eBiz Tomorrow by Chris Salazar

Jeremiah has posted a rather long and extensive post asking his audience who has more information about Generation Y:  The Government or Facebook?

(For the sake of argument let’s assume that the Government will only rely on their own resources/information and will not drift off to Facebook)

Perhaps its a waste of time to compare these two entities, especially since they are almost at opposite ends of the universe (in terms of who they aretheir goals, business plans, etc).

AGAIN, let’s put all of this aside to figure out the real answer to Jeremiah’s unearthly question.

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What do you see everytime you fill something for the government?  (does this look familiar?)

“Under penalties of perjury…”

Because of this, I, nor will you, lie to the Government about your personal information (on a general basis, there’s always few who will lie regardless).

Yet, compare this to Facebook.  Facebook has NO way of verifying that the information you provide is correct.  Sure, you can put in all of your personal information and be honest, BUT I’m sure and willing to bet money that more people lie on Facebook than they do on Government submissions.

So should we really be asking which source gives us valid info?  You can have all the information you want, but if none of it is true, then there’s no case.

Here are the questions I would ask:

1. Who provides the most accurate information?
2. Which source of information would be most useful for marketing campaigns to Generation Y?  How about Product Research?
3. Is quantity the important thing?  Or should we be focusing on something else?
4. What are the benefits of “formal” information (government) vs informal information-giving (facebook)?

The ultimate question is…

HOW can we combine both ideas and resources from the government and facebook to create the ultimate customer database?

Its just not worth it to compare these two, both acquire information from people in totally different ways.  And in all reality, aside from my bday and maybe my relationship status in Facebook, everything else could be bogus in my Facebook profile…I could be trying to impress my gf with movies that I “like”…or I could be posting bogus pictures of “my” car…OR could I be telling the truth about everything?

 

I’ve got and I’ve found it…rather I’ve found the person who have surpassed me by a great deal! Someone who is my age and has already done so much with social media in both his personal and professional life…Dan Schawbel.  His main focus is BRAND…and he recently gave his predictions for Personal Branding in 2008

In the light of the new year coming and my attempt to add value to Dan’s contributions, here are my own predictions for 2008’s world of Social Media:

• Corporations will move past “community” and work to create CUSTOMER UTILITY
  • Yes, corporations should concentrate on providing their customers with a service; whether that be an interactive knowledge base, variety of web 2.0 product interfaces, or a network of online consultants available around the clock
  • Everyone is creating a community, but investing in the customer is important. Common questions to ask: What can they actually use? What’s missing in my industry? Why should customers invest their time with my company?
• Users will challenge corporations to become transparent and real
  • Open-communication is not enough; every leading corporation will have 2 faces (the CEO and the Community guy)
• Job openings in social media will explode - will we see CCOs (Chief Community Officers)?
  • We’ll have two versions of the story, two different types of Press Conferences. One will be on TV and in front of reports, the second will be on a blog “translating” into real terms what’s going on. Nowadays, CEO’s messages are lost in translation…its the CCOs job to keep it real.
• Blogging and Facebook will lose its value and utility
  • I’ve seen it with Facebook already, I’ve been bombarded with way too much SPAM and I’ve lost interest in it. I see other profiles, who I used to frequently visit, and they are filled with so much extra stuff that makes it look like one big blob of junk.
  • Blogging…people are trying to make a living through their personal blog? Too many adwords, too many attempts to make a $1, too many people why to become e-famous. What happened to true, passionate blogging for the love of writing and sharing one’s ideas?

What are your predictions for 2008? Am I on the right track or do you have some objection?

The Washington Post reported that the Defense Department has blocked soldiers’ internet access to a total of 13 sites, including MySpace and YouTube. Why? Fear that these sites will take up too much bandwidth.

Let’s look at these implications for a moment. By blocking access to MySpace/YouTube, they are pushed away even more from the rest of the world. They are out there fighting for their country, why not give them some free time?

Let’s examine more closely what MySpace brings to the table, that no other site does:

MySpace Benefactors:

• Allows open communication around the world
• Provides a 24/7 anywhere-accessible platform for the following:
  • To keep in touch with family members
  • Meet new people
  • Rekindle lost friendships
  • Exhibit creativity in creating a unique L&F
• Access to current, top 100, and underground music in just about any genre
• Ability to upload video files for the world to watch

Why keep soldiers away?  It’s shocking to see this.

It’s amazing, how MySpace has managed to reach several different audiences.  Although, what’s Facebook’s response?  Why doesn’t facebook create a section for those in war?

Today’s life of constant give and take redefines the “user/consumer” role in business. Think about how business in general has evolved–several hundreds of years ago, it was the job of the engineers/managers to decide what is made. Slowly, the “market” decided how businesses work. But that’s not enough. Within every market, there’s individual micro-communities with very unique needs.

Fast forward to the “user-generated media” era of today. The keyword word here is “user” …we’re users create media. This means we’re in charge of what we see, do, and have. In a way, the market is for the people and run by the people; which is the beauty of social media.

However, we’re moving past this idea quickly. B/c not only are we just created or generating media, but we are consuming it at an increasing rate. From blogs to podcasts to vlogs we are consuming tons of content each day. No longer do we just use data, we consume, learn, store, and express ideas. It’s important how the roles are shifting here and businesses must take note of this.

The life of a consumer:

• Social Bookmarking: Tools like delicious make it easy for users to consume information at any time of the day no matter where they are (at home, work, or from their mobile device). Not to mention, you can share your delicious links with other users using tags. Again, we aren’t just creating content, we are consuming it and making it easy for others to consume as well. Its quick, fast, easy, and non-techy. It’s social bookmarking, NOT technical bookmarking.
• RSS Feeds: Similar to bookmarking, RSS feeds can be read through a feedreader, like Google feedreader. Today we want instantaneous updates on the fly! Feedreaders bring all of that to you. Subscribe to an RSS feed, keep it stored, visit the link in the future. Consuming information from multiple sources is easy and quick!
• Social Networking: Everyone is involved with this…whether it be MySpace, Facebook, LinkedIn, or online dating sites (match.com). Everyone has an account! Again, the easy factor comes into play here…plus all of these tools provide users with the opportunity to consume candid information from their family, peers, or even people of the same interests around the world.
• Blogs: Plain and simple, blogs drive social media. The majority of the tools I mentioned above all grab content from blogs or some sort of repository for information. First, being able to store information/thoughts in one place is great, but sharing it with the world at large is remarkable. Im contributing to the world…im offering my own candid thoughts for others to consume.

There are several other components that drive the lives of consumers and as technology moves forward so will the tools. For now, its important to understand why this is so important.

Consumers are engaging with their peers, neighborhoods, and the world. Before social media, we only had school, work, and clubs to engage with others locally. But, the conversation has moved globally now.

Although, how can we measure the effectiveness of these tools? Here’s what I think:

• Word of Mouth
• Increase in the number of users
• Comments/User Feedback
• Innovation of new tools for users
• What’s missing?

I’m positive measuring the effectiveness of a community marketing program will always be difficult.  But, hey, at least it gives us something to talk about.  I’m curious as to what other strategies are for measuring if your community program is engaging enough?

Jason Calacanis has a lot of harsh feelings towards Facebook! He’s really missed the point of Facebook, its about online communication, aggregating widgets that mean something to you, poking each other, and writing on 10 million walls a day. If you’re not up for this, then Facebook is NOT for you.

He almost seems anti-social! He doesn’t want to see what movies I like and recommend, he doesn’t care about comments/messages you send him, and he doesn’t care about joining groups (even if they are for good causes). He argues that we aren’t going to save anything with creating a group…which is wrong! That’s only the first step and social networking is making it easier to get people around the world involved with the same mission.

Most likely, he’s just fed up with social networking in general…since there’s so much news out there, especially on techmeme. But, that’s what feed readers are for…filter out all the redundant stuff.

All of the reasons Jason hates facebook are all of the reasons why I like it! Why is this? Is it a generation gap? What’s going on here?

Time will answer these questions, but here’s my prediction:

Facebook will change how we receive news (especially on mobile devices). Facebook will become the next feedreader…it will become a one-stop shop for everyone! Finally, it will surpass MySpace as the most valuable social networking site in the WWW.

WORD OF ADVICE: Jason, you can remove those widgets from your facebook so you don’t see what movies they recommend…it might help!

UNRELATED NOTE: He is also a 5th degree black belt in TKD…Jason I do TKD as well. Let’s chat sometime!

Others who are joining the conversation:

• Robert Scoble
• Rexblog.com
• A VC
• The Messaging Times

Disclaimer:  My good friend Michael Sykora sent me the link to this article.  Ironically, we are part of the younger generation, but he sent it through Yahoo Mail.  But, I’ll tell you why later…keep reading.

Yes, email is for old people!  Why though?  Not because its prehistoric (laugh), but rather times have changed.  The new (younger) generations revert to other forms of communication in place of the rather old email apps.  Some say the future of email can be found in MySpace and Facebook, while others say its text message, but truth is it will always be changing.  Today its text, tomorrow its MySpace, next month its Virtual IM.  It’s difficult to keep up…but it shouldn’t be.

Stop trying to catch up and instead figure out why things are changing so fast.  I admit, I use email just for work too, and revert to text messaging instead.  1000 text messages isn’t enough for me, I need unlimited texts.  Why though? It’s because things today are FAST paced, I can’t take the time to open up my computer and send an email asking “what are we doing tonight?”  A simple text is easier, faster, quicker, and more efficient.

MySpace and Facebook take time too, but everyone is on it!  Which means, I constantly get emails/messages from each and a reply is just a click away.  Plus they both have handy mobile alerts letting me know when someone has messaged me…does Yahoo?  Not sure, if they do, they haven’t done a good job marketing it.  Cell phones and social networking are key to today’s lifestyle, which brings me to my next point:  stop creating one-offs, instead create something that links everything together!

Here’s how you can keep up with us:

• build something that aggregates everything into one (myspace, facebook, email, news, etc) - one giant feedreader
• make it interactive and fun - engage us, we get bored easily
• make it accessible from mobile devices - we’re using our phones already, why not join us
• make it easy

Here’s what I only use email for:

• Business related messages - hence why my friend sent me this article through yahoo and not on facebook/myspace
• To talk with professional people who are not part of my “social” circle (people from work, ex bosses, family friends)
• Older people who don’t get it  *wink*  *smile* (just those who dont have myspace/facebook or a texting plan)

I’m excited to be part of this time when things are changing so fast.  The way we receive information is different from how it was 20 years ago, and it will continue to change.  I love it!

MySpace is the “king” of social networking and has been for quite some time. Yet, Facebook is rising with rapid speed, especially since they’ve opened up their platform to allow developers the opportunity to create cool widgets for profiles. They’re embracing their users and providing them with a great amount of control over what they have on their site.

But, not as much control as MySpace. Users can change anything and everything about their profile (fonts, colors, images, banners, etc). Now, should Facebook allow the samething?

THE social networking blog argues that Facebook should allow users the ability to customize their profiles. I doubt this is in the scope of Facebook’s strategy, otherwise, they would have already allowed it. I’d have to disagree with Linda Roeder, although I respect her for her knowledge in Social Media.

Here’s why becoming more like MySpace will HURT Facebook:

• They’ll lose users.  Plain and simple those users who left MySpace for Facebook will drop off.
• Drift too far away from their strategy.  Facebook has set out to provide a social network where people can express both professional and social likings.  Unlike MySpace, its purely popularity and social…nothing more.
• Too much customization = slow connectivity! MySpace literally got on my nerves, it was just too slow b/c of all the customizations, weird backgrounds, and tons of pictures.  Facebook doesn’t allow any type of profile customizations whatsoever.  Is this a good thing though?  Yes for the time being.
• Spamming.  I must get around 10 friend requests a day on MySpace, and 9/10 times they’re spam.  I hate this, but so far I have not had one spam friend request on facebook.

Now, some people argue that Facebook is too boring and leaves no room for customization.  Not even a font color change, but will this really hinder Facebook from becoming the next King?

I’d have to argue that font colors won’t mean anything.  It’s who evolves with their users fastest and provides the right freedom.

Facebook opened up their platform to developers to create whatever modules they want.  Since then, traffic has sky rocketed and other colleagues of mine have joined.  MySpace still hasn’t done so…I’m past trying to make my site look pretty, I looking for functionality improvements.

To me, functionality prevails over the anesthetics.  How about you?

Of course MySpace is going to acquire a few enemies here and there. It’s possible and expected. Yet, if you are going to hate MySpace, please have some valid reasons…

Social Media is something I’m passionate about and love. The idea of forming your own communication, vocalizing your views, and showing your true colors is very intriguing. However, some people don’t share the same passion, which is okay, its not for everyone.

AC The People’s Media Company, posted their top 8 reasons why they hate MySpace. You can read up on their article, although, I have to admit, most of the reasons are why I like MySpace, isn’t that ironic? I’ll tell you why…reason by reason (their claim is in bold, my response follows):

1. You are not an HTML programmer/page takes too long to load - The complaint is that MySpace users are not tech-savy and have to rely on tools/widgets to update their MySpace. As a result, it takes too long to load a page. Let’s face it, MySpace users are not tech-savy, in fact, the majority of the users are my parent’s age! So these tools, although they might create html/css errors, it helps users customize pages to their own liking! Besides, the number 1 reason why pages take too long to load is because they are filled with loads of pictures, videos, sound clips, etc…and thats a good thing!
2. Who decided 8 was the limit? - Granted this post was made a while ago, but users now can add a Top 16 list. Although, his argument wasnt the number, it was the whole idea of a Top “something.” Actually, this is kinda cool! So cool, that T-Mobile is “copying” this idea, with their Fave Five! Seems to me, people like this idea!
3. Your music sucks - Sorry that my music sucks, but its a way for me to express myself and my interests. Not everyone has the same taste in music. In fact, b/c of MySpace I’ve taken a new interest in alternative rock (result from visiting my friends’ myspaces a hundred times a day). And, im completely happy…I’ve found a new genre of music to explore. Be open to others’ taste in music, and its okay to not like my music, I probably dont like yours either. (only kidding).
4. Those stats aren’t you. - Some people do put bogus ages and interests, but its okay. Why? I typically only accept invitations from my friends, so I already know how old they are, religious affiliations, and their likes/dislikes. It’s only a problem if you start surfing into the realm of stranger-ville…but I don’t. Its mainly a tool I use to keep in touch with friends only…I know them already!
5. Those pictures of you with a tan are a lie - Like I said, the majority of MySpace users are my parents…they have a life, they work, and their pictures are real! So what if lighting makes you look a bit more tan, its not MySpace’s problem. Geesh, pictures are pictures…and most people post pictures of themselves. Besides if you are my friend, I know what you look like, I know what pictures are real…so its not that big of a problem for the other 1% that post bogus pictures, they aren’t my friends.
6. Your dad is so proud - Facebook, Flickr…all other image hosting platforms have pictures of partying…so what? If thats how you want to portray urself, go ahead, its a choice. MySpace isn’t pulling your arm! MySpace provides users with tons of freedom! Here’s to “freedom-space”
7. We’re not friends - Again, MySpace gives you the opportunity to approve friend requests. Why not just approve your real friends? It’s as simple as that. Sure there’s spam, but spam is everywhere…I get tons of spam here on this blog. Just ignore it. Just keep a network of your real friends…its okay, if its only a few, hopefully it will grow some.
8. You are a loser - I guess they think all MySpace users are losers! Having a MySpace is the same as having a facebook account, linkedin account, or even a webpage. Again, its a form of expression, its a way to show your creativity, show who you really are. If anything, its a way people will remember you. Your right, MySpace does live on…and thats a reason in itself to have one that documents your interests, friends, and key events in your life.

I’m not sure if their post was a joke, or if they really do hate MySpace. But I hope my short analysis has shed some light. As I said before, their top 8 reasons why they HATE MySpace is almost my top 8 reasons for LIKING MySpace. This is just to show that its not for everyone.

Here’s what other people have to say about social media:

• More Presidential Battlegrounds; Facebook and Ustream
• Developing Rules for your Online Community
• Facebook Polls | Market Research meets Social Networks?
• Community 2.0 - Meeting your users

Take a loot at some of my other posts about social media:

• Can Facebook win the battle over MySpace?
• Top Five Reasons why Social Media Works
• Video isnt whats most important about YouTube
• Facebook is using feeds now

Facebook seems to be a hot topic everywhere I look. Right now, Im sitting at my old school library, and it’s amazing how many people are on facebook when you look around. This is just an observation, but its a trend that I’m seeing more and more! But is it a fad? Will it just fade away…Im guessing that Facebook is here to stay.

Yet, its main competition, MySpace, could prevent Facebook from being the leader! Now, Im not too concerned about number of users or even how much money they bring in compared to MySpace, but instead, what value they add. Are they serving a greater purpose than MySpace? Let’s try to bottle down the key features of both facebook and myspace to see:

Provides a legitimate social networking platform

• MySpace: Yes, but who is part of the network? Probably, friends you met at a party, someone who is in your class, someone you think is cute, or spam.
• Facebook: Yes, and although the network could be any of the above, it also includes colleagues and business professionals. That’s the difference! The network on Facebook is a lot more professional and older. Obviously, MySpace has its own niche, but will this survive the rapid popularity of Facebook?

Provides an opportunity to show one’s personality

• MySpace: Yes, all power is in the hands of the creator. This is something MySpace has mastered! And the younger generation loves it! But, does it get old? Well, I know my sister loves MySpace and so do my parents, but what about my generation? Where do we go? FACEBOOK…but can facebook keep my generation for long?
• Facebook: No, theres not much room for creativity. Of course this is the intention, but is it the right strategy? I know its great for my generation, but will it withstand the generation swings? Can Facebook keep people like me interested?

Web 2.0?

• MySpace: Although, I’d say that MySpace has some good web 2.0 widgets, its just not up to par. Then again, this might not be their strategy. But, this could put them significantly behind competition if they dont keep up because their users are evolving…and they need to be aware of this.
• Facebook: Absolutely! I like the whole idea about the Feeds (although some think its a bit invasive). Plus now you can import flickr photos directly to facebook!

Here to stay?

• MySpace: Yes, but for who? I feel like MySpace is very niche, either you like it or you dont! Can this keep them the top social networking site? Im not too sure
• Facebook: Face it, we are all on it or at least talking about it. Even the Community Evangelist at LinkedIn, Mario Sundar, has a facebook account. AND even Jeremiah, who asked the question if he really needs it since he already has LinkedIn and his blog, signed up and is adding friends.

What does everyone else think?

Before we continue any further, I need to first make a disclaimer: I admit that I’ve somehow joined the social networking internet craze, starting from Xanga, leading to MySpace, then to my blog, and now I’m pretty interested in Facebook.

In fact, this is precisely what has got me wondering about the MySpace generation. Yes, the majority of them are still using MySpace, but I’m not worried about them, I’m most interested in those early adopters who are moving drifting away into something else.

Now, what is happening exactly? I’m not too sure, but first lets take a look at how MySpace is evolving (from 2005 through 2006).

Below is a table depicting the trend in users by age group (numbers are percent of users):

	Aug 2005	Aug 2006	Growth
Audience, 000	21,819	55,778	YTY
Age: 12-17	24.7	11.9	-12.8
Age: 18-24	19.6	18.1	-1.4
Age: 25-34	10.4	16.7	6.2
Age: 35-54	32.4	40.6	8.2
Age: 55+	7.1	11.0	3.9

*Source: comScore

Interestingly, the so-called “MySpace Generation” group is not the age group adding the most users (instead the number of users if actually declining). MySpace is actually adding more users who are around my parents’ age.

From the ages 12-24, MySpace is experiencing a 14% decline in users. What’s this due to? Where are they going? Here’s what I think…

• Some users are just dropping off. They just completely lost interest or got too busy for MySpace. It’s not for everyone, so this is expected.
• Facebook came along. Facebook has always been around since MySpace, but perhaps these users want a more sophisticated social networking site. Facebook provides an opportunity to network with fellow classmates and in the future fellow co-workers.
• The rise of LinkedIn. This really takes Facebook to the professional level because its mainly used by business professionals to stay connected with people they’ve worked with or friends/family. Users can post resumes, job experiences, post job openings, and in some cases apply for job positions. My buddy Mario, as the Community Evangelist, started a LinkedIn blog, check it out.
• The Blogosphere. There might be a select few who have transitioned to blogs, although, its not one of the more popular choices.
• There’s something I’m missing. As always, some users are on to the next BIG thing. But what is that? Could it be video?

I’m very curious to see where the MySpace generation will end up…including where I’ll end up.

Some interesting stories on social media:

• MySpace is kind of the new Microsoft
• MySpace took Photobucket from Google (Google chose Video-YouTube instead)
• Facebook believes in the marketing power of Social Media