Gary Vaynerchuk on Twitter

Just wanted to quick post this excellent description of Twitter by super-duper social media master Gary Vaynerchuk.  He explains why Twitter is so powerful and game-changing in a very short video:

 

Taken from iReport.com.  I love Gary – he gets it.

Buzzwords: And a 1.0, 2.0, 3.0...

Depending on how involved you are with the web, you may or may not have heard the terms given to the various web "movements."  We are currently living in the Web 2.0 movement and rapidly approaching Web 3.0.  Speaking of which, I am wondering what happened to 2.1, 2.2, etc.  But I will save that research for another time.

So what do these numbers mean?  I'll try to give you a short description and examples of each, and you can figure out where your existing online presence falls.

Web 1.0 is the static web.  A Web 1.0 site exists on it's own, with no interaction from users or other sites.  It might look good, contain relevant information, but it really doesn't do anything that involves the user.  A plain brochure site would be considered Web 1.0.

Web 2.0 is a move towards a more interactive, user-driven web.  Sites now have a social element and often base some or all of their information on user-provided content.  YouTube is a great example of Web 2.0 because it is entirely driven by user content.  Facebook is another example with it's social networking aspect.  Even Amazon.com is very Web 2.0 with it's dependence on customer reviews and ratings.  The interfaces of Web 2.0 are also much more interactive and AJAX-driven.  AJAX allows for things like drag-n-drop functionality and smoother interaction with the site.

The new kid on the block is Web 3.0.  To me, Web 3.0 involves a push towards a limitless, machine-independent web.  Basically, the web is your computing interface.  All your software, data, etc becomes web-based.  Web 3.0 has also been called the "semantic web."  It's a movement where your online presence is really defined by a variety of sites and sources.  For example, have several Blogger sites, a LinkedIn account, a Facebook page, a GoodReads account, and more.  Factoring all these sources together becomes my online presence.  A site like Plaxo that integrates all these profiles could probably be viewed as touching on Web 3.0.

So how would you classify your current online presence?  If you're still in 1.0-land, it's probably time to re-think your strategy. 

Okay, Twitter, you win

For the longest time I have been avoiding Twitter.  I set up an account about a year ago and simply never saw the point.  Those of you who are unfamiliar with Twitter should just know that it's a micro-blogging platform (140 chars or less in a post) where you simply answer the question, "What are you doing?"  I know...it sounds really really stupid.

But now that I've taken the time to set up my profile and actually "follow" some other people, I absolutely love it.  How did I live without this?  Let me explain further.

I did a few searches for other development firms or companies whose applications I use frequently (FreshBooks, 37Signals, FreelanceSwitch, etc) and added them to my "Follow" list.  In turn, a few people have started following me as well.  Now when I log in to my Twitter account I can see the recent "Tweets" for each of people I am following.  I can even send them reply Tweets if they are asking questions or talking about something I'm interested in.

Still sounds stupid doesn't it?

It's not!  Trust me!  Because here is the thing that's great:  By following individuals in the same general profession as myself, I am able to keep up with the latest and greatest talk in the "biz."  I can now keep up with the newest Web 2.0 apps, programming platforms, design standards, etc without even putting much effort into it.

What has made it SUPER easy is the TwitterFox plugin I set up in my Firefox browser.  Now as I'm in front of my PC during the day, I can update my status easily, and other people's Tweets come across the bottom of my screen as they are posted.  It's incredible: I feel well-informed without even really thinking.  And that's what we all strive for, right?!  :-)

So if you are looking into Twitter, be sure to follow me at http://twitter.com/daveyank  I apologize in advance if following me is a complete bore, but try to find people with similar interests or professions as you and you'll love it.  It's a great way to publicize your company and stay informed with the concerns of your client-base.

Buzzwords: Blogs and RSS

If you've received one of my business cards, you've probably flipped it over and seen the tag-cloud of terms associated with Lift Development's capabilities. I feel it would be a good idea to give a basic explanation of each of the "buzzwords" that I included in case some are unfamiliar to you. Look for several posts about these buzzwords in the coming weeks.

Among these are the terms "Blog" and "RSS." This is a good point for starting out since right now you are reading a blog, which is short for "Web Log." It's essentially a content publishing platform where one or more people can post articles, ideas, rants, or whatever they want.

For example, I use this blog to talk about things relevant to the web field. My wife and I have a blog where we post pictures and stories of our kids for our friends and family to read. As a business, you can use your blog to talk about things relative to your industry, publish special sales you may be having, or publicize a new product or service. You can really use a blog for anything.

The most popular blogging platforms include Google's Blogger, WordPress, TypePad, MovableType, etc. You can choose whichever platform offers an interface to your liking. In the end they all offer the functionality of an RSS feed, which is how people can access your blog without actually visiting your site.

RSS, which stands for "Really Simple Syndication," is a way to push content out to the end-user. Instead of end-users having to visit your website anytime they want to check for new content, they can add your site's RSS feed to their feed reader or web portal of choice. They can even have new posts emailed to them through various RSS-to-email applications.

The advantage of RSS is that each day the user can open up a single tool, such as Google Reader, and view all of their feeds in one place. Instead of having to go to 50 different websites, they can have the feeds from all those sites pulled into their reader.

These tools are all over the web. Anytime you see an orange logo such as the one above, that means an RSS feed is available for subscription. Just copy the hyperlink of the icon and add the address to your reader.

If your organization would like to learn more about blogging and adding RSS feeds to their website, contact Lift Development today. I would be happy to help you set up and design a blog for your target audience.