iPhone

I’ve been a Blackberry user since time began, or at least since 2000. The Blackberry was, after all, the first of its kind – there was the Palm, but somehow that didn’t make the grade.

I was in LA during the Academy Awards and my boss lent me her BB. There I was, with this strange device in hand (remember how big the interface was then, and that scrolling mechanism?) and I was suddenly set free from my computer. The last time I’d had that sensation was when I converted from sending faxes to clicking out emails, what a relief! So, tripping around at the Four Seasons Hotel in Beverly Hills during one of the most stressful weeks of the year – because if no one wore our diamonds on the red carpet all @!&%$ was going to break loose – I suddenly had something that could keep me totally connected. It was a revelation.

Fast forward 10 years and I am still using the BB but seriously considering making the move to the iPhone. I continue to love the interface on the BB (though much smaller I can type as fast as ever) but let’s face it, the iPhone appears to have better Internet connections and better everything else. So, this BB girl is about to make the move unless someone can convince her otherwise… Somebody?

Predictions are always tricky and often dangerous. But in our business, we make it our job to predict the latest and greatest trends and tools in the social media arena. Granted, we may have some missteps along the way, but why should that stop us?

So, here it is folks, the new up-and-coming social media space – TUMBLR! Although it may not be the newest platform, it is definitely the one with the greatest potential – the new “Twitter”, if you will. Tumblr has everything you could want in a social media platform: bookmarks to easily grab content from the Internet and post to your site, a popular iPhone application, audio posts, and the option for tons of free themes to personalize your space. It’s essentially Facebook, Twitter and MySpace all-in-one.

This hybrid of popular social media outlets allows Tumblr enthusiasts to ‘reblog’ each other’s posts (in much the same way that retweets distribute content on Twitter), monitor ‘Tumbularity’ (follower scoring system), pull content from those they follow (similar to Facebook and Twitter), and broadcast a ‘Tumblelog’ (essentially a blog). Using Tumblr has been described as ‘lifestreaming,’ and with all these features it is easy to see why.

Over 7 million users worldwide have jumped on this band-wagon including Katy Perry, John Legend, and Josh Groban. Tumblr is near the tipping point – all it will take is a few news/tv/celebrity mentions to catch fire.

You heard it HERE first, now go out and become part of the next big thing!
 

Source: raincoastermedia.com

We all know that social media marketing is on the rise, but by how much exactly?
 
Last week, Forrester Research released their Interactive Marketing Forecast for the next five years that estimated social media marketing to grow at an astonishing annual rate of 34 percent – faster than any other form of online marketing – to hit 3.1 billion by 2014.
 
Of course, social media is still an infant – compared to other segments of online marketing, like display advertising and search marketing — but an infant that’s growing really fast. In just five years, this kid will be making more money than both email and mobile marketing. Quite a promising forecast, isn’t it? Can we get a portable time machine already (say, in the form of another iPhone application and fast-forward to 2014?!
 
However, it looks like 2009 is not a bad year either, despite the mostly cloudy economic climate. The experimental phase of social media marketing is coming to an end. eMarketer.com called 2009 “the year of building social media strategy.” Indeed, it seems like everybody is finally realizing the importance of social media, and companies all over the world are busy developing best practices and implementing first social media strategies.
 
Still very young and under-developed, social media is like a kid who is only getting ready to start school this fall. And gosh, aren’t we anxious for this kid to study well, grow up strong and healthy, and start making a lot of money – as soon as possible?