Win via Facebook
Chipotle burrito prize
Write, invite, vote-NOW!

Chipotle just announced an online contest: today only, post a haiku on their Facebook page, and the haiku with the most “likes” wins.

Chiptole commercials are always creative, and recently they’ve looked to crowdsourcing for content. This contest also takes the next step, encouraging hopeful winners to invite their friends to vote on their submissions. Obviously, you must ‘become a fan’ to vote, so Chipotle benefits from an increased fan base, at least during this voting.

View the contest ad here

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Hey Mark,
How’s it going? I promised you another note when I wrote earlier about events, so here it is.

I wanted to share some ideas with you about Facebook pages. I know this has been a work in progress and I hope you’ll consider some of these suggestions.

1. Let administrators post as themselves – we all know social media is supposed to be about individuals engaging, right? So how come when I post on the page I administer, I cease to be a person and start to be my organization? It’s kinda creepy. This is particularly important when there is more than one admin, and any responses seem fragmented. Why not let the posts come from “Andrea (Org Admin)” rather than “Org”?
2. Let me know when people post to the pages I administer – I love the notification at the bottom of my screen when someone posts on my Wall, why not also let me know when someone posts on a Wall I’d administer? Yes, it could mean a lot of notifications, but it also means I’m better able to engage with my fans.
3. Let me share items to the page I administer Right now I can share to my profile, or send a message. Why not make it easier for me to share to the page I administer, spreading information more easily across the site?

Thanks guys, you’re doing a great job, keep it up!

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The Nexus One handles notifications beautifully: a status bar at the top of the screen shows icons related to activity, and a simple swipe of the fingers shows received emails, texts or tweets, missed calls, and other status items. You can click directly on any of the items to be pulled into that application, or clear the list.

This ability to run apps in the background and show the user a quick view of the status is great; no need to manually launch an app just to check a status. Although the iPhone has push notifications, the feature pales in comparison to the Android notifications, which often would flag an incoming email quicker than my Notify desktop app.

This quick view is particularly useful when checking the phone after a period of non-use, to get caught up on activities. It struck me that this is important for the Nexus One, because I don’t feel the same compulsion to be on it that I do with the iPhone. There is something simply enjoyable about using the iPhone, which is why you so often see folks simply playing with them. The Nexus One is much more utilitarian, in its use and feel. It’s a powerhouse, but I never felt the same draw to check it continuously. So the Nexus One needs to provide those notifications, to let you know what was going on while you were off doing something else.

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1. Why I Switched from an iPhone to the Nexus One
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One of the main features that interested me in the Nexus One was turn-by-turn voice-guided navigation.

Almost all the features in the Nexus One have some level of voice support, and the navigation is no different. You can say things like “navigate to wagon wheel skate center” and it will guide you there. Obviously, it hooks into Google Maps, so there is no need to worry about purchasing updated maps for your car’s GPS. (You need only to be concerned with Internet access). It can also tap into traffic updates, letting you know if a particular route is congested, and suggest alternatives.

Yup: en route you can modify your path based on live traffic updates to determine which will be the quickest route.

For those who’ve been spoiled with a library of voices for their in-car GPS, the standard voice provided may be a bit disappointing. I also was quite surprised the system hadn’t learned that “Ft” on a highway sign should be pronounced “Fort” rather than “phht”. Overall, however, I was content enough with the service to claim that I really had little need for a different GPS device for my vehicle.

Google Maps Navigation is still in beta, but it is available for the latest Android phones.

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1. Nexus Gone
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3. Trying out Google Voice

I’m a marathoner: in 2009, I completed 7 marathons, ranging in finishing time from 3:29:36 to 6:42:15. Why the big discrepancy? Every race is different.

There are external factors: course and weather, as well as internal factors: training, nutrition, mindset. And all can have an huge impact on the end result.

When you look at a campaign out in the wild: either one you’ve done yourself, or something you’ve seen a competitor take on, don’t assume you can replicate the success. Certainly, you can learn what works and what doesn’t, but there are so many different factors, there are no guarantees.

Frankly, the excitement and challenge of the unknown is what keeps me in the race.

Courtesy John Noltensmeyer: http://www.flickr.com/photos/johnnynotes/

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I figured I would jump on the bandwagon and post what the most popular posts of 2009 were. It was in the last few weeks of 2008 that I started structuring my blog differently: creating a limited set of categories in which to classify my posts. I know I didn’t post as frequently to some of the categories, but this list clearly showcases what’s bringing people to my blog (whether they stay.. that’s a different matter):

1. What to do with a Wet iPhone (published December 28, 2008)
2. What “No Commitment Pricing Policy”? (AT&T and iphone) (published July 12, 2008)
3. Transitioning to Google Voice with GV Mobile iPhone App (published July 23, 2009)
4. Transparent gifs – Will IE6 Never Die? (published June 17, 2008)
5. 5 Differences Between iPhone Native and Mobile-Web Apps (published February 10, 2009)
6. Incase Power Slider iPhone Case a Must-Have for Power Users (published April 7, 2009)
7. The Difference Between Social Media and Social Networking (published December 18, 2008)
8. Is “Building an iPhone App” Really a Good Mobile Marketing Strategy? (published February 17, 2009)
9. 4 WordPress Themes to Take your Blog to the Next Level (published March 3, 2009)
10. Facebook should take a page from Livejournal’s book on privacy settings (published April 16, 2009)

A few observations:
People love iPhone Posts! The top two are more geared towards users, however, not developers. This is one of those cases where I may be getting some traffic, but is it really the sort of traffic I want? Some of the posts are geared towards development and strategy, which is more in a place I’d like to be. Last year I publicly declared that I wanted to work on a mobile campaign in 2009. That didn’t work, but that remains a goal of mine.

Older Posts Still Have Legs. At first blush, I wanted to assume that older posts (some written in 2008) were ranking higher simply because there had been more time for people to read them. Yet when I reviewed my Top Ten from July 2009-Jan 2010, there was only one new addition: 1.8 Million Victoria’s Secret fans on Facebook (published July 2, 2009) pushed down the WordPress Themes and Livejournal posts. Another indication why it’s important to highlight past posts: just because something is older doesn’t mean it ceases to be relevant.

Strong Titles Make for Popular Posts We’ve heard it before, but it seems to hold true. Throw a numbered list or a question in a blog title, and people flock to it. (Hmm, can I change the title of this one to “What were the Top Ten Blog Posts in 09?”… sounds awkward)

People Can’t Read What You Don’t Write I just looked back, and I didn’t blog from September 8th through November 25th. That is part of my motivation to start “throwing it against the wall” and publishing posts without feeling this obligation to research and refine until posts are perfect. I know I have an tendency to write too much anyway, and so often I discard a blog post draft because it isn’t exactly how I wanted it to turn out. This year I’m going to try to avoid such drouts, even if it means some posts are a bit more rough than others.

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I just finished reading a blog post entitled “Why SEO is easier than social media marketing by Tamar Weinberg.

One of her key points relates to the ability to gain experience in SEO:

If you’re a brand new student in the school of thought of SEO, after you’ve learned about improving your web presence via search engines, there are countless opportunities to prove to yourself that you know what you’re doing. For you, this means practice and true application of acquired skill. ..When it relates to SEO, you can start right away. And you should. After all, you can’t learn SEO just by reading about it.

She advocates buying a few domain names, setting up sites, and experimenting. If you’re a fan of analogies, you just throw it all against the wall and see what sticks.

With my development background, this is an idea that appeals to me. If someone wants to know how something can be done online, I sit down and hammer away at it, to figure it out. There’s no failure in the frame of learning.

So I’m going to renew my blogging efforts: throw out some posts that are maybe not as polished as what I’ve aspired to in the past. See what sticks: what resonates, what falls flat. Will you help, let me know what works for you?

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Social media changed the marketing and journalism game because it enabled anyone to be a publisher. Some would say that we should each contribute: that we have our own valuable opinions to share. Others maintain that at some point we’re just all adding noise and it becomes more difficult to find worthwhile content. Given my blog post title, I think you know what side I’m on.

I can write a blog post about Google Wave or Twitter Lists, and it may not be the best article about these topics. But for those individuals who see me as a trusted source of information, I make it available. At least monthly I speak at a conference or training session, and people ask me for resources or insights. As I explain to them: If I have to answer the same question to two people, I write a blog post about it. I figure if they want to know, so too do others. Also, it gives me a post to point them to, that they can then share with others.

Are my insights the strongest in the industry? Are my posts the most beautifully crafted? Perhaps not, but they are still of value to my network. And so too can yours be.

Perhaps because I feel so passionately about online publishing, I feel sad when someone hesitates from setting up a blog because they don’t feel they have anything to offer. Remember the Long Tail? Even if there are only two other people in the entire world who are concerned with the long term effects of the blue dye used on Smurfs in the late 80s, setting up a blog can be a way to provide information and connect with those people.

There are plenty of Google Wave tutorials and posts out there, but my coworkers and friends are asking *me* about it. I’m the information gatherer and synthesizer: they just want the Cliff’s Notes version.

Setting up a blog and writing in it is time-consuming, to be sure. But don’t be afraid that you’re imposing on others or not offering anything of value if you have a topic you’re interested in and passionate about. You may be amazed with the people your words can touch.

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As I mentioned, I’d been speaking with some of my colleagues at Resource Interactive about a pitch for SxSW. Lara Lebeiko had the idea of speaking about women in the IT field. I have my notes from one of our phone conversations, where she said she did not want it to be a feminazi panel We talked a bit about women who go into tech and eventually leave, in some cases to start a family, and then do not return. I thought it was interesting, but as I am still IN the field, I didn’t have much insight on that. What I’ve found interesting, however, is how the male-dominated IT field is starting to see a significant number of women enter in the social media or accessibility space. I’ve seen others discuss the social media aspect of it, and the prevalence of women in the accessibility space is simply something I’ve noticed personally. (Sharron Rush, Glenda Sims and Marla Erwin are a few of the ladies that I had the pleasure of meeting at Access U).

A Pew Internet research paper on “How Women and Men Use the Internet” recognized these differences back in 2005, which is arguably before all this crazy “social media” hype really took hold. It was noted:

How Women and Men Use the Internet: Summary at a Glance

There is often a perception that boys like technology, and girls like dolls. However, I recently read something (in “made to stick”, I believe) that stated that girls are bigger consumers of personal electronics than boys (in every category except video game consoles). Think about teenage girls and their phones.. Boys and girls both buy iPods, but may use them differently. Boys will tend use the music to isolate themselves, whereas girls are more often to share their player, their music and therefore their experience with a friend. (I doubted this phenomenon, but a friend who teaches high school track ensured me that girls do in fact each share one earbud of a set to listen together).

I have always maintained that I enjoy technology not for technology’s sake, but as an facilitator. I like what we can achieve with it. When I built my first webpage in the late 90s, it was to share information with my friends. I was a geocities community leader, I worked on an online community targeted at at-risk youth. It was about community: about the relationships that could be forged via technology: it was not about the technology itself.

Using technology to connect with others evolves naturally into discussions of accessibility. When you’re looking at using technology to engage with others, you obviously need for those “others” to also be able to use the tools as well. I love to share the quote by James Edwards (co-author of “The Javascript Anthology: 101 Essential Tips, Tricks and Hacks) –

One person’s preference is another person’s real need. It may be that a group of users finds it easier with Ajax, but if another group of users finds it completely impossible then you’re cutting people out, and you’re doing it for basically nothing.

I think of it as a hierarchy, basically, where accessibility is the most important thing, and usability comes next, and preference and design and aesthetics comes next. All of those things are important, but if one affects the other then you have to think which is the most important.

And to my mind, accessibility is always the most important, because accessibility impacts on what people really need. Everything else is just preference.

You need to have community members to foster community, which means you can’t lock the doors and bar people from entry. How does the local Stitch ‘n’ Bitch group get translated to the online world? How do the different communication means and motivations of women and men relate to their approach to IT, and why does it matter?

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