by Joyce Turner-Gionet | Aug 24, 2015 | Business Success, Content, Interactive, Latest, Social Media
Chat slang is no longer just about the kids; it’s not even about the rest of us ‘getting down with the kids.’ It hasn’t been for quite a while!
Hard to believe, but texting has been around for 23 years
The first text message was sent in 1992 by a 22-year-old test engineer from his PC to the Vodaphone network in the US. Chat slang — the ubiquitous LOLs, TTYLs and JKs — now wraps its saucy paws around many of the 350 billion global text (SMS) messages we send monthly. According to the stats, more than 15% of those messages are in a business context.
When it comes to chat slang, we make it up as we go
Almost every text we send has the potential in it somewhere for abbreviation and/or acronym. My mum (in her eighties) has taken to chat slang like the proverbial duck to water. She signs her texts (even Christmas and birthday cards) YFM (Your Favourite Mother; not that I have another mother, LOL). She wanted a picture of my daughter, a nurse, in her hospital scrubs and sent her a text that said: “Can u take a selfie?” (aka a photograph of self).
My daughters rarely answer their phone, but they respond to text and pepper their responses with emojis. My old high school pal regularly texts just one word to me: “Chat?” She doesn’t mean shall we pick up the phone and have a conversation. She means is it a good time to have an extended catch-up session, via text? If I say: “sorry, not now,” she’ll reply: kk 2moro TTYL. A successful chartered accountant who runs her own company, she’s one smart cookie, but texting brings out her impish, casual side.
Whether — as many continue to despair — we’re killing the English language with chat slang, is a moot point. WCYD?
That’s what chat slang is: casual speak. And it is impish. Admit it! As grown ups, the impish aspect can be fun. The abbreviation of words and phrases and the use of acronyms saves time (some grammar sticklers maintain it’s a product of laziness); but necessity, as usual, is the mother of invention. Where’s the space to have a formal or in-depth conversation on a screen like that of the current iPhone, which measures 138 cm x 67 cm? This dictates pithiness in what we say. Whether — as many continue to despair — we’re killing the English language with chat slang, is a moot point. WCYD (What Can You Do)?
LOL originally meant laughing out loud, a text response to a joke. Nowadays, it’s more like the shoulder shrug in a face-to-face conversation, a sort of non sequitur. It should follow something funny. It often doesn’t. JK (Just kidding); 2 (to, or too); 4 (for); OMG (Oh my gosh or oh my god); c u soon (see you soon), are old hat. We’ve progressed. NetLingo’s list of chat acronyms and text shorthand is mind boggling.
Is chat slang good for business?
What about in a business context? Is chat slang the new business casual? I saw a professional newsletter recently that ended with: BYOD (bring your own device) to the convention. Bet a lot of those business folks had to read it twice, thinking: Is that a D or a B on the end? Should chat slang be used in formal business writing? Well, then it would no longer be formal writing. What about a business email or text?
You’re late for a meeting with a client, so you text: gtbl8. C u in 20 (going to be late, see you in twenty minutes). Is that acceptable business etiquette? Much depends on the nature of the relationship you have with your client. Mostly, it’s a common sense approach, but if you’re wondering, there are a slew of websites out there with advice on business texting etiquette (see below).
What about emojis?
We all love emojis (aka emoticons), the colourful icons that we reach for in both personal and business contexts: Want to say ‘I love you,’ then the googly eye icon, a red heart and a female sheep icon work well, whether you’re a mushy 8-year-old or a mushy 80-year-old. The sheer number of icons available for phones, tablets and computers is exploding. Obviously, someone’s seeing a need. What about in business? Seems we’re using them here too …
Emojis speak volumes in email and text. You’re angry about something: insert a mad face. Sad: insert a sad face. Embarrassed: insert the face with the bright red cheeks. Kidding about something and want your boss to know that you’re kidding (we all know from experience how easily texts and emails can be misinterpreted), insert a plain old happy face, or maybe two, for emphasis. Pleased with the job your client has done, you add a happy face in your thank you. Emojis often change the entire mood of an email.
Is proper grammar in hiding?
So where is chat slang taking us? Is proper grammar in hiding? Should we despair? Since when is OMG the appropriate response to a hangnail and the onset of a hurricane? When did my favourite mother start talking about selfies?
The experts seem to think that chat slang is simply a reflection of the more casual way we live today. Maybe we can start to worry when the president of the multinational we work for sends us a text before our presentation: DFTBA! (don’t forget to be awesome!) We should really worry when the government rejects the business expenses we reported on our tax return with an lmbo (laughing my butt off) or lshic (laughing so hard I’m crying).
Slang has always been proper grammar’s edgy cousin
Slang has always been proper grammar’s edgy cousin. Like jargon or colloquialism, slang hangs around language, a thorn in formality’s side. I can’t imagine reading an entire book or article where the content is exclusively acronyms and abbreviations. Is that even possible? (Argument enough for why we really don’t need to worry too much about where chat slang is going!) To be maddeningly esoteric: Chat slang is what it is. We no longer speak the language the way Shakespeare spoke it (the bard was a huge fan of slang). Language evolves, it changes with the times. Slang, jargon and colloquialism are always along for the ride. So, 4 now …
“2 b or not 2 b”: the future of chat slang is TBD.
What’s your opinion on chat slang? Should we use it or lose it? Does it belong in a business context? LMK (Let Me Know).
Read more …
7 Rules of Texting Etiquette Every Professional Needs to Know
Best Text Messaging Apps of 2015
Other side of the coin reading:
‘Crystal’ software: No chat slang or emojis here! A Gmail plug-in that gathers data on your personality then helps you compose formal emails in your own tone of voice: Can personality data change the way we communicate with each other?
by Miriam Hara | Aug 18, 2015 | Advertising, Business Success, Communications, Latest, Social Media
Great Content is King!
Social Media is our current best friend. It allows us to talk regularly about our businesses (and ourselves) to anyone who’s interested. And there’s the rub: “anyone who’s interested.” The aim of great content creation is to get people interested! Content’s job is to engage. Content creation isn’t rocket science, but creating great content — content that gets people talking, responding and remembering — isn’t easy. It takes work, time and understanding. And yes, it requires you to set aside a budget for it. I’ve already written quite a few blogs on Content Creation including: Content Creation: Get found in 2014, Content Marketing for Businesses: 3 reasons to do it, “Compose Tweet Here” – 5 easy steps for great Twitter content. The bottom line in of all of them is …
Make Great Content a Priority
Creating rich, engaging content is the key to everything your business wants to accomplish. Commonly heard: “I don’t know where to start” or “I don’t have time to create good content.” The solution is clear: hire someone! In today’s business world, it’s not an option, it’s a priority – in every industry.
Here’s an interesting article, which aims to prove that creating great content is the key to achieving great SEO rankings:
5 Stats That Prove Great Content is the Key to Great SEO by Amanda Walgrove
Think YouTube, the place where 80% of online video is consumed. More and more, how-to and DIY videos are populating the YouTube channel. Businesses and brands alike need to be active in this channel if they are to create great content and keep their target audience engaged!
Content Creation is a trending topic, but it’s also evergreen. Contrary to what many say, content is nothing new. In marketing, content was always important! Now, there are just more ways to deliver it and measure its success!
Being in marketing and practicing what we preach (yes we do walk the talk), we’re launching the latest title in our eBook series, Content Creation Understood: 21 biz-isms you need for success. It’s composed of short, snappy insights that will help you wrap your head around creating great content, in less than five minutes!
Coming Up!
Over the next few months, we’re going to follow up the eBook with blogs that expand on some of our biz-isms, so look out for those! Here’s a taste from the 21 ‘biz-isms’ in our eBook: #8 Content is only the first step, #16 Optimize your content.
Content Creation: Are We There Yet?, is a blog we published in May this year. If you think you’re not there yet, it’s the perfect time to download Content Creation Understood. If you think you are there, check it out anyway, there maybe something else you can do to drive your content farther!
Hope you enjoy it! Let us know what you think.
Twitter & Facebook: #ContentCreation #SocialMedia #SharedWisdom
by Jayne Christopher Bintle | Jul 24, 2015 | Business Success, Communications, Latest, Social Media
Publicity is all around us; now more than ever. Our eyes and ears are constantly fed information from all angles – we love it – we hate it – we crave it! We create new channels, we seek out more information, more detail – we want to know EVERYTHING about the celebrities we admire and even the ones we don’t! We get to do what we only dreamt of in the past – actually interact with our favourite celebrities, through the likes of Twitter and Facebook; gaining insights into their daily lives; even what they had for breakfast! The relationship goes both ways; if a celebrity takes the time to put the effort in and actually write their own blogs, tweets and posts, they have the opportunity to build more intimate relationships with their fan base – that all important, long-lasting emotional engagement, which to us marketers is the Holy Grail!
What about if the relationship turns sour?
Although publicity can be very rewarding for both parties; taking celebrity beyond superficiality – what about if the relationship turns sour? Like any other human, celebrities make mistakes – they speak (or post) before they think sometimes, forgetting for a second how much responsibility rests on their shoulders or how deeply people will think about what they say, no matter how insignificant it may have seemed to the celebrity at the time.
I am using celebrities as an example, but the same principle goes for businesses and any other public entity. Like any relationship, it’s the way you deal with ‘bad publicity’ that can make or break your relationship with your stakeholders.
PR is all powerful, now more than ever
Public opinion is everything – opinions are shared and reviews are readily available for any product or service that you may wish to purchase. Anyone with a public profile needs to be conscious of this and place this fact at the core of their communications strategies, if their career and / or business is to survive.
I was once asked (in a panicked tone of voice) to arrange for the removal of a scathing post about the organization I was working for at the time. It was posted to Facebook by the spouse of a disgruntled member of staff. There were some significant contractual changes taking place within the organization; some tough decisions were being made to ensure its long-term survival and it’s safe to say, many of the changes were not well received. My response: 1. We cannot remove this, even if we wanted to; 2. Even if we could, people have now seen this post and responded to it. Therefore, if it was removed, we would not only be coming across as opaque, rather than transparent, but we would be perpetuating the ‘them and us’ culture we were working so hard to move away from. In short, it would be entirely counterproductive. The best way to deal with this, was to minimize the damage by pushing out positive content through all channels and ensure that we had an appropriate response to the negative post, should the press pick up on it and request comment.
In this example, the negative publicity wasn’t damaging to the organization – it had been fuelled by emotion, rather than fact and this had been immediately evident to anyone who read it. However, the manner in which the organization responded could have done so much damage, particularly to the already strained relationship with employees. As it turned out, the ‘positive publicity push’ response, raised awareness of the organization and the whole situation went on to support the justification for a full digital and social media strategy for the organization (who had been previously ‘dragging their feet’). Great!
The statement, ‘All publicity is good publicity’, is much too general
Gaining positive results from negative publicity is dependent on so many factors:
- How ‘business critical’ the negative publicity was
- How visible it was
- Who said it (how influential they are)
- How you responded
- How timely you were in your response
- How visible it was
- Who demonstrated support for you / your business – how influential your supporters are.
So, [inlinetweet prefix=”” tweeter=”” suffix=”#SharedWisdom”]’Is ALL publicity GOOD publicity?’ – Not necessarily. Like any relationship, it should be handled with care. [/inlinetweet] And the short answer – it’s complicated!
by Miriam Hara | Jul 22, 2015 | Advertising, Communications, Latest, Social Media
Origin of the word: List + (art)icle.
Are listicles worthy of advertising? It’s a question that needs to be asked simply because they resonate so well with people and that’s what we want for our advertising messages. We want them to resonate? We want them to promote action, but we also want them to be high quality content. Do listicles fit the bill?
Listicles are everywhere: in print, on the Internet, they show up in news feeds, although some argue they’re ‘masquerading’ as journalism. If you see an article headed: ‘The 10 Best …’ or ‘The 5 Most’ … it’s a listicle. The 10 Best Behinds in Hollywood, The 5 Best Orange Veggies For Radiant Skin, 22 Reasons Your Ex-Mother-in-Law Still Hates You: we all know listicles. Most of us have read a few, maybe shared a few. Buzzfeed.com, land of listicles, offers some truly bizarre ones. This morning’s was: 13 Photos of Terrifying Shark Eggs! I didn’t read it; wasn’t sure I could handle seeing an egg with the power to terrify me so early in the day. But is this form of content creation credible. Is it serious?
Easy to digest, light on cerebral calories
Webster’s defines a listicle (yes, the word has made it to the dictionary, online at least) as “an article structured in the from of a list, typically having some additional content relating to each item.” [inlinetweet prefix=”” tweeter=”” suffix=”#3HListAddict”]Listicles are like popsicles for the soul: guilt-free treats. Colourful, easy to digest, available in a variety of flavours, light on cerebral calories and consumed with no effort. [/inlinetweet]Mostly, they’re just plain fun. You get sucked in because you’ve been wanting to lose weight and the canny listicle language got you: “10 easy ways to lose that last 10 pounds”. The point is, though, it got to you.
My newspaper, a relatively conservative one, also seems to be big on listicles lately. In the last few months, I’ve seen:
- 3 ways to benefit now from historically low interest rates.
- How to shake a dynasty in 10 easy steps: the Alberta election and why it all went wrong for the Progressive Conservatives.
- 10 ways to make people really like you at work
We’re busy. We like reading short, snappy bites that make their point quickly
The jury is probably going to be out forever on listicles, particularly in the realm of journalism. [inlinetweet prefix=”” tweeter=”” suffix=”#3HListAddict”]But we love lists and listicles are essentially expanded lists. We’re busy. We like reading short, snappy bites that make their point quickly.[/inlinetweet] (Think bullet points: there’s a reason we use them. They deliver key points quickly and succinctly.)
The venerable New Yorker sums up our attraction to listicles perfectly: “The article-as-numbered-list has several features that make it inherently captivating: the headline catches our eye in a stream of content; it positions its subject within a preexisting category and classification system … it spatially organizes the information; and it promises a story that’s finite, whose length has been qualified up front. Together, these create an easy reading experience, in which the heavy mental lifting of conceptualization, categorization, and analysis is completed well in advance of actual consumption …”
Hmm! That sounds a lot like advertising’s job. So do listicles have a role to play in advertising? Some say they do!
Listicles are “a great tool to reach consumers”
From an Advertising Age guest post: “… news syndication company Mobiles Republic showed that consumers are “news snacking.” The study showed that while new consumption is increasing, consumers are checking the news for a shorter amount of time. They’re hungry for news but “snack” throughout the day. Listicles can help feed their appetite. It appears listicles are here to stay and advertisers should take note. They’re a great tool to reach consumers.” Why?
I’m summarizing the author here, but I’ve linked to the entire article farther below:
Listicles …
- Are social in nature and easily shared.
- Engage consumers, typically with something that resonates.
- Can reach the right consumer at the right time with the right message
- Allow advertisers to be creative.
- Can work across platforms.
Listicles are here to stay, and advertisers should take note
Chances are, now you’re thinking about them, you’ll see listicles in places you hadn’t noticed them before. Or at least, you’ll recognize them as such. What’s your take? Listicles have a place in advertising?
[inlinetweet prefix=”” tweeter=”” suffix=””]Send me the best listicle or listicle ad you’ve seen this month. #3HListAddict[/inlinetweet]
A few more lively listicle commentaries:
From Forbes:
Five reasons why millenials love listicles
From The New York Times:
In defense of the listicle
From the Smithsonian:
Listicles that went viral long before there was an Internet
by Miriam Hara | Jul 15, 2015 | Advertising, Latest, Social Media
I hate to break the news to you, but the social media channel is media; as such, it is a channel that is increasingly necessitating the use of advertising. Advertising is alive and well … and the social media channel can be thanked for that!
Advertising, or successfully advertising, is about reach and frequency. Of course, it’s about creative and messaging too. But if you don’t have reach or frequency, well, it’s like winking in the dark. Your message won’t be heard, let alone seen. Reaching your target audience, casting a wider net, etc., is what advertising “promises” and how and what it delivers. Ultimately, the very definition of advertising is the act or practice of calling public attention to one’s product, service, or need; using paid announcements in newspapers and magazines, over radio or television, on billboards, and yes, digital properties.
Those saying that advertising is going the way of the Dodo bird, well, they might be in for a surprise – they may just look outside and see a Dodo walking around in their backyard!
It’s not hard to make the leap to understanding why the social media channel is, or should be, considered as advertising. Understood, the aspect of “paid” is inherent in advertising. However, I would challenge this type of thinking. Paid for distributing a message, or paid in terms of creating the message, still makes it advertising. Content marketing has developed as a core tactic because of the social media channel, and content, no matter how “grassroots” or professional it is developed, is still advertising. You only have to look at Facebook. The different formats of social media advertising available to brands is quite varied. You can build your brand page — that in itself is a form of advertising — where your target audience can choose to follow you, come and see what your brand is up to on a daily basis, if you desire. You can “boost” your brand post, for a nominal fee of course. You can create display advertising, targeted to your niche, which I feel is pretty “conventional” thinking. Suffice to say, all this what I term as social media advertising.
The social media channel with all its diverse properties was made for advertising.
Or did the reverse occur? Advertising has evolved the social media channel into an advertising channel, simply because of its potential and ability to reach niches and masses alike. The creative aspects of creating the messaging based on the media channel will vary, of course. But then again, they always have! You wouldn’t create a magazine ad and place it on an out-of-home billboard? (Although, I have seen that, unfortunately). Advertising, done well, delivers the appropriate type of creative for the channel. Advertising on the social media channel is no different. Posting on your business blog is advertising, isn’t it? It establishes your business as a leader, as an expert. It garners relationships and spreads the word about your business. Advertising has never been about one-way relationships. The essence of advertising is about awareness and provoking an action: “Hey look at me! I’m here. Come see me. Get to know me”. It has transcended the relationship between product and customer, brand and consumers, business and client from pure physicality to one of connectivity and viewership.
[inlinetweet prefix=”” tweeter=”” suffix=”#SharedWisdom #ExceedBeyond”]What are your thoughts on the role social media plays in advertising?[/inlinetweet]
by Miriam Hara | Jul 13, 2015 | Business Success, Latest, Social Media
In an airport, recently, I came upon an out of home billboard with a prominent headline: The future of sales will be social. I was taken aback by the statement. Hasn’t sales always been social? The very essence of sales is about the building of relationships. Any B2B sales executive will tell you this. So will any entrepreneur. A retail consultant will tell you the same thing.
Sales is about connections; connections between seller and buyer, but more importantly, between these two individuals.
I get that the ad was suggesting that social media is a viable place and space for sales. I understand that what has changed is the way in which those ‘sales’ relationships start, develop and flourish. I also get that the social media platform has provided many of us with the ability to cast a wider net, geographically.
Based on my experience with LinkedIn and guest blogging, potential clients have been referred to me from individuals that I have never actually met. Some haven’t even conversed with me, but have been privy to my blogs or have shared comments on the LinkedIn Groups that we have in common. In a previous post I wrote about business networking and getting ‘found.’ Sales, at its root, is all about networking. And networking is all about being social!
The future of sales is social … in many ways. Once the connect or contact is made, it is still up to you to make that connection count. Okay, so maybe it’s through FaceTime, Skype, web conferencing or webinars… [inlinetweet prefix=”” tweeter=”” suffix=”#SocialSales”]Suffice to say that the physicality of sales has changed[/inlinetweet], but the socialness (yes, I made up that word!) of sales has always been there.
[inlinetweet prefix=”” tweeter=”” suffix=”#SocialSales”]What are your thoughts on using the social media channel as a sales “networking” tool?[/inlinetweet] If you’ve already been using the social media channel in that way, please share your success stories with us?
