The Social Wisdom Of Jane Austen Novels

08Feb10

Characters in Jane Austen novels should serve as models for social-network users, writes Elizabeth Dunn. Austen knew only too well what many marketers forget: Attention to etiquette is essential at all times, and passion is the most important thing of all. “Speak from your heart, do not endeavor to deceive, and all shall be well,” Dunn writes. HubSpot.com

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Why News Orgs Need Social Editors

05Feb10

Posting stories to Facebook and Twitter may soon be a full-time job — even at established media organizations, panelists at a Social Media Week event argued. Staying relevant and engaged in social spaces are musts for all media companies, they said, and it’s often more work than individual reporters can handle. “If we’re going to survive as an industry, we have to figure out new models. The old ways aren’t working or they’re working in very limited ways for a very limited number of power players,” said Rachel Sklar of Mediaite.com. The Huffington Post

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10 Steps To A Smarter Social Strategy

02Feb10

It’s easy to use social tools to add value to your business, but you’ve got to work smart, writes Don Reisinger. You need to invest plenty of energy, Reisinger notes, but you should also make sure you don’t go overboard: Target only the networks that make sense for your company, engage only with those people whose interests match your services or products and be careful only to post comments that reflect well on your business. GigaOm

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Calculating The Cost Of Social Media

28Jan10

Calculating your company’s social media’s ROI starts with being able to track the investment your company is actually making, writes Brian Solis. By keeping tabs on the employees, time, equipment and opportunity costs associated with a social-media campaign, you make it easier to see whether you’re actually getting something of value in return, Solis writes. “Our exploration and experience has redefined the traditional metrics,” Solis adds. “[But] the case for new metrics can’t be made until we have an intrinsic understanding of how social-media engagement affects us at every level.” Mashable

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4 Essential Real-Time Trend-Monitoring Tools

25Jan10

The real-time Web is potentially a powerful tool for market research — but you have to know where to look for information, writes Evan Britton. With tools such as Tweet Cloud, which monitors the buzz surrounding a certain keyword, or Daily RT, which flags the Twitter terms that are re-tweeted the most, it’s getting far easier to monitor social-media trends as they happen. “These real-time tools will help you to utilize the real-time Web effectively and efficiently,” Britton promises. Entrepreneur.com

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9 Social Web Questions For Smaller Firms

24Jan10

Smaller companies tend to spend more time managing day-to-day operations, so Heidi Cohen offers nine questions these firms should consider to develop an effective social-media plan. Does your business show off what it does online, extend expertise to broader audiences or provide reasons for people to connect? “This may drive additional revenues,” she writes, recommending that companies create content that possible clients will find useful. ClickZ

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Does Your Company Need A Social-Media Calendar?

20Jan10

Social-media success is all about being organic and responsive — but you can still benefit by planning ahead, writes Aliza Sherman. Using an editorial calendar can help ensure you keep hitting your core messages, and help you coordinate your efforts across a range of social-media platforms. “You shouldn’t be tweeting and updating entirely in a vacuum,” Sherman writes. “Organic conversation doesn’t work for companies that are trying to achieve specific business objectives.” Web Worker Daily

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Preach To The Converted, Says Home Depot Social Team

19Jan10

It’s vital to focus your organization’s social-media campaign on colleagues who “get” the format, or at least have the ability to learn, argue the Home Depot’s Nick Ayres and Sarah Molinari. Some people will never buy into social programs, they note, so you’re better off making the most of people — such as existing customer-service reps — who can sense the medium’s potential. SmartBrief/SmartBlog on Social Media 

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Are You A Conversationalist Or A Spammer?

18Jan10

Marketers need to strike a balance between conversation and self-promotion to get the most out of Twitter, argues Jason Falls. At one extreme, Falls writes, marketers get so caught up in conversations that they overlook opportunities to promote their brand; at the other, marketers fail to engage their followers and simply bombard them with promotional tweets. There’s no right or wrong here, Falls argues, but it’s essential to find a marketing style that fits your company’s goals. Social Media Explorer

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How Tweets Climb Google’s Rankings

15Jan10

The key to Google’s new real-time search technology is that it ranks Twitter users by reputation, says Amit Singhal, who led the system’s development. The more followers someone has, the more weight Google’s system accords to the people they themselves follow, Singhal says. “You earn reputation, and then you give reputation,” he explains. “One user following another in social media is … a form of recommendation.” MIT Technology Review

Filed under: Google, Social Media, Social Tools, Strategy, Twitter   |  Closed