Posted by Katie Noonan
Facebook has recently modified its fan pages to more closely mirror profile pages, creating a real opportunity for Web 2.0 savvy businesses and communicators. The opportunity is clear, but how to best leverage it, a little less so.
We're hoping that you'll check out Furia Rubel's Facebook page, and let us know what you think. This way we can use our page as a case study and share what we learn with ThePRLawyer readers.
Thanks for your help in this social media experiment!
Tuesday, March 10, 2009
Thursday, March 05, 2009
Simplicity is Key
Posted by Amanda Walsh
A recent post on “The Future Buzz,” by Adam Singer, was about simplicity and staying focused. I like the “less is more” theory, especially when it is applied to public relations, marketing and Web design. I am sure many professionals would agree that they can easily drown in “information overload” on the Internet or the idea of being overcome with many messages through the Internet. Adam presents some interesting problems that can be solved by staying focused and straightforward in your approach.
Here are some dos and don’ts that will keep things simple and help PR practitioners stay focused in their approach to online PR:
Don’t make your blog overly extravagant. When a blog has too many bells and whistles such as banners or RSS feeds, it can be hard for the viewer to concentrate on the actual message. Do organize all the extras on other pages in logical clusters. “Simplicity makes everything stand out,” Adam advises. I agree that some of those “extras” may be helpful or necessary, but you should organize your blog with simplicity an ease of reading in mind.
Don’t issue “lengthy media pitches and press releases full of fluff.” Do target your audience and know the types of stories or “beats” that bloggers and/or journalists cover. Media pitches with links will grab attention. Another great piece of advice is to provide your message within the body of an E-mail and to be honest and descriptive in the subject line of all E-mails.
Don’t overload your Web site with information. Do keep all information organized. Using simplicity in Web design can be difficult, but keep in mind the action you would like your visitors to take and where you want them to click and read. Use those goals as guidelines when designing your Web site.
To read more of Adam’s advice for simplifying your approaches to online communications, check out this link. To learn more about "information overload" check out this article by InformationEngineering.net.
A recent post on “The Future Buzz,” by Adam Singer, was about simplicity and staying focused. I like the “less is more” theory, especially when it is applied to public relations, marketing and Web design. I am sure many professionals would agree that they can easily drown in “information overload” on the Internet or the idea of being overcome with many messages through the Internet. Adam presents some interesting problems that can be solved by staying focused and straightforward in your approach.
Here are some dos and don’ts that will keep things simple and help PR practitioners stay focused in their approach to online PR:
Don’t make your blog overly extravagant. When a blog has too many bells and whistles such as banners or RSS feeds, it can be hard for the viewer to concentrate on the actual message. Do organize all the extras on other pages in logical clusters. “Simplicity makes everything stand out,” Adam advises. I agree that some of those “extras” may be helpful or necessary, but you should organize your blog with simplicity an ease of reading in mind.
Don’t issue “lengthy media pitches and press releases full of fluff.” Do target your audience and know the types of stories or “beats” that bloggers and/or journalists cover. Media pitches with links will grab attention. Another great piece of advice is to provide your message within the body of an E-mail and to be honest and descriptive in the subject line of all E-mails.
Don’t overload your Web site with information. Do keep all information organized. Using simplicity in Web design can be difficult, but keep in mind the action you would like your visitors to take and where you want them to click and read. Use those goals as guidelines when designing your Web site.
To read more of Adam’s advice for simplifying your approaches to online communications, check out this link. To learn more about "information overload" check out this article by InformationEngineering.net.
Tuesday, March 03, 2009
Skittles Social Media Campaign Gone Awry
Posted by Katie Noonan
While some are heralding Skittles' new social media campaign as groundbreaking, innovative and even "amazing," according to eConsultancy.com blogger Chris Lake, the campaign leaves the company vulnerable to one of the biggest PR concerns in the Web 2.0 age: a loss of control over their message.
I do believe their new campaign is innovative and bold. Visit http://www.skittles.com/ and you'll be asked to enter your birthdate to proceed to their new Web site. One quickly sees why Skittles would require this information. The background of their site is search results showing all tweets about Skittles on Twitter. Herein lies the problem. Third parties become the vehicle for distributing Skittles' message. Some have seized the opportunity to plug their own blogs, comment on the social media phenomena, or simply spam the page with vulgar or irrelevant tweets. Very few individuals have engaged in conversation about the product, and no one is saying "Skittles are yummy, go buy a pack today."
The social media campaign has certainly started a conversation on the Internet, so if that was their ultimate goal, then they succeeded. However, if their goal was to convert this conversation to increased sales, I think they may have missed the mark. A large part of candy sales are driven by kids asking their parents to buy them a pack at the movies or in the grocery store, but that demographic is not on Twitter, nor are they old enough to visit other social media sites like Facebook and Flickr (sites to which the new Skittles' site also links).
The whole thing leaves me scratching my head. Are they trying to break into a new demographic? Boost sales among the 18-24 set, or professionals who have recently embraced social media sites like Facebook and Twitter? Garner attention and increase chatter on the Web about their product?
The campaign is bold and provactive, but that it will convert to an increase in sales remains unseen, and their main objective behind launching the campaign is even more of a question mark. While social media campaigns can and should be utilized in the Web 2.0 age, it's imperative that companies maintain ultimate control over their message. Otherwise the brand gets muddled and leaves consumers like me scratching my head, but not necessarily running out to buy a pack.
If Skittles had provided a tab on their Web site to link to Twitter, Facebook and Flickr, they would have gotten the best of both worlds- the opportunity to branch into a social media public relations while still maintaining control over their brand.
While some are heralding Skittles' new social media campaign as groundbreaking, innovative and even "amazing," according to eConsultancy.com blogger Chris Lake, the campaign leaves the company vulnerable to one of the biggest PR concerns in the Web 2.0 age: a loss of control over their message.
I do believe their new campaign is innovative and bold. Visit http://www.skittles.com/ and you'll be asked to enter your birthdate to proceed to their new Web site. One quickly sees why Skittles would require this information. The background of their site is search results showing all tweets about Skittles on Twitter. Herein lies the problem. Third parties become the vehicle for distributing Skittles' message. Some have seized the opportunity to plug their own blogs, comment on the social media phenomena, or simply spam the page with vulgar or irrelevant tweets. Very few individuals have engaged in conversation about the product, and no one is saying "Skittles are yummy, go buy a pack today."
The social media campaign has certainly started a conversation on the Internet, so if that was their ultimate goal, then they succeeded. However, if their goal was to convert this conversation to increased sales, I think they may have missed the mark. A large part of candy sales are driven by kids asking their parents to buy them a pack at the movies or in the grocery store, but that demographic is not on Twitter, nor are they old enough to visit other social media sites like Facebook and Flickr (sites to which the new Skittles' site also links).
The whole thing leaves me scratching my head. Are they trying to break into a new demographic? Boost sales among the 18-24 set, or professionals who have recently embraced social media sites like Facebook and Twitter? Garner attention and increase chatter on the Web about their product?
The campaign is bold and provactive, but that it will convert to an increase in sales remains unseen, and their main objective behind launching the campaign is even more of a question mark. While social media campaigns can and should be utilized in the Web 2.0 age, it's imperative that companies maintain ultimate control over their message. Otherwise the brand gets muddled and leaves consumers like me scratching my head, but not necessarily running out to buy a pack.
If Skittles had provided a tab on their Web site to link to Twitter, Facebook and Flickr, they would have gotten the best of both worlds- the opportunity to branch into a social media public relations while still maintaining control over their brand.
Monday, March 02, 2009
Web Sites Not Liable for Third Party User Content (for the most part)
Posted by Katie Noonan
Web sites are not responsible for user commentary, according to recent court rulings relating to Section 230 of the federal Communications Decency Act, Ragan guest blogger, Bruce E.H. Johnson, said today in his blog Are you responsible for content generated by readers?
Here are a few highlights from Johnson's blog:
Web sites are not responsible for user commentary, according to recent court rulings relating to Section 230 of the federal Communications Decency Act, Ragan guest blogger, Bruce E.H. Johnson, said today in his blog Are you responsible for content generated by readers?
Here are a few highlights from Johnson's blog:
- Web sites do still need to air on the side of caution to avoid potential libel suits. For example, companies may be help liable for comments made by their employees on their Web site, as employee comments do not fall under the category of third party content.
- Online news outlets are protected from libel suits for comments posted by readers in response to articles.
- Web site administrators need be careful when they edit user comments as that may make them more vulnerable to a libel suit.
- According to Johnson, Web sites are also protected from user posts that violate intellectual property rights "provided that you follow the instructions set forth in the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA)."
It would seem that the courts give Web sites a bit of leeway when it comes to holding them liable for third party content on their site. The PRLawyer would still recommend airing on the side of caution to avoid a PR headache or legal hassle.
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