There’s an interesting piece out today by Matt Thompson at Newsless.org ruminating on the key portions of the news that reporters either cover poorly or miss entirely.

I’ve come to the conclusion that there are four key parts to news stories, and we typically only get one of them, even though journalists possess all four, and the other three are arguably more important.... As long as the news is structured solely around what just happened, journalists are going to be fighting a rough battle... As news consumers, we should be demanding these [other] things as well. After all, right now we’re only getting the lamest part of the story.

I think his analysis is sadly all too true, and fits well with my longstanding negative critique of the current state of journalism today. If you’re at all interested in the profession, and what could be done to make it better, this is a must-read.

-posted by Paul

Tags: newsless, journalism

Industry analyst Joyce Putscher (http://instat.com/bios/putscher.asp)  has seen a lot of changes in both tech companies and within the analyst community itself.  Although she now manages In-Stat's Connected Digital Home service, in her 25+ years of experience in the electronics and engineering technology fields, she's pretty much seen it all.  As part of our continuing series of interviews, VOXUS asked her to comment on how young companies can best gain face time with her, what innovations she's following these days and even how job seekers might break into a career as an industry analyst. 

1) We've noticed a change in the analyst community in terms of proximity.  Many industry analysts now work from home offices instead of from their group's corporate  headquarters.  This presents a challenge for arranging face-to-face meetings with company representatives.  How are you connecting with clients and potential clients?  Via trade shows, and if so, which ones?  Do you use or like web presentations for product demos?  Any other tips for gaining face time with you?
 

The Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas is THE primary show for covering consumer electronics devices and home networking-related markets.  Ideal venues, from both a start-up perspective (less cost than the LVCC) AND an analyst perspective (less mileage on the feet), are the Digital Experience and Showstoppers events.  Speaking from an analyst viewpoint, or from anyone who has to walk the LVCC back and forth, your "dogs" get extremely tired each day.  So, I look forward to getting much accomplished at those events.

Working remotely means taking advantage of teleconferences, and various forms of presentations.  I have been satisfied with web presentations for product demos, and believe that method is a great alternative.

As for any analyst, the product, technology, or service needs to be in my bailiwick in order to spark my interest.  It is vastly different than 15 years ago, where you might have group meetings once a week to sort through mailed-in press releases to choose which analyst they belonged to!  Now, there is an overload in information, to put it mildly.  But, that said, it seems to work better to have information pushed at analysts, rather than having them sign up with company websites in order to get applicable news.  It is ideal to only be put on specific distribution lists by marketing communications or analyst relations folks that are applicable to that analyst.  This typically occurs after briefings or interviews take place regarding specific topics.

2) You're currently covering several consumer sectors: home networking and digital media adapters/players/receivers being two of the areas.  What are you tracking as upcoming "next big things" in these spaces?
 

Although digital media adapters have been emerging for a number of years, new online video service-capable CE devices are coming to market that may eventually take these devices to the next level of being used in an average home networked household.  The Netflix Player is an ideal example of such a device.  At $99, it is priced at the most popular price point that consumers are willing to spend on such a device, according to our consumer research.

The term "over the top" is sometimes used for this type of device, but it is a somewhat fuzzy term that can be applied to a number of products, and can mean different things to different people.

3) With the job market intensifying, any advice you can give to current technology company employees who might be thinking about transitioning to the analyst world?
 

Intern and contract opportunities: During economic downturns, contract opportunities tend to increase among analyst firms.  Depending on the company and structure, intern opportunities may also present themselves. 

Entry level, New graduates: Times have changed.  What used to be primarily an opportunity for experienced engineers, and technical marketing or market research professionals, has transitioned into one where entry level positions can be available for new graduates in companies who want to bring someone in at a lower salary level and train them.  Although not exclusively an opportunity for those with new MBAs, that is now a common requirement and starting point for those without relative experience.

Entry level, Seasoned professionals: Even in tough times, openings can occur; however, higher position levels will typically require either very specific experience/background related to the market(s) to be covered, or previous analyst experience covering a related area.  Successful candidates may have previous analyst experience, market research background, engineering background, or technical marketing background.

Whether a person finds success as an analyst depends on his or her: 1. Personality (are they outgoing or abhor the thought of cold-calling people?) 2. Strengths (are they persistent or give up easily?) 3. Talent for crunching numbers and creating forecast models. 4. Ability or not afraid to speak in front of large audiences. 5. Ability to sift through a ton of marketing speak and industry hype to get down to realistic assumptions and realistic potential for a technology or product. 6. Ability and willingness to put yourself on the line by developing your own forecast and defending it.

It is a marketing person's job to create "buzz" and hype around technologies and products, but it is an analyst's job to be objective and to arrive at defendable assumptions and market forecasts.  But, you must realize that you will always find a Goldilocks scenario.  Out of three companies, one will say your forecast is too high, one will say it is too low, and the other will say it is just right.

 

Tags: joyceputscher, instat

Andrew Dumont likes to live life on the edge, whether it's wakeboarding or searching for his next jolt of caffeine. So it's no real surprise that, at 21, he chose to join a startup. As the vice president of marketing and business development for Bellingham-based Tatango with its group text messaging product, he's constantly on the run -- and has successfully grown Tatango's user base from 7,000 to over 400,000, primarily through the use of social media. As part of VOXUS's continuing series of interviews with local entrepreneurs, VCs and marketers, we asked him to share his thoughts on public relations for startups and, more specifically, on how he successfully uses Facebook to promote the Tatango brand.

1) You've publicly stated that you didn't know a whole lot about public relations prior to founding Tatango, yet you've had some incredible success with Tatango's media outreach. What's one lesson learned that you could share with other entrepreneurs?

When working in a startup, you learn very quickly just how scarce cash is. At the early stage of our company, I couldn't justify allocating the resources needed to hire a professional pr agency, although I would've liked to. So, we did what every great startup does, we winged it. Having no prior training or experience in public relations, I had to learn the ropes of the industry very quickly in preparation for the launch of Tatango. Since that day of realizing that we couldn't afford an agency, we’ve earned ink in the Wall Street Journal, Seattle Times, CNN, PC World, TechCrunch and others.

That being said, I am far from a pr pro, but I did learn some very valuable lessons and tips during my crash course in public relations. I went ahead and noted two tips for entrepreneurs looking to get started in pr, as I think both are crucial to a successful campaign.

Ask Questions - This is the best piece of advice I can offer and it applies to every aspect of business, ask questions. Although public relations was completely new to me, there were thousands of professionals that live and breath public relations, all of which have massive amounts of experience in the field. They’ve most likely lived through any issues you’re facing, so pick their brain. When I first started with our pr efforts, I sent out emails to several of the top marketing/pr pros in the Seattle area, simply explaining my situation and asking if I could chat with them about some “best practices” of the industry. I received a response from nearly everyone I emailed and set up meetings with Scott Willoughby of SEOmoz, Eric Berto of Etelos, Jeff Precor of Yapta and Doug Alley of Jott, this was extremely helpful. There is no way I would've been as successful as I was with my efforts without their help (thanks again guys).

Be Real - Many editors get thousands of faceless pitches each day, so what can you do to stand out? It’s easy, just be real. It’s all about transparency. Connect with the people you’re pitching on Facebook, Twitter and Linkedin, you need to put a face behind your pitch. Personally, I like to connect with all of the editors that I’ll be contacting prior to pitching, this helps add familiarity when your name shows up in their inbox. Not only that, but connecting with the editors on these various networks allows you to really understand what type of person you're pitching. Pr is all about being genuine, find out what their interests are and relate to them.

2) Many entrepreneurs are struggling with the best way to use Facebook because the lines between personal and business information are blurred. On the one hand, it can be a really good marketing tool; it's also a social networking site where people share recipes, photos, etc. You seem to straddle both worlds quite successfully with your Facebook page -- can you share any tips on how others might do the same?

Facebook is one of the best marketing tools available. We've built our business with a zero dollar advertising budget, and I can safely say that without social networks, we wouldn't be here today. For me, the line between my personal and professional life isn't blurry at all, there is no line. This is how it needs to be to utilize Facebook effectively. As with my last point on the pr tips, it's all about being real. Your personal life is a huge asset to the core of your personal and professional brand. If you’re passionate about gardening, cooking, sports, juggling, beer or anything else, it’s likely that there’s someone out there that shares the same interests. With personal attributes or hobbies displayed to the public, a brand becomes more than just an image but an actual living object. By exposing these personalities, you’re opening your brand to a new demographic that may not have been connected prior.

Think about it like a television show, you fall in love with a show because of the characters in it. For me, I’m addicted to the show Entourage because I’ve connected with the character Ari Gold. His outrageous antics and lavish lifestyle has made me envious of him, his character traits have been so well developed to the point where I feel like I actually know him, as if he was a buddy of mine. Because of this connection, when I’m asked about my favorite TV show, Entourage comes to mind without hesitation. The same concept applies to a personal or professional brand. By using these pre-established characters (yourself and your employees), you’re expanding your company's relevance beyond just the functionality of your product, you’re creating an atmosphere that fosters connections on both a personal and professional level. With these types of connections established, your brand will come to mind as the “favorite” and we all know, nothing is more powerful in the world of marketing than word of mouth. I am a firm believer in transparency for businesses, so if you'd like to chat more about it, feel free to message me on Facebook. : )

3) Where do you hope to take Tatango between now and the end of the year?

I've got very high hopes for Tatango in the upcoming months. We've been extremely busy with the construction and implementation of the new version of the site, Tatango 2.0, which was recently pushed live. In the next couple of months I hope to continue growing the Tatango user base, flesh out our revenue model and cement the Tatango brand as the top name in group text messaging.

Blog: http://andrewjdumont.com/
Twitter: http://twitter.com/andrewdumont
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/andrewdumont

-posted by Rachel

Tags: tatango, facebook