My Four Favorite (And Free) Twitter Tools

Twitter Tools Photo
Photo Credit: George Adams (http://500px.com/gpadams)

I’ve been using Twitter since 2008, back when no one was quite sure what type of information to share in their tweets (“I am now using the restroom”). Twitter quickly became a necessity to me as I began using the social media platform to market a website (remember Hiptics?) and engage thousands of readers who followed my website’s Twitter account.

Over the years I have managed the social media presence for a handful of different brands. It shouldn’t come as any surprise that I’ve played around with my fair share of Twitter tools. This post will share my opinion on the best free Twitter tools available for you and me to use. These tools are listed in no particular order.
Continue reading →

No Thanks, Netflix

Netflix Facebook Share Option

I just want to watch Netflix in the privacy of my own home life.

It seems like every time I log into my Netflix account, I get asked to share what I am watching with my friends on Facebook. It’s been about three months since Netflix announced their Facebook social sharing feature, but it still seems just as unappealing as it did when I first saw the “Yes, share” button pictured above.

My friends aren’t jumping at the chance to share their activity on Netflix either. We’re sharing enough already.

I think it’s weird. What’s the point? – My friend Frank’s immediate response when I asked about Netflix’s social feature

Final thought: It just hit me that Netflix is my safe place where I go to escape the social web. I want it to stay that way. That’s why I said no thanks, Netflix.

Your Klout Score Is Meaningless

I have a Klout account, but I accept the fact that my Klout score is meaningless. You should too. I’ll justify my claim below. The main point, though, is that taking your your Klout score seriously is a waste of time.

Apparently I am not the first person to feel that a Klout score is meaningless. Than you Google Instant for validating my feelings.

Google Instant Search says Klout is bullshit.

Before I go any further, you should know that I like the concept of Klout. It’s a really smart idea. I think Klout is a smart, memorable name. I think Klout has a good looking logo. But the score Klout generates to measure your ‘influence’ means nothing.

Klout: Give A Lot, Get A Fish Sandwich

There was about a three week window of time that I decided to take Klout seriously. I downloaded the app on my iPhone and began caring about raising my Klout score. The key to making your Klout score go up, I found, was activity. As you’ll see, if you care about your score, Klout can easily take over your life.

To keep his score up, Lee tweets up to 45 times a day—an average of one every 32 minutes. [...] Lee once took a vacation during which he had no access to the Internet. This made him uncomfortable. “I was worried that brands couldn’t get in touch with me. It’s easy for them to forget about you. And I knew my Klout score would go down if I stopped tweeting for too long.” (Wired)

At the height of my Klout usage, my score was 62. No big deal. I came to the conclusion Klout was a waste of my time when I received my first ‘Klout’ perk. It was for a McDonalds fish sandwich. I wasn’t the only one disappointed / grossed-out.

The Klout Score Doesn’t Accurately Measure Influence

The real issue with Klout is that the score does not truly indicate one’s influence online.

I began using the social analytics tool CrowdBooster a while back, and like most social media tools, I forget about them. I made an point one day to check my CrowdBooster, and when I did, I saw something that proves that the Klout score is not an accurate representation of influence.

The influential Twitter user they wanted to me follow is proudly a member of Team Follow Back. If you’re familiar with Twitter then you know people that represent #TeamFollowBack is one of the corniest things someone can do on Twitter. These folks may aquire thousands of followers, but they have little influence.

(Remember, people are following them only so that they get followed back and mutually pad eachothers follower counts to create the impression of popularity.  in their profiles and tweets when they are desperate for followers. It’s the equivalent of saying, “hey guys, follow me and I’ll follow you back so follow me, okay?!…you guys are gonna follow me right?!”)

A user with a high klout score

I have always said that having 5 followers on Twitter who want to follow you is better than having 5,000 followers who are following you for other reasons — let’s say because of #TeamFollowBack.

I didn’t write this blog post to be controversial or insult the folks over at Klout. As I mentioned, I think there’s a lot of ‘good’ in Klout, but my experiences have shown me that it needs some tweaking before I can take their claim of being the ‘standard of influence online’ seriously.

Maybe I’ll dedicate a future post to writing some ideas on how Klout could improve?

Marketing Inspiration From The Malbon Brothers

Mike Malbon, Chris Franco, and Jason Newport in front of Frank's Chop Shop

This afternoon I headed over to Frank’s Chop Shop with Jason Newport to bounce ideas around with owner Mike Malbon. Jason predicted the trip would inspire me, and he was dead right.

Mike and his brother Stephen Malbon come from a family of Virginia hog farmers. Instead of going into the family business, the Malbon brothers moved to New York City and eventually started a marketing firm specializing in helping big brands connect with the youth through music, sports, and fashion.

The Malbon brothers also create their own entities and do for them what they have done for their big name clients. Frank’s Chop Shop is your favorite rapper’s favorite rapper’s place to get a cut in NYC. There’s also Frank 151, a pocket-sized, heavily visual publication that highlights up-and-coming artists among other things.

There’s unlimited ways to connect with people, but most marketers do the same old thing. Not the Malbon brothers. They are proof that when you commit to your creative marketing ideas, you can get results. For me, the trip was a reminder of the potency creative offline marketing can have for a brand, especially when combined with a sound digital marketing strategy.

Check out my Vine from Frank’s Chop Shop…

Marketing In 2013 Is About Creating Experiences

There has never been a more exciting time to be in marketing.

Whether you’re a marketing professional or the brand that relies on marketers to get the word out about your product, 2013 is the year to step your game up and start creating experiences. We have consumers who are willing to be engaged, and unlimited ways we can use the web, social, and mobile to engage them. Unfortunately most marketing professionals are blowing it.

Instead of real desire to engage their audience and make a lasting impression, the majority of modern marketers are more focused on the volume of impressions. They are stuck in the cycle of creating slightly-above-average content, promoting it, and optimizing for maximum ROI.

How many more “7 Killer SEO Tips Every Blogger Ought To Know” posts does the Internet really need? How many more ‘social media secrets’ are there left to reveal?

When I was a little kid I told my mom and dad that I wanted to be an inventor when I grew up. To succeed in the world of marketing in the 21st century, you need to embrace your inner inventor. After all, marketing in the 2013 means having the opportunity to do things that have never been done. That’s not fluff speak, it’s the truth. It should make you excited.

Even more exciting than the new technology is the new kind of consumer that we have the privilege to address. As Fjord illustrates, this is the era of consumer self-realization and this new kind of consumer — which includes you and I — does not want to be sold to, but rather engaged. As marketers we will win when we provide consumers with an experience, not ad-copy. Think about making a memory before making a sale.

To the content creators and marketers: We have this endless digital landscape that allows us to publish and promote anything our minds can imagine. It is being filled with soul-less content that gets impressions without making an impression. If we only harvest our most inspired work, we will get results, and that’s what marketing is all about, isn’t it?