We considered a trip to some inspiring far away landscape to cogitate and be stimulated by the power of Mother Nature, but in the end we went to the people who we knew could help, our work mates.

A few brainstorms later and we decided to run our first Cre8 global initiative, ‘City Focus’.

All Texties were invited to submit a number of photographs of the city in which they live and work. They were asked to support their image with a caption stating why they loved their home town.

The response was overwhelming; not just the volume and the number of cities represented, but the high standard of images submitted. Our Texties revel in the beauty of a deer snapped against the backdrop of the Golden Gate Bridge, in the pleasure of discovering breathtaking graffiti in the hidden – away places of New York City and in the paradox of the two great religions of India, Hinduism and Bollywood.

Five images were selected as the winners from each region and entered into the final stage. Aedhmar Hynes selected the winning image taken by Christopher Kowalewski from our Paris office (see below)

“Passage Ways”  By our Global Winner Christopher Kowalewski

You can see all our city images here http://www.flickr.com/photos/text100/sets/72157625716361127/

Our brilliant photography now adorns the walls of the Text 100 offices worldwide. They feature in our new business presentations and our social media sites. We are proud to say that we at Text 100 are creative people and we have the photographs to prove it.

‘City Focus’ is the first initiative in the Cre8 programme. Our next competition will be taking place in the coming months so watch this space…

By  Kerry Davies

I’d also like to thank our contributors who have helped make this blog as vibrant and diverse as Text 100 itself.

Happy reading – and happy holidays!

Objects in the Rear view mirror, by Jay Cuthrell http://www.flickr.com/photos/jcuthrell/63028482/

Ten Practical Steps for Improving Your Facebook Presence

Now that many brands are advertising Facebook presences ahead of their actual web presences, it is more important than ever that we understand the conversations that are happening on brand Facebook pages. Are they positive or not? What type of content engages fans? Why do fans actually become fans in the first place?

What you can learn from the BP Global PR Twitter spoof

You’ll often hear social media dorks like me talking about how easy it is for brands to lose control of their message in social channels, but what does that actually mean in practical terms?

What You Need to Know About German Social Media

Guten Tag! In the next segment of our regional social media snapshot series, I thought I’d share insight from the Text 100 Munich office into the region’s unique online behaviors and cultural considerations…

Infographics and communication – data visualization in the information age

I love infographics. I really do. What am I talking about? Well, this is how Wikipedia defines the word infographics (or data visualization). Information graphics or infographics are graphic visual representations of information, data or knowledge. These graphics present complex information quickly and clearly, such as in signs, maps, journalism, technical writing, and education.

The top 10 most influential FTSE brands on Twitter

Some time ago I did a little research into which companies from the FTSE 100 index could be found on Twitter, and in this post I want to take a closer look at which of those brands are the most influential. I also wanted to know what makes those brands more influential than others, and if there’s anything we can learn from them.

• Jumo is built on Facebook Connect, so you must log-in through Facebook to join.
• Any not-for-profit organization with proof of official tax exemption can create a profile page.
• Users can follow specific charities , see what organizations their Facebook friends are following or start to follow other Jumo members (people passionate about the same charities, volunteers, etc).

Jumo consolidates everything known about a cause from Facebook, Twitter, Flickr, YouTube, new sources, etc. and provides a service that Facebook Causes and  Twitter do not—the ability to view all the charities and the issues they support on one home page.

At its launch, Jumo featured 3,000 organizations and causes, ranging from Climate Change to At Risk Youth. Hughes is focused on engagement, as he sees Jumo as a way to increase support for charitable organizations by bringing people closer to the causes they are most passionate about, which he believes will translate into a high rate of fundraising over time.  However, it’s important to note, another distinction of this network is that the main goal is not giving. In fact, organizations can’t ask people to donate for the first month it’s on the network to encourage organizations to put out compelling content and build relationships so that requests for donations does not  feel invasive.
While it remains to be seen how many consumers will opt to join and participate in yet another social network, initial response has been strong with traffic crashing Jumo’s servers. This initial rush to the network certainly could be driven primarily because of the shiny new “must test it” factor, but the initial success could also be due to the fact that Jumo has built a network that mimics the way people socially think about philanthropy offline, with our online behaviors.

As the Jumo community grows, we recommend following the causes your brand supports to stay current on the content in social media channels that could be cross promoted on your own social assets, and also monitor the Jumo response to that content from followers to shape future communications about joint initiatives. Jumo may also help brands identify cause advocates/influencers that could be engaged to amplify PR and social media efforts.

I couldn’t agree more.

On February 2, 2010, I set off from New York City on what was to be a seven-week secondment to London.  Nearly three months later, I returned home with more novel experiences, expanded skills and amazing relationships than I ever thought possible.

Sure, I had experienced the true global nature of Text 100 by working on the IBM business for more than 5 years. Sharing content, collaborating on outreach and receiving local insights from teams on the ground everywhere from Mumbai to Sydney was a regular part of my job. At least I thought it was…

Physically being in the UK working with both local clients and my Text 100 colleagues – while maintaining many of my responsibilities in North America – gave me valuable insight into our processes and people.  It also showed me how easily people can lose sight of the big picture when working with colleagues or clients internationally.

For one, working with colleagues in countries such as France, Denmark, and Germany showed me how different every market is, even if they are geographic neighbors.  Driving initiatives and new business pitches on both sides of the Atlantic also allowed me to witness how quickly a minor detail – such as a verb tense or email tone – can cause a major miscommunication.  The lesson?  Well, I will never write an email without considering the translation again!

Overall, my time in London taught me the proper channels to take to get things done around the world, how to manage my workload to be effective across time zones, and how to effectively relate with people from dramatically different backgrounds.  However, probably most importantly, my secondment taught me how to successfully motivate people with a fresh spirit of enthusiasm – something too easily lost in our day-to-day work lives.

Successfully surviving this balancing act gave me a greater appreciation for our network of Texties.  I returned to New York with a fresh appreciation for Text 100, our people and our business goals.  As a team leader, I manage with an open mind and renewed willingness to question goals and priorities, testing people to always think outside the box and on a global scale.

It wasn’t always easy or predictable (Icelandic Volcano anyone!?), but I wouldn’t trade this experience for the world!

During these three years we’ve seen how social media has evolved, redefining how companies and brands engage with their audiences because ultimately it has changed how people communicate and live.  Social media is becoming a mandatory requirement for any successful PR outreach and Text 100 has been a leading proponent of this platform since the early days of the internet.  Our heritage means we understand the impact of technology and, combined with our global outlook, we’ve been able to lead in the social media space from the beginning. Today Text 100 is not talking about social media – we are living it.

Our strategy for the next three years focuses on building our strength and expertise in the social media arena.  We see the opportunity for significant growth in our business, to expand our client base beyond the traditional technology brands and to truly excite our industry through innovation.

Already we have started to implement changes (March 2010) such as welcoming Sarah Howe onto our Executive Leadership Team (ELT) as global director for campaign innovation. Our next steps have just been announced, creating a flatter management structure in APAC and EMEA to support our continued growth around the world.  Dividing all our regions into five separate business units allows for our regional directors to stay close with clients, support and develop staff, and to drive Text 100 forward to a new decade of opportunity.

This means we are welcoming four new people with new ideas and creative minds to the ELT ; Anne Costello former Senior Vice President Asia Pacific, promoted to Regional Director South Asia, Steven Murphy former Regional Operations Director, Asia Pacific, promoted to Regional Director North Asia, Rowan Benecke, former Asia Pacific Regional Director, will relocate in August to Madrid to run the newly formed Central & Southern EMEA region and Sarah MacKenzie, former Global Head of Digital Lifestyle, promoted to Regional Director for Northern Europe.

This new structure supports our drive for growth, innovation, flexibility and diversification and I truly see the next three years as being one of the most exciting periods in Text 100’s history. While we will soon be celebrating our 30 years in business, we are looking into a future of digital innovation, which has changed the world of communications more than anything, and Text 100 is more ready than ever to lead this. So stay tuned – there is much more to come.

What’s your take on the trends in 2010?

The world is looking to Copenhagen where the UN climate conference 2009 is currently taking place. At Text 100 we advise many clients on CSR and social media communications and have therefore been very interested in considering the communications landscape surrounding the conference this year. We want to find out how Web 2.0 and especially the rise of social media has revolutionized the way politicians are communicating their positions, how NGOs are trying to influence the discussions and how COP15 is bringing climate experts to the “blog table” to offer insights into the climate discussion. It is very interesting to take a look behind the scenes and understand how many different stakeholders can stay up to date every minute of  the day.

Prior to the start of COP15 we created an international Text 100 COP15 team with the objective of monitoring the social web including blogs, Twitter, social networks, online forums, YouTube, Flickr etc. and analyzing what we found. The team started its work with the COP15 pre-conference in Barcelona, on 2^nd November. After six busy weeks we have observed the following, topline trends.  We will be pulling together a thorough analysis of our findings in early January.

• NGOs, politicians and journalists are important users of social media today. Interestingly, companies and  industry associations do not seem to be  exploiting the potential of social media.
• Twitter and blogs are the social media tools used most. An interesting example is the twitter wall of Greenpeace on 5th December in Berlin: Greenpeace put a big screen in Berlin at the Brandenburg Gate. At the end of the day, it received 15,000 tweets with the hashtag #savetheclimate. There were people in Germany sending messages to Angela Merkel and what she should focus on. One can see this twitter wall also in the Greenpeace GreenAction blog: http://twitterwall.greenaction.de/. 
•  NGOs leverage social media to inform their members and followers about current activities, to call for action and to report about progress made in Copenhagen. A good example is WWF Climate Blog. 
• Interestingly, social media is mainly used as an information channel. In many cases there aren’t a lot of comments and dialogue that show a vivid discussion about the climate conference. However, a positive example in terms of interaction and dialogue is the Climate Thinkers Blog of the Danish government which invites some of the world’s most renowned climate thinkers to participate in a virtual global climate debate. 
• Prior to the conference, topics discussed in social media were about expectations, attendees and results, as well as practical questions about how to travel to Copenhagen, how to find a hotel etc. With the start of the conference we can see a big shift in the discussion. Now it is more about climate content such as negotiation progress, positions and opinions of different parties as well as news-worthy activities of NGOs.

If you would like to hear more about social media usage at COP15 please listen to the Englisch radio show of Deutsche Welle or read the related article on their Web site.

In the next segment of our regional social media snapshot series,  I thought I’d share insight from the Text 100 Munich office into the region’s unique online behaviors and cultural considerations:

• Social media usage in Germany lacks behind other major European markets and globally compared to the USA or Asia/Pacific. According to the a recent report from Universal McCann, only 57% of the active Internet users in Germany regularly read blogs and 50% have created a social network profile.  A recent ReadWriteWeb story noted that Germany is five years behind the US in terms of social media adoption.

• While Facebook is seeing tremendous growth, the biggest social network in Germany is SchuelerVZ, a community of 7.4 million students from 12 to 18 years old.  In June, Facebook cracked the top three with more users than competitors StudiVZ and Wer-kennt-wen. Companies planning to launch a consumer social media campaign in Germany should keep in mind that Facebook isn’t the only place to target and SchuelerVZ has a bigger reach.

• Looking to make business connections in Germany? The most important German business network is Xing, which dominates LinkedIn in the German market. At the end of July Xing boasted more than 8 million users; among them are 635,000 premium users who pay for their accounts. Like LinkedIn, Xing has lots of different groups around targeted business topics like SMB or social media marketing, etc.

• Interesting cultural tidbit: Germans are very hesitant to change and known for their habitualness. This translates to their lives online:  Each time Facebook introduces new features, Germans express their outrage.  Be sure to spend time listening before you launch your social media program in Germany to make sure you understand their social media preferences and patterns. The use of these norms will increase your project’s chance of success.

A few weeks ago Vodafone launched a marketing campaign in Germany with a large social media component (see Twitter, Blog, Facebook, Youtube, MySpace and Microsite),  one of the first of its kind in this region. Vodafone faced harsh criticism of the campaign for a handful of social media 101 offenses that you should always keep top of mind:

• Social media is a conversation, not a megaphone: Vodafone was criticized for purely taking its marketing messages and pushing them through this new channel, not tailoring their approach for the community or trying to start a dialogue. In addition, the company received more than 2,000 negative comments within two hours on Facebook, but did not respond or adjust their approach.
  
• Don’t fake it. Always be authentic: Vodafone hired a popular Germany blogger to support the campaign. This blogger was well known as an iPhone and T-Mobile customer, so his work for Vodaphone was immediately seen as a shame.  Vodafone should have more closely evaluated their partners and insisted they be transparent about their involvement.
  
• Get to know your audiences likes/dislikes before you engage:  The Vodafone campaign used Denglisch (German mixed with English terms, in an attempt to sound cool and interesting), but some didn’t even seem to be sure how to pronounce the buzzwords they were using. This tactic backfired as Germans complained they would have preferred to be reached via German or English language, not a combination.

Want to learn more about social media in Germany? Leave your questions in to comments or get in touch with me on Twitter or Xing.

Extending your social media strategy into new a country requires a strong understanding of that region’s online behaviors and cultural considerations. To help you build your strategy, I thought I’d share insight from Text 100’s Sydney office and provide a quick look at what makes social media engagement unique my country:

·      Australia currently lags behind other developed nations in what we consider to be fast Internet connectivity. Rural areas are waiting for their connection speeds to catch up their city counterparts. If you’re looking to reach people outside of the major metropolitan capitals, YouTube might not be your best bet. However, earlier this year the Australian Federal Government announced that it would invest $43 billion over 8 years to build a National Broadband Network. The new network is expected to deliver high-speed Internet access linking metropolitan cities, major regional centers and rural towns, eliminating existing ‘blackspots’ and in turn driving uptake of online video, e-commerce, online education and social networking.

·      Flickr use grew by 14 percent last year, making it the third most popular social media site in Australia by year’s end. Be sure to consider a photo stream as part of your strategy to not leave this audience untapped.

·      2009 really saw the critical mass adoption of Twitter in Australia. In fact traffic to Twitter grew by 1,067% in January, with Australia’s being the 4^th largest group on new users globally. However, Aussies still only make up 2 percent of the total Twitter users.

·      According to research by Forrester, Australians are more likely to be creators of social media content than their US counterparts and 41 percent have published opinions specifically about brands. You’ll see this trend in action the most in blogging. In fact, in the tech space the ratio of “journo bloggers” to true” bloggers who are simply passionate about their technology is beginning to change. More true bloggers are becoming more prominent in the social media-scape.

Interesting cultural tidbit: While Australians have long been known for their sense of adventure it doesn’t translate to their love lives. Aussies are very reluctant to use the Internet for online dating.

Want to learn more about social media in Australia? I’m happy to share a larger presentation on the topic or answer specific questions in the comments.

Image Credit: Forrester’s 2008 Australian Adult Social Technographics Report.

In the 12 months since we surveyed bloggers in Asia Pacific, we’ve seen more PR people contacting bloggers, we’ve also seen more bloggers indicate they’re happy to be contacted. This is great news, but it does come with a warning. And that warning, put simply, is give us what we want. Corporate press releases are still spamming their way into the in-boxes of the world’s bloggers.  I don’t have to explain why this is approach is tragically flawed.

They also told us they liked social media news releases – and that they’d seen more of them used over the past 12 months. Encouragingly, the majority said they’d use content from this type of release in the coming year. If you take nothing else out of this post, take this point to heart if you’re looking to get cut-through via a mass communication.

What was also interesting is that many of these views were universal.  Bloggers were more similar than different in many areas. For example, they typically like emails, want photographs and, most importantly, want something unique for their community.

When it came to who they trusted for information, our global bloggers were also united.  “Other bloggers” were the number one source – and they also wanted data via RSS. Two lessons here – you’re more likely to be listened to if you’re part of the blogging community. And if you want blogger eyes on your content, deliver it through RSS.

But the differences were interesting. As we drilled down into each of the 21 countries, we found unique trends that will help our teams and their clients work better with their blogging communities. One point to note that will help shape tactics is the amount of time bloggers typically spend blogging each week. We found that most Asia Pacific bloggers spent less than nine hours each week blogging – while two thirds their North American counterparts exceeded this. So bloggers in Asia are typically part-timers – which means adapt your tactics (and expectations) accordingly.

So where do I think the next 12 months will take us?  Hopefully to a point where PR people realize that bloggers are influencers – not (typically) broadcasters. They create and attract communities around their content – and need to be treated as individuals. Only through the creation of a shared agenda – providing the right content in the right context – can our clients hope to play an effective role in these influential communities.

Jeremy Woolf

Global Social Media Practice Lead