It's a Community, so "Do Unto Others...."

There are many, many issues to contemplate and discuss with regard to intellectual property and social media. Though several years old, this post from the Legalzoom blog captures many of the key legal considerations.  

One of the most important considerations -- to me at least – isn’t legal. Rather, it’s the issue of what happens to one’s reputation, or that of the brand we represent, if we fail to respect another’s work by using it without permission or attribution.

Social media sometimes has a wild west feel to it, like you can get away with nearly anything. Indeed, we’ve all seen posts on Facebook or other social media that fail to give credit where credit is due. But for me it all comes down to this: when we engage in social media, we are participating in a community. As members of a community, each of us has a responsibility to respect others and to respect the work they produce.

However, it's awfully difficult to monitor this in the social world. I see content every day that’s posted or shared without attribution. Even though many content producers now want their material spread as far and wide as possible, we shouldn’t make assumptions. Rather, we should follow the age-old "Do Unto Others...." rule.

Evaluating American Airlines' Business App

I love American Airlines' (AA) free app for the Iphone! It's an exceptional example of a business social app that both improves customer experience and engages customers in new and exciting ways.

It’s sophisticated, visually appealing, uncluttered, and – importantly – it’s intuitive to use. When booking a flight, checking a reservation, or changing seats, I want to handle those transactions smoothly. AA’s beautifully designed app allows customers to handle virtually any function quickly and easily.

Not only can you book a flight, but you can also:

·       Check flight status

·       Change seats

·       Check frequent flyer mileage

·       Email your itinerary to a colleague or loved one

·       Review flight schedules

·       Purchase an Admiral’s Club Day Pass

·       Check in for a flight

The feature I value the most? AA’s revolutionary boarding pass feature! With AA’s app, you no longer need to print and carry a paper boarding pass. The board pass bar code is scanned directly from your smartphone when you pass through security. The security agent simply directs you to hold the phone under the scanner, and the barcode is read automatically. This is a small, but revolutionary step, in making security easier for passengers. As a customer, I’m delighted that AA offers this feature via the app.

Several bonus features are worth noting:

·       Sudoku. When I’m sitting on the runway on a delayed flight, I like to find things to occupy my mind. A book usually does the trick. But for those times when I realize, too late, that the book I was reading is stowed in the overhead in my carry on bag, American’s Smartphone app comes to the rescue. The app is embedded with a Sudoku game feature to keep me occupied. Sudoku occupies me for hours.

·       Parking reminder. The AA app’s parking feature not only allows you to jot down a quick reminder note about your car’s location, but it also allows you to store a photo of your car’s position.

AA’s Smartphone app has it all: functional features that allow flight check in and changing seat assignments plus helpful add-ons such as the parking reminder feature. It’s everything a good app should be in the interactive, social age.

Working in Adobe Connect

Last night was a first for me. I delivered a PowerPoint presentation on the Vine smartphone app to my colleagues. Wow, Adobe Connect is a cinch to master!

Adobe Connect is a godsend for groups that work or live at a distance from one another but need to present complex information in a meeting setting. Here’s out it works:

·        The participants and presenter access the meeting via a link provided by the meeting host.

·        There are two presentation option and either works brilliantly:

o   Upload his/her presentation document to Adobe

o   Share his/her desktop to allow participants to see exactly what the presenter sees.

(For my presentation, I opted to share my screen as I had videos to show participants and discovered that accessing videos is smoother via desktop sharing that an uploaded document. Were I not sharing videos, I would upload my presentation directly.)

·        Adobe Connect allows the audience to interact with the presenter verbally and via text. The audience asks questions in real time and receives the answers immediately.

·        Of some note, the presenter may either address the audience using webcam feature, or he/she may upload a photograph. (I uploaded a photo as there can be a ‘jumpiness’ to webcams that I personally find distracting.)

Adobe connect really is as simple as the above four steps indicate; it couldn’t be more user friendly!

I've presented via Cisco's Webex tool on prior occasions and found it acceptable. However, Adobe Connect is visually more attractive than Webex, and its interface with users can't be beat. The audio is clear and crisp with only a few hiccups that may be more attributable to the individual's wireless than Adobe Connect itself.

Overall, this is an exceptional tool for creating a social interaction when a group cannot meet in person. It’s a necessity for any business today that wishes to communicate in real time with business associates in more than one location. Adobe Connect is cost effective and is a great example of how the internet has changed commerce.

How Vine is Democratizing Marketing

The social media tool I studied for this class is the new Vine app for smart phones which was introduced just one year ago. Like most social media, Vine "is a great equalizer and it's leveling the playing field for those who can adapt and lead" (Solis 2011, xv). With only a smartphone and one’s imagination, one can create video content anywhere and anytime. Vine places video production in the hands of the grassroots.

Best of all? Vine is free!

At first glance there is at least one drawback -- videos can only be up to 6 seconds in length. However, individuals and brands are learning how to tell stories and market products within this constraint and in doing so are revolutionizing marketing. Dunkin Donuts was the first brand to broadcast a Vine-created video, on September 8, 2013, during ESPN’s Monday Night football. View Dunkin’s video here.

Ford Motor Company has now taken up Vining with ads like this one. With this simple, 6 second video, Ford engaged emotionally with potential customers by reminding them of playing with trucks as children. For the male customer, in particular, this ad drives home the fun of owning a truck.

Vine could not be simpler to use. To create a video:

1.     Point your phone in the desired direction.

2.     Place your finger on the screen.

3.     The camera records until you lift your finger.

If you want to include several shots in a video, simply press and lift your finger at intervals until you capture all the desired shots. Remember though, you only have 6 seconds!

Vine is so simple to use that even my technology-challenged father can figure it out! And with a free social tool that’s this user-friendly, the door is now wide open for individuals and brands of all sizes to take advantage of the power of Vining.

The advent of Vine is yet another example of social media leveling the playing field by creating opportunities for inexpensive outreach to audiences. While Ford and Dunkin Donuts can use Vine as a creative extensive of larger marketing campaigns, with Vine even small mom-and-pop operations with limited budgets can play.