The Buzz, blog by Apis Design

September 30, 2009

If the Twitter community were 100 people. Great visual and a couple of notes.

Filed under: Online Marketing — Tags: , , , , — Alex Zagoumenov @ 10:45 am

We’ve all been trying to understand the community of Twitter. I know a lot of people from the general community (not agencies) that are still not seeing the benefits of Twitter conversations. Businesses are talking about Twitter just because Twitter is a buzz word. Still, the problem of simple and clear understanding of the “Twitter beast” remains.

In August 2009 two companies, Sysomos and Pear Analytics, partnered to lead a study of Twitter audiences. Below is a great visualization of this study done by InformationIsBeautiful.net

We are not suggesting that this is THE solution to all “Twitter for Business” problems but it’s a step in the right direction of understanding the role Twitter plays.

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September 29, 2009

Social Media: next 500 days by Digital Alberta. Event in review.

Filed under: Online Marketing — Tags: , , , , , — Alex Zagoumenov @ 11:21 am

On Tuesday, September 22nd, Robin and I went to one of the Digital Alberta’s monthly mixers. I actually volunteered to coordinate the event for Digital Alberta by getting the panel members and the moderator together. In any case, it was definitely lots of fun throughout the process. Here are some of the highlights from the event:

A great networking event. Robin mentioned that he actually had a very productive evening talking to people from different walks of life.

Panel composition and the Moderator. A few of the guests at the event commented on the uniformity of the panel. I mean the panel was brilliant and we had a great discussion, but the panel composition could be more diverse next time.

Major points Social Media and next 500 days covered by the panel and the audience:

  • Social media is many different things. We have to be able to clearly define it, as well as its individual components such as social media marketing and social networks, platforms.
  • Rene Smid (Executive Director at Digital Alberta) posed a great question about the average time investment required to reach success in social media networks. More in the video that’s coming up.
  • Social media is just a new concept with roots in traditional business.
  • Social media may not be the solution to every business problem.
  • Companies should pay attention to their marketing strategy.
  • Social media is about creating conversations and maintaining relationships.
  • Social media is about sharing value with your network.
  • Social media is here to stay.

The video compilation of the event by Roger Kondrat is coming up shortly, stay tuned!

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September 18, 2009

Oilpatch urged to embrace Twitter

Filed under: Online Marketing — Tags: , , , , , , , — Robin Eldred @ 8:26 am

In today’s Calgary Herald, an article appeared concerning a speech given at the Global Business Forum in Banff on Septermber 17. Richard Edelman, head of Edelman Public Relations, explains that there is currently an ‘insufficient understanding’ of issues surrounding oil and gas projects and their environmental impact. He states that the critics are the ones who are defining the companies involved through social media.

Edelman urges companies that now is the time act, “otherwise the impression will be frozen in time.” He goes on to state that the use of social media is critical for companies to reach younger audiences. A culture of transparency is building, so it’s up to the companies themselves to start participating in the conversations.

Here’s hoping that some of these oil and gas companies start contacting us so we can help them get started.

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September 17, 2009

World’s Slowest Water Cooler

Filed under: Inside Apis Design — Tags: , , — Robin Eldred @ 3:04 pm

Earlier this year we decided that filtered water was no longer optional. We bought a used water cooler (with a built-in fridge no less!) from Kijiji. It has since been professionally cleaned and, despite this maintenance, we believe it is the world’s slowest dispensing water cooler.

For example, here are things that happen faster than filling up an 8 oz glass from the Apis water cooler:

  • Printing out a 5-page document from our printer.
  • Starting up and logging in to Eve Online.
  • Booting up the XBOX.
  • Tweeting.
  • Printing out a 10-page document from our printer.
  • Getting driving directions on Google Maps to our new client in the South East.
  • Opening iTunes, going to the iTunes Store, entering a promo code for a free song from Starbucks, and then downloading the song.
  • Printing out a 15-page document from our printer.

We’re seriously considering retiring the world’s slower water cooler. Mind you, having now written a blog post about it, I am feeling a bit nostalgic. Like it’s a close friend. A slow, close friend. I feel bad for the little guy. And hey, sixty bucks is sixty bucks, right?

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Twitterville: Global Neighborhoods author in Calgary: event in review

Filed under: Online Marketing — Tags: , , , , , — Alex Zagoumenov @ 2:56 pm

A few weeks ago I joined this group on Meetup.com called Third Tuesday Calgary. Last night I went to an event organized by this group. The event was a conversation with Shel Israel, the author of the Twitterville: Global Neighborhoods. Here’s a few takeaways from the event.

Global Village / Global Neighborhoods

Much like Marshal McLuhan with “global village” in the 1960s, Shel talks about the concept of “global neighborhoods” today. Twitter, he says, is a tool that allows us to have small conversations with people of common interest. It’s like talking to your neighbor over the fence. Twitter is simply a tool to create and maintain those short conversations online. As Shel mentions, Twitter is the closest to face-to-face communication.

The importance of telling stories

Much like Seth Godin in “All marketers are liars”, Shel is emphasizing the art of story telling. His book, Twitterville, is in essence a collection of stories about people talking on Twitter and telling stories; something others can relate to. The entertainment component is part of any successful story we read, hear and share with our friends and colleagues. As Dean mentioned in his You don’t know how to blog post last week, telling stories is super important, if it’s not a story, he won’t read it.

Broadcasting Era / Conversational Era

As we are moving from the broadcasting era into the era of conversations and small talks, the value of relationships and value transfer becomes the primary concern. We are no longer pushing the message as it was done for decades by advertising and traditional media. We are engaging in conversations, trying to help people solve their problems. As Shel mentions, the media as a social institution isn’t going anywhere. It’s valuable and will continue to evolve. There will, however, be a transition, and it’s happening already. The key for media outlets is to get through this transition and emerge into a new format of media; a combination of traditional and social journalism.

As a side note, I purchased the last copy of the book at this event. 12 hours later still excited to have it and plan to read it within next couple of weeks before Shel writes his next book :)

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CanWest Concrete: A rescue project

Filed under: Apis Design Clients — Tags: , , , , — Robin Eldred @ 10:18 am

We recently completed a website redesign project for CanWest Concrete Cutting & Coring here in Calgary: www.canwestconcrete.com. They were struggling with their project and invited us to step in and help out.

Let’s let CanWest themselves tell the story:

“CanWest Concrete Cutting’s original website was designed by an employee of the company who had a rudimentary knowledge of how to put a website onto the Internet, which at the time, was quite simply enough. A few years later, the company recognized the increasing value of Internet advertising, and how important it is in today’s business world to have a professional website that clearly outlines the company’s mission, services and, most importantly why and how they can be contacted.

We had been working on our website for some time on our own, and with the help of another design company, without much progress, when we were referred to Apis. Once we started to work with the Apis Design team we were able to produce a highly professional and productive website in a very short turn around time.

Not being website professionals ourselves, the insight, advice and experience of the Apis design team has proved invaluable in producing a website that consistently generates leads and increased market awareness of our company. During this difficult economic period the increased exposure and lead generation that our new website has provided has proven to be a valuable asset to our business.

The website is an ongoing project, which is where the Apis team has shown their true commitment to excellent service. Since the new website was launched we have had lots of feedback from employees, colleagues and customers. Additionally, the company has branched out into new areas of service. Both of these dynamics have required that we make changes, alterations and additions to the website, some of which are of a time sensitive nature. Without exception Apis has reacted quickly, usually within 24 hours, and done an exceptional job in implementing the requested changes or additions. We truly feel that we are working with a partner who is interested in and cares about the success of our business.

We highly recommend Apis if you choose to help grow your business through the important tool of an effective website.”

Valerie Hindley
Executive Administrative Assistant
CanWest Concrete Cutting & Coring

Can you see us blushing? Believe us, Valerie, the feeling is mutual… ;-)

Stepping in to take over a project in distress is always difficult. The key to success, as with any project, really, is to ensure that the business and the web company are on the same page with regards to the goals for the website. With CanWest we were, and it worked. It worked really well.

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September 15, 2009

Convergence or complication?

Filed under: Web Strategy — Tags: , , , — Robin Eldred @ 10:42 am

I say ‘complication’. Let me explain.

As mobile web browsing becomes more and more prevalent, web designers are considering the use of mobile websites more frequently. The big question is, do you simply restyle the same content to accommodate for a smaller browser window with no images, scripts, or multimedia, or do you use entirely different content. I feel quite strongly that you must use entirely different content, as the objectives of visitors on varying devices will in turn vary.

As an example, people sitting in front of dual 24 inch monitors are ‘browsing’. They can take their time, research, digest, take notes, add bookmarks, compare, etc. Visitors using their iPhone on the bus need something specific, and they need it now; directions, a phone number, an email address, a price. Bam! No waiting allowed.

As such, given these different objectives, the different “types” of a website should necessarily have different messages.

In the future, we will see more devices, not fewer. The PC will not converge on your wrist, or in your sunglasses, or in your head. You will simply have all of these as options. And, as such, websites will be required to present specific information to each of these devices.

So, my friends, I vote for ‘complication’ over ‘convergence’ when predicting the future of websites.

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September 14, 2009

You don’t know how to blog

Filed under: Online Marketing — Tags: , , , — Dean Rudd @ 2:58 pm

The only blogs that I follow are blogs by PEOPLE that tell stories as a means of disseminating their point.

They are centered around a theme, naturally, but the engaging part is the story that the person is telling, and rooting it in their personal experience makes them the expert – as though it is research that they have conducted. So, I offer up that blog topics are driven by our personalities.

For example, Dan (our lead developer) might decide that his central theme is “programming for the web” but he would give it a name like “Nerd Power on the Web”. Then each blog post would be a story from his personal experience, or an experience he can relate to and translate as his own, that eventually ties back to the central theme of “programming for the web”.

By this, we give ownership of each central blog theme to an individual – so if it sucks, it’s their reputation that suffers. If it rules, both the individual and the organization gain value. The point is that pride and personal interest will help maintain quality control.

The arching theme of this post is that the point of social marketing is to drive online relationships deeper before driving them wider. This is done on a person-to-person basis – socializing the way you would socialize at a party where you’re the center of attention – but with new tools.

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5 key points to consider in developing your company’s blogging program

Filed under: Online Marketing — Tags: , , , — Alex Zagoumenov @ 1:39 pm

We’ve recently done a review of social media marketing processes at Apis Design. As a result, we’ve identified a few weak spots that needed improvement. Below are the things to focus on when creating a blogging process at your company.

Purpose. Before getting into the details of your blogging program, answer the question “Why?” How does a blog contribute to your marketing and communications objectives? Are you trying to increase awareness of your company’s activities? Is the point to create a community of readers?

Content focus. Knowing what you are going post is as important as why you are going post. A common reason for blogging is to share valuable information with members of your network; customers, partners, vendors. The goal is to make sure that your individual posts (and blog as a whole) deliver value to your audience.

Identify champions. These are the people who will become the voice for your company. They are employees that read, talk and breathe the industry. They are the experts. They also know a lot about your company and your customers.

Quality control. Although many are saying that your social media message should not be controlled, we believe that any communication that’s coming out of your company should be controlled for quality. A peer review process should solve the problem.

Frequency. Frequency of your blog posts will depend on resources available, your industry, and the goals you are trying to achieve. Based on our experience a weekly post should be sufficient in most cases.

At the end of the day, blogging is about delivering value as well as engaging with the reader, so 1) keep the reader in mind, 2) keep the message in mind, and 3) participate / discuss.

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