Running the R.A.C.E. Formula

There is a saying, “if they do not know you, you do not exist.” The phrase, perhaps, is a bit extreme but it hides a reality. In the business world, a good product is also subject to a good promotion. Communication is not limited to publicizing services but also directing the message and transmitting it wisely.

Source relationship-economy.com

In any entrepreneurial project, a communication plan is almost as important as the business plan. The communication plan can be a real challenge as it is a field that is not necessarily dominated. There is no universal structure for a perfect communication plan, however, there are certain models that can guide us—and one of them is the R.A.C.E formula.

Running the R.A.C.E.

Source allenbergracingschools

The R.A.C.E. formula or model is a four step process proposed by John Marston in 1963 for communications planning. It is an essential sequence process involving Research, Analysis, Communication and Evaluation.

Source by sweetprocess

In general, what this model shows is if you hope to influence public opinion, you have to establish a starting point: research the existing opinions and attitudes of your target audience. Next, analyse that information to prepare a communications plan. Execute or communicate your plan and, lastly, review or evaluate your efforts and monitor your impact. This week I will talk about the first two steps of this process: Research and Analysis.

Research
Research can be as extensive as commissioning a public opinion poll or as simple as talking in an informal basis with your clients or staff. Primary and secondary research can give you an idea of what your audience needs to know about your company, what your adversaries are doing, where the content is coming from, and what is the best way to communicate.

Source by better-ir.com

The most important thing about communication is that it is not just putting information out there. We have to consider it as a dialogue and we need to keep our audience at the front of our mind all the time. We have to remember that the receiver of the message is who will determine if the process is successful or not.

Analyse
The analysis stage involves sifting through the research to look for information that will help you frame your communications plan. However, do not forget that instead of concentrating on what you would like to say, the goal is to focus on what we would like to them to know, learn and do.

Source zenportfolios.ca

I agreed with new PR practitioners who argue that the R.A.C.E. formula must be updated. My experience in the field has taught me that there is no one structure to follow that guarantees successful communication.

Despite following the R.A.C.E formula as a sequence process or in a variation according to the company objectives, it is a work in a process. The goal is to determine how to get from having something to say to how you know people have heard your message and how they respond to it.

Source webdirexion

If you are creating a communication plan, write it out. You need to set your goals but make sure the plan is flexible enough so you can adjust within the preset time frame. Communicating well is not easy and finding the key to get our message out in the best way possible may take a while. In these times of information, media, and noise abundance, if you do not know yourself and your audience, you simply do not exist. Or what do you think? Please leave your comments in the section below and if you haven’t connected with me on social media yet, check me out on Twitter and Google+.

Daylight Saving Time. Is it Really Bad?

In order to better exploit daylight hours in the summer and winter months, many countries make a schedule change. Although this change is only an hour, it can have a significant impact on the population. Colleen Carney, a psychologist at the Sleep Laboratory and Depression at Ryerson University says, for most people, change is imperceptible, but the discussion on the pros and cons of daylight savings arises every year, and a majority agreement never appears to be achieved.

The alleged negative effects appear to result from a perception of time. Whether the days appear shorter or longer is up to personal discretion. In my opinion, pushing time backward or forward an hour does not make much of a difference because time itself is artificial. People assume we are moving forward in time, but in reality we are just moving in space. Hours, minutes, seconds, days, etc., are all man-made increments, but time itself is not.

Source: Riadzany

Changing time to take advantage of daylight hours is not a new concept. The practice began over a century ago. Many benefits have since been attributed to it, as well as a great deal of controversy. The following is a list of the top 5 arguments against the practice known as Daylight Saving:

It’s bad for business
MJ Kamstra, L.A. and M.D. Kramer Levi  are the main supporters of the hypothesis that Daylight Saving Time (DST) will adversely affect the performance of the stock market in the post-change Mondays. This point has been refuted by other researchers at H. Berument, however the theory that DST aggravates the stock market has continued to be fiercely defended. This theory is known as “The Weekend Effect”.

Auto accidents.
Changes in sleep patterns alter alertness and increase the number of car accidents, according to Manitoba Public Insurance collision data. A 20 per cent increase in the number of crashes on the Monday following the annual time change was noted in 2014, compared to all other Mondays that year. 

Heart attacks.
According to a study published in timeanddate.com, more heart attacks have been found to occur during the first week following daylight saving. This is assumed to be due to increased stress and little recovery at night.

Health conditions:
The time change can hinder the perception of time and may affect our biological clocks. It can cause sleep disorders, especially in children and the elderly. In addition, people who experience frequent migraines and headaches are also affected, and among the healthy population, people have higher daytime behavioural adjustment problems.

Operational efficiency
Not all countries schedule time changes, which may cause problems. For example, scheduling meetings with remote work teams can be difficult. In a globalized economy it is increasingly more common to interact with people from other countries. The best solution is to warn your group in advance to avoid conflicts.

Source: gcrinstitute.org

Those are a few of the major arguments against daylight saving. There are, however, some benefits that comes with it. Did you know that something as simple as the time change has served to prevent terrorist attacks? One of the most striking cases, as stated MA in ‘ABC’ took place on September 5, 1999, when three terrorists failed to consider daylight saving time while setting the detonation timer on their weapon of mass destruction.

Whether time is artificial or not is something that has been debated for years. The way in which we utilize time in our personal lives and in society for scheduling and planning is what makes it a reality. Saving one hour in a day can change our own lives as well as the history of others’, so use it wisely.

In the end, daylight saving time may not be as bad as we think. History has shown there are both pros and cons to incorporating daylight saving time changes into our lives. How does it affect you?

Left or Right: The Future of Tinder

We are all looking for something. The love of our life, the perfect job, the right customer, the best supplier, or perhaps the right social network to get our message across.

Tinder proclaims one million new users every week , a number which indicates there are more people looking for the same thing than ever imaginable.

With more 22 million matches a day across 140 countries. Tinder has become one of the most successful applications in recent years.

After reading that Tinder had the best day ever for engagement on Valentines Day, I decided to experience for myself what it is all about. I have had a big surprise.

The popular location-based dating app is not just flirting and sex. In the few days I spent studying this application, I can dare to predict that within a few years Tinder will be much more than a regular dating application. I believe it will become a great resource to interact directly with that specific audience that tend to be around 25 to 35 year old.

Most comments about Tinder around the world are somewhat variable.

“Tinder is less superficial than our everyday lives, our everyday interactions with people,” @seanrad, founder and CEO of Tinder.

A woman´s perspective by @CarolineKent

What women really think…of Tinder
by @angrychatel and @MichelleToglia

In general people say it is just another app to find casual sex, which might be true today, but I do not discount the notion of people using this app for m-commerce and networking in the near future. The amount of professional men and women using the app to look for interaction other than just sex is incredible.

It appears as though the app does not accept much advertisement at the moment. Just a few weeks ago, GAP launched their campaign “You’re invited to the pants party” on Tinder. Shortly thereafter, Tinder unveiled their disapproval with the campaign, stating that GAP violated the terms and conditions of the app. This information has become known through Twitter, and the brand immediately responded before the situation became a crisis.

So far, Tinder has been used mostly for campaigns on sex trafficking and other alignment problems, as well as some beer companies’ campaigns. There is no doubt the app is open to brands that want to target this specific audience panorama.

At the end I agree with the following quote from Tinder, not just a hook up app. by @EleanorWalsh_ie 

Tinder may be considered  just another dating app for the time being. I personally give a right swipe to Tinder for its future potential to be used as a marketing tool for targeting in a special way its growing a potential audience. The idea of bringing together men and women looking for some kind of interaction seems to be a piece of cake for marketing and promotion.

Is Tinder another dating app that has its days numbered or Is it an ideal tool for promotion not yet very well exploited but with a great future ahead? Please leave your comments in the section below and if you haven’t connected with me on social media yet, check me out on Twitter and Google+.

Rethinking the way we do Networking.

We all admire that person who appears to be in the right place at the perfect time. That person who seems to be touched by the Gods and somehow makes things happen. That person who participates in the appropriate events, talks with confidence about the most important and current topics, and gives the impression that could be the perfect fairy Godmother that would help you to find that dream job, the ideal clients that will help you reach the next level, or simply who could invite you to be part of the VIP list for the hot places in the city.

This reminds me of the time when I was in high school wishing to be part of the popular group. But today, it seems much more perturbed. Even though the internet gives us the possibilities to interact in just one click with the special human beings, all those opportunities makes it endless, and in someway shocking.

How do we make that first move without seeming desperate or being labeled as a nerd? How do we show our skills in a unique way in a world where we are competing with thousands of people who can be seen with better qualities or are simply more experienced than us?

Maybe we are a genius in our field and nobody knows. In this complex world, preparation, skills and abilities are just as important as knowing how to relate with the right people. Contacts is the key word for success. Not just any contact, but the right person that will answer the phone when you call, or that person who will not hesitate to introduce you to someone you need to know.

Discovering that special someone is not a matter of luck, or even just being pretty or handsome (which certainly sometime helps). Achieving this reciprocal connection has everything to do with making the right move, and ultimately learning the art of networking – something that is becoming increasingly necessary in an environment of fierce competition in this digital age.

Since I moved to Winnipeg, I started a new Twitter and LinkedIn account. These networks opened up a world of possibilities to meet and interact with incredible people, who may have been nearly impossible to connect with in my offline life.

The experience has been more than satisfactory. I am amazed to see the magic of social networking. It has never been easier to say hello and invite a stranger for a coffee, although there is a risk of being misinterpreted and giving a wrong impression. I still remember a conversation with my first follower in Canada. A man, about 37-years-old, who seemed very professional in his writing, thought that knowing the city would give him an advantage in engaging in something more personal with me – a proposal I immediately turned down. I did not give up. An act of love from @MOSKALelectric made me turn my attention to this special way of connecting.

Jodi is everywhere. She is beautiful and smart, and she always has an appropriate comment for any given situation. Yesterday, I sent her a message and she immediately gave me her cell phone number. We had a few minutes of conversation that confirmed that we all are much more alike that what we think.

It was really satisfying to feel how that online relationship moved in a real world. I felt like she was one of those “friends” who are not close, but when you need them, they respond with such admirable availability.

Making contacts online is a reality, and although it seems that some people practice it in a structured and algorithmic manner, I believe if it is not transferred to off-line life in an honest and natural way, it is will be nothing but a fantasy.

We must remember that networking is 100 percent quality over quantity. Materializing these connections that we have on LinkedIn, Twitter or Facebook should be based on a genuine relationships of trust. This requires time, and if managed wisely, it can allow us to make a difference in the life of this new online friend, as well as in our own life.

In conclusion, I believe networking should be rethought, it is more than simply contacting someone with the expectation of benefiting from them in the future. It is much more than that. It is a new way of making friends, sharing ideas with people who have similar interests, creating big things together, making a difference. I use social media to interact with people I admire, people I want to build a relationship with that could transform into a friendship in which we could use our means to grow personally in this overwhelming social life and what about you? why do you connect with new people online? Please share your comment in the section below.

Thank you for reading, and if you haven’t connected with me on social media yet, check me out on Twitter and Google+.

Mia

“The currency of real networking is not greed but generosity”. – Keith Ferrazzi

A bus stop heated by a tweet

It is not a secret that winter can be just horrible in some parts of the world. Believe me, I live in Winnipeg @cityofwinnipeg. With so many winter months here, I already forget what spring smells like.

In Great Britain, a company called British Gas Heating has adapted a bus stop (Manchester Piccadilly) to be heated by sending a tweet. Is that not brilliant?

The #TweettoHeat shelter was launched few days ago, offering passengers a place to keep warm while they wait for buses, trams and trains.

This warm idea is part of a campaign to promote a home kit that allows users to control their heating remotely.

This promotion strategy utilising bus stop tweet interaction is not a new idea. Remember the Tweet to Eat campaign. The bus stop perhaps takes it to the next level. We cannot deny the beneficial powers of just one tweet.

This could be an interesting notion of real publicity for @manitobahydro to consider in our city, don’t you think? Please leave your thoughts in the comments section below.

Thank you for reading, and if you haven’t connected with me on social media yet, check me out on Twitter and Google+.

Mia