InsidEPR

Apps We Love

By Roya Pakfetrat

It’s Valentine's Day and love is in the air - well at least for our favorite apps! It’s no secret around here; we can’t eat, sleep, commute, work or socialize without having our mobile devices right by our sides. So in honor of the year’s most sappy holiday – I wanted to know what apps are the most near and dear to our hearts. I recently polled the office and the winners are in:

• Roku – “Because sometimes I’m too lazy to go find my Roku remote, with the app I can just use my phone.”
• Out of Milk– “It makes grocery shopping a breeze!” (Only available on Android devices, iPhone application is in the works)
• Drync Wine – “The app allows users to journal about a bottle of wine they enjoyed or own. It provides expert reviews and commentary for hundreds of thousands of wine listings. When I find a wine that I’m either interested in trying or have tried and don’t want to forget the name I can save it to my ‘Cellar’.”
• Chase Mobile– “I haven’t been to a bank branch in a LONG time.”
• Trillian -  “It’s a free IM client which integrates pretty much every kind of messaging platform– including Facebook. I use it on both my laptop and iPhone.”
• RunKeeper– “I love it because it has GPS tracking which allows me to see the route I took and how many miles I went.”
• Chipotle – “Why would I wait in line when I can order on my way to the nearest Chipotle?” (Only available  to iPhone users)
• Google Music – “Embrace the cloud and it shall set you free! With this app, I migrated my entire music library from iTunes to Google Music, where I can stream my entire catalogue anywhere I have a data or WiFi connection through my phone, or just by logging into my Google account on a computer. It makes those lonely BART rides home a little more bearable (and yes it works in the tunnels!)” (Only available on Androids devices)
• Instagram– “Because it creates the illusion that my old iPhone takes good pictures.” (Only available on the iPhone)
• Pinterest/Words with Friends – “I love them because they occupy my commute time by inspiring me to try new recipes and trends (Pinterest) and keeping me connected to my far-flung family and friends (Words with Friends).”
• Awesome Facts – “I've had this app for 2-3 years now. I love the random, amazing and entertaining facts. Plus it’s great if you have to kill 5 minutes while you wait for someone, or have to entertain a car full of kids.”
• Foursquare – “I am hopelessly addicted.”
• WhatsApp– “WhatsApp is a mobile messenger application that replaces SMS and works through the existing internet data plan and works across multiple platforms. I use it primarily to stay in touch with friends around the world because it’s free to SMS. You can also upload and share photos, which is ideal if you want to share a photo of an event or place but don’t want to upload to a social media site like Facebook.”
• Yelp – “Because when I’m in unfamiliar territory and need a place to eat – I’d be lost without it. I can get restaurant phone numbers, prices, locations, directions and of course - a dependable rating!”
• Square – “Square is clearly ideal for check-splitting and the general cool-factor.”

Did we mention your favorite? If not, we would love to hear about your top pick.  Happy Valentine’s Day from Engage PR!

The SOPA Era

By Leslie Schmidt

Weeks after major websites such as Wikipedia, Reddit and Google protested the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) with an organized blackout, the news waves are still buzzing about the role that legislators should take in the infringement of copyrighted works. But for now, SOPA is dead. So in its memory let us remember its short life and bid it farewell.

October 26, 2011:SOPA was born. It was brought to life by House Judiciary Committee Chair and Texas Republican Lamar Smith along with 12 initial co-sponsors.

November 16: The first hearing was held by the House Judiciary Committee to discuss SOPA

• In protest, the 16th also became known as American Censorship Day, when Tumblr, Mozilla, Techdirt, the Center for Democracy and Technology as well as many other Internet companies participated by displaying banners on their sites which read “STOP CENSORSHIP”
  December 15: A second hearing was held to amend SOPA in order to make the bill more agreeable to both parties

January 14:The Obama administration responded to a petition against the bill, stating that they were in favor of SOPA since it encouraged all sides to work together. In response, more than 100,000 people petitioned the Whitehouse protest.

January 18: The biggest day of SOPA’s life

• The day the Internet went black: Numerous sites, including Wikipedia and Reddit, chose to participate in a service blackout in protest of SOPA staying dark for up to 24 hours. Wikipedia even chose to include a note to its site visitors stating its SOPA opposition, which was seen by over 160 million people
• San Francisco held an anti-SOPA protest at the Civic Center Plaza with speakers voicing their concerns, including one former rapper, MC Hammer.
• An anti-SOPA rally was held in New York outside the offices of two SOPA co-sponsors, Senator Chuck Schumer and Senator Kirsten Gillibrand
• Google blacked out its logo and added a link which read “Tell Congress: Please Don’t Censor the Web!” leading to a SOPA petition site. In one day, this anti-SOPA campaign on Google gained 4.5 million petition signatures. That number grew to reach over 7 million.
• Over 2.4 million SOPA-related tweets were posted using the terms SOPA, Stop SOPA, Tell Congress and #FactsWithoutWikipedia.

After the January 18 Protests: Support for the legislation decreased from 80 to 65 congressmen and opposition grew from 31 to 101 congressmen

January 20:SOPA was declared dead to the American public

January 24: Day the House Judiciary Committee planned to vote on SOPA. Meeting Status: Canceled.

SOPA was loved by some; Hated by many. So for Internet users everywhere, I say… Good-bye SOPA and good riddance.

Friday By the Bay: The Monday Edition

By Suzanne Panoplos

For those of your paying attention, our "Friday By the Bay" was preempted by our pre-Super Bowl edition of our post-Fantasy Football results. Got it?

Anyway - welcome to the Monday edition of our "By the Bay" series where we take a look at—the weather. Not just any weather but Bay Area weather where you can experience a dramatically different climate in a matter of hours. Where else can you go from the Ocean to the Redwoods to the Mountains – all in the same day?!?

I experienced this phenomenon last weekend when we were skiing in the Sierra Mountains on Saturday and biking along Sawyer Camp trail in the protected San Francisco Watershed lands the very next day. This is not just my shameless attempt to post a couple of photos of my family but my true appreciation for the flexibility we have in the Bay Area.

I have worked for high-tech companies all my life and when I am logging some really crazy hours, I look wistfully back east where friends and family are working their comfortable nine-to-five jobs.  However, with the hustle and bustle that is Silicon Valley, comes the privilege of being able to experience the amazing Bay area climate and all nature has to offer. 

So next time you are glued to the couch watching the Kardashians, Jersey Shore or some other train wreck of a reality show – take a moment to think about what you could be missing.  Whether it is the wines of Napa, the surf at Ocean beach or a 600-year old California Bay tree along the Sawyer Camp Trail – get outdoors and experience our Bay Area weather!

When will Green IT Simply be a Part of Smart Business?

By Fran Lowe

We’ve been talking in a concerted way about Green IT for at least half of the last decade, and much longer if you were an early adopter of Green or a proponent of sustainable business. We’re all aware of IT industry giants like Google, IBM, GE and SAP who realized the immediate benefits of going Green by becoming more efficient in the way they operate.

Early adopters also realize that becoming more efficient - using less energy in their data centers or using recycled water in their cooling towers -  is just the fringed edge of Green IT. Going green has given these early adopters and leaders a measurable business advantage as they’ve continued to leverage a sustainable mindset and Green IT to develop and sell green technology products and services to enterprises worldwide. Their success has been spurred on by their  marketing efforts around Green, which in turn has built brand value for these companies and encouraged the adoption of Green technology by a growing number of customers. There are, of course, many "degrees" of  being green or engaging in sustainable activities. In the world of data centers, for example, obtaining a large percentage of energy from renewable or "non-coal” resources is being seen as an important next step.

Next-generation IT that brings together big data, cloud, virtualization and software-centric networking is increasingly more energy efficient by its very nature. Scale drives efficiency whether we’re talking about using the cloud to reduce the net energy usage of business computing or the fast-growing wholesale data center industry that is delivering power and cooling efficiencies that save millions of dollars for large scale customers. Leaner, more flexible and resilient computing is another way of expressing Green IT.

The interconnectedness of these technology trends is driving the ever greater need for companies of all sizes to adopt technology frameworks that are interconnected and able to measure and track results. The IT sector is more aware than ever of the environmental and financial impact of increased power consumption, data center cooling issues and e-waste from IT operations. By adopting and integrating green and sustainable targets, they will be better able to manage the environmental impacts of their computing assets and facilities from the get-go.

When Green is finally just the smart way of operating and doing business, by which I mean doing business in a way that ensures an enterprise will be able to flourish and persist over the long-term, we will likely no longer be talking about Green IT.

I’ve no idea when that is - but hope it’s sooner than I think.

 

Prepare Your Communications for an Equity Event

By Jeannette Bitz

2012 is here and as we enter into the new year, experts from seemingly every sector are looking into their crystal balls and revealing their “predictions” for the upcoming year.

For those compiling their “top 10 IPO lists,” there are the clear standouts - Facebook and Yelp - but also quite a bit of uncertainty amidst fluctuating market conditions.  However, there is a sense of optimism among analysts and many believe that we will see an increase in the number of IPOs and acquisitions throughout 2012. In fact if 2012 is anything like 2011, organizations may elect to get acquired versus going through the IPO process. Dow Jones VentureSource this month released its analysis of the number of venture capital-backed companies that exited in 2011. According to the report, the number of exits by acquisitions far exceeded the number of exits by IPO by the largest amount since 1992, when Dow Jones VentureSource first began to produce exit data.

Either exit strategy requires a well-thought out communications plan. For companies that are considering an IPO or preparing to be acquired, it is important to emphasize the importance of maintaining visibility throughout the process - from the months leading up to the filing or acquisition, throughout the quiet period in the case of an IPO, and after the transaction or event has occurred. Most organizations have never undertaken this type of effort and may not realize the pivotal role that a PR agency can and should play in guiding them through the process.

One of the most important pieces of advice we offer our clients is to make sure the communications efforts continue to move forward. Even during a quiet period, companies must avoid placing their marketing and PR programs on auto-pilot, or even worse, shutting them down altogether. Although there will always be cautious lawyers on hand to pull back the reins, the reality is that a company can continue with most of its planned PR activities, such as issuing press releases or launching products, as long as it had already been engaging in these activities in the past.

Once you start thinking about an IPO or other equity event is the time to make sure your PR and marketing efforts are in high-gear and focused on building your profile with prospects, customers, investors, and the media, to establish a business-as-usual level of outbound communications.
Here are five general guidelines that companies can leverage to continue to build momentum while preparing for an equity event:

1. Stay the course. Continue planned communications strategy, product launches, press releases, and editorial opportunities.
2. Simplify your story. Re-tool your messaging to make it easy for investors or prospective buyers to comprehend and relate to.
3. Analyze your PR strategy. Focus on the activities that will get you noticed, such as thought leadership pieces and placement in trend stories.
4. Refresh your marketing materials and other assets, such as sales collateral, corporate identity, website, newsletters, and direct marketing campaigns.
5. Develop and expand social media strategy. Implement or expand social media strategy, creating an integrated marketing matrix that ties in key initiatives with social media campaigns.

It is important to know that your company will emerge from the IPO or acquisition as a substantially more significant company - from both a size and revenue perspective - with a greater burden of accountability. By putting a communications framework in place, your PR agency partner can help your organization extend the goodwill earned during the IPO or acquisition far into the future.

Go Augment Yourself

By Mike Tomlinson

If there’s one thing we can take away from this year’s Consumer Electronics Show (CES), it’s that mobility is king. All computing is moving to mobile devices, but the coolest developments stem from bridging this mobile computing world with our natural movements and choices as human beings. I’m of course talking about Augmented Reality (AR)!

The big news during CES week came from Israeli optics manufacturer Lumus, who revealed a consumerized version of see-through visual displays which are currently used by military organizations around the world. Just think of its applications beyond the obvious military purposes—surgeons with these unusual looking spectacles will be using augmented reality to back them up during major surgeries. Pilots will use augmented reality to assist with complicated navigation during severe weather. But if that doesn’t sound like ‘Minority Report’ enough to you, know this - glass manufacturer Corning has developed a completely transparent glass electronic display, opening the door in the near future to our own cars overlaying important information and warnings onto our windshields as we drive about town. Even Google is getting into smart cars with AR-- but more on that in my next blog post.

We have barely touched the surface of consumerized augmented reality even though some companies are ahead of the curve and have started using AR as an extension of their marketing and sales divisions. IKEA has integrated augmented reality into their socially-oriented sales approach, allowing users to download an app that, when pointed at their living room, will overlay any of IKEA’s products onto the screen. This gives would be buyers an idea for which IKEA furniture would look best in that room. Amazon announced last year the development of Amazon Flow, a mobile AR app that scans barcodes and provides reviews, videos and prices for what it was you scanned. Just last week, Japanese electronics company Omron announced an app that will instantaneously translate text from one language to another, simply by pointing your phone’s camera at what you need translated (Chinese food, anyone?).

And soon, Google’s Goggles app will be able to visually identify any object you place within its frame of view and retrieve information about that object from the internet. The possibilities are endless, and it’s a great time to be an augmented reality proponent (and to have millions of dollars to invest into fledgling AR companies). Yet, with each advancement made in AR, more questions and complications come with it. In my next blog post, I’ll dive into the challenges in augmenting our own lives to exist in a growing digital world, reflecting the gray areas that rise up from the competing demands of these dual realities. Stay tuned!

Media Prediction 2012 Misses Green Boat

By Fran Lowe

I can only conclude that the Financial Times is, as they claimed earlier this week, the early media leader in moving coverage of Green business to its front page and business sections. FT is doing away with separate coverage - bringing green, clean economy and environmental coverage into the mainstream. This end to the “ghettoization" of Green IT, clean tech and corporate sustainability is a positive sign.

It is significant that green is being seen as a new way of doing business.  It is not just about creating new efficiencies, new goods and new markets; but also, it relates to global issues such as supply chain sustainability and global resource management, to name but a few.

This positive sign, however, seemed to run into a major stop sign at this week’s PRSA Media Predicts event, a gathering of top media luminaries that deliver their insights on what technologies, topics and trends will be significant in 2012. When asked by an audience member to predict what would happen in green tech in 2012 – and presumably what the media will be looking to cover – there was decidedly a “universal deer in the headlights” moment from the star line up of eight tech journalists that included TV (Bloomberg and CNBC), NY Times, SF Chronicle, IDG, TechCrunch, technologizer, SFGate and O’Reilly Radar.

The response, when it came, referred to Nest, the maker of a cool new green thermostat for consumers and current favorite with Nick Bilton, NYTimes, (@nickbilton) with a comment on consumers needing to see the benefit or incentive.  That’s certainly true, but what about business?

Sadly, consumer bias was the tone for much of the panel discussion. Sam Whitmore(@samwhitmore) summed it up well the morning after noting that John Gallant (@JohnGallant1) from IDG single-handedly drove enterprise discussion.

 For those of us who focus on B2B and the drive for not just greater efficiency and reductions in energy consumption but real innovation that is building new products, categories and industries, this green thing is pretty big stuff!

We are Thankful

Complied by Molly Reynolds

In the spirit of Thanksgiving, the team at Engage PR has been reflecting on what we’re thankful for. We’ve compiled a short list; feel free to add your own thoughts.

Happy Thanksgiving from the team at Engage PR!

 

• I am thankful for my great clients and their interesting technology which motivates me to come to work everyday.
• I am thankful for GPS!
• I am thankful for my iPhone – it brings me email, music, connections with friends and family, games, restaurant suggestions and reliable directions to everywhere I would like to go.
• Keyboard short cuts!
• I’m thankful for Google Alerts about client coverage.
• Outlook meeting reminders – I would be lost without them!
• I am thankful for iOS5 and the updated Google Maps feature that shows me three different possible routes for my trip.
• I’m also thankful for the Google Maps app on iPhones because of the “use public transportation” option.
• The Wii Fit that will help me work off all the wonderful holiday food!
• I'm thankful for Facetime on my Macbook; I can still feel close to my family who live far away.

Dear iPhone - I Miss You

By Roya Pakfetrat

A few months ago I did the near impossible - I said good-bye to my iPhone 3S and hello to the HTC Evo 4G. Man, oh, man  - I really miss that pretty little piece of technology from Apple. The Android is fine and dandy but the iPhone changed my life.

At the time, I was switching from a solo plan on AT&T to a family plan with Sprint. Economically, it was the right decision but emotionally and mentally, it was not. Now, of course, Sprint is offering the iPhone – but that’s not why I’m here today.

I may not currently be an iPhone user but I plan to be one (again) soon and in the mean time, I can at least read about the cool new iPhone 4S. Here is some of the latest hype on the new gadget:

• Apple sold 4 million units in just three days. So, if you’re thinking of buying the new phone from the Apple store, note that they are asking customers to reserve it online first.
• With the new “find my friend” application, you can even catch a cheating spouse. What could be better - a single app that helps you track users and end bad relationships!
• With “Stuff” Siri Says, you get a unique view intoApple’s new personal assistant, Siri. This site posts screen shots that capture her comical responses.
• Aside from entertainment, Siri does really seem to be a hit so far. A recent Mashable review from a veteran speech recognition user backs this up:
  “Its speech recognition isn’t perfect, and some of its errors are laughable, but in a quiet environment, its accuracy is nearly equal to that of the desktop version of NaturallySpeaking running on extremely powerful processors.”

Until I get to “find my friends” and tell Siri what to do for me, I’ll just have to live vicariously through the endless bloggers, users and writers who are loving their new iPhone 4S.

Netflix has a few things to learn from cable operators yet

By Caitlin Mattias

Netflix has been busy hacking away at the DVD rental brick-and-mortar stores of yesteryear ever since the launch of the no-late-fee, mail-order service launched in 1999. Let’s be honest, no one enjoyed rushing to the closest movie rental store only to find that all the copies of “Clueless” had already been rented for the weekend. Not to mention the inevitable late fees when your little brother forgot to drop off the movie after school. The old model was clearly rife with problems, so few tears were shed by consumers as Netflix’s signature red DVD sleeve became a cultural icon.

With all this next-generation thinking and industry-demolition going on, it’s clear that Netflix management was under the impression that their business decisions were touched by the divine. It’s become evident over the last few weeks, however, that the company DOES in fact have something to learn from the traditional cable operators they’re now targeting for extinction.

Ever since Netflix launched their on-demand streaming service, the cable provider ecosystem has had to quickly develop strategies to address subscribers sucking up bandwidth by streaming video. Of course, Netflix isn’t the only site to blame here – YouTube, Hulu and even music streaming services Spotify, Pandora and a legion of others are causing headaches for those managing network data usage.

If there’s one thing that cable providers have learned in the last few years, it’s that customers are fickle  characters. They have no qualms about switching providers, especially if one can offer more customizable services to cater to their household without using a complicated pricing structure. The industry trend today about cable providers is to offer triple-play services, i.e. bundling high-speed internet, television and telephone/voice service.

Somehow, Netflix management didn’t get this memo. In July, the company announced that it would split the DVD rental service from streaming, prompting an outcry on Twitter (where else?). Last month, the frustration of tweets amped back up as the company announced it was spinning off the DVD rental service altogether into a new company named Qwikster. In short, customers would be provided LESS options under one roof and they would have to pay MORE for the services that they had already been enjoying for one monthly price.

It came as no shock that Netflix issued a harried apology via blog post explaining the split late in September. But Netflix Co-Founder and CEO Reed Hastings’ apology and explanation didn’t change the fact that no one wanted the silly name “Qwikster” showing up on their credit card statements. It seems that all Reed and the rest of the management team needed was a little nudge from the stock market (read: stock plunge) to realize this whole spin-off might not work. And a scant three weeks after this bombshell dropped, we learned Monday that DVDs will be staying at Netflix after all.

Maybe those cable guys aren’t as out of touch with consumers as you thought, Reed.