One of the biggest barriers many thought-leaders find in using social media is their lack of subject-matter: “What should I write? I can’t do an 800-word article every day…” is a common refrain. Most bloggers will confirm that shorter posts are much more likely to be read, so this desire for longer postings is usually [...]
Viral fraternalism: Why trades unions have the most to gain from social media tools
Even after Googling for ten minutes or so, I was unable to work out whether it was Groucho Marx or George Burns who said, “The secret of acting is sincerity. If you can fake that, you’ve got it made.” That may be true for actors, but one of the hardest lessons that brands, politicians and marketers [...]
RSS + lateral thinking
If there is one bit of technology that I would urge every non-techie to get their head around, it’s RSS – ‘really simple syndication.’ This is a facility that most modern websites have added to them allowing visitors to take bits of content and use them in a variety of ways. The most obvious use [...]
MP’s websites should save MP’s time – and make their constituents happier’
In heavily contested constituencies, most sitting MPs have a good website. That’s part of the reason that many of them were returned in 2010. But how many MP’s websites help them to step up the quality of their work as an elected representative? Speaking to MP’s researchers (having shared an office with an MP’s team [...]
Bootstrapping skills – mailmerge
This is a short post about a subject that someone in your office needs to know about. A basic understanding of how mailmerge works, along with a bit of lateral thinking can help you get your information out very effectively – and save you loads of work. It’s as useful a bit of knowledge as [...]
Leadership blogging tips 3: Mean what you say
“If you want to hear God laugh, tell him your plans” – Woody Allen Blogging helps you develop your thoughts in public. This can improve your productivity and create a new dialogue with a targeted group of people that you want to work with more closely.
Inforgraphics & open data: An introduction.
The leadership blogging series on this site will continue to dance around what is essentially a single point: That blogs are good for getting others to help you describe a problem (the essential prelude to solving it effectively). People who have thought about this potential for any length of time have concluded that an effective [...]
Leadership blogging tips 2: Productivity, recreation or therapy?
Unless social media makes you more efficient and effective, it’s recreation or therapy*. Obvious, eh? As Flannery O’Connor said… ‘I write because I don’t know what I think until I read what I say.’
Leadership blogging tips 1: Target your audience
Short. Classy. Targeted. The busy influential people that you most want to have a conversation with are not likely to be impressed by ‘digital incontinence.’ Peter Jay was upbraided by a sub-editor at The Times for writing his column too densely. He replied: ‘I am writing for three people in England, and you are not one of [...]
Potent Facebook
You may have seen this already, but it’s worth another showing. Using Twitter may offer some instant gratification, but it’s worth remembering just how potent Facebook is as a medium. The Conservative Party’s digital manager Samuel Coates recently tweeted that a Tory microsite got something in the order of ten times as many referrals from [...]
