Questions We Get Asked

Are Blogs a Fad?

No. [That was easy.]

 

Blogs are here to stay. One hundred million blogs and counting does not a fad make. The reason is quite simple. Blog software makes it so easy to publish, collaborate, share, create, converse, listen – all the things we as humans do naturally to connect to each other. The difference with blogs is we can do it all on a global scale – any time and any where about any thing.

 

Blogs are a channel that is completely remodeling the flow of information. They have already had a profound effect on mass media, consumer behaviors and business. We are no longer dependant solely upon mass media for news, information, gossip or entertainment. Blogs are a communications fact of life.

 

Very soon blogs will be seamlessly woven into the communications tapestry, and we won’t speak of “blogs” as something new, unique or different. They are fast becoming a staple of the modern communication.

 

Aren't blogs just personal journals by teens about things that no one but their moms care about?

Yes. But mostly, no. Blogs are published by journalists, corporate executives, marketers, mass media, advertisers, PR pros, citizens, freelancers, project teams, cooks, analysts – well, you get the idea – everyone. About things they care deeply about. Deeply enough to spend time writing blogs entries and reading and commenting on others. Self-expression is addicting.

 

And they do get read – some more than even the most popular mass media. RocketBoom, a video blog, for example, has more “circulation” than some cable news shows. The fuel behind blogs is syndication – most popularly known as Really Simple Syndication (RSS) – which allows people to receive updates automatically. Online search engines favor new, updated content, and they find it using RSS. That means blog content is returned within the same search results as “mainstream” content. In fact you may be reading blogs and not realize it...

 

What is RSS?

Oh my. So few words and such a big question. RSS stands for Really Simple Syndication and is indeed a method for syndicating content online. Blogs have syndication as a standard feature, which is one of the reasons information flows so quickly in the “blog-o-sphere.”

 

Syndication allows individuals to subscribe to web content (a “feed”) and receive it on their desktops as soon as the content is updated – either using one of the newer web browsers or a special software application called a “news reader” or “new aggregator.” Several online services also provide aggregation of your preferred RSS feeds: Google, Rojo, Newsgator, Netvibes, My Yahoo, FeedBucket, to name just a few of the 50 or so.

 

The point of RSS is that information comes to you. And it gets really interesting and useful when companies, services, or web sites provide RSS so you can subscribe to things other than blogs – like search results, product availability, jobs, new home listings, audio or video (podcasts) and so on.

 

So, next question, can RSS help you find relevant audiences?

 

How does RSS affect my search rankings?

It affects them hourly! RSS is constantly feeding new content to standard search engines, and the new generation of search engines powered solely by RSS are becoming very popular. New, fresh content is often being favored over static content. In contrast, standard web pages are often indexed only once a month or so, and search engines are constantly changing how they index pages based on the new wave of blog and RSS content.

 

Can blogs, RSS or podcasting be a marketing tool?

Absolutely! These are successful marketing tools when you adapt your marketing to the medium. In fact, your audiences want to connect with you in modern ways! The important thing to remember is today it is about the audience – it isn’t about you.

 

Aren’t there liability issues surrounding blogging and podcasting?

Yes. But by in large they are no different than in any other print or broadcast medium. It is just that not everyone that is publishing online understands what those liabilities and responsibilities are.

 

The most important thing you can do is to get “new media” policies in place in your organization - now. Whether you are blogging or podcasting or not, your staff, employees, partners are, and being clear about your policies will avoid 97% of the potential liability issues.

 

The other thing to do is train everyone in your organization about standard liability issues, and if you are a public company, about disclosure regulations.

 

How do we do media relations in the present journalistic environment?

It is a bit more challenging in some ways, but the good news is there are a lot more ways and places to get coverage – and new tracking tools makes it easier to show all your results.

 

The parts that haven’t changed is having “good” news and building relationships. But including in your media relations the thousands more channels represented by influential blogs, podcasting, consumer-generated media, journalists who blog, mobile media, social networking, means learning some modern media skills.

 

We do provide seminars specifically about modern media relations tactics. If you would like to attend one, or bring us into your agency for a private seminar, contact us or subscribe to our seminar announcement RSS feed.

 

What is the big deal about text messaging?

It is staggering actually. In the UK alone 100 million text messages are sent every day, but those statistics lag behind the per-capita stats for Singapore China, Korea, Europe. While the usage in the U.S. is not quite as strong, due to interoperability issues and our strong attachment to cars, youth view text messaging as an essential method of communication.

 

The point is, text messaging is a vibrant communication channel – and is often the preferred choice. Mobile media is our most personally important gear. Which means it is an opportunity waiting for you as a way to connect and/or service your customers – no matter where they are.

 

Why are podcasts causing so much buzz? What’s the big deal?

Eyes are full. Ears are not. Podcasts are one answer to the “what I want, when I want it, how I want it” attitude of today’s audiences. Podcasts are downloadable audio and video files, but with a twist. They are enclosures to an RSS feed – meaning you subscribe and receive podcasts automatically as they become available.

 

Podcasting allows for time shifting of content, much the way digital video recorders do for television.

 

Mainstream broadcasters are offering radio and television shows in podcast form. Corporate communicators are using them for internal and external communications. Politicians use it to connect with constituents. Newspapers are supplementing the daily print news with podcasts. Individuals are using it as their own broadcast channel. And the list goes on.

 

Podcasting is just a year old, but its growth is exponential. It does not require an MP3 player, as you can listen or watch podcasts on your computer. But the growth of personal media means we have to adapt our content to be where are audiences are, and podcasting is just one of the ways to do it.

 

How do we convince our CEO new media is important?

Show don’t tell. The evidence is all around you. People are using new mediums. Traditional media usage is declining while new mediums are everywhere.

 

Get up on the trends yourself. Bring us in for an Executive Briefing. Cut out pictures, take screen shots. Find out what your competitors are doing. Search the blogosphere for your organization or products – or employees. Read the industry trades – they are full of case studies, trend forecasts and news articles about new media. Go to one of our seminars. Look at fashion magazines (even clothes are adapting and some media are fashion accessories).

 

The new mediasphere is more than new ways to market or communicate. It also offers enormous opportunities for new products, services or revenue streams.