December 13, 2011

Top 5 Things You Should Not Do On Social Media Sites

There are more and more social media sites popping up every day, and it seems like almost everyone who has access to the internet belongs to one or more of these. Some of the most popular sites include Facebook, Twitter, Google +, and LinkedIn. There are also several lesser known sites and those with very specific niche membership.

While every social site is different in many ways, there are some things that they all have in common. Namely, all of these social sites have certain things that you simply should NOT do when you are using them. There are a lot of social network faux pas, but here are the top 5 things you should not do on any social media site.

1.) Overshare (too often). Sure the point of these sites is to share, but don’t overdo it. You will soon be losing fans, followers or whatever that particular network calls them in no time if their feeds are getting clogged with your updates, check-ins, favorite photos and more. What exactly is oversharing differs from site to site, but take a cue from what you see others doing to set the tone.

2.) Overshare (too much). Depending on the site and how public or private it is, there are any number of things that may be TMI or simply information that you shouldn’t be giving out. A public forum like Twitter probably is not the place to be spouting off about how your house will be unattended all week when you are in Aspen, and pretty much every site isn’t the place to post pictures of your baby’s dirty diapers.

3.) Keep your kids away. There are social networks that are fun and safe for kids, and by all means let them use these with your supervision. The regular social networks for adults, however, need to be off limits. Letting your kid use these sites can expose them to predators, creeps and adult situations they simply may not be ready for yet. Additionally, putting information about your kids and their photos front and center on your profiles still exposes your kids to creeps and predators and possibly even situations that no one will ever be ready for. This may sound paranoid, but these are your kids, so it is good to be extra cautious.

4.) Pick an easy password. There are a lot of scammers out there, and there are a shocking number of folks who protect their social media accounts with one of the top 20 most popular passwords. Additionally, a lot of folks pick names of significant others, their kids, their pets and other things that can be far too easy to figure out. If you have an easy password (or one you use for multiple sites), you may end up with some big problems, not only from scammers who may want to pose as you or use your site to send out spam, but from people you know who want to know what you have been saying in your private messages.

5.) Say something that could get you in trouble. There are many different types of trouble, and they all should be avoided. You can get in hot water with employers, coworkers, friends, relatives, strangers, teachers, spouses and more with social network posts and updates. People have lost their jobs, lost their friends and even lost their lives over something that they spouted off about on Facebook or Twitter. That being said, don’t post about things that you shouldn’t be doing because they are against some rules or against the law. Unless you are trying to stir up controversy, don’t say things that are controversial. Don’t advertise that you are slacking off at work or tweeting during a lecture. Don’t use these sites to air someone’s dirty laundry. Arrests, expulsions, divorces, lawsuits and more have come as the result of something carelessly posted on a social site, so please post with thought and with care.

This article is provided by Kevin Moor who writes for different sites, which inter alias are working to find better disk cleaner.

December 12, 2011

Some Predictions About Social Media in 2012

It has been a pretty interesting year for social media. We saw the introduction of Google+, a change which could lead to fundamental differences in the way that search engines work. Facebook introduced Gestures, which could rob the “like” button of its importance when any verb can be transformed into a button.

Twitter solidified as a mainstream platform, reflected by a fourfold increase in advertising costs. Groupon turned out to be slightly overvalued after Facebook retaliated, and augmented reality started to show some promise. Shareable phone apps that exist solely for entertainment were another interesting trend.Looking back on the year, it once again becomes obvious just how much things can change in a short period of time. This begs the question: what’s next? Here are some things we can expect to see in 2012.

The Rise of Social Search

Google has already made some big changes to its search engine. The introduction of the Panda update reduced the effectiveness of several popular SEO tactics. The Google +1 button gives users the ability to tell the search engine whether or not they like a page.

The introduction of Twitter data into the search algorithms was an interesting step, even though Twitter eventually cut off the fire hose of information. The search engine will inevitably mine Google+ for a similar reason. Social shares will influence the search results, but that is just the beginning.
The search results have become increasingly personalized by location and user input. Information collected from Google+ will be used to show users results that they may be more interested. The idea of a universal ranking in the search engines is quickly becoming obsolete.

The Demand for Privacy

Facebook admitted this year that its site tracked users online behavior even after they left the website. They claimed that this was a bug in their system. Whether or not this is the case, this is part of a long list of concerns that people have about privacy and Facebook. With Google+ using user data to influence their search results, and likely their ads, the possibility of a backlash looms for 2012.

While these concerns are unlikely to slow the adoption of social media, they may impact the way that social consumers relate with brands. Social consumers have always been distrustful of brands, and this behavior is likely to intensify. Brands will have to find the right balance between becoming a part of the online conversation without butting in or coming off like an eavesdropper.

The Rise of Social Businesses

The 2011 Pivot Conference revealed the confusion that most businesses still have about social media. Seventy-seven percent claim that they know what their social consumers look like, but only 35 percent can reliably say that they’ve actually asked their consumers what they want from their social engagement with brands.

Fifty percent of businesses said that they would be out of the experimental stage and have a clear social strategy by the end of 2012, while the other half said they would still be in the experimental stage. This either means that half of businesses are overconfident in their strategy or that half of businesses already have a good idea of what a strong social marketing presence looks like. Either way, businesses will need to be well versed in social media in order to succeed by the time this shift takes place.

Mobile Will Surpass the Desktop

Research company Gartner has predicted that 2012 will be the year that Google Apps becomes a viable competitor for Microsoft Office. They believe that social networking applications will be developed for mobile devices before computers, rather than the other way around. Routine use of mobile internet is quickly approaching ubiquity.

There is a good chance 2012 will be even more interesting than the past year. Competition between Facebook and Google+ could result in accelerated change in the industry. What this means for marketing and consumers in general has yet to be seen.

Jeff has been blogging for 4 years and contributing on blogs since 2007. He is a professional IM and SEO consultant. In his free time he guest lectures for business and marketing students at various colleges in NY. At the moment, he is writing for a real estate agency in NY that offers Queens condos for sale.

October 26, 2011

Using Social Media at Trade Shows

With the excitement around social media it’s only natural for the trade show and exhibition industry to try to find ways to use and adapt it for use. Not only to help promote their stands and posts but also to help engage with other attendees and potential clients. There are an ever increasing number of social media platforms out there and it can be hard to know which ones are worth investing time in. However unless you are working in an industry that is heavily involved in social media it probably safest to stick with platforms that you are comfortable with and you know that your customer base and peers use. Anyway here are some useful ways you can use social media at a trade show or exhibition.
Preshow
If you have a company twitter feed then you can try to build up some excitement pre show. Link to blog posts showing how your brand new exhibition stand is developing; tell people about exclusive offers at the exhibition and interesting people they are likely to meet there. You can ensure that customers and clients alike know where to find you and ensure that they have reasons to visit you. The preshow build up will be most useful if it is combined with other preshow marketing. For example if you are going to do a product launch at the show then you can add teasers to your social media feeds before the show to help build interest and discussions.
During the Show
There are several things you can set up so as to keep engagement going throughout the show.
For example you can:
• Use Foursquare and Gowalla to announce when you have signed into and out of the show.
• Twitter, to liveblog the show for example by letting people know about events, announcements and so on.
• Put QR codes and Microsoft Tags either on your stands or literature so that people can download videos/PDFs or anything else that you want them to have with ease.
• You can use Qik and Audioboo to record video and audio clips live from the show and then put them up for people to see. Got an interview with an industry thought leader or a product demonstration? Then get the video onto Youtube, Facebook and your website within minutes.
• Don’t have business cards? Use Bump and Hashable to exchange contact details quickly and easily. Do have business cards? Use these when you meet the silly people who forgot to bring them! Hashable is particularly useful as you can set up reminders to follow up people.
After the Show
Make sure to blog about your experience and what you learned. If there were good and useful presentations or talks then make sure you talk about them. If you gave a talk put the slideshow or video up on your website. This will encourage people to link to your site, particularly if you put a link to the site in your embed code!
About the Author: Daniel is a UK blogger and marketer who exploring how to use social media for business. He is currently writing on behalf of an exhibition stand manufacturer.