Social Media, Meet Politics

Today is Tuesday. It's not quite half way through the week, but it is not the absolute beginning. Usually my Tuesdays are pretty dull. I go to class, I come home, I nap, I think about doing school work - pretty average if you ask me. Although it may be a boring day for me, there's never a slow moment in the social media world. Every second, millions of people interact with each other through social media networks. This week, I have decided to examine how social media will be a power player in next years 2012 Presidential Election. 

Writers and bloggers all over the country, have coined the next US Presidential Election as a social media battle. Mashable writes, "It’s clear that there will be more back and forth via social media this time around than in 2008, when Obama’s campaign pioneered the use of Facebook and Twitter to reach voters." In 2008, social media networks were not as developed and as popular as they are today. Facebook currently has over 500 million users, Twitter is a little behind with 175 million users, and Youtube is rapidly growing with 490 million users. With this type of major social presence on the Internet, it is no surprise that that social media is going to play a very influential role the upcoming election. As one of the quickest and most efficient means of connecting people and transferring news, social media will be a critical tool for political candidates to reach the American public. For anyone who doubts this, just type in the hashtag #barackobama, and you’ll be able to tap into millions of real-time conversations about the current President (or go on Facebook and observe his 19 million fans). 

On Monday April 4^th, President Obama announced his 2012 re-election campaign. However, this time it was in the form of a video that went viral.  I say it went viral because within a matter of minutes my Facebook newsfeed was bombarded with "I'm In!" likes for Obama. In addition to releasing a video on Youtube, Obama offered ways for people to get involved via Facebook and Twitter. Simply go to Obama's website, click "I'm in!" and instantly, you are connected to the millions of other people backing Obama's campaign. Obama's video release was an excellent and quick way to spread the word about his re-election. The amazing thing about social media is that each time someone posted the video, someone else could share it, retweet it, email it, and spread it to hundreds of other people with the click of a button. This type of social media "storm" allows for news to spread within seconds. 

Shortly after Obama's video went viral, Republicans were prepared to release their rebuttal video. Whereas Obama wanted "change," potential GOP candidate, Tim Pawlenty (R- Minnesota) is telling us it's time for a "new direction." (Note to all politicians: I'm kind of sick of these generic "change" "directions" and "it begins here" mottos.) Pawlenty's video is the exact opposite of Obama's. Instead of smiling faces talking about how excited they are for the election, the GOP video uses brisk, rough images of gas prices and financial crisis to depict the current state of America. If you haven't seen the price of gasoline, I recommend just staying indoors. The video definitely uses "shock value" to convey the importance of this next election. 

In addition to Tim Pawlenty, Mitt Romney has also jumped on the social media bandwagon and released a video announcing his decision to run for President. Just like his fellow competitors cheesy lines, Romney informs us that he "believes in America." Mashable wrote a great summary of Romney's "believe in America" video. Romney talks about unemployment, the economic crisis, and directly blames Obama for all of these issues. In addition, Romney's video takes a different approach addresses the audience directly. Whereas the other videos used images and music to convey emotions, Romney uses facts as a means to evoke emotion. Romney talks about his credibility and the types of plans he has for America. Not that I don't like Mitt Romney, but this video was a bore. I found myself dozing off after 35 seconds. At least Pawlenty's video was so loud it kept me awake and focused. 

If you thought silent videos were no longer popular, clearly you have not been paying attention to the political storm on Youtube. Former Speaker of the House, Nancy Pelosi, recently added a "silent" video of a Democratic Representative giving a silent speech. The video, entitled "Speechless," condemns the Republican Parties agenda for 2012. New York Representative Joe Crowley used posters with messages on them to deliver his "speech" to Congress last week. The video has already received 260,000 + views on Youtube. Although Crowley is not a political candidate, this video  helps show how other politicians are using social media as a way to fuel the 2012 election. 

While many politicians have used Youtube as a campaigning source, surely the battle does not end here. After this Youtube frenzy of political videos, politicians took their thoughts and ideas to Twitter. Republican Mitt Romney called out Barack Obama saying, "@barackobama I look forward to hearing details on your jobs plan, as are 14m unemployed Americans.” Unlike Romney, other politicians were smarter and did not use Twitter as a means to bash a fellow politician. 

Recently, President Obama went to the Facebook Headquarters in Palo Alto, CA and participated in a live "Townhall Chat" with Facebook creator, Mark Zuckerberg. Obama answered questions about the government, current policies, and the future. I must say this was a smart move on Obama's behalf. By making ties with the largest social network in the world, Obama was able to spread news about his campaign and policies very quickly. In addition, Obama's consistent involvement with Facebook helps emphasize the importance of social media. Although this was a great PR move, hundreds of people protested outside of the Facebook HQ against Obama. 

Over the next few months, it will be important to monitor the political chatter to see the reactions to these videos and what type of topics are stirred up on social networks. I'm sure as it gets closer to the election, certain hashtags will be used to help organize information. It will be important for politicians to monitor the "social media airwaves" to try and learn more about the American public. By observing conversations and topics, politicians can better aim their speeches and ideas. 

Is Twitter Hurting Your Love Life?

With over 200 million users, Twitter is one of the largest and most popular social networking sites. With this type of major influence, Twitter has be subject to a number of studies on how it influencing individuals in their everyday lives. Recently, numerous articles have been published that talks about how active Twitter users tend to have shorter relationships. What's the real story behind this?

Both Mashable and Gizmodo published articles about Twitter's possible negative effects on your love life. Ok Cupid, an online dating service, recently performed a study on how romantic relationships do not last as long for the active Twitter user. Out of 833,987 Ok Cupid members, the majority who actively tweeted had shorter relationships. In addition, the problem continued to get worse with age. The study also examined that, "The average relationship for an 18-year-old that uses Twitter is about nine months." This is compared to an average of nine and a half months for 18 year olds who do not tweet. 

Ok Cupid's founder, Christian Rudder's has said that, "People who Tweet live their life in shorter bursts. Is this true? I have to believe it's very situational. I tweet a lot. Okay, I tweet too much, but it doesn't mean I am going to break up with my boyfriend because I happen to spontaneously updated my Twitter while I am bored in class. In addition, nine months versus nine and a half months? Two weeks isn't that big of a deal when it comes to dating someone. I don't think this is a really rational argument. The headline was more appealing than the actual research results. 


Gizmodo makes an excellent point in there article. What do we want from relationships? Generally something that is mutual, loving, happy, and easy. What is Twitter on the other hand? Gizmodo states, "Twitter is, for the most part, the antithesis of these things—unidirectional, cold, and vain." Perhaps they are right. Twitter for the most part is very vain. According to one study, "pointless babble" makes up 40% of tweets each day. Maybe Twitter is making us more self-indulged and consumed in ourselves. I can't speak on behalf of anyone else, but I know I don't want to be in a relationship with someone who is only concerned about their own well-being (as possibly their Twitter's well-being). 

Overall, I guess I am sort of surprised by this study (and let down at the same time). I was expecting a more "drastic" difference in relationship lengths. When I first read the headline I got a little nervous. I was hoping that I wouldn't be another person that made this statistic true (note to self: don't believe in self-fulfilling prophecies). At the end of the day, though,  I am going to keep tweeting. Stats are stats, this is real life. 

Monitoring Our Influences

For everyone in my Social Media for PR class (#COMM3309), we know tomorrow is the lucky day when most of our projects are due. In addition, it's also the amazing day when our social media audits are due. After stressing out all weekend, I took a break and decided to complete my weekly blogs. While I was reading through Brian Solis' Engaged, I realized how much this chapter relates to the social media audit project we have been working on for the past four weeks.

I didn't really understand what "social media monitoring" was, nor did I see it's importance. Solis provides a good background look at social media monitoring. He refers to monitoring as the eyes, ears, and heart o the organization. I did not realize how true this was until after I completed my audit. If I was running a company, I would be monitoring all over the web. It was fascinating to be able to tap into conversations and actually see what people were talking about. Normally, we only rely on what we hear from friends and families. Social media monitoring offers a completely new way to "assess" a company. In addition, it definitely shows where the company needs to improve.

For my social media audit, I chose a local business in Austin. After monitoring the company for a substantial amount of time, I thought of a number of a different ways that the company could improve their social media and thus increase business.

Solis also encourages listening. Sure, we can all read what customers are saying, but are we really listening to their opinions? By listening and taking customers opinions into action, the company can:

- grow
-learn
- create and ideate
- humanize
- enhance processes
- expand market share
- improve products and services

Solis provides even more outcomes from listening in chapter 19 of Engage. Listening not only benefits the clients, but the company as a whole. If it's a win-win situation, why aren't more organizations doing this? Maybe they do not know how. Solis goes on to teach us how to social media monitor and provides a number of websites and tools to help develop a strong monitoring campaign.

Friendfeed, Collecta, Hootsuite, and Twitter search were just a few of the tools Solis listed. After completing my audit, I wish I had used a few of these other tools in my Yahoo! pipe. By engaging in more online sources, the company can find more feedback and information on the internet.

Overall, this chapter was very informative and useful for the social media audit. My only concern is that it was just a little too late. With the social media audit due tomorrow, I cannot use a lot of the tools that Solis provided. However, this will be very useful if I ever run monitor another company.

Engaging Ourselves

Recently, I wrote a philosophy paper that applied Aristotle's theories of virtue and vice to internet behavior.  Looking back on things, I wish someone had warned all of us that the internet would come back to bite all of us in the butt. As a kid, I didn't think about what, why, or where I posted things. I acted in the moment and thought the "delete" button actually meant it would be erased. However, this is not the case anymore. Lucky for me, I don't have any "life threatening" information or photos floating on the web (that I am aware of...).

In chapter 13 of Brian Solis' Engaged, he talks about a variety of ways that we can brand ourselves on the internet. Before Solis dives into these branding methods, he warns about using cautious when posting information on the internet. Solis says, "Individuals who are currently employed are also at risk of losing their jobs based on their behavior on social networks and what they choose to share online" (Solis 165). Getting fired over what you share on the internet? I thought if I ever got fired it would be because of poor work, or always being late. Social technology is changing every aspect of our society. Solis also warns that "our contributions to the Web are indexed and archived for years to come" (Solis 164). It is crucial that we are very cautious about what we choose to post on the internet. For all you know, one post could land you in the unemployment line.

As we continue through Engage, Solis begins to teach us on "personal branding." Solis says, "We are now defined by the size of our social graph" (Solis 165). Our digital identity can be affected by our following. It is important that we develop our online selves with cautious by making sure we analyze every contribution to the internet. One tool that can really help define your online presense is a blog. Blogs allow for individuals to really let their voices shine through. Unlike social media networks, you can explicitly talk about interest, hobbies, or experiences.

In order to "brand" ourselves, we must get our voices heard. In class last week, we discussed how to use Google Insights and Ad Words to figure out what tags could be placed on our blogs to make them show up in search engines. Solis also encourages this and lists a number of websites that can help bloggers find better tags and terms to increase popularity.

Once we get an audience, how to interact with them? Solis provides an in-depth list of ways to successfully converse with your readers. Solis says:

1. Stick to your area of expertise and provide a unique perspective on what's going on

2. Post meaningful, respectful comments

3. Always think before posting - also, post timely

4. When disagreeing, keep it polite

Throughout the rest of chapter 17, Solis continues a detailed list of ways to keep healthy and efficient communication flowing through your social networks.

Overall, Solis provides a great starting point for branding, internet safety, and interaction. This chapter was especially enjoyable because it related to a lot of our recent in-class discussions. In addition, I know a number of kids in the class are doing personal branding projects, so this was probably helpful. Up until a few days ago, I never considered an online portfolio or personal branding. However, Solis has provided a substantial list of great reasons that I should take my skills to the internet. High five, technology.

Social Media: It's a Political Battle

Tuesday. It's not quite half way through the week, nor is it the absolute beginning. Usually my Tuesdays are pretty dull. I go to class, I come home, I nap, I think about doing school work - pretty average if you ask me. Although it may be a dull day for me, there's never a dull moment in the social media world. Today, I decided to examine the political stories unfolding on social media websites. 


Many writers and bloggers have coined the next US Presidential Election as a social media battle. In 2008, social media networks were not as developed and widely used as they are today. Facebook has over 500 million users and Twitter is a little behind with 175 million users. Either way, there is no denying that millions of people are connected and sharing thoughts every day over one of these social mediums.

On Monday President Obama released his 2012 re-election campaign. However, this time it was in the form of a video that went viral.  I say it went viral because within a matter of minutes my Facebook newsfeed was bombarded with "I'm In!" likes for Obama. Obama's video release was an excellent and quick way to spread the word about his re-election. The amazing thing about social media is that each time someone liked the video, they could share it, retweet it, email it, and spread it to hundreds of people with the click of a button.

Shortly after Obama's video release, Republicans were prepared to release their rebuttal video. Whereas Obama wanted "change" potential GOP candidate, Tim Pawlenty (R- Minnesota) is telling us it's time for a "new direction." (Note to all politicians: I'm kind of sick of these generic "change" "directions" "it begins here" mottos.) Pawlenty's video is the exact opposite of Obama's. Instead of smiling faces talking about how excited they are for the election, the GOP video uses brisk, rough images of gas prices and financial crisis to depict the current state of America. If you haven't seen the price of gasoline, I recommend just staying indoors. The video definitely uses "shock value" to convey the importance of this next election.

Surely, the political battle can't stop here. Politicians took their thoughts and ideas to Twitter. Republican Mitt Romney called out Barack Obama saying, "@barackobama I look forward to hearing details on your jobs plan, as are 14m unemployed Americans.”

It will be important to monitor the political chatter during the next few days as million watch and share political videos. As we continue to share our personal thoughts and opinions through social media, the use of tags, retweets, and other tools will help politicians keep an eye on how the American public is feeling. #imready

"Like" Google

Google has been a pretty popular topic for discussion this past week. In class, we watched Inside The Mind of Google. CNBC's typical "dig beyond the surface" type documentary, examined Google's precense in our every day lives. Many of us use Google to search for things on the world wide web, images, videos, blogs, news, and  a variety of other sources. One guy in the video put it best, "We confess things to the Google search box that we wouldn't even tell to a priest." Now that I've got everyone hyped up on Google, let's talk about their latest and greatest feature - the +1 button.

The majority of us have Facebook's and use it on a regular basis. No matter what you might be doing on Facebook, at one point of another you have clicked the "like" button. This little button has become a revolutionary trend. The "like" feature has crossed over to clothes, movies, and advertisements. I am proud to say that I own a few items of clothing that say "I LIKE ____." It's genius. Liking something on Facebook can have a huge affect on your Facebooking experience. In light of this, Google needed to create something just as competitive - the +1

Google advertises the +1 as "The +1 button is shorthand for "this is pretty cool" or "you should check this out." Kind of a corny advertisement if you ask me, but none the less, it's a first try. 

Much like the "like" button, the Google +1 button will allow individuals to have a more "social" experience while surfing the web. As users +1 items, it will be archived and it will allow Google to get to "know" you better and thus make your search results as fitting as possible. In order to make this a "social" experience, Google will compare items you liked with others, in an effort to bring you more results and items that it thinks you would like.

Downsides? Facebook is a very personal social media website. We expose our interests, likes, family members, favorite books, gender, and a variety of other personal information. However, Facebook is able to use these tools to make sure ads and other pop-ups are directly related to what we post. Google is lacking in this category. An article on Mashable states, "If Google could get more profiles, it could increase the accuracy of its targeting beyond keywords and browsing data." 

Feeling a little confused? Dont worry, Google provided a 1 minute video to explain the entire thing using fun pictures. 

Engaging Our Audience

As we continue on through Brian Solis' Engaged, we learn a variety of ways to increase of social media skills and to engage the audience. In chapter 6, Solis begins by examining the "understated" power of photo-sharing websites like Flickr, Webshots, and Photobucket. Solis says that people who use Flickr are able to "build relationships" over a number of topics (travel, music, etc.) The word relationships really stuck out to me when I was reading through the book. Social media serves to bring people together and connect us and in turn, develop relationships. By sharing our interests and hobbies in images on a social media website like Flickr, we allow ourselves to connect with others who share the same passions.

Solis talks about how The American Red Cross used Flickr for members to share photos and experiences while working with The Red Cross. By sharing stories and photos, it helped the volunteers build relationships and increase connectedness. Despite being a great social network, websites like Flickr are most effective when they are used in conjunction to other social media networks. The American Red Cross also has a blog, Twitter, and Facebook account that are frequently updated. Users are able to interact across multiple social media networks. 

What are some other ways to increase social connectedness? Solis points out a number of ways to create chatter and effectively transmit information. One of the most popular, and socialized, areas of social media are forums/discussion boards. On discussion boards, individuals are able to openly talk about any number of topics. When I need a question answered, a lot of times I will type the question into Google and a number of discussion boards will pop up. Here, people who have the same question work together to find a solution. It is a quick, and generally, effective means of communicating. Solis uses Yelp as an example of a social forum. Members of Yelp provide personal experiences and stories at local businesses in any area. In turn, readers are able to get "real" insight into a restaurant before they go eat. This type of reviewing website is a great way to connect individuals and share stories. It is also very beneficial for finding out nitty gritty facts about restaurants and businesses. 

How do we maximize ourselves on Twitter? Solis provides 21 tips that will help increase connectedness and spread information for brands. Tips include concepts such as: special offers, focus groups, customer service, curation, fundraising, and events. Each of these tips can help brands make their mark on Twitter. 

It is important for brands to make sure that they do not "cross over streams" when they are using social media networks. Each network requires a certain type of behavior. On Twitter, we use short words and language because of the space we are allowed. However, the same sparse language should be avoided on a blog.

Overall, Solis provides an excellent jumping point for brands and individuals to maximize their social networking experience.