I recently ran across this article from BusinessWeek that discusses the challenges of advertising on social media sites. Websites,  such as MySpace, seemed to come right out of the gate with display advertising,  while others treaded more cautiously before heading down this avenue.

Today, it would appear that neither has found the magic  recipe of pleasing both their advertisers and users at the same time. According  to the BusinessWeek article, advertisers find that “as  few as 4 in 10,000 people who see their ads on social networking sites click on  them, compared with 20 in 10,000 across the Web.” In  addition, users are feeling invaded and frustrated, some going as far enough as  to start petitions against the sites!

Although  predictions for growth on social media sites will be down from last year, we  can still expect a 75% increase in ad spend. Aggravated visitors may choose to  cancel their accounts, but the fact still remains that these sites aren’t going  anywhere! They continue to make great efforts to update their advertising platforms  with future promises of, for example, additional targeting options to reach a  more engaged visitor.

My thought is that it can still be a smart way to reach your target  demographic, but you have to be sensitive to that fact that they don’t want to  feel like their MySpace is a walking advertisement for your product or service.  More to come on this revolution, I am sure!

Election year in the United States is always an exciting time of patriotism, debate, passion and controversy. It is a time when the nation is supposed to come together to select a leader, a mentor, and a role model. For years, election campaigns have been ruled by an overpowering amount of television advertisements. Television advertisements have always played an important role by providing a way for the candidates to express their beliefs, their goals, their plan of action, and their reasoning behind why they are better than their competitors. It has always been a great way for politicians to reach millions of Americans in the hopes of acquiring the highest amount of votes. However, television hasn’t allowed fellow Americans the opportunity to express their feelings and ask the questions that they needed to know….at least not until this past year.

The July 2007 democratic debate was one of the most talked about topics of last year. YouTube and CNN created a new debate format in which voters sent in video questions to be answered in televised format. This allowed everyone the opportunity to ask a question to a future president. The floor wasn’t just open to reporters anymore; it was open to everyone, young and old. It opened up a whole new perspective to the presidential candidates. Social Media is the people’s voice! There is so much potential for social media to become a decisive tool for the politicians. If the politicians are able to hear the voice of the people, they can modify their campaigns to reflect what the people are looking for in a leader. Social media is also a great way to connect with the younger demographic.

A recent article posted by MediaPost, discusses how competing old/new media alliances including CNN and YouTube, MTV and MySpace, ABC News and Facebook have promised to change the structure of the typical election year by mashing up traditional TV news with the social media capabilities of the Internet. Pew Research Center stated that 42% of people ranging from 18 to 29 regularly learn about the presidential campaign from the Internet.

A frightening aspect of politics has become its ability to divide rather than unite. Republican vs. Democrat. Pro-Life vs. Pro-Choice, etc. The list goes on and on. Rather than bringing people together, presidential elections have tended to cause the nation to select a political party, a strict set of beliefs, and a stance against anyone who disagrees. Yet, with the introduction of social media into the election, it has allowed people to create an open dialogue with each other.

It is my prediction that social media will be more heavily used in this year’s presidential campaigns. It will help encourage more citizens, especially younger ones, to vote and participate in this year’s election. This is the first year, where the “ordinary” voter can be heard if we choose to partake. Social Media makes it easier for all of us. Go forth and find a social community to participate in. Let your voice be heard and make a difference!

This December the term ‘Blog’ will celebrate its tenth birthday. It was this month back in 1997 where Jorn Barger started this site ‘Robot Wisdom Weblog’ that served as a daily log of interesting web links published in chronological order.

Two years later in 1999 online journal author Peter Merholz took Jorn Barger’s word “weblog” and split it into the phrase “We blog.” Blog soon became shorthand for weblog, and blogging was born.

‘Short’ Blog Time Line

1999: Blogger was founded as one of the first internet communities providing free blogs.

2002: The launch of Technorati, one of the first blog search engines, making it possible for people to track blog conversations on a continuous basis.

2004: The launch of Flickr, a photo-sharing community that helps popularize photo blogging.

2005: Garrett M. Graff becomes the first blogger to receive credentials for the daily White House briefing.

2006: Research report from the Pew Internet and American Life Project estimate that 12 million U.S. adults publish their own blogs.

2007: Technorati reports it is tracking more than 112 million blogs worldwide.

Happy Birthday ‘Blog’!