For now, you can find me writing over at BostInnovation.com.  I write about Boston’s tech and entrepreneur pulse and cover VC and Angel insights.

As always, feel free to contact me (sarah at sarah merion dot com) or @reply me on Twitter: @sarahmerion.

Best,

Sarah

Let me know what your views on HOW and WHY students use social media.  These are my thoughts…

HOW:

This question of “how” they use it needs to be divided into two categories – those who use it for productively by providing value to others and as a means of consuming value (we’ll call this Value Social Media Users), and those who use it for personal pleasure (Me Social Media Users).  Surely these categories can cross over into each other, but this is mainly how I see students using it.

College students additionally either “get” or “don’t get” Twitter.  We “get” Facebook because we grew up with it and it’s pretty self explanatory in terms of why we should use it and what we get out of it.  Students even “get” LinkedIn – because of it’s clear value proposition that it will aid your professional career – we can understand this and get on board with it. Now we come to Twitter, which is a mix of both.  Unless a student has experienced social media, it’s hard to figure out how to use it to add value to your life.  Which is why I brought up the two Twitter Camps if you will, Value Users and Me Users.  I would venture to say that most college students are Me Users users but certainly that is changing.  Marketing, computer science, and graphic designers are the best adept at using Twitter effectively.

WHY:

Again, the two camps.  Value Users see that there are opportunities to be had from adding value, connecting with people online, and learning from others.  Me Users use it because it’s fun and yet another way to “update your status”, like Facebook.

Sometimes I think people use Twitter as a way to talk to the Universe, sometimes not expecting it to talk back. It’s like when you stub your toe while you’re alone in your house.  You yell out “SHIT!” because it hurt and because you wanted to express something, not because you thought that some guy’s voice was going to say back to you, “I’m sorry you stubbed your toe Sarah, want some ice?”.  It’s instinctive.  This is a lot of what Me Users do I think.  On the other side, Value Users interact in social media to get a response.  They add value to instigate conversation because conversation and relationship building is the foundation of opportunities.

What do you think?  HOW and WHY do students use social media?

Photo credit drgonzoisnotaphotographer

If we think about this though, “up” doesn’t always equate with “good” or “progress” or “better”.  “Up” could mean redundant, inefficient, or unproductive operations.  In fact, positive improvement could be down, lateral, or even on another axis.

There is not one direction or one way of achieving “improvement”.  As long as things evolve, in my eyes that’s improvement enough.

Just my two cents, but perhaps I’m crazy.

Photo credit swanksalot

1. Go big or go home. If you’re going to take an Internet hiatus and temporarily cease your social network communication, go all the way.  Certainly I was still tweeting (narcissistically, of course) and going to Facebook, but I was not adding value to the normal social media interactive circle.
2. Make it known that you’re taking a hiatus. While I did not do this formally, it was probably pretty clear from my MIA and my boring Twitter stream that I had checked-out.  I take it seriously when interacting with people online that they should provide value or get out.  If you’re going to sit on the sidelines for a while, make sure that people know you’re taking a breather and not just being stupid.
3. Tend to your offline life. Whatever that may be for you, make sure you take care of your offline life while you’re on your hiatus.  This is your time to give attention to the things you don’t normally pay attention to and to work on things in your personal, professional or business life that don’t get done when you’re busy scouring the internet.
4. Come back strong. There is no excuse to bowing out.  You have to come back – it’s your duty to add value to this crazy world.  We all need a breather, so once you’re cooled down get back in the game.  Come back with a renewed fervor and intensity.

Is taking a hiatus a good thing or a bad thing for your image on the internet?  Does it make someone look lazy or just plain human?

In our digital age, where websites like Facebook, Twitter, and ChatRoulette all demand our attention, web consumers are looking for a quick fix, and are entitled to short bursts of entertainment. In fact, it is getting harder and harder everyday to engage an audience online if you’re not the next viral video on YouTube, if all of your friends aren’t in the same place at the same time, or if you’re not meeting crazy strangers from around the world or oddly enough down the street.

The Gen Y consumer needs to be stimulated, and needs to know within seconds that your website, product or service can add some value to their otherwise “busy” lives.

Here are 5 tips for capturing a Gen Y audience:

1. Give them something fun, something interesting or something outright crazy

In a world where Scarlet Takes a Tumble can take in over 10 million YouTube views, you have to have something just unbelievable or no one, or very few people will care about it.

2. Break the latest and best news!

Let them know something new and awesome has happened, but really have something fresh and amazing to support that.

3. Give it to them within 3 seconds, or they’ll leave

This isn’t always applicable, but we all know that people have a shorter and shorter attention span. If you can’t loudly express your value-add within 3 seconds, you’ll have lost your chance.

4. Prove you’re legit (social proof)

Are all the cool kids doing it? Prove to your audience that you are credible, that Media is covering you, their friends are using your product or service, or that strangers are highly recommending your offering

5. Make it real personal

The Gen Y consumer is incredibly entitled. They want to make sure they’re being treated like kings and queens, and that you’re going out of your way to do everything you can to make them happy. One day we’ll be able to create websites that virtually greet you with a “Hi Joe” or “Hey Dave.” We can easily do that now, but we won’t always get your name right. ;-) On the flipside, if you happen to be a Joe or Dave, you’re gonna love this new website we’ve got.

Photo credit Daniel*1977

1. Crocs are EVERYWHERE. Men, women, and children.  I spotted about a dozen and a half Crocs on my flight (not kidding).

2. Men are gorgeous. And they frequently like to walk around town without their shirt off.  I’m not complaining, I’m just sayin’.

3. Meat, bread, cheese, and ice cream are prevelant. However, equally as prevalent are the beautiful (and skinny) Argentine women.

4. Stray dogs exist like no other in Buenos Aires. As an American I’m not used to seeing so many dogs but they are quite abundant here and seem to be very friendly.

5. There is this sense of politeness and chivalry that exists in Argentina.  For example, when my friend and I went to check out the gym and spoke with a sales lady, she kissed us on the cheek on the way out, although we didn’t sign up.

6. Life is lived at the quarter of the pace and intensity as it is in New York.  It is a bit interesting to get used to, but I’m liking it.  For another example, while in the car on the way from the airport to my place of residence, my driver repeatedly told me slow down and calm down, that I was in Argentina.

7. Women are more natural here.  It appears that women wear less makeup and accessorize less.  Of course I am generalizing in all these statements, but they are just initial reactions, remember that.

8. Pregnant women are taken better care of and given more preference. While at the grocery store, I was in the express line for 15 items or less.  Right before it was my turn, a man came up and asked if he and his pregnant wife could go ahead of us.  Of course I said yes, and then I looked up and saw that the sign was for 15 items or less and embarazadas.

9. There are a lot of young families and young mothers. Perhaps in their twenties, and perhaps it is just my perception, but young families seem to be quite common here.

Click here to read the first post in my series about Buenos Aires.

Now, these social networks are so obese (with information) that digesting the information is not the problem – it’s digesting the right stuff in an appropriate enough amount of time.

Think about it: broadcasting a message to my 2,957 followers does not yeild 2,957 @replies.  It just doesn’t.   That’s because on a given day I’m only a handful of people’s radars.  And if you flip this around, I only have about 150 people on my radar (according to Dunbar’s number, which I don’t entirely disagree with).  It’s not just Twitter. It’s everything and frankly it’s really annoying.

There are 7 deadly signs that your social network is obese, and busting at the seams:

1. You no longer talk to your actual friends online. You only talk to the people who are the most obnoxious (read: tweets a lot and FB status updates 12x a day).

2. You know those Facebook birthday reminders?  If you can’t place a face with the name within .2 seconds, yeah, you’re saturated.

3. Of the people you follow on Twitter, you only actually talk to a dozen of them.

4. Your LinkedIn account has more LIONS than it does former bosses.

5. Your normal FourSquare friend requests starts at 35.  You have to sift through the randoms to find your actual friends.

6. The random guy you emailed ONCE appears in your Gchat box.  Like you’d ever want or need to talk to him again.

7. Your social networks are no longer a good way to keep tabs on people because THERE ARE TOO MANY PEOPLE.  It’s less passive stalking, more pro-active stalking.

Photo credit rutthenut

As a semi-successful blogger (whatever that means, right?) I’ve seen my fair share of pitches over the past year. Authors, software developers, and advertisers have reached out and contacted me – pitching their product or service and asking me to feature it on my website. 95% of the time, these pitches are bad, I mean like…BAD. To the point where I’m getting the “Dear Fellow Blogger” introduction – an instant red flag that sends the pitch directly to the trash pile.

The day of the old traditional PR pitch is dead – but you already knew that, right?

New media has completely opened up the line of communication between businesses and from business to consumer. Essentially anyone, anywhere, at any time can get in touch with their target audience. Social Media is only the beginning, but is now an integral part to the PR approach? Why…because today’s PR pitch is founded in research – doing your due diligence to research before you strike is imperative to landing a deal.

So how do you research? How do you REALLY get to know the individual or business you’re looking to pitch to? Here are five tips to get you well on your way.

Read blogs – and get involved in conversations there

I love when people read my blog – I love it even more when they really get something out of it – and I love it the most when a blog post encourages a person to go so far as to leave a comment, send me an email, and start the two-way communication process. There are a million trillion blogs out there – so for someone to take the time to read and comment on yours…well folks, that means something. So if YOU are the one looking to pitch, get involved in their community and above all, be genuine. I’ll almost always listen to someone who’s taken time to listen to me.

Be personable

In short – be a friend first – be someone who is genuinely interested in the business or individual your approaching. The spray and pray approach, reaching out to anyone and everyone who will listen, is a waste of your time. A WASTE. To quote David Meerman Scott’s “New Rules of Marketing & PR”:

“Barraging large groups of journalists with indiscriminate PR materials is not a good strategy to get reporters and editors to pay attention to you.”

RESEARCH leads to a targeted PR approach – study the company individual and approach with the intent of building a relationship. Non-targeted approaches (aka most of the PR pitches out there) are SPAM.

Give them a “WIFM”

If I’m going to help you out – I want to know how what you’re offering will help me out. Call it selfish, but if I’m going to take the time to test out your product, read your book, and write a blog post about it or throw up a banner ad – you better damn well have something in it for me. An opportunity for revenue, a free book, something. Any PR approach that’s all take and no give is dead in the water – A deal may be weighed in favor of one party over the other, but there needs to be some mutual agreement.

This isn’t rocket science folks, but I continue seeing the old school approach that, plain and simple, doesn’t work anymore. It’s a waste of my time and a waste of your time putting it together.

Get creative, be yourself, do your research, and people will be much more likely to help you out.

Photo credit smcgee

What is the difference between buying online and buying the in the store?  Location.  Perhaps price, but if there were a $5 and I could get it right now by walking down the street, “right now” and “down the street” wins hands down.

Well, thanks to some innovational companies, “right now” and “down the street” has a new meaning.  They’ve re-branded location and made it sexy, sleek, and glamorous.  Location isn’t just a latitude and a longitude coordinate anymore.

• Location is informational.
• Location is social.
• Location is good for the local economy.

Lost with the dot coms and digital networks of the 00’s, brick and mortar lost it’s appeal, it’s value, it’s ability to attain and retain customers.  Now, location-based services such as FourSquare, Gowalla, and Groupon take us back.  The convergence of these services with traditional brick and mortar stores has the ability to revive local economies, promote discounts otherwise overlooked, and attain better publicity through location social networks.

Digital mortar morphs two realities of ours – online and physical – to create a perpetual circle. This circle allows each other penetrate the opposite reality.  As a brick and mortar store, owners more successfully reach digital natives.  As a digital innovation, brick and mortar stores become clients, not competitors.  This is exactly the kind of partnership that FourSquare, Gowalla, and Groupon create.  This partnership allows all merchants to work on the same team.  In essence, by allowing the competition to join hands, everyone is able to win a little more.

Photo via Leonard John Matthews