Be nice to those on the way up. You never know who you will meet on the way down.

Where ever I go and who ever I go with I ensure I make conversation with people I meet.  You never know who you will come across and what they can do for you. It is not what you know, it is who you know.

Network Network Network. Build those contacts. The network of contacts is all the people whom you can share ideas, advice and support with. To me this means teachers, lecturers, friends, family, work colleagues, sports/ societies and so on...

Although it is difficult to stay in contact with everyone, social media gives you the opportunity to stay in contact at no extra hassle.


Facebook is a good channel to get to know your contacts on a personal level by commenting and/or liking their activity. This will allow your contacts to be reminded of you and in turn they are likely to click on your profile.

Whereas Twitter is a good channel to build strong contacts with professionals whom work in the industry and share news about the day-to-day activities.

I always try to network effectively by making the best use from my existing contacts, and thinking of ways in which they can help me move towards my desired career goal.

If you are looking to build your contact list try attending:

• Career Events
• Exhibitions
• Drink receptions
• Coffee breaks

Blackberry's customer loyalty scheme

Earlier this month Blackberry users were going mental on Facebook and Twitter about the service collapse. Blackberry users in Europe, Canada and South America also experienced technical difficulties which was believed to speculate from Blackberry's global infrastructure. In other words they had a failed back-up source. It resulted in millions of customers worldwide without the use of their smart phone for three days, which caused a lot of upset, anger, and frustration.

The issue was reported via many different media channel. ITV ONE in particular caught my attention, where Managing Director of RIM (which stands for Research in Motion) was interviewed about the fault in Blackberry.

Steven Bates apologised to the customers who were experiencing problems, and then went on to explain the reasoning behind the messaging and browsing failure. It was nice to see that Blackberry were not ignoring their customers.

However, there was no settlement for when the problem would be solved, nor did he mention any compensation that would be given to users without access to their Blackberry.

At this point I feel it would have been important to offer a freebie because people appreciate free things. It makes them feel special. It would have made customers take their mind off the problem, which could have resulted in less ranting, and in effect it would have reduced the bad publicity Blackberry were quickly accumulating.

As a Blackberry owner, I believe that during this time the biggest problem of all was to admit I had a Blackberry. To Iphone users it was seen as a joke. Humorous Facebook and Twitter updates were escalating by the minute. Even video's like this one were being posted to Youtube...

I recently blogged about Brand Management and Customer Service on Twitter where I stated companies should monitor tweets, regarding their brand, and have a strategy for bad PR. In this case, Blackberry should have monitored what their customers were saying about them.

Not only did this show a lack of acknowledgement, it made the company look worse, especially because they are a technical industry. They should have an experienced community manager, who is knowledgeable on social media tactics. It could have quickly changed the attitudes of some customers.

What happens now?
RIM have now tried to make amends with customers by giving 'premium apps for free' as well as one month of technical support for free. The premium apps consists of: SIMS3, Bejeweled, Texas Hold 'em poker 2 and many more which RIM claim will add at a later date.

Although free Apps are a nice gesture, I am not entirely sure it will make up for no access to email for several days. Blackberry users need to be reassured that this problem will not happen again, so they can continue to trust the brand and stay loyal.

Personally, I am waiting for my contract upgrade date so I can convert to an Iphone!

Do your friends get what you do?

When I was in my final year at uni I was looking forward to finishing and going home to see my friends and family whenever I wanted. Five months has passed and I would go back to uni tomorrow if I could!

I miss everything about university- even the dirty plates, cigarette butts in glasses, and the coldness of a damp student house in the winter! Call me crazy, I don't know, but uni is literally 'living the dream'. I had no idea the 'real world' would be this boring. I live to work, whereas in an ideal world, I would like to work to live.

In my home city, Milton Keynes, all my friends have settled down, moved in with their partners and already had babies! Do you realise how scary this is for me?

I read in the newspaper the other day that the trouble with my generation is that they want everything NOW, and I'm sure most of you will agree with this. Young people nowadays want immediate gratification, but surely this is something that you wait for, and earn during years of living?

I never felt 'old' at uni, because I'm not, I'm 22! Since living at home I feel extremely old and I feel like I have taken a huge step backwards. The most frustrating thing is I am yet to see any gratification from getting a BA Hons degree.

At present I am trying to use social media to connect, whereas friends of mine who offer their services, rely on traditional word of the mouth marketing. When I talk about the latest campaign I am running for my work, or the newest client to have met, the conversation always manages to last just two minutes before it changes.

I feel the need to connect with like-minded career people in other places. I'm starting with Twitter, LinkedIn, and blogs but I am definitely keen to start face-to-face networking.

How to build up your Twitter account?

Although Twitter can resemble Facebook, it is in some respects very different especially for public relations, journalist and marketing professionals. I cannot emphasize how much I love Twitter!

Facebook, in my opinion, is merely as good as Twitter when it comes to Marketing. I'm not interested in seeing where my Facebook friends went at the weekend, what clothes they wore, how old their children are now...etc. Facebook has become far too personal and I think Facebookers are far too open about their personal issues. It makes me cringe!

Whereas Twitter consists of people who are social- media savvy and are knowledgeable on the world of marketing. Most importantly my followers care about their reputation. My Twitter timeline informs me and educates me everyday because I choose to follow important sources like marketing agencies in London, newspaper brands and graduates who in a way act like my competitors. I try to ensure I am tweeting similar content. Although I could rant on about the brilliant services Twitter provides, you might be reading this thinking well, actually, I don't know where to start and who do I follow?

Building a Twitter account and tweeting 'the right' information can seem like a daunting task. Particularly when the timeline shows your followers tweeting links, images, mentions and hashtags!

I have explained the different features that can be used in tweets:

Links:
If you would like to back up your tweet with further information, you can copy and paste the URL of a website. Twitter will automatically shorten the link and your followers will be able to view the website. Links are great to show where you got the information from and what style of websites you trust and value.

Images:
If you would like to share a photo with your followers, there is a symbol of a camera under the 'whats happening' text box. The photo's you share will stay on your Twitter profile under 'recent images' which is great for potential followers to gain an understanding of your personality and style of tweets.

Mentions:
Mentions is when you start your tweet with '@' and then the username of the follower you want to speak too. It will then appear on their '@mentions' tab.

It is quite important to monitor the people who choose to 'follow you', so you can welcome them. Once they are following you, you can tweet them by a mention, to generate a conversation.

It is also important to occasionally tweet the people who you are following, to encourage them to follow you back and show other potential followers what you are interested in. It also shows how good you are at communication.

If a potential follower was to view @Oliveremery's profile they will see he is a Public Relations Manager in London, which suggests I am communicating with people in my chosen sector.

Hashtags:
Personally I have still not come to terms with the hashtag concept, but I use it and this is why:
1. When I generally want to have a moan, I use the hashtag #ThingsIhate, and the same for when I want to say something positive. I then use the hashtag #ThingsIlove.
2. If I am watching a TV programme I will insert it into a hashtag. For example, #Xfactor.

My understanding of this is that people who will then type '#Xfactor' in the search box will see my tweet. They could then view my full profile and potentially follow me. If you visit my profile you straight away know I am interested in PR/ Marketing. You never know who will click on your profile so base the content around your main interest. Why are you tweeting? Who is your Target Audience?

Once you understand the tweeting process, you will start to understand Twitter and believe me it is a FANTASTIC marketing tool.

If I have persuaded you to join Twitter start by:

• Follow competitors-

Tweet similar info, look at their list of followers and choose to follow a few.
Build your contact database, each and every tweeter will benefit you.
Monitor competitors coverage because you could be missing out on something within that particular industry. 

• Prepare your responses-

If someone wants to ask a question about you or your company think about the type of response you are tweeting back. Does it portray you or your company in the right way? Is it likely to gain you a Retweet?

• Provide good customer service-

Help others and communicate clearly. Be friendly to followers, more people will want to engage with you. If you are providing good customer service, you could spread around Twitter in a matter of minutes.