As social media enthusiasts, we are constantly being asked about What businesses have incorporated social media successfully? What is the ROI? What structures are in place. The list goes on. What? Why? Where? When? How? Really. The reality is that social media is evolving and with this evolution the answers for all aspects just does not exist – it is a time for experimentation and exploring - setting those standards.
Having said that, there are those businesses that have dived in and in essence have provided case studies that we may learn from. Successes and failures are all valuable. You will find all aspects of this business socialization in this Scoop.it magazine.
Enjoy
Shirley 
I did a quick survey of my network on how they would describe the culture of Facebook, Linkedin and Twitter. You will find the highlights here with some of own perspectives.
Like all cultures, they evolve with time. This is a snapshot of Facebook, Linkedin and Twitter today If we continue to act in a socially uninformed and uninspired manner, some of our new social enterprises may suffer the same fate that took down so many e-businesses at the beginning of this century. 
In this post, I really want to talk about “What is Social?” I want to take this opportunity to talk about the behavioural attributes that makes for a good “Social Media Aficionado”. I loved saying that. Why? Well, the more I speak to businesses and organizations, the more I realize that the expectations of “how to manage” a community or “What the expectations are” when you decide to work or play in this space, are not necessarily understood.... 
The Power of the TwitterChat was an agenda item at the Socialize Toronto conference I attended recently. It was great to have this discussion in a very diverse group.
TwitterChats are so valuable! The selections are amazing. You get to meet new people in different sectors, functions and generations.I mined the richness of the conversation at the conference with my own thoughts to come up with 10 good reasons why you should attend them. 
For a smaller banks such as the $409 million-asset Bank of Georgia, figuring out how to use social media safely and legally isn t easy.
But they have! it is called having an opportunity to have a conversation. I am always amazed by large corporations in regulated industries are so quick to throw in the towel when the topic of social media is put on the table. It is good to see this bank showing leadership in this arena in order to have those conversations with their customers. 
How Google+ Hangouts Are Transforming TV Broadcasting...
We certainly live in exciting times. Google seems to be in the news for one thing or another - weekly! I have attended some of these livestreams on YouTube/hangouts. It is certainly amazing and the title of this post came to mind immediately. A tranformation is certainly taking place...... 
This is a good example of an informed customer using social media to research, give feedback and making recommendations of the best restaurants from her perspective. Her list includes:
Table 17 @Table17 Enoteca Sociale @EnoSociale Fish Bar @_fishbar F’Amelia @FameliaRisto Vaticano @VaticanoToronto Cafe du Lac @cafedulac Real Sports @RealSports Fresh @freshonbloor e11even @e11even Nota Bene @notabenetoronto Lou Dawgs @loudawgs
Welcome to our world!! Read on to learn more....... The Toronto-based coffee business sparked a social media backlash after it underestimated how many people would sign up, accidentally sent an email saying the coffee was on its way, and fell into silence when it couldn’t deliver.
Another example of how not to do a social media promotion. Starbucks did almost the same thing and mistake some time ago- some one did not do their homework. Underestimation is the biggest mistake with this type of promotion.
Read on to understand why.... 
I selected this piece written by Michael Britto from 11/2011 via socialbusinessnews because at the end of the day, we all want to see evidence that there is indeed ROI from our social media business efforts.
In this article, Research consulting firm, Bain and Company has found concrete evidence that companies who have adopted social media early on (Dell,. Wal-Mart, Starbuscks, Jet Blue & American Express) have captured real economic business value from their budget investments.
Here's a brief summary of this article:
1. Link social media efforts to concrete business objectives **Bain has provided this matrix with real examples of companies that were successful in linking social media to business objectives.
**Focus and tailor your efforts to engage your key customers
**Bain identified 10 segments of social customers.
**Members of these segments frequent different social media platforms and prefer different types of content and engagement models. (As illustrated in their social media consumer segmentation)
2.Build a social media organization to deliver results **Smart companies mobilize cross-functional teams spanning marketing, sales, public relations, corporate strategy, customer service, product development, IT, HR and legal.
**They are building social capabilities, behaviors, processes and workflows into the underlying DNA of the organization rooted in change management.
(Bain outlines three organizational models based on their study in this article)
3. Monitor and measure the results—then close the loop
**Creating the right measurement philosophy to measure and track results is mission critical.
4.Be flexible and adaptive.
It’s still early days
****We live in the culture of NOW! Social media is one area in which everybody is learning and adapting in real time – customers, partners and the organization.
**** Just as companies need to continuously experiment to determine what works for them and their customers, they also need to negotiate an increasingly crowded playing field, with newcomers always joining the game.
**** The companies that succeed will be those that are flexible, adaptable and ready to change.
Curated by Jan Gordon covering "Content Curation, Social Business and Beyond"
Read full article: [http://bit.ly/wR9CsL] Via janlgordon 
Which sites help brands keep up in the real-time content race? Which sites really drive engagement? Here are four seen as emerging leaders.
Tumblr ~ Instagram ~ Pinterest ~ Tout ![The One Thing Most Social Media Marketers Forget [Plus Infographic] | Jeffbullas's Blog | Business Socialization | Scoop.it](http://img.scoop.it/CfCa-LgImGsXBvlf9jaupjl72eJkfbmt4t8yenImKBVaiQDB_Rd1H6kmuBWtceBJ)
Amongst all the social media glitter there is a one little marketing tool that should not be forgotten, in fact it should be embraced and integrated into the new social web. The Humble Email
Good tips and points on why you should integrate your email marketing strategy with social media.... 
The article is a good reminder of 10 basic points/ mistakes you should avoid regarding your business planning activity and plan. He wrote the article some time ago and recently updated it. He is right, all the points still apply today. Given the time of the year, this provides a good checklist as you review your business plan. |
Scoop.it Scoopers! Are you interested in a Fan Group or G+ Circle?
I have had an excellent response to my post. As a result, I am thinking of putting a G+circle and/or Fan Group together. Any interest? Just respond to this post to let me know... Cheers 
It seems to me that social media enthusiasts either sit in the Google Plus camp or the Facebook camp. There is this great divide. I am thinking – why do I have to choose? I am pretty clear how I interact with my Facebook network and although I am still figuring out the optimal use of Google Plus, the two sites provide different experiences. Furthermore, I think Google Plus is just one component of Google’s plan on the social arena. 
I have been in so many “global organizations” where they use the term global and what it really means is wherever the head office resides ( be it UK, US, Canada, Japan- wherever), the way the business will be conducted in other countries, will be the same as the head office country. So their interpretation of global is that we are doing business IN that country -not WITH that county. Wrong!... 
Without the advertising dollar of the multinational corporations with which they often compete, many of Toronto's local brewers have embraced social media as their chief marketing vehicle of choice. 
Since I wrote my piece on storytelling in this space, I realize I was far from being original when choosing the title. Many have agreed content is king however I now realize that the crowning of the queen is a coveted spot with many claiming the position! From my research, many of these bloggers make really good points and should be considered when thinking about blogging and content marketing. 
I have gone to enough conferences over the past 6 months to pull the alarm. Consider it pulled. Why? I have gone to a number of social media conferences dedicated to functions or departments and I have found that each function had a different perspective on the fit of social media in their organization ... Sam Fiorella of Sensei Marketing guides the audience at the Social Media Masters Conference in Atlanta on how to establish a Corporate Social Media Infrastructu...
Excellent presentation... worth the read! 
Today, with the exponential growth of social networks and blogs, it can be overwhelming searching for information on the internet. As a result, the act of filtering, selecting, reviewing and providing commentary with a perspective on an article, or collection of articles, have become increasingly important. This is known as social media curation
Be sure to also see Robin Good's valuable feedback providing additional clarification regarding the list. Twitter has acquired Summify, an app that scours the San Francisco microblogging site and users other social networks to identify the stories their friends are sharing the most. 
A new interactive media company says it's ready to break new ground with its patented technology platform that connects social networks, TV audiences and content providers.
iPowow Canada plans to bridge what it calls "a huge gap in the interactivity between television broadcasters and viewers" with In the Moment, a patented technology for online, mobile and on-screen connectivity in real-time.
The platform works on computers, tablets, iPhones, Android phones and mobile browsers and other second screen devices.
Producers at the American Music Awards used the interactive platform from iPowow to tally in real-time votes cast from smartphones, giving each star a Hot or Hotter ranking instantly. 
When traditional avenues were not open to them, he and his mother used the one’s that were familiar and readily available. He started on YouTube, built his fanbase of loyal subscribers with record numbers (currently at 2+ Billion views), created mass engagement using Twitter (currently at 14Million followers) and Facebook (currently at 37 Million likes)…. and continues to use these tools seamlessly, as if he was born with them. Hold on a minute, he was! Justin Bieber was born in 1994, a member of Generation Y/ Z similar to the young adults in my circle. His mother, Pattie Bieber, was born in 1976- late Generation X, early Generation Y member. They look at this media totally different to those of earlier generations. 
Innovation Excellence speaks to the following five areas that are driving business innovation...
1. QUANTIFIED SELF & M-HEALTH 2. GESTURAL INTERFACES & AUGMENTED REALITY 3. SoLoMo CONTENT + DATA EXCHANGE 4. SOCIAL TELEVISION 5. D.I.Y. & DIGITAL OBJECTIFICATION 
The future of business is pure chaos. Here’s how you can survive--and perhaps even thrive.
Good read. Inspiring... |
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 |  |
7 |
|
Next |
