Podcast Awards – Get out the Vote
Head to podcastawards.com and vote for your favorite podcasts. Recognize the people and podcasts that bring value to the medium.
Podcasting is an important part of social networking. It is a platform for sharing views and opinions and serves as a starting point for a conversation.
The podcastawards.com ballot is also a great way to find new resources. Browse the various categories to find quality podcasts to add to your iTunes catalog.
by: Stewart Savage, Technology Alchemist, Abaton Consulting
New Facebook Profile Coming Soon
The roll-out of the new Facebook profile has started. The new profile format is available now and will be rolled-out to all users over time. People who want activate their new profile immediate can go to can go to http://www.facebook.com/about/profile to learn more and upgrade their profile immediately. Keep in mind, once you switch to the new profile, there is no going back.
What’s New?
A snap-shot of your personal info is located along the top of the profile page along with a photo gallery comprised of photos from you and your friends. This new feature adds a new dimension to the profile. It is clean and tight. The photos are a nice touch, especially if someone is trying to determine if want to “friend” you.
The right-hand column is larger providing more space for advertisements to be in a landscape format rather than a portrait landscape. The additional space allows for more ads to be visible per page giving Facebook greater opportunity to monetize the Facebook user profile.
Included at the top of the right-hand column is Friends’ Favorite Places. This section shows locations where your friends have checked-in. The addition of this component will increase the visibility of the Facebook location-based services and promote check-ins through Facebook Places.
Profile Tabs have been moved to immediately below the profile picture. Along with the move, the ability to directly control the applications has been removed. It is important to note, there appears to be no direct way of modifying the components of this new profile section.
What’s Missing ?
There is no longer a listing of pages that you “Like.” The listing was previously found at the bottom of the left-hand column on your profile page. After searching and searching, I have been unable to find a substitute method for viewing “liked” pages. The absence of this feature will make it difficult to review and organize pages that you have liked.
Summary
The addition of Friend’s Favorite Places shows the direction in which Facebook is headed and that geo-social will be a winner in the future.
The transforming of the Tabs along the top of the page to buttons on the side of the page cleans up the interface and gives it a more polished look and reduces control of content; a move that could push business pages disguised as personal profiles towards adopting traditional Facebook Pages.
Like it or not, your Profile page will soon be updated to the new format. Be ahead of the curve and make the switch. Visit http://www.facebook.com/about/profile to learn more.
by: Stewart Savage, Technology Alchemist, Abaton Consulting
Consistent Customer Service
The difference between good customer service and poor customer service is like night and day. A positive customer service experience energizes you and makes you proud that you selected a service provider that understands your needs and does their best to ensure that those needs are met. A negative experience drains your soul and causes you to bemoan your vendor of choice.
Over the past few days, I have been attempting to resolve an issue with my blog hosting service. During the support process, I had the good fortune of experiencing both ends of the customer service spectrum. I have enjoyed top-notch “I will do my best to solve your problem” service to “Yeah, I know what your problem is. Let me send you an email that has the instructions so you can fix it yourself.”
What makes this unusual (or not) is that this range of customer service interactions came from the exact same service provider for the exact same issue. Each time I called customer service to get assistance with my specific hosting issue, my experience was different. And it all boiled down to the same variable in the equation: the person at the other end of the phone.
From a consumer’s perspective, having a consistent and reliable customer service experience is beneficial. When a customer knows what to expect, the stress of the situation is alleviated. Emotions and effort are focused on the resolving the problem rather than inconsistency customer service.
Take time to standardize the customer experience. Train your staff on supporting the services you offer and provide them with a common set of tools. Give your support staff the opportunity to provide a consistent experience. Once the support structure is standardized, test it to see if there is consistency across the support team. A little extra effort will have your customers will thanking you in the long-run.
Remember, it is not always about “wowing” your customer. Many times it is about getting the problem resolved so we can get back to work. Our time is precious and there is no need to call customer support three, four, or five times to be connected with a support tech that has the knowledge and wherewithal to accurately diagnose a problem and implement a solution.
by: Stewart Savage, Technology Alchemist, Abaton Consulting
Facebook can get you fired!
When it comes to Facebook, always be careful of what you post. Your online activities can and will make it back to the wrong person. Take for instance, Dawnmarie Souza, of American Medical Response (AMR). As AMR had a social media policy that addressed such issues, Ms. Souza was released from employment when her post(s) came to the attention of her employer.
Ms. Souza's case is still be pending and it is quite possible that she will be reinstated. However, when it comes time to find a new job, she may find that many doors are now closed.
Posting your thoughts on Facebook may be cathartic, but those thoughts can jeopardize your work, personal, and social lives. Perhaps it is best to share your thoughts with the journal you keep next to your bed.
by: Stewart Savage, Technology Alchemist, Abaton Consulting
Time (again) to look at Facebook
The recent announcement by Mark Zuckerberg regarding the upcoming changes to the Facebook messaging system should make business owners re-evaluate their participation in this growing social network. The addition of an integrated messaging system within the confines of the Facebook network will change the way we communicate and how business owners are able to connect with the growing number of Facebook users.
The new Facebook messaging system will provide two things. First, it will allow members of Facebook to obtain a personalized @facebook.com email address for communication with people outside the confines of Facebook. Second, it will integrate Facebook email, Facebook messages, and mobile messages into a single threaded interface.
The personalized email address and the integration of mail, messaging, and mobile into a single communications environment will fundamentally change the way people participate on the Internet. With everything you need in one location, the need to leave Facebook for news, information, and communication is severely reduced. This means that traditional methods of connecting with customer may no longer work.
What does this mean for the business owner?
If you have dismissed Facebook in the past, it is time to take another look at Facebook (as well as other web 2.0 technologies) and re-evaluate your business plan, communications plan, and marketing plan. You need to determine how Facebook should be used as part of your overall business strategy.
The success of your business depends on your ability to adapt to changes in your business environment as well as understanding how social media can be used to connect with customers. Facebook is changing the way people participate on the internet. You need to be aware of these changes and take steps to connect with your customers on their terms.
Additional information on the recent changes at Facebook.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/11/15/AR2010111503275.html
http://voices.washingtonpost.com/fasterforward/2010/11/facebook_launches_e-mail_servi.html
by: Stewart Savage, Technology Alchemist, Abaton Consulting
Perfect Your Yelp Listing
Geo-location services are an important part of social media. With people sharing their locations along with their opinions about your business, you must take an active role in monitoring and managing your business and brand.
Yelp is offering a free 30 minute webinar designed to perfect your business listing which ultimately affects your business brand. The webinar will focus on creating a business listing that makes it easier for your customers to find you, an overview of analytics, creating effective offers and announcements, and how photos can enhance your listing.
Sign-up for this webinar at https://www1.gotomeeting.com/register/561267545
by: Stewart Savage, Technology Alchemist, Abaton Consulting
Maintaining your Brand
Stewart Savage of Abaton Consulting is presenting tonight at the City of Davis computer lab, 6:30pm to 8:30pm. Topic - Monitoring your Brand and keeping an eye on the competition. Discussion and presentation will cover the various tools available to see what people are saying about you and your competition. Search, RSS, Twitter, and Facebook are just a few of the topics to be covered.
The City of Davis Computer Lab is located at 600 A Street, Davis, CA 95616 (between City Hall and the Senior Center).
This complimentary class is brought to you by the Davis Community Network.
by: Stewart Savage, Technology Alchemist, Abaton Consulting
Avoid Social Media Gaffes
Nora Carr provides great insight to strategies for keeping you and your staff out of trouble in social networks. Her 11 tips can be used as a starting place for you social media policies and procedures. Take a look at the eSchool News article at http://www.eschoolnews.com/2010/10/05/how-to-avoid-committing-social-media-gaffes/
by: Stewart Savage, Technology Alchemist, Abaton Consulting
IPv6 insights from Tech Republic
As the last address blocks for IPv4 are allocated, the transition to IPv6 is looming on the horizon. IT managers now need to understand the IPv6 standard and start moving towards adoption.
To make the transition easier, Tech Republic offers 10 tips for understanding IPv6. http://blogs.techrepublic.com.com/10things/?p=1893&tag=nl.e101
by: Stewart Savage, Technology Alchemist, Abaton Consulting
SARTA to host “Green” conference
On October 26, 2010, the Sacramento Area Regional Technology Alliance (SARTA) will be hosting the Sacramento CleanStart Showcase. The CleanStart Showcase is part of the CleanStart initiative that brings together top performers in green technology and green business in an effort to develop and accelerate the clean energy technology ventures within the Greater Sacramento Region. The Showcase highlights the businesses that focus on green technologies. The showcase will be held at the California State University Sacramento, University Union.
Green technology is an important part of your technology plan and your overall business plan. You need to take a serious look at green technologies and discover ways to effectively implement eco-friendly initiatives.
For more information visit the SARTA CleanStart website at http://www.cleanstart.org.
by: Stewart Savage, Technology Alchemist, Abaton Consulting
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