Facebook’s Gestures will make more businesses like them
Facebook is about to get more important for Business. Fact. I quite often hear people saying “Yeh, but Facebook is for family and friends not business, right?” and then normally spend the next 10 or 20 minutes to convince them it isn’t so. It doesn’t always work. To many, the informality of Facebook, the way you can banter with ex-school-mates and existing office colleagues alike, doesn’t lend itself well to ‘promoting a brand”. Yet last week’s announcement from Facebook about the changes coming to their portal is about to make Facebook even more important and a vital business tool. We often recite the mantra of ‘Content is King’ and until now Facebook (despite already hosting 4% of all photographs ever taken in the world) hasn’t really towed the line with that one, until now. Facebook is moving to a more newsy type-look and will be placing content on a more newsworthy basis. Content now is very important on Facebook. What changes? From the 30th September (i.e. today) Facebook will no longer be driven by a long line of posts from those a user has linked to but instead a Timeline and a set of organised post. In fact it is an intelligent timeline that will create more a chronological story or scrapbook than just a series of posts. If you’ve ever seen the impressive Flipboard app on the iPad you will get the idea. Facebook is looking to organise us. That includes the basic like function. This is being opened out to developers given them more scope to create their own versions connected to online activities. That is likely to make users more savvy as to who, what and when they like. So Facebook will decide what is relevant content to us and place this in our timeline. As a user though you won’t miss out on the other content completely, that will be available as part of a rolling ‘ticker’ on of each user’s home page. Dspite this apparent information gatekeeping, Facebook claims the new changes will allow you more control over what appears as a top news item as, users will be given more options over these sorts of preferences via new setting controls. The idea is that with one quick glance users will easily catch-up on the actions of their important friends over the past 24 hours without having to scroll through countless updates “you should see the things you’re most interested in” claim Facebook, yes but not necessarily the most recent. To the writer this move is perhaps more about understanding where Facebook sits alongside other social networks. During the recent UK riots, during live sporting events and reality tv shows, the ‘as live’ action and interaction has taken place on Twitter not Facebook. Twitter has almost become the default for immediacy, Facebook something more of a reflection. In tradtional analogy, Twitter is to TV and radio what Facebook is now becoming to newspapers and magazines. Again that makes content on Facebook even more important. If you are a business, the stronger or more unique your message the better the chance it will attract interest from an audience. From a user perspective the chances are their top news will become stale for those who log on more than once per day, so any new engaging content will be lapped up The true impact – and whether it makes Facebook users leave in droves or new sign-ups happen – won’t be seen for months yet, but we suggest you concentrate on ensuring what you have on Facebook is as up to date and relevant to your daily business as possible. Let us know what you think of the new look Facebook.
Business Elite take to Twitter
Whether it is an attempt to be down with the kids, or simply identifying the networking and business growth potential of the Twittersphere, a new survey from CNBC entitled Europe’s Mobile Elite 2011, shows more than a third of Europe’s top business leaders are now using Twitter. 61% of the respondents said they believed social media was changing the way they did business and 45% admitted they feared being unable to keep pace with technology as it applies to their industry. Wanting to stay ever connected to what is going on in their business smartphone usage is up with iPhone leading the way (21%) followed closely by Blackberry (20%) but Android catching up fast at (14%). 15% of those surveyed also now own an iPad, the majority combining it for business and pleasure – 49% claiming their children use it at home. On the social media front however it is Twitter stealing the headlines. Whilst Facebook remains the most used (down to 77% from 81% last year), Linked-in continues to grow (56%) and Twitter (38% from 30%) is finally being recognised as a high-flying business tool. 18% of the executives surveyed admitted to having accounts for all three of the social networks. With more and more of business decision makers taking to social networks for themselves, it is hoped that the ‘buy in’ frustrations experienced by many looking for social media investment could begin to decrease.
Now event ticket buying just got more social
With the summer all but over, so is the festival season that has kept social networks busy in recent months with photo postings, check-ins or simple profile updates. Those active in social media like to show off where they are and what they are doing and those not so lucky to be there like to make comments back, while others in the vicinity often pipe up to say hi, come and meet me. Big ticketing events like these are immensely social but so far it has been more an informal use of social tools and not one businesses have been that great at capitalising upon. Until now. Ticketmaster last week launched a new feature in it’s Facebook strategy. Seat tagging means now when you book your tickets for your event, your friends can immediately see when and where they will be attending. Either that will make them extremely jealous, or as Ticketmaster hope, it will inspire them to book with you. An article on the changes at FastCompany quotes Ticketmaster CEO Nathan Hubbard “Each time a ticket buyer shared with Facebook friends that he was attending an event, that alert generated $5.30 in additional ticket revenue.” So already, the customers were using Facebook to inspire each other to make similar purchases, but now Ticketmaster have made that easier. It really is an example of social commerce. Via the new application, just as you might visit a site and see the faces of your friends pop up, as other people who have liked the site via Facebook, so now when you go to book your tickets on the venue seat map, you will see what friends have already booked and where they are sitting. It is enhanced Facebook connectivity that could change the way people spend their leisure time. Unfortunately, for those in the UK, it is a US-based application for the ticketmaster.com website powering it, but don’t expect it to be too long before the UK follows suit. As a nation entertainment ticket buying is a business sector not apparently affected by the current economic slowdown, we like to have treats like this to look forward too. The Facebook integration feature Work on the interactive seat map that launched in the US last year and is now used in more than 300 venues allowing fans to choose their exact seats instead of relying on Ticketmaster’s “best available” option, another feature us in the UK will have to wait a little while for yet.
Does Google PLUS really add to our world?
It looks like Facebook. It’s blurb sounds like Facebook. If you got up close, it probably even smell’s like Facebook, but this is Google entering the social networking arena…again. A select band of people (were you one?) were this week invited into Google’s latest project – a social networking service called Google PLUS. Those selected few will also soon be able to invite others and the idea is to let people share and discuss status updates, photos and links as you would in Facebook but in a more intimate group. Small groups or ‘Circles’ is the focus – colleagues, best mates, sportsteam teammates etc – and for that purpose there are group text messaging and video chat facilities built into the network. The Google line is it is more like real life, you have more control and more privacy: “In real life, we have walls and windows and I can speak to you knowing who’s in the room, but in the online world, you get to a ‘Share’ box and you share with the whole world,” said Bradley Horowitz, a vice president of product management at Google. Pitched by anybody else and actually it probably sounds like a poor-imitation of what is already out there. Yet this is Google saying this and backing the project so people will sit up and take notice. The biggest issue is whether the heavily scientific and engineered approach that has seen Google become so successful using algorithms and data analysis, can be converted to a more touchy-feely and informal approach that social networking thrives on. What Google hopes is that people will sign up with PLUS to enable them to get at least some insight into the valuable world that is developing in social networks in terms of advertising data and trends that so often is not accessible to Google’s search robots or experts. The ‘reality’ approach includes an attempt to mimic those occasions when people want to be your friend when you don’t really care. Unlike on Facebook, people do not have to agree to be friends with one another. Via your circles however you can have greater control over who sees what about you. So you effectively get more than one persona. The multiple personality aspect is promoted as a benefit and can offer greater control, but could also offer its own difficulties and dangers of course. The potential winner as we see it at the moment is ‘Sparks’ which is a push type notification of “what you’re into and … stuff it thinks you’ll like”. It may sound a bit Big Brotheresque but the viral aspect and shared interests appeal of Twitter and Facebook could be amplified by this tool. Google has of course launched big ideas before and then slowly retreated but expect it to push and bang the drum on this one more and more as the year progresses and they tweak based on feedback from a growing user base. Have you had an invite to Google PLUS? Have you taken the plunge? What are your thoughts?
Ignore social media at your peril
In traditional business would you hand your rival a clear advantage by ignoring a route to market? A new report from office and business service specialists Regus suggests by ignoring social media for your company you could be doing just that. The report found that whereas 33% of companies successfully gained customers through social networking activity in 2010 a year on that percentage had risen even further to 41 per cent. A no-brainer? The study of 17,000 managers and business owners across 80 countries, revealed it to be a globa trend too, so whatever your market, if you ignore social media you will probably be left behind. In the UK one in three social network users are a fan, follower or friend of a company page or profile, meaning those not focused on building a social media following are missing out on a third of business if not more, and that figure is growing day by day. What are your experiences of building business via social media?
Roll over blogging and Twitter – Here comes Tumblr
Tumblr has been around since 2007 but in the last year or so has made a massive in-roads into the social-networking sphere as particularly the younger generation flock to take advantage of its micro blogging functions. If you’ve not seen Tumblr before it’s kind of Twitter meets a blog. A short blog that can often consist of re-blogging what you find elsewhere. It’s the kind of stuff that many now use Facebook for, posting their favourite YouTube videos and the like, but Tumblr is more out there in the open internet, broadcasting to the world and creating a few personalities of its own. Others have described it as text meets email which is another fair comment, but however you see it or others see it, nobody can deny that Tumblr is on the move up. Back in July 2009 it recorded monthly page views of 250 million. Earlier this month it recorded 250 million page views in one single day! The success of the platform is its ease and personal nature. Few see it as a business tool, it is probably too informal for that, but we recall people saying the same about Facebook just a year or so ago. The popularity of Tumblr is rooted amongst creative types. It allows you to show flair and an insight into your personality that other networks perhaps have more constraints over. Yet, the success of Tumblr means companies are at least taking an interest. At the moment this appears to be mainly publications and news sites like The New York Times, The Huffington Post and Rolling Stone magazine, where their profile sits more comfortably with the existing Tumblr user base, but expect more and more corporates to give it a try as they push for the social media lead.
Getting a grip of reality?
Well The Apprentice has already set the Twittersphere alight, with the contestants seemingly chosen for their ‘character’ rather than their business credibility. With that comes the questions over the sanity of those who apply and take part. Yet, if a quirky state of mind is a requirement for selection on The BBC’s biggest reality show, what depths will be revealed by the newest reality show to hit Channel 5? Yes, Channel 5 is set to become reality heaven for several weeks later this year for those so inclined. It will play host to the big brother of all reality contestant shows. In fact it will play host to Big Brother itself. Yes, the show that ended a run of ten years on Channel Four is to come back to our screens one down the channel list, with production giants Endemol still at the helm. With a new show, comes new contestants and a new application procedure and this week saw the launch of a new site: bigbrotherauditions.com. Those up for the challenge (ridicule?) can apply to be on the show directly via the site or download and print forms to send later. The bizarre thing is, that with the rise of social media even since the last series of Big Brother, those ‘characters’ likely to be ideal for the show are also likely to be heavily into social media with large Facebook and Twitter followings. So 1) will it still be possible for the producers to keep the identity of the contestants secret before they are officially announced and 2) will those selected be able to cope with the cold turkey of going without social media while they are inside the Big Brother house? 3) Will the evil Big Brother create a false online universe within the house, that mimics internet access under certain dictatorial regimes in far flung corners of the world? We will have to wait and see, but certainly expect to see plenty of media bumph surrounding reality shows again this year and without a big sporting event this summer expect also reality related hastags to dominate the Twitter debates. Have you ever applied to be on a reality show? We’d like to hear your experiences.
Six tips to improve your social Media presence
Whatever your level of aptitude with Twitter and Facebook, there are many tweaks you can make to improve your presence in the social media sphere. Here are six to get you started: 1. Encourage people to link to you Make it easy for people to like and re-tweet your content. Include Social Media buttons whenever you can and encourage them to link back to you with calls to action like “Enjoyed this? Then why not link to us!”. 2. Get your look right Social Media may be more informal than traditional business fora but you still need to make sure your brand is properly represented. Make sure your social media backgrounds, skins and themes are in your corporate colours, carry a logo and are distinctively yours. Make sure you have also posted a detailed and interesting biography or profile either as a person or as your business with links to all your relevant sites. Look professional at first glance and you will encourage many more second looks. 3. Know the netiquette This stems way back from days of online bulletin boards but is as valid in the Facebook and Twitter worlds as it still is for forums. Every site and networking will have its own rules. Some are written some less so, so it is important you study a new network before blasting in. Learn the rules and stick to them. They are there to protect you from being shot down in flames at the very worst. 4. Appreciate not replicate It is easy simply to re-tweet another’s post but your own followers will appreciate you giving it your own slant, they are after all following you. By all means credit others but if you can also rephrase it so you pitch it for your own following. 5. Be a superhero – or at least a Community Angel OK, you don’t have to wear your underpants on the outside of your trousers but being willing to help others rather than just sell your services or self-promote is a good way to develop a strong following. Advice, humour, insight are all things that help us get through our daily lives a bit easier, so if you can offer those on a regular basis you will find you become more popular and thus more able to sell your wares much easier int he long run. 6. Make social media part of your day – every day There’s little point spending weeks getting your username, branding and social media policy right and then abandoning it. See it as akin to attending a networking event: Once you are there you need to stay there and be active or you won’t get anything out of it. In fact if you don’t think you have the time to manage it properly it may be better to avoid it altogether until you do – customers will see a lack of interest and look elsewhere. If you remind yourself of just one of the above every day you will soon see your online presence improve and start getting bigger rewards from your social media efforts.