Using Virtual Worlds to Reach Consumers

I came across this interesting article in ReadWriteWeb that discusses how the enterprise has not yet quite dived head first into virtual worlds, even though it has been around since 1995. Virtual worlds are different because it recreates social interaction found in real-life in a digital space. Steven Walling mentions three key functions that can benefit virtual teams in an enterprise which are social networking, real-time collaboration between teams, and interactive training. While these functions are great, what are some functions of virtual worlds that are beneficial in reaching consumers?

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Who Updates the President's Twitter?

For most of the White House, Twitter access is blocked because of security risks; but who is inside, tweeting for the President?

According to the Wall Street Journal, White House deputy press secretary Bill Burton told Mediaite’s Rachel Sklar that the president’s new media team, including director of new media Macon Phillips and online programs director Jesse Lee, update the White House Twitter feed.

HootSuite is enabled on White House computers for the new media team, he explained, but it is blocked on the remainder of White House computers for security purposes–though they’re working on getting those restrictions relaxed.

Individuals who work at the White House are not restricted from having private Twitter accounts.

Follow the President here,@BARACKOBAMA

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Engaging with Gen Y Through Social Networks

Dan Schawbel of Mashable recently listed the top 10 social networks for Generation Y in this post here, but Tim Wright of the Examiner picks out the top 5 from Dan's list that managers should take a look at in order to know as much about Gen Y as they can. This includes their values, their interests, their styles, their clothes, and the way they think. Here are some sites that the Tim recommends taking a look at in this post. Enjoy!

http://brazencareerist.com
http://20somethings.ning.com
http://My.BarackObama.com
http://myYearbook.com
http://coolpeoplecare.org

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Do online social newtworks actually exist?

In the Mansfield Journal, Holly Harman Fackler pondered over whether the word "online community" was an oxymoron. In the online space, civility, accountability and consideration don't follow the same rules as real world relationships. It's a group of faceless people congregating in one spot. She also points out that many neighborhoods in our country are the same way.

But an online community can:
-Facilitate a place for people to come together and generate ideas
-Challenge ones thinking and lead to greater self awareness
-Lead to communication
-Lead to understanding

So an online community can be a great place to do all of these things, but a truly successful online community culminates when there is off-line participation in meetings and gatherings. A community goal should always result in both virtual and actual meetings.

So what do you think? Is "online community" an oxymoron?

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Help Create a User-Generated Conference

You are invited to create the very first user generated destination where futurists, trend hunters, free thinkers and idea generators explore all things possible and transition the group Future Trends to the believers of “Infinity”. Where the intersection of personal and professional issues come together – spanning disciplines, generations, industries and mindsets – first in a virtual sense – later in a physical one.

Get Inspired: Check out our Sources of Inspiration tab for great resources to inspire you
Start Creating: Develop with us the first user-generated conference
Invite Others: Get your colleagues, business partners and contacts involved!

Join today!
http://bit.ly/2OxOsj

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A revenue model for social media

Media Life Magazine recently sat down with Havas Digital’s Micah Nyatsambo, director of social media, and Rob Griffin, director of data, search and analytics, to talk about the revenue opportunities for social media, and where they're going to come from in the future. Griffin believes that the true opportunities lie in word of mouth advertising, and many companies are just starting to figure this out. They also believe that it's a great place for companies just to listen to their customers. They also look at the strengths of the different social media tools. Read the great conversation here.

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Personal branding versus content

Dawn Foster recently looked at the interesting topic of focusing too much personal online branding. She states that while online branding is important, don't overlook the importance of the content provided on the website. She uses several sources such as blogs and Twitter, and has never had personal branding as a focus. She suggests that a strong base of content can change views on the importance of personal branding. What do you think? What have you focused on when you've begun to build your brand online?

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Web Seminar: "Is LEADER spelled with an I?" Searching for Innovation in the World of Talent Development

Here's a web seminar that is being put on by one of our sister events that I thought our readers might be interested in. It takes place tomorrow Wednesday July 22nd from 2:00-3:00pm EDT.

About the webinar:
The success of leadership development, leadership transitions and leadership integration vary widely across industries, organizations and individuals. Why? In a recent research review, most executives expressed doubt that new leaders can step into new roles and deliver positive results. With all of the investments being made in talent management today, there are expectations that greater outcomes will be achieved. Please join Dr. David Yudis and explore some paths of possibility.

Featured Speaker
Dr. David Yudis, Director, Global Learning and Development, Disney

Date: Wednesday, July 22, 2009
Time: 2:00 PM - 3:00 PM EDT
Find out more and register here: https://www1.gotomeeting.com/register/501492696
Use Priority Code: G1M118W1BLOG

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How to Find a Job Using Social Media

AnnaLaura Brown of Examiner.com shares a few tips on how to use social media to find the job of your dreams. In this tight economy, job-seekers are going to new lengths to look for steady employment; but what about using the plethora of social media resources that you may already use?

Here is AnnaLaura's list of ways to use social media to your advantage. Any more items that you'd like to add?

1. Use Twitter. Send out tweets letting people know what kind of job you are looking for. You can also indicate in your profile keywords and that you are job hunting. In addition there are many job websites as well as large corporations and employers who are using Twitter to send out information about available job openings. Do a search on Twitter and follow any of these accounts which are relevant to the kind of job you are seeking.

2. Use Facebook. Put on your profile specifics about the kind of job you are looking for. Every once and a while when you update your status indicate a bit of information about the kind of job you want. Write a Facebook note describing your ideal job and then tag anyone who you think may be able to help you.

3. Use Linkedin. There are a lot of recruiters on this social networking site who are looking to hire people and make sure that your profile is well written, that you get recommended and that you make it look like a professional resume. Request contacts on a regular basis and be active with groups and answers. Linkedin of all the social networking sites is the one which offers the best possibility of being hired.

4. Use Squidoo. Create a lens describing your ideal job and include information about how anyone who is interested in hiring you can contact you.

5. Write a blog post about your ideal job and tell your readers how they can hire you.

Have you found a job using social media? Let us know!

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Official Call for Presenters: Community 2.0 2010

Official Call for Presenters: Community 2.0 2010
From: Kelly Potanka
Re: Community 2.0 2010
Deadline: Friday, August 14th, 2009
Event Date: May 2010

Production has begun for Community 2.0 2010 - THE destination for harnessing the power of communities to propel business growth.

For 2010 the event will focus on real-time examples from corporations that illustrate action-focused deliverables that produced business results. We are looking for case studies from corporate practitioners as to how they used community to drive results for:
• Innovation, NPD, R&D
• Market Research, Customer Insights
• Conversational Marketing, Brand Building & Loyalty, PR, Engagement, Community
• Business & Competitive Intelligence
• Customer Support

If you are a corporate practitioner, we invite you to submit a speaking proposal directly to Kelly Potanka, Conference Producer, on or before Friday, August 14th, 2009. Send to kpotanka@iirusa.com or call 646-895-7330. Please note: abstracts are reviewed and selected on a rolling basis, so please submit early. For consideration, please include:
• Proposed speaker name(s), job title(s), and company name(s)
• Contact information including address, telephone and fax numbers and e-mail
• Talk title
• Summary of the presentation (3-5 sentences)
• What the audience will gain from your presentation (please list 3-5 key “take-aways”)

Added Bonus: Each speaker will receive free admission to the conference (a $2000+ value) including admission to all conference sessions, workshops, networking breaks, lunches, exhibit halls, etc.

Who will attend this premier cross-industry conference on online communities and social media?
C-level executives, VPs, Directors, Analysts, Community Managers, Research Directors, Product Managers, Creative Directors, Interactive Designers, Market Researchers, Trends Experts, Customer Service Executives, Innovation Directors, and Consultants.

Potential Topics for 2010 Include:

• Community metrics/ROI
• Who owns community?
• Lessons learned from non-profit communities
• Making your community sustainable
• Preventing community burn-out/fatigue
• Best practices and trends in external and internal enterprise micro blogging
• Measuring success for internal communities
• Insights into vendor consolidation
• Attracting users, engaging existing users, user incentives
• Legal/policy issues
• Tying your community into corporate strategy
• Processes for finding, thanking, and engaging lead users
• Community management-roles and responsibilities
• Considerations for global communities
• Moving from online to in-person communities
**Please feel free to submit additional topics of your choice

Due to the high volume of responses, we are unable to respond to each submission. All those selected to participate as speakers will be notified shortly after the deadline.

Thank you for your interest in Community 2.0. Check for updates and discussion related to the event at http://bit.ly/182Tvn.

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Return on investment for social media

ZD Net recently looked at the return on investment when it comes to social media. They believe that social media will return your investment if you put the proper amount of time into it. They also point out that if you have the proper amount of social media, you can avoid social media disasters. ZD Net cites the most recent social media disaster for United Airlines, United Breaks Guitars.

Do you believe it's worth investing in social media? As we've seen with many companies, United not the first, many PR disasters come about due to social media. Should companies have measures in place to control these events?

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How does your company share information through social media?

I came across this article in Mashable in which the list 10 ways that universities sharing information using social media. Here's a quick recap..

1. Gathering and Sharing Information
2. Showcasing Student and Faculty Work
3. Providing a Platform to Broadcast Events
4. Emergency Notification
5. Connecting People
6. Producing, Not Just Promoting
7. Creating a Dialogue and Communicating to Students
8. Facebook Office Hours
9. Coaching for the Spotlight
10. Getting Wired Via Mobile

Read the full article here.

What are some other ways your company shares information through social media that is not listed here?

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Reaching niche markets with social media

AdWeek recently looked at the new niche-market products that are now on the market due to the access that social media provides to these communities. Traditional marketing models put products out there with mass market appeal, but now that social media allows companies to identify and communicate with small markets, new products are rising in popularity. The article uses the line of Gluton Free products which they have marketed almost exclusivly digitally:

"We felt that this was a product that was going to be marketed almost entirely digitally," said Kelli Ask, interactive-marketing manager at General Mills. "We knew this was a group of very passionate consumers, always talking to each other and looking for solutions."

Read the full article here.

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Community Friends and Strangers

I came across an interesting article on Seth Godin's blog in which he describes marketing to friends and strangers. Seth goes on to describe the difference between our real friends, and "friendlies", which are people to we share a digital link with but are not real friends. How has this concept affected the way we use social media to reach our friends? Is there a difference in the way we market to these two groups?

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Does Social Networking Breed Social Division?

Riva Richmond of the NYTimes asks, "Is the social media revolution bringing us together? Or is it perpetuating divisions by race and class?"


The graph above is part of a study done by Eszter Hargittai, an associate professor of communication studies at Northwestern University, who surveyed both 2007 and 2009 first-year college students, ages 18 and 19, at the diverse campus of the University of Illinois at Chicago. Hargittai is interested, among other things, in the socioeconomic differences between Facebook and Myspace. In Hargaittai's research has "found that Hispanics were much less likely to use Facebook than anyone else and much more likely to use MySpace. Whites, African-Americans and Asian-Americans were all big users of Facebook, with 80 percent or more of each group using it sometimes or often."

So why the difference? Riva Richmond writes, "Students from less educated families were still more likely to use MySpace, while those from more educated families were more likely to use Facebook. So is this white flight? Yes, but it’s not quite so simple, she (Hargittai) says. Everyone is fleeing MySpace, and whites and Asians are fleeing in larger numbers."



We encourage you to read Riva Richmond's piece in its entirety here:

Does Social Networking Breed Social Division?

Eszter Hargittai's blog

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Creating online branded communities

In a recent article at Fast Company, they look at how China and Japan have excelled at creating integrated online brand opportunities. These communities, in coordination with great ideas and offline elements, can lead to great marketing campaigns. When focusing on branded communities, there are two ways to reach an audience: to find their current communities on the web and reach out to them, or to create an online community compelling enough to bring your target audience to you. Read about a few of the communities that Fast Company was impressed with here.

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Brand Ambassador Marketing

I came across this great video from Robin Good in which Josh Bernoff shares his view on the role of the brand ambassador and how to behave when you are compensated to write sponsored posts on your blog. Definitely some worthwhile information.

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China joins Iran in Blocking Social Media During Protest Crackdowns

Digital East Asia reports that with the death toll and number of injured mounting, China is trying to both stop the demonstrators and squash their message through control of social media. This crackdown, seems to be attempting to limit the access of those involved in protests to the tools to spread and organize their message.

The New York Times reports, "In an attempt to contain China’s worst ethnic violence in decades, the authorities had imposed curfews, cut off cellphone and Internet services and sent armed police officers into neighborhoods after the first riot, but protesters massed across the city as rumors spread of fresh violence being committed by both sides."

New Protests in Western China After Deadly Clashes

Happening Now: China joins Iran in Blocking Social Media During Protest Crackdowns

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Playful rivalries appearing on Urban Dictionary

The Boston Globe recently took a look at the Urban Dictionary and how popular it has become online as a place where cities have began to take their rivalries. Many of the different entries, which come from users who submit new dictionary terms, still have to do with the amount of money the certain cities possess. The article looks at a few of the towns around Boston and their definitions. Read the full article here.

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Using Facebook to Screen Candidates? The Info You Get May be Illegal

Many managers are using Facebook and other social media outlets to understand more about a particular person's candidacy for a position at their company. Much has been written to warn potential candidates of what information they provide on social networks, i.e, excessive drinking or being pictured in less-than-professional situations. But because of the tight restrictions of what can be asked of a job candidate (marital status, religion and age), managers who find out this information on social networks may prove to be inadvertently illegal. What if, for example, the interviewer uses the knowledge they garnered from a candidates Facebook to make a determination of an individual's candidacy based on their marital status, religion or age?

Whereas Facebook may allow managers to protect themselves from hiring undesirable candidates, is it really the best tool to use from a legal perspective?

Social media brings new corporate rules

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Flickr and Twitter: A Match Made in Heaven

According to this article in TechCrunch Twitter and Flickr have finally integrated! Users can now link their Flickr accounts to their respective Twitter accounts. The official feature is called Flickr2Tiwtter.

Flickr allows you to directly Tweet out any photos directly from their site. We should expect a huge emergence of Flickr photos showing up in Twitter soon.

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