Around the Net

Crowley: Give Social Influencers 'Referrer's Fee'

Foursquare founder Dennis Crowley reportedly thinks the next big development in social networking will come from algorithms that can determine how influential recommendations or updates are based on the response they garner from others. "Once that happens, [Crowley] said, marketers will be able to reward the most influential users for mentioning them," reports Forbes' Mixed Media blog.

If, for instance, your movie endorsement - via Twitter, Facebook, or another social platform -- drives ticket sales at Fandango.com, "You should get some kind of referrer's fee," Crowley said during a panel discussion this week. "I bet that exists within a year. There will be some way for you to get kickbacks." Forbes, however, suggests that recently created Federal Trade Commission guidelines governing paid endorsements on blogs and social media sites will stifle Crowley's vision. "They could well prevent Foursquare and other tech companies from developing new features many of their users would undoubtedly welcome," writes Forbes. Undoubtedly? First, we'd hope that such features would offer social "influencers" comparable "kickbacks" for saving us from an awful movie.

Read the whole story at Mixed Media »

Next story loading loading..