But, we already knew that.

Anyway, most of us know there are some sneaky ways that Facebook tries and manipulates it’s users. Some may be ok with it but many of us aren’t. A few days ago I had seen an ad on facebook that said something about marketing and the picture on the ad was one of the prominent figures in social media marketing. I had been wondering myself why he would use Facebook ads to promote himself cause I know he doesn’t need anymore work. I mean the guy barely has time to eat dinner with the family.

So this is what Facebook is doing: they are using your pictures on ads without your permission. The ads are only shown to your friends but you never know what is being shown. Think about it for a minute. If your daughter is studying abroad and you are both using Facebook and are mutual friends, how would you feel if you saw an ad saying “Hot Singles You Can Take Home Tonight” ….. You would pick up the phone, dial the number and start questioning if she is there to study or to do shit like this. Depends how understanding of a parent you are when she says she never made an ad like that.

This can really cause some problems between friends and families. Especially among people who don’t really know the ins and outs of Facebook and how it has been using user profile and pictures on ads. If this bothers you there is a way you can put an end to this. Just follow the steps below to make sure none of your friends ar seeing you on “meet hot singles” ads,

1. log on to your facebook
2. Put your mouse pointer on “setting” at the top right. You should see three options, click on “Privacy settings.”
3. Click on News Feed and Wall
4. You will see two tabs at the top : “Actions within Facebook” and “Facebook ads.” Click on Facebook ads.
5. Click the drop down menu and choose “no one” and click save changes.

This will make sure you are never seen on a Facebook ad unless you decide to create one yourself. As far as Facebook goes,

Stop being such a jerk and ask before you use user content.

Thanks to Cheryl Smith for pointing this out.

It feels good. It feels good that I don’t have to worry about numbers. Whether I am writing on blogs or helping a client market their product or content via social media platforms, it’s all about the numbers. It’s always been that way. After all, numbers are what  drives everyone to set their foot on the web. A new blogger’s goal in the beginning is to get as many subscribers he possibly can. We are wired to think that numbers is all that matters. It’s all about the numbers. Subscribers, page views, affiliate accounts, comments….it all comes down to numbers.

As most of you know this blog was abandoned for a while. I started it cause I want to build a community. A place I can call my home on the web. Today while I was checking numbers on some of my client’s sites, I noticed something different about myself. I haven’t checked subscriber count, traffic stats and I don’t really care how many comments I get to a post on this blog. The thing I care about this blog is participation. Of course when there are 10 comments that’s a number, however, your comments aren’t just a mere number to boast next to the post title, at least not here.

I feel quite relieved and am glad that I have one less thing to worry about. I don’t need numbers here. I want guests, guests who will come visit me and share their thoughts. I don’t need subscribers in the form of numbers to throw down a feedburner chiclet on the sidebar. If you come, read, participate and engage with me and the rest who do the same here, I am good. I don’t care if this blog gets 100,000 a day or 10 visits a day as long as those 10 visits engage and participate I am a happy camper.

I have become so accustomed to looking at numbers and planning my next step, that not having to worry about it and just write for you and myself is an awesome feeling. This blog is all about you and a bit about me. Numbers are the last thing I’ll ever worry about here. The only thing I’ll worry about is participation and engagment. That’s the way it should always be but we have become slaves to the number game. I am free of number slavery, at least on this blog.

Would love to hear what you think and how you handle your own blog. What matters more to you – engagement or statistics?

image

She doesn’t use twitter so looking at so many people wishing her “Happy Anniversary” was quite a surprise to her. She was all smiles. To you and me it may not seem anything big since we are always connected via twitter but to her this was quite surprising. I just want to thank you all for helping me out. I truly adore my wife and as cheesy as it may sound coming from a guy….I love her to death.

Here is the link to all the tweets and once again thank you guys! It means a lot to me and a lot more to her. We are two people that find joy through the littlest things in life.

Happy Anniversary Baby!!

We hear this every single day. If you want to utilize social media and become an integral part of the community there is only one mantra to follow : give, give, give. I am not against the idea of “giving” cause that is what social media is based on to some extent. However, giving without moderation and consideration can hurt your personal brand. Think about it for a minute. How often do you give? What are you giving? How might this “giving” hurt your personal brand?

Before I go sharing my “personal opinion” I would like you to know that I am not saying you should never give. You should. After all, this is what separates social media from traditional media. In social media space you are able to give advice, feedback, disagreement, etc. But giving doesn’t include just that. Giving includes helping others out through retweeting people’s stuff on twitter, sharing links on Facebook, promoting digg submissions etc. I’ve seen so many people “giving” others so much that it is hard to find their own voice. If you are constantly giving and trying to help someone out, how do you build your own brand?

We need to hear your voice too. We need to hear what you have to say and have to offer. We are interested in you more than your friends.

Just something that hit me and thought I would ask your opinion. Do you think social media is all about “giving?” Personally, I don’t think so. It’s about giving but in moderation. If you are going to use a platform and be the giver the entire time, all you end up doing is build someone else’s brand and your personal brand suffers, in some cases it becomes almost non existent. Even Santa waits till Christmas to give and he still manages to pull off quite a following and fanbase in the society , think about it.

Would love to hear your take on it.

image credit

Something has been bothering me quite a bit lately so I thought I would talk a bit about it. It would be safe to say that almost everyone reading this blog has a Twitter and Facebook account. Some are more active on Twitter and some on Facebook. When it comes to social networking platforms, Twitter and Facebook beats pretty much every other platform (besides LinkedIn when it comes to professional networking) that are out there. I am a pretty heavy user on Twitter. I enjoy the service and use it both as a work and leisure medium to network and interact with fellow users. I use Facebook as well but not as aggressively as I use Twitter.

Lately I have been seeing an increasing trend among Facebook users. The trend isn’t really something that I would say is unacceptable but it can be when the true meaning of networking itself is jeopardized. The trend that I am talking about is importing twitter updates to Facebook. Personally, I am not against it but I don’t see a reason to have every single one of your tweets being shown on Facebook. Usually when you are importing your tweets to Facebook anything that isn’t a reply (@username) is shown as a Facebook update, including retweets. This to some of your facebook friends might be confusing. Twitter is huge but it certainly doesn’t mean everyone in your circle is using it, or using it as heavily as you do. Your choice of networking platform might be Twitter, their’s Facebook. Then again it’s your choice. It’s your account….who cares? Well, the network of people you are trying to connect on Facebook might.

The reason why I see importing every tweet to Facebook as a problem is because many people don’t even choose to see if anyone is actually responding to those tweets on Facebook. Although they are tweets on twitter when you import it to Facebook, it becomes a Facebook update. Your friends on Facebook might be commenting on it, they might ask you questions related to the update and never get an answer. Why? Because many people fail to go back to Facebook and see what’s going in that part of the world. This to me signals a huge problem. You are using two platforms simultaneously and ignoring one group of your friends and constantly connecting with the other. That to me isn’t effective networking. It is embracing one group and alienating the other.

I personally am against importing all your tweets to Facebook. I import my tweets as well but I use the application that allows you to send only tweets that you select to Facebook. I am in favor of importing select tweets rather than importing every single one of them is because it helps me become an active participant on both. Rather than embracing one and alienating another. I update twitter multiple times each day but not so much Facebook. When I select a tweet that I want imported to Facebook, it’s much easier to track who is saying what, not just on twitter but on Facebook as well. I will be tweeting this post with a hashtag #fb which will import the tweet to my Facebook. This way my update on Facebook remains fresh and it is much easier for me to see what others have to say both on twitter and Facebook regarding my views on this subject if they choose to.

That’s what’s been bugging me lately. What you choose to do is your choice but I would definitely suggest using the select tweet app to import your tweets to Facebook. It will help you manage both platforms and be a part of both networks in a much more effective and manageable way.

Feel free to add me on either Twitter, Facebook or both.

I’ll be honest. When digg first replaced shouts with twitter I was pissed. I have been using digg for years and although shouts were seen as a spam tool, that’s not exactly what it was, at least to me. I received one or two shouts from a couple of my mutuals each day, and I probably sent out 2 at the most per day. Along with each shout I sent a short message just to say hi. After all, there isn’t really any social element to digg besides interacting in the comments section of a submission.And most of you know comments on submissions are usually bombarded by the trolls. So shout truly was something I used and thought was good as an overall tool to communicate and send out requests.

Actually, I had wrote on one of the blogs myself that shouts will soon be replaced by twitter. It was a joke but a couple weeks/months later digg actually eliminated shouts and integrated twitter. Here is my version/prediction of the shout replaced by twitter which is a lot different than how digg did it.

It was a joke and I thought digg would replace shout with something else to keep communication within the platform. That didn’t happen and joke became reality.

I think digg integrating twitter and facebook is a smart move. It sort of ties three different platforms (digg, twitter and facebook) which allows users that are not aware of one of the service, or have yet to use it one more reason to sign up. All in all kudos to digg for the move. But not having a communication channel within the site is something that I find pretty dumb. They should have done something when the transition was made. Users can now share links via twitter and facebook and interact with the community members of one platform using a different platform. Smart move? Not really.

Anyways, I hated it when the shout feature wasreplaced with twitter and facebook. But boy am I glad they did. Once twitter was integrated into digg, many digg users who previously didn’t have a twitter account got on board. I have had a chance to connect with fellow diggers and interact with them on a daily basis. Shout gave the opportunity to stay touch base but with twitter I have been able to interact on a personal basis, day in and out. I am glad they integrated twitter because now I can finally interact with fellow diggers. It’s not just about digging their subs to show them I am here anymore, it’s social now. I talk (tweet) to them. It’s fun to look into their lives. To be able to share stories and build a relationship that goes beyong the “digg it” button.

Although I was pissed in the beginning when the shout feature came to an end, I can’t thank Digg enough for integrating twitter. It is sad but it took a different platform for digg to allow conversation between their users. Hopefully, they will figure something out in near future to facilitate conversation between their users within their platform. As of now, twitter seems to be serving the purpose pretty good.

Thank you digg for integrating twitter and bringing the digg community even closer. I am digging it.

Feel free to connect with me on Digg, Twitter and Facebook.

Here is the twitter profile, pretty crazy. The fact this person has over 900 followers just goes to show how overrated the whole follower count thing is.

I was this close to making hundreds of thousands and was almost closing in on a million last night, the night before and the night before. Everyday a new idea, a new beginning and cash pouring down while I day dream has been a part of my daily routine, especially at night after I wrap up client work and think about myself. It’s fun. I get an adrenaline rush and for about an hour or so I feel like I am the smartest guy on earth. It feels good. I jot it all down on a piece of notebook, look at it, get up and go for a quick smoke which I can barely finish cause I am in a hurry to shape this plan by tomorrow.Ohh yeah, I want it now. I get it all documented on a piece of paper with ideas, sketches and of course the six digits numbers and sometimes more.

I head to bed and wake up my wife who probably is wondering what the hell do I do so late on the computer. She knows this is what pays the bills but am sure at times she has her doubts. I understand, It’s allgood. Anyways, I wake her up and I tell her “Hey baby, trust me by next year this time we are going to be rich.” She says, “we’ve everything we need right now why do you have to push yourself so hard?” That is when I get a little bummed cause she can’t share my excitement. Whatever. I say to myself “I will show her.” And then it’s tossing and turning all night thinking about the money, the fame and my name everywhere on the web. Whoaaaaaa it’s “Ritu” everywhere. Facebook, Twitter, Digg, Reddit. Newspapers are talking about me, blogs are talking about me…man I am popular!

Then I wake up. Excited. I skip my morning cup of coffee and cigarette and head straight to the computer. I get everything ready to go and start building on this idea. After all, it’s an idea that can’t wait. I mean, come on, this is going to make me thousands if not millions. I pull my notebook out and start flipping pages to see how I can build on it. WTF? This is the stupidest idea ever. This isn’t going to work. Seriously, WTF? Damn it, why was I so freaking excited last night? And now it’s time to get back to work again and build someone else while watching another one of my million raking ideas go down the drain.

I get an idea each night. I dream of something big each night. I plan it out. I wake up in the morning and scratch that and start all over again that night. That’s just who I am. A man who gives birth to ideas day in and day out. None have made it big but one day, one day I will have it made.

Do you ever get that way, or am I just weird?

Ohh wait, this is going to work!! I just had an idea guys and this is going to work. I gotta write it down so I can get on it right away. I will catch you guys later. Yes! this is the one…. hahaha this is going to make me thousands if not millions….

Every time I go to a grocery store I see a kid crying out “Mom, I want that candy. Mom, please!” As you can imagine, mom is trying to keep the kid calm without giving into his demands “No, you can’t.” I look into the cart and I see toys, candies and a bunch of other stuff. He certainly doesn’t need any more. So why is he throwing a tantrum? Well, he is just being a kid but let’s relate this to the social web.

If you look around on different social platforms about 90% of people are asking if they can either get a click to the link, have someone buy their products or simply follow them on twitter. There is nothing wrong with asking, we all need help once in a while. The main factor that one needs to realize is how often do you ask and what you give back. Let’s go back to the mom and a kid at a grocery store scenario again. If a kid never asked for anything while at the grocery store and out of nowhere ended up asking something that one day, you bet the mom would give into his wishes. He seems to be so understanding and deserves a treat. But if the kid asks for something every time, mom sure as hell isn’t going to give in.

The key to utilizing social media is frequency of it all. Ask yourself a few question if you ever wonder why you aren’t getting back as much as you would like :

I think most of us fail to realize that social media is the same as offline world. There are few things, few tactics that needs to be applied but the key is to carry the offline etiquette online and stick with it. You don’t buy your kid a toy every time he asks for it, so why should anyone else give a damn about you every time you ask for it. It’s all about frequency, it’s all about participation, it’s all about asking for the candy when you need it. When there is a good cause behind it.

Be the kid that helps mom carry her grocery bag 5 times in a row and the sixth time ends up asking for a treat. She will end up buying more treats than usual. That’s how the social web works – it’s all about what you give and how often you ask. If you give enough, you will get candies without having to ask.

I feel like asking for comments but I haven’t given back enough through this blog yet to ask for one. I will wait till I bag a few groceries for you.

image

The ultimate outcome of marketing is to influence action, and there is no better way to influence action than being part of the community.

According to dictionary.com, marketing is

1.the act of buying or selling in a market.

2.the total of activities involved in the transfer of goods from the producer or seller to the consumer or buyer, including advertising, shipping, storing, and selling.

That definition needs a little editing now that marketing has moved from the act of buying or selling in a market to engaging in a market. No where in that definition words “engagement” or “community” is to be found. Today, if I want to buy a product, I don’t just head out to the store. I usually turn to the online community to learn about the product. Facebook, twitter, forums, blogs, any form of social media that is out there I will make use of it before I decide on spending my money. This is exactly why businesses have started utilizing the social web by engaging with their target market. There are still a few that don’t see the value of it all, but for some it’s hard to break the monotony that the traditional marketing has set.

One of the first questions I get from my clients is – “How will this effect the bottomline? What’s the ROI?” I think it all depends on what ROI means to you. Do you calculate return on investment solely in monetary value or does brand loyalty and long term growth matter? If you are a business, you can’t always look into short term goal. The key is to get the word out there, it’s necessary in todays world to have a presence on the web and make “everybody” aware that you are out there.

Marketing isn’t just about creating an advertisement and asking people to buy. Do you fall for it when you see an ad on TV that says “Buy my product. It’s the best out there!” ? I hope not. I sure as hell don’t. Marketing is about engaging. Dell is a prime example of it. They have been able to boost their sales by millions by including twitter into their marketing strategy. When they take the time to answer our tweets, are they just being nice? No! Each tweet has an indirect marketing message which tells us “See. We are different than our competitors. We are here for you even though you aren’t shelling cash right away.”

Whether you are promoting a blog, a product, affiliate links, business as a whole or whatever it is that you are marketing, if you fail to engage in the market your competitors will beat you to dust. Here is the new definition of marketing which I think should be :

1. the act of engaging in a market with community building and engagement being primary goal and sales secondary.
2. the total of activities involved in being a community member of the target market and in the transfer of goods including advertising, shipping, storing, selling and utilizing different social media tools.

If you disagree let’s have a healthy discussion in the comments section. Beer is on me

image source