Positioning Your Online Presence Above the Data Deluge
This is a companion piece from an earlier article on why data noise emanating from the feedreaders, Friendfeed and Twitter is good for you. It was sparked by a sentence written by Om Malik on GigaOM tonight about Data Deluge:
We’re confusing noise with information, and information with useful information... and he urged me to focus GigaOM on being not just another information resource but an actionable wisdom resource.For business blogs, one key mission is to impart knowledge to readers, quite often in the delivery or commentary of breaking news. Twitter is a great broadcast tool with loads of personality, but inefficient as a wisdom resource. Why? Too much noise from casual conversation. I tend to look more closely at the tweets of @mashable, @pkedrosky, @guykawasaki, @jowyang and @morganb among others because they tend to eschew the small talk and throw out tidbits that make you think.
Here are four efficient steps for using social media to build a wisdom resource platform:
- Become a "reader hub" by sharing interesting articles and breaking news via Twitter, Google Reader, Del.icio.us, Friendfeed, Stumbleupon, Digg and other social bookmarking applications. Time spent: 10-60 seconds each citation.
- As you share articles, you become more informed about what impacts your business, the markets - real estate, Wall Street, consumer, and your community and region.
Become a wisdom hub by explaining breaking news and providing
perspective to interesting articles. Note the topical relationships, paradoxes and oddities that spark an aha moment. Time spent: 30-60 minutes per blog post.
- Occasionally create "anchor" articles that become referenced and bookmarked data points, for example 1000 Watt's Real Estate 2.0 Map or my recent Twitter/Friendfeed slideshow . Time spent: lots of hours.
- Unless (or even though) you're a Twitter addict, keep focused on providing data value even within the context of your conversations. The relationship building will come in time (that's what social networks are for).
it's interesting how much you like twiter. I go there....I look but I'm not finding the groove.
Am I a loser?
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lol Kevin, Twitter is hard to get, frankly it seems frivolous... the reason I like it is because it's positioned, along with Friendfeed, as an online form of broadcast media that will eventually and inevitably be integrated into the mass media. I try to explain these ideas in this slide presentation and in the blog post Why Twitter is Potentially a Mainstream Media Killer App
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Great article, Pat. Good reminder of the value of these tools when used well.
I've just retweeted it, dugg it and propelled it.
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Appreciations Scott... you have the start of fine investment blog at www.Investor-Secrets.com.
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Thanks Pat. Except my blog is www.investing-secrets.com
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Arggh! I meant that
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I came across your profile on "my blog log". I have enjoyed your blogs.
My colleagues from my personal site have bookmarked it and are reading it regularly!
I finding it a challenge to keep up to date with all the blog/furums and posting/replying to folks.
The upcoming Inman Real Estate Expo should be a wealth of information.
Keep up the awesome information!
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Decent tips, but they are just tips.
There isn't a "right way" to use twitter any more than we have a "right way" to us a telephone.
Most of the telephone (or any) conversations that happen in a day are nonsense.
Compare Twitter to a crowded airport. Lots of very interesting conversations going on, many would allow you to listen in if there were a socially acceptable way (there is, it's called Twitter).
But would you ever go down to the airport just to listen in?
Filter it, ignore it, save it for important stuff, or join in and have some fun.
If you are interesting, I'll be following you.
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Exactly true... these "tips" are just from the perspective of the noise-sensitive Twitter reader (me). Frankly, I do enjoy the conversations and witty ramblings of @respres, @laniar, @ines and @geekmommy, small talk can be entertaining...
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Where's the beef?
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I think I started twitter due to a post of your a few weeks back. I have a hard time making mixing personal with business online. My thoughts were twitter would help pull me into more of the social aspect of online communication. So far I read the blogs that get posted centered around biz and feel a tad funny when I twit about something personal I'm doing. Growing pains or twit twinges I guess.
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Great article ! I really enjoy reading your posts.
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... "For business blogs, one key mission is to impart knowledge to readers, quite often in the delivery or commentary of breaking news. Twitter is a great broadcast tool with loads of personality, but inefficient as a wisdom resource. Why? Too much noise from casual conversation."
Heaven knows I try to be more along the lines of a Guy Kawasaki, but sometimes you just get sucked into those long tweet conversations, ya know?
I am checking Friendfeed out, though, to see what that's all about.
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