Friends from Social Network Pursuade Couple's Purchase

My wife and I regularly check-in to retail stores, restaurants and night spots via Foursquare and Facebook. This isn't normally newsworthy for me, but yesterday it proved to be influential on a large purchase we are planning.

Shortly after leaving the retail store of a specialty mattress manufacturer, I noticed that a few comments were left on my Facebook status (which I previously used to check-in) cautioning me to not proceed with the purchase. The comments ranged from tales of manufacturer defects, loopholes to their warranty, and suggestions for alternative mattress manufacturers.

It's funny, because I typically study and share research with my clients about consumer social networks influencing purchase decisions. Guess it's... validating, to experience something like this first-hand.

Thanks friends.

Why I Don't Blog, And 6 Reasons Why I Should

Q: Why do I write a blog? A: To share my opinions on digital advertising for the purpose of educating readers, stimulating conversation and... feeding my ego.

Q: So why has it been months since I wrote a post? A: Because I can accomplish my aforementioned objectives with Twitter and Facebook.

I'm not trying to make excuses here. Honestly, these social media destinations enable me to easily tweet, comment and share candid opines. I post via my iPhone apps and TweetDeck on my Mac/PC. It's never been easier for me to publish in such quick and easy ways with an engaged audience.

• Twitter's 140-character limit discourages full sentences (for better or for worse). Public conversation is enabled via responses, tagging and re-tweeting.
  
• Facebook is plugged into so many sites, that it's easy to post an article and add my own color commentary (natch'). Public conversation is enabled via commenting and wall postings.

So why blog? Here's 6 good reasons:

1. Not everyone uses Twitter and Facebook.
   
2. Blog postings are indexed by Google.
3. Blogs provide a certain permanence to posts that can easily be searched.
4. Blogs can stay focused on a single subject, positioning author as subject matter expert.
5. Blogs may generate revenue (Google AdWords).
6. Blogs contribute to building the brand You.

Extending Brands on Flickr

AKQA London's Geoff Northcott recently wrote about using Flickr as an extension of a brand into the social media space. His post is packed with great examples of companies who are using Flickr to do this well. What may be most valuable: Northcott's analysis of do’s and dont's for brands considering incorporating Flickr into their social media strategy. Full article: http://geoffnorthcott.com/blog/2008/07/brands-on-flickr/

'Wary' point number 4 is relevant to much of social media in general, but rarely is adhered to: "Attempting to start a community space without a passionate user base in place or cred to start one." Love it.