$3,000,000 for 30 Seconds

Wanna buy a Superbowl ad?

* Word of warning - just because you have funny or memorable commercial idea does not always mean you will be successful because of it.

Millions of people will see your brand and many may remember your commercial, but not all of them want to buy a dog toy.

Here's one alternative. Here's another idea. And you should probably watch and think about this.

The world of ads is changing and not just because of a bad economy.

Art, Marketing, and Social Media

Twin Cities-based artist Phil Hansen isn't a household name yet, but don't be surprised if that soon changes. Without the big bucks in his pocket to hire fancy public relations firms or high-priced talent agents, Phil's decided to spread his own word through the use of social media.

His online influence has increased significantly since he began posting videos of his projects on Youtube and Facebook. Phil's latest series, which he's titled Art Happening, strives to be as topical and culturally relevant as possible in order to appeal to a wide range of demographics without diluting the work's fundamental essence.

It seems to be working. The Art Happening series has attracted the attention of CNN, Dr. Phil, and thousands of eager viewers and art lovers throughout the vast online community.

We spoke with Phil about his DIY approach to marketing his unique artwork, as well as the challenges, benefits, and drawbacks that come with putting your own creative vision out into the world for all to see...

Get the Most Amount of Exposure for Your Brand with the Least Amount of Money

Today's post is from our friend Jacob Morgan.

Jacob Morgan is a social media consultant and runs a team of Technical SEOs. Jacob has founded a start-up in the social media space and has worked with brands such as Adobe, Conde Nast, Sandisk and Salesforce on creating search strategies. He is an avid and passionate blogger on all things social media and marketing related. He also loves meeting and building relationships with people so say hello and let him know if he can help you. You can connect with Jacob on: Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn.

Exposure is something that every business wants. If you’re Intel or the mom and pop shop on the corner you want exposure. The difference between these two examples is that Intel can play around with a lot more money…a lot! However, if you’re a small business you can still get a lot of exposure (or if you’re a mid/large business) without spending thousands of dollars. I will preface this by saying, it does take time and effort, but it can be done. This is a high level post of three core principles that you need to follow to get the job done. Here is what you need to do:

Exist

Simple right? You have to make sure that you exist online. At the very least you need to make sure that you are showing up in search results for your brand/company name. If you need a few quick tips to do this then read my quick and easy SEO tips for creating a:

• Title tag
• Meta description
• URL structure

These 3 simple things should get you to rank for your brand/company name (provided it’s unique, and yes there is a lot more you can do for SEO). The whole point behind existing is to create a “hub” for your company, a main central site a.k.a your website.

Spread

Now that you have a central site where people can come to find information about your product and services it’s time to expand out across the social web. This means joining sites like twitter, delicious, facebook, linkedin etc. This means creating a blog (if it’s relevant) where you can post information and build trust/authority in your niche. Don’t just go out there and join every and any social network you can find. Make sure you search those networks for relevancy. Use tools such as twitter search or google alerts to identify possible communities that may exist (or perhaps people that you can just reach out to).

You also have to remember to take the same trust and authority that you are trying to build on your main site and apply it to your “spreading” sites. This means providing quality valuable content across all of your channels, no spam, no junk, and no B.S.

Here are a few ideas to help you spread:

• Offer to write guest posts for other people (blogger outreach)
• Find people on linkedin that might be able to help spread the word (PR, journalists, etc.)
• Attend offline events that are relevant to your industry
• Encourage your users to help spread the word for you
• Make your content easily shareable (do you have links on your homepage to your social media profiles?)

Aggregate

Now that you exist and you have spread across the web it’s time to bring everything together to home base. The key for all of your social media efforts isn’t to get more friends on facebook or followers on twitter, the key is to get yourself exposure. This means sharing yourself across your social media channels and driving all of that traffic and community to your site.

Here are a few ideas to aggregate:

• Cross-link your social media profiles and site. This means put a link to your website in your twitter profile, put a link to your twitter profile on your facebook page, create an email signature with your links
• If you write a blog post then tweet about it and put it up on facebook (etc.) get the word out
• Once people visit your site you should provide an easy way for them to become repeat visitors. Offer an RSS subscription service and an email subscription service.
• Create a newsletter that will offer users unique content that only you offer
• If your community grows create your own ning site (free)
• Give your users the opportunity to guest post on your site
• Hold promotions or contests on your site (that you let people know about through your other social media sites).

This is obviously a large topic with a lot of room for expansion and discussion, but do what you can to follow these three principles and you should notice a strong increase in your site exposure. Have any other tips you want to share? Was this valuable to you?

Thanks for reading!

10 Rules for Blogger Etiquette

Most of us read blogs (you are reading one right now!), but do we know proper etiquette as a reader? Here is a list of suggestions for proper behavior when reading and interacting with a blog.

1.) If its your first time commenting, introduce yourself. Bloggers love to meet their readers and develop relationships with them. Let the blogger know where you found their blog and a little about who you are (but don't over promote yourself).

2.) Do not (immediately) self promote. Don't do it. Nothing will tick off a blogger quicker than if you enter their blog space, give nothing back to the conversation, and then plaster the comments with an unwelcome ad touting your work. Add value to the conversation, build a relationship, and work to naturally earn the attention you are seeking.

3.) If you read often or found the topic helpful, leave a comment. Blogging consistently about relevant topics can be hard (we post on Daily Axioms at least once a day), and leaving a comment is where writers can find the energy to keep working hard.

4.) Put quality into your comment. While its nice to leave a "great post!" remark for a blogger, its even more helpful put some time and thought into your comment. Leaving additional links and resources that add to the conversation will show the blogger that you read their post, understood what they were talking about, and want to be in the dialogue of the conversation.

4.) Read the other comments before leaving your own. You wouldn't come into a room and jump into the conversation without listening for a little bit first. Your idea or comment might have already been said, so make sure to get the full picture of where the conversation is at before sticking your foot in your mouth.

5.) If you found the topic helpful, click an ad. I got this idea from Seth Godin, and it has really changed my thinking about online ads. Clicking the ad is an easy way to throw a coin in the tip jar and say thank you to a blogger. Its free for you, only takes half a second, and rewards good content when you find it.

6.) Share the blog or post in other places. Another way to show the blogger love is to Tweet a link to their post, bookmark it on Digg, or send it to a friend on Facebook who would find it helpful. Bloggers will see this as an act that builds relationship and trust.

7.) If you are leaning towards commenting anonymously, think twice about what you are writing. A lot of people think that if they post a comment anonymously, they can write whatever they want. I have read a lot of horrible personal attacks and unfounded remarks made by anonymous commenters. Its okay to disagree, but do it in a constructive and respectful way.

8.) Do not mass email/pitch bloggers. This should not be done with newspapers or television either, and bloggers will delete your email just as fast. Figure out who the author is, read their blogs posts, and then if you still think your product or service would interest them, find the most appropriate way to let them know about it. Pitching yourself on their most recent post probably isn't the best way.

9.) Point out spelling errors, but do so discreetly. No one is perfect and when a grammar mistake, spelling blunder, or broken link slips through the cracks, bloggers want to fix the error as soon as they can. Help them out by kindly letting them know. Once again, a better option than a comment is to Tweet, email or Facebook them through a DM or private message.

10.) Stop lurking and join in! Become part of the conversation (notice the reoccurring theme yet?) and let the blogger know you are out there. Bloggers are not unlike you and can be very approachable especially if you just apply the Golden Rule. Who knows what mutual benefit could be formed if you actually got to know them?

I know you all have other suggestions. What are some of your rules for reading blogs?

The Axiom Phone Booth Has Arrived

#FollowFriday

Today, the number one trending topic on Twitter is "#followfriday." By including this tag in Tweets, users are sharing their recommendations for who to follow on Twitter. This is a great way to find new people to network with and really demonstrates the power of how people are using social networks to connect with more people.

You can follow us on Twitter at a few handles: @axiompr, @drewgneiser, and @timotis.

Join in and share your recommendations of who to follow.

Happy National Pie Day!

10 Places To Find Jobs On Twitter

As the web becomes more social, it is becoming easier and easier to connect with people from all over the world. This reality provides the opportunity to network, which can be vital for finding jobs. Gone are the days of starting from scratch when looking for a job; instead, if you are building personal equity now and networking online, you will increase your opportunities of job opportunities when you are in need. Twitter is a great place for finding jobs (and they are out there!). The following list are some of the best people to follow on Twitter if you are looking for jobs.


@HeatherHuhman - Heather helps "Gen-Y find internships and entry-level jobs." Regularly tweets job openings, opportunities, and good career advice. (Thanks to Tom O'Keefe for the tip.)

@SEOJobs - Online marketing, SEO technical and strategic, and analysts. Can also connect directly with Tim on his personal Twitter.

@1984Jobs - Think differently by working at Apple in developing or support positions.

@JobsAtIntel - Intel posts job listings all over the world for positions within their company including marketing, management, and even intern positions.

@AuthenticJobs - A wide range of jobs ranging from web developers to content writers from all size companies.

@Jobs (Twitter) - Wanna work for Twitter? Twitter is definitely a growing company and is always looking to add to their team.

@MNHeadhunter - Paul is Minneapolis based and works to connect the dots for people. Start a conversation with him and maybe he could point you in the right direction.

@SocialMediaHeadhunter - Jim keeps his eye on the social media gurus to help connect you with the right people. Let him help you find the right job.

@Web_Design_Jobs - Lots of jobs for web design, flash, and coding.

@PublishingJobs - Looking for a jobs in Europe? Lists lots of jobs in publishing for sales managers, marketing, and editors


Aside from this list, a good way to find jobs on Twitter is to connect with the leaders in your fields of interest. Use Twitter's search function to look for people and introduce yourself. By building these relationships now, you may have an open door in the future to ask for help when looking for jobs. I have often seen personal requests tweeted asking for help for a friend's job search.

Who have I missed?

Monetizing with social media, a tricky domain

Buy an ad on a blog one minute -- get a hair-raising comment or two the next. Surprised? You shouldn’t be. There are a lot of inaccuracies in posting content on blogs and microblogs that can ultimately lead to your brand’s dismissal. When choosing where to monetize, tread lightly.

Why is it taking Twitter such a long time…
Twitter is being very particular as to how to go about monetizing tweets and personal and business profiles containing brand advertisement. Say for instance, your company loves one guy’s tweets only to find out there are discrepancies in what he is saying. Not that this has happened yet, but problems like these could lead to crows on Twitter, instead of beautiful bald eagles.

The dream job…
There were multiple tweets about the ideal job and thousands applied for it, thinking it was indeed a legitimate posting. It was fake, but suppose this high-traffic, high web click Web site would have rubbed elbows with a Monster.com advertisement. A complete and utter fail, as the message would be “Monster.com: your calling never calls.” I'm glad the makers of the job ad came forward, instead of being exposed by an angry online user who might be searching for a job at this point.

Back to reality…
Recently, the Wall Street Journal explained that social media has yet to be fully trusted (sorry, you have to subscribe to read the FULL story... which is why you need print news), though personalized-tailored ads have been successful on sites such as MySpace – and even more explosive on Facebook. It’s always entertaining when you update your profile, include “weight lifting” in your activities, and refresh your page to see an advertisement giving you access to an ultimate body workout. Appealing ads are all about reaching the psyche, and that’s precisely what social networks have done.

So it still remains to be seen if blog ads are really paying off, that is unless, a company has found a brand enthusiast that will never deter from praise. Mood-changing, bad experiences are still a possibility however.

What do you think? How can Twitter ensure tweet accuracy so ads will be as transparent as the landscape of which they are an integral part?

Pandora Adds Ads

While listening to my Beatles station today on Pandora, a short commercial for "Lie To Me," a new FOX show premiering tomorrow, popped up in between songs.

This was the first time I had seen this kind of advertising on Pandora. It was only about 10 seconds long, clean, and didn't really annoy me at all. I think this format works and it has been suggested that it would work with Twitter. In between every 15 Tweets, Twitter could insert small clean ads that relate to what your profile is about or the keywords within your Tweets. What do you think?

3 Marketing Lessons From LOST

Season 5 of LOST starts tomorrow Wednesday, January 21 on ABC. I am excited. There are many reasons LOST has a cult-like following - brilliant writing, a diverse cast that so many people can relate to, a complex mythology, a bit of luck, and of course, cool marketing. The ABC team has done a great job to promote LOST and their work has paid off.

1. Listen to fans. LOST is known for its close interaction with its fan base. Have a question for the executive producers? Head on over to the ABC LOST message boards and ask. If its a good question they will probably talk about it on their weekly podcast. There have been a few times when a fan question actually lead the writers to better clarify something in the show. Every year, the LOST team also attends ComicCon, a multi-day fan convention in California to interact with their fan base.

Are you interacting with your fans? They have a lot they want to say and listening could make your product or company feel more like a community.




2. Use marketing to enhance the story. Instead of just putting a campaign together that tells when the show is on, every year the LOST marketers create new ways to enhance the story. One of the first marketing campaigns was a book that was "written" by a passenger of the plane that crashed on the show (you know that guy who got sucked into the jet engine in the pilot epsisode? Yeah, that guy). The book contains vague clues and reference to the world of LOST. The marketers also have launched several fake websites for the different companies in the show (Oceanic Airlines, Hanso Foundation, Dharma Initiative) and interactive experiences that were built to make the show bigger and more real. These campaigns add to the experience of the show, making it feel real and alive.

What kind of stories are you telling? Chris Brogan had a good post recently about using stories to spread ideas. Instead of simply throwing your product out there, give people a reason to want to share it. Experiences impact us far longer than all of the advertisements we have become so used to filtering all day. People share experiences with each other, not advertisements.


3. Reward fans for digging. Not everyone is going to spend hours on all the extras that come with the show LOST, but some will. Since the storyline LOST is so surrounded by mystery and questions, the writers and marketers know that the fans will search for answers. This past summer, fans of LOST were able to participate in the interactive online simulation called DharmaWantsYou.com (which kicked off at the ComicCon conference, shown above) in which a fictional scientific research company from the show recruited new members to help them out. While everyone knows the company does not actually exist, the experience was run as if it were. Each week a set of tests and games came out and if participants scored well enough, they would gain access to exclusive content from the show. LOST fans spend hours online digging into the game and discussing. Another cool project the LOST creators came up with were the LOST puzzles. Not only were the puzzles fun to put together (who doesn't like a puzzle?), but there was more. If you put all 4 puzzles together and flipped them over, there was a secret image only visible with a black light. For those willing to take it even a step further, the image also contained several sets of codes that could only be translated using a specific book that was referenced in the show. When translated the clues revealed more secret insight into the show. There are a lot of LOST fans are very devoted to solving the mysteries of the island and regularly discuss theories behind the show.

Are you giving your customers any reasons to invest more time in your product? People like to be rewarded when they invest more time into the product or brand that they love. If you can create a product with no end to the rewards gained from digging, you will hook people and create zealous brand evangelists.

13 Places To Get Online Inauguration Coverage

Barack Obama's Inauguration Ceremony takes place on Tuesday. Although tickets sold out fast, you can still get very good coverage if you know where to look on the Internet.

1. Major Television Networks Online - All the major TV networks are broadcasting a web stream of the events. Check out ABC.com, CBS.com, MSNBC.com, FOXNews.com, and CNN.com for each network's coverage.

2. Major Newspaper's Online Video - Many of the major print newspapers are also broadcasting video feeds of the event. USAToday.com, The New York Times, and The Washington Post.

3. Hulu - Hulu will be live streaming the inauguration and the stream is embeddable. More content on Obama, past speeches, and commentary can be found on the Obama Presidency page.

4. Current TV and Twitter - Current TV and Twitter are partnering on inauguration day to add real-time Tweets to the live TV broadcast of the event. Using the hashtag "#current," many of the Tweets will be added into the TV broadcast. You can follow the inauguration on Twitter by viewing the live feed streams for #inauguration, #inaug09, and #dctrip09 (for those road tripping to DC).

5. Facebook Updates with CNN - CNN and Facebook have partnered for the Inauguration. Not only will the swearing in be live streamed, but users can RSVP to the event and then provide status updates during the event. A window will show all your friend's updates on the event.

6. Text Messages From Obama Team - Text "History" to 56333 to receive periodic updates from the Obama team about inauguration happenings and events. Click here for more info.

7. Livestation - Wonder what the rest of the world outside of the US will be thinking? At Livestation.com, you can switch inauguration coverage between a variety of international perspectives including Al Jazeera English, the BBC World News, C-SPAN, euronews, and France 24.

8. Flickr Stream From Presidential Inaugural Committee - Head on over to Flickr to see tons of photos of the inaugural happening from DC. Good pictures of the stage construction process and more.

9. YouTube - The Presidential Inaugural Committee has set up an official Inauguration Page on YouTube. If you join the group, you can post your own videos from the events.

10. Joint Congressional Committee - The Joint Congressional Committee will be live streaming the entire event. There is also a wealth of information on their site about what happens on inauguration day, the history of past inaugurations, and video from historic inaugurations of the past.

11. Joost - Joost will be live streaming CBS' feed on the Everything Obama page.

12. Terra - Hispanic-focused Terra will show both English and Spanish streams of the event.

13. Live Earth - Live Earth created a video channel for the inauguration where users can submit short videos giving Obama ideas about how he can use green technologies to change the country and help our environment. Some of the videos will be shown in DC the day before the inauguration.

UPDATE:
(Bonus)
14. Obama Inaugural Twitter - The Official Obama Inaugural Committee Twitter has got tons of info that will help keep you up to the second.

Beware:Trolls

Today we have another guest post from our friend Ben Nesvig:

A note to congress and companies engaging in social media: beware of the trolls.

Yes trolls. No, not the kind that supposedly live under bridges. I am referring to the online trolls. A troll as defined by UrbanDictionary.com is: One who posts a deliberately provocative message to a newsgroup or message board with the intention of causing maximum disruption and argument

What does this mean?

Anytime you open up your videos, blog, or website to comments from users, you will find trolls. This is true for websites, but especially for YouTube videos. Congress recently joined YouTube and created a channel. So far they have received some positive feedback, but they have also been a victim of the trolls on YouTube. A look at the comments on a recent video put out by Nancy Pelosi will give you an example of what I am referring to.

What should you do?

So how do you deal with trolls? You have three options: either block comments, moderate comments, or ignore the comments. I recommend slight moderation. You can moderate the explicit, racist, and spam comments, but leave the rest.

It is very important for companies to acknowledge that the internet is full of anonymous users ready to leave negative comments on anything they come across. Do not take it personally; it is just part of putting out content on the web.

Commandeering social media… when you’re not a fan of Apple

I have to confess Apple isn’t among my favorite fruits. That’s actually pineapple. So how can a non-supporter of Apple understand social media if they don’t endorse products like the iPhone 3G or the iPod Touch?

I, myself, am the type of guy who will laugh at a video featuring Steve Jobs getting pied (here’s one featuring Bill Gates), but will pray for his speedy recovery. I get bothered when I walk passed Apple stores in malls and see dozens of people in droves besieging the newest innovation. People save up their hard-earned cash (over saving for a house!) to go out and spend a fortune on these products that keep them tuned out from the world around them.

I’ll even walk passed a jogger with an iPod, thinking to myself they’re "cheating their run." Running was never meant to be accompanied by headphones, and classrooms were certainly not meant to be interrupted by i-type products. Don’t get me wrong – Apple is not the perpetrator of all unsound social etiquette but I do think they have a very secret message, a subliminal undertone: buy and get hooked for life. That’s a long time.

If I continued with this attitude, I thought to myself my knowledge of social media would be rather short-sighted-- if I didn’t jump aboard the Apple app store, as I see the many social media gurus and technology reporters and bloggers often do. So I came up with a routine to navigate social media as Axiom’s social media manager, to avoid the Web traffic from the Apple Store:

1) Every day, I read social media blog posts via subscription to RSS and comments feeds from the following BLOGS:
-Mashable
-TechCrunch
-GigaOm
-Scobelizer
-WebInkNow
-Convince & Convert

2) Thanks to Drew’s master plan, I participate in blog conversation by adding my two cents in the comments section. I oftentimes read comments before posting my own to get a context for the conversation thread. Sites like DISQUS make it easy to understand when a thought is continuing and when it ends.

3) I am on Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn, but nothing else. Reason being: you can often immerse yourself too far in social network profiles and the newest microblogging devices—to a point where you’re wasting time as you click on one link after another. Pretty soon, you’re finding yourself reading about Britney Spears from a 13-year old who happens to like pineapple just like you. And you can’t help but comment on their Piczo account. What are you doing on Piczo anyway?

4) I blog, and good blog posts don’t take 20 minutes. The ones with worthwhile content take hours to compile—tagging, linking, and adding visual elements. My most recent social media epiphany has taught me to reserve about 10 posts and schedule their publishing when the occasion arises.

5) I develop relationships with people in the space. That doesn’t mean I follow 2,000 social media enthusiasts on Twitter (just look at my number) or invite everyone, their mom, and their grand mama to “friend” me on Facebook or join “my professional network on LinkedIn.” It means I engage with the top developers of social media devices, enough so that I can one day meet with them over coffee. After all, isn’t this space about building relationships online that will stick, will cause remembrance and recognition?

A lot of social media advocates may be huge proponents of Apple, but I’m not one of them. And I’m doing just fine.

Bad Hedgehog

Mariah Carey wrote a poetry book. Here's a line from it:

I love my unicorn, he knows I am true,
My troubles go poof, my unicorn named Boo

I am reminded of the book Good To Great (highly-recommended read). In one chapter, Jim Collins explains the Hedgehog concept which is about discovering where three concepts intersect - what you can be the best at in the world, what drives your economic engine, and what you are most passionate about. Discovering your Hedgehog concept will help inform your business decisions by eliminating and affirming opportunities based on whether they fit.

Mariah Carey is a singer. She can hit some pretty high notes and make catchy pop songs. I don't think she is a poet. "Poetry writer" does not fit in her Hedgehog concept and therefore might be a bad use of energy and also damage her image.

I waste a lot of time on various online activities that don't really help me achieve my goals. Not all these activities are bad. Some of them just don't fit. Businesses do this all the time. What kinds of things might you be doing that don't fit in with your Hedgehog concept?

Be That Person

Do you ever get frustrated when there isn't that certain blog post out there about a particular topic? Maybe you could be the one to write it.

Ever wish that someone wrote that certain blog that discussed the topic you are most interested in? Maybe you could be that person.

Searching for that thriving community that you know doesn't really exist yet? Maybe you could think of a way to be the leader.

Twitter vs. Google Reader

One look at social media icon Gary Vaynerchuk’s Twitter account and he’ll tell you to keep social media simple. But do some devices make things easier or harder to optimize your search for quality content?

Clearly, Google Reader and Twitter don’t have much in common besides the fact that both boast quick notification or real-time updates. Taking a tour around Twitter can result in a whole new flow of information, friends, and lovers of your brand. You can filter through tweets that appeal and don’t appeal to you and choose whether or not to respond. It’s thread heaven for tweet-ups or web conferences now. Questions can be answered quickly because it’s quick format. Ugly interface, however.

Now, we examine Google Reader. Sure it’s really helpful to aggregate all of your blog and news content for your own personal Google account, but what about getting more out of your experience? You are so limited to what you can explore on Reader that perhaps RSS is really not simple at all. You see a number of entries pop up in the window. You read through them on the same page and think, “Is the blog worth a second look?” Perhaps that blogger was having a bad day and decided to rant instead of praise. Chances are you’ll remove their feed. After all, this is too much information and you’re crunched for time. Well, at least the interface has improved.

So for RSS, I’d hit up Twitter and check out what other people are promoting with links. Suddenly, you’re whole niche becomes a whole lot bigger and much more creative. My best content take-away has always come from Twitter.

What about you?

You Are Being Watched

Consequences still exist on the internet. You can hide behind a screen name and say whatever you want, but there may still be backlash against you. Tina Fey may even call you out.

(Update: We had a video clip up earlier today, but the television gurus took it off YouTube. Just follow this link to see about what Tina Fey said at the Golden Globes last night.)

People are monitoring what and who you are talking about. Many people and brands get Google Alerts whenever you use their name. One poorly worded criticism or overly passionate rant could get you blacklisted or hated. Maybe you should think twice before you post.

Gupta Good For Our TV Nation

The choice of Dr. Sanjay Gupta to serve as Surgeon General is inspired. Anyone criticizing President-elect Obama's decision to tap the CNN correspondent into one of our country's highest healthcare posts doesn't understand the nature of the position. Essentially, it is the Surgeon General's duty to educate the public on all public-heath issues, such as obesity, HIV disease, smoking dangers, and other various ailments.

In other words, he dumbs it down so us regular folk can understand why fatty foods kill you.

Gupta already does this in spades on television and as an insightful columnist for TIME magazine. He's perhaps the most prominent public health figure in our culture; a classier, better polished, more-reputable Dr. Phil, though I hate to make the comparison. Gupta's also one of the loudest voices continually stressing the importance of preventative care--staving off disease before it arises. What a novel idea, huh?

And if we need a guy to shame us into changing our eating habits and sedentary lifestyles, I can't think of a better authority figure than the reassuring and telegenic Gupta. Like any good doctor concerned with the health of his patients, Gutpa scolds you but never forgets to smile and stress that it's never too late to change. He's like the coolest guidance counselor you ever had in high school. And that's exactly what this fat and easily-offended country needs; firm but gentle guidance.

While we spend billions of tax-payer dollars overseas to fight an external threat to our security, domestically we're slowly eating ourselves to death. Does anyone else see this absurd disconnect in our leadership, or am I the only one?

Something needs to be done. Why not restrict fast-food ads to prime-time television or ban them completely on Saturday mornings? We don't allow Big Tobacco to advertise on television, yet heart disease kills more people than smoking-related illnesses, and nearly every commercial break at every hour during the day features a McDonald's or Domino's pizza advertisement. Do we really want the health of our nation's precious children to rest in the hands of corporate lobbyists petitioning their government???

I absolutely loved the section in the phenomenal Wall-E aboard the space station (coincidentally named Axiom) where all the humans were grotesquely overweight and relying on robots to do even the most basic of tasks while they remained blissfully motionless in their personal floating orbs. Of course I laughed, but it was a nervous, stilted laugh. Such brilliant prophesizing in a children's film could make anyone scared for our future.

So, if we live in a society influenced more by network television shows and celebrity gossip blogs than the New England Journal of Medicine, then perhaps a guy like Dr. Gupta is just what the doctor ordered.

Charlie Hobart is a Senior Account Manager at Axiom Marketing Communications in Minneapolis, MN. He also writes about politics, pop culture, and American lifestyles on his blog, The Chuck Wagon.

Twitter Attempts. Fail.

The elusive fail whale wore its big, ugly self... on me. I tried out a blog contest. I tried to offer valuable content to followers and prospect re-tweeters by perusing Google “social media” News for hours… and I got nothing.

Are you doing things wrong?
A recent article by Jenny Cromie revealed to me a number of things I’ve been doing wrong on Twitter. Are you in the same boat? I won’t steal Jenny’s thunder by going through every example she politely conveyed with hysterical lingo. I will, however, offer you some things to consider:

The best kinds of Tweeple
They are natural. They are not awkward and are certainly not desperate. We who boast less than 300 followers tend to get nervous after a couple minutes of no response because we see other handles with numerous @replies. Are we not popular? Truth hurts—yes. Take it very personal and rethink your strategy.

How to Tweet
Be natural. Find things when they occur up-to-the-minute (because Twitter is all about up-to-the-minute) and tweet about them if you think “your” followers might find it appealing. Some people are better tweeters than others because they know the landscape much better than you do. (Don’t for one second take that personal). If I were a natural at the Internet space, I would know better. I’m not, but I'm learning.

Remember…
Twitter is a communication tool, a very fast one. Choose your Tweets wisely and when you do have the time, tweet. When you don’t, don’t. It’s just that simple.

Have you made mistakes? Tell us about them. Funny, strange, mistakes that turned into something good, etc.

Flame Your Friends

Burger King just announced a new Facebook application called Whopper Sacrifice to help promote their Angry Whopper. This may be one of the most amusing and creative apps that I have ever seen.

Unlike every other app or fan page that rewards you for adding more, Burger King is encouraging the exact opposite. Do you think this will work?

UPDATE (1/14): Facebook has shut down the Whopper Sacrifice application citing that the application "facilitated activity that ran counter to user privacy by notifying people when a user removes a friend." 233,906 friends were removed by 82,771 people in less than a week. Bad move Facebook.

3 Places to Find The Hottest Blog Topics

How do you stay on top of the most-read and hottest internet buzz? Whether you are trying to find a hot blog topic to write about or confirm the status of Steve Jobs' health, we all have different news sources we consult. News aggegators and trend tracking sites are becoming more important for bloggers to tap into channeling search engine traffic to their blogs. In this post I would like to highlight a few of the tools that I often use to find a breaking story that I can write about. If you use these tools you can improve your blog content, capitalize on hot topics, and bring more traffic to your blog.

Here are a few suggestions for you to scope out the latest and most popular articles and discussions:

1. Google Trends - Updated every hour, Google Trends lists the Top 100 most searched terms. A quick scan of Trends will often bring late-breaking news stories to you before most news sources cover them. If I am writing about a hot topic that is listed in Trends, I will make sure to pull related search terms from the list to use as tags for my post. For example, if you wanted to write about the "naked skier," you could also include the blog tags "skier suffers exposure," "vail skier," and "skier upside down" to increase your Google search traffic to your blog.


2. Alltop - Includes top news stories online, most Tweet links, the hottest news stories from major newspapers and publications, and top selling iTunes items. Knowing which blogs, traditional news sources, and bookmarking tools your blog readers use will help a lot. If you knew that your readers liked to bookmark with Digg, you could check which stories Digg users were most saving. Maybe your readers are big YouTube users; by looking at the hottest YouTube videos you might be able to get some ideas of the content your readers are looking for. Popurls is also a good choice. This site tracks a lot of the same things as Alltop, but includes more web sites and blogs. I like the format of Popurls because you can expand lists to see more of the top results.


3. Fark - This site collects ridiculous, strange, and unbelievable news headlines from around the world, marking each with tags such as "amusing," "strange," "stupid," and "obvious." Fark's FAQ says it best: "Fark is what fills space when mass media runs out of news. Fark is supposed to look like news... but it's not news. It's Fark." I can often find tech news (under the "Geek" tab) that can easily be turned into an eye catching blog headline or topic. Number counts next to each headline indicated which are most popular.

Which aggregating news services and tools do you use?

How Many People Actually Use Twitter?

Eric Berlin poses a good question here. The makers of this video make it pretty apparent that, while twitter has grown “exponentially” according to Darren Rowse, this random sample society still doesn’t tweet and they’re letting you know that.



What can you do about it?
The most successful social networking platforms come by hands-on learning. You can talk about it to a person until you’re blue in the face, but the first step to conversion is embracing (take in with the mind) the technology; second step, spend hours of time navigating the device. I’ve been reading Twitter conversion articles lately and the writers themselves say they had to give Twitter a second look after an earlier in the year sign-up kept them from exploring Twitter any further.

I believe Twitter will have a tipping point eventually… much like Facebook. If you were to replace “Facebook” with “Twitter” in this street questionnaire, I guarantee you that everyone would know Facebook because it’s a global phenomenon that has stuck. I’m forever enslaved.

Contest Time
If you’re one of those people enslaved by Twitter, you are eligible to participate in this contest. Count how many people in this video don’t know what Twitter is, report it back to @axiompr and Axiom will send your favorite candy to you. Please tweet “XX from Brazil don’t know Twitter.” Remember, you have to be the first person to do it!

Thanks to the makers of this video and Wii for giving vibrancy to gaming.

Baby Step with Bill Murray

Please do not come into work after a long holiday break and talk about how many days left until the next break. Please do not count the number of hours until the weekend.

I believe we should all be doing something we love, something we can be passionate about. There are a lot of people who should not keep the jobs they have. I understand that we all have bills to pay and duties to not act irresponsibly, but if you don't like your job or where you are at (and are not moving towards any personal goals), there is something wrong. Take action.

Please watch this clip from Bill Murray's What About Bob?


Here are 3 Baby Steps you can take:

1. Don't let false excuses imprison you. I do not buy into many of the excuses that I often hear - the economy is bad, its too hard, I don't have time to look for something else. Poor excuses. And many of them are only in your head. There are many benefits to starting a business during a down time and some of the best businesses were started during recessions. Don't go into a recession yourself.

2. "Set small, reasonable goals, one day at a time." Rome was not built in a day. Spend 1 hour a day after your normal work day to get things done. Reconnect with one old friend/colleague/family member each week and let them know what you are up to (maybe they have some ideas or job leads). Have one meaningful conversation a week on Twitter that builds a strategic relationship. Comment on one new blog. Set up a structured way to learn a new skill that could be added to your resume. Each day holds the opportunity for you to make a small baby step in the right direction.

3. "Don't think about what you have to do to get out of the building, think about what you have to do to get out of the office." I get overwhelmed sometimes when I try to make everything happen at once. I start playing the "what if" game and overwhelming myself with every task all at once. Instead of focusing on each step, I wonder how things will get completed and give up before it even starts. There is no way to predict where our future will take us. All we can do is take the baby steps towards what we think it may be. As we move along, our next step should become apparent when we need to take it.

Please do not do nothing. Baby steps towards the future.

Social Media Marketing Is Simple

Many are still afraid of social media. There are a lot of terms and ideas floating around that confuse people and can even make them panic. I want to start the new year off right by proposing an idea that sounds pretty simple:

The goal of social media marketing is the same as traditional media marketing - to spread ideas through word of mouth.

When working in the social media world (obviously not all social media should be used for marketing), the aim is to get people to talk about your product or brand. Facebook, Twitter, blogs, and other social media platforms allow people to share ideas quickly. People talk about their interests and hobbies, which often include brands and products. Using social media for marketing aims to tap into the rich veins of discussion that will produce buzz and excitement around a brand.

The tools may be different, but most of the goals are very much the same:

• Make a great (good is not good) product that can stand on its own without spin that satisfies a consumer need.
  
• Customers will get excited and tell their friends about the product.
• Marketing can help, but real success comes through viral word of mouth a.k.a. the best and most desired form of marketing.

Yes, I am trying to simplify social media a bit for those still gripping to understand. Good ideas spread. Goal of social media marketing = word of mouth. Is this too simplified?

The Fall of Twitter?

MySpace was fun, then the spam came.

Facebook was great, then the spam came.

Twitter is great, and now the spam is here.

In order for a community to flourish it must have members. With members comes momentum and with momentum come the stupid people. This is the tricky part about preventing spam in a user-generated content community; there is no way to keep out the trouble makers without limiting the community's potential for everyone. Charge for the service and some people are left out (I would have to reconsider using Facebook if they charged). Before you knew what Twitter was or how it worked, would you have paid to use it? I did not understand Twitter at first until I used it a while then realized the value. On top of everything else, even if a community charged its users, this still would not guarantee the safety of a spam-free environment.

I do not think there is an easy fix for spam on social networks. We should probably get used to a certain degree of it. While spammers will get smarter and smarter, the only defenses we have are better anti-spam education, better spam filters on the communities, and harsh punishment when possible. I personally think that Twitter has done a good job so far to let people know about DM spam. Hopefully the developers have taken a few lessons from MySpace and the others that have lost control of the problem.

Martha Stewart's "Blogging" Show

This morning I watched the Martha Stewart Show for the first time—to which my fiancé replied, “Why are you watching Martha Stewart?” The show’s theme intrigued me: blogging.

The special, off-the-beaten-path show of Martha Stewart kept me glued to the television set as blogger after blogger revealed their secrets to successful blogging. Perez Hilton stopped by as well as Margaret Roach, a garden writer and blogger that Axiom is currently pitching.

If you're pitching Perez, you might want to know that he's a morning person. Perez starts his day at approximately 3:57 a.m. every morning and reads through e-mail, looking for friends’ juicy gossip on celebrities and then broadcasts it for 15 hours or so. Perez may make a living (he couldn’t reveal to Martha as to how much, though she herself was quick to point out that all of her finances are publicly disclosed; after all, she has to be ever so careful), but you couldn’t pay me enough or provide enough ads for me to give my life away like that. Though handsomely rewarded every time he blogs, Perez seems tired to me. A tired, top celebrity Web blogger.

I’ve watched Margaret Roach’s tweets unfold on Twitter, but her blog is a different story and one very attractive to the gardening public. Martha Stewart Omnimedia’s former director, Roach showed us that a surprise element with consistency helps blog traffic, such as her “Frogboys.” See for yourself at “A Way to Garden.”

Throughout the show, Martha threw in mentions of her own blog, which apparently her sister and friend executive run. She touted the Canon G9 Powershot, which is apparently the best camera for taking pictures to upload to your blog, as well as using a Wordpress-owned domain. Martha's also a ham for the cam, so when several of her featured bloggers "linked" to her blog, she announced to the world her most successful blog days ever.

I wish I was Martha, because she's the only one that can flub someone's name (Sharon Palin) and still have billions of fans-- while leveraging everyone in her path.