One of my mantra’s to clients is to “look sideways” to find opportunity.
There is so much modern media that hasn’t made it to the drawing board (or has yet to be discovered) for most organizations. Based on our modern media presentations and client discussions, many organizations are still in the stage of learning about blogs, podcasts mobile media, social networks and the rest (trust me on this). You, like so many we talk to, might be seriously considering how to use these tools for your PR or marketing; or you might be one of those organizations that for a whole host of business reasons and hurdles can’t move forward any time soon with the “conversation model.”
Serving your audiences with modern media doesn’t have to be about putting yourself “out there.” Just look sideways and you can find audiences and serve them with modern media - or even create new services within your existing PR or marketing initiatives. Yes, you can be modern without blogging or putting videos up on YouTube.
A few examples of using an iPod for something besides creating a corporate podcast might better illustrate what I mean by “looking sideways.”
- The recently opened 21C Museum Hotel in Louisville, Kentucky asks guest about their music preferences during the reservation process and a custom music selection is downloaded into each guests’ in-room iPod before they arrive.
The Schiphol Airport in Amsterdam, in partnership with Samsung Electronics and Talpa, recently installed kiosks called “Fuel for Travel” that lets travelers load up their MP3 devices with music, t.v. shows, movies, guides and audio books before boarding their flight.
- Nordiska Kompaniet in cooperation with Ridderheims (fine meat and delicatessen products distributor) has put the iFood terminal in Nordiska Kompaniet’s upscale food hall in Stockholm. The terminals let visitors purchase and download audio recipes to their iPods. They purchase the recipes – and of course all the ingredients – while in that all-important “frame of mind” moment.
All three of these put a modern medium to use to extend the brand, engage the modern customer, and provide a valuable service/solution. And, it can even be a new revenue stream.
Try looking at new media as a product. It might help your organization side-step the hurdles or fears of going ”conversational.” And, it just might wind up changing other perspectives too.
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