Tumblr is where blogging platforms intersect with social networks. It’s as easy to set up as a Twitter account, meaning you’ll be off and posting in no time, but it’s also easily customizable to fit your company’s needs. Its “like” and “reblog” features make it super-simple for your followers to share your posts, and engagement is easy to measure by tracking how many likes and reblogs you get. So what are the pros and cons of Tumblr, and should your business be using it?

Pro: it’s super easy to set up. Pick a URL, set a password, and you’ve got a blog. Then there’s the customization—pick a theme (or your own colors and fonts), put up a profile picture and an “about me” section, and your blog is ready to go. Get posting!

Con: sometimes Tumblr is too simple. The customization options are good, but you can’t host it on your own server. You can use a custom URL, but you can’t host it yourself. Tumblr also isn’t fully featured—you don’t have as much control over formatting. If you need something really specific, you might be better off with WordPress or something similar.

Pro: Sharing is so, so easy. It’s just as simple as pushing “retweet” on Twitter. You can share other bloggers’ relevant posts, and your fans can share yours, with literally the push of a button. They can also express interest by clicking “like”, similar to Facebook. It’s the best of both worlds because it’s easy to see how MUCH engagement you’re getting and WHO it’s coming from.

Con: There really isn’t a con to this.

Pro: A lot of young people are on the site. Mashable breaks down the demographics as follows:
“Here’s the breakdown of who is using the blogging platform, according to Mark Coatney from Tumblr: In the U.S. the audience tends to be younger — 56% of the service’s 25.2 million monthly visitors are under 34, and users skew slightly more male (52%). If that sounds like your average customer, you may want to give it a go.”

Con: Older people are much less prevalent on Tumblr, so if you are marketing, say, insurance or chiropractic services, you may not be in the right place.

Pro: Posting is fool-proof. Tumblr offers you options like text post, photo, video, dialogue, and more. All you have to do is enter your content and click go. Tumblr’s themes will arrange your posts in a visually attractive way without you having to do anything.

Con: The formatting is decided by how you set up your blog at the beginning. You can do some HTML customization but the basic format is already set. For a lot of people without code experience, this can actually be a pro.

The bottom line is that Tumblr is really easy to use and is good for most people. You may want to think twice if you need specific layouts or if your demographic group isn’t on the site, but otherwise, Tumblr gets a big fat yes.

It would be redundant to attempt to explain or analyze why the Harry Potter franchise is as mega-popular as it is, so let’s not do that. But J. K. Rowling and company, backed by Sony, have come out with an amazing transmedia experience that is putting the wizarding world in a whole new light. Rowling famously refused to authorize ebooks of the iconic series, and now we know why. She was working on the most interactive, engaging ebook platform you could possibly imagine. That’s what Pottermore is—it’s an online reading experience, social network, MMORPG, and ebook store all rolled into one.

The central focus of Pottermore is the books. A user journeys through the books, reading (or rereading) and hunting for Easter eggs and special features, including Rowling’s own backstory and analysis of moments in the story, characters, and her own motivations. This in itself would be an awesome transmedia case study because it makes the reading experience so vibrant and fun (seriously, the Easter eggs are so cool). But that’s not all Pottermore is.

It’s also a game. Users (I won’t say kids, because I know more adults who play than children) can get sorted into Hogwarts houses—Ravenclaws represent—and other wizarding rights of passage like buying wands. They then learn to make potions, cast spells, and duel other users. Triumphs win house points, and each of the four houses competes for the House Cup, just like in the books.

Pottermore also has built-in social tools. In the “Great Hall” feature, players can talk to members of other houses and post public comments, as well as checking their progress in the House Cup. In the “Common Room” feature, it’s whittled down to members of the same house only. Finally there’s the friends list, which is pretty self-explanatory. Users can be as public or as private as they want to be, and a vibrant community has sprung up within the platform.

In essence, Pottermore has everything a good transmedia experience should have. It engages you, keeps you constantly hungry for new features, re-energizes you about existing material, mixes different types of media, and most importantly, it pushes you to buy. You can buy regular ebooks and audiobooks from within the site. But that’s not what keeps users coming back—in the end, Pottermore is just FUN. Follow them on Twitter for updates, or just head on over and see what the fuss is about.

Social media is full of pitfalls for the unwary. Here are some examples of what NOT to do when using social media to market to potential customers.

DON’T only focus on selling. Aim for engagement.

DON’T get confrontational.

-Bad: Our meatballs are so much better than theirs! RT @joebloggs: Mama’s Meatballs are the best meatballs!

-Good: @joebloggs Those look good! You should try ours sometime and let us know what you think!

DON’T send unsolicited pitches.

-Bad: Hey @missmary2012, buy Acme Meatballs!

-Good: Hey @missmary2012, you mentioned craving Italian food! Why not give our meatballs a try? Let us know what you think!

DON’T get too casual. Mind your manners.

-Bad: Our meatballs are f***ing awesome!

-Good: Our meatballs are really delicious!

For more thought-provoking ideas on what NOT to do, check out this article.

The new social media “It” network is Pinterest, the idea-sharing site that is taking the internet by storm. It’s still currently invite-only, which obviously adds to some of its charm, but it’s fun and interesting in its own right. The biggest demographic so far seems to be people interested in design, crafting, cooking, and making beautiful things. This makes Pinterest ideal for people who sell clothing, cooking utensils, home goods, and the like; not so much if you sell belt sanders and lawn mowers. So how do you use Pinterest for your business?

1. Make sure it’s worth your while. As mentioned above, if you sell motor oil, Pintrest might not be a good use of your time.

2. Integrate it with the rest of your brand. You might want to sign up with your Twitter account because it’s not available for Facebook fan pages yet. Pinterest is very visual—make sure it matches.

3. Invest the time. Follow high-profile pinners. Click people’s links. Create visually interesting or themed pin boards. You have to create the great content to catch people’s interest.

4. Promote more than your own products. Focus on ideas, cool designs, etc.

5. Follow community etiquette. Credit your sources! Don’t focus on self-promotion. Don’t be spammy.

Many social media platforms may be free, but that doesn’t mean it’s something you can handle by having your college-age nephew run your Twitter page in exchange for free food. For a new media strategy to be effective, you have to approach it professionally. Social media is not for the faint of heart—there are rules.

10. Content is paramount. This rule speaks for itself. Be interesting. Be fun. Be helpful. Don’t be boring. Don’t be spammy. Bottom line: be yourself.

It’s widely agreed that there are several social networks that marketers are expected to be familiar with, so here’s a little cheat sheet about the pros and cons of the Big Four.

Facebook

• Pro
  • The built-in advertising platform is easy as pie to use.
  • You can target people by interest or demographic, so you don’t have to annoy anybody who won’t care about your content.
  • You get “top of mind” awareness through Facebook’s new “Timeline” feature—your interactions pop up on the pages of friends and friends of friends.
  • Photo albums last forever and stay visible on the top of your Page indefinitely.
  • You can send direct messages to all your fans at once—like an email blast without the work.
  • It’s an all-in-one blogging platform too—have your photos, videos, and blog posts all in one place.
  • Longer character limits mean it’s great for long form posts, unlike Twitter.
• Con
  • It’s difficult to pick up new fans—they can’t see you unless you reach out to them.
  • The constantly changing platform means there’s a frequent learning curve.
  • There’s a lot of new stuff to learn, which can annoy users–there’s always a bit of user attrition after a major change rolls out.
  • Statistically, getting fan interaction on your Page can be tough, until you reach the tipping point.
  • You need to be really proactive about starting interactions—”like” other pages, post on other walls, sharing other people’s content.
  • You can’t search other people’s posts for content, the way you can with Twitter or Tumblr.
  • It’s hard to track which users convert into sales directly from Facebook, unless they go through your Facebook ads; you have to monitor your stats closely.

Twitter

• Pro
  • It’s super easy to make new contacts—all you have to do is send one tweet, RT, or follow, and the user can instantly see it.
  • The user interface and setup are a cakewalk.
  • Very interactive—you can communicate directly with your customers and deal with their comments or concerns right away.
  • Tweets are retweeted and rebroadcast like wildfire, and you don’t have to do anything but be interesting.
  • You can search all public posts for keywords, especially your business name, which makes monitoring a snap
  • Twitter users are more open to connecting with brands and people they don’t know than Facebook users.
  • It’s easy to push people from Twitter to your website, Facebook, or blog.
• Con
  • Tweets can often get lost in a user’s Twitter stream—it’s hard to keep their attention unless you’re posting frequently.
  • You can only post one photo at a time, and write posts of 140 characters at a time. Not good for long posts.
  • Direct messages can only go to one user at a time, although this does help prevent spam.
  • For sharing videos, you have to use a third-party service.
  • No stats on how much your tweets are being read—only retweets and mentions.
  • You need to know what you’re doing—bad strategy goes viral.

Tumblr

• Pro
  • It’s dead simple—super easy to set up, customize, and get off the ground. You can be writing your first post in minutes.
  • Visually appealing and user-friendly
  • As easy to get reblogs and follows as it is to get retweets on Twitter
  • Great for longer posts—there’s no character limit like on Twitter or Facebook.
  • Tumblr has a fast-growing community, which means it’s easy to increase your follower count.
• Con
  • Tumblr isn’t fully featured (yet), which means you’re giving up some of the freedom of blog platforms like WordPress. You can customize Tumblr with some html, but you can’t get it quite as perfect as other platforms.
  • No self-hosting, so if Tumblr goes down, you go down. And Tumblr goes down a lot.
  • Between downtime problems and lack of customization, you probably don’t want Tumblr to be your only blogging platform or social media product—have a backup.
  • Tumblr definitely skews younger—if you’re trying to market to middle-aged car enthusiasts, Tumblr might not be for you.
  • Stories can get lost on users’ dashboards, like Tweets in their Twitter feed.

LinkedIn

• Pro
  • Reconnect with past and present colleagues and classmates—staying in touch is easy.
  • Get answers to industry questions—your network is full of experts just waiting to answer your questions.
  • This is where you find older users—the average age of LinkedIn users is 41.
  • LinkedIn features useful tools like SlideShare so you can share kinds of content that don’t usually fit in on other social media platforms.
  • Groups are usually focused on professional topics.
• Con
  • It takes a long time to get up and running.
  • It’s tough to turn connections into business deals—LinkedIn is much more about professional connections and job-hunting than marketing.
  • People aren’t on the site all that often–it’s hard to get their attention, unless it’s a friend request or recommendation request.
  • You can’t delete a post after you’ve made it.

If you want to see someone doing social media right, look at the Muppets franchise. Many entertainment properties have tried and failed to get into the new media world, but the Muppets have always been ahead of the curve. They have an engaging website, but their real strength lies in their use of social networking itself. For example, their Twitter feed is often “taken over” by characters, rather than just constantly flogging their latest DVD release. Right now Miss Piggy is in charge, and nobody is better at self-promotion than the divine swine herself.

The best part about the Muppets in the new millenium, though, is their use of YouTube. Their channel is full of the usual movie promos and commercials, but their original content is where they really shine. Take Beaker’s rendition of “Dust in the Wind.” Muppets Studios actually understand internet culture, right down to the dubious intelligence of YouTube commenters.

Beaker\’s Ballad

Of course, sometimes the original content is just plain awesome. We’ll let this one speak for itself.

Muppet Rhapsody

When it comes to choosing between a boutique shop and a corporate agency, bigger does not always mean better. Top talent often migrates toward smaller agencies because there’s more room to stretch and be creative. Boutiques aren’t responsible to stockholders so they can focus on each client and the best creative solution rather than a conglomerate of clients and the worst of corporate politics. Smaller agencies have far more room for big ideas that are fresh and original, rather than old, haggard messages pushed through the corporate mainstream like Cheez-Whiz .

Boutiques are also able to give each client the attention that’s deserved. Face-time with principals continues long after you sign, through the final execution and beyond. Also, there’s no room for low-level employees and low-level work. Everyone is hand-selected and they have the talent to carry their own weight times ten. The turnaround time can’t be beat, either. That’s because there aren’t multiple layers of approvals that slow down the process and water down its impact. And when you have a client request, someone, not something will take your call and have an answer for you – if not immediately then shortly thereafter.

A boutique has no closed doors, only open minds and room on a calendar to fit your schedule – rather than visa versa.

If you’re looking to compete with the big boys, your best bet may be to use a small boutique shop to help you quickly, nimbly run circles around them.

Another company that really gets social media is Klout. Obviously they’re involved—social media analytics is their business, after all. But they manage their own media really well, using it to gain new users and re-engage existing ones. You can follow them on Twitter here or Facebook here.

Between their top-notch tools and enticing perks, Klout is a company that really gets social media.

A Love Letter to Social Media: Etsy

The next in our series of companies who are doing social media right is craft marketplace Etsy. On Etsy, artists and crafters can sell their wares to an almost-rabid customer base of handmade and vintage-loving consumers. The site is beloved by both buyers and sellers, partly due to the fabulous items for sale there, but also because Etsy has mastered the most important thing in social media, or any marketing: tone.

For sellers, Etsy puts out a daily email blast of tips and tricks to improve your business model, balance your prices with the amount of work you put into each item, and how to take your craft business from a side project to your full-time job. The company is deeply invested in making sure their artists are doing well and making beautiful things.

The bottom line is, Etsy knows what their customers want, and they provide it in an elegant package. We should all be so focused.

The next installment in our series of companies who are doing it right is green startup SproutRobot. This company is amazing. You give them your zip code, and they tell you what kinds of fruits and veggies to plant, when, and how. They even give you cute little diagrams to show you how to sprout and care for every type of plant!

The really smart thing, though, is that for a very small fee, SproutRobot will send you the right seeds for your garden (or balcony) size, at the right time, with the instructions for idiot-proof planting. How could we say no to home-grown produce that we can grow on the patio?

In addition to a great business model, SproutRobot has their social media bases covered. Catch them on Twitter, Facebook, and even Tumblr.

A lot of companies are confused about how to use social media for their markets. Understandable—a lot of stuff in this area is untried. But every so often, we find a company that just ‘gets it.’ Vintage-inspired online clothing retailer ModCloth.com is one of those. They get it. Their social media strategy is fabulous. Not only do they have an awesome range of products, they let their customers and fans into just about every facet of the business. Users get to vote on new products with the Be the Buyer program. They show us what it’s like to work at ModCloth, AND they show off their products at the same time! They have not one, but FOUR Twitter feeds: @ModCloth, @ModCloth1stLook, @ModClothCareers, and @ModClothPRBuzz.

But the most important thing that ModCloth does? They take GOOD care of their customers. Every tweet gushing about a product or about their customer service gets a polite, friendly thank you. Every Monday and Thursday they run fun games with great perks. Every complaint gets addressed (relatively) quickly. Case in point: a while back, our community manager was looking for a dress for an event and lamenting that she couldn’t find anything cute in her size. ModCloth was following her on Twitter, saw her tweet (it wasn’t even directed at them) and linked her to their “extended sizes” section. You can bet she bought a dress right away.

And there you have it. The key to successful social media use isn’t frequent tweeting or racking up a lot of Facebook fans—it’s impeccable customer service. The medium has changed, but the need remains the same. Take care of your customers, and they’ll take care of you.

I have had access to Google plus now for a few days. First thoughts are that the interface is amazing. By amazing I mean its probably the best UI I have ever seen.

Now on to the obligatory Facebook Vs. Google..

#1 Social Media is not a war as much as we might want controversy and antagonism its not. A competition ok but not a war, Google doesn’t want google to be shut down because they are going to separate divisions if that happens. Facebook actually needs Google for the same reason they are not allowed to operate a monopoly.

#2 Facebook will be fine, as a user of Google+ my use of Facebook has not changed at all…Twitter on the other hand… well that is a different sections

#3 The next my[__] conversations are all a little premature. However Facebook needs to innovate (by innovate I don’t mean add Google video chat) and I am sure they will.

Businesses and G+

When you sign up for Google there is an express agreement that profiles are for people. (Looks at Mashable Ford and The National Association of Realtors) You cannot run a business profile Google will shut you down. Community managers should be jumping at the chance to get on, figuring out what resonates and which strategy they should be considering (this is very early). One thing we know Google has Post Rank and the Businesses data will be built using that tool.

Tumblr users…

Popular tumblr memes can be found on G+ you guys will really enjoy it. I dont think G+ will pose much of a threat to tumblr as a network, you guys are just too passionate.

In Conclusion:

Social media has undergone a fragmentation in recent years G+ is going to continue the trend. The Geo market has already demonstrated that Social Media has become more like the TV market than the winner take all My[__] vs Friendster vs. Facebook days of 2006.

That is my Google Plus post.. here is a random photo of a duck.

If you have ever seen the movie “The Social Network” there is a line that Mark Zuckerburg says. When his partner is  pressing to add ads on the service Mark responds with “We dont know what it can be, we dont know what it will be”. That my friends is exactly where Google + is. Google+  is the newest addition to the social sphere. Which normally wouldnt be news because new small networks popup and leave all the time.. but this time its different.

Why?

One word Google!

This is Google’s 5th attempt at creating a social network. Orkrut, Buzz, Wave, and Groups were all pretty much flops. The forums are still used and somewhat awesome. What makes this different… Well we don’t know yet… its hard to say what this network means and we wont know for a while. If does mean a new ux across most google services as well as a new ux for most Google apps. One piece of news they are creating a pages area for businesses but since I dont have an invite yet (and even if I did they dont mean much as google is pretty much only letting in people at random even with invites) I have no idea. Quite frankly I will be more than happy to try it out in 2 months from now if it is still there. I loved Google buzz and Google wave but everyone else hated it so they didnt add a lot of value. I cant go through another heartbreak so for me Google + = let it ride for a while see what it does.

Facebook makes everyone (or almost anyone) feel awesome on their birthday. Yesterday I got almost 100 birthday wishes from people I haven’t talked to in a while. I know some people might not feel amazing about that but I did. Brands should consider taking advantage of this once a year or every few years. If your fan base has grown dormant running ads requesting engagement is smart. Increasing interaction= new fans+ larger top news feed post reach.

Check it out..

Linkedin is not facebook or Twitter. However they are one of the first major players to jump on the wings of a total IPO. I am not sure it is a buy even at $32 or $35. This could go one  of two ways be a brilliant investment or its pets.com of social media. Linkedin is a huge network but Im still not sold on it for a three reasons.

1. Lack of network commitment- The useage of members and the commitment to the network is somewhat low.

2. Limited touch points and usage- Linkedin needs to continue to work on its goal of being “the solution” for professionals on the web. Honestly after the IPO they should probably buy Quora and use it as “The resource”

3.Shrinking Demographic target- The site is designed perfectly for boomers. The biggest problem with this is that boomers are going to retire soon enough and not need the network at all.

This week Facebook had google got into a little, possibly major, fight. Apparently Facebook hired a PR firm to go after Google’s “Privacy issues” and got caught red handed. This creates an awkward situation for users, investors, and advertisers. The issue is starting to make the Silicon Valley feel more like a grade school playground than a functioning business environment.

Hopefully these companies don’t go with the tit for tat game, the game where everyone looses. It seems another simple playground lesson would work better… just be nice

In the Social Media world this is one of the best branding tips on the market. If you are nice taking care of major issues becomes less complicated. The nay sayers will always be around particularly if a brand is well known. However  if the brand is willing to be nice they will generally win.

Just a thought and a tip…

@mhandy1 on twitter

While looking through our search data today we stumbled across someone that found our site through the search “Licking on your nostrums”.

With some fear we decided to search it ourselves.. I guess we can say  ”Thank-you autocorrect” for the lead?

As the Graph above shows Twitter was the primary driver of conversations around the Osama Bin Laden’s Death. Twitter is much “louder” than Facebook because of network properties. On Facebook one user posting about Bin Laden may get as many as 2 to 3 posts maximum without annoying followers.  On Twitter this number could be in the hundreds. Anytime a user “@mentions” someone on Twitter that tweet is hidden from other users unless they follow both the person tweeting and the person the tweet is directed towards.

Often it is said that a Facebook share is worth more than a Tweet but that only applies in when comparing 1 post to 1 post. If you consider the fact that a user can share 10 or 15 times on twitter per facebook share it becomes clear that they are equal, or slightly favoring tweets. Each network is distinct.

Consider the following from the Global PR channel on Twitter…