Graffiti Update

I just found some great Graffiti Art that is being done right here in Springfield, Missouri.  I hope you enjoy it as much as me.

The Long Tail

In Chris Anderson‘s article entitled, The Long Tail, Anderson discusses what has become known as the long tail of business.  With the advent of the internet and the world of e-commerce people major corporations are starting to see the impact of the long tail on the bottom line.  In short the long tail comes about from e-commerce sites like Amazon, Rhapsody, and the many other e-commerce giants.  Since these companies are housing mostly just server space they are able to carry thousands if not millions of titles previously unavailable or extremely rare in some situations.  They can provide these titles because they are not paying rent on shelf space therefore allowing them to host millions of songs that show up on b sides and in relatively obscure import albums.   Having the ability to host all of these other songs has allowed companies like Rhapsody to utilize the long tail for a huge in crease in the bottom line.  This is a beautiful concept that should be embraced.  In this video Anderson gives a brief talk on the Long Tail of technology.

You’re Not Social Enough

Wow, I had no idea there was such a myriad of alterations that have taken place in the business world since the introduction of social media.  Christopher Musico, touches base with these alterations in his article, You’re Not Social Enough, published in Customer Relationship Management June, 2009.  Musico takes the reader to a new society that exists online and use social media.  In fact Musico quotes Natalie Petouhoff, a senior analyst with Forrester Research, saying “81 percent of active Internet users believe social media can give consumers a greater voice regarding customer care.”

81 percent is a startling number, a number that should raise the eyelids of managers and CEO’s across the board.  Simply put, if companies in today’s society want to stay relevant and achieve sustainability, they MUST interact with their customers on-line.

I work as a Sr. Associate for a local University Bookstore.  This is a position that allows me certain luxuries, as far as living and working amongst my target market.  I work in a market that can actually see market trends changing just by watching what the popular students are wearing in a certain month, as I said it is a luxury.  However, with continuous growth in online academic programs the market has begun to change.  Now most of our customers are online students, that are just trying to order textbooks or a hoodie.

This shift in our market has forced us to create a larger online presence where we can engage the customer and get direct feedback.   This shift from just providing in-house customer service, to more of an online social service has caught upper management off guard so now we are trying to play catch up.   The Society for New Communications Research has seen this happening in many businesses so I don’t feel alone. This is a neat informational video with some good statistics about social media.

I think the Society for New Communications Research states quite well the benefits of engagement in the on-line world. “Companies can capture and put the information into the overall knowledge base.  More people are smarter than one, and you can grow a [knowledge base] faster than you could if the company went about doing so on its own.”  To me that is what it is all about.  Create a knowledge base that is based on the intellect of many of your customers.  This will allow business to adapt to their customers needs on a real-time basis rather that adjusting based on research that is outdated before it is even published.

Social media is giving business what it has always needed, but maybe not always wanted.  Wanted or not the social media world is here to stay, those who wish to succeed will embrace the change, those who do not will perish.

The Internet Waits for No One

Samuel Morse Telegraph Image via Wikipedia

Samuel Morse would be rolling over in his grave if he were to see where we have come since his famous invention, the telegraph.  I recently read an article titled The Internet Waits for No One, by Esther Thorson.  I have always had my own thoughts and theories about the internet and what it means for the future of our society, but Thorson goes in to a bit more detail.

I agree with Thorson that the internet has completely change the landscape of our society.  The internet truly has changed everything, the way that we live and function in everyday life is different now than it was 30 years ago when we had a big console tv that you had to get up and actually change the channel.  Now I am writing this blog on a laptop while in bed, and if I want to pause the film I am watching in the split screen all I have to do is hit stop on my remote.

This may seem a bit candid, but I think Thorson would agree.  There are some pretty staggering numbers associated with the internet, for instance internet advertising revenue rose 40% from 2004-2006 (Thorson, 3).  If that was in 2004 I can’t even imagine what the numbers are now with the advent of the social network.

Thorson continues to break down the statistics, she reports that 82% of children are online by grade seven, and those 8-18 reported use of electronic media 6.5 hours per day.  I know it shouldn’t be, but this is pretty staggering, and these statistics are old.  What I have gleaned from this is that it is true that the internet waits for no one, the train has already left the station.  I think it then becomes the responsibility of competent managers to get on board with the internet and all it has to offer.  From a marketing perspective, you have to go where the buyers are, and they are online.

Corporate Reputation Management

In today’s market companies are being forced into having not only a strong social media presence, but also a strong reputation management plan in place in order to maintain a healthy reputation on-line.  In his article, Corporate Reputation in the era of Web 2.0, the Primark case, Brian Jones addresses corporate reputation management as it applies to the social web.

” The Way a company behaves on-line and is perceived by its wider audience is far more important than overt philanthropy, donations to charities, flashy websites or even annual CSR reports printed on recycled paper” (Neff 2001)  I find this to be a pretty strong suggestion, but Jones says that companies must develop practices and procedures to be prepared for the new web.  Companies are reaching far greater audiences than before and the have to be prepared for engagement with the customer in an all new way.

I can relate to this idea of reputation management with my work.  Much of what I do is reputation management.  Companies are seeing that they must be aware of what is being said about them by some blogger with a million followers.  One missed step and the company could be bankrupt overnight.  It is a whole different world we are dealing with.

Jones has a very simple yet effective model for reputation management that includes; monitoring, engaging, and measuring.   This model is cyclical and has no end point it is continuous.  Continuity seems to be the only way to stay relevant in the realm of Web 2.0.  As business people we cannot set by an watch it all happen, we must engage our audiences where they are, and most of them are on the Web.

A Few of My Pieces

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Graffiti Art Fargo

Graffiti artist gets down in Fargo, North Dakota.  Check it out!

Just Venting

Exhausted, this has been one of the longest weeks ever. Next week, Vacation!

PHUKET PHOTOGRAPHIC SOCIETY

PHUKET PHOTOGRAPHIC SOCIETY, a group on Flickr.

Photos After Dark

Photos After Dark, a set on Flickr.

A collection of photographs taken after dark.