Digital
Twitter Yes Or Twitter No
Apr 16th
Twittering on Twitter is a topic, that I have been discussing with my colleagues and friends for the last one year or so. We have had many heated arguments and sometime fun “status wars” on IM, FB & Twitter. Questions like the below kept coming up countless times in our discussion, without a conclusive end.
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- Is it worth your time?
- Isn’t micro blogging pointless?
- What is the purpose of Twittering?
- Can you really follow all your friends and not be lost?
These are just a few of the questions that come to one’s mind when you talk about Twitter. On one side we have Twitter maniacs, who are absolutely in love with it and on the other, we have people like me who really don’t understand the hype it is receiving. It’s come to a point where I’ve started hearing words like “it’s twitterific!” etc.
This does make me wonder, is it really worth it the effort? Very recently, I had asked a question on LinkedIn “Twitter Yes Or Twitter No” and received a mixed bag of answers; As expected, some hate it, some like it and a few who just do not care. Even post this question and 29 answers later, this topic is still open. I guess to really know, you have to use Twitter yourself and make your decision based on your objective and experience.
Some of the answers to my question on LI are worth quoting:
Paul O’Brien: My point is that when EVERYONE does it it becomes noise, like radio or TV on which all the channels are constantly playing at the same time. The same way the internet has been searching for a better way to consume all the information online (first directories, then search, then RSS, etc.) Twitter has to evolve from what it is now to really be worth it.
Scott Graham: By building personal relationships with the customers who use your services you become a part of their life, and Twitter helps you do that.
Twitter will work for some of you and it might not for most of us, either way it is an excellent tool to be updated in real-time about events, news and people. I will update this topic again in a week or two.. so long!
Okay, so I’m back and have actively started Twittering to give a fair and balanced review. So far, I am loving it and it give’s me something that no other platform provides.. i.e to follow people and topics in realtime.
Earlier, I thought it served a purpose from a business or brand perspective only, but now after using it just for 2 days (actively), I think I see why people love twitter so much. It is not a tool to keep in touch with a 1000 friends, but rather a tool or means to effectively update and be updated in real time about people and issues that are of interest to you.
So, signing off with the conclusion: TWITTER YES!
Building Brands Online
Sep 4th
Building Brands Online
Now that is something, I see very few digital marketers doing – Building Brands Online. Digital Advertising (Mobile + Internet) is mostly being used as a sales channel, with ROI driven media and search campaigns. I do understand that we get the most extensive tracking and targeting available with digital marketing, but using it 90% of the time to deliver a lead or sale is something that’s beyond me.
We all pass billboards, watch tv, read the paper or listen to radio. The communication on these mediums does create recall and also places some promotions into our head. But when it comes to internet or mobile advertising we only talk the sales language or define success in terms of ctr.
Do advertisers or marketers ask, hey how many people bought the product after seeing that television commercial or hoarding? - NO. But when it comes to online, its all about driving sales and leads.
Leads, Sale, CTR, Clicks… etc. These are the heavy duty words used by most digital marketers at the client as well as agency side, without bothering to understand the medium. They do not understand the push that a brand receives by campaigning online. The user experience it can create and how engaging it can be to it’s audiences.
Many of my clients would like to use it just for driving up sales, and spend their branding monies with offline/mainline advertising. But I do have two wonderful clients who truly understand the leverage and opportunity online campaigns provide, they realize the push a brand receives by engaging their audiences and connecting with them.
So what do you think about advertising on mobile and internet? Is it only about leads and sales?
Google Android Mobile Platform
Aug 10th
Google Android mobile platform is a software platform and operating system for mobile devices based on the Linux operating system and developed by Google and the Open Handset Alliance. Android in the near future will make mobile’s cheaper and more affordable as handset manufacturers like Samsung, Sony and Motorolla will not need to pay licensing fee to Symbian or Windows Mobile for using their operating system.
Google Android Mobile Platform Logo
In July 2005, Google acquired Android Inc., a small startup company based in Palo Alto, CA. At the time, little was known about the functions of Android Inc. other than they made software for mobile phones. This began rumors that Google was planning to enter the mobile phone market, although it was unclear what function it might perform in that market.
The unveiling of the Android platform on 5 November 2007 was announced with the founding of the Open Handset Alliance, a consortium of 34 hardware, software and telecom companies devoted to advancing open standards for mobile devices. Google has pledged to make most of the Android platform available under the Apache free-software and open-source license, once it is released in 2008.
Android mobile has had its share of criticism for not being all open-source software despite what was announced by Google. Parts of the SDK are proprietary and closed source, and some believe this is so that Google can control the platform. The Android Software Development Kit License Agreement states that:
3.2 You agree that Google (or Google’s licensors) own all legal right, title and interest in and to the SDK, including any intellectual property rights which subsist in the SDK. Use, reproduction and distribution of components of the SDK licensed under an open source software license are governed solely by the terms of that open source software license and not by this License Agreement. Until the SDK is released under an open source license, you may not extract the source code or create a derivative work of the SDK.
Google has since announced that all parts of the Android OS will be released under the Apache License where applicable and under the GPL elsewhere. Google’s applications that interact with Google’s systems, such as their email service, are not open source.
Most of us are eagerly awaiting the release of mobiles based on the Android Mobile Operating Platform, however I’m still not sure whether it would be for the good or bad. Afterall, how much power do we want to see in the hands of Google?
Parts of this post have been sourced from Wikipedia
