Lifestreams are back in the spotlight again thanks to the most recent meme started by Steve Rubel, except this time, the popularity of flow, aka presence applications, such as Twitter, Pownce, Jaiku, and Tumblr is much greater and expansive than the last time the topic circulated the blogosphere. As the idea starts to move along the bell curve, people are realizing the potential for aggregating information and broadcasting a focused channel of relevant content – on both sides of the…
Channels Will Improve the Twitter Experience
I’ve been following Chris Messina‘s and Stowe Boyd’s discussion on creating pseudo channels for Twitter. I find this extremely interesting because the volume of users and tweets are well beyond overwhelming it it makes it difficult to track, discover, and participate in relevant and interesting conversations. Messina and Boyd aren’t talking about groups as we know them in other social networks per se, but more along the lines of parsing information to specific assemblies of people around a common topic….
PR is About Relationships, Just Ask Robert Scoble
The crossroads of traditional PR and Social Media is on an inevitable path to a very public boiling point. In the realm of Social Media, conversations are king. As much as we talk about how to participate in Social Media, it doesn’t mean a thing if we don’t take a few steps back and remember that regardless of the technology, meaningful conversations are about respect and relationships. And, I should also point out that the most rewarding dialog has always…
Top iPhone Applications for PR and Marketing Professionals
The iPhone is gaining traction as not only the must have gadget of the year, but also as an effective tool for mobile professionals. Rather than continue gushing about a device that I am forced to love, I will continue to post new stories when I find new ways to justify its value beyond a killer iPod with phone and Web functionality. Since Apple has refused to offer an SDK (software development kit), I have been somewhat reluctant to believe…
Is Pownce the Twitter or Jaiku Killer?
There’s a new kid on the block and the edglings are a twitter over whether there’s room for another player in the presence application market. Pownce, the latest brain child from Digg founder, Kevin Rose, is off to a whirlwind start, with many asking whether or not it is already the “new” Twitter and Jaiku Killer. While Twitter and Jaiku are the current leaders, we’re really still too early to predict winners and losers in a market that is far…
Defining Social Media
After publishing, “The Social Media Manifesto, A Manifesto for Integrating Social Media into Marketing,” I decided to take a short break. I wanted it to reside online for people to discover before it was pushed down the page with every post to follow. Afterall, we do have a very short attention span these days and the important posts that exist across the blogosphere are unfortunately quickly forgotten. But that’s the point of the manifesto. There are conversations taking place across…
The Social Media Manifesto
In the past, I’ve spoken at PR, tech, and communications events about Social Media and how companies can engage in the conversations taking place with or without them. As much as I wanted to look into the future, I was rooted in the present as a means to connect it to the past. There are just too many new things to introduce to people and even more reasons why they should care. The discussion usually centered on the tools enabling…
TwitDir is the White Pages for Twits aka People on Twitter
When Twitter originally launched, it offered an integrated, basic directory search function. For one reason or another, it vanished over night. It was a disappointing move as I, like many, relied on search to catch up with friends that we knew were on Twitter, but we were all too busy to remember the IDs, let alone add them to our email signatures and business cards for future reference. TwitDir is one of the many cool third party apps that reintroduces…
Twitter Down Again, Sparks Adoption for Jaiku
Yes, it’s true. We are a fickle impatient bunch of early adopters looking for things to be there when we need them and work like we want them to. We do have patience with cool, new technologies and apps, but that patience quickly thins when it is tested too frequently. Yes I am a fan of Twitter. But, using Twitter can be frustrating at times. All too often, I’m forced to wait, sometimes without satisfaction, in order to hit the…
You.tv – A New Chapter in Lifecasting is Already Unfolding
Please read Part I prior to reading this article. Also, please scroll down and press pause to stop the inbound video feeds until you’re ready. The new world of lifecasting through video, a la Justin.tv, and through other flow apps such as Twitter, Jaiku and Tumblr, are lessons in Internet culture, communication and proof that narcissism can be a powerful driver for technology adoption. In my last several posts, I’ve documented the migration of text-based streams. In this post, I’d…
