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?