Independent Thinking » IABC/Washington

7 Digital Trends to Watch in 2012

Daria Steigman — Tue, 17 Jan 2012 06:01:14 +0000

From l-r: Steve Radick, Dan Horowitz, Daria Steigman, and Rick Dunham

Integration, mobile, and consolidation were all topics under discussion at the January 12 IABC/Washington panel on trends in digital communications.

Here are my top seven takeaways:

1. Silos will start to fall. According to Steve Radick of Booz Allen Hamilton’s Digital Strategy and Social Media Practice, government agencies will better integrate their social media initiatives. He noted, in particular, that people are starting to understand the disconnects that happen when customer service is not integrated.

2. Government social media will be in “wait and see” mode. Radick said not to expect a lot of big Government 2.0 initiatives. He suggested that most agencies will be in waiting mode during this election year.

3. Companies will start to clean up their act. Dan Horowitz of Fleishman-Hillard’s Digital Group and Social Media Practice pointed to a new Altimeter report that found that large companies have an average of 178 corporate-owned social media accounts. In 2012, he said, they will consolidate and coordinate better–which involves, of course, aggregating efforts via smart tools (e.g., Buddy Press).

4. Social media reaches maturation. Horowitz pointed to Forrester’s just-released research on social media adoption that found that 86 percent of adults who use the Internet use social media.

5. The press release is dead. Okay, Rick Dunham, Washington Bureau Chief of the Houston Chronicle and chief author of the Texas on the Potomac blog, didn’t really say this. But he did say that he’s relying more and more on Twitter search and other social media to discover trending stories and breaking news–and to get ideas for news stories–and not so much on press releases.

Plus two trends from my remarks:

6. Mobile has arrived. eMarketer estimates that there will be 113.9 million mobile Internet users in 2012–an increase of 17.1 percent from 2011. This includes 72.8 million mobile shoppers and 37.5 million mobile buyers. This means that every business–large and small–needs to have a mobile strategy.

7. “Find-ability” will be more important than ever. With Google rolling out “Search Plus Your World,” having a solid content marketing strategy (and quality content) will be more important than ever. Businesses that are still relying on static, corporate-brochure-type Web sites will be left in the dust.

Bonus Trend: Platforms. I just read Phil Simon’s The Age of the Platform (review coming soon), and I haven’t really had a chance to sit down and think through how small businesses will be able to take advantage of what he calls “extremely valuable and powerful ecosystems” (think Amazon or Apple) that allow you to scale, morph, and bring in partners, users, vendors, and so forth. While the business concept may not be new, technology has made doing this very different. I think Simon’s on to something. This is one emerging trend to watch.

Agree with these trends? Disagree? Think something’s being over-hyped? Please weigh in below.

Photo courtesy of Capitol Communicator.

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What’s Trending in the Digital Space?

Daria Steigman — Mon, 09 Jan 2012 06:01:24 +0000

Web 2.0 was so last year. Or last decade.

Either way, we’re moving on.

So what’s going to be trending in the digital space moving forward?

If you’re in the D.C. region, join me and my fellow panelists for an IABC/Washington breakfast meeting on January 12 as we discuss trends in digital communications.

I’ll be joined on the panel by Dan Horowitz of Fleishman-Hillard’s Digital Group; Steve Radick of Booz Allen Hamilton’s Digital Strategy and Social Media Practice; and Rick Dunham, Washington Bureau Chief of the Houston Chronicle and chief author of the Texas on the Potomac blog.

This should be fun. If you’re in the Washington area, please do join us.

Photo by Rosaura Ochoa (Flickr).

Don’t Be Random

Daria Steigman — Wed, 09 Feb 2011 22:01:27 +0000

I received a random phone call from a recent college graduate the other day inquiring whether my company was hiring.

Although I don’t have any job openings, I tried to be helpful:

Suggesting she look at the local IABC, PRSA, and AMA chapters–and gave her the URLs.
Suggesting she consider attending some of their lower-cost events (i.e., those more likely to be affordable to an out-of-work newbie).
Pointing her to Job of the Week.
Recommending that, as she finds people to talk to, she ask them for an informational interview as a way to get in the door (rather than asking for a job–which tends to elicit a yes/no response).

I even gave her my e-mail address (no, she didn’t have it–which suggested she hadn’t looked at my Web site before calling), and told her I’d be happy to look at her resume.

She sent her resume a little while later–but my address wasn’t on it (assume it was blind copied), the note was addressed to someone else, and it was a generic letter. No mention that she’d talked to me. And, of course, no thank you.

You can guess what happened next.

Make sure you’re making the most of your opportunities. Don’t be random.

Photo by Nicolas Nova (Flickr).

Do Writing Skills Matter?

Daria Steigman — Fri, 12 Feb 2010 14:02:13 +0000

[Note: This post originally appeared on IABC's Communications World blog.]

One of the questions at last month’s IABC/Washington panel discussion on 2010 trends was on core competencies. What skills do communicators need to have today?

Panelists cited several, including:

the ability to identify influencers
knowing how to tell a story
tech skills and proficiency (including a working knowledge of WordPress)
thinking more like journalists (accountability and transparency)

And, of course, writing skills.

But are writing skills still important? In an age of fragmented attention spans and 140-character tweets, there’s a battle going on between communicators who believe the AP Stylebook still has its place and those who think grammar rules and style points are so 20th century.

What’s your take? Is writing a core competency? And what other skills must communicators have to succeed?

Photo by karindalziel (Flickr).

Influence, Relevance, and Core Competencies

Daria Steigman — Mon, 18 Jan 2010 15:39:28 +0000

What happens when you put smart people on a dais together and ask them about trends in their profession? If they are Shashi Bellamconda, Torod Neptune, Paul Sherman, and John Taylor, then we’re in for some great insights.

I had the pleasure of moderating last Thursday’s IABC/Washington panel discussion. Between asking questions and keeping the conversation on track, I also took a few notes. So if you missed the conversation, here are a few highlights:

The most dramatic change in the communications landscape in the last decade? Torod Neptune said it was “commoditization” (with fewer people seeing communications as a specialty). Paul Sherman pointed to user-generated content, the elimination of gatekeepers, and the power of a person’s network. John Taylor said the implications of social media mean that he increasingly sees himself “as a business person who does communications.” Shashi Bellamkonda said that people were no longer anonymous online; rather, it is now the norm to establish a virtual presence and to promote your personal brand by helping someone else.
How do communicators stay relevant in 2010? While PR hasn’t changed, Neptune noted that “the nature of influence has.” [See also Guy Kawasaki’s comment about “build[ing] a critical mass of nobodies.”] Taylor talked about reaching out quickly to correct mistakes and address problems, and stressed that face-to-face meetings are still important. Bellamkonda said that the new landscape has leveled the playing field, pointing out that small companies today are just as likely to be in the news as bigger ones.
How should companies manage their reputations? Companies need to be “comfortable being naked,” said Neptune in response to a question about the blurring lines between our professional and personal lives. Taylor pointed to one of the simplest corporate social media policies; what he termed Hair Cuttery’s “don’t mess up our brand” policy.
What’s the impact of mobile (particularly in the context of the first large-scale use of text messaging for micro-philanthropy)? Taylor cited some revealing statistics about the growth of mobile: a 37% increase in wireless data use and 730 billion text messages among U.S. wireless subscribers in the first half of 2009; and over $5 million for Haiti earthquake relief via text in just two days (including $3 million to the Red Cross in $10 donations). [The Washington Post has a great article and more stats here.]
What skills do today’s communicators need? Sherman said the biggest skill is the ability to identify the real influencers. Neptune stressed that good writing skills are still important. Bellamkonda said that the most important qualification is “someone who can tell a story.”

The last insight goes to Taylor, in response to a question about community—and how the concept is changing. Taylor suggested that values remain constant, because people have always valued transparency and authenticity. What has changed, he said, is how these values are expressed and rewarded.

What would you add to this conversation?

Photo by Shashi Bellamkonda/Network Solutions.

Data, Mobile, and Other Trends to Watch

Daria Steigman — Wed, 06 Jan 2010 17:33:27 +0000

How has the communications landscape changed? And what do these shifts mean for businesses and the people charged with marketing, communications, and so forth? In advance of next Thursday’s IABC/Washington panel on 2010 trends in communications, I talked to Shonali Burke about data, mobile, real-time, and other emerging trends.

A couple teaser quotes:

“Our communities may no longer be bounded by geography, but they’re just as strong.”

“It’s not like blog posts and videos are replacing old-school marketing, because not everyone’s using social tools or using them the same way. So our jobs are just getting bigger.”

Read the complete interview here.

Six Reasons Why You Should Serve on a Board

Daria Steigman — Mon, 04 May 2009 18:46:14 +0000

I love boards. Not sawed lumber, though I imagine that comes in handy if you need to build shelter from the rain. But those management structures that are designed to provide guidance, oversight, and strategic direction to an organization.

I believe that all solopreneurs and small business owners should get some kind of board experience. I’ve served on (and ran) both my 270-unit condominium association board and that of the rather-large IABC chapter in the Baltimore-Washington region. I’m now serving on a business advisory board for a student-run group that initiates and implements micro-development projects in Washington, D.C.

The best boards are run like businesses; and, like any business, they offer an opportunity to gain valuable skills. Boards also challenge us to test our limits and reach beyond our comfort zones.

So here are six big benefits I gained from serving on boards:

Financial management skills, including building and managing million-dollar-plus annual budgets.
Contracting, including bidding out large projects.
Personnel management, including hiring and firing, and dealing with a sexual harassment claim.
Project management (large-scale construction and renovation projects).
Teamwork, including learning how to build consensus.
Leadership.

Next post I’ll talk about my secret board desires. But now I’d like to ask you: What have I left out? What skills and insights have you gained from serving on a board?