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Brittany Dorfner • 07-27-10
In my last post, I addressed the importance of setting goals when considering a social media campaign, and shared tips on how to monitor conversations, build your following and find potential customers via Twitter.
Moving away from implementation, today’s post focuses on Jason Falls’ (@JasonFalls) presentation “Five Ways to Measure Social Media Success,” zeroing in on how to measure social media efforts and identify the ROI.
So, you’ve finally gotten the C-Suite on board for your social media campaign, but now you have to prove it’s effective (and worth the organization’s time and money).
After establishing goals and selecting the tools, set measurable objectives and strategies as part of your campaign - how will you use the tools to achieve your goals? Potential strategies include:
– Develop an incentive to get people to follow you via Twitter, or to like your page on Facebook.
– Advertise your incentive.
– Reach out to people you know regarding your incentive, and invite them to link to your pages, effectively broadcasting your content across other networks.
– Create content that encourages a new follower/fan to come back.
With strategies in place, set realistic benchmarks against which to measure your campaign outcomes. Doing this in the beginning means you’ll have something to compare your results with later.
How you measure your social media efforts (or what you’re able to measure) is based on the purpose social media marketing serves for your organization - is it aiding in brand awareness, building community, providing customer service, allowing for research & development, offering direct sales opportunities? Defining the purpose will help define your measurement strategies.
If you’re using social media for any of these reasons, learn to measure your effectiveness against the following goals:
– Increased awareness/reach (using focus groups and surveys)
– Positive enagagement/conversations (via social media monitoring through tools used or other services like Filtrbox)
– Growth of online community (track number of followers, fans, subscribers)
– Generation of new product ideas; improved product features/service lines
– Improved conversion rates (leads vs. clients)
After you’ve determined how best to measure your goals, continue to track them to evaluate your social media efforts.
If you’ve already implemented social media in your overall marketing strategy, have you identified your goals and benchmarks? If so, have you succeeded in reaching them?
Emily Embury • 07-15-10
Edublogger Adam Bellow held a memorial service for the term “Web 2.0″ at the 2010 ISTE Conference as part of his session titled eduTecher’s 10 Web Tools To Make Your Classroom Rock. In support of his effort to “bury the term once and for all,” Adam contributed this guest post to summarize his ISTE presentation for our readers.
An Abridged History of “Web 2.0″
The term “Web 2.0″ was first coined in 1999, more than ten years ago. A lot has happened since then. For instance, we were introduced to a little Web company named “Google.” To think of it another way - ”Web 2.0″ was coined before the first iPod was introduced. However, while the term was first kicked around in 1999, it wasn’t until 2003-04 that “Web 2.0″ took on its current meaning and gained popularity.
When originally coined, the term meant something because the predominant number of websites simply informed. Company Web pages, and basic information tools such as dictionaries and reference sites, provided data and static information with minimal user interaction (social or otherwise). These “read-only” websites came to be known by the moniker “Web 1.0.”
In the beginning, “Web 2.0″ was cool. It was the new buzzword. Unfortunately, it’s still lingering with us today. The “2.0″ signified that there was a distinct and definable difference between new interactive websites and those that came before. That’s fine. Initially this idea makes sense. For a few months, or even a year, we can have a shiny new name to define a changing medium.
But today’s Web is almost entirely interactive or social in some way. Why continue to use a term that distinguishes itself from the predecessor if the predecessor no longer needs to be differentiated from (see example of “Coke II” or “New Coke). Most of the static sites from years ago now offer a degree of social interaction - at the very least you can add comments or share content.
The Web has evolved. The medium is still very much the same, but its use has changed. It’s meaningless to call it “Web 2.0″ to designate it as different if the term doesn’t explain what the difference is (see example of “Cave-People” versus People).
Well, We Have to Call it Something…
If not “Web 2.0,” then what? To find out Adam’s suggestion, see the full-length version of The Life and Death of “Web 2.0″ available through Scribd.
For more from Adam, view this Visibility Matters blog post: “The Tech Commandments.”
Adam Bellow is the director of educational technology for the College Board Schools. In addition, he is founder and president of eduTecher, a free website that helps educators integrate technology effectively into the classroom. eduTecher offers links to hundreds of web tools and sites, and provides information on how these tools may be used in the classroom. A free eduTecher iPhone application is available for download as well.
Sandy Fash • 07-13-10
 What a successful ISTE 2010 in Denver! Reflecting on that week, we learned about a number of exciting new initiatives, trends, product launches, and more, emanating from the conference and the trade show floor.
One of the most interesting sessions we attended was a Feedback Forum hosted by the Consortium of School Networking (CoSN) and the Software & Information Industry Association (SIIA) on Tuesday morning. The two organizations hold Feedback Forums at several conferences throughout the year, giving vendors the opportunity to hear directly from educators and administrators about various topics.
This forum focused on personalized learning, and it was fascinating to hear the perspectives of the ten panelists. The general consensus was that if we compare our current educational system to the business world, we are using a mass production model to deliver education, and we need to move to a system of mass customization.
Where differentiated learning relies on teachers to be the primary instruction-givers, personalized learning draws the student into the learning process through engagement and interest-focused activities. Panelists agreed a paradigm shift was needed – reforming teacher-led instruction practices to emphasize student-focused learning.
Later that day, we had the opportunity to connect with our good friend, William Zaggle, president of GlobalScholar, who shared a story that reminded us of the earlier forum. Have you ever heard the story of the five monkeys?
Five monkeys were placed in a cage where bananas hung from the ceiling. Bananas being a favorite food, the monkeys clambered up the stairs placed in the center of the cage to reach the bananas. To their chagrin, each time they attempted to grab a banana, they were squirted with water. Over time, the monkeys decided the bananas were not worth the hassle. Then, one monkey was replaced with a new monkey. Realizing this cage showcased a beautiful bunch of bananas, the new monkey attempted to climb the stairs to reach them. Unfortunately, on his ascent, the remaining four monkeys grabbed him and pulled him back to the ground. This new monkey also decided the bananas weren’t worth the trouble. One by one, the original five monkeys were replaced with new monkeys – monkeys who had never been sprayed with water – and none of the new monkeys would risk climbing the stairs to get the coveted bananas.
This interesting anecdote illustrates why our educational system has remained the same for hundreds of years: we believe in what tradition tells us is true. Zaggle’s point echoed a comment from one of the Feedback Forum’s panelists: although we have leveraged the teacher-led instruction model in the past, we need to question its efficacy as times change. Personalized learning may be unchartered territory for many K-12 institutions, but we’ll never know if water will be sprayed unless we are willing to rise to the challenge.
Brittany Dorfner • 07-09-10
 Kevin Hogan of Tech & Learning Back from ISTE 2010, we’ve determined the winner of our Foursquare contest (mentioned in an earlier post, “Why You Should Check Into Foursquare” ). That signal honor goes to Kevin Hogan, editorial director of Tech & Learning! Kevin managed to check in more times than anyone else, earning him the prestigious title of ”Mayor” of CB&A’s Media Central at ISTE.
As our winner, Kevin will receive a $25 Groupon gift card to use on a daily deal of his choice.
Thanks to all who participated in Media Central at ISTE 2010, and to those who checked in to our Foursquare venue!
Emily Embury • 06-26-10
The CB&A team has traveled to Denver for ISTE 2010 – the conference formerly known as NECC. The theme of this year’s most comprehensive educational technology event is Exploring Excellence. Nearly 20,000 teachers, technology coordinators, library media specialists, administrators, policy makers, industry representatives, and students from around the globe have gathered in the Mile-High City.
 Whether you’re attending the conference in person or virtually, bookmark www.isteconnects.org or follow ISTE Connects on Twitter for the latest news, events and commentary from ISTE. In addition, follow Charlene Blohm, Kristen Plemon, Sandy Fash, and Emily Embury on Twitter as they tweet daily updates of interesting articles, client news and helpful tips. Also be sure to follow CB&A at CBlohmAssoc, led by Brittany Dorfner.
News from clients exhibiting at the conference…
Califone (Booth #1189) Providing all students the opportunity to clearly hear their teachers and audiovisual media in the classroom, Califone showcases its upgrade Infrared Classroom Audio System as well as the company’s new Assistive Listening System. For more information, visit www.califone.com.
Discovery Education (Booth #628) Discovery Education announces new agreements with several organizations, including BBC, Smarterville/Reading Rainbow and CBS News, to further expand the content libraries of the company’s curricular services. For more information, visit http://bit.ly/aDFO67.
ePals (Booth #1478) ePals highlights 11 educators from around the world who were named winners of the company’s 2010 Teacher Ambassador Contest. These winners were chosen based on their innovative use of the ePals Global Community across the curriculum. For more information, visit www.epals.com.
Funds For Learning (Booth #1532) Funds For Learning announces the latest release of E-rate Manager, a web-based tool used for assistance with E-rate funding requests and commitments, offering improved features to enhance the user experience. For more information, visit www.fundsforlearning.com.
GlobalScholar (Booth #554) GlobalScholar highlights several U.S. districts that use the Pinnacle Suite of products to provide administrators and educators the data and resources they need to inform instructional decisions and improve student achievement. For more information, visit www.globalscholar.com.
Gradecam (Booth #1384) When paired with a web or document camera, GradeCam Online allows teachers to scan and grade multiple-choice tests and other assignments instantly, helping to ease a time-consuming administrative burden. For more information, visit http://bit.ly/dnOgod.
Lightspeed Systems (Booth #580) Nearly 800 schools are planning to implement My Big Campus from Lightspeed Systems in the upcoming school year to enable educators and students to collaborate and share appropriate online resources safely and securely. For more information, visit http://bit.ly/arRzPM.
PBS Teachers (Booth #948) PBS offers standards-based teaching activities, lesson plans, on-demand video assets, and interactive games and simulations through its Web portal for preK-12 educators, pbsteachers.org. PBS has released several new mobile apps to enhance student learning anytime, anywhere. For more information, visit http://pbskids.org/mobile.
PBS TeacherLine (Booth #948) With the surge of open technology use among educational institutions, PBS TeacherLine has converted to Moodle for its online course management system. The conversion provides schools with more flexibility in licensing, customizing and delivering professional development to teachers. For more information, visit http://bit.ly/cZ2Prm.
netTrekker (Booth #884) netTrekker is launching a new version of its search tool, named “netTrekker Search,” to provide users with a personalized and productive search experience. Users can customize home pages and search results based on their needs. For more information, visit http://bit.ly/csUtag.
STI (Booth #437) STI unveils Ready, Set, Go!, a customized program of professional development and coaching that supports schools in creating a data-informed culture to increase teacher effectiveness and student achievement. For more information, visit http://bit.ly/bZe1tW.
And in other news this week…
SIIA - SIIA announces the results of the organization’s annual Vision K-2 Survey during a press conference for media, industry VIPS and members. In addition, the organization highlights its 2010 Trends Report for Education Technology. For more information, visit http://bit.ly/b2xfi5.
Shmoop - Shmoop announces its public beta test of Shmoop Economics, a free online resource that uses humor, current events, pop culture references, and games to capture student interest in economics. For more information, visit http://bit.ly/9TDem8.
For more news related to ISTE, visit these links:
CB&A ISTE news page: http://bit.ly/ISTE10
CBlohmAssoc YouTube channel: http://bit.ly/CBA_YT
CB&A Facebook page: http://bit.ly/CBA_FB
Sandy Fash • 06-26-10
With ISTE 2010 right around the corner, it may be a good idea to brush up on your media training skills. Whether you have meetings already set up with members of the education trade press, or you just want to be prepared in case someone stops by your booth for a quick interview, it can’t hurt to review the basics.
 Handling tough media meetings, or any interview for that matter, can be uncomfortable even for the most veteran company spokespersons. Beyond remembering to stay calm and professional, however, there are a few tricks that can help you stay on message while still answering the reporter’s more abrasive or probing questions.
The real key to handling tough media meetings is realizing that you are always in control. Using your verbal prowess, you can focus the discussion on what you want to talk about. There are two techniques that can help when it comes to answering interview questions – transitional phrases known as “flags” and “bridges.”
Flags
You may say a lot of things during a meeting, but to emphasize the points that you truly want to get across, you will want to use “flags.” Flags are verbal signals that cue the reporter, alerting him or her to pay close attention because you are going to saying something important. When you are delivering one of your key messages, practice using flags such as:
- The most important point to remember is…
- Let me tell you how it works…
- In fact…
- Let me give you an example…
- The real issue here is…
- What matters most to educators today is…
- Educators always tell us…
- It boils down to this…
- Simply put…
- The truly critical issue is…
- Here is what I want people to know…
- There are three reasons for that. The first is…
- The bottom line is…
- Here is a fact for you…
- If you take away one thing from our discussion today, it should be this…
Bridges
Political debates provide a perfect example of a skill long practiced and perfected by public speakers: the ability to answer (or get out of answering) the really tough questions. No matter what difficult questions are thrown your way during a challenging situation, you can always avoid the question and get back to your key talking points by using a verbal technique known as a “bridge.” Bridges are phrases that help you transition from the reporter’s question back to the message you want the reporter to hear:
- I don’t know, but let me tell what I do know…
- That’s important, but the truly critical question is…
- That’s one way to look at the issue, but think about it this way…
- The answer is no, we’re not doing that, but let me tell what we are doing…
- I don’t know what they [competitors] do, but let me tell you what our philosophy is. Based on our years of experience, we…
- The facts are…
- From my perspective…
- I’ve heard that, too, but the real focus should be…
- Here’s an even tougher question…
- If I may, let me pick a more important point…
- The reality for today’s educators is…
- Let’s talk about something I’m even more familiar with…
- Opinions can differ, but what I believe is…
- Let me tell you what our philosophy is…
- The question should be…
- What concerns me even more is…
- What’s more important is…
Practice these phrases so they become second nature. These techniques work not only during difficult situations and crises, but also in media meetings under “normal” conditions.
Emily Embury • 06-25-10
More than 75 percent of teens own cell phones, up from just 45 percent in 2004, according to Pew Internet & American Life Project. However, nearly 70 percent of schools nationwide ban mobile devices during the school day, according to a survey conducted last year by CommonSense Media. But some districts are beginning to realize the untapped potential of handheld devices. As best said by educator Lisa Nielsen, “It’s not a question of if, but when all schools will allow mobile devices for learning.”
Handheld devices such as the iPhone® and iPod touch® are viewed by many educators and ed tech experts as a pathway to improved student engagement and personalized learning. A recent study found that vocabulary improved as much as 31 percent in children ages three to seven who played with the popular PBS KIDS MARTHA SPEAKS app. Smartphones have become increasingly popular among parents - their use is 12 percent higher in households with children than other households according to Nielsen.
I Education Apps Review (IEAR.org), an online community of more than 500 educators, administrators and app developers, is taking a closer look at the educational value of mobile devices in the classroom. Founded by Scott Meech, the organization publishes a blog with educational app reviews, and suggestions on how to use these apps and devices for personal productivity, as classroom tools, and for other creative educational endeavors. You can follow IEAR.org on Twitter, or sign up to be a member of the community here.
A few of our clients have developed apps for iPhone, iPad and iPod touch:
 Shmoop Shmoop is one of the leading education iPhone app developers, with more than 400 applications on topics ranging from Ulysses to Stairway to Heaven. Designed to make learning fun and relevant, Shmoop Learning Guides are available in seven subjects: literature, poetry, bestsellers, U.S. history, civics, biography, and music. Shmoop helps students understand how subjects relate to their daily lives.
Discovery Education introduced a U.S. Geography application to both educate and entertain middle school students. U.S. Geography by Discovery Education offers videos, knowledge-based challenges and games aligned to national education standards, plus a leaderboard-driven competition, to engage students in learning U.S. geography concepts. The app will be on display at booth #628 during ISTE.
 Lightspeed Systems Lightspeed Systems developed a mobile Web filter application to secure school-issued mobile devices for learning. The Lightspeed Guide Browser regulates and monitors Web browsing on mobile devices, when used in conjunction with the company’s Internet filter for education institutions that protects students and the school network from safety and security threats. The app will be on display at booth #580 during ISTE.
STI launched a mobile Parent Portal for InformationNOW, the company’s Web-based student information system, to help schools facilitate school-home communications. Its iPhone app, InformationNOW Mobile, provides parents with on-demand access to information about their children’s education, including grades, progress reports, report cards, and class schedule, as well as school announcements and calendar.
Brittany Dorfner • 06-21-10
With ISTE just six days away, we’d like to share one more list of restaurants, shops and entertaining venues in and around Denver. With this and our previous three posts in hand, you’ll have no trouble navigating the city for good food and fun. Thanks to Jeanne Hayes, President of The Hayes Connection, Inc., Kevin Custer, CEO of AutismPro, and David Pendery, President of Crazy Poet Music Group, LLC, for their added suggestions on where to eat and what to do while in Denver.
Restaurants
– The Cruise Room Bar (located in the Oxford Hotel), 1600 17th Street, theoxfordhotel.com/the-cruise-room.html
– My Brother’s Bar, 2376 15th Street, denvergov.org/AboutDenver/today_driving_beat_stop5.asp (Burgers/bar food)
– Ship Tavern (located in the Brown Palace Hotel), 321 17th Street, brownpalace.com/dining/ships_tavern.cfm (Burgers/steak/seafood)
– Maggiano’s Little Italy, 500 16th Street, maggianos.com (Italian cuisine)
– The Broker Restaurant, 821 17th Street, thebrokerrestaurant.com (Steak/seafood)
– Simms Steakhouse, 11911 W. 6th Avenue, Lakewood, Colo., simmssteakhouse.com (Steak)
– ELWAY’S Downtown, 1881 Curtis Street, elways.com/downtown (Steak)
– Steubens, 523 E. 17th Avenue, steubens.com (American cuisine)
– The 9th Door, 1808 Blake Street, theninthdoor.com (Spanish tapas)
Entertainment
– Coors Field Tour, 2001 Blake Street, colorado.rockies.mlb.com/col/ballpark/tours.jsp
– Golden Brewery Tour, located on 13th & Ford Streets, millercoors.com/golden-brewery-tour.aspx
– Denver Museum of Nature & Science, 2001 Colorado Boulevard, dmns.org
– Denver Botanic Gardens, 1007 York Street, botanicgardens.org
– Denver Zoo, 2300 Steele Street, denverzoo.org
– Colorado Rockies game, 2001 Blake Street, colorado.rockies.mlb.com
– Colorado Rapids game, 6000 Victory Way, Commerce City, Colo., coloradorapids.com
– Concerts at Red Rocks Park and Amphitheatre (open seven days a week), 18300 W. Alameda Parkway, Morrison, Colo., redrocksonline.com
Shopping
– Cherry Creek Shopping Center, 3000 E. 1st Avenue, shopcherrycreek.com
– Pearl Street Mall, Pearl St., Boulder, Colo., boulderdowntown.com/visit/history-of-pearl-street
– Larimer Square, 1430 Larimer Street, larimersquare.com
– 16th Street Mall, 16th Street, denver.com/16th-street-mall
– Flatirons Crossing, 1 W. Flatiron Crossing Drive, flatironcrossing.com
Spa
– For ladies: Oxford Hotel spa, 1600 17th Street, theoxfordhotel.com/spa.html
– For gentlemen: Gentlemen’s Quarters, 1605 W. 17th Street, gquarters.com
To all our readers attending ISTE 2010, we wish you safe travels and a great experience!
Keith Krueger • 06-18-10
I’m very pleased to announce that we have opened our Call for Presentations for the CoSN 2011 Annual Conference, which will take place in New Orleans, La., March 14-16, 2011, at the Hilton New Orleans Hotel. The conference theme is “Mastering the Moment,” and we will focus on how ed tech leaders can find innovative ways to strengthen investments in technology during the economic crisis. Given New Orleans’ experience with recovering from a terrible natural disaster and making the most of limited resources to rethink and innovate in education, the city is a great location for the conference.
From now until July 23, we’re accepting presentation proposals related to the “Mastering the Moment” theme. The call for presentations is open to both CoSN members and non-members, and proposals can be submitted in five presentation categories: Concurrent Sessions, Education Poster Sessions, Pre-conference Workshops, New! Great Ideas, and Birds-of-a-Feather Roundtables. To learn more about the conference and submitting a proposal, visit www.cosn.org/Home/2010CallPresent/tabid/6686/Default.aspx. For ed tech companies, we encourage you to reach out to your key customers. Let them know about this important opportunity to submit a proposal showing how they are making a difference with the support of your products and services. We’re looking forward to hearing from you.
In the coming weeks, I’ll share more information about conference registration and other details. If you haven’t already booked your ticket to New Orleans, do it soon!
Keith Krueger is CEO of the Consortium for School Networking (CoSN).
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