Insights for Leaders Navigating
Visibility, Credibility, and Growth.
From media strategy to reputation management, we explore the trends shaping public perception and share the approaches that drive measurable results for growing brands.
Last week, TechFlash.com published a list of the top 100 Seattle companies that are drawing the most Web traffic and attention on Twitter, blogs and with other media. Working closely with YouNoodle, a start-up which monitors a company’s media buzz, TechFlash ranked companies on a scale of zero to 100. The higher the number, the more traffic the company receives. This list is known as the TechFlash 100.
Companies such as Big Fish Games, a Communiqué PR client, Zillow and Picnik take top rank on the list; earning rankings in the high 70’s and low 80’s.
So what are these companies doing to earn top rank on this list? How are companies garnering increased Web traffic on social mediums such as Twitter?
To answer these questions, we took a closer look at social media activities behind Big Fish Games, Zillow and Picnik. Here’s what we found:
Big Fish Games takes an active role engaging customers in various social mediums. The company manages a blog on its main Web site as well as a Big Fish Games Facebook page. Big Fish Games tweets almost daily and has more than 1,235 followers on Twitter. The company also maintains Facebook pages for its most popular games including the Mystery Case Files franchise.
Zillow also maintains a blog as well as a Facebook and Twitter account. Like Big Fish Games, Zillow uses these social mediums to highlight news about the company and provide updates on events. Zillow also uses its blog as a place to highlight compelling customer stories and offer readers tips about selling their house.
Picnik, a leading online photo editing application, is actively involved in Facebook, Twitter and publishes blogs to its main site. What stands out about Picnik are the 81,108 fans it has on Facebook. The company uses Facebook as a means to publish pictures, demonstrate its application’s capabilities and share upcoming news with its fans.
Based on this information, organizations that want to increase Web traffic among social media outlets should 1) manage and actively update a company blog, 2) create a Facebook page and provide frequent updates to fans and 3) actively use Twitter. In addition, an organization should work closely with its internal or external PR team to ensure online coverage includes Web links back to the company Web site. This is a great way to increase Web traffic to an organization’s site.
To read more about the TechFlash 100 click here.
Taxes can be a contentious issue in America, especially in this economy. On tax day last week, hundreds of thousands of people across the country protested at gatherings called “tea parties” to voice their opposition against what they view as wasteful government spending. The parties got their name from the infamous Boston Tea Party when colonists protested the British government by tossing taxed tea into the Boston Harbor.
It’s no secret that the news media love a controversial issue, so their coverage of the tax day tea parties is not surprising. But many are asking if cable news shows took things too far in their coverage of the 2009 tea parties by inserting their opinion in the story. Was coverage of the tea parties fair and balanced? And should news anchors ever share their opinion on the air?
In a New York Times article on the subject, David Carr describes a CNN anchor covering a tax protest in Chicago shaking her finger at protesters and shouting at them. Carr also shares these quotes from a Fox News reporter inviting viewers to a protest: “Bring your kids and experience history,” and “our kids are being sold into slavery.”
These examples of opinions being inserted into the story by news anchors are far from objective journalism. And while this can add color to the story and engage some viewers, it detracts from the standard of objective news that many stations try hard to uphold.
There is a place for partisan journalism when it is labeled as such, but general news broadcasts should remain objective. Viewers trust their news sources to be objective and their confidence is shaken when reporters take sides.
Did coverage of the tea parties ruin public trust in the objectivity of some news stations? Probably not, because these reports were one-time occurrences rather than examples of a larger trend. But the public outcry over how some stations covered the tea parties should serve as a warning of the damage done when news broadcasts are not objective.
Local daily newspapers across the nation are in bad shape, and many Americans fear losing a keystone of their communities: local news. National newspapers and broadcast media have their place, but local papers inform and enrich the communities they serve with stories about politics, business, arts and culture. For instance, USA Today isn’t likely to report on an initiative to close several Seattle schools because it’s not relevant to a national audience, but the news is still important to Seattleites.
Daily newspapers as we know them may disappear, but if a growing crop of online startups are any indication, local news is here to stay. These startups, called hyperlocal news sites, aggregate online stories that are specific to a reader’s neighborhood or city. Some even have their own reporters to supplement content with original articles. According to a New York Times article on the subject, “They might let a visitor know about an arrest a block away, the sale of a home down the street and reviews of nearby restaurants.”
I checked out one such site called EveryBlock.com. After clicking “Seattle” on the home page and typing in my zip code, I landed on the “Timeline” page with a list of 911 dispatches, building permits and business reviews near my house. Not exactly breaking news. Things got more interesting when I clicked on the “Overview” page. Here I found an aggregate of discounts and sales at businesses in my neighborhood, local news stories, city press releases and restaurant inspections. Improvements to my neighborhood park, two-for-one DVD rentals and the Vegan donut shop up the street got a four-star review? Definitely news I can use.
So will hyperlocal news sites replace daily newspapers? It’s possible, but they face some major hurdles. First, they need to develop a viable business model to secure advertising revenue – no easy feat in this economy. They will also need to offer customizable dashboards so readers can select whether they want up-to-the-minute reports of 911 dispatches in their neighborhood, a comprehensive list of local businesses applying for liquor licenses, or just plain news.
We will be interested to see whether these sites take off and would love to hear your thoughts. Would you use a hyperlocal news site?
Last night was the official launch party for Colleen and Jennifer’s book Strategic Public Relations. The event took place at the Palace Ballroom and featured tasty tidbits from Tom Douglas. Books were flying off the table and despite the fact it was tax day, the turnout was fantastic. It was wonderful to catch up with past and present clients as well as friends of the agency.
Strategic Public Relations is written for a broad audience from CEOs to PR practitioners and outlines how to maximize the impact of PR. The book also contains insight from business leaders at such companies as Alaska Airlines, Clearwire, Deloitte Services, Edelman, Nike, Seattle Children’s Hospital, Starbucks, and many other brand-name organizations that are using PR to accomplish their most important goals.
Strategic Public Relations has truly been a labor of love for Colleen and Jennifer, as well as the agency. As a fairly new addition to the Communiqué team, it’s been really rewarding to see the book come to life in its final stages and to celebrate that milestone with Colleen and Jennifer.
We also celebrated another milestone last night, the fifth anniversary of Communiqué PR. In her speech at the party, Colleen recounted how Jennifer approached her on Thanksgiving Day 2003 with a vision and business plan in hand. While starting a PR agency may not have been the highest priority in her life at that time, she said, “The balance in our relationship has enabled us to arrive at this point: when one of us was holding back the other one was there pushing or pulling the other forward. It’s this teamwork and partnership that allows us to stand here today to celebrate the fifth anniversary of the agency.”
A big thanks to all of you who attended last night’s festivities. The party was an overwhelming success and we were so honored to have you celebrate these milestones with us.
To purchase your copy of the book, click on the cover above or go to Amazon or Barnes & Noble. You can also become a fan of Communiqué PR on Facebook!
We will provide an update and link to the photos from last night when they are available.
On February 26, Alaska Airlines announced the trial launch of its new satellite-based wireless Internet service, Alaska Airlines Inflight Wi-Fi. The launch of this service, which can be used by passengers to browse the Web; access online music, games, podcasts and webcasts; send and receive e-mail and connect to Virtual Private Networks (VPN), garnered more than 45 print and broadcast mentions.
Yesterday (April 14), the company announced the initial survey results of its Inflight Wi-Fi service trial – and the positive data from this study illustrate consumers’ excitement over this service. Since the service trial launch, more than 2,100 passengers have logged on and used Alaska Airlines’ Inflight Wi-Fi. Of those passengers who tried the service and completed a survey during or after their flight, more than 96 percent intend to use it again.
A few of the other key findings from the survey include:
More than 78 percent of those who tried the Inflight Wi-Fi service are either “extremely likely” or “very likely” to recommend it.
More than 75 percent felt the service was either “excellent” or “very good.”
About 35 percent of passenger accessed the service with portable devices such as smart phones. Other passengers surfed the Web on devices such as notebook computers.
As a consumer, who easily gets bored and antsy on flights, this service is just the thing that I need to help keep me occupied and productive during flights. If you’d like to read more about what journalists are saying about this service, read some of the great coverage Alaska Airlines Inflight Wi-Fi Service has received: