Cyber-squatting is something that plagues brands in social media all the ruddy time. There is plenty that can be done to help prevent that ‘worse case scenario’ from becoming reality and it’s something that we advise all new businesses do from the outset. Username check is Ronseal and does exactly what it says it does and checks a variety of social tools to see whether your potential username is already in use. Hell, it even checks ones that no longer exist such as rejaw RIP, but it’s free and easy so can’t complain.

But what happens if you have a pre-existing brand and are only just catching up, or maybe you have a new brand but unfortunately someone else had the bright idea of using your  username for themselves??? The instant reaction is to want to kick them to the curb, but maybe they could be your butler? *tweet for me Wilson will you*. Okay sounds ridiculous but in this day and age where crowdsourcing shifts from being absurd to a norm, is it really that far out to look to utilise potential brand advocates in this way? (Please note: i someone is pretending to be your brand then don’t interact or negotiate with them, try to sot it via the official channels).

Here are a few ideas of what you could possibly do:

1. Get started & Get on side

So,  someone on twitter has the username you would prefer you had but go with your second choice and start doing everything as you would normally to generate authenticity & authority – clear branding & frequent tweeting. Now once you have gone some way to establishing yourself it’s time to get in contact.  Contact your namesake maybe commenting on their username. The idea is to get them on side so some general friendly chitchat is a good place to start. There’s a reason why it’s called social media. DON’T BE PUSHY!

2. Involve the user

Sometimes you need a bit of creativity, so why not suggest the idea of involving the squatter in your campaign. This is good especially if they have a pre-existing following. The more flare you share the more likely they are to get involved. If you are able to forge a good relationship then that user might just be willing to forward on the odd tweet here and there should someone make a mistake – at the very least. In the early stages it’s all about increasing visibility so those first interactions are essential.

Who knows, if you throw a ’social media guidelines’ document their way they might decide it’s not worth the effort and hand over the name

3. Gift Aid

This is always going to be easier for existing brands that are new to social media as are likely to have promotional material but never forget about ‘giving’. If you have a product that the squatter might potentially like then why not give it to them, they’re bound to be far more impressed than you trying to bully them. One brand advocate isn’t going to hurt now is it?

Obviously these aren’t ‘the new rules’ or anything of the sort but we wanted to address whether a new thinking could be applied to an old problem? We think there is potential there but would have to be reviewed on a case by case basis. Just think though…. if you were one of the first to tackle the situation in a clever way that could be a nice PR story.

Just remember the basic rules of social media. Listen>engage>add value

What do you think? Is it ever just to interact with a squatter? Seen any examples of brands doing this? Let us know your thoughts in the comments…

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1. don’t get senti-mental!

Tesco has recently launched a new iPhone app for your clubcard which is a big step in the right direction for the supermarket brand, with Nokia and Android versions penciled in for production also. Not only does it make your data portable but it will also save the plastic rainforest! FTW!

How long will it be until Oyster follows suit? (A very long time i imagine)

It reminds me of being in a meeting with an agency talking about a proposal for a particular supermarket wishing to  drive traffic to it’s online store. I suggested, why not think about data portability? What if, what they did in the supermarket directly affected their online experience or opened up exclusive offers to encourage them to go online without interupting their everday life.

The Tesco Clubcard iphone app is probably the first step in that direction where every action we take has an online consequence (as we choose fit). Before long you’ll be clicking “RSS my life”.

Oh, and as for the agency, i think they pitched the idea of  ‘a blog‘ in the end. Oh well.

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Definition of Spam: a disruptive, esp. commercial message posted on a computer network or sent as an e-mail.

Now that sounds like a pretty obvious explanation but i just wanted to make it clear in our minds before we begin. ‘Cos we’re going to begin right about now.

There’s been a lot of buzz about ‘word of mouth marketing’ and ‘generating conversations‘ but what does this actually mean? How do you ‘generate‘ conversations, especially around a campaign that’s well, not really that interesting? There is only one way…. hire one of the all new magical agencies that inspire people to instantly talk like there’s no tomorrow!

But how do they do it? Here comes the science….

They don’t. In fact, all they are doing is replicating the tried-and-tested PR method of utilising bloggers. BLOGGER OUTREACH. Now you might think that the words blogger outreach and conversation are actually very different but some people seem to be getting confoozed [sic]. Blogger outreach essentially involves spamming a notoriously long list of strangers from a multi-coloured spreadsheet in the hope that they will actually read it and are willing to be bought. This doesn’t really sound like the fluffy stuff that these new age agencies are promising?

Now don’t get me wrong, blogger outreach is an important part of any campaign but it is what it is and it should only be one part of a much bigger strategy not just something that is rolled out for every pitch that’s won.

People like to talk when they are engaged, when they can interact, when they see something new. If you start off on the right foot then bloggers will naturally be interested in it and it’s just a case of bringing it to their attention not ramming it down their talkbox.

SO, want to build conversation? Get some ideas that are actually interesting, and for any clients out there, get smarter. quicker. And stop getting mugged over. please. so we can move this industry along.

But what do you think? Have you been on the receiving end of some ‘outreach’ that just didn’t feel right? Or do you actually think that there’s nothgin wrong with calling it ‘conversation’? Take over in the comments….

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Lego is fantastic isn’t it, it’s one of those toys you have as a young child that really forces you to use your imagination. Building, learning, correcting & then starting all over again. Obviously there were manuals that told you how to make a particular object but once you’d created the desired object – did you stop there? I know i didn’t, i would normally take the creation to the top of the stairs and test it’s structure by rolling it off the top step. I quickly developed a knack for restructuring said objects back to their original state no matter how they crumpled upon impact.

Eventually i stopped rebuilding them and decided to build something new from the rubble. I had to smashup a few Lego pick-up trucks to get there but it was worth it. The morale of the story is obvious – don’t get comfortable, pick apart what you’re doing, sometimes it better (and more cost-effective) to stop altogether & start again. The PR industry is suffering in the wake of a Social Media (r)evolution yet they continue to cling on to what they know best instead of embracing the change.

At the end of the day it’s about Communication and PR & Social Media both come under that umbrella. But the consumer is no longer a circle, it’s a square and it’s no good trying to bang in the old brick like you did before. Start again and play about until you have the right brick. But beware, don’t expect them to be square for very long either

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