Assignment I Online Portals in Africa

Your individual assignment Online Portals in Africa

o  Discuss how increase in bandwidth, mobile usage & online media affects consumption of traditional news sources vs. online news sources & mobile

o  How many portals are available in the country? o  Comment on free speech o  What is the community interest in specific subject matters

– jobs, news, sport, education, dating? o  How does the availability of online and mobile sources

affect interest and marketing to these communities? How will it benefit the local community?

o  Discuss internet / mobile adoption o  Identify gaps for digital agencies to make an impact o  [An African country has been assigned to each of you]

Did You Know? – Mobile version

Chapter 3| Web PR & Online Reputation Management

University of Cape Town 5 August 2011

What will I learn today? Web PR o  How is Web PR different from traditional PR? o  Steps of a PR Campaign o  Important aspects of Web PR o  Engaging with the audience o  Online distribution channels ORM o  Monitoring o  ORM Tools o  Managing ORM o  Crisis Management

Web PR Controlling what is said about your brand and directing conversations around it to maintain the brand’s public image

How is web PR different from traditional PR? o  Two branches of same practice evolved into

completely different media

o  Both are about creating engagement between people and the brand

Traditional PR vs Web PR

o  Mainstream, top-down media

o  One-sided information

o  Only publisher can influence content

o  Negotiates the web

o  Democratic

o  Anyone can influence content

Traditional PR Web PR

Steps of a PR Campaign o  Conceptualise the message o  Create the message o  Deliver the message o  Observe the response o  Respond o  Follow up o  Network

Important aspects of Web PR

Engaging with the audience

Advertising : Customer Break-up

Challenges of Web 2.0

o  Create online capital

o  Active interaction

o  Listen more than you speak

o  Talk about others

o  Personal recommendations count

o  Be visible

o  Focus on one channel at a time

o  Register on all platforms

Example : Memeburn Visibility on Google

Online distribution channels

Your own platforms No restriction & full control on what you can publish on:

o  Your website o  Your blog o  Twitter account o  Facebook o  LinkedIn Profile o  Google+, apps o  Flickr photo stream o  YouTube Channel

External Channels

Spread the word through neutral channels – build relationships with online news & publication sources, article directories, industry bloggers, etc.

Distribution by individuals

Personal recommendations without your influence.

The ultimate goal = viral messages

Success story = FNB’s smartphone app

PR Web in Plain English

Case Studies

Barack Obama’s Presidential Campaign Success

Barackobama.com – Interactive!

Yes we Can – Mobile messages

Barack Obama Facebook growth

Barack Obama’s Presidential Campaign Success

Check out: http://www.slideshare.net/superank/digital-media-us-elections http://whywebpr.blogspot.com/2009/01/barack-obama-web-pr-case-study.html

Woolworths’ Web PR mistake

Woolworths decided to remove all religious magazines from their shelves out of the blue & had huge outcry from the public. Their response was damaging to their high value brand, because of:

1.  Bad initial framing of the issue

2.  Not managing the media

3.  Not engaging with the fans

4.  Not moderating comments

http://www.getsmarter.co.za/blog-marketing/430-marketing-four-web-pr-mistakes-woolies-could-have-avoided

Online Reputation Management The analysis of your personal, professional, business or industry reputation as represented by content across all types of online media channels.

Why ORM is so important

1.  It protects your brand 2.  It allows you to make smart decisions 3.  It gives you a lead over your competitors –

the key is listening! 4.  It’s the best customer retention tool you have 5.  It allows you to measure which marketing /

communication & brand activities are working

6.  It focuses on where to spend your budget to get the most bang for your buck

Source: http://www.heavychef.com/why-orm-is-so-important/

Monitoring •  Gather data from a wide variety of channels, sources & types of media •  Gather both quantitative & qualitative data •  Monitor own platforms, comments, articles, emails & make use of

specialised tools

ORM Tools Depends on company size, budget & amount of media attention your brand gets

Google Alerts Google is incredibly powerful & has to be monitored.

1.  You need a Google account to create alerts

2.  Found at www.google.com/alerts

3.  To create an alert, type a word into the “Search terms” box

4.  Properties can be customised to your specific needs

5.  You will receive emails when something new is posted online

Suggested Google Alerts

o  Your company name

o  Names of your products

o  Name of CEO & prominent personnel

o  Your industry

o  Your location, where relevant

o  Your website URL

o  Your biggest competitors

o  Your most important SEO keywords

Social media tools Social networks have their own proprietary monitoring tools.

There are also many 3rd party tools that can be of high value,

e.g. Followerwonk, bit.ly etc.

Paid ORM tools If your company is large or busy, might be worthwhile to invest in powerful paid-for tools, e.g.

www.saidwot.com

www.trackur.com www.brandseye.com

Managing your ORM

o  Quick thank you / acknowledgement

o  Promote good comments (don’t overdo)

o  Add info, opinions & personal messages to good comments

o  Thank brand promoters publicly, e.g. discount / promos, good rates

o  Take each one seriously o  Apologise sincerely &

directly o  Don’t be defensive o  Address problem in open o  Turn negativity to your

advantage o  Respond levelly & present

case with facts & details o  Never delete / hide

comments

Positive Feedback Negative Feedback

Hello Peter

Crisis Management Reputation crisis comes about when negative message about your brand goes viral

How to handle a crisis o  Prepare a contact plan for important

stakeholders o  Make a communication strategy for your

online communities o  Don’t ignore a crisis and hope no one will

notice o  Find the places online where discussions are

most active and go straight to the source o  Monitor your online reputation closely with

chosen tools o  Tailor your strategy continuously

Case Studies

BP’s Oil Spill Disaster

Classic example of “those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it” o  BP underplayed the impact of the spills o  Sent out mixed messages o  YouTube Video was #10 most watched video o  ORM tools now include Facebook, twitter

and Flickr photostream, YouTube channel alone cost $250,000 to create & a $50million ad campaign

BP Oil Spill – a worldwide crisis

Avoiding Disasters Be prepared, or you will get caught & pay a high price

FNB impressed customers by listening, engaging & became a market leader in innovation as a result

FNB’s (user friendly) Website

FNB on Twitter

FNB on Facebook

FNB on YouTube

FNB’s YouTube Channel

FNB on Memeburn

FNB Google Visibility

Thank You!