Earlier this month BlogWell, presented by SocialMedia.org, stopped in Washington, D.C., where SmartBrief’s Jesse Stanchak had the opportunity to speak with Gayle Weiswasser, vice president of social media communications at Discovery Communications.
(Full disclosure: SocialMedia.org CEO Andy Sernovitz regularly contributes to this blog and serves as the editor at large for SmartBrief on Social Media.)
Weiswasser spoke about how Discovery manages its social media outreach, which spans across all of its networks — from Discovery Fit & Health to Animal Planet to TLC. In all, Weiswasser estimated that there are about 70 Facebook pages and 13 Twitter accounts, which represent each of the individual networks and television shows under the Discovery umbrella.
Some of her take-aways:
- Each network has to be developed according to its individual needs. Accounts have their own strategy based on their content and target audience. Discovery Communications then works with each individual network to meet their promotional goals.
Mario Sundar is LinkedIn’s first social media expert. Having been with the company since 2007, you could argue that no one is more knowledgeable than Sundar about LinkedIn, and the ways that it can be used by busy professionals. I recently asked Sundar a few questions in hopes of gleaning some of his knowledge. An edited transcript of his responses follows.
LinkedIn is often viewed as a recruiting or job-seeking tool. Do you think people are underestimating its utility?
Sometimes. I do think professionals are growing in their understanding of LinkedIn’s benefits as the site grows mainstream.
I often say, “Ask not what LinkedIn can do for you, but rather what you can do with LinkedIn.” I use it constantly as my social Rolodex (constantly updating it with the help of the e-mail plug-ins we’ve got). Also, I can’t think of a more effective asset than LinkedIn Advanced Search. It helps me tap into my professional network for answers. (read more…)
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Social network terms of service are usually presented to users as non-negotiable. “These are these the rules you agree to in exchange for access to the site. Take ‘em or leave ‘em.”
Except when it comes to the network’s obligations regarding user information and privacy. Then the attitude is often, “Here’s what we’re doing today. We reserve the right to change the rules whenever, and maybe we’ll tell you about the changes when the time comes.”
Thus the problem of social media privacy isn’t necessarily about access to data or even use of data — it’s about a lack of commitment to users, said panelists at a South by Southwest Interactive Festival panel on Friday. (read more…)
“Social media is not a trend — it’s the way your customers are communicating,” said Ford Saeks, president and CEO of Prime Concepts Group, to IFA 2011 Annual Convention attendees at his standing-room-only presentation “IFA Technology Summit: Social Media — Ignore it at Your Own Peril.”
“Even if you haven’t embraced social media yet, your brand has a social media presence,” he said, because franchisees, customers and more are talking about you online.
Don’t be afraid or intimidated by the technological aspects of social media, Saeks explained, and remember that it’s all about communicating, which is something nontechnical and familiar. (read more…)
Foursquare has grown from a network of 300,000 users supported by four employees in February 2010 to 6.5 million users supported by 50 employees today, said CEO Dennis Crowley during a session at Social Media Week.
That’s tremendous growth, even if most people have never tried checking in to a location-based social network and many Americans say they have never heard of the network.
What’s next for the network? Before a standing-room-only crowd, FastCompany‘s Austin Carr interviewed Crowley about the networks’ future. Here are the highlights of what Crowley had to say: (read more…)
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