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November 5, 2009

Amazon Integrates Twitter with Affiliate Program. Is it Spam?

Amazon has introduced a feature on its Associates affiliate scheme which allows its members to tweet links with ease directly from its site. When browsing products, affiliates can now post links to Twitter by simply clicking a toolbar button at the top every page, similar to the way in which they might share an article via a "share this" button.

Of course, the same result was already possible by entering an affiliate link into a url shortener and posting it to Twitter, but the two-click functionality now makes that process easier and quicker.

Whether or not this is a good thing for Twitter users is another question entirely. The micro-blogging and networking service already experiences problems with spam accounts and unwanted marketing messages, so the introduction of similar functionality across other affiliate programs could well contribute to the growing amount of content many users consider spam.

Posted by Jack Marshall at 7:41 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

October 22, 2009

Real-Time Search Results vs. Real-Time Data Collection?

While much of the focus of yesterday's dueling announcements from Google and Microsoft that each search engine would be including real-time Twitter feeds in its search results dealt with the potential benefits to users, I think that's just a side-effect of the deal.

It would seem to me that the bigger benefit here is that the data from Twitter's so-called "firehose" of all current Tweets would be a boon to each search engine's organic search efforts, allowing them to create new algorithms that recognize trending topics more quickly, identify large-scale linking habits, and otherwise improve their overall search results, outside of any Twitter results.

Will this change people's Twitter habits? Well, there are already plenty of Twitter spammers out there, but this will only serve to encourage them more. Now that these spammers can potentially affect all search results, instead of just Twitter results, they will likely redouble their efforts.

For the non-spammers, this may lead them to think twice before posting something to Twitter, now that it will be more likely that their Tweet will appear in search results on Google or Bing, instead of fading into the obscurity of their Twitter stream.

Posted by Kevin Newcomb at 3:04 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

October 21, 2009

Bing Gets Closer to Real-Time with Twitter, Facebook Deals

Microsoft's Bing just got a little bit closer to delivering real-time search results through a pair of data deals with Facebook and Twitter.

Speaking on stage at the Web 2.0 Summit in San Francisco, Dr. Qi Lu, president of Microsoft's Online Services Division, told the crowd that Bing will begin offering a real-time index of Tweets, tools for filtering Twitter search results, and the top Tweets on a topic.

The beta of Bing Twitter search is only available in the U.S.

A search on Bing Twitter will bring up the most recent Tweets on the search topic, as well as top links shared on Twitter about the topic.

Tweets can be sorted by time, or by a Bing-defined "best match," which will include factors like the Tweeter's popularity, "interestingness" of the Tweet, and "other indicators of quality and trustworthiness," according to a Microsoft spokesperson.

Bing Twitter will also include a listing of the hottest topics on Twitter, along with the top links shared on Twitter about those topics.

Details on the Facebook partnership are less clear. Dr. Lu said that the deal is coming, but a spokesperson would only say that a "global partnership with Facebook that will bring public Facebook status updates to Bing search results" will be available "at a later date."

Posted by Kevin Newcomb at 3:11 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

October 1, 2009

Twitter Lists Present Cool Possibilities for Brands

If you haven't seen it already, Twitter has announced it's testing "Twitter Lists," essentially lists of users that can be categorized according to who they are or what they write about. According to a Twitter blog post yesterday, "The idea is to allow people to curate lists of Twitter accounts."

In non-pretentious language, that means eventually anyone will be able to assemble a group of Twitterers, allowing people to easily follow all those accounts.

So, I've been thinking about what this could mean for brand marketers. Well, if anything, it should mean that marketers will have a number of options when it comes to creating their own lists. For CRM or customer service, they can readily compile all their brand-related Twitter accounts into one. Think @ford/teamtwitter. Or whatever.

I also see a ready opportunity for cause marketing. Let's say a brand really wants to connect with charity activity around breast cancer, or wants to establish itself as a leader in the movement towards clean energy. If I understand Twitter's offering here, a brand could assemble a list of Twitter accounts associated with individuals or organizations it believes are influential in that particular category and promote the list on their own sites and through their own Twitter accounts. Think @google/netneutrality.

Of course, this could work for non-cause stuff, too. Say a brand wants to get noticed among running enthusiasts or among fans of Asian cinema. It could put together a list of Twitterers who post about those topics. How about @Asicsamerica/running?

This is akin to what Microsoft has already done in conjunction with Federated Media and Twitter in its ExecTweets site.

Then there's politics. The parties can compile lists of people or party organizations aligned with their side. Or a candidate could assemble a list of thought leaders he'd like to draw attention to (or he'd like to draw attention to him). Think @lpnational/thoughtleaders.

Though I think this offering alone presents some good opportunities to brands, it ultimately could become a good source of revenue for Twitter. A brand could sponsor an official Twitter List, for example.

So, now, before Twitter actually launches this feature, brands ought to start thinking about how they might want to use it.

Posted by Kate Kaye at 1:16 PM | Permalink | Comments (3)

September 21, 2009

Brands Show Off Their Social Side at IAB's MIXX

The Bank of America has turned to Twitter as a channel for customer care.

Betty Crocker's marketing team worked with CafeMom.com, a social network for moms and moms-to-be, to help moms plan birthday parties for children ages 3 to 12.

And Cheetos and its creative agency, Goodby Silverstein & Partners collaborated with Federated Media to develop a sponsorship program called Cheetos Boredom Busters.

The initiatives of Bank of America, General Mills' Betty Crocker, and Frito-Lay's Cheetos were highlighted during the first day of the Interactive Advertising Bureau's MIXX conference on Monday during Advertising Week.

Stephanie Charlesbois, senior communications strategist at Goodby, Silverstein, said publishers in Federated Media's network were tasked to come up with video and other content for their audiences. "We made it clear to brand teams (at Frito-Lay) it was essential that we have to give up creative control. This is a scary thing for the clients," she said.

A 10-month Betty Crocker campaign on CafeMom had several goals including provide moms with cake ideas and inspirations for party themes while establishing Betty Crocker as a source of "holistic birthday solutions," said Laura Fortner, SVP, marketing and insights at CafeMom. Three groups of 50 moms were asked to use Betty Crocker party themes and share their photos and insights on CafeMom.

And Jennifer McDonald, BofA digital marketing executive, discussed the evolution of the bank's social media strategy. Its first initiative back in 2006 amounted to a product promotion on Facebook. Next, the bank sought to build upon its sponsorship of the U.S. Olympic Team, encouraging people to create a cheer and promote it on social network.

"We continued to challenge ourselves to become more relevant in our core day-to-day business," said McDonald.

Its first initiative back in 2006 amounted to a product promotion on Facebook. Next, the bank sought to build upon its sponsorship of the U.S. Olympic Team, encouraging people to create a cheer and posting it on a social network.

But Bank of America re-evaluated its social media play again this year. "We continued to challenge ourselves to become more relevant in our core day-to-day business," McDonald said.

So, the Bank of America examined what customers were saying about the brand on social networks. It subsequently set up a Twitter account, @BofA_help, to help customers resolve issues they were having with their checking accounts and other services. The account, manned by David Knapp, now serves 50 to 100 customers a week.

So how did the bank get buy in for the Twitter account from its legal department and other teams? "It's an extension of our customer service team...This is a service channel for us," McDonald said.

Posted by Anna Maria Virzi at 8:09 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

September 10, 2009

Shop 'Til You Tweet and Drop

Can merchants, designers - and even a publisher -- get penny-pinching consumers to change their ways despite the economic downturn?

An initiative, Fashion's Night Out 2009, aims to do that and help revive NYC's fashion industry. Taking place in at least 13 cities tonight, including NYC, the campaign taps Twitter and Facebook to develop buzz.

Many of the city's retailers and designers are sponsoring special events. For instance, Gwen Stefani will appear at Bloomingdale's and Third Eye Blind will perform at Nine West Shoes at 53rd and Fifth Avenue, New York. Both appearances were announced on Twitter.

Fashionistas were giddy. Wrote @symonedollface on Twitter: "ughh #FashionNightOut Zac Posen, Patricia Fields, Ms. J, and Pharrell in one night... I MAY LOSE MY MIND"

Vogue magazine's publisher, Condé Nast, is behind the effort in a big way. It registered the URL, www.fashionnightout.com. The site includes a directory of 700 participating merchants and a tool that lets a shopper check off her itinerary.

On vogue.com, the mag publisher is offering a sweepstakes, including eight $5,000 shopping sprees. One hitch: participants must answer 16 questions on whether they'd like to opt in or out of getting special offers and other information from retailers and other event's sponsors. Let's make a deal!

Posted by Anna Maria Virzi at 12:35 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

August 31, 2009

Marriage Proposal As "Social Media Enagement Success Story"

My husband and I eloped and didn't tell anyone before we did it, so I guess I'm naturally skeptical of people who want to make spectacles of their marriage proposals and weddings. Today the cynic in me surfaced again when I caught wind of the "Dalila, will you marry me?" campaign launched by a guy named Fred, evidently a staffer at digital agency Deep Focus.

Fred included video and social media-enabled banner ads on women-aimed site SheKnows, where he posted a list of 10 reasons his girlfriend Dalila should say, "Yes." It didn't take long for a large banner unit featuring a dynamic Twitter feed to flood with posts related to his campaign.

It also didn't take long for her to agree to get hitched. It must have been reason number 9, Dalila's hair: "Her hair is what I first noticed when I met her, and to this day is still a major part of my most fond memories of her."

Um....OK....

I can't help but wonder if the campaign served a dual purpose as a way for Deep Focus to promote its social ad prowess, but then again, there's the cynic rearing her head. The agency's CEO, Ian Schafer's Twitter post congratulating Fred: "Delila said YES! Congrats, Fred!!! http://bit.ly/u82e2 #SayYesD A social media engagement success story :)"

Posted by Kate Kaye at 2:11 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

August 12, 2009

Zappos, Cisco to Chat Up Social Media at SES San Jose

Cisco Systems sells network equipment (e.g., routers and switches) and Zappos sells shoes. Each will be telling its social media story during panels hosted by ClickZ and Online Marketing Summit at Search Engine Strategies San Jose today.

We're also expecting a lively session about white hat/black hat in social media.

Not able to attend? Follow the conversation on Twitter by tracking #sessj.

Here's the complete lineup of the ClickZ/OMS panels:

Igniting viral campaigns: Brian Ellefritz, senior manger, social media marketing at Cisco Systems; Matthew Liu, product manager at YouTube sponsored videos; 10e20's Greg Finn; WebMama's Barbara Coll; and Apogee Search's Bill Leake. That panel will be moderated by Aaron Kahlow, chairman of the Online Marketing Summit.

Managing conversations and reputations: Brian Kalma, head of user experience and Web strategy, Zappos; Digital Voodoo's Dave Evans; Serengeti Communications' Liana Evans; and HubSpot's Mike Volpe. It will be moderated by yours truly.

White hat vs. black hat in social media: Harte Communications' Beth Harte; TopRank Online Marketing's Lee Odden; Search & Social's Dave Synder; and 97th Floor's Chris Bennett. Dave Evans will moderate.

Posted by Anna Maria Virzi at 2:03 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

July 31, 2009

Help! Someone Stole My Twitter Photo and Bio

Okay, I'm in double trouble on Twitter.

Someone or something is posing as me on Twitter - not once, but twice.

My image and bio can be found on at least two other accounts.

Problem is, some tweets include links to XXXBlackBook, an X-rated site. (My employer isn't going to be happy about that.)

Plus, a typical search on Twitter did not turn up this problem. Someone tipped me off to it instead.

To make matters worse, the tweets include some pretty strange words you'd never hear uttered from my lips.

Though I reported this account, below, and a second offender to www.twitter.com/spam at about 7 a.m. ET today, they were still live 10 hours later.

Posted by Anna Maria Virzi at 5:02 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

July 24, 2009

On Twitter, Spammers Perish

How many followers did you lose?

That question was being chirped this morning by scores of people using Twitter after the social network said it's "correcting follower and following counts."

"In particular, those with large followings may see significant changes as we correct for spam accounts and data inconsistencies," according to a post on Twitter's "Status" blog.

People using Twitter reported losing 100 or more followers. Mashable reported that thousands of accounts were killed.

Spam has become an issue that threatened Twitter's popularity.

Twitter's move was taken in stride by most people. "twitter cancelled all my hot friends that wanted to show me there naughty pics from last weekend aka Spammers Perish," tweeted BTtweets, who had 70 followers as of this morning.

So say bye-bye to your fair-weathered, blue-feathered spammy friends.

Posted by Anna Maria Virzi at 12:47 PM | Permalink | Comments (3)

July 13, 2009

Google's 46 (and Counting) Twitter Accounts

It's not uncommon for companies with lots of products to maintain multiple official Twitter accounts. Yahoo has a bunch, including for Buzz, Mail, and delicious. So does Microsoft, not surprisingly given the size of its empire. But Google may take the cake for the largest number of accounts. In a post to its official blog, the company lists all of them -- a whopping 46. They include consumer-facing accounts, such as user tips for Google Calendar and headlines via Google News; product-centric ones; accounts by region; and accounts featuring open jobs and descriptions of Google's culture.

Of course advertiser-centric accounts make up a large chunk of the total. Here are the 13 (at last count) maintained for customers of Google's various ad products:

twitter.com/AdSense - for online publishers
twitter.com/AdWordsHelper - looking out for AdWords questions and tech issues
twitter.com/AdWordsProSarah - Google Guide for AdWords Help Forum
twitter.com/GoogleAnalytics - insights for website effectiveness
twitter.com/GoogleAdBuilder - re building display ads
twitter.com/GoogleRetail - for retail advertisers
twitter.com/TechnologyUK - for U.K. tech advertisers
twitter.com/InsideAdWordsDE - for German AdWords customers
twitter.com/GoogleAgencyDE - for German ad agencies
twitter.com/AdSensePT - info for Portuguese-language publishers
twitter.com/AdWordsRussia - AdWords news & tips in Russian
twitter.com/DentroDeAdWords - Spanish updates from the Inside AdWords blog
twitter.com/AdWordsAPI - AdWords API tips

Posted by Zachary Rodgers at 8:49 AM | Permalink | Comments (4)

June 29, 2009

Twitter, YouTube Tributes Commemorate TV Pitchman Billy Mays

Fans of Billy Mays are rallying on Twitter and YouTube to pay tribute to the TV pitchman for OxiClean, Kaboom, and OrangeGlo.

Mays, 50, died unexpectedly this weekend.

Some are wearing blue and encouraging others to do. (#wearblue4billy)

Other tributes are popping up on YouTube, including this rap song and video and photo montage.

The pitchman's son, Billy Mays III, a.k.a., @YoungBillyMays, also reached out to supporters on Twitter, asking people to send in photos for a collage and thanking well wishers for their tweets. "Just want you all to know that I've read EVERY single reply and they've greatly helped me get through this day. Thank you," he wrote.

Posted by Anna Maria Virzi at 11:40 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)

June 2, 2009

Twitter Tips From the Comcast Cable Guy

One question I had for Frank Eliason, director of Comcast's digital care:

Has he ever been tempted to throw up his hands and say, I don't care!

He insists that thought never crosses his mind.

I caught up with Eliason after he spoke at Federated Media's Conversational Marketing Summit on Monday and shared his experiences providing customer service as @comcastcares on Twitter along with his team of 10.

At the summit, he offered these tips for online customer service in a Twitter era:

--Don't forget the personal touch. Each Comcast digital care team members has his and her own Twitter account (e.g., @ComcastBonnie) accompanied by a photo. "You'll see my picture. You do not see a company logo. My picture is my ID," Eliason said.

--Don't avoid blending your personal and professional lives online. For instance, Eliason's @comcastcare account on Twitter includes links to the Comcast blog and his family Web site.

--Don't judge a person by the number of followers he has on Twitter. Because he pumps out so many notes to customers, Eliason understands if some followers tire of his tweets. "I wouldn't follow me, either," he said.

--Follow the stream of tweets related to your business. "We respond to almost every single one of them and say, 'Hey, can I help you?' " he said. The team doesn't provide an answer to a customer the first time around. "We throw the ball into their court (and ask) if they want help. They will let us know."

Posted by Anna Maria Virzi at 12:01 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

May 20, 2009

Twitter Leaves Door Open to Ads

If you're Biz Stone you sure have to watch what you say. After the Twitter co-founder told an audience yesterday that the company didn't find the concept of advertising "interesting," a number of outlets understandably took him to mean Twitter has sworn off ads entirely.

That's apparently not the case. In a corrective blog post, Stone allows as how just because the firm isn't exactly excited about display ads, that doesn't mean it won't one day accept them.

From the post:

The idea of taking money to run traditional banner ads on Twitter.com has always been low on our list of interesting ways to generate revenue. However, facilitating connections between businesses and individuals in meaningful and relevant ways is compelling. We're going to leave the door open for exploration in this area.

And just in case any of you in the marketing world had your feelings hurt by that "interesting" remark, Stone has a kind word for you too.

"Do we hate advertising? Of course not. It's a huge industry filled with creativity and inspiration. There's also room for new innovation in advertising, marketing, and public relations and Twitter is already part of that."

Posted by Zachary Rodgers at 4:32 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

May 6, 2009

VideoEgg Event: Streaming Live, Sort Of

The audience for ad network VideoEgg's live streaming event this afternoon was unforgiving after the program started late and then encountered intermittent blackouts during the first 40 or so minutes.

The event, "Seven Minutes to Reinvent the Internet for Advertising," was hosted on uStream, included a Twitter feed, and featured high-profile panelists such as Denuo CEO Rishad Tobaccowala and GroupM Interaction Worldwide CEO Rob Norman.

"I scream. You scream. We all scream at UStream," complained @gregstielstra on Twitter, using the event's hash tag, #7minutes. "This stream is a prime example of why interactive advertising is bleak," @rabbityz tweeted 30 minutes into the event.

@videoegg attributed the technical difficulties to the number of online participants, which totaled about 600 people at one point. "hey folks! we're working out the kinks of the live stream as the online audience number increases, thanks for hanging with us," @videoegg tweeted.

Posted by Anna Maria Virzi at 2:54 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

April 29, 2009

Morning Reads: Yahoo Layoffs Commence, Twitter Full of Quitters

Yahoo has begun layoffs of between 600 and 700 employees, according to tech and gossip blog lalawag. The cuts are on schedule, as Yahoo said during its Q1 earnings call eight days ago that it would notify staffers within two weeks.

More than half of Twitter joiners fail to return to the service a month after signing up. Nielsen Online reports retention rate for micro-blogging service is now about 40 percent, posing a challenge to its prospects. That's actually up from a retention rate below 30 percent over the past 12 months. Those bleak return-rate will make it hard for Twitter to achieve reach in the long term. According to Nielsen Online VP David Martin, "a retention rate of 40 percent will limit a site's growth to about a 10 percent reach figure. To be clear, a high retention rate doesn't guarantee a massive audience, but it is a prerequisite."

Posted by Zachary Rodgers at 11:40 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

April 22, 2009

Twitter Followers: Easy Come, Easy Go

How fickle are your Twitter followers?

This tool from Qwitter gives you a clue.

Goes to show, saying good-bye can be easy.

Bye-bye tweets!

Posted by Anna Maria Virzi at 10:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

April 19, 2009

Quote of the Day: A Tweet for @Oprah

"At last, Oprah has an outlet for her thoughts and opinions," tweets @nathanreid.

Posted by Anna Maria Virzi at 7:22 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

April 17, 2009

Celebs on Twitter: College Kids Come to Cutters' Quarry

Twitter's growing at ridiculous speed -- and I mean that in the Dark Helmet sense. Comscore reported yesterday that traffic to the Twitter site doubled in March, to just shy of 10 million users, and the surge has brought the micro-blogging service to entirely new segments of the population.

Including the all-important celebrity demographic. Oddly enough, this week produced a number of milestones in the celebrity Twitterverse. Yesterday users of the micro-blogging service were treated to an absurd contest between actor Ashton Kutcher and the CNN Breaking News Twitter account to be the first to achieve a million followers (Kutcher won late last night, but CNN has since crossed over).

Much more importantly, however, today is the day Oprah Winfrey will produce her very first tweet. The daytime talk Diva will host Twitter founder Ev Williams, who will talk up the service and presumably give her pointers on how to use it. Oprah's already amassed more than 65,000 followers, and it seems reasonable to assume the attention will trigger a rush of woman Twitterers.

And how is the celebrity invasion sitting with the legions of dedicated Twitter users? Longtime Twitter user (and friend of mine) LetterB had this to say yesterday: "You know how the cutters feel in Breaking Away when the college kids swim in their quarry? That's how I feel about celebrities on Twitter."

Posted by Zachary Rodgers at 9:58 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

April 2, 2009

NCAA Appeased, MarchTweetness Returns Under a New Name

MarchTweetness is back. Only now it goes by a different name.

Three days after an NCAA copyright complaint forced Federated Media to tear down its experimental college b-ball Twitter aggregator, the AT&T-sponsored site is live again -- with two days to go before Saturday's semifinals.

For most of the week, the URL redirected to a simple Twitter search for the final four teams. That's because Federated Media slipped up when it first created the site, violating the NCAA's copyrights -- perhaps an indicator of company's greenness when it comes to designing sports-related experiences. (Tip for anyone considering a sports mash-up: College and pro athletic associations are REALLY uptight about their trademarks.)

The new site is very similar to the old, with a few important changes. Most notably, the name has changed. MarchTweetness is now TitleTweets, and the old URL now redirects to TitleTweets.com.

Also significant: AT&T is still attached to the site, but now it's listed as "The exclusive wireless partner of the NCAA," whereas it wasn't before. I have a call in to learn whether AT&T had a sponsorship arrangement with AT&T before this week. A large badge on the TitleTweets site links to the NCAA's site, where users can watch live games and view interactive brackets. The badge lists NCAA's other official sponsors Pontiac and Coca-Cola Zero.

Smaller changes included reworking of the copy. "Join in on the March Madness Excitement" becomes "Join in on the NCAA March Madness excitement."

You can check out the before and after below (images courtesy of the FM Publishing blog).

Posted by Zachary Rodgers at 3:48 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

March 24, 2009

Twitter Accepts Its First Ad Payment, Will 'Suggest' ExecTweets

In what may technically be its first ad deal, Twitter is accepting payment from Microsoft and John Battelle's Federated Media Publishing to promote ExecTweets, a service that aggregates tweets from top business executives.

According to FM Publishing, ExecTweets is "a real-time tool that helps you to find, follow and engage with the world's most prolific and successful business executives on Twitter."

While FM says ExecTweets does not represent an important revenue model for the service, Twitter's leadership has given the ad seller its blessing. In a post to the company's blog, founder Biz Stone wrote, "if you're a major brand and you want to sponsor a topic-focused social media experience with Twitter, we suggest Federated Media -- they'll fix you up right."

On a first glance, the interface would appear to have been rolled out a bit prematurely. For instance, the media and advertising category -- where FM should be well-equipped to generate rapid value -- is slim pickings for anyone not exclusively interested in Web publishing. Featured here is a who's who of overexposed digerati: Joi Ito, Guy Kawasaki, Tim O'Reilly, and Pete Blackshaw.

Whatever its flaws, ExecTweets is notable for one big reason. It appears to be the first time any brand has worked with Twitter on a paid basis. While its not clear how much Twitter received from Microsoft for supporting and promoting the tool, Battelle wrote in a blog post that "Federated Media felt that Twitter should share some of the revenue associated with ExecTweets since this project is made possible using their open platform."

A noble sentiment to be sure. However FM stands to benefit greatly -- arguably more than Twitter -- by being the first to engage the thunderously popular service in a paid relationship of any kind. That is a huge selling point for any ad seller.

For its part, Twitter must tread carefully. Having agreed to promote ExecTweets on its homepage and "suggested users" page, the company must now give careful thought to disclosure to avoid provoking user skepticism every time it recommends a product or Twitter user.

Posted by Zachary Rodgers at 7:33 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)

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