HC+T Update: February 7, 2014

From: "HC+T Update" <shel@holtz.com>

Subject: HC+T Update: February 7, 2014

Date: February 7th 2014

February 7, 2014
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How rough will the road be to wearable tech in the workplace?

While there isn't a groundswell of enthusiasm for Google Glass, and most people scoff at the idea of wearing a mobile device on your wrist, wearables are coming and the workplace may be where they reach a tipping point. Few companies are addressing the issues that will create, ranging from the need for policies to heading off privacy concerns. Read more

This week on FIR

On episode 741 of the Hobson and Holtz Report, we explore the desirability of employing a "right-time" marketing approach versus "real-time," we discuss the evolution of internal communications from control to influence, have a chat about wearable technology, and look at the decline in the strength of customers' relationship with brands. There's more from our technology and Asia correspondents, and a rundown of news. Listen
On TV@Work, Ron Shewchuk talks to online video pioneer Paolo Tosolini. Listen
Kevin Anselmo chats with LinkedIn expert Chuck Hester about the business network's usefulness for educators and education communicators in the latest episode of Higher Education. Listen
Dan Carter talks social media marketing with host Glenn Gaudet on AMP Up Your Social Media. Listen
Mitchell and Michael interview veteran high-tech exec Lori Harmon on Thought Leadership. Listen
MarketingProfs founder Ann Handley is the guest on FIR B2B. Listen

If you like what you read in the Friday Wrap, be sure to visit LinksFromShel.tumblr.com. It's where I collect everything I find interesting during the week, and the source of items that make it into the Wrap.

Above the fold

This hardly looks like a teen exodus

73% of U.S. teens are on Facebook. If that's a teen problem, I'd be curious to see what success looks like. The AllFacebook has details and tons of other stats released by the Pew Internet & American Life Project on Facebook's 10th anniversary. For instance, 54% of U.S. adults use the social network, 64% of Facebook users visit daily (a 13-point hike since 2010), and nearly half say photos are a key reason they use it. A Wall Street Journal article on the same Pew study reports that only about 10% of Facebook's users update their on status every day.

Are we going overboard with apologies?

Early last month I wrote a post outlining the four conditions for an effective apology: have something that truly warrants an apology, mean it, be sincere and unscripted, and deliver the apology through multiple channels. These conditions don't seem to apply to the flood of apologies that appears to be pouring out of corporate offices these days. According to BusinessWeek, a study of nearly 1,200 apologies made over a two-year period found that corporate Twitter accounts use the word "sorry" 8.6 times more than individuals do, and "apologize" and "regret" get tossed around 37.5 times more by corporations than individuals. One reason is that Twitter is used increasingly to respond to individuals addressing customer service issues. "But quantity and quality aren't the same thing. Apologetic social-media messages from brands are often stilted and mealy-mouthed."

Brands have possibilities with Facebook's new Paper app

I noticed the same thing Christopher S. Penn did when taking a look at Paper (according to his post on the SHIFT Communications blog), the new Flipboard-like app from Facebook. While Paper presents news feed articles in a far more appealing way designed specifically for he mobile experience, there were no ads and no content from brand pages. AdAge, however, sees potential. "The insertion of branded content, either directly or indirectly, should also strive for a balanced approach that hits the right notes to play well within the ground rules Paper is trying to establish," writes Doug Hopkins. He offers a hypothetical example of a company-sponsored Olympic athlete, with the brand playing a supporting role in a story that primarily focuses on the athlete and the event.

Below the fold

Instaradio lets you broadcast audio in real time from your smartphone

There are many options for recording and sharing audio from your smartphone, from Soundcloud to AudioBoo, but none that let you broadcast your audio live. Until now, that is. Instaradio has debuted an Android app and updated its iOS app, along for " instant live audio streaming broadcasts for users, via their smartphone device and using nothing more than their built-in mics, unless they opt to add their own additional accessories," according to TechCrunch.

A PR dashboard for Google Analytics is available

Justin Cutroni, author of the Analytics Talk blog, reports on a PR-focused dashboard for Google Analytics that you can add, for free, to your existing Analytics account. "This dashboard is focused on the visitors to a website, where they came from and what they do on the site," he explains.

Klout adds tools to help you boost your score

Klout, which claims to measure social media influence (a claim many dispute), has added a "create" section that provides you with a stream of content based on your areas of interest that you can then share through your social media accounts. The idea is that people will engage with the content, boosting your score. You have to wonder, though, just how influential somebody is if their score is based on using a Klout score-boosting tool. TechCrunch has the story.

Tide opts for Vine videos instead of a Super Bowl ad

Last year, Tide spent the requisite fortune on a TV spot for the Super Bowl. This year, they decided to share 22 Vine videos during the game, each one aimed at one of the brands that did air a commercial. The strategy paid off with 3.6 million impressions thanks to retweets. While that's nowhere near the record 111.5 million people who watched the game, it's still a respectable payoff that could keep on producing results. The Procter & Gamble company did spend some money to promote the tweets, according to AdAge, which included nods to Budweiser and Jaguar ads, among others.

Another report suggests Facebook's dominance may be winding down

Even though the source -- the USC Annenberg Center for the Digital Future -- is impressive, I still have my doubts about the conclusion reached after a study revealed that people think they'll reduce their Facebook use over the next five years. Twitter and Instagram, meanwhile are on the rise, according to a Daily 'Dog story. The Center's director says it means people want to get their content out faster than they can on Facebook, but doesn't account for the fact that Facebook is likely to address the issue. And let's not forget: Facebook owns Instagram.

Mobile is email's new home

If you've noticed a bump in your email marketing open rates, you may have smartphones to thank for it. 65% of email is accessed from mobile devices, with smartphones dominating the field; tablets account for only 16% of opened emails. The pervasive adoption of mobile devices has been accompanied by a surge in the number of emails people open, according to a VentureBeat report.

Hashtags dominate Super Bowl social posts

Hashtags were part of more than half of the commercials that aired during this year's Super Bowl, according to VentureBeat, a good move since they work on more than one channel. "It's possible to read between the lines and conclude that advertisers suspect consumers are just as likely to launch their post-ad musings on Facebook as they are on Twitter," writes Jordan Novet.

Posts from friends influence Millennial purchase

Millennials (born betwee 1977 and 1997) are more likely than other demographic groups to consider buying something a friend has recommended in a social media post. Harris Interactive's study found 68% of 18-to-34-year-olds will at least think about the product if a friend has posted about it, almost the opposite of those 65 and older, 78% of whom said their friends' social media posts would have no influence on their purchase decisions. eMarketer has the story.

What's the best time for that post you're hoping will go viral?

A nifty infographic from Social Times -- drawing on a number of sources -- offers insights into the best time to post items to social media sites. In the morning, for example, post between 9 and 11 on Google+, between 7 and 9 on LinkedIn, and between 12 and 1 (yes, a.m.) on Pinterest. The inforgraphic also covers worst times, and best and worst days. Of course, use these as starting points for experimentation to find your own sweet spot, since every audience is different.

If you haven't considered podcasting, perhaps now is the time

For a number of reasons, podcasting doesn't get the limelight a lot of other social platforms get, but it has "silently grown for the last 5 years in the background," writes Christopher S. Penn. (Wow, two references to Chris on one Wrap!) Penn points to research from Edison Research and Arbitron that peg the podcast audience at 32 million in the U.S. alone. "Podcasting is a great way to deliver a lot of content to dedicated parts of your community for the purposes of reinforcing loyalty and strengthening your brand," Penn concludes.

A few more items for your consideration

I'm conducting a webinar in March for PeopleFluent. Details to come.
I'll be speaking at the global intranet conference from IntraTeam in Denmark on February 26-28.
I'll be on the program at IABC's social intranet conference in Los Angeles in March. Details to come.
On April 2, I'll do two sessions at the Ragan Communications conference at Walt Disney World.
I return to Sao Paulo, Brazil, in August for three days of teaching at the national communications association, ABERJE.
In October, I'm off to Warsaw, Poland to speak at an internal communication conference.

Need a speaker?

I am routinely among the highest-rated speakers at every conference -- internal or external -- where I speak. Let's talk!

Since 1996, HC+T has helped organizations communicate effectively in the emerging online space using intranets to reach employees and various dimensions of the Internet to communicate with other stakeholder audiences.

HC+T provides a full range of services for large organizations, from speaking and training to communication audits and strategic plan development.

Visit us at Holtz.com.

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