The Social 6: Key Stories of The Last 24 hours, 8/15/12
#6 Done Deal: 10 Weeks Later, Salesforce.com Owns Buddy Media
Peter Kafka delivers a great article for AllThingsD sharing that Salesforce.com now officially owns Buddy Media. The deal was said to have closed at $750 million. All in all, a pretty quick acquisition as these deals tend to go. Congrats to my friends at Buddy Media for officially being part of the Salesforce family.
#5 Facebook's Instagram Deal Moves One Step Closer: UK's Office Of Fair Trading Gives IT The All-Clear
Speaking of slower acquisitions, Facebook’s Instagram deal is one step closer to being a reality: Ingrid Lunden of TechCrunch explains some of the anti-competitive concerns surrounding the deal. Personally, I can see why any consolidation of social platforms should be closely reviewed.
#4 Mobile Apps Could Be Affected by New COPPA Privacy Rules for Kids
Brian Proffitt writes a great article on ReadWriteWeb explaining why the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act are considering new changes.
#3 How the Second Screen Scored in the Summer Olympics
Mobile media became a huge deal during this years Olympics. John Paul Titlow writes an interesting for ReadWriteWeb telling why, and is a great way of telling what the future holds for mobile event consumption.
#2 Ultimatum to stores: sign pledge not to sell 'trampy' kids clothes or be boycotted
Nick Ralston posts a video and an article on Life & Style about whether or not to sell kids clothes that may be a bit revealing. Inappropriate clothing for children has raised as an issue against Target Australia (*very* loosely affiliated with Target USA), and a grassroots attempt is being made to respond to the store’s decisions.
#1 Dell CEO's Daughter Booted From Twitter for Security Reasons
How annoying would it be for you to spend $2.7 Million to keep your family safe, only to find that the biggest security concern was your own daughter? Even though it was innocuous, Alexa Dell, CEO Michael Dell’s daughter, posted a photo going to Fiji, which could lead to people following her. Zoe Fox writes for Mashable and gives more details to the situation, which sheds some light on the concerns associated with geo-location sharing.
The Social 6: Key Stories of The Last 24 hours, 8/14/12
#6 Now In 20 Cities, Startup Grind Aims To Inspire The Next Generation Of Global Entrepreneurs
Rip Empson writes for TechCrunch profiling Startup Grind, an event-based community for entrepreneurs.
#5 How Maker Camp uses Google+ to give teens a behind-the-scenes look at tech and science
Now here’s a pretty cool initiative: a new summer camp is in the making and the markers are Google and Make Magazine! This new online camp is targeted at 13 to 18 year olds that want to learn more about science and technology. Anna Heim writes for The Next Web explaining more about this new online initiative.
#4 Answer Underground Aims To Be A Mobile-Focused Quora For Education, Hits The iPad This Week
Did you know there are 3.7 billion web searches every month for education-related topics? I sure didn’t. Sallie Severns, formerly of Answers.com, founded and created Answer Underground, to help fill this information niche. Answers Underground is a mobile-focused learning utility created to help students share information and get answers quickly. Rip Empson shares more details in this TechCrunch piece.
#3 Kim Dotcom promises that disruptive new music service, Megabox, will launch this year
Writing for The Next Web, Jon Russell says Dotcom's new venture, Megabox, will allow artist to sell music to direct users, and is said to launch before the end of the year.
#2 Case Study: Twitter and Mindy Kailing
An article on Pocket Stop’s Basement Blog about Mindy Kaling, , and how her new show on Fox, The Mindy Project, might not have gotten off the ground without the strength of her voice on Twitter. This is a great lesson for any sole proprietor or personality: having a strong “social voice” clearly can pay huge financial dividends.
#1 Google makes another huge move in travel with rumored acquisition of Frommer's
Fresh off of acquiring Zagat a few months back, Google is now acquiring Frommer's brand of travel guides! Brad McCarty writes for The Next Web outlines the move, which should improve Google’s travel-planning searches.
The Social 6: The Weekend Recap, 8/13/12
You know the drill by now: here’s a countdown of the top six most important articles I’ve shared in the last day. I curate this top six based on number of retweets, clicks, favorites, and mentions, so you guys are a large part of what ends up listed here :)
#6 5 Tips to Take Food Photos Good Enough to Eat
I think most people can agree, seeing great pics of food can make you hungry. Samantha Murphy delivers a great piece on Mashable giving you tips on how to take great food photos using your smartphone.
#5 5 Reasons Why Your Social Media Training Will Fail
There are things to always keep in mind so your social media training does not fail. This Business 2 Community piece by Kate Rose gives 5 reasons why training fails, and some tips for making sure this doesn’t happen to you.
The Summer Olympics had plenty of viewers and pundits going social, turning to social media and traditional media to criticize Olympians in real-time. Even if you’re not remotely involved in the Olympics, this is a great piece to read to get an understanding of the problems with media scrutiny in 2012 and how to best deal with it.
#3 Funded! Dalton Caldwell’s Twitter alternative App.net reaches $500,000 funding goal
App.net , a “real-time social feed without the ads,” reached its funding goal ahead of time. The approach Dalton Caldwell and his team have taken is commendable: reaching out to users and developers first, with the goal of putting them ahead of advertisers. There’s an alpha available at https://alpha.app.net/global/ if you want to check it out. Great project and worth rooting for.
#2 Paul Ryan Is Gabe From 'The Office'
The most newsworthy story this weekend undoubtedly had to be Mitt Romney's selection of Paul Ryan as his running mate. While there's tons of serious analysis out there, Amanda Wills takes a different approach, and posts a great slideshow illustrating the similarities between Gabe and Paul Ryan. Nice to see that Gabe Lewis is (in a way) finally getting what he's always wanted - a shot at the bigtime. Personally, I've noticed some similarities between Gabe and VP nominee Paul Ryan, so it's nice to see I'm not the only one.
#1 Viewpoint: 11 Reasons a 23-Year-Old Shouldn't Run Your Social Media
Wow. This story sure elicited plenty of feedback and retweets from you guys. I think the provocative title may have helped.
Technology is changing at a rapid pace, sure; however that doesn't mean you must hire a 23 year-old to manage your social media. Hollis Thomases writes for TIME Business and offers some great guidance. Don't be misled by the title of this article; the analysis inside is a serious, thoughtful approach to how a brand should be handling its social strategy.
Related articles
The Social 6: Key Stories of The Last 24 hours, 8/10/12
#6 Facebook turns to its army of users to report phising attacks using new public email address
Facebook's success unfortunately makes it a target for phishers and scammers. Matt Brian writes a great article on TheNextWeb explaining how Facebook is turning to its users to cut down on Facebook-related phishing. Solid move for the company to get the rise in phishing under control.
#5 Are RIM and Samsung Ready to Do the Deed?
Richard Adhikari writes a nice article on Ecommerce with details about how Samsung and RIM might be getting in bed together, either through a licensing agreement or flat-out acquisition. In my mind, RIM’s value isn’t going to go up anytime soon, and a deal would be a step in the right direction for the struggling firm.
#4 Where Apple's Boy Genius Went Wrong
During the Olympic coverage, Apple aired three ads that they thought could have helped sales, but they’ve been reportedly pulled from the air pretty quickly. Chris Maxcer delivers a great E-Commerce Times article explaining why the ads were pulled, and how an advertising powerhouse like Apple went wrong.
#3 Chick-fil-A: Stop Trying to Control the Conversation
Another strong E-Commerce Times piece! Christopher J. Bucholtz outlines where Chick-fil-A went wrong in its support of gay marriage. If you’re following my writing or my tweets, you know I think Chick-fil-A is 100000% within its rights to support its brand values, but the shifty way they managed the fiasco from a PR perspective is what really got to me – and many others.
#2 If a Google Employee Dies, Spouse Gets Half Pay for 10 Years
I wrote my upcoming book Going Social based on not just being sociable with your customers, but being good to them in general. When you think about it, some of your most important customers – or constituents – are your employees. This piece outlines how amazingly good Google is to its employees. It’s not just free food and fitness classes anymore: the death benefits extended to employees are pretty impressive. Samantha Murphy of Mashable goes into good detail in this piece.
#1 Pinterest Drops Invites, Now Open to Everyone
This past Wednesday, Pinterest announced they have removed their invite-only strategy towards increasing membership, and are now open to anyone with a pulse. Yet another sign Pinterest is looking to go mainstream in a major way. It will be interesting to see how adoption rates go up – or not – as a result of this move.
The Social 6: Key Stories of The Last 24 hours, 8/9/12
As you guys may be aware, I’m a pretty voracious reader and generally share a bunch of news & reviews via my social platforms. Here’s a countdown of the top six most important articles I’ve shared in the last day. I curate this top six based on number of retweets, clicks, favorites, and mentions, so you guys are a large part of what ends up listed here :).
#6 Backed By $900K From Keith Rabois And Angels, Breakthrough Is Your New Online Shrink
Did you know that one in four Americans suffer from a diagnosable mental illness? To go along with that, only one-third of those people are treated! Its no secret that the poor are a few of many that can't afford treatment. Rip Empson writes for TechCrunch about Breakthrough, launched out of TechCrunch50, and how it offers a way for users to privately connect with mental health professionals via email, phone or HIPAA-compliant video chat.
#5 Y Combinator-Backed Canopy Labs Unveils A Self-Serve Approach To Customer Modeling
Canopy Labs, one of the startups in Y-Combinator’s current class, is aiming to help mid-sized businesses organize their sales leads and focus on high-value customers. Anthony Ha delivers a TechCrunch article outlining Canopy’s value proposition, and how an “actionable and quick” solution is better than a custom solution built in-house.
#4 Boutine Lets Women Build Their Own Virtual Boutiques
A new website called Boutine allows women to browse and create new looks by mix-and-matching items. Similar to Polyvore in many ways, the website aims to be the place where you actually purchase the items you mix. Founder Pramod Dabir, was inspired to try his hand at a fashion startup after years of working in investment banking thanks to a little inspiration from his then fiancee, now wife. Yet another fashion-focused startup, but this one looks like it has the business model to stick around if it gains any traction.
Apple put a 24-hour ban on users changing their Apple ID password via phone, after at least one hacker used some phone trickery to get access to users’ accounts.
#2 Google to Include Gmail Results in Search Results
Yesterday, I reported that Google is looking to include Gmail results inside regular web search queries, and explored what this could mean for the future of search. Read the piece to see how to sign up for the private beta.
#1 Square Partners With Starbucks, Raises $25M For Series D; Howard Schultz Joins The Board
While Square started largely at a grassroots level, here’s one more indicator that it’s heading for the bigtime. Beginning this fall, Square will be the exclusive debit and credit card transaction partner for Starbucks across the U.S. Plus, pay with Square users will be able to the nearest Starbucks by accessing the Square Directory from their iPhone or Android phone. This is a huge coup for Square in becoming a mainstream transaction handler.
The Social 6: Key Stories of The Last 24 hours, 8/8/12
#6 The Pitfalls of the Unmanaged Customer Experience
What makes your brand, ultimately, is the experience you give to your customers, not just the product you actually sell them. Yes, we all know this. No, most companies still don’t adhere to this somewhat important rule. Malcolm Carlow writes for E-Commerce Times, and provides some nice, high-level advice on customer service.
#5 Bingo! Facebook Gambles On Games Using Real Money, Not Credits, To Engage Users
Facebook hasn’t had such a good time in the news lately, as I’m sure you’re aware. However, Facebook is rolling out something that could be minor game-changer. Ingrid Lunden, writing for TechCrunch, says not only is this a new way to interact with people but you can win real money! It’s only in the UK for now, but it will be interesting to follow this and see how much traction this gets.
#4 Instagram & foursquare Photo Contest Boosts Engagement Across Social-Mobile Platforms
Interesting case study: Barney’s Beanery ran a two-week photo contest across all its locations and offered prizes such as $100 gift cards and much more. According to Moment Feed writer Joergan Aaboe, Barney’s Beanery sees 66 percent increase in photos taken and tagged to their locations relative to Facebook and foursquare check-ins.
#3 FAQ: Why did Google buy these companies?
Jon Gold, writing for NetworkWorld, gives a rundown about Google's history of acquisitions, and how each one has fit into the company’s strategy. Overall, I'd say Google has acquired pretty intelligently, acquiring expertise where they were lacking.
#2 Why Apple Should Buy Foursquare
Do you believe Foursquare is just another app? At the moment it doesn't have much room to grow, according to many; even though I’m a big fan of the app, usage is nowhere near some other social platforms. However Jon Mitchell writes for ReadWriteWeb and says Foursquare would be a perfect fit to be purchased and embedded into Apple’s iOS strategy.
#1 Facebook Introduces Mobile Ad Unit to Promote Apps
Mobile is becoming an increasingly important part of going social, and Facebook simply won’t be competitive if it can’t find a way to monetize mobile media. Given that, only a few weeks after the debut of its first-ever ad unit for mobile, Facebook is releasing a new mobile unit in beta, so that app developers can better promote their apps.
Guys, read my lips, this is the start of something pretty major.
The Social 6: Key Stories of The Last 24 hours, 8/7/12
#6 Underemployed? Social Networking Can Help
Most people agree that having a job is better than not having a job. Social networking can actually be of great assistance for those among us who are underemployed. In this helpful Mashable piece, Sudy Bharadwaj outlines how social networking can help.
#5 ShoeDazzle Steps Up Fashion E-Commerce Competition, Adds 1M Users In July And Now Has 13M
According to Ingrid Lunden of TechCrunch, ShoeDazzle picked up 1 million new users in the month of July, bringing the total number of members up to 13 million. Kim Kardashian is one of the backers of this trendy website. Expect to hear more from ShoeDazzle over coming months; their strategy is sound, and their brand is clearly resonating with consumers.
#4 I Want To Be Like Mitt; So I Bought Thousands Of Twitter Followers
John Talty reports, in a well-written International Business Times article, that Mitt Romney had been averaging 3,000 to 4,000 new Twitter followers per day for much of July, but in one three-day period -- July 21-23 -- he Romney amassed more than 130,000 fans, strongly indicating that his handlers are purchasing followers. The question the Romney campaign needs to ask itself is, are purchasing followers who might not ever support the candidate in November worth it?
#3 So you think you're an early adopter? Find out just how "early" with this site
Have you ever wondered how early you joined a social platform in relation to other users? It’s kind of cool to find out if you were one of the early adopters that helped popularize a site and made it a big deal. Drew Olanoff (one of my favorite tech reporters) writes for The Next Web about a new tool that will help you figure out how much of an early adopter you really are.
#2 Be A Bitch On Email, Or Be Email's Bitch
Do you ever get over 100 emails a day? If you’re one of these people, you must hate emails. Personally, I have a love-hate relationship with them. This TechCrunch article (by Jordan Crook) argues for a more efficient world when it comes to email in this piece.
#1 Why people hate Klout, and how to fix it
A lot of you found this piece interesting: Klout, the leading tool for measuring influence, has often been criticized for its lack of transparency and accuracy. In this Econsultancy piece, Sam Dwyer offers up some ideas how Klout, Kred, and PeerIndex can fix their business models.
The Social 6: Key Stories from This Past Weekend, 8/6/12
As you may know, I’m a pretty voracious reader and generally share a bunch of news & reviews via my social platforms. Here’s a countdown of the top six most important articles I’ve shared in the last day. I curate this top six based on number of retweets, clicks, favorites, and mentions, so you guys are a large part of what ends up listed here :).
#6 I Respect Your Social Media Community- Do You Respect Mine?
“You can’t just go head first and sell into a community you don’t know,” writes Pam Moore, one of my favorite writers and marketers. This piece is full of thought-provoking questions that will help anyone interested in going social, from a novice marketer to a senior executive. Read Pam’s piece. Really.
#5 Why A/B testing is essential to your startup's campaigns
Companies live and die by how alert they are and how they’re meeting the requests of their customers. But the age-old question is, “How do I know what customers want?” If you’re Steve Jobs, you can make bold statements such as, “It’s not the consumers’ job to know what they want,” but for the rest of us, there’s A/B testing. In this The Next Web piece, Dan Taylor, writes that if you’re not measuring, you’re not marketing. As a huge, huge proponent of A/B testing, this is a must-read.
#4 5 Things Your Digital Agency Isn't Telling You
Delivering sound, successful communications strategies to clients is your 100% focus if you are a digital firm. Jessica Payne argues that, as part of any valued relationship, they should be providing you — the client — with counsel that may not always be easy to swallow.
#3 Will Facebook Ever Let You Edit Posts? Here's Why it Should
Emily Banks of Mashable asks if Facebook will one day give you the ability to edit your status updates. She believes it most likely will, and in the near future. After all, comments can already be edited. Personally, I think this change is long overdue, and I expect to see it implemented before 2012 is over.
#2 McDonald's is answering tough, sometimes bizarre customer questions
McDonald's in Canada has launched a new social media campaign that has been pretty buzzworthy. This FoxNews.com piece reports that since June, McDonald's employees has been answering all kind of questions on its website, “Our Food. Your Questions.” Some of the questions are incredibly bizarre, such as “Does your Egg McMuffin use real eggs?” – but yet McDonald’s is answering them in a transparent, engaging manner. I highly recommend you check out this campaign – it’s a pretty great one.
#1 What will Facebook look like in 2022?
If you study the history of digital powerhouses such as Google, Yahoo, and even Amazon, it’s pretty clear that Facebook will have to reinvent itself on an ongoing basis the Internet landscape changes. Allen Gannett delivers a thoughtful piece on The Next Web exploring what the future may hold for Facebook.
The Social 6: Key Stories of The Last 24 hours, 8/4/12
As you may know, I’m a pretty voracious reader and generally share a bunch of news & reviews via my social platforms. Here’s a countdown of the top six most important articles I’ve shared in the last day. I curate this top six based on number of retweets, clicks, favorites, and mentions, so you guys are a large part of what ends up listed here :).
#6 Do You Remember All the Cool Things Your CRM App Can Do?
Christopher Bucholtz, in this E-Commerce Times piece, argues that the average enterprise isn't taking advantage of many of the features that come baked into their CRM implementation. As someone who's advised many companies in getting the most out of their CRM investment, I can attest to the problem. Scheduling features are the biggest opportunity for companies to easily extract more value out of CRM, as Mr. Bucholtz outlines in this piece.
#5 Facebook Photos Get Blurry With This Privacy Plug-In
This fall, you may see a lot of blurred photos on Facebook. McAfee will be making it a little safer to share your photos on the social platform thanks to Social Protection, a new product that will allow users better control over their, and prevents people from downloading those pictures to view anywhere else. This sounds more like McAfee looking for a saleable product than it is solving a real need, but maybe I'm in the minority? Emily Price reports more in this Mashable piece.
#4 Social Media Is Becoming Useful, Finally
Contrary to the headline of this article, it's not a rant about how social media has largely been a productivity waster. Instead, it's a piece about Clipboard, a privately beta-launched at the end of 2011 and available to the public since May, is looking to make social media more productivity for everyone. Gustavo Razzetti has more detail on Clipboard in this Clickz piece, and how it could be a bit of a game-changer.
#3 Google Plus Comes to Blogger, Brings Both Communities Together
Google rolled out a brand new feature in Blogger this past Monday that ties directly into Google Plus. In this Business 2 Community piece, Andrew Glasscock explains all of the benefits the new functionality offers for Blogger users. If you're a Blogger user, this is A) a must-read and B) something you should look more into!
#2 Kanye West Is Advising NYC Startup The Fancy on the Future of Commerce
This week, Kanye West payed a visit to one of my favorite NYC startups. The Fancy - which is is one of his favorites as well. Kanye stopped by to give advice to The Fancy CEO Joe Einhorn, who reportedly "looks up to Kanye the way most tech folks idolize Steve Jobs." Hey, whatever works for you. Key takeaway here: The Fancy is becoming a favorite of quite a few celebrities, not just 'Ye.
#1 A Real Dad Won't Save You if You're 'Taken' [VIDEO]
I think a lot of you were interested in winding down yesterday; that's probably the #1 reason so many of you clicked on this parody of the Movie Taken, the 2008 thriller about an American girl kidnapped by human traffickers in Paris. Pretty fun video of how a dad less capable than Liam Neeson's Taken character would react to his child's abduction.
The Social 6: Key Stories of The Last 24 hours, 8/3/12
As you may know, I’m a pretty voracious reader and generally share a bunch of news & reviews via my social platforms. Here’s a countdown of the top six most important articles I’ve shared in the last day. I curate this top six based on number of retweets, clicks, favorites, and mentions, so you guys are a large part of what ends up listed here :).
#6 Image Ad Startup Cortica Raises $7M From Li Ka-Shing's Horizons Ventures And Ynon Kreiz
Cortica announced that they have raised $7 million in funds. The company's image recognition technology helps serve up incredibly relevant ads; just take a look at the example inside this article. TechCrunch blogger, Anthony Ha, says the money comes from Horizons Ventures, the firm owned by Hong Kong billionaire Li Ka-Shing, and from Ynon Kreiz, the former chairman and CEO of the Endemol Group, the world’s largest independent TV production company.
#5 Sign and Send Contracts From Your iPhone For Free With HelloSign
Not quite a social story, but bear with me - this is a pretty big productivity booster! HelloFax, the company that allows you to send and receive digital faxes, has spun off its digital signature service into a new product called HelloSign. Emily Price, writer for Mashable, says documents can be signed and securely returned to their sender from both the web and the company’s new iPhone application. Unlike other services and apps that are already out there, digital signatures using the service are free and unlimited so you can send and receive just a few documents with no cost.
#4 Why Is Great Service So Rare?
Great service is something that every customer wishes to have at all times. Everyone loves a customer-friendly brands like Zappos, and gets weak in the knees when a customer service rep actually treat us to great service. Who couldn't agree with that? But besides the obvious business advantages, outstanding service remains frustratingly mysterious, as contributor Dorie Clark outlines in this Forbes piece.
#3 Is Social Media Destroying Real-World Relationships? [INFOGRAPHIC]
It's no secret that social media allows us to organize our real-world relationships.It allows you to meet new people outside the digital realm — both of which can be great, life-enhancing things. Sam Laird writes on Mashable asking if social networking could have an adverse effect on our quality of life? After all, 24% of respondents to a recent survey indicated that they had missed out on participating in a major event in person because they were too busy documenting their life online. Pretty useful infographic included in this piece, too.
#2 Rumor: Google Puts A Hold On New Google+ Acquisitions
Frederic Lardinois and Alexia Tsotsis report for TechCrunch that Google may be putting a stop to all acquisitions related to Google+, at least until the end of this year. Google is cautious of both growing the Google+ team right now and providing the product with any more resources until January. It will be interesting to see if Google+ marketing spend goes down in the short-term. Is Google looking to see if Google+ can continue its forward momentum without as much of a concentrated push on their part? Could be. At a certain point, Google+ has to succeed or not on its own merits.
#1 8.7% of Facebook accounts are fake? Still, that leaves 872m bona fide users.
According to Paul Sawers, writer for The Next Web, 8.7% of Facebook accounts are fake, as CNET noted earlier today. That means about 83m users, if we’re using the 955m figure announced by Facebook recently. While this obviously leaves Facebook with a pretty significant number of worldwide adoptees, the amount of accounts purported to be fake is pretty staggering.