Social Media

• Most Topular Stories

• 5 Key Benefits Of Social Customer Service

  Social Fresh

  Michael Brito

  15 May 2012 | 8:04 am

  Originally published at SocialBusinessNews.com Last week, thinkJar and Sword Ciboodle released a whitepaper, We Are Social: The State of Social Customer Service, and in it identified the top 5 primary benefits of social customer service: Increased Customer Satisfaction Meet Customer Expectations Intangible Benefit Increased Loyalty Reduced Cost of Customer Support Other benefits included increased revenue and deflected phone calls coming into the call center. One data point that I found interesting is that a little over 20 percent of those surveyed reported that they are not using social…

• Seven Principles of Content Marketing

  PR-Squared - Social Media Marketing and Public Relations

  Todd Defren

  14 May 2012 | 1:20 pm

  Now that we’ve all agreed that “Content is King (Again),” and Content Marketing is all the rage, maybe it is time to think about some easy-to-follow tenets.  Let’s keep this simple. Follow a 70/30 Rule – 70% of content curated, 30% branded.  Why? Because the rest-of-the-world is at least 70% more interesting than your brand; and, promoting external content builds social capital, makes grateful fans of influencers. All content should be SHAREWORTHY.  Don’t publish junk.  Better to be quiet than to queer the signal-to-noise ratio. All content should benefit…

• Why Small Business Have A Huge Advantage Over Brands In Social Media

  socialmouths

  Francisco Rosales

  10 May 2012 | 12:18 pm

  I currently have the fortune to experience two different fronts of digital marketing. Under Plural, I work with brands and, with SocialMouths I mostly jam with small business, personal brands, and bloggers. One of the reasons I absolutely love this setup is that they are two different worlds in how the social web is approached, how it’s handled and how success is measured. So I’m here to tell you that, despite the ridiculous budgets and unlimited resources, small business has a huuuge advantage over brands when it come to social media. Here are my thoughts: Strategy. Or Not? This…

• The Irony Of Measuring Marketing Now

  Social Media Explorer

  Jason Falls

  14 May 2012 | 8:00 am

  I once provided counsel for a company that had little confidence in social media marketing. It begrudgingly decided it would hire a consultant, go through some strategic exercises and probably prove that social media was bullshit and it would be better off sticking with its traditional guns. The brand’s insistence with my work, as is with most clients I’ve dealt with, was that we measure everything as infinitely as possible. Skeptics are like that. They want to know how many clicks, how many re-tweets, how many milliseconds the time-on-site number increases each month, even if…

• 6 Tips for Using Pinterest for Business

  Social Media Examiner

  Mitt Ray

  14 May 2012 | 7:00 am

  Are you wondering how Pinterest could help your business?Pinterest is one of the hottest social media sites at the moment. Pinterest was the fastest stand alone site ever to reach 10 million monthly unique visitors.One study shows how Pinterest has been bringing in more traffic to websites than LinkedIn, Google+ and YouTube put together.Brands are benefiting with Pinterest in generating traffic and sales.So if you’d like to attract a lot of traffic to your website using Pinterest, check out these 6 tips.#1: Use Original Pictures to Drive TrafficIf you visit the Popular Section of…

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  building43

• AngelPad: Building Great Startups!

  Robert Scoble

  8 May 2012 | 10:36 am

  AngelPad is a mentorship program founded by Thomas Korte with a team of ex-Google employees to help technology startups build better products, attract seed funding and grow more successful businesses. AngelPad provides founders with funding, mentorship and the chance to work alongside other great founders at the AngelPad office in San Francisco. “AngelPad is in the business of taking companies from a very early stage, anytime from idea to some prototyping, all the way through fundraising and beyond as they become part of the network of companies in AngelPad,” explains Thomas Korte,…

• Firebase: Syncing Data between Clients

  Robert Scoble

  7 May 2012 | 9:17 am

  Firebase is a cloud service that automatically synchronizes data between clients and with their cloud servers. It frees developers from worrying about how their data will be communicated and stored, and allows them to focus on their own application logic. Apps built with Firebase can be written entirely with client-side JavaScript, update in real-time out-of-the-box, are inherently scalable, and interoperate well with existing services. “Firebase is a scalable real-time backend. What that means in layman terms is it’s like Dropbox for your applications data. It really let you build great…

• BoostCTR: Improving Online Ad Copy

  Robert Scoble

  7 May 2012 | 8:25 am

  BoostCTR powers leading advertisers and agencies to optimize ad content across search and social networks. It is the first comprehensive and systematic approach to optimizing ad content. The Boost Method combines proprietary technology with its network of 500+ expert copywriters to deliver highly effective, performance-driven online ad copy at scale. Founded three and a half years ago in Miami, BoostCTR is now headquartered in San Francisco. David Greenbaum, CEO of BoostCTR says, “BoostCTR is a service that is focused and dedicated on one thing – which is improving pay-per-click (PPC) ad…

• Podio: Managing Your Work Better & Smarter

  Robert Scoble

  4 May 2012 | 7:27 am

  Podio is an online work platform. It allows people to manage their work better, smarter and in their own way. Podio is currently based in Copenhagen, with a multinational team of German, French, British, and Danish employees. You can work with everyone on Podio – your co-workers or your clients, contractors and suppliers. Podio adds structure to any type of work. Pick an app to fit your specific needs and start to work the way you want. More than 45,000 apps have been built or modified by Podio users. Or you can build your own app on Podio, without technical skills. Apps have been built…

• Zaarly: Ask for Anything

  Robert Scoble

  3 May 2012 | 2:07 pm

  Zaarly is altering the way people outsource simple errands and tasks. The site works by letting people post requests for an item or service, and then lets other people, businesses and companies bid to fulfill those needs. Once an agreement is met, Zaarly connects the two parties so they can complete the deal. People can either pay in cash when the service is complete, or through Zaarly’s payment system. In March 2011 during SXSWi in Austin, Texas, Zaarly was beta-tested and introduced nationally in early May of the same year. Since then, the company has attracted over 100,000 users and…

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  Social Media Examiner

• 6 Ways to Grow YouTube Subscribers and Your Exposure

  James Wedmore

  15 May 2012 | 7:00 am

  Are you seeking more visibility for your YouTube videos?Are you wondering how others do it?If you want the massive views, exposure and targeted traffic that YouTube offers, you need to focus on first building an audience—or as YouTube calls them, subscribers.Why YouTube Subscribers?A YouTube subscriber is someone who has chosen to “follow” your channel and your content so they can stay updated with your latest videos. In essence, a subscriber can become a raving fan who watches, comments and shares your videos with others. Building up a strong subscriber base is essential for…

• 6 Tips for Using Pinterest for Business

  Mitt Ray

  14 May 2012 | 7:00 am

  Are you wondering how Pinterest could help your business?Pinterest is one of the hottest social media sites at the moment. Pinterest was the fastest stand alone site ever to reach 10 million monthly unique visitors.One study shows how Pinterest has been bringing in more traffic to websites than LinkedIn, Google+ and YouTube put together.Brands are benefiting with Pinterest in generating traffic and sales.So if you’d like to attract a lot of traffic to your website using Pinterest, check out these 6 tips.#1: Use Original Pictures to Drive TrafficIf you visit the Popular Section of…

• Google+ Hangouts On Air for Everyone: This Week in Social Media

  Cindy King

  12 May 2012 | 7:00 am

  Welcome to our weekly edition of what’s hot in social media news. To help you stay up-to-date with social media, here are some of the news items that caught our attention.What’s New This Week?Google+ Hangouts On Air Now Available Worldwide: Google+ Hangouts On Air was launched last September to a limited number of broadcasters and is now rolling out to the rest of the world.  This means “you can now go live in front of a global audience.” Here’s a reminder of what you can do:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3pmSWh2BQcoFacebook Announces The App Center: The App…

• How Online Video Can Grow Your Business and Your Brand

  Michael Stelzner

  11 May 2012 | 7:00 am

  In this video I interview Steve Garfield, who is the author of the book Get Seen: Online Video Secrets to Building Your Business.Steve shares insights into how video can give your company a competitive advantage. He also shares tips on how to get started and what to look out for in the future.Be sure to check out the takeaways below after you watch the video.Here are some of the things you’ll learn in this video:Why you should consider using video for your businessHow you can use video to create a competitive advantageAdvice on how you can create quality video on a small budgetHow to…

• 5 Ways Social Media Can Increase Your Revenue From Existing Customers

  Nichole Kelly

  10 May 2012 | 7:00 am

  Are you using social media to keep your existing customers happy?Do you want to figure out how to drive revenue from existing customers through the social channel?This post will give you 5 tips to gain more revenue from your existing customers using social media.Why Focus on Existing Customers?For many companies, connecting with their existing customers is a natural fit for social media. These companies are seeing conversations about their brands, their competitors and their industry that provide them with an opportunity to engage others in dialogue.There are two types of strategies that…

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  TechCrunch

• F.ounders Hits New York To Gather The Next Wave Of Global Tech Stars

  Mike Butcher

  16 May 2012 | 5:13 am

  The are almost too many tech events in the calendar these days to mark any particular one out as being worthy of note. I say almost because, on the global stage at least, TechCrunch Disrupt (Ok, Ok, but still…) remains up there because of how much other media attend and, well, just it’s general awesomeness. Into this small basket you could also put, for instance, Le Web, Founders Forum in the UK, DLD, The Lobby Conference, the tech elements at Davos and maybe even TED. What few of them are doing however, is celebrating new blood. You tend to see the people who have made it, not…

• Facebook May Be Worth $100B, But What Are You Worth To Facebook?

  Rip Empson

  16 May 2012 | 4:32 am

  It’s almost here. The big day. Can you feel the excitement? Yes, if all goes according to plan on Friday, Mark Zuckerberg will ring the Nasdaq bell in a hoodie, the big blue social network will go forward with one of the largest IPOs for an internet company in history, the markets will hit a fever pitch, the Four Horseman of the Apocalypse will update their statuses — and the rest of us will just go back to using Twitter. Nonetheless, Facebook is expected to go public at a valuation between $92 and $103 billion. As such, it’s pretty clear what Facebook is worth to us…

• Gartner: Q1 2012 Phone Sales Declined 2%, Dragged Down By Asia-Pacific. Samsung Leads All

  Ingrid Lunden

  16 May 2012 | 4:25 am

  Sign of a maturing marketing flattening out, a lack of compelling devices, or a contraction in the economy? Gartner today released figures that note that worldwide sales of mobile phones were actually down by two percent this quarter, to reach a total of 419.1 million units — the first time the market has declined since the second quarter of 2009, the analysts say. Gartner’s explanation is a slowdown in demand from Asia-Pacific, because of a lack of compelling new devices getting launched in the period: users are simply holding out until something better comes along. Nevertheless,…

• iZettle, The ‘Square Of Europe’, Checks Out Mobile Payments In The UK With 3,000 Free Readers For SMBs

  Ingrid Lunden

  16 May 2012 | 1:59 am

  With Square yet to reveal when or where it might offer its mobile payment service in Europe, and PayPal apparently still only talking with would-be partners, the door is wide open for more local players to jump in and pick up some market share. Sweden’s iZettle, which often gets compared to Square, is now doing just that: today it is launching its iOS, dongle-based mobile payment service to the UK, four months after its pan-nordic live launch, and as it is preparing to launch an Android version of its product later this year. iZettle kicking off its service by giving away 3,000 card…

• Moonfruit Finally Exits For $29 Million In Cash To Re-energize Yell

  Mike Butcher

  16 May 2012 | 1:01 am

  In the white heat of the current tech market it’s sometimes easy to forget that some companies, although taking their time, simply become viable businesses – instead of waiting for a call from Facebook or Twitter that may never come. I’ve been covering web site and shop builder Moonfruit for longer than I care to remember (they launched in 2000), but along the way husband and wife team Joe and Wendy White kept on pushing the company until it was one of the most innovative of its kind out there. Today that hard work is rewarded in Moonfruit’s acquisition by directories…

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  ReadWriteWeb

• Top 10 Windows 8 Features #6: Secure Boot

  16 May 2012 | 5:00 am

  It's the single greatest dilemma of modern society: How much freedom would you trade to get more security - or vice versa? Since Windows XP became the most exploited operating system in history, Microsoft has taken bold moves - not all of them very popular, but usually very effective - to sever the routes of exploit. User Account Control, though controversial, eliminated perhaps 90% of account-elevation exploits. Now the company makes another bold security move - changing how Windows 8 boots to increase security, potentially at the cost of some freedom for certain users and…

• Giving iPad PowerPoint Presentations Just Got a Lot Better

  15 May 2012 | 11:01 pm

  One of the iPad's more intriguing business uses is making presentations before a live audience. The device is portable and fun to use, and the swipe and pinch gestures can make for some dramatic presentations. Sadly, iPad presentations haven't lived up to their potential - especially for users of Microsoft PowerPoint. But the lastest version of Brainshark's free SlideShark app could help change that.    Normally, the latest version of a mobile app wouldn't merit coverate on ReadWriteWeb, but this is a game changer, especially for experienced speakers who are used to running their…

• Facebook Will Roll On, Even as GM Pulls Ads

  15 May 2012 | 5:43 pm

    General Motors Co. said on Tuesday that it would stop advertising on Facebook because the platform didn't generate enough sales. It is certainly not a great day for the social media giant, as it looks to float its initial public stock offering on Friday. Before you heed the naysayers, though, consider what Facebook is really good at.     Need proof that Facebook will weather this and countless other storms? Look no further than the comments section of the very Wall Street Journal article that broke the news. The newspaper spurs logins by riding on…

• Engagio Gives the Web a 'Context' Button

  15 May 2012 | 5:02 pm

  The killer app for the social Web is the one that will filter the signal from the noise. In the Facebook age, even casual Web users hold tons of conversations at once. Engagio, the conversation discovery company, pulls them all into one place. It also leads you into new ones. And with a new dashboard view released today, it lets you click one button to figure out what's actually going on in all these conversations. Engagio's dashboard breaks out articles, sites and other links from all your social networks into separate panels, and lets you reply, share and like straight from there. But the…

• Staying Off Facebook Won't Protect Your Privacy

  15 May 2012 | 2:30 pm

  Stay away from social networks and people won't know who you're hanging out with or what you're doing, right? Wrong. When it comes to social networking, a recent study suggests, you can run but you can't hide.  A paper published last month in the journal PLoS One shows how researchers were able to learn about nonmembers of social networks based on information their friends posted online. Using machine-learning models, German researchers Emöke-Ágnes Horvát, Michael Hanselmann, Fred A. Hamprecht and Katharina A. Zweig were able to predict whether two nonmembers…

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  Mashable!

• HTC One X Delayed at US Customs and Three Other Stories You Need to Know

  Stan Schroeder

  16 May 2012 | 5:21 am

  Welcome to this morning’s edition of “First To Know,” a series in which we keep you in the know on what’s happening in the digital world. Today, we’re looking at four particularly interesting stories. HTC One X and Evo 4G LTE Delayed at US Customs HTC’s two new smartphones, the flagship One X and the Evo 4G LTE, have been indefinitely delayed at US customs due to potential infringement on an Apple patent, the Verge reports. Apple won a patent lawsuit against Android back in December 2011, effectively banning HTC from selling certain devices beginning April 19, 2012. At the…

• Want to Live Stream Your Wedding? Here’s How

  Kate Freeman

  16 May 2012 | 4:52 am

  Even dream weddings can be missing something — friends and family who cannot attend. So what better way to utilize live streaming technology than for a once in a lifetime event? There are a number of web based services that specialize in live streaming weddings. Check out a couple of them here: Marry Me Live Stacy Yamaoka and her business partner Christopher Anderson started Marry Me Live in 2009. “It started because we recognized the needs of both of our families,” Yamaoka told Mashable. Anderson’s grandparents weren’t able to attend his sister’s wedding…

• Facebook Travel App Gogobot Hits 1 Million Registered Users

  Kate Freeman

  16 May 2012 | 2:39 am

  Facebook social travel app Gogobot announced on Wednesday that it has reached the 1 million registered users mark. The app launched on Facebook in January, when the social network unveiled a slew of integrated apps, including Gogobot. Gogobot was in use before that time, launching in private beta 18 month ago. Now the app is exploding in popularity: A new user joins every 15 seconds, more than 5 million places have been shared on Gogobot and overall membership has grown 65x year-on-year. The social travel site lets you share your vacation photos with friends and strangers on the site. You can…

• Thousands of Butts Were Analyzed to Create This Lightweight Chair [VIDEO]

  Kate Freeman

  15 May 2012 | 10:44 pm

  German designers placed a high-tech, sensor-equipped chair in the middle of a palazzo in Milan last month to record stress points on the backsides of thousands of people. The goal? To determine how to design a lightweight and efficient chair that’s sturdy enough to support a wide variety of users. When someone sat in the chair, monitors recorded data and processed it with an “algorithm that determines the most structurally efficient version of the chair,” according to the blog Co.Design. The engineers worked with Audi’s Lightweight Design Centre “using methods…

• In-Flight Calling: Coming Soon to an Airplane Near You [VIDEO]

  Emily Price

  15 May 2012 | 10:29 pm

  Hitting the friendly skies doesn’t necessarily mean you can’t make a mobile phone call — at least if you’re flying on one of Virgin’s new Airbus A330 planes. The airline plans to make in-flight calling available first on its flight from London to New York. By the end of the year, in-flight calling will be available on 17 planes and at least 10 routes. Calls will be restricted to the time the plane is actually in the air – so you’ll still have to power off when the plane takes off or lands – and American laws require the service to be turned off when the…

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  Charlene Li

• Beyond the IPO: Ten Implications of a Public Facebook

  Charlene Li

  8 May 2012 | 10:05 am

  By Susan Etlinger, Charlene Li and Rebecca Lieb The run-up to Facebook’s IPO reminds me a bit of a wedding: everyone’s attention is on the big day (expected to be Friday May 18), without much regard for the weeks, months and years afterward. Charlene Li, Rebecca Lieb, and I sat down to discuss some of the implications of a newly public Facebook: on shareholders, business and Facebook itself. — SE  (Cross-posted from altimetergroup.com.) Whether or not Facebook’s IPO ends up being one of the world’s largest (this Washington Post article places it 6th, between…

• Webinar: A Foundation For Mobile Business

  Charlene Li

  20 Mar 2012 | 12:46 pm

  Now for a word on mobile in the enterprise. Altimeter’s mobile analyst, Chris Silva, is working on a report that explores how managers on the business-side – not the IT – side of the organization are increasingly leading the charge to bring mobility to their workforce. A key challenge is how to build the control and security foundation for a mobile business strategy. Chris and I will be hosting an open, no-cost webinar on Wed March 28th at 10am PT/1pm ET that will discuss the key elements of the mobile control layer, its importance, and how both the technologies and leadership…

• Report: Making The Business Case For Enterprise Social Networks

  Charlene Li

  22 Feb 2012 | 3:58 am

  In 2011, the US hit a milestone — more than half of all adults visit social networking sites at least once a month. But when it comes to using social-networking technologies inside organizations, many business leaders are at a loss to understand what value can be created from Facebook-like status updates within the enterprise. Some organizations have deployed social-networking features with an initial enthusiastic reception, only to see these early efforts wither to just a few stalwart participants. The problem: Most companies approach enterprise social networks as a technology deployment…

• New Report: “Make An App For That: Mobile Strategies For Retailers”

  Charlene Li

  7 Feb 2012 | 12:16 pm

  When it comes to shopping, I have a love/hate relationship with my iPhone. Some apps are actually helpful, letting me explore products or buy something immediate. But the vast majority of the retailer apps litter my screens, sitting unused after an initial, disappointing whirl. My frustration is reflected in the findings of my colleague Chris Silva‘s new report, entitled “Make An App For That: Mobile Strategies For Retailers“. Of particular value is that Chris pivots the report around two major strategies retails can use when it comes to mobile: Enrich: These strategies are…

• Jerry Yang’s departure signals a New Day for Yahoo!, the passing of an era for Tech

  Charlene Li

  17 Jan 2012 | 6:30 pm

  My first reaction to the news that Jerry Yang is leaving Yahoo! was that this was the passing of an era. I first met Jerry in 1994 when he was still a PhD student at Stanford, before he and David Filo left to run Yahoo! full time. Through bubbles and two economic downturns, Jerry has always been omnipresent in Silicon Valley. But all good things come to pass. With the arrival of Scott Thompson as the new CEO of Yahoo!, it makes sense that Scott be given a clean slate upon which to write the future of Yahoo!. This is very much the norm for incoming CEOs, where founders are asked to take a…

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  SmartBrief on Social Media

• Twitter bot seeks out Shakespearean tweets

  15 May 2012 | 11:29 am

  A Twitter bot retweets messages that use iambic pentameter, the 10-syllable poetic meter favored by William Shakespeare.  -More- Web Content Manager Corporate Executive Board

• Have Google+'s users moved on?

  15 May 2012 | 11:29 am

  Google+ is living up to its reputation as a "virtual ghost town," an RJ Metrics report says.  -More- 

• Facebook's just a fad, half of Americans say

  15 May 2012 | 11:29 am

  About half of the American public believes Facebook will eventually slip back into obscurity, according to an Associated Pres -More- 

• Renren posts big loss, blames Chinese economy

  15 May 2012 | 11:29 am

  Chinese social network Renren posted a loss of $13.6 million for the first quarter, after a loss of $2.6 million in the same  -More- 

• Twitter plans curation with an e-mail-digest feature

  15 May 2012 | 11:29 am

  Twitter says users will be able to sign up for customized e-mail newsletters that highlight the best content from their netwo -More- 

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  Social Media Today - The world's best thinkers on social media

• Twitter Verification Implications for Brand Marketers

  AdamLeiter

  16 May 2012 | 4:55 am

  With recent news that Twitter's verification process has become linked to monthly advertising, there has been conversation and debate about blurry lines in the sand. What does this change mean for your brand or company on Twitter? Is verification critical to your Twitter strategy?

• Content Marketing - Are You Building a Reputation within Social Media?

  Susanna_Gebauer

  16 May 2012 | 4:43 am

  There are different approaches to using social media for business, but what most have in common is their emphasis on the quality of “content.” More and more often you hear the phrase “content is king.” The underlying truth is that if you get your content right, you will indeed start to rule.

• Social Media: The Final Frontier of Integrated Marketing Strategies

  Mark_BigDot

  16 May 2012 | 4:34 am

  As technology has rapidly progressed over recent years it has become increasingly difficult to boldly go where no one has gone before; in marketing terms anyway. This article considers the value of viral marketing as part of your digital strategy.

• The Scent of Social Media: NY Yankees Fragrance

  Localspeak

  15 May 2012 | 3:50 pm

  While the April-launch of the New York Yankees fragrance was immediately a hit in social media sentiment, the humorous comments are decidedly critical, alluding to the apparent dissonance of a “ballpark fragrance” in the New York subway system...

• The Best Mother's Day Facebook Campaigns of 2012

  Morgan J. Arnold

  15 May 2012 | 3:45 pm

  We've been monitoring the $18.6 billion dollar holiday - Mother's Day. Using the searchable Facebook Tab Directory, Track Social was able to pick up all Mother's Day-related Facebook campaigns, and analyze the results to see which brands were able to drive online traffic, generate buzz, increase engagement and boost audience numbers.

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  Social Media Explorer

• Choosing and Weaving Social Within a Multichannel Marketing Program

  Jason Falls

  15 May 2012 | 8:00 am

  Editor’s Note: Today’s post is of the guest variety and offered up by my friends Gini Dietrich and Geoff Livingston. Their new book, Marketing in the Round, is out and available. They are smart. It is good. Pay attention. The world of marketing in small and large businesses is a siloed one. Companies have ad campaigns, PR plans, social media strategies, and websites built independently and bolted together in a haphazard manner. It’s surprising how rarely these disciplines work together to achieve corporate objectives like establishing a second vertical for a product, or…

• The Irony Of Measuring Marketing Now

  Jason Falls

  14 May 2012 | 8:00 am

  I once provided counsel for a company that had little confidence in social media marketing. It begrudgingly decided it would hire a consultant, go through some strategic exercises and probably prove that social media was bullshit and it would be better off sticking with its traditional guns. The brand’s insistence with my work, as is with most clients I’ve dealt with, was that we measure everything as infinitely as possible. Skeptics are like that. They want to know how many clicks, how many re-tweets, how many milliseconds the time-on-site number increases each month, even if…

• How To Engage In Online Forums For Your Brand

  Jason Falls

  11 May 2012 | 8:00 am

  Editor’s Note: In light of our recent affirmation that forums and message boards are a bountiful home for consumer interaction and engagement around brands and products, I thought it appropriate to invite some solid expertise here to help advise us on how to proceed in exploring online forums for marketing purposes. Today’s guest post is by the person I regard as the foremost expert on managing online forums in the U.S., if not the world, Patrick O’Keefe. I regularly find myself in the position of having to defend online forums, without actually wanting to be put into that…

• Honing Twitter’s Power to Improve Healthcare Communication

  Jason Falls

  10 May 2012 | 8:00 am

  Editor’s Note: This is a guest post by Brian S. McGowan, PhD, is a research scientist and author of the forthcoming fall 2012 release of #SOCIALQI: Simple Solutions for Improving Your Healthcare. Healthcare in the U.S. is provided across a frighteningly broken and fragmented system of providers and institutions. As a result, the quality of American healthcare is consistently ranked among the worst in the developed world, and costs incurred per patient are 2-5 times higher than in comparable countries. Our problem isn’t that we’re incapable of providing high-quality care –…

• The Business of Writing Books

  Jason Falls

  9 May 2012 | 8:00 am

  A number of my friends either are, or plan to soon be, writing their first books. I’m really excited for them. I was in their shoes a year ago, plowing through writes, rewrites and edits, putting thoughts on paper and hoping someone out there would think the topic was interesting enough to plop down $24 for a book about it. All of the folks I’m referring to, in addition to several others, have asked me if writing a book is worth it. While there are few thrills for someone who classifies themselves as a writer more pleasing than seeing your name on a real, hard-bound piece of…

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  @ProBlogger

• Get Obsessed with Your Message

  Guest Blogger

  15 May 2012 | 3:01 pm

  This guest post is by Danielle LaPorte of DanielleLaPorte.com. Blog = up? Posts = rolling? It’s time to get obsessed with your message. A quick dictionary moment, to differentiate between your voice, your topics and your message. Your voice is what makes your writing distinctive, compelling, unmistakably you. You’ll carry your voice from your blog, right into your book. Seamless, identifiable. Individual. Your topics are the categories or subjects you write about (Eco-luxe weddings on a shoestring budget! Savvy corporate management, with heart and soul! Thrifty vegan recipes!) Your…

• On the Elusive “Next Level” of Blogging

  Darren Rowse

  15 May 2012 | 9:04 am

  We’ve all heard of it—the elusive “next level” that so many bloggers talk about online. But what is the next level? How many levels are there? Is there an end point in leveling up? These are all worthwhile questions—especially for more experienced bloggers who have spent a lot of time and energy in reaching the level they’re already at. For these bloggers, trying to reach the next level can involve a degree of risk, so the steps that get us toward the next level might be taken slowly and with care. On the other hand, the web isn’t exactly undersupplied with…

• Grab Your BWE Virtual Ticket for $100 Off—24 Hours Left

  Darren Rowse

  14 May 2012 | 7:09 pm

  Wish you could get to Blog World Expo this year, but can’t make it to New York? Me too. I’ll be in Queensland with the winners of my blogging competition, but I know there are plenty of bloggers from other countries, as well as within the States, who won’t be able to attend Blog World this year. Fortunately, you and I don’t need to miss out on the information and fun of the Expo (and if the speaker list for this year is anything to go by, the conference is going to be really impressive). We “remote” bloggers can still “attend” on a BWE virtual…

• Install Your First WordPress Theme

  Guest Blogger

  14 May 2012 | 9:09 am

  This guest post is by Karol K of ThemeFuse. Seeing a headline like “How to Install a WordPress Theme” on ProBlogger might seem strange at first. This doesn’t sound like a “pro”-thing at all, right? If you’ve been dealing with WordPress for a while then this is probably even more than obvious to you. However, everyone starts somewhere, and there are plenty of experienced bloggers who haven’t ever installed a WordPress theme—but would like to give it a try. Maybe you’re installing your first theme right now, and you’re searching for a…

• How to Select the Perfect WordPress Theme for Your Blog

  Guest Blogger

  13 May 2012 | 3:08 pm

  This guest post is by Karol K of ThemeFuse. Selecting a WordPress theme is one of those tasks that seem fairly easy at first How hard can it be? you ask yourself. You simply go to Google, type in “best free WordPress themes” and you’re good to go, right? I’m sure you already know where I’m going with this. So let’s just say it out loud so we can put it behind us: Forget about free themes! They are evil! This is something I’ve been saying for a little more than a year now. And hey, don’t blame me, it’s just the way it is. Long story short,…

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  CenterNetworks

• Shark Tank Recap – April 27

  Allen

  27 Apr 2012 | 8:00 pm

  Below is a recap of the April 27, 2012 episode of the ABC show Shark Tank. If you are unfamiliar with Shark Tank, the concept is simple – entrepreneurs pitch their ideas to a panel of investors and the investors have to provide at least the amount the entrepreneur is seeking for a deal to be completed. Tonight Barbara Corcoran was replaced by QVC product creator Lori Greiner. Other sharks include: Mark Cuban, Kevin O’Leary, Damond John and Robert Herjavec. Don’t forget to check out our previous Shark Tank recaps. Pitch #1 – Duality Cosmetics First up into the Shark Tank was…

• Does Product Design Always Matter?

  Allen

  26 Apr 2012 | 9:20 pm

  While I don’t own many Apple products, I know the feeling that they give me when I use them. I like my Android tablet but for some reason the iPod Touch just seems to give me a better feeling when I use it. For years I’ve called it the, “white headphones effect”. There are lots of brands that provide the same feeling while you are using them. Another great example is Whole Foods. Here in Austin there is another healthy supermarket, Central Market. Both stores are excellent but, for me, there is just a better feeling walking around Whole Foods than there is when inside…

• Web Jobs – April 23

  Allen

  23 Apr 2012 | 7:46 am

  Check out some of the latest web technology and business jobs posted for April 23, 2012 on the CenterNetworks Job Board. Subscribe to the CN Jobs feed and get all of the latest Web industry jobs delivered directly to you. Featured Jobs: Chief Operating Officer at Indochino Apparel Director of Software Engineering at Bloom Health Software Designer at Viddler More Jobs: Senior Web Software Engineer at Kareo Front End Developer at Soli Senior Software Engineer at OkCupid Labs Software Engineer at Causes Employers – Join other top companies on the CN Job Board. Post your jobs today –…

• Why I’m Using Facebook More Often

  Allen

  20 Apr 2012 | 6:52 pm

  I’ve never been a heavy Facebook user — I’ve had an account for a very long time but I mainly used it to share posts from CN and to “friend” people who request that I friend them. Over the years I’ve changed my personal settings to be able to see the different types of ads that are displayed. Up until this month I’ve never had a profile picture and have appeared as women and men of all different ages. Whenever I take a look at the main feed on Facebook, it’s mostly content imported from Twitter. I’ve written about this before and wish that…

• Tumblr is Invisible to the News, As These Charts Show. Why?

  Dan Lewis

  18 Apr 2012 | 5:52 pm

  This post written by Dan Lewis – he wants you to learn something new every day. The news is behind the times. Look at the bottom graph of the top picture. Relative to Twitter, there’s been virtually no news pickup of Tumblr.  It’s a flat blue line.  On the other hand, search volume shows that Tumblr’s been a “thing,” relative to Twitter, for almost two years. The news is two years behind. The second picture is Tumblr v. Instagram.  Outside of the sale, Tumblr’s been crushing Instagram on search volume — steeper slope and everything.  And yet, until the sale, both…

• 

  Social Fresh

• 5 Key Benefits Of Social Customer Service

  Michael Brito

  15 May 2012 | 8:04 am

  Originally published at SocialBusinessNews.com Last week, thinkJar and Sword Ciboodle released a whitepaper, We Are Social: The State of Social Customer Service, and in it identified the top 5 primary benefits of social customer service: Increased Customer Satisfaction Meet Customer Expectations Intangible Benefit Increased Loyalty Reduced Cost of Customer Support Other benefits included increased revenue and deflected phone calls coming into the call center. One data point that I found interesting is that a little over 20 percent of those surveyed reported that they are not using social…

• Omaha Steaks Go All In With Facebook Store

  Jason Keath

  15 May 2012 | 7:04 am

  Originally published at SocialCommerceToday.com Omaha Steaks is bucking the trend toward Facebook store abandonment and has opened a store to offer fans access to exclusive merchandise, a move that is considered a no-brainer by company senior vice-president Todd Simon. “I think not having a Facebook store would be kind of like saying we don’t have to have a retail store,” stated Simon in a recent Adweek article. “We sort of held back really getting into this until the technology was there that allowed us to develop a shopping experience around the social platform and really…

• If more events used text messaging, we would all be happier

  Justin Mastrangelo

  15 May 2012 | 6:23 am

  This isn’t a bunch of reasons how you can be more “green” at your next event. This is three ways you can eliminate paper using text messaging. These ideas will save you hassle, create better event, and make your attendees, or the people your brand meets at that next event, happier at the same time. Every one of us, when we attend a seminar, meeting, conference, whatever — we bring our phone with us. We are adept at using that phone to take notes, respond to emails, and Tweet about the live event we are at. Why not incorporate those skills to improve everyone’s experience? 1. No…

• Bring Insight To Your Social Media Data With Ratios

  The Community Manager

  14 May 2012 | 8:04 am

  Originally published at TheCommunityManager.com Being a data analyst, I sometimes talk with organizations that struggle to use data. I see good research sit on a shelf because it’s either overwhelming and businesses can’t translate the numbers into action, or they’re looking at the wrong numbers. One of the quickest ways to really understand your data and, by association, your community is through a ratio. Here’s why. Getting a Baseline Let’s say you have 1,000 members in your community. You do some basic analysis and learn that each week there are approximately…

• Audio is easier than video, Three ways your brand can make sound social

  Nick Cicero

  14 May 2012 | 7:02 am

  Sound is magnificent, universal, and takes a variety of forms in our everyday lives. But when it comes to the social web, we tend to forget the wide spectrum of audio that exists outside of the context of music. Alexander Ljung, CEO of the popular music sharing service Soundcloud, spoke at Mashable Connect about the “Unmuting of the web,” set to a background score of low growling drones and ethereal synth pads. Sound is the only medium we can consume in parallel. Meaning we can consume audio content while we perform other tasks. Like listen to a webinar while we respond to emails or…

• 

  socialmouths

• Why Small Business Have A Huge Advantage Over Brands In Social Media

  Francisco Rosales

  10 May 2012 | 12:18 pm

  I currently have the fortune to experience two different fronts of digital marketing. Under Plural, I work with brands and, with SocialMouths I mostly jam with small business, personal brands, and bloggers. One of the reasons I absolutely love this setup is that they are two different worlds in how the social web is approached, how it’s handled and how success is measured. So I’m here to tell you that, despite the ridiculous budgets and unlimited resources, small business has a huuuge advantage over brands when it come to social media. Here are my thoughts: Strategy. Or Not? This…

• How to Display Social Media Buttons

  Brad Shorr

  8 May 2012 | 12:05 pm

  Guest post by Brad Shorr from Straight North. Effective display of social media buttons on your blog and website becomes more critical every day: On the people side, social media for business has gone mainstream, so building a community around your company pages opens up huge opportunities for sales, leads and referrals. On the SEO side, social shares are being given more weight by Google and other search engines. Content that is liked, tweeted and +1’d will perform better in SERPs than lonely, unloved blog posts and web pages. This post includes several suggestions for displaying social…

• The 4 Economic Reasons to Rebrand Your Business

  Sookie Shuen

  4 May 2012 | 9:41 am

  This is a guest post by Sookie Shuen from Tomorrow People. How much can your company benefit from a timely rebranding and revitalization? When considering this question, one must keep in mind that rebranding does not necessarily address the wants and needs of the company directly, but rather speaks to the wants and needs of that company’s current and prospective customers.  Therefore, the important factors to consider when assessing the value of a rebrand include equity measurement; market differentiation and accessibility; brand awareness, relevance and vitality; and consumer personality,…

• 10 Blog Conversion Tips From Derek Halpern

  Francisco Rosales

  2 May 2012 | 9:28 am

  This week I want to talk about blog conversion, the art of making your visitors take action whether that means spending more time reading your content, buying one of your products or subscribing to your email list. There is plenty of content out there on how to convert your readers to subscribers and buyers and, if you take your blogging seriously as an integral part of your marketing, you’ve probably read tens or even hundreds of posts about the topic. Me? I went to Derek Halpern for advice on how to improve SocialMouths. Derek is the author of SocialTriggers, where he writes about…

• Video Blogging As A Powerful Lead Generation Tool

  Ryan Critchett

  26 Apr 2012 | 10:56 am

  This is a guest post from Ryan Critchett from RMC Tech. Editor’s note: I usually don’t do this but in this case I thought it was important to point out that, the intention behind this type of content is to showcase real entrepreneurs and their stories of successful use of social media marketing, rather than presenting the usual suspects nobody can relate to, like Redbull or Starbucks. These are real examples you can put into action. The story is told by Ryan and, if you have something similar going on, share it with me. Here goes… It’s no secret, video blogging is a…

• 

  Bazaarvoice Blog

• 10 things you didn’t know about online consumers

  Ian Greenleigh

  15 May 2012 | 8:00 am

  Note: This post originally ran on  iStrategy Blog , and is republished here with permission.  Online consumers love to share their opinions with each other on the things they buy. Savvy shoppers have always turned to this public feedback for guidance, but since more and more word of mouth data has been digitized, archived, and analyzed, companies are now able to rely on it for their own guidance. In the last year alone, our research has distilled tens of millions of consumer data points into a strikingly clear picture of today’s consumers. Here are ten of the most interesting things…

• Technology is child’s play (how toys, consumers, and marketers are connecting)

  Haylie Rudy

  9 May 2012 | 1:07 pm

  The playroom we all live in I have a sister who is much younger than me.  I remember practicing my killer basketball skills on the courts in middle school when I received news that I needed to rush to the hospital to welcome baby Ellie into the world.   Ellie and I have been able to grow close over the years. I like to think I’m not the terrorizing, bossy older sister, but rather more like a caring aunt or even second, “cool” Mom. Ellie is now in middle school herself, obsessed with her iPhone and constantly documenting every moment of her life via Instagram.  Last weekend at a…

• Five ways to change your “relationship status” with influencers

  Ian Greenleigh

  3 May 2012 | 9:18 am

  The topic of influencers usually focuses on tools more than strategies. Klout, for instance, is not a strategy, it’s a tool that tends to dominate any discussion of influencer discovery and outreach. In this post, let’s talk about strategies that work. Relationships are at the heart of any effective influencer strategy. People like engaging with people they know and like. Relationships take time, effort and trust. And relationships of this kind can be just like other human relationships— active or passive, close or distant, substantive or superficial, straightforward or messy, fair or…

• How to get more out of the Facebook content boom

  Warren Colbert

  1 May 2012 | 9:20 am

  From search to social Close to 1/5th of total time spent online is spent on Facebook. This is a huge shift from the composition of web activity eight years ago when Facebook first began. Back then, it was a search-focused web. Most content creation and consumption happened on siloed web pages and search functioned as a bridge to this content. Google became synonymous with “search” and built an empire that dominated the web. Search is not dead Let me be clear, this is not a “search is dead” post. Search is far from dead, and phrases like that are overly simplistic at best. It’s not…

• The new window shopping: how to build brands by photo sharing

  Carrie Griffiths

  25 Apr 2012 | 9:56 am

  Before digital photography, I remember the excitement of getting my pictures developed the moment I returned home from a great trip or event. It was all about the anticipation, the hopes that I’d captured a specific moment, face, or place. Conversely, I also recall the instant gratification of my parents’ Polaroid: watching the photo coming out of the camera, waving it in the air to “dry,” and watching the magic of film appear right before my eyes. The romance of waiting for film to develop may have faded. But like Polaroids, today’s photo trends in digital, mobile, and social offer…

• 

  JasonKeath.com

• Is it possible to remove hatred from politics?

  Jason Keath

  10 May 2012 | 9:36 am

  “Criticism may not be agreeable, but it is necessary. It fulfills the same function as pain in the human body. It calls attention to an unhealthy state of things.” — Winston Churchill You may or may not know that I am against the amendment to ban gay marriage in the state of North Carolina, my home state. But I am also against the ugliness, insults and divisiveness that originates from both sides of issues like these. It is misplaced passion and unchecked anger. Neither of which do well to solve America’s deep bench of problems. I have fallen victim to this misplaced passion and…

• Every Person Has A Story, Epic Chick-fil-a Video

  Jason Keath

  13 Apr 2012 | 11:40 am

• Who uses the word “chalice”?

  Jason Keath

  12 Apr 2012 | 11:00 am

• Forget the Easy Button, TNT Creates An ‘Add Live Action Drama Button’

  Jason Keath

  11 Apr 2012 | 3:01 pm

• A 9 year old boy who built an elaborate cardboard arcade

  Jason Keath

  10 Apr 2012 | 9:22 am

  UPDATE: Caine’s Scholarship fund has already raised $111,000. His original goal was set at $25,000. A 9 year old boy who built an elaborate cardboard arcade in his dad’s used auto parts store is about to have the best day of his life. Give this kid a woodshop class and watch out. Help Caine’s Scholarship Fund: CainesArcade.com Caines Arcade – YouTube. Hat tip @simonjcole

• 

  Liz Strauss at Successful Blog

• Choose Your Winners Wisely and Invest Unconditionally

  ME Liz Strauss

  15 May 2012 | 7:14 am

  Relational Reciprocity I don’t play with every new social media tool. In fact, I ignore most of them. I’ve decided my view is that tools are vehicles for problem solving or uniquely rare opportunities for new learning. The former I go looking for when I need them. The latter show up without warning, but are few and far between. Once the decision is made to participate, I’m in with “both feet.” I’m a saturation learner, always have been. It shows in my 14+ years of dance training, my 8 years of theater, my 35 years of education and educational publishing…

• Getting Organized Without Wasting Your Time

  ME Liz Strauss

  14 May 2012 | 12:40 pm

  by Ann Smarty click photo for source A System to Save Time When you run a blog, there are some things you can’t help but spend a ton of time and energy on. Coming up with new posts, fiddling with the template, talking to readers, publishing videos of funny cats you found on YouTube and just had to share…these are the important elements in the life of the average blogger. Certainly, the last thing you want to waste time on is organization. Yet every time most of us set out to organize things, we tend to spend all day on the process. Getting sorted turns out to be more of a hassle…

• 3 Things I Learned, Lost, and Earned by Being Off Social Media for 10 Days

  ME Liz Strauss

  14 May 2012 | 7:23 am

  People or Screens Every morning for almost a year, I’ve been publishing photos of the sunrise over Lake Michigan. Sometimes when the afternoon is worth a photo graph I also publish a photo of the sunset too. On Twitter I greet my friends with a “Good morning, Twitterville” and a kind word. I try to check in with them via Facebook and Linkedin too. Many of my online social interactions help me keep my day moving … as I transition from one task to another, it helps me to stop by Twitter to give my friends a shout out or to take time for a short read and a retweet. Being…

• Beach Notes: Do You See What I See?

  ME Liz Strauss

  13 May 2012 | 9:06 am

  by Guest Writers Suzie Cheel and Des Walsh Sand Bubbler Crab Art I was walking on the beach and saw what to me looked like a butterfly. When I put the photo onto the computer I saw it could be a bow-tie. Nature is amazing. This pattern was made by a small sand bubbler crab who live in burrows in the sand. At low tide they scour the sand for food and these bubble patterns are the result of their foraging. What do you leave in your path for others to find? Suzie Cheel & Des Walsh

• What have you learned from your children?

  molly

  13 May 2012 | 3:00 am

  I can remember distinctly the first few minutes of my oldest daughter’s life. She arrived at 7:04 p.m. after 18 hours of labor and every hour since then has been changed by her arrival. My very first recollection was that I had never felt anything as soft as her skin. “The moment a child is born, the mother is also born. She never existed before. The woman existed, but the mother, never. A mother is something absolutely new.” ~ Rajneesh I remember also something that I believe has shaped not only her childhood but that of her sisters… I somehow innately grasped and internalized…

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  12 Most

• 12 Most Beautiful and Useful Social Media Infographics By Anita Hovey

  Anita Hovey

  15 May 2012 | 10:00 am

  By Anita Hovey One of the most useful trends of the past year is the growth of the infograph: a graphic visual representation of information, data or knowledge (Wikipedia). A well planned infograph can pack a whollop of information into an easily digestible format. The best ones are not only informative, but creative works of [...]

• 12 Most Must-Have Free Online Productivity Tools for Small Business By Doug Rice

  Doug Rice

  15 May 2012 | 9:00 am

  By Doug Rice The world of web 2.0 has opened up the floodgates of resources for small business people. The playing field has truly been leveled. It used to be that larger businesses had the upper hand, because they could afford to shell out money for expensive customer relations, project management, knowledge development, and data [...]

• 12 Most Aspiring A Words for Bloggers By Susan Silver

  Susan Silver

  15 May 2012 | 8:00 am

  By Susan Silver Did you participate in the A to Z challenge in April? Many writers put their skills to the test in the challenge. The premise was to write 26 posts — one for each letter of the alphabet. I was too cowardly to compete but I was jealous of my friends like Amberr [...]

• 12 Most Stimulating Small Business Blog Ideas By Sharyn Sheldon

  Sharyn Sheldon

  14 May 2012 | 10:00 am

  By Sharyn Sheldon Having trouble thinking up topics to write about on your small business blog? Ideas can come at all hours of the day or night, but rarely can you summon them on demand. Making regular deposits in an idea bank can help, and you should always have a notebook on hand to capture [...]

• 12 Most Certain Ways You Will Turn Off a Website Visitor By Amy Tobin

  Amy Tobin

  14 May 2012 | 9:00 am

  By Amy Tobin Websites are the foundation of a good marketing platform and I spend hours of my life discussing & contemplating them. Too often, we become enamored with what is possible and lose sight of what is important. There are so many shiny gimmicks we could employ that it is essential we S-T-O-P and [...]

• 

  chrisbrogan.com

• Create a Setting and Connect With Emotions

  ceb

  14 May 2012 | 12:26 am

  I recently moved the delivery time of my beloved newsletter to be Sunday morning (well, that’s when it launches here, though my New Zealander and Australian friends all get it on Monday). In the process, I talked to people about sharing this information over breakfast, and with a “second cup of coffee” sometimes. I basically set a scene in the reader’s head that we were having a personal chat over breakfast. Ask yourself this: in trying to reach others for whatever your goal may be, is it facts or emotions that will win them over? Which do you think plays the bigger…

• Nobody Reads Agency Blogs- Or Why You Need Skin in the Game

  ceb

  7 May 2012 | 8:57 am

  Thanks to Jason Falls, I just read this post about how many marketing agencies are closing down their blogs and tweeting and Facebooking instead. “Nobody reads agency blogs, and there are so many out there it’s impossible for people to keep up anyway,” said Sam Weston, director of communications at digital agency Huge. Nobody Reads ANY Blogs- If They’re Boring I’ll tell you without even having to look why nobody reads a blog: because it’s boring. Because it’s poorly written. Because it’s utterly self-referential. Nobody has time to read junk. Why would you?

• Constraints

  ceb

  5 May 2012 | 11:43 am

  I was at a live performance the other night where Jacq sang and played with Girish, and I had a great conversation with Reggie, the drummer for the night. (I am SO sorry that I don’t know your last name, Reggie.) We talked about the fact that his typical drum kit for events is usually like 30 or so pieces, but that he decided to go minimal for the event. He had a kick drum, a snare, a tom, two cymbals, and a cowbell. What Reggie said was something like this, “I really enjoy this, because it means I really have to use what I have to get the expression I’m aiming for. I…

• Pattern Break

  ceb

  2 May 2012 | 11:17 pm

  When you wake up in the morning, you check your emails, probably from your phone. First thing. Yes? Why? There’s no good answer to why. Even brain surgeons can wait until they’ve done other things before checking in on the world outside of your immediate proximity. So why do you do it? Because it’s a habit, a pattern. Do you read the top tech and marketing blogs? Why? Why do you read this blog? Because you’re subscribed? Are you getting something from it? If no, then why are you still doing it? Twitter and Facebook are hugely pattern-driven. They thrive off the same…

• Where Should You Put Your Content?

  ceb

  30 Apr 2012 | 9:44 am

  I’ve been asked by subscribers of my personal newsletter how I decide what goes on my blog and what goes into my newsletter. I think the answer differs depending on your strategy, but I’m more than happy to tell you how I view it. I put information that sells on my blog, and information that nurtures in my newsletter. Information that Sells My job, because people seem confused these days as to what exactly it is I do or am selling, is to help mid-sized to larger companies build business (revenue and growth) by improving their use of the human digital channel (social media, email…

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  Logic+Emotion

• Social Business: Where It's Been & Where It's Going

  David Armano

  6 May 2012 | 1:56 pm

  "Chasing the past, I stumbled into the future". - T A Sachs I've always been a firm believer that in order to look to the future, we must look back to and fully grasp the past (and the present). Having had several recent engaging conversations with smart people who I respect, I've picked up a hint of exhaustion around usage of the word "social". Could it be that some who saw the "change" coming years ago are weary of having carried that torch for so many years as we move into the heavy lifting? It's natural to want to move to the next thing—but I'm convinced that today we are largely still…

• Own The Data, Own The Future

  David Armano

  14 Apr 2012 | 11:15 am

  Now that some of the dust is settling around Facebook's massive acquisition of Instagram this past week, we can all take a step back and think about the bigger picture. Yes, Facebook understands the critical role mobile will play in how billions of people interact and communicate but they also understand that interactions, engagement, consumption or whatever you want to call it generates one thing. Data. Facebook wants it. Google wants it. And all businesses will want to understand it. There is huge, big business to be built around all kinds of data. Targeted marketing is the first salvo and…

• Thoughts on the Future of Social-Digital Agency Services

  David Armano

  7 Apr 2012 | 12:29 pm

  *The above does not reflect actual or estimated market share Now is as good a time as any to be thinking about the future of digital (and social) as defined by those of us who provide services or even products around these. If you work for any agency or consultancy—this article is relevant for you. If you're on the "client side" consider it relevant as well as ultimately it is your business model and needs which dictate the market conditions that affect your partners, vendors and professional service providers. I'm writing this piece from the perspective of having worked at several digital…

• Thoughts On Altimeter's Digital Influence Report

  David Armano

  21 Mar 2012 | 12:13 pm

  Altimeter's most recent report titled "The Rise of Digital Influence" revolves around the theory and practice of "digital influence". A trend that will not die despite the industry's counter movement against platforms such as Klout and the scores of imitators which have subsequently followed. (Full disclosure, I was interviewed in depth for the report). Altimeter rightfully begins the analysis of "digital influence" by calling out the distinction from how we view influence traditionally and offering a brief definition:"Traditional influence is defined as the act, power, or capacity of causing…

• Klout Targets Agencies Via "March Madness" Competition

  David Armano

  20 Mar 2012 | 10:33 am

  Klout has dialed up their marketing efforts, this time placing agency individuals in a March Madness bracket style competition they are calling "Agency Insanity".  Critics will scoff at it as another attempt to get individuals to pump up scores, but in actuality the effort is a straight forward marketing initiative aimed at raising awareness, generating buzz and getting Klout to show up in people's social streams. A while back, Klout's founder Joe Fernandez and I discussed something like this as part of a brand initiative and it's interesting to see it in action under a different context.

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  Spiral16

• How Companies Should Respond Online [Social Media INFOGRAPHIC]

  Eric Melin

  14 May 2012 | 10:41 am

  Last week, I posted a Blog Post Promotion Checklist for 2012 that helps content marketers make sure they are getting the most traction from every web post they make. Part of that is going taking the post to social media, linking on other people’s blogs, and responding to your own comments. But what do you say to drive traffic back to your site and interest to your brand? Listening online is one of the first steps in setting up any social media strategy. But once you find the relevant conversation, what’s next? Today’s post focuses on some specific advice in terms of how…

• 12 Steps To Promote Your Blog Post [INFOGRAPHIC]

  Eric Melin

  9 May 2012 | 12:35 pm

  Content marketing is a great way to drive traffic to your company’s webpage and establish yourself as an expert in your field. It’s worked well for Spiral16 and our pals over at Divvy HQ have just created a really helpful infographic that will help your blog posts get noticed once they are completed and ready to show to the world. You’ve just finished your awesome blog and you’re getting ready to publish it. You want to make sure it doesn’t slip into the ether unnoticed! You want to ensure that the most number of eyeballs see the blog as possible, in hopes that…

• What is Social Media’s Role in Your Company?

  Eric Melin

  8 May 2012 | 12:06 pm

  There are still a ton of questions that surround how social media should be integrated into the day-to-day business of today’s companies. That’s why the The Entrepreneurship Institute (TEI) is presenting a breakout session called Social Media and its Role in Your Company this Thursday May 10 at The President’s Forum of Kansas City. Our CEO Tracy Panko is one of several panelists who will be sharing their insight and answering questions on the panel, which is from 11am – noon at the Kauffman Foundation Conference Center. (Register here.) Here are some of the questions…

• Social Media Leads the Way for Free Comic Book Day

  Alan Rapp

  7 May 2012 | 3:19 pm

  For those who might not know, the first Saturday of May has come to be known as Free Comic Book Day. On this date every year, comic book companies ship out a special collection of free comics to retailers and comic book shops around the country to help promote current and upcoming releases. It also serves as a thank you for loyal fans for continuing to make weekly treks to comic shops to purchase printed pages in this digital age. Where Was the Discussion? Although more mainstream media did pick up on Free Comic Book Day, from the conversations Spiral16 tracked in the days leading up to the…

• Thanks to KC/IABC For Bronze Quill Honors and Congrats to Other Winners!

  Eric Melin

  4 May 2012 | 11:36 am

  Last night, I was honored to be hanging out at the Uptown Theater with Kansas City’s best and brightest business communicators for the KC/IABC Bronze Quill Awards. Spiral16 was presented with a 2012 Bronze Quill for the Spiral16 blog–the very thing you are reading right now. We have tried to supply you with a steady stream of targeted, quality content about social media monitoring, measurement, and strategy since launching the blog in a regular capacity in late 2010, and is was great to be rewarded last night for all that hard work. Special thanks to Michelle Lamar, Aaron Weber,…

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  BlogWorld & New Media Expo Blog

• How Will You Use Open Google+ Hangouts?

  Allison

  15 May 2012 | 4:05 pm

  Recently, Google opened up Google+ Hangouts so everyone can broadcast on air (previously, this function was only available to a select few). Hangouts are the best Google+ function in my opinion, so I’m excited to see this change. When you’re hanging out, you can also embed to stream on your site, and it will record and post to YouTube automatically. Here’s a video showing what people are doing with Google+ On Air Hangouts: So the question is…how will you use this new function? Here are just a few ideas for online content creators: Run weekly online course Broadcast a…

• BlogWorld’s Podcasting Team Grows

  Amber Avines

  15 May 2012 | 9:14 am

  Jeffrey Powers has joined the BlogWorld team as Podcasting Editor-in-Chief and will also be producing original videos for our blog. His series, BlogWorld TV, will showcase a variety of topics and feature some of the industry’s up and coming thought leaders (check out his first episode!). Jeffrey joins Cliff Ravenscraft, who produces The Podcast Report each week for BlogWorld, and will be providing readers with useful content on a regular basis. Right now, Jeffrey’s inviting all BlogWorld attendees to shoot a quick video that he’ll use for a future episode of BlogWorld Video. Just say…

• Using Business Cards at BlogWorld: Some Things to Think About

  Deb Ng

  14 May 2012 | 12:00 pm

  You’re ready. We’re all ready. BlogWorld New York is less than a month away and Twitter and Facebook are a-buzz with conversation. In monitoring these conversations I’d say our attendees’ top item to bring to BlogWorld is business cards. I’m not going to disagree with their importance, but lets talk about their effectiveness and some best practices for using them. You see, the first few times I attended conferences, I also thought business cards to be the most important item to bring along, but over time my views about business cards and how I use them have…

• Five Questions with Daniel Lewis: BlogWorld New York [Video]

  geekazine

  13 May 2012 | 8:30 pm

  Today's BlogWorld TV segment includes Five Questions with Daniel Lewis of the Ramen Noodle Podcast. Are you going to BlogWorld New Media Expo New York? Let everyone know – we will have opportunities for your voice to be heard! In this first episode of BlogWorld TV, Jeffrey Powers of Geekazine makes the call out to the public. If you are going to BlogWorld New York, feel free to create a 10-second video and he’ll add it to future episodes. All you have to do is get on camera and say: My name is ________ and I am going to BlogWorld & New Media Expo in New York June 5-7!

• How to Attend BlogWorld Even if You Can’t Make it to New York (or get much more out of it even if you do attend)

  Johnny B. Truant

  13 May 2012 | 7:05 am

  The 2012 New York BlogWorld & New Media Expo (June 5-7) is going to be one of the coolest BlogWorlds yet. I’m not just saying that, either. From listening to The Podcast Report, it’s clear that BlogWorld is becoming the center of the entire new media industry. But what if you realize how cool this year’s event is going to be… but you’re bummed out because you can’t be there? Well, with the Virtual Ticket, you can still “attend” from home! Just like we did for last year’s Los Angeles event, we’ll be recording pretty much all of the conference sessions and providing them…

• 

  News from SMP

• How people spend time online

  7 May 2012 | 7:00 pm

  How people spend time onlineEver wondered how many people are online, where they hang out and what they do?  Well, this ‘How people spend their time online infographic’ by go-gulf takes a shot at cutting through the statistics.  Jammed p...

• Figaro Digital Social Media Marketing Conference April 2012 fast approaching

  2 Apr 2012 | 7:00 pm

  Figaro Digital Social Media Marketing Conference April 2012 fast approachingThese days, it seems there are more UK-based social media events that you can shake a stick at. As we approach the Easter weekend, Figaro Digital kicks off its Social Medi...

• Social Media World Forum (SMWF) Europe arrives in London

  26 Mar 2012 | 7:00 pm

  Social Media World Forum (SMWF) Europe arrives in LondonLondon welcomes the Social Media World Forum (SMWF) Europe for the next two days (27-28 March).  Pitched as the leading social media marketing event by it organisers Six Degrees, it's on...

• Updated Facebook Pages – How ready is your Timeline?

  5 Mar 2012 | 6:00 pm

  Updated Facebook Pages – How ready is your Timeline?In case you’ve been on holiday somewhere without access to the internet, you probably haven’t read the many stories about Facebook Pages being implemented.  30 March 2012 is the date to put ...

• SES London 2012 hits London next week

  15 Feb 2012 | 6:00 pm

  Search Engine Strategies: SES London 2012 hits London next weekThe four-day long search engine event SES London 2012 Conference and Exhibition hits London next week from 20-24 February.   Known for being primarily a search event, SES con...

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  idaconcpts

• How to Use the Mail Merge Feature in Word

  Damian Davila

  14 May 2012 | 6:55 pm

  The Microsoft Mail Merge feature and I have a love-hate relationship. About twelve years ago, while I was employed as an intern for a consular service, I was asked to draft a letter that was to be mailed to five hundred people. I was given a list of addresses on a sheet of paper and asked to print the letters and envelopes after drafting them in a Word document and send them on their way. I was given two days to complete this task along with the excessive amount of other work I was to keep up on simultaneously. I spent hours typing out each address and copying and pasting the content of the…

• Data is the New Oil

  Damian Davila

  13 May 2012 | 3:38 am

  Ranging from Facebook to Google to Zynga, thousands of companies are building sustainable businesses on the aggregation of personal data. Data mining has been likened by the World Economic to a “new type of raw material … on par with capital and labor.”  One might said to oil. The Rush for Data The main problem with data aggregation is that malicious developers are not only accessing your information, but they are also able to access your personal identifiable information (PII). Tech snoops that are trolling the Internet and social media are gathering enough information to get a…

• Ecommerce Retailers: To Pay Per Click or Not to Pay Per Click

  Guest Blogger

  12 May 2012 | 1:23 pm

  Marketing your ecommerce store can be difficult. Since you’re selling things online, it’s best to market yourself online. One of the most common forms of online marketing that ecommerce merchants use is pay per click (PPC) advertising. PPC, however, can be a financial investment, and it can be an investment that doesn’t always pay off significantly. Why? PPC requires a lot of analysis and effort before it makes you any sort of profit. If you’re deciding whether PPC is right for you, keep reading. Two reasons you might want to use PPC 1. Traffic to your store is low – If your social…

• Apple vs Microsoft: Tablet Market Clash between iPad and Windows 8

  Guest Blogger

  11 May 2012 | 3:19 am

  Besides Google Android, the tablet king Apple iPad is about to get a taut rival in Windows 8. A row of Windows 8-based tablets are to enter to the scene later this 2012. Microsoft has already previewed its ARM compatible Windows 8 and a dedicated app store called the Windows Store for it. Most analysts think that Windows 8 and Windows Store will haul up crucial threat to iOS and its App Store. Maybe, Google’s Android might not have overcome Apple iPad in number of products sold. But the open source firmware enjoys a clear edge over iPad in escalating popularity. But when it comes to Windows…

• iPhone Apps for the American League Western Division Baseball Fan

  Martin Monroe

  9 May 2012 | 1:46 pm

  Major League Baseball’s American League Western Division teams each have only three other teams to contend with in their annual hunt for playoff gold. Some teams have all the luck. It could be the Milwaukee Brewers’ fault for defecting to the National League a while back. Now there are 14 teams total in the AL to the NL’s 16 teams. Everything seems to work out and if the Western Division get’s a pass by only having 4 total teams, then that’s how the baseball cookies crumble. Install these four apps on your iPhone to become the baseball analyst supreme. Texas Baseball Live Texas…

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  Forum One Blog Posts - All Blogs

• Mobile Solution: Responsive Design on ictQATAR

  Nam-ho Park

  8 May 2012 | 10:31 am

  ictQATAR is the website for the Supreme Council of Information Communication and Technology for the Government of Qatar, which is in charge of technology innovation and implementation throughout the country. Forum One has worked with ictQatar since 2010 to design, develop, and launch their current English-Arabic bilingual site on the Drupal 6 platform, and has continued to support them with usability and site enhancements since. ictQATAR is the website for the Supreme Council of Information Communication and Technology for the Government of Qatar, which is in charge of technology…

• Nonprofit Technology Conference 2012: Our Reflections

  Brian Pagels

  3 May 2012 | 11:07 am

  After sometime to reflect on the ongoings of NTEN's 2012 Nonprofit Technology Conference, we wanted to share our thoughts on what we learned, gained and enjoyed about the conference.  After sometime to reflect on the ongoings of NTEN's Nonprofit Technology Conference, we wanted to share our thoughts on what we learned, gained and enjoyed about the conference. read more

• GovTech Reports on Drupal Adoption

  Mike Shoag

  27 Apr 2012 | 11:31 am

  With over 150 federal government sites powered by Drupal, the open-source CMS is more than ever meeting the needs of big sites. GovTech.com, a top source of government IT news, reported today on the many new government sites that are confidently adopting Drupal as their CMS. Agencies have overcome concerns about security, integration, and departure from Microsoft products. They are now realizing that Drupal’s flexibility make it the most cost-effective solution. Our own CTO, Kurt Voelker, was quoted in the article: With over 150 federal government sites powered by Drupal, the…

• Drupal Tutorial: Pushing Drupal 6 Core Auto-Complete

  Keenan Holloway

  23 Apr 2012 | 4:20 pm

  Recently I had the task of creating a form that utilized an auto-complete text field that filtered on a specific field of a table. This seemed like a great candidate to use the core auto-complete and after a sprint of information gathering I had what I thought would be enough. After delivery I learned that there was one surprise feature. The auto-complete text field needs to be able to have filters applied to it via-form filter dropdown. Recently I had the task of creating a form that utilized an auto-complete text field that filtered on a specific field of a table. This seems like a great…

• Mapping County Health Rankings: Mapnik, Node.js and PostgreSQL

  William Hurley

  16 Apr 2012 | 8:38 am

  The third launch of County Health Rankings has been the most exciting out of any of the three due to the mapping component that serves as the primary way to access the rankings. The third iteration of the County Health Rankings website has a great set of new functionality to get the mapping in place. Mapnik, and Node.js and PostgreSQL — oh my! read more

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  NowSourcing.Com » Blog

• Weekly Meme: Socially Awkward Popcorn

  rose

  15 May 2012 | 12:30 pm

  I fail at making microwave popcorn, and fail even more at eating it. More often than not I end up burning it, resulting in stinking up the whole office. A mess ensues every time I open the bag because of the delicious, drippy butter that is so enticing. No work gets done because, frankly, popcorn stops everything. So lately I’ve been opting to only popping it after everyone has already left. After several weeks of this practice, I have come to realize just how weird it is. Waiting until everyone else leaves so you can gorge your face with an entire bag of microwave butter-lovers…

• Facebook IPO: Can Facebook Beat the Google Display Network in Online Advertising?

  alexkenemer

  15 May 2012 | 10:47 am

  © 2012 WordStream, Inc., a PPC and Search Engine Marketing tools company.

• The Top 12 Benefits of Digital Menu Boards

  kevin

  14 May 2012 | 2:59 pm

  Value Menu: The Top 12 Benefits of Digital Menu Boards [Infographic]Compliments of QSRweb.com

• The Real Cost of BYOD

  Kristina

  10 May 2012 | 2:12 pm

  © 2012 Xigo

• This Week in Infographics: The Easy Way Isn’t Always So Simple

  Kristina

  10 May 2012 | 9:36 am

  The theme this week reminds me of watching fairy tales as a child. Remember how there was always a shortcut for the traveler? The shorter path was always dark and stormy, and the long path was sunny and lovely – the shortest distance between two points isn’t always the easiest way to get there. The interstate will have more traffic than the back roads during rush hour, and the seven day fad diet will ultimately create more work for you in the long run. Our first infographic takes us back to a “simpler time,” and compares it to today – the topic: poker. Taking a…

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  Social Media Marketing

• 4 Reasons Facebook Timeline Isn’t Working For Your Business

  Naomi Trower

  28 Apr 2012 | 8:07 pm

                                                                            Photo Credit: My Facebook Page Do you want to know why the new Facebook timeline isn’t working for your business? Not sure why your fans are not interacting on your page despite posting at different times? Here are 4 reasons and I will share solutions for you: 1. Facebook Edgerank EdgeRank is an algorithm developed by Facebook to govern what is displayed (and how high) on the News Feed. This score represents how people interact…

• 7 Year Old Girl Scout Sold 353 Cookies in 2 Weeks & What That Means In Your Business

  Naomi Trower

  9 Feb 2012 | 1:02 pm

  Many people thought this story would be about my daughter and although she is a fiesty rockstar, this is about another fiery little red-haired gal that is in my daughter’s girl scout troop. We all know that this gal will eventually be a powerhouse CEO or a super Real Estate mogul one day. So you would think that her parents took her girl scout brochure to their workplace & sold like crazy for her… **WRONG** She took the majority of the initiative by herself with her sales. Here are the key components to her success and how it relates to your business. Innovative New Product…

• Free Webinar: 2012 Social Media Strategies For Real Estate & Mortgage

  Naomi Trower

  19 Jan 2012 | 11:41 pm

   Click Here for Full View Social Media Strategies in 2012 for Mortgage and Real Estate Professionals– Tuesday, January 24, 2012 Discover How to Harness the Power of Social Media to Make More Money in 2012 Social media can be an inexpensive – yet lucrative means– to generate leads and grow your business. Join us for an in-depth look at how to implement Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and other social media to excel in a “people-driven” economy this year. Join us for a free webinar hosted by Trevor Hammond, Founder and CEO of MFIC Pro:Social Media Strategies in 2012 for Mortgage…

• 6 Most Popular Real Estate Social Media Posts

  Naomi Trower

  1 Jan 2012 | 9:09 am

  I hope 2012 brings you much success in all of your endeavors. I want to share with you the top blog posts that received the most shares, interactions and comments throughout the past year along with a few of my favorite new year pictures. photo credit: Shutterstock 12 Essential iPad Apps For Your Small Biz 10 Rockin’ Real Estate iPad Apps   photo credit: Shutterstock HOW TO: Setup a Self-Hosted WordPress Blog Top 10 Real Estate Social Media Resources   photo credit: Shutterstock Top 7 Famous Failures 7 Tips To Market Your Real Estate Biz w/Social Media in 30 min / Day Here’s…

• 7 Tips To Market Your Real Estate Business with Social Media in 30 min / Day

  Naomi Trower

  9 Dec 2011 | 12:06 pm

  I know your story…As a real estate or mortgage professional you just don’t have the time to deal with social media. I hear this every day – in fact I’m receiving many requests to start a company that manages social media profiles specifically for real estate and mortgage professionals.   Here are 7 Tips To Market Your Real Estate Business with Social Media in 30 Minutes / Day Tip #1 Find Your Clients Favorite Social Media Sites As you attend events or meet new clients be sure to look them up on social networks to connect with them. This will allow you to maintain…

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  Jessica Randazza

• Reclaiming Real-Life Conversation

  jessicarandazza

  26 Apr 2012 | 2:38 pm

  Recently I read an opinion piece in the New York Times called, “The Flight From Conversation,” that struck a chord, as I’m sure it does for many of us. It highlighted the current state of our “always on” culture –the seeming need for constant digital connectivity while sacrificing RL conversation for mere connection. And the [...]

• Social Networks Stealing the Punch?

  jessicarandazza

  23 Apr 2012 | 9:54 am

  This weekend I made the trek to celebrate my 10-year high school reunion from Homewood High School located in Homewood, AL – my hometown nestled in an area south of Red Mountain, and to locals, lovingly named the suburb community “over the mountain”.  It was an exceptional place to grow up, with all the resources [...]

• Breaking Up is Hard To Do

  jessicarandazza

  26 Mar 2012 | 9:00 am

  Neil Sedaka said it best in 1962, “breaking up is hard to do,” and with today’s technology and constant lines of communications to our former flings and romances, it doesn’t seem to be getting any easier. Last year I went through a break up with someone I had dated for awhile that was also in [...]

• Climbing Off the Sx Wagon?

  jessicarandazza

  16 Mar 2012 | 2:15 pm

  Each year I eagerly await and anxiously plan my annual trips to Austin, TX for South by Southwest, known for being the cat’s meow of all nerd conferences. Where brands, marketers, technologists, and innovative startups intersect. The intensity and caliber of innovative technology and services that come out each year leave me in a head [...]

• Can we move the industry beyond social media lipstick?

  jessicarandazza

  23 Feb 2012 | 11:58 am

  Last night I had the pleasure of entertaining one of my favorite folks from the Seattle social media scene – Kevin Urie. Kevin, the president of Seattle Social Media Club (at least for the next month) is one of those rare finds in the marketing industry. He’s  driven by passion, and it’s clear that he [...]

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  ManagingCommunities.com

• 90% of Conversations in Social Media About Banking Occur in Online Forums

  Patrick

  14 May 2012 | 11:42 am

  photo credit: in search for a new country of residence Recently, Jason Falls shared an interesting fact with me. According to his research, collected through NetBase, 90% of the trackable conversations occurring online around banks and bank products were in online forums. Ninety percent! 5% related to consumer reviews, 3% on blogs and less than [...]

• How to Properly Use the Word “Forums” and the Term “Online Community”

  Patrick

  10 May 2012 | 3:28 pm

  photo credit: avlxyz Once in a while, I run across an article that uses the word “forums” or the term “online community” in a weird, misleading way. What disappoints me most is when someone does this when they are claiming to have expertise in this space – they have community in their job title, they [...]

• Why We Don’t Allow People to Link to Their Own Tutorial Sites on PhotoshopForums.com

  Patrick

  7 May 2012 | 2:27 pm

  photo credit: outcast104 On PhotoshopForums.com, we don’t allow people to link (outside of their signature) to tutorial sites that they are in some way affiliated with. Even if the tutorial answers a question that has been asked. To some, this may sound strange. But, for us, it speaks to the intent of participation and the [...]

• Online Communities Can Use Kickstarter and Crowd Funding, Too

  Patrick

  3 May 2012 | 3:11 pm

  I recently backed a project on Kickstarter for the first time. The project was for “A Show with Ze Frank.” It was successfully funded (raising $146,752, well exceeding the goal of $50,000) the new series from Mr. Frank is well underway. I have loved his past work and was excited to see him back doing [...]

• Post and View Community Management Jobs on ManagingCommunities.com!

  Patrick

  30 Apr 2012 | 4:11 pm

  photo credit: bgottsab ManagingCommunities.com is regularly visited by community management professionals of all experience levels. Many of which are in need of employment or looking to further their careers. If you are looking to hire a community management professional and find qualified candidates, the people who read ManagingCommunities.com are who you are looking for. Whether [...]

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  Bokardo

• New Resource: Principles of User Interface Design

  Josh

  8 May 2012 | 4:53 am

  I’ve just published a new resource that I hope is useful: Principles of User Interface Design. It contains a list of 20 or so design principles that I refer to all the time. This was a good way to get them down into one spot…so I can point people there in the future. You’ll also notice that the page is very simple and (I hope) extremely easy to read. I wanted to start from scratch and really simplify the page much more than a normal blog post and make it easily readable on mobile devices as much as larger screens. I first started using media queries and planning out…

• Designing for the Next Step

  Josh

  16 Jan 2012 | 8:33 am

  Note: this is an excerpt from my forthcoming book Make them Care! In a recent post (Why you should bury the sign up button) I told the story of a redesign I did in which people just didn’t want to click the “sign up” button on the home page, no matter how beautiful or sexy that sign up button was. What I realized from that project is that there are cases in which no amount of visual design will significantly improve the state of things…instead we need to focus on making people care. Here’s another example. On cyber Monday this past November I received an email…

• Design is not Horsepoop

  Josh

  17 Dec 2011 | 6:37 am

  In his impassioned piece Design is Horseshit, YongFook suggests that the increased focus on designers as founders is misguided because design isn’t what makes most startups successful. In my recent post The Golden Age of Design in Startups I was bullish on designers as founders, so I’m here to call bullshit on Yongfook calling bullshit…or something like that. (actually, the idea of “calling bullshit” seems silly to me…why not just respectfully debate a point?) Yongfook’s argument is that design is not the reason why startups are successful. He suggests that…

• More on Burying the Sign Up Button

  Josh

  7 Dec 2011 | 10:49 am

  A couple weeks ago I published Why You Should Bury your Sign Up Button and got some really interesting feedback and comments from folks. One of the more interesting bits was a follow-up post by the folks at Zurb who had experienced the exact same phenomenon…when they took away the “sign up” button and instead put a “learn more” button at the bottom of the page they got a 350% increase in sign ups: Why Burying Sign Up Buttons Helps Get More Sign Ups Think about how counter-intuitive that is at first glance. You take away the call-to-action that says “sign…

• The Golden Age of Design in Startups

  Josh

  5 Dec 2011 | 4:59 am

  I just returned from Dave McClure’s excellent Warm Gun Conference, and I haven’t been this excited to be a designer in a while. The entire event was about design, metrics, and products, and even more importantly the people at the conference were many of the who’s who in Bay Area design. From what I saw and experienced there I daresay there are signs we’re entering a golden age of Design. The evidence: 1. The startups being invested in are designer-led. Take the new Designer Fund that funds startups with designer-founders and helps mentor them. Consider the companies in…

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  Collective Thoughts

• Master Bruce Wayne: Business’s Best Potential Superheroes

  Kristina

  2 May 2012 | 8:40 am

  Most readers associate the name “Bruce Wayne” with Batman, the masked vigilante who has fought crime in comic books, TV shows and movies for over 70 years. Another side of the character, one that does not get as much attention as his rope-swinging, villain-punching alter ego, is the effort he puts forth with his “Wayne Foundation”, the charitable trust he established with his family’s fortune. Several real-life billionaires, including Bill Gates, Warren Buffett, and the late Steve Jobs, have also endeavored to give away much of their fortunes to charitable causes, setting the…

• Personal Privacy, Social Media and You

  Brian Wallace

  27 Apr 2012 | 8:58 am

  Today’s prevailing attitude about the free exchange information across multiple platforms and applications, known to many as Web 2.0 design, is causing users to take a hard look at what constitutes personal privacy. There are many pieces of information people use to conduct daily business on the Internet that shouldn’t be publicly shared, such as credit card information or Social Security numbers. Many are also concerned with the unintended consequences of content shared on social media channels like Facebook and Twitter. As these concerns show no signs of disappearing, they have become a…

• My Dirty Valentine

  Kristina

  8 Feb 2012 | 12:50 pm

  Valentine’s day can be awful for a respectable single – bring on the mushy lovers and the despair of the singleton articles, let’s get it over with. This is why I particularly love Keeping It Kleen’s new infographic – it is hilarious, disgusting, and someone finally thought outside of the box on this one. If you are single, it will make you happy that you don’t have a boyfriend who doesn’t brush his teeth, or a girlfriend who wears the same underwear two days in a row. If you are attached, I suggest you invest in some powerful hand sanitizer. © 2012…

• History of the Businessmen [Infographic]

  Kristina

  30 Jan 2012 | 4:40 pm

  What do cavemen, William Shakespear, Christopher Columbus, and Mark Zuckerberg have in common? They were all shrewd businessmen in their time. Whether they were carving sticks, promoting plays, or trying to get funding to sail the world – these men have set the stage for where business is today, and where it will go. Business MBA’s new infographic does a wonderful job of putting these great men and their skills in order, and giving us an idea of where Generation Y will take us next. From: Business MBA

• Where Did Google Make Their Money In 2011?

  Kristina

  23 Jan 2012 | 1:00 pm

  The number is out there, Google made 37.9 billion dollars last year. About 96 percent of this came from advertising. WordStream’s impressive new infographic explores which keywords were the most popular and whose ads made the search engine so much money. © WordStream, a Google AdWords partner company.

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  123 Social Media

• Building a Social Media Dashboard

  Barry Hurd

  9 May 2012 | 11:08 am

  Warning: fopen(http://su.pr/api/simpleshorten?url=http://123socialmedia.com/building-a-social-media-dashboard/&login=barryhurd&apiKey=R_5908e1757bbb2d6bc0b88f47a59d3403) [function.fopen]: failed to open stream: HTTP request failed! HTTP/1.1 503 Service Unavailable in /home/executiv/public_html/123socialmedia.com/wp-content/plugins/wp-tweetbox/wp-tweetbox.php on line 109 Warning: fread(): supplied argument is not a valid stream resource in /home/executiv/public_html/123socialmedia.com/wp-content/plugins/wp-tweetbox/wp-tweetbox.php on line 112 Warning: fclose(): supplied argument is not…

• Social Media Policy & Employee Rights with National Labor Board

  Barry Hurd

  12 Mar 2012 | 7:14 pm

  While there are many social media policy documents floating around and we’ve covered the topic in-depth here many times before (see related articles below) - it is always interesting when social media policy is viewed strictly from a legal and labor relations perspective. On that note I want to draw your attention to cases from the acting general counsel of the U.S. National Labors Relations Board. While the NLRB has a very broad goal, its various rulings regarding existing social media policy and regulation is interesting. The most recent report (dated January 25, 2012) covers 14…

• Corporate Social Media Training, cookie cutter = bad

  Barry Hurd

  9 Mar 2012 | 4:27 pm

  On a daily basis we receive inquiries for social media training via webinar and on-demand platforms. The reality of the request is that most of the people want a “canned solution.” The general reasoning goes like this: They have a problem. They need it fixed. They want to buy something off the shelf to fix it. Unfortunately when it comes to corporate social media training, nothing exist on the shelf. There isn’t a single cookie-cutter item that can be universally applied to a corporate footprint that doesn’t cause more problems than it is worth. Typical examples…

• Social Media Training, a guide to no nonsense education

  Barry Hurd

  13 Feb 2012 | 1:21 pm

  To help some of our readers I’ve collected a list of training articles that I have written over at BarryHurd.com that detail some of the core elements around types of media and how the interact in both the offline and online world. I typically add an additional article about once a month to this list in an effort to create a holistic resource to raise the common understanding of what ‘social media’ is and is not. This series of social media training documents is also a go-to list of ideas when I am researching client projects or developing tactical plans. If a ‘social…

• Social Media Training – 40 Questions for the Corporate Team

  Barry Hurd

  6 Feb 2012 | 8:26 pm

  There are a lot of questions regarding social media training and how it ties into a larger organization. To help with that I’ve collected some of my thoughts in a free whitepaper that highlights some of the critical areas of impact you should be thinking about. You can read through the list of questions I’ve covered below… but will need to download the whitepaper to get some of my value-added thoughts. Some questions to think about… How much does this cost? What forms of social media will reach our business goals? Are there any “low cost” benefits? What are…

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  Brian Solis

• The Fallacy of Information Overload

  Brian Solis

  15 May 2012 | 8:50 am

  Some of you know me through my work in studying how social media and disruptive technology impact business and culture. Others have worked with me in translating insights into action and change within the enterprise.  Every now and then, I share another side of myself that evokes the aspiring social scientist in me as I explore how all of this is affecting us as individuals and human beings. Not a day goes by when I’m not asked about whether or not the social media bubble will finally burst. Twitter, Facebook, Google+, Foursquare, Pinterest, this all has to be too much right? More…

• Music, Film, TV: How social media changed the entertainment experience

  Brian Solis

  10 May 2012 | 9:56 am

  Social media is more than a digital water cooler for TV and movies. The global conversation that takes place around events and the experiences people share based on what they watch teaches us about consumer preferences. More importantly, their activity influences behavior. Behavior counts for everything. Studying it is just the beginning of course. In order to understand and eventually steer behavior, we must translate activity into insights and in turn, translate insights into actionable strategies and programs. The Hollywood Reporter recently published an exclusive poll about social media…

• The future of TV is more than social, it’s a multi-screen experience that needs design

  Brian Solis

  7 May 2012 | 1:19 pm

  The future of television is much more than social; much in the same way that the future of media is too, more than social. Social is a fabric; it connects the individual nodes that make up the human network. But, social however, is not a means to an end. And, as such, the same is true about the working theories driving Social TV. Understanding the role social plays in how viewers connect with programs and other people is essential to defining the future of television. Over the years, I’ve written much about my vision for the long overdue convergence of not only web and TV, but also how the…

• The Path from a Social Brand to a Social Business

  Brian Solis

  2 May 2012 | 11:17 am

  I’ve been a long-time supporter of MediaTemple’s (MT)Residence program along with Gary Vaynerchuk, Neil Patel, and many others whom I respect. I wanted to share my “7 questions to answer to become a social business” with you here.. Social Media is pervasive and is becoming the new normal in corporate marketing. Brands who get this right are starting to build their own media networks rich with customer connections numbering in the millions. Right now, Coca-Cola has over 34 million fans on Facebook, but they’re hardly alone. Disney follows just behind with 29 million…

• Do Customers Really Matter to Your Business? Prove it.

  Brian Solis

  30 Apr 2012 | 10:21 am

  Frank Eliason and I have known each other for many years. We’ve shared the stage on many occasions, he’s made an appearance on Revolution, and most importantly, I’m proud to call him a personal friend. Frank has championed the adaption and transformation of customer service during his time at Comcast and at CITI. Never one to shy away from sharing his opinions, he’s certainly bullish on where service needs to be as a function and a philosophy versus where it is today. In fact, he’s gone so far as to call out social media customer service as being a…

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  Social Business Advisor: Social CRM and Enterprise 2.0

• Free Webinar: Common Collaboration Problems with the CIO of Pabst Brewing Company

  Jacob Morgan

  15 May 2012 | 2:28 am

  This Wednesday the 16th at 10am PST Ben Haines, the CIO of Pabst Brewing Company will be joining me on a webinar to discuss some of the common collaboration problems that organizations face today.  We’re going to try to have a casual discussion around what obstacles organizations are running up against and how they are overcoming these obstacles.  The event is being powered by Cisco which is allowing us to host the event on their platform. Here are the details taken from the event site: Collaboration is not new. In fact, we have collaborated for thousands of years. However,…

• What Would Happen if Your Organization Didn’t Invest in Collaboration?

  Jacob Morgan

  10 May 2012 | 1:40 pm

  I (and many others) have spent a great deal of time talking about why organizations should invest their resources in collaboration tools and strategies.  But let’s assume for a moment that you didn’t.  How long do you realistically see your organization going on without making this investment; 1 year, 2 years, 3 years?  Do you really see your organization waiting this long? At this point I have probably worked with, spoken with, and researched hundreds of companies and it’s rare to come across an organization that nothing in place when it comes to collaboration.  At the…

• Implementing Enterprise 2.0 at IBM

  Jacob Morgan

  8 May 2012 | 3:06 am

  I had the opportunity to have several in-depth conversations with John Rooney (CIO of Technical Strategy) and Ethan McCarty (Senior Manager, Digital and Social Strategy) of IBM.  The conversations resulted in our recently released case study on Implementing Enterprise 2.0 at IBM.  Here is an overview of that case study. With over 420,000 employees in over 70 countries, IBM is one of the largest and most recognized companies in the world today.  A company of this size needs to be able to coordinate and collaborate, share business processes, and respond to market demands. In order to make…

• The Twelve Principles of Collaboration

  Jacob Morgan

  3 May 2012 | 12:41 pm

  1.  Individual benefit is just as important as the overall corporate benefit (if not more important) Don’t focus on the overall corporate value and benefit when communicating collaboration to employees.  Employees care about how this will impact them on an individual basis.  How will this make their jobs and lives easier? 2.  Strategy before technology Before rushing to pick that shiny new collaboration platform focus on developing a strategy which will help you understand the “why” before the “how.”  This is crucial for the success of any…

• New Study: Only 10 Percent of Employees are Engaged

  Jacob Morgan

  1 May 2012 | 1:52 pm

  I don’t like reading things like this, I really don’t.  But today I came across a report released by Modern Survey which found that we have a lot of work to do around engaging our employees.  Modern Survey isn’t the first firm to report low engagement numbers, Gallup and Blessing White (along with others) have all found low engagement rates within our organizations.  The questions, approaches, methodology, and data that all of these firms get is different but the trend and overall findings remains the same.  I don’t think we realize how crucial employee engagement…

• 

  GeekGirlfriends.com

• A Technology That Changed Women’s Lives

  Christina Tynan-Wood

  10 May 2012 | 11:13 am

  The folks at JimmyJane sent me the preview of the movie Hysteria (above.) It looks hilarious. I’m a fan of technologies that make life more fun. And I’ll watch anything with Rupert Everett in it. So, even without the fascinating, hysterical, and apparently true(ish) history of how the invention of the vibrator changed medicine and [...]

• Do You Think the Internet is a Distraction?

  Christina Tynan-Wood

  4 May 2012 | 2:42 pm

  Okay, I’m procrastinating. My to-do list has 29 projects and 473 tasks on it. And writing a blog post where I intentionally set out to use the Internet to distract you from productive work is not even on that list. But I don’t care. I’m doing it. Every day I get upwards of 200 emails. [...]

• I Want Some of These Robots in My House

  Christina Tynan-Wood

  2 Mar 2012 | 9:35 am

    I can think of a million mundane and domestic ways to use a swarm of these tiny, autonomous, flying robots around my house: Chasing the dog off the couch a 200 times a day, picking up the trail of clutter left by two teenagers and a husband, and — most fun of all — [...]

• I’m Giving Away a Netbook!

  Christina Tynan-Wood

  16 Feb 2012 | 1:20 pm

  Did you get a bed of roses on Valentine’s Day? A diamond ring? A trip to Paris? No? Me either. Would a new netbook help make up for it? Because I have one. And I’m giving it away. Maybe you saw it in my Family Circle High Tech Gift Guide back in 2011. It’s the [...]

• I Want This in My Next Phone

  Christina Tynan-Wood

  1 Feb 2012 | 12:30 pm

  HzO has invented a nanotechnology that coats the inside of electronics, making them impervious to water. I have pulled useless electronics out of toilets, the garden after a rainstorm, a bathtub, and the rinse cycle in the washing machine. There are cases that will do this but they never seem to be on the phone [...]

• 

  Dan Zarrella

• Using Twitter Data to Map Emotions Geographically

  Dan Zarrella

  6 May 2012 | 11:30 pm

  A few weeks ago, I spoke at a federal agency conference in Arlington, VA and one of the most interesting topics was the potential use of social media, by intelligence agencies, to map out and predict social unrest. So I decided to start experimenting with the concept on my own. By combining the linguistic analysis systems of TweetPsych with Twitter’s geo tagging data (which isn’t great yet) and the Google Maps API, I was able to plot tweets on specific latitude and longitude codes based on their emotional content. Below you’ll see 6 maps of various kinds of psychological…

• Introducing TweetCharts: Get The Twitter Data You Need

  Dan Zarrella

  30 Apr 2012 | 12:15 am

  It used to be that if you wanted to get data on a certain industry, keyword, hashtag or Twitter user you had to wait for a geeky, social media scientist type to write the scripts and run the reports for you. With my new tool TweetCharts.com that’s no longer the case. Enter any word, phrase, hashtag, URL or username and TweetCharts will return a comprehensive report, including data on reply, retweet, and link percentages as well as the most common words, most mentioned users, most used hashtags and more. I began working on TweetCharts a few weeks ago actually on a plane. I did some…

• [Infographic] How to Get More Pins and Repins on Pinterest

  Dan Zarrella

  11 Apr 2012 | 1:11 am

  Data about Pinterest is sparse because they’ve been slow to release their API, but I was able to utilize search engine APIs to pull some data about the trendy new social site. I gathered information on over 11,000 pinned images and did some analysis to create the infographic below. This data should be useful for Pinterest users who’d like to get more repins on the images they’ve pinned, as well as content producers who want their content pinned and repinned more. I hope to be able to do more research into Pinterest, especially as they release their API. Let me know what data…

• [Infographic] How to Get More Clicks on Twitter

  Dan Zarrella

  24 Jan 2012 | 11:18 pm

  I’ve often said that the best use of Twitter is as a broadcast medium. You should be creating a ton of interesting content and sharing it with your followers. To that end I’ve done a bunch of research on how to optimize the clickthrough rate (CTR) of the links you’re tweeting. For the purposes of this data, I’ve calculated CTR as the number of clicks on a tweeted link divided by the number of followers the account had when it tweeted that link. Below is an infographic presenting some of my past findings as well as some entirely new data I’ve found about…

• [Infographic] What are the Best Times to Blog?

  Dan Zarrella

  23 Jan 2012 | 12:54 am

  One of the most popular webinars I’ve ever worked on, The Science of Timing was also one of my favorite. If you haven’t seen it, go check out the on-demand recording now. In it, I present data I’ve collected over three years about the effect timing has on a variety of online marketing activities, including blogging. Below is an infographic that represents a collection of the three most important stats I have about when to publish blog posts. In the webinar, I also make the point that my results are based on huge aggregates of thousands, millions, or even in some cases,…

• 

  Emily Chang - Designer

• Urban magic hour

  Emily Chang

  18 Apr 2012 | 10:09 pm

• Artcodes

  Emily Chang

  30 Mar 2012 | 1:25 am

  Excited to announce our new art brand, artcodes, featuring original art, designer toys, art products and more. I’ll post more details soon. In the meantime, sign up to be notified of our launch and follow @artcodes on twitter!

• Great Things

  Emily Chang

  15 Mar 2012 | 5:44 pm

  Great things are not accomplished by those who yield to trends and fads and popular opinion. - Jack Kerouac Via explore

• The Wild Air

  Emily Chang

  1 Mar 2012 | 8:13 pm

  Live in the sunshine. Swim in the sea. Drink the wild air. -Ralph Waldo Emerson

• Surfrider’s 3 Second Film Challenge for World Water Day

  Emily Chang

  27 Feb 2012 | 7:59 pm

  I’m a proud member of Surfrider and thought I would participate in the 3 Second Film Challenge to raise awareness about water issues for World Water Day 2012. I sent in the four short videos below that were shot at various times while surfing. Learn how you can reduce your water waste at Surfrider and help preserve such a valuable and limited resource. Also, please take a moment and learn how to reduce sewage runoff and take simple steps to stop polluting our oceans and waterways. Big Swell in Pacifica, CA Paradise in Uluwatu, Bali Clear Blue Water, Hawaii Waves Rolling, Pacifica, CA

• 

  Bazaarvoice Blog

• 10 things you didn’t know about online consumers

  Ian Greenleigh

  15 May 2012 | 8:00 am

  Note: This post originally ran on  iStrategy Blog , and is republished here with permission.  Online consumers love to share their opinions with each other on the things they buy. Savvy shoppers have always turned to this public feedback for guidance, but since more and more word of mouth data has been digitized, archived, and analyzed, companies are now able to rely on it for their own guidance. In the last year alone, our research has distilled tens of millions of consumer data points into a strikingly clear picture of today’s consumers. Here are ten of the most interesting things…

• Technology is child’s play (how toys, consumers, and marketers are connecting)

  Haylie Rudy

  9 May 2012 | 1:07 pm

  The playroom we all live in I have a sister who is much younger than me.  I remember practicing my killer basketball skills on the courts in middle school when I received news that I needed to rush to the hospital to welcome baby Ellie into the world.   Ellie and I have been able to grow close over the years. I like to think I’m not the terrorizing, bossy older sister, but rather more like a caring aunt or even second, “cool” Mom. Ellie is now in middle school herself, obsessed with her iPhone and constantly documenting every moment of her life via Instagram.  Last weekend at a…

• Five ways to change your “relationship status” with influencers

  Ian Greenleigh

  3 May 2012 | 9:18 am

  The topic of influencers usually focuses on tools more than strategies. Klout, for instance, is not a strategy, it’s a tool that tends to dominate any discussion of influencer discovery and outreach. In this post, let’s talk about strategies that work. Relationships are at the heart of any effective influencer strategy. People like engaging with people they know and like. Relationships take time, effort and trust. And relationships of this kind can be just like other human relationships— active or passive, close or distant, substantive or superficial, straightforward or messy, fair or…

• How to get more out of the Facebook content boom

  Warren Colbert

  1 May 2012 | 9:20 am

  From search to social Close to 1/5th of total time spent online is spent on Facebook. This is a huge shift from the composition of web activity eight years ago when Facebook first began. Back then, it was a search-focused web. Most content creation and consumption happened on siloed web pages and search functioned as a bridge to this content. Google became synonymous with “search” and built an empire that dominated the web. Search is not dead Let me be clear, this is not a “search is dead” post. Search is far from dead, and phrases like that are overly simplistic at best. It’s not…

• The new window shopping: how to build brands by photo sharing

  Carrie Griffiths

  25 Apr 2012 | 9:56 am

  Before digital photography, I remember the excitement of getting my pictures developed the moment I returned home from a great trip or event. It was all about the anticipation, the hopes that I’d captured a specific moment, face, or place. Conversely, I also recall the instant gratification of my parents’ Polaroid: watching the photo coming out of the camera, waving it in the air to “dry,” and watching the magic of film appear right before my eyes. The romance of waiting for film to develop may have faded. But like Polaroids, today’s photo trends in digital, mobile, and social offer…

• 

  Beth’s Blog

• Social Media, Networking, and African Women’s Leadership Training in Rwanda

  Beth

  15 May 2012 | 10:00 am

  For the past ten days, I’ve been in Rwanda, Africa.  I was honored to be a trainer as part of the launch of the ACE Leaders Project, a program developed by the Institute of International Education Sub-Saharan Regional Office and supported by the Packard Foundation.   The project is under the visionary leadership of Cheryl Francisconi who is the director of IIE’s office in Addis Ababa in Ethiopia and has vast expertise in developing, designing, and implementing transformative leadership programs for several decades. The project mobilizes leading women’s organizations and…

• Need Answers: LinkedIn Has Them

  Beth

  14 May 2012 | 10:44 am

    Note from Beth: I’m just finishing up an intensive training here in Rwanda.   I was out in a rural area where Internet connectivity was a huge challenge, so was not able to blog,   But now that I’m back in Kigali with a good Internet connection, expect to hear more about my experience teaching social media and the Networked NGO.     Right before I left for this trip, Geri Stengel, shared a guest post about nonprofits and use of LinkedIn that was of interest to many folks.   So, when Geri offered up this second post about nonprofits and LinkedIn, I couldn’t…

• Are You Being Left Behind as Technology Ushers In a Whole New Approach to Philanthropy? #CoFLA

  Beth

  4 May 2012 | 9:25 am

  Note From Beth: Just before I left for Rwanda, I caught some interesting discussion threads about organizational adoption of networked ways of working on Twitter coming from the #COFLA hashtag as a result of the Council on Foundations gathering in Los Angeles.   I discovered that it was Larry Eason from DotOrgPower and his colleague, Shelley Wenk, offered to write this summary of the discussion as a guest post. When I landed,  I was able to get the guest post from Shelley via email and publish it because Rwanda has one of the better Internet connectivity infrastructures for the countries…

• Attention Data Nerds: Nonprofits Miss Out on the Power of LinkedIn: Learn How to Tap It

  Beth

  3 May 2012 | 10:02 am

  Note from Beth: By the time you are reading, I’ll probably have been on a jet plane for far longer than I want to be and maybe have landed in Rwanda.   Once I recover from the journey, expect read reports about the Networked NGO in Rwanda and use of social media to support Women’s Rights organizations.   If you’re motivated to go deeper on LinkedIn after reading this summary,  you will want to check out my curated list of nonprofit and LinkedIn resources here. Nonprofits Miss Out on the Power of LinkedIn: Learn How to Tap It – Guest Post by Geri Stengel  …

• Three Reasons Kids Need Digital Literacy and Citizenship Education

  Beth

  2 May 2012 | 9:49 am

  Photo by WhiteAfrican Note from Beth: By the time you read this post,  I’ll be in the air enroute to Rwanda for a training project.   As a parent of wired kids, I think teaching digital literacy is very important for parents to do.  Here’s some great advice from my colleagues at CommonSense Media.   Three reasons kids need digital literacy and citizenship education — and three ways to provide it – Guest Post by Emily Esch If you’re reading this blog, it’s probably because you’re a huge fan of social media and believe that it empowers all of…

• 

  The Foush » Blog

• April 2012- Dublin Sandbox Launch, 2 TEDxVideos and a Magazine Article!

  Rahaf

  8 May 2012 | 1:44 pm

  This month’s update is going to be short and sweet! After being on the road so much last month, I was really glad to have some time to relax at home. Despite March’s glorious weather, the majority of April was wet and cold. Not the best weather for touring the City of Light, but actually great weather for writing. While I did mostly stay put, I did go over to Dublin to participate in the week-long launch of the Dublin Sandbox Hub!   1) Dublin Sandbox Hub I was delighted to head over to Dublin to celebrate the launch of our newest Hub and welcome our Irish Sandboxers into the…

• March 2012 – Recap: London, Copenhagen, New York, Toronto and a Birthday!

  Rahaf

  11 Apr 2012 | 7:39 am

  March was a glorious month this year. The weather was unnaturally warm in every single place I visited! In Paris, it was around 21 degrees, and everyone finally abandoned their winter boots and coats in favor of light sweaters and flats. Even the French, notoriously monochromatic, accented their outfits with colourful silk scarves and bright spring bags. To my delight, within the first few weeks of the month, the trees had started growing leaves, adding splashes of green to the streets! It was a busy month, that involved a lot of whirlwind travel. I spent the first week of the month in…

• 

  Debbie Weil's Blog

• Can You Really Write a Short Book in 8 Weeks?

  debbie.weil@gmail.com

  27 Apr 2012 | 7:46 am

  Yes, if you start with a bunch of great content you can draw from: blog posts, articles, notes, lists, research. And are ruthlessly focused on shipping something in 8 weeks. But the fact is, it probably does take 10,000 hours to learn how to write well. If not 10,000, then a lot of time over a period of years.

• Why a Short Book? Hint: Quicker to Write and Delivers Same Business Benefits

  debbie.weil@gmail.com

  8 Feb 2012 | 12:30 pm

  The cool thing about writing a short book and self-publishing it on Amazon Kindle is that you can think of yourself as a Beta Author. Why Beta? Think of it as an Agile Book Launch. Your short book will be provocative, smart and well-written. It will have a sizzling title and a click-inducing cover. But it may be the first in a series of books. You may want to write a longer book later. You may want to revise it. No problem. As an entrepreneurial author, you're in charge. You don't need permission from a big New York publisher. The theory beyond agile software development and lean…

• My Three Words for 2012: Alignment, Quiet and Compassion

  debbie.weil@gmail.com

  1 Feb 2012 | 3:17 am

  Inspired by a number of other bloggers and authors, including Chris Brogan (Temple, Untangle, Practice), Jonathan Fields (Serve, Inspire, Transcend) and Chris Guillebeau (Finishing), I am starting 2012 with three words. I was tempted to say "launching" 2012 because that's what it feels like. More about that in a minute. First, my words: Alignment Quiet Compassion Alignment 2012 is going to be a year of adventure, excitement and hard work. Oh, and lots of unknowns. Why? Because I have launched a new company, Voxie Media. Voxie Media is a new hybrid. It's a next-generation publishing…

• Wake Up and Write For Your Existing Readers (Don’t Look for Readers Later)

  debbie.weil@gmail.com

  27 Jan 2012 | 2:22 pm

  Seth Godin reminds us - again - of the new way to think about writing a business book. You are writing for the fans and followers you already have. Your tribe. They are the ones who will celebrate with you and kick off word-of-mouth sales if you set your launch price on Kindle at $0.00. As Seth puts it: "Wake up in the morning thinking about what (you) can write for (your) readers." Not the other way around. The old mindset went like this: write your book, get it edited, get blurbs from big names, design a great cover, print, distribute, launch and hold your breath for sales. In other words,…

• Is Publishing a Kick-ass eBook for Kindle One of Your Goals for 2012?

  debbie.weil@gmail.com

  29 Dec 2011 | 2:44 pm

  We're betting it is. And there are one spot no spots left to pre-register for the next Beta Author Boost, starting in March 2012. Beta Author Boost is a unique writing workshop that enables up-and-coming business authors to write and publish a short, kick-ass eBook for Amazon Kindle in 8 weeks. The first Beta Author Boost sold out in less than 12 hours. The program is currently in full swing with 10 subject matter experts working on a wide variety of book topics. We are having a blast. Writing a book, even a short book, is hard. What if a drop-dead deadline propelled you to finish your…

• 

  Blogworks: Social Media India, Brand, Marketing and Communication Consulting.

• Episode 2 of #satyamevjayate sees over 50% drop in mentions on Twitter compared to debut episode.

  vishesh

  14 May 2012 | 8:00 am

  We received great response to our analysis of Satyamev Jayate mentions last week and you must be curious to see what happened yesterday. Let me give you the top-line – conversations on Twitter saw a 52% drop over last week and we noted a total of 12565 mentions of #satyamevjayate (only this specific hashtag) In... Read more »

• Analysis of today’s Twitter conversations around Aamir Khan’s #SatyamevJayate

  vishesh

  6 May 2012 | 12:31 pm

  The build-up for Aamir Khan’s Satyamev Jayate has been unprecedented and a phenomenal 16700 posts were generated today (upto 15oo hours IST) as the show opened today. We decided to take a peek into Twitter conversations today. Hope you find this useful. Do share your thoughts on what you felt about the conversations today. Twitter... Read more »

• IndiaSocial Summit 2012 Twitter Analysis #indiasocial12

  vishesh

  13 Apr 2012 | 2:36 pm

  IndiaSocial Summit 2012 evoked a fair amount of buzz and conversations online generating over 6000 messages between Jan-April 2012 (of which over 3800 were shared between 2-4 April 2012 – the event duration). Here is a part of the report we prepared for our internal assessment. IndiaSocial summit 2012 twitter analysis by team blogworks View... Read more »

• 

  gapingvoid

• In praise of the email newsletter format

  Hugh MacLeod

  9 May 2012 | 10:40 am

  [Subscribe to the gapingvoid newsletter here.] This made me very happy– Austin Ray from Mailchimp interviewed me about my “fantastic open rates”. Mailchimp, as you know, is what powers my daily cartoon newsletter. With email newsletters, at least with Mailchimp, the average “open rate” is around 6%-8% i.e. for every hundred people you send out to, six to eight people actually open it and read it, as opposed to just sending it to the trash. Our newsletter is 40%+. That’s amazing. We were impressed to find out that Hugh MacLeod‘s MailChimp campaigns consistently maintain a…

• Leaving the mainstream…

  Hugh MacLeod

  9 May 2012 | 10:27 am

  This is the latest cartoon to go out in the newsletter. I’m not anti-mainstream; it has its place. That being said, it isn’t for for everyone. And yes, sometimes you have to leave it, to find out who you REALLY are. I can certainly relate…

• The trouble with big companies…

  Hugh MacLeod

  8 May 2012 | 12:03 pm

• All three possible answers

  Hugh MacLeod

  8 May 2012 | 11:05 am

• I hate my life

  Hugh MacLeod

  8 May 2012 | 10:52 am

• 

  Social Media Dudes - Internet & Mobile Marketing Strategies

• 27 Awesome Ways to Get People to Listen to You

  Dennis

  28 Apr 2012 | 10:52 pm

  27 Awesome Ways to Get People to Listen to You   This guest post is by Nick Thacker of livehacked.com. I’ve been creating stuff lately—blog posts, articles, tweets, videos, ebooks, etc.—and I realized something: The biggest struggle I’ve had during it all was getting people to listen. While blogging and submitting articles, leaving tons of comments, [...] Related posts: 3 FREE Ways to Increase Your FaceBook Fans – Often Overlooked 3 FREE Ways to Increase Your FaceBook Fans – Often... 13 Great Ways To Repurpose Your Content! I think you would agree that valuable…

• 13 Great Ways To Repurpose Your Content!

  John

  17 Jan 2012 | 6:59 am

  I think you would agree that valuable content on your website or that was authored by you and hosted on other sites is critical to your success to drive traffic and ultimately make sales. At the end of the day, it separates a good blog from a great blog! So creating great content is job [...] Related posts: Best Ways to Drive Traffic To Your Blog! The following article was written by  Dorothy J Bellisario who... Content Marketing Principles: 3 Highly Effective Things to Incorporate Into Your Blog Posts! One of the things that I learned from my attendance... Related posts brought to you by…

• 3 FREE Ways to Increase Your FaceBook Fans – Often Overlooked

  Dennis

  11 Jan 2012 | 7:40 am

  3 FREE Ways to Increase Your FaceBook Fans – Often Overlooked In my opinion more fans are better than fewer fans.  You can talk about “quality” all you want but you will not change my mind on this one.  The more fans you have the more likely you will develop new business or even create [...] Related posts: Get Better Engagement From Your Facebook Page! Dennis and I have had several people come up to... 20 Helpful Facebook Fan Page Tips! Strategy 1. Life is short!  So have some fun from... 5 Ways Non Business Owners Can Benefit Financially From Social Media 5 Ways Non Business…

• Why Your Blog Didn’t Take Off in 2011 and How You Fix It for 2012!

  John

  7 Jan 2012 | 7:36 am

  Fair warning!  This blog post is not for the meek or the faint hearted! About this time last year, you were like a lot of folks who decided that they were going to follow Gary Vaynerchuk’s advice and  “Crush It” (no slam on Gary…if you do what he says, you are going to be farther [...] No related posts. Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

• LinkedIn Profile Essentials – Part 2

  John

  5 Jan 2012 | 7:02 am

  This is part 2 of a 2 part series written by Janet Slack.  See Part 1 by clicking here. Today we are looking at strategies that will make your LinkedIn (LI) profile a true asset for your business.  You want it to be a great place for people to learn more about you and we [...] Related posts: LinkedIn Profile Essentials – Part 1 You need a great LinkedIn profile.  It really is no... Getting Setup On LinkedIn! Social media is gaining massive popularity these days due to... 10 Ways To Promote Your Business With LinkedIn! LinkedIn in many regards is the forgotten member of what... Related…

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  Soshable | Social Media Blog

• Online University Courses Incorporate Mobile Applications

  Drew Hendricks

  15 May 2012 | 11:33 am

  Getting your education on the go is now possible. With mobile education applications, it is now easy to take online university courses and stay updated using your smartphone. You can use your smartphone in a variety of ways. You can check your class’s message board, you can email your professor, or you can delve into the world of applications. In fact, eSchool News, an online publication for education professionals, lists ten of the best available online applications. One of them is called “Molecules,” and it allows the user to toggle three-dimensional images of molecules, in order to…

• Speaking at the Automotive Boot Camp in Vegas this Week

  JD Rucker

  14 May 2012 | 10:24 pm

  There’s good and bad about speaking engagements in Vegas. The good part is that the city is ideal with plenty of hotel rooms and conference space to make anyone comfortable and productive. The bad part is that it’s Las “Stays In” Vegas and attendees are often distracted from the business at hand. That won’t be the case at the PCG Event tomorrow through Thursday. The attendees are there for learning and the presenters are professionals. I have been to the previous two and both were high on education, low on distractions. The only bad part is that I won’t be…

• Video Marketing: Going Viral with Your Company

  Anita Brady

  14 May 2012 | 9:22 pm

  We’ve done it, just like most of our friends have done it to us. We’ve come across a viral video that either made us laugh out loud, cry like a baby or think about something we’d never really considered before; and we’ve passed it on – usually with a comment like “lmao” or “This is going to make you cry.” And some of them are just so simple: a little kid getting his finger bitten by his younger brother or a three second symphonic clip introducing a wide-eyed gerbil. These videos are getting millions and millions of views and it seems like…

• Turning Back the Clock on the Eternal September: What the Brouhaha over Mark Zuckerberg’s Hoodie Tells Us about Social Media

  Michael Gillen

  14 May 2012 | 9:04 pm

  So, a large number of the cognoscenti have gone downright apoplectic about Mark Zuckerberg daring to wear a hoodie to all-so-serious meeting of business bigwigs. The scandal.  What’s next?  White after labor day?  Red shoes on a Thursday?  How can our society survive without our sumptuary laws?  Perhaps the Mayans were right: the end is nigh! Sarcasm aside, it really does show an interesting moment about social media and its place in society and Mark Zuckerberg—for good or for ill—is its personification.   Social media is not businesslike; it is not Chanel and it is not Brooks…

• Apple Ping: A Social Media “Genius” Idea

  Nick Renna

  14 May 2012 | 5:38 pm

  Just so we are all on the same page, Apple Ping is a social media platform for music. Ping is an underestimated platform that really has an incredible amount of possibilities for those who really love music. Not only does it allow for people to share what is in their libraries, but it also allows for people to see updates about a specific artist and even concert updates. It imports their Tweets and you can see what everyone is saying and listening to. It’s not so much a platform like Facebook where you can comment on people’s walls and such, but you can comment on songs and albums that…

• 

  Brains On Fire Blog

• Is All of That ‘Noise’ a Bad Thing?

  Eric Dodds

  15 May 2012 | 9:37 am

  How many times have you heard talk about the dreaded ‘noise’? The other day a friend of mine lamented about how digital camera prices have dropped to a point where ‘everyone’ is calling themselves a ‘professional photographer’ and its creating so much ‘noise’ in the industry. But it seems to be everywhere – from startups releasing a product, to companies exploring social media, to ‘content strategy,’ to hundreds of people applying for the same job opening. Everyone seems to be asking, “how in the world are we going to…

• Nostalgia, Mad Men and Emotions

  Robbin

  14 May 2012 | 8:32 am

  Yours truly at a Brains on Fire Mad Men Christmas party a few years back. I’ve never gotten caught up watching the show, Mad Men. But the other day someone showed me a short clip that got stuck in my heart for many reasons. Take a minute and watch it. Don’t you love that? The definition of nostalgia as a pain of or ache is wonderful. Even happy memories can create that tug. Since we’re in the word of mouth marketing business, we think a lot about the role of emotions in igniting conversation. We know that brands and organizations that evoke strong emotions and storytelling…

• The End User is Not the Only User

  Eric Dodds

  10 May 2012 | 8:38 am

  I am not a product designer. I’m not even a designer. But I noticed something recently that made me think hard about the process of developing products and experiences. My wife and I were eating at a burrito chain where one of the new Coca-Cola “Freestyle” drink machines was installed (1). I’m not a soda drinker, so I didn’t experience it for myself, but I could tell that other restaurant patrons were really enjoying the futuristic interface and the impossibly broad number of drink choices available from one machine. (I read later that the number of available…

• Hello (and some photos) From Chicago

  Robbin

  9 May 2012 | 7:50 am

  We’re at the WIT. Love the little brilliant details in this hotel, like birds quietly chirping in the halls. I’m in Chicago this week at Womma‘s womm-u with Cordell and Geno. And I’m so glad we all came. Honestly, I wish everyone from Brains on Fire could attend. Yesterday’s keynote speaker Steve Knox is shiny brilliant (he spoke at the FIRE session two years ago and was a huge hit). Every time I get the chance to be in Steve’s company, I take it. And every time I hear him speak, I learn something new. Here are just a couple of things that stuck in my mind:…

• 6 Things Food Trucks Can Teach us about Social Media

  amy

  7 May 2012 | 9:15 am

  Food trucks are all the rage. They’re popping up everywhere, embodying the principles of not only fine dining, but fine design on the go. There are food truck lunch breaks, food truck festivals, even food truck weddings. And now food trucks are teaching us a thing or two about social media. This weekend I came across a must-read article: 6 THINGS FOOD TRUCKS CAN TEACH US ABOUT SOCIAL MEDIA. Consider it an essential Monday morning read. Not only will it get your wheels turning, it may get your stomach rumbling, too.

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  McBuzz Communications | Mark McLaren

• Online Marketing Secrets: Driving Traffic to Your Website is Only the Beginning

  Mark McLaren

  14 May 2012 | 4:49 pm

  Recently I received a question about driving traffic to a website in order to increase sales. Specifically, the question was, what do the “big boys” use to generate sales and leads on their sites? The big boys (and girls) like to use big advertising budgets of anywhere from $100,000 to $1,000,000 or more per month. Want to learn to play the piano? You'll be more successful with an instructor. Online marketing is the same. Hire a consultant if you want to do it right. They spend this on traditional advertising, of course, like TV, magazines and newspaper ads. Online they spend…

• Five Keys to Generating New Business with Online Marketing

  Mark McLaren

  8 May 2012 | 11:59 am

  On Wednesday, March 9 at 8:00 AM Pacific Time (11:00 AM Eastern), I’m giving an online seminar on Five Keys to Generating New Business with Online Marketing. The seminar is FREE. Here’s an outline of what we will be covering. Call in and ask a question! We’ll be giving away a free one-hour consultation from McBuzz Communications. Click here to attend. 1. Your Value Proposition and Your Business Goals What is Your Value Proposition? You need to be able to say what your business does, why people need it, and how it is different from competitors. Use % and $ to make this clear. This is…

• SEO 101: When Bad Title Tags Happen to Good Websites

  Mark McLaren

  1 Mar 2012 | 4:15 pm

  Some search engine optimization techniques are difficult. Others are not. It’s easy to find otherwise well-built, engaging websites with really bad SEO. By “really bad”, I just mean completely neglected or overlooked. HTML title tags are a frequently neglected aspect of SEO that, when fixed, can have an immediate impact on search rankings. On most sites built with content management systems like WordPress, fixing a bad title tag takes 2 minutes and a little keyword research. Here’s an example. Smashing Ideas is a cutting edge digital media agency that makes smartphone…

• WordPress Developer and Contributing Author Jeremy Green of Endo Creative

  Mark McLaren

  10 Feb 2012 | 4:13 pm

  Jeremy Green WordPress Enthusiast Owner of Endo Creative Custom Website Designs NOTE FROM MCBUZZ: Jeremy Green will be answering WordPress questions on our Free WordPress Help pages. I began hand coding websites in my bedroom back when Geocities and Angelfire were cool. Thankfully the web has come a long way since then. A couple years ago I began diving into the wonderful world of WordPress and now I use it everyday, whether on my own sites or on my client’s sites at Endo Creative. We are a Fort Collins based company specializing in custom web design and development, utilizing WordPress…

• Even More Free WordPress Help

  Mark McLaren

  8 Feb 2012 | 12:07 pm

  Looking for Free WordPress Help? This is the place! You can ask a question about WordPress in the comments on this page, and we will answer as soon as we can. For FREE! Remember, this service is free. If we can’t get to your question right away, please be patient, or try the WordPress support forums. Mark McLaren and McBuzz Communications have been offering Free WordPress Help and Free and Easy WordPress Tutorials for many years. And now we are extremely pleased to have assistance from WordPress Developer Jeremy Green at Endo Creative. (Please note that McBuzz Communications,…

• 

  Studio Notes by Shai Coggins

• It’s Mother’s Day

  Shai Coggins

  12 May 2012 | 8:28 am

  Tomorrow, a number of people from different countries would celebrate mothers on the same day. Here in Australia, as well as the US, South Africa, and the Philippines (to name a few), mothers get to take centre stage. And, I would like to mark this day to celebrate* my mom and being a mum. Yes, I have a mom and my kids have a mum. For someone like me who was raised with American English spelling conventions, and had to adjust when I started living in countries with British English spelling conventions (especially since I’m married to an Englishman and living in Australia!), this whole…

• On things and people that matter most

  Shai Coggins

  6 May 2012 | 9:44 am

  As I fret over some things that have been bothering me for a while now, my husband gives me a hug and says: “Don’t worry about it. It will be fine. No matter what happens, you’ll find the right way. You always do. It’s not the end of the world.” He’s right, of course. For the most part. (Yes, he will be ecstatic to read those words, I know, but it’s true. ) The thing is, knowing he’s there to support me with my choices like he has often done for the fourteen years that I have known him, does make me feel less anxious. More at peace with whatever…

• Billy Cart Adventure for Charity Water Birthday Campaign {Video Trailer}

  Shai Coggins

  23 Apr 2012 | 9:29 am

  When I asked people to support the 38 for my 38th birthday campaign, I also promised something: All supporters who donated to the campaign get to view a never-before-seen video of me that I prefer not to release in public under normal circumstances. Well, I figure that supporters deserve that kind of thank you at the very least. At least I get to squirm for a good cause. To give all the wonderful birthday campaign supporters a sneak peak of what they’ll see once the campaign is over, here’s a special trailer I created: And, as an update: As of this writing, we now have raised $442…

• #12NTC Highlights from San Francisco

  Shai Coggins

  20 Apr 2012 | 8:05 am

  Just over a couple of weeks ago, I was in San Francisco to attend the Nonprofit Technology Conference 2012. This is my second year attending this amazing conference by NTEN and I think I loved it even more than I did the first time around. Something I didn’t expect, really. As the wonderful, smart and generous Beth Kanter pointed out, it felt more like a reunion. Yes, even though I barely see the people in this community and I live in Australia, attending this year’s NTC felt like a homecoming of some kind. And, Beth was only one of the many that I ended up spending great time…

• 38 for my 38th: A birthday wish with a twist

  Shai Coggins

  4 Apr 2012 | 4:02 am

  On Friday, the 6th of April, I’m turning 38. Scary, but true. Then, I found out that millions of people don’t live to see their fifth birthdays because they don’t have access to clean, safe water. Now, that’s even scarier. Usually, I have a huge hang-up about celebrating my own birthday due to a number of life-scarring reasons. But, nothing quite like the ones who never get to celebrate their birthdays for lack of water. So this year, I decided that I would finally find a reason to celebrate my birthday. But, instead of parties and presents, I’m giving up my…

• 

  Bare Feet Blog

• Bare Feet Studios on the Web

  Roxanne Darling

  14 May 2012 | 4:54 am

  Our company was started in 1996 by Shane Robinson and a previous partner. In 2000 the partnership dissolved and Roxanne Darling joined Shane to rebrand the entreprise as Bare Feet Studios. At that time we had the hardest time with a new name as – don’t laugh! – all of the good web addresses were taken. So as we sat around the desk of 6 people in Santa Fe, New Mexico in the winter, we noticed that no one was wearing shoes. And that the URL www.barefeetstudios.com was available! So our new name grew of a very simple attribute, yet it represented so many aspects of our core…

• Shane Robinson, Digital Artist

  Roxanne Darling

  14 May 2012 | 4:52 am

  Shane has toggled back and forth between art and technology since high school. He programmed on a Commodore 64 yet was also nick-named “copy machine” for his ability to draw virtually anything he saw – accurately and down to the finest details. He ended up graduating from the University of Iowa with a Bachelors in Fine Arts. And yet one of his first jobs was at Kinko’s where he taught himself how to use Adobe Illustrator over the weekend in order to sail through a job interview the following Monday! H continued bouncing back between database programming and owning an…

• Roxanne Darling, Quantum Coach

  Roxanne Darling

  14 May 2012 | 4:35 am

  Roxanne is a lifelong learner and her favorite topic is consciousness. For all, all roads lead to the big C! Being conscious means having less stress, being a more artful and compassionate communicator, heading off problems before they fester, and finding the humanity in each person regardless of their quirks, their shortcomings, and even their demands. Go explore Divine Openings with Rox. | Like Rox’s page on Facebook. In April 2009, Roxanne was initiated as a facilitator of enlightenment via a week long process. It used to take much longer, but like most everything else these days,…

• Beach Walks with Rox, an Online Video Pioneer

  Roxanne Darling

  14 May 2012 | 4:00 am

  Back in late 2004, Shane was podcaster #32 in the universe. Always one to be on the front lines if seeing what the internet is up to, he had an audio show called “None of This Matters.” Surprisingly, it has a lot of overlap with the business philosophy we have developed over the years, and which is now available (on steroids!) over at my coaching site, Divine Openings with Rox. But I digress – as I often do – as so much of our lives are interconnected now. It has become virtually impossible to discern fixed starting points and pure examples of cause-effect! Visit…

• Giving Back: A Core Part of Our Sharing Nature

  Roxanne Darling

  13 May 2012 | 6:24 pm

  Back in the spring of 2000, while we were still based in Santa Fe, NM, there was a huge forest fire that broke out and endangered the entire community of Los Alamos, home to the birth if the nuclear bomb and one of the largest nuclear research facilities in the world. As a founder of the New Mexico Internet Professionals Association (NMIPA) Shane knew that online would be the best place to coordinate emergency communications. He and his team of fellow employees and other NMIPA members rapidly launched a web site to funnel emergency messages that ranged from fire department updates to…

• 

  Ignite Social Media

• Will Social Gaming Help or Hurt Your Business?

  Christina Gleason

  15 May 2012 | 10:09 am

  There are a number of social games out there on a variety of platforms – although the most popular seem to be those played on Facebook and smartphones. If you’re reading this, chances are you play at least one of them: Words with Friends, Scramble with Friends, Hanging with Friends, Draw Something, The Sims Social, Gardens of Time, Diamond Dash, Bubble Island…the list goes on. But do you play those games with only friends and family, or have you reached out to business contacts on your quest to challenge new competitors? Do you play only at home or during “free…

• 20 Men Worth Following on Pinterest

  Christina Gleason

  8 May 2012 | 8:00 am

  Pinterest has a reputation for being popular with the ladies. I suppose there’s a reason for that; Forbes reported that 97% of Pinterest users are women, and that 47% of women who use social media have made purchases based on Pinterest recommendations. But that doesn’t mean there aren’t men on Pinterest. They may make up only 3% of the population, but men make up a minority worth paying attention to. Many of them are far more popular than most of us women. Is it the novelty of having a man in a “woman’s world?” (That’s tongue in cheek, folks. Not…

• After Timeline, Top 50 Brands See Facebook Comments Dip 11%, Likes Rise 11%

  Jim Tobin

  3 May 2012 | 8:58 am

  On February 29th, Facebook introduced Timeline for Brands, allowing brands to have a nifty cover photo but also eliminating their ability to have a default landing tab (something I would still very much like back). By March 30, all brands had to switch over to Timeline. Since I’ve been tracking the 50 largest branded Facebook fan pages for more than two years, and since I’ve done previous analysis on how they perform relative to which have the most active fans, how often they post, the impressions they generate and their value, even if certain brands attract more outgoing fans…

• Ignite Social Media Hiring 20+ New Employees in Many Disciplines

  Jim Tobin

  2 May 2012 | 4:24 pm

  We’re growing again. Since three of us opened our doors in 2007, we’ve grown to roughly 75 employees, but we still need more to meet growing demand from our clients new and old. Are you looking for a chance to really enjoy your job? To work in social media marketing in a place that values (and expects) everyone’s contribution? To work on some of the world’s best brands as your clients? To never have the same day at work twice? If so, we may be looking for you. (If you’re not looking, but know someone who is, please forward this along to them.) Wide Array of…

• Top 50 Branded Facebook Fan Pages, April 2012: 8.3m fans and up make the list

  Jim Tobin

  1 May 2012 | 1:50 pm

  The bar to make it on the Top 50 Branded Facebook Fan Pages list this month is only getting higher, as the 50th brand on the list (Sprite) has an impressive 8.3m fans. Facebook continues to be the giant of pages, coming in at over 64.5m fans and adding 1.5m fans in April alone. The rich getting richer. At the same time, Converse made an interesting move, apparently shutting down the Converse All Stars page, despite the face that it had over 23.3m fans. Perhaps as part of a transition plan, Converse did manage to add 5 million fans to their main page, shooting them up 23% and helping them move…

• 

  Technosailor.com

• Crazy Christians and Bad Spam and Mailing List Management

  Aaron

  27 Apr 2012 | 4:24 pm

  I somehow got added to a mailing list recently unsolicited. It’s called Christian Report and I refuse to link to them. It is an arrogant, self-serving site that is plagued by guilt. There is therefore now no condemnation for those that are in Christ Jesus. -Romans 8:1 What is seriously tragic about this site (aside from the content) is that I was added to this mailing list unknown. For God knows what reason. I mean, I’m used to getting spam and all, but at least a mailinglist has an unsubscribe, right? I am a user of Other Inbox, which has this neat “Unsubscribe”…

• Tech: We Need to Start Being Feminists. Stat!

  Aaron

  26 Apr 2012 | 2:42 pm

    Used under Creative Commons. Photo by Jay Morrison. This. That extends this I wrote about a few weeks ago. This is pissing me the hell off! All that. It all needs to stop. How are some of the brightest minds on the internet not seeing the harm in how we collectively perceive women, women in tech, women in our industry? How is it funny to send nude photos of women to a prospective boss and get hired as a result? How is it humorous to make jokes about “gangbang interviews” in a professional presentation? How is this okay? In the context of discussion around this…

• David Simon on Debate and Journalism

  Aaron

  26 Apr 2012 | 12:05 pm

  It’s why I used to love a healthy newsroom, which I have described as a magical place where everyone disagrees with everything all of the time.  Arguments make the work better; when people stop arguing, or at least arguing intelligently, absent the usual half-assed, rhetorical cheating, the work invariably suffers. (Source: davidsimon.com)

• Scantily Clad Women are for the Bedroom, not the Showroom Floor.

  Aaron

  9 Apr 2012 | 12:00 pm

  I love women. I love scantily clad women. I think the majority of men, and of course some women, would agree with me. Sexual attraction is inherently part of the human experience and part of the instinctual core that makes up who we are. The same goes for women with men. However, this is not okay. *This* is a glimpse inside Ad:Tech San Francisco. Maybe not all of Ad:Tech. Maybe not even most of Ad:Tech. But it’s certainly a representation of how at least a few people decided to capture it. And this is not directed toward the photographers, at least one of whom I am personally acquainted…

• Twitter as a Protocol

  Aaron

  1 Mar 2012 | 2:06 pm

  Image from Shawn Campbell. Used under Creative Commons Yesterday, I had lunch with a guy who was picking my brain about various topics. One of the conversations we ended up having was about the longevity of Twitter as a company. It hearkens back to conversations I had years ago when Twitter was barely making it as a service. It was down seemingly half the time, a problem they have long since solved. In those days of 2007 and 2008, Twitter was just beginning it’s conquest of communication mediums. It was nowhere near as big, influential or necessary as it is today. It was getting there…

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  Favorite Recipes, Food, and Cooking Blog

• Make a $10 Donation to the Going Solar Project and Get ASP.net Web Hosting For Almost Free (and a Free Book)

  11 May 2012 | 2:17 pm

  I need help and I will help you too! Contribute to my "Go Solar Project" and I will give you (almost) free asp.net web hosting. Blogs, Online Store, CMS website (free #FOSS software too) If you donate more than $10.00 (USD) to my "Going Solar Project" I will give you web hosting and up to10 email accounts (web hosting) for $4.99 a month (personal website or small business websites only as we don't have the bandwidth for high volume commercial websites), for as long as you want. No long term contract either! Donate today and I will email you about the web hosting as soon as…

• Fraud - More Email Complaints About Northern Leasing Systems Inc

  27 Apr 2012 | 3:22 pm

  Here are several recent emails I have received regarding Northern Leasing Systems inc. Some of the information has been redacted to protect the person emailing. However I have retained the emails just in case they are needed in court.... New one today 4/27/2012 it came in 5 minutes ago... "I haven't contacted you before, but I too, got sucked into the Northern Leasing web - not once, but twice. Once for a credit card terminal, and again for a lease/purchase of a digital sign for my store. Last year when the SKS debacle began, I created a Facebook page: SKS Associates Raided My Bank…

• Fraud - More Email Complaints About Northern Leasing Systems Inc

  27 Apr 2012 | 1:42 pm

  Here are several recent emails I have received regarding Northern Leasing Systems inc. Some of the information has been redacted to protect the person emailing. However I have retained the emails just in case they are needed in court.... New one today 4/27/2012 it came in 5 minutes ago... "I haven't contacted you before, but I too, got sucked into the Northern Leasing web - not once, but twice. Once for a credit card terminal, and again for a lease/purchase of a digital sign for my store. Last year when the SKS debacle began, I created a Facebook page: SKS Associates Raided My Bank…

• If I Worked for Northern Leasing Systems I would Quit Before I Went to JAIL

  24 Apr 2012 | 2:27 pm

  Hey Jay Cohen and the folks at credit card leasing company Northern Leasing Systems Inc. I have been waiting since 2008 for this day to happen. If you are an employee, salesman, independent sales or affiliate of Northern Leasing Systems, if it were me I would jump ship before the State of New York and possibly other State;s indict you for fraud. I know, because my wife got screwed by Northern Leasing Systems, Inc. and this week is the week that Karma comes back and bite anyone associated with Northern Leasing systems. You have been warned now you are on your own. Read our story at…

• Savannah Daily News Publisher Louise Phelps Threatens Lawsuit Over Public Opinion

  2 Dec 2011 | 5:41 pm

  This is just too funny not to share. I get a call from the Savannah Business Journal which is owned by the Savannah Daily News about some sort of “lists of lists”, I tell the salesperson I hear this kind of stuff every day and am not interest. Low and behold the publisher of both Louise D. Phelps calls right afterwards. In my opinion I feel like it is a scam of some sort to extract money from my business to bye in the “book of lists”. Anyway, she ends up arguing with me and I tell her where you can stick her journal and newspaper (you can just imagine where). I write…

• 

  Marketing Roadmaps

• The one in which I declare war on infographics

  Susan Getgood

  28 Apr 2012 | 12:11 pm

  GLAM-Wiki Infographic (Photo credit: Wikipedia Infographics are all the rage these days. Every new media company seems to have one (or more) to visually explain their offerings, and every social consultant seems to have one to share their analyses.  The damn things are all over Pinterest and there are even entire websites devoted to infographics. Except I find most of them are pretty useless. You can’t print them out unless you have a large format printer, and the print is so tiny you can’t read them on the screen most of the time either. Which is tragic on the rare occasions…

• Happy Saint Patrick’s Day

  Susan Getgood

  17 Mar 2012 | 10:40 am

  meillionen - clover (Photo credit: waen ♡) Today I’ve got a short post over on my personal blog about the new Cartier ad, L’Odyssée de Cartier. Up next here (maybe tomorrow) a few words about infographics.

• The blog contest you are so glad wasn’t yours…

  Susan Getgood

  10 Mar 2012 | 4:41 pm

  Last week, a blogging hot mess developed around a contest being run for Chrysler by Ignite Social Media. You can get the deets at this post by Avitable. Fair warning: Avitable has a definite point of view on the events in question. I don’t.  Or more accurately, I’m not picking a side because I think both “sides” could have done things differently and achieved a far different outcome. As many on the comment thread on Avitable pointed out, this sort of contest, in which consumers are encouraged to vote for their favorite bloggers so one of the bloggers can win a tremendous prize,…

• Brief report on blog monetization panel at Family Travel Conference

  Susan Getgood

  11 Feb 2012 | 1:12 pm

  Image by Getty Images via @daylife Last week, I was privileged to participate on a panel about blog monetization at the inaugural Family Travel Conference . In my presentation I talked a bit about the different ways to make money with your blog as well as some of the considerations if you decide to go the advertising route, including the advantages of working with an ad network. My fellow panelists were Steve Bookbinder of   Digital Media Training, Tim Springstead of Travora (formerly the Travel Ad Network), and moderator Michael Theodore of the Interactive Advertising Bureau. In the…

• Is Facebook the new website?

  Susan Getgood

  31 Jan 2012 | 9:00 pm

  This weekend is the Super Bowl, and while I will be paying slightly more attention to the game because the Patriots are playing, my main interest is in the advertising. This year, I will be watching closely to see how many commercials drive to Facebook pages, in addition to or instead of, a website. Because Facebook is clearly where so many brands are going these days. It reminds me a little of the “web rush” in the mid/late 90s when mainstream brands realized what many tech companies had grokked since the first browser in 1993, that the browser had changed the marketing equation…

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  The Social Customer Manifesto

• Turning fans into advocates

  Christopher Carfi

  9 May 2012 | 3:41 pm

  There are some great conversations happening over at the Advanced Social Media Strategies for PR, Marketing and Corporate Communications event at Cisco today. In particular, wanted to give a shout out to our CEO Sean O’Driscoll, who is presenting today on the topic of Turning Fans into Advocates. Check out Sean’s deck, embedded below. Turn fans into advocates through influencer engagement View more presentations from Ant’s Eye View

• It’s no game…

  Christopher Carfi

  19 Apr 2012 | 1:43 pm

    This one should be a lot of fun. Sean O’Driscoll will be presenting with the folks over at Badgeville on the topic of engagement and gameification in a webinar on April 25th at 10:30 PT. (Register here.) The quick agenda: How to use the Journey to the Engaged Enterprise as a benchmark for your external and internal social engagement plans Critical milestones at each stage of the Journey, and common obstacles that can prevent you from reaching them Why the principles of Badgeville’s Behavior Platform are critical to driving the kind of successful, sustainable customer and…

• The Social Engagement Journey event, April 23

  Christopher Carfi

  19 Apr 2012 | 12:29 pm

    REGISTER NOW Sean O’Driscoll, our fearless leader at Ant’s Eye View, is keynoting an event next Monday here in the Bay Area. Here’s the description: “Becoming a fully engaged enterprise in today’s social world isn’t about creating a “social media strategy.” It is a journey defined by stages of operational maturity, milestones, and ultimately, a destination. The successful journey requires practitioner experience, pragmatism – and perseverance. But the payoff is immense. The fully engaged enterprise discovers on this journey that customers again trust…

• The Hunger Peeps

  Christopher Carfi

  8 Apr 2012 | 9:30 pm

    Katniss Everpeep volunteers as tribute.   Katniss Everpeep startles the judges.   Katniss Everpeep cuts down a Tracker Jacker nest.   Katniss Everpeep destroys the supply pile.   Katniss Everpeep avenges Rue.   Katniss Everpeep buries Rue in flowers.   Katniss Everpeep and Peepa are crowned victorious.  

• No, you can’t control your own data, says the travel industry

  Christopher Carfi

  7 Apr 2012 | 12:16 pm

    A big thanks to Jennifer Cobb for the link to this New York Times article entitled “Swatting Down Startups That Help Consumers.” The gist is that there are a raft of startups that act on the behalf of customers in interacting with big brands (These kinds of services can be thought of as “fourth party” services.) Some examples: Customer-benefitting booking engines for car rentals Airline milage program points aggregators (think Mint.com, but for points) Airline seat watchers that automatically rebook you to a better seat when one opens up A number of brands…

• 

  Koka Sexton dot Com

• This Week in Social Media

  Koka Sexton

  22 Apr 2012 | 2:10 pm

  Let me start off by saying that I get a lot of email. I was just introduced to a service called Sanebox that has helped a ton. I wanted to give this new format a shot. There are many things I come across on social networks that are worth sharing and I’ll be finding some of the best of those and creating a blog post about them each week. View the story “Social Media This Week” on Storify [View the story "Social Media This Week" on Storify] Social Media This Week Storified by InsideView · Sun, Apr 22 2012 15:14:30 How a few shifts in your sales process can have a huge…

• Building a Social Business

  Koka Sexton

  19 Mar 2012 | 7:27 am

  Last week InsideView held it’s first user conference called the Insider Summit. It was a lot of work and a bit stressful to pull it together. It all worked out and it was great to see so many customers in one place all wanting to hear the plans for InsideView and the were using Twitter to spred the news. During the conference there were about a dozen breakout sessions that fell into one of three tracks; Sales, Marketing and Social Selling. I held a lunch time panel with some amazing leaders in the sales world, Anneke Seley, Jill Konrath and Craig Rosenburg. They answered questions…

• Social Media: The ROI of Marketing Engagement

  Koka Sexton

  24 Feb 2012 | 7:30 am

  There are many articles on the ROI of social media. Many of them talk about the ROI of social media not being revenue but more about extending marketing reach and connecting with prospects and customers. One I read recently was called Tackling the Question of Social Media ROI: Change Your Goals. It was probably one of the better explanations of social media ROI I have read but I wanted to add some of my own thought about it. Fans Followers and Subscribers The most basic and easiest metrics to put in place are counting the number of fans, followers and subscribers you have accumulated over…

• 3 Social Media Apps Every Marketer Should Use

  Koka Sexton

  13 Feb 2012 | 7:09 am

  If you are responsible for monitoring and engaging with your Twitter community, here are a few applications that you should be using. These applications and some elbow grease from you and your team will provide results like what I posted earlier on how social media engagement drives new followers. I wish there was one app that could do all of the great things these can do collectively but I have not found one yet. These are the top social media applications I use on a regular basis and what I find most valuable about them. Sprout Social Hands down one of the best applications for a team…

• Social Media Engagement Drives More Followers

  Koka Sexton

  21 Jan 2012 | 2:00 pm

  A few weeks ago I tasked the team to pay closer attention to the community we have developed on Twitter. The goal was to see if being more engaged with our community would drive more fans and followers. It seems like common sense but I wanted to test it out just to make sure the extra time spent would result in an increase. I’ll be the first to say that the number of followers you have is not the most important metric. In fact companies that think that numbers are the most important metric, miss the point of what social media is all about. The metric should be based around the amount of…

• 

  MarketingProfs Daily Fix Blog

• Four Tips for Breaking Out of Your Slump Just Like Albert Pujols Did

  Guest Blogger

  15 May 2012 | 9:03 am

  A guest blog post by Maranda Gibson of AccuConference. Former St. Louis Cardinals powerhouse first baseman Albert Pujols traded the Midwest for the West Coast when he accepted a record-breaking deal from the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim. His start for the Angels was highly anticipated, so many people were shocked that Pujols had done more striking out than anything else since the beginning of the season. That’s right. A lot of money was invested in a man who could hit a home run off any pitcher in either league, but all he had managed to do lately was strike out—until May 6,…

• What the Evolution of Marketing Automation Looks Like [Infographic]

  Guest Blogger

  14 May 2012 | 9:03 am

  A guest post by Irv Shapiro of Ifbyphone. The term “marketing automation” often conjures up images of people waiting on hold or receiving out-of-office responses. However, smart business owners know that marketing automation equals measured results. The term “marketing automation” includes lead management, Web analytics, email marketing, voice-based measurement, inbound marketing, and social media. And marketing automation contains a wealth of opportunities for businesses to… Measure ROI and lead quality Streamline the leads-to-sales process Enhance user interaction…

• Content Management for Marketers: What’s the Difference Between Open Source and Cloud Platforms?

  Guest Blogger

  11 May 2012 | 12:49 pm

  A guest post by Roland Benedetti of Nuxeo. Ten years ago, if you asked a group of marketing professionals which content management systems (CMS) they encountered most often, you would probably get a few blank stares. Nowadays, however, everyone knows what a content management system is because marketers use them nearly every day to create content, edit websites, and manage projects. But is there only one type of CMS? Do they all operate the same? Which type is best for which function? One of the biggest differences in CMS solutions is what is called open source vs. cloud-based solutions. Do…

• Free Friday: Learn to Talk With Your Audience, Not Talk At Them

  Veronica Maria Jarski

  11 May 2012 | 9:06 am

  “If you believe business is built on relationships, make building them your business,” says Scott Stratten in his best-selling book, UnMarketing: Stop Marketing. Start Engaging. In our digital age, your clients and potential customers are talking, sharing, advising, and even gossiping on social networks. So, how do you join in meaningful conversations with your audience? How do you avoid sounding like you’re lecturing your potential clients or badgering your existing ones? To help you learn how to engage in mutually beneficial relationships online, we’re offering you…

• Four Marketing Lessons From Dear Old Mom

  Guest Blogger

  10 May 2012 | 12:21 pm

  A guest blog post by Jason Ferrara of Ifbyphone. Mother’s Day is just around the corner, so I started making a mental list of all the little (and not-so-little) lessons my mom taught me over the years. In teaching me how to cook and clean, and offering parenting advice, my mom has been a constant source of wisdom and guidance. Mom also taught me how to be a better marketer (this most likely surprises her). I realized that Mom taught me four key behaviors that I use everyday in my marketing role. 1. Always Call If You’re Going to Be Late My mom is a stickler about calling if you’re going…

• 

  Digital Trends

• Incredible real-life Tesla Gun is more a piece of art than a weapon of war

  Andy Boxall

  16 May 2012 | 4:20 am

  A "mad scientist" has built a real, working Tesla Gun, after being inspired by the graphic novel The Five Fists of Science, where Nikola Tesla himself wields two such weapons.

• Apple obtains patents for a steering wheel remote control

  Mike Flacy

  15 May 2012 | 11:41 pm

  Since more consumers are connecting their Apple devices to car audio systems, Apple may be releasing a way to control music on those devices without requiring the driver to take their eyes off the road.

• Magnetic Bike Lights scrap the ugly straps and look of other lights

  Scott Younker

  15 May 2012 | 9:06 pm

  Magnetic LED lights from Copenhagen Parts automatically turns on when fitted to a bike.

• Will the Supreme Court prevent the creation of an anti-piracy ‘urban legend’?

  Graeme McMillan

  15 May 2012 | 8:00 pm

  The US Supreme Court is being asked to take on the case of a man who owes Sony $675,000 for admitting to illegally share 31 songs online. If it accepts, it may be agreeing to re-examine the way that all illegal file-sharing lawsuits have been discussed and ruled up until this point.

• Beyond CISPA: The cybersecurity bills you need to worry about right now

  Andrew Couts

  15 May 2012 | 7:15 pm

  With CISA pushed to the back burner, the Senate is set to consider two alternative cybersecurity bills, both of which are far more expansive than CISPA — and each with many of the same problems, according to privacy advocates. Here is everything you need to know about the Cybersecurity Act of 2012 and the SECURE IT Act before they hit the Senate floor for a vote this month.

• 

  Janet Fouts - Social Media Coach

• Do It Yourself Social Media Audit

  fouts

  13 May 2012 | 11:04 pm

  We tend to create the social media presence for our businesses in an organic fashion, which is the natural way to grow relationships right? New tools pop up we just HAVE  to try, or our network of connections asks us to join a new network in order to communicate with them. The problem is; as you explore new tools and meet new people who invite you to join them on other networks, your messaging and your social media presence overall can easily get confused. That’s why it’s a good idea to conduct a social media audit every so often to step back and get a 10K foot level. This allows you to…

• Social Media Efficiency for Nonprofits

  fouts

  9 May 2012 | 1:10 am

  I talk to nonprofits about various aspects of social media just about every day. By and large people get the value of building community around their cause. They get the relatively manageable expense of leveraging social media to raise visibility for their nonprofit, find funders, advocates, and  volunteers when compared to more traditional marketing channels. They WANT to use social media effectively. They know it works and they’ve seen the success cases. So what’s stopping them from diving in? Two things are the biggest issues. 1. The learning curve to get up to speed on the…

• Getting real engagement on your Facebook page

  fouts

  18 Apr 2012 | 4:58 pm

  Many Facebook page owners are disappointed with the results they are getting from their Facebook pages. Why? Sometimes because they think they’ll put up a page and their fan base will flock to the site, dynamically post content on their own and discuss it with their peers, all without much effort from the community manager (if there is one). Hooey. This just doesn’t happen unless you’ve got a vibrant community and are expanding it to Facebook. So what do you do? Quit broadcasting If you tell me everything I need to know through your Facebook page, and it reads like your email…

• What is your Reach on Facebook? (Any why you shouldn’t care)

  fouts

  5 Apr 2012 | 5:29 pm

  A client contacted me this morning, upset because her “reach” seems to be  seriously declining on Facebook. For some reason Facebook chooses Reach to be the metric graphed on the insights page, and it’s little understood, so here’s the long and the short of it.  Here’s how Facebook defines reach “The reach chart shows how many people have seen any content about your Page, and where applicable, whether these people were reached through an organic, paid or viral channel. People might see your content through more than one of these channels. As a result, the sum of your organic,…

• Managing Facebook Pages Just Got a Lot Easier

  fouts

  29 Mar 2012 | 9:00 am

  Part of what I do as a social media coach is help businesses large and small manage their facebook pages.Our social media management team is frequently asked to go to a client’s event and help live-tweet, take photos or video and post them live during the event to share with their fans. Most of us have iPhones, so we get good pictures, but we can’t upload in batches to a Facebook page from the phone. Frankly, Facebook’s iPhone app simply sucks at photo management. We can only upload images one by one, which is seriously painful when you’ve got 20-30 images to upload.

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  SocialTimes

• These 3 Social Media-Themed Products Take ‘Screen Printing’ to the Next Level

  Devon Glenn

  15 May 2012 | 10:21 am

  We’ve heard of Web 2.0, but Print 2.0? From Twitter posters to Facebook albums, here are three social media-themed products printed straight from the screen. continued… New Career Opportunities Daily: The best jobs in media.

• When Instagram Becomes Art: A Look at the W Hotel’s Photography Exhibit in New York

  Devon Glenn

  15 May 2012 | 8:12 am

  With Internet Week in full swing, I stopped by the W Hotel in Times Square to get a look at the Instagram photography exhibit, a collaboration between the hotel and a photography community called Instagram NYC. continued… New Career Opportunities Daily: The best jobs in media.

• Imagine a CBS Sitcom Starring Groupon Employees — It’s Happening

  Neil Vidyarthi

  15 May 2012 | 6:51 am

  Vanity Fair is reporting that a new sitcom entitled “Friend Me” has just been ordered to series by CBS and will feature characters who work at Groupon.  In January, when news first broke of the pilot episode, Groupon denied that it had any involvement in the show, but that’s because it was a one off pilot.  Now that the show will be airing weekly, will Groupon need to intervene in some way? continued… New Career Opportunities Daily: The best jobs in media.

• The History of Social Recruiting [Infographic]

  Neil Vidyarthi

  15 May 2012 | 5:51 am

  There was once a time when you’d type up your resume on your old fashioned word processor, add a little flair and a unique (but not irresponsible) font and print it out to deliver by hand to a prospective employer.  Those days are long gone, and today’s job hunt is new territory for people on all sides of the fence.  A new infographic looks at the history of social recruiting and provides some startling statistics about how many people are using it — for instance, 49% of employed Americans are looking for new jobs on social networks. continued… New Career…

• 2-Second Trick For Boosting Your YouTube Channel’s Google Ranking

  Megan O'Neill

  15 May 2012 | 4:51 am

  Looking for an easy way to boost your YouTube video ranking in search results?  At the beginning of a video of Steve Garfield’s presentation from Blog World & New Media Expo LA 2011, Paul Colligan offers up a quick tip that can do wonders in making your videos more discoverable in Google. continued… New Career Opportunities Daily: The best jobs in media.

• 

  Biz Growth News - branding, business development and new media tips to attract more clients in less time

• Free Webinar: Customer Centricity – is it a Panacea or a Pipe-Dream?

  Krishna De

  23 Apr 2012 | 12:22 am

  UPDATED 7 MAY 2012 – If you missed our recent webinar about the importance of developing a customer centric organisation to succeed in today’s challenging market place you can access the webinar recording as a video, the slides and an MP3 of the event below. In October 2011, IBM released a global chief marketing officer study. Over 1,700 CMOs were interviewed and the research identified four major challenges that they are facing: -   The adoption of social media -   The proliferation of channels and devices -   Shifting consumer demographics -   The explosion of data. I am…

• 7 Irish Facebook Timeline Cover Images Celebrating St Patricks Day

  Krishna De

  18 Mar 2012 | 10:17 am

  If you joined me for one of my Facebook Timeline webinars in the last couple of weeks, you will know how impactful your Facebook cover image can be in sharing your brand story. I thought I would explore how Irish Facebook Pages have celebrated St Patrick’s Day this year using their cover photo (and in two cases changing their Profile image) in the hope this may give you some inspiration for the next public holiday you celebrate wherever you are in the world. If there are other Facebook Timelines that you think did a great job in celebrating St Patrick’s Day through their Timeline cover…

• Win A Ticket To Attend The Techovate Conference, Wexford 21-22 March 2012

  Krishna De

  17 Mar 2012 | 4:30 pm

  If you have not already heard about the terrific conference that is taking place this week in Wexford for small and medium enterprises looking for guidance on how to accelerate your business using technology, you will want to check out the Techovate conference website. There is an impressive line up of speakers including Cisco, Eircom, Facebook, Google, LinkedIn, IBM, Microsoft and PwC. As I reference in my recent article about recommended conferences for 2012, the event is especially relevant for small and medium enterprises who are looking for guidance on how to improve their business…

• Recommended Marketing And Social Media Conferences For Leaders And Entrepreneurs 2012

  Krishna De

  17 Mar 2012 | 3:11 pm

  I often get asked what conferences I recommend people attend so if you are based in Ireland or the UK I thought I would curate a list of events that I recommend you consider attending if you are an executive or leader interested in social media and integrated marketing. I will update this list during the course of the year so if you have a suggestion that you think should be added do leave a message in the comments or through our support desk. For some of the later events the speakers have not been announced so I have added Twitter profiles were they are available so you can follow them to…

• The St Patrick’s Day Google Doodle 2012 Inspired By The Book Of Kells

  Krishna De

  17 Mar 2012 | 4:04 am

  If you check into Google’s search engine today in some countries today including including Australia, New Zealand, Argentina, Denmark, the UK, and of course Ireland you will find the Google Doodle celebrates St Patrick’s Day. The Google Doodle was drawn by Chinese American artist Jennifer Hom who is based in New York. and is inspired by the Book of Kells. The Washington Post reports that Hom worked on the Google St Patrick’s Day 2012 doodle for 40 hours over four days. Hom comments that she had to zoom in by 300 percent to render the precise Celtic knots which is closer than the…

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  Techipedia | Tamar Weinberg

• The New Model: How Google+ “Gets” Content

  Guest Author

  15 May 2012 | 8:25 am

  This is a guest post by Joel Harrison. The way content is shared today changes online marketing, putting content to the forefront of what users, companies, brands and products are about. Google+ has just won the People’s Choice award for social media at The Webby Awards presented by the International Academy of Digital Arts and Sciences. This may come as a surprise, since Google+ isn’t as popular as was first expected. It’s trying to reverse that situation though and bind everything together into a huge social network, always faithful to its mission ‘to organize the world’s…

• How to Build Better [Business] Habits

  Guest Author

  8 May 2012 | 8:47 am

  This is a guest post from Christopher Wallace. It’s 2 p.m. on a Wednesday and that fully loaded triple-decker sandwich from the nearby deli has you wondering how long you can get away with catching some z’s under your desk, or if that drawing-eyes-on-your-eyelids thing really works. Whether or not you plowed down a big meal or have the mid-week blues, those last few hours of the work day or week can be some of the most unproductive. So how do you pick yourself up and get back into the swing of things? The answer is in creating good habits. While taking a swig of an energy drink…

• How to Make Your Facebook Ads Convert

  Guest Author

  1 May 2012 | 8:45 am

  This is a guest post from Craig Robinson. Getting proper return on investment for Facebook advertising can be tricky. First, you need to create an ad that attracts clicks, which usually is the easy part, and then you need a decent percentage of the people clicking through to be potential customers. The last thing is a bit harder to control but has a huge impact on the end result. When the wrong people click, your conversion goes down and you have to pay Facebook for nothing. There are, however, a few tips you can follow that might increase your performance. If your Facebook-advertising…

• Web Lead Tracking Explained: How to Get High Quality Leads with the Internet

  Guest Author

  24 Apr 2012 | 8:39 am

  This is a guest post from Brad Shorr.  A lot of entrepreneurs and midsize firms say they “get a lot of web leads.” However, when asked if they know the source of the leads, they have only a vague idea – and sometimes, no idea at all. How can you tell where to direct your marketing efforts if you don’t know where your leads are coming from? You can’t. This post will talk about how to set up lead tracking on your site, take the guesswork out of your marketing, and help you get more, high quality leads. Phone Conversions A lot phone inquires are never even identified as web leads!

• How to Create a Video Marketing Strategy for Your Business

  Guest Author

  17 Apr 2012 | 8:41 am

  This is a guest post from Neil Davidson. In recent years, there has been a dramatic increase in the amount of video people watch on the Internet. Any forward thinking business will do well to take note and use video to their advantage. But where do you start? Surely, video marketing must be really expensive, time consuming, and technical? Actually, none of those concerns are necessarily worth the worry. The growth of affordable, digital technology means that anyone can make a video and put it online, instantly widening their audience base beyond anything we could have imagined 10 years ago.

• 

  Stay N Alive

• Why do I Think Marketers That Don't Embrace Google+ Will be Out of Business in a Year?

  8 May 2012 | 2:23 pm

  (Want to skip all this and get the courses right now? Go to http://www.pluralsight-training.net/microsoft/TwitterOffer and sign up now!)As I mentioned earlier on Google+ (where you'll always hear tech news first from me!), I recently just finished a course on Pluralsight all about how you or your friends can embrace Google+ better for your business or clients (you can see what this course covers at http://www.pluralsight-training.net/microsoft/Courses/TableOfContents?courseName=googleplus-business). In a new series for businesses provided by the video training site, Pluralsight,…

• Custom Tailoring 2.0 - "Dress Code" is Set to Become the Zappos of Tailoring

  2 May 2012 | 11:00 am

  Back in October I had the opportunity to visit Hong Kong for business. While I was there I decided to get a custom suit made. I'm a sucker for a good suit! While Hong Kong is certainly not as cheap as Thailand when it comes to custom-made suits, it is generally much cheaper than the typical run-of-the-mill tailor in the United States. In the United States it's typically "go cheap (as in poorly designed) or go broke (as in way too expensive for the 99% to afford)". In Hong Kong for about $300 I can get a pretty nice suit that is completely custom-tailored for my body type and size, something…

• You'll Always Hear it First on Google+

  1 May 2012 | 9:38 pm

  I'm starting a new experiment. From now on every post I make to StayNAlive.com will originate on Google+. This goes in line with my earlier post where I suggested that the Blogging landscape is significantly changing, and the blogs that want to survive will need to embrace social means of publishing and discovery. You'll recognize this trend immediately as you visit my blog and see the ability to automatically share the articles you read on StayNAlive.com to Facebook, and today I'm going to continue that trend with the strengths that Google+ provides.The Power of Google+ CirclesOne of…

• Wanna Learn Facebook Development? Check Out My New Video Series

  19 Mar 2012 | 10:38 am

  Facebook application development isn't just a skill, and it's not just for developers either - it's a mindset and a culture that you have to understand to truly understand and implement its value. It's something both marketers, business owners, as well as developers should understand to fully have a grasp against the competition in this increasingly social world. That's why I jumped at the chance to work with the popular online learning site, Pluralsight, to do a new series on Facebook application development. My first video went live yesterday, and I hope will be the first in a line of…

• Still Think Facebook's Not Threatened by Google+? Facebook Now Supports "+" Tagging

  8 Mar 2012 | 12:23 am

  As a Google+ user (Author of Google+ For Dummies), and also avid Facebook user (Author of Facebook Application Development For Dummies), I often find myself getting my keys mixed up going back and forth from Google+ to Facebook. This is particularly frustrating for tagging friends. When Google+ launched, I found myself constantly putting in the "+" button to tag friends on Facebook, only to realize Facebook's form of tagging was the "@" symbol. It appears some time in the recent past Facebook has now adopted the "+" (plus) sign to allow tagging in status updates. From the start, Google+…

• 

  Colin Walker - Social Thoughts

• What is Google Plus?

  Colin

  11 May 2012 | 5:27 am

  Numerous conversations have arisen around the direction Google’s social network is heading and how this compares to our expectations of where it should be. Is this current questioning of the status quo simply a healthy debate or is it indicative that key engagers are, perhaps, losing faith in the service? So, what is Google+? To play devil’s advocate let’s consider: There is the possibility that we are all over-analysing the situation and, as is common with a relatively new social service, are attempting to ascribe to it a meaning that fits our notion of what we think it…

• Managing our social connections beyond Dunbar.

  Colin

  9 May 2012 | 5:24 pm

  While aspects of our behaviour on social networks can reflect that of our offline lives we need not be subject to the same constraints. Social networks are often criticised for being little more than online popularity contests where users strive to amass ever higher numbers of followers. The pressures of online influence systems demanding constant interaction with an ever wider reach also contribute to this feeling and we are advised that we should focus on quality and not quantity. The argument most frequently used to “prove” that having a larger number of friends online is that…

• Are we losing out with only +1s?

  Colin

  3 May 2012 | 11:04 am

  As Google continues to integrate the Plus social layer across its ecosystem are we actually gaining from the process? Arguments over Google changing the like & dislike voting buttons on YouTube, as prompted by Wil Wheaton’s outburst, raise a number of issues despite the company currently only testing a range of alternatives. The primary concern is that a move to using a +1 button instead of the traditional “thumbs up” would force users to join Google’s social network. To play devil’s advocate we already have to sign in with a Google account to like or dislike…

• The 3 R’s of Influence – towards a better measurement of social influence.

  Colin

  2 May 2012 | 12:42 am

  The measurement of social influence is fundamentally flawed due to its reliance on a limited data set. An alternative is therefore required. You can view the proposal here: The 3 R’s of Social Influence (Embedded PDF) Gauging the true influence of an individual is a complex affair and hinges on a host of factors including a stable identity. Current systems such as Klout and Kred do not measure influence, they measure interaction by way of pure numbers: shares, retweets, likes, +1s, comments etc. extrapolated out over your connections and those sharing your content. This is not true…

• Welcome to the trust network.

  Colin

  17 Apr 2012 | 8:26 am

  Google is using authorship to rid us of the faceless web but our relationships and their social signals can have a much greater impact. Welcome to the trust network. Tom Anthony wrote a very thought-provoking post over at SEOmoz showing how authorship and social signals could have a profound impact on search. Inbound links have decreased in influence over the past couple of years, in part due to abuses of black hat SEO, and Tom asks one key question in his post: “How much do we trust this link?” The introduction of social signals and authorship means that we can now see not only…

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  Social Media Mom

• Top Online Masters Programs for Women’s Studies Explain What Women Want

  socialmediamom

  11 May 2012 | 2:28 pm

  Reading time: 4 – 6 minutes Credit In colleges and universities across the nation, women’s studies programs allow students to investigate issues of gender and sexuality through scholarly research and debate. These programs first began to emerge in the late 1960s and early 1970s with the rise of the women’s liberation movement, and many feel this relatively new field of study is well suited toward new types of degrees, like distance learning programs. Women’s studies programs have flourished in American institutions of higher learning, taking root almost everywhere. The…

• A Mother’s Day Infographic

  socialmediamom

  10 May 2012 | 1:05 pm

  Reading time: < 1 minute It is that time of year, for those of you who don't know: Mother's Day is Sunday, May 13. In honor of this special day, we are featuring a new infographic from Internet Exposure. Here you will see just how tech savvy moms have become, as well as what they really want for Mother's Day. Not Yo Mama’s Mama – a Digital Mom Infographic by Internet Exposure

• Online Graduate Certificate Programs That Will Teach You To Be A Leader

  socialmediamom

  8 May 2012 | 9:34 am

  Reading time: 3 – 5 minutes Credit There are few things more valuable in life than being a good leader. With this skill, you can rise to the top of your profession, take charge in difficult situations and be admired by friends and peers alike. Many people feel that leadership is an innate quality – in other words, something that you are born with. This is true in some ways. Extroverted, gregarious people are somewhat more likely to become leaders. But it is also true that you can learn to be a leader. Like anything else, leadership is a skill that can be improved, often times with…

• The Internet’s Role in Your Personal Privacy

  socialmediamom

  27 Apr 2012 | 10:33 am

  Reading time: 4 – 6 minutes As people use the Internet more frequently and provide more personal information via social media sites such as: Facebook, Foursquare and Twitter, there is an increasing tension between a United States citizen’s right to privacy and freedom of speech, and the government’s desire to monitor its citizenry to protect against unlawful actions.  With this tension only growing, those in the legal field must be aware of these concerns and prepared for future instances where public sentiments and proposed government legislation could potentially clash.  With…

• A Quick Guide to Pinterest for Families

  socialmediamom

  2 Apr 2012 | 10:38 am

  Reading time: 4 – 6 minutes   If you haven’t heard, Pinterest is the latest internet hit. Part social media, part photo swapping – the new social sharing site has the potential to go strong for quite some time. But what should parents know about Pinterest? Is it harmless for children? Teens? What does Pinterest really do? What is it for? I will attempt to give you some understanding into the new and exhilarating world of pinning. To begin with, you can’t just sign up for Pinterest. You have to either be invited or request an invite. At this early stage, neither one is…

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  Quick Online Tips

• Free Download: Norton Antivirus 2013, Norton Internet Security 2013

  QuickOnlineTips

  15 May 2012 | 11:18 am

  Home > Downloads > Security Want free antivirus? Now you can download Norton Antivirus 2013 free as well as Norton Internet Security 2013 for free as Symantec has released the beta version of these security software for free trial for public use – to find bugs, get feature suggestions and to help improve the Norton Security software before paid release into the market. Free Norton Antivirus 2013 Download Download Norton 2013 beta software now – available for free download exclusively at the Symantec website. All the three versions of the security software – Norton…

• The Best Way to Gift Amazon Kindle

  QuickOnlineTips

  13 May 2012 | 1:01 am

  Home > Gadgets > Tutorials » Kindle What is the best way to Gift Amazon Kindle? Don’t just buy it and present it to your friend. Instead it is a great idea to ship directly from Amazon.com since there are several options which make the deal better that way. The usual way is that you order an Amazon Kindle, get it delivered to your shipping address and then gift warp it to present it. However, note that Amazon customizes the Kindle with your Amazon login details and account. Gift Kindle There are many advantages if you choose to gift Amazon Kindle directly by shipping…

• Your Blog NEEDS an Awesome Logo

  QuickOnlineTips

  12 May 2012 | 9:18 am

  Home > Blogging > Guest Posts Your blog’s logo is one thing that your readers will never forget if you have a great one (or a really bad one). If done right, a logo can become a symbol that is universally recognizable and represents your blog to the world. A blog can either just be a content source, or it can become a brand; a content source is boring, but a brand is exciting. Having an awesome logo is pivotal to building a brand, but how does one build an “awesome” logo? Follow a few simple guidelines and you’ll end up with a cool brand – not just another blog. Keep It…

• Reputation Management: SEO on Steroids

  QuickOnlineTips

  11 May 2012 | 12:51 pm

  Home > Blogging > Guest Posts > SEO Online reputation management (ORM) emerged as a natural evolution of search engine optimization—and to this day, reputation management makes heavy use of leading search engine optimization (SEO) principles. It’s almost enough to make the novice think ORM and SEO are just two sides of the same coin—but of course, that’s a major oversimplification. Really, online reputation management can better be described as SEO on steroids. Yes, many of the tools and techniques used are the same. But ORM takes everything about standard SEO and pumps…

• Got Klout! Get Free Entry to Cathay Pacific First Class Airport Lounge

  QuickOnlineTips

  10 May 2012 | 9:53 am

  Home > Social Media Do you have Klout? It can get you free entry into Cathay Pacific first-class airport lounges! It’s one of the social perks of being an engaged social media icon. Now many bloggers and site owners can get free entry into this first-class airport lounge for free simply because they have Klout. Power of Klout Klout is a social media tool which measures your influence in social media circles by studying your social media profile like Facebook, Twitter, Google plus, Flickr, and so on. Klout has announced a partnership with Cathay Pacific which allows people with a…

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  PR-Squared - Social Media Marketing and Public Relations

• Seven Principles of Content Marketing

  Todd Defren

  14 May 2012 | 1:20 pm

  Now that we’ve all agreed that “Content is King (Again),” and Content Marketing is all the rage, maybe it is time to think about some easy-to-follow tenets.  Let’s keep this simple. Follow a 70/30 Rule – 70% of content curated, 30% branded.  Why? Because the rest-of-the-world is at least 70% more interesting than your brand; and, promoting external content builds social capital, makes grateful fans of influencers. All content should be SHAREWORTHY.  Don’t publish junk.  Better to be quiet than to queer the signal-to-noise ratio. All content should benefit…

• Seriously, This Is Gonna Be Cool: The Corporate Social Media Summit

  Todd Defren

  4 May 2012 | 9:05 am

  Next month I’ll be moderating a panel at the Corporate Social Media Summit, which is being held June 13-14 at the New Yorker Hotel in NYC.  It’s gonna be a great time, with an impressive list of corporate attendees, including SHIFT clients such as McDonalds and H&R Block, among many others (Whole Foods! Dell! Lego! Mercedes!). I’ll be moderating the panel on “Reputation preservation and enhancement: Use social media to maximize the impact of your brand.”  I’ll be joined by McDonald’s Heather Oldani, Director of U.S.

• Never Give Up, Never Surrender!

  Todd Defren

  29 Apr 2012 | 7:22 am

• SHIFT Communications Named Digital/Social Agency of the Year

  Todd Defren

  24 Apr 2012 | 11:00 am

  Shameless self promotion time. Hang on. Wow, wow, wow. We are busting at the seams over here.  Today the Holmes Group named SHIFT Communications the 2012 Digital/Social Agency of the Year – with “honorable mentions” in the category going to behemoths like Edelman, Ogilvy and Weber Shandwick. This marks the 3rd time in the last few years that SHIFT has nabbed “agency of the year” honors.  We were the “Agency of the Year” according to the American Business Awards, and the “New Media Agency of the Year” (again via Holmes) back in 2008. Both times we were psyched.  But this…

• What’s Old is New Again: Earned Media Can Be Your Hub

  Todd Defren

  23 Apr 2012 | 8:17 am

  I was catching up with a former client recently.  We launched their company a coupla years ago, and by almost any measure, it is now considered a hot commodity.  They have tons of social media fans, lots of inbound media requests, do a lot of great content marketing, etc. We originally parted ways, very amicably, because they had reached a degree of success that no longer warranted as much proactive effort (and, being a startup, they were wisely watching their burn rate). During our catch-up session, this company representative described a newfound fever within the company to get more…

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  The Responsible Marketing Blog

• Return of the salesperson from hell

  Patrick Byers

  3 May 2012 | 1:47 pm

    I’m the proud owner of a new Chevy Volt, and I’m thinking of ordering a license plate that says Shocked. You see, I thought I’d buy a Nissan Leaf. After multiple visits to the Leaf website, reading reviews and watching videos of the owner experience, their marketing connected with me. I decided the quirky all electric vehicle might be just the car to finally free me from the shackles of the gas pump. So, I went to a local Nissan dealer and took one for a spin. It drove well, and decided I’d find out if they’d honor Nissan’s lease deal. That’s…

• An opportunity missed, and at what cost?

  Patrick Byers

  18 Apr 2012 | 4:34 pm

  I just contacted a company because a coupon code they emailed me didn’t work. As it turns out, it expired in their time zone, not mine, so I missed a discount of about $10 by about 10 minutes. Sure, I could have been an ass about the fact they didn’t state the timezone on their coupon, but it was only $10. But customer delight drives word of mouth, and had they bent the rules by 10 minutes and honored it, this would have been a different post — and I would have surely shared the name of the company with you. I’ve been a non-friction customer for at least eight years…

• God is in the details

  Patrick Byers

  28 Mar 2012 | 7:04 pm

  More evidence that the days of boring church marketing are long gone: Mars Hill Church, based here in the Northwest. We thought we’d peek under the covers of their website to see if we could discover who coded the site, and look at what we found: If you’ve never fiddled with HTML, this won’t mean much to you. But if you have, you might have just said “awesome” under your breath the way we did. “It’s all about Jesus” is one of their key messages, and whether you’re Jesus follower or not, take this away: There’s always room for…

• Do we hate Dollar Shave Club’s viral video?

  Patrick Byers

  7 Mar 2012 | 12:01 pm

  This being the Responsible Marketing Blog, you might think a video with an F-Bomb in it might attract our ire, right? Wrong. Watch this: There are plenty of things we don’t like: Racism. Bigotry. Violence. Corporate greed run amok. Comic sans. But boring marketing is irresponsible, and boring Dollar Shave Club is not. This is f**king brilliant.      

• Responsible or not? CIT’s college recruiting video

  Patrick Byers

  20 Feb 2012 | 3:22 pm

  College advertising is usually so, well, meh. Not so with this ad entitled “It’s a Snap” from filmmakers Henry & Aaron, done with full creative license for their alma mater, Western Australia’s Central Institute of Technology. The video has gone viral, leaving some to say it has changed the face of college recruitment advertising. So, do you think they’ve nailed it for their target audience, or have they gone too far? Comment below to weigh in.    

• 

  new media wise

• How to Market Your Handcrafts Business Online

  newmedia

  11 May 2012 | 9:16 pm

  Crafts business, Australian and Pan-Asian crafts 1 Carrara Market—avlxyz (Flickr.com) You’ve got crafts to sell, and they’re awesome. How come you’re not making money from them? Chances are, you have not taken advantage of online marketing for your business, and all its accompanying tools. Let’s say you have a handcrafted jewelry business, and you want to make people aware that it exists. What do you do? For starters, recognize if there is already an existing market for your kind of business online. If it does, check it out and do a bit of research to see if it is…

• Creating an Online Buzz for Your Biz

  newmedia

  7 May 2012 | 9:14 am

  Twitter Tree—pandemia (Flickr.com) A business that has no online presence may as well pack up and quit being a business. These days, there is no reason for a business owner, even the humblest of start-ups, to NOT use the Internet to raise awareness for a product, service, or idea. Take social networking sites, for instance. Pages, groups, and accounts are devoted to trying to sell new products and services every day. Since these sites take up a sizable chunk of the average Internet user’s time, it’s safe to predict that putting up a page or account for your business will get the…

• The Three V’s of Effective New Media Marketing

  newmedia

  1 May 2012 | 1:46 am

  Any product, idea, or service can become ripe for the picking with the proper use of new media marketing. There are so many ways to get it right…and so many ways to get it wrong, as well. To help you get started, we will discuss the three V’s which can help you on the path to using social media to your advantage, and to get people to notice your product, idea or service. V #1: Go viral. Batman Viral marketing 08—KellBailey (Flickr.com) Memes, viral videos, and other forms of things that get shared to infinity can REALLY help your product, idea, or service get noticed in a major…

• The Cons of Social Media

  newmedia

  26 Apr 2012 | 8:25 pm

  A few days ago, we discussed the pros of social media for your business. Today, we will tackle its cons. This video presents many good points worth thinking about to make the most out of social media. You could have too many followers, but not niche-specific ones. In Twitter, Facebook, and other forms of social media, many people fall into the trap of thinking that thousands of followers, fans, and Likes mean being able to reach a wide audience to be able to promote your product or service. This is not always the case. Bear in mind that plenty of social media accounts are bot-generated or are…

• Why Investing in a Membership Website Can Do Your Business Good

  newmedia

  20 Apr 2012 | 7:58 pm

  Membership Site Development Digital Markteing—Maria Reyes-McDavis (Flickr.com) If you have a business, you definitely need social media AND a membership website in these fast-paced times. Why? For starters, you can get all the pros of social media as mentioned in the previous post. These include developing your brand, creating a network of contacts, and using automated posts for convenience, just to name a few. Now, add the investment of a membership website, and you are sure to make money for your business. Membership websites contribute a unique set of benefits for any business owner,…

• 

  Web Strategy by Jeremiah

• Video: Scaling your Social Business

  jeremiah_owyang

  13 May 2012 | 8:34 pm

  A few days before the hectic 2012 SXSW storm (my analysis here), The Dachis Group hosted the Social Business Summit (catch one in your city) with some of the world’s top brands to discuss social business.   Kicking off the day, I shared Altimeter’s research on how advanced companies are scaling their programs –and avoiding programs that will slow them down.  A few key points we iterated: Being prepared in advanced with: the proper policies, teams, roles, and education programs. These are the foundation needed to build a Center of Excellence. Advanced corporations have…

• People on the Move in the Social Business Industry, May 11, 2012

  jeremiah_owyang

  11 May 2012 | 6:00 am

  Both the submissions on this job announcement board, as well as available social media positions at corporations continue to pour in. In this continued digest of job changes, I like to salute those that continue to join the industry in roles focused on social media, see the archives, which I’ve been tracking since Q4, 2007. People on the Move in the Social Business Industry: Although I’m a few months behind this, first of all, congrats to Mia Dand (twitter, linkedin) is Director, Global Social Media at Symantec, focused on building and leading social media strategy for…

• A New Category Defined: Social Performance Software

  jeremiah_owyang

  4 May 2012 | 8:32 am

  A new software category has emerged to bring performance marketing to social channels. After interviewing over 10 software companies and 10 agencies, a new trend has emerged that will change the social business landscape. What is this trend? The marketing performance techniques to refine TV, Radio, SEO and other marketing mediums are now moving to the social space.   Read my definitive post on Mashable to learn how this impacts not only brands, but also Facebook and my long term predictions on how this will play out. Market Needs Companies are struggling to scale to keep up with all the…

• Podcast: Why The Term “Social Media Agency of Record” Will Dissolve

  jeremiah_owyang

  30 Apr 2012 | 9:08 pm

  I’m honored to be a guest on Mitch Joel‘s famed podcast, Six Pixels of Separation, to discuss my latest post that’s caught the Industry’s attention how Social Media Agencies are Turning to Ads. Mitch invited me on the podcast to discuss this further. One of the assertions I make is the term “Social Media Agency of Record” (aka SMaoR) will eventually go by the wayside, as those pure play agencies are starting to move into advertising (starting with social ads), digital, interactive, and more. My take? We’ll just have a broader focus as social becomes…

• Recording: Three Disruptive Business Research Themes

  jeremiah_owyang

  29 Apr 2012 | 10:13 pm

  Advance your career and learn about the three Disruptive Business Themes companies cannot ignore. Working among our team of analysts and researchers, Altimeter’s Research group has found three common higher level themes that will disrupt all businesses. Working among our analysts from mobile, content marketing, advertising, analytics, leadership, change management, user experience, and social, we’ve distilled all of the trends we’re seeing and found a common thread among them. We generated the three research themes with the following in mind: the goal was to ascertain…

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  Jon Burg's Future Visions

• Succeeding Through Social Media's Trough Of Disillusionment

  Jonathan Burg

  16 May 2012 | 1:16 am

  In Gartner's Hype Cycle, the Peak of Inflated Expectations is followed by the Trough of Disillusionment.  While Social Media as a business practice is hitting that crest, I don't believe this spells doom for the industry.  And it's all going to come down to one word: value. How Did We Get Inflated Expectations? Social Media is regularly being misunderstood and misreported.  The digital social dynamic is in it's formative young teen years, and in the interest of growing business and driving investment we as a society may have over-promised.  And as an industry, I cannot say that we have…

• Are Marketers Evil Scumbags?

  Jonathan Burg

  12 May 2012 | 3:29 pm

  Before you read this post, please read The Verge's investigational peice on internet scammers.  It's a great peice and the driver of this post. Dear Popular Culture and The General Public, Marketers are not evil.  Internet marketers are not evil.  TV advertising as an industry is not evil.  Bad people do bad things, and unscrupulous people do unscrupulous things.  But they aren't marketing and they aren’t marketers, they are scammers. If a fraudster poses as a physician and harms an unsuspecting community, we do not blame doctors.  We do not blame the broader practice of medicine.

• What Are We REALLY Looking For In A CEO?

  Jonathan Burg

  9 May 2012 | 8:54 am

  Is the purpose of a CEO to lead a company or to lead investors?  Is the purpose of a CEO to manage public perception or lead internal direction?  Must a high level position like CEO demand a deep technical knowledge of the details of the worker-bee side of the business?  Must the CEO of Kraft Foods be able to bake?  Can the CEO of Brooks Brothers wear Levis jeans on vacation?  Would it ever be acceptable for the CEO of Baskin Robbins to be lactose intolerant?   Over the past week Yahoo! and Facebook have both been called out by the press for their CEO-related dramas.  And both of these…

• Modern Relevancy In Aging Tragedy

  Jonathan Burg

  18 Apr 2012 | 2:21 pm

  How should we, the third generation, commemorate The Holocaust?  Nobody wants to remember or contemplate massive death, atrocity and desperation.  There are few alive who can still personally recall and mourn for the millions of individuals lost to this tragedy.  So how are we to carry the torch? A few short hours ago my newfound homeland began 24 hours of national mourning over the 6 million Jewish souls lost in the Holocaust.  Radio stations stopped blasting their normal music, TV stations halted their regularly scheduled programming, restaurants and health clubs closed up early and…

• Outstanding Kickstarter Success Is A Liability

  Jonathan Burg

  18 Apr 2012 | 6:15 am

  Kickstarter is a brilliant concept.  But a runaway success may be their all-to-soon undoing. What Is Kickstarter? Visionaries post their ideas and the general public gets to contribute towards funding these ideas.  In addition to donating towards what the micro-investor considers to be smart innovation, investors will often receive a nominal return such as early access to the theoretical finished product, recognition as a contributor in the finished video project and occasionally even an actual physical product once it's produced.  Kickstarter is to investing as Kiva is to banking - making…

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  Confessions of an eBiz Junkie

• The Power of the Narrative

  Len Devanna

  10 May 2012 | 7:10 pm

  What do you suppose this small corked bottle filled with sand is worth?It was purchased at a yard sale for 33 cents.It was later sold for $59.50 on eBay.How's this possible? The power of the narrative. We've been telling one another stories since we figured out how to carve pictures into rocks thousands of years ago. Stories can serve as a powerful tool to teach, entertain, or simply activate our imaginations.  But storytelling isn't restricted to the 'once upon a time' variety. Stories can be used to engage your audience on virtually any topic, and can offer a far more interesting means of…

• Crisis preparedness - Are you ready?

  Len Devanna

  31 Mar 2012 | 7:52 pm

  It's always interesting to watch how brands deal with a crisis when they arise. As example, JetBlue had their hands full this week with an unfortunate situation at 36k feet. The good news, the brand reacted swiftly and confidently, suggesting they have a well-established crisis response framework in place. But it seems JetBlue may be in the minority here. There are endless examples of brands seemingly caught completely unprepared for the inevitable. In a study by Burson-Masrsteller, a whopping 79% of business decision makers believe their company will experience a crisis within the next…

• The Business of Saving Lives

  Len Devanna

  10 Mar 2012 | 10:58 am

  I'm honored to be presenting this morning at the Business of Saving Lives Conference at Tony La Russa's Animal Rescue Foundation. Sponsored by VCA Animal Hospitals and PetSmart Charities, the day long event provides attendees practical information and tools for effective animal welfare operations. I'll be sharing some thoughts on the role Social Media can play to help abandoned pets find their new 'forever homes'.  Below are the are that I'll be presenting.   Business of saving lives View more PowerPoint from Len Devanna

• Refining Marketing Tactics for Impact

  Len Devanna

  22 Feb 2012 | 11:38 am

    The buying behavior of the digital consumer is evolving at a frenzied pace. Our digitally-enabled world has given us unlimited access to product research, while Social Media has put peer sentiment a mere click away. Now consider the pace in which major corporations change. Keeping pace with these rapidly evolving trends is challenging at best. With budgets remaining largely flat, Marketers find themselves spreading finite resources across an increasing number of engagement tactics. Dollars once spent on traditional channels such as print and television advertising have been stretched…

• 

  Chris Saad

• What is Love?

  Chris Saad

  29 Apr 2012 | 7:38 am

  In my last few posts I’ve used the word ‘Love’ a lot. I thought I would try to describe what that word means to me. From the bible (though I am not a big fan of that book) “Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.” I would add… Love is truth. Love it is openness. Love is loyalty.

• Ruminations re: Relationships

  Chris Saad

  16 Apr 2012 | 12:37 pm

  My last post was about personal behavior. This one is about personal and business relationships. —- Above all else, you must have a great relationship with yourself. Without that strong foundation, you can not have a strong relationship with another person or organization. There’s no such thing as normal. We all have our biases and neurosis. We obsess over ritual, process, dogma and fear. Did he do the right thing on date number 3? Did she file form number 5? Did they come through the right door? Our egos, pride and fear get in the way of real connections and meaningful leaps of…

• Compelling Behavior

  Chris Saad

  21 Mar 2012 | 9:19 pm

  I’ve been thinking a lot about what compels people to behave a certain way. In business. In personal relationships. In life. I’m certain there are countless books espousing countless metaphors for thinking about the issue. For me it comes down to some common themes. Perspective Perspective is perhaps one of the most important human traits. Along with tool building and self-awareness, it’s one of the core things that separate us from the animals. It allows us to switch angles, points of view, lenses, frames of reference or ways of thinking in order to evaluate an idea or…

• The Open Web Is Dead – Long live the Open Web

  Chris Saad

  5 Feb 2012 | 7:54 am

  Yesterday Robert Scoble once again declared that the Open Web was dead. His argument was that Apps and proprietary black holes like Facebook are absorbing all the light (read: users, attention, value, investment) and taking our beloved open platform right along with it. In his post, he kindly (but incorrectly) named me as the only person who really cares about the Open Web. While that’s flattering, I think he’s wrong about me being the only one who cares. But he is right about the Open Web. It’s in real danger. URLs are fading into the background,  native Mobile apps are…

• You don’t need to ask permission to change the world

  Chris Saad

  11 Nov 2011 | 11:41 am

  I was just watching a great TED video about the guy who runs ‘Improv Everywhere’. If you don’t know what that is I strongly suggest you google it and watch the video. His TED talk had some great themes and some funny videos showing the result of their work, however my key takeaway was from a small innocuous line that he kept repeating as a one of his throw away comments… “and we didn’t even ask permission”. His final summary in his talk speaks to our collective need to, as adults, remember to play and have fun. But I think that his statement about…

• 

  Des Walsh dot Com

• Testing the Social Media Engagement Management Tool Sprout Social – Part 2

  Des Walsh

  25 Apr 2012 | 1:59 am

  In March I posted about my exercise of evaluating the social media engagement tool Sprout Social. In this second post on the topic, I’m focusing on some of the reports generated by Sprout Social. By the way, these posts are not intended as a comprehensive review: more by way of sharing my exploration of the tool. Also, the information and comments are still based on using the basic Pro version. I’m hoping to make the time in the next couple of days to check out the other offerings – Small Biz, Deluxe and Premium. Group Trends The first graphic on the dashboard home page…

• Not Everyone Likes LinkedIn but with 120 Million Users Can You Afford to Ignore It?

  Des Walsh

  11 Apr 2012 | 5:36 am

  Getting the Point About LinkedIn Whenever I get up to speak to a group about LinkedIn, I’m conscious that there will almost certainly be some people in the group who have decided they don’t like the platform and others who may not feel strongly for or against it, but just don’t see the point. Because let’s face it, for many people, the word “LinkedIn” just conjures up the image of messages, including from people they may not even recall having met, declaring they would like to add the recipient to their “professional network”. Those people…

• Six Key Social Platforms for Busy Professionals

  Des Walsh

  2 Apr 2012 | 3:30 am

  Too many platforms, too little time Long ago I lost count of all the possible social media platforms and tools a business might reasonably use. And in my email and on various newsfeeds I see more new ones being announced or talked about every day. That proliferation of possibilities probably helps explain why for many professionals the topic of social media brings on an immediate sense of overwhelm. There’s just too much going on, with too many different social platforms. The temptation is to just put off or ignore the whole topic and maybe hope things will settle down enough one day to…

• Interview About Wacky Gift Site Helps Me Explain Media Curation

  Des Walsh

  27 Mar 2012 | 3:30 am

  Sometimes it’s the quirky projects that can best help us explain serious business concepts and processes. I watched a very entertaining interview yesterday on the Sunrise breakfast TV show with David Mancherje, founder of a quirky new online site, Me Wanty! Spending as much time as I do in earnest examination of and discussion about such topics as the ROI of social media and the measurement of online influence, the interview was for me enlightening and even inspirational. I felt that I could be watching the beginning of a significant, maybe highly successful online business, within a…

• Law Firms and Social Media Success Stories 1

  Des Walsh

  26 Mar 2012 | 3:17 am

  I’ve long maintained that there are some serious challenges for professional services firms wanting to engage effectively with and through social media, as I wrote about earlier this year in relation to financial advisers. The flipside is that there is a lot of opportunity for those professional services that make the effort to develop a good understanding of the social media sphere, create a workable strategy and take action determinedly and consistently. But it’s not easy to find appropriate case studies against which to benchmark, as I discovered when I went looking for some in…

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  Affiliate Marketing Tips from Super Affiliate Zac Johnson

• Improving Search Rankings with Sheer SEO Software

  Zac Johnson

  15 May 2012 | 4:16 pm

  With Google playing mind games with SEO masters, blog owners and webmasters around the world… no one is safe from recent changes in the search results. While we can’t change how Google fluctuates web site rankings, we can make sure that we are ready for future updates and make our web sites and blogs ready for any future changes. No matter what Google does, in the end quality links and content are king. With this concept and model in mind, using the proper software to monitor and manage your sites rankings and back links are key. Today we are going to take a look at Sheer SEO…

• How To Increase Affiliate Income By Ranking On Google’s First Page

  Zac Johnson

  13 May 2012 | 5:08 pm

  The almighty “G” has released the Penguin and the effect on blogs especially affiliate review blogs are huge. It’s like affiliate marketers are confused. They’ve a lot of questions traveling through their clouded minds – what’s Google really up to. How do I position my affiliate niche sites to rank better, generate income and make me happy? I need to pay some bills and Google just wouldn’t understand. They don’t care about me, despite all my efforts to please them. I wish Google would fall in love with my niche blog – all these plights will be gone in a hurry – Oh God,…

• How Blogging Has Changed My Life

  Zac Johnson

  10 May 2012 | 9:10 am

  Running your own blog is easy… creating an authority blog and one that makes money is another! Yes, everyone talks about the power of blogging and how it can make you rich or how it can provide you with exposure to people all over the world and even create a new life and business of it’s own. Yes… all of this is possible through blogging, but only if you live, eat and breath it! With millions of new blogs going live every day, the odds of your blog standing out from the crowd is pretty slim to none. You need to find a niche and simply kill it! Keep generating amazing…

• Making $200,000 a Month with Pay Day Loans

  Zac Johnson

  8 May 2012 | 10:32 am

  It’s always great to hear about how others are making big money online. Not only does it inspire us to do better, but it also expands the opportunities and reach for many marketers who aren’t thinking outside of the box. In a recent interview on oDigger, LeadsMarket‘s co-founder discusses how their top affiliates are generating over $200,000 a month in commissions through the promotion of pay day loans! You can read the full interview at the interview link above, or review two of the most important questions covered in the interview below. Why should affiliates consider…

• 3 Creative Ways to Use Mobile to Grow Your Blog

  Zac Johnson

  3 May 2012 | 6:25 pm

  Is your blog currently in a rut? Are you looking for that one creative way to massively grow your blog and online business this year? Look no further, because the answer is here. And as you’ve probably guessed, mobile is that answer. The rate at which mobile usage is growing every year is stunning, and I’m pretty sure it’s only a matter of a few years before mobile internet dominates standard internet usage completely; I know that sounds bold, but I have solid data to back it up. Mobile Internet is Exploding Now, and You Need to Catch On! Yeah, mobile internet is really exploding right…

• 

  Andrew Chen (@andrewchen)

• How do I learn to be a growth hacker? Work for one of these guys :)

  Andrew Chen

  11 May 2012 | 1:52 pm

  After writing my recent article on Growth Hackers, I’ve been asked by quite a few folks on how to learn the discipline. The best answer is, learn from someone who’s already good at it – if you’re technical and creative, it’s well worth the time. I would encourage everyone to also read Andy Johns’s Quora answers on What is Facebook’s User Growth team responsible for and what have they launched? and What are some decisions taken by the “Growth team” at Facebook that helped Facebook reach 500 million users?- it lays out a lot of the key…

• Growth Hacker is the new VP Marketing

  Andrew Chen

  27 Apr 2012 | 10:30 am

  YouTube didn’t need ads to spread itself – instead it used embeds. Ad via Laughing Squid The rise of the Growth Hacker The new job title of “Growth Hacker” is integrating itself into Silicon Valley’s culture, emphasizing that coding and technical chops are now an essential part of being a great marketer. Growth hackers are a hybrid of marketer and coder, one who looks at the traditional question of “How do I get customers for my product?” and answers with A/B tests, landing pages, viral factor, email deliverability, and Open Graph. On top of this,…

• Google+ and the curse of instant distribution

  Andrew Chen

  11 Apr 2012 | 2:54 pm

  I was reading today’s NYT article on Google+’s new redesign and found myself continually puzzled by the key metric Google continues to report as the success of their new social product: Registered Users. In the very first sentence, Vic Gundotra writes: More than 170 million people have upgraded to Google+, enjoying new ways to share in Search, Gmail, YouTube and lots of other places. The use of registered users is a vanity metric, and reflects how easily Google can cross-sell any new product to their core base of 1 billion uniques per month. What it doesn’t reflect,…

• The Law of Shitty Clickthroughs

  Andrew Chen

  5 Apr 2012 | 1:50 pm

  The first banner ad ever, on HotWired in 1994, debuted with a clickthrough rate of 78% (thanks @ottotimmons) First it works, and then it doesn’t After months of iterating on different marketing strategies, you finally find something that works. However, the moment you start to scale it, the effectiveness of your marketing grinds to a halt. Sound familiar? Welcome to the Law of Shitty Clickthroughs: Over time, all marketing strategies result in shitty clickthrough rates. Here’s a real example – let’s compare the average clickthrough rates of banner ads when debuted on…

• Visual Basic, PHP, Rails. Is Node.js next?

  Andrew Chen

  1 Apr 2012 | 4:07 pm

  I had a nerdy conversation on what might be the next mainstream framework for building web products, and in particular whether the node.js community would ultimately create this framework, or if node.js will just be a fad. This blog post is a bit of a deviation from my usual focus around marketing, so just ignore if you have no interest in the area. Here’s the summary: Programming languages/frameworks are like marketplaces – they have network effects Rails, PHP, and Visual Basic were all successful because they made it easy to build form-based applications Form-based apps are a…

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  Social Gears

• New Follr Features – Improved Contact Finder and Networking!

  Stephen Fells

  9 May 2012 | 9:00 am

  We are pleased to announce a significant change that will allow you to connect with with people far more easily! Simply log into your Follr account and click the ‘Tags & Contacts’ link: You’ll see lot’s of suggested contacts: Click any ‘Connect’ button and your invitation is sent! Alternatively you can click the ‘Contact Finder’ link: and then search by member tags or last name. Every connection improves your Follr score. Is that important? YES! Search results on Follr list people with the highest Follr score first. So if you want to…

• Will You Take The Blue Pill or The Red Pill?

  Stephen Fells

  26 Apr 2012 | 9:00 am

  Whether you love or loath science fiction you have to give it credit for preempting technological advances. So here’s a quick quiz using a sci-fi stalwart; Star Trek. Can you name the modern day equivalent for these four Star Trek gadgets? If you said mobile phone (‘Handheld communicator’), GPS (‘Transporter Console’), Bluetooth (‘Communications Earpiece’) and iPad (‘PADD’ or ‘Personal Access Display Device’) you get full marks! You have to love the app that makes your iPad look like a PADD. Now that’s backward…

• You Have 6 Seconds To Get a Job. Are Your Ready? Go!

  Stephen Fells

  18 Apr 2012 | 9:00 am

  This month we’ve been told that the unemployment rate is going up. Change that, it’s going down. Sorry, I meant it’s going up and down! No matter where you get your news the most important job related information, the information about you, is in your resume. But according to job-matching service TheLadders you have six, yes six, seconds to make an impact with your resume. If you think about it that’s less time than it took to read this paragraph… Are recruiters suffering from ADD? Are CEO’s and brokers sick of the normal “I’m the perfect…

• Follr Releases New Digital Identity Management Platform

  Stephen Fells

  15 Mar 2012 | 6:00 am

  Completely redesigned software product replaces Follr Digital Identity Websites administration system and rolls out significant feature enhancements. Emeryville, CA (March 14th, 2012) Follr, Inc., today announced the release of a new version of their digital identity management product, a free Web based SaaS (Software as a Service) platform. The announcement follows a record increase in registrations, up 78% in February versus January and initial first quarter registrations up 51% versus the fourth quarter 2011. The enhanced platform is available across all three company products; Follr Solo,…

• Follr Releases Free Digital Identity Management Community Platform

  Stephen Fells

  14 Feb 2012 | 8:00 am

  Software product extends use of Follr Digital Identity Websites to communities, associations, professional bodies, membership groups and societies. Emeryville, CA (February 13th, 2012) Follr, Inc., today announced the release of “Follr Community”, a free Web based SaaS (Software as a Service) product aimed at helping communities, associations, professional bodies, membership groups and societies to help them better serve participants, grow member base and generate revenue. The announcement follows the recent release of Follr Business, which alongside Follr Solo, makes this the company’s…

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  brandflakesforbreakfast

• junk food patches

  a_blodder

  15 May 2012 | 7:10 am

  Danone Corpus Light created a spoof ad featuring Junk Food patches to help people stick to their diet.Step 1: Place on Patch. Step 2: drink a Danone Corpus Light. That simple.I'll take the super-size combo sticker please. (Who wants to bet this is an actual product in say, the net 10 years?)

• be a tourist in your own city

  a_blodder

  15 May 2012 | 7:05 am

  In Sweden, Västtrafik, the company who manages their public transportation system, created an app that allows people to get a virtual tour of places and sights outside the subway along their commute, using the GPS in the phone.Ok - so this app probably wouldn't work so well on New York subways (and coming up ahead, another rat), but interesting nonetheless (maybe for walking around the city) and a good advertising opportunity for local companies too.

• a bear-y good car offer

  a_blodder

  15 May 2012 | 7:00 am

  Car companies usually employ lots of gimmicks to get people to buy cars, but this takes the pic-a-nic basket.In Sweden, Volkswagen had a special offer on their 4Motion cars, best suited for handling wintery conditions, that only ended when a hibernating bear woke up. They had a webcam on the bear so you could watch him slumbering all winter, and a 'pool' where users could guess when the offer would end for a chance to win a grand prize.Not sure what the bear got out of the gig - a new car maybe? Or maybe just some honey.

• instagram socialmatic camera

  David Plain

  14 May 2012 | 7:30 am

  Someone please make the Socialmatic Project a reality. Via.

• original hipsters

  David Plain

  14 May 2012 | 7:30 am

  Who were the original hipsters? That's right, it was your Dad. Don't believe me? Check out the tumblr-project “Dads are the Original Hipsters”.

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  ComMetrics | measure for impact

• Social media: Lost in translation?

  Urs E. Gattiker

  12 May 2012 | 7:01 pm

  Translation and culture – make it work Good social CRM (customer relationship management) requires that we consider cross-cultural differences, but challenges remain. How do you ensure quality control when it comes to translating text? Does the translated text convey the image AND style you want for your brand? This is the third post in a series of sure-fire tips for making your corporate blog successful while communicating more effectively. The first one addressed, Blogging: The death of trust? and was followed by, Is your blog a failure?. Today we address translation. In the…

• Is YOUR blog a failure?

  Urs E. Gattiker

  29 Apr 2012 | 2:24 am

  Get the right data and metrics to create a successful blog By the end of 2011 we had 181 million blogs around the world, over five times the 36 million found online in 2006. Is your blog reaching the right target audience? Do clients read the content you send their way? No Virginia, it is not all about pageviews! This is the second post in a series with sure-fire tips for making your corporate blog successful. The first one addressed, Blogging: The death of trust? Companies may blog on WordPress or Tumblr, and/or have a presence somewhere else, such as Facebook and Google Plus. But how…

• Blogging: The death of trust?

  Urs E. Gattiker

  14 Apr 2012 | 7:01 pm

  Update 2012-04-29 – next in the series: Is YOUR blog a failure? 4 rules to live by A culture of suspicion could have dire consequences for bloggers and advertisers. Once a reader or client’s trust is lost, restoring it is difficult, expensive and definitely not fun. This is the first post in a series of blog posts that address some surefire tips for making your blog successful. Let me start with last year’s back to back earthquake, tsunami and nuclear meltdown disasters in Japan. It shattered Japanese faith in most of the country’s government agencies. But the death…

• Twitter metrics: The ultimate tools

  Urs E. Gattiker

  31 Mar 2012 | 7:01 pm

  Anaytics and sCRM We published a post about the 101 best Twitter tools, saving time with Twitter but how can we best measure our impact and resonance on Twitter? We tested the best and the worst and present our four winners, guaranteed to help you achieve a bigger bang for your buck. Since I began blogging in late 1999, I am continually discovering amazing things. In the process, I have also given a lot of thought to how social media works. This makes me wonder whether Twitter and other microblogging tools matter, and if so, do they help you scale your efforts and generate improved resonance…

• Company failures: Why is Twitter so difficult?

  Urs E. Gattiker

  17 Mar 2012 | 7:01 pm

  Twitter Success Stories: Are you ready for excellent ROI (return on investment) with Twitter for your B2B (business to business) or B2C (business to consumer) outfit? We tell you why so many micro-blogging efforts fail. Others have said one should not dream about finding clients through Twitter conversations. What is your opinion? I outline why caution is important and what you can do to succeed. 1. Do not trust user numbers By the end of 2009, the number of Twitter users reached over 75 million, with 6.2 million new user accounts every month. But even then, a large number of Twitter accounts…

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  Six Pixels of Separation - Marketing and Communications Insights - By Mitch Joel at Twist Image

• Can Breastfeeding Save Time Magazine?

  Mitch Joel

  15 May 2012 | 12:01 pm

  When was the last time you discussed Time Magazine around the dinner table? I found myself giving a dissertation on mass media at dinner the other night. It all started when one friend leaned into the table and spoke (in an almost embarrassed whisper), "Did any of you see the cover of Time Magazine? The one with the mother and her older child... breastfeeding?" I knew that they were talking about the issue dated May 21st, 2012 titled, Are You Mom Enough? by Kate Pickert. The article about Dr. Sears and the attachment parenting movement has created quite a stir, but I wanted to tease…

• Listen. Engage. Connect.

  Mitch Joel

  14 May 2012 | 1:10 pm

  One of the largest gatherings of professional marketers is about to take place. The Canadian Marketing Association's 2012 CMA Summit is happening next week (May 16th - 17th, 2012 at the Westin Harbour Castle Hotel in Toronto, Ontario). I'm fortunate to be the chairman of the board of the directors of this association and prior to that role, I was co-chair of these national annual gatherings. Each and every year offered professional marketers from across the globe the opportunity to connect and share. This year will be no exception. All under one roof. During the two days, just some of the…

• The Virtual Self And The New Trend Of Self-Tracking

  Mitch Joel

  13 May 2012 | 10:09 am

  Episode #305 of Six Pixels of Separation - The Twist Image Podcast is now live and ready for you to listen to. Now, with the ubiquity of smartphones and mobile connectedness, it has never been easier to share with the world our each and every move (look no further than Facebook's one billion dollar acquisition of Instagram). And we're publishing our lives. All of the time - in text, images, audio and video - for the world to see. In fact, it's happening more and more with each and every passing day. Why are we doing all of this self-tracking? It's a topic that has fascinated Nora Young for a…

• Six Links Worthy Of Your Attention #99

  Mitch Joel

  12 May 2012 | 8:09 am

  93Is there one link, story, picture or thought that you saw online this week that you think somebody you know must see? My friends: Alistair Croll (BitCurrent, Year One Labs, GigaOM, Human 2.0, the author of Complete Web Monitoring and Managing Bandwidth: Deploying QOS in Enterprise Networks), Hugh McGuire (The Book Oven, LibriVox, iambik, PressBooks, Media Hacks) and I decided that every week or so the three of us are going to share one link for one another (for a total of six links) that each individual feels the other person "must see". Check out these six links that we're…

• This Is Being Recorded... By You

  Mitch Joel

  12 May 2012 | 7:52 am

  The art of self-tracking. It was one thing to know where I was going. It was a totally different experience to know how far I had been, how much further I needed to go, what my expected time of arrival was, how long I had stopped for and what my average speed was. Most people just stare at the map of their GPS system and wait for the voice commands to bark out their next turn. I never tagged myself as an analytics jockey, but switching over to the trip data screen of my GPS turned the long drive into both a game and fascinating collection of data. The system was tracking my every move (and it…

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  Chris Pirillo

• Dystopian Viking Playground

  Chris Pirillo

  15 May 2012 | 5:28 pm

  Dystopian Viking Playground What happens when your Web 2.0 standbys go by the wayside and years of your creative content suddenly disappears? Is Humantenna a new Microsoft project, or a bad Syfy network movie of the week? Is Sweden a Viking Dystopia? Do you know how to get Adobe Creative Master... Read the full article on http://chris.pirillo.com/

• Swinging is Disorienting

  Chris Pirillo

  15 May 2012 | 4:17 pm

  Swinging is Disorienting Pardon me, would you have any Grey Poupon? Is the new Mission Impossible movie a chick flick? Do you ever use your phone’s camera to prove that the store is out of something that your significant other wants? Are you in the rabbit habit? Have you ever ridden a seesaw... Read the full article on http://chris.pirillo.com/

• Ocarina Rollercoasters and Unpronounceable Boat Trips

  Chris Pirillo

  14 May 2012 | 5:19 pm

  Ocarina Rollercoasters and Unpronounceable Boat Trips Can you lose weight on a dinner cruise? Could Cold War spy tech keep us networking in the absence of an Internet? Are your email contacts compromised? Will you like the updated Google OS? Why is shopping online better than shopping offline? What... Read the full article on http://chris.pirillo.com/

• Motion in the Ocean

  Chris Pirillo

  13 May 2012 | 4:20 pm

  Motion in the Ocean In this edition of the Pirillo Vlog, we peruse a farmer’s market (presumably to buy some farmers, though we just sampled a few on this visit), I get a whole bunch of LEGO (surprise, surprise), and Diana takes her first boat ride, ever! First impression? “Eww, it... Read the full article on http://chris.pirillo.com/

• Orange Juice is Cheaper Than Gas

  Chris Pirillo

  12 May 2012 | 4:15 pm

  Orange Juice is Cheaper Than Gas Orange juice, orange juice, everywhere, nor any drop to drink. If my Prius ran on orange juice, I could get 99.9 miles per gallon (according to recent readings). Since orange juice is now cheaper than gasoline, I’d really like to see if this can be done. Any... Read the full article on http://chris.pirillo.com/

• 

  Common Craft - Common Craft - Our Product is Explanation

• In Honor of Richard Feynman - The Great Explainer

  leelefever

  11 May 2012 | 2:15 pm

  Today I was reminded by Brain Pickings that it's Richard Feynman's birthday.  He passed away in 1988, and would have been 94 today.  I recently became fascinated with Feynman while doing research on the Art of Explanation book.  Feynman was a brilliant and colorful American Phycisist who played a major role in the Manhattan Project and later won a Nobel Prize.  He was known as "The Great Explainer" due to his ability to help people understand and more importantly, be inspired by science and the world around them.   From reading about Feynman, his ability as an explainer was based on a…

• The Art of Explanation Cover

  leelefever

  9 May 2012 | 1:38 pm

  Well, The Art of Explanation book is getting a lot more real.  A few days ago we finalized the cover for the book: What do you think? If you'd like to track our progress, check out the Art of Explanation website.  Categories: bookcoverExplanationpublishing

• Art of Explanation Book Update

  leelefever

  25 Apr 2012 | 11:59 am

  Over the past month, Sachi and I have been neck-deep in ideas surrounding explanation, and it has been one of the most creative times in our lives.  As you may remember, I'm writing a book called The Art of Explanation that will be out in October of 2012.  To make our deadlines with the publisher, we took time this month to focus almost solely on the book - and that we did.  I've written and Sachi has edited almost 60,000 words in the last month or so, which is much more than will appear in the book.  In a lot of ways we've been writing this book for years, so this was our time to bring…

• New Video: Twitter for Business - Explained by Common Craft

  leelefever

  17 Apr 2012 | 10:40 am

  Today we’re announcing a new video: Twitter for Business - Explained by Common Craft.     Twitter has been a big part of the Common Craft story.  In 2008 we made a video called Twitter in Plain English that was present on the Twitter home page for over a year, introducing millions to both Twitter and Common Craft. Since that time Twitter has evolved in many ways.  As it became a powerful way to track news and discover information, we made a video on Twitter Search.  Now that it’s become a powerful business tool, we’re publishing a new video called Twitter for Business, which…

• Lilipip Has Become What Now? Exactly!

  leelefever

  2 Apr 2012 | 12:12 pm

  For over two years a company called Lilipip has been a member of our Explainer Network of video producers.  Jen Zug and her team have run the show at Lilipip for while and now that Lilipip's owner has decided to pursue other things, the creative team decided to "keep the band together" and relaunch as a new company.  Their new company is called What Now? Exactly! and starting today, it will replace Lilipip on the Explainer Network.  We've always loved Lilipip's video explanations and expect more great things from the new company.  Here are a couple of videos that represent the first…

• 

  Data Mining: Text Mining, Visualization and Social Media

• Zero Tolerance Search : 24 year old neuroscientist

  Matthew Hurst

  12 May 2012 | 4:44 pm

  [The idea behind 'zero tolerance search' posts is to illustrate real life search interactions that show how far we have to go in leveraging the explicit and implicit data in the web and elsewhere.] Yesterday, I heard part of an interview on NPR. The interview was around a new book on determinism and neuroscience. The only thing I remember about the author was his young age. I wanted to recover the name of the author and the title of his new book so that I could comment on his argument against determinism (which was, essentially, 'I'm afraid of determinism therefore it…

• Excellent Visualization of Network Effect

  Matthew Hurst

  12 May 2012 | 4:28 pm

   

• Graphing Twitter Attention

  Matthew Hurst

  30 Apr 2012 | 9:39 am

  track // microsoft (and games and movies) now includes a simple graph indicating the attention being given to each cluster of posts. This graph shows the total of tweets per hour for all posts in the cluster. Below is an example from the cluster around Steve Wozniak's positive comments for his Windows Phone.

• Microsoft's Windows Phone 8 Problem - A Solution

  Matthew Hurst

  22 Apr 2012 | 10:08 am

  Briefly - there is plenty of chatter (see track // microsoft) about the possibility that Microsoft won't be upgrading existing handsets to Windows Phone 8. However, Hal makes a very interesting point in his post on the topic. The problem is not the upgrade, it is the users. Simply give them all a new Windows Phone 8 hand set for free - problem solved.

• Finding New Story Links Through Blog Clustering

  Matthew Hurst

  20 Apr 2012 | 12:15 am

  The basic mechanism used in track // microsoft to cluster articles is similar to that used by Techmeme. A fixed set of blogs are crawled and clustered based on specific features such as link structure and content (and in the case of Techmeme, additional human input). However, what about blogs that aren't known to the system? I recently added a feature to track // microsoft which analyses clusters for popular urls and adds those to the bottom of the cluster. The title of the web page is used as a simple description of the popular page. In the recent story about Nuno Silva's mistaken…

• 

  Drew's Marketing Minute

• Are you falling behind when it comes to mobile?

  Drew McLellan

  13 May 2012 | 2:04 pm

  I think it is fascinating in a “I don’t get it” sort of way.  We all know that mobile is where digital is headed.  We’ve all repeated the “by 2015, the #1 way we will access the internet is through our smart phones” and yet… it seems like most people are lollygagging along when it comes to getting onto the mobile train. Is your website mobile optimized?  Are you learning more about mobile ads?  Are you thinking about how you’re going to accept mobile payments? Or do you look like this infographic? Browse more infographics.   You might…

• Going viral = out of your control

  Drew McLellan

  8 May 2012 | 7:38 am

  It seems like one of the goals I hear more and more is… “and we want it to go viral.”  I translate that to mean — we want a lot of people to see it. But rarely when someone says they want something to go viral, do they really understand the implications of that.  The biggest one is — the minute it begins to go viral, it begins to take on a life of its own and it is beyond your control. Let me give you a very tangible example.  My daughter and several of her college friends decided that they wanted to jump into the Sh*t People Say meme that was started in…

• 9 Keys to Wicked Awesome Landing Pages

  Drew McLellan

  5 May 2012 | 12:21 pm

  Note from Drew:  Every once in awhile I like to open up the blog to a guest with a depth of expertise that I think you’ll benefit from.  Here’s Jason Well’s take on landing pages. A few weeks ago I spoke at SES New York about mobile PPC and SEO. I touched briefly on mobile landing pages. After the presentation one of the attendees walked up to me and said, “thanks for covering mobile landing pages, but most people still need help on their standard landing pages.” He was right. Especially in the B2B world, ‘regular’ landing pages are still critical. While keeping in…

• What can you learn from a small town?

  Drew McLellan

  30 Apr 2012 | 6:20 am

  Turns out, quite a bit. The whole concept of having a marketplace is blurry today.  It used to be — you sold stuff to your neighbors because they were the only ones close enough to buy from you. But today the world is one “global small town” where all your customers can talk directly to each other and every one of them can buy from you or from the guy on the other side of the planet. In their book Small Town Rules (click to buy it on Amazon*) authors Becky McCray and Barry Moltz take a look at what works in a small town and help us understand how those same rules apply to us,…

• What is the next step?

  Drew McLellan

  25 Apr 2012 | 6:31 am

  That’s the question you should ask yourself as you create any marketing piece.  ”What is the next step I want the prospect to take?” Whether it’s a Facebook fan page, an enewsletter, a TV spot or a blimp with your logo on it — you have earned their momentary attention.  What are you going to do with it?  Where do you want to take the conversation/connection from here? Do you want to give them the opportunity to contact you? Do you want them to share your content? Do you want them to ask you a question? Do you want them to laugh so hard that they have to tell…

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  Social Media Clubhouse

• Netherlands Now World's Second Net Neutrality Nation

  SMCReporter

  15 May 2012 | 10:00 am

  Net neutrality was a hot topic in 2010, when the United States Federal Communications Commission (FCC) was deciding on whether to allow internet providers the ability to prevent or slow access to certain content, sites or VOIP providers in an effort to give preferential access to their own services and/or to slow the access of their competitors.  It was reported last week that Netherlands just became the second country to legally become a "Net Neutrality" nation, read more

• Social Media Industry Report 2012 Highlights

  kbailey

  11 May 2012 | 9:00 am

  Passionate people all have something that they enjoy looking forward to.  Football fans love Super Bowl Sunday, music lovers are already planning for next year’s Coachella Festival and social media marketers can’t wait to read the annual Social Media Industry Report.   The Social Media Examiner published the 2012 Social Media Industry Report on April 3, 2012.  This year’s report surveyed over 3800 marketers of all ages employed in a variety of different industries including agencies, small businesses and B2B/B2C companies.   Didn’t catch the report?  Here’s what you missed:…

• Social Media Clubhouse Newsletter (5/9/12)

  SMCReporter

  10 May 2012 | 3:45 pm

  EXPANDING PROFESSIONAL MEMBERSHIP BENEFITS We're excited to expand our membership benefits with the launch of the members-only webinar series, which will be hosted by, and attended by, Social Media Club Professional* members.   The Social Media Club community represents all industries and level of expertise, but the key component is that all seek ways to improve their knowledge around social media tools and best practices. These members-only webinars will provide excellent content and extend visibility to Professionals in our community that are creating innovative campaigns and have advanced…

• Expanding Membership Benefits with Professional Members-Only Webinars

  SMCReporter

  10 May 2012 | 7:00 am

  We're excited to expand our membership benefits with the launch of the members-only webinar series, which will be hosted by, and attended by, Social Media Club Professional* members.  The Social Media Club community represents all industries and levels of expertise, but the key component is that all seek ways to improve their knowledge around social media tools and best practices. These members-only webinars will provide excellent content and extend visibility to Professionals in our community that are creating innovative campaigns and have advanced knowledge to share.  We've already lined…

• The Future of Mobile Payments

  pamsahota

  9 May 2012 | 8:55 am

  First people feared giving your credit card number over internet versus giving it to an operator on the phone...now we are using the phone to swipe your credit card via an online app. Funny how things become so easily integrated. According to Pew Research, “Within the next decade, smart-device swiping will have gained mainstream acceptance as a method of payment and could largely replace cash and credit cards for most online and in-store purchases by smartphone and tablet owners, according to a new survey of technology experts and stakeholders.”  Are you one of the early adapters who…

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  Webinar Marketing & Marketing Success With Webinars for Business

• Help My Testis Grow? (testimonials)

  contact@deanhunt.com (Dean Hunt)

  14 May 2012 | 12:45 pm

    I need your help… If I have provided any value, info, entertainment etc at all over the past 6 years or so, could you please help me out by sharing your thoughts with me? I put together this video to explain more, and a short summary below the vid. Thankyou. Summary: Could you provide [...]

• The Most Difficult Path My Actually Be The Easiest Path

  contact@deanhunt.com (Dean Hunt)

  5 Apr 2012 | 5:11 pm

  Imagine this… you are looking for success, and you look at your options, there are two clear paths in front of you: Path A is the difficult path, it requires bravery, stepping outside of your comfort zone, and seems more likely to end in failure. Just the prospect of following this path terrifies you. Path [...]

• Comfort Zones are like Coffee

  contact@deanhunt.com (Dean Hunt)

  22 Mar 2012 | 1:16 pm

  Have you ever wished you could do something that you are scared of doing? Ever wondered what you are capable of achieving if only that voice in your head didn’t keep talking you out of it? Today I had coffee for the first time in a few months… it hit me hard, my head feels [...]

• Never Up Never In

  contact@deanhunt.com (Dean Hunt)

  15 Mar 2012 | 11:28 am

  I can hear thousands of people saying “that’s what she said” as they read this…. (you cheeky readers)…   Here is the thing though… I used to play a LOT of golf, I was even trained by some PGA professionals, and they always had a saying when it came to the art of putting… “Never [...]

• How to Adapt to a New Culture or Country

  contact@deanhunt.com (Dean Hunt)

  14 Mar 2012 | 10:00 am

   In the past 5 years alone I have lived in 3 different countries and 7 different houses, I have lived in Spain (Madrid), northern and southern England, Nashville, and near the beach in Florida… What have I learned? What did I do completely wrong? What differences have I noticed? Let’s dive into all of this [...]

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  The Buzz Bin

• From Driftwood to Décor: How Brand Stories Help Us Connect

  elacy

  15 May 2012 | 8:47 am

  By Emily Lacy (@emstheticket) This past weekend, I visited a shop in Richmond’s Shockoe Bottom neighborhood for my regular dose of neo-hippie products. College times past left their mark, and I have a shamefully soft spot for huge patterned pieces of cloth.  Furthermore, much to my parents’ confusion and dismay, no apartment for me is complete without the smell of incense smoking up the place. New apartment calls for new incense, so it was time. Little did I know, I’d also be walking away with a renewed wonder at brands and the captivating stories at their cores. As I was picking…

• Facebook’s New “HIGHLIGHT” Feature Leaked

  Priya Ramesh

  14 May 2012 | 9:47 am

  By Priya Ramesh (@newpr) Facebook’s new “HIGHLIGHT” feature leaked in New Zealand TechCrunch calls it “Reckless New Ads Test” I Paid, Now You Have to Listen to Me (Courtesy: TechCrunch for title caption) At the Facebook Marketing Conference in Feb, Brian Boland, Director of Product Marketing, Facebook revealed that the average news feed story from a user profile reaches just 12 percent of their friends. Business Pages meanwhile only get 16% of their fans seeing each post, which is why Facebook launched its new “Reach Generator” to help marketers buy extra distribution of their…

• Avoid Poor Rankings by Creating Valuable Content

  Jason Poulos

  11 May 2012 | 9:05 am

  By Jason Poulos (@TheSaganaki) If you were to look under the hood of Google you’d be presented with an extremely complex and intricate math formula. Since it’s virtually impossible for humans to keep track of every website on the internet, Google has turned to it’s algorithm to help determine how a website ranks on their search results page. Knowing that their formula isn’t perfect Google periodically changes these algorithms in an effort to provide searchers with the most relevant and accurate content. When this happens, it’s known as an “update,” which in…

• 5 Restaurant Food Trends from NRA

  Jason Stemm

  10 May 2012 | 1:47 pm

  By Jason Stemm The annual restaurant show in Chicago offers a peak into the future if you know where to look. Smoked basmati rice, zero calorie noodles and All-Natural/Gluten-Free everything align with current trends, but where are things heading? Here are 5 areas to watch out for in 2012. Here Today, Gone Tomorrow: Nancy Kruse’s Menu Innovations session is not to be missed. Each year she highlights trends that are driving growth at foodservice. New menu items both limited and permanent were up significantly in 2011, and she anticipates that to continue as operators try to attract customers…

• Drinking Happens in Real Life

  chelper

  9 May 2012 | 7:00 am

  By Caroline Helper Last Thursday was Languedoc Day. Just as the marketing powers-that-be have managed to successfully transform nearly every day of the calendar into a holiday celebrating certain foods and ingredients, these same days are being gobbled up by various wines and regions, too. Many of these wine days are really only celebrated virtually – via hash tags on Facebook and Twitter. Too often they are too obviously marketing schemes aimed solely at generating impressions and playing the numbers games for clients. However, as I learned last week, these kinds of days can also offer an…

• 

  Greg Verdino's Marketing Blog

• Five For Friday: May 11, 2012

  Greg Verdino

  11 May 2012 | 8:47 am

  What’s keeping you from moving forward? According to Forrester, it might be confusion, politics and the shock of the new. Get past that and you’re faced with a world of opportunity — to reinvent pieces of your business that haven’t traditionally been considered “marketing”, to rethink your approach to audiences and new markets, and to get creative in involving your customers in all sorts of innovation. This week’s Five For Friday is all about making change happen. Here are The Five for the week ending May 11th: How to Cure Social Media Paralysis CMOs and Marketing VPs agree that…

• Five For Friday: May 4, 2012

  Greg Verdino

  4 May 2012 | 7:53 am

  This year, April showers aren't just bringing us May flowers. They've also brought us our first May edition of Five for Friday -- or Cinco para Viernes if I remember any of our high school Spanish. This week, we're talking about social, social and more social. What it means for entertainment and media companies. Why you may not want to get too attached to Facebook. How Google might be botching it (again). And some practical advice and provocative questions for marketers still struggling to get social right. Enjoy this week's Five for Friday. And then get out there and enjoy Cinco de Mayo.

• Five For Friday: April 27, 2012

  Greg Verdino

  27 Apr 2012 | 6:50 am

  In this week's Five for Friday, let's take a look at social media from the perspectives of a member of traditional media's old guard, a B2B marketer, a media futurist, and a media buyer. Plus we'll look at an interesting take on why companies should focus less on what's next and do a better job of handling what's now. Put it all together, and you've got "marketing through the looking glass" -- everything looks kinda familiar but nothing is quite what it seems. Here are some of my favorite reads and interesting ideas for the week ending April 27th, 2012. Inside the AP’s Social Strategy Great…

• Chirpify Disrupts The Music Business All Over Again

  Greg Verdino

  24 Apr 2012 | 10:44 am

  My client Chirpify is having a damn good day, today. The company, which "turns tweets into transactions" by letting any organization or individual link their Twitter and PayPal accounts to conduct super simple social commerce in 140-characters or less, just closed a $1.3 million Series A round. If that's not enough, they're also rolling out a new solution that allows entertainment companies and independent artists to use Chirpify to offer digital downloads of songs and electronic tickets straight over Twitter too. So now labels and artists can come up with all sorts of creative ways to…

• Five For Friday: April 20, 2012

  Greg Verdino

  20 Apr 2012 | 7:46 am

  In a new feature that I hope to keep up each Friday, I'll take a look back at the week and summarize five stories I found newsworthy, noteworthy, insightful, interesting, or just plain fun to read. We'll do this to keep ourselves on our game, and to help keep you on yours. Oh, and to save you the effort of having to filter through the 5,000 unread items in your Google Reader. Let's call this regular feature Five For Friday. And here are my picks for the week ending Friday, April 20, 2012. The Jig Is Up: Time to Get Past Facebook and Invent a New Future We have reached the tipping point in…

• 

  Serial Oversharer

• It's probably a good sign that this feels totally normal and natural.

  14 May 2012 | 5:01 pm

  It's probably a good sign that this feels totally normal and natural.: A live sports show produced by the Boston Globe, on the Internet at noon a few days a week? File under: The New Normal.

• Spring/Summer Reading List Progress Report: Rainbows End

  24 Apr 2012 | 5:56 am

  Late last night, I finished reading Vernor Vinge’s Rainbows End, the first book on my reading list.That list, a few of you might remember, was put together from your tweeted suggestions  based on my remarkably idiosyncratic and subjective criteria, including “not too depressing” and published after 1999 or so.Rainbows End fit all my requirements, and thanks to Brian Boyer for the recommendation.Not going to author a full book report here, but please accept this short list of keywords and clauses as a sort of reduction sauce: singularity heavily augmented reality ubiquitous…

• Levon Helm in Santa Cruz, 1976.

  18 Apr 2012 | 8:30 pm

  Levon Helm in Santa Cruz, 1976.

• Etsy Hacker Grants: Supporting Women in Technology

  6 Apr 2012 | 8:45 am

  Etsy Hacker Grants: Supporting Women in Technology: Follow me around the Internet long enough, and you’ll notice I love to pass along links like this. I suppose I did so before I had a daughter, but that nearly 5-year-old fact certainly changes things a bit. So, check this out. All you really need to know is “Etsy Hacker Grants” are scholarships for women to go to a sort of programmer summer camp in New York this year. If that sounds like something you, or one of your favorite women, would be interested in, pass it along.

• Because you need a motion control system for your iPhone’s...

  4 Apr 2012 | 5:59 pm

  Because you need a motion control system for your iPhone’s camera, using your iPad as a remote control. Sort of. Maybe you don’t think you do, but you do. (via Kickstarter and Raw File)

• 

  SocialFish

• Got E-learning?

  Maddie Grant

  15 May 2012 | 1:51 pm

  Need your feedback please! Does your organization rely on e-learning to drive revenue or member retention? Are you managing multiple e-learning platforms and software to deliver webinars, hybrid events, virtual conferences and more? Association Forum wants to give you access to the professional development you need to maximize the impact of e-learning. Complete this brief survey by 11:59 p.m. CT on Tuesday, May 22, to tell us whether you’re using e-learning, how and why, and you’ll receive the survey results and an executive summary report. Your feedback will allow us to design…

• Tracing the Path of the Digital Learner

  Maddie Grant

  15 May 2012 | 7:00 am

  Check out this Google Insights study about Education Trends Through the Eyes of Your Customer. In a fast-changing world, education is still in high demand online. Google looked at internal search query data, Compete clickstream data and commissioned a brand perceptions study with Ipsos OTX to understand the 2012 landscape and found: 80% of education search query paths end without a conversion. 1 in 4 education researchers never even look outside the web. 9 in 10 don’t know which school they want to attend at the onset of the journey. 2 out of every 3 researchers who use video do so to…

• How To Humanize Your Business

  Maddie Grant

  14 May 2012 | 7:00 am

  and Jamie and me! How To Humanize Your Business Ever get jealous that the open, unstructured social media efforts of the community completely trounce your well-planned and even well-funded social media programs? Are you frustrated when your own social media efforts are thwarted by inter-departmental competition? These problems are common, and we can no longer blame them on people “not getting” social media. The blame actually lies in the way we run our organizations. In this session the authors of Humanize: How People-Centric Organizations Succeed in a Social World will explore how to…

• The Future of Association Publishing

  Maddie Grant

  12 May 2012 | 7:00 am

  Thanks to Association Media & Publishing for this interesting video.  Do you have any thoughts about the future of publishing?  You know we do   (photo credit)

• Understanding Meetings Cost in the New Reality [HYBRID EVENT 5/23]

  Chris Urena

  11 May 2012 | 12:49 pm

  CommPartners(@CommPart) is teaming up with the Hospitality Industry Professionals Network (@HipNetwork) on May 23rd to deliver the most interactive, entertaining and stimulating hybrid event ever. And we would love for you to attend!! Centered on the topic “Understanding Meetings Cost in the New Reality,” we’re combining thought-provoking industry experts and compelling subject matter with our progressive hybrid event model. Takeways: Attend an unrivaled, interactive attendee experience led by CommPartners’ virtual emcee, Emilie Barta, including a pre- and post-show…

• 

  Global Neighbourhoods

• Help Me With a Forbes Column on Google+

  shelisrael

  3 May 2012 | 10:02 am

  Ever since I started writing The Social Beat for Forbes, I’ve been wondering what to do with this, my beloved home blog. I have an idea. I currently crowd source my column ideas on Twitter and Facebook to get content, quotes and ideas that often find their way into the my columns. But people send me lots of content that just doesn’t fit. It is not their fault. My descriptions are space limited at Forbes and my requests are often too open ended.  So I thought I would try expanding descriptions here. We’ll see how this works out. Right now, I’m writing a story about…

• Special Offer: Stellar Presentations for only $4.99!

  shelisrael

  3 Apr 2012 | 9:38 am

  I launched my new book, Stellar Presentations: An Entrepreneur’s Guide to Giving Great Talks six weeks ago. It is the most critically acclaimed of my three books. On Amazon, 10 people have given it five stars, two people gave it four stars and no one has rated it lower. Other blog reviews have also been highly favorable. People who read it say the book is not just for entrepreneurs but for anyone who has to present in any kind or size of organization. I’ll let the market decide. Some people think that because the book is so brief–just 76 pages, a two-hour read–that…

• Come Visit me at Forbes.com

  shelisrael

  31 Mar 2012 | 10:53 am

  I am writing a column for Forbes.com called The Social Beat. Everything I write related to Social media, the web, startups and the tech sector will appear there. It will be the primary venue for my online writing. Please come and visit me there. Occasionally, I will have something to say on other topics, particularly related to my book and speaking projects. I will use Global Neighbourhoods when that occurs. Until then, I hope you will come and visit me in my new home.        

• A Stellar Presentations Excerpt: The Three Questions

  shelisrael

  29 Feb 2012 | 9:32 am

  The following is excerpted from Chapter One of my new book: Stellar Presentations: An Entrepreneur’s Guide to Giving Great Talks. The Three Questions I was raised as the youngest son in a Jewish family.  That meant that each Passover I recited the ritual Four Questions that launched the story-telling part of our Passover dinner. These days, I am rarely the youngest one at the table. But as a speaker and a coach, I begin the story that my clients or I will tell by reciting three questions: Who are the people in the audience? What do I have that they want? What do I want to accomplish…

• So, Why Is Stellar Presentations So Damn Short?

  shelisrael

  27 Feb 2012 | 12:42 pm

  My new book, Stellar Presentations is 76-pages on length and costs about 10 bucks. I estimate it will take two hours of your time to read it. Four times in the three weeks since I launched the book, people have complained that the book is too short and that I should add more chapters to make it worth the money I’m asking. As I so often do, let me tell you a story to illustrate a few points: A woman drives her Mercedes into a garage. The mechanic asks her what the problem is. “I’m not sure. It just doesn’t sound right when it’s idling,” she says. The…

• 

  Christopher S. Penn : Awaken Your Superhero

• Changing the game may not be improving it

  Christopher S Penn

  15 May 2012 | 7:05 am

  Think carefully about the overused term “game-changing”. Let’s say you’re playing tennis, and the game isn’t going so well. You decide that you need a “game-changing move”, pull out a shotgun, and blast the ball out of the air. Have you changed the game? Absolutely. Have you changed it for the better? No, not to mention likely injuring the other player. The game has not improved, but it has changed. Business folks who use the term game-changing are indicating that the way they’re playing the game isn’t working right now, so they’re…

• The 4 kinds of numbers I look at daily

  Christopher S Penn

  14 May 2012 | 6:14 am

  In my daily routine, I’ve plotted out 4 kinds of numbers that I look at daily to see how things are going and give me an instant read on what I need to be focusing on. 1. Conversions: I look at the end results first. I look to see whether anything of value is being generated or not. Examples in your world might include sales, donors, or contributors. 2. Key performance indicators: These are the numbers that are directly connected to my end results. If sales are the end result, qualified leads are a key performance indicator because they’re directly connected, one step away.

• Book reviews: Influence, Deadly Sunset, Ninja Apprentice

  Christopher S Penn

  11 May 2012 | 6:23 am

  I’ve had a chance to read more than a few books I’ve bought or received lately, and I owe those authors reviews, so let’s dig in. If it weren’t obvious, I’m stuffing this post with affiliate links to Amazon, too. Just so we understand each other. Mark W. Schaefer’s Return on Influence I enjoyed Mark’s book quite a bit as I think he did a great job of looking at influence overall. He did his homework for sure, interviewing dozens of people and getting different perspectives on what constitutes influence in the digital age. He also explores Klout and…

• How to keep up with too many social networks

  Christopher S Penn

  10 May 2012 | 5:55 am

  DJ Waldow, Loren McDonald, Cassie Witt, and a few others asked the interesting question yesterday: “Are the growing demands of social media/networks weighing you down? At some point (I think) you have to choose those you get the most juice out of. What’s your take?” Here’s my take. Again, same disclaimer as my post the other day on content sharing: this is not “the right way” or a “best practice”. This is only how I handle it based on my limited time available each day and peculiar workflow. You should test and analyze for yourself. I take a…

• Closing techniques are for content creators, too

  Christopher S Penn

  9 May 2012 | 7:33 am

  I was watching a music video earlier in which the artist (after the content ends) was taking the time to thank the people who helped produce the video. What struck me most was the last line of dialogue: “So if you guys liked this video and think I should do more like it, let me know. And uh… so thanks for watching guys and… um, you’re awesome. Bye.” As closing statements to an otherwise excellent video go, that was fairly awful. But it’s not just salespeople and musicians that struggle with closing. Virtually everyone has that blog post that they just can’t…

• 

  Socialmedia.biz

• UppSite: Turn your website into an app in minutes

  JD Lasica

  10 May 2012 | 8:01 am

  Afew days ago I sat down with Gal Brill, the founder and CEO of UppSite, an Israel-based start-up that can turn your website into an app in just minutes. At top is a video UppSite produced about their service, and at bottom is my interview with Gal. As the Web turns increasingly mobile — with [...]

• Big Data in the visual age

  ayeletnoff

  7 May 2012 | 12:19 pm

  How Mobli can take virtual experiences to a new level As we all know, there’s a huge amount of data on the internet– the biggest challenge is sorting it all and finding what’s relevant for you. This is such a big challenge that there’s a whole branch of the tech industry, called Big Data, that [...]

• 12 blogging mistakes to avoid at all costs

  Manage

  3 May 2012 | 8:01 am

  Image by Vlue on BigStockPhoto.com Or, surefire ways to sabotage your blog posts & jeopardize your reputation Target audience: Businesses, brands, bloggers, social media marketers, SEO marketers, Web publishers, educators, journalists. Guest post by Neil Patel Co-founder, KISSmetrics Blogging is a lot like fishing. Some people do it all the time and never catch anything, [...]

• Social media, tech & marketing events: May 2012

  JD Lasica

  1 May 2012 | 7:43 am

  A scene from last year’s CMS Expo. (Photo by Chris Hammond on Flickr)   Guide to events & conferences for the coming month May brings us another month chock-a-block with conferences on social media, technology and marketing. Which events listed below will you be attending? I’ll be traveling to four conferences (speaking at three of [...]

• Take charge of the curation wave with these slick tools

  Manage

  27 Apr 2012 | 7:14 am

  A Twitter best practices page on Scoop.it curated by Debra Askanase. Why Scoop.it, Bundlr, Pearltrees, Storify & Pinterest should be part of your Web marketing plan Second of two parts. Also see: • Top tools to help you curate business content Guest post by Gianluca Fiorelli SEOmoz Target audience: Businesses, brands, social marketers, SEO marketers, [...]

• 

  Gauravonomics

• The Future of Media

  gauravonomics@gmail.com (Gaurav Mishra)

  12 May 2012 | 9:02 am

  Imagining the Future of Media Last week, I wrote about possible futures of social networking, in a near future so near that it could be the present itself. I used a 2×2 matrix with likely/ unlikely scenarios on the X-axis and negative/ positive scenarios on the Y-axis, leading to four scenarios. I said that the likely/ negative quadrant is the default, as our world seems to devolve into chaos, when left to its own devices; if we reach out for our better selves, we might create a better world, in the likely/ positive quadrant; if we are lucky, we might even exceed our expectations and…

• The Future of Social Networking

  gauravonomics@gmail.com (Gaurav Mishra)

  6 May 2012 | 7:42 am

  Imagining the Future of Social Networking Now that we have a social network for one billion people in the world (Facebook), a social network for 150 of your most intimate friends (Path), and a social network just for your significant other (Pair); a social network for videos (YouTube), a social network for photos (Instagram) and a social network for status updates (Twitter); a social network for professionals (LinkedIn), a social network for curators (Pinterest), and a social network from Google (Google+); not to mention a parallel universe of social networks in China (Renren, Weibo, Youku);…

• People’s Insights Quarterly Magazine

  gauravonomics@gmail.com (Gaurav Mishra)

  18 Apr 2012 | 1:36 am

  Pascal Beucler, SVP & Chief Strategy Officer, MSLGROUP Gaurav Mishra, Asia Director of Social Media, MSLGROUP The Power of Crowdsourcing Insights and Innovation According to the recent PwC CEO Survey of 1200+ business leaders across 69 countries, business leaders believe that crowdsourcing people’s insights are one of the main drivers for leading innovation and change. We have a significant body of knowledge on crowdsourcing now, including business rationale, application areas, best practices and case studies. We have seen dedicated third-party crowdsourcing platforms in action for…

• Social Technologies and Citizen Activism: The 5Cs Framework

  gauravonomics@gmail.com (Gaurav Mishra)

  4 Apr 2012 | 6:03 am

  (Here’s a book chapter I wrote for Empodera.org almost two years back.) Social Technologies and Power Structures The debate on whether internet and mobile technologies are transforming traditional power structures is dominated by three divergent narratives. According to the first, utopian, narrative, internet and mobile technologies enable individuals to publish and distribute content, self-organize into communities of interest and participate in collective action. As a result, they can create new types of media outlets, build new types of civil society organizations, and monitor,…

• The Storytelling Mandala: Purpose-Inspired Transmedia Storytelling

  gauravonomics@gmail.com (Gaurav Mishra)

  2 Apr 2012 | 4:19 am

  Marketers have always used stories to share information, change opinions and influence decisions. Now, as people create, consume and share brand stories in new ways, marketers need to go beyond the 30-sec product ad or the 300-word press release, and tell purpose-inspired transmedia stories that inspire, organize and energize people. Six Trends in Storytelling Let’s start by recapturing the six important trends that are reshaping how people create, consume and share brand stories: - Short attention spans: People are consuming news and entertainment in byte-sized pieces, increasingly on…

• 

  GigaOM

• Betting big on live sports data, Perform lays €120 million on RunningBall

  Robert Andrews

  16 May 2012 | 3:56 am

  After online sports broadcast specialist Perform Group went public a year ago, it promised it would succeed its acquisition of Goal.com by buying more sports sites. Now it is making a big one - Perform has offered up to €120 million ($153 million) for sports data provider RunningBall. The company employs match scouts to log over 1,000 in-game events for over 30,000 soccer games annually and is also growing in to logging data for others sports. The company’s Pushing Feed, Trader Client and Performance Video packages are provided to clients like media outlets and live betting…

• iZettle, Europe’s rival to Square, hits the UK

  Bobbie Johnson

  16 May 2012 | 2:00 am

  Swedish payments startup iZettle is making its most significant since coming out of beta last year, with a pilot program to enter the potentially huge British market. Until now the company, billed as Europe’s equivalent to Square, has so far only made its product — a free plug-in dongle and app that let small merchants accept card payments through their iPhone or iPad — available in Sweden, Norway, Denmark and Finland. But as of Wednesday, it is offering 3,000 mini card readers to merchants in Britain, as part of a limited rollout in the United Kingdom. “The U.K. is…

• For Facebook-boosted video apps, reality checks in

  Om Malik

  15 May 2012 | 10:48 pm

  When Facebook made it easy to share what videos you were watching, companies like Socialcam, Metacafe, DailyMotion and Viddy rocketed up the app-charts and saw a sharp increase in the usage and downloads of these apps. Of course, with this friction-less sharing actions came howls of complaints from Facebook’s users. Well, it seems the party has come to an end. The reality check is eerily reminiscent of the decline in attention for social news-reader applications. AppData.com statistics show a sharp decline in the number of daily active users of these services. In my post yesterday,…

• Does function trump form in application design?

  Derrick Harris

  15 May 2012 | 8:20 pm

  There’s a principle of application design that beautiful means usable, but a new study out of Google suggests that’s not always the case. Rather, the researchers found, while beauty doesn’t necessarily affect perceived usability, poor usability can negatively affect perceived beauty. The study is far from conclusive, but as consumerization continues to sweep through software design, it might offer some warning worth heeding. Nobody wants a reputation as selling a product that’s both unusable and ugly. The subject is on the top of my mind after recently writing a piece for GigaOM Pro…

• Holy moly: Netflix clocks 42B API requests per month

  Janko Roettgers

  15 May 2012 | 6:11 pm

  Updated. Netflix clocked close to 42 billion API requests per day in January, according to the company’s director of engineering Daniel Jacobson, who revealed the number as part of a presentation he recently gave to the Paypal engineering team. In his slides, Jacobson pointed out that the number of API requests has grown 70-fold in just two years, from 600 million in January of 2010 to 41.7 billion in January of 2012. Providing an API that is resilient enough to handle these kinds of demands is not a small feat, and Jacobson’s slides reveal some of the principles behind the architecture…

• 

  The Virtual Handshake: Opening Doors and Closing Deals Online

• Redesign of Teten.com and TheVirtualHandshake.com

  David Teten

  26 Apr 2012 | 9:09 am

  Assembling a WordPress Website My mother and I met Daniella Norwood, the owner of ella j designs, and her husband Brian Bigda at a Lean Startup Machine weekend at which I was a judge.  She did a great job redesigning my mother’s site, DancetimePublications.com, so I hired her to do a redesign of Teten.com and TheVirtualHandshake.com.  I’d love your feedback on the site.   I definitely recommend hiring Danni for your WordPress needs. Enter Danni: David’s RFP included: upgrading Teten.com and TheVirtualHandshake.com to the latest version of WordPress, modernising the design of both…

• SEC Charges Adviser with Defrauding Investors via Social Media Sites

  Scott Allen

  5 Jan 2012 | 12:28 am

  On Wednesday, the Securities and Exchange Commission today charged a Chicago-area investment adviser, Anthony Fields, with fraudulently promoting more than $500 billion in fictitious securities on several social media sites and issued two alerts and an investor bulletins regarding the risks investors and advisory firms face when using social media. “Fraudsters are quick to adapt to new technologies to exploit them for unlawful purposes,” said Robert B. Kaplan, Co-Chief of the SEC Enforcement Division’s Asset Management Unit. “Social media is no exception, and…

• The Perfect Content Curation Tool?

  Scott Allen

  15 Dec 2011 | 11:10 am

  Maybe I’m just lazy. Maybe I’m overly ambitious. Maybe a little bit of both. All I know is. blogging as much as I would like to is a freakin’ lot of work! I do write original stuff sometimes – and some pretty good stuff at that, I think. I’m also a decent curator of content. For example, Linked Intelligence has grown into the definitive unofficial source for all things LinkedIn. But being a good curator is tedious and time-consuming. And a lot of the reason for that has to do with a sub-optimal workflow. At the moment I’ve cobbled together several tools,…

• Fun with Klout

  Scott Allen

  9 Dec 2011 | 10:57 am

  I’m not going to bash Klout. plenty of others have done that already, and besides, I like getting free stuff, so, more power to them!  I just want to have fun with them. A few weeks ago, I did a post about Wikipedia’s fundraising ads, entitled Jimmy Wales, Serial Killer?, which got retweeted by a few people. Well, thanks to that, Klout decided that “Wales” and “Serial Killer” were topics I was influential about (sorry, didn’t get a “before” snapshot). Now, they weren’t among my top 3, which were “Social Media”,…

• Happy Birthday to Me, and How Distributed Cognition Enhances Relationships

  Scott Allen

  17 Nov 2011 | 9:46 am

  It’s 9am on my birthday, and already, 65 people have posted birthday wishes on my Facebook wall. Several more have Skyped me. Sure, it’s just a simple act – some might argue it’s only slightly more social than a poke, but I disagree. Frankly, I think this is really what the social web is all about: using distributed cognition to truly enhance relationships. How so? Ever heard of Dunbar’s number? Basically, it’s the theory that the size of our social network is limited by the size of our neocortex, and for human beings, the maximum number of…

• 

  Brent Csutoras

• Reddit Gets a CEO, Kills Site Search, and Adds ‘All’ View

  Brent Csutoras

  23 Apr 2012 | 8:59 am

  Reddit, one of the largest social aggregation sites on the web, has been making a few changes as of late. JD Rucker wrote an interesting post early 2011 questioning whether Conde Nast even knew what they had in Reddit and if they were in effect holding Reddit back from really growing. Later in September of 2011, Reddit [...]

• LinkedIn Boot Camp (Infographic)

  Brent Csutoras

  29 Mar 2012 | 9:00 am

  Although I have found LinkedIn’s ad system a bit of a disappointment, I am still a fan of the site in general. So when I saw this infographic that Mindflash put out, I had to share it with you all too. Click on the graphic below to see a larger version if you are unable [...]

• 12+ Million Views and Counting.. How Content Marketing Goes Viral

  Brent Csutoras

  26 Mar 2012 | 8:25 am

  I have spoken for years about the merits of using content marketing to help quality content get a lot of visibility, social signals, and possibly go viral. Recently I wrote an article about the success that content marketing can have, explaining that even with the decline of Digg, which was one of the largest social [...]

• Google’s Love / Hate Relationship With Affiliates

  Brent Csutoras

  6 Mar 2012 | 1:24 pm

  It is clear that Google has a strong Love / Hate relationship with Affiliates, which typically boils down to whether you are using their services and how large a volume you are generating in sales. Here is a really interesting Infographic that Aaron Wall put out, which details some of the love, and of course [...]

• Social Media Career Advice

  Brent Csutoras

  14 Feb 2012 | 9:34 am

  I was recently invited to take part in a collaborative effort that Onward Search put together, offering advice from some of the top social media marketing minds to anyone thinking about a career in social media marketing. I was quite impressed with many of the suggestions made, and wanted to share it with you all. [...]

• 

  Marketing Land - Internet Marketing News, Strategies & Tips

• Report: Google+ Engagement Down, 30% of Users Publicly Post Won’t Post Again

  Greg Finn

  15 May 2012 | 8:47 pm

  Yes, Google+ has 170 million users, but just how active are they?  A recent report from RJ Metrics suggests that based on public posts from 40,000 Google Plus accounts, engagement is poor.  The average public Google+ post is seeing less than one +1, less than one reply and less than one re-share.... Please visit Marketing Land for the full article.

• Ahead Of IPO, GM Drops Facebook Ads; Forrester Warns Other Companies May Follow

  Pamela Parker

  15 May 2012 | 4:34 pm

  It couldn’t have happened at a worse time for Facebook, which has its initial public offering of stock later this week. General Motors has decided to stop advertising on the social networking giant, citing concerns about the site’s effectiveness. Meanwhile, a Forrester analyst says... Please visit Marketing Land for the full article.

• Marketing Day: May 15, 2012

  Matt McGee

  15 May 2012 | 4:01 pm

  Here’s our daily recap of what happened in online marketing today, as reported on Marketing Land and other places across the web. From Marketing Land: Report: Social Ad Spending Expected To Double By 2016 Social media ad spending is expected to double in the U.S. between now and 2016,... Please visit Marketing Land for the full article.

• Report: Social Ad Spending Expected To Double By 2016

  Matt McGee

  15 May 2012 | 2:58 pm

  Social media ad spending is expected to double in the U.S. between now and 2016, according to a new forecast from BIA/Kelsey. The data are from BIA/Kelsey’s U.S. Local Media Forecast, which sees a compound annual growth rate of 21 percent in social media advertising. The forecast estimates... Please visit Marketing Land for the full article.

• Understanding The True Reach Of Pinterest

  Monica Wright

  15 May 2012 | 2:01 pm

  Pinterest became the social media’s new golden child earlier this year when marketers learned that it drives more web traffic than YouTube, Google+ and LinkedIn combined. Yet despite recent studies showing that referral traffic from the channel is decreasing, it’s still a big hitter in the social... Please visit Marketing Land for the full article.

• 

  Posts about Social Media from the Econsultancy blog

• 18m UK consumers have used social media for customer service

  David Moth

  16 May 2012 | 5:17 am

  More than a third of UK consumers (36%) have engaged with brands through social media, according to a survey from Fishburn Hedges. This has doubled from 19% since August 2011 and equates to around 18m people. The increased interaction appears to be driven by the widespread belief among respondents (40%) that social media improves customer service, compared to only 7% who feared it would harm service. In fact 68% of those who have engaged with brands through social media believe that it “allowed them to find their voice.”More than two-thirds (65%) also believe that it is a better…

• GM ditching paid Facebook ads: report

  Patricio Robles

  16 May 2012 | 3:11 am

  Facebook apparently hasn't experienced any problems convincing investors to put their money into its IPO, but while the social network focuses its attention on Wall Street, it might do well to pay more attention to a nearby street: Madison Avenue.That's because, according to a Wall Street Journal report, GM, the world's largest car maker, apparently isn't hot on Facebook's paid ads.In fact, it's so unimpressed that the Wall Street Journal's sources say that the once-troubled automaker "plans to stop advertising on Facebook after the company's marketing executives determined their paid ads had…

• Twitter hits 10m UK users, 80% use mobile

  Patricio Robles

  15 May 2012 | 2:42 pm

  Facebook may be the subject of all of the headlines with its public debut looming this Friday, but another major player in the social networking space is reminding the world that it's still growing too. Twitter, which has built a company that one day might go public too on the back of 140 character messages, has waived its hands in the air by announcing that it has surpassed 140m users worldwide.As reported by The Guardian, 10m of those users are in the UK. That's good enough to make the UK Twitter's fourth largest audience behind the US, Brazil and Japan, and explains why the company has a…

• Facebook's vulnerability could make it the most interesting IPO ever

  Patricio Robles

  15 May 2012 | 10:24 am

  In what may be the most anticipated IPO ever, Facebook, will go public this Friday. Mark Zuckerberg, the hoodie-wearing 28 year-old CEO of the world's largest social network won't be in New York to ring the NASDAQ opening bell. Instead, he'll be at his company's Menlo Park headquarters ringing it in virtually.When Facebook goes public on Friday, it will be selling 50.6m shares more than it originally planned to, and at $34 to $38 per share, the company's stock will debut in a higher-than-anticipated price range. All told, Facebook could raise nearly $15bn in its offering and hit the…

• Start Me Up! A profile of Achoo

  Graham Charlton

  15 May 2012 | 7:06 am

  Achoo is a social network which allows its users to brag about their achievements and build up a profile which will help attract future employers.  The site was launched by Andrus Purde, and I've been asking him about Achoo, its business model, the challenges of launching, and his future plans. In one sentence, what is Achoo? A professional social network where marketers and other professionals can build their network, share their accomplishments and find new opportunities. What problems does Achoo solve? The traditional résumé and services built around it,…

• 

  Convince and Convert Blog: Social Media Strategy and Social Media Consulting

• 6 Great Conferences to Attend Before the End of 2012

  Amy Schmittauer

  15 May 2012 | 8:00 am

  Amy Schmittauer is the Founder & Face of Savvy Sexy Social. She is a “social media frenzy” working in social relations consulting, blogging, and, of course, vlogging about life on her YouTube channel. Connect with her on Twitter. If there’s anything I’ve learned throughout this crazy ride of working in digital marketing, it’s that reading all the blog posts ever written, staying up-to-date on all the latest news, and watching all the how-to YouTube videos you can find is still not enough. There’s no doubt that all the information you need to learn about…

• 6 Reasons to Make Your Big Idea Small

  Jay Baer

  12 May 2012 | 3:20 pm

  Brad Van Orden is the most interesting man in the world. It’s not the Dos Equis guy, it’s Brad. Sheena Navigates the Market in Nebaj, Guatemala A former product engineer for WL Gore & Associates, Brad is an expert telemark skier, mountain biker, mechanic, cook, humorist, and explorer. I got to know Brad and his wife Sheena when I lived in Flagstaff, AZ (where they’re from). I met Brad and helped him with some Web strategy when he took an interest in sustainable energy (as a hobby) and taught himself C++ and a bunch of other programming languages to build a company called…

• Social Pros 15 – Marcus Sheridan, The Sales Lion

  Jay Baer

  10 May 2012 | 11:05 am

  This is Episode 15 of the Social Pros Podcast : Real People Doing Real Work in Social Media. This episode features Marcus Sheridan of The Sales Lion. Read on for insights from Marcus, and our Social Media Stat of the Week (this week: email opens on smartphones and tablets have grown by 82% in the last year). Listen Now Click the play button to listen here: Download the audio file: http://socialpros.podbean.com/mf/web/ic763t/SocialProsEpisode15.mp3 The RSS feed is: http://feeds.feedburner.com/socialprospodcast Find us on iTunes:…

• The Rise of the T-Shaped Agency Model

  Daniel Lemin

  9 May 2012 | 5:00 am

  Daniel Lemin is Strategy & Analytics Lead at Convince & Convert. He also runs the consulting firm Social Studio where he provides analytics, PR and integrated marketing strategy to his clients. Agency owners, take note: your traditional team structure – the one that divides your agency into “digital”, “account management” and “creative,” among others – may be restraining capacity to innovate and expand your client capabilities. We work with a lot of agencies and have come to recognize the challenges that leaders are facing in…

• The Five Reasons Why Most Facebook Brand Pages Aren’t True Communities

  Jessica Malnik

  8 May 2012 | 5:00 am

  Jessica Malnik is a PR/marketing coordinator, social media specialist, videographer and an avid blogger. Visit her blog for social media, technology, public relations and marketing ramblings. What are the defining characteristics of a community? It’s a topic I’ve been pondering more and more lately. Is it about geography, common interests, socio-economic similarities, or similar viewpoints? The list goes on and on. To get to this point, it becomes necessary to define what a community is. According to dictionary.com, a community is…

• 

  Elevator View

• Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law, 5:20PM

  Stewart Mader

  14 May 2012 | 2:54 pm

  Photographed from the 18th floor of 80 Fifth Avenue (Dailymotion).

• 4 & 7 Times Square, 1 Bryant Park, and New Yorker Hotel, 6:07PM

  Stewart Mader

  8 May 2012 | 2:45 pm

  Photographed from the 14th floor of 545 West 25th Street (The Glass Houses at Chelsea Arts Tower).

• W Union Square, 5:36PM

  Stewart Mader

  7 May 2012 | 11:05 am

  Photographed from the 18th floor of 80 Fifth Avenue (Dailymotion).

• Steelcase WorkLife Center, 8:00PM

  Stewart Mader

  4 May 2012 | 9:24 am

  Photographed from the 7th floor of 4 Columbus Circle (Steelcase WorkLife Center).

• Manhattan from Williamsburg, 5:30PM

  Stewart Mader

  3 May 2012 | 9:03 am

  Photographed from the roof deck of 440 Kent Avenue, Brooklyn (Schaefer Landing North).

• 

  The Online Community Guide

• The Real Problem

  Richard Millington

  15 May 2012 | 1:30 am

  Last week I posed a problem to community managers.  It read like this:  You're running a community that's been around for 18 months. The number of registered members is rising by about 250 per month.  The level of activity appears relatively constant. The number of discussions is rising, but the number of responses to each discussion has tapered off a little. You notice the same names begin to appear on almost every response.  Several of these same names are beginning to argue with each other on every topic. As community manager, what would you do…

• Moderation Masterclass

  Richard Millington

  14 May 2012 | 3:48 am

  Moderation is a powerful tool to boost participation in your community. Once people have completed the registration process, you rely upon the troika of moderation, events/activities, and content to sustain high levels of participations. The communities that struggle to keep people engaged, are failing at one or more of the above tasks. The most common is moderation.  If you want to learn how to do it right, you can now watch this free lesson from The Pillar Summit's Professional Community Management course: http://www.pillarsummit.com/moderation (apologies for the first…

• The 4 Tenets Of Professional Community Management

  Richard Millington

  11 May 2012 | 5:48 am

  This post always bugged me. It summarized a lot of bad job descriptions into a widely-linked article.  There are four tenets to professional community management, but it's not what you might imagine.  Data: Data tells you where you are now. It tells you how you're doing, whether the community is producing the benefits you promised and where you need to focus your efforts. This is the future. All the metrics are available to us. You can find an example of data in practice here. If you're not actively tracking your data, how do you have any idea how your community is…

• Newsletters and E-mails

  Richard Millington

  10 May 2012 | 1:30 am

  I've come across a few platforms which don't let you do two important things: 1) Set up a newsletter. 2) Mass-mail all members.  The difference between the two is also important. Newsletter are a regular update of what's new and popular in the community. Mass e-mails/notifications are rarer, incredibly important, announcements that can't wait until the newsletter (or dwarf the importance of a newsletter. Use the latter sparingly.  I wouldn't use platforms that didn't offer both. Without these, you can't highlight activities that…

• Free Lesson: How To Convert Newcomers Into Regulars

  Richard Millington

  9 May 2012 | 2:52 am

  As part of our week-long preview of The Pillar Summit's Professional Community Management course, we've published our first free lesson. Click here to watch: http://pillarsummit.com/convertingnewcomers/ You can also access the comprehensive reading material to accompany this lesson. Feel free to share these materials with anyone it might help. If you like the lesson, we hope you sign up for the course. The course will greatly improve your community management skills, knowledge, and resources (scripts, templates, calendars, training guides etc). We will teach you how to boost…

• 

  Daily Blog Tips

• The Verge Slams Internet Marketing Gurus

  Daniel Scocco

  14 May 2012 | 11:17 pm

  If you still haven’t seen the piece on The Verge where they slam some Internet marketing gurus pretty hard, well, grab some popcorn and visit the link below, cause you are in for a treat (whether you agree with the opinions of the article or not). The post is titled Scamworld: ‘Get rich quick’ schemes mutate into an online monster, and it runs for thousands of words with a very comprehensive view on the matter. Just to give you an idea on how they didn’t hold any punches: there are pictures and videos of some pretty famous Internet marketers (e.g., Frank Kern and Mike…

• How to Structure Your Posts (and Why You Need To)

  Ali Luke

  14 May 2012 | 6:30 am

  Do your posts seem to be a loose collection of ideas, in no particular order? When I’m coaching bloggers, one common problem that comes up is a lack of structure. During the drafting process, many writers simply sit down and type whatever comes into their head. That’s fine for a warm-up … but it’s not a very efficient way to create a blog post. Think of structure as the underlying framework for your posts. With a strong frame in place, your post won’t sag in the middle or have bits falling off at the edges: it’ll be easy for you to create, and easy for your readers to take in.

• Make Money On YouTube with Affiliate Marketing

  Daniel Scocco

  11 May 2012 | 9:52 am

  A couple of weeks ago I published a post explaining the basic process you need to go through if you want to become a YouTube partner, which allows you to display ads and monetize your uploaded videos. My buddy John Chow followed that post up with an explanation of his approach to YouTube monetization, which is quite different. In his post titled How to Make Money on YouTube John explains that in addition to the money he makes from the ad impressions on the video he also earns by placing affiliate links in the description of the videos. In fact he mentions that the affiliate links earn much…

• First Impressions on Websites Can Be Misleading

  Daniel Scocco

  9 May 2012 | 9:02 pm

  One thing that makes online marketing particularly complex (and interesting) is the fact that you can never be sure about what’s going on behind the scenes of a certain website. That is, you can’t know how many visitors the site has, how much it makes per month and so on. In fact sometimes the first impression you’ll get can be quite misleading, and here are some examples: Number of Comments Until a couple of years ago the average number of comments a blog would get per post was a good indicator of its traffic. Today, however, I don’t think this rule holds true. For…

• Publishers, Websites and Mobile Apps

  Daniel Scocco

  7 May 2012 | 10:21 pm

  In my opinion one of the most interesting and important debates right now is whether the future is all about apps, or whether the web we’ll remain the most important platform around the world for content production, sharing and consumption. There are good arguments for both sides, and experts and analysts remain divided. If you are interested on this topic as well I recommend that you check a piece on MIT’s Technology Review titled Why Publishers Don’t Like Apps. The story is somewhat focused on traditional publishers, but it touches on other things as well, including the…

• 

  Poetslife

• Emergency Management - National Disaster Medical System

  Poetslife

  14 May 2012 | 7:26 pm

  Note: All photos enlarge if you click them.I write this in hopes those in areas without the resources to run a mock medical exercise can learn a few lessons from my experience at this one.I was a volunteer mock victim at a Baltimore Federal Coordination Center (FCC) under the National Disaster Medical System (NDMS) sponsored a full-scale exercise at BWI Airport on 12 May 2012.This exercise was different because it was focused on medical evacuation and treatment.The full exercise plan is at the bottom of this blog entry, but here is a synopsis:"Purpose: The purpose of this exercise is to…

• Mike Smith Enterprises Blog Prepper Tip

  Poetslife

  22 Apr 2012 | 1:46 pm

  Mike Smith Enterprises Blog: Late Season Snow Storm Threaten Power Failures: This weather cam photo from WTAE TV, Pittsburgh, shows the trees leafed out. Why is that important? Because heavy, wet snow will bring...Mike recommends a simple $45 inverter for your car lighter to power an appliance (like a refrigerator to keep your insulin fresh) during a power outage. Great prepping.

• Best Wines in the World

  Poetslife

  8 Apr 2012 | 9:03 pm

  Black Ankle Vineyards in Mount Airy, MD, produce the best wines in the world.That is my opinion based on decades of tasting wine from when I was a student in Paris at 19 to today, some 30 years and many bottles of wine later.I'm no sommelier. But I know a great, great wine when I taste it, and all of Black Ankle's wines are great. I especially like the Crumbling Rock and the Slate, but they are all out of this world. How out of this world? I'm very careful about what I store in my emergency supplies.The owner, Sarah O'Herron (she's the one pouring), says the unique taste is due to it's…

• Life360 Keep Your Family Safe

  Poetslife

  10 Mar 2012 | 8:12 pm

  Life360 phone app is a good tool to use to keep your family safe before, during and after an emergency. Protect your fledglings from the dangers out there (see, for example, the red tail hawk on the oak fence in my back yard that often threatens our blue birds).It does many things, but here are the most important:Push the panic button and you can contact your family IMMEDIATELY if you have an emergency.The GPS map shows you EXACTLY WHERE your loved ones are so you can find them IMMEDIATELY.From my emergency management experience, I know that when an event hits, so too does tunnel vision, a…

• Herman Samuel “B” Beck, Jr.

  Poetslife

  3 Feb 2012 | 5:49 am

  “B” Wise with Your Time (for Herman Samuel “B” Beck, Jr.)There is a clock above Town HallNear the old B&O station in Mt. Airy,Dependable, accurate, useful and true,Named after Herman Samuel “B” Beck, Jr.Mr. Beck, author of the Mt. Airy B&O Story,1936 graduate of Mt. Airy High School,WWII radioman with the Army Air CorpsIn the European Theater of Operations,“B” columnist of the Mt. Airy NewsOf the “Way We Were” column,Member of the Mt. Airy Town Council,Manager Coach of the Mt. Airy Little League,Promoted citizenship as a Member, PresidentAnd District Governor…

• 

   louisgray.com

• The "Archive" Button Can be Your In Box's Best Friend

  30 Apr 2012 | 4:39 pm

  You practically can't open your RSS reader or spend a day on a social network of your choice without running into complaints about email. Nobody likes it. Everybody says they have too much of it. People gloat over mass deletions of unread items, or sporting a full in box four or five figures deep. Some people take vacations from it or swear they'll pound through their to-read list in what could be an eventually futile journey toward the improbable in box zero. But for many of those people, it's likely the impenetrable in box is symptomatic of something else - the inability to make a decision…

• Private Companies, Stock Splits and Taxes

  15 Apr 2012 | 1:33 am

  From 2001 to 2009, I worked at a private company in various roles, from marketing manager to director. Over my eight years there, I gained stock options from my hire date in January of 2001, to my last option grant in the fall of 2008. In addition, I purchased stock as an individual in 2005 and 2006. While we filed to go public in 2007, we eventually had to withdraw this plan, and the company never did see those options become public. Last fall, after I joined Google, the company was finally acquired, for cash. I was given some payout from my time there, and separate investing, but due to…

• Measuring Up at Life's Checkpoints

  9 Apr 2012 | 1:36 am

  According to my blog history, I turned 30 years old five years ago. So that correspondingly means that today marked my hitting 35. When I got the somewhat congratulatory call from a high school best friend this morning, I asked what in the world could possibly be different at 35 than 34, aside from being qualified to run for president. He quickly said that when you hit 35, your back goes out... you become incontinent... so yeah, not great stuff.Any time life passes an arbitrary number, it becomes second nature to do a self-evaluation and compare where you are against life goals, or where…

• Writing for Social, Defending for Court

  30 Mar 2012 | 12:39 pm

  Earlier this month, I had an interesting experience, being asked to participate in a deposition, taking questions from a legal team as part of an ongoing case. While I’ll skip the details out of deference for confidentiality, there were aspects of the morning that serve as a reminder for those of us who participate online that often, content we post is permanent, and it can be discovered and used for means far beyond those we originally intended.For those unfamiliar with the process of a deposition, it’s essentially when an individual is called as part of a fact-finding mission, to bring…

• Fitbit: Virtual Badges Influence Real Behavior

  9 Mar 2012 | 7:27 pm

  I am not going on a diet - and I have no interest in going to the gym, even if Google makes it incredibly easy to eat healthy on campus, and gym membership is free with equipment abundant. It's just not me. But despite this clear disinterest in my making any kind of physical life change, I have been wearing a Fitbit the last week, obsessively counting my steps, climbing the stairs and tracking how many miles I make on foot. I've even been wearing the lightweight tracker at night to see how long and how well I sleep - working to optimize that as well.So why would I resort to such silliness?

• 

  SheGeeksSheGeeks | SheGeeks

• 4 Tips to Cut Useless Tweets Out of Your Twitter Timeline

  Corvida Raven

  9 May 2012 | 8:00 am

  Just like the Facebook Newsfeed, keeping your Twitter timeline full of relevant information. As we increase the number of people we follow on Twitter, we also increase the number of distracting, useless information, otherwise known as noise, that flows into our Twitter timelines. Constantly pruning for fresh information is a tedious and time-consuming job that I only do once a month. In the meantime and in between time, I use the following tips to keep the noise level down in my Twitter timeline.   Turn Off ReTweets for Individual Accounts I have quite a few people I follow that love to…

• Google+ Receives A Fresh Redesign That You Might Like

  Corvida Raven

  12 Apr 2012 | 2:30 am

  I have to be honest. I haven’t been the biggest fan Google+. I’ve been Circled over 11k times , but I don’t see much activity from users beyond sharing the same things they share on Twitter and Facebook. Most of the people I’ve circled seem to be more active elsewhere. Though Google+ original design was well received, I found the layout too cluttered with text. Overall, Google+ reminded me of a message board stuck with an old school design while flaunting new school features. So, I’m more than excited about the new redesign for Google+ because it finally feels…

• Facebook Buys Instagram: Thoughts On Why And What To Expect

  Corvida Raven

  9 Apr 2012 | 4:18 pm

  Facebook is buying Instagram for $1 billion. After the $500 million valuation Instagram received, it makes you wonder why Facebook will pay twice the price for Instagram. It’s just a mobile app that lets you share pics with friends and has less than 50 million total users compared to Facebook’s 800+ million active monthly users. You can do the same thing on your phone or desktop from the Facebook site. This may be true, but when it comes to designing an addictive mobile app and photo-sharing experience, Instagram is a winner, and threat-turned-opportunity for Facebook’s…

• Khoya: An Interactive Adventure Made For Your New iPad

  Corvida Raven

  21 Mar 2012 | 9:00 am

  When the iPad was first announced, I expected to it to magically transform the world of ebooks. I expected a new world of e-reading experiences to flood my screen from authors all over the world. I mean, can you imagine what Harry Potter would look like had J.K. Rowling written it for the iPad? If you’re having a hard time imagining it, let a new iPad app called Khoya open your eyes to an interactive storytelling experience far beyond anything you or your iPad has ever seen. Price: $4.99Download: AppStore (iPad Only) Khoya is a city under the control of the evil Nasha, and…

• How To Diversify Any Conference You Attend

  Corvida Raven

  15 Mar 2012 | 5:51 pm

  On Monday, March 12th, I participated in my fourth panel at SxSW 2012 titled: “Race: When to Hold it and When to Fold it.” The purpose of the panel was to change the conversation from “What can technology conferences do about diversity?” to “What can attendees do about diversity at technology conferences?” If you have a few minutes to spare, listen to the full panel via the link above. In this post, I’d like to focus on why recommendations are a big part of diversifying conferences and how conference attendees (and speakers!) can help. The (Echo) Chamber of Networks…

• 

  Discount Safari

• What happened to the discount code business?

  admin

  26 Apr 2012 | 9:16 am

  There was a time when there were a few websites out there dealing with discount codes. These websites were concerned about the highest quality of their services anf focused on the experience with the user. But since many webmasters got access to affiliate platforms the business started going down hill. Why? Keep reading… When affiliate platforms found a niche between the merchants and the end customer thousands of webmasters decided to run a websites dealing with discount codes. It is quite easy to update the website oncy in a while and add some “new” free delivery codes…

• New Very Promotional Codes Available Online Now

  admin

  27 Mar 2012 | 3:21 pm

  First and foremost, it is essential to know that there are several benefits and innovative features which are offered by Very. Some of the benefits that are provided by the online retailer include a Very Promotional Code, shopping tips, social shopping, advice and buying guides. This retailing outlet allows you to chat and share ideas with other clients. It is possible to write reviews of the products on the online site. One thing that you should know about Very is that it offers competitive prices for their products. It is possible to save more when using a Very Promotional Code. You can…

• Europcar Discount Code: Giving you the best transport deals

  admin

  1 Mar 2012 | 2:40 pm

  The Europcar discount code is an offer anyone looking for excellent car hire service in Europe should be on the lookout for. This service is dedicated to offering its clients first class transport solution ranging from vehicles updated with cutting edge technology such as portable Wi-Fi; prestigious vehicles for persons on holiday and courier vehicles to solve your transportation work. All the cars are in excellent condition to save you the hassle of unprecedented breakdowns. In addition, the car is delivered to your chosen pick up place free. You can also designate a place where it shall be…

• Why Choose Dixons? Dixons Free Delivery: That’s Why!

  admin

  1 Mar 2012 | 2:20 pm

  Many people search for electronics and they want them as soon as possible; with Dixons free delivery and many delivery option there is no better place to order your next electronic device. After deciding what type of electronic you are needing for your home the next step is to decide when, where, and how you would like your item to be sent to you. For any item purchased there is next day delivery on large domestic appliances and is offered but is subject to slot availability. Dixons also offers a wide range of delivery throughout the day. Dixons starts their deliveries as early as 7 and do…

• How to activate your Kiddicare Promotional Code

  admin

  1 Mar 2012 | 1:08 pm

  You can now save lots of cash with the Kiddicare voucher codes. This special company is the primary plus size vendor in the UK market. Kiddicare boasts comprehensive expertise and infinite knowledge in fashioning the perfect cloths apparel that will surely allow one feel beautiful every time that they wear the merchandise. Moreover, the splendid Kiddicare promotional code will help you make super savings as you shop for your favorite apparel in their fantastic and wholesome  product catalogue that includes accessories, sleep-ware, clothes and lingerie just to mention a few,  these items are…

• 

  THINKing

• The Brand Called You

  Harry Hoover

  15 May 2012 | 7:15 am

  The best brands always try to do the right thing, so that their reputations will remain unsullied. But beyond that they grow, evolve and get better with time, while maintaining their special qualities from the past. We all have a personal brand with social, cultural, intellectual, and personal needs that may not necessarily be addressed in our daily work. Address these needs and you begin to improve your brand. Here is my agenda for building your brand. Join and participate in community and professional organizations Generate media coverage about your brand Stay in touch, or renew old ties…

• Creativity 2012 – Week #20

  Harry Hoover

  14 May 2012 | 6:02 am

  Photo credit: penywise from morguefile.com Rewarding Creativity - Extrinsic motivation–especially based on monetary rewards–has a detrimental effect on creativity. But is this really true? Innovation Requires Both Ideas And Action - Some say the lack of innovation within organizations isn’t because of a lack of ideas, rather a lack of action. There are too many ideas and not enough implementors. Mark Twain On Originality – Is combinatorial creativity plagiarism? Let’s ask Mark Twain. What Chimpanzees Can Teach Us About Inspiration - Zoologist Desmond Morris performed…

• Driving Blog Traffic With Pinterest

  Harry Hoover

  9 May 2012 | 11:47 am

  Are you using Pinterest to drive traffic back to your blog? I am experimenting with it. Why? Well, a recent study indicates that Pinterest drives more sales than Facebook. Is this true? Don’t know. But a little experimentation doesn’t cost me anything. So, why not? I’ve set up two boards, the one you see above about How To Use LinkedIn, and another on marketing communications, primarily to direct traffic back here to THINKing. If this idea gains traction, I’ll be developing additional boards where I have a lot of content in a specific topic, such as creativity. My…

• You Might Be A Writer If…

  Harry Hoover

  8 May 2012 | 7:00 am

  There are some writing errors that can make you appear stupid, particularly if you call yourself a professional writer. You would not believe – or perhaps you would – how many times I have received content from “writers” containing some of these errors. So, I have compiled my list of things you need to know if writing is your vocation or avocation. You might be a writer if you know: - – how to use there, their and they’re correctly - – the difference between its and it’s - – when to use peek, peak and pique - – the difference between…

• Creativity 2012 – Week #19

  Harry Hoover

  7 May 2012 | 10:08 am

  Photo credit: martinlouis from morguefile.com 5 Effortless Postures That Foster Creative Thinking - Literally sitting outside a box, rather than in it, makes you more creative, according to new psychological research. Doodling For Dollars - Employees at a range of businesses are being encouraged by their companies to doodle their ideas and draw diagrams to explain complicated concepts to colleagues. 201 Ways To Arouse Your Creativity - Creativity is like sex. You fumble your way through, you get lost in it, you fall in love. Both are passionate, rhythmic, pleasurable, and flowing. Both…

• 

  Firebelly Marketing

• Infographic: State Of The Internet In 2012

  Kelly Rynard

  15 May 2012 | 8:47 pm

  Presented By: OnlineUniversities.com

• Instagram Marketing: 5 Must-Reads

  Chad Richards

  14 May 2012 | 8:35 am

  Here are your 5 must-reads on Instagram marketing that we don’t want you to miss. The Rise of Instagram in Social Marketing: Tapping Into Consumer Creativity By Andy Parker In just the past few weeks, there has been an explosion of brands jumping on the Instagram bandwagon. Track Social has been following brands’ use of Instagram on Facebook through it’s searchable database of active Facebook apps and we have seen a continuous stream of new Instagram initiatives. 5 Awesome Examples of Instagram Marketing From Real Brands By Lauren Sorenson Mobile photo sharing is now a part of our…

• Infographic: Pinterest Deconstructed For eTailers and Content Marketers

  Kelly Rynard

  8 May 2012 | 2:00 pm

  This infographic created by Maxymiser shares interesting information about Pinterest. It details out the who, what, where, when and how you can use Pinterest. For marketers, the last two sections are particularly intriguing. Are you working on Pinterest for a brand? What has been your experience?

• Facebook Offers: 5 Must-Reads

  Chad Richards

  7 May 2012 | 10:44 am

  Here are 5 must-reads on Facebook Offers that we don’t want you to miss. Facebook’s “Offers” News Feed Coupons Launch In Self-Serve Beta For Local U.S. Businesses By Josh Constine Today any local U.S. business can start using Facebook’s Offers product – free-to-create coupons that businesses can share to the news feed, and that users can bring to brick-and-mortar stores for redemptions. Facebook launches Offers: Coupons in your News Feed By Emil Protalinski As expected, Facebook has launched its new Offers service, just eight months after killing Facebook Deals. More…

• Ivy League Facebook Face-off

  Duncan Alney

  3 May 2012 | 4:13 pm

  Ever wondered how America’s top colleges stack up when you compare their Facebook presence? Compiled By: OnlineUniversities.com

• 

  ConverStations

• Should Your Lists be Bullets or Numbered?

  Mike Sansone

  16 May 2012 | 5:00 am

  originally posted on Dialing8 Using lists in your content is a great way to gift readers by providing “eye rests” and making your content easier to read and share. Is there a difference between using bullets or numbers? Yes. Think of a numbered list as a step-by-step order and a bulleted list as unordered. In fact, these two types of lists are called “Ordered Lists” and “Unordered Lists”. An unordered list might include things you would pick up at the grocery store: Eggs Green Onions Bread Bell Pepper Orange Juice An ordered list might be the instructions…

• Whistle Stops – 5/13/12

  Mike Sansone

  13 May 2012 | 9:53 am

  Whistle Stops are conversations, eye-openers, or tools representing the brain train discovered while traveling along the Conversphere.  From business to education, life hacks to giving back, these are the posts and links that have in some way grabbed my attention this week! The 6-Step SEO Audit Every Marketer Should Conduct via Hubspot 99% Conference 2012: Key Takeaways on Making Ideas Happen from Behance 26 Tips for Success With Location-Based Marketing from Social Media Examiner Why Small Business Have A Huge Advantage Over Brands In Social Media on SocialMouths 5 Creative Uses of…

• Stepping Up

  Mike Sansone

  10 May 2012 | 6:41 am

  Maybe it’s no longer about Catching Up or Keeping Up – but about Stepping Up. Are you Up for change? Can't see the video in your RSS reader or email? Click Here! more here Stepping Up is a post from: ConverStations You just finished reading Stepping Up! Consider leaving a comment!Follow Mike Sansone on Twitter or Facebook or on Google+

• Second Question: “How do you want it cooked?”

  Mike Sansone

  9 May 2012 | 4:52 am

  The server comes to our table and asks my breakfast companion what he would like. “Two Eggs, please,” he said. Guess the next question. If the question doesn’t get asked, what will the resulting breakfast be? Even though there’s over a dozen ways to cook eggs, we know what success will look like and taste like before we crack shells. Shouldn’t it be similar with social media? “I’ll have a Facebook with a side of Pinterest,” he thinks. There’s probably over a dozen ways to use Facebook and Pinterest together. What will success look like?

• Preparing for Social Media: For Times When There is No Time

  Mike Sansone

  4 May 2012 | 5:50 am

  You will find there are times when there is no time for social media. Let’s hope so.  Hopefully, you’re busy on your core business: project work, client meetings, billing & invoicing, display merchandising, inventory – all that other stuff that is part of doing business successfully. I have one of those days today. Thankfully, with careful planning and preparation, I’ll get the things which need to be done – done. And I prepare for the social media stuff too. Using my RSS reader and Twitter list, I’ve scheduled a few tweets. I didn’t find a lot…

• 

  RyanSpoon.com

• Nike Basketball’s Beautiful Facebook Timeline In Time for NBA Playoffs

  Ryan Spoon

  15 May 2012 | 10:28 am

  Just a terrific, creative and well-timed use of the Facebook Timeline by Nike Basketball. Coinciding with the NBA Playoffs – and a handful of new sneakers for top stars like Lebron James, Kobe Bryant and Kevin Durant – Nike Basketball is releasing a series of basketball rules: “Every EPIC moment has a story. And every story has a lesson. Lesson No. 1: The deeper the bench. The stronger the squad.” Each rule is placed atop a basketball poster that ties into the playoffs and relevant players. Two or three rules are posted a day (so far, 38 rules and posters have been…

• Facebook Offers In The River Promotion

  Ryan Spoon

  14 May 2012 | 12:22 pm

  Two trends within Facebook that I have written frequently about: - Facebook Offers: which has morphed from a Groupon-like platform to an extension of their sponsored ad format - In the River Marketing: which is particularly important for large products / platforms like Facebook (examples here: New Facebook Photos and Facebook Places) Combine those and you have the following series of screenshots: Facebook’s In the River promotion of their new Facebook Offers product. When you visit your Facebook page, you are prompted with a takeover atop the status box: “Welcome to Facebook…

• Amazon Brings All 7 Harry Potter Books to Kindle Lending Club

  Ryan Spoon

  10 May 2012 | 2:51 pm

  This is pretty significant news out of Amazon: all seven Harry Potter books are now available in the Kindle Lending Club. It is the all-time bestselling book series and is a testament to Amazon’s willingness to put marketing muscle behind Kindle and the Lending Club. And considering the reach and popularity of the Harry Potter franchise – it is a win for Kindle owners, Harry Potter fans, and Amazon users. It is also worth noting that it is a couple days from Mother’s Day and Amazon’s merchandising exists (upper right corner) but is far smaller than the Harry Potter…

• NYTimes Mobile Paywall

  Ryan Spoon

  9 May 2012 | 7:39 pm

  Not a ton to say here except that: - I reached the New York Times paywall - And it is visually very bold / intrusive - But while it is disruptive – and that’s the goal of course – it is really not very actionable: The only part of the entire screen that is clickable are the two orange buttons.That is

• #TrendingOnGoogle+

  Ryan Spoon

  8 May 2012 | 5:07 pm

  I haven’t logged into Google Plus in a little, so I cannot tell if this is a new feature or a result of my infrequent usage – nevertheless, I was taken aback by Google’s new Trending on Google+ module… which looks exactly like Twitter’s. While it is interesting to see that the topics are related (ie Junior Seau, NFL), I was most interested by the use of hashtags on Google. Within my Google+ network, I have not seen hashtags used with any regularity (whereas they obviously are part of the Twitter culture) – I also would have assumed they would relied on…

• 

  New Marketing and Interactive

• 5 tips to grow your mobile app business

  dean@deanwhitney.com (Dean Whitney)

  15 May 2012 | 4:15 pm

  If you build it, they will…probably not come. Even if you design and code an amazingly engaging, fun, and useful mobile application, there is no guarantee that it’ll gain traction, users,... An early pioneer in interactive media, sought after speaker and leading expert on search and social media marketing, Dean Whitney is the Founder of Dean Whitney Interactive.

• How usability testing can increase your sales…by the millions

  dean@deanwhitney.com (Dean Whitney)

  7 May 2012 | 8:36 pm

  This isn’t my story. But, it does a much better job at making a case for usability testing than anything I could possibly make up. Ready? Once upon a time there existed an e-commerce website.... An early pioneer in interactive media, sought after speaker and leading expert on search and social media marketing, Dean Whitney is the Founder of Dean Whitney Interactive.

• How the world’s largest global start-up and accelerator competition, MassChallenge, is killing off the business plan

  dean@deanwhitney.com (Dean Whitney)

  3 May 2012 | 3:12 pm

  At first, it exists as just an idea. At a coffee shop, after a couple cafe lattés, you and few friends flesh it out. Over a long weekend it gets invested in by VC’s. And after a month,... An early pioneer in interactive media, sought after speaker and leading expert on search and social media marketing, Dean Whitney is the Founder of Dean Whitney Interactive.

• How inbound marketing and HubSpot will change the way you think about marketing (2 of 2)

  dean@deanwhitney.com (Dean Whitney)

  27 Apr 2012 | 10:30 am

  Instead of forcing consumers to interact with brands, marketers figured out how to make consumers WANT to spend time interacting with your brand: by GIVING. This is what Massachusetts Institute of... An early pioneer in interactive media, sought after speaker and leading expert on search and social media marketing, Dean Whitney is the Founder of Dean Whitney Interactive.

• How inbound marketing and HubSpot will change the way you think about marketing (1 of 2)

  dean@deanwhitney.com (Dean Whitney)

  24 Apr 2012 | 9:39 am

  Instead of forcing consumers to interact with brands, marketers figured out how to make consumers WANT to spend time interacting with your brand: by GIVING. This is what Massachusetts Institute of... An early pioneer in interactive media, sought after speaker and leading expert on search and social media marketing, Dean Whitney is the Founder of Dean Whitney Interactive.

• 

  Direct Marketing Observations

• How Do We Get Duped By SEO [Infographic]

  marc meyer

  14 May 2012 | 10:54 am

  It all starts with a title. The better the title, the stickier the title, the more likely you’ll suck us in.

• How Digital is Changing the Consumer Experience

  marc meyer

  2 May 2012 | 4:02 pm

  Let me give you a few real world examples that happen every day.  You’re at a stop light for all of 30 seconds and you start to get antsy because the light hasn’t changed.  You are going to make a right on red and there is someone in front of you who does not turn right away, and you lay on the horn.  You’re in line at the store waiting to check out and it’s taking forever.  Forever being about 3-4 minutes. Why are we so impatient? Maybe these examples will help. You’re surfing the web and a page doesn’t load quick enough so you try another website.  You want to buy a product…

• Social Media and The Olympics

  marc meyer

  20 Apr 2012 | 3:44 pm

  Two things for you to check out. First check out the infographic below and second, check out this link: http://hub.olympic.org/

• A Need to Redefine Brand Lift

  marc meyer

  13 Apr 2012 | 8:22 am

  According to a recent survey published by eMarketer, four in five North American brand marketers considered brand lift to be the most important metric for evaluating the success of their online branding efforts.  But is brand lift the right metric at all?  Vizu which partnered with DIGIDAY on the survey defines brand lift as the following: Brand Lift is defined as the percentage increase in the primary marketing objective of a brand advertising campaign But does that definition correlate to digital correctly?  Should it?  Marketers consider it to be the one worthy metric.  Given its pure…

• On Social Media Tools, Noise, and Experience

  marc meyer

  12 Apr 2012 | 10:00 am

  I was driving through the Florida Everglades last week when I thought, “How in the hell does someone survive and get around out here in this vast expanse of nothingness?”  Which made me immediately draw a relation to the water that surrounds the glades being the internet so to speak, and the wispy reeds of sea grass or whatever the hell it is, being your customers or users of the internet.  I then thought, “There’s a lot of noise out there now, was it, or is it now because of social media?  Did social media create the noise?”  Is social responsible for this?

• 

  The Engaging Brand

• Stepping Stones to Social Business Model

  Anna Farmery

  15 May 2012 | 10:05 am

  "Wherever life is, it never retreats" Words of Kevin Kelly during his 2005 Ted Talk on How Technology Evolves. As much as we sometimes would like the world to stop so that we can catch our breath....it won't. I have written about social business a lot recently and that is because I feel that technology evolves then business models adapt to cope with the technology. Social media was a use of the technology. The greater effect though was raising the expectation of the consumer. Now the consumer has found their voice, they want more.....like Oliver Twist! A voice is wonderful but what about the…

• What is creativity? Really....

  Anna Farmery

  14 May 2012 | 10:24 am

  "We don't use machines because although they seem to help at first, they produce limitations in the long run" The words of Rosa Lladro in a recent interview in Monocle magazine. It struck me as such an important part of business and indeed of using social media. As humans we like structure and boundaries. Yet what makes brands stand out from the crowd is true creativity. True creativity is Not looking at what you are capable of....but what you want to make and making it possible Not having a huge budget and using business consultants..instead of spending big money, spend big time…

• Show 384 - Inside Mobile Marketing

  Anna Farmery

  13 May 2012 | 8:52 am

  This week's The Engaging Brand podcast covering social media, business ideas and brand marketing tips, is ready to download. Alex Meisl, Chairman of Sponge which he has developed into Europe's market leader on Mobile Marketing with operations in 20 countries,  joins Anna Farmery to discuss  What is mobile marketing? What actually is mobile advertising? What is the difference between marketing to the different devices? The concept of mobile shopping How 80% of advertisers do not have a mobile site - staggering google mobile website data? Check out GoMo from Google How to make a mobile…

• Why Technology Does Not Give Life Value

  Anna Farmery

  12 May 2012 | 11:14 am

  In 1955 Sarnoff was speaking about mass media and said "We are too prone to make technological instruments the scapegoats...The products of modern science are not in themselves good or bad; it is the way they are used that determines their value" Strikes me in over 50 fifty years, as much as technology advances.....our ability to develop our minds as humans, remains harder! Value in life comes not in using things, not in owning things....but in connecting 'things'. Connecting ideas Connecting technology to how to make life better - for you and others Connecting people through the art of…

• 5 Social Business Predictions

  Anna Farmery

  11 May 2012 | 12:57 pm

  Social business in the future will not be about products or services, it will be about connections. There....my prediction for business over the next decade. Social capitalism will link  put emphasis on the role of business within society. Not just about providing employment but in protecting resources and developing commuinity across the globe. Social business will have assets and liabilities.....but these will mainly be in the connections and talents they have access to....rather than in machinery. Social business will work with the customer rather than for the customer or to the customer.

• 

  Going Social Now

• Add Organ Donor Status to FB Profile. Brilliant.

  Shiv Singh

  1 May 2012 | 6:00 am

  Today Facebook is urging its US members (roughly 161 million of them) to add their donor status to their Facebook profiles according to the NY Times. There are around 7,000 patients waiting organ transplants. In addition to encouraging Facebook members to add their donor status, the company is also encouraging everyone to list their birth dates and schools to further create peer pressure to further push people to add their names to the rolls of registered organ donors.I couldn't be more impressed with the initiative. It's been done on a smaller scale by other companies on the…

• Sosolimited via The Creators Project

  Shiv Singh

  6 Apr 2012 | 11:55 pm

  An inspiring perspective and worth watching. This isn't about digital marketing or about social media but how Sosolimited thinks about bits and bytes is how brands need to think too.

• Breaking down the Paid, Owned & Social Media Chinese Walls

  Shiv Singh

  25 Mar 2012 | 10:54 pm

  It is easy to forget that social media marketing has one critical challenge. You cannot scale it consistently. If your plan goes really well, it'll scale on its own. Similarly, if things go really badly your marketing efforts (much to your irritation) will probably scale too. However, there's never any guarantee as to why and when your social media marketing efforts will scale. If you're trying to reach a certain number of consumers in a certain way in a certain time period, you simply can't depend on organic social media to do so. Even the most perfect marketer cannot depend on that.Hence…

• Interview with MediaPost on how Facebook is growing up in the eyes of marketers

  Shiv Singh

  24 Mar 2012 | 7:10 am

  Pepsi is among brands that have recently updated its Facebook presence, when the social net redesigned company pages. Online Media Daily spoke to me,  to discuss the upgraded brand pages, the new ad offerings and analytics tools Facebook introduced in February. Interview below.OMD: What's your take on the new Facebook brand pages incorporating Timeline?Singh: The first version of brand pages did not always engage consumers around a brand. This version does a few different things. One is putting the Wall front and center even more strongly -- that's a big step forward. With Timeline…

• Super Bowl Digital Advertising Madness

  Shiv Singh

  31 Jan 2012 | 10:11 pm

  Super Bowl is upon us as is the advertising madness around. There are a few key themes that will hold true this year for sure and are already surfacing:1. Releasing ads online early is becoming table-stakes. Nearly everyone seems to be doing this and with good reason. It's about building momentum into the Super Bowl typically done with a mixture of paid and organic promotions of the TV ads online.2. The smarter advertisers are constructing narratives around teasers, the TV commercial and what should happen after the ad airs. Some are even focusing on second screen social TV experiences (we…

• 

  Polygraph Media Blog

• On the Facebook IPO

  Chris Treadaway

  15 May 2012 | 4:10 pm

  Lots of thoughts on this... let me try to be brief.  And my opinions on this should not be considered as investment advice, but rather my observations following up on my interview with WebProNews earlier this year.  I am a marketer and practitioner, not an investment professional.  The Facebook IPO is the apex of this cycle.  Finally, we can all buy & sell shares of the world's dominant social property.  Woohoo! The Facebook price range was increased today, which will value the company at roughly $100b when it begins trading.  Unreal -- although this was inline with where the…

• Big Social Data & the Peak of Rick Santorum

  Chris Treadaway

  2 Apr 2012 | 10:04 am

  February 8th was a watershed day in the US Presidential campaign of Rick Santorum.  The Pennsylvania conservative picked up a sweep of somewhat unexpected wins in Colorado, Minnesota, and Missouri.  Pundits and news sources called the outcome "devastating" for the Mitt Romney campaign and a "shot in the arm" for Rick Santorum.  Romney went on the offensive, launching attacks against his Republican rival weeks after the event. All of this would be great, with the exception that February 8th was actually the statistical peak of the Rick Santorum campaign.  We can prove…

• SXSW Interactive 2012 Observations

  Chris Treadaway

  14 Mar 2012 | 2:21 pm

  Some thoughts following the blur that was SXSW Interactive 2012: I very much agree with the sentiment that "nobody won SXSW" this year, but I also don't think you can expect that every year.  Twitter "won" the conference in 2007.  4sq arguably stole the show in 2009.  GroupMe "won" in 2011.  In my mind, the latter won it only because the tech press had to give the title to *someone*.  But also look at the years... in the even years nobody "won" at all per se.  You don't have a  "press-designated" winner every year and this…

• Snap Reactions to February 29 Facebook Announcements - Ads & Pages

  Chris Treadaway

  29 Feb 2012 | 9:36 pm

  Some quick snap reactions to the February 29 announcements today at the Facebook Marketing Conference: The Timeline for Pages features seem to be a matter of both give and take.  Pages get Timeline functionality, which is now the standard view of both Pages and Profiles.  Users can interact with local businesses, brands, non-profits, and people using the same look & feel. This is a huge investment in this new structure... Facebook will be very motivated to (over time) make Timeline the default structure for all Pages & Profiles, whereas it is a choice right now.  It's just…

• The Future of News is Now, and it's Tiger Teams

  Chris Treadaway

  24 Feb 2012 | 9:59 am

  News media has always been an interest to me going back to my time as sports editor of my high school newspaper, The Northwestern, in 1991.  I was deeply involved, maybe even instrumental, in converting Stratfor from a consulting business to a web publisher in 1999.  And our first go-to-market strategy for Notice Technologies in 2009-2010 was to partner with local newspapers and the families that owned them.  So I have a professional curiousity about local media that I can't quite shake, even if it isn't the best business decision. The other day, I read an update posted by my…

• 

  Brass Tack Thinking

• 9 Ways To Be An Expert Without Being An Ass

  Amber Naslund

  14 May 2012 | 6:15 pm

  I know many of you hate the term “expert”. It’s like the frustration-filled cry of the internet, second only to “down with Comic Sans”. But we all strive to excel at something, and be perceived as doing so. The trick is how you demonstrate expertise and accomplishment without being christened with titles like “douchebag”. If you’re good at what you do, there are ways to communicate and exemplify your good work without having to rely on a flashy few words and adjectives to convey it. And when you do it right, you won’t need to call yourself an expert, because…

• When To Go Ahead And Have Your Brain Picked

  Amber Naslund

  8 May 2012 | 1:56 pm

  Okay, professionals. We get it. No one really likes to work for free. And yes, it’s really important to set boundaries for yourself and for your business so that you don’t undervalue the work that you do, or undermine the qualifications you have as a professional. Anyone who has been in business for any length of time will tell you that you have to value your time and expertise and be willing to draw the line at giving away too much for free. Enter the “No you can’t pick my brain” theme across the internet. Undoubtedly you’ve read one of those posts or…

• Read This Book: The $100 Startup

  Amber Naslund

  3 May 2012 | 11:31 am

  As a matter of practice, I don’t do book reviews. There are a bunch of reasons for that, but I just don’t do them. And I’m totally breaking that “rule” because I think each and every one of you reading this can get something out of Chris Guillebeau’s new book, The $100 Startup. [Full disclosure: Chris sent me an early copy to read. He didn't ask for a review. He didn't send me a pony or even a cup of coffee. There was absolutely no quid pro quo, it was just here's my new book, hope you like it. I know Chris from the online world, but we've never spent time…

• 

  NTEN

• Sharing Our Way toward Equality: Social Media and Gay Rights

  Brett

  15 May 2012 | 8:56 am

  By John Hoffman, Director of New Markets, ZeroDivide Since the moment that President Obama stated that he supports same-sex marriage, there’s been a flurry of social media activity, both pro and con, on the issue. It’s obvious by now that social media has played a huge role in shaping Americans’ attitudes toward LGBT issues. But I would go a step further. Despite the unavoidable struggles and setbacks that lay ahead, the inherent qualities of social media make the passage of same-sex marriage and equal rights for LGBT individuals and families inevitable. Here’s why: 1. Social media is…

• Google Drive: Does It Matter?

  Brett

  14 May 2012 | 12:48 pm

  TJ Rainsford Chief Technology Officer 501cTECH Google Drive is still brand new and not without limitations, but its capabilities are pretty hard to ignore. On April 24, Google announced the much anticipated Google Drive service, a cloud-based "disk drive" where individuals and organizations can store there documents, spreadsheets and a host of other electronic files. That may sound like a big deal but organizations and individuals with Google accounts could do that already using Google Docs. So does Google Drive really matter? In short, the answer is yes!

• Member Round Up: Change and Opportunities!

  Amanda

  11 May 2012 | 4:23 pm

  Flickr:MarkusramWe can feel it - the season is changing! How do we know? NTEN members are providing more educational opportunities, asking for more help on amazing projects, and announcing even more technology tools than ever before. With all the change going on, make sure you learn about all the ways NTEN members are making a difference in the world. Have more news to share? Drop us a line or include your links in the comments!Women rule! And Women Who Tech just created an awesome infographic that details exactly why women rule. For example, did you know that women represent 56% of the…

• Engaging Volunteers in Technical Roles

  Brett

  11 May 2012 | 1:54 pm

  Would you trust a volunteer to help maintain your organization's servers? Okay, probably not, but what about taking out an iPad to collect constituent data? Or setting up wi-fi hot spots after a disaster. Volunteers are the lifeblood of many a nonprofit, and there are many ways you can engage them in technical roles – but it requires a special skill set to manage them. We'll explore the pros and cons of a volunteer workforce supporting technology at our upcoming webinar, "Engaging Volunteers in Technical Roles". Learn more and register today >> In this webinar, you'll learn: How to…

• Developing a Cloud Migration Strategy, Part 2: Process, Costs & Things to Consider

  Brett

  10 May 2012 | 4:57 pm

  Matthew Eshleman Director of Professional Network Services Community IT Innovators The promise of the cloud is that you don't have to worry about servers anymore. The reality of the cloud is that you have a lot of other things to think about. We may have jumped the gun a little by discussing what systems to migrate in part 1 of this look at developing a cloud migration strategy, but now we're going to ask and answer the question of How to Migrate. Migrating to a cloud based application or service is different from installing some software or server in your office. It is imperative that…

• 

  PsyBlog

• How To Encourage People To Change Their Own Minds

  Jeremy Dean

  9 May 2012 | 10:08 am

  Self-persuasion: let people talk themselves around to your point of view. Changing people's minds is hard. We resist having our attitudes adjusted by others, especially when the message isn't directly relevant to us and we aren't paying that much attention. But what if you could get people to change their own minds? People will listen to themselves and will automatically generate arguments that have personal relevance for them. It's not as crazy as it sounds. Actually people are being encouraged to persuade themselves all the time. Here are a few examples: When a parent wants to change a…

• Five Effortless Postures that Foster Creative Thinking

  Jeremy Dean

  27 Apr 2012 | 4:28 am

  Literally sitting outside a box, rather than in it, makes you more creative, according to new psychological research. There are lots of metaphors floating around in creativity. We talk about 'thinking outside the box', 'putting two and two together' and 'seeing both sides of the problem'. But are these only metaphors or can we boost our creativity by taking them literally? We know our minds interact in all sorts of interesting ways with our bodies, so what if we enacted these metaphors physically? That's the question Leung et al. (2012) examine in a new study published in the journal…

• What “The Love Bridge” Tells Us About How Thoughts and Emotions Interact

  Jeremy Dean

  17 Apr 2012 | 12:11 pm

  How much control do you have over your emotions? Have you ever wondered why one person can speak in public without apparent nerves while another crumples under pressure? Or why one elite athlete can shake off their nerves to win Olympic gold while another chokes? Even with ample experience some people never seem to learn to cope with their emotions. A key insight comes from a controversial psychology study carried out on a rickety bridge by Dutton and Aron (1973). The love bridge Men crossing the bridge were approached by an attractive woman who asked them to fill out a survey. The men were…

• Do Posh People Cheat More Than the Lower Classes?

  Jeremy Dean

  3 Apr 2012 | 12:24 pm

  Who cheats more: the lower classes to escape poverty or the upper classes because they feel entitled? Imagine two people: one from the upper classes and one from the lower classes. Let's say our lower class individual works in a factory, lives in a small house in an average area and receives a relatively small salary. Our upper class individual, though, has inherited money, lives in a large house in a beautiful area and doesn't need to work for money. Now let's say both these individuals are driving along in their cars (one cheap, one expensive), when they approach a pedestrian crossing…

• Want to Improve Your Attention? Wear a White Coat

  Jeremy Dean

  30 Mar 2012 | 11:39 am

  The power of 'enclothed cognition': how what you wear affects how you think. It's surprising how much simple movements of the body can affect the way we think. Using expansive gestures with open limbs makes us feel more powerful, crossing your arms makes you more persistent and lying down can bring more insights (read more here: 10 Simple Postures That Boost Performance). So if moving the body can have these effects, what about the clothes we wear? We're all well aware of how dressing up in different ways can make us feel more attractive, sporty or professional, depending on the outfit, but…

• 

  Usability Counts

• Fast Company: Advertising People Are Not Normal

  Patrick Neeman

  15 May 2012 | 9:25 am

  From Fast Company. We knew it. ShareStuff to check out UX Drinking Game | UX Resume and Career Guide

• Onward Search: Research Yourself Into a New UX Job

  Patrick Neeman

  14 May 2012 | 3:10 pm

  One of the most important things about any job search is knowing the companies that you are applying to. Jessica Greco has crafted a great post about researching your way into a new UX Job. Some very good points: Research comparable jobs. If you’re the type to take on more responsibilities as they become necessary, you may be working at a higher level than your title indicates. Apply those research skills to publicly available job descriptions and salary surveys. How does your experience compare? You may be surprised to find out you’re being underpaid. Check out the data…

• The Last UX Resume Template and Career Guide You’ll Ever Need

  Patrick Neeman

  12 May 2012 | 8:29 pm

  The Usability Counts UX Resume and Career Guide Download Now Need that resume and career advice to get the UX job you love? I’m offering the Usability Counts UX Resume Template in Microsoft Word format. It includes comments and annotations to give you tips on how to write your resume. You also get a list of 30 other recommended articles for developing your User Experience career. It might not get you a job right away, but it should give you ideas on how to better structure your career history and accomplishments. You just have to fill out a 30-second form. I’ll be involved an…

• Dakotalapse: Amazing Timelapse Photography

  Patrick Neeman

  12 May 2012 | 1:02 pm

  Please upgrade your browser Nothing needs to be said. Click here to view all the videos. ShareStuff to check out UX Drinking Game | UX Resume and Career Guide

• What Are Your Organizational Challenges? Answer The Survey.

  Patrick Neeman

  8 May 2012 | 2:23 am

  I’ve got quite a few responses, but I want more. Click here to answer the survey. Here are some quotes from the survey: Very timely survey. Organizational challenges seem to loom over everything we do. I find myself designing things that never get built, or things that get built but never implemented, or being left out of the process entirely and seeing things implemented that have never been designed. … Our relatively new UX team is struggling to settle into a comfortable rhythm of working. And it’s been a challenge to not only sell UX to other departments, but also to…

• 

  Blonde 2.0's Blog

• Get Ready for the First Ever LeWeb London! 50% Discount For Blonde 2.0 Peeps!

  Ayelet Noff

  14 May 2012 | 10:57 am

  I go to tech conferences all over the world. One conference that I never miss is LeWeb Paris. Why? Because this conference has all that one could ask for – amazing lineup of speakers and panels, great networking crowd, the coolest parties, incredible food and the most wonderful ambiance. This year Geraldine and Loic have really outdone themselves and have added LeWeb London to the mix as well. I am excited for the first ever LeWeb London and am certain that the Le Meurs will bring all the best elements of the Parisian conference to the UK while in addition giving it extra British spice.

• Why I Can’t Unplug

  Mark Lerner

  9 May 2012 | 10:45 am

  I remember my first computer, 75 Megahertz processor and 250 megabyte hard drive; I now have a disk on key that has 30 times that amount of space. I remember that horrible sound of AOL trying to connect to the internet through a 24.4 k modem. We thought we were so technologically advanced back then; I don’t think anyone could have imagined what it would be like in a few years. Today, we have iPhones, iPads, iPods, Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and god knows what other new chachki that will come out in the near future. The point is, you can never be anywhere and not be reachable. I was having…

• It’s as if Google doesn’t have product managers.

  Shahar Goldfinger

  1 May 2012 | 11:06 am

  Get it together Google. Get it together Samsung, HTC, Sony, LG and everyone else! I am sick and tired of phones that don’t work. How hard can it be? Simply said, I’m a loyal Android user and fanboy of the OS for about two years now. I stood by the OS through thick and thin for one reason specifically – I believe in openness. I like the fact you can put Android on whichever device you like. I like that if you’re an app creator your apps do not need to be approved. I like how everyone can be a part of it. But seriously though, philosophy and belief can only take you so far. How…

• New Journalism is Decadent and not Deprived

  Brian Blondy

  24 Apr 2012 | 11:23 am

  Tom Wolfe, the esteemed writer of the groundbreaking and seminal work of non-fiction of the 1970’s, The Electric Kool Aid Acid Test, decided in 1973 to put together a book, or better said, an anthology, which curated the changing face of non-fiction journalism. He aptly titled the book, The New Journalism, in order to define what he saw as the best, new journalism that was being printed at the time. Wolfe self-described this endeavor as aiming to gather the most “absorbing and gripping” long-form writing into one volume so as to identify (for university students in particular) new…

• Is the Bubble About to Burst Again?

  Kevin Swaine

  17 Apr 2012 | 10:20 am

  Just over a year ago Microsoft shelled out a whopping $8.5 billion dollars to buy Skype. Then last week Facebook broke the bank to spend $1 billion on purchasing Instagram. Add to that the sale of Tweetdeck to Twitter for $30 million and Zynga spending $180 million on OMGPOP . These stories have dominated the news over the last few weeks. Opinions, for both sides, have been published, counter-opinions have been posted and amongst all the media frenzy, one thing seems to have gone unnoticed – in the last year alone over $10 billion has been spent on social media platforms and applications.

• 

  funduBytes

• Flipbooks are back

  Rupesh

  27 Apr 2012 | 5:31 am

  Two advertising campaigns that caught my attention in recent times, both using flipbook mechanics to convey the message are as follows:- 1. Twitter Commercial for Smart Argentina by BBDO Argentina that uses the keyboard commands J, K keys to go to next or previous tweet respectively on a twitter profile. The communication message is smart car that finds it's place even in a limited character tweet. 2. Volkswagen Amarok FlipDrive on facebook uses the keyboard command right arrow key to navigate to the next photo in the album which gives the vehicle a in-motion feel. The communication…

• Cannes Cyber Lions 2011 - Entries from India

  Rupesh

  21 Jun 2011 | 1:05 am

  Here is a list of entries for Cannes Cyber Lions 2011 from Indian Ad agencies. So, which one is your bet? Update (22/6/2011): There are no shortlists from India in the cyber category. http://www.canneslions.com/work/cyber/?award=99Now SMS JOIN FUNDUBYTES to 567673434 to subscribe for mobile updates.

• The Easiest Trick to Record your Computer Screen

  Rupesh

  23 May 2011 | 1:33 am

  ScreenR is a web-based screen recorder that enables you to capture your computer screen as video without any install or download. Steps involved are- 1. Go to screenr.com 2. Launch the screen recorder to capture the computer screen (upto 5 min). 3. Login to publish the video online which is available for download. But, the above process includes uploading of the processed video and downloading the same to your local computer. Can we have a way to save time and bandwidth by skipping step #3 and still acheiving the screencast? Yes, you can! Once you have done with the recording, login to…

• Obama Ousted Osama as Mayor of Abbottabad; Osama Tweets from the Hell

  Rupesh

  2 May 2011 | 1:58 am

  Yes, you might be reading the news everywhere about Osama being dead but here's a twist to it in foursquare language. (courtesy: Digital Inspiration) And in reply to the above, Osama is tweeting from the hell Let the social circus begin! Now SMS JOIN FUNDUBYTES to 567673434 to subscribe for mobile updates.

• I AM - Crowd Sourced Film In India

  Rupesh

  12 Jul 2010 | 2:56 am

  Lots of people bark social media, only few are actually doing it. Onirban Dhar, an independent director and producer of movies 'My Brother Nikhil', 'Bas Ek Pal' and 'Sorry Bhai' has set an e.g. by crowd-sourcing his next project 'I am'. 'I am' is a collection of 4 short films based on social issues like child abuse, homosexuality, single motherhood and Kashmiri pundits. It all started when the script was ready and they were struggling for funds. Onir then updated his facebook status appealing like-minded people who believe a movie on these issues should be made urging them for monetary…

• 

  Media Culpa

• How to find your profile page on Cinemagram

  kullin

  2 May 2012 | 12:44 pm

  Cinemagr.am is a fun app for creating animated images (GIFs) where only a portion of the frame is animated and the rest is in form of a still shot. The app still doesn’t have a very good web presence, so how do you find your images if you want to embedd them to your blog? Of course you can search for them on Google, but there’s a better way. Go to the app on your smart phone and select the image you want to locate. Press on the share icon on one the image (the icon with three dots in a row). Choose “tweet” to share it on Twitter. You don’t actually have to tweet it, but now…

• BBC stops Pinterest spammers

  kullin

  25 Apr 2012 | 2:54 am

  I blogged last week about how spammers on Pinterest used a URL on BBC’s site intended for external redirects. By adding the web address of the spam site to the BBC redirect link, it looked like an image on Pinterest had been pinned from BBC.co.uk, when in reality the link took you to the spammer’s site. After I blogged about it, the BBC have now closed that opportunity for spammers. The link can no longer be misused. The issue with spammers that use URL shorteners on Pinterest still remain though. Related Posts:Pinterest spammers use bbc.co.uk redirect to fool usersFake IKEA gift…

• Pinterest spammers use bbc.co.uk redirect to fool users

  kullin

  16 Apr 2012 | 8:36 am

  There is a growing amount of spam on Pinterest and I blogged today on my Swedish blog about how it is easy to replace a link on a pinned image to send unsuspecting users to a spam site. Just replace the image link with a link using a URL shortener and no-one can tell before they clicked the image that they aren’t going to end up on the site where the image was originally published. In my blog post you can see the screen shots from an image of Strandvägen in Stockholm, which if you click on it, sends you to a site selling weight loss pills. Here’s how it works. Pin an image to…

• Norwegian paper offers online version without info from mass murder trial

  kullin

  16 Apr 2012 | 5:19 am

  The trial against the Norwegian mass murderer Anders Behring Breivik started today and the media coverage, especially in Norway, is massive. The online news sites are filled with interviews, articles, photos and video coverage. The events that took place on July 22 this year in Oslo and Utøya were nothing short of horrific. For many people in Norway, there may of course be a number of reasons why you would not want to read the detailed reports from the trial, including photos and videos of the murderer. Dagbladet.no solved that issue by offering a “trial free” button, i. e.

• Cinemagram – an Instagram for animated images

  kullin

  15 Apr 2012 | 6:50 am

  Popular photo app Instagram does many things really well, but one thing it does not handle is the ability to upload and share videos. Enter Cinemagram, a social networking app for sharing short videos that are actually made into animated GIFs. It includes Instagram-like features such as the ability to add filters to your videos, but the twist with Cinemagram is that each video can be edited so that only a portion of the frame is animated and the rest is in form of a still shot. The effects can be hilarious. The app is fairly new and was initially $1.99 in Appstore, but it is currently free.

• 

  Regular Geek

• HTML5’s Value For Mobile Event Apps

  Rob Diana

  11 May 2012 | 7:56 am

  This is a guest post from Krister Ungerboeck, the CEO of Ungerboeck Software International. The most successful event planners have started using mobile technology to more quickly connect with customers and meet their needs. New mobile applications can drive business to their websites and help them provide better service. Yet, current mobile technology has several deficiencies that make it not only expensive to implement, but it also limits the types of devices that can access a particular app. HTML5 coding aims to change all of that. By developing websites and applications using HTML5,…

• A Q&A With Opa Creator Henri Binsztok

  Rob Diana

  30 Apr 2012 | 11:30 am

  I recently attended the PhillyETE conference and there were a number of interesting talks. In particualar, I was a big fan of the talk from Alex Payne regarding Emerging Programming Languages. One of the languages that I found interesting, Opa, seemed more than just a language, and conveniently someone emailed me about it. That someone is Henri Binsztok, the CEO of mlstate.com and creator of Opa. Given that Opa is probably unknown to many readers, I figured I would get some basic questions answered by Henri. Henri described Opa in one line, “It puts together the actors of Erlang,…

• Tips For Developing Multilingual Software Applications

  Rob Diana

  25 Apr 2012 | 7:31 am

  This is a guest post from Christian Arno, the founder of Lingo24. Why is software localization important? The very nature of software applications means they can usually be accessed, bought and downloaded regardless of geographic location. The World Wide Web provides potential access to a truly global market but a monolingual application is one with limited appeal. To a certain extent, English remains the lingua franca of the business and online world but the fact remains that the majority of the global population speaks no English at all. Of those that do, many speak it as a second language…

• Mobile Development Job Trends – February 2012

  Rob Diana

  29 Feb 2012 | 7:34 am

  Now we get to the last installment of the job trends posts, mobile development job trends. Given that mobile development is the hottest thing right now, the trends are important, and at some points difficult to read. The terms included in this list were iPhone, Android, WP7 or “Windows Phone“, BlackBerry, Symbian, WebOS and PhoneGap. There is some noise in the data, but not enough to significantly affect the trends. First, let’s look at the basic job trends from Indeed: In the past 9 months or so, it looks like Android demand has overtaken iPhone demand. I found this…

• NoSQL Job Trends – February 2012

  Rob Diana

  23 Feb 2012 | 7:46 am

  Continuing the February job trends here is another installment. Today, we are looking at NoSQL job trends. I am continuing to focus the list of NoSQL offerings on the same 9 tools. So, the list includes Cassandra, Redis, Voldemort, SimpleDB, CouchDB, MongoDB, HBase, Hypertable and Riak. As was stated previously, Hadoop continues to be the clear leader in demand and tends to flattens the trends of other solutions. I am watching the trend to see if the other tools are close enough to make the graphs useful, but at this point, Hadoop is not included. First, we look at the trends from Indeed:…

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  Metrica

• Humans are driving the social media machine

  Amy Samson

  15 May 2012 | 4:06 am

  The more I look at social media, the more I believe that it is a reflection, albeit a little distorted at times, of our own humanity. It shows what inspires and motivates as well as what outrages us – and as we use it more and more to express our emotions, we see the impacts of this expression in the real world. As I was reading through the April Gorkana Charity Barometer, it really hit me how much of this month’s social media coverage was driven by the outpouring of human emotion in response to events both big and small. The death of Claire Squires was a prime example of how a small…

• The PR and Social Media Cheat Sheet #036

  Adam Layton

  11 May 2012 | 5:44 am

  If you work in PR and are interested in the latest thinking on media monitoring, PR planning, media analysis and social media measurement, these are the must read stories from the last week. This week’s top PR and social media picks:  Firstly, RIP Adam Yauch of the Beastie Boys. Darling of all twenty to thirtysomething, arrested development, media manboys. Like me. …and much in the same vein, Goldie Lookin Chain rapper Rhys Hutchings was voted in as Labour councillor in Newport. Can social media make journalism better? Top tweeters revealed their favourite follows to The Guardian.

• Automotive Brands Move Up a Gear in Creative Pinterest Engagement

  Anna Dorywalska

  10 May 2012 | 3:49 am

  Social media’s latest darling, Pinterest, has been generating increasing levels of buzz recently and chances are you have heard about this fast growing network already. Now that consumers are familiar with the concept, the marketing industry is asking: How can we use it (and make money from it)? There are people who think Pinterest hype is going to die down. There are also those who are excited about the possibilities the portal brings. I’m in the latter group.  Even if Pinterest is not for everyone (hey, Twitter is not for everyone either), it offers a wide range of opportunities to…

• Eco-Fashion to the fore in April’s Retail Barometer #GorkanaBarometer

  Paul Kennedy

  9 May 2012 | 7:05 am

  Eco-fashion was a key topic in the retail barometer this month with three High St giants doing their bit for charity in the community. TK Maxx launched ‘Give up clothes for good’ – a major clothes collection drive at their stores, as did M&S with their East London launch for ‘Schwopping’ and H&M with ‘Conscious Collection’. H&M’s CEO Karl Johan Persson was frequently quoted and the new range was well received on Twitter: “Sustainable fashion hits the high street. H&M goes green with their new #hmconscious collection. Love this…#summer“ and…

• The PR and Social Media Cheat Sheet #035

  Adam Layton

  4 May 2012 | 4:08 am

  If you work in PR and are interested in the latest thinking on media monitoring, PR planning, media analysis and social media measurement, these are the must read stories from the last week. This week’s top PR and social media picks: A British court ruled that UK ISPs must block torrent sharing site The Pirate Bay. Why Google and Facebook might completely disappear in the next five years. Facebook announced that users can now share their organ donor status. How a social network can help families cope with autism. Still measuring your influence on Klout? Are you some sort of asshat?

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  Mizz Information

• Why I Doubt Associations Will Become Filters for Digital Overload

  Maggie

  9 May 2012 | 7:00 am

  I admit, I was surprised but happy to see the headline "Will Associations Become Filters for Digital Overload?" in the Huffington Post. Happy because I'm always glad to read things pertaining to associations outside the association bubble--or maybe I just don't read the Huffington Post regularly and they always post about associations. Regardless, if you read this blog you probably know what my first thought was when I read the headline: of course I do not think associations will become filters for digital overload! Why not? Here are but a handful of the reasons: Associations care about their…

• Facebook Fails are Mounting

  Maggie

  8 May 2012 | 8:27 am

  Despite the media frenzy over Facebook's impending IPO, all isn't 100% rosy for Facebook. Two things I've recently read  highlight what I consider to be pretty big fails on Facebook's part, and, were I considering investing in Facebook (which I never in a million years would do), would give me pause: Social Readers are collapsing. Wow, "frictionless sharing" is annoying people and backfiring? Who could have called that one? To me, the bigger story here is that people do not have infinite patience for just accepting whatever Facebook throws at them. Facebook is notorious for…

• 31% of Associations Have Online Communities. Where are the Association Community Managers?

  Maggie

  30 Apr 2012 | 9:08 am

  I just read a post about an upcoming membership marketing benchmarking report, specifically detailing the part of the report that addresses social media use by associations. The report surveyed 700 associations and, according to the summary of the upcoming  report, among associations with over 20,000 members, 31% reported having a private social network. Hm, I thought--that's a lot of private social networks....yet, as far as I know, there are still very, very few community managers in the association world. I've blogged about this before--this is an aspect of associations that I simply…

• Why Facebook Timeline Will Continue to be Bad For Brands

  Maggie

  24 Apr 2012 | 11:19 am

  What--Facebook Timeline hasn't performed as well for brands as Facebook led them to believe it would? Say it isn't so! I am not at all surprised--here's why: Timeline is a UI nightmare. Where the hell are you supposed to look? With so much emphasis on images, pages take forever to load. There are two columns--except when there aren't when an image spans both columns. And don't even get me started on the way the admin panel takes up an entire screen. My eyes don't even know where to look when a page finally loads; apparently I'm not the only one who is confused.Timeline totally discourages…

• What Does a Washington Post Blogger Resigning Say About the State of Digital Publishing?

  Maggie

  23 Apr 2012 | 6:55 am

  While reading Sunday's Washington Post, I came across the headline "The Post fails a young blogger." This should be interesting, I thought, and read it. It was not only interesting but scarily familiar to me. The article describes how the Post blogger responsible for blogPost just resigned because of the no-win nature of her job. Her job entailed writing an average of 5.9 blog posts per day approximating 500 words each with a goal of attaining 1-2 million "hits" a month (don't get me started on the term "hits"). She was a one-person operation, presumably making far less than "seasoned"…

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  THE BLOGGER'S BULLETIN

• How to Become a Person Who Takes Action

  Deb Lamb

  8 May 2012 | 2:11 pm

  Are you someone who spends more time thinking than doing? You’re not the only one. There are a lot of people who are more thought-oriented than action-oriented. This is not a personality trait that is set in stone. With some work, you can become a person who takes action instead of one who sits on the sidelines. When you find the methods that work best for you, stick with them. You might dwell in chaos and disorganization while more action-oriented people have it together and maintain their organization for anything-work, school, life, kids. Action people typically have more energy at the…

• How to Stay Positive When You’re Surrounded by Negativity

  Deb Lamb

  11 Apr 2012 | 2:28 pm

  If someone were to ask you, you would probably say that you were a pretty happy person. You try to keep a positive frame of mind and stay upbeat. It can be difficult, though, to maintain a positive mindset when you find yourself surrounded by negativity. Here are a few ways you can help keep your positive attitude whenever you look around and find that everyone else is being negative. It’s nothing personal. People can often get into the bad habit of talking negatively. It can be aimed directly at you or simply be about a myriad of other things that are going on in that person’s life.

• Submitting Your Articles Successfully

  Deb Lamb

  11 Apr 2012 | 9:20 am

  After you have written a few articles that you are proud to attach your name to, it is time for you to start submitting them to a few different article directories. There are hundreds of different online article directories that you can choose from. These can be either paid sites or free. Find article directories that are highly ranked in order to build traffic and enhance your notoriety. Selecting a few well-respected directories will allow you to reach the widest possible audience. Here are just a few of the best article directories to consider when you get ready to submit your articles:…

• Structuring Your Articles for Article Marketing Campaigns

  Deb Lamb

  30 Mar 2012 | 6:04 pm

  As soon as you figure out exactly what it is that article directories expect from your content, it is much simpler for you to structure your articles to meet those expectations. You will be able to get into a routine and follow a pattern for your articles, which will make it faster and easier for you to complete for submission. For the most part, article directories have very similar requirements in their submission guidelines. Each will require you to use proper grammar and spelling. Your content has to be unique and informative. The article lengths must typically be at least 400 words…

• 10 Quick Tips for Life Rejuvenation

  Deb Lamb

  30 Mar 2012 | 5:18 pm

  You’re in a rut. We’ve all been there. The only way to get out of it is to shake things up! Add some of that zest and exhilaration to your life that you’ve heard other people talking about. It doesn’t have to be anything drastic. Just find a few ways to bring some simple changes to your life and you will be amazed at how great you feel! Even one small change to your typical routine can make a world of difference in your attitude and your outlook on life. Here are ten ways that you can spice up your life right now: 1. Plan a special “renew and restore” day! Find a date on your…

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  Weber Media Partners | Impressions Through Media

• Sex, Lies and Tweets. Arrogance or Ignorance?

  Catherine Weber

  15 May 2012 | 8:43 am

  Today’s Wall Street Journal was riddled with examples of “smart” people in high places making age-old mistakes.  And it’s the oldest stuff in the book. Yahoo’s CEO misstated his college degree on his online biography. This would have been no big deal until Mr. Thompson decided to lie about how it got there by blaming a search firm. That is when the cover up got him fired. Does this remind anyone of the Martha Stewart lie that put her in jail? Best Buy’s new CEO was caught having an affair with a subordinate and resigned, but the Founder and Chairman…

• Facebook Brand Pages: Making Brands Human

  Catherine Weber

  30 Mar 2012 | 4:10 pm

  Today, a big change came to Facebook brand pages, and will require your attention to fully harness the new opportunities for your page.  Brand pages are a highly visible part of your interaction with customers, and Facebook has made changes that will help you improve your ability to interact. Cover Photo First and foremost, you will need to bring your attention to the cover photo on your page, which will replace the current 5 thumbnails. This image is a great opportunity to draw in users from the moment they arrive. Timelines Like personal profile pages, brand pages will now have timelines.

• Financial Industry Is Slow To Get Social, Restrained by Regulation

  Catherine Weber

  21 Mar 2012 | 2:15 pm

  Series 1 on Social Media in Highly Regulated Industries Some in the financial industry think it simpler to abandon social media, but for most, they are stuck in a difficult juxtaposition as they are expected to grow their book of business, but then told they cannot use all the tools available to do so. My Edwards Jones money manager is forbidden to use Facebook for business, and the company won’t allow her to have access to the site from her office.  Merrill Lynch just recently began allowing their employees to use LinkedIn, but under strict guidelines. With social media in full swing…

• Pinterest: The Power of Images

  Catherine Weber

  27 Jan 2012 | 11:47 am

  Over the past few years, there have been a mind-boggling number of technology innovations. So many, that it has our heads spinning. As for social networks this past year, the launch of Google+ was big. But, by all reports, the next big thing is Pinterest. Pinterest has over 4 million registered users as of this week and is growing rapidly. 1.5 million of the predominately female audience visit Pinterest every day – spending 14 minutes on the site on average. Alexa.com reports “Pinterest.com is ranked #133 in the world according to the three-month Alexa traffic rankings… The…

• The SOPA Debate

  Catherine Weber

  13 Jan 2012 | 10:59 am

  On the surface, Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) and Protect IP (PIPA) sounds like a good idea – to punish those who pirate intellectual property. As an writer and artist, I am all too aware of the dangers of posting your work and then finding it elsewhere, without your permission. Imagine the cost implications for movie studios, record labels, and of course the individual who has few resources to go after the culprit. The idea behind this bill, according to those who have followed the debate, was sound. The result, however, has been described as a threat to free speech, web-related…

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  Social News Watch

• The 2,700 Year Old Art and Science of Encryption

  JD Rucker

  12 May 2012 | 4:05 am

  When most think of encryption, they think of computers using complex algorithms to hide data in ways that require a password or key. This is a very modern and simplistic view of a long and stories history behind encryption. Since the dawn of human communication we’ve had a need to be able to send messages without the risk of them being seen by the wrong people. Thus, encryption is as old as the written word in some cultures. This graphic depicts some of the amazing forms of encryption that have been scattered through our history. Without computers, one needs to have a very creative mind…

• Will StumbleUpon Slide Under FTC Advertising Disclosure Changes?

  JD Rucker

  5 May 2012 | 5:54 am

  One of the least expensive forms of pay-per-click advertising on the internet is StumbleUpon. With prices as low as 5 cents per click, they are able to drive more traffic for the buck than sites like Google or Facebook. What’s more, ads have a chance of picking up “natural” stumbles that are free. In some cases, a good campaign with strong content can get more natural clicks than paid ones. The challenge is with disclosure. On mobile apps, it declares when a stumbled piece of content is sponsored. On the browser toolbar version, it does not. As pages are served to users who…

• The Most Accurate Business Listings come from… Foursquare?

  JD Rucker

  29 Apr 2012 | 3:53 pm

  There will always be business listing errors online. People sometimes do not pay attention. Businesses move or shut down. Some businesses are asleep at the wheel and unscrupulous competitors sabotage their listings. It happens. It’s not surprising that around 20% of the listings on popular sites like CitySearch and Mapquest are inaccurate. What was surprising is that the most accurate data apparently comes from Foursquare. Foursquare co-founder Dennis Crowley speaks during the 2011 Web 2.0 Summit (Image credit: Getty Images via @daylife) The location-based social network that lets…

• Layering Social Media Channels to Pump Up Campaigns

  JD Rucker

  27 Apr 2012 | 2:06 am

  This is the easiest part to of a consolidated social media brand messaging campaign, but it’s also one that is not well understood and rarely implemented properly. The standard practice is to have a message, send it out on Twitter and Facebook, and move on to the next piece of news. It’s a futile effort. What’s better is to layer it. Depending on the timing of the posts and necessity of speed with the news itself, one should plan it out to hit the rest of the world over time and across as many channels as possible. The example in the link above has these assets with which to…

• The Value of Social Data

  JD Rucker

  23 Apr 2012 | 5:53 pm

  There are many ways to slice and dice the data that people and businesses collect from social media. It is not the black hole that many believe it to be and ROI-savvy people who are willing to dive deeper into the numbers can be rewarded with the data they want… and then some. This graphic depicts it all nicely. Click to enlarge. From: Holiday Ford Via: Automotive SEO

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  Danny Brown

• Your Value

  Danny

  15 May 2012 | 2:44 pm

  Electricity is free, but we pay energy companies to harness it. Water is free, but we pay for the privilege of filtering. Air is free, but we pay for the solution of conditioning it for summers in our homes. Natural gas is free, but we pay for the importance of safety in its use. Oil is free, but we pay for the welling and distribution. When we get down to it, all the things we could have for free we’re willing to pay for, because where needs are met, value is gained. If you meet the needs of your audience, why would the value you bring be free? Your Value originally appeared on Danny…

• Join @GaryVee and @AmberMac in Toronto July 26 for Social Mix 2012 #SoMix2012

  Danny

  14 May 2012 | 10:02 am

  If you’re in the Toronto, Ontario area on July 26, make sure you keep the day free for what promises to be one of the city’s leading social media and business events this year. Top business and marketing folks Gary Vaynerchuk and Amber Mac will be keynoting at the inaugural Social Mix, presented by Jugnoo (hey, that’s where I work!). They’ll be sharing their insights and expertise on what it takes to succeed both online and offline, and how to build your business for long-term success. Alongside Gary and Amber, we’ll also be bringing the highly respected Gini…

• Everything Is Dead

  Danny

  12 May 2012 | 8:29 pm

  The print industry is dead, yet we still use a version of ink for the ebooks that killed print. The news release is dead, yet we still count print publication mentions as a measure of success. Advertising is dead, yet we still spend almost $120 billion every three months. Blogging is dead, even though the platforms reporting this are built on blogs. PR is dead, despite it pervading every part of a business from customer service to branding to HR and more. Seems everything is dead, even though we continue to use all of these corpses today. Great to be alive, eh? Everything Is Dead originally…

• Social Media, Self-Proclamation and the Wanky Word

  Danny

  10 May 2012 | 9:45 pm

  We all want to be famous, whether we admit it or not. We all want the glory of recognition for our work; our media; our creations; our results. To say otherwise is to lie. Of course, the thing is, there are different levels of what we want and how we want it. Thankfully for those that want it, whether it’s deserved or not, social media allows us to live out our narcissistic fantasies and be as famous as we believe we should be. Fame, though, can come in many forms. There’s the type of fame that Mike talks about; but that’s where we seek fame but don’t really say as much. Then…

• 27 Highly Recommended WordPress PlugIns As Used on Here

  Danny

  9 May 2012 | 8:39 am

  One of the great things about self-hosted WordPress blogging is the amount of plugins available to help you make your blog just the way you want it. For anyone not on WordPress, plugins are additional solutions that you can install to your site’s admin area, and they then offer extra functionality to your blog and how your readers interact with it. These can range from social sharing options, design tools, subscription options, e-commerce solutions and much more. In my last post, I spoke about the process that went into the redesign here, and Ken Mueller (an awesome part of…

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  Twitterrati

• Frrole: What’s Happening on Twitter in Your City?

  Mark Evans

  6 May 2012 | 6:21 am

  Idea: Looking to see what’s happening on Twitter in your city? Frrole delivers a “social newspaper” of 20 cities. My take: An interesting and easy way to get a snapshot of the local TwitterSphere. Utility Grade: 6/10

• A Whois for Twitter Users

  Mark Evans

  27 Dec 2011 | 9:00 am

  One of Twitter’s shortcoming is how little information it provides about users, other than a short bio and a URL. So how do you quickly get more insight about particular users? The answer could be Twho is This, which offers up an extensive list of a person’s social/digital presence, along with their Twitter bio and a link to follow them. It’s not the prettiest service and it could benefit from offering more information but it’s better than what Twitter offers. An example below is Mathew Ingram (aka @mathewi). By doing a query on his username, it shows 14 different…

• $300 Million of Twitter, Please

  Mark Evans

  19 Dec 2011 | 2:40 pm

  Twitter may not have a vibrant business model but it sure has no problem attracting heavyweight investors. The latest person to step up in a major way is Prince Walid bin Talal of Saudi Arabia, who bought a $300 million stake from an early Twitter investor as part a strategy “to invest in promising, high-growth businesses with a global impact.” (More details on the New York Times) You figure with so much interest, Twitter could do an IPO. Of course, an IPO means you have to disclose your financials, which Twitter may not want to do given it’s probably spend a lot more money than its…

• Postpost Streamlines Twitter

  Mark Evans

  15 Dec 2011 | 11:00 pm

  A fact of life about Twitter is the more people you follow, the noisier your live stream becomes. As much as the live stream is a parade in which a new “float” comes along on a regular basis, there can be times when you want a way to have a more focused or narrow slice of what’s happening with our live stream. An interesting tool to take control of your live stream is Postpost, which drills down into it so that people can do searches for particular keywords. For example, if I was interested in tweets about “startups”, Postpost would generate the following results…

• So How is Twitter Making Money?

  Mark Evans

  14 Dec 2011 | 12:05 pm

  Curious about how Twitter makes money? Henry Blodget did an interview recently at the Insight conference with Adam Bain, Twitter’s chief revenue officer, which I suppose is the guy responsible for helping turn Twitter into a business big enough to support its sky-high valuation and growing workforce (800 and counting!)

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  WebGuild

• Facebook Co-Founder Saverin Gives Up U.S. Citizenship

  Daya Baran

  14 May 2012 | 12:27 pm

  Eduardo Saverin, the billionaire co- founder of Facebook (FB), renounced his U.S. citizenship before an initial public offering, a move that may reduce his tax bill. (Many wealthy Americans are also doing the same to avoid the high tax bill.) Facebook plans to raise as much as $11.8 billion through the IPO valuing the social network at as much as $96 billion. Saverin’s stake of about 4 percent would be worth about $3.84 billion. Saverin and his family came to the U.S., in 1992 because they were going to be kidnapped by Brazilian gangs because they had a successful business. They U.S. gave…

• IBM Patents A Way To Help People Lose Weight (IBM)

  Julie Bort

  14 May 2012 | 11:57 am

  IBM has been awarded a patent for a game that will pay rewards to people who eat right. IBM researcher Michael Paolini is the inventor of the game and says he lost 18 pounds by playing it, reports the New York Times. Paolini says the idea is to give people immediate rewards for doing the right thing. So, choose an apple instead of a slice of apple pie, and, ca-ching!, you could get 50 cents awarded to your account. The game was inspired by a hybrid car, the Honda Insight, that instantly tells drivers how their driving is affecting their gas mileage, Paolini told the Times. The inventor thinks…

• Apple Maps To Replace Google Maps. Major Revenue Hit For Google

  Daya Baran

  14 May 2012 | 1:25 am

  It is now widely know that Apple plans to replace Google maps on iPhones, iPads and iPods with the rollout of iOS6 at its WWDC in June. It is reported that Apple’s maps, which was developed, in-house, will feature 3-D maps. The maps are based on the acquisition of three mapping software companies between 2009 and 2011, Placebase, C3 Technologies, and Poly9. The stunning 3D image above is from C3, which, according to the company, uses “previously classified image processing technology… automated software and advanced algorithms… to rapidly assemble extremely precise 3D models,…

• Yahoo CEO Thompson Out For Lying On Resume

  Daya Baran

  13 May 2012 | 4:43 pm

  Yahoo CEO (YHOO), Scott Thompson is out. The official statement simply says, Scott Thompson has left the company. It doesn’t provide a reason. Thompson lied on this resume, about having an engineering degree. When it was exposed, he lied about lying about no lying about his bogus resume. Its odd that Thompson work as eBay for 10 years and even served as Paypal president with that bogus resume. Ironically, the Yahoo board did not fire Thompson, they let him resign. That means Thompson will probably walk away with a considerable amount of money, hence richly rewarding Thompson for lying.

• Meet Ross Levinsohn, Yahoo’s Sixth CEO In Five Years

  Business Insider

  13 May 2012 | 12:38 pm

  Now Ross Levinsohn is expected to be named Yahoo’s (YHOO) CEO on an interim basis, with the departure of Scott Thompson. He’ll be the company’s sixth CEO in five years. So who’s Levinsohn? He’s best known for his time running Fox Interactive Media, the News Corp. division which formerly owned MySpace and a host of other online properties. Under his watch, Fox bought Myspace for $580 million—then inked a $900 million search deal with Google. Shortly afterwards, he left News Corp. to become a venture capitalist at Fuse Capital. So he’s got a good sense of…

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  Connect - Digital Marketing Expertise from iCrossing

• Trust Flow & Citation Flow, MajesticSEO’s New Link Metrics

  Tibor Palocsay

  15 May 2012 | 8:55 am

  The basis of how good a website’s SEO value is is judged on many aspects, but most consider the most important factor to be the SEO ‘equity’ passed to the site from external linking sources. These ‘backlinks’ are monitored to try and gain an understanding of the value that they are passing to the site. There are many tools that allow you to measure these values, one of which is Majestic SEO. Yesterday Majestic SEO announced two new link metrics, Citation Flow and Trust Flow, for measuring the perceived quality of a domain, subdomain or page. Google.co.uk Over the last couple of…

• Luxury, Automotive & Electronics Brands Rank Top In Google+ Engagement

  Modestos Siotos

  11 May 2012 | 6:26 am

  A recent report published by social media analytics experts Simply Measured unveiled that automotive, electronics and luxury are the top 3 industries on Google+ user engagement within the Interbrand Top 100 brands. According to Simply Measured CEO Adam Schoenfeld  ”luxury and automotive brands are clearly finding Google+ to be an effective way to connect with consumers”. Brands like Ferrari, GUCCI and Burberry appear to be in the top of the Interbrand Top 100 list in the number Google+ circlers (followers). Some other useful points include: 64% of the Interbrand Top 100 brands now…

• No such thing as a random satsuma

  Danny Chadburn

  30 Apr 2012 | 3:45 am

  The brightonSEO conference earlier this month came and went with a flurry of insight and opinion, and a hadouken. Those returning after a classic sun-drenched Brighton lunch hour were treated to a presentation from iCrossing’s very own Charlie Peverett. He told a tale of innocence, how he spent his days as an editor blissfully oblivious to the intricacies of SEO. However, when the curtain was pulled back he peered into a murky world that revealed the true reason why nobody was reading his content The presentation is now available to view in all its glory, where you’ll discover…

• Formula 1: Race Result — Shanghai / China — Sakhir / Bahrain

  marc.belle

  27 Apr 2012 | 8:11 am

  After 2 somewhat unpredicatble and very compelling races here are the results for the last 2. Apologies for the slight delay on these it has been a manic couple of weeks for Creative HQ! We particularly like the look of Shanghai! Bahrain- Post from: Connect Formula 1: Race Result — Shanghai / China — Sakhir / Bahrain

• The Blog Tree: UK Edition [Infographic]

  tamasin.handley

  24 Apr 2012 | 10:18 am

  Today Eloqua published The Blog Tree: UK Edition, their latest infographic centering on bloggers in the UK. It shows the most influential marketing-related blogs in the UK, and we’re thrilled that Connect has been included! The Blog Tree: UK Edition comprises of 67 blogs across seven categories (marketing, PR, social media, design, search engine optimization, start-ups and technology). The root system symbolises the news sources that feed the tree with source material. The higher a leaf is placed on the tree, the more influential the corresponding blog with leaf colour representing…

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  Herd - the hidden truth about who we are

• Decision making landscape - towards a better map

  Mark Earls

  4 May 2012 | 7:21 am

    In a recent post about what BE is missing, I referred to this Crawford chart that I feel captures the individualist model clearly: it places individuals - like a Ptolemaic Earth - at the heart of things. The alternative is not a Copernican one - shifting the focus from one planet/individual to another while retaining the structure of concentric circles around the focal point. No, a better conceptual map would be more like this: a repeated pattern of Crawford's individual circles or a series of interacting individual balls: And most importantly of all, a dynamic pattern - one that…

• "All that matters in the end...

  Mark Earls

  26 Apr 2012 | 6:27 am

  ...is other people". That's what the priest said at my mother's funeral, two years ago this week. Today I'm off to another funeral (second one this week). Our dear friend John Cronk died on 12th April in the Royal Marsden. Although he'd been ill for a while, it still seems like a ghastly adminstrative mistake. A real friend, through thick and thin. A genuine 'mensch' who made our lives better just by being part of them. I'll post the professional appreciation I've done for him at a later date.= but today, just do this for me: whatever else you're…

• Blinded by the technolight

  Mark Earls

  23 Apr 2012 | 7:34 am

  As if by magic: Tom's cartoon explores the underlying technophilia which dogs marekting and policy-making too much. Brain porn or Digital Everything - it's all technophilia, I'm afraid

• Neuroscientism and neuroporn (updated)

  Mark Earls

  23 Apr 2012 | 6:15 am

  Am feeling for Jonah Lehrer this weekend, following Steven Poole's review of his latest book, Imagine - How Creativity Work in the Guardian. I've met Jonah a couple of times and read his work frequently and - as is often the case - feel for the real person I've construed in my head. Unflattering reviews are never pleasant to receive (I've had a few in my time and much as I'd like to pretend they don't hurt, they genuinely do) but at the heart of this one is a critique that I have a lot of sympathy with, if it's true - namely Imagine's overwhelming…

• Habit and the HERD (I)

  Mark Earls

  20 Apr 2012 | 7:06 am

  Am ploughing my way through Charles Duhigg's new book on Habits at the moment and - the basic point about habits and our tendency default to low-level cognitive activity aside - am finding it all rather disappointingly and over familiar territory.  Not just in terms of the overkill of neuro-cartography ("we know that this is important because there's something going on in the brain here...") but in terms of the ideas of habits being shaped by rewards and repetition (in what way is this not classical conditioning?). Add to that the lionising of dead Mad Men and their…

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  C R U C E S

• Facebook Mobile stats from Socialbakers (infographic)

  Michael Myers

  13 May 2012 | 9:58 am

• Amazing TNT ad (video)

  Michael Myers

  10 May 2012 | 6:44 am

  An awesome “ad” from TNT via @chancyk. Enjoy!

• The thing that will kill Facebook

  Michael Myers

  8 May 2012 | 6:38 am

  It’s hard to imagine a world without Facebook and yet, if this infographic is to be believed, online empires only “own” the mindshare of the market for around 11 years. This means Facebook has only three years left!!! I guess Zuck will have the cry himself to sleep with his measly billion$. Infographic aside, the ...

• The issue with personalized advertising

  Michael Myers

  6 May 2012 | 6:25 pm

  We’ve all been sucked in by the hype around contextual advertising and many of us see these ads daily due to today’s tracking technologies. These technologies the tremendous amount of time spent online by consumers, understandably makes marketers giddy about the potential of personalized ads. The issue, that I see is around a person’s frame of mind. ...

• Pinterest for Marketers (video infographic)

  Michael Myers

  1 May 2012 | 6:17 am

  These stats on Pinterest have been featured in numerous infographics and now you don’t have to read! You can just sit back and watch . . .Enjoy!

• 

  Ben Werdmuller von Elgg

• The Edinburgh Festivals API: a case study in innovation

  Ben Werdmuller

  14 May 2012 | 5:11 am

  I was the inaugural Geek in Residence at the Edinburgh Festivals Innovation Lab, working with Rohan Gunatillake and the Edinburgh Festivals on open data and digital accessibility. Here’s a video from Rudman Consulting for AmbiTIon Scotland about the Festivals API portion of the project: Related entries Open data in the arts (0) Edinburgh Festivals Lab Geek in Residence (1) The Open Stack and truly open APIs (0)

• Ani DiFranco’s crowdsourced video for “Which Side Are You On?”

  Ben Werdmuller

  9 May 2012 | 10:54 am

  It’s nice to see my favorite musician embrace social media a little more: Here she is on Twitter and Facebook. I came to the project late, and I’m not sure how the photos were contributed; there’s a site at whichside.net, but it’s not hugely inspiring. Nonetheless, the song is, and it’s a great start. Related entries Hannah’s album, and why Bandcamp is awesome (0) Music! (2) Ben’s Big Gig (1)

• The river and the tide

  Ben Werdmuller

  8 May 2012 | 10:48 am

  Most data on the web comes as a river. Blog posts, photos, Facebook updates, tweets, news stories, videos, cloud files – all lists with the newest at the top. It’s the design pattern of the Internet. Within this design pattern, there are four main places where innovation can occur: How you consume the river. How you filter the river. Where the river lives. How and what you post to the river. Right now, all the value lies in the first three. Social news apps suddenly declined when Facebook changed how its river works; Technology Review recently moved its content into an RSS feed…

• CISPA: Act now

  Ben Werdmuller

  26 Apr 2012 | 10:47 pm

  The Cyber Intelligence Sharing and Protection Act just passed in the House, during a vote that was moved up a day and staged during the NFL draft. It vastly expands the already onerous act into one that allows significant domestic surveillance. As TechDirt notes: Basically this means CISPA can no longer be called a cybersecurity bill at all. The government would be able to search information it collects under CISPA for the purposes of investigating American citizens with complete immunity from all privacy protections as long as they can claim someone committed a “cybersecurity…

• Activity streams: not just for the cloud

  Ben Werdmuller

  25 Apr 2012 | 1:29 am

  At the end of last year, I was asked to contribute my wishlist for Linux on the desktop for an issue of Linux Format magazine. Here’s what I submitted: I want an activity stream for my activity on my local computer, and across my network. When, for example, I make a change to a document, I want my PC to record it on my activity stream as “Ben Werdmuller edited ‘Linux Format wishlist’ in LibreOffice Writer.” By default, those changes are private to me only, but I can set access permissions per file, application, location on disk and type of update (“status…

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  Suzemuse - Create. Share. Learn. Be Brilliant. Personal Blog of Susan Murphy.

• The Secret to Understanding Social Media

  Susan Murphy

  27 Apr 2012 | 6:08 am

  If you’ve been following this blog for any length of time, you’ll be aware of the tremendous impact social media has had on my life and career in the past 6 years or so. It’s brought about incredible opportunities for my business, allowed me to meet and become close friends with many wonderful people, and it’s changed the course of my teaching career. So many people are clamoring to figure this space out right now. What does it really mean, this fundamental shift in the way we communicate? Why should we care? How do we do it? Where do we start? These are all questions…

• Zen and the Art of Getting Over Yourself

  Susan Murphy

  23 Apr 2012 | 6:42 am

  Yesterday I did something totally out of my comfort zone. I went to a recording studio and laid down a few tracks. The studio, in case you’re curious, is in my friend Dennis’ basement. He’s got quite the set up. Dennis asked me to come by after he heard this recording that I did using my iPad and Soundcloud. That was my first step out of my comfort zone a few weeks ago. I have been learning how to sing and play guitar at the same time for about 25 years (yeah, I know), and I figured that I’d gotten this song to the point that I’d just record it. I had no…

• Are We Information Junkies?

  Susan Murphy

  6 Apr 2012 | 7:44 am

  Last night while sitting at a pub with some friends, the topic of information came up. My friend Tom, in particular, had a few interesting things to say about it. I asked him if he thought that constantly being tapped into the stream of information that the online world affords us was bad thing. Is our constant connection to blog posts, news articles, video, podcasts, Twitter, and Facebook more detrimental than positive? Are we a culture of information junkies? His response, essentially was “no”. He basically said that in fact (and I’m paraphrasing) we have always been able…

• The Myth of Distraction in the Classroom

  Susan Murphy

  23 Mar 2012 | 8:28 am

  Back when I was in school, I remember the teacher telling us to take out a note book and a pen, and face forward and pay attention. There we were, twitchy teenagers, forced to have laser-like focus on every word the teacher said (or read). There was time for questions at the end. Inevitably, my mind would wander. I’d be thinking about everything but what the teacher was droning on about. I’d doodle instead of paying attention. I’d pass secret notes to my friends. I’d glance frequently at the clock, impatiently waiting for the bell to ring. When it did…freedom!

• Content Aggregation: Making Information Useful Again

  Susan Murphy

  9 Mar 2012 | 7:44 am

  Every day, I am reminded of what an amazing thing the Web is. We have access to the whole world in the palm of our hands, and connect to people on the other side of the planet in an instant. How fortunate we are to be alive at this transformational time in our history. Information makes the world go ’round these days. That fact alone is at once both awe-inspring and completely overwhelming. Our access to information is changing the way we perceive the world, and it’s happening at lightning speed. The volume and pace of information flow can be difficult to manage on a good day, and…

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  Social Networking for Newbies

• Is the LinkedIn premium service worth it?

  admin

  25 Apr 2012 | 12:33 am

  Let me start by offering an analogy. Premium vs. regular gasoline (petrol.) Fact is that some vehicles really benefit from the Premium grade gasoline. However for many others, it is a waste of money. So as far as the premium LinkedIn service, it all depends on what you are trying to accomplish. The premium version offers more options than the free version but the fact of the matter is that most people fail to fully utilize the free version and therefore waste their money on the premium. In my opinion the premium version works when you need to have specific searches that only the premium…

• Should we connect with strangers on LinkedIn?

  admin

  20 Apr 2012 | 10:01 am

  I recently wrote this article on the topic. I’m curious if you would vote differently after reading it. Please vote and comment.

• How to change your LinkedIn Group’s name

  admin

  18 Apr 2012 | 4:46 pm

  Please watch the video below if you need to change your Group’s name. One caveat: you are limited to making five changes in the group description. So plan accordingly.

• Which of these three things are you doing with your LinkedIn recommendation?

  admin

  11 Apr 2012 | 10:15 pm

  Receiving a LinkedIn recommendation is exciting! However unless you take some steps, it will remain hidden from the world. This video shows you the three things you can do with a LinkedIn recommendation- including how to make it visible for the rest of the world to see.

• Who has viewed my LinkedIn profile?

  admin

  9 Apr 2012 | 9:03 pm

  One of my clients recently sent me the following question: Is a person notified each time I view their profile?  I often look to see who has viewed mine and wonder  each time I view a profile if it’s relayed to that person. The info is not relayed to the person but they can see in their home page. The free version allows you to see the last five people who viewed your profile. The paid version allows you to see most of the folks who have seen your profile. The only ones you can’t see are those that are surfing LinkedIn anonymously. An effective LinkedIn profile will encourage…

• 

  GROWMAP.COM

• Facebook iPhone App UI Change: Videos and Pictures on Social Media – Future of Engagement

  Steve

  15 May 2012 | 2:17 am

  People use their eyesight to do almost anything. This ranges from analyzing their environment to analyzing the text in a book. We even used our eyesight as our primary means of finding and catching prey back when we lived in the wild. Facebook took advantage of humans being visual animals and faster mobile download speeds and decided to make pictures and videos bigger in their mobile app. Murray Newlands examines this change and how people reacted to it on social media in this week’s Future of Engagement: Alerti social media monitoring chart about negative and positive conversations…

• 4 US Fundraising Conferences to Visit in 2012

  asmarty

  14 May 2012 | 2:16 pm

  This is a guest post by SEO, professional blogger and guest blogger Ann Smarty.  Ann (@seosmarty) owns MyBlogGuest.com and I just signed up for her new link monitoring tool. With so many worthwhile causes vying for the limited dollars that businesses and individuals have available to donate, fundraising for even the most pressing of needs can be a daunting task. With success dependent on the tools and knowledge that you bring to your desk each morning, it’s very important that every possible source is explored thoroughly. If you’re a fundraiser looking to up your game in the name…

• How Individuals, Bloggers, and Small Business MUST ACT to Create a Better World for ALL.

  growmap

  10 May 2012 | 11:57 am

  Ethanol = Starvation. Click image to read The Ethanol Scam on Rolling Stone magazine. In order to create a better world, we must clearly understand how the current world works. When the major media can control what we all see, they charge brands for that access and only the wealthiest thrive because they have the resources and connections to take advantage of that access. In yesterday’s Future of Publishing Episode, representatives for Disqus and LiveFyre discussed how they monetize communities. In that business model we are right back to only those who already have wealth or access to…

• Brand Participation in Product Conversations – Future of Publishing

  Steve

  9 May 2012 | 8:46 am

  Brands have always been looking for ways to enter conversations with potential customers on third-party sites. Many publishers are reluctant to let them because they fear it will make them appear less objective. In this episode, VigLink’s Oliver Roup and Influence People’s Murray Newlands interview Dan Gill of Huddler, Jordan Kretchmer of Live Fyre, and Daniel Ha of Disqus about how publishers can charge brands to enter these conversations in a way that does not damage the publisher’s community. Watch the discussion below: Future of Publishing is sponsored by VigLink. If you enjoyed the…

• Your Business – People are ALREADY Talking About You Online so You MUST Join the Conversation

  growmap

  8 May 2012 | 12:09 pm

  "Doing Nothing is Almost Never the Right Thing" ~ Seth Godin ~ Click image to download November 2010 Interview with Seth Godin from FearLessStories (PDF) I speak to businesses regularly that are afraid of what bloggers might say about them. They fear what might happen if they start using social media – or let their employees do so. What you need to know is people are already talking about you, your business, products and services online. Bloggers can already write about you – right now – today – whether they ever contact you or not.  The risk is not going…

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  TheWayoftheWeb

• 3D Printing in 2012 – innovation coming thick and fast

  Dan Thornton

  9 May 2012 | 10:37 am

  When I wrote ‘2012 – the year of 3D Printing?‘, I didn’t realise it would quickly become one of my most popular ever posts, get masses of great comments and end up featured on other sites including the Wall Street Journal. But that was back in August,2011, so how are my predictions fairing up now we’re approaching halfway through 2012? Well, I’d say pretty good – it’s still going to be a while before we see a 3D printer in every home, but the capabilities to make use of them have already arrived, and the hardware itself is getting cheaper. Plus…

• Why I love writing and technology…

  Dan Thornton

  2 May 2012 | 11:41 am

  …because done well, both can inspire people to act. Whether it’s laughter or tears, love or hate, making a purchase or revolting against a government – both can provide amazing tools to inspire and encourage. It’s how I ended up combining writing and marketing. And it’s why I don’t dream about one day turning this business into an ‘SEO’ agency. Or a ‘social media’ agency. I dream growing this business into something larger which is known for being able to enable change and action both internally and externally. And it’s why I…

• Still here – 6 years of blogging and 4 years of data…

  Dan Thornton

  30 Apr 2012 | 6:18 pm

  Although I started publicly blogging at TheWayoftheWeb on a blogspot account back in 2006, it was only in 2008 that I switched to WordPress and installed my current Google Analytics account, so May 1 is kind of an anniversary. Technically I really started blogging back in about 1999 with a Homestead website, but that didn’t progress further than some horrific design decisions and a couple of extremely half-hearted business ideas, such as a database of pub reviews (I still occasionally wonder how much revenue the likes of FancyAPint make!) Either way I’ve constantly veered between…

• Facebook’s Trending Articles – adding irrelevance into my network

  Dan Thornton

  25 Apr 2012 | 6:58 pm

  Facebook started testing ‘Trending Articles’ roughly a week ago, but they’ve appeared in my own account for the first time today. Now below the latest update from my network, I get a block displaying 5 articles read by someone connected to me, like so (name of friend removed as who knows whether they want it displayed publicly) I have the vaguest idea that this might be about American Football – a sport I rarely watch as I’m not a big fan, and it’s not freely available in the UK. In fact, none of the 5 highlighted stories were particularly interesting or…

• The “Cardboard arcade kid”, vs “Push button to add drama” – value in viral video?

  Dan Thornton

  23 Apr 2012 | 6:14 pm

  Two weeks ago I posted a quick blog post about a video featuring 9-year-old Caine Monroy, who built a cardboard arcade over a summer vacation, and waited for his first customer to turn up. Well, after two weeks, the result of his first customer happening to make a video about him, and then organising a flashmob via Reddit and Facebook is in. 2.9 million views on Vimeo, with 10,400 likes. 2.5 million views on Youtube with 31,000 likes 105,000 Facebook Likes. 6,400 Followers on Twitter. Over $186,000 raised for Caine’s Arcade Scolarship Fund. Almost $200,000 dollars has been raised from…

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  Connection Agent

• Words With Baggage

  Steve Woodruff

  15 May 2012 | 7:11 am

  While facilitating a workshop on vendor/project management with a client yesterday, I felt compelled to emphasize that one of the keys to communication between two parties (say, client project manager –> vendor project manager) is realizing that words carry baggage. And I do not speak of “baggage” here pejoratively, as we often do, but simply descriptively. There is the dictionary definition of a word or phrase. Then, there is the meaning and significance embedded in our minds, which is attached to an (accurate or not) personal definition, past experiences, images,…

• LeadershipChat: Transitions

  Steve Woodruff

  14 May 2012 | 5:12 am

  Markets change. Companies change. Circumstances change. And leaders transition in and out of their roles. How is this handled? What are the upsides, the downsides, and the pitfalls of leadership transitions? That will be our topic of discussion for LeadershipChat this week. In and of themselves, transitions are neither inherently good nor evil. They’re simply a fact of life. The reasons for them, and the way they are handled, make the difference between a positive and negative experience. Sudden transitions due to scandal or sub-par performance can rock the boat temporarily, but may…

• Business Mist = Business Missed

  Steve Woodruff

  11 May 2012 | 7:36 am

  We’d fondly like to think that our potential clients – and even we ourselves – have a clear, 20/20 view of our professional offerings and message. However, the case is almost always more like this: The fog of information overload in the minds of customers, the greyness of unclear positioning, the vaguely familiar sounding competitive bullet points – all of it adds up to being easily forgotten when the opportunity is at hand. Business Mist means Business Missed. A lot of dollars and time can be spent marketing and advertising, but if the message is unclear, the…

• Be Narrow-Minded

  Steve Woodruff

  10 May 2012 | 7:42 am

  When building a business, it’s healthy to take something often thought to be a deficit, and turn it into a strength. I’m talking about narrow-mindedness. Specifically, I mean that you should relentlessly optimize your market definition. Get a clear focus. Aim for the smallest of targets. To put it in the words of a very helpful article by Tom Searcy in Inc. magazine: Don’t define your competitive advantage by your competitors. Define your distinction by your customers. (go ahead – click the link and read the article. It’ll be your best read all day.) Or, #9 in…

• Chicago-style Leadership

  Steve Woodruff

  8 May 2012 | 7:03 am

  Last week, with about 150 others, I attended the SOBCon conference in Chicago (this was my 3rd year). This gathering always provides thought-provoking gems, along with great opportunities to deepen relationships (here is my quick review of the 2012 gathering). I thought I’d list out three discussion points for this week’s LeadershipChat based on things said in the Windy City at SOBCon. 1. “Relationships always trump results.” (from Gary Goldstein). Overall, I agree with this perspective – even if projects go awry, the relationships built are the biggest benefit…

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  Mike's Lifestream

• The digital lives of American moms. Pinterest is their most frequented site.

  16 May 2012 | 4:07 am

  via simplyzesty.com

• Can Facebook Advertising Ever Beat Google?

  16 May 2012 | 4:02 am

  via mashable.com

• How to spot an Instagram junkie

  16 May 2012 | 3:52 am

  via dailyinfographic.com

• Facebook: Behind the IPO everyone is talking about

  16 May 2012 | 3:47 am

  via mbaonline.com

• The State of the Internet

  15 May 2012 | 9:51 am

  via onlineuniversities.com

• 

  WordPress.com News

• Stay In The Conversation

  Beau Lebens

  15 May 2012 | 6:01 pm

  It’s now much easier for you and your commenters to keep track of the conversations you’re involved in across WordPress.com. Some recent tests have shown that by subscribing commenters to new comments by default, they are more likely to stay engaged and come back and comment more on your blog. With that knowledge, we’ve changed the default comment following behavior to help you get more conversations going on your blog. We made the initial changes last week and after great feedback from you we just launched an update. Here’s how it works: By default, posting a comment…

• Look at These Gorgeous Blogs

  Sheri

  15 May 2012 | 1:05 pm

  We’ve added a user showcase where you can view stunning customizations made by people just like you. From complete redesigns with CSS to adding pizzazz with Custom Fonts to clever use of options like background and header, this showcase will spark your imagination and inspire creativity. Discover details about what each showcase blog is doing with WordPress.com themes and customizations by clicking a thumbnail to see a colophon-style list of credits on the left. We’ve also updated footer links so blog owners can show off the types of customizations they’ve made and visitors can…

• Photo Blogging 101, Part 1

  Erica V.

  14 May 2012 | 10:00 am

  Spring is in the air. With the weather warming up, now is a great time to get started on a photo blog. Creating a photo blog is a wonderful introduction to blogging on WordPress.com or an opportunity to refresh your current site. Ready to get started? You can sign up for a new blog right over here. Getting started Photo blogs, sometimes called phlogs, use pictures instead of words. While many photo bloggers choose a type of photo that they want to focus on, such as portraits, others use their photo blog to document their life’s events. Photo blogs come in a variety of styles, including…

• New Themes: Just Desserts and Oxygen

  Michelle Langston

  10 May 2012 | 8:11 am

  Happy Thursday! We’ve added some exciting new themes to our ever-growing collection, and we’re happy to tell you all about them. First out of the oven is…Just Desserts. Yep, that’s a theme! Designed by Andy Rutledge, Just Desserts is a deliciously stylish premium theme that’s perfect for blogs centered on food. With its responsive, single-column layout and unique presentation of images and posts on the front page, Just Desserts gives you a delectable canvas on which your mouthwatering photos and text can really shine — even when viewed on smaller mobile devices…

• Find Friends Who Use WordPress

  Nick Momrik

  1 May 2012 | 2:32 pm

  Are you curious to see how your friends are using WordPress? Give the new and improved Friend Finder a try to connect with your Twitter, Facebook, and Google contacts who have WordPress sites! After authorizing WordPress.com to use your Twitter, Facebook, or Google account to find your friends (don’t worry — none of this account information is saved!) you’ll see a list of people you know who have WordPress sites. Click Follow and each time your friend publishes a new post it will show up in your Reader under Blogs I Follow. If you have multiple blogs, make sure to set the…

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  Social Media Bird Brain

• To Mobile or Not To Mobile, Part 3

  10 May 2012 | 12:56 am

  Image from whatsyourdigitaliq.com We've looked at what's involved with evolving your social communication by making your website either Mobile Friendly or Mobile Optimized in Parts 1 and 2 of this blog post. Now let's see if evolution is imminently required or can be put off for a while. Smartphone Adoption Rates Remember that Google/Ipsos report from Part I? Smartphones have penetrated the

• To Mobile or Not to Mobile? Part 2

  30 Apr 2012 | 9:10 pm

  Image from whatsyourdigitaliq.com So let's pick up where we left off last time, looking at what's involved in either creating a separate mobile website or redesigning your site to be mobile-friendly or optimized for mobile. Separate Mobile Site One of the reasons a separate mobile site can be problematic is that most non-mobile optimized sites have a lot of content. When you have a lot of

• Facebook Profile Image Change

  25 Apr 2012 | 4:22 pm

  Facebook is changing the size of profile pictures from 120x120 to 160x160 pixels. If you incorporate your profile pic as part of your Timeline Cover photo, this can affect your layout: Image via digitalwizdom This guy's head might be placed differently at 160px and look a leeettle strange... If your profile pic and timeline cover aren't integrated, then don't worry about it. That is all.

• The Continuing Saga of: "To Mobile or Not to Mobile" Pt. 1

  20 Apr 2012 | 7:20 pm

  image via what's your digital IQ Adoption of Smart Phones is rapid. People in my age group are probably some of the last hold-outs, but most of us will likely adopt them, because it will make sense. If I didn't work from home, I imagine I would already have one. So is it time for your small nonprofit to get a mobile website? I'm afraid that - for me - the answer is once again yes and no.

• Mining Newsletters for Fun and Nonprofit

  11 Apr 2012 | 2:00 am

  Image from History of Pala Mining If you're like me, you are getting a boatload of e-letters in your inbox. Half the time, I scan their headlines for anything that seems worthwhile, and if I don't see it - BANG - into the round file. I don't do this with everything, of course. Some groups have given me so much good content in the past, that even if the preview pane doesn't look promising, I'll

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  Social Media, Internet Marketing, and Life connected | Josh S Peters

• Making time for someday

  Josh S Peters

  11 May 2012 | 1:03 pm

  Just schedule it Ever notice how all of those projects you want to get to “someday” just keep piling up? I have a To-Do list on Astrid that has 50+ entries tagged “someday” and until recently that list just kept growing. Last week I started scheduling “someday” time. Just an hour or two chunks at a time, typically during the evening, or on the weekend and to ensure I get them done I remove myself from home-based distractions and go to a coffee shop until the project is done. Of course this only works if your “someday” projects are on the…

• The 60 Minute Social Media Audit

  Josh S Peters

  26 Apr 2012 | 11:54 am

  All it takes is 60 minutes I have a guest post up on Mashable, about running a 60 minute social media audit every quarter to make sure your social is “up-to-snuff”. The audit is in no way complete, nor is it a full business audit where you look at metrics, conversions, goals, KPIs, or ROI. It’s a tactical and maintenance audit that will help you keep on top of all the little things that slide between the cracks and get put off. Head on over to Mashable and take a look at 60 Minutes to a More Efficient Social Business Strategy and if you get a second I’d love to get…

• Generic Experiences Produce Generic Responses

  Josh S Peters

  11 Apr 2012 | 12:57 pm

  Generic is forgettable When was the last time you read or looked at something and said “Gee, that’s really average. I think I’ll share it.”. Or how about the last time you saw a product and thought “This is so generic I must have it.”. Unless you’re a hipster, this probably hasn’t happened recently if ever in your life. Even when you’re bargain shopping and buying generic brands you’re not excited about it, it’s just something you do. You go through the motions. Now think about the last time something excited you, amazed you,…

• Marketing to your mom

  Josh S Peters

  13 Mar 2012 | 10:16 am

  Like this graphic? Get more content marketing tips from Copyblogger. I feel like this just says it all. How would you market to your mom? Would you spam and annoy her, or would you make sure she was well informed and had a pleasant experience? Thanks for reading, Josh S Peters

• HOW TO: Optimize the OG:Description Tag for Search and Social

  Josh S Peters

  6 Jan 2012 | 3:40 pm

  The first question that comes up about the OG:Description tag is “What is OG:?” In this case it does not mean Original Gangster. OG stands for Open Graph which is a tagging protocol (OGP) that is quickly spreading and being adopted across the web as a new standard (you can learn all about OGP at the Open Graph Protocol site). The second question is “What’s the max character limit of the OG:Description tag”? Short answer, there is none. Long answer 160-300. The actual OG:Description tag has no character limit. It’s a meta tag so there’s virtually…

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  Corporate Eye

• Online Content Consumption Shows No Signs of Slowing Down

  Susan Gunelius

  14 May 2012 | 10:30 pm

  Online Content Consumption Shows No Signs of Slowing DownContent marketing is so hot right now that every brand is trying to figure out how to become an online publisher. Unfortunately, most are still struggling because they’re trying to fit traditional push marketing techniques into the pull marketing environment of the web. Since consumers’ demand for online content continues to grow so quickly, even brands that are publishing inferior content are reaping benefits simply because they’re “in the game.” Research from JZ Analytics puts some numbers to online…

• The Advertising vs. Social Media Debate

  Susan Gunelius

  10 May 2012 | 2:34 pm

  The Advertising vs. Social Media DebateIn a recent speech, Nike vice president of digital sport, Stefan Olander, urged brands to stop focusing on “old metrics” like clicks and likes. As Nicola Clark of Brand Republic reports, Olander stated, “A whoe industry is stuck on trying to force old metrics on to new channels. Advertising is a new model that is being squeezed into the new framework of social media, when the fact is that people don’t want to be interrupted.” There is definitely truth to what Olander says. The power of social media marketing for brands comes…

• South Korea Rebranding the DMZ

  Susan Gunelius

  9 May 2012 | 10:32 pm

  South Korea Rebranding the DMZSixty years ago when the Korean War ended, a four kilometer zone (2 kilometers on either side of the cease fire line) and spanning 248 kilometers was identified as the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) where no military equipment or personnel could enter. Of course, that didn’t stop both North and South Korea from lining up millions of soldiers and landmines to guard either side of the DMZ. Fast forward to 2012 and the DMZ still exists, and has become a popular tourist attraction (complete with lines of observation binoculars, gift shops, and T-shirts for sale)…

• Pottermore and Harry Potter Brand Exceed Expectations

  Susan Gunelius

  7 May 2012 | 10:07 pm

  Pottermore and Harry Potter Brand Exceed ExpectationsOver half a million people purchased Harry Potter ebooks during the first month that they were available through the Pottermore ebook store and digital universe for a total of nearly $5 million. The site attracted 22 million visits from 7 million unique visitors during its first two weeks, and those visitors liked what they found on Pottermore. The site tracked 1 billion page impressions with the average visitor viewing 47 pages and spending 25 minutes on the site. During those first two weeks, 5 million people registered on the site and…

• LinkedIn Acquires SlideShare

  Susan Gunelius

  4 May 2012 | 10:40 am

  LinkedIn Acquires SlideShareNews that LinkedIn acquired SlideShare for over $118 million broke this week (along with a SlideShare presentation explaining the news) — an acquisition that gives LinkedIn access to a lot of content created, shared, and discussed by its target audience of professionals. In March 2012, the SlideShare website received over 29 million unique visitors, which means it’s one of the most trafficked websites for professionals. Over 7.4 million presentations have been uploaded to SlideShare since it debuted in 2005, and since then, those presentations have been…

• 

  Vino Party - Il blog sul Vino

• Lacrima di Morro d’Alba Doc

  Fabio Mele

  2 May 2012 | 5:07 pm

  Il Lacrima di Morro d’Alba è un vino dal color rosso rubino istituito Doc nel 1985. Oltre che Morro d’Alba, viene prodotto nei territori comunali di Ostra, Monte San Vito, San Marcello, Senigallia, Belvedere Ostrense. La sua produzione è molto antica e secondo la tradizione giaà nel 1167 fu apprezzato da Federico Barbarossa quando dimorò presso il Castello di Morro d’Alba durante l’assedio di Ancona. Visivamente presenta oltre al rosso anche delle sfumature purpuree e violacee. All’olfatto è gradevole ed intenso, leggermente speziato, possiamo ritrovare elementi fruttati e…

• Dolcetto d’Alba Doc

  Fabio Mele

  2 May 2012 | 5:03 pm

  Il Dolcetto d’Alba è un vino dal colore rosso rubino che è stato istituito Doc nel 1974 ed è prodotto interamente nelle province di Asti e Cuneo ed interamente con uve dell’omonimo vitigno. Viene prodotto anche nella tipologia Doc Superiore con invecchiamento di un anno. La tradizione vuole che sia il vino più bevuto nella zona delle Langhe piemontesi. All’odore si presenta gradevole e distintivo con richiami floreali e di liquirizia, il gusto è notevolmente asciutto e tendente all’amarognolo grazie ad un retrogusto di mandorla amara, molto armonico. Assieme ad altri prodotti…

• Vitigno Lacrima

  Fabio Mele

  2 May 2012 | 4:57 pm

  Il vitigno Lacrima viene coltivato attualmente soprattutto in provincia di Ancona, più precisamente nelle campagne attorno a Morro d’Alba. In passato sembra che questo vitigno fosse diffuso anche nel resto delle Marche, in Campania, Umbria e Puglia. Nei secoli la sua presenza è regredita alla zona di Morro d’Alba. Per questo motivo ha anche rischiato l’estinzione negli scorsi decenni, fino a quando negli Anni Ottanta è stato tutelato con moderne coltivazioni e con la denominazione d’origine.  È conosciuto anche con il nome di Lacrima Nera o di Lacrima di Morro d’Alba. Piccole…

• Vitigno Dolcetto

  Fabio Mele

  2 May 2012 | 4:55 pm

  La coltivazione del vitigno Dolcetto risale alla fine del Cinquecento secondo testimonianze certe. Le stesse testimonianze rimandano alla zona di coltivazione del basso Piemonte (Monferrato e Liguria), per diffondersi in seguito nell’Oltrepò Pavese, nell’Alessandrino e nel Cuneese. Nella zona di Tortona è necessario non confondere il nome “Nebbiolo” che viene dato ai vitigni locali, trattandosi in realtà sempre di Dolcetto. All’inizio del Novecento era tra i vitigni più coltivati delle zone settentrionali d’Italia, fu poi notevolmente ridotto a causa della fillossera. Dal…

• Montefalco Sagrantino DOCG

  Fabio Mele

  30 Mar 2012 | 3:40 pm

  Storicamente il Sagrantino esisteva solo nella sua versione passita, tanto che la prima autorizzazione del 1977 esisteva per la Doc Sagrantino Passito. La versione secca invece ha dovuto aspettare ancora diversi anni prima di essere riconosciuta. La considerazione di questo vino è cresciuta notevolmente durante gli Anni Novanta, probabilmente grazie al merito del produttore Marco Caprai che per primo ha creduto alle sue potenzialità inespresse. Così nel 1992 questo vino, in entrambe le varianti (Montefalco Sagrantino Passito e Secco) ha ottenuto la denominazione DOCG. Va al Montefalco…

• 

  Marketing Conversation

• The Unique Marketing Qualities of Social Media

  speters

  10 May 2012 | 6:38 pm

  The controversial though common aphorism that “corporations are people” applies well to the social media landscape, where entrepreneurial individuals are branding themselves just as readily as a transnational company. Social media is at its heart a communal arrangement where online entities are judged more for their transparency than they are their content. This bodes well [...] The controversial though common aphorism that “corporations are people” applies well to the social media landscape, where entrepreneurial individuals are branding themselves just as readily as a transnational…

• Mastering The Two-Way Nature Of Social Media Marketing

  speters

  30 Apr 2012 | 8:47 pm

  When describing the difference between social media marketing and traditional techniques, experts will often focus on the interactive nature that the former offers. With social media, consumers can promote a brand by discussing it and by posting on a product page. Businesses and consumers can communicate back and forth as peers, even within the confines [...] When describing the difference between social media marketing and traditional techniques, experts will often focus on the interactive nature that the former offers. With social media, consumers can promote a brand by discussing it and by…

• The U.S. Census: Then & Now

  speters

  11 Apr 2012 | 5:19 pm

  Via: Home Insurance Guide Via: Home Insurance Guide

• How to use Google+ for business extended video tutorial

  Chris Abraham

  9 Apr 2012 | 10:40 am

  I really felt like I needed to rush it through my recent free 30-minute How to Use Google+ for Business webinar, and that made me sad. There is so much ground to cover. So I sat down and used my trusty copy of Camtasia to record just about everything I know in this 80 minutes [...] I really felt like I needed to rush it through my recent free 30-minute How to Use Google+ for Business webinar, and that made me sad. There is so much ground to cover. So I sat down and used my trusty copy of Camtasia to record just about everything I know in this 80 minutes of (obviously unscripted) tutorial on…

• Forget the Bear, Outrun Your Competition

  Chris Abraham

  6 Apr 2012 | 9:00 am

  The best thing about social media marketing is that you don’t have to be the most popular, have the most followers, or be the most sophisticated, you just have to do a better job than all your direct competitors. You don’t have to be the fastest, the biggest, or the strongest in order to win [...] Image via Wikipedia The best thing about social media marketing is that you don’t have to be the most popular, have the most followers, or be the most sophisticated, you just have to do a better job than all your direct competitors. You don’t have to be the fastest, the…

• 

  Chris Abraham

• Good range and pretty close

  Chris Abraham

  15 May 2012 | 9:18 pm

  Taken at Sharp Shooters

• Working from Java Shack

  Chris Abraham

  14 May 2012 | 4:19 pm

  Taken at Java Shack

• Passed! 23/25 on the written motorcycle test

  Chris Abraham

  14 May 2012 | 2:47 pm

  Taken at Arlington DMV

• Super dorky but amazing volume, noise filtering, and battery life. Hands-free heaven.

  Chris Abraham

  14 May 2012 | 1:07 pm

  Taken at Arlington DMV

• I hate Mondays

  Chris Abraham

  14 May 2012 | 11:12 am

  Taken at XSport Fitness

• 

  Riffs, Tiffs and What Ifs

• Great Leaders GROW – Interview with Bestselling Author Dr. Ken Blanchard

  Steve Kayser

  10 May 2012 | 10:12 am

  Successful leaders don’t rest on their laurels. Leadership has to be a living process, not a title, not a business card. "The path to increased influence, impact, and leadership effectiveness is paved with personal growth. Our capacity to grow determines our capacity to lead. It’s really that simple.

• The Third Hand: Nothing is Ever as It Seems

  Steve Kayser

  3 Apr 2012 | 1:58 pm

  The old man was singled out by the crowd at a family get together. Dressed in bib overalls, worn T-shirt and a past prime denim cap. He was a hard-working farmer. It showed. The crowd urged him on... “Come on old man, play! Bring out the third hand.”

• A Paradoxically Perplexing Paradox

  Steve Kayser

  19 Mar 2012 | 12:30 am

  A paradox is not a conflict within reality. It is a conflict between reality and your feeling of what reality should be like.

• How to Stay Relevant in Business and Life

  Steve Kayser

  27 Feb 2012 | 2:41 pm

  “The illiterate of the 21st century will not be those who cannot read and write, but those cannot learn, unlearn and relearn.” - Alvin Toffler I heard a couple of acquaintances talk about a person they work with that was "older" and no longer contributing to their business. This person apparently couldn't, or wouldn't, learn new skills. Or, for that matter, even keep up with the skill-set needed for the job. Age was mentioned, and not favorably. They thought this person should be "put out to pasture."

• The Power of Resistance: Lessons Learned from Bestselling Author Steven Pressfield

  Steve Kayser

  25 Feb 2012 | 11:58 am

  I've had the good fortune to interview and work with many great storytellers over the last few years.  J.D. Meier, program manager for Microsoft's Patterns & Practices team, and author of the "Sources of Insight"blog, asked me what the most important lessons I'd learned from the high-profile "working" writers and storytellers ... the ones who actually make a living doing it.

• 

  Uber.la - tech reviews, opinion and wit

• Waiting on Pinterest? The Excitement is on NEXT-PIN Sites – Beyond #Pinterest

  jmacofearth

  15 May 2012 | 11:53 am

  BOTTOMLINE: Pinterest, thanks for the wakeup call. People like sharing photos and Facebook is too cumbersome to do that simply. I don't want everyone IN my Face-book. Follow my PINS sure. // What's next for Pinterest? Unknown. // What's next for NEXT-PIN sites? Sky's the limit.

• It Might Not Be Your Computer That's Slow, The Power Browsers: Chrome, Firefox, and Safari

  jmacofearth

  14 May 2012 | 2:45 pm

  So in the next evolution of the web the BROWSER is going to become more transparent. I recently saw an article about the CLOUD vs the BROWSER. Imagine a world of apps, where your browser is no longer the gateway to the cloud that it is today. You've already got a bunch of those apps already.

• What the iPhone 5 Will Bring This Summer: A Surprise

  jmacofearth

  14 May 2012 | 8:26 am

  I can't tell you much about what the iPhone 5 will look like. I can't tell you anything about how it's going to "Think Different." What I can tell you is, "It's going to be different in a way that surprises us all. And the biggest surprise is going to be on the other manufacturers and the workload ahead. Question: "How is that Android version of Siri coming? I can't remember the cute name?"

• Hallmark Doesn't Get Me: My Happy Mother's Day Card (print your own)

  jmacofearth

  13 May 2012 | 10:29 am

  I'm pretty sure Hallmark has no clue who I am or what I care about. So I think we need to get back into the tradition of kids and make our own. I'm using the latest tools PowerPoint and Google. It's the thought that counts. Enjoy.

• Online Marketing Extreme Fail: How's That Working For Ya Exact Target?

  jmacofearth

  11 May 2012 | 1:26 pm

  I think I'll give my business to Constant Contact. At least they're open for business. And I already know how much they are going to charge me. I'll just tell my client that Exact Target was too expensive. Unless I hear from them before Monday. [What are the odds?]

• 

  Digital Marketing Blog // Digital Operative

• Street Art Appreciation

  BJ

  10 May 2012 | 2:49 am

  As a company whose culture thrives on creativity, no matter if that is born of technology, marketing, design or pure business mind; we here at DO love to look outside of our walls for true inspiration. On this evening, while working on an international marketing program for a client, I wandered the streets of urban culture and artists. I was drawn into a labyrinth of laborious art across the globe. And I wanted to share it with everyone. Part of what makes our digital agency so unique is our ability to derive inspiration from everywhere at anytime. It’s even a core interview question…

• Digital Operative Featured on Magento eCommerce Blog

  adamlu

  17 Apr 2012 | 12:33 pm

  When magicians Dan and Dave needed their eCommerce site built they had an extra trick up their sleeve – Digital Operative. These two magicians needed an upgrade from their original eCommerce platform and Digital Operative – a Magento Solution Partner was happy to comply. Here at Digital Operative we put our creative, design, marketing, and development minds together and put together a site we are really proud of. It combines a clean layout with unparalleled shopping functionality. Features include: Streaming video product type, A unique user interface for product organization and…

• Magento Go SEO checklist

  adamlu

  23 Feb 2012 | 12:55 pm

  This is the Magento GO checklist from the presentation “What You Should Know about SEO“  from February 22, 2012 by BJ Cook and Adam Lundquist. This checklist will help you with the basics of SEO and get your Magento Go store off the ground. You can download our 2-page SEO checklist here:  Digital Operative’s SEO checklist for Magento Go

• 3 ways Pinterest can help market your business!

  adamlu

  17 Feb 2012 | 7:06 pm

  Pinterest is the social network darling of the moment, and your business should be making money from it. You may not have heard of Pinterest, but your consumers have. Pinterest is large (3.3 million users) and it captures users attention (average site time 72 minutes). I will briefly describe what Pinterest is, what makes it unique, and how you can use it to drive traffic to your website. What is Pinterest? Pinterest is basically a virtual bulletin board. It is a way to share interesting images online. A user will have many different boards, each themed around a different subject. When a user…

• Twitter Redesign Preview

  BJ

  14 Feb 2012 | 1:28 am

  So I do not remember getting any type of email from Twitter about getting a BETA or sneak peek at any type of redesign. Nonetheless, below is a screenshot I took after some of my followers were not seeing the same thing. So what do you think?

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  Seldom Seen Kid

• Break Stuff, Fix It Better

  Matt Churchill

  18 Apr 2012 | 4:20 pm

• 5 New startups to look out for – April

  Matt Churchill

  11 Apr 2012 | 1:58 am

  Here’s 5 news startups to keep an eye on… Trakt.tv is taking GetGlue and Miso on at their own game, providing a TV check-in service that aims to do what Last.fm did for your listening habits. LIVE! Shopitize wants to make shopping easy, fun and social. Also availble for your mobile device of choice. LIVE! Pingram is a mash up of Instagr.am and Pinterest, what’s not to love! LIVE! GetArtUp wants to turn your bare walls into curated spaces by commissioning up and coming artists to create something amazing on your behalf. LIVE! Budgetable is the latest in a long line of…

• Don’t Be Afraid To Fail

  Matt Churchill

  10 Apr 2012 | 3:32 am

• Gaming Is Good For You (Infographic)

  Matt Churchill

  9 Apr 2012 | 1:43 am

  Gaming is Good For You (via Frugal Dad) Source: Frugal Dad

• 3 Things They Don’t Tell You About Community Management

  Matt Churchill

  15 Feb 2012 | 3:02 am

  3 Things They Don’t Tell You About Community Management

• 

  the i.d.e.a. brand

• Lessons Brands can Learn from Mobile Apps and Gaming

  Ryan T.

  14 May 2012 | 6:17 pm

  Don’t we all just want to be entertained?  Might just be the reason both mobile apps and social engagement continue to grow like crazy. Chew on these stats: Angry Birds has hit one billion downloads, increasing Rovio’s revenues more than ten fold in 2011, soaring to $106 million Sales in the mobile phone/tablet gaming market in the U.S. more than doubled between 2005 and 2010 reaching $898 million, and according to Mintel are expected to reach $1.6 billion by 2015 Although ...

• Are You Answering Your Customer’s Questions?

  Indra

  11 May 2012 | 6:30 am

  Every year I return from the PRSA Counselors Academy Spring Conference all fired up with inspiration and new ideas. This year is no different. I need to tell you about Marcus Sheridan. Right now. Marcus, aka The Sales Lion, sells pools (well not that much anymore, but that was, and on some level still is, his business), but I would wager he knows more about content marketing than 75% of the people taking up space at agencies across the country. ...

• HangTen #281: Kick-off May With Movement

  Karin

  8 May 2012 | 1:02 pm

  ‘Keeping our toes on the nose of refreshingly current trends, ideas and guerrilla tactics.’ To advance, progress, prompt, arouse, excite. These are just a few of the many definitions for the word “move,” the verb noticeably in the minds of marketers this month. This week we’ve noticed brands spark movement emotionally and others have taken a more physical approach. Get moved, moving, or move someone, it’s our challenge for you this month. 10 Must Text While Driving? We have all ...

• The Power of Children in Video

  Indra

  28 Apr 2012 | 4:57 pm

  Have you heard of Kony 2012? Of course you have. What about Caine’s Arcade? Or Niños Incómodos? These three videos have each hit a nerve resulting in strong viewership, pass along value and media coverage. What is the thread that binds these videos? Children. Each video had a very different goal but ultimately tapped into a common global reaction to the concept of hope. It is human nature to hope for the future of our children. Perhaps mixed with that ...

• HangTen #280: Harnessing Happiness

  Karin

  26 Apr 2012 | 4:25 pm

  ‘Keeping our toes on the nose of refreshingly current trends, ideas and guerrilla tactics.’ Whether in the form of subtle contentment or intense joy, we all demand a daily dose of happiness to maintain our sanity and achieve optimum health. Luckily, a number of businesses, brands and bosses are catching on and chipping in on our quests. They’re tackling the problems and shortcomings that often hinder, and or squash, our state of happiness. Check out the epic office morale boosting ...

• 

  Technology & Marketing Law Blog

• Granick on CISPA's Deficiencies (With Some of My Own Comments)

  15 May 2012 | 5:07 pm

  By guest-blogger Jennifer Granick (with comments from Eric) [Eric's introduction: Some guest visitors to the blog need no introduction, and...

• A Twitter Exception for Defamation?

  15 May 2012 | 1:05 pm

  [Post by Venkat Balasubramani] William Charron pubished a short piece for the Berkeley Journal of Entertainment and Sports Law that...

• The Dangerous Meme That Won't Go Away: Using Copyright Assignments to Suppress Unwanted Content--Scott v. WorldStarHipHop

  14 May 2012 | 12:15 pm

  By Eric Goldman Scott v. WorldStarHipHop, Inc., 2012 WL 1592229 (S.D.N.Y. May 3, 2012) Copyright law wasn't designed as a...

• New York Judge *Slams* Bittorrent Copyright Plaintiffs – K-Beech; Malibu Media; and Patrick Collins v. Does

  12 May 2012 | 12:48 pm

  [Post by Venkat Balasubramani] K-Beech, Inc. v. Does 1-37, CV 11-3995 (E.D.N.Y.) Malibu Media, LLC v. Does 1-26, CV 11-1147...

• An Unmasking Effort Gets Gutted Some More – Art of Living Foundation v. Does

  10 May 2012 | 4:37 pm

  [Post by Venkat Balasubramani] Art of Living Foundation v. Does, 10-cv-05022-LHK (N.D. Cal.; May 1, 2012) I posted earlier about...

• 

  zioneyemedia.com

• Twitter Updates for 2012-05-14

  David

  14 May 2012 | 4:00 am

  RT @blogfotografia: The early development of the giant 509m deep Miao Keng shaft – China: Fotografia de Robbie Shone http://t.co/8FsrQ4oC # RT @photoblggr: 25 Tasty Pictures of Cookies http://t.co/DmVd0Suz YUM!! # WOW! Amazing RT @NatGeoPhotos: Photo of the Day: Kayaking, Greenland http://t.co/J0ss4P8U #pod #photography # RT @wmainard: I am so thankful for my Mom @aussietrishj & her amazing influence on my life! Thankful for Leah, such an incredible Mom/wife! # RT @Techmeme: Microsoft Funded Startup Aims to Kill BitTorrent Traffic (Ernesto / TorrentFreak) http://t.co/omnxNRQd…

• Twitter Weekly Updates for 2012-05-13

  David

  13 May 2012 | 4:00 am

  @nordysanda Thanks, Sanda! I'm doing ok, how's life in Seattle? I miss it!! in reply to NordySanda # RT @minervity: Star Wars Voice Changer For The Hardcore Cosplayer – http://t.co/EvX8C7dv # Star Wars Voice Changer!! Luuuke.. http://t.co/tDyRyDs6 # RT @rww: Pinterest Will Boost Your Referral Traffic, But Can It Boost Sales? http://t.co/yuEvThne # Facebook and Privacy issues.. AGAIN! WTH?? http://t.co/EsKF6QXt #Fail # Instragram in America [Infographic] http://t.co/zPs0CWhD # RT @jdesignz: Microsoft officially offering Xbox 360 4GB console for $99, two-year Live Gold…

• Twitter Updates for 2012-05-13

  David

  13 May 2012 | 4:00 am

  Ugh I hate being sick :( x-x —- # Tough to have the whole family – even yourself – be down with sickness #boo # @Christech_org wow dawg that's great! Not exactly sure tho… Maybe use textures or backgrounds in addition to color? in reply to Christech_org # Photography By TOMAAS http://t.co/ga65afqO # <3 http://t.co/XGD1v6KY #

• Twitter Updates for 2012-05-12

  David

  12 May 2012 | 4:00 am

  RT @neilpatel: The Straight Skinny On CSS3 Rounded Corners and Border Effects http://t.co/AkVulNEu # Good resource RT @caspergrl: CSS Browser-Compatibility Search Engine: Browser Support – http://t.co/WaN9iUAK # Awesome! Will check RT @behoff: Finally updated my @Behance portfolio with some new work: http://t.co/JL26XNbB (more coming soon as well) # Now this is interesting… RT @webpronews: Mark Zuckerberg: The Unlikely Zen Guide to Bing's Social Design. http://t.co/adzYXetE #Bing # TY @seomoz and Rand for your Penguin article RT @webpronews: Google Penguin Update Punishes…

• Twitter Updates for 2012-05-11

  David

  11 May 2012 | 4:00 am

  CANNOT WAIT!! RT @webpronews: Dishonored Release Date Set For October 9th – http://t.co/cyndh6n1 # Does anyone know of a great Tattoo place here in Nashville? Am very skeptical about the shops here and would like some recs # RT @webdesigndev: ~~ 340 Premium Logos PSDs, Download Here: http://t.co/Kn2039CR #logo #branding #design # LOVE IT! RT @designmagtweets: 30 More Portfolio Sites for Your Design Inspiration http://t.co/LGC87r8j #design #webdesign # I'll try the CMS Dashboard.. looks promising! RT @speckyboy: Today's Post: WordPress Plugins That Make Your Life Easier…

• 

  FreshNetworks Blog

• The science of social media ROI

  Matt Rhodes

  15 May 2012 | 11:05 am

  TweetLast week I presented at a webinar as part of a series looking at the science of social, focusing on social media ROI and demystifying the confusion that surround it. The problem with social media ROI is that it is so easy to measure so many things that we become overwhelmed by measures. We think that everything is important and that everything is a measure of ROI. It isn’t. And it isn’t. Followers and Likes do not make ROI; moreover they stop us from thinking about the bigger business benefit of social. We need to measure different things for different reasons, not just…

• Twinteresting: why can’t we curate tweets?

  Hamid Sirhan

  15 May 2012 | 5:24 am

  Tweet It is no secret that Pinterest is a great way to share discoverable content. The “waterfall stream” format can really help rapid skimming of visual content. Take, for example, the ‘Pinterest for Facebook’,  Friendsheet, or Pinstagram, the Pinterest-style Instagram feed. People are finding ways to curate images from a variety of sources, but what about the ability to do this with items that are primarily textual, or links? Using favourites as a stopgap I use Twitter prolifically, but a lot of my usage focuses on finding new information – blog posts and news…

• Three simple ways B2B marketers can get value from LinkedIn

  Matt Rhodes

  10 May 2012 | 10:34 am

  TweetWhen thinking about social media and how to use it for your brand, our initial reaction is often to think about the channels we can use and the conversations we can have. But using social media does not necessarily mean having a channel or joining a conversation. There can often be as much value (and sometimes even more) from listening to what others are saying. For B2B brands LinkedIn is a great example of where social media can be used as much to listen and learn as to talk and engage. From ambassadors, to market information and even competitor research, here are three ways that…

• WalmartLabs – taking Big Data into retail

  Jon Stokes

  9 May 2012 | 10:16 am

  Tweet Walmart, the world’s largest retailer, acquired social media firm Kosmix just over a year ago, creating @WalmartLabs, with the intention to use this specialist R&D unit to define the future of commerce by merging social, mobile and retail. So far WalmartLabs has released two interesting developments using social: • ShopyCat – the gift recommendation engine This Facebook application uses your Facebook profile to suggest suitable products for you, based on the interests and hobbies of your friends. An interesting aspect of this approach is that the app will offer links…

• Facebook’s action links – new potential for branded apps

  John Shevlin

  3 May 2012 | 10:53 am

  TweetOn Wednesday Facebook launched action links: “a new way for people to interact with your timeline app directly from Facebook”. An action link is a customised link which sits alongside the classic “comment” and “like” options in open graph stories on the timeline, newsfeed and ticker. One of the examples of an action link, given by Facebook, is foursquare. When someone checks in, friends now have the option to “Save this Place” in addition to commenting and liking the story. Clicking “Save this Place” adds the location from Facebook, directly to your foursquare to-do…

• 

  LJ Jones's Blog

• When I was a kid......

  LJ Jones

  3 May 2012 | 7:49 pm

  When I was a kid........ vital Nintendo knowledge, like how to beat a boss or a cool cheat code, was passed from one kid to another at school. You couldn't look it up on the internet when you got stuck. You just figured it out and it worked pretty well. Up Up Down Down Left Right Left Right B A Select Start..... you kept a tape in your "BOOM Box", ready to hit record when your favorite song came on the radio so that you could savor that song over and over again. Sometimes you waited for days just so you could get the entire song..... you had to rewind and fast forward things. Cassette tapes.

• Scientist Identify Geek Gene

  LJ Jones

  26 Apr 2012 | 3:49 pm

  Geek GeneScientists have finally identified the geek gene. That all important part of our DNA that makes us love things like Star Wars, Comic Books, Sci-Fi and Video Games. It explains why full grown men are willing to dress up in red tights and pretend they have Super Speed.Scientist theorize that this gene is also responsible for most social awkwardness and also inhibits men and the occasional woman from talking to the opposite sex.Geek ChromosomeOften large chains of the geek gene are woven together to form an actual geek chromosome, creating super geeks. Geeks so geeky, they rarely see…

• Math With Friends

  LJ Jones

  27 Feb 2012 | 2:42 pm

  I have never been very good with word based games like Scrabble, so I came up with a game that is a little more my speed and one I can beat my wife at.  I call it Math With Friends.  It's more fun than a spelling bee.  It's based on word games like Scrabble but way more fun because it uses math.

• Brick Website

  LJ Jones

  23 Feb 2012 | 4:29 pm

  I have had this blog for a long time, but haven't had anything on www.ljjones.com as an actual site. So I decided to build something. Its inspired by LEGOs and the idea that you can build or create anything you want out of life. I made the whole thing out of bricks. If you like LEGOs then check out my site.I have no affiliation with LEGO. I do however, think they are a great toy for both kids and adults.

• Agencies: How to land new business.

  LJ Jones

  9 Feb 2012 | 2:54 pm

  As a marketing manager, I am the gate keeper. The person that holds the keys to the budget and the person who decides what campaigns we run. As the gate keeper, everyone wants to talk to me. I'm a popular guy. (But only because I have money).So here's a little bit of advice when you pitch me a campaign. Help me grow my business. Don't help me grow yours.They don't say it out loud, but when a person is pitching me, in the back of their mind I can hear them thinking: "He's got money. If we could just get him to sign this one year contract, it will help grow our business."Before they pitch me,…

• 

  shesgotclients.com

• Mastermind With Me For An Entire Year…

  Christine

  9 May 2012 | 11:57 am

  Yesterday was my husband Sean’s birthday and we had a nice quiet dinner at home. I’m not the fanciest of cooks, but I made scallops and asparagus for him. I mention it because every time his May birthday rolls around, I realize how close we are to another year being nearly half over. And I wonder…how is 2012 going for you in your business? If you’ve got a nagging feeling that you’re not quite where you’d hope to be at this point in the year, I think you’ll want to watch a brief new video I made for you. It’s only 4 minutes, and in it I share a quick…

• A 3-Step Process to Finding Public Speaking Gigs to Build Your Business

  Christine

  2 May 2012 | 1:19 pm

  While I’m known for coaching entrepreneurs on how to grow a business online, I’m also fond of telling my clients and students to get out from behind the computer once in a while too! Yes, technology can be fantastic, but it’s vitally important to connect with people face to face as well. Public speaking is a powerful way to accomplish this, and is something I did a good amount of early on in my business especially. Because of its many benefits, I continue to seek out these opportunities today, and one of the biggest questions I receive around this is about HOW to find these speaking…

• 6 Ways to NOT Reinvent the Wheel in Your Business

  Christine

  19 Apr 2012 | 12:54 pm

  This month’s “Third Thursday” video tip is all about how to not reinvent the wheel in your business. Why? It’s too HARD to do it that way! As business owners, when things feel “too hard,” it’s almost impossible to keep a success and money mindset, we don’t keep up with the marketing, we certainly don’t feel motivated to continue taking action, and everything essentially goes to hell in a hand basket! That’s why in this video I’m sharing with you my top 6 ways to not reinvent the wheel yourself. The best by-product of that? It frees up not only…

• The #1 Thing Holding You Back From Success… And How to Turn it All Around

  Christine

  18 Apr 2012 | 4:25 pm

  As a successful solopreneur with a thriving coaching and training business, one of the things I hear a lot is, “I wish I knew how to have a thriving and successful business!” Maybe you even say this yourself. If you’re a small business owner, coach, consultant, healer or other service professional and you’re feeling stuck and frustrated right now, then this call is for you. This isn’t a call to tell you about the latest marketing tactic you should be using, or a lecture about twenty more things you need to add to your to-do list. I know you’re not looking…

• 3 Ways a Mastermind Can Change the Course of Your Business

  Christine

  12 Apr 2012 | 1:29 pm

    Napoleon Hill, who was the author of the classic book on success, Think and Grow Rich, described a Mastermind as “a coordination of knowledge and effort, in a spirit of harmony between two or more people, for the attainment of a definite purpose. This form of cooperative alliance has been the basis of nearly every great success.” Imagine having the support of other like-minded entrepreneurs, working together to reach a common goal: to have a profitable, rewarding and FUN business that feeds your soul AND impacts the world. I’ve been a member of different masterminds…

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  Zazoo

• A Pin-teresting concept

  ray

  1 May 2012 | 6:48 am

  So you think you’ve finished your studies? You may have graduated years ago, but let me tell you, in today’s economy, school is never out. If you don’t have it already, you need to develop a philosophy of life-long learning. Things are changing much too fast to rely simply on what you learned at uni or [...]

• Digital natives vs. digital immigrants

  ray

  25 Apr 2012 | 7:06 pm

  By Ray Welling In the competition between digital natives – Gen Y, which has grown up with online technology and digital immigrants – those of us who can remember typewriters and phones with cords attached – for primacy online, it seems that the digital natives have gained the upper hand. Think Mark Zuckerberg (Facebook, and a billion [...]

• On joining the Creative Economy

  ray

  22 Mar 2012 | 5:08 am

  Ray has started a new gig, writing a column/blog for Smarter Business Ideas, a magazine and website for small businesses who use Telstra services. Here’s an excerpt from his first post: With both his kids following their father down the difficult path of a ‘creative’, Ray Welling offers the next generation some sound business advice that they [...]

• The Jim Morrison guide to relevance through social marketing

  ray

  19 Sep 2011 | 5:28 pm

  From Ray’s NETT blog: What are the most important factors to consider when you’re communicating ideas to people? How do you get your message across successfully? From my days as a journalist writing for newspapers and magazines through to my current work presenting digital marketing messages or lecturing to students, a few common themes have emerged in terms [...]

• The more things change…

  ray

  22 Aug 2011 | 7:20 am

  From Ray’s NETT blog: Despite working with new technology every day (or maybe because of it!), I like to collect old wares, and my idea of a good weekend includes some time spent trawling through antique and vintage shops. A recent acquisition was a set of books on ‘modern business’ produced by the Alexander Hamilton Institute back in [...]

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  Online Marketing Blog

• Channel Your Internal Marketing Warrior: 4 Tips for Strengthening Your Marketing Plan

  Ashley Zeckman

  15 May 2012 | 5:25 am

  Release Your Internal Marketing Warrior In March of this year I made a decision: I wanted to get healthier.  The problem I have always faced is that I didn’t see the point of exercise, just for the sake of exercise.  Treadmills and stationary bicycles never did much for me, but I was looking for a way to regain some focus and start down a healthier path. About a month ago I spoke with my good friend Ali who had recently started a training program to become a yoga instructor.  She convinced me to attend a class with her and I even though I’ve done yoga before, this was an entirely new…

• 5 Ways to Optimize the Business Value of Attending Conferences

  Lee Odden

  14 May 2012 | 11:37 am

  Are you optimizing your conference experience? TopRank receives a lot of value from having me speak at conferences but you don’t have to be a speaker to realize a positive return from events. Small, large online or offline, there are numerous ways to optimize and maximize your return on conference involvment both in the short and long term. If your company is considering whether to send you to events because of uncertain return or benefits, show them the following list. In fact, if I were running a conference, I’d make sure these tips are shared with attendees, sponsors and…

• Online Marketing News: Take Action on Social Data, LinkedIn Gets the Scoop, Google Reigns Supreme, Google & Big Data for SEO

  Ashley Zeckman

  11 May 2012 | 5:35 am

  Actionable Social Analytics This recent infographic by awareness takes a dive into social analytics.  In an era where virtually every brand is online, it is essential that action is being taken off of the data we are collecting from social networks.  This infographic provides not only some of the Key Performance Indicators (KPI) that your company should be tracking, but how to calculate these numbers as well.  Examples of the KPI’s your company should be tracking: Brand Awareness & Reputation Marketing Program Effectiveness Lead Generation Effectiveness Use LinkedIn to Get Juicy…

• Holistic Optimization Across the Sales Cycle: Optimize Speaking Events May & June

  Lee Odden

  10 May 2012 | 10:08 am

  When you have a business that relies on attracting new business online the sheer volume of options can be confusing. Should offline advertising efforts transfer to online? Maybe email marketing? What about SEO or the hot topic, social media? So much focus is placed on tactics and channels, that a lot of misplaced digital marketing budget gets wasted or spent inefficiently. To bring some clarity to the myriad online marketing options available, I think it’s worth marketers taking a holistic approach that starts with an essential understanding of goals and customers. Who are your best…

• What Are the Most Important Social Networks for Business?

  Lee Odden

  9 May 2012 | 10:03 am

  If you’ve been involved with marketing on the web for 10 years or more, could you have imagined what the web looks like today back in 2002? Considering the changes over the past year between Google, Facebook, Pinterest and Mobile, looking ahead just 12 months can be a challenge.  The state of constant change requires an adaptable approach. One that involves a cyclical process of planning, implementation, scale and refinement. During that process of continuous optimization, it’s important to take the temperature of trends for your specific target market as well as at a broad…

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  Content Matters

• News Flash: Crappy Replica Apps Won't Save Publishing

  Barry Graubart

  15 May 2012 | 8:18 am

  My Twitter stream was all abuzz yesterday with tweets suggesting that the App Economy was over. I must have missed that official announcement, so I clicked through to read a bit more. The root of all the excitement, it turns out, was a post by Jason Pontin, Publisher of MIT Technology Review entitled Why Publishers Don’t Like Apps. The article shares MIT’s experiences in developing, launching and promoting an app for the respected Technology Review magazine.  And the author points to the MIT experience as evidence that the mobile web, not native apps, are the compelling path forward for…

• Developing Your Mobile Strategy in a Multi-platform World

  Barry Graubart

  14 May 2012 | 2:44 pm

  At the bootcamp session at last week's Content VIA Platforms conference, I gave a presentation on developing a mobile strategy in a multi-platform world. It was a fun discussion, spotlighting why HTML5 vs. native app doesn't have to be a religious war, among other topics. I've posted the slides here. Developing your mobile strategy siia via bootcamp - barry graubart At the bootcamp, we also discussed the recent Jason Pontin post, Why Publishers Don't Like Apps and my response, News Flash: Crappy Replica Apps Won't Save Publishing. 

• I Moved

  Barry Graubart

  17 Apr 2012 | 3:25 pm

  I'm pleased to announce that I've recently joined Reis, Inc. as Vice President of Marketing for ReisReports.com. Reis is the leading provider of commercial real estate information and analytics to lenders and investors. For more than 30 years, Reis has been the authoritative source for rent, vacancy, absorption and new construction data. In my new role I'll be leading the growth of ReisReports.com, a platform aimed at bringing Reis content to new audiences. For more information visit ReisReports or drop me a note.

• Is Apple a Net Job Creator or Destroyer?

  Barry Graubart

  2 Mar 2012 | 3:29 pm

  Apple's been taking heat lately about their manufacturing locations and treatment of workers at FoxConn and elsewhere. Today, the company struck back, releasing a study showing that the Company and its ecosystem have been responsible for the creation of 514,000 U.S. jobs. About 10% of those jobs are with Apple itself (47,000 of their 70,000 employees are in the U.S.), the rest include jobs by companies in their supply chain (e.g. Corning, creator of iPad and iPhone screens) as well as those of the Fedex workers who deliver their products. The company also made a point of noting that their 21…

• Men are from Mars; Women are from Pinterest

  Barry Graubart

  15 Feb 2012 | 9:25 am

  Unless you’ve been on Mars, or perhaps a Moon colony, you’ve probably heard about Pinterest and how it’s the fastest growing social net out there.  According to comScore, Pinterest now has more than 11 million active users, making it the fastest independent site to hit 10 million monthly unique. The average Pinterest user spends 98 minutes per month on the site, trailing only Facebook and Tumblr in social media time spent. Even more interesting, TechCrunch has reported that as many as 97% of Pinterest users are female. That number seems a bit suspect – it’s actually based upon…

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  FUEL LINES Fueling Ad Agency New Business Through Social Media

• Ad Agencies: Independence does not mean having to go it alone

  Michael Gass

  15 May 2012 | 3:56 pm

  Ad Agency networks offer many benefits for small to midsize independent advertising agencies.  This is a guest post written by my friend,  Peter Gerritsen, president of Transworld Advertising Agency Network better known as TAAN, the oldest and among the largest ad agency networks in the world, with 52 member agencies operating in 32 different countries. Peter Gerritsen, president of TAAN Not a single person in this business can truly say they do it all by themselves.  We all work with many different resources, vendors, staff, clients, media, consultants, friends, mentors,…

• Why ad agencies should learn about Springpad

  Michael Gass

  14 May 2012 | 9:54 am

  If you are a regular reader of Fuel Lines, you know that I am a big fan of Edward Boches, Chief Innovation Officer (formerly Chief Creative Officer and Chief Social Media Officer) at Mullen. Edward was among the few creatives to understand the importance of social media as an active practitioner. He has led his agency by example. I’m honored to have Edward share a new social media platform through this guest post that will help your agency and your clients. Over the last five plus years we’ve seen the emergence of numerous new social platforms change how we market, distribute…

• AMC’s The Pitch: Chemistry with the TV audience is different than with the potential client

  Michael Gass

  13 May 2012 | 6:52 am

  Prospective clients are looking for chemistry and likability in their ad agency partners and it doesn’t have to be a crap shoot.  BooneOakley, a small 20 person ad agency in Charlotte, NC, showcased its unusual chemistry on “The Pitch” before a nationally televised audience. They were competing against a New York agency, Conversation, to be selected to develop an ad campaign for the popchips company. BooneOakley didn’t win the client, but evidently they won over the television audience. According to the initial results of AMC’s The Pitch Poll – “Who…

• Nobody Reads Ad Agency Blogs

  Michael Gass

  8 May 2012 | 11:32 pm

  Why most agencies may be ready to ditch their blog and why they shouldn’t.  Jack Marshall, a staff writer for Digiday wrote an article that is creating lots of buzz entitled, “Agencies Ditch Blogs.” He points to a study conducted by the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth, that reveals that only 37% of Fortune 500 companies now maintain a blog. That is down from 50% that was reported in 2010. Jack makes an assumption that this is  that this is probably true of advertising agencies: “It seems there’s a similar trend among agencies. Though many sporadically…

• Lessons from AMCs ‘The Pitch’ on How to Motivate Your Ad Agency After A Loss

  Michael Gass

  7 May 2012 | 10:06 am

  Tracy Wong, The Mirren New Business Conference How to lose a pitch in front of millions of television views and the entire ad industry and still come out as the winner. A good number of agencies depend upon the pitch as the primary way they win new business and grow. Some national attention and industry buzz has been brought upon the pitch process due to AMC’s new show simply called, ‘The Pitch,’  where two opposing ad agencies compete against each other for work for a nationally recognized brand. ‘The Pitch’ demonstrates the flaws in the pitch-for-business…

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  Jon Dale

• 365 Days of Pikes Peak – The Journey

  Jon Dale

  16 May 2012 | 5:00 am

  This is a guest post from Shaun Dagget (aka The Pikes Peak Guy). Shaun is best known for photographing Pikes Peak every single day for a year as a result he’s somewhat a of legend in this part of the country. He launched a hugely successful Kickstarter campaign and has gone on to release a series of companion products to his original coffee table book (which he’s just released in a softcover version). His story is amazing and has huge implications for publishing specifically and business in general. Shaun is a perfect example of the kind of entrepreneur Chris Guillebeau talks…

• Review of The $100 Startup by Chris Guillebeau

  Jon Dale

  8 May 2012 | 1:41 pm

  Every once in a while a book comes along that hits you right between the eyes and changes everything. For me this happened when I read Tribes and realized that the way business and marketing works had changed and most people didn’t realize it. My life’s work is a result of the change in thinking I experienced while reading that book. A few weeks ago I was priveleged to receive an advance copy of Chris Guillebaue’s new book, The $100 Startup.  I’m convinced this book is going to do for thousands of people what Tribes did for me.  It’s going to change the way…

• How long should your blog posts be?

  Jon Dale

  25 Apr 2012 | 6:00 am

  I get this question a lot.  My answer is really simple. As long as it needs to be and no longer.

• Sabbaticals, calling and the thought process behind Moolala

  Jon Dale

  22 Sep 2011 | 10:11 am

  Many of you know that I’ve been taking a blogging sabbatical while we launch Moolala. In some ways it’s been amazingly freeing but there are other times I’ve got ideas bouncing around that I’d really like to share. Yesterday I sat down with Kevin Miller for an episode of his Free Agent Underground Podcast.  We talked about figuring out your life calling (one of my favorite subjects) and he got me to share several different stories from my early days in business and a lot about our philosophy in launching Moolala. Most people will just hear the audio version of this…

• Do Not Reply

  Jon Dale

  22 Jun 2011 | 3:11 pm

  There are few things more frustrating than hitting reply and composing an email only to realize that you’re replying to DONOTREPLY@wedontcareaboutyou.com. I think using a DO NOT REPLY address is one of rudest things a company can do.  It’s tantamount to saying “We don’t care if you want to talk to us.” Just my 2 cents…take it or leave it.

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  Kneale Mann

• Is Customer Service an Endangered Species?

  Kneale Mann

  15 May 2012 | 4:54 am

  If you work somewhere, you have customers. Even if you are eight levels away from actual paying clients, you are part of the equation. Which means you have a chance to improve or diminish the experience each and every customer has with your company. We are also customers of each other inside our companies. I call it internal customer service. Without it, external customer service will forever be a challenge. We all want great service but clearly we don't always get it. Why is that? Is it because good enough will do for most people? Is it because the fear of actually stopping and doing a great…

• We Don't Always Know

  Kneale Mann

  11 May 2012 | 4:15 am

  The ascent of leadership within your career and business is a complex journey. It would be simple to look back at when you got a raise or promotion and called those the rungs on the ladder. When you look a bit deeper, they may not have been your growth spots. Since we aren’t machines nor are our teammates, coworkers and fellow stakeholders, we need to keep a keen eye on human elements and interaction. So if we pause for moment and look at those times in our career where we felt hampered perhaps in a restricted environment, were those possible learning opportunities or obstacles? Two-Way…

• How Important are Your People?

  Kneale Mann

  8 May 2012 | 3:00 am

  Leadership is action, not position. Donald H. McGannon It’s simple to develop responsibilities, titles, direct reports and deliverables. But how will you allow a place of teamwork to resemble reality? The organizational chart is probably necessary for you to chunk up the work, responsibilities and strengths of your business but how you build a great, sustaining and successful company is through your people. There are no short cuts. If you have ever experienced a true open environment it can be exciting - yet to some - chaotic. And because most don't want chaos, they choose to keep things…

• Are We the Enlightened Ones?

  Kneale Mann

  5 May 2012 | 6:06 am

  It may be safe to suggest that humans have uttered the idiom “in this day and age” since we could form the words – in whatever language we spoke at the time. Some have claimed that there are more scientists alive today than in any other time in history. We have seen monumental advancements in medicine, business and technology in the last one hundred years. However one seventh of world's population won’t eat today and there is war and conflict around the world. We have a way to go. Make More Faster The industrial revolution created mass production and transformed business and…

• 2012 List | Revisited

  Kneale Mann

  4 May 2012 | 4:35 am

  We like lists. They’re easy to read and review. It’s content in small digestible chunks. But without action, they’re just nice lists. On January 1st, I did yet another one and I was looking at it this week. Much work to be done, especially the singing! Travel more Forget the past Turn your phone off Someday is not on the calendar Don't wait for approval Talk about them Say sorry Excuses won’t help you Dream big. Do bigger Be gracious Thank your parents Make quick decisions Trust yourself Numbers are irrelevant Read more, skim less  Stop comparing yourself to others Make eye…

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  Social Networking Watch: News on the Social Networking and Social Media Industry

• Twitter Touts U.K. Growth Figures

  Mark Brooks

  15 May 2012 | 5:48 pm

  CNET NEWS - May 15 - 80% of Twitter's users in the U.K. are also active on mobile devices, easily besting the global average of 55%. 10M people across the U.K. are actively using Twitter, placing it in fourth place behind the U.S., Brazil, and Japan. Twitter now has 140M active users around the world. by Don ReisingerSee full article at CNet News See all posts on Twitter

• Facebook Files New S-1, Pricing $34-38 Per Share, Raising $14.7B

  Mark Brooks

  15 May 2012 | 5:44 pm

  TECH CRUNCH - May 15 - Facebook will offer underwriters the right to purchase up to an additional 50,612,302 shares of Class A common stock to cover over-allotments. Facebook anticipates that the IPO price will be $34-$38 per share. In total there will be 337.5M shares offered, plus the 50.6M additional shares (so up to 388M shares sold), and it wants to raise $14.7 billion. The stock will be trading under FB. by Ingrid LundenSee full article at Tech Crunch See all posts on Facebook

• Japan's Mixi Mulls Putting Itself Up For Sale

  Mark Brooks

  15 May 2012 | 5:32 pm

  MARKET WATCH - May 15 - Japanese social network mixi is considering putting itself up for sale. Mixi, which began operating in 2004 and quickly became Japan's leading social network, has struggled to maintain or grow its user base in recent years as Facebook has made a concerted push into the Japanese market and as mobile phone gaming sites have grown in popularity. Mixi's net profit fell 45.8% last year. See full article at MarketWatch See all posts on Mixi

• Chinese Social Network Renren Sees Losses Increase

  Mark Brooks

  15 May 2012 | 5:05 pm

  BBC.CO.UK - May 15 - Renren posted a loss of $13.6M compared to $2.6M in losses YOY. The firm runs one of the biggest social network in China, as well as a daily deals site. Renren said it had to raise expenditure on marketing to $17.4M, a 78% increase from last year, mainly on its daily deals site Nuomi.com. However online gaming has proven to be a good alternate source of revenue for the company. See full article at BBC.co.uk See all posts on Renren

• OMMA Mobile Conference Takeaways

  Mark Brooks

  14 May 2012 | 5:43 pm

  MARK BROOKS - May 14 - I checked out OMMA Mobile today, which is part of New York City Internet Week.  Here's the top takeaways. Get with the program! Within 2 years 50% of all internet consumption will come from mobile devices. Buy now, and establish your ad partners, while costs are reasonable. Less than 1% of online ad spends are on mobile. Put mobile at the core of your marketing efforts and don't silo your mobile ad budget. For more takeaways see the Courtland Brooks blog.