All posts by Michael Bingham

Yesterday, I sent a text from California to a colleague in London. Considering the distance (5,468 miles / 8,800 km), I paid close attention to the delivery confirmation, which came almost instantly via iMessage.

This sparked my curiosity…how fast did that message actually travel?

While it’s hard to say for sure, since these tiny bits of data within a computer don’t physically exist, it’s reasonable to assume that such messages travel at near the speed of light…186,282 miles (300K km) per second! Putting that into greater perspective, the speed of light travels at 670+ million miles an hour, and items travelling at this rate, would hypothetically require 1.3 seconds to reach the moon from earth…it might as well be next door!

A few decades ago, an equivalent letter could have taken a week or more to travel from California to London, via a mail carrier.

Mankind has communicated using largely the same words and grammatical structures for centuries. Today, the QWERTY keyboard layout, which remains hugely popular, has been in use since 1873! So while good things can last a long time, it’s important to be prepared to leverage the modern tools of the times that we live in.

Today, the material that we read, write or otherwise create (blogs, tweets, Instagram posts, vine videos, Facebook likes, emails, marketing collateral, ads etc.) are distributed and absorbed at an unimaginable rate. I can see even the grandest science fiction minds of the past being in awe of today’s possibilities!

Communication advancements directly impact how we interact with our friends and family…and the same is true in business. Companies of all sizes, can’t afford to exclusively communicate through 20th century tactics in a 21st century world!

At Liberty, we believe in and execute, a “follow the sun” integrated communications methodology, where marketing, public relations, social media, web design, etc. are designed and implemented as part of a single consistent discipline.

Technology helps us ensure that no matter the time of day, our clients’ messages are promoted and delivered consistently across mediums, in the targeted manner that works best for the markets and influencers that matter most to them!

After all, your innovation and information is rocketing at the speed of light, and your message(s) should be aligned to work together to hit the mark and be delivered on time.

Yesterday, I sent a text from California to a colleague in London. Considering the distance (5,468 miles / 8,800 km), I paid close attention to the delivery confirmation, which came almost instantly via iMessage.

This sparked my curiosity…how fast did that message actually travel?

While it’s hard to say for sure, since these tiny bits of data within a computer don’t physically exist, it’s reasonable to assume that such messages travel at near the speed of light…186,282 miles (300K km) per second! Putting that into greater perspective, the speed of light travels at 670+ million miles an hour, and items travelling at this rate, would hypothetically require 1.3 seconds to reach the moon from earth…it might as well be next door!

A few decades ago, an equivalent letter could have taken a week or more to travel from California to London, via a mail carrier.

Mankind has communicated using largely the same words and grammatical structures for centuries. Today, the QWERTY keyboard layout, which remains hugely popular, has been in use since 1873! So while good things can last a long time, it’s important to be prepared to leverage the modern tools of the times that we live in.

Today, the material that we read, write or otherwise create (blogs, tweets, Instagram posts, vine videos, Facebook likes, emails, marketing collateral, ads etc.) are distributed and absorbed at an unimaginable rate. I can see even the grandest science fiction minds of the past being in awe of today’s possibilities!

Communication advancements directly impact how we interact with our friends and family…and the same is true in business. Companies of all sizes, can’t afford to exclusively communicate through 20th century tactics in a 21st century world!

At Liberty, we believe in and execute, a “follow the sun” integrated communications methodology, where marketing, public relations, social media, web design, etc. are designed and implemented as part of a single consistent discipline.

Technology helps us ensure that no matter the time of day, our clients’ messages are promoted and delivered consistently across mediums, in the targeted manner that works best for the markets and influencers that matter most to them!

After all, your innovation and information is rocketing at the speed of light, and your message(s) should be aligned to work together to hit the mark and be delivered on time.

A few years ago, I attended a conference that focused on the convergence of technology and entertainment. During one session in particular, 5 executives from various cable and broadcast networks debated the place and benefit of the Internet as a complete delivery method of their content, live and on-demand.

Everyone on that stage was largely against doing anything that might disrupt the traditional content delivery model and partnership that has been immensely profitable for decades.

Flash-forward to today…online content delivery and resources have improved dramatically for cable and satellite subscribers, yet there are key barriers facing so-called “cord cutters”.

For example, in the United States, the big three broadcast networks: ABC, CBS and NBC allow access to their content through various mediums and devices. Mobile phones, tablets, PCs, and Internet-connected devices (Apple TV, Roku, Vudu, Boxee, etc) can easily access nearly any TV episode over cellular or WIFI.

But, if you’ve cut cable completely and rely upon online streaming, you typically must wait until “tomorrow” to enjoy “tonight’s” episodes. In an era where consumers want to enjoy content, when and where they choose, this minor inconvenience inspires tech-savvy consumers to develop alternate means of accessing content.

Enter Aereo…“Watch Real, Live TV on the Internet. Finally.”

Now, I don’t want to debate the pros and cons of Aereo, but rather highlight what could become a watershed moment for the entertainment industry. I “cut the cable” two years ago, and haven’t missed a show that I’ve wanted to watch, except live local sports (ugh!).

Perhaps in the future I will be able to turn on my Internet-connected device, select the ABC (or CBS…NBC…ESPN…etc) app, and with a single click access to both live and previously recorded content. Seamlessly.

Internet-connected boxes, such as Apple TV, are beginning to see robust and sustained growth, which begs the question, is there a place for another distribution model?

• Over-the-Air (OTA)
• Cable
• Satellite
• Internet???

In the U.S., there are more than 115 million paid TV households (not people), and a staggering 500 million iTunes users (with active credit cards). These are huge markets! With these total in mind, imagine if ABC (or any of the other players) offered its full catalogue on-demand, as well as their live broadcast stream for $7.99 per month (Hulu Premium’s pricing). If they secured 29 million customers, or just 6% of the active credit card users on iTunes…ABC could generate an additional $232 million per month in fees, and $2.8 billion per year.

Remember, these figures are general in nature, but nevertheless they paint an intriguing picture regarding the revenue potential of diversifying content distribution to include, full-fledged streaming.

What do you think?

P.S. Take a look at how Netflix and BYUtv are addressing this market:

• • House of Cards: airs exclusively on Netflix with a $7.99 subscription
• • Granite Flats, BYUtv’s first scripted show, can be watched ‘live’ and on-demand, free

If you’ve had the chance to observe the glacial cliffs in Alaska, you can attest to their elegance and grandeur. Massive sheets of ice, built-up over centuries, slowly creep forward, until a thunderous roar snaps the silence and a massive glacial shift sends a mass of ice and snow tumbling into the ocean.

Advancing social agenda

It’s spectacular!
If I can take the liberty, I would like to apply this thinking to this week’s market shifting news by the Securities Exchange Commission (SEC).
On Tuesday, the SEC outlined a new rule, that for the first time it will allow companies to use social media (Facebook, Twitter, etc) to disclose key financial  information.
The Caveat?
Corporations must clearly inform investors about their change in disclosure policy and strategy. With this move, a HUGE barrier to corporate social media adoption experienced a major glacial shift; catapulting the investor relations status quo deep into the ocean.
While some may be concerned about this change in policy. In the world of business communication, this change is both healthy and necessary,  because:

•  Businesses can communicate financials with vast audiences, for minimal cost
•  Companies can begin moving towards a conversation style that’s more natural
•  Business models will evolve, and jobs will be created
•  PR teams have the opportunity to further improve their corporation’s voice

This shift by the SEC was slow, and adoption by corporations might be even slower. But, as a colleague of mine (and fabulous blogger), Ron Ploof , wrote in his book, Read This First:
Transition isn’t easy. In order to adopt some of these methods [social], corporate executives must rethink traditional marketing and public relations roles….such radical changes require tough executive decisions.
I believe that the use of integrated digital communication principles is more important than ever, and this move by the SEC validates this point.
Remember, Change comes slow…but when it comes, we need to be ready to act…or we might just find our way of doing business at the bottom of the ocean of old ideas.

In my office, I am surrounded by meaningful, funny and generally inspirational statements by some of history’s most influential minds.

“If you’re afraid of butter, use cream”

“Don’t nag yourself with thoughts of failure, Simply do”

“Keep Calm and Carry on”

I love these quotes for many reasons, but there is a particular quote by Mark Twain, the famed American author, that left a lasting impression upon my mind:

“There are no trivial occurrences in life if we get the right focus on them”

It is important that we always keep in mind that nothing we do in life, whether in business or privately, is trivial. Brick-by-brick, step-by-step, precept-upon-precept, if we consciously seize and focus upon life’s moments, these experiences will directly influence everything we do…for the better.

I strive to apply this principle everyday. As a professional communicator, it is especially important to realize that delivering lasting quality, creativity and success is realized by streamlining the specifics, focusing on the details and remembering that everything (and everyone) contributes to the end result.

There is great stagnation in settling for an ordinary level of accomplishment. And, most importantly when we deliver less than our best effort, we betray our client’s trust. This trust means everything to me.

Remember there are no trivial occurrences if we…Find the proper focus…
Share our client’s passion….Never settle for mediocrity…Act with honesty and integrity…Fearlessly communicate….everyday!

This is what I believe in, and what Liberty promises to deliver.