• home
  • find a job
  • toolbox
  • events and training
  • mentoring
  • how i can help you
  • get in touch
Menu

comms2point0

Street Address
City, State, Zip
07739 41 23 77
comms2point0.co.uk is a shared learning space, created by – and written for – creative communications professionals

Your Custom Text Here

comms2point0

  • home
  • find a job
  • toolbox
  • events and training
  • mentoring
  • how i can help you
  • get in touch

why every organisation should have trojan mice

October 14, 2012 Darren Caveney
There's no shortage of advice on how to tackle digital communications. Here's one book that's worth getting and one pearl from it.

by Dan Slee

 

Okay, confession time: I try my absolute hardest to avoid books on social media.

Books on climbing? Yes. Books from self-styled social media ninjas? no thank you.

One of a few that stands like a shining beacon is the excellent 'Organisations Don't Tweet, People Do' by Euan Semple.

I've lost count of the number of people I've recommended this hardback work to. Even if you don't go out and buy it you can take something from the title.

One of the reasons why I'm rather keen on it is that it strikes a chord with some of the work we've done.

One example that Semple comes up with is 'Trojan mice.'

In other words, in an organisation do lots of little things to see where they end up and if they work without shouting about them to the world. Or senior management. He writes:

"Conventional initiatives are like the more familiar Trojan Horse. Big, lumbering, slow moving. It takes a lot of people to move it and it is very hard to get it to change direction without a lot of effort.

"As we deployed low cost small tools and kicked off little initiatives at the BBC we began to describe our approach as deploying Trojan Mice, a metaphor borrowed from British consultant Peter Fryer.

"Set up small, unobtrusive inexpensive and autonomous tools and practices set them running and cajole and nudge them until they begin to work out where to go and why."

It's an approach that in spirit chimes with Dave Briggs' line about JFDI - Just Flipping Do It.

Thinking back, some of the things I've done have worked well. Others haven't. None of them we've made a big noise about from the word go.

Of course, there is the argument from some PR people that everything - Trojan Mice and otherwise - has to be linked up to a campaign with objectives, key messages and things to measure. I'm just not so sure about this. This feels like trad comms sellotaping itself to the new stuff and forgets that fact that to make this new stuff work you have to embrace the fact it's a conversation.

With Trojan mice you can make some mistakes. Do five things. If two work, tell your bosses' boss about them and see how you can nurture them elsewhere. Even the quiet failures you can learn things from.

Dan Slee is co-creator of comms2point0. He also blogs here.

 

Print Friendly and PDF
In digital + social
← remember the real networks?what, public health as well? five tips to survive and thrive →

sign up for the comms2point0 weekly email

delivered once a week. straight into your inbox. guaranteed to be packed full of good stuff. absolutely no fluff.

comms2point0 will *always* respect your privacy.

Thank you!

Want to write a post for comms2point0?  Email us a brief outline of your post idea or specialist subject and we'll be in touch!

Name *
Name

Thank you, Darren or Dan will be in touch with you soon!

latest events ...
YOUTH MATTERS - HOW TO ENGAGE WITH YOUNG PEOPLE
Mar 20
YOUTH MATTERS - HOW TO ENGAGE WITH YOUNG PEOPLE

BRAND-NEW WORKSHOP - BIRMINGHAM

STRATEGY SURGERY
Mar 25
STRATEGY SURGERY

BRAND-NEW WORKSHOP - BIRMINGHAM

SOLD OUT

May 9
UNAWARDS WINNERS MASTERCLASS 2019

BIRMINGHAM

latest jobs...

Featured
Feb 21, 2019
communications improvement adviser, local government association
Feb 21, 2019
Read More →
Feb 21, 2019
Feb 21, 2019
assistant producer, simply communicate
Feb 21, 2019
Read More →
Feb 21, 2019
Feb 20, 2019
digital insight and product officer, department of health and social care
Feb 20, 2019
Read More →
Feb 20, 2019
Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...

comms2point0.co.uk is a shared learning space, created by – and written for – creative communications professionals.  Home to fresh comment, informed opinion, in depth analysis and expert feature articles, comms2point.co.uk inspires and supports communications professionals in the UK, Europe and beyond.

©2011 - 2019 Darren Caveney, Creative Communicators Ltd.

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...