So, the latest "time-waster" to show up in the social spaces is Empire Avenue. Here's a quick breakdown: You buy & sell "shares" of people and brands; a virtual, wanna-be version of a stock market of social media personalities.

I do like the creativity, the site usability (considering the intricate nature of the platform) and most of all, the behaviors of the users within the site - that's what I'm most interested in seeing. I'm curious how people will try to leverage Empire Avenue. Influencers, Internet Celebrities, major brands and plenty of people you have never heard of, you'll see them all. But what's their purpose for playing here?

I say check it out at the very least. You can decide for yourself on the typical "why bother" question posed whenever a new concept catches fire. Sure, the "game" element is fun. The ultimate goal for Empire Avenue is obviously the in-game sales and upgrades available to the users. They want you to buy "Eaves" and spend real money to increase your portfolio value (so you can buy more shares in people) or you increase your portfolio's available cash by completing various free/paid "offers" such as buying a magazine subscription or an FTD floral arrangement.

For example, you can buy 70,000 eaves right now and get 30,000 extra eaves, for only $50. Why? Not sure. Is it worth it? Maybe, if you're trying to increase your own exposure and want to try something new and cheap. I'd like to think people like Robert Scoble and Jeremiah Owyang don't need to pay real money to claim another star on their social walk of fame. There are a few things you can do to extend your hand and play nice, such as endorsing someone's blog feed link within their profile, recommending their shares for purchase and tweeting the fact you just bought shares in someone. (And you thought checking-in on Foursquare was odd?)

It seems like a clever affiliate model leveraging social gaming techniques: social connections, awards, chat, upgrades, time-based/expiration models, etc...plus it hits on multiple ego items.

The problem is the game element itself. It'll eventually wear thin. The formula behind a users stock price, as I understand it now, rewards you for your connections and consistent sharing - not quantity of sharing. So, unless an active user like Robert Scoble hangs up his SM sharing activities, his value could be infinite. I'm curious if they'll introduce the ability to short shares as well. Let's hope they don't add margin and options functionality. Charles Dow would roll over in his grave.

Not sure what renders a person's value as overbought or oversold. (Other than zero activity and everyone selling your shares) Knowing this, could Scoble's stock become the social media share value equivalent to Berkshire Hathaway?

I have seen a few nice examples of Empire Avenue being used wisely for additional exposure. Besides brands like Toyota, Ford & Audi, Jay Baer is using it to help promote his book with Amber Nasland, "The Now Revolutions" by giving away one free copy to shareholders who tweet their purchase.

Don't give it too much thought though. It's just a game. And if you are interested, you can sign up here. Oh, and be sure to buy some shares in ERICM & ADUSA :)

Have you tried it? What do you think?

Original post appeared on the Location Based Marketing Blog

Which social content helps you get better search engine results? Links shared via Facebook or Twitter?

According to a study done by SEOmoz, the answer is a Facebook share. (according to their research)

Makes sense to me. Simply stated:

• Search engines love Facebook's content
• Search engines want to index more shared content
• Search engines are moving towards ranking content shared by influential people (They need the content first - then they'll work on ranking those who shared it)

Interestingly - no mention of the fact that Bing powers Facebook's search results. Bing recently announced they now hold a 30% share of all search activity. More content shared on Facebook ultimately means more content available within Bing...

Read more of the SEOmoz study - great info on the shaping of social search.

A while back, one of the first business books I latched on to was Jeffrey Gitomer's "Little Book" series. Strongly recommend to anyone looking for branding, inspiration and sales tips. I tried something he mentioned and have been doing it ever since - at least for 10 years now.

When someone tells me they're going on vacation, I ask them to bring me back a refrigerator magnet. They always ask if I'm serious. I always say yes.

Sure enough, when they come back, they hand me my new refrigerator magnet. Like clockwork, they ask, "Do you collect magnets?"

"Nope, just wanted you to think of me at least once during your vacation."

Last weekend at a poker game, a good friend slid a new magnet across the table to me. I didn't even know he went away. Even cooler, he bought a car at one of our stores the following day.

What are you doing to stand out and be memorable? Would love to hear other variations of your refrigerator magnet.

I love when Google shakes things up the moment you feel comfy with a new concept or strategy.

Google just launched their new +1 service which makes search results "sharable" with your Google Chat network. You're already familiar with Facebook's Like feature and Twitter's Tweet button on thrid party sites. Now, get ready to have the ability to share search results. Very interesting.

Here's an example of how +1 will appear next to the results:

Keep your eye on this - an interesting development as search and social activities take another step closer in building their connections with each other.

Here's something new I just found out about AutoTrader: Each dealership account can only have their leads sent to one (1) XML email address.

I wasn't aware of this. Ever. Were you?

Would love to hear from anyone who is experiencing anything different.

I requested two new lead delivery addresses for our autotrader leads (regular leads & credit applications) to be fed into our CMS. No can do - only one XML feed allowed. 

Catch up AutoTrader. This shouldn't be an issue.

Click image for full size.

2010 was an incredible year. Technology improvements, significant search adjustments and a deluge of progressive marketing concepts have helped remove the late adopter label for a large portion of the retail automotive community.

The tide is turning faster than ever. New strategies embraced within the retail segment are helping improve the car buying process and consumer experiences. Dealers are becoming more pro-active; they're listening and making a true difference. Dealers are positioned well for the anticipated retail recovery and consumers will continue to benefit.

After all the advances, it’s time to look ahead. 2011 is sure to deliver a fresh buffet of new strategies and technology solutions. Here's a few favorite items I'm banking on to help consumers and dealers. Plus, a couple of them are pretty cool as well.

Search. Still Supreme.

Search strategies will always be a top priority, however, this segment continues to zig and zag faster than a first-time Dodge Viper driver on wet pavement. Traders on Wall St. say the best time to sell your stock is when the taxi drivers tells you to buy it. More people than ever know how to use Google's search playbook. Google knows this and they're responding. Initial responses include the organic page layout changes, Google Places priority placement, Google instant and instant previews. Other early changes included items such as the possible death of Page Rank due to the lack of index updates in the second half of 2010. Look for greater emphasis on design and usability to help improve consumer experience and dealer conversion.  

Google and Bing are already experimenting with real-time recommendation algorithms. The consumer voice will grow stronger as their own social influence (Klout score) rank drives the position of this content to users. More consolidation between search and review sites will happen, creating greater utility under one roof vs. the scattered fragments of sites which provide these service currently. Imagine a search result page functioning more like a cross between a Facebook fan page, Google Places Page, Foursquare and Shopkick.

The importance of Google Place Pages will move beyond just it’s placement among the organic results. Greater functionality within the pages, additional rich content and, of course, the integration/inclusion of location based services will push the real-time needle further. The nearly-instant validation of the location based social experience became evident with Foursquare’s image and comment update. Note the buzz surrounding other picture sharing applications; Instagram and Picplz made a quick rush to integrate with other location based application leaders. Look for possible consolidation within this segment later in Q3 or Q4.

Part of their solution is a server module (called mod_pagespeed) which checks various speed levels, optimizes client-server round trips and even optimizes caching. Bottom line, content will appear even faster for consumers.

• Google Page Speed
• YSlow
• Gomez
• Load Impact
• Pingdom

When comparing feature phone usage vs. smart phone usage, users were twice as likely to engage with shopping/retail category applications. Additional consideration must be given to mobile’s cousin, the tablet revolution. More than a dozen tablets were reviewed at this year's Consumer Electronics Show and may even be available by the time you read this - all designed to connect more data, improve accessibility and change consumer experiences.

82% of U.S adults are active cell phone users and 43% have access to apps. This equates to an app access-rate of about 35% of the entire population, with a lower use-rate at two thirds this number, or about 25% overall. While it may seem funny that only two thirds of smart phone users actually use any applications at all, this is a significant number of people who are changing the way that they engage with mobile technology.

Keynote speakers, workshops, client meetings, vendor booths, casual lunches, classy dinners, vendor parties, VIP gatherings and more. So much to do at NADA 2011 in San Francisco.

Everyone wants to see it all, nobody wants to miss a thing and no one wants to leave feeling like they missed the "good stuff." Here's a quick list of some of the hottest new tools behind the micro-trend centered around helping improve group communications, social activities and relationship building.

• GroupMe: Free, private group text application with the ability to name your groups, add unlimited users, add/delete users, share photos and also mute the group if needed. (I have a group created for NADA 2011 with 15 members already - shoot me your cell # if you'd like to be added as well)

• Beluga: Another free private group text application with the same feature set plus the ability to mark your location - a nice addition. Groups within this app are "Pods."

• Fast Society: More private group activity here. Neat feature: The ability to create an expiration date for the group...no unwanted texts after the event if you happen to forget to remove yourself.

• Yobongo: Same deal here...only problem with Yobongo is the fact they've been very slow to issue invite codes. A lot of pre-launch buzz surrounding this app.

• Hashable: This is positioned simply as a fun, new way of tracking the new people you meet. Which is something we'll all be doing at NADA 2011. It also tracks the strength of those connections based on your activity. Very simple - when tweeting, use a hashtag with specific activity such as: #intro, #breakfast, #coffee, #lunch, #dinner, #beers, #with, #justmet. (For other hasthags, just use: cc @hashable to track the connection)

• Plancast: Plancast helps you find out about events and other social activities ahead of time so you don't miss out on them. Use this to plan your NADA 2011 events and workshops Link your profile to your social profiles to ensure everyone can see your plan & get involved. Connect with me on Plancast

• Instagram: A great free mobile photo sharing app. Share your pictures of NADA 2011. Cool filter features help customize your photos; link your profile to your social profiles as well.

• Picplz: Another neat mobile photosharing app with with the similar features.

• CarZar: I'd be out of mind if I didn't mention CarZar - the 1st location based automotive photosharing app. There should be a decent crop of cool rides on display at NADA 2011 - everyone will take photos of them, why not share them within the one community created specifically for the automotive enthusiast?

Know of others?

How do you plan on making sure you see the good stuff at NADA 2011?

Millions of people are checking into location based marketing applications. Why?

As more people use these services, more people will undoubtedly ask this question. People still ask why they should use twitter though. Similar thoughts…follow along.

Foursquare wants users to check-in to “change they way we experience cities.” For this to happen, the location itself needs to participate with the platform. We’re still a long way from mass acceptance; fortunately, the momentum has begun and the inertia is in place.

However, another trend has emerged: using the check-in as a means to update your network with your activity.

This is simply moving the needle backwards by creating more noise within Foursquare. Twitter & Facebook included if the updates are pushed.

Location based marketing’s true utility lies in it’s ability to help promote specific locations, create new engagement layers for their visitors and provide valuable information in the form of recommendations, reviews & tips for others.

If businesses fail to adopt these concepts, the process fails.

It can also fail if visitors just update their check-in status with their own personal note and comments, the risk of pings being turned off increases. If I commented on each check-in with an update about my own personal activites, I would expect people to tune out. (Nobody wants to receive an update of what you’re having for lunch that now includes additional info about your old roommate plus a map AND and picture.)

However, if the updates include relevant reviews and tips, the content suddenly becomes more useful. A great local example is Tara Z. and her updates from Lovin’ Cup. Her check-in’s include specials, event news and even real-time updates about what’s happening there. (Her updates have actually driven my wife & I to go there)

And unfortunately, the business probably doesn’t even realize the marketing benefit she’s providing…

Thoughts?

Original post: Location Based Marketing Blog

Everyone uses text messages within their stores as a method of communicating. Here's a great free group chat tool that has so many usage possibilities: Beluga. Imagine creating user groups for sales people, the service dept. & management to send group message & notifications. Groups, or "pods", are easy to use as are the rest of the features within the app's smart UI. (as expected - the app was created by three former Google employees) Added features include the ability to add your location and images to the messages. Beluga can be downloaded for free for iPhone & Android. Give it a try - what other group uses within a dealership can you find?