So the Liberals sent me an email today about usage based billing. Basically the email outlined how the conservatives have no digital strategy, how the Liberals are building one, and how they are on the side of Canadians.
A snippet of the email that I found interesting was:
Liberals have been engaged on these issues. In 2009, we worked with the Openmedia.ca / Save Our Net Coalition on Net Neutrality, a position that we support wholeheartedly. Last fall, we announced our Open Government Initiative, which will make government data accessible to all Canadians.
So why was this letter an example of both good and bad public relations?
On the good side, kudos to the Liberals for reaching out to stakeholders while the iron is hot. The reality is that it shows they want me to know they care about an issue I care about. Neither the Conservatives or NDP did so.
In addition, they didn't just reach out, but have a micro-site dedicated to UBB. So they are not just reaching out, but they are mobilizing an activist segment of the voting population.
Lastly, you can sign up for updates on digital affairs on their Web site. So they are reaching out, mobilizing and establishing a connection to build thought leadership in the future (and they were first out the gate to do so).
So all-in-all an excellent response to the UBB crisis and one that shows the Liberal party has it's act together on the PR front!
Now for the bad.
PR101 - know your stakeholders.
The people who got active in UBB are technically astute voters. They use the internet in ways that politicians probably don't even know about. As such, if you are going to reach out to them and say that you will be their voice on digital affairs, you have to show that on some level you know what their concerns are (beyond just UBB, since everyone already knows that's a concern now).
The Liberals missed a golden opportunity here to build instant thought leadership simply by articulating the issue of Skype. In Canada you cannot get a Canadian telephone number associated with Skype. You can in almost every other country in the world. And point of fact, if you want a phone number from any other country in the world, you can get it.
So I'm a Canadian and I can get a New York number with a 202 area code, but I can't get a Canadian number. How messed up is that?
Why can't I get a Canadian number? Because of the CRTC not allowing it. Which means that my only options for having a telephone number is Bell Canada or Rogers (see a similar theme emerging here with regards to the CRTC protecting incumbents - except in this case instead of internet it's about your home phone and long distance charges and voice services).
I currently have unlimited long distance in the US and Canada on Skype for $2.99 (and that includes voicemail) - to get the same thing from Bell I'd have to pay $22.00 for long distance and another $5 for voicemail (on top of the basic telephone line which costs $24). So you do the math, $2.99 versus $49.00
Anyway, had the liberals articulated that they knew about this issue (and trust me, this is the next big shoe to drop when it comes to CRTC regulation and Canadians getting screwed over - and it will probably mark the rapid decline and death of the carriers as we know them) I would have really jumped on their bandwagon.
But alas, I doubt they even know about Skype or how many Canadians wish they could get a Canadian number on their Skype account but can't.
Instead they reference 'government data accessible to all Canadians' as an example of their skin in the game. I have no clue what "government data' means nor why I would care about access to it.
So a 50/50 mixed response from me and a prime example of both good and bad public relations occurring at the same time, in the same breath.
Know your audience before you communicate with them, it's critical. While reaching out is great, if you look like you don't know what you are talking about it can cause as much damage as it had potential in positives.
In the Liberals case, I was still extremely impressed with their response so their brand gained ground in my mind. But they failed to convince me that they truly know what they are doing when it comes to digital issues because they didn't mention the second greatest injustice next to UBB, and that is the denial of VoIP services that have a direct inward dial number in Canada.
They are definitely heading in the right direction though and if they just dot their i's and cross their t's they may actually start regaining prominence with the Canadian public if they continue to market and communicate their message as they are doing with UBB.
A snippet of the email that I found interesting was:
Liberals have been engaged on these issues. In 2009, we worked with the Openmedia.ca / Save Our Net Coalition on Net Neutrality, a position that we support wholeheartedly. Last fall, we announced our Open Government Initiative, which will make government data accessible to all Canadians.
So why was this letter an example of both good and bad public relations?
In addition, they didn't just reach out, but have a micro-site dedicated to UBB. So they are not just reaching out, but they are mobilizing an activist segment of the voting population.
Lastly, you can sign up for updates on digital affairs on their Web site. So they are reaching out, mobilizing and establishing a connection to build thought leadership in the future (and they were first out the gate to do so).
So all-in-all an excellent response to the UBB crisis and one that shows the Liberal party has it's act together on the PR front!
Now for the bad.
PR101 - know your stakeholders.
The people who got active in UBB are technically astute voters. They use the internet in ways that politicians probably don't even know about. As such, if you are going to reach out to them and say that you will be their voice on digital affairs, you have to show that on some level you know what their concerns are (beyond just UBB, since everyone already knows that's a concern now).
The Liberals missed a golden opportunity here to build instant thought leadership simply by articulating the issue of Skype. In Canada you cannot get a Canadian telephone number associated with Skype. You can in almost every other country in the world. And point of fact, if you want a phone number from any other country in the world, you can get it.
So I'm a Canadian and I can get a New York number with a 202 area code, but I can't get a Canadian number. How messed up is that?
Why can't I get a Canadian number? Because of the CRTC not allowing it. Which means that my only options for having a telephone number is Bell Canada or Rogers (see a similar theme emerging here with regards to the CRTC protecting incumbents - except in this case instead of internet it's about your home phone and long distance charges and voice services).
I currently have unlimited long distance in the US and Canada on Skype for $2.99 (and that includes voicemail) - to get the same thing from Bell I'd have to pay $22.00 for long distance and another $5 for voicemail (on top of the basic telephone line which costs $24). So you do the math, $2.99 versus $49.00
Anyway, had the liberals articulated that they knew about this issue (and trust me, this is the next big shoe to drop when it comes to CRTC regulation and Canadians getting screwed over - and it will probably mark the rapid decline and death of the carriers as we know them) I would have really jumped on their bandwagon.
But alas, I doubt they even know about Skype or how many Canadians wish they could get a Canadian number on their Skype account but can't.
Instead they reference 'government data accessible to all Canadians' as an example of their skin in the game. I have no clue what "government data' means nor why I would care about access to it.
So a 50/50 mixed response from me and a prime example of both good and bad public relations occurring at the same time, in the same breath.
Know your audience before you communicate with them, it's critical. While reaching out is great, if you look like you don't know what you are talking about it can cause as much damage as it had potential in positives.
In the Liberals case, I was still extremely impressed with their response so their brand gained ground in my mind. But they failed to convince me that they truly know what they are doing when it comes to digital issues because they didn't mention the second greatest injustice next to UBB, and that is the denial of VoIP services that have a direct inward dial number in Canada.
They are definitely heading in the right direction though and if they just dot their i's and cross their t's they may actually start regaining prominence with the Canadian public if they continue to market and communicate their message as they are doing with UBB.
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