Facebook, Friends, and Staying Connected

Facebook recently implemented some changes, many of which seem cosmetic, a few of which change the utility of the service. Personally, I like the new drop-down message inbox peek, but dislike losing the ability to hop directly from one application to another.

Now, when I want to hop from a mad game of Scrabble to check on my mafia, I am forced to re-route through my FB home page... hmm... Why would the Facebook masters implement this solution? Perhaps to pad the number of clicks or homepage visits in their metrics? Seems like a detour to me, and adds to the hassle and time commitment the service requires.

And, make no mistake, folks are starting to change their view on Facebook, even as the service itself evolves. What was once an intimate, insiders-only service is now mainstream and muddled. Are all 284 of my "friends" really that well-connected? No.

I used to appreciate the small-group feel of Facebook. And, as my network has expanded, I've been happy to reconnect with folks from my past, but in the process this online community more nearly represents my offline social connections, with levels of importance, connection, and sharing varying widely. I've got friends - online and offline - with whom I rarely interact. There are others who are on the "pretty frequently" cycle. And then there are the select few, with whom connecting is a daily or even hourly activity.

Guess what? This tight-knit group, the ones with whom I'm so connected... They are the same group that was first over the wall with me on Facebook years ago, the same early Twitter adopters whom I follow & follow me, the same folks on speed dial for my phone. Turns out, good friends are good friends, regardless of the tools used to maintain the relationship.

As for Facebook? Well, I'll keep using it, for now, but I can foresee the moment when I just decide it's not necessary to keep up with good friends. At which point, it'll be come a less frequent, less relevant part of my online day. Facebook could become Plaxo-esque, a repository of contact info and occasional interaction. For some, it's already lost relevance. How about for you?

Google Real-time and Goggles: Whee!

Back in May I wrote about Twitter's then-new search functionality, calling it "enticing, exhilarating, and exasperating." I thought it was pretty slick, though still primitive, and destined to be a handy staple for marketers interested in managing their customer relationships.

Now Google brings real-time search to the masses, including Twitter, Facebook status updates, and news as it happens... or at least as it's published. Time will tell how valuable this firehose of information turns out to be, but be sure that new insights and uses for the information will arise.

While we're on the topic of Google announcements, Google Goggles also seems pretty darn intriguing. Think of the social media applications. Want to rate a hotel, brand, or anything else? Point your phone at it, click a menu option, and rate it on the spot. Want to do a search for ratings? Do the same.

This Goggle technology and other similar solutions will provide new means to search for or receive promotional offers. Think of Catalina-style coupon offers delivered via mobile devices. Someone pulls up Pampers on their phone and gets an offer for $1 off Huggies, on the spot.

Another Post in The Living Room

Please take a look! Paid Tweets, Transparency, and Integrity

Local... Social... Activate!

One thing I really appreciate is the "big" trends applied in local, even intimate ways. Recently, I've been noticing my favorite local haunts - a small coffee house, a nice little restaurant - taking steps towards greater engagement with their customers.

In the case of City Market (my source for chocolate croissants), I found a nice handmade sign displaying options for new cup sleeves with a request that folks vote. Where was the sign? Appropriately, placed in the junk-up-your-coffee station above the flatware, so nearly every coffee-drinking denizen would have the chance to weigh in. What a great, low-tech, high engagement way to keep customers involved in the evolution of the brand!

At Berkeley's - where I highly recommend the polenta mosaic for dinner followed by warm donuts for dessert - the proprietors have started building a community via SMS text messaging. Nothing new, per se, but appreciated nonetheless. Not that I'm not already loyal to the place, but the texts do keep the restaurant top of mind for the inevitable "hmmm, do I really want to cook?" evenings.

Got any favorite examples of Local/Social activation you'd like to share? Let us know... And if your examples include chocolate croissants or warm donuts, I'm happy to coordinate on-site research!

Twitter the Video Network?

Over the past few weeks, I've had several conversations about how Twitter is "like a new broadcast network". Well, now you can add video capability into the conversation, thanks to Twitmatic. Here's a nice overview of the service:

http://www.wired.com/epicenter/2009/05/use-twitter-like-a-television-network/

And be prepared, there is definitely more to come as folks dig into the Twitter API and play with it.

Remember, "Social" Isn't New

Here we go again... The latest "social" darling is Twitter. Is it going to surpass Facebook? How do we use it? How come we're not already Tweeting our way to business success? These and other questions are flying through conference rooms all over the place. And, they are good questions to ask.

Without a doubt, Twitter is proving itself useful as a means of rapid dissemination of information and a source of consumer insight for companies who pay attention. Who can argue with the growth curve of this new utility, now used by millions of people each month?

Allen Adamson posted a good article yesterday on forbes.com about differences between Facebook and Twitter. The differences are notable because thinking "Twitter versus Facebook" misses the point. That line of thought is similar to "Hammer versus Screwdriver". Different tools for different purposes, friends!

At the risk of vast oversimplification, Twitter is quicker and Facebook is deeper. Each can play a role in a well-crafted move into things social. Adamson finishes with "As has always been the case, organizations need to use whatever means are available to listen and learn..." I couldn't agree more.

And here's where I'd like to emphasize Adamson's "As has always been the case..." We're human, folks (leaving out the odd zombie or space alien disguised among us). We are social creatures. We talk, we interact, we socialize! The underlying behaviors haven't changed so much as the enabling tools have. Whether communicating in synchronous or asynchronous fashion, technology has enabled greater reach, speed, and – perhaps most importantly – the ability to archive our interactions for future review.

Synchronous and asynchronous sound "big" and "technical", but really it's just "at the same time" or "one after the other". Talking with each other is a great example of the former; writing notes to others exemplifying the latter. Whether Webex or Twitter, today’s enablers of both types of communication surpass the imaginations of our forebears. And there is absolutely more to come... New solutions and innovations will continue to stream our way.

In this propagation of further, faster, better it helps to stay grounded in the underlying truth when considering strategy. The old questions of "What are we trying to accomplish?", "Who are we trying to reach?", and "How will we measure success?" are still absolutely necessary. They are crucial to the avoidance of Shiny Object Syndrome (thinking myself clever for coining the phrase, I did a quick google search "just to be sure". Guess what? Over 15,000 results!).

Regardless of the tools available, because new ones are constantly being invented, it's crucial for marketers to keep the order to "ready, aim, fire!" Those who succumb to S.O.S. are guilty of firing first and only considering the concept of aiming afterwards. Such efforts generally waste time and money without delivering measurable results.

"But what about being fast? About being on-trend? About staying relevant?" I hear the groans, and there's nothing to stop rapid implementation by asking the important questions. Heck, being wrong on some of the answers is part of getting better. Positive iteration is only possible by identifying that something could be better. Answering the what, who, how questions doesn't ensure success; it ensures intention of being successful. And intention leads to direction, which in turn enables learning, assessing progress towards a goal, and ultimately results.

So, play with the shiny objects, tweet your heart out... Just do it with intent. Otherwise you will likely just contribute to the growing pile of twitter litter (another one I coined late... only 2,700 search results for this one, though).