Publications
THE WALL STREET JOURNAL
Vendetta of the week: Twitter ponzi schemes for building followers
Twitter friends and followers are more than statistics. They’re real relationships, real people. When we get so obsessed with the number that we’re willing to entrust the following process to a ponzi scheme, we’ve lost sight of the purpose of this — or any other — social network: to connect us, and to help us communicate.
Twitter quickstart: 10 ways to make time to Twitter
Whether you’re an ambivalent Twitter newbie or a chronic tweeter in the throes of a growing addiction, your tweeting is going to take time that you’re currently using for something else. Here are my suggestions for activities you can pare back on — or give up entirely — to make room for tweeting.
Twitter quickstart: Effective twittering in 5 minutes a week
If you’re new to Twitter, you want to quickly eliminate the five sure signs you’re a Twitter newbie. Here are some quick ways you can follow people, attract followers, and keep your feed regularly updated — all in less than five minutes a week.
Twitter quickstart: Your first 21 tweets
If you need to stake a claim to your Twitter identity, but you don’t know what to tweet about, here’s an easy way to get your Tweeting underway. You don’t need to look like the world’s most longstanding Twitterer (after all, Oprah just started tweeting last week!), but an empty Twitter feed is just, well, a little forlorn.So I’ve taken the liberty of writing your first 21 tweets for you.
Social media strategy and tech tips, now available through Firefox search
Grab the Social Signal Firefox search tool and get access to all of our great social media resources from your browser’s search bar.
3 great options for Twitter and delicious integration
Tweeting web links is one of the simplest and most effective ways to offer regular, useful info of value to your followers. While you’re tweeting those links, you can also bookmark them in delicious.
Using social media to drive business innovation: insights from Guy Kawasaki and Target’s Michael Axelin
Hearing Guy Kawasaki on the Art of Innovation reminded me of a blog post I wrote last year after attending a talk by Michael Axelin, V.P. of Softlines Design and Product Development at Target (and fellow Oberlin alum). Both talks helped me refine my own thinking on how social media can support business innovation — a key benefit of social media that is neglected in favor of a pure focus on marketing.
3 steps to jumpstart your corporate Twitter account by moving friends and followers from other accounts
If you’re using multiple Twitter accounts, you don’t have to start each one from scratch.
14 tips for Twitter contests that build followers and brand visibility
Inspired by a successful Twitter contest, we ran on our — and created this set of tips on what it takes to run an effective contest.
3 tips to make better use of the Firefox browser
It turns out that a great source of insight on how to make effective use of Firefox is….Firefox.
The Harvard Business Review
Vendetta of the week: Twitter ponzi schemes for building followers
Twitter friends and followers are more than statistics. They’re real relationships, real people. When we get so obsessed with the number that we’re willing to entrust the following process to a ponzi scheme, we’ve lost sight of the purpose of this — or any other — social network: to connect us, and to help us communicate.
Twitter quickstart: 10 ways to make time to Twitter
Whether you’re an ambivalent Twitter newbie or a chronic tweeter in the throes of a growing addiction, your tweeting is going to take time that you’re currently using for something else. Here are my suggestions for activities you can pare back on — or give up entirely — to make room for tweeting.
Twitter quickstart: Effective twittering in 5 minutes a week
If you’re new to Twitter, you want to quickly eliminate the five sure signs you’re a Twitter newbie. Here are some quick ways you can follow people, attract followers, and keep your feed regularly updated — all in less than five minutes a week.
Twitter quickstart: Your first 21 tweets
If you need to stake a claim to your Twitter identity, but you don’t know what to tweet about, here’s an easy way to get your Tweeting underway. You don’t need to look like the world’s most longstanding Twitterer (after all, Oprah just started tweeting last week!), but an empty Twitter feed is just, well, a little forlorn.So I’ve taken the liberty of writing your first 21 tweets for you.
Social media strategy and tech tips, now available through Firefox search
Grab the Social Signal Firefox search tool and get access to all of our great social media resources from your browser’s search bar.
3 great options for Twitter and delicious integration
Tweeting web links is one of the simplest and most effective ways to offer regular, useful info of value to your followers. While you’re tweeting those links, you can also bookmark them in delicious.
Using social media to drive business innovation: insights from Guy Kawasaki and Target’s Michael Axelin
Hearing Guy Kawasaki on the Art of Innovation reminded me of a blog post I wrote last year after attending a talk by Michael Axelin, V.P. of Softlines Design and Product Development at Target (and fellow Oberlin alum). Both talks helped me refine my own thinking on how social media can support business innovation — a key benefit of social media that is neglected in favor of a pure focus on marketing.
3 steps to jumpstart your corporate Twitter account by moving friends and followers from other accounts
If you’re using multiple Twitter accounts, you don’t have to start each one from scratch.
14 tips for Twitter contests that build followers and brand visibility
Inspired by a successful Twitter contest, we ran on our — and created this set of tips on what it takes to run an effective contest.
3 tips to make better use of the Firefox browser
It turns out that a great source of insight on how to make effective use of Firefox is….Firefox.
OneZero
The upside to teen life online
Frankasaurus has a great blog post about her experiences growing up online, comparing the impact of chat rooms on a socially awkward teenagers with the experience of using social media today. As she writes about her early years in online chat: It wasn’t long before I...
For Oprah.com: Gifts for the geeky dad (even after Father’s Day)
Do you have a tech-loving Dad in your life? This post for Oprah.com offers great gift ideas to show him that he’s your favorite geek.
How to stop waiting by the inbox
I recently sent one of those e-mails that leaves you feeling like a shmuck. Not because of anything I wrote, but because I knew I would be obsessively checking my inbox every five minutes until I got a response. There are all kinds of reasons you might find yourself...
A balanced look at the mental impact of social media
"The Internet is distracting and isolating and diminishes our capacity for focused work." "The Internet is transformative and connecting and is making us steadily smarter." The conversation about the Internet's mental and social impact often feels like a debate...
Discovering family through a social media crisis
My latest blog post for Harvard Business Review tackles the challenge of surviving a social media emergency. It was inspired by what turned out to be a minor emergency: the earthquake that rattled most of central Canada yesterday. As it happened, I was in Ottawa at...
Patrolling the boundaries in social networking
Rob Jewitt, a lecturer in Media Studies at the University of Sunderland, writes about the university's recently introduced social networking site for students. Embedded in his description of the site's features are some interesting reflections on the kinds of...
What online music fans learn about online community
Anastasia Goodstein says this about how social networks have changed the relationship among music fans and between fans and artists: While the future of MySpace may be questionable, I have to credit the service with transforming the relationship between artists and...
A techsperiment that puts family tech use in a new light
Last week we conducted a techsperiment on eliminating gadgets from our family time: we swore off using iPhones, iPads and computers from the time we got home (5 or 6) until the time the kids were asleep (8 or 9). We did pretty well during the week, and discovered that...
JSTOR DAILY
The upside to teen life online
Frankasaurus has a great blog post about her experiences growing up online, comparing the impact of chat rooms on a socially awkward teenagers with the experience of using social media today. As she writes about her early years in online chat: It wasn’t long before I...
For Oprah.com: Gifts for the geeky dad (even after Father’s Day)
Do you have a tech-loving Dad in your life? This post for Oprah.com offers great gift ideas to show him that he’s your favorite geek.
How to stop waiting by the inbox
I recently sent one of those e-mails that leaves you feeling like a shmuck. Not because of anything I wrote, but because I knew I would be obsessively checking my inbox every five minutes until I got a response. There are all kinds of reasons you might find yourself...
A balanced look at the mental impact of social media
"The Internet is distracting and isolating and diminishes our capacity for focused work." "The Internet is transformative and connecting and is making us steadily smarter." The conversation about the Internet's mental and social impact often feels like a debate...
Discovering family through a social media crisis
My latest blog post for Harvard Business Review tackles the challenge of surviving a social media emergency. It was inspired by what turned out to be a minor emergency: the earthquake that rattled most of central Canada yesterday. As it happened, I was in Ottawa at...
Patrolling the boundaries in social networking
Rob Jewitt, a lecturer in Media Studies at the University of Sunderland, writes about the university's recently introduced social networking site for students. Embedded in his description of the site's features are some interesting reflections on the kinds of...
What online music fans learn about online community
Anastasia Goodstein says this about how social networks have changed the relationship among music fans and between fans and artists: While the future of MySpace may be questionable, I have to credit the service with transforming the relationship between artists and...
A techsperiment that puts family tech use in a new light
Last week we conducted a techsperiment on eliminating gadgets from our family time: we swore off using iPhones, iPads and computers from the time we got home (5 or 6) until the time the kids were asleep (8 or 9). We did pretty well during the week, and discovered that...
THE VERGE
Social Media Fail, Airline Style
The capacity to operate a 747 is incompatible with social media smarts. That’s the conclusion one might draw from the…
5 ways to maximize computer use — and happiness
Q: How many computers does it take to enjoy a relaxing evening at home? A: 7. Five to use simultaneously, a sixth to blog about how you're doing that, and a seventh to keep your spouse entertained while you do. Yeah, I know, it reads like a formulaic joke. But that...
Do ebooks help or hurt children’s literacy?
Print books may be under siege from the rise of e-books, but they have a tenacious hold on a particular group: children and toddlers. Their parents are insisting this next generation of readers spend their early years with old-fashioned books. This is the case even...
