Archive for May, 2008

TWITTER, AND THE WILDLIFE OF A KENYAN BLOGGER

Kimojino

*Joseph Kimojino, blogger, Kenyan native, and member of the Masai tribe, uses various social media to draw attention to a serious cause.

Taken from Wired.com

“Kenya’s wildlife is seriously threatened by poaching, except in parks like the Mara Triangle, which employs rangers to protect animals. The rangers’ salaries are paid from park fees, but tourism has dropped 90 percent. To keep the conservancy running, the park’s online outreach needs to raise $50,000 a month until the tourists return…”

Widespread violence following Kenya’s latest election has led to this serious decline which the Mara Triangle Wildlife Park relies on to function. In an effort to keep the operation running and protect the lives of thousands of wild animals, the conservatory has launched an online outreach effort, utilizing social media tools such as Flickr, Facebook, Twitter, Vimeo, and its own blog to raise awareness.

So far, the online outreach has been successful, raising over $40,000 in donations from the blog, $2,000 from his Facebook page, and additional help from the sale of ad space on the blog to safari companies. The rest comes from individual donations from people all over the world.

You can check out Kimojino’s blog about wild animals and his life as veteran ranger at the Mara Triangle Wildlife Park where you can also make one-time or monthly donations. He also posts photos of wild animals to his Flickr page, uploads interesting videos to Vimeo, and tweets up a storm in an effort to raise money for the park.

WAYS YOU CAN USE SOCIAL RESOURCES TO HELP SPREAD AWARENESS FOR YOUR CAUSE:

  • Make a Facebook group
  • Get volunteers to Twitter on the job
  • Use LinkedIn or other professional networks to help find sponsors
  • Create a MySpace profile and make friends with others interested in your cause
  • Comment on other relevant blog or article posts
  • Write about your cause and send it to bloggers who focus on your topic
  • Make a video about your cause and upload it to YouTube

WHO’S THE PREGNANT ONE?

pregnant WHOS THE PREGNANT ONE?

We’re pleased to announce that our Word of Mouth Services Director, Mrs. Crystalyn Stuart, is pregnant. We’re not sure whether it’s a boy or a girl yet, but we’re nearly positive that he/she will come out WOM’ing. Congratulations to Crystalyn and her husband!

In other news, Ryan Goff has joined a gym. We wish him the best of luck.

TWITTER BREAKS NEWS OF EARTHQUAKE

 TWITTER BREAKS NEWS OF EARTHQUAKE

Earlier this week, everyday people knew about the devastating earthquake in China before the media even broke the news, thanks to Twitter.

Several people in China used their cell phones to post Twitter updates as the earthquake was happening, spreading word of the disaster instantaneously.

Robert Scoble, a Twitterer and world-famous tech blogger, reported the earthquake to his followers “before the USGS website had a report up and about an hour before CNN or any major press started talking about it” according to his personal blog.

Twitter was used as a way for survivors to let friends and family around the world know that they were safe. After the quake, Twitter was used as a way to show support for those affected, with updates like “Tomorrow evening at 2200, all university student dormitories will have lights off for three minutes as a mark of respect for people who died. Hope it gets support and if you agree with me, spread it around,” according to bbc news.

This event has brought a lot of mainstream attention to Twitter, fueling discussions that it might be the fastest way to cover breaking news.

And here are 101 other everyday uses for the service.

Follow MGH WOM on Twitter: @ryanatmghwom

LINKEDIN…AND WHY YOU SHOULD CARE

pic logo 119x32 LINKEDIN...AND WHY YOU SHOULD CARE

Each week, you probably get about 5 emails asking you to join LinkedIn or accept someone’s connection invitation. Annoying, we know.

But if you’re deleting these emails and ignoring the invitations, you’re missing out on a huge opportunity for both yourself and your business.

This entry isn’t about the top ten ways LinkedIn can help you personally (because it’s already been done). Rather, MGH is here to make sure you know how much it’s growing, why it’s changing the business world, and how to you might be able take advantage of its potential.

Growth

In a recent report on US social networking sites, Nielsen reported that LinkedIn’s unique monthly audience has increased over 300% from just a year ago to almost 8 million. This positions the business network as the fourth most popular social network in the nation, trailing behind MySpace, Facebook, and Classmates Online.

How LinkedIn is changing the business world

LinkedIn is the new way to network. Rather than attending local networking events - packed full of 30-somethings who uncomfortably stand around and sip on their apple martinis - business professionals are using the site to connect with those who matter most to their corporate life.

The site holds particular potential for those directly involved in sales, as LinkedIn offers the opportunity to look up prospects, businesses, interests, connections, etc. It’s a more efficient and targeted means of cold calling.

How to take advantage

  • Sign up, build your profile, and encourage coworkers to join
  • Grow your network by connecting with LinkedIn’s top connected individuals
  • Feel free to ask for introductions (through mutual connections) to people you wish to connect with
  • Get noticed:
  • Ask/answer questions in the Q&A section
  • Write recommendations for former business associates
  • Update your status on a regular basis
  • Check out prospective:
  • Employees - find out who they worked for, what their recommendations say, and if you have any mutual connections
  • Clients - determine what you have in common, explore possible business connections

Also note that in the time that it took you to read those suggestions, you’ve probably missed 3 to 4 new LinkedIn connection emails. So go get on the site and start connecting.

And for more LinkedIn tips, feel free to email or IM us at any time (AIM: mghwom).

WEB TWO POINT…OHHHHH

Just stumbled across this video about the past, present, and future of the web. Some of it’s a little complex, but it does give a well-rounded explanation of how forward-thinking has changed the way we interact online.

YouTube Preview Image

SOCIETY FOR WORD OF MOUTH


Visit Society for Word of Mouth
Here at MGH, we’re all about idea sharing and opening discussions as they relate to the Word of Mouth industry.  A new social network, called the Society for Word of Mouth, has helped to facilitate this open dialog and has made it kind of fun.Started by Ben McConnell and Jackie Huba of the Church of the Customer Blog (read this, if you’re not already!!!), SWOM now has 700 members from around the world. These WOM advocates share client case studies, best practices, and general advice with other site members.

Much like other social networks of its kind, SWOM lets members create their own profiles, participate in discussion boards, upload images/video, and message other members.

We highly recommend joining the site and getting to know the other players keeping track of the Word of Mouth industry.  And, if you’re in the area, be sure to add yourself to our “Baltimore SWOM’ies” group.