Get control now of proliferating social media activities: Altimeter report

A few years back, in working with an organization to organize its social media efforts under a strategy, we found that the company had over 50 Facebook pages and groups. Most had fewer than a dozen or so fans, most likely because nobody was supporting these pages with content and interaction. Ultimately, we winnowed the number down to the five or six pages that had amassed some genuine interest and to which the organization was willing to commit the resources required to maintain and build momentum.

Today, 50 pages no longer seems like all that big a deal. According to a report The Altimeter Group released today, global corporations… Read More »

Gallup study: Exploding social media myths or blinding flashes of the obvious?

The research company Gallup claims that a recent study debunks three social media myths. When Gallup, a trusted name in reserach, announces “groundbreaking new insights into how people interact with social media and into its effectiveness as a marketing tool,” you’re inclined to pay attention.

But while the results are interesting, I wouldn’t make any decisions about how to use social media based on them, particularly since the “myths” Gallup claims its research refutes aren’t myths at all. All of Gallup’s conclusions are givens that we have accepted as fact since the dawn of social media.

Non-myth #1

The first of these non-myths is… Read More »

How has your Google+ usage changed?

A couple reports have noted traffic to Google+ has declined slightly despite increased subscribers (over 20 million at last report). Depending on whom you listen to, this either makes perfect sense, is what Google+ deserves, or is total nonsense.

This is an entirely non-scientific poll, but it might reflect a general trend. of course, it’s too early to draw any conclusions or any kind about Google+‘s future, but what the hell.

Apply a grain of salt to social media research reports

Social media is the source of more research than any topic I can think of. There’s research undertaken by research companies like Forrester, professional services firms like McKinsey & Company, by large organizations like IBM and by every marketing agency and service provider looking to get a little press. The tactic of sponsorsing research in order to issue a press release and get some ink is nothing new, but with the proliferation of social media-focused companies, the volume of research has exploded.

With the release of these studies, you can find commentary by any number of analysts, consultants, columnists, reporters and bloggers… Read More »

10 reasons businesses should keep on (or start) blogging

It’s funny how The Pew Internet & American Life Project can release results of a study in December, but a late-February article about one of the study results published in The New York Times can create such an uproar.

The Pew study offered a broad overview of how members of different generations use the Net. Among many other things, the study revealed that teen and Millennial blogging have declined. Half as many teens said they worked on their own blog in 2009 as did in 2006 (a drop from 28% to 14%) while Millennial blogging has declined by 2%, from 20% in December 20089 to 18% in May 2010.

From the Times’ perspective, that spells… Read More »

Want to know about your social media audiences? Try asking

Several years ago, as Twitter and Facebook were beginning to serve as alternative venues for comments and discussion about blog content, I asked measurement expert Katie Paine what this meant for those trying to get a handle on reactions to what they wrote. It used to be easy, after all, when all the feedback appeared in the blog’s comment section. But now, with people commenting just about anywhere, how could bloggers stay on top of reader reactions?

“They’ll just have to go back to asking,” Katie said.

Of all the social media measurement methods hashed and rehashed in blogs, presentations housed on Slideshare, webinars and other… Read More »

Page 1 of 7 pages  1 2 3 >  Last ›