A marriage between Social Media and Exclusive NY Nightclubs?

Ok too funny: Joshua Niamehr, owner of EnchantedDiamonds, LaundryLocal, COO FreshFanatic, and CEO of Online Holdings Corp, has scheduled a TechCrunch meetup at the Boom Boom Room, a very exclusive nightclub, for this Wednesday. Usually exclusive NY clubs don't even like anyone taking pictures but it seems Social Media "Nerds", as the article calls it, are now in and even Le Bain nightclub, another super exclusive, has a Facebook page! How do you think this affects exclusivity of night clubs, no change or does it dilute it?

http://guestofaguest.com/social-media/techcrunch-meet-boom-boom-room-the-hip-nerds-have-officially-arrived/

Where's the Beef?

What do you all think of Taco Bell's social media response to the recent lawsuit claiming they only use 35 percent beef (as opposed to 40 percent)?  They bought out search terms so that when you google taco bell lawsuit they have the first response - a special website with their statement and a video.  They also bought ads that contain the headline, "Thank you for suing us."  Smart strategy or are they letting customers know about an issue that otherwise was not on their radar?

3 Ways to Customize Your Food Online

3 Ways to Customize Your Food Online

I loved this article because it reflects on the different ways that brands are using online social media to get consumers to interact with their brand and even to expose them to a new brand. After reading the article, I decided to order a customized box of cereal for my nephew and nieces from one of the proposed brands MojaMix.com, I picked Moja Os as the base (looks like Cheerios), then added dried strawberries and blueberries. I was impressed with the simple and easy design of the website, it literally took me 2 minutes to do it, and you're able to upload a personal picture, name your own cereal mix, and add whatever label you want. They also have a Facebook page, of course! Well I hope the premium cereal tastes good to them :)

What is internet?

I found this really interesting and funny video which made me think "How it would be without internet?". Would you ever though that a decade ago people did not even know what is internet?! The only media was press, radio and television. How do you think our lives would look without social media? How people would spread the information globally, in just couple seconds, if the internet would never been discovered? Would it influence public relations and international relations? Imagine..."Twitter Revolution" would never happened... Well it is just a couple things to think off... However, luckily for US (the people that have free access to social media because not everybody in the world is so fortunate) the internet was invented and we can enjoy its usage.

Give me some of your idea: "How it would be if..." and enjoy the video.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9nTPX4JW_Ts&feature=youtube_gdata_player

Bringing back our grand-parents' values

I've found it is a funny article. The title is rather surprising...
We doubt it! But finally the article and the told anecdotes convinced me..almost. Will it convince you ?

http://mashable.com/2011/01/31/social-media-grandparents/#

Superbowl and social media

This article on msnbc.com talks about how companies are using social media during the Superbowl to fortify their customer base and attract new ones. Like mentioned in class, Mercedes Benz is just one of the many of the companies that is getting in on the action. Doritos is relaunching its "Crash the Superbowl campaign" and companies such as Homeaway and Audi are using Twitter and Facebook to reach consumers. These companies have realized that they need to employ non traditional tactics in order to engage their customers, especially younger generations. However, many industry leaders fear social media because of their inability to fully control it. Companies know that they cannot control negative comments and feedback on social media platforms and a poorly executed campaign can definitely make things worse. Still, as we enter 2011, executives know that change is inevitable.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/41261760/ns/business-business_of_super_bowl_xlv/

We're trusting thought leaders more and more

This article caught my eye because it reminded me of our Friday discussion about Quora, and how part of the appeal is that the answers are coming from "experts."  Basically, it gives a break-down of the key points from the annual Edelman Trust Barometer.
At the same time that we're trusting our online "friends" less, we're trusting online "credentialed experts" more - perhaps the explanation for Quora's (so-far) winning strategy.  If you attract knowledgeable individuals to review your product etc, your message will be more widely accepted, whereas people are now placing less trust in their online, non-credentialed "friends." 
These tools also make "experts" more accessible, whereas it used to be more difficult to find a knowledgeable voice. Ultimately, this gives us a good picture of how businesses are being forced to adapt and target these thought leaders, instead of spreading their message to every individual via social media.

The first digital revolution?

From the February issue of Foreign Affairs magazine:

On January 17, 2001, during the impeachment trial of Philippine President Joseph Estrada, loyalists in the Philippine Congress voted to set aside key evidence against him. Less than two hours after the decision was announced, thousands of Filipinos, angry that their corrupt president might be let off the hook, converged on Epifanio de los Santos Avenue, a major crossroads in Manila. The protest was arranged, in part, by forwarded text messages reading, "Go 2 EDSA. Wear blk." The crowd quickly swelled, and in the next few days, over a million people arrived, choking traffic in downtown Manila.

Kind of puts into perspective the idea that digital revolutions are a recent phenomenon!

How Videos Go Viral [INFOGRAPHIC]

How Videos Go Viral [INFOGRAPHIC]

How Videos Go Viral

I have alway wondered how the latest YouTube video goes from obscurity to millions of views. Mashable posted an infographic offering some explanation, but I think its still partly luck. I'm sure seo also contributes to what makes a video go viral. The infograph breaks down social video watching by region and finds that the South watches more viral videos than any other. I would be curious to find more social media stats by region.

How Videos Go Viral

Foursquare Introduces New Tools for Businesses

I found it very interesting that Foursquare introduced a new tool to let business collect more information about their clients or customers.
http://bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/03/09/foursquare-introduces-new-tools-for-businesses/

Status Updates turned “Sponsored Stories”

Facebook is at it again! They’ve recently rolled out a new product allowing advertisers to pull content from users’ status updates, “likes” and check-ins, and repurpose it as an advertisement appearing in that right rail (where we’re all oh-so-familiar with ads already).

Get this: you can’t opt out. Facebook’s justification for this is that only your friends will be able to see these “sponsored stories,” and they would see them in their news feed anyway. This article explains a little bit more and also offers a great quote from David Berkowitz in an op-ed for Mashable:

"Facebook's latest advertising offering, Sponsored Stories, is characteristic of the company: bold, clever and lacking empathy."

Do you guys agree or disagree with Berkowitz?

ps – At the time of this posting, 3,403 people “liked” this CNNMoney article via Facebook!

If it Were My Home

Ever wondered what it’s like to live in a certain country? I bet most (if not all) of us ponder this question every now and then.

Here’s a website that provides answers to your questions. By offering a country comparison tool, If it Were My Home lists some of the pros and cons of living in each country that you choose (all based on statistics). For example, I decided to compare the living conditions in Japan to those in Spain. Here’s what I got:

I thought it was an interesting website that can help those who plan to move to a new country. The website also suggests a variety of books that provide more information about these places. There is also a comments section where people share their perspectives and personal experiences of living in these countries.

Twitter Revolutions- A trending topic?

We have seen a recent use of Twitter in the organizations of protests, and even revolutions over the past few year. Given our most recent readings and discussion in class, I thought this article was interesting. In this report on the riots in Egypt, BBC specifically mentions the use of Twitter in this, and other, protests.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-12283849

Google Voice Number Porting

This article discusses the pros and cons of using Google as your primary phone. There are many interesting options available once you have switched, but it can get messy. I don't think I could ever part from my phone, but the article makes some nice points. What do you think?

State of the Union Wordle

A wordle is an online tool that allows you to input text and then it converts 

the size of the words based on how many times it is mentioned. The larger the font, 

the more times it was mentioned in the address. The big ones this time were America 

and people. Interesting. Wonder what the key phrases were for other presidents! 

Here is the one that I created for tonight's state of the union!

The Pope Gives His Blessing to Facebook, Orkut, and Social Media

Dear Catholics,
Now we can feel good about being active using social media. Recently, Pope Benedict XVI shared his reflections about social media and global communication throughout internet. He pointed out the "dark sides" and "bright sides" of the social media use. However, in his speech he concluded that:
"I would like then to invite Christians, confidently and with an informed and responsible creativity, to join the network of relationships which the digital era has made possible. This is not simply to satisfy the desire to be present, but because this network is an integral part of human life. The web is contributing to the development of new and more complex intellectual and spiritual horizons, new forms of shared awareness."

via Message for the 45th World Communications Day, Benedict XVI."

Moreover, we all can fallow Pope on his personal internet website: www.Pope2you.net

To read more about go to:

http://blogs.forbes.com/kashmirhill/2011/01/24/the-pope-gives-his-blessing-to-facebook-orkut-and-social-media/?boxes=businesschanneltopstories

Facebook Photo Hacks

It's something we all (in this class) look at everyday: Our Facebook profile page. I've always thought of the home profile page as a bit utilitarian. It gets across information including bio, recent pictures, comments but I've never thought of the layout of the page as a way to display your own type of art.

Apparently you can create Photo Hacks on your profile page. Mashable asked people to submit "Facebook Photo Hacks" and they got some impressive results.

http://mashable.com/2010/12/24/more-new-facebook-profiles-pics/#64278-Marc-LaurentAtthalin

This blog entry isn't telling you about a new media or tool but is about a different way of expressing yourself using standard media. I was drawn to the creative approach and it made me stop and appreciate the multiple ways media (in this case FB) can be used as a way of self expression or self marketing. These unique approaches can grab the attention of friends or customers - just like the guy who bought the PR URLs for when the bosses googled themselves. Does anyone have any other experience running into creative new ways to use "old" media tools?

Turning Your Phone Off at the Theater, A Thing of the Past?

The Illusion Theater, one of Minneapolis' well-known independent theaters, is using social media in an interesting new way. They are currently staging Moliere's "The Misanthrope," and in order to generate interest and buzz, they created a Twitter Night, where audience members were asked to keep their cell phone on and live Tweet their reactions to the show using the hashtag #lightsup.

What do you think of this idea? They managed to make it a trending topic, and generated conversations and buzz about the show, and was free publicity. What do you think? Should more art shows and theaters follow in their footsteps, or are people always going to hate sitting next to someone with their cell phone on and Tweeting?

Read the full story here.

Online Networking: It can help OR harm

As media savvy students, we are all well aware of the networking capabilities of social media. You can use Twitter to find a job posting, Facebook to connect with people in that network, and Linkedin to provide them with your online resume. With all of this online presence, however, how much of a footprint are you leaving?

This article below describes how many companies are now conducting social media background checks. We have discussed this in class (Professor Kumar's topless nurse) and Groundswell addresses it too. In our era of a strong social media presence, we have to be aware of what we are saying, posting, and even who we have associated with us.

Perhaps we all have a friend who likes to post about bringe drinking an illicit drug use. Not only do we have to be cautious of what we say, but being associated with someone who posts bad things reflects poorly on us as well.

IPcalypse

 Internet is Running Out of Space

This morning I came across an article from Mashable stating that the Internet is running out of space. It's funny because you don't necessarily ever think about something like this happening. The web is infinite how could it have a maximum capacity? There are bounds to everything but luckily someone was intelligent enough to realize how quickly we were approaching this number and creating a new IPv6.

My question is doesn't this seem to be inevitable? Will this happen at one point in the future or will all those computer geniuses out there continue to fix the problem? Can the world even having this much?
 

The World Before the Internet [COMIC] - What do you think?

The World Before the Internet [COMIC]

I wanted to share this Comic with the class. I thought this was funny yet scary at the same time. The sentence "The World Before the Internet" does sound so far away but the Comic portrays the world as boring place and I disagree. I find that people used to spend a lot of time coming up with original ideas and we have so many great thinkers like Einstein to prove it. Now with the Internet we are still developing and sharing great ideas but I wonder if we are sharing more than we are developing. What do you think?

Podcast pessimism?

Early on while reading Groundswell I was struck by how pessimistic the authors seemed to be toward podcasting.

Podcasters and even podcast listeners are rare, reaching only 11 percent of the online population in America and less in other countries.

As a University of Florida alum and an avid college sports fan, I was excited when I discovered during my senior year that a group of sportswriters for our student newspaper were starting a Gator sports podcast. I listen to it regularly and have grown more impressed over time as it went from an ambitious idea into a funny, informative and professional 40- to 60-minute product. If you're interested in seeing what a group of dedicated kids can do with a Macbook and a few pieces of recording equipment, you can check it out here:

alligatorSports Podcast on iTunes

But beyond that, I was just wondering if anyone else in this class is a frequent podcast listener. Are the podcast statistics from Groundswell out of date? Or are podcasts simply a technology that has failed to catch on?

Social Media Trends for 2010

I came across there six social media trends for 2010 while reading a blog for Harvard Business Review:
1. Social media begins to look less social (or it might seem that way because of all the clutter and noise that we can see on Twitter, facebook, etc)
2. Corporations look to scale (more companies are looking to provide customer support on twitter, etc)
3. Social business becomes serious play (some networks, like foursquare, have a game-like component)
4. Your company will have a social media policy (and it might actually be enforced)
5. Mobile becomes a social media lifeline (as 70 percent of organizations ban social networks, employees might be looking to "feed their social media addictions on their mobile devices")
6. Sharing no longer means e-mail (for exmaple, "The New York Times iPhone application recently added sharing functionality which allows a user to easily broadcast an article across networks such as Facebook and Twitter.")

I thought it was interesting. You can read the full article at
http://blogs.hbr.org/cs/2009/11/six_social_media_trends.html

Study: Young kids better with tech than 'life skills'

I found this article online and I found it really creepy. I know we are in social media class and we supposed to look at the positive sides of technology and worlds innovations. However, it bring some concerns...

According to studies 58% of young children can play a computer game and 53% can ride a bike. Well should we consider it as something positive, or negative? We could think, it is good because the technology now days evolves so fast that kids need to know how to operate in this technology based world. But on the other hand should we let kids forget about old physical activities and games that were common when we were young?

What do you think? How we could make it work both ways and make it fair for both sides of personal evolution?

http://news.cnet.com/8301-19518_3-20029002-238.html?tag=cnetRiver

Leave Your Wallet At Home, But Bring Your Mobile Device

Beginning today, the next time you’re up early or late and need a tall or grande cup of java from Starbucks to keep going, no worries if you’ve misplaced your wallet . . . just be sure you arrive at Starbucks with your iPhone, iPod Touch or Blackberry. You will be able to pay for that cup of caffine using the Starbucks Card Mobile. This “card” is a barcode visible on the screen of your mobile device made possible via the Starbucks Card Mobile app that has been downloaded to one of the aforementioned mobile devices (for Android owners, an app for this device is apparently being worked on). There is a 2-D scanner at the register that will read your barcode. Funds are added to the “card” via PayPal or credit card.

For a society in a hurry and for a society in which the cell phone has become integrated with daily life, this payment method makes sense. Hopefully, though, the time savings part will not be nullified waiting for that grande latte to be made! Of course, you can always make good use of your time checking emails, news, your FB page, etc. on your mobile device.


Source of photo: http://mashable.com/2011/01/18/Starbucks-mobile-payments/

Looking for a job? Twitter can help.

Since the majority of us are graduating in May and will be on the job hunt in the near future, I thought this article and video tutorial could act as one of the many search options we can utilize.

The video shows using Twitter in a job search, with some basic information on Twitter in the beginning. Tutorial videos have a tendency to be pretty dry, but the information you can find is valuable.

Lifecasting: Creepy or Cool?

I wondered aloud in class on Friday what lifecasting was, so I checked it out at home. Lifecasting (not to be confused with the molding/casting process) is basically a continuous videostream of one’s personal life broadcast live on the Internet. It is typically done through wearable recording devices.

My initial thought was, “Who in the world would be interested in this?” It sounds boring and a bit narcissistic. As it turns out, lifecasting has quite a history. Wikipedia offers a very thorough explanation and backstory here. Also, this is an interesting YouTube video that shows how some people (known as “lifecasters) are employing lifecasting.

What do you guys think? Is it weird or something that could actually be effective? How could different companies and organizations use it? I was thinking something along the lines of “A Day in the Life of the CEO.” Other ideas?

Twitter Analytical Site

Though I Tweet, I'm not a frequent Twitter user, and I know I could be using Twitter more effectively.  Via Twitter, I came across this article, 5 Best Analytics Tools, and felt it was worth sharing.
It describes several tools that let you measure how active you are on Twitter, what kinds of followers you have, and what you Tweet about.  Some create graphs to visualize your online behavior, others label you a certain type of Twitter user.
I'm going to test-drive a few and see if these analytical tools can help you adjust your Twitter activity to be more effective and influential.

Welcome to Social Media Strategies and Tactics

Welcome to the class blog.  As you can see, this is a site that was very active last summer during the debut of this course.  I thought I would keep the content on here so that you can see the types of posts that students generated.  Look forward to actively engaging in all things social media in the months ahead!