Whatever you decide, Plurk is a really cool service. When asked to review this service I had never actually heard of it (I know, shock!) so I went over and checked it out. Signing up literally took just a few seconds and there was none of that pesky “Verify your email” business. I hate having to wait around for an email to verify that I actually signed up. How many times have I been waiting for an email and simply got bored and never came back. Plurk has given me that sense of “instant gratification”. I was immediately impressed with the way the site was designed. By using a horizontal layout rather than a vertical one, it seemed to me at least, to be the most natural thing in the world. The second thing that really got my attention is the attention to detail that was taken in the design and layout of the page. The colors are very pleasing to the eye and I really love the “prettiness” of the site. It is very inviting and makes full use of the web 2.0 features!
Plurk doesn’t just work on your home computer but now you can even use it on your mobile phone. Granted the layout isn’t as nice (mainly because of the limitations of mobile browsers) but it is still very intuitive and easy to use (http://plurk.com/m). Unlike Twitter though is the current inability to use SMS to post plurks. This is a serious limitation and one that I really hope they address in the near future.
Another very nice feature is the ability to group your friends into cliques with the ability to limit each clique to certain aspects of your timeline. You can send plurks to specific cliques or to your entire friend list. Also the more friends you invite the more appreciation that Plurk shows in the form of stars. If you sing up 10 friends you get a silver star attached to your avatar. 25 friends get you a gold star and 50 friends get you a red star. This is a feature that is lacking in other social networking groups. I have a couple hundred friends in Facebook but no little stars!
If you want to add an image, picture, video, even a YouTube video to your plurk you are able to. The interface determines if you have given a URL to a graphic or video and automatically generates a thumbnail image for you. One feature I’m not sure I will get used to or not is “qualifiers”. When you go to site via your cell phone or your PC and you start to enter your latest plurk you are presented with qualifiers such as “Thinks, Likes, Hates, Loves, Wants, Wishes, Hopes” etc. These are also color-coded to represent moods. This is interesting but what if you don’t want to use a qualifier? Fortunately the “A-Team”, or so they call their designers, thought of that and allow you to “freestyle”. Another feature that I think is a bit outdated is karma. You get more karma by using the site, adding plurks, inviting friends, etc. They have added a twist to karma by “unlocking” various features based upon how high your karma gets. We all start out as “You are in the state of creation” and the people with the most karma get “You have reached Plurk Nirvana!” It might be awhile before I reach Plurk Nirvana, but one thing is certain—I want to plurk more!

]]> http://www.seopulse.com/2008/11/plurk-twitter-and-pownce/feed/ 42 http://www.seopulse.com/2008/11/how-to-benefit-from-social-media-marketing/ http://www.seopulse.com/2008/11/how-to-benefit-from-social-media-marketing/#comments Mon, 10 Nov 2008 09:23:09 +0000 admin http://www.seopulse.com/2008/08/how-to-benefit-from-social-media-marketing/ Before we can even discuss the benefits of social media marketing we first need to understand just what the heck it is! These days terms such as SEO (Search Engine Optimization), and SMM (Social Media Marketing) are being thrown around and just about nobody knows just exactly what they are. This article won’t get into the whole SEO debate but we will take a look at SMM. SMM in a nutshell is using social networks such as Twitter, Facebook, Myspace, or Blogger to sell your product or to promote your cause! SMM is less of direct advertising in the form of ads and more in the direction of conversational/word of mouth advertising. If you ask traditional marketers about the importance of effectiveness of SMM you will get the old line that it is unproven or untested. SMM does require some effort and if you don’t understand the pros and cons of SMM before using it you could be disappointed.

There are a few essential things you need to do in order to make SMM work for you:

• Let your customers do the work – In an older context it was very important for the seller to communicate with the buyer and “sell” the buyer on the benefits of your product. Many hours could easily be wasted trying to convince potential buyers that your product was the best thing since sliced bread. This is no longer the accepted paradigm. Any successful internet marketer will tell you the most effective strategy is to get your existing customers talking to your prospective customers. I can tell you just how effective this is myself. I have several clients who are my biggest evangelists and bring me more business than I can ever find for myself. Just the other day I was at a meeting of local business owners and when the subject of my business came up (not mine specifically) one of my current customers said very vehemently that if they wanted things done right to come to me. I was a little embarrassed by this since the service I had performed wasn’t that substantial but the end result was I gained five new customers. These were customers that I had to do absolutely nothing to get! By doing a good job on your service or product your customers will promote you better than you can! Conversely if you do a bad job you will lose even more prospective customers because bad news spreads faster and further than good news.

• Get people talking – Getting people to start talking isn’t all that difficult. Just suggesting a topic to someone can get a whole conversation going. Try it when you get a chance. It is quite simple to do! The hard part is directing that conversation toward your product or cause. This requires a bit more thought but can be done if you are willing to make the investment. So-called content marketing is using relationships to get your message across. Content marketing uses tools that are already around to people who are interested in hearing from you. By using opt-in services such as blogs, podcasts, videos and vlogs you can broadcast your message to thousands of potential customers. The key is the relationship. Make yourself known on these sites and let people become acquainted with you. Then when they need a product that you sell you are the first person they think of.

• Discuss your product in a human voice – this might sound odd but it is very important! The best salespeople in the world are ones that can relate to you in a personal way. They have a story to tell and it draws you in, makes you curious, and makes you more eager to buy. You are asking someone to buy your service or product so be human with them! Good writing skills are important here as you want people to relate to you. Some might call this the snake-oil tactic of selling but it does in fact work! Your customer will respond to an amazing and authentic story faster than one that is filled with simple information. Soothe your potential clients ears!

There is no doubt that SMM requires some effort to actually be effective but it can be very effective if you are willing to invest the time necessary. Think back to some of the things you bought. Did you buy the product that simply listed its specs and was written in a very formal style? Or did you select the product that spoke straight to you? It is more likely you chose the latter, and your customers will too!