After reviewing the other suggested readings and videos, I cannot help but come back to the couple of pages from chapter 1 of the book Groundswell. The book defines its title as "a social trend in which people use technologies to get the things they need from each other, rather than from traditional institutions..."
It is truly remarkable how any one individual can summon support from the masses using even the most simple media outlets; and I find this phenomenon absolutely compelling. But what is concerning to me is that somebody's mere opinion of a poor experience could be taken as gospel and ruin a company's reputation. That part is beyond intriguing -- it is alarming!
This groundswell movement is not just a matter branding for a company, or an opportunity for advertising, or a community for additional retail sales, or a forum for increased trade volumes, but it could very well be a conduit for calamity depending on the voice that is being heard.
Just think about it. Imagine you are a small business owner who has invested your life savings into your company, and provided years of dedicated and faithful service to your customers. But then one day in one particular moment you slightly upset one particular patron or passerby who then posted a few sound bites about the experience. And then others in that person's user community discovered that piece of content and proliferated it further. Perhaps it then made the local, regional or national news. That could be game over for everything you have worked tirelessly for and stood for in your business.
As much as do like the prospect of "groundswell" and how the book positively portrays it, the flipside could absolutely be calamitous. And as the couple of pages in chapter 1 suggest, one person cannot reverse the proliferation of the masses. It would be as Grant Robertson says, "That's like trying to take pee out of the swimming pool."
Sunday, April 28, 2013
Week 2 - Post 2
I just finished reading the online article "Build your startup without building code" that I was looking forward to this week. In a word, I am disappointed.
After reading the title of the article I was excited at the prospect of what it would contain. I could only imagine what I would glean. That the content would really show me how to startup a website without needing to know how to code. How tremendous!
I work in a software development environment and I know how difficult any coding can be, let alone web design and implementation for a startup company. But then I read the article...
In short, it mentioned some basic concepts over the course of a few sentences and proceeded to plug the names of various web entities for the remainder. Foolish me -- I expected the article to actually describe what tools would accomplish what facets with perhaps an example of the particular usage, as well as an anecdote or two about another company that was successful in using the technology. Especially the piece about raising money. The author makes it sound as if AngelList and Kickstarter are just giving away money to anyone who solicits it. I highly doubt that....but thanks for another plug.
Summarily, in no way did this article help me inch any closer to starting my own business. But hey, at least I was able to discover CrowdSpring. That was pretty cool.
After reading the title of the article I was excited at the prospect of what it would contain. I could only imagine what I would glean. That the content would really show me how to startup a website without needing to know how to code. How tremendous!
I work in a software development environment and I know how difficult any coding can be, let alone web design and implementation for a startup company. But then I read the article...
In short, it mentioned some basic concepts over the course of a few sentences and proceeded to plug the names of various web entities for the remainder. Foolish me -- I expected the article to actually describe what tools would accomplish what facets with perhaps an example of the particular usage, as well as an anecdote or two about another company that was successful in using the technology. Especially the piece about raising money. The author makes it sound as if AngelList and Kickstarter are just giving away money to anyone who solicits it. I highly doubt that....but thanks for another plug.
Summarily, in no way did this article help me inch any closer to starting my own business. But hey, at least I was able to discover CrowdSpring. That was pretty cool.
Wednesday, April 24, 2013
Week 2 - Post 1
We are now starting the second week of the course.
From reviewing the schedule of classes and assignments, I am particularly looking forward to learning about how to build a startup business on the web...and it sounds like the article will give some tips on how to do this without needing to know how to code. Cool! I'm also looking forward to reading a chapter from the "The Social Marketing Playbook" on transitioning marketing to social media. It seems to me that aside from personal branding, this could be a the heart of the course...but I'm not quite sure yet.
Additionally, my other goals this week are to keep rolling on the 'Twitter as a Branding Tool' project and getting a jump on the team project.
From reviewing the schedule of classes and assignments, I am particularly looking forward to learning about how to build a startup business on the web...and it sounds like the article will give some tips on how to do this without needing to know how to code. Cool! I'm also looking forward to reading a chapter from the "The Social Marketing Playbook" on transitioning marketing to social media. It seems to me that aside from personal branding, this could be a the heart of the course...but I'm not quite sure yet.
Additionally, my other goals this week are to keep rolling on the 'Twitter as a Branding Tool' project and getting a jump on the team project.
Sunday, April 21, 2013
Week 1 - Post 2
I just read the article "Does the internet make you dumber?" In short, I cannot say that I disagree with the premise.
With every passing year I feel like the attention span of my colleagues, even myself, gets shorter. My presumption, based on no scientific evidence, was that it is because the world is increasingly living sound bite by sound bite. Hence, reading this article has resonated with me.
Everyday in my office place I see folks walking through the halls while staring at their smart phones, sitting in meetings pouring over the email on their laptop, seemingly only focusing on the discussions at hand for moments at a time, and ultimately making snap decisions before moving on to the next fleeting thought. I have always believed that the more we thrive on tweets, quick posts, text messages, and even short YouTube clips that the more we train our brains to limit our attention span. Reading the line, "we are at risk of losing as we spend ever more time scanning and skimming online", while scary, seems to be spot on, at least in my own experience.
It makes me think of the old axiom about "quality not quantity", and this new digital age anchored in a multitude of short sound bites and quick clips certainly seems to be lending itself towards a culture of "skimming" that requires little to no sustained focus or critical thinking and could ultimately lead to a deterioration of our cognitive abilities.
On the other hand, I hope that the tremendous volume of information to which we are exposed more than makes up the difference!
With every passing year I feel like the attention span of my colleagues, even myself, gets shorter. My presumption, based on no scientific evidence, was that it is because the world is increasingly living sound bite by sound bite. Hence, reading this article has resonated with me.
Everyday in my office place I see folks walking through the halls while staring at their smart phones, sitting in meetings pouring over the email on their laptop, seemingly only focusing on the discussions at hand for moments at a time, and ultimately making snap decisions before moving on to the next fleeting thought. I have always believed that the more we thrive on tweets, quick posts, text messages, and even short YouTube clips that the more we train our brains to limit our attention span. Reading the line, "we are at risk of losing as we spend ever more time scanning and skimming online", while scary, seems to be spot on, at least in my own experience.
It makes me think of the old axiom about "quality not quantity", and this new digital age anchored in a multitude of short sound bites and quick clips certainly seems to be lending itself towards a culture of "skimming" that requires little to no sustained focus or critical thinking and could ultimately lead to a deterioration of our cognitive abilities.
On the other hand, I hope that the tremendous volume of information to which we are exposed more than makes up the difference!
Saturday, April 20, 2013
Week 1 - Post 1
My head is already spinning after just watching the introduction video and upon completing the two required readings. Perhaps the YouTube clip is what made me dizzy.
I have seen that clip a few times, and yet every time I watch it I experience an uneasy somewhat dreadful feeling. Being somebody who wants to at the very least be knowledgeable of what is going on around them, I watch a video clip like that and immediately feel that my efforts are futile. That the only thing certain about the future is exponential change. Wow! This alone makes it difficult to keep pace.
Knowing that, I immediately wonder what media will last and which will fail? In other words, which might be a good use of my time and energy to use and collaborate in, and which will ultimately disappear? Or should that even matter? And then I begin to wonder, which are the outlets that would resonate most with me? And how do I find them in what feels to be a turbulent sea of information?
It almost kind of reminds me of how I channel surf -- I don't even really know what I'm looking for amidst the hundreds of channels being thrown at me. But then again, in this digital age, I might be having to go find it rather than remaining passive and just consuming things as they come. And then finally I wonder if I will need to retrain myself to consume any of the particular technologies. The thought is admittedly a bit of a turnoff. So then, what is the point of all of this?
The point is exactly what I opted to take this clinic. I want to learn more about the rapid pace of change in technology and in particular how successful companies are using it to their competitive advantage. Rather than shy away from it, I want to tackle it head on and leverage whatever it is that I can. And this despite the very fact that the volume and change of technology feels overwhelming.
I plan on reviewing some of the other interesting readings and videos before attempting to put it all together for Week 1, but after completing the aforementioned activities and reviewing the schedule of assignments, this course has already taken me out of my comfort zone. Consider the wakeup call received! I definitely look forward to the weeks ahead...
I have seen that clip a few times, and yet every time I watch it I experience an uneasy somewhat dreadful feeling. Being somebody who wants to at the very least be knowledgeable of what is going on around them, I watch a video clip like that and immediately feel that my efforts are futile. That the only thing certain about the future is exponential change. Wow! This alone makes it difficult to keep pace.
Knowing that, I immediately wonder what media will last and which will fail? In other words, which might be a good use of my time and energy to use and collaborate in, and which will ultimately disappear? Or should that even matter? And then I begin to wonder, which are the outlets that would resonate most with me? And how do I find them in what feels to be a turbulent sea of information?
It almost kind of reminds me of how I channel surf -- I don't even really know what I'm looking for amidst the hundreds of channels being thrown at me. But then again, in this digital age, I might be having to go find it rather than remaining passive and just consuming things as they come. And then finally I wonder if I will need to retrain myself to consume any of the particular technologies. The thought is admittedly a bit of a turnoff. So then, what is the point of all of this?
The point is exactly what I opted to take this clinic. I want to learn more about the rapid pace of change in technology and in particular how successful companies are using it to their competitive advantage. Rather than shy away from it, I want to tackle it head on and leverage whatever it is that I can. And this despite the very fact that the volume and change of technology feels overwhelming.
I plan on reviewing some of the other interesting readings and videos before attempting to put it all together for Week 1, but after completing the aforementioned activities and reviewing the schedule of assignments, this course has already taken me out of my comfort zone. Consider the wakeup call received! I definitely look forward to the weeks ahead...
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