The SQUARED Root

Posts Tagged ‘business’

Dion Hinchcliffe to Keynote Interactive Austin 2009

Posted by Mike Chapman on January 19th, 2009

Dion Hinchcliffe, an internationally recognized authority on Web 2.0 and its application to business and our personal lives, is scheduled to keynote and participate in this year’s Interactive Austin 2009 conference scheduled for April 27th.

FG SQUARED is the title sponsor for the event which will include a full day of timely and valuable sessions on achieving business profitability and learning how to effectively participate on the social web from an organizational perspective.

Hinchcliffe is leading the conversation in the Enterprise 2.0 and larger business communities on “How to Survive and Thrive in Business Today with Web 2.0.” As the founder and chief technology officer of the Enterprise 2.0 advisory and consulting firm Hinchcliffe & Company, he has extensive practical experience with enterprise technologies and he consults, speaks, and writes prolifically on IT and software architecture.

Dion’s work is more than ever focused on advising business leaders how to survive in the current business environment while fundamentally transforming what they’re doing to position them more effectively going forward.
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If you’re concerned with adapting to the new environment in business – an environment that will necessarily require increased openness, transparency and participation – while also driving growth and innovation in your company, you’ll want to be a part of Interactive Austin 2009 and participate in the day-long conversation on these and other topics.

Assumptions learned previously are giving way to new ways of doing business in areas such as product development, marketing, customer service, operations, line of business, finance, communications, humans resources and just about everything else in most organizations, according to Hinchcliffe.

If you want to get a first-hand vision of how to use 2.0 concepts to create growth, transform the customer relationship to drive revenue, drive operational costs down, improve productivity, safely restructure your business models, leverage and harness innovation, and effect change, you’ll want to meet and hear Dion.

I’ve plagiarized liberally from “Dion Hinchcliffe’s Web 2.0 Blog” to write this post and also to make sure that I gave you an accurate description of and feel for what he’ll be covering at the conference.

A complete agenda for the conference is being developed. Please contact me @Mike Chapman on Twitter or email me at Mike.Chapman@fg2.com to discuss it or make inquiries. Also search #IA09 for Twitter conversations before and during the conference.

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The Concept of Singularity

Posted by Barry Rumac on October 29th, 2008

One of FG SQUARED’s principles of business is The Concept of Singularity, and if you work with (or near) us and you’ve heard the term, you might wonder what exactly it is, why it’s important, and/or its place inside of a brand image.

 

Since The Concept of Singularity is a branding concept, to divine the meaning of this concept, it helps to begin with “branding.”

 

Branding is a term that is always in the forefront of thinking in many companies, especially among the marketing department, who are the stewards of the corporate brand and responsible for its creation, enhancement and protection.

 

Many definitions of “brand” exist but I prefer to describe “brand” as the sum of all perceptions that stakeholders have about a company and its products or services.

 

The Concept of Singularity, while part of the brand image, differs in one aspect:

 

- Of all the things a company may be known for, The Concept of Singularity is generally the single most important reason for which the customer purchases the product or service.

 

- Furthermore, a well-established Concept of Singularity serves as the best defense a brand has against competitive inroads.

 

 

How does this work?

 

Think for a moment about a recent major purchase you may have made or are considering, and also about what your key criteria was in that purchase decision.

 

To illustrate: If you are considering the purchase of a new car, and if safety is your primary concern, then you most likely have narrowed your list of possibilities to those vehicles that have reinforced that attribute.

 

Volvo is one brand very likely to have come to mind. If you are considering the purchase of a new set of tires for your car, and safety is your primary concern, then you might have put Michelin on your list.

 

Why? Because in recent years both of these brands have successfully stressed safety as a main product attribute. In fact, safety has become for both of these brands their Concept of Singularity.

 

This is not to suggest that this attribute is the sum total of their respective brands, rather that among all of their positive attributes, safety has risen to the top and in fact, formed a competitive barrier to any other brand that wants to claim safety as a reason to buy. Put another way, they own the safety space. This makes it difficult for a competing brand to come in on that platform.

 

So the question now becomes: how does a brand, your brand, develop its own Concept of Singularity?

 

While not difficult, it does require two key ingredients of your marketing: being consistent and being persistent.

 

Be consistent in the relevant platform that you are exposing to your customers, and be persistent in using that platform in one form or another in almost all of your communications internal and external. It is only over time that your brand develops that wonderful attribute that will help drive sales and keep competitors at bay.

 

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Brand Awareness

Posted by Mike Chapman on October 3rd, 2008

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I am a big fan of business management expert Tom Peters.

Long before the current emphasis on social media, and the individuality in branding it provides us online, Peters was evangelizing that we should passionately be in pursuit of developing our own brand.  We should engage in disruptive behavior, break out of the cubicle, and enjoy work again.

Peters has been warning for decades that massive changes were coming to large corporations and to the workers that comprise them. Talented professionals no longer should be dependent on the sponsoring companies for an income. Professional service organizations, PSOs, can perform many of the same functions at lower costs and with better results.

The percentage of workers who will spend an entire career with one company is dramatically lower. Career mobility is an accepted lifestyle choice and job security has been exposed as a myth. Loyalty to an employer is a two-way proposition and is not assumed. Tom Peters not only predicted these trends, he passionately advocates for them.

It should seem obvious that smart companies would look for ways to get out ahead of the new trends, including those made possible and preferable by the new world of 2.0 technologies. To do so would empower their employees, make their jobs more interesting, and encourage them to stick around, and thereby making their companies more competitive.

So it was notable, if not surprising, last week when Susan Scrupski, nGenera’s research guru, offered this commentary on where many large enterprises actually are today:

“we find that social, emergent behavior can be viewed as dissent in large enterprises. In the enterprise space, we find the major barrier to adoption of 2.0 ideologies is culture. Even if there is a groundswell of support to embrace social media, corporate cultures can run counter to its actual widespread acceptance. Marketers in large companies are more inclined to recognize the benefits of building relationships via social media sooner, but they run into roadblocks from other, more conservative, areas of the business. It’s a huge challenge for some large brands.”

At least one very large corporation is leaning into the trends and taking steps to allow employee empowerment on a large scale.

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Recently the Social Media Club of Austin met on the IBM Austin campus with Chris Almond, IBM Redbooks Project Leader. He shared some of the innovations in social computing taking place at IBM.

He stressed that IBM has developed specific guidelines for using blogs, wikis, social networks, virtual worlds and social media, and is allowing their integration into the workplace. With IBM stock doing well, they are not making these moves under pressure, but instead to stay current.

Chris didn’t give away any company secrets, but he did give us some real insights into steps being taken within the firewall at IBM to tap into their own employee talent pool. By allowing the creation of innovation networks and collaboration between different areas of the corporation, employees are able to take advantage of the newest tools.

They’re also considering ways to tap into the social capital they have with the many retirees of IBM using social media and other forms of social computing.

Qualified, former IBM employees might find it satisfying to work on a project from time to time. They already have a vested interest in the continued success of IBM, as pension plan participants, and they could enjoy the work knowing they were not going to be permanently back on the payroll.

By establishing clear guidelines and setting expectations from the beginning, and by accepting and embracing the changes occurring outside the firewall, a large company can adjust into the “groundswell.”

Bottom line considerations will always be bottom line. Proprietary information is still proprietary. Employees and, in this case, former employees are empowered. Managed disruption occurs from within and for the benefit of the corporation.

Chris Almond is definitely a brand unto himself. Chris is also a valued employee of IBM. Other large enterprises – and those not so large – would be wise to learn from his example. Chris says he’s very happy at IBM.

Please read the social computing guidelines being used by IBM and comment below on them or anything else I’ve written. You don’t have to agree with me. In fact, critical thinking is encouraged.

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The Communications Revolution

Posted by Mike Chapman on September 26th, 2008

I have sometimes characterized social media as a revolution in communications. While that may be a bit of hyperbole, social media and online social networking are certainly providing a multitude of new opportunities for two-way and multi-directional forms of communications.  

These often disruptive and sometimes less than polished online conversations, form the basis of the Groundswell occurring on and around the internet. Marketing, advertising, and all forms of media, including customer and public relations, have been profoundly impacted.

Despite the feeling of newness, however, the basic characteristics of social media are at least as old as the United States. Thomas Paine’s pamphlet Common Sense, written in 1776, encapsulated the concepts of the American Revolution in an unorthodox form for its time and was circulated in a purposefully disruptive manner among the American colonists.

The pamphlet served as a call to arms against the King of England’s tyrannical rule and offered an alternative approach for self-governing. The ideas in the pamphlet weren’t completely original, but the simplicity of the language used was out of the ordinary.

Paine’s more casual style of writing was more suitable to the kind of democratic society he and others envisioned. Complex ideas were made intelligible to the average reader in contrast to the more formal style favored by institutions of power. That sounds similar to the authenticity and transparency which are also the hallmarks of modern social media.

Finally, Paine’s willingness to openly confront King George III, on the record for all of his fellow colonists to read, was very uncharacteristic among colonists who feared the wrath of the King. His willingness to voice his opinions in the open, and in understandable language, was instrumental in initiating a public debate about independence.

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Common Sense Communications Today

Compare Paine’s revolutionary pamphlet to what’s going on in communications today. Because of the many options that have been created by new technologies, each of us has the opportunity  to engage in conversations with other people who share our interests and in a language that can be understood by those involved.

Consequently, proactive companies are instituting new strategies that anticipate the sweeping changes in communications and self-organizing occurring around the internet. Not only can a business or not-for-profit organization get out in front of potential negative communications coming from their various constituencies, they can effectively convert them into brand loyalists with sincere attempts at developing genuine relationships with them

By acknowledging them as being important and then communicating openly with them, it’s possible for corporations to foster good will and enhance the organization’s social capital among its customers. It’s not only possible; it’s happening.

There are profound opportunities for large organizations, including corporations, to empower their employees in this new environment by opening new channels of communications to the communities outside of the company. This very natural form of social capital is nothing short of revolutionary. Well, it’s certainly a move in the right direction.

Additionally, through effective implementation of an internal communication system, such as an intranet, employees can be empowered to be excellent advocates for their company. With clear internal guidelines in place, an intranet can provide a platform for coordinating teams of goodwill ambassadors who can be available to reach out into the groundswell. I’ll write more about how FG Squared is taking the lead in this direction in a future post.

It’s a little too late for King George III to learn about the benefits of listening. It might be, however, the perfect time for you and your business to start.

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Power Networking

Posted by Mike Chapman on September 19th, 2008

The Presidential campaign of 2008 has forever changed the way politics will be conducted in the United States. The current campaigns being waged for the White House are good predictors of the massive changes also coming for businesses, non-profits and other organizations. The use of online social networks, social media, and social commerce to organize, communicate, raise money, and ultimately affect the electoral process, have been so disruptive and effective they will never be absent from any major campaign again.

Without getting into a critique of any of the candidates or their campaign efforts, it’s safe to say that most political prognosticators would not have predicted the current match-up between U.S. Senators Barack Obama and John McCain going into November. Through effective use of social networks – including the one his campaign created for itself – to rapidly establish a national presence and a serious fundraising operation, Barack Obama came out of nowhere to defeat a field of formidable opponents and win the Democratic nomination. As proof of concept, John McCain, the Republican nominee, is aggressively working to replicate Obama’s online successes in his own effort to leave nothing to chance in this extremely competitive contest.

MyBarackObama.com and McCainSpace.com, the respective online communities for the two candidates, and their extensive interactivity with other social networks, are clear evidence of a developing online reality in politics, business, and every other aspect of our daily lives.

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Social networks themselves are nothing new to politicians. Utilizing social capital for the benefit of a candidacy or a cause is standard operating procedure. The Clinton and the Bush families have extensive supporter lists that have been cultivated over decades and which were key to their political successes. What’s new this cycle has been the ability to very rapidly grow a social network using online technologies and for them to be extremely effective in supplementing traditional campaign strategies and tactics.

How does any of this apply to the rest of us? The Obama campaign has proven the benefits of using online social networking, social commerce and social media tools to enhance traditional marketing and communications effort along with other key functions of an enterprise. McCain is hoping to do the same. Regardless of the outcome of the election, campaigns will never be conducted without a serious effort to utilize from online social networks to supplement traditional on-the-ground efforts.They can’t afford not to. The same principle applies to every enterprise dealing with human beings and who might have any interaction with online social networks.

If your business or organization intends to be competitive going forward, you cannot afford to ignore the lessons of the current election campaign. If you have no competition, then you can continue to do things the way they have always been done. That is, of course, until someone with an online strategy decides to announce against you. Good luck catching up with them after that happens.

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Facebook and the Business World

Posted by Beth Ranson on June 6th, 2008

Some of the hottest topics of the business world these days are centered on social media. One of the main issues is around Facebook as a business networking tool.

To really begin this discussion, let’s look at business in general. One of the key elements in growing your business is increasing sales. Coming from a sales background, I have attended many different sales classes and seminars and they have all said the same thing. Building strong relationships closes sales and increases profitability.

We were taught to look around a prospect’s office and find a nick-knack, a photograph, a trophy; anything that would give us a glimpse into their personal life. Maybe you see a picture of a sailboat on their wall, so you ask them how long they have been a sailor and to what destinations have they sailed. Immediately a conversation has begun.

Finding these little connections helps sales people build a small trust between them and the prospect. Applications like Facebook, can help you accomplish this before you even walk in your potential client’s door. You can see that they have two kids and that they love the Red Sox. You have a glimpse into their personal life before you even meet them.

Basically, if you are in business, you have been “social networking” your entire career. You just haven’t been able to network on this large of a scale. According to Facebook, there are more than 70 million users with more than half of them college graduates. In fact, the 25 years and older demographic is the largest growing group on Facebook today. That’s a whole lot of business prospects to get to know.

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Social Commerce: Word of Mouth, applied to Business

Posted by Dave Evans on May 31st, 2008

The subject of “social commerce” — social media applied to business and specifically to commerce-related transactions and customer processes — is gaining in recognition as a significant tool in the standard business toolbox. For example, of the top 100 retailers with online operations, 50 are using the Bazaarvoice social commerce platform. Powering these commerce applications is, at the core, social media: digital word of mouth turned media, produced and presented by current customers for consumption for consumption by potential ones.

If you’re wondering about who is using social media — and in particular experiencing it in the context of a purchase — the answer is “everyone,” a point driven home in a recent Universal McCann study. It’s basically a given that if you sell it, someone else is talking about what happened after they bought it. That conversation is being tapped and inserted into the purchase funnel, right in between your ad (awareness) and the check out (point of sale).

The rise of social media good news for those brands with a tight link between Marketing–where the expectation is set, and Operations, where the promise is delivered on. These are just some of the topics I’ll be speaking about at the upcoming Interactive Austin conference in June. I hope to see you there. In the meantime, let me about your experience with social media and its use in your company.

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My Tag Cloud

Posted by Steve Golab on March 27th, 2008

Now that I am serious about meeting up with the rest of the world, my friend Cynthia Baker has asked me to draft a real professional biography that would be useful for securing presentation slots at target rich business conferences. Upon drafting the biography, I immediately reviewed at http://www.tagcrowd.com/ and here is the result.

 

 

created at TagCrowd.com

 

 

It’s amazing how well tag clouds center in on your thinking process! Thank you www.tagcrowd.com.

 

Here is my current biography to be recorded in Internet history forever. Please trust this only represents my life until now. But afterall now is gone.

 

Kindest Regards.

 

Steve Golab began his career as a pioneer of interactive communications while still an undergraduate in mechanical engineering at the University of Texas at Austin. Golab piloted the university’s College of Engineering Multimedia Lab, developing interactive educational materials while demonstrating the powerful impact of multimedia and the Internet on learning complex technical subject matter.

 

In 1994, during the early adoption of HTML 1.0, Golab co-founded FG SQUARED (www.fg2.com). Launched as a technology consulting business, the Austin-based firm soon evolved into a multimedia design agency focused on digital video, 3D animation, motion graphics, information management, and systems.

 

Golab’s engineering background brought the firm its initial success as a high-tech consultancy. His talent for understanding what really happens inside technology and visually communicating complex subject matter is core business at FG SQUARED.

 

From business visionary to organizational thinker and from strategy leader to relationship builder, Steve’s role in the agency he helped create is wide-ranging. A typical day finds Steve moving from addressing high-level client needs to consulting with team members in planning and execution of world-class interactive strategies.

 

Steve focuses on longevity, leadership, and the building of profitable relationships. However, it is Golab’s strong entrepreneurial spirit, diverse business management skills and his passion for achieving total client satisfaction that have enabled FG SQUARED to consistently remain an industry leader. Today, FG SQUARED has evolved into a full-service, interactive agency that applies interactive technologies and expertise in marketing to help clients achieve a faster track to profitability.

 

Since 2003, FG SQUARED has achieved upwards of 35 percent compounded average annual growth. The agency’s core capabilities span the spectrum from strategic planning and digital branding to interactive media production and social media solutions for Fortune 500 clients such as Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. (NYSE:AMD), Hitachi Ltd. (NYSE: HIT), Royal Dutch Shell (NYSE: RDS), Motorola (NYSE: MOT), Premier Global Services (NYSE:PGI), Canon (NYSE: CAJ), and Texas Association of Community Health Centers.

 

Building long-term relationships with clients in diverse fields including energy, technology, healthcare, entertainment, and mobile communications, FG SQUARED has earned more than 100 interactive media awards including the New York Festivals, Business Week MC Icon, WorldFest International Film, and Telly Awards. FG SQUARED is also a past recipient of the New Media 500, honoring it as one of the world’s most influential interactive agencies.

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