Social Media Marketing Blog by LeapForward Marketing

Active Brand Participation as the Driving Factor Behind Online Marketing

2011-02-07T10:08:00.000-08:00

Andy Hobsbawm, Brands 2.0 - brands in digital world
Rachel S. Demerling, “Twitter Me This, Twitter Me That.” The Marketization of Brands Through Social Networking Sites

I will probably sound redundant when I say that in the Web 2.0 world, the rules of marketing have changed. No longer companies, organizations and institutions have a monopoly on brand-related information. No longer mass media is the single source of mass information. Today, everyone is a media outlet. Today, consumers are the primary and most trusted source of information about brands and products. Add to that highly fragmented audiences and increasingly shorter attention spans, and what you will get is a totally new marketing environment in which brands need to reinvent themselves in order to stay afloat and to grow.

In this new environment it is no longer enough to simply broadcast a message. To be heard - and listened to - brands need to become active participants of communities and conversations that take place online. With new territory, come new rules. And there are three big challenges that brands face online.

Lack of control. I have already mentioned that, today, consumers are the main and most trusted source of information about brands and products/services. And it looks like it is not going to change. Instead of trying to take control over what's being said about them - which is, needless to say, is impossible - brands should encourage the flow of favorable consumer-generated content through reviews, comments, photos, videos and more. Brands should be ready to get negative feedback as well and use this feedback to their advantage by responding in a timely and constructive fashion. In her article Demerling writes that consumer feedback "provides the retailer with invaluable information about what their consumers like or dislike about their products, as well as what improvements can be made to increase sales."
Considerable investment. No, I am not talking about money here. This was the easy way in the olden days of traditional media domination. Today, brands must invest something more valuable than cash. They need to invest their time and human resources to be constantly engaged in the conversations taking place on the social web. Marketers should stop treating social media like a second class citizen assigning responsibility for social media efforts to interns and least experienced staff members. Your social media marketing campaign should be led by an experienced professional who has a great understanding of your target audience as well as various social media tools.
Human interaction. As Hobsbawm puts it, "There has only been one magic ingredient for truly compelling net interactions: people." In other words, people don't want to connect with brands, they want to connect with other people. Successful social media marketing campaigns build communities around brands. They also create brand advocates whether by appointing people from within companies or providing most dedicated customer/fans with the tools to 'evangelize' brands to the rest of the world.

The 3 Pillars of an Online Group

2011-02-07T08:48:00.000-08:00

Clay Shirky, Here Comes Everybody

Chapter 11 Review

Most online marketers are striving to build successful communities around their brands. Everybody is looking for the "secrete sauce" that will get people interested and keep them engaged. Until recently, I was sure that one-size-fits-all model for building online communities didn't exist. And those who claimed they had a proven way to make brands "big" on the web were just looking to get a quick buck at the expense of people who knew little about the principles of the Web 2.0.

As it turns out, the secrete sauce does exist. What's unfortunate, though, is that even with the knowledge of what makes an online community successful, most brands will still get it wrong. So, here it is, the 3 Pillars of an Online Group:

Plausible promise. According to Shirky, this is the "essential piece that convinces a potential user to become an actual user." What is it that your brand - and, most importantly, the community behind it - has to offer. I'm really into rock climbing. So, let's say I want to promote a new climbing shoe line designed especially for women. Female climbers face different challenges than male climbers. So, my community might be based on the plausible promise that the female members will become better climbers (please note, I'm not going to promise them that they will become world-class climbers. The promise has to be plausible). By participating in my community, female climbers will gain access to information that will help them deal with women-specific rock climbing challenges, like climbing during and after pregnancy, meeting fellow female climbers, developing proper training routines and climbing techniques and such.
Tools. The next key is provide group member with the right set of tools to participate. Members of my community will be able to create personal profiles, find other climbers based on location, organize events and climbing trips, share their knowledge through forums and blogs, upload and comment on photos, create subgroups (like Climbing after Pregnancy or Female Climber of Tampa groups). In addition there will be a branded blog loaded with useful information. Keep in mind that the tools you provide must be "designed to fit the job being done" and they "must help people do something they actually want to do."
Bargains. As Shirky puts it, a bargain "helps clarify what you expect of others and what they can expect of you." The bargain for my female climber community is that members can expect to receive a sound advice and support from fellow members in exchange for sound advice and support. Proper language and other communication and media standards might also be part of the bargain. What's important to remember is that the bargain has to be "a part of the lived experience of interaction."

In theory, these 3 pillars of a successful online community sound pretty simple. In practice, however, it's hard to get all of them right. Deep insight into your target audience's needs and motivations and understanding of the different social tools will certainly make the job easier.

The Key to Building a Successful Online Community

2011-02-07T07:58:00.000-08:00

Clay Shirky, Here Comes Everybody

Chapter 9 Review

In this chapter, Shirky talks about the principals on which Small World networks are built and why in the world where virtually everybody is connected to everybody, Small World networks prove to be most effective and efficient at maintaining connections and moving information. Shirky writes: "Small World networks have two characteristics that, when balanced properly, let messages move through the network effectively. The first is that small groups are densely connected... The second characteristic... is that large groups are sparsely connected." In other words, a Small World network consists of many small clusters of closely connected (average) users bridged by highly connected individuals.

In social media marketing terms, those highly connected individuals are often referred to as "though leaders." The ultimate goal of many social media marketing campaigns that I've witnessed was to get attention of "though leaders" in particular industries. What many campaigns have failed to accomplish, however, is to provide those high-profile individuals with the right tools to help companies connect people with one another as well with marketed brands.

A blog post by Chris Brogan about your brand or a viral YouTube video guarantee your 5 minutes of fame. But what happens next? Have you created a space where people who like your brand can come together (think blog, Facebook page, branded community, etc.)? Have you given them the tools to connect and build relationships with one another and your brand (think: comments, reviews, guest posts, user-uploaded photos and videos, etc.)?

Too often social media marketing campaigns focus on one of the two key components of the Small World network: high-profile individuals or average users. The key is to find the right balance between the two. Let (average) users connect and talk about your brand - and everything else - in smaller clusters. This is a natural way for groups of people to exchange information. At the same time, have the tools that"though leaders" can use to bring in more people and help them build and maintain their own connection withing already existing community.

Let's Talk About Mass Personalization

2011-01-31T10:43:00.000-08:00

V. Hazleton, J. Harrison-Rexrode, W. Kennan

New technologies in the Formation of Personal and Public Relations

"Since individuals are changing the ways in which they communicate whith each other, correspondingly, the methods used in public relations to create, maintain, and utilize relationships are changing as well."

One of the most significant changes social media has brought on communication was in the network-building capabilities of an average user. In the word where everybody is connected, geographical boundaries have diminished and people began to build relationships based not on proximity, but on similarity. Whatever it is you are into, there's a good chance you can find a community of like-minded people somewhere on the web. And the harder it is for an individual to meet people he can relate to offline, the stronger his ties will be to his online community.

These affinity-based online relationships together with public availability of personal information have changed the way we think of strangers (at least strangers we meet online). We relate to those strangers on a more personal level, we feel for them, we even call some of them friends.

Some marketers make a mistake of thinking about social media as just another tool to reach the masses and broadcast messages. But times have changed and your consumer expects much more than an impersonal one-way message. She wants to get product recommendations based on her past purchases or personal style. She expects to see her name spelled out in the emails she receives from your company. She assumes you'll remember her baby's birthday. What's more, she expects you to reply to her tweets and posts on your Facebook fan page.

Not too long ago, corporate/institutional participation in social media was optional, and those who weren't ready refrained. Today, however, if you are not talking about your company online, someone else is. As a company owner/employee or a marketer, you have to be ready to represent your company online and invest a considerable amount of resources to connecting with your customers on a personal level.

It's Not Just Social Media Marketing, It's a New Kind of Marketing

2011-01-31T09:47:00.000-08:00

Clay Shirky, Here Comes Everybody

Chapter 7 Review

In this chapter Shirky talks about the reasons behind the rise of successful social movements in recent years. Social tools have allowed individuals to easily find and connect with like-mended people. And, as Shirky puts it, "Whenever you improve a group's ability to communicate internally, you change the things it is capable of." Social Web has granted virtually unlimited access to information to its users. What's more, it provided the tools for people to easily share that information as well as create and distribute new content to the masses. This information flow has empowered web users. And when enough people get together, they are now capable of changing long-established institutional, political and societal structures.

In this context, social media marketing is not just marketing on social media sites. It is a new kind of brand (organization, institution, etc.) to consumer interaction, where the consumer is well-aware that he is now an active - and very powerful - participant of the conversation. This concept can be hard to grasp for people brought up on traditional media.

Today, any marketing initiative is not just a final product of efforts by a creative agency, paying company and media outlet. It is rather a process, a living organism that evolves and changes in the hands of consumers. To be successful on social media, companies and organizations need to be ready to give up the control over their brands and messages they are so used to having. Instead, organizations need to learn how to facilitate conversations and provide customers with the tools to connect, communicate and take action in ways that are beneficial for both, the facilitating company and the users.

Personal Motivation as a Driver Behind Your Social Media Campaign

2011-01-31T08:19:00.000-08:00

Clay Shirky, Here Comes Everybody

Chapter 5 Review

What is it about Wikipedia.org that allowed it to survive - and flourish - in the environment of chaotic collaboration, where anyone can make any edits they want? How has Wikipedia managed to become a reliable source of often academic information, despite the fact that the majority of its contributors have limited (and sometimes zero) knowledge on subjects they write about? In this chapter Shirky explains that with the rise of social media, entry barriers to group communication and collaboration have almost diminished. Therefore, people don't need to be rewarded in some financial way to communicate, create and collaborate anymore. It's the "feeling good" reward that get's them going.

Marketers have always sought ways to engage audiences, get them excited and, ultimately, spread the word of mouth. In theory, today it's easier than ever to do so. I mean, all you need is to attract enough customers who are passionate enough about a particular subject and give people the tools to communicate and collaborate around it. "[If] enough people care enough about an article to read it," writes Shirky about the Wikipedia phenomenon, "then enough people will care enough to improve it." In reality though, there have to be some strong non-financial incentives for people to get together and do something.

Because there are so many non- and for-profit social initiatives on the Web these days, marketers not only have to identify and bring to light WHAT moves the audiences, but also understand WHY it moves them. This is the 'secrete sauce' everyone is looking for. From aspiration to do a good thing, to desire to get healthier, raise a happy child or simply find a good deal, every customer has a personal motivation for things they do online. A deep understanding of your customers motives will greatly increase your chances for success.

Finally an Update

2011-01-30T13:32:00.000-08:00

I'm not a Twitter-quitter and I'm not a blogging-quitter. And although I haven't posted here in a while, there's a good reason for that. Or rather a couple of good reasons.

First of all, since my last post my husband Peter got laid off, and, as a result, we started our own family company called My Little Jules.

My Little Jules, or www.mylittlejules.com, is an online kids' clothing store where you'll find cute baby clothes and fun toddler outfits your little ones will love to wear! We search through many brands to find the ones that truly reflect the essence of childhood. So, I've been crazy-busy promoting our company and managing all aspects of this business (together with my beloved hubby, of course). If you'd like to connect with My Little Jules, here are a few links.

My Little Jules Facebook page - personally, my favorite
My Little Jules Twitter account
Jules Got Style blog

Second, I went back to school to get my M.S. in Marketing! I'm really excited about that, although it's been pretty tough to balance family, work and school life... and squeeze a little bit of "me" time somewhere in there too. So, for the next few months, I'll be using this blog to post writing assignment for one of my classes, Strategic Media Communication, which, hopefully, will get me back into the habit of writing about social media and social media marketing!

What Your Parents Taught You About Social Media Marketing

2010-08-30T09:15:00.000-07:00

Julia and I just came back from a play date at a local recreation center. Being around 1- to 3-tear-old creaming ‘machines’ who are constantly stealing balls and toy cars from each other made me think about… you got it!... social media marketing.

From young a age our parents taught us the importance of sharing. Unfortunately, many companies still overlook this critical element of social media marketing. It’s too bad, because without a comprehensive sharing strategy, your online marketing efforts might not get the exposure – and results – they deserve.

The Importance of Sharing In Social Media Marketing
Today’s customers are empowered with information. The Internet has allowed people to access and share knowledge, which made the word of mouth one of the most trusted sources of information about products and brands. Get online, and you’ll find that the Web is flooded with website, blogs, social pages, forums and more filled with information about your company.

Unfortunately, you have little control over what information your customers share about your company and how they share it. But you can channel that information in ways that align with your overall marketing strategy.

Be Nice and Share
The first thing you need to do is to start sharing yourself. Create content about your company and its offerings as well as about other things that relate to your products/services/industry and are of an interest to your target audience. Create as much quality content as you can, create it in many formats and publish it on multiple social media sites. Then, make it easy for your audience to find and share that information.

Teach Them about Sharing
Don’t just assume that your customers will share your content. Guide them. Invite them to tweet about a blog post, email a product page to friends, or post your YouTube video to Facebook. Be direct about what you want them to do and offer options.

In addition, encourage customers create their own content. Ask your audience for comments and reviews and reward contribution. Saying “Thank you,” is usually enough. But you can also reward them in other ways. For example, Home Depot asks its customers to write a product review for a chance to win a $1000 gift card.

Remember, a comprehensive sharing strategy can help you build strong relationships with your audience, expand your reach and deepen market penetration.

So, how do you make sharing part of your social media marketing strategy?

5 Benefits of Online B2B Marketing

2010-08-19T07:20:00.000-07:00

Save on your marketing costs

going small

Compete with the ‘big dogs’

Create a unique voice for your brand

Integrate your brand into your customers daily lives

Receive feedback from your customers

The Value Of Free In Social Media Merketing

2010-08-14T07:25:00.000-07:00

Some may argue that by being free (for the most part) Google cheapens its brand and misses out on revenue generating opportunities. However, others see it as a way to build valuable relationships with potential buyers. By giving out an array of free tools and applications, Google integrates its brand into personal and professional lives of its customers. At the end of the day, this strategy brings more paying clients - and money - through Google's main revenue generator AdWords. What's more, by letting people use its' tools for 'free,' Google gains an insight into its users' lives and minds, which, again, translates into more revenue from Google AdWrods.

Lesson learned? Free stuff that you give out to your target audience is not really free after all. When presented in a right way, e-books, whitepapers, educational videos, apps, games, blog posts and more can become powerful tools for generating and nurturing leads, communicating a message to your audience and even executing a market research. Everything that you broadcast using social media sites, each message you communicate and everything you give out 'for free' should be integrated into you overall marketing strategy. Only then you'l be able to get the real value out of the free stuff you share with you existing and potential customers.

AND THE MOST IMPORTANT THING TO KNOW ABOUT MARKETING IS…

2010-08-09T17:49:00.000-07:00

A few day ago I came across a LinnkedIn discussion about ‘What is the most important thing to know about marketing?’. It was interesting to read people’s personal opinions on what marketing is all about. But that discussion also made me think. And after some considerations I came to this conclusion:

The most important thing to know about marketing, is that its end purpose is to sell the product. Too often we get caught up in 'being creative,' 'having fun,' 'building relationships' and such. No matter how cool/cutting edge your marketing activities are, if they are not selling the product (one way or another), you are doing something wrong.

The market, your customer, target segments, market’s needs, creative approach, listening and responding, which were some of the answers on that discussion, are all very important components of marketing. However, everything you do and how you do it must eventually translate into sales/profit. Otherwise, you are wasting your company's resources on people and activities that won't positively impact the bottom line.

If you are a member of the Marketing Communication group, you can view this discussion here.

Image credit: Tracy O

INSPIRATION WANTED

2010-08-07T10:03:00.000-07:00

Ever feel like your creative juices just aren’t flowing - the big idea isn’t coming and the ‘a-ha!’ moment… well, is not happening? In times like this, I always think about a movie I saw some years ago. The movie is called “Dead Poets Society.”

In this movie, an English professor John Keating, played by Robin Williams, makes his students stand on a table to see the world from a different perspective. Through this exercise, Mr. Keating reminds his students, and all of us, that we "must constantly look at things in a different way." "Just when you think you know something," he says in another scene, "you have to look at it in another way."

So, next time you slip into a creative coma, remember, sometimes, you just need to look at things from a different perspective. And you’ll realize that the big idea has been there all along.

TWITTER AS A LEAD GENERATION TOOL

2010-08-05T19:11:00.000-07:00

Despite being so hot these days, Twitter often poses a real challenge for those who use it as a business tool. How do you get people to follow you? What should you tweet about? How do you convert 140 characters into a real buyer?

How to Get Tweeple* to Follow You?
This is a two step process. First, you identify people who will want you buy your product. This is done using Twitter search and other search tools available online. Then, you broadcast information that delivers real value to people you follow.

What Should You Tweet About?
As a rule of thumb, 50 - 70% of your tweets should be ‘educational material.’ Most often it’s third party information that presents value to your followers but is not directly related to your company. So, if your are a food retail chain, you ca talk about the latest research in healthy eating, give out recipes and more. The rest of the tweets should be company related: your blog posts, news coverage, research, special offers and such.

How to Use Twitter as a Lead-Generation Tool?
For B2C marketing, promotions, coupons and special offers are great. If you are a B2B company, using Twitter to generate leads might be a little more challenging. For B2B users, Twitter presents an opportunity to establish themselves as though-leaders and build meaningful relationships that might later translate into sales. You can also use Twitter to tie together all your other social media activities like blogging, video sharing and social networking. However, if you are looking for a ‘quick fix,’ you can use Twitter to promote a white paper or a webinar. Ask people to register to download/participate and you get your B2B leads!

*Tweeple - people who use twitter.com

If you have more ideas on how to use Twitter as a lead generation tool, please share your wisdom with others.

GO SMALL TO GET BIG

2010-08-04T06:59:00.000-07:00

The world of social media offers marketers an incredible opportunity to reach a very specific buyer. The infinite number of niche sites and communities makes it fairly easy to locate and connect with people who want to buy your product. It’s unfortunate that many companies are still missing out on this opportunity because their marketing teams are doing Facebook ads and pitching Chris Brogan. Not to say that such ‘high-level’ marketing (as I call it) shouldn’t be done). But sometimes to get big on social media sites you should go to the very niche communities and plant your ideas there first.

Those communities might be very small. There might be an overwhelming amount to choose from which will make it very time consuming to pick the right ones. You will have to dedicate your time and resources to becoming a true member of those communities. But the benefits outweigh the challenges. Besides saving you some cash and waited efforts, social media niche marketing builds relationships based on trust. You are reaching your buyers on their turf where they feel warm, cozy and… safe. This makes them more open to new ideas, especially when they come from a trusted member of their community and are supported by others.

Here are a few questions you should answer before ‘going small’:

What can you provide that's new and compelling to met your market’s unique needs?
Do you know your market’s “hot buttons” and communicate as a member of the niche, not an outsider?
Who are the direct competitors and how will you position against them?

Check out this article on Entrepreneur.com for a more detailed strategy for niche marketing.

INTERESTED IN SOCIAL MEDIA MARKETING? LEARN TO FLY A HELICOPTER FIRST

2010-04-12T11:38:00.000-07:00

This past Christmas, my husband Peter wished for one thing and one thing only – an RC Helicopter. He lived and breathed RC helis - he watched hours of YouTube videos, read how-to guides and reviews, he even figured out a strategy to learn how to fly one. And so Santa, i. e. myself, had no other choice but to give Peter a 2.4Ghz Walkera HM 60B Brushless ready to fly RC Helicopter.

But while the heli was ready to fly, Peter wasn’t. As it turned out, it’s not as easy to fly an RC helicopter as it might seem. It took Peter about a month - and few hundred bucks for replacement parts - to get the thing off the ground. Today, he can keep the helicopter in the air for a minute or so. You get the idea.

Here’s what my beloved husband, has to say about why it is so difficult to fly an RC heli: “Well, one would think that you have only a limited number of controls to handle when flying a heli. In reality, you do… Seven of them, which need to be manipulated at the same time in order to fly successfully.” In addition, “all parts need to be put on correctly so they don't fly off or cause unwanted vibrations. And all the parts need to be configured as a whole in order for the heli to be balanced properly.”

Why am I telling you this? Because, the same is true for your social media marketing efforts.

There’s a lot at play here. Blogging, commenting, social networking, online video, social bookmarking, microblogging, search engine optimization - all the components of your social media marketing mix need to be tuned individually AND working in harmony, for your ‘helicopter’ to fly. And don’t forget all the ‘controls’ of your social media marketing like benchmarking, monitoring, participating, developing content and much-much more, which need to be handled simultaneously.

So, don’t get discouraged if your social media strategy doesn’t take off the ground right away. Practice makes perfect. It’s just the matter of time for your efforts to pay off!

SOCIAL MEDIA MARKETING BEST PRACTICES

2010-04-07T17:37:00.000-07:00

Getting started in social media marketing? Check out this video with @jhabra as a speaker.

Social Media - Best Practices to effective social media marketing and business strategy from SB Click on Vimeo.

THE VALUE OF SOCIAL MEDIA IN B2B MARKETING

2010-04-07T12:19:00.000-07:00

Today, it’s hard to argue that social media marketing is critical for effective B2C communications. But in B2B marketing, the value of social media is often overlooked. Today, via Jeff Bullas’ blog (@jeffbullas), I came across a study that looks at the impact of social media on the decision-making process among CEOs, Directors and Managers.

According to this study, the convergence of the Internet, Web 2.0 and emerging mobile technologies, has brought us to the era of B2P (Business-to-Person) communications. In this era, control over your company’s reputation belongs to your audience. That’s why all companies, big and small, must reach out to their audiences via social media.

What’s often overlooked in B2B marketing is the fact that it’s a person, a decision-maker, on the other side of the communication channel. As more and more people use social media for professional purposes, the role of social media in the decision-making process is rapidly increasing. In fact, today 82 percent of decision-makers say they conduct research online. “Through the use of professional networks and online communities, decision-makers are connecting and collaborating with peers, experts, and colleagues far and wide in an on- demand environment, about the issues that keep them up at night.”

Questions like:

Is this company experienced?
Is this company knowledgeable?
Is this company trustworthy?

play an important role during the decision-making process. And, guess what? To answer these questions, the decision-makers and their supporters read your blog, google your company’s name and ask their social networking peers for opinion. How many people are talking about you and what they say, shows how credible and experienced you are. What YOU say indicates your knowledge and builds trust.

Today, social media marketing is necessary for successful B2B communications. As the research paper concludes, “[l]aggards who do not understand the value of social networking and its appeal to the emotional side of customer relationship management will lose competitiveness and, ultimately, market share.”

IS your company leveraging the power of social media marketing? And what are some of the ways you use social media for B2B communications? Please, share your comments and ideas in the Comments section!

Image credit: Noah Sussman me on delicious network explorer

HOW TO INCREASE YOUR VISIBILITY ONLINE - PART 2

2010-03-31T09:32:00.000-07:00

If you’ve read Part 1 of this blog post, you already know how to increase your online visibility and expand social network through blogging and tweeting. If not, please see HOW TO INCREASE YOUR VISIBILITY ONLINE. Today, I’d like to talk about expanding your social network on LinkedIn and Facebook. I will also give a few tips on how to turn you ‘friends’ and followers into prospects.

LinkedIn:

Join Groups. The one most important step you can take to expand your social network on LinkedIn, in to join groups. You ca find groups you’d like to join using LinkedIn group search. You can join groups that fit your professional background or groups where your target audience is more likely to hang out. Check out 30 Top LinkedIn Groups for Entrepreneurs, eMarketers, and Social Media Enthusiasts by @WebStudio13. If you’d like to start your own group, read 8 Tips for Managing a LinkedIn Group by @mashable.
Participate in discussions. Once you’ve joined groups, start participating right away. Find discussions that interest you or relate to your products/services. Like with blog comments, speak up only when you have something valuable to add to the conversation. If someone replies, continue the conversation. When you feel comfortable, start your own discussions.
Always look for networking opportunities. Once in a while, you’ll come across open networking discussions where people, who are looking for social networking opportunities, leave links to their LinkedIn profiles, Twitter accounts, etc. Take these opportunities to connect with more people! You can also try staring a discussion in which you introduce yourself to the group and invite fellow group members to connect.

Facebook:

Leverage your existing network. Facebook is a little trickier than LinkedIn because it’s been used primarily to stay in touch with personal contacts. You can invite people you are connected to or already follow to become friends on Facebook. Once you’ve done that, look through your friends’ friends to see if there’s someone you might have missed or have met (on- or offline) before.
Join Facebook groups. Similar to LinkedIn groups, groups on Facebook are meant for people with similar backgrounds or interests. Join groups where your target audience hangs out. Participate in discussions and invite people to connect.
Create a Facebook page. You can think of a Facebook page as a Facebook profile for a company/brand. Update your page with interesting articles, new blog posts and tweets. Add pictures and video. Make it as interactive and informative as possible. Here’s a great video on how to create a Facebook page (via @johnhaydon).

Now, here are a few ways to turn your ‘friends’ and followers into prospects:

Lead, don’t sell. Social media marketing is all about carefully leading your audience into the buying process. Don’t use hard-sell techniques. Nurture your audience. Build relationships by offering valuable content, listening and responding.
Use call to action. Tell your audience what is he next thing you want them to do: read a blog post, join a group, participate in a discussion, answer a question, leave feedback, listen to a podcast, etc. It’s OK to ask your audience to contact you, check out your products or leave their info. Just make sure that you offer something valuable in return.
Maintain contact. In addition to your voicemail and email, check your social networking profiles and discussions often. Let people know what is the best way to reach you, but be prepared to communicate in many different ways.

Do YOU have ideas on how to increase visibility online and turn social networks into prospects? Please, share your comments and ideas in the Comments section!

HOW TO INCREASE YOUR VISIBILITY ONLINE

2010-03-31T06:41:00.000-07:00

So, you’ve done your homework. You’ve started a blog and regularly post content to it. You’ve completed your LinkedIn and Facebook profiles. You’ve registered a Twitter account and posted a few tweets. But what now? How do you expand your network and turn ‘friends’ and ‘followers’ into prospects? Here are a few ideas:

Blog:

Read other blogs. Using Google blog search, Technorati or any other blog search engine, find blogs that interest you and your potential clients. Once you’ve identified the first group of blogs, look through their blog rolls to find even more. Start reading blogs regularly. This will help you understand what’s relevant and help you come up with topics for your own blog.
Comment. When you get a chance, leave a comment. Link back to your own blog or individual posts, when appropriate. However, only comment when you have something valuable to add to the discussion. Here’s a great post from @problogger on leaving comments on other blogs.
Encourage conversation. Always ask for comments and encourage discussions on your own blog. Once in a while, write about something controversial. Contact other bloggers asking for their comments. If you get a comment – reply, check out commenter’s blog (if there’s one) and return a favor.

Twitter

Follow. Find people to follow using Twitter search. Look for key phrases that your target audience might use. These would be the same key phrases you’ve identified when optimizing your website for search engines. Using people search, check out if any of the bloggers you’ve identified earlier are on Twitter. When you come across an interesting article, see if the author is on Twitter. Always look for a “Follow me on Twitter” button on relevant websites.
Interact. Reply to people’s tweets or when someone is addressing you (@YOURtwittername), retweet other people or mention their names (@THEIRtwittername) in your tweets.
Make it even more social. Find Twitter lists and groups to follow/join or create your own lists and groups. Here are two great articles from Mashable (@mashable) on why and how to create Twitter lists and groups.

In my next posts I will talk about how to increase your visibility using social networking platforms like LinkedIn and Facebook. In will also discuss a few steps your need to take to turn your ‘friends’ and ‘followers’ into prospects.

In the meanwhile, I would love to hear how YOU use social media to expand your network. Please, share your comments and ideas in the Comments section!

ONE SOCIAL MEDIA MARKETING ADVICE EVERYONE SHOULD FOLLOW

2010-03-26T05:31:00.000-07:00

What is one advice all companies/brands should follow?

Last Sunday night @MomTalkRadio shared social media marketing advice with mom entrepreneurs: register your company/brand name in as many places as possible. This means:

• trademark your company/product name

• buy a domain name, including common misspellings

• create a Facebook page

• grab the name on Twitter

• register a blog

• and so on and so forth

Even if you are not using all the platforms now, you might want to use some of them later. It’s best to be prepared.

STAY DISCONNECTED

2009-11-27T08:40:00.001-08:00

I love holiday season! Not just because of those extra days off work, or good food, or even presents. But because of all the special moments I get to share with my family and friends. And while it’s tempting to sneak in a blog post or tweet between family dinner and a movie-watching session, I encourage all of you to stay… disconnected.

Let’s be honest, as much as some of us enjoy it, blogging, rating, commenting, sharing and all the other things we do on social media sites are exhausting. So, this holiday season, give social media a break and, instead, spend extra time chatting with your grandma, playing with your kids or barbecuing with friends. And then, get back to posting, tagging, poking, tweeting, watching, friending… with renewed energy, fresh ideas and clear mind.

Happy holidays!

Photo credit: jmtimages [off]

YOU ARE WHAT YOU TWEET

2009-11-18T11:14:00.000-08:00

Again, Courtney Love is causing trouble. This time, the bad-girl rock star is being sued for libel after posting derogatory tweets about designer Dawn Simorangkir. But yesterday’s story on cnn.com goes far beyond just covering Love’s social media flop. It raises some interesting questions about social media, law, privacy, freedom of speech and culture. To learn more about Love’s and other cases read Can the law keep up with technology?

What can we take away from this story? While the government – and society in general – is figuring our how to keep social media in line with the law without taking away from privacy and free speech, our job is to always remember that EVERYTHING we share via social media tools is accessible to virtually EVERYONE. What’s more, it’s there to stay.

Your tweets, blog comments, profile pictures, wall posts, photo albums, videos and more make up your online personality that today easily translates into your image in real life. So, whether you are using social media for personal or business purposes, don’t post something you wouldn’t say or share in real life.

And, by the way, another issue the story on cnn.com discusses is whether the Web is a “unique, separate space” or an extension of what I've been referring to as 'real life.' What do you think?

SOCIAL MEDIA AND MASS MEDIA: ARE WE GETTING IT ALL WRONG?

2009-11-12T12:52:00.000-08:00

In his recent post Lee Aase of Social Media University, Global (SMUG) talks about social media’s synergy with mass media. Aase writes that social media and mass media are fueling one another. They are working together to deliver information to the masses. As much as I agree with Mr. Aase that right now social media and mass media are working in synergy, I believe the synergy as he describes it is coming to an end.

Let me explain. Soon, TV, radio and newspapers as we know them will be gone. They will become more interactive and more… well… social. I can see the day when we will be able to ‘friend’ people, share shows and participate in discussions using our remote controls. What's more, as more and more people start using social media to access and share information, social media channels will become new vehicles of mass communication. So, may be instead of talking about synergy between social media and mass media, it’s time to start talking about their convergence?

Why is this important? Because when it comes to delivering your message to the masses, today, using social media is a must. Your audience doesn’t care how comfortable or uncomfortable you are with Facebook, YouTube and Twitter. The number of people who access information via social media platforms is growing rapidly, and it looks like it’s not going to change anytime soon. It’s time for businesses, organizations and individuals to bring their social media efforts to the next level. At the end of the day, whatever you put out there is for the whole world to see.

WHY USING SOCIAL MEDIA IS LIKE RAISING A CHILD

2009-11-11T12:28:00.000-08:00

My daughter turned 1 month yesterday. And it was quite a month for both, my husband and I. Only for the past week or so I started getting more or less comfortable with my new role as a mother. I’ve gotten used to being on her schedule. I stopped freaking out when she starts crying in the stroller while we are taking a walk. I know what to do when her tummy hurts. And I’ve learned to recognize her moods and needs. What I’ve also learned is that when it comes to raising kids, patience is everything.

You can’s ask a baby to hurry up and finish eating because you are having friends over and really want to hang out. You can’t tell her to fall asleep faster because your favorite show is about to start. But what’s more, you won’ see the results of most of your efforts till months, years or even decades from now.

That’s why using social media to achieve your business, organizational or personal goals is like raising a child. Ok, may be you won’t have to wait decades to see results. But unless you have already established a large online following (be that customers, fans or members of your organizations), it will take a little while for your efforts to pay off.

But be sure, with the first blog post will come the first reader and with the first tweet will come the first follower. Even if it doesn’t seem like it right now, your efforts WILL bring results. All you need is to be caring, resourceful and patient.

ONLINE VIDEO MARKETING GUIDE

2009-05-20T13:36:00.000-07:00

Online video marketing guide by the IAB Video Council will help you plan, create, execute and assess the success of your online video campaign. The guide provides useful info on using online video with other media, planning and executing online video campaigns, setting objectives, developing creative strategy, engaging your audience, targeting, measuring and much more. In addition, it offers a number of case studies to get your creative juices flowing.

The guide is definitely worth checking out before you begin planning your next online video marketing/advertising campaign. Here is "IAB’s top twelve tips for filming online video adverts" from Filming an online video advert section:

By Jack Wallington, senior programmes manager, IAB

1. TV and online: work better together. If you’re filming for TV, incorporate the online shoot into the TV shoot, and make sure it does not get pushed aside in favour of TV. Online video and TV audiences are the same, the quality of your ad should be too.

2. Length: the IAB recommends making online video ads of 10 to 15 seconds long. If you’re only advertising around long form content you can make your ad longer, perhaps using an edited version of your TV advert.

3. Branding: include your brand, packaging or logo throughout the advert to aid recall.

4. Player size: the vast majority of online video is viewed in a smaller player, so make sure text is readable and that you use shots that don’t look cluttered in a smaller viewing space.

5. Get creative and entertain: video is about entertainment. You may not have much time in a 10 second advert but that’s plenty of time to entertain.

6. Sound: in video players the sound will be on automatically when someone clicks to view a video. Sound effects and music can make or break your advert. Car adverts use music to great effect, while annoying sound effects can irritate but be memorable.

7. Interaction: if you want people to interact with your advert make sure the ad includes scenes that show what you want people to click on (e.g. your product), allowing enough time for them to do this. You can include multiple scenes to really show off your product, but you’ll need to plan for this.

8. Actors: if you’re using them, don’t skimp on talent. Watch previous work by professional actors and get multiple opinions to make sure they’re suitable.

9. Pacing: use lots of short clips to give the impression of a fast paced scene. For slow paced ads, use few fewer, longer clips.

10. Call to action: if you want people to do something, make it obvious, simple and eye catching. Use graphics that stand out against the video clip.

11. Engagement: online viewers can lose interest quickly. Entertain, engage and make sure your message is delivered quickly and clearly to a relevant audience.

12. Cut cost, not quality: just because you are online doesn’t mean you can cut production quality, but given the reduced screen size there are tricks of the camera to reduce cost. E.g. to show a crowd at a concert you just need the crowd, you don’t need to hire the O2 arena!

WORLD 3.0

2009-05-11T10:02:00.000-07:00

"Did You Know 3.0" is a five-minute slide show on incremental flow of new technology and information that will make your head spin. We live in a society where people get bombarded with information every second of their waking lives and new technologies are being developed (and adopted) with a speed of light... And guess what... Over the past few years we've got so used to this way of life that we don't even notice that the flow of information is expanding at an incremental rate. But I'll stop talking now and let you see for yourself:

GET INSPIRED: HOW COMPANIES ARE USING SOCIAL MEDIA FOR MARKETING

2009-05-06T12:19:00.000-07:00

Beth J. Bates, a New Media Special Correspondent, put together a nice list of examples of how companies are using social media for their marketing and branding initiatives. I've added a couple of things of my own, so here it is:

Sprite launched a video campaign using YouTube and Facebook to appeal to younger audiences while jump-starting a career of a singer and songwriter from the UK, Katie Vogel.

Agent Provocateu, British lingerie maker, stepped up its social media game using Twitter and blogging in time for Valentine's Day.

Videoegg used live streaming in conjunction with Twitter to educate prospect about "new ways to make the digital media work harder for brand advertisers."

Get inspired :)

LEAD GENERATION STRATEGY: FROM BANNER ADS TO TWITTER

2009-05-05T11:51:00.000-07:00

This banner ad by Oneupweb was at the top on an e-newsletter that I got from SocialMedia Insider earlier today. And it made me wanna click - mostly, because of its originality. You see, whenever I come across a cool ad, or any other out-of-the-box marketing initiative, I want to know what company is behind it. I want to learn.

The ad took me to the landing page with an offering to download a white paper The Fusion of Search and Social Media. They asked me if I wanted to be contacted by a representative from the company (how cool is that!) and offered to sign up for a newsletter. Once I filled out a quick registration form, I was taken to a page where I could download the white paper and, by the way, check out every social media profile the company has.

This is what I call great lead-generation strategy. I am now following Oneupweb on Twitter and subscribing to its blog. And may be sometime in the future I will give them a call to see what they've got to offer.

It is a little scary to know how well Oneupweb knows its target market - social media marketing folks who, like me, are hungry for good information and unconventional perspectives.

HOW NOT TO WRITE YOUR WEB COPY

2009-04-13T11:11:00.000-07:00

So, I was doing a little research today trying to figure out what this company, let’s call it just the Company, does. I went to this company’s website hoping to get a better picture of its specialization, products and services. But… no hint on what the company is all about on the home page, and all I found under Products We Offer tab was this:

For six decades, the Company has been designing and manufacturing products that are innovative, functional and durable - products that provide solutions based on listening carefully to the needs of our customers. Today, the Company offers more than 600 different products that solve problems for all types of customers by saving time, reducing labor, improving performance, enhancing appearance and maintaining trouble-free operation for a long, long time. the Company also takes pride in offering technical support and expert consultation for new construction and renovation projects, as well as existing facilities.

Have idea what the Company does yet? Neither have I.

Ok, so now we know that the Company offers products… many of them. And that it’s proud of its technical support and is involved in construction.

But your website functions as a virtual shopping window. So, think about what products you want to showcase. Which selling point you need to highlight. And what customer you want to attract. These things should be apparent through text, images and design the moment your target customer, and pretty much anyone else, lends on your site.

BRANDED ENTERTAINMENT IS THE NEW MARKETING SUPERPOWER

2009-04-06T09:05:00.000-07:00

A couple of weeks ago, I read an article on MediaPost Video Insider that talked about branded entertainment. According to Dave Jackson, the author of this article “The advertising model, as practiced for the last hundred years or so, has been one based on interruption… However, marketers have also begun In a shift in tactics, applying their resources to create content to get their message across.”

A number of companies are now including branded entertainment into their promotional mixes. Borders, for example, launched Borders Live at 01, an online channel that educates and entertains site visitors while building brand awareness and showcasing products. Post Grape Nuts is sponsoring a 50-episode Web series “The Guy’s Manual” that offer advice to men on topics ranging from how to get a date to how to take your fiancée’s poodle for a morning jog. Geico joined in by launching a series of YouTube videos featuring ‘talking’ kittens, famous gecko and YouTube celebrity Numa Numa Guy. Finally, yesterday Turner Sports launched the original Web series “Off Track with Tony Stewart.”

Why is branded entertainment becoming increasingly popular? Branded entertainment promotes deep brand engagement and builds strong relationships with customers that extend beyond a product. It opens a world of new opportunities to production studios, advertising agencies and marketing firms. And as the industry moves forward, we’ll see more and more companies successfully executing branded entertainment campaigns.

WHAT GOOGLE CAN LEARN FROM IZEA

2009-03-25T10:44:00.000-07:00

I’ve been seeing many conversations about Google struggling to create an adequate business model for YouTube and YouTube publishers getting frustrated over the limited monetization options available to them. Although, YouTube already has a revenue sharing partner program, it is only available to top YouTube publishers. Today over the lunch break, a colleague and I had a conversation about how YouTube can make some extra cash and, at the same time, give smaller publishers an opportunity to monetize their content. Here’s what I came up with:

YouTube will allow its users to control advertising associated with their content and charge them a portion of their ad revenue.

To do so, YouTube needs to create something like Izea’s PayPerPost Marketplace, only for video. In this space YouTube publishers and advertisers will meet, bid and make deals. All financial transactions will be made through channels provided by YouTube. This will allow the video sharing site to track that information and charge fees accordingly. Another option is to charge publishers, advertisers or both certain opt-in fees.

I don’t know how much infrastructure changes and other work and expenses will be required to create such a Marketplace. But let’s not forget that YouTube is the largest video sharing site and I see how this program can attract thousands of smaller or newer brands hungry for eyeballs.

What do you think?

ONLINE VIDEO MADE SIMPLE

2009-03-16T14:09:00.000-07:00

In today’s blog post The Beauty in Simple Stories, Chris Brogan makes a point that sometimes the most effective communication is through stories that are appealing because of their simplicity.

This can be the same with online video. To create a great video that will appeal to your audience, you don’t always need to spend a fortune on the latest equipment or pay thousands of dollars to a production team. Sometimes, all you need is a hand-held camera and some imagination. That’s all it takes for you to tell your company’s story, create compelling videos about your products and services or even launch your own web-based online video series. Need some examples to get the juices flowing? Check out these online video campaigns:

HubSpot TV
Will It Blend?
Greg the Architect

SOCIAL MEDIA: MONITORING AND ENGAGING - Part1

2009-01-21T12:36:00.001-08:00

Someone asked me a couple of days ago, “how you are currently monitoring and engaging with online posters?” I replied with a pretty lengthy email and though that, with a couple of changes, it would also make a good series of posts. So, here is my #1.

Step #1 – Looking for blogs and top bloggers
I usually start by identifying blogs and top bloggers in the area that I'm interested in. You can use Google search - Blogs, Technorati or Icerocket.

Technorati works best for me - you can search for blogs, blog posts or just go to the ‘top 100 blogs’ section. Technorati shows the number of blogs linking to a website/blog in the last six months (called ‘Authority’), displays the latest posts and when they were published; it assigns a rank to each blog. You can also see how many of Technorati members 'fave' each blog, so it it’s pretty easy to identify top blogs AND bloggers in your area of interest.

Icerocket also ranks blogs and displays the number of references. To figure out how popular a blog is, you might also want to visit this blog and look at the amount and quality of comments.

Once you've identified the first set, visit those blogs again and look through "my favorite blogs" or "blogs that I read" section. You may find blogs that you’ve overlooked or discover blogs that are less popular but worth reading. You can also use social bookmarking sites like Delicious and Digg to initiate and organize your search. For more info on how to get the most out of Digg click here.

Identifying blogs and top bloggers is a tedious process and can get pretty messy. So, be patient and keep track of the blogs you’ve visited. If you find a good blog, save it to your favorites, bookmark it or subscribe to an RSS feed right away.

Please share your own experiences and other people who might come across this blog post. Did you find this post helpful? And how do you go about searching for blogs and top bloggers?

Thank you.

HIGH-TECH SANTA (for the love of physics)

2008-12-08T18:59:00.000-08:00

NOTE: This is not an original post.

Newswise — Don’t believe in Santa Claus? Cutting-edge science explains how Santa is able to deliver toys to good girls and boys around the world in one night.

If you’re skeptical of Santa’s abilities to deliver presents to millions of homes and children in just one night, North Carolina State University’s Dr. Larry Silverberg, professor of mechanical and aerospace engineering, can explain the science and engineering principles that allow the Jolly Old Elf to pull off the magical feat year after year.

With his cherubic smile and twinkling eyes, Santa may appear to be merely a jolly old soul, but he and his North Pole elves have a lot going on under the funny-looking hats, Silverberg says. Their advanced knowledge of electromagnetic waves, the space/time continuum, nanotechnology, genetic engineering and computer science easily trumps the know-how of contemporary scientists.

Silverberg says that Santa has a personal pipeline to children’s thoughts – via a listening antenna that combines technologies currently used in cell phones and EKGs – which informs him that Mary in Miami hopes for a surfboard, while Michael from Minneapolis wants a snowboard. A sophisticated signal processing system filters the data, giving Santa clues on who wants what, where children live, and even who’s been bad or good. Later, all this information will be processed in an onboard sleigh guidance system, which will provide Santa with the most efficient delivery route.

Silverberg adds that letters to Santa via snail mail still get the job done, however.

Silverberg is not so naïve as to think that Santa and his reindeer can travel approximately 200 million square miles – making stops in some 80 million homes – in one night. Instead, he posits that Santa uses his knowledge of the space/time continuum to form what Silverberg calls “relativity clouds.”

“Based on his advanced knowledge of the theory of relativity, Santa recognizes that time can be stretched like a rubber band, space can be squeezed like an orange and light can be bent,” Silverberg says. “Relativity clouds are controllable domains – rips in time – that allow him months to deliver presents while only a few minutes pass on Earth. The presents are truly delivered in a wink of an eye.”

With a detailed route prepared and his list checked twice through the onboard computer on the technologically advanced sleigh, Santa is ready to deliver presents. His reindeer – genetically bred to fly, balance on rooftops and see well in the dark – don’t actually pull a sleigh loaded down with toys. Instead, each house becomes Santa’s workshop as he utilizes a nano-toymaker to fabricate toys inside the children’s homes. The presents are grown on the spot, as the nano-toymaker creates – atom by atom – toys out of snow and soot, much like DNA can command the growth of organic material like tissues and body parts.

And there’s really no need for Santa to enter the house via chimney, although Silverberg says he enjoys doing that every so often. Rather, the same relativity cloud that allows Santa to deliver presents in what seems like a wink of an eye is also used to “morph” Santa into people’s homes.

Finally, many people wonder how Santa and the reindeer can eat all the food left out for them. Silverberg says they take just a nibble at each house. The remainder is either left in the house or placed in the sleigh’s built-in food dehydrator, where it is preserved for future consumption. It takes a long time to deliver all those presents, after all.

“This is our vision of Santa’s delivery method, given the human, physical and engineering constraints we face today,” Silverberg says. “Children shouldn’t put too much credence in the opinions of those who say it’s not possible to deliver presents all over the world in one night. It is possible, and it’s based on plausible science.”

PS: next year I'll ask Santa for a nano-toymaker

TWITTER FOR BUSINESS: CUSTOMER RELATIONS, CRISIS MANAGEMENT, PRODUCT PROMOTIONS AND MUCH MORE

2008-12-03T12:50:00.001-08:00

Weather you are already using Twitter for business or just thinking about creating an account, you probably know that Twitter is much less sophisticated and more dynamic than other social networking sites. Simple in its architecture, Twitter resembles an old-fashioned chat room rather than a blogging platform or social networking sites like Facebook, LinkedIn or MySpace. Twitter users are encouraged to answer one simple question “What are you doing?” in only 140 characters. Not much, huh? The presentation you’ll find below demonstrates how using those 140 characters savvy and dedicated marketers can take their companies very far. In addition, it gives an insight and provides great examples of how companies like JetBlue, Dell and Zappos have used Twitter for customer relations, crisis management, event activations, product promotions and more.

Ogilvy PR 360 DI Twitter Webinar

View SlideShare presentation or Upload your own. (tags: ogilvypr publicrelations)

SlideShare Link

IS SEO DEAD?

2008-11-20T08:44:00.000-08:00

Is SEO the way we know it dead? According to Bruce Clay, it’s not too long till search engines evolve into more modern and personalized ranking methods based on behavior and intent. On November 11, the president of the Internet marketing company Bruce Clay, Inc., Clay spoke at a session entitled "Top-Shelf Organic SEO" in which he discussed personal search. Here’s what’s coming:

Search results will be based on your prior search history, so everybody will end up with different results.
Search results will depend on the intent of your search. Based on your IP, Google can figure out where you're located and guess the intent of your search (shopping, research, entertainment…).
Traffic is not everything. Bounce rates, conversion rates, navigation summaries and other KPIs will become increasingly more important with implementation of behavior and intent-based.
Everything will be searchable. Google will be able to convert audios into text, scan sites for images and ‘jump’ into the middle of videos. How engaging your site is will affect its search engine ranking.
Spammers will have to work harder. Using just text won’t be enough to rank high on search engines. In addition, the value of linking will be diminished.

SOCIAL MEDIA MARKETING - MEASURING ROI

2008-11-14T09:13:00.000-08:00

When it comes to social media, tracking ROI can be tricky. In his new video, David Meerman Scott discusses measuring ROI for social media marketing campaigns. According to Scott “you can’t measure everything in actual dollars-and-cents ROI.” But here’s what you CAN measure:

How many people are exposed to your ideas (how many people read your blog, receive your blog feeds/newsletters, are in your social network or attend your webinar)
How many people have downloaded something from your website (a white paper, e-book, client story a podcast)
How many people have shared your content with others
How many people are talking about your products/services, company or people that work for you (on their blogs, websites, Twitter, social networking sites). Also, measure this against your competition
How many people are saying something positive
You can even measure how many people are buying your products
And, I would like to add, look at your website stats. Has the traffic increased? Are people spending more time on your site and visiting more pages. Do you see a decrease in bounce rates? Do more people fill out a contact-us form or request a demo? Does your site appear higher on search engines?

To measure all this you also need the right tools and be comfortable with using them. Here are the tools that I’ve had experience with:

FREE STUFF
Google Alerts – “email updates of the latest relevant Google results (web, news, etc.) based on your choice of query or topic.” You can get Google Alerts based on the name of your company, products and names of the top executives. Now, if your CEO’s name is Chris Brown and your sell a product called “Gentle Hand Soup,” you might be in trouble.

Technorati – “Real-time search engine for blogs that tracks what is current and popular.” Not only will Technorati help you find best blogs that are relevant to your company, products anD industry, it will also show you how many people like and are linking to YOUR blog (you do have to register your blog with Technorati to get this info, though)

Google Analytics – “Learn more about where your visitors come from and how they interact with your site.” I love Google Analytics. It provides all the info you need to know about your site visitors, traffic sources, referring sites, keywords, visitor’s behavior and more. It also lets you monitor Goals. Let’s say you have a contact-us form on your site. Google analytics will help you see how any visitors come to the page and how many of them actually fill out the form. How cool is that?

PAID SERVICES
Salesforce – There’s so much more to Salesforce than I can ever imagine. But using it to launch and monitor marketing campaigns, track email open rates, create reports and manage customer relationships makes it easier to evaluate and improve your marketing efforts AND estimate ROI.

HubSpot – the best thing about HubSpot is that it lets you measure your online marketing performance against your competition. It is a great tool to use if you want to improve your website’s SEO. HubSpot can also be integrated with Salesforce for better understanding and evaluation of your marketing efforts.

Click To Play

SOCIAL MEDIA IN PLAIN ENGLISH

2008-11-11T09:24:00.001-08:00

Thought I'd share

FACEBOOK'S SOCIAL ADS GO INTERACTIVE... BUT ARE THEY REALLY GONNA WORK

2008-11-11T08:52:00.000-08:00

Facebook is rolling out a new ad format called "engagement ads" which takes advertising on social networks one step further. The new ads are more interactive than current "social ads." They will appear on the main screen when a user first logs into Facebook and engage this user by asking him or her to take a certain action (like commenting on a movie or adding an event to his or her calendar). After the user takes action, Facebook will share a notice about this action with his or her friends. This new ad format is certainly an improvement, but as my friend once said "People go to Facebook to get in touch with other people. They don't care about ads."

And if you are going to use Facebook for your marketing initiatives, get a little creative. Here are a couple of examples from Matthew Pollock's article Is YouTube the right pipeline for you?

"Fiserv, a leading provider of information technology services to the financial industry, recognized Gen Y consumers as desirable prospects for many credit unions. To connect the two sides, Fiserv launched a Facebook application called MyMoney, which lets users search, join and manage funds from their credit union account from their profile pages. To leverage Facebook's viral capabilities, every person who adds the MyMoney widget then alerts their friends, which creates a powerful, self-propelled ripple effect that will ultimately continue to drive adoption. It's a very simple concept but has been a huge success, as the average user spends about 20 minutes on their Facebook page daily and 36 credit unions now support the application."

And, "Coca-Cola recently released a Facebook application for its brand Burn. The application allows users to create a customizable virtual avatar and then "go out," either with existing friends or new ones. The next day, users can check their avatar's blog to see what went down the night before, and view images that show both avatars hanging out. The end result replicates a real-life night out at the club, and users come away with a shared virtual experience that faithfully delivers on the brand promise of the night-extending Burn energy drink. Again, it' a concept that most marketers might not have considered, but when you find out the application recently crossed 150,000 installs with more than 85,000 users active on a monthly basis, you might wish you had."

QUICK SEO TIPS: Give Your Site a Facelift

2008-11-06T09:51:00.000-08:00

These days, SEO is a hot topic among marketing professionals. Some of them "get it," but the majority is still confused. So, I've come up with 6 quick SEO tips that will help you boost your site's Google ranking. Here they are:

1.Get rid of that flash banner at the top of your home page. I know it's sexy, I know it's hot, but it is not good for your SEO. Google reads approximately 125 lines of text AND CODE at the top of each page, and if it doesn't find any relevant information in those lines, it moves on. That flash banner has a lot of code associated with it, so it pushes all the important keyword rich text down to the bottom of the page where a search engine can’t “reach” it.

2. Optimize URLs. Your URLs should include the keywords that are important to you. Let's say you sell cars to college students in Tampa Bay and your site is called www.TampaRide.com. Then, you would want to create pages that will be rich with keywords like "budget cars," "preowned cars," "fuel efficient cars," "cars for college students,""auto finance for college students" and so on. You would also want to include those same keywords into URLs corresponding to the relevant pages. So, a page about auto finance for college students will have a URL of "www.TampaRide.com/auto-finance-for-college-students"

Also remember that using hyphens in URLs is better for SEO then using underscores (www.TampaRide.com/auto_finance_for_college_students) or not separating the words in the URLs at all (www.TampaRide.com/autofinanceforcollegestudents).

3. Start a blog. Google loooves fresh content. And when you have a blog on your site, you can update it as much as you want. Plus, a blog gives you an opportunity to stuff your site with keywords (just make sure to not overdo it) and include some keywords that you wouldn't normally mention on your site (like "cheap cars" instead of "budget cars" or "used cars" instead of "preowned cars"). Another benefit of having a blog is linking. Linking is very-very important for your SEO. The more INBOUND links coming from RELEVANT terms your site gets, the better. (I'll talk about blogs in more details in my next post)

4. SEO press releases. Using services like MarketWire, BusinessWire or PRNewsWire to distribute a few SEO press releases will help you boost your search engine ranking as well. Include 4-5 keywords (or 1-3 keywords 2 times each) into each press release and link them to the relevant pages on your site. So, let's say you are sending out a press release about an upcoming sale. Then, write something like "[YOUR COMPANY NAME] is a place for college students looking for budget cars, fuel efficients cars and preowned cars. Need to finance? No problem..." then link "budget cars" to www.TampaRide.com/budget-cars, "fuel efficient cars" www.TampaRide.com/fuel-efficient-cars and so on.

When your press release gets picked up by online news publications or blogs, it creates a number of inbound links which, as I have previously mentioned, helps with your SEO.

5. Use meta tags. This is where SEO gets a little more technical. If your webmaster has provided you with the tools that allow you to easily create meta tags in the back end of your site (you should see "title tag," "meta keywords" and "meta description" fields when editing a page in the content management tool), then you are probably already using meta tags. A piece of advice: use your keywords as meta tags. So, a page about fuel efficient cars, should be titled "Fuel Efficient Cars," you get the idea. If you can't meta tag your pages through the content management tool, below is a link to an article that will provide you with HTML code for creating meta tags.

http://www.sun.com/webdesign/guidelines/metatags.html

Using meta tags will help optimize your site by "telling" search engines the "names" (titles) of the pages, providing short descriptions of each page and attaching keywords to those pages. Also, don't forget to tag all the images with relevant keywords. Meta tags include, page description tag, meta keywords tag, title tags and image tags.

6. Give some TLC to headlines. Like your site visitors, search engines recognize headlines. They also know that a headline is supposed to describe what a page is about. When headlines on your site contain keywords, your site has better chances of getting higher search engine ranking.

SOCIAL NETWORKING IS EVOLUTION

2008-10-01T10:34:00.001-07:00

I've been pretty busy with work lately and haven't had much time for blogging (which is, I know, a very bad excuse)... But something moved me when I came across a blog post
by Dave Allen on Music Think Tank. So, I wanted to share this passage:

To understand and embrace social networking is to place the idea that says "technology makes this possible" to one side and embrace the idea of the basic human need to stay in touch with other like-minded people at all times. As Clay Shirky says “The desire to be part of a group that shares, cooperates, or acts in concert is a basic human instinct.” Think about rock concerts for a minute.....

Most people that take a position on social networking and advertising come at it from a technological point of view, as in "technology has created the means for everyone to be connected and to stay in touch." I disagree with that statement because it removes nature from the game. It is entirely natural for humans to want to interact as often as possible as we are all social animals. Cities are no more artificial (technological) than the hives of bees. Therefore the Internet is as natural as a spider's web. People who believe that technology is driving our interactions are missing the point - we ourselves are technological devices, invented by ancient bacterial communities as a means of genetic survival. Bottom line - social media is as natural as apple pie as we all want to be as connected as possible - we can't help it. [A really good book from which I have borrowed some thoughts is 'Straw Dogs' by John Gray, professor of European thought at LSE, published in the UK by Granta.]

Beautiful...

IS SOCIAL NETWORKING OVERRATED?

2008-09-05T11:30:00.000-07:00

According to the recent Synovate’s survey, “more than ‘one-half of adults surveyed in 17 countries do not know what social networking is” and 36% of social network users said they were losing their interest in social networking.

Does this mean that social networks are losing their allure? Probably not.

Every week I find newly registered users on Facebook or LinkedIn – people that I have known or worked with before but lost connections with. I see more and more people use social networking sites for a wide range of purpose – from connecting with their family and college buddies, to professional networking, to job searching, to marketing and branding.

“Answers” on LinkedIn is becoming popular among people looking for an expert advice or just a few words of wisdom. MySpace is getting big among music artists who want to connect with their fans. Facebook is great for finding/establishing interest groups and, thus, marketing. Twitter is a hit for personal branding and wisdom sharing. In addition, if my mom signed up for a Russian equivalent of classmates.com last week, social networking is way too far from being called a fallen empire.

May be the buzz and excitement are not the same. But this might just mean that from something crazy-new social networking is turning into an integral part of our lives.

SOMETIMES LESS IS MORE

2008-08-21T13:13:00.001-07:00

For all those marketing folks who get caught up in the moment :)

http://view.break.com/542649 - Watch more free videos

SEO 101: HOW TO AVOID UNETHICAL SEO PRACTICES

2008-08-21T09:24:00.000-07:00

So, you’ve hired a SEO specialist. Together, you have identified the “keywords,” you have written a keyword-reach copy for your website or blog, you have focused on link-building and meta tags, you have, finally, improved your website’s Google rank. You write your SEO coach a nice check and later that day, in you office, sit back in your chair thinking about the money well-spent… Well, not so fast. In his recent article Brandt Dainow writes about 7 ways SEO consultants rip off their clients. Here are just a few of them:

Focusing on keywords and ranking
While it’s a great – and easy - way to measure the effectiveness of your SEO effort, it might not be the best one. Each search engine has its own ‘ranking’ rules. So, if your website is #1 in Google for a certain keyword, it might be in the 2nd or even lower position in other search engines. You also need to remember, that when you target multiple market segments, the keywords for each segment will probably be different. The same applies to multiple products/product lines.

Focusing on link-building
While a site's page rank is largely determined by the incoming links, the quality of those links is much more important then the number.

Dainow writes: “Google assigns a nominal value of one to all the links coming out of a site. Thus, if a site has 10 outgoing links, each of those links has a value of 0.1. If a site has 100 links, then each of them has a value of 0.01. Furthermore, if the site has too many links, Google downgrades it because it is obvious that the links are there simply to try to influence Google. Such a site is known as a "link farm." Google hates link farms.”

Talking rubbish
Most SEO specialists know that, like the majority of their clients, you have no idea how SEO works and what most SEO terms really mean. And they will use it against you!

Here’s an example that Dainow gives. Let’s say your SEO specialist sends something like this your way: "The site has successfully captured 10 percent of the search space for this retail sector."

Sounds great, doesn’t it? But here’s a problem. You know that by “search space” your SEO guru means search engines. But which ones? Some of the search engines are very small and insignificant - others don’t work in English. And what exactly does capturing 10 percent mean? “Is this 10 percent of the results? How could anyone calculate that? How many pages are we surveying? Are all positions of equal value? Is No. 1 worth the same as No. 10? Or No. 100? Does this mean the client site is listed 10 times for every 100 results? And how many pages of results were reviewed?”

Spamming the search engines
There are a number of ‘illegal’ techniques that you can use to boost your website’s ranking. And, although Google and other search engines now have very strict policies against spammers, some ‘evil’ SEO agencies still use those techniques with or without your permission.

You need to be aware of everything your SEO specialist is doing. And if something just doesn’t feel right, ask for an explanation or go some research yourself. To get some insight on search engine spamming, read Black Hat SEO - What is Black Hat SEO or Latest Search Engine Spam Techniques.

So, what is the best way to protect yourself from unethical SEO practices? I would say, to learn SEO yourself. You don’t have to know everything, but you need to have a general idea about how SEO works and what the major terms mean. You also need to have a general understanding of web analytics.

But before you even hire a SEO agency, you need to figure out what it is you want to achieve. Are you trying to ‘push’ one of your products, generate new leads or expand into another market segment? Your SEO strategy should be based on your strategic goals.

BUILDING BRAND WITH ONLINE VIDEO

2008-08-17T09:10:00.000-07:00

This past Tuesday, August 12th, I had an opportunity to attend monthly meeting of Media Professionals of Florida (MPFI). During the meeting Barry Bienstock, President of Dahill Studios Endavo Media and Communications, Inc. discusses how to "Build Brand and Revenue with Online Video Distribution."

According to Contardo, there’s an increased demand for professionally produced online video content. This demand comes from both, internet users and marketing professionals. While more people find and watch video content online then ever before, 62% of those people say that they prefer “professionally produced” videos. (Pew Internet & American Life Project) At the same time, marketers recognize the effectiveness of video as a marketing tool and spend an increasing amount of their marketing budgets on online video promotions. (According to Kelsey Group, the number is expected to approach $7 billion by 2012).

Contardo went on saying that media production professionals have an opportunity to tap into interactive media and win more business. But first they need to understand the demands of the markets. Today’s online video market calls for high-quality video. Companies need video for a variety of purposes like news, HR training, advertising and promotions, investor communications and more. Online video is used across all industries and the variety of lengths and formats of it is expanding. And, finally, new monetization models have allowed organizations to make money from their video content in a number of ways. These are just some of the trends media professionals need to be thinking about when negotiating with and producing video content for their clients and building their own brands with online video.

To sum the hole thing ups, The challenge that media production professionals are facing is how to provide their clients with the great video content and tools they need for successful online video marketing and how to use the same approach to build brand an revenue for their own business.

A FEW PRETTY PICTURES THAT I TOOK

2008-08-15T06:58:00.000-07:00

I've been super-busy at work lately and haven't had a chance to update my blog this month. So, I'm sharing with you a few beautiful pictures that I've taken over the past year. let me know what you think :)

SOCIAL MEDIA BRAND MONITORING: ARE YOU STICKING YOUR HEAD IN THE SAND?

2008-07-30T09:07:00.000-07:00

For most of us criticism is painful. Especially when criticized is something that we’ve put our hearts and minds into. For a chef, that would be his new culinary creation, for a marketing professional – a brand. But, as my grandma used to say, “Praises don’t teach.”

With the explosion of social media, virtually everybody got an opportunity to publish their content, share thoughts and express opinions. And, all of a sudden, the voices of dissatisfied customers that have been ignored till recently are becoming lauder more powerful. In his recent post Not All Social Media Fun & Games Todd Defren writes about a Fortune 500 company that needs to make a tough decision: to ignore the YouTube video that attacks the company or to respond, which from the corporate standpoint can be considered a weakness.

With this said, the question arises: should companies be involved into social media brand monitoring and respond to criticism that comes from social media channels? Or should this type of criticism be ignored?

According to Jeff Zabin, a Chief Evangelist in the Precision Marketing Group at Fair Isaac Corporation, “[s]ocial media monitoring gives direct marketers an opportunity to keep their fingers on the pulse of how consumers are responding—to what extent current campaigns are successful, how they need to refine campaigns over time and, ultimately, the business outcomes.” In addition, “social media monitoring can inform everything from product development to legal departments, who want to understand if there are any crises on the horizon that they need to pay attention to.” (Use of social media monitoring growing; direct can reap benefits, too)

Remember Dell? And what about Comcast? Both of these companies are great examples of how social media brand monitoring together with appropriate actions taken to address criticism can save a brand.

Another article, Your Social Media Strategy Starts with Monitoring by Mack Collier, emphasizes that any social media campaign should start with brand monitoring and lists 4 advantages of doing so:

It lets you be proactive in responding to complaints from customers…
It helps create evangelists for your brand…
It increases your brand
equity…
It makes you more familiar with social media tools and sites…

So, should companies use social media for brand monitoring and participate in the conversations that take place online? In my opinion, every marketer needs to answer these questions based on her company’s corporate culture and strategy. However, judging by the experience of the companies like Dell and Comcast, ignoring criticism that comes through the social media channels can severely damage your company’s reputation.

What do you think?

Online Advertising Is Growing Fast...Or Not?

2008-07-25T07:59:00.000-07:00

Just when we though that the social media marketing and PR were putting an end to the era of often aggravating online advertising, statistics show exactly the opposite. According to a recent article in LA Times, online advertising is “growing so fast that in 2008 it is projected to surpass ad spending on TV, radio and movies combined for the first time ever.”

I know. Wow!

There is yet a reason to why the numbers are so high. Research companies like Outsell Inc., count the money spent on websites as part of companies’ online advertising costs, because websites are increasingly used for marketing. Well, dah… I personally don’t agree with this measurement system. Putting a good website together and placing a banner ad on MySpace are two different thins. It seems that folks at Outsell are confusing online marketing with online advertising. But, oh well.

“The 1,088 US-based companies surveyed will spend $61.5 billion, or 61.8% of their online advertising and marketing budgets, on their own sites, siphoning away money from other options, he said,” goes on the article. To marketing professionals these numbers mean that those who still “don’t get” new media marketing, need to hurry up. And to those who do – high five.

UNIVERSAL STUDIOS, YOU CAN'T GET ME

2008-07-15T04:30:00.000-07:00

When I saw Universal Studios' social ad on Facebook this morning, I was intrigued. "Take A Florida vacation unlike any other," the it said. To learn more about special offers for Facebookers, I clicked on the ad. But instead of a specially built Facebook page, the ad took me to the home page of the Universal's website... Booo!

It seems like folks on the Universal's marketing team, still don't get it. The days of poorly targeted banner ads are coming to their end. To be successful on social networking sited, they need to show me that they care. I don't want to be a part of the crowd that visits Universal's website every day. I want to be myself and I need them to speak to me as an individual. Especially when they get to my Facebook home page and promice a vacation "unlike any other."

NEW TECHNOLOGIES AND CHANGING WORKFORCE LANDSCAPE

2008-07-09T05:49:00.000-07:00

In his Threading Some Trends Together post, Chris Brogan talks about how new technologies and rising gas prices are making it more expensive for both, employers and their workforce, “to house a work staff than to manage it remotely.” To adjust some major management changes must take place.

I personally am looking forward to that time when it will be perfectly normal to work from home or, as Brogan writes, “remotely.” I find myself much more productive when no one walks by my cubicle every other minute, when the printer isn’t growling behind my back and when I don’t have to listen to my co-workers speaking on the phone.
Sure, some people will have to learn how to discipline themselves. And many employers will have to learn how to trust their employees. But if you think about it, there is just as much destruction in the office (co-worker, computers, water-coolers and coffee machines) as there is at home or any other place.

Phones, emails, social networking sites and wifi have made it easy for people to overcome distance and communicate while being far apart. If an average person has learned how to leverage the power of these new technologies, why can’t companies do the same?

WHAT IF.. OR THE WORLD WITHOUT SOCIAL NETWORKING

2008-07-08T09:39:00.000-07:00

It’s hard to even imagine what our life would be without social networking sites! Or what would happen if we deleted all our social networking accounts!

What would we do with all our pictures? How would we share our thought and new experiences? How would we stay connected with our friends, family and colleagues? How would we meet new people and find jobs???

Would we have to call someone? Or invite them for a cup of tea/beer/glass of wine? Or visit a good friend in NY? Would we have to start talking to stranger in the workout gyms and bars or at the subway stations???

May then we could spend our evenings (and nights) reading books or watching movies. May be we would be able to do something we have been putting off for so long, like painting that bedroom wall or trying surfing. May be we would spend more time outside…

It’s hard to imagine.

Texting Your Way To Love - IS TECHNOLOGY EVIL?

2008-06-05T13:30:00.001-07:00

Smart, funny, disturbing... Makes me think back to all those great discussion I had in my Information Technology and Human Values, Mass Media and Society, Writing for Interactive Media and other classes. Here are some questions that are hard if not impossible to answer.. Is technology good or bad? Is it harming our society or improving ways in which people interact with one another? Is it turning us into social freaks or making us lonely? Just something to think about..

New Media & Social Networking

2008-06-05T07:25:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I had an opportunity to attend AMA Tampa Bay conference in Tampa, FL. The topic of the conference was New Media & Social Networking, and some of the area’s most knowledgeable marketing gurus were speaking about new media, social media marketing, blogging, podcasting, search engine optimization and video marketing. The whole event was set up in form of speed dating. Attendees were rotating between tables depending on their area of interest.

I was a little bit nervous in the beginning – AMA Tampa Bay’s conference was the first event of this type that I have ever attended. But once I got to know the speakers and other attendees a little better - and had a glass of red wine - I relaxed, began socializing and even scored a couple of points when I mentioned Squidoo at the Social Networking table.

Aside from everything that was said about all the different new media tools, there were few points that I found the most interesting:

Companies are no longer in control of what content that is created about them – customers are. And to direct conversations unfolding online toward their reasons, companies need be active participants and facilitators of those conversations.

New Media is unforgiving. Unlike traditional marketing campaigns that disappear once and for all when the time comes, new media campaign may run for years to come. Content published online is very hard to control, it builds up upon itself – just like a snowball rolling down the hill. And companies need to be very careful about what kind of information they put out there.

None of the new media tools should be used alone. To achieve desired results companies need to utilize wide array of interactive media tools. They need to carefully choose tools that are appropriate for their industry, purpose and, what’s more important, audience.

Finally, technological advances have far surpassed marketing practices. While many companies are very successful in incorporating new media tools in their marketing strategies, the majority of organizations are still struggling to leverage interactive media and new type of the company-customer relationship.

WEB METRICS 101

2008-05-30T06:53:00.000-07:00

If you are a young specialist, like I am, you probably find yourself constantly going online to research unfamiliar terms, complex concepts and new marketing trends. And the more you learn about social media marketing, SEO and website development, the more you realize how much you still don’t know. So, whenever I get a new assignment, my work begins with research. This week I needed to use Goggle Analytics to figure out how we could improve our corporate website’s search engine ranking and bounce rate. And although I have had experience with web metrics before, I needed some advice on what KPIs to look at. After spending some time looking through the list of Google search results, I found an article, Web Metrics 101 – What DO all these Terms Mean?, which provided some basic, but very well-written and rather insightful information. According to Rich Page, the author of the article, these are some of the key web metrics to understanding how successful your website is: visits & unique visits, top key words and top internal search keywords, average time spent, exits, bounce rate, conversion rate and more. I printed the article out and now keep it on my desk for future references. So, should you.

"WELL... GOOD FOR YOU..." OR NOTES ON WHAT IT MEANS TO BE AN INTERNET MARKETING SPECIALIST

2008-05-28T11:54:00.000-07:00

When people ask me what I studied in college, I hesitate to answer. It’s not that I’m embarrassed or try to keep it a secret - no. But it always takes me a while to explain to someone what Electronic Media Arts and Technologies really means.

I don’t think even my parents know what I dedicated 4 years of my life – and a good chunk of their budget- to. Whenever my mom and I talk about my school or work, she usually asks “Well, are you enjoying it?” And I say “Yeah, I love it!” I then start talking about usability, Search Engine Optimization, social media marketing, web analysis and online campaigns. I go on telling her how we reduced our bounce rates or rolled out a new micro-site. She usually says something like “I see” or “Sounds fun” or my all-time favorite “Well, good for you…”

It drives me nuts when people say “Well, good for you…” Unfortunately, this is the most common response I get when discussing my degree or work. So when someone asks me what I studied in college, I always talk about the classes that I’ve taken to give this person a general idea of what I have learned: social impact of new media, computer mediated communications, digital arts, writing for web, programming… so on and so forth. Then this person thinks for a second or two – trying to digest all the information that I have just thrown at her – and replies, “Oh, so you are a graphic designer/programmer/web developer/writer!..” “No,” I say, “I’m an Internet Marketing Specialist.. Or a Web Strategist…” [AWKWARD PAUSE] And she goes “Well… good for you…”

I think the problem is that for many people Internet is still a foreign territory. They still believe that bloggers are a handful of geeks or failed journalists. They think of internet marketing in terms of spam, pay-per-click, EBay and banner ads. They are convinced that MySpace is for their teenage kids and perverts and Facebook is for college crazies. And they probably still believe that Wikipedia is just a sham.

I hope one day people will realize how huge Internet is and how much influence it is having on every aspect of our personal, social and professional lives. May be then I won’t get any more of “Well… good for you…” [or should I say “I can’t believe you wasted 4 years of your life and your parents’ money on THAT”] type of stuff and get something like “Oh wow, sounds great! Tell me more about it!”

THE FIRST SOCIAL NETWORK

2008-05-20T09:18:00.000-07:00

Did you know that the first social network ever was the Internet itself – the ARPANET?

According to Wikipedia, the ARPANET (Advanced Research Projects Agency Network) was the “world's first operational packet switching network, and the predecessor of the global Internet.”

Unlike circuit switching, packet switching allowed to use single link to communicate with more than one machine. The entry on Wikipedia says, “Not only could the link be shared (much as a single post box can be used to post letters to different destinations), but each packet could be routed independently of other packets.” The first message send over the ARPANET occurred on October 29, 1969 at 10:30 P.M.

"Lick (Dr. J.C.R. Licklider, a pioneer in computer science and founder of the ARPANET) was among the first to perceive the spirit of community created among the users of the first time-sharing systems... In pointing out the community phenomena created, in part, by the sharing of resources in one timesharing system, Lick made it easy to think about interconnecting the communities, the interconnection of interactive, on-line communities of people, ..." (ARPA draft, III-21)

ONE GOOD DRUMMING LESSON OR HOW TO LEAD YOUR ONLINE COMMUNITY

2008-05-19T12:55:00.000-07:00

As the sun went down last night, Treasure Island beach, Fla., came alive with the sounds of bongos, djembes, maracas, bells and crash cymbals. Arms were flying, hips were swinging, heads were shaking and lights were spinning as over 200 people gathered at the sunset drum circle to share a drink, a laugh or a beat. Those of you who have been to a drum circle know that group drumming is all about listening, sharing and working together. Once a base drum sets the beat, others pick up one by one fallowing the rhythm and, at the same time, creating their own unique drumming patterns.

According to Mickey Hart, percussionist and musicologist, “The drum circle offers equality because there is no head or tail. It includes people of all ages. The main objective is to share rhythm and get in tune with each other and themselves. To form a group consciousness. To entrain and resonate.”

In this sense of shared consciousness, drumming is very similar to building content for the social media sites. Just like every drum circle has its unique beat, tune and pace, each social media site has its own tone and vibe. Social media users form communities – or circles- around their areas of interest to share thoughts and knowledge and “get in tune with each other and themselves.” And while every “collective voice” in drumming consists of hundreds of different sounds that fuse into one salient beat, social media content emerges from hundreds, thousands or even millions of individual online voices.

Among those voices, companies are striving to become the ‘base drums’ – those who lay the foundation for the social media content and lead the rest of the online community. What these companies need to remember, however, is that among drummers, leaders are chosen by the members of a circle. Same happens online. To become leaders, companies need to win trust and respect from the social media community. What’s more important, they need to be ‘in tune’ with the rest of the circle.

BLOGGING GOES HOLY

2008-05-16T14:03:00.000-07:00

I’m a sloth… For the past few weeks I’ve been sleeping 4-5 hours a night. I’ve been working on my final projects, writing a senior research paper, taking exams, working, running, kayaking, rock climbing and entertaining my family that came all the way from Russian for my graduation. But I haven’t published one new blog post… This makes me a sinner in the blogging world.

In his post “The 7 Deadly Sins of Blogging” Tom Pick lists seven ‘deadly’ mistakes a blogger should try to avoid. Here they are:

Gluttony: Avoid the "it's all about ME!" syndrome in blogging, where every post is about ME, MY company, or MY product or service…
Greed: Everyone has to eat, so there's nothing wrong with generating income from a blogâ€”providing it's done ethically…The sin, however, comes from deceptionâ€”passing off paid content as an "objective" blog post. If exposed, this practice destroys a blog's credibility.
Sloth: A blog needs fresh content on a reasonably frequent basis to be effective. Writing a couple of posts per month (or less) is not conducive to getting traction with search engines, RSS subscribers or other bloggers.
Wrath: The best review posts have an objective tone, presenting both the strong points and limitations of a product, services, company, individual or idea. But posts that simply trash someone or something seldom do a blogger or his/her audience any good, and certainly don't help the subject of the writing…
Pride: You've seen itâ€”bloggers who write with the tone of "I am the all-knowing fountain of wisdom on (topic), and you mere mortals should count yourselves blessed indeed to feast on the morsels of knowledge that fall from my intellectual table." Oh gag me. Get over yourself.

At the same time, Todd Defren published a post called “The PR Professional's Credo: 7 Promises” describing seven rules PR professionals should follow to gain trust and respect of the bloggers they pitch.

1. The PR pro promises to read several weeks’ worth of previous blog posts and/or articles to ascertain whether their story would be a good fit for the blog/publication.

2. If the PR pro ascertains that there is NOT a good fit, they will not pitch the blogger/reporter, and promise to push back on unreasonable client or management demands to do so.

3. Before pitching the blogger/reporter, the PR pro promises to double-check their method of outreach. They will not only check externally-developed media resources like Cision but will also review any guidelines made publicly available by the blogger or publication.

4. The PR pro promises to never send a press release without being able to demonstrate its concrete relevance to the blogger/reporter … and will never, ever send an attachment unless it’s been requested.

5. As much as is possible, the PR pro will participate actively and transparently within the communities of-interest to their clients. The PR pro acknowledges that a “cold call” (in any form) – while sometimes unavoidable – is considerably less effective than reaching out as a known community member.

6. The PR pro promises that any correspondence – whether the initial contact or follow-up – should contain a message customized to the blogger/reporter’s needs and should offer value. For example, “just checking to see if you got the press release” is not welcome or appropriate.

7. The PR pro acknowledges that being ignored by the blogger/reporter is not to be considered license for harassment. It’s more likely the pitch was not of-interest, so any further outreach should be mindful that the story idea has likely been quietly rejected. If the PR pro must try again, they promise to do so by offering a different, more creative and valuable approach to their original pitch.

At the end, both, bloggers and PR professionals, need to act like human beings, respect each other, their audiences and communities and do their jobs with integrity. However, I do disagree with Defren’s promise #7. If you’ve done your homework and followed all the other 6 promises, it doesn’t hurt to double-check whether your email/pitch was received/read/passed along/or forgotten. I’ve been through a couple of occasions when people I was pitching forgot about my email or deleted it by accident. And they were very thankful when I emailed them to confirm that all the materials I’d emailed before had been received.

SO WHAT YOU GONNA DO WITH ALL THAT JUNK?

2008-04-18T10:41:00.000-07:00

While investors and marketing professionals are getting all googley-eyed about social networking sites, some say “‘cashing in’ is something social networking sites haven't quite figured out.” (Christy Carew)

In her NPR Marketplace report Stacey Vanek-Smith gathers marketing professionals and business experts like Morningstar analyst Larry Witt, News.com's Declan McCullagh and USC marketing professor Ken Wilbur to find out how they perceive the future of social networking sites in the world of business. Their answers?.. They still don’t know.

What they do know though is that social networking sites like Facebook and MySpace are vastly overvalued. For example, today Facebook is worth $15 billion, but it made only about $150 million last year. 100 times less than what it’s priced at!

So how can we explain such an enormous difference between what Facebook is making and its market value? Potential profits. A great analogy was gives by Wilbur who compared the buzz around social networks to the business phases introduced by South Parks' underpants gnomes.

GNOMES: Phase 1: Collect underpants. Phase 2: ... Phase 3: Profits!

KEN WILBUR: I think we get that here a little bit. Stage one, attract a whole bunch of users. Stage two, we're not sure, we'll try advertising, we'll maybe try charging them for giving little cartoon puppies to each other. Stage three, profits.

I think the point that they are missing out is that companies are using social networking sites to build relationships with their audiences and existing/potential customers. This advantage is difficult to translate into numbers, but it is also crucial in today’s competitive marketplace.

As Adam Hanft, an advertising executive says in the report “The reason that people go to Facebook is not the same reason that people go to Google or Yahoo, where there's more of a commerce intention or a research intention.” That’s right, people come to social networking sites to communicate and build connections. And stage 2 might as well be just that – communication and connection between companies and social networking sites’ users.

SOCIAL MEDIA MARKETING FOR NONPROFIT ORGANIZATIONS

2008-04-10T09:09:00.000-07:00

I’ve been getting some very interesting comments on my Social Media and Web Marketing: Let's Be Friends? blog. This blog is a part of my COM 425 project that I wrote about couple of days ago. The purpose of the project is to find out what new media gurus and internet marketing experts think about the impact of online marketing on social media and its users.

Here is a comment from Beth Kanter who is a trainer and consultant for nonprofits in the area of effective technology use:

“I'd like to turn the question back to you with a little bit of a twist. Since you are, a "digital native" and have been a social network users before there was a strong business presence -- I am wondering what you think about the growing presence of nonprofits in these spaces promoting social causes?...

…Do you think that nonprofits and social causes should have a presence on social networking sites - and what do they need to do to be able to talk to folks of your generation?”

I think it’s great that nonprofit organizations are penetrating social networks –this is where their audience ‘resides’ today. But in terms of how organizations should use social media to achieve their goals, for- and non-profits are not much different. The same benefits and risks of social media marketing apply to both of them. Social media and social networks give these organizations an opportunity to get out there and have their voices heard. At the same time, these attempts to break through can backfire in form of negative feedback or the audience’s apathy.

For their social media marketing efforts to be effective, these organizations have to develop strategies that harmonize with the vibe of the social networks and other social media outlets. A good example I can think of is a pink ribbon as a gift on Facebook.

May be a nonprofit organization can come up with a widget that will allow Facebookers to rate each other on how "green" they are. Or "Send a Panda - Save a Panda" campaign where each dollar spent on a 'panda' gift on Facebook is donated to the WWF.

SOCIAL NETWORK MARKETING – STARBUCKS STYLE

2008-04-08T07:35:00.000-07:00

When my Norwegian friend sent me a cup of Starbucks coffee on Facebook, she probably didn’t think that she was unintentionally contributing to the company’s online marketing campaign. You see, I stopped drinking Starbucks coffee at the beginning of this semester when I realized that I was consuming an average of three cups per day – not healthy. Now, Starbuck took revenge for my disloyalty through the word of mouse.

No, I didn’t jump in my car and drove to the nearest Starbucks to get a steaming cup of my favorite white chocolate mocha… Mmmmmm! But I did sign up for the widget and send coffee to my three top friends – so that they can share my misery. “How cool is that! – I thought. - Now I can meet my friend from Norway in the cyber space over a virtual cup of coffee!”

Humor aside, this is a great strategy to penetrate social networks in a way that works well for both, the company and social networks’ users. Now Facebookers can indulge and share ‘free’ Starbucks coffee (and the more cups you send, the more cool drinks you have access to) and the company can enjoy its successful social network marketing campaign.

You go, Starbucks!

MY COM 425 FINAL PROJECT

2008-04-08T06:45:00.000-07:00

As you might know, I'm getting ready to graduate from The University of Tampa. The date is May 10th... And the few things that lay between me and my BA degree are my:

Senior project
Beginning photography final portfolio
COM 425 - Information Technology and Human Values - final project

So, here's how YOU can help me graduate:
1) Go to http://tatianatugbaevafinalproject.blogspot.com
This blog was created specifically for my COM 425 project
2) Read the post
3) Comment and, if you wish, spread the word

The project is about the impact of online marketing on social media and its users. So, if you are reading this blog post, it means that you have something to say.

Thanks in advance!

BLOGGING IS A COMMITMENT

2008-04-06T20:08:00.000-07:00

It’s been a long and crazy week. As my graduation (and all the due dates along with it) is getting closer, it’s hard to find enough time to even wash my face some mornings (I know it’s kinda gross). But I’m trying to keep up the good work and keep my blog going.

This is when I realize that blogging is a commitment.

In her recent blog post Danah Boyd writes “[T]hose who are passionate about what they do do it to extremes.” The blog post is a review of a recent New York Times article I n Web World of 24/7 Stress, Writers Blog Till They Drop talking about bloggers who literally drop down dead from stress, exhaustion and unhealthy lifestyles. After reading the article and the post by Boyd who has a remarkably pessimistic outlook on the professional culture, I wonder “Is this what I want for myself? To work 24/7, raise teens that starve for attention ‘cos I was too busy working and writing my blog as they were growing up and burn out by the time I’m in my mid 50s with no money in my savings?” Of course not. But once I’ve had a taste of blogging, I cannot stop.

It’s like rock climbing to me. When I tried it almost 9 years ago, I knew I was hooked. My friends didn’t get it, even my parents didn’t (and still don’t) get it. But those people who I climb with know the joy of driving for 10-16 hours and camping out in the middle of nowhere regardless the weather and with no amenities nearby. They know the pleasure of carrying pounds of climbing gear up the hill, climbing all day long and coming back to the camp all bruised and bitten up with fingers raw from friction against the rock. They are hooked just like I am because they like to challenge themselves and push their bodies to the limit.

Now, blogging is a different adrenalin rush. But to me, it’s a way to get my thoughts and ideas out there - to challenge myself challenge the world and its order. If you have nothing to say, nothing to add to the conversation, then you probably shouldn’t be blogging. It’s not just a job or a marketing/PR tool – it is the means of communication. And to communicate you’ve got to have something to talk about. You also have to make a commitment to deliver meaningful content to your audience and, first of all, yourself.

LET’S FACE IT, YOUR AUDIENCE DOESN’T CARE ABOUT YOUR COMPANY AND ITS PRODUCTS

2008-03-27T09:15:00.000-07:00

In college, I was taught to write for my audience. My journalism, advertising & PR, marketing and interactive media professors preached this seemingly simple rule to us like it was one of the commandments. From those gurus of a targeted message I learned that I had to, first, study and understand my audience, then, learn to speak its language and finally, “sell the dream, not the product.”

To me, all this is common sense. But every day I encounter ads, news releases, websites and, believe me, even blogs – and more- that fail to communicate to and with their audience. They deliver generic one-size-fits-all content that is either too vague, product oriented or ego-feeding. It seems that folks at the big companies often cannot distinguish between user manuals or product specs and an effective product description. They also overlook the differences among various types of media and push the same content to TV, radio, magazines, and the Web.

Let’s say I’m shopping for a new car. Well sure I’m concerned about safety, seating, gas mileage, horse powers, so on… But I’m also a girl. So when I go to the [CAR BRAND]’s website and get something like: “5.4L… blah-blah-blah… Triton V8… blah-blah-blah… power-deployable running boards… blah-blah-blah,” I have no idea who this Triton guy is and what power-deployable running boards are supposed to do. But I need to know right away what this car can do for me. Will is save me gas and money? Will it stop fast enough if I notice a red light a little too late because I was fixing my make-up? Will it fit my girlfriends and their boyfriends in together with our mountain bikes and camping equipment? This is what I want to know. And guess what, if I can’t find this content on your website/blog/[your choice], I’m going to your competition.

So, after doing a little research I was able to distinguish 4 major mistakes that companies make when developing content:

One-size-fits-all content – companies fail to distinguish different types of customers they might have and create content that, at the end of the day, doesn’t target any of them.
“Look at me, I’m so good” or ego-feeding content – companies write about how good they are at what they do instead of how they can help their target market solve its problems. Financial institutions are especially guilty of this one.
Product-specs content – this is my car example. Again, instead of telling the audience how this particular product can satisfy the audiences’ particular need, companies talk about what the product does and what it is made of. IT companies and car-manufacturers do this mistake especially often.
Vague-language content – this is when companies talk about how ground-breaking, innovative, robust, user-friendly and so on the product is. Ok, so what can it do for me?

Poorly developed content usually includes all of these mistakes to some extend. So, next time your are writing a copy – for your ad, news release or website, think about your audience, its needs and problems and how your product can satisfy these needs and solve the problems.

SOCIAL MEDIA VS. TRADITIONAL MEDIA OR HOW TO CREATE A SUCCESSFUL MARKETING STRATEGY

2008-03-25T12:54:00.000-07:00

In his recent post ANALYSIS: Value of quote in the Wall Street Journal with a link to your blog and product, David Meerman Scott compares a traditional media hit - a quote in a Wall Street Journal, to a good blog post. He writes that when it comes to increasing website traffic, well-written and interesting blog posts seem to be more effective. According to Scott, while there are certainly many intangible benefits of a traditional media hit, social media has more impact on website traffic and online visibility.

While this might me the case, the power of traditional media is undeniable. First of all, it builds your credibility, which is essential for smaller and new companies. Second, it broadens your reach. Not each of your potential, or even existing customers, reads, comments or even trusts blogs. To give you an example, in my Writing for Interactive Media class we had this huge discussion about blogs and, to be more specific, their credibility. Almost half of the class said blogs were very unreliable sources of information. And those were people studying to become interactive media and online marketing experts!

Anyways, while your blog/website content is crucial to drive new traffic and keep people coming back for more, one traditional media hit can significantly boost your credibility and reputation. I think, in a good marketing strategy all media outlets work together to support and enhance one another. For example, in his new post Social Media Engagement Turns Lemons into Lemonade Todd Defren tells how one comment from a client of NEAT Receipts helped the company get a cover story in FORTUNE for Small Businesses. This is great example of a successful strategy.

DIGITAL UNIVERSE IS EXPANDING AT EXPLOSIVE RATE

2008-03-20T13:14:00.000-07:00

I came across this press release couple of days ago while doing research on the IT Industry. Sponsored by EMC Corporation, IDC – a company that measures and forecasts digital information, published its study on explosive growth of the digital universe and how it is affecting individuals, societies and businesses. Here are some cool facts:

In 2007, the digital universe was 10% bigger than originally expected - 281 billion gigabytes (281 exabytes)
Digital universe is expanding at the rate of 60% a year and "is projected to be nearly 1.8 zettabytes (1,800 exabytes) in 2011, a 10-fold increase over the next five years"
The amount of information generated about an average person on daily basis (“names in financial records, names on mailing lists, web surfing histories or images taken of you by security cameras in airports or urban centers”), or “Digital Shadow,” now surpasses information that individuals create about themselves, or “Digital Footprints”
In 2007, the digital universe was equal to almost 45 GB of digital information for every person in the world
eWaste (mobile phones and other electronics and PS) is becoming an environmental concern; it is accumulating more than 1 billion units a year. Oh, Wow!

So what are the reasons of such an explosive growth of our digital universe?
According to the press release, “accelerated growth in worldwide shipments of digital cameras, digital surveillance cameras, and digital televisions as well as a better understanding of information replication trends” are the reasons. Add to this “Internet access in emerging countries, sensor-based applications, data centers supporting “cloud computing” and social networks ,” and what you’ll get is the digital universe that already has more units of information than there are stars in the sky!

I strongly recommend reading this press release and checking out a cool little gadget from EMC that let’s you track your “Digital Footprints.”

WIRELESS INTERNET CARD – MISSION IMPOSSIBLE

2008-03-16T15:24:00.000-07:00

When my boyfriend’s dad called this morning and asked for help with choosing a wireless Internet card provider, both, Peter (my boyfriend) and I got on our laptops. His dad was particularly interested in T-Mobile, so, we ‘googled’ “T-Mobile Wireless Card,” expecting to spend only about 15 min of our precious time on “serving the duty.” But nothing came up…

Well, sure we got some search results, but none of them provided any info on what we were looking for: coverage, prices, plans for existing customers and, most important, how wireless cards work (to give a decent explanation to Peter’s not so technology-savvy dad). Besides, none of the results gave links to T-mobile’s official website except for a paid ad (which, by the way, took us to a page that had no information on wireless cards, whatsoever!) and a press release dated back to 2002.

After about 20 minutes of fruitless efforts, we came to the conclusion that T-Mobile keeps its wireless Internet cards top-secret and does not provide such service to us – average mortals.

Search results on other companies were no different. Sprint surprised us with a paid ad leading a web page with a promotional offer that expired in September, 2007. Verizon was somewhat better and provided a short flash-animated guide on how to install the card… Hmmm… We haven’t even purchased yet…

Only AT&T was on top of the search-results list with the link that read “Wireless Internet and wireless laptop solutions AT&T wireless ....”The company dedicated the whole section of its web site to wireless Internet solutions with an abundance of “Learn more,” special offers and customer support links.

Social Media: Connecting Lives

2008-03-14T07:13:00.000-07:00

As I have previously mentioned, I was born and raised in Russia. I moved to the States after graduating from high school to pursue higher education at The University of Tampa. It was about 5 years ago. Back then, the only means of communication with my friends and family I had were my phone, email and instant messengers.

I lost connection with many people because it was either too expensive or time consuming to stay in touch. Many of my friends from high school or rock climbing team had moved, changed their addresses and phone numbers. You know how it happens… But this summer, I discovered one Russian web site called VKontakte– something like Facebook or MySpace - that rocked my world! This relatively new (only about a year and a half) social utility has become so popular so fast that I was able to find most people I’d ever known or met, including some of my teachers and coaches. Now, I can share with them my everyday experiences and thoughts through pictures, wall posts and messages. I feel like they are part of my life again. To me, this is amazing!

My next step is to teach my mom how to use VKontakte so we can stop paying enormous amounts of money for 2-hour phone calls :)

YOUTUBE GONE WILD

2008-03-13T09:38:00.000-07:00

I’m a rock climber. I’ve been climbing for about 8 years now and was on the Russian National Climbing Team before I moved to the States. Living in Florida, I don’t get to climb outside often because, as you know, Florida is FLAT. But I do go to the climbing gym on the regular basis and take climbing trips with my friends whenever I get a chance.

Many people who have never tried rock climbing assume that it is all about upper body strength. It is not! Normally, the whole body is involved in the process. But muscles aside, one must know the techniques and have the ability to “see” climbing routes. Meaning, one must know how she/he will climb the route before even getting on the wall or rock.

I just came back from a climbing trip to Alabama, where few other people and I camped out at a very popular climbing place called Horse Pens 40 or HP 40. Just to give you an idea of how far from ‘civilization’ we were - most people from our group didn’t have any cell phone reception… Except for one girl.

There is this one route called (ironically) The Beach in HP 40 that I’ve been working on for the past year. But whatever I did, I couldn't finish it. One night my friends and I were talking about that Beach problem, and the girl who had cell phone reception also happened to have an iPhone. It didn’t take us long to get on YouTube and find a video of a person climbing The Beach. (Hallelujah! My climbing riddle was finally solved!) So, there we were in the untamed wilderness of Alabama, sitting by the campfire, eating marsh mellows and watching YouTube videos on the iPhone. Pretty New Age, huh?

My point is, virtually any video can be found from any part of the world. What an opportunity for us, common people, and for them – organizations, businesses, corporations...

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COLOR, COLOR OR COLOR?

2008-03-06T10:17:00.000-08:00

Who would think that there is the whole science behind colors!
While it is not a secret that we tend to assign certain meanings to different hues, tints and shades, I was surprised to learn just how powerful colors are when it comes to influencing our lives.

Color has always been important for me – just take a look at my condo and you will know what I am talking about. Walls in there are avocado-green, butter-yellow, beach- and nostalgia-blue... you get the picture :) I’ve never had a problem experimenting with paint. But yesterday, something happened that made me rethink my ‘relationship’ with color.

As I was working on my GooglePages online resume (and, by the way, it is yet to be finished), I couldn’t decide on a color scheme for the web page. Should it be green and white, or grey and orange, or may be red and light brow?.. hmmm… Having little experience with colors in the professional world, I turned to the wizards of the World Wide Web for an advice and guidance.

First, I had to decide what exactly I was looking for. Did I want to present myself as an expert and professional? Did I want the visitors of my webpage (in other words, my potential employers) to feel welcomed? Did I also want them to have a little fun? Yes, I wanted all that! So, I googled “colors, meaning, job,” and here is what I got.

In the article on InfoPlease David Johnson talks about psychology of colors. He emphasizes that different cultures assign different meanings to colors. Here is what some of the most popular colors mean in the US culture:

Black – authority and power. Also, submission (this is where little black dress comes from). Black can also symbolize evil. Personally, I think that black is very stylish and will probably use it as one of my font colors.

White – innocence, purity and …sterility.

Red - the most emotionally intense color. Stimulates a faster heartbeat and breathing. It is the color of love, passion and aggression... so no red on my resume :)

Blue - one of the most popular colors. Peaceful and tranquil, blue can also be cold and depressing. “Fashion consultants recommend wearing blue to job interviews because it symbolizes loyalty,” writes Johnson. So blue it is! Besides, it is my favorite color.

Green – calming and refreshing. Dark green is masculine and conservative; it symbolizes wealth.

Yellow – cheerful, sunny and optimistic, it is an attention getter. But be aware, it may cause people loose their temper.

Purple – connotes royalty, luxury, wealth and sophistication. It is also very feminine and romantic.

Brown – solid, ‘reliable’ and genuinene. But brown can also be sad and wistful.

So, I decided to go with the darker blue and black pallet and add some lighter font colors to brighten my resume up.

To those of you who are working on or already have your online resumes, blogs or personal web pages, I recommend dedicating some time to researching and perfecting your web pages color schemes.

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NEW ERA OF MARKETING AND PR

2007-11-28T05:46:00.000-08:00

I just came across an amazing blog - Web Ink Now by David Meerman Scott! The author writes about online thought leadership and viral marketing strategies and his every post is a goldmine. I am amazed by how much I have learned in just 30 min. His posts are sweet and short but abundant with useful information and tips.

Consumers are moving into the cyber space slowly but surely. They still have a long way to go before they learn how to trust the Web, but even now marketing and PR specialists recognize the power of new media.

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SEND YOUR ONLINE IMAGE TO REHAB

2007-11-12T12:53:00.000-08:00

HR professionals use social media to decide who they want to hire.

When a hiring manager “googles” your name, and a picture of you dancing on a table at a frat party pops up, it might be… hmmm… not so good for your career.

Social media – our web sites, blogs, MySpace and Facebook accounts, forum postings and dating profiles – gave us an opportunity to meet people all over the world, to get our voices out there and be heard, to discuss, debate, and share... It also took away the last bits of privacy we had left.

“Anything you post online, and anything your friends post about you online, is not private. Internet searches are being used by scholarship committees, universities, and employers,” says “Internet Safety” article on TheMoreYouKnow.com.

Unfortunately, younger social media users often forget that even a Facebook profile set on privet will pop up on the Google search. Too many college students post pictures, blog articles, comments, and personal information without thinking about it. This may eventually deprive them from their dream jobs.

Sorry, You Are Out
“Googling” employees has become a common part of hiring procedures and occasional background checks that companies perform. According to recent survey conducted by Viadeo, a business social networking site, one out of five hiring managers has used the Internet for unofficial background check of job candidates, and 59 percent of those said that information they found influenced their decision. Quarter of those hiring managers has rejected candidates because of what they discovered.

MySpace or Facebook accounts and couple of blog postings are not the limit, though. Through the Internet, hiring managers and headhunters can access information that is legally off-limits on your resume. According to Business Week’s article You Are What You Post, “your age, your marital status, the value of your house (along with an aerial photograph of it), the average net worth of your neighbors, fraternity pranks, stuff you wrote in college, liens, bankruptcies, political affiliations, and the names and ages of your children” can all be found online.

So think twice next time you are blogging about legalizing marijuana, uploading pictures from the last night’s party to your MySpace page, or giving out your personal information to an online company. Is it something you would want your employers to know?

You Know What’s Coming
Larger companies have long been doing criminal record, credit score, and college degree checks and asking candidates to pass drug tests. Today, smaller companies are “joining the club,” because all the investigative work can be done in less time and at significantly lower cost by the means of the Internet.

Students and young professionals recognize that the problem is not going to go away and agree that hiring managers are absolutely justified for using the Internet for their professional purposess. “I personally think that any type of information you choose to post to a public site like Facebook, MySpace, etc... is information which could be used to make a hiring decision,” writes Peter Chemisov, a USF graduate, 26. “Think of this scenario... You are a manager who hired a person to operate a wheel chair transport service. The criminal screaning came back clear. In a few months, there is an accident and people are injured. Your clients then finds out - through doing a simple and free Google search - that the driver was a marijuana and meth user. How does this make you look? What types of legal action could be taken against your organization?”

What You Gonna Do?
College students are becoming more cautious about what they post online. “Even six months ago it wasn’t that bad,” says Oscar DeSoto, a USF senior, 24. “Now everybody is so polite on Facebook. Everybody is deleing their pictures and tags and hiding their wall posts. Just yesterday one of my friends deleted 20 groups from his Facebook profile.”

You can go even further in rehabilitating your online reputation, however. If social media can damage your image as a well-qualified employee, it can definitely create one as well. You just have to be smart about you post.

Create a personal webpage or Facebook profile and talk about your professional qualities, ambitions, achievents and experiences. Post your responses on the blogs and forums that relate to career you want to pursue. Become a part of an online community for young professionals. And, finally, get rid of that picture of you dancing on the table at the frat party.

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NEW MEDIA POETRY

2007-11-07T07:52:00.000-08:00

I am a big fan of poetry and I absolutely loved "Ask Me For The Moon" by John Zuern. The piece was a little confusing in the beginning. But as I was clicking deeper into the web site, the pieces of this unbelievably-poetic puzzle began revealing themselves.
Yes, the poem is a puzzle: one piece over here, another - over there. And as a visitor, I had to find them and put them all together.
"Ask Me For The Moon" is about Hawaiian island Waikiki. However, it is not the island that reveals itself to tourists but to those who serve them. Zuern depicts Waikiki from the perspective of local people living in gloom and submission. To those who call Waikiki their home, the beauty of the island is corrupted and polluted.
I though that the piece was lacking sound. It was very quite... a sort of silent observation. The poem reminded me of a series of snapshots, where, instead of photographs, Zuern used words.

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IS BLOGGING NEWS?

2007-10-05T14:52:00.000-07:00

I think we should ask ourselves another question - How relevant the term “journalism” is to blogging?

Blogging is, above all, about communication. It is a form of social media, where the word “social” is critical. Blogging is a two-way process, where a sender makes a post to not merely inform a receiver, but to provoke thoughts and replies. And then the receiver does the same in return. Journalism, on the other hand, is about gathering, checking, analyzing, and delivering information. And that’s about as far as it goes.

The popularity of blogging as the means of delivering the news is growing, though. So may be the term “journalism” is outdated. May be we should redefine it or come up with another word that would better describe the way the news are delivered and received today.

It seems to me that today, no matter which news channel, radio station, or publication you turn to, you will get not the news, but points of view and perspectives. Blogs allow us to share our realities and perceptions without being paranoid about it. And, as a result, search, all together, for some common ground.

CREATIVITY

2007-08-29T16:46:00.000-07:00

On wikipedia.com “creativity” is defined as “a mental process involving the generation of new ideas or concepts, or new associations between existing ideas or concepts.” We usually associate creativity with art, literature, science, or other activities that involve higher levels of mental processes and what we call “thinking outside the box.” However, one can be creative even with daily routine. Dressing up, making notes, taking pictures, cooking, making an excuse for not completing an assignment on time or writing an email to a friend, all this involves creativity to some extend.

To me, creativity is an integral aspect of our lives that makes each and every one of us unique. It is our ability to come up with ideas, to solve everyday problems, to make connections between our past and present experiences, and to draw conclusions. When we say that someone is not creative, what we probably mean is that they are not capable of coming up with original ideas.

Today, the word creativity is used more and more often to talk about the ways companies do their business. Creativity is especially important in such areas as marketing and PR, branding, advertising, promotions and sales. Companies make huge efforts to create and sustain their unique images, to reach out to and establish exclusive relationships with their current and potential customers and stakeholders. Organizations have to be very creative to differentiate themselves from their competitors, to appeal to their potential and current customers — in other words, to succeed. In some industries, such as show business, fashion, and mass communications, creativity is vital.

Some websites I consider to be highly creative are
www.subservientchicken.com
www.sidekick.com
www.chipneville.com
www.altoids.com

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