Say hello to the digital business future
Oct 19 2009 Agenda, Birmingham Post
John Lamb is a renowned critic of Twitter. So why has he decided to go digital?
When it comes to matters digital, I have form. My record shows that I provoked indignation in the Facebook and Twitter communities when I wrote in this newspaper that I thought their conversations were “banal”.
Indeed, when I logged on to Facebook the other day, a “friend” immediately warned everyone of my presence and suggested that they posted only “intellectually stimulating” messages. My reputation goes before me.
Despite that, Digital Birmingham has asked me to be part of a debate on Wednesday called Hello Digital - Discover the Future.
It is described as a “digital media festival enabling participants to explore the modern world and open doors to new possibilities.”
They asked me to explain how businesses were exploiting the opportunities presented by the digital phenomenon. I honestly didn’t know.
And when I asked about 20 companies in Birmingham if they were adopting social networking as a business marketing tool, most of them didn’t know, either.
While acknowledging the value people get out of Facebook, Twitter etc through swapping the trivia of the day (the new gossip on the telephone with your pals), I wanted to discover if there is any real business advantage for a company to break into digital social networking.
You can see the worth to personalities like Stephen Fry, who is apparently one of Britain’s most popular tweeters with 810,000 followers. Or even the Prime Minister’s wife Sarah Brown, whose following of 840,000 is already bigger than the membership of the Labour Party.
But my own imperfect and limited research tells me that few companies have even thought about it.
An exception is The NEC Group. Their digital manager is Jez Ashton and five minutes with him gives you a great insight into the new media.
He has an advantage in Twitter because much of the material he places on there is preaching to the converted, like fans of Tom Jones or any other entertainer.
Fans will be immediately alerted if they receive a Tweet (see, I’m getting the hang of this) about a new concert date. Jez is exploring how the NEC can use Facebook as a feedback channel for more of its venues, as well as a key communication link with visitors.
Having started with the new LG Arena a few months ago as a test-bed, it has attracted 3,000 fans and created great levels of interaction. “We’re likely to roll it out to the NIA and the NEC over the coming months in slightly different tailored ways,” he says.
“It’s also likely that we’ll continue to explore its benefit to other areas of our business, like The Ticket Factory and Amplify, our recently re-branded hospitality offering.”
Linkedin is also on Jez’s radar and he feels that this network will probably be most relevant for bringing together exhibition organisers at the NEC.
Yudhisthir Sharma is an MBA student at Aston Business School in Birmingham. From India, he is an engineering graduate in electronics and communications and has wide international experience in this field.
He says: “Social media is low-cost, high-return and, therefore, an obvious choice for SMEs. It’s a mistake for businesses to regard this as a fad and it’s essential that they look into this market – it’s an extension of communication. For small businesses it’s do-or-die time and getting involved will give them a competitive advantage. Most of the technology we leverage in social media is free but just getting on Facebook or Linkedin is not enough. There should be a strategy and it should not be approached in a blinkered way.
“Marketing in scattergun fashion would be a mistake. Companies should be specific about targeting the right people. Before going flat out, they should learn what’s out there; learn about different technologies and media and monitor the market before embracing the technology.
“People can do this by setting up RSS news feeds, listening to podcasts, understanding what to do and then taking a slow and strategic approach.
“Businesses should not expect quick returns. Small companies can save a great deal but only by adapting a strategic approach.”
Greg Lowson, partner and head of the Birmingham office at law firm Pinsent Masons, tells me that they are using Facebook and Youtube for student recruitment and are experimenting with Linkedin for corporate activity.
But David Grove, the chairman of two of Birmingham’s most successful businesses, Hill & Smith Holdings plc and Grove Industries Ltd, said he had never used social networking for business purposes and had no plans to do so.
Most businesses use email and surf the net to get information and know that their company’s website is a valuable way of promoting themselves, but tools like Twitter, blogging, Facebook and YouTube are more or less a mystery to them.
Apparently, one of the most celebrated business-building examples of using social media is Heather Gorringe, of Wiggly Wigglers, who’ll be on one of the panels at Hello Digital.
She managed to save £80,000 a year on advertising through using online networking – no wonder many traditional advertising media, like newspapers, television and radio, are going down the tube.
Birmingham is giving businesses every opportunity to take advantage of the digital revolution. Coun Paul Tilsley, deputy leader of Birmingham City Council, has launched the city’s Digital Districts, recognising that communication is a key factor influencing inward investment and whether a city is ready for business.
“I do not want to see our city falling behind in this essential piece of infrastructure for business in the 21st century. This is why I have initiated our digital districts programme to challenge the marketplace and bring 21st century telecommunications to the city,” he said.
Hello Digital will also give companies the opportunity to learn for free how they might get best value out of developments, including free surgeries by social media guru Nick Booth.
Hello Digital is a partnership board of public and private organisations that includes Birmingham City Council, Advantage West Midlands, Screen WM, Arts Council England West Midlands, Business Link, Marketing Birmingham and Digital Birmingham that was created to support the digital media industry in the city.
Since it’s regarded as important to have an online presence, if only to ensure that people are not damaging your business, getting savvy with the internet, Facebook, Twitter and a host of other digital communication avenues might just prevent you being stabbed in the back.
To book a free place on a digital surgery and register for the workshops. visit www.hellodigital.net.
* John Lamb is the Press and PR Manager at Birmingham Chamber of Commerce and Industry
