Friend Connect for Blogs?
May 15, 2008 Technology, blogging
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You might have read about Google’s new Friend Connect service. There’s definitely been no shortage of news coverage about it.
I haven’t seen that much of it so far, other than the examples on the web site. I’m looking forward to watching the campfire videos over the next few days. But I have to say, I am very interested and intrigued by the service. So, I’ve signed up for the preview release.
Lots of bloggers, myself included, want our blogs to be about community. We want our blogs to be not just a place where we can be heard, but a place where people can connect, and have their say as well. We want it to be a conversation, a community.
As such, I’m sure there’s got to be a use for a service such as Friend Connect. In trying to build a community, an easy, one-click way to add social features has got to be useful.
That said, I don’t have any concrete ideas yet. I’ll definitely be thinking about it, especially as more demos and videos come out. But I thought I’d throw it out to you guys as well. Lots of you are smarter than I am.
So, what do you guys think of Friend Connect? Useful? Any ideas already on how you’re going to use it?
[?]Tags: blog, community, Conversation, Friend connect, google, social, web 2.0
The offline world still exists
May 12, 2008 Marketing
Stowe Boyd posted his story about his experience with Clear, and “bet[s] that Clear is going to do everything wrong“.
More than the customer service aspect of it, one thing that really struck me is this. With all the focus on online tools and Web 2.0 and all, it’s really easy to forget the basics - the offline things. Basic things like the sign on a door.
There’s so much talk about how companies should join the online conversation, create more engagement online, make their online tools more personal, etc. It’s easy to forget that for most companies, a large part of the customer experience is still the offline aspect.
It’s a simple thing. But one that we need to remember. As companies, or as individuals building our personal brands, even. We need to remember that there’s still an offline component. It’s easy to forget, especially when we make changes, because online is so much easier to change. It’s easier to change a website than to change the sign on a door. But they’re both just as important.
You’ve got to make sure that what you say and do offline matches what your behavior online. Not everyone’s going to check your website all the time.
Yes, the web allows you to spread your message further and establish your brand more. But your brand still exists offline. You’ve got to pay just as much attention to the offline experience.
There’s still an outside world that exists offline.
[?]Tags: branding, customer service, offline, web 2.0
Your Web 2.0 Story
Apr 28, 2008 Personal Development, Technology
I’ve been thinking about the intersection of the things I write about here. I blog about things from technology to sports to personal development. And I do think there is a central theme. Obviously I deviate from it sometimes. But in general, I’d like to think that I’m still holding true to my original intended message: an encouragement to realize your true potential and not settle for anything less.
The sports parts are related because, well, I think sports are a very good analogy to life. The mental aspects and decision making - the games are almost like a miniature replica of life.
The technology aspects come in because I believe that technology (especially in today’s Web 2.0 world) can be an amazing resource for that. It makes it a lot easier to realize your potential.
And so, on that note, I want to ask you to share your thoughts.
How has social media and Web 2.0 impacted your life? Has it helped make you a better person or improved you in any way?
I’d love to hear your story.
[?]Tags: Personal Development, share, social media, story, web 2.0
Feedback Loops
Apr 25, 2008 Analogies, Technology, blogging
Image via WikipediaWe’ve all heard the high pitched squeal that results from feedback from speakers. And I’m pretty sure most of you would agree that it’s annoying. It’s not something you want to hear.
Feedback occurs when a microphone picks up it’s own sound from the speaker. The sound gets trapped in a loop (microphone picks it up from the speaker, amplifies it and sends it to the speaker, where it gets sent back to the microphone, etc), which causes that annoying whine that we all know (and most hate).
The thing is, with the power of Web 2.0, it’s very easy to get trapped in our own ‘feedback loop’. The web allows you to amplify your voice. With blogs, podcasting, Twitter and all the other Web 2.0 tools, you can speak and be heard.
But social media is a conversation. It’s not a one way broadcast. Yes, the tools help to amplify what you have to say, but if you’re just trying to build yourself up, it’s not going to work. You’ll just get annoying.
Companies which blog and only plug their products aren’t going to get much value from social media. Companies which blog and listen to what their customers say back will.
Same for individuals. You’re more likely to gain from social media if you’re listening to what others say, and feeding off each other, inspiring each other. If you’re just amplifying yourself over and over, you won’t gain value, and you won’t be adding value either. You’ll just be making noise.
How do you keep yourself from getting trap in a ‘feedback loop’?
Tags: feedback, listening, social media, twitter, web 2.0
My Take on Fragmented Conversations
Apr 17, 2008 blogging
Okay, so I’m finally back after a week or so. And there’s been a lot going on in the blogosphere over that week, not least the conversation about comments. Lots of people have written and discussed about this. Two such people were Valeria Maltoni - who asked whether comments should be portable - and Robert Scoble - who said that the era of blogger’s control is over.
For me, the issue isn’t about control. The issue is about the conversations themselves. I would love to know what people are saying, and to be a part of the conversations - to interact with and answer my readers. And also, when different parts of conversations are happening on different places, the readers might not be able to get the whole picture/value of the conversation. If a really good conversation is happening on FriendFeed, the readers on the blog itself could miss out. And vice versa.
That’s the biggest issue for me about the fragmentation of comments. And I’m looking forward to see whether anyone manages to come up with a solution. I think the Feed with Comments plugin that I’m using here (as announced in the previous post) helps solve the second problem slightly - the comments being in the RSS feed themselves makes them available no matter where the feed is ported to.
What do you think?
Tags: blog, Commenting, Conversation, web 2.0
The Collaboration Trend
Mar 13, 2008 Technology
Yesterday, I wrote about how power is shifting. I just wanted to carry on that theme a bit.
I think in general, there’s a huge trend starting, a shift from one authority figure to a collaboration model. It’s happened with journalism and blogs, hollywood and youtube, etc. Now it’s happened in conferences. And scientists are saying that science is headed in that direction too.
Is it a good thing? Personally, I think it is. I like the trend toward collaboration. I like how the playing field is being leveled, and how a 17 year old like me can interact with the likes of Mitch Joel and Chris Brogan.
I think this trend empowers the average individual. We’re seeing a power shift towards the average user. The average person can now interact and contribute in ways that were never before possible. And it undoubtedly empowers groups to do more.
But as we all know, “with great power comes great responsibility”. I think it’s a great trend, but we have to be careful not to misuse the technology.
On a side note, do you think this power shift will happen in education? I, for one, would love to see that happen - a power shift towards students.
What do you think?
[?]Tags: collaboration, education, power, web 2.0
Power is Shifting
Mar 12, 2008 Technology
By now most of you probably have heard about the SXSW keynote interview with Mark Zuckerberg. If you haven’t, here’s some links from Techmeme. From what I’ve read (I wasn’t there or on Twitter at the time, so my apologies if I’m wrong), is that the crowd ‘revolted’ against Sarah Lacy, the interviewer, heckling her and asking her to let them ask the questions.
There’ve been a really wide range of views on this, some in support of Sarah Lacy, and many - such as this - criticizing her.
And apparently, there’s been another revolt in SXSW.
But I wasn’t at either of them, so I’m not going to comment on what happened, or what went wrong.
I think the significant question, which Jeremiah Owyang asked, is this - Is power shifting? And that’s what I want to write about. My answer? Yes, definitely.
The whole basis of Web 2.0 is user generated content. It’s about placing power in the hands of the user, so everyone can have their say - so no one person has complete control.
Is it any wonder, then that that culture has spread to conferences as well? It was bound to happen, if you ask me.
[?]Tags: mark zuckerberg, power, sarah lacy, sxsw, user generated content, web 2.0
