MikeMacLeod.net - Latest Comments

Re: Who Decides What News Is Important?

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Re: Who Decides What News Is Important?

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Re: Idea For My Unemployed Friends

michaellowenstein — Mon, 22 Mar 2010 18:56:29 -0000

Mike -

I had my own stakeholder research and consulting company before joining GfK (then NOP World) in 2004, and leaving them to join Harris Interactive in 2006. Until March 5th, I was SVP and Senior Consultant in their Stakeholder Relationship Consulting (formerly Customer Loyalty) group. Like 20 other Harris employees, I was in the latest group of cutbacks.

While I'm tempted to go out on my own (see my LinkedIn profile) as a researcher/consultant, I'm looking at opportunities more on the strategic boutique consulting, and possibly corporate, sides. Why? Because I actually think I'd be able to make more of a contribution in those capacities than by jumping back into another MR situation.

Re: I’m Not Going To Be A Fat Dad

Mike MacLeod — Mon, 22 Feb 2010 19:55:06 -0000

Thanks Annie!!

Re: I’m Not Going To Be A Fat Dad

annie — Mon, 22 Feb 2010 08:54:24 -0000

Congratulations! I'm rooting for you and your family all the way. It is not an easy task you have taken up but it is worth every bit of pain.

Re: Under Construction

annie — Sun, 14 Feb 2010 19:29:45 -0000

Hello? Is someone here? What's going on? Do we get a free gift for visiting?

Re: Why Twitter Followers Don’t Matter

Chris Cavs — Thu, 14 May 2009 10:08:19 -0000

It's interesting that you say this. Over the last few years, Twitter certainly has become a tool for conversation. It did, however, start out as a broadcast tool. The whole, "What are you doing?" question certainly lent itself to broadcast messages. It was the users who defined what Twitter would become, and what it will become in the future. This may be a question of semantics, but I think it's worth mentioning when you declare what Twitter is or is not.

As far as broadcasting a message, in some instances, broadcast works well. For example, the user @BreakingNewsOn is pretty much a broadcaster. There is very little interaction with the user base, yet they have many followers, and are arguably a valuable addition to the twitter community.

I understand that you're talking about marketers, but your first sentence is then very misleading. Twitter most certainly IS a broadcast medium.

Re: Why Twitter Followers Don’t Matter

Coach Jenn — Tue, 14 Apr 2009 08:08:49 -0000

Very interesting perspective. I am learning more about Twitter every day.

<abbr>Coach Jenn’s last blog post..Busting Weight Loss Plateaus</abbr>

Re: Leaders Discuss Future of Social Media

Sarah Van Elzen — Mon, 23 Feb 2009 09:55:56 -0000

Thanks for sharing the stats! Great insight! I agree Twitter is best for business @sarahvanelzen.

Re: Most Popular Links on Twitter

bradhart — Wed, 18 Feb 2009 15:40:53 -0000

my preferences is for http://twitturls.com/ as it separates out links, images and videos.

<abbr>brad hart’s last blog post..Idol Gets Down and Dirty</abbr>

Re: Who Decides What News Is Important?

Mike — Fri, 23 Jan 2009 07:59:04 -0000

Brian, Steve,

Thanks you both for sharing your insights.

One definite positive from all this is that no one (political parties, causes, etc.) is going to be able to claim that "the media" controls any sort of agenda.

Re: Who Decides What News Is Important?

Brian Tarran — Fri, 23 Jan 2009 03:34:37 -0000

Steve-

You got me there. I'm not really sure my decision-making process is that much different. After all, I would be out of a job if I wasn't driven to make our website and magazine as widely read as possible.

After posting, I was actually musing to myself on how the web really hasn't changed things that much. Print editors pick front page leads based on what they think will be big sellers or those that will keep their regular readers coming back.

I guess the key difference with the web is the speed with which editors can now find out how correct their hunch was and switch their news agenda accordingly. (Fortunately or unfortunately, depending on your point of view) our current website analytics setup is too cumbersome for me to have time to go and find out each morning which stories were most popular, meaning we can pursue stories we think are important, whether our wider audience agrees or not.

Sometimes this pays off. For instance, we were writing about the dangers the online behavioural targeting row posed to research in terms of damaging new legislation at a time when nearly all researchers we spoke to were saying it wasn't of concern to them - and the monthly web stats we did see seemed to tally with that. Now, of course, the MRA has flagged the possibility of new online privacy legislation as one of the key issues to watch this year, Kantar Group has appointed its first chief privacy officer, and I guess that won't be the end of it.

In this instance, we made a decision about what was important which went against the value judgement made by the majority of our readers. Were we wrong to have done so? And will we continue to do so when we get a better analytics package?

Re: Who Decides What News Is Important?

Steve Molof — Thu, 22 Jan 2009 19:07:32 -0000

Brian,

- I agree with your statement "the web has made it so that editors deem what’s important as what delivers them the most hits or comments – rather than what deserves to be most widely read." So I'm curious, since you're a news editor, how your approach differs?

Now since we're talking about "Who Decides what News is Important?" I think it's only fair to say, being the online media ninjas that we are, we are guilty by association and are a product of our environment. Without covering your eyes when waiting for the cnn.com web pages of the world to load, there's no fail proof way when consuming non-partisan and non-biasely chosen headlines/stories to make our own decisions as individuals. I think this is relative to the idea of voting with your pocketbook when you shop at a physical grocery store, in the end it's up to the individual what's best, regardless of the value judgements made by top level execs and editors.

Will Smith said it best - don't hate the player, hate the game.

Re: Who Decides What News Is Important?

Brian Tarran — Thu, 22 Jan 2009 14:00:57 -0000

As a news editor, Mike, the question of what news is important is something I wrestle with every day. Steve, I think, gets it part right when he says that it is down to the individual. But that's only correct so far as the individual is concerned. How do you decide what's important to a company, an industry, a country or a global audience? Unfortunately, the web has made it so that editors deem what's important as what delivers them the most hits or comments – rather than what deserves to be most widely read.

Re: Who Decides What News Is Important?

Steve Molof — Thu, 22 Jan 2009 12:49:28 -0000

Mike,

I love this question as it begs for the only answer I know to give: YOU DECIDE what news is important and only YOU. I think the only reason the massess become the masses is because of the same numbskull attitude you and I both shared when flocking to the cnn's of the world for our daily fix - much the same way I flock to Tully's every morning for a cappuccino, I remain guilty in that respect. Rock on with the twitter feeds!

Re: Twitterize Your Market Research

Barry Judge — Sat, 17 Jan 2009 17:53:39 -0000

It's input. For me it's a great platform to reach Best Buy blue shirts and corporate employees who may never know the rationale for our communication and may never see it. We still rely on copy testing as well, a blog supplements the more traditional feedback mechanisms.

Re: The Research Industry Needs More Experimentation

MR HERETIC — Tue, 13 Jan 2009 09:53:15 -0000

There are many reasons why. Here are two of the big ones:

1) Middle managers who don't understand new technology have enough power, a motive (survival!), and often band together, to protect the status quo. The bigger the research company, the more this happens.

2) Established MR companies are run by accountants. The will avoid risk and try to make the old methods leaner and more efficient until they have absolutely no other choice. This systematically inhibits innovation and frustrates the clued-in people within the company until the give up and leave.

Seth Godin said it best: http://sethgodin.typepad.co...

<abbr>MR HERETIC’s last blog post..Safe is the New Dangerous</abbr>

Re: Twitterize Your Market Research

Mike — Mon, 12 Jan 2009 16:12:30 -0000

Hey Brian,

He doesn't guarantee a balanced sampling blend and he doesn't use this by itself to make a true prediction.

Understand what Twitter is and understand the information that is gathered. You're right, he'll hear about the extremes - either the people that hate it or the people that love it. And that is useful.

It's not scientific and it shouldn't be used as a replacement for science. But at the cost of the time it takes to type 140 characters, would you not be interested to get a quick assessment of your product - even if it isn't weighted perfectly?

Re: Twitterize Your Market Research

Brian LoCicero — Mon, 12 Jan 2009 15:58:40 -0000

Okay, so you're a sampling guy, tell me how he guarantees a balanced sample in order to make a true prediction?

Although I'll generalize greatly here, won't responses from Twitter be likened to what too many companies get from Customer Sat from recruiting off of register receipts? You'll either get the extremely happy with the service, always say yes group or the group just looking to trash the hell out of it because they're the "man".

Also, by what standard does he evaluate this batch of ads versus any of his previous batches? He's evaluating ads in a cloud while flying with a blindfold on.

I guess if I'm his current copy test MR firm, I'm worried, if I'm not, well, he's getting a call from me to explain the error of his ways. His polling practice is no better than (R.I.P.) Facebook Polls or some horrible poll on the nightly news. He's getting WoM but nothing statistically significant.

Re: The Research Industry Needs More Experimentation

Corey — Sun, 11 Jan 2009 21:17:56 -0000

no one has figured how to integrate the technology with their 1950s platforms.

Re: More Layoffs – How Can I Help?

Mike — Fri, 09 Jan 2009 17:47:03 -0000

Thanks Denzil. I hope all is well with you.

Re: More Layoffs – How Can I Help?

Denzil Weerasinghe — Fri, 09 Jan 2009 15:51:54 -0000

You are a good person , Mike. I was very sorry when you left us.

Re: SocialToo Protects Me From Itself

Mike — Mon, 05 Jan 2009 06:52:01 -0000

Thanks Jesse. I look forward to your newer features. I plan on testing your polling service this week.

Re: SocialToo Protects Me From Itself

Jesse Stay — Sun, 04 Jan 2009 23:58:58 -0000

You're welcome Mike, and thanks for the love! I've got a bunch more features like this I want to implement as I get time (Donate so I can get to them faster!). My end goal, which I think is different than other services like this, is to get rid of the spam, not create it. In the end I want to make Twitter and other social networks a better place, which is why I created the service. At the same time I think we all have our own ways of using the service so I have to enable users who want to send these dms to their followers.

<abbr>Jesse Stay’s last blog post..Apple, Safari is Worthless to Me at the Moment!</abbr>

Re: Invite Code for Zentact

twitter.com/zeugmacom — Sat, 03 Jan 2009 05:44:03 -0000

Check http://portablecontacts.net/ by JSmarr.