Over at Social News Watch, we’re trying to compile a complete list of social media sites.  There are so many out there — tons of brand new ones and a ton of old ones that might have been forgotten.

Whether for marketing or simple enjoyment, it’s good to have a complete list.  While submitting to thousands of sites might prove to be counter-productive, we plan on breaking down the list into several different versions so that everyone has a chance to find the ones they really like and want to use.

Head over to SNW and see what you can add to the conversation, or simply post the sites that you know (or lists of sites already put together) and we will begin the long process of finding, checking, and classifying the sites into something manageable.

* * *

Read more about social media websites on Soshable.

The automotive industry has always been notorious for being a year or two behind the rest of the world when it comes to the internet.  When other industries such as real estate and e-commerce were starting to get onto the Internet, car dealerships held out as long as they could.

When websites started getting more intricate and interactive, car dealers started throwing up online billboards.  Search Engine Optimization started becoming a necessity around 2004 around the time that equipment leasing hit it big on the Internet.  In the car business, it really became popular this year.

Web 2.0 has been a part of most industries for a couple of years now.  Web 3.0 is just around the corner.  Yet, the automotive industry still hasn’t quite embraced the social aspects of the Internet…

…until now.

TK Carsites, known in the industry as the cutting-edge leader in the industry when it comes to website design and automotive Internet marketing, has been accumulating knowledge and understanding of Web 2.0 for a couple of years now.  After all that time, they have started to launch products that are unique in their ability to put car dealers where they haven’t been before.

Blogs

Blogging has been a growing segment of the internet for years.  They range in scale and scope from huge technology blogs that receive hundreds of thousands of visitors per day to personal blogs that simply allow people to vent with only their friends and family to visit it.

There are several strong automotive blogs.  TK Carsites has built the only true automotive blog network that encompasses just about every facet of the industry.  They have recently expanded their network to reach out to other industries that are logical cross-overs into automotive such as environmental, tech, business, and finance.

TK has also released a blog program that caters to individual dealers’ needs.  They can help dealers get set up and trained to run their own blog internally.  They can set up the blogs and manage the content completely.  They can even custom tailor a program that lands somewhere in between where the dealer is involved but not solely responsible.

Blogs help on many fronts.  They can offer a public view of the dealership, “humanize” it in a way by offering useful tidbits, highlight community accomplishments, and house tools that local people can use.  They are also excellent SEO hubs, sending links to pages on the dealer’s web properties and serving as a listing itself on the search engines to push competitors and negative reviews lower in the rankings.

Dealerships need a blog.  Some could do well to have several.

Social Networks

Websites like Facebook and MySpace can be useful in the automotive industry, but it is in the niche social network sites where things can get more personal.  This arena, dominated by web platforms and applications like Ning.com, KickApps.com, and GoingOn.com, bridge the gap between the world-focus of large social networks and the local focus of community driven social networks.  It has been starting to get some attention in the automotive industry over the last couple of months.

TK Carsites has had an active automotive social network running since mid-2007.  They were the first in the segment and they are the first to perfect it for their dealer clients.  Similar to blogs, car dealer social networks have several uses.  The one thing they have that blogs do not have is direct interactions with the customers.  People can join these networks, communicate with the dealership or other members, and help to create a local community that can put the dealership in a good light.  More importantly, they are excellent venues for addressing customers’ complaints.  Sound like a bad idea?  It’s better to find it on a network controlled by the dealership where they can make things right rather than having a negative listing on Ripoff Report or Dealer Rater pop up on searches for the dealer’s name.

Like with the blogs, TK can guide dealers through the process, they can run it for them, or anywhere in between.  A well run social network can be golden.  On that is poorly run (or not run at all) can be more of a negative than a positive.

Social Media

What would a story on this blog be without discussion of social media?

This is by far the most difficult aspect of Web 2.0 to integrate into the automotive industry.  Social media is user driven news.  Most sites such as Digg, Reddit, and Propeller are designed to allow users to submit news, videos, or images from other websites and to have these submissions voted up or down by other users.  Others, such as NewsVine and NowPublic, allow users to publish their own content on top of working with a similar style as the other sites mentioned.

Regardless of which type of social media site it is, the automotive industry is a hard sell.  Media regarding car dealers (unless it’s negative or embarrassing) has very little chance of success on these sites.

TK Carsites has taken on the attitude of, “If you can’t beat them, join them.”  More importantly, they have taken the first steps in creating and maintaining a social media site that is geared specifically for the automotive industry and car dealer media in particular.  Their new website, which is currently in beta testing, promises to push the automotive industry into social media in ways that have never been done before.

Next?

That’s the million dollar question that experts in and out of the car business are tackling.  What’s the next “big thing”?  Microblogging?  Social Hybrids?  Integrated Web Communities?  Regardless of what it is, based upon their track record, TK Carsites seems to be best positioned to conquer Web 2.0 for their clients as well as prepare for Web 3.0 in the near future.

* * *

Read more about automotive social media on this blog.

I stumbled upon Predictify recently and the my Social Spider Sense started tingling.  “There’s something here, man.  There’s something potentially good here.”

Upon joining, reading, examining, and predicting, I soon discovered that the site was loaded with potential.  The basic premise is that large groups of people offering their predictions about future events can often offer more accurate looks into the future than small groups of experts.  The platform offered at Predictify is designed to harness this power to determine who, what, where, and when.

There is a financial gain aspect to it as well.  Someone who really wants to get answers to a question can pay for Premium questions.  The charge is $1 per response.  The money is split between the predictors who got it right with a portion going to Predictify.  Each predictor’s share of the pot is based upon their accuracy on previous questions (free or premium), their level of expertise (which is based on a point system), and the timing of their submission (answering questions earlier is better).

The simplified description of the algorithm that determines payouts looks like this:

Total Payout = Accuracy / Time Payout + Level Bonus

Moving up in levels is based upon a point system.  You can get points by referring new users, asking questions that get approved, sending invites and questions to friends, posting comments, and submitting predictions.

Pound for pound, this seems like an excellent overall idea.  It seems fun and useful at the same time: just what Web 2.0 should be.  It taps into the power of the collective wisdom while giving incentives to everyone involved to participate.  The key will be marketing.  Can they get this off the ground to go viral and become a force in the social internet world?

So far, they seem to be moving up nicely.  They were involved with The New York Times football prediction project this year.  They received a good bump on their launch from Mashable and several blogs.  Only time will tell if it will work, but so far, so good.  I just made a prediction about the Start of the US Recession.  Hopefully, I’ll get my share of the $1500 pot!
* * *

Read more on this social media blog or check out some of our social media recommendations.

There has been a trend that has been percolating behind the scenes.  While Facebook and MySpace cultivate their mass presence by making the world accessible to people and people accessible to the world, Ning is bringing laser-precision focus to social networking, allowing the niche aspect of internet interaction to flourish.

While the social networking powerhouses offer limited platforms for people to form groups and interact with like-minded people, Ning has made it their purpose to offer flexibility in their product.  As the self-proclaimed “Home Depot” of social networking, Ning has a do-it-yourself platform (“you can do it, we can help”) that is simple to use and manipulate.  A person can create an account and start a social network geared around whatever they want in a few minutes.

In many ways, this is the way of the future for social networking.  People tired of the big-box mentality of Facebook and MySpace, where monetization of their tremendous user bases seems to be the top priority, can focus their efforts on building their own network that targets others with the same interests.

There are many nice features on every social network, but one thing that makes Ning very strong is the ability to use the platform on one’s own domain.  There is a free option that uses ning.com sub-domains, but with a little effort and a $4.95 per month pricetag, users can park their network anywhere they want.

Ning users can create networks that go after people in the same area, profession, interests, or whatever they want.  Here is a sample of some networks currently on Ning that exemplifies the infinite variety potential:

• Horse enthusiasts can network with over 700 other enthusiasts at Show My Pony.
• I don’t speak Spanish, but 233 people obviously can at TVCocina.  If food is a universal language, the videos here will definitely make you hungry.
• Over 11K firefighters are members of Firefighter Nation.  Tons of videos, blog posts, and images.
• Shanghai has its own network with nearly 1200 users featuring local events, nightlife and more.
• In automotive, there is a car dealer network with over 120 members that discusses honesty in selling.
• Mothers, there’s a social network for you.  With over 1000 members, Mommy2Mommy is a place for parental sorority.
• Alumni organizations are taking hold on Ning.  Hawk Talk is a place for JP Alumni to reconnect.

The possibilities on Ning are nearly limitless.  There are drawbacks.  Porn has started creeping in and it’s been making the news.  Spam is prevalent, with people joining and posting on dozens of networks.  It makes it to where you either have to keep a close eye as an administrator or risk Viagra stories hitting your pages.  Still, it’s far less daunting than the larger players.

In the near future, expect to see more business, organizations, and charities start to take advantage of the potential.  Niche Social Networking is growing and should experience exponential traffic spikes within the year.