Source: Shutterstock With a $1 billion valuation, Twitter is becoming, according to Co-Founder Evan Williams, an information network, a practically priceless exchange for connections, information, and the resulting activity that ensues. Indeed, Twitter appears to have evolved into a human seismograph, a lifeline interweaving people through conversations, reciprocity, and connections inspired by the interests, ideas, passions, causes, and observations that move them. Twitter’s core and most loyal users are at one with the service. Their daily actions hinge on the…
Ning Proves That There’s Life Outside of Facebook and Twitter
Source: Shutterstock I was recently asked in a 2010 planning meeting about my views on Ning and whether or not it was worthy of consideration or attention. It seems that the question is increasingly raised as Social Media becomes pervasive within the halls of marketing, advertising, customer service, and public relations. My answer is this. If your only focus is Facebook, blogs, and Twitter, the grapevine to which you’re connected is only telling you part of the story. Listening to…
The Greatest Hits of 2009 Part III
Source: Shutterstock What comes around goes around and as we close the chapter on 2009 a new chapter that documents our direction and experiences is already unfolding. Revisiting the stories, lessons, vision that helped get you where you are today may help you surpass not only your expectations, but those of your peers, customers, prospects, and influencers as well. The Greatest Hits of 2009 Part III 1. Significant 2. Reviving the Traditional Press Release 3. This is Not a Sponsored…
Facebook Brings Fans into Focus
Source: Shutterstock As brands and personalities race to establish online communities and host meaningful conversations in Social Media, Facebook continues to pave the roads that connect them. If your customers, prospects, and the peers who influence them are active in Facebook, Facebook Fan Pages are then not a question of if, but when and how they’re implemented and cultivated. Many brands and personalities underestimate the value and reach of social networking, instead opting to drive traffic and activity back to…
The Future of Interactive Marketing
Source: Shutterstock Forrester recently released a new report tracking the future of US interactive marketing through 2014. Authored by Shar VanBoskirk, with Christine Spivey Overby, Niki Scevak, and Angie Polanco, Forrester predicts that interactive marketing is poised to grow at a 16% compound annual growth rate (CAGR). Even though interactive marketing will approach $55 billion by 2014, the report also observes that not all industries will keep pace with this growth. Retail and financial services are expected to dominate the…
Twitter: The Business of Community
Source: Shutterstock Twitter continues to explore and appraise long-term revenue models. For the time being, Twitter’s primary focus is to build and nurture a thriving and indispensable community. Equally critical is the company’s ability to steer engineering and marketing efforts towards developers to empower them to extend, evolve, and enhance the overall Twitter experience for the vast landscape of discerning users as well as those new members who have yet to realize its potential. In July 2009, we were introduced…
Live Video Streams Go Mainstream
In April 2007, I wrote a series entitled “You.tv” that documented the transformation in user-generated online video from episodic content to live broadcasting. Over time the You.tv movement would come to be known as lifecasting, live streaming, or live casting, as it shared with viewers everything the Webcam captured, as it happened. Since then, live streaming has evolved from nichecasting to mainstream broadcasting, with more and more individuals, and now celebrities and businesses, live casting video streams to viewers across…
The Greatest Hits of 2009 Part II
Source: Shutterstock The look at some of my most revered thoughts, observations, experiences and lessons continues in Part II of this ongoing “best of 2009” series. I’ve selected these posts as I believe they still not only have value today, but will continue to guide you in the new year. Part I is available here. Greatest Hits of 2009, Part II: 1. Micro Disruption Theory and The Social Effect 2. The Conversation Prism v2.0 3. Video Interview: How to Build…
In Social Media, It’s Not Just Business, It’s Business-To-Business
Source: Shutterstock (edited) As some social media experts are now starting to realize, businesses need a little bit more than relationships to justify their spend in conversational marketing. Relationships are difficult to forge and even more burdensome to measure. And while participation and engagement are part of a more effective interactive business communications program now, we can not neglect our responsibilities to the bottom line as well as our dedication to existing customers and prospects. Socialized media affects an organization…
The Evolution of A New Trust Economy
Source: Shutterstock (edited) Social Media is rooted in relationships, the dynamic interaction and collaboration between real people. We learned and continue to learn how to communicate in public forums, evolving our personal views on privacy and uncertainty as we transform from digital introverts to social extroverts. This is our industrial revolution and its reward for participation is relevance. The socialization of online societies democratized the publishing industry and equalized influence. The Social Economy Socialnomics is the study of what I…
