SWMSTweet: Highlights from June 2010
Submitted by Sam Whitmore on Wed, 2010-06-30 21:00The June round-up from @SWMSTweet:
SWMS Tactical - "What Works?" Tips and Highlights from the first half of 2010
Submitted by Christy Whitmore on Tue, 2010-06-29 15:59As we reach the midway point of 2010, we thought we'd do something new: replay for you the most important takeaways from the 2010 SWMS editorial teleconferences so far. Hear the audio selections in which leading reporters, editors and bloggers dispense wisdom beyond the usual cliché “Don’t call… email.” We found four consistent themes throughout the first six months of the year: data, SEO, context, and content.
Data:
Julia Angwin, The Wall Street Journal
"Deeper than interactive graphics"
Sebastian Rupley, Gigaom
"We respond to good rich data"
David Sleight, Graphics Designer
Data: "The new wire service"
Robin Wauters, TechCrunch
Statictics: "Always interesting"
SEO:
Greg Jarboe, SEO-PR
"Keyword research is market research" and "Tag, tag, tag"
Stephen Wellman, Ziff Davis Enterprise
Coaches reporters on search performance
Context:
Charles Babcock, InformationWeek
"Cues and clues"
John Dix, Network World
"Diagram it!"
Content:
Omar Gallaga, NPR / Austin Statesman
"Sound livens it up"
Nick Wingfield, The Wall Street Journal
"Video footage is super helpful"
Nick Kolakowski, eWeek
Think "Spy photos"
SWMS Strategic: Visual Storytelling, Problem and Solution
Submitted by Sam Whitmore on Tue, 2010-06-29 15:37Visual storytelling is one slow train, isn't it? Why doesn't today's web content move people like books and movies do? Multimedia tools and powerful hardware abound. And we remain so easily captivated by drama, be it last fall's Balloon Boy hoax or last week's game-winning goal from Landon Donovan.
After attending a two-day visual storytelling summit in Washington state, we think we know why.
Formidable obstacles remain, especially for corporations not used to humanizing themselves.
SWMS Editorial Teleconference - Eric Hellweg, editor, HarvardBusinessReview.org
Submitted by Christy Whitmore on Thu, 2010-06-24 17:28
When you think of C-title tech edit destinations, does Harvard Business Review come to mind? It should. Join us as executive editor Eric Hellweg walks us through the many changes he's overseen at the title since his SWMS appearance last year. It's hard to think of a better site to reach senior executives across so many different industries.
SWMS Editorial Teleconference: Mike Cassidy, columnist, San Jose Mercury News
Submitted by Christy Whitmore on Tue, 2010-06-22 11:27
Mike Cassidy is among the last men standing at the venerable San Jose Mercury News. He also endures as a storyteller. Many pay lip service, but few of today’s journalists really know how to make a reader care — truly care — about a person they don’t even know.Mike’s writing evokes. It speaks. It’s stylish but not self-conscious.
It’s too bad more PR pros aren’t geared to help someone like this. All the potential is right here in these notes. He outlines several pitch approaches he’d consider.
Mike also says he will answer any e-mail addressed specifically to him (i.e. not blasts). Try him on that!
SWMS Facebook Group: The Latest Feed
Submitted by Sam Whitmore on Wed, 2010-05-26 14:04Recap from our SWMS Facebook group: The Big Think, Column five Media, IPTV's ascendance, The Social CRM Battle of the Titans, Carol, Kara and Mike (oh my...)
SWMS Editorial Teleconference - Julia Angwin, senior technology editor, Wall Street Journal
Submitted by Christy Whitmore on Wed, 2010-05-26 13:40
With big changes to Digits and a new daily video to discuss, Wall Street Journal senior technology editor Julia Angwin makes a return appearance on the SWMS editorial teleconference series. Angwin blogs infrequently and appears occasionally on Digits video. But she manages a team of crack bloggers who produce many Digits posts as well as the product analysis video series called Worth It?
Julia also teases with information about a coming database journalism project and the importance of thinking visually while working on story ideas.
SWMS Analysis: PR's Stake in Social CRM
Submitted by Sam Whitmore on Thu, 2010-05-20 12:24What does "social CRM" mean to a PR pro paid to pitch reporters? Not much. Today.
SWMS Tech Edit Spotlight on Social Media Measurement Tools
Submitted by Sam Whitmore on Tue, 2010-05-18 21:00
Analytics-driven listening tools aren’t new. Biz360 was out there ten years ago. So was Cymfony. These tools are truly one of those decade-long overnight-success stories.
SWMS analyzed a handful of tools and discovered that they are the sound of one hand clapping. To get full value from the time and money invested, you really need to pay extra for a human analyst to (a) help you make sense of the data, and (b) set objectives that deliver you the results you want.
We also illustrate another pitfall: how to avoid building silos that prevent a company from collaborating across departments.
Yes, they are... if managed properly
Data Visualization - examples and news
Submitted by Sam Whitmore on Wed, 2010-05-12 13:14SWMS is creating this collection of interesting data-visualization examples and news. Visit frequently for updates.
Our advice: get to know the artists and visual art workflow at the publications you care about. They are increasingly important as media evolves online, on tablets and on mobile screens as well. While most of these artists aren’t “pitchable” in the traditional sense, become a source for them in the near term to secure a better relationship with them when it really counts.
Also, consider who you are talking to when you are pitching visual ideas. Word people think in keystrokes, artists think in pictures. Seems like a simple point, but it can make all the difference when getting your ideas over the goal line.
