MySpace, where are you going?

Last week, another MySpace CEO stepped down to be replaced by two co-Presidents.

In the wake of several recent changes in leadership, one would expect that at least one of them would have left behind a progressive change in what is happening in terms of retention and acquisition of new users.  Sadly, it seems the juggernaut that once was keeps filling roles with job titles, but not leaders.  Maybe this time it will be different.

Interestingly, MySpace was doing quite well prior to its acquisition by News Corp., in my opinion. The question is, with the data and knowledge they hold concerning MySpace users and their interests and habits, why can’t a company of their size and resources figure out what to do with that information?

Who stopped using MySpace?  Everyone currently on Facebook.  The MySpace we all know could never bring us back as the site stands currently.

The question is, what should they do?

Some action is required if the site is to be considered a player a few years from now.  Why not take the music and entertainment path by storm and become the best at that, instead of just another site for music?  What are they thinking?  I feel like they’re squeezing the sands of opportunity right through their fingers and it seems like they don’t even know it.

I have friends who bought the Droid from Verizon because of the hype leading up to it.  As cool as it is, the hype wears off.  Something like this won’t work here–they need a brand new approach with a story and incredible stickiness.  The raw materials exist.  I wonder who will make something of them.  MySpace should really consider leaving the social media museum and get on the playing field in a big way–before it’s too late.

What would you change first, if you were one of the new co-Presidents?

Google Real-Time Search

At Cyentist, we have long been proponents of a cohesive online marketing strategy. Fundamentally speaking, companies need good design, a social media plan and search marketing activity to create a firm foundation for success in marketing their brands online—locally, regionally and nationally.

We know that these elements work together to create online results for business.  Cyentist has always recognized that the relationship between social and search are invariably connected and should be regarded as an opportunity to provide highly relevant information in real time to individuals who are seeking the information in question.

Until Monday, there were not many obvious examples available of search and social as a unit.  Enter a big player: Google!  On their official blog, Google announced the inclusion of real time results in addition to their standard search result page.

Typically the search engine result page or SERP includes Sponsored Links or paid advertisements and organic results, organized by relevance to the search query.

Today, amongst the organic results, you will find a scrolling, real-time feed labeled, “Latest results.”

It is interesting to note the prominent position Google chose for these results.  It is clear they believe this is important, in fact, they have stated that Twitter’s real-time functionality is the future of search.

Welcome to the future.  Real time search has a long way to go, but it is encouraging to see such a rapid progression in this direction from a major player such as Google.

For those of you with questions about how this affects your company’s search engine rank and social media visibility, please get in touch.  We are following these trends very closely and have insights to offer based on the work we’ve done thus far.

Social Media ROI

The subject of ROI is a hot one when social media hits the boardroom table.  I can’t help but laugh to myself when a potential client asks me what type of ROI they can expect from their social media program–especially when the client is a referral that originated from Twitter or Facebook or someone who reads this blog.  I have to say, Erik Qualman has done it again with his Social Media ROI video on YouTube.  He’ll have a million hits inside of a month, no problem.  Thank you, Erik.  This is eye-opening.  Even for me.

What is the cost of social media?

“What is the co$t of doing nothing?”

“Do you really want to take that risk?

Genesis

I was on the phone with a good friend the other day, talking
about social media and what bothers us most about Twitter. Don’t judge. Isn’t this what you talk with your friends about?

We both had our own unique set of opinions on the
subject. I made an observation,
which turned into a 15-minute rant that my friend labeled, “The Genesis of
Social Media”. The premise of this
was the comparison between today’s “social media expert” with the early “search
engine optimization expert”.
Back in the day, people tried to get their web sites to rank at the top
of Google for words such as, “the”, “ketchup” and “business”. The rationale was, “If I can just get
my web site to rank at the top of Google, I will have the traffic benefit of
millions of daily searches on these keywords.” “If enough visitors click on my link, I will have sales-it’s
just a numbers game.” Of course,
today this is as close to spam as you can get. Completely irrelevant, stupid and pointless all in one! Hence why Google prioritizes relevance
above most other ranking criteria.

That’s why when I see a “social media expert” on Twitter
with 25,371 followers and after careful review, this person is clearly an
idiot, it irks me. It burns me up
inside. I know for a fact that
these “experts” do not have a clue who is following them. It is obvious that they simply ran
several Twitter scams/tools/tricks to attract a large irrelevant following, who
they, in turn blast with countless pre-scheduled tweets selling whatever they
possibly can—it’s a numbers game. Sad
thing is, it probably works, which only encourages this ludicrous behavior. Who
are you following? Do you know
them? Who’s following you? Do
you know them?

When I say, “know”, I mean, do you read their tweets? Are they relevant to you? If not, why don’t you unfollow them? Reduce the noise pollution in your Twitter
feed and I guarantee you’ll enjoy the service a lot more.

TwitterIn – Twitter on your LinkedIn Profile

Here’s a video I saw come over Twitter today with Biz Stone of Twitter and Reid Hoffman of LinkedIn discussing the integration of Twitter features and updates on the popular business social network LinkedIn.

Unfortunately I’m feeling some bitterness about LinkedIn timeouts as I type this, as I’m sure they’re getting hit hard with visitors over the news.  So while I can’t yet implement this new functionality yet, I will share this video with you in the meantime.

Facebook: “We’re a technology company, we’re not a web site.”

This morning, Facebook’s COO, Sheryl Sandberg shared the company’s view of advertising and the role they play.  Some of the questions were centered around Pages.  One audience member asked, “How do big brands connect with their fans on Facebook, without being overly promotional?”  Sheryl’s response was, “They do it around authentic news and authentic things or authentic offers that people want to see; ads that they’re interested in.”  Keep this in mind as you build a fan page for your Page on Facebook.

One of my favorite parts of this clip is Facebook’s view of itself as a company.  Sandberg remarked, “Our business model and our view of ourselves is that we’re a technology company, we’re not a web site.”  I find it interesting that they see things one way, while many of their actual users consider Facebook to be just a web site.

Being about as prolific as Google, Facebook is here to stay, having reached 300 million members and reporting a new cashflow-positive status early this week.

Measuring ROI For Social Media

Just about every day, a new potential client calls or emails
asking how quickly we can build followers for them on Twitter or when they can
expect sales from their social media efforts. Most are not immediately impressed when I tell them it will
generally take between six and twelve months to see results, as long as things
are done correctly from the beginning and tracked properly.

I thought it would be helpful to refer to Oliver Blanchard’s
Basics of Social Media ROI to shed
some light on what goes into making social media work. Not only do I love the format of the
presentation, but also it explains perfectly what a brand should consider
before moving forward on an investment into social media. Just like anything else you invest in,
a return should be expected within a reasonable period of time. Here’s a closer look at how ROI should
be viewed with regard to social media:

Social Media is a World Changer

This video explains that we no longer search for news–it now finds us. This is well-explained by the fact that last night YouTube reported that it had a few more than 90,000 views.  As I write this it has had 113,585 views.  This video is finding its audience-fast!  That’s the power of social media.  While we slept, this video was shared and clicked on nearly 25,000 times.  I would imagine this number will continue to rocket upwards for some time.  Congratulations to Erik Qualman, Author of Socialnomics, the book this video is based on!  I’m buying my copy today.

Evaluate Your Social Media Professional

I’ve met some really talented experts and some know-nothing posers and have to say both can teach you a lot about what’s going on in social media. Anything that rubs you the wrong way is probably going to cause the same reaction in others, so don’t do those things!

Frankly I’m glad both players are around for now, and there will certainly be a shake-out at some point.

I’ve been advising my clients on social media participation for many years and many have taken heed and profited. Now this advice is available in a multitude of forms by many and it is wise analyze before making a decision on whom to work with.

My perspective is this: A social media professional must demonstrate a true understanding of the business in question before offering any service or advice pertaining to social media.

Usually this one simple indicator will narrow down the list of candidates a company is evaluating.

If they don’t understand what you do, find someone who does, or someone who is willing to learn everything about your business.

Next evaluate them on their ideas. This is new territory marked with with daily changes and shifting markets, so what worked yesterday for someone else may not work for you today.

References and past work is merely an indicator of what used to work. Have your own ideas and bring them to the table with your social media professional. Collaboration is very helpful.

Stay away from cool for the sake of cool. Everything is cool. You should think about what will work. Things that work are really cool!

Twitter Real-Time Search

Have you tried using Twitter Search?

This is a remarkable tool that allows you to conduct keyword-specific search queries that yield real-time tweets containing your search terms.

Searching tweets in real-time is a great opportunity to strike up a conversation about your industry.  Many people are looking for conversations to join that are somehow connected to their brands.  Twitter Search opens the door to just such a possibility. 

The other day, I joined a new gym so I thought I would preview what people were saying about “gym membership”.  As you can see below, there’s something for everyone.

If you’re not sure how to get started connecting with potential customers, try searching the same keywords you’re optimizing your website for using Twitter Search.

Have you had success with this approach?  Please leave a comment explaining what worked.