Social Media Marketing In Smart Way

6 Apps You Don’t Want To Miss

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sun, 10 Jun 2012 11:08:00 +0000

Foursquare

Fousquare saw an overhaul this week. The update to the app offers personalized recommendations and deals based on where you are, as well as where your friends have been. The app also got a fun redesign, changing the way you see where your friends have checked in and who is located around you.

FixYa

FixYa released an update to its HTML 5 mobile app this week, which allows you to get free expert solutions for problems you may have. Questions on the site range from what the right filter size is for your camera to how to unclog your washing machine.

Android users gained an exclusive new feature in the update: the ability to ask and answer questions by uploading videos and pictures directly from their phones without needing to download an app.
You can check out FixYa's app by going to its website from your mobile browser, FixYa can also be accessed from the web.

Cause.it

A Foursquare of sorts for good deeds, Cause.it is an app that allows users to earn points for doing things like volunteering at local food banks, animal shelters or other similar organizations. Points can later be redeemed for deals and free items at local merchants.

Thumb

If you've got a question, then Thumb has an answer. The opinion-based social network allows you to pose a question to the masses -- or a select demographic of people -- and then receive real-time answers in the form of a thumbs up or down. It also offers the ability to add a comment as well.

Version 3.0 of Thumb also adds the ability to communicate with people who have commented on your question. You can post likes and dislikes to your profile on the service. And, it offers more options for sharing your opinion via Facebook, Twitter and SMS.

InstaCC

InstaCC — Calendar and Challenges for Instagram turns your Instagram photos into a daily creative challenge. The app also organizes your Instagram pictures on a calendar, and lets you like a comment on photos just as you might through Instagram.

Live OCD Free

A therapist who specializes in obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) has created an unusual ally for treating patients: an app. The $79.99 app is designed for children and adults with OCD helping them practice and overcome some of their challenges.

The product of three years of work by therapist Dr. Kristen Mulcahy, the app has OCD patients practice tasks, ultimately making those tasks less anxiety-inducing.

It can be tough to keep up with all the new apps released each week. But you’re in luck: We take care of a lot of that for you, creating a roundup each weekend of some of our own highlights from the week.

This week we found an app that lets you instantly get the opinion of a group of people on everything — from what shirt you should wear out tonight to what you should have for dinner, and another that will help get expert advice on any problems you might have, such as a broken computer or clogged toilet.

A new app for good Samaritans rewards you for volunteering in your community, and an update to a popular app helps everyone find deals and friends located around them.

If you love to take pictures, another new app helps turn Instagram into a game, and organizes your pictures in calendar form.

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5 Things to Consider Before Applying for a Job

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sun, 10 Jun 2012 10:18:00 +0000

Mona Abdel-Halim is the co-founder of Resunate.com, a job application tool that tailors and optimizes your resume for a specific job. You can find Mona and Resunate on Facebook, Twitter, and Google+.

Your skills and experience certainly lend themselves to certain types of jobs, but they aren’t the only things you should consider when applying for a new position. Your satisfaction in a new job goes beyond simply being able to utilize your skills each day — you also need to consider who you’ll be working with, what the company is like and if you’ll be happy in the job, should you land it.

So what else is important, you ask? Here are a few other aspects of a new job you need to consider before applying:

1. Type of Management: Everyone thrives in a different type of work environment, and much of that environment is about how you’re managed on a day-to-day basis. Do you need a manager who allows you to work independently? Or do you prefer someone checking in with you on a daily basis? If you’ll be working remotely most of the time, are you able to successfully self-manage?

Think back to what worked and what did not work in your last position. Who is your ideal manager? What type of work environment will they encourage each day?

2. Corporate Culture: What is the office environment like? What values are important to the company? Do you agree with them? How do they affect the day-to-day environment at the organization? You can investigate these aspects of an organization by visiting its website. You can also gain additional insight by browsing employee reviews on Glassdoor and Vault.

Another aspect of the culture is the leadership. Do you admire and respect the top management at the organization? Do they make you want to work there? If you don’t, you may want to rethink your decision to apply at the company.

3. Your Personality Type: There are many things you can learn about your work style from discovering your personality type. Do you have a preference for extraversion or introversion? Do you require a quiet working environment or do you thrive in a bustling environment with more distractions? How your personality type will mesh with colleagues and supervisors plays a part in job satisfaction, too.

4. Work/Life Balance: What type of balance do you require? Will you be working significantly more hours than you did at your last job? What will your commute to this new job be like? Will the new position require frequent business traveling or overtime hours? These factors can affect your home life and may introduce more stress if you don’t consider them before applying. Know your limits to ensure your next position is the right fit for you and your life outside of work.

5. Company Stability: In this economy, it never hurts to dig a little deeper on company growth and financial stability. This can help you determine whether or not you’ll be looking for a new job in the near future, due to the company cutting back its workforce or shutting down altogether.

Additionally, it pays to research the industry in order to figure out if it’s healthy. Is it expected to be around in the next 10 to 15 years, or is it on the decline?

Are there other things job seekers need to consider before applying for a new position? Let us know in the comments.

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Would You Vote for Your Next President on Facebook? [POLL]

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sun, 10 Jun 2012 09:28:00 +0000

Can digitizing voter registration get more people signed up to vote before Election Day? A pair of New York lawmakers think so, and they introduced a plan on Friday to do just that.

The Voter Empowerment Act of New York would digitize the entire registration process in an effort to reduce errors caused by handwriting and typographical blunders that can leave otherwise eligible citizens off the voter rolls.

“As election season approaches, government bureaucracy continues to impede too many people from voting,” said New York State Senator Michael Gianaris in a statement. “Our proposal would remove these obstacles and maximize voter turnout while saving the state and its counties hundreds of thousands of dollars per election, thus preventing disenfranchisement and enabling better record keeping.”

The bill would also enable 16- and 17year-olds to pre-register to vote and allow government agencies to ask New Yorkers to update their voter registration each time they have an interaction with such an office.
Currently, voters in New York have to register on paper forms which are prone to several problems: People can fill the forms out incorrectly without knowing there’s a problem, they can mail them to the wrong address, the forms can be damaged and made illegible in the mail, and so on. Moving to digital ballots could help to address those issues.

Online voter registration could also have other benefits, too. Citizens could register to vote or change their address much closer to Election Day than is possible with paper registration forms, according to the lawmaker’s release.

The proposed law is modeled on the Voter Empowerment Act introduces in the U.S. House of Representatives, and similar efforts have been carried out in several other states, including Arizona, Delaware and Georgia. However, as the press release notes, the New York plan “would be the most comprehensive state plan implemented to modernize the voter registration system.”

The bill would only allow New Yorkers to register to vote online, it won’t let them actually cast a ballot on the Internet.

However, this raises a question: if it becomes possible to vote for a president on a platform such as Facebook, would you?

Answer our poll and then share your thoughts about online voting in the comments below:

Would You Vote for the Next President on Facebook?

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The Ultimate Social Media Profile

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sun, 10 Jun 2012 08:38:00 +0000

Valued at $104 billion, Facebook broke all records with its recent debut on the stock market.

With such phenomenal success, other social networks are even more determined to carve out a niche in the market place. With fierce competition for your profile page, viral and covert marketing methods may no longer be enough. These companies, unlike Facebook, are stepping out from behind the screen and into the physical world of advertising.

Two social networks in the realms of social gaming and dating have made 1,000 people’s profile a little more prominent.

Zynga, founded in 2007 is the company behind the popular Facebook games such as Farmville, Cityville and Hidden Chronicles and with a user base of over 250 million users a month is a major player in the world of social media.

Badoo is a dating focused social discovery website that was founded in 2006 and now boasts over 150 million members and is growing at over 150,000 users every day. It is now the 59th most visited website in the world.

Zynga’s “I Love to Play” Campaign

In the run up to Christmas 2011, Zynga (gaming social network) users could upload their photos into a billboard game which were then displayed on digital screens in Times Square, New York. Zynga commented that ‘I Heart Zynga’ was simply a ‘game’ to ‘celebrate’ their players but it also cleverly captured the essence of their brand; a gaming platform with people who ‘Love to Play’

It gave a personal touch to their advertising and graphics of the most popular games were also displayed, giving the general public a true sense of their network.

Badoo’s Ultimate Profile Campaign

Badoo, the fast growing online dating site, uses a similar method of integrating user’s pictures into their adverts. Initially the ‘Badoo project’ photographed 1000 New Yorkers (who had to sign up to Badoo) and picked 26 winners ‘based on personality, energy and individuality’ for their billboard campaign that was launched in April 2012. This campaign was displayed on billboards, taxi tops and underground trains.

The Badoo blog states that for these 26 users who will be plastered across New York.

‘it’s like starring in the ultimate profile picture.’

The number ‘150 Million’ is just as important as the photos. It gives Badoo ‘the world’s largest and fastest growing social network for meeting new people’ a sense of value.

It encourages others that there will be a perfect match for them in this large population. Building on this idea, they also have a counter on their home page, showcasing how many people are already using Badoo.

Of course this is a prime example of the network effect theory; in essence, the more people that use the service, the more valuable the service is to the user.

Building a Community

Both Zynga and Badoo are creating value and a sense of community by choosing ‘real’ users to represent them. It’s especially interesting how Badoo invoked a sense of excitement amongst their audience through the potential of being picked for an advertising campaign. They’ve included their users at every step and this is vital – they have got their feedback, created a buzz and made their audience feel part of the campaign which translates into more log-ins and viral chat.

What can we Learn from These Campaigns?

Buying premium advertising space in New York might not be in your budget but how could you adapt these techniques to your own business?

Just as Badoo highlights the size of its membership to create credibility don’t be afraid to display your credentials (such as number of followers, awards etc) to the world. Even simple elements such as share buttons that display the number of “retweets” and Facebook “likes” provide social proof that does get noticed.
All businesses should have ‘followers/fans/friends’ via a Facebook page and blog, so why not test out some potential campaign ideas? People love to give their opinion and even more so when it’s taken on board.
Could you pick a ‘follower’ of the month? Ask them some fun questions about themselves and dedicate a day to them. Give them a higher platform within your business. It gives your website a personal touch.
You might not have 150 million people on your website but be proud of the number you do have, make your audience feel valued. Thank them! Remember 100,000 followers started with 100 of them.
Hold a caption competition where clients could tell you what your brand means to them. Could you reward them with a discount or a gift?

Is there an interesting (and cost effective) way to present your brand and profile to the world?

Think how Zynga used gaming, how could you be innovative with your business?

What About You?

Despite millions being spent on eye catching logos, platform design and compelling copy, both businesses and social networks need to grab the attention of a public who, having been inundated with data requests, aren’t now so easy to convince.

Could you unlock some refreshing marketing initiatives with techniques that involve your existing audience?
Look forward to hearing you ideas, stories and experiences.

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The Internet Changes Wednesday, But Most People Won’t Notice

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Wed, 06 Jun 2012 20:02:00 +0000

With IP addresses now depleted, the Internet Society is leading the launch of IPv6 to allow the web to continue growing.

Without adopting IPv6, people surfing the web will have to go through a transitional gateway before entering a non-updated site using IPv4, making the experience slower. On launch day Wednesday, website owners are encouraged to permanently enable IPv6 — the next generation of Internet protocol.

“World IPv6 Launch Day is a lot larger than people understand,” John Curran, president and CEO of the American Registry for Internet Numbers, told Mashable in an email. “IPv6 is the single largest upgrade in the history of the Internet. It’s not a small decision for the major content providers to turn on IPv6 and leave it on.”

“Going forward, Internet users will be forced to go through transition gateways to reach businesses that do not similarly upgrade by adding IPv6 connectivity, with the result being slower connections and services for their customers,” Curran added. “The good news is that done properly, Internet users globally will not notice any significant difference in their daily lives.”

Hundreds of organizations are making the switch — Google, Facebook and Time Warner Cable, to name a few.

Internet Service Providers will be able to use IPv6 to connect new customers to the web, while existing customers are unlikely to notice a change. Companies and websites should speak with their ISP or hosting company to get IPv6 turned on their existing Internet connection.

News of IPv6 and the lack of available IP addresses with IPv4 was announced in February 2011.

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6.5 Million Encrypted LinkedIn Passwords Leaked Online [REPORT]

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Wed, 06 Jun 2012 18:22:00 +0000

It’s not a good day for LinkedIn. After reports that its iOS app potentially violates user privacy by sending detailed calendar entries to its servers, comes a report that 6.46 million encrypted LinkedIn passwords have leaked online.

A Russian forum user claims he has hacked LinkedIn, uploading 6,458,020 encrypted passwords (without usernames) as proof.

The passwords are encrypted with the SHA-1 cryptographic hash function, used in SSL and TLS and generally considered to be relatively secure, but not foolproof. Unfortunately, it also seems that passwords are stored as unsalted hashes, which it makes it much easier to decipher them using pre-computed rainbow tables.

In simple terms, this means an attacker might be able to crack many of the passwords using very cheap resources in a relatively short amount of time.

While there’s a possibility that the password collection is not genuine, some reports on Twitter add credibility to the story. LinkedIn said on Twitter it’s looking into the issue.

Finnish security company Cert-Fi has posted a warning about the incident, saying it is “likely” that whoever hacked LinkedIn possesses the accompanying user names as well.

If you’re a LinkedIn user, we recommend you change your password right now. Furthermore, if you used that password on any other online service, we recommend you change those passwords as well.

Developing…

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10 Social Media Secrets from the Social Scientist

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Wed, 06 Jun 2012 17:32:00 +0000

There are some secrets regarding social media that I’d like to share.

I’m a bit of a hard-core social media user and I’ve been doing web and content development for many years now. Because I have been online for a very long time (pre-graphical Web), I am pretty attuned to what constitutes authentic and cooperative behavior online.

There are things that set apart the altruistic contributor (check out this cool thing!), for instance, from the self-serving ones (buy my stuff!).

If you do nothing else this year, consider shifting your social media strategy to encompass increasingly pro-social guidelines. The more you give, the more the community will give back, but it needs to be done with a sensitive hand. Think of communities as gardens to be cultivated, and your social media activities then have structure, focus and value. Without a doubt, value is the currency on the Web, and the more value you create, the more people will flock to you.

Here are ten ways to create maximum info value with social media:

#1. Make your social media more about you.

Make your social media less about them and more about you.
This is a very counter-intuitive principle, but it’s an important one. You can opt to use social media as tools for yourself, your organizations and your followers – to enhance communication, meme sharing, bonding, etc. It is okay to promote yourself and the things you love, but do it sensitively and with thought to the value you are creating for your community. If they are a community of gut-busting punners, then by all means, pun all day. But if it’s a professional community, it’s best to be very judicious. I frequently lurk for a while to get the vibe before I start making contributions myself.

I use Twitter and Pinterest primarily as social bookmarking tools. This goes back to my love affair with Delicious, an early social bookmarking and meta-tagging app.

Twitter:

I’m an info slinger, so managing info is a big issue for me. Twitter’s hash tags are super easy and allow me to expand the potential relevance of a find to much broader groups of people. Twitter is also great for creating transparency around internal organizational dialogue (the positive and potentially public bits) regarding project themes, methods, etc. It’s also great for demonstrating how well you know the space you occupy, just by virtue of knowing who’s who and what’s what. This lets you leverage other people’s contributions and that promotes them and saves you work. I have one or two Twitter presences that I really only use to retweet as a way of archiving and sharing.

Pinterest:

I love Pinterest because I can unite a bunch of interests in a visually pleasing way. Exactly like those scrapbooks of pretty papers, pressed flowers and ephemera that the ladies used to make and share. I used to use Google Notebook a lot, but it had nowhere near the level of visual appeal that Pinterest does. Just the sheer uniformity and quality of images on Pinterest sets it apart from nearly every other user generated content spaces I have encountered. Remember those early MySpace pages and the love affair with animated GIFs? The Web was formerly a pretty ugly place. Pinterest applies order to chaos with elegant results.

#2. Create orbits

When you think about your social media strategy, think of yourself establishing orbits around things you love and creating magnetism (good contributions) for others to orbit you. Document your finds and your learning journey into primers for the uninitiated. I have infiltrated a couple of communities by using that strategy. The Web quickly rewards people who create value and fresh perspectives. Leaving comments in blogs, tweeting, sharing, etc. are all pretty low effort ways to establish yourself. It’s important to use a consistent identity, though, and avoid the flame fests at all costs.

#3. Share more

Something we humans have been doing for a very lone time. Online it translates into share, share, share, and share some more. But make sure that what you’re sharing is relevant to your audience.

Your childhood friends (Facebook, most likely) care about adorable videos of your children – your Linked In colleagues? Not so much. But Linked In can be a great vehicle for establishing cred quickly in a space. You can ask questions or answer them, post useful updates, comment in groups, etc.

#4. Join the social network nirvana

There are a couple of best kept secrets in the social media verse and Quora is one of them. It’s certainly not everyone’s bag, but for generalists it’s Nirvana. The quality of contributions tends to be very good, there is a “Be Nice” policy, and a real names only policy, and moderators who occasionally step on toes. But something about it seems to work, in the creating-order-from-chaos kind of way.

Information chaos is one of our biggest challenges and having a place where you know the cream rises can be very handy. It’s also the place where you can ask literally ANY question and expect a reasonable response from VERY knowledgeable people.

#5. Engage

Internet people crave opportunities to engage.

Everyone loves rewards. We should be thinking more about how to reward people for their contributions online, both tangibly and intangibly. Pinterest contests get people pinning your content. A $40 gift card can go a LONG way in motivating semi-volunteer content developers and community managers. And it goes a long way towards letting them know how much you appreciate them.

#6. Leverage yourself

Think about how to inter-connect your social media outlets and efforts. Facebook, Twitter and Linked In all offer easy integration with each other, and there are many widgets available such as widget box, that allow you to embed your real-time streams into other locations.
This is great because it keeps your content fresh, without having to do a bunch more work.

#7. Aggregate your social streams

If you are one of those people or organizations who is heavy into social media, there are a whole crop of tools that make stream management so much easier. About.me lets you aggregate your streams in one place for easy viewing (by you or others). Some are focused more on publishing (TweetDeck), others on analytics and other influence/reach metrics:

#8. Don’t get too attached to any one platform.

It’s pretty likely we have no idea what the Facebook-equivalent social media site will be in say, 2020. Our excitement these last few years is that many of the tools have also allowed a range of social phenomena we have really never seen before.

One of the lovely things about humans is that we will adapt a new tool to many anticipated and unanticipated outcomes. Early movers (celebrity tweet auctions, etc.) can sometimes find a massive advantage with one clever idea. Things occasionally go viral and enchant millions. This is a level of reach and connectedness we have never known. Obama sends me emails and Lady Gaga posts Facebook messages telling me what TV she is watching.

What’s incredible about social media is what they enable in our culture, not whether it’s called Facebook or Twitter. Just because you have a hammer, it doesn’t make everything else nails and thinking it does will limit you from acting nimbly on new opportunities.

#9. Some industries suit social media

Certain industries really benefit from social media and are natural innovators as a result. If you’re looking for ideas, check out sectors like food & beverage, travel and video games – anything with a passionate following that can be leveraged into a vibrant and self-sustaining community.

#10. Make social media your front line

Social media networks are your front line to your most wired communities. Getting to know those people via comprehensive observation can help you find opportunities to engage and enchant, in ways you’ve probably never thought of. But those people can also be your biggest advocates and informants, even the grouchy ones. Listening and converting (by responding to questions, requests and concerns) are incredibly powerful tools in building a community that is enthusiastic about you. But there are also many practical benefits, like the ability to provide quicker/better support, educate potential customers, promote causes and efforts that are meaningful to you. These are magic tools in the right hands, but their mastery requires a lot of trial and error. In this case, the best way to learn is to jump in. Social media coordinators are great, but even better if you are the CEO or someone working on potential products/services.

Many real life empires rest on social media these days. But try thinking about the people whose info needs you serve, and win by serving them better and better, a bit every day.

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What 3 Types of Facebook Marketing Apps Drive the Most Viral Sharing?

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Wed, 06 Jun 2012 16:42:00 +0000

Everyone business or marketer has a secret desire that their marketing goes “viral”.

It is the holy grail of marketing. Firstly because it generates high velocity sharing and secondly because its often seen as free.

It can accelerate a brand from relative obscurity to nearly famous.

It is “word of mouth” marketing enhanced and supercharged by the internet and social networks.

This “earned” media sharing that is seen as totally free is often initially sparked by paid media (such as banner ads, paid search marketing on search engines or mass media such as television).

Viral Marketing is Often Not Free

Marketing that fits this ultimate marketing profile are campaigns such as “Old Spice“.

This campaign was sparked by a 30 second advertising spot during the Superbowl and then driven further by paid advertising on digital and mass media

Paid is often the catalyst to create the powerful free earned media that is seen in friends sharing on Facebook and Twitter.

7 Facebook Marketing Campaign Types

Marketing on Facebook is one of the main social networking platforms that are employed by business marketers.

So what types of marketing campaigns can you design for Facebook and what are their strengths?
Wildfire (a social networking marketing platform with 200,00 users) looked at 10,000 campaigns that were run over 9 months.It looked at 7 major campaign types that companies and brands used to market on Facebook.

Each type of campaign has its advantages. Some campaigns will achieve greater participation rates (entries). Other types will result in more sharing and earned media. This is the powerful viral marketing that you don’t have to pay for. Also known as crowd sourced marketing.

The Top 3 Types of Facebook Apps to Drive Sharing

If your main marketing goal is to encourage Facebook fans to share then you need to use these three types of marketing campaigns and apps to drive Facebook sharing of content via the Facebook news feed .

Favourites is the top app type at over 37%
Quiz ranks second at 30%
Trivia comes third at 27%

The Top 3 Types of Facebook Campaigns for Participation

Coupons are used frequently in marketing to provide an incentive for people to participate.Everyone loves a discount!

These three application types are the ones to implement if you are looking to have thousands of participants.

Coupons rank clearly as the top performer with an average of over 3,000 entries per campaign
Giveaways comes a distant second at 1,888 entries
Sweepstakes is not far behind at 1,630to

Case Study

In looking at these results from the study then you need to provide a variety of marketing tactics and choices to appeal to the greatest audience. Just like people prefer different social networks and also will consume a variety of media depending on whether they will read an article or watch a video.

Delta Airlines is a great example of offering a range of tactics to create the highest level of participation and sharing.

In the example above, Delta has more than six custom content applications available for users to interact with. Each tab does something different, and while the activity offered on one tab will perform better at enticing user signups, another tab will be best for inspiring user-generated content submissions and sharing.

Takeaways

A strong social media marketing strategy is one that approaches the creation of branded content and applications for users from multiple angles

Designing some owned media to achieve high consumption and participation rates
Designing other owned media to influence high sharing activity (to generate the earned media that grows communities so successfully).
Use paid media to amplify your owned content even further, and you’ll reach new users outside of the existing network, thereby generating many more opportunities for earned media.

What About You?

Are you implemeting these tactics for your Facebook marketing campaigns?

Are your goals to motivate sharing, participation or both?

What has worked for you? What hasn’t worked?

Look forward to hearing your Facebook marketing stories

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The Beginner’s Guide to Tumblr

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Mon, 04 Jun 2012 19:18:00 +0000

Tumblr is a micro-blogging platform that churns out more than 64 million posts daily. There are 57.5 million blogs on Tumblr, which might seem intimidating to anyone not already using it.

Tumblr could be useful to you for many reasons, depending on what you’re looking to get out of it, for example, inspiration, scrapbooking, communication or a portfolio.

The site is a mix of bloggers, brands and tastemakers. But to keep it simple, there are essentially two types of bloggers on Tumblr: those who create original content and those who curate, or re-blog posts.

Depending on how you want to utilize the platform, this guide will help you move from a Tumblr novice to power blogger.

1. Getting Started

Tumblr registration is simple: You only need an email address, password and username. However, considering there are 57.5 million blogs on Tumblr, it’s possible that you won’t get your first choice of username.

With Tumblr, you can change your URL later, so if you absolutely hate it down the road, that can be fixed — but keep in mind that change will affect SEO.

Be sure to upload a default image, too, to complete your profile.

2. What Do I Do With This?

Once you have an account, there are a number of following options, depending on how you want to utilize the site.

Some use Tumblr to write and create original content, for example, to document lifestyle, travels, milestones or to showcase work.

Tumblr hosts some hilarious parody and nostalgia blogs that cater to specific persons, places or things.
If you’re not creating your own content, Tumblr is also great for curating. Many users browse the web for the best and most interesting things they can find. It’s up to you to decide what that is: hilarious videos, inspiring quotes, breathtaking photos? Whether you like animals, fashion, art, music, film or just a random assortment of interesting finds, decide what you want to blog about before going further.

1. Quadro

From the font to the layout, the Quadro theme is a close tie with the Pinterest pinboard.

2. Kinley Lite

Kinley Lite uses a very similar pinboard layout, as well as a similar color and font style.

3. Star-Aurora

Star-Aurora is another mosaic-style option with a bolder font.

4. Meringue

The Meringue theme also has the same pinboard feel to it.

5. Nominal

This theme uses a crisp font, and has a clean, mosaic look.

6. Cargo

Cargo has the same mosaic asthetic as your Pinterest board, but it's a little more minimalist.

7. Canvas

This example includes text, however, it's still the same board-like layout. This theme also includes the infinite scroll option.

8. Tessellate

For Tumblr users who post mostly images, Tessellate is a no-brainer.

9. Photo Stack

When you hover over the scattered stack of photos, the theme organizes into a neatly arranged board.

Aside from suiting your blog to your personality, one of the most fun things about Tumblr is the ability to customize themes. Tumblr themes offer the ability to customize the look, feel and functionality of your blog.
Try to avoid the default theme, simply because there are hundreds more to choose from, and many talented designers have put a lot of effort into them.

Some themes are free, but if you really want your blog to stand out, consider paying for a premium theme that offers more personalized options.

Once you’ve selected a theme, you can customize further by editing HTML, changing colors or font type, adding a background image or adding pages.

4. The Dashboard

Tumblr’s dashboard is really user-friendly, no matter the format of content you want to post.

If you’re not ready to publish a post, or want to come back to it later, you can either save as a draft or schedule it in the queue. Both options are on the right side of the dashboard.

At the top of the dashboard, next you your profile picture, you’ll see a series of colorful icons labeled by format: text, photo, video, etc. Depending on what you’re trying to share, the options in each individual post box are really easy to figure out.

For added convenience, you can place the Tumblr bookmarklet at the top of your web browser. There are a number of other useful tips here.

The tabs at the top of the dashboard allow you to filter between views: either just your posts or those from people you follow. (We’ll talk more about your followers later.) If you want to see your posts in the back-end, click on your tab. To view it as your chosen theme, click on your profile picture.

Each post in the dashboard has a series of buttons at the top-right, which let you engage with others by re-blogging and liking their posts. (This is where the distinction between original content creator vs. curator is most prominent.) Most original content bloggers don’t re-blog very often because they are publishing to a certain style or subject.

However, the more followers you have, the more quickly their posts move on your dashboard — remember, there are millions of posts each day. If you want to keep all of your favorite posts in one place, the little heart at the right corner of each post is your friend. You can then click the heart tab on the far-right to access all of the things you’ve liked in one place.

5. Navigation

By now, you should be set up and ready to “tumble.” But half the fun is discovering what other people are posting, especially if you’re using the platform to curate, or re-blog. So, how do you find other interesting people and blogs?

Tumblr has a series of tags, which you can view in Explore, that separate individual posts by different interests — for example art, humor, music, fashion, television, etc.

A select group of people manage each tag and hand-pick posts best-suited for the category.
Additionally, Spotlight is a Tumblr feature that showcases various noteworthy blogs within each tag.

Tumblr is not just for self-engagment. There are a number of ways to connect with people you know and reach out to new people.

First of all, by authorizing Gmail, Twitter and Facebook, you can see which of your friends are already using the platform.

If you’d like to reach out to someone privately, see the envelope icon at the top-right, where you can send a message. The feature offers different styles of paper-themed backgrounds and fonts, which makes each message seem more personal.

Some users have also enabled the “Ask Me Anything” feature. Keep in mind the user can post any question on his site, but you can always opt to ask anonymously.

7. Mobile

Once you’ve successfully navigated the basics of Tumblr, take your blogging on-the-go with the platform’s free mobile app — available for iOS and Android.

The mobile app’s features are pretty similar to the website, except that the dashboard appears slightly more minimal. Otherwise, all of the things explained above are available on mobile — you can still post all the same formats of multimedia, and even customize your blog.

Tumblr is as vast as it’s never-ending dashboard — there’s a lot more to the site, but this overview should give you a good head start.

What tips do you have for someone testing out Tumblr for the first time? Share your advice in the comments.
Image courtesy of Tumblr, silas216

View the Original article

5 Ways Social Media Is Revolutionizing Talent Acquisition

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Mon, 04 Jun 2012 18:38:00 +0000

Sajjad Masud is co-founder & CEO of Simplicant, a cloud-based social recruiting platform transforming talent acquisition and making enterprise-level recruiting technology accessible to companies of all sizes. Connect with Sajjad and the Simplicant team on Twitter and Facebook.

The way we communicate with each other has evolved rapidly over the last decade. Social media has further intensified the departure from traditional communication methods to redefine how people and businesses interact with each other.

In fact, more than half of companies on social media fail to have a social media strategy and in doing so, risk ignoring an increasingly dynamic and expanding audience. Recent social media stats show that more than 60% of adults are connected to one or more social networks, while 23% of online time is spent entirely on social networking activities.

While social media has seen rapid growth at the consumer level, the gap between consumer and corporate adoption is widening. Businesses are continuing to figure out optimal ways to harness the reach of social media and translate its usefulness into results.

One area where the benefits are already beginning to outshine older methods is talent acquisition and recruiting. The sheer number of active users on sites such as Facebook have made social recruiting extremely advantageous. With so many people using social media, especially for employment opportunities, companies are expected to use social media to recruit for more than 80% of job openings in 2012.

So just how does social media benefit the environment of talent acquisition? Here are five shifts that are taking place now.

1. It’s Personal

Hiring has always been concerned with people, and the relationships formed through social media between candidates and employers are even more imperative.

While candidates can reach out to key recruiters, companies form entire networks or talent communities to connect and engage with candidates. Social media is a tool that caters to sharing interests and engaging in conversation, making it easier to find a suitable candidate early on. After all, we do it so much everyday that it becomes a natural process.

2. It’s Transparent

Social media users tend to be self-aware of their brand because of how visible their activity and interests can be. Because of this, we must always anticipate some sort of reaction or feedback. No longer are your strategies and tactics a secret from those outside the company — they are fair game for criticism, even by the candidates themselves.

Though your recruiting activities can open a Pandora’s box of negative comments, it’s still a good way to find new perspective on what you may be doing wrong and how it can be better.

3. It’s No Longer Just For HR

Social media talent acquisition allows for entrepreneurs and CEOs alike to find candidates directly, quickly and with a reduced cost-per-hire — especially for startups that lack traditional HR personnel or funds for a recruiter. However, social recruiting is not to be taken lightly; just because you can find candidates on Facebook doesn’t mean you should throw away the rule book.

4. It’s Marketing

A solid plan, a target audience, metrics and data are all required for effective social recruiting. With the introduction of Brand Pages on Facebook, your organization isn’t any different from those selling a product — instead, you’re advertising a place of work.

Through brand management, content creation and engagement, candidates and employers alike see the value of social interaction for talent acquisition. It’s instantly measurable and targeted to something that older processes simply can’t match.

5. It’s Being Shared

Employees on Twitter, LinkedIn, and Facebook are contributing to the efforts of recruiting through their own posts and tweets. Not only are open positions getting distributed as pieces of content to vast networks of people, but it’s also facilitating the use of social referrals — one of the best sources of quality candidates. Job seekers are finding ways to take advantage of social referrals by keeping in contact and engaging with key members of companies.

Conclusion

Social media doesn’t need to be the absolute center of your recruitment strategy, but it would be ill-advised to ignore the trend completely. These five factors are changing and advancing the ways we approach finding the best talent and taking it to a more personal, open and collaborative experience.

What do you think? Does using social media mean less work for recruiting, or just more effective implementation of traditional ideas?

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5 Fascinating Things We Learned From Reddit This Week

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Mon, 04 Jun 2012 17:58:00 +0000

1. The White House Makes Beer

NPR interviewed Michelle Obama this week about gardening, but Reddit users were more interested in the mention of the White House's home-brewed beer.

White House Honey Ale is the first homemade beer to have been made in the White House. As one commenter mentioned, there are now two additional styles being brewed: White House Honey Blonde Ale and White House Honey Porter.

2. Everything Is Bigger in...Australia?

Scattered throughout Australia are 150 strange, "larger than life" tourist attractions -- including a giant Scotsman, a large dead fish and "the big poo."

One attraction in particular, the giant earthworm, is also a museum.

Image courtesy of Wikipedia

3. How to Create a Website

A Reddit user with elementary understanding of HTML, CSS and Java wanted to know what else goes into creating a website. One user compared a website to a library, and all of the posts to books.

The discussion led to a detailed, but well-explained, breakdown of dynamic language, and how it's used to create dynamic content, including ads.

4. 'Where's Waldo?' Was Originally Banned

In 1987, the first "Where's Waldo" book was banned because one page had a woman baring her chest on the beach.

The image was edited for the 1997 special edition, however Reddit users want to know what else was hiding in the popular children's book.

5. Why Pigeons Live in the City

A funny photo of pigeons at McDonalds got some insight from Reddit user Unidan, a Biology graduate student. Pigeons, most specifically "Rock Doves," derive from sea-cliffs, but over time have substituted their natural habitat for the ledges of buildings.

The birds have also traded their usual food for human garbage, and ingest pieces of gravel to help digest it.

Some of the most interesting things on Reddit are also the most unexpected. For instance, a post that’s just supposed to make people laugh might leave users learning something new. Or maybe an interesting interview with a celebrity includes a moment that’s fascinating, but has nothing to do with the original topic of discussion.

Those are some of the most valuable moments on Reddit. For example, this week users got a biology lesson in the comments of a funny bird photo. They also learned that the White House makes beer, which came up when Michelle Obama told NPR about gardening.

Ironically, the book that’s famous for making you look really hard for something small, “Where’s Waldo?” is also part of this week’s interesting facts.

View the Original article

7 Travel Tools for Planning Your Family Adventure

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Mon, 04 Jun 2012 17:18:00 +0000

1. Trippy

As you can tell by the screenshot, Trippy looks very similar to Pinterest. At first, that's almost precisely how Trippy functioned, too.

Recently, Trippy incorporated vacation planning into its otherwise simple "pinboard" functionality. Trippy's new map tool locates all the photos you've posted to your boards and pins them to a world map, so you can localize your travel wish list.

Furthermore, Trippy has added Facebook Timeline integration, so consider connecting the social network to share your travel plans with friends.

2. Wanderfly

Another site similar to Pinterest, Wanderfly allows you to search for and discover travel destinations by tag, such as "adventure," "beach" and "off the beaten path."

Wanderfly is great for getting down into the nitty gritty of the cities, countrysides and destinations you plan to visit. For example, search for or share your own tips about the best places to hike near Portland.

Speaking of recommendations, Wanderfly prides itself on user-generated local suggestions, so feel free to seek out and save advice from other Wanderflyers.

3. Hipmunk

Once you've narrowed down your travel wish list and decided upon a destination, you're ready to book your journey. That's where Hipmunk comes in.

Hipmunk's bread and butter is booking flights and hotels. The difference is that the site displays flights from all kinds of airlines in a visual grid format. You'll literally be able to see how flights overlap, their duration and number of layovers. Handy.

At left, you can see Hipmunk's iOS and Android app, which recently updated to incorporate your personal schedule from Microsoft Outlook, Google Calendar or Apple iCal. That way, Hipmunk will notify you if your appointments conflict with potential flights.

4. Gtrot

Gtrot is not only a great site to keep track of your favorite places and activities in your own town, but it's also a helpful way to research the local happenings in towns you plan to visit.

For instance, I like to keep track of restaurants I love in New York so that I can return with visitors and friends again later. Similarly, Gtrot hosts a list of places I still wish to visit, like a digital to-do list.

You can also search Gtrot by city, where a list of city "experts" appears. Browse their profiles for a comprehensive list of suggestions and recommendations, kind of like a more personal Yelp.

5. HotelTonight

Most of these tools so far have been great for planners. But what if you're more of a fly-by-the-seat-of-your-pants kind of traveler?

HotelTonight welcomes your spontaneity by providing last-minute deals on unsold hotel rooms in major U.S. and Canadian cities. You can even book rooms up to 2 a.m. same-day.

The iOS and Android app displays available hotels by location, and even includes photos and booking options.

6. Gogobot

Similar to Trippy, Gogobot integrates with Facebook so you can share your travel photos, recommendations and experiences with friends and strangers.

Or, seek out advice yourself. Gogobot prides itself on its growing network of users (now 1 million-strong) to help answer your travel queries and share tips.

7. TripTwit

Airlines, hotels, cruise companies and car rentals post incredible deals to their Twitter followers, but you can't have your eye on the tweet feed at all times, right?

With TriptTwit, set email alerts for Twitter deals by destination. That way, you can grab 'em when they're hot.

When it comes to planning an inexpensive, convenient vacation, you can never have enough travel tools in your arsenal. Whether you’re simply in the wish-list phase or well past the hotel-booking stage, digital and online resources can help.

We’ve collected seven of our favorite travel tools that will inspire you, as well as help you organize and share your next holiday. Learn more about Thailand from user-curated sites like Wanderfly, or set up travel deal notifications on sites like TripTwit.

What tools do you find most helpful for planning vacations? Share advice for fellow travelers in the comments below.

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11 Tumblr Tips for Power Users

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Mon, 04 Jun 2012 16:38:00 +0000

1. Mass Editing

To quickly edit multiple posts at the same time, use the Mega-Editor.

The tool looks just like your archive, except you can selct or delete multiple posts, and edit and add tags.

2. Hot Keys

Certain keys help you browse through the Dashboard more quickly.

To move forward, press the "J" key. The "K" key moves you backward.

You can also like the current post by pressing the "L" key.

To reblog instantly, without leaving the dashboard or tagging, click the reblog button while pressing the "Alt" key. If you need to tag, press "Ctrl" instead.

3. Posting Without Internet

Sounds impossible, but you can do a few things on Tumblr via SMS.

Once you've grabbed the personal Tumblr email from the settings page of your blog, send a blog post with tags, a photo, quote or any other feature. Tumblr will automatically detect it and send to your blog.

Or post audio (once you've configured) by calling 1-866-584-6757.

4. Queued Posts

To rearrange queued posts, click the up and down arrows and drag to the right order.

You can also hover over the arrows and press the "Alt" key, then click. The post will automatically move to the top of your queue.

5. Original Posts

There is a small fold at the top-right corner of every post on the dasboard. It's easy to miss because it only folds when you hover the mouse over it.

Leave the mouse hovering to see what time it was published, and click to view the original post on the user's blog. This is a valuable tip for anyone who has lost something in the dashboard.

6. Quick Engagement

When you hover over a user's profile picture in the dashboard, a small "i" offers you different ways to engage.

Depending on what features the user has available, you can ask a question, send fan mail and unfollow or follow a person, without leaving the dashboard.

7. What Your Friends Like

Want to know what posts your friends like? (This trick only works for public Tumblrs.)

Minus the brackets, use the following URL: http://www.tumblr.com/liked/by/[insert username].

You can also do the same with archives by typing http://[insert
username].tumblr.com/archives.

8. Personal Stats

If you manage more than one Tumblr, you don't need to switch back and forth to view followers, drafts, messages and queues.

Press the "Alt" key and click on the tab as a shortcut.

9. Search

Not every Tumblr has the search bar available.

To get around it, type this URL: http://[insert username].tumblr.com/search/[search term].

10. Let Followers Answer

When you end any post with a question mark, a box appears to the right that allows other users to answer.

Even if you're really excited or enraged and add a "?!," the box still appears.

11. Short Codes

If you're not a fan of Bitly's new redesign, this tip might be useful.

On the edit screen, pull a short code from any published post when your Tumblr is synced to Twitter or Facebook.

Once you’ve mastered the basics of Tumblr, consider learning a few more tricks to make the blogging experience even easier.

From browsing the dashboard to editing and publishing, the tips listed above can be valuable to seasoned Tumblr users like you — especially if you juggle more than one account.

Tumblr’s minimal design may seem pretty straightforward, but the site has a few hidden tricks up its sleeve. Some may have been hiding right under your fingertips this whole time.

What hidden tricks do you find useful on Tumblr? Share your master wisdom in the comments below.

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Facebook Is Exploring Options for Kids

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Mon, 04 Jun 2012 15:58:00 +0000

Facebook may be preparing a membership option for children under 13, allowing them to access the social network under parental supervision, according to a report.

The new option will allow children under 13 to have accounts linked to those of their parents, the Wall Street Journal says. Parents will be able to control who their children add as friends and which apps they use. The new features may also allow Facebook to charge parents for games and entertainment their children access.

Facebook told Mashable it is currently exploring options for younger users, but did not confirm or deny the WSJ report.

“Many recent reports have highlighted just how difficult it is to enforce age restrictions on the Internet, especially when parents want their children to access online content and services,” the statement said. “We are in continuous dialogue with stakeholders, regulators and other policymakers about how best to help parents keep their kids safe in an evolving online environment.”

Though Facebook currently restricts users under 13, studies have shown that as much as 38% of children on Facebook are under 12. If Facebook opens its digital doors to youth, it could significantly increase its user base of 900 million.

Speaking at the All Things Digital conference last week, Federal Trade Commission chair Jon Leibowitz said the organization is looking to update the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Rule for the first time in years. The changes may include an option for parents to track their children’s online activities and requiring parental consent for geolocation services.

Acknowledging that many children under 13 create Facebook accounts, Leibowitz said parents can be the ones to ensure the social network is used safely.

“If a parent lets their child on at age 12, at least the parent is the gatekeeper,” said Leibowitz.

Given the risks presented by cyberbulling, child predators and trolling, Facebook will need to be careful as it prepares a youth option. What precautions do you think are most important for Facebook to take as it explores options for youth?

View the Original article

Who is Using Twitter?

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Mon, 04 Jun 2012 15:18:00 +0000

Twitter as the mysterious online cousin to the mobile text message has always been branded with strange names.

Twitter users have often been associated with terms such as Twits, Tweeps and Twerps and have hidden their tweeting idiosyncrasies from friends and family. Like an alcoholic hides their bottles.

The 140 character limit has been cast as not necessary in a world of “Big Data”, where saying a lot is valued more than saying less.

I have often been asked to explain what Twitter means at dinner parties and one of my favorite phrases has been

“It is like a SMS on Steroids”

Its brevity is its charm and strength.

Is the Younger Generation Using Twitter?

In 2010 I was lecturing at the International College of Management to a class of 18 to 24 year old students.

I asked who was on Twitter and only one had the courage to own up in front of their peers.

Fast forward 18 months and a different class but with the same demographics, I asked the same question, instead of one hand I saw five.

It appears that Twitter is gaining acceptance amongst the millennial generation.

Is my “very” scientific research supported?

According to the Pew Research Center’s Study it is and here are some of the facts and figures.

Is Twitter Growing?

The Pew Research Center Study revealed the following

Some 15% of online adults use Twitter as of February 2012
8% do so on a typical day.
Overall Twitter usage has nearly doubled since November 2010.
The percentage of online adults who use Twitter on a typical day has doubled since May 2011
The proportion of of adults using Twitter on a typical day has quadrupled (now 8%) since late 2010 where it stood at 2%.

The rise of smartphones might account for some of the uptick in usage because smartphone users are particularly likely to be using Twitter. This is in part because Twitter is now embedded in the Apple iOS5 mobile operating system and can be used as easily as sending a text message.

Who Uses Twitter?

Several demographic groups stand out as having high rates of Twitter usage relative to their peers.

African-American internet users continue to use Twitter at high rates. More than one quarter of online African-Americans (28%) use Twitter, with 13% doing so on a typical day (this is nearly double the overall average)
Young adults — One quarter (26%) of internet users ages 18-29 use Twitter, nearly double the rate for those ages 30-49.
City residents — Residents of urban areas are significantly more likely to use Twitter than their rural counterparts.

Among the youngest internet users (those ages 18-24), fully 31% are Twitter users. These numbers on the 18-24 demographic reveal that the heavy use of texting is also moving to Twitter which will have some implications for advertising on Twitter by marketers and brands over time.

How Old are They?

Twitter use within the overall population remained steady over the last year, and usage rates within most major demographic groups changed little over the same time period.

There are some standouts.

Twitter use among 18-24 year olds increased dramatically between May 2011 and February 2012, both overall and on a “typical day” basis.
Nearly one third of internet users in this age group now use Twitter, up from 18% in May of 2011 and 16% in late 2010

What hasn’t changed much is the Twitter use by those in their mid-20s to mid-40s which largely leveled off in the last year after roughly doubling between late 2010 and mid 2011.

What is a Typical day of Twitter Usage?

In addition to increasing on an overall basis, the proportion of young internet users who use Twitter on a typical day also doubled over the last year. Fully one in five internet users ages 18-24 (20%) now use Twitter on a typical day, up from 9% in May 2011.

Notably, “typical day” usage among slightly older adults (those ages 25-34) also doubled—from 5% of such internet users in May 2011 to 11% in February 2012—even as overall usage levels within this group remained stable over that time period.

Who Uses Twitter on Mobiles?

Twitter and the “Mobile Difference”

There is a strong relationship between youth, mobility and Twitter use when looking specifically at Twitter use on mobile phones. Twitter usage is highly correlated with the use of mobile technologies, especially smartphones.

One in five smartphone owners (20%) are Twitter users
13% using the service on a typical day

By contrast, internet users who own more basic mobile phones are

Roughly half as likely to use Twitter overall (9% do so)
Just 3% of these more basic phone owners are “typical day” users.

Indeed, this correlation between Twitter adoption and smartphone ownership may help to explain the recent growth in Twitter usage among young adults. Those ages 18-24 are not just the fastest growing group when it comes to Twitter adoption over the last year—they also experienced the largest increase in smartphone ownership of any demographic group over the same time period.

As with general Twitter usage, smartphone owners are much more likely than average to use Twitter on their phones (overall 16% of smartphone owners use Twitter on their phones, and 10% do so on a typical day).
As with our general Twitter usage findings, cell owners ages 18-24 are more likely than older cell owners to use Twitter within the context of their mobile devices—fully one in five 18-24 year old cell owners (22%) use Twitter on their phones, and 15% do so on a typical day.

African Americans and Latinos (both of whom have high rates of smartphone ownership) also stand out as heavy mobile Twitter users.

Takeaways

There are two major takeways that have implications for marketers.

The growth of smart phone adoption is highly correlated to the growth of Twitter usage.The 400% growth in Twitter usage by 18-24 year olds

These two standouts will need to be considered in marketing campaign planning and how this integrates into the use of other platforms such as Facebook and mobile apps.

How About You

Are you using Twitter more? Do you prefer to tweet from your mobile rather than your laptop or desktop.

What do you tweet about. Are you using Twitter to share your Instagram photos?

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Managing Facebook Pages Just Got a Lot Easier

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sun, 03 Jun 2012 17:10:00 +0000

Part of what I do as a social media coach is help businesses large and small manage their Facebook pages.Our social media management team is frequently asked to go to a client’s event and help live-tweet, take photos or video and post them live during the event to share with their fans. Most of us have iPhones, so we get good pictures, but we can’t upload in batches to a Facebook page from the phone.

Frankly, Facebook’s iPhone app simply sucks at photo management. We can only upload images one by one, which is seriously painful when you’ve got 20-30 images to upload. Besides, it’s just not good practice to flood your Facebook page with too many photos at once. No matter how great the event is, people just don’t want to see them all in their news feed if they’re not in them. Better to wait until you can create an album and then post.

Until now, the only option was to download images to a laptop during the event and frantically upload them to Facebook through the website so you could get back and take more. Ugh. Sometimes the photos don’t get up for days if the client doesn’t have time to deal with it after the event. Ah, but no more. Weaver Mobile has built on their first iPhone app, PhotoBox! to offer a version that allows you to create n

Manage Facebook photos from your iPhone

You can create new albums on Facebook from your iPhone and upload the whole batch at once to Facebook. With PhotoBox! Pro, you can upload to your profile or any page you manage. You can also batch download entire albums and archive them on the spot, edit and re-upload too.

Did I mention editing?

Both versions of the PhotoBox! app offer a nice set of filters you can apply to your Facebook photos including cropping rotation and annotation. The filters are intuitive to use and save you from having to edit them later.

Browse liked pages

The “My Likes” tab now allows you to view all of the photos the pages you’ve liked have uploaded. View them on your iPhone and download the ones you want to save to a folder on your phone, your iPhone album, or a private album on Facebook with a collection of all the photos you’ve liked through PhotoBox!. Download is super-fast and you can view several thousand images, pick the ones you like and download with a click.

Recent Feed

Another feature I like is the ability to view all the images posted recently in my news feed. I have quite a few friends and things fly by in the news feed. Being a visual kind of girl it’s fun to scan the recent uploads from my friends, and then I can save them to a private “liked photos” album on Facebook to view them later, or download them.

Un tagging

With all the uproar in the last few weeks about employers viewing Facebook pages and demanding passwords, it’s good to be able to view all the photos you are tagged in and un tag them easily. Both PhotoBox! apps allow you to easily scan them all on one tab and un-tag with a click.

Weaver Mobile has two great apps here, and I’m not saying that just because they’re a client. I’m thrilled they are listening to what us page admins really want to see in a Facebook photo management app. This is an app built for people who use Facebook a lot, take lots of photos on their iPhones, and want to work efficiently in the field.

Download the apps and give them a spin. PhotoBox! and PhotoBox! Pro are both available in the iTunes store (sorry, no Android yet, but soon!) Then come back and let me know what you thought!

View the Original article

Pinterest Rolls Out Curated Newsletter for Users

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sun, 03 Jun 2012 16:30:00 +0000

Users on Pinterest usually have to seek interesting content for themselves, but a new feature quietly rolled out Saturday drives them to even more personalized content.

Pinterest has become a hot social pinboard that drives more traffic than most major social networks — meaning there is more content on the site than ever. That’s why many users are sure to appreciate Pinterest’s new weekly email newsletter, making it easier to find even more great pins and helping them keep tabs on how their own pins are doing.

Mimicking the website’s pinboard style, each pin or board in the email is linked to the website, but users are unable to re-pin or like a post directly from the newsletter. The newsletter lists a few popular boards, pins from friends that might be of interest and a useful feature for brands especially: your most popular pins of the week.

Pinterest also includes its own favorite post in the newsletter, which this week was a lip-dub marriage proposal that went viral on YouTube.

Though Pinterest is stepping up its curation game, startups are seizing the opportunity to make Pinterest a more enjoyable experience for users. Earlier this month, a site launched that notifies users via email when their pinned items go on sale. The recent startup Pinerly offers basic analytics about pin performance and scheduling pins.

There’s also WP Pinner, which is a plug-in that lets WordPress users share, track and schedule material on Pinterest.

Share your thoughts in the comments.

View the Original article

10 Funniest Tweets of the Week

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sun, 03 Jun 2012 15:50:00 +0000

1. @JDShapiro

2. @mollylambert

3. @ConorTripler

4. @GotDeportedYolo

5. @NotYourName

6. @NickSchug

7. @jeffreymax

8. @TheRealEdHansen

9. @saralizzzz

10. @thepatrickwalsh

Molly McAleer, writer for 2 Broke Girls and HelloGiggles co-founder, curates this week’s Twitter comedy, and she’s taking a less-traditional approach.

Do they sell Spanx that cover your entire life?
— Molly McAleer (@molls) April 21, 2012

“My favorite Tweets this week are — for the most part — nontraditional,” says McAleer. “You’d never hear them in a stand-up act or see them printed on a bumper sticker, but they’re hilarious to me just the same.”

McAleer is a Twitter veteran, having joined the site in 2006. Back then, she says, it was a small community of her “favorite Internet-types, uber dorks and a bunch of random folks from Godknowswhere.” Before hashtags, retweeting and “@” replies, it was a random directory of users you stumbled upon without interaction.

“People would quite literally answer Twitter’s prompt question of ‘What’s going on?’ with things like, ‘Driving home from work and passing a candy factory. The highway smells like Butterfingers,’” says McAleer. “I found that to be very charming.”

But Twitter has evolved into something else completely now. Social media has altered traditional journalism. One of the most profound examples of the shift within news organizations on Twitter came after the Iran election, and since then, Twitter’s become the primary source for breaking news and celebrity deaths.

It’s also a great source of entertainment, especially for comedians.

“Over the last couple of years, Twitter (or at least my feed) has become a place to read and share jokes and quips,” says McAleer. “While I enjoy humor as much as the next person, this has been my least favorite era of Twitter. I find it to be the least interesting.”

What McAleer does like about Twitter, and the Internet altogether, is that she has control over what she wants to see and can ignore the rest. Her favorite people on Twitter are the ones who make her laugh without trying.

“I mean, save trying for your paycheck or your family or something legitimate, right? Let’s maybe just bask in the ordinary, the silly, the unique ways that people naturally share their voice,” says McAleer. “Do I sound like a hater? I don’t mean to be a hater.”

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How to Raise Startup Capital Without a Pitch Deck

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sun, 03 Jun 2012 15:10:00 +0000

Shafqat Islam is the co-founder and CEO of NewsCred, a platform that connects publishers and brands with the world’s best journalism. Follow him @shafqatislam.

My company has gone through three rounds of financing, with our latest Series A closing in the fall of 2011. We did the Series A fundraising without a pitch deck, also known as your sales pitch.

It’s true that the deck is often considered the main piece of fundraising collateral. But I would argue that the main marketing collateral while fundraising is you: the founder. Below are the lessons we learned from raising a series A round without a pitch deck.

1. Date Before You Marry

Finding a great investor is like finding a great spouse. You would never decide on your life partner after a week of frantic courting. Why do that when finding an investor? Remember, you can’t divorce your investor. So select investors that you think will make great long-term partners.

My number one criteria: only date people you really like spending time with. In our case, we “dated” our lead investor for more than a year. During that period, I kept in touch, had occasional coffees, sent interesting links, engaged him on Twitter, and kept him up to date on the company. As a result, our story had a nice, positive arc and our investor had a lot of context. As Mark Suster says, VCs invest in lines, not dots.

2. Don’t Ever “Start Fundraising”

The added benefit of the “date before you marry” approach is that you never have to go into “fundraising mode.” There is no flipping the switch one day. When you think funding is on the horizon, you can increase the frequency of your meetings and start sending stronger signals — more numbers, charts showing growth, news of key hires.

In our case, the occasional meetings slowly turned more serious, and when it was time to start thinking about fundraising, the transition was natural and the investor already knew that things were going well for the company. Instead of pitching him on a general offer, we were in a position to share the product road maps, pipeline, and financials.

3. Create Urgency

Once you have the interest of investors and it’s clear that you are raising a round, the most important thing is to create some sense of urgency. Deals don’t close by themselves. Salespeople close deals, and in this case, you are the salesperson. If you don’t know about sales, this is probably a good time to pick up a good sales book or find a sales mentor.

Also, don’t forget that VC’s have little incentive to say “no” right away (although the best VC’s give quick responses), because it’s usually in their interest to drag on the process to collect more information and know the investment has little risk. You should try and create some sort of forcing function, whether it’s based on time, an important hire, a deal closing, or product milestones.

4. If You Create a Proposal, Don’t Send It Early

Think of your pitch deck as your sales proposal (or wedding proposal!). In a normal sale, you would never send a proposal to a prospect before you’ve spent enough time getting to know them, understanding what they are looking for, and finding out if your solution is a good fit. So why do it differently here?

Keep the deck to yourself, and customize and send it when both sides are comfortable that there is a deal there. In our case, the only time we actually used any slide was on the day before we got the term sheet, just so our investor had something to show his partners during the Monday morning partners meeting.

5. Ask for Help

My entire fundraising approach is predicated on the fact that you have to build relationships with investors first. That said, we initially built our company in Switzerland, and I did not know a single investor. As such, not knowing investors is not a valid excuse. Hustle and figure out a way to build those connections. Cold email people, go to events, comment on VCs’ blog posts, ping them on Twitter, set up your AngelList profile, do whatever it takes. Once you build some initial relationships, even if they are informal, nurture the hell out of them.

If there is one takeaway, it’s that fundraising is not a one-time thing. It’s an ongoing process, and the most important part of VC fundraising happens when you aren’t actually raising money. VC’s invest in you, so return the favor and invest in your relationships with them. Ultimately the relationships will matter more than an amazing pitch deck.

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Pinterest for Business?

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Fri, 01 Jun 2012 13:59:00 +0000

I admit I’m a little behind with this post. Everybody and their cousin Sally has already written a post on Pinterest by now. Its’s the media darling of the day. Or at least it was. Then we actually read the terms of use and some people are already deleting their accounts in protest. See, it turns out that not only does the TOU state “Cold Brew Labs and its licensors exclusively own all right, title and interest in and to the Site, Application, Services and Site Content, including all associated intellectual property rights”, (that means the pins you post too!) but Pinterest is apparently adding affiliate links to some of the posts to earn money when you click on the links. On top of that their sign-up process is really designed to “automatically” build your following by notifying your entire list of connections that you’ve joined and suggesting they follow you. Smart eh? That’s why you are suddenly getting tons of emails from Pinterest.

Hmm. In this day and age, transparency is hugely important and this wasn’t cool. The digerati who are up in arms about the TOS. But when all is said and done though, does the user base care? The market is collectors and mostly women, who like to curate collections of images around things they like. I’m willing to be they could care less if Pinterest makes money from affiliate links on their collections as long as they are free to curate more. As for the emails, either filter them into a mailbox or change your email settings on Pinterest.

How is business using Pinterest?

Now see, that’s the interesting thing. Because it’s all the rage businesses rushed to figure out how to leverage Pinterest’s incredible popularity to get people talking about their business and there are some very creative uses by brands large and small alike, as well as nonprofits.

Which businesses do well on Pinterest?

Clearly interior design, food and infographics are doing really well here, but it’s really all over the map. Here’s a board of Fashion Brands on Pinterest and another for the America Heart Association. Here’s one just for the boys, er, men, called Board of Man. Even the National Guard has gotten into the act. Just do a search for what you do and you’re likely to find some boards built around it.

Start with a core group of pins and then drip them in over time

Remember that as more users follow your boards you have an opportunity to remind them of your existence every time you post a new pin. If you post a dozen pins at once they get a dozen emails at once. Once a day is probably a more tolerable noise level for most. Just like with Twitter it’s better to spread out your shares rather than inundating us with them all at once.

Create boards that are different

We do not need another board all about cupcakes. We don’t really. Do something to make your board stand out from the crowd. Here’s a fun way to do it by slicing up images for a single board, similar to what people have done with Google+ photos.Post items that are shareable. (DUH)

Think of ways to pin on a schedule

It trains your users to expect a great pin from you every day and they begin to look forward to it. Can you have a theme for every day of the week, or even weekly that keeps people interested?

Name your boards with SEO in mind

While we have very little demographic data about our boards it’s clearly showing up in search engines too. Create your board title with SEO in mind. “My board” doesn’t mean a thing. “Hot Cars” is clear and much more likely to both gain interest from users and seo form the search engines. What will people search for to find you? Select a category for your board that is appropriate to your purpose in pinning. Fill out the description with keywords in a complete sentence.

Follow other pinners

Follow the people who are most popular in your areas of interest. Most likely they’ll follow you back. It’s super easy for people to click that “follow JFouts’s back” and they are following all of your boards. This is important. Let’s say you are in the wine industry and you’ve created boards for sustainable wine making, your wines, Sonoma valley travel and wine accessories. When someone follows all your boards they get a bigger picture of who you are and when you post your new labels or the latest vintage, they see that too.

Collaborate

When you find an influencer you are impressed with invite them to collaborate on a board. To do that you just create a board, then go to edit and choose “Me + Contributors” under who can pin. This will allow you to invite influencers in your area of interest, people who have a complementary viewpoint, etc.

Be social

Pinboard is boring if nobody comes to your party. Re-pin great finds from other boards. It’s good for them and it’s good for you. It’s likely they will reciprocate and may even invite you to collaborate. Go see who the people are who like or re-pin your posts. Follow them, re-pin something of theirs. Reciprocation is the core of social interaction. Ph, and of course don’t forget to share your pins on social networks, add the Pinit button to your blog and maybe even add a widget with your recent pins to let people see what is important to you.

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Getting real engagement on your Facebook page

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Fri, 01 Jun 2012 13:19:00 +0000

Many Facebook page owners are disappointed with the results they are getting from their Facebook pages. Why? Sometimes because they think they’ll put up a page and their fan base will flock to the site, dynamically post content on their own and discuss it with their peers, all without much effort from the community manager (if there is one).

Hooey. This just doesn’t happen unless you’ve got a vibrant community and are expanding it to Facebook.

So what do you do?

Quit broadcasting

If you tell me everything I need to know through your Facebook page, and it reads like your email newsletter, then that’s all I’m going to do. Scan it, extract information and move on.

2. Quit marketing

If I feel like you’re streaming ads to me and calling it interaction I’m going to tune you out. I may scan the headline in my newsfeed, but unless there’s a hook to something for me, I’m not going to read further. I want to be talked TO not AT.

3. Find out who I am

Did you ever go look to see who someone was after they fanned your Facebook page? I’m guessing that less than 5% of page owners, and maybe 50% of community managers would answer yes. What a missed opportunity to learn more about your market, what they like, and what value they might be able to add to your Facebook community!

4. Like me back

Let’s say you sell photography equipment. Wouldn’t it be useful to you to know if your fans are photographers? What if you not only liked my Facebook page but shared my work on your page? What if you made a comment on my photo about how beautiful it was? I’d be grateful. I’d tell my friends. I might even buy something.

5. Give me something to do

Photos and videos make us think, or laugh, encourage us to add a comment and share with our friends. Give me a poll (that isn’t a focus group question and I’ll give you my opinion.

6. Gimme respect

Show enough respect to your fans to say please and thank you. To ask opinions and respect the answers. To feature case studies or examples of real people who have impacted you, your product or the world.

7. Rinse, repeat

Doing all of the above once is not enough. You’ve got to do it over and over until it’s a part of your natural work-flow. The miracle happens when it’s no longer “work” but fun!

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5 Top Social Media Professionals on Google+

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Fri, 01 Jun 2012 12:39:00 +0000

There’s been a lot of noise about Google+. First it was the meteoric rise of the new platform and social media types rushed to learn it and get those tips and tricks posts out. Personally I’ve got a love/hate relationship with Google+. On the one hand it’s got the best features of Twitter like immediacy and fast moving conversations with the added plus of being able to direct conversations to channels (Circles) of people who are actually interested in that topic and exclude the ones who could care less. It’s Twitter on steroids. They are also doing an amazing job of listening to what the network wants and adding new features to suit.

How cool is that?

Unfortunately the platform has quite a lot of downside too. I’ve noted before that the Google+ Business pages may not be for all brands, some have built their Google+ pages and done quite well, but maybe not well enough to ax that Facebook page just yet. The user interface is getting better but it’s still painful to get in and out unlike sites like Twitter and Facebook which are very manageable through 3rd party apps. Heck, even for this article many of us are confused about the name itself, is it G+, Google Plus, Google + or Google+??? The very fact that the + sign causes SEO problems speaks volumes about Google’s planning on this thing. Oh, and don’t even get me started on the fact that their own browser, Chrome, crashes Google+ regularly unless you disable their implementation of Flash. And STILL, I love it. I don’t use it as much as I’d like to, but every time I do I wish it was easier to use so I would use it more.

With the recent hoo-ha about brands abandoning Google + pages for Pinterest, I reached out to my network to ask some top social media practitioners what they thought. Here’s what they said:

Lee Odden

Google+ is full of twists and turns when it comes to evaluating its usefulness. I’m sure many in the search marketing world will echo the sentiment that Google+ participation has initially felt like an obligation because of the potential impact on search visibility.

Search Marketers must know the details to properly advise clients.

Some companies are using Google+ for that reason and others understand that Google+ users do indeed represent their target market and those who influence the target market.

Personally, I find Google+ useful for surfacing content that I don’t find on Twitter or Facebook. The traffic we get from Google+ also sticks longer than other social media referrals.

For brands and marketers deciding on Google+ or any other social site, I think you need to actually research, plan, use and measure in a meaningful way to determine the impact. Awareness, extended reach and building connections with niche influencers as well as longer term indirect impact such as an increase in search visibility are all valuable outcomes from Google+ participation. To me, services like Google+ are tools and tools are only as effective as the skills of the people using them.

Beth Kanter

Does Google+ have the potential to be a valuable platform for nonprofits or is it just another shiny object to distract nonprofits?

Should your nonprofit do more than simply set up a presence on Google+ and not invest any more time?

What is a productive way to experiment and learn to the answers to these questions without wasting time?

These were the questions that were going through my mind as I listened to a presentation on Google+.

Steve Farnsworth

So, should business be on Google+ now? Absolutely, but your customers may not be there yet. I tell clients to only build and support social platforms where they find their customers and prospects currently. However, Google+ is a beast of a different color that will have a deep impact on how your business gets found on the world’s biggest search engine for the foreseeable future. Brands need to hedge their bets. You need to be watching and developing your Google+ presence or risk getting lost as the next generation of search passes you by.

Google has already made several announcements signaling their clear intention to integrate Plus content and comments in results. Unlike Facebook or Twitter, Plus is owned by Google. They will use Google+ content and serve it up in search results, and give it preferential ranking like they do now with YouTube results. It is probable-unless the courts are successful making an anti-trust action stick-that Google will exclude Facebook and Twitter results in favor of their platform.

Irene Koehler

While there is much focus on which social networking site will ultimately reign supreme, it is, to a large extent, a pointless conversation. There are unique strengths and opportunities to each. A critical part of any successful social strategy is an understanding of these unique elements, and tailoring content and engagement with them in mind.For me and millions of others, Google+ has proven to be an incredibly powerful platform for discovery of new and relevant people and brands.

Is it easy to accomplish this? Definitely not, it takes a great deal of planning and hard work – just as it does anywhere online. I hear almost as many people dismissing the possibilities of success on Twitter or Facebook as I do Google+. It’s too early to discount any of them as the social landscape is changing rapidly.

Debra Askanase

I love the interface and interactivity that Google+ offers. The platform enable threaded, in-depth conversations that other platforms (including Facebook Pages) lack. The conversations on Google+ are more interactive than any I’ve encountered on a Facebook Page or on Twitter.

Google+ is also set up to easily explore and find others for conversation and connection. Google+ has become one of my favorite social media channels for in-depth topical conversation and exploration of ideas and new contacts.

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Social Media Day Is June 30. How Will You Celebrate?

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Thu, 31 May 2012 13:07:00 +0000

Social Media Day is exactly one month away! On Saturday, June 30, digital enthusiasts will hold meetups across the globe to celebrate the one thing that unites us and keeps us in constant contact: social media.

Whether you’re an obsessed Instagram photographer, an endless Pinterest pinner or a ten-times-an-hour tweeter, Social Media Day is a time to recognize the digital revolution that has changed how we live.

How Will You Celebrate?

Social Media Day will be a truly international event. Mashable community organizers are already hard at work planning events in hundreds of cities worldwide.

The meetup in Swindon, U.K. will feature presentations about social media strategy as well as a speed networking session. Thousands of miles away in the United States, a celebration dedicated to startups will be held in Detroit.

We want to know: How are you celebrating Social Media Day? Will you organize a Foursquare scavenger hunt? Attend a fast-paced panel discussion about social media branding? Play Pinterest-inspired hopscotch? The possibilites are endless, and we want you to get creative!

Tell us what you’ve got planned for Social Media Day in the comments below. We look forward to hearing what you have in store!

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Google: Knowledge Graph is Making You Search More

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Thu, 31 May 2012 12:27:00 +0000

Google revamped its core product — search — in a major way a couple of weeks ago. Now it looks like the change is paying off.

Since the introduction of its Knowledge Graph on May 16, overall search activity has increased, Google representatives told The Wall Street Journal.

The company didn’t offer any numbers, but did say people are interacting more with their search results, and performing more searches.

One Google executive, Amit Singhal, said people were doing more with search partly because the new features were “stoking people’s curiosity.”

The Knowledge Graph (more generally known as “semantic search”) goes beyond matching search terms to pages. In short, it tries to discern the meaning of the phrase a person types in.

For example, if I’m searching for “Facebook movie,” Google infers I’m probably looking for information about The Social Network. It pulls data from open databases such as Freebase and Wikipedia to create a visual block of results to the right of my search results. Thumbnail images of the cast, and the movie poster, are shown alongside basic info about the movie.

Singhal said the increase in use of its product has benefits for others sites as well — if people are performing more searches, they’re visiting more non-Google sites via those links.

Google’s Knowledge Graph is only available for U.S.-based searches right now. Since the feature appears to be popular, however, it’ll likely spread to other English-language countries soon.

The Knowledge Graph and semantic search are tools within the larger trend of evolving search results. Services such as the Wolfram Alpha search engine, interfaces like Apple’s Siri and projects like IBM’s Watson are all designed to steer people to a small — or singular — number of useful results, as opposed to a grab bag of links that may or may not be what you’re actually looking for.

Have you been seeing Google’s Knowledge Graph in your search results? Do you think it’s affected how often you search? Share your experiences in the comments.

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Can Your Mobile Apps Be Trusted? [INFOGRAPHIC]

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Thu, 31 May 2012 11:47:00 +0000

Mobile apps sure are handy little doodads, telling you what’s going on, where to go and who’s nearby. But can they be trusted with your privacy?

Facebook and Google aren’t the only connected services that should have your privacy antennae up. The mobile devices that travel with you nearly everywhere also gather plenty of dirt — and you might be surprised who else has access to that dirt.

What do you need to be aware of? According to the application security firm Veracode, there are four levels of risk to watch out for. Some apps with malicious code can access your data and device sensors. Other times, your information can be intercepted if you use mobile Wi-Fi. Jailbroken iPhone and Android apps can penetrate your operating system. And bad guys can use faulty firmware to gain administrative access to your device itself.

But people are beginning to become more aware of how and why to protect their privacy when it comes to mobile apps. In March, a class action lawsuit was filed against 18 companies including Facebook, Apple and Twitter for privacy negligence.

Why is mobile app privacy more important than ever? Simply put, apps are everywhere. In 2011, approximately 25 billion Android and iOS apps were downloaded and the mobile app market saw its millionth entry.

Veracode put together the infographic below to give a comprehensive rundown on mobile app security. Check it out, then share with us in the comments — How much attention do you give your mobile apps’ privacy settings?

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