Business

Simple Steps to Protect Your Twitter Account

This weekend my Twitter account was hacked. The “attack” wasn’t all that serious – one spammy tweet was posted that appeared to be from me, but wasn’t. However, it motivated me to tighten up my account before a more serious hack occurs.

The spammy tweet came from an application that had permission to access my Twitter account. I granted the permission a while ago, but forgot.  Granting access to a Twitter or Facebook account happens easily.  When signing up for a new tool, if you use your Twitter of Facebook accounts to log in, you’ve granted permission to the tool. In my case, I had granted access to Pinterest, foursquare, Instagram and a long list of other apps.

The problem is many of us grant access to these apps and then neglect to give them another thought. After a while, a long list of apps builds up and this can make your account vulnerable. For this reason you should regularly review which apps are accessing your Twitter account and revoke access to the apps you no longer use, trust, or don’t otherwise wish to grant access.

Here’s how to do it.

Log in to your Twitter account.

Find the “Edit Profile” symbol (far right) and click on it.

Select “Settings” from the dropdown list.

Select “Apps” from the Settings menu. Now you will see all applications that currently access your Twitter account. From here, you can decide to revoke access or maintain select applications.

If you select “Revoke access” and later change your mind, you can “undo revoke access”.

Good luck and be safe.

Cheers,
Erin

@eringarrity

More Than a TV Show

Irish Broadcaster RTÉ is in its 6th season of Operation Transformation. This show is one of the best examples of a television property with a comprehensive and value-rich online offering.

First, about the show… Operation Transformation is a weight loss competition between Irish residents (aka: normal people, not celebrities, or extraordinarily large people). These overweight contestants (referred to as leaders) are each put on a specific weight loss plan that covers everything from meal planning to exercise regimes.

Using the online tools established for the show, viewers can “follow” a leader. Each leader has his/her own web page that includes their full-body 360 photo, their age, weight, height and personal story. When a viewer follows a leader, they get access to that leader’s weight loss plan as well as:

• the leader’s detailed weight loss journey (a week by week account)
• online videos of that leader’s daily workouts
• online weight loss tools to calculate own body measurements
• daily meal plans for that leader
• PDFs of weekly shopping lists to support the corresponding meal plans (so the viewer can follow along at home)
• online coupons for local grocer
• access to expert weight loss coaches and physicians through the show’s Facebook Page

Operation Transformation also features the successes and pitfalls of audience members following along at home, while an RTÉ Radio show keeps viewers of Operation Transformation up to date on the leaders’ progress in between broadcasts.

In addition to the list above, other online components include:

• downloads of motivational music (to keep you going in your workouts)
• videos of dance troupes and/or other community-based physically active groups
• mobile app to support weight loss and calorie tracking
• listings of local runs and other health-conscious events

And of course, all programs can be watched online.

RTÉ is Ireland’s national broadcaster (think Ireland’s BBC or CBC). It stands for Raidió Teilifís Éireann (pronouced, Rad-eo Tella-feesh Air-ann) which means, Radio & Television in Ireland. Operation Tranformation is the broadcaster’s first crossmedia / 360 degree project.

How Social Media Matters to TV

A new survey confirms that social media boosts TV viewing. The survey, conducted by Nielsen and the Cable and Telecommunications Association for Marketing, showed that 49% of women & 43% of men began watching a show based on posts in social media.

The biggest battle for TV-relevance lies between the two largest social media networks on the planet: Facebook and Twitter. Both networks have made it publicly known each is seeking to become more closely tied with television. Twitter has now forged a partnership with Nielsen, a global information and measurement company with a division (Nielsen Watch) dedicated to measuring television viewing. During the Olympic Summer Games this past August, Facebook launched a new feature called the “Talk Meter“. The Talk Meter measured which athletes and events garnered the most Facebook activity. This information was shared with, and on, NBC. Now Talk Meter is used to measure the most chat-worthy news events, rated on a scale of 1-10, and shared widely on many news networks.

What’s curious is the imbalance between which network sees the most TV-related activity (Twitter) versus which one holds the biggest influence over television watching (Facebook).

According to Trendrr Twitter generates 3/4 of the social media activity related to television whereas Facebook only generates 16%.

However, when it comes to influence, this survey showed Facebook had more, particularly over which shows people would watch. The survey showed that 49% of women and 43% of men would start watching a television program based on Facebook posts. Despite Twitter having more TV-related activity, according to this survey, Twitter only influenced 16% of men and 14% of women to start watching a new TV show. The numbers shift even more dramatically for 18-34 year olds:  

“The demographic that advertisers covet, viewers 18 to 34 years old, were the most influenced by social media chatter. Among those in this age group, 54% said they were enticed to tune in to a show because of Facebook comments, and about 21% said they were swayed by tweets.” (source)

The question is what kind of effect this surge in TV-related activity will have on TV-specific social networks like GetGlue, Miso and the like. Viggle’s recent acquisition of GetGlue combined with Nielsen’s recent acquisition of SocialGuide suggests confidence in these social TV applications. However, given most of the online world is already on Twitter and Facebook, and considering the study and survey results above, it makes one wonder what the future holds for these more niche networks. For now though, it appears GetGlue, for one, is keeping ahead of Twitter for scripted programmes anyway. (source)

As we enter a new year, it will be interesting to see how much more social media will influence our television watching choices, be it via Twitter, Facebook, GetGlue, SocialGuide or some yet-to-be introduced network.

Any predictions?

Erin

@eringarrity

Merging+Media Conference 2012 | ALERT-TV+

Merging+Media Conference is taking place from October 24 – 26. The event brings together cross-media thought leaders and award-winning strategies that will help you Innovate. Cross-pollinate. & Co-Create.

If you don’t have your ticket yet, Register Now!

If you registered already, don’t forget to check out some Hot Tips for the conference.

Our CEO, Moyra Rodger, will be participating in the “Who Owns What?: 360 Intellectual Property Rights” roundtable on October 24 (1:00-2:30 pm) and she will also be moderating the “Show Me the Money!: Financing + Distributing the 360 Property” session on October 25 (4:30-5:25pm).

Finally, other than attending the great line-up of sessions, be sure to come say “Hi!” to the ALERT-TV+ team at the Merging+Media 2012 Innovation Gallery. ALERT-TV+ is our online audience engagement system and it is designed specifically for producers and broadcasters to create effective cross-platform strategies that deliver measurable results.

We look forward to meeting you at the conference.

Tags: 2012, ALERT-TV+, cross media, magnify digital, Merging Media Conference, Moyra Rodger, transmedia

Why Your Business Needs ALERT®

Magnify Digital was created in 2007 as a digital strategy agency. The team here soon realized that they were creating much more than just an agency.  They pioneered a process for aggregating, simplifying and leveraging the non-stop avalanche of  digital platforms, tools, and tactics. That’s when ALERT® was born.

ALERT® is an automated web based system that enables marketers and small businesses to take control of their digital presence and devise effective strategies that actually work for them and their clients. ALERT® stands for ASSESS, LOCATE, ENGAGE, RESPOND & TRACK – the five key steps to the system and we’d argue, the five essential components of every successful digital strategy.

Assess & Locate make up the first stage – a rigorous Assessment of a company’s digital presence, and that of its competitors. A scan of the industry reveals what your target audience is saying and where they are hanging out. The second stage is Engage, which consists of devising and implementing a manageable and measurable Strategy. Once the strategy is in place, it’s time to Respond & Track, which essentially is monitoring your online presence.

The benefits of using ALERT® are endless! Marketers often complain they don’t have enough time to keep up with the seemingly endless changes in social media features, emerging tools, guidelines, policies, and thought leaders. ALERT® does the heavy lifting for you.  Think of it as a digital whisperer! ALERT® makes licensees look like digital strategy rock stars without the expense and hassle.

Here are some key features. The ALERT® system is:

• Updated daily. The tools are updated whenever a new feature, viable platform, or tactic comes to market.
• Resourceful. Includes a resource area full of aggregated information, such as social media statistics, news updates, and case studies.
• Easy to use. You don’t have to be a digital expert, the system takes you through a step-by-step approach on how to use each tool and feature.
• Time saving. We’ve already done the work for you. You don’t need to keep on top of trends and new tools. ALERT®  aggregates this information into one place and best of all makes the digital jargon make sense.
• Web based. You can use it anywhere.
• Professional in design. The system is designed to make you and your company look great. It automatically creates polished documents based on the data you input.

ALERT® is the perfect system to help get you and your business get on its way with an effective digital strategy!

Please contact us if you have any questions regarding this system.

Maryam
@socialmaryam

Tags: digital, small business, Social Media, strategy