guest post by Ann Smarty When it comes to basic social networking on a totally personal level, there are three real contenders that are fighting for dominance over the market. At the top of the tier is Facebook, the current victor, if by a short distance. Next is Twitter, which has become wildly popular, especially for celebrities who enjoy quick updates and access to fans. Last, we have Google +. As the new kid on the block, it is still gaining traction as it begins to establish loyal followers  show all text

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Pinterest is unquestionably the hot social service of early 2012, with mainstream outlets such as Good Morning America covering it and brands working quickly to figure out how to optimize it. But there’s a good chance if you’re reading this you don’t even have access to it. For the uninitiated, Pinterest is a curatorial site that calls itself a “virtual pinboard,” which allows users to capture and organize images from the web. A recent study from Shareaholic shows that the budding network now d...  show all text

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Oh the things you can learn about what is and isn't posted on Facebook, or any social network for that matter. A new study by Millennial Branding, of over 50 million Facebook data points collected in partnership with Identified.com, uncovers some very interesting digital behavior and characteristics among Gen-Y (ages 18 to 29). The result, is an infographic worthy of contemplation. Here are the highlights: Gen-Y inadvertently uses their profiles as an extension of their professional personality.  show all text

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As the world goes mobile, it's prompting a boom in mobile advertising, which is poised for a huge year in 2012. The winners include companies such as Nexage, a real-time bidding exchange provider which told me that it hit 100 billion ad requests today.

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You know what’s funny? If you Google “how do you get kids to learn” (sans quotes, even), the first result goes to this TechCrunch blog post about an app that lets kids draw butts on the iPad. Really! The post details the company called Madbrook (aka Everything Butt Art), which launched at TechCrunch Disrupt NY in May. It’s the brand behind a series of printed books, all of which are meant to teach creativity and step-by-step drawing while using humor and silliness to appeal to the young demogra...  show all text

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The Susan G. Komen foundation has reversed a controversial decision not to renew funding for Planned Parenthood projects for breast cancer screenings, the group said in a statement Friday. "We want to apologize to the American public for recent decisions that cast doubt upon our commitment to our mission of saving women's lives," the group said. "We will continue to fund existing grants, including those of Planned Parenthood, and preserve their eligibility to apply for future grants, while main...  show all text

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Facebook users receive more comments, messages and likes — the hugs and high-fives of social networking — than they give, according to a new study. The Pew Research Center’s Internet & American Life Project study, which looks at Facebook activity of users over a one-month period, shows that users Like content on their News Feed about 14 times, while their content is Liked about 20 times. Users send about nine personal messages and receive 12. This discrepancy exists because certain “power users”  show all text

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If you've used Instagram even once or twice, you more than likely saw at least one picture of someone's pet. The service is for sharing photos of anything you want to share, so it's ...

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The Huffington Post Media Group revealed more details about its upcoming online news channel, the Huffington Post Streaming Network. The announcement takes place just days before Huffington Post celebrates its first anniversary since its acquisition by AOL. AOL purchased The Huffington Post on Feb. 2, 2011 for $315 million and made HuffPo‘s front woman, Arianna Huffington, the president and editor-in-chief of the newly formed Huffington Post Media Group. At a press event previewing the Streaming  show all text

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Skype for Windows version 5.8 is out, bringing several interesting features, including full HD video-calling, group screen sharing and Facebook integration.

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In this week’s Search In Pictures, here are the latest images culled from the web, showing what people eat at the search engine companies, how they play, who they meet, where they speak, what toys they have, and more. Bing Drink In A Glass: Image via Flickr. Behind The Scenes On President... Please visit Search Engine Land for the full article.

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Operationalizing social media across the organization is perhaps on of the most challenging aspects of social media for companies and brands. Too many look at social media as a consumer-facing communications channel and forget that departments from HR to research and development and even internal collaboration among divisions can all be helped by social technologies and strategies. We’re addressing that issue at Explore Dallas-Fort Worth in several discussions, one major one led by Zena Weist, ...  show all text

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Anonymous is on the move. The hacker group has claimed credit for coordinated attacks and leaks against the U.S. government and international law enforcement agencies Friday. According to Twitter accounts associated with the group of “hacktivists,” more activity can be expected throughout the day. Anonymous released a call between the FBI and Scotland Yard regarding a joint effort in a cybercrime case. The case is tied to investigations in New York, Baltimore and Ireland, according to The Guard...  show all text

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Increase email marketing conversion rates and improve open rates with these email marketing tips from Sherice Jacob

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SCHEDit wants to answer the question “what is going on tonight?” in the same way that Twitter answers the question “what is happening?” — with a customizable, interest-based platform that transcends personal preference. The company launched with its first partner, Boston.com, on Thursday. Here’s how it works: Users log into a new events site on Boston.com with their Facebook accounts. They set up a profile and choose specific venues and people who they want to follow. Their newsfeeds are then p...  show all text

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1. Join If you haven't already, sign up for a Pinterest account. There's a waiting list to join now — talk about exclusivity — but you can beat the system by having an existing Pinterest member send you a request. If you don't know anyone on Pinterest, some have had success by finding members via Twitter and asking for invitations that way. Click here to view this gallery. If you’re planning a wedding and knee-deep in collecting ideas for the perfect dress, hairstyle and invitations, there’s  show all text

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People are more likely to give in to urge to tweet or check email than other cravings, say US researchers Tweeting or checking emails may be harder to resist than cigarettes and alcohol, according to researchers who tried to measure how well people could resist their desires. They even claim that while sleep and sex may be stronger urges, people are more likely to give in to longings or cravings to use social and other media. A team headed by Wilhelm Hofmann of Chicago University's Booth Busine...  show all text

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Last week Jeannie Walters and I were discussing Brian Solis’s new book The End of Business As Usual. Because she is a customer experience expert, she was especially interested in what Brian had to say about the connected customer and where business is going because of it. When I mentioned I was writing a review of the book, she asked if she could join in. And, because the Pinterest debate between Paul Sutton and I worked so well, we thought we’d do a combined book review. Jeannie reviews it from  show all text

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The future of books may be here. Augmented reality book Between Page and Screen is an innovative art project that seeks to renew the reading experience by combining the physicality of a printed book with the technology of Adobe Flash to create a virtual love story. To see the technology in action, you simply lay the 44-page hardcover across a laptop with a webcam and words will suddenly appear, spin and rattle. Turn the page to experience the wordless book of poems and see the future of interac...  show all text

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Facebook took social media by storm on Wednesday after the company filed the preliminary prospectus for its long-awaited initial public offering. The company is seeking to raise $5 billion. SEE ALSO: Facebook IPO: Reactions from the Social Web (and Zuckerberg) Still not sure what all of this means? If you haven’t already had a chance to read the document, we’ve embedded it below. For a breakdown on everything you need to know about Facebook’s IPO, read further. Facebook S 1 Inside Look With...  show all text

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UPDATE, 12:32 p.m.Cecile Richards, president of Planned Parenthood, said during a Friday conference call that her understanding of Komen's announcement is that it's a complete reversal of the decision to bar funding to her group. "It's quite clear that Planned Parenthood and our health centers and our doctors are eligible now to work with Komen foundation again," Richards said, before adding that she hasn't actually talked to Komen leaders about the decision. "I certainly take them at their wor...  show all text

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Schools are on a short list of organizations that have been notoriously slow to adopt emerging tech. But within the last few years, as social media becomes more integral to students’ lives, educational institutions are finally catching on, and catching up. When it comes to higher ed, there are not only opportunities for digital learning, but digital marketing too. Some schools have taken the reigns on both sides, with mixed results. SEE ALSO: 5 Free Homework Management Tools for the Digital St...  show all text

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1. Intended word: "GPS," not "GSPOT." Click here to view this gallery. In December, millions of readers laughed along with Damn You Auto Correct‘s funniest entries of the year, based on Facebook shares, tweets, comments and page views. Get ready to laugh again. Jillian Madison — who founded the popular blog after she once texted a guy friend to see if he wanted to come over for “fellatio” and she meant “gelato” — has now posted her favorite all-time picks. Not surprisingly, her picks are hi...  show all text

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Jacq and I just watched Adele Live At The Royal Albert Hall (amazon affiliate link), and though every song was just wonderfully done, I found myself fascinated by what Adele was doing in between each song. Because even though most people would be interested in hearing her belt out her amazing repertoire of hits, what I took away from the performance was Adele’s real magical ability: the ability to resonate with her audience. What Adele Could Teach You About Impact I’m writing something about th...  show all text

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This guest post is by Marcus Sheridan of The Sale Lion. We’re all communicators. That’s what we do. Some of us love the feel of pen in hand. Others find joy as the fingers hit the key pad. But for me, the magic is in the communion that occurs in front of a live audience, a place where I feel more at home than any other. Like you, I’m a blogger. I’m also a business owner. In fact, I own a swimming pool company. Ten years ago, I started the business with my two partners. The challenges of entrepr...  show all text

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In San Francisco cafes and bars, even on the street, I overhear people talking about their startup ideas, business plans, and goals. And there are tons of incubators, Angels, wannabe Angels, VC firms, making investments in startups. And there's lots of money being made, especially among the Super Angels, the incubators such as Y Combinator, the micro-VCs, and people such as Jeff Clavier, Dave McClure, who have made fortunes selling startups to larger companies. Sometimes startup teams can go fr...  show all text

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If you live near a Microsoft retail store, you can now pre-order a Nokia Lumia 900 with a $25 down payment, the Verge reports. Unfortunately, even if you do that, you still won’t know how much the device will cost when it finally arrives, probably in March. The Lumia 900 sports a 4.3″ AMOLED ClearBlack display with a 800×480 pixel resolution, an 8-megapixel camera (as well as a 1-megapixel front-facing one for video chat) and LTE/HSPA+ support. With a 1.4 GHz processor, an Adreno 205 GPU and 512  show all text

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