As I was flipping through my feed reader this afternoon looking for something interesting to write about, Rick over at EyeCube caught my interest yet once again. He seems to manage to do that with just about every post he writes.

This one was about the GE Smart Grid site and the ever so cool video that they have up to promote their Smart Grid project.

See? Cool, right? So while I was looking at the video and playing with the Augmented Reality tools, I realized that GE gets it. They’ve totally nailed the whole idea of social networking and viral campaigns.

They’ve created this little tool, that is cool enough for people to send to their friends and say “hey, check this out, cool, right?” and it’s cool enough that each friend will then tell two friends and so on and so on (you know, like that old shampoo commercial). They haven’t hit you over the head with all the in depth information about the Smart Grid Energy Saving features, and instead have created a visually interesting little link that says “get plugged in”. That’s all there is to it.

Heading to the Smart Grid site, I found a wealth of information about energy distribution, how the Smart Grid technology will change that, and offers up resources for green living, as well as a whole whack of links for information on green related technologies. They’re offering detailed information for “energy professionals and enthusiasts”, which again, I just think is cool.

Without that cool, short little video however, I would have never seen the site, learned about some Green resources I wasn’t aware of or even think I could ever be interested in smart grid technology or energy distribution strategies. Instead, here I am, learning more ways to live my own life a little more greenly, and sharing their viral site with all of you.

The one thing about campaigns like this, that many people and businesses just don’t get, is that you can’t make something viral. You just have to make something cool and the viral happens.

Remember that the next time that you’re looking for a way to promote a new product, site or designing a new campaign. A little cool goes a very long way.

I can admit it - I geek out over statistics. I pour over my Google Analytics reports, and I ogle Omniture. I also get a little gooshy over seeing compete.com come out with statistics for social networks as a whole… oh, and my hands down guilty pleasure has got to be all of those Twitter statistics measurement APIs floating about like Twitter Grader and Twinfluence. I can’t help it, deep down, I am a dork.

Compete.com recently released their January 2009 statistics for traffic ranks to the various social networks.

I find this endlessly fascinating. Look at Twitter’s skyrocketing hurtle from 22nd place to Top 3. I’m still, and always, surprised that Classmates.com and MyYearBook.com are in 7th and 8th places respectively - I’d always used FaceBook for random connections with classmates I wasn’t friends with then really, and am not now either.

The one thing that is missing from this data, and the thing that would make it of more use is where this traffic is coming from. While these are global sites, the stats only pull from US browser information, and so sites like Orkut and Bebo, whose users are primarily come from continents other than North America, get the short end of the stick with these numbers. 

Like Caroline McCarthy from CNet said, "Still, statistics are like tequila shots. Always take ‘em with a few grains of salt and a slice of lime, and be warned that they may give you headaches." [source] That said, and while I agree with Caroline 100%, I do still love me some tequila.

[image source: Compete]

Every once in a while, I realize that I’ve got a compendium of sites that I look at daily, sometimes to find topics for BuzzNetworker, sometimes just to learn things, but that I don’t always share with you guys. So today, to give you something to read for the weekend while I’m up in Whistler for Word Camp, I’m going to give you a few of my favourite sites.

In no particular order, here’s five of my regulars.

WebWare - Cool Web Apps for Everyone - One of the reasons that I really like this site is because it’s comprehensive coverage of some cool tricks to either speed up your surfing, tweak your experience etc.

Muhammad Saleem - Dude has a brilliant mind. Some of the things that he comes up with are simply awesome, and anyone who wants to learn about social media from one of the stars of the game, go check out Mu writes.

Eyecube - Rick provides thoughtful content, and talks about seriously interesting things. What more do you want?

Dan Zarella - A master of metrics. If you’re looking for anything related to social media metrics at all, Dan’s your guy, and I love him. He’s a social & viral marketing scientist… and that’s really quite brilliant I think.

Chris Brogan - No list of social media sites would be complete without Chris. Such a nice guy and so smart! Chris takes his time to explain things and provides thoughtful content, interesting insights and food for thought.

These are just a few of the sites I follow … What are some of your “must-reads?

[image sources: Muhammad Saleem by CC: TopRankOnlineMarketing and Chris Brogan by CC: Phil Campbell]

Tags: Blogs, Reading list, recommendations, social media blogs

MemeLabs, the online video contest gurus, have a new contest, and one that sounds pretty cool. Chip Wilson, the Lululemon founder, apparently isn’t dead yet, and to commemorate that, he’s holding a walk/run/parade/party …thing.

This is the 2nd year for the “Chip’s Not Dead Yet!” one mile, uphill race where all proceeds support BC Children’s Hospital. This race is different; you have the choice to run, walk, or parade in one of the various ‘waves’ that go up the hill. If you want to run in your underwear, so be it. If you want to run in a bridesmaid dress, go for it.

On Friday, June 20th, 2009, a busy street in the Vancouver neighborhood known as Kitsilano will be completely closed to traffic and the event starts. You run in “waves” of themes - all the superheroes together, all the animals, the gladiators… well, you get it.

The fastest one up the hill will win $20,000, but, you’ve got a chance to win $1,000 right now! Memelabs wants to know what your ideal themed wave would look like. Dress up as your favourite superhero or even run in your underpants! Tell us what you think would make for the best wave and you will have a chance to win $1000 in cash and one of our monthly prize packs! Enter here!

For a quick sneak peek of the race, check out the video.

Twitter is notorious for it’s lack of business model, and Simon Dumenco from AdAge has written a really thought-provoking article about the service. I’ve always just accepted that if I’m going to be online, I’m gonna get advertised at. Maybe not tho…

Simon raises an excellent point when he says

But what if it’s not only too late, but it was never time? What if not everything that flits across our screens — computer or cellphone or whatever — can be contorted into serving as a profit center? As I’ve said before: I don’t think every tweet or blurp or bloop or fart that emanates from a human can or should have ads sold against it or be otherwise monetized. [source]

Now with the economy going sideways and the VC firms warning tech companies to slow their burn rate and batten down the hatches so as to weather the storm,  some of our beloved social media apps  may disappear. Being loved isn’t enough to get through the current rough patch.

Rafe Needleman wrote

Although well-used by many and even relied upon by some (like me), Twitter has yet to turn on a revenue model. It’s not like the company would lose users, if it set up a minor advertising strategy as a test; people want to see the company make some money. Please, Twitter, turn on the revenue before it’s too late. [source]

So, who’s right? Do you think Twitter is in danger of getting crushed under the fail whale? (image source: Yiying Lu)

We’ve all heard the ‘horror’ stories. IT departments who block Facebook, YouTube, Twitter and MySpace. We’ve all got friends who can’t access even personal email until they get home in the evening. Personally, I think it’s silly, because of some of the massive benefits that I, and others I know, have experienced through social networking.

A study completed by the UK ‘think tank’ and research firm, Demos, is trying to convince enterprise bosses to embrace the new technologies.

Any attempt to control employee’s participation on these sites can limit the way staff communicate, as the Demos study said, but also, can limit the firm’s opportunities for new business as well.

“Banning Facebook and the like goes against the grain of how people want to interact. Often people are friends with colleagues through these networks and it is how some develop their relationships.”  said the study’s author, Peter Bradwell. (image source, BBC News & Getty Images) [source]

It’s time for companies to get caught up with the times and not only allow their employees access to social networking tools,  but also look at getting onto these sites themselves!

The US Army has declared Twitter a potential tool to organize a terrorist attack. They’re basing this on the fact that news spread rapidly about the July earthquake in LA - much faster than news outlets could report the news. Activists at the RNC in Minneapolis apparently used the service to provide information on police movements.

So, ok fine. Yes, those of us who use Twitter spread information and news rapidly. Much of the breaking news that I become aware of comes to me through Twitter. What I’m having trouble with is what seems like paranoia over the tool.  As Noah Shachtman, of Wired’s Danger Room points out with his hilarious graphic, this just seems way too  reactionary.

“Twitter has also become a social activism tool for socialists, human rights groups, communists, vegetarians, anarchists, religious communities, atheists, political enthusiasts, hacktivists and others to communicate with each other and to send messages to broader audiences,” the intelligence report said.

“Terrorists could theoretically use Twitter social networking in the US as an operation tool,” it said. “However, it is unclear whether that same theoretical tool would be available to terrorists in other countries and to what extent.” 

What do you think? Are we all being too dismissive about this?

Yesterday, I talked about TwInfluence, and some of the other questionably useful Twitter API applications. I think I may have finally found a good one: Tweet What You Spend.

@TWYS is the company behind Tweet What You Eat, which also looks cool,  it’s just not one I’ve gotten into yet.

Tweet What you Spend is simple, and aims to answer the question - what happens to my cash between trips to the ATM? If you’re anything like me, you don’t normally carry cash, in fact, I so rarely carry cash that it drives my husband a little batty.

All you do is (and I’m assuming you’re a Twitter user as I get into this) follow @twys, and direct message them your expenditures, like this: d twys Coffee 2.30. That entry then shows up in your personal cash journal.

I mentioned @twys to a few people talking about other APIs tonight, and while they thought it was an interesting service, but they already get that through their various financial programs and also through their online banking. See, for me, that means that I need to be more organized than I am currently not, and  I’ve proven in the past that “financially organized” is not a good label for me. It’s really not, and yet, this little program has made me much more conscious of my spending, in a way that even being on the broke side hasn’t done. I’m more organized about my money, know exactly what I’ve spent it on and which bills I’ve paid etc. 

I can also information on which categories I’ve spent money in, all with a simple drag and drop feature; I can get a pie chart of my spending and see where it’s costing me the most.

Now, in order for me to keep track of my money, I just have to send a text message to @twys and it’s all recorded nicely for me. AND, I can export it to a comma separared values page as well.

It might not be for everyone, but if you’re anything like me and wonder where all your cash actually goes, or you just want to keep track of things, check out Tweet What You Spend and see how it goes!  (image source: screenshots of my account)

This evening was Vancouver’s monthly Third Tuesday, where Mhairi Petrovic, the founder of Out Smarts, explained how to sell social marketing to the traditional marketing decision makers. Raul (aka Hummingbird 604) live-blogged the event.

The information was fantastic, and I thought it needed a wider audience. The full post from Raul is here, but the salient points are below.

Some of the primary objections to social media that traditional marketers have to social media include: 

1) “We already use social media” Complete misconception -  having a website or a facebook page is not participating in social media.  

2) Perceived as a tool for only the younger set. This is a misconception. Yes, MySpace was adopted by young music lovers. The over 35 demographic is the fastest growing sector of the users of Internet. Social networks for professionals are the fastest growing social media segment. 

3) Social media does not apply to me. Technorati and its State of the Blogosphere report stated that they have 133 million blogs in 36 countries. 100 million people on MySpace, 140 million people on Facebook, 20 million photos on Flickr. You have to join in the conversation, before you get left behind.

4) Social media as simply a fad. It’s got no long term/staying power. The case of Friendster is commonly cited as the example of social media being a fad. This is only one case, but the first blog is dated 1982 so it’s not a flash in the pan. If you don’t start using these new technologies NOW you, and more importantly, your business, risk getting left behind.

5) The need for transparency and the fear of losing control of your brand. Those that need to control every press release and make sure that what is being said meets the party line think that social media is too risky. Business owners who think that participation in social media makes you vulnerable and means that you lose control of your brand need to learn this is not the case. Participating in social media means that you actually get more control than you may have had previously - you can respond to any negative comments and move the discussion to your corporate blog.

6) The need for privacy. LinkedIn and Facebook have privacy settings. Set appropriate limits both in terms of who to add and what information you put out there. You control the content. Don’t put EVERYTHING if you feel that it may infringe on your privacy. Use these tools appropriately, understand that you’re in control, and limit your risk by using these technologies in the right way.

7) “Social Media is just fluff.”  People say that Facebook is just fluff - all those zombies and bunnies and garden patches! But the sheer volume of people using it, shows that there is relevance in it. There is a lot of fluff in TV but that doesn’t stop companies from spending billions in advertisements in these media. Your company can benefit from social media if you implement the tools appropriately.

“I don’t have time for social media”  This excuse allows people to negate doing something that they have to do. You can’t afford not to at least consider what your competition is doing with social media and to find out what you can do with social media. You can reach your customers more effectively through social media and by building community. Overall, a social media campaign costs less than a traditional campaign. You may need to hire someone to help you navigate the social media waters and to do it correctly, but that cost will only be a positive investment. 

9) “The only professional way of doing it is the traditional way.” Social media tends to be seen as either “for, or by amateurs”. Social media strategists are considered snake oil salesmen still. Social media is NOT only for amateurs, it’s not an appropriate comment at all. For people who only do traditional marketing, they should transfer the budget for those projects to social media for one month to see how it effects it.

10) “Show me the money. Where is the ROI (Return On Investment)”. There is a dearth of information (publicly available - what has been the return on investment in social media?). Wal-Mart episode - got bad marketing. Mazda did a similar thing. Despite their huge presence, they still had to lay off people and cut off costs. Social media-based marketing is not the end and be all, but it is a component that you can use in your marketing arsenal. Traditional marketing campaigns are even harder to measure in terms of ROI.

Mhairi’s main and central example on huge ROI for using social media - a UK company “ WigglyWigglers” that engaged in a great social media campaign. This is a gardening company. They have a podcast, YouTube channel, a blog, a newsletter and they use them actively to share information on the worms for gardening. The result: they now have over 40,000 podcast subscribers, 43,000 newsletter subscribers, more than 800 friends on Facebook, customers in New Zealand and North America, they’ve improved their Google Page Rank massively, online sales 50% of their total sales, and they’ve done this all with a 97% reduction in their advertising costs. That really proves the ROI on these technologies.

The bottom line is that traditional marketers can no longer ignore the benefits of social media. All the results attest to the fact that traditional, old-school marketers need to learn some of these tools, and harnessing these tools can only benefit you. 

Om Malik, one of the few uber-A-listers I haven’t met or hung out with yet, has a fantastic post about the economy, VC Funding and start ups. With the economy heading so completely south, start ups are starting to tighten their belts.

Heck, look at Jeremiah Owyang’s tally of the Social Media layoffs recently:

Oct 10: Fast Company, which has social network for website and popular videoblogger, lays off 20

Oct 10: Seesmic, a video conversation player lays off 7

Oct 6: eBay to lay off 10% of workforce to streamline after recession.

Oct 3: Gawker blog network lays off 19, and brags about it.

Om goes on to say that because of this meeting, Sequoia is telling its companies to put survival strategies in place and figure out ways to outlast the broader market troubles. (image source: GigaOm)

Sequoia isn’t the only one advising its startups to tighten their belts and prepare for a roller coaster ride. Ron Conway, a well-known angel investor in the Valley who has invested in companies like Google, offered very sobering advice to his companies via email earlier today. (from Om)

Raising capital will be much more difficult now. You should lower your “burn rate” to raise at least 3-6 months or more of funding via cost reductions, even if it means staff reductions and reduced marketing and G&A expenses. This is the equivalent to “raising an internal round” through cost reductions to buy you more time until you need to raise money again; hopefully when fund raising is more feasible.

Letting go of staff is hard and frequently sickening.  A re-evaluation of timelines and re-focus on milestones with an eye to doing more with less will allow you to live many more days, and the name of the game in this environment in some respects is survival — survival until conditions change. If you are in a funding cycle, you should raise your funding as soon as possible and raise as much as possible but face the fact that if you can’t raise money now you must cut costs. [source]