• A New Year's Resolution For The Social Media-rati
    The thing that has most awed me about the year gone by is how we in the technology business -- and particularly in social media -- operate in a parallel universe when compared with the rest of the world. While everyone else moves around in a long-term funk, all day long I'm surrounded (virtually speaking) by people who live in a place where anything is possible, where there's plenty of money to be had to develop money-making ideas, and where the future is something to embrace, not fear. Having a new iPad only adds to my personal sense of wonder.
  • A Social 2011 In Review
    Where did 2011 go? How did Pinterest, Bo.lt, and Sonar change how we interact with media, and with each other? What happened to Anthony Weiner and Osama Bin Laden? When did "+"join "@" in the digital lexicon? In a year where I visited eight countries and read 95 books, I also managed to pen nearly 50 columns, and I reread them all so you don't have to. Several themes emerged, with quite a few posts about startups, shopping, mobile social media, Google, and events. The year also brought its share of failures and disappointments to learn from. Here's 2011 in …
  • The 2011 Berky Award Winners
    It's time for the most anticipated time of year, as the Berky Awards have arrived. Here's how the Berky Awards work: each year (alright, just this one so far), millions of people vote on their favorite social media services and technologies. None of those people tell me their votes, though, so I have to come up with the winners myself. The winners are treated to a printout of this column at their own expense, and a free beer at 360i's bar whenever they're in Tribeca. Without further ado, here are the Berky Awards for Social Media Excellence in 2011. Please …
  • Of Lowe's, 'All-American Muslim,' And Facebook Home Page Improvement
    Here at the sumptuous offices of the Social Media Insider, there's nothing we love more than a corporate PR controversy and a chance to be a Monday Morning (or, in this case, Wednesday afternoon) quarterback. So, in that spirit, let's talk about Lowe's!
  • 16 Resolutions For Vendors
    Over the course of a year, I'll get about a thousand pitches from vendors. The great ones lead to vendors becoming partners. The bad pitches get deleted. The worst get forwarded around. In light of that, here's my wish list for vendors. Vendors that follow the list will win more business. Granted, the best vendors don't need this list at all, but most can use at least a few reminders.
  • A Reminder To Social Marketers: Nope, You're Not Trending
    As it's only Dec. 7, I'm beginning to feel as though Top 10 lists, along with Christmas decorations in the mall, are going up more and more prematurely. How else to explain that this week has seen a bumper crop of Top 10 lists, ranging from the top Twitter hashtags, to Facebook's top -- well, 20 -- shared stories, to TIME magazine's list of 54 different Top 10s?
  • How YouTube Became A Community
    Hey, community managers, the good news is that you have a new community to manage. Of course, that's also the bad news. YouTube has always been a funny site to include in social media plans. In the past, it hadn't felt that social. Unlike Facebook, Twitter, and other explicitly social properties, it's possible to use YouTube with absolutely no social interaction. But the latest updates to YouTube change everything.
  • Friend Me Or Else: A Parent's View Of Teens And Facebook
    Some weeks, Facebook is more interesting than others. And when I say that, I'm not talking about this week's settlement concerning privacy with the FTC. For me, the most interesting thing on Facebook this week was when I posted the following status update on Monday night: "Hi fellow parents of teenagers. I don't know everything there is to know about Facebook. Honest. So, here's my question: what guardrails do you put up when your teenager goes on Facebook?"
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