All Entries Tagged With: "new media"

Getting Your Content Out There – Fast.

Content is considered the “currency” of social media. Content is made by you, your company, you favorite blogger, news outlet and more..

Now, how do you/they make the content easier to find? Read on.

The algorithms that have made Google famous may be replaced in the near future with a new indexing system that will be better for web publishers out there. According to ReadWriteWeb, the system “will enable web publishers of any size to automatically submit new content to Google for indexing within seconds of that content being published.” Sounds good right?

The system is called PubSubHubbub (PuSH), and that article explains it better than I could; you can find more technical information here, and a great explanatory video here.  The kicker is that anyone can use this method of distributing content; it is entirely free code. And people are taking advantage: Wordpress has already adopted it so now, all your new content will get sent within a matter of seconds to those who subscribed to receive it.

Besides being a more efficient for Google to catalog everything, now, it won’t be just your tweets getting out to your readers in real time, but your blog posts as soon as you write them. The Web is moving to real time more and more every day, which is good news for marketers. Looking to break the latest story, lead the dialogue? Then you need your content available in real time. Stephen at Impact Media (which also reported on the PuSH announcement from Google) makes a good case that this sort of cataloguing won’t topple the search algorithims of today, but I think more people are interested in what’s happening right now than Stephen suggests and the faster you get your content into the search engines and their news feeds, the more likely they’ll see it.

Google Buzz, Part Deux

Let’s talk more about Google Buzz.   I mentioned this a few weeks ago giving you my general impressions of the new platform, and it seems the general consensus on the web bounces between “I HATE IT!” (which tends to be the gut reaction whenever a major player releases a new feature) and “let’s give it more time.”

I attribute the two reactions to two things: First, Buzz was automatically integrated with everyone’s Gmail. You had to click “accept” on a pop up menu – before you even got a chance to see what it was like! Second, it’s value is not immediately apparent.

Although Google automatically linked you to all your Gmail accounts, the learning curve to get the most out of it is pretty steep.

 I ‘m still trying to figure out how to integrate Buzz with of my other social media tools because the services it provides are already filled by Twitter and Facebook. In fact, Mashable readers ranked it third behind these two older platforms.

I

t’s not an intuitive program. If you’re looking for some basic guides to using Buzz, check here and here and here , and of course, Google itself. Just the presence of so many “how-to” guides is telling; there are lots of guides for Twitter, but those talk about the nuances of tweeting, not how to adjust settings, or worse, disable it. This is a big challenge for Google.

 Couple that with the multiple concerns about privacy, and no wonder people are upset.

However, Buzz is gaining some traction.

• A significant number of businesses are developing Buzz profiles and getting active. Here are some big businesses I was able to find  using Buzz: Samsung USA, Vizio, Verizon, CNN, the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, and more. (It took me a while to find where to search for profiles, just use the search bar at the bottom of this page.)
• Wordpress has already implemented a “Buzz This” feature for the blogs it hosts and HuffPost and TechCrunch have added “Buzz This” icons alongside Facebook and Twitter sharing icons
• The Washington Post reported last week that, according to AddThis, sharing via Google Reader has increased by 35% since Buzz launched. Still small potatoes compared to sharing on Facebook and retweeting, but presumably there will be more to come.

The bottom line is that these major organizations are paying attention. So as annoying as it may seem right now, you  probably should too.

7 Habits of Highly Effective Social Marketers- Connie Bensen

Back to the continuing “7 Habits” series with Connie Bensen. I first “met” Connie Christmas Day (or thereabouts) about two years ago when testing out Skype. Social Media waits for no-one, right? We struck up a conversation online, and have since stayed connected, (or have tried to!) through Twitter. Without further ado, Ms. Connie Bensen.

About Connie
I’m the Director of Social Media & Community Strategy at Alterian. I work under corporate marketing and have two focus areas: the social media strategy at Alterian & also providing marketing support for SM2 our social media monitoring tool.

1. What one trait or *habit* got you to where you are today?
Investing many hours in learning and giving back to others.

2. Your work day just started, what’s the FIRST thing you do and why?
My first item is to read email because I need to get centered for the day. Now that our parent office is in the UK their day is half over when I start mine, so I frequently start my week on Sunday evening.

3. What makes you efficient with your day?
I couldn’t live without Evernote. It’s amazing (and free!). It synchs across the cloud & my lists and information is always available no matter what computer I’m working on.

4. Your Favorite Business book of all time?
Word of Mouth Marketing by Andy Sernovitz rates very high.

5. 3 things on your desk right now /3 things you can’t live without
a mouse (I can’t use a laptop without one)
pen & paper
on my desktop I NEED evernote, skype, Thunderbird, Firefox, Digsby

6. Habit you want to kick in 2009
One habit I need to change is working too much. And I’m starting to figure out how to not work on weekends, but it’s really hard (seriously!). I have an upcoming move & look forward to socializing more with friends.

7. Habit you want to form for 2010
I plan to get more exercise on a regular basis. Although January is over & I’ve managed to avoid it so far! :)

7 Habits of Highly Effective Social Marketers- John Jantsch

If you are a small business on a shoe-string budget, look no further than Duct Tape Marketing. Today’s “7 Habits of Highly Effective Social Marketers” continues with
the 7 Habits of John Jantsch.

About John
John Jantsch is a marketing and digital technology coach, award winning social media publisher and author of Duct Tape Marketing and The Referral Engine

1. What one trait or habit got you to where you are today?
Paying attention to what’s going on around me and writing about it daily

2. Your work day just started, what’s the FIRST thing you do and why?
Coffee – I have a routine of sites, email, engagement, Twitter, etc that I run through – I guess it’s part of my overall systems approach

3. What makes you efficient with your day?
GTD and Central Desktop – I’ve always been a list maker

4. Your Favorite Business book of all time?
The Practice of Management – Peter Drucker – although it may not seem like it, it’s the best marketing book I’ve ever read

5. 3 things on your desk right now/ 3 things you can’t live without
24″ Monitor, Moleskin notebook, Jug of green tea

6. Habit you want to kick in 2010
Coffee

7. Habit you want to form for 2010
Increase Yoga and running practices

10 Things You Didn’t Know about LinkedIn

Remember when you first heard about LinkedIn and signed up, thinking it would be convenient to have your resume online? And remember how you haven’t spent much time there since?….

You can wring so much more use out of our profile than you think; here are 10 tips to get you started.

1.) This tip could be an entire post on its own, but thinking about reordering your profile to highlight your best attributes.This is like getting getting dressed up for a big event. Horizontal stripes are bad, unless you want to accent width…LinkedIn started offering reording earlier this month, and there’s a handy video guide with tips on the company blog.

2.) You may have synced your blog feed with your LinkedIn profile, but did you know you can add video too? LinkedIn added a video application last spring, and its’ been generating a lot of buzz since, though the concept of video resumes has been around for a while. Reel Social Media has step-by-step instructions (with its own handy video guide). Important to remember: just becaue you can, doesn’t mean you should. Adding video is great for showcasing artistic talent, past speeches or presentations you’re particularly proud of, or could be a unique way to add reccomendations. Five minutes of you answering your own interview questions isn’t a good idea.

3.) LinkedIn also lets you tag your contacts with unique labels. Want to walk up to the speaker you just heard at a conference but can’t remember how you’re connected? Scroll through your tags and jog your memory.

4.) Be active. This sounds like a no brainer, but bear with me: how many of you check the site when you get a notification about some connection making another new connection, scan your profile, then log out? LinkedIn and social media are changing the way people communicate and the way people find jobs – if you’re not a frequent participant in that conversation, then no one knows just how many interesting things you have to say. Don’t get left behind.

5.) Use LinkedIn to drive more traffic to your own website, specifically the qualified traffic that will add content and conversation to your growing community. The gist? Make connections, first by linking yourself to people you know, then by answering the questions of people you don’t. And by joining groups that cater to your niche.

6.) Or start your own group. Lewis Howes, who literally wrote the book on LinkedIn, has a lot to say about this. Groups on LinkedIn are the same as groups on Facebook.  Use them to show your support for something or to meet others who think the same way. Lewis recommends that you should use LinkedIn to not just connect with people you know, but with EVERYONE. It’s the equivalent of walking up to a stranger and introducing yourself.. Just write a well crafted introduction, and don’t worry about tripping and falling on your face as you make your way toward someone to shake hands; remember, all your accomplishments are published for the world to see too.

7.) All of this advice is useful, of course, for someone trying to get a job. The bottom line is that LinkedIn makes it easier than ever to network continuously. Regardless of whether you are employed or not, you should be on LinkedIn as often as you’re on Facebook, creating a strong network that can support you when you need it.

8.) And because social media is sometimes about stoking egos, you can also see who’s viewed your profile.

9) You may have seen that you can upgrade your LinkedIn account, for a small fee… I just signed up for a premium account last week. We’ll see. (There is some good commentary here)

10.) LinkedIn is a great place to figure out WHO you are, WHAT you want out of your career, and HOW you can get there. Howes continues to list a few good questions to ask yourself when you are setting up a profile.

Your thoughts? How do you like to use Linkedin?

7 Habits of Highly Effective Social Marketers – Colin Browning

Colin Browning- Photo Credit Jim Storer

He’s # 15 in your scorecards, and number one in your hearts, ladies and gentleman, THE Colin Browning…..

About Colin
Colin had recently left New Marketing Labs to join IDG. He now designs marketing programs for leading technology brands as a part of IDG’s Strategic Marketing Services team.

1. What one trait or habit got you to where you are today?
I started as a photographer. I learned from the beginning that to stand out, I needed to see things differently and to make others see things differently.

2. Your work day just started, what’s the FIRST thing you do and why?
My work day starts when my eyes first open in the morning. I do some of my best creative thinking as I make my cup of coffee and take those first sips as I am thinking about the day ahead. My morning coffee ritual and day mapping is a critical part of my successful days.

3. What makes you efficient with your day?
Getting a solid 8 hours of sleep the night before, followed by a morning workout – then no matter what the day throws at me – I am can take it head on!

4. Your Favorite Business book of all time?
I have to say, I have been much more inspired by reading the bios of great artists lately like Arthur Danto’s bio of Robert Mapplethorpe or a biography of Andrew Wyeth (can’t recall the author). These have inspired me with their singularity of focus, dedication, and talent.

5. 3 things on your desk right now/3 things you can’t live without
I am going to cheat and write things in multiples (I hate rules):

Photos of my family & friends (iRoadtrip!)
iPhone
notepad & pen

6. Habit you want to kick in 2010
Evening TV – like many, I do tend to get sucked in.

7. Habit you want to form for 2010
Spending more of my evenings playing with the kids and then reading a wider range of material: fiction, non-fiction (not just the social media stuff) and biographies.

7 Habits of Highly Effective Social Marketers- Carissa Caramanis O’Brien

It gives me great pleasure to introduce interview #13 of the “7 Habits” Series. Carissa Caramanis O’Brien is a communications, content marketing and social media luminary in Boston. While she’s not running her own company, she also happens to be an EMT-B- and some of us had a chance to see here in action (Jan. ‘10) during a bit of medical emergency at Jeff Pulver’s 140 Conference in Boston

About Carissa
I’m Carissa Caramanis O’Brien, or @carissao. I’m the president of Red Box Communications, a consulting firm specializing in strategic communications counsel for healthcare, non-profits and technology organizations. I help people tell their stories and connect them to the audiences that matter most.

1. What one trait or habit got you to where you are today?
Determination. Even when work or life has dealt me a challenging hand, I’ve always found an even keel and a steady hand. Add that to a healthy dose of personal faith, a heck of a lot of hard work, continuous flexibility and just a dash of madness, and I’ve got the recipe for creating something great…it’s gotten me this far, and I’m counting on it to fuel my next successes.

2. Your work day just started, what’s the FIRST thing you do and why?
I check my email and Twitter (via Tweetdeck, unless I’m on the road, in which case I do a quick check of UberTwitter first). Unless something urgent welcomes me there, I’ll quickly move to Firefox to pull up Google Reader and simultaneously start my daily content assault to see just how many open tabs my system can really handle.

3. What makes you efficient with your day?
First and foremost, a recognition that I’m still not as efficient as I want to be. I am a work in progress. In my quest for efficiency, I rely mostly on simple, low-tech tools…daily to-do lists (one professional and one personal) and a common kitchen timer. Each night, I draft my to-do lists for the next day, ensuring at least the top priorities are captured. I recognize, of course, I’ll add to these or adjust them the next morning, but it helps me set the stage for the day ahead and plan accordingly. I owe good friend Tim Walker (@TWalk) for the timer idea. He suggested it for better time management while writing. I’ve found it to be an incredibly simple, yet disciplined means for budgeting my time and keeping me honest.

4. Your favorite business book of all time?
I always hesitate to pick a favorite because I’m incapable of choosing any ONE of virtually anything, and my favorites tend to fluctuate over time. I’m sure others will mention the likely suspects like Godin, Carnegie, Covey and the newer hits of Brogan and Vaynerchuk, all greats. A few I’d include are “Good to Great” by Jim Collins, “Making it All Work” by David Allen (better known for “Getting Things Done,” another winner) and “Oh, the Places You’ll Go” by Dr. Seuss. While I’m not a huge Seuss gal, that book was gifted to me by my first employer out of college, ironically the week I was planning to give notice. While I was naively struggling with the idea of the impending breakup, that book’s message was timely…“So be sure when you step. Step with care and great tact. And remember that life’s a great balancing act…You’re on your own. And you know what you know. And YOU are the one who’ll decide where to go.”

5. Three things on your desk right now/3 things you can’t live without?
My 17” HP laptop, which I love for many reasons, but will likely get replaced by a Macbook by the end of the year (especially now that I also have my Acer netbook);

My Blackberry Storm, which has served me well and keeps me connected, but will also be replaced as soon as Nexus One is available on Verizon (Spring 2010);

The very first photo taken of my daughter…my joy, my inspiration, my constant reminder of the woman I want to be.

6. Habit you want to kick in 2010?
I will find a way to ditch the guilt. Building a business, managing a household and raising a child are all tough jobs. Balance is something I’ve learned to concede. Instead, I want to be successful at flexibility, bending and shifting to match my diverse priorities and meet the needs of each. With that, I’ll find a way to let go of the guilt, of the professional that’s not with her kid, and of the mom that should be working on that blog post. I need to be a master of more than one thing, but that requires a healthy perspective of what success really looks like.

7. Habit you want to form for 2010?
Putting first things first. I’m easily drawn to the next exciting thing, but I mustn’t allow myself to be distracted from the priorities on my plate. A primary goal here is to refocus on a life-long habit by honoring my roots as a writer. After spending much of this year building a business, and helping clients craft their stories, I will get back to a regular schedule of my own content creation.

7 Habits of Highly Effective Social Marketers- Scott Stratten

Ok, Interview #10 of the “7 Habits of Highly Effective Social Marketers” series. Up today we have Scott Stratten who heads up Un-Marketing. With over 45,000 followers on Twitter, he always has something interesting to say, and being from Canada, he’s probably cheering on his fellow Canadians during the 2010 Olympics in Vancouver right now, right Scott?

About Scott
Scott is an expert in Viral, Social, and Authentic Marketing which he calls….Un-Marketing. When he’s not traveling the world talking about Social Media, he is being featured in the Wall Street Journal, Fast Company and CNN. Plus, he likes coffee.

1. What one trait or habit got you to where you are today?
Strong personality. The ability to have an opinion and take a stand on it allows me to show my passion for a subject. If you don’t look like you give a damn about what you’re talking about, why would your market care? Don’t be afraid to tick a few people off.

2. Your work day just started, what’s the FIRST thing you do and why?
From bed, I check Twitter on my Blackberry, specifically the “@ replies”. Engagement is what my world is about so I want to make sure if someone reached out to me, I can get back to them. There is no point in using social media if you fail to be social.

3. What makes you efficient with your day?
Tweetdeck on laptop + UberTwitter on Blackberry + my assistant. I can be anywhere in the world and be in the middle of things, or be removed totally.

4. Your Favorite Business book of all time?
Permission Marketing by Seth Godin. It was the first time I read about relationship marketing and have never looked back. I wouldn’t get off the plane until i finished it. Which was a little awkward.

5. 3 things on your desk right now/ 3 things you can’t live without
Guitar Hero figure, BlackBerry, picture of my son. All three help me function (well, not the guitar hero guy, but you can’t live without bringing the rock!)

6. Habit you want to kick in 2010
I fall victim to the shiny-object syndrome, where I always come up with new ideas. But the fact is, I rather not change it. I run the show because of this twisted brain, and outsource/hire my weaknesses.

7. Habit you want to form for 2010
I want to learn how to be a polite New York Times best-selling author in September, instead of a pretentious one. Only time will tell..

7 Habits of Highly Effective Social Marketers – Paul Gillin

Ok, Interview #10 of the “7 Habits of Highly Effective Social Marketers” series. Today’s interview is with Paul Gillin, author of the
New Influencers and Social Media Speaker, Trainer, and  Content Marketing Consultant. One of my favorite “products” that Paul Gillin produces is his website “Newspaper Death Watch“. As a journalist with 25+ years of experience, he is especially tuned in to the evolving space around journalism and publishing.

1. What one trait or habit got you to where you are today?
I suppose I have a knack for seeing where the puck is going, at least as far as media is concerned. I was trained as a journalist but quickly got out of general assignment work and into specialization in information technology, which was a pretty geeky field of the time. The timing turned out to be good, because in the early 1980s the technology went mainstream and I went along with it.

I got my first demonstration of the Internet in 1993, before there was even such a thing as a web browser. I knew immediately that this was the future of publishing and moved my interest and career in that direction years before that became fashionable. I also caught on to the idea that social media was going to revolutionize not just publishing but the way people communicate and was able to get a book into the market on that subject before the feeding frenzy began.

2. Your work day just started, what’s the FIRST thing you do and why?
I have a carefully tended list of RSS feeds from sources I respect on subjects relating to new media. I try to spend one or two hours at the beginning of each day browsing through new entries. I tweet a lot of those recommendations, which generates other conversations and awareness on Twitter. I also bookmark a great deal of stuff that may be useful to me later. It’s difficult for me to start a day without knowing what my most trusted sources are saying about my field.

3. What makes you efficient with your day?
I use the Google suite of applications for mail, calendaring and many of my documents. This means that nearly everything I write is searchable, which saves me from fumbling around for stuff. I also reuse a great deal of content so that letter writing is more a matter of assembling than creating new content.

My most productive tool, however, is Dragon NaturallySpeaking. It’s a voice recognition program that enables me to speak rather than type. I probably work two to three times faster and am able to write considerably more by speaking than I would if I had to type everything.

4. Your Favorite Business book of all time?
The Innovator’s Dilemma by Clayton Christensen

5. 3 things on your desk right now/ 3 things you can’t live without
Two of them are computers. I flip back and forth between them so I am constantly working even while waiting for a website to load. The third most useful item is the microphone I use to dictate into Dragon.

6. Habit you want to kick in 2010
Well, I would sure like to make it through the year without a cigarette, but I’ve already blown that one. From a business perspective, it’s a tendency to take on more than I can handle and then having to work 16-hour days to meet my obligations.

7. Habit you want to form for 2010
Doing a better job of following up and staying in contact with people. I value relationships but I’m so busy that I tend to let them lie fallow until I have a reason to contact someone. I would also like to get back into playing the trombone regularly. I was an avid musician through high school and college but put the instrument aside many years ago. It beckons to me but my ability has deteriorated so badly that it’s frustrating even to try.

The Buzz on Google Buzz

Unless you’ve been living under a rock these past few days, Google just entered the Social Media World- here are some quick initial thoughts. (and if you haven’t heard about Google Buzz, it’s ok, because being under a rock isn’t always a bad thing)

What is Google Buzz?
Combine Gmail and the status updates you find in Facebook. Throw in a photo and link sharing, and you have a real-time update of what your friends (who need gmail accounts of course) are doing.  There is obviously much more functionality here, but those are the basics for now, we’ll cover the nitty gritty in a later post.

The Pros
- Relatively easy customer interface that sits alongside your gmail inbox. For heavy users of gmail.com, this is a good thing. If you push your gmail to your phone or Outlook/Mac’s Mail, well you might not use it that much.
- No limits. Unlike Twitter, you aren’t limited to 140 characters. Who knows, people may begin to start blogging via Google Buzz?
- Mobile. Seamless integration with your mobile device with geo-location as well. So you can see what people are saying and where they are saying it.  Fairly similar to FourSquare and those who use Twitter with geo-location turned on.
-Content aggregation. Not surprisingly, Buzz allows you to integrate with other products, so when you add photos to Picasa, share something on Google Reader, watch something on YouTube or blog about something, your friends on Buzz, will get “buzzed”. Note that you can’t sync with Facebook…

The Cons
- The Buzz “stream” isn’t chronological. For those of us used to Twitter and Facebook, updates are chronological, but not exactly in Buzz. Google adds the latest comment on anything to the top of the Buzz stream. So, if one of your friends posted some great pictures on Buzz 10 minutes ago, But  if you have 13 people (and complete strangers mind you) commenting on someone else’s buzz, then your friend’s post gets slowly moved to the bottom. Google- pay attention here!
- Giving people so much room to say something and share  something may really clutter things up. That’s what makes Twitter so good….
- What makes a Google Buzz “friend”?  You may now get followed by other people using gmail/buzz. Does that mean you should follow them back? Twitter users probably will, but facebook-only users (vast majority of people) probably won’t. They’re comfortable with their Facebook friends because they share a common friendship around something. The only thing that connects fellow buzz users is a gmail account..

General Thoughts

-Nice early entry by Google. I think Google is still in the “test and learn” phase.
- Don’t jump on the bandwagon quite yet- Google will (should) probably tweak things in the next few months to make the user interface better. The lack of a chronological stream is quite confusing
-I think success of buzz will be directly related to not how many people use it, but simply how people use it. If people start adding all of their content to buzz, it will be a lot of content for the everyday user to digest- like drinking from a firehose.
-Don’t expect integration with Facebook- ever. I can’t imagine Facebook every letting them “in”. Remember that Facebook has 400 million users, and Google only has 176 million gmail users.

Video Description of Buzz
Still want to learn more? Here’s a quick video for you.