touch the box
Sharp has been running a unique promo on Facebook, and giving away loads and loads of prizes. Once you install the application on your Facebook page, you get a box. And you hold the box for a while. If it opens while in your possession, you get what's inside.
Some people have already won laptops, flat screens, and tickets to a Yankees game. (That last one seems more like work, than a prize - but that's just me.)
I like the website, where you can just type in random stuff and watch the box laugh at you. Things that I tried, which are apparently not in the box: Body parts, Angela Lansbury, a Krispy Kreme doughnut. Oh well.
Labels: ads, facebook, social media
posted by darryl ohrt @ 8:21 AM
3 comments
google: now we can see everything. except facebook.
The Google gods have just announced that they've engineered some magical potion that allows their search engines to see text in Flash. This is a big deal for Flash developers, because up until now, if your site was built in Flash, it was pretty much invisible to the search spiders.
An awesome development that is a great step in the right direction. Now really important content like the text from the Mentos Kiss Fight will finally be viewable for the world to see.
(And don't worry. Your drunken rants in Facebook are still completely invisible from the Google gods.)
Labels: facebook, Flash, google, search, webdev
posted by darryl ohrt @ 7:51 AM
0 comments
ze frank just friended you
Ze Frank, artist, speaker, experimenter, lover of Plaid, person that can't be described with one line - recently conducted a fun experiment. Ze borrowed a couple of Facebook profiles, and became someone else.
With a simple tweet asking if he could be you for one week, he received over 200 responses. He chose two of them to explore.
Christine Huang tells what she learned from the experience of channeling her inner Ze, on Facebook. Really fun.
Labels: creativeinspiration, facebook, social media
posted by darryl ohrt @ 7:29 AM
0 comments
what if life were facebook
What if real life were more like Facebook? From Tim Brunelle, via Twitter.
Labels: facebook, social media, video, viral
posted by darryl ohrt @ 7:22 AM
0 comments
a bunch of stuff that you already knew...
but that's ripe for sharing with your boss: This social media stuff is really, really popular.
Universal McCann just released a new report showing that people really dig social media. That people watch video online. And are participating in social networks. And are beginning to understand RSS.
You will probably say "DUH", but you know you need these bullets for that PowerPoint presentation to the board:
- 83% watch video clips, up from 62% in the last study in June 2007
- 78% read blogs, up from 66%
- 57% of internet users are now members of a social network
- RSS consumption is growing rapidly up from 15% to 39%
- Podcasts are now mainstream digital content, listened to by 48%
More highlights of the 17,000 internet users surveyed last month on ReadWriteWeb.
The photo of Rob's smirk has absolutely nothing to do with this post. I just thought a graph or chart would be really boring. Let's just pretend that Rob is thinking of social media trends in this pic. Which, I believe he is.
Labels: facebook, podcasting, rss, social media, trends
posted by darryl ohrt @ 7:32 AM
1 comments
no really, i'm working.
If you use Facebook for business and pleasure (it's like a good mullet - business in the front, and party in the back), then you're going to love the new Get Stuff Done application for Facebook.
Organize, create lists, share files - this is one of the most robust applications that I've ever seen on Facebook. They've actually thought out how you might use Facebook as a project planner - and by the looks of it, supplied everything you need to get started. See a detailed overview on 5ThirtyOne. So, what are you waiting for?
Labels: facebook, productivity, social media, workplace
posted by darryl ohrt @ 7:47 AM
3 comments
i am 22% beautiful
This is pretty funny. Blogger buddy Lee Washington has just completed some work on a Facebook application for Nip Tuck. The application allows you to test your Facebook profile photo, and see how beautiful you are.
Unbeknown to Lee, I've been conducting my own little experiment on Facebook. I'm using an old photo of myself, after a mountain biking accident, as my profile pic. (Really funny to see how people react to you, when they think that you look like a monster.) What a perfect test of the Nip Tuck application!!
Lee and his team will be happy to know that it worked. My smashed up face is only 22% beautiful. (Ironically, thanks to a wonderful plastic surgeon, I'm now completely healed, with all of my eyelids intact.)
I re-did the test on a current photo, and discovered that my face is "76% perfect." My plastic surgeon will be happy to hear that. And I'm now available for fashion shoots.
Labels: facebook, social media
posted by darryl ohrt @ 6:26 AM
0 comments
people you may know
Facebook just launched a pretty cool new feature - people you may know. Looks like they're pulling people who your friends have in common.
A quick look at my list shows a bunch of other bloggers and social media nuts. And a couple of old once-removed friends. Pretty cool feature - very similar to what that less-liked social application, LinkedIn has had for some time now.
Labels: facebook, social media
posted by darryl ohrt @ 7:20 AM
0 comments
be good. be consistent. be a strong brand.
Chris Brogan writes another typically brilliant post about maintaining our online personas, and points to someone who gets it - Gary Vaynerchuk.
Think about it. You have a Facebook profile, you're on Twitter, LinkedIn, and about 68 other social sites. Are you the same? What image are you projecting? What is your personal social media brand?
Gary points out a lovely side effect of personal online branding- bad guys can't hide. Good guys will prevail. Transparency is a wonderful thing. People that are evil are being found out and identified for their actions - faster than ever in history. So here's to genuine, honest, great personal branding. Woot!
Labels: branding, facebook, social media, twitter
posted by darryl ohrt @ 7:29 AM
1 comments
how to get the best facebook photo ever
Have a professional photographer take it, paparazzi style. Methodizaz is just that company. Tell them where you'll be, what kind of mood you'd like to be photographed in, and they'll take care of the rest. When you least expect it. For now, the service is only available in NYC - but I suppose it's just a matter of time before people in the great state of Kansas can get paparazzi, too. From swissmiss.
Labels: facebook, photography
posted by darryl ohrt @ 7:17 AM
1 comments
the difference between facebook, myspace and twitter users
Here's some interesting information about users of Facebook, MySpace and Twitter. Max Freiert has compiled some research showing popular sites that users visited, in addition to the social sites. (He calls them "addicts", without any real background on addiction...I believe he actually means "heavy users.")
Max concludes that:
+ MySpace addicts are somewhat vain – focusing heavily on establishing and fine tuning their online personas by customization of their personal profiles
+ Facebook addicts focus more on engagement – interacting with applications, music and people both on and off the platform
+ Twitter addicts are most interested in fostering communication and exploration.
Not sure I completely agree with his conclusions, but regardless - this is some cool information. From Johan Bryggare, via Twitter.
Labels: facebook, myspace, social media, twitter
posted by darryl ohrt @ 7:40 AM
0 comments
global creativity boom: here we come
I met an old friend, Greg last weekend, who works in the entertainment business. We had a fun time catching up. (Not that we weren't already caught up, thanks to Facebook, but anyway...) He was telling me about how reluctant the music industry has been to break down global barriers. From video formats to iTunes sales, there are artificial walls everywhere. Walls created by old-thinking people, who insist on always doing things the way they've been done before.
Greg is a member of the internet worker generation. If you're reading this, you likely are too. We have a different expectation for sharing, communicating and consuming. And there are no walls. Bit by bit we're breaking them down. Those of us on the front lines can see it happening - across industries and all demographics. And of course, it's happening in his industry - just as it's likely happening in yours.
To this point, Bruce Nussbaum writes a typically brilliant post about the effect of social media on your business, and the coming creativity boom.
New, grand things are becoming possible. But you've got to be ready for change. Willing to let go. Of your brand, of your marketing, of your old thinking.
So - take a good look at your business and ask "what walls can we knock down?" (Or who do we need to push off to retirement.) And then get ready for the ride of your life.
Labels: facebook, social media, trends, twitter, web2.0
posted by darryl ohrt @ 8:10 AM
0 comments
facebook gets all orderly
Facebook is pushing a fairly significant update this spring, that will add tabs to their users profiles. Pretty cool that they're consistently paying attention to their product and users, and adapting and growing. The introduction of tabs opens up a bunch of doors for growth, while keeping the tool clean and organized - so that it doesn't become a MySpace clusterssuck of bad design and impossible navigation.
If you'd like to learn more, you might want to become a fan of the Facebook Profiles Preview group, and they'll keep you up to date. You can also give them feedback. Good things.
Labels: facebook, social media, trends
posted by darryl ohrt @ 7:17 AM
0 comments
flash: now available on facebook.
Both scary and exciting at the same time. Facebook is allowing Flash on their company pages. This is a big deal. Could be a massive boon for brands, and a major annoyance for Facebook users. Can't wait to see how this develops. In the meantime, we're beginning to experiment. More, soon.
Labels: facebook, Flash, social media
posted by darryl ohrt @ 7:50 AM
0 comments
a sweet and tasty facebook campaign
Mashable reports that MarsUK has launched a campaign allowing Facebook users to actually purchase chocolate for their friends. Not chocolate made from those nasty tasting pixels - but actual, delicious chocolate treats.
The campaign allows you to send points to your friends, that they can then redeem at a local convenience store chain. AWESOME. That's the way to promote, sell and utilize a social network in a new way.
Everyone wins. Twix gets great social branding. People get Twix. Retailers get store traffic. Isn't chocolate the most wonderful thing ever?
Labels: ads, facebook, social media, yummyfood
posted by darryl ohrt @ 7:50 AM
1 comments
marketers: ruining all the fun
Do you completely ignore all of your Facebook notifications, and then delete them 25 at a time? You're not alone.
BusinessWeek reports on how marketers are mucking up a good thing by annoying the crap out of you with notifications and applications and stuff that doesn't add to your experience.
While the trend is real - I'm not convinced of the BusinessWeek conclusion - that people are leaving social apps, and finding new things. They point to the decline in MySpace usage as proof. Ummm....decline in MySpace usage?? Yeah, and people don't wear acid washed jeans anymore, either.
Crowds aren't going to continue migrating to the next new thing, just because of ads. Because the ad agencies will follow. When I am finally in control of the world, two things will happen:
1. Social sites will listen to their users, and create tools that make it easier to ignore, delete and remove the annoying crap. Facebook is already making some strides in this area. I predict more in the future. New social apps should have this built in.
2. Marketers will need to create content that has value. For real. And stop force feeding friend notifications and spamming.
So, see you on Facebook. And Seesmic. And Twitter. And Ning. And....
From Wilson Cleveland, via Facebook.
Labels: facebook, myspace, social media, trends, web2.0, youthmarketing
posted by darryl ohrt @ 8:03 AM
2 comments
facebook apps are annoying beasts
Joseph Jaffe writes an excellent post about how Facebook isn't the silver bullet many marketers think it is.
Facebook application usage is dwindling. I see on my Twitterstream fellow Facebookers rave about their ability to delete 25 Facebook notifications at a time. And everyone's annoyed with the 'someone has a crush on you' type invitations.
I think Jaffe is right - clearly there's some Facebook fatigue going on here. However, I don't think it's with Facebook itself - but instead, with the un-inspiring Facebook applications. The Facebook audience continues to grow. And I'll bet it hasn't neared its peak, as far as membership goes.
As a social media junkie, here's what I see that Facebook users DO really enjoy:
+ Catching up with their friends' status updates
+ Sharing links with friends
+ Sharing photos and videos of and with friends
+ Sharing events and groups with friends
+ Communicating with friends
So the question is - what can your brand do that helps your audience accomplish these tasks? Some applications can succeed too - but they'll need to provide actual value, beyond annoying everyone on my friends list.
Related, Scott Monty has a beautious post about how marketers still have a lot to learn. Clearly, marketers need to understand social media, and their audience needs. Or need an agency that does. ;)
Labels: facebook, social media, strategy, web2.0
posted by darryl ohrt @ 7:45 AM
2 comments
breakfast with robert scoble, mark zuckerberg and the president of pakistan.
A bunch of very notable bloggers and internet geeks were on hand to cover the World Economic Forum in Switzerland this past week.
You can see some of the coverage (originally streamed live) via cell phone video, on Qik. Absolutely engaging to watch.
Anyway, among the kabillion and two interesting things that took place, Robert Scoble met Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg. They went to breakfast with Pakistani President, Pervez Musharraf. (Can you imagine??) Scoble interviews Mark, and shares the details on his blog. At one point, they met up with Linden Labs/Second Life CEO Phillip Rosedale, too. Anyway, you'll love Zuckerberg even more, and be pretty stoked with his vision for Facebook.
Photo from Scoble's Flickr set, featuring Rosedale and Zuckerberg. (And how cool that Zuckerberg sports a hoody in a land of ties and suits?? Awesome.)
posted by darryl ohrt @ 8:23 AM
0 comments
social media and the next disaster
Google's doing good stuff again. Google.org's technology project titled InSTEDD, is pulling together some friendly technologies like Twitter and Facebook, to better prepare us for situations like emergencies or natural disasters.
This is a cool idea - but we've got a ways to go as far as stability is concerned. Twitter was brought to it's knees earlier this week, because too many people were twittering about the Steve Jobs keynote speech. One can only imagine how it would hold up in the event of a natural disaster. That said, as a communication tool for regional disasters (like Hurricane Katrina) these tools would be awesome.
Labels: facebook, social media, technology, twitter
posted by darryl ohrt @ 6:42 AM
0 comments
keep the lawyers out of the room
Wow. Must be "how not to handle social media" day. First Target, now Mattel and Hasbro.
If you're on Facebook (and if you're not, what are you doing??) you've probably heard of the application Scrabulous. Maybe it's reinvigorated your love for the game.
Well Hasbro and Mattel apparently just woke up and discovered the game. Were they delighted that this social media device was invigorating their brand? Did they embrace it and find a way to make it theirs?
Nope. They sent attorneys. Matt Dickman has a wonderful post on what their approach and thinking could have been. Or should have been.
Labels: facebook, pr, social media
posted by darryl ohrt @ 7:45 AM
0 comments
support your candidate by beating them for points
Is all the media coverage on the presidential primaries making you want to take a stick to Mitt Romney? Well now you can! Tribbit is a startup that just launched a new Facebook application called Pinata which features a bi-partisan Presidential Primary Pinata that lets people show their support for their favorite candidate by encouraging their Facebook friends to earn points for “whacking” the crap out of their respective avatars until they break. Wholly useless but oddly satisfying for those that want to REALLY give Hillary something to cry about.
posted by Wilson Cleveland @ 2:54 PM
0 comments
everything about everything about inernet marketing
Here's a massive list of the best internet marketing blog posts. How to do almost anything on almost any social tool. Lots of great reading if you're stuck at the office this week while everyone else is on vacation. They'll come back fatter, and you'll be smarter. (Always better.)
The pic of David Hasselhoff might seem related, but this is a pic that I snapped right as he was jumping onto a social media bandwagon. So it's related, trust me.
Labels: blogging, facebook, google, hacks, self promotion, social media, twitter, web2.0, webdev, youtube
posted by darryl ohrt @ 8:42 PM
0 comments
google: we need your help here.
Mave Gibson shines her Facebook brilliance on what's still wrong with Facebook's Beacon policy.
Now would be a great time for Google to invent, launch and be something totally better and different. And not evil. We need Google social, now.
Labels: facebook, google, social media, web2.0
posted by darryl ohrt @ 7:24 AM
1 comments
facebook tells all your friends what you're buying online.
Facebook is treading in some socially dangerous waters. Read
this post from Ethan Zuckerman about how when you buy something on Overstock, the purchase appears as an item in your NewsFeed.
Yes - you could stop it, change your settings to not allow it in the future...but, do you really want to have to do that with every retailer from here on in? Don't think so. Should you have to install some cookie cleaning scripts on your machine to combat this? Not fair to expect the general public to do that.
There are rants across the internation all about this, and protest groups on Facebook. Lots of unhappy noise.
Facebook friend Mave Gibson said it brilliantly:
"I am concerned because of what it means in terms of the cultural landscape. we need to speak out against these new things as they are happening, lest we allow precedents to be set that will inform what the internet of the future will look like.
what facebook has done is change the implicit understanding/precedent that has existed on the web to date regarding privacy and how sites can use/access information about us."
Here's something to consider.....Google would never do this. And it shows the value of Google's mission statement, "Don't be Evil."
Labels: facebook, social media
posted by darryl ohrt @ 7:41 AM
1 comments
the latest in social media fashion
Can't keep up with your social media networks? Get this shirt, and show the world what networks you're a member of. Excellent holiday gift. (If it's not already outdated, because the internet gods added more social network juice to the land of socialness.)
Labels: facebook, fashion, myspace, social media, twitter
posted by darryl ohrt @ 7:47 AM
0 comments
teens: IM is easier than speaking
This is nothing new to you, if you read Brand Flakes on a regular basis - but if you're putting together a presentation for your board on how to connect with teens, here's some great fodder for your PowerPoint. (Or, be old-school, and email the links to your boss.)
First, Wired News reports from the Associated Press story. And then The Slate has an excellent write up too.
Expect to see Matt Lauer and the Today Show doing a special report on this subject, in a few weeks. And acting all amazed, like they've just discovered some new cult that kids are participating in.
"Next, on Today. Are teens abandoning email!? Find out how teens are communicating on the internet. When we return...this new teen trend may take you by surprise..."
Matt Lauer: So, you're telling me that you really don't check email at all??
Teen: Uh....dude, what's up with your hair?
Labels: facebook, mobile, technology, trends, youthmarketing
posted by darryl ohrt @ 7:41 AM
0 comments
why you need to have a strategy before you make a facebook fan page
I couldn't say it any better than Jeremia has brilliantly posted on his blog...
In the meantime, go ahead and become a fan of the single most important agency in all of the history of design, branding and interactive sweetness.
Labels: facebook, plaid, social media, strategy
posted by darryl ohrt @ 8:12 AM
0 comments
marketers: watch this facebook video
Here's an outstanding primer on how to place ads on Facebook. So easy to target an exact audience. Reminds me of the early days of Google AdSense. So exciting.
Duh - you'll need Facebook to see this. If you're not on, either slap your IT person, or leave your job today.
Labels: adindustry, facebook, social media, trends
posted by darryl ohrt @ 7:30 AM
0 comments
social media starfish
There's some interesting discussion going on about the concept of Social Media Starfish - and how many people are using too many networks, and how Facebook is becoming the "social media supermarket," where you can get all of your social media in one place. Fun to watch this develop.
Labels: facebook, social media, web2.0
posted by darryl ohrt @ 8:11 AM
0 comments
what they should really be teaching in college.
Facebook 101. Robert Scoble predicts this new class at Stanford will result in the creation of new exciting companies. I agree.
Labels: facebook, social media, web2.0, webdev, youthmarketing
posted by darryl ohrt @ 7:31 AM
0 comments
IT: let your employees on facebook.
These kinds of stories make me sick.
Where's My Jetpack writes about his recent experience at a gig within an in-house creative agency in a large corporation. Their management/IT department has blocked employees from seeing many sites. To 'protect' them, and 'keep them productive.' As if they were pets.
I constantly meet with clients who can't see their own videos on YouTube, can't create Facebook profiles, can't see what the competition's doing, and can't see what's going on in the marketplace.
Yet, they're expected to generate marketing and brand campaigns that will connect with this world that they're not allowed to experience.
How about we just trust our employees? How about we give them access to tools that let them do a better job? How about we let them connect with the real world? And hold them accountable for performance, rather than their web surfing history?
(The pelvic thrust video is for those of us that enjoy internet freedom. Isn't it great?)
Labels: branding, facebook, marketing, productivity, social media, workplace
posted by darryl ohrt @ 7:38 AM
2 comments
aggregation. the solution for social media overload?
Fleet Street PR has an excellent post about the growing number of social media tools, and how there's less and less time in your life to use them. The graph above shows the number of social tools being used by the author David Fleet, over time.
This is the same dilemma that I hear from all of my blogger/social media friends. We're running out of time in the day. David points to the answer to all of our problems: aggregation.
Totally agree. But we need more of it. Faster. Now. I believe Facebook will become this in the near term. But there's another problem, too:
Content overload. I can no longer read all of my RSS feeds in a single day. Too many subscriptions. My Twitter feed is growing, and many days I miss important Tweets. I can see my Facebook newsfeed going in the same direction. I've decided not to participate in the Digg social profile/tool. Something's got to give.
Aggregation will be a part of the solution, but I fear that it's going to be necessary to limit the amount of content we consume, too. I've sadly nearly eliminated books from my life. No time. Replaced by RSS and other media. Aggregation can allow us to consume more, faster - but there's still a limit to the amount of media that a human can ingest. So...until Facebook can solve this problem for us, I think it still comes down to....content is king. The best will bubble up to the top, and the rest will sink to the bottom.
Labels: facebook, rss, social media, technology, trends, twitter
posted by darryl ohrt @ 7:38 AM
7 comments
bring your second life into your facebook life
Someone's create a sweet new application for Facebook that ties your Second Life to your Facebook life. Some would argue that if you have both of these, you have no life.
Anyway - the application lets you display your avatar on your Facebook profile, and indicate when you’re on and off line in Second Life. If your friends also have the app installed, you’ll be able to see each other’s avatars. Really cool idea.
Labels: facebook, secondlife, social media
posted by darryl ohrt @ 7:40 AM
2 comments
this is how you launch a book
Joseph Jaffe's new book Join the Conversation just hit the stores, and he's managed an amazing feat. His book hit #2 on the business book charts (just under Alan Greenspan's book), and #26 on the overall Amazon charts yesterday. How did he do it? Bum rushing the charts.
By inviting all of his friends - his blog readers, his podcast subscribers, his Twitter followers, his Facebook friends and other social media friends....to join together on Sunday and purchase his book on Amazom.com.
And they did. And his book cruised up the charts. No doubt getting noticed by plenty of people who are not a part of his social network. Hooray for Joseph, and the success of his new book - and hooray for social media - in yet another great example of how small audiences networking together can create something huge. Congrats Joseph!
Labels: blogging, facebook, marketing, self promotion, social media, twitter
posted by darryl ohrt @ 7:31 AM
0 comments
kids today.
WOW. Nothing that you don't already know if you read BrandFlakes regularly - but this is a stunning presentation of students today. Awesome.
Labels: facebook, pop culture, social media, technology, trends, youthmarketing
posted by darryl ohrt @ 7:44 AM
0 comments
"poking" with a pitchfork
When anonymously sending animal crap through the mail just doesn't convey the pure hatred you feel for that not-so-special someone, TechCrunch for this post about Facebook's evil twin, Hatebook: The ANTI-SOCIAL utility that encourages users to upload blackmail material, publish lies and earn "hate points." I've already registered.
Labels: facebook, social media
posted by Wilson Cleveland @ 10:26 PM
0 comments
future of facebook = linked in?
So it's time for the IT departments to let their employees into Facebook. Some think it's the next big business networking tool. I agree.
Labels: facebook, social media
posted by darryl ohrt @ 8:06 AM
0 comments
does the long tail work on facebook?
Here's an interesting factoid. The Long Tail doesn't entirely seem to apply on Facebook. Everyone's doing the same thing. Using the same applications. It's like the 80's when everyone thought that Bon Jovi haircuts were cool.
Check outRadar Oreilly's post about the matter, and then see the Mayor of the Long Tail, Chris Anderson's response. Interesting discussion.
Labels: facebook, longtail, social media, trends
posted by darryl ohrt @ 7:37 AM
0 comments
the future of social networking
Uber brainiac Chris Anderson has some incredible thinking about social networks - and predicts that a 'one size fits all' mentality (Facebook) isn't likely to be the end-all for social networking. He cites Ning as a great example. I'd agree - and it's really starting to get some traction.
He also points out that the future of social networking isn't destination based - but instead should become a standard feature of everywhere we go. Totally.
But that's just my dumb-ass synopsis of what he said. Read it for yourself on The Long Tail blog.
(Photo from Robert Scoble's Facebook gallery. Isn't it awesome?)
Labels: facebook, pop culture, social media, technology, trends
posted by darryl ohrt @ 7:43 AM
2 comments
my new favorite blogger: a facebook friend
A couple of weeks ago, I suggested that Facebook could easily replace blogging. And a few other things (like work).
Now, I have a new favorite blogger. Cheri Uppal. Everytime I open the Facebook tab on my browser (admittedly, too many times during the day), Cheri has posted links to some of the most awesome finds on the internet. Here's a sampling from yesterday:
Unique and strange products from Japan.
Babes with books.
Pierced eyeglasses.
So - if you're not already on...get in the game. Join Facebook, and become a part of something. Become Cheri's friend, and get inspired.
Labels: adindustry, facebook
posted by darryl ohrt @ 7:53 AM
1 comments
lending club closes $1M in loans on facebook.
This is about a week old now, but worthy of notice if you haven't already seen it. Lending Club has announced that they've closed $1M in loans. On Facebook. These are small loans, or "micro loans", and an excellent example of the long tail in action. And the power of social communities like Facebook.
Awesome. I mean, for the people who are realizing Facebook as a business tool - not for the people who are getting further into debt. :)
Labels: facebook, social media, youthmarketing
posted by darryl ohrt @ 7:43 AM
0 comments
facebook could easily replace blogging
Please join Facebook today. (Look me up, once you're in.) This is getting more relevant by the minute. Some of the awesome web 2.0 evangelists (like Robert Scoble) are now posting videos exclusively to Facebook. I've just viewed about six videos that I'd LOVE to share with you, and can't. Until you're in Facebook.
I've only become a user recently, myself - and I've been doing more observing than actually participating. But I'm going to make a genuine effort to change that.
Yesterday, Facebook made what will prove to be a pretty massive announcement. They're opening up the site to search engines. Or at least their member profiles. (Members can choose whether or not they wish to be seen.) I imagine this trend will only continue. Why not have the entire monster crawlable?
Oh yeah, and it looks beautiful on the now-less-expensive iPhone. And the new touchscreen iPod.
So come on in. All of your friends are waiting.
Labels: facebook, google, search, social media, trends
posted by darryl ohrt @ 7:38 AM
1 comments
walmart on facebook. beginning of the end?
Walmart has launched a Facebook application (you'll need a Facebook account to see this) that some say has been hijacked.
I think it's great that they're there. And trying. Parts of their promotion made me say "awesome", and other things made me say "ummmm...."
Awesome:
+ For recognizing the value of Facebook, and not attempting to create your own social network.
+ For producing an application that allows (even negative) posting and conversation.
+ For linking specific products that (seem) well targeted to the needs of the audience.
+ For attempting to be there. It's a step. More than you can say for some other uncool brands.
Ummm....:
+ Forgetting that your audience of college kids are smart. And cynical. Why not turn the conversation into the focal point? Talk "green", talk economics of walmart, and ask "what can we do different?"
+ Forgetting that college kids don't generally think of Walmart as being cool. Wrong to ignore this. One commenter says: "BOOO Wal-Mart, you suck! You unethical, wage-sucking scum, you forget that college students are less ignorant than our parents, we don't ignore what you do to this country."
So why not bring the outside conversation in? There are plenty of strong arguments for their side of the fence, too.
If nothing else, it's fun to watch the conversation.
Labels: facebook, retail, social media, youthmarketing
posted by darryl ohrt @ 7:32 AM
0 comments
half of the places you don't want to work at
Apparently, half of the employers out there block their employees from accessing Facebook while on the job.
Always great to know that your employer trusts you. And that your employer needs to babysit you, to ensure your productivity. If only they could stand over your shoulder all day, everyday just to be sure that you're not wasting a single minute out of your super fun productive day.
Without Facebook, how would you ever meet friends like