New to Social Media? Here is a list of folks I value who you could say are the doers in Social Media. Some folks talk the talk, but don’t walk the walk. This group are the Social Media doers in the business world. I find their insights valuable and I know you will too!

		chrisbrogan – Chris Brogan President, New Marketing Labs. More? http://bit.ly/cbbio . email: blog at chrisbrogan dot com
		jowyang – Jeremiah Owyang Partner, Altimeter Group. How I use Twitter http://tinyurl.com/24lv65
		AaronStrout – Aaron Strout CMO – Powered, Inc. (and dedicated husband/dad)
		rhappe – Rachel Happe Connector of ideas and people. Fascinated by social dynamics. Principal at The Community Roundtable – @TheCR
		RonPloof – Ron Ploof Dad, Author, Speaker, Consultant, New Media Management
		TomHumbarger – Tom Humbarger social media, marketing, community strategy, community management, consultant, blogger, runner, father of 4 – how can I help you?
		marksylvester – Mark Sylvester Solving problems using Visualization. Personal and Quasi professional observations here. @intronetworks for work related thoughts
		mikepascucci – Mike Pascucci Social Media/Online Community manager, AAA Mid-Atlantic
		juliaroy – Julia Roy Social Strategist, digital influencer and creator/host of Tweet Week, a video blog about Twitter. Show archive: youtube.com/tweetweek
		DerekShowerman – Derek Showerman Director Of Social Media & Senior Social Media Consultant @ Authority Domains. Former SM Consultant @ Mzinga. Mets fan! Perfectionist & analytical sith nerd.
		adamcohen – Adam Cohen Partner at digital agency Rosetta, Leading Search, Online and Social Media Practices, Red Sox, Celtics and Patriots fan, Dad of 3 amazing boys
		BryanPerson – Bryan Person Social media evangelist at LiveWorld. Keywords: Husband, Dad, Austin, #RedSox, breakfast
		KateDickman – Kate Dickman Crayonista, Social Media Gal + Community Manager for Panasonic’s new online community – LivinginHD.com
		mwallcomm – Mark Wallace VP Social Media, commonground Social Network for Environmental Professionals – Lawyers, EH&S, LEED, Green Building, CRE, etc.. Dad, Hockey/Sports Guy, Music Fan
		GeorgeDearing – George Dearing blogger,media tracker and Telligent evangelist working on the real-time web [georgedearing.com]
		justinmwhitaker – Justin Whitaker Freelance Geek. Socal Media Bunny Rabbit.
		glennhilton – Glenn Hilton I own ImageX Media a Drupal web design and development firm. I’m passionate about social media, technology, authenticity, and everything that’s good.
		ShannonPaul – Shannon Paul Social Media Manager @ PEAK6 Online. The views expressed on this profile are mine and do not necessarily reflect the views of PEAK6.
		ChadNorthrup – Chad Northrup CoreBlox co-founder, Dartmouth Alum ’96, Boston sports nut, beer lover, husband, and dad to 2 little girls
		Marc_Meyer – Marc Meyer Dir.of Social Media and Search, Principal at DRMG, and Co-founder of Hashtagsocialmedia.com

You bulk follow them here:

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I was recently putting together a document for benchmarks involving Social Media, and to make sure I wasn’t missing anything I did a Google search to see if I was missing any benchmarks. What I found was interesting was most everything was for pay, which makes little sense. There isn’t much giving away of intellectual property with sharing how to set goals? So with that, here are 5 benchmarks that your social media presence can strive for. If you reach these goals you will see success:

Twitter- Number of followers. In order to effectively spread your message and engage successfully we suggest organically getting over 1000 followers, and over 100 Tweets.

Facebook Fanpage – Once you get to 50 posts with unique content (articles and blogs), and over 200 followers you will see some calls to actions occur.

LinkedIn Group – Same deal with 50 posts, but with Linked In usually 100 followers on LinkedIn does the trick. We have found most folks on LinkedIn are inclined to participate in business ventures then on Facebook. So less is more!

Youtube – Once you get 15 new video posted and shared in Social Bookmarking channels and embedded in your blog or social website, you will start seeing success. Remember unique content is key, so these videos need to be created by you and your organization.

Alexa – We have seen a direct correlation between traffic ranking under 800,000 and social media success. If you do your due diligence of sharing your unique content in DoFollow Social Media channels with the link pointing back to your blog or social website, you will start seeing success at achieving your business objectives once you get under 800,000 (lower the better- Facebook is ranked 4 in the world). Share the link to your unique content in as many Do follow Social Media channels! It is laborious, but incredibly important.

We have well over 200 benchmarks that we share with our clients. But these are 5 benchmarks that will help you be successful using Social Media if you do your due diligence (commitment to unique content) and track to these markers. Don’t hesitate to contact Authority Domains if you need additional help or guidance.

@derekshowerman

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Is your company struggling with its Social Media strategy? Ironically if you’ve been searching for an answer your lethargy might actually help you leapfrog the competition. The rest of this article deals with the benefits of socially integrating your site with Facebook Connect. Afterwards I’ll offer up a quick and easy referral strategy for your eCommerce site.

Theoretically there’s a war that’s being waged right now over your online entity. The main players are Facebook Connect, OAuth (Google) and OpenID (decentralized). While these giants battle it out for supremacy, let me save you a whole bunch of time, effort and energy. The war is over. The king is dead. Long live the new king, Facebook Connect.

Technologically all three services are fairly similar. Basically your user authentication is handled by a third party and a validation cookie is sent back to you the instigating site. OpenID is slightly different insofar as that anyone can run their own authenticating server. In the case of Facebook Connect and OAuth, Facebook and Google handle the validation respectively.

Technology aside, where Facebook enjoys a massive competitive advantage is in the underlying social network that’s intrinsically built into the site. When a user connects to your site via Facebook Connect you as the site owner can use the FacebookRestClient to not only pull all of the demographic information that Facebook maintains on that specific user but additionally (and more importantly) you can also instantly pull all the demographic information on all of that user’s friends as well. This data used properly can be a huge boon for your company as I’ll explain later.

Some of the other features that Facebook Connect  offers are the ability to publish to the user’s newsfeed, tag friends, upload pictures, share links and change their status remotely (a la Twitter). That’s right, users on your site can publish directly to Facebook without leaving your site. There’s a whole host of other features that you can learn about from the Facebook Connect documentation page.

Ultimately what does this all mean for you? Let’s have a quick look of the competitive advantages to you, the online business owner:

1. Trusted Authentication – The trust actually runs two ways in this case: First your internal technology department can basically outsource all your authentication management system to a huge company (fewer headaches for you, less liability). Secondly, your end user gets peace of mind that a reputable ID management system is in place (much like the VeriSign GoldSeal, it promotes consumer confidence)
2. Simplify Signup – I know if I fill out my personal information on yet another social media site I’m going to snap and I know I’m not the only one out there who suffers from Social Profile Fatigue. Facebook Connect offers a simple and streamlined method for users to join your site without filling out a large form while still providing your eCommerce site with all the demographic information you want and need. Oh and by the way, since your users will spend less time signing up for your product or service, they can spend more time doing what you want them to (like buying stuff!).
3. Word of Mouth Accelerator – One of the least expensive and most powerful customer acquisition methodologies is word-of-mouth (‘free’ has a certain ring to it). By allowing your users to instantly and seamlessly publish information to your site as well as their own Facebook account you gain instant access to their entire social circle. Smart brands will learn that the key to getting content into Facebook is about providing a meaningful value exchange for each Facebook Connect interaction, prompting their users to naturally want to post to Facebook at every turn.
4. Business Information – Even if you’re planning on starting your site tomorrow, you can quickly and easily tap into years of demographic information that Facebook has been collecting. The value of each signup suddenly gets multiplied by a hundred fold each time someone signs up to your site (the average Facebook user has 124 friends).
5. Increase Traffic – According to Bob Buch, VP, Business Development at Digg.com: “..social community sites using the Facebook Connect API have seen their traffic increase from 30 -100%”
6. Instant Targeted Marketing – Upon logging in, the Facebook-powered profile can inform a much more relevant, targeted experience. A retailer can feature merchandise based on profile details like location, age, relationship status or even brands that the user has “fanned.”
7. Influencers – For anyone who’s read The Tipping Point you’ll instantly recognize and value the “Connectors”.  Facebook Connect makes it quick and easy for your company to recognize which users have the biggest social circle and your company can act accordingly (for example you can offer free samples to anyone who signs up for your service and has over 1,000 Facebook Friends).
8. Easy Implementation – One of the best features of Facebook Connect is that it is by far and away the easiest of the three libraries to implement. Basically drop their Javascript library onto your page and you’re ready to rock (there are other methods but this one is the easiest).

Quick and Dirty Viral Marketing

Few online businesses stand to gain as much from Facebook Connect as eCommerce websites. Ecommerce sites typically have a lot of users but little or no viral promotion. One simple type of promotion that becomes easier with Facebook Connect is a simple product recommendation system that has some sort of reward associated with it. For example earn a 5% discount off of all your purchases every time you refer product (x) through your newsfeed. Another simple Facebook Connect strategy is to offer a $20 gift certificate for every Facebook Friend referral.

What are your experiences with Facebook Connect? How are you using Facebook Connect, OAuth or OpenID to improve your site’s stickiness?

As always using music to inspire my programming. Here’s what’s in my iPod right now: La Roux – Bulletproof (Zinc Remix)

@alenauthority

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So here we go… the lawsuits have begun and the days of being a completely anonymous blogger are now over.  So beware with what you say and how true or not true it is. You may fall victim to what you thought was a protected private cyber world.

All this stems from the shameless and anonymous ‘Skanks in NYC’ blogger, who was facing a potential defamation lawsuit by model Liksula Gentile Cohen.  The blogger, who published photos and called Cohen shallow, demeaning names, completely disrespected and portrayed the model in negative fashion. Cohen took action and asked that the racy post of her be taken off immediately. However it didn’t end there, Cohen also demanded that Google release the name of the “anonymous” Blogger. Google did not comply with Cohen’s requests, unless ordered to do so by a court.  Well, Cohen’s requests and persistence with the courts paid off and  the Manhattan Supreme Court Judge ordered Google on August 24^th to hand over the blogger’s e-mail and IP addresses. Google gave the information to Cohen’s lawyers, who plan to sue the blogger for defamation.

Now here’s the twist, that same blogger, who now has been identified as fashion student Rosemary Port, is filing a lawsuit of her own. She has decided to sue Google for revealing her identity to Cohen, and thus to the world.  So now we know that if the correct actions are taken with the legal system, anyone’s identity can be given away with a simple court order.

This is only the grand introduction of what can potentially be lawsuit after lawsuit; back and forth with the plaintiff and defendant.  Who are right and whose freedom of speech is actually being taken away? Now that Google has been ordered to give up the identity of a customer, this is surely a case that many will be watching closely.  Is this only the beginning of the end for all anonymous blogs? If simply calling someone something online is considered to be defamation, it may open the door for more lawsuits against all social networking sites such as; Facebook, Twitter, myspace, etc…. Just make sure to be nice with your words and you won’t even have to sweat about a lawsuit. But then again, where’s our 1^st amendment right?

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A client recently asked me to put together a cheat sheet to show to Social Media naysayers. As I was doing the research I started asking myself, why would any brand NOT engage? Have a gander at these 10 data points:

1. According to a global Nielsen survey of 26,486 Internet users in 47 markets, consumer recommendations are the most credible form of advertising
2. There were nearly 116 million US user-generated content consumers in 2008, along with 82.5 million content creators. Both numbers are set to climb significantly by 2013 (eMarketer, February 2009)
3. 86.9% of respondents said they would trust a friend’s recommendation over a review by a critic, while 83.8% said they would trust user reviews over a critic. (Marketing Sherpa, July 2007)
4. 81% of online holiday shoppers read online customer reviews (Nielson Online, December 2008)
5. 74% agree-including 14% who strongly agree-that they choose companies and brands based on what others say online about their customer service experiences, the survey shows. (Society for New Communications Research, May 2008)
6. Mobile user-generated content will generate $5.7 billion worldwide in 2012, up from $576 million in 2007. (“Mobile Social Networking: Opportunities & Forecasts 2008-2013,” Juniper Research, October 2008)
7. By 2020, 84% of marketers agree that building customer trust will become marketing’s primary objective, and 82% agree that collaboration with customers will prevail over marketing. (1to1 Media survey of the 1to1 Xchange panel, April 2008)
8. Online businesses lose as many as 67% of consumers due to a lack of online product information. (Allurent, January 2008)
9. In a study of online UK retailers, 59% reported that the consumer-generated activity leads to better search engine optimization. (eMarketer, 2008)
10. 75% of people don’t believe that companies tell the truth in advertisements. (Yankelovich)

among 78% of the study’s respondents. (Nielsen, “Word-of-Mouth the Most Powerful Selling Tool”, October 2007)

With this compelling data in mind, think about Social Media in regards helping your business fill these business objectives:

1. Market research and business intelligence
2. Customer/partner education
3. User groups
4. Product innovation
5. Competitive analysis
6. Peer‐based support, education and innovation/evolution
7. Company‐wide collaboration/learning solution
8. Thought leadership/leads
9. Workplace alignment, communication & training
10. Organic/White Hat SEO Link Building

Now think about the data points above and these 10 business drivers above. Is there any business that is lacking in at least one of those areas? Is your business lacking? Now think about this:

“Social Networking & Social Media Ad Spending to Rise 13.2% in 2010 to 1.3 Billion!”
-eMarketer

I came away from my task yesterday convinced, now more than ever, that all companies should be utilizing Social Media to some degree. I am not saying go full bore if you haven’t engaged yet, but if anything it is time to dip the toes in to the Social Media waters to see how warm it is. The data is saying now is the time, especially with the Wall Street Journal and CNN claiming the recession is at an end.

@derekshowerman

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Over the weekend I received a number of messages asking what is Social Media? With Authority Domains legacy being around SEO, Link Building, PPC I thought it would beneficial to give you a black and white visual of what Social Media can mean for your business. When watching this video, think about Scoopville in relation to your business objectives.

We hope this video helps describe Social Media in a way that makes complete sense and answers the questions from this weekend. If not, click the link below and we will do a free review of your business and let you know how we can help you drive your SEO goals (using White Hat Social Media techniques) while opening new doors for your business through the use of Social Media Marketing.

@derekshowerman

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Over the last few months I have been occasionally jotting down hash marks in my notebook. It has nothing to do with the abnormally wet weather in New England. I was sort of running a very impromptu survey of my friends, family, associates & respected peers on their Twitter habits. It all started with my Mom who flatly refused to use it when I innocently suggested it to help her online presence. It ended today after chatting with an old coworker about their inability to “get sales with Twitter”.  Wrong way to look at it, but I digress.  Here are the results broken down into 4 buckets:

1. 53% are not on Twitter and have no plans to do so- Quantcast recently estimated that Twitter has over 20 million users, while Compete.com claims there is 2.4 million with 4 million being made up of unused and SPAM accounts. By comparison the world population is approaching 7 billion which means only 2.6% of the world population using Twitter. So by comparison, having only 53% of my constituents not on Twitter is quite low compared to the world view. I would be remiss if I did not point out that a large portion of this group has been unemployed for an extended period of time and has not utilized LinkedIn effectively. There is too much of a correlation for it to be pure circumstance.
2. 21% are on Twitter and Tweet daily with at least 10 or more Tweets- This percentage I suspect is quite high considering the crowd I roll with. As the Influential Marketing Blog most eloquently put it; “Twitter is being led by the social media geeks. This particular finding should likely come as no surprise, but 15% of Twitter users who follow more than 2000 people identify themselves as social media marketers. These individuals are more likely to post update’s every day (sometimes more than once per day) and also use Twitter more actively for direct communication”. I fall into that category, so 21% is high compared to the world norm. I would also like to point out that this is the group that is gleefully employed and a high percentage of them found a job using Twitter. Just and observation…
3. 14% have a Twitter account, passively post (less than 10 posts a day) and can’t quiet “figure it out” – Most of these users are on Twitter for work or for a reason. They know they need to use it in their career, but haven’t engaged effectively. Others are also using it to find a job but instead of engaging people to let the serendipitous business opportunities present themselves, they are beating their chest about their past career instead of talking about what they are learning today!
4. 12% are either not on Twitter yet but plan too, or are on Twitter and have no posted yet. OR are on there and have less than 5 posts – I suspect this is the group that Compete.com chose to track while Quantcast qualified them as faulty users. One observation about this group- many of them currently work in a very strict or older work culture (i.e. Pharmaceutical & HealthCare, Insurance, Legal, and Investment & Banking). I give them props for considering the possibilities with Twitter / Social Media and understand why they are slow to adopt.

Results of the poll suggest Twitter is not as addictive as nicotine! But to 21% of my constituents it is a part of their life. As much of an addiction and part of their everyday life as smoking is to smokers! I think it is a matter of education and being introduced to success utilizing Twitter.  Same with Social Media in the business world, once they see the ROI it will become standard practice. For now, Twitter doesn’t seem to be addictive, but let’s revisit this in a year and see how it is trending…

@derekshowerman

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Well, maybe not in heaven, but how about here on earth?   I’ve been in the SEO business for about four years and in the music industry for almost 12. There has been an obvious love/hate relationship growing over the past 10 years with labels and online music downloads. Some may say that the internet was the apocalypse of the record label industry, while others simply think it’s the product of what humanity has become and is developing into.  However, despite these conflicts, I see how Social Media has finally stepped in and has extinguished the flame.

We all know that the glorious days of going to our local record store and browsing through the endless aisles of ear candy, are pretty much done or nearly extinct.  Seems like if you want to get close to that experience these days, you have to pick up some mouthwash at Target and browse onto the other side of the mega store through the 4 aisles of what Target calls their “music department”.  Definitely not as exciting as it used to be!  But wait, there are other options. You can hop in your car or take a plane and travel to far distant lands called Hollywood, Berkeley or San Francisco and visit the last of the true infamous independent record stores world famous “Amoeba Records”.  Well back to reality. Going to Amoeba isn’t an option for 99% of all music fans, so we’ll just leave that out. Instead, most people are left with something else that isn’t too bad… the Internet!

Finding music on the internet isn’t new news at all. However, I wonder if the internet was truly the end of the music industry as we’ve all known it or the birth of something new?  On top of that we have to really ask ourselves, “Isn’t it simply the way that we’re evolving in society”? Seems like we may be getting a bit lazier these days and the idea of going out and picking up the latest new release isn’t on the agenda. Instead, it’s much more convenient to order something with the click of a button and PRESTO!!! You got it!

Now, whether or not you paid for it is another issue. I’ve been on both ends of that boat; as a musician and as a fan. I understand the struggle it is to make music, release it and hope that it will actually sell, giving you a chance to possibly make some money from it.  I also understand what it’s like to be broke. It seems easy to have something for free when it’s so accessible, even though stealing is stealing regardless of the situation. So no, I don’t like taking music for free. If you can’t pay for it, then don’t steal it.

Now back to the extinguisher. Social Media has filled a huge connectivity gap between fans, record labels, industry people and anyone else involved.  For over a decade we’ve limited ourselves to comments, ratings, and message boards in order to bring our communities together.  Before Social Media, emotional context was best expressed with techniques such as using ALL CAPS or typed emotions. However, in the absence of face-to-face contact, these techniques are inadequate as tools of true human expression. Today’s internet with Social Media provides tools to musicians, fans, industry folks and your everyday web surfer, keeping the industry alive, exciting and vibrant. In other words-bringing back that face-to-face connection. The invention of MySpace, Facebook and Twitter has linked the virtual expression to the masses. While blogs gave users a platform to express themselves, it was (and still is) at its core a one-way medium. The true power of a social network is its ability to rapidly connect ideas by linking friends, fans and colleagues, dynamically in real-time.

Rock and Roll and the internet go hand in hand.  Artists these days have exclusive goodies only available on the internet, endless communication, information, multiple social media networks and a nice little online store called iTunes.  Fans love to keep in touch and have the sense that they’re close to the artists they admire so much. Same goes for the Artist who likes the feedback and contact with their fans.  Labels and promoters also have the ability to benefit from these Social Media tools, bringing them back into their familiar territory with the strength needed. These are amazing tools that in my opinion only help the music industry perform their goals in a more efficient way. Independent bands can truly stay independent and actually be heard/ discovered. While bigger labels can promote their products as well and still stay connected with what their consumers want.  In the end we’re all happy campers. Not only can you apply Social Media to music but you can apply this to all products and services. Think about this one…  What would The Beatles become in their early cavern days with Social media and the internet???

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A few months after I graduated from college my friends were all signing up for this new site called, Facebook. In the early days of Facebook, you were required to enter an .edu email address to sign up. Since I recently had my .edu email revoked, I was forced to look over my roommate’s shoulder at her Facebook page and also started a MySpace page. After a year or so, I stopped looking up high school classmates, old boyfriends, posting pictures of my weekend adventures out at the bars, and let my MySpace page die. At that time Facebook and MySpace were nothing more than a way to keep in touch with my friends who had been scattered across the U.S. after graduation. I believe most people have had similar experiences with social media sites, you sign up for one or two, use them for a few months, and the novelty deflates.

Four years later, .com email addresses being accepted on Facebook, the evolution of Twitter, the purchase of my iPod Touch, and this little widget called “share” on almost all websites, has changed the way I use and view social media. In addition to these changes, I switched the industry in which I worked and am now managing an ecommerce site. My use of the outlets has evolved from keeping in touch with old pals, to keeping in touch with industry information and as I call it “continuing industry education credits”. It is like taking a 10 minute class each morning on what is new in my industry. Who doesn’t want to know what is affecting the industry in which they work? Why would I wait for my industry magazines to come in the mail, when the same writers are blogging once a week? Every morning I log on to my NetVibes account, view my Twitter account, Facebook page, read through any new blog posts, and respond to any questions or comments.

The evolution of my perception of social media started with two people, Derek (Authority Domains Director of Social Media) and Barbara Walters. Yes, the 79 year co-host of The View and famed interviewer, Barbara Walters. Derek hammered home the notion of gaining invaluable industry knowledge by being an active social media user and the generation leads from having a social media presence. Occasionally, when I feel the need to listen to five women talk over each other for an hour, I watch The View. Over the past two months, Elizabeth Hasselback, Sherri Shephard, and Joy Behar have been talking about Twittering. They have finally persuaded Barbara Walters to start Tweeting. Whoopi just starting flying on airplanes, so they have a ways to go with her. If a 79 year old career woman is Tweeting, I am definitely behind the curve.

Three weeks ago I started simple daily Tweets, a Facebook Fanpage for the ecommerce stores, located a few interesting bloggers in my industry, and setup my NetVibes page. The total setup time was not more than 30 minutes. I was nervous, and thought ‘what do I have to say to the world and what can I really learn from these outlets?’ My answer after three weeks, there is a lot I have to say and so much more out there that I can learn and grow from. Beyond keeping connected in my industry, I am learning more about my customers and how to involve them with our Fanpage and following the companies whom we purchase from. I have already had people contact me with new products for the site, in addition to finding out about fantastic promotion ideas.

My girlfriend’s like to poke fun at the fact that I tweet and keep up a fanpage. They consider it to be ‘an over load of information’. They ask me “Why do I want to know what Ashton Kutcher ate for breakfast?” My response is, “don’t follow silly people.” If you connect with quality people and the right businesses – you will see the real power of social media.

A former social media skeptic –

Janel

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I am admittedly a new Twiitter convert but want to share with you a simple technique you can use to save time and connect with people who add valuable insights to your niche.

Off topic post are fine in moderation, however getting 15 post a day from someone along the lines of ” I just went to Sonic and they were out of Cherry limeades…what the heck!” adds nothing of value for you.

Here is how you can keep that to a minimum by only following people who add content of value and minimize the “Hey there are no raisins in my Raisin Bran” post.

Step 1:

If you don’t have it already. Download PowerTwitter for Firefox. Its free and only takes seconds to install.

Step 2:

Once installed go to your twitter homepage. You will notice some great functions have been added to your Twitter page. Click on your followers list then visit any follower you have.

Step 3:

Once on your follower’s Twitter homepage you will see a search box. Use the check box to only search their updates and input your own version of the following advanced search query.
“Link building” OR “Social media ” OR SEO OR PPC OR Adwords OR ROI OR Analytics OR Ecommerce
*Adjust this search query to match the things that interest you.

Now You Are Setup To Follow Or Not In 5 Seconds

Anytime you get a new follower or think of following someone, simply visit their page. PowerTwitter will remember your advanced search query in the recent searches dropdown . Select it and you can tell in a few seconds if this person produces content that you will value.

I see profiles all the time with great looking BIOs but with horrible content. This simple step will save you wasted time following then finding out the person produces little to no content of value.

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