All of your posts, shares and ‘Likes’ tell a story. What’s yours saying?
Consider this: anyone, strangers included, can tell a great deal about you via your digital footprint; that is, the trail you leave behind as you share updates, post pictures or check into places. It’s likely that you’re broadcasting what you look like, where you work, where you’ve been, who you know, what you like to do, and of course, your views on a variety of topics.
As the amount of information continues to pile up online, your digital footprint can either help or hurt your personal brand and your business.
I’ve seen business owners and personal contacts tarnish their reputations with a few words or a few clicks, not realizing the full power of the digital world. Every picture you post, every status you like, every update you send is essentially announcing to the world who you are, permanently.
Over the past two days alone, I’ve witnessed two pretty major gaffes take place in my network – both of which were unfortunate and completely avoidable. In the first instance, a business owner publicly called someone out on Facebook in regards to a personal issue, complete with profanity. In the second incident, a professional who works for a major energy company ‘Liked’ what could be considered an inappropriate public photo. The action showed up on the feed of everyone who followed them.
Think for a moment of the repercussions. Before I do business with or consider hiring anyone, the first thing I do is find their social media profiles and find out what they’re all about. Do you swear? Stop. Are you overly negative or regularly posting inappropriate things? Don’t do it. Published words, and any online actions for that matter, can easily be misinterpreted, so be careful about how you may be coming across online. Whether it’s the language you use or the tone of what you are saying, every word you type, every action you take online is essentially what you are broadcasting publicly, and permanently.
At the same time, you still want to have a presence. So avoiding the social space entirely can backfire too. Many companies, including my own, use search engines and social media to dig up information all potential candidates. What are we looking for? We’re hunting down information to potentially validate your resume, to find out if you walk your talk and to learn more about you, as a person. Also, when I’m looking to use the services of another business, especially a business which is tied to a personal brand (as today they essentially all are) I do the same thing. I expect and know that potential clients of mine do the same when trying to find out more about my business.
It’s critical now, more-so than ever, to educate our employees, colleagues and especially children, that what they say or do online is permanent. It can be a great opportunity for you to build your brand or prove to be the easiest method of self-destruction. Maybe it’s time to do a personal digital analysis on yourself? You may be surprised looking from the perspective of an outsider.
Lisa Ostrikoff, Special to The Globe and Mail
via All of your posts, shares and ‘Likes’ tell a story: what does yours say? – The Globe and Mail.
- Published in Lisa Ostrikoff - The Globe And Mail, Social Media Video
Your business is still ignoring online advertising? Step up.
As the owner of a new-media startup, the language I speak is common and easily understood by my colleagues and contacts in related fields. What’s happening around us online and to media in general seems obvious. I have lived and breathed it for years, and I am immersed in it daily.
But what’s happening in the digital space is still very new to many brands and consumers. It’s evident in the blank stares I often get in casual conversations when I share content I read recently, or I bring up the future direction of my business. While I ponder the logistics and inner-workings of online advertising, many others are only aware of what’s put in front of them, and they don’t concern themselves with change until they absolutely have to.
As this digital divide continues to widen and the evolution of media picks up speed, the differences are increasing between business owners who are ready to leap into new online advertising lands, and those who are not. Either they are too scared to try something new or they don’t see the potential, or a combination of both. One of the most common sentiments from truthful business owners who haven’t fully evolved online is this: “When you’ve been doing the same thing for decades, it’s easier to stay the same than to try something new.”
Some forward-thinking clients of mine started allocating good chunks of their marketing and advertising budgets online, and over the past few years digital has become an integral part of their strategy. Others advertise in more traditional mediums, but they are slowly starting to warm up to a small step into the new frontier.
“If people don’t understand this, don’t waste your time,” a client said a few years ago, “people eventually will be forced to get it.” We have arrived at that “eventual” point.
Way back in 2007 – perhaps even earlier – it was predicted that “the Internet is rapidly moving from a ‘text web’ to a ‘video web.’” The stats I would pull to show to potential clients, it turns out, accurately predicted where video would be in 2009, and again to where we are in 2013. It’s actually bigger, better and more diverse than initially thought.
If you want to dip a baby toe into the digital space before taking the plunge, that’s fine, but do it sooner than later. It’s better to start small now than to get left behind forever.
via Your business is still ignoring digital? Step up – The Globe and Mail
Lisa Ostrikoff is a TV journalist and anchor-turned-creator of BizBOXTV, a Canadian online video production, advertising and social media marketing agency.
- Published in Lisa Ostrikoff - The Globe And Mail, Video Advertising
Business owners need to ‘evolve or die’.
The expression ‘evolve or die’ always felt a little over-the-top to me, but now I say it with conviction. If your business isn’t paying attention to the changes online, it will be left behind.
One of the biggest changes in marketing and media is turnaround times. This is evident with the immediate nature of social media, where things are happening real-time. So if your business wants to play ‘real time,’ keep in mind that idea-to-execution has to happen quickly. There’s no time for lengthy meetings, drawn-out proposals or over-planning. The emphasis is placed on taking action. This doesn’t mean quality is at stake: when you have laser focus when it comes to your business strategy, and know where you are going, the steps to get to where you need to be become quite obvious.
Companies also need to become more lean and agile. For example, if something happens on social media, and you want to react or give your opinion, you need to be present then and there, not a week from then. If you want to do a video segment related to something timely, it needs to be pushed out while it’s still on people’s minds. Being overly attached to plans will become a detriment – and it’s the hardest thing for larger organizations to deal with. As a small- or medium-sized business, this is where your advantage sits. While large corporations will spend months planning something, you can be already doing it.
Another requirement is the willingness to take risks. There are many innovative businesses and brands out there hustling like they never have before, while their (soon-to-be extinct) competitors are still sitting in their board rooms deciding and meticulously planning what to do. Need to enhance your website? Get it done. Thinking about trying social media? Don’t wait. Wondering about how video can work? Do it. It can be scary trying something that maybe has never been done before, whether in your city or your industry, but it gives you the opportunity to pave the way for how things should be done. Plus, if you decide whatever it is doesn’t perfectly fit with your business – you are agile enough to change course and try again. It’s better to try something new while you’re ahead of the curve rather than waiting for the opportunity to pass you by. It’s been said many times over: taking risks has its rewards.
For those who are scared of what’s happening, maybe in denial or perhaps even thinking it’s all temporary, you need to give your head a serious shake and start swimming, hard. It’s better to get ahead now, start living in this digital world and trying a few new things because by the time you are finally ready to execute, there’s a good chance the wave will have passed you by.
via Business owners need to ‘evolve or die’ – Lisa Ostrikoff, The Globe and Mail.
- Published in Lisa Ostrikoff - The Globe And Mail, Social Media Video, Video Marketing
Want to ‘wow’ customers? Stop asking them to buy stuff.
My last column on brand journalism sparked some great discussion and more questions from my network on exactly how businesses can implement a brand journalism strategy.
Just to recap: Brand journalism is a useful way for brands, big and small, to use the approach of professional journalists to create, curate and share expert content in the form of blogs, articles and video. Businesses are essentially becoming their own media houses too, whether hiring internally or contracting out to people with journalism backgrounds.
Home Depot, Cisco and Boeing are just some of the more commonly talked about larger brand journalism examples, producing relevant media for their audiences in the forms of how-to content, demonstration videos as well as pages upon pages of industry-relevant information. You’ll never see any of the content pieces screaming ‘buy now.’ Rather – the aim is to educate, inform and even entertain its consumers.
RedBull, for example, constantly strives to ‘wow’ its fans through its brand journalism efforts.
The Austrian energy drink company has essentially created its own media network that pushes its content strategy via Red Bull Media House. Dubbing it as “Fascinating people, inspiring stories,” it’s content marketing library boasts thousands of professional videos on it’s YouTube channel. With 1.6-million subscribers and 550-million video views – its strategy is something to take a second look at.
RedBull’s content focuses on sports and events and, of course, athletes. It’s exciting and captivating content distributed via a variety of digital platforms including web video and social media. But YouTube is where it re ally rules. In fact, RedBull is one of the top five YouTube sports content producers in the world, and has launched more than a dozen web TV shows featuring its sponsored athletes.
The brand placement itself is minimal, if non existent, as the emphasis is instead on simulating and exciting content. RedBull’s magic brand journalism formula: create content people want to watch and share, while ensuring whatever it is in alignment with their image and message.
The idea central to brand journalism is that a brand needs to offer value in order to get something valuable back. Consumers are smarter than ever before and demand more respect. If a company can tell those stories in an authentic and non-intrusive way, it’ll start building a loyal community that wants to live, breathe and share this brand.
Businesses, marketers and advertisers can all learn a thing or two from Red Bull’s brand journalism approach. Next time you’re thinking about launching a ‘push’ commercial, bend your mind a bit. Instead, become the show.
via Want to ‘wow’ customers? Stop asking them to buy stuff – Lisa Ostrikoff, The Globe and Mail.
- Published in Brand Journalism™, Lisa Ostrikoff - The Globe And Mail, Video Marketing