Contributing Comments

I spend about 30% of my day working with Facebook. I manage content on my clients fan pages. I work very hard at acquiring more fans and friends or boosting videos and photos views. I have no idea how much time I have spent on generating or replying to comments and wall posts. These are the new metrics for clients and this is how I, as a social media slave, am judge on my ideas and efforts. I understand and embrace that. I enjoy my job and take pride when I get the result I am looking for, but I cannot help but think that as drones of the internet, we are missing the true values of Facebook.

Getting Ready for The Glass

This past weekend I was in Maine wakeboarding with an old college buddy. We reconnected with each other using facebook. We planned this trip by creating a facebook event and exchanging facebook messages. We introduced each other to friends who were going to be attending by sharing facebook profiles. And now we are sharing pictures and videos of the weekend with each other using facebook.

Panoramic of Dock - "great place to dock start"

As someone who was addicted to the second generation of facebook (post Ivy league generation) I remember when facebook was it’s most useful. When it was most simple. It was just a “degree of seperation” algarythm, that incorporated photos. It was a simple webspace that allowed you to stalk your college friends and their friends. We knew all we needed to know. How many friends we all had and how many of them were mutual. We also knew if that cute girl in your Global Marketing class had a boyfriend and if she partied as hard as you did.

I understand the new facebook. I appreciate the need for Mark Zuckerburg to monetize the brilliance. I just hope we can hold on to it’s original convenience.

After a long Hiatus, I’m recommitting myself to blogging.

Settled In To My New Hood

I profusely apologize to my readers. I”M SO SORRY! I have set a goal of writing at least 3 posts a week. They may not be the freshest content but it’s going to be mine. I’ve felt like my contributions were minimal and that I wasn’t actually adding anything to the conversation, but I’ve been reborn blog-style. MORE TO COME

- dentonmd

I’m a relative newbie to PodCamping it. I know the rules, I LOVE the format, and I enjoy speaking/attending. The upcoming PodCamp Ohio is in my home state and it’s been held in my college town. Needless to say I am EXCITED for this one. Speaking list is stacked with great friends of mine and people I will be meeting for the first time. People I’m excited to see include:

Luke Armour

Debba Haupert

Cliff Ravenscraft

Kait Swanson

If you want to see a full list of who is scheduled you can go to - http://www.podcampohio.com/sessions/

To register visit - http://www.podcampohio.com/participate/registration/

I haven’t been back to the Buckeye State in almost a year. What a great excuse to return! I hope to see you there.

Last week, my boy Melvitax upgraded me to WP 2.5, and to commemorate I’ve changed the look of my blog. I think the new WP interface is cleaner, much more user-friendly and over all more aesthetically appealing. I really enjoy using it, and I recommend upgrading if you haven’t yet.

If you haven’t switched over from other blogging platforms I’d like to share the below graph with you. You are behind the curve but not by much. As of July ‘07 more people visit/use wordpress than type pad.

If your curious as to why folks are trending to wordpress you can check out any number of blog posts that have been written about this. Most people agree that the below reasons are true.

SEO

The beginning of this year a blog post was written on Knowledge is Everywhere (from Melbourne) He She touts a 500% better hit rate on wordpress over typepad. Any tag associated with a wordpress blog post, is also tagged in the technorati database. This is huge from an search frame of mine. That’s a sight with ample “juice” and helps to determine a blogs weight/authority. There are other arguments why wordpress is better for SEO, such as URL construction, faster java script etc. but technorati tags aren’t argued very often.

CUSTOM, CUSTOM, CUSTOM

The wordpress admin functions are only limited by the users knowledge of how to manipulate it, and the plug-ins that have been developed. According to Wordpress.com there are currently 1,891 plug-ins that range from youtube video players to rss tracking, and even more complicated. As a whole they have been downloaded by/utilized on 4,082,686 blogs.

MOBILE FRIENDLY

From reading blogs and commenting on your cell, to writing, uploading photos, and editing from anywhere, Wordpress is very nice to the blogger who is on the go.

NOTE* If you would like a less complicated, or less “tech” based blogging platform TypePad, Tumblr, and even Bloger/Blogspot might be better for you.

My boy, C.C. Chapman, posted this morning about Good People Day 2008.  The concept is sweet.  It was shared with him by Gary Vanerchuk, who recently sponsored an event I help throw with the Young Executive Board. That makes Gary a good person in my book.  The idea is that social media activity will be focused on positive stuff, specifically good people, doing good things.

I, like CC, enjoy the hell out of repping people who deserve it, so this is a fun post for me. I want to list a TON of folks who make “ISH” happen, but I’m going to limit my self to 5. I want to thank them all for leading by example.

Craig Meisner- Executive Director, Camp Interactive

This guy runs an amazing program that gives inner city kids the opportunity to experience outdoor activities, and then brings them home and teaches them how to use technology to share the experiences with the world via the “inter-webs”…

Working with Craig is awe inspiring.  He is great at getting influential people passionate about his programs and connecting them with the right people who can turn that passion into benefits for the kids. Check out Camp Interactive if your so inclined, or you can hit me up. I sit on the Young Executives Board.

Abraham Estrada- Teporocho

If you ever find this guy with out a smile on his face… TAKE A FREAKING PICTURE!!!! I can tell you that it doesn’t happen often.  Abe is a bilingual blogger that inspires me to be a happier person. He always looks at the bright side of things. His personality can’t be put into words just because he’s that positive ALL THE TIME.  Even when he’s fighting programing errors at the desk next to me, he’s still laughing at it.  I just don’t know how he does it.

Paull Young- Senior Account Executive, Converseon

Youngie is my roommate and is such a good guy that I don’t know where to start. His online efforts speak for them self, but something people might not know is that Youngs volunteers his time with iMentor. He’s given his (our) couch, his air mattress, and (for the brave) his bed up to any New York visitor who is in need of a soft pillow to crash on. If that’s not enough… I know from experience he’s the FIRST to volunteer his time for anyone or any group in need.

Melvin Rivera- All Forces

Melvin is the most amazing dude. He has this calm, centered chi that immediately puts you at ease when your around him. There isn’t a person in our office that hasn’t mentioned trying to be more like him, and that’s just the beginning. You wouldn’t be reading this post with out him. He helped me get my blog running with his WP expertise. He unconditionally helps me with anything I have problems with. Melvin has bent over backwards to make everyone’s existence easier. He’s a problem solver by nature, and uses his blog to share those solutions with anyone who can find him.

C.C. Chapman- RBA/Mentor, The Advance Guard

As most know RBA is my mentor.  C.C. is the kind of guy who will lead by example.  He exemplifies the cliche “Walk Soft Cary a Heavy Stick”. I’m not sure there is a bad bone in his body.  I have emails, chats, and voicemails, that show his true supportive nature.  He’s approachable, and giving in a way that is unique to his personality. If you ask anyone who has met him for a good CC story, you’d be hard press to stump any of them.

Alright so we all have our favorite TV Spots, my friend Karen Gould shared this with me when I got into work this morning and I couldn’t resist sharing it. Adverblog posted about Selmore’s campaign for New York Pizza. I’m not much of a pizza eater but if I am ever in Holland and craving a bit of familiar American food. I am getting a bite of this. I applaud their attempt at making the commercial entertaining.

So I know that facebook has many applications, and using it as a marketing tool is experimental at best right now, but I’d like to propose an idea. (please bare with me)

As some know, I was born and raised in the Nasty Nati. (Cincinnati, Ohio to those who are not from the Buckeye State) For all it’s troubles my home town has some pretty rad things to add to it’s character, especially the food and the “back-yard” games.

No matter what city we are in Transplanted Buckeyes always seem to find each other. I have kept in touch with and made new Ohio Friends through facebook. A good friend of mine from Ohio is living in NYC and is having a Cincy Party soon and incorporating four of my favorite things from The Nati (see below). She created a facebook event, invited some friends from both New York and Ohio, and she’s allowed attendees to upload photos videos and links to her group. A great conversation has started about why the food is so special, and why it’s Cincinnati themed. I think this is an innovative, outside-the-box marketing opp for some Cincy brands, specifically:

Skyline Chili

Cornhole

LaRosa’s Pizza

Greater’s Ice Cream

Three of these four brands are distinctly Cincinnati, and I don’t advocate that they change that (until they are ready), but I see an amazing opportunity for larger brand awareness through evangelists and influencers. If any or all of these brands were to sponsor or offer promotion for these sort of parties, they could potentially introduce their products to a slew of new potential buyers. I know that a lot of people have jumped on the facebook page band-wagon and the results are yet to be scene but I’m not on facebook to be a fan of a brand. I’m there to interact with friends and (lets face it) “stalk” potential friends. From the perspective of a facebook user, this could be an effective branding approach, a way to reach out to the community, and not just be available for them to reach out to you.

I have everything I need for a great weekend. Two full seasons (plus extra content) of Twin Peaks and enough David Lynch coffee to stay awake for all of it.

- Just For Fun

This is one of the coolest robots I’ve seen in a while.

My robotics experience is limited to my failed attempts at Electrical/Mechanical engineering in college, and the U.S. First Competition (Rep team #144), but I still can’t get over the AMAZING abilities of gyroscope technology. (e.g. - check out time stamp 0:38)

This thing is so life-like I actually sympathized with it when it was struggling to get up from the ice.

Lastnight I got home to find a birthday card from Jackie Vettorino in my mailbox. On top of good wishes and a sweet message, she included a Starbucks gift-card. And just like every other building in NYC, I have one right across the street from my office. YES!!!!!!

Enjoying a Starbucks coffee purchased with the gift-card/birthday present compliments of Jackie Vettorino