Fun Friday: Twitter Goes Mainstream, Early Adopters Worry About Change

 

Sometimes we forget, in the midst of celebrity showdowns and concern over changes in the community, that Twitter (and other services like it) are just tools.

 

Some companies will use them to build bridges with their customers and some will use them to push out information. It's the same with non-commercial users, some are using Twitter as an entertaining pastime, some are interested in networking and still others are interested in keeping in touch with a close circle of friends. Still others have no use for it whatever.

 

It's not about the purity (or popularity) of the tool, but about the mircro-communities that use the tools. As hot as Twitter is today, we will probably be doing something else next year if our friends move on to something else.

 

So let the celebs use the tool as they will, and let those that follow them hold them to account with their vote. The nice thing about Twitter, Facebook and other social media tools is that they are opt in.

 

Can a purist case be made to use the tool in a way in which is most powerful, as a relationship building platform?

 

Of course, but because it is a tool, people will use it in a number of ways.

 

At this point, you might wonder why I called this serious missive Fun Friday, to which I say "watch this video and LIGHTEN UP people." AS I tweeted earlier today:

 

Ironic that we want people to join Twitter than hate on them when they do!

 

Acquisitions a Sign That Social Media is Maturing, Livingston and CRT/tanaka

 

Social media is starting to mature. There is no better sign of this than when firms start to acquire talent. There is rumblings of this all around the social media and communications firms.

 

Connie Reece's company, Every Dot Connects, was recently acquired by New Media Lab in Austin.  On the heels of that announcement comes the news today that Livingston Communications, owned by Geoff Livingston, the author of the popular Buzz Bin blog, was acquired by CRT/tanaka. Geoff will remain on as a senior vice president. Geoff is also the author of "Now is Gone: A Primer on New Media for Executives and Entrepreneurs.”

 

Last year, Livingston Communications nearly merged with the Social Media Group, but that deal fell through. In the way of full disclosure, I do have a connection with Geoff Livingston and Livingston Communication as a contractor.

 

I asked Geoff to answer some questions that I think people will have, Here were his frank answers:

 

Question: When you talked about merger with SMG you really hit on the idea of a purist social media practice, CRT/tanaka takes an integrated approach? What gives? Which one do you advocate?

Geoff: I think people said that was a purist approach, but if you look at this post you will see au contraire: We never said it was stand alone, and that ultimately social media must be integrated.  The CRT/tanaka acquisition simply accelerates that move for me.

 

Question: What happens to the BuzzBin?

Geoff: It keeps going as is, authored by me, but is now owned by CRT/tanaka.  If I ever depart I will have to go re-earn my Google jujitsu.

 

Question: Will you be censored there?

Geoff: I really don’t think so.  The see the writing on the wall and want to be a top quadrant social media-capable communications firm. Our goal is not to be the social media department, it’s to push social media as a capability across the front line and execute as an agency on interactive, in PR and through advertising with the ability to intelligently engage stakeholders in meaningful two-way conversations. 

 

Not everyone will be as opinionated as me, but there are already some voices inside the company who are using these tools.  We want to encourage more voices, not stifle the ones who are already out there.

 

Question: Why are you merging now?

Geoff: Because it was the right deal at the right time for me.  I don’t want to be the man, or the most popular guy on the Internet, and so having a CEO title doesn’t mean anything to me. What means something to me is becoming more available to my family, and doing great things that impact our society through clients, through openness and transparency, and through the embracing of public responsibility for our society’s issues, and the charitable efforts to resolve those problems.

 

Question: What will you be able to do with CRT/tanaka that you couldn’t do with Livingston Communications, what kind of services can you provide?

Geoff: A lot more. I feel like I went from 100 hp four cylinder engine to turbocharged V8 BMW M5.  Further, CRT/tanaka’s presence in NY and LA makes me feel like we have the three most important communications markets in the country covered.  We have access to major consumer experiences now, and as a nimble mid-size company, I feel like we can compete with the Edelmans and Ogilvys of the world.

 

Question: Will Livingston Communication be a subsidiary or will you become CRT/tanaka?

Geoff: Livingston is gone.  We are CRT/tanaka.

 

You can also read Geoff's take on the acquisition at the Buzz Bin.

 

Photo by the inimitable Beth Harte at the SxSW All Hat...No Cattle party

Media Profile: Journalists and Social Media. Dwight Silverman, Houston Chronicle

 

Dwight Silverman is the Interactive Journalism Editor for the Houston Chronicle and the online Chron.com. His Tech Blog is filled with great advice for the average person that is just trying to get their computer to work, along with great info for what I like to call the "gadgetist," or those that love and use gadgets.

 

I have followed Dwight on Twitter for sometime @dsilverman, and noticed how effectively he uses the medium in a conversational manner. If you follow him, you can expect links to his blog, but interspersed with interesting commentary and interaction.

 

I asked him to be my first Media Profile Interview because I think he is getting that mix between hard journalism and social interaction right, and I think that will be a key for the survival of journalism. He also makes some great point about (and how NOT) to reach journalists through social media.

 

 

1. Which social networks do you use professionally? Twitter mostly; Facebook a little.

 

2. Do you also use social networks personally, and do you keep these accounts separate or combined? I use Twitter in a personal way occasionally, in that I sometimes address my friends through it, or I talk about recreational things I'm doing that might be interesting to others - seeing a movie, going to a festival, eating at an interesting restaurant. But Twitter is primarily how I interact with those who interested in my tech-related writing and experiences. Facebook is probably more my "personal" social network, but I am not that active on it. I guess I'm more of a "lurker" there.

 

3. Which social network do you find most useful and why? Twitter, for sure. I think Twitter is incredibly important for journalists, because it allows them to interact closely with the people they cover; other journalists; and their audiences. It's also an incredible resource for information - you can ask a question and, if you have a critical mass of followers, you're likely to get a useful answer. Finally, it's also become the ultimate breaking news service. If something is happening, you are very likely to find out about it first via Twitter.

 

4. What are some of the ways (say 5 or so) that you use social networks in your reporting? I use Twitter to keep a close eye on what Houston Twitter users - particularly those who are involved in tech - are saying. I also use it to test column and blog ideas. I've used Twitter as a kind of informal polling system, asking users what they think of a particular topic. I've used it to recruit people to help with news coverage. And, of course, I've used it as a liveblog for events I'm covering. Afterwards, the updates I've posted also become my notes for a later blog post or even a print column or story.

 

5. What is the most interesting story you have ever covered due to connections or pitches you received through a social network? Probably the recent series of cable cuts suffered by AT&T in north Texas, which caused the data network for many of its Texas wireless users to go down. I found out about it through Twitter, then used Twitter to determine the breadth and length of the outage. Another one: We used Twitter to recruit people to help us cover the Democratic caucuses during the Texas primary. We had 5-6 folks use Twitter to say what was happening inside their caucuses, and then we posted those entries in a blog.

 

6. What is the biggest faux pas that you have experienced on a social network by someone looking to get you to cover a story? I've had only one PR person try to pitch me publicly, in old-school fashion, via Twitter. It's intrusive and jarring. It's not appropriate, and feels that way.

 

7. What is the ideal way to get your attention in a social network? Be real and interesting, and contribute things of actual value to the ongoing conversation. If you're shilling, that comes across quickly and it doesn't work in social media. Have something worthwhile to say, and contribute meaningfully to the overall community.

 

You can contact Dwight Silverman via email at dwight.silverman@chron.com or on Twitter.