M/C/C Blog

RIM Takes On Google Voice with BlackBerry MVS 5.0 for the Business User

noreply@blogger.com (Clayton) — Fri, 20 Aug 2010 14:16:00 +0000

Staying true to its enterprise-oriented roots, Research In Motion (RIM) recently launched the latest version of it BlackBerry Mobile Voice System (BlackBerry MVS) business software for mobile devices. While it boasts similar capabilities to Google’s Google Voice application, RIM’s new baby may see accelerated adoption due to the company’s mastery of delivering products that meet enterprise needs better than any other player in the wireless market as well as its end users’ absolute affinity for software that comes in any size or shape as long it syncs beautifully. Let’s also not forget: Google Voice is processed through Google’s offsite servers rather than on your local BlackBerry Enterprise Server and while that may be alright for some people, many companies don’t want to risk the potential security threats of having critical emails going through another company’s servers.

In addition to call waiting, call hold, call transfer, call scheduling and simultaneous ring, MVS 5.0 also packs these whizz-bang-wow features:

One Office Identity: This feature enable enterprise MVS 5.0 users to make calls from their mobile phone that the receiver sees as originating from their desk phone number. On the flip side, it also allows for both a user’s mobile and office phone to ring simultaneously when someone, potentially a client, is calling their office phone. I like to think of this feature as an alter ego, a superhero identity if you will. After all, superheroes are always on call.

One Office Voicemail: MVS 5.0 conveniently notifies out-of-the-office employees of work voicemails with an indicator on the BlackBerry home screen. For mobile workers, this is really a lot more helpful than it initially sounds. For example, most enterprise employees probably already have their voicemails being pushed to their office phone via email in a downloadable .WAV file which they then receive in their smartphone inbox. At first glance, One Office Voicemail would appear to be the same feature in a shinier package. However, this MVS 5.0 feature is actually more functional and reliable. Downloadable .WAV files attached to emails sometimes don’t adhere to size limitations on BlackBerry devices, so oftentimes voicemails are still remotely inaccessible. This is a setback I’ve been experiencing more frequently lately while on lunch breaks, personal time off or at offsite client meetings so I’m a pretty jazzed about One Office Voicemail – simple as it may seem. We’ve pointed out previously the wild success that can be driven from simplicity (Hello, Apple and Google brand strategists.)

Voice over Wi-Fi Calling: This feature addresses cost, coverage and communications needs with a “trifecta” by allowing for calls to be made “from your office phone” at home, at work or in Wi-Fi hotspots.

Move Call: Move call enables users to transfer calls from their mobile device to their home, a preset conference room or a one-time use number. This means that if I’m on a work call on my home, I can use MVS 5.0 to transfer it to my handset when I walk in the door to make sure I don’t lose the call, or the client, due to AT&T’s “wonderful” service. Move Call also works in conjunction with the Voice over Wi-Fi feature to move calls from a service provider’s network to a Wi-Fi network. I can think of several other scenarios where having this little trick up your sleeve would come in handy, but you get the picture. Sorry iPhone users…

Extension Dialing: Last but not least, this final MVS 5.0 feature drives the convenience factor home and is so short and sweet it speaks for itself. Extension Dialing gives enterprise users the capability to dial any coworker using their corporate extension.

Back to the Future: Motorola Ultra Classic

noreply@blogger.com (Nathan) — Mon, 16 Aug 2010 16:57:00 +0000

Welcome to Back to the Future. With more than 20 years of experience working in the tech industry, our offices are packed full of historic tech “treasures” just asking for their day back in the fluorescent lights. So we’ve decided to give them their second chance. Check back every month for our homage to the past tech that changed our lives, or at least made us think it would change our lives.

In the second feature of our Back to the Future series, we take a look at a device that has literally changed the world. While it may not be quite as old as some of the relics you’ll find in our halls, Motorola’s Ultra Classic line of mobile phones was literally the game changer in cellular technology. The first phone to be considered truly “portable,” the Motorola Ultra Classic was a game changer and attracted consumers from marketing CEOs like M/C/C’s own Mike Crawford to high school students such as everyone’s favorite troublemaker Zach Morris.

The Motorola Ultra Classic finally got people out-and-about while talking – even if it was only for a couple of minutes at a time due to incredibly high voice rates. No longer were you pulled over on the side of the road or sitting in a parking lot tethered to your car’s cigarette lighter. Now you could be at a restaurant, decide to make a phone call and three minutes of unpacking later you were ready to dial!

The Motorola Ultra Classic came with some truly inspiring features as well. In addition to just calling someone, you could create a directory to auto-dial from (up to 99 entries), setup “Super Speed” dialing and have call timers. I bet you’re regretting that iPhone 4 purchase now, aren’t you?

For those who are still interested, you can pick up one of these beauties for just around $200. I know what you’re thinking, “That’s the same price as a new iPhone or Motorola Droid!” Yes, yes it is, but you get the added benefit of not having to sign a two-year contract (assuming you can actually find a way to get service) and you get the confidence of knowing your phone is truly unique.

Clayton demonstrates how to
carry the Ultra Classic with style

Trust me, you’ll turn quite a few heads when you bust this bad boy out at the next Metroplex Technology Business Council luncheon and start attaching the antenna. Of course, the downside is that there’s a pretty big possibility you’ll poke the person next to you in the eye once you’ve attached the antennae.

PR on the Go!

noreply@blogger.com (Clayton) — Thu, 12 Aug 2010 16:17:00 +0000

Mobility has opened a door for public relations professionals in ways they never could have imagined. Public relations professionals have to be ready for whatever curve ball may come their way and now they can receive the information at two in the afternoon or two in the morning by having a mobile phone. Mobility provides PR teams with e-mails, calls and Internet around the clock.

It also allows professionals to keep up with their clients no matter where they are or what they are doing. Miranda Yow wrote an article in Platform Magazine discussing mobility and how it has taken PR to the next level. She asked professionals to picture themselves at a grand opening for client A and getting a phone call from client B who reports that they have a product that is up for recall and would like to hold the media back until all communications points are written.

With mobility this is no problem at all; you whip out a phone, shoot out an email, set up a news conference and go from there but without mobility that would be impossible. You would have to get to a computer before anything could be done.

This keeps PR teams on their toes and allows them to maintain top quality media relations and communicate effectively. Public relations is formed around the acronym R.A.C.E. which stands for research, action, communication and evaluation. With mobility we are able to be effective communicators and to take action no matter where we are. Mobility has opened the door for public relations in more ways than one and is revolutionizing the world in connectivity. There are so many smart phones to choose from and PR professional can find a phone tailored to his or her needs. To read more about mobility in PR click here.

The Ins and Outs of Network Analytics

noreply@blogger.com (Clayton) — Fri, 06 Aug 2010 18:58:00 +0000

It should be the first thing that crosses the minds of app designers, mobile marketers, carrier executives and anyone else working in the mobile industry: Who is going to use my product? It’s no secret that everyone from McDonald’s employees to CEOs are required to know their audience the best they can, and with the continual growth of data-based, wireless services, the market is also growing more and more elusive. Sure, there is Google Analytics for your site, but mobile data is a different breed of information with more complicated needs and interests. So how is it that mobile marketers are able to target wireless consumers effectively?

The difference is between in-network and out-of-network analytics services. Out-of-network analytics services such as Google Analytics use website tags, cookies and the cache to record information via JavaScript regarding the user’s actions. The problem is that this does not record all of the information for all users. Not all mobile browsers are supported by these services and much of the information is easily lost during transmission due to the analytics platform’s location outside of the information route. In short, the website sends whatever information it can gather from the mobile browser to the analytics platform

Another option for capturing analytics information is an in-network analytics service. These services place the mobile analytics platform in the information flow so that the mobile internet gateway sends information directly to it as opposed to the website’s JavaScript gathering and sending it. This provides for more accurate information regardless of the mobile browser.

Since the mobile industry is so driven by data plans, which is usually controlled by a carrier’s hardware, the accuracy of mobile analytics plays a key role in a carrier’s ability to provide dependable service to wireless consumers. This means that with more accurate information, consumers may spend less time chasing low introductory rates or limited-time offers and experience less frustration with unsatisfactory service from carriers. Not to mention you, as the designer, programmer, sales rep or otherwise, will have a better grasp on how to design, program or sell your product to picky consumers.

U Want 2 Buy A...

noreply@blogger.com (Clayton) — Thu, 05 Aug 2010 16:36:00 +0000

Mobile marketing has been going through quite a change over the past few years. Even on television, most networks are airing those obnoxious commercials imploring you to text a noun or adjective to an odd string of numbers in order to find out how compatible you are with your mate and subscribe to ads. Aside from wondering how many relationships these services make or break, advertisers should be thinking about what’s going on with mobile advertising. Clients are often asking agencies to break into the mobile market, but so many of them steer clear of this part of the digital arena because they are unsure of its logistics or fear they will not be able to quantify results. Alcatel-Lucent Market Advantage recently did some research regarding how well young consumers respond to mobile advertising and how we, as advertisers, can utilize the medium to effectively reach them.

According to surveys, young people actually respond pretty well to mobile advertising. Since 90 percent of youth and young adults subscribe to SMS services, the medium is a great way to reach this market, and more than half of those surveyed across the globe said they would respond to mobile advertisements as long as they are tailored to fit individual interests. Based on these responses, the aspects they find most important in the process are the ability to start or stop messages, asking questions to tailor ads to each person’s interests and respect for privacy.

With a growing trend in mobile Web browsing and ad-supported applications, it seems that advertising has already been built into the mobile experience; however, SMS advertising has retained a taboo nature among advertisers. Respondents to this research actually welcomed this type of advertising, especially if some incentive were offered along with it, the most popular being a discount on SMS, MMS or data services for subscribing to SMS ads. Building an incentive such as this into mobile service plans not only improves customer loyalty toward a given carrier, but also brings in even more revenue, allowing for less outrageous prices on the data plans we all love so much.

Since mobile advertising is still relatively new, it should be interesting to see how it grows and takes a more definite shape. With this many young people looking into these opportunities, I would venture to say that SMS marketing has a seat reserved at the mobile marketing table.

A World Connected

noreply@blogger.com (Clayton) — Tue, 27 Jul 2010 19:56:00 +0000

As technology grows the world continues to shrink and language barriers begin to decrease. This has been seen on Xiha Life’s homepage, a forum dedicated to connecting the world through online discussions. Xiha allows users to talk about family, vacations and friends all in their own language. They offer Google translation below an article and through this they have seen many people from all over the world comment and interact with each other in several different languages.

You might say, “I have tried translations online and they are a joke.” I would be in the same boat with you, especially after studying abroad. I used translations that were so horrible my host family would look at me with a very confused expression on their face. There is no telling what I actually said. But just since that semester, computer scientists have sought for a new way to train computers to understand and interpret correctly.

With computer intelligence, translations have and are becoming more reliable and this is evident on Xiha Life. It would be silly and a long process for computer scientists to teach a program the rules of language so instead, computer scientists locate massive corpora of online documents previously translated by humans explains Wired Magazine. The documents are then used to train cloud computers to recognize which words and phrases match up in languages across the boards.

“Machine translation isn’t good enough to translate books, but when you have someone you want to talk to, it really helps out a lot,” says Jani Penttinen, CEO of Xiha Life.

Google has become the best at training their cloud and are leading the way in translations that make sense. This method of training clouds to produce accurate translations will show even more as the Web grows and develops. It is strange to think that not long ago China seemed to be a distant place but today we can speak to someone in China as if they were our neighbor and carry on conversations without knowing their language at all.

It’s amazing that the pace of finding new ways to communicate online hasn’t slowed down a bit since the days of IRC. In PR, this continues to offer new ways to effectively and efficiently communicate to new audiences and expand the outlets to which our information is distributed.
For more information pick up a copy of July 2010’s Wired Magazine.

Edited Photos: Putting a Cap on Unethical PR

noreply@blogger.com (Clayton) — Tue, 27 Jul 2010 19:41:00 +0000

In case you haven’t heard, people are still mad at BP. Just after the company finally capped its oil leak this week, this photograph of the BP crisis center was posted to the company’s website to show employees hard at work on a solution. The problem is it looks like they hired a toddler to Photoshop it. The photo shows screens displaying live video of the leaking well; however, the edges of the screens do not line up with the images they display and the jagged cut-outs of employees’ heads don’t speak much truth into the situation either. BP later said that the images had merely been inserted in order to fill screens that would have otherwise been blank and that the photographer had been responsible.

Disregarding the chain of blame for the photo and not considering that someone would notice its terrible quality; this photo raises yet another ethical quandary for the company’s PR representatives. Where should we draw the line when using edited photos for PR purposes? After all, nearly every journalist adheres to strict ethical standards stating that no photograph that has been even slightly altered (with the exception of some cropping) should be communicated as truth. As professionals who often rely on PR, we must consider what pushes the limits.

I have personally used altered photos before for PR purposes, although adjustments have always been obvious and I have never once had the intention of deceiving an audience. My use has been limited to placing text on a tombstone, for example, to illustrate a company’s dying profits. The truths are that 1) PR is, in part, about managing an image and 2) a photograph is just as efficient, if not more efficient, than written or spoken words to communicate an idea. Descriptions can be misleading, but seeing something with your own eyes is assuring. In my opinion, it is usually unethical to use altered photos alongside news. If a company has to edit photos to create a sense of urgency or some other illusion, it probably has much bigger problems headed its way than some bad publicity.

If a photo is being used for purposes other than crisis management, it may be permissible (that’s a big maybe). Personally, I feel that altered photos should be avoided in situations that inherently carry public interest such as a massive oil leak. Essentially, the knowledge that BP’s photos were altered destroys the company’s credibility, and when dealing with a crisis of this magnitude, credibility is pretty much all a company has. This coincides with the importance of public transparency regarding corporate crisis communications. A company that appears to be honest with consumers is much more forgivable than one with an obviously extensive, behind-the-scenes production. Sure, it’s easy to cover up problems, but when the cloak comes off, and it almost always will, you will come out of the situation much better if there’s not an ugly secret hiding underneath.

Android Apps Closing the Gap

noreply@blogger.com (Clayton) — Thu, 15 Jul 2010 21:48:00 +0000

Analytics recently released from AndroLib.com indicate that more than one billion Android apps have been downloaded from the Android Market since the application storefront was opened two years ago. Even though the operating system is far from touching its competitors, it seems to be poised for rapid growth, taking shares from RIM’s BlackBerry, Apple’s iPhone, Microsoft’s Windows Mobile and Palm’s webOS.

With the folks at Apple facing the iPhone 4 hardware meltdown, Android may even have a chance to be the runner up in the OS popularity contest, especially since it is the only one of the top five that did not experience a decrease in market share over the past few months. With capabilities rivaling the iPhone and BlackBerry, as well as the marketing power of Google to spread the joy, the Android operating system has effectively positioned itself as a viable threat to its predecessors.

Application developers have been working overtime lately to produce even more apps to keep the ball rolling. In the first half of July alone, developers designed more than 10,720 new Market applications. Along with the introduction of Google’s App Inventor, an easy-to-use program that allows anyone to invent a new Android application, it seems the variety of apps to choose from will begin growing even more. Allowing anyone to be an app developer provides that, if there isn’t already an app for that, there soon will be.

As a business owner or advertiser, this means you may want to keep an eye on where your marketing dollars are being spent. If you have a team working around the clock on a brand new iPhone app, you may want to pump the brakes and wait to find out if Apple plans on fixing that pesky antenna problem soon as well as consider working on an Android-friendly version. With a growing, competitive market in Android apps, the mainstream waters may be changing soon, and you will want to be paddling in the right direction when they do.

Cisco Live 2010 Seven-Day Forecast – Cloudy With a Chance of Staying Cloudy

noreply@blogger.com (Clayton) — Tue, 13 Jul 2010 22:52:00 +0000

Cisco Live is the technology juggernaut’s annual, award-winning conference for technical innovators. As Cisco’s largest educational and training event each year, the conference sessions and World of Solutions expo are attended by more than 10,000 IT professionals both in-person and online via the Cisco Live Virtual portal. With such industry clout, it should go without saying that what’s being talked about at Cisco Live is a smart bet on what will be happening in the future. This year’s event just wrapped up at the beginning of the month and the conclusion was that computing is going to get very cloudy.

None of us live under a rock (or at least I hope none of you do!), so the term “cloud computing” isn’t new to us. In fact, as a concept, it’s not new at all. To briefly refresh our memories, cloud computing is a distributed computing model that serves as a platform for efficiently and effectively sharing resources, applications, software and information. Righhhhht… because we’re all completely clear on exactly what that means. Cloud confusion.

There are a lot of different ideas surrounding cloud computing models – how they can be used, should they be public or private, how do you secure it? As a longtime Cisco Networker company with vast experience in developing telecommunications solutions to pair seamlessly with Cisco products, CommScope went to Cisco Live intent on offering insight and clarity on what’s really needed to build and support highly-demanding cloud computing networks. After hearing all the presentations on what the cloud could bring to the future, CommScope realized that people were skipping the first question all together – how do you build it? As the industry leader in network infrastructure and physical layer components, CommScope recognized an opportunity to educate the community on larger scale and decided they should do so through a sharable medium to incorporate one of the key pillars of cloud computing philosophy. Naturally, they turned to online video.

The benefits of sharable online video to any marketing program are exponential. Not only can it be produced quickly and affordably, but you also have complete control over your message. Additionally, as content demands from digital publications increase, the likelihood of your video being picked up by several media outlets looks sunny. Also, it’s content that you generate once and can repurpose throughout the years as necessary with minor alterations – think of it like being green and recycling. Finally, it’s stored in the cloud, and I think we’ve clarified by now why that’s beneficial.

Survey Says! Well You’re Just Gonna Have to Read This To Find Out

noreply@blogger.com (Clayton) — Sat, 10 Jul 2010 22:55:00 +0000

In the beginning of July, an alliance of 15 global PR agencies known as the Oriella PR Network released the results of a survey they conducted between May and June on how digital media has changed the nature of news-gathering. They interviewed 750 journalists in 15 different countries, and I’d like to tell you what they found out. I’d also like to comment on their findings as I go along, so I do hope that’s all right with you. Let’s begin!

Fact Number One: 75% of journalists appreciate emailed press releases.

I kind of feel like there should be a little disclaimer here that reads, “when the content is high-quality and well-targeted,” but any PR practitioner worth their salt isn’t using the shotgun approach to disseminate their news these days. What I really thought was interesting about this statement came from the article in which I was reading about the survey. It referred to emailed press releases as a “traditional” PR tactic. To me, that’s a statement about the affects of digital media on the role of the reporter in and of itself. Have we really reached the point where email is the traditional tool? That’s an idea that speaks loudly to the elderliness of the faxed release and renders to snail-mailed release completely antiquated. The good news is that the traditional method is still found useful, but that still leaves us wondering what the cutting-edge method is.

Fact Number Two: social media releases and social media newsrooms were the only two tactics on the list to increase appreciation by journalists.
This little tidbit in conjunction with the blurb above confirms something that we’ve been saying at M/C/C for a few years now and have been implementing in our own PR campaigns. No the press release is not dead, yes there is a demand for a social-friendly, sharable release and a central place where anyone can access all content related to a particular company. If you look at these charts, you’ll see that while 75% of journalists find the emailed release helpful, you’ll notice that figure has declined by almost 20% in one year. At the same time, while social media news releases and newsrooms are rising in popularity, it’s a gradually ascent with less than 1% and less than 10% increases respectively. It’s likely that this is partially due in part to the constantly-changing beta-testing-like state of social news distribution. But there’s no doubt, based on this evidence, that your company should be pursuing both methods accordingly to achieve the best results from a well-rounded marketing program.

Pedal to the Metal Advertising

noreply@blogger.com (Nathan) — Thu, 01 Jul 2010 13:11:00 +0000

Advertising is about being creative and finding the best outlet to advertise in. It is interesting that one of the best markets to advertise in may be NASCAR, depending on the public you are trying to reach. Think about it, people pay money to go watch these speeding billboards go around and around a track at 200mph. The cars look so colorful and displaced but a recent article in Wired broke it all down.

There is a method to the madness. The title sponsor for NASCAR is Sprint. The Sprint Cup Series logo goes on every car that competes. Sprint has paid $75 million a year to keep their place as the sponsor and have their logo on every car.The primary sponsor gets to decide on the car’s paint scheme and team colors. They pay $25 million a season to decorate the hood and rear quarter of the panel.

There are also the competition sponsors. They provide certain things for the races every year. For example Goodyear supplies all the tires and Sunoco provides fuel. They also get to put their logo on every car.

The next sponsor places their logos on the B-pillar or areas adjacent to the rear tires. The bigger the logos the more the cost but the price usually ranges from $1 to $4 million per season. Finally the Contingency Sponsors. They pay $375,000 a year to advertise on either side of the front wheels. They also have the right to set up mini competitions within the competition.

This advertisement is speedy but recognized by many. It not only gets several views the day of the race from spectators and TV viewers but also from the publicity each car receives throughout the year from meet and greets, commercials and print advertisement. Companies who invest in advertising with NASCAR seem to want their brand in front of the public in every outlet but maybe that is why it costs the big bucks.

Back to the Future: Iomega Zip drive

noreply@blogger.com (Clayton) — Fri, 25 Jun 2010 22:28:00 +0000

With the first feature in our Back to the Future series, we take a look at a relatively young, yet incredibly famous Iomega Zip drive. While it may not be quite as old as some of the relics you’ll find in our halls, Iomega’s Zip drive was the economical storage solution for the ages. Heralding unprecedented portable storage capabilities (100MB and then later 250MB and 500MB!), Zip disks and their corresponding readers enjoyed a five-year period (1994-1999) as the top dog. That is until recordable CD and DVD drives started ruining the fun.

Rated as PC World’s 23rd best technology product of all time in 2007, Iomega’s Zip drive still holds a special place in the hearts of many MCC’ers – particularly the folks in the creative department. Of course, today 250MB seems almost laughable considering I can get a 16GB SD Card for less than $50, but where’s the nostalgic fun in that?

Check out some of the thoughts from around the halls as we reflect on the treasure that was the Iomega Zip drive.

“I distinctly remember thinking this was it. Nothing could top this. I remember even buying a new Mac just for the embedded Zip drive! Heck, I still have a hard time throwing away spare Zip drives I found in archives just because I still feel like they should be so amazing and useful.”

– Hillary Boulden, Senior Art Director

“I remember just how joyful of a feeling it was the second I plugged it in. Back then, the average hard drive was only maybe 500MB and most programs came on five or six diskettes at minimum so just the thought that I could practically take my entire hard drive and put it on one disk and take it somewhere was amazing. The hardest part for me was that so few people could truly understand my joy at the concept of this because for many of my friends this was their first experience in computers. They didn’t remember the days of having to continuously switch out disks to save something or go back to a program.”

– Pam Watkins, Senior Vice President Business Operations

“Technology was moving so fast during that time. The ability to store information was growing at light speed. It was very similar to what we’re seeing in the cell phone market today with phones constantly improving on each other. The Iomega drives were the embodiment of this; however, what’s most impressive was their ability to evolve. You know, when they first came out they started at around 100 MB and then after we saw that capacity more than double with 250 MB and then triple with 750 MB. I think that ability to expand is what kept it going for so long. Without it, it would have died after 12 months.”
– Mike Crawford, President

RIM’s Marketing Mishaps

noreply@blogger.com (Nathan) — Thu, 17 Jun 2010 18:22:00 +0000

So here at M/C/C we can’t seem to stop talking about Research in Motion’s (RIM) upcoming OS 6.0 rollout. Last month we went over OS 6.0’s new features and discussed RIM’s adoption of the mullet motto. Now we’d like to take a look at something that’s near and dear to our own hearts – its marketing communications strategy.

To introduce O.S. 6.0, RIM developed a sneak peak video and aired it at WES 2010 in April, BlackBerry’s premier event for advancing mobile connectivity in business activities. They said it themselves, folks – business. Remember that little sound-bite while you take a look O.S. 6.0’S capabilities in action.

Back? Okay. Here’s the thing, and I’m just gonna come right out and say it, no sugar-coating, no lead-in, just here it is: The Black Eyed Peas don’t exactly conjure up visions of increased business productivity, which is supposed to be RIM’s niche in the crazily competitive smartphone market. In fact, they’ve got the beat that pounds, which to me indicates a headache. And we all know how non-conducive to work efficiency a pounding headache can be. I know RIM has a corporate contract deal with the Black Eyed Peas, and that’s cool for network commercials and all. But this video doesn’t really show me how I can optimally use O.S. 6.0 to improve the communication routines in my day-to-day business life. Example: dancing around while watching the “Boom Boom Pow” video on my BlackBerry in heels and a business suit isn’t really part of my job description. I’d also like to take this moment to point out that “Boom Boom Pow” blew up more than a year before the debut of this video and is therefore so 2000-and-late. It’s not that I’m not a Black Eyed Peas fan (as I clearly know their lyrics by heart), it’s simply that they’re not the best fit for this video or the conference it was generated for.

The thing about O.S. 6.0 that BlackBerry users (myself included) are so excited about is that it incorporates touchscreen technology with that QWERTY keyboard we can’t live without. The one that provides us with the best email functionality available. If we haven’t jumped ship to iPhone or Android devices by now, it’s because we’re tied to the BlackBerry brand by that little plastic keyboard. We’ve been longing for a solution that will deliver us fun apps and flippy-slidey-finger-around technology in addition to our beloved keyboard. Hark! It’s here (or will be soon)! Wait a minute, this video is a bunch of people dancing around and sliding their fingers across a giant touchscreen interface. Is this an iPhone commercial?

I rest my case.

What does Vocus acquiring HARO mean for PR pros

noreply@blogger.com (Nathan) — Thu, 10 Jun 2010 19:58:00 +0000

There was a pretty interesting announcement from M/C/C’s media list database/distribution partner Vocus this morning. The media database company will be acquiring Peter Shankman’s famous HARO email service. We’ve been using both services in the PR department for quite a while now. Vocus is a tool that the PR department uses to discover, monitor and develop relationships with media contacts from the thousands of different publications for our clients. In addition to serving as one of our many sources for editorial opportunities, contacts and outlets, Vocus enables users to more accurately track reporter interactions and engagement levels through integrated monitoring capabilities.

HARO is an email blast that gets distributed three times a day filled with several requests from reporters on topics that they are currently writing about and could use expert sources for. Users review each email blast and pitch their clients or companies to these sources if they feel they could provide them with relevant information on that particular topic (for those who remember ProfNet, it’s very similar but more up-to-date and with higher open rates). It has been a great tool for increasing targeted pitching capabilities and ensuring a better open rate on pitches and releases as well as opening the door to more opportunities for coverage for our clients.

One thing to note about this merger and HARO and Vocus in general: These are just tools. You still need to know how to use them. And if these are the only tools you’re using for your public relations program then you’re missing out on a lot of other valuable opportunities. There are so many other tools and techniques at your disposal for reach media and consumers directly that it would be foolish to limit yourself to just these two tools.

While the exact details of how this acquisition will impact the HARO email blast have not been made available and we still utilize several other tools and methods for securing coverage opportunities, the acquisition will no doubt have a positive impact on the capabilities of businesses using both of these services to secure coverage and develop relationships as these two tools become more integrated. Being able to source previous HARO queries from reporters and see their coverage history could greatly improve targeting efforts for public relations efforts. In addition, the ability to have HARO queries integrated into the Vocus system would help broaden fleeting editorial calendar lists as well as enhance site traffic consistency.

We’ll make sure to keep everyone up-to-date on new developments as they become available. We’ve got high hopes for the system and our capabilities for our clients.

Is iPhone 4’s FaceTime a blow to Skype?

noreply@blogger.com (Nathan) — Wed, 09 Jun 2010 22:34:00 +0000

Some might say Steve Jobs saved the best for last. At Apple’s Worldwide Developer’s Conference (WWDC) Monday, Apple CEO Steve Jobs delivered his keynote about the monster company’s new baby, the iPhone 4, while attendees and attendees-by-extension through twitter and live blogs, rubbed their mental hands together in anticipation of each unveiling. One of the last features to be announced was the nifty video calling app, dubbed FaceTime, which enables video calling to other iPhone 4 users. Callers will be able to see and hear each other in a two-way conversation using the iPhone’s new front-facing camera with no difficult setup involved. FaceTime is powered through Apple’s new operating system, the iOS 4; however, the feature will not be available to iPad or iPod Touch users.

Many were expecting this highly anticipated video calling option to be used through Skype, a free video-calling service available on a variety of devices and computers that we advocated as a tool with great B2B communications potential. Even though Skype has an existing contract with Apple for mobile video calling for the iPhone 3G, what Jobs introduced was the in-house created FaceTime, legitimately positioning it as a competitor to Skype.

So how does Skype’s future fare in all this?

Before we start hammering nails in the coffin, people should know about FaceTime’s Achilles’ heel. As of launch, FaceTime is only available through Wi-Fi and only compatible with other iPhone 4s – considerably shortening its reach. This gives Skype enough time to possibly develop and trumpet its own mobile video conferencing, and in the meantime publicize its advantages such as its availability across all platforms and connection to 3G networks. This is especially important to consider since Verizon and Skype just finished announcing their recent partnership to bring the VoIP and video calling service to all of the carrier’s smartphones, which by the way is the largest carrier in the nation..

As we mentioned in previous posts, Skype also has easier access to and recognition with the business users thanks to the fact that it’s already integrated into many computers and business video conferencing systems. In fact, in an effort to expand on these capabilities, Skype added the Skype Manager feature in its Skype for Business portal in May. Skype Manager allows managers to control employee accounts, give assignments, perform file transfers and easily set-up multi-party video conferencing for more streamlined communication between businesses and coworkers. That being said, Skype still needs to find an easier way to migrate from your laptop screen to your smarphone screen. Hopefully, Apple will open up the doorway to multiple vendors; however, if history is anything to go by I wouldn’t count on it anytime soon.

Fair or Foul: Is Pay-Per-Click An Ethical Crisis Management Strategy?

noreply@blogger.com (Nathan) — Tue, 08 Jun 2010 21:24:00 +0000

A recent news story examining some of the marketing efforts around the Gulf oil spill fostered some interesting, friendly debate around the M/C/C office. It wasn’t about the spoof @BPGlobalPR Twitter stream set up by a brilliant man known by the penname Leroy Stick. We’re all in agreement that he’s a genius, and the feed is hilarious. This debate was sparked by a story examining the ethics of a British Petroleum (BP) pay-per-click campaign running on search engines Google, Yahoo! and Bing.

Through the search campaign, BP attempts to “…make it easier for people to find out more about [its] efforts in the Gulf and make it easier for people to find key links to information on filing claims, reporting oil on the beach and signing up to volunteer.” (via triplepundit).

Search “oil spill” on the search engine of your choice. You will probably see the top sponsored link for BP’s own website devoted to the oil spill with the tagline: “Info about the Gulf of Mexico Spill; Learn more about how BP is helping”. Research indicates that the majority of people don’t recognize sponsored links as such, and, instead, take them to be objective information raising the question, “Is it ethical for BP to use sponsored links as part of its crisis management strategy?”

In traditional media, the publisher has the right, and obligation, to identify advertising as such when it is presented by the advertiser as editorial content. That’s a standard that has been driven by pressure from editorial staffs for decades. It allows readers to be clear on what is commercially paid for material and what is independently generated content. It is also the right of the media to refuse to publish advertising that they feel is inappropriate or offensive to the audience (as exemplified in the recent Lane Bryant commercial vs. ABC/FOX fallout). Perhaps the ethics of Google and other search engines should be questioned here. Why don’t they put policies and practices into effect that more clearly identify advertising versus organic search results and/or refuse paid advertising that they believe is inappropriate or misleading to users?

At the end of the day, when you’re a company in the middle of a crisis – your approach to disseminating your own information is always going to be called into question. The best practice is to be honest in your communications. But, utilizing any legitimate outlet, PPC programs included, to spread your message and serve as an up-to-date resource regarding the situation is not unethical. This used to be done primarily through public relations efforts and paid broadcast and print ads, but as the traditional disciplines continue to merge into integrated marketing platforms, we predict PPC will become a commonly used tool in crisis management kit.

Striking When the Iron’s Hot

noreply@blogger.com (Nathan) — Tue, 01 Jun 2010 21:31:00 +0000

I just finished reading an interesting report from BBC News discussing Mark Gasson, a British scientist, who claims to be the first human with a computer virus. Gasson implanted an RFID chip in his hand that allows him to answer his phone or pass through secured doorways automatically without interrupting his normal routine or having to dig out a physical ID card. With the right program, Gasson explained that by simply walking into a room and passing through security, he could cause several computer systems to spread a virus throughout the entire network with his infected, embedded chip – very similar to how viruses can be spread through corrupted data on a USB flash drive or a wireless network.

RFID is an incredible technology that’s currently being held back by security concerns, as Gasson’s story clearly demonstrates. That being said, it’s great to see traditional consumer news organizations looking into both the benefits and the risks associated with advances in emerging technologies. As a technology agency, we couldn’t be happier to see the mainstream media becoming more involved with the technology impacting their everyday lives because it presents more opportunities for our clients to share their messages with larger, unconventional audiences and establish themselves as industry thought leaders by continuing to leverage those opportunities. If you’re in the technology industry, there’s never been a better time to be involved in marketing.

For example, at M/C/C we work with Revere Security, an encryption and authentication services provider that has developed an algorithm that would have secured poor Mr. Gasson’s RFID chip, thwarted the virus attack and prevented the potential destruction of critical computer networks. Thanks to growing consumer and media interest in the security of wirelessly transmitted data (via technologies like RFID, ZigBee, mesh networks, etc.) and M/C/C’s PR efforts, Revere Security has seen enormous success spreading the word and educating people about the lack of security in these systems and the vulnerability it creates. In fact, Revere Security’s original opportunities are leading to new opportunities.

Recently, we conducted an analyst briefing with GreenTech Media about security risks in the emerging smart grid industry and where Revere fit in. In addition to the analyst learning more about Revere and sharing their story with his contacts and companies on retainer, he also included Revere’s CEO in his list of the Top 100 Movers and Shakers in the smart grid industry. Additionally, the analyst then invited Revere to participate on a panel at the Networked Grid 2010, a smart grid-centric conference, alongside industry experts from Cisco and Verizon.

This resulted in great exposure for Revere. A small startup was able to have their name right alongside two of the largest companies in the nation and the smart grid. You can’t beat that kind of exposure and brand building. In addition, we were able to leverage the Top 100 list and speaking opportunity for additional releases and media coverage.

With the technology industry receiving so much attention from the media lately, it’s important to find where you can make an impact and just attack. There’s never been a better time to leverage opportunities for technology in markets and publications that wouldn’t normally be a target and gain exposure to a wider audience that can have a direct impact on your business. And when you find those opportunities, latch on to them and take full advantage by leveraging every news article, industry event, expert report and everything in between to legitimize your position as a leader in the technology industry and your vertical markets.

Fox4 Tours Trilogy Circuits with Congressman Pete Sessions

noreply@blogger.com (Nathan) — Thu, 27 May 2010 21:44:00 +0000

Electronics manufacturing service (EMS) provider and M/C/C partner Trilogy Circuits had a special visit from Texas Congressman Pete Sessions. Ranked as one of the fastest-growing technology companies in the DFW area, Trilogy Circuits’ products are used in virtually every modern aircraft carrier, which was a large part of the reason why Sessions was interested in checking out the facility as well as presenting Trilogy with a special award for its continued success in the aerospace industry.

Accompanied by aerospace and military defense industry professionals from the likes of General Dynamics, L-3, Raytheon and Rockwell Collins and with Trilogy CEO Charles Capers as his guide, Congressman Sessions took a tour of the company’s newly-expanded facility (double the size, to be exact) and M/C/C was able to secure Fox4 along for the ride.

The story, which ran multiple times on Fox4, took a special look at Trilogy’s manufacturing processes and quality control standards that have enabled Trilogy to mark its presence as a quality leader in the industry. And thanks to some complimentary quotes from Pete Sessions, Trilogy’s contributions to DFW and its industry didn’t go unnoticed. You can check out the full video from Fox4 by clicking below.

Hands on With Office 2010’s Social Media Connector

noreply@blogger.com (Nathan) — Fri, 21 May 2010 15:11:00 +0000

There were quite a few skeptics when Microsoft first announced it would be incorporating social media status updates and functionality in Office 2010. At first, the question seemed to be: "Was this going to be another half-baked implementation like it did with Xbox 360 and Zune?" I have to include myself in that group as well, which is hard to admit because I’ve been a giant Microsoft fan boy ever since Windows 3.0 (even though I don’t have a Windows tattoo…yet). After using Office 2010 for the past few weeks, I can honestly say there’s nothing half-baked about Social Media Connector. Instead, it's a perfectly baked marble cake with plenty of room for icing in the future.

If you’re unfamiliar with Outlook Social Media Connector, you can read a little about it here. Basically, it’s a way to aggregate social networking information and contact activity into Outlook so you can seamlessly stay up-to-date on your day-to-day (and not so day-to-day) contact without having to go out of your way too much. When describing it, it sounds like a nifty little add-on that could be fun but not really useful. In practice, it’s one of the most useful additions I’ve seen in Outlook in a long time.

So what’s different? Basically, when you do anything involving a contact in Outlook, you now get this little box at the bottom of whatever you're doing. Whether it’s an email you’re sending or just received, a meeting or just the actual Contacts view, you can access the most recent updates, emails, contact information and attachments from the contact. You can see an example of it from an email sent to me from Steven, M/C/C’s up and coming PR apprentice, below.

Right now, only LinkedIn and MySpace are working; however, Microsoft has promised upcoming support for Facebook as well.

The part that’s great is that you can quickly and easily keep up to- ate on each and every one of your contacts as you’re contacting them. This not only provides you with up-to-the-minute accuracy but also can give you some quick helpful points to include in the email to help personalize the correspondence. In PR we’re always looking for new ways to personalize our communications with reporters and expand our relationship with them. Now, we can keep up to date on recent position changes, promotions or job changes before we send the email to ensure we’re reaching the most appropriate person. In addition, we can include personal details to help tailor the message to them.

For instance, just looking at Steven’s LinkedIn messages/postings, it’s easy to see that in addition to PR he’s interested in healthy foods and healthy eating. Using that information, I can tailor my messages to him to make them more relevant to his interests. In addition, he’s recently made a new connection on LinkedIn. If I also know the person, I can comment on the new relationship and inquire as to how they met. Not only does this create a more personable relationship, but it adds a conversational question for him to respond to.

While I've been point out the uses for PR, just think about the other areas that this can be utilized in like sales, new business and account services. The other key benefit of this implementation is the placement. Everything is available quickly and easily in Outlook. You don’t have to go online hunting through LinkedIn or Spokeo. You simply look down and scroll. The convenience combined with the comprehensiveness will drastically change the way you approach emailing. Additionally, the feature is still in Beta and there's plenty of room for the service to grow so keep your eyes peeled for new additions throughout the year. Of course, you can keep your eyes peeled here as well since we'll make sure to keep you notified as soon as new features/applications come out.

If you’d like to try it out you can download the Office 2010 beta on Microsoft website here. Feel free to post your impressions below or send them over to us via email.

Hootin’ and Hollerin’ for HootSuite Assignments

noreply@blogger.com (Nathan) — Mon, 17 May 2010 13:43:00 +0000

Here at M/C/C, we cheer on any platform that a) helps business run more smoothly and b) does so in a social networking space. Recently HootSuite has unveiled a host of new applications to prove it can fly with the big boys. HootSuite’s appeal is the “social media all-in-one place” convenience, which integrates Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Wordpress and most recently MySpace and Foursquare. The network also recently rolled out Android apps and iPhone app updates, but now the HootSuite apparatus is taking integration a step further and mixing it with team collaboration to make HootSuite Assignments.

Yes, the word “assignment” has cringe worthy connotations and can make a grown man whine, “ I don’t wanna do my homework.” But HootSuite’s latest is actually pretty cool. Ideal for agencies, groups and enterprises and “built with teamwork in mind,” HootSuite Assignments enables management over multiple users for various social networking accounts, message sharing , status updating via e-mail to social media pages and just generally coordinating for higher efficiency. The team manager can monitor progress, track activities and give assignments to team members all through the Internet or a smart phone. A manager can give an assignment from options in a drop-down menu, such as a request for an employer to engage a Facebook fan or Twitter follower who responded to a company’s update, with a space for annotations if the manager wants to give specific instructions. The tracking option allows manager and crew, or client and agency, to quickly view which messages have been resolved, forwarded to another team member or still need to be addressed.

But HootSuite Assignments’ shared columns and “shared drafts” features are what really tickle our social media fancy. Shared columns can be accessed by all collaborators (hence, shared) for keyword or topic searches, brand monitoring , list following and more , allowing teams to focus on tracking conversations, spreading messages, and monitoring results. The shared drafts feature allows for team member input and feedback for responses before they’re Tweeted or posted to Facebook or LinkedIn, for thorough consistency and optimal response handlings. Hootsuite also revised the “Launch” button so all options, settings and tools are available from one starting place

Hootsuite Assignments’ can be maneuvered perfectly in the case of damage control where the response process needs to be more thorough, while still maintaining immediacy. Imagine you spot negative buzz about your company or its latest service/product on Twitter or Facebook that might require delicate handling and collaboration (hey, it happens). You could simply use the assignment feature to ask your marketing team to give an appropriate reply to said user comment at high priority. Then the reinforcer is on it, drafts a response, sends it for your approval in the shared drafts folder, posts it to the site, all while you monitor this progress and all through HootSuite – in a timely manner of course.

Now as much as we think HootSuite Assignments may be on to something, we’re sidestepping one of its biggest selling points. The platform allows users to pre-schedule tweets and Facebook posts to give the illusion of constancy, so you could realistically update Twitter for two weeks by just entering a lineup of posts in one hour. We often stress the importance of regular maintenance when it comes to corporate social media, but it shouldn’t come at the cost of authenticity. Ignoring social outlets for chunks at a time because you think scheduled updates have it covered is venturing into dangerous territory. What if that disgruntled tweet caught on like the plague or a negative Facebook post is festering on the feed turning off potential fans, and you’re none the wiser because your updates have been scheduled? Or what if you missed out on an opportunity to engage your fans and followers during a trending topic discussion? The beauty of social media for businesses is the ability to connect and interact directly to an audience in a way you couldn’t before. Pushing out blatant self-selling messages to followers like a machine removes that unique personalized factor and turns off followers. And it’s difficult to win them back after that. Yet another reason to leave social media and brand management to a savvy marketing agency who’d be more than happy to engage your followers and attract new ones.

Recent social media developments seem to share a common factor: professional collaboration. Last month at its f8 conference, Facebook announced its shiny new partnership with Microsoft for the platform Docs.com, a tool for uploading and sharing Microsoft Office Suite documents between users. And while we at M/C/C/ have the same relationship with new social media developments as an easily distracted person does with a pretty butterfly (oooooooh, neat), we’re aware not everyone is so fascinated. This is why these collaboration tools are so nifty, because collaboration means shared accountability and shared accountability means more evenly distributed work among everyone and consistent results – the ultimate goal, no matter how you get there. So if you think the owls have it, check out HootSuite Assignment’s on-demand informative webinars, or its YouTube channel.

RIM’s Mullet Makeover: Business in the BlackBerry, Party in the OS

noreply@blogger.com (Nathan) — Wed, 12 May 2010 22:31:00 +0000

I’ve been a dedicated BlackBerry user ever since I entered the agency world as an intern and determined every second without access to email was critical and could potentially cost me employment. After a little bit of research and a lot of observing what was being used primarily in my office, I hurried to signup for a data package and selected my first BlackBerry Curve 8300 – crimson-colored in tribute to my alma mater and hair color. I was amazed by the world of opportunities it opened up for me and quickly realized that I had been mistaken…I had purchased a CrackBerry instead. My addiction turned out to actually not be too detrimental for me, though. I became more productive, more efficient and quicker at response than ever before. Even though I was relatively green to the professional world, I could see what all the, “BlackBerry is the business user’s best choice,” blogging was about. But despite my initial elation, I began to experience some smartphone let-downs.

I’m now currently rocking the BlackBerry Bold 9700 and was THRILLED when I purchased it a few months ago. Until I learned that despite running the most current version of Research in Motion’s (RIM) operating system (OS) and having the newest BlackBerry device on the market, there were still limitations to the business-related things I could do on what was supposed to be my business-friendly phone. There are certain things about BlackBerry’s previous OSs that have improved over time with each new release, but they’ve never reached that “just right” status. For example, BlackBerry didn’t originally support simultaneous data and voice so you could answer emails while listening to a conference call on the road. Its latest OS, version 5.3, supports that capability, but don’t get excited about utilizing your favorite vendor’s mobile site if it’s designed for a Webkit browser. Browser aesthetic and ease of use are still areas that BlackBerry is seriously lacking in (see also: apps). But maybe not for long!

At Mobile World Congress a few months ago, RIM announced the debut of something magical they’re calling “O.S. 6.0.” Expected to appear sometime in the third quarter, the buzz around this OS indicates that RIM might have finally hit their sweet spot. In addition to running a WebKit-based browser (like iPhone and Android do already), O.S. 6.O supports true multitouch and maintains BlackBerry’s famed messaging systems. To me, this sounds like having my cake and eating it, too. BlackBerry is often praised for having the best messaging system out there in BlackBerry Messenger (BBM), but it seems like RIM has finally listened to what business users have been saying for a while. Now that we’ve all witnessed (and survived) the iPad revolution and with HP Slates rounding the corner, I don’t think anyone can produce a solid argument that touch capability isn’t going to catch on in the business world. Here on the M/C/C Minute, we’ve touched (pardon the pun) on this topic quite a bit, and it still holds true. Multitouch capability in mobile devices dramatically improves ease of use and functionality which are invaluable efficiency and collaboration tools.

BlackBerry once reigned supreme as the uncontestable smartphone choice of the mobile workforce and O.S. 6.0 looks like it could be the “hail mary” RIM needs to not only earn that title back, but keep it. Hopefully they’re already thinking, “Okay so we did the multitouch thing. Let’s put better apps in BlackBerry App World that help our customers do their jobs better (and have a little fun in the process). Thus much like the mullet, BlackBerry’s would incorporate the business and the party in one fell swoop. As a BlackBerry devotee who recently found that zero out of eight helpful apps emailed to her by an iPhone-using coworker were available for BlackBerry, I have my fingers crossed.

Is your URL too long? Then Take a Tiny.Bit Off

noreply@blogger.com (Steven Nelson) — Mon, 10 May 2010 20:00:00 +0000

How many times do you monitor the length of a URL as you surf the web? I would guess not very often. The length of a URL or hyperlink usually goes unnoticed until you copy and paste it into an e-mail, blog post, Facebook or Twitter update. You’re then confronted with an excessively long URL that takes up two or three lines by itself. Lucky for you and everyone else trying to jump on the social media bandwagon, there are several URL shorteners online to help cut down on the length of your outbound links and plenty of incentives to go along with them.

URL shortening makes a web page accessible by creating a shortened version of the original URL. While many URL shorteners alter long webpage addresses using random numbers and letters, there are some that allow you to incorporate keywords for a particular webpage into the shortened link. By maintaining keywords in a short URL, targeted audiences can easily identify your website and conveniently remember the address for future visits as well as referrals to friends.

URL shorteners have recently grown in popularity due to the increased use of Twitter. As you know, Twitter decided a 140 character limit was sufficient enough to communicate a message. In this case, URL shortening is extremely useful because it lets you compose an informative Tweet and include a link to a website. While URL shorteners may have gotten their kick-start with Twitter, they have expanded in use to other sites and outlets greatly. According to Bit.ly, a popular URL shortener, more than 50% of its daily encodes happen outside of Twitter. Clicks to Bit.ly links created on Facebook, a social website that does not have a stringent character limit for updates or postings, are twice as much as on Twitter. Let that serve as an example of the versatility of URL shortening. Though it was meant to shorten lengthy URLs for character limited posts, it can be used in multiple social mediums for its shear convenience as well as tracking capabilities.

URL shortening has significant benefits, but a common concern for those using a URL shortener is the influence it has on Google rankings and search engine optimization (SEO). Rest assured that your website rank is significantly improved because URL shorteners allow you to share those links more frequently, which brings about the most notable feature of URL shorteners in this blog. The most valuable piece of information the Web can provide is the number of times a link was clicked on. Going back to Bit.ly, this URL shortener gives its registered users access to valuable statistics that report the number of times a link was clicked on and even breaks down the sources from which the link was clicked as well as the countries. Due to the unique tracking capabilities, URL shorteners are becoming increasingly valuable for businesses looking to find out how its followers are using its social media and PR material.

There are several URL shortening services online, including Bit.ly, Tinyurl.com, is.gd and twurl. The most valuable way to use the URL shortening method is to use a custom short URL. As I briefly mentioned before, this is a great way to create a URL that is memorable, reusable and branded to your company. The whole idea of social media is to get your point across in a timely, accurate and sufficient manner. A long URL can make that difficult. It’s best to give your message some breathing room so it’s not hidden behind a lengthy web address you want to share with your followers.

Did Microsoft Pound the Final Nail in the Coffin for Flash?

noreply@blogger.com (Nathan) — Wed, 05 May 2010 16:38:00 +0000

Earlier this week, Microsoft announced that it will officially be moving to further HTML5 standards and will only be supporting H.264 video formats in the latest version of its Internet browser, Internet Explorer 9 (IE9). While the tech giant did join the standard back in 2009, this announcement drew considerable attention due to the rather public sparring match between Apple and Adobe over current Flash usage and its ability to support growing Internet usage. Even though Apple has been “a little” more vocal about its criticisms of Adobe’s Flash platform, Apple only holds 7.5 percent of the US PC market share and accounts for less than 5 percent of the global market share with its Safari Internet browser also trailing far behind most of its competition at only 4.2 percent. Needless to say, Apple can talk a big game, but it really doesn’t have a direct impact on the outcome.

Microsoft on the other hand, can. Windows is used on more than 85 percent of computers around the world and Internet Explorer is used by 60 percent of the world to browse the Internet. So when Microsoft makes a landmark decision for online video and Web standards like stating that it will only support H.264 moving forward, it has the potential to have a serious impact. But in the end, what does this all mean for you and your company?

First things first: No one is truly abandoning Flash. Not right now and probably not for a while. There’s too much invested in the platform for companies to simply turn their backs on it. Microsoft has already stated it will continue to support third-party plugins such as Adobe Flash, just not as directly as HTML5 and H.264. If you’ve built your website in Flash or you’re currently building your website with Flash elements, chances are you’re going to be fine.

That being said, you may want to start familiarizing yourself with the new standards since it doesn’t look like they will be going anywhere any time soon. While HTML5 can do many of the same things as Flash, it’s not a complete substitute yet. There are things Flash does well and there are things HTML5 does well. But being informed about changes and developments, or having a marketing agency that keeps you informed, will be important moving forward. In addition, it’s probably not a bad idea to start looking at video in H.264 in the future so you don’t have to re-convert everything to fit emerging standards. There isn’t too much of a question about the format becoming a standard at this point so you’re pretty safe relying on it.

The big changes will come in the form of mobile browsing. See, mobile browsers don’t (or at least can’t right now) support third-party plugins so if it’s not made to support Flash it will never support Flash. This is also where Apple starts to have a little more of an impact. As you may know, Webkit has somewhat become (and by somewhat I mean it’s a know fact) the de-facto mobile browser for smartphones. The iPhone uses it, Android uses it and Palm uses it. The interesting part is that while Webkit is an open source project, it’s made by the people behind Safari, which just happens to reside on every Apple computer in the world. Much like how Android is an open source operating system that just happens to be developed by the folks at Google. So while you may see Flash pop-up on some mobile devices, I wouldn’t run out and build my entire mobile site in Flash any time soon. Most likely, HTML5 and H.264 will be the standard for mobile browsing in future devices.

That being said, Android phones already support Flash lite and the mobile operating system will get even more support with the “Froyo” (2.2) update coming soon and the operating system has seen quite a bit of growth recently.

Luckily, you’ve got a marketing company that keeps abreast of all these changes and takes special consideration for your market. With a simple code and some time, we can evaluate what browsers users are using when they visit your site to help determine the best course of action and format when it comes to creating and embedding interactive content on your company website now and in the future. In addition, we have the tools and capabilities necessary to ensure the sustainability of your marketing materials.

That’s not to say there aren’t some pretty big changes for the Internet moving forward. Any new standard always brings exciting opportunities and changes; however, that’s also why it’s important to have a marketing company that’s staying a step ahead for you and building your materials to suit your immediate needs as well as your future needs.

M/C/C Takes Home Another Telly

noreply@blogger.com (Nathan) — Tue, 27 Apr 2010 14:57:00 +0000

M/C/C's work with Chisholm Trail Longhorn Beef (CTLB) was selected by The Telly Awards and the Silver Telly Council to receive a 2010 Telly Award. The award-winning video was produced to go on the front page of CTLB's website (http://www.eathealthybeef.org/).

CTLB is committed to ensuring its customers know where their beef is coming from and what is in it and M/C/C made that a priority for their marketing materials as well. The video was produced using voice talent from one of the ranchers in the CTLB co-op. Not only did this help keep costs down, but it ensured the authenticity of the video and the brand. Created in under a month, M/C/C was able to create a high-quality, now award-winning, video efficiently and cost effectively.

f8: Microsoft "likes" this.

noreply@blogger.com (Jenn) — Thu, 22 Apr 2010 19:49:00 +0000

During its f8 Developer’s Conference in San Francisco, Facebook unveiled a heap of announcements about its future projects (all of which are being gobbled by famished social media enthusiasts as we tweet). Among the introduced was Facebook’s plan for ~~world domination~~ its new platform, the Open Graph, designed to further customize Facebook users' Web escapades according to personal interests.

Open Graph acts as a sharing portal for Facebook user interests between websites and apps, making any information the user makes public fair game for target marketing. The Atlantic’s Derek Thompson calls Open Graph “the future of marketing,” and Slate tech columnist Farhad Manjoo summarized the platform’s projected impact on Twitter with, "Facebook is basically going to be the Web." With that, the countdown for throngs of advertisers and marketers to swoop in begins. Pandora and Yelp have already taken a bite of their portions. So how can your business or firm’s marketing take a piece, too?

One option already gaining popularity is “Like” button borrowing. Open Graph allows domain owners to put Facebook’s trademark “Like” button on their sites. Any Facebook user can “Like” the site by clicking the button. This triggers an automatic update on the users’ Facebook feed in view of all their hundreds of friends. If said friends click the update, voila, you’ve driven traffic to your website and increased awareness of your brand just with the single addition of a Web button, potentially one of the simplest internet marketing techniques to date. This feature is only one of the plug-ins Facebook has developed that could be useful to businesses, and not just for consumer-oriented marketing. Possibilities with the platform could be more than we realize, even for B2B which may shrug at these types of applications, asking, “What’s in it for me?”

Facebook’s new coupling with Microsoft for a document editing tool called Docs.com, currently in beta, could be the next wave of communication between businesses and give Google Docs a run for its money. Docs.com has already been labeled by some as a more user-friendly version of Google Docs, a tool that allows the same type of document sharing. But according to reviews, formatting problems when Google Docs are transferred to Microsoft software hindered its take-off – a problem Facebook’s Docs.com can side-step altogether because of the direct partnership with Microsoft. Powered by Microsoft 2010, Docs.com.com allows users to discover, create and share Microsoft Office Documents making it simple to share power point presentations, spreadsheets, reports and more with Facebook friends and coworkers. After sharing, you can discuss the document with other users as you would a status update or photo, moving your communication forward into more social productivity and advancing the latest crowd sourcing trend.

The implications of Facebook’s Open Graph for private users are pretty clear and simple. Impact on the marketing and advertising side, however, is still in the speculation phase. Since Docs.com is still in its trial period and the creators have an open ear, why not check it out and be a part of its evolution? Maybe your business could use Adobe collaborations for InDesign, Photoshop or PDF sharing? A tool for filling Excel fields with potential business contacts from Facebook? E-mail reminders from Facebook about clients’ birthdays so you can drop in with some Facebook face time? Users are already proposing ideas, including a suggestion of online networking for businesses where documents can be edited and updated. This could potentially cut out e-mail as a middle man for collaborative efforts, like finalizing reports, between business and client. As Facebook’s purposes increasingly know no bounds, tell their team how applications could better serve your marketing communication needs at getsatisfaction.com/Docs.com.