Making Your Smartphone Emergency-Ready - Fall 2013 Update

Making Your Smartphone Emergency-Ready

As a public information officer or communicator for your company or agency, your role likely includes emergency response. With today’s fast-moving world of social media and instant news, it is absolutely critical that you have the ability to work from anywhere. After all, when disaster strikes, you may be at home without access to the resources of your office, the power could go out, or you might need to report to a field command post.

Your smartphone is an incredibly-powerful tool, but is your phone disaster-ready? Does it have the apps that will allow you to function on the go? My recommendations below are based on programs available for iPhone and/or iPad, which are the most-often carried devices, but many of these apps (or similar ones) are also available for Android devices. (If you have a Windows phone, or Blackberry device, you’ll find fewer choices).

Getting Started
The first thing is making sure you have the essentials to keep your phone operating and connected.  Get a small zippered pouch to carry your phone charger, its USB charging cable, and ear bud headphone. Keep this bag with you always – in your purse, messenger bag, briefcase, backpack or car.

Just as important is a backup battery to keep your phone charged. This is critical: your phone’s battery won’t last many hours with heavy use. My favorite is the Hyperjuice Plug backup battery with twin USB charging ports, which will fully charge an iPhone up to nine times. Keep the backup battery charged and with you.

Safety Apps
Flashlight
Your phone’s LED camera light will brighten your world when the power goes out. The flashlight function is now built into the iOS 7 operating system for iPhone, but if you don’t have that, flashlight apps can be downloaded for free from your device’s app store.

Productivity Apps
DocScanner
Need to make a PDF? DocScanner allows you to take a photo of any document, automatically crops it, and turns it into a PDF that you can email or post. Instantly distribute news releases electronically during a disaster!

Google Maps
Easily check out evacuation perimeters, streets and landmarks with Google Maps. You can even take a quick screen shot then share the image to social media.

Screen Capture
This is not an app, but a feature of most smartphones. It allows you to take a photo of whatever is on your device’s screen, such as a map of an evacuation zone. On iPhone and iPad, you snap a screen shot by simultaneously pushing the round Home button on the front of the device and the rectangular button on the top right side of the device. Look in the Camera Roll for your screen shot, then e-mail it or post it to social media in seconds.

Dropbox
Everyone needs cloud storage for backup or document-sharing, and Dropbox is one of the most popular. Set up your account, then install the app. You can use it for transferring large files to colleagues, or to file documents, photos and notes collected during an emergency for archival purposes.

Monitoring Apps
Emergency Radio or Scanner
Emergency response enthusiasts provide thousands of real-time audio feeds of police and fire radio scanners. These apps allow you to monitor public safety agencies in many communities as they roll units and respond to emergencies.

iHeartRadio
This radio station app allows you to listen in to the live broadcasts of hundreds of radio stations across the country, including news/talk stations that provide breaking news coverage of major disasters. It’s a great way to monitor what’s being reported when the power is out or you can’t be near a radio.

Multimedia Apps
iMovie
Social media excels at distributing content quickly during disasters, and video always gets lots of clicks and shares. Shoot a quick update by the event spokesperson at the Joint Information Center, open it in iMovie to trim the beginning and end of the video and add a title, then use one-button upload to share it instantly to Facebook or YouTube.

(Hint: Get a tripod mount and lavaliere (clip-on) microphone for your smartphone so you can shoot steady videos with great audio quality. Here’s a page on my web site that has my recommended phone accessories: http://www.kerryshearer.com/techstore/)

SoundCloud
Don’t forget the power of audio and sharing your content with radio stations. SoundCloud is the YouTube of the audio world. You can record sound bites with your spokesperson or subject matter expert, trim the clip using another app, such as iRig Recorder, then do a one-button upload to SoundCloud. You can share the link video social media and get your information on the air fast!

BFF (Broadcast For Friends)
BFF lets you do a live video broadcast to your Facebook page, and archives the broadcast for later viewing. Mount your smartphone to a tripod and point it at the podium during a news conference, then hit the BFF Broadcast button to go live!

UStream
UStream is another service that provides an app which allows you to webcast live from your smartphone or tablet. You can share the live link or embed the webcast on your web site, as well as archive the broadcast for later playback.

Skype
Skype is another popular live video app. Most TV stations are all set up to put a Skype interview on the air live, so it’s a great way to make your subject matter expert available. Remember to use your smartphone camera’s built-in LED light to illuminate your interviewee at night or whenever indoor lighting is inadequate.

Voice Recorder
Most phones have a simple voice recorder app that allows you to easily record briefings, take audio notes, or even interview subject matter experts for posting to social media.

Event Coordination
Voxer
Staying in touch with your PIO team to coordinate response during a disaster is essential. The Voxer app turns your phone into a push-to-talk walkie talkie, allowing you to send voice messages in near-real time. You can also send text, photos and location information. As a bonus, all conversations are archived for later replay.

GroupMe
No more laborious typing of multiple contact names into a text message header when you want to reach several team members at once. With GroupMe, you set up a list of recipients just once, then they are all on the list. When anyone in the group sends a message or replies, everyone on the list gets it at once. Photos can also be attached. It’s an efficient way to keep everyone in the loop.

This is just the start of apps that will help make your smartphone or tablet emergency-ready. There are many other great tools, such as the Red Cross’ series of emergency apps covering fires, earthquakes, floods and more. The CDC has an excellent app containing important health information and links to tools and resources as well.

Keep your eye open for additional apps that will help you work effienciently from the field, and you’ll feel a lot more confident knowing your phone or tablet are emergency-ready!

Kerry Shearer is a social media trainer, public health communicator, and member of NPHIC’s Web and Social Media Committee. You can reach him at kerry.shearer@gmail.com, follow him on Twitter @kerryshearer, on Facebook at KerryShearerFan, or visit his web site at www.KerryShearer.com.

o it’s a great way to make your subject matter expert available. Remember to use your smartphone camera’s built-in LED light to illuminate your interviewee at night or whenever indoor lighting is inadequate.

Voice Recorder
Most phones have a simple voice recorder app that allows you to easily record briefings, take audio notes, or even interview subject matter experts for posting to social media.

Event Coordination
Voxer
Staying in touch with your PIO team to coordinate response during a disaster is essential. The Voxer app turns your phone into a push-to-talk walkie talkie, allowing you to send voice messages in near-real time. You can also send text, photos and location information. As a bonus, all conversations are archived for later replay.

GroupMe
No more laborious typing of multiple contact names into a text message header when you want to reach several team members at once. With GroupMe, you set up a list of recipients just once, then they are all on the list. When anyone in the group sends a message or replies, everyone on the list gets it at once. Photos can also be attached. It’s an efficient way to keep everyone in the loop.

This is just the start of apps that will help make your smartphone or tablet emergency-ready. There are many other great tools, such as the Red Cross’ series of emergency apps covering fires, earthquakes, floods and more. The CDC has an excellent app containing important health information and links to tools and resources as well.

Keep your eye open for additional apps that will help you work effienciently from the field, and you’ll feel a lot more confident knowing your phone or tablet are emergency-ready!

Let's connect! Click here to get my free periodic social media tips, tools and techniques!

Kerry Shearer is a social media trainer, public health communicator, and member of the National Public Health Information Coalition's Web and Social Media Committee. You can follow him on Twitter @kerryshearer, on Facebook at KerryShearerFan, or visit his web site at www.KerryShearer.com.

Social Media Savvy: Getting Started with Video to Effectively Communicate

Web video is exploding in popularity, with over 800 million unique visitors watching over 4-billion hours of video each month on YouTube alone! And with more agencies and organizations participating in social media spaces like Facebook and Twitter, it's important to realize that videos get more clicks and "shares" from users than plain old text-based content alone. So how do you get started creating your own content? It's easier than you might think! Here are some tips:

What To Share
Your agency does many everyday activities that can make great video content. Holding a conference or on-site forum? Do a brief recap video summarizing the key points. Holding a community event? Release a promotional video in advance, then post a quick "update" during the event itself for immediate sharing. Got a hot topic making news in your are of influence? Sit down with your subject matter expert and do a short interview concisely covering what people need to know. Getting unfairly bashed by the media? Shoot your own video telling the whole story.

Cameras
You don't need to spend a lot to get a good video camera. The Kodak Zi10 (currently available for about $99 on Amazon.com) is the only small pocket camera of its kind with a removable SDHC memory card and a connector to plug in a microphone. Another option is the iPhone or iPad. The newest models have excellent built-in cameras that record in HD, and tripod mounts are available so you can shoot rock-steady shots. Canon Vixia video cameras are known for great quality and start at about $300. If you plan to shoot a lot and have the funds available, you may wish to invest in a more expensive camera with better image sensors and professional audio connectors. (Visit my web site at www.KerryShearer.com for recommendations on all these options).

Audio Technica ATR-3350 wired lavaliere microphone - less than $20

Audio
Lesser-quality video is forgivable, but poor quality audio is not. That's why you never want to use a camera's built-in microphone to record interviews; it will sound hollow or echoey when the person speaking from several feet away. When buying, choose a camera that allows you to plug in an external microphone. Inexpensive cameras use a 3.5mm connector (the size of a mini headphone jack). Higher-cost cameras ($1,800+) use heavy-duty 3-pin XLR audio connectors, the professional standard. Clip-on lavaliere, hand-held, or wireless mics are available no matter what kind of connector you have.

Shooting Video
If you have a high definition camera, always shoot in HD, which creates a widescreen (16:9 aspect ratio) image at the highest quality. Even if you are going to output the final product in standard definition widescreen format for the web, it will look a lot better if the original footage is HD. Make sure you have adequate lighting, and never shoot interviewees in front of an office window, as the backlighting will fool an inexpensive camera's auto-exposure mechanism and darken the image. Use a tripod whenever possible. Most cheap tripods don't allow for smooth panning or tilting, so get a fluid-head tripod if the budget allows. Be sure to capture a variety of wide, medium and tight shots to allow yourself plenty of editing options. If you go hand-held, hold the camera securely with both hands and lock your elbows to the sides of your torso, When you pan left or right, move your entire upper body. This will allow much steadier shots. During interviews where an off-camera producer is asking questions of your subject matter expert, place the producer just to the side of the camera so the interviewee is not looking directly into the lens.

Transferring Your Video
Once you have recorded all the elements of your video, it is time to transfer the files to the computer. Because virtually all of today's cameras capture video directly to memory cards instead of old-school DV tape, the process is fast and easy: you can simply place the memory card into a card reader connected to your computer and drag the video files right onto your computer’s hard drive and start editing immediately. Many cameras also allow you to connect to your computer via a USB cable to transfer files.

Video Editing Programs
Whether you are PC or Mac-based, there are many editing program choices. For PC, the most basic (and perhaps least versatile) is Windows Movie Maker, which can be downloaded free from the Microsoft site. Next up is Adobe Premiere Elements, a less-capable version of the full-featured Adobe Premiere Pro. For Apple users, Adobe makes a Mac version of Premiere Pro. Or, you can use Apple’s iMovie, the less-expensive version of its pricier Final Cut Pro X. If you plan to invest some resources, consider Adobe's CS6 Production Premium suite. It's expensive, but offers a whole suite of integrated programs to aid you in your productions, and the overall cost is far less than buying the programs individually. These suites typically contain programs that allow you to manipulate and prepare still images, create compelling animated opens and closes for your videos, and burn DVDs with menus. If you're shooting on iPhone or iPad, download Apple's $4.99 iMovie app. You can edit and upload right from your i-device!

How To Edit
You’ll need to dedicate some time to learning the video editing program you select. But they all use the same concept: You drag your imported video clips down what is called the editing “timeline” and line them up in the order you want to use them. Selection tools let you trim the starting point and ending point for each clip. You can then apply video effects, such as a smooth “dissolve” between clips, or perhaps a “wipe” or “zoom” transition. Editing programs offer many options – the key is to keep it simple and not overuse effects, which can dilute the impact of your production if not used effectively. The timeline offers multiple “layers” of audio and video, so you can stack effects. For example, you might have a medium shot of the on-camera host on video layer one, then put an over-the-shoulder graphic on video layer two. The host's audio would be on audio layer one, and background music on audio layer two.

Outputting Your Completed Video
Once your production is done, it’s time to output it. The great thing is that video editing programs have export "presets" for specific services, such as YouTube or Vimeo. For example, when I export videos, I generally use the "YouTube HD" preset, which creates a high-def file in a web-friendly H.264 compression standard format. I also recommend saving a copy of your project in its full, original quality (usually .AVI or .MOV). You can also burn the project to DVD.

Producing your own web videos can be very beneficial for your agency and really ramps up your social media engagement. It allows you to create content quickly and update it as often as needed. Start simple, and expand as you develop more skills.

I'll be posting training on my web site to help communicators develop their video, audio and social media skills. Please visit www.KerryShearer.com to be notified about free training materials as they become available.

Have fun, and I'll look for you on YouTube!

Let's connect! Click here to get my free periodic social media tips, tools and techniques!

Kerry Shearer is a broadcaster, communicator, social media/communications consultant, and Chair of the National Public Health Information Coalition's Web and Social Media Committee. He's a frequent emergency communications trainer and speaker at national conferences on social media and web audio/video techniques.