The Greatest Storytellers? Oscar quickviews

Film holds its place as the most lucrative form of storytelling, so I’ll give the Oscars a few lines here.

 

3 things I missed at the 83rd Oscars:

1. Un-nominated actors as hosts? Working material and scripts for humor. Delivering lines. Some are calling for a return to comedy. The show needs LIVE spark.  Read more here.
2. Oscar tradition casts previous year’s winners as this year’s presenters. But where were Monique and Christoph Waltz. (from Roger Ebert)
3. The show ended early (for us in the Mountain time zone). Not enough to show?

 

3 things I liked about the 83rd Oscars:

1. Best Picture montage with audio of emotional WW2 speech from “The King’s Speech.” Look for the “Best Picture Compilation” (3:12) here.
2. Randy Newman speech - playful jabs at Academy, with genuine appreciation. Remember that his pop songs carry the water for his social commentary.
3. 10 films up for “Best Picture” a little large, a bit unwieldy, but good intentions for high-profiling more films.

See you at the movies.

 

Piano stairs change behavior

Here’s an outstanding example of imagination at work! Creativity is the ingredient that can change behavior! Thanks Volkswagen!

No TV football this New Year's Day?

(Univ. of Mich. drum major David Hines Jr. by David Guralnick, The Detroit News)

College football is my game. It’s erratic. The moods and moves of young football players never fail to surprise, and there are plenty of upsets. But with a total of three – count ‘em, three – games on broadcast TV, the college bowl system is no longer what it was.

To paraphrase Churchill, this is not the beginning of the end of bowl games as we once knew them. It is the end of the beginning of an all-new college bowl system.

Follow the money. TV execs decided to not bid against ESPN for broadcast rights to the remaining 32 bowl games. I didn’t really notice or care until it interrupted my annual New Year’s Day ritual. For me, New Year’s Day is “pro scouting day.” It’s relaxing. It’s the culmination of the season’s drama, NCAA sanctions, player mishaps and coaching scandals.

But as a committed member of the “Rabbit Ears Coalition” (we who do not have cable/satellite), there is only one bowl game at my house this New Years Day, the totally inconsequential Outback Bowl between 7 and 5’s Penn State (coached by 84-year old Joe Paterno) and Florida (coached by 46 year-old Urban Meyer). Good players, good coaches, should be a decent game. But there’s no Sugar Bowl, no Fiesta Bowl, no Orange Bowl for we broadcast patrons.

NBC opted for the outdoor NHL game. ABC wants to get us hyped up for the sci-fi drama “V,” so they’re showing last season’s closing episodes. CBS chose “48 Hours.” Fox is sticking with “Cops” and “America’s Most Wanted.” The networks have no enthusiasm at all for the college football audience (compared to the cost of buying the TV rights). Are they right? Does the college football fan only want games that “matter” in the form of a college football playoff system?

A word on ESPN3.com. I had a glimmer of hope that I could go on line to watch a game. I’ve figured out how to cross the “living room divide” and get the internet on my TV (S-video cable from an older laptop or Wii Internet). Alas, my provider (Qwest) does not have access to ESPN3.com. The good folks in Bristol did provide me a comment page to “ask my provider” to offer access to ESPN3.com. Does that mean Qwest has to pay ESPN the same way cable/satellite providers pay for content? I’m certain of it.

So that’s the game, and those are the players. I am finally convinced that to get my bowl games back on “Free TV,” a playoff system is required. “Games that matter” will bring back the audiences, and the major networks will pay up. Dang. I understand progress, but I kind of liked things the way they were.

Wizbangblog.com stayed up late and wrote the first blog on the dearth of TV bowl games found on my Google search.

Learning style points for social media

Many thanks to Sam Fiorella, of http://www.denmarktheagency.com/ and sponsors http://www.cbeyond.com/ for last week’s "Social Media Squared" seminar in Denver. The long day was chock full o’ tips and techniques. But mostly, I appreciated the changes in mindset being forced upon American business by the wide open social media culture.

I liken the current transition from “old PR” to “new PR” to the difference between learning styles. Consider the difference between room dynamics in a lecture (“I’m the expert. Shut up and listen.”) and a more interactive symposium (a learning environment in which the attendees are expected to share their expertise). In fact, sharing (give and receive) is a cardinal ethic in the social media universe.

At the University Pittsburgh’s Cathedral of Learning, 26 world renown “Nationality Classrooms” depict the different learning styles employed around the world. We are generally familiar with the ornate, forward-facing, “professor knows everything” layout of the Norway classroom.

The beautiful Indian classroom, also ornate, orients the students’ desks facing each other. In this design, a “shared” learning experience is encouraged.

The clock is ticking on hierarchical business structures in the 21st century global economy. Here is a short list of a few of Fiorella’s “new” paradigms of communications in the social media age:

• Note the transition from “one to many” (broadcast) to “one to few” (database, e-blasts) to “one to one” (super niched, highly targeted, almost personal communications).

• Case study: Boston restaurant blogs recipes and videos for foodies, sees 30% rise in sales a year later.

• “You are serving the COMMUNITY – not yourself.”

• “Social media is used to create conversations, not make announcements.” (Even celebrity and PR announcements made on Twitter want to be part of the conversation.)

• In the “Social Media Ecosystem,” healthy organisms feed each other.

• In the era of Web 2.0, work is not a space, it’s an activity. (no more “going in to work.”)

Growing your blog, basically

A client recently asked me “how do I get more people to read my blog?” A great, bottom line question. In fact, an entire industry has been build up around getting one's blog or website noticed. Without going too deeply into the soil, let me keep it simple. Focus on “the 3 C’s.”

 

 

CONTENT
Your blog needs a snappy title, and a sub-title that describes your target topic/genre/niche.

 

Your lead paragraph has to meet the requirements of a good lead, including the key words by which you want to be found.

 

Facebook raises the value of its posts that contain media (image or video link), or that have comments.

 

One of many ways to engage your audience is to ask a question at the end of your post. Comments on your blog post are golden.

 

A Google search of the term SEO (“search engine optimization”) turned up 1.32 BILLION hits just now (the industry I was referring to above). The purpose of SEO is to get as high on the page of search results as possible. As you study those “best practices” (use of keywords, lots of people linking to your site, called “back links”), you will – in theory - develop a higher search result.

 

A couple of articles I like on the basics of SEO:

• Stoney deGeyter’s SEO 101.
• MediaCollege.com offers a few pages to help you sort through the concepts of SEO, and don’t miss the discussion on ethics of Content SEO and Non-Content SEO.

CONNECTIONS
This is the social part of social media. Your blog entries should include LOL (“lots of links”). There will sometimes be a reciprocal linking to your blog posts, but only if your work truly adds to the conversation.

 

Good blog pages also have a “blog roll,” a handy list of related blogs that the host likes. In the process of building any social media site (Facebook or Twitter) or blog, if you want friends, be friendly! Check out my previous post on “Blog rollin’.”

CONSISTENCY
If you are a writer, you must write. Not just colorfully, but regularly. It doesn’t have to be long, in fact, keeping your topics focused will keep your blogs short. Try to keep your blog short enough to read between stops on the Metro.

 

Want to bring in another aspect of the issue? Write another blog. Ongoing, regular content keeps your readers (and search engines) well-fed and happy. There is no other route to growing an audience.

 

Content.  Connections.  Consistency.  The basics, but there is so much more to say…

Blog rollin'

It took a while for the blog roll to take share on my marketing and communications idea spot, Seismic. But it’s finally here. Thanks to social media maven Sarah Evans and media database Cision’s Heidi Sullivan on a recent social media webcast. Their webcasts are free!


I was convinced by Seth Godin’s post on “Demonstrating strength.” The line “Risking the appearance of weakness takes strength. And the market knows it” was the last straw. I was concerned that with all the truly excellent content on other blogs, my offerings would look pale in comparison. That’s an old-fashioned, defensive view of the open nature of the internet.

A little “self-talk” reminded me of the unique experiences and skill set I offer to my clients, friends and contacts. The last 30 years in radio and international non-profit PR weren’t for nothing’!

My process for building the blog roll began with deciding how many and which blogs to post. I begin with 20 blogs and websites in my “best of.” Probably my years of radio and “Top 20” in my brain somewhere. Sarah Evans only has 15. Cision has 33.

Some of the blogs I settled on I’ve followed for years. I even included a link to the static site for The Cluetrain Manifesto. It’s concepts are essential for late adaptors and reluctant communicators. The rest I investigated from Advertising Age’s “Power 150," solely based on the name of the blog. Yup, the name. The name is the primary and pre-eminent identifier you’ll ever have. Reflecting my Star Trek geekdom, “what is your designation?

I’ll be checking out your blog roll too!

10 steps to better TV soccer

Have you got World Cup fever yet? Neither do I, but I have watched a couple of matches. It makes me wonder why FIFA and the TV producers don’t do a few basic things to make the game LOTS more interesting for the American viewer. Besides “destroying the integrity of the game,” these 10 steps will certainly grow the game for the American TV market.

Soccer leagues have all the little kids in the nation locked up, but they won’t break through to the rest of us until they change something. Maybe FIFA is perfectly fine having the world’s most popular sporting event without the US market. OK, but while I’m trying to “do my part” and be relevant to a global event, it would be more enjoyable if they had a clue about the American TV viewer.

So with apologies to the futbol purists, here are 10 steps to better TV soccer:

1. More and better use of cameras – What are they using – 2? 3? Why not the overhead view? The end of the field long view? How about the camera on a track (used in NFL games and at track meets) to show the speed of the game when players are in a footrace to catch the ball? How about a “goal cam” to show what the goalie sees during the single most exciting moment of any game – the penalty kick? A close look shows only the occasional use of these angles. What a waste! For the American audience, they will need to use those angles more.

2. More instant replay – I don’t want to overturn the official’s call. It’s enough to embarrass them when they blow a call. They currently use the replay on penalties, during scuffles, and for shots on goal. Headers are amazing physical feats that deserve more coverage. And dare I say it… the tele-strator?

3. Border ads – I actually like the Rock ‘em-Sock ‘em football players on the lower edge of the screen during Fox’s NFL coverage. It’s fun. Let the ad creators develop the borders of the screen. I’m easily bored, OK? All that long running across that big field. Producers seem to struggle to find ad space on events that don’t have natural stops in play, but they’ve done OK with NASCAR ad availability.

4. More player profiles – this is critical when we don’t know the players. It’s a big field, but I want to see his face! If he’s a great player, you’ll have to show me why. Winning goals? Games started? Shots on goal? The goalies should be big time stars, but I want to see the stats that count. Educate us. Oh, they don’t want to embarrass the American viewer that has to be walked through fine points of the game? Maybe it’s better that we don’t watch at all. Idiocy!

5. Sponsored plays – since we’re going all commercial, how about “that header brought you by Brylcream – for winners!” “That goalie’s big hands play sponsored by Isotoner.”  Hmm... guess there aren't that many opportunities for sponsored plays...

6. More ads with soccer metaphors - The ads during the World Cup rarely reinforce soccer imagery. I like the stadium placards for Budweiser, and I like the GEICO soccer announcer. The Allstate protection goalie, good. The Adidas YouTube ad with Beckham, Snoop and Daft Punk, outstanding! I want to see highway safety ads where the driver waves a yellow card as a substitute for road rage. How about “90 minutes to win” as a call to office productivity?

7. Profile local soccer kids – Those nerdy kids who play soccer are going to need a real make over to start winning the popularity contests. Get these kids on a soccer version of punt, pass and kick. And once TV learns how to cover soccer, state championship soccer matches should find themselves on TV, sponsored by FIFA.

8. Convert kids to soccer from other sports – Are soccer players fast? Fastest on the field? Can you recruit the kid with the fastest 40 from football to soccer? Can the defensive end be converted to soccer goalie with all the celebration that his quarterback sacks used to get? Think Lawrence Taylor or Alfred Willams or Karl Malone as goalie.

9. The next star after Beckham? – who is it? Make sure he has a movie star or rock star wife.

10. And lastly, US success in the World Cup - "our" team will have to get to the semi-finals in the World Cup. Relax, you‘ve got four more years to harvest the next round of great players.