the Social Arrow

Social Marketing? Is It About You?

SocialMind — Fri, 13 Mar 2009 06:28:02 +0000

Many people get the wrong impression when starting out on their trek into social media. Make friends, chit chat, talk about your stuff, what you like, what you want, what you need, and ..

True, to all the above really. But then not so much.

I’ve many reasons for the previous post, chief among which is to allow you to be able to trust me. If your going to interact with me, I must at least give you the due credit of letting you know who I am, what my background is and where my thoughts are focused. By being transparent in this way I really hope to make sure you have the ability to be open with me in return - no hidden agendas here.

But, to balance that post out in your mind, consider however, how it may be completely inappropriate if done in the wrong fashion, in fact, some may mistake your ideals as something else completely(naw.. not possible, is it?). You need to concentrate on what is going to appeal to your audience, you need to listen to what they are telling you and react in an appropriate manner, filling the void of their needs with a wealth of good knowledge. As long as they can feel some sort of trust level that allows association with your content, your going to make subscribers, comments and eventually buyers. (remember it can take a few goes round to gather the kind of trust that brings a sale)

Determining what the voice of your audience is demanding IS alot easier than some suspect.

Read your comments, respond to them, read your emails, read your twitters. Think about what each personality that is responding to your commentary, blog posts and other places of interaction is truly saying . If you’re not checking OFF your blog more than ON it, well perhaps you should start doing that - the source of inspiration may come from many places, and sometimes you need to just go to that conversation, wherever it is. Remember, responsible and resourceful content written by you no matter where it maybe.

By better analyzing your blog/communities needs and looking at their own blogs, websites, forum posts, twitters, etc etc, your going to start to generate a view of what they are thinking and trying to actually personally achieve in life. This will give you the ability to write posts on topics that “hit it home”. (Make the front page of digg, get you to the inside of glam, make you popular over at the lizard-lover forums.. etc.)

It’s not about me here at all in fact - I just happen to do the posting. I’d love to have you interact more with me and become a regular reader and perhaps we will have a common goal to achieve some good in this world.

It’s not about me, and it’s not really about you either. Listen and consider carefully(perhaps ask for guidance?), you’ll know what feels right.

Let’s try something good this time round shall we?Similar Posts:

The future of.. “Me”

SocialMind — Mon, 09 Mar 2009 07:27:52 +0000

What started out as a stream of concious update on Social Actions, Google Friend Connect, and the future of the Social Arrow ended up being something much more personal.. can you relate?

Over the past few weeks, I’ve been focusing my efforts more and more towards a concrete attainable goal and less towards a more existentially “seek and categorize” viewpoint.

Obviously Google Friend Connect has been a focal point of this blog for awhile now, and I am working on expanding the Google Friend Connect plugin for WordPress using the help that representatives from Google have contacted me with. I have only recently taken the time to read more into Social Actions premise, the personalities involved with it and the road it is making an attempt to take.

Quite eerily(to me at least) I had some very similar thoughts and ideas, which I had started acting upon awhile ago (I had even started the “Social-Action” ning group for a few days while I was sifting through ideas, completely unknowing of their projects, honestly!)

After much thought and deliberation, resulting from numerous sources of inspiration and new connection, I’ve come to a set plan of action.

I need to tidy things up immensely in my life - (both online and offline)

I’ve been sorting through countless pieces of information. Engaging in various testing methods and analytical thought experiments to bring light to important “truths” here on the Social Arrow.

I’m writing up a piece named: ”Through the Web 3.0 Looking Glass (And What Alice Found There)” - The premise of course aligns with the premise of Lewis Carrolls “nonsensical” brilliance, paradoxically adding another dimension to a yet overly beaten goat.

I still find myself saying - So what?

That’s where combining all my skills into something that I can actually get behind comes in.

Considering the drive of my life over the past 6-8 months, I’ve been seriously considering various non-profit organizational positions. It’s now came to a head (if only in MY mind) and I must act upon what I know and see.

I’m leaving myself very open for reanalysis and focus - I do have the ability to snap it on a dime, simply because I do.

As well as leaving myself open, I’m also focusing the direction. Too much searching, too much finding, too much of too much.

Finally a purpose is becoming more clearly defined for the Social Arrow and my directions as curator.

Learning to think .. what a novel idea.

I’ve found various subject matter extremely interesting and important in my studies of social media, social networking, social bookmarking, social interaction, social applications and the infrastructures we build them on.

I’ve also found it doesnt matter how much you build on, the interactional value is humanity itself. Everything we participate with, in and on is a tool to further our existence in some way.

Learning to deal with the tools of a new age has problems. Chaos, confusion, bitterness, anger, resentment, rage, depression, loneliness, self-deprecation - can all be results of a misplaced loyalty to “What is going to get it done for me?”

It’s time to stop asking what’s going to get it done. It’s time to start showing how you know to get it done.

Tools are just that, tools. Regardless of those tools (i.e. Twitter, Your Computer, Your Car, Your Cell, etc..)

Right now, you are working on something that concerns you. Oh you think your just reading my poorly written bull right(see, I can do self-deprecation real well.)? But in the background, what are you doing? What did you have in mind when you got to this article? What did you have in mind before you sat down at the computer? What did you have in mind before you started blogging??

The fact is, right now, the borders are being torn down.

In all facets of our life.

Technology, marketing, personal relationships, business, ideals, religion, politics - ALL combined together.

Not just combined, WOVEN. Woven in ways only we as humans can do. We created the subject matter, now let us mash it all together and see how many more “truths” we can find.

I said I had more of a focus. I do. For me, for now, for this moment. It doesn’t affect you - but it does.

I’ve drafted up an initial document that will be submitted to the Social Actions “Change the Web Challenge” regarding the creation of a Social Action Gadget for Google Friend Connect. Basically it’s a stepping stone in many events that I’m seeing unfold in my life. If the idea excites you, we should talk.

You can read more about that when it’s officially submitted.

It’s really not about the tools and projects.

This is about a turning point.

I have ran many a website/blog over the years and experimented with every piece of software and hardware I could get my hands on - I’ve a TON of experience with computers and technology that stems from a childhood obsession that never really went away.

The differences for me with the Social Arrow and past experiences parallel the differences everyone is starting to realize. I’ve built this blog from the ground up in literally a few months, gaining the attention and interaction of some very interesting and well respected names. Just check the members section of Google Friend Connect on this site to back that statement up, I’m not gonna point fingers here. If I wanted to make a connection it was made(and still being made.. )

There’s an important truth in the analysis of the Social Arrow’s existence and ability to have sway at all in this world.

Let me preface this statement with a one line link-off introduction to the majority of what my traditional work image would box me into - try not to be too shocked if you’ve been an avid reader, it’s not like I killed someone: “I’m a farrier. I shoe horses for a living.”

Josh Emsley Starting Blacksmithing Young

The “I do this for a living” .. statement has so many connotations of traditional impression that it’s hard to pin down the actual response an individual will have to your said profession. I also raise english bulldogs and miniature dachshunds with my wife(we literally do NOT have enough dogs to sell simply from online sales.. and we won’t ship!).

Stereotypical “jobism” does indeed exist. - Lawyers are evil, Politicians are liars, Computer Programmers are geeks, Teachers are too critical, and Farriers? well we’re definitely not involved with computers, we just “shoe the horse”. (Equine Podiatry is a very indepth field of knowledge that people have and continue to dedicate their lives to advancing.)

Rather than pigeonhole myself into that traditional view by exposing this on the Social Arrow up until now, I simply created a persona that would be able to associate directly with the issues and personalities of the Social Arrow itself.

“Created a persona? You deceived me?” Some are thinking. Well no, that’s not it. I’ve been completely truthful to you in every instance of my interest and inspiration on this blog. I’ve left out an enormous part of my personal and mental being by remaining anonymous on here, but at the same time I left a door open for speculation and engagement from my audience that may have not presented itself otherwise.

All that was of a concern.. before I realized how the peices are fitting together, being fitted together, how I can be a part of it and what concerns to address first for me. While my anonymity may have progressed the initial introduction between connections(debatable) during the expansion of the Social Arrow, the restriction is showing itself to be a hinderance in several different ways now.

Many people are going through this very same transition.. not just many.. everyone. In some form or another. This kind of change doesn’t just affect a locale, it affects the global community. It also starts to bind together events that seemed so unrelated at one time in ways that many are afraid to see.

I’ve resolved to move my existence onwards into the digital age in all manners available to me. If I’m to use the tools I’ve been given the ability to see, construct and manipulate further I need to start “forging” ahead.Similar Posts:

QR Codes In The US? But Why Bother?

SocialMind — Tue, 03 Mar 2009 02:25:17 +0000

QR Codes (QR = “Quick Response”) are nothing new. They’ve been around for a few years now in fact. Some countries have found them to be an effective way to combine online content with offline presence. I wrote up some history on QR Code Marketing in a previous post.

With the current rate of technological advances, there’s never been a more relevant time for QR Codes to be actually used by the population.

If you think about it, the scene has now been set in North America to follow what Japan and others have found a very successful marketing adventure. Not until recently did we have the exposure to cell and internet technology that has been seen in certain places. I remember back 15-20 years ago hearing about how all the kids in Japan were getting cell phones.. how “crazy” that sounded back then. Hah, look at us now.

There’s many valid reasons and uses for cell technology, we just needed that explained to us, again, and again…

Well, it’s been explained, and been explained well.

Now, a Japanese founded company named Ricoh is trying to carry over their success with QR Code marketing in the clearly ready and booming technological hot-spots of North America.

I was recently contacted by Matthew Stewart of Ricoh with some information regarding their new beta app iCandy. They have a promotion running in which you can get $10 free iTunes for signing up and filling out the feedback form. This is meant to get people more interested in the new technology and how they can use it, as well as provide some needed feedback for improving their service.

As this is something I’ve been watching for a little while now, I was definitely interested to check it out. I signed up at iCandy and downloaded the beta version of their little software package. It’s a very smart and unobtrusive application(beta versions available for Windows and Mac user) that attempts to make creating and printing music and video themed QR Codes in conjunction with iTunes a snap. I had a working example in a matter of minutes. I did have some trouble adding content outside of iTunes itself, but I suspect the kinks will be worked out very quickly and perhaps this isn’t such an issue when they seem to be focusing on the music and video side of things with the iCandy application.

I asked Matt to write me up some of the important points to make about iCandy, Ricoh and the actual QR Code Technology.

First of all, it’s important to actually give the user a reason to even bother with QR Codes right? Well here’s some ideas that Matt and Ricoh have already seen successfully implemented.

Matthew Stewart’s QR Code Implementation Examples:

“Sharing online music/movies/media in person. For example, Starbucks offers a free song of the week – but to get the song, the user has to visit iTunes, find the song, and type in a lengthy code. iCandy takes the pain away – just swipe the QR code and you’re there. This is a great way for bands to promote themselves via t-shirts, stickers, etc. And it’s also a great way to share music/media with friends in person.”
“Affiliate marketing—more easily connect users from offline contact to online information. Great for sharing press kits and sales kits at trade shows.”
“Contacts/business cards. Rather than manually input somebody’s contact information, just swipe the QR code. (This is popular in Asia already)”
“Books/printed text. Imagine scanning a QR code along a book passage and watching a relevant video from the author or listening to a mood-setting song or reading a relevant website. QR codes could give books and other printed text DVD-like enhanced features—inexpensively.”

Depending on who you are and what you know, this information is far too important not to at least take a mental note of.

As for the actual iCandy take on things, this is what Matt had to say about why you should consider teaming up with them when thinking about expanding your marketing into this new avenue:

“iCandy is primarily focused on music/media – it integrates well with iTunes to load music fast and also prints out album artwork along with the QR codes. That makes it ideal for a virtual jukebox for parties or as a way for kids or older folks to access music without navigating computer menus. Our aim is to get more people excited about using iCandy for something fun like sharing music, and then expand to marketing/promotions. Many QR code companies claim that QR code apps are best used for marketing—and while we don’t necessarily disagree, who’s going to download and install an app just to be better marketed to?”
“iCandy recognizes QR codes through desktop video capture (webcam) AND photo capture (via third-party readers on iPhone, though an iCandy app is in the works), giving more options to users (always better).”
“iCandy aims to make it easy for regular users to put QR codes on anything (scarves, undergarments, coffee cups, whatever).”
“iCandy offers free robust analytics, meaning users can track the scans connected to certain QR codes (how many times scanned, where scanned, etc) and recalibrate their campaigns as needed.”
“iCandy connects with Twitter so you can let your friends know what you’re up to automatically.”
“iCandy has the muscle of Ricoh, Inc behind it.”
“We really want user feedback to make iCandy as good as it can be – we’re even offering $10 iTunes gift certificates to everyone who tries iCandy and completely fills out our feedback form. We’re committed to getting this right. There are a lot of QR code apps out there, and offering the best functionality/user experience will be the key to coming out ahead.”

Some impressive and completely necessary points made. I was particularly intrigued with the analytics and it was one of the first things I noticed after signing up. I never even thought about how easy it would be to find out usage statistics on who is scanning your codes and where they’re located. It’s right there on the dashboard first thing. That really added to my interest considering my obsession with analytics packages.

Keep in mind there are many different applications of QR Codes and also many different companies involved. I pointed out Scoutles use of QR Codes and how the creator has a website named Qurify to encode text. I have no attachment myself to any corporation at present time, therefore I really have no ulterior motives when posting on something like this. I simply think this is something important that you my fellow socially interested compadres may benefit from hearing about. This is definitely going to naturally evolve into our lifestyles.

One of the more interesting comments on the last post I made on this technology was from a fellow named John who is creating a local news community using traditional print, online technology and QR Codes. Check out more info about that over at Spektacle Heights. It’s really quite intriguing.

(Completely Unrelated Rant(or is it?)): Work for a newspaper company? Going out of business? Maybe it’s time that your company started thinking about combining all the tools available to you and stop trying to “fight change”. It never was about your companies rules, it just happened to be very convenient and the only option. Something better came along, and now you can’t compete in the way you used to. Don’t try and say it didn’t, just use it like the rest of us. You had the advantages, but they’re not advantages if you can’t find a way to weave current technology into the equation. I’m not saying QR Codes are your solution, I’m saying it “all” is. Maybe you need someone to help point you towards what “all” means for your company in this new era. (End-Rant)

I’ll be curious to see how things develop this year for QR Codes in the US. I have a feeling we’re just seeing the tip of the iceberg. Matt offered to setup a Q&A session with some of the guys at iCandy for me and I thought it might be a good idea to record some of that and post it up here in a follow-up. If you’d like me to ask a question for you, please feel free to leave it in the comments and I’ll add it to my own.Similar Posts:

Thesis WordPress Theme Winner!

SocialMind — Sun, 01 Mar 2009 05:59:32 +0000

The names have been drawn in the Social Arrow’s Twitter contest in which the developer version of Thesis WordPress theme was being given away. In total we had 42 entrants. Congratulations to @danhhoang for winning the contest!

As well as the theme, we were also giving away 10,000 entrecard credits. When checking Dan’s blog at the time of winning, I didn’t find an Entrecard widget so I’ve decided to give the credits to the runner up.. @wwstewart over at the SugarBuzz Project

Here’s the screenshot from random dot org:

Thanks for entering!

And here’s a link to all of you in order of entry, thanks for taking the time.

Similar Posts:

Google Friend Connect TinyMCE Plugin Announcment and Adding Google Friend Connect Through the WordPress Editor

SocialMind — Wed, 25 Feb 2009 18:31:49 +0000

***UPDATED UPDATE*** March 3rd, 2009: Checking a few things I’ve added the custom gadget as well to the shortcode. The playlist gadget from iLike comes up by default when typing [ gfc gadget="custom"]. I also cleaned up the GFC custom widget to include only the relevant options and added the ability to run custom widgets in “canvas” mode. I’ll get this out through the WordPress site today. Here’s an example:

Code for this example without the beginning space between first square bracket and g: [ gfc gadget="custom" gadgeturl="http://os.ilike.com/gadget/playlist" present="canvas" align="left"]. The extra two variables found in this gadget are “present” which only has one option “canvas” and defaults to off as well as “gadgeturl”, which is the location of the gadget you wish to use on the page. The default gadget is the iLike playlist so you could actually just type [ gfc gadget="custom"] and have it show up.

***UPDATE*** After some trouble with making things work right when converting this to “shortcodes“(alignment was way more difficult than it should have been thanks to browser compatibility) I’ve made a breakthrough. So I’ve got it working so that you could type [ gfc] but without the space, like this:

and it will show up a comment gadget by default.

All options can be set using the format [ gfc gadget="gadgettype" width="400" align="right"] etc etc… (without the first space after the [ .. don’t forget!)

The updated version should be out by tomorrow (cross your fingers), after which I’m going to add a button directly to the editor that pops up a menu with the options to make this even easier.

I’m working on this in my free time. If you’d like to help me work on it even faster, why not contact me with an idea?
***END OF UPDATE***

According to the Google Friend Connect Integration Roadmap today is the day that WordPress gets the ability to add GFC gadgets through the text editor.

I just wanted to make a quick post right now (1:18PM EST, Feb. 25, 2009) to update anyone that was waiting on this and announce another little project that I’ve started and should have ready in the next week or so.

I’m going to be working on the Google Friend Connect Integration for WordPress plugin update from now till it gets done (sleep is doubtful tonight) so either way we’ll be getting a decent update for the Google Friend Connect plugin by at least the wee hours of the morning (maybe sooner).

While working on this I got to thinking that TinyMCE needs a plugin for Google Friend Connect. Then, no matter what platform (ex. WordPress) you’re using, the ability to add Google Friend Connect with little effort (at least within the context of the editors output) would be available. Yes, I got distracted! ….

Alright, enough of this post, back to work.

PS - There are some pretty huge things planned in the next few updates of the GFCI plugin for WordPress as well like full comment and login integration with wordpress - I’ll update the roadmap with more specifics soon.Similar Posts:

Why Use Twitter? or Great, Another Twitter Post..

SocialMind — Mon, 23 Feb 2009 07:03:23 +0000

There’s SO MANY tutorials out there explaining Twitter that I’ve purposely made it a habit not to bother. If you really need to immerse yourself in the Twitter terminology and become a twitterholic do yourself a favor, go to TwiTip and subscribe. There’s a ton of relevant information including listings of “important” people categorized by their interests/specialties.

So what is the purpose of this post then? There’s obviously a ton of information about Twitter, why am I bothering?

People who do not Twitter do not get Twitter.

Period.

You can let them read all the tutorials in the world, listen to you go on about how “fantasticly awesome!” your Twitter following is and still they’ll stare you directly in the face with that look.

You know the looks, pick one: “Uh huh, but.. what is the freaking point??” - “That is one lame chat room” - “Too much work to figure it all out”

I think a particular point that some people need pointed out to them, is that they do not need to “catch up” with everyone else.

I got the idea for this post after conversing with Twine CEO Nova Spivack briefly during his “Twitter Revelation“, and was encouraged to write it when one of my more loyal readers wrote a few comments about her reservations with using Twitter.

I think many of us have gone through a Twitter conversion similar to the following:
(time ranging from hours to years on this due to global advancements)

“Looks … ok.. but not ok enough for me to bother”
“Alright I still don’t get what all the fuss is about”
“Ok fine, that’s the last straw.. I guess I really should check this out.. if only to be able to talk about it more intelligently”
“Signed up… still not impressed.”
“Oh Wow! I didn’t realize it gave me THIS ability”

Now … the factor that made us go “Oh Wow!” tends to differ and is perhaps directly related with the personally interesting personalities that are on Twitter before us.

THIS ability.. how do you quantify THIS?

Everyone has their own projects, interests, ideals, etc..

Twitter allows for a more natural, or “organic” evolution of WHATEVER you are doing.

THIS for me would be the ability to connect with people in the world fast. Connecting in both sending a vision of what I feel is important at the present time and in allowing me to directly message personalities that would otherwise take forever to get the attention of - (think no voicemail, secretaries, etc). The connection goes both ways, and as such, relevant personalties and opportunities present themselves. I’m always looking for ways to increase the chances that I “get lucky”. (it’s the poker player in me.. or is it?)

Perhaps if more people define what THIS is, the newcomer may see the benefits of Twitter a little faster.

So, what’s THIS for you?

Similar Posts:

Are You Enabling Dependency by Donating to the Poor?

SocialMind — Fri, 20 Feb 2009 22:10:15 +0000

You give your money to your local charity and it helps feed and clothe the homeless. It sounds like a great thing right?

It is, but unfortunately there is another issue at hand here: dependency.

By simply giving aid without adding the tools that enable the local residents to help themselves, dependency is created.

The Acumen Fund deals with this issue, perhaps it’s time to think about solving the underlying problems of our worlds shattered nations. We have the tools, help share them effectively.Similar Posts:

Social Bar Added to Google Friend Connect Integration Plugin for WordPress

SocialMind — Mon, 16 Feb 2009 20:59:56 +0000

The Google Friend Connect Integration plugin for WordPress has been updated to version 0.9.6!

Google released a nice feature called the Social Bar within the past few days. The social bar allows you to add a narrow bar at the top or bottom of the screen as seen here at the Social Arrow. Using the social bar will give you the option to let your users interact through comments determined by the entire site, individual page, or you can specify an individual item id and switch it up abit. You can turn off the comments in the bar if that’s not your thing.

Another feature of the social bar - a login or signup gadget that allows your visitors to login or join your sites friend connect. Allowing your members an easy way to get to the login is going to make participation rates go up. A visitor who wants to participate can join with only a few clicks and more than likely won’t have to reenter any of their information. This is one of the most important features of using Friend Connect.

The members gadget allows your visitors to check out the members of your site. Not so surprisingly, people like to check other people out. As your community grows, you’re going to start to find out more about the people who are interested in your content. The interesting personalities that are reading and thinking on your content are suddenly able to voice their opinions and let themselves be seen in ways that the human mind craves.

In the center of the social bar, you’ll notice an activity stream of your sites activity. This is a great way to keep track of what is going on with your site, allow your visitors to find out what the hot topics are and give them more incentive to particpate.

One of the nicest things about using the social bar for blog users, less clutter in your sidebars. By putting these main gadgets within the social bar you’re allowing more real estate on your sidebars for other important things.

As time goes on (Friend Connect is still really new) we’re going to see more and more interesting gadgets to allow participation and interaction for the users of your website. There are a ton of options already for you to check out and play around with. You can check out the gadgets page here at the Arrow to get an idea of some of the features.

To find more information regarding the WordPress plugin you can visit: Google Friend Connect Integration for WordPressSimilar Posts:

Google Sync, Friend Connect Social Bar, and Entrecard has a Marketplace?!

SocialMind — Thu, 12 Feb 2009 01:12:22 +0000

3 Hot things you might like to know about:

Number one:
Google Sync has been released. Combine this with Latitude, Friend Connect and various other Google products and you’re starting to see something abit more interesting take shape.

Number Two:
Google Friend Connect has added a Social Bar to the mix. This neat little feature can be seen at the bottom of the social arrow at the time of this post (I’m not sure if it fits here yet). I’ll add this feature to the next update of the plugin.

Number Three:
Entrecard is going nuts with fantastic new social features. They now allow you to add a bunch of social network sites to your profile such as twitter, mybloglog, etc.. as well as the most important thing - the Marketplace. This now means you can sell yourself for EC! FAN-tastic, I put up my first offering over here.

Anyways, there’s a quick round up of what’s hot on my mind at present second, got anything interesting to tell me about as well? Oh hm, I’m working on abit of another post on QR Codes and iCandy. Look for that hopefully by next week.Similar Posts:

Human Search? Google Latitude

SocialMind — Fri, 06 Feb 2009 02:45:58 +0000

Now, not only can you find the best information on Google, you can also find where your friends are at. They’ve just released a service named Google Latitude that allows you to automatically post your location in the world to your friends. Using the GPS technology in your smartphone, or the location technology of Google Gears, you can now easily let anyone know where you are and what you’re up to.

Here’s a short video showing how it works.

One of the most popular TV shows in America is “Big Brother”, a show in which the contestants have a complete lack of privacy.

But, you can tell it when to track you and when not to track you… right?

What do you think, is this a good idea? Is this just the natural evolution of how we’re going to use techonology to work with each other? Or just another 1984 esque sign of Big Brother tracking our every movement. What say You?Similar Posts: