Monthly Archives: October 2009

U.S. Legal Firms Change Roles as China Bolsters Legal System

Posted on October 13, 2009 | 2 Comments

chinese lawyerThe evolving Chinese legal system, and increasing skills of Chinese lawyers, are narrowing the role that U.S. firms can play there.

But the good news for Seattle firms is that their location on the Pacific Rim and knowledge of Asian culture continues to give them an edge over other U.S. firms.

China has been rapidly rebuilding its entire legal and court system since the end of the Cultural Revolution and its aftermath, said Norm Page, co-chair of Davis Wright Tremaine LLP’s China practice group, who was speaking by phone from Shanghai.

Chinese educational institutions also are pumping out smart attorneys eager to get into the international law arena.

“The gradual increase in the professionalism of the court system is something that has been a very striking change in the last 15 years since we’ve been here,” Page said. “There are many, many more lawyers, and the standard of practice and professionalism is vastly higher than it was 15 years ago, or five years ago.”

Attorney David Tang, who manages the Greater China Group for Seattle law firm K&L Gates, said the increasing strength of Chinese law firms suggests that Chinese values, and doing it the Chinese way, are becoming more prevalent there.

Under Chinese law, non-Chinese firms cannot practice law in China.

So, while Seattle law firms can counsel Western companies on operating or opening in China, as well as advising Chinese companies on their own aspirations in the West, those same law firms can’t go to court in China, and can’t directly represent clients in legal proceedings with Chinese governmental entities.

The competition among firms within China to land big contracts is fierce.

In fact, any Chinese-born and trained lawyer who joins a Western law firm operating in China instantly loses his or her right to go to court while working for a foreign firm. This is not the case in Hong Kong, which operates with a much more open system than mainland China.

All of this, however, doesn’t mean that U.S. law firms will shutter their China offices anytime soon.

Despite the limitations, Seattle-area law firms operating in China are capitalizing on the rapid evolution of the economic relationship between the U.S. and China. While just a few years ago this consisted primarily of finding ways to bring cheap Chinese goods into the U.S. market, the relationship has become much more complex.

“China represents incredible opportunities for American companies, environmental cleanup engineers, software, coffee, research and development, medical services, medical technology, education,” said former Gov. Gary Locke, now a partner in Davis Wright Tremaine.

“Just as U.S. companies are finding it much more advantageous to set up representative offices in China to market their goods and services, so too are the Chinese finding it advantageous to establish a presence in the United States, whether they’re importing or exporting,” Locke said.

The Chinese are welcoming foreign legal firms to open offices in mainland China, said George Yates, chair of the international practice for Perkins Coie LLC in Seattle.

“They are really regarded as a conduit to bring work into China, to be done by Chinese law firms,” he said.

Nelson Dong, a partner with Dorsey & Whitney LLP, said firms are reporting an increasing clientele of Chinese-based business people needing legal advice about how to open a facility in the West, or how to go public on a Western stock exchange.

In many ways, U.S. lawyers operating in the Chinese market act as legal translators and guides; they set the stage for American companies’ legal work and contracts in China, even if Chinese attorneys must complete the final work.

“Because of longer history, and familiarity, I think in some ways it’s easier for Washington companies to know how to do business with the Chinese businesses there,” he said. “From the perspective of our companies over there, I don’t think they view China as exotic or mysterious or anything like that, I think they view China as a good marketplace. From the East Coast, they approach it much more as entering into a mysterious and exotic place.”

Despite that fact that China is evolving into what Locke calls “more of a nation ruled by law,” the fact is that much business in China is still done the old way — according to who knows whom. In Chinese, this is called Quanxi.

Courtesy of Puget Sound Business Journal

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When to Keep Your Twap Shut on Twitter

Posted on October 12, 2009 | 2 Comments

twitter-dead birdWhen silence is golden
As any Twitter enthusiast can tell you, tweeting can become an addiction. This platform has given brands, companies, and individuals the ability to broadcast their thoughts and insights on a real-time basis, which allows for immediate connections, engagement, and valuable conversations.

We know that Twitter is a platform that is meant to be used frequently and consistently.There are times, however, when it is vital that you not reach for your phone or double-click on your Twitter client of choice. 

At the 140 Twitter Conference held recently in Los Angeles, Twitter experts expounded on how they used Twitter to effectively reach out to clients and consumers, and to promote their own brands. But a running theme of discussions was that there are definite instances when is it not a good idea to tweet.

Here are a few examples of when it might be best to keep your “twap” shut.

Don’t tweet: In a crisis 

Twitter can be an invaluable tool in your arsenal when your brand or company is plunged headlong into a crisis. However, it depends on how you use it.

At the 140 Conference, Mike Prasad, the brain behind the Twitter sensation Kogi BBQ, spoke about how savvy use of his Twitter account helped Kogi one-up its competitor, Baja Fresh.

This summer, when Baja Fresh announced a new item on its menu — the “Baja Kogi Taco” — Prasad was understandably shocked and concerned that Baja Fresh was “ripping off” Kogi’s trademark name.

Prasad and @kogibbq wisely refrained from going on the attack and, instead, allowed followers to voice their unhappiness at Baja Fresh itself.

Within hours, Baja Fresh was overwhelmed with a deluge of tweets criticizing the company’s move and declaring their support for Kogi BBQ.

Baja Fresh, unable to ignore the power of Twitter, set about changing the item’s name from “Kogi” to “Gogi,” another spelling of the Korean transliteration for “meat.” 

This move alone could have settled the crisis. In an effort to conciliate the Twitterverse, however, @BoldBajaFresh replied to almost every single one of the disgruntled tweets. Each of the replies mentioned and sometimes praised its competitor, with phrases such as “Kogi truck is in a class of its own” and “Kogi taco truck is a marvel.”

Kogi BBQ, by wisely refraining from tweeting extensively on this issue, emerged from this episode looking classy and unscathed, secure in the power of its loyal and passionate core audience.

Baja Fresh, on the other hand, not only had to do an embarrassing about-face, but wound up dedicating its Twitter stream — for a brief period of time — to lauding and praising its competitor.

Two very simple rules on when not to tweet can be gleaned from this episode:

  1. Don’t tweet when your followers can tweet for you. Allowing your core audience to shout your brand message from the rooftops is infinitely more powerful than you doing it yourself.
  2. Don’t “tweet down the food chain.” Baja Fresh was the bigger corporate brand. Kogi was just a local business. One single tweet acknowledging the change of the taco name could have sufficed. Instead, Baja Fresh conceded power to Kogi by feeling the need to tweet incessantly about its competitor.

Kogi won this round by staying silent, while Baja lost it through its lack of restraint on Twitter.

Don’t tweet: When you think you’re funny

Think you’re funny? Maybe you are, and maybe you aren’t — it’s not always up to you to decide. As every good comedian knows, a joke that can work brilliantly with one audience can bomb with another. With Twitter, you don’t really have the luxury of choosing, or even truly knowing, your audience. So why risk alienating and offending a significant chunk of your following?
 
Take the example of agency representative James Andrews (@keyinfluencer), whose snarky tweet regarding Memphis, the global HQ of his client, FedEx, landed him in hot soup. Early this year, Andrews landed in Memphis and tweeted his reaction to the city.

Needless to say, FedEx was not amused, and Andrews was subject to a chastising email that quickly made the rounds of the blogosphere.
 
The 140 Twitter Conference featured a special panel of professional comedians who use Twitter to stay connected with their fans and networks, and to try out new jokes in 140 characters or less. However, when asked if they thought it would be appropriate to use humor for a corporate or business account, all panel members immediately voiced their hesitation. Since a good joke, by its very nature, always walks the line between funny and offensive, it would not be wise to take that risk.

Stand-up comedian and actress Loni Love (@lonilove) advised that if you can’t be funny, focus on being positive and inspirational on Twitter. That will put a smile on your followers’ faces without running the risk of a backlash.

Don’t tweet: When it will ruin your brand mystique

 In a way, tweeting is like dating. If you know everything about the person by the end of the first meal, then the mystery and intrigue have vanished, and you don’t see the point in sticking around for coffee. Or a second date.

During the music business panel at the 140 Twitter Conference, artists such as Curt Smith (@curtsmith) and hip-hop star Chamillionaire (@chamillionaire) discussed the idea that some musicians just should not be on Twitter, as their entire brand is built around their mystique. For instance, could you imagine Jack White of the White Stripes tweeting?

While the advantages of being on Twitter outweigh the disadvantages for most consumer and corporate brands, it would be wise to give some thought as to whether you’re tweeting too much. There is a fine line between transparency and over-exposure. If your brand is exclusive, high-end, mysterious, and playful, make sure that your Twitter account stays true to that tone. Make your followers feel special, and keep them intrigued.

Going back to Kogi BBQ — imagine if it posted a monthly or yearly calendar detailing exactly where the truck would be and when. The long lines would shrink pretty fast, as the main appeal of that brand is its unpredictability.

Don’t give it all away on the first tweet, as your mother might say.

Don’t tweet: When the president of the United States says so

That might sound obvious, but clearly not so for ABC’s Terry Moran. President Obama, while being interviewed by CNBC, made an off-the-record comment about Kanye West’s behavior at the MTV Video Music Awards. “He’s a jackass,” said the president.

Moran, who was in the room, was so clearly tickled by this rather un-presidential statement that he tweeted about it immediately.

Moran later deleted the tweet, but as we know, it’s not possible to permanently delete a post from Twitter. The White House was unhappy about this leak, but the damage had been done — primarily to Moran’s credibility as a responsible journalist.

To learn from his mistake, respect the wishes of your clients, your colleagues, and others who may not necessarily want their remarks broadcast on a public network. Remember, you are not only staking your reputation with each tweet, but theirs as well. Stay mum about breaking news, partnerships, deals, and other confidential or sensitive developments until you are absolutely sure that the news can be relayed to the public.

Frequent use of Twitter may cause us to slip up and momentarily lose our discretion as to what is and what is not appropriate. However, always keep in mind that you can never truly delete a tweet. Never forget that pesky “Print Screen” key. If it’s out there, someone would have made a screen capture of it (as our examples so far have demonstrated), and your words can, therefore, live on forever.

Are you really sure you want to tweet that? 

Courtesy of IMedia.  And Twitter (of course!)

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What’s the “Big Deal” With Twitter?

Posted on October 9, 2009 | Comments Off

twitter-logo2Brett Tabke was among the speakers on the ‘Mega Panel’ at SMX Advanced this year. This session essentially consists of a panel of established industry experts fielding questions from the crowd of conference attendees. It never takes long in these type of sessions to get a feel for what’s on everybody’s mind. This year, to the surprise of exactly no one, it was all things social media and Twitter that dominating the Q & A.

More WebProNews VideosI caught Brett Tabke, founder of WebmasterWorld, shortly after the session to get his take on some of the high points of the discussion. It looks like this social media thing is doing nothing but growing and it’s impact is being felt across the board in ways most of us never imagined.

Realtime Search:
Realtime search is one of the biggest concepts to talk about in terms of social media. Brett brought up the example of the French airliner that crashed in South America recently. Information about the incident was available instantly through Twitter.

More significantly, this information wasn’t simply in the form of Tweets about the crash, there was new content being created and linked to in Tweets. This new content, created on the fly and accessed in real time, wasn’t available through Google, Bing or Yahoo yet, but it was in Twitter.

The concept of content discovery in realtime hasn’t really been done (at least not very well) to this point. This is why you’ve been reading weekly rumors of this company or that company being interested in purchasing Twitter.

Marketing:
Social media marketing is entering a whole new level. Business interest in social media started out a lot like business interest started in blogs. When blogs were first coming into vogue, businesses were, for the most part, looking at blogging from a public relations/reputation management standpoint. Of course, as blogs became more and more prevalent businesses increasingly incorporated them into their marketing mix.

The same thing is happening with social media, just a little faster. Take a look at BestBuy and their ‘Twelpforce’ Twitter strategy. They have over 500 people signed up, scouring Twitter looking for folks with questions about plasma TVs and various gadgets.

Social media, particularly Twitter, is moving more and more out of the realm of the ‘optional’ for business. Managing your identity in social media is becoming just as important, if not more, than managing your .com domain. GoDaddy is even going ahead and registering your Twitter accounts along with your domains now.

Just like with your domains, if you aren’t ‘you’ then somebody else is apt to become ‘you’. Twitter registration has evolved to the point that account creation there is just another step in responsible brand management.

Evolution of Twitter:
Now that Twitter has become too big to be ignored and (for many) too important not to use, what comes next? Just as with anything else new on the web, it hasn’t taken spammers long to get into the mix. Spammers have hit Twitter like 7 year locusts. Anyone who has been using the service of a significant amount of time can tell you that the peddlers of porn, mortgage ‘deals’ and pharmaceuticals have arrived en force.

Twitter by nature is completely opt-in so you would think that the spammers would have a hard time with getting much done. Fortunately for the spammers however people are, by nature, just greedy. The currency of Twitter is (for the most part) your follower count. Whether it’s to increase the effectiveness and reach of your tweets or just to stroke the ego, for many, the Twitter game is largely about growing the follower number.

This has given rise to countless “add 500 followers per day” schemes and mechanisms in order to game the system. The rationale being, if you find somebody with 3000 followers, you are apt to think, “hey, this guy must have something cool to say”. It’s logical enough but unfortunately not necessarily the case.

So, how can you tell if somebody is worth following? That’s a question a lot of people are asking. What is authority? How can you tell if someone is an authority? How do you know the person you are following is even who they claim to be?

Twitter has started verifying accounts for some of the A list set. Celebrities are finding their way onto Twitter in increasing numbers. Prompted in large part by a lawsuit filed by Tony LaRussa, Twitter has started a program of verifying the accounts of celebrities. It’s a step in the right direction which will likely make it’s way from celebrities to businesses soon enough but it’s really just a start. What if you want to find twitter people to follow within niche industries, or within your local area?

Finding people to follow is easy enough. We have Twellow and Twellowhood (shameless plug alert) just in the way of examples of sites you can use to find interesting people. How do you tell who is worth following though once you’ve found them?

Brett and I talked about this a bit in the interview. We are starting to see some sites and services pop up to ‘grade’ Twitterers in an attempt to assign some sort of authority or rank to accounts. Sound familiar? It should. This is essentially what search engines have spent years trying to figure out for websites.

Personally, I think there is something a little unsettling about the concept of having rank or some arbitrary authority assigned to Twitter accounts, but I suppose it’s probably inevitable to some extent. You can check Klout.net for an example of such a service. Here you will find an algorithmic number value assigned to Twitter accounts. The ingredients and factors of the algo are (of course) secretive and mysterious, but we’re all used to that by now aren’t we?

So in some regards, meet the new boss, same as the old boss. There’s still a lot of ground to cover with this whole social/Twitter thing. Remember search? How many search engines did we go through before we got Google? How many Google-killers have come and gone since then?

Social Media is still an area very much in it’s development. There will no doubt be plenty of twists and turns as we move along. However, there is one thing you can absolutely take to the bank: if aren’t in it, you need to get there. For better or worse, “wait and see” strategists have no place in this world.

Courtesy of WebProNews.

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