I have a confession to make: I do not spend every moment of my free time reading marketing blogs. In the past, on any given day I would log in and scan through dozens of blogs each week just to keep up with the changes happening in Social Media. My in-box would fill up rapidly with new alerts- some were relevant to me; and some were not. And to be honest ; this process sucked up a great deal of my time and energy that I needed to be giving to our clients.
Not long ago, a colleague of mine advised me to sign up for the top social media news stories to be emailed to me from Smart Brief: a free service that provides daily e-mail based news & content. I have not looked back since. They do the searching for me- so I can read the top industry articles of the day and stay current on new online tools, tips, and news. I scan my daily Smart Brief emails- then share that content with our Web Marketing_RX Twitter followers and Facebook Friends.
So- it makes me look really smart and like I spend tons of time researching and finding the most helpful tools and information from the top industry gurus. In actuality….well….I cheat. So there! Now you know! Try it your self and let me know what you think! They provide daily digests for professionals in so many industries- Marketing, Accounting, Education, Technology, Hospitality- you name it!
Note- Please do not think I am discouraging you from following your favorite blogs! Nothing can replace that relationship that bloggers have built with their readers; and the best way to get the most out of that relationship is to subscribe to your favorite blog (or blogs); read their posts, comment on them, ask questions, follow them in other social networks and do the same to continue or expand the conversation. But Smart Brief does offer a short cut for you to get valuable information- AND, introduce you to new blog readers.
Here is a sample of how awesome Smart Brief is- check out the some of the stories that came to me today:
Today’s Buzz
Dell nears $7 million in Twitter sales with “no strategy” Dell announced that it had made nearly $7 million in sales through Twitter. Manish Mehta, the firm’s social-media and community vice president, offers this advice to companies still standing on the sidelines: “Social media isn’t a means to further a corporation’s strategy, it’s a means to help determine it.” He suggests relying heavily on customer feedback to determine the best course of action. “No strategy necessary,” he writes. The Huffington Post (12/8)
2010 New Year’s Resolution: Get Social. 2009 is almost over, but it’s left a lasting effect on marketing. Grab a hold and get social—or risk having your campaigns fall off the radar like the fail whale on Twitter. Because your customers have gone social—and you should, too. Download Oneupweb’s Ultimate Social Media Bundle.
Ideas in Action
Holiday gift ideas are just a tweet away More than a quarter of shoppers say they are using social-networking sites to generate gift ideas this holiday season, comScore reports. Customer-generated reviews were the most likely source of influence for those buyers, according to the report. “I think we are getting our first real glimpse at the impact social media will play on commerce as we enter the next decade,” says comScore Chairman Gian Fulgoni. San Francisco Chronicle/The Tech Chronicles blog (12/8)
MySpace offers cash prizes as incentive to use APIs MySpace is offering real-time APIs that will let developers aggregate status and mood updates, include site profiles in searches and upload photos to MySpace from external sites. The social network is also offering cash prizes to encourage third-party developers to take advantage of the APIs. TechCrunch (12/9)
Social-media critics move box office Social-networking buzz is carrying the Sandra Bullock film “The Blind Side” to success at the box office, which — despite lukewarm reviews for being too feel-good — is seeing an uptick in viewers each week. “People want to be on the forefront of discovering a great new artist or a cool new film [and] there’s more ease in sharing,” said Fayetteville State University associate professor Chuck Tryon. CNN (12/8)
The Takeaway
The scary reality of real-time search The world of search engine optimization has completely changed now that Google is integrating real-time Web data into its searches. Companies may be concerned to find Twitter comments — good and bad — at the top of their search results, but this move empowers customers, Rob Birgfeld writes. “We have to be ready to react, engage and help them tell the story that’s going to be on the front page of Google,” he adds. SmartBrief/SmartBlog on Social Media (12/8) , Mashable (12/7)
Why MIT won the DARPA challenge The MIT team that won DARPA’s balloon-hunting challenge credits its success to a “recursive incentive” model — paying people not just to provide leads about where the balloons were, but just to link the team to other people who may know where they are. “We think this recursive incentive allowed people to feel as though they were a part of a team helping to solve this proverbial needle in the haystack challenge,” says Riley Crane, a team member. CNET/Digital Media blog (12/8)
How to boost comments on your blog Comments can elevate your blog and enrich its content, but it’s not always easy to engage readers, Niall Harbison writes, suggesting that you pose questions, be conversational, respond to readers, and make use of other social sites. “The key is saying interesting things on these other platforms so as you build a community and people feel compelled to come to your blog and comment,” he adds. RotorBlog.com (12/8)
You are invited to Word of Mouth Supergenius where you’ll learn to be a fantastic word of mouth and social media marketer. Get practical, hands-on techniques to get started, grow your program, and earn amazing word of mouth. Receive $99 off using discount code “SmartBriefSentme”.
SmartPulse
Inc. magazine recently reported that 91% of Inc. 500 companies are using social media. Does it surprise you that the percentage is so high?
Not surprised. Social media is becoming a must-have.
62.92%
I’m surprised. I would have thought the number to be much lower.
33.33%
No opinion.
3.75%
Welcome to the mainstream: Large companies appear to be embracing social media as a business norm, proof positive that the platform is firmly in the mainstream. But how is it that these companies can get behind Twitter when so many of them still don’t have a blog yet, asks Paul Chaney, Internet marketing director for Bizzuka and author of “The Digital Handshake.” Check out more of Chaney’s analysis on SmartBlog on Social Media.
Facebook now reports having in excess of 350 million members worldwide. This expansive growth led CEO Mark Zuckerberg to announce recently that changes to privacy settings were in the works. Those changes have now been rolled out. As a result, do you plan to make changes to your privacy settings?
All of a sudden, your ’social brand’ is front and center and has the potential to drive top-line results for those who are actually searching for your product. Still comfortable with that intern running your Twitter account?”
Thanks so much for the mention– we’re thrilled to be recognized by knowledgeable folks such as yourselves. We’re looking to constantly improve the product– and if this is any indication– we’re listening to our users to help us with that. We have over 120 publications, but SmartBrief on Social Media has grown at an accelerated pace because of great mentions like this.
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Rob Birgfeld
(December 15th, 2009 at 1:44 pm)
Thanks so much for the mention– we’re thrilled to be recognized by knowledgeable folks such as yourselves. We’re looking to constantly improve the product– and if this is any indication– we’re listening to our users to help us with that. We have over 120 publications, but SmartBrief on Social Media has grown at an accelerated pace because of great mentions like this.
Once again– thank you and to sign up directly for SmartBrief on Social Media, visit http://www.smartbrief.com/socialmedia
Rob Birgfeld
Amy Dunn
(December 15th, 2009 at 3:03 pm)
Thanks for your comments Rob! I really do appreciate this service (as you can tell) and hope others will jump on board too!