Spontaneous contemplation

Sometimes a sampling of musings on PR, marketing and social media as they might occur

Who wants to go first? @dbreakenridge @geoffliving @ginidietrich

Social-media-books

 

Look what came in the mail today!  And they came together in the same box from Amazon. I've got about 50 pages to go in Lee Odden's Optimize -- which doesn't disappoint – but looking forward to finding time for these two books:  who wants to go first?  

I have read Geoff's previous book -- Now is Gone -- and Deidre's -- Putting the Public Back in Public Relations -- and Gini's blog, well,she calls it like it is, which not enough people in PR do anymore.  Even so, I feel as if I used to read more books than I do now:   I think my reading time has increasingly moved more and more online, or even mobile.  I can only sacrifice so much sleep…

As a result, I tend to favor audiobooks given how much time I spend on the road (Listening to The Dragon Fly Effect now), it’s a good way to make use of the time.  Even so,  I still try to make a point to physically read books.   I like to highlight, write notes in the sides and dog-ear pages.  Lee's almost certain to get a blog post out of me, given how many dog-ears he’s got now, and it's a lot harder to write blog posts after listening to audiobooks because it's basically from memory; with audio I get the concept which furthers my knowledge, but I don't have a command of the details to write a compelling post.  

It could take months for me to knock out both of these…but there’s sure to be a lot of notes! 

Matt Light, Captain Morgan and sneaky web ads

Sneaky-web-ads

I was sorry to see Matt Light was retiring from the Patriots.  The veteran linesman has kept Tom Brady relatively safe from defensive hecklers for many years...so I clicked the link which took me to a page much like the screenshot you see nearby.  

But lookout... the ads are getting sneakier.

As soon as I arrived to read the story, a new page opened that took me to a landing page -- in this case a Facebook landing page for Captain Morgan -- which is the source of the ad surrounding this story.  At first I thought it was a pop-up, but when I went back to the story, I realized the Captain Morgan connection between the ad on the ESPN story and the Facebook landing page.  The ENTIRE ad surrounding the story is hyper-linked to the ad.  

Technically it's not a pop up, but in viewing the story, I had erroneously clicked on the Captain's blackness and that triggered a new ad.  It's nothing short of in-your-face advertising; and I think it's bad because it's irrelevant to the content I'm consuming, and worse, border line manipulative in getting a click, which is clearly geared to getting a like. 

I'll give you a like, Captain...like this post. 

Fix? Twitter and Facebook Mobile Apps

Securedownload

Facebook reportedly bought Instagram, not just for the photo-sharing -- which people on Facebook do in volumes -- but for it's mobile app expertise.  Good thing too, because they need it, but they are not the only company.  There's one little thing with both Facebook and Twitter that I'd really wish they'd fix:  syncing the mobile app with the web.  

Case in point:  Sometimes I'll get an alert that someone liked a Facebook post or Retweeted a Tweet on my mobile device.  If I'm near a computer, I'll check it online because I think the interface and experience is more comfortable. When I check it online, the alert goes away on the Web, but it remains on my device.  The only way I can clear it is to physically check the alert AGAIN on my mobile device. I've got to do the same thing twice.

I'm a a bit obsessive compulsive about things like this -- I can't avoid checking red alerts screaming for my attention (which is why the old Microsoft IM message "you are not signed in" in the tray used to drive me nuts).  I wish these companies would tweak the apps to fix this issue -- either that or pay for my red-alert therapy. 

Not "influential" enough

Rebok

Reebok announced a give away program for influencers.  According to UK-based Marketing Magazine, "Reebok will identify 1,000 influential people who discuss fitness on social media platforms Facebook and Twitter, to give away free CrossFit personal training sessions. The top 100 influencers will receive a free pair of Reebok RealFlex trainers."  

The program is limited to UK-residents, but I logged in to see how it worked anyway.  The screenshot nearby shows the results.  

Get ready for the criticism. It happens every time with a program like this. Certainly programs like this confuse the difference between influence and popularity, but I commend Reebok for trying something new.  If the program works and drives results, that's the intended effect. 

#DC Metro launches anti-groping campaign

She

DC's Metro has launched an anti-groping campaign which the DC City Paper says is "a remake of Boston's transit agency's award winning anti-groping campaign."  Nothing wrong with that, especially if Boston had success with the program (why reinvent the wheel?).  However, the paper continues that, "the Boston campaign encourages riders to snap photos of offenders, while [DC] Metro's does not."  I'm not so sure that's true. 

A press release from DC Metro offers an online reporting mechanism and an email address harassment@wmata.com and despite the City Paper's report, the release clearly states the email is to "allow victims to send photo or video files to assist an investigation."  Metro has distributed flyers like the one nearby all around the Metro in both English and Spanish. 

“This purpose of this outreach is to let people know that it’s not okay to sexually harass people on Metro,” said Metro General Manager and CEO Richard Sarles in the Metro's press release. “We are encouraging anyone who may be harassed to report the incident to Metro Transit Police, and we appreciate the support of the advocacy groups in getting our message out into the communities we serve.”

DC City paper has previously reported on the issue, which is something I've never observed because creeps know I'd "rub" them back and they probably wouldn't like it.  It amazes me that stuff like this happens to the extent that we have to launch a campaign against it.  

Why can't people just do the right thing?  First off by not rubbing on people, which is creepy, and secondly, if you see someone doing that, why not intervene?  You don't have to be a confrontational ninja to help someone out -- just get her (or him) out of there by trading places, pulling them free, or just saying something.  It's the right thing to do, is it not?

If you are a women and are interested in learning self-defense, my good friend Jeremy, a former grade school teacher who launched his own business (amazing entrepreneurial story) runs a program called "She's Safe." He's got schools all around DC in Maryland and Virginia. Jui-Jitsu has got to be the best self-defense training a women could do by its sheer virtue of ground fighting; the ground changes the dynamics of leverage in standing upright. 

The "rub" is something that has applications outside of violence, but in business. A book I read a few years ago by Paco Underhill called "Why We Buy" which describes the "butt brush" in retail. Retailers that had narrow isles lost sales because women would get (ostensibly accidentally) brushed by other people (could be a woman or man).  I'd underscore here, that this was accidental, in the course of shopping, not the creepy stuff the DC Metro is tackling. Retailers that widened isles saw more sales from women shoppers.  

This is a good program; if you live in the DC area, spread the word.  Hat tip to the Drudge Report and Washington Examiner for the tip. 

Hi, Unknown! You look like a great candidate!

Eacommo

I get a lot of stuff from recruiters.  Sometimes that makes me feel good but other times, it's insulting.  I'm not looking right now, but I'll almost always take a call from a recruiter because it's good to network and I might be able to help someone else out.  

The screenshot nearby is from an email I received today -- a recruiter says she spotted my resume and "thought this opportunity might be of interest."  Really?  How can you possibly know that if you don't even know my name?  Why would I give up a secure job for a 3 month contract?  Worse still for your client who is paying for a search but only getting spaghetti thrown against the wall. 

There's a ton of advice out there for job seekers and a lot of it focuses on etiquette, formatting and doing background research.  Often it's recruiters that provide this advice.  Shouldn't they be held to the same standard?