‘Live Stream’ Explained for the Philippine Blog Awards

Posted by Jayvee Fernandez at September 9th, 2009

This event is dappled in awesomeness. We’re trying something new this year — a live stream coverage of the event over the Internet courtesy of Flippish. If you’re expecting fixed point webcam quality work with a 30 second delay, well we’re out to prove you wrong. The live coverage has similar production value as on television, except that everything will be streamed via a dedicated line over the Internet. For those who will be unable to join us on that day, the live stream is actually the best way to follow the awards night.

The #1 Reason Why I Like Google’s New Search

Posted by Jayvee Fernandez at August 12th, 2009

Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you would have noticed that Google is road testing a new version of their search engine. Not only is it faster, the results are also different. Should be interesting to see how this unfolds in the next few months.

But going back, the cheap-ass reason why I like this new search is because finally, my complete name pops up first in the suggestions for autocomplete when you type the word “jayvee.” Before, it would always lead to the Jayvee Dance Performance Arts Theater at jayveedance.net (BAH!)

Try out the new search in preview and share your stories.

Have you stopped caring about numbers?

Posted by Jayvee Fernandez at August 10th, 2009

I’m in class, having just finished my session, giving the floor to Anton. And just now, Regnard approached me and we had a really brief conversation about traffic optimization. I ran a small survey over at Performancing last week on optimizing your archives and really, everyone said that they don’t bother.

I used to be anal about my analytics. But then I just stopped caring.

And then in all irony, when I stopped caring, the stats went up. And I’ve been writing less. Hah. Go figure. You guys experience this?

iBlog 5 Live Stream

Posted by Jayvee Fernandez at May 9th, 2009

Watch live video from Ask Janette on Justin.tv

Happy Saturday folks. See you at iBlog 5. If by chance you can’t make it, you can still view the live stream c/o Janette.

Three Thoughts on Personal Branding Online

Posted by Jayvee Fernandez at April 22nd, 2009

I’d like to share three short pieces I wrote as a regular contributor for Performancing. What ties the three together are really just my thoughts on personal branding online and marketing yourself.

The first is a short brain fart on determining what type of blogger you are based on how much information you are willing to share online. Question: Is your life an open book? How open? Who do you drag with you online?

The second is more or less an exploratory post on how much below the line budget you’ve allocated with your blog. Have you built your blog into a strong brand to the point that it can be ubiquitous?

The third post is about authenticity. I wrote this after we wrapped up a session in AIM where Professor Cruz talked about authenticity and branding. It’s like asking: Is your travel blog real? Or is it a fake Ironwulf?

Enjoy!

“We get it, but the key decision makers don’t”

Posted by Jayvee Fernandez at April 3rd, 2009

If you belong to an ad agency, you’ve probably heard this before — young guns get the whole new media, social marketing, web 2.0 bit (argh, so many buzz words!) but at the end of the day we always defer to the higher authority of clients who have decision makers who do not understand Internet Marketing.
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Blog Tips for EXTRA Credibility in Sponsored Manila Events

Posted by Jayvee Fernandez at March 18th, 2009

Sucked into the “blogging thing” and now attending blog events? Read on.

You’ve seen medicine bottles having labels such as “fast acting” and “long lasting.” Some even have “extra” for “extra strength.” Sure, you know deep down it’s just marketing boohoo but you still end up buying that bottle. You know what? Maybe the same can be said for blogging, especially when we attend events. In this post, I will elaborate more on blog events and engaging with PR agencies, independent publicists, and marketing managers as a blogger in Manila.

Here are some thoughts to guide you through attending events. There’s nothing wrong with doing so — in fact we’re probably the only country that engages bloggers as a relevant part of the “media” through face to face engagements.

Let’s do this!

The truth is, a lot of PR practitioners do not read your blog. Sad right? But it’s true! They only do when you email them the post you proudly wrote. The most obvious sign that they don’t read is when they tell you after an event “hey can you email me when your post is up?” As a blogger who’s probably new to PR engagements, you aim to please. As a glossy journo for tech, that is one of the biggest insults ever known to someone in the publishing industry (You’re attending events right? You’re getting press kits right? So yes you’re now part of the industry). It’s the publicist’s job to collate media values (including those posts in your blog) — not you. In fact they aren’t even supposed to pester you to ask if you’ve written about them.

Let’s go to the “extra” i was talking about in the first paragraph. You can’t buy credibility. In fact, credibility is all you’ve got as a blogger. So let’s assume that you are fairly credible – you write fairly well, you know some optimization tricks, you take decent photos … but wait — why does your blog template suck?. First impressions last, especially in this industry. Go for EXTRA credibility. Ask yourself this question — do you think that out of the hundreds of thousands of free templates, there is one that actually says “this is me.” I’m not saying that you should spend an arm and a leg for a new template (mine is from Gisele — check out her amazing portfolio). Differentiate yourself with a layout that truly identifies you as you. If you don’t know how to design, get help. We are a community after all. The last thing you want is a template that vaguely resembles someone else’. There is no excuse. You are after all, part of the “industry” now (I can’t stop highlighting this!). Oh maybe buy your own domain while you’re at it.

If you want to be known, be known for only one or two things, and make sure you do these well. To the SEO and blogging industry, having many blogs is absolutely normal. But when you start to engage marketers, you don’t say “hello, I write for twenty blogs.” They won’t see you as a brand. They’ll see you as a production house. You’ll know this when they give you a sheepish grin. Trust me, I’ve seen it before.

But what about those really good writers who’ve made names for themselves and don’t really have a professional looking blog? See, that’s the thing – they’ve already made a name for themselves. Or .. their popularity has exceeded the need for them to dress up. Again, I’m just talking about getting the “extra.”

You know if you’re going to take home something from all of this, it would be a call to action to let there be some sort of harmony with your online brand and yourself, since you are seen every week! You can’t separate it — even if you wanted to.

Happyslip Blogs wins Grand Bronze Anvil — most outstanding PR tool for 2008

Posted by Jayvee Fernandez at February 25th, 2009

We live in exciting times. For matters of semantics, I refer to “we” being us people in publishing, advertising, marketing, blogging, and really — anyone involved in a profession that has to do with changing mindsets. Globally, we hear horror stories of PR agencies who “just don’t get it” or marketers who try to ride on a successful bandwagon of memes or tend to desecrate the true meaning of “word of mouth” or “viral campaigns” with half baked communication plans. The same is replicated locally — you probably have noticed an upsurge in the number of blogging events with every other PR practitioner wanting a piece of the blogging pie because the values derived from it are more trendy than scientific.

That last line — more trendy than scientific — is usually reflected by these events that don’t really have a lot of strategy involved. The truth of the matter is that blogs — or the bigger pie which is new media is never an end in itself.

I’d like to dispel the myth that local marketers don’t understand new media. A lot don’t. But to say that everyone in the marketing profession is a luddite is a misinformed statement. Take the Department of Tourism for instance, perhaps the most new media savvy branch of government office that recently bagged a Grand Bronze Anvil for PR Tools. Secretary Durano made use of an online video celebrity to lead a market segment to a quantifiable objective — plane ticket sales and adding a whole lot of “brand equity” to the Philippines. I mean, who would have though, eh?

Generally speaking, bloggers in the Philippines are usually classified as the early adopters when it comes to new trends — because breaking it all down, we’re all just very informed consumers. So when we complain, it’s probably the early adopter in us doing so, forgetting that there’s a huge “big body” making its way towards the paved path.

Sure, you’ll have the dime a dozen marketers. But I’m more interested in getting to know the ones who really do get it. And to be quite honest, they’re starting to show themselves

Ah, The Good Times.

Posted by Jayvee Fernandez at January 19th, 2009

When you stare down at the precipice of uncertainty, it sometimes means that you’re looking from the wrong direction. And it is the same with predictions and musings of every writer that “this year will be this..” or “this year won’t be more of that from last year…” But I’ve noticed though — and thank the holidays — that the new year is usually a gift providing incentive to going back to your roots. With friends coming home (and yes I still have relatives coming home till mid Feb for family nuptials), it is becoming more and more apparent how I see myself in the light of friends: the formative years, family, and going back to this quasi time warp makes me see decisions that I’ve made in light of where I’ve come from.

“If you are lost, always remember your roots.” Sasuke once told Naruto.

Ah the Good Times. I write this in perspective to something Anton Diaz blogged about a couple of days ago when I met him, Regnard Raquedan and Prof. Lim from AIM. It was a comfortable meeting, with much allusion to the fact that a lot of my roots were painted among the walls of the Asian Institute of Management (where both my parents met – my dad was a student, mom was the professor’s secretary — hee!).

Anton writes:

This was a significant day for me. I met with Professor Ricky Lim of AIM, Regnard Raquedan of AIM blogger fame and Jayvee Fernandez of abuggedlife. We shared a common vision of transforming the Asian Institute of Management (AIM MBA School) into being the foremost recognized educational institution for Internet Marketing and Social Marketing in South East Asia.

I took in a teaching position last year at AIM (yes, dad was proud – he taught case study there as well). The goal was to set up a series of electives for social media marketing – AIM being the premier in case studies and having a rich history in MBA’s – and paired together with several mavens from the local new media scene. I was point of contact. We brought in Anton. Regnard was, by default the famous “AIM blogger.” There are a ton more. I love meeting brilliant people who want nothing less than changing this country for the better. It’s my passion. It’s what makes me completely happy.

And we really do plan to grow this into something big: I’m surprised I can even write about it.

Ah, The Good Times. And it, I assure you, always comes from roots.

“Flowers from the Rubble”

Posted by Jayvee Fernandez at December 10th, 2008

I can’t help but be sentimental as its nearing the end of the year. And today I’d like to talk about remembering your roots.

The best TV appearance I ever made was in a recent show of a friend whom I met at the UA&P. His name is John D Borra and aside from running a huge events place and blogging at Flowers from the Rubble, he moonlights as a host for an engaging talk show called Juan on Juan (Zoe TV). The 50 live minutes struck a chord as it was a pretty defining moment to have two old friends together in front of the camera. The guy in the middle is Jason de Villa, current editor in chief of Mobile Philippines and someone who I’ve worked with in many ways since 2003. It was during the first 5 minutes of the running camera that I realized how Jason paved the way for John D’s teaching career and my career as well in the glossies. We discussed, in cramped length the joys of traditional and new media all having been involved in both for the past 5 years (Jason appeared in the front page of Digg recently).

And it is with that where I borrow John D’s blog title for this post. I think that being in the media for the better part of my youth allowed me to be more sentimental about career. It was in an animated series – I honestly forgot what it was, pardon me – where the protagonist’s mentor told him to never forget your roots in times of doubt. And, I guess it is with those same roots that established writing that is fearlessly fair, and loving what you do. Love is defined as the selfless gift of self (or “the gift of self giving”), and loving what you do as a blogger means more than just writing a post, but mastering your niche.

When I go back to my roots as a blogger, the answer to many important questions becomes more apparent.

I hope it is for you too! Welcome to the Christmas season!

[photo c/o Phoebe | my tummy c/o Cheetos]

Two new blog ideas that will make you famous

Posted by Jayvee Fernandez at November 4th, 2008

Here are some blog ideas boiling about and I’d like to share them with you. I’d have wanted to do these myself but, well, I have a lot to eat with a full plate in front of me. Here they are:

Idea 1. Back in 2005 the company I worked for had already launched a consumer shopping magazine that specialized in doing honest to God product comparisons. Like we’d have 5 of the best sisig in town and compare them. Or six of the most packed burgers. Or they can be as mundane as comparing the total resistance of five brands of tissue paper or the chicken gravy from the top three fast foods.

That magazine was called The Reviewer and it would be cool if a group of people took off and did that again. It would be easier in the sense that you don’t need to have advertising to support you since it’s something you’d have to do by yourself to avoid any biases. The blog won’t review restaurants or establishments. It reviews products in contrast to other products and you’d need to be a very sensitive consumer to see through the marketing. It sounds easy but believe me, it isn’t.

Idea 2. Are you a photographer, talent manager or make up artist? It would be fun to produce a site showcasing the beauty industry with one catch: zero use of Photoshop or any photo manipulating tool (with the exception of crop and B&W conversion). Real photography. Real models. And I mean REAL MODELS. You know how anyone can be a model these days? Well, a blog like this will definitely showcase raw talent from photographers, make up artists, stylists – and yes, bringing back the super models! It’s easy to get shocked when browsing through a magazine and you find out that the model was not photoshopped – you tend to ask for the name of the model and photographer in the credits!

Again, I think this concept would look better as a glossy industry mag but a blog should work just fine.

Any takers? If you do borrow these ideas, tell me. I’d gladly help promote them!