Monthly Archives: April 2018

Back when Russ Shaw founded Tech London Advocates (TLA) five years ago, people asked him whether London even had the capacity to cultivate a vibrant technology scene. Needless to say, no one asks him that question now.

It’s amazing just how much the technology sector in London has evolved over the last five years alone. Starship Technologies, which has itself grown from a small-time start-up to the world’s leading autonomous robot delivery company, is testament to this.

Liberty recently joined Starship at a special event to celebrate TLA’s 5th birthday. Starship gave a demo of their very cute delivery robot while the company’s VP of Marketing, Henry Harris-Burland, addressed an audience made up of leading figures from the London technology scene across sectors including cyber security, robotics and AI.

Henry explained why maintaining and developing social acceptance for disruptive technology will be key to the overall success of London’s tech scene in the near future. This is a view echoed by responses to the latest TLA Future of London Tech survey, in which over a third (34%) of respondents said that they believe AI and robotics will define the success of emerging tech in London within the next five years.

London, and by extension the UK, is clearly playing a leading role on the disruptive stage, and the onus is on everyone involved to make sure that the city remains competitive and steps up its innovation game. Companies like Starship are certainly shining examples for smaller start-ups who are getting their feet off the ground in the capital.

Social media, like PR, is constantly evolving. There was a time where Twitter users were only able to tweet 140 characters or less. The change to 280 characters may seem like it happened eons ago, but we just have to look back to November 2017. Wow, I feel old all of a sudden.

A long-forgotten aspect of Twitter, even before the extended tweet-storms, were the other character limits Twitter imposed. Originally, Twitter handles and photo/video attachments were a part of the 140-character count. While social media platforms are evolving, why aren’t its users following suit? Here are some of the mistakes social media users are still making and how to fix them.

1) What’s the Plan?

Your social media content will succeed only when there’s effort and a plan put into effect. Creating a strategy or schedule for your content will keep your social media channels organized and scattered. It will also give a reason for your followers to tune in and engage. Planning ahead is key; if you don’t, you might be tweeting to an empty followers list.

2) One Size Doesn’t Fit All

On social media, “cookie cutter” content won’t get you far. Always tailor content to fit a particular social media platform. Your followers don’t want to see the same thing plastered across three or four social media platforms. Make sure you’re creating and writing different copy for each of the channels you’re on – your followers will thank you.

3) Respond!

Pressing “tweet” is half of the job. You must interact; I recently tweeted at an organization regarding more information for an upcoming release; it’s been a week and a half and I haven’t heard back yet. Why are you on social media if you’re not social? Always engage! Otherwise, rest assured, your followers will look elsewhere for their answers, including your competitors.

4) Demographics, Demographics, Demographics

Before you hit send on a scheduled post, do you know who you’re trying to reach? Many companies still don’t know their target audience. Before blindly posting a tweet or LinkedIn post, do the research. All platforms offer free analytics tools, that offer a helpful – if just basic – look into who the people that follow your organization are.

If you have tips and tricks of your own, feel free to leave them in the comments below or tweet us at @LibertyComms – we’ll be sure to retweet our favorites!

As a child growing up in the 60’s in Britain, everything seemed new and fresh and exciting.  It seemed that the sun was always shining and that if you set your mind to it, you could do whatever you wanted to in a brave new, swinging 60’s scene.  It was exhilarating and creativity was everywhere – our school teachers seemed to be getting younger and hipper, the post-war blues had long gone and there was a real feeling of hope and openness all around.  In Britain consumerism had taken hold – we had the best music, best fashion and pop culture.  We had well paid jobs and money in our pockets.  The youth of the 60’s were really liberated and believed the world was their oyster.  On the other side of the pond, in the United States of America, a young inspiring political personality was making waves and challenging the status quo.  John F Kennedy, his wife Jackie and the entire Kennedy dynasty oozed with cachet and glamour.  They represented the times which were as Dillon sang it, “a-changing” – and for the better.  Of course, things were not quite as bright as I remember.  The backdrop to all this was the disastrous Vietnam war which claimed so many young lives and an ever vivid drug scene as the world, and particularly the young, experimented with LSD.

In many ways living in that decade and the one that followed shaped who I became.  We were allowed to be free; allowed to challenge the thinking of our parents and those before them; we were encouraged to expand our minds and learn – and of course all things tech began to change our lives in more ways than we could have imagined before.  Convenience became the order of the day at home and energy saving gadgets became part of the new, mid-century modern home – homes which most people could afford to buy with help from the banks.  Young people became their own personalities – not a mirror image of their parents and unlike their parents, they could afford to buy small luxuries.  Sound systems, hifi’s, microwave ovens, colour tv’s all became attainable to the modern family and technology certainly played its part.

In some ways when I remember those years, a lot of the changes and progress made back then seems to have slid backwards in recent years.  The geo-political climate of today seems less about wanting to progress and be open and has become more insular and protectionist.  Technology, however, marches on.  This is why I was excited to learn that the voice of JFK had been reconstructed by technology to reproduce the speech he was due to give when he was assassinated in Dallas all those decades ago.  Not only was this a colossal engineering and technological undertaking, but on hearing the speech he never gave, the words in the current day still ring so true and are possibly even more relevant to society.  Listening to JFK’s voice again, augmented and delivered with passion, made me think about the power of words AND the power of technology – two of the things that have driven my professional career in the technology industry.  Long may technology thrive – not only to recreate the past, but to cement our future wherever it takes us.

If you want to take a listen for yourself, check out the video below.