#2011 Social Media Rewind

As I begin this post, we’re just hours away from January 1, 2012. What a year it’s been for us social media gals and guys. Remember when Facebook decided to deprecate FBML in Facebook Pages? Forcing Page Admins to learn iFrames…or at least try.

Do you recall when Spotify launched in the U.S?

What about the impact social media played in this year’s global events? Egypt. Japan. Joplin and others.

As you know, social media is an incredibly powerful tool for networking with friends, colleagues and industry folk. Building a brand. Trouble-shooting customer service issues. Connecting with one’s or a brand’s customers on a deeper level than the telephone or email. Most importantly the ability to make an impact and help others during distress. I am thankful for social media for many reasons and that being one of them.

Social media evolved quite a bit this year. Here’s a short and sweet recap for ya. I hope you have a great News Year’s celebration and an even better 2012!

January
Facebook decides to test adding users’ old Facebook updates in a Memorable Stories sidebar. Has anyone actually noticed old status updates on the sidebar. I think I noticed a few.

February
Twitpic launches new video-sharing feature. Do any of you use it? Or just use the video feature on your iPhone, Droid etc?

March
Facebook officially changes the look and feel for all existing Pages and does not allow the addition of new FMBL tabs. Page Admins had the option of upgrading to the new Page in February or wait till March 10 when it became permanent.

April
Did you hear of the Hootbar? Well, it arrived in April when Hootsuite acquired Twitterbar and made a Hootbar. Awww, how cute.

May
Facebook begins it’s attempt to get into the social check-in + deals arena with the launch of check-in deals to Facebook Pages; Pages that contained an actual street address. Sorry eTailers (sans brick-n-mortar stores).

June
Google+ launches and becomes wildly popular due to a curiosity factor. Invitations were scarce and demand for an account was high! Wajam launches and allows us to search the web and find content based on what our social networking friends have shared on Facebook, Twitter, etc.

July
Facebook teams-up with Skype! The social network launches new ways to interact with your Facebook friends: multi-person chat and live video calling.

August
FourSquare adds updates it’s user experience by adding Lists and Events. All your public Google+ posts now appear in Google search results…love it!

September
By this time, we’re increasingly becoming social online. 100 million people have Klout. Hootsuite acquires Geotoko and enhances it’s check-in features.

October
Google+ traffic drops, according to this study. LinkedIN now allows businesses to post status updates on their company Pages; previously businesses were only allowed to do this in their LinkedIN Groups.

November
Finally! Google+ allows the creation of Business Pages. This was great news for social media pros in all sectors of business. Augmented reality (AR) becomes increasingly popular in marketing campaigns for brands such as Starbucks, National Geographic, Disney, PBS Kids and many others. You can check-out my AR post here.

December
Twitter changes it’s look and feel in an effort to enhance Twitter search and connect with others. You can find my recap of the change here.

Mobile Apps For Halloween

It’s the end of October…Halloween time! Seriously though, where did time go? Someone please tell me.

Anyhow, I think you’ll be interested in knowing of some cool and fun mobile apps to make your Halloween that much better!

Find a safe trick-or-treat location:

• Westfield U.S. Shopping Centers App. Participating malls offer trick-or-treating for families.
• If your city government offers a mobile app, download it to find the safest neighborhoods for trick-or-treating.

Find costume ideas:

• YouTube App. Search for “how-to” Halloween make-up and hair video tutorials.
• Yellow Pages App. Find your nearest costume store.
• Google App. Search costume ideas by keyword under the Google Images option.

Find a Halloween party:

• CitySearch App. Find an organized and totally raging Halloween party.
• Yelp App. Same as above. Find a stellar Halloween party and enjoy the night.

Make Halloween treats:

• Martha Stewart App. Get some frightful and yummy bite ideas.
• Epicurious App. They have some cool Halloween cake pops goin’ on!
• Food Network App. Get inspired by the likes of Alton Brown, Giada and more.

Halloween hashtags – #Halloween, #Costume, #Spookystats, #Candy

Did your city get on the America’s 20 Best Cities for Trick-or-Treating list? San Francisco, CA is No. 1. I lived there for two years, so I am a bit proud!

Give Your Wedding Some Social Media Flair

I Do!

Hey girls,

I thought this would be a fun post and offer some insight and stimulate ideas, whether you’re planning a wedding, daydreaming of a wedding or helping a friend with wedding details. I’m currently the maid of honor for my sister’s wedding and have been helping her with details here and there. All this wedding chatter between her, my mom and my friends got me thinking about how to use social media in wedding planning and other wedding related things.

I’m not suggesting ditching the custom stationary save-the-date cards, bridal shower or wedding invites. Here are just some ideas to integrate social media into the traditional wedding flair! Moreover, people are spending more time online, sharing content, posting photos, shopping and collaborating…so why not get your wedding online?

Create a Facebook Group
Create a Facebook Group in place of a standard wedding website. This will save you money and give your guests easier access to information because they’re most likely already on Facebook when you make updates. Your Facebook Group can be private so you can avoid offending those who didn’t make the invite list. In the Group, you can upload photos of the venue, accommodations for out-of-towners, the wedding party and of course you and your honey. My friend, Stephanie, created a Facebook Group for her Hawaii wedding and it’s been fun being a part of it. I love seeing people post “I RSVP’d! Can’t wait” in the Group news feed.

Now you can enjoy the benefits of group chat with multiple people! Don’t forget Facebook’s new integration with Skype for some live video chat with your Group members too.

As the date gets closer, post weather updates and exciting news about last minute details!

Get on Google+
Google’s answer to social media as of June 30! Google+ comes with amenities such as Circles, Sparks, Hangouts, among other things!

Circles fall under the same concept as Facebook friend lists. A posting you do in Google+ can deploy publicly or to specific Circles, so why not create a Circle consisting of your wedding party, your wedding vendors and/or your out-of-town wedding guests (post travel deals and ideas for sight-seeing).

Sparks allow you to compartmentalize the topics you’re interested in so you can find them easier online. Create Sparks for wedding, stationary, catering etc.

Hangouts give you the opportunity for live video chat. Live chat with guests, the future in-laws, wedding party and others!

Create a hashtag
Example: #BenLovesAshley
Update your Twitter friends on your wedding planning progress, post pics via Instagr.am or other photo sharing app and post video clips!

Need to discuss color palette, the most affordable (but nice) hotel accommodations, etc. Organize a tweet chat with your closest friends using your hashtag.

Integrate your hashtag onto your save-the-date cards and wedding invitations. This will encourage your guests to join the conversation on Twitter leading up to the event, and tweet from your wedding in real time posting pics and video!

Use QR codes
I love QR codes because it gives us the opportunity to spoon-feed people information, making online navigation easier and information transition faster.

A QR code on a wedding invite could easily point to:
– A mobile website of your gift registry which could be at Pottery Barn, Crate & Barrel, etc.
– A YouTube or Vimeo video of you and your honey leaving a personal message for your guests.
– An RSVP form, which can easily be created online using SurveyMonkey. Try it!

Use a QR code scanner app on your phone to scan me!

Scan me too!

I used http://qrcode.kaywa.com/ to create the above QR codes.

What are some other ways to give weddings some social media flair? Lets chat about it!