View more documents from Marta Kagan.

“Everything is spam.”

Indeed, even if you send information to a friend (a real one!), if he’s not interested, that email is as unwanted as one from a spammer.

Public relations agencies should remember that lesson. Information sent to a receiver should be relevant and coherent with their interests. He should be delighted; if not, you’re boring him. Worse: you’re molesting him.

When doing public relations, it is important to finely divide your receivers. If not, it’s as though you are asking them to be receptive and open to your message, simply to please you…

On inbox pollution

Unfortunately, PR agencies seem to think it is normal to send advertisement to your front door (think of those infamous flyers that we receive every week) and that the same goes for your inbox.

That’s completely wrong.

Dear PR agencies, if you bother us with your email, we will think of them as spam, and eventually, you will notice that your emails never get read. Although that might be a good thing, you will eventually have to ask yourselves this question systematically:

Is my message relevent for this specific internet user?

I’ll spare you the story behind this post. I don’t have Michelle’s confidence in such matters. But I think the message is clear enough without the anecdote!

I’ve already discussed this in my post on Testament: Have you made arrangements for your virtual identity?. I put forward that the virtual identity can be perceived as an extension of every day, “real life”, or as a part of it.

Michelle Sullivan’s comment led me to pursue my reflection. Learning that someone we’ve known is deceased is never something easy to accept. But what about the death of an avatar? Is our virtual identity worth as much to us?

You’ll note that Michelle’s comment spurred long thoughts, but mostly brins up tons of questions…

1- Internet: its value as a communication channel

People prefer learning the death of someone in person; is it possible that “technological” means of communication are completely inappropriate in some situations?

New technologies force us to question what we had always considered important in our relationships to others: the look in someone’s eye, sense of touch, smell… At the moment, we still say that a conversation through a webcam does not hae the full texture of a moment spent with someone… But we did not grow up building long distance relationships. The next generations, however, are likely to enter virtual relationships in the very first moments of their life. How will they perceive this? Except for carnal passions, will physical proximity seem as important to them?

2- Internet: its value as an experiential space

Do we have the same reaction (its intensity, and the type of reaction) when we learn the death of someone we knew “physically” as for someone we knew virtually?

What value do our virtual ties have? Do we try to make them become a reality? Do our ties through the Internet have importance because we hope (consciously or not) to live something outside of the virtual reality? How are our relationships strenghtened by using virtual communications channels?

Are relationships that were not initiated in the real world as valuable to us?

We haven’t finished drawing the limits to how much what we experience on the Internet is worth in comparison with what we experience in the physical world…

The future

What would make society consider experiences on the Internet on the same level? Is it desirable? Would it be true? How would that change our relationships to others, and the value we give to our presence on the web?

But most important: can we live the Essence online?

“A company specializing in giant super LED display for shows. Important specialist for large concerts. They work for international and i ncorporated artists. Their project list is pretty impressive… a must see…” (Freely translated)

Wow. Indeed, Element Labs adds some pizzazz to a project…!

Selling spectacular

I always find it interesting to see how artists working with business people use technology to reach grandiose and spectacular goals. It’s more than light branding; here, the lights are part of the product, its prestige, its uniqueness.

I noticed that Element Labs’ portfolio showcases pieces in architecture and arts, but most of their projects are designed for products and services in the entertainement business. Producers invest fortunes in such installations, because they, themselves, are a strong consumption argument.

The showbusiness industry in particular is constantly driven to continuous improvement: consumers are more and more demanding. With the media and decrease in transportation costs, they see what has been done elsewhere, and expect similar quality. Otherwise, they don’t buy.

Should Québec city call upon Element Labs’ services?

This year, Québec city celebrated its 400th anniversary with great pomp and circumstance. Québec had grand ideas. The quality of the installations, activities, shows and concerts was impressive for the size of the city. They have set a new standard for years to come…

What is govtweets?

govtweets is an easy of tracking live conversations that occur via twitter on the topic of party leaders in Canada. Instead of tracking conversation generators, govtweets tracks specific content that is being discussed by anyone on twitter. If you find a political twitterer particularly interesting, govtweets can help you discover them too.

The same service exists for the United States.C’est Yves Williams qui a attiré mon attention vers govtwitts.

What is govtweets?

govtweets is an easy of tracking live conversations that occur via twitter on the topic of party leaders in Canada. Instead of tracking conversation generators, govtweets tracks specific content that is being discussed by anyone on twitter. If you find a political twitterer particularly interesting, govtweets can help you discover them too.

Prenez note que le même service existe pour les États-Unis.

I recently gave a presentation at Podcamp Montreal intitled “The Self, The Identity and the Internet”. I decided to present in English to ensure the presentation was open to everyone, since it was what I call a “UGC” (user generated conference ).

Although my presentation was scheduled at the same time as famous podcasters Mitch Joel and CC Champman, I was overjoyed to see that I still managed to fill the room and received many comments from attendees. Several people were very passionate about the subject, and I was glad to see that the conversation continued well after the end of my presentation! (an example)

Among the attendees, the guys from Seesmic were there (including Philippe Lejeune), and they filmed my presentation and dedicated several seconds of their Podcamp montage to me.

Seesmic at Podcamp Montreal!

For those of you who weren’t there, you can still listen to my presentation, as it was generously recorded and posted on Internet Archive by Simon Roy, of OuËbe Musique.

While we’re on this subject, I recently found a great slideshare by David Armano, for his project “Brand U.O“. The gist of it?

The idea is this:

Personal brands matterówe’re creating them each time we create a profile online, reinforcing them each time we have an interaction and if we get fired or move on in our careersóit’s the one thing we are allowed to take with us. That can never be taken away.

What I like about this presentation, is that it connects identity and branding. In a certain way, as soon as we put content online, we are adding to our own online image…

“All social media play some part in mirroring us, reflecting us, whether to ourselves or in front of others” affirme Adrian Chan.

Since on the Web, people don’t have access to our entire being, our body languge, our energy, we return once again to the impression that we can’t truly know a person in their entirety if we only know them online. Otherwise, all we see is ever only an image…

An image.

Do you feel like an image on the Web? Better yet, a brand? Good question.

[ By the way, my next presentation will be at Webcom Montreal! Yay! ]

Is it because I studied with pen and paper? Or is it because I don’t have / use the right technological tools?

It can be an intrusion

There’s an example I like to use when I talk about that subject: the perception change of a phone call. Massive and multidaily use of emails and instant messaging tools have changed to way we see phone conversations.

When you call, somehow you take an unilateral decision of the time and space of the feedback you ask to the other person. It’s insisting on having a direct and simultaneous connection, from which the other can’t escape: you must announce you will interrupt it. And you can not suddenly cut off and put it on the back of a technical failure, because it is very unlikely.

In a society that continually seeks to increase individual freedom, a call may have something binding. Ask teens what they think. They greatly prefer instant messaging, which allows you to talk to more than one contact at a time and continually adjust the intensity of the exchanges. No, really, the phone is not as interesting. Worse: you must keep the object in your hands or stuck between the head and shoulder, pffft!

[Parenthesis: if in this example, holding the phone is one more effort to maintain communication, in other circumstances, the link with the physical object is significant. Just think about lovers away from one another and literally clinging to their phone while they talk to their loved one!]

It has something more

These new patterns of communication and perception of their usefulness do not necessarily relegate the tool to oblivion. No, it just moves from the status of the communication channel from common to privileged.

By it’s nature, simultaneous voice communication has something more than writing: the tone of voice, hesitations, exclamations … and the fact that we hear breathing (yes!). The information is much richer and the immediacy restricts the ability to filter the feedbacks. It’s more authentic, hencing the feeling of intensified intimacy.

And in the intimacy, we fell more vulnerable … that’s why we reserve certain communication spaces only for the closest friends. Accepting such a communication may be a symbol in itself, a mark of confidence and a clear message: “your requests to connect and relate to me are not intrusive to my eyes”.

***

The communication occasions are increasing, as well as the opportunities for massive communication to our communities. Then, unique communications between two people take a new meaning… but this will be a future ticket.