December 29, 2010

Discount tickets for UX Hong Kong

Daniel Szuc (speaking at Web Weds V43.0) has kindly offered 10% off for any member of Web Wednesday who'd like to hear some of the world's top usability experts at UXHK.


Buy your tickets at a 10% discount here.

Semantic Fat?

Christmas is over. All your presents have been opened. Only shreds of meat are left on the turkey. You want a break from Facebook. Twitter is bugging you. You can't think of what to blog...

Try something new in 2011 - get fit! Our friends at CrossFit Asphodel (see "Asphodel Meadows" on Wikipedia) are generously sponsoring prizes for the lucky draw at our next Web Wednesday social mixer on Wednesday 5th January 2011.



3rd prize: Free CrossFit Asphodel On Ramp program (Four 1 hour classes) worth HK$1,250

2nd prize: Free One Month Unlimited CrossFit class membership (valid after completing On Ramp program), worth HK$2,400


1st prize: Four Free Personal Training Sessions, worth HK$3,200


Offer for all Web Wednesday members: HK$500 off the original price of any CrossFit class membership package for one month only (valid after the On Ramp program has been completed). Just mention "Web Wednesday HK" when you sign up.

Let's talk value - slideshow

Daniel Szuc has kindly shared his slides from his recent talk on "the value of asking why?". Comes with an audio that you can listen to here.

Come to learn more about usability and speak with Daniel in person at our 43rd gathering on 5th January 2011.

Let's talk UX - Social Mixer V43.0 (Jan 5)

Hope you've all had / are having a refreshing break and have unplugged yourself from social media for at least two days. It's great for the soul.

In 2011, I'm nudging Web Wednesday back to the FIRST Wednesday of the month and will try my best to keep it there. Please understand if I need to move it around, due to venue or speaker availability or my own travel schedule.

We're kicking off the new year with a very inspiring talk on "The Value of Asking Why?" by Daniel Szuc, renowned international speaker (UX Australia) and Principal Usability Consultant at Apogee Hong Kong.

Sign up on Facebook or this blog.


I really like this mind-map of Daniel's talk:


Daniel has even produced a usability kit for web designers and is organizing Hong Kong's first User Experience Conference, UX Hong Kong (香港使用者經驗研討大會).


As per their website, "UX Hong Kong is a 1 day intimate UX program to learn, discuss, experience, share and immerse with some of the best UX international talent and local community from Hong Kong and Asian region. We have invited speakers to provide snapshots and workshops on the topics of UX strategy, design research, mobile design and the UX toolkit. Everyone attending will have an opportunity to preview all speakers in the morning and then an opportunity to choose 1 workshop in the afternoon to go into a topic more deeply with one of the speakers".

I'm working on getting a discount for Web Wednesday members...

Our social mixer will start at 6:30pm and wind up around 9:30pm, with the talk/interview starting at 7:15pm.

As per usual, there's a HK$100 entrance fee, including one complimentary drink and the chance to win lucky draw prizes, sponsored by CrossFit Asphodel, a newly launched fitness training Centre in Quarry Bay.

Our lovely assistant, Vivian, will issue receipts if you need one. (For students, you can get in for HK$50 without free booze). Thereafter, all standard drinks will be charged at special happy hour prices. 10% of entrance fees will be donated to Oxfam Hong Kong.

Looking forward to another exciting year of digital evolution.

December 15, 2010

Christmas Break

Calling all Festive Digerati!

On the fifth day of Christmas, my true love gave to me...
5 gold ring(tones)
4 angry birds
3 French hacks
2 iPhone apps
And a Samsung Galaxy!

Christmas is fast upon us and so are all the ensuing parties! After a good run this year, Web Wednesday Hong Kong will be taking a break this month.

Fear not, as we will be back on Wednesday 5th January, 2011 at Volar. (Details to come).

Thank you all for being active members of our rapidly growing community! Enjoy the holidays!

Talking about Christmas songs, love this:

November 23, 2010

Get Spoilt with Exquisite Prizes

The entrepreneurial founders of local Hong Kong start-up, Spoilt.com.hk , have generously sponsored the following "gifts of experience" for tomorrow's 42nd Web Wednesday social mixer:

3rd Prize: Make your own CD (admit it, you love karaoke!)


2nd Prize: In-office Stress-buster Massage (who doesn't need one of these?)


1st Prize: 3-hour Handmade Chocolate Master Class (yummy!)



Follow Spoilt on Facebook and Twitter (@spoiltHK).

November 21, 2010

Check-in China: Social Mixer V42.0 (24th Nov)

Hear ye, hear ye!

Now that you've all become accustomed to checking in via the web everywhere you go, it's time to introduce you to the latest craze to hit the mobile internet in China, namely "Jiepang". (The Chinese "街旁" means "beside the street").

On Wednesday 24th November, I'll be interviewing David Liu, Co-Founder of Jiepang, China's latest location-based social network (think FourSquare with Chinese characteristics). David cut his entrepreneurial teeth in Taiwan with "Wozai". After studying at UCLA, David worked on several start-ups in social networking, desktop software, and mobile software. David grew up in Silicon Valley and today lives in both Beijing and Shanghai. (Recent photo of David below taken at Sina Weibo's 1st Developer Conference in Beijing).

Let us know that you're coming by signing up on Facebook or our contact form on this blog.

CNN recently interviewed David as shown on this video hosted by Tudou (ironic, inst it?



The event will kick off at 6:30pm and wind up around 9:30pm, with the interview starting at 7:15pm. As per usual, there's a HK$100 entrance fee, including one complimentary drink and the chance to win lucky draw prizes.

Jiepang is also generously sponsoring up to 100 drinks if you use Jiepang to check into the venue at the event. Venue is the still-stylish Volar Bar & Club, Basement, 38-44 D'Aguilar Street, Lan Kwai Fong, Central, Hong Kong.

The steps are simple: (1) Register for Jiepang (via jiepang.com), (2a) Download the App (iPhone or Android) or (2b) Mobile surf to m.jiepang.com, (3) Check into Volar, (4) Show your badge (sample below) to the Jiepang staff who will issue a coupon, (6) Show coupon to bar tender, (7) Bob's your uncle!

(Wonder how many of you will try to outwit the system by just showing the above jpeg?).

Here's an introductory video explaining how Jiepang works and why you'd want to join.



As per usual, there's a HK$100 entrance fee, including one complimentary drink and the chance to win lucky draw prizes, sponsored by Spoilt.com.hk.

Our lovely assistant, Vivian, will issue receipts if you need one. (For students, you can get in for HK$50 without free booze). Thereafter, all standard drinks will be charged at special happy hour prices. 10% of entrance fees will be donated to Oxfam Hong Kong.

You can connect with Jiepang across several social media channels: their blog (we.jiepang.com), Twitter (@jiepangtw), Facebook (jiepanghk), Plurk (does anyone still use this?), Sina Weibo (t.sina.com.cn/jiepang), Douban and in person at Web Wednesday V42.0 on 24th November 2010!

November 11, 2010

Autism Stories to Share

Remember Communications Shutdown? Did you shutdown your social media on Nov 1st?

These are the kids who feel this every day and will enjoy the benefits of this charity activity.



Read some moving stories about life with autism.

LinkedIn - Facebook for Suits!

LinkedIn has become the “Facebook for suits!” (Quote copyrighted by Napoleon Biggs). For the more B2B or shy-of-consumers type client, LinkedIn presents an interesting way to dip your toe into social media. A quick summary of some core functions:

1) Search: you can pick to search by ‘people, jobs, companies, answers, inbox and groups”. As you type, it suggests results just like Google Suggest.

2) Answers: allows questions in multiple languages (I tried “中国">” and got this result. Brands can sponsor categories, like Philips is sponsoring “Health”.

3)Groups: have now evolved into more lively forums, where you can ‘Like’ ‘Comment’, Flag’ or ‘Share’ via Twitter. As the group owner, you get to set the rules of engagement, accept or reject members, post promotions, move topics to the top (“Manager’s Choice”) and link your news feeds to blogs, twitter or other RSS feeds. Come see register for Web Wednesday's Group on LinkedIn to see it in action.

4) Companies (beta): is very much like Facebook Pages in that you can chose to “Follow” a company. The default setting seems to be ‘Overview’ and ‘Careers’ but Philips has a whole section on ‘Products & Services’ that you can recommend, join, comment and share (via Twitter). And then you get fascinating statistics, pulled off LinkedIn’s database that provide various demographic breakdowns of the people in your company, what job tier they are, how long they’ve worked for you, who’s been promoted (new titles) and who’s left (departures) - you can even see which new company they joined! It also shows the company growth as reflected in staff numbers on the LinkedIn database! Check out the Philips Statistics

5) Direct Ads: again similar to Facebook Ads in that you can target by gender and age geography, job function and seniority, industry and company size. You only pay per click and can set a daily budget. Read all about it here.

Best of all, LinkedIn has a Page on Facebook and Facebook has a Companies page on LinkedIn.

November 10, 2010

Photos from Social Mixer V37.0

And how could I forget the great interview with Jeremiah Ohyang??

Photos from Social Mixer V38.0

Realised that I hadn't posted this set either. (Too damn busy, sorry!)

Photos from Social Mixer V39.0

Whilst I'm at it, here's the photos from Web Wednesday Social Mixer V39.0.

Photos from Social Mixer V41.0

Don't be shy, you were there. Come spot yourself at the last Web Wednesday Social Mixer (V41.0).



Also available on Facebook and our Flickr Group (flickr.com/groups/webwednesday.

October 24, 2010

Real-Time Journalism - Social Mixer V41.0 (Oct 27)

Calling all Hong Kong Digerati!

As Typhoon Megi bypasses Hong Kong and denies us a day off, time to plan for another social mixer where you get to meet the crème de la crème of Hong Kong's internet community.

This month's gathering (Web Wednesday HK V41.0) will take place on Wednesday 27th October and we'll be talking about "the effects of the real-time web on journalism". Let us know you're coming by signing up on Facebook or on this blog.

Our guest speaker is Kevin Drew, editor/correspondent for The New York Times’ global editions, based in Hong Kong and working on the Times' Continuous News Desk, where he focuses on breaking news for the Web sites and newspapers.

The event will kick off at 6:30pm and wind up around 9:30pm, with the interview starting at 7:15pm at Volar Bar & Club, Basement, 38-44 D'Aguilar Street, Lan Kwai Fong, Central, Hong Kong.

As per usual, there's a HK$100 entrance fee, including one complimentary drink and the chance to win incredibly slinky lucky draw prizes sponsored by Dejavu Lingerie, a local Hong Kong start-up set up by two regular Web Wednesday guests, who happen to be ex-models (yes, we attract all types, not just geeks!).

Our lovely assistant, Vivian, will issue receipts if you need one. (For students, you can get in for HK$50 without free booze). Thereafter, all standard drinks will be charged at special happy hour prices. 10% of entrance fees will be donated to Oxfam Hong Kong.

Looking forward to seeing old faces and meeting many more new ones!

October 6, 2010

Jakarta Tweet-Up: Inspiring!

Thanks to Marcel Ekkel (Twitter.com/marcelekkel) who introduced me to Della Wijaya (twitter.com/della_w), the community manager of Yahoo! Koprol, I met an inspiring group of Indonesian digerati at a Tweet-Up in Jakarta last night. With a witty twinkle in her eye, Della set up the hashtag for the event, "#BiggsTU"! See the related tweets (and some photos) here.

As my Flip was at hand, I thought it'd be fitting to quickly introduce everyone. So here they are in full glory (slightly pixelated by the video transfer):



You can follow some of them on Twitter, which has taken Indonesia by storm. Now it is the third largest community on Twitter after the US and Japan.

@della_w, @NicoAlyus, @FarahMangun, @nilatanzil, @AdityaSani, @pitra, @alderina, @wiwikwae, @aulia, @thomasarie, @aulia and @auliamasna.

Communication Shutdown Revealed









Make your donation to Autism charities around the world here.

September 29, 2010

Facebook fatique? Come Shutdown!

Something mysterious is afoot. And it happening on October 1st. No. it's not the anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China...it's to do with addiction... [Correction: I've been fooled, it's actually happening on November 1st. Keep your eyes peeled!]




Visit Communications Shutdown on the web, YouTube, Facebook and Twitter. Pumping soundtrack by star DJ David Guetta.

September 13, 2010

Magic - Web Wednesday hits 40!

Web Wednesday has hit 40 (months old)! To celebrate, we will have the funniest magician in Hong Kong, Andy Comic (andycomic.com), wooing the audience with his bilingual, impromptu show at our next social mixer on Thursday 16th September. [Yes, Web Wednesday is in denial but we couldn't afford the red sports car so thought that magic would fit in nicely with the topic of "The Dark Art of Search". Besides, Andy tells me that when he's not doing magic, he's programming PHP!]


September 12, 2010

The Dark Side of Search - Social Mixer V40.0 (Sept 16)

Calling all Asian Searcharati!

On the back of all these global search gurus attending the SES Conference in Hong Kong, I've invited a special guest, Max Sim, the ex-head of search for Rupert Murdoch's news and real estate empire to speak with us about the "The Dark Side of Search" at Web Wednesday - Social Mixer V40.0 on Thursday 16th September, 2010.

Whilst at News Corp, Max worked on the following real estate sites: realestate.com.au, propertyfinder.com, propertyfinder.ae, squarefoot.com.hk, realcommercial.com.au, casa.it, athomelorraine.fr, athomealsace.de and athome.lu.


We accept SEO/SEM virgins and black hat practitioners. White hats are asked to come under cover, just in case there is trouble! Sign up on Facebook or this blog to let us know that you're coming so that we can warn the bouncers.

As per always, we kick off at 6:30pm and wind up around 9:30pm at Volar Bar & Club, Basement, 38-44 D'Aguilar Street, Lan Kwai Fong, Central, Hong Kong. Do come early as we may have a special performance lined up.

August 24, 2010

Discounts for SES Hong Kong

Search Engine Strategies ("SES"), the world-renowned conference on search and social marketing, is coming to Hong Kong on September 13 and 14th, 2010!

Organized and programmed by the SES Advisory Board and SearchEngineWatch.com, the conference will be packed with sessions covering PPC management, keyword research, SEO, social media, local, mobile, link building, duplicate content, multiple site issues, video optimization and usability, plus networking events, parties and more.

We've negotiated a special discount rate for our members of 25% off (Sorry, the correct discount is 30% off, even better!). So instead of paying the regular US$995 for the 2-day conference, you'll pay US$746.25. Book your tickets now by visiting seshongkong.com and entering the code, "SESWW2", in the booking form.

Incisive Events, the owners of SESHK, are also generously sponsoring the top prize (a free delegate pass worth US$746.25!) at tomorrow's Web Wednesday social mixer so do come along to mix with the local Digerati, Searcharati, Twitterati and Social Media Gurus.

You can also follow SESHK on Facebook or Twitter (@sesconf_asia). The event hashtag is "#seshk", track it here. A first for a conference in Asia - a list of the speakers active on Twitter. I'm sure there will be plenty more firsts at this event.

I'll be moderating a panel on "Search & Social Games Goes Mobile" at 12:10 on Tuesday 14th. See the full agenda here.

August 11, 2010

Next Social Mixer on 25th August - Data Privacy

Calling All Asia Digerati,

Apologies for the last minute notice but I've had to postpone this month's gathering until Wednesday 25th August.

It'll be worth the wait...as the topic is "Data Privacy - does it really exist on the Internet?"

Our guest speaker will be Charles Mok, outspoken advocate of data privacy, well-known local internet entrepreneur and founder of the HK Internet Service Providers Association.

Read more about Charles on Wikipedia in English or Chinese. Read his blog - Charlesmok.blogspot.com (mostly in Chinese) or follow him across the internet on Twitter, Facebook, SlideShare, YouTube and Flickr. That's not the half of it, you can also find him on Sina Blogs (blog.sina.com.cn/charlesmok) and Sina Weibo (t.sina.com.cn/charlespmok), where has more 19,500 fans!

I'm working on another guest who will add some gun-powder to the evening so keep your Facebook eyes open.

See you on 25th August! Sign up on Facebook so we know you're coming.

Napoleon Biggs
Founder & Host - Web Wednesday

August 3, 2010

StartUp Saturday HK - Aug 7

Just when you thought that the web had run out of alliterations, along comes "StartUp Saturday", Hong Kong's answer to the TechCrunch 50. This first-time event is already over-subscribed but, if you've got a great new idea, why not turn up?




Casey and his clan have done a great job with this event and recruited a fine selection of successful local ex-start-ups as speakers and budding entrepreneurs to showcase at the event in Cyberport on Saturday 7th August 2010.

If you want to network before or after you get there - or simply listen and learn -you can chase these entrepreneurial types down on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and their Posterous blog.

Casey has also started work on a list of local technology start-ups.


Synovate Survey - My life is my phone

Latest report from Synovate on Asian Youth's fondness for the phones. See extract here.



August 1, 2010

Photos - Social Mixer V38.0

Thanks for all you 140 fearless members of the Web Wednesday community in Hong Kong who battled the elements (black rainstorm warning) to join us for our 38th social mixer and interview with Christian Cadeo from AdMob. As a reward, here are some great photos taken by PJ Hau (email: 300dpi.fotography@gmail.com or call +852 9779 7024).



If you have some photos that you'd like to add to the community, feel free to upload them either on Flickr (flickr.com/groups/webwednesday) or Facebook (facebook.webwednesday.hk)

July 23, 2010

Admob at Web Wednesday V38.0 on July 28th

Calling all Asian Digerati!

Due to the summer holidays - two weeks in sunny England - this month's social mixer will be on Wednesday 28th July at Volar.

Our guest speaker will be Christian Cadeo, Head of Brand Advertising for AdMob, which was purchased by Google last year for US$750 million.

We will be talking about the future of mobile advertising and how smart phones are changing the way we search for, find and consume multimedia content. Naturally, we'll cover how AdMob plans to counter Apple's iAds and if they are getting into bed with location-based advertising hotties, like FourSquare.

In June this year, Admob launched ad units for iPad apps. That look like this:

In November last year, they launched interactive video ads for the iPhone, which were used by Microsoft to launch Windows 7. Watch the video on an earlier posting.

The event will kick off at 6:30pm and wind up around 9:30pm, with the interview starting at 7:15pm at Volar Bar & Club, Basement, 38-44 D'Aguilar Street, Lan Kwai Fong, Central, Hong Kong.

Sign up for the event on Facebook or (if you're one of the few still resisting, on this blog).

As per usual, there's a HK$100 entrance fee, including one complimentary drink and the chance to win lucky draw prizes.

Our lovely assistant, Vivian, will issue receipts if you need one. (For students, you can get in for HK$50 without free booze). Thereafter, all standard drinks will be charged at special happy hour prices. 10% of entrance fees will be donated to Oxfam Hong Kong.

We have a lucky draw with great prizes generously donated by uBuyiBuy, Hong Kong's very own equivalent of GroupOn.

Looking forward to seeing old faces and meeting many more new ones!

Napoleon Biggs
Founder & Host - Web Wednesday Asia
Head of Digital Integration, Fleishman-Hillard Communications Asia

June 13, 2010

World Cup 2010 pushes Universal Search

June 1, 2010

Web Wednesday V37.0 on June 2nd

Calling all Asian Digerati!

Topic: "Goodbye, social media. Hello, social business!"

This month, we bring you Jeremiah Owyang, one of the world's leading web strategists (His blog: web-strategist.com) and a well-respected industry analyst (Forbes CMO Network, Bloomberg TV, SXSW) ...whom we successfully diverted from a trip to his ancestral home in Zhongshan!
We will be discussing the future of the social web and what actions organisations should take to benefit from the next evolution, otherwise known as "social CRM".

Web Wednesday - the premier networking event for Asia's Digerati - will kick off at 6:30pm and wind up around 9:30pm, with the interview starting at 7:15pm.

Venue: Volar Bar & Club, Basement, 38-44 D'Aguilar Street, Lan Kwai Fong, Central, Hong Kong.

If you're on Facebook, do sign up here so we know how many people are coming. If not, you can sign up on this blog.

As per usual, there's a HK$100 entrance fee, including one complimentary drink. Our lovely assistant, Vivian, will issue receipts if you need one. (For students, you can get in for HK$50 without free booze). Thereafter, all standard drinks will be charged at special happy hour prices.

Prizes: "Open Leadership: How social technology can transform the way you lead", by Charlene Li (Jeremiah's business partner). You can buy the book here.

We will donate 10% of entrance fees to Oxfam Hong Kong.

Looking forward to seeing old faces and meeting many more new ones!

Napoleon Biggs
Founder & Host - Web Wednesday (facebook.com/webwednesday)
Head of Digital Integration, Fleishman-Hillard Communications Asia

April 27, 2010

Web Wednesday V36.0 - May 5th

Calling all Asian Digerati!

For our third birthday, we have the pleasure of bringing you acclaimed filmaker Siok Siok Tan, who's latest creation is "Twittamentary", a crowd-sourced documentary about how the real-time web is changing social encounters around the world.

Siok (Twitter: @sioksiok) describes herself as "a filmmaker, entrepreneur and a honorary geek with a deep passion for great storytelling in the age of real time web". She is also an internet entrepreneur who has built Niurenku, an online video venture in China focused on sports, music and youth culture. Siok previously worked as an executive producer for Discovery Channel in Asia. The shows she produced have clinched more than a dozen awards and nominations at the Asian TV Awards and the Golden Bell Awards. Siok has also been a visiting lecturer at the Beijing Film Academy, where she directed a documentary about the Beijing Olympics (Boomtown Beijing) with the assistance of her students. Siok holds a Bachelor of Arts degree (Honors) in Comparative Literature from Brown University, USA.

We'll be having other birthday surprises so do come along on Wednesday 5th May at Volar Bar & Club, Basement, 38-44 D'Aguilar Street, Lan Kwai Fong, Central, Hong Kong.

The mixer will kick off at 6:30pm and wind up around 9:30pm, with the interview starting at 7:15pm. We'll be showing extracts of the documentary.

If you're on Facebook, do sign up here so we know how many people are coming. If not, you can sign up on this blog.

As per usual, there's a HK$100 entrance fee, including one complimentary drink. Our lovely assistant, Vivian, will issue receipts if you need one. (For students, you can get in for HK$50 without free booze). Thereafter, all standard drinks will be charged at special happy hour prices.

We will donate 10% of entrance fees to help fund the completion of Twittamentary.

Looking forward to seeing old faces and meeting many more new ones!

Napoleon Biggs
Founder & Host - Web Wednesday
Head of Digital Integration, Fleishman-Hillard Communications Asia

April 19, 2010

How to manage a social media overload

[This is an extract from a recent article published in Media on 26th March 2010. Read the full article here].

Social network overload? Napoleon Biggs, vice-president and head of digital integration for Asia-Pacific at Fleishman-Hillard, shares his secret on how to deal with more than one online presence at a time.

I'm suffering from social media overload! Maintaining my social media presence has become a burden. Being a person that thrives on social interaction, I never thought that I'd reach this stage in my life.

Let’s start with some history.

In the beginning, there was Facebook. The world of status updates was simple. Facebook even told us how to start the sentence: “Napoleon is …

Then along came a punky upstart by the odd name of “Twitter”. Its open platform rapidly encouraged people to share links (with URL shorteners, like Bit.ly), upload and comment on photos (with Twitpic), retweet other people's thoughts and star your favourites. All this within the space of 140 characters.

The world of status updates changed overnight. Now everyone and his mother is offering status updates, be it Sina Weibo, Google Buzz, Plaxo Pulse (recently renamed "Stream") or Me2day memos.

Thanks to the creativity of the open source world(s) we currently inhabit, there are quite a few tools out there to manage all these conversations and they are all heading in the same direction.

Many started as tools for managing Twitter conversations, like Tweetdeck, Hootsuite and Seesmic but have now integrated Facebook as well. Ping.fm allows you to manage your status updates across multiple platforms at once. But, I’m going to run through a tool that I find works very well in an office environment, for managing your work and personal messaging platforms.

It’s called “Digsby”. No it’s not related to the large fluffy dog ‘Digby’, but is almost as faithful to its master’s demands. The software comes in Windows, Mac and Linux versions, and can be downloaded at www.digsby.com.

[Read more on Media.asia]

Emergency relief to Qinghai Earthquake

Following our established tradition, we will donate 10% of the entrance fees at the upcoming Web Wednesday event (6:30pm - 9:30pm, 21st April at Volar) to help Oxfam Hong Kong provide emergency relief to survivors of the recent earthquake in Qinghai, China.

You can also donate separately on the Oxfam HK website (oxfam.org.hk).

Oxfam is catching up with mapping technology to show where they are active as per below. The map was created using MapMaker.

April 12, 2010

Web Wednesday V35.0 - April 21st

Note: Event postponed to 21st April at Volar, Lan Kwai Fong.

Calling all Asian Digerati!

Given the renewed buzz about ebooks created by the recently launched iPad, I thought it only fitting to invite Greg Sung, the Founder and CEO of aNobii - "the neatest thing for booklovers since paper", to speak at this month's social mixer on Wednesday 21st April at Volar Bar & Club, Basement, 38-44 D'Aguilar Street, Lan Kwai Fong, Central, Hong Kong.

Greg will explain how he has successfully tapped into people's passion for reading to create a community of digital bookworms, who have shared over 19 million titles via personalised bookshelves. We will also discuss how aNobii is using barcodes, iPhones and iPads to make the reading and book ordering experience so much more convenient.


The mixer will kick off at 6:30pm and wind up around 9:30pm, with the interview starting at 7:15pm.

As usual, there's a HK$100 entrance fee (paid at the door) which includes one complimentary drink and access to the whole event. Our lovely assistant, Vivian, will issue receipts if you need one. (For students, you can get in for HK$50 without free booze). Thereafter, all standard drinks will be charged at special happy hour prices.

We will donate 10% of entrance fees to Oxfam Hong Kong.

Looking forward to seeing old faces and meeting many more new ones!

Napoleon Biggs
Founder & Host - Web Wednesday
Head of Digital Integration, Fleishman-Hillard Communications Asia

March 12, 2010

Data gets sexy

Google's quest to organise the world's data has just moved a step closer with the launch of Public Data Explorer. Although I'm not a data-head, I can't help but like this kind of easy visualisation.

February 24, 2010

First 2 Forward - Match 8 (Tonight!)

The next exciting episode of First 2 Forward is tonight! It's time for Cat Fight! 今晚,不見不散!

Join the creative trendsetters on the Facebook Page invite or follow First2Forward on Twitter (@first2forward).

MC Hyperlink is guaranteed to entertain in a funny mixture of English and Cantonese. And you get to see the hottest links on the current web, ahead of anyone else (apart, from the others who attend of course!). All the links are then shared on the web at www.first2forward.com for you to enjoy at your own leisure, away from all those shy creative types!

February 2, 2010

Red Net Prizes

Sherman has tapped into her friends in the Chinese Internet and sourced some great prizes for the lucky draw at tomorrow's Web Wednesday event in Hong Kong:

  • Signed copies of her new book, "Red Wired - China's Internet Revolution",
  • YouKu gifts signed by it's founder, Victor Ku,
  • Credit Suisse's internet analyst report, signed by its author Wallace Cheung,
  • Not-to-be-missed, a stuffed bear character from NetDragon's online game "Kaixin",
  • Momo Wang's cartoon book, "I, Tuzki, U" signed with bonus hand-drawings (see below):

Public Relations in 2010

The nice folks at the Hong Kong PR Network have invited me to speak at their monthly gathering tonight to comment on "A Decade of PR: The Past and the Next".


After only 5 months working inside the PR industry with Fleishman-Hillard, I'm not sure if I fully qualify for the role but at least my 13 year in digital communications count for something. Over the years, I have dealt with many a PR practitioner, be it in sports marketing or digital marketing, so I have a good understanding from whence they came.

This is where I see PR being in 2010 (or even earlier!):

Firstly, corporate structure will have changed in order to reflect the (new) way that media is consumed and opinions are formed. This is already happening at big media conglomerates like Disney and Fox, who are breaking down their channel silos.


Communications agencies will adapt and move away from job descriptions, like digital agency, media buying house or PR consultancy, and become all round communicators who specialise in a particular industry.

There will be a new member of the "C-Suite", known as the "Chief Reputation Officer" (CRO). Not only will this person manage the reputation and public perception of the company and its products but also that of its executives, who will become their own brands (thanks to social media, especially microblogging). Hands-on digital expertise will be at the core of this job.

The CRO will have a team of research analysts tracking all channels and providing real-time updates in changes of public (and internal) perceptions.

HR will want to know what you say about your company and colleagues, but may not necessarily tell you it's tracking your conversations - call it 24 x 7 "360 assessments"!

Public Affairs: governments and individual politicians will become more accountable and more open to direct questions from constituents, but will also get much better at monitoring and directing public opinion. (The tools are already there, but the know how is lacking).

Grass roots movements on the Net become the norm.

Self-service PR: much like advertising has been commoditized by Google, you will see self-service platforms for buying online influence. Just look at what Nuffnang is doing with bloggers in ASEAN or how you can buy influence in China via the "50 cent gang".

Back-2-Boutique: highly fragmented audiences and disperse channels will require consultants to specialise in niche areas, such as healthcare, finance, public affairs. There simply isn't enough time in the day to be an expert at managing communications for multiple clients from different industries.

I can't wait to see how the PR professionals refute these theories.

February 1, 2010

Help Haiti

The recent earthquake Haiti has struck our hearts and minds. Now it's time to open our wallets!

Following in good tradition, we'll be donating 10% of the entrance fees from this month's Web Wednesday social mixer on 3rd February in Hong Kong to Oxfam (樂施會) to support their relief efforts in Haiti.

An excerpt of a situation update from the Oxfam website, "Ten tonnes of new stock was flown from the United Kingdom to Santo Domingo in the Dominican Republic on Saturday and has now arrived in Port-au-Prince. Thirty tonnes of stock departed from the UK yesterday and will be followed by a further flight, carrying 50 tonnes of Oxfam aid on Friday. Water trucking has begun in several locations across Port-au-Prince, but operations were briefly halted because of lack of fuel around the capital."

Some photos from Oxfam Hong Kong's photostream on Flickr account to show the disaster...



Make your donation here.


January 28, 2010

Web Wednesday - Social Mixer V33.0 (Feb 3)

Calling all Asian Digerati!

With Google's threatened withdrawal from China, all eyes are now on the future plight of the Internet in this country with over 384 million netizens.

To give us true insights into where this could all go, I've invited Sherman So, Co-Author of "Red Wired - China's Internet Revolution" to speak at Web Wednesday V33.0 on 3rd February at BackStage Live, 1/F Somptueux Central, 52-54 Wellington Street, Central (just up the road from the famous Yung Kee Restaurant).

Sherman was the former lead technology reporter for the South China Morning Post and is a regular contributor to the Hong Kong Economic Times. You can read more about her book on her website: RedWiredRevolution.com

The mixer will kick off at 6:30pm and wind up around 9:30pm, with the interview at 7:15ish. Sign up here on Facebook.

As per usual, there's a HK$100 entrance fee, including one complimentary drink. Our lovely assistant, Vivian, will issue receipts if you need one. (For students, you can get in for HK$50 without free booze). Thereafter, all standard drinks will be charged at a special happy hour discount of 30% off.

We will donate 10% of entrance fees to the victims of the earthquake in Haiti.

Looking forward to seeing old faces and meeting many more new ones!

Napoleon Biggs
Founder & Host - Web Wednesday

January 20, 2010

First 2 Forward - Match 7 (Jan. 20th)

January 6, 2010

Web Wednesday on CNNGO

Turner's (relatively new) travel venture, CNNGO (cnngo.com), has picked up tonight's Web Wednesday interview with "Singaporean web mogul, Benjamin Marc Wee" (original article here) and added a rather strange interview from YouTube (as per below). Thanks for the mention, CNNGoers!

January 1, 2010

Subject: IT 人 一月一日一齊 March: 還我普選元旦大遊行 | Give me Universal Suffrage: March on

我們 – IT呼聲的成員 – 祝你們聖誕快樂,新年進步!

在香港,政府就2012年政制改革諮詢文件就普選及民主的安排令人失望,「過去、現在和未來的功能團體幽靈」驅之不散。香港人還要等多久?

在元旦日,IT呼聲邀請你與我們攜手並肩,同行為民生、為我們的下一代!

集合時間: 2:30 - 2:45pm
集合地點: 港鐵中環站 J2 出口(遮打花園)

我們並將在一月為資訊科技界舉行論壇,討論政府的2012年政制改革諮詢,請各位留意。

讓我們再次祝願你和你的家人,在新的一年得到平安、健康和喜樂。

IT呼聲*
http://www.facebook.com/l/a58eb;www.itvoice.hk

* 羅彬博士、鍾宏安、方保僑、梁兆昌、莫乃光、吳其彥教授、宋德嘉、邱祖淇博士、楊和生、葉旭輝 


We, the members of IT Voice, wish you Happy New Year!

The Hong Kong Government's proposal for the 2012 constitutional arrangement has fellfallen short of our people's aspirations for universal suffrage and true democracy. Ghost of functional constituencies past, present and future just wouldn't go away. How much longer can Hong Kong wait?

On January 1, 2010, IT Voice invites you to walk hand in hand for democracy, for the future of our next generation.

Gathering Time: 2:30-2:45pm
Gathering Place: MTR Exit J2, Central Station (next to Chater Garden)

IT Voice will also organize an open forum in January for the IT sector to discuss the proposal in the Government's constitutional reform consultation. Please stay tuned.

Once again, we wish you and your family peace, health and happiness in 2010.

IT Voice*
http://www.facebook.com/l/a58eb;www.itvoice.hk

* Dr Robin Bradbeer, Edmon Chung, Francis Fong, SC Leung, Charles Mok, Prof Joseph Ng, Chester Soong, Dr Joe Yau, Lento Yip, Sang Young

http://www.facebook.com/l/a58eb;www.it360.hk/1-1-2010/