What's New In Nerd World

There's lots of excitement in the air if you're me--cool new tools, ongoing blogger drama and an awesome conference coming up:

Google Wave--basically "a new tool for communication and collaboration on the web" that apparently originated from the question "“What might e-mail look like if it were invented today?” I'm having trouble wrapping my head around it so I'm not even going to try; all I know is I hate Gmail so I'm not having much faith in Google to re-invent email.

Microsoft Bing--Microsoft is throwing $80 million on the table to try to unseat Google in the search engine category. I personally hate it, sight-unseen, since a) it's Microsoft and b) it's being billed as a "decision engine." Thanks Big Brother Microsoft but I like to make my own decisions. If you're curious, enjoy this preview from when it was still being called by its code name, Kumo.

Bloggers beware--new FTC guidelines affecting sponsored posts are coming later this summer.

Buzz 2009--social media for associations--was just announced today. I'm psyched that there's finally going to be a conference that goes beyond association social media 101. Not to mention that my friends Lindy Dreyer and Maddie Grant are at the helm. I'm also psyched because the king of blog ethics, Andy Sernovitz, will be there (the guy quoted in the FTC article above), as will Guy Kawasaki, who is lucky enough to be rubbing shoulders with my new goddess, The Bloggess, as I write this post.

Guy and the Bloggess (aka "Jenny" ) are right this moment embarked on the USS Nimitz, a Navy ship. I don't really get the whole thing--it's apparently an effort on the part of the Navy to embrace social media and blogging. Read/listen to this for more information about the trip; all I know is it's awesome because, while Robert Scoble and Charlene Li are super-serious social media dieties, The Bloggess is busy tweeting about sex toys and vlogging about how much xanax she'll be bringing on the trip.

The USS Nimitz trip basically illustrates, in a nutshell, why I'm obsessed with social media: because in social media world it's not only acceptable but totally desirable to be as kick-ass as you want to be. In what other context would the Navy be inviting the girl who pitched the idea "Captain Hookers"--on a very serious, super top-secret mission with very serious, super-smart business people? In social media world, though--you watch. I guarantee you that girl will emerge from that ship with a big huge book deal as good as done and will eventually have a show on HBO and be rich and famous. I'm. Telling. You.

Why "Sponsored Posts" and "Authenticity" Don't Mix

Here's the thing about sponsored posts: they are NOT authentic. Marketers think that they've discovered the way to customers' hearts and wallets through what Chris Brogan calls the "Everyman." That is, instead of paying actors and copywriters and buying TV spots or print ads, all you have to do is put your product in the hands of Joe or Joanne Regular and let them start the magic word-of-mouth train by blogging/vlogging/tweeting about it. SO much nicer and more genuine than real advertising, right? I mean, which do you trust more--a paid advertisement or a bunch of real people telling you their honest opinions about a product they've already used?

Well, in theory the latter; but only until you start poking around in their collective psyches--or, in this case, blogs. For instance, in a mommy blogger community I recently joined--specifically because I'm curious about this kind of thing--there was a discussion thread "Would you post a poor product review?" Out of 24 responses, only 9 said yes, and of those only 4 were absolute yesses. The rest hemmed and hawed, saying that they don't like to be negative or hurt anyone's feelings or make anyone look bad. One said she had once posted a bad review and the company who supplied the product contacted her and told her to take it down--so she did. The consensus of the thread was pretty much that if you discover you have something negative to say about a product, you should contact the company and see if they still want you to post the review.

Geez, talk about a sure thing. And don't think companies don't know it. They know that people love to get stuff for free--and the bigger/better the thing, the more people want it. And the thing is, they also know that for every person out there with scruples (say the 4 out of the 24 I mention above), there are 20 more who have none.

Not to go back to my blogging/sex analogy, but seriously...say you're a guy looking for sex and willing to pay for it. Would you want a prostitute who makes you feel like a king and fakes it artfully or one who's "authentic" and yawns through the whole thing? If the cost is the same why wouldn't you go for the one who treats you the way you want to be treated? Same for marketers wanting bloggers to generate buzz about their products: if there are millions out there who come right out and say I will not post a negative review because that's not the kind of person I am--of course you're going to send your stuff to those people and not to the ones who say right off the bat that they are 100% honest.

Mommy Blogger Drama

I posted this in my other blog (the one where I can use the "F" word and talk about stuff other than social media) but figured I may as well save myself some time this holiday weekend and make it do double-duty over here. Fear not: no use of the "F" word in this particular post.

I don't know why but recently I've become fixated on the whole mommy blogger thing. In case you have no idea what I'm talking about when I say mommy bloggers, I'm talking about Power Moms who companies are falling all over themselves trying to woo into hawking their products and services. I'm talking about women like Jessica Gottlieb, who get invited to the American Idol finale and party, and Jessica Smith, who is a Ford Flex spokesmom and gets to do stuff like be flown to Santa Barbara to stay at the Four Seasons hotel, work out with Oprah Winfrey's personal trainer and receive makeovers as part of a 30-day challenge on an upcoming fitness video program for the Nintendo Wii. This is how these ladies roll.

How lucky are they? Or...are they?

First of all, there seems to be a lot of heat on the collective mommy bloggers lately--the FTC is in the process of revising their guidelines relating to bloggers, based, it seems, largely on the tons of moms out there who are endorsing products on their blogs. I've already written about this stuff in my other blog so I won't rehash it here, except to say that, as you can see from those three posts, I'm not really feeling the whole blogging for money thing. Or I didn't think I was.

I honestly don't know, though--I mean, it depends how much money we're talking I guess. If I were able to make a reliable income blogging and do it full time, would I? Especially if my kids were little and it meant I could be home with them? If it meant I got stuff like free trips to Disney for the whole family and other free stuff and cool perks, would I feel differently? I'm kind of thinking yes.

What I do know is this: where there are women, there is drama. Rivalry. Cattyness. How could there not be? We're talking about not only women, but moms--the most judgemental population imaginable. Now in addition to criticizing each others' choices about parenting, breastfeeding and working outside the home, they can criticize each others' blogging styles and methods.

Honestly, it's better than TV.

Who You Calling A Nobody?

Today was my daughter's 13th birthday so I let her skip school and took her to the mall. While I was stranded in the hell that is Hollister/Abercrombie/Pac Sun/Aeropostale (e.g. loud music and lots of perfume in the air) I was thankfully able to entertain myself with my iPhone. And, naturally, Twitter. The Washington Post tweeted a link to a story in today's paper about--what else--Twitter, and I admit my nerd sensibilities were completely offended when I got to this part:

"Here's something odd:

There are some non-celebrities who amass giant followings. Thousands of strangers tune in for regular updates of these nobodies' lives."

Nobodies? Wow. I could almost feel the gut punch the collective Twitter elite no doubt felt when they read that.

What I don't understand is this: how can someone find it curious that "non-celebrities" could be as interesting as, or--dare I say it?--more interesting than celebrities on Twitter? Um, Washington Post reporter lady--have you read Britney Spears' tweets? Kim Kardashian's? I personally will stick with the 154 nobodies I'm following, thanks.

Bloggers Who Heart Jurassic Park

I admit it--I'm obsessed with the movie Jurrassic Park. I'm loving that I'm not the only one who has managed to weave it into a blog post recently:

• My post about Groundswell and Jurrassic Park


• Maddie Grant's post, Cluetrain-Plus-Ten: On Social Media Policies


• Scott Brinker's post about marketing automation and Jurassic Park

Hey--does this qualify as some kind of organic meme about the intersection of Jurrassic Park and social media? Who's up next?

Where's The Line Between Blogging and Splogging?

First go read/watch this "review" then come back here.

Now, what was that--Chris Brogan and his daughter having a spontaneous love-fest about a $329 messenger bag or Chris Brogan doing a paid endorsement for the bag? While he does offer a "very special thanks" to someone for "connecting" him with the company that makes the bag, he does not come out and say, "I got this bag for free in exchange for blogging about it." In the comment section he says:

"Well, please understand that this isn't an ad as such. I wasn't paid to talk about the back[sic]. I was sent one for review. I guess one could say that might count as a payment, but I don't see it that way."

The question is, does the FTC see it that way? Is giving a blogger with a huge following a free bag to review ethical? Is accepting it and blogging about it without fully disclosing that you got it for free ethical? While you're thinking about it, go back to Chris Brogan's post and scroll down to the plug for the Thesis Theme for WordPress. Now, is that an ad? Or is it just him again expressing free love for a product? Does it even matter?

I personally happen to think it does matter. I used to read Chris Brogan's blog because I valued the content of his posts. Now I look at each post and/or badge on the page and have to wonder "wait, is this an ad?" It's like those spreads in magazines that look like articles or testimonials, but when you look at the top of the page you see "Paid Advertisement"--and ignore those pages.

Not to beat a dead horse or anything; after all, I've blogged about this before....but this bag review post really stuck in my craw.

Here is some more food for thought about sponsored posts. Here are some great links/resources from the Word of Mouth Marketing Association (WOMMA).

Is Social Media A Good Career Choice If You're Old?

As far as I'm concerned, there are four--not two--absolutes in life: death, taxes, looks matter and age matters. Ok, so maybe looks are not exactly on par with death, but it's a scientific fact that the better looking you are, the more successful you'll be in life. I will spare you (and me) the drudgery of including 20 more links to research proving looks matter; if you're a person who thinks looks aren't important in this world then I'm quite sure I'm not going to be the one to convince you so no sense trying.

And even those who don't agree that being ugly can be a limiting factor in life have to acknowledge that age is most certainly a limiting factor. You know--ageism? Don't tell me you don't believe in that one either. Well, I wish I could be that optimistic, but I'm not--ageism is alive and well as far as I'm concerned.

But I digress. I'm "only" 40 (for another month) so unless I'm angling to be a model or a stripper, I don't really think my age should be a limiting factor in terms of my career at this point. But I'm beginning to fear that if my career choice is going to be social media maybe I should worry.

As social media becomes more well established as a fact of life as far as businesses are concerned, more and more social media jobs are going to be springing up. I should know--I have one--social media & community specialist. But social media is a new field and a new skill set--and that skill set is unfortunately classified by many as part and parcel of being a recent college grad. Many consider Twitter and Facebook and YouTube to be things teens just intrinsically know, so who better to hire to do those things on the job than teens or 20-somethings?

Think I'm being paranoid? Enter the Twintern. I love the paradoxical message that surrounds the concept of social media intern: brands recognize that social media strategy and engagement are key to a brand's success today...so important that these functions are best suited to interns or entry-level employees.

Here's the thing: if I or another 40 or 50 year-old social media professional had to hit the streets tomorrow to look for a new job and it was between one of us and, say, Charlotte the Twintern, who would get the job? Would it play out in the traditional way--e.g. experience on the job wins--or, when social media jobs are on the table, is the new twintern philosophy going to prevail--e.g. hire the young person who has grown up with these tools because they know them best? I don't know--maybe social media is going to turn out to be a young person's career and 40-somethings like me better think twice about even starting down that path.

What do you think?

Social Media Foot-Draggers: It's Time to Get Over It

Social media holdouts are triumphantly circulating Nielsen Online's recent report that more than 60% of new Twitter users stop using the service within a month. I can just see them waiting to stick the fork in Twitter and all the other social media tools with a final "I told you so," putting the whole issue to rest once and for all. They figure if they drag their feet long enough, the "should we or shouldn't we?" question will solve itself because social media will have proven itself to be the fad they're counting on it to be.

Sorry, but I don't think they're going to get off that easily. For every hater-esque news item about how social media fails: viral fundraising doesn't actually bring in money; Twitter is dying; Facebook is on the way out--there are equally-convincing articles pointing out the flaws in the naysaying ones. Nielsen's data is flawed. Facebook Causes is actually a powerful tool. Facebook recently surpassed 200 million active users. Etc.

The bottom line is that what's happening with individual social media platforms is irrelevant; while the tools may come and go, social media itself is here to stay. Need yet another example? ASAE has just served up a great one, in the form if its new Power of A campaign. Last week they launched the campaign and the accompanying website--you can read the details in their press release. Twitter and blog mutiny ensued, with a flurry of posts: mine. Chris Bailey's. Lynn Morton's. Deirdre Reed's. Dave Sabol's. Jamie Notter's. I'm sure there are more; apoligies if I've left any out--please feel free to add more in the comment section and I'll add to the post.

And guess what? ASAE was listening (or is listening part of the package of services they're paying Ogilvy for?--sorry but I can't help but wonder...). Last night I saw that John Graham, President & CEO of ASAE, had written his own post, acknowledging and addressing some of the issues people have been blogging and tweeting about. The campaign is changing courses, or at least adding some additional elements.

If this isn't a stone-cold example of why social media is here to stay, I don't know what is. What--suddenly a day is going to come where people get tired of complaining about stuff? Please. Obviously the answer is no. So, then, what--the ASAEs and Facebooks of the world--e.g. everyone who must now actively listen to what's being said about their brand and respond--are just going to decide they're tired of listening and catering to the masses and just unplug? Sorry but it's just never going to happen. The world of communication has changed in fundamental ways and there's just no going back.

Sorry, Twitter-haters--you may as well just pick a Twitter handle and get on with it.

The Power of..Huh?

Recently I received an email from ASAE's president and CEO about a new campaign, The Power of A. It said something about how they were getting ready to roll out this new campaign to highlight "the many ways in which national trade and professional groups assist U.S. employers, legislators, workers and the public at large every day." The email went on to say something about TV spots, a YouTube channel...to be honest I deleted the email and don't remember what else.

When I read it I had two thoughts: the first was "Cool--maybe now people will understand what I mean when I say I work at an association" (because plenty of people don't); the second, after clicking through to preview the new campaign was "Huh?"

I shrugged off the whole thing until a few days ago when I noticed people starting to tweet about the Power of A. Then I read some blog posts about it and was relieved that I don't seem to be the only one who is just plain confused about the whole thing. Chris Bailey asked the exact questions I did: what audience is ASAE trying to target? The general public? Or just fellow association executives?

After getting a better look at the site now that it's launched, I am more confused than ever. At the risk of sounding stupid, I am truly baffled by the whole thing. I mean, the site looks nice and clean. It also looks expensive. Once I read the press release about the campaign, I understood why:

"The Washington, D.C. office of Ogilvy Public Relations Worldwide was engaged by ASAE & The Center to develop and implement the campaign, whose top priority is to inform decision makers on Capitol Hill, particularly those individuals who comprise the group of newest political gatekeepers to the American public. A blended Ogilvy PR team of creative, public affairs, media and digital strategists will bring ASAE & The Center’s integrated program to life primarily through television and digital media."

Clearly, the answer to the question about what associations are doing to move the country toward economic recovery is: paying top-tier PR firms to create expensive, utterly-useless solutions to non-problems. I mean, come on--the same "conversation" that's supposed to take place on the Power of A site could easily have been had on ASAE's existing site and/or blog. Acronym could have posed the question "How does your association move the country toward economic recovery?" and the same people who are responding on the Power of A site could have submitted posts to Acronym. ASAE could have suggested the #PWRA hashtag and encouraged members to tweet about the whole thing.

Seriously--how many associations are laying off employees? And how many more are having to slash benefits and/or freeze salaries? Is this really the time for ASAE to be showboating the fact that they have retained Ogilvy to produce a bunch of expensive fluff, all so some association execs can swap stories on a fancy website?