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I was lucky enough a few years ago to spend some time investigating Neuro Linguistic Programming and how it can improve personal efficacy and deal with workplace issues.  That’s why I wholeheartedly encourage everyrone to attend tomorrow’s Isle of Man Junior Chamber of Commerce seminar on NLP.

Speaker Justin Tipper, Certified Trainer of NLP has been using the practices in business and therapy for nearly a decade, and runs transformational training courses within the social care sector, within financial institutions, in sports, in shipping, and within Government.  He’s previously worked in banking and fund management organisations in London, the Channel Islands and Isle of Man.

Justin says, “Some time ago, I was in a job that I found rewarding in part, but also frustrating, as I was aware that there had to be so much more I could do and achieve, if only I knew how.  I discovered some information on NLP, and what others were doing with it, and immediately decided to book myself on a course to learn more. I have never regretted the opportunity that came my way, and now I have created a business in which I truly feel that I am doing my life’s work – that is, to directly assist people to be the best, the most excellent, the most outstanding, in their chosen fields. ”

Brief outline of presentation content:

• What is NLP? How and where did it start?
• Why is NLP relevant to business life, and to business people? Who is using it, and what results are they getting?
• What are the main ideas in NLP?
• How is NLP used to assist people in achieving excellence?
• What if I started using NLP techniques in my work, what would happen?

£10 members £12 guests and includes buffet and refreshments.  Sefton Hotel, Douglas, Isle of Man.

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• Tricks of the Mind

Last month Andy Orton, managing director of Dotperformance, an Isle of Man-based digital agency, spoke about search engine marketing.

Andy’s been in business for three years now and his firm has come to be recognised as one of the Island’s most respected digital agencies.

‘To be successful on the web it’s not enough to stick up a brochure website and hope your it meets your customers’ needs,’ he said. ‘You need to be proactive about connecting your business with people who are searching the Internet.’

Click here to read the rest of this Tech Talk column.

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• A Perfect Guide to Search Engine Marketing

ThirdThursday is an international movement whereby folks who are interested in social media get together to talk about trends, tools, initiatives, ethics, anything.  I doesn’t matter if you are a corporate tweeter or if you want to find out more about what your kids are up to on Bebo, you are welcome.

ThirdThursday is about sharing knowledge and experience.  Each of us has a different perspective on social media; we’ve learned different things. Our meet up is a great way to exchange ideas and information and have a nice social lunch at the same time.

Everyone is welcome and it’s free except for the price of your lunch.  Meet us at Paparazzi, Douglas Promenade Thursday, 20 November at 12.30.  Ping to let me know if you can come.

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• Double Whammy Thursday

Chip says the CEO of a start up should be an evangelist and that you can’t outsource evangelism.  On these points I agree; no PR worth their salt would disagree.  But not everyone is born with evangelical skills.  Our job is to help them.  We teach them how to do the job.  We give the tools to be successful.  We support them. I can’t remember ever having had a client ask me to take the lead in this area.

Chip says that not every CEO of a start up should have the job.  Again, I agree.  But in the real world, there are people that probably aren’t best suited in the role.  Again our job is to help them grow into the job.  We teach them the importance of relationship-building and help them to be better communicators.  Usually these people are trying to do a good job.  I think it’s better to help them achieve their goals than to say, “You’re crap at this.  Don’t even try.”

Chip says that companies can get PR too early.  I think that depends on your definition of public relations.  If you confine it to mean media exposure, I agree.  But getting expert help on all aspects of business communication is helpful at any stage of a company’s progression.  I’ve helped pre-revenue companies prepare to meet potential investors, advised on recruitment strategies and insprired employee engagement.

Chip says that not all companies need PR agencies.  Nothing could be truer.  But most organisations could benefit from the advice of a professional communicator the same as they benefit from talking to a lawyer or an accountant.  So your PR advice could come from independent advisor, an in house communications professional or even from having a conversation with pros in the PR blogosphere.  Or a PR agency.  It’s horses for courses.

Chip says a lot more in his post.  I agree with most of it so their is no point rehashing it here. But be sure to check it out for yourself.

I thoroughly enjoyed taking part in the panel discussion and watching the debate that ensued. Thanks to Chip Griffin and everyone else who took the time to listen and/or participate.

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• PR Advice for Startups
• FIR Live panel discussion on the value of PR for startups set for Nov 7

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1. Stephen Davies must have spent a lot of time in compiling this list of UK jounalists on Twitter.

2. Christopher Howse asks if we should abandon the use of the apostrophe.  I vote no!

3. Look who made the UK top 50 PR people by Twitter influence!

4. Chris Brogan has a case study of an individual told to stay out of social media by his boss. Sadly I’ve heard similar stories myself.  Talk about baby and bathwater.

5. Should you or shouldn’t you? Niall Cook posts a list of questions you should ask yourself before taking your company into Twitter.

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• Jeeple and Preeple

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I’ve been to dozens of awards dinners over the years and on the whole they are generally either very tedious affairs or very boozy parties, depending on whether you’ve won an award.

Last night I had the opportunity to attend the Awards for Excellence gala in Douglas, Isle of Man.  This was not your run of the mill awards ceremony.  In true Manx style, Isle of Man Newspapers made their event a real fun night out. It didn’t matter if you were a winner or not, you were glad to be there.

From having the event compered by Graham Davies, known as one of the funniest men in Britain, to the fabulous multi-media show by Paul Moulton to Geoff Corkish’s song, to the dancing ladies in skimpy costumes to the surprise performance by Robin Gibb there was something for everyone.  And the event was broadcast live online so if you didn’t make it to the Gaiety Theater, you could still enjoy the show from anywhere.

Oh yeah…a lot of people from the public, private and not for profit sectors picked up awards too. Well done to Trudi Williamson and her team at Isle fo Man Newspapers.

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Image by Khaotikit via Flickr

Tonight  in the Garden Room at the Sefton Hotel, Douglas, come meet Phil Drowley, the first Manxman to conquer Mount Everest.

Speaking after his two-and-a-half month climb, he said: ‘The view from the top of the planet was truly awe-inspiring and humbling.  I am immensely proud to be the first person from the Isle of Man to achieve flying the Manx flag on top of the world.’

He’s the main speaker to tonights Junior Chamber of Commerce meeting and everyone is welcome.  It all starts at 6pm.

The cost is £10 for Junior Chamber of Commerce members or £12 for non-members.  Book your place  by contacting Jenny Christian at the chamber offices on 674941, or emailing jenny.christian@iomchamber.org.im.

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• Isle of Man are you prepared?

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• Isle of Man BCS Event: ManxWiki

• babooshka
• Owen Cutjar
• Paul Stallard
• Derek
• REG CROWDER
• Create
• Leo
• Steve Burrows FBCS CITP
• Nickop
• Jure Cuhalev
• A bit of this and a bit of that
• Massimo Carraro
• Chris Bishops
• Kevin Hillstrom
• Neville Hobson
• Free Software
• Leo Cussons
• Brendan Cooper
• Deborah Zanke
• FIR For Immediate Release

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This is the election in which Web 2.0 played a significant role in allowing American citizens, and people around the world, to feel that were taking an active role in democracy. So how did online social media shape the election of 2008 and what can business learn from it? There was a wide range of tactics used to reach audiences that traditionally shy away from the voting booth. Both candidates put serious effort into reaching people via social networks, YouTube and Second Life.You have to admire the creative thinking behind some digital campaign initiatives. On John McCain’s website and you can play Pork Invaders, a version of Space Invaders with a message about wasteful government spending. And the popular online games Guitar Hero 3 and The Incredible Hulk both sport in-game ads for Barack Obama.

Click here to read the rest of the Tech Talk column.

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I enjoyed taking part in the FIR Live Panel programme today about the value of professional PR to a tech startup. The conversation stems Jason Calacanis’s post Fire Your PR Agency.  Shel and Neville asked each of the panellists to consider these questions.

• What’s wrong with Jason’s assertions?

Well, actually I think not a lot is wrong, for Jason.  If you are a born communicator. If you have a thorough understanding of the publishing industry, the internet, social media and marketing. If you are a natural extrovert.  But most people are not like that.  I know of one MD of a technology company who would rather put fish hooks in his eyes than go into a networking situation. He’d never speak to a reporter.  He couldn’t write a news release if his life depended on it. But he runs a successful, profitable business.  It’s not that his personality doesn’t cause problems. It does. But having a PR professional on his side helps. A lot.

• What can a PR professional do for a startup that a CEO can’t or shouldn’t do?

For this one I said focus, perspective, contacts and knowledge.  A CEO needs to deal with a thousand issues a day.  They just don’t have the bandwidth to do PR.  It’s that simple.  We bring perspective to the job.  Tech CEOs are often software engineers and are the main architect of the product. It’s like asking a new mother to describe how beautiful their baby is. They can go on and on and on about every detail. But they can’t actually articulate the information that people actually care about.  When you are just starting something new, you don’t often have all the contacts and relationships you might need.  Hiring a PR consultant is a real short cut because they bring all their relationships into the mix. And then there’s knowledge.  The CEO is expert in his industry, but a PR professional has a thorough knowledge of publishing, media, internet, presentation practices etc etc.

• What PR activities or outcomes are important to a start up beyond publicity?

I always say that the R in PR is for relationships and the is the best payoff.  That’s relationships with all stakeholders…employees, shareholders, regulators, legislators, householders…and of course customers.  To me gaining and maintaining a beneficial relationship is the ultimate goal.

• What CAN a startup CEO do to promote his company?

I’d say, generally anything he is confident in and has time to do.  If he can be the public face of the company, the main personality behind it, excellent!  But maybe her role is to hire the right skills to get the job done.

• What are the considerations for selecting a PR agency for a start up?  What should they look for in an agency?

For me it’s three things.  Flexibility, industry knowledge and people.  You need your agency to be there when you need them, to leave you alone when you have to focus on something else.  And at startup if they can work with you about fees and payment and are willing to take a risk, you’ll have a loyal partner.  The more industry experience the better, the quicker the ramp up, the better the results.  And, you can’t overestimate the importance of the people.  Could your PR advisor be a personal friend. Do you like them. Do they work the way you like to work.  People and personality are crucial.

• How should a  startup measure the ROI of its PR activities?

Without trying to sound vague, this is entirely dependant upon what you set out to achieve.  We recently launch a new hospice facility and got 8,000 visitors through the door during the open week. Client was delighted.  We launched an egaming site and made it to number four on Google in a couple of days.  Client was delighted. You get the idea.

Thanks to Shel and Neville for setting up the show. Thanks to my all my co panelists too for making it such an interesting discussion.  KD Paine,  Rob Lane, Todd Defren, Michael O’Connor Clarke

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I had the opportunity to meet up with a bunch of students from Ballerkameen High School in the Isle of Man earlier this week.  They are taking part in the Junior Achievement company programme and wanted to learn about how PR could fit into their marketing mix.  I was impressed with the quality of question and their general awareness of the importance of reputation in business.  I think we’ve got a good cohort and look forward to judging later this year!

Image of Sharon Kissack

Yesterday I attended a meeting organised by the Isle of Man Business and Innovation Centre. The purpose was to discuss connecting women in business on the Island.  A healthy crowd of female entrepreneurs came out to discuss the possiblity of creating formal network.

Jo Dobson, director of strategic relationships at Coventry University Enterprise was on hand and gave a presentation about the challenges for women in business and the benefits of working together through an organised network.  Sharon Kissack of Ambitions Recruitment also spoke. She gave an overview of her own personal experiences in juggling work, home, social and civic responsibilities. She has quite a compelling story that I think all working mothers could identify with.

On the whole feedback was positive and an Isle of Man business women’s network seems destined to happen.  Not before time, I say!  Thanks to Kate Lord at the BIC for getting this initiative rolling.

If you couldn’t attend but want to give your feedback on the idea you can do that here.  In the meantime, watch this space.  I’ll post updates here as this new network takes shape.

Are you starting your own company? Did you have PR success when you were starting out?  Please ring in and tell us your story.  Shel and Neville have put together a good panel for this one including:

• Rob Lane CEO of Overlay TV
• Mike Manuel, PR practitioner of Voce Communications
• Katie Paine, PR measurement guru of KD Paine & Partners
• Moi!

The show will be broadcast live tomorrow 18:00 GMT. Call (347) 324-3723 or use the live chat interface on Blogtalkradio.com to take part in the show.   Listen in by dialing that same number or by visiting the www.forimmediaterelease.biz and clicking the “listen” button.

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• FIR Live panel discussion on the value of PR for startups set for Nov 7

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In a long expected answer to Google Apps, the folks from Redmond demonstrated, for the first time, their new Web applications for Office, which are lightweight versions of Microsoft Office Word, Excel, PowerPoint and OneNote that are used with the browser.

Now anyone can use all of the web, phone and PC versions of Office to edit and collaborate on the same document.  Click here to read the rest of this Tech Talk column.

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• Microsoft is bringing Office to the browser

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I was having a monthly progress meeting with a client a couple of weeks ago when the subject of Facebook came up.  My client contact told me that FB is blocked in their workplace.  I wasn’t entirely surprised. She also mentioned that mobile phones are also  banned.  That did surprise me. I really can’t imagine what my work day would be like if I was cut off like that. Not good, I expect.

I was thinking about what Niall Cook said when I saw him at the Ottawa ThirdTuesday last month. He pointed out that if you take away people’s networks and communications tools, they’ll find a workaround.  It could mean sneaking away from the desks to check for text messages and Facebook on the BlackBerrys. It could mean stretching the lunch break to dashing out at 4.59.

I reminded my client that communication technologies are the oxygen of today’s generation. You need to let people breath if you want to get the best out of them.

Today I saw a story in the Telegraph about the think tank Demos.  They say that these forums provide crucial platforms for discussion and collaboration and that limiting the use of this software could have an adverse impact on the way staff communicate with one another.

“Banning Facebook and the like goes against the grain of how people want to interact,” said Peter Bradwell, author of the Demos report.

“Often people are friends with colleagues through these networks and it is how some develop their relationships.

“They are part of the way in which people communicate, which they find intuitive,” he added.

Erm….I couldn’t have said it better myself.

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Here’s my pick for the week:

1. Jeremy Shoemaker explains why and how he uses Twitter.

2. On his Influential Marketing Blog Rohit Bhargava explains why people are starting to use virtual environments, like Second Life, for meetings.  Makes sense.

3. Craig is growing cynical about online social networks.  I wonder if this is the start of a trend?

4. It’s not too often you’ll find the guys at the Bad Pitch Blog lost for words but this pitch beggars belief.  Someone is trying to flacka product on the back of the terrible events in Jennifer Hudson’s family.  Truely shocking.

5. By far, the UK’s biggest PR story this week was the BBC’s handling of the Jonathan Ross/Russell Brand affair.  What a cock up! You think the world’s most recognised media brand would have a clue about how to manage a negative story.  Neville has a good summary of events.

Image via CrunchBase

The Isle of Man blogosphere growing (slowly but surely). And this week has seen two highlights.  First of all, Derek ‘The Bandit’ Richardson’s excellent South African tech podcast, Switched On, featured quite a long discussion about life (and technology) in the  Isle of Man.

Also, my blogging friend from the North, Babooshka of the Ramsey Daily Photo blog, was Blogger’s ‘Blog of Note’ yesterday.  She tells me that traffic has gone through the roof!  She should be proud; her blog is excellent. (She’s promised to come out to the next ThirdThursday to tell us all about it).

Also, my company has just been taken on to create a new blog that I think will be a UK industry first.  It’s all very exciting, but I can’t talk about it yet.

And of course (shameless self-promotion), I’ll be taking part in the Hobson & Holtz Report’s Live Panel show next week.

I’m starting to feel quietly confident that the Isle of Man is getting some real traction in social media.

Image by Stephen Poff via Flickr

In fact, even Bank of England Governor Mervin King has finally used the dreaded ‘R’ word and the impact on Sterling was immediate.  Yes, we are in a recession and anyone who thinks it’s not going affect the Isle of Man should have their head read.

Indeed, the National Institute of Economic and Social Research says the UK is on the brink of its first full year of recession since 1991.  It says Britain will suffer the worst setback of all leading economies.   As the Isle of Man’s economy is strong linked to the UK’s we must take note.

With everything going on in the global banking industry, few people in the Island have been untouched by the events of the past few weeks.   And, it won’t be long before the ramifications trickle into most other industries, including technology.  Click here to read the rest of this Tech Talk column.

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Venue:   Ballakermeen High School, Douglas

Date:      Wednesday 29th October 2008

Speaker:  Dotperformance

Time:       Doors opened at 18:00 for an 18:30 start.

Web site visibility – the ease with which potential customers or visitors can find a web site among a myriad of competitors – is a crucial factor in a site’s success or failure. Hundreds of new websites are springing up across the Internet every day and all of them are vying for the same viewers you are trying to attract to your website. Search engine optimisation is important, given that more new web site visitors come from search engine referrals than from any other source, but the term is ambiguous, widely misunderstood and probably overrated.

This Masterclass is aimed at helping you understand how you can maximise the visibility of your website, using search engines positively stimulate more organic traffic. The BCS IoM will seek to separate myth from reality and to answer any questions you may have around how you can make your website more attractive to search engines.

Admission is free and everyone is welcome.

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2. In ‘Why you need to be looking at Twitter’, Mitch Joel explains the basics and talks about the microblogging service’s potential for organisations.

3. Donovan Sharkey’s analysis of some recent data on the effect of social media trends on the practice of public relations provides some interesting insight.

4. The inmedia blog post ‘My PR agency can’t write’ is entirely correct. If your PR people can’t write about your company, your products or services or issues, then they don’t understand your business.  How can they advocate on your behalf?

5. Sally’s got some excellent advice about making yourself available should a journalist need to speak to you.  Seems basic, but I’m not surprised to hear about her challenges.  These days people would rather send an email nine times out of ten rather than pick up the phone.

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Thanks to everyone who came out last night to the Isle of Man Social Media Club’s ThirdThursday meet up. I was a bit disorganised in setting it up and so we were a week late, but eight social media enthusiasts showed up, and we had an interesting discussion, nonetheless.  Check out Owen’s blog for pix (but I may not forgive him for posting one very unflattering one of me). Also on hand were Nerys Roberts and Sarah  Read of the The Smooth Group, Derek Richardson, podcaster extraordinaire, Gary Shilling, a newbie SMC member who has great credentials, Nathan Pledger, blogger, tweeter and general social media guru and Paul Wheeldon, Duke Marketing’s new marketing manager, who has a keen interesting in learning more about social media.  Oh, and little ol’ me! I was there too.  I love having the opportunity to pick people’s brains and learn from others.  I heard the backstory on manxforums.com last night.  Tres interessant!

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Paul Ballard hit me with a meme earlier this week.  In the spirit of sharing a bit about myself and fun, here we go!

Top three non work websites:

• Weightwatchers
• Facebook
• eBay

Top three karaoke songs:

• American Woman
• Moonage Dayream
• Like a virgin

Top three weekend cocktails:

• G&T
• Gin and Tonic
• Gordons and Scheweppes

The three people I am tagging are:

• Nickop
• Kathryn B
• Leo

If you are using RSS to get  Strive Notes and don’t wish to receive the newsletter, feel free to send a message and we’ll take you off the list, no problem. Or, if you’d like to sign up, just using the box at the bottom right corner of the blog.

Feedback is more than welcome! Please send me your story ideas and questions.

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• Rob Lane, CEO, Overlay TV (and several previous startups)
• Mike Manuel, PR practitioner, Voce Communications
• Katie Paine, KD Paine & Partners, PR measurement guru
• Me!

The panel comes as a result of several high-profile posts suggesting startup CEOs can do their own PR just as effectively as a professional. Well I’ve worked for more than my share of tech start ups and my experience shows that CEOs typically have too much on their plates to be able to focus on PR.  I’ll be talking about this on the night.  We’re working with a couple of start ups right now, and hopefully one of them will ring in to talk about their trials and tribulations.

The panel discussion will be hosted on FIR’s BlogTalk Radio channel on Friday, November 7 at 10 a.m. Pacific, 1 p.m. Eastern, and 6 p.m. in London. As with all BlogTalk Radio shows, you’ll have the oportunity to call in and add your own perspectives or ask questions of the panelists. Just call (347) 324-3723 during the show. You can also listen to the show by dialing in to that same number, or by visiting the site and clicking the “listen” button.

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• How PR Can Help Some Startups: Perspective of one Industry Analyst

Image by Getty Images via Daylife

However, it’s something that folks in the open source community have been grappling with for years.   If your software is available for free online, how do you expect to make any money out of it? By offering value added customisation and support services has been the answer so far.

But now, a report from IT industry analysts The 451 Group, concludes that open source is no longer a viable business model in the software sector.  Click here to read the rest of this Tech Talk column.