Media into its mix and overall strategy pretty brilliantly and was the first FMCG brand to do so. The bars were also sampled at tube stations and other places and the sample bars through facebook were obviously voluntary and you had to put in your address. So instead of Social Media i.e. Facebook Ad units being the main driver it was, in fact, only a part of the campaign for marmite to increase its reach.

Great Idea. Great Work.

Personal Branding and Enhancing Employee Relations with Social Media

I gave a presentation yesterday at the “Social Media and the Employment Relationship Conference” in Holborn, London.  Essentially, I was talking to a group of HR consultants and professionals and letting them know how to get involved and get started using Social Media in their particular context.

Here it is :)

Yeah Baby! Social Media is the New PUNK ROCK!

I’ve always seen Punk as a philosophy rather than a once off bunch of noisy kids with spiked hair and bad attitudes. It was about standing up to the establishment, breaking the rules, going against the norm.  They are the ultimate modern form of talking straight back with their own interpretation of how to talk back in the first place.  Hence, the below video, is a bit misplaced with comparing punk rock only to social media… it’s bigger than that.  The philosophy, I believe, transcends all media because it addresses the underlying intentions behind WHY we communicate.

So if you question the norms, don’t agree with them and voice your opinions with any media whatsoever… you are a PUNK.  Word… Enjoy the video :)

Technorati Tags: Punk, Punk Rock, Music, Philosophy, Social Media

Twitter in Real Life.

This is most likely the reason first time users of Twitter stop, give up and bad-mouth it. I can’t blame them after watching this.

A message to the people who think Twitter sucks – You ARE FOLLOWING IDIOTS. If you followed the right people, Twitter is Awesome.

Technorati Tags: Twitter, College Humour
Peace.

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