Posts Tagged digg
Social Media – Top 25
Posted by Paul Holmes in business, internet, personal, social media, society on August 30, 2010
Social Media Camp, Victoria BC, October 3rd, 2010
If you are using social media for business, you are probably best to stick with LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter (perhaps with a dash of YouTube or Flickr). But if you are a geek like me, you might find a few little gems in this list.
25. Google Buzz
So much buzz, yet so little sting. It’s my new FriendFeed, although I don’t think Google intended it to be used this way. I rarely use it, despite the fact it’s in my face every time I use GMail.
24. MySpace
Oh! How far you have fallen, MySpace. For those of you who haven’t heard of MySpace, it’s a website where you can find music. Is there anything else? Not really. Don’t accuse me of dissin’ MySpace though, you’ll notice this list doesn’t include bebo, hi5, Friendster, Multiply, Plaxo, ecademy, or any of the other also-ran general interest social networks.
23. Identi.ca
It’s like a better Twitter, only it hasn’t reached critical mass. I hope they have some commercial success with status.net, because competition is good.
22. FriendFeed
As predicted, Facebook bought FriendFeed and did nothing with it. It was number 10 on my last list.
21. meme by Yahoo!
I have met some very interesting people on this. It’s another offering that blurs the line between micro-blogging and blogging (like Posterous and Tumblr tend to); it seems to be a great place to profile photography. Like VIMEO, it’s a better network not for the features or marketing potential, but for the interesting users and their content.
20. Hunch
Great idea – a taste graph for the social web. I hope it catches on; a good idea is only that unless it gains critical mass. Notably, the founder of Hunch was also a co-founder of Flickr.
19. StumbleUpon
I have nothing against StumbleUpon, and I know it can be a dream come true for people who spend all their time on SEO. It’s fun and easy to use, but I honestly don’t use it much…
18. Slideshare
Share your PDFs and PPTs easily, embed them elsewhere, and share them directly on Slideshare itself, with your friends and contacts there. Great tool!
17. Goodreads
Do you read good? This is a great social network for people who like to read. I love it, even though I don’t read so goodly.
16. Flixster
I like movies. In fact, I like movies a lot. The Flixster website itself is a bit MySpace-y, but the iPhone app rocks. You can mark movies you want to watch, and rate your movies, and add a review. It doesn’t seem this network has caught on, but I use it at least once a week.
15. Sprouter
If LinkedIn is Facebook for business, then Sprouter is Twitter for business. It seems to be catching on. Time will tell.
14. Tumblr
It’s a blog or a microblog, and a social network, all beautifully united. Simple. Fun. I use it a little.
13. Posterous
Another good and simple blogging tool. Notice Tumblr and Posterous are neck-and-neck, I only put Posterous a notch ahead because I use it to subscribe to some great blogs (and they e-mail me a daily digest). However, I don’t use it much to blog (see item 3 for my real bias).
12. Gowalla
Share your location with your friends. Creepy, but fun and interesting. There are a bunch of tools that do this: Gowalla, Foursquare, Yelp, BrightKite (not on this list), and now Facebook Places (not yet available in Canada). Admittedly I use all 4 (soon to be 5) on my iPhone, and sort of get a kick out of it. I like Yelp the best, and it has a legacy review function, which is, in my opinion, way cooler than the simpler Gowalla and Foursquare.
11. Foursquare
It seems to be the category killer, but the game is definitely not over, especially with Facebook getting in on the act, and Yelp revving up their user base. I put Foursquare ahead of Gowalla, because you can be Mayor of the places you visit! Imagine my joy in being Mayor of First Choice Haircutters!
10. YouTube
Oh, YouTube. So famous, so popular, so immature and anti-social. Your comments remind me of things I used to say when I was 12. YouTube is great because it will host your video, and because it has critical mass. But for grown-ups, VIMEO is much better.
9. VIMEO
It’s like a nice YouTube. Better content, and more mature users. I’m a bit surprised it’s done as well as it has, considering YouTube’s market dominance. There have been other contenders in the video space, too – DailyMotion, VEOH, and others.
8. Meetup
They actually had a friend feature, but they apparently phased it out. But it’s still a social network, in that you can find members of your meetup groups, and see what other groups they are in. It also allows you to indicate your interests, and suggests new groups to you based on geography and interest.
Best of all, Meetup is about meeting people in real life, not just online. And isn’t this the best sort of social networking there can be?
7. Digg
Geek alert. I still like Digg. It’s fun. Sorry.
I’m still a bit unsure about the new version (I was an Alpha user), but I think it will be better in the long run.
6. Facebook
I don’t really like Facebook. However, it must make the list because I do like that I can connect with almost all my friends there. Also, it has some great marketing tools (like Facebook Business Pages and Facebook Ads).
5. Yelp
I really like Yelp. I think it’s better than Gowalla and Foursquare. It started out as a review site, but they’ve since added the check-in functions to mirror Gowalla and Foursquare, and you can be a Duke (or Duchess) instead of a Mayor! What can be better than that!? It’s gaining critical mass, albeit not as quickly as Foursquare.
4. Flickr
Best. Photo. Sharing. Tool. Ever. Forget about TwitPic and TweetPhoto and that frog one… if you want to Tweet a photo, use Flickr! It has some incredibly powerful group and sharing functions, and is itself a social network, too. If you’re going to share photos on Twitter, it’s hands-down the most sensible tool to use.
3. Blogging using WordPress
I’m a huge fan of blogging, and a huge fan of WordPress!
I’ve organized two WordCamp events in Victoria, and cannot say enough good things about it. It’s a great product. It’s easy. It’s fun. It’s free (you have to have web hosting, but if you have a website, you can add WordPress fairly easily).
There are numerous other blogging tools (some mentioned in this list), but with the self-installed version of WordPress, you own your social media! And you build your own community. You are not reliant on a startup with an unknown revenue situation or business model to host your media.
I’m a big fan of integrating Feedburner and Disqus, too.
2. LinkedIn
Are you in business now? Will you one day be in business? Do you have business dealings? Are you a professional that might expect one or two job changes or career focus changes sometime in the next thirty years? Are you a student? Are you management? Are you between the age of 18 and 80 and expect to live and work for the next 6 months, or longer?
I’m not going to beat around the bush here. I’ve heard all the excuses for not being on LinkedIn. They are all misguided (at best), lazy or stupid (at worst), and of no validity whatsoever.
You must sign up to LinkedIn immediately, and shame on you for not doing so before now!
This is not Facebook – there are no party photos, funny status updates and kid’s stuff. This is serious business, and it will take all of 5 minutes a month out of your hectic schedule.
1. Twitter
I (heart) Twitter.
It can be whatever you want it to be. If you want to talk marketing on Twitter, there are definitely some best practices. But outside of that world, there’s no right or wrong way. Want to socialize? Want to meet people? Want to talk business? Want to talk shop with other people in your business? Want to find out the news or the weather?
Jump on in and join the conversation!
Twitter, as crazy as it may sound, in it’s 140 character glory, is really the everything network, and remains steadfast in it’s number 1 spot on my list.
Epilogue
There you have it, my exhaustive list. You may notice I removed Instant Messaging from the list. I’ve decided it doesn’t apply to this list. Like text messaging, I still use it, of course, and occasionally do business on it – but it’s not inherently social in the 1 to many sense that we’ve come to recognize social media as being.
Like my list? Hate my list? Agree with something? Disagree with something? Did I miss something real obvious?
Is Google Buzz the Twitter Killer?
Posted by Paul Holmes in blogging, business, internet, social media on February 16, 2010
Will Buzz Kill Twitter?
Some have compared it to FriendFeed, some have called it Google’s answer to Facebook, and some are just annoyed and can’t wait to turn it off (in GMail, you can scroll to the bottom and click on “turn off buzz”, by the way).
Others have predicted Google Buzz will annihilate Twitter! They make a compelling argument.
- It’s a sophisticated broadcast notification system, much like Twitter.
- It’s public.
- You can send images (and you don’t need third party applications like TwitPic).
- You can automatically feed Buzz from other services (Blog RSS Feeds, YouTube, Twitter, Flickr, Digg, etc.).
- Your Google profile is now your Google Buzz profile, and has much more information than a Twitter profile (yet, uglier).
It’s overwhelming like FriendFeed, but this is offset in part by neatly integrating right into GMail (which is certainly the most open tab on my browser). This means you can have a peak, or you can completely ignore it – but it will always be at your fingertips, beckoning you…
And does anyone have any doubt that “Buzz” will very soon be searchable (and from Google, no less)?
Will Buzz kill Twitter? Maybe. Maybe not.
What do you think?
Top 10 Social Media
Posted by Paul Holmes in blogging, business, personal, social media on December 1, 2009
I have written various articles on social media in the past, and a few people have asked what my favourites are. The following list is not “the best”, nor specifically “the best for application X”, rather my favourites – those I enjoy using or gain specific benefit for using.
10. Ning‘s (like Your Canada)
Ning is a really cool product that allows you to launch your own social networks around specific themes. Your Canada is an example of one I launched to add a social component to our popular Your Canada website.
9. FriendFeed
Everyone was getting excited about FriendFeed, the ultimate social media collaborator. It’s a cool tool because it let’s you tie all your social media activities into one stream. It can be a bit overwhelming though, so I find myself using it sparingly these days.
8. YouTube
Anonymity is still the name of the game on YouTube. As a result, you get poorly spelled and otherwise idiotic comments on videos all the time. This is too bad, given that it otherwise is the best place for exposure, and the tools to connect people socially are actually pretty good. The social aspects of video are still developing, and I suspect a number of other sites may take the lead in “social video” while Google focuses YouTube more on commercializing what they have (and doing this primarily by pushing sponsored videos, vs. an advertising model). Some to watch include Vimeo, DailyMotion, 12seconds.tv, Ustream.tv, blip.tv, and about a few dozen others.
7. Flickr
Yahoo! has one product that kicks ass and totally owns it’s vertical, and that is Flickr. Flickr is the best social medium for sharing photos/images. Picasa is Google’s alternative, and it is OK. A few others are Photobucket and Flixya, but they are a long way from successful at this point.
6. Digg
The DiggBar has revolutionized Digg (much to the chagrin of the ol’ skool Diggers). I use it all the time, and am a bit of a Diggaholic now. It’s a great tool for sharing interesting stuff you find on the web. It also has some great integration tools to very easily share “Dugg” stuff on Facebook and Twitter. I use Digg every single day.
5. Instant Messaging
Three years ago this was number one (followed by blogging and online forums). Three years ago, I did 100% of my instant messaging using MSN Messenger. Two years ago, 80% was MSN and 20% was GoogleTalk. Today, 50% is Facebook, 30% is GoogleTalk and 20% is MSN. As always, ICQ and AIM are 0%. Instant messaging is still a great way to get ahold of people in a hurry.
4. Blogging
I love to blog. I have at least 5 blogs I update regularly, and I love posting comments to other people’s blogs (which is what makes it a social medium). I also love WordPress; I am a total convert to the platform. I even organized a WordCamp in Victoria a few weeks ago, which was tonnes of fun.
3. Facebook
I was a Facebook holdout for ages, but have grown to like it. I like it because almost everyone I know is there. The platform itself is annoying sometimes, and frustrating at others, but they have the critical mass, so it remains a tool I continue to use, even if I use it despite itself.
2. LinkedIn
LinkedIn is great for business. At a recent presentation I gave at the University of Victoria to all of their business students, I asked several hundred students how many of them were on Facebook, and almost every hand went up. I then asked how many were on LinkedIn, and about 5 hands went up (I think a few of those hands were faculty, too). This is ashame. LinkedIn is a great tool for business, but also for career building. The guy sitting next to you in class today might be CEO of some big corporation in 10 years. Stay in touch and add them to your network on LinkedIn. I’m not sure if I got through to them or not.
LinkedIn is easy, passive and a great way to introduce people. It’s sort of like a virtual business mixer, but doesn’t require you to smile and dress nicely.
1. Twitter
Even people who love Twitter make fun of it. Twitter is an amazing tool for connecting with people and getting a message out. Through the power of the retweet, your potential network is huge. That conference I organized back in #4 above – I used Twitter as the primary medium through which to promote it, and over 100 local (and international) people showed up. Not too shabby for something people love to make fun of.
Loading ...I’ll review my list every once in awhile as my tastes change. It’ll be interesting to look back in the future and see what has changed.
I can already say that “FriendFeed” used to be much higher up the list, and I expect there is a good chance Google Wave and Foursquare will appear here in the next year or two. The influence of mobile and video (and mobile video) should introduce a few new angles to the equation, too.
A few others that I use that didn’t make the top list are Plaxo (11), Yelp (12), Identi.ca (13), Vimeo (14), Meetup (15), SlideShare (16), MySpace (17), and StumbleUpon (18). I have profiles on a few others, but don’t use them much.
I’m always happy to connect with people I know on any of these networks, see my social media links in the right column to link to my profile, or visit my Contact page.
Share on Tumblr
Posted by Paul Holmes in blogging, internet on August 22, 2009
I’ve been playing with Tumblr for awhile. It’s really cool, and the interface is amazingly simple, but I could never quite figure out exactly what to do with it.
Then I went to WordCamp in Surrey and listend to Lorraine Murphy from Raincoaster, and she described it as a “terrible blogging tool”, but a “great scrap-booking tool.”
The lightbulb went on!
I was using DiggBar a fair amount for this, but “scrap-booking” is not really the point, and because of the “social” aspects of Digg, you have verify your humanity every time, which slows the process down considerably. Then, going back and finding your Digg later isn’t rocket since, but it’s not dead simple either. This is not an anti-Digg post (they did send me a free t-shirt, after all), but I would say that Digg is best used for it’s intended purpose (same goes for StumbleUpon and Delicious).
Retrieving links from Tumblr is 100% idiot-proof, since it’s a public blog – no logging in, no messing around. Since it’s “blog-style”, you just need to remember the date you added it, or search for it.
I installed the “Share on Tumblr” bookmarklet (not button, widget or plugin), and already find myself “scrap-booking” all sorts of stuff.
I’m off to the races!
When you login at Tumblr and create your first Tumblog, go to the Account menu (top right) and select “Goodies”. Click on and drag the “Share on Tumblr” button to your bookmark bar (yes, it even works in Chrome).
After that, you’ll be tumbling like a mad tumblr!
Social Media Interview with Michael Allison
Posted by Paul Holmes in business, internet, social media on August 12, 2009
I had the pleasure of lunch today with my old friend and social media connoisseur, Michael Allison.
Michael had the idea of interviewing me for his blog, and I thought that sounded like a great idea, so I interviewed him as well. Mostly for my own practice, but also because Michael has a wealth of knowledge on the subject.
Social Networking Primer – Social Bookmarking
Posted by Paul Holmes in social media on March 28, 2009
On February 4th, I commited to writing some of my experiences on Social Bookmarking.
At a lecture at the last AffiliateSummit in Las Vegas, I recall the speaker suggesting that people pick one social bookmarking site and stick to it. I decided to survey the landscape, and do just this.
I have to admit, though, as an entire branch of social media, I am generally disappointed.
Here’s what I set out looking for:
I wanted a social bookmarking service that would not only do all the cool social aspects, but also integrate easily into my browser and become a useful tool for my own day-to-day web surfing. This was clearly too much to ask for.
The main issue: I like folders. I organize bookmarks into folders. I see the value of tags, I honestly do – so give me both. Or at least give me “faux” folders (groups or lists) that I can easily access in a tree structure that’s based on tags. Isn’t this obvious?
Now some people might laugh at me and accuse me of living in 2002. That’s OK, because I think I’m with most of the rest of the world on this (at least, for now).
Anyway, here’s the synopsis of my research:
Diigo – This is my chosen “one”. You can sort your bookmarks into “lists” – something like “faux” folders. Unfortunately, accessing them from the “Diigo” menu in Firefox (when the plug-in is installed) still takes 6 clicks, and if you want a list with more than a screenful of options, you have to switch to the web interface, adding yet more clicks. (Regular bookmarks take 2 clicks.) It also allows private and public bookmarks. While imperfect, Diigo is easily the best of the worst in terms of usability. (Diigo took over Furl, one of the pioneers.)
ma.gnolia.com – He dead.
delicious – Do not install the delicious toolbar – it literally takes over FireFox! This could be a good thing if it did it well, but it does not. Furthermore, delicious can’t seem to stay logged in for me. Every time I want to delicious an article, it turns into a 13 step process and I typically abandon my efforts in frustration.
StumbleUpon – These guys have clearly taken the “social” aspect to the extreme and done a great job. For a schmo like me who’s looking for something that’s actually useful for my day-to-day life, as well, though – they don’t do the trick.
digg – digg does the social part well, and is used by lots of people, so has some critical mass going for it. Otherwise, I’m disappointed on almost every angle. Browser integration is essentially non-existent (the toolbar is a waste of valuable screen space, in my opinion). It does not allow multi-word tags on bookmarks (at least, not obviously). Profiles are extremely limited. And support tells me my account accidentally got deleted (the good news is that support responds to e-mails). Cool logo, though (reminds me of the Doozers from Fraggle Rock).
There are others much like digg: Simpy, Faves and reddit – they do the social aggregation part well, but don’t try to be much else.
In this “social news” category, I think newsvine has an interesting platform. I might play with it a bit more when I’m bored.
Conclusion: If the best “social media” aspects were combined with some good old fashioned integration, convenience and usability, this would be my social bookmarking application of choice. First company to do this, let me know. In the interim, I’ll mostly be using my “Bookmarks” menu in FireFox and watching the social bookmarking world pass me by.
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