Here in Boston, a television station just went social- real social. They already had a good fan base on Facebook, some followers on Twitter and were actively promoting their “socialness” online. But where it really shines through is in their newly redesigned website.
WHDH, whether you like it or not, is going to make you understand social by simply visiting their website. Check out the quick (2 minute video) below.
What I really like is that the entire team has bought into the concept. Their weather team hops online and blogs on a regular basis and really brings their news to life. Weather can be boring- for them it’s not. WHDH brings a bit of personality and context to the news they deliver and share online, which in this day and age, is a good thing…
This past weekend one of the lenses on our family Digital SLR camera broke by way of a drop by a 4 year old and some chocolate wedged in some really hard to find places on the lens.
So, I took some time to play around with the new FLIP HD Mino camera while talking on the phone with my friend Kate Webber, of Kate Webber Photography. One of her photos just got nominated as one of the best wedding photos in this nationwide contest. So, I thought. “How can I help Kate in this nationwide contest, while testing out the new video camera? Easy. See if a virtual video “ask” will work. Will it?
So, before you do anything else, please VOTE now (you can vote up to 2 times). When you’ve received that vote confirmation email from Top Knots, send it to Kate at ivoted@katewebber.com. This will enter you in a drawing for a complimentary one hour photo shoot, or a choice of one of her prints.
Make sense? Ok. Good. Now please go vote for Kate, and help her get 500 votes by Friday!
One of the most challenging things about Social Media is that it’s a new way of doing business. Not something we necessarily planned for in our day, and something well, we’re not quite used to. We’re not in the habit of doing it every day, but we’re gettin’ there, right?
Now, as the successful social media practitioner or evangelist of your company, you are trying to make it your habit. You’ve got a handle on Facebook, you totally get Linkedin, and are slowly getting the hang of Twitter. You’re listening, building a community, engaging, learning, measuring, reporting back to whomever you need to report to.
You’re now in your social media habit. You’ve got your routine down. Facebook? Check. Twitter? Check. Google Reader for RSS Feeds? Check.
But not so fast.
Are you sure you want to get in the “habit” of doing the same thing every day? Some of you have probably been using Tweetdeck for the past year or so? Habit? Probably. Open your eyes and check out the world of Seesmic Desktop, or just head back to Twitter.com.
- Instead of heading directly to wordpress to blog every day, why not go to tumblr.com, posterous.com, or back to Friendfeed?
- Are you STILL using Snapfish or Kodak to share photos? Seriously? Why not try Flickr? or Picasa or SmugMug?
- Looking to get a Flip HD Camera for Christmas? Avoid the hype, the Kodak zi8 is much better…
Bottom Line. If you’re going to live and work in the social media world, I’d get used to mixing things up, because, well for now, things are still being mixed up. Change is good. Change makes you think with new perspective about the value and relevance of each social media application.
Facebook, Linkedin and Twitter are today’s sparkly social media platforms, but that doesn’t mean they’ll be just as relevant a year from now. Take some time to explore one new application or “thing” a week. You’ll think a bit differently about social media, and how you and your company use it.
