“Many of the people that I get as followers on Twitter seem to offer nothing more than a continual stream of advertisements. It seems that a growing number of “Internet marketers” are taking over Twitter, trying to get business in teaching people how to grow their follower counts and sell advertising.”

He is right, but only to a point. What he does not seem to grasp is that Social Media is “self-policing;” that is, there exist far more tools to kill spammers and other pests than there ever have been for email, which is far less spam-proof. But it takes a bit of diligence to keep one’s social media streams clear of unwanted spam.

I use Socialoomph.com one or two times a week to vet my Twitter followers. There I can “ignore” – not reciprocate follows of troublesome new followers. I can also block them so that they can’t see me and I can’t see them.  If the spammer is particularly bothersome, posting nothing but ads or links to “how to make money on Twitter” or “come see my pictures,” there’s button that reports them to Twitter as a spammer.  You can’t do that with email if some unscrupulous actor gets your email address and sells it to others causing a tidal wave of unwanted garbage.

If anyone with nothing useful to offer has multiple thousands of followers, I don’t want to be on their follower list either.  Except for users who are doing company branding or are celebrities in their own right, it just isn’t reasonable to expect that having 10 thousand or more followers or reciprocated friends might be useful in any sense.  I like the concept of “Dunbar’s Number,” first featured in the book The Tipping Point, that theorizes most people can only manage about 150 meaningful social relationships.  Back in 2007, Tobias Escher wrote a good piece on this social brain hypothesis.

Most social media tools, and especially the ones that are popular, offer options to help users eliminate just about any content they don’t want.  FaceBook’s recent change, broadening permissions to a default “everyone,” can easily be throttled back if only you take a couple minutes to dictate specifically what content you want to see and what content of yours that you want to share only among close friends.

So, Mike Schaffner has valid complaints, but he is just dead wrong about the ramifications of them.  As people become more proficient in managing their social media spaces, and as companies like FaceBook, Twitter, LinkedIn and others devise ways to make their user experiences less spam-susceptible, this issue is likely to become moot.

It makes no sense to conflate social media’s growing pains with mortal flaws.

BT (before Twitter) I had been engaged in what has come to be known as “social media” through blogs and discussion groups for several years. I hand-coded my first blog (now defunct) in 2002, really before there was any server-side software for it – even before I was aware of the term “blog.”  Frequent posting of new content to a web index.htm page was a real challenge, but I enjoyed it a lot!

Since then, I’ve created and maintained several blogs at Blogger.com and using Wordpress (like this one). I’ve also helped  others create personal blogs.  Lately, I’ve been answering lots of questions and giving free advice to friends (and friends of friends) regarding what social media tools might work best for what they are trying to accomplish in business.  I’ve got 25 years experience in various PR, marketing and advocacy roles and I have some solid technical certifications, too.  I have a great mix of skills and experience to help folks with this stuff.

I had meant to go full-bore with developing this side of my business last summer, but Tropical Storm Fay got in the way.  Fortunately, most of that mess is past and I’m ready to offer my social media skills to clients.  Toward this end, I’m going to take on three demonstration projects at no cost to my customers.  I already have one commitment in hand, and I’m writing a plan for it.

I want to put two more demonstration projects under my belt before I’ll start formally soliciting business.  I see all the people out there using the “social media expert” banner who don’t have the track record to back it up.  That’s not the way I work.

This morning, I seized up an idea and as soon as I post this, I’m hitting the send button on an email to Madlibs‘ marketing department:

Hi [name of person who reads this],

You don’t know me from Adam, but I have a quickie idea for using social media to increase your sales.  I loved Mad Libs as a kid and think you have a real opportunity to become trendy for a new generation.

Here’s my idea in short form:

• Get a Twitter account (I don’t know if @madlibs is registered by you or not)
• Create an “official” Facebook Madlibs fan group (there are some, but none appear to be by your company)
• Create landing pages on your web site specific to Twitter and Facebook
• Use the Twitter and Facebook APIs on those pages to create interfaces to the services
• At those pages, allow visitors to fill in random blanks (just like Madlibs) and auto post their Madlib results
• Visitors can select a topic, but can’t see the results until after they have posted their results to Facebook or Twitter
• Every auto tweet should end in the hashtag #madlibs
• It seems like a no-brainer to me that you’ll get a ton of followers that you should follow back and connect with to build interest in your publications
• It seems to me that most social media users are in the age cohort that would be likely to engage with you (and develop/rekindle an affinity for Madlibs)
• I believe that if you [verb] this, Madlibs’ sales will [verb] [adverb] through the [noun]!

If you would like to discuss developing your social media presence, I’m available for calls – no charge.  I’m currently doing some demonstration projects for my services and would be happy have your product in my portfolio as proof of concept.

Thanks for taking the time to read this brief proposal.  I look forward to speaking with you soon.

Regards,

Bob Finch

Social media is in its infancy. Few have the depth of experience in this that I do.  I’ve built a successful business from my avocation before and regardless of the economic environment, I believe I can do it again!

Stay tuned.

Twitter’s Constant Stream Of Update Messages Suddenly Grinds To A Halt

Lucky for Twitter this happened on a weekend during the night (at least U.S. time) so most users won’t have even noticed. But it goes to show how dangerous it is to rely on a free third-party service for important communication.

This is just absurd.  Computer systems rarely go without glitches, particularly those that are scaling up. Think about all the times your paid services have been down.  If you spend any significant amount of time connected to the Internet, you’re familiar with outages.  The only time in recent years that I’ve found any outage to be unacceptable was when I was without my (former) main email account with Netidentity for two days.  And then a couple of months later it happened again. From what was reported, that the outages happened during upgrades, it was beyond unacceptable. That’s failing to plan ahead, plain and simple.  Inexcusable.

My point?  It is no more dangerous to rely on free services than it is to rely on paid services.  The only difference is that when it’s free, you don’t get to call customer service and complain.  That’s all.  In the case of Twitter, does anyone really think that its staff – and its investors – consider up-time any less important than the staff at your cable or telephone company?  Really?

When supposedly smart folks dole out horrible advice or commentary about anything to do with social media, I feel it’s important to point it out.

Get Firefox

Here’s something that might have gone without saying, and probably goes without saying too often at sites frequented by people who live immersed in all this tech stuff.  After having several conversations in recent days with people I see as being in my target audience, I now know it needs to be said:  Firefox is the equivalent of a gateway drug for Social Media.

If you’re still out there reading this post in Internet Explorer, then, please, click on the icon to the right, download a copy and start using Firefox.

Just do it. Now.

Many with whom I speak with who are not already using Firefox are irrationally fearful of it.  Yes, it represents “change.”  But isn’t it better to undertake this little – and from a simplicity standpoint it is little – change if it will make it easier for you to manage much bigger change challenges that lie ahead?

The folks at Microsoft have tried pretty hard to encourage development of plugins for their flagship Internet browsers, but they have failed miserably.  Now, I don’t expect you to become a Firefox power-user, Web 2.0 guru and Social Media Butterfly overnight.  But you aren’t going to get there at all, or even a little bit of the way, if you don’t use an alternative browser.  Flock and Opera are also nice products too, but Firefox has the keys – add-ons – to the holy grail – understanding how all this stuff works and fits together. Trying to get to the Social Media Party with Internet Explorer is like Cinderella trying to get the the ball without a Fairy Godmother.

After you install Firefox, you’ll need to spend some time, not a lot, looking at the various helper doo-dads.  There is something there for everyone…I kid you not.  Right now, I’m running 38 add-ons.  You probably don’t need so many.  But it’s really helpful to be able to get answers by highlighting text or highlight and click.  I also like to customize my browser tabs with various plug-ins, instantly view thumbnails of all the tabs I have open and, when I must use Internet Explorer, there are plug-ins to make that happen right within Firefox.

Most importantly, there is a plug-in for every good Social Media site.  That’s how Firefox helps you stay connected and share information with the people who matter, whether it’s colleagues, clients, friends, family or other people who share your interests.  I could go on and on about this great tool.  But what I hope you do is use it yourself.  It will help open your eyes and put you on a path to being prepared for dealing with the radical communications changes headed our way.

Oh, and don’t worry about your bookmarks.  Except for the few you have that should be under lock and key, they’re all going to migrate to the web and be shared with your friends anyway.

Trust me.

“Hi, I’m Bob Finch.  I am a Listaholic.  I haven’t clicked on a list in 17 minutes…”

Is it too obvious I’m feeling goofy today?  It’s Friday and I’m feeling lazy and have too much to do aside from this blog; plus, because it’s my first Friday at What’s Next Now, I will silly this up a bit.

Drumroll please!

Here is my top ten list of lists for those interested in Web 2.0, Social Media and generally using the Internet to get ahead:

1. Neatorama » Blog Archive » 10 Things You Should Know About the Internet

Ah, the Internet: you use it every day for school, work or fun. In such a short period of time, the Net has grown into an essential every day thing that it’s hard to imagine life without it.

But how much do you know about the Internet? Did you know that you have the Soviets to thank for this wonderful invention? Or that despite the flack that he got for inventing the Internet, Al Gore actually did play a major role in the creation of the Net?

2. 35+ Examples of Corporate Social Media in Action

We’ve discussed some tactics to get your company better engaged with social media. Lest you think there’s a limit to how you can connect with business and customer facing audiences, we’ve assembled this list of more than 35 companies who are experimenting with social media in a host of different ways.

This list is by no means exhaustive, and it represents a wide variety of businesses, industries and social media tools. As you can see, engagement takes many forms. Some are likely to generate more discussions with the company while others might result better connections between customers. Some will fade away over the next 6-12 months while others will continue to grow and evolve.

3. 50+ Personal Productivity Blogs You’ve Never Heard of Before (and about a dozen you probably have) – Stepcase Lifehack

The personal productivity niche on the Web has grown by leaps and bounds since Lifehack launched only a few years ago. While a few sites dominate the rankings, there are lots and lots of lesser-known sites that are as good or even better than the “A-list” productivity blogs.

4. Disruptive Conversations: Revisiting “the 10 ways I learned to use Twitter”… and adding “Attention Lens” and “Presence”

Why do you use Twitter? After the folks at Twitter added a “Share Your Story” link yesterday where they are asking people why they use Twitter, this has prompted a number of folks to blog about why they use Twitter. One nice piece was from Paul Colligan: “Why I Twitter – And Why It Just Might Make Business Sense” – and then there was Stowe Boyd’s that I’ll mention later.

5. Lifehacker Top 10: Top 10 Conversation Hacks

A whole lot more than just words passes between people who are talking, so a few simple conversational skills can help you recognize what’s really being said and help you lead the discussion your way. Learn how to read body language and facial expressions, de-code euphemisms, ask sensitive questions, criticize constructively, get what you want in negotiations, cut off chatterboxes, and more with our top 10 conversation hacks.

6. 50 Steps to Establishing a Consistent Social Media Practice | chrisbrogan.com

You’ve told the boss that you’re going to implement social media stuff for your organization, and in your mind, you’ve decided that means an account on Twitter and a blog. Maybe there’s a bit more to it than that. For instance, what are your goals? Are you there to show customers and prospective new customers that you care? Are you there to solve customer issues? Are you building awareness and attempting new forms of digital marketing? Knowing this up front makes a world of difference.

7. 10 Essential Sites for Tips and How-To’s

The advent of the Internet and social media have spawned a number of how-to sites, which has made finding tips and resources easier than ever before. We’ve put together a list of 10 essential sites where you can find or in some cases contribute tips and how-to’s on a wide range of topics.

8. 50+ Sites To Help You Bury Negative Posts About You or Your Company! | Search Engine People Blog

Have you ever had a client come to you in a state of desperation, begging for help to remove a blog post that ranks for their business name, and portrays them in less than a positive light?

Or perhaps you had a very contentious break-up with an old flame, and they’ve since decided to air their beefs with you in a more public forum, and these complaints now appear every time you type your name into Google. Maybe you merely made a mistake one evening after a few too many beverages, but the proof now appears in video form online and as a result has become part of your public resume.

9. 100 Must-Read Books: The Essential Man’s Library | The Art of Manliness

There are the books you read, and then there are the books that change your life. We can all look back on the books that have shaped our perspective on politics, religion, money, and love. Some will even become a source of inspiration for the rest of your life. From a seemingly infinite list of books of anecdotal or literal merit, we have narrowed down the top 100 books that have shaped the lives of individual men while also helping define broader cultural ideas of what it means to be a man.

10. 8 Great Anti-Hacks to Fundamentally Change Your Life | Zen Habits

Albert Einstein stated that “problems cannot be solved by the same level of thinking that created them.” Einstein, of course, was right. Sometimes our problems require more than life hacks, tips, tweaks, etc. Sometimes our lives don’t need optimization, they need to be fundamentally reconfigured.

Those aren’t in any particular order, but I do find them most useful.  While it isn’t a list of the sort above, I’d be remiss if I didn’t plug my friend Jonathan Lyons’ spiffy list site, mywallah.

For more information about feeding your list addiction, please visit the grand list of great lists I’m building at SecondBrain.  And, if you have other lists you’d like to promote, please, ummm, list them in the comments section.