Archive for November, 2009
Posted on November 18, 2009 - by Wayne Sutton
Is it time for Twitter to kill Trending Topics?
Since Twitter has “jumped the shark” from earlier this year, trending topics seem to have less value than ever. Random tends such as #blackthoughts and #whitethoughts which are trending one and two now are more about jokes, free will expression and spam, than sharing or posting valuable content. Also besides the spammers, some “Trending Topic seekers” are tweeting things that really should never be said online, ever. Recently Brian Solis of FutureWorks wrote, Do Twitter’s Trending Topics Signify What’s Important to You?. My answer in the comments was no. Also I stated that Twitter could use services like topsy.com, bit.ly or Tweetmeme to better filter trending topics based on links or tweets that I have tweeted based off of their api. Also with the new geo api Twitter could show me Trending Topics not only by what I have previously tweeted but by location and popular tweet content near by.
Personally at the current state of Trending Topics and with the growth of new Twitter users I think Twitter should stop displaying Trending Topics until they can make it more valuable. Also I’ve heard from many individuals say they don’t even look at or use Trending Topics anymore or care about Trending Topics for that matter.
Twitter though is acknowledging the Trending Topics problem on a recent blog post called: Get to the Point: Twitter Trends. Post excerpt:
As Twitter grows and the number of tweets each day continues to astound us, we’ve noticed an increasing amount of clutter in the public timeline, especially with trending topics. Trends began as a useful way to find out what’s going on but has grown less interesting due to the noisiness of the conversation.
So, today we’re starting to experiment with improvements to trends that will help you find more relevant tweets. Specifically, we’re working to show higher quality results for trend queries by returning tweets that are more useful.
Good luck with improving Trending Topics but unlike the list and retweet roll-out, I think Twitter should hide Trending Topics everywhere on the site until it’s fixed.
Your Thoughts or Take the Poll below?
Posted on November 17, 2009 - by Wayne Sutton
Social Media Examples: How downtown restaurants & coffee shops are using social media in Raleigh
Social Media Examples: How downtown restaurants & coffee shops are using social media in Raleigh, NC.
By now everyone should know that social media marketing and restaurants are a perfect mix. Especially when it comes to using social media to reach local customers. Restaurants have an advantage of the ability to interact with their customers and explore other marketing opportunities without spending a lot of money with little risk. Sadly this also means most restaurants are using social media on a small level posting Twitter account and/or Facebook fanpage on their website and blogging without thinking about the offline marketing opportunities or using social media for customer service opportunities. Also a lot of times this means there is no employee social media policy, 24/7 monitoring, established goals and no social media monitoring or measuring tool being used to track engagement and what’s working. Regardless it’s working for some and there’s always room for improvement. Below are three examples from Cafe Helios, Busy Bee Cafe and Sauced Pizza. *Disclaimer, I have not worked with any of the three and this blog post is only coming from preliminary observations but I have eaten all three. 
Cafe Helios
Website: http://cafehelios.com
Blog: http://cafehelios.com/blog
Twitter: @Cafehelios – 655 followers
Facebook Fanpage: – 212 fans – http://www.facebook.com/pages/Raleigh-NC/Cafe-Helios/21777426721
Pros:
- Clean simple website design
- Blog design matches brand with seamless integration ( I think the entire site is WordPress)
- Facebook and Twitter icons on contact page
- Using Twitter to Tweet specials and event promotions
- Twitter logo and background matches brand
- Using photos, in-store and on website and Facebook fanpage tab
- Using Facebook Fanpage to to post specials and event promotions, just like their twitter account
- Using blog to post more detailed information about events
- Welcomes the community to host events/meetups/tweetups at location.
Cons:
- No “find us” on Twitter and Facebook logos or icons on the home page
- I don’t see an option to join an email newsletter online or in-store. I can’t remember if they have one in-store either but I don’t think so
- Lack of constancy on Blog, Twitter and Facebook Fanpage updates
- Monitoring the @cafehelios account with little engagement from @cafehelios
- Posting same content on Twitter and Facebook Fanpage
- Not using video on blog or Facebook fanpage
- No in-store signs that say contact or follow/fan us on social media sites.
- Not showing social networking profiles on blog sidebar
- No custom Facebook fanpage username
Sauced Pizza/strong>
Website: http://www.saucedpizza.com
Blog: http://blog.saucedpizza.com
Twitter: @SaucedPizza - 207 followers
Facebook Fanpage: – 454 fans – http://www.facebook.com/SaucedPizza
Email Newsletter Sign-up – http://www.saucedpizza.com/email.html
*Opened in the last 3 months
Pros:
- Email newsletter, Facbook Fanpage and Twitter icons on the homepage
- Advertising Free wi-fi on homepage
- Using Google Calendar to show events and allowing users subscribe to calendar
- Showing Facebook Fanpage Fan box on blog sidebar and on contact page of main site.
- Showing social networking profiles on blog sidebar
- Using blog for promotions with consistent updates
- Using notes Facebook app to sync/link blog and Facebook Fanpage content
- Have a tab on Facebook fanpage to sign-up for email
- Using Facebook Photo gallery and events tab
- Custom Twitter background
Cons:
- Using Blogger for a blog platform, (sorry I’m a wordpress guy)
- Blog link not in main navigation
- Twitter, Facebook and sign-up for email newsletter on the footer of the website
- Posting same content on Twitter and Facebook Fanpage
- Not using video on blog or Facebook fanpage
- No in-store signs that say contact or follow/fan us on social media sites.
- Better Twitter engagement than @cafehelios but not consistent coming from account.
- Website and blog design not consistent
Busy Bee Cafe
Website: http://www.busybeeraleigh.com
Blog: Not obvious ( I think it’s the Homebrew/Outide the Hive link)
Twitter: @BusyBeeCafe – 457 followers
Facebook Fanpage: – 1428 fans – http://www.facebook.com/pages/Raleigh-NC/The-Busy-Bee-Raleigh/88670951056
Email Newsletter Sign-up – Top right home page: http://www.busybeeraleigh.com
*I visited for the first time yesterday, Nov. 16.
*Opened in the last 7 months
Pros:
Twitter and Facebook icons in consistent locations throughout the site.
Share-this / social bookmarking icons on the footer of the website
Consistent updates on Facebook and Twitter
Using Facebook Twitter app to post updates to Twitter (I think)
They have a clipboard asking me to sign-up for their newsletter on the counter
Custom Twitter background
One video on Facebook Fanpage ( it’s a pro because they are the only one to have a video out of the three)
Using Facebook Fanpage as their blog (also a Con too if you don’t have a blog)
Welcomes the community to host events/meetups/tweetups at location.
Cons:
- Blog not obvious
- Very little if not zero engagement on Twitter
- No email newsletter sign-up on Facebook Fanpage
- Using Facebook Fanpage as their blog (also a Pro too if you don’t have a blog)
- No in-store signs that say contact or follow/fan us on social media sites.
- No custom Facebook fanpage username
- No in-store signs that say contact or follow/fan us on social media sites.
Stats:
followerwonk.com Twitter account comparison
Compete.com comparison
Summary:
Again this was preliminary observations without using any major measuring or analytics tools. Also I’m not a big Yelp user and I didn’t look to see if they have a Yelp profile and if there is any feedback on it.
- All three are using Twitter and Facebook to “push” out updates about in-store promotions and events with very little engagement.
- All three are not using video to create content with the exception of Busy Bee Cafe one Facebook video.
- The content strategy seems to be same message on all three platforms (blog, Twitter, Facebook)
- All three have cork boards for people to post flyers and posters but those are also good locations to post information about their social networking profiles. None have a visible presence to say find or follow us on Twitter or Facebook. Twine Interactive office downtown Raleigh is a good example of how to use social media icons in windows to attract customers.
What’s next or to do?
- Using Location based apps such as Tri Out, Brightktie, Whrrl, FourSquare and Gowalla for location based marketing.
- Create video content for hire engagement and customer reviews
- Better blogging. Yes restaurants need content strategies too.
- Mobile: Have a mobile version of their website and/or create restaurant iPhone/andriod interactive app with menu and pictures/videos of food.
- Augmented reality, I wouldn’t worry about this until 2nd half of 2010
Questions:
What are other ways have you seen restaurants use social media and how can they use it better?
Posted on November 15, 2009 - by Wayne Sutton
Blog Updates: Making your WordPress blog more Social
Usually on weekends I’m going through my email and trying to reach inbox zero before Monday morning but last night I decided SocialWayne.com needed a few updates. My primarily goals of updating SocialWayne.com was to make it faster, remove WordPress plugins I didn’t need and add social engagement. While adding a few social engagement features I may not have reached my goal of speeding up the load time but I’m hoping WP Super Cache will handle the rest. Either way, here’s what I done to SocialWayne.com to make it more social.
1. Wibiya toolbar
Wibiya enables blogs to integrate the most exciting services, applications and widgets of their choice into their blog through customized web-based toolbars.
2. Added Follow Me Plugin
A floating tab on the right that says Follow me that links to my Twitter profile.
3. Added/Changed Facebook Share Count Plugin
I had another Facebook Share Count plugin installed but I switched to the one created by Jess Stay
4. Updated: Easy ReTweet WordPress Plugin
I still have Topsy and Tweetmeme plugins installed and actived but I’m not displaying them.
5. Added Facebook Connect Comments
Sadly my blog theme doesn’t support Disqus therefore I’m using BackType and Facebook to for social comments.
6. Added ShareThis Plugin
I was using the Sexy Bookmarks Plugin but I can add google analytics to ShareThis therefore I’m making the switch.
7. Added Find Me On plugin
You know what to do.
8. Added Google Friend Connect Gadgets
If you look to your right on the sidebar you’ll see two new gadgets from Google Friend Connect. One always you to leave a comment about the blog or you could post topics that you would like for me to cover and the other is a poll widget. Speaking of the poll, if you have a moment, login and vote. I’m using the feedback for an upcoming blog post.
There are a few more things I’ve done to SocialWayne.com and I’ll blog more about the Facebook Share plugins in the next few days. Let me know what you think about the changes and have a great week.
Posted on November 14, 2009 - by Wayne Sutton
What I'm sharing on Google Reader for November 14th
Today, while reading RSS feeds in Google Reader, I came across these interesting blog posts and wanted to share them with you. I hope you find some of them interesting. If one of them was useful to you or if you have a comment about one, let me know in the comments. For real-time results of what I’m sharing on Google Reader see my feeds on FriendFeed: http://friendfeed.com/waynesutton
Thanks
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Shared Twitter Part 4 – Seesmic Desktop.
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Shared Twitter Lists Good? Bad? Ugly?.
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Shared 7 Cloud Computing Myths Busted.
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Shared A Personal Branding Tale Part 3.
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Posted on November 14, 2009 - by Wayne Sutton
Verizon Wireless Motorola Droid hands on Video Review
Tonight while visiting a local Best Buy Store I had the chance to try out the Verizon Wireless Motorola Droid phone. After all the hype I was ready to be blown away. Watch the video below for a short hands on review, ironically the video was recorded on my iPhone.
*wait a few min, for YouTube to encode the video as I’m posting this from my iPhone.
What were your first impression of the Droid?
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone
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About
Wayne Sutton helps individuals, startups and businesses succeed in understanding how to communicate on the social web via web development, user experience, brand strategy and marketing (Mobile and Social).
Wayne Sutton is an Entrepreneur, Advisor and Partner of NewMe Accelerator.
Ph: 919-816-2230
@: wayne@socialwayne.comSubmit
