Put your best face out there on Facebook

Founded in February 2004, Facebook is a social utility that helps people communicate more efficiently with their friends, family and coworkers. Anyone can sign up for Facebook and interact with the people they know in a trusted environment.(1) Facebook provides a wide range of effective tools for sharing information with the world. Whether your a business trying to take advantage of the networking platform to advertise your products or services, or just taking advantage of the tools to keep in contact with friends and family, Facebook is the way to do it. With more than 300 million active users,50% of who log on to Facebook in any given day(2), Facebook is a statistically sound choice for putting your best face out there, and reaching a large audience.

1.http://www.facebook.com/press/info.php?factsheet

2.http://www.facebook.com/press/info.php?statistics

Top 10 List- Great blogs!

1. Da da da da da.... you gotta love Mc Donald's. Great informational content, and a pleasant display.

http://crmcdonalds.com/publish/csr/home/_blog.html

2. Amazon. Wow, gotta love reading! Book reviews, recommendations based upon your purchase history.... the list goes on and on.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/blog/id/A287JD9GH3ZKFY

3. A local favorite for all you mothers. JJ Cole. Lots of product information, with hilarious video demonstrations.

http://jjcolecollections.com/blog

4. When your cool the sun shines on you 24 hours a day. Oakley's. The essence of cool embodied in a blog.

http://www.oakley.com/community

5. Every American has a vested interest in this company. GM. Good discussion forum

http://fastlane.gmblogs.com/

6. Life seems so much more exciting on Yahoo! Bright and energetic.

http://ycorpblog.com/

7. Gamer heaven at the World of Warcraft blog. Great picture galleries, and video links.

http://www.wow.com/

8 Great shoes, decent blog- Adidas. Celebrity appeal

http://adidasblog.com/

9. Is it an enormous bean bag? or is it a Lovesac? Employee commitment and morale.

http://lovesac.typepad.com/shawndnelson/

10. Our Commander and Chief Barrack Obama has a blog too!.... I'm pretty sure he doesn't actually do the posts though(Organizing for America's blog). very patriotic theme... imagine that!

http://my.barackobama.com/page/content/hqblog

The Cyborg of the Internet

Much like the cyborg of the world renown Star Trek television series, the blog is constantly evolving as it assimilates new technologies, and features. What started as a simple text posting of someones thoughts has become a platform of gadgets, advertisements, and visual entertainment. Although there is still a distinction between what is designated a "blog" and what is a "website", those lines are constantly being rewritten.

According to Rich Brooks a web designer and business blogger, there is still a distinction between the two. He said this in a recent post: "Your Web site is your portfolio; it's the best of what you have to offer and displays your business as you want the world to see it. A blog, on the other hand, is more an ongoing conversation you have with prospects and clients. It can help you establish yourself as an expert, post information quickly, and differentiate yourself from the competition...at least right now. There will be a (further) blurring between blogs and Web sites; soon the word "blog" may become obsolete and blogging technology will integrated w/in most Web site software packages."(1)

For now blogging still plays an important role in business and social networking, but I believe that what we now call blogging will fade away into the essence of Internet websites. They will become one and the same.

(1) Brooks,R., Flyte - Web marketing strategies for small business,

accessed at: http://www.flyteblog.com/flyte/2006/02/blogs_vs_web_si_1.html

Blog Policies

To maintain a professional blog, whether for your business or as a networking tool for yourself, there are certain guidelines or policies that should be followed. Although there is not one set of policies that are set in stone for all blogs, there are quite a few similarities in those of major corporations. GM has adopted the following policies for their company blog.

1. We will tell the truth. We will acknowledge and correct any mistakes promptly.
2. We will not delete comments unless they are spam, off-topic, or defamatory.
3. We will reply to comments when appropriate as promptly as possible.
4. We will link to online references and original source materials directly
5. We will disagree with other opinions respectfully.(1)

In my own personal experience as a small business owner, and blogger, I would ask myself the following questions before I would publish anything that would reflect on me or my business.

1. Would I want a customer/ potential employer to read this?

2. Am I representing myself/my business in a positive light?

3. Could anything I'm posting be taken out of context and potentially offend my readers?

4. Is what I am posting relevant to the subject matter of the blog?

5. Visually is there any content that may be considered inappropriate or unprofessional?

(1)GM fast lane blog, accessed on September 26, 2009 at: http://fastlane.gmblogs.com/about.html

Assignment 1

In this day and age, when most people obtain information from the internet, a professional blog can contribute to presenting a positive face to your target community. According to Internet World Stats, 73.9 percent of the population of North America are internet users. Since the year 2000 there has been a 132 percent increase in the number of internet users.(1) Statistically speaking, if you want to get a message out, the internet is a great way to do it. Although it is over simplistic to say that if you start a blog it will improve your image, it is one tool that if used effectively can not only improve your image, but bring in new customers, and provide valuable information to your readers.

(1)Internet and user population stats for the Americas, Accessed at:http://www.internetworldstats.com/stats2.htm, September 15, 2009.