263,124,707,113,654 extraterrestrials can't be wrong?

How does this happen? Either:

• The Facebook social plugin on CNN.com is wonky.
• The Facebook social plugin on CNN.com is being manipulated.
• Votes from other galaxies prove that Hawking is right.

What do you think?

First, a couple of disclaimers: I don’t know Dave (@madmain on Twitter) personally [Update: He reminded me that we did speak on the phone a year ago about using the RichmondWiki project in his new media seminars, but I did not count a 15-minute phone call a personal relationship] but I hear he’s actually a nice guy in real life. I have no personal beef with him and my opinions certainly aren’t shared by everybody else. I just call it like I see it.

But since he’s asking so many times and in so many ways, I can’t sit by and not offer my reasons for NOT voting for him to win a Shorty Award. I guess it’s my way of offering some insight into why people might not be inclined to vote. Who knows, maybe this will help somebody win next year without alienating a lot of followers in the process.

I have not, and will not, vote for @madmain for a Shorty award because:

1. Direct Message Spam

What you tweet about is your own business, but when you ask your employees to DM [Update: Dave said he didn't ask his employees to DM people, they did it because they wanted to...but it came from the agency account so in my mind it came from the company/brand = same thing] me asking for a vote you are spamming, plain and simple. I don’t view the message below any differently than I would an unsolicited email that I did not opt in to receive. What does that accomplish? It lowers my opinion of the brand/company/person that sent it.

2. Overly Repetitive Requests for Votes

One or two requests for votes are fine. But hundreds upon hundreds [Update: Dave counted and said he had only 92 "asks" in 3 weeks. Sorry for the hyperbole] and dozens [Update: Dave counted and said it was only an average of 4.5 each day] each day come across as begging and do not an interesting conversation make.

Any social media marketer knows that repeatedly begging and cajoling your followers for “conversions” is a losing long-term strategy. Social networks and community-driven sites are supposed to be built on mutual value and reciprocal relationships. Brands that simply shout are going to be ignored because they ask but don’t give.

My favorite Twitter analogy is that of a cocktail party. Short conversations with interesting people that can potentially lead to follow-ups and larger conversations. The last time I was at a bar and somebody begged me for something it was a dude selling roses. He was kind enough to drop the issue after a polite “no”.

3. Shifting Signal to Noise Ratio

I still follow @madmain because he occasionally offers an interesting perspective or clues me in to a person that I would want to follow (although not with #followfriday pimping). That’s how it’s supposed to work. But when the ratio of vote requests to useful content increases dramatically it becomes harder to follow the conversation and derive value from the relationship (for me, at least). [Update: Dave counted and said he tweeted over 500 "non-asks" things during the same time period]

4. There’s Nothing In It For Me

Again, back to the value equation. What do I gain from voting? If it meant I could opt out of the unsolicited DM’s and redundant requests for votes then I would consider it. But so far you’ve only taken, you haven’t given me anything in return.

Would a vote secure a future reciprocal act? Again, there’s some value there but it hasn’t been conveyed so I have to assume I have nothing to gain from voting.

5. Social Media Should Not Be a Popularity Contest

As I’ve said before (a year ago today, actually), social media is just communications enabled by newer technologies. It’s still just People + Relationships + Communication. Twitter is just a technology that allows the number of people and communications to scale, sometimes too easily and too fast.

If we can assume that most people use social media to develop relationships and communicate, we must also assume that those people want to develop quality relationships. What happens as the quantity of those relationships increases? The quality must decrease.

In Conclusion

Again, this is not a personal attack, but more of an explanation that Shorty contestants all over may find useful. I’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments, on twitter, or over a beer.

'nuff said?

Other interesting tidbits:

• Twitter logs about 300 tweets per second.
• The 5 billionth tweet is affectionately known as the “pentagigatweet”.
• As of this past April, there had only been 1.6 billion tweets, meaning 3.4 billion have been sent in the past 6 months alone.
• Since posting the “pentagigatweet”, he has said that he intends to delete it, creating a zombie version called the “necropentagigatweet”.
• My Top 5 Twitter Pet Peeves from February ’09 are still true.
• As I predicted in March of ’08, Twitter is still not a marketing revolution except for a clever few that have adapted to the new communications platform.

Measuring Social Media

If you are into Social Media and want to learn how to measure your social marketing efforts, I highly recommend you attend Dave Linabury’s “Measuring the Success of Online Communities” presentation at LA2M on Wednesday, November 4th.

Dave is a nationally recognized expert on creating, building, nurturing, and activating social networks. I had the privilege of working with him on a few projects at Campbell-Ewald Advertising and I can honestly say he’s lapping the field in this area.

You may recognize him from a previous post a few weeks ago called “Why Social Media Users Revolt“.

Not only does he have a fantastic understanding of online group dynamics, he is an Omnigraffle wizard and comes up with the slickest presentation slides, posters and visuals I’ve seen in an advertising agency. To be honest, many advertising “creative-types” could learn a thing or two about simple concept visualization.

If They Fight, They Care

The real lesson for anybody that participates in or facilitates a social community is,

“If your members aren’t squabbling every once in a while, there’s a good chance that your community isn’t all that compelling to people. If they fight, they care.“

Don’t be afraid of dissent or in-fighting amongst members, but don’t ignore it either. Click the image for full-size goodness and feel free to re-post it with proper attribution.

When Social Media Attacks (click for full size)

Full Disclosure: I freelanced for Campbell-Ewald in the fall of 2008 on several client projects and new business pitches. I really respect the digital work they do and it’s a great group of people. No foolin’.

Unless you are in-tune with the search engine community, you may have missed Google’s announcement of their new prototype search architecture (fancy way of saying code and servers). It’s a bit too much detail for most, so here is a summary straight from the source:

For the last several months, a large team of Googlers has been working on a secret project: a next-generation architecture for Google’s web search. It’s the first step in a process that will let us push the envelope on size, indexing speed, accuracy, comprehensiveness and other dimensions.

In a very un-Googley move, the search giant opened up a preview of the new system before they launch it as the primary google.com search engine. There is no way to know which enhancements will make the final cut, but it’s safe to say that there will be a lot more speculation and testing from the search community before the final verdict is cast. For now, use search comparison tools like CompareCaffeine.com to see if your site behaves differently in the new search.

How to Shake the Jitters

Can't...stop...shaking...

Based on some preliminary findings and interpretations, I have compiled a few ways to minimize the Caffeine jitters and improve your site’s chances of gaining visibility in the new Google:

1. Get Social

Despite the glut of marketers blasting their messages on social networks and social media sites these days, it can still be an effective communications channel for companies that are willing and able to engage in a meaningful dialogue with fans and critics alike. A thoughtful social media strategy includes both active and passive involvement in online communities, along with the creation of value for the consumer. Don’t just rush into the latest social site du jour. Define your objectives first, then figure out which technologies and communities will help you accomplish them.

2. Update Frequently

The Caffeine architecture seems to favor more real-time indexing. For non-geeks, that means that Google is placing a premium on fresher content. This doesn’t just mean social media sites, but can also include company blogs, resource sections, Q&A content, or any other piece of content on your website that can be (and should be) updated frequently.

3. Observe the Signs

Keep an eye on your site analytics. Watch for anomalies or deviations from your normal traffic patterns as Caffeine is integrated into the main Google platform. Some key indicators are:

• visits by keyword
• average time spent on site
• average page views per visit
• goal/conversion rates

The Last Drop

Most early reports from the search community are finding that rankings are not changing dramatically with the Caffeine update. Smart search marketers don’t spend too much time worrying about rankings anyway.

Instead, watch your traffic and conversion metrics for more pure signs of success. You will be rewarded in the long run by focusing on creating valuable content that helps your visitors accomplish their tasks.

The shocking part is how little their parents know about what they are actually doing online.

Perhaps the naivete is due to the generational and technological gaps. It also could be the lack of oversight over the home computer or unsupervised computer use outside of the home.

Either way, parents should take note of the following statistics from a recent study:

I Know What You Did Online? (click to enlarge)

(via Common Sense Media)

When I Was Your Age…

My wife and I were just talking about this topic the other day. Our family computer (only 1, the horror!) was always in our kitchen so there was no room for schenanigans. We will impose the same rules on our kids someday, simply because we are more aware of the dangers and risks online than our parents were.

For more information about keeping kids safe online, SafeTeens.com and SafeKids.com seem like good starting points. I haven’t explored them too much, so feel free to leave a comment if you know of other good resources.