Archive for December, 2007
Sunday, December 30th, 2007
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Photo by sarchi
A big Thanks to Dan Zarrella for this wonderful guest post.
If we are going to talk about how to create desire with and in social media,
we must first understand what it is we mean when we say “desire”. In memetics
the closest term is probably attention, but that concept is not completely analogous,
desire stimulates and is borne from attention. In Fruedian terms, desire is
what drives a person to seek pleasure and avoid pain, and to Kant things that
purported to make a person’s future better are desireable.
For us to desire something, it must be attention-getting, pleasure-inducing
and promise a better tomorrow (or at least a better next few moments),
but it must also be compatible with existing mental and social frameworks. We
will not view a meme with an open mind if it contradicts an idea or belief we’ve
invested attention into, nevermind desire it. This also works at the social
level, most people won’t give an idea the time of day if it disagrees with something
my social group accepts. Apple fans will not be convinced that windows is better,
so its pointless to try, instead try re-framing your meme to prevent resistance.
You’ll catch more flies with honey than with vinegar.
The creation of desire, or the process by which a person is induced
to desire something come in two models, in one desire itself is a meme
capable of transmission and assimilation from person to person and in the other
desire is an emotion caused by memes.
In the latter model it can be assumed that if you create a
pleasure-inducing and future-enhancing meme, you will stimulate desire. In social
media pleasure induction generally comes in the form of entertainment (a funny
video) or social proof (being the first in your clique to know about a new rumor),
and future enhancing typically takes the form of empowering things, like hassle-reducing
gadgets (think iPhone) or HOWTOs.
In the former model, the “desire meme” must be engineered by
encouraging the outward expression of desire, both at the individual and the
cultural level. Human empathy and a desire to “fit in” and “belong” to a social
group with similar motivations will stir desire in people exposed to other people
who are already infected with the “desire meme”. Apple has done a great job
of stimulating an “us vs them” mentality which leads to strong expressions of
group and individual desire, which in turn brings more fans into the fold. The
entire Ron Paul meme is about evangelism also. I allowed people to leave comments
on the USB Absinthe Spoon site, proclaiming why they wanted one and many of
the reactions to the site focused on how much people wanted one rather than
the product itself.
In a review of Sade’s Reason, the philosopher Maurice Blanchot said
“For passion to become energy, it is necessary that it be constricted, that it be mediated by passing through a necessary moment of insensibility, then it will be the greatest passion possible.”
In social media it is a challenge, some sort of friction that turns
simple want into powerful desire. Things like scarcity and exclusivity,
as well as Veblen-based price structures can turn a lukewarm following into
a frothing mass of lunatics. Invite-only web services like gmail have taken
advantage of this phenomenon to spread widely with very low distribution or
advertising costs. My USB Absinthe Spoon campaign was able to drive desire in
a specific following by emphasizing the scarcity of the product.
Dan Zarrella is a
viral marketing consultant
and if you liked this post you can read his blog and
vote
for it at the SEJ search blog awards for Best Social Media Marketing Blog.
Technorati Tags:social media, social media marketing, viral marketing
Posted in Guest Posts, Social Media, Social Media Marketing | 6 Comments »
Friday, December 28th, 2007
Photo by luc legay
2007 will be ending in the next few days and 2008 will be beginning. It has
been an amazing year for me. It was In 2007 I became very involved in Social
Media Activity. I am looking forward to 2008 and everything that it has to offer,
but before I can simply say Hello to 2008 and Goodbye to 2007 I wanted to list
my favorite posts from all of my favorite Social Networking sites…. StumbleUpon,
Sphinn, Twitter, and Facebook. *Keep in mind that these posts are my favorites
and nothing official.*
Favorite StumbleUpon Posts of 2007
StumbleRank - Ranks the
Top StumbleUpon Users.
A
Comprehensive Guide to StumbleUpon: How to Build Massive Traffic to Your Website
- Maki of DoshDosh wrote this mini guide on StumbleUpon because he thought StumbleUpon
has enormous potential in maximizing brand exposure while fitting nicely with
a long term site building strategy.
How
to Use StumbleUpon for Your Business: The Definitive Guide - Tamar writes
this great post for 10e20.com.
The
Why, How and Who of Marketing in StumbleUpon - Garrett French writes this
very in depth post regarding StumbeUpon and using it for Marketing purposes.
Building
Your Blog With StumbleUpon - A ProBlogger Guest post by Skellie showing
how to use StumbleUpon to increase your Blog Traffic.
Stumbleupon
mathematics for stumblers - Tim Nash gives us his thoughts on how he believes
the StumbleUpon algorithm works.
How
to Use StumbleUpon to Promote - David Risley of WebbyOnline explains in
detail how to Use StumbleUpon.
StumbleUpon
Will Love Us Even When Google Doesn’t - Brian Wallace writes about
the effectiveness of StumbleUpon.
5 Tactics
For Driving Traffic From StumbleUpon - Cameron Olthuis writes for Search
Engine Land showing you how StumbleUpon is a great way to bring large amounts
of traffic to your site…. at times even bringing more traffic than digg.
How
to Set Up a Domino Effect of Traffic - Vandelay Design writes how he greatly
increased his traffic by setting up a Domino Effect with StumbleUpon.
25
Reasons You Get Thumbs Up - Andy Beard comes up with a list of 25 reasons
why you might get a Thumbs Up on StumbleUpon.
Analysis:
StumbleUpon’s Top 50 Stumblers - Glen Allsopp felt there wasn’t a
lot of information on StumbleUpon on how to become a Top Stumbler. Glen researched
and posted his findings.
6
Reasons to Love StumbleUpon - Marty tells us the 6 reasons he loves StumbleUpon.
Writing
for StumbleUpon: High Impact Content “Above the Scroll” in Four
Easy Steps - Muhammad Saleem points out that with StumbleUpon having your
important content above the scroll is extremely important.
How
Important is StumbleUpon? - Rose Sylvia shows us how to use StumbleUpon
to its fullest.
Favorite Sphinn Posts of 2007
Sphinn
- The Social News Site Every Search Marketer Should Be Using - Rand writes
in detail 10 reasons why Every Search Marketer should be using Sphinn.
Please
Don’t Ask Me to Sphinn Your Stories (and How to Use Sphinn and Similar
Social News Websites) - Tamar writes this excellent post about Social Networking
Etiquotte.
Why
Sphinn Needs a Dumbass Button - Digg has a "bury it" button….
Greg Boser suggests a "Dumbass Button" for Sphinn.
Fool Proof
Sphinn-Bait Tactics to Reach the Front Page - Kelvin Newman writes in detail
how to reach the front page of Sphinn.
A
5 Pack Of Sphinn Interviews - Todd Mintz Interviews 5 members of the Sphinn
Community.
How
to Dominate Sphinn in 4 Easy Steps - David Harry comes up with the Sphinn
Domination Plan.
The
First (un)Official Sphinn Awards - Day 1 - Jeff Quipp at Search Engine People
offers days 1 of the (un)Official Sphinn Awards…. freakin hilarious.
The
(un)Official Sphinn Awards Part 2 - David Harry Holds Part II of the Sphinn
Awards at his site and it is equally as funny as Day 1.
A
Very Beginner’s Guide to the Sphinn Network : Tips and Tricks - Mack
offers up some tips to New User’s of Sphinn.
Sphinn:
In Depth Traffic Analysis And Advice - Matt Jones did his research and offers
his traffic analysis and some Sphinning tips.
20
Top Sphinners You Should Know - Here is a list of 20 Sphinners and their
sites that you might not know, but should.
Sphinn Google Gadget
- As if I didn’t adore Pat of SEOish enough he comes up with this amazing Sphinn
Google Gadget.
Favorite Twitter Posts of 2007
The Big Juicy
Twitter Guide - Caroline Middlebrook puts together a very detailed guide
to Using Twitter for Marketing.
Guide
to Twitter as a Tool for Marketing and PR - Lee Odden puts together a great
post with tips on using Twitter as a Marketing Tool. Lee’s community offers
tons of wonderful Twitter Tips!!
The
Several Habits of Wildly Successful Twitter Users - Bren at Slacker Manager
offers tips and advice for Successful Twitter Wanna-be’s.
Eight
Ways Twitter is Useful Professionally - Anne Zelenka offers 8 ways to use
Twitter Professionally.
Use
Twitter To Boost Your Marketing Strategy, No Really - Chris Bennett offers
his ideas to user Twitter as part of a Marketing Strategy.
The
Top 5 Ways Smart People Use Twitter - Sharon Sarmiento suggests focusing
on these 5 smart uses of Twitter to keep from falling into the Twitter abyss.
Is
Twitter TOO good? - Kathy Sierra writes this post showing her struggle with
Twitter…. In this post you can see her struggle with Twitter being a waste
of time and the rest of the world chanting Twitter’s wonderful goodness.
Twitter
vs. Pownce: Who Pwns? - Tamar takes a close look at Twitter and Pownce and
compares the two.
Twitter is Paying
My Rent - Marshall Kirkpatrick writes how he uses Twitter to come up with
stories to blog about. At the time of this post 6 out of his 7 last posts wint
to the front page of Digg… the same stories he came up with thanks to Twitter.
Twitter
CAN be Useful! Who Knew? - Due to Twitter coverage of the fires back in
October Jennifer Laycock saw an incredibly useful way to use Twitter….. Her
brother and his wife were able to subscribe to the Twitter Feed and quick and
easy access to instant updates as they drove across the country safely.
Favorite Facebook Posts of 2007
The
Facebook Marketing Bible: 24 Ways to Market Your Brand, Company, Product, or
Service Inside Facebook - If you are looking on exactly how to Market on
Facebook this is a "Must Read" by Justin Smith.
12
Ways to Use Facebook Professionally - Judi Sohn explains why Facebook can
be a great addition to your web working toolbox.
How
to use Facebook to Promote your Blog - Brian Wallace compliles some tips
on how to promote your blog using Facebook.
Not
many people know this, but I invented Facebook - Lyndon says, Let us all
rise up and shout, “I INVENTED FACEBOOK.”
Your
Private Facebook Info Isn’t So Private - Lisa Barone shows why adjusting
your Facebook privacy settings may not be enough to keep people from seeing
inside your Facebook Windows.
Seven
Steps to Graphing Your Facebook Strategy - Dave McClure offers an indepth
look at Facebook. This is a great post for anyone new to Facebook.
A
Successful Facebook Marketing Campaign - Social-Media-Optimization.com compares
a successful Facebook campaign (Target) with an unsuccessful campaign (Walmart).
How
to Develop a Hit Facebook App: 29 Essential Tools and Tutorials - SoftwareDeveloper.com
comes up with Resources to help you build a successful Facebook app that users
will love.
You
too might be a Facebookaholic, if: - Dave McClure gives us 17 hints that
we might be a Facebookaholic.
Who
needs Google? Facebook’s stealth ad system - ValleyWag
gives us the details on Facebook’s Ad System.
Mash
Pets, SuperPokes, Vampires, or Zombies? What are Your Social Network Ice Breakers?
- Mark Laymon shows us how he uses certain Facebook applications to "Break
the Ice".
A
Girl’s First Time….. being Poked - Ok, this post is one of mine.
Sorry, I just crack myself up. 
Is
The Horde At Facebooks Walls? - Tim Nash writes this post for Clicks.ws.
on the how-to’s of Advertising on Facebook.
Web
Strategy: What the Web Strategist should know about Facebook - Jeremiah
Owyang tells us what we need to know about Facebook as a strategic marketing
channel.
Technorati Tags:social networking, social bookmarking, stumbleupon, sphinn, twitter, facebook, 2007, social media, social media marketing
Posted in Facebook, Humor, Link Love, Social Bookmarking, Social Media, Social Media Marketing, Social Networking, Sphinn, StumbleUpon, Twitter | 18 Comments »
Tuesday, December 25th, 2007
Image courtesy of krisdecurtis
I wanted to take a moment to wish all who celebrates a very Merry Christmas.
I hope everyone enjoys this time with their families. If it’s anything like
my Holiday with my family it will be wonderful food, plenty to drink, great
company and lots of time spent putting toys together.
Have a wonderful and safe Holiday. Merry Christmas!!
Shana Albert
Posted in Uncategorized | 4 Comments »
Monday, December 17th, 2007
Photo by Fabbio
I love you so much I hate you!! Or, I hate you so much I love you!! Oh boy,
is my head Sphinning!! I keep
Stumbling over things
and getting Mixxed up because
my head is totally in the Social Media clouds. Let me explain my battle a bit…
I love you, Social Media…. Let me Count the Ways:
- People – I have met
so many people from
all over World.
Many of these
people I would consider a dear
friend and/or Colleague.
- Traffic - With the correct Social Media Marketing Strategies
you can bring a lot of amazing traffic to your site.
- This is Work?? - I can call Social Media part of my job,
but yet it is so much fun.
- Voyeurism - I can be a Voyeur and it’s okay….
Watching where my friends have been and what they did while they were there.
(StumbleUpon,
MyBlogLog,
etc…)
- Conversations - Conversations via blog comments, Instant
Messaging, blog posts, facebook,
twitter, blah,
blah, blah.
- De-Stresser - Take my mind off of my Stressful Work / Life.
- Not all about Google - No longer have to rely on Major
Search Engines for all of my traffic.
- Keep Updated - Easy to keep up with new and updated information
on the topics that interest me. RSS Feeds
- Link Building - Building Links is fairly easy with Social
Media and a lot of fun. No more emailing for link exchanges.
- Creativity - I feel More Creative now than I ever was.
- Sweet Dreams - I love Social Media so much I even dream
about it at night while I’m sleeping.
- Opportunities - Joined in on projects
with fellow colleagues I have met online
- Standing Out - Social Media Activities can make you Stand
Out - A successful Article or Blog Post can do very well on Social Networking
Sites which can make you stand-out in your Niche.
- Social Media Fame - Having a Blog with a Readership can
make you feel like a Superstar.
I hate you, Social Media… Let me Count the Ways:
- Pressure of keeping up the Pace - Feeling if I slow down
I will get lost and no one will be able to find me.
- Inevitable that someone will be unhappy - This is very
difficult for a people pleaser such as myself. Unable to make everyone happy.
If you make someone unhappy you might hear about it in a follow-up post or
a blog comment.
- Voyeurism - Just like I can watch other people travel through
the Blogosphere, people can watch me too. Knowing this makes me feel a bit
weary about popping on to someone’s blog or StumbleUpon Profile too many times
in a row. Not sure why, but it does.
- This is Work!! - Social Media is very time consuming. And,
even though it is a lot of fun it is so much work!!
- People - Most people that I have met online have been wonderful!!
But, not everyone is as nice. Some people pretend to be your friend because
ultimately they want something from you. Don’t use me!! I hate that!!
- RSS Feed Reader is Too Full - As I mentioned in #8 above I use
a RSS Feed Reader to keep updated. However, my Feed Reader has become so full
that lately I have been missing important posts. Because my Reader is so full
I tend to read the Titles of the Posts to see what sounds interesting enough
to read and landed up missing some really wonderful posts.
- Poor Time Management - What little Time Management Skills
I have had in the past have totally went down the toilet since I added Social
Media Activity to my To-do list. UGH!! I think I’ve already complained
about this in the past, huh?!
- Productivity - Productivity on some of my other duties
has begun to slip.
- Sleepless Nights - Don’t get enough Sleep. Even my
dreams are overcome by Social Media Activities.
- Social Media Pressure - The pressure to achieve a certain
Social Media Status or keep this status is incredibly intense. Sometimes it
is hard to enjoy the fame due to the constant fear of losing it.
I will be following this post up with other posts detailing the specifics on
each of these Love/Hate dilemmas.
Technorati Tags:social media, social networking, social bookmarking, sphinn, stumbleupon, social media marketing, blogging
Posted in Blogging, Facebook, Humor, Mixx, Social Bookmarking, Social Media, Social Media Marketing, Social Networking, Time Management, Twitter, Web 2.0 | 20 Comments »
Friday, December 7th, 2007
Yesterday I wrote a Post on Collective-Thoughts, Wow,
Social Media is a lot like High School!! . It is a humorous look at how
Social Media has many similarities to High School. Both Social Media and High
Schools have Popular Crowds, Clubs, The Bad Boys, Rule Breakers, Goodie-Goodies,
Parties, Peer Pressure, and Gossip. I hope the readers enjoyed it as much as
I enjoyed writing it.
I’ve learned that using analogies is a great way to explain things that are
normally difficult to explain. There are many people on the net that find Social
Media and Web 2.0 very confusing. Analogies help explain something confusing
to an individual by comparing it with something they already understand. So,
here I have listed 12 articles that use cool analogies to explain different
aspects of Social Media.
Join the Conversation or Break
Into the Conversation? - Sean at Grin & Grumble compares Social Media
being a Pool and Bloggers being the different types of swimmers in the Pool
of Social Media.
The
“symphony” of social media - Dee Rambeau at CausePlanet.org
writes a creative analogy comparing a symphony orchestra with social media.
Why Corporations
Should Blog (Hint, it’s not SEO) - Josh Hallett at Hyku uses your love for
your significant other to prove a point.
Marc
Canter’s vision of the open social network - Chris at Particls Blog comparing
Facebook and other Social Networks are like Shopping Centers.
Fly-Fishing
Where the Fish Are - Ann Handley at Marketing Profs Daily Fix writes about
fishing using flies was not unlike marketing using the tools of social media.
Social
Media, the Pond Analogy and the Old Media Disconnect - sean at Scrollin’
On Dubs compares Marketing with the spreading of ripples in a glassy pond.
The
Ethics Of Social Bookmarking - xrayspecs at The Internet Marketing Neophyte
compares a new site to a piece of driftwood.
Social
Media Marketing is Similar to a Fishing Tournament - Mark Laymon at Collective-Thoughts
Bookmarking
Solutions: Quick Access vs. Long Term Storage - Jay White at Dumb Little
Man compares Social Bookmarking to paper filing systems.
Advertising
Tips (with Sex examples) - talisman.org explains what marketing is using
Pick-up Lines and the such.
Online
social networking, an extension to human evolution? Arun Radhakrishnan at
TechRepublic talks about the relation between social networking and human evolution.
The
Virtual world and the Real World - An Analogy - Karthik Vijayakumar at Water
Droplets compares The virtual world to the real world.
Technorati Tags:social media, social bookmarking, social networking, analogies, social media marketing
Posted in Blogging, Facebook, Humor, Social Bookmarking, Social Media, Social Media Marketing, Social Networking, Web 2.0, Websites | 8 Comments »
