We often take things for granted now that used to be precious glimpses into the future.
We didn’t know then to the extent that this form of electronic media and interaction would have in our lives. In gaining one thing, do we lose something else? To gain web interaction, a lot of the older generation feels that it’s coming at a larger price: Human, face-to-face interaction. However, new reports suggest that adults have already embraced technology.
Social networking is not the be all and end all in marketing or consumer-to-company interaction. Most of us have figured out that the more we can facilitate brand recognition and reach out to our client base, the better chance we have at retaining the consumers that are spending the money, looking to us to provide the products and communicating their desires and dislikes. Without the ability to foster relationships with consumers, companies are isolating themselves from sales leads with social media.
If companies continue to internally and externally treat the social media class as a ‘phenomenon’ instead of a serious tool to engage with their audience, they’ll be left behind in the reject bin of the modern day consumer. No one wants to be left in the bargain bin while the rest of the companies hang tagged and ready to sell on shelves- correctly branded and at ‘attention.’
The correct marketing draws clients in and the right customer service keeps them as life-long purchasers, but how do we influence other entities involved in technology and networking?
I attended the Social Media Breakfast this morning.
- Online Presence Here: http://smbmsp.org
- Twitter Them Here: http://twitter.com/smbmsp
Among the wonderful demo that was, (MixMobi,)a well-timed application that allows mobile users to receive updates or coupons via mobile phone.
I also had the privilege of witnessing an absolutely needed discussion and debate on Social Media: Behind the Firewall. We discussed both security concerns over internal documentation in external collaboration sites, but also, finding the methods of getting employers to ‘buy-in’ to the entire idea of social media: not a fad, but rather to engage with clients creating and entirely different way of viewing business with consumers. (Hand-in-hand, vs: top down, methodology.) The main ideas focused on value vs. fear and how to ‘let go’ of the constraints on the average worker and empower them to be company representatives online- unafraid to speak or collaborate. (Still the point remains: How do we empower our employees with the RIGHT information in which to speak of.) …and are we giving away our voice, as company representatives because the words that we speak must be positive? I think that’s the next step in review.
To engage further, I spoke with Derek Schwartz, who works at JDL Technologies in Eden Prairie, Minnesota. He following is to his credit as he described to me what he’s witnessed while watching the trends in technology as a business manager:
“The irony is that we, as parents, society, employers, and a country, expect schools to deliver a relevant, 21st century education to our public school students, yet most teaching methodology is stuck in the Agrarian age. Case in point, a MN school district recently started a project where kids who passed a certain test LAST YEAR were given a laptop to support academic achievement THIS year. During the first two weeks of the project, the kids weren’t even allowed to turn the machines on during class periods, and there is no advertised technology integration occurring in the classrooms in the long term. Now – multiple issues here:”
1. By excluding some kids from the technology project, you instantly create a discrimination suit potential at the worst, and reduce your credibility in the eyes of the community parents in the best case.
2. Excluding some kids also hinders technology integration in the classroom, since any teacher really doing their job well can’t build terrific materials depending on technology since not all the kids will have access in the classroom. I find this very frustrating.
3. To my knowledge, there was no Professional Development done with the affected teachers to support a paradigm shift. The old problem again: throwing hardware at a complex, systemic problem hoping that “this” will fix it.
In a large Florida school district, JDL is piloting two different models of virtualized desktop computing:
- Leveraging new technology, up to 80% of the existing student computers can be eliminated while still serving the same number of kids simultaneously. This allows massive savings on electricity, management of the physical machines and licensing, and building HVAC costs while also providing for quieter labs (supporting student achievement) and increasing the number of computers available for kids, but at a much lower cost than buying a bunch of new machines. This model saves the district up to 40% of their current annual spend for student machines.
- Developing a web-based conduit for students to access all district curriculum and applications, the other solution can leverage any low cost computing solution (even iPhones!) to deliver content anywhere, anytime. This solution is platform-agnostic, needing only an OS ,web browser, and a network connection (including 3G/4G technology) to operate. This solution enables the district to rollout low-cost machines to students that can operate continuously for the whole school day and provide access to all the educational content the district pays for and develops in-house. 24/7 access supports student achievement and is a paradigm shift for the way schools can operate – being no longer confined to bricks and mortar. The real beauty here is that initial estimates suggest a district wouldn’t have to spend any additional cash per year than they do now to begin implementing this on a wide scale.
Special thanks to all the attendees at today’s SMBMSP and Derek Schwartz for the fantastic information about schools embracing technology and the conflicts that come along with it all. Excellent information!
