PR2.0, Corporate branding through accurate messaging and communication using social media

Post Contributed by: Charu Bajaj

Twitter on toes

The entire country shudders down to view the aftermath of the Mumbai attacks. All the countrymen were trying to gather latest updates of the entire sequence of events from the affected sites. But what matters at such moments is, the authenticity and spontaneity of information. And amongst such upheaval if we find a true friend always on toes for us we are fortunate.
Twitter has proven to be one such pal, as the tweets really gave unabridged details of the happenings from the places engulfed by terrorist attacks. To the extent that when the news channels initially reported the mission over at Taj, tweets were hinting at that the struggle was still on and later it proved to be true. The sites like Flickr had photographs from the affected areas within no time.

‘Social Media for a Cause‘, as it helped people to know the wherebouts of their lost brethren and relieved them of their worries. The power of Social Media is immense and it has proved to us as Twitter was on toes when we wanted it the most!

Post contributed by: Charu Bajaj

The surging competition of open sources on business – a case study

Couple of months back, as part of their curriculum, a B-School students came to me to comment on this case study. What I loved about it is its relevance to the contemporary business scenarios being faced by many power houses. Here it goes…

Problem: Ammo Up, an extremely popular electronic-music game, is the brainchild of AMPS’ cherished programmers, who now spend their time trying to keep customers dazzled with upgrades. AMPS are a Silicon Valley startup with revenues of over $550 million in the last financial year. Ammo Up is zany, button-filled modified gaming console that connects to your computer and lets anyone make interesting games and sounds. The CEO of AMPS Inc. has never heard or believed in open source.

The CEO recently got a chance to visit a trade show and found an open-source start-up called Open Areana, which copied the basic idea of Ammo Up but wrote its own open-source code for it. Their tag line was “Fight the Power”.”Aren’t we suing you?” were the first words out of the CEO’s mouth to the open-source guys.

As the CEO’s quest continued, she began to worry that in many people’s eyes her company was being seen as the overly powerful corporate enemy with an iron grip on its Intellectual Property (IP). She was worried over how her developers would react. She feared that they would desert her if she opened up all of their code to the community. At the same time, these same developers were ragged from trying to get out the next release. But then again, she wondered if perhaps the open-source model would make their lives a little easier?

A few days later, executives from AMPS found a YouTube video of a bunch of people playing games on competing devices that were much more sophisticated and cooler than those from AMPS. The video suggested that they were open-source competitors who had not only copied the idea of the original AMPS’ device but had also improved them in ways the firm never even contemplated, leaving the executives stunned.

Ques 1. Should AMPS float with the rising tide and join the open-source community?

Comment: Google, it’s launch of chrome, used to simple tag word “future proof”, which its been using for quite some time, and displaying as part of its inherent philosophy. They say, by making chrome an open platform, they’ve already made it future proof, meaning the product will not have to fight to keep abreast with the world. Rather, it’s the world that will use the product to define GenNext. U have enough examples across the board (I speak of only internet industry here since that’s the domain I deal with) to show that they r doing nothing new. A simple example of how open source has crushed IPs is the battle between firefox and internet explorer. Microsoft is a case of a classic business powerhouse keeping a tab on everything it does, obfuscating / locking its legacy behind iron doors. But that’s typically because the DNA of the company comes from a time when the intellectual property was the key to throne, like the Arthur’s Excalibur. And that’s what everyone fought for – Xerox to Apple, Apple to MS.. it was an era of bolts and chains.
Times have changed. Welcome to the free world when it’s not the propriety nokia software that wins, but the IPhone, Andriod’s of the world with their development platforms to launch new applications. Facebook and its “Applications” have triggered the internet history’s biggest wave of social networking revolution. So all I can say is, you can run but you can never hide, simply because if it’s about You against the World – you better be prepared for a long n gory battle.

Ques 2. If yes, How could the company make money without its Intellectual Property?

Comment: The key here would be balance. You don’t need to be an “Open Source” like the GNU license thing. Rather, what you would want to do is to build out a platform, which helps support applications from developers from across the world. You do not need to open up your legacy code and have the world rip it apart. What you should do is provide an open source platform, a plug and play feature enabler which can socket into your legacy and help the developers make gaming their own thing. Monetization can still happen from the more sophisticated products you develop with your team, on the same platform and also from revenue share with the open source developers. You could charge through license fee per usage of the platform, but that would need some serious research into consumer behavior since things like these result in untimely demises (like the 2000 .com bubble burst when a lot of free service providers tried to charge and eventually closed down, usa.net email service being one such notable case). So the bottom line is, its easier said than done, but you will have to go with the flow and find a money making spot there in middle of it all. Unless you have a product which can stand the test of time (like the ms office, which has weathered open office and Google spreadsheet attacks by constant evolution, at least till now), you need to go with the current or get ready for a shock treatment.

Post contributed by

Pankaj Vermani

Importance of a Mentor – Avinash Raghava

So before I start collecting my thoughts and think of what to write, a preface about the person I am talking about:

Avinash Raghava, Regional Manager, North – NASSCOM.

Avinash is one of those WEB 2.0 evangelists who has the complete grasp on his subject and he does walk the talk. I have had the chance to work along with Avinash on several occasions now. Well, as they say breaking the stereotype, for me it was just a phrase, till I met Avinash. His humble nature and attitude would floor you anytime, any given day.

A masterful networker

Well, do I need to tell you anything? The NASSCOM EMERGE community speaks for itself. The astounding success and ever growing community of thought leaders from the industry does not requires a separate mention.

Respecting time

Everytime I have worked with Avinash, its been time worth. A straight to the point person, every meeting is worth its time with him. Avinash does keep his time right and I respect the thought “time is money”!!

A Mentor

YES! I must confess to one straight and simple fact that my first mentor (professionally) in life has been Avinash. How did I get to know him ( a long story), in a jist my blogging passion made me know him. Avinash has always been supportive and I have learnt lessons from him which no one else would have ever pointed out at, the proof of which is, a few months back I was in a meeting with the Founder & CEO of a WEB company, and when he asked me who do you have as a mentor, all I had to say was “Avinash”.

Life ahead?

I’d always take pride in relating with Avinash. A mentor, guide he has been of immense support and help to me in times when I was down and out. All my respects and wishs for this emerging true WEB 2.0 evangelist. Given the chance working in capacities with Avinash would always be a wish to be fullfilled.

Thanks Avinash for all the support, would need it always , also I’d like to thank (Charu Bajaj) to allow me to write on this great blog that she is maintaining

Post contributed by: Paritosh Sharma

Billion dollar dreams, One reality – Vijay Shekhar Sharma

Okay so before I start, I must confess one thing that Life is the strangest thing happened to me. Things happen when you dont expect them and  in a way that you would have never thought of.

We are all talking about recession, but from the very beginning, in all my lectures, conferences and talks I have maintained that these are times full with opportunities. You just need to be at the right place and the right time, with right qualities and abilities.

And I present to you probably the youngest Indian whom I would love to be mentored by: Vijay Shekhar Sharma. Founder and MD, One97 Communications.

I met Vijay @ the NASSCOM Friday’s 2.0 session, where he left an impact that not many do. A guy who knows what he speaks of! He knows his numbers right and cathces rigth when he pulls the ground below your feet off

Seeing him @ CNBC TV 18 Young Turks was again good, tracking his company, his blog has been an experience worth a post on this blog. Moreover I met Vijay at his new facility @ Noida and looking at the design and hsi favorite one liner “Let there be light” well I’m mighty impressed with this simple, humble but a highly effective and ‘he knows his words’ guy!

I find Vijay worth a mention on this blog, being maintained beautifully by (Charu Bajaj) and I’m sure we are yet to see the real deal!

Best Wishes Vijay!

Post By: Paritosh Sharma

PR 2.0- Well That’s the Way to be!!!!

As world is shrinking boundaries more and more people are getting connected. There are two way bridges of communication and Obama’s success has rightly proven it. His election campaign was driven by social networking tools. The impact which he lid on people was unbelievable as he also attracted people who supported his contender. This domain is exploding and yet another era is shaping up or rather we can say has shaped up where people believe in collaborative growth. The power of Social Media can be utilized to create a close knit environment at the workplace.

Influence on Workplace- A democratic approach

There is lot of flow of energy if people are given an opportunity to express themselves. A close knit web at the workplace allows people to contribute towrds the growth of an organization. If all the employees are placed at par and have a free say they will definately feel more committed and responsible to their own ideas which they can express by writing a blog discussing and expressing themselves on a specific topic.

Customers- Our Focal point

Micro blogging sites can be leverged to extract immediate feedback from the customers. The customers then no longer remin people belonging to an alien land, as there behavior can be  very well understood and judged. A good example for this is Zappos, which is growing by engaging its customer and forming  social web. Such transparent communities builds a feeling of trust among the customers.

Branding- Reach masses

Brand can be created by making your present for the world. Once that brand is created people start knowing you for what you are. It was never so esy before as with web 2.0 live videos can be streamed which can include interviews, conferences and events to spek volume about your work.

Thus these web tools can be used to enable organizations to extend their roots and gain foothold to emerge as winners.

Zee news Goes Mobile…with One97

So with newer media getting into play, more and more media houses are vying to get into the Internet and the Mobile space.

After a few newspapers and channels, now its turn of a news channel to explore the mobile space. Mobiles are penetrating our lives every second and with innovative content on offer, it makes sense for News channels to provide LIVE content for people on the move.

For more follow the link:

http://www.watblog.com/2008/11/19/zee-news-mobile-tie-up-one97-5774/