Tempori Parendum – We move with the times, High School of Stirling
Yes, the media world is changing very quickly, the web and new mobile technology allows communications channels that no-one foresaw at the start of last year’s Michelmas term. Shocks aplenty, as last year’s head boy has hooked up with the school gossip, which just goes to show, anything’s possible. As leader in communications and with plenty of other schools judging PR College on our exam results, we have to constantly be revising the curriculum - only the fleet footed will survive, and we don’t want parents sending their kids down the road at the Advertising Academy do we?

Esse Quam Videri – To be, rather than to seem to be, Southampton Grammar School
This term, the web is the most transparent media we’ve got – even better than that acrylic lying around the DT lab. However, too many students are still apparently unaware that the whole school internet is rigged with clever CCTV stuff and if you go around making impersonations, or playing on the astroturf without permission, you will get caught – and made to write 1000 lines apology updates on Twitter.

Ut Voce Ita Vita– As with your voice, so with your life, Exeter Cathedral School
Memo for the teachers at PR College – it’s all very well telling your clients students to get involved in this social media malarkey, but if you’re not doing it yourself, what kind of a role model are you? (Disclaimer – this was my prep school)

Audi et Aude– Learn and Dare, Ravenscroft School
I fear too many of the summer term’s projects have been plagiarised or simply re-used versions of previous campaigns. Where’s the ambition in you? This year I’d like to see more daring projects, stuff that hasn’t been done before, that’s going to keep our students excited and interested, and coming back for more lessons and after school activities. I suggest field trips to art galleries, musical concerts and the theatre to revive your creative minds.

Provida Futuri – Mindful of the future, Pitzer College, California
Maybe it’s that Usain Bolt guy making it popular, but sprinting was oversubscribed this summer. On the other hand, our cross country running team has a few very keen & successful members that need supporting with all the help we can give them. Students need to know that it’s not how fast you run, it’s how far. A good sprint today may be forgotten about next week, but distance runners prove their worth and show real commitment to the sport. (If that makes no sense, read this)

Ex antiquis et novissimis optima – The best out of the old and the new, Fitzwilliam College, Cambridge
Ok, we all love ICT lessons, and playing around with the new gym equipment. But our library is one of the most well stocked in the country, and many people still love libraries. The web is great and allows us to really thrive as a school, but it’s not all about Twitter and all her friends. It’s our job to ensure that clients students get the best programme that fulfils their objectives and turns them into rounded brands individuals. The newspapers still matter, TV still matters. They may be in decline, and social media may be on the up, and while there are 19m active users of Facebook in the UK, that means there are 40m people that don’t use it.

Best of luck, looking forward to a great year.

Lewis Webb

Head of Year 7

As a natural follow up, he’s now published a book on the subject, which is sitting pretty as a New York Times best seller. Essential summer reading? Well, my copy is in the post – even if it’s available digitally… for free.

As part of the book’s promotional media offensive, it could be that Chris has found inspiration for his a book from the unlikely source of German news magazine Spiegel. The intruiging tête-a-tête has the poor interviewer on the back foot from the first question as Anderson’s answers dissect the current media landscape saying that he no longer uses the words “journalism”, “news”, and even “media” itself.

His point, while abstruse, is that although he still reads articles and consumes media from mainstream outlets, he is directed to that news through other media – Twitter, RSS, etc. I’d have to agree here, I rarely visit a media outlet’s homepage, instead I’ll arrive there through a link that’s been shared or brought to my attention through various networks.

Anderson then goes on to make the following challenge to the mainstream – “If you have attention and reputation, you can figure out how to monetize it. However, money is not the No. 1 factor anymore. [...] Attention and reputation are two non-monetary economies. The vast majority of people online write for free.”

I’m always keen on looking at the technologies that are enabling members of the public to create their own content more easily, from simple blogging and website creation platforms like Wetpaint, to mobile video streaming technologies like Qik. There seems to be an unceasing rise of these services, which lend support to Chris Anderson’s suggestion that “maybe the media is going to be a part time job. Maybe media won’t be a job at all, but will instead be a hobby.”  After all, if the mystery behind creating a story is truly simplified, then we can look forward to a continually growing number of sources of how we’re entertained and kept up to date.

Originally posted at Shiny Red

Apparently, it’s gone down a storm with fund managers and CEOs all around London. But based on a sample size of… umm, Matthew Robson and his mates, he’s succeeded in telling us exactly what those of us working in this space have know for the last few years…. no Twit Sherlock.

I think it all comes down to income – or lack of it, and the resulting fact that most teenagers will be on pay-as-you- go mobile phones; credit is more valuable than pure gold to most teens I know. Without fast, all-you-can-eat access to the web, teens won’t be online on the move, which means they are unlikely to use twitter on their mobiles – the primary communication medium – and if calls = credit, they are more likely to use MSN or XBox Live and Wii voice chat to speak with each other while they’re at home – it’s free.

The thought piece confirms many fears of digital marketers, but we already know that teens are an extremely hard audience to please, and the likes of Bebo have already understood that it’s about monetising content that this picky bunch will like. Last week I was at a New Media Knowledge conference where a Bebo spokesperson said that they no longer produce content unless they have secured 100% of the funding through a commercial sponsor. Its new Beat music show is racking up around 400,000 views and is sponsored by (Red client) Samsung. Yes, this is online advertising. No, teens don’t find it annoying, and the simple reason is that it’s engaging content wrapped up in brand engagement.

First off, I’ve narrowed down my blog into four areas: Lifestyle, Media, News and the Shoreditch Twit. This means that I have some direction on what I want to write about. So Lifestyle will include music, films, fashion and entertainment; Media will be thoughts on old and new media and technologies, News might contain thoughts on world events and politics, and the last one is pretty self-explanatory.

What this means is that I need content to write about, so while I’m more than happy to go off and find my own stories, I’m very grateful to people who consider my little blog to be worth their time and effort in letting me know what they are up to.

I’ve also added a little video module in the footer – while I don’t create that much video, this is a Vimeo widget that simply lists my favourite stuff on there. Please do send me any links of clips that you think I might like.

Finally, one thing that will stay the same is the random pictures which have no apparent connection to the blog post – this one’s kind of easyI think, so stick your answers in the comments as usual, as well as any other comments you have about the new site.

So tell me about Macmillan Cancer…
Macmillan Cancer Support is all about improving the lives of people affected by cancer. We provide practical, medical, emotional and financial support.  So as well as providing nurses and occupational therapists, we can come to your house and help with the gardening or carry your shopping and we even offer support if you’re struggling with the financial impact of cancer.

How did you get involved with Twitter – how do you use it for Macmillan?
I got involved because a couple of friends were using it and it seemed an easy way top keep in touch with them.  Both use social media as part of their work, so I saw first hand just how useful it can be for an organisation.  It took a while to get our heads round how to use it for Macmillan, but I think we’re getting there – it’s just part and parcel of being an organisation on the web these days.  We send out updates on campaigns and fundraising events, we encourage people to join in and we try our best to respond to everyone who @’s us, especially those who are fundraising.

What was the idea behind the Shoreditch Twitnic?
I’ve been to a couple of the Shoreditch Twits and really enjoyed them, so when they were trying to come up with a June concept, I suggested making it part of our Big Picnic event.  We encourage people around the country to raise money for Macmillan by hosting picnics and getting their guests to donate money in exchange for some food or drink.  We also have loads of sales promotions in Somerfield, so if you go into your local one, you’ll find loads of products where a percentage of the profits are donated to Macmillan.  We were lucky in that Somerfield are great supporters of ours and they provided all the food and drink for the Twitnic.  Big Picnic goes on till the 14th July, so if anyone else wants to get involved, they can log on, register their details and get lots of tips, ideas and themes.

And you’ve got something else planned for Shoreditch as well?
We do, it’s called The Brick Lane Festival and it’s happening on the 13th August 2009.  We are basically taking over some venues on Brick Lane and the surrounding area and putting a bunch of bands on.  We’ve already announced that Frank Turner, The Chapman Family, Spycatcher and Jersey Budd are playing and we’re going to be announcing loads more in the next two weeks.  I’m even tempted to get up and play myself!

We’re really excited about the event as it’s the first time we’ve done anything like this.  Tickets are only £20 and all the bands and venues are doing it for free, so all that money goes to people affected by cancer. You can buy tickets and check for more bands being added here.

Do you see more charities turning online in today’s climate?
I do, but I think it’s just something that every brand/organisation is doing, not just charities.  For us, it’s obvious you have to have some presence on the web, not just in terms of PR, reputation management but also fundraising and raising awareness of the services we provide. It’s a great way to connect with your supporters and get real time feedback on what you are doing right and what people aren’t responding to. Because of the climate, we’re all told by experts that it is a cheap and easy way to work, but I think with charities (particularly smaller ones) our greatest resource is people and their time, so while there are all these new things to try and experiment, we can’t replace all the things that already work.

I’ve found that I could spend all day on Twitter/Facebook/Justgiving sites talking to supporters, but all the offline/print/broadcast work we also do would suffer and they are equally important to reaching people. I think it’s vital that we remember that there are many people who need us that aren’t on the net.

But you’re relatively ahead of the pack, what advice would you give to the third sector  to get involved to this?
Firstly I’d state the obvious; that listening to what people are saying about you before diving into the conversation is important. Whether it is Twitter or forums or Facebook, you need to be patient and really look at what people are saying (and not saying) before you start to approach them. You’ll have a greater understanding of what the mood/culture is and that in turn will help you approach people online in a more friendly, less corporate way.

Every organisation has a personality that comes from a mix of their public face and internal culture. Try and find your voice and personality in everything you do.

Try everything that’s free! If you don’t like Twitter, or don’t see the value in it, there is probably another tool out there that will suit your needs.  The worry for me is that charities will see Twitter (because of the media spotlight) and if they don’t like it, will write of Social Media altogether.

Anything else we should know?
We have lots of different ways you can get involved with supporting Macmillan, from trekking in South America, to picnics, to marathons, to coffee mornings or just shaking your tin outside a supermarket.

First off is the advert that’s being aired in cinemas: A whistlestop trip around the globe showing how lovely the world would be if only we could hug and kiss each other instead of paying for things – a sort of kindness economy if you will. Trouble is, that in a time of global recession, suggesting that everything would be better if only money didn’t exist is twee, naive and unreasonable as a central concept of a marketing campaign. What’s more, it’s not a concept that Absolut (owned by Pernod Ricard, a company making annual sales of €6.6bn) subscribes to. Absolut sold around 100m litres of Vodka in 2008, I’m sure that they’d prefer £16 for a bottle rather than a kiss on the cheek (not to mention their shareholders).

Secondly, the week long series of events and giveaways, where people could exchange acts of kindness for goods (fruit, coffee, cocktails – although I’ve seen many a girl get free drinks in exchange for their number or a discreet snog). The website proudly reported that “Early morning coffee seekers who were extra kind to the barista staff were rewarded with lattes, cappuccinos and a few healthy teas. Smiles, winks, loud ‘good mornings’, lots of compliments and laughs demonstrate just how kind Londoners can be.” Yes we can be kind, if we’re getting something for free.

What Absolut don’t tell us is how the vendors were coaxed into taking part. For example, the Berwick St market traders aren’t operating on Pernod Ricard finances. My hunch is that they were sponsored by Absolut to get involved – meaning that the pashminas and grapefruits were paid for in the first place – in essence making the “acts of  kindness” superfluous to the entire economy of it all – or, by Absolut’s logic meaning they’ve been paid for twice… odd.

Finally, visitors to the website are asked the question: In an Absolut World you could acquire whatever you desire as long as you’re prepared to pay in kindness. That puts a slight spin on value. So, how would you measure value? What would you buy and how would you pay for it? 

Unfortunately, most visitors didn’t really get the question and came up with gems such as:

• I wish I can live in a world of kindness. No money, no worries , no robbery just kindness. What a wonderful life…..  (Obviously not read Hobbes’ Leviathan)
  
• I would rebuild New Orleans and retire on a farm. (You’ll have to be REALLY kind to rebuild a city)
  
• If kindness were currency I’d pay for everyone around the world to have expensive cancer drugs that they can’t currently get. I’d do anything for that. I’d even be kind to spiders by giving them flies to eat, and not screaming loudly when I see them and not dusting away their webs. (Sure, let’s ask drugs companies to give away years of R&D in exchange for Polly being nice to spiders, “Hold please….” )
  
• I would buy enough chocolate for everyone and distribute it when it was needed (You’d buy chocolate? with money? isn’t that against the rules?)

Well thanks Absolut for providing us with some amusement, but please stick to marketing campaigns that don’t patronise us or try to turn us into hippies – it doesn’t suit you.

Anyway, I also do appreciate the emails I get letting me know about cool new stuff to write about – even if I’ve not posted anything yet, I’m sure I’ll get around to it when the time comes (Chris, Yuri, Alex are first in my showing love queue!)

Accedo: This is more of an update from what they showed me at IBC, essentially, they’ve taken on the ‘app’ model for Facebook and Twitter so that you can view a cutdown version of these applications as a sidebar during your normal TV watching. In the same way that online applications such as thwirl and digsby recognise that some things need to be kept in the background while you’re focusing on your main task, Accedo will sit completely unassumingly until you want to share what you’re doing with your network. It also integrates with your EPG, so that just using the coloured remote buttons, you can update what you’re watching. Neat, look:

SeaChange: as a previous client of mine, I was curious to know what this middleware provider was up to in the world of web content.  They’re pimping Affinity, a social networking engine for video-on-demand, essentially a tool that allows you to make and take recommendations for stuff in a VOD library, the idea being that people will discover pay-per-view content that they might not normally find (= extra revenue for operator). The problem I have with this is that it seems that the recommendations are done via collaborative filtering (i.e. you share what you like with your friends and vice versa), which means that the solution is only good when your friends like the same stuff as you AND they happen to have an Affinity enabled TV service. If it was linked to a social network’s API, there would be a lot more value from this and it wouldn’t necessitate the latter point.

Ericcson: Yes they do TV, although apparently they don’t do web design so well. They were showing last.fm on TV – not the actual videos, but essentially, it’s an ‘app’ built for playing music through your TV when you get very bored of adverts for ringtones on VH1. I’m not entirely sure where it sits in the network because they don’t seem to be talking about it in any of their literature or website, which is a shame. I liked the demo though, it looks pretty slick and my TV has better sound quality than my PC, so I’m all for taking this particular service to the living room in another way (I currently use the last.fm app on my iPod quite frequently for that type of thing. Pic below:

CompleteTV: Now I have to say I’m more than a little disappointed with these guys. Despite having a fairly nice booth at IPTVWF, and splashing the YouTube Logo across it a couple of times, looking at their site, I fail to see how that was any more than lip service to online media making its way to the TV in any genuine form. Fear of content producers… perhaps. Now, that might sound harsh, but here’s the thing… CompleteTV makes boxes – not a great start… boxes for the consumer (even worse, since most of this stuff will migrate to the network in 3-4 years), which, with the whole wealth of social media goodness out there can do all this: “browse the internet and act as an email/instant messaging client”. Wow. I’m hugely underwhelmed, mind you, they’re way above Ericsson on the web design front.

Finally I wanted to quote a great article from the March/April issue of Future Media, in which Jonathan Webdale has interviewed Anthony Rose, one of the big cheeses behind the iPlayer, who said that “2007 was the year the BBC chose what you watched, 2008 was the year viewers chose what they watched and 2009 would be the year your friends choose what you watch.” As long as it’s not my Mistresses-watching colleagues choosing, I’m keen to see how it goes. It’s a great article (print only so far) which talks a lot more about TV going into social media (rather than what I’ve written here) so go read it now.

G20 – Group of Twenty (G-20) Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors was established in 1999 to bring together systemically important industrialized and developing economies to discuss key issues in the global economy. Also a model number from car manufacturer Infiniti.

G20 Summit – On 2 April 2009, world leaders from the G20 countries – representing 85% of the world’s output – will meet in London against the backdrop of the worst international banking crisis in generations.

G20Voice – 50 of the world’s most interesting and influential bloggers will be your eyes and ears at the G20 Summit. They come from 22 different countries, and between them represent a global audience of over 14 million readers. Some are ‘professional bloggers’, others are ordinary citizens who have become well known through their blogs.

G4 – successful vocal troupe made famous by ITV’s The X Factor television programme in 2004 in which they came second. Also a type of Apple Computer.

We20 – was inspired as a public initiative to run alongside the G20, creating a bridge between the G20 leaders and you. I’m not entirely sure, but I think We20 aims to provide the platform for people like you and me to come up with plans to help save the global economy. Help.

We7 – is an ad-supported music download and streaming site launched in 2007 and supported by ex-Genesis frontman, Peter Gabriel. [disclosure: We7 used to be a Shiny Red client]

G20meetsWe20 – Post G20 Summit meetup which should be a good chance to hear what some G20Voice bloggers, including Vikki Chowney and Lloyd Davis, thought of the summit, and probably play some table football as well.

G-Wiz – electric car produced by Indian company Reva – famously beat a Mustang in a drag race once the Top Gear crew got their hands on a few extra batteries.

Right, that should be clear then?