In July 2009, Twitter debuted a new home page to appeal to the early market majority who were suddenly introduced to the popular microblog, but not quite sure what to make of it. Version 2.0 of the home page spotlighted popular themes and conversations through trending topics and real-time search to lure new users into the service through context rather than technology. Almost nine months later, Twitter continues its race towards mainstream ubiquity with the release of a new home…
Redefining Viral Marketing
In September 2008 at Web 2.0 Expo in New York, I shared something that many, to this day, believe to the contrary, “There is no such thing as viral marketing.” The declaration was empathetic in its direction to those marketers who have been on the receiving end of directives instructing them to create and unleash viral content. In parallel, the statement was aimed at those decision makers who assign such projects. Content, no matter how brilliant, creative, abstract, or controversial,…
Twitter and Facebook: The New Tools of Productivity or Distraction
The argument is strong on either side of the case: do social networks increase or decrease productivity on the job? It’s a landmark case where the decision will ultimately determine the fate of business within respective online communities of influence. Perhaps however, it’s also a decision that we may never realize. On one side, the focus of employees and the output of their time and energy, is essential to the livelihood of the company that employs them. Unregulated distractions, especially…
Q&A: Culture Shock, How Social Media is Changing the Culture of Business
Good friend JD Lasica asked me to answer some fantastic questions for a post he published in celebration of Engage. I poured so much of myself into the responses, that I felt it was worth sharing here with you as well. Many of the lessons and observations below are important for you as a champion, decision maker, entrepreneur, or executive. Social Media is not only changing how we communicate, we are also changing the culture of business from the outside…
Behaviorgraphics Humanize the Social Web
In 2007 Charlene Li, then at Forrester Research, now running the Altimeter Group, along with Forrester ‘s Josh Bernoff, Remy Fiorentino, and Sarah Glass released a report that introduced us to Social Technographics. Forrester’s research segmented participation behavior on the social web into six categories, visualized through a ladder metaphor with the rungs at the high end of the ladder indicating a greater level of participation. Social Technographics were designed to help businesses engage in social media with a more…
Engage is Now Available at a Bookstore Near You
Following a special and unforgettable debut at SXSW Interactive, I’m excited and thankful to announce that Engage! is available at bookstores near you. When you invest so much into something that you believe will change the way people think, you can’t wait to tell the world. This book is written for you… It helps champions, decision makers, and executives understand the impact and potential of new media and how, when, where to integrate it into mix. It also helps you…
The Age of Social Networks
Social networks share a common ingredient in design and intent, the connection of people and the facilitation of conversations, sharing, and discovery. What they do not share however, are culture, behavior, and prevailing demographics. Each network is unique in its genetic and cultural composition and it is for that reason that we benefit by becoming digital anthropologists in addition to new media marketers. Demographics are distributed within all social networks, but only concentrated within a select few. Where specific demographics…
Brands Must Become Media to Earn Relevance
What follows is the complete version of my recent post on Mashable, “Why Brands are Becoming Media.“ One of the greatest challenges I encounter today is not the willingness of a brand to engage, but its ability to create. When blueprinting social architecture and the engineering that connects people to other people strategically, enthusiasm and support typically derail when examining the resources and the commitment required to rhythmically produce, distribute, and support content. Indeed, we are programming the social web…
There’s an I in Twitter and a ME in Social Media
As we’ve learned time and time again, there is no “I” in team. Instead of focusing exclusively on “what’s in it for me,” we’re encouraged to contribute to the greater collective of groups in order to accomplish wonderful things – those usually unattainable by any one person. Of course, this headline is a play on those words, but it also opens the door to an interesting conversation – one that explores a global network of connections weaved from both relations…
10 Steps for Optimizing the Brand for Social Search
Facebook recently overtook Yahoo as the second most visited site in the United States. And in doing so, Facebook along with other social networks set the stage for a confluence of social and search that fundamentally changes who we, as a society, discover and share information, and in turn, where our attention is directed and driven. Source: Mashable Make no mistake, attention is shifting away from traditional destination sites and instead, it is fixated on personalized attention dashboards that funnel…
