Archive | Podcast
It’s show number 22, and we’re starting to show our age around here — we spent at least the first few minutes of this episode debating the ins and outs of daylight saving time. We never quite landed on whether we’re currently in daylight saving time or if we’ll be in daylight saving time in a few weeks, but we did agree that the object of the game always seems to be to save a little daylight.
visit IntoOutdoors.com
Our guest this week is Josh Bell, the founder of IntoOutdoors.com, a specialized social network for hunters and anglers. The site has only been live for about a month, and already it has 300 active members. Josh talked to us about the goals and plans for the site in the next year, what it’s been like trying (for four long years) to bring his idea to fruition and, to that end, his relationship with LaunchMemphis. (Particularly topical, of course, with 48 Hour Launch happening this weekend.)
Aside from our time with Josh, we also offer some highlights from the Core Conversations at this week’s March Social Expedition breakfast, which focused on social metrics and blogging.
In the social metrics conversation, the talk went across the board from how to start and install Google Analytics to measuring Twitter impact (check out oneforty.com) and tracking shortened URL clicks (through sites like bit.ly, 3.ly, tr.im and bud.url).
The blogging discussion centered more around the creation of unique and fresh content — Matthew said much of it was spurred on by a comment made by our speaker, the Memphis CVB’s Kerry Crawford Trisler, that it takes her two hours to do a typical blog post. The bloggers talked about the time constraints they face while still trying to keep things as updated and content-rich as possible. A possible solution offered up was the idea of guest blogging, which can also be an excellent tool in promoting your blog and your brand to a new audience of readers.
Download the podcast here, listen with the player below, or click the iTunes logo to subscribe.
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It’s as busy as ever before at the Social Expedition news desk, particularly in the legal department. Some headlines we talk about:
- Google executives convicted in association with YouTube bullying video
- Google conviction affects Internet workers
- Yelp sued over extortion
In the cracks in between those topics, Matthew and Ansley share examples of how customers who are converted are the most loyal, and Matthew busts out some serious opinions about obscenity and Apple’s decision to clear the App Store of explicit content.
All that and more happen in the main section of this week’s podcast.
Our guest this week was Kerry Crawford Trisler, better known to some, she reports to us, as “That Girl With the Blog.” You might more officially know her as the human being behind the @ILoveMemphis Twitter handle and related web and social presences, notably the I Love Memphis blog.
Elizabeth Cawein, Dave Barger, Kerry and Matthew Crawford Trisler
Crawford Trisler talked to us about her role at the Memphis Convention and Visitors’ Bureau, where she’s technically known as “social media specialist” — she lets us in on the myriad ways that title just can’t quite capture a typical day on the job.
We also talked to Kerry about her favorite tools and platforms, the evolution of the CVB’s social philosophy and how she measures their social footprint. Though Kerry’s techniques are a bit more analog, it’s a topic we’ll be diving into this week on The Core Conversation.
We’re hoping to pull in representatives from some different firms who have tools on the market for measuring social analytics to weigh in on the podcast. Either way, we want to hear from you, as always – how do you measure social interactions? Or is it like trying to nail Jell-O to a tree? You tell us, Friday at 11:30 a.m. CDT. Call in at 646-721-9429 or listen live here.
And of course, join us for next week’s Expedition breakfast. It’s already March? We know, it can’t be — but it is. So be there to hear more from Kerry, who’ll be joining us as our guest speaker. You can RSVP and learn more through MeetUp.
Download the podcast here, listen with the player below, or click the iTunes logo to subscribe.
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The Expedition podcast is almost of legal drinking age – this week marks episode no. 20. Hopefully you’ll forgive us for being stuck on Buzz again this week, as we talk about all the various ways Google has managed to disappoint us recently.
But it’s not all bad! We’re joined this week by a new member of our team, Ansley Fones, and our guest Jonathan Lyons, public relations and marketing coordinator for the Peabody Hotel in downtown Memphis. Jonathan gave us the scoop on how the Peabody is using social technologies to create community among its guests and among Memphians, including crowd-sourcing ideas for the perennially popular Peabody rooftop parties. You can find the Peabody on Facebook and Twitter.
Dave Barger, Elizabeth Cawein, Jonathan Lyons, Matthew Crawford Trisler
Also in this episode you’ll hear our thoughts on some new random chat services, particularly ChatRoulette and Omegle. While Elizabeth is creeped out by the very idea, Matthew and Ansley throw in some ideas on how the random chat concept could be a great addition to the social scene with the right tweaks and filters. Of course, Matthew’s opinion may have been influenced by this potato chip bear, shown to him by someone from an Omegle chat.
Be sure to join us this Friday for the Core Conversation, happening at the usual time (11:30 CDT) and in the usual place (listen here or call in at 646-721-9429). We’ll be talking about everything new and next in social business, including the possible uses of Google Buzz, new social features in Outlook and other platforms like Chatter. Next week’s Expedition podcast will feature Kerry Crawford Trisler, better known as @ILoveMemphis on Twitter, who will also be joining us at our March Expedition breakfast. (RSVP here.)
Download the podcast here, listen with the player below, or click the iTunes logo to subscribe.
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On this week’s podcast we do our best to answer the question that’s been on everyone’s mind. And no, it has nothing to do with old Facebook, its whereabouts or when it’s coming back. (Although we do touch on our gripes about the new layout, too.)
No, we spent just about all of this week’s podcast talking about Google Buzz. We couldn’t help ourselves, since Google has pretty much gotten all up in everybody’s Kool-Aid with this one. It’s location based, it’s social, it’s a status updater, it’s an auto-friend-finder, it probably folds your clothes and tells you your butt looks fat in those jeans.
Dave Barger, Elizabeth Cawein, Bob Hazlett, Matthew Crawford Trisler
We recorded our first segment prior to our interview with this week’s guest, digital marketer and blogger Bob Hazlett (@OneHalfAmazing). So you’ll get to hear us before and after Buzz — though Matthew had it on his iPhone yesterday morning, Dave and Elizabeth’s Droids weren’t hip to the new fad. But by the time Bob joined us we’d all gotten our coveted Buzz invitation screen, so we spent some time chatting about it with him, too.
We also talked to Bob about his recent entry into the iPhone app store with a dedicated app for his blog, OneHalfAmazing.com.
Don’t forget to join us for the Core Conversation, happening at the same time and same place as usual — 11:30 a.m. CDT here or by calling in at 646-721-9429 — when we’ll be talking about more social enterprise topics and also how social technologies have influenced dating and relationships.
Download the podcast here, listen with the player below, or click the iTunes logo to subscribe.
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If you’ve ever wondered how to make your passwords more secure, needed the answer for a random question or pondered the sentiments of the Twitterverse on one topic or another, this week’s podcast is for you.
In light of the recent Twitter phishing attack, we talk torrents as well as plug-ins and features of different browsers that will help you create and keep track of multiple safe passwords. Dave introduces us to Aardvark, a site that allows a user to enter areas of expertise (as well as physical location) to make themselves a resource to other users looking for answers to questions.
We also talked a lot of Memphis in this episode, including a trip over to TweetFeel, where we found that 52 percent of recent tweets about our beloved city were, in fact, positive. Hopefully that number will skyrocket tomorrow with the Spirit of Memphis kick-off pep rally; we’ll be there and blogging!
Our guest this week, Memphis’ most web-savvy Realtor Joe Spake, gave us some hope for the home-buying market but also shared with us his social experiences with the Center for Southern Folklore and his thoughts on the demise of Memphis landmark the Zippin’ Pippin.
We’ll be podcasting live tomorrow as usual for the Core Conversation, so be sure to join us at 11:30 a.m. CDT by calling in to 646-721-9429 or listening along here. The topic this week is social tools for the enterprise.
Download the podcast here, listen with the player below, or click the iTunes logo to subscribe.
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We’re not typically ones for the bandwagon, but when it comes to iPad jokes, we just couldn’t help ourselves. We touch on its utilities, dip our toe in the iPod Touch v. iPad debate and skim through some of its features, sure. But mostly? Like the classic Seinfeld line, we’re left wondering about the marketing geniuses who came up with that one.
Elizabeth, Beth Sanders, Matthew, and Dave
It’s not all jokes this week, though, as we talk about the inundation of the White House Facebook fan page in advance of last night’s State of the Union address and the Edelman Trust Barometer. Dave explains that the folks at Edelman release a study every year around the concept of consumer trust. Apparently Chinese consumers have more trust in American corporations than Americans do (ouch), and in 2010 a high-earning company does not necessarily earn automatic high marks. In the past, success has been fairly easily equated with trust; this year’s study reveals that our attitudes on that are changing.
And as corporations look to enhance trust in their brands, no doubt they’ll be looking to social media for solutions this year — a recent study shows that social is the top priority for marketers in 2010. It feels like a “duh!” moment for Elizabeth, but Dave notes that this shift is something to be wary of, as more megaphones are likely to appear and begin broadcasting messages on these channels.
And of course, if you haven’t heard about Google Xistence, it might just be the next best thing in virtual living.
This week our guest was Beth Sanders, a communications guru and self-proclaimed geek. As Dave points out, she’s the uber-early adopter, so we picked her brain about what she’s been into lately. What we got back was a laundry list of location-based services to check out: GoWalla, CauseWorld (which allows you to earn “karma points” that translate to real dollars for charity), Whrrl, Loopt and of course, FourSquare. We also opined a little bit about the possibilities awaiting us with the upcoming tablet announcement since we sat down with Beth prior to the unveiling of the iPad. (Giggle.)
We wrap things up with some very intellectual discussion on the virtues and pitfalls of cupcakes, but mostly about a cool local kid who’s selling them to raise money for Haiti. You can find him on Facebook. We also touch on our upcoming events, like next week’s breakfast (featuring our own Dave Barger speaking on social tools for the enterprise) plus this week’s Core Conversation, which goes down at 11:30 CDT on Friday as usual. We’ll be talking about what to do if you get hacked, and you can join us by calling 646-721-9429, or you can listen live here.
Download the podcast here, listen with the player below, or click the iTunes logo to subscribe.
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This is our 16th episode. We’re growing up so fast – and Elizabeth still hasn’t gotten the hovercar somebody promised her. And while we’re coming of age, social media shows no signs of stopping its growth and constant reinvention.
The Consumer Electronics Show (CES) took place recently, and the nascent gadget freaks in us await January’s unveiling of shiny new toys as though it were Christmas proper. Everyone wants in on the act.
Even Google and Apple unveiled or are unveiling new products this month, and though the true identity of Apple’s product won’t be known until it’s announced Jan. 27, everyone seems to think they know what it is.
While we’ve been telling people for a long time to go ahead and grab the Twitter username you want before someone else does, it seems that Twitter will soon begin releasing usernames that seem to have been abandoned.
If they delete and release these usernames all at once, expect there to be an absolutely insane landgrab, like when Facebook suddenly allowed custom usernames and URLs.
Unfortunately, when it comes to usernames, you can’t always get what you want. But if you try canonical URLs, you’ll get what you need – an easy way to tell your audience how to find your social presence.
Elizabeth Cawein, Matthew Crawford Trisler, Eric Mathews, and Dave Barger
Eric Mathews stopped by our office to drop some knowledge on us about how two Mercury Technology Labs startups – Marks Menus and Into Outdoors – are leveraging social technologies to achieve their goals and provide functionality.
Eric notes that if Memphis wants to maintain a vibrant entrepreneurial community, then what’s going on in that community needs the city’s attention.
The Memphis Flyer gets that – and “20 Under 30,” the cover story of their latest issue, takes that idea to the general public. The story focuses on 20 of the most influential Memphians, most of whom bring attention to how great it can be to live here – and at least two of them are local social luminaries.
Stephen Hackett made the list – not for his “#gojgo” campaign, like Matthew says in the podcast (he hadn’t seen the paper yet, just the list of who was on it) – but for a post on his blog, Fork Bombr, about how if we want Memphis to be a better place, we need to take responsibility for making it so.
And there’s @ILoveMemphis herself, Kerry Crawford Trisler, married to our own Matthew Crawford Trisler (whose heart beats faster at just the sound of her name). Her efforts on Twitter, Facebook, Flickr and the I Love Memphis Blog have earned her not just a spot on the Flyer’s list, but the cover.
Congratulations to everyone on the list – that’s a big honor, and you all deserve it!
Please join us tomorrow – Friday – for the Core Conversation podcast. This time around we’ll be talking about Creative Commons, Copyright/Copyleft issues, and promoting music online with the Creative Commons Foundation and Eric Maskol, who wrote our crazy-catchy theme music.
Do take some time between 11:30 and 12:30 to join us. You can call in to the Core Conversation at 646-721-9429.
As for the Social Expedition Podcast we’ve been talking about all this time, you can Download it here, listen in the player at the bottom of this post, or click the iTunes logo to subscribe.
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We’re all Google-y eyed for our 15th show, talking about Google’s recent stand off with the Chinese government and a patent that might see the company placing real-time ads into your street view in the near future.
But it wasn’t all about Google — we gave Facebook a little attention as well, mostly because lately Dave can’t stop talking about the Suicide Machine. Facebook has blocked access to the service, so if you want to delete your Facebook presence you’ve still got to do it the old-fashioned way. Dave sees this as a potentially big faux pas on the part of our friends at Facebook — Marky Z, as Dave calls him — but we’re not all in agreement on that point.
And of course, our guest this week is the lovely Rachel Hurley — perhaps better known to some of you as Rachel And The City — who manages the social media happenings at Ardent. She talks to us about the evolution of social media in band promotion at Ardent, but also lots of stuff she’s learned along the way, from the true value of Twitter to finding the right kind of followers.
Be sure to join us tomorrow as usual for the Core Conversation, kicking off at 11:30 a.m. CDT. We’re talking about the recent Social Fresh conference in Nashville as well as online privacy — when was the last time you had a look under the hood of your Facebook profile to see just what the man knows about you? Call and weigh in at (646) 721-9429 or listen live here.
You can download the podcast, stream it via the player below, or subscribe in iTunes.
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Here’s the consensus in our office: 2010 is pronounced “twenty-ten.”
Today we’re talking about snow days – Elizabeth apparently got out of school for rain once.
"Snow Elvis Statue" by mrbrent62 on Flickr
We’re also talking about something you might do during your day off – the Facebook’s Community Council – helping to police for offensive content on Facebook through crowdsourcing.
You might also want to drink something warm, like coffee – and Google’s new Caffeine search engine algorithm may or may not be released, but it’s certainly going to affect the way social activity reflects in your search engine rankings.
But what’s kind of lame about snow days is that they make it difficult to get out and mingle with friends – say, at tweetups like the one we had Tuesday at South of Beale, welcoming Jeremiah Owyang to Memphis for a brief stay, or to our Social Expedition Breakfasts, like the one Wednesday, where Eric Mathews presented.
Rather than drive to events like that in snowy weather, it might be safer to just call a good friend. Thom Rigsby, for example, joined us on the phone from Huntsville, Ala., where he lives and works as a blogger and social media strategist.
We talked with him about the importance of getting out and meeting people in meatspace, and what he thinks 2010 will bring to the social sphere.
Don’t forget that the Core Conversation call-in podcast will start back up on Friday – We’ll be talking about the rise of the Mobile Web.
You can download the podcast, listen by clicking the player below, or subscribe in iTunes by clicking on the logo below.
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Matthew Crawford Trisler, Rick Tarrant, Dave Barger
So that’s it for 2009, huh? We’re marking the end of the decade with a new face voice in your ear, some makeshift electronic repair, and a look back at the year’s trending topics on Twitter.
While it seems that social news has kind of drifted out of focus until the end of the year, with favor being given to the traditional end of the year list, there has been word about the very likely Google Phone – the Nexus One – and Google’s press event coming up on Jan. 5.
We also introduce our new intern, Shannon. She’s cool, knowledgeable, and most importantly, shares our expeditionary spirit.
We got so caught up in talking to Shannon, about the requirements for being a social media expert, the concept of 1000 true fans, and what she’s studying, that it ended up taking up almost half of the episode.
We brought in Rick Tarrant of Rick Tarrant Productions for the second half of the episode, and Rick’s trying to find his place in social media and podcasting after a career in radio – just listening to his voice, you can tell that he earned his keep as a radio guy.
He shares with us what he’s been learning, and how. There’s a great wealth of recommended reading and listening to be gleaned from Rick’s interview, from Leo Laporte to Gary Vaynerchuk.
As you go about getting your 2010 underway, keep in mind that we’ll have Eric Mathews from Mercury Technology Labs and Launch Memphis as our guest at the Jan. 6 Social Expedition Breakfast.
We’ll also pick up the Core Conversation podcast again on Jan. 8th, after a holiday-enforced break.
And keep your eyes peeled – we’ll be having a tweetup on Jan. 5, welcoming Jeremiah Owyang to Memphis. Details will be announced shortly.
You can, as usual, download the podcast, play it by clicking the the player below, or subscribe in iTunes.
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