Archive for the ‘Miscellaneous’ Category
Paul Annett, the Design lead at Clearleft, presented at Refresh D.C. last night. His public speaking engagements this year include: SXSW (Austin, USA), Webdagene (Oslo, Norway), FOWD (Leeds, UK), Refresh DC (Washington DC, USA), eBay (London, UK).
Here are some video clips I took of the presentation. He explained how his Youtube video which appears number #1 on Google when you search for magic trick has received over 13 million visitors.
He also went on to speak about a bunch of different interests and views regarding web design and usability. Thanks to Refresh D.C. and it’s sponsors for hosting such a great event!
Typography is everywhere. It is often described as a cornerstone to good design. Here we are paying tribute to that with mind blowing examples of designers that have mastered the art.
A sensational typographic video by Jarratt Moody
And one great interview with typographer Paula Scher
Facebook: Profile or Page?
Here at BOALT, we have seen a reoccurring issue– businesses do not have a solid understanding of the Facebook fan page. Time and time again, we have emphasized the difference between a Facebook profile and fan page. The fan page also differs from a group.
Facebook offers a comprehensive explanation of the fan page. “A public figure, business, or brand can create a Facebook Page to share information, interact with their fans, and create a highly engaging presence on Facebook. Pages are distinct presences that are optimized to represent a business, and are separate from user profiles. Like profiles, they can be enhanced with applications that help the organization communicate with and engage their fans, and capture new audiences virally through their fans’ recommendations to their friends.”
Profiles
Facebook goes on to explain that a profile is intended for an individual’s use only, not a business. A profile is a tool for friends to connect– from the wall for friends to write on all the way down to the newest feature, friend tagging.
Pages
Once a Facebook profile has been created, a fan page can be made to promote a business. The Facebook page shares many of the same features of the profile, but they are often utilized in a different way. It offers a tab for “Discussion”, where consumers can have a conversation about the brand and/or product. Like the profile, there is a space dedicated to photos. A business can post pictures of stores, customers, events, etc.
The page may offer information to fans via the wall. This information could include upcoming events, promotions, contests, etc. These updates will then appear on the wall of the fan.
Mashable explains how this creates a viral marketing effect. “So, when you become a fan of a brand, a band, a movie, or a person, that information is posted on your wall, and your friends might see it too. You can see which Pages your friends are fans of via the ‘Info’ tab on their profile.”
Anytime a user becomes a fan of a page, the fan pages’ logo is placed on their profile. This is another way traffic is drawn to fan pages, and another instance of viral marketing at work.
Benefits
The fan page offers other benefits to businesses. It is convenient, because more than one administrator may be added to the page. This way, the page can be updated by several members of the organization. Facebook provides free metrics to administrators. “Powerful reporting and insight tools are provided free to Page Admins. On a cumulative and week-over-week basis, these granular reports will measure reach (e.g., impressions, clicks), viral impact (e.g., fan adds), responder insights (e.g., gender and age), and engagement (e.g., video plays and wall posts) of visitors to the Page.”
Another added benefit is that one profile can have numerous fan pages. For instance, if an automotive group has more than one car dealership, they may create a page for each dealership under one profile.
While fan pages are valuable for many reasons, it is imperative for businesses to understand that people are more likely to become a fan because they do not have to share their information to do so. A fan simply agrees to receive updates, unlike becoming a friend which usually shares all profile information.
As with any social networking tool, the most successful pages will be the most up-to-date and they will offer the most valuable content. For more tips, Mashable offers “5 Elements of a Successful Facebook Fan Page.”
As I explained in “10 Reasons Why Car Dealers Need to Get in the Social Media Game,” it’s more important than ever to connect with consumers. What’s going to stop a patron from going down the street and buying from your competitor?
So, you’ve taken the advice and signed up for the most popular social media sites– what’s next?
It’s time to use your social networks to build a community and improve your brand equity.
1. Do your research
Find out how to use your social media tools.
Here are a couple useful books:
The Twitter Book by Tim O’Reilly and Sarah Milstein
Facebook Marketing:Leverage Social Media to Grow Your Business by Steven Holzner
If books aren’t your thing, you can always utilize the web for information on the use of social media tools.
2. Who to add– Building your community
Your customers are doing their web research before venturing out to the dealership, make sure you find them first by establishing an online presence. Also, add your vendors and business partners. When following people on Twitter, remember that the rule quality over quantity applies. Soshable’s post, “Following on Twitter: Quality vs Quantity,” offers great insight to the science of building a following on Twitter. “Twitter is not a popularity contest.”
This is no ordinary video, it’s part of our new social media project. The exciting part is that these videos are completely customizable, ranging from the colors, music, effects all the way to the transitions — there are endless possibilities. An unlimited number of videos can be generated in just under 60 seconds and what’s more, this is just a small part of BOALT’s new project. Enjoy! (more to come next week)
The Government 2.0 Expo is the happening event in D.C. this week and all the Silicon Valley techies are in town. Tonight, Daniel Beck and I got to go over to Google’s D.C. office to hang out with Tim O’Reilly of O’Reilly Media and Craig Newmark, founder of Craigslist.
Their office was pretty cool. I even got to play a game of Foosball. I had a nice talk with Peter Corbett about D.C.’s technology initiative and all I can say is what the future holds looks very promising. I would encourage anybody who’s interested in a career and/or life change to move here! It’s a very exciting city, the politics are just a part of it, the technology and overall intellect is incredible.