Five SM accounts everyone needs

You can't avoid social media. Chances are you’ve talked about it with friends, you’ve had meetings about it at work, and you’ve read stories about it in the news. Probably all three, actually... every day.

Social Media channels are becoming the avenue of choice for companies, entertainers, news outlets, politicians and other public figures and entities to share critical information. I’m guessing you don’t want the information to pass you by, and therefore here for your convenience are five SM sites with which you NEED to have an account.

1. Blogger. Blogger is one of the world’s most popular blogging platforms. Creating your own blogger profile will not only enable you to start your own blog, but you’ll be able to easily browse others and leave your own comments. Trust me: Nobody likes anonymous comments.

2. Facebook. Facebook has 300 million users around the world, and it’s time you got on board. Not only is Facebook a site in which you can connect with colleagues and friends, but you’ll be able to view pictures and content from causes, organizations, companies and others through Facebook Pages.

3. Twitter. Twitter, the unique microblogging platform, is probably the fastest-growing social media site in the genre. Millions of people are tweeting interesting things every day, and while you probably don’t care about most of it, I guarantee there are Tweeters out there that you DO care about.

4. YouTube. A YouTube account allows you to both upload your own videos and leave comments on others’ videos. You haven’t really lived until you’ve uploaded your own video to YouTube.

5. LinkedIn. A platform for professional networking, LinkedIn allows you to connect with business associates and colleagues. You can upload resumes, update work experience, join professional groups and lead discussions.

Visit the sites above and create your own free profile. It really won’t take you very long. Link them all to your primary email address, and make sure to upload a real picture of yourself (so you aren’t that annoying, faceless, blank avatar that everyone hates).

Having an account with the social media sites mentioned above will give you access to vast amounts of new information, as well as the ability to leave comments and create your own media.

Hallelujah! Facebook enables pages to link to Twitter

I wrote a while ago about linking your personal Facebook page to Twitter. It's just another way to simplify the update process, I guess.

Well now Facebook has gone and done us one better.

As one who operates a corporate Facebook Page and Twitter Account, I've often wished the two platforms could be linked like my personal accounts. It becomes cumbersome to post the same information in different channels. My wishes were in vain, however, because it was impossible to link Facebook Pages with Twitter.

Until now.

Thank you Facebook.

Too much information

Facebook, Twitter, blogging--social media channels like these are opening doors all over the world.

Unfortunately, uninvited guests are starting to step through those doors. Literally.

Articles like this one, in which a man and his family were robbed after an innocent post on Twitter, are starting to pop up all over the Internet.

Mashable recently posted an article in which a "reformed burglar" calls Facebook and Twitter a "Burglar's goldmine."

There are two problems here: We, as social media users, are all too willing to share every bit of information about our lives, and we also tend to accept friend/follow requests from complete strangers without thinking twice.

A good rule of thumb: Don't accept a Facebook friend request from anyone you don't personally know. If you use Facebook for business or promotion consider building a Facebook page rather than using your own personal account.

As far as Twitter is concerned, expect total strangers to start following you. 99% of the time it's completely innocent--people follow you because of your content. Just make sure to remember that your followers aren't just your close, personal friends. Don't reveal any personal information that could put you or your family in jeopardy.

I know the only reason we go on vacation is so we can talk about it (at least it seems that way sometimes), but just try and refrain until you're safely back in your home.

Ashton and his 3 million followers

I just read the news, hot off the presses, that Ashton Kutcher has reached 3 million followers on Twitter.

Kutcher, the former "Dude, Where's My Car" star, is Twitter's most popular user.

Forgive me, but... why?

Why are people flocking to Ashton Kutcher? What is he tweeting that's so dang interesting? (You can see for yourself at Twitter.com/aplusk.)

Don't get me wrong, I'm sure he's an interesting guy. There's a lot of interesting people out there. But 3 million? Was "That '70s Show" really that popular?

Maybe he's just riding Demi Moore's coattails. Maybe his step-daughter, Tallulah Belle Willis, is texting all her friends and telling them that Ashton is the coolest.

Whatever the case, congratulations to Ashton Kutcher. You've given hope to obscure, b-list celebrities everywhere. Even if people don't like you in movies, they might still like you in Social Media.

HOW TO: Connect your Twitter feed and Facebook Status

Are you on Facebook, constantly updating your status?

Are you on Twitter, constantly telling everyone what you're doing?

Sick of doing basically the same thing on two different platforms?

Then you sound like someone who needs to make a little connection. You may not know it, but your Twitter feed and your Facebook status can be one and the same--inseparably connected. When you update one, the other follows suit without question.

All you have to do is add the "Twitter" application to your Facebook account.

Here's how: Simply log in to Facebook, search for Twitter and click on the application (Make sure it's the application, not a group or a page). When you land on the application page, click on the button to add it to your profile. You'll be prompted to give your Twitter username and password.

Follow the instructions until the application has been successfully added, and then you'll never have to bounce from site to site again. Just post something to Twitter, and the same message will appear on Facebook.

Pretty sweet, eh? How do you like it?

Unplug

You may have noticed I haven’t updated this blog for a while. This is simply because I was nowhere near a computer. I was completely unplugged, disconnected and isolated.

It was great.

Over the last few weeks I’ve been out on the open road, then hiking through beautiful slot canyons and most recently diving through waves at the beach.

And I never even considered Tweeting, updating my Facebook Status or blogging about it. I just enjoyed the moment.

And therein lay an important message: Learn when (and how) to unplug. Not only that, but make a conscious effort to unplug. Online communities are growing exponentially every day, but never let social media destroy your personal social life.

You may not believe me, but I promise you can live without Twitter for a few hours… or days. Enjoy the people who can speak to you face-to-face, and the conversations that can last more than 140 characters.

Make it exclusive

I had a great meeting yesterday with some representitives from TxtWire, a mobile marketing company.

They made a comment about mobile marketing that I thought applied well to social media marketing.

When an organization is sending mass texts to all the cell numbers they've collected, the number one priority for those organizations is to make those text messages compelling and exclusive. Otherwise your customers will drop like flies.

Likewise, if your company is on Twitter and is simply sending shorter versions of the boring emails people already delete, you can bet you're going to lose some followers.

Go write a message on Facebook, Twitter or your blog and make it exclusive! Give them a reason to follow!

Twitter: Answering the age-old questions

"So what is Twitter?”

Odds are you have either asked, or have been asked that immensely popular question—possibly in the last 48 hours. Twitter is one of the fastest growing platforms in the social media world, and your friends and family are starting to wonder about it. They want to know what Twitter is, maybe for no other reason than Oprah told them to find out.

The first question is usually followed by its twin: “What’s the point?”

Answering this question is a delicate process. It will either sour potential Twitterers forever, or it will pique an interest that might even lead to adoption. I’m going to try to answer both questions in a way that will show you that Twitter has an actual function in society.

Twitter itself is pretty simple. Once a user signs up for Twitter he or she will be faced with this question: “What are you doing?” And then he or she has 140 characters (read: characters, not words) to answer the question. (Note: Most people ignore the question and just write freely.)

Easy enough, right?

So easy, in fact, most clear-thinking adults will immediately brush it off as a waste of time. They rally behind their clarion call: “Who cares?” One guy, for example, heard about Twitter from some friends, so he signed up for an account. He starts by writing something like “Wondering why Twitter is such a big deal,” and then never comes back.

Another Twitter baby lost. Such a tragedy. One that could have been avoided, though, if this person would have started his Twitter life with the right strategy. And here it is.

The key to Twitter newcomers is to concentrate on others first. Every Twitter account displays three different groups: People you’re following, people who are following you, and number of updates. Unless you are Bono, you’re probably going to start out with zero followers. That’s okay—we’re thinking of other people first. Concentrate on who you can follow.

Start by seeing if any of your email contacts are already on Twitter. You’ll be able to search through Gmail, Yahoo, MSN and other major email providers through Twitter.

Next, check out Twitter’s list of suggested users. There you’ll find people like Rainn Wilson (of The Office), the official Google account and a whole slew of other Twitter users in entertainment, politics, news and art. Pick and choose who you’d like to follow.

Then perform a simple search. Find people who are tweeting about your favorite subjects. You like BYU football? Search for BYU Football and you’ll find all kinds of accounts. Search for news outlets, famous figures, sports teams and friends, and follow all of them.

As you do this, you’ll find more and more people will follow you in return.

Now you’re off to the right foot. Now you’ll be able to gather information from your favorite sources. You’ll be able to see news stories from The New York Times breaking at the speed of tweet. Before you know it people will be chatting all around you. Some of it will be valuable, some will be a waste, but at least you can now pick and choose.

And suddenly it’s your turn. Suddenly you’ll have something meaningful to say, and you’ll join a conversation seamlessly. Now you’re using Twitter to pass on links, articles, video and pictures you find in your daily Internet perusal or you’re simply quipping about the mundane tasks of your daily life.

One bit of advice, though: Whatever you decide to type in that field of 140 characters, make sure it has value. It doesn’t have to be Pulitzer Prize material, but try to say more than “Welp… going to bed.”

Let’s sum up, shall we?

What is Twitter? A Web site in which users gather and distribute short messages.

What’s the point? To share information in real-time. To join ongoing conversations. To connect with friends, media and popular figures in a new way.

So try Twitter out today. If you'd like, you can follow me and let me know if you have any thoughts about anything I’ve written.