Book review: Selling without selling

Without being a sales person or having any professional trace in this domain, I found a couple of inspiration for my daily professional, academic and even personal journeys in this book Selling without selling. The title in itself is an invitation to open the book and I didn't wait too long until I lost myself for a couple of hours into the comfort of my couch.

Don't expect nothing spectacular from this book. There are many simple reminders we have to deal generally in our social life: control the body language, keeping a medium to high level of social interactivity, use a positive vocabulary, think and observe twice before intervening in a conversation, care and relate to your audience. It might be easy and at the beginning of the book I was about to leave the lecture as convinced that it is nothing new I will learn out of it. But, in fact, although there were well-known ideas and practices, I realized that I didn't use them in a coherent way. Or that despite the fact that practicing some of the advices, the connection with other aspects of my PR and communications activities are rather superficial.

Overall, an easy but useful lecture for a lunch break or for a cloudy Sunday morning!

Using Twitter in space

The astronaut Paolo Nespoli sends pictures to Earth via Twitter.

The spontaneous brand

I will not enter into any details regarding the (low) degree of insanity of this story with UFOS, Armageddons and other double vision effects. For the branding and PR point of view, for me it was interesting how the image of this Bugarach, a relatively unknown place inside and outside France, turned into a most see destination (and not only for the sake of post-2012 survival). With advantages - as people who bought land and who are heading (in flows) to this place, investing in hotels and other services - and disadvantages - as the immediate danger for the quiet life of the people. If the elements of this image are truth or not, reliable or not, created or invented this doesn't matter. The final result is the collective work of people's (secret) wishes, their desires and mental needs. From now on, it's the duty of brand managers and communicators to continue the work.

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Texting, for teens and adults

A couple of years ago - less than 3, perhaps -, texting was the priviledge and hobby of hype teens. Now, it is the mainstream all over the generations. An answer to this demand are as well the evolving programs adapted for cell phones, providing news, cultural and travel information. This is the challenge for the communications as a whole.

Inspiration or/and information

About involving communities, peoples and sharing ideas.

Self-helping books

or a long period of time I considered the self-help book and, in general, the publications aiming to make you happier and shining and more peaceful with a huge distrust. What profession is this, to help people to smile, to be themselves, to be happy? In fact, everybody wants to be like this, but what you cannot solve is the unpredictable and unfriendly environment. In conclusion, these self-help whatever are not to be taken into account, as their efficiency and professionalism is closer to the daily horoscopes.

It was a long time ago, more than 10 years, at a very beginning of my personal observation process of the human relations. Working in a very personalized environment as it is the case with the journalistic one, it was not necessarily a need to be too careful with the management of human resources. Journalists are supposed to be, by their professional definition, bold, mean, indifferent to what other people say. But, as I upgraded my level from a simple reporter to a middle executive, if these people do not understand the reason of being connected and coordinating with the others, their news could be a wonderful story, but without relevance for what the daily organisation of the newspaper. Hence, the need to create good communications links and to let people understand the necessity to be aware of the nonconflictual tools which could be used in relation with the others.

After these experiences, I continued to face various problems related to human resources distribution: people unhappy with their work because unable to go beyond their own limits, people unable to identify their potential in order to find the right place for outlining their capacities, people in a permanent conflictual competition with the others, but in the impossibility to realize that the most important problem relies in themselves.

With other words, the industry of self-help and coaching books is not a simple industry, but it is answering practical needs following the dramatic changes from the last years regarding our working environments, economic incertainties and outbursts of new communication tools. And I started to read several books about how to better improve ourselves, by a careful - almost scientifical - evaluation of our own resources and I also started to write one, about how to better communicate in and between institutions.

The practical experience is always the best key to create the opportunities for change and improvement. Of ourselves and of our environments. A new section in this blog will be dedicated to this books and articles dealing with how to communicate with ourselves, not only for the purpose of our very urgent commercial projects.

The twitting dance

The dancing/ballet experiences on Twitter is another example of the doors the communications are opening to our knowledge. A knowledge based more on the personal experiences - or slices of them - than on what we assume these experiences are.

Using the right word

Glamorous words. The last new entry fantastic words found in some sophisticated - or pretending to be - books. They make us feel special, to impress people - including by creating them the lack of comfort when it is understanding what we want, in fact, to say. But, as clothes, words have a very contextual use. A very sophisticated silk dress and rich jewelries we decide to wear at 8 o'clock in the morning are not improving our image, but - if we are not very kitsch- make the other doubt seriously about our capacity to make rational choices about our life. Even some of them we do not want to hear about, what we dress is telling a lot about ourselves.

The same, the words. I always appreciate people who are able to use a diversified vocabulary. The condition is to use the right word, when necessary.

One of the challenges I am facing very often is exactly about finding the right words. In the PR messages, you need to be as clear as possible, for an audience who, in general, do not have too much time. And want to hear or read your messages very fast. An to remember, at least 10%.

So, if we agree that the same think could be said in more than 10 times, we hope to agree as well that the number one and number two choices of describing something should be the simplest one. Without diminishing by this the core concept, or without weakening the ideas. But, making it understandable for a broad area of individuals.

Using sophisticated words and constructions is not at all a sign of intelligence. And nobody will pay you more because of your hectic vocabulary. But for being able to make things understandable and decryptable. Do you feel humiliated or under used according to the professional and academic capacity you assume to have ? Maybe you are not in the right professional position!

Random Communications - The Roulette's Principle

After mIRC and ICQ, huge chat hubs providing opportunities of various kind of conversations to millions of unknown partners from all over the world, a new concept, tailored about the principle of the roulette - random video and audio conversations with strangers randomly "chosed" by a computer is getting increase popularity - chatroulette.

It was created by a young 17 year old from Moscow - just in order to answer some needs a teenager used with this kind of comunications discovered while using current similar sites. For entering the site you have to guarantee - a word is a word - that you are at least 16. As far as I tried, it is no way to check it so, more or less is a matter of chance. The principle is not too complicated: you are directed to various kind of people, you are talking with and if you want, to push the "next" button and are directed further. And, in fact, you could never stop, as long as you could be in direct contact - visual as well - with people from all over the world who, comparatively with other websites, they could see you and you could see them.

The door to various kind of abusive behavior is open, as the system itself is in process of improving/changing/adapting to the needs and risks of the users.

Our communications habits are changing and the roulette system is only a simple answer to a simple need we, as humans, discovered in ourselves, to know more people, from various kind of the corners of this big world. It is interesting that the main trends are set by the very young - it was the same with Google, with Facebook, for example - that the other age group of the population is following and to whom it is adapting easily. At the end, there are no barriers, we could enter purposively or not, in touch with various kinds of people, to know an impressive number in only a couple of hours.

The good part is that we are able to improve our knowledge about world, about other cultures, to improve foreign languages or to feel less alone. To consider communication and the words as the main tool to use in getting in contact with the world. The bad side is related to the possible abuses - from various sexual exhibitionists and pedophilia - following the widespread use of these free access websites. But, at the end of the story, it is still about information: as long as you are aware and you know what to do, how to defend yourself against this kind of behaviors - blocking, reporting abuses, going to the next conversation - you could survive. Is in a way similar to the dangers that usually you could encounter in the street: people could rob you, beat you, aggress you. You have to be able to recognize the good and the bad and to drive yourself as safe as possible. Staying home just to prevent various kind of dangers is not the wise solution, isn't it?

School Communications

A very good example from a normal German school.

The parents are part of a network where they are able to exchange e-mails and ask questions to the principal and other teachers regarding the content and the program of the school. Monthly, you receive newsletter with the main activities taking place in the near future, or those already organised, as well as the main changes regarding the teachers and the program.

Periodically, you have the usual parent's meeting, but as well other socializing events purposed to offer to the parents better ways to know each other and, eventually, to identify their common problems.

Question

If 24 months ago, including in a PR and communications plans, the social networking platform was a futuristic and innovative way to see things, nowadays, the presense of those tools is normal. What it is normal too, and always was, is to offer a valuable and creative content to those networking solutions. Here I see the main challenge because, even many of us, we are using several time the day almost all those tools, we still not have (the almost) full management. Because, we need to adapt our thoughts and ways of thinking to an environment always on the move. How to do it faster and better?

Almost 40% of the Twitter messaging

is "pointless babble".

I often face this dilemma about Twitter, where I have various kind of "friends" - some of them individuals, some of them organisations or newspapers and reviews: how interesting what I am "twitting" about could be? I finally made the choice to simply put on-line some articles or some questions related to professional issues, as none of the members of the network are close friends. So, they will not be interested how happy I am today, or if I liked the icecream. The need to adequate your message to your readers is the main line and the key to efficient communications.

Birth-live, on Twitter

by CEO's wife.

The idea in itself is as any other idea of communicating an event. The question: are people interested in such a private encounter? The answer to this question seems to be "yes". Of course, not anybody could enjoy such publicity and, of course, you need some previous advertising, in the on-line environment.

Astronomic Twitter

on the occasion of the International Year of Astronomy. An example of the good use of the micro-blogging platforms who are no more the "priviledge" of young and restless. It is a very efficient way to share instantly with people from your group - professional and personal - ideas and thoughts. A dimension not to be missed in any strategies and communications plans, whatever the domain.

Medical records - on line?

Risks and opportunities. It is obvious that the on-line system cannot avoid the health-care system. But, it is not easy: you need trainings with the medical staff - from the technical aspects to purely communications ones. For example, how to be able to communicate, to use on-line portals and offer more than a simple medical service, but also a friendly environment, fit to the requirement of a new emerging generation of patients - more informed, but equally possible victims of the overinformation (think about the big number of sites where people not with a medical qualification are giving advices who are took into account, including about pharmacological self-treatment. And on-line is a place as well for miraculous healings and charlatans). The most important is privacy and data security. Ethical data management.

Breakfast on-line

Yes, it is true. Most part of us - with an active, social life, but not necessarily - we are more and more used to start our day not by preparing the breakfast, but by checking our accounts. It is a daily habit not only of adults, but also of the younger generation. An element already took into account when it is about various services offered on-line and about how to make the social platforms fit to the growing demands of an increasing number of users. This is the very practical side of the coin.

Another aspect is related to the situation in itself. It is unavoidable? Can we live without all this on-line communications and still consider ourselves alive? For me, it is mostly a matter of use and abuse. Of course the ways in which we acquire knowledge today is very fast and beneficient for anybody interested and eager to know more. And, to share this knowledge to the other - as this blogging service, anybody could set up in a matter of minutes. But, the real-life balance cannot be neglected. Think about a "virtual" politician, present and popular on-line and on various social networking platforms: his active virtual life is valuable only if it is continued by the same active involvement with real people, in the everyday life.

And, are we more socially connected nowadays, and more happy with our lives and friends? If I am thinking about how many possible friends I lost contact in the last years, because it wasn't Facebook, for example, to add them immediately and continue the communications, I would answer "yes". But, in the same time I have my own reserves about a high percentage of this on-line aspects. Think about on-line break-ups or on-line "relationships", about people unable to manage their real-lifes, about the confort of anonimity and the perverse pleasure to permanently lie about yourself, because almost impossible to discover who is hiding behind a nickname.

But this is the situation on the ground. It is important to be fully aware of this and to continue to think about solutions and ways to improve our communications. On-line or off-line, it is still a matter of words.