Social Media is Hard: The 2013 Landscape of Social Networks in One Infographic
How Governments Are Using Social Media for Better & for Worse
Social media has become a crucial part of how we interact with our friends, community and even run our cities. Governments are starting to take serious notice and incorporate social media into their own day-to-day actions. Governments may not be early adopters but the proliferation of social in national media has ramped up its importance for governments around the world. While this initial stance kept politicians on the defensive, enough time has passed that individual politicians and even entire governments are starting to use social media to connect with their communities in new, open ways. We've chosen a few examples to illustrate some of the many ways government is embracing social media. Have a read through some of these initiatives and let us know in the comments how your own government or political representative is putting social media to good use. America Gets Social Social media has a strange role in America as both kingmaker and career wrecker. Canada Crowdsources Conclusion
6 Core Principles to Tap the Power of Social Community Participation
Gartner reports that many business and IT leaders fail at utilizing social media effectively because they do not understand mass collaboration. Many businesses use a “provide and pray” approach, expecting online community participation to just happen. It’s just one of the reasons why communities fail. What happens instead is that users have an initial interest and then lose that interest as they discover that the platform is too difficult to use collaboratively. Applying the six core design principles creates a better social media environment for meaningful collaboration and social community participation, Gartner says. 1. User and community participation is the driving force behind successful mass collaboration. The design becomes driven by this goal instead of making a social outlet where people can easily participate in the conversation and add meaningful content. 2. A purpose must be meaningful, identifiable and clearly defined for the target audience. 3. 4. 5. 6.
What marketers need to know about Google+
With another social network being launched by Google, the leader in search and most things Internet, the world is abuzz (sorry) with what Google+ means. Well, if you're a marketer, you'd better get off your recliner and pay attention to what it means to you and your clients. In its first month, Google+ surpasses 10 million users and the +1 button has already been added to more sites than the "tweet this" button. Third attempt This is Google's third attempt at a social/collaboration platform. Its first attempt, Google Wave , did not make much of a... well... wave as a collaboration platform. In developing Google+, the search giant has taken advantage of what it learned from the Buzz and Wave failures and has combined it with the third mover advantage, following Facebook and Twitter's massive successes in the social space. Yes, Google+ is a monster. There are a few large influences that Google+ will have on the social web that marketers need to take note of:
Social Envy - Study Finds Facebook Causes Depression And Isolation
BERLIN - Social networks like Facebook make many things easier. You can find out right away if Alex got the job or not, and you can not only read about Marie’s vacation, but you can also see all those pictures of her on the beach, too. There’s also a downside to this. Researchers have conducted tests that show that people who spend a lot of time scrolling on Facebook are more socially isolated and more frequently depressed than those who do not. The question, of course, poses itself: are lonely people more drawn to social networks – or does constant surfing result in loneliness over time? While it wasn’t able to answer the question conclusively, a joint research study conducted by Berlin’s Humboldt University and the Darmstadt’s Technical University did however reveal that spending time on social networks could lead to negative feelings. The German researchers, led by Dr. The never-ending “envy spiral”
Debunking Popular Myths of Social Media
Social media is many things to many people. For some, it’s a core part of their overall business and marketing strategy. For others, it’s a key player in driving traffic to their blog. So, lots of uses and definitions, depending on who you speak to. Yet there is one area where all the definitions can come together and agree on, and that’s the area of social media myths. So, here are a few social media myths that we can probably all agree are out-of-date thinking at best, and dangerous advice at worst. Social Media is Free Bzzzzt (insert noisy buzzer sound here). Yes, the tools are free (unless you have the premium version of these platforms). But even if you’re a small business user or solo entrepreneur using social media to help raise awareness of your brand through interaction, you have to invest a serious amount of time for any traction to begin. Sure, you can bootstrap your way around social media – but free it ain’t. Social Media Levels the Playing Field Except they’re not. Conclusion
The Conversation Prism: Making Sense of Social Media
Surprise. Not all social media is the same. Brian Solis and JESS3 break new ground with an illustrative taxonomy that unravels some of the mystery concerning the use of social media. The power of their contribution lies in the distinctions implicit in the categories found in The Conversation Prism (click the diagram below). Each category around the “wheel” represents a different type of conversation. By implication, each type of conversation serves a distinctive business purpose. As one moves around the wheel, other helpful distinctions become apparent. The taxonomy also marks a key milestone in the evolution of social media. Here are some thoughts on how to use The Conversation Prism: Marketing. Enterprise Strategy. Finance. Information Technology. Human Resources. The Conversation Prism provides a welcome tool as social media moves into its second stage of development.
What Google+ Means For Marketers
Like everyone else, I was stunned at Google+ exploding on the scene-and the incredible buzz that ensued. Google could give Charlie Sheen a run for the money if the breathless hype continues, which I expect it will for awhile. Still, marketers and companies should take notice because, after all, it is Google. The 500-pound-gorillo’s jumping into the market puts a spotlight on some key issues-ignore them at your own peril. Trying my best to cut through all the smoke, here’s what I see short term: More fragmentation and disruption: The new shiny toy immediately drew in the Geeks, and has since been spreading like wildfire — 10 million new users in only two weeks. More noise, more information overload: Actually, information is not your key concern-conversations are. Looking at the bigger picture, this is really as much about content as anything. Five questions to ask for starters, and to make sure you’re positioned for the G+ world: Are you in the game?
Facebook likes can reveal private personality traits, according to study
It's no secret that Facebook is a goldmine for advertisers seeking to target specific demographics — but it may surprise you to discover just how much of your personality is revealed by simple activities there. Researchers from the University of Cambridge and Microsoft Research have been quietly (and innocuously) collecting data on Facebook user likes and personality traits using applications like "MyPersonality" on Facebook, and now they're showing how the data can be used. Simply by tracking what things you've liked on Facebook, the researchers say they're able to determine things like your sex, ethnicity, political leanings, and religion with accuracies over 80 percent. The findings were published today in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, based on data that you can dig into yourself on a public wiki.
