What Storytellers Can Do In Real Time

January 8, 2009 · Comments

Panasonic Green Press Kit lihd Yesterday, I went to the Panasonic press conference at CES09. (Reminder: I’m here as Panasonic’s guest). It was fun, as I don’t often go to to press conferences, and rarely to ones as large as that run by Panasonic. It was a really tight presentation, with over a half dozen speakers from different parts of the organization.

The press event was mobbed with people anxious to cover the news. I saw two guys from Engadget, and of course Steve Garfield was there, and all kinds of mainstream press, too. I was a bit claustrophobic, so I hid out way in the back with all the big cameras and machinery.

What excited me was this: I live-tweeted the press conference while the folks around me wrote their notes into paper note pads for stories they’d write later. Here were a few of the tweets:

Panasonic announces new hd camcorder with 70x optical zoom. #ces09 #lihd. 9megapixel, by the way.

Panasonic releasing 3 new BluRay players plus integration to Vieracast. Also new portable BluRay player w/Vieracast. #ces09 #lihd

Amazon video just announced deep integration with Panasonic on their Vieracast platform. 40000 titles. 1 click buy on demand. #ces09 #lihd

There was lots of news from the event. I’m sure it was covered very well by people like Engadget. What I liked, however, was that we, the bloggers, had the scoop on the mainstream press by who knows how long, and further (and this is the super cool part to me), I really loved that I had conversation coming back to me almost immediately about what I was posting. Example:

okhumane- @chrisbrogan I personally have a Lumix and LOVE it. Highly recommend. And we take pics of all our shelter animals with a Lumix!

catttaylor- @chrisbrogan keep up the updates. Bought my DH a Panasonic plasma TV for our anniversary. Camcorder would be nice.

mindofchester- @chrisbrogan James Cameron always wanted to do 3d and was willing to wait till the technology was perfect. Panasonic must be to something.

So, not only had we scooped them, but we already had conversations started, too. That, friends, is astounding and potent. I spoke later in the night to Panasonic CMO Bob Greenberg, and was really into the overall experience of “the conversation” and what that meant to the company. At a little dinner, he talked about what bringing bloggers into the story meant for him. (I’ll cover that in another post.)

My question is this: how have (or how can) you use social media tools in real time to capture the stories around us, in whatever form you want? Have you used video to catch something faster than other people? Have you snapped something with your cameraphone that was meaningful to you or a community, but wasn’t big enough for the evening news?

Journalists: do you see how live-tweeting a press conference might get the story into some kind of live action play faster that way?

What’s your take all the way around?

Oh, and thanks to Crayon for setting this up. So far, so fun.

Complete side note: look at the picture. That’s the “press kit” we got from Panasonic. As part of their commitment to green improvements, it’s just a card with a URL to download digital copies of the kit (and there were HUNDREDS of people crammed in that room- saving paper). But what’s really REALLY cool is that the card has flower seeds in it, and if you plant the card in the ground and water it, it’ll grow wildflowers. Nice touch.

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  • Martin
    I like the 'press kit' idea. Works on just about every level. Two thumbs fresh!
  • That's really cool about you tweeting real-time info.
  • Great example of the timing benefit of live-tweeting versus traditional media. I wonder if one of the "mainstream" journalist's"responses would be along the lines of "it may take longer, but the time lag builds in the opportunity for better vetting, background, color and contrast."

    Guess it also depends on the nature of the story and the value those additional elements would contribute. But, no doubt, the news cycle is changing in a radical way. It's exciting to explore where it's all going to lead.
  • I think, it could be fun to tweet from a press event and get replies which envokes additional questions you can make in the event. But I don't believe it is a good movement to broaden the results of such an event by tweets or even cameraphones. I'm afraid, we will get a 'noise' of half knowledge in this way. Oh, the press kit is really cute!
  • Well done you and well done Panasonic!
    That's real creative thinking!!
  • Want to know something interesting? I realized as I read your title that I've come to associate myself with a storyteller and have added it to my mental labels of self-definition. (Which are a good thing. No one rag me on it.)

    Writer, business owner, enterpreneur, consultant, storyteller... very cool.
  • Particularly if you have a huge follow, live tweeting is a dynamic, interactive method for bring people closer to an event they have little chance of attending IRL. Social media amazes me (still a relatively new user, less than a year, for personal, but increasingly professional, reasons). What I'm finding, though, what has been a surprise...is I'm learning things before they're introduced into mainstream news; I might see a tweet and several DAYS later read it in our local paper; or, I've seen tweets that weren't reported for hours (an eternity) on traditional online news channels.

    THAT is the WOW factor.

    Love Panasonic's press kit--memorable, environ-friendly, and totally out-of-the-box thinking!
  • Hey Chris!

    You just made me wish I was in the US at the right time. When will CES ever be in Asia. :) That'll be a first! :)

    To answer your question, I haven't used Twitter to send up-to-dates, but one day I'll definitely give it a whirl once I pick up my 3G broadband. :)

    All the Best!

    Regards,

    Erwin Chua
    Winning To Win With Erwin Chua - Internet Marketing Advice
    http://winning2win.com
    http://www.twitter.com/waywalker0101
  • This is fantastic, it's the sort of thing Twitter was BUILT for and appeals to that side of me that sprints back to the office or runs to find the nearest wi-fi spot to file copy and beat the competition after a press conference. It's not so dissimilar from the way things already work, in the past I've sent an SMS to my editor because it's the fastest way to get a quick bit of information across.

    With Twitter and press conferences I think a key factor is having an interested audience who know when to expect updates. I don't believe this should replace the way mainstream press reports, nor is it intended to, but is a way of getting the basics out faster to an audience that wants to know first. Once the pressure of beating the competition is out of the way it means reporters have more time to sit back and write a more considered piece, not rush something out as fast as possible.

    Oh, and as a journalist and having been to a lot of press conferences and been given a lot of paper in the past it is so nice to see such an eco-friendly press-kit. I just don't understand people who refuse to try to work paperless.
  • {Fist Bump} for the Press Kit idea!
  • Zoe
    I was listening to a TED podcast yesterday in Clay Shirker spoke about institutions vs. collaboration (from 2005 I think). He pointed out that "Is this journalism?" is not the question -- the question is whether or not we are getting information to the people. I think this distinction allows us to get past superficial distinctions, and embrace things like real-time storytelling.

    Like Emma said above, although this is a great development, it shouldn't replace traditional journalism -- it should enhance it.

    I also have to second James' comment -- I too have recently been adding "storyteller" to my mental labels of self-definition :-D.
  • Man Chris, you really got my wheels spinning on this one. So many things to process like you literally stepping back on the set to take it all in. I'll call it "fluid journalling" while the penned fixtures stood there letting the ink dry. They may have saw you coming, but were unable to do anything about it. Reminiscent of NBA's Spud Webb back when he was doing his thing with the Sacramento Kings. Remember how he would drive the paint @ 5' 6'' and crash the boards over the best in the game. That's you brother.

    You've got me thinking of all the missed opportunities recently. Just last week I witness a grown man freaking out in the middle of morning rush hour traffic because his dog was ran over by a morning commuter. I could have camera phone video blogged or utterly'd his pain as it relates to a world moving so fast and inconsiderate that it has ran over a nation of people.

    Not one sound byte recorded or pixal was captured last night of my best friends 4 year-old daughter being filled with the Holy Spirit. She captivated the entire dinner party for nearly 20 minutes non-stop as she preached her first sermon at the top of her little lungs. But I digress. From now on, I'm living for those fluid journaling moments in time.
  • Tweet Tweet Happy Birthday Mom! @laroncarter
  • That press kit sounds amazing - genius idea!
  • Billy
    I certainly see the connection potential. When I travel without my family and been able to experience something cool I keep us connected in the same way. I followed a similar method as you at CES09 on my last trip to Arizona when I went to a rodeo. I used my BB to snap pics and post almost live what was happening at the rate of one per minute. My daughters absolutely loved it! It allowed me to share with them something that in the past I could only have told them about. That's powerful stuff. Building up families in a world that keep trying to tear them apart. Great post!
  • As a documentary wedding photographer, story-telling is my metiér so this post rings so true to me. And as a student of journalism, I can see how using new tools - getting the news out faster than ever before AND receiving feedback from those who consume it - can be beneficial to both news providers and news consumers. If you don't have a story to tell, you've got nothing to sell.
  • Alain Sherter
    It's not a case of whether one approach--live reportage versus the fusty day- (or hours-)old variety--is superior. As you suggest, live reporting is better at getting news out quickly; long-form stories are typically better at providing context and analysis. It's an old, though obviously still active, debate. Want real immediacy in your news? Watch TV. Nothing beats a live broadcast, including Twitter, for bringing people closer to the action. And when broadcast news first became popular in the '50s, the debate was remarkably similar, with TV advocates extolling the virtues of the new medium and boasting about scooping the ink-stained wretches, and the wretches arguing that news without context is, as one commenter noted above, mere noise. What's changed is that the Internet puts the tools to produce journalism in the hands of everyone.

    The fundamental question in journalism isn't whether one medium is superior to another--it's what medium is best a capturing the audience's attention (and delivering it to advertisers). What we're seeing now, as Stanford's David Nordfors http://bit.ly/Nhw0 and others have explained, is news content peeling away from the traditional media infrastructure and filtering into new platforms. My guess is that Twitter, because of it's 140 character-related limitations, will be replaced by a more flexible medium for delivering live news--some hybrid platform that combines the respective benefits of blogging, vlogging and so forth with Twitter's social dimensions, speed and ease of use. Once these technologies are standard in the news biz (even as new ones emerge), journalists will be left to ponder all the usual questions: How do we serve the interests of our readers (or sponsors); what's the best balance of news to analysis; what is our relationship to the community and its governing institutions; and, not to get all epistemological about it, how do we know what we think we know?
  • Alain Sherter
    It's not a case of whether one approach--live reportage versus the fusty day- (or hours-)old variety--is superior. As you suggest, live reporting is better at getting news out quickly; long-form stories are typically better at providing context and analysis. It's an old, though obviously still active, debate. Want real immediacy in your news? Watch TV. Nothing beats a live broadcast, including Twitter, for bringing people closer to the action. And when broadcast news first became popular in the '50s, the debate was remarkably similar, with TV advocates extolling the virtues of the new medium and boasting about scooping the ink-stained wretches, and the wretches arguing that news without context is, as one commenter noted above, mere noise. What's changed is that the Internet puts the tools to produce journalism in the hands of everyone.

    The fundamental question in journalism isn't whether one medium is superior to another--it's what medium is best a capturing the audience's attention (and delivering it to advertisers). What we're seeing now, as Stanford's David Nordfors http://bit.ly/Nhw0 and others have explained, is news content peeling away from the traditional media infrastructure and filtering into new platforms. My guess is that Twitter, because of its 140 character-related limitations, will be replaced by a more flexible medium for delivering live news--some hybrid platform that combines the respective benefits of blogging, vlogging and so forth with Twitter's social dimensions, speed and ease of use. Once these technologies are standard in the news biz (even as new ones emerge), journalists will be left to ponder all the usual questions: How do we serve the interests of our readers (or sponsors); what's the best balance of news to analysis; what is our relationship to the community and its governing institutions; and, not to get all epistemological about it, how do we know what we think we know?
  • I think that a both/and approach may well be the future of journalism. Tweeting the release live will cover the event and get the conversation started, and then it is followed on quickly by a better-vetted story that fills in blanks, raises questions, provides other POVs, and presents any pertinent challenges. The hybrid approach has much intrinsic value, imo.
  • My concern tweeting live would be accuracy. Without a written press release, it would be easy to mis-hear a letter in a model number or something else more serious and post it in real time. It is also very, very difficult to type a tween post, and use the rest of your brain to accurately hear what is continuing to be said while you are typing.

    I do, however, think the tweeting live events is more akin to TV news than newspaper reporting, but the power and the potential are staggering.
  • It is keenly interesting to see how the opening thought in "The Cluetrain Manifesto" is... well, manifesting: markets ARE conversations. The people and organizations who really "get" this are those who start, then help to guide and anticipate the flow of these conversations. Trying to control these conversations is a fool's errand and is counterproductive. It's great to see that Panasonic is willing to wade into the uncertainty and to trust in their products, their process, and more importantly their customers (read: conversation partners). This is how the organizations of the future will market successfully.
  • I like the idea behind this post - it's definitely true. You've scooped everyone that follows you while everyone else had to wait until later to write, re-write, read, re-read and publish articles. Kudo's!

    The seeds idea was first done with a gas station that ran on solar power as well. Saw it on the news before. I'll see if I can find the link. But I agree, its a great idea
  • I'm really glad you're writing about this topic, Chris! Live-tweeting is a great way to let folks follow along and feel like they're right there. I prefer reading live-tweets rather than video at work, because I can just keep it in the corner and get the interesting stuff rather than all the blah-blah. Plus, live-tweeters often add in their personal knowledge. My friend #agahran is a pro at this (see #tas08 for example), and @chriskauza did a super job live-tweeting the Angel Capital Conference (#ACS08). I put my toe in the water live-tweeting #igniteboulder, and I plan to do it more systematically at ChicksWhoClick #cwc09 this Saturday Jan 10. Then I'll expand on some of the best topics in a blog (which I am just testing now -- thanks to all the advice you've given us here on how to blog effectively!)
  • I forgot to sign off with my twitter @AndreaMeyer -- what a newbie!
  • Twitter is the ultimate "power conversation starter". Twitter certainly fans the flames and gets the conversation going - the potential "problem" for the likes of Panasonic - what if the conversation is negative?

    I'm with Jonathan on this one. Panasonic is demonstrating not only GREAT confidence in their new product line by inviting you to this event, but also great insight in recognizing the power of "social" in social networking.
  • This is a great way for a journalist (even a traditional one) to build a story. Like you said you have your notes going out live, and easily retrieved for the column. However, even more importantly you don't have to hunt down interesting personal interest angles and sources or industry experts to balance the reporting--they all come to you via Twitter.

    Another genius social media innovation from you, Chris. Thanks!
  • Like Seth Godin would say all marketers are great story tellers.

    Put this in real time and you've got people hooked to see what story your going to tell next. This is the great thing about transparency; it's all live.
  • Batman
    How soon on the HD camera, and will I be able to get a hold of one in time for this year's 168 Project? Would they like a beta field test? :)
  • There's really nothing else I can say of Twitter that your other commentators haven't already spoke of so I'll keep this short.
    The fact that you used Twitter to bring us the news in real time was the out of the box thinking versus the others that was jotting it down on a pad.

    man i wish i was there!
  • Very cool. It's exciting to see how social media tools are challenging the definition of the phrase "spread like wild fire." Actually, I'm thinking it's won't be too long before things like Twitter beat a wild fire to the punch. Imagine that - the fire department getting tweets instead of phone calls...

    I'd like to see more Panasonics out there. While immediately available news and content is challenging in terms of managing crises, companies that put themselves in the forefront and are not afraid of getting the scoop to bloggers are bound to enjoy more success for being transparent and engaged.
  • An example of the way I use new media ... as a business marketing tool and as a citizen journalist ... is when I attended the TwinTech parties in Washington DC last year, which brought together traditional business and new media/tech folks (next one is Jan. 22, 2,000 expected: http://twintech3.eventbrite.com/). Armed with a Nokia N95, I sent out mobile Tweets and pictures via Brightkite, which were cross posted to Twitter as well. Then I went to mobile video mode with Qik. Sarah Lacey was on her 'user generated book tour', and I was able to do a short, lively 'live' mobile video interview with her. I was the only one at the party shooting Qiks, and was more than happy to have that edge and use it as a great conversation starter.

    When I was in radio, we always talked about missed opportunities. So much happens each day, it's hard to cover it all. But when you have the opportunity to be at an interesting, newsworthy event, it's fabulous that new technology and social media channels like Twitter enable anyone ... literally anyone ... the new army of Prosumers (consumer producers) to capture and deliver news and content ... and more importantly, start that immediate conversation.

    Yes, it also means a lot of noise and a very large echo chamber. So what. Power to the People.

    @BrickandClick
  • kitykity
    Maybe a little off-topic of your post... but more on-topic to the post's title...

    I have used my iphone before, while on vacation, to take one-photo-an-hour and upload them to flickr, with a short description, talking about what I'm doing. I've had people tell me that that was awesome--they felt like they were on vacation with me.

    So besides just news conferences and the like... you could take someone to the zoo, or to the beach, or a million other places. ;)
  • Utilizing social media for real-time news has pretty much bumped the old school news outlets out of the game. (at least when it comes to being the first to break any type of news).

    It's also amazing that tools like Twitter spread news so quickly, that when it does finally hit mainstream media, most bloggers and social media types consider that news to be "old news".

    It's such a sign of the times: When faster isn't fast enough. :)
  • I love this-how companies not only are thinking different about the environment and about communicating in real time, but acting different too. Props to Panasonic for acting different with the online press kit not just talking out of one side of their mouth.

    As far as real time communication goes, isn't that the best feeling in the world, to know that you have impact someone, not just impacted them, but immediately impacted them?

    Something about the time span factor...impatience maybe?

    Either way, it sure is nice to see.
  • Leslie Pardo
    Chris,

    Thanks for sharing. Interesting info on so many levels. Love that you real-time tweeted and the conversations your tweets generated. With your followers, it's no surprise that so much dialogue resulted from your tweets. The green press kit also is cool.

    Wonder the ramifications for traditional journalists when they are scooped by bloggers.
  • Neat stuff, Chris! I knew you had headed to Vegas for CES, but I presumed it was to stir up support for the pirate ship. I hadn't seen your earlier post until now. That said, I caught some of Steve Garfield's tweets linking to his blip videos about the Panasonic 1" and 1/3" TVs, which I watched and re-tweeted, and noticed the smaller of two saw some additional re-tweets from mine.

    I don't view live-tweeting as scooping the story before pen-and-paper users, but taking advantage of technology. And for an electronics convention, it's all the more relevant.

    Here's an idea, if you haven't already considered it: Rather than relying on "live-tweeting" alone, configure an account with ping.fm so you can send one message to a ping address, e.g. via GoogleTalk, and that one message will send to all your networks at once.
  • Like you pointed out, live tweeting unearths the conversation that could only enrich a journalists story.

    How much cooler would it be to write a story and have instantaneous testimonies?

    Good stuff, Chris.
  • great blog today, I like the idea of being ahead of the media. This will turn into something pretty darn big. Thanks Chris
  • Thanks for the panasonic details.

    My husband and I use different social medial tools to capture and resend events and details all the time. Chris loves taking pictures and photos of the different events we attend then as soon as we come back he makes a mini video of everything that happened and puts them on his blog or facebook for everyone to see. Its fun.
  • I've had a Canon digital SLR for a couple years. Great for my kids' sports. But this Christmas I bought a little Canon PowerShot and I love having it with me to capture what's going on. Your live tweeting at Panasonic (love them -- my digital video cam is a Panasonic) shows that big media is going to have a hard sell on whatever value they add to what live tweeting can do. Would have been great if one of your followers responded with a question for Panasonic.
  • My best example is scooping my husband every day. For years, he has ragged me about not reading THE NEWS. Now, when he asks, "Did you know...?" and "Did you hear...?", my answer is always, "Yes."

    Thank you, Twitter and Google Reader.
  • First off, I love the Press Kit. Saves paper, saves waste (especially on the show floor), AND gives people a way to plant some flowers. :) Way to be memorable!
    As for the live-Tweeting, it's awesome because it's "live". I still read the (hopefully well-thought-out, and well-written) articles that come later, but catching it as it happens is much more exciting.
  • I've heard this subject being discussed in the news lately. It seems that journalists are running a little scared because social media and bloggers are scooping them all over the place. Just look at how the twitter community kept each other updated on the Mumbai tragedy. I think to many "mainstream" businesses underestimated social media, and now find themselves far behind everyday people that engage in it.
  • I am trying to use all this social media and learn how, but I am frustrated with how slowly I am getting into these things and yet, I want to succeed, because there are so many women my age who don't know how...are still getting paper magazines to their doorstep...and are not able to keep pace...

    We need their skills and knowledge as a balance for the very least...but also like my husband who is a brilliant, green designer architect people need to know he is here with tremendous skills, knowledge and human understanding...I need to get the word out...I am trying, I am learning,
    I think I need help..
  • Hi Chris

    I think that's a pretty unique idea with the flower seeds in the press kit.
    So Panasonic's planting wildflowers. I wonder if they will use them for an upcoming commercial about the 3d series. Time lapse flowers growing in 3d
    Boy wont Timothy Leary be a happy camper.

    Gary McElwain
  • Every time I tweet from a conference or event it's huge and people really appreciate it and send lots of feedback. Reporter Ron Sylvester has been very successful tweeting from court proceedings for Kansas.com. I am encouraging reporters to add this to their repertoire. It's just hard to do both when you are preparing for a live shot or working to get everything you can for the print story. It is refreshing though to know that a reporter from WTSP did a live shot using a laptop and Skype. No satellite truck. That's huge. I'm hopeful.
  • ron_miller
    Chris,
    Hey Chris:
    Another great post.

    You make a good point, but as I read your piece, I had the same thoughts as @Alain Sherter. While getting the word out there and the discussion started in real time is very cool indeed, and I think it's an essential part of news gathering as we know it moving forward, what you are doing essentially is blogging/Twittering the dog and pony show. Sure, you can add your comments, but there is little time to provide and really insightful analysis while trying to keep up with what's going on around you.

    That's for the bloggers/journalists to do later. So while I think you did a great service putting out the word as it happened, what you did and what the paper notes guys were doing were not mutually exclusive and I hope never will be. There's plenty of room for everyone in the social media tent. :-)

    Ron Miller
    by Ron Miller Blog
    http://byronmiller.typepad.com
  • JJ
    I don't see how this is ground-breaking or important. Yes, the other people had note pads. Because they were aware that the announcement of a new video camera isn't news. It's just a press event. What good does it do me to know 20 minutes quicker that I'll be able to buy a new Lumix or something 3 months from now? If it were a bombing in Mumbai or an earthquake in San Fran, or something that was actually breaking news, it would be more impressive. But Twitter's already been used/proven to be useful in real emergencies. So this isn't a big deal.
  • Do you get so involved in reporting the event that you miss out on the event?

    BTW, I love the idea of the press kit.
  • Chris,
    Do you think the world's ready for Panasonic to bring back their old tag line: "Just slightly ahead of our time"? To quote http://www.thetechzone.com/nephp/?m=show&id... : There was only one problem with this, as Panasonic found out, people feel uncomfortable using products ahead of their time.
  • In response to the commenters (journalism purists?) who question the relevancy of the scoop to a presser rather than breaking, harder news: This is a scoop of a different nature. The feedback immediacy is totally relevant and accelerates the reactive process to the launch, which in turn - down the road - will accelerate any modifications Panasonic might make in response to customer demand.

    By now, companies should understand that business is relationship-based. Those that don't won't have a prayer of selling a product. It's great news that a large company like Panasonic is demonstrating not only an understanding, but is working within the paradigm.
  • Batman
    As was suggested at the recent Digital Hollywood conference, I think it's way past time we drop the word 'social' from the term 'social media', and call it what it is: Media. Since bloggers were declared part of the MSM back on Oct. 21st, we shouldn't marginalize ourselves either, with phrases like, “Twitter Users and the Mainstream Media,” etc.

    Therefore, since what Twitter is at its immediate level is a microblog, using Twitter to report the news is already mainstream. And recalling everything from my one 9th grade journalism course, taught by Mrs. Meiners, 3 sources are required to report a story accurately. How many of those sources are tweets, may be left up to the individual writer of the story....

    Now, how to repost as, The Random Rant? :)
  • Perhaps I'm still irremediably old-school, but I still find laughable the notion that a story or reasonably insightful conversation can take place in the tiny bits on Twitter. On the other hand, when the mainstream media is your comparison, you don't have much in the way of competition. Getting the scoop is one thing, but storytelling connotes longer narratives.
  • I want a card that grows plants.
  • Great post, Chris (as always:).

    Shows the power of Twitter. And, I love the press kit idea.
  • Twitter has turned the tables on traditional press and media- and has only begun. Storytelling is the key to today's communication- just look at Malcom Gladwell's new book, "The Outliers"--I watched your tweets during that time you write about and just smiled, thinking, "Things had changed so much!" Thanks for fabulous insight Chris- and flower seeds in the press kit? Now that's radical---in a good way!
  • Chris,

    Great fun to scoop the journalists! I enjoyed reading just the essential high points of the announcements from Panasonic. More in-depth reviews can be digested later.

    In a previous incarnation I was a senior systems design engineer for Sony Electronics Broadcast and Broadband Systems Design Division, and Panasonic was the arch rival when we selected components for a broadcast television studio or post-production suite design.

    Thanks for starting the conversations, and the fact that Panasonic is listening is powerful.

    Respectfully,

    Nicholas Chase
    www.twitter.com/nachase
  • Chris, great post and I'm glad to say we've incorporated social media into our "traditional" PR events (like press conferences, etc.) and found good success. Opening up the message to people beyond who's just in the room and beginning a dialogue or conversation in real time is a wise thing to do. This is exactly why I find value in Twitter and following great thought leaders like you. Mahalo!
  • Alexis
    Love the flower paper/press kit idea. We have used plantable paper for media mailers and the response has always been very positive. Always enjoy learning about new ways to think about the "traditional" press kit
  • "Getting the conversation started" is key point in this post. But the communication needs to continue with quality content in comprehensive follow up. Wow, the media kit certainly is exploding....
  • Huh. You'd think that they'd NEED the real time situation the most! They'll continue to get scooped unless they adopt this. Since I'm not up on the press, I've assumed for some time now they'd be the ones who'd be the early adopters - uploading video and sound bites with a frenzy. Great food for thought.
  • Some time ago, I posted on good manners in business networks. Our editorial team followed my idea more than 2 weeks later... I did not even have to use micro-blogging tools but my good old blog. Social media has faster options. The question is: Why are companies still not booking these tools like 'old' media platforms?

    The press kit idea is ace... !
  • As Alain Sherter said: >> It’s not a case of whether one approach–live reportage versus the fusty day- (or hours-)old variety–is superior. <<

    I'm a journalist myself. If there's anything worth tweeting during an event, I'll send tweets and/or dents. I'll still write about the event afterwards, in a more extensive and coherent way.
  • I have created a new web site called Horse2Heart www.Horse2Heart.com that contains hundreds of horse stories. We are in the process of adding an equestrian related news segment that will focus on the Best of the Best. As part of this we have taken a booth at the Equine Affaire www.equineaffaire.com and will be interviewing the top people in the horse community. The dates are Jan 29 – Feb 1 in Pomona.

    The plan is to have a set in the booth and also shoot some live action in the arenas. We will need people to interview for this event. Here is a link to some of the people we will try and interview. http://www.equineaffaire.com/california/feature...
    Do you know anyone else we might talk to? Do you have any horse stories you would like to share.

    I am about to buy a hrad drive Hig Definition video camera to shoot this.
    Would Panasonic like to share that new video camera?
  • Lisa Newton asked in her comment, “Do you get so involved in reporting the event that you miss out on the event?”

    I have wondered the same thing. Sharing the experience live is a hallmark of Twitter. But does reporting an event via Twitter interfere with participating in the event?

    The answer probably depends on whether you are a journalist or not. Chris says he "hid out way in the back with all the big cameras." He covered the event like a reporter and in the process scooped traditional media. No question, microblogging holds great promise as a journalistic tool.

    Occasionally reporters have to choose between covering a story and participating in the story. Can one both interview the victim and console the victim? Report the fire and help put out the fire?

    Event attendees have a similar although less consequential decision: Can they tweet the event while effectively participating in the event?

    Do you find tweeting enhances or distracts from your event experience? There were some thoughtful comments about this at my blog on the topic: http://brandstoke.cpvinc.com/?p=260
  • It was so interesting to read this post and these comments after the Hudson River plane-crash photo that Janis Krums took on an iPhone and posted to Twitter.
  • NRI
    I love stories in copy, and I don’t do nearly enough of it. Conversation I’ve got covered, but I don’t have enough real stories.

    Something I need to put more focus on–thanks for the reminder!
  • Sam
    If you're struggling to effectively market your new brand or business then I must recommend GetMeMedia.com.


    Getmemedia.com is the place to search for marketing communications ideas online. Designed to make access to great marketing ideas easy for brand teams and agencies, it is unique in providing visibility and access to hundreds of marketing opportunities from across the entire market place.

    Use http://www.getmemedia.com/ to kickstart your new business ideas.
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