Transcript NEW MEDIA

NEW MEDIA – a brave new world?
[INFORM Meeting No 2]
26-27 November 2008, Brussels, Belgium
Kirsti Mijnhijmer & Henrik Josephson
The Northern Periphery Programme 2007-2013
The North Sea Region Programme 2007-2013
This session will address the following
Part 1: BACKGROUND TO EFFICIENT COMMUNICATIONS
 Generic steps to improve outlook and maximise impact
Part 2: NEW MEDIA
 What is it all about?
Part 3: A SHORT GOOD PRACTICE STATEMENT
 What to consider when opting for new media solutions
1. New media?
NEW MEDIA IS A WIDELY USED TERM FOR WEB BASED MEDIA
TOOLS AND TECHNOLOGIES.
Key characteristics
 Digital,
 Computerised and/or, Networked.
Another important new media concept: WEB 2.0
 User-designed and/or made,
 User-controlled,
 Interactive.
1.2: Background – always consider this!
 The Plan
New media or not, it has to be grounded in a Communication Plan with
a long term strategy.
 Relevance
Do not over-extend your commitment in communications, plan for what
is relevant and budget accordingly.
 The Target Group(s)
Use new media when relevant for the (specific) target groups you have
identified in your Communication Plan, do not use it simply because
you can – it may back fire and be counter-productive.
1.3: Link to Communication Plan

Web based communication
Make the web your main platform for all communications.

Support website by printed materials and e-communications
 Print by Just in Time and Print on Demand (sustainable and costefficient),
 Be very restrictive with e-communications (do not waste other peoples
time with Newsletters and Press Releases if not relevant and target
group specific).

Target group identification is a key factor for effective
communications – you cannot be everything for everyone
• (Potential) Beneficiaries,
• Other stakeholders,
• The Commission,
• General Public.
1.4: Effective and relevant
A FEW KEY POINTS ABOUT WEB BASED COMMUNICATIONS,
ALSO RELEVANT FOR OTHER WEB 2.0 MEDIA OPTIONS.

Customised to target audience(s)
• Information available – Who are you talking to?
• Way of communicating stories – Communicate, do not inform!
• Features – What features are relevant for your audience?

User friendliness
• Usability – Relevant things first, i.e. news visible!
• Accessibility – You have 5-8 seconds, then the visitor leaves
• Content Management System – should be user friendly
• Writing style – writing for the web is different, learn it
1.5: Writing for the web and new media
THE FOLLOWING IS TRUE FOR WEB TEXTS AND SERVES AS AN
EXAMPLE THAT YOU MUST ADOPT THE STYLE AND TONE TO THE
SPECIFIC MEDIA YOU INTEND TO USE.

People don’t read online texts, they scan them!

In order to make texts more accessible:
• Start with the conclusion,
• Use headings and sub headings,
• Use headings that make sense.

Write concise

Wording
• Objective (emotional online writing is for amateurs – no credibility),
• Plain English (or any other language, no EU speak).
2: New media – general statement
NEW MEDIA (AS DEFINED) AS A GENERAL TOOL IN
COMMUNICATIONS IS STILL IN DEVELOPMENT.
+
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Will present you with a range of new opportunities which will potentially be
very cost effective and enable you to reach new target groups,
This is the direction communications is going for the future, learn it now and
be a front runner tomorrow.
–

Will present new challenges – if you do not take them seriously you will
waste (a lot of) money and credibility.
2.1: New media – know the difference
YOU NEED TO BE AWARE THAT THERE ARE
CHARACTERISTICS THAT SEPARATE NEW MEDIA FROM
OTHER MEDIA.
 CHEAP AND FAST BUT TRICKY
Many new media options are tempting because they are cheap, easy to
use and fast. But they demand much more in maintenance (e.g.
updates).
 TARGET GROUP SPECIFIC
Social and interactive media (web 2.0) is much more target group
specific and fast changing than other media options – do not
underestimate the pace or the need to be specific.
2.2: Selected new media
IT IS EASY TO BE CHARMED BY THE POSSIBILITIES, BUT ARE YOU
AWARE OF THE CHALLENGES?
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Website / Web Based – The revolution will be web-based, but you need to
know how to write for the web,
Videos – Effective but you need determining competence,
Streaming / Podcasting – Potentially very good penetration, but high risk if
do not know the target groups very well,
Internet Radio – Not likely a viable option (do you have enough content
and the funding to back a serious effort?),
Open Forum / Blogs – Cheap to start but expensive to maintain, needs
constant updates or you loose audience and credibility quickly,
Web 2.0 / Social Media – Its the future, but you need to monitor what
happens with your contributions.
3: Good Practice
A FEW THINGS TO CONSIDER WHEN OPTING FOR NEW MEDIA
SOLUTIONS.
Try new technologies!
 But they should be part of the Communication Plan
User friendliness at different levels
 Design – You make things visible by the design (and vice versa)
 Content – Be relevant and concise, delete the rest
Be selective
 Customised approach!
 Who is it really: Stakeholders/General public/Commission?
Transparency
 You should be open about what you do and what you aim for
As always
CONTACT US FOR MORE INFORMATION.
www.northsearegion.eu
[email protected]
www.northernperiphery.eu
[email protected]