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https://www.latimes.com/opinion/story/2020-04-14/trump-news-conference-total-authority
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Letters to the Editor: Trump is No. 1 in headlines that start with ‘president lashes out’
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Letters to the Editor: Trump is No. 1 in headlines that start with ‘president lashes out’
To the editor: After reading what feels like the 1,000th headline beginning with “Trump lashes out,” it’s time America reaches the consensus that even a lunatic wouldn’t claim that “everything we did was right.” (“Trump stokes up his blame game for the coronavirus,” April 13)
President Trump repeatedly failed as a businessman until finding success as a provocative reality TV host. Repeating the act, he’s cobbled the presidency into a series of TV cameos calibrated only by the “ratings.” The networks allow their correspondents to be insulted like professional wrestlers to keep the ratings going.
Instead of taking Trump seriously, the American people should enjoy the last few months of the show, then cancel the series in November.
Eric Alter, Woodland Hills
..
To the editor: It is a basic principle of management — accountability cannot be separated from authority. If you are in charge of something, you are answerable for the results.
Trump claims that his authority over states is “total.” His claim is laughable, given that he has consistently denied any responsibility for any shortcomings in the federal response to the coronavirus crisis.
His stock in trade is to blame everyone and anything else for his failures, not to accept the fundamental responsibility that authority requires.
Marcia Goldstein, Laguna Woods
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To the editor: Our country has more than 24,000 deaths and leads the world in coronavirus infections. Yet our president proclaims, “Everything we did was right.”
He looks at the world and at our country through one narrow and vainglorious lens: How will his actions affect his ratings and his reelection campaign?
When the economy needed to be shuttered for the health and safety of all of us, he turned it over to the governors since it would be seen as a huge negative. But when it comes time to reopening the economy and getting all the praise, he proclaims that “the president of the United States calls the shots” and that his “authority is total.”
Mission accomplished.
Ken Goldman, Beverly Hills
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To the editor: Trump is the undisputed master of lashing out. It is how he does his job as president.
His long, fractious briefings endlessly attacking the media and the governors of blue states who have been tirelessly working pretty much on their own have not served him well. He is not only acting like a privileged monarch, he is also losing his battle to persuade the American people that he is a great leader in this time of crisis and uncertainty.
Should he actually fire Dr. Anthony Fauci, it would produce widespread disgust and anger among the electorate, and it would drive one more self-inflicted nail into his political coffin.
Bette Mason, Corona del Mar
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4e196f3a15e0e6a005243cf0fe028df3
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https://www.latimes.com/opinion/story/2020-04-15/column-popular-science-finds-new-life-online-coronavirus
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Column: How a science magazine from Charles Darwin’s era found new life online amid the coronavirus
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Column: How a science magazine from Charles Darwin’s era found new life online amid the coronavirus
The 1870s was the decade that gave us the telephone, the light bulb and phonograph, Vaseline, PVC and Darwin’s book “The Expression of the Emotions in Man and Animals.” And it also gave us Popular Science, a magazine that has been published for 147 years — and for the last 21 years, has offered all sorts of science delights on its website.
Corinne Iozzio became its editor in chief just as the coronavirus crisis was starting. Since then, the website has delivered user-friendly and inventive takes on the practices and practicalities of COVID-19, like a step-by-step guide to cleaning your groceries, how to clean your face mask and how to tell allergy symptoms from COVID-19. That’s in addition to regular sprightly and engaging science and tech stories with headlines such as: “We are eating large animals to extinction,” “What avocados and clownfish have in common, sexually speaking,” and a personal favorite, “Why two by fours don’t really measure two inches by four.”
In an age when science is right there on your phone, Iozzio wants to help make you make science work for you.
*****
How is Popular Science covering coronavirus? What’s your response and responsibilities?
This is one of those moments where the word “popular” in our name is absolutely the most important thing that we have to keep as a watchword, to not necessarily get too deep into the science and the lab work of what’s going on in the face of a global pandemic, but to really just take that breath and take that step back and think about what are the things that our readers want to know. What are the measured answers to the really important questions? And how do we deliver them to them in a way that’s accessible and approachable and just doesn’t really talk down to anybody in any real way?
And what do they want to know?
They just want to know practical things: I have symptoms that I would normally just think are a cold. When should I be worried? What’s the threshold for when I should be really pressing to get a test. What’s the [Centers for Disease Control and Prevention] say? I’m out of hand sanitizer. What the heck do I do? Really practical things that I think of when we talk about what we need to be covering, what we need to be sharing with our readers, is what is life in the time of COVID.
I saw one article about how to stop touching your face. I can’t imagine anything more practical.
Even taking that step back and taking a breath and thinking, how do I become more conscious of all of the things that I do without thinking? All of the things that I take for granted? And how does every iota of that need to evolve?
Or even, just what are the things that make me want to touch my face? Is this a nervous tic? Do I have allergies, therefore, I have itchy skin?
Once you identify your triggers and you think, what do I do to stop those? How do I change that habit? Do I twiddle my thumbs? Do we need to bring back fidget spinners just to keep our hands busy? These sorts of very practical day-to-day things that can have a really big impact on people’s lives.
Opinion
Column: Max Brooks: We’ve had plans for a crisis like coronavirus for years. Why aren’t we using them?
Opinion
Column: Max Brooks: We’ve had plans for a crisis like coronavirus for years. Why aren’t we using them?
‘We were ready for this. And since the end of the Cold War, we’ve been dismantling systems because they cost money and we don’t want to spend the money.’
A lot of our job is translating. cutting through all of the jargon. And frankly, when the news is so saturated right now, all of the noise — what are the facts and figures? What are the things that we can trust and put forward and really use that authority?
This is a brand that’s 147 years old. And that’s not something that we take lightly. We take that authority that we have, and we wield it in a very strategic and methodical way.
Are you there as a fact checker to debunk some of the mythology that’s out there?
I think we do serve that sort of role as gatekeepers and as people who push our proverbial glasses up our nose and say, here’s what’s really happening. We’re going to talk about this for a second. Now, you heard that you can distill vodka into hand sanitizer. Can we just have a reality check on this for a second, please?
Have those been some of the most popular pieces on your site?
Obviously, in the last few weeks, all of our COVID coverage has been extremely popular, but stories like that, stories about how all of the stores are completely out of hand sanitizer — OK, well, let’s talk about aloe vera gel. Let’s talk about rubbing alcohol and then let’s do the math for you to figure out the right proportions to put those together, so that you will have something that’s just as effective as if you went to the market and bought some sanitizer.
Popular Science is a quarterly publication, but you can’t wait that long to cover something like this.
The magazine serves a very different function than the website. The magazine we think of as a keepsake. They’re all single topic cover to cover. We just dig our teeth into something that’s super-duper fun and interesting and can touch on every facet of science, something that can really sit on the shelf and you can come back to it time and time again like you would a nice hefty coffee table book.
The website, popsci.com, is actually our largest platform, and that’s where we do the type of work serving the day-to-day needs and curiosities of our audience.
What’s the difference between the quarterly magazine’s readership and the people who read you online?
The magazine readership skews a little older generally and it skews more male, which is something that we have been slowly changing over the last several years. The digital audience is very different. It’s younger. Both of our audiences are very geographically diverse. Our audience is spread not just on the coasts, which is more typical of science and technology magazines. We have a very large concentration of readers in the middle of the country. And that’s true for both print and digital.
What’s remarkable about our digitals, about popsci.com, is that our readership there is close to a 50-50 split, men and women. And that’s something that we worked really hard to change over the last three or four years.
It used to be much more heavily skewed male and we’ve pulled it center, which is something that we’re really proud of. I think it’s not a matter of, we came in and suddenly started covering women’s issues. What our science desk found was that women’s magazines were covering issues of women’s health and science that were more traditionally relevant to women, but they weren’t covering it with the real scientific authority that Pop Sci could have.
So then we took this notion that there is this underserved thing: Let’s take our scientific authority and apply it to things that a more heavily female audience would be interested in. And once we started to do that, the change happened very quickly.
What are a couple of examples of those stories?
I’ll name a couple of my favorites. One of our younger editors became very enamored with a particular brand of tights, this brand called Heist. They’re the most comfortable tights. They didn’t run. They didn’t bunch. They didn’t roll down at the waistband. And she just became completely enamored.
What is the innovation? What is the engineering marvel that has allowed these tights to come into existence? So she called up the company, she talked to their heads of product. And what she found was that it wasn’t that the technology to make better tights wasn’t out there. It’s just that somebody bothered to try. And that’s true of so many things pertaining to issues that predominantly impact women.
More women than men, for example, suffer from chronic migraines. And only in the last two or three years have you seen real advancement in the types of drugs that can not only treat migraines, but help prevent them.
How has the mission of Popular Science changed over nearly 150 years?
Even if you look 10 or 15 years ago at Popular Science, you would have looked at it and you might have thought it to be an enthusiast magazine, for somebody who’s really, really, seriously interested in science, somebody who is an early adopter in terms of gadgets and audio video equipment.
And that’s changed so much, just in terms of the pervasiveness of technology in our day-to-day life, the amount of time that we spend interacting with it. And also just this notion that our entire world is science, this sort of awakening to everything that’s happening around us,
Science is part of everyday conversation in a way that it hasn’t been before. And we’re seeing that made manifest. Scientists aren’t the geeks and the nerds hanging out on the fringes. They’re part of the national conversation. We’re the cool kids now. And that’s a really great place to be.
There’s entrenched feeling that science is difficult, that it’s hard to be a scientist, or even engage in science just as an interested amateur.
It’s both worlds, right? Science is hard and it does require a tremendous amount of education and discipline and reading and knowing everything that came before you in order to figure out how you move forward.
But it’s also participatory. We’re each one of us, a source of data, and more data makes better information. If you look back at predictions of the future, we had flying cars by now and we were living in “Jetsons” condos in the sky, but nobody saw the smartphone coming.
Now it’s like we use Waze as a mapping tool. And each one of us is helping to map and catalog traffic on a day-to-day basis. And that’s something that nobody ever saw coming.
If you even bring it back to what’s happening right now with coronavirus and COVID testing, testing is important because it’s a mechanism by which people can get the treatment that they need. But testing is also important because it helps us get the data that we need to really understand what’s happening. And in that way, science is a very community thing and it’s incredibly participatory.
If science hasn’t always been political, then it certainly can be now. Is that something you have to deal with every day?
It’s something that we’re aware of every day, and it’s something that we take a lot of care in how we touch on politics, when we cover things and when we talk about things.
We’re very sensitive to something that might get very easily construed as what we just think is like some sort of offhanded joke, or some tiny little word choice can be very off-putting to someone who you’re trying to get to understand what’s happening.
We want to bring science to people’s doorsteps and help them understand how it impacts their day-to-day life.
Like the Green New Deal, for example. Giant, nebulous, hard to wrap your arms around. We say, OK, let’s look at this state by state. If we had a Green New Deal, what does that mean for you in Colorado? What does that mean for you in Delaware? Or California needs to do a lot of work retrofitting its buildings.
It’s just a matter of really drilling down like that. And that’s how you take the politics out of it. You just say, OK, I’m not going to talk to you about Republican or Democrat or independent or whatever. I want to talk about how this hits you where you live. Science is about facts, not opinions, and politics is grossly often on the opposite side of that.
Have you been surprised at how broadly science can be defined — internet freedom, pantyhose; it seems pretty wide.
I always say you could hand me a mechanical pencil and I could find you three science stories in that pencil without breaking a sweat. Let’s talk about the guy who made the clicky thing. Let’s talk about the synthetic rubber in the not-rubber eraser on the tip of it. It could go on and on and on. It’s everywhere.
How did you get into science journalism?
I got into science journalism through tech journalism. I was always the kid working with my dad running speaker wires under the living room floor, drilling holes in the floor, then running across beneath in the basement so that he could hook up his Bose floor speakers.
And then early in my career, I worked in tech journalism right around when the first iPhone came out. So it was kind of the best moment to become a gadget reporter.
With the coronavirus crisis, we see people turning to science and saying, ‘Science! Save us!’ It seems that every 10 years, something comes along and science has to come in in the last reel and be the hero in the white hat. Or the white lab coat.
It’s absolutely true. We want the undercurrent of science to not only be something that becomes part of the public conversation in an emergency. This is always something that’s happening in the background. And all of these wheels and mechanisms and research is always moving forward so that when something like this does happen, we’re hopefully at a stronger position every single time.
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0f963bb762c93ed78e80ccdc18c062d0
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https://www.latimes.com/opinion/story/2020-04-17/nimby-homeless-covid-19
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Opinion: Put NIMBYism under quarantine, before homeless people with conoravirus get even sicker
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Opinion: Put NIMBYism under quarantine, before homeless people with conoravirus get even sicker
It’s bad enough to be homeless and have no place to shelter when you are healthy. In south Orange County, if you’re homeless and have tested positive for COVID-19, your choices of places to go are a sidewalk or a hospital. Yet there are hotels sitting empty in the county that are willing to provide rooms to homeless people, if only the public would let them.
Instead, two communities in south Orange County have marshaled their energy and legal resources to thwart efforts by the state, the county, hotel owners and an experienced service provider to help protect sick homeless individuals from getting sicker as well as to keep them from spreading the virus to the community at large.
First, it was the residents of the retirement community, Laguna Woods Village, who effectively shut down plans to allow the nearby Ayres Hotel to house homeless people with COVID-19.
Now, it’s the city of Laguna Hills and several property owners who have sued Orange County to stop its plan to use the Laguna Hills Inn to house and isolate homeless individuals who have tested positive or are suspected of being positive. The city is asking for a temporary restraining order to block the initiative. At a court hearing conducted via teleconference Thursday, Kelly Richardson, an attorney representing the city of Laguna Hills, balked at the county calling this “a NIMBY (“Not In My Back Yard”) case of the worst kind” in court filings.
Richardson got that right. This is beyond NIMBYism. It’s cruelty.
Lawyers for the city of Laguna Hills argued that putting up infected homeless individuals was a danger to the public health of the community. Neither the county nor the Illumination Foundation, the service organization that’s set to oversee the care of the occupants, could guarantee that infected people wouldn’t leave the hotel and wander around the city, the lawyers argued. In other words, according to the city, the hotel is a hazard.
In fact, it’s the virus that’s the hazard. It’s hazardous — and inhumane — to let people who are homeless and sick stay on the street. And if they go to a hospital when they don’t need that level of treatment, they further strain resources the county needs to conserve. All they need is a place to isolate and recuperate.
Lawyers also argued that if all the 76 beds in the hotel were filled with COVID-19 patients, that would represent a 600% increase in coronavirus cases in Laguna Hills. There were 13 cases when they made that argument. There are now at least 14.
But that’s absurd. If that were the standard for analysis, every nearby hospital would be considered a nuisance too. Also, the county’s goal is to provide at least one hotel in different regions of the county to accommodate people who have nowhere to isolate. At the moment, the southern part of the county has none.
According to the county’s legal filings, the requirements for people isolating in the hotels are incredibly restrictive — much more so than would be tolerated in a homeless shelter during normal times. Occupants will not be allowed outside (even in the parking lot), and if they are caught violating that rule, they will be banished from the hotel and returned to wherever they came from. If they came with a car (some homeless people live in their vehicles), they must surrender their car keys. There will be security personnel on site. And the service provider’s staff has agreed not to frequent any local restaurants or stores.
These are stricter regulations than we put on COVID-19 positive individuals who live in houses and are merely cautioned to isolate and stay inside. We don’t police any of the people who tested positive and have homes in Laguna Hills or elsewhere.
Fortunately, Orange County Superior Court Judge Thomas A. Delaney didn’t see the use of the hotel as a public nuisance. He rightly saw it as a public health benefit for everyone.
However, the city has also argued that using the hotel to house sick individuals changes its use and violates the covenants, conditions and restrictions governing the property. Delaney said he’s inclined to believe that’s the case. Still, the judge won’t decide whether to issue a restraining order until after he’s heard more arguments from lawyers Monday morning.
But aren’t those regulations trumped by the state’s emergency order declaring, among other things, that hotels should be used — even commandeered — to house individuals who need isolation or quarantining? Let’s hope the judge sees it that way. We all need this hotel. And we need it yesterday.
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832e4db47fff5ddfb8ee0d38cfe6a445
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https://www.latimes.com/opinion/story/2020-04-20/coronavirus-protesters-are-no-rosa-parks
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Column: Comparing coronavirus protesters to Rosa Parks is grotesque. Just stop it
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Column: Comparing coronavirus protesters to Rosa Parks is grotesque. Just stop it
Our culture has a wonderful way of taking controversial or partisan figures and weaving them into the broader story of America.
When Abraham Lincoln was assassinated, for example, his secretary of war, Edwin Stanton, purportedly said, “Now he belongs to the ages,” which was a way of saying that the battles Lincoln fought and the leadership he provided would stay with us and shape the nation going forward.
This kind of recognition is common when it comes to dead presidents, but it is even more valuable when it comes to moral heroes. It is appropriate that Republicans and Democrats alike celebrate the legacy of Martin Luther King Jr. It is a great and glorious thing that the civil rights activist Rosa Parks is talked about as an American hero, not solely as an African American one.
That said, can we not be idiots about it?
“I call these people the modern-day Rosa Parks,” Stephen Moore an economic advisor to the president, said several times last week, referring to the small crowds protesting government lockdown and quarantine orders. “They are protesting against injustice and a loss of liberties.”
Many have noted the bizarreness of a presidential advisor and avid supporter of President Trump, a man who sits on the president’s movable feast of a committee to reopen the economy, also serving as an architect and organizer of protests against policies the president himself has advocated.
But that contradiction merely reflects the president’s own inconsistent behavior. He acknowledges that masks are a good idea for all but then says he won’t wear one. He insists that his power is absolute but then says governors are the ones who should “call the shots.” He issues guidelines for combating the pandemic but then lends support to protesters denouncing them and decrying the governors who are enforcing them “LIBERATE MICHIGAN!” “LIBERATE MINNESOTA!” “LIBERATE VIRGINIA!” the president has tweeted.
Apparently, the hunger for the sweet air of liberty is most desperately felt in swing states.
It’s notable that the president has not actually abandoned his view that he has “total authority” to call the shots; he merely chooses not to exercise the untrammeled power the Constitution does not give him. (The calculation seems to be that the president wants to pocket the successes of state-led efforts while casting blame elsewhere for any resulting problems.)
If he actually believed these states were in need of liberation he could do something about it. Places in need of liberation suffer from tyranny, and the president does have a constitutional obligation to see to it that American citizens do not endure tyranny.
It was this obligation that justified President Eisenhower’s decision to dispatch the National Guard to safeguard the lives of African Americans trying to go to school in Arkansas. It was why the Justice Department under Lyndon Johnson intervened to protect the civil liberties of African American citizens.
Which brings me back to Rosa Parks. The Jim Crow system she famously defied codified the notion that some Americans were fundamentally inferior to other Americans. The notion that some citizens do not share the same constitutional rights as other Americans is by definition tyrannical.
Nothing like that is happening here. I am perfectly willing to concede that some governors have made mistakes. Banning Michiganders from purchasing gardening equipment and car seats for babies strikes me as heavy-handed.
But this Rosa Parks comparison is grotesque in its asininity. Unlike Moore, Parks was not fighting to regain temporarily suspended liberties, but liberties many Americans had never fully enjoyed. She was a nonviolent warrior in a struggle to guarantee the rights and dignity of all Americans. Her struggle was grounded in the idea that all Americans are born with the equal right to life and liberty.
The quarantines are grounded in a not altogether dissimilar understanding: that we all deserve protection from a virus that disproportionately strikes our most vulnerable citizens and is now the second leading cause of death in America, and closing in on heart disease quickly. And because of the nature of the crisis, it requires cooperation and sacrifices from everybody.
As a matter of law and morality, these intentions matter. If you could ask the founding fathers whether what we’re going through is tyranny, they would answer, collectively, “Are you high?” or whatever the Colonial-era equivalent was.
But we live in a time where inconveniences and hardships alike must be turned into acts of deliberate villainy by our political opponents or nefarious overlords. One can marvel at the cynicism required to impose these hardships and simultaneously claim outrage over them without losing sight of the scope of the villainy — and asininity — on display.
@JonahDispatch
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https://www.latimes.com/opinion/story/2020-04-21/coronavirus-covid-19-dancing-tiktok-courtney-cox-social-distancing-powwow
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Op-Ed: Got cabin fever? It’s time to dance
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Op-Ed: Got cabin fever? It’s time to dance
Eight years ago, when my boyfriend and I started dancing in our living room after dinner, little did we think our somewhat eccentric pastime would sweep the nation. But if social media are any gauge , dancing at home is the coronavirus pandemic’s bathtub gin.
Confined to the all-too-familiar patch of steel and plaster we call home, Americans are sashaying and kick-ball changing our sadness and fear away. Families are erupting into tiny pageants of jazz hands. A dance challenge started by the video-sharing app TikTok, meant to promote social distancing, has drawn more than 4.6 billion views. Videos from LeBron James, Mark Wahlberg and Judd Apatow suggest that now may be the best time ever to see heterosexual men tangle with precision choreography.
But beneath the roar of approval and delight elicited by all this shimmying and twirling, you can hear a whine of disapproval. When Courtney Cox, the “Friends” star, put up a sultry video of herself dancing to “Slidegang!” by Lil Jackie, the backlash was immediate: “You know thousands of people just lost their jobs right?” Or, as one viewer of a wildly popular video featuring a father in Louisville, Ky., dancing with his two adult sons sniffed, “Really?????”
Crises, as any satirist or corporate publicist will tell you, wreak havoc with tone. One man’s Fosse-esque shoulder isolation is another man’s blackface. It doesn’t help that dance, by showcasing the corporeal and the sensual, has for centuries been a target of censure.
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“Judging from the volume of condemnations from on high,” Barbara Ehrenreich has written, “the custom of dancing in churches was thoroughly entrenched in the Middle Ages and apparently tolerated — if not actually enjoyed — even by many parish priests.” “On high” won; dancing in sacred spaces was prohibited starting in the 4th century. Jump ahead to the 1950s, when television critics decried Elvis Presley’s hip gyrations as “animalism” and “vulgarity” to more recent contretemps over Miley Cyrus’ public displays of the rump-tastic idiom called twerking.
But to condemn dance is to overlook three important facts. First, you can’t separate a dance’s meaning from the circumstances surrounding it; context is everything. In the 1800s, when the Zezuru tribe in southern Africa was approached by marauders, the tribe would dispatch a chorus line of topless tribeswoman to daze the attackers by shaking their breasts suggestively at them. Yet the Zezuru, like most Africans, decried Western-style touch-dancing as vulgar.
Or consider today’s Christian fundamentalists here in the United States. Earlier generations linked dances such as the lindy hop and the jitterbug to miscegenation and truancy and general wildness; they outlawed dancing altogether. But today, some Christian parents who were forbidden to dance as youngsters see twerking, flossing and krumping and urge their children to take up the old-timey swing steps.
Whatever you may find objectionable about the pandemic’s homemade dance moves — too happy, too sexy, too unbeautiful — remember there is a context: coronavirus fear and cabin fever.
Second, for some Americans, dance is a form of spirituality. One of the most moving results of the pandemic has been the creation of the Facebook group Social Distance Powwow, which has drawn more than 160,000 members as I write this. Self-isolation Native Americans are using it to post videos of themselves performing traditional dances in their homes or environs, often in full regalia. Yvette Leecy, of the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs of Oregon, dances with her two granddaughters around a campfire in her backyard. “We’re going to do our social dance for healing,” she explains, “for our lands, for our people, for the sick, for the people who can’t dance. We hope that this helps everybody.”
Third, dancing at home is a great unifier. I started dancing in my living room in 2012 mostly for stress relief. Job-related tension had colonized my jawline; I was Elsa Clench. I wanted to shake off the tension, literally. But, over time, as my boyfriend, Greg, started bopping with me, the function of dancing shifted. Greg and I are both mild-mannered, socially recessive WASPs not prone to public displays of affection. But put on some Beyoncé or Parliament with a strong beat and we get all handsy and hippy. At 8 p.m. on a weeknight, I find myself committing the first sensual act of the day. That Greg and I have been together for 17 years only underscores the mental health benefits of dance-floor sensuality.
To be reductionist: Sometimes a good dance is better than sex. And that doesn’t even count the exercise. Somewhere, Michelle Obama and Jack LaLanne are smiling.
I wouldn’t deign to mouth off about Courtney Cox’s dance moves, or the public dissemination thereof, for the same reason I won’t criticize the Social Distance Powwow: I’m not privy to the full extent of these dancers’ inspirations or intentions. Granted, dancing can seem like a strangely egoistic reaction to a world in which thousands are dying and even more are losing their jobs, but is marathon-watching “Gilmore Girls” or baking bread any less so?
To scorn dance now is to join in a centuries-old prudishness and closed-mindedness that overlooks movement’s blessings and charms. Sacred or profane: I don’t really care. Just keep the beat alive.
Henry Alford’s book “And Then We Danced” was reissued in paperback in 2019.
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ce84662ec2844561353178eeee09b18b
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https://www.latimes.com/opinion/story/2020-04-22/pandemic-is-the-worst-time-for-local-newspapers-to-die
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Letters to the Editor: A pandemic is the worst time for local newspapers to die
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Letters to the Editor: A pandemic is the worst time for local newspapers to die
To the editor: It was disheartening to read about the decline of local newspapers throughout the nation, including several sister publications of the Los Angeles Times. Although there is never a good time for an industry to collapse, I cannot think of a worse time for print journalism to do so than right now.
Growing up reading the daily newspaper gave me a glimpse of the world around me and beyond my neighborhood. I read about faraway places, people and issues. More importantly, reading newspapers helped me decipher between fact and opinion.
My favorite assignment in 6th-grade English was creating our own newspaper. I never had a knack for putting words in an order that appealed to readers, but I have always admired those who did.
Today, I share the joy of reading a newspaper with my 13-year-old son, to whom I pass on the important skill of deciphering fact from opinion.
Jason Y. Calizar, Torrance
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To the editor: I want to thank the entire staff of the Los Angeles Times for continuing the hard work of putting out a daily newspaper during this enormously difficult time.
You continue to produce a quality product, even though I see, from how thin the paper has become, there is seriously diminished advertising revenue.
I appreciate everything that all the writers, editors, photographers, print production folks and others do. And, I really appreciate the generosity and leadership of Dr. Patrick Soon-Shiong, whose purchase of The Times in 2018 was a great gift to me as a subscriber and to the entire city and region.
Jeffrey Rabin, Los Angeles
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To the editor: I’m really sorry to see the end of the award-winning Glendale New-Press, which has been around since 1905.
Reading the News-Press is how I found out that the Glendale City Council had passed a more strict requirement for wearing masks than Los Angeles County. It helped me feel connected to community life and happenings that I wouldn’t have known about otherwise.
To all those journalists who worked hard on local news, we in Glendale, La Crescenta and Montrose say thank you for your service.
Bruce Alvord, La Crescenta
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aa9c4774bf82b5cc31d08f91ac3994fb
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https://www.latimes.com/opinion/story/2020-04-23/reopening-because-of-flawed-antibody-studies
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Letters to the Editor: No, flawed coronavirus antibody studies don’t mean we can reopen
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Letters to the Editor: No, flawed coronavirus antibody studies don’t mean we can reopen
To the editor: I am perplexed by the coverage of the USC and L.A. County COVID-19 blood antibody study, which had significant flaws.
Public policy professor Neil Sood and his colleagues at USC bypassed all the usual rigors of scientific review and went straight to the media with their findings. Their survey included 863 adults chosen from a database maintained not by an academic institution, but rather by a marketing firm, and the participants needed to drive to a testing site at a time when many people might have been afraid to do so.
The wide generalization made by the authors is what is truly galling. Sood suggests, “We might have to recalibrate disease prediction models and rethink public health strategies.” This is irresponsible and dangerous messaging when the world has experienced more the 2.6 million confirmed COVID-19 cases and more than 180,000 deaths.
There is a rationale for the scientific peer-review processes. It is slow, it is arduous, and it is painful for a reason. The public needs to demand better — from our testing, from our researchers and from our public health officials.
Philip Bretsky, MD, Santa Monica
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To the editor: Results from both of the recent Los Angeles County and Santa Clara County antibody studies suggest that the real fatality rate from COVID-19 infections could be between 0.1% and 0.2%, which is close to the seasonal flu death rate.
Given this information, shouldn’t there be an urgent, massive and random antibody testing effort to validate these results? And, if the results are similar, shouldn’t we end the shutdown?
Glynn Morris, Playa del Rey
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84b73f7240b44de2bc4bd1d668e9dbd1
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https://www.latimes.com/opinion/story/2020-05-07/scotus-bridgegate-corruption
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Opinion: ‘Bridgegate’ is still a scandal for the ages, even if it wasn’t a federal crime
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Opinion: ‘Bridgegate’ is still a scandal for the ages, even if it wasn’t a federal crime
“Bridgegate,” a 2013 scheme by associates of New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie to close traffic lanes to punish a political opponent of the governor, was and remains a political scandal for the ages.
What it wasn’t, the Supreme Court said on Wednesday, was a federal crime. The justices unanimously overturned the fraud convictions of Christie’s deputy chief of staff, Bridget Anne Kelly, and another Christie associate, Bill Baroni.
Writing for the court, Justice Elena Kagan conceded that “the evidence the jury heard no doubt shows wrongdoing — deception, corruption, abuse of power.” But the convictions had to fall, she added, because their misconduct didn’t amount to a taking of government “property” under the relevant federal statute.
“Under settled precedent,” she wrote, “the officials could violate those laws only if an object of their dishonesty was to obtain the Port Authority’s money or property.” The realignment of toll lanes on the George Washington Bridge was “an exercise of regulatory power,” not a property grab.
The closure of the lanes was political payback for the refusal of Mark Sokolich, the mayor of Fort Lee, to endorse Christie’s reelection. In what later became a cultural meme, Kelly sent an email to officials of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey saying: “Time for some traffic problems in Fort Lee.”
Some initial reaction to Thursday’s decision portrayed it as yet another example of the Supreme Court going soft on public corruption. But that’s unfair.
It’s true that the court has repeatedly struck down convictions in cases of white-collar crime or political corruption.
Four years ago, also by a unanimous vote, the justices overturned the conviction of former Gov. Bob McDonnell of Virginia in connection with $175,000 in cash and gifts lavished on McDonnell and his wife by Jonnie Williams, a businessman who wanted the state to conduct research on a nutritional supplement his company had developed. McDonnell had set up a luncheon at the governor’s mansion to help promote the supplement, and he told several aides to meet with Williams.
Writing for the court in the McDonnell case, Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. said the law required that, to be found guilty, the defendant had to have engaged in “a formal exercise of government power.” He also wrote: “Setting up a meeting, calling another public official or hosting an event does not, standing alone, qualify as an ‘official act.’”
That was far too narrow an interpretation of an “official act.” As the L.A. Times editorial board noted: “A public official can put his thumb on the scales in ways that go beyond signing a bill or appointing someone to public office. “
By contrast, in the Bridgegate decision, Kagan makes a plausible argument that prosecutors overreached.
The actors in Bridgegate did suffer consequences for their scheme. Both Kelly and Maroni lost their jobs. Christie, who has denied any knowledge of the plot, probably was harmed by the scandal in his unsuccessful quest for the 2016 Republican presidential nomination.
“Bridgegate” remains a scandal — and a cautionary tale for public officials — even if it wasn’t a federal crime.
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e198d340ef07a8f5aa9c9e68e1ba3582
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https://www.latimes.com/opinion/story/2020-05-10/newsom-25-million-covid-19-budget-deficit
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Letters to the Editor: Remember when Gavin Newsom said 25 million Californians would catch COVID-19?
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Letters to the Editor: Remember when Gavin Newsom said 25 million Californians would catch COVID-19?
To the editor: You claim that the coronavirus pandemic has plunged California into worst budget deficit in state history. That is not true.
The spiraling unemployment, economic losses and budget deficit were due to the governor’s March 19 stay-home order. Was that order a justified response to the COVID-19 threat?
On March 18, the governor wrote a letter to the president stating, “We project that roughly 56% of our population — 25.5 million people — will be infected with the virus over an eight week period.” Apparently the governor also believed that the case mortality infection rate was at least 1%, meaning there would be at least 255,000 deaths in California.
Today, the number of confirmed infections is fewer than 70,000. Reported deaths total less than 3,000.
The March 19 action of the governor that resulted in the economic apocalypse and our historic budget deficit was not rational or justified.
Ned Leiba, Culver City
Opinion
California will never be the same. Tell us what you want to see change after the coronavirus pandemic
Opinion
California will never be the same. Tell us what you want to see change after the coronavirus pandemic
Help the Los Angeles Times reimagine what California should look like after the COVID-19 pandemic ends.
..
To the editor: I acknowledge COVID-19 has caused a monster budget deficit for California. But before Sacramento considers raising our taxes, I say it should consider killing the high-speed rail project between Los Angeles and San Francisco.
The success of telecommuting proves it’s not really needed. Plus, it really won’t be truly high speed since it will have to slow down in cities and towns.
The rail line is an obvious target for terrorists, and when the next pandemic comes, it will be safer to drive between San Francisco and Los Angeles than to take a train.
Let’s put a stake in this money-sucking project now.
Steve Paskay, Los Angeles
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To the editor: The L.A. Times Editorial Board is correct to praise Gov. Jerry Brown and his successor Newsom for setting aside billions of dollars in a rainy-day fund. But I have to take issue with the assessment that California put its financial house in order prior to the pandemic.
As unfunded public employee retirement obligations increase each year, the politicians did not do enough. With lower-than-anticipated returns from public employee pension investments in the stock market, workers gaming the system to increase lifelong benefits, and a greater number of retirees due to prolonged life expectancy, we have the makings of a tsunami of crushing debt.
Jerry Glass, Lakewood
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4c23053405919043e2c2887861b98093
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https://www.latimes.com/opinion/story/2020-05-10/risking-death-to-eat-out-isnt-resistance-its-recklessness
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Letters to the Editor: Risking death to eat out isn’t ‘resistance,’ it’s recklessness
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Letters to the Editor: Risking death to eat out isn’t ‘resistance,’ it’s recklessness
To the editor: As many restaurants are anxious to reopen, the Silver Dollar Saloon in Yuba County, which opened in defiance of state orders, shows exactly how it should not be done. (“2 counties defied Newsom and reopened. Now California warns restaurants could lose licenses if opened too early,” May 7)
Pictured mingling with customers shoulder to shoulder and with sneakers propped up on the opposite bench, apparently the waitress is not aware of how the coronavirus is spread.
I can imagine responsible business owners looking at the front-page photo, cringing and thinking, “This won’t help us open up.”
Tony Baker, Rancho Palos Verdes
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To the editor: “Resistance” is a word that usually describes action taken against tyranny, not against rules that are made the save people’s lives. Is it really worth risking death for a tortilla or a beer? (“An Orange County cafe opened in defiance of Newsom. Now it’s the center of stay-at-home resistance,” May 8)
I guess calls by President Trump, former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie and so many other Republicans for people to be willing to risk their lives to bring back the economy resonate with some very hungry and very thirsty people.
They may be willing to die, but most of us would rather live and not have the virus spread.
Susan Harris, Glendale
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To the editor: Seeing the picture of people standing close together without masks at a San Clemente restaurant, I was reminded of what Heraclitus, the pre-Socratic thinker, wrote: “Stupidity is better kept a secret than displayed.”
Rod Hagenbuch, Pacific Palisades
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5e6e1055a466c20f8166860a92b0da8b
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https://www.latimes.com/opinion/topoftheticket/la-na-tt-bernie-evangelist-20170222-story.html
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Bernie Sanders is the leaderless Democrats’ anti-Trump evangelist
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Bernie Sanders is the leaderless Democrats’ anti-Trump evangelist
Imagine strolling into an evangelical church, packed to the rafters with true believers, just as the preacher is about to ask the sinners to step forward and be saved. And imagine walking up to the pulpit and asking that preacher if he’d like to sit down with you for a conversation about scriptural exegesis. Imagine how you would be received.
I almost felt like that on Sunday night when I walked onto the stage of an ornate old theater in downtown Los Angeles where I had been invited to interview Bernie Sanders, the Vermont senator whose run against Hillary Clinton was the unexpected phenomenon of the 2016 Democratic primaries.
Going in, I knew the audience would be animated. The event had sold out quickly, and tickets that started at $25 were being scalped for hundreds of dollars. These folks were enthusiastic about seeing their political champion again after the disappointment of the lost primary campaign, the subsequent electoral college defeat of Clinton and the inauguration of a new president who is assaulting every policy and principle they believe in. What I did not quite anticipate was Sanders.
David Horsey / Los Angeles Times
David Horsey / Los Angeles Times
David Horsey / Los Angeles Times
David Horsey / Los Angeles Times
David Horsey / Los Angeles Times
David Horsey / Los Angeles Times
David Horsey / Los Angeles Times
David Horsey / Los Angeles Times
David Horsey / Los Angeles Times
David Horsey / Los Angeles Times
David Horsey / Los Angeles Times
David Horsey / Los Angeles Times
David Horsey / Los Angeles Times
David Horsey / Los Angeles Times
David Horsey / Los Angeles Times
Before I was brought in from the wings, the senator gave a 45-minute speech that was the latest iteration of the stem-winder he delivered at hundreds of town halls, fairgrounds and stadiums throughout the long presidential campaign. By the time I joined him at the two chairs at center stage, the rowdy crowd was revved up and Sanders was far from finished with them.
I kicked off my segment of the program by showing three of my cartoons on the big screen behind us. I thought that would be an entertaining way to ease into a discussion. Sanders glanced at them, but did not even fake a guffaw. When I tried to connect with him by mentioning I had been in Vermont a few years ago and witnessed the Strolling of the Heifers, a homespun parade of cows in Brattleboro, he did not smile or make a remark about the charms of his home state. When my meandering questions failed to get to the point quickly enough, he broke in with answers. And, two or three times, he got up from his chair to talk directly to the audience.
Now, I do not want to be misinterpreted. I did not find Sanders to be rude or unfriendly. Rather, he was a man with a mission, a very untypical politician who is deeply serious about his message and his cause. As I observed when I heard him speak at rallies in Pomona and Bakersfield before the California primary, he does not waste words making jokes or telling endearing personal stories. And on Sunday night in L.A., he was an evangelist with a responsive crowd. He was not obligated to fritter away that opportunity by indulging me.
The points Sanders touched on in his “sermon” were familiar from the campaign and from his campaign book, “Our Revolution” — the dangerous rise of an American oligarchy that buys control of the political system and reaps most of the rewards of economic growth; workers with stagnant wages for lengthening hours of labor; the hollowing out of the middle class; the need for relief from obscene levels of college student debt; the still unattained promise of affordable healthcare for everyone; the opportunities to create jobs by rebuilding the country’s infrastructure and building a new energy system divorced from fossil fuels; the imperative to deal with climate change before it is too late.
The difference now is that Donald Trump is in the White House and Republicans command Congress. So, Sanders is no longer looking for votes, he is preaching resistance. He is on the road urging his followers to reject despair, exhaustion, fear or apathy and get more deeply involved in politics by running for office, joining campaigns, chasing down elected officials at town hall meetings, taking to the streets in protest and “thinking outside the box” — resistance on every level.
On Sunday night, Sanders reminded the audience that “this is not the first moment in American history that has been bleak.” He recalled the dire situation of African Americans in the South in the 1950 and ’60s, the quandary of women a century ago who were denied the right to an education, the plight of workers in earlier eras who had no rights because they had no unions, and the shadowed lives of gay people who had to keep their true identities in the closet. In all those situations, people could have given up, he said, but they did not.
“I left the campaign more overwhelmed and impressed by the beauty in our country,” Sanders said, bringing the evening to a close. “And don’t let Trump and his friends on television discourage you. There is incredible beauty in this country. There are millions of people of every race and every background who want to work together to makes this the country that you and I know it can become. And right now our job is to be as smart as we can be, to be as effective as we can be, to organize … educate, get involved in the process in a way you never have before, because this is not just for you. This is for my four kids and your children. It is for my seven grandchildren and your grandchildren that you have now or to come. This is for the future of the planet. That’s what we’re fighting for.”
As I watched Sanders speak — amused by my superfluous role and impressed by his passion and stamina — it struck me that, if the man were 10 years younger, everyone in the media would be talking about him as the top choice for Democrats in 2020. Instead, the Democratic Party lacks a national leader. Clinton is silent in defeat. Barack Obama is playing golf. Joe Biden’s chance has passed. There is no single person who is the obvious savior of the party.
But Democrats have an evangelist in Bernie Sanders, and his campaign seems far from done.
[email protected]
Follow me at @davidhorsey on Twitter
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b15fe67158c8ca5094d84e1888a6157f
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https://www.latimes.com/opinion/topoftheticket/la-na-tt-derelict-congress-20130102-story.html
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Derelict 112th Congress sets new record for low achievement
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Derelict 112th Congress sets new record for low achievement
The 112th Congress worked hard on just one thing: competing to be known as the most worthless, incompetent, do-nothing gathering of lawmakers in the nation’s history. These political underachievers may well have guaranteed themselves that dubious distinction by what they did and did not do Tuesday night.
In theory, our senators and representatives are elected to promote the best interests of the people who elect them. In practice, a great deal of the elected officials’ time is spent serving the interests of the people who paid for the campaigns that got them elected. But in the past, even the most bought-and-paid-for members of Congress found ways to come together and do the right thing in times of national crisis.
The 112th Congress, though, manufactured an artificial crisis while failing to provide timely aid to people suffering from the devastation of a crisis that is all too real.
The manufactured crisis was the “fiscal cliff.” In 2012, after damaging the nation’s credit by playing politics with the debt ceiling and nearly letting the government default on its debts, Congress set a time bomb for itself – big tax hikes and draconian budget cuts timed to kick in after the stroke of midnight on Jan. 1, 2013. This was supposed to focus everyone’s attention so that they would come up with a serious, bipartisan plan for reducing the ever-growing federal deficit.
We all know how that went. Nothing got done for most of the year, then weeks of squabbling and brinksmanship ensued following the November election. Only after the deadline arrived Tuesday was a bill passed that blocked most of the tax increases and delayed reconsideration of the budget cuts for two months.
In other words, Congress could summon the will to do only the very easiest thing: preserve George W. Bush-era tax cuts for about 99.5% of Americans while letting taxes rise a little for households earning more than $450,000 annually. Everything else – all the hard choices – got kicked down the road to the next Congress, thereby guaranteeing another fiscal freakout just weeks from now when the debt ceiling has to be raised again.
It does not have to be like this. There have been countless budget battles in the past, but those occurred in Congresses where compromise, horse-trading and centrist impulses pushed tough debates toward a final resolution. In today’s polarized political world, ideology trumps intelligence, especially in the House Republican Caucus. A perfect example of this was Tuesday’s second failure to serve the public.
Following the vote on the fiscal cliff deal, it was expected that the House would vote on a Senate bill directing $60 billion in emergency aid to the victims of Superstorm Sandy. The people in storm-ravaged New Jersey and New York have waited for assistance many weeks longer than past hurricane victims in several Southern states ever had to wait, but House Speaker John A. Boehner canceled the vote.
A lot of outraged Northeastern congressmen and senators wanted to know why. The answer? Right-wing anti-tax groups, including the Club for Growth and the Heritage Foundation, have been challenging the aid package, demanding that it be balanced with cuts to other programs. They also claimed the measure had been laden with pork, though the examples of extraneous spending were few. So the tea party ideologues in the House GOP gave the aid deal a thumbs down.
New Jersey Republican Gov. Chris Christie went ballistic. In a statement issued Wednesday with New York Democratic Gov. Andrew Cuomo, he said: “This failure to come to the aid of Americans following a severe and devastating natural disaster is unprecedented. The fact that days continue to go by while people suffer, families are out of their homes, and men and women remain jobless and struggling during these harsh winter months is a dereliction of duty. When American citizens are in need we come to their aid. That tradition was abandoned in the House last night.”
Since the 112th Congress goes out of business today, the process for delivering storm aid will have to be restarted in the new Congress. Unfortunately, voters did too little to alter the congressional roster in the fall election. Thus it is not cynicism but mere logic that would suggest the new 113th Congress is already primed to set its own low benchmark for dismal achievement.
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607721ba9d2935152095fb925e142e72
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https://www.latimes.com/opinion/topoftheticket/la-na-tt-high-ceo-salaries-20140415-story.html
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Obscenely high CEO salaries are stark marker of U.S. wealth gap
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Obscenely high CEO salaries are stark marker of U.S. wealth gap
A beginning elementary school teacher in a small district in California makes around $40,000 per year. That’s 2 or 3 thousand dollars more than poor Larry Ellison brings in -- but Ellison, the CEO of Oracle Corp., earns it in an hour.
There’s nothing that illustrates the vast and growing wealth gap in America more starkly than a list of the incomes enjoyed by the top business executives in the country. A new study done for the New York Times found that pay for the 100 top CEOs jumped 9% from 2012 to 2013, raising their median annual compensation to nearly $14 million.
At the top of the pile is Ellison, the Silicon Valley potentate and America’s Cup champ, who is the fifth-richest person on the planet. Divvying up Ellison’s yearly cash, stock and options package into 40-hour-a-week slices, New York Times reporter David Streitfeld set the CEO’s hourly earnings at $37,692.31.
No. 2 on the generously paid CEO list is Robert Iger, head man at Walt Disney. He has to scrape by on less than half of what Ellison takes home and must work more than two hours to make what that starting teacher earns in a year. Another movie and media mogul, Rupert Murdoch, comes in at No. 3, which is also the number of hours he needs to work before he matches that teacher’s annual income.
CEO compensation has been controversial for many years, and various efforts have been made to rein in the runaway pay scale. Nothing seems to be working. It might not be such a point of contention if all boats were rising, but, as we well know, incomes for most Americans have stagnated for three decades. As the nation has become immensely richer, a tiny share of our citizens have raked in exorbitant gains.
CEOs are just the most visible beneficiaries of an economic system that values and rewards a small cluster of people at the top in an outlandishly disproportionate way. Sure Ellison and Eiger and Murdoch are good at what they do. They are probably business geniuses. But are they orders of magnitude more valuable to our society than a teacher or a nurse or a fireman or a farmer?
In 2013, Tim Cook, the boss at Apple, and Steve Ballmer, the just-departed head of Microsoft, received seven-figure pay packages -- $4.2 million for Cook, $1.2 million for Ballmer. That’s pretty good money. Cook and Ballmer, though, were near the bottom of the top 100.
In a more sane economy, that kind of money would put them at the top, but sanity is no longer the rule. Today, the super rich get super richer and the middle class continues to feel the pay ceiling press heavier on their backs.
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63469844afc439e606b89c97511b123f
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https://www.latimes.com/opinion/topoftheticket/la-na-tt-keystone-xl-pipeline--20141119-story.html
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Keystone XL pipeline pumps out political nonsense
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Keystone XL pipeline pumps out political nonsense
Like most debates in Congress, the fight over the Keystone XL pipeline is driven by posturing and partisanship rather than common sense. On Tuesday, this phenomenon was on full view as the Senate took a vote that fell short of overriding environmental concerns and giving the pipeline the go-ahead.
The goofiness began with the reason the vote was taken at all. Louisiana’s Democratic Sen. Mary L. Landrieu pleaded with her party’s Senate leaders to bring up the measure on the theory that a public display of her strong support for the pipeline would help her prevail in the December runoff election in which Republican Rep. Bill Cassidy is favored to oust Landrieu from her Senate seat.
What’s goofy about that? Well, for one thing, though Landrieu is a sponsor of the Senate pipeline bill, Cassidy is sponsor of the House version, and it is hard to see how passage of the legislation would give Landrieu any advantage over Cassidy.
For another thing, if this was meant to be a demonstration of Landrieu’s clout as chairwoman of the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, it did not work very well. The bill missed getting through by one vote, and, as the world knows, even if Landrieu defeats Cassidy, her influence will only shrink when Republicans take over the Senate in January.
And, for a third thing, what lame-brained political consultant is naive enough to think that Louisiana voters care that much about a pipeline that would not even run through their state? Elections do not turn on issues of limited interest like this, especially if competing candidates have exactly the same position.
Still, California Sen. Barbara Boxer – one of the leading Democratic opponents of the pipeline -- told the media she thought taking the vote was worth doing since it produced a good debate on the issue. Maybe, but one of the country’s most prominent liberal voices, Rachel Maddow, spent several minutes on her MSNBC show mocking the Democrats’ quixotic attempt to help Landrieu when they have so few days left to do anything useful with their disappearing Senate majority.
“What on Earth were they thinking?” an incredulous Maddow asked. “How is this even conceivably, by any stretch of the imagination, a constructive use of time by the Democrats?”
Republicans, even though they lost the vote, were perfectly happy that Democrats gave them the chance to grandstand on the issue and highlight how things will be different when they are in charge. The incoming Senate majority leader, Kentucky Sen. Mitch McConnell, said the pipeline bill would be revived and passed early next year – possibly with a veto-proof majority.
Significantly, McConnell referred to the measure as “the Keystone jobs bill.” Republicans think they are on to something by shifting the terms of debate toward the job-creation aspect of Keystone. If President Obama decides to exercise his veto, they will slam him for killing jobs – and, for good measure, they will also hammer him for undercutting American energy independence.
That is more misleading silliness. According to TransCanada, the company behind the pipeline, the project is expected to create fewer than 2,000 temporary construction jobs for two years and just a handful of maintenance jobs after that. The exceptionally dirty oil that will be extracted from Alberta’s tar sands and pumped through the pipeline will bring a lot of money to Canada and to multinational energy companies, but the oil itself will go to foreign countries, not to Americans.
The benefits of this project for the United States are dubious, but the risks are real, from the potential for disastrous oil spills and pollution of groundwater to a major increase in carbon spewed into the atmosphere. The smart thing to do would be to proceed with extreme caution, but that is not what congressional politics dictate once the posturing and partisanship shifts into high gear.
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8f9fdff298d92bb564826ad7c918c07b
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https://www.latimes.com/opinion/topoftheticket/la-na-tt-obama-gay-marriage-20120509-story.html
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Obama champions gay marriage; the culture war is on
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Obama champions gay marriage; the culture war is on
President Obama has crossed the Rubicon and come to the defense of same-sex marriage. For him, it was a small step, since his is already the most pro-gay rights presidency in history, but it will have big political ramifications.
The war is on. The line is drawn. Mitt Romney -- who, in another incarnation as a candidate for the U.S. Senate in Massachusetts, said he stood to the left of Teddy Kennedy on gay rights issues – now is opposed, not only to gay marriage, but to civil unions. Any trace of limp-wristed accommodation with homosexuals is being drummed out of the Republican Party, and Romney wants to prove himself a good drum major.
In state after state, Republicans are backing bills and ballot measures that push back against the rapid advance of “the gay agenda.” On Tuesday, voters in North Carolina approved an amendment to the state constitution that not only bans gay marriage but also makes civil unions and domestic partnerships illegal. This is no mere “defense of marriage,” it is a judgment about what kinds of relationships should benefit from government policies.
It is not about politics, it is about sin. Many religious Americans fervently believe homosexuality is a moral abomination. They also believe heterosexuals living together without the benefit of marriage are breaking God’s law. The only sanctified model for human partnership is a man and a woman joined together in matrimony, they insist, and that model should be favored by government while other pairings are discouraged.
This is a traditional view that, only a few years ago, was utterly conventional and largely unchallenged. But an alternative way of seeing things has emerged and has, in recent polls, won the approval of a majority of Americans. Newark, N.J., Mayor Cory Booker summed up this alternative principle on MSNBC’s"Rachel Maddow Show” on Wednesday evening: “This is not about gay rights; this is about equal rights.”
This too is a traditional ideal and has the added force of being imbedded in our Constitution: No citizen can claim more rights than another; all people are created equal. So, if state or federal governments offer tax advantages, legal protections or special privileges to married people, then every citizen should be allowed to marry. The U.S. Constitution does not pass judgment. It is not the Bible. There is no exception based on what a citizen does in the bedroom or with whom he or she does it. Equal protection under the law is the right of every American.
So, now, an election that was supposed to be about “the economy, stupid,” will also be about which tradition should prevail. Romney and the Republicans have made it perfectly clear they are the party of the religious view. All sinners may find forgiveness, but not all of them have the right to marry. They cannot even establish a household with a person they love and receive the same state-sanctioned benefits enjoyed by married citizens.
The Democrats are the party of equal rights. This is hardly new, but the president’s statement of support moves the party to an unambiguous endorsement of same-sex marriage as part of that egalitarian guarantee. At the Democratic convention in September, there will be no attempts to fuzz up the language on this issue in the party platform as there would have been if Obama were still playing it safe. His position is no longer evolving. He has chosen sides.
Now, we will see if he pays a price. Certainly, this will intensify support for him among liberals and in the gay and lesbian community, but there are more evangelicals than homosexuals in America. There are a lot of blue-collar swing voters with conventional views of sexuality. There are plenty of conservative Catholics among the Latino voters the Democrats need to win. Yes, 53% of Americans say they favor gay marriage, but a big share of them are young people who are the laziest voters.
The president probably lost votes by speaking up for gay marriage, but, at least with half the country, he won new respect. Obama came into office with expectations he would be a transformational president. On this issue, at least, that is what he is becoming.
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b2d82da84763db1dcd7003bde3a7a456
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https://www.latimes.com/opinion/topoftheticket/la-na-tt-pruitt-undermines-20170406-story.html
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Scott Pruitt undermines the EPA with anti-scientific ignorance
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Scott Pruitt undermines the EPA with anti-scientific ignorance
Donald Trump’s foreign policy and legislative agenda may be a confused mess due to amateurism, impulsiveness and understaffing, but his administration’s attack on the environment is operating with the focus and zeal of the Spanish Inquisition. Led by EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt, the Trump team is moving quickly to return national environmental policy to a pre-scientific age.
The Trump administration’s proposed federal budget would whack the Environmental Protection Agency especially hard — a 30% cut. Even some big corporations that are less-than-enthusiastic fans of the EPA are worried the budget stinginess will be problematic for their operations because there won’t be enough staff at the agency to process and approve the applications needed to move ahead with environmentally sensitive projects.
Nevertheless, Pruitt is intent on a complete neutering of the agency he runs. It came to light this week that the new director is now demanding that all but the most insignificant enforcement measures taken anywhere in the country get a review in Washington, presumably to determine if they are out of step with Pruitt’s pro-industry cheerleading.
David Horsey / Los Angeles Times
David Horsey / Los Angeles Times
David Horsey / Los Angeles Times
David Horsey / Los Angeles Times
David Horsey / Los Angeles Times
David Horsey / Los Angeles Times
David Horsey / Los Angeles Times
David Horsey / Los Angeles Times
David Horsey / Los Angeles Times
David Horsey / Los Angeles Times
David Horsey / Los Angeles Times
David Horsey / Los Angeles Times
David Horsey / Los Angeles Times
David Horsey / Los Angeles Times
David Horsey / Los Angeles Times
EPA scientists who do research into the causes and effects of climate change have been put on notice much like Galileo got put on the spot by the Vatican. When Galileo proclaimed that the Earth revolves around the sun, the church demanded that he recant or be branded a heretic. Like medieval priests, Pruitt and Trump do not want to be contradicted by any scientific findings that refute their belief that climate change is a hoax. That is why Trump has also told NASA to stop collecting climate change data from orbiting satellites.
The Republican dogma of unrestrained economic exploitation drives the president and his EPA chief. As a result, climate science has become a heretical activity. It is no wonder government scientists have been very busy since the election transferring vast amounts of research from government computers to private servers. They fear it will all be destroyed by the new Savonarolas in a technological bonfire of the vanities.
The central target of the onslaught, Barack Obama’s Clean Power Plan, set the United States on a course toward a 26% reduction from 2005 greenhouse gas levels by 2025. Trump has signed an executive order that would scuttle the plan in order to please coal and oil interests.
Appearing last Sunday on Fox News, Pruitt attempted to defend the new policy and got serious blowback from interviewer Chris Wallace. What would Pruitt do about the tens of thousands of Americans who get sick or die from environmental pollution who would be saved by curbs on carbon emissions?
“Without the Clear Power Plan, how are you going to prevent those terrible things?” Wallace asked.
Pruitt had no good answer and instead yammered on about “regulatory overreach.” Has the U.S. ever had an EPA chief who is more a stooge of the fossil fuel industry?
The only silver lining in the black cloud of stupidity that hangs over the EPA is the fact that the Trump administration’s retreat to the ignorant environmental policies of the McKinley era is being offset by the imperatives of the energy market and the enlightened actions of states and cities.
In a recent opinion piece, former New York Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg said the U.S. would still be able to meet commitments made in the 2015 Paris accord on climate change that led to the Obama plan. He noted that, no matter what tricks Pruitt and Trump have up their sleeves, they cannot stop the decline in the use of coal. Already, 250 coal-fired power plants are scheduled to be closed or converted to cheaper, cleaner fuel sources, Bloomberg said. That, combined with state and city efforts to cut emissions and commitments from major corporations to do the same, will mean the goals agreed upon in Paris remain in reach, with or without the federal government’s help.
Which may prove that the anti-EPA crusade is as futile as it is feudal.
[email protected]
Follow me at @davidhorsey on Twitter
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a43229c029b42108811a9e1d1eff8d46
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https://www.latimes.com/opinion/topoftheticket/la-na-tt-rape-of-american-20130605-story.html
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Rape of American woman in India shows how women travel with peril
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Rape of American woman in India shows how women travel with peril
The gang rape of a 30-year-old American woman in India on Tuesday is the latest horrific reminder that women travel in a more dangerous world than men.
The woman was visiting a mountainous tourist area in northern India when she found herself stranded. She hitched a ride with three young men in a truck who drove her to a remote spot, took turns sexually assaulting her and then dumped her by a bridge in the wee hours of the morning. It’s easy to say she was foolish to hitchhike in a country where there have recently been several highly-publicized attacks on women, but that does not in the slightest justify the way the woman was treated.
The Indian justice system’s failure to crack down on rapists is appalling. In some cases, officials there have even pressured the victim to marry her attacker in the interest of social harmony. That kind of sick, misogynistic thinking, unfortunately, is not unique to India. Women take the blame and the burden for rape in many traditional societies. They are forced into marriages or murdered by their own fathers and brothers for bringing shame on their families.
Of course, it is not just in countries where tribalism and religious fundamentalism rule that women risk being raped by men who think they can get away with it. The United States military is proving to be a risky environment for females. Recent reports put the number of rapes among service members in the thousands annually.
The brilliantly acerbic comedian Louis C.K. does a riff on the subject that is funny, but sadly true. He says the bravest thing a woman ever does is get in a car and go on a date with a man. “How do women still go out with guys, when you consider that there is no greater threat to women than men?” the comedian asks in his standup routine. “We’re the No. 1 threat to women! Globally and historically, we’re the No. 1 cause of injury and mayhem to women.”
Most men are not so bad, of course. Most American guys have learned to treat women decently. Still, there are far too many men in this country and in every country who look at women as property to be exploited, not as co-equal human beings. Luckily for women in the U.S., Europe, Australia and a few other places, the law is usually on their side.
I have a peripatetic daughter who has traveled the world on her own – from South America to Europe to India – and has yet to encounter any really bad men. The biggest creeps she ran into were in France, oddly enough, and she learned effective put-downs to quell their advances. But she knows the world is different for her than it is for her brother. She has to be on guard all the time. A sense of peril travels with her and every woman wherever they go.
Someday, I hope, this will not be true, but, for now, this is a man’s world and a woman must be brave and smart to navigate a safe path through it.
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76bb8a9cab6c8a05f5fdfe6e3903c12a
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https://www.latimes.com/opinion/topoftheticket/la-na-tt-republican-limbaugh-20120305-story.html
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Republican leaders let Rush Limbaugh dominate their party
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Republican leaders let Rush Limbaugh dominate their party
George Will, one of the last lions of the right wing whose conservatism is a philosophy rather than a pathology, has heaped scorn on Republican leaders for their cowardly obeisance to Rush Limbaugh.
Sunday morning on ABC’s “This Week,” Will said straight out that “Republican leaders are afraid of Rush Limbaugh.” Last week, Limbaugh infamously characterized Sandra Fluke, a 30-year-old Georgetown University law student, as a “slut” and a “prostitute” who should provide the world with videos of herself having sex because she supports birth control coverage in employee insurance plans. Will said the tepid disapproval of Limbaugh’s words expressed by GOP presidential candidates and congressional leaders demonstrates just how much they are scared of the king of hot-talk radio.
"[House Speaker John] Boehner comes out and says Rush’s language was inappropriate,” Will said. “Using the salad fork for your entree, that’s inappropriate. Not this stuff.”
Commenting on Limbaugh’s tirade, Mitt Romney timidly observed that “slut” and “prostitute” were not necessarily the words he would have chosen, as if Limbaugh were simply in need of a thesaurus.
Rick Santorum called Limbaugh’s comments “absurd,” but seemed to give Rush a pass since he is an entertainer whose job it is to be absurd.
Newt Gingrich simply took the Limbaugh flap as one more opportunity to denounce the “liberal media.”
To their credit, Ron Paul and John McCain risked the wrath of Limbaugh’s dittohead legion by condemning his comments. But too many other Republicans were unwilling to speak out against the man who has set himself up as the arbiter of who is and who is not sufficiently conservative to be a credible member of the Republican Party.
As Will noted, the would-be leaders of the GOP and of the free world talk boldly about bombing Iran, but they cower in the broad shadow of the “Great Gasbag.”
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cb0d9a12792f482abf5817f945083070
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https://www.latimes.com/opinion/topoftheticket/la-na-tt-right-wing-smears-20121029-story.html
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Romney victory would vindicate right-wing smears of Obama
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Romney victory would vindicate right-wing smears of Obama
It is impossible to know if Mitt Romney would turn out to be a good, bad or a mediocre president, but one certain downside of a Romney victory is that it would reward the most venal forces in American politics.
It only starts with the kind of campaign Romney has run. He and his “super PAC” allies used a mountain of dollars to produce unending waves of attack ads that swamped the messages of his Republican primary rivals, Newt Gingrich and Rick Santorum. In the general election, Romney cranked it up a notch. President Obama’s own money machine paid for a slew of hard-hitting attacks against Romney that employed exaggeration and selective facts, but none of the Obama ads reached the same low level of deception as those put up by Romney as he zeroed in on the president.
Of course, disgustingly misleading attack ads have become ubiquitous at all levels of politics this year. Whether Romney wins or loses, that is unlikely to change. Still, seeing a campaign for president propelled to victory on so many outright falsehoods cannot be good for the republic.
PHOTOS: Top of the Ticket cartoons
That would be the lesser of the ill effects of a Romney win, though. Much worse is that the right wing’s broader onslaught of derision and lies against the president that began even before he took office would have achieved its goal. Barack Obama may, or may not, deserve reelection. But no man with as much decency as Obama exhibits in both his private and public life deserves the contempt that has been dumped on him by arch-conservative ideologues, talk show ranters and Internet goons.
From Rush Limbaugh, Sean Hannity and Donald Trump to all the anonymous creators of the wild fabrications that churn out of websites and go viral in emails, the relentless vilification of Obama has been unprecedented. Sure, every president suffers unfair criticism. Many of our most effective presidents, from Thomas Jefferson and Abraham Lincoln to Franklin Roosevelt and Bill Clinton, have been slandered and hounded by critics. But Obama’s detractors have plumbed new and revolting depths of mendacity.
Obama’s birthplace, his paternity, his religion, his academic attainments, his citizenship and his loyalty to the country have all been called into question by people who feel no moral qualms about spreading fabrications and untruths. Any unfair tactic, any lie is justified in order to “take back America” from someone they refuse to accept as a legitimate president, despite the indisputable reality that he was elected by a majority of American voters in a near-landslide of electoral votes.
It is a false equivalence to say the left has been guilty of similar smears during the administrations of Republican presidents. In those past instances, all but a few Democratic elected officials shunned such slanders. The same was true for all but the most rabid liberal commentators. But most of today’s Republican leaders stay silent in the face of the lies and many eagerly repeat them, while leading conservative pundits give the endless falsehoods credence, not an honest critique.
The right wing’s eagerness to engage in deceit has distorted credible conservatism and corrupted political discourse. It has turned the Grand Old Party into a rigid and narrow ideological club that tries to purge any Republican who displays even a hint of moderation or willingness to compromise.
The ever-waffling Romney is not their perfect candidate, but, for now, that does not matter. He offers their one and only chance to drive the usurper, Obama, from the White House. That has been the right wing’s objective every minute of every day for four years, and vindication of their dishonest, un-American crusade would be the worst result of Mitt Romney’s election.
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ae82e887d4027688e4f12010d0ac31bd
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https://www.latimes.com/opinion/topoftheticket/la-na-tt-robin-williams-20140811-story.html
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Robin Williams’ ‘spark of madness’ let him soar above his demons
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Robin Williams’ ‘spark of madness’ let him soar above his demons
Robin Williams did not have a mere spark of madness, he was a bonfire.
Given the apparent circumstances of his death – severe depression leading to suicide – some might ask if he burned too hot for his own good. Was the “spark of madness” truly the precious gift he considered it to be? Or is it a dangerous thing that we need to smother with rationality and restraint?
“You’re only given one little spark of madness,” Williams said. “You mustn’t lose it.” I very much doubt the “madness” of which he spoke had anything to do with mental illness. Rather, it is the spark of impulse, insight, enthusiasm and inspiration that is essential to creativity. It is defined negatively as madness only by the forces of conventionality and conformity, by the powers-that-be who are threatened and undermined by original thinkers, rebels, contrarians and comedians.
A rapid-fire rush of comic insight was the hallmark of Williams’ performances. He perceived the absurdities and ironies of politics, sex, identity, life and death at such a quick pace, he left us breathless with laughter and amazement.
In the midst of his manic hilarity, though, there was most often a trace of melancholy in his face and poignancy in his voice. You could see that he knew, all too well, that the human foolishness he so fiercely lampooned was tragic, not comic. It is that tragic sense that made him such a good dramatic actor; why this comic genius could inhabit serious roles, as he did in “Good Will Hunting,” “The World According to Garp,” “What Dreams May Come,” “The Dead Poets Society” and many other fine movies.
By all accounts, he was a generous and gracious man, but he struggled with his own flawed humanity – the addictions to cocaine and alcohol that kept luring him back and that contributed to his mortal fight with depression. If he’d been less on fire with creative madness, would he have been less susceptible to the things that tormented him and, perhaps, finally killed him? If he’d been more drab and restrained, would he still be alive?
I’m only guessing, but I suspect his troubles may have been with him either way. From my own observations of life and human folly, I’d argue it was his brilliant, explosive spark of madness that helped Robin Williams soar above his demons for so long.
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053256b08d8a39b73ae202a5fd64ec65
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https://www.latimes.com/opinion/topoftheticket/la-na-tt-stabbings-at-school-20140411-story.html
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Stabbings at Pennsylvania school add a new wrinkle to gun debate
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Stabbings at Pennsylvania school add a new wrinkle to gun debate
The novelty of Wednesday’s knife attack on students at a suburban Pittsburgh high school provides a new debating point in America’s endless argument about guns.
Proponents of an unrestricted right to own and carry all types of firearms will point to this incident and say it proves that any weapon is dangerous and that gun owners should not be singled out and shackled by government regulation. They will also insist that if there had been guns available to teachers and administrators at Franklin Regional Senior High School, where the stabbings took place, someone could have stopped the 16-year-old perpetrator as soon as he initiated his attacks.
Fans of gun control will counter by noting that, had the boy with the two knives been wielding an assault rifle instead, the students now in the hospital would likely be in a morgue and the number of victims would have been much higher. As it was, gun opponents will note, two school employees were able to subdue the boy without gunning him down and, unless one believes rough justice is better than a court, that is a good thing.
And so it will go. Old arguments will be rehashed and get us no closer to figuring out what to do about the acts of mass violence that come at us relentlessly, month after month, even day after day.
This week, the president was at Ft. Hood, Texas, leading the mourning for the most recent of two deadly shootings at that military base. There, as at the Pennsylvania school and in Aurora, Colo., and Newtown, Conn., and all the other places where attacks have occurred, the question of motivation remains largely unanswered. Yes, most of the time, the individuals -- almost always men or boys -- who carry out these horrific crimes are mentally unstable. But we have always had mentally distressed people among us. Only in recent decades have massacres at schools, military bases and other public places become a common occurrence.
What is different now? Is it, perhaps, that one incident feeds on another? Is mass slaughter now the default action for many sick minds? Is it simply the thing to do if you are a loner with a grudge, a twisted grip on reality and a weapon?
If it is the case that this is something our society has grown into, a way must be found to grow out of it. After all, lynchings were once common; now they never happen. Law enforcement and a cultural shift made the difference in that case. It is harder to see what will make a difference in the case of the new American violence.
In Australia, a string of mass shootings quickly led to a ban on gun ownership. That seems to have done the trick; no more mass shootings Down Under. Of course, that will never happen here. It is unimaginable that Americans would give up their guns. Gun nuts won’t even give up dealing firearms from the back of their pickup trucks.
Guns are not the core problem; violent individuals are. But guns, unlike knives and baseball bats and fists, have driven a dramatic rise in the level of mayhem as firepower has increased. That is undeniable.
And guns are not the solution. More guns in more hands will not guarantee there will be someone there to stop the next attacker, but it will mean there will be more intemperate people who turn petty disputes into deadly confrontations -- a case in point being the fool in the Florida movie theater who gunned down a dad who was texting his child’s babysitter.
As the Australian experience proved, availability is a key factor. For a mentally disturbed person with an impulse to violence, it is nearly as easy to obtain a gun as it is to pull a kitchen knife out of a drawer. If, somehow, we could change that one thing -- make firearms less accessible -- we might begin to see fewer attacks.
But that is not the direction we are going in many parts of the country. One example: the Idaho Legislature has now made it legal for students to carry guns to class at colleges and universities. They did not do this because classrooms and campuses are dangerous -- on the contrary, they are among the safest places in America. They did it to please the gun lobby and the firearms industry.
And so we are stuck. The continuing debate will change no minds. Craven politicians will continue to make things worse through their cowardly obeisance to extremists. Teachers, students, shoppers, moviegoers, little children and all the rest of us will continue to wonder who among us is the next target, while tomorrow’s killers will have their pick of weapons.
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61faa8d3bbc11ff3724790a14a9ddceb
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https://www.latimes.com/opinion/topoftheticket/la-na-tt-tsa-airport-security-charade-20150608-story.html
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TSA’s 95% failure rate shows airport security is a charade
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TSA’s 95% failure rate shows airport security is a charade
A couple of years ago my wife — who may be the least likely person on the planet to commit an act of terrorism — was randomly pulled aside at airport security for a thorough screening. Seeing that the process was going to take awhile, I took a seat on a nearby bench where a TSA officer was taking a break.
I told the officer why I was waiting. He smirked and told me he had been in the military and knew a little bit about security. Then he waved his arm at the ranks of screening apparatus and long lines of haggard airline passengers and said something like: “This is all a joke. I can think of a hundred ways to sneak a weapon through all of this.”
Something tells me that young man is not still employed by the TSA. Either he would have tired of the empty exercise and found more fulfilling employment or his supervisors would have punished him for his honesty. However things have turned out for him, his analysis has proved to be disturbingly accurate.
A report leaked out of the Transportation Security Administration reveals that a team of investigators from the Department of Homeland Security managed to sneak weapons and fake bombs past airport screeners in 95% of their attempts to beat the system. That means what many of us suspected all along has now been confirmed. All those expensive body and baggage scanning machines, all that intrusive rummaging through luggage, all those intimate pat-downs of little kids and grannies, all those nail clippers confiscated, all those bottles of liquids seized, all those shoes and belts taken off, all those laptops pulled out and all those thousands of frustrating hours wasted in line have been mostly for show.
Millions of American citizens have been unwittingly turned into non-speaking extras in an epic theater production staged by our government in airports across the country. The goal has been to trick a few would-be airplane bombers into thinking they will get caught and to create an illusion of safety for innocent air travelers. That charade has been exposed.
Now what happens? The current Senate confirmation hearings of U.S. Coast Guard Vice Adm. Peter V. Neffenger, President Obama’s nominee to take over as TSA administrator, should become a forum for debate about how to radically alter the way TSA operates. In a perfect world, such a debate would lead to wider examination of the country’s vast, fear-driven, money-sucking national security system that metastasized after 9/11 into a bureaucratic colossus, but that is likely too much to hope for.
There have got to be smarter ways to provide real security at airports. Treating the 99.99% of travelers who just want to get from here to there like criminal suspects has always been offensive. Now we know it is also woefully ineffective.
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b88bd8ee10c4409ac9738382aae24595
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https://www.latimes.com/opinion/topoftheticket/la-na-tt-undecided-voters-20120912-story.html
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Undecided voters are a tiny cohort that may not matter in the end
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Undecided voters are a tiny cohort that may not matter in the end
Undecided voters, you can run but you cannot hide. Turn on your TV and find wall-to-wall attack ads designed to scare you. Answer your phone and find pollsters trying to pick your brain. Answer the door and somebody hoping to win your vote will be on your doorstep – maybe even an actual candidate for president or vice president.
Polls indicate 98% of Americans have made up their minds about the choice between President Obama and Mitt Romney. That makes the 2 percent who are still thinking it over (or failing to think about it at all) a prime focus of attention for both campaigns and for the media and pollsters who are following the race for the White House.
In reality, though, it is not even 2 percent of voters who are getting the attention, it is a much smaller subset of that small electoral sliver: undecided voters in the eight states that are still not solidly in one camp or the other. There are actually so few voters in play that all the tens of millions of dollars being spent on attack ads might be better spent by simply paying each one of these vacillating voters for their vote. Maybe $50,000 each would do the trick.
But no, it is not going to be that pleasant for the befuddled few who just cannot decide. Instead of cash, they are going to be force-fed stories about how Romney got rich and ruined lives by closing companies during his tenure as boss at Bain Capital. They will hear over and over again how Obama has only made a bad economic situation worse and is keeping struggling parents up at night worrying about their children and the taxes and debt that the president plans to pile on their tender shoulders.
Judging by some of the statements undecided voters have made to the news media, though, it may be that all these overtly mendacious attack ads meant to sway them are simply having a dispiriting effect. Rather than making a choice, the undecideds may decide that both candidates are unworthy of their support and they may not vote at all.
With nearly two months still to go, it is too early to say for sure that the race is set in stone. The presidential debates are to come next month, and a stellar performance (or, more likely, a huge gaffe) by one candidate or the other could alter the perceptions of a significant number of voters. An unforeseen event -- such as this week’s attacks on the American Embassy in Cairo and the killing of the U.S. ambassador and three other Americans at the consulate in Benghazi, Libya – could shake up the race. But right now, it looks as if the victor on election day is likely to be the man who most effectively mobilizes the voters who already have made up their minds.
In the end, those few who are slow to choose may not matter much at all.
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7d4e2618897b82ce3fa444ba3030f2ca
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https://www.latimes.com/world/afghanistan-pakistan/la-fg-afghan-europe-refugees-20160225-story.html
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As Europe’s migrant crisis drags on, thousands languish in Greece’s parks
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As Europe’s migrant crisis drags on, thousands languish in Greece’s parks
A devastating refugee bottleneck has left thousands of men, women and children languishing on blankets and cardboard in public parks in Greece and has brought diplomatic tensions in Europe to new highs.
The new phase of Europe’s migrant crisis emerged in recent days after some Balkan nations began to impose their own border controls in the face of continued inaction by the European Union.
EU ministers gathered in Brussels on Thursday to discuss how each country was responding to the crisis and attempted to forge a cohesive path forward.
But the lack of unified action has exacerbated existing divisions between member states and threatens to do irreparable damage to the future cohesiveness of the 28-member bloc.
“Right now the unity of the union and lives, human lives, are at stake,” said European Migration Commissioner Dimitris Avramopoulos, who is from Greece, as he entered the Brussels meeting. “This is a moment of great responsibility.”
Afghan migrants are the main casualty of the new border controls.
Macedonia, bordering Greece and used as a pathway to Northern Europe, declared Sunday that it would allow only refugees from Iraq and Syria to pass through.
At least 5,000 refugees from Afghanistan have become stuck at the border and at least 2,000 were put on buses bound for Athens.
As European countries have been under more pressure to accept Iraqi and Syrian refugees because of the conflict involving Islamic State, some governments have begun to classify people from other countries — including Afghans, who make up one-third of asylum seekers in Europe — as economic migrants, meaning they cannot gain political asylum.
Afghans say that they are fleeing violence in their country and that the European policies are discriminatory.
Nasim Lomani, who works for a Greek organization providing social services to refugees, said Afghans found themselves rushed onto buses with no information about the conditions they would be returning to in Greece.
“They were separated from the Iraqis and Syrians, then quickly forced onto the buses,” Lomani said. “Everyone was afraid that they would be put in detention.”
The Macedonian decision followed announcements last week by Austria and Slovenia that they would cap the number of migrants allowed in daily. Austria hosted a meeting with Balkan countries in its capital, Vienna, on Wednesday to discuss how to stem the seemingly endless flow of people.
Greece expressed outrage at not being invited to the talks and withdrew its ambassador from Vienna in response.
In a statement, Foreign Minister Nikos Kotzias said the decision was made “in order to safeguard the friendly relations between the states and the people of Greece and Austria,” but it appeared to have an opposite, chilling effect.
Tensions are mounting across Europe more generally, which is putting new strain on the already fraught relations between members of the EU, which has been reeling from crisis to crisis for months.
Just last week, Europe’s leaders were gathering around conference tables late into the night securing a deal that gave key concessions to Britain ahead of a June referendum on its EU membership.
Now they have the migrant crisis to deal with and no more time for indecision.
As the winter chill begins to thaw, there are renewed concerns about how many people will attempt to make the crossing into Europe from war-torn countries in the Middle East and North Africa.
Already this year, more than 100,000 migrants have made the perilous journey and at least 400 have died, according to the International Organization for Migration.
Even for migrants who have already made it to some of the wealthier, Northern European countries, life is becoming more fraught.
A French court Thursday said the so-called Jungle camp in Calais, home to thousands of migrants who hope to come to Britain, could be razed.
In anticipation, Belgium introduced checks and 290 extra police officers along its western border with France out of fear that many of those displaced from the sprawling slum will attempt to relocate there.
Austria announced last week that it would limit the number of people entering to 3,200 a day and accept only 80 new asylum seeker applications each day.
Slovenia said it would introduce its own quota.
Germany, which registered 1.1 million asylum seekers last year, is facing pressure to reduce the numbers of new arrivals. It has introduced measures to speed up the time spent processing claims from migrants who are unlikely to get asylum.
“These newest restrictive measures risk violating EU law and undermine efforts for a comprehensive and coordinated approach to deal with the refugee and migrant crisis in Europe,” the Office of the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees said in a statement.
Greece has not taken kindly to the tightening of borders and has threatened to block all EU decisions at a summit next month if countries do not accept their allocated quota.
In September, the EU announced plans to relocate 120,000 migrants from Greece, Italy and Hungary in addition to the 40,000 it pledged to relocate from Greece and Italy in May.
In reality, barely 600 have been relocated and fewer than 5,000 places have been offered.
Since Sunday, Greek authorities have established four camps to accommodate those turned away from the Macedonian border, most of whom are Afghans.
Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras alluded to the burden placed on his country when he tweeted that the European Union must treat the refugee crisis as an international problem, saying, “Greece will not accept unilateral actions.”
In the final months of 2015, as more than 200,000 Afghans crossed into Europe by sea, Victoria Square Park in central Athens was mainly a way station for refugees looking to enter Macedonia.
At the time, local tour agencies marketed “luxury buses” that for about $30 would transport them to the Macedonian border.
Now the situation in the park resembles the years before Europe’s refugee crisis, when Afghans would spend months or years trying to leave Greece — sometimes by hiding in the backs of freezer trucks — to seek asylum in the more prosperous economies of Northern Europe.
In those years, Greece became a haven for human smugglers as Afghans struggled to find a path to a country that would accept them.
With Europe increasingly closed off, more Afghan refugees could end up in Turkey, where tens of thousands already live illegally because the Turkish government does not recognize new asylum seekers or maintain refugee camps.
The camps in Greece are temporary and refugees are supposed to stay for only four days, during which they are expected to be registered and classified as either a refugee or economic migrant.
Aid workers and former refugees say that process is likely to take much longer. “There’s no way the registration and initial assessments can be made in four days’ time,” said Arash Bayat, who works as a translator and advisor to Afghan refugees.
Special correspondents Latifi and Boyle reported from Kabul, Afghanistan, and London, respectively.
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e8d29492368a7f33412f4773bee40b06
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https://www.latimes.com/world/afghanistan-pakistan/la-fg-afghanistan-turkey-migrants-20150111-story.html
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In Turkey, Afghan migrant gives new arrivals a reality check
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In Turkey, Afghan migrant gives new arrivals a reality check
In a decade of bouncing from Pakistan to Iran to Turkey, Sohrab Barati, 26, has come to know just about every possible fate likely to befall Afghan migrants as they inch toward Western Europe.
Penniless families sleep in parks. Boys as young as 16 squander their scant wages at nightclubs and bars. Young men his age are recruited to different sides of the battlefields in Iraq and Syria.
Barati sees the scenarios playing out like an old film reel.
The downfalls he has witnessed since leaving Afghanistan have prompted him to serve as a guide, advocate and interpreter for Afghans in Istanbul, a major way station between their conflict-ridden homeland and the promise of the West.
“I realized I could either stand by myself or I could help others in need,” Barati said over a plate of qabeli pulao, a traditional rice dish, at an Afghan-owned cafe in Istanbul where diners chat in Dari and Pashto, the main languages of Afghanistan.
“So many have been fed lies by people who came before. They say, ‘The government will provide for you; life is good in Turkey.’ But I see it as my duty to tell the truth about this life.”
Among the more than 14,000 Afghans in Turkey seeking resettlement in a third country, Barati has earned a name by setting up a Facebook page for the community of migrants in Zeytin Burnu, a neighborhood 30 minutes from central Istanbul where he lives, providing advice and serving as an interpreter on various problems such as immigration issues and medical emergencies.
Most of what he does is on a volunteer basis, but he recently began charging to interpret at hospitals and police stations to make ends meet.
It was a chance encounter with a “shifty,” flirtatious Turkish girl in a tailoring workshop soon after he arrived five years ago that helped Barati gain the language skills that would enable him to serve as an interpreter.
“It weirded me out how she kept staring at me all day,” he recalled.
Barati’s conservative upbringing in Afghanistan led to culture shock in Turkey, a more secular Muslim nation. Turks were surprised that he hesitated even to shake the girl’s hand, even though they dated for a year and a half. She taught him dirty Turkish words, drawing laughter from Turks.
After two years of living in border areas with few other foreigners and mastering Turkish, Barati found himself embraced by locals. He was invited to weddings, lavish Muslim circumcision ceremonies for newborns and flag-waving street celebrations honoring new Turkish army recruits.
But things changed in 2011. As the so-called Arab Spring uprisings spread, Syrian refugees began flooding into Turkey. Afghans, long the world’s largest refugee group, suddenly felt forgotten in Turkey.
Last spring, Afghans staged a 53-day protest against the United Nations refugee agency, accusing it of lengthy delays in processing Afghan asylum applications. Barati served as an interpreter and liaison for the protesters, mostly young Afghan men, a dozen of whom briefly sewed their lips shut and went on hunger strikes.
Afghan refugees soon found themselves pulled by all sides of the deepening conflict in Syria and Iraq. Last year, one of Barati’s relatives, an 18-year-old Shiite Muslim who had been living in Iran, was killed shortly after he arrived in Syria to fight on the side of beleaguered President Bashar Assad.
Barati, an ethnic Hazara Shiite, recalled his time in Shiite-majority Iran, where locals called him by the pejorative “Afghani” and insulted him with practically every sentence. He has heard reports in the media and from fellow refugees that Iranians pressure vulnerable Afghans, most younger than 20, to go off and fight for Assad against the Sunni militants of Islamic State.
“The Iranians tell them, ‘It’s your religious obligation as a Shiite,’” he said. “Or worse, ‘We will deport you if you don’t fight.’”
In Sunni-majority Pakistan, it’s the reverse: Pakistanis try to encourage Afghan Sunnis to fight for Islamic State, said Barati and another Afghan migrant from eastern Afghanistan.
Several times, Arab, Afghan and Turkish smugglers have asked Barati to find them customers for the perilous voyage across the Aegean Sea to Greece, the next stop on the migrant trail toward the more desirable destinations of Western Europe. He has refused.
“They’ve offered me free passage to any country I wanted, but knowing what lies ahead for them I can’t bring myself to do it,” Barati said. “Maybe I will help hundreds of people, but if even one dies in the sea or is trapped in Greece it will have outweighed any possible good I could have done.”
His life in Turkey is secure by comparison, but lonely. He has formed a small community in both Zeytin Burnu and the capital, Ankara, maintaining ties with other Afghans. But he has lost contact with his family.
His mother and siblings left their home in the volatile Behsud district of Wardak province soon after he reached Turkey. He long ago cut ties with his father, a local elder whose confrontational attitude earned him enemies among both the local government and Taliban insurgents.
He has asked migrants and smugglers in his network, as well as U.N. staff members, to track down his family. But he, too, is trying to move on from Turkey. His application for asylum in Turkey languishing, he also has petitioned U.S. authorities to grant him asylum, contending that he would not be safe in his Taliban-dominated home district.
The $300 or so he makes each month at the tailoring workshop, along with fees he occasionally collects as an interpreter, provides him enough to survive. But he is far from being able to save for the future or to start a family.
In Turkey, he said, “I may be accepted, but I will never be comfortable. I will never be able to build anything for myself. I will just continue working to make enough to live but not enough to have a real, sustainable future.”
His experience has not only helped other Afghans, it has left him with the realization that life as a migrant means constant uncertainty.
“Whenever someone has just arrived, I always tell them, ‘If you can find a way back, go back; this life isn’t easy and it’s not for everyone,’” he said. “Afghans should only throw themselves in the fire if their lives are truly in danger at home.”
Latifi is a special correspondent.
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e35cf4e840e621c601e0d36dcf0e52cc
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https://www.latimes.com/world/afghanistan-pakistan/la-fg-afghanistan-us-aid-outlook-20140731-story.html
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U.S. aid to Afghanistan exceeds Marshall Plan in costs, not results
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U.S. aid to Afghanistan exceeds Marshall Plan in costs, not results
The United States has now spent more on the reconstruction of Afghanistan than it did on the Marshall Plan that lifted Western Europe from the ruins of World War II. But it can expect far less return on its investment in the still-unstable Central Asian nation, a Pentagon auditor reports.
Afghanistan is mired in political crisis and will remain dependent on foreign donors, primarily the United States, for years to come, writes John F. Sopko, special inspector general for Afghanistan reconstruction, in his latest quarterly report to Congress.
U.S. spending on the Afghanistan nation-building project over the last dozen years now exceeds $104 billion, surpassing the $103.4 billion current-dollar value of Marshall Plan expenditures, which helped rebuild European nations after World War II. The spending helped a vanquished Germany emerge as the economic engine of Western Europe.
“SIGAR calculates that by the end of 2014, the United States will have committed more funds to reconstruct Afghanistan, in inflation-adjusted terms, than it spent on 16 European countries after World War II under the Marshall Plan,” says the report.
The 259-page account features a photograph of a pile of metal frames from school furniture in Nangarhar province from which the wood was stripped and burned for heat.
Sopko’s accounting of the record U.S. foreign investment makes it clear that the proceeds from Afghanistan will fall far short of the German experience.
Afghanistan is beset by corruption, tribal conflicts and a resurgent Taliban poised to strike government targets once U.S. troops end their combat mission in December. The Islamic militants chased from Afghanistan by the 2001 U.S.-led invasion have stepped up attacks on the fledgling Afghan National Army, inflicting many of the 2,330 deaths suffered by the force over the last two years, the auditor noted.
Almost two-thirds of America’s investment in Afghanistan’s reconstruction, $62 billion, has gone to building up its military and police forces, which are now at a level that far overwhelms the country’s ability to pay for them. Even if the government succeeds in its plan to reduce the size of its security forces by 35% by 2017, the projected annual $4.1-billion cost for the 228,500 citizens under arms is almost double what the country collects in tax revenue, Sopko pointed out.
The Afghan government approved $7.6 billion in spending this fiscal year, despite anticipated revenue of $2.8 billion.
“This year, donor grants will make up most of the shortfall, but aid to Afghanistan has been falling since 2010, and history suggests it will fall even more sharply after U.S. and Coalition troops are withdrawn,” the report notes.
The predicted donor fatigue after U.S.-led NATO forces leave would coincide with a reduced ability for U.S. auditors to evaluate how Afghans are using their U.S. aid, the inspector general noted.
A companion report to Congress this week warned that lax oversight and inventory practices for the $626 million worth of U.S. weapons delivered to Afghan soldiers and police could mean weapons will fall into the hands of militants.
Sopko’s office, known by its acronym SIGAR, said it was initiating “a new series of lessons-learned reports” from the most expensive foreign reconstruction effort underwritten by the U.S. taxpayers.
The report detailed billions spent on ill-considered agriculture and infrastructure projects unsuitable to Afghanistan’s terrain and culture. Among them was a failed attempt to curb opium poppy cultivation to deprive the Taliban of a vital source of income.
The inspector general also alluded to the unfinished work of democracy-building in Afghanistan, where two rival presidential candidates claim to have prevailed in the multistage election that began in April. A recount of more than 8 million ballots cast in the June runoff is underway in hopes of determining the winner between former World Bank official Ashraf Ghani and former Foreign Minister Abdullah Abdullah, who had beaten Ghani in an earlier election round.
Until a successor to President Hamid Karzai is inaugurated, the U.S. cannot get the necessary endorsement from Kabul for a plan to leave behind a U.S. force of nearly 10,000 troops to train Afghan security forces.
Follow @cjwilliamslat for the latest international news 24/7
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5eaf7dbb63926183fcae442255272b69
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https://www.latimes.com/world/africa/la-fg-burkina-faso-president-bows-to-protesters-says-he-is-stepping-down-20141031-story.html
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General in power after Burkina Faso’s president gives in, steps down
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General in power after Burkina Faso’s president gives in, steps down
Burkina Faso’s military chief took control of the country Friday after President Blaise Compaore bowed to popular anger and resigned, following his failed attempt to manipulate the constitution so he could seek a fifth term in office.
Gen. Honore Traore told a news conference that “given the power vacuum” created by Compaore’s departure, he would assume the responsibilities of head of state.
“I undertake a solemn engagement to proceed without delay with consultations with all parties in the country so as to start the process of returning to the constitutional order as soon as possible,” Traore said.
The degree of support for Traore remained unclear, as some protesters reportedly consider him too close to Compaore. Some called for former defense minister and retired Gen. Kouame Lougue to take over.
Compaore, one of Africa’s longest-serving leaders, announced his resignation in a statement saying he was vacating power to “put in place a transition” that would lead to elections within 90 days.
The decision by Compaore, a regional power broker whose country has been a stable Western ally, sent political tremors across the continent. His departure marked a democratic milestone, making it seem harder for longtime leaders to cling to power against popular will.
After 27 years in office, he experienced a humiliating defeat after trying to ride out the mass protests and opposition calls for him to quit, insisting he would stay in power another year while a transitional government was installed.
In the end, he was forced out by massive protests, dubbed Burkina Faso’s “Black Spring,” and saw all the major symbols of power in Ouagadougou, the capital, looted and destroyed by furious demonstrators. Protesters opposed a parliamentary vote that was to take place Thursday to change the constitutional limit on presidential terms and allow Compaore to run in elections next year.
After a day of rioting, chaos and looting Thursday, Compaore abandoned his attempt to remove the constitutional limit and promised to give up power late next year, when his term expired. But critics saw it as an attempt to buy time in order to manipulate events and railroad opponents so he could get a fifth term.
Opposition leaders said he had lost popular legitimacy and rejected his attempt to hang on.
Tens of thousands of Burkinabe defied Compaore’s call for calm and renewed their protests Friday, gathering at the Place de la Nation. They also gathered outside the army headquarters, chanting, “You take your responsibility and we will take ours!”
Cheers rang out as Compaore announced his resignation.
He said he had decided to step down for reasons including “the severely deteriorated sociopolitical situation characterized by continued public disorder and looting.” He called for peace and said it was the responsibility of opposition leaders to stop the looting.
“For my part, I believe that I’ve fulfilled my duty,” he said in his statement.
He reportedly headed toward Ghana in a convoy of several dozen SUVs. After his departure, youths looted his residence, reportedly burning hundreds of white T-shirts supporting a “yes” vote in a constitutional referendum, which would have been necessary if the parliamentary vote had failed.
A day earlier, soldiers at the president’s residence had opened fire on protesters trying to storm the building. There were reports that people were killed or seriously injured, but casualties could not be confirmed.
Compaore took power in a 1987 coup, when Burkina Faso’s revolutionary leader, Thomas Sankara, often called Africa’s Che Guevara, was killed by soldiers in mysterious circumstances. Sankara and Compaore were old friends and allies, but there have been murmurings for decades that Compaore may have played a role in the assassination.
The truth about who ordered the killing of Sankara, who remains popular in Burkina Faso, has never been established.
Compaore’s tilt at a fifth term followed an abortive attempt by former Senegalese president Abdoulaye Wade, to seek a third term in 2012, after a constitutional amendment increasing the presidential term to seven years. The move spurred protests, and after opposition leader Macky Sall won election, Wade backed down.
The protests in Burkina Faso had been brewing for months, as opposition leaders urged Compaore not to try to extend his grip on power. But the popular movement to oust him began in earnest Tuesday when crowds massed in Ouagadougou and demonstrators toppled a statue of Compaore in the city of Bobo Dioulasso.
Before the planned parliamentary vote, protesters Thursday braved bullets and surged into the National Assembly, or parliament, setting it ablaze. They ransacked the state television building, closing down broadcasts, and attacked other symbols of power and looted the homes of Compaore family members.
Twitter: @RobynDixon_LAT
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ed894d344335eb24a3ad01f472fa4aae
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https://www.latimes.com/world/africa/la-fg-kenya-violence-shabab-20150403-story.html
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Kenya massacre points up country’s weakness against Somali militants
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Kenya massacre points up country’s weakness against Somali militants
It took just four gunmen to demonstrate Kenya’s impotence against the Somali militant group Shabab.
In an attack heavy with foreboding symbolism, Shabab massacred 147 college students, all or most of them Christians, in the eastern city of Garissa on the eve of Good Friday. At least 79 were injured, and the four gunmen were also killed.
Survivors described their terror Thursday as gunmen searched dormitories, asking students whether they were Muslims and executing any Christians.
Earlier in the day, Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta downplayed the attack’s severity, although it was known that hundreds were trapped, telling Kenyans that several were killed and wounded.
Unconfirmed local news reports suggested some students at Garissa University College were beheaded, as furious critics railed at the failure of security forces to prevent mass terrorist attacks on civilians.
Many said authorities should have boosted security at the campus, an obvious target with a mixed Muslim and Christian student body in northern Kenya, after specific intelligence warnings in recent days of an impending attack on a Kenyan university. Others bemoaned that a tragedy mirroring Shabab’s 2013 attack at the Westgate mall in Nairobi, the capital, which killed 67, could have occurred, with even greater casualties.
Survivors described how men with machine guns swiftly shot down the two police officers guarding the college before swooping into the campus, spraying bullets everywhere and taking control of one dormitory.
The targeting of Christians, a classic Shabab tactic, is designed to ramp up tension between the nation’s Muslim and Christian populations, helping it attract more recruits, analysts said.
The attack also underscored the persistent failures of Kenya’s security services: the corruption that allows Shahab fighters to easily penetrate the border and move around the country; the intelligence shortcomings; and the heavy-handed harassment of Kenya’s Muslim population that drives alienated, jobless young men into the arms of extremists.
More than 100 students were held hostage on the campus as the 15-hour siege dragged into the night. As darkness fell, a series of deafening explosions rang out, according to reports from the scene.
“The operation has ended successfully. Four terrorists have been killed,” Interior Minister Joseph Nkaissery told reporters in Garissa. In the grisly finale, the gunmen, strapped with explosives, were blown up as Kenyan forces moved in, firing, he said.
Shabab has suffered recent setbacks in Somalia, with the killings of its secretive commander, Ahmed Abdi Godane, and other top figures in U.S. drone attacks. But it remains capable of carrying out devastating attacks in Somalia and neighboring countries, often using just a few gunmen.
The attack Thursday was its bloodiest, and the second deadliest in Kenya after the 1998 U.S. Embassy bombing in Nairobi.
Ken Menkhaus, a Shahab and terrorism expert at Davidson College in North Carolina, said that though the group was growing weaker in Somalia, it was gaining strength in Kenya. He described the college attack as “tragic and predictable.”
“They have been looking at soft targets in northern Kenya where they can operate more easily than in Nairobi,” he said. “It was a very easy target of opportunity for them that was going to have a very big impact on Kenyans.”
Officials said all students were accounted for. More than 800 were on campus during the attack; 587 fled or were rescued, a figure that apparently does not include the injured. Dozens of injured students were flown to Nairobi for treatment.
Authorities named the commander behind the attack as a former schoolteacher, Mohammed Mohamud, an ethnic Somali who also goes by the names Dulyadin and Gamadheere and is a major Shabab figure from southern Somalia’s Middle Juba region. The Kenyan Interior Ministry released a photograph of Mohamud and offered a reward of $220,000 for information leading to his arrest. Authorities placed a $55,000 bounty on his head in December.
Claiming responsibility for the attack, Shabab said in a statement that the university was on Muslim land and was there to promulgate “missionary activities and to spread deviant ideology.”
Garissa is a nonsectarian, public institution that specializes in science and technology.
The attack came less than a week after a similar Shabab attack on a hotel in the Somali capital, Mogadishu, killed 24 people. In an unusual departure from its focus on East Africa, Shabab also recently threatened an attack on an unspecified American mall.
Kenya’s government, desperate for a solution, any solution, to the country’s security crisis, plans to build a wall on part of its 450-mile northern border with Somalia, said Issa Timamy, governor of Lamu state, the site of several deadly attacks in 2014. But critics said a wall wouldn’t work, especially without an improvement in the training and quality of security personnel.
Human rights groups have reported extrajudicial killings of suspects by security forces, including several clerics on Kenya’s coast, and the arrests of hundreds of Somalis at a time.
One leading Shabab expert, Stig Jarle Hansen, said that Kenyan police were so corrupt that it was easy for detained Shabab members to bribe officers to let them go, and that the border was so porous and poorly protected that Shabab could easily strike in Kenya.
Shabab carried out numerous attacks near the border last year, including the massacres of 28 bus passengers and 36 quarry workers near Mandera, and the killings of more than 90 people in several attacks near Lamu on the coast.
“The border is totally leaky, partly because it’s huge, but partly because of the level of corruption amongst the Kenyan border services,” said Hansen, who has written a book about Shabab.
He said that at times the statements of Kenyan politicians were obviously false. A recent Shabab video lampooned the president, Kenyatta, who insisted that last year’s attacks on Mpeketoni, near Lamu, were by local political forces. The video showed Shabab forces in Mpeketoni, with Kenyatta behind them on television denying they were there.
“It was gift wrapping for Shabab. At times Shabab has been more correct in its information than the Kenyan government,” Hansen said.
He said the mass arrests and allegations of extrajudicial killings damage “the reputation of the Kenyan security services in the eyes of the people, who can become potential recruits. All these problems give Al Shabab a big operational advantage and a big propaganda advantage.”
Menkhaus said Shabab, allied with Al Qaeda, had been overshadowed in recent months by Islamic State, which has attracted thousands of foreign recruits.
“Some of what they’re doing is to try to regain ground. They’ve been completely overshadowed in the public eye by the Islamic State in the past year. These attacks are some attempt to try to regain attention, and they’ve succeeded in doing that,” he said.
Menkhaus said that apart from creating border security services and police who were more committed and less corrupt, authorities needed to win back the Muslim population, many of whom were indifferent to or passively supportive of Shabab because they felt alienated by the abuses of security forces.
Kenya is more than 80% Christian. About 11% of the population is Muslim.
“Winning back commitment from all of the Kenyans, so that when they see something suspicious they report it, and there’s police follow-through, these are things that need to be addressed immediately,” he said.
Shabab’s attacks, he said, aimed to “drive a wedge between the Muslim population and the Kenyan state and rest of society. It’s incumbent on the Kenyan government not to allow them to frame it that way, and to respond in a way that doesn’t allow them to do that.”
One longtime anti-corruption campaigner, John Githongo, reacted angrily to the attack. “Garissa attack yet another outrage. Corruption and hubris costs us dear in the face of determined barbaric foes,” he wrote on Twitter.
Kenyatta addressed the nation on television after the attack, announcing that he would speed up police recruiting by sending 10,000 new officers for immediate training to increase security.
“We have suffered unnecessarily due to a shortage of security personnel. Kenya badly needs additional officers, and I will not keep the nation waiting,” the president said.
Twitter: @robyndixon_LAT
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6b4f5bb9b3fae613aae69196df3ca0a8
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https://www.latimes.com/world/africa/la-fg-libya-airstrikes-isis-20160801-snap-story.html
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U.S. launches airstrike campaign against Islamic State in Libya
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U.S. launches airstrike campaign against Islamic State in Libya
U.S. attack jets and drones launched airstrikes inside Libya on Monday against multiple Islamic State targets, marking a further expansion of President Obama’s war against the militant group.
The warplanes targeted Islamic State transport vehicles and tanks that had been menacing Libyan forces inside the densely populated city of Surt, along the central Mediterranean coast where the Sunni extremist group has built a stronghold.
The strikes, the start of an ongoing campaign, will give the U.S. military a more prominent role in war-torn Libya and open a new front less than six months before Obama leaves office.
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b8461af9318727cad49e99edc62181d0
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https://www.latimes.com/world/africa/la-fg-obama-kenya-village-20150725-story.html
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In Kenyan village, Obama’s decision not to visit comes as a shock
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In Kenyan village, Obama’s decision not to visit comes as a shock
When news broke in Kenya that President Obama wouldn’t be visiting his father’s village during his Kenyan tour, some saw it as strange, even a little outlandish. To others the announcement was simply not to be believed.
Many people remain convinced that somehow he would manage a surprise visit to Kogelo. A mganga, or witch doctor, in the village reportedly tossed some bones and shells, predicting Obama would do so.
But his stepgrandmother, Sarah Obama, and other family members departed for Nairobi, a sure sign that no village visit would occur. Obama also appeared to confirm that there would be no Kogelo trip, describing his first visit to the village in 1988 as “a moment of extraordinary discovery.”
“This one’s more business. You don’t have the time to travel. You don’t have the time to mix it up,” he said in a BBC interview that aired Friday.
Obama landed in Nairobi late Friday, accepted flowers from a small child and shook hands with President Uhuru Kenyatta before taking a seat at a desk on the tarmac, apparently to sign the visitors book (a great tradition in all Kenyan establishments).
The idea that after long years of absence — he last visited Kogelo in 2006 as a senator — Obama would not pay homage at his father’s grave was particularly unthinkable for traditional Luo villagers. The elders had planned to slaughter cows and goats for a great feast to celebrate the return of “our son,” according to local media.
The village feast will go ahead anyway, but it won’t be quite the same.
In the deeply traditional Luo culture of Obama’s father, dead ancestors are ever present, influencing life and even making demands and giving instructions from beyond the grave. It’s believed that these powerful, at times frightening spirits expect that certain ancient graveside rituals be performed, especially after a long absence.
Anthony Omoro, 52, a pastor in Kibera, a sprawling Nairobi slum, said educated urban Luos understood that Obama was on an official visit with important state obligations, but to traditional Luos a failure to visit the grave would be an unfathomable omission.
“They are shocked. They have a fear that the forefathers will be angry,” he said. “They’re disappointed because they don’t understand issues around governance and the logistical issues surrounding a presidential visit. They’re looking at Obama not as a president but as ‘our son.’
“As a son, you don’t have formal arrangements. You just call and say you’re coming, or even if you don’t call it’s OK.”
Columnist Okech Kendo wrote in the Star newspaper: “In the eyes of the villagers, the barriers of oceans, seas and continents do not make these ties any less binding. Relatives would find it traumatizing if Obama does not go ‘home’ during the third year of the last term as U.S. president.”
Kibera is a Luo stronghold. Many here left their villages and their parents in western Kenya decades ago, hoping to find a niche. They got menial jobs, started informal businesses hawking vegetables or clothes, and dragged themselves up in the world.
Traditional Luos believe that those who neglect their obligations to the ancestors will be plagued by dreams where they will find themselves talking to their late father, grandfather or another important figure who has died. To them, the forefathers are not impressed by presidential protocol or security concerns. Nor do they care about a crammed schedule that includes a state dinner, global entrepreneurial summit, bilateral meeting and speech to Kenyans.
According to Luos in Kibera, the wishes of the ancestors cannot easily be denied, without risking making them angry.
“It can come into your dream, like he’s right there talking to you, like you and I are talking now. He can say, ‘You have to go visit your land,’” said Eliakim Giddy, 40, a soccer coach in Kibera and a Luo, enjoying a lunchtime beer in a local pub. “All this comes to you in your dreams: ‘You have to do this and this.’ If he doesn’t do it, eventually he won’t be happy.
“When you wake up, you think, ‘My dad is dead, but I was just talking to him.’ Maybe Obama is experiencing that, but he can’t say.”
Omoro said traditional Luos believe that a deceased husband could visit his widow’s bed and even have sexual relations with her. Or he might visit her and tell her she could find a stash of money if she cut into the mattress. Or he might name people who owed him money and the amounts and information about other unfinished business. A widow who went to people requesting repayment couldn’t be dismissed.
“You cannot deny it,” Omoro said. “It’s taboo. You would immediately be cursed.”
Apart from the deeply felt spiritual yearning for Obama to visit his father’s grave, local people, not only from his own village but other settlements in the area, regard Obama as their anointed son.
“In our culture, when a child is blessed in such a way that he holds some clout, then the whole village is blessed, especially the men,” Omoro said. These beliefs loom large in Kenyan politics: When a man is elected in high public office, clan members expect to be looked after and to prosper.
“Whatever he gets, he can turn around the lives of the people,” Omoro said. “It’s not only his family that is blessed but the whole village and the whole clan. Even those who never saw him physically are saying, ‘Obama is our son.’”
Twitter: @robyndixon_LAT
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cda29f132b71a2f215d97a7306a167b7
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https://www.latimes.com/world/africa/la-fg-south-africa-drought-20180401-story.html
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Global Development: How Cape Town found water savings California never dreamed of
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Global Development: How Cape Town found water savings California never dreamed of
A six-car municipal police convoy skidded to a halt outside a Cape Town house, and police leaped from their cars at the offending sight: a trickle of hose water splashing onto a squat red flower.
Resident Mohammed Adhikari looked bemused and a little sheepish as police surged into his house, slapped him with an $87 fine and delivered a lecture. Watering yards with bore water is limited to one hour Tuesdays and Saturdays — and totally banned with tap water. This was a Monday.
Adhikari regarded the new lawn and garden he had just laid. He was unaware of the time limits, he said, adding that he relies mainly on his own well and buys 1.3-gallon water bottles for drinking. “I don’t think people are abusing it. Really, I don’t,” Adhikari said of water. He’s mostly right.
Earlier this year, the Cape Town government predicted the taps would run dry on April 22 — Day Zero. Only 39% of citizens were meeting conservation targets. But Cape Town appears to have narrowly averted disaster by slashing individuals’ average water use by half, an achievement that dwarfs efforts in other drought-prone regions, including California.
High-income Cape Town families have cut their average water use by 80%, according to Martine Visser, director of the Environmental Policy Research Unit at the University of Cape Town, while low-income families cut back by 40%. After city residents were restricted to just over 13 gallons per person a day, any household that blew the limit had a water restriction device attached to its pipes by authorities.
The extraordinary savings — in the heat of the Southern Hemisphere summer — put to shame how much water California used daily when its drought dragged into the summer of 2016: 109 gallons per person.
During the devastating 1996-2010 “Millennium Drought” in Brisbane, Australia, daily water use tumbled from 79 gallons per person to just 44 gallons. Impressive, but not as good as Cape Town.
California, South Africa’s Western Cape and southern Australia are especially vulnerable to climate change because, with their Mediterranean climates, they depend on captured winter rainfall or snowmelt.
The drought gripping southern Africa is unprecedented. “The drought has fallen off the graphs. It’s severe,” said Cape Town Deputy Mayor Ian Nielson. “If you look at the rainfall records where there’s 100 years of records, there’s nothing like this. Scientists at the University of Cape Town have estimated it at a 1-in-400-year probability.”
Cape Town’s achievement was the result of mass effort and learning new habits, such as quick stop-and-start showers, with a bucket in the tub. Any captured water is bucketed to toilets for flushing.
Visser was part of a University of Cape Town team that tested “nudges,” or messages, to Capetonians on saving water. High-income families responded best to social recognition, while low-income families responded to reminders about lowering their water bills. A city map used green lights to highlight households that met the targets and, controversially, expose those that did not.
“It’s been phenomenal. People are proud of what they’ve achieved. The mindset has changed. I think people have been quite empowered to find that they’re capable of living with so much less water without being dramatically impacted,” Visser said.
Vigilant enforcement is also key. After the officers lectured Adhikari, the convoy sped off, swooping down on cricket clubs, building sites, car washes and salesmen selling bottled tap water.
“The water restrictions are fairly stringent,” said Wayne Dyason, Cape Town law enforcement inspector, with some understatement. His enforcement team has stopped people diverting mountain springs into their properties, washing down commercial refrigerated vehicles with fire hydrants or running informal car wash businesses in Cape Town’s poor townships.
Even before the drought, the city cut losses from leaking pipes to 15% of water, compared with 37% nationally. “If we hadn’t done that, we would have run out of water by now,” Nielson said. Once the city’s six main dams dwindled, officials throttled back pipe pressure to reduce consumption.
Cape Town, source of most of the country’s wines, fruits and vegetables, is also an important tourist hub. Hotels urge tourists to keep their showers short and flush toilets “only when necessary.” Airport washrooms offer hand sanitizer instead of tap water.
Using tap water for any outdoor purpose is banned. Builders are using recycled or bore water for cement and mortar. Some restaurants have abandoned pasta and boiled vegetables, while others have switched to paper tablecloths and napkins, or reuse water from ice buckets to mop the floors. The city plans to pump stormwater into the ground to replenish aquifers.
“Everyone wants to be a superhero in the water crisis,” said Christine Colvin, Cape Town-based water expert for the World Wide Fund for Nature. “It’s not a result of any one hero. It’s a result of agriculture taking a really big hit. It’s a result of city engineers fixing leaks and reducing pressure and the willingness of 4 million Capetonians to play their part.”
The crisis has produced some proposals that go from ambitious to fanciful — such as importing water by tanker from the Congo River or towing an iceberg from the Southern Ocean.
“It’s not as outlandish as it sounds,” said Peter Johnston, climate change researcher at the University of Cape Town, of the iceberg idea. But more economical solutions are closer to home.
“The big one that’s the elephant in the room is the fact that we normally use clean water to flush our toilets,” Johnston said. “Now, we’re taking our gray water from our shower to our toilet in buckets. Imagine if that was automated. But that requires some engineering.”
Tony Soares based his Cape Town business, a commercial laundry started in October, on dirty groundwater. The Green Planet Laundry is the only commercial laundry in Africa that is off the water grid.
The bore water it uses looks unsuitable for washing — reddish brown, contaminated with human and animal feces. “We are using poop water, purifying it to drinking level and using it to do our laundry. My water cost is not zero, but it’s not being used at the expense of people’s drinking water,” he said.
Soares draws only 2% of his daily water needs from the bore, because he purifies his gray water. He imported Italian commercial laundry machines that use 50% less water and 30% less electricity than conventional machines. He employs only jobless people. And he has attracted water-conscious clients, including top-end hotels, gyms and a police training academy.
He originally hoped for a return on his investment in seven years. Not now. “I think we will get that in 18 months,” said Soares.
Johnston said most scientific projections forecast a drier and hotter climate for Cape Town in future decades, forcing the city to focus not just on reducing demand but alternative water sources.
Cape Town avoided the mistake made during Australia’s Millennium Drought, when cities spent billions on massive desalination plants that had to be mothballed at enormous expense when rains finally came.
Cape Town is building three small temporary desalination plants but its main focus is drilling hundreds of bore holes. The risk: guzzling too much groundwater, as happened in California.
“A lot of people are digging bore holes into that water now, but we don’t know how much water they’re taking out and how many bore holes there are because they’re not being monitored,” Johnston said.
California approved legislation in 2014 to prevent unsustainable groundwater use. In areas where groundwater has been severely depleted, local agencies have until 2020 to draft and begin implementing plans to manage water better.
Colvin also worries that the usual environmental review processes for projects aren’t being observed.
“It’s a bit of a case of suck it and see. We have to be brave enough to switch it off if the environmental impact is unacceptable,” she said.
Recycled water, including purified effluent, offers a cheaper source than desalination, but many governments are reluctant to embrace this. Purified effluent is used for drinking in Singapore and Namibia, but that would be a hard sell here.
“There’s just a yuck factor, so there’s a certain amount of resistance to that,” said Johnston, who believes that changing the perception of recycled water will be key to the region’s survival. Cape Town can’t afford to “see it as something that is dirty and must be thrown away,” he said. “It’s dirty, but it can be cleaned.”
For now, Cape Town residents are nervously awaiting the fall and winter. If rain doesn’t come, Day Zero may loom in Cape Town this year after all.
“The critical uncertainty that remains is: are we in year three of a three-year drought?” asked Colvin. “Or are we in year three of a four- or five-year drought?”
[email protected]
Twitter: @RobynDixon_LAT
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4b3991d0eabb4097fb515ce91c0124cd
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https://www.latimes.com/world/africa/la-fg-south-sudan-atrocities-20151028-story.html
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Forced cannibalism, gang rape and mass graves: Anatomy of South Sudan’s terrible war
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Forced cannibalism, gang rape and mass graves: Anatomy of South Sudan’s terrible war
In what could become a landmark for African justice, an African Union report on South Sudan’s war has found evidence of gross human rights atrocities and recommended an African court be set up to prosecute those responsible.
The cruelty to civilians during South Sudan’s two-year war shocked the AU commission, which spared few details in describing the crimes: People were beaten and forced to jump into fires. Bodies were drained of blood and other victims were forced to drink the blood or eat human flesh. Women, old and young, were gang raped and left bleeding and unconscious. Children were forced to fight, or were enslaved by militias.
The report, released late Tuesday, also said mass graves of victims were found.
“The stories and reports of the human toll of the violence and brutality have been heart-wrenching,” the commission report said. “All these accounts evoke the memories of some of the worst episodes of earlier human rights violations on the continent, including in South Sudan itself.”
War broke out in December 2013 between different factions of the ruling party, one associated with President Salva Kiir, an ethnic Dinka, and the other with former Vice President Riek Machar, a Nuer. Tens of thousands were killed, although the AU report said it wasn’t possible to state accurately how many.
Under intense international pressure and a threat of U.N. sanctions, the two sides signed a peace deal in August designed to bring the war to an end, but violations and continued fighting have been reported.
NEWSLETTER: Get the day’s top headlines from Times Editor Davan Maharaj >>
The AU commission said it reached conclusions about who should face prosecution for crimes against humanity, but kept the names confidential. It also identified key problems in South Sudan, including the militarization of the government and society and too much power concentrated in the hands of the president.
In this 2010 file photo, then-Vice President Riek Machar, left, and President Salva Kiir arrive for a news conference in Juba, South Sudan.
The AU commission was led by former Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo and began its work in March last year, interviewing victims, witnesses and members of the government and opposition. Its report was due for release earlier this year but was delayed as negotiations over the peace deal dragged on.
The report called for an “Africa led, Africa owned, Africa resourced” court, including South Sudanese judges and lawyers, to prosecute the atrocities.
The call for an African court is significant in part because of growing African opposition to the International Criminal Court. One major criticism has been that the court, based in the Hague, is anti-African because it has focused largely on prosecutions of African figures.
Opposition to the ICC by African leaders has become more pronounced with the efforts of the ICC to prosecute sitting African leaders for crimes against humanity, including Sudanese President Omar al Bashir and Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta.
Bashir has never been arrested despite visiting several African countries, including Malawi and South Africa, while charges against Kenyatta had to be dropped. ICC prosecutors accused the Kenyan government of refusing to cooperate and blocking their investigation.
The AU report on South Sudan also comes as a Senegalese court is prosecuting former Chadian President Hissene Habre for crimes against humanity committed decades ago, under the principle of universal jurisdiction.
The AU report describes the sequence of events in South Sudan after violence broke out in December 2013. Hundreds of Nuer men were rounded up and killed by government forces or their allies in an organized military operation that couldn’t have been carried out without the involvement of top government and military figures, according to the report.
“House to house searches were undertaken by security forces. During this operation male Nuers were targeted, identified, killed on the spot or gathered in one place and killed.”
The report cited crimes that “could constitute either war crimes or crimes against humanity, includ[ing] killings, murder, rape and sexual violence, forced displacement, removal of populations, abducted children associated with conflict used in servitude and beaten, looting, pillage and destruction of property, disappearances, torture, targeting of humanitarian workers and property.”
Despite the atrocities and ethnic violence in South Sudan’s war, the report found no evidence of genocide. But the commission found that the extreme violence and repeated attacks on civilians had “wrecked relations” between different communities, adding that South Sudanese expressed the view there could be no reconciliation unless perpetrators faced justice.
Kiir blamed his rival Machar for launching a coup attempt, which he claims triggered the violence, but the AU commission rejected this account, offering a different explanation: After tension between Kiir and Machar, a skirmish between rival ethnic factions in the presidential guard broke out. The skirmish triggered ethnic killings in the capital, swiftly spreading to other regions.
The report called for the reform of the military so as to reduce its power in South Sudanese society.
“The influence of the military appears to pervade nearly all spheres of life in South Sudan, including politics, governance and public life. A significant percentage of elected leaders at the top level are former military,” the report said.
It also found the presidency was too powerful, while the legislature, judiciary, civil society and media were extremely weak.
Follow @RobynDixon_LAT for news from Africa.
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30ef7fe2e7e7f56f6d4f2dbae5745db6
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https://www.latimes.com/world/africa/la-fg-us-africa-aid-2017-story.html
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With 20 million people facing starvation, Trump’s foreign aid cuts strike fear
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With 20 million people facing starvation, Trump’s foreign aid cuts strike fear
President Trump’s proposed budget cuts to the United Nations, which runs agencies such as the World Food Program and UNICEF, come at a time when famine is reaching a crisis point in parts of Africa, and children in some countries are dying of starvation.
The timing of the proposed cuts has sent chills through the international aid community, which fears that a retreat by the U.S. in relief funding could make a bad situation worse.
Just days before Trump’s budget was released, U.N. humanitarian chief Stephen O’Brien warned that the globe is facing its worst humanitarian crisis since the end of World War II.
Two years of drought and failed rains across much of Africa have affected 38 million people in 17 countries.
Without a massive donor injection of $4.4 billion, aid officials estimate, more than 20 million people face starvation and famine in Nigeria’s northeast, South Sudan, Somalia and Yemen. The disaster is likely to leave countries fragile for years to come.
The United States, through its humanitarian aid and support for the U.N., has traditionally been at the forefront of global efforts to avert catastrophes such as famine, and to relieve the effects of drought on some of the world’s poorest people.
The budget process involves negotiations between the White House and Congress that could see changes in Trump’s proposal to slash funding for the State Department, as well as the U.S. Agency for International Development and other international programs, by 28%, or $10.9 billion, as he seeks to increase military spending by $54 billion next year.
But Scott Paul, senior policy adviser at the humanitarian agency Oxfam, said Trump’s budget blueprint sent tremors of alarm through the humanitarian community.
“The message that it sends is that the U.S. is no longer interested in leading or being part of global efforts to mitigate suffering in the world,” he said.
Even before Trump’s blueprint was unveiled, there wasn’t sufficient global support for U.N. and humanitarian efforts to stave off catastrophes in South Sudan, Somalia, northeastern Nigeria and Yemen, Paul added.
“We have these four emergencies on the verge of famine, which from our point of view already signal a failure of will to prevent this historic level of suffering,” he said.
“Maybe our biggest concern is that looking forward we will see this crisis spiral out of control because the U.S. is stepping away from the table when it comes to the overarching priority of shared prosperity and a stable and peaceful world,” he said.
For decades, the U.S. has been the largest supporter of the World Food Program as part of a bipartisan congressional commitment to averting famine and starvation. In 2016, the U.S. paid 24% of the food program’s $8.6-billion budget, or about $2 billion.
But in the future, other countries will have to step up to provide a greater share of disaster assistance, Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said in Japan on Thursday.
“I think it sends a message that the U.S. is turning inward at a time when we are facing these unprecedented crises that require increasing U.S. engagements and humanitarian assistance,” said Bernice Romero, senior director for policy and humanitarian response at Save the Children. “In 2016 the U.S. contributed $6.4 billion in humanitarian assistance, the largest in the world. Cutting its funding at a time of looming famine in four countries and the world’s largest displacement crisis since World War II is really unconscionable and could really have devastating consequences.”
Parts of South Sudan and northeastern Nigeria have already experienced famine in the current crisis, with humanitarian agencies warning that Somalia, where half the population is in dire need of help, could be next.
The largest fear for us as humanitarians is that there will be less assistance to save lives in the future.
Bernice Romero, senior director for policy and humanitarian response at Save the Children
At present levels, the U.S. also funds 40% of the Office of the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees, 22% of the U.N. Secretariat, as well as 28% of the cost of U.N. peacekeeping operations in places such as South Sudan, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Darfur in Sudan, Mali and the Central African Republic. The budget proposal caps the contribution to peacekeeping at 25%.
Steve Taravella, senior spokesman for the World Food Program, said the budget blueprint sparked concerns that the U.S. was retreating from its historical support for aid to avert starvation and hunger.
“I think everybody who has seen the numbers that were proposed has some fear that efforts to fend off famine will not get the same support they have in the past,” said Taravella. “At the time when we are asking the world for even greater amounts to help stave off famine in these parts of the world, what we are looking at is the possibility of a decrease from our major donor. It’s not an abstract threat. Right now, people are dying. They’re dying for lack of food. We’re desperately asking for increased funds. We understand that it’s very difficult to keep turning to the well.”
“We’re trying to draw the world’s attention to the threat that famine poses to global stability and peace. Nobody wants to experience a famine like we have in the past. That’s really what’s happening now.”
Ben Parker, an analyst and editor at IRIN, a news agency specializing in humanitarian issues, said the ability of the U.S. to sharply cut its contribution to the U.N. Secretariat and peacekeeping was limited, because these were mandatory shares worked out on a formula agreed by all U.N. members. But humanitarian spending is discretionary.
Parker said the U.S. humanitarian contribution was large in dollar terms, but in terms of the percentage of its economy, “the U.S. is not very generous.”
He said the U.S. could default on its obligations to support the U.N. Secretariat and peacekeeping, as it has done in the past, but this would eventually lead to a loss of its voting rights, problematic for one of the five permanent members of the Security Council.
More details of the cuts will emerge in coming months, as the budget process continues. Paul said Oxfam was hopeful that Congress would insist on maintaining emergency humanitarian support.
But he said there was concern that the global architecture to maintain peace and stability was at risk, with other important funding targeted for cuts, including American contributions to the U.N.’s budget, U.N. peacekeeping and other global programs to support development and peace-building.
As nationalist and populist movements gain ground across the globe, humanitarians worry about what this might mean for future lifesaving operations.
“I think there’s concern in the humanitarian community that there’s a growing sense of looking inward across the globe. The largest fear for us as humanitarians is that there will be less assistance to save lives in the future,” said Romero, of Save the Children.
Trump’s budget director, Mick Mulvaney, told journalists at a news conference Thursday that the president had promised to cut overseas spending during his campaign.
“We’re absolutely reducing funding to the U.N. and to various foreign aid programs. The president said, specifically, hundreds of times — you covered him — ‘I’m going to spend less money on people overseas and more money on people back home,’ and that’s exactly what we’re doing with this budget.”
[email protected]
Twitter: @RobynDixon_LAT
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98b6dadb7ce6836ae7c189a240416a2d
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https://www.latimes.com/world/africa/la-fg-wn-nigeria-meeting-20140722-story.html
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Nigeria’s president meets kidnapped Chibok girls and their parents
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Nigeria’s president meets kidnapped Chibok girls and their parents
Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan on Tuesday met with a group of schoolgirls who escaped from the terrorist group Boko Haram and the parents of the abducted girls, about 100 days after nearly 300 girls were seized.
But there were troubling signs that Nigeria’s battle against the insurgency remains bogged down, with Boko Haram occupying the town of Damboa in recent days and raising its flag after killing dozens of people and driving nearly all the residents away.
Activists reporting that more than a dozen villages in eastern Nigeria have been conquered in recent months. Tens of thousands of people have fled in the northeast of the country, including some 15,000 people from Damboa, Agence France-Presse news service reported.
Nigerian officials report at least 100 people were killed in Damboa, south of the Borno state capital, Maiduguri. However, exact casualties weren’t known with insurgents still in control.
The fall of Damboa is seen as a major humiliation for the military, which has recently claimed an important victory: flushing insurgents out of the nearby Sambisa forest. Military spokesman Chris Olukolade told journalists Monday that the army would soon regain control of the town.
Some 219 schoolgirls kidnapped from the town of Chibok in April are still in captivity, with fears many of them have been forced to marry insurgents or convert to Islam.
Boko Haram’s leader, Abubakar Shekau, threatened to sell the girls “in the market” and referred to them as “slaves” soon after the kidnapping but has since released videos calling for a swap of jailed Boko Haram fighters in return for the girls.
Tuesday’s meeting in Abuja, the capital, between the president and Chibok residents came at the urging of Pakistani activist Malala Yousafzai, who met the Jonathan last week. The meeting was supposed to happen a week ago but was postponed by the parents, who said they needed more time to gather and organize.
At last week’s postponement, Jonathan released a press statement describing #BringBackOurGirls activists as “psychological terrorists” and accusing them of using the crisis to score political points.
Jonathan met 177 representatives from Chibok, including some of the girls who managed to escape from Boko Haram, parents of abducted girls and village leaders, the Associated Press reported.
Borno Gov. Kashim Shettima was also at the meeting. His spokesman, Reuben Abati, told journalists after the meeting that it was “a very successful event.” He said the president assured the girls that the authorities were doing everything possible to rescue the abducted teenagers.
Abati posted pictures of the meeting on his Twitter account.
The president called for patience, cooperation and understanding.
“Anyone who gives you the impression that we are aloof and that we are not doing what we are supposed to do to get the girls out is not being truthful,” Jonathan told the gathering, according to a statement from Abati.
“Our commitment is not just to get the girls out, it is also to rout Boko Haram completely from Nigeria,” he said. “But we are very, very mindful of the safety of the girls. We want to return them all alive to their parents. If they are killed in any rescue effort, then we have achieved nothing.”
He said it was not appropriate to discuss publicly what steps authorities were taking.
Nigeria’s military has ruled out an attack to free the girls because of fears many would be killed. Analysts say the only way they can be released is through negotiations with Boko Haram, although Jonathan has repeatedly ruled this out.
Eleven parents of abducted girls have died, AP reported Tuesday, seven of whom were killed by insurgents in recent attacks on another village.
Boko Haram has been attacking villages near Chibok for many months, killing hundreds.
Human Rights Watch reported recently the group that killed more than 2,000 people this year.
Follow news out of Africa on Twitter at @robyndixon.
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a4928927d9f84f9019182df99b8f2873
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https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbescommunicationscouncil/2016/11/23/what-every-marketing-exec-can-learn-from-giving-a-ted-talk/
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What Every Marketing Exec Can Learn From Giving A TED Talk
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What Every Marketing Exec Can Learn From Giving A TED Talk
The TED name is synonymous with quality, thought-provoking content, which is why videos featuring TED speakers have become some of the most popular content on the web. The short talks follow a strict format that requires the speaker to be concise and audience-focused, skills that every communications leader should master.
One of the biggest challenges of developing communications is presenting a story that connects with the intended audience, so delivering a concise TEDx talk is a great way to practice and develop your skills.
About a year ago, I set a goal to deliver my first TEDx talk. I started by interviewing people who had given talks in the past and asking for tips on developing, delivering and being selected for a TEDx. What I learned, both from my interviews with these experienced individuals and from my own moment on the TEDx stage, was this:
Start With The IDEA
TED is all about “ideas worth sharing,” so each and every talk always starts with an idea first. The stories are developed as a way to emphasize and describe the idea you want to share. When I began my pursuit, each person I talked to first started by asking me, “What’s your idea?” This was their way of teaching me that the idea comes first.
What I shared with them was my journey of being a quiet, shy and introverted person who challenged myself to do the things that made me uncomfortable, such as learning to network, which led to me founding my own women’s association. The long story I shared was not an idea by any means, but with their coaching, I realized the main idea behind what I had shared was the concept of doing the things that make us uncomfortable as a way to become the best version of ourselves.
After an artist friend created a drawing that embodied my introversion as a superhero, I realized the idea could go even deeper. In the end, the idea I shared was this: When we do the things that make us uncomfortable, we get closer to being the best version of ourselves, so doing the uncomfortable is really our super power. After articulating this idea I was able to begin crafting stories to illustrate the concept to my listeners and engage them.
Forbes Communications Council is an invitation-only organization for communications, public relations, public affairs and media relations executives. Do I qualify?
I often see marketing that doesn’t connect tightly to any idea or action, which tells me that the people producing the content likely started with a concept or a story, but not with an idea. Starting with the idea gives you the proverbial “north star,” which is a guiding light for building a cohesive story that drives the audience toward a true end goal.
Focus On Your Audience – It’s Not About You
One of the first things I noticed in the training materials I was given was an explicit directive reminding me that my talk should not be about me. Of course, I could incorporate my story into the idea, but the talk couldn't simply be a recapping of my life or an overview of my product offerings.
Imagine if all marketing started with this rule in mind. Marketing would be less about product features and more about the possibilities for end users. Having real empathy and focus on your audience is the secret to quality marketing communications, so if every marketing executive had this down to an art form (or a TED Talk), the entire team could be more successful.
Don’t Let The Visuals Be A Distraction
Presentation slides in a TED Talk have to be simple, with basic images and very few words. This is because people become distracted by the visuals if the design is too complex. If we think about our own experience with presentations, we tend to look at the slides, reading ahead to see what the presenter is going to say next. Our brains also tend to focus on the point of highest stimulation, meaning the busy presentation behind the speaker may be the only thing the audience sees.
This is a great reminder to marketing execs that crafting great visuals is only valuable if they reinforce the message and guide the audience where they need to go. When we let the visuals become a distraction from the message, they become a waste of energy and valuable marketing real estate, not to mention expensive marketing dollars.
We know that when we press play on a TED presentation, we will see one of the best talks ever delivered and we’ll walk away with a new conversation starter that earns us serious social credibility. The marketing your team produces should have the same effect. Take a few notes from TED and make your content more valuable for your audience so they can carry your message with them and continue to share it with others, thus expanding your brand and building your impact.
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5461fdfbfe31ccfffde7895503a3a8ba
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https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbescommunicationscouncil/2017/02/27/the-nuts-and-bolts-of-successful-online-sales/
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The Nuts And Bolts Of Successful Online Sales
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The Nuts And Bolts Of Successful Online Sales
The rise of e-commerce in the United States has knocked down the conventional brick-and-mortar retail business. Even giants like Macy’s and Walmart have had to close hundreds of their stores. As profits of retail chains dwindle, their management teams confirm that it is getting harder to compete with digital stores like Amazon. So it's no wonder that many retail stores are now going online.
Working at an outsourced web development company with a focus on B2B and B2C solutions, I observe, analyze and implement the approaches and business models of our clients to create profitable online sales tools. By employing the approaches that I describe below -- namely AIDA, Four Ps and loyalty programs -- we have increased the number of incoming requests from organic search, saved significant money on AdWords, reached more than average CTR, and built lead generation at reasonable costs. And like any online business, we always strive to be closer to our target audience.
There are three vital e-commerce website components to consider when planning a top-notch online business: marketing, front end (user interface) and back end (server side). The first two have the biggest impact on conversion rate, so I will focus on some tried-and-true tactics for maximizing these components of your online business:
Three Ways To Maximize Your Marketing Efforts
Marketing goals influence the development of your online store big time, so it’s vital to know key marketing approaches to evaluate your shop's target audience. By understanding customers’ goals, motivations, frustrations, jobs, hobbies, etc., you can determine features to be added to your e-store, such as filters, wish lists, subscription options, cost saving visualization, recurring billing and personalization settings. You can use the following models to maximize your online presence in the eyes of your target audience.
1. AIDA Model: The AIDA model helps plan a quick transition from the customer’s initial product awareness to purchase. Here's how you can implement the model:
Awareness: Use catchy promotional slogans, taglines and attention-grabbing offers. Interest: Highlight high-quality product visualization, customer feedback and discounts. Desire: Include engaging product descriptions and demonstrations. Action: Employ clearly visible "Buy" buttons, contact information and calls to action.
2. Four Ps Model: Four Ps is a marketing concept revolving around four categories, as follows:
Product description should indicate that all items are of high quality and have a warranty. Other models and similar items should also be displayed. Price should not necessarily be the lowest to attract customers as long as benefits, such as extra services, an easy-to-use professional-looking website, discounts and deals, are offered and highlighted. Promotion banners and/or text should be displayed on every important page. Place is important for local buyers and if it’s a local online store, it should be reflected in the website content and interface.
Forbes Communications Council is an invitation-only organization for communications, public relations, public affairs and media relations executives. Do I qualify?
3. Loyalty Programs: Implementing a loyalty program puts the Pareto Principle to work for you. By rewarding your most loyal customers (who are already accounting for 80% of your sales, according to the principle), you will get them to come back even more frequently. Include ease-of-use features like:
customer identification; calculation and displaying of discounts, redeemable points, etc.; email notifications about the program, deals and earned rewards; displaying products available to loyal customers only.
Five Features To Maximize Your User Interface (Front End)
While there are over 50 front-end features that you can use to improve the user interface of your online store, the five that I discuss below will have the most impact on your website and customer satisfaction.
1. Navigation: Menu, product catalog and search are the three pillars of online store navigation.
The product catalog often serves as the primary navigation menu for online stores. A horizontal navigation menu can be used for less than seven product categories; otherwise, a vertical menu is advised. The recommended number of submenus should not exceed three.
Faceted navigation helps shoppers filter out products that do not meet their needs. You can divide products in each category into up to 10 sub-groups based on attributes to be filtered. The most common faceted search filters are price, size and color. After a filter has been activated, the catalog should be updated without having to reload the entire page, which is annoying to customers.
2. Best Sellers: The best sellers feature triggers shoppers’ desire to know what the most purchased items are. People trust popular products and are more likely to buy them. Mark your most popular merchandise in a special best seller section that includes 5-20 items.
3. Digital Merchandising: Offline retailers promote products by displaying them to targeted customers. For example, toys are placed on lower shelves for kids to see them better, while popular brands are displayed in the most conspicuous places. There are similar merchandising tools for digital stores. The key is to store and analyze statistics on conversions, item popularity and profit margins, and then display your products based on this information.
4. Search: The search feature is an effective conversion booster. That’s why it is always a highly visible component of professional e-commerce interfaces. Autocomplete search suggestions are retrieved from the product database and can feature small brand logos or product pictures.
Shoppers should be able to sort search results by criteria like price, popularity and date. Include a quick, easy-to-use purchase button along with the displayed items.
5. Contacts: The more contact details you include on your website, the more your customers will trust you. It’s a good idea to display contact details in the website header, and the online chat feature is a great way for customers to quickly contact your store. Modern online chats are equipped with additional functionalities such as callback requests, real-time monitoring and analytics.
Conclusion
Understanding these important components puts the shop owner, customers and developers on the same page, easing the task to launch and propel your online business. Developers give birth to e-commerce projects, while logic and marketing strategies allow startups to evolve.
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79eafa8b1198c0eec8f9460b856eadd7
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https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbescommunicationscouncil/2017/03/31/seven-ways-to-share-the-hard-truth-over-social-media/
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Seven Ways To Share The Hard Truth Over Social Media
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Seven Ways To Share The Hard Truth Over Social Media
Social media is a great medium for building your brand and sharing positive company news and mentions. But when you don't have good news to share, how can you share it in a way that won't shake your social following?
The cardinal rule for crisis communication on social media is honesty. This will show your audience that you respect them, and that's key for preventing them from feeling jaded with your brand.
Below, seven communications executives from Forbes Communications Council offer their best advice for addressing bad news on social media -- without getting your followers up in arms.
Clockwise from left: William Topaz, Glenn Gray, Holly Chessman, Irene Froehlich, Brandie Claborn, Heather Dueitt, Monica McCafferty. All photos courtesy of the individual members.
1. Candor counts.
Bad news or good news, it doesn't matter. You need to respect your followers and be honest and forthright with them. They will be inspired by your trust and confidence in them. As Warren Buffet said, "Take the high road; it's far less crowded." You're building relationships with your followers and relationships are not always smooth. It's a long game -- and honesty counts. - William Topaz, Healthcare Brands
2. Know your audience.
Whether your news is positive or negative, it should still resonate with your followers to spark engaging conversations. It's important to be respectful of differing opinions, but let your audience know you are willing to address topics that others might not be as willing to. - Glenn Gray, Buffalo.Agency
3. Be proactive.
If you don't get ahead of it quickly, the social media community will have no problem spinning a minor issue into a full-blown crisis. Be proactive and make the first move. Apologize if you made a mistake. Let your following know how you are going to make it better. And if you can't make it better, let people know what steps you are taking to ensure the problem won't happen again. - Holly Chessman, Glance Networks Inc
Forbes Communications Council is an invitation-only organization for communications, public relations, public affairs and media relations executives. Do I qualify?
4. Focus on the positives.
Studies show that when communicating messages that have a negative impact over social media, it is still better to choose traditional forms of communication. If you must, it's best to find a way to focus your reader on what is positive, what lessons can be learned (or were learned), inject humor (if appropriate), or even encourage a dialogue and interaction around recommendations and suggestions. - Irene Froehlich, DrFirst, Inc.
5. Turn defeat into purpose.
Brands operating in the political space know that a defeat can wake up your base. The Women’s March on Washington, and numerous sister marches following the inauguration of President Trump, demonstrate this principle. People took to social media and the streets. Many progressive organizations are likely to view the next four years as an opportunity to engage their bases via digital communications. - Monica McCafferty, R&R Partners
6. It's all in the delivery.
Business isn't always a perfect Facebook status update. If you have a transparent relationship with your community, they will appreciate the honesty. When dealing with a global brand crisis for a well-known product, we found that being honest and transparent went farther than hiding a mistake or bad news. Our followers became stronger brand ambassadors and started standing up for us. - Heather Dueitt, NoteVault
7. Authenticity gets you through.
When times are good, positive messages come easy; it’s when times are tough that leaders have the biggest opportunity to inspire. Life’s greatest lessons are learned from the hardest times. Bring authenticity to your followers and if there’s a silver lining to share, do it. If you can offer a solution, bring it. When you treat people with dignity and respect, even the hard truth can be inspiring. - Brandie Claborn, Intel Security
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d07a31633e99eb8cc238f6e61fc91864
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https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbescommunicationscouncil/2017/04/18/why-you-should-invest-in-a-custom-website/
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Why You Should Invest In A Custom Website
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Why You Should Invest In A Custom Website
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Hundreds of new custom-made and template-based websites are being launched every day. Many business owners are facing the question of whether or not to invest their time and money into a custom-made website. After working with both custom and template-based sites, I can say that for a company to thrive in a competitive market, custom is the way to go. It's a big investment at first, but is more beneficial and potentially more cost-effective in the long run.
Of course, working from a template is often cheaper and faster. You can buy it for a very low price, fill it with content and have a brand new site up in a couple of hours. But there's a chance that your next-door neighbor has exactly the same template for an entirely different business. It's hard to make the template look branded when it could belong to another company. You will realize how limited the template features are as soon as you decide to customize it to your needs when your business start growing. It could require more money to add custom features to the template than to build them from the ground up.
Below, I'm going to review the benefits of a custom-made website.
Unique Look And Feel
Business owners put a lot of effort into the design of their offices, especially the lobby because this is the first room their clients see when they walk in. But the lobby probably isn't the first thing people see nowadays. Most go to your company’s website before they come to visit you in the office. Your website makes the first impression, and we all know how important that is. You have to treat your website as you treat your office and make it the best reflection of your business and values.
A custom site provides a unique identity for your business. You have full control over its look and feel. It should be in line with all other offline and online branding materials you have. The design of your site should tell the story behind your business. It is critical to carry all brand elements through your online and offline materials; the site should look like it belongs to your company and users should recognize your brand even if they don't see the name and the company logo.
Planning Process
Just as a house needs blueprints and goes through a thorough planning process before you can start building the foundation, your website needs to be planned out before you start seeing mockups.
Planning is a good exercise that makes you think about your business, goals, customers and prioritization of content. It helps you identify your unique value proposition and learn about your user groups and the goals they want to achieve on your site. Many business owners realize how many things they didn’t think of when they start researching and being asked questions about their business.
Forbes Communications Council is an invitation-only organization for communications, public relations, public affairs and media relations executives. Do I qualify?
While going through the planning process, define clear steps to achieve the goals and objectives of your organization. You will also have the opportunity to review your content and make sure it's relevant, educational and engaging to your audience, as well as optimized for search engines. Planning will result in a better-structured site that will turn more visitors into customers. It could become your best salesperson.
Custom Features And Functionality
Another significant benefit of a custom site is the freedom to build virtually any functionality or feature you need. You will have the ability to create a personalized experience for your users.
While going through the planning process, you might decide to launch your site in phases. By doing that, you can save time and money in the beginning. After the launch of the minimum viable product (MVP) version of your site, start monitoring user behavior to learn what features they are interested in. Then add these features in the next phases of your project. The beauty of a custom site is that it can grow with your business.
Search Engine Optimization
And don't forget about search engine optimization while planning and building your site. Have a marketing person work closely with your design and development teams. Together they will incorporate everything necessary to create a website that will be ready for SEO. This may save you time and money in the long run and give you the opportunity to beat your competition.
Remember, your website is the big part of your business success. You need to give it a strong foundation so it can bring you new clients and grow with your business.
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4e1424069c9c770c9836a8603f1c7fd6
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https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbescommunicationscouncil/2017/04/28/how-to-build-a-successful-author-marketing-platform/
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How To Build A Successful Author Marketing Platform
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How To Build A Successful Author Marketing Platform
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Launching a career as an author is about more than writing a book. In today’s DIY multimedia world, authors are expected to be online personalities and savvy marketers. The truth is that, while some publishers provide a degree of marketing and publicity, it’s largely the domain of the author to promote their work and build a fanbase. This means that publishers are more likely to give coveted book contracts to writers with a proven track record of growing and engaging an audience.
When evaluating new authors, publishers look for several criteria in addition to writing talent and book ideas, including:
Size of email list Number of social media followers Influencer affiliations Active online presence Strong, consistent message
Before I landed my publishing contract with Hay House for my book Sh#t Your Ego Says, I was in the same position as most unpublished writers – full of ideas but without a clue about how to get myself out there. But I learned that a few strategic actions could make a big difference in growing my brand as a writer.
Here are my best tips for growing your author platform online:
Create A Unique Brand Voice
You already have a voice as a writer. The next step is growing your voice as an online personality. There is no “right way” to brand yourself, as long as it’s unique and authentic. The first thing to consider is how you position yourself with a tagline or main message. What makes you different from others in your field? What single sentence cuts to the heart of your message? Keep it simple and memorable. Consider using a unique handle for your URL and social accounts. At first, I used to use my real name. I gained more traction when I started using my book title (Sh#t Your Ego Says) instead.
Your brand voice includes a visual presentation. Choose a distinct color palette, typography and logo. Have a professional headshot taken and use the same photo consistently across all touchpoints. Make it easy for your fans to recognize your brand from a mile away.
Launch Your Digital Home Base
Launching a website is the first step to building an online presence. It’s also the step that seems most daunting to beginners. Your website does not need to be fancy or feature-rich. The purpose of your website should be to have a digital home base, provide visitors with a way to contact you, and share long-form content with your audience. It is critical to optimize your site with best SEO practices (for example, including H1 keywords and article titles that include your name, industry, and main message) so people searching Google are more likely to find you.
Forbes Communications Council is an invitation-only organization for communications, public relations, public affairs and media relations executives. Do I qualify?
Choose Your MIM (Most Important Metric)
It’s important to know what action you want your audience to take and gear your efforts toward that conversion. Having a large email list is the metric that publishers value most. Email lists are weighed heavier than social media followers because email is a more stable communication platform. Having an email newsletter creates a deeper relationship with your audience and is less likely to be ignored than social posts. Platforms such as Mailchimp make it easy to build and manage an email list.
Once you choose your MIM, sprinkle your website and social media accounts with calls-to-action toward this conversion. For example, install plugins on your website that allow your fans to subscribe to your email list or like your Facebook page. Provide incentives (such as a sample chapter) for signing up.
Gathering emails is not the only acceptable MIM. If your audience is more social, you might build an Instagram or YouTube following instead. Use whichever metric works best for your brand.
Get Serious About Social
Are you the type of person who comments on news and current events? Try doing so from the perspective of your personal brand. Is your book full of good quotes? Design quote posts and share them. Some authors thrive on camera and share video content. The point is to create and share content that makes you excited. I like to draw, so I chose Instagram as my platform of choice and share hand-drawn quotes and pictures.
Think of your audience as an extended friend group. It doesn’t matter what you share as long as it’s authentic to your brand and you post with enthusiasm and consistency.
Create A Content Funnel
It’s important to create content for everyone, from newcomers to superfans. A content funnel helps deepen relationships and push your fans toward conversions (such as newsletter sign up or ebook purchase). Social content is at the top of the funnel. It’s free, fast and available to everyone. Blog posts are one level deeper because they require people to visit your website. Toward the bottom of the funnel is “premium” content – such as e-books, video series, or workshops -- that is gated behind a paywall or email submission form.
The more content you provide for free, the more fans will become familiar with your work and the more likely they will be to buy your books.
Build Relationships And Links
How can you drive traffic to your website and social channels when you have relatively few fans? One of the best tactics is reaching out to mid-sized online outlets in your field and pitching articles. There are plenty of websites without writing staffs who happily accept content from emerging writers. Add a bio to your article that includes links to your website and social accounts.
It also helps to proactively make “professional friendships” with influencers in your field. Send them emails and social messages, start a mutually-beneficial dialogue and grow your network by establishing relationships.
Show up for your audience, share valuable insights, be authentic, post with consistency, and have fun.
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70bdf3c3c0a53243fbd2437cfad681b0
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https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbescommunicationscouncil/2017/06/30/press-release-makeover-putting-prs-to-work-in-your-visual-campaigns/
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Press Release Makeover: Putting PRs To Work In Your Visual Campaigns
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Press Release Makeover: Putting PRs To Work In Your Visual Campaigns
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When was the last time you watched a video or “liked” an image someone posted on Facebook? Chances are you’ve done both within the last few days, if not in the last few minutes. Marketers have already jumped on board the visual communication revolution, and it’s changed how many of them interact with their audiences. But those working in PR are trailing behind, and there’s never been a more important time to catch up.
Just 42% of press releases included multimedia in 2015. That’s a 14% increase from 2013, but it’s far from enough when you consider how effective visuals are. Press releases see a 1.4x increase in views when images are added, and an impressive 2.8x bump when they include video. No wonder, then, that 68% of the 100 most-viewed press releases in 2015 included multimedia. Visuals make these releases more shareable and more likely to be picked up by the press.
Want to know how to create a successful visual press release? Here are five essential tips for getting started.
Consider your audience.
No press release can be effective without a target audience in mind. You’ll have a diverse array of media at your fingertips, from infographics and motion graphics to VR and interactive experiences. But you need to know what types of media your audience is most likely to consume.
For instance, millennial audiences prefer social media-friendly visuals in bite-sized chunks. A 2016 study found that 10-second mobile video ads are more appealing to them, while audiences aged 35-54 prefer 30-second spots.
You also have to optimize your media by device based on your target demographic. While baby boomers and Gen-Xers still prefer desktops and laptops, 25% of millennials primarily use mobile for content engagement. Yet six in 10 members of both groups share content on Facebook, so social media optimization is a must.
Once you know your audience, plan the layout and distribution of your press release based on where your target demographic spends the most time.
Incorporate at least two different types of media.
The more images you include in your press release, the more engagement it’ll get, according to a PR Newswire analysis. In fact, releases with six images saw 2.4x more views than releases with only text. Those that included video performed even better.
A diverse array of media is more essential than ever for a successful press release. When you add not just images but motion graphics, videos, charts and links to interactive experiences, audiences can choose how they prefer to interact with the information, and will often end up engaging on multiple platforms.
Video and motion graphics in particular have the potential to set your releases apart because, although they’re highly popular with audiences, the video adoption rate in press releases remains very low, at just 2% according to PR Newswire. In short, incorporating diverse media communicates that your company is forward-thinking and agile.
Types of media you can incorporate or link to:
Motion graphics Infographics Micro-narratives Interactive content Virtual reality or augmented reality experiences Videos Charts, graphs and tables Visual ebooks
Forbes Communications Council is an invitation-only organization for communications, public relations, public affairs and media relations executives. Do I qualify?
Keep a consistent look.
You know you want to incorporate multiple visuals, but a mishmash of colors and design styles is more likely to look like confetti than a professional release. Any visual campaign needs to achieve a unified style in order to communicate to your audiences that your company has a coherent vision, a unique identity and a targeted approach to whatever you do. It’s how you build trust.
What’s more, when the look of your content complements your overall brand identity, that content is more recognizable as yours when it’s shared. Pandora’s latest campaign to launch its on-demand screening feature incorporates the same look across videos, images and social media elements. The brand’s “fat P” logo is instantly recognizable, but the benefit of a consistent look is that you don’t have to include a logo at all for your content to be identifiable as yours. A too-prominent logo might reduce shareability. Instead, in a well-run visual campaign, the quality of the content generates organic interest that naturally leads audiences back to your company.
Another example: Carrington College, a client of ours, keeps a few important design features consistent across all their motion graphics. Whether it's addressing springtime allergies or the history of vaccines, it utilizes a whimsical design style and the same voiceover artist; you know right away the graphics are from the same company. After providing useful, shareable information, Carrington only includes its logo at the end. The brand’s commitment to authentic communication builds trust with viewers starting with the first interaction. The result? More than one million views in the first few weeks.
Minimize text.
Incorporating multiple types of media means that you can — and should — use less text. People prefer interacting with and sharing visuals; the last thing you want to do is bury them.
When BuzzSumo analyzed more than 1 million articles to determine which were shared most, they found that posts that included an image every 75-100 words were shared 2x more than those with fewer images. This sweet spot held true on both Facebook and Twitter.
Brevity in the text itself is also a surefire shortcut to shareability. “Shorter headlines, bullets, and bolding are all tried and true practices for making your story easy to discover and digest on any device,” PR Newswire points out.
Optimize for multiple platforms.
There’s no point in creating great visual content if your audiences can’t view it. It’s essential that your visual communication is mobile- and social media-friendly. Write headlines and blurbs short enough to tweet and consider incorporating mini-infographics, motion graphics and GIFs, ideal for social sharing. And with more than 60% of 13- to 34-year-old smartphone users on Snapchat, it’s essential you incorporate the latest platforms into your visual campaigns, as Pandora did when they offered a Snapchat snap code for unlocking artist mixtapes.
You can’t afford text-only press releases anymore. Invest in a visual strategy to boost engagement, sharing and trust, and set your releases apart from the rest.
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8c91a363f63301c848a792cf6796578f
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https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbescommunicationscouncil/2017/07/25/four-reasons-why-outsourcing-is-marketings-modern-solution/
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Four Reasons Why Outsourcing Is Marketing's Modern Solution
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Four Reasons Why Outsourcing Is Marketing's Modern Solution
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Decades ago, marketing was a slower and simpler process. Available avenues focused mostly on print and broadcast campaigns rolled out over months, and the data returned to marketing teams usually came from focus groups and sales departments. But with the digital revolution, everything -- speed, scope, budgeting, data -- has changed.
The logical decision would be to expand marketing departments to handle this complete paradigm shift. But ironically, many companies are doing the opposite: Rather than adding more full-time heads or scaling up, they’re keeping their marketing departments small and speedy and relying more (in some cases, completely) on outsourced consultants.
Sound like a left-field idea? At face value, perhaps. But when you look closer at the following four items, it starts making a lot more sense.
1. Different Specialties
There are very few all-in-one marketing consultants. Usually, they offer a few focused specialties -- and that’s a good thing. Today’s marketing initiatives require a wide variety of specializations based on the explosion of media, artificial intelligence, technology and data insights all centered around a seamless consumer experience. The customer decision journey is not linear and requires marketing teams to understand and leverage a wide variety of channels that meet prospects where they are. For in-house teams, it becomes expensive and extraordinarily difficult to staff teams who can stay on top of all of this and grow with the market.
By employing a wide variety of outside specialists, it allows teams to create best-in-class, integrated marketing work that can be budgeted and scheduled based on individual specialties. There’s no reason why you can’t bring on multiple tracks in parallel, but the nice thing about staffing through contracted consultants is that you can run as lean or as robust as you need. Internal teams serve as strategists and project managers.
2. Different Perspectives
Outside specialists bring fresh insights, experience and knowledge that many in-house teams have not been exposed to in the confines of their organization. Because of that, most consultants have learned to identify transferable skills and core problems in order to drive home solutions.
Forbes Communications Council is an invitation-only organization for communications, public relations, public affairs and media relations executives. Do I qualify?
Some might have more experience in the tech sector while others may have primarily worked in a B2C capacity, and others may work with governmental agencies. This creates a unique opportunity for consultants from different backgrounds to view situations differently than someone familiar with the industry. The result? Creative solutions that may never have surfaced with an in-house staff.
3. Faster Speeds
Need help fast? One major advantage of working with a variety of outside marketing consultants is being able to add and remove talent based on your immediate needs. For example, let's say you have a marketing director and support staff. If you want strategy strictly with inbound and Google Adwords, it's simple enough to hire a consultant who specializes in that area -- and because a consultant works with those tools and agendas every day, bringing someone up to speed on your situation should be a swift and efficient task. New ideas or campaign pivots can be quickly explored and executed by bringing in an expert hired gun to oversee a project from start to finish.
4. More Efficient Budgets
In addition to the speed of bringing someone in on an as-needed basis, the other practical benefit of working strictly with consultants is the ability to only have people on contract when you need them. Chances are, you're not always going to need all elements of a marketing campaign at full blast at all times: design, content strategy, media planning, digital marketing, SEO, social media, traditional media, etc. By creating a roster of preferred and reliable marketing contractors, you're able to scale up and down as budgets, seasons and project cycles change over time. With careful planning, you can schedule consultants in advance so they can drop right in as needed and keep your marketing running as a well-oiled machine, even if you lack full-time staffers.
Keep in mind, coordinating outside consultants takes careful planning and coordination to allow the collective outside staff to be aligned and deliver a cohesive approach. However, when combined together and executed well, you can create a faster, agile and efficient marketing team that delivers more targeted results. In a way, it’s reflective of the way the digital age -- social media, search engines, analytics, etc. -- has given the world instant information and the ability to pivot quickly. Combine that with the human factor of bringing in-house perspectives in and you have the recipe for 21st-century marketing: custom, speedy and scalable.
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c6328673311f6a04a022aab27670ec92
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https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbescommunicationscouncil/2017/07/25/why-kindness-matters-in-the-workplace/
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Why Kindness Matters In The Workplace
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Why Kindness Matters In The Workplace
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In my first few weeks as a mid-level marketer at a company that is known for having some tough personalities, I went on a sales call with a top executive. When we arrived, I grabbed the armload of client gifts, sales materials and a laptop from the cab. The person that I was with carried nothing, and didn’t hold the front door open for me as she breezed through, causing me to struggle with the items as I tried to avoid having it slam in my face. I continued with that company for three years, and never once felt much respect for that executive.
Years later at a new job, I was returning from a production shoot with an overnight bag and a computer. It was winter and I was in heels. A senior-level sales person with me not only insisted on helping me, but also grabbed the heaviest items. I immediately flashed back to having that door closing in my face and felt very, very grateful for the situation that I was in now.
Both of those women continue to advance in their respective careers.
I have been fortunate to work with and for some amazing human beings. While fewer and further between, I’ve also worked with people who have treated others terribly. What I’ve learned from my experience is that you don’t have to be kind to be successful, but I’ve seen absolutely no evidence to support that you need to be a jerk, either.
I believe, wholeheartedly, that people should be able to walk through the doors of their company every day and expect to be treated with basic kindness. We spend a tremendous amount of our waking hours at work and the way we treat one another while we are there is incredibly important.
Manners matter.
I expect my young kids to always say please and thank you. I believe that adults should expect this from one another as well. Those are not words that should ever be implied; they should be said. People who can’t be bothered with common courtesy make the environment around them worse.
Forbes Communications Council is an invitation-only organization for communications, public relations, public affairs and media relations executives. Do I qualify?
Respect the hierarchy, but don't abuse it.
People (usually) get to senior levels because of experience, skill and performance. They have absolutely earned the right to have their authority respected. When that authority is abused, it needs to be addressed. But yelling at and belittling the people who work with or for you (or anyone for that matter) are inexcusable offenses. Being good at your job doesn’t give you license to be a bad human being.
We have all lost our cool at one point or another, but if it becomes a habit, the problem isn’t everyone else who is “letting you down,” it’s you.
Don't mistake kindness for weakness.
Sure, it would be nice if employees could come in late, dress inappropriately, expect benefits that aren’t provided by the company and never have to experience long days or heavy workloads while still receiving a salary. But in a professional environment, that just isn't going to happen. Businesses don’t succeed that way.
You should set high expectations for your employees and require them to meet those expectations to stay employed, and exceed them to move forward. Being kind doesn’t mean that you should allow yourself to be taken advantage of. When there is an issue and your kindness is being tested, deal with it in a way that is firm but courteous.
Good employees don’t stay long in bad environments. Fear and respect are two different things. Foster a workplace where people stay and work hard because they respect you, not because they fear you.
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9816a5ef19f0fd3478732246e5576ccc
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https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbescommunicationscouncil/2017/07/28/how-will-the-laws-banning-salary-history-affect-your-recruitment-team/
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How Will The Laws Banning Salary History Affect Your Recruitment Team?
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How Will The Laws Banning Salary History Affect Your Recruitment Team?
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The New York City Council recently approved a bill making it unlawful discriminatory practice to directly inquire with a candidate about compensation. The regulation has been passed in hopes of diminishing gender bias, especially when it comes to the gender pay gap. If your firm or client is already aware of the candidate’s compensation history or becomes aware via a public search, this regulation makes it illegal to rely on that information to develop a new compensation package.
Similar laws have already been passed in Massachusetts and Pennsylvania. Massachusetts’ Pay Equity Act will take effect July 1, 2018, while Pennsylvania’s Wage Equity Bill is in effect as of May 23, 2017. However, the Chamber of Commerce of Greater Philadelphia filed a lawsuit in federal court on April 6, 2017, challenging the Philadelphia law and seeking an injunction.
The Pay Equity for All Act has also been reintroduced into the mix. This bill amends the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938, making it unlawful for an employer to:
"Screen prospective employees based on their previous wages or salary histories; Seek the previous wages or salary history of any prospective employee from any current or former employer of such employee; or Discharge or in any other manner retaliate against any current or prospective employee because the employee opposed any act or practice made unlawful by the Act, or made or is about to make a complaint relating to any such act or practice, or testified or is about to testify, assist, or participate in any manner in an investigation or proceeding relating to any such act or practice."
What does this mean for your recruitment team?
If your recruitment team works with candidates based in New York City, Massachusetts or Pennsylvania, you should keep up to date with the latest regulations. Make sure your firm is conscious about the way in which you discuss compensation with your candidates. As this bill goes into effect, you will be prohibited from asking your candidates and any of their employers about their salary history, or even doing public searches on it.
Forbes Communications Council is an invitation-only organization for communications, public relations, public affairs and media relations executives. Do I qualify?
It is important to remember that you can discuss compensation with candidates as long as they volunteer this information. It is also OK to discuss whatever salary expectations the candidates have for the prospective roles.
Reasons your candidates may want to voluntarily disclose this information:
Releasing compensation information will save your candidates and clients from wasting time if the projected compensation is completely out of range. Salary data provides competitive intelligence and compensation package data that can be easily leveraged for boosts in package offerings. Revealing this information shows the recruiter and client that you are serious about the position.
Note: Cluen’s synopsis is not a replacement for legal advice from your own attorney (we are not lawyers). Before adopting any new policy, contact your firm’s lawyer(s) to advise on how to properly comply. It is important to make sure your team is in compliance with the latest policies and regulations.
Some suggested next steps for compliance:
Remove any questions around compensation from online applications. Create new internal processes for how you vet candidates during the recruitment process. Develop a plan for how your firm will document salary “expectations” rather than current/past figures.
The New York City Commission on Human Rights will be enforcing this new provision. Individuals will have the right to seek action against any employer that violates these new regulations. Penalties will range from $125,000 for an unintentional violation, up to $250,000 for a “willful, wanton or malicious act.” Officially, this law in New York City will go into effect October 31, 2017.
The final takeaway? It's important to take the time to reevaluate your interview process and make sure your team is in compliance.
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f49b5a63a0ce79654ea44d5b2a207df3
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https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbescommunicationscouncil/2017/08/03/what-you-should-do-when-your-brand-is-entangled-in-a-public-crisis/
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What You Should Do When Your Brand Is Entangled In A Public Crisis
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What You Should Do When Your Brand Is Entangled In A Public Crisis
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A recent survey suggests that public relations executive and event coordinator are two of the top 10 most stressful careers today. Why? The inability to manage the outcome. With digital channels becoming the lifeblood of businesses, there is little room for error in customer experience. The expectations of companies are at an all-time high and the responsibility for brand protection lands squarely in the office of the CEO. So when a corporate incident occurs, how can the role of communications minimize the blow?
In the past year, there have been several high-profile incidents that have plagued corporate brands. United Airlines found itself in hot water when a doctor was forcibly pulled off a plane. Though it was airport security that removed the passenger, United was deemed at fault in the court of public opinion, causing irreparable damage to the company’s brand.
Similarly, in the cloud hosting space, Amazon S3 web-based storage service experienced a widespread issue this year that either partially slowed or took down websites, apps and devices relying upon it. Reporters were quick to call out affected websites and services in their press coverage without verifying the details. Subsequently, affected companies that experienced a partial slowdown, including ours, were bundled together in the news with companies that experienced complete outages.
In both the United Airlines and Amazon incidents, reporters overlooked the nuances in their reporting, leaving the news coverage misguided and detrimental to the brands involved. Whether it was poor judgement or nefarious intent, this shows that brands must take effective steps to protect their reputations and shape public opinion.
Navigate the incident by incorporating your community.
Many PR professionals will tell you that the first step in crisis communications is to admit your mistake after an incident to boost public goodwill toward your company. While this can be a powerful move, jumping into high gear without investigating the facts does not help address the one thing at stake: the trust between a brand and its customers.
Forbes Communications Council is an invitation-only organization for communications, public relations, public affairs and media relations executives. Do I qualify?
Instead, bend the first rule by incorporating your community to manage brand confidence and competence. Leverage the community as another voice for your brand across social channels and with reporters. In times of crisis, the best advocates are in your community -- those who have the access and ability to get accurate information out quickly and navigate the PR incident.
Communicate company values.
Doing what’s best for your customers starts with ensuring employees are aligned to deliver customer satisfaction and safety. Communicating these values often and early internally to employees, and externally to customers and the community, positions your organization to respond and manage PR incidents with confidence.
Get your company leaders on board quickly so they can address an incident with accurate information. If left out of the communications response playbook, it invites questions about the company’s corporate practices. In the case of United, physically removing airplane passengers shed light on the policy of overbooking passengers and created bigger issues for the brand.
Build your top 1% of influencers.
Brand ambassadors are influencers who have a strong affiliation with your brand. They are an extension of your brand voice and can be partners, customers or users of your technology. These influencers often have a strong following across multiple communities. By tapping your top influencers when an incident occurs, you can address a big problem that companies face in times of crisis: If customers come first, why didn't you already know about the problem?
Influencers, particularly your top influencers, have product expertise and the power to connect with a very specific audience. Cultivate these relationships and continue to invest in them so you’re prepared for the next crisis.
Every brand will find themselves embroiled in a crisis at some point -- it’s not a matter of if, but when. Crises offer teachable moments, but by having the necessary tools in your arsenal, you’ll be that much more prepared. Ensure your crisis communications program is fit, work with your CEO and business stakeholders to get key pillars in place and be ready when the next incident strikes.
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0cd273526cd69c80483b60d2c4db8174
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https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbescommunicationscouncil/2017/08/07/the-future-of-marketing-requires-a-new-business-model-not-new-tactics/
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The Future Of Marketing Requires A New Business Model, Not New Tactics
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The Future Of Marketing Requires A New Business Model, Not New Tactics
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On May 27th, 2016, Tesla opened pre-orders for their Model 3, and within 24 hours, more than 200,000 customers had paid deposits to reserve their place in line — without the physical product yet existing. Tesla’s cost of advertising was only $6 per car — less than 1/90th of the ad cost of their closest price-range competitor. The breakout success of the Model 3 was not due to an amazing ad campaign or a creative mega hit, but rather a new business model showcasing the future of cars as well as the future of marketing.
Marketers ≠ Magicians
Businesses too often believe marketers have the magic touch. They’re believed to have a creative superpower that allows them to turn any average idea into a massive success by simply spinning a few words and colors together. The problem with this red herring is that it negates what’s actually required to make amazing marketing.
For starters, our newly published "State of Marketing" report at Salesforce has shown that high-performing marketing teams are more likely to have both an executive commitment to their overall marketing strategy as well as the budget to support their efforts. The report, which is based on a global study of 3,500 marketing leaders, also shows that these top teams aren’t afraid to flip marketing on its head to get closer to what customers want. The same research also shows high-performing marketing leaders are 2.4x more likely than underperformers to move away from traditional marketing roles toward roles aligned with a customer journey strategy. In fact, 59% of marketing leaders across performance levels believe that traditional marketing roles limit their ability to engage customers.
Furthering the failed idea of magical marketing, Dominique Hanssens, Professor of Marketing at UCLA Anderson and former CEO of the Marketing Science Institute, shows in his book Empirical Generalization About Marketing Impact (2015) that marketing and sales promotion have no significant effect on business growth. His research found that a 10% increase in advertising spending only returned a 1% effect on short-term business performance while having an insignificant effect on long-term growth. Hanssens and Tesla both illustrate that business models where marketing is viewed as a promoter of products are fundamentally flawed. Let’s dig a little deeper to find out why.
A New Business/Marketing Model Emerges
Tesla isn’t the first electric car maker. It doesn’t have a long history when compared to its competitors and it has never produced an award-winning ad. And, before the Model 3, Tesla had never made an economy car! Yet, it not only sold more cars, it sold 4x as many cars as its closest competitor in under 24 hours at a tiny fraction of the advertising cost. It wasn’t magic. It was a new business model that leverages a new role for marketing.
Here's how this plays out between Tesla and Mercedes-Benz, their closest direct competitor. When you look at both companies side by side, you see more than two competing products — you see competing business models. Mercedes-Benz — as with most businesses — follows a "build > market > sell" model where first they produce a product, then they market it, and finally hope to sell it. Tesla follows the exact opposite model: market > sell > build, where the marketing becomes the primary economic driver, not the product.
The New Role And Scope Of Marketing
The new model of business — market > sell > build — still uses the term ‘market,’ yet it’s decoupled from product and takes on a different definition. Instead of telling the world about your wares, it opens the door for a new role and scope of marketing.
That new scope of marketing has everything to do with customer experience. It's not just making a product and trying to convince your customers to buy it. It starts with a better understanding of what your customers actually want and using that insight to inform what you're making in the first place. The “State of Marketing” research reveals that 86% of high-performing marketing leaders believe their company is competing on the basis of customer experience. These top teams are 2.7x more likely than underperformers to say marketing is leading customer experience initiatives across the entire business.
However, simply changing your company’s marketing tactics to focus on customer experience initiatives isn’t enough. Marketers must also follow a business model where they not only own the task of ensuring a holistic and consistent customer experience across the entire customer lifecycle but where those insights guide what is being sold as well as what it is being delivered. The end product may be the same, but the economic outcomes are vastly different.
Forbes Communications Council is an invitation-only community for executives in successful public relations, media strategy, creative and advertising agencies. Do I qualify?
Tactics alone are not the future of marketing — a new business model is. The model our businesses have operated under is a holdover from a time when the products were the highest economic output our businesses could produce. Now consumers are buying experiences, where the products are only a small part of the total. Those businesses who can grasp this idea, and shift their idea of marketing to the owners and sustainers of the experience are poised to reap the rewards of the early adopters as Tesla so electrically has shown us. Yes, there will be new tactics in the future, new channels, and more content. None of these is the key, they are only the outward expression of an inner change which must come first if you truly desire to succeed in the new marketing era.
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70f592dc48c69ddd9cf1540efd273512
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https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbescommunicationscouncil/2017/08/08/its-time-to-squash-the-leader-vs-doer-mindset-todays-effective-leaders-require-both/
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It's Time To Squash The Leader Vs. Doer Mindset: Today's Effective Leaders Require Both
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It's Time To Squash The Leader Vs. Doer Mindset: Today's Effective Leaders Require Both
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The recent rise in entrepreneurship is redefining what makes an effective leader, dispensing with the age-old adage that a person is either a leader or a doer. Today's entrepreneurial economy requires leaders who do more than act as the face of an idea; they must also have the technical skills and social capacity to articulate business strategy, drive agendas and nurture relationships throughout the organization.
In this era of business transformation, leaders must do more than direct and delegate; they need to guide others by walking alongside them. The ability -- and willingness -- to get their hands dirty earns respect and results because team members see firsthand that advice and counsel come from experience in addition to ideation.
"Rather than leading with a top-down approach, network entrepreneurs focus on creating authentic relationships and building deep trust from the bottom up," according to Stanford University’s Stanford Social Innovation Review (SSIR). "Many collaborative efforts ultimately fail to reach their full potential because they lack a strong relational foundation."
From Elon Musk and Sheryl Sandberg to Andy Grove and Sara Blakely, the best entrepreneurial leaders aggressively seek, identify and promote talent that has the skill and energy to drive businesses forward. Whether leading an entire company or a small internal team, a successful leader is both alpha and omega, agenda-setter and skillful doer.
So how can you incorporate the doer into your leadership approach? I spoke to insightful entrepreneurs and experts to find out:
1. Mentor team members and get your hands dirty.
A highly effective manager knows each member of the team and shares their ambitions. Design your team carefully and ask repeatedly whether you have the right people in the right seats, and if they have the right resources. Ensure your team is equipped to execute the agenda; resources are both human and physical assets and must be sufficient to the task at hand.
Jeremy Pepper of Communimatic said, “It’s about being in the trenches. The best leaders are those that are able to pitch in during crunch time. I’ve had bosses who get that it’s a team effort and lead by doing. I’ve had bosses that were so detached from the day to day that at crunch time they could neither lead nor do, and those people... well, they were of no use.”
2. Remain agile.
This means being capable of making decisions in the best interest of positive momentum over perfection.
"My strategy professor in business school gave us a powerful insight that became a pillar of my efficacy as a leader," said Fission Strategy CEO Cheryl Contee. "He told us, 'You can have something be 100% perfect and 0% done or you can have it be 70% perfect and 100% done. And as executives, you will be forced to make this decision over and over.' Leaders create positive momentum forward and that requires embracing truly the spirit of a slogan I've seen on the walls at Facebook: 'Move Fast and Break Things.'"
3. Build a culture that values different contributions.
Strategy can de developed by anyone, and the leader who recognizes this motivates their team even more when allowing others to set the path.
"Most people confuse leadership with the idea that you have to tell people what to do or get people to work on a vision that you set and keep," said Jason Preston, co-founder of Dent, where I serve as a board member. "Somehow the idea of doing things becomes different than leadership, because if you're leading, how can you also be doing? But in fact leadership is the practice of motivating people to tackle the tough challenges ahead of them in order to make the changes they need to thrive in a new environment. Once you see leadership in this light, there is no longer any conflict between leading and doing."
4. Be authentic and accountable.
Strong leadership is driven not by self-interest but by the best interests of the team, company or customer. That's why you must be authentic and accountable to employees, customers, your board and your investors.
"Sometimes you must be willing to tell someone that their 'baby' isn't as special as they think," said public relations expert Leigh Barer. "As a service provider, I walk a delicate balance between positivity and reality -- between what my clients want to hear and what my clients need to hear to further their business."
5. Lead the team by being a part of it.
Tenure in an organization is shorter than it used to be. In the past, an employee may have spent two to three years training inside a company to build their skills. Now, employees may only stay at the company for two to three years. Teams need to succeed in a shorter amount of time, and leaders must know how to ensure everyone is "plugged in" to the business in the right way.
Amir Mashkoori, CEO and co-founder of ISDI Digital University, said, "To win in business in this day and age, recognize that there is less time to money, less time to market and less time to train. In any organization, about 10% of the team are superstars and they are the ones that bring everyone together and make things happen -- they are the glue to excellence. There’s no doubt that you’ve starred in your career to be in the leadership position that you are in and by being more involved you may be that glue to take the team to the next level. So if the ultimate employee is plug-and play, then the ultimate leader must 'plug-IN-and play.'"
Forbes Communications Council is an invitation-only community for executives in successful public relations, media strategy, creative and advertising agencies. Do I qualify?
The nature of the entrepreneurial economy demands that effective leadership be present in every level of an organization, while the pace of change of both technology and markets ensures that the role of leader has never been more challenging. The iconic charismatic leader of yesteryear has given way to the technocratic leader of the present. Today’s successful leader cannot manage constant change without technical savvy and a keen aptitude. It’s a new world; time to play by the new rules.
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e93b98a1a299386208de896e8c5540d8
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https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbescommunicationscouncil/2017/08/11/merge-ahead-the-importance-of-internal-and-external-communications-coming-together/
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Merge Ahead: The Importance Of Internal And External Communications Coming Together
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Merge Ahead: The Importance Of Internal And External Communications Coming Together
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Today, I’m doing both internal and external communications at a biopharma company. But back in the late 90s, I was working for a cable TV company that dove headfirst into the cable internet service business and was dipping its toe in the internet phone industry. I managed a web team creating intranet and extranet sites and produced a local news operation that blended web interaction and television. The buzzword then was the "convergence" of media.
Fast forward to the end of June 2017. I’m attending an internal communications conference, at which an agenda item is a convergence of capabilities of sorts -- specifically "the interplay of internal and external communications."
The conference laid out issues and opportunities. A veteran communicator discussed the importance of nurturing employee ambassadorship and relationships with influencers, a former news anchor shared presentation coaching secrets for all audiences, and two digital media pros demonstrated visual storytelling, which, of course, has global appeal.
What else did I learn that day?
The interplay of internal and external communications happens all the time in organizations large and small. Capabilities in both areas make communicators more valuable as strategic advisors. Compelling storytelling (spoken, written and/or illustrated) is critical.
The Inefficient Interplay
Your internal team develops a piece on an innovation that is meant to motivate employees, runs it through internal review and publishes it. The manager of your company's external site sees it, modifies it for her audience, runs it by her internal reviewers and possibly a lawyer who reviews her material, and publishes it.
Instead, why not start with both audiences in mind? You end up with one writer, one review cycle and a story that employees and external stakeholders see at the same time.
Blended Approach ROI
Your PR team is used to developing relationships with key stakeholders, including journalists and social media influencers. Meanwhile, there's a thriving community on your company's internal social media system. Some employees have even turned into internal influencers.
Forbes Communications Council is an invitation-only community for executives in successful public relations, media strategy, creative and advertising agencies. Do I qualify?
Again, why not start with the end in mind? Tap into your internal resources as you shape your external outreach. You may find there's gold right there in the ground beneath your office.
Finally, Storytelling
It's a current buzzword, but also a universal and timeless one. Here's an example from a large company's approach to a town hall meeting: Senior communicators had advised their leaders about authenticity and personal anecdotes many times. So a leader stood up and described winning regulatory approval for a product and later bumping into a competitor that didn't in the lobby. The audience was transfixed by the story.
Measurement of the event revealed the spike in interest. At the next town hall, each leader told a personal story. Again, the data showed that strong storytelling reaches people.
Reaching Convergence
Some may say that only senior communicators reach the stage where they can and do blend both internal and external expertise. It also may turn out that people in your organization lean toward one type over the other. Both of these statements can be true and neither one is negative (unless someone thinks their choice is the only one that matters).
There are benefits to this so-called convergence. For one thing, leaders of communications groups can realize efficiencies by uniting teams that develop employee and public content, including stories, videos, infographics and social media pieces. For another, I bet most of the early-career communicators in your company are interested in exploring both capabilities.
Finally, when internal communications work together with external, all company stakeholders -- from employees to customers -- feel heard and respected.
That was the teaser on the agenda of the conference I attended. It speaks to an important lesson in the communications industry — organization objectives, communication team goals and even individual styles are moving toward convergence.
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31b24c279a3ec13c0566cb16c5635d89
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https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbescommunicationscouncil/2017/08/25/your-most-valuable-tool-your-teams-feedback-loop/
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Your Most Valuable Tool: Your Team's Feedback Loop
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Your Most Valuable Tool: Your Team's Feedback Loop
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As a nascent marketer, I misjudged how crucial feedback was to success. But when I was promoted to head a marketing and communications team, that lack of appreciation for feedback slowly eroded my team’s functionality. While I had a leadership philosophy founded on open communication, I underestimated how intentional and vigilant I needed to be.
But a few months into my then new role, an employee informed me things were not operating as smoothly as they once had. I was shocked! Weren’t we producing exceptional campaigns? Weren’t we meeting deadlines and making revenue goals?
While the answer to those questions might have been yes – how would anyone on our team know? We had little to no feedback loop. What I’ve since learned is that not only are such breakdowns usually communication issues, but the common denominator is frequently the absence of effective, two-way feedback.
I’ve since developed an ever-evolving philosophy that borrows from multiple perspectives. I’ve uncovered three vital elements to an effective feedback loop.
Request feedback persistently.
If our employees appear to operate like mere cogs in a machine, they may feel like we view them as little else. They may have no clue whether we value their input and ideas.
That’s why I have a photo of a children’s playground slide in the shape of an elephant on the wall of my office. In this poorly designed slide, the children walk up the steps and enter the mouth of the elephant, they walk through its body and then they slide down a tube coming out of its butt.
What is this doing in my office? Well, a leadership trainer I admire uses it as a metaphor: At some point, someone involved in producing the slide must have thought, "This is a dreadful design." But either 1. they didn’t speak up or 2. their leader wasn’t open to feedback. Consequently, everyone kept their noses down and did what was necessary to build this unfortunate slide.
Giving feedback about what’s going wrong is everyone’s job. However, the leader’s job is to create an environment wherein all team members have ample opportunities to speak up.
Forbes Communications Council is an invitation-only community for executives in successful public relations, media strategy, creative and advertising agencies. Do I qualify?
Now in brainstorming sessions, my team might say, "Okay, wait. I think we’re building an elephant slide." I then ask them to elaborate and together we decide what needs to be restructured. But I first had to persistently ask them for feedback before this unsolicited input came naturally.
Become a model feedback recipient.
I took a course in business school called Leading Successful Teams. Eager to learn how to finally get people to "do what I want," I was shocked when the professor assigned a book called Thanks for the Feedback: The Science and Art of Receiving Feedback Well by Douglas Stone and Sheila Heen. Perplexed, yet ever the diligent student, I read the book.
It turns out the "we treat others how we want to be treated" cliché applies to feedback, too. When our employees see us taking feedback openly and objectively, and that we give real consideration to feedback from all perspectives, they are more likely to receive your feedback in the same manner.
Nonetheless, falling into ego and power trips is all too easy when it comes to taking criticism. However, even misguided, misdirected or misinformed feedback can be useful. According to Stone and Heen, rather than getting defensive, we should express appreciation and curiosity about all feedback.
Admittedly, this felt inauthentic at first, as if I were patronizing people, but by greeting unsolicited feedback with gratitude and inquisitiveness, I built closer relationships with colleagues, enhancing mutual trust and respect. Now if I disagree with or don’t understand feedback, I can support my decisions in an informative rather than defensive manner. Most importantly, taking this approach often opens a dialogue that results in clarification about what is really meant by the feedback, which consequently exposes valuable insight I might not have otherwise uncovered.
Today, other members of the organization see our team as more open-minded and cooperative, which is more than a nice morale boost – all the pain has been removed from collaboration. If interdepartmental communication is lacking at your organization, consider how your leaders accept feedback. Are they approachable? Open-minded? A first step toward breaking down silos is looking at our own responses to feedback.
Make giving feedback all of our job.
As leaders, giving feedback must be our area of expertise. Think of it this way: All of your industry expertise is useless if we can’t impart that wisdom to our employees.
And remember, praise is a form of feedback – possibly the most important form. When someone nails a project, we must skillfully communicate their success to them, not only because it feels good, but also so they continue that level of work. Saying, "You’re a genius!" doesn’t do much more than boost someone’s mood for a short time. However, we can ensure exceptional performance is repeated through praise that is specific, accurate and impersonal, which means saying something more like, "That solution you developed was really creative and effective."
Likewise, when we don’t master criticism, we end up doing all sorts of counterproductive things. This can lead to the dreaded philosophy of: "I’ll just do it myself because they never do it right." What a terrible waste of your time and a missed opportunity for your employees. Or maybe you’ve thought, "Haven’t I told him not to do that a million times?!" This is usually not a result of a bad listener but of our own ineffective (usually vague) criticism. And finally, many of us shy away from criticism because it feels awkward or even unkind.
Learning how to tackle those obstacles and making feedback your "real" job means honoring feedback as our most valuable tool. Start the way my professor did – with yourself. From there, limitless development opportunities are available for you to improve.
And when things start to go off track, remember to ask your team, "Am I building an elephant slide?"
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d2c9373e429c3407f0bc8ab7bb7a94bd
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https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbescommunicationscouncil/2017/08/29/after-vegas-experts-weigh-in-on-cybersecurity-investments/
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After Vegas: Experts Weigh In On Cybersecurity Investments
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After Vegas: Experts Weigh In On Cybersecurity Investments
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With the 20th Black Hat and 25th Def Con wrapped up, security pros are remobilizing their defenses against adversaries who froze power plants, held dozens of banks, hospitals and manufacturers hostage, and may have influenced the U.S. election. Alongside these real-world attacks, the Vegas stage shined a glaring light on new hacks to "pwn" voting machines, cars and even radiation detectors.
I’ve left similar talks feeling naked just for connecting my devices to the internet. Freshly reminded that everything is hackable, I asked industry experts about security investments to understand what’s next for this space.
Follow the money trail.
Global cybersecurity deal flow Courtesy of PitchBook.
PitchBook data shows that VC cybersecurity investments peaked in 2015 at $4.2 billion and are trending down -- $3.6 billion in 2016 and $2.8 billion in 2017 as of late July. But Kyle Stanford, VC analyst at PitchBook, predicts that “2017 is on pace to eclipse the highest deal value and come close to the highest number of completed transactions [in cybersecurity].” One reason for this uptrend is the expectation that AI and machine learning funding will enhance security innovation for identifying and thwarting attacks.
Zooming in on buying patterns from the past three years reveals the warped speed at which the industry moves. Neil MacDonald, the security oracle of Gartner, takes hundreds of customer calls each year. He notes a shift in 2014, when customers began investing in tools to “rapidly detect and respond” to threats that evaded antivirus and firewalls. Those post-perimeter threats drove demand for tools that analyze access through user behavior, network traffic and endpoint detection. Today, the cyber response has again broadened, this time with an emphasis on fortifying processes. Two of the hottest investment areas for customers are building security into IT operations and development and raising workforce awareness.
User appetite for the cloudification of everything has exponentially expanded the attack surface and with it the nuances in security response. Strong customer demand and VC funding continue to fuel innovation. But the problem is, just one misconfiguration, one ill-fated employee click, can unlock access for hackers. “Even if the good guys bat .900, they’re going to get pwned,” Accel Partners’ Jake Flomenberg says.
The C-suite weighs in.
Danny McPherson is Chief Security Officer at Verisign, a company that ensures the security, stability and resiliency of key internet infrastructure and services. He says: "As the internet gets more interconnected, multi-tenancy means more systemic dependencies."
Lookout’s Chief Strategy Officer Aaron Cockerill emphasizes the need to secure the connected ecosystem: “Increased mobility means IT departments need to secure their companies’ data and assets outside their traditional perimeter, on the endpoint.”
“As companies race to the cloud, security teams or proper security controls are often left in the dust,” notes Ben Johnson, co-founder of Carbon Black and Obsidian Security.
These perspectives reflect the complexity of securing data across the many layers of the cloud. Add in the litany of breach disclosures and the ghosts of government surveillance leaks, and it’s understandable why security on and off the cloud has become a boardroom issue. As a result, security war chests have grown even as the cyber-skills shortage means not enough human talent to fill the need.
Forbes Communications Council is an invitation-only community for executives in successful public relations, media strategy, creative and advertising agencies. Do I qualify?
In this context, it makes sense that the growing markets MacDonald cites address security gaps by maximizing efficiency. Bringing security into processes for building and running connected things helps reinforce broken defenses, as does growing security-consciousness among employees. Plugging these holes won’t cancel out the need for more security pros, but they are necessary fixes in a connected world.
VCs eye new bets.
According to PitchBook, top VC firms Accel and NEA are among the most active investors in cybersecurity startups in the past five years. Like MacDonald, both see green pastures in companies that can secure DevOps processes. One particular sub-sector seems to resonate:
“I’m increasingly excited about companies in the security orchestration and automation space,” Flomenberg notes. Already he has led a series A for Demisto, which automates simple, repetitive tasks, freeing security responders to focus on “the highest value problems.”
Aaron Jacobson, principal at NEA, also sees opportunities for security orchestration companies. “The cybersecurity talent shortage creates a ripe opportunity for investment. Analysts are simply overwhelmed responding to incidents,” he says.
It makes sense why this space is so promising. As McPherson at Verisign sums up, the defense framework is understanding: "What assets do I care about? Where do they live? Only then can you determine the most effective controls to protect them."
More connected things and data traversing on- and offline networks expand the terrain for defenders to cover. This increases the need to bake security into the DevOps lifecycle for each piece of the connected ecosystem from consumer-facing devices to back-end infrastructure. In this environment, security automation can absorb basic tasks like monitoring SIEM alerts or scanning for malicious attachments. Orchestration comes into play by connecting tools (like automation), systems and processes -- enabling human talent to focus on strategic workflows.
Getting dry powder.
Flomenberg observes, “Early-stage security deal volume still feels robust.” He is quick to note: “My intuition is, we’re seeing a separation from the haves and the have-nots.” Those who scale live to fight another day towards becoming the next security platform. Those who fail to scale could still salvage a respectable exit by way of acquisition.
“While we’ve seen a slowdown in early-stage activity in cybersecurity, the market is there for growth-stage companies,” says Jacobson. That is because later-stage brands can tap the public markets and private equity growth avenues unavailable to less established players.
But, cautions Johnson, “I’ve seen very smart, experienced teams have trouble raising funds.” This happens when seed or series A companies fail to stand out in the crowded field and when late-stage startups can’t show revenue to justify follow-on rounds.
Somewhere off Sand Hill Road, I’m waiting for a friend. A few feet away, two VCs chat quietly, optimistically about an emerging space. I sip my old-fashioned, feeling a smidgen safer.
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b4d8d4803b4b29aef36f23e89452edc5
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https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbescommunicationscouncil/2017/09/06/key-digital-marketing-trends-to-prepare-for-in-2017-2018/
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Key Digital Marketing Trends To Prepare For In 2017-2018
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Key Digital Marketing Trends To Prepare For In 2017-2018
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Species that adapt survive, according to Charles Darwin -- and not even necessarily those that rely on strength. Strategies and platforms are evolving in the digital age, and consumers are engaging brands on channels that didn't exist a few years ago.
The modern marketer must be extremely agile. But while change spawns creativity, the goals of marketing remain constant. An employer hires a marketer to communicate the right message at various stages of the funnel, raise brand awareness and loyalty, drive traffic and customer engagement, and implement methods that lead to conversions and sales.
Here are key trends in marketing to prepare for in the coming year:
The Talent Gap
The talent gap in digital marketing is the root cause of unsuccessful campaigns. It results in inappropriate budgets, misinterpretation of data and ad spending on techniques that no longer work. Classically-trained marketers can help their brands rise above the noise by acquiring new digital skills. And younger, less-experienced practitioners can improve their contributions by learning the basics of marketing so they can apply core principles in creative ways.
Expect more companies to find the right balance between employing generalists and specialists -- and more importantly, expect companies to increase training in digital marketing for both. To maximize the impact of budgets, practitioners can hone their skills in growing areas such as content marketing, analytics, mobile, social marketing, programmatic, SEO, in-store marketing, location targeting, personalization/customization and omnichannel integration.
There are online providers that offer authoritative certifications in digital marketing. To attract and retain talent, HR managers may have to customize compensation for personnel who consistently deliver high ROI in a digital world.
Social Marketing
Social marketing is typically considered a low cost, high ROI approach. One emerging tactic is to promote stories on Facebook's News Feed as a way to gain favorable coverage. This approach often involves circumventing publishers and going directly to social sites to gain exposure.
Another method is to give social users offers (such as discounts and/or cash) to promote the brand's products and services. For example, a restaurant could give a 10% discount if customers share photos of their dining experience on social media. The key is to find new mediums that deliver more awareness and traffic, and not to rely on conventional outlets such as news sites.
Video Marketing
In 2014, a YouTube vlogger installed a Go-Pro camera on his dog's back to better understand how his pet behaves when the owner leaves the house. Audiences, too, got extremely curious and the video went viral. Pet food companies should consider that it's not necessarily big budgets that win the day, but rather great ideas that can require low production costs. Think again of Charles Darwin: Survival goes to those who adapt, not necessarily to those who rely on strength.
Forbes Communications Council is an invitation-only community for executives in successful public relations, media strategy, creative and advertising agencies. Do I qualify?
Expect more businesses to hire marketers who can leverage social networks in savvy ways — people who understand the psychology behind what motivates audiences to watch video content on their devices. Brands would be prudent to close the talent gap in this key area. According to OMI, skills are most often missing in social media (27%), analytics (37%), mobile (29%) and content marketing (27%).
In-Store Marketing
It takes a talented staff to pull off an effective in-store marketing campaign because it requires combined skills in brick-and-mortar promotions, analytics, mobile, location technology and classic marketing.
Here's an example. You walk through the aisle of a retail store and you receive notifications on your smartphone regarding what items are on sale. You also receive digital coupons, airline miles or other offers to entice more purchases. Mobile in-store updates are intended to increase a shopper's awareness of current promotions as well as increase the amount of time a shopper spends inside the store. These notifications also suggest products based on your purchase history.
Nearly three-fourths of millennials say they're willing to receive location-based mobile alerts, according to Digital Marketing Institute, and according to ANA, shopper marketing is expected to increase to $18.6 billion by 2020.
The Takeaway
The age-old practice of marketing requires people who know what they're doing. The modern marketer must be willing to experiment, change gears and if needed, defy convention. While today's digital ecosystem features new tech and innovation, top talent remains key to getting ROI. Programmatic requires manual intervention in order to find the right parameters, analytics need sound interpretation, location-based promotions need the right offers at the right time, video marketing needs a solid understanding of the audience — and so on.
Social and video marketing, analytics, native ads, programmatic, in-store mobile offers, content marketing and other digital techniques are all changing the profession, but the basis for long-term success is unchanged: Human marketers must be determined to adapt.
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d700a6136498a21a310fb579a08b4b30
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https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbescommunicationscouncil/2017/09/19/retail-as-marketing-redefining-the-retail-experience/
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Retail As Marketing: Redefining The Retail Experience
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Retail As Marketing: Redefining The Retail Experience
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In the pre-digital era, the relationship between brick-and-mortar retail stores and their customers was largely transactional— places to fulfill supply and demand. Yet as online commerce continues to grow exponentially, the role of the retail store is shifting from purely pragmatic to more experiential. Moving forward, the key to survival for retail stores may rely on their ability to act as a living showcase for products and brands.
Take Coach, for instance, which has made some radical yet effective changes in its approach. Last year, the company pulled its line of handbags and accessories out of 25% of its North American department store locations — choosing instead to focus energies on its own stores. Chief among those stores is the new Coach flagship location in New York, which elevates the ordinary shopping experience with special touches like a monogramming station (replete with emojis), a 12-foot dinosaur fashioned out of Coach leather pieces, and Made to Order Rogue (which gives shoppers the ability to create a bespoke Rogue bag).
Tesla and Nike are also among the companies leading the charge to create new associations with the traditional retail experience. For luxury car manufacturer Tesla, the dealership concept has made way for direct-to-consumer stores and galleries. Sleek interactive displays and on-site demos educate shoppers about the brand's electric vehicles, while design studios enable would-be Tesla owners to configure their desired model (which they can then share on social media). As Automotive News put it, "The idea is less to sell a product on the spot than to let shoppers spend time with the brand." It seems to be working: Reservations for Tesla's Model 3 are reported at around 400,000.
As for Nike, its new concept store in Soho adopts an omnichannel-style approach to marry the company's virtual and physical offerings. The goal? To offer dynamic tools for personalized performance. Among the in-store features: an instant personalization studio with laser engraving and custom printing capabilities and a fitting room with digital checkout and adaptive lighting (to mimic the feel of a yoga studio or evening run). Numerous "trial zones" offer inviting spaces for shoppers to test shoes, whether on a synthetic turf soccer field or on a basketball half court. For instance, the Nike+ Running Trial Zone transforms the treadmill into a 90-second run in Central Park or the West Side Highway via digital screen (fueled by real-time performance feedback).
The Shifting Role Of Stores
This new breed of experiential retail signals the movement toward stores as vehicles for marketing rather than just straightforward sales. Though e-commerce provides instant gratification through savvy search engines and easy one-click buying, there is still no replacement for the sensory touchpoint provided by a brick-and-mortar location where customers can touch, feel and evaluate the product in person. Retailers that recognize this distinction will certainly have an edge in the rapidly changing marketplace, in which the number of distressed retailers has tripled since the Great Recession, according to Moody's Investor Service.
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The proof? Highly successful online retailers such as Amazon, Fabletics and Warby Parker have all ventured beyond the digital landscape to open physical stores in recent years. Though it may seem counterintuitive in today's rocky retail climate, these retailers are finding real value in reaching customers the old-fashioned way. According to Amazon's Chief Financial Officer Brian Olsavsky, the retailer's burgeoning chain of bookstores is "another way [for the company] to reach the customer and test what resonates with them."
No matter how long a retailer has been in the brick-and-mortar game, its longevity will depend on not only its ability to create enhanced experiences for customers but its unique take on how to keep them coming back. One shining example is Nordstrom, which is slated to open 17 new stores this year (amid a landslide of closures for other department stores). The retailer has long been hailed for excellent customer service, from hassle-free returns to hand-delivering items to homes. Whole Foods has also succeeded in this vein, going to great lengths to ensure an inviting environment with colorful displays and carefully-curated playlists.
This "feel-good" takeaway is yet another aspect that is largely exclusive to the real-life shopping realm, and it goes hand-in-hand with shaping the new face of retail. Now is the vital time for retailers to embrace these realizations, as many shoppers still prefer buying from physical stores over shopping online — and forward-thinking, experientially-minded retailers have a shot at keeping it that way.
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https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbescommunicationscouncil/2017/09/29/stop-reinventing-the-marketing-wheel-this-is-why-your-campaign-failed/
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Stop Reinventing The Marketing Wheel: This Is Why Your Campaign Failed
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Stop Reinventing The Marketing Wheel: This Is Why Your Campaign Failed
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Stop playing the victim. Marketers tend to blame a number of different reasons for less-than-successful campaigns: lower budgets, slow quarters, ineffective operations, unmotivated sales teams. Sure, those variables may have played into a bad campaign, but overall it’s on us. It’s our campaign, so let’s take responsibility. We’re the first people to be blamed, we’re the first to be considered for layoffs by HR and our budgets keep the entire accounting team awake at night.
The first step in breaking a bad habit is accepting reality, so here’s a little help from me: Your team won’t create the next groundbreaking idea. Recent estimates speculate that the average American will see anywhere from 250 to thousands of marketing messages every single day. Every idea has literally already been done. The renaissance of advertising happened in the 1960s; from there we’ve just been tinkering with what worked and translating it to new media. This is why your campaign failed – you didn’t accept the reality that your idea isn’t new.
Don’t reinvent the wheel. Study the masters of your industry and tailor each campaign to fit your product or service.
Work smarter, not harder: Find concepts from previous campaigns.
The worst enemy of a marketer is their ego. I’m blunt because I can speak from experience on this: More often than not, my desire to create something different and unique hindered me from creating something that converted. Don’t let your ego get in the way when you’re brainstorming. Look to past campaigns, both internally and externally, to build upon an idea and make it bigger and better than the last.
A perfect case study for this sort of thinking is Apple. Its advertising is some of the coolest and most effective across all media. I vividly remember watching iPod ads as a kid and becoming fascinated with the product and brand. The bright colors, the silhouettes of people dancing, the music -- all made the experience feel electric. This doesn’t stop with the iPod. The Mac versus PC campaign. The iPad launch. They’re all marketing gold and all rooted in simplicity.
Now consider the current ads Apple is running for the iPhone – not much different than those early iPod ads. Striking imagery, more realistic due to the Instagram generation and the need to document our every move, and simple as always. Simple was key for Apple and has continued to be its main creative requirement.
Forbes Communications Council is an invitation-only community for executives in successful public relations, media strategy, creative and advertising agencies. Do I qualify?
Trust me, if simplicity and similar concepts worked for Apple, they can work for you.
Use demographic research and targeting that’s worked for others in the past.
Data is everything in communications. There’s rarely a good reason for launching full-scale campaigns unless we know three things:
• Who we’re targeting
• Why we’re targeting them
• Their purchase behaviors
Without those three items, a carefully crafted message will be lost on individuals who had no business seeing your ad, to begin with.
Go with what works, or with what competitors are targeting. Carefully create an audience that has worked for someone notable in your industry and tailor the product, service, message and market slightly to segment the right niche for you. I think about it like this in my own work: The chemical dependency field is unique because the people who need our services will most likely not be the inquirers. Individuals who need treatment will be more responsive to a Kylie Jenner lip kit message because of their aspirational appeal and age range. In the current opioid epidemic, young people between 18-30 are dying at alarming rates so one would think that demographic would be the target market, but it’s not.
It’s the parents and loved ones who are the decision makers when it comes to rehabilitation. So, we look at other industries and campaigns that target this parental 45-65 demographic to see what has worked for them.
Here's where real estate comes into play. Real-estate and substance-abuse marketing are more similar than you might think. Both messages are targeting a specific group of people during situational needs. Both target the same general age range and financial scenarios, and both must make logical yet emotional appeals. The old adage is “you buy a house from a friend, not a realtor.” The same is true for treatment — you check in to the program where you speak to people you trust, not the ones recommended by insurance. So, my team and I dissected what was working for successful real-estate firms in Austin to drive admissions up 27% in a single quarter. Compare this to the national average for treatment admissions which have sat at 3% for a decade. With some simple messaging tweaks and targeting, our team discovered we were able to drive admissions up 9x.
Recap, recon, recreate.
After the creative team has spent weeks creating the perfect campaign that everyone finally agrees on, the most important part of a campaign is the recap. It’s vital that we continue to track how messaging reaches our audiences and test what versions create the best outcomes.
Think of it as an investment: Each campaign is an opportunity to either learn and gather knowledge or grow your business. Of course, the goal is to always continue generating revenue and look out for the organization’s continued prosperity, but finding new pieces of information that can craft future campaigns can be just as valuable.
New York City advertiser and TWBA executive Richard W. Lewis said it best in his 1996 book about the wildly successful Absolut Vodka campaign – one that still runs to this day:
“The Absolut Vodka advertising campaign has been running nonstop for 15 years, since 1981. This is remarkable because, in the advertising business, campaigns can change as often as every year, as marketers attempt to keep their brands’ personalities fresh. When the campaign began in 1981, Absolut was selling about 20,000 cases annually in the U.S.A.; [in 1996], sales were over 3 million cases — an increase of 14,900%.”
Imagine what would have happened if someone tried to create something different. It wasn’t just learning to stop reinventing the wheel; it was about staying the course. Find what works, stick with it and let it grow.
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https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbescommunicationscouncil/2017/10/04/recruitment-trends-blockchain-technology-and-technologists/
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Recruitment Trends: Blockchain Technology And Technologists
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Recruitment Trends: Blockchain Technology And Technologists
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What is blockchain?
Blockchain is a technology that powers cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin. It helps a group of computers maintain an auditable ledger of transaction history on anything and provides transparency between all parties involved. There is no central authority required (like a credit card company required to sit between buyers and sellers). Each transaction is a "block" held by various participants and the "chain" of blocks visible to everyone documents the entire history (of who paid whom, who owns what).
These peer-to-peer decentralized networks enable developers to create markets for transactions of goods and services, without a middleman. This can drastically reduce the time it takes to make and log transactions as well as the cost and labor involved in property transfers.
Example One
When you buy a car, there are multiple parties involved and a number of financial transactions. You want to check the car's ownership history, if there were any accidents or repairs, connect with a title agency, maybe get financing from a lender, etc. You could write these conditions into the blockchain in such a way that the entire transaction is transparent to all parties and happens quickly without a lot of effort. The transaction history will move with the car through its entire life as well, making it just as easy for anyone to purchase it and do the research moving forward.
The way we manage this information today creates room for error and enables corruption in data, whether it is intentional or not.
Example Two
You are looking to purchase the finest apple the world has ever seen. You could look through the blockchain to see where the seeds were purchased, where the apple was grown, pesticides that were used (if any) and the current owner of the apple. Purchase the apple and add your transaction to the blockchain.
Worldwide Adoption Of Blockchain Technology
Technology is changing the way we do business and opening up new markets and recruitment opportunities. We have seen major growth within various industries where emerging markets require immediate organizational development and expansion. The tech and finance sectors are continuing to evolve, specifically with the increase in popularity of blockchain technology.
In a recent Deloitte study, 28% of those surveyed reported that their companies have already invested $5 million or more in blockchain technology; 10% have invested $10 million or more. And 25% expect to invest more than $5 million in blockchain technology in the next year.
Forbes Communications Council is an invitation-only community for executives in successful public relations, media strategy, creative and advertising agencies. Do I qualify?
According to LinkedIn, the need for blockchain expert talent within the industry is at an all-time high. Companies like Microsoft, Walmart, Barclays and IBM have already implemented blockchain technology. According to the Financial Times (subscription required), most of the people who list blockchain as a skill on LinkedIn are based in the U.S., the U.K., France, India, Germany and the Netherlands. There is no question that more countries are soon to follow.
Industries Currently Using Blockchain Technology
Industries that are already leveraging blockchain technology include: government, accounting, marketing, insurance, construction, pharmaceuticals, finance, healthcare, retail, hospitality, technology, distribution and mining/diamond.
In response to the demand for talent, many U.S. universities are adding blockchain to their course lists, such as NYU, Duke, Stanford, Berkeley and Princeton. IBM is also partnering with 1,000 universities to establish a series of grants and provide open resources to train the next generation of talent.
Blockchain Positions On The Rise
Blockchain positions are increasing accordingly, including: blockchain developers, analysts, data architects/engineers, emerging technology consultants, technical specialists, content marketers, security experts, marketing/sales, compliance officers, product managers and recruiter/talent acquisition pros.
What It Means For Talent Acquisition
Companies around the world are moving quickly to adopt blockchain technology. It makes sense that the job market will have to adapt. For starters, you can update your recruitment database and make sure that you are capturing all the new attributes of skills, assessing potential candidates along these vectors and reorienting your talent pipelines accordingly. These positions are in high demand and the market for talent that possesses these skills happens to be limited.
If your recruitment team is looking to expand within emerging markets, developing relationships within the blockchain community is a good start.
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https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbescommunicationscouncil/2017/10/16/exploring-industry-disruption-two-sided-marketplace-dynamics/
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Exploring Industry Disruption: Two-Sided Marketplace Dynamics
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Exploring Industry Disruption: Two-Sided Marketplace Dynamics
A man poses holding a smartphone showing the App for ride-sharing cab service Uber in London on September 22, 2017.London transport authorities announced Friday they would not renew Uber's licence to operate in the city when it expires on September 30 for safety reasons, although it has three weeks to appeal. / AFP PHOTO / Ben FATHERS (Photo credit should read BEN FATHERS/AFP/Getty Images)
Two-sided marketplaces are fast becoming key players in every industry. A two-sided marketplace allows suppliers and customers to interact with one another and creates value through an intermediary platform. Uber in the transportation industry, Airbnb in housing and Upwork in the gig economy are common examples of two-sided marketplaces bringing industry-wide disruption. Even the arts and crafts industry is getting disrupted by platforms like Etsy, which helps artisans sell handmade and vintage goods to niche customers.
Two-sided marketplace business models are also helping to tackle global issues. Companies like HeroX are connecting brands and innovators to solve the world's most challenging problems.
Two-sided marketplaces are simply more productive than traditional business models.
Marketplaces help their customers tap into the power of the crowd. They have a higher speed of delivery and the supplier-to-customer ratio is often greater than one. The customer has the power to choose the right balance between speed of delivery, cost and quality of service. The winner is the one that can provide the fastest, best or most economical service.
It's difficult to build a two-sided marketplace.
Running and building a two-sided marketplace is a fine balancing act between managing and predicting supply and demand, building a technology that facilitates faster and more efficient service, and creating a robust customer experience, all while managing the ups and downs of seasonality.
Let's take a deeper look at what really drives two-sided marketplaces.
1. A scalable payment model: Most marketplaces rely on automated algorithms or standard pricing models to enable faster service to clients, lucrative earnings for suppliers and a healthy profit for themselves. It would be impossible for a human to facilitate every transaction on a marketplace, and therefore creating a scalable pricing model is perhaps the hardest yet most important component to figure out.
It's even harder to change the model at a later stage as the marketplace scales due to the many customers and suppliers who are already part of it. There are many examples of marketplaces that scaled on the wrong pricing model and couldn't change it later because the customer's expectations were already set. This is exactly what leaves room for competitors to come in and change the game.
2. A dynamic incentive model: By its default nature, a two-sided marketplace will have to manage fluctuating supply and demand. That's where a dynamic incentive model (e.g., surge pricing) comes in. Suppliers need an incentive to provide service at odd hours or to meet shorter deadlines, whereas customers need high speed of delivery when supply is low and times are difficult. This is extremely tricky to navigate. We all know how much damage control on-demand ride-sharing services have on their hands because of surge pricing, especially during humanitarian crises when unit economics break down and public sentiment takes over.
Forbes Communications Council is an invitation-only community for executives in successful public relations, media strategy, creative and advertising agencies. Do I qualify?
3. An element of curation: Successful marketplaces need to meet a certain standard of service, but marketplaces usually can't control the quality of service provided by their suppliers. Uber, after all, cannot control how its drivers choose to treat riders and vice versa. What they can do is provide some sort of curation in terms of minimum standards, quality checks to enter the platform and guidelines or non-negotiable rules.
At this point, most marketplaces have moved to using a dynamic curation model or gamification where both suppliers and buyers are constantly rated and matched in real time. No wonder traditional business models are being challenged by this.
4. Service tiering: Tiers help marketplaces classify suppliers to create smaller crowds within the big crowd. UberPool versus UberX is an obvious example. Tiering exists on some level in all two-sided marketplaces because it helps better supplier-buyer matching while enabling the marketplace to increase profits. Another example is Upwork, which enables you to engage a freelancer on a one-time or repetitive basis through a varied pricing system.
5. Data-driven automation: Due to the scalable nature of a marketplace, it can start collecting a large stream of location, behavioral, personal, demographical and business-related data. Using machine learning and data science, marketplaces are able to predict future demand and create supply at the right time. For example, a marketplace like Upwork can predict what kind of freelancer will be more in demand in the future and start building a talent pool to meet that need.
Conceptually, two-sided marketplaces seem simple, but what goes on behind the scenes defines their success. Once these dynamics have been successfully established, it is only a matter of time before we see the disruption of an entire industry, the creation of an entirely new workforce and billions flowing in venture capital.
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https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbescommunicationscouncil/2017/10/25/gaining-the-upper-hand-in-the-new-healthcare-marketing-landscape/
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Gaining The Upper Hand In The New Healthcare Marketing Landscape
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Gaining The Upper Hand In The New Healthcare Marketing Landscape
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Patient behaviors and expectations are changing rapidly — and as a result, so is the world of healthcare marketing.
With the rise of urgent care centers, retail clinics and telemedicine in recent years, consumers now have access to a more diverse array of healthcare options. They are also more involved with their care decisions due to higher health insurance premiums and co-pays. Furthermore, they have grown accustomed to finding answers to their healthcare-related questions in a matter of moments thanks to the internet.
Unfortunately, there are still many healthcare organizations that have failed to adapt. Is yours one of them? If so, this has placed you at a significant disadvantage in your industry, which is only becoming increasingly competitive. Today, healthcare providers need to stay 10 steps ahead with healthcare marketing strategies or risk becoming irrelevant — or at least less visible — to prospective patients.
Let’s explore three key strategies your organization can implement to gain the upper hand in the new healthcare marketing landscape.
1. Be present where the attention is: online.
There’s no doubt about it — attention has shifted to the internet. Consider the fact that 88% of U.S. adults use the internet today, compared to just 52% in 2000, according to data from Pew Research Center. And this trend isn’t limited to younger generations: Americans age 65 and older have been identified as the demographic with the fastest internet usage adoption rate since 2000.
Prospective patients are now more inclined to use the internet to look up information related to their healthcare. Google reported that one in every 20 Google searches are for health-related information, and a Pew Research Center survey found that 62% of smartphone owners have looked up health information on their phones within the past year.
With the upswing in popularity of mobile devices, accessing the internet has become easier than ever — making it inevitable that patients will continue to rely more heavily on digital media.
The best way for healthcare organizations to reach their ideal audiences and increase brand awareness is to go where patients are already dedicating their attention. They need to invest in more online marketing efforts and claim a presence across various digital channels, from their websites to search engines to social media platforms like Facebook and Instagram.
2. Think about the patient’s online experience.
Remember, online user experience matters — just like patient satisfaction matters in the treatment room. In many cases, prospective patients will research your healthcare services and facilities online before scheduling an appointment. If their first experience interacting with your organization is a negative one (even if it’s online), they may be left with a poor impression and choose another provider.
Here are a few questions to consider:
• Does my website have a modern and mobile-friendly design?
• Is it easy and intuitive to navigate?
• Does it immediately answer the visitor’s most important questions?
• Are my social media posts and ads relevant to my target audience?
• Are my posts and ads actually driving engagement?
Forbes Communications Council is an invitation-only community for executives in successful public relations, media strategy, creative and advertising agencies. Do I qualify?
3. Track your marketing results.
There’s a famous saying attributed to 19th-century entrepreneur and marketing pioneer John Wanamaker: “Half the money I spend on advertising is wasted; the trouble is I don’t know which half.” The key to effective healthcare marketing is tracking data and using that information to improve results.
This is a common struggle for healthcare marketers — especially those who heavily invest in traditional marketing channels such as television, radio and billboards, which are more difficult to track from a patient-conversion perspective.
The great benefit of digital marketing is the transparency behind it, as marketers can track how their audiences are actually engaging with their digital campaigns in real time. They can track metrics such as time spent on the page, numbers of pages viewed, clicks and conversions (such as calls or completed web forms).
Data-driven marketing is not only essential for validating current marketing efforts -- it also provides valuable insights into how campaigns can be fine-tuned for better results down the road.
Are you meeting patients in their online journey?
Remember, consumers are demanding more from healthcare providers today as they seek out care options. If you want to keep your healthcare organization competitive, you will need to meet prospective patients right where they’re at in their online journey and anticipate their needs — and that goes hand in hand with claiming a strong online presence, delivering a great user experience and using data to optimize your marketing campaign efficiency.
What could your organization do to improve in each of these areas?
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https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbescommunicationscouncil/2017/11/16/continuing-success-nine-methods-to-repurpose-strong-marketing-campaigns/
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Continuing Success: Nine Methods To Repurpose Strong Marketing Campaigns
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Continuing Success: Nine Methods To Repurpose Strong Marketing Campaigns
Campaigns require a great deal of work. Not only do you need to generate the idea, you also have to figure out which audiences you want to reach and what language or medium best reaches them. You must design graphics while making sure your imagery clearly conveys the messaging of your organization. All of these steps cost resources and time.
When you have created a strong campaign, one that engages your target audience, it seems wasteful to set it aside after its initial run. Instead, consider repurposing that content for later marketing efforts.
Below, nine communications executives from Forbes Communications Council share their top tips for creating something new out of your best former campaigns.
These communications executives share their top tips for making old campaigns new again. All photos courtesy of Forbes Councils members.
1. Learn from experience.
Every campaign, even highly successful ones, has elements that work and some that don’t. It is crucial that you learn from past experience. Determine what it was about your most successful campaigns that resonated with your audience and use that as the foundation for your next. Was it the right mix of delivery methods? The point of view the message was delivered from? The visual style used? - Brandi Wessel, Chaparral Energy
2. Always acknowledge what you've learned.
It’s easy to forget that your end user is a real-life person. My number one tip to all marketers who have gained success from their past efforts is to acknowledge and build upon it. If I run a campaign for a month that helps my company grow exponentially, the following month I’m going to follow it up with: “Since last month's event was received with such great feedback, we’ve decided to...” - Ani Stepanian, Mercer Vine
3. Reuse content in different formats.
Have a high-performing blog post? Or a video that viewers rave about? Reuse your best performing content to reduce effort. Recycling content can include taking a blog post and turning it into an infographic or video, taking a video and making it into a podcast or several shorter videos, taking an infographic and turning it into an e-book and more. Save time while keeping your audience engaged. - Holly Chessman, Holly Chessman Marketing
4. Build webinars off of popular blog content.
In most cases, a marketing team will produce much more blog content than they will webinar content. A helpful strategy in repurposing and creating something new from something old is to review your best performing blog posts from the past and recreate that topic in webinar form. It's an easy way to recycle content topics that you know people will like. - Noah Mithrush, Evisions
5. Leverage email automation.
When a marketing campaign is hugely successful, why let it end and be a past success? Repurpose the program into an email automation program that continues to push the theme and core messages by email. This reaches newer prospects in your funnel who came in after the initial campaign, so to them what's old is new again. - Jennifer Best, ConnectYourCare
Forbes Communications Council is an invitation-only community for executives in successful public relations, media strategy, creative and advertising agencies. Do I qualify?
6. Review the analytics.
Review the analytics before getting started to ensure that you're repurposing the most engaged portions of the previous campaign. Ensure that the content itself is evergreen and connected with the current brand voice. Refresh the associated artwork to match current trends. For digital campaigns, consider updating the campaign incentive by adding a personalized URL with a unique landing page. - Alysia Gradney, Vision Source
7. Update the imagery.
Reposting successful, engaging content is a smart marketing strategy, but when doing so, make sure to update the creative images, especially if you ran the story one season and you are now running it in another. Make it look and appear current with new visuals. A new color palette for the season may be just enough to make it pop again! - Judy Herbst, Worthy Inc
8. Learn from 'The Fast and the Furious' franchise.
Congratulations — you've got a hit! You've connected with your audience and they are engaged. Do not overthink your success, or worse, change the formula. Freshen up the story, introduce new elements and characters, and deliver a sequel that will keep your audience coming back for more. - Lou Casale, Hiscox USA9. Target the non-converters and new prospects.
When a marketer creates a successful campaign, it is not only important to keep the creative fresh but also target the right audiences. While a successful campaign may be widely distributed or have converted many people, there are always prospective customers who have not seen the campaign, or have seen it but did not convert. An effective approach is to target the non-converters and new prospects. - Lu Chen, THINX
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https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbescommunicationscouncil/2017/12/06/get-smarter-with-artificial-intelligence-11-ways-marketers-can-leverage-ai/
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Get Smarter With Artificial Intelligence: 11 Ways Marketers Can Leverage AI
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Get Smarter With Artificial Intelligence: 11 Ways Marketers Can Leverage AI
Artificial intelligence may have once been the stuff of science fiction, but businesses across industries are now using this budding technology to make their operations more efficient. For example, companies may use chatbots to engage current and potential customers, freeing up human agents to do more strategic work.
But chatbots are only the beginning. Every day, companies like Google, Microsoft, IBM and Amazon find new ways to help businesses of any size use AI to gain an edge over their competitors.
Below, 11 communications executives from Forbes Communications Council share how marketing and PR professionals can best leverage modern AI capabilities in creative ways. From improving the user experience to increasing productivity, here's what they had to say.
These communications executives share AI applications they're excited about. All photos courtesy of Forbes Councils members.
1. Use chatbots to begin the customer journey.
Chatbots can help businesses connect with users at the beginning of their journey, providing guidance and offering new features. If a purchase is straightforward, bots offer an inexpensive, convenient way to move customers toward transaction completion. The key is not to forget to provide an easy way to transition to human customer service when conversations or requirements become complex. - Holly Chessman, Holly Chessman Marketing
2. Automate everything that isn't creative.
I started developing marketing automation to cover for me while I would be on maternity leave. Through AI, I ruthlessly removed any and all manual tasks from my plate, leveraged third-party tools and improved our own internal tech to get my job done. The result was that things ran smoothly while I was out and when I returned I was freed up to work on higher value and more creative projects. - Lauren Alexander, Neurohacker Collective
3. Let the data drive you.
Through the use of AI, data-driven PR efforts are easier to develop and implement. AI allows you to sort through big data by creating efficiencies that fine tune brand voice from controlled communication channels to reputation management efforts. Utilize a monitoring tool like Meltwater to analyze real-time conversations and extract key phrases and insights to raise awareness for your brand. - Alysia Gradney, Vision Source
4. Track trends and find opportunities.
Marketers should use tools that scan thousands of data points and surface relevant or trending topics, like Hootsuite's sentiment analysis tools, BuzzSumo or Google Trends. These AI tools can help marketing and comms professionals spot rapid response PR opportunities, surface relevant influencers in the space and suggest new ideas for campaigns and content. - Nadja Blagojevic, Axiom
5. Combine AI and human teams for better service and sales.
Integrate AI into your human customer service team. Computers and humans can learn from each other to create better service and sales. Pick your top 10 sales agents and have your AI learn the best responses and actions from these overachievers. AI will then use that knowledge to coach underperforming agents on what to say and do, raising their level of performance. - Eileen Canady, SYKES
6. Optimize the consumer's journey.
Creating personalized site experiences is something beyond human capabilities, but easily accomplished with AI. Marketers should leverage data collection tools to gather useful data about each customer. We can use those critical data points to provide a highly personalized consumer journey with AI. Consumers, on the other hand, appreciate the white-glove service and elevated digital experience. - Lu Chen, THINX
Forbes Communications Council is an invitation-only community for executives in successful public relations, media strategy, creative and advertising agencies. Do I qualify?
7. Use AI bots to save time and resources.
A little-known secret of PR professionals is news-writing bots that produce stories and press releases using artificial intelligence. You can feed data and basic template information into the AI platform and watch it crank out draft stories while you focus on higher-return items. Using these bots takes some practice, but they’re a great tool that can help streamline your PR efforts. - Brandie Claborn, McAfee
8. Use conversational AI to move from push to pull.
Research shows consumers don't mind talking to a bot if it's helpful. Consumers do mind, however, being bombarded with intrusive marketing messages. Conversational AI can work to your advantage by creating personalized, timely experiences that add value beyond a sale. In our digital economy, loyalty is king and customers reward relationships. Conversation is one of the quickest ways to get there. - Jennifer Kyriakakis, MATRIXX Software
9. Benchmark against your industry peers and predict the future.
The best use of AI for marketing and PR professionals is leveraging benchmarks from anonymized data to see how their organization’s performance stacks up against industry peers. AI can also use anomaly detection and correlate events to identify patterns that are likely to result in a future issue. I don't know a marketing or PR professional that wouldn't like the ability to predict the future. - Laurie Ehrbar, ServiceNow
10. AI is only as good as the data that goes into it.
Focus on the AI your customers use – things like voice search and assistants. AI is only as good as the data that goes into it, so make it better by feeding it the highest quality data about your business. To do that, start by creating a central source of truth inside your organization because there's no way for the AI to know the answer if you don't. - Elizabeth Walton, Yext
11. Give your bots a personality.
You've worked hard to develop a unique voice that is consistent with your ad campaigns, marketing materials, social profiles and in-person interactions. Automation opportunities abound, so giving personality and identity to your bot while honoring human connection is paramount. AI experiences should be an extension of your voice – an opportunity to showcase your personality to an engaged community. - Andrew Caravella, Sprout Social
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7ab5e6b1ae2509263975dcf82b5e8787
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https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbescommunicationscouncil/2017/12/27/speaking-video-how-businesses-are-communicating-with-customers-today/
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Speaking Video: How Businesses Are Communicating With Customers Today
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Speaking Video: How Businesses Are Communicating With Customers Today
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In today’s video-first world, it’s no surprise that more and more businesses are switching their focus to match the demands of their audience. The majority of millennial consumers prefer to get their information in video format across platforms like Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. But video isn’t a brand-new world to navigate -- it’s a way to amplify your existing marketing strategy. It’s as simple as taking your current social media efforts, blog posts and emails and reworking them into video.
Use what you have.
Translating content you already have into video format is the simplest and most efficient way to get started with video. There’s no need to brainstorm storylines or set aside an additional budget to create brand-new content. You can create a video in minutes using existing photos or videos and plugging them into pre-built storyboards like Buffer did when it repurposed one of its blog posts to create a Facebook video.
Consistency breeds visibility.
In terms of strategy, creating compelling videos should go hand in hand with fostering regular communication with your audience. When used simultaneously, these tactics help keep your brand on the forefront. Consistently appearing in your customer feeds is an easy way to connect and stay relevant. Keep the lines of communication open with weekly, even daily video. Generating a steady flow of content gives your business visibility by placing you higher up on customer feeds.
How can you stay on top of the feed?
• Have a plan. Stumped for ideas? Pull out a calendar and plan a video post for each holiday.
• Be intentional. Set realistic goals for posting. According to a survey my company recently conducted, 48% of marketers create four or more videos a month. Put aside 30 minutes to an hour each week to create.
• Experiment! Try different types of marketing videos (announcements, product demos, testimonials) and see what gets the most engagement. Try varying where and when you post to see what works best for your brand. Then, deliver content on the platforms where your audience is already active and engaged.
Be succinct.
Cutting through the newsfeed frenzy can be a challenge when advertising on social. For small businesses, video is instrumental in solving this problem. And it is most effective when conveying one concept at a time. Be intentional about breaking up your ideas to ensure that viewers are watching your video content until the end. One short video a day is better than one long video a month. Not to mention, you’ll have more to work with if you break up a longer video into two or even three shorter videos.
How can you stay concise with video?
• Think in terms of bite-size content. Drive engagement by keeping it brief and effective, like sharing a Black Friday promotion video.
• Stick to one idea. If you’re talking about a sale, don’t introduce a new product or testimonial. With video ads, the bare minimum is often the most effective.
• Take a look at the last video you made. Does it have more than one idea? If yes, cut it down to one main point and use the rest of the video as content for your next video adventure.
Forbes Communications Council is an invitation-only community for executives in successful public relations, media strategy, creative and advertising agencies. Do I qualify?
There’s no denying that video is here to stay. Incorporating it into your existing to-dos is the easiest and fastest way to elevate your marketing efforts. Use these tips to create regularly and effectively, and get started today.
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cc07dd0887743e24c8433a7334c00b40
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https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbescommunicationscouncil/2018/01/03/how-to-launch-a-digital-company-in-one-day/
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How To Launch A Digital Company In One Day
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How To Launch A Digital Company In One Day
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Launching a digital company in one day sounds outrageous, but in reality it’s completely feasible. I spent a day putting a website together to prove that it only takes a few hours of concentrated work to create and launch a web company, as long as you have a solid idea. Please keep in mind that the marketing for your new company is a completely different beast.
Why have I chosen to show you such a down and dirty website/company launch? Because I can’t tell you how many times I’ve heard from colleagues about all the cool ideas they have but have never bothered to work on because the project was too large or too labor intensive. This article is here to show you that you’re only one day away from launching your idea.
I’ve broken down this case study of my own website launch into five easy-to-follow steps:
1. The Idea
The only thing stopping you is yourself, so pick whatever idea you’ve been mulling around in your head. Would you love to blog about area restaurants? Done. That’s your idea. Have you always wanted to share your recipes and food photos with the world? Do it. My pie-in-the-sky idea has always been to have a freelance marketing agency.
• Case Study Idea: marketing agency
2. Name & Logo
Now, this two-part step is where everyone gets hung up. Don't spend days, weeks or months thinking about this because it will never be what you want it to be. Pick an idea and run with it. Do you think Google thought its name and brand would have such notoriety when it was picking it? Nope. You can’t anticipate a Google phenomenon so don’t attempt to create one. Pick a name that will work for now and you can address changing it down the road if you’re unhappy with it. Your brand and company make the name important, not the other way around.
Once you have a name, you need a logo. I suggest using any of the freelance websites out there to hire someone affordable and fast to put something together for you, such as UpWork, Fiverr, 99designs, etc.
• Case Study Name: inLA (Not creative at all, but I think it’s just obscure enough to garner some attention.)
• Case Study Logo: I’m by no means a halfway decent designer, but I do have some Photoshop knowledge so I picked an easy, clean font (Helvetica) and I Frankenstein-ed part of an ornate letter to create the emblem. You can see the logo on our website header: inla.io
3. Domain & Website
I know many people let their company name be dictated by what domains are available, but this can halt your creative process and slow down the launch of your company. As you can imagine, it’s nearly impossible to find a domain that isn’t already taken. If you’re a tech/marketing company, consider using an .io site in place of a .com. Now, putting up a website may seem to be the most daunting task imaginable but with services like Squarespace, you can throw up a theme and website in under an hour. That’s exactly what I did.
• Case Study Domain: inla.io -- .io websites are all the rage now in the tech and marketing space. This may not be the right avenue for your company, but it’s worth a shot.
• Case Study Website: I jumped on Squarespace and picked the cleanest and simplest website theme I could find. As this is a marketing agency site, I didn’t need an e-commerce backend or a large blogging plug-in for now.
Forbes Communications Council is an invitation-only community for executives in successful public relations, media strategy, creative and advertising agencies. Do I qualify?
4. Content
Here’s another step where many people get hung up. If you’re a blogger, you don’t need 15 pre-written articles to launch. You just need one. A single article can help you launch that blog.
• Case Study Content: For my marketing agency website, I just needed some basic information about who I am, what validates me as an industry expert and what services I offer. Do not try to tackle content by imagining every single piece of information that may be useful. Pick a handful of higher level topics and build upon those initially. I work with several other industry professionals when I freelance and I often pull them into freelance projects with me. It was easy for me to speak about the experience of my "team" because we all work together and consult on marketing projects as a group.
• Imagery: If you do not have custom photos you can use, there are several websites that offer free stock photos. Unsplash or Pexels are a couple examples.
5. Marketing
You have your idea, website and content. Now the real work begins. I’ve written several articles with step-by-step guides on how to best market your company. Learn more about marketing to the powerful millennial demographic here, and partnering with influencers to increase your reach here. Start there and build upon the momentum.
After spending a day creating and launching my pie-in-the-sky idea, I took away a few lessons that are crucial to not only launch the company but to be sure that I set it up for continued success. For starters, no matter how wonderful and thought out my idea might be, it can be rendered useless if I don’t continue with a strong launch and marketing push. Also, coming up with instant content on the fly proved rather difficult because I had to draw on all of my experience as a marketer in order to qualify myself on my new website. And finally, although I got the website and general concept of my company up and running, I quickly discovered that there was a slew of other tasks I’d have to take care of in the days to come (i.e., social profiles, email setups, DBA filings, etc.).
Spending eight hours powering through a quick launch will prove to be incredibly productive and momentous in launching an idea you’ve always had, but be prepared to follow it up with continued and consistent work and dedication.
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f5e2d52b66b0b9fb2b7647563919dc11
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https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbescommunicationscouncil/2018/01/23/e-commerce-best-practices-building-an-online-store/
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E-Commerce Best Practices: Building An Online Store
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E-Commerce Best Practices: Building An Online Store
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One of the biggest advantages of the digital era is the ability to buy and sell online. Shoppers enjoy a cozy shopping atmosphere while online retailers have access to a global market. No wonder the share of e-commerce retail sales is steadily growing.
Statistics reveal that retail e-commerce sales will amount to a whopping 4.4 trillion U.S. dollars worldwide by 2021. And yet nearly a third of American small businesses don't have a website. Online retailers in less developed markets miss out on even more opportunities.
Merging business model and web development awareness is a challenge that prevents many retailers from entering the digital commerce arena and expanding at the pace of recent technologies. My company has accumulated much expertise in the field, and this article is the first in a series of articles addressing how to harness the power of online B2B and B2C solutions.
Transitioning Your Business From Offline To Online
One of the easiest ways to expand a traditional offline company is by going online, especially if:
• the business model has proven profitability;
• there are internal systems already in place;
• the data the business uses can be analyzed to improve various prioritized factors.
Let's start by nailing down the architectural approach to developing an e-commerce solution. Building an online presence for an offline store requires a solid plan to transition to a multichannel model. This can involve either reorganizing the existing structure or adding staff to manage the diverse shipment and inventory management options, such as in-store pickup and inventory tracking.
Offline retailers going online should consider integrating ERP (enterprise resource planning) systems, which influences platform choice during the early stages of e-commerce solution development. Offline businesses like shops and restaurants might also consider using a web-based point of sale (POS) to keep customers happy and staff productive.
Consider planned implementation of inventory management and offline and online sales data synchronization while prioritizing your initial requirement list. This list is quite standard for online businesses, though implementation methods are diverse and depend on the specific business niche and company.
Hint: The first step is to conduct a thorough business analysis, choose the platform and technical basis for the e-commerce solution and prioritize implementation.
Redesigning Your Online Store
The concept of redesign is tricky. Why should a business invest in an online store if they already have a solution in place? Why not upgrade and add functionality to the existing e-commerce solution? The answer lies in tracking user behavior.
Web shop owners track multiple profit-influencing parameters, including bounce rate, time spent and cart abandonment. After analyzing user behavior and comparing current marketing ROI to revenue, shop owners realize the necessity of front-end and back-end changes. When it comes to front-end design, users prefer easier navigation and more catalogue items per page. It’s cheaper to follow design trends and retain customers by updating the look of your site, rather than sticking to an old-fashioned and ineffective design.
On the back-end of the website, owners should assess if the current system can display more categories, handle more orders, offer one-click purchases, support popular payment methods, ensure transaction security, etc. If limitations exist, think about changing the back-end platform and architecture.
This task is growing increasingly important, especially after the boom in e-commerce development that the market has experienced in recent years. Platforms are outdated, cannot comply with modern security standards and restrict businesses from growing revenue. Redesign can also be necessitated by a new business model, like going multichannel, omnichannel or even B2B, which changes the architecture of the existing e-commerce solution.
Hint: Start with setting priorities for the front-end and back-end and setting overall business goals, before deciding on web store redesign.
Building Your Online Store From Scratch
Current technology allows us to reduce the costs of launching an online business significantly by using frameworks and other solutions that help deploy an idea promptly and cost-effectively. The keys to success when starting a business are:
• being within the reach of the clientele;
• understanding the end customer, and;
• speaking the same language (sharing ideas, understanding needs and providing a user-friendly solution).
The first task is made easy by the internet, but the others are more of a challenge. Being within reach means unveiling a desktop, tablet and mobile-friendly store (at least), not to mention a clear user interface. Understanding the end customer means ensuring convenient payment and shipment methods, which guarantees a smooth shopping experience and higher retention.
Hint: Be on the customer's side. Analyze their needs so you can solve common customer issues.
If your brand is embarking on one of these e-commerce development projects, remember the important decision-making factors covered here and conduct a thorough analysis before making any big changes.
Forbes Communications Council is an invitation-only community for executives in successful public relations, media strategy, creative and advertising agencies. Do I qualify?
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535714ae4324c8dbe44a5e7505872c16
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https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbescommunicationscouncil/2018/01/30/the-future-of-ai-funding-accelerates-for-ai-startups/
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The Future Of AI: Funding Accelerates For AI Startups
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The Future Of AI: Funding Accelerates For AI Startups
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By 2020, AI technologies will have created a $1.2 trillion insights-driven market and filtered into almost all new software product and services. For years, personal assistants from Siri to Alexa have deepened big tech’s reach into our lives. Now, young startups are finding funding success to bring a host of other AI innovations to market.
For all the investments, most experts agree that natural language processing and machine learning are currently too nascent to go beyond narrow use cases. The limits of AI are what have us repeatedly shouting “representative” at the automated call center agent that just “didn’t get that.” For now.
But CES, the recent global consumer electronics show in Las Vegas, demoed a world of AI under iteration -- including Sophia the humanoid, self-driving cars and LG's concept robots that will deliver goods, check in hotel guests and guide shoppers through store aisles. We are speeding down the path of chatbots that can process human communications well enough to provide basic customer service specific to a machine's programmed area of expertise. This creates an opportunity for human workers in impacted sectors to offload repetitive tasks and take on more challenging roles.
Among early-stage AI startups, five seed and A rounds from December provide a glimpse of the near future of AI.
Safely accelerate research and product development for the $200 billion biopharma manufacturing industry?
Apprentice.io raised a $2.5 million seed round from Silverton Partners and Hemi Ventures for its augmented reality platform, which aims to transform manufacturing operators, scientists and engineers into “masterful controllers of their work environments.” Augmented reality displays critical data in a user’s line of sight at the appropriate time, helping the user perform complex tasks with increased accuracy gleaned from machine learning capabilities that flag deviations before an error occurs. CEO and co-founder Angelo Stracquatanio emphasizes, “We augment human ability.”
Scale farming organics?
FarmWise secured a $5.7 million seed round for its weeding robot to do just that. Playground Ventures, Felicis Ventures, Basis Set Ventures and Valley Oak Investments are looking to co-founders Sebastien Boyer and Thomas Palomares to help farmers tackle labor shortage and meet growing demand for pesticide-free produce. A user enters in a GPS geofence to set the area for the robot to weed. Computer vision and deep learning allow the platform to gather crop-level data and carry out tasks like weeding and thinning, which are crucial to sustainable organic farming.
Innovate customer service?
DigitalGenius raised a $14.75 million A round from Global Founders Capital, with participation from Salesforce Ventures, MMC Ventures, Paua Ventures, Kairos, Runa Capital, RRE Ventures, Lumia Capital, Compound, Spider Capital and Lerer Hippeau Ventures. Investors and customers (including KLM Royal Dutch Airlines, Unilever and Eurostar) are bullish on the technology, which CEO and co-founder Dmitry Aksenov calls an “intelligence layer on top of existing customer service platforms to automate and significantly speed up case resolution.”
Plan more resilient cities?
Natural disasters cost the U.S. $306 billion and 362 lives in 2017. After surviving 2014’s Kashmir flood, Ahmad Wani co-founded One Concern in 2015 to use AI to better prepare communities for disasters before, during and after. Its $20 million A round from NEA will fund the team’s mission of saving lives through the combination of machine learning, hazard modeling and AI. It assigns a unique digital fingerprint to natural and manmade elements from a rock to megacities. The insights will empower governments to minimize disaster damages, better plan cities and recover quicker.
Harness nature to improve our health?
Nuritas raised a $20 million series A round led by Cultivian Sandbox to develop a database of plant-based peptides that carry health benefits. It uses machine learning to speed up the identification of these peptides, which pharmaceutical, cosmetics and supplements companies can leverage for medical R&D and wellness products. As an example, Nuritas’ partnership with agrochemical giant BASF will launch an anti-inflammatory for sports nutrition this year.
AI innovation inspires optimism, with some caveats.
Looking at AI progress also requires addressing the social context of its collateral damage. Over the next two decades, robots could replace 47% of U.S. jobs. These numbers are grim, but viewing them in isolation is like calling the game outcome at halftime. Historically, humans are masterful adapters of our environment. We’ve been adapting to automation en masse since the Industrial Revolution. Instead of making us worse off, technology has improved working conditions and made goods and services more accessible to larger segments of the population. But the transition will be painful unless policymakers find a way to help people in endangered jobs future-proof their incomes.
Answers could come from career retraining programs, curriculum revamps in schools and universal income (which some governments are already piloting). If we adequately prepare workers, AI will unlock tremendous social benefits alongside business advantages. As I discuss in a previous article, we’re seeing this in security operations centers where automation and orchestration are freeing human workers from repetitive and mundane tasks to focus on more complex challenges.
Back to the near future of AI. The newest crop of funded startups are innovating AI fundamentals to save and better human lives in very different ways. Sustainable city planning and farming will help accommodate a growing global population, especially when factoring in climate change. Augmented reality for research and development and treatments from peptides discovery improve our quality of life. And though sales enablement is sector specific, it removes pain points for some of the most stressed workers. Quite possibly, the distant future of AI follows the usual trajectory of innovation: a more productive workforce and a higher quality of life.
Forbes Communications Council is an invitation-only community for executives in successful public relations, media strategy, creative and advertising agencies. Do I qualify?
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06b94609be97d7945d247cdb5285367a
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https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbescommunicationscouncil/2018/01/31/13-ways-your-business-can-win-more-media-exposure/
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13 Ways Your Business Can Win More Media Exposure
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13 Ways Your Business Can Win More Media Exposure
Maintaining visibility for your company’s brand is a consistent goal among communications professionals. You probably spend a lot of your time coordinating media opportunities to keep your company relevant and in the news.
Securing these media spots can be a challenge, but they are necessary to help your brand resonate with clients. Ensuring your company stays in the spotlight can mean the difference in whether or not you meet revenue goals each year.
Below, 13 communications executives from Forbes Communications Council share how you can create more media opportunities to position your team members as experts in the industry. Here is what they recommend:
These communications executives share strategies to turn the media spotlight toward your brand. All photos courtesy of Forbes Councils members.
1. Follow the headlines.
Offering reporters a quote on a national theme that relates to your brand can often lead to media placements big and small. Proactively reaching out to the press on a story that will only get bigger shows you are on top of the news cycle and that you know your subject matter. Online services like HARO (Help a Reporter Out) can also connect you with reporters in search of relevant quotes. - Ashley Murphy, Stribling & Associates
2. Actively engage your experts.
Our university experts play a key role in positioning our brand. They present at conferences around the globe and are actively involved in creating solutions to challenges facing their communities, such as rising sea levels and flooding in Norfolk, VA. We research emerging news trends and proactively pitch our experts to select national reporters and publish thought leadership columns and editorials. - Giovanna Genard, Old Dominion University
3. Utilize your digital presence.
Ensure that you are updating and utilizing your digital presence to position your brand as a thought leader. Keep website content fresh and add content as frequently as possible. Also, use social media posts to do the same so your digital presence speaks for itself when you reach out to trade publications or any other type of media. - Nishat Jones, Victory Packaging
4. Identify the white space.
To be a true thought leader in a saturated media landscape, you need to have a unique point of view. Identify the white space and gaps in the information being provided by other experts and develop insights that will add a fresh perspective to the conversation. You can't be a thought leader if you're following the pack. - Lou Casale, Hiscox USA
5. Offer more than one perspective.
We recently stumbled upon a way to help reporters in light of getting their new technology stories completed. We address more than the topic they have been assigned by the editors -- our thought leaders have intrinsic and valuable knowledge about the industry, and this only helps educate writers and reporters as they are building their story. - MaryAnn Holder-Browne, One Network Enterprises
6. Participate in user groups.
Recently we had two of our marketing members take part in a software user group panel session. They were able to share their vast knowledge in the space and teach others. Afterwards we had attendees approach us with all types of questions and even job inquiries. To further the effect, answers from the panel were then reproduced into blog posts and shared through social channels. - Noah Mithrush, Evisions
7. Focus on your CSR initiatives.
Many great companies do lots of good without any acknowledgment. When issues arise in the press in areas where you give your time and talent as a company, or if it involves one of the values you hold dear in your culture, be bold and outspoken. Speak about your breastfeeding rooms, diversity initiatives, pro-bono work, donations and support of local and national nonprofits. - Jennifer Mellon, Trustify
Forbes Communications Council is an invitation-only community for executives in successful public relations, media strategy, creative and advertising agencies. Do I qualify?
8. Build relationships.
Don't be so focused on the finish line that you forget to start at ground zero: building relationships. Opportunities will increase when you truly understand your target market, know the media's coverage area, keep it human (show that you read their content) and clearly show reporters and editors how your thought leaders can add value to current conversations. - Doreen Clark, SmartBug Media
9. Let your star players shine.
I cannot stress the importance and value of thought leaders to your brand and industry enough. Pitch them to journalists who you know do regular Q&A pieces and offer their expertise to writers and bloggers. Their value is inestimable in both positioning your company as a brand leader and assisting the writer. You are growing company awareness in your field, and shining a light on their expertise. - Lynne McQuaker, Studio Movie Grill
10. Make thought leadership a team sport.
Encourage and empower subject matter experts in your company to create content that can be shared via your online blog or when pitching press. In addition, get the most bang for your buck with every content piece you write -- turn a contributed article into a company blog post, break up quotes and visuals to share on social and expand on messaging for curated sites like LinkedIn or Medium. - Jennifer Kyriakakis, MATRIXX Software
11. Exercise a dynamic PR strategy.
Creating more media opportunities requires a dynamic PR strategy. Traditional pitching methods are still effective, but other methods are just as important. Apply for speaking opportunities in your industry. Public speaking can not only help place your leaders in front of live press, but can also strengthen their authority, supporting future profile building and brand awareness initiatives. - Sean P Finelli, The Roman Guy - Italy Tour Operator
12. Train your spokespeople and be selective.
You can go after numerous high-quality publications, but none of it will pay off unless your start with top-notch media training for your spokespeople and keep them fresh with ongoing education. The other key to success is being selective -- the leader needs to be a good fit for the publication’s target audience and journalist. Get this match right and you’ll have lots of long term opportunities. - Brandie Claborn, McAfee
13. Don't underestimate soft skills.
While expertise is important, do not underestimate the power of soft skills. Developing relationships with media via social media and in person is key. In addition, remember to make their job easier. Creating friendly content, such as infographics to easily digest the data, is helpful. Also, don't forget to provide the spin of the story. Give them the why. - Levitica "Lee" Watts, Smith, Gambrell & Russell, LLP
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e8e8b49e93fa8f0555eca944413db659
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https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbescommunicationscouncil/2018/01/31/the-blockchain-that-could-disrupt-googles-ad-monopoly/
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The Blockchain That Could Disrupt Google's Ad Monopoly
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The Blockchain That Could Disrupt Google's Ad Monopoly
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In the past year, cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin transformed from geeky passion projects on Reddit into a speculative boom that has leading experts scrambling to get up to speed. Just last week, finance luminaries Warren Buffett and Jamie Dimon contradicted each other, with Dimon saying he regretted calling Bitcoin a fraud and Buffet warning that cryptocurrencies would end badly.
[Disclosure: The author invests in several cryptocurrencies including Bitcoin, Ethereum and IOTA and consults on ICO launches. Investing in any cryptocurrency is very risky --you can lose your entire investment.]
For the most part, everyone I talk to (who is not an engineer) doesn’t really get what blockchain is and how it can actually be used (besides as a currency). To those of you who are unaware that there is any other purpose for blockchain, it is important to note that while the press has focused on the 1300% increase in Bitcoin’s value, most of the actual work being done is in creating applications for blockchain that have little to do with currency -- or at least currency is only a component of the applications’ larger purpose.
Ethereum, for example, is the platform on which several new applications are being developed, from universally-accessible (but private) medical records to distributed cloud storage (think Airbnb for extra hard-drive space) to licensing royalty management apps. What these future applications have in common is that humans have been removed as the middlemen who are too costly or inefficient to allow these applications to currently exist. With blockchain technology, the machines transact among themselves, so a patient’s full health history is recorded automatically, you can earn money storing a stranger’s stuff on unused hard drives and you don’t need an agent to protect your photo copyrights.
All of this sounds great, of course, but what does any of it have to do with marketing?
You may have heard this, but the Internet of Things is coming. Quickly. Gartner predicts that by 2020, we’ll have over 20 billion smart devices, many with sensors, cameras and microphones connected to the internet. These are items like smart thermostats, smart TVs, baby monitors and security cameras that alert you when movement is detected, as well as any product you can control with an app.
Right now they’re collecting data, but that data isn’t captured anywhere that can help you understand the person using these devices. But what if all of the behavioral usage data from each of those independent smart objects was captured into a user and household profile? And what if those profiles were connected to a machine-learning AI that could deliver nuanced profiles based on real-world data (rather than 12-person focus groups or surveys of people who may not actually use your product)? You’d know that the 42-year-old guy in 94904 uses the treadmill his wife bought him for Christmas only once a month. You’d also know his favorite beer (always stocked by his smart fridge), that he has a child under two (baby monitor), is a fan of "Stranger Things," commutes 20 minutes to work each day and regularly reorders hemorrhoid pads on Amazon. Amazing for marketers. Creepy for citizens.
With this insight, you'd create much more targeted campaigns, form promotional partnerships you'd never have considered and increase the overall ROI of every marketing dollar spent.
To be clear, this is coming one way or another -- which means a lot of the art of marketing will be supplanted by the science of AI targeting. If you've used Facebook’s Custom Audiences you've seen a glimpse of how powerful this can be.
So how will we get this data? It’s no accident that Amazon, Google and Apple are locked in an arms race to get their home hubs into as many homes as possible. If their hub is the one used to control all your connected devices, they become the data monopoly that all marketing revenue will flow to in five years.
But not if a German nonprofit developing a cryptocurrency called IOTA can get there first. IOTA’s proponents describe it as “post-blockchain” technology and it is technologically different from blockchain but based on its same principles. It wants to be the future method of information exchange between smart products and is developing something called the data warehouse. Don’t go nuts and invest your 401k here just yet -- it’s still early and the technology is not proven -- but it’s promising enough to have attracted some big-name collaborators.
In this concept, data from all of the smart devices in your life would flow through a sort of data bazaar where bits and pieces of it could be purchased by people who want it -- like marketers. In this scheme, the user controls access to personally identifiable data and gets paid if they choose to sell it. Your home hub would still collect data but would no longer have a monopoly. And because the system might create the ability for individual smart devices to interact with each other without going through a central hub or the cloud for instructions, not all usage data might be shared with the home hub.
Aside from the hurdles of engineering this new technology, implementation would require broad adoption across manufacturers of smart devices and security will be a key development and PR challenge (these devices can take video from inside your home!). In the U.S., the market influence of big tech will likely slow implementation, but Europe just passed legislation giving consumers ownership of their personal data so it is more likely to take root there first.
As marketers, either way we’ll waste less money trying to identify who we’re targeting and testing ads with the wrong customers. And we’ll be able to create promotional offers that have real value to customers because they'll be tailored in a way that’s currently not possible. Marketing and product development will continue to meld together as both share the same goal of anticipating and serving the needs of well-defined users. As a citizen, though, I’m hoping the consumer-as-data-owner blockchain model wins out.
Forbes Communications Council is an invitation-only community for executives in successful public relations, media strategy, creative and advertising agencies. Do I qualify?
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e03d1702acae686e9e08ebd31abff9f4
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https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbescommunicationscouncil/2018/02/14/12-marketing-trends-to-take-advantage-of-this-year/
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12 Marketing Trends To Take Advantage Of This Year
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12 Marketing Trends To Take Advantage Of This Year
The world of marketing is constantly changing, especially in the modern era of social media, automated ad tech and audience analytics. Brands need to stay on top of these changes to successfully reach their audiences, especially as consumers become savvier and more skeptical of advertising.
Because the members of Forbes Communications Council live and breathe marketing every day, we asked them what today's marketers can expect to see on the horizon this year. From technology like virtual reality and artificial intelligence to overall strategies like influencer and account-based marketing, here's how you can take advantage of the latest trends.
These communications executives share the trends to pay attention to in 2018. All photos courtesy of Forbes Councils members.
1. Virtual Reality
Virtual reality is becoming increasingly commonplace as a marketing tool for brands big and small. The challenge is using VR in a way that makes sense for your overall brand messaging and target audience. VR marketing is still emerging, so it's a great time to explore your options and get ahead of the curve. - Ashley Murphy, Stribling & Associates
2. Interactive Content
Many brands, especially in the B2B space, have relied on blog content or PDF content (white papers and guides) to generate leads as part of their content marketing strategy. This year, you can expect interactive web experiences to take the lead in engaging visitors – experiences that display thought leadership content in more compelling, animated and visual ways. - Erin Moloney, Perficient Digital
3. Pinterest
Though Pinterest is often seen as a niche social media platform, I predict it to be the next big thing. Using Pinterest Lens and its functionality to engage with customers and put your products, services and style in front of consumers will be a surefire way to capture additional marketing attention in 2018. - Adam Durfee, Y Digital Agency
4. Artificial Intelligence
Early adopters of AI have already found it to increase user engagement. However, integrating AI with a site's chat box or Facebook messenger will require perhaps even more creativity and understanding of the brand's target market. AI still has to address customer needs and problems just as aptly as a human agent, and it helps if the AI experience delights customers in a fun and lighthearted manner. - Amanda Hinski, Frost Valley YMCA
5. User-Generated Content
In the next year, consumers will crave authenticity from brands. Our recent survey showsthat 86% of consumers say authenticity is important when deciding what brands they support, and 60% say user-generated content (UGC) is the most authentic form of content. By integrating trusted and engaging UGC throughout their multichannel marketing efforts, brands can win consumers' hearts and wallets. - Mallory Blumer, Stackla
6. Voice Search
Voice search is one of the most rapidly adopted technologies in recent history and it's changing the way consumers interact with the world around them. When you ask a question, you don't get 10 links back; you get one direct answer. Marketers should ensure the main voice providers (Google, Apple, Microsoft) have the correct facts about their businesses so they can provide the correct answers. - Elizabeth Walton, Yext
7. Honesty
Brutal honesty is a current trend that has been gaining steam, and we should all expect it to continue in 2018. Marketers can take advantage by clearly stating what their products and services are good at and where they need improvement. These statements can be backed up by objective customer reviews. This honesty translates to brand integrity, leading to trust and sales. -Pat Scheckel, Singlewire Software
Forbes Communications Council is an invitation-only community for executives in successful public relations, media strategy, creative and advertising agencies. Do I qualify?
8. Chatbots
Chatbots are popping up everywhere, both in Facebook and other live chat solutions. As chat-based AI takes off, I expect to see more chatbots being utilized in everything – answering FAQs, placing orders and getting in touch with customer service. Marketers should be on the front lines embedding sales material and messaging as their company rolls them out to ensure they drive real value. -Zach Kwarta, Endurance International Group
9. Account-Based Content Marketing
ABCM will help B2B companies target unique personas as individuals within a company. Marketers now have the opportunity to steer away from a one-size-fits-all advertising approach to a highly targeted, unique user experience, leveraging a customized content journey with micro-sites, landing pages, images and/or calls-to-action. - Tami McQueen, 31south
10. Educating Consumers
As decision makers are being inundated with data – and we all know that data is different from knowledge – we must as marketers strive to be educators. Buyers are creating their own paths to purchase, and we have the opportunity to showcase and highlight key objectives and knowledge base points for the end consumer. By making content easy to understand and locate, we can capture mindshare. - MaryAnn Holder-Browne, One Network Enterprises
11. Experiential/Event Marketing
Experiential and event marketing are seeing a big resurgence, and brands will lean in even more to those types of marketing activations. I think that music tour sponsorships will have new life because of this – brands can do even cooler venue activations that audiences interact with, and they'll get broadcast out to a much larger digital audience. -Sherry Jhawar, Blended Strategy Group
12. Influencer Marketing
Influencer marketing has been trending up and was the marketing buzzword and hot topic in 2017. In 2018, I expect job openings to surface specifically for in-house influencer marketing, and for influencers to act as the new media buy at a more efficient cost. It will take some time to nail it, but you might as well start now. - Benjamin Trinh, Postmates
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https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbescommunicationscouncil/2018/03/02/does-print-still-have-a-place-in-the-future-of-advertising-10-experts-weigh-in/
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Does Print Still Have A Place In The Future Of Advertising? 10 Experts Weigh In
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Does Print Still Have A Place In The Future Of Advertising? 10 Experts Weigh In
Since the dawn of the internet, people have heralded the death of print media. It’s true that news has gone primarily online; most major media companies have made business model shifts in recent years to accommodate consumer preference for digital content. But where does this leave companies that have relied heavily on newspaper, billboard, magazine and direct mail ads?
Although print advertising may not be completely defunct yet, its future hangs in the balance. Marketers still dedicating resources to print in 2018 will need to consider whether it’s worth continuing in the current digital landscape. Below, members of Forbes Communications Council share their thoughts on where print fits in the future of advertising.
These communications executives weigh in on the future of print advertising. All photos courtesy of Forbes Councils members.
1. Print will continue to be valuable where there is a physical customer presence.
Print is already a target-specific medium and will become more so. It makes sense where you come in physical contact with your customers, like a retail store or event. For example, our medical payment plan products make sense in a doctor's waiting room so we invest in print there. And direct mail is the most effective way to reach senior citizens who will read long-copy mailers. - Dave Matli, Parasail Health | Matli Consulting LLC
2. Luxury consumers will still value tangible ad platforms.
Glossy magazines and major publications hold a certain cachet that online doesn't achieve. There is literal weight to your presence. This tangible platform resonates well with luxury consumers and clients -- the trick is to find a complementary balance between digital and print within any given campaign for a multidimensional approach. - Ashley Murphy, Stribling & Associates
3. AR will give print ads a place in seamless omnichannel brand experiences.
With people becoming more and more blind to digital advertising methods, print offers an alternative medium to connect with your audience on their terms. Advances in technology like AR and image recognition will enable print ads to be the first step in a seamless omnichannel brand experience. - Patrick Niersbach, InContext Solutions
4. Print will need to complement and encourage digital interactions.
If your target audience reads print magazines as a regular part of their day, there is still a reason to consider print ads in your marketing mix. However, you need to adjust the expectations of actions your audience will take. Print ads will be more effective if they are a complement to your digital campaigns already in play and entice readers to interact with your brand online. - Jeannie Ruesch, xero.com
5. Offline entities and influencers will reengage consumers with print media.
Print media is in a state of evolution as it finds new ways to reengage consumers through partnerships with offline entities. As this evolution occurs, it will hopefully lead to higher readerships. Unfortunately, if you only have one dollar to spend on marketing and need to decide between print and digital, digital will always win. The reach is far greater with digital advertising. - Sherry Jhawar, Blended Strategy Group
6. Paper will become cost prohibitive, killing the last print campaigns.
Eventually, the entire population will have been born and raised with the internet available to them. Newspapers and magazines will only be found in museums. The last bastion of print ads will be direct mail, as a physical mailbox will be the last place that print can reach that digital can't. Eventually, that will die as well when all bills are paid online and the cost of paper becomes cost prohibitive. - Stephan Baldwin, franchisegator.com
Forbes Communications Council is an invitation-only community for executives in successful public relations, media strategy, creative and advertising agencies. Do I qualify?
7. Print ads won't make sense in our dynamic screen environment.
Paper and other static fabrics do not provide the features that the future of advertising will come to depend on. They are heavy, inconvenient, unchangeable, wasteful and ultimately outdated. The moment something is printed, it's frozen in time. Audiences want to see vivid, immersive, dynamic displays that are time relevant down to the minute. - Courtney Dale, ICM Consulting and Media Corporation
8. Print and digital campaigns will be fully integrated.
Gone are the days when leftover budget from digital channels was used for print. For maximum impact around a product launch or announcement, build an integrated marketing campaign that brings the best of both worlds together. Use KPIs that complement both channels instead of evaluating them in isolation. - Almitra Karnik, CleverTap
9. Print will allow brands to rise above the digital racket.
The ubiquity of digital media has given print media a strange new power. Think of how special it is to get a written letter as opposed to an email. If you're trying to target a C-level audience, forget email -- their assistant will just hit delete. But if you take your e-book, print it as a nice brochure and mail it to the exec's office, it might get to their desk and leave a lasting impression. - Brandon Ortiz, Salesforce.org
10. Print will remain ideal for hyper-local markets.
There are "yellow page" industries that have grown solely from hyper-local print advertising. My industry, private investigators, happens to be one. Adding technology and digital advertising has been integral to scaling and creating new markets and users. However, traditional customers still utilize print advertising to meet their needs and we need to play in that space as well. - Jennifer Mellon, Trustify
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504c0a02fe78f14226ecc69a694919d1
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https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbescommunicationscouncil/2018/03/07/give-consumers-the-ads-they-want/
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Give Consumers The Ads They Want
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Give Consumers The Ads They Want
As advertising and ad measurement become more sophisticated, two things are certain: New technologies and channels are bombarding consumers with messaging, and consumers have become frustrated with advertising that they find irrelevant, disruptive and annoying.
The environment of increasing media channels (in-store smell is my new favorite), ad blockers, banner blindness, shorter attention spans and general mistrust of advertisers is tough for brands trying to get their messages to the right people. Tuning out the noise has become instinctual -- even my two-year-old son has learned to “Skip Ad” in YouTube to get to his Daniel Tiger video faster. It doesn’t take a futurist to realize that we have to improve the way we advertise to consumers if our industry hopes to survive.
Fortunately, today’s technology, research and insights can help us understand consumers’ motivations and purchase behavior better than ever before and enable advertisers to give consumers what they really want: not less advertising, but better advertising. By leveraging the power of data, marketers have the power to create advertising experiences that are actually enjoyable for consumers, guiding them along their journeys to purchase.
When we put the consumer first -- meaning we reach them at the right moment, with the right message and with a relevant product or service -- they welcome the assistance of advertisers. That’s why I’m confident that in the future -- consumer permission will be at the center of all effective advertising. Our audiences will recognize the value they can get out of advertising that is actually useful for them, so they will tell us what they’re interested in, how they want to be targeted and on what channels they’re best reached.
For example, Pinterest, an IRI partner, is already creating an environment where users ask to be advertised to. Promoted Pins show up in relevant searches and look just like regular Pins, except that advertisers pay to have them seen by more people. They don’t interrupt or distract Pinners but instead are summoned by the user looking to discover something new. Users don’t even consider Promoted Pins to be advertisements because they help users find the ideas and solutions they came to Pinterest for in the first place.
In a more direct way, voice-activated technology is another channel where consumer-first advertising is bound to take hold. Alexa will wait until you ask how to get a coffee stain out of your favorite white shirt before responding with instructions, along with a recommendation for the best stain removal product on the market. Then she’ll offer to have it delivered within a few hours. That kind of advertising puts the right product in front of the right individual at the time the consumer requested and enables immediate action to be taken.
Once we have data to support it broadly, augmented reality (AR) presents a similar advertising opportunity for savvy brands that believe in putting consumers’ needs at the forefront of their advertising strategies. One day soon, when that same consumer with a stained white shirt points their phone to the stain removal product in their laundry room, they could watch videos showing how to use the product for best results as well as adjacent products that might help. That advertising experience presents a useful, relevant and timely recommendation to a consumer actively searching for information.
If the industry continues driving toward a better advertising experience for the consumer, it’s clear that new advertising mechanisms will provide a win-win solution for both advertisers and consumers. The future of additive assistive advertising, however, is dependent on whether advertisers can understand their consumer’s needs at the right time and reach them in the right place.
In order to get there, it is critical that advertisers invest in their ad measurement and optimization capabilities. Measurement solutions on the market today have evolved so that scaled and precise data sets can exist as one to optimize marketing efficiency across each ad unit. If we scale our ability to measure advertising responses at the most granular, we can make the ad experience of the future our reality.
Time and time again, we are reminded that the evolving tastes, wants and needs of consumers must drive business strategy and innovation. In advertising, it is hard to argue that our strategy today gives consumers the experiences they want. But if we double down on investment in measurement and commit to delivering additive advertising experiences, the opportunities for more efficient, effective and enjoyable advertising are endless.
Forbes Communications Council is an invitation-only community for executives in successful public relations, media strategy, creative and advertising agencies. Do I qualify?
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ba9615c434fa73016b21b834cac00b9a
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https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbescommunicationscouncil/2018/03/09/13-ways-to-boost-facebook-content-engagement-post-algorithm-shift/
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13 Ways To Boost Facebook Content Engagement Post-Algorithm Shift
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13 Ways To Boost Facebook Content Engagement Post-Algorithm Shift
In January 2018, Facebook announced an algorithm change designed to "bring people closer together and build relationships." The social media giant's ranking system now prioritizes posts that "spark conversations and meaningful interactions between people." But for brands that already struggle with organic Facebook reach, this update could push them even further down the news feed.
While smart brands have always made follower engagement the goal, it has now become even more important to post content that your audience will care about and react to. We asked 13 members of Forbes Communications Council how they'll be updating their social marketing strategies to ensure their Facebook posts are still being seen.
These communications executives share advice on staying visible in light of Facebook's algorithm update. All photos courtesy of Forbes Councils members.
1. Leverage social sharing programs.
We plan to increasingly leverage our social sharing platform to offset this change. By empowering our employees, partners and fans to share our content through personal posts, we hope to offset the Facebook shift away from corporate posts so that our content can still be found on social channels organically. - Jennifer Best, ConnectYourCare
2. Create content that encourages meaningful interactions.
Businesses have been told from the beginning that Facebook is a community. In the face of the algorithm shift, encouraging meaningful interactions means keeping your content valuable and relevant to your channel's audience and community. Encourage conversation, sharing and comments. Facebook is practicing Darwin’s concepts and we are up for the challenge. - Sean P Finelli, The Roman Guy - Italy Tour Operator
3. Feature individual users in your content.
Facebook's new algorithm gives preference to posts that are shared by individuals and receive early comments and engagement. To make sure our content is prioritized by the algorithm, our strategy is to focus on our users and their stories. It gives our users a chance to be in the spotlight and increases the likelihood that they will share our content with their personal networks. - Mandy Menaker, Shapr
4. Provide something compelling, authentic and useful.
Many marketers spend time chasing the latest changes to Facebook, Google and other platforms' algorithms. You need to be aware of general trends, but if you're trying to exploit every little hack to get your content higher up in feeds and searches, it might be time to rethink your strategy. Focus less on ever-changing formulas and more on creating compelling, authentic, useful content. - Brandon Ortiz, Salesforce.org
5. Engage influencers.
As always, content that is targeted and relevant to your audience is crucial for engagement. To counter the Facebook shift, we look to engage influencers who will share content and effectively spread the word to their networks. The power of the combination of personal and professional networks (Facebook and LinkedIn, for example) enables us to push our narrative across multiple channels. - Tracey Grove, Microsoft
6. Play ball with Facebook and use its new tools.
Facebook wants you to play ball. Don't fight it; you won't win. Engage with and participate in new products rolled out to help increase reach. Facebook Stories are a sure way to beat the algorithm. Even if consumers are not seeing your posts in their feeds, they will still see the stories at the top. Use Facebook Live, Messenger bots, Groups for Pages, profile frames, video and donate. - Julie Behr, Marbaloo Marketing
7. Create and upload videos that prompt conversation.
The algorithm shift ensures your posts will be viewed if they prove to have meaningful interaction. Videos uploaded directly to Facebook that prompt conversation are the answer. At least that’s what the data is telling us. Billions of videos are watched on Facebook every day. - Laurie Ehrbar, ServiceNow
Forbes Communications Council is an invitation-only community for executives in successful public relations, media strategy, creative and advertising agencies. Do I qualify?
8. Enhance your own personal brand.
A strong personal brand is the key to corporate brand awareness. Start building a loyal community around your personal professional brand by providing expert content, free consultancy, useful tips and helpful giveaways. But don't forget about your corporate pages. If you manage to make valuable sources out of them, subscribers will visit them intentionally. - Galina Grigoreva, LoyaltyPlant
9. Target specific audiences with tailored messaging and visuals.
We’ve seen this before with Instagram’s changes, and now Facebook. We’ve learned it takes savvy strategy to ensure your message is being seen. It’s important to engage new and existing customers by using content that is relatable to them. By targeting specific audiences using messaging and visuals that are tailored to their interests, brands can reach potential customers in an authentic way. - G'Nai Blakemore, Mattress Firm
10. Use your content to solve your audience's problems.
How Facebook prioritizes content is similar to how a search engine does: by the value you bring to its users. To get them to engage with your brand, focus on providing content that solves the questions and problems they already have. Don't lead with announcement-style content. Rather, lead with questions your target audience is asking, or the direct answers they seek. - Christina Crawley, Forum One
11. Focus on employee advocacy.
Facebook's algorithm shift increases the importance of a more organic distribution strategy for marketing content. Marketers need to distribute content in a way that mimics viral user-generated content. To do this, we are leveraging the social profiles of employee advocates to seed and interact with new content. - Jesse Williams, ExecVision
12. Consider a paid Facebook marketing strategy.
Now is the time to pull together a paid social media strategy for Facebook, if you can. If you want your content to be seen on the primary Facebook user's news feed, organic content is not the best way to go. Spend just $25 on a post to guarantee your content gets seen. If you are able to spend more, don't hesitate. - Chloe Politis, Mount Sinai Health System
13. Incorporate user-generated content.
As Facebook's algorithm prioritizes friends and family content, it's going to be more important than ever for brands to encourage the creation of user-generated content within their loyal customer base. This can be as straightforward as creating social contests, or take a subtler approach by focusing on creating quality, shareable content that provides information and education to users. - Jennifer Levanduski, Revel Systems
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https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbescommunicationscouncil/2018/03/13/taming-the-sabertooth-tiger-three-ways-to-cope-with-stress-at-work/
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Taming The Sabertooth Tiger: Three Ways To Cope With Stress At Work
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Taming The Sabertooth Tiger: Three Ways To Cope With Stress At Work
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Stress and anxiety are increasingly becoming issues in the workplace. A study by the International Labour Organization revealed that increased competition, longer working hours and higher performance expectations are all contributing to an increasingly stressful work environment. Digitization and always-on technology have blurred the boundaries between work and personal life, removing the natural buffer between them and costing us our health.
When humans lived in the untamed wilderness, we had to deal with threats in our environment. If a hungry sabertooth tiger targeted you as a tasty treat, you needed to quickly decide whether to put up a fight, run flat out in the opposite direction or do your best to look like a rock.
This automatic fight, flight or freeze response is no different today. Our minds and bodies still respond in the same way to everyday stressors. If we’re dealing with a crazed knife-wielding lunatic, this response makes complete sense. But most of the threats we encounter are purely psychological. The sabertooth has evolved. Our brains haven’t.
The tricky thing about stress is that it’s a necessary emotion. Studies by the University of Berkeley have found that stress entices the brain into growing new cells that improve memory. If the stress isn’t prolonged, it’s harmless and can even be beneficial as new nerve cells keep the brain more alert and improve performance. The irony is that as soon as stress continues beyond a few moments into a prolonged state, it suppresses the brain’s ability to develop those cells. That’s when our hardwiring works against us. Chronic stress exhausts us, mental performance suffers and our health deteriorates.
What to do about it? We cannot necessarily change our environment, but we have the power to shift our response to that environment by building resilience.
Shut down the committee.
The voices in our heads are great at pointing out our failures. They use words like “worst,” “always,” “never” and “should” to make any event seem catastrophic. Becoming aware and detaching from these thoughts can be challenging. It’s easier to play the victim than it is to take responsibility for changing the situation. Think you’ll never get that project so you shouldn’t even ask? Check in with a trusted friend or colleague and ask for their insight and advice. Using your support system shuts down the cycle of negative thoughts. Dealing with real data instead can help you reframe a situation, find a solution you may not have considered and take action. And if you do fail at something, it doesn’t mean you are a complete failure. You’ve experienced a setback, but you also have an opportunity to approach the next challenge in a different way.
Stay positive when the going gets tough.
When all is going well, it’s easy to stay positive and upbeat. When you’re having a really tough day, it becomes more challenging. When you find you can’t stop thinking about that snarky email, consciously shift your thoughts to something positive. Write down three amazing things that happened to you recently. The key is that these amazing things don’t have to be life-changing. They can be tiny, simple things that you would usually take for granted -- simple pleasures in life that make you feel peaceful, joyful or grateful. The act of writing them down takes cognitive effort that shifts your perspective to a more positive one and breaks the cycle of rumination. Extra points for reviewing the list the next morning to keep things in perspective.
Find courage in the face of fear.
Fear is an inevitable emotion you’ll encounter at work. Fear of failure, rejection or humiliation can be paralyzing. Maybe you’re afraid to ask your boss for that raise, or you're afraid to challenge a colleague or client. Facing your anxiety can be easier if you recognize that discomfort in these situations is to be expected and focus instead on the end result you’re striving for. This is high intention with low attachment. Shifting your focus to intention changes your perspective -- high intention. Taking the long view helps you pick yourself up and try again, even if you are rejected this time around -- low attachment. It takes a lot of effort to embrace the discomfort of fear and stay the course. Acknowledging that gut-wrenching fear is a natural part of the process helps you come out on the other side both wiser and braver.
Shifting your perspective is a powerful tool when dealing with stress. Changing the way you perceive day-to-day pressures gives you an opportunity to take back control and become more confident in stressful situations. Building resilience is not a series of isolated activities -- it's a practice that can help you turn your sabertooth tiger into a kitten.
Forbes Communications Council is an invitation-only community for executives in successful public relations, media strategy, creative and advertising agencies. Do I qualify?
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https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbescommunicationscouncil/2018/03/14/how-millennial-ceos-are-adapting-to-generation-z/
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How Millennial CEOs Are Adapting To Generation Z
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How Millennial CEOs Are Adapting To Generation Z
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I don’t put much stock in generational stereotypes. My entire adult life I’ve been inundated with stories about how members of my generation — millennials — are entitled, lazy and killing the economy, even as I built a company of nearly 250 people from scratch with a lot of dedicated employees who are around my age.
But as a boss and business owner, I have to admit that different generations do bring different approaches to work. To lead effectively, it’s important to understand what drives them, particularly when it comes to the cohort that’s coming up behind me: Generation Z.
Born from about 1995 onward, Gen Z is about to enter the workforce en masse. And they don’t just represent the future of my team — they form a crucial consumer base that we need to tap into. As CEO of a tech startup in the video space, I’ve probably had more interaction with employees of this generation than most. Gen Zers are increasingly filling our entry-level positions, often in client-facing sales roles.
In working with them, I’ve noticed a few distinctions that set them apart from my millennial colleagues, especially when it comes to communication styles and motivation at work. Here’s what I’ve learned about working with Generation Z and how it has changed how CEOs run their businesses — mostly for the better.
They’re not just digital natives; they’re mobile natives.
Millennials were the first generation to come of age with the internet, but Gen Z grew up on mobile, and that’s informed their communication patterns.
I was surprised to learn that many of my Gen Z hires see email as an archaic form of communication used only for handing in school assignments — if that. Their preferred medium for communication is anything instant: Messenger, WhatsApp, Snapchat or Instagram, and they expect their workflows to be entirely available on a mobile platform.
This predilection for instant chat can make for a bit of a learning curve. Many younger hires need a primer on how to use email for work, for example. Deeper still, they’re conditioned to a level of anonymity from communicating through apps, where messages disappear and handles often conceal true identities. Take the time to spell out for younger team members that instant doesn’t equal private or inconsequential.
Overall, however, I see Gen Z’s aversion to email and affinity for messaging as a strength. It’s a clear indication of how communication — in business and beyond — is evolving, and I’m at an advantage to be able to see it happen in front of me in real time.
They’re anything but camera-shy.
A natural result of growing up with a camera in your pocket is that you’re not afraid to use it. More than any other demographic on my team, Gen Z lives and breathes video, preferring to send short Snapchat or Instagram videos to friends or colleagues in place of texts. This tendency has the potential to be a distraction from work or a super valuable asset. As a leader, it’s up to you to channel it in the right direction.
Personally, I see huge potential in Gen Z’s proclivity for video. In an increasingly visual world, these folks are pros at presenting themselves face forward in a polished, confident yet natural way. A lifetime of selfies has taught them the power of image, and they’ve internalized the art of branding and self-presentation.
Some of my youngest sales hires have sent out video messages to CEOs of Fortune 500 companies within a week of starting. In fact, one of our projects was the brainchild of a Gen Z employee who wanted to send a video to a client just like on Snapchat — without having to bother with editing, uploading or embedding.
They have serious ambitions — but may not be clear on what it takes to reach them.
The same experience that makes Gen Z so good at putting a polished face forward — growing up with Instagram, Snapchat and Facebook — can also alter their expectations of what it means to live and work in the real world. People in their early 20s have been constantly exposed to a never-ending stream of well-edited and expertly curated images of perfect vacations, off-the-hook parties and effortlessly achieved life goals, or so it seems.
As a result, members of this cohort can put immense pressure on themselves to advance and achieve, sometimes without fully understanding the work, and especially the time, involved. With my younger hires, I often have to break down the process of advancement within the company — how to work their way up as part of a team and what’s a realistic measure of success. It’s just not possible to go from a new hire to an account executive in six months, no matter how dedicated they are.
But it’s important to approach these conversations with respect and not to cast young workers as self-obsessed snowflakes looking for shortcuts to the top. As a millennial, I’ve heard that accusation more times than I can count. Trust me, it’s frustrating and demoralizing, and it doesn’t inspire loyalty or hard work. Gen Z’s expectations make sense within the context of their world.
And when I take the time to explain why my company operates the way it does and how their roles contribute to that, they’re excellent team players. Command and control don’t work with them. Sharing the bigger picture — and being transparent about motives and outcomes — does. Gen Z won’t blindly follow without justification, and that might be their biggest strength. After all, it’s the only way business truly moves forward.
Forbes Communications Council is an invitation-only community for executives in successful public relations, media strategy, creative and advertising agencies. Do I qualify?
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045a3ce9b4d20f876f76c9c9f997009f
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https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbescommunicationscouncil/2018/03/20/sink-or-swim-how-to-create-buyer-personas-to-ensure-marketing-success/
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Sink Or Swim: How To Create Buyer Personas To Ensure Marketing Success
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Sink Or Swim: How To Create Buyer Personas To Ensure Marketing Success
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The world of marketing is much larger than it was 15 years ago. Marketing today includes not only TV and radio spots but also all aspects of online marketing -- advertising, social media and video. Sadly, too many businesses waste time and money because they fail to market to the right audience.
Creating buyer personas is the most critical step in accurate marketing. Buyer personas make it possible to target ads to specific needs, behaviors and concerns. Without this step, marketers waste their efforts and resources. Here's how to create effective buyer personas:
Research data points and trends.
Ideally, you already have an idea of who is buying from your company and why. Your buyer personas must be detailed to be effective. That's why research is the first step. Look at your database to discover trends on how your customers consume your content. This provides an outline of the problems your existing customers have -- and how your products and services can solve them.
There are several tools that can help you identify these trends. Facebook and Twitter analytics are helpful in showing what topics and demographic information are most relevant to your business. Google Analytics can provide you with detailed information about who visits your website and what terms are being searched. At my company, we use Google Analytics to customize articles around relevant topics and questions. We pay particular attention to keywords that have a low volume of results and low to medium competition. That’s because these keywords are more specific and targeted.
You can also talk to your sales teams about the types of customers and leads they interact with. Find out what questions and problems the sales team hears consistently. What generalizations do your sales team make about the types of customers you service?
Research industry problems.
Understanding relevant industries will help marketers solve industry-specific issues. This includes understanding the laws, regulations and urgencies that your buyers face.
For a clothing boutique, this could be something as simple as understanding whether cost or style is more important to students going to prom. At my company, we discovered a new employment law trend around fair work week. These new laws created immediate compliance problems and questions for the retail and restaurant industries in specific geographic locations. This led to several new buyer personas around these needs, industries and geographic locations.
Interview customers and prospective buyers.
Interview your customers. They will tell you what problems and needs your product solved for them. If you are a B2B company, interview customers from each industry that your service. Find out what features help them the most. Ask what caused them to search for a solution and why your solution was the best fit.
Don’t forget to interview your “bad” customers or the ones who refunded or canceled shortly after their purchase. The bad customers will be able to tell you about the problems they had or the reasons your product wasn't a good fit for them. This will help you become more specific about the types of personas that you service well. You can also use the information to improve your product and become a better fit for more customers.
Create your buyer personas.
Take the information you have gathered and start creating your buyer personas. They should be detailed and include geographic and demographic information. Know what types of companies each persona works for and what their job position is. It’s important to understand each persona’s challenges and top goals. This will allow you to better explain how you can solve those dilemmas. Understand their education level and preferred way to research and buy from a company.
For example, if one of your main buyer personas loves to read information online but wants to talk to a live person instead of an online chatbot, it is vital to understand that for your marketing process.
Continue to update buyer personas.
Revise and modify your buyer personas. We learned this when we wrote an article about new minimum wage laws. That article got over 100,000 views in only a few weeks, but we didn’t get a single inquiry on our product from all of the page visitors. We soon realized why: The article targeted everyone interested in the new minimum wage laws. This meant that instead of drawing in decision makers and researchers, we drew in the lower level employees who wanted to make sure they were getting paid enough. Our buyer personas were too broad.
After that, we modified and narrowed down our buyer personas and started creating content related to those roles. As a result, we have seen lower traffic to individual articles but an increased number of inquiries in the last two months. We will continue to modify our buyer personas on a regular basis.
Another reason for this is because buyers change over time. The world is constantly evolving and that means that the same personas you use today may not represent your buyers in five years.
Even if you have a general idea of your buyer personas, taking time now to detail out and update those personas will make your marketing more effective.
Forbes Communications Council is an invitation-only community for executives in successful public relations, media strategy, creative and advertising agencies. Do I qualify?
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https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbescommunicationscouncil/2018/03/23/10-sources-of-inspiration-for-content-marketers/
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10 Sources Of Inspiration For Content Marketers
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10 Sources Of Inspiration For Content Marketers
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Marketers are challenged with the task of capturing the attention of their respective target audiences. And everyone knows attention spans are tough to hold in today’s social media frenzied world.
The average office worker sends and receives 120-plus emails daily – likely a conservative figure for more senior titles. On social channels, 400 hours of video are uploaded to YouTube every minute of the day, and Facebook users deliver 4,166,667 likes during that same time. Clearly, there is no shortage of content.
Anyone can upload a blog, image or quick video. But if you want engagement? If you want to cut through the clutter? Your campaigns and content need to sizzle. No one has time for mediocre.
Between strategy decks, endless meetings and dashboard reporting, even the best content marketers can lose their creative mojo. To create, transform the blank page and come up with that next big campaign, content marketers must carve out time for inspiration.
Just as some companies allow their employees a few hours or days a week to innovate and work on special projects, creative free time should be granted for marketers who write, design and build.
Need some suggestions for stimulus? Consider these 10 ideas to get the juices flowing and ease creative roadblocks.
1. Turn to TED. While TED began in 1984 as a conference, it is now accessible to anyone with an internet connection. I often turn to my friend TED when I need a distraction or just want to learn about something new. There are so many topics to explore, and after less than 20 minutes, you’re a little brighter. I’ve yet to attend the live events, but it’s on my bucket list.
2. Go to the movies. Whether you are focused on B2B or B2C, the cinema offers us all the latest in pop culture, art and thrillers. A two-hour escape and some big screen drama can spark new ideas.
3. Visit the local bookstore. These stores are tougher to find (thanks Amazon), but occasionally I’ll go out of my way to find one and then spend an hour walking the aisles. I spend most of that time in the magazine section, scanning covers, ads and beautiful spreads. Suddenly, those quippy subject lines and blog post ideas surface.
4. You’ve got mail. I also subscribe to way too many magazines, and somehow I still get catalogs. I keep a pile in my work bag and at home to tear through when I need a little break or visual stimulation. Instagram is fun too, but I like the actual flipping of pages.
5. Listen to podcasts. I download my favorites onto my Spotify app and enjoy different sessions during commute time. Yes, I will listen to popular marketers, but I also gravitate toward many for pure entertainment pleasure. Oprah, Gretchen Rubin, health and fitness leaders. Mix it up.
6. Get moving. Step away from the computer. A few times a week, I’ll hit the gym at lunch. In the afternoon, I’ll make a Starbucks run. In the morning, I get the wheels turning with a run. So many people land their best ideas when they go outside. Walk, run, strike a yoga pose. It helps.
7. Read constantly. The best writers and content creators read. Pick up a young adult novel, dive into the classics or grab the latest New York Times bestseller. I strive to read a diverse group of voices. Even my children’s bedtime stories can spark ideas. Plus, some of the greatest leaders and thinkers are committed readers. It doesn’t hurt to follow the habits of some of the smartest minds in America.
8. Get crafty. Doodle, journal, paint. I keep a journal to jot down interesting words I come across in copy, or a phrasing or quote I like. I also have my own art bucket with watercolors, markers and pencils. No kids allowed. We spend so much time on our laptops and devices. It is comforting and novel to simply pick up a pen and write.
9. Change your environment. Whether you have a fabulous modern office space or something resembling the drab halls of Office Space, changing your work setting can help stir new thoughts. I’m not a coffee shop worker, but sometimes I do better working at home, working late at night or working outside.
10. Experience something new. I wish I could jump on a plane and get inspired with endless vacation trips, but that’s just not practical. Still, I can take a cooking class, try a fitness craze or hike a new trail. As the saying goes, “Variety is the spice of life.”
John Cleese said, “If you want creative workers, give them enough time to play.” Makes sense to me.
Forbes Communications Council is an invitation-only community for executives in successful public relations, media strategy, creative and advertising agencies. Do I qualify?
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8aff97671dcd2396c5bb71cb3bf9b086
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https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbescommunicationscouncil/2018/03/29/grab-readers-attention-with-these-13-headline-writing-tips/
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Grab Readers' Attention With These 13 Headline Writing Tips
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Grab Readers' Attention With These 13 Headline Writing Tips
As content marketing efforts have dramatically increased for modern brands, so has the importance of writing catchy, clickable headlines for online copy. Whether it's for a blog post, an email blast, a thought leadership article or a press release, the title of your piece needs to grab the reader's attention and entice them to continue reading.
Of course, this is easier said than done. Consumers are bombarded daily with advertisements and marketing content, so you need to refine your approach to cut through the clutter. Take a page out of the Forbes Communications Council playbook when you're drafting your next headline.
These communications executives share tips for writing strong headlines. All photos courtesy of Forbes Councils members.
1. Leave them hungry for more.
There are several aspects that make for an effective headline. First, capture the reader's attention with something that will resonate with that particular audience. Second, leave them asking for more. If you unveil all the content in the headline, there is no need to read the article. Skim the surface of the topic to optimize opens and CTRs. - Cody McConnell, Keller International
2. Have a crystal clear purpose.
Headlines are interesting and attention grabbing when they connect the viewer with what they want or need. To write a great headline, make sure it clearly articulates what the viewer will get by clicking on it or viewing further. It's about honesty and interest, and it's harder than it sounds. A crystal clear purpose that matches headline to content means viewers will stay longer and share more. - Seth Waite, RevUnit
3. Consider what would make you click.
We are all consumers of online content. I pay attention to what I personally click on and use what I learn to guide my own headline writing. There are some topics I will click on regardless of the headline. But occasionally there is a headline on a different topic that I simply can't resist. I write those headlines down and save them so I can consider what drew me in and for future inspiration. - Candice Russell, pitneybowes.com
4. Keep it brief and emotionally powerful.
Consumers are inundated with headlines and advertisements on multiple platforms, so their attention span is quite limited. I always tell my team to keep headlines short and to the point while invoking emotion. Nike’s campaign for its Black History Month collection is a prime example that utilizes just the word "EQUALITY." The word means so much to people and piques interest for engagement. - Edward Bourelly, OMNI-CULTURE MARKETING, INC.
5. Say it out loud.
"Write like you talk" is vital when you only have a fleeting moment to capture readers' attention. Does your headline sound right when you speak it? Can it stand alone without a subhead? If not, it's probably too jargony or convoluted. Keep it simple and make sure your headline is something a human would actually say. - Dave Heinzinger, inMarket
6. Keep it conversational.
One of the best subject lines I have ever used is "hey." It was simple, but it got a great open rate because it felt personal and fun. Headlines can, of course, be longer than one word, but skip sensationalized jargon and keep it conversational. - Mandy Menaker, Shapr
Forbes Communications Council is an invitation-only community for executives in successful public relations, media strategy, creative and advertising agencies. Do I qualify?
7. Show readers what's in it for them.
My best advice is to keep it simple, clear and to the point. A good headline lets readers know the content has value and isn't just clickbait (because it isn't, right?). Headlines should convey that readers will either learn something new, glean impactful advice or be entertained and moved by the words coming next. Answer the question, "What's in it for me?" - Melissa Kandel, Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices
8. Ask others for feedback.
Consider what headline/title will get the most clicks and views. I've seen influencers ask their followers via social media to either vote on a poll or pick between a couple of headlines that they plan on using. There is nothing wrong with asking others for feedback, even if it may seem unorthodox. - Benjamin Trinh, Postmates
9. Ask a question in your headline.
I find myself clicking headlines if they ask a question on a current topic and promise to answer it. It has always served as a teaser for me. But if this technique is used without providing answers, it can leave a bad taste. Make sure you only use it if you are answering the question and providing some direction. - Anshu Agarwal, Cedexis
10. Leverage the power of FOMO.
FOMO is a powerful motivator. Playing on the fear of missing out -- instead of learning more -- can be an effective way to draw people to your content. For example, "The One Time Management Tip You Can't Start Your Day Without" is more compelling than "Starting A To-Do List, And Other Productivity Tips." - Alina Morkin, Voices.com
11. Leverage data and test your headlines.
At its core, search and social media are the largest, most easily accessible panels a marketer can tap into. Test multiple versions of your creative against the audience segments you want to reach, then leverage the data from these tests to scale across platforms. - Jim Kensicki, Catalyst
12. Establish a human connection.
As our world continues on its path of commoditization, it forces a new relational pitch. The new norms of social media, mobile updates and media streaming are all competing with the stories, but not necessarily the headlines. Apply a title that does not simply title the story, but rather relates the story to the target audience. Remember, we’re all still human (for now anyway). - Patrick Corcoran, Luxoft
13. Be controversial.
The quickest way to grab attention is to make a somewhat controversial statement or ask a challenging question. Get your audience curious and get them to think. It's a teaser for the copy. In a world of shrinking attention spans and competing headlines, standing out from the crowd is crucial for getting the reader to take the time to engage with your copy. - Tracey Grove, Microsoft
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7f34441bb1df354da742ad95afd27e2b
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https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbescommunicationscouncil/2018/04/10/how-to-transform-marketing-for-the-fourth-industrial-revolution/
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How To Transform Marketing For The Fourth Industrial Revolution
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How To Transform Marketing For The Fourth Industrial Revolution
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Klaus Schwab, founder and executive chairman of the World Economic Forum, talks about our world being on the brink of the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR), which is “characterized by a range of new technologies that are fusing the physical, digital and biological worlds, impacting all disciplines, economies and industries, and even challenging ideas about what it means to be human.”
Companies looking for growth opportunities need to transform to compete and win in this emerging global economy. In addition to building on their core technical capabilities and acquiring the missing pieces to develop solutions for their customers, they must modernize their marketing organizations and position themselves to be effective at reaching and influencing 4IR customers.
Here are the six things CMOs must do to transform their marketing organizations for the Fourth Industrial Revolution.
1. Rebalance your marketing budget to increase sales with more marketing-sourced leads.
Getting a bigger marketing budget isn’t the answer. Spending in the right areas is, which means you must have rigorous lead-generation ROI analysis. By comparing how effective your content marketing, email marketing, event marketing, SEO and social media marketing programs are in attracting new customers, you can rebalance your resources to win. And rebalancing is an ongoing activity. The 4IR world is dynamic, which means you have to be dynamic too.
2. Develop consistent messaging for customers -- and investors.
Do a better job of telling your story. Too often, marketers craft their messages based on their business strategies, which makes their communications internally focused. Effective marketing begins with understanding your customers’ problems, digging for pain points and showing how you solve them with your solutions -- but you can’t stop there. You need to know what investors want as well. Do your research to learn what investors are looking for in business models and make sure your communications address what will make them confident in your company.
3. Modernize your marketing tools.
Get rid of the homegrown tools that you have evolved over the years for email marketing, segmentation, collateral creation, etc. Recognize which systems and processes are holding you back and making the lives of your marketing staff more complicated than those of your competitors, especially startups that have the advantage of starting from scratch with a clean slate. Take back that advantage and have the courage to invest in new tools and processes. Your customer is part of the 4IR — you need to be too.
4. Transform your website into a hardworking tool that welcomes and orients new customers.
This is really an extension of the last tip. Web technology has likely undergone a sea of change since you last developed your website. You probably thought of your website as a place where your customers could get everything they needed, and so it became a library, a card catalog of documents. It is beloved by your installed base but doesn’t welcome new customers or tell them how you can change their lives and work for the better. Focus on who you really want to reach.
5. Refresh your brand to appeal to younger customers.
You may have a company legacy for the history books, but the millennials on 4IR design teams may not know or care about that history. They are looking forward, not backward. Your brand needs to be sharp, sleek, vibrant and energetic. And you need to change it up frequently. Fresh is not yesterday’s look.
6. Consolidate marketing resources that are scattered across various organizations.
Now that you are focused on lead generation and have modernized your marketing tools, honed your messages into what speaks most powerfully to customers and investors, and refreshed your brand to reflect your messaging, you need to ensure that you have the right people in the right roles. People are always at the heart of a transformation.
Creating a leading-edge marketing organization with modern tools and processes can provide measurable growth for your company. To get the type of marketing results you are looking for, your people will need to flex their marketing muscles, get clear on the company’s objectives, continuously improve how they design best-in-class marketing content and campaigns, and build a community where they share best practices.
Forbes Communications Council is an invitation-only community for executives in successful public relations, media strategy, creative and advertising agencies. Do I qualify?
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c6d5c0dc59a3a996af3defe2368efb3c
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https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbescommunicationscouncil/2018/04/11/three-ways-to-boost-company-culture-recruiting-and-retaining-talent-with-video/
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Three Ways To Boost Company Culture: Recruiting And Retaining Talent With Video
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Three Ways To Boost Company Culture: Recruiting And Retaining Talent With Video
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Video is a powerful tool when it comes to advertising your products and services. However, the benefits of video aren’t limited to marketing your business. Internally, video can also be a uniquely effective tool for recruiting diverse talent and enhancing company culture. Cultivating a strong company culture does more than ensure happier employees. It can help your business improve employee retention and establish a positive brand identity for both your customers and your employees.
You may have noticed LinkedIn rolling out the use of native video on its sites, helping businesses develop regular communication with prospective employees. Similarly, Glassdoor encourages businesses to embed up to five videos in their company profiles. Not only does using video internally make it easier to attract talented employees, but it can also elevate their ability to do their best work.
Here are three ways to harness the power of video to foster clear connection, communication and efficiency, and boost your company culture.
1. Connection: Use video to reinforce and celebrate company culture.
Many businesses enhance company culture by hosting company parties, events and volunteer events that encourage teamwork and solidarity. Video is an easy way to share these moments and build morale among employees. Plus, there’s no need to exhaust your budget hiring a videographer for every team-building moment. When you hold a company event, shoot footage on a smartphone (or have your employees do so). Then, simply add your photos and videos into a video creation tool to create a quick, professional video.
Whether recapping events with footage shot at a company outing or leveraging TV screens you may have in your office, take the opportunity to showcase company culture. Here’s some inspiration to get you started.
• Did your business win an award? Let your team know and share why it was important to the company.
• Keep a video of employee photos, names and positions looping in the office to celebrate what each individual brings to the team.
• Use video to celebrate the individuality of your company’s culture.
2. Communication: Reinforce staff camaraderie and company mission in meetings and beyond.
Incorporating video into your company’s HR strategy ensures that your employees are clear on values, objectives and company culture. At my company, for instance, we use video on a regular basis to reinforce our “we believe” statements, or mission statement, during weekly meetings with current employees and while onboarding new hires. It’s an effective alternative to sharing information and helps keep our team actively engaged. Through this process, we reaffirm our purpose and direction while making meetings more visually interesting.
In fact, establishing company culture with video starts from day one. We have new employees create an introductory video sharing a bit about themselves to create a culture of communication from the start. This serves a dual purpose: keeping current employees updated about new hires and integrating new employees into our unique workplace. Adding video to your company culture doesn't have to be complicated, though. Here are a few simple ways you can incorporate video to foster healthy communication.
• Loop a video with your “we believe” statements at your office. Keep it top of mind and ensure your company’s goals are aligned among all employees.
• Create a short video where employees share their thoughts on company values, allowing them to take ownership of your company’s mission statement and illustrate a clear vision of objectives.
• Share employee introduction videos for new hires at a weekly all-hands meeting or through an internal communication app like Slack. Encouraging employee communication from the get-go creates an efficient work environment and can minimize misalignment in the future by building trust and familiarity from the onset of each work relationship.
3. Efficiency: Share open roles with video.
According to LinkedIn, one of the best ways to hire is through employee referrals -- perhaps because referrals are a genuine indicator that you've created a workplace that people love enough to share with their friends. By creating open-role videos and posting them on LinkedIn, your business can empower staff to share available positions with their networks, making your recruiting efforts more efficient.
Several online video creation tools allow companies to create professional videos within minutes. Start creating and sharing these videos with your team on a regular basis. They’re both memorable and effective, whether they’re shared on social media, at company meetings or in company-wide update emails. Here are a few tips for creating an open-role video and amplifying recruiting efforts at your company:
• There’s no need to shoot from scratch. Use photo or video assets you already have. Or, create a video in minutes using a few royalty-free stock images.
• Use a template to save time. Just plug new information into an existing video template each time you have an open role. For example, job listing site Mediabistro uses the same template to create videos to share job opportunities on Facebook.
• Share open-role videos on your website to let prospective employees gain insight into your company culture.
There’s no doubt that your employees are engaged by video, just as your customers are -- as I discuss in a recent article. Luckily, businesses are only just beginning to realize the importance of using video to develop company culture and find employees who fit that culture. If you haven’t yet, get ahead of the curve and start using video to build and share your company’s unique culture today.
Forbes Communications Council is an invitation-only community for executives in successful public relations, media strategy, creative and advertising agencies. Do I qualify?
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https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbescommunicationscouncil/2018/04/13/14-ways-to-document-communications-processes-for-faster-easier-growth/
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14 Ways To Document Communications Processes For Faster, Easier Growth
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14 Ways To Document Communications Processes For Faster, Easier Growth
Documentation is key to successful business processes. It allows you to have procedures in place to expand your company with ease as you face anything from employee conflict to crisis communications.
When these processes are not documented, it can be an expensive lesson to learn. According to The Holmes Report, communication breakdowns can cost businesses as much as $37 billion a year. Avoiding this expense is as easy as putting the pieces of a puzzle together. You need vigilance and constant diligence to ensure your documentation is ready when the need arises.
Below, 14 members of Forbes Communications Council share best practices for documenting your processes to scale communications faster. From constantly reviewing and optimizing to using collaboration technology, here is what they recommend:
These communications executives share the ways in which they have scaled their communications processes. All photos courtesy of Forbes Councils members.
1. Constantly review and optimize.
With each client program, we always have a timeline or plan that itemizes each action and milestone. We're continually reviewing and optimizing with each program so that we can take insights from previous work and apply them to the next. Process is something that is continuously evolving; sticking to the same routine each time prevents growth. - Kriselle Laran, Zeno Group
2. Take advantage of collaboration technology.
If you're working with a distributed team, especially globally, collaboration technology is life saving and project saving. Simple project management tools like Asana and Basecamp provide visibility into full project plans, accountable parties and dependencies. This can make a huge difference in efficiency and communication. - Natalie Hahn, Billtrust
3. Keep a repository of on-brand messaging.
Don't reinvent the wheel. Keep a running list of the messaging, stats and milestones that best represent your brand and tell your story. You'll be both more efficient and more consistent. - Jeff Murphy, SnackNation
4. Start with the basics.
While it may be time consuming, documenting your workflow is extremely effective for managing your time, your message and your business. It helps to start with the basics: Identify your audience, break down everything step by step, assign responsibility and clearly state the end goal. Something as simple as a checklist can help create a process and streamline communications quickly. - G'Nai Blakemore, Mattress Firm
5. Rinse and repeat.
Creating a repository of templates and process documents has enabled us to scale communications globally. Communication champs can leverage repeatable processes to scale and adapt templates to ensure global consistency while also acknowledging local nuances. By retaining this repository, updates to both processes and templates can be made in real time. - Tracey Grove, Microsoft
6. Enlist process managers and workflow tools.
Campaigns and ongoing tasks need a dynamic process or project manager with a robust workflow tool the entire team views, and that sends automated alerts when updates occur or actions are required. Depending on the project's scope, this person can be an experienced professional, PR agency or even intern who assesses progress and recommends next steps to optimize and scale communications. - Alex Goryachev, Cisco
7. Use cloud software for real-time updates.
By using software that allows for real-time updates saved to the cloud, teams contribute to the mission faster and more effectively with fluid communication and ongoing updates. While this tech amplifies our communication, nothing will replace the effectiveness of our in-person or televideo status meetings to create alignment. - Robyn Hannah, Dynamic Signal
Forbes Communications Council is an invitation-only community for executives in successful public relations, media strategy, creative and advertising agencies. Do I qualify?
8. Create a network of local experts.
For repetitive communications, such as training materials, we have a "super user" on each team who can orient a new person and teach them what's available and how to use it. In essence, we have a few key people who are our "documentation." By decentralizing the information, we can share it faster. - Tony Holbrook, Ingram Micro Commerce & Fulfillment
9. Know who to ask and when.
Compose and maintain an internal subject matter expert list that is available to your entire team. This ensures everyone knows exactly who to contact and is particularly handy when creating features or blog posts. You should also document an agreed-upon review process for each type of communication, illustrating how high each should go up the chain. This will help create speed and agility. - Brandi Wessel, Chaparral Energy
10. Socialize processes.
Documentation of good processes is foundational, but processes have greater value when they are easy to understand and there is both organizational understanding and buy in. Coworkers could struggle to embrace processes that are lengthy or complex unless time is taken to socialize and practice the process in question. This rings as true for communications as elsewhere in the company. - Serge Vartanov, AutoGravity
11. Create a handbook.
The best way to approach communications is to have a content and brand handbook. Make sure it includes editorial and branding guidelines, as well as a review of audience and content insights. This will help your teams stay on brand and be audience centric when drafting communications. Practice to ensure there's an approval flow outlined for each type of communication. - Megan Murray, The Conference Board
12. Automate your workflow.
By streamlining and automating workflow, you can eliminate back-and-forth emails, phone calls and manual processes that waste time and money. Additionally, you provide all stakeholders visibility and documentation throughout the process. Simply put, there is no downside to automating workflow. - Laurie Ehrbar, ServiceNow
13. Make it habitual.
Every year, our team works on a list of habits we will follow. We set rules and procedures everyone must follow in order to track accomplishments and benchmarks. Examples include whether newsletters will be weekly or monthly, if reports will happen every quarter, when personnel evaluations will take place, etc. Establishing a habit helps everyone know when to slow down and when to pick up the pace. - David Isern, Texas Tech University College of Architecture (TTU CoA)
14. Use recipe cards.
Digital communications methods are constantly evolving. When refining a new process, I find that the concept of recipe cards to be extremely useful and practical, from listing out the main ingredients (tools, content types, hours of work) to mapping out execution steps, and what the results should be, using real-life examples. This approach is also highly effective for internal buy-in. - Christina Crawley, Forum One
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https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbescommunicationscouncil/2018/04/24/five-qualities-to-seek-in-a-brand-marketing-partner/
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Five Qualities To Seek In A Brand Marketing Partner
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Five Qualities To Seek In A Brand Marketing Partner
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Is your brand active in partner marketing? By partner marketing, I mean creating mutually beneficial relationships between your brand and other businesses -- like publishers, communities and brands. In these relationships, your brand pays for traffic and sales driven by your partners. Partnership is a fast-growing marketing sector. That growth is coming from both first-timer marketers creating their first partner marketing strategies as well as veteran partner marketing teams exploring new types of alliances to drive even faster growth.
Whatever your stage in employing performance partnerships for your business, it is important to seek the right partners for your brand. As with any relationship, the characteristics that make an ideal partner can be challenging to articulate. To help you identify great partners for your business, consider these five qualities when evaluating partner fit.
Scale And Incrementality
Perhaps the most important factor to consider is the extent to which a partner can deliver scale. Can it drive sufficient traffic and sales to warrant your time and attention? Creating and managing a partnership requires investment on your part -- make sure that the partner can deliver sufficient sales to warrant that investment.
Beyond the sheer size of the company or its audience, consider potential incremental reach. Evaluate to what extent a partner can reach and attract new customers and customer segments. Perhaps a potential partner can open up new communities for you. Imagine, for example, that you've always wanted to be able to appeal to millennials but haven't yet cracked the case. A potential partner that appeals to this massive and growing audience might be just the tool you need to drive significant incremental sales. That’s a partnership worth exploring.
Audience Alignment
Great partners often have great alignment in whom they target. For example, if both your brand and its partners are geared toward working mothers or college students, it makes sense for one brand to drive its consumers to the other. That's when audience alignment truly becomes a benefit to all parties -- including prospective buyers, who may find that the partnership helps them find products they need more easily.
When I talk about audience alignment for partners, I don’t mean strictly demographic groups or audience segments. It’s more about making sure you are thinking about who needs both products.
Shared Values
Look for brands that share consistent values with your own. Consumers these days are drawn to brands that work toward more than financial profit, and that drives loyalty. Many brands are driven to stand for something beyond their concrete offerings.
For partners, shared values can be extremely beneficial, as they afford consumers the opportunity to double down on their support for a cause. Other considerations for values alignment include company reputation, international business practices and attitudes toward technology and innovation. Similarly, a great partner can help you play catch up on a desired trait. For example, a car company that partners with a technology company may help crystallize consumer perceptions of its own tech credibility.
Relatability Of Categories
Similar to the concept of audience alignment, brands should seek partners in categories that are relatable to their own. Partnership is collaborative, and you want to attract collaborators that can drive strong sales for you. The combined value proposition of partnership is greater when the two companies offer related benefits.
Relatability doesn’t mean brands have to be in the same category or vertical to partner. But there needs to be some commonality between them. To use an extreme example, a partnership between an educational publisher and a parent-teacher organization likely has a great deal more relevance than a partnership with a sports team.
Pricing Strategy Sync
While it’s not necessary that products or services from partners be comparably priced, partnerships often work best when each company’s pricing strategy is similar. Brands and communities that appeal to bargain shoppers, for example, are likely to appeal to similar buyers. On a similar note, luxury brand partnerships also frequently perform well.
Imagine, for example, a status luggage company partnering with a frequent-flier program to make special offers to their platinum-status travelers. Since both offerings are about delivering a better travel experience, there’s good alignment. By contrast, an airline that lives and breathes heavily discounted family travel would likely not be a great partner for that luxury luggage. It’s all about fit.
Once you’ve evaluated and identified a great potential partner, you need to put a program in place that’s mutually beneficial. The value you deliver to that partner comes in part from the revenue they earn cross-selling your goods. But it’s also about paying off the relationship in brand value and in being committed enough to the pairing to allow it to grow. You want to ensure that the marriage is as good as the courtship. And as with a good marriage, if you’re going to be successful, that value exchange needs to be a two-way street.
Forbes Communications Council is an invitation-only community for executives in successful public relations, media strategy, creative and advertising agencies. Do I qualify?
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93449e7254443f9b04a2f2698f36e6f2
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https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbescommunicationscouncil/2018/05/02/the-case-for-brand-authenticity/
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The Case For Brand Authenticity
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The Case For Brand Authenticity
In the beginning, there was just you. Well, there was you and a blank status update box, the digital troubadour of a simpler time. It sat there, motionless save one thin, blinking cursor, until you filled it with whatever you wanted to share. Maybe you adopted a new puppy or felt moved to publish a 350-word political manifesto. You might’ve just purchased a home, gotten engaged or, during a quiet moment in the late afternoon, decided the best way to quell your boredom was by posting a photo montage of that half-eaten cheese burrito you had for lunch.
Anything was fair game.
The early days of social media were groundbreaking -- not only because of the sociological effects platforms like Facebook, Twitter and YouTube had on the cadences of our cultural existence, but also because of the barriers they unapologetically broke between what was once private and is now public. No longer were conversations happening in siloed text messages or on the phone. Now, with the right hashtag or keyword, thoughts could be instantly disseminated to friends and strangers alike, exposed to the opinions of an entirely opinionated world.
There was something fun and -- in the context of recent data breaches -- a little naïve about the way information was so haphazardly splattered around the internet during the days of digital yore. We had no elaborate content strategy; we just typed. And for a while, we happily existed in this state of organized chaos until marketers realized what a collective obsession with posting the minutiae of everyday life represented: attention.
Just a few years after social platforms came on the scene, a colossal shift in media consumption took place. People were spending inordinate amounts of time watching online videos and scrolling through news feeds, which communications executives understood could be a game-changing benefit for their brands. But, as the all-encompassing arm of professional social media took hold, what would become of the uneaten cheese burrito?
“Marketing ruins everything,” I was recently told by a VP at a world-renowned ad agency. We were on break during an industry conference, deeply engaged in one of those nostalgic and flowery discussions that often accompany hours spent in the dizzying digital weeds. I wasn’t sure what the statement meant -- he was in the business of marketing after all -- and the more I thought about it, even hours after his words were spoken, the more I wondered if he was right.
Just as consumer attention transitioned from TV to computer to tablet and phone, there’s another swing of the pendulum that’s happening to the nature of brand content. Instead of the polished and sleek content we expect from traditional marketing, copy and visuals are hurtling toward a more authentic, genuine place. It’s the realness of the messy, unfinished burrito combined with the expertise of a savvy social team.
In fact, swap the burrito for marshmallow-filled, chocolate-covered graham crackers and you arrive at one of the most quirky and irreverent brand Twitter accounts in all the land: @MoonPie. The account shot to social stardom with the unlikely advent of the 2017 solar eclipse and has been racking up record impressions and engagement ever since. It began August 2017 when, in a promo-type tweet, Hostess declared its Golden CupCakes the official snack of the celestial event, to which MoonPie replied, “lol ok.”
Two words, and that was it. The tweet received 522,000 likes and 196,000 comments, and the account gained more than 100,000 followers. (As of this writing, it currently sits at 223,000.) Of course, the quirkiness couldn’t end there. If you rummage through tweets sent by the account, the voice behind it (The Tombras Group, an ad agency based in Tennessee) consistently pushes the boundaries of grammar, propriety and even clip art. @MoonPie comments deep into a Twitter thread and randomly replies to brand mentions late on a Saturday night. It’s not what you’d expect from a large, national food brand but that’s exactly why it works.
Holistically, Twitter seems to provide the best examples of this “lol ok” social strategy. For reference, see the official accounts of Wendy’s, Dictionary.com and, most recently, The Museum of Rural English Life, which received internet acclaim after posting a grainy, black-and-white photo of a well-stocked ram. Even more proof solidifying the pervasiveness of the style can be unearthed by researching a few blue-check-verified journalists at popular publications; you’ll find their tweets surprisingly stripped of punctuation or even well-formed prose.
Disappearing content played a big role in this authenticity revival. As soon as Snapchat -- and later, Instagram Stories -- introduced the wildly popular feature of posts that go away, the pressure for perfection simultaneously disappeared. Unburdened by the fastidiously curated aesthetic of an Instagram feed, users could just create. Soon, following the dictates of the consumer trend, many brands did the same. (Traces of our ever-popular meme culture might also hearken back to this concept.)
Today, it’s not just words that are receiving a casual treatment; videos are also lilting in the direction of sincerity. Shaky cameras, out-of-focus frames and uneven lighting fill our screens. In the wake of documentary-style visual techniques, characters are becoming more realistic, too. Subjects at the forefront of some of the funniest, craziest and most tug-at-your-heartstrings brand videos finally echo the diversity that brings color to life outside our lens.
The result is a production that feels less conference-room conceived and more honest, a reflection of the unedited truths that perceptive consumers crave. In our attention economy, a video’s believability is one of the key determinants as to whether it will be skipped or shared. Really, every single piece of content should be judged by this standard. It was never the media component that electrified society to connect in ways previously unimaginable -- it was always the social part of social media that made the movement real.
Forbes Communications Council is an invitation-only community for executives in successful public relations, media strategy, creative and advertising agencies. Do I qualify?
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369e3f19f969d570d5c3446ab098a1d5
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https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbescommunicationscouncil/2018/05/14/five-aspects-of-visual-identity-that-many-companies-tend-to-overlook/
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Five Aspects Of Visual Identity That Many Companies Tend To Overlook
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Five Aspects Of Visual Identity That Many Companies Tend To Overlook
A company’s brand can be as valuable – if not more so – than the products and services it offers. Just take a look at the 2017 brand valuation rankings published by global brand consultancy Interbrand. Apple’s brand alone is worth $184 billion, while Google’s is $141 billion. Yes, that’s billion with a B.
While a brand identity is comprised of many qualities, visual identity is arguably its most important. This includes the logo, sure. But it’s also the typography, the icons and the illustrations. It’s the photos you use in your ads and the footage you use in your videos. It’s the color palettes and contrast methods you use on your site and various mediums of social media.
Despite visual identity’s remarkable significance, companies sometimes lose sight of what others see. Partners, customers and prospects are the ones who ultimately define your brand, but too many businesses fail to pay enough attention to certain elements of visual identity, which can prove costly over time.
Here are five key aspects of visual identity that are often overlooked:
1. Collaborate with your team.
Employees throughout your organization have a stake in its visual identity. Although the creative department and its design team may be developing the company’s visuals, they don’t necessarily bring the strategic insight on what the company aspires to represent that executives and senior marketers bring. When working in tandem, however, diverse thinkers will hatch ideas well worth pursuing to fruition.
Everything revolves around your “big idea”– the one key takeaway message your company wants etched in everyone’s mind. To ensure your visual identity adheres to its principles, develop a set of rules, guidelines or exercises that enable you to test new concepts. Lots of good ideas won’t pass muster; only the outstanding ones will.
2. Know who you are.
You can’t appeal to everyone, and trying to do so might guarantee that you appeal to no one. Who is your audience? Who are your customers, now and in the future? These are the first questions to ask when developing your brand, and how you answer them will have a direct bearing on your company’s visual identity. Trying to appeal to audiences outside your true company character sends mixed and muddled messages. Why complicate things?
Discover what you look like. Then return to the mirror frequently to maintain your good looks.
3. Never stray from consistency.
When it comes to cultivating a strong visual identity, a consistent aesthetic is critical. Your visuals must be identifiable over time, so when someone sees them, they know it’s you. The designs and images you use become part of the brand experience, so when they are used inconsistently, people don’t know what to expect, and your organization risks diluting its overall brand.
Ideally, your organization can create its own visual identity system and ensure that consistency is maintained throughout all collateral and content assets, online and off. This means checking off parameters related to your color palette, typography, illustrations and more, and making certain your brand’s visual identity encompasses a form of overall harmony.
4. Remember that uniqueness is a virtue.
You only stand out from others by taking chances. Creating a distinct visual identity isn’t easy, and novel design ideas are often met with initial resistance. Innovation can be scary. But differentiating a brand is critical if you want to become an industry leader. Let others think differently, and instead take Apple’s advice to “Think Different.”
Coming up with a strong visual identity that sets you apart from the pack involves competitive research, and lots of it. What are your competitors doing right, visually speaking? What are they doing wrong? Most importantly, what are they missing altogether that can have a lasting strategic impact? Determining that last fact allows your brand to leap above all others.
5. Craft an ongoing story.
Always consider the role your visuals play in telling your organization’s continuing story, and how it shapes the big idea and the meaning behind your brand. When audiences encounter your logo – or other visual aspects of your company – they gain some sort of understanding, if only subconsciously, of who you are and what you do.
As time passes, these visuals take on more dynamic characteristics, and their appearance and subsequent recognition become components of a consumer’s broadening experience with your company – the different chapters of the book without end. When a retired steelworker eyes a can of Coke he’s drinking from on a hot summer day, he may very well flash back to the times he did so when finishing up his paper route a half-century before. His story, then, becomes intertwined with that of Coca Cola.
Once you’ve fully grasped and sought to optimize the above five qualities of your visual identity, your work is only just beginning. As your company evolves, so will its big idea. That means your visual identity will require constant tuning and the agility to shift in any direction. That said, when your organization always pays attention to these key aspects of its visual identify, good things will come.
Forbes Communications Council is an invitation-only community for executives in successful public relations, media strategy, creative and advertising agencies. Do I qualify?
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6f7dda3010b282ef2eb4857d247fe811
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https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbescommunicationscouncil/2018/05/29/the-one-marketing-truism-you-cannot-ignore-perception-is-reality/
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The One Marketing Truism You Cannot Ignore: Perception Is Reality
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The One Marketing Truism You Cannot Ignore: Perception Is Reality
We’ve all heard the phrase, “Perception is reality.” Nowhere does that hold more true than for marketers trying to drive awareness, consideration and purchase of their products and services. The perceptions consumers have of a brand, its values and its products and services can have a dramatic impact on consumer purchase behavior. If a business can foster positive perceptions focused on these aspects, it’s likely to build a sustainable, loyal and growing customer base.
Just what is perception? Perception is defined as the process by which individuals select, organize and interpret stimuli into a meaningful and coherent picture of the world. It can be described as how we see the world around us. Two individuals may be exposed to the same stimuli, but how each person selects, organizes and interprets these stimuli is a highly individual process based on each person’s needs, values, past experiences and expectations.
Consumers act and react on the basis of their perceptions, not on the basis of objective reality. Thus, to marketers, consumers’ perceptions are much more important than their knowledge of objective reality. It is important that marketers understand perception and its related concepts to determine what factors influence consumers to make purchase decisions.
In consumer behavioral terms, perception is the result of two inputs that interact to form the personal evaluations that ultimately drive purchase:
• Physical stimuli from the outside environment
• People’s expectations and motives based on past experiences
While it’s difficult to impact the expectations and motives formed on past experiences, here’s how you, as a marketer, can impact the physical stimuli consumers perceive in the world around them.
What are physical stimuli?
Physical stimuli are any unit of input that impacts your sense of sight, smell, touch, hearing or taste. This could be anything from marketer-created stimuli such as a billboard or a display ad to stimuli that are more native to the environment (e.g., being jostled by a pedestrian on a busy street or the sound of crickets chirping in the suburbs at night).
How do stimuli impact consumer decision making?
External stimuli can impact many stages of the consumer decision making process, making it a critical consideration for marketers. For example, consider the first three stages of this process:
• Problem recognition: Problem recognition can be triggered by both internal and external stimuli. In the case of external stimuli, advertisements that consumers hear and see or discussions with friends or family members can prompt consumers to realize they have an unmet need awaiting fulfillment.
• Information search: External stimuli created by marketers are a critical component of the information search phase, especially for high involvement or new products. Consumers routinely look to websites, blogs, affiliates and discussion forums for insight into various product options to fulfill the problem they have recognized.
• Alternative evaluation: When evaluating various alternatives, consumers often look to create a list of determinant attributes, the most important attributes that drive purchase of a product or service, and they evaluate each alternative against those determinant attributes. Marketers can create external stimuli in the form of advertising to identify and communicate determinant attributes, as Pepsi famously did with freshness in the mid-1990s.
What role do marketers play in creating physical stimuli that influence perceptions?
Much of the discipline of marketing communications focuses on creating stimuli that positively influence consumer perceptions. Best practices in doing so include:
• Identifying your product’s value proposition: In order to influence perceptions, you need to define and document your product’s value proposition. Your value proposition is your big picture brand promise, the benefit your product or service uniquely provides. Defining your value proposition requires you to understand your target customers’ unmet needs and how your products, as well as that of your competitors, will fulfill those needs. Identifying gaps where your customers face unmet needs that are not fulfilled by competitors can help you to identify your product’s value proposition.
• Developing a holistic market communications strategy to influence perceptions: Marketers should document and share their strategic goals on an annual, bi-annual or quarterly basis depending on their company’s cadence. Doing so will enable them to identify and prioritize activities for the time period, and one of those activities might include building, influencing or changing consumer perceptions about their product or service.
• Developing a multichannel tactical strategy: Once you have a sense of your product’s value proposition (what you want to communicate about your product or service) as well as your marketing strategy (your goals for a defined time period), consider developing a thorough tactical plan that includes the marketing tactics you plan to launch during that time period, the objectives of each tactic, the channel, the spend and quantitative metrics you plan to measure. In order to more persuasively influence consumer perceptions, consider incorporating experiential marketing tactics into your plan. Unlike most marketing tactics that appeal to your sense of sight and/or sound (e.g., television commercials, print ads, radio spots, etc.), experiential marketing has the ability to engage more of a consumer’s senses and therefore may be more impactful in influencing consumer perceptions.
• Being aware of sensory adaptation: Consider how often your consumers experience sensory adaptation, the phenomenon of getting used to marketing tactics that stimulate certain sensations. Sensory adaptation often leads to consumers becoming less able to notice particular stimuli, like marketing tactics, in their environment. That’s why consistently evaluating the performance of your tactics and refreshing the creative is critical.
According to the 2017 Edelman Trust Barometer, 48% of American consumers do not trust businesses -- an increase in distrust since 2016. With so much distrust in businesses, marketers have a responsibility to positively influence consumer perceptions, especially if they have a strong value proposition that clearly improves the lives of their customers. Doing so doesn’t have to be guesswork. Grounding your tactical plan, or the stimuli you create, in a well-researched value proposition, could enable you to positively influence consumer perceptions -- and therefore their reality.
Forbes Communications Council is an invitation-only community for executives in successful public relations, media strategy, creative and advertising agencies. Do I qualify?
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16fb02d82c4edf810706eea3f28044e9
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https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbescommunicationscouncil/2018/06/01/four-data-driven-strategies-to-leapfrog-your-competition/
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Four Data-Driven Strategies To Leapfrog Your Competition
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Four Data-Driven Strategies To Leapfrog Your Competition
Are you taking a data-driven approach to your marketing strategy? As a marketer, you have likely been on the receiving end of this question. I know I have, and I think we can all agree on the immense benefits that come with it. I find it particularly inspiring and of immense value when data returns unexpected solutions or opens my eyes to new approaches to the problem at hand.
A study recently released by Bain & Company on the value that marketers have gained from their data and technology investments uncovered an interesting angle on how to connect with consumers in the most effective way. While most marketers leverage data analytics to identify the right consumers and personalize their messaging to fit each segment, that is only half of the puzzle. The other half, widely untapped, consists of identifying the right moments to communicate with them based on their behaviors and interests.
I work for a location intelligence and consumer insights company, and we see this often in our business. Marketing budgets are tighter than ever and competition is fierce. Being able to identify the best opportunities to create meaningful connections with target audiences and, once the message has been delivered, understand if it generated results is a must for advertisers today, is what separates leaders from laggards.
Here are four ways leading marketers are successfully using data to leapfrog the competition:
Targeting
Not only is it important to identify the right consumer segments to target, it is also crucial to engage them at the right time. Traditionally, a way to achieve such an in-the-moment opportunity would be to deliver an ad or push notification as a consumer visits a particular store. For example, the consumer walks into a grocery store and gets a 20% coupon for a product. What if, instead of reaching consumers at the end of their journey, you could engage them while they are still deciding which product to purchase, right when they recognize they have a need or just at the perfect time to spark their desire for your product? By understanding consumers’ offline behaviors and interests, marketers are taking their segmentation and targeting capabilities a step further to create meaningful experiences for their audiences.
Competitive Intelligence
The competitive intelligence arsenal for marketers has been somewhat limited -- there is only so much you can learn about your competitors’ performance, especially in real time. A number of forward-thinking marketers, however, are leveraging location intelligence to paint a clearer picture of how consumers engage with their brands and their competitive set. For example, they can understand which customers are loyal to their competitors and which are the occasional visitors, and develop specific conquesting strategies to target those who will be the most receptive. As a result, not only can they keep an eye on how the competition is performing, but they can also create efficiencies with their media.
Real-Time Measurement
You’ve identified your target audience, determined the right moment to reach them to maximize engagement and even mapped out your segmentation against your competitive set. Now your campaign is live and you can’t wait to see how it is performing. Is it driving consumers to store?
More and more marketers are leveraging location data to measure the effectiveness of their advertising in real time so that they can correct course if need be, before it’s too late. I am a big proponent of testing as many ideas as possible: I encourage my team to think outside the box and test concepts they think could be powerful knowing that not every activation will work. I constantly remind them that what matters is keeping an eye on the results so that if we recognize something is not working, we can learn from it right away instead of repeating the same mistakes over and over.
The ability to understand the offline impact of advertising in real time is a powerful tool that many marketers are leveraging because it allows them to create efficiencies, remain in control (as much as possible) over the outcomes of the campaign and have more flexibility to experiment and innovate.
Predictive Analytics
Last but not least is the most advanced use case. As marketers build their data and technology stack, they can get access to advanced analytics that allow them to further their ability to answer key questions, as well as ultimately make predictions of future performance. Once mastered, this use case significantly impacts marketing effectiveness because it allows marketers first to turn the data into a smart decision making tool and then to forecast future outcomes and stay ahead of the game by preparing for them accordingly.
Is your company leveraging -- or considering -- any of these data-driven strategies?
Forbes Communications Council is an invitation-only community for executives in successful public relations, media strategy, creative and advertising agencies. Do I qualify?
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3187f2d12378a4c5f6ee6fd57483315c
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https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbescommunicationscouncil/2018/06/13/brand-curiosity-the-importance-of-why-moments/
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Brand Curiosity: The Importance Of 'Why' Moments
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Brand Curiosity: The Importance Of 'Why' Moments
Shutterstock
Curiosity is a great trait to have. A curious person is usually a life-long learner. They are humble enough to admit that they don’t know it all and instead are on a continual quest to discover more and more. I have seen this trait manifest through my seven-year-old daughter. We have been going through a “why” phase that is just now slowing. Everything I said or asked of her came with a “why?” I used to think this phase was made up for sitcoms and gave viewers a good laugh as they watched kids repeat why over and over again, but here I was living it. It wasn’t as funny when it became my reality.
Every time she asked “why,” I wanted to scream stop. But one day, I stopped long enough to listen. After several whys, she would make a statement. This statement would summarize what she had just learned from me through her series of questions. The next time that topic came up, she no longer asked why. Instead, she would engage me with awareness and understanding. This new knowledge became a part of her, and now our discussions about the topic graduated from surface to in-depth conversations.
I realized that she was just curious and had a strong desire to learn something new. There was an interest she was seeking to feed to help her become more connected to the topic on which she was garnering information. The same holds true for our target audiences in regards to our brands. Strong brands should always have their customers clamoring for more. These brands spark an interest within their target audiences -- a yearning that they chase to remain connected and keep them asking why.
What happens when there is no brand curiosity? An organization I worked for a few years back faced a public relations crisis a few months after my arrival. CNN was working on exposing some truths about the organization that would not have painted it in a flattering light. The chief strategy officer, my boss, and the PR director worked for weeks trying to talk CNN off the ledge and into putting the story back into the vault. Despite all their efforts, CNN was moving forward.
The story hit, and we all held our breath. We waited in anticipation for the storm to come through and knock us off our feet. One hour went by, then two hours, then three. Soon it was day one of the story and then a whole week. Crickets. Silence. Not one single peep. No backlash, no high fives, no whispers, nada. The story did not receive any reaction. Not one.
Every PR person’s dream! A negative news story opening the doors to the skeletons in the closet, and nothing came from it. Our marketing team meeting the following week began with our PR director rejoicing and banging her tambourine. In the midst of her dance, the CSO who led our marketing team rained on her parade. He pointed out that the story was met with silence. The PR director agreed and was dismayed by his lack of joy. His next words echoed in my ears: “No one cared.” A lack of care means just that -- no one cares.
Remember the old sayings that no news is good news and that all press is good press? Well, in this case, we weren’t newsworthy at all. What came to the surface for us was that the curiosity was gone. That intense desire to know us and wonder about us had died. Our brand calling out to the hearts of those we aimed to serve was a thing of the past. Not a single soul desired to know us more, learn from us or even understand us better -- whether it be our good side or bad side. They didn’t care.
At that moment, I realized I needed to mourn the death of our brand.
Just like my daughter, curiosity moves us to action. We dig and hunt until we find answers. We walk down dark pathways and scale mountains to find out more. Brand curiosity is vital and necessary. Without it, brands become obsolete, die and fall off the face of the earth never to be thought of again. The messages we develop and the engagement we create should encourage that wanting for more. The minute our audience stops asking why is the minute they have stopped caring.
As long as my daughter is asking why she is showing me her interest. Does your audience still want to know why? Are they curious and asking for more? I now welcome the questions. Content is a primary vehicle used to spark curiosity. I create and invite the why moments through rich content that formulates questions in the minds of my audience. Utilizing platforms such as social chats or podcasts allows strategic conversations to take place -- pushing out just enough content to inform but also to generate a thirst for more.
The key here is to produce moments that speak to your audience and create content that connects to their hearts. Do the research. Discover as much as you can about your audience beyond your own brand. We need to know where else our audience hunts to feed their curiosity. Seek to answer what your audience is eager to know and how they already get their answers. Take what you have learned and find alignment with your brand to engineer those moments of why. Once you have done so, a conversation will evolve that allows more information to be shared and a connection to take place.
As communicators and marketers, it is our job to determine if the sparks are still there between our brands and our audience. We create that spark. Take the time to measure your brand curiosity and your brand will live long and prosper, leaving enough mystery to keep your audience hunting for more.
Forbes Communications Council is an invitation-only community for executives in successful public relations, media strategy, creative and advertising agencies. Do I qualify?
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e717aa5b0a8faf9274b32fa91e45351d
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https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbescommunicationscouncil/2018/06/20/six-quick-tips-to-make-your-remote-employees-feel-more-included/
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Six Quick Tips To Make Your Remote Employees Feel More Included
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Six Quick Tips To Make Your Remote Employees Feel More Included
Telework has become increasingly popular as a recruiting tactic given the positive impact it can have on an employee’s work-life balance. That shift means companies are focusing on how to best engage and communicate with teleworkers. Specifically, the question for many is how do we set the stage for collaboration, creativity and decision making for all employees, including those who work remotely?
A 2016 Gallup poll showed that 43% of the workforce worked from home at least some of the time — an increase from 39% in 2012. Employees, particularly the millennial generation, embrace workplace flexibility. In a war-for-talent environment, companies that offer remote working as a perk gain an edge.
Companies benefit from remote working policies, too, with the ability to hire the best candidate regardless of location. Although some managers might be concerned that their direct reports aren’t co-located, telecommuting employees are actually 13% more productive than those in the office, and companies that support remote working have 25% less turnover.
While many companies are benefitting from telework, some are regressing and retreating on their own remote policy trends. Recently, IBM, Aetna and Yahoo required telework employees to return to headquarters, citing the need to increase collaboration, innovation and agility. But sitting shoulder to shoulder in the same conference room doesn’t guarantee a dynamic culture.
The Truth About Remote Employees
Remote employees want the same things on-site employees want: meaningful work, an opportunity to contribute, and to be included, appreciated and recognized. Overloaded with communication technologies, companies still struggle to create processes and behaviors that help remote employees feel inherently a part of the team.
And here’s the real issue — the “out of sight, out of mind” adage unfortunately applies too often to offsite employees. How often have you had an impromptu meeting with your team in the office that resulted in a change in project direction or priority. But oops. You forgot to include your remote employee in the meeting. You caught him up and apologized though, so it’s all good, right?
Perhaps employees’ lack of engagement, communication and collaboration isn’t so much an issue of where they work as it is an issue of how included they feel in the process. By addressing inclusion, location may no longer be a pain point.
Six Ways To Include Your Remote Employees
1. Get to know your remote employees and encourage onsite team members to do the same. In addition to regular project updates, have scheduled one-to-one meetings and performance development discussions. Communicate via video and keep remote employees updated on corporate and in-office news. Create time for informal conversation, much like you would have around the conference table at the end of a meeting or in the hallway during a coffee run.
2. Schedule meetings at a convenient time for all, or rotate the time so one group or individual isn’t the one who always has the midnight conference call. Even with video conferencing, the ones on video may feel disconnected from the attendees in the room, so make a concerted effort to pause and solicit input from those in remote locations. Rotate participation in meetings — have remote employees present to the team.
3. Use technology to establish informal communication. Collaborative software like Slack, a closed Facebook group, a group chat or other internal system provide an online water cooler spot. Encourage employees to follow your lead in using the system to keep in touch, get to know each other, share humanness and spark creativity.
4. Commit to including remote employees in projects and decisions even when under tight deadlines. No more apologizing for excluding them after the fact. Make it a priority to get their participation at the time.
5. Remember to include remote workers when it comes to celebrations. Whether it’s an employee milestone or the signing of a new client, keep remote workers in the loop. Although they may not be able to attend the celebratory event, Skype or FaceTime them and send them a special note or lunch treat as well.
6. Recognize your remote employees’ contributions. While you may give someone kudos in the break room in front of peers, you will need to intentionally find an opportunity to recognize a remote employee in front of their peers. Show them you care and make recognition an ongoing activity with an online recognition wall that keeps everyone up to date on the entire team’s accomplishments.
If you want a culture where employees talk with each other, build ideas off of each other and are efficient at making decisions, you must establish trust, and feeling included is essential to that. By making a consistent effort to intentionally include all of your employees and ensure they feel included, you can create a collaborative environment that ultimately benefits all members of your team.
Forbes Communications Council is an invitation-only community for executives in successful public relations, media strategy, creative and advertising agencies. Do I qualify?
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ec1ef571ef177b9d6293f194129fbb9b
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https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbescommunicationscouncil/2018/06/21/how-to-breathe-new-life-into-a-stale-employer-brand/
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How To Breathe New Life Into A Stale Employer Brand
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How To Breathe New Life Into A Stale Employer Brand
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If your organization has been having difficulty finding and retaining the talent it needs, it may be due in part to a stale employer brand. Not to be confused with your company brand -- which encompasses the messaging, perceptions and valuation your customers have of your organization’s products and services -- your employer brand is your reputation as a great place to work or an awful place to work.
If you suspect your employer brand is less than stellar, it’s time to start approaching talent attraction and retention in the same way you would your company brand. That approach typically requires asking the following questions: What messages is your company trying to convey? What impact does the organization want to have? How do your employer and company brands intersect to promote your company mission?
At a time when skills gaps are problematic across many industries, and unemployment among professionals and managers has remained around 2% for over a year, a business-as-usual attitude is no longer acceptable. Top candidates have options, and they are gravitating toward companies that have strong employer brands.
According to my company’s 2018 Reputation Management Study, 71% of employers say employer brand strength is important or very important when a candidate is evaluating a job offer. Yet many companies do little to ensure that their company culture remains appealing and is not harming their reputation or their business. A 2017 survey by CareerArc confirms that although 96% of companies believe employer brand and reputation can impact revenue, only 44% monitor that impact.
In terms of ensuring an engaging company culture and monitoring the impact of employer brand, here are some companies that are leading the way:
• PwC: One of PwC’s most innovative branding techniques is the employee stories on its career pages, where individual employees are highlighted through photos, bios, Q&A sessions and career timelines. Not only do these stories give job seekers a good idea of the kinds of people they’d work with at PwC, but they also show how PwC can help them meet their long-term career needs.
• L’Oréal: L’Oréal, which has been consistently honored by such entities as Fortune as one of the world’s best places to work, developed an employee value proposition by soliciting input from its employees. The EVP touts “a thrilling experience,” “an environment that will inspire you” and “a school of excellence for prospective employees.”
As these examples demonstrate, employer branding is not simply an initiative to attract talent. It is a business-wide strategy that supports long-term growth, improves employee retention and builds upon the overall company brand. In short, it offers invaluable returns for companies that make the investment in becoming a place where people take pride in working. Now that you understand some of the attributes of companies that have strong employer brands, here are a few tips on how to take their lead:
Engage your current high performers.
Initiate conversations with them to understand why they work for your organization and why they stay. Find common messages among these employees that can be promoted to prospective talent. Invite your A-players to serve as brand ambassadors, sharing these employee messages and experiences through your career site, social media, PR and marketing materials. Your top performers are often already engaging in PR to promote the company as well as their own personal brands (as I discussed in a recent article), so it makes sense that they would also be ideal to serve as your employer brand ambassadors.
Tap the networks of your employees.
Since talented employees know other talented individuals who would be a great fit for their organizations, encourage and enable them to share job postings with their social networks. People are more likely to respond to a job listing forwarded by a friend. According to Jobvite’s Social Recruiting Survey, 41% of recruiters and hiring managers said referrals remain the top source for quality talent, followed by internal hires and social/professional networks. My company echoed these findings in its Reputation Management Study, with almost 60% of candidate respondents ranking employee referrals as their top method for evaluating employer brands.
Pay close attention to the candidate experience.
Develop a mobile-friendly career website where your job postings and application forms are fully compatible with smartphones. Keep the application process streamlined by offering both “apply with LinkedIn” and “join our talent community” options, ideally with a one-click application. Evaluate your career pages frequently and breathe new life into them as often as possible. Consider whether they’re too text-heavy or even too boring. Use real visuals if possible, instead of stock images. Monitor where candidates go on your site and make sure the message you’re sending attracts the right talent. Go beyond just posting jobs and touting your company awards. Initiate meaningful conversations, involve your own employees and make it fun and interesting. Try applying to your own openings to get a handle on the candidate experience. Is your process awkward and time-consuming? If it frustrates you, it will also frustrate potential candidates.
Limit your efforts.
Although the opportunities to spread your employer brand through social media are limitless, your company resources are not. Restrict your outreach efforts to tools that can deliver the most impact and that you can sustain. Convincing job seekers that your company is fun, engaging and accomplishing exciting things is tough to do with a blog, Twitter account or Facebook page that hasn’t been updated in weeks.
Evidence keeps mounting that employer branding is one of the most powerful tools to attract great talent to your company. Thanks to PR, social media and review sites like Glassdoor, that branding can be accomplished on a modest budget if you are creative, authentic and in tune with the talent market.
Forbes Communications Council is an invitation-only community for executives in successful public relations, media strategy, creative and advertising agencies. Do I qualify?
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13efa00d802a93a2af24bfd2e26ba88f
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https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbescommunicationscouncil/2018/06/22/creativity-is-for-everyone/?sh=2f6374d553f8
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Creativity Is For Everyone
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Creativity Is For Everyone
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Creativity has a branding problem.
When many people think about creativity — especially people who don’t consider themselves to be creative — artists immediately come to mind. Sculptors, painters and dancers. Pablo Picasso and Georgia O’Keeffe. People whose work altered the ways we think about beauty and even how we see the world. Or our minds turn to innovators like Walt Disney or Steve Jobs. Their creations were so different from existing products and processes that they swiftly and dramatically changed industries.
Those are pretty daunting models to live up to. But creativity isn’t just about revolutionary ideas, and it’s not just the domain of artists and visionaries. Creativity is for everyone.
The image of a creative person as a special breed isn’t just misleading, it’s wrong. Researchers have pushed back against that monolithic concept of creativity. Lucy L. Gilson and Nora Madjar at the University of Connecticut, for instance, argue that there are actually two main sorts of creativity: radical and incremental.
Radical creativity is the far-out, groundbreaking stuff that has become the popular face of creativity. Incremental creativity is the often-overlooked and far more accessible form. It’s about building on existing concepts — refining, expanding and improving them.
It might sound less sexy than radical creativity. But incremental creativity is what the vast majority of projects and businesses need to continue to move forward. It’s the way most of the world works: Just like those “overnight” success stories in Hollywood, what looks like a sudden breakthrough is usually the result of years of making progress on a problem — experimenting, honing the craft, iterating and going to lots and lots of auditions.
And it’s going to become increasingly essential in the workplace.
I don’t need to tell you that robotics and artificial intelligence are pervading and changing every industry, from advertising to healthcare to transportation. In some cases, they are enhancing the way humans work; in others, they are replacing them entirely. According to a study from the McKinsey Global Institute, at least 60% of occupations are largely made up of tasks that can be automated. As technology makes even greater inroads, some of those jobs will disappear because it will be cheaper, faster, easier or more effective to have machines do them. Other jobs will remain, but will drastically change.
Most of the jobs that will be automated involve physical tasks that are very structured and predictable. But creativity is something that machines haven’t mastered (yet). Creativity is how people bring value to the table, using it to turn the potential offered by technology into results.
In fact, when the World Economic Forum conducted it Future of Jobs report, it examined what skills will be most important in the workforce by 2020. Creativity came in third, after critical thinking and complex problem solving.
Happily, anyone can be creative. And being incrementally creative isn’t just sufficient: It’s desirable. While crazy ideas can result in big rewards, they also come with correspondingly bigger risks. Not every business has the appetite for substantial risk-taking, but virtually everyone needs to move gradually in new directions.
The good news for leaders is that incremental creativity can be encouraged and incentivized. The process starts with debunking the idea that creativity is only for a few special people. Engineers, coders, salespeople and customer service representatives can all apply creativity to their jobs. Leaders can demonstrate their support by showcasing new ideas and rewarding progress.
They can also emphasize problem solving. As opposed to radical creativity, which aims to reframe a problem — think of Elon Musk’s plan to build a super-fast tunnel under Los Angeles instead of encouraging more carpooling or rethinking local traffic routes — incremental creativity takes a solutions-based approach. A good example is the work that engineers at my company do every day. They aren’t simply adding servers to increase our technical capabilities, they're challenging themselves to find other ways to scale and be more efficient at the same time.
Not everyone has it in them to be a revolutionary. But an evolutionary? Absolutely.
Make incremental creativity a part of your culture and you just might find fresh ideas where you least expect them. The power is in everyone’s hands — or, more accurately, in their heads.
Forbes Communications Council is an invitation-only community for executives in successful public relations, media strategy, creative and advertising agencies. Do I qualify?
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8b86cf77ccaa209022a643c8bc4ae418
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https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbescommunicationscouncil/2018/06/26/nine-key-aspects-of-rebranding-any-business-should-keep-in-mind/
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Nine Key Aspects Of Rebranding Any Business Should Keep In Mind
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Nine Key Aspects Of Rebranding Any Business Should Keep In Mind
Having a brand that represents your values is key to gaining and keeping customers. But brands can go off-message, or find their message no longer resonates with their target audiences.
Changing your brand to reflect the values that your customers hold is a challenging proposition, however. Undergoing a company rebrand takes a careful hand and plenty of thought into what customers you are interested in looking to reach stand for. If done right, aligning your business with these qualities can certainly have the desired effect and earn you a loyal customer base. Done incorrectly, rebranding can cost you not only the customers you're hoping to reach, but a segment of established clients as well.
To make the rebranding process as smooth as possible for your business, nine members of Forbes Communications Council weigh in on what aspect of rebranding is absolutely crucial to watch out for, as well as how to handle it with care. Here’s what they had to say:
Members discuss some important things to remember when planning a rebrand. Photos courtesy of individual members
1. Audit Of Legacy Branding
Rebranding is an extremely challenging marketing undertaking. One of the most important aspects of a seamless rebrand is completing a thorough audit of where an how the legacy brand is used internally and externally. A successful rebrand typically requires a synchronized switch to the new branding. If any aspects of the legacy branding were missed in the initial audit, they may create confusion about the rebrand in the market. - Tom Wozniak, OPTIZMO Technologies, LLC
2. Understand The 'Why'
One crucial component for rebranding is understanding the business case, or the “why,” and focusing on telling your story. This helps companies identify whether they should partially rebrand to clarify their story, or completely rebrand to tell a different story or take a completely new approach. - Danielle Edberg, Procore
Forbes Communications Council is an invitation-only community for executives in successful public relations, media strategy, creative and advertising agencies. Do I qualify?
3. Start With The End In Mind
Begin the rebranding project with the end in mind. Understand why the rebrand is necessary, then establish a clear vision and goals for it before considering tactical changes (like developing a new logo). Ultimately, the success of a brand is determined by how well the brand's story resonates with the target audience, so take an outside-in approach to the rebranding process. - Nick Goellner, Advanced Machine & Engineering Co.
4. Keep Elements Of Your Original Brand
The purpose of rebranding is to enhance your existing brand to engage with your target audience while capitalizing on the brand equity you've built to date. For that reason, it's imperative that you at least give a nod to your original brand in some way — be it keeping your original tagline, colors or playing off your old logo — so you can connect with a new audience while still making sure your existing brand ambassadors recognize the brand they've come to love. - Stephanie Schroeder, Discovery Benefits
5. Find The Right Internal Advocates
Having gone through several rebranding efforts throughout my career, there are three critical aspects to watch out for. One, listen and understand the internal company culture and heritage of the brand before embarking on a rebrand. Two, find the right advocates internally to drive the project through, from the C-Suite to high-value culture people within the organization. Three, partner with a brand or design firm that really understands your business and has a portfolio of work that is truly innovative in your space. - Ken Yanhs, Zappi
6. Simultaneously Rebrand At All Levels
The most important aspect of a rebrand is ensuring that it occurs at all levels of the company simultaneously. This takes a lot of careful planning, but whether this means making certain that every department knows how to access the updated marketing materials, or that they truly understand the new core values and culture changes, a rebrand will only be successful if every single member of the organization understands and stands behind the new company direction. - Andriana Zacharakos, Fort Funding Corp
Read more in The Rebrand Gut Check: Five Things You Need To Know For Success
7. Develop A Voice That Aligns With The Target Audience
As a company approaches a rebranding initiative, it is critical to examine the core customer profiles in order to reverse engineer an identity and voice that aligns with your target audience. Moreover, a brand must also assess their own key messages and values to draw parallels with how the organization would like to be perceived in the marketplace. - Allen Yesilevich, MC²
8. Establish An Emotional Connection With Customers
Regardless of where your branding efforts are going, your brand has to connect emotionally with your target customer. This means that you have to pull your target customers into your story in an authentic way. - Stacy Gentile, GoldMine CRM
9. Remember Search Engine Optimization
A lot of the work we do in marketing is based on building brand recognition and online visibility. Transitioning to a new name, domain or rebrand can put that all at risk. One of the most crucial elements to watch for is search engine optimization. Without having the proper technical aspects of SEO in place, your rebrand might experience a dip in traffic for a month or two while all your updates are indexed by search engines. - JD Prater, AdStage
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2939dc5b11af9157d48f995a1f18906d
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https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbescommunicationscouncil/2018/07/09/how-the-changing-business-world-has-impacted-it/
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How The Changing Business World Has Impacted IT
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How The Changing Business World Has Impacted IT
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Today’s IT department doesn’t look like it used to. Triggered by simultaneous shifts in the business world, everything has changed: the work, the methods and the speed. Here, we look at four recent business shifts and how they have impacted IT.
1. IT in business strategy: Every company is a technology company.
Nearly every company relies on IT to create differentiation in some way. Johnson & Johnson has long been a healthcare company, but it is heavily involved in biotech. General Electric, the industrial and one-time financial services company, conducts advanced research and sells tech products. Blue Apron sells food, but its heart is that of a tech company.
The challenge for businesses today lies in recognizing the opportunities that come from new technologies and offering value propositions before digital-native startups capture the market. Who knows what might be possible better than CIOs and CTOs? Rather than waiting to hear what capabilities are needed, IT leaders should be in the boardroom presenting new sources of innovation and efficiency. Building business and IT strategy simultaneously results in tight alignment, top-line growth and a competitive edge.
2. A fast-paced world: New development life cycles change IT culture.
The cadence of business is accelerating. Successful businesses have responded by becoming more flexible and adaptable, learning to quickly pivot to serve customers in a rapidly changing competitive landscape. But where does that flexibility come from? Often, from their IT departments.
For decades, there was one dominant software development life cycle (SDLC): waterfall. When businesses started to move faster, IT couldn’t keep up. Then iterative, lean, agile, spiral and DevOps models emerged. They brought significant benefits -- better alignment between business strategy and IT, for example, with more rapid delivery and better end products. But adopting these SDLCs requires significant cultural changes. IT has to start working before key decisions are made and account for the possibility of the organization changing its mind.
3. The rise of XaaS: IT departments move from technology providers to technology diplomats.
Cloud computing today enables just about anything to be delivered “as-a-service” (XaaS), making it easy for business people to bypass IT and purchase technology from outside the organization. This democratization of IT has caused tech fluency to spread throughout organizations. Smart software salespeople target business unit leaders, not IT execs. So where does that leave IT?
Organizations still require strategies for information and systems. A siloed technology landscape is not usually the most effective one. Someone must sort through competing requests, prioritize IT spend, lead programs and projects, and manage vendors.
The result is that IT departments need to change their mindsets -- and their skill sets. Without a monopoly license on providing technology, they need to be diplomats and negotiators. The new task at hand is to sell the business on what they want it to buy and to ensure that smart decisions are made, even if not entirely by them. Facilitating honest conversations around what the business wants can reveal a variety of things -- from unrecognized requirements to misunderstood capabilities, future limitations to future growth opportunities. As IT leaders sharpen their skills, their abilities to help businesses navigate their technical futures open up a world of opportunities.
4. A digital revolution: The customer is king.
Today’s most successful brands create personalized experiences -- and they grow their revenue two to three times faster than competitors. The Amazon effect (almost frictionless shopping and near-immediate results) has spilled over into every industry, with customers’ expectations for superior experiences rising.
The result is a digital revolution -- not just web, mobile and social, but CRM, analytics, artificial intelligence and more. The need to keep up with customers drives an enormous percentage of most IT budgets today and defines much of the relationship between IT and business.
When database marketing began in the early 1980s, companies used direct mail and phone to market to customers one on one. As the use of the internet became widespread, email became a popular tool for direct marketing. Customer relationship management was invented when companies began consolidating detailed data about customers into centralized databases and then mining the information, turning it into valuable insights.
The focus on web, mobile and social has only continued to grow. Today, this information -- plus external data sets and more -- is combined to create a 360-degree view of the customer. The result has been a major shift in the skills, priorities and working relationship between business and IT.
What’s next?
As the world continues to speed up, one thing we know for sure is that things will change faster than ever before. IT departments of the future will have two crucial needs -- adaptability and business alignment.
Adaptability allows IT to reinvent itself even as it continues to deliver. Services can’t be interrupted while IT implements a major transformation program. Instead, IT needs to be constantly adjusting and improving, taking changes in stride while simultaneously providing superior services. IT leaders must deal with the problems of today while growing toward the vision of tomorrow.
Business alignment means having a shared goal with the rest of the organization and driving all activities toward the pursuit of that goal. Business alignment is easily visualized in heavily tech-dependent companies (like Uber or Airbnb) but is just as important in companies with less visible dependencies (like health care and manufacturing). The consequences of failing to deliver this business alignment can be seen in companies like Toys R Us, which is going out of business largely due to failures to thrive against digital native Amazon.
It’s easy to look backward and see how business has impacted and changed IT. It’s harder to predict what comes next, but with adaptability and alignment, IT departments can handle whatever is thrown at them. As Steve Jobs said: “You can’t connect the dots looking forward; you can only connect them looking backward. So you have to trust that the dots will somehow connect in your future.”
Forbes Communications Council is an invitation-only community for executives in successful public relations, media strategy, creative and advertising agencies. Do I qualify?
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2120fbcfa3c974c8dcb12c7c2f407853
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https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbescommunicationscouncil/2018/07/12/seven-communications-trends-worth-knowing-about/
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Seven Communications Trends Worth Knowing About
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Seven Communications Trends Worth Knowing About
No matter how well your current system works, someone is always looking to find a better way. This isn't a bad thing: Stronger approaches mean more efficiencies and solving sticking points that can cause grief for everyone involved. But there are a lot of potential solutions being explored out there, ranging from introducing artificial intelligence and blockchain tech to better handle data to trends focusing on improved storytelling and content creation.
So how do you know what trends to pay attention to and which to ignore? To help point you in the right direction, seven members of Forbes Communications Council describe the major trends they see coming in their industry in the next two years and what these changes may mean. Here’s what they had to say:
Members discuss communication trends you should know about. Photos courtesy of individual members
1. AI And Process Augmentation
Artificial intelligence and process augmentation will change how companies work in the next two years. More than 60% of business-to-business companies are likely to redesign their processes to accommodate and ensure human augmentation for scalability and precision. In the next two years, the resistance to AI might come down once we begin to see the synergy and begin regulating it to ensure it doesn't pose any major threat. - Yaagneshwaran Ganesh, Fiind Inc.
2. Improved Storytelling
I predict that storytelling will be one of the major differentiators between brands that get noticed and those that don't. The market will continue to get noisier and brands that create human connections through the art of story will rise. This means that now more than ever, becoming a prolific writer and communicator is a key characteristic of effective marketers. - Holly Tate, Vanderbloemen Search Group
Forbes Communications Council is an invitation-only community for executives in successful public relations, media strategy, creative and advertising agencies. Do I qualify?
3. Better Content And More Content Creators
In the next two years, as brands and social platforms alike push for more user-generated content, there will be more digital content creators than ever before. And, thanks in part to advancements in technology, the content we see is only going to get better. It’s no longer enough for communications professionals to improve upon their own skill set; they must also find creative new ways to leverage the skills of the creators around them. - Cameron Conaway, Solace
4. Widespread Use Of AI-Powered Devices
We are in the early stages of AI-powered devices. Soon it will be a prerequisite for all consumer electronics. Since data collection and mining are key to harnessing the full benefits of this technology, companies and marketers must be overly diligent in helping consumers understand the benefits as well as the risks, and be transparent about the data they collect and how it is used. - Teri Daley, Huawei
5. Rise Of Video Communications
Everything seems to be moving to video. It is imperative to decide whether or not you want to invest in the equipment and time to do this internally or find an agile partner to help ensure you are not behind the curve with using video to communicate your company's message. - Caroline Lyle, TMW Systems
Read more in How To Create High-Performance Video Marketing
6. Growing Trust In Companies Over Data Use
I think we are already seeing this play out but trust, both in how an organization conducts business and how they leverage customer information for marketing and promotion, is going to be huge. Companies will have to double down on outreach campaigns that are carefully targeted without coming across as creepy. - Colby Reade, M.J. Murdock Charitable Trust
7. Digital Innovation Leading To Increased Authenticity
It is no surprise that digital innovation continues to be a top trend when discussing the future of our industry. We need to continue to be digital storytellers and interact with customers in meaningful and authentic ways. The sky is the limit on what is next. Gone are the days of the overpriced celebrity spokesperson. Customers are looking for a real, trusted brand ambassador and social media makes that even easier to happen. - Beth Shivak, Union Bank & Trust
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65d2d3b64bcbc8f3be80902a9d2eec4d
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https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbescommunicationscouncil/2018/07/26/marketing-during-mergers-and-acquisitions/
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Marketing During Mergers And Acquisitions
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Marketing During Mergers And Acquisitions
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Deloitte reports that corporations and private equity firms are anticipating an increase in mergers and acquisitions (M&A) in 2018. Thus, as brand and customer experience stewards, it’s critical for marketers to be prepared for a merger or acquisition and how it will affect current and future efforts.
When my company Bradley-Morris, Inc. acquired RecruitMilitary in October of 2016, the experience was completely different from the most recent addition of the MBA Veterans Network. However, both ventures contained invaluable learning opportunities from a business and marketing perspective.
Below are some do’s and don’ts for the M&A process.
Do create a plan with leadership.
Create an M&A committee comprised of leadership team members to set priorities for all departments over the first 100 days. Define clear expectations both internally and externally. Marketing and PR’s involvement is vital during the planning process because they will be overseeing the communications side.
Do invest in building new internal relationships.
During the acquisition process, it’s not uncommon for the marketing department to have to make the first leap toward total team integration. Creating opportunities for social gatherings and encouraging everyone to rid themselves of us versus them language is a great first step. It’s important to build a new foundation of trust before exploring tough topics, such as skills overlap or job changes.
Do conduct research to understand current processes and assets.
The discovery phase is highly important during the first 100 days of an M&A. Draw out workflows and identify all key players and assets involved in marketing efforts. In the early stages of acquiring RecruitMilitary, it became clear that for us to achieve a full-scope view of the company, we needed to leverage CRM and marketing automation tools.
Don’t forget your customers.
Once the M&A announcement has been made, customer reactions will vary depending on their perception and personal experiences. Creating an FAQ and talking points for employees is important so that everyone has guidance on how external communication should be conducted.
Don’t overlook the culture.
People are arguably one of your company’s greatest assets, and an M&A can easily cause concern regarding job security and the unknown. In addition to making improvements in communication and technology, we also went through an extensive exercise to create a new vision and values for the company. This allowed group participation from both entities and set the tone for how we were going to operate moving forward as a unified organization.
Don’t underestimate the importance of branding.
An effective brand strategy will provide critical details involved in the daily fundamentals of marketing initiatives. Have a clear sense of what your brand represents and leverage relevant images and the desired tone to achieve clarity and consistency throughout all messaging.
The success of marketing during a merger or acquisition is reliant on having a strategic plan, good communication and a sense of collective purpose as a team. Having gone through the process and reflecting on the overall M&A experience, although the waves of inevitable change seemed daunting at times, our organization and, more specifically, our marketing department, gained new strengths, key subject matter experts, new technology and a revived sense of purpose.
What is most important is that mergers and acquisitions expand your ability to serve your customers better and in more robust ways than you would be able to accomplish separately.
Forbes Communications Council is an invitation-only community for executives in successful public relations, media strategy, creative and advertising agencies. Do I qualify?
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a1b54c516437502759058eb8ef8b859a
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https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbescommunicationscouncil/2018/08/14/six-tips-to-market-your-blockchain-startup/
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Six Tips To Market Your Blockchain Startup
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Six Tips To Market Your Blockchain Startup
Pexels Pexels
Blockchain startups are all the rage the right now. Why? Because blockchain has a lot of untapped potential.
Blockchain is the technology that fuels the cryptocurrency Bitcoin, and many companies are using it to create startups of their own. In simple terms, blockchain is a certified, safe transaction between two parties. In the case of Bitcoin, blockchain technology records and validates a financial transaction between two people.
While its main use is for financial transactions, blockchain has many possibilities. It can certify the exchange of stocks, validate identities, secure title deeds and protect the security of ballots cast online. Because of its potential, investments are pouring into blockchain startups. It's predicted that the blockchain market will be worth $885 million by next year, according to Statista.
If you're one of the many professionals assembling a company that is fueled by blockchain technology, you'll have a lot competition. To get the word out, here are six marketing tips:
1. Define your content strategy upfront.
You'll need more than a solid business plan and website to market your blockchain startup. You need content that explains what your company does, what your value proposition is and how blockchain technology helps customers.
Consider creating in-depth whitepapers, an inbound marketing funnel via blog posts, etc., to provide this detailed information. Gate some of your content so that consumers who are interested have to provide their contact information in exchange for the content. Use the information gathered in your lead nurturing strategy. Keep a good chunk of content ungated so prospects can search for you and move through the funnel quickly.
2. Use influencer marketing.
One of the best ways to market your blockchain organically is through influencer marketing. Consider partnering with a social media influencer to promote your company.
This influencer doesn't have to be a big-name celebrity, just someone with clout in the blockchain or cryptocurrency world who can lend credibility to your company and generate buzz. Create content together, such as videos, and have the influencer share it on their social channels.
3. Offer thought leadership through guest posts.
Blockchain technology is still in its infant stages, so people are craving information on the subject. Many people don't know how it works or why they should care about it. The founders of blockchain startups can fill this void with blog posts and guides.
In addition to writing these pieces for your own blog, reach out to other industry sites like The Next Web, TechCrunch and The Verge and offer to write original guest posts for them. You'll not only get publicity, but you might also snag the attention of a media outlet that is desperate to find experts to discuss the topic right now.
4. Build a community of followers.
Go beyond collecting followers on Facebook and work to build a community of followers who are invested in your startup. Many blockchain enthusiasts are using a messaging app, Telegram, to share news and stay in the know. While a lot of the chatter focuses on cryptocurrencies, it's a good place for any blockchain startup to discuss their company and start building relationships with people in this niche.
5. Leverage real-time analytics and user engagement platforms.
To successfully market your blockchain startup, you'll use a variety of tactics and tools, one of which should be an analytics and engagement tool. This can help you understand what kind of website traffic you're driving to your site and give you a platform to communicate with the community of followers you've built.
6. Keep people informed.
The main focus for many startups is searching for and securing investments. While this is important for blockchain startups, too, it's equally as important to update your audience on the progress you're making.
Blockchain technology is fairly new and evolving, which can cause jitters among investors and questions among followers. Avoid this by writing a blog post once a month on what's new or host a chat via Facebook Live so people can engage with the company and understand its progress.
If you're part of a blockchain startup, you're on the cutting edge of technology. It's an exciting place to be, but it will require strong marketing efforts to promote your company and leverage its potential to both the public and investors.
Forbes Communications Council is an invitation-only community for executives in successful public relations, media strategy, creative and advertising agencies. Do I qualify?
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62d0a63f0b11ac76e31c3ab793ba0a4f
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https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbescommunicationscouncil/2018/08/15/how-rpa-is-changing-the-way-we-work/
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How RPA Is Changing The Way We Work
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How RPA Is Changing The Way We Work
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The Beatles saved the world from boredom. Can a cutting-edge technology known as robotic process automation (RPA) do the same for the workplace and take the robot out of the human? Based on more than 50 RPA early organizational adopters who I have interviewed, the answer is yes.
RPA is one of the digital transformation technologies that help businesses robotize repetitive routine tasks. Just like cognitive automation, chatbots and artificial intelligence, RPA enables a higher efficiency in human actions. By programming software robots, or “bots,” to replicate administrative processes that are normally performed by human workers, you can think of it as having a virtual “employee” that can perform a repetitive activity significantly faster and more cost-effectively than humans.
(Full disclosure: My company offers RPA solutions.)
The Implementation Challenges Of RPA
At this point, most may wonder: Will these bots take my job? Fear not: Based on my research, the majority of the companies that have implemented RPA do not intend to lay off the workers who used to perform the tasks now automated by bots. Instead, they have reallocated these workers to focus on more knowledge-based, creative and strategic assignments, relieving their human employees from boring and repetitive work. Think about how Jen from accounting won’t be yawning from manually copying information from one document or system to another application anymore.
When it comes to marketing, RPA can prove to be highly beneficial and provide a competitive edge to early adopters, but when it comes to new technology implementations, employee resistance to change is almost a given, especially toward a solution that they feel can potentially replace their own jobs.
Organizations looking to digitize their marketing service chain might come across other roadblocks that include automating non-suitable processes, a lack of executive buy-in, employee onboarding, unrealistic goals, missed ROI, infrastructure constraints, security issues and other challenges that go along with most technology innovations. Marketing leaders need to work with their internal RPA sponsors to drive grassroots empowerment from day one to accelerate adoption.
RPA Can Be Applied In Many Ways To Help Your Team
If you’re implementing RPA in your organization, here are some tasks you can consider automating to free up your creative teams:
• With RPA, you can automate a variety of tasks. This can include monitoring customer activities for opportunities of upselling through segmented campaign targeting and preparing data for customer subscription or warranty renewals. Automation can also assist with campaign management data collection through web scraping and information dissemination for both marketing and sales activities.
• Bots can be programmed to monitor your client base’s policy status and identify gaps and opportunities for discounts and bundles. This will enable you to send highly segmented emails to maximize conversion and sales opportunities.
• RPA can replace reactive troubleshooting with the proactive identification of issues associated with bulk shipments of promotional materials. It can reduce cycle time by automating the promotional materials packaging process for form submission to the regulatory department, tracking the promotional material shipments status, and recording price quotes in response to promo material print production bidding into an application.
• In the imminent proliferation of data privacy regulations worldwide, RPA can also play an important role in relieving the massive administrative burden that large regulatory policies such as the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) can present. With the regulation’s comprehensive policy to enable advanced data review rights and ongoing consent management, your marketing database is likely to deal with a flood of requests that can skyrocket operational costs. Software robots can capture the information, interpret data, perform action items and provide a response to the requester, regardless of where data resides or of its formatting. This way, companies can set up a portal for data subjects to review their stored data and update or delete their personal information. With bots searching all database systems, providing speedy responses to incoming requests and maintaining an audit trail of all requests, there’s no need for human intervention.
A change management strategy is key to the success of a disruptive implementation such as RPA. A poor communication plan and lack of executive and grassroots buy-in can lead to missed opportunities and failure to deliver full value. To avoid under-resourcing change management activities, RPA sponsors need to set up clear goals and make sure to align the strategy, processes, technology and people.
RPA and other cognitive technologies are here to stay, and the potential for them to create a fundamental shift in the way humans work is enormous. I look forward to leveraging technology innovations and taking a step closer to living in the utopian society that John Maynard Keynes predicted -- stating that, by 2030, humans will be able to work an average of 15 hours a week and dedicate the rest to leisure and creative tasks.
Forbes Communications Council is an invitation-only community for executives in successful public relations, media strategy, creative and advertising agencies. Do I qualify?
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cbb5ff8698b642d5fcd0df65f1cc7756
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https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbescommunicationscouncil/2018/08/17/five-ways-to-get-the-most-out-of-a-networking-event/
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Five Ways To Get The Most Out Of A Networking Event
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Five Ways To Get The Most Out Of A Networking Event
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Have you ever taken the time to analyze how you are spending your work-related time and the business results that come from what you do?
Many people forget to think about networking as work-related, scheduled time. They often go to a networking event if, and only if, it fits into their schedule or what's left of their open time. They attend, socialize and walk away with no results. In the end, they may have had fun; however, they might believe that these events are not worth going to if they are expecting business from them. Have you ever felt this way?
Change your thinking to change your results!
Let's have a paradigm shift. What if you planned your networking into your work hours? What if you went to the event with a work-related mindset, looking to make new relationships and build on old ones that could formulate into business growth? What if you were crystal clear with your goals and desired outcomes for the event? For example, you may want to meet two new people and set three one-on-one (kneecap-to-kneecap) appointments with people who you speak to at the event. Would you have different results?
Follow these steps in order to make your networking events productive for your business:
1. Be clear about your goals and desired outcomes.
Start with the end in mind. Know what you want to get out of the event before you walk into the room. Set a goal for how many people you will meet, how many appointments you will set, how many business cards you will collect and/or who you will reconnect with.
Be there with a purpose in mind. Just like in life, if you know what you want, you can achieve it.
2. Talk to people and meet new people.
It can be dangerous to go to a networking event with someone you already know. It is easy to only talk to the people you came with. Break away from the comfort zone of the people you know. Meet someone new, and start a new relationship. Grow your network. Your income is directly related to the size of your network.
When meeting new people at an event, what can you talk about? Ask about them. People love to talk about themselves and often do not have people who are willing to listen. Here are some great conversation topics to consider for when you meet someone for the first time:
• Where are you from originally?
• What brought you here? Why did you decide to attend tonight?
• What do you do? How long have you been doing that? What made you decide to be in your line of work?
• What keeps you doing what you do? What do you love about it?
• If you could alter or change anything about what you're doing or how you are choosing to do it, what would you change?
• Do you work on a team or alone?
• What business goals or projects are you currently working on?
• What do you like to do when you're not working?
• Do you have any kids? How old are they? What schools do they go to? (This is a good topic if you live near each other and may have kids in the same school.)
• If they mention anything about being married, you can ask about their spouse or how long they have been married.
• Find out if they have someone in your field who they already work with.
When you ask questions, make sure you listen to the answers. You may find similarities that you can talk about. You may also find out that they have a need or a problem that you can help solve. If you connect well with them, you may be able to set your one-on-one appointment before the event is over.
It all starts with building the relationship. People will do business with people they know, like and trust.
3. Become a card collector rather than a card giver.
How many times have you been given a card and then thrown it away or lost it? No one wants a card that they didn't ask for, so don't get in the habit of pushing your card into other people's hands. By getting their card, it puts you in control of the follow-up. Now, the key is to actually follow up.
4. Have a structured follow-up plan that works.
This should be a plan that you can replicate over and over again after the event is over. You may want to consider things like connecting on social media, adding them to a customer relationship manager (CRM) drip email campaign, sending a card and texting them.
Ask for an appointment. At the appointment, ask for their business.
5. Have fun and be yourself!
Always be authentic. Find the people who like you for who you are instead of trying to be someone you're not. You can only fake it for so long, so just start out being authentically you.
By following these steps, I have grown my business exponentially. I meet lots of new people and it has gone from being scary to network to being fun. I used to dread networking events and now I look forward to them. I challenge you to go into your next networking event with a purpose. Follow these five steps and see what happens. Please reach out to me and share your results. I'd love to hear from you.
Forbes Communications Council is an invitation-only community for executives in successful public relations, media strategy, creative and advertising agencies. Do I qualify?
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3e7abbed60c08b942b6db1335c389271
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https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbescommunicationscouncil/2018/08/22/develop-your-staff-through-team-building-and-team-learning-opportunities/
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Develop Your Staff Through Team-Building And Team-Learning Opportunities
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Develop Your Staff Through Team-Building And Team-Learning Opportunities
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Develop your people, or they will go to another employer who will do the job for you! A 2018 survey of 5,000 employees by the Korn Ferry Institute found that the No. 1 reason people look for a new job is boredom, and one-third of respondents would want new challenges at a new job. Korn Ferry’s recommended solution: Develop your people, so they are always learning and growing.
How do you develop your employees so they don’t feel bored? One-on-one coaching is essential, but I find that team learning is just as important and far more efficient. At least once a quarter, I gather my team together for a group-learning exercise.
We often think of team building as an excuse to get everyone to have fun, but we ignore the team-learning opportunity. The key is to start with a competency the team needs to develop and then plan a group activity that focuses on that competency. Ideally done, you can achieve both team learning and team building at the same time.
Below are examples of team-learning opportunities, including the competency to be nurtured and the corresponding activity.
Creativity
Creativity is one of the hardest skills to teach. One can take a class to learn math, but there are few classes that teach creativity. The one effective way to accomplish this is to engage in a creative activity.
I have found glass blowing to be fun and creatively inspiring for my team. Odds are, no one on your team is a professional glassblower, so everyone starts out as a novice. Over the course of an afternoon, team members learn the art of glassmaking and make creative decisions regarding the color, shape and texture of each piece.
Everyone becomes an artist for the day and watches the creative actions of their colleagues. I also have the team vote on awards that honor the pieces showing the most creativity. Each member leaves with a souvenir they can display in their office to inspire future creativity.
Problem-Solving
The workplace is filled with issues, but not always new solutions. I often encourage teams tasked with solving a difficult problem to visit an escape room. For those who have not had the pleasure, escape rooms place a group of people in a locked room where they have to solve a series of puzzles to reach additional rooms and eventually escape.
Like real life, the problems are not always logical; it is better to work as a team, and the team is pressed for time. Teams leave the activity with a better understanding of how they work under pressure and how they can work together to solve a problem.
Strategic Thinking
Marketers are often tactical, looking for a quick solution to solve the problem. But effective marketers sometimes need to step back to better understand the situation and the root causes of the problem before identifying the solution. A great way to learn strategy is to go back in time and role play with great strategists.
An example of this is a Civil War strategy session at Gettysburg, the site of the largest military battle in North American history. The three-day battle at Gettysburg featured two brilliant generals who had to make dozens of decisions over 72 hours, which resulted in a major change in the course of our history.
There are several companies that offer this on-location strategy session. The program usually includes a Civil War historian who walks the battlefield with your team and challenges you to make the decisions that General Grant and Lee had to make in 1863. The power and impact of strategic thinking are never more evident than at Gettysburg.
Competitive Analysis
One area that presents a struggle to my teams is getting into the mind of our competition and thinking like competitors.
When I was a young brand manager at Kraft Foods, we were required to write two business plans every year -- one for our brand and one for our top competitor. The idea was to force oneself to think like the competition by doing their job.
Writing a business plan is not a great team-building activity, but a more fun option is to get out of the office and shop the competition. Pretend to be a consumer, not a competitor, and honestly evaluate how competing brands are differentiating themselves versus your product.
Getting out of the office and into the real world can clear one’s head and challenge one’s built-in bias that the home brand is superior in every possible way. When the team regroups back in the office, we perform several quadrant analyses to plot ourselves versus the competition and look for where we have opportunities.
Another option is to gain inspiration by purposely shopping in an industry that has absolutely nothing to do with your brand. When I was running marketing for a video game retailer, I sent the team out to a variety of luxury retail stores, and we came back to the office to brainstorm what we saw, what inspired us and how we could apply it to our business.
Finally, sometimes the competency you want to encourage is just plain old, simple fun! There is nothing wrong with that either. I annually take my team to a Philadelphia Phillies game; nothing is more all-American than a day at the ballpark. We have also gone on a walking food tour of Philadelphia, and this fall, we are going to try ax throwing. I hope to be alive to tell that story in a later article!
Remember, develop your team, or someone else will do so at your team members’ next companies.
Forbes Communications Council is an invitation-only community for executives in successful public relations, media strategy, creative and advertising agencies. Do I qualify?
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b9f5b7940f3445c2eb16433f93a2f700
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https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbescommunicationscouncil/2018/08/27/three-keys-to-improving-your-teams-dynamics-with-crowdsourcing/
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Three Keys To Improving Your Team's Dynamics With Crowdsourcing
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Three Keys To Improving Your Team's Dynamics With Crowdsourcing
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Great leadership tactics may include management by walking around and the monthly coffee meetings with the CEO to try to get real conversations going at various levels of your organization. The goals here are usually to promote communication and gain an understanding of employee needs, in addition to cultivating higher productivity and, in turn, profitability.
But not all methods of communication are perfect. Some, like employee surveys, stand to be updated. I’m sure you have taken a survey (or 10 or 100) yourself by now, so you know that the typical respondent often feels like they are taking a test in complete isolation, and only the leader will see the results. As a leader creating a survey, you may try for objectivity, but typically, your preset answers lead the respondents to the result you are expecting.
Aside from the one-on-one meeting and the flawed survey, leaders can make it safe for employees to weigh in on a specific topic by using an anonymous crowdsourcing tool. This can be used before and after strategic meetings to uncover topics, drive clarity and improve buy-in. (Full disclosure: My company offers an anonymous crowdsourcing platform.)
For those who are not familiar with crowdsourcing, this tactic uses a question (or set of questions) to spawn a conversation with your entire team by allowing them to anonymously post their answers while voting and commenting on other answers previously posted. In this way, everyone sees all of the answers in real time, and the silent majority may have their ideas voted to the top while the normally vocal minority may be voted down.
Yet, just like any other information-gathering technique, there are several best practices to note before implementing crowdsourcing to improve your company’s bidirectional conversations. Here are three critical success factors you should consider:
1. Craft The Right Questions: While surveys tend to rely on close-ended questions with preset answers, crowdsourcing requires open-ended questions that foster conversation. However, it isn’t enough to ask an open-ended question; you have to craft the question in such a way to generate interest in a conversation with your entire team. For example, if you are having a problem with employee retention, you should not ask, “Why are you thinking about quitting?” Instead, ask something like, “What prevents you from recommending a talented friend from working here?” The conversation that ensues will likely give you the answer as to why they are thinking about leaving.
2. Acknowledge Results: One of the biggest problems with surveys is that no one except the leader usually sees the results, and that is typically after weeks or months of processing. Because crowdsourcing is instantaneous, you can see the results immediately. Use this factor to build trust, and acknowledge your team’s consensus at the next town hall meeting by bringing up the crowdsourcing session and recognizing specific findings. Even if you can’t do everything suggested in the crowdsourcing session, by acknowledging it, you defuse any potential lingering resentment or doubt.
3. Follow Through: Nothing kills trust like failing to follow through on promises made. Act on those items recognized above -- quickly. By doing so, you will not only improve team productivity but also develop the buy-in of your team because they will feel like they had a say in what is being done. Think about it: Would you rather do something you are told to do or something you were part of developing, even if it wasn’t your original idea?
Remember that it’s a process, not a project.
While surveys may seem like a project, crowdsourcing, when systematically implemented as an ongoing management tool, can develop a cadence that improves collaboration and performance over time. Team members who are too skeptical to participate in the first session may readily jump into the next opportunity when they see that you, as a leader, are acknowledging and acting on the team’s position from the crowdsourcing session.
Remember that true communication with large groups is a process. Use crowdsourced questions judicially to develop rapport, and the classic management-employee communication gap will close.
Many of today’s employees have set higher levels of communication expectations. Set a new level of safe bidirectional conversations to match these expectations. Ultimately, it can give a sense of inclusion and drive trust, clarity and adoption.
The bottom line is that employees prefer to be conversed with. This is easy in an organization of 10 or fewer, but in organizations of hundreds, thousands or even hundreds of thousands, this process can ensure employee retention and corporate productivity -- when implemented effectively.
Forbes Communications Council is an invitation-only community for executives in successful public relations, media strategy, creative and advertising agencies. Do I qualify?
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4f542fac77114de625639c223b3e21f7
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https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbescommunicationscouncil/2018/08/28/how-to-use-employer-branding-to-recruit-potential-employees/
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How To Use Employer Branding To Recruit Potential Employees
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How To Use Employer Branding To Recruit Potential Employees
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Changes in the labor market, rapidly developing technology, the openness of markets -- all this forces employers to not only recruit new employees but focus more on those currently employed. This state of matters, in turn, falls within the scope of the so-called "employer branding" -- a company's activities aimed at building a brand that's perceived as an "employer of choice." Only companies at which current and potential employees find their work environment attractive for career development deserve to be called such employers.
One of the most effective ways of promoting recruitment is to create a workplace that employees recommend to their friends. This way, the company may be additionally promoted if its satisfied employee were to advertise on social media platforms, like Facebook, by publishing a post concerning a vacancy at their company.
As job candidates, we often follow leads that are recommended to us by a friend or family member. And, according to a study conducted by Jobvite.com, the highest quality candidates are more often from referrals than other traditional forms of recruitment.
The Steps To Leverage Your Employer Branding
Understand your potential candidates' needs. The effectiveness of the message lies in adapting it to the current needs of the people to whom it is addressed. Problems with the understanding of the message by potential job applicants may lead to its misinterpretation and, consequently, failure at early stages of communication.
Define the target group. The essential stage of introducing branding of your company is in defining the recipients you want to reach. Should they be young people or maybe high-class professionals? Defining this helps in determining the choice of communication channels. The next step is to draw up a strategy that takes into account, in particular, how your company would stand out from the competition.
Customize your offer. The basis for an effective employer branding strategy is to develop a transparent offer that would include everything a company can offer its potential employees in exchange for their skills, knowledge and capabilities. Clear conditions are the basis for effective communication and avoid misunderstandings, which could delay the process of brand building and recruitment.
Define objectives and KPIs. The right choice of key performance indicators (KPIs) and measures to monitor them will enable the company to formulate its objectives correctly for the whole year. Achieving these priorities will allow for calm, further planning because you will know that you are going in the right direction, in line with your needs and expectations.
Identify channels of communication. Defining the target group, the needs of the recipients and what the company can offer its potential employees in exchange for their skills will help you choose the most effective channels of communication. Not everyone will receive the message from social media or outdoor advertising; therefore, it is necessary to adequately prepare for this stage, which will allow for the potential to reach the greatest possible return on investment (ROI).
Determine how you will communicate the offer. All the steps mentioned above are the basis for the preparation of a communication plan with potential employees. But you need to do more. Brainstorm, write down all the ideas and analyze them in terms of the needs, age and interests of the people in your target group. Don't forget to test these concepts. Remember, the better and more appealing your idea is to your target recipients, the more likely it is that you will stand out from your competitors that are also looking to recruit professionals.
Make your plans come true! Have you analyzed all the above steps? Good. It is time to put them into practice. Be consistent, monitor the results and react when problems arise. Make adjustments to your plan whenever necessary. Thanks to this practice, the objectives shall be fulfilled and the process of recruiting through building the brand a success.
Being an employer is not only about ensuring that the right people are employed. It also means building your brand in such a way that competitors feel that you are hot on their heels in pursuit of the best candidates. In this way, it will be much easier for you to build a solid, competent team and, thus, to provide the highest quality products and services. Follow these steps consistently, and you will see that implementing an effective employer branding strategy is not so difficult.
Forbes Communications Council is an invitation-only community for executives in successful public relations, media strategy, creative and advertising agencies. Do I qualify?
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48f95156c29ab962bbe2ab425743f060
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https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbescommunicationscouncil/2018/09/06/the-three-keys-to-digital-marketing-transformation/
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The Three Keys To Digital Marketing Transformation
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The Three Keys To Digital Marketing Transformation
Digital transformation means a lot of things to different people. In its simplest form, it is the ongoing pursuit of achieving the highest levels of scale, efficiency, innovation and profit using data and technology.
In the context of strategy and operations, I have found three keys to effective digital marketing transformation.
1. Organization
Change is frustrating, and it can seem inefficient at first. Digital transformations are designed to alter company culture as well as many long-standing strategies, processes and tools.
Organizational challenges are often the biggest hurdles. Adopting the requisite technology or data is the easy part. You can only do those things, however, if everyone is equally willing to commit themselves to a shared vision -- even if it means sacrificing their current operating models.
For example, if you’re part of a global company that’s managing its marketing channels separately by region, there are several changes you can make, shifting the team structure to drive greater scale and efficiency. A simple framework that’s easy to remember is to think global and execute local.
“Think global” means establishing a global framework on which all teams can depend on for technical resources, direction, knowledge-sharing and collaboration.
“Execute local” means putting trust in the regional teams to apply your marketing strategy according to the unique and nuanced requirements of their local markets.
Digital transformation is about finding that right balance between standardization, scale and locally relevant execution.
2. Channel Management
An important step for any marketing team that’s undertaking a digital transformation is to rethink its channel management strategy -- not who is managing each marketing channel, but how those channels are working together. One of the most pervasive issues that can diminish your marketing return on investment (ROI) is the lack of cross-channel optimization. This requires some changes in your cross-channel processes.
In the pre-digital era, a fully integrated marketing strategy might transpire like so:
• Marketing researchers uncover insights.
• The creative director pitches a campaign idea.
• The media team develops a mixed-media plan.
• The creative team produces assets for each media type (TV, radio, etc.).
• The media buying team negotiates rates and placements.
• The campaign goes live across all media channels, resulting in a connected experience across all media touch points.
• Sales go up.
• The client is happy.
Every team in this example might be measured against a unique set of metrics in their respective discipline.
Today, applying the same rules and standalone measures of success across your marketing channels could be flawed or misleading. Take social or content marketing, for instance. For years, marketers defended the efficacy of these channels by arguing that their functions are not designed to directly influence sales. We refer to these activities as “top-of-funnel tactics.”
The risk is that if you cannot correctly attribute value to those activities, they will be the first to go when budgets tighten because they don’t generate sales. What value should you attribute to those activities? The answer presents itself when you manage your digital channels in a truly integrated way.
Properly Managing Your Digital Channels
If all you look at is last-touch attribution when analyzing your sales performance, you may think the best converting channels are paid search and display retargeting. These channels do well in terms of converting new customers because they’re typically focused on the bottom of the funnel -- the stage of the customer journey when people are most primed to shop or buy something.
We easily forget that the bottom-of-funnel marketing tactics can only perform when there’s a funnel to begin with. Search engine optimization (SEO), content marketing, social -- those are the channels that develop your top-of-funnel audience.
The most important goal for any marketing organization is to grow and manage its audience. It all begins and ends with this body of data.
3. Technology
You can build (and define) your audience through every conceivable customer touch point and save this information using a data management platform (DMP). The DMP can store several bits of information about your audience, including email addresses, purchase statuses and every marketing channel they have interacted with over time.
For example, imagine your company sells airline tickets, and your SEO team builds a landing page about the 10 most romantic locations in the United Kingdom. This page doesn’t mention the cost of flights to England. However, the content is intended to inspire prospective travelers who are considering a trip to the UK.
A visitor finds this page (via Google Search) and clicks through to your article. The visitor reads more articles and then leaves and doesn’t return for a while. While on your website, you mark them using a Facebook tracking pixel. All this information is now stored in your DMP.
Later, you launch a Facebook retargeting ad campaign that promotes an exclusive, low-cost travel special to the UK. You configure your campaign to serve ads to people who viewed pages on your website related to UK content.
The visitor in our example never sees the ad. Why? Because a few days before the campaign, that visitor returned to your website and purchased a ticket to Paris. Their information was saved in your customer relationship manager (CRM), which also sends data to your DMP, and you had set up a rule to avoid serving Facebook ads to customers who purchased any airline tickets in the last 60 days.
Who takes credit for the purchase of the flight to Paris? Which media channel(s) deserves credit for saving your organization the unspent media dollars that could have been wasted on this traveler if he or she was served your ad?
Obviously, this is a trick question.
This is an example of marketing success that can be attributed to all the digital channels working together, made possible by technology.
Digital marketing transformation never ends, but correctly executing these three keys will help transform your team members to become pioneers of change and innovation. Your internal processes become streamlined, and your capacity to adopt technology and change your organization around its abilities will give your business a distinct advantage over your competition.
Forbes Communications Council is an invitation-only community for executives in successful public relations, media strategy, creative and advertising agencies. Do I qualify?
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c5300feb4ffbf6aaf1ea288fb14a560a
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https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbescommunicationscouncil/2018/09/26/nine-entrepreneurs-share-their-most-successful-experiential-marketing-tactics/
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Nine Entrepreneurs Share Their Most Successful Experiential Marketing Tactics
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Nine Entrepreneurs Share Their Most Successful Experiential Marketing Tactics
In a mostly digital world, it is perhaps unsurprising that unique, in-person branded experiences are an effective way to stand out from the crowd. From intimate seminar-style workshops to pop-up shops, these "experiential marketing" campaigns can make your company especially memorable to consumers and lead to future sales.
There are countless ways to create a branded experience for customers and clients, but depending on your audience and budget, it can be difficult to decide the best route. We asked a panel of Forbes Communications Council members to share their tried-and-true experiential marketing strategies. Here are nine tactics that have brought the best return on investment (ROI) to their brands.
Members share their successes in reaching customers with experiential marketing. Photos courtesy of individual members.
1. Creating A Strong Online Component For Physical Events
Experiential marketing offers brands the ability to connect one-to-one with consumers. There is no question that physical experiences reach fewer people than comparable spend on digital channels, but the value of each connection is greater. The best way to maximize ROI of experiential programs is to extend them to digital channels to reach both the physical attendees and the online community. - Keith Bendes, Float Hybrid
2. Inviting Clients To A Unique Corporate Retreat
Because our annual company retreat this year took place in beautiful Whistler, BC, Canada, we took a few clients heliskiing. For many, it was one of those once-in-a-lifetime experiences they’ll always remember and associate with our brand. Plus, it created bonding experiences, both between clients and between our colleagues that expanded into partnerships and friendships. - Cameron Conaway, Solace
3. Interacting Directly With Consumers As An Expert On Quora
We've found that Quora is an unconventional (yet highly effective) platform for directly interacting with audiences, growing niche notoriety and finding leads. Oh, and it's 100% free! Just look for relevant topics and then offer users value in the form of information. A couple tips for success: Don't be too promotional, answer as quickly as possible and always give credit where it's due. - Nicolas Miachon, Upfluence Inc.
4. Live Streaming Your Branded Event Tour
In 2016, we launched a seven-city tour, taking "Trap Karaoke" across the country in promotion of the BET Experience and Awards. Entry was done through email sign up: You registered for a turn on stage via the website and we broadcast all performances via Periscope. Attendance spiked from one city to the next, and we saw an increase in ticket sales and ratings from each of the cities we stopped in. - Ken Gibbs, Viacom
5. Launching Local Guerilla Brand Activations
Experiential marketing gives brands an opportunity to connect with consumers in a more personal way. It’s less intrusive than shopping in a setting created to market specific products because it’s a more immersive and visual display of the brand. Local guerilla activations that visually reflect the personality and culture of that specific community have been most successful for us. - G'Nai Blakemore, Mattress Firm
6. Hosting Small Events For Customers And Prospects To Mingle
In the B2B space, it boils down to human interaction. While our technology has appeal, ultimately, people buy from people and companies they trust. To give a great 'trust' experience, it's good to showcase customer results in the form of intimate physical events that allow for customers to mingle with prospects. They're sharing a great experience while learning about the value of the product. - MaryAnn Holder-Browne, One Network Enterprises
7. Creating And Distributing Unique Physical ltems
We’ve seen incredible return applying experiential to a few categories. With prospecting, we send custom-built guitars in the shape of our logo. With tradeshows, we build a living comic book wall in lieu of a formal pop-up. In our building, we've installed unique digital experiences with takeaways. - Scott Schoeneberger, bluewatertech.com
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8. Holding Behind-The-Scenes Tours
After a building expansion and renovations, we've hosted tours. Guests are greeted in our renovated showroom and given backstage 'passes' with a map. They are taken on a guided multistop tour, highlighting building expansion, our company's unique differentiators and improvements to processes and services. The last stop is a lounge. Clients old and new leave understanding the value of what we do. - Heidi Baumgart, Event Source
9. Doing Pop-Ups At Existing Conferences
One of the best experiential marketing tactics our clients have done is doing a pop-up at Create & Cultivate, a highly elevated conference targeting females growing in their careers. The conference draws influencers, celebrities and top executives, all in various panels throughout the day. It is an amazing platform for all types of brands, from food and beverage to beauty to fashion to technology. - Sherry Jhawar, Blended Strategy Group
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89ee20e6280b63f56a225a4cff3d5b41
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https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbescommunicationscouncil/2018/10/12/understanding-the-diversification-of-google-search-results/
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Understanding The Diversification Of Google Search Results
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Understanding The Diversification Of Google Search Results
Pexels Pexels
In a 2008 blog post by Moz's co-founder Rand Fishkin, I read about the diversification of search results regarding their subject area. And today, Google has only expanded its diversification efforts.
It doesn't matter where you currently are, if you type the word "veterinarian," "lawyer" or "mechanic" into the search engine -- especially when you add a city to the search term (e.g., "New York City Veterinarian," "Los Angeles lawyer" or "Prague mechanic") -- you will not get links to the websites of the 10 best veterinary clinics, law firms or car repair shops in a given city. Instead, you'll see results such as Google Maps listings and some business cards pinned to given locations, catalogs of the institutions you're searching, encyclopedic references or cross-references to various forums where users ask for a particular service in their city.
By diversifying the results, Google increases the chance that you will find what you need, even though you asked for it in general terms.
Responsible For This State Of Affairs Is What I Call 'Google Results Diversity'
From my perspective, diversification most likely occurs when Google spits out thematically unified search results because it's not able to respond perfectly to a user's queries.
In 2014, Google began using featured snippets (extended descriptions of websites) as one of its tactics for search results ranking. Featured snippets were supposed to help display the best answers to users' inquiries, pulled directly from the specific websites. After an affair with numerous cases of promoting false or inappropriate content (e.g., "women were evil"), Google started working on increasing the number of responses to search results, calling them diverse perspectives.
And in its next step -- direct answer -- the company has accelerated the delivery of the results one expects, showing an answer at the top of the search engine results page (SERP), similar to the way a voice assistant might provide an answer.
Elements That Have The Most Significant Impact On Google Results Diversity
Based on my experience, I have found that Google performs analyses in at least three areas, assessing whether the content it presents in search results meets its users' expectations:
• Behavioral Factors: Using factors common in Google Analytics, such as rejection rate or time spent on the website, Google analyzes whether the website meets the expectations of the user, who reaches it through search results.
• Page Structure: Your header layout, text paragraph length, the presence of images or matching the title with keywords are the basis for the page's visibility in the search results. For example, articles that are too short or too long, with no preserved header and paragraph layout, are less likely to reach the top of the search results.
• Sentiment Analysis: This covers all activities that Google undertakes to determine the emotions of users as a reaction to the text. I am not only talking about the so-called "hate," but also the evaluation of our articles on other websites, measurement of the impact of our articles on social media, the authority of the websites on which links to our articles are placed and even to our domain.
Search quality expert Danilo Godoy stresses that understanding the user's expectations is crucial for Google when assessing the value of a given source. Therefore, in the case of ambiguous queries, Google classifies search results as "more likely" and "less likely," thereby prioritizing some of the meanings of search results for specific keywords.
When developing your online tactics, it's important to keep these elements in mind. Based on my perspective and understanding, the main purpose of Google's search results diversification is to maximize the coverage of keywords with minimal redundancy. This allows Google to increase the probability that the user will click on a topic of interest to them after typing a given keyword in the search engine.
Forbes Communications Council is an invitation-only community for executives in successful public relations, media strategy, creative and advertising agencies. Do I qualify?
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038bd4e459416d840558a03934bca787
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https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbescommunicationscouncil/2018/10/24/a-three-step-marketing-approach-to-launching-and-growing-a-business-without-capital/
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A Three-Step Marketing Approach To Launching And Growing A Business Without Capital
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A Three-Step Marketing Approach To Launching And Growing A Business Without Capital
What every aspiring entrepreneurial business owner craves is a way to start or grow a business without having any money. People may see entrepreneurs like Mark Zuckerberg or Jeff Bezos and believe the way to become successful is to raise money from investors. Both of their companies were able to raise significant funding before they were even profitable. But most entrepreneurs won't be able to raise that type of money to start a business.
I have worked with a lot of entrepreneurs who have struggled to get new clients. Before I start working with them, they often tell me they're trying to save money to run Facebook or YouTube ads or to run automated email marketing campaigns, and we always start from the same place.
Find A Blue Ocean Market
From my perspective, the problem with most businesses today is that they are positioned as commodities. There is nothing unique about them -- they don't specialize in serving particular markets. And the problem with offering a commodity product or service is that there is no difference between you and your competition. When this happens, it's a price war to the bottom of who can offer their products and services at the lowest price.
A lot of people come to me and say, “I want to start a marketing agency or a freelancing business,” and I always ask, “What do you do that you're the best in the world at?” When I ask this question, I don't mean to hurt the client's feelings. I say it to make a point -- that every businesses' goal when they start or grow is to be the best in the world at what they do. The other reason I say this is to make a point that it is much easier to be the best in the world at something small than something big.
For example, you might have a background or experience in the restaurant industry or legal sector, and you might be great at running Facebook ads, copywriting or creating videos. So, what I tell my clients is that you can create your own blue ocean market by offering a specialized product or service to a specific industry that you understand and that has a strong market need for what you offer. Because your competition will often be offering broad services, this can make you unique and different and position your company as the best in the world at offering that one thing.
The way you create a blue ocean market is by finding a problem in an industry that you understand or can learn, and offering a solution that can solve that problem. Then, your website, marketing material, ads and all of the content you put out should highlight how you specialize -- and are the best -- in solving a specific problem for a specific group of people.
I've used this strategy several times. When I co-founded LiveVoice, we were offering outsourcing services to any business that needed it. But when I analyzed our company and looked at our strengths and weaknesses, I realized we had the unique skill set of sales. I did market research and realized that the restaurant industry was experiencing rising labor costs and that employees were not incentivized to upsell. Then, I realized that we could specialize in handling call-in and catering orders for restaurants, upsell every order and lower the restaurants' costs because of our pricing model.
After testing the market and building a proof of concept, we were right. The restaurant market had never heard of us, and after we established a proof of concept, we scaled up with personalized marketing automation and started to book meetings with executives of well-known chain restaurants.
How To Establish A Proof Of Concept
If you look at how the most successful startups and entrepreneurs start their businesses, one thing that may surprise you is that the founders do what I call “recruit customers manually.” What this means is they are personally sending emails and messages to potential customers to generate meetings and deals. They aren't spending money on Facebook, Google or YouTube ads, hoping to get customers. By manually sending personalized emails or LinkedIn messages, they find the message that resonates with their blue ocean market, which becomes their secret sauce.
You can test different ways to position your company in these personalized messages and let the market tell you what resonates versus just guessing. The way I recommend doing this is through what's called a “mistake” email. This is a very personalized email with which your reason to contact the recipient is a mistake that you noticed the company is making. This could be something on their website, in their ads or anything relevant to your solution. Then, you create a short screen recording critiquing the mistake and explaining why it's a problem and how your solution can solve the problem. Attach the screen recording to the email and, based on my experience, your response rate should be between 20% and 60%.
Scale Up With Personalized Automation
Once you've found your blue ocean, established a proof of concept and acquired three to four high-ticket clients organically, then it's time to throw gas on the fire and really grow your business.
Now, for entrepreneurs, consultants or freelancers who are selling to businesses, I recommend using sales automation software to do this. After you've sent out hundreds of “mistake” emails, landed some clients and figured out what messaging resonates, you are now ready to scale. Create highly personalized emails at scale, aimed at your blue ocean market and targeting those companies that need your solution.
Based on my experience, this strategy works extremely well and can be used by any freelancer, consultant or entrepreneur who sells to businesses.
Forbes Communications Council is an invitation-only community for executives in successful public relations, media strategy, creative and advertising agencies. Do I qualify?
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5465a7a84b7551d89218149e547d5540
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https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbescommunicationscouncil/2018/10/25/thanks-to-better-data-two-easy-approaches-to-account-based-marketing/
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Thanks To Better Data, Two Easy Approaches To Account-Based Marketing
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Thanks To Better Data, Two Easy Approaches To Account-Based Marketing
These days, most people understand that account-based marketing (ABM) can drive real value for a business. But that doesn’t make it easy.
Among the thousands of programs we’re supporting for our clients, we’ve noticed that most successful “ABMers” use two specific approaches: We call them the overlay and the value-add approaches. Both approaches depend on two critical setup success factors:
1. Treating accounts as the critical unit of demand, rather than focusing on individuals (as is typical of lead-based demand gen).
2. Requiring super-accurate account- and contact-level data.
Before beginning ABM, you’ll want to make sure you can move beyond lead tracking to account tracking. You’ll also want to make sure you have a good supplier of the richest possible third-party data you can find.
Overlay Approach To ABM
Conceived to enhance existing strengths within your organization, the overlay approach focuses ABM within an area where your marketing is already performing quite well. For example, if demand gen is working for you, you can overlay a target account list on your program and then modify your standard campaign activity to lift performance further for that particular set of accounts.
To pull this off, you obviously have to commit to making better content for certain accounts. You’ll need to partner with your product/solution marketing team, or a similar group, to create the content that’s needed. And you’ll need better insights -- rich data -- to inform the content you build.
These insights come from new data sources that can tell you what an account currently has installed and whether or not they’re in a buyer’s journey. Likewise, you can learn a great deal about their actual topic interests, their current vendor preferences and so on -- well beyond what your own website or systems can tell you.
Value-Add Approach To ABM
This approach looks downstream from marketing -- it focuses on providing direct aid to specific sales efforts. To set it up, you’ll need to collaborate effectively with sales. Only your sales team can tell you where you can add the most value to its efforts. (Make sure you avoid signing up for anything you can’t really deliver!)
Here’s a simple example: Salespeople are usually tasked with prospecting to find opportunities within their territories. They spend a lot of time and effort probing accounts that actually have no intention of buying anytime soon. As part of an ABM strategy, marketing is in a great position to provision new sources of data, like real purchase intent, that are proving incredibly useful to salespeople for account and contact prioritization. By acquiring real purchase intent, marketing can actually show sales who is in the market, who to talk to and what to say, thereby adding value directly to their existing sales activities.
If you ask me, ABM is a no-brainer, but real success requires preparation and continuous improvement. It doesn’t mean you can adopt a set-it-and-forget-it approach. ABM requires careful preparation, requirements gathering, and continuous, methodical tweaking. In a data-driven world, using one of the two methods (or both) can have a significant impact on your business.
Forbes Communications Council is an invitation-only community for executives in successful public relations, media strategy, creative and advertising agencies. Do I qualify?
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f3399cafc16398dfb77a8321cfcf780a
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https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbescommunicationscouncil/2018/11/01/turn-professional-envy-into-a-productive-approach-to-career-growth/?sh=6205bb6a1101
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Turn Professional Envy Into A Productive Approach To Career Growth
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Turn Professional Envy Into A Productive Approach To Career Growth
We’re all guilty of letting that nasty feeling of envy distract us from staying in our lane. In your personal life, it’s the comparison trap of Instagram users or mommy bloggers who post covetable snaps of their dreamy afternoons with kids in tow at the farmers market or on a weekend getaway, wine tasting with their besties.
But what about the envy trap in our work lives? Do you find yourself stalking LinkedIn profiles wondering how that kid from grad school who couldn’t string together two sentences is the chief technology officer of a hip athleisure startup? Are you measuring your own accomplishments against your colleagues when annual reviews approach?
Envy is normal. We’re human, after all. And maybe you’ve auto-corrected when you feel professional envy start to creep in because we have been taught to view negative emotions as unproductive and a contributing factor to “getting in your own way.” But, if the Disney Pixar animated movie Inside Out taught us anything, it’s that all our emotions are valuable to our well-being.
Transform Your Approach To Envy
As a recovering perfectionist, I understand how distracting comparison can be. It knocks us off course and slows down momentum. So, when I heard a tip for using envy as a tool for productivity, it was a game-changer!
If you’re familiar with Being Boss (the book and the podcast), you know that Emily Thompson and Kathleen Shannon consistently serve up actionable tips for bringing your best self into your work. In episode 190 of the podcast, the bosses have a conversation with Amber Rae, author of Choose Wonder Over Worry. They discuss “seeking external approval versus internal awareness” and “habits and routines to consistently practice choosing wonder over worry.”
Amber talks about creating an “envy map” as a method for her to reframe this feeling into a tool for productivity. Based on her suggestions and my own approach to the process, here’s how you can leverage your own envy map:
Make a list of all the personalities, celebrities, colleagues, supervisors and LinkedIn profiles that turn you green when you get stuck focusing on their success over your own. This list can include folks you know personally or the personalities you follow on Twitter.
Then, for each person on your list, jot down the traits, characteristics, successes and wins that you are drawn to. It’s unlikely that one person encompasses all the traits you’d like to reflect. Instead, you may notice that your former supervisor is a fantastic communicator, your colleague is always prepared in meetings with insightful feedback and the bestselling author who you follow on Twitter exudes bravery and takes risks.
When you dig deep, you’ll begin to see a web of connected traits that starts to form the ideal vision of your professional self. Sit for a moment and embody those traits with “I am” phrases. “I am brave. I am a great communicator. I am prepared.” Now, doesn’t that feel good?
From my perspective, a secondary benefit of this game-changing tool is that you’ll begin to personify your heroes. You’ll see that they didn’t get to the present moment without pitfalls or failures. If you invited them over for dinner to swap stories, they’d have plenty to offer about how to overcome the career roadblocks we all face. Once you realize this truth, your envy will likely soften into curiosity. Take that newfound wonder and allow yourself to get curious about how you’ll adopt some of these enviable skills and start to become the elevated version of the person you were born to be.
Apply Envy Mapping To Your Marketing
As a marketing and brand manager, I utilize envy mapping as a valuable step in the brand coaching process. I recently led our organization through a major rebranding effort, updating the design and messaging of a 20-year-old company that lacked a cohesive brand identity.
As part of the creative process, I walked the executive team through this envy mapping exercise. I asked key players to think about brands they admire -- not only our competitors in human services but brands from all industries. We came up with examples in retail, hospitality, health care and food service.
Then, we examined how those brands get it right. Is it their stellar reputations for customer service or product innovation? Is it the classic typeface and color scheme of their brand assets? From there, we identified the characteristics that mirrored our company’s values and began to incorporate those aspects into our new brand strategy.
Envy mapping is an engaging process that reveals patterns unique to you or your team. Whether you’re a freelance marketer or part of a creative team, take the time to reflect on the people you follow and brands you’re loyal to. The key is to stay focused on the traits you admire, without trying to be the other guy. Allow that hint of envy to drive you forward, but remember to stay in your own lane.
Forbes Communications Council is an invitation-only community for executives in successful public relations, media strategy, creative and advertising agencies. Do I qualify?
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