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One in five tech firms has rejected a job applicant because of social media profile

16th March 2012

Almost one in five technology industry executives say that a candidate’s social media profile has caused them not to hire that person. This is revealed in the 2012 annual technology market survey conducted by Eurocom Worldwide (http://www.eurocompr.com) the Global PR Network, in association with UK PR agency partner, Six Degrees (http://www.sixdegreespr.com).

The annual Eurocom Worldwide study has previously found that almost 40 per cent of respondents’ companies check out potential employees’ profiles on social media sites, but this is the first evidence that candidates are actually being rejected because of them.

“The 21st century human is learning that every action leaves an indelible digital trail. In the years ahead many of us will be challenged by what we are making public in various social forums today. The fact that one in five applicants disqualify themselves from an interview because of content in the social media sphere is a warning to job seekers and a true indicator of the digital reality we now live in,” said Mads Christensen, Network Director at Eurocom Worldwide.

The Eurocom Worldwide survey this year also reveals that while nearly half (49 per cent) of technology executives say that their firm will increase their expenditure on social media in the next 12 months, over half (57 per cent) say they are unable to accurately measure the impact of the investment. By contrast, only 23 per cent say they can measure it.

The survey finds that 74 per cent of respondents consider online PR to be very or quite important for their company’s search engine optimisation (SEO) with 37 per cent saying it is very important.

“The significant role of online PR in search engine optimisation is often underrated but clearly not by technology firms,” commented Amanda Hassall, Director at Six Degrees.

Social media content

Respondents to the survey were also asked about the primary source of social media content and messaging for their company. The majority (78 per cent) cite in-house sources with PR agencies the second most important source at 12 per cent. Digital marketing agencies and advertising agencies combined account for the remaining 10 per cent.

Of those respondents who work in companies that publish a blog, 57 per cent say that it is done in order to raise profile or create thought leadership. Nearly as many (55 per cent) state that the blogging aims to improve interaction with customers, while 37 per cent say the aim is to boost SEO and 36 per cent say it is to participate in industry debates. According to the responses, the main reason for not blogging is that it is ‘too time consuming’ cited by 42 per cent of those who don’t blog. One in five doesn’t see the value of it while 14 per cent fear a negative response.

The most popular social media platform for technology companies is:

• LinkedIn (74 per cent)
• Twitter – 67 per cent of technology firms tweet
• 64 per cent have a Facebook presence
• 56 per cent are on YouTube.

Only half of respondents surveyed say that their company has a formal process for listening to what is said about them in social media.

The Eurocom Worldwide technology confidence survey was conducted online by member agencies of Eurocom Worldwide during January and February 2012. A total of 318 responses were received with approximately 80 per cent from European countries and 11 per cent from the Americas.

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What You Need to Know to Capitalize on the Video Boom (Even if You’ve Never Shot One in Your Life)

15th March 2012

VideotasticWordtracker has joined forces with Gareth Davies, an acclaimed SEO and ecommerce expert, to create “Videotastic – How to make amazing web videos and sell more online” – a must-have guide to planning, producing and marketing effective web video.

With prospects 72% more likely to buy when seeing a relevant product video, and online video reaching more than 84% of the US Internet audience (in January 2012, comScore), online video is an established and growing trend.

The book takes an easy-to-follow approach. Readers can learn about the video production process, how to use cameras and lights, discover new ways to market and host the finished product.

Here’s what Andy Beal, CEO of Trackur had to say about Videotastic! “I’ve met few people that understand every aspect of video production like Gareth. Read carefully what he has to say, and your next video may well go viral!”

Gareth has helped hundreds of small businesses and created videos that have exponentially boosted their conversion rates and profitability.

“I hope readers can use this as a tool to learn and improve in video production as well as gain the confidence to successfully market themselves and/or their products online” Gareth Davies, author of Videotastic!

Videotastic! has been created for people of all levels of ability and involvement in web marketing – from those who know nothing about online video to professionals looking to reinforce their expertise.

For more information on this web video e-book and a $20 launch discount off its normal price of $49, visit Wordtracker’s Videotastic! page: http://www.wordtracker.com/ebooks/web-video

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First ever Pinterest Lottery turns Pinterest boards into a game

12th March 2012

In a social media first, airline {{ bmi has launched a campaign that turns “repinning” on the social network Pinterest into a lottery style game of chance.

As part of the Pinterest Lottery, bmi has put up an initial five boards, each featuring visual content from a different destination on the airline’s network -Beirut, Dublin, Marrakech, Moscow and Nice (www.pinterest.com/flybmi).

Each board has nine images, or pins, each with a different number. Just like in a standard lottery, Pinterest users choose up to six numbers. This is done by repinning up to six pins from any of the boards.

At the end of each week a lucky number is chosen, with one user at random who chose that number winning a pair of return free flights to any bmi destination.

Pinterest is one of the most talked about and fastest growing social networks of 2012, growing 329 per cent from September to December 2011 and according to some sources now referring more traffic to websites than Google+ or LinkedIn.

As only visual content can be pinned to users’ boards, this makes it perfect as a place where travellers can draw inspiration on where to go on holiday.

Stuart Beamish, Marketing Director, bmi, said:

“We’re always looking for different ways in which social channels can be used to bring the destinations we fly to, to life and Pinterest is a perfect place to do this. By running the Pinterest Lottery, we’re hopefully not only giving Pinterest users ideas of where they might like to fly to, we’re also injecting an element of fun and of chance into the promotion.”

Every week a new board is being added to bmi’s Pinterest page, and users are invited to submit suggestions for topics via social media. In addition to different destinations, these could feature other aspects of travel from food, to beaches to cultural sites.

At the same time as running the Pinterest Lottery, bmi has been hosting the #bmieditchallenge – a photo-edit challenge on the social network Instagram. Last week, photos of nine Spring Sale destinations were uploaded onto Instagram, with an invitation to edit them.

By going onto the bmi Instagram page (http://statigr.am/flybmi), Instagram users can view and vote on the finalists.

The winner (chosen on 10 March) will receive a pair of return business class flights to one of those nine cities.

For more information on the Pinterest lottery – http://bmisocialplanet.tumblr.com

Visit – bmi at www.flybmi.com, www.twitter.com/flybmi or www.pinterest.com/flybmi

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Social Media use is Endemic in UK Workplaces

9th March 2012

The growing numbers of employers said to be concerned with the impact of social media on their organisations prompted the research by Croner ( http://www.cronersolutions.co.uk), the UK expert in workplace information, software and services, part of Wolters Kluwer.

As well as the 15% looking at the internet once an hour, the online survey found that 6% of workers are doing this more than three times an hour. Male employees are the biggest offenders with 19% confessing to logging on at least once per hour compared to 10% of females.

And it is bad news for the capital’s businesses as Londoners are the most likely to surf the net for personal use during the day (42%).

Amy Paxton, Senior Employment Consultant at Croner, says: “The numbers of bosses calling our employment advice lines about social media use in the workplace has steadily risen noticeably over the last 18 months.

“Traditionally employers have had a knee-jerk reaction to social media, some wanting to dismiss employees for gross misconduct. However, this could result in claims for unfair dismissal.

“Additionally, when faced with such situations, employers may also want to introduce a complete ban on accessing social media sites. While this is an understandable approach, employers need to consider the potential benefits for their business if employees make positive use of social media.

“It is completely acceptable for employers to limit internet use during times when employees are expected to be working as it obviously has an impact on productivity. However, access could be offered before or after work, or during official breaks. Whatever an employer chooses it is important that they have the right policies in place which clearly set out what employees can and can’t do.”

The YouGov research has found that over a quarter of workers surveyed (28%) say that the businesses they work in do not have policies in place for social media, internet or email use. A further 14% do not know whether their company has these policies in place.

Amy Paxton says: “High-profile legal cases involving Twitter and Facebook users at work should serve as a warning to employers of the dangers of not having clear policies in place.

“Even though social media still presents itself as a challenge to many businesses it doesn’t have to. And if companies want to be seen as innovative, exciting and dynamic then they may wish to hop on the social media bandwagon and start to future-proof their business.”

Croner recommends that a social media policy should:

  • Set out clear rules on the use of social media. If appropriate, provide some positive guidelines on responsible use
  • Explain the aims of the policy, for example to protect a valuable brand or the business’s reputation
  • Provide clear guidance on what is acceptable in terms of use during and outside working hours. There may be some different rules for out of hours behaviour but some obligations (e.g. confidentiality and not making discriminatory comments) will apply equally
  • Apply to all employees, although different rules may apply depending on their roles within the business
  • Include a right to monitor its employees’ communications. This potentially raises data protection issues so organisations need to ensure that employees are made aware that monitoring may take place and the extent of that monitoring
  • Be subject to regular review to ensure it is up to date with developing technology and reflects the corporate approach of the organisation
  • Be monitored and disciplinary action taken, where necessary, to ensure compliance.

 http://www.wolterskluwer.co.uk

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RFID technology allows retailers to harness social media like never before

6th March 2012

Businesses can now gain control over the level of engagement they have with customers with the use of branded RFID cards which customers can swipe at their physical location to share their activity on Facebook (or other social channels).

Previously, the only way for brands operating in the physical domain to engage with their customers via social media was to create Facebook apps or Pages on which money is spent to drive traffic. Once users are engaged here, they share information with their friends about the app, not about their specific activities at the venue. LifeSynk effectively offers ” {{ a social media-based loyalty scheme allowing businesses to harness the power of word-of-mouth }} ” by allowing customers to swipe their card at the physical location to unlock offers and share experiences with real-life examples.

How does it work for the customer? The customer obtains an RFID card which they link to their Facebook account in a single step on a brand’s Facebook Page. They can then swipe this card at all outlets that have a LifeSynk terminal (which can be branded). When they swipe, the user can take advantage of offers, discounts or promotions as engineered by the brand through the LifeSynk system. Branded and contextual information is broadcast to the user’s friends via Facebook (or other social channels), such as “I just received 20% off menswear at Gap”.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eSllbmn0fgY[/youtube]

In the same way that the Tesco Clubcard scheme works by monitoring customer activity to tailor offers, LifeSynk allows businesses to do this but across a social forum, so that all the customer’s friends can see the benefits they are gaining from the brand.

The user is able to visit their own admin console to control permissions such as allowing wall posts, but more importantly they can view all the branded promotions that are available, thus allowing brands an effective platform to promote their campaigns.

How does the brand use it? The LifeSynk system is comprised of an RFID reader, small CPU computer, sound board, Wi-Fi connectivity and LED lights. Its only requirements are Wi-Fi connection and a power point.

A dashboard of rich features enables brands to set up campaigns and actions that occur when cards are swiped. They can customise the specific news feeds that appear on their customer’s profile pages, and customers’ activities can be tracked.

A number of functions can be assigned to each terminal allowing the brand to control what occurs when a user swipes. The LifeSynk terminals are virtually effortless for businesses: they are shipped with the Wi-Fi key programmed into the board, and start operating as soon as they are switched on. The server is automatically updated if newer versions of the software are found.

The brand has access to rich analytics showing locations, who swiped what, how many times, demographics and more. It even calculates how many people were shared to and the click rate, ultimately allowing businesses to track the number of customers drawn to the venue via the sharing and word-of-mouth of their friends.

Digital services such as Spotify are currently benefiting from integrating with Facebook because activity that’s broadcast is immediate and relevant, driving traffic through shares.

How useful is this to brands? At present a user can check in to a venue, post a status update or Tweet about their experience, but the brand has to sit powerless without insight or influence over these conversations. With LifeSynk, brands can take control of conversations about themselves on social media.

In terms of security, LifeSynk is built on the back of Facebook. It stores no user accounts or personal information – all of this is via a Facebook app, so it is optimally secure using Facebook’s own platform. There is no way to access a user’s account without access to their Facebook account.

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