Archive for October, 2012
The end of SXSW as we know it?
Oct 25th
For me, there are two MUST go-to events in the digital marketing space — Social Slam (naturally) and SXSW.
If Social Slam is friendly, inexpensive and accessible, Austin’s SXSW Festival is its alter-ego! But SXSW is also unparalleled in its showcase of cutting edge content and ideas, its potential for networking with every high flyer in the business, and the diversity of its content.
It is also a painful experience. SXSW is frightfully expensive to attend. The venues are so spread out across the city of Austin that you cannot hope to see a fraction of what you want to see. But most of all, SXSW is CROWDED.
To anyone visiting this event, it’s apparent that SXSW has FAR outgrown the city of Austin’s ability to handle it. The hotel rooms are sold out six months in advance. The convention center corridors are so jammed you can hardly move, let alone find a quiet place to talk. And the sessions are so packed you can’t even attend most of the popular keynotes. Many people sit on the floor and watch popular speeches on TV monitors. Pretty ridiculous.
So it’s not entirely surprising that the event appears to be easing out of Austin for the ultimate convention site — Las Vegas. Here is the announcement from yesterday:
Announcing SXSW V2V!
We are excited to announce SXSW V2V, the newest addition to the SXSW family of events. SXSW V2V is an extension and re-imagining of the 26-year-old Austin event with an emphasis on the creative spark that drives entrepreneurial innovation.
The startup and venture capital space is of major interest to all the creative industries that are at the core of the SXSW family of events. SXSW V2V features four days of informative panels and workshops, inspirational speakers, intensive mentor and coaching programs, networking events and receptions, pitch competitions and startup showcases. This new event will offer an intimate environment for innovators and entrepreneurs across all creative industries learn the skills, make the connections and find the inspiration to take their ideas and talents to the next level. If you are involved in building an app, a service, a business, a brand or a community, then this event is for you.
Join us for this excitement-packed, four-day event Sunday August 11, 2013 through Wednesday August 14, 2013 at The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas in Las Vegas, Nevada.
SXSW is commonly referred to as the “World Series of Start-ups.” Is that title now moving to a new Las Vegas event?
I think much of the appeal of SXSW is the electricity driven by the start-up community. Going to SXSW without the start-ups will be like eating cake without the icing. If SXSW migrates the start-up frenzy to a new Las Vegas event the Austin conference will lose its soul. Bootstrapping entrepreneurs are going to have to place a bet because they more than likely will not be able to attend two different (and expensive) events to try to get attention.
It’s not entirely a surprise that SXSW is snapping its funky Austin roots but it makes me wonder if the entire conference is imploding from its success like a star that grows so large that it starts collapsing on itself.
Note: After this post ran, I was contacted by Hugh Forrest, Director of SXSW Interactive, who wanted to clarify the strategy behind Las Vegas versus Austin. I asked him specifically to address the question, “If I was bootstrapping a new business and had to choose between Austin and Las Vegas, which would I choose and why?” Here is his response:
We are very excited about all the excitement that the SXSW V2V announcement generated last week. Las Vegas has a small but fast-growing community of startups and digital creatives — so being a part of this emerging scene in August 2013 offers lots of amazing possibilities.
That said, the SXSW V2V event will NOT preclude SXSW Interactive from hosting dozens and dozens of startup-related programing in March 2013 in Austin. For a list of the 50+ startup-related panels and solo presentations currently planned for spring 2013 in Austin, please see this blog post from the SXSW website on October 15 — http://bit.ly/WdUppm
In short, we feel that there is enough momentum / energy in this startup ecosystem to fuel two very different events in two very different cities (Austin and Las Vegas).
If you are a startup, should you attend the event in Austin or Las Vegas (or both)? That really depends on your particular situation. If your schedule is already booked for spring 2013, then you now have another option to receive the same kind of great startup-related programming by attending the SXSW V2V event in August in Las Vegas.
The essential guide to minimizing legal risks in Social Media Marketing
Oct 24th
By {grow} Contributing Columnist Kerry Gorgone
Nothing spoils a great marketing campaign like a cease and desist letter. As an attorney, I’m fascinated by how fast and loose most people play on the web, just inviting such a letter!
Whether you ultimately win or lose, playing the litigation game can cost more money than most businesses can afford. Of course, there’s always the chance someone will sue you, warranted or not, but here are some tips for minimizing risk with web-based content.
1. The difference between LINKING and SCRAPING
The absolute safest course of action is to create your own original content, from the copy on your website to the videos you post to YouTube and the images you upload to Pinterest.
Contrary to popular belief, providing attribution for content you’ve copied and pasted (aka “scraping”) does not protect you from liability. If anything, it increases the risk you’ll get sued by alerting the content owner to the infringement. Of course, scraping someone else’s blog content is a no-no.
Linking, on the other hand, is generally legal. People post content online hoping it will be seen and shared. They can hardly complain after the fact when you share a link to that content, provided you don’t reproduce it wholesale on your own site or social media feed.
The problem with Pinterest and similar sites is that you copy the image itself and upload it, which technically violates copyright. While a smart content owner shouldn’t sue over this use, in my opinion, that doesn’t mean they won’t. Read the terms of use for each social network carefully before jumping in, and if you choose to share content, be sure to link, as opposed to copying and pasting, or even embedding.
The same goes for images. Be sure to “watermark” your images. Make sure your pictures include your URL or company name, so you protect your own intellectual property rights.
2. Go the extra step and get permission.
Without permission, using someone else’s content is infringement. With permission, it’s free publicity for them, great content for you. Agreement is win/win, as opposed to litigation, which is generally lose/lose. Just the act of seeking permission can also create new connections. It can be a networking tool. Most people are honored to be asked. So take that step.
3. Use content that’s licensed under Creative Commons.
If you’ve encountered writer’s block and can’t get permission for any suitable content that someone else has created, consider using content released pursuant to a Creative Commons license. These licenses allow use of the subject work, provided certain conditions are met.
Creative Commons licenses range from very permissive, requiring only attribution (credit), to more restrictive, such as licenses forbidding any change to the work. As a marketer, always avoid material released under a Creative Commons license that forbids commercial use.
4. Choose an original name.
You can save yourself headaches right out of the gate by choosing a unique name for your company, blog, brand or product. This is why we see so many crazy names on the web like ZipperFish and Stagnant Ape (kidding). Search existing trademarks. Avoid anything in the same industry that comes too close, or anything that looks similar. Bear in mind that each state has a trademark registration system, too, so be sure and search the state registry for the state your business is based out of, as well as the federal system.
5. Don’t play games with games.
Having online games or competitions can be tricky because you can’t violate the law when conducting an online contest, giveaway or sweepstakes. First and foremost, avoid “lotteries,” which involve people paying for a chance to win. These are illegal in most countries except for state lotteries and authorized raffles. When running a sweepstakes, be scrupulous about posting the rules, and keep them consistent throughout the promotion period. Changing the game halfway through will likely get you into trouble with each state’s Attorney General, not to mention the Federal Trade Commission.
State clearly who is eligible to participate, what they need to do, how winners will be selected, etc. Always include “void where prohibited,” to ensure you are in compliance with any state regulations banning your promotion.
If you’re running a contest based on skill, either make your contest “no purchase necessary,” or exclude entries from states where a purchase requirement is illegal. Again, explain in detail how people can enter and how winners will be chosen.
Whatever type of promotion you run, get permission from entrants up front to use their image and likeness should they win.
6. Be honest (It’s the law!)
Be accurate in any statements you publish via social media. Lying about competitors or their products can get you sued for defamation or interference with contractual relations. Lying about your own product can get you fined for violating truth in advertising laws.When engaging your prospects via social media, your content should not consist of sales pitches anyway, but since you’re likely to sell at some point, remember: honesty is the only policy.
This holds doubly true for any disclosures that the FTC may require (PDF). What’s clearly sponsored content to you might look like your own, unbiased opinion to the average web user, so when in doubt, disclose. There’s virtually no downside. There are even free online tools that can help you to create your own custom disclosure statement.
The FTC assesses any complaints on a case-by-case basis, so figuring out what’s going to pass muster can be a challenge for bloggers. Your best bet is to disclose in the post itself if you’ve received anything of value in exchange for blogging about a product, service or company. The FTC has indicated that a “disclosure” button or other blanket solution may not go far enough to ensure that your readers are fully informed.
7. Use tools like Hootsuite with caution.
I’m a huge fan of social media management tools like Hootsuite, Seesmic, and TweetDeck that enable you to populate numerous social network feeds from a single application. The risk in using these, of course, is the ease with which you can send a personal post from a company account. Notable incidents include KitchenAid’s unfortunate foray into politics via accidental tweet, as well as the tweet that went out from Chrysler’s official feed disparaging Detroit drivers.An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure: disable all personal accounts from the services you use to populate your company feeds.
In this day and age, people can sue anyone (and frequently do), but implementing these suggestions can help to minimize the risk that you’d be found liable, which makes a lawsuit less attractive to your opponent.
What concerns do you have about the law and your social media presence?
Kerry O’Shea Gorgone, JD/MBA, teaches New Media Marketing in the Internet Marketing Master of Science Program at Full Sail University in Winter Park Florida. Follow her on Twitter: @KerryGorgone
Illustration courtesy BigStock.com
How do you know if your blog is making an impact?
Oct 23rd
About two years ago, I was really down on my blogging.
I would work hard on something that I thought was really smart and provocative and it would just fall flat. And then I would put out something dumb like “The 20 Funniest things you can do on Twitter” and it would go viral. It didn’t make any sense. It was disheartening.
I felt like my hard work was going nowhere. Maybe you feel that way sometimes too?
No matter how much you stare at your Google Analytics, it’s not going to interpret for you whether anybody cares about your blog.
Even comment sections aren’t much help.
A rule of thumb is that only about 2 percent of your readers leave comments. That’s a generalization I have found that holds up across many types of blogs. Readers may be too busy, too shy, or just not interested enough to comment. So you need a LOT of readers before you start getting comments.
Drastic action
In addition to only hearing from a vast minority of your readers, there is a big difference between a “comment” on the topic and real “feedback” on how you are doing as blogger – if you are making a dent in the way people act and think.
I realized that if I was going to make truly meaningful connections with these strangers popping in on my blog and figure out if this thing was having any impact, I was going to have to make an effort to get to know them better. So, I started to call up my readers.
I made a goal to call at least three of my blog readers per week over a period of a couple of months and by far the overwhelming lesson I learned was yes — I was having an impact, in so many unexpected ways.
I’ll never forget a call I had with Caroline Di Diego, a businesswoman and entrepreneur who had left so many interesting comments on my blog. She told me in great detail how one quite obscure blog post I had written had changed her outlook on business and marketing. Although the post had run two years ago, she could still recall its lessons and it still impacts her even to this day.
This conversation meant so much to me, because I had been particularly proud of that blog post but it had not been a popular post in terms of how much it had been shared. In fact, I was so disappointed by the reaction to this thoughtful post that I wondered why I was blogging at all.
A re-energizing impact
Caroline’s reaction — and the reaction of so many others — gave me a new energy, a new commitment to blogging, because these conversations made me realize that even though I might not hear it every day, I am having an impact.
I recently recounted how one physician who averaged just 4.5 readers a day found out that she had impacted a life.
My point is, if you’re working hard on your blog, it may be difficult to know if you are really having an impact unless you reach out and actually talk to people about it.
What has your experience been? Are you making an impact and how do you know?
Illustration: I added the WordPress logo to a Bigstock.com illustration
Will the social web fuel international cooperation or catastrophe?
Oct 21st
I recently read the fascinating book Outliers
People from different regions have many subtle communication habits that combine to create breakdowns when styles collide. So should we expect this to happen as an everyday occurrence in our online world?
Inevitable cultural collisions
Gladwell’s book highlights research revealing the vast depth of these differences and the catastrophic implications when there are even small misunderstandings. One case study illustrated how cultural communication differences resulted in a tragic plane crash when a South Korean style that is deferential to authority clashed with the style of busy New York air traffic controllers bossing people around. In fact, Gladwell points out that regional communication patterns alone might be the root cause for many deadly accidents.
I was thinking about how this remarkable observation applies to an online world where regional barriers have been removed and we have the opportunity to have daily communications with people from all over the world. If catastrophes occur in the highly-controlled world of air traffic control, what are the implications when people from other cultures try to connect and understand each other through tweets and posts completely lacking in context, tone, and cross-cultural understanding? Are we entering a world where international collisions are the norm?
I’ve written about the optimism I have about the Internet being a unifying force for understanding, especially if we are talking in the global language of “Facebook.” But after reading Outliers, I began to wonder about the massive disconnects that must be occurring … but do we even realize it?
We’re all ambassadors
About 50 percent of the readers of {grow} are from outside the United States and I am absolutely paranoid about offending somebody. Before publishing any post I try to sift through any obscure terms or colloquialisms that might be misconstrued or misunderstood. I try to filter my “humor” to some extent and examine my posts through a global lens before hitting the “publish” button.
But here’s the reality. I am almost certainly confusing and offending people no matter what I do because I’m not sure if there is really an effective way to “write global.”
As we propel ourselves into a world of increasing global communication collisions, don’t you think we could all benefit from a course on how to be effective Internet citizens? It seems like anybody who signs on for a Facebook account or a WordPress blog site should be required to understand what they are getting into.
If the Internet is going to truly serve as a force for unity instead of catastrophe, shouldn’t we all take the time to figure out how to do it well? And what does that even mean? How do we create some buffer of understanding around us to minimize the inevitable cross-cultural collisions?
The reference to Outliers
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-Mark SchaeferFollow Mark
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