SreeTips

Four lessons from a single successful tweet

One of the things I try to do on this blog is share what I learn about the fast-changing, confusing world of Twitter. In the past, I've posted about the downside of using text alerts for Twitter; the right way and the wrong way to use hashtags on TV; and how to be generous on Twitter.

Today, I want to share some lessons I learned from a single tweet I sent two days ago. While it doesn't unlock all the secrets of successful tweeting, it highlights some of the things that makes some tweets successful and some not … Read more

Sarah Silverman's new political project, 'Let My People Vote'

Sarah Silverman, the comic actress whose 2008 video "The Great Schlep" helped focus attention on the young Jewish-American vote, is back with a new political project.

"Let My People Vote" is a website and social-media project that looks at voter ID laws. It showcases a video starring Silverman ranting -- in her trademark expletive-filled way -- about the laws that are part of this year's election story. An actress playing her grandmother and some guns make an appearance, too.

Paid for by the Jewish Council for Education and Research, this the latest project of Schlep Labs, … Read more

And now, the Tabby Awards for best apps for tablets

Just when you thought there couldn't be any more award contests, here comes one for tablet apps.

The Tabby Awards seek to recognize the best apps for tablets and open for nominations now. From the press release:

For the very first time, the best apps for iPad, Android and Windows tablets will be judged for their outstanding tablet specific features and utility by a panel of tablet professionals. The competition will be open to both native apps and web apps for tablets and will include app developers worldwide. Consumer and Business apps will be evaluated by two separate panels, … Read more

Technology's impact on similar crises, two decades apart

Technology and everyday tools that millions use are being blamed, in part, for the recent spate of attacks against U.S. embassies in the Middle East.

Social media and a YouTube video of an obscure, crudely-made trailer of an anti-Islam film have helped fan the flames of anti-American hatred that's always looking for an excuse to bubble up in some parts of the world.

It's these same tools, of course, that played such a critical role in helping the anti-dictator forces in countries like Egypt, Tunisia, and Libya over the last 20 months or so. Now we are … Read more

How a low-ranked tennis player used Twitter to raise her profile

Before the U.S. Open tennis tournament began this week, I had never heard of 18-year-old Laura Robson (@LauraRobson5), even though she won an Olympic mixed doubles silver medal in London this summer.

To me, the women's game is dominated by the Williams sisters, Serena (@SerenaWilliams) and Venus (@VenusesWilliams), and a revolving cast of mostly unmemorable Russian players, except for Maria Sharapova (I couldn't figure out her official Twitter feed -- can you? Her site has a social section, but it only lists a Facebook account).

But 89th-ranked Robson, who sent former champ Kim Clijsters packing in … Read more

Crowdwire looks at politics via lens of social media, branding

The screen grab above is from The Crowdwire, a new, noncommercial project that among other things looks at the success of the political campaigns in regard to branding and social media.

As you can see, in this snapshot for the period July 16 to August 15 the brand of President Barack Obama and his Republican challenger, Mitt Romney, figure in the top three most-discussed brands on social media (I was surprised to see that the Batman movie came in only at fourth place considering the fact that the Colorado shootings took place July 20).

The Crowdwire (@TheCrowdwire on Twitter), a … Read more

As Square nears prime time, a look back at its evolution

With the announcement that Starbucks is going to use Square for all credit- and debit-card payments (see this CNET News post by Steven Musil, @StevenMusil), the mobile payments startup is finally ready for prime time.

Yes, Square has been in the news for a while now, and it's gotten a valuation estimated to be between $1 billion and $4 billion, and has millions of dollars in transactions per day. But it's this deal with Starbucks that is going to give Square truly wide exposure and make it more commonplace.

I thought this would be a good moment to … Read more

Your favorite mobile apps, please

When I meet friends in person these days, I often ask if they have any new apps on their phone I should know about. I've learned about useful new and new-to-me apps as well as frivolous, waste-of-time apps this way (some only work on Android, which I don't have at the moment, but are still worth hearing about). 

I'll tell you about one my favorite newish apps, one I use every day, in a moment, but want to invite you to tell me about your favorites, too (the less commonplace the better, of course). Please tell … Read more

How the world's biggest companies are doing social media

The graphic above show the 10 most-often mentioned companies on social media among the Global Fortune 100. That's according to the third annual Global Social Media Check-Up Study of how Global Fortune 100 companies are using social media, conducted by Burson-Marsteller and Visible Technologies. You can find the full study at BM.com/social, including the executive summary and an infographic.

Here are five findings highlighted by the authors of the study:

1. The Fortune Global 100 were mentioned a total of 10,400,132 times online in one month. Gone are the days that companies and brands … Read more