Twitter name that does not inspire confidence.

Wow, if you are going to sell laptops, I don't think I'd follow a Twitter account @laptopfail and then buy a laptop from the company that owns the account.

If the Laptop fails.. its just too convenient.

Just like paying for a Hooker called VD.

#SGFail
#TwitterFail

-- Robin Low

#SMWF Social Media World Forum Asia 2010 - Day 1

There were several interesting talks at #SMWF today 22 Sep 2010, and I've attended some of them.

Going to the "FREE" workshops and to the paid conference, I would say that the workshops are almost a complete waste of time... Unless you have never engaged on social media before.

In my opinion, if you just follow Mashable, you can probably get newer and better information than the sales pitches by the speakers.

Mahesh Murthy, Founder & CEO, Pinstorm

After attending almost a day of talks and panels, I find that one of the speakers, Mahesh Murthy had probably the best presentation, giving a lot of information on social media in the Indian market, as well as insights on the emerging trends.

His presentation is clear and insightful, giving a lot of takeaways which reinforces my ideas and beliefs on how social media should be integrated into a company's business processes.

The Free Workshops:

As with most cases in Singapore, if you offer "FREE WORKSHOPS" Many people will come. The workshop areas are simply too small, and many were left standing. I thought people have to register to go to the workshops, and they have some advance notice on how many people would attend, but I guess, I was wrong. It seemed like pretty bad execution.

The projector screen was too small, and I could not see anything as the presenters had fonts that are too small as well.

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My friend Jeremy Woolf from Text100 was there to be on a panel, but I felt that he should be a speaker as the other people on the panel seemed to be just there for show.

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Interesting ideas from #SMWF.

In social media, brand tone of voice is important during engagement.

Communicating for an investment bank vs communicating for a coffee shop is different.

Having copywriters respond to inquiries works better than scripts. You do not look like a bot, yet you could have a consistent tone of voice that fits the brand.

Shifts in technology and expectations - Do companies need REAL TIME MARKETING, 24/7?

Companies and brands should not focus on copyright but rather communicate and connect.

To be credible, one does not buy media -- one earns media.

Active social media presence helps in SEO searchability.

Lastly, its a great place to meet friends. The social media crowd in Singapore is so small, you are bound to bump into people you know.

-- Robin Low

YouTube Statistics 2010

Some YouTube Statistics 2010

Interesting figures about YouTube in 2010

-- Robin Low

Social Media for an older crowd?

Social media is maturing in many countries, and on many reports on the Media today, you start to see the trends of older folks getting on social media.

With saturation among the younger traffic, and social media being readily available on mobile applications, the older folks -- folks above the age of 50 years -- are also participating in social media.

Recently speaking to a crowd of senior Alumni at an NUS event, I realized that even in Singapore, especially among the educated crowd, more seniors are also getting on social media.

If your marketing plan assumes that only teenagers are adopting social media, you could be making a very costly mistake. Nearly half of Americans between 70 and 75 are now online, according to the Pew Internet and American Life Project. “Social media are giving seniors a voice, and for a generation that has sometimes felt isolated and overlooked, that’s no small feat,” said Sarah Hoit, chief executive of My Way Village, which designs online social networks for older adults.

In an article by Mashable, Baby Boomers and Seniors Are Flocking to Facebook

Trends can be seen that this group of people often forgotten when we speak about social media is actually slowly getting into Facebook and reading blogs.

With families becoming ever more spread out, using Facebook or Twitter is likely the best and cheapest way to stay in touch. In addition, these older users may be executives and using a professional social network such as LinkedIn as part of their careers as well.

The older demographics are likely the parents and grandparents of those younger users. In Singapore, it is sometimes hard to meet your children and grandchildren, and social media enables these seniors to stay in touch with what their families are doing.

With more seniors online, is it time to change your marketing strategy to include seniors in mind?

I'll be conducting a social media course at Aventis School of Management on 23 and 24 Sept, 2010.
The Social Media Marketing Workshop

-- Robin Low

Business And Social Media: A Potent Mix?

There will be a social media panel on Aug 26, 2010 at Suntec City Singapore, 7:30am.

The panel will discuss the importance of social media across various industries, how their companies use social media, the problems they faced and the latest happenings on social media in Singapore today.

You get a chance to meet the panel and ask them questions if you are interested to run your very own social media campaign in Singapore.

Come join us at the NUSS Graduate Club, breakfast is included.

-- Robin Low

Blogger Sharing Widget

New Share buttons are now available on blogger.



When you log on to blogger, you can see it immediately, but if you miss it, this is how you can add the widget to your blog.



Click on "Design"



Click on "Edit" link (under Blog Post)



Check the box, "Show Share Button"



And now, your blogs on blogger can be shared easily by reader and your followers!

-- Robin Low

Evolving communication channel

The Internet is evolving. Technology is changing the way people communicate and get information. With today's evolution of media, especially on the digital end, marketing and brand management is no longer as simple as just advertising or public relations. Professionals now have to accept social media as a communication channel and there is a big shift from attention to engagement. Brand management today involves not only engaging with influencers, brand advocates and detractors. It means much more today than just setting up an account on Facebook and Twitter.

On a recent Mashable blog: 5 Tips for Managing Your Company’s Brand on the Web
It is important to engage in social media, but even more important to do it right.

In my experience, it is important to have carefully crafted messages that appeal to your supporters, and clearly highlighting the values of the products and services in such a way that it not only appeals to your supporters, it is easy for them to share these messages.

Many successful companies who are in the forefront of social media, like Ford and Starbucks, have already built up such a group of supporters that they essentially have a community that talks about their brands and their products. Having an external validation of your products and services is much more powerful than a large billboard or a front page ad, as more people are likely to respond to it. Furthermore, if you have built up a big enough network of supporters, it will certainly get more exposure.

I also feel that having NEW Content everyday is not as necessary as sharing interesting content that your supporters can relate to. I realized that my cat's success on Facebook and Twitter was because I shared many relevant videos, and entertaining news, coupled with a few "witty kitty" quotes with an attitude. Compared to my twitter and Facebook account where I blog and add new photos and opinions regularly, it was much easier for my cat to find her niche and influence more people.

Social media is also more than just numbers, although many "success matrix" that people understand is usually based on number of fans or followers. Success is also attributed to retweets, likes, shares and various other influence metrics. I have known a few people who have only about 100 friends on Facebook, however, they seem to get much more engagement that most of my other friends with more than 3000 friends on Facebook. Numbers do play a part, however one must not forget that social media is still a lot about engagement and message.

-- Robin Low