Note to Influencers: We're Ok, Thanks

I don't know if it's just all the rain that has me in a foul mood or what, but I just saw a tweet that that capped off a feeling that's been brewing inside me for a while and triggered this rant.

It was a tweet from a big name "influencer"--or "social media guru"--take your pick of terms. I'm not in the mood for taking flack tonight so I'm going to refrain from describing the tweet lest that person get his/her ire up and and his/her minions over here to leave me a million comments about how I'm just bitter and this person is SO NICE and SO GIVING and SO SMART and how dare I question him/her. So use your imagination and just insert an annoying tweet you've recently seen. Or a recent blog post. The kind where the author is smug in his/her position in the social media-o-sphere and feels that their duty in life is now to didacticise to the rest of the world about how we should--or shouldn't be--doing social media.

Didacticise--I'm taking artistic license with that term, but it perfectly describes what I'm talking about here. Didactic is the word that keeps coming to mind lately when I read certain blogs, and see certain people's tweets. THIS is how you should be doing X, Y, or Z. Don't do this. Do this. Some of the top social media blogs read like sermons and I'm getting really tired of it. Has it always been this way and I haven't noticed it? Do I do this and not notice it? Probably. If so, I apologize and promise to smack myself.

It's like social media world has created this layer of cream on top of regular people world where the vaulted "gurus" dwell and they've collectively decided that their role in life is to 'splain the rules of the universe to us peons down here--the ones who don't have 20,000+ followers on Twitter, a book deal, and a social media consultant's shingle.

We're all just people here. Some of us have lives that involve other people and therefore we're not able to spend 29 hours a day online, responding to every single blog comment or tweet and engaging authentically. Some of us work in places where, despite our best efforts, the higher ups don't and might never get it, and because of that our business Twitter streams are broadcast only and aren't conversational marvels. Some of us don't have a crisis communications plan in place and don't see the higher ups endorsing one in the near future. Some of us choose to tweet about stupid stuff, or mix personal and professional in inappropriate ways, or don't optimize each blog post with a photo or strategic key words. Get over it.

I guess this is my long-winded way of saying...I don't really know what I'm saying. That this whole space of Klout and influence and numbers and popularity and weblebrity is annoying and oh-so-tiresome? That I wish I could go back to the good old days of blogging for the sheer love of writing and not having to watch what I say because the world, including employers past, present and future, is watching? That sometimes the idea of going back to editing galleys is tempting?

Whew. End rant. For now, at least.

Is the Era of Free Coming to an End?

Yesterday my friend Deirdre tweeted me a link to a blog post about a topic she knows I'm "passionate" about (read: obsessed with): blogger compensation. This particular post was about food bloggers struggling with the issue of compensation. She floats the idea of a food bloggers union, but quickly backpedals and points out that organizing a group of professionals with the intent to set prices is probably illegal.

Now jump back to my few recent posts about blogging and compensation: how women in particular have problems asking for what they're worth when it comes to business, including blogging, and how the "free" model is getting old as far as I'm concerned. These issues are nothing new to me; I've been blogging about citizen journalism for several years now and almost a year and a half ago pondered whether relying on free user-generated content is a sustainable model.

Not to be all "I told you so" but I was gratified to read Mayhill Fowler's post about why she left the Huffington Post. In short: because they refused to pay her and she decided her work was worth more than nothing. She points out that the Huffington Post pays some of its reporters six figures, while not paying its many citizen journalists a penny.

Here's the thing: how many other publications out there are making money selling ads yet not paying a dime for the content that populates those same ad-laden pages and brings in the traffic in the first place? How long before other bloggers take Mayhill Fowler's lead and decide that they're not willing to work for free anymore? Will there be an uprising where bloggers do form some kind of union, either formal or not, and begin to demand payment for the work they're doing? Judging by the 50+ comments on Mayhill's post, the natives are definitely getting restless.

The Power of Velma

I love blogging but one thing I'm horrible at is titles for my posts. Which is why when I do a really good one it's particularly satisfying. And it's even more satisfying when I get to revisit a post with a title I was particularly psyched about.

Like "The Power of...Huh", for instance.

Remember that whole fracas?

Like any controversy, The Power of A thing died down quickly and the campaign shifted from being dynamic--a twitterfeed of comments about the campaign and a blog--to off the radar. Shocker.

Now there's a new controversy in town: the power of V. "V" as in Velma Hart, a prominent, kick-ass member of ASAE who recently delivered basically an Oscar-winning speech to President Obama.



Her question has garnered a ton of media attention...yet nary a word from ASAE. And ASAE members are wondering why.

RT @davidgammel: @dinalew @ewengel @cubanalaf @maddiegrant @dinalew That's the Power of V(elma). Yes, why ASAE so quiet. #powerofvless than a minute ago via TweetDeckLeslie White
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RT @dinalew: @ewengel @cubanalaf @maddiegrant @mcnulty6 just had to bring up PofA. Their agcy couldn't buy this amt of coverage! #powerofvless than a minute ago via TweetDeckLeslie White
ltwhite

Is this a failed PR opportunity on ASAE's part? A failure on the part of their social media engagement strategy? Or not a failure and simply one of those things that falls under steering clear of politically-charged issues?

I can see both sides of it, personally, but I'm falling to the side of missed opportunity. I manage my association's social media presence and if Velma were one of my members, I would have definitely featured her on our Facebook Page and tweeted about her. In my view, this is less a political issue and more of an association community thing e.g. a chance for ASAE to showcase a member doing something cool and noteworthy. But that's just me, and I know our members like seeing one of their peers featured in the media.

What do you think?

Is it Realistic to Think Bloggers Will Demand Fair Payment?

One thing about me: I'm very good at being passionate about how things SHOULD be done. I'm the best person to come to if you want a pep talk about asking for a raise, or demanding better treatment at work or from a partner. And occasionally I even rise to the occasion and take my own advice. But lots of times my bark is louder than my bite and I'm not good at asserting myself.


The One we trust...
Originally uploaded by Daniel*1977

I often find myself in trouble in blog world because of the strong way I voice my opinions--I come across WAY more strongly in writing than in person. Unless you count the times I had to go head-to-head with my ex mother-in-law and pulled Academy-winning performances....but I digress. But I'm the first to admit that many of my highest-traffic blog posts have been as a result of something I've blogged about in all innocence which was misconstrued as something more negative and all hell broke loose. Happened when I blogged about Chris Brogan's Twitter practices. Or how a mom blogger reality show is a horrible idea.

All of this is a long way of leading up to Deb Ng's post about why bloggers need to hold out for being paid in cash, not stuff. If you read this blog you know one of my pet issues is fair payment for blogging or working as a community/social media manager. So naturally I couldn't agree more with Deb on this post (or basically all her posts, for that matter); she asks if she's the only one who thinks bloggers are getting the crappy end of the stick in blogger/brand relationships that involve a blogger accepting a trip (that takes time away from her paid job) as compensation for being a brand evangelist and the work that entails. I found myself getting all fired up as I read her post--OF COURSE bloggers who are working for free are getting a raw deal and need to stick up for themselves.

But then I paused because I realize that while Deb is absolutely right and women SHOULD be asking for money to blog or do social media work for companies, the reality is that it's probably not going to happen much of the time because that's not the way women generally work. Women are notoriously bad about negotiating when it comes to money, and demanding what they're worth--because, in fact, we're often terrible at realizing our own worth. I know I am, despite years of work on this exact issue. And the group of women who is perhaps particularly bad at knowing their worth is stay-home moms; the group of women who, I'm assuming, make up a decent chunk of the mom blogger population. I know when I was a stay-home mom for 8 years and did some freelance writing, I was horrible at the money part. I'm still horrible at it, for the most part.

So while to a woman who is confident about herself and her professional abilities may have no problem approaching a brand as Deb did and asking to be a sponsor--for cash--I suspect many, many of the women (or men, I guess, but I think this is probably more of a female issue--feel free to correct me in the comments if you disagree) involved in the world of blogging for money or something approximating money wouldn't have that same confidence. Let's face it: this whole social media/cewebrity thing is all tied up with ego and drama and the thrill of feeling wanted or valued and for many women, they're just grateful to be picked. Even if it means having to pay money out of their own pocket at tax time for that giveaway or trip they accepted. Social media is so much about being a popularity contest--with it's "Top 50 This" and "Top 100 That" lists that there are plenty of people out there just so gratified to be playing in what they perceive to be the big leagues that asking for money too just won't happen.

I don't know what there is to be done about it, other than a mass consciousness-raising about women knowing their worth...but I don't know that us all getting together and looking at our lady parts with hand mirrors will accomplish that. Anyone have any better suggestions?

New Voices

Sometimes you just hit a blog dry spell--either that or you are just done entirely. I'm hoping it's the former rather than the latter for me; regardless, I'm sitting here trying to force a post and am just not feeling like thinking or blogging about social media right now.

But lucky for you there are some new (or new-ish, or at least new to you) bloggers who have plenty of enthusiasm and interesting things to write about:

• My friend and co-worker Janet McNichol blogs about workplace wellness, which I think is pretty unique in the association world. She is also much better than I am about using pictures, videos, charts, etc--all that stuff you're supposed to do but which I don't do because I'm lazy.
• Another (ex) ASHA coworker has also recently started blogging--Stefanie Reeves. I loved her post about how association lobbyists are lagging behind the rest of the world in terms of social media adoption.
• I love when I "meet" someone via their blog--as is the case with Kathi Edwards' new blog the Learning Evangelist. That's another good thing about association bloggers--lots of them live in the DC/MD/VA area. Having JUST started
  blogging, Kathi has a ton of enthusiasm and I look forward to reading her stuff.
• And now for something completely different...a radio show by my friend and fellow book club member, Dawn's Early Light. The show is live Mondays from 4-6 ET and features "American roots and rock."

Ok, those are the four that I can think of--who did I miss? Feel free to add yourself and a link to your blog, or tell about someone else's blog or podcast or whatever.

Do Your Videos Get 10 Million Views?

In case you didn't already know this about me, I have two kids--a 12 year-old son and a 14 year-old daughter. One of their favorite things to do is watch stupid videos on YouTube--videos they hear about from their friends on Facebook (yes, I know you're supposed to be 14 to be on Facebook but many, many under 14 kids are on Facebook...is yours? If so, I hope you're monitoring what they're saying on there...but that's another post for another day). Watching what interests my kids and their friends gives me a new appreciation for what kinds of videos get a ton of views. The answer? Not the kind I make.

Now don't get me wrong: I have no illusions that I have any video-making talent whatsoever. Blogging=maybe; videos=not so much. But I occasionally try to venture into video-making territory, just to mix it up. The result? Such greats as "Twitter in Real Life" (warning: language) and "Old Spice is Cool Now?." You know, quality stuff like that. Because that's how I roll.

But I realize I'm doing it wrong--both making videos and creating content on the internet in general. I've been blogging religiously for over five years now and get, what, maybe 150 page views a day? If that. And that's taken 5 years of blood, sweat and tears to achieve--or at least billions of hours spent online, much to the non-amusement of my husband and kids.

According to the internet, this is the kind of content that people actually like:




Almost TEN MILLION views?!

I think I need to find a new hobby.

Foursquare Fatigue

Am I the only one who's gotten past the honeymoon period with Foursquare and is wondering what the point is anymore? Lately I've found myself either not checking in at all or feeling kind of like a chump when I do bother to check in.

There seems to be so much hype about Foursquare and geolocation apps in general, but I can't shake the feeling that most of the hype is coming from people who in some way stand to make a profit off Foursquare rather than users. So far my experience with Foursquare has been very lukewarm: first I had to manually input most of the places I checked in at since I live in the burbs where nobody else was using it. Then I checked in a bunch and got caught up in the hype about how Foursquare was the next big thing and surely me spending time checking in constantly would result in something cool. Then I kept waiting. And kept waiting. And I'm still waiting.

Sure, more companies seem to be doing Foursquare promotions of some type...but a lot of them are still stuck on the notion that the ultimate prize is a badge. I've said it before and I'll say it again: I don't care about badges. If I'm taking my real-life time to do Foursquare, ultimately it will require some kind of real-life reward for my trouble or I'll lose interest.  Stuff like a badge for getting checked for an STD? Not so much. A $100 Sephora gift card would be cool, but nobody seems to be doing stuff like that in Olney, MD.

To me, the difference between, say, Twitter and Foursquare, hype-wise, is that with Twitter, initially you may not find it useful but the more you use it, the more useful you find it. With Foursquare, the more I use it the less useful I'm finding it. As to all the hype about Foursquare being the next Twitter, I'm just not seeing it. If Twitter disappeared today, I'd be a wreck--I get news from Twitter, I connect with people, I use it as a search engine. If Foursquare disappeared, I'd maybe fidget for a minute or two the next time I bought a movie ticket, wanting to check in, but then I'd probably forget about it.

How about you? Do you think Foursquare is still up-and-coming or has it already jumped the shark?

According to AP, Bloggers Are Journalists

Apparently citizen journalists are now just plain old journalists--well, usually unpaid journalists. This from the Associated Press, which announced today that its staff "will recognize bloggers as valid sources of news and credit them in their articles."

They're still one step behind the times, though, because their new stance extends only to blogs, not Facebook status updates or tweets. Seems to me that tweets would be something they'd want to cite as a source, since so much news is broken via Twitter these days.

Not to be like this, but I don't know that I want anyone considering me to be a "valid news source." Part of blogging, to me, means the freedom to answer only to myself. I write what I want to write, if I want to write. Yes, this is probably a half-assed attitude...but that's how I feel.

By the way--and apropos of nothing--did you know this blog is one of the top 100 small business blogs on Technorati now? Number 85 as of today, to be specific.

I don't know that such a designation gets you anywhere in life, but I guess it's better than a sharp stick in the eye.

BitDefender’s Downloadable Guide to Protecting Children Online

The prevalence of computers in our daily lives means that our children are exposed to them at a very early age. Our kids watch our every move, including those online, and want to emulate the behavior they see. Regardless of the many benefits that constant internet access brings, the online world remains a risky place for kids.

BitDefender’s new Protecting Children Online guide [PDF] is a downloadable PDF that’s designed to be shared with friends, family members, and community groups to spread the word about online safety.

Protecting Children Online provides an overview of the risks and dangers kids can be subjected to on the internet and e-threats designed to target personal data. It also contains tips for children, teens, parents, and teachers with practical advice and easy to implement solutions that can assist you in protecting your family online.

This printable guide that can be emailed, printed, and shared with friends and loved ones alike in order to keep everyone safe in cyberspace.

This article was provided as exclusive content by BitDefender because of my role as a BitMom Blog Network Member. No compensation was received for sharing this post however, BitMoms does provide me with a conference stipend and other materials to help me facilitate sharing topics of internet safety and security with my readers and through the BitMom Community.

About BitDefender®- BitDefender is the creator of one of the industry's fastest and most effective lines of internationally certified security software. Every day, BitDefender protects tens of millions of home and corporate users across the globe — giving them the peace of mind of knowing that their digital experiences will be secure. More information about BitDefender and its products are available on the company’s website.

Good Salary News For Women...if You Don't Ever Get Married or Have Kids

Don't get too excited about Time.com's triumphant headline "Workplace Salaries: At Last, Women on Top" unless you know of a way to freeze your age at 29 and are willing to forsake marriage and kids. Forever.

First they say that according to a new analysis of 2,000 communities by a market research company, in 147 out of 150 of the biggest cities in the U.S., the median full-time salaries of young women are 8% higher than those of the guys in their peer group. Great, right?

Well, then comes the "slightly deflating caveat": this new trend applies only to unmarried, childless women under 30 who live in cities. The rest of working women — even those of the same age, but who are married or don't live in a major metropolitan area — are still making less than men, just like usual.

Great, so on the low-income side of the career spectrum (pre-30s)--and for a very finite time period--some women are making more than men. Halle-freakin-lujah. I guess those of us who are in our 40s, have kids and are married better not hold our breath on the equal pay front.

What Free Costs Me

This post isn't just about me, but about the royal "me" as in us. Plus it rhymed. But it is about free, and what free for companies costs those of us doing the free contributing.

What inspired this post was two things: yesterday's association Twitter chat (#assnchat) and a tweet by SmartBrief. The topic of #assnchat yesterday was annual meetings, and as part of that we were discussing speakers, speaker fees, and speaking for free. Maddie Grant said:

@maggielmcg we're trying hard not to speak for free anymore. provide tons of free content in other ways. #assnchatless than a minute ago via TweetChatMaddie Grant
maddiegrant

Her point was in the context of a conversation about highly-paid general session speakers who are horrible and the fact that the most valuable speakers at ASAE are volunteers who still have to pay (reduced) registration as well as travel expenses. ASAE has members who are association staff (like me) and who are vendors or consultants (like Maddie). If you're a vendor or consultant, the presumed "what's in it for me?" (WIIFM) for speaking at their events is potential new business leads. If you're association staff, the WIIFM is reduced registration, resume fodder, potential future job leads, and, of course, the ego stroke.

On to the Smartbrief post:

Team @SmartBrief wants you: http://ow.ly/2xP4aless than a minute ago via HootSuiteSmartBrief on SocMed
SBoSM

Cool, I thought, when I saw the post: they're hiring. Well, not exactly: they're looking for someone to pen a weekly column and become a member of their advisory board. I was all set to reply--because who wouldn't want to be on their advisory board--when it dawned on me: a WEEKLY column? That's a ton of work. Or it is if you already have a full-time job, have your own blog (or two), already volunteer in various capacities (as I do; I recently became a proud member of the Social Media Club--DC's Leadership Team, in addition to various other volunteer activities and guest blogging gigs)--then have the rest of your life to swing--which in my case includes 2 kids, a husband, some attempt at an IRL social life, a house to take care of, dinner every night...you know--stuff. Life.

Now obviously I'm not the only one with a life--we all have one. And to some of us writing a weekly post would be no big deal, and well worth it in exchange for a coveted spot on a highly visible advisory committee. But the thing is that it's not just Smart Brief looking for contributors: user-generated content is a huge part of so many companies' weekly and even daily offerings. Look at Social Media Today: all their content is written by unpaid bloggers. Even newspapers now are capitalizing on the hyperlocal trend by including citizen journalists as part of their daily offerings. Webinars--there are tons of them out there, and most content is provided by uncompensated volunteers. Blogs--tons of them rely on guest bloggers for content. And so on.

Content provided by uncompensated volunteers is a great model for businesses: they don't have to pay someone to write/provide it and it's what people want to read/watch/hear: the equivalent of reality TV (sort of). I'm talking about what Chris Brogan called "Everyman": average Joe who will tell it to you straight (presumably) and who we all trust more than we trust ad guys or paid copywriters.

But what happens when "Everman" decides he/she wants to get paid? Or that he/she's tired of companies making a buck off his/her free efforts? Hopefully that's starting to happen more in the mom blogging world, where expecting mom bloggers to blog, tweet and promote for a pack of diapers or a link is starting to get really old.

Is this making any sense at all? Am I the only one who's feeling stretched too thin and wondering whether, in the end, ego strokes are worth tipping the work/life balance cart? At some point will people start deciding they don't want to write or do webinars or speak for free anymore? Or is this nothing new and there's always someone willing to do it?