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Philippines: Interviews
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Interview with Aileen Apollo, Google Country Consultant - Philippines
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Note: The answers below are Aileen's personal opinions and does not reflect that of Google.
1. Google has its own set of products that embrace or promote both the social media and social networking trends such as Blogger, YouTube, Orkut, Google Reader, Groups, Apps, etc. Do you see a trend emerging, with regards to Filipino companies or institutions that are making use of these products? If so, how do you see this trend evolving in the next 5 years? If not, why do you think they aren't using these applications?
There are early adapters to these products, but across the country I believe everything is still at a very early stage. I guess because with all the advancements being made it's just a bit hard to keep up. I believe though that eventually more and more companies will embrace it. It will take a bit of time though.
2. Google Analytics is a free and very useful tool offered by Google. What does the data provided by Google Analytics mean for companies/marketers in the Philippines that use New Media such as blogs and wikis compared to traditional methods of measuring marketing initiatives?
3. You were one of the speakers in last years first internet and mobile marketing summit in the Phillipines, 1nterconnection.1ntegration.1nnovation. In your opinion, will the desktop or the mobile phone be the primary tool to consider if companies want to reach out to their customers and engage them in a conversation in the Philippines?
4. Who do you think should take the initiative in educating Filipino citizens and Philippines-based companies about the emergence of Social Media tools, their uses and their potential benefits? (Government, digital/technology enthusiasts, schools, PR/Marketing/Communucation professionals, tech companies, etc.) And why?
I believe that the best person/group to do this are the digital/technology enthusiasts because they understand it better than anyone and as users they can make recommendations without bias. 5. In your opinion, which aspects of the Filipino culture aid or prohibit the adoption of Social Media tools?
Interview with Henryl Moreno, Search Editor (Philippines), Yahoo! Southeast Asia
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Note: The answers below are Henryl's personal opinions and does not reflect that of Yahoo!.
1. Have there been rising trends towards Filipino journalists/PR professionals/corporate communicators utilizing Social Media channels (e.g. Blogs, wikis) rather than traditional media (e.g. Newspapers, magazines)? If there is, what do you think are the causes of this shift? If there isn't, why do you think they haven't experimented with Social Media?
There isn't a shift per se from traditional to social media channels, but rather journalists and other communications professionals have expanded into new communication channels while retaining their traditional media presence. As more and more newspapers, and TV and radio stations set up space on the Internet, we see a lot of content being migrated as well for the simple reason that technology allows us to do so - from news videos to entertainment columns to society pages and classified ads, traditional media channels are gaining more audience by deciding to venture into the Web. This is a really smart move - the top traditional media sources are also among the most frequented web sites. PH examples: www.inquirer.net<http://www.inquirer.net/>, www.gmanews.tv<http://www.gmanews.tv/>, www.abscbnnews.com<http://www.abscbnnews.com/>.
As for the journalists/communication professionals themselves, they are winning over more readers/viewers, especially among the more than 13 millions OFWs who have no access to PH traditional media except via the Internet. PH examples: http://blogs.inquirer.net/home/, http://www.gmanews.tv/blognetwork, http://www.ellentordesillas.com/
At the same time, with Internet space available for everyone--not just journalists (or those with traditional media exposure)--the definition of who can be journalists/communication professionals is becoming increasingly fuzzy by the day. We see people getting famous for posting articles, videos, etc. about themselves, what they do, what they think, or what they saw. Web sites such as Yahoo! (http://news.yahoo.com/you-witness-news) and CNN (http://edition.cnn.com/ireport/) encourage people to submit their videos, the audience practically playing the role of journalists or communicators.
Where before we waited for the papers or the tube to tell us what to think about/talk about, we can now decide for ourselves what to do, to a large extent. I think this is the reason why social media channels are so popular - they give us the power to express ourselves to the rest of the world-- mileage we can't get previously except if we're someone important.
2. How much do Filipinos trust material found on Social Media channels as compared to traditional media such as newspapers and television?
I would say it's hard to judge as I've yet to come across literature on the subject. But seeing how easily traditional media have expanded their presence into the Internet, I think our trust on social media channels is increasing, especially if traditional media with web presence themselves put up blogs, etc. to communicate with their audiences. Traditional media embracing social media channels sends us the message that these channels are credible too. More importantly, however, we anchor our trust on the source of the message and the message itself.
3. Various issues concerning the publishing of material online include the use and management of identities. Be it the personal blogger or the communications professional, anyone can easily create an online identity which may not necessarily reflect their true 'offline' identity, and start a blog. As a member of the media, what is your take on this? What are some of the responsibilities that a journalist should take note of when starting his own blog?
The publisher of content must strike a balance between his privacy and the public's right to know. I don't read opinion/news blogs of people who don't identify themselves for the simple reason that you don't have any (obvious) way of holding him responsible for content (although people writing fiction and poetry are, in my opinion, very much entitled to remain private as long as they don't plagiarize). Someone who publishes content on the Internet must, at the most basic, be aware of copyright laws and must at all times, stand by what he publishes.
4. Now with Social Media tools (Friendster, blogs, etc.), it is so easy for Filipino citizens with an opinion to post anything online such as breaking news, gossip, etc. What do you think is the impact of the citizen journalism phenomenon on news organizations such as ABS-CBN and newspapers like The Philippine Star?
While much of the country relies on traditional media for its information needs (after all, the TV, radio, and newspaper still reach the most number of people in PH), the Internet is reaching more and more Filipinos every year (http://www.internetworldstats.com/asia/ph.htm), and consequently, the growth of social channels is expected to continue. But since there is no dominant alternative media outlet in PH yet, citizen journalism on the Internet is not that influential or widespread for now. It's important to note though that segments of society that want a bigger audience (and are not waiting for traditional media to give it to them) have used the Internet to establish a following. PH examples: http://bulatlat.com/, http://pcij.org/, http://info.ibon.org/.
I have yet to see a major schism between traditional and alternative media, but would like to note this incident: http://www.yugatech.com/blog/blogosphere/abs-cbn-thinks-blogging-did-not-help-pbb/. Will a similar or bigger conflict occur in the future? I think so. A more usual source of conflict between alternative and traditional communicators these days is copyright, and we've seen many instances. Youtube users have reported that videos of TV shows they posted on the Internet have been taken down upon the copyright owner's (usually traditional media) demand. Ex.: http://jepoy.bengero.com/2007/10/lol-abs-cbn-interactive.html, http://howard-the-duck.blogspot.com/2007/12/willie-practices-his-screw-up.html.
5. In your opinion, which aspects of the Filipino culture aid or prohibit the adoption of Social Media tools?
Our desire to always stay in touch with family, friends, and acquaintances has enabled social networking sites like Friendster to easily find acceptance among Filipinos. It's the same reason cell phones became, in such a short time, a daily fixture of Filipino life.
Our love for recognition leads us to turn to Youtube and create blogs using Multiply, Wordpress, Blogger, LiveJournal, etc. We want to watch and be entertained, while at the same time, there's always a part of us that wants to perform. We only need to look around to see videoke and singing and dancing contests also fulfilling that need.
I don't see any aspect of Filipino culture that prohibits the adoption of social media tools. We're raised to be outgoing people, to makisama with others. And even if some of us aren't, we always want to be heard. :)
Interview with Abe “YUGA” Olandres, A professional blogger, a blog consultant, a serial technopreneur, and resource speaker
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Ben:my group and I have done our research and with recent data putting the number of internet users in the Philippines at 14 million out of a population of over 92 million, how large do you think the blogging community is in the Philippines?
Yuga:With respect to that number, I think it's still small. From my computation, I've pegged the number of 'active' blogs to just over 200,000
Ben:small in terms of percentage or real numbers?
Yuga:That's dominated by LiveJournal, Multiply and MySpace
Yuga:in terms of percentage
Ben:How about Friendster? Isn't it still one of the most visited websites in the Philippines?
Yuga:Yes, it's on Top 5.
Yuga:neck in neck with Yahoo and YouTube
Yuga:actually worldwide, Friendster has climbed to #8 from #13 according to Comscore.
Ben:hhmm....that's interesting. I would have thought a lot of people might have migrated over to Facebook already.
Yuga:Facebook is very small in the Philippines.
Yuga:From what I heard from the inside, it's just around 10k.
Yuga:compared to 8.5M Filipino users on Friendster
Ben:what do you think makes Friendster and Multiply so appealing to pinoy internet users instead of Facebook?
Yuga:Friendster and Multiply had first-mover advantage. Something like 3 years ahead; that is like an eternity in internet years.
Yuga:Since it's a social networking site, people go where the crowd is, where their friends, officemates, relatives and ex-GFs.
Ben:would you expect these same Friendster users to move over to Facebook in the coming years?
Yuga:I've noticed the more mature crowds are starting to move.
Ben:I would think that all it might take is a few groups to start moving over and using those applications
Yuga:Friendster has become more crowded and people of the same interests will tend to move to a tighter community like Facebook.
Yuga:There's also the segmentation in terms of demographics.
Yuga:Friendsters are for the younger generation and they are the ones who are cliquish and will tend to stick with their group.
Ben:even though the community may still be small at the moment, how's its reach and accessibility?
Yuga:I believe connectivity has doubled in the last 3 years
Yuga:with the massive campaign for low-cost fix-wireless broadband like Smart Bro, about 300k new residential accounts were added since June 2005
Ben:It's great that there's been good support for low-cost broadband
Yuga:Yup, and 3G adoption is also widespread.
Ben:Who do you think should take the initiative in educating Filipino citizens and Philippines-based companies about the emergence of Social Media tools, their uses and their potential benefits? (Government, digital/technology enthusiasts, schools, PR/Marketing/Communucation professionals, tech companies, etc.) And why?
Yuga:I think everyone has a stake on the use of social media tools and each sector will definitely benefit from their own initiatives.
Yuga:I've noticed some schools are slowly using Blogging as a tool for communication.
Yuga:Allowing students to use a blog to submit their essays and assignments.
Ben:wow...I wish I had that over here in Singapore
Yuga:Government sector is moving to OpenSource and will likely follow ICT guidelines once the policies are put in place.
Ben:I feel that the infrastructure would be one of the most important things for the proliferation of the internet (and on the side, Social Media)
Yuga:Yes, connectivity has played a major role in the popularity.
Yuga:Sites like YouTube won't be popular if we don't have broadband.
Ben:yup. the vids would take forever to load on a 56k
Ben:with the increasing popularity of social media in the philippines, do you think businesses should use social media as both an advertising and an outreach tool?
Yuga:I am now a partner with one of the bigger Online Media outfit here in the Philippines and I realized they've been adding social media advertising as part of the package.
Yuga:So Multiply, Friendster and Facebook now form a percentage of big business's marketing efforts.
Ben:in terms of just advertising or actually getting down onto the ground level and interacting with the consumers?
Ben:like creating an account on Freindster for example
Yuga:in terms of grassroots interaction, it's just starting
Yuga:Although the bigger multi-national companies like P&G, Nestle, Unilever are big on this.
Yuga:But that's because the Int'l HQ has mandated its practice.
Ben:ah. yah, with popularity of social media in the US I can see why.
Yuga:There's still some concerns esp. with the business sector. New Media is one arena they know they cannot control. So outcomes aren't 100% good.
Ben:that's one of the hurdles that I see in trying to convince bosses...hehe. Do you think businesses in the Philippines should use social media?
Yuga:Companies or their brand's online reputation still emanates from their offline reputation. So if the brand or service has inherent problems/issues, it could be hard to interact with the community online as this opens up the gates to uncertainty.
Ben:*nods*
Yuga:Yes, I think they should, but slowly and carefully.
Ben:in that case, knowing the social media scene as well as you do in the Philippines, what tips might you have for a company who might be thinking of using Social Media there?
Yuga:First, be ready to face the exposure -- it could be a welcoming one or it might not pan out well. Second, be transparent.
Yuga:Social networking thrives on transparency, so companies should open it self up more than it traditionally should.
Ben:specifically for businesses in the philippines?
Yuga:ahh, Engage your market on the platform they are most comfortable with.
Yuga:Most business who go into Social Media does not consider the platform they use and the demogrpahics of the crowd that the platform attracts.
Yuga:Most will ultimately go with Frinedtser because the numbers are there. Yet, they fail to see that their target demographics rarely use Friendster.
Ben:true, true
Ben:In your opinion, which aspects of the Filipino culture aid or prohibit
the adoption of Social Media tools?
Yuga:aid - the extended family culture. it's an inherent cultural phenomena which was fueled by Friendster -- Filipinos love to connect with long lost relatives, even to the 3rd degree.
Yuga:the very first instance Friendster hit the Philippines was from a Filipino in the US who sent an invite to a relative in the Philippines. This was traced by Friendster themselves in an inteview by PBS.
Yuga:prohibit - crab mentality, Filipino compete fiercely and networking is like a popularity contest. A contest on who has the most friends or connections.
Yuga:that mentality diminishes the very definition of "friends" because users just add as many as they want without regard for the degree of 'connection'.
Ben:wow....ok
Ben:that really has been very insightful
Ben:something that I'd never be able to know (nor perhaps even my filipino friend) if not for this interview
mingwei.yap.2005 |
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