Firstly, a consolidation exercise by the parent company at the end of 2010 resulted in focusing on 3 areas of service.
Secondly, an attempt to find value sources of reference and discussion.

There is thought that this site may combine / consolidate with another site but we’re considering if that is the right strategy.

In the meantime, thanks for tuning in.

This week we outline how a business can offer vouchers through a mobile app.

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This week we look at two examples of how a business can exhibit a more intimate relationship with their clients.

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This week we ask: ‘Can mobile apps help improve customer service?’
The answer has to be a resounding ‘YES’ but with the integrated use of other accessible / viewable social media too, for example Twitter and Blogs.

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Podcasts should match the central focus of your organisation. Or, they simply be internally orientated as  a great communication tool.

We’ve re-thought the purpose of the Corporate Podcasting Show and have renamed / re-branded it to be inline with the main focus of Knowledge Hemispheres. Its almost as if we moved to a new era. We’re not saying the Podcasting is no longer valid! We believe it still is, but now forms part of a bigger story of new media, i.e: content on the move.

Mobile Apps have to be the biggest shift in recent times. Therefore, we’re going to deliver a podcast that is orientated towards the value of mobile apps and mobile content. Podcasting clearly fits into the latter.

The latest show, Episode 30 is now available:

This week we’re benefits of mobile content and Apps for business.
We hope you enjoy it!

Take for example, the viral video for Alfa Romeo (see link below). Its not only creepy but borders on seedy.
The point being that what was an original video about cuteness (to some) has been hijacked.

Lets consider some typical traits in viral video’s:

• Cuteness
• Funny
• Peril – My view it is bad to laugh at people that fall over
• Identifiable – Can people easily relate to what you are talking about
• Spontaneous – Remember Jill and Kevin Wedding video we spoke about.

Read more tips here.

There is an interesting article on understanding if viral video clips can encourage traffic to your website here.
Also, click here to read about and view the original Sloth video,  including news on a new festival to encourage associated creativity.
Quote, re: Lucy Cooke’s original video:

Within a week of visiting the world’s only sloth orphanage in Costa Rica last year, Lucy Cooke had made a rough-and-ready 90-second clip that was being watched by more than 160,000 people a day. Her decision to “go and shoot a bunch of sloths” put her at the epicentre of online viral video.

With her original footage still attracting thousands of eyeballs daily, Cooke is now in final talks with broadcasters about producing a full-length documentary. “I posted the 90-second video on my Vimeo site and very quickly it was favourited [sic] and pushed by Vimeo staff,” she explains. “I then put the word out via my personal Facebook page and also my Amphibian Avenger Facebook and Twitter feeds. The video was then tweeted and retweeted by a few key friends who have a lot of fans.

Personally, I believe that the quality of your brand image is essential. Being associated with something that is suspect should not overtake a firms zealousness to become mainstream or current. Then again, some may argue that any publicity is good publicity and that such content is just like flicking through a magazine. Corporate responsibility is also key to keep inline, else a costly law suit could commence.

Click here to view the embedded video.

The video shown above is the finished product.
NB The video below outlines the, ‘making of the video’ – NB beware of the bad language at the end.
Some of the camera’s used for this shoot are described here.

More importantly, with the ipad offering so much interactivity, these digital advancements are just the start of what could become a new art of expression.

However, at what cost?

The end product is certainly amazingly glossy and impressive and offers new promise to professional photographer and videographers. NB It is the cover that has been developed.

However, it is likely that smaller magazines will not be able to afford this but over-time just like augmented reality equipment became cheaper, it will become more accessible. KHL Interactive offer i-pad magazine conversion services. One of the advantages is the ability to include overlays that can launch video content – this could be an alternative, as video could be launched at the beginning or embedded within the publication.

The other issue is who will bare the cost of such expensive shoots / content in the short-term? If the paywall model works then we could find chargeable premium editions, for example fashion magazines can cost  upwards of £5 per issue. Will an on-line digital version be supplemented by advertising revenues?

Click here to view the embedded video.

Here are some suggestions:

• Great for registering at events, for example: a charity ride
• Again, at say an event using it for on-the-fly Powerpoints.

With regard to the latter, recently we recorded at the InfoSec2010 event in London. The crew saw lots of people with i-pads, albeit that it is not available in the UK until late May 2010. Many used it for the purpose of quick demonstrations with powerpoint slides.

• In meetings, communicate specific ideas on a light multi-media device
• For example, it could be great for communicating diagrams, concepts or enlarging specific images – helping the creative process.
• Marketing survey’s – Obviously, better looking than a clip pad. You will probably have to put the i-pad on a chain to stop an unsuspecting quick running robber from dashing off with it!
• Related to the latter, design really engaging questionnaires for market research or product feedback.
• In addition, to questionnaires, signing-up people to subscription services through a simple touch-sensitive form could be appealing, especially if access to a portable application or on-line magazine could be demonstrated on the spot.
• As the world becomes more social (on-line), companies with Facebook, Youtube, Linkedin, Ning, Myspace and shared bookmarking tools could be updated on the move with selective locally acquired content.
• Product demonstrations – showing multi-media views or insights of a product.
  You could develop a specific video tutorial or Motion Graphics film based promotion of a product.
• On-line magazine (interactive, flip-book type with rich media instead of or blended with flat images and text).

With regard to the latter, KHL Interactive offer online magazine conversions for existing PDFs. A proof-of-concept / trial can be set-up foc for upto 60 views.

What the i-pad brings us is what I have been dreaming about for years. An environmentally friendly unit that delivers rich engaging content. The video shows the potential for advertisers. NB The reality will be if more opportunities are given to many creative providers, not just traditional agencies. Why? Because everyone deserves a chance to bring in new ways of communicating messages within a commercial context.

Today, Advertising is too ‘In your face’!
Many feel that advertising needs to be more innovative and less, ‘in your face’, i.e: surveys have suggested that text message based adverts / spam, windows pop-ups or what I call web-page over-takers (adverts that simply confuse and hijack your reading space) are irritating. Even advertisements before watching a video can really turn-off the viewer!

So, what kind of advertisement is acceptable?
It is a known fact that entertainment orientated, subtle and relevant advertising is popular. There is also no point is placing advertising on the back of rich content, as by that time the viewer or listener is ready to move on. Maybe sponsored space is the best way to go, for example, a classified section that is sponsored? Or, how about shorter commercials, e.g: less than 10seconds.

In summary, it is great to see new tools like the i-book store coming our way, what we don’t want is commercial dominance by some players else they will be ‘talking to the hand’!!

In recent years, McGonigal has grown especially interested in the way that massively multiplayer online gaming generates collective intelligence, and interested in the way that the collective intelligences thus generated can be utilized as a means of improving the world, either by improving the quality of human life or by working towards the solution of social ills.

For example,games like World of Warcraft give players the means to save worlds, and incentive to learn the habits of heroes. What if we could harness this gamer power to solve real-world problems?

She say’s:

Instead of providing gamers with better and more immersive alternatives to reality, I want all of us to be become responsible for providing the world with a better and more immersive reality.

It also took me back to a scary Star Trek (original series) episode entitled: A Taste of Armageddon
In this episode (plot summary by http://www.ericweisstein.com/fun/startrek/) Kirk, Spock, and three crew members (including Galloway and Tamura) beam down and are met by Mea 3 and a security detachment of two who take them to Anan 7 and members of the High Counsel. Anan 7 claims that Eminiar VII has been at war with Vendikar, the third planet in the system, for 500 years. However, no evidence of warfare is evident to the landing party who witness a fusion bomb “attack.” In fact, Yeoman Tamura’s tricorder shows no radiation disturbances, despite Anan 7′s claim that half a million people have just been killed. A counter-attack is ordered by Anan 7 and carried out by Sar 6′s activation of the “attack unit.” Spock realizes that the war is being fought by computers which calculate casualties and that the citizens who are declared “dead” are then required to report to disintegration chambers.

Click here to view the embedded video.

On a positive note, I really like this video as it is both well presented and provides great lateral thinking. For example, recently she has suggested and developed 3 games that encourage resolving world issues in a virtual environment but with a possible optimism and input for real world challenges or reflections.