Rick Weiss is Playing games with PR

RickWeiss.ca is up

2008-05-31T19:27:00.004-04:00

I had to make a desision - I had to get rickweiss.ca running.

I was tired of pondering hosting options, etc, etc. So I went for a good, solid, but likely not a permanent solution. I created a Wordpress blog, and registered it with my domain, which I'd purchased almost a month ago.

The nice thing is, if I change over to a new host, I keep my domain, and nothing will change!

So, now you can visit me at my new blog! I won't be posting here anymore, I've imported all my material from this blog to my new wordpress blog. Hope to see you there!

Slow motion video

2008-05-25T23:02:00.002-04:00

Ok, I couldn't help but link to this. Various ordinary things filmed using high-speeds cameras and played back in slow motion.

Who should do the speaking?

2008-05-21T23:39:00.003-04:00

Spokespeople are important when dealing with the public. But they need to be chosen well. I was listening last Thursday's edition of Search Engine from the CBC in podcast form earlier today. There was a segment on Cogeco cable's poor performance in a recent survey on ISP blocking BitTorrent traffic.

The spokesperson who was on the show talking to Jesse Brown on Search Engine was a communicator working for the company. Her presentation was basically
"No, Cogeco does not actively filter P2P traffic, key message, key message, key message, fumble, fumble, fumble." She finally admitted, after Jesse's final question, that she didn't have the technical knowledge to answer it.

So, what I learned from the segment had nothing to do with Cogeco's service (I've used it in Hamilton a number of years ago, by the way; it ~~sucks~~ offered frequent down-time). I learned that the company handles negative media coverage poorly.

Finally, the segment confirmed once again, that while communicators have the skills to deal with media as liaisons, we aren't necessarily (and maybe even rarely) the best people to give the interview.

PS3 or XB360

2008-05-09T10:18:00.002-04:00

It's a big question right now. A lot of people are debating which is the better buy. Leo Laporte and friends debated this question on the most recent This Week in Tech (TWiT).

I'm not going to answer this question here, I'm asking it myself. But I'll share what I think are the important cases for the argument based on my knowledge of the consoles.

XB360:
It's established with a large game catalogue. It now includes high-def HDMI outputs for those with supporting displays.
The Xbox Live network is well established and offers a plethora of downloadable content. Microsoft has, to my knowledge, developed the XBL network to a greater degree than the Playstation Network.
The XB360 functions as a media expander to access media content from your home PC in your living room across your home network.

PS3:
Playstation 3 is the the more powerful console, purely from a hardware perspective. The Cell processor seems more flexible and robust than the chip in the Xbox. PS3 has the SIXAXIS controller which allows for motion sensitive control in games that utilize it.
PS3 includes a BluRay drive - if you want to be an early adopter of this disk format it may be an attractive feature. Movies on BluRay are considerably more expensive than DVD, and on a typical TV and sound system you won't see much of the benefits they offer. Videophiles with the latest gadgets and large high definition displays might want this.
The PS3 also has built in wi-fi and a plethora of media inputs from USB, MemoryStick, SD memory, and even Compact Flash. There's no media centre interface with home PCs.

My conclusion:
It's hardly a conclusion.. But it might help you decide if you're considering buying one of these systems (but not both!).

PS3 has a lot of future possibilities. Greater processing power, support for 1080p resolution, XB360 only supports 1080i. It has BluRay. It has SIXAXIS motion sensitive controllers.

XB360 is the better gaming system right now. It has more available titles right now, it has a highly developed online community for you to play games with, and download content.

Please point out anything I've forgotten. Argue my points, or just share what you've bought, or are planning to buy.

I'm available!

2008-05-01T21:30:00.003-04:00

That's right, I'm available to be hired.

I've completed my courses in PR and Corporate Communications at Centennial College in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. I would like to stay in the city.

Some of my strengths:

I'm a team player to the end. I have never had a bad experience in group work. I work hard to bring the group together, generate productive discussion and I resolve disputes.

I understand people. I studied psychology for my undergrad degree and I am empathetic towards others. I'm a good communicator in one-on-one and group situations.

I'm considerate. I think before I speak and I look before a leap.

I understand social media. I have a good grasp of its strengths and weaknesses. I understand it's role in SEO. I get that it works best to build communities and evangalism among an audience, rather than to push products and services. I have fun with social media.

Some of my weaknesses:

Sometimes I'm too relaxed. Yeah, I could sell myself better in an interview setting, I could be more outspoken at times, but that's part of why I'm a team player, I save my competitiveness for those I should be competing with. I also deal incredibly well with stress because of this! I've worked in sales where I got paid commission. I did alright at it; above average in fact. I "go for it" when I have to.

Please help me here. For those of you who know me, tell me my other weaknesses. Be candid. I want to grow.

If you know anybody who'd be interested in talking to somebody like me about a position they're looking to fill, please forward this post to them.

I would be ideal for a position in the communications/marketing department at a small/medium size enterprise who's looking to introduce social media into their promotional strategy. I welcome any other suggestions that anybody has.

If you'd like to reach me, my email address is richard(dot)weiss(at)gmail(dot)com

I thank you for your help.

soon to be rickweiss.ca

2008-05-01T15:25:00.003-04:00

I did it. I bought my name.

Now that I own rickweiss.ca I'm planning to make it my blog URL. I'm working at securing a host, and moving my content into a Wordpress format.

If anybody has an tips to share that'll make this process smoother for me, I welcome them with open arms! Hopefully I'll be moved over by next week. I'll post a final note when the work is done. Anybody know how I would go about migrating comments and such? is that possible?

Terry Fallis wins the Leacock Medal with The Best Laid Plans

2008-04-30T15:14:00.003-04:00

http://www.cbc.ca/arts/books/story/2008/04/30/fallis-leacock.html?ref=rss

I just heard it, first through Chris Clarke, but there's the official news. Terry won the Leacock. I finally started reading The Best Laid Plans on the weekend (on the train to NYC for PodCamp NYC) and I'm about half through it. It's a fantastic book. It's masterfully written and sneaks humour into all the perfect and often serious moments.

Congratulations Terry!

Not a fan of Grand Theft Auto

2008-04-30T10:35:00.002-04:00

That's right I said it. I'm not a fan. I've played the games, they're fun. But I'm not a fan. The past few days the blogosphere has been buzzing about GTA IV.

But when I saw this I felt really left out! Sure, the photo looks very Photoshopped, but if Jack Thompson, the vocal anti-rockstar, anti-violence in video games, southern attourney might have become a fan... Where does that put me?

To protect my pride I'm going to have to buy an Xbox or PS3 and GTA IV, and I'm going to have to do it ASAP.

PodCamp NYC - here I come!

2008-04-23T10:21:00.002-04:00

I'm travelling to New York City tomorrow for PodCamp NYC 2.0.

I've never been to NYC, which was the primary reason for this trip. Now, I'm getting excited to meet a few of the people I've become acquainted with online in the past month.

PodCamp Toronto was fun, but I was new to the unconference environment and was getting my bearings. NYC will be bigger and better. I hope to meet lots of people and learn a lot of new things.

Internet security - a communications nightmare

2008-04-14T13:27:00.001-04:00

The vast majority of us are aware that the internet contains many threats to our security. What is it that stops people from protecting themselves?

I read an article in Yahoo! News about a recent report from the NCSA (National Cyber Security Alliance) investigated Americans' awareness of the threats posed by cybercriminals in terms of their security and the security of others. They found that almost 80% of respondents were unaware of the term 'botnet', a network of infected computers working as 'bots' for the source of the malicious program, usually to send e-mail spam or perform DoS attacks on specific networks.

Almost 50% said they don't know how to protect themselves from cybercriminals.

This is a huge communication challenge. How would an organization take on an awareness campaign of this scope?

Traditional advertising - We've become accustomed to ads for safe sex; how about safe computing? I know, not quite as exciting, but people need to be aware of concepts like 'botnets' and 'zombie networks'. A provocative ad campaign could do this easily.

Media campaign - There are frequent news articles about internet security. I've been reading them for almost as long as I can remember. They talk about case studies, they review product packages designed to protect your computer, and propogate fear, but I'm not sure how much they educate people on what to do to protect themselves outside of buying anti-virus software. This media campaign should be focused on how to install a proper firewall, recognizing signs that your computer(s) might be affected, and what to do when your computer is part of a 'botnet'.

Educational 'advergame' - Yes, I had to work in a video game reference somewhere. Lets say part of this campaign were a flash game where you had to prevent a virus from taking over a computer. Sorta like "Crimson Room" but instead of escaping from a room, you need to perform certain tasks to protect your computer.

Blogging and Social Media - Engaging duscussion between people who know about internet security in a productive way with people who do not. Techies tend to be impatient with the web-unenlightened so this may be the most challenging component. How-to forums, where people work together to trouble shoot. A lot of this already takes place online, but it's not always accessible to those not already a little in the know.

What do you think? how do we help people become more web-savvy? By reducing the number of people who leave their computer open to attack and incorporation into 'botnets' we might be able to reduce the amount of spam we all get in our inboxes. Most of it is sent through zombie computers.

A realization I've come to - changes to my blog

2008-04-08T23:26:00.003-04:00

I created "Playing games with PR" because I wanted to do something a little different than my peers; as we were all required to create a blog for our Online PR course. I decided to work in a hobby and interest that I have had for most of my life, while discussing public relations. I made this decision because I thought it would make it easier to turn blogging into a new hobby that I would keep up even after my class was finished.

It worked. My Online PR course required 6 blog posts over the semester, and I more than tripled that number.

This has been great, because it has let me speak as a quasi-expert about the gaming aspect of my blog, while exploring and learning about the PR side.

However, I've come to the realization that it doesn't accurately sell ME. I've only really discussed one of my interests. There have been times when I've wanted to write about other aspects of PR, and have actually limited myself. I started wondering why I'm doing this. I mean, I'm playing games with PR, not "Playing PR with games!"

I'm going to broaden the scope of this blog. I'll continue to talk about PR and the game industry. But, I'm also going to talk about PR in general, and throw in a few snippets about my other personal interests for flavour.

Also, I'm exploring my options for hosting this blog with it's own domain, and switching to a wordpress format. More to come about that!

Easter Eggs & April Fools

2008-04-06T16:02:00.001-04:00

Public relations is about increasing public awareness, generating discussion and altering the public perception of an organization through communication. What generates wide spread discussion as much as funny jokes and cleaver pranks?

Easter eggs are secret jems hidden in software. In Excel 2000 you could access a game similar to spyhunter by though a list of commands. It was the programers' way of working the credits into the program in a fun way.

April fools have been a tradition for ages, and it follows that they would make an appearance on the internet; game developers and publishers have embraced the tradition.

Joystiq produced an entire guide to the '08 April Fools pranks. Which is great because it just saved me a lot of work listing them! I can get to the business of talking about the discussion these generate.

Bloggers talk about April Fools and Easter Eggs because they're entertaining, they show creativity on the part of companies and they're done just for the consumer. There is no direct financial benefit to putting some time into a web prank (except attracting web traffic).

I think it's great PR. It raises awareness and generates discussion; it shows good-will towards your audience and consumers in an entertaining way. Certainly, it's not enough to JUST entertain your audience. If you're providing a good product, quality support and being a responsible company, what better way to get in your audiences' good books than to make them laugh?

Mega64 live action Tetris video

2008-04-06T15:29:00.002-04:00

I laughed so hard at this.

mega64.com

Video games: What's good about them.

2008-03-29T17:14:00.003-04:00

I recently gave a presentation in one of my classes about the things we could gain by playing video games. I'm tired of games that push the line in terms of violence and graphical realism, but have nothing to take away in terms of skills or gaming experience.

I think that these attributes should be accessories to a great gameplay experience that we can take something away from.

The games I mentioned in my presentation are old adventure puzzle games like King's Quest, and I mentioned real time strategy games like Starcraft. I gained the following skills and experiences from these kinds of games:

Creative problem solving
Quick decision making
Formulating strategies
Multi-tasking

I also developed a community of friends with similar interests. Video games have been a point of contact and relationship building over the years. They've also been a lot of fun, particularly sharing experiences and friendly competition. What does it matter if shared experiences are in a virtual world or real world? The laughter and memories are real!

Nintendo - harming the environment is fun! Wii!!

2008-03-21T23:57:00.004-04:00

Recent news has spawned a lot of blog chatter about Nintendo. Greenpeace ranked their environmental friendliness bottom of the consumer electronics manufacturers barrel.

I don't know how Greenpeace conducts their research, I don't know anything about Nintendo's manufacturing processes. What I do know is this isn't positive news coverage for Nintendo. And I don't know is whether the news will do anything to chill the sales of their hot-ticket Wii console.

Well over a year since it was released, the Wii hasn't had a single price drop and it is still selling out. By contrast, PS3 supplies are adequate and they've dropped the price multiple times; by CA$200 for the 80gb version.

So I ask you, the reader and possibly Wii owner or aspiring owner, does the negativity from the Greenpeace rating make you want to own a Ninendo Wii any less than you already do? Or, if you didn't want a Wii already, does it affect your view of Nintendo?

Social Media and "The Pitch"

2008-03-18T00:07:00.003-04:00

I’ll be frank. This blog post is for a class assignment and has very little to do with video games. However it does relate to electronic communication, which can be entertaining in the right context. I’m going to go with that, and slip this right in.

Onto my topic - the pitch; it’s a core component of public relations. Whenever we’re presenting a new idea, a different behaviour or fresh picture of an organization we’re essentially pitching something to our audience. With evolving technology, the tools we use to pitch are evolving.

Social media is reshaping the way some agencies and organizations perform public relations. Along with these changes, the pitch is being reshaped. Social media is a tool that allows organizations and their public to engage in two-way communication.

“blogs can elevate your profile, establish credibility and open a two-way conversation with customers” [1]

The two-way element of the conversation that blogs generate builds trust among readers. They can get to know the writer over time. They become familiar with the writing style and the personality behind your responses. Pitching an idea is much different when you have established rapport with your audience. At this point, all you need to do is present a good idea that’s valuable to them, and you’ve got your change in behaviour.

Social media extends out from blogs to social networking sites like Facebook. Todd Defren, one of the fathers of the social media news release recently blogged about using Facebook to contact the media. Todd listed a number of mainstream media networks and prominent journalists who use Facebook.

“Whether you’re reaching out to bloggers, consumers or mainstream media, Facebook probably should be a consideration” [2]

In fact, not long ago former full-time reporter Tom Foremski of the SiliconValleyWatcher blog stated that he would only accept pitches from PR people who have befriended him on Facebook, and he wanted those pitches to be sent through Facebook.

With social media changing the face of the pitch, how are we to recognize it? Some pitches are stealth, they come in under the radar through flogs, Facebook applications, new and creative advertising tactics through YouTube and pretty much any other media under the sun.

Chris Brogan asks on his blog whether stealth pitches through social media have a negative effect on our behaviour or view of an organization. He argues that pitches should be transparent. If you’re pitching on behalf of somebody else, as in, you’re being paid to pitch something, be up-front.

It’s the trust you establish with your audience that’s going to lead them to make a decision. If you maintain your trust and pitch things appropriately, your audience will at least be neutral towards your pitch, because they like you. Then let them educate themselves and make a decision, while maintaining your authenticity.

Just saw them filming the Max Payne movie

2008-03-10T21:28:00.004-04:00

I just walked past a set for the new Max Payne movie, a film adaptation from the popular video game series. The movie stars Mark Wahlberg as Max Payne.

I really enjoyed both Max Payne 1 and 2. They had a compelling story, a great tragic anti-hero and fantastic gameplay on the PC and Xbox. There are few things I love in a video game or movie as much as a good anti-hero.

Anyways, it was kinda cool to see them filming a scene here in Toronto. I look forward to seeing the movie in theatres.

5 games I could play every day.

2008-03-08T00:32:00.001-05:00

My first "About me" post was a few weeks ago titled "my evolution as a gamer". This is going to be another similar post about me as a gamer.

This is a list of some games that I miss playing on a regular basis.

Here we go!

1. Half-Life 2 (PC):
This is a PC game that needs no introduction. But I have a confession, I'm behind on my Half-Life playing. Still haven't picked up the Orange Box with Ep. 1 and 2. Neverless, I love these games. There are few games I've played that offer the same level of sci-fi fantasy and quality of gameplay experience. Valve made a masterpiece with this series, in my opinion.

2. Total Annihilation (PC):
This is the best game you never played (and if you did, good on ya!). Total Annihilation, or TA for short, is a real-time stratagy game that was released in 1997. The plot is negligible, but the gameplay irreplaceable. I continue to play it on occasion because there's gameplay elements that have never been replicated.
The Core Contingency expansion brought a total of 75 units per side, with units operating in the sky, on land, on the ocean and underwater. Canons that could shoot clear across a small map, nukes could be stockpiled and unleashed on any point on the map, and a unique resource management system.

3. Katamari Damacy/We Love Katamari (Playstation 2):
These are becoming rare PS2 games to find in North America. The premise of the game is rediculous. You roll around a ball that picks things up and gets bigger as you pick up more objects. Eventually you suck up cats, people, cars, buildings, islands. You get the idea.
Actually if you haven't played the game you probably don't! The controls are simple, the music is fun and light-hearted, the graphics are goofy. It's just a fun, silly Japanese game that I love to play and still want to buy a copy of. Probably order it from ebay.

4. Myth and Myth II: Soulblighter (PC and Macintosh):
These are the games that most people forgot Bungie made. These are from the pre-Halo days, before they made Oni, and before Microsoft bought the studio. They were amazing multiplayer games with a strong cult following (much like TA).
What was cool about the Myth series is that the multiplayer was fast. Games were time-limited and most people played 8-15 minute games. You began the round with all your irreplacible units. Because you couldn't build more, units had to be used as efficiently and effectively as possible.

5. NBA Jam (Sega Genesis):
My favorite sports game ever. I don't usually like sports games but this one was really fun! Not sure what else to say about the game. It's 2-on-2 basketball with loose rules and big dunks!

Customer satisfaction counts as capital

2008-03-05T09:34:00.004-05:00

I got this from a Joystiq blog post.

Valve, the game studio responsible for Half-Life, Half-Life 2 and various add-ons, has said that they will provide free downloadable content to customers who bought Team-Fortress 2 for the Xbox 360 and Playstation 3.

In a time when many publishers are charging for DLC to increase revenue, Doug Lombardi of Valve says they want to use it to "keep the customer happy" and playing Team-Fortress 2. He sees it as an investment into future projects.

Good move on Valve's part. In the video game industry the first few weeks of sales figures determine whether your product will stay on store shelves. It's a definite investment to have a fan base of loyal customers who are itching to pick up your next release title.

I really should go out and buy Valve's Orange Box sometime soon. When I do, I'll have a spare copy of Half-Life 2 to give to a friend.

Mobile devices and integration of technology.

2008-02-27T12:30:00.000-05:00

Everything is working with everything else these days. With standards like wi-fi, bluetooth, USB, etc, electronic devices are becoming integrated into one big system that allows us to do things that were science-fiction a decade ago.

Mobile devices are incredibly powerful now and only getting more features and connectivity. Mobile phones have internet access and some have wifi capability, particularly smartphones.

The Playstation Portable (PSP) has wifi and a built in browser.

The Nintendo DS has wifi and an add-on browser.

Some digital cameras have bluetooth for direct communication with printers, computers and cell phones (upload to Facebook mobile on the fly from an external digicam?)

The iPod touch and iPhone have internet access and some amazing apps - like google maps integration, etc.

Video games have begun integrating with the internet and social media as well. Some have links to URLs within the game that you need to visit outside of the game to get a clue to progress.

Where is this going, and where am I going with it? I could see mobility, social networks and virtual realities being integrated to the point where games and social media are used to create virtual communities that we'll be able to access at any waking moment.

Kinda cool to think about; kinda scary as well.

What do you think? Will this mean anything to the future of PR?

Bad PR for Dalton McGuinty

2008-02-26T08:55:00.002-05:00

It's not gaming related, but I wanted to mention this anyways.

A recent immigrant from India seemed to have made an attempt to befriend the Premiere, and in an email, used a common expression in India, that was taken as a threat here.

I wonder if McGuinty ever even saw the email? It was probably filtered out and the police were contacted before it even reached his inbox.

In fact, I wonder if McGuinty even knew about this before the media picked it up.

Working at International Services for Students at Ryerson University, I met quite a few students from India, and to hear some of them saying "I can't believe you did that! I'm going to kill you!", or something similar in a joking manner is common. Even some Canadians use this expression.

Most Canadian's know that's completely inappropriate to say something like that in Parliament - but how are recent immigrants supposed to learn this? Through ongoing ordeals with the police and legal system?

How could the Premiere have dealt with this better, particularly if the email was filtered, and nobody in his office informed him of it? He'd better respond quickly, now that it's in the news.

Blizzard's game release practices

2008-02-17T04:03:00.002-05:00

Blizzard Entertainment, the creator of Warcraft, Star Craft and Diablo, has a fairly unique way of announcing release dates for their products.
They simply say "We'll release it when it's ready".

In the past, Blizzard has released games more than a year past their projected launch date to ensure the game was properly polished when it found it's way to store shelves. From a public relations perspective, I can look at this two ways.

1. Eventually fans could get tired of this approach. I mean, can't Blizzard set deadlines and meet them? Maybe success has made Blizzard cocky - they expect people will buy their games anyways, so it doesn't matter when they hit the market.

2. Blizzard may build respect among fans for being honest and not rushing a product out to sales before it's complete. I mean, you don't want to leave one door off a car because it needs to roll off the assembly line on a fixed schedule.

I think it may be somewhere between the two. I'm going to buy their next game regardless of when it comes out because I have confidence in Blizzard to produce a fantastic title. But that doesn't mean I'm not irritated with their brand. I want to know whether Star Craft 2 is coming out in 2008 like they originally announced, or if I have to wait until 2009. Is that too much to ask from a brand that I've been loyal to for over a decade?

Advergaming

2008-02-13T16:35:00.003-05:00

Using games for advertising isn't a brand new idea - companies started releasing 3.25" disks with games advertising a product years ago.

America's Army isn't a new 'game', it was first released on July 4, 2002 as a PR campaign to help military recruitment. If I recall correctly, it was based on the Unreal 3d game engine. The US military openly stated that it's impossible to know the effect of this game on recruitment.

PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals) has used anti-advergames to alter people's perceptions of companies such as KFC.

Have any of you ever played a game like this? Do you think it changed your perception of the brand it represents?

Effective PR, viral marketing or just good for a laugh?

2008-02-13T16:25:00.003-05:00

Capcom, a game developer with a historic tradition (well, historic for a young industry), is offering two Valentine's e-cards based on their popular Devil May Cry franchise.

I'd argue that anything that makes people laugh and feel good is PR. But is it effective? I'd love to hear opinions on this type of public relations / viral marketing.

Getting into the game industry

2008-02-09T01:34:00.001-05:00

I'd quickly like to thank Fourzerotwo (aka Robert Bowling) for replying so quickly to a message I sent him. I'd asked if he had any advise about getting into the industry.

His words didn't surprise me much, but he definitely reinforced some of the thoughts I've had. He particularly stressed the importance of getting behind games that I'm excited about and support personally. As budding PR pros, we need to seriously consider who we're working for - if we're really behind our employers we'll be more enthusiastic and genuine. This will improve our credibility and image over the long run.

This isn't far off a post I wrote recently.