Category Archives: Social Media

Think it’s all about Twitter and Facebook? Think again. Catch up on all my social media related stuff right here.

Is Facebook the new Friends Reunited?

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I seem to have been repeating the same mantra with increasing regularity lately – Facebook will, within five years (but I reckon nearer to three) become … Friends Reunited.

There, I’ve said it, and I’m willing to put it out there and stake my blogging reputation on it*.

You don’t have to look too closely to see that it’s already becoming less of an immediate, “this is what I’m up to now” platform and over time, I believe, will simply become a platform for people like you and I to archive our digital life. A sort of social cloud storage for film, photos and links that make up our digital lives and interests.

As a tool to keep in touch with people, to actually have online conversations it is becoming all about instant chat. Snapchat, What’s App, in-built chat options on smartphones, and many others, are now entering the fray and commanding more attention, especially among the younger generation.

A few other sources have been backing this theory lately including these interesting articles from The Drum (UK loses 9% of Facebook users) and Daily Mail (Facebook admits teens are tiring of it)

Facebook is losing its appeal due to two main reasons: An abundance of aged thirty-plus people (i.e. parents and grandparents) having and maintaining accounts meaning Facebook is losing its ‘cool’ moniker, and advertising.

But what does this mean for social media use in local government and should we already be thinking, ‘what’s next’ and/or, especially, ‘how do we communicate and keep engaging with young people’?

Interestingly, our own Facebook insights at Cornwall Council mirror this view. Our core users are females aged 25-34 with less than eight per cent of our total Likes being aged 25 and under across both genders.

It would be interesting to see summary reports from other authorities on demographics but it would seem already, based on our own stats, that Facebook is good for reaching the plus 25 age group (and especially women) but not so good for anyone younger.

So, I say it again, how are we going to engage with these people? As they become more platform savvy, you can bet your bottom dollar they won’t be using a platform that forces them to click on or view adverts (Google+?). They will be having closed conversations (rightly so) that no-one, especially us as public information stakeholders, will have access to to find out what they’re thinking, doing, what are the trends etc.

Thinking aloud, could we therefore be seeing a turnaround in engagement with young people in that proper engagement now means getting off digital and taking the conversations back into the real world (if they ever left)?

The default I hear quite often is “we need to engage with young people, so let’s start a Facebook page”. My advice has always been to think before you leap and from now on I will really hammer this home and encourage other offline / online channels as a priority.

This theory is given extra weight when you consider that in my spare time I voluntarily do the social media and communications, as well as help on the beach, for a local surf life saving club. Some of our younger members refuse to like the club’s Facebook page even though they’re actively involved with the club – and this is surf life saving, what some would deem a prety ‘cool’ thing to be associated with.

Liking a Facebook page is for all of us, and especially young people, an action that comes with emotional value attached. By liking something you are admitting to your peers that you like it in a way that for some can be too revealing, it can be a label and in some ways defines who you are.  Following a Twitter account doesn’t carry the same level of emotional ‘buy-in’ that Facebook can, hence why most Twitter accounts have far greater numbers attached than Facebook

So what’s the best way to get over this? Now, I’m not, and never professed to be, an expert at engaging with young people, and good practise may already be suggesting that offline communications is far better quality than online, but the fact remains; for those of us still thinking that social media and Facebook is the default way to go when dealing with youngsters it may be time to start altering your point of view – or risk becoming ‘No Friends Reunited’.

*Subject to change pending investment from Facebook. Terms and conditions apply.

Why a comms – customer service link is essential

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Picture the scene. You arrive at work on a Monday morning after a weekend of downpours to find your social media accounts inundated with cries for help. Requests to clear a flooded drain sit alongside a query on how to find out if a dead cat has been collected by Council staff, and much more besides.

So, (to coin a well-know phrase) who you gonna call?

Luckily for us, we had already started talks with our contact centre colleagues on how to better resource our Facebook presence so that it not only reduces pressure on the corporate comms team but also satisfies the contact centre’s own channel shift ambitions. I’m sure we’re not alone in starting to see our Facebook page being used much more as a direct customer service channel rather than the ‘celebration of where we live’ ethos that we originally envisaged.

Yes, we still post campaign messages and promote the council and wider Cornwall as much as possible, but as our social media presence evolves, we’re finding that our customers simply want a better way to get hold of us and to get the information they’re after quickly, accurately and with a friendly tone.

It’s up to us to respond to this call.

In the above example, what would have taken a comms team member the best part of a morning to source contacts and write responses took the contact centre team just 15 minutes; both quick and accurate. We even got some thanks from customers – The mark of a social interaction well done!

And reputation boosting is just one of the benefits of bringing your contact centre colleagues on-board.

In corporate comms we have to keep ourselves as ‘in the loop’ on corporate matters as possible but it has been surprising to learn just how much the customer service team know about those customer priorities that are happening now, in real-time (rather than reactively) on the ground.

For example, their knowledge of the corporate calendar – from changes to bin collections to notices of council tax being issued – is an invaluable resource worth tapping into on its own. They also have a far better awareness of which customer contact channels may be experiencing busy periods at any particular time and can react and divert people accordingly.

This knowledge means that as time goes on, we’re finding that they are equally adept at posting proactive corporate messages to Facebook.

And the benefits don’t end there. Your contact centre will already have a book full of the contacts your customers need and can intuitively, due to years of experience, find the right person for the right answer, and fast.

As Karen Collet from the contact centre says: “With social media we are finding that we can interact with people in a public place (one to many) and this allows us to engage with those who may not use our website as a preferred tool for information or as a way to contact us through the traditional channels.”

On the mechanical side we currently use a flagging system using a shared email inbox – flagged red for customer services and yellow for comms. We’re not sure yet if this is the best approach (a situation not helped by some Facebook notifications not being sent as email alerts) but it seems to be working for now.

A natural part of the process are regular feedback sessions on how we’re all finding it. Knowledge sharing on the best ways to move forward and what challenges, opportunities we may face going forward has done wonders to cement these new-found working relationships.

In fact, as time goes on, it becomes ever more apparent to us that better links between internal communications and customer service teams are a vital part of effective service delivery.

Looking ahead it’s obvious that while we’re merely scratching the surface at the moment we can all see the potential.

Whether the next logical step is moving customer services onto Twitter, You Tube, Vimeo and beyond we’ll have to wait and see but if our Facebook experiences are anything to go by then it is certainly worth considering.

It helps if, like us, you have a contact centre team that buy-in to the more authentic tone that social media allows.

Karen added: “We hope that this collaboration will allow us to publicise customer service information that affects residents directly such as refuse and recycling, highways information, permit renewals, disruptions to service, and hopefully correct inaccuracies in things other people are saying, but overall showing that we are human and are here to help.”

So our advice? Next time you find your social media pages inundated with requests for help, make sure you’ve put your customer service team on speed dial.

This post was initially written for the Comms2Point0 website. The link to the post and site is HERE

Film in local government

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The results of the UK’s first Local Government survey into the use of film by local councils has shown that 80% of respondents plan to increase the use of film to communicate both internally and externally.

The power of film as an effective communications tool was given more weight with the majority of respondents agreeing that their existing films were a success in delivering the right messages.

However, there is still room for caution. The survey shows that while the use of local government film is on the increase, there is still confusion around its creation, sharing and effectiveness.

Internal bandwidth issues, resistance from I.S departments, too much control from the Corporate centre and restricted access to software (with some staff forced to edit films on their personal computers) are given as barriers to future growth.

The vast majority of respondents (87%) have the capacity to produce their own films and indeed many do, with one council producing around 100 films per year. However, the average number of films produced each year for each local authority is 10.

While the numbers are encouraging, in terms of content, there was a large variation. Crucially for local government departments with small budgets, the majority of respondents disagree that a film needs high production values to be a success with not one person strongly agreeing to that statement. This is clearly good to hear and is a signal to others that a lack of equipment or technical expertise shouldn’t be a barrier to producing effective films. 60% of people also disagreed that professionally produced films are necessarily better than user generated ones.

I’ve written lots recently about the importance of story and its importance to the effectiveness of film content but worryingly, 53% of respondents feel story doesn’t count towards a film success. Only one respondent answered that story should be deemed as very important to the effectiveness of a film.

47% of respondents also disagreed that running time had no impact on success. I’d disagree and maintain that a shorter running time will do far more to encourage viewers to watch the film to the end (thus increasing its effectiveness) than many other factors. However, it’s not all doom and gloom on this subject as conversely, 54% said a film needs to be short and to the point to be most successful.

The effectiveness of film has to be as a two-way communications tool so it’s not just pushing messages to viewers. 57% of respondents said yes, they do get feedback, although only 31% of respondents said they actively engage with online communities and join in conversations about their films. 46% said they’d like to do more in this area, although with two comments suggesting corporate communications disabled or needed to sign off comments, this is an area that clearly needs work.

 Other key findings from the survey include:

  • 85% of respondents have work access to video sharing sites
  • 87% have capacity to produce films internally
  • 67% (10 people) commission films externally with an average of 6 per authority
  • 60% offer resources for others to use film

In conclusion, with 80% of respondents agreeing they plan to use more film in the future, the signs are that film is a communications tool that is being taken more seriously.

One local authority is redesigning its website to integrate more film while another is producing video answers to its FAQs page. New digital roles are being considered within corp comms and one Council was encouraging more film production, especially on internal campaigns.

To develop the profile of Councils and councillors and the work each does up and down the country, the survey proves that film is an essential weapon in the comms arsenal.

Comments from the survey’s ‘Your Thoughts’ section

  • YouTube has shown that the message of a film means as much as its production values. With the hostility of our local newspaper linking our videos through YouTube to hyper local sites with more of a community emphasis allows a fairer message to be delivered to our residents. Why should our message be at the whim of a aggressive teenage reporter out to make his name. Technology interfaces are making access to tools much easier for lay people. Local authorities should nor fear an amateurish effort, they have a home spun charm of their own.
  • Its a great opportunity and as we are continually living in a digital world local authorities (including my own) need to play catch up with technology and the use of film to market and promote the services we provide to our residents. Its a great opportunity to create new jobs in local authoritiues and potentially save money by having the expertise in house and continue to communicate more effectively.
  • Close collaboration between IT, Comms and L&D/OD is crucial to make the platform for film flexible enough for others across the organisation to work.
  • Egos – need to take account of this to ensure more effective films
  • More needs to be done to enable others to create film
How do you measure the success of a film?

How do you measure the success of a film?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Local Government film survey was first published in the Summer of 2012 and, due to moderate response rates, was extended up until December. A total of 19 respondents took part in the survey. 

 With thanks to the Local Government Association communications team for its help in collating and publicising the survey.

P.S. I will add all graphs from the survey in due course – at time of going to press, a new WordPress update has rendered my image upload function useless – am on the case but if you’d like any more info or detail before then please just get in touch! :0)


What should we be learning from the Lord McAlpine case?

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Listening to Radio Four on the drive home last night and the update on the Lord McAlpine Twitter story I couldn’t help but think about what the investigation, subsequent allegations and potential of legal action against Twitter users could mean for us in the world of comms.

In particular, I wanted to focus on the escalating legal web that seems to be engulfing social media (and in particular Twitter) and how this could, or should, be perceived by those in organisations who are currently using these platforms.

Much of my thinking is shaped from experience during sessions where myself and comms colleagues, acting as advisors and advocates of social media use for individuals within the organisation, come across a frequent and justified concern centred on the fear of saying something wrong and the repercussions this may bring to the individual, their job, the organisation and even their lives away from work.

Predominantly, in line with current thinking, the advice we tend to give in reply is to always exercise common sense, to Tweet and post as if talking to a public audience and to always pause, even get a second opinion, before hitting the Send button.

However, as the McAlpine case has highlighted, and it’s a question we should all be asking ourselves; is this, some may say, ‘laissez-faire’ attitude the right line to take right now and if not, what should we be doing as comms professionals to better exercise our credentials and support and advise these people?

I’m not suggesting we immediately change the current practise of encouragement and nurturing for those who want to enter the world of Twitter and I’m always conscious of knee-jerk reactions. But, as an ex-newspaper editor, I do believe that the time may have come for us to start giving the legal (rather than purely reputational) risks of social media use much more weight than we might currently do.

For its part, the legal system has been slow to keep up with the developments in social media and defamation and libel laws, and is currently doing its best to catch up and establish stability and precedent to cases of social media misuse. Rightly so I must add.

So, one would assume that when this happens in the near future, our Tweets and social media posts will be covered by a much more rigid and definitive set of laws. (On a positive note, this will act as a stabiliser and provide professionals with a clear set of guidelines from which to advise others.)

However, the pertinent question it does throw up is, as a result, just how much faith should we continue to put into the hands of ‘untrained’ professionals to communicate through social media?

My previous life in the press taught me only too well the perils and pitfalls that come with the often blurred areas of defamation, libel and public interest.  Even with a couple of years of dedicated journalism training – with an emphasis on journalism law – journalists themselves often get caught out by the law (hence why we have subs and editors to act as a gatekeeper). So how can we reasonably expect our non-trained social media users to have total confidence that they may not themselves inadvertently fall foul of the law?

For example, ask yourself, just how many of your social media users are aware that libel law says you don’t have to be named to be identified?

To compound the problem, the McAlpine case has brought the phrase jigsaw identification process much more into the public consciousness and again, this very real threat creates an entirely new set of concerns to consider.

So, how best do we adapt and improve in line with this recent sea-change in Twitter use – previously predominantly considered as a cuddly, positive communications ‘blanket’?

Do we now need to ensure our social media communicators undergo at least some kind of legal training or at the very least awareness-raising on the legal issues? Will this frighten them off even more, or do we continue as we are, safe in the knowledge that our “this is what we’re up to” style Tweets are relatively safe from any legal harm?

I’m not suggesting I know any of the answers right now; no doubt these will materialise and mould into shape as the law and best practise evolve. It seems like this is the state elsewhere too as once again we see and hear the arguments swing both ways between those for and against tighter social media control and how the McAlpine case should progress  – to sue or not to sue those who Tweeted or Retweeted allegations.

But one thing I do know is that right now, much of my concern lies with those sitting in both mine, and your, organisation who are either thinking about, or being asked to use social media and who must be feeling quite lonely and unsure indeed about whether they can or should, what help and clear guidance is available and how they can Tweet while avoiding these very real pitfalls?

In my mind, never has the need for a social media ‘expert’ been more apparent and necessary; one versed not only in good practise but also now in excellent legal knowledge. Is the role of social media communicator and the general media becoming more blurred as the legal implications of each start to merge, should large organisations consider having an ‘editor’ role in its social media use? Perhaps?

As always, there are often more questions than there are answers but for now, it’s in all of our interests, and it’s all our jobs, to ensure that we provide this role to our non social media professionals as quickly and as efficiently as possible.

Balancing networks

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Here’s a pertinent and more personal than usual post, but one that hopefully will generate some discussion and feedback.

This week, I took the decision to delete the Facebook app off my iPhone, AND, I’ve moved my Twitter app into a folder instead of having it glaring at me in full view on my phone’s Home page.

‘Why’, I hear you lambast, ‘as a social media comms professional, have I done this and what could I possibly expect to gain from it’?

Well, the answer, I’m hoping, is really rather a lot.

Having spent a good portion of my youth travelling throughout the Indian sub-continent and Asia, I like to think my travels and experiences have created and nurtured in me a largely healthy, positive and fruitful state of mind and self-awareness. So, at times, I feel it is important to take stock and assess current priorities in life.

This manifested this weekend when I found myself contemplating existing pressures on my time, and by extension my ‘headspace’ – you know, that valuable commodity that we often fill (both consciously and subconsciously) with non life-enhancing and non-priority matters.

During this brief period of self analysis I couldn’t escape the conclusion that the pressures I was exerting on myself were quite significant and perhaps starting to manifest in making me feel more ‘time and attention poor’.

I thought about it some more, trying to seek out the reasons, and soon realised that as well as my online social networks – Facebook, Twitter, this blog, my Vimeo channel and Flickr groups, I also have my offline, physical networks to nurture too, you know the ones, my ‘actual’ friends, my family, my wife, my two young children – the new puppy!

And the thought occurred to me, ‘how can this be sustainable’? How can anyone be expected to not only sustain, but also to nurture and enhance, this number of online and offline networks, doing not only those networks, but importantly ourselves, justice?

So, it took me about a second to start putting this alongside my priorities in life and thus I have simply cut out and reduced some of those that I’ve deemed not too pivotal right now.

Now, I’m not sure if this sounds strange coming from a comms’ professional, although it’s important to stress that I am by no means criticising the platforms; I think they’re great and I will continue to use them professionally and to keep in touch with distant friends and family in particular.

It’s just that instead of delving further into the habitual checking, for example, of Facebook last thing at night and first thing in the morning, I will now only be checking updates when I’m physically sat at my desktop computer. With Twitter, I’m going to try and restrict my browsing to times when my focus is on it and nothing else, when I can do it justice and actually follow up decent Tweets and links.

Again, I’m not saying I’m not going to continue using and advocating its use both personally and professionally, I’ll still be Tweeting regularly, it’s just that I’m choosing to deliberately shift its focus in my life somewhat.

So far, I’m happy to report it’s a been a positive step. My mind does feel less ‘cluttered’ (I likened it to a colleague recently to that feeling when you stop smoking, that constant niggling sense of desire is no longer there), I’m trying to retrain my brain so that when there’s a lull, perhaps on the TV, that I don’t feel the need to instantly grab for my phone to ‘fill the void’. Essentially, I’m consciously lessening the need to feel constantly stimulated by online content.

Instead, I’m learning to enjoy the mental space, to get back to a state of focus and to refill the void with more ‘real’, life affirming and constructive thoughts that are centred on my immediate priorities both personally and professionally.

I think that’s something worth sharing and exploring for all of us. Maybe it’s our jobs, as comms professionals, not to become too immersed in the platforms themselves so we can stay objective and retain holistic oversight?

We are, after all, playing a long game. The evolution of communications, PR and media is not going to end anytime soon so why not allow yourself a break every now and again, to awaken yourself again to the other mediums, and how the communications’ mix can be utilised to best effect?

Achieving a healthy social balance is becoming more difficult in these ‘always on, always connected’ times and I hope I’m doing my bit to ensure I’m in control of the flow.

But, what do you think, do you agree and how do you maintain a healthy offline and online balance?

Demonstrating the power of interaction for political engagement

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Today has been a very interesting one in Cornwall local government. A motion of no confidence in the Leader was carried, a new Leader appointed and several Cabinet members resigned in what was often a strongly worded but always eventful debate in County Hall.

All of this has been taking place amongst a backdrop of some major change projects in the pipeline for Cornwall Council  so to say interesting times lie ahead is somewhat of an understatement.

But from my personal viewpoint, today also represented a massive step in the direction of promoting local democracy, and the near perfect marrying of technology and transparency from which I think there is much for others to learn.

Moving away from the steps of power in the Chamber and surrounding committee rooms and going back a few weeks, a small team of dedicated comms and web professionals, myself included, have been busy preparing for today’s webcast.

It’s easy to take for granted when you’re watching a seamless webcast, but internally, recent changes to our streaming infrastructure have created some technical issues that have meant much going on behind the scenes in preparation. The web team in particular has been busy testing and retesting the equipment and servers ahead of today’s anticipated massive viewing figures. Believe me, there were some nervy web and comms officers in the build up to, and during, the webcast but thankfully it all went without a hitch!

So, what of the figures for today’s extraordinary webcast?

Thanks to our integrated comms approach, as well as streaming the webcast, we also encourage people to join the debate by contributing to the hashtag #ccwebcast via Twitter.

As well as a massive number of Retweets, interactions and a splurge of new followers, at  one point the hashtag was trending in the whole of the UK (see image). We were in third position above #Belgium and #Worldfoodday, such was the level of online debate and conversation following the proceedings.

I’m not sure if there has EVER been another example of a local political debate trending on Twitter? (Please correct me if I’m wrong) But, if that is true then all involved should be justifiably proud of their involvement. I know I am.

We’re trending! #ccwebcast straight in at number three

Over on our Cover it Live chat function we had a record 3,981 page views and 242 comments. Statistics show the majority of people were engaged on the chat for over 30 minutes and there was often political debate raging even during pauses in the webcast stream.

And as for those webcast viewing figures!? A record 4,489 people tuned in to watch the webcast at one point (the previous highest had been 2,644 for a Full Council meeting in December 2010). The number had been steadily climbing throughout the day and is thanks in no small part to our linking up with local media websites who embed the webcast on their pages and help stimulate debate. One of these, ThisisCornwall.co.uk, (the most visited website in Cornwall) reported its stats were, “through the roof”.

Bearing in mind our public gallery can seat approximately 50 people, that is a massive demonstration not only of the potential for webcasts to clearly show proceedings as they happen, but also in demonstrating the level of interest in local politics – something many commentators say is doomed to fail.

I strongly believe that these numbers prove that by enabling people to take an active role in the debate, by marrying up the available technology with transparency and democracy – a direct line into the Chamber – we can encourage more people to take an active interest in local politics.

Long term I’m not suggesting that this is anymore than a flash in the pan due to the gravity of today’s debate (although I hope I’m wrong), but if we can retain just a double-figure percentage  of those 4,489 viewers in future debates and the essential role of local democracy then we have achieved a great deal indeed.

If you’d like to watch today’s webcast again, you can view the archive at http://www.cornwall.public-i.tv/core/portal/webcast_interactive/88673

Putting context to your content

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I signed up for and started to populate a Pinterest account earlier today. I’m not sure if I’m late or early to the party on this one but hearing some figures which state the content sharing platform is now the third most popular social media site it’s looking very much like the former (I’ll skip over the fact that they were saying this about Foursquare not too long ago – what is happening with that?)

Anyway, I digress, while populating the 200 character profile information section I found myself writing that I’ve got ‘a creative mind but not always the creative skills’. For some reason, this resonated and made me contemplate my creative ‘self’, creativity in general and where it all may be heading as we see much more democratisation of content.

Now, I’m certain that there will always be a special place for that highly skilled photographer, filmmaker or designer, just as there will always be a place for a highly knowledgeable coder, engineer or programmer but for everyone else, those who fall somewhere in between the two (a creative mind without the creative skills perhaps?) we’re going to have to start segueing ourselves somewhere between the two in order to really maximise our own knowledge and therefore the success of our content.

Think about yourself right now. If you would describe yourself as more of a creative, then (if you’re not doing so already) now’s the time to start getting genned up on technology, immerse yourself in what’s coming, in what fields, and learn how it’s going to help you tell your story. (Better still, learn to use the latest technology to this end, and fast!) Likewise, technologists have to start thinking creatively in order for their tech skills to be accepted by the masses (for an example just look at many Apps – technical expertise in spades, but the most successful also have more than a dash of creative genius too.)

Myself? I’d say I was a creative thinker, or perhaps that should be a creative tinkerer? With a background in journalism, I can create a pretty good written account when required, I take a decent photo and have a good eye for design, I know my way around film and can edit, so yes I have a creative streak, but to label myself a true creative, I’m not so sure. (I think perhaps I lack the patience to be ever deemed a true ‘artist’)

But perhaps I, and others who I know are of a similar ilk, are becoming the norm? It’s becoming clear day-by-day that the boundary between creative and technology is blurring and that you don’t have to be a creative expert in order for your content to be successful.

For example, to be a professionally successful, independent photographer or videographer nowadays you not only have to know how to capture a stunning image but you also have to keep up-to-date with the ever advancing progress of image capture technology to stay at least on par with your competitors. Equally important is that you  embrace an increasingly large variety of social media platforms to develop networks and to give yourself more influence and reach online. (Both will equal more customers after all). The creator has to become a technical expert too.

Here’s a case in point. Have you heard about the new Lytro camera which, through the capture of the ‘entire’ light field, rather than the traditional ‘one’, allows you to capture an image and then set your point of focus later? This will have a massive impact on photography, and while it’s just in its first iteration at present, it is only expected to become more advanced, be better quality and ultimately the technology will become common place in all digital, mirrorless cameras (the SLR is dying out!; in case you hadn’t noticed)

Google too will, in the near future, be releasing augmented reality glasses that will be able to film and take photographs of whatever you’re seeing and to instantly upload these to the web to share, among a list of many, many other attributes. That this will bring about a major shift in what is socially or even morally acceptable is pretty much a given, they will cause a massive social stir, but that’s for a future post!

You also need to start thinking about adding context to your content. It’s OK to be able to tell your story but how are you going to bring it to life? What detail are you going to add that makes your story stand out from the rest?

Advances in mobile sensor technology is one of the areas expected to boom in the coming years. Your mobile device will soon come equipped with a massive variety of sensors including thermometer, barometer, advanced accelerometer, heart rate monitor etc. It will be able to not only snap a quick picture or video clip but will also tell viewers where you were when you took it, what the weather was like, how fast you were travelling, what your heart rate was at the time etc etc.

Essentially, content is being given more contextual value. It’s no longer about just the ‘who’ created it, it’s now about the where, the when, the why and how. All of that will become automatically linked to each piece of content too.

So, what’s the conclusion of this post? Well, to be honest I’m not so sure there is one. There’s no doubt we’re on a creative journey, most of us in the communications’ world have bought the ticket and boarded the aircraft. But while the ultra-creatives and technologists turn left to spend their journey in perfect isolation, where does this leave the rest of us?

As the democratisation of culture and content creation continues apace, we have to start making ourselves and our stories stand out from the crowd – it’s up to us to break out of the silos of creative or technologist and start to make ourselves expert in both. Thinking about how to add context to your creative and technological journey would be a very good place to start.

 

Harrow ‘How to’ online volunteer guide

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It’s a first of its kind for Content Comms as we have our first ever guest blogger. Taking on the mantle for the first, but hopefully not last, time is Nicola Rae, Marketing Officer at Harrow Council.

Nicola was only too pleased to share more information about Harrow’s recently launched ‘How to’ initiative and in particular their innovative approach to publishing video guides for volunteers to become more involved in their local communities.

Harrow ‘How to’ Online Volunteer Guide by Nicola Rae, Marketing Officer, Harrow Council

Many people want to get more involved with their community but don’t know how or where to begin. This is the conclusion Harrow Council came up with after the responses received from residents and locals who took part in the research.

Harrow Council’s ‘How To’ video guide page

As a result, the ‘How to’ guides (www.harrow.gov.uk/howto) were launched in March 2012, making use of online and video technology to showcase ten different ways to get involved – from organising street parties, to running a sports group and setting up a community enterprise.

An interactive mobile enabled microsite was designed which hosts ten ‘How To’ video guides where you can watch members of the community talk through how to get started, what to do and who to contact.

The ultimate aim of the project is to show residents how to volunteer and in doing this we did not want it to be the Council telling people what to do and how to do it, and so we scoured the community to find real Harrow residents to become the faces of the guides. These Community Experts are already carrying out this work; they then share their knowledge through the guides by offering practical tips and advice on how to get started.

The use of video was an innovative concept for the Council, and the emphasis on keeping it about the community fitted in with the Council’s vision of listening, leading and involving.

As part of the project, we also developed a Volunteering Directory for prospective volunteers to complement the ‘how to’ guides. This was in response to residents’ feedback where they told us that they were not aware of the volunteering opportunities available and wanted one place where they could go to source this information. Now, those wishing to look for volunteering opportunities can search through a one-stop-shop which lists thousands of fantastic opportunities both locally and regionally. This in turn provides an excellent service for voluntary organisations looking for volunteers.

The impact of the project was to raise the profile of volunteering in the borough and to celebrate Harrow’s volunteers; it has also succeeded in demonstrating the Council’s role as a facilitator. It has helped to change the face of volunteering and show that there are many different ways to get involved. A key part of this has been making it easier for residents to find out where the opportunities are and additional support for local community groups and charities to fill their vacancies.

For more information contact Communications Team, Harrow Council.

(If you’d like to write a guest blog for Content Comms, particularly around a project that involves the creation of digital content then please get in touch. Thanks.)

Content creation and the power of stories

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I’ve been left pretty -nay- very inspired recently as I’ve begun to delve deeper into the world of content creation and in particular the role of stories in our lives both personally and as professional communicators.

Storytelling is one of the oldest forms of communication known to man  - it is at the centre of all families, communities and cultures – and so it really shouldn’t come as any great surprise that the art of the story should be at the very centre of all our communications.

Coca Cola has recognised this in the two fantastic, in-depth films below, which detail the global company’s Content Creation Vision until the year 2020. (Obviously the fact this timeframe clashes with expected ‘graph-of-doom’ cuts in local government funding are a happy accident, but one that shouldn’t be overlooked).

It is these two films that have really hit home to me how important the power of a story is. The better the story the more likely it is to be enjoyed, to be shared, and therefore the longer it will exist. At Cornwall Council, where we’re currently developing our social media and content plans, I’m going to ensure that stories are a central part of our conversations going forward.

There are literally loads of learning points and stepping board ideas I took away from watching the two films and while some of it is quite internal for the Coca Cola brand and the profit-driven private sector, much is fully transferable into the wider world of local government.

Part One is below. Scroll down after reading for Part Two.

I don’t want to give too much away before you watch the films yourself but some of the key points I took away are:

1) Coca Cola’s move from ‘Creative Excellence’ to ‘Content Excellence’ is an acknowledgement that it’s what’s inside the message that counts and that gets people talking, not necessarily the tool or tools used to deliver it.

2)  I love the concept of ‘Liquid Linked’ content. “To create ideas and elements of content so contagious they cannot be controlled” and move freely (Liquid) but that do not become separate stories and stay in tune with “business objectives, brand and consumer interests” (Linked). Part Two of the films gives more details on how to control the Liquid flow.

3) No-one now has the ‘Smarts’ on ideas. Coca Cola admit that consumer-generated stories now outnumber Coca Cola-generated stories on most of their brands – how compelling is that?

4) We need to switch from ‘one-way’ to ‘dynamic’ storytelling to achieve content excellence. To quote from the film, dynamic storytelling is: “The development of incremental elements of a brand idea that get dispersed systematically across multiple channels of conversation for the purposes of creating a unified and co-ordinated brand experience. The role of content excellence therefore is to behave like a ruthless editor to prevent these stories just becoming noise”. Again, compelling stuff.

5) ”Data will become the new soil, soil in which our ideas will grow, and data whisperers will become the new Messiahs”. Essentially, this statement puts a new and exciting twist on the concept and importance of discovering the influencers and advocates in your communities, harnessing their information and encouraging them to tell and share their/your stories for you.

6) Coca Cola recognise that as a company they tend to start converstaions and then move along to the next one far too early. They recognise a need to fuel the conversation they’re having in the long term, and the need to measure the positive buzz and impact those efforts create. They recommend greater investment in online tool netbase for this. There’s a lesson there for us in doing our best to develop content and stories that have long-term ambitions.

If after watching the films you’re inspired to find out who it is narrating, I’ll save you the trouble as it is Coca Cola Vice President of Global Advertising Strategy and Creative Excellence Jonathan Mildenhall. You can follow him on Twitter @Mildenhall and his blog is at http://jonathanmildenhall.tumblr.com/ Needless to say I’ve been checking in quite regularly as part of my new learning journey.

So; how do I feel this ethos can be Liquid Linked to us communicators? Well crucially, I don’t think there’s anything inherently new in the message, it’s more about reminding the brain to focus on the purity and the catalyst of your campaign, project, production or press release – its STORY.

Think about why you’re telling it, who is telling it, what am I (as the listener) going to take away from it, what is the moral, why should I tell my own friends this story? All important questions.

As well as a compulsion to hear great stories, humans also have a desire to tell their own stories, to make the memories, experiences and emotions of their lives come to life and hopefully inspire others. It is key to the role of a modern comms professional that we do our utmost to root out these compelling stories and help them spread their wings throughout the digital and traditional audience.

There is a story to tell in everything that we as individuals and as large organisations do. Just look around your office at the depth of talent you can plug into as a storytelling resource, to share great wisdom and experiences.

Further afield, imagine the stories that your environmental wardens, your countryside ranger, your social worker, your Chief Executive, your recycling operative etc etc all have to tell and all that have validity in this context.

I’m pretty sure that if you approached them, the vast majority would only be too willing to have you act as a vessel for their story, whether that be through the medium of print, audio, images, video; whatever.

Lastly, kudos to Coca Cola for actually releasing their vision in this open way. The fact I’m writing about it now shows that its idea of dynamic, Liquid Linked storytelling actually works.

So, what’s the moral of this rather rambling short story? If you’re not already; really start to open your eyes, ears and minds to the stories that surround you every single day, start to harness them, tell them and help others to learn from them. Crucially, start to work the notion of story in its purest form into your comms and content plans, strategies and projects. As long as it remains linked to your project or organisation’s overall aims.

I think it’s now ‘Once Upon a Time’ that all of us become the tellers of our organisation’s stories.

What did you take away from watching the Coca Cola Content Vision? Please let me know in the comment box below.

What I learnt from Cornwall’s first public sector social media conference

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The dust is setting tonight on what has been for me (and I know many others) an exceptional public sector-led social media conference, held at RAF St Mawgan, nr Newquay.

Jointly organised by the Devon and Cornwall Police force and Cornwall Council (which I’ve already blogged about HERE) the event was a chance for many in the public sector to learn more about the use of social media from a diverse range of speakers and across a diverse range of subjects.

From the national policing perspective, to practical examples of social media use (integrated with other comms) and what was for me one of the highlights, a panel of media representatives from the BBC, BBC Radio Cornwall and our local daily newspaper the Western Morning News.

So, instead of repeating verbatim the entire content of the day, I’ve decided to list the top 11 things I learnt from the day and what I am going to take from it. I’m sure I’ve missed a few out so please share your own views on the event by leaving a comment below.

So, what did I learn?

1) Putting in place a process, such as a business case, for applying for social media access for corporate use is important (right now). It can be seen as a barrier introduced by the corporate centre but as social media use grows, so does the potential for it to become a customer relationship management tool and as such it is imperative that those applying for access are made aware of this potential and are prepared. Not being prepared could have massive reputational risks. Yes we want as many people as possible to have access (and we promote this) but it is also our job in Comms to ensure the corporate reputation is secure at al times.

2) That social media is a great tool for bringing people together online but even better when that turns into offline! Online social media was the catalyst for getting everyone to attend our multi agency conference today but the offline social interaction as a result was just as valuable (if not more so) – right now, what other subject would have had the same impact in bringing such a variety of partner agencies together? Another reason to love social media.

3) That Cornwall’s public sector works extremely well together and with the right burst of energy does, and will continue to do, great things for our partners and the people of Cornwall with passion, enthusiasm and a strong desire to improve communities.

4) As digital natives start to populate the corporate workplace in greater numbers they may need specific training and guidance to teach them (or remind them) that their personal, online presence can have an impact on their professional lives and reputation of their employer. Many have not, they’ve not had to be, and are therefore not yet familiar with this concept. Training is key!

5) Facebook only shows status updates set to its own algorithms for determing who you share with most, who posts the most content etc. I never knew this. Wonder why you always get the same kind of update and don’t always hear from all your Friends? That’ll be why.

6) A lot of large public sector bodies are essentially at the same place on their social media journey. Twitter and Facebook have both only really started to see user peaks in the last three years. The BBC only formally adopted its social media strategy around six months ago. We are still at the start of the journey. At Cornwall Council, we adopted an organic approach to our first couple of years social media use but now, as its importance grows, we too are developing a strategy. I know several others are as well. We’re in this together!

7) Your strategy obviously needs to be wide ranging but cover at least: What do we want to get out of social media (why are we doing it?), training requirements, a content calendar, a mechanism for getting more Members to use it.

8) There is a lot of confusion around personal and professional Twitter accounts and how the two merge, or should they exist separately. For example, can you promote your Twitter tag at the bottom of your corporate emails? There is work for us there on clarifying this for colleagues and making this seem less of a barrier. Also, we need to do more to empower and support staff to trust their instinct and Tweet happily about personal and professional things from the same account (if they so wish).

9) I’ve been fortunate enough to have been to several social media related events in recent times and this is the first time I have heard about the use of social media from the point of view of a jobbing journalist and how they now use Twitter especially as a news source and will (I’ve heard it said) take no prisoners when it comes to it giving them a great story. Myself (and according to feedback many others) really got a lot out of this part of the day and would recommend bearing this in mind when you’re thinking about speakers for your next social media event. A refreshing insight!

10) A couple of the journalist/media presentations contained good examples of where large organisations had got it wrong, the lesson being; we all make mistakes. “So,” I asked, “how understanding are you when we (the public sector) make mistakes?” The answer was that the media do have a certain amount of empathy for when these mistakes may happen. As long as it’s not a massive story they could be missing, they’d be sympathetic to an honest, apologetic online response and if escalated would appreciate a telephone call to maybe straighten things out. As an ex-journo myself I’m not 100% convinced as I know all about the appetite for news but it was enlightening to hear nonetheless that, in their words, “we are human”. I sincerely hope if/when we make a mistake they remember this response :0)

11) And finally for me, quite a personal one, because I realised that while I didn’t give the most earth shattering presentation ever seen, (my partner was stoic in his support) this was a presenting first for me so I realised I can do it, and enjoy it!!  Hopefully the only way is up and who knows, maybe you’ll see me speaking at your next conference – right after the journalists :0)

For more from today’s event, take a look at #Cosm12 over on Twitter. Finally, a massive thanks to everyone who attended today and of course, everyone who presented and helped to organise! See you next year for #CoSM13