| Building and Protecting your Reputation |
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Hi John,
A very Happy New Year to you. Possibly a new decade too, but I've lost track of the arguments over that one.
So what's in store in this electronic missive this year? More of the same, actually. Tips to improve your speaking, media reputation and use of social media, along with the media winners and losers of the week.
As ever, I promise that this advice will remain forever free, and you never have to buy anything from me. Of course, if you want some more in-depth advice, I'm happy to enter into a transaction with you.
As for the wider world, I've been interviewed on radio a few times over the festive period about what may happen in the world of reputation and communications. Of course, my guesses are as good as yours, but here are a few trends I predict:
1) Introduction of social media regulation, probably by holding senior individuals in social network companies liable for the way in which material is checked and removed.
2) A big increase in brand activism, with major brands getting behind global campaigns in an effort to gain trust that has been lost by politicians and national leaders.
3) Much more micro-targeting by companies, using techniques from political campaigning to get tailored messages to hundreds of small groups
4) TikTok becoming a major force in communication and advertising.
5) Influencers will face much more scrutiny, and there will be more scandals about who has been "bought".
So there we are - I will report back at the end of the year and you can see how accurate I was! |
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The interview this week is another that proved very popular last year (yes, I didn't get out to interview anyone over Christmas), it's a chat with a remarkable young man, Felix Finkbeiner. Hear about his plan to re-forest the planet in the Media Coach Radio Show.
There's also a terrific song from Matt Scott. |
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The MediaMaestro is Zoe Petre, a student from Glamorgan, who began posting shots of her revision notes on Instagram in September 2016 while studying for her A-levels.
She now has more than 40,000 followers from across the globe. Explaining why she began, she said: "My exams weren't going very well. I had already resat my first year, but still wasn't predicted good grades and knew I could do better.I realised I needed new revision techniques so I began taking photos of my notes and posting them on Instagram to motivate me."
Alongside the immaculately written posts, Zoe also began posting updates of how she was getting along with her revision and exams.She also added tips she had learnt on how best to study and what subjects to choose.
"I kept getting new followers without really trying," she said. "My numbers just literally started to leap up."
As her followers increased, so too did her grades. She said: "I wanted to go to Cardiff University, but didn't think I'd get the grades. But people kept pushing me to succeed and, in the end, I got one A, two Bs and a C grade, which was enough to get in."
In September 2018, Zoe began a course in biomedical science at Cardiff University. Now in her second year, she continues to post every other day and is still attracting new fans. |
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The MediaMugs are dozens of companies who produced and sold 2020 diaries which included a major error. This year, the Mayday bank holiday has been moved from a Monday to a Friday, to coincide with the anniversary of VE day, which marked the end of the Second World War in Europe. The switch was only announced in June, after many diaries and calendars were already printed, leading to millions showing the incorrect date for the bank holiday, as reported by The Sun.
Retailers including WHSmith, Clintons and Paperchase have admitted they have aisles full of 2020 products which contain the date error.
It's been reported that many UK printers decided to keep the botched 2020 products rather than face a huge bill to have them reprinted, although some have made the change. Frustrated social media users have already pointed out the mistakes in their diaries, with one writing: "Check your diaries and calendars for 2020, people; only just realised that my new Moleskine has the early May Bank Holiday on the wrong day..." |
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| Speaking Tip - Advice versus Instruction |
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Great speakers give their audiences great advice that they can make use of immediately. Some are more directive in their advice, some less. However, sometimes I hear a speaker say "you must do it this way - this is the only way". I'm not impressed by that approach, and nor, I suspect, are most members of their audience. Advice and guidance is one thing, direct instruction is something else.
This issue becomes even more significant when there is a difference of opinion amongst acknowledged experts. A speaker may be heard not only instructing their audience, but also dismissing the views of other experienced colleagues. Since speakers tend to speak from their own experiences, and the information they have read, they can only really speak for themselves. Of course, their way of doing things may also work for many others, but there is no absolute guarantee that it will.
In my opinion, speakers need some humility. By all means offer advice, and back it up with solid evidence. Of course, this piece of advice is not an instruction (I'm in danger of starting a logical paradox here). I think you know what I mean. |
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| Media Tip - I'm going to sue! |
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What do you do if you spot a story about you online or in the press which you regard as damaging? Your first reaction might be to sue the author, and the media outlet. However, it may not be the right thing to do. It's easier than ever these days to monitor the media. Google Alerts can send an email to your desktop as soon as your name or company is mentioned anywhere on the web.
As ever, being prepared is crucial. Receiving an early warning gives you time to reflect and means that you won't act in haste and anger. Here's a checklist of other things to consider:
Quick, simple actions can defuse bigger problems Talk it over with colleagues - never act alone Consider how much damage has been done Think twice, and then think again before acting If you decide to comment, address all the issues If compensation is due, agree it quickly Get as much coverage as possible for any remedial action agreed A call to the editor may be better than a formal complaint If you do complain, be prepared for more scrutiny
In short, decide if any action at all is required, and if it is, be quick, decisive and honest.
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| Social Media Tip - 5 ways to verify a social media expert |
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A recent search showed over 50,000 self-proclaimed social media experts on Twitter. That's a lot of (apparent) expertise. If you needed social media expertise for your business, how on earth could you choose? I believe there are some very simple checks you can do to give you the best chance of finding a genuine "expert". Here are five tests that I hope will help you. 1) Evidence of success.
Rather than explaining what they might be able to do for you, any genuine expert should be able to "show and tell" a number of examples where their work has been of benefit to clients. Ideally, they should be able to quote examples of similar work to that you are asking for, and provide proof of their success. Look for numbers and financial value. If they say that their value is "impossible to quantify", be very wary.
2) Referrals from happy clients
This is similar to the one above, but your potential expert should also be able to provide contact details of past clients who will vouch for them. Ideally, they should allow you to select several clients from a list, and then provide you contact details so that you can take up references. If your expert claims that all of their work is "confidential", or "too early to tell", this should give you cause for concern.
3) Referrals from other experts
This one is a bit more tricky. In my opinion, people who are very good at what they do become known by other experts in their field. There are a number of universally acknowledged expert in social media, such as Robert Scoble, Guy Kawasaki, Amy Jo Martin, Chris Brogan and Joel Comm (yes, and some others - make up your own list). I think it is reasonable to ask your "expert", which of these people knows them and could vouch for them.
4) Online presence
Real social media experts use social media a lot. That's why they get good. It's not just about the number of followers they have (though that is significant), but it's also about whether they post regularly, engage with their connections and appear to know what they are doing. If you their Twitter profile and find they are following 2,000 people, but have only a few hundred followers, run away quickly.
5) Published expertise
Have they written a book (yes I know, very 20th century), blogs or wikis that you can look at? Do they speak often at large events? Real experts publish their knowledge widely, and are often asked to speak. It's not a guarantee of expertise, but it's another sign. This list is not exhaustive, and nor does it mean that if they don't tick every box, you should not engage their services. But if they only meet one or two of the above criteria, are you sure they are a real expert? If you're putting your money out there, you need to be confident. Take care. |
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| Would anyone believe that a pair of phone booths in a New York street could be rented out as co-working spaces? Apparently our chums at Improv Everywhere managed to convince some people. |
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| The information in this ezine may be freely re-used in any online or offline publication, provided it is accompanied by the following credit line - "This information was written by Alan Stevens, and originally appeared in "The MediaCoach", his free weekly ezine, available at www.mediacoach.co.uk." |
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