Saturday, March 24, 2012

Unarmed and Dangerous...

Last Sunday I'm sure many of us heard about the young South American man Roberto Laudisio Curti, who was killed after a police officer shot a taser into his back as he was being pursued in Sydney's CBD.

The question left in my mind and many other people's minds was whether using a taser in this situation was the really the RIGHT thing to do, particularly because now it is believed that the deceased was unarmed.

Another case of questionable killing has been internationally circulating around the death of 17-year-old Trayvon Martin, an African American who was shot last month in a gated community by George Zimmerman,  a white neighbourhood watch volunteer. It is also believed that Trayvon just like Curti was also unarmed.



It has also been claimed by witnesses in the Curti killing that he had yelled loudly for help before being fatally tasered. It was also claimed that the police had used capsicum spray on Curti after he hit the ground. Was this really necessary? It is clear that Curti was already on the ground and being held firmly by police, why was capsicum spray also necessary in this instance?

An 'immediate moratorium' has been called by the NSW Council for Civil Liberties in an attempt to crack down on the use of the supposedly 'non-lethal' weapon. According to NSW police criteria the taser must only be used to:

"protect human life . . . where violent confrontation or resistance is occurring or imminent; protect officer/s in danger of being over powered or to protect themselves or another person from injury" (Taken from The Age).

Again, according to witnesses of this cruel incident, it did not appear to them that the police, or any other person was in immediate danger of Curti. They just wanted to catch a thief.

The incident began when at 5:30am on Sunday morning, a topless Curti walked into a convenience store and told the  employee that somebody wanted to kill him. The employee later mentioned to police that this visibly upset and disorientated man 'did not want any money, he just wanted protection and he took a pack of biscuits'. It was also clear to the employee that the man was affected by drugs when he stated he was 'a messenger of god and the end of the world was near'. What is questionable is the fact that the employee never cited Curti as a threat.



Another witness claimed she saw the man screaming and running from the officers yelling 'help'. A short time after he hit the ground, a female police officer starting kicking him in his side.

It is apparent that the use of the taser has come under scrutiny in the past. Another man in 2009 was killed after he was hit several times by a taser in Queensland.

Through this evaluation I am not only questioning the use of the taser by NSW police, I am questioning the fact that Curti was unarmed at the time. He was not a threat, he did not announce to the witnesses or the police that he intended to cause harm. I was particularly angered when I heard about the death of 17-year-old Trayvon Martin who fatally shot by neighbourhood watchmen, George Zimmerman as he walked through a gated community in Florida in the US.

The incident began with Martin after visiting a local convenience store, was walking back home with a packet of skittles and a can of iced tea and the hood of his jacket pulled over his head due to rain,  was approached by 28-year-old Zimmerman.  Zimmerman called an emergency operator and told them he thought Martin looked suspicious. According to the recording of this conversation, the emergency call operator told Zimmerman to leave the young man alone.

Martin, sensing Zimmerman's hostility and anger starting to run back home, Zimmerman immediately took chase with his gun in hand. Martin didn't stand a chance.

Similarly to the taser in Australia, Florida has a law known as 'stand your ground' which allows the use of deadly force if someone believes they are in danger of imminent death or great bodily harm. Does this sound familiar?

What angers me more about this case is the simple, painfully obvious fact that Martin, who was easily half the size of Zimmerman and unarmed was seen as a threat?

Currently Zimmerman is not in police custody because he cited to the police at the time of the incident that he was 'imminent danger' and that Martin was a clear 'threat' cue the 'Stand your Ground' law. 

The FBI and US Justice Department have opened a civil rights investigations, and a grand jury is considering  whether to charge Mr Zimmerman with this incident.

Martin's family, community and civil rights activists are now campaigning for the 'Stand your Ground' law to be abolished, with an online petition also demanding the arrest of Zimmerman. It has drawn 1.4 million signatures and counting.

I understand that both these cases are fundamentally different, but what I thought was compelling for both of these cases is the fact that both of the victims were unarmed. Where do we draw the line between somebody being a threat? In the case of Trayvon Martin, I believe the government who passed such a law as 'Stand your Ground' needs to be held in some way accountable.

It's a hard one. But, I certainly think both deaths could have been easily avoided. Such a waste.

Thursday, March 8, 2012

KONY 2012

When I saw the KONY 2012 flooding my facebook newsfeed, I knew I needed to find out what it was and research so I could make my own mind up about it, instead of being emotionally swayed by the video, like most people. I decided to write a status update of Facebook (which I regret it some ways) about how I felt about it. Please note: I should not have said phony, questionable was what I should have originally said!
 MY QUESTION:
I too knew Kony 2012 was phony from the start. We need to question everything we see and do our research!
THIS IS THE CONVERSATION AS IS:

    • Talei Rose Vulatha Define phony? I have worked with IC before. There is alot of misguided and unsubstantiated evidence being played out on 'both sides', if you dare to trivialise the issue in such a way. So disappointing to watch what has been such a dear cause to many people I have worked with to be shredded apart by social media.
      4 hours ago · · 1

    • Ingrid Brooks Perhaps phony wasn't the word to use-questionable? I'm absolutely entitled to my opinion and I respect yours. People r just so impressionable. Great filmmakers they are and important cause but the way in which this has been approached through the social media platforms is questionable to me. There are many articles and news forums questioning the legitimacy if invisible children Inc. They have actually admitted that 31% of donations only go to the actual project-include administration etc. What do they do with the rest of the money? Over 2 million was written off for travel expenses and film making.

      I believe the action being taken on social media platforms around the world is not the right kind of action.

      Is it right that one day many may be faced with the news that they were responsible for the hunting down and killing of this man? The documentary seen by millions of people neglects to state that thousands of, if not more deaths may result if we use further resources to seek Everyone just wants to fight to kill the bad guy (and he is evil), But going ahead with it without realising the actual situation is questionable. This situation requires a "meticulous diplomatic resolution".

      Many of my friends on facey advocated for “Stop Kony 2012, this week but would they be able to find Uganda on a map?

      “The idea that popular opinion can be leveraged with viral marketing to induce foreign military intervention is really, really dangerous,” says a Ph.D. student Jack McDonald from King’s College in London. It is known all too well that social media can bring about significant and violent change in volatile regions (i.e. Arab Spring). Moreover, everyone knows how fast events, memes, protests or ideas can spread on social media. Social media brings out an immediate visceral response, not necessarily an educated one. People need to think before they “like.”

      So I apologize Talei, I should have said questionable. Phony was not the right word to use. This is my opinion and I am absolutely entitled to it, as u r to yours...and I respect that.

      3 hours ago · · 3

    • Jenna Gleeson I think social media wasnt and isnt the way to go about it but that doesnt define that the whole situation is phony?! Nor does the fact that only 30% of the money goes to the right place.. its not about either of those things but what joseph kony DOES do to those people and that those people HAVE and are suffering because of it and it needs to be and should be stopped!! Whether it does or doesnt work is a different story... But i cant c how anyone in their right mind would make up such a thing and get the ugandian ppl to act out all of the fears they spoke about and jacob when he spoke about it and was crying, that was sincere!? What about when they were all asleep hiding out in the shelter on top of each other.. They asked them to all do that..?! Lol.
      I think its amazing that they r doing this all through social media and it seems affective but i havent decided whether i think it will be or not...

      2 hours ago ·

    • Ingrid Brooks That's why I changed it to questionable. I never said it shouldn't b stopped. I merely said that I don't think this is the right way to go about it. I never said it was made up either Jen! It is definetely sincere. Shit things are happening...but however, as I said I don't think this is the way to go about this issue. It's good that it has made individuals aware-where do we go from here? It is absolutely important where the money goes-but I don't think enough of it is going to the right place!
      2 hours ago · · 1

    • Ingrid Brooks As I said diplomatic resolution...
      2 hours ago ·

    • Ingrid Brooks Have u seen all the suffering in other African nations and that dictators rule most of the African continent? I'm not saying we don't need to help these people, but we need to look at the bigger picture 
      AND IT CONTINUED TO ANOTHER LINK: 

      ON FINANCE -

      All of the IC financial documents are accessible. I find the whole argument in stating overspending in administration and film maikng to be a total joke. Alot of such opinions coming from people who have probably never worked for and NGO and haven't the first clue of how much it costs to run a campaign.

      www.invisiblechildren.com/financials

      anyone who takes a little more time to consider a financial report will realise that if you are given $20, you spend $15 and keep $5 to be spent on further campaigning DOES NOT make your organisation FOR PROFIT.

      $13,765,177 IN
      $8,894,630 OUT
      $4,870,547 REMAINING ASSETS.


      What is so frustrating about people latching onto the finance complaint is that the general population will happily sit back and watch the ads in the superbowl which are how much for 30 secs??? - 3million dollars? What is more ridiculous is that WE FIND THIS ENTERTAINING?!

      We are quite comfortable watching and accepting multimillion dollar profit driven corporations wasting unimaginable wealth without ever being put up to as much scrutiny or force to justify how they have spent money on promoting trashy consumerist products.

      Yet the IC develop a documentary that is OF COURSE designed and calculated to be emotive and inspiring yet is drilled relentlessly. If only we could display more rigorous passion against the sickening capitalist world. It seems that our humanity finds it far more justifiable to be inspired to buy pepsi.

      Violence, military and peace talks.

      The IC has for years advocated for a peaceful resolution to this conflict. I in no way at all condone acts of violence in order to bring Joseph Kony to justice. Nor do I believe in a vengeful violent reaction. Statements such as 'I hope he burns in hell' are not the beliefs that I hold to ANY degree. However, it is naive to think that more lives will not be lost in ending a destructive systematic injustice that has operated in the region for so many years.

      The IC also campaigned relentlessly for the success of the Juba Peace talks between 2006 - 2008. But alas, Kony failed to sign the final peace agreement on multiple occasions. In an idealistic world, Kony and his powers would surrender peacefully and there would be no need for any further bloodshed. It is my understanding that the IC would like a technologically based approach to tracking Kony. AGAIN the organisation and myself DO NOT believe in such a violent resolution despite what impressions may be held by some who have watched the documentary.

      Social Media -

      Sure there will of couse be some people who jump into the campaign without a greater knowledge of the issue. To be frank, I would rather see people pour there energy into the IC campaign then their insular little lives.

      Social media, as I am sure you are aware, has incredible influence that can be used in both positive and negative ways. I do not agree that posting the video in social media sites is 'not the right way'. I think that it has been inspiring and interesting to watch so many people become passionate about something apart from themselves, no matter wether they support the IC or not.

      Hugh Evans, founder of the Oaktree orgaisation and the Global Poverty project succinctly defined how I too feel,

      "Great to see the public discussing #KONY2012.

      My hope is that the amazing energy it has generated will cause people to ask -- "why can Kony and the LRA still operate? and how can we support investment in strong governance and the rule of law to create long-term change?"

      My perspective is that Kony and the LRA are a byproduct of poor governance and a lack of the rule of law in the region.
      ...
      We should support the people of Uganda to invest in education, healthcare, the public service and a stronger government bureaucracy in the north.

      Here is a good link- http://thinkprogress.org/security/2012/03/08/440851/defense-kony-invisible-children/?mobile=nc

      I also think it's great to see the mainstream media engaging in debate around African development, and the Invisible Children team should be encouraged for their capacity to get the issue on the agenda." - Hugh Evans.


      ALSO,

      It is a sad sad day when people we result to defining an issue far greater than their own self indulgent existence by naming it "phony". In my mind it resonates other such bigoted, one lined presumptious bull as expressed by other less conscientious people . TONY ABBOT - "Boat people"???!

      Not a personal attack but to all, just remember that what you say on facebook is on a public forum and a very powerful tool. You have a responsiblity to make sure what you say is well thought out and justified not a one line slogan. Be intelligent, researched and properly informed before you let your fingers run away with your ego.

      I will be supporting the IC campaign. I will also be supporting many other campaigns that work to improve the Human Rights of ALL people in the developing world and otherwise as I have done for 10 years and will continue to do as my chosen profession.

      If this 27 minutes has begun to bring such issues in to light not just in Uganda or Sudan. Not just in Africa. But also for the greater awareness of the ridiculous imbalance that we see in a world today, then the effect of the campaign on a purely human level is commendable.
      · · · · See friendship · about an hour ago


    • Ingrid Brooks
      How long did this take you to research. We clearly don't agree on the issue and this is probably in itself not the best forum to do this on. I think private messages in the future would be much better. Firstly let me just...See more


    • Lusie Vulatha
      This is not a personal attack. And is that a serious question or a sarcastic one about how long did it take me to research. I'm confused. If you write something like "phony knoy" in a public forum you are inviting people to scrutinise or ag...See more


    • Lusie Vulatha also, this is talei not lusie. wrong computer!

    • Ingrid Brooks Talei give me time....

    • Talei Rose Vulatha Going out, I'll read your message when I get home. Gotta say though, I love the firey convo.

    • Ingrid Brooks In a nutshell:

    • Ingrid Brooks I was inviting people to challenge me, not judge me telling me I have self indulgent existence! Jesus Talei Rose Vulatha hit it where it hurts next time! How is that an attack. I urge you to 'research' the word attack and I think you'll find that it is synonymous with your judgmental contrived comments.

    • Ingrid Brooks LET ME ALSO SAY!!!!!!!!!!!! FOR THE RECORD I KNOW PHONY WASN'T THE RIGHT WORD!! I CHANGED IT TO QUESTIONABLE! HOW MANY TIMES DO I HAVE TO STATE THAT!!!!!! IT"S LIKE YOU THINK I AM POLITICALLY INFERIOR TO YOU..moving on

    • Ingrid Brooks You talk about financials a lot...which were published by invisible children-need I say more?

    • Ingrid Brooks
      I would like to also say where did u pick these superbowl examples up from? Who finds it entertaining? I don't plus, I can't identify I don't understand the scale, last time I checked I wasn't AMERICAN.Another American reference for u: this...See more


    • Talei Rose Vulatha
      Ingrid. This is not a note about you and me. I respect you and realise that we more often than not have different persepectives. This is about an issue far greater than us. Maybe you need to take a moment to calm down and realise that this ...See more


    • Ingrid Brooks I think you'll find large scale campaigns are put to scrutiny...BUT WE WANT IT! don't fix it if it ain't broke!

    • Ingrid Brooks That is how u were saying it? if anybody reads it you utilised my comments and turned them into an attack on me. Now you're telling me i'm pretty much selfish because I thought it was about me! I can't bloody win!

    • Talei Rose Vulatha Yet again I will affirm. This is not about you. Calm down.

    • Ingrid Brooks I will finish up in a minute...i'm completing calm. Just getting my points across! Just let me finish. If you want to resume this let's do it over private message okay?

    • Talei Rose Vulatha I don't particular want to deliberate this over private messages to tell you the truth. I have been watching everyone fighting out personal crap on facebook and I find it ridiculous. I am sorry if you believe yourself to be a part of the generalisations I am making.

    • Talei Rose Vulatha I felt I needed to offer my perspective. That is all.

    • Ingrid Brooks
      I know Invisible Children advocate for this campaign to be resolved peacefully. I merely said I don't agree with how it is being implemented. I was talking about the ramifications of putting it onto social media platforms. Very very clever ...See more


    • Ingrid Brooks This was freaking awesome...

    • Talei Rose Vulatha I am not comparing YOU to tony abott. Goodness Ingrid. This is agonising. THIS IS NOT ABOUT YOU.

    • Ingrid Brooks I didn't say me-read the comment. Agonising.

    • Ingrid Brooks Didn't say it was about me, you're making at about me. I thought it was about me cos u took my words and added "ego" and the like. You're trying to make me look like a silly pants!! You and I both know we're better than this. Let's move on. As I said-good convo, no hard feelings!

    • Talei Rose Vulatha Not specifically your ego. Im not trying to do anything to you.

    • Ingrid Brooks I know you're not-it could have been worded better tho.

    • Talei Rose Vulatha It is pent up fury from watching what has been happening. Im sorry if you have taken a personal offence to my wording. However it is a commentary, my perspective and my understanding. Like you said, everyone should be entitled to that.

    • Ingrid Brooks That's okay. Yes everybody should be entitled to that.
    •   


      HAVE A READ AND SEE WHAT YOU THINK. This is not the whole conversation in its entirety. As you can see a lot of my comments were cut off. As I said, we are all entitled to our opinion. It is healthy to question and debate the world around us. I do believe Talei and I got way to personal, that is really not healthy for a political debate. 

Tuesday, November 29, 2011

My Favourite Films

5. Guess Who's Coming to Dinner (1967)

Ever since I was small I have been captivated by the vivacious Katharine Hepburn. My Mother and Grandmother have always instilled in me the power of her acting and her ability to question society in the days when women weren't meant to represent any sense of masculinity and strength. Guess Who's Coming to Dinner (1967) is one of my favourite Hepburn films because it too encompasses a sense of questioning in an age of racial tension in America. The film tells the story of Joanna 'Joey' Drayton (Katharine Houghton-Hepburn's real-life niece), a young woman of a liberal upper class background, who has begun a love affair with Dr. John Prentice (Sidney Poiter), a young physician.

The couple visit Joanna's home in San Francisco, where she introduces her fiance to her successful parents Matt Drayton (Spencer Tracy) and Christina Drayton (Katharine Hepburn). John's parents also attend dinner ad are surprised to find that Joanna is white. Monsignor Ryan (Cecil Kellaway), a senior Catholic Priest friend of Matt Drayton's also attends the dinner and serves as the voice of reason and tolerance. This film is a beautiful film depicts the reaction of family and friends as they try and accept the choice made by Joanna and John. I recommend it to anyone.



4. Abre Los Ojos (Open Your Eyes) (1997)

After finding out that 2001's Vanilla Sky starring Tom Cruise, Penelope Cruz and Cameron Diaz was a remake, I immediately had to see it. Don't get me wrong, I loved Cameron Crowe's remake of the original, but there's something magical about the original.

From a prison cell, Cesar (Eduardo Noriega), a 25-year-old in a prosthetic mask tells his story to a psychiatrist Antonion (Chete Lera). Several flashbacks reveal important events: good-looking César is attractive to women. At his birthday party, he flirts with Sofía (Penélope Cruz), the girlfriend of his best friend Pelayo (Fele Martínez). Later on, he takes her home and stays the night, although they don't sleep together. The next morning, César's obsessive ex-lover Nuria (Najwa Nimri) pulls up outside Sofia's flat and when she spots César leaving in the morning, she offers him a ride back to her apartment to have sex. On the way there, however, she intentionally crashes the car, committing suicide, and César is horribly disfigured. Sofia can not bear this and returns to Palayo's side.


After César's disfigurement, he begins to have a series of disorienting experiences. He passes out drunk in a street and wakes to find that Sofia not loves him and his face is no longer distorted.
But as he makes love to Sofía one night, she apparently changes into Nuria. Horrified, César smothers her with a pillow, yet finds everyone else believes Nuria was indeed the woman everyone else calls Sofía.

From then on, fragments of his past begin to return to him and it becomes clear that shortly after his accident, he contacts Life Extension, a company who specialise in cryonics, to be preserved and experience lucid and lifelike virtual reality dreams. 

Returning to their headquarters, under supervision by prison officers, he discovers they specialise in cryonics with a twist: "artificial perception" or the provision of a fantasy based on the past to clients who are reborn in the future. He had committed suicide at home after sleeping drunk on the street, and was placed in cryonic suspension. His experiences from about the midpoint of the movie onward have been a dream, spliced retroactively into his actual life and replacing his true memories. At the end of the film he elects to wake up and be resurrected. Convinced his life since the drunken night in the street is simply a nightmarish vision created by Life Extension, César leaps from the roof of the company's high-rise headquarters, resolving to open his eyes once more to real life outside the cryonic fantasy.

This film really is a pleasure. It is complex, intelligent and audacious. Cameron Crowe's remake is also unforgettable. For me this film stands out because of its great soundtrack and beautiful imagery. However, Abre Los Ojos (Open Your Eyes) is an unforgettable experience.



3. Once (2006)

This film really is such a gem. I first saw this film with my sister and we both fell in love, mostly with the absolutely beautiful music. We got the chance to see the films stars, Glen Hansard and Marketa Irglova in Sydney and it too was the most beautiful experience.

The film tells the story of an (unnamed) male who resides in Dublin writing hauntingly beautiful songs about his break-up with his girlfriend who cheated on him. He lives with his father and makes a living fixing vacuum cleaners, and singing and playing for money on the streets of Dublin. One of these nights he meets a young (also unnamed) Czech girl who plays piano, does odd jobs and cares for her mother and young daughter.

This unlikely pair begin a friendship based on their love of music and the Girl encourages the Guy to put together a demo disc in the hope they may land a music contract in London. Over the course of a few days the Guy and Girl embark on a journey together examining their past loves, and reveal their indescribable, unique love for one another through their haunting songs.

I would recommend to anyone to listen to this soundtrack. You will definetely not regret it. The music featured in this film is the most beautiful music I have ever had the pleasure to listen to.





2. Garden State (2004)

I can't really stand Zac Braff. I don't really know why, maybe I've seen too  many Scrubs episodes, and he has released some terrible movies in the last few years. However, Garden State is certainly not one of them.

I will admit I like a film with a good soundtrack and Braff offers this to his audiences almost perfectly.


I couldn't write the plot summary anymore encompassing than this:



"Andrew Largeman shuffled through life in a lithium-induced coma until his mother's death inspired a vacation from the pills to see what might happen. A moderately successful TV actor living in Los Angeles, "Large" hasn't been home to the Garden State in nine years. But even with 3,000 miles between them, he's been unable to escape his domineering father Gideon and the silencing effect he's had on his son from afar. Stunned to find himself in his hometown after such a long absence, Large finds old acquaintances around every corner living quite unique lives as gravediggers, fast food knights and the panderers of pyramid schemes. Meanwhile, at home, he does his best to avoid a long-simmering but inevitable confrontation with his father. By a twist of fate, Large meets Sam, a girl who is everything he isn't. A blast of color, hope and quirks, Sam becomes a sidekick who refuses to ride in his sidecar. Her warmth and fearlessness give Large the courage to open his heart to the joy and pain of the infinite abyss that is life". 





1. Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004)

 Upon initial viewing of this film I wasn't quite sure if it was as brilliant as everyone was making it out to be. To be quite frank, I didn't really get it! I viewed the film a second time, I absolutely loved it. This film is filled with such depth and intelligence

Joel Parish (surprisingly brilliantly portrayed by  Jim Carrey) is an unhappy, withdrawn man who meets Clementine (also brilliantly played by Kate Winslet) a girl who is everything he is not, a free spirit, although at times dysfuntional. They are attracted to each other immediately despite their differences

They interact as if they have never met one another before, but in actual truth the pair were former lovers who separated after two years together. After a shattering fight, Clementine, in her true reckless spirit, decided to pay for program to have her memories of Joel erased from her mind. Upon learning of this procedure, Joel also has his mind wiped immediately after Clementine. However, Joel while unconscious, has second thoughts and decides he will do whatever it takes to fight the procedure and keep the memories of Clementine.

Much of the film revolves around Joel trying to preserve his memories. Audience watch as we view their love and courtship in reverse. However, it appears that all his memories of Clementine have been erased.


The employees of the Lacuna Corporation are revealed to be more than just peripheral characters. Mary (Kirsten Dunst) had an affair with the married doctor, Dr Howard Mierzwiak, who heads the company (Tom Wilkinson). In order to keep the affair a secret, Mary has the affair erased from her memory.

Patrick (Elijah Wood), who is lonely, becomes fixated on Clementine during her own erasing procedure and uses Joel's own personal mementos to seduce her. This situation proves to have a critical effect on the films main storyline.

 Once Mary learns of the affair she had with the doctor, she steals all records and sends them to all clients. Joel and Clementine both listen to their initial erasure tape recording and realise their relationship can still exist, even if everything isn't perfect

If you haven't seen this film, please do. It is beautiful.


If the list were continue: Shaun of the Dead, The Breakfast Club, Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels, Donnie Darko, American Beauty, Amelie, Almost Famous, To Kill a Mockingbird, One Flew over the Cuckoo's Nest, Casablanca, The Shawshank Redemption, Breakfast at Tiffany's, The Green Mile, Kpax, Giant, The Shining, Empire Records and This is England.




Wednesday, November 9, 2011

Why businesses NEED social media...

Where are your customers?
Customers in a MallJacob Morgan with Chess Media Group wrote a short but sweet post in mid-March. His approach to convincing potential clients on adopting social media goes like this:

“If I told you that many of your customers and prospects interacted and communicated in the social space would you invest in having a presence there?”
“What if I told you that you would never know you made a single direct dollar off of any of those customers and prospects in the social space, but you knew that they were still there, would you still invest?”

Now step in the executive’s shoes for a moment and imagine how you would react. Would you say, “Yeah, even still, I refuse to go where my customers are.” Of course you wouldn’t and that is why this approach is effective.

There is a sense of urgency within both small and medium sized businesses, but when we look at large companies, they are publishing hugely effective social media campaigns. There’s a disconnect. Small and medium sized businesses don’t usually have PR and Marketing departments. If they do, it’s one or two employees representing each main department. With small businesses, it’s a resource issue, so many times you have executives sitting in their office justifying social media out the window. So what might motivate decision makers, within companies, to integrate social media in their departmental plans?

Executives like numbers


Show executives the potential of social media by using statistics. There was a great post over on the Social Media Club website a couple of days ago, based on the 2011 Social Media Marketing Industry Report. That post highlighted the benefits of using social media platforms:
Numbers for Executives
- 72 percent of respondents said social media Increases website traffic

- Improved Search Rankings – (62%)

- New Partnerships – (59%)

- Better Sales – (48%)

- Reduction in Marketing Costs – (59% for self-employed, 58% for small businesses)

- Respondents were twice as likely to increase leads using social media

Let’s face it, executives like numbers. They see the direct affect an action has on the bottom line. Most companies went through a phase where employees went to their director or manager and pointed at social media saying, “Come on, look everyone else is doing it.”, but of course in the beginning they had no numbers to prove it. If you research communications, marketing, public relations and media for years, then follow and research social media as it evolves, you will be convinced that social media is just about the most powerful tool so far in human history. Without numbers and statistics though, arguing this case is difficult. Executives, branch directors and managers are slowly realizing the potential of online communities, likely because we now have over 7 years of wide spread usage of blogs and a handful of years of accumulated usage and sales statistics from online social networks.

Consumer Expectations – An Example


Imagine an advanced software company. There are a few employees at this startup and they are selling custom programs, and yes they have had a few repeat customers, but they find acquiring new clients to be difficult. The executive is wondering why, and the reason is quite simple. Take a look at that bullet list above because the second item highlights the issue in this example. Search rankings are important, but make no mistake about it, those metrics are tied to social media. If I hear about a really interesting product and I google the company or product name, there should be at least a handful of results pointing to their website, but alas, in this case, there is only one related link. What do you imagine a potential customer will think with these results? Maybe, “This is an advanced software company trying to sell me a computer program and it’s hard for me to find them online?

When it comes to information and research, the online world is now more important than our physical world.

Imagine this same software company, but in this next scenario, they have integrated social media into their marketing, PR, SEO and customer service strategies. How different do you think the picture is? The first page of the search results alone will be filled with network accounts and profiles of this company, and even a positive review or two on separate social networks. That is the effects of social media on business. Consumers will expect companies to be engaged in online communities.

Businesses that are not connected to these types of services will either join, or exist as a small mom and pop shop, limited to their own city. Today, that advanced software company would not be able to expand into other cities without using social media. I realize I might be preaching to the choir here on Social Media Today, so let me add some more depth below.

Learning Curve


Many online communities are guilty of deception because they seem to be user-friendly. In fact, there is a hidden learning curve. By that I don’t mean learning the buttons and the interface.

Tap into the deep functionalities of the online communities to accelerate participation and engagement with your followers/fans/friends, ultimately leading to more quality relationships and therefore more sales.

The reality is that on twitter alone, you could search “twitter tips” and you will get thousands upon thousands of blog posts that provide helpful tips. The deep functionalities of every community offers their users accelerated organic connections. You’ll notice this with Facebook, LinkedIn and all the other social sites as well. About once a month I’ll see a blog post outlining tips and tricks, stuff you didn’t know, settings that will change your experience with such and such social network.

If a company has been on Twitter for 3 years, they will inevitably have more followers than a company that just joined (more like 50 followers). The experienced company has already climbed that “deep functionalities learning curve”, so they are doing what works. Whereas the new company is still figuring out their strategy and positioning, while only sending out tweets about their service. One key point in using social media for business is to engage with clients and consumers, right? Businesses want more quality relationships and of course, increased revenue. The sooner a company starts climbing the deep functionalities learning curve, the sooner their Klout (Online reputation and engagement metric) score will be at a respectable level.

Good Social Media Consultants can provide that crucial guidance, but just be aware that there is a learning curve. If you hire the right consultant or advisor, he or she will help your find those hidden functionalities, to tap into the true potential of each social media website.

The Effects of Social Media


I realize some of you may disagree that social media is “the most powerful tool so far in human history”. If you agree with me, you might already be thinking about Tunisia, Egypt, Libya etc. Or you may be wondering why the top handful of social media websites are being valued about 50 times above their latest revenue reports. Let me go further and point out that I am certainly not alone in this perspective. One scholar at Simon Fraser University is predicting that social media might be bigger than the industrial revolution in terms of societal effects. Now, let that sink in before going to the next paragraph!

Avoiding social media and not integrating it into your multi-departmental strategies is a dangerous decision because consumers expect it and despite the deceptive nature of some of the popular social platforms, there is a learning curve to climb.

I believe some of us can see the crest of the oncoming social media wave, but like a great surfer, you might want to swim towards it to get that great reward before it’s behind us when social media has evolved into a completely different system.

(Article taken from: http://socialmediatoday.com/austenm/288998/practical-reasons-why-businesses-need-social-media).



Such an interesting article. I have been currently working with a local business on increasing their advertising in order to increase their sales and business awareness. Social media is the way of the future. Even if someone doesn't want to know about your business or any upcoming sales, their bound to see it anyway! I say this because on a daily basis I see or read many things on Facebook and Twitter that I really have no interest in learning about, but because I check my newsfeeds regularly, I see it!

The online world really is more important then our physical world!

More to come on the world of social media...