One of the most ubiquitous and disruptive websites to emerge in the last 10 years is Craigslist. Impacting industries from real estate, news paper classifieds, careers and auctions the site has for the most part remained entirely free to use. A great example of organic, word-of-mouth spread I’ve always been interested in how the meme of Craigslist spread from city to city to become one of the most popular uses of the web. I was lucky enough this week to get a chance to ask the site’s founder, Craig Newmark a few questions about exactly that. Here are his answers: Dan: I think the social…
Selected by viralmarketing
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Dan Zarrella
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Interview with Craig Newmark: How the Craigslist Meme Spread
30 Oct 2009 | 7:00 am -
Weekends and Afternoons Show the Highest Twitter CTRs
27 Oct 2009 | 4:18 amWant more clicks? My new data suggests that you should Tweet your links in afternoons, evenings and on weekends. Continuing the study of Twitter clickthrough rates I started last week, I added over 100 more of the most followed Twitter accounts to my database and indexed click data on over 20,000 bit.ly links Tweeted by those accounts. In all of the data below, I measured CTR as the number of clicks a link received, divided by the number of followers the sending account had on the day it Tweeted it. As I noted in my other post, this number can be over 100% due to ReTweets that may use the… -
Modeling ReTweet Dynamics
26 Oct 2009 | 6:39 amEarlier this year I read a paper called “Modeling Blog Dynamics” in which they propose a method of modeling the spread of links through the blogosphere using zero-crossing random walks and exploitation vs. exploration applied to a logical flowchart model: The authors suggested that the model could be used in influence maximization algorithms which aim to identify key, influential individuals in a given social network for the purposes of viral marketing. I was intrigued by the possibilities and have been tossing around a possible flowchart model of how individuals decide to ReTweet… -
Want More Clicks? Tweet Less
21 Oct 2009 | 3:40 amTweet Much? Don’t Expect a High CTR. New data I’ve been working on seems to indicate that the more frequently you Tweet links, the fewer clicks you’ll get. I’ve been working towards a statistical model of how an individual makes a decision to ReTweet a specific Tweet and in that process, I came across an interesting problem: before someone ReTweets something, they have to notice it. If you’re anything like me, you’re only able to actually read a small percentage of the total activity in your friend’s timeline, which means that very few of the Tweets I’m technically… -
To #SaveReTweets, Make Sure Everyone Knows How to ReTweet
19 Oct 2009 | 6:11 amI wrote a little while ago about how Twitter’s plans to mangle ReTweets with its Project ReTweet, and the danger that poses to the crowd-invented functionality. After having several conversations on the topic and wondering what we could to do save ReTweets, I’ve come to the conclusion that the only thing to do is make sure that everyone knows how to ReTweet the original way. Then, once (or if) Twitter goes ahead with Project ReTweet, we can all continue to use the old format. If you like ReTweets, help save them by spreading this post around to ensure that everyone understands the…
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Neuromarketing
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The Outsider Effect
16 Nov 2009 | 4:52 amTrying to juice up your next ad campaign? Develop a clever new product strategy? Research shows that adding an outsider to the mix can improve the thinking of your team and produce better results. According to a study published in the Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, Better decisions come from teams that include a [...] -
Management Lessons from Airplane Crashes
9 Nov 2009 | 6:40 amAirplane crashes don’t happen often, and when they do they are no doubt among the most-studied failures in any industry. Most bad business decisions, by contrast, are pushed into the past as quickly as possible. That may be one lesson – studying why a business strategy proved to be a failure might prevent similar failures [...] -
Emsense Raises $9 Million
3 Nov 2009 | 9:09 amNeuromarketing firm Emsense has raised $9 million in additional capital. The new round was led by an investment from Technology Partners with existing investor the Foundry Group also participating. This funding will allow EmSense to continue its global expansion in support of its many market research partners. The funds will also enable the company [...] -
Want Some Emotion with That Website?
3 Nov 2009 | 5:01 amAs a web community guy, one of the most common problems I see is the failure to communicate emotion properly when people interact online. A remark intended as humorous can be perceived as a personal attack, or an expression of sympathy can be taken as cruel sarcasm. While I always suggest caution (particularly [...] -
College Branding: What if Harvard Moved Next Door?
2 Nov 2009 | 5:06 amWhy do most college branding efforts end up as meaningless pablum? I think it’s because most colleges have been relatively insulated from the effects of devastating competition. In fact, historically there have been major barriers to competition in the cozy world of higher education. The biggest have been geography, cost, and reputation. [...]
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Church of the Customer Blog
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New company, new history
18 Nov 2009 | 1:14 amWhen Jackie Huba and I decided eight years ago to start a company, we envisioned it as a consulting firm that would help clients create customer evangelists. It was March 2001. We'd both just left the web development company we had worked at for three years. Online advertising was king then, but we wanted to explore why some brands experienced strong word of mouth while others didn't. We wanted to understand what fueled the evangelism, how it happened, and how could we help others do the same. We started with a website and an email newsletter in an era that could only be described as Before… -
Advertising without advertising
12 Nov 2009 | 12:16 pmSometimes a movie quote is the best way to capture what you're all about. -
Kicking out unwanted customers
30 Oct 2009 | 10:35 am"Don't talk during the movie or we will take your ass out." If you've been to an Alamo Drafthouse, the movie theater chain in Austin, Texas, then you've seen that semi-serious warning couched in a fun "public service announcement" before a movie showing. Theater founder Tim League knows that talkers mar the movie-watching experience for everyone else, and he does not tolerate them -- even if they punch the windshield of his car.See, Tim was a customer recently at one of his theaters. A nearby loud-talker was asked by a theater waiter to keep it down. The customer protested, loudly, demanding… -
Twitter: the killer app for customer service
22 Oct 2009 | 10:31 am"Hello, this is Sam Kaufman from the AT&T Internet Executive Office, and I am calling about your tweets."That's what I heard yesterday after posting a few tweets about my less-than-stellar customer service experience with an AT&T DSL technical support rep. The rep was trying to diagnose my DSL problems and after telling me to stay on the line for 10 minutes, he never returned after 30 minutes. I hung up. He never called back.With a few hours of my AT&T tweet, @ATTJohnathon, a customer care rep on Twitter contacted me, asking if he could help. I DM'ed him my account number as he… -
Fees are penalties. Always.
19 Oct 2009 | 1:24 pmIt's a wonder why some businesses can't grasp this. Consider the U.S. airlines last month: Southwest reported an 8.8% increase in revenue passenger miles. Its load factor, the percentage of seats that were filled, increased 11% from a year ago, to 74.7% — a big increase for a month in which schools reopen and summer vacation travels stop. JetBlue saw a 9.8% jump in passenger miles. Its load factor rose about 1% from the prior year, to 77.6%. Compare those numbers to other airlines. Delta: Down 5% on its mainline operation. It also cut capacity by 5%. American: Down 2.6% domestically. It cut…
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PSFK
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IdeaPaint: A Blank Canvas For All Your Good Ideas
IdeaPaint provides analog inspiration by transforming any flat surface into a dry erase board. -
(Pics) Rotterdam Market Hall
Dutch architecture firm MVRDV has designed a stunning building for the city of Rotterdam which stylishly mixes public and private space. -
French Hotel Offers Guests the Chance to Experience Life as A Hamster
For 99 euros ($148.10) a night, one hotel in France is offering guests the chance to live the life of a hamster. -
(Event) Pop Life at the Tate
“Good business is the best art”, Andy Warhol once said. It's a sentiment that may well have formed an ill-advised strap line to Tate Modern’s much lauded Pop Life: Art in a Material World. -
Deformscape Uses 3D Modeling To Create a Unique Outdoor Space
Architect Tom Faulder has built a backyard landscape that appears to funnel towards a maple tree centerpiece, using 3D modeling software and flat plywood tiles to create what he calls Deformscape.
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Brains On Fire Blog
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People are just amazing.
20 Nov 2009 | 7:02 am“Closeness to customers” is something I have been studying lately. I wrote about the effect it has on your company here. I also believe it is huge part of what we help our clients do. We help our clients create deeper more meaningful, emotional connections to the clients they serve. So in an effort to practice what we preach, I’m in the process of spending time “interviewing” our clients and some of our client’s customers. And here is what I have to share with you: Do it. NOW. If you’re part of company or organization and you have customers or advocates,… -
Patagonia presentation - 2009 WOMMA Summit in Vegas
19 Nov 2009 | 10:12 amThis morning at the WOMMA Summit in Las Vegas, The VP of marketing for Patagonia, Rob BonDurant, took the stage to talk about one of the most fascinating, word of mouth worthy, mission-driven, cult-like brands around. And he didn’t disappoint. You could call the whole talk a highlight, but here are the tidbits that resonated with me: We would rather inspire than promote. We would rather earn credibility over a purchase. Advertising should be used only as a last resort. The three charters of Patagonia. It’s what they adhere to and live by. We don’t create stories. We publish them. These… -
Stories make Connections
18 Nov 2009 | 9:50 amI’m lucky to be the grandson of a storyteller. My grandfather told me a ton of stories growing up; they were a combination of tall tales and family stories. Often the storytelling took place in usual environments - in his garden, or sitting on the hood of his car eating hot dogs on the edge of the Greenville Downtown Airport. And so it goes… I seek out storytellers for our clients. I’m captivated by how people use stories to connect, especially when un-prompted. As fate would have it Brains on Fire is now working with the granddaddy of storytelling… Colonial Williamsburg. The… -
On devoting your time to what works
17 Nov 2009 | 10:17 amSpike said in his last blog post that “technology can be a trap.” We rant all of the time around here about how ’social media is a tool’ and how ‘it might not be best for your business’ and on and on. But it reminded me of a real story about technology as a trap. Do you remember way back, well, actually, a short time ago when Twitter first started to grab headlines and brands began to view it as a business tool? Companies everywhere started to question whether they should ‘be on Twitter.’ Some time after that initial uproar I was out to dinner… -
Twitter, you’re not a person
16 Nov 2009 | 5:51 amRumor has is that the panel that’s choosing TIME’s Person of the Year is split between Twitter and and The Economy. Wha? Okay, according to a WIRED article, this isnt’ the first time a non-person might win the award. In 1982, “The Computer” got the nod. Since then a fair amount of non-persons have won: The Endangered Earth (1988), The Peacemakers (1993), The Whistleblowers (2002), The Good Samaritans (2005) and, of course, You, in 2006. I get it. I know that naming Twitter person of the year would get a lot of buzz. But let’s take a look at some of the reality: via…
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Buzz & Viral Marketing Agency ★★★Vanksen|Culture-buzz
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The Body Shop: The Love Etc... Pre-Launch Event
19 Nov 2009 | 8:02 amThere were 40 of them, they were full of enthusiasm, but most importantly they were with us for a whole weekend in Marseille, France, for the presentation of the new The Body Shop fragrance: Love Etc...™. It is in a kind of crazy but mostly relaxed and a little magical atmosphere that the BuzzParadise team met up with 40 of its bloggers from France and Switzerland on a Saturday to embark on a very special train journey to Marseille. In honor of the launch of its new Love Etc...™ fragrance, the ethical beauty company decided to invite the blogging ladies to the French metropolis Marseille… -
The Internet: The No. 1 Purchase Persuader In France
18 Nov 2009 | 2:25 amAccording to a study by Ifop Nurun, in France the Internet has become the decisive media when it comes to purchasing, even surpassing the power of television and print. Among the people polled, 29% say they trust the Web and say that it can help them make relevant decisions when it comes to making purchases. Sources emarketer The original post on culture-buzz.fr Translated by H. Turner Source images emarketer -
The Big Warm-up: An Interview with Susan Sachatello
18 Nov 2009 | 1:35 amPlease introduce yourself: Susan Sachatello, Senior Vice President, Marketing for Lands' End What is Lands' End's mission statement in the US today? What is the promise the brand brings to its clients? Lands' End promises to give our customers a great shopping experience where they will find stylish, high-quality products at an amazing value. We strive to be the beacon for what's real… real value, real people, real difference. Can you please describe the campaign and how it came to life? The Big Warm-up was inspired by a similar endeavor in Boston known as the Big Boston Warm-up. In… -
Tweet Level: Measure Your Influence On Twitter
13 Nov 2009 | 1:58 amTweetlevel is a new tool developed by Edelman that allows you to measure your own influence and credibility on Twitter. Do you want to find out? The answer is at tweetlevel.edelman.com. Sources Tweetlevel The original post on culture-buzz.fr Translated by H. Turner Image source Tweetlevel -
Listorious: Discover The Best Twitter Lists
13 Nov 2009 | 1:53 amRecently, we told you about the new Twitter function that allows you to create lists and share them with your followers. Listorious has now made a list of the 140 most popular Twitter lists. Among them, you will find the list that Vanksen has dedicated to international buzz, advertising and web agencies. You can follow us on twitter.com/vanksen_com. And how about you, what are your favorite lists? Sources listorious.com The list of the best advertising agencies on Twitter The original post on culture-buzz.fr Translated by H. Turner Image source listorious.com
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The Viral Garden
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Social media tool roundup!
18 Nov 2009 | 11:22 amI wanted to share with you a few tools I've come across in the past few weeks that might help you out as well. Over at MackCollier.com I recently did a review of Monitter. Monitter is great for local/retail businesses because it lets you do location-based searches on Twitter! Instead of just monitoring Twitter for relevant terms, think of adding the additional layer of only finding people that are tweeting about those terms, but in a specific zip code! Great way to identify potential customers for a small, local business!Another tool that looks interesting is a blog platform created by… -
Twitter traffic flattening, but Bit.ly surging
11 Nov 2009 | 4:42 pmFor the second straight month, Twitter's traffic has declined, according to Compete. The micro-blogging site had just over 23 million visitors in October after peaking at 23.5 million monthly visitors in August. Now to be fair, Twitter's traffic has only been down fractionally since August, falling only 2.11% since September. But it does indicate that the site meteoric traffic rise is finally leveling off. Twitter's traffic is still up a staggering 577% for the year.Facebook continued to chug right along, growing its traffic by 3.5% in October and posting just under 129 million visitors for… -
Is your blog losing its identity?
11 Nov 2009 | 6:00 am"Individuality is fine, as long as we all do it together." - Major Frank Burns, M*A*S*HIn Google Reader, I get new posts and articles from over 100 blogs and sites every day. I get dozens of shared items well. For the past few months I've noticed that the majority of the posts fall into two categories:1 - They are 'Guide/How-to/Steps-to' posts. Here's the formula: The (Celebrity/Fictional character) Guide to Better/More Effective (blogging/tweeting/etc). Or "X Steps to Better (social media term)".2 - Echo posts. It seems like every couple of weeks, a blogger (usually a popular one) will hit… -
#blogchat update and how you can be involved!
7 Nov 2009 | 6:09 amAs many of you know, for several months now we've been meeting on Twitter every Sunday nite at 8pm CT for #blogchat. This is where we discuss various topics concerning blogs and sometimes other forms of social media.The chat has become very popular (thanks to you!), and that's gotten me to thinking about how that popularity can relate to this post on how we need to find ways to focus on new voices.You see, one of the things that's been sorely missing from #blogchat is someone that can do a recap of each week's chat. I simply don't have the time, and it's really tough for any one person to… -
Stop asking the wrong blogging questions
2 Nov 2009 | 6:47 amWhether you are a new or seasoned blogger, many of you likely have many of the same questions:"How do I get more readers?""How do I get more comments on my posts?""What about blog subscribers? How do I get more of them?""How can I use Twitter to drive more traffic back to my blog? Or Facebook, or Friendfeed?"Notice that all of these questions are focused on YOU, the blogger. How YOU can get something.What if you instead asked this question: "What superpower will I give my readers?"I'm totally channeling Kathy Sierra here, but think of your blog as a telephone booth, and your reader is Clark…
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Seth's Blog
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The amateur scientist (that's us)
20 Nov 2009 | 2:41 amMany people buy a car (probably their single biggest discretionary purchase) based on slamming a door, kicking a tire and judging the handshake of a salesperson.We choose a surgeon based on the carpeting in his office and a politician by his hair cut.During the first week of swine flu vaccines in New York, most parents (more than half!) chose to keep their kids out of the program.Interviewed parents said things like, "I'm not sure it's safe," and "I wanted to see if it affected other kids..."No mention of longitudinal studies or long-term side effects. No science at all, really, just rumors… -
Embracing lifetime value
19 Nov 2009 | 2:46 amIf you walk into a company-owned cell phone store to sign up for a contract, what are you worth?Given the huge gross margins at AT&T and Verizon and the standard two-year contract, I think it's easy to figure on more than $2000 in lifetime value.If you ran a business where a customer represented an additional $2,000 in profit, how would you staff? How long would you make someone wait? If staff costs $25 an hour, how long would that extra person take to pay off?Few businesses understand (really understand) just how much a customer is worth. Add to this the additional profit you get from a… -
Some books for November
18 Nov 2009 | 12:00 pmRandom thoughts from all over for those of us hungry for new ways to think. This month's list is here. The previous list was blogged in September. -
The reason they want you to fit in...
18 Nov 2009 | 2:03 amis that once you do, then they can ignore you. -
Breakthroughs and drips
17 Nov 2009 | 2:25 amThere are only two ways to win in the market.You can create a breakthrough. A promotion so powerful that people can't help but engage. An innovation so remarkable, people can't help but talk about it. A pricing strategy or ad campaign that breaks the mold and is worthy of attention. This takes huge guts and substantial investment.Or you can win with consistent benefits, delivered over time. You win by incrementally earning share, attention and trust. This might take years.Almost all marketing attempts to do neither of these, and of course, fail. Painless and quick are rarely associated with…
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Web Ink Now
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Making stuff up
19 Nov 2009 | 3:48 amHow do you market your company, products, and services? Are you sitting around your comfortable offices with your colleagues just making stuff up? Or do you really understand your buyer personas and what problems they have that you can solve? I share my thoughts on making "stuff" up in this short video. Thanks to Stacy Melillo Spognardi at Cisco for asking the question that prompted this answer. I spoke with Stacy in my office (yes that's my junk you see in the background of the video). The six-part series resulting from our discussions called “Social Media Marketing for Telcos” will be… -
A surprisingly fun and interesting B2B ebook from CareerBuilder
18 Nov 2009 | 10:09 amMost B2B communications is dry and boring. Most B2B content offers send buyers to a squeeze page requiring an email address. As a result most buyers just can’t be bothered. I really enjoy when I find a B2B ebook that surprises me by its originality. Here's one from CareerBuilder. Once you get to the landing page, you can punch that big, sweet Download Now button to get the ebook right away. Better Recruitment Starts with Better Search CareerBuilder's Search Smart eBook: The insider's guide to better resume database search (with tips and tricks for finding the best resumes) The purpose of… -
Online video as lead generation
16 Nov 2009 | 12:17 pmVideo has been available on the Web for years and with YouTube it is simple for anyone to create and post a video online. However, a legitimate criticism of video (especially from B2B marketers) has been that it is tough to do lead generation. Sure you can have a URL mention at the end of a video or you can embed a video within a landing page with some lead offers, but that's not fully integrated. My friends at VisibleGains have developed a video application that solves this problem. Here is an example program we created from the four videos I shot at GM a few weeks ago. The VisibleGains… -
Hey B2B marketers: It's okay to have fun!
13 Nov 2009 | 7:14 amWhy is so much business-to-business marketing dreadfully boring? I think it's because the marketers involved think "business" as in "I am marketing to a business" and this results in an overly serious tone. After all, if you are marketing to, say, technology companies that’s different than consumer marketing, right? Wrong. B2B marketers seem to forget that what all marketers need to do is communicate to people. People want to do business with people and the companies that understand that in the B2B world develop a following. National Instruments is a B2B supplier of measurement and… -
Eugene Mirman is on television, is very nice, and likes seafood
9 Nov 2009 | 10:33 am"There is no middleman between me and an audience," says Comedian Eugene Mirman, known for his work in Flight of the Choncords, his book of satire The Will to Whatevs: A Guide to Modern Life, and appearances on Comedy Central and Late Night shows. He has a blog, a Facebook page and is on Twitter. "I want to be entertaining on the web," he says. "That's what's fun for me. While there is a store on my Web site, the push is to provide things to entertain people." And entertain he does, Eugene's Twitter bio reads: "I am television's Eugene Mirman. I am very nice and like seafood." Sample tweet:…
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Copyblogger
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The Art of the Paragraph
20 Nov 2009 | 6:11 amAnyone can write a paragraph, but not everyone knows how to write one that other people want to read. You’ve seen it: You open a book, and the whole page is one long block of text. Each sentence in the paragraph makes exactly the same point, said in a slightly different way, and you wonder why they didn’t just say it once and be done with it. Every paragraph is the same length (five lines, maybe?), whether it makes sense or not, and it gives the piece a monotonous rhythm. The paragraph makes a point without telling you why that point is important, and you can’t help… -
How to Persuade People to Accept an “Unfair” Offer
19 Nov 2009 | 6:36 amEver heard of Charley Hill? He seemed like an average, ordinary guy. He lived in a mid-sized town with his wife, two children, and a dog. He went to church on Sunday, coached Little League, and drove a pickup truck. He was friendly but quiet, the sort of guy you could walk by on the street without noticing. But appearances can be deceiving. Charley Hill was one of the most successful farm equipment salesmen in the Midwest. People would travel hundreds of miles to see Charley, even when there were plenty of dealers much closer to home. What did Charley have that other salesmen didn’t? Not a… -
Free Report: How to Become a Creative Entrepreneur
18 Nov 2009 | 8:58 amI’ve written another piece of extended content, this time for Lateral Action. Rather than sending you over there, I’ll just tell you about it here. It’s a free 31-page PDF report (don’t worry, it reads fast) called The Lateral Action Guide to Becoming a Creative Entrepreneur. It’s probably the most personal I’ve gotten about my history, but it’s still heavy on actionable, real-life examples. Here’s what you’ll discover: Why I quit my cushy law firm job and turned to online publishing. How I failed miserably. How I then succeeded miserably. How I… -
Landing Page Makeover Clinic #20: TantricSexforBusyCouples.com
17 Nov 2009 | 6:14 amThis is another addition to our ongoing series of tutorials and case studies on landing pages that work. Is it hot in here or just me? Diana Daffner and her husband want to help people find a renewed sense of joy and connection in their intimate relationships through tantra. Their business, IntimacyRetreats.com, offers couples retreats throughout the year, but realizing not everyone can attend a retreat, they also want to promote their books and media products. The URL referenced above is actually the “/shop page” off their main site. Diana would like to use the page as an… -
What I Learned From Writing 42 Guest Posts in 7 Weeks
16 Nov 2009 | 7:12 amBefore you get too impressed, hear this: I did it all in self-defense. Let me give you some quick background. I have extreme Tourette’s Syndrome, as Sonia noticed recently. Tourette’s makes people move or vocalize involuntarily and occasionally results in unspeakable awesomeness. My motor tics range from eye blinking to punching myself in the face to even stranger things. My phonic tics range from clearing my throat to hooting and yowling and snarling and slobbering and screaming like the Tasmanian Devil. Did I mention that I work in a quiet library? There are only a couple of things that…
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Buzz Marketing for Technology
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CMO Challenges in Driving Data into Insights
17 Nov 2009 | 5:47 amA good friend and former colleague of mine Dan Neely, CEO of Networked Insights reminded me recently that there will be more data created in this year than in the previous 5000 years combined!With all this data the question many CMOs wrestle with is – How to manage so much data from so many sources and separate systems to drive insights on how customers behave? With the goal being a seamless and consistent experience as customers and prospects pin pong across a variety of channels.A recent Forrester report called The Intelligent Approach to Customer Intelligence does a good job outlining… -
What to look for in a Social Media Marketer?
13 Nov 2009 | 5:26 amNow that we are beginning to feel the relief of the economic uncertainty that has been hanging around us for the past few months, I am beginning to hear a lot about the invention of some new roles inside organizations looking to get “social media”.Typically this means hire someone who knows our “space” really well and someone who is an expert in social media.Well it’s the latter part that is the hard part. Consider that in Malcolm Gladwell’s latest book The Outliers he goes into a discussion about Violinists and how long it takes them to become a master at their craft. So without… -
5 Tricks to B2B Marketing Socially
9 Nov 2009 | 11:36 amWhenever I ask members of sales team from around the globe what they need – the answer never changes – more case studies. Its not to say that we don’t respond but for whatever reason it takes a village to get a single case study done.The reason the sales team loves case studies is it gives them evidence. Evidence for them to start a conversation around your solution and gauge whether there is a need with the potential buyer they are talking to.Then how do B2B Marketers use that content with Social Media to do the same - here are 5 tricks to Marketing B2B content socially ...1) Tell good… -
The Tipping Point and your Contact Center
3 Nov 2009 | 6:06 amBack in the year 2000, Malcolm Gladwell published his landmark book called The Tipping Point. And little did he know 9 years later he would have set the stage for how many Contact Centers handle Social Media?Let me explain …Many of the most Socially advanced Contact Centers today are using tools to listen in on Conversations. Conversations that are happening about their brand, conversations that are happening about their competition, and of course conversations that revolve around Customer Support! Customer Support makes for an easy anchor of any good Social Media strategy so it stands to… -
Some Weeks are Hard to Top!
1 Nov 2009 | 4:45 amLast week was the perfect storm of 3 major life moments all coming together in one week to form the perfect trifecta. It’s a week that is going to be hard to top in Dunay history but don’t put it past me to try!It all started Friday, Oct 23rd when my wife came into the house and said “oh yeah, I think your books have arrived – I saw a whole bunch of boxes out by the garage”. Little did she know in that moment I became a published author! I spent the weekend packing up copies of Facebook Marketing for Dummies (Wiley) and sending them to family, friends, long time mentors but most…
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YOUTUBE: FEATURED
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Lil Wayne Unreleased Studio Session From The Carter Documentary, IN STORES TODAY! (Nov 17)
16 Nov 2009 | 10:20 pmLil Wayne Unreleased Studio Session From The Carter Documentary, IN STORES TODAY! (Nov 17) Exclusive Lil Wayne Studio Session from the Carter Documentary, Order at thecarterdoc.com or in stores now at Best Buy, Hot Topic, itunes, or myxer.com (mobile products) Shout out to Nina and Dre in the ATL! more to come from Nina and her crazysexytechiecool blog at qd3.com. Welcome to the QD3 fam. From: QD3ENT Views: 198620 335 ratings Time: 04:21 More in Music -
Lil Wayne Carter Documentary Premiere (1st 10 mins)
16 Nov 2009 | 8:27 pmLil Wayne Carter Documentary Premiere (1st 10 mins) The Carter Documentary directedy By Adam Lough in stores now (NOV 17) Available at Best Buy, Hot Topic and iTunes. Order this film now at official site thecarterdoc.com Get Carter doc mobile products as myxer.com "Dope Boy" track at the end by Adam Tensta, Sweden stand up! Adam Tensta coming soon on qd3.com, itunes and myxer.com (mobile) QD3.com relaunch coming soon.... From: QD3ENT Views: 739456 2410 ratings Time: 10:00 More in Music -
50 Cent's Before I Self Destruct (Teaser)
16 Nov 2009 | 11:16 am50 Cent's Before I Self Destruct (Teaser) Inspired by 50 Cents latest album of the same title, BEFORE I SELF DESTRUCT is a gritty 90-minute film, written, directed and starring Curtis Jackson (aka 50 Cent). The film is a coming of age story about an inner city youth raised by a hardworking single mother. "Before I Self Destruct" is available EVERYWHERE! Purchase the album here ---- http://intersco.pe/Fc From: 50CentMusic Views: 509435 1230 ratings Time: 10:02 More in Film & Animation -
"Weird Al" Yankovic Helps Explain Auto Tune (Know Your Meme)
11 Nov 2009 | 3:08 am"Weird Al" Yankovic Helps Explain Auto Tune (Know Your Meme) Look here for links to all videos from this episode! The Rocketboom Institute for Internet Studies examines the phenomenon of Auto-Tune with help from special guest Professor "Weird Al" Yankovic! http://www.weirdal.com/ http://www.youtube.com/user/WeirdAlTV http://www.antarestech.com/products/auto-tune-efx.shtml Antares Auto Tune http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jT_fnAjZNDY T-Pain: Can't Believe It… -
Kanye and Charlie AUTO TUNED!
10 Nov 2009 | 8:44 amKanye and Charlie AUTO TUNED! Kanye, Balloon boy, Charlie Bit My Finger, and more -- AUTO-TUNED! Click here to subscribe: http://www.youtube.com/subscription_center?add_user=barelypolitical Free Kanye & Charlie Bit Me ringtones: http://thegregorybrothers.com/ (under the Music tab) We remix ATTN #2 with the melodies of cherubic children and cherubic Kanye. Who is the best unintentional singer?! You tell ushere are your choices-- Kanye? Charlie's brother? Charlie? Child with banana? Child trying to steal banana? Balloon Boy? Thanks!! From: barelypolitical Views: 1773522 19574 ratings…
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Logic+Emotion
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KeepVid: Download videos from Google, Youtube, iFilm, Putfile, Metacafe, DailyMotion! [del.icio.us]
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Tweeting at the Speed of Scale
15 Nov 2009 | 7:59 pmOriginally posted on the CollaboratoryFrom a holistic perspective, we talk about the need for organizations to become more socially calibrated—able to adapt and respond to changes both externally and internally. The three areas where emergent outcomes can manifest are, participation with your customers, collaboration between your employees and optimization in the interactions/transactions between your business and its partners. Digging into customer participation, it’s clear that in a networked economy customers demand engagement, information, support and ultimately, value and ecosystems… -
Overcoming The Obstacles To Social Business
13 Nov 2009 | 8:06 amOriginally published on Harvard BusinessWhile social media often commands favorable media attention, the less often told story is that successful initiatives are rare to come by and that there are still a number of organizational roadblocks that managers need to overcome in order to make progress. Still, we are seeing signs of progress in the form of new efficiencies, more direct ways to connect with customers, and ways to make products and services better. From my experience working and talking with people in large, complex organizations, here are a small sample of obstacles to look for with… -
7 Visualization Groups On Flickr to Find Inspiration | FlowingData [del.icio.us]
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How Google Helped Save A Life
9 Nov 2009 | 3:00 amWhen my eight-year-old (Max) complained that he wasn't feeling well, we kept him home. On the next afternoon, when he complained about stomach pains, I told him to lie down. Later that day, when the stomach pains persisted and I had left the house—Belinda turned to Google for help. Mother's intuition told her to search for information—specifically where the appendix is located. And after doing so she went up to Max's room and pressed down on the right side of his abdomen. When he winced in pain, she decided to call the doctor. The doctor said go to the emergency room. The ER said, get a…
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trendsspotting blog
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The “unfriend” Social Cycle: Social Networks Beahvior Patterns
18 Nov 2009 | 6:19 amThe New Oxford American Dictionary has chosen ‘unfriend’ as its word of the year. To ‘unfriend’ means to remove someone from your friend list on a social network like Facebook or MySpace (and we extend that to a similar pattern of “unfollow” in Twitter). “Defriend” came in as a close rival, but unfriend takes it one step further by employing a more active and abnormal “verb sense” of the word ‘friend.’ Earlier we had stated some of the facts on Social networks: An average Facebook user has 120 friend. In general he/she general… -
Twitter users share early adopters symptoms
12 Nov 2009 | 10:16 amRecent findings of a Pew Internet study revealed, Twitter is being extensively used as a status update service to keep in touch. Youth (age 18 -44), social network users and users with access to mobile internet show early Twitter adoption symptoms. The study – Twitter and status update, was conducted in September 2009, amongst a sample of 2,253 adults, 18 and older. The key Highlights of the research indicates: 1. One in every Five Internet user Now on Twitter 19% of internet users say they use Twitter or another service to share updates about themselves, or to see updates about others (up… -
For a Better (Digital) World
3 Nov 2009 | 7:00 amIn a beautiful thought-provoking project of Jonathan Harris (creator of We Feel Fine – one of the first social web emotion visualization projects), Harris shares some touching personal insights with artistic inspirations relevant to a digital world. In this “World Building in a Crazy World” – Harris suggests 1-2-3 principals for a world building idea – “a universal idea executed simply, with an element of play, nostalgia or beauty”. Enjoy. Tweet This Post Plurk This Post Buzz This Post Delicious Digg This Post Ping This Post Reddit Stumble This Post -
Halloween through Location Based Applications
1 Nov 2009 | 7:11 amGoogle Latitude or other location based applications working through mobile phones can let you track your kids whereabouts during Halloween. Aside from tracking, many of those applications can be used (note privacy concerns) for sharing the Halloween experience. Locations of retailers selling costumes and decorations can also be found by using applications as Poynt. To improve the Halloween experience, Zillow.com, have created a Trick or Treat Housing Index, which presents the top-five neighborhoods to maximize candy harvesting. The index uses four equally weighted data variables: Zillow… -
Google Wave: Invite Led Viral Campaign
22 Oct 2009 | 2:24 pmSearch Engine giant Google, has shown the world how it is reshaping the way communication happens over the internet with the soft launch of Google Wave. And it has done so in a way it knows best – through invite based viral marketing. The internet witnessed tremors of excitement when 100,000 exclusive invites to Wave were sought after by surfers who were curious, passionate, and addicted to Google. A sense of Déjà vu is hard to avoid. Google sent out similar invites when it launched Gmail in 2007, to build hype. Privileged invites led marketing has been a potent weapon that Google has…
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Buzz Networker
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Who Follows Whom on Twitter
17 Nov 2009 | 8:40 amWhen you spend a lot of time on twitter, you’re probably making lots of friends. One of the features that I think is great on Facebook is the mutual friends display. I use this frequently to determine if I should already know this person or perhaps what the context is of the reason I should know them. Although not quite as easy to do within the twitter interface, there is a similar tool available from the Who Follows Whom website. Who Follows Whom allows you to put in multiple twitter usernames, up to 5, and see who are the people that both people are following and who are the people… -
Job Hunt Tips: Don’t Forget to Network
13 Nov 2009 | 9:49 amBy some estimates, this is the toughest job market in two decades. Indeed, the fact that the unemployment rate just topped 10% indicates how difficult things are right now. Which means that relying solely on the job boards may be a bad idea. Indeed, CNN Money points out that this is not even close to enough if you are serious about succeeding in the job hunt: According to Paul Bernard, a veteran executive coach and career management adviser who runs his own firm, many job seekers make the mistake of relying too heavily on online job boards, particularly at the start of their search. Bernard… -
The NHL Scores on New Twitter Lists
9 Nov 2009 | 4:07 pmTwitter, the micro-blogging service, recently release a new feature that allows users to create lists to categorize and group the people they follow. One of the really helpful features of the new twitter lists functionality is that you can set the lists to be public or private. Public lists can be shared with other twitter users and the NHL has taken this functionality and created a very targeted business use for hockey fans. The NHL (@NHL on twitter) has created lists for each of the active NHL teams, as well as some older teams that no longer exist. When the Twitter Lists functionality… -
Why Networking is Good for your Business
29 Oct 2009 | 8:58 pmBusiness has always been a personal experience as it is people selling, buying, dealing with people. Social media has helped business hugely to connect on that personal level with the investment now being time rather than money. If business need a reason to invest in social networking then look at this fact “According to Brand Reputation, 84% of the consumers they surveyed are more likely to look for online product reviews than they were just a year ago” That fact is powerful enough as you realise that Google is your primary advertising tool but then if you add “And those… -
5 Tips On How To Use Social Media Wisely
28 Oct 2009 | 8:32 amWhen using social media, there are a few things that one should keep in mind when connecting with others. Being able to use social media wisely is very important. Image: SXC.hu To help you think about a few things when using social media, I have created a short list below: Respect others and don’t SPAM with links. Don’t always push information our to people, connect with others by responding to others. If you come across helpful information, be willing to share it. Be open to answering questions that you friends may ask. Look at ways where you can automate or manage your social…
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Brent Csutoras
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Digg Trending: Does This Belong on the Homepage?
4 Nov 2009 | 12:07 pmOn October 28th, TechCrunch released a screenshot of the new Digg Trend feature they had acquired. Digg Trending ‘identifies and highlights upcoming stories that have a high volume of activity (think Diggs, comments, favorites, shares, etc.). When we detect a new trending story, it will appear on the homepage for ten minutes. Based on the Digg [...] -
SMX Interview About Using SMM for ORM
19 Oct 2009 | 8:27 amWhile at SMX East in NYC earlier this month, Neil Rodriguez caught up with me and did a quick interview to discuss my presentation from the Social Media for Reputation Management panel. Here is the interview: You have to admit, Neil has probably some of the best interview introduction around. Related Posts:SMX's Social Media for Reputation Management RecapSocial [...] -
The New StumbleUpon V4… Less Content, More Social
13 Oct 2009 | 1:36 pmI have raved a lot over the last year about the changes that StumbleUpon has made since it launched it’s 3rd version of the site in November 2008. The new design brought in a more content focused StumbleUpon, with category pages, recommended content on the review pages, easier discovery of content, share features, increase friends cap, [...] -
SMX’s Social Media for Reputation Management Recap
13 Oct 2009 | 8:52 amIt seems more and more that social media has become a part of the conversation whenever there is a panel or discussion on reputation management. So it was interesting to see SMX put together a panel dedicated to how you can use social media to help manage your reputation online. The panel turned out to be [...] -
SEOktoberfest 2009… PROST!
12 Oct 2009 | 8:56 amSEOktoberfest really blew me away this year… and that is saying something considering I spoke there last year as well. Maybe it was because the sessions were a little more organized and we were all able to really learn some interesting new things, maybe it was that I had so many of my closest friends around, [...]
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PandemicBlog
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Twitter Fail
18 Nov 2009 | 8:22 amThis bird hates Twammers Improper Following on Twitter You’ve seem them on Twitter. Their messages that they’re “now following you” clog up your inbox. In fact, the only safeguard is not having a twitter account at all. Who am I talking about? Twammers. Twammers, or twitter spammers, can be classified as having a succinct, direct marketing strategy. Not known for their subtleties, or their beat-around-the-bush tactics, these twammers actually achieve a pretty high success rate – that is, the rate they successfully turn you away from their product. Joking aside,… -
Social Media: From the Fringe to the Front Page
15 Apr 2009 | 6:12 amIn recent weeks, I’ve found myself in a staggering number of conversations with family, friends and coworkers about social media. I attribute this not only to their recent adoption of new technologies, but also to the surprisingly ubiquitous presence of social media in our regular news stream. These days it seems as if the New York Times can’t grant enough front page real estate to stories about Facebook’s fabled founders or how Snickers is taking advantage of the social media revolution. Running parallel to the coverage of social media has been analysis of the precipitous fall of the… -
How quickly does your news spread?
3 Apr 2009 | 7:44 amBeing able to call yourself a blogger is great. It does not matter whether you post many times each day like Chris Brogan or if you post every few months like the folks over at Where is Bob? When you do post though, how do people find your posts? Even if you are a personal blogger like Paolo Jr, you at least have a small group of dedicated readers… be it your immediate family, circle of friends, or Second Life buddies. But, how do new people find your posts? In your blog design, you need to make it very clear how people can subscribe. Look at the big RSS button with “subscribe”… -
Have a Question? Tweet the Crowd
27 Mar 2009 | 5:55 amThanks to social media tools, marketers are finally learning the value of sharing the spotlight with their customers. In the old days, product information flowed directly from the brand to the customer. Marketers would put their heads together and develop the story they wanted to tell, the narrative that would (with any hope) stay in the mind of the customer when the purchase window moved from locked shut to wide open. Of course, branding in this sense still exists; we need only look at the most recent Super Bowl to see advertisers jockey for attention and spend exorbitant funds on… -
Taking advantage of Social Media ? Taking part in Social Media
24 Mar 2009 | 5:55 amIf you’re reading this blog, chances are that you take more advantage of social media than your average internet user. You’re likely on Facebook and maybe even Twitter. You might have a blog or check out Reddit and Digg once a day. Do you simply use those tools? Or, do you participate with their communities? Personally, my favorite internet tool is Twitter, but I have a hard time dealing with tweeple, who only tweet about what they’re doing and thinking without ever interacting with their followers or the tweeple they follow. Take a look at Twitterholic. Even if you have…
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Buzz Marketing Daily
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5 Twitter Tools For Businesses
20 Nov 2009 | 4:41 amManaging a Twitter account for a business can be a daunting task. Let these 5 time-saving Twitter tools help you organize and better manage your account and show you the results of your efforts. CoTweet CoTweet is a great time-saving tool to organize Twitter accounts. It offers a built-in workflow system, allowing the user to assign specific tweets to specific employees, and attach notes. For example, a tweet from someone asking a question could be assigned to someone saying, “This is a key client, please respond quickly and respectfully!” Users set their statuses to available or… -
Breaking: Wall Posts on Facebook Fan Pages can be Targeted!
19 Nov 2009 | 12:43 pmNick Oneill of AllFacebook.com reported last night about the latest and greatest Facebook feature for Fan Page admins in his post Facebook Enables Page Administrators To Target Stream Stories and Facebook reported in the early hours of the morning with a note New: Publish to Fans Based on Location and Language. So what is the new feature? Fan Page admins can now customize which fans see Wall posts based on language and location, as granular as by city for some countries! This models the functionality of how page admins can target Fan Updates. What does this mean for all Fan Page admins? -
Watch Me Wednesday: theKbuzz Multicultural Thanksgiving Spectacular!
18 Nov 2009 | 1:29 pmA well-fed workplace is a happy, productive one! Our Chief Buzz Officer, Dave Kerpen, came up with the great idea to hold a multicultural Thanksgiving at theKbuzz! All of our staff brought in dishes that represent their culture. It was de-li-cious! Here is a quick recap of our Thanksgiving. How does this compare to the renowned Google and Facebook free lunches? -
5 Key Ingredients to Creating Online Buzz
17 Nov 2009 | 8:13 amI believe that creating buzz is an art, not a science. But there are many factors that going into the success or failure of a hit video on YouTube, a super-popular Facebook Fan Page, or other online content created to get people talking about your company, organization, product or cause. Here are 5 factors that just might make or break you. We love acronyms @theKbuzz, because it’s easier to remember stuff like ASHES: 1) Authenticity: People like to see and hear real stories, from real people. Tap into both to create great content. Leave the actors and scripts to Hollywood –… -
Study from MomConnection Reminds Us Not to Take Our Moms’ Brand Love For Granted!
16 Nov 2009 | 3:22 pmLast week, Parenting and Baby Talk magazines’ online community, MomConnection, published the results of their purchasing decisions survey conducted among 583 moms with children under 12 between September 10 and September 24, 2009. The survey sought to explain moms’ activity on social networks and their purchasing decisions. Unsurprisingly, (given the Facebook user statistics we already know) the survey found that more than 80% of the moms surveyed have Facebook accounts, with the next most popular social network being Classmates.com with a mere 39% claiming accounts on the site.
