Taking shelter from the Twitterstorm

The term ‘Twitterstorm’ is fairly regularly used now in the media, describing an event when hundreds of Twitter Tweets (140 character messages) are sent by individuals at the same time on a particular topic. This has become the way for the online generation to express their opinions. It can be in response to a comment in a newspaper, a consumer product issue, controversial advertising campaign – in fact, pretty much anything.

PR agencies , especially in the digital PR space, are aware just how quickly public opinion can be shared using the web and the rapid impact (positive or negative) it can have on the brand reputation of their clients’ products or services.

What’s interesting is that the legal system has not yet caught up with regulating this type of activity. Protection for brands in the event of a negative Twitterstorm is not yet available from the law.

So it is increasingly important for brands and their marketing and PR agencies to monitor the web for feedback – positive and negative. Web 2.0 provides the most amazing opportunity for brands and their audiences to engage – providing direct feedback and enabling brands to hear what the end user sees as being positive / negative about the products and services they offer. It is essential that brands listen and learn from this valuable insight.

No matter the tone of the consumer feedback, it is important for brands to acknowledge the input. It could mean the difference between the success or failure of the product or service. Also, if a consumer has taken the time to provide comment, it should be acknowledged.

Web 2.0 is all about engagement and that involves both parties – brands and consumers.

Are Twitterstorms going to be the only future forum for expressing public opinion? That’s a space to watch. However, until regulation catches up with technology developments, brands must remember that Twitter and the web are powerful communication tools available to the widest possible audience. For brands, this could be the biggest opportunity or threat, depending on whether they engage now or decide to wait and see. No matter what approach they decide to take – listening right now is an immediate priority to ensure they are prepared for potential bad weather ahead.

The Future of PR – is it really digital?

Digital PR is increasingly being talked about in the PR and Marketing media. PR agencies are starting up divisions or spin off companies to focus on digital communications services for potential and existing customers.

There’s no doubt that online communication tools such as Twitter, social networking and blogs are all part of society today, but so are conversations at bus stops, in coffee shops and in people’s homes. These face-to-face conversations are driven by information from print newspapers, TV and word of mouth news and views. We’ve got to remember that not everyone spends their day connected to the Internet.

However, with ongoing technology developments, these online and offline worlds may be merging even further. At the recent CES event in Las Vegas, new innovations were displayed including the latest in combining TV and Internet. With products like the Samsung Widget TV, the traditional living room that is dominated by the family TV, may now give that same family easy access to the Internet via their TV screen. The need to boot up a laptop or computer in order to access the web will be a thing of the past.

The distinction between web-based and more traditional information sharing sources is definitely blurring. PROs and Marketers must remember that it’s essential to understand the target audience you are trying to reach and ensure you include the correct media channels in order to reach them. That means being aware of all online and offline channels, and with increasingly rapid technology advances there’s plenty to keep up to date with!

It’s an exciting time and one that PROs should embrace in its entirety rather than focusing on one area alone.

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Surrey Tweetup: digital networking in real life

Last night, thebluedoor - Surrey based digital PR agency - hosted the second Surrey Tweetup in Farnham with very generous support from iBundle.

Organised through the power of Twitter - specifically using the recently rolled out lists and geolocation functions - 45 people came along to a very successful Surrey Tweetup. Kindly sponsored by innovation hub, iBundle, those attending were not only treated to drinks but also to an insight into the complex issues surrounding digital data interoperability by iBundle's founder Julian Ranger.

thebluedoor is committing to organising this free digital networking event on a monthly basis (we hope!). We are aiming to ensure that those attending will have plenty of networking (and drinking / social) time. In addition, we hope to source an interesting speaker to start the digital conversations flowing. A significant challenge in the digital world is its massively fast changing nature - cloud computing, real-time web, hyper-local, privacy - therefore each month's expert speaker will provide those attending with a relevant and meaningful update on a specific topic (rather than a business pitch).

The next #SurreyTweetup will be held on 25th March 2010 (venue to be confirmed - although it will be in Farnham). This event will take a slightly different format as it falls on the global Twestival event. Harnessing the power of Twitter, people will be meeting up around the world on the 25th March to raise much needed funds for Concern Worldwide.

So we are bringing Twestival to Surrey in the form of Twestival Farnham, which we're very excited about. As soon as the url and organisation information is released by the Twestival global organising committee, thebluedoor will be launching a dedicated Twestival Farnham blog where everyone will be able to get all the details. In addition, we will keep this blog up to date with Twestival Farnham information, plus there is already a specific Twitter Twestival Farnham feed: @twestivalfarnhm (missing the a because Twitter won't allow a longer Twitter handle). And in April, we will be running a 'regular' Surrey Tweetup gathering.

In the meantime, thank you all for attending last night. As promised, below is a list of everyone on Twitter who came along. Don't hesitate to put those I've missed out in the comments section below. And see you again!! (And next time I will be bringing labels so we can write our Twitter handles on - good suggestion from @k4thybrown.)

@jhhypnotherapy, @mewcenary, @neil_p, @emmafirth, @jamesfirth, @SEOtipsntricks, @rangerj, @benjaminellis, @thelastromantic, @mrmatthamm, @velohub, @emmabandey, @opensourcerer, @k4thybrown, @twentynine12, @suesearle, @4legs, @poldings, @andypike, @1minus1, @georgeLMoore, @projectfive, @pascalw, @asaltbde, @nickykriel, @wiggo, @rachela8, @knockbuckle, @mintytorus, @bhardcastle, @the_jchristie, @jeniferdav, @toni_jane, @guy1067, @rgosc, @abigailh, @sheila_parry