Smartest People in Social Media – Part 1
Over the past month the entire Smarter Social Media team has been hard at work preparing our first annual list of the 100 Smartest People in Social Media. Today we are very excited to debut the first 25 people on our list. We have not ranked the 100 members of the list individually, as they represent different areas of industry. Some are celebrities, others are bloggers and a good portion is social media marketers like us. But the one thing all members of this list have in common is that they are very, very smart.
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100 Smartest People in Social Media
These days it seems like you can’t go to a networking event, business meeting or even a family dinner without coming across a “social media guru”. With the rise of this new, amorphous form of communication, thousands of people have jumped on the bandwagon, proclaiming their own expertise. Unfortunately, most of these so called experts are just hacks attempting to profit off of the ignorance and exuberance of others.
The recent economic calamities have left business desperate for novel marketing methods, and social media is just that. An exciting, interactive way, that has been shown to energize sales, improve customer services and grow brand equity exponentially, social media marketing is relatively inexpensive and incredibly effective (when its effective). Read the rest of this entry »
Facebook Keeps Growing and Growing
Just the other day, Mark Zuckerburg released an open letter which highlighted 2 things; the need to change some settings for everyone’s security and the fact that Facebook now has 350 million users. It’s no surprise given that Facebook is the most dominant social media network! However, come to think of it, do you think it’s just a fad waiting to die out or something that may continue to define our society for decades to come?
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7 Myths of Small Business Social Media
I Have to Use Social Media! – Social media is all the rage right now. As a result it seems that everyone feels they need to jump on the bandwagon. At Smarter Social Media we cringe when we see Logistics Companies setting up Facebook Fan Pages or Accountants using Twitter for solicitation. Simply put if it won’t convert to sales then there is no reason to do it. Social media marketing is not right for every business. In general social media is most effective for B2C products and services, that have engaging, human qualities. Examples: Bledtec, Zappos and American Apparel. There are some compelling B2B examples as well: Sun Microsystems, GoDaddy and IBM. But in general these are rarer.
Social Media Marketing is Free – Like much of the hard work done by small business owners, there is an assumption that if you don’t have to write a check for it, it’s free. In reality social media marketing is never free. Whether you are paying an employee or agency to manage your social media presence or taking time out of your day to do it yourself – social media is costing your money. The cost comes in the form of salary paid or in the form of dollars sacrificed to opportunity cost. Read the rest of this entry »
Social Media Behind the Hero
CNN’s Hero of the Year for 2009, Efren Peñaflorida, was recognized for his unselfish efforts in educating poor and under privileged children to keep them off the streets and out of trouble. By touting a push cart across the streets of Cavite City, Philippines, Efren was instrumental in the education of thousands of street kids. This noteworthy feat was definitely worth CNN’s coveted award and the prestige that comes with it.
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“Dead Friend” FaceBook Suggestions
I have always had the habit of updating my FaceBook profile and status at night and in the wee hours of the morning. Ask me why and I’ll tell you that I find those hours conducive to thought. It is during these times that I also write most of my blogs, articles and novels. We all know that the night brings great fear and anxiety to others but many people actually do thrive on working at night.
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Social Media and Space Exploration
If you think about the many things social media has proven itself useful in, space exploration would be the last thing in mind. Leave of to the creative folks at NASA to use social media to leverage themselves and the publicity of their space missions. Apparently, NASA has begun using the power of social media to their advantage by setting up their own Twitter profile; @nasa.
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Facebook Fail
The team at Smarter Social Media relies on Facebook’s weekly birthday reminder to keep up with the birthday’s of family, friends and clients.
This week I was surprised to find out that I had only two friends with birthdays. I have 1,080 friends on Facebook so I should have about 20 birthdays a week, some weeks a bit more, some a bit less. But two! That is a shocking dive that would make a strong case for astrology, indicate a momentary military conflict that separated our nation’s men and women a few decades ago or be evidence of a major Facebook glitch.
