I was reading Chris Brogan’s Blog — always highly recommended — and one of his recent posts, Quid Pro No, got me thinking about how some social networking websites are un-naturally inflating their user numbers by creating an environment where reciprocal friending is de rigueur. Everything from address scraping to spammy auto-tweeting when your friends sign up, to old-fashioned guilt is used to get you to sign-up for sites you never intend to visit again.
I Hug Complete Strangers
Twitter Strategies: Random Followers and Follow Strategies
The Evil Genius that is Peter Shankman
Three Questions from Social Media Club Boston
Last night I went to the Social Media Club meeting (#SMCBoston) held at Hill Holiday’s State Street offices. Hill Holiday kicked things off with a multi-media overview of their incredibly creative Chili’s campaign (using P.J. Bland’s.) I loved the idea of using social media to “activate assets.” (Sounds like Joss Whedon’s Dollhouse, doesn’t it?) And, the entire connected universe, wow. Impressive…budget. With a short introduction for and from each, the panel was introduced.
Teaching Curiosity
Economic Conditions Demand Flexible Thinking
I live in Lexington, MA. The town was recently cited as one of the most walkable Boston suburbs. Downtown has been a bit torn up for the last year or so as the Battle Green Inn was torn down and a new complex with condos and retail space is going up in its stead. It all looks like it is going to be beautiful when it is done.
Marketing Elephants
The Business Value of Twitter
A friend recently asked me to help her demonstrate the business value of social networking (particularly Twitter) to a potential client. I started off the way any reporter might tackle the job, I tweeted the question, asking for opinions and searched Twitter for references to “business value of Twitter.”
Last Night They Paid Me in Pizza
When you are what you sell — as most services are — you often find yourself being asked to help out. Which is totally cool — I really don’t have the financial wherewithal to make big donations to my favorite charities or my friends’ projects, but I can help out, applying my expertise in PR/marketing and social media.