Dude Wants His Viral Video Award

Does The Newsletter Still Have A Place In Social Media? Introducing Aerocles 1.0

Long-term answer – no clue. Short-term answer, yes, for me, anyway. I’d like to welcome you all to Aerocles 1.0 – My very own “Tiny Letter“

1.0 being a bizarre regression from the likes of Twitter, Facebook, Linkedin, this blog, my writing for Ad Age, and other such endeavors. A newsletter, however tiny, seems like an unnecessary anachronism. Which is why I was so confused upon submitting it’s magical lure. I’m even more astounded that anyone even signed up to receive this thing, given my average daily tweet count that must be well over 100. So I guess, for those of you that have already subscribed, thank you for that, and for those that haven’t yet, please do. I hope I don’t disappoint, but I’m honestly not quite sure what direction this initiative will take.

I’m about halfway through Frank Rose‘s “The Art of Immersion,” in which the Wired contributing editor explores the history and evolution of what we now call the “Transmedia” narrative or experience. One of the examples he gives is the way in which Charles Dickens used the newsletter of his time as a way to communicate with his readership between editions of his serial stories, soliciting feedback which he usually ignored but occasionally impacted the direction of his work. (For the record, I was never a fan of Dickens – content suffers when you get paid by the word.)

That’s my plan, for now. I will be taking a hiatus from blogging here on The Legends of Aerocles, as there’s no point in duplicating my Ad Age efforts, but in doing so, I’ll be losing the valuable back-and-forth with my few, but oh so appreciated, readers (you) (hi mom). As such, while I contemplate shifting the nature of my blog (if you have any suggestions, I gladly welcome them), this newsletter will serve as my direct connection to you, so I can let you know what I’m working on and hopefully, you’ll give me some feedback. This means pimping out my writing for Ad Age and all the conferences I’m working on, but don’t think of it as shilling, think of it more as exclusive access to vital insider information I’ll also share links to articles that I think you’d enjoy. What? A Human Content Aggregator? Shocking, I know. But I’ll do my best to filter out all the crap and stuff you’ve probably already seen and keep it to 1 piece of recommended reading per “edition.”

I don’t quite consider myself a journalist in the traditional sense, but the modern industry blogger/trendhunter/writer/quasi-journalist, and in that role, I very much rely on you, my readers, to tell me what you want so I can pander to your every whim. Or at least take it into consideration.

For my first trick, I’m going to direct you all to check out our upcoming Media Evolved Conference which I’ve been working on for a while now and really hope you attend and enjoy.

For my next trick, I’ll let you in on a little secret – I’m working on a write-up exploring the future of eCommerce, looking at several possible routes online shopping can take – with my own unique POV that I know you’ve come to love.  Obviously, “social” shopping is one future iteration with significant potential, but it’s not the only one. Nor is Groupon (Damn I hate that name). So please, my first request to you, aside from general feedback on this whole “TinyLetter” concept, is to clue me in on your thoughts and predictions for eCommerce – innovative integrations, data-mining operations, partnerships, new platforms or sites…and all that jazz.

So with that, I bid you a temporary farewell. Trust me, when the “Legends of Aerocles” Rebrand, Refocus, and Redesign is complete – I’ll make sure you know, whether you care or not. You may still see occasional posts here, but until I figure out exactly what to do with my blog so that it augments or supplements my Ad Age writing, I’m going to focus most of my writing into Twitter, Ad Age, and now, Aerocles 1.0.

To everyone who has read and commented on this blog for the last 2+ years,  Thank you for at least pretending to give a crap
~David

The State of Youtube [Inforgraphic]

Courtesy of Encryped (sic) Memories

Hootsuite Releases New Content & Influence Filters, Officially The Best Twitter Client

I’ve always been a fan of Hootsuite. I’ve been touting them as the best Twitter client while everyone else was clamoring over seesmic and tweetdeck. Well folks, this is why:

Hootsuite upgraded to HTML 5 not too long ago, an impressive move on it’s own. Today, they astound their users yet again with another update, this time focusing on improving the quality of content through the institution of additional filter systems, along with a new Social CRM features.

The filter system is incredibly easy to use, and allows us to further refine the content that floods our streams every day. For power users and professional social media folk, like myself, following 5000 people is a daunting task. Tools like this allow users search within their pre-established columns and tabs, either by Klout Score (Influence) or by keyword.

This functionality has been lacking from twitter and 3^rd party clients. I’m shocked it took so long for someone to do this the right way, but I’m not in the least bit surprised it was Hootsuite.

Add to that the additional “Insights” that appear in a new tab within the pop-up profile boxes, integrations with “Zendesk for customer service, and you’ve got the makings of a twitter app/client to destroy all others as the premier package for personal and professional use.

I’m not sure how many of you took the survey (using User Voice, an awesome crowdsourcing tool if you haven’t seen it). I did, and I’m glad to see that a lot of the user feedback and ideas are incorporated into this evolving product. H00t H00t.

This also just happens to be a brilliant way for Hootsuite to build buzz just prior to the imminent Paid Premium Service launch.

Here are the basics, excerpted from the press release.

Filter by Influence

Drill down into your network by filtering columns by influence score. Sorting by Klout’s algorithmically-produced score allows you to learn which followers and contacts enjoy the widest reach. Ideal for quickly identifying campaign candidates or response priority.

Filter by Keyword

Too many messages to sort through? No problem. Filter your columns on-the-fly by keyword. Type in your desired word to remove the extraneous updates and focus on what’s on your mind. Ideal for tracking topics and prospecting for clients.

Follower Insights

Get to know your network with the knowledge behind the “Insights” tab . Learn where your contacts Hang-out online including publicly available links to social profiles, a collection of images, even occupations and title — all in one view

Hoot to Zendesk Support

Where does social networking end and tech support begin? It doesn’t matter since Twitter updates can now become track-able tickets directly in the popular help desk app, Zendesk . This integration helps streamline your customer service and ensure quality responses.

Organization View

Since HootSuite released Team Collaboration tools, many users have added extensive networks. Now managing your colleagues is easier thanks to a new view which shows your contacts on each network, along with a simple way to add more team members.

To get started, click the Owl, choose Settings, then My Organizations to tune-up your teams.

From enterprises to start-ups, HootSuite is pleased to help businesses and organizations reach out to spread messages, monitor conversations and track results.

As you may know, we’re excited about releasing paid plans in the coming weeks. Keep in mind, HootSuite will remain free for an estimated 95% of users based on current usage patterns. Meanwhile, premium users will enjoy access to extra features, high limits and prioritized support.

We’ll release details in the coming weeks but to preview, the paid plans will offer:

* Unlimited social networks
* Unlimited RSS feeds
* Team members on social networks
* Advanced analytics & reports
* Expedited support

Digital & Social News: 6/11/10 – Internet Week Edition

AKA The “I don’t care about the World Cup” Edition

Stay Tuned For My In Depth Coverage/Review of Everything I Learned at the Ad Age Creativity & Technology (CaT) Conference, by far one of the best and most valuable and interesting events I’ve ever had the privilege to attend. I rank it up there with TED and SXSW. Oh, and I’ll be looking over this new Klout “Facebird” thing and will have my thoughts for you next week. Klout is definitely going to be huge. HUGE!

Klout to Launch Facebird for Facebook

Heineken Lets Beer Drinkers Customize Their Bottles

Stickybits Rolls Out “Official” Branded Bits, Signs Up Pepsi As First Advertiser

Twitter Acquires Smallthought Systems to Integrate Analytics Tools

Reaching Teen Influencers with Social Messages

Are Typosquatters Hijacking Your Brand?

More Adults than Teens Consume Mobile Video

Mind Over Mass Media

Hispanic Moms’ Online Shopping Habits

Mobile Apps to Hit $32 Billion in Five Years

Google Launches Video Ad for TV Effort

Google Mobile Trivia Feature Activited: But, Keep Your Questions Short if You Use Speech-to-Text

Experts Predict We’ll Be Working in the Cloud by 2020 [STUDY]

City of New York Blankets Times Square with Giant QR Codes

Fashion Mag Turns to Facebook to Find New Stylists

Why Japan Matters: iPad Mania, Cloud Computing, And Social Intelligence

Online Video Viewing Shifts to Long Form Content

How Consumers Interact with Brands on Social Media

Trada brings crowdsourcing to online advertising.

Awareness of Location Based Social Networks Currently 7% Of Americans 12+

Create Video Narratives Out Of Google Search Queries

Remember Google’s ‘groundbreaking’ Super Bowl Ad – “How To Impress A French Girl” [AKA Parisian Love] as seen via search engine magic? Well, now you can create your own. Check out the demo and my own crude attempt, titled “My Day In Google Searches.”

What do you think? Gimmick? Utility? Fad? Not Even?

May Madness – Top Social, Interweb, & Tech Posts [Links]

Google, come clean on Wi-Fi spying

Twitter to Eliminate Third-Party Ads in User Timelines

Twitter, Customer Service, and Good Brand Management

The Psychology of Web Design

Epicenter Mind Our Tech Business: Inside Foursquare: Checking In Before the Party Started (Part I)

Klout Launches Site Wide Refresh In Bid To Become The Arbiter Of Influence

Shortbord Launches Public Beta: Employs “Enduring Exposure” To Unlock Mystery of Real Time Social Endorsements

Victoria’s Secret Shares the Facebook Like Button a Whole New Way

Twitter To Prohibit Any Third Party To Advertise In-Stream

Papa John’s Recruits Facebook Fans to Create Next Pizza

Simplify Foursquare Checkins with Barcode Scanning Android App

TweetUp Launches “AdSense For Twitter” Product At #TCDisrupt

Zynga And 7-Eleven Strike Branding Deal, 10% Of The U.S. Now Playing FarmVille

Vivaki Predicts $100M Market for Choose-Your-Own-Ad Format

Facebook Shopping Mall Snares a $1.5 Million Investment

Millennial Media: Android Ad Impressions Rise 77 Percent In April, iPhone Sees 8 Percent Drop

Facebook Users’ Phone Numbers Exposed by “Evil” App

Hulu Gets Tricked Into Running On Android 2.2

Twitter’s Most Influential Users [INFOGRAPHIC]

Facebook CEO: We Will Add Simpler Privacy Controls

A Resume Is Not Enough: How to Market Yourself Online

An Inside Look At Facebook Questions, The Next “Killer App” Of Facebook

What Are Mothers In Asia Up To Online?

Why Google’s Android Could Rule Connected Cars

DST’s Yuri Milner: Facebook Is Going To Be The Social Graph That Unifies All Civilization

Rivals Seize on Troubles of Facebook

New Media, Old Media: How Blogs and Social Media Agendas Relate and Differ from Traditional Press

Crystal-Clear, Maybe Mesmerizing

10 foursquare secrets worth making ‘public’

Google TV: What Does It Mean for Advertisers?

Who Do You Trust More: Facebook or Google?

I won’t go into all the ramifications of Facebook’s new social plugins and bid to dominate the interwebs. You can check out the Carrot Creative Blog for a nice little “what it means for you” recap, along with Mashable’s constant, sometimes in depth/sometimes superficial, coverage of the new tools and announcements, as well.

What I’ve noticed is that the tech battles that are currently brewing transcend industry or product. To name a few:

Facebook  vs Twitter vs Foursquare

Facebook vs Google

Google vs Apple

Google vs Microsoft & Yahoo

My question, as such, is – if you were to relegate control of you entire online behavior and identity to one of these dominant entities, which would it be? Which brand engenders trust? Functionality? Personality?

We may not have to actively make this decision in the near future, but we are passively acknowledging its growing preeminence it every time we go online. Sooner or later – and probably sooner, Facebook’s open social graph will collide head on with Google’s open ID, and I wouldn’t be surprised if Apple launched an alternative – anti-culture – subversive  – nonconformist version of the concept: One ID to rule them all. Add to that the truly independent competition – the open source Wikipedia/Firefox-ish rival.

In fact, it may – and probably will – boil down to what browser you use as your portal to the digiverse – Chrome, Safari, Firefox, or the inevitable Facebook Browser that will be the culmination of their efforts to connect the web and infuse Facebook’s presence in every online destination.

So – I ask again – if you had to turn over near-complete control of your online activities to one of these brands – insofar as they will manage you – your email, social activities, functions and features, web browsing, shopping the advertisements you receive, your financial information, etc… to provide a seamless, integrated and unified experience – Who would you trust? Who would you prefer as your Internet partner-in-crime-and-everything-else? I know I trust Google to develop functional tools, I trust Facebook exploits my personal information to create a more socially enhanced experience – even if it is at the cost of my privacy. I trust Apple do design innovative and aesthetically pleasing “things” that boast superior user experience and interface, but may lack in the features/functionality department (Can someone say MULTITASKING?)

Anyway…PLEASE weigh in here and in the comments. Thanks!

Is “Facebook Presence?” Another Piece of Their Location-Based Puzzle?

Not gunna write a lot today folks – Just wanted to bring two interesting things to your attention:

1. Hat Tip to Ian Schafer and his Deep Focus Cohorts for this Twitpic. It would seem like Facebook is debuting something called Facebook Presence at the f8 conference tomorrow. My question is – will this feature be limited to attendees and then abandoned? I think not. In fact – while you can read all about the planned f8 announcements on GigaOM one functionality that remains as mysterious as it would be monstrous, is Facebook’s esoteric, possibly QR Code Utilizing, Location/Check-in Functionality that would compete head on with Foursquare and Gowalla (And Twitter). I dunno – take a look at the screen shot – to me this system looks very well suited for, and thus easily adapted, to align with possible iterations of such location based features.

What do you think this means for the general user?

2. This is the funniest ad I think I’ve ever seen:

Social Media & Digital News/Links – 4.20 Edition

Featured: TAT augmented ID [Video]

Google Escalates The Location War With Google Places – [TechCrunch]

Friends vs. Strangers: What’s Next for Foursquare? And ChatRoulette? – [TechCrunch]

Adgregate Markets’ ShopFans Brings Social Retail Storefronts To Facebook – [TechCrunch]

Nielsen: Facebook’s Ads Work Pretty Well – [Ad Age]

Measuring The Value Of Social Media Advertising – [TechCrunch]

2010 Social Media Marketing Industry Report – [Social Media Examiner]

Forrester Announces Peer Influence Analysis: An Analytical Framework to Inform Social Media Marketing Strategy – [MarketWatch]

Facebook Now Commands 41% of Social Media Traffic [STATS] – [Mashable]

The Formula for Effective Facebook Ads [REPORT] – [Mashable]

Revisit Lets You Create A Beautiful, Animated Twitter Wall – [Mashable]

Facebook May Launch Recommendation Service For Other Websites – [ReadWriteWeb]

Facebook E-Commerce App Payvment Allows Retailers To Use Coupons To Attract Fans – [TechCrunch]

Facebook Asks You To ‘Become A Fan’ Of All Your Interests – [TechCrunch]

Facebook Introduces Community Pages, Hopes To Make Them “Best Collections Of Shared Knowledge” – [TechCrunch]

6 experimental social media campaigns – [iMediaConnection]

AT&T’s Yelp-Like Social Local Listings Platform Buzz.com Launches To The Public – [TechCrunch]

Insert Paris Hilton, Lindsay Lohan, Tiger Woods Joke

OTHER RANDOMNESS

Barbie’s Unflattering Photos – She’s Not So Perfect After All! [Bit Rebels]

Ingenious: Free Music If You Talk About It on Facebook or Twitter [WIRED]

Steve Jobs Reiterates: “Folks who want porn can buy an Android phone” [TechCrunch]

AND…MY PERSONAL FAVORITE:

Satirical whizzes bringing Book of Mormon…

to Broadway