It was inevitable. Because social media is not the end all be all. Social media won’t cure your marketing woes. Social media will not make you more popular. And social media will not cure cancer. Social media is a channel (or more accurately several channels) and it always has been. Just like television, radio, email and websites. Facebook, […]
Read moreThe Big, Fat Content Glut
Content is everywhere – and that’s the problem. Content creators – bloggers, videographers, writers, artists, designers, musicians, journalists, directors, illustrators, actors, etc. – should be celebrating. The internet has opened up the world to them. Writers can sell novels and non-fiction directly to readers. Musicians can sell their songs right to listeners. YouTube and Vimeo […]
Read moreWhy “Likes” Matter
Nothing causes as much consternation as a Facebook “like.” Marketers want to give it a value. Sales guys want to monetize it. Communicators want to measure it. But the simple fact is that few people understand it. So what is a like? What does it mean when a Facebook user “likes” something? First, you need […]
Read more10 Signs That You Need to Unplug
1. You use the word retweet instead of repeat in casual conversation. 2. You actually say to someone: “I just read something about that on Facebook.” 3. The distant sound of a mobile phone ring makes you check your own phone for an incoming call (extra points if you do this after hearing a mobile […]
Read more4 Myths of Social Media Authenticity
One of the great big whopping lies about social media is authenticity. Because – let’s face it – there isn’t much that’s authentic about social media. There’s lots of spin, cherry-picking, and bright-side propaganda from both individuals and brands going on. Few people and brands are truly genuine about their attitudes, personalities and opinions on […]
Read moreYou’re Not Married to Your Social Networks – You’re Just Dating
Because if history is any guide – social networks come and go. Mostly go. So don’t go off and get hitched. As my astute colleague Greg Swan recently noted: “You would think the track record of social network migration (i.e. users emigrating from Compuserve to AOL, AOL to Friendster, Friendster to MySpace, more recently MySpace […]
Read moreWhat the Heck is Content Marketing?
Content marketing is when a brand creates content and shares it. It’s different from “regular” content (whatever that is) because its goal is to attract and engage consumers. Content marketing has been around since the beginning of PR and advertising. It used to come in the form of company newsletters, advertorials, user conferences, company magazines […]
Read moreMarketing is the New Journalism
And journalism is the new marketing. For better or worse, we are moving rapidly into a state of brand-produced journalism. It’s happening on two fronts: Sponsored Content and Brand Publishing Sponsored Content There’s no doubt traditional media companies are dropping like flies. Circulations and subscriptions have flat-lined – print advertising revenue is moving to digital […]
Read moreFear of Storytelling & Other Tales of Brand Failure
The Internet is killing Advertising. Or at least what we would consider traditional advertising. Fewer people believe the claims. More people tune it out. Or just avoid it all together (fast forward anyone?). The Internet has ushered in an era of transparency, openness and instant access to information. There’s no place to hide. So claiming […]
Read more“The Best Personalized Newspaper in the World”
That’s a quote by Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg describing Facebook’s newly redesigned News Feed. Amazing, isn’t it? Facebook wants to be a newspaper while its busy putting real newspapers out of business. Oh, the irony. Facebook’s business model is about selling ads around content. But Facebook doesn’t create any content. It’s users do by uploading […]
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May 22, 2013 


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