Social Media Coach talks about the next big thing

1. Hello Alexandros! Please introduce yourself to the readers of this blog and update us on your latest endeavors.

My name is Alexandros Fatsis also known as Social Media Coach. Working in the e-commerce sector for several years, I soon realized that the only viable method to promote companies’ products and services was through digital marketing. This means Social Media marketing of course, but also, search engine optimization as well as pay per click.

Through endless trial and error, and by reading everything I could get my hands on the subject in addition to delving into peculiar and little known forums, I learned what works and what doesn’t. I also found out about small but important tricks that could give you an edge to this business.

Being one of the first people in Greece to have an Internet connection (from around 1994) and dealing with computers and web sites since childhood helped me significantly, giving me an early head-start and familiarity with the subject.

2. It is easy to perceive that various Greek firms have started investing heavily in social media or social media campaigns to marketise their products or services correctly. Does it take a significant amount of time & effort for digital marketers nowadays in order to convince these companies and their managers, on the delicate fruits & power of social media? Do they seem eager to listen and adapt to the changing laws/mindset of digital marketing?

Unfortunately, the majority of Greek companies still considers digital marketing not as something essential but just as a “nice to have”. Of course there are several exceptions, but these are mostly in the e-commerce sector.

However, even such firms often appear to not realize neither the power, nor the special characteristics of relationship marketing. They consider social media just as a free channel for broadcasting their message to everybody they can, and thus generate insignificant results.

On the other hand, I must admit that even at a slow pace this way of thinking is starting to change. Some marketers are starting to understand the potential of new media and are more willing to invest on it, and more importantly, adapt to this marketing paradigm shift.
 
3. Social media vs. technological Darwinism. The ones who won’t adapt will fall behind? What is the next big thing in social media?
 
The next big thing in social media is, of course, Google+. Not by itself though. In the next two or three years Google Glasses will make mobile phones and tablets more or less obsolete. So initially we will see very important changes to anything related to mobile technology.
 
A great part of Google Glasses’ functionality will be based on Google+ and vice versa. Thus I believe these two Google products will be significantly integrated and will not only change social media marketing but also everything related to mobile marketing.
 
4. Please close this discussion the way you see fit. What is your long term goal as the Social Media Coach? Thank you for your time!
 
As technology always changes, digital marketing changes with it. I believe that search engine, social media and mobile marketing will eventually become one. Even though Google Glass will be a game changer as I already mentioned, my long term goal is to grow my company making it flexible and strong enough to tame this new beast that is about to emerge.



You can connect with the Social Media Coach through the following links:
 
Free e-books: http://www.socialmediacoach.gr/social-media-coach/e-books.html

Official site:  http://www.socialmediacoach.gr/

Google+: https://plus.google.com/106554713546932370716

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/socialmediacoach.gr

Alphaville 1965

Alphaville is the dystopian film by the great director Jean-Luc Godard, released almost haf a century ago. The director smiles sardonically upon us as the film's bleak vision looks through the decades that passed and the ones that will come, where technology and pure scientific logic drive change and worldwide upheaval.

One cannot escape the prophetic ramifications spelled throughout this sci-fi masterpiece, as it progresses to a black & white panorama of Orwellian asphyxiation.

As time passes by, the film reaches its apocalyptic metaphors and reveals its timely & powerful concerns, fears, of a world ruled by disciplined followers of science & technology.

The protagonist, Lemmy Caution, picked by Godard out of b movies, performs the role of an agent whose mission is to stop this totalitarian madness. The deep dark voice of the super computer Alpha 60, reminds us of post 00's AI (artificial intelligence) that has been enhanced in our modern lifes, in ways that we acknowledge as natural. When was the last time a computer voice assisted you online or offline? 

After watching this movie, an ominous light fades away in our minds... darkness covers all our hopes for a future not governed by machines, where humans are stripped from all emotions.

This movie could have well influenced Ridley Scott's cyberpunk film ''Blade Runner'', where Harrison Ford falls in love with a replica, as another Lemmy Caution learning the words ''conscience'' & ''love'' to Alphaville's Anna Karina...

Social Analytics by IMC Technologies (Greece) - a short interview

1. Please introduce your company, IMC Technologies, to the readers of our blog & update us on your latest endeavors.

Modern organizations, regardless of their size or function, want to engage their members / customers / citizens / employees (who are the most valuable assets) in an online collaboration and participation process to receive feedback, insights, opinions, ideas, to discover emerging trends and opportunities or identify threats, to inform and build awareness, to reach consensus, to solve problems, to build relationships, to promote goals, and most of all to make generate new revenue streams.

IMC Technologies flagship products are eDialogos, publishAIR and Knowledge Accelerator with which IMC develops a leadership positioning in the markets of social business software and social analytics.
IMC offers their tools in various commercial models ranging from full custom solutions and professional services for large customers and governments, on to cloud based Software as a Service solutions with global scalability.

IMC produces innovation. We have invested heavily in research for the last 7 years, targeting the global internet market  while developing a leadership positioning in the greek market. Our various publications, patents and our market position are all clear indicators of this path.
Over the years of IMC's existence, we have consistently grown the organization with high value professionals, across disciplines, into a fully integrated and efficient scientific and commercially successful team of around 35 people, with a focus on customer success having served more than 150 customers

2. How do you see the current business ecosystem in Greece (online/offline)? How willing are the established firms to enhance new technologies in their business tactics in order to grow & engage with their customers or users base, quantitatively measure & understand their needs, thus to serve them better?

Greece is more like an emerging Market for the software segment we work on. Usually in these cases first moving technology like ours is not an advantage and it's only after some years that the new technology models become applicable . Nevertheless we have two very strong advantages speaking on behalf of all Greek technologists. The first is that we have a growing community of startup companies with real innovation and second there is a big number of global brands active in the Greek language and Market that are ready to experiment on innovative technology produced by Greek techies. This means there is fertile soil for creating a number of pilot projects that would be very difficult to implement in the USA or Germany and the UK. Needless to say that the overall economic climate is disappointing  but to rephrase a quote from one of my favourite books, ''squeezing a profit from social change, is the rule rather than the exception in days like ours'' ( the book is Pere Goriot).

3. Various companies will have to adapt to a constant technological Darwinism, pushed by the rapid pace of information, knowledge, due to continuous technological innovations. Who do you think will survive in the long run?

The fast and the furious :). In technology, "too big to fail" doesn't work and development teams must be fast and flexible. Technology is volatile and risky but usually if you observe the succesful examples of our industries, the following will be in common:
Strong investment in research & innovation, short time to Market, and the trial & error approach .

4. You can close this discussion the way you see fit:

And one more thing... I strongly believe that data is the new oil!

Panos Georgolios, CEO @ IMC Technologies
Alex Tamvakis, CTO @ IMC Technologies
www.imc.com.gr

Thank you for your time & answers! - Stathis Kassios

Cloud revolution

 Some thoughts based on Cisco's latest white paper: ''Cisco Cloud Intelligent Network: Prepare Your Network for the Cloud ''.

In our times, many companies serve their customers worldwide, 24/7. Constant travels require business people to share updates, emails, data, content, memos, with their peers back to the company's headquarters. 

Cloud economics have promised efficiency, innovative business models, reduced operating costs. Clouds are rapidly changing the way of scheduling & doing business. The ultimate challenge will be to unify remote locations & users, all applications and devices used, under a secure Cloud network. IT teams, will be responsible for serving the complicated needs of modern online business operations.

No matter where your firm's offices are located, your clients, or your personnel, the Cloud will be connecting all your latest applications and services, breaking all geographical boundaries. Everything will be channeled & monitored through the enterprise network. In order for the latter to function properly, security will consitute a major factor for assuming that your company's Cloud network is successful.

Nowadays, users demand high speeds, decreased latency, high bandwidth, to feel satisfied. Cisco offers a Cloud Intelligent Network (http://www.cisco.com/en/US/netsol/ns1172/networking_solutions_solution_category.html). Amazon provides users with the Amazon Web Services (AWS). Again, security and optimization, will be a major concern for success and for serving huge amounts of traffic. The enterprise network, has to be intelligently optimized, before securing the flow of sensitive data between the company and the users, through various devices like their own mobiles, tablets, smartphones etc. 

This business paradigm shift, will spur massive public and private clouds. By 2014, around 50% of all the business workloads will be handled via Clouds. Business applications will be moving to the Cloud, thus the need to keep optimizing the availability to its users. All enterprise applications will be accessed & handled through the devices brought by the workers themselves. IT departments will have to adapt to security issues, data prioritization and control.

The rising Cloud ecosystem, will demand large amounts of data transfers for videos & virtual dektops. Overall, aiming for high quality when delivering services & applications, will play a key role in securing the Cloud from mis-management, resulting in low quality user experience. 

Excerpt from the The Wealth of Nations

''Food not only constitutes the principal part of the riches of the world, but it is the abundance of food which gives the principal part of their value to many other sorts of riches.The poor inhabitants of Cuba & St. Domingo, when they were first discovered by the Spaniards, used to wear little bits of gold as ornaments in their hair and other parts of their dress.They seemed to value them as we would do any little pebbles of somewhat more than ordinary beauty, and to consider them as just worth the picking up, but not worth the refusing to any body who asked them . They gave them to their new guests at the first request, without seeming to think that they had made them any very valuable present. They were astonished to observe the rage of the Spaniards to obtain them; and had no notion that there could anywhere be a country in which many people had the disposal of so great a superfluity of food, so scanty always among themselves, that for a very small quantity of those glittering baubles they would willingly give as much as might maintain a whole family for many years. Could they have been made to understand this, the passion of the Spaniards would not have surprised them.'' - Adam Smith

My predictions for 2013!

• More & more companies around the world (small, medium, big) will be moving to public clouds (social media) to embrace new marketing tactics, expand their customer base, save money on huge budget marketing campaigns.
• Various organizations will have to deal with preserving, supporting & maintaining their Big Data in Clouds. Big data, as the innovative bridge empowering the connection between businesses & their customers.
• Current social media firms, will focus on mobility. They will spend resources trying to generate additional sources of revenues through mobile ads. Monetizing mobility, as the big bet.
• More people will be going online via mobile or portable devices than their desktops.
• Patent wars (Apple vs Samsung), will probably continue in 2013 among tech giants, settling lawsuits, chasing after media exposure, increasing industry fragmentation. Patent wars exhaust rivals, add market share & value to the winner.
• Visual platforms like Instagram, Flickr, Pinterest, Tumblr, etc. will be driving significant traffic to their interfaces. Visual platforms, as enablers of brand engagement.
• Google's Hangout will be explored by more musicians & bands that want to host a virtual performance. Big brands will be using Hangout as a social CRM.
• Gangnam Style showed the way for the globalization aspect of modern connected societies, beyond cultural barriers. The web & digital media, as a global arena for sharing viral content. The trend spotted here, will be promoting a massive event and then have domestic memes that feed the viral phenomenon (extend product life cycle).
• Large numbers of people in China (a country slowly becoming Westernized at its own pace) will be moving to cities & metropolitan areas, raising wages, unbalancing the low - cost status quo which Western companies have invested in.
• Companies will be outsourcing social media engagement to the hands of digital media agencies.
• Consumers are becoming the new marketeers. Extreme word of mouth through social media, affects how people perceive or consume brands.
• Due to the Greek crisis, 2013 will be an interesting year for content creators, writers, reporters & journalists, because people out of work with their skills, will create new opportunities.
• Smartphones, tablets & bandwidth. The necessary triangle for video content producers & small firms that want to leverage in low cost video content for their ads. Personal videos will be uploaded & streamed in minutes.
• In 2013, we will see departments of companies leveraging big data & social media, as serious business tools, to create corporate benefits.
• The Singularity is coming...

- Stathis Kassios (http://skassios.com/)

My top 5 for 2012!

As we approach the end of 2012 & not the end of our beautiful & grotesque world, here are my top 5 blog posts for the year that has passed:
 
+ The promo video of my start - up company, Songreal: http://stathiskassios.blogspot.gr/2012/02/songreal-official-promo-video.html

+ Music ''shot'' part III feat. Christian Cambas: http://stathiskassios.blogspot.gr/2012/03/music-shot-part-iii-christian-cambas.html

+ Hailing from Dresden, a global citizen & boundary spanner: http://stathiskassios.blogspot.gr/2012/08/hailing-from-dresden-global-citizen.html

+ The third industrial revolution is here: http://stathiskassios.blogspot.gr/2012/10/the-third-industrial-revolution-is-here.html

+ Another ''music'' shot feat. Stereo Mike: http://stathiskassios.blogspot.gr/2012/12/new-music-shot-feat-stereo-mike.html

 Expect my predictions for 2013...soon!

Your blog pal,
S.

Another music ''shot'' feat. Stereo Mike

1) It is a great honor to host you in my personal blog space & enjoy a music ''shot'' with you Mike. Please update us on your latest artistic & general endeavours.

Thanks for the invite! I'm a big fan of your blog, so it's a pleasure to be having a "shot" here. I've been in the studio in London writing and producing my new album "KATALH3H" (part I), recording an exciting new artist - Helena Micy - and getting ready to perform at South by Southwest in Texas. I'm also continuing to teach music production at the University of Westminster, and writing a book that will accompany the second part of "KATALH3H".

2) In one of your latest blog posts, I understood that you are expressing your personal thoughts about persisting for your personal dream. I wonder though, in today's music industry (Greece + abroad), is the sole creator of art who is setting the dream, his manager, or his record company? How can artists survive between pure freedom of creation & profit, a relationship controlled by so many intermediators, before reaching their audience? 

That is the million dollar question! I won't pretend I have an absolute answer; because I believe that "the dream" is a process, a path, and we are all just travellers on a quest. So, at times, we have to stop and honestly ask ourselves "what is my dream?" If the dream is Expression, then the artist alone has to define it, not the label, not the manager, nor any other part of the industrial "mechanism". If the dream is profit, one has to play a strategic game of chess, where - unfortunately - Art becomes one of the many variables. I believe, however, that there is a way to combine true artistic expression and success, if you remain persistent and define your vision honestly. It's a slower process, but it sets your priorities clearly and works as a reminder for the times when "intermediators" start calling the shots. It's true that the lines can often get blurred, which is why the artistic voice has to remain loud and clear. The "mechanism" that is there to support artistic expression can often flip and start working in self-interest - that is the very nature of the current flavour of cannibalistic capitalism. But this is when an artist has to cut off all ties with support systems that became parasitical. Fire your manager, drop your label! If your material has value, you can acquire buzz, success and an audience. But do you have the patience to become autonomous? Or recognise effective new partners? This takes hard work, experience and befriending technology, both in terms of production and dissemination.

3) Counting 6 years of economic & cultural crisis in our home country. How do Greek artists (indie + mainstream) approach this phenomenon which has been altering our society? What is their role & responsibility in times of turbulence?

I think Greece has remained a peculiar musical territory, for at least as long as I have experienced it (as a listener and artist). The combination of a small population, huge accumulation in the capital and overall corruption has created some unique issues. There has never really been a fertile enough ground for the underground or for indie survival, because audience numbers where simply too small to sustain "alternative" output. The Athenian radio nepotism also made sure tastes were tailored, and that is something they could control in the tight geography of the capital that, however, did house half the Greek-speaking (and -listening) population. As a result, artists in my era would always face a dichotomy the moment they crossed over: sell out or disappear. In other words, play by FM rules or receive no airplay. The "gatekeepers" would spell it out to the labels and managers, by what they'd let in or "on". So, if anything, I believe the situation has been unhealthy for a long, long time. The current crisis is only magnifying it. And despite all its negative facets, one thing that I am welcoming in this "downward spiral" is that the monopoly is very clearly now eating itself. Mainstream media, their predictable choices and the content itself are becoming irrelevant to a growing (young) audience. This, of course, goes hand-in-hand with the Internet affording new, direct forms of "consumption" and "listening". So, this challenging phenomenon has also got to be an expressive opportunity for modern Greek artists, and this is where I see our responsibility lie: Can we operate outside of the controlled air-waves and still write some tunes that mean something and stand out in the cyber-maze? We may even affect a change in the modus operandi as a result of the transition of influence and, hence, of power. I see a great parallel between the music paradigm and Greek culture and society as a whole, in the opportunities this crisis actually affords.

4) You can finish this ''music shot'' the way you see fit.

To young artists I'd say: keep expressing yourself and become good at your craft. Then you can change things!

Thank you very much for this ''music shot'' Mike!

Stathis 

Thank you!

Mike.

Myspace revisited - social media wars

There was a recent buzz & presentation over online media for the new Myspace design & functionality. Now this is no news. Myspace is struggling to regain its dominant (?) position it once enjoyed (back in 2003). This time though, web journalists are reporting something good back. Something very promising & versatile.

Don't forget that Myspace is an online platform featuring millions of tracks from indie & mainsteam artists. Therefore, its owners have persisted that this rich Intellectual Property has to be diffused upon the masses (old & present users) with innovative new design & functionalities.

“The Internet just became boring,” COO Chris said to a panel of journalists. ''There was nothing fun anymore … I want to make it fun to use MySpace.”

Other managers reported that the new Myspace is now a new product. The new design sparks emotion for the fans, the artists, its users overall. The new Myspace is also a bet & a challenge for web developers as it reinforces meaning, navigation, search capabilities.

Users can enjoy new personalization features too that seem to consist a different language that needs to be learned in order to fully master Myspace. I should mention that they also changed ''Like'' to ''Connect''. They have designed the whole platform so that users ''connect'' with everything featured.

Myspace, Spotify, Pandora, Vevo, Facebook, Youtube...who is winning & who is left behind?

 

October_2012

Here is an interesting e-book for all the digital marketing gurus out there. Just click on the head banner to download (free):
http://www.slingshotseo.com/

An album by Noisia which I find totally exceptional:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xe7QjPMiRw8

The new landing page of Songreal (Greek start-up/cloud music service/co-founder):
http://www.songreal.gr/

Visiting Oslo soon...