Reputation Management

The restaurant netted national attention, about 50k+ followers on Facebook, and – I can’t confirm this – but I’m sure they’re dining room is now full. Their website is so busy that it’s crashed. And so goes the half-life of the social media meltdown. Far from the howls and screams of the social media pundits, you’ll find that the episode was nothing more than a fart in the wind.[read more]

A warning, from an ex-digital activist, that keeping a low profile, or no profile, is a tactical risk when it comes to reputation management in the 21st century.[read more]

Good marketers know you have to stand for something. You can’t be all things to all people and still expect to build an iconic brand. Targeting is what sets you apart from the rest – a fact that holds especially true when it comes to fashion. And branding isn’t just about whom to attract; it’s also about whom to repel.[read more]

An update on the Amy's Bakery Company social media fiasco. They've hired Justin Rose PR and are planning to carryout a grand reopening. I can't help but feel that a huge amount of the people following this story are purely people wanting to watch the carnage unfold. And unfold it has! They will get next to zero value from that increased audience.[read more]

Facebook lists / shutterstock

Have you ever experienced that awkward moment when you receive a Facebook friend request from a client? If you choose to accept client friend requests, it is important to curate and organize the content to which your clients will have access. Facebook Lists allow users to achieve just that![read more]

What May 11, 2013 brings to the political fate of Pakistan will be determined in some hours of having written this article. Whether that is a "Tsunami of Change" or a "Perception of Stagnation" with the same old leaders reclaiming the helm, we can be sure of the unprecedented role that social media has played in the lives of Pakistanis.[read more]

Ben Smidt/Marquette University

"I just want brands to focus on sentiment that matters and not on what is facile and easy to measure. Ten thousand 'likes' for a puppy picture is not worth a dozen customers getting their real problems resolved because brands listened and acted."[read more]

Klout, like other disruptive companies, has been trying to figure out the best way to provide value to the people who use it. Klout has definitely succeeded in becoming a noteworthy metric to help identify influencers. And soon, there's going to be a whole new level added to the Klout world... Klout is becoming a social network themselves. Some may call it a pivot, others may call it growth, but any way you look at it this is a big step for the company. Essentially the scorekeeper is now playing the game.[read more]

LinkedIn (Image Source)

Every professional should be using LinkedIn, and that goes for writers too. LinkedIn goes beyond just meeting new people, and participating in “getting to know you” conversations and lead generating “dance cards.” Follow these simple steps to create and use an All-Star author’s LinkedIn profile.[read more]

Posting incriminating evidence tends to be a regular habit of a lot of social media users. It happens enough for us to shake our heads in disbelief and wonder why. It’s my contention Gatsby was one such person who lacked the will or awareness to exercise due discretion.[read more]

Inbound and outbound marketing each have particular merits and should be used in concert to optimize your marketing ROI. Many major brands, including Coca-Cola, Pepsi, Disney, Hyundai and Samsung, employ what I like to call boundless marketing in order to win big. Do not confine yourself or your company to inbound or outbound marketing exclusively. Instead, be agile and strategic about your marketing strategy.[read more]

Many companies are using Twitter for posting jobs as part of their employer branding strategy which makes perfect sense. However, Employer Branding is about how you look to the outside world. Take look at the twitter accounts and you will see many lack a Header (cover) picture. What does that say about your company?[read more]

By acknowledging and openly discussing the concerns of disgruntled customers on social media, small and midsize businesses may actually boost their reputations –and their bottom lines.[read more]

Having troll trouble online? Trolls have been with us from the day that computers were linked together and that online anonmity was made possible. As more and more people adopt social networks, encounters with these seedy denizens of the web rise in frequency, tainting many a person's first forays into online spaces. Here is a field-tested technique for dissuading trolls in forums and social networks.[read more]

The implementation of the hashtag, which originated on IRC, is a big reason behind the popularity of Twitter. It is a useful way of both searching the site and tagging posts. Sometimes, they are even used in ways that make you fear for the future of humanity. Here are six hashtags you won't believe are real.[read more]

Too many business owners throw their hands up and give up on reviews. It’s personal and it’s painful to read how someone misinterpreted and mis-characterized your service, product, or business. But, the absolutely dead wrong response is to walk away.[read more]

Once you’ve decided to be transparent, honest, authentic, and human in your online conversations, the content, brand ambassadors, influencer marketing, customer reviews, and a solid product or service will help you cross the marathon finish line. Warren Buffet famously said, “If you lose money for the firm, I will be understanding. If you lose reputation, I will be ruthless.”[read more]

The one constant that we can mold, influence, and maintain in a world of vocational change, is our own personal brand. And Twitter has gradually emerged as the brand paver's trowel of choice.[read more]

Social media software questions (Photo: Flickr's Diamond Farrah)

Choosing social media management software for your agency or company is a difficult task. Ask lots of questions, and don't feel bad about it. Here are nine things to think about before you get on the phone with salespeople and schedule demos.[read more]

Monitoring public information on the internet is not a violation of privacy. Much ado has been made about colleges that follow their athletes on social media. Time for sanity in the discussion. As of this writing, there are 35 states considering some form of digital privacy bills making it illegal to ask for social media passwords and usernames for purposes of gaining private information.[read more]