Blogging in Lobbying?

What’s blogging got to do with lobbying? Infamous blogger Victor “Bikoy” Villanueva and Airah of the Kabataan party-list as well as Congressman Mong Palatino who also is the president of Kabataan Party-list tell us how blogging as a tool helps them as lobbyists in trying to influence the people to vote on their side. In those interviews, I share with you some of the important insights on lobbying through blogging given by Congressman Mong, Sir Bikoy, and Ma’am Airah.

On the importance of blogging

Mong:

“But in terms of convincing the public, in terms of disseminating information, in terms of informing the public, blogging is an effective tool, because more and more young people especially students are getting their news not from TV, radio, or newspaper but from news websites.”

“But blogging, with unlimited space, you can articulate your views without censorship, and at the same time there is interaction, in  the comment section, that’s instant feedback, which can be a basis for a new article.”

On the role of blogging

Mong:

“and you ask the role of blogging? To tell you frankly, blogging has little impact on lobbying today. Because majority of our lawmakers don’t know what blogging is, the role of social media, what are the social media websites.”

Bikoy:

“if we want to know the sentiment of the people, hindi lang natin sa blogging kinukuha yun, it’s just a part of it.”

On cyber-activism

Mong:

“But I have to emphasize that virtual activism, cyber protest is not enough. If you really want to influence policy makers, you should directly engage them.”

Airah:

“But you have to realize that bloggers aren’t , kaya nga diba may term na ‘cyber-activist’ ,kasi diba meron yung mga tao daw na pag nag-join cla ng  social issue- based groups sa facebook, feeling nila they’ve contributed to the campaign already and they stop there, so what happens is even if you try to organize offline events, wala masyado pumupunta, so it’s a disappointing reality na some people are confined or confine themselves to online activity.”

On the future of blogging

Mong:

“So I think the future of blogging in the future, will continue to play an important role in the political process, but not now.”

“Blogging is a promising political tool. In the same way that texting 10 years ago was a simple means of communication.”

Don’t Let Yourself be the Last to Know!

I know you love trivia, and I’m quite sure you love the Internet too, so let me lighten up your mood with these trivia I have about the Inernet (some HS teacher taught us to pronounce it that way, without the ‘t’, idk.y). These I got last Saturday from Mr Paolo Pangan of Yehey Corporation, the guest speaker then with a thousand trivia. 🙂 Thanks Sir for the information you shared with us. The intro AVP used by Mr Paolo in his talk featured wow-ing information about people’s consumption of the Internet. If I’m not mistaken, its title was “Did you know?”. Well then, did you know that...

• 28 million Pinoys are into the online world; internet penetration rate is 33% which means that 3 out of every 10 Pinoys have already tried using the Internet. (yes, that includes me and you :P)
• 60% of the internet population is comprised of Classes C and D. Surprising, isn’t it? That’s why internet cafés/computer shops are very mabenta to Pinoys. Maybe this kind of business is a wise investment after all. 😉
• People use the Internet mainly for information, communication, entertainment, and commerce. The use of e-mail tops the list as well.
• In the United States, they call it “Instant Messaging.” In the Philippines, we call it “Yahoo Messenger (YM).” Guilty? You’re not alone. Haha.
• The top sites in the Philippines include Yahoo!, Facebook, Friendster, Youtube, and Google. I’m not sure of the order, but I think Google still has to win the preference of the Pinoys over Yahoo! especially when it comes to e-mail services. Also, many have now switched to Facebook, so if you want to catch up with your friends and sustain a happy social online life, then it would be advisable to create an FB account now. 😛
• When it comes to online campaigns, two 3s are very important: you need to (1) create buzz, generate hype, and craft strategy according to the (2) demographic of the target audience, psychographic (how they think), and their technographic (specific online tools they mostly use).
• On viral marketing, two things have to be considered: the virus (video) and the virus carrier (target audience). A viral video has to be viral on itself for it to  reach its target audience with minimal efforts, which should really be the case.
• Social networking sites like Facebook and Friendster help marketers and advertisers “stalk” you. Your activities in these sites give them vast information on who you are, including your preference and your behavior. Scared now? Do not be. 😉

YOU WANT MORE TRIVIA?

See this previous blog post–“Ang Pinoy nga naman, Adik” as some of the trivia shown to us have already been posted in this communication blog. Yey. Don’t we just love trivia? 😀

“Buwis-Buhay”: A Viral Video

Team: Pinoy Big Squatter (Jorron, Jemi, Jena, Jackie, Jam, Glecy)

Concept: “Taong Grasa” the sosyal version

Main Objective: To have fun by doing something unusual which the audience would be interested in

Sub-objectives:

• To see how people would react upon seeing taong grasas using techie stuff like digicam and ipod, wearing havs and braces, and ‘spokening dollars’
• To know the response of people with regard socially relevant issues such as the upcoming 2010 national elections

The whole experience? Totally FUUUUUN! KJs (Kill-joy) were ostracized. JOKE. Actually, we were all very much game, we all had this “let’s get it on” attitude while shooting the vid so we really enjoyed the experience. Laughtrip indeed. And viral we believe. 🙂

Just watch the vid to know what I’m talking about. Hehe. Hope you enjoy it as much as we enjoyed it! 🙂

Ang Pinoy nga Naman, Adik!

Blogging. Photo Sharing. Video Uploading. Watching Video clips. Podcasting. RSS. These are the things that the Filipinos are up to these days. Well, the Pinoys are not the only ones who are addicted to new social media. Other nations such as South Korea and Brazil are also active NSM users. Let me share with you some of the statistics showing how addicted the Filipinos are as regards the use of NSM: (got this from Sir Barry, he discussed this in class three or four Saturdays ago :D)

THE PHILIPPINES IS…

• no.4 in writing blogs (65.8%)
• no.1 in social networking (83.1%)
• no.1 in photo sharing (86.4%)
• 2nd to Brazil in video uploading (60.5%)
• no.1 in watching video clips (98.6%)
• no.1 in podcasting (61.8%)
• no.6 in RSS (45.2%)

Pinoys are indeed NSM lovers. Aren’t we? We love joining social networking sites such as Friendster, Multiply, Facebook, Plurk, Twitter, and many others because we want to expand our network and keep in touch with people who matter to us. More than that, we love uploading photos for the world to see. We love photo sharing. In fact, almost all of my photos in Facebook were shared photos, meaning, tagged ones. Pinoys love writing blogs, especially if the topic concerns the family. I, though, am not fond of blogging. Taking this comm blog aside, I think I have only written less than 10 blogs all in all.

We are no.1 in watching video clips and no.2 in uploading videos. Not surprising. Youtube is really mabenta to Pinoys. Actually, I often watch youtube vids when I get bored, like I watch some dance videos of my crush or my fave artists’ music vids, or any interesting video clips. Hehe. What is surprising is the fact that the Philippines is no.6 in RSS use and no.1 in podcasting. I do not even know how to use RSS and I haven’t even done podcasting. The people I know don’t as well. Oh well, life is indeed full of surprises. Haha.

Why then should we know these information?

For orcom practitioners, these information matter because this would guide them on how to better reach their target audience through the use of new social media. Statistics tell us that Filipinos are into new social media, therefore it’s wise to use NSM to get to them. If they are into Facebook or Twitter or Youtube, or if they are into blogging, then so penetrate this “world.”  Knowing the implications of such statistics would be helpful in assessing which channel to use for better communication with the target market. So, those who do not know the statusquo and are unaware of this addiction of Pinoys over new social media, better turn into NSM before it’s too late. 🙂

Winner Ka ‘Pag Orcom Ka!

A friend of mine wanted to arbor my PRHS campaign shirt, the one that we wore during our four-day campaign at La Immaculada Concepcion School (LICS) in Pasig City. Though I’ve always believed in generosity, I refused to give that shirt away because that really is special to me. Even if it looks so wamiyu or hiphop on me and the print is grepa, I still treasure that shirt because it reminds me of the successful campaign that we had to promote our degree program, Organizational Communication (Orcom), to the school of our choice.

This campaign was one of the requirements we had in our Public Relations class last semester. We were told to form a group of six and make a campaign that would promote BA Organizational Communication to high school students. That gave birth to PearlCrest Solutions, the team that I am truly proud of. To be honest, I wasn’t so confident with my degree program before that PRHS campaign. But because we were tasked to promote it, I had to believe in it. The good thing there is that I didn’t force myself in the process, my appreciation and love for Orcom came to me naturally as I learned more about the course.

The Campaign

We conducted pre-test survey to LICS juniors to know the extent of their knowledge about Organizational Communication. The results were not surprising; they barely know about it. This became the foundation of our campaign–our strategies and tactics addressed these results. We had a key message that was DOTA inspired so as to establish easy connection with the students, as the survey revealed that most of them liked playing DOTA.

Key Message:

WINNER KA ‘PAG ORCOM KA!

We had a Room-To-Room (RTR) campaign that lasted for four days. In each of the top 10 junior sections, we presented audio-visual presentations among other tactics that would capture the students’ attention and help them understand Orcom. We specially addressed their misconceptions about the Orcom program such as it is a call center course, etc. To know more about the campaign and about Orcom in general, please visit this site that we, PearlCrest Solutions, made: theorcomwinner.multiply.com.

Post Campaign

After all the hard work we put in this campaign, I could say that it was all worth it. We had the chance to promote Orcom, and I had the chance to better appreciate it. With this, I leave you with my own perspective on Organizational Communication, and why this degree program is the course of the century. 🙂

Orcom for me is...

Organizational Communication is the answer to the need of organizations to be more efficient and resourceful. With it banking on communication, it is geared towards better regulation of information within the organization and better alignment of business goals and strategies. BA Organizational Communication (Orcom) as a course is grounded on these values. It trains its students to be more than just communicators, but to be business-minded people who are competent in many fields. With this, subjects such as advertising, marketing, public relations, corporate communications, and human resources are included in the course curriculum to ensure that students become well-rounded employees, which most organizations look for nowadays. Orcom grads are trained to be flexible, versatile, and adaptive to the workplace, and they are not restricted to narrow technical specialties (some of which machines can do) because they know how to do several tasks. This is the advantage that Orcom grads have over other college graduates. This is what makes Orcom students standout in the workplace. Indeed,

WINNER KA ‘PAG ORCOM KA!

P.S. Thank you to Ms Ingrid for being the guest speaker in class and discussing Search Engine Optimization. I truly learned a lot from you. Thank you for inspiring all of us to “figure it out” and be successful like you. Most of all, thank you for making us proud of Orcom. To those who are still reading this blog, thank you haha and please do visit siegwebsolutions.com. 🙂

The Antipolo Bakasyonistas: Experience Antipolo, Feel New Social Media

The night before our case docu presentation, my 152 group mates and I went to Antipolo not to have some vacation (how I wish) but to finalize our case presentation. Who was I with? The other half of the Pangea Family (Jemi and Jam) plus Jorron, Glecy, and Jackie from the old groupings. Yey. We still don’t have a group name, do we? It was a loooong ride; fun nevertheless. We stayed in Jemi’s house and experienced hospitability at its finest. Mr & Mrs Masaquel embraced us with warmth and kindliness, so remarkable it made us want to experience Antipolo again. Viral vid’s next, Hinulugang Taktak here we come! HAHA. 😀

Too bad we were not able to present our case docu that Saturday because we lacked time. Too bad also we were late in class, so we were only able to listen to two groups I think. Based on what I’ve learned from the group presentations, not all companies use New Social Media effectively. Some just have a networking site for example, but isn’t managed well. On the other hand, there are companies that successfully use NSM to interact with their target audience. This allows them to get better insights from their target audience as well as get feedback for product or service improvement.

Based on my learning as regards this case docu experience, many companies still have not taken advantage of New Social Media. Yes, some of them have website and intranet, but they still haven’t tapped the infamous social networking sites such as Facebook and Multiply. Too bad for them. Worse, there are companies (or contact persons from those companies I should say)who do not know what New Social Media is. Like one marketing person from one of the companies that I tried to contact even asked me what NSM is. That person even told me he’s not sure if he knows about the topic. Then I got wafazed. Eep. Or maybe he’s just not familiar with the term NSM, because it sounds so technical. But still, I got wafazed.

Be THE star; Ace the I!

Applying for a job and getting called for an interview is really tough. So many applicants with different credentials apply for the same job position, and only one gets to have that  life-changing slot. Out of the hundreds of resumes sent online or directly to the office, one’s really lucky to have been called for an interview, because only those with compelling resumes get  to the next level. With what I have experienced in our practicum last summer, I have learned that

• A good resume will set you apart from the others. Making a resume is actually challenging because you really have to think of ways on how to make it compelling in a concise way (2 pages is actually preferred), both aesthetically and content-wise. Lay-out and spacing are very important; these two help emphasize the more important aspect of the resume–content. Experience and training from the degree program that are of importance to the position being applied for have to be highlighted, not the grades or awards achieved during elementary or nursery. That’s why I did not include my cheesy chess awards in my resume , companies wouldn’t mind anyway. Biether Ocampo much? Haha.

Right now, vidresumes (video-recorded) are now being used as a substitute for an actual resume and interview. Some people prefer this because they get to “perfect” what they have to say about themselves for the company to consider them for the job. I, however, have not tried doing it even just  for the sake of experiencing it, you know like video-recording myself while I speak of my credentials, that’s why I cannot tell as of now whether vidresumes are better or not. I’m afraid I would sound “boses-lata,” which always happens whenever I try to record my voice or I’m on voice chat. 😐

• A good resume will get you an interview. Again, being called for an interview is a thing to be happy about, because many job applicants don’t get to this level. With this opportunity given, you really have to be THE STAR, or else you won’t get the job. Some of the interview tips given to us in preparation for our ojt were to do these two Rs–Research and Relax. Research about the company and Relax during the interview. But these two are a bit old a tip, so glad we discussed in class the STAR way of acing an interview. Situation|Task|Action|Results. To avoid giving a list of what you are and what you can do, tell a particular situation you’ve had where your handling of the task produced great results, and emphasize what qualities you exemplified in that action. Back this up with the following competencies: person leadership, communication, customer focus, business and functional know-how, and results orientation.

It’s always easy to talk about these tips, but being in an actual interview is always a different case. Getting hired for the job is again, TOUGH. With the competition there is among college graduates (and battle of the schools always likely to happen), acing the interview is really crucial.

WEEki Workplace: A reflection on Don Tapscott and Anthony William’s WIKINOMICS

Everyday of our lives we are bombarded with advertisements–billboards, print ads, and radio ads of different brands, TV ads and infomercials of politicians and presidential wannabes such as Mar Roxas and Manny Villar, and all sorts of ads that are embedded in the Internet. Unquestionably, advertising is everywhere and we can’t get away from it. Case in point, my summer internship.  I never wanted to be in the advertising industry because for one, I fear competition (or bitchy competition I should say), and another one, I hate being around bitchy people. But due to some funny twist of fate, I practicum-ed at an advertising agency. Well, it just proved that no one can escape advertising, no matter how hard you avoid it. 😐

Dynamic

No regrets though of spending my ojt at an ad agency. I was able to erase all my bitchy notions about advertising and the creative minds behind it. The working environment is just so dynamic and the competition is just like that, well who won’t be super competitive when you’re talking about multi-million accounts? Three-layered eye bags wont be that bad after all as long as you’ve got the money! Yeah right. The people in ad agencies are mostly young and fabulous, and they really bring with them a radically different philosophy of work–high-technology adoption, creativity, fun, and diversity. Advertising agencies are indeed a concrete example of the Wiki Workplace.

Creative

Ad agencies adhere to the principle of bottom-up approach to innovation, encouraging participation and creativity from all employees using collaborative tools. The structure of the organization is flat, which allows peering. Ideas flow freely within the agency, and employees are given flextime. They also have personal time at work wherein they can blog or chat or do whatever they want such as play table tennis at the office or watch an NBA game as long as it doesn’t interfere with their job or it doesn’t violate any company rules. What a way to compensate all the stress the industry gives them! It’s such an employee-centric weeki workplace.

Collaborative

Ad agencies also bank on new social media to exchange relevant information within the organization and deliver ad campaigns and tactics externally. These collaborative tools also allow them to work outside the agency, whether they’re out of town or just at the comfort of their homes. In the advertising agency where I ojt-ed, written memos and bulletin boards are no longer existent. Well, they have a big white board for updates and TTDs, but the rest of the updates and  relevant stuff, they use e-mail. It really is a paper-less type of communication in there. They rely heavily on new social media to create their ad materials, from market research to client briefing down to the actual execution of innovative ideas. There was even a time when they used the Internet (particularly Youtube) to advertise their particular campaign. It was such a big hit that it even earned international recognition. True enough, the reach of new social media is so powerful.

Competitive

Competition in organizations such as ad agencies is so high that they always have to innovate or else their competition will get the better of them. This is what makes advertising so dynamic. This is also the same reason why ad agencies hire yuppies, thinking that they offer new and fresh ideas on the table. But this set-up is also disadvantageous because job security is at risk. Too bad for old employees, they might be kicked out of the organization if they don’t adapt well to change.

On a personal level…

1. I simply cannot NOT love new social media. Just like advertising, new social media is inescapable. Reality check, techie people have an edge over those who are not in terms of job employment. So I really have to familiarize myself with new social media if I want to stay tough in the competition.
2. If I fail to do so, then that’s a bye-bye to my job. I mean, organizations are always innovating and reorganizing, and if I fail to meet the expectations of the org, then most likely I will get fired. Oh no.
3. I wonder… What will happen to human interaction if every office will turn into a virtual workplace?  Will I be able to enjoy that kind of environment? Will I be able to establish meaningful relationships with people? I’m a person who depends a lot on nonverbal communication, so I fear my answer would be NO. 😐

Alone in the Dark?

Slowly but surely

Netvibes was first introduced to me by my co-intern Lou when we were still at the advertising agency where we took our summer internship at. I found the concept of Netvibes impressive, though I didn’t actually entertain the idea of creating one for myself because of two reasons: (1) I seldom go online, which my friends often complain about, and (2) I don’t have anything else to put in there aside from Yahoo! Messenger and Multiply and Facebook.  Well, being the “techie” that I am, that’s what I thought of.  But, the Conversation Model we discussed in class last Saturday made me realize how stupid I am for having that kind of perspective; with the overwhelming number of online communities and sites that the model presents, I can say that I deserved that slap in the face.  Honestly, I feel so pressured right now because the rest of my generation are already breathing new social media while I am still stuck in the old days. It’s really about time for me to learn these new things. I’ve started to explore blogging already (through this communication blog) and now I shall try to explore Netvibes and other new social media stuff. Wuu! Little hops Jena little hops!  😉 It really is hard to change, especially if you’ve been so used to the system, and I should know that. That’s why it isn’t easy for traditional organizations to shift their gears and turn to new social media and mass collaboration. It will be a gradual process for sure, just like my little hops.

Target it Right

Corporations who have successfully embraced new social media have to be cautious and wise enough in choosing what new social media tool/s to use. Appropriate channel or tool with the right message and the best strategy is always the way to go. But, this can only be achieved when consumers are properly located and targeted. I believe determining whom to target  is the most challenging part of all as there are a lot of online communities and sites out there where potential markets are. This actually sounds scary to a person like me who knows only a few number of sites and isn’t a member of any blogging communities yet. Like where and how will I start? Oh, maybe I should first become active in the online world. IKR?  Looking for relevant online communities  is but another easier said than done. I also feel the same way as regards the other important tasks–engagement plan and online reputation management. How do you actually engage people? How do you actually manage your reputation online? Well, I’ve read about the User Contribution System, and I think this can be a good way of engaging consumers. Sir Barry discussed in class how he and his team actually manage their reputation online; how RSS and social media dashboard help them monitor consumers’ feedback. However, I still am confused… I still have lots of questions in mind. Am I the only one who’s feeling this way? 😐

The Big Orange Ref

The video blog below is the product of Pangea Solutions’ 3days and 2nights stay at Kathleen’s unique and colorful house in the South. Yes, we spent that long in creating this 2 minute cartoon-inspired vlog, but you know being the Fangea Family that we are, it wasn’t always about the vlog. I mean, we did other fun stuff as well such as kwentuhan galore in the dining table after eating, voice-chatting with some Orcom-mates (yummy dinner couldn’t even stop us from chatting), and spending some bonding session (alam na haha)after learning that we won’t be having oc152 class that week for some reason.

The whole experience, no matter how stressful it may seem, was just enjoyable.   Well, who won’t enjoy being inside a big orange ref? Kath’s family just loves orange; the walls, the plates and cups, the house decors, they’re all orange! Ibang level! Haha. I’ve never been in a house that color-coordinated before. Kath’s room, guess what, it’s color pink. The kitchen’s yellow, her brother’s room’s blue (did I remember it right?), and everything else is just color coded. What a cute and lovely house. 🙂

Well, just like a ref, Kath’s house was cool (literally). We stayed in her pink room  for days with her air-con on, wuu what more can you ask for? The only not-so-good effect I can think of (just for the sake of naming one) for staying that long in the big orange ref was weight-related. I think I gained 2 pounds after that, but Ping? I believe she gained 2 kilos, which was worse. Hahaha peace Ping. We just could not resist the yummy food/buffet served to us. The quality was just restaurant-like, promise, the food’s really delicious. 🙂

In as much as the kitchen was filled with laughter while we were at the big orange ref, our hearts were filled with happiness when we knew that people, meaning those who’ve seen our vlog, liked our output. Yey! We’ve always wanted our vlog to have an animation/cartoon feel, so everyone could relate to it easily. Fortunately, Kath’s the master of Flash! Haha. Congrats to the other groups as well, we all did a good job! 🙂

Pangea Solutions/ Fangea Family: Kath Uson, Joanna Armendez, Jemi Masaquel,  Jam Fiecas, Jasper dela Cruz, and yours truly, Jena Lariza. 🙂

Vlog topic: History/Evolution of Communication