#143 - Google's Top Websites and What You Need to Know About Web 3.0

Think you have a pretty fair idea of which websites are the most popular today? Google recently shared its list of the top 1,000 sites developed from measurements within the Ad Planner feature based on category, unique visitors, reach and page views.

Strangely, the list does not include any data from Google or YouTube, yet the clear (and predictable) winner is Facebook with 540 million users, over 570 billion pageviews, and approximately 35% of all measured web traffic. This makes Facebook the world’s number one website. Yahoo.com is in second place, followed by live.com, wikipedia.org and msn.com.

Google released the list to point its advertisers in the direction of sites they should advertise on. It’s interesting to note that two of the major sites in the top 10 don’t even offer advertising – wikipedia.org and mozilla.com.

With all the hype of real-time search right now, it seems peculiar that Twitter doesn't rank higher in the list. It currently sits in the 18th position with only 5.4 billion page views. (Poor Twitter). Click here to see the ranked list. Google plans to update the list monthly for its advertisers. The chance of any of these top performers dropping out anytime soon is slim.

The buzz about Web 3.0
Apparently, we are at the beginning of what our technology industries refer to as Web 3.0, or the next generation of Web 2.0. Neither of these can be defined in concise terms since they do not consist of definite products or services or even a broad spectrum with structured guidelines. Regardless, I'm going to give it a try.

"Our globe's mammoth data archive could become even
more open to analysis across various platforms, making
online services - and the professionals who
understand them - even more resourceful and valuable."

A little history
When it first launched, the World Wide Web was merely an interface to access data stored on computer terminals or servers. Web 2.0 (a term that has been hotly debated) came out of the economic "dot.com" bubble bursting. It was touted then as the re-birth of the Internet. However, it only served to add upon established underlying principles of the World Wide Web (eg: HTML as a base language for all users).

Web 2.0’s contribution to the World Wide Web has been a vast array of services which facilitate collaboration and sharing. Most notably, with the advent of social networking sites, blogs, audio/video posts, podcasts, wikis, IMs, etc. More importantly, it also saw the rise of a handful of powerful search engines with the ability to delve into the innermost recesses of any web page and extract relevant data.

But, there was one catch.

Even the most powerful search tools still need the thought processes of puny human being to guide them to those pages and load them with generous doses of keywords so they may come up with the intended results. On the other hand, Web 3.0 is expected to transfer these thought process directly to the search engine software’s Mode of Operation - or brain. So, Web 3.0's goal is to create a World Wide Web where all data is easily understandable by all machines - just as we humans presently understand it.

Is this the dawn of Intelligent Computing?

The techies call it "semantic computing," and many speak about how Web 3.0 will open up an astronomical amount of web data to intelligent analysis. This would also enable machines operating on and from different databases and platforms to successfully exchange information with one another. Greater automation is another long-sought benefit.

Web 3.0 is likely in your future

Web 3.0 is essentially the next step in the evolution of the World Wide Web from a mere depository of information on interconnected networks, to a faster, more intuitive and more productive way of experiencing the Internet. Now, we can look forward to a greater assortment of web services, possibly characterized by a degree of artificial intelligence. Our
globe's mammoth data archive could become even more open to analysis across various platforms, making online services - and the professionals who understand them - even more resourceful and valuable.

What does all this mean to the common web user? To marketers? Journalists? Public relations practitioners? It may mean less use of our own intellect for researching data and making decisions. Doe the thought excite or frighten?

In my case, a little bit of both. What about you?

#115 - Do you know what cyberspace is saying about you?

The days of content disappearing into the ether are over. Everything we do online is being tracked, recorded, and often displayed somewhere. Each of us is tweeting, face-booking, blogging, and you-tubing a legacy that our families, our great grandchildren, will be able to read. The real question is: will we be proud of this online legacy?

The cautionary moral is obvious. Our true personality, and more importantly our character, is coming through loud and clear for the world to see in each of our social networks. Now that this is called to our attention, let’s make sure that anything we publish, openly or privately, is something we wouldn’t mind our children and grandchildren seeing.

Register your Domain with Yola and
Get Free Web Hosting & A Professional Website. Buy Now!

#102 - Social Networks: A Marketer’s Perspective

Corporate marketers around the world have been nothing short of amazed by the explosive growth and power of today’s social networks, although many have been disappointed by their own ventures into this area. More significantly, even the most successful social network with a massive audience can have a very hard time making money.

Why Social Media has cause for concern
Reason #1 - Lack of Confirmation: While many successes online are obvious, the failures are often quite obscure. Everybody notices big deals like Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter; but there is almost no public (or private) documentation of the thousands of other sites and networks that have failed. This hurts our learning curve. Classmates.com, for example, has been around since the ‘90’s. Yahoo! 360 was a very early entrant that got a lot of attention. But, neither of these has ever gained traction. How many others like them are out there? The truth is, we really don’t know. This is still a crap shoot for many marketers as the paradigm shifts slowly and media reorganizes. For businesses, it’s time to “turn on” to the "always-on" generation.

Reason #2 - Low Value Audiences: An impression on a social network can be worth as little as 1/20th the value of an impression at a top content (brand) website. While this may seem confusing, there are good reasons it is true.

Reason #3 - Eyeballs do not equal consumers: Consumer value is derived not just from identity, but also from intention. While an affluent mother of three might be an avid Metallica fan or an enthusiastic snowboarder, but when she’s at the PTA meeting, she’s focused on her kids - not her hobbies.

Reason #4 - Intrusion: On sites that carry “branded content,” consumers understand and expect to see advertising. But the new social networks are consumer-driven and advertising intrusion on them is resented (just ask the owner of Facebook ). People accept ads on TV (unless their DVR remote is handy) and in newspapers, but they but don’t want advertisers breaking into their homes. Facebook is where many people “live” today.

Reason #5 - Engagement: A media brand is only valuable if people believe in it. Part of what advertisers pay for is an association with a believable brand. So, while social networks are powerful, basing business on or in social media is far from a sure thing.

How today's businesses can improve the odds
They can use more "Cluster" targeting. The biggest successes have started out as small communities. Facebook was initially limited to a single university; MySpace became popular within the LA rock scene. For a social network to succeed it must saturate one entire community before it can spread effectively to others. Open network architecture allows people to keep their friends - even on competing social networks – and in allowing this, the networks does consumers a favor and increases its own value. By effectively integrating social components into their brands, marketers get the best of both worlds.

As audiences become more engaged, they actually start adding to the discussion, which can help to decrease customer service requests and lower advertising costs.

Source: "The Anatomy of Buzz Revisited," by Emmanuel Rosen.

Day 90 - Strategies for non-traditional grads

Are you willing to work part time? Many non-traditional students and new grads crave flexibility, according to a recent survey. Many of us want to spend more time doing things we enjoy -- writing, traveling, even playing with the kids or grandkids -- and sometimes, we're willing to accept part-time schedules or reduced hours. As employers nationwide increasingly cut back on hours, the willingness to be flexible can make any job seeker more attractive to more companies.

As a non-traditional student and an older job seeker, I know things are different for me than for my younger counterparts. I mean no disrespect to the next generation of up-and-coming journalism, advertising and PR superstars, but experience does pay off. A "seasoned" pro can often accomplish in 20 hours what a younger colleague would need a week to do.

Then there's telecommuting. More people are working from home! With a laptop and a PDA, you can be in business. It doesn't matter where you work, it just matters that the work gets done. Many non-traditionals also bring with them a lifetime of contacts, and they've dealt with every imaginable circumstance and work-related crisis. You can rely on your own strength and experience, and so can employers. Few traditional grads can say the same.

The key for the non-traditional or older student is to make make sure you are totally and absolutely connected and committed to new media, along with the traditional. It's a brave new business world out there compared to 20 (or even 10) years ago. You need to understand the tools and computer programs being used by today's corporations, and you need to be fluent in what I call, New Media-speak. Be familiar with terms like tweeting and wiki, and familiarize yourself with Facebook, Twitter, Bebo and Google. The archive for this blog contains many articles which can help bring you up-to-speed, esepcially if you've been away from the workforce for awhile or are entering it for the first time later in life. I hope you'll check it out.

Don't tell yourself no one is hiring
The number one mistake the over-40 set makes is complaining that companies are not hiring them. Yes, a few older candidates may have to work harder to overcome discrimination. No, it's not fair. But it doesn't mean that every employer is hell-bent on avoiding workers over 35.

The website RetirementJobs.com lists more than 30,000 full and part-time jobs available nationwide with "age-friendly employers." Other sites that cater to older workers include: Jobs 4.0, Retired Brains, Seniors4Hire and Workforce50.com. In addition, AARP offers an annual list of the best employers for workers over 50.

Many companies are open to hiring older workers. Follow this link below to a more in-depth article on how older graduates can sell themselves.

http://internsover40.blogspot.com/2009/11/20-ways-older-job-seekers-can-sell_12.html

LinkedIn Tip of the Day
Using the Search Function on your LinkedIn home page (check the upper right of the page), you can “search” People, Jobs, Companies, Answers, Inbox and Groups. If you move to the right of the search box and click on “Advanced,” you can also search on keywords, name, company (current and past), geographic location, industry, job title (current and past), school, groups, language, by the interests of those being searched, when they joined LinkedIn, those in or out of your network, and by relevance – or any combination of the above.

Find companies you want to work for or do business with and the people you need to meet at those companies by using LinkedIn search tools. With over 50,000,000 business professionals registered there, your search could pay big dividends.

Day 86 - More major companies make the switch to Social Media

Luxury goods manufacturer Burberry has just hooked up with Facebook to launch a new Web site celebrating its trench coat, making it the latest in a long line of retailers who are using social media to boost their brands.

The Web site, artofthetrench.com, will allow members connected via Facebook to submit images and stories about their own Burberry trench coat experiences. I will admit that I always wanted a Burberry trench coat. But I wonder how many people under 30 have even heard of the brand?

The original Burberry was designed by company founder Thomas Burberry specifically for use by British army officers in 1914 serving in World War I. This same trench coat design is still the company's top-selling garment. Talk about a timeless value!

Their latest social networking move puts Burberry amid a procession of retailers who are using social media like Facebook, Twitter and YouTube to get their brands in front of consumers and try to interact with them (us). I’m just not convinced that this translates into sales - yet. The next generation of marketers is betting it will.

Another retailer - Mothercare - already runs its own successful social networking site (for moms) at Gurgle.com, as does the British online fashion group, ASOS, at its community, ASOS Life.

Others, like Marks & Spencer which announced last month that it had 80,000 followers on its Facebook page, have set up brand pages on every major social networking site. While I have my doubts that this is the way consumers will "connect" in any meaningful way with brands as we move through the 21^st Century, dedicated sites and online advertising certainly do help to raise awareness of products and services. Like many people, I am concerned that the Internet is still in chaos. It is barely regulated, warrants extreme caution and sees major changes on a daily basis.

What’s your take on this trend toward social media marketing? Major international corporations are spending billions of dollars in their marketing budgets to “connect” with you online. Are you feeling the love?

Day 78 - What you need to know about Web 2.0

Web 2.0, also known as social media marketing, is the term used to describe the second generation of the Internet. In this second wave, you don’t have to be tech savvy to create an Internet presence. Anyone can do it. And, if you are in business in 2009, you have to be online. There is no choice.

As any smart business person will tell you, you want to be wherever the buyers are. Right now, there is a massive wave of people moving onto social media sites. So, that is where businesses think they have to be to connect with prospective buyers. But just dropping the net (pun intended) in the right water doesn’t mean you're going to “catch” anything. Corporate America now needs the people and technology to create a functional online presence that translates to sales success. Do you know how to connect? If you do, and especially if you’re currently studying social media trends, you are gaining a highly marketable skill. For students (of any age) who are about to enter or re-enter the job market, Web 2.0 is as important to you as any class you'll ever take.

Social networking is merely at the beginning of its development. However, it is growing more sophisticated every day. Huge companies like Procter & Gamble, Coca-Cola and Target have established a presence on social networking sites, and they've also shown small business owners that opportunities exist for them. Web 2.0 has effectively leveled the playing field. It's essentially free and you don't need much technical skill to participate in this game. I think it's time for all of us to start paying closer attention to the ways Web 2.0 is changing our work and our lives.

Social media marketing is the revolution that is changing the way business is done. Business owners are learning to leverage the Internet to attract new consumers. But how many of these new social marketers are doing it well? Go to any social networking site and you will find examples of companies that do not get it. They plaster their replicated corporate websites everywhere without ever “branding” themselves or creating an experience for the people who live on these sites. They pitch you their products and services without creating any added value for the user. As a student, I am learning that the time to understand branding is now. YOU are your most valuable commodity, and learning to create value is the new name of the game. How do you do this? Easy, by offering helpful content and being a real person.

Have you started your own website, blog, wiki or Facebook Group yet? Do you write product reviews or contribute to online discussion forums?

Imagine a cocktail party in a great big room, filled with interesting people. There are many conversations all happening at once. People are talking about themselves, asking questions about whomever they are conversing with and so on. Soon, a common thread is discovered. Something changes when people learn what they have in common. That's when the conversation gets lively. That is how people connect.

It’s no different when you, your company or a brand enters the social media. Forget the old broadcast methods of marketing and communications. For instance, here on my blog, I talk about what I’m studying and learning, and issues that I think may be pertinent to others like me. I sometimes talk about myself and what matters to me, but not constantly. If I start trying to sell you things (I know this because I tried), then you will tune out or find the nearest exit.

Straight marketing doesn’t work at a cocktail party or on Facebook, a blog or any social media venue.

If you want to become part of the community or build brand loyalty, then do so exactly as you would do it offline. Mix and mingle. Share things you have an interest or expertise in. Share your connections and give your attention freely. Before you know it, you’ll be the life of the party and the people you connect with will be ready to listen!

Day 77 - How do you use the Web?

Here’s a quick scan of the top ten most visited websites (according to Alexa.com). The list is quite revealing. Which of these are you using regularly?

1. Google (1997)
2. Facebook (2004)
3. Yahoo (1994)
4. YouTube (2005)
5. Windows Live (2005)
6. Wikipedia (2000)
7. Blogger.com (Purchased by Google in 2003)
8. MSN.com (1995)
9. Baidu.com (2000, the leading Chinese Search Engine)
10. Yahoo.co.jp (Yahoo in Japanese)

There are two conclusions we can draw from this list. First, internet users are primarily interested in three things: searching, socializing and entertainment. Second, check the dates to the right of each name on the list. That’s when the site was founded. Isn’t it amazing that Facebook gets much more traffic than Yahoo, even though it was launched a full 10 years later?

What does any of this mean for students, especially for those studying business, marketing, media or communications, and for consumers? To me, the message is loud and clear. While search function and information gathering are still very important to Internet users, socializing and connecting are what we really enjoy and the thing we do the most. Some have reported that people are leaving the Internet for Facebook. There’s some truth to that statement.


Facebook is still today's single most popular online site. I use it more and more myself, and I enjoy it, even with the recent re-design. Like so many baby boomers, I found that Facebook allowed me to finally reconnect with so many old friends, far away family members and colleagues from all areas of my life and career. Did you notice that Twitter didn't even make the list? The micro-blogger may be coming on strong today, but I predict it’s future is primarily in marketing. It doesn’t allow much of anything in the way of real connecting, unless you're a celebrity nurturing a fan base.

Interestingly, the top 10 list also tells us that visitors to Google, Yahoo and Windows Live are not just going there to search. Far from it; each service offers a social media aspect to it. Google offers Gmail, Docs, Picasa and live chat. Yahoo has a whole host of services that connect us, as does MSN (Bing). So the lines between simple online searches and social connecting are becoming more blurred as the big search engines take on more and more of the social connecting services. Interesting!

Data Source: Reuters.

Day 75 - Have you noticed what's new about Facebook?

Just over a week ago, Facebook rolled out more changes to its home page that they feel will simplify the Facebook experience by giving you two different ways to view your Home Page News Feed. You’re now able to switch between a summary view (News Feed) and a real-time view (Live Feed). The links show up just above the “What’s on your mind?” box in the center of your screen.

News Feed
When you log into Facebook, you see the most interesting things that happened in the last day in the “News Feed” view. News Feed picks stories that FB thinks you’ll enjoy based on a variety of factors including how many friends have liked and commented on them and how likely you are to interact with that story.

Live Feed
Once you’ve caught up on what you missed, you can then click over to the “Live Feed” to see what’s happening in the moment. As long as you remain logged into Facebook, you continue to see posts and activity from all your friends in real-time. You can edit what appears to you in this view by clicking on “Edit Options” at the bottom of the home page.

Facebook decided to make these changes after receiving feedback about all the home page changes they made back in March. With this latest change, Facebook is moving what you used to see in the Highlights section on the right hand side of your screen back into the News Feed. As a refresher, here’s what you’ll find noted in your News Feed:

• anytime your friends are tagged in photos
• when a friend becomes a Fan of a Page
• when one RSVPs to an event
• or joins a group
• when your friends make new friends
  

Facebook has also made birthdays and events a little easier to see in the right column of the home page. Facebook says it put a lot of thought into these changes to the site and did a lot of testing before releasing anything. They gather feedback by reading emails from users and testing new ideas with small groups of users. After every change, they continue to gather feedback and refine.

I am inclined to think that these recent changes have much more to do with e-commerce than our convenience. When someone sees that a friend has become a Fan of a Page, RSVP’d for an event or joined a group, they are also more likely to click on that page/event/group link and check it out. The goal is clearly to increase the viral growth of these items, many of which are corporate sponsored. In other words, this will be good for businesses that have Fan Pages and Groups. The one thing marketers need to remember is that if they want their content classified as ‘most interesting’ and placed into our News Feed, then they need to provide great content that engages us and makes us want to click the comment or “like” buttons.

Here’s to change - again! What do you think about the Facebook re-design?

Day 74 - The increasing cost of time

If there is one thing non-traditional students have a shortage of, it’s time. There are just not enough hours in the day, despite our best efforts to cram as much into 24 hours as possible.

With what feels like an ever-decreasing supply of time, and the simultaneous increasing demands for our time from professors, other students, family members – and marketers of all persuasions – we’ve installed filters on our computers to separate the “important stuff” from all the “noise.” It is my experience that all college students feel the same way about their email inboxes. At most schools, students are provided a free email account, but many don’t use that address at all; at best, they don’t check it often enough. This leads to missing pertinent info and often necessary messages.

In speaking with many of my peers, traditional and non-traditional students alike, I’ve heard over and over that they simply “don’t have enough time,” let alone an interest in processing every message, announcement and newsletter the university sends them. Combine these with messages from professors, social sites, family members, the administration offices and the enormous amount of “spam” directed at college students today, and you’ve got a recipe for rampant miscommunication.

Given all these new computer filters, how can any company or university, “create" time for students to communicate with them?

The first thing they can do is understand why the filters are there in the first place. They protect our sanity and send one distinct message - don’t interrupt me and don’t bombard me with constant communication. Got it? Sometimes, the weekly newsletter is not worth the time it asks us to give. If something more valuable was offered, students might reconsider.

Colleges need to create programs that actually give value to their consumer - students. We want to share, learn, question and collaborate with our institutions, not simply “follow directions." We aren't here to purchase our degrees; we came to buy an education. A good place to start would be to investigate student interests and our communication spaces. Meet us where we live.

Find out what students are interested in (really) and then provide opportunities that match both students’ desires and university goals. One place to look is within social media. It's very easy today to study the content of numerous social sites and find out what your students are saying and doing with their time. Does the college or university website provide any good reason for students to visit it regularly, like tracking our individual performance against goals or receiving coaching on a regular basis? Is the website interesting, attractive or fun? Most important, is it user friendly?

Other questions colleges should be asking about their online presence, even in email communications with students, include: Could they be better targeted? Could they be more entertaining? Is a spokesperson accessible and responsive to the audience? Can students and faculty members participate in any way?

Students could and should serve as brand advocates who help universities tell their unique stories and attract future students. A great school is one whose students tell great stories about it. Who is talking about your university? Do the students have a voice? Everyone needs to be part of this conversation.

A successful college or university is a “brand.” No doubt, brands today have to work harder to provide value in exchange for students’ time. The trade for time (attention) works best when the university listens to what students are saying – and what they are not saying.

Day 73 - How to start your love affair with Social Media

Social Media Marketing is about much more than just “spreading the word” about a product or brand online. It's about engaging with consumers in real time. It's quickly proving to be the necessary ingredient in many marketing plans. It adds value to any business. Venturing into social media is much like having a “love affair” with the buying public. Your audience needs to feel good around your brand. Here are five main rules that will help you establish a “loving and lasting” relationship with consumers.

#1 Research and plan
Research what your public is interested in and plan the social media campaign around that. If you do this right, you've won half the battle. The way to do this all-important research is by first finding out where your customers go - which websites, forums and communities… then be there! Don’t waste time on sites your target audience would never visit – like a gaming site if you are targeting young mothers (they have no time for games). If you are working in the beauty industry, for example, check to see if your consumers are interested in things like the potential side effects of certain ingredients on the skin, environmental impact and animal testing. Become a master of the "soft" sell. If consumers have certain concerns, explain your point of view on them in friendly conversation by joining forum conversation threads. Be sure you never lie!

#2 Be Honest
Telling the truth (in this case about your company, yourself, your services or products) is essential to building a reputation and creating your positive image. People will trust you if you follow this guideline. Even more important, if you do make a mistake, go ahead and fess up then apologize. People are more prone to “forgive” when you are upfront.

#3 Engage
Do you have something to say? Then say it in an interesting and creative manner. Don’t just throw random messages into the social media space. Every post in your blog, every Tweet or LinkedIn discussion should be planned around a pre-determined social media strategy (yes, you do need one). Respond to questions and comments from everyone who visits your networking sites; comment and compliment other people's posts on a competitor's blog, re-tweet good stories - share. Use tools and widgets to spread the word as fast as possible. Try adding the “share” button to your own posts or connect the company website to your own Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn accounts. You want your message to reach as far as possible.

#4 Listen, listen, listen
Talking and sharing are half of the conversation necessary when using social media. Listening is equally as important if not more so. If you have an unhappy customer, find out why. Consider the complaint and answer it immediately. Show respect and understanding for everyone who takes the time to enter your conversation, even those who are not potential customers. Everyone will be appreciative and flattered by the attention. Every person you connect with online has a personal network with an average of six layers of "interconnectedness." Conversing with one individual also means potentially spreading your message to others.

# 5 Get ahead of the competition
Monitor what the competitors are doing online. Equally important, you must also start tracking your own reputation using online tools and software programs. Trackur, twitrrart, trendpedia, socialmention, buzzlogic insights, streamwall, socialminder, blogpulse, and even simple google alerts can be useful toward this end. Follow the trends. What are other consumers in the industry interested in or talking about and what are your competitors doing about it? Be “one step ahead,” whenever possible. If you can provide more helpful information, interact more often and pay extra attention, you will come out the winner.

Trying to market anything via social media is a lot like being in a successful relationship. It requires planning, effort and lots of attention!

Day 68 - Why don’t more women blog?

Approximately 74% of bloggers today are men. I had no idea I was in the minority! As a relative newcomer to blogging, I wonder, what’s holding women back? Surely, many of us have something to say. In general, aren't women the better communicators? We certainly talk more than men (sorry, if that sounds sexist). No, women are not generating blog content to the degree than men are. Could it be that women are intimidated? Blogging is work, but it is so rewarding. I recommend it for anyone who has knowledge or opinions they wish to share.

On the flipside, women dominate in other social media. A report compiled by Google Ad Planner shows that equal numbers of men and women are now using sites like LinkedIn, DeviantArt and YouTube.

When it comes to Flickr, Facebook, Twitter, FriendFeed, MySpace and Bebo, the women far outnumber men. In fact, there’s only one major holdout for women and the social web and that's the social news site Digg, where 64% of users are reportedly male. (I personally use Digg every day, ladies. It rocks.)

That the Digg population is largely male comes as no real surprise, but what about these other numbers? Are women more social but less confident in their ability to generate content or is there some other explanation?

If you’re interested in starting a blog, I support you! For more information, visit: Web Hosting by iPage - $3.50/month only ; or Jumpline-3 Months of FREE HOSTING! No Strings attached. More Information.

You can also learn more about creating a free blog at: www.blogger.com or www.wordpress.com.

Day 62 - Designing your own "dream job"

Every second, thousands of people are posting online status updates; every hour, we see thousands of new videos uploaded. Blog posts are being written and published by the millions. Now, cluttering this social media landscape even further, we have millions of "tweets," more short messages to share. More and more content is being shared via mobile phones. Enough!

This onslaught of creative content is too much for many people, especially some of my friends over-50. Until recently, we had relatively few technologies at our disposal to manage the information overload. We were at the mercy of "algorithmic" search - what most of us know as Google (yes, I know, and a few other search engines). Yesterday, I mentioned StumbleUpon, a social bookmarking/content sharing tool that's actually been around for awhile, just like Digg and de.licio.us. Do you think these "collector" tools are really enough to solve the ever-increasing problem of too much online social media? (You may recall the term "collector" from my previous post on the "Social Technographics Profile.")

According to a feature in SocialMediaToday, in only a few years we may reach the point where all information on the Internet doubles every 72 hours. Imagine that! I don't even have an adjective that effectively describes the monster we're creating here. We, the collective people of the world, are generating more information than even we can imagine. One predictable result is that companies have begun to focus more on content creation, especially as they add social media to the marketing mix. Many forward-thinking corporate execs are using social media to listen to what consumers are asking for, and then use the same online audiences (fans, friends, members) to create this wonderful thing called "buzz" about their products and brands.

But who is going to make sense of all this media as more and more goes out into the ether? Is it by chance or by luck that businesses hope to catch the eye of the consumers who need their specific products? I have a new job in mind - one that would pay its own way for any number of companies. The time I've spent and the advanced education I've received has been with good reason. Any corporation today can benefit from a full-time employee - well educated, with excellent business sense, someone honest and trustworthy - who can sift through all the online content and choose the best material for corporate consumption, the best sites to pursue buzz marketing, and the best places to advertise. Yes, they can.

The position I just described does not really exist - yet. Still, I am not alone in thinking this is an idea whose time has come. I've got a certain skillset, 30 years in the making, that's ready to be put to productive use. If such a position did exist, what could we call it? I'm thinking "Web Archivist" or "Social Media Manager."

Blogger Rohit Bhargava at SocialMediaToday has a name for the job already - Content Curator. Defined as: "Someone who continually finds, groups, organizes and shares the best and most relevant content on specifics issues online." Note that the key component in this job description is the word "continually." In the real time world of the Internet, this is critical. If you look at how many people are using Twitter accounts to highlight interesting bits of online content or how del.icio.us users have been tagging and sharing content for years, you will see that the concept has built up some steam.

Here's Bhargava's manifesto describing the new position: "To satisfy the people's hunger for great content on any topic imaginable, there will need to be a new category of individual working online. Someone whose job it is not to create more content, but to make sense of all the content others are creating. To find the best and most relevant content and bring it forward. The people who choose to take on this role will be known as Curators. The future of the social web will be driven by these "Content Curators," who take it upon themselves to collect and share the best content online for others to consume. They will assume the role of citizen editors, publishing highly valuable compilations of content. In time, these curators will bring more utility and order to the social web. In doing so, they will add a voice and point of view to organizations and companies that can connect them with customers - creating an entirely new dialogue based on valued content rather than just brand created marketing messages.

His manifesto actually sums up what I've been trying to accomplish here in my own blog. Hopefully, something similar will become available in corporate communications departments for those of us currently honing the knowledge and skills to provide such a service.

Graduation is right around the corner for many of us, but it's never too early to start searching for the perfect job. If it doesn't exist, we can create it for ourselves!

Day 49 - Connecting with social media marketing

I've written about social media (networks like Facebook, MySpace and Twitter) a number of times and I've alluded to this thing known as "Social Media Marketing." It's very easy to bandy about this latest marketing catchphrase and not know what anyone is really talking about. I hope to clear up some of the confusion.

Social Media Marketing means using social networks to market brands and drive traffic. Consumers, especially younger people, need to know what they are getting into when they use the social web sites, since experts predict they will be the primary marketing tool of the future. (Personally, I'm not so sure about this.)

As time goes on, the thought is that it will become necessary to use social sites as tools for actual e-commerce. What is social media to us, really? It's just where we "hang out" when we're on line. That's all. We used to hang out in front of the TV. Now, we're spending more time online. So far, it's all been about conversation and sharing. Personally, I am a huge fan of Facebook. It connects me to my family and friends who are geographically too far away for close contact. It allows me to engage with others and feel "connected." On Facebook, I can be involved in the daily lives of more of the people I care about, just as if we were still neighbors, classmates or business associates. For most of us, social media has added an amazing new dimension to life.

On the other hand, as with everything in our capitalistic society, more and more companies are looking to "sell" us things using social media - OUR social media. The question is, are we buying? We've seen this new media become a lot of things to a lot of different people. We are not only chatting with friends and family, we're also sharing pictures, playing games and looking for information and entertainment. I suppose social networks might be helpful when you're trying to make a purchase decision. Like so many things, the debate is really about control. Can we maintain control of our social media? I, for instance, recently became a "fan" of a company (on Facebook) that sells a product/service I like. Am I already in too deep? It's possible. I don't have the answer quite yet but I will let you know.

Could our profiles on Facebook/MySpace/Twitter or LinkedIn be used against us? We can hope not. If a company I am a "fan" of sends me periodic status updates with interesting information, then I think that might be OK. On the other hand, if my Facebook wall starts to look like a newspaper insert, then I am not going to be cool with that. Becoming a "fan" online of any entity, be it manufacturer, brand, product, or TV show, is completely optional. It's your decision - unlike the stack of junk mail you probably receive each week. Did you ask to receive any of that?

The social media marketing revolution is well underway. As a past (and hopefully,future) marketing professional, I choose to actively explore the new media and learn about what motivates its creators and how it is being used. If it's true that control of advertising messages is moving into the hands of consumers, then we need to work together to sort through this online chaos. By lending my voice to the chatter about social media, I hope to help us all navigate the uncharted waters.

In today's social media marketing news
Facebook Connect recently made it easier for webmasters to implement Facebook links on their sites. That's big news. As people spend more time on Facebook, they are actually relinquishing a certain amount of trust to this social network, whether they realize it or not. This means that it's easier to buy from any site that is plugged into Facebook via Facebook Connect. Consumers who were once wary of making purchases online due to security concerns are beginning to get over this fear. Let's face it. Shopping online is easy, convenient and for some, addictive.

According to an Avaya marketing executive, Facebook Connect will allow you to go to a Website like Dell.com and authenticate yourself using your Facebook profile, giving you access to your friends so you can chat about potential purchases. You might say "Hey, Jeff, I’m looking at this fancy laptop and heard you just bought something like it. Would you recommend this one?" Imagine the new doors this opens up for advertisers! At the same time, your buddy is just as likely to steer you away from the purchase. Fascinating! All this change ultimately means positive things for consumers and real challenges for companies. The bottom line is that this is a great time to be a marketing, advertising or PR student. Companies need us now more than ever.

Concert Alert
Tune in tomorrow for a review of the Kansas/.38 Special concert (tonight) at the Regional Special Events Center in Murray, KY. For now, it's all just 'Dust in the Wind'...

Day 40 - Facebook Celebrates a Milestone

Facebook announced today that it has surpassed the 300 million-user mark, and the company is now making money - for the first time. It was bound to happen sooner or later, but the company had said that it would not happen until next year. Apparently they're ahead of schedule. That's saying quite a lot in light of the recession. According to founder, Mark Zuckerberg, Facebook became cash flow positive last quarter. "Over time, Facebook will continue to be as strong as all of the connections you make," Zuckerberg added. "We'll continue building new and better things to make connecting with the people you care about as easy and rewarding as possible."

Source: Chris Crum, WebProNews (9/24/09).

Back to that magic number - 300 million. To put this into perspective, the official 2008 population for the entire United States was just over 304 million. That's a lot of people on one social network.

Amazing, but true.

Meanwhile, back in the land of the studious...um....student
I'm still plugging away at this ever-expanding pile of class assignments, putting way too much pressure on myself, as I tend to do. To counteract this natural tendency, I'm also doing everything I can think of to combat the stress - yoga classes, hitting the gym, meditating, talking to anyone who will listen. Blogging about things is actually fairly cathartic. I think I'll live.

The big news this week is that I have received approval from the IRB (Institution Review Board) to proceed with my survey and final research project. The process of applying for and gaining this IRB approval was scary at first but relatively painless. I even met a new a friend when I went to the office for my interview. Sally, who runs this department, is also from Florida so she and I have a lot in common. I must overlook the fact that she's a Florida State "Seminole" (I attended THE University of Florida). Suddenly, the old football rivalries strike me as nothing but humorous.

Now, I can rock and roll with my survey distribution. It's a big step in the right direction. For anyone out there considering grad school, do not be put off thinking it's all that difficult. It's not. It just requires focus and patience. It's definitely one of the best moves I've ever made. If I can help others to open up their minds to the endless possibilities available through education, then that would be icing on the cake.

On tap tonight: a local "drumming circle." I hope it's a great stress reliever.

Ciao!

Day 11 - The nation mourns a loss

I was barely conscious when I heard the sad news of Ted Kennedy's passing today. We knew this day was coming, of course, and yet I was filled with a profound sadness. He was an outstanding public servant, a consummate politician and a human being I related to. He, too, received a second chance (or two) in his life. I genuinely admired the man.

After watching the sad news, I fought with the computer for several hours in an attempt to complete an online web advertising certification course I've been taking. In this last tutorial, I am learning the basics of search engine optimization or SEO. It all comes down to choosing the absolute best keywords or search phrases fro your particular content, and registering your material properly with ALL the search engines. I am learning quickly just how to accomplish this in order to get articles prioritized higher in searches.

A textbook I've been waiting for finally arrived today. Hooray for Amazon! I'm reading "Groundswell - Winning in a world transformed by social technology," by Charlene Li and Josh Bernoff (of Forrester Research). I highly recommend this book to anyone working in marketing or mass communications. Social media is changing the way companies do business so fast that no one can keep up with it, let alone generate a textbook on the subject. Yet, here we have a current book that offers hard data, and demonstrates well the ways in which 25 companies are currently using social media. I'll have much to share on this subject in future posts. (I hope you'll want to learn a few new things along with me.)

I'm concluding with a quote from Dan Millman's Everyday Enlightenment because it struck a chord with me :
"One of the strangest delusions many of us today still have is that it is good to love other people but bad to love ourselves. I suggest that the more you are able to see, love, and accept the one facing you in the mirror, the more you will be able to love others. If we are the same awareness shining through a billion separate forms, then all love begins with self-love. For the heart to awaken, it cannot exclude a single soul, including you.”