Posts Tagged ‘Fuzion PR’

Whoah – Major changes to Facebook “pages”

February 15, 2011
Facebook changes to business pages

Changes to Facebook - confused?

Just when we were getting used to Facebook they go and change it all again!

This round of changes are quite significant and represent a major change in how they are thinking including (I think?) trying to incorporate things that are possible on Twitter (a business following a business) and a facility whereby businesses can align to each other.

I’ll do my best to explain some of the changes .. here goes

Look and Feel

The look and feel of Business Pages has changed on Facebook with some of the buttons/tabs switching position. The profile pic (if you were utilising its full capability) will now be reduced – from 200 pixels wide and 600 long to 180 x 540 – a call to your graphic designer may be required.

Similar to the new personal profile pages the new business page will also display photos of your most recent “experiences” on the top of the page.

You now have the ability (and choice) to display the “admins” for the page (below the profile pic).

Users switching to Pages

This is a major change and one I suspect is being influenced by twitter to an extent. Now a user can “switch” their profile to their page (or page of your choice if you are admin for a few pages) and then behave more like an individual – however in this mode the user does not have the full functionality as if you would with a personal profile but you can now:

  • Like other pages (you cannot be friends with individuals)
  • Like and Comment on other pages as “the business”

In this way you will start to see a community of businesses “liking” each other – something which you can do easily on twitter in a very uncomplicated way.

Facebook changes

Recommended pages appears to the right of your page

To enhance this feature Facebook recommends pages for your business page to like (as opposed to friends) based on similar people “likes” and interests on your business page and theirs (you will have to read that sentence a few times to grasp the point I suspect!!).

One of the effects of this is that updates on business pages you choose to like will come into your news feed (using Facebook as a business “page” user), which in a way can bring you specific information about pages only. This feature enables you to engage with the latest and important news from other business Pages you like.

Information about Business “Page” updates

Facebook has introduced a facility whereby you can get alerts for activity on your page. If you have a large volume of activity this will drive you nuts, however it will help to make sure you don’t miss any important activity of your business pages.

Relevancy – The “everyone” filter

The “Everyone” filter on the Wall by selection provides a new way for people to see the most interesting posts first.

Enhanced Moderations

Facebook have provided more facilities for moderating content on your page automatically including posts by users above a certain age and you also have the ability to block posts using certain selected  “keywords”.

More changes

The changes being implemented are still a little “buggy” so expect a few glitches and a few more things to change slightly – no throwing the computer out the window guys … it’s not worth it!!

All in all you can see that Facebook is trying to enhance the “business” aspects of the platform, which provides opportunities for anyone in business who is clever enough to fully utilise them.

Sorry about the heavy post ..

Fuzion provide a full Social Media Consultancy service.

Greg Canty is a partner of Fuzion Communications

Have you met your “Other Self”?

February 15, 2011
Napoleon Hill, Think and Grow Rich

Napoleon Hill – Inspirational!

I came across this powerful extract in Napoleon Hill’s inspirational book, “Think and Grow Rich” published in 1937, and written with a backdrop of the Great Depression.

You have been disappointed, you have undergone defeat during the depression, you have felt the great heart within you crushed until it bled. Take courage, for those experiences have tempered the spiritual metal of which you are made – they are assets of incomparable value.

Remember, too, that all who succeed in life get off to a bad start, and pass through many heartbreaking struggles before they “arrive”. The turning point in the lives of those who succeed, usually comes at the moment of some crisis, through which they are introduced to their “other selves”.”

Have you met your “other self”?

I know it is a terrible time for so many people but I would really urge them to dig deep (or even deeper as the case may be), try to look for the positives or the “unique” opportunities and eventually you will find a new and possible very rewarding and fulfilling path.

Greg Canty is a partner of Fuzion Communications

The Candidates – David McCarthy, Independent (Cork South Central)

February 13, 2011
David McCarthy, Independent Candidate, Cork

David McCarthy - A Fresh approach?

As part of the election process I am going to do a “Ronseal” (what does their tin say about them) review of the political candidates literature that comes in through our letterbox and score them accordingly!!

Candidate: David McCarthy, Independent for Reform (Cork South Central)

David’s literature didn’t actually come through my letter box but he came across my activity on-line and asked me to review his material – I must say, I like this positive approach – well done David!

Design and Layout (5)
David has opted for a 3 panel DL format, which allows him plenty of space to build his arguments and allow the reader a chance to properly assess what he is all about. The flyer is well designed and has taken quite a fresh approach – score 5

Photo (10)
This is a really good photo of David – he looks smart but also looks friendly and open. The photo captures a young man and it conveys to me a candidate that would have fresh ideas and energy as well as warmth. He is wearing a dark pin stripe suit (personally I think he is a little bit young for the “regulation” suit)  with a white shirt and plain red tie – maybe he wants to balance youth with seriousness: I would have dressed a little younger David. Would you trust this man? I think definitely, the photo screams of youth and freshness. Well done! – score 9

Contact Details (5)
He includes both his email address and his personal phone number on his flyer, as well his facebook and twitter pages and a link to his website. That puts David is a very progressive box and gives everyone an opportunity to really find out more about what he is like and what he is up to – score 5

Background (10)
David tells us plenty about himself here and you do get a sense of his personality. He has a lot of work done in the political arena supporting other candidates, which shows he does understand the process. He works in Communications but personally I would like to know what he is qualified at – if he were to get our vote what expertise would he bring to the party? It is clear that David is good at “making things happen” – he demonstrates this with the work he has done on his dads projects. I can see energy and commitment and someone who would work hard for things he believes in – score 8

Sales Pitch (10)
David explains why he is running, that it is not a time for sitting on the fence and he wants to offer an alternative voice – he outlines some clear ideas and policies and then asks the reader to empathise with the difficulty of being an “independent” candidate. His closing pitch is to give him a chance but he reminded me too much of the difficulty of being an independent – score 7

Big Picture (10)
The big picture arguments are well documented. David outlines point by point his policies and ideas and has clearly put a lot of time and thought into this – the other candidates could well take a leaf from his book, instead of the “vote for us because FF have made a bags of it” approach. I’m not sure if all of this would work in practice but it does demonstrate someone who works with solutions instead of pointing out problems – score 9

Overall Score
I really like what David has done here. In summary he promises the reader a fresh approach, someone who understands the system and is solutions focused. My only real negative is that he points out too well how difficult it may be for an Independent candidate, maybe to the point that one might feel there is no point giving him their No.1 vote.

However, I’m sorry David is not in my constituency ..  overall score 43 out of 50.

Best of luck in the elections David – for some reason I feel we will be hearing more from you !

Greg Canty is a partner of Fuzion Communications

The Candidates – Jerry Buttimer, Fine Gael (Cork South Central)

February 13, 2011
Jerry Buttimer, Fine Gael

Jerry Buttimer, Fine Gael - tell us more Jerry

As part of the election process I am going to do a “Ronseal” (what does their tin say about them) review of the political candidates literature that comes in through our letterbox and score them accordingly!!

Candidate: Jerry Buttimer, Fine Gael (Cork South Central)

This review is quite easy for me as it follows a standard format that some of the Fine Gael candidates are using – I have other candidates reviewed already so my job is easy – check out Derry Canty!

Design and Layout (5)
Jerry and his FG team opted for a really small flyer, A6 size, it’s tiny but it is printed on heavier paper than the other candidates so far. For some reason there is no mention of which constituency Jerry is running in prominently on the flyer  – score 3

Photo (10)
There is a only a fair photo of Jerry, looking just ok, giving no hint of his personality and with a slightly vacant look in his eyes. He is wearing a dark suit with a light blue shirt and red and blue striped blue tie – standard attire for a politician I guess! Would you trust this man? The photo doesn’t engage with me so I will give a neutral score here – score 5

Contact Details (5)
He includes both his email address and his personal phone number on his flyer, a nice “open” approach. As well as this he has his Facebook and twitter pages listed .. ok, that puts him in the progressive box and gives everyone an opportunity to really find out more about what he is like and what he is up to – score 5

Background (10)
There is absolutely nothing on the flyer about Jerry. When I say nothing I really mean nothing.. how can I be expected to vote for you if I know nothing about you, what you believe in, what you are qualified at, what you have achieved – score 0

Sales Pitch (10)
The sales pitch on the flyer is a generic Fine Gael pitch and not why we should vote for Jerry. To be fair it does give a point by point review of what they would do. It is a little generic though using terms such as “radical stimulus plan” and “radical reforms” , tell me more, I’d love to hear more about these radical changes .. – score 5

Big Picture (10)
The big picture argument was the same as the sales pitch and did attempt to explain how FG would make a difference. At least there is an attempt at explaining how the “big picture” might be different if we voted for them – score 8

Overall Score
This is a Fine Gael flyer with Jerry’s picture and contact details on it. As I suspected we will see exactly the same across the length and breadth of the country with other candidate’s names and pictures.

Jerry (or Derry as the case will be), people vote for people and you know this – your flyer is a wasted opportunity to get your message across to your voters. Lots of pressing the flesh is needed to show them you – check out Aine Collin’s (Fine Gael) flyer who goes some way to showing what she is like and why we should vote for  “her” – overall score 26 out of 50.

Best of luck in the elections Jerry or was it Derry!?

Greg Canty is a partner of Fuzion Communications

The Candidates – Derry Canty, Fine Gael (Cork North West)

January 30, 2011
Derry Canty, Fine Gael

Derry - we want to hear about you!

As part of the election process I am going to do a “Ronseal” (what does their tin say about them) review of the political candidates literature that comes in through our letterbox and score them accordingly!!

Candidate: Derry Canty, Fine Gael (Cork North West)

Now this review is tricky as he is a namesake and I know him! .. but, the idea here is to review the candidates purely based on that flyer that comes through the letterbox. After all I reckon that is as much as most people voting will get to see of their candidates unless they have been really active in their particular area.

Design and Layout (5)
Derry and his team opted for a really small flyer, A6 size, it’s tiny but it is printed on heavier paper than the other candidates so far. For some reason there is no mention of which constituency Derry is running in – score 3

Photo (10)
There is a good enough photo of Derry, looking friendly and approachable. He is wearing a dark suit with a white shirt and a blue tie – standard attire for a politician I guess! Would you trust this man? On the higher side of average I guess! – score 7

Contact Details (5)
He includes both his email address and his personal phone number on his flyer, a nice “open” approach. As well as this he has his Facebook page listed .. ok, that puts him in the progressive box and gives everyone an opportunity to really find out more about what he is like and what he is up to – score 5

Background (10)
There is absolutely nothing on the flyer about Derry. When I say nothing I really mean nothing.. how can I be expected to vote for you if I know nothing about you, what you believe in, what you are qualified at, what you have achieved – score 0

Sales Pitch (10)
The sales pitch on the flyer is a generic Fine Gael pitch and not why we should vote for Derry. To be fair it does give a point by point review of what they would do. It is a little generic though using terms such as “radical stimulus plan” and “radical reforms” , tell me more, I’d love to hear more about these radical changes .. – score 5

Big Picture (10)
The big picture argument was the same as the sales pitch and did attempt to explain how FG would make a difference. At least there is an attempt at explaining how the “big picture” might be different if we voted for them – score 8

Overall Score
This is a Fine Gael flyer with Derry’s picture and contact details on it. I suspect we will see exactly the same across the length and breadth of the country with other candidate’s names and pictures.

Derry, people vote for people and you know this – your flyer is a wasted opportunity to get your message across to your voters. Lots of pressing the flesh is needed to show them you – check out Aine Collins flyer who goes some way to showing what she is like and why we should vote for  “her” – overall score 28 out of 50.

Best of luck in the elections Derry!

Greg Canty is a partner of Fuzion Communications

Would you text “Flirt” to 57333?

January 30, 2011
Text flirt

Who would text "flirt"?

Past 11 at night you will come across so many of these adverts, you know the ones, “text flirt to 57333, for friends, friendly chats or maybe more” .. and they promise even more.. “girls in your area are waiting to talk to you“!

Do we really think that you could be fooled by these adverts? Would you really call that number and expect to actually chat with someone genuine (if that has happened to anyone, I’d love to hear about it). You know without a doubt if you called that number you would end up chatting with someone programmed with standard chat up lines and a “put on” sexy voice at a huge cost (probably after waiting at least two minutes, pressing this button and that, eating up valuable time)?

Of course you wouldn’t , don’t be silly, who would? I am 45 and have never done this , nor do I know of anyone who has. At a stretch maybe a few lads larking around on their parents phone having the crack? Beyond that and applying my sense of logic and experience I can’t imagine anyone using the “flirt” service.

The conclusion is that no one really calls these numbers. Right?

While these adverts are not shown on prime TV, they are shown off peak with huge frequency and on the newspapers. They aren’t free and someone is writing cheques on a regular basis for them. Are they really stupid and foolish or just trying to get rid of money on an idea that will never work? I doubt it ..

Conclusion? Never assume you know about the marketplace, there is money in the niches, you just need to find them!!

Greg Canty is a partner of Fuzion Communications

The Pitch – Did Donald Draper really find it that easy!

January 19, 2011
Donald Draper - Mad Men

Did Donald Draper really find it that easy?

In the beginning it starts with a briefing meeting, the client outlines their requirements and you listen, gently probing for information, what kind of a business is it? What are their challenges and objectives ? What activity have they tried in the past? What are the dynamics of their industry and what kind of people are they? What are they looking for from you? You commit to coming back with a plan and you set a date for the follow up meeting..

Ok, you’ve put the toe in the water and now you’ve started on the roller coaster journey of “The Pitch”.

With one maybe two weeks of a gap to the presentation date you start that process of thinking, researching, discussing, brainstorming and even dreaming about this possible new client. It’s after slipping into your bloodstream and you are well and truly on the way.

Then the crew up the pace and start working on the plan with roles assigned to each of the team. We chat over coffee, we chat over lunch, the late phone calls, the good ideas. What do you think of this idea ..?

Now you start to become the actual business owner, you start investing emotionally in the challenge and finding the best solutions that will achieve “your” business objectives, your heart and mind are totally committed.

Two days to go, where is everyone? A quick review meeting to make sure the team is on track. The final proposal is starting to take shape.

One day to go and the visuals are other final material is produced, review, review and review again. There is no point being half committed, to have a chance you have to go the extra mile, which always means late nights and short weekends ..

Good suit today! Who is going to present which parts? Rehearse and rehearse and the final pitch is finally ready to present, Oh.. Last minute ideas .. what about it? Ok, go for it, make those last minute adjustments and then final print, burn CDs and off we go.

The nervous excitement and adrenaline take the team through the presentation to the prospective client. The team plays their part, fielding the questions, adding our nuggets of wisdom and experience, taking extra notes and then it is over.

Thanks a million, that was great, we will review your plan and come back to you” and then the inevitable post mortem starts.

What did they think of us? Did I say the right thing? What did he mean by that comment? When do you think they will give us feedback? .. The million questions roll around in your head, could we have done better and most importantly, will they go with us?

Then comes the crash.. you have been so fired up and caught up in the roller coaster of the process that you now are totally exhausted when it is all over.

You’ve played your part, given it your best shot and now it is time to detach yourself emotionally from the process. When you commit 110% it can be tough .

Before I used be on “tender hooks” waiting for the result, which normally doesn’t really happen me any more. Now when the presentation is over, that is it for me. We’ll wait to hear and if enough time passes and we haven’t heard I will push for feedback (it’s amazing how often you never get feedback, which I am convinced is an Irish thing – one crew actually admitted to me that they were just looking for new ideas!!) and that is it.

When we win it is fabulous and when we lose then try not to take it too personally, it could be for one 1,000 different reasons.. At least always give yourself the best chance of winning and learn what you can, so you can be better the next time.

Today we made a great pitch (at least that’s what we thought!), which we put an incredible amount of time, effort and ourselves into. We went through the whole emotional rush and now we are in that “after” place – totally exhausted!

Will we win the account? Who knows.. but I reckon we have a good chance! The great news is that we have another pitch to start into tomorrow!

Donald Draper from Mad Men made it look too easy!

Greg Canty is a partner of Fuzion Communications

New Years Resolution – Change your Bio!

January 1, 2011

New Years Resolution

How about this year with your New Years Resolutions doing something a little bit different that might really makes change actually happen?

I’m not sure about you but I gave up making these “New Year” resolutions a long time ago because I know I just don’t stick to them, so I guess it is time to take a different approach.

New Years Resolutions? What are they about anyway?

If I am really going to commit to doing something different, I guess it should be something significant, something really positive in my life, some “change” that I want to happen – I suppose you could say I want a “new me” in some way, corny I know, but isn’t that what it boils down to?

To achieve any goal a lot of the motivational “gurus” will recommend some form of visualisation, finding some way of creating a clear picture of what that success looks like. This process is supposed to help clear the path of obstacles and open your mind to the route to ultimate success. Easy? Not really ..but you can see how it could work.

With this in mind how about taking this approach but simplifying it for our “life change” resolutions – forget about New Year, if it’s a positive change let’s really go for it!

How about doing the ultimate visualisation and actually making a change to your bio? It sounds a bit crazy but why not? It takes the visualisation a stage further and makes it a public promise in a way – This is who I am.

Ok, you’re not a liar so now you have to correct this small little “white lie” about yourself and make that positive change in your life so you can become the person you want to be!

Wow, that’s powerful stuff if it could work for you. For this you need to choose those changes very carefully – What is it you exactly want to change?

So .. Who are you ?

A non-smoker, an entrepreneur, a writer, a wine expert, a mountain climber, a cyclist, a marathon runner, a photographer, award winning PR consultant, an artist.. It’s up to you.

After carefully deciding that “life change” go to your bio on Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, your blog, website or even your CV .. make that little White Lie and start correcting it as soon as possible.

I must start ..

Greg Canty is a partner of Fuzion Communications

£35 a week!

December 31, 2010

Greg Afro Canty

September 1982 and this 17 year old hopped off the bus (this was unusual because every other time that  I went to work it was on my trusted bicycle – then again it was day one of the rest of my life!) on The Grand Parade in Cork and headed to work for the first time to Barber & O’Leary, Financial and Management Consultants, on the South Mall no less!

To celebrate this special occasion I had a new brown blazer with a choice of different trousers, each a different shade of brown or beige to complete this classic ensemble. The “piece de resistance” was my curly afro, while quite unique was probably a talking point for many!

Despite the grand title the firm was really a small to medium sized accountancy and audit firm, but the partners did have some investments in their own projects, which we all ended up working on at some point.

While I was confident I could make my mark on the business world, I was also quite nervous – I didn’t even do accountancy in secondary school!

Jumping right in at the deep end, that September I started 5 fabulous years working by day and studying for my accountancy exams by night. We dealt with clients of all sorts, big and small including my favourite, Mrs O’Sullivan who had a right skip in her step after her beloved husband passed away .. The glamour of her all of a sudden!

The amazing thing with accountancy (a profession often mocked quite unfairly) is that immediately because you are dealing with peoples finances and their “financial stories” (I always had a romantic viewpoint that the accountant is actually a financial storyteller), you are taken into a position of trust, even at the age of 17!  This is a privileged position to be in, considering that employees could be working in that business all their lives and never be in that position of trust and influence that the young accountant can often find themselves. Wow, I absolutely loved it.

Many people assumed that I must have loved working with numbers and that is why I did accountancy .. Nah , I loved the idea of being in business and I reckoned this was going to be the best business degree of all – day in day out we worked on all sorts of clients, doing bank reconciliations, sorting out total messes at times, preparing accounts (storytelling, I tell you) listening, learning and advising.

My god, I learned so much from one of the partners of the firm, the fabulous James Barber, who was an absolutely brilliant boss (I would love to catch up with him some time and find out what he really made of the curly haired 17 year old!) and I tried my best to avoid the other partner , the unpredictable Sean O’Leary, who mostly didn’t seem to care at all and the odd time took too much interest.

The crew inside there were great but I must admit I learned the most from the enigmatic Christopher “third degree” Burns who was an erratic but brilliant accountant, a chancer most of the time but the only one in my view who could handle our biggest bully of a client Mr B (unfair to name the man but he shares a surname with my mums side of the family – maybe we are related? Scary thought.. ). I still tell people stories about Third Degree to this day – a total and very colourful legend!

Robert Arnopp from Bandon, shared the same love of music as me and we swapped albums continuously throughout this time. I later met one of my best buddies Brian Sexton, who joined the year after me and later worked with me again in the drinks industry. Brian famously noticed the very attractive secretary, Bernadette Dilworth on his first day at work (“cop on Brian” she is out of our league were my clear thoughts) and ended up marrying her years later! For some reason Brian and I started to call each other “Bob”, which  we still do to this day. Why? I have no idea .. We managed to have some of the best of laughs out on different jobs that we worked on together – we were just kids, behaving as professionally as possible, but at times we just couldn’t control the giggles!

These were my formative years, I worked hard and studied hard, I learned incredible skills that have always stayed with me and I ended up leaving the practice five years later as a young qualified accountant. I was asked to stay on but I needed to discover more about the world of business!

I started at £35 a week, just like any other apprentice (I was making more than this on my newspaper round, which I continued out of necessity!) and genuinely loved every minute of it except for the 3 months we did the most boring study in the whole world for the Cork Harbour Commissioners, which was one of those times I wished Sean O’Leary would take less interest!

Regarding our huge pay packets, Robert had this great story of going to the bank and lodging his monthly pay check. He knew the bank teller who commented on how much he was being paid, very impressive indeed. He didn’t have the heart to tell her it was a months pay and not a weeks!

To Mr Barber, Third Degree Burns, Robert and Brian thanks for the fabulous business degree, which always stands to me and to be honest, the really great time!

Greg Canty is a partner of Fuzion Communications

When Christmas Trees were Tall

December 27, 2010

Tall Christmas Tree

It scares me how quickly we forget things, how quickly memories just disappear .. The exception is the “big occasions” or the “big moments” such as wedding days, terrific concerts, children being born or even total disasters such as an accident, big or small.

When we do remember certain moments, that weren’t “big moments” as such – what happened that makes these stay with us specifically?

I grew up in a musical family .. Not in a way that you might imagine with us all playing instruments but there was always some music playing. Mum and Dad always had music on in the car or at home so we were raised on Johnny Mathis, Glen Campbell, Perry Como, Jose Feliciano, Johnny Cash and many more. I guess this rubbed off on me as I started collecting music seriously from the age of 13.

One Christmas, at least a few days after the main event I remember feeling a little nostalgic and I started going through my parents old albums hoping to find some gems that would still be relevant to me.

I remember putting on this album by a blind artist, Jose Feliciano, which my folks used to listen to with us and stated moving from track to track carefully lifting and placing the stylus or needle at the start of each track ..

This special song, which turns out was actually written by The Bee Gees (I am only just after discovering this by the way) came on and for some reason I started to cry, and cry quite uncontrollably and just couldn’t stop!

I guess I listened to the words, was taken in by how soulfully it was sung, remembered all those times I listened to it with my folks and recalled a time of lost innocence: “When I was small and Christmas trees were tall” .. Why does that moment stay with me to this day?

I was thirteen!

Greg Canty is a partner of Fuzion Communications

Full lyrics: The First of May

When I was small, and Christmas trees were tall,
we used to love while others used to play.
Don’t ask me why, but time has passed us by,
someone else moved in from far away.

Now we are tall, and Christmas trees are small,
and you don’t ask the time of day.
But you and I, our love will never die,
but guess who’ll cry come first of May.

The apple tree that grew for you and me,
I watched the apples falling one by one.
And as I recall the moment of them all,
the day I kissed your cheek and you were gone.

Now we are tall, and Christmas trees are small,
and you don’t ask the time of day.
But you and I, our love will never die,
but guess who’ll cry come first of May.

When I was small, and Christmas trees were tall,
do do do do do do do do do …
Don’t ask me why, but time has passed us by,
someone else moved in from far away.

Music and lyrics: Barry, Maurice, and Robin Gibb (Bee Gees)

What an amazing song – check it out!