Evernote is Clearly Serious

Of course the web has changed how we read news.  For many of us, the newspaper is rare, and television news doesn't deliver the depth of quality of information we demand. While there are as many ways to read the news now as there are Starbucks shops in a downtown financial district, it seems that a number of common threads have emerged.

Just from a sampling among our friends, we find that common approaches to reading news include Google+, Facebook, Twitter, AOL, and Yahoo. The two latter options present news items curated by an editor and laid out in a more formalized structure.  The three former options occur more organically, with news items presented by circles of friends sharing the articles that interest them.

Where Next? How About Here!

My friend asked me the other day, "what do you think will be the next big social media influence? I'm hoping to find the next Facebook before it gets big."

After more consideration, I thought that the question we should be asking ourselves is how well we use the networks we already inhabit.  You see, the well established networks (LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, and Google+ -- all of which have well over 100 million subscribers) are vital to business and media communication strategies.  If we fail to use these tools well, then seeking out the 'next hot platform' will not work any better. The endeavor simply dooms us to being participants in the "Red Queen's Race."

Vital questions to ask are:

Infographics and the Rise of a New Intellect

I'll be honest. I love infographics every bit as much as the next hungry information consumer. I adore the snapshot presentation of facts that gives me a glimpse of the impact and reach of certain phenomenon. (In fact, I'm producing a science show for kids that uses this approach very heavily.)

BUT -- I also know that one must be careful to check the underlying facts and the methodology with which the picture in an infographics is assembled. There is an old saying that "figures don't lie, but liars can figure." If you also consider the timeworn saw that "a picture is worth a thousand words" you can deduce that liars who can figure AND who can create infographics have 1000 more ways to lie!

Here's one from an article I saw recently.

Following the Discussion

Over the time that online discussions have been around, there has been an evolution in the way we read things. Near the dawn of "social media" the metaphor required that you first find the right discussion, and then you could see what people say. (This was the way it worked in the BBS and "discussion forum" days.)

The current fashion is to start with the people (presumably that you know and trust) and then delve your way into the discussions (which, presumably would be the ones of interest to you). We progressed from "who's talking about my topic" to "what topics are on my friends' minds?"

The mechanism that allows us to use the topic or idea to discover people, and of course to explore the ideas themselves is the #hashtag. Here are some of the things we've learned about the use (and abuse) of the hashtag.

Vend Locally, Speak Globally

I can remember how in 1997 when I talked to small local business owners about the excitement of the Internet and what it would make available to them, many of them told me, "I don't need people all over the world to know about my business, my marketplace is right here in this town."

Today if your business does not have a web site however, it's like not having a business phone number. (In fact, even if your business has not yet opened its doors and doesn't actually have a phone number - you still need a web site in place for many purposes.)

The conversation today is very different. I talk to business owners about how they can use a social media strategy and they say something that sounds a lot like what they said in 1997. They ask me if it matters to their bottom line that Twitter readers in New York City can read about their local flower shop or restaurant.

This article makes a great case for how it DOES matter. (Why Online Reputation Matters - Small Business Trends, Jan 2012)

Here's what I have to add in the way of a cautionary tale.

A certain business with prominent success in the Southeast US recently leaned hard on a small business owner who makes t-shirts in his garage. (They may have believed that they had to do this in order to protect their trademarks.) The business owner struck back by mobilizing a veritable army of fans and friends of friends to expose the bullying. He used Facebook, YouTube, and a network of cost conscious blogger moms to spread the word.

Even when the outrage belonged to someone in a distant geographical region (like California or Colorado) where the prominent brand had no business -- the reach of these social media participants did bring the message back into the core markets for the brand.

The t-shirt guy is doing very well, thank you so much. The impact of the boycotts and bad publicity for the larger brand is difficult to measure given that it's a family owned company without a requirement to expose its sales figures.

I can attest that others have told me that they like the larger brand's products, but they will not be purchasing them any more.  Guess the family that owns the company will have to just Eat More Kale.

For you as a business owner, this should serve as an indicator that if you don't use today's tools strategically to manage your brand's reputation, someone else will be doing it for you.

Truly a Twit? I don't think so!

Occasionally as I follow new people on Twitter, I get an automated response from them that goes something like this:

"Thanks 4 the follow! Please prove U R not a Bot & validate..."

The first part is good, although I've learned that adept users of the English language can still use complete sentences and words on Twitter, even with the 140 character limit. It's merely a matter of efficiency with language.

The second part is a little startling and mildly insulting.

You see, if I've followed you on Twitter, it is a sign that I respect what you have to say to allow your thoughts into my news timeline.  So asking me to prove something is a bit rude.

On top of that however, the link that is supplied leads to a service called "TrueTwit Validation System" that promises to instantly give you 10,000 followers. Without even having to register for their service (which IS a required step to be "validated") I can tell that this is...

Hogwash!

The principles of effective social media participation have to do with engagement, with participation, and with value provided in the network through contribution, mentions, re-sharing, and feedback. None of that results in the instant assignment of 10,000 followers.

I don't drop people I follow when I get this message, but when I'm in the mood, I do call them out with a mention.

If you don't use the service, I recommend not using it. If you do already use the service, I strongly recommend turning off the Auto Follow message.  I'm pretty sure I'm not the only one who's startled and alienated by it.

My Month Over 50

Klout Scores and The Red Queen's Race

I don't know what caused me to check into it, but sometime back I fired up an account at Klout to see what my social media reach looks like.

I mean who would ignore a round of calls to potential allies and colleagues about business when there's a new way to examine graphs about frequency and impact of our thoughts shared online?

Okay, well here's the point.  Klout allows you to aggregate statistics on activity related to your Facebook, Twitter, Google+, YouTube, Tumblr, and a variety of other social media platforms. It determines a composite score based upon the size of your network, the number of people who respond and interact with your supplied content, and other factors that illustrate the reach.

The gold standard for a Klout score is 50 or better.  If you can manage to arrange your network so that it reaches that peak, you have achieved the equivalent of a .290 batting average in baseball. (For those of you who don't follow the game, .290 is performance in the highly acceptable range.)

I did manage to crest past 50 about a month ago and although I suspected a tweak to the Klout scoring algorithm, I still discovered that I was very pleased with myself, especially when I checked to see where others in my peer group were rated.

But then the Red Queen's Race began.  After a couple of days of rising score, I saw mine begin to fall incrementally each day.  If I made it a point to post often, and to do the things that would incent people to share my posts, retweet my updates, and to mention me in their own posts, the decrease would be mild.  If I went to the beach and left the system powered down, my decrease was more significant.

Ultimately, I don't know the value of this measure -- but since everyone is measured the same way, it certainly provides a relative guide. On the other hand, I have to ask myself if I'm willing to persist at spending time each day hunting for content I can publish to keep the buzz high.

It is free on the other hand, and only takes about 5 minutes to get started, so perhaps you'd like to visit Klout and discover your own score. You may find it entertaining or insightful.

And then there's always the beach.