New Blogs Focus on What Did NOT Hit the Front Page of Digg

May 24, 2008 by 1 Comment

PopFAILOn an episode of The Drill Down 3 weeks ago, MrBabyMan, Zaibatsu, MSaleem, and about 50 people in the chat room of their Ustream broadcast discussed putting up a site where stories that didn’t make it to the front page of Digg could “find a resting place.”  After a quick brainstorming session, Lost Shovels was born.

While it hasn’t taken off yet as hoped with only 4 stories posted there currently, a variation of the idea was created at PopFAIL.  This one has much more activity currently (I am one of the contributors) and each submission is accompanied by an analysis of why it didn’t make it and why it should have made it to the front page of Digg. [Read more...]

Filed Under: Digg, Mixx, Propeller, Reddit, Social Media, StartUps Tagged With: , , , , , , ,

Social Media Nosedive – Alexa Shows Recent Drops Across the Board

March 30, 2008 by 6 Comments

Every time I bring up Alexa, I get a ton of people who tell me how unreliable and worthless it is.  Let’s assume for the sake of this piece that I know this.  Let’s also assume that my budget for gathering data is zip and Alexa and Compete are the only real options.

With that out of the way, Alexa is showing major drops in reach for Digg, StumbleUpon, Reddit, and Mixx and other social bookmarking sites.  They are all happening around the same time.  Concerning?  Not at this point, since the data is all very young.  Worth monitoring?  Absolutely. [Read more...]

Filed Under: Digg, Mixx, Newsvine, Reddit, Social Media, StumbleUpon Tagged With: , , , , , , , , ,

Social Media Outcry Brings Competition to the Table

March 2, 2008 by 4 Comments

The negative comments to this post are already coming.  I can feel it.  Why?  Because I am about to be completely ambiguous and talk theoretically, even though I have knowledge that the things I’m about to discuss are facts.

Ever since Digg, Slashdot, and the other early social news sites took hold of a new market on the internet, there have been clones and competitors popping up left and right.  The next “Digg Killer” has emerged and subsequently fallen almost every week for the last couple of years.  Newer networks have been proposed, many are getting worked on, and I know a lot about some, little about others. [Read more...]

Filed Under: Digg, Mixx, Propeller, Reddit, Social Media Tagged With: , , , , , , ,

A Social Network for Social Media (brilliant!)

February 13, 2008 by 4 Comments

Social Media Social NetworkStrange. It’s one of those things that pops up and you think, “was there really nothing like this before?”

That is what comes to mind when you look at the Social Media Social Network at Social News Central.  It is a simple Ning site, but it has started off very strong.  With 160 members joining since its recent creation and a member list that boasts “heavy hitters” from social media websites like Digg, StumbleUpon, Propeller, and Mixx, Social News Central promises growth and a world of potential. [Read more...]

Filed Under: Digg, Mixx, Newsvine, Niche Social Networks, Propeller, Reddit, Social Internet, Social Media, StumbleUpon Tagged With: , , , , , , , , ,

Best Advice for Mixx: Stop Following Digg

January 27, 2008 by 9 Comments

This won’t be a popular article.  It can’t be Dugg because it mentions Mixx and it can’t be Mixxed because it seems to lean towards being critical.  In hopes of my true feelings being expressed and understood, let me say that I love Digg and I love Mixx.  Both are the best at what they do.

What do they do?  Digg serves up the ultimate in news niblets for us to ingest at our leisure.  It grants incredible exposure to quality content and helps blogs, large and small, to pop up on someone’s screen who never would have visited otherwise.  This doesn’t even touch on the other recipients such as YouTube, Flickr, and traditional news sources online.

Mixx does the same thing, right?  Well, sort of.  Mixx does offer the same type of quality content.  It does grant exposure, but not on the same scale (or in the same ballpark) as Digg.  Still, its strength lies in the people and their attitudes.  For the most part, Mixx is a much more social and sociable platform that Digg or any of its clones. [Read more...]

Filed Under: Digg, Mixx, Social Media Tagged With: , , , , ,

How to be a Part-Timer and Still Hit the Front Page

January 20, 2008 by 26 Comments

Front PageMost people who submit content to social media websites like Digg, Reddit, Mixx, or Propeller do so because they believe what they are submitting is worthy of making it to the front page where it can be viewed by a gazillion people.  It could be something that interests them from the news.  Perhaps it’s a story they worked exceptionally hard on from their blog.  Maybe it’s a hilarious video they found.

So, new to the world of social media, they submit it and wait for their name to appear in the popular section.  It’s a great story, afterall.  However, in most cases, it does not make the front page.  Undaunted, they try again.  And again.  Eventually they start to look at what hits the front page and they see a discouraging trend — the same names keep popping up, and it isn’t theirs.

What do they do?  They click on a profile.  At Digg, they might click on Suxmonkey, a front page regular.  They scan down to the stats and their eyes pop out of their head.  34,000 Diggs!  Oh ____!  Perhaps they check out Reddit next and click on QGYH2 to see a karma score over 100K.  Moving right along to Propeller, they check the Top Contributors section to find that they’ve all submitted hundreds, even thousands of stories and comments.

If you are one of these people, don’t give up!  You don’t have to spend hours a day, every day, to become a regular to the front page of social media websites.  You simply need a strategy that fits your schedule. [Read more...]

Filed Under: Digg, Featured, Mixx, Reddit, Social Media Tagged With: , , , , , , ,

Call for Quotes from Social Media Superstars

January 18, 2008 by 14 Comments

We are putting together a piece about social media superstars and what motivates them. Looking for opinions.  Please leave your opinions or quotes in the comments of this story.

There are those who spend several hours every day on social media websites like Digg, Reddit, Propeller, Mixx, Sphinn, and StumbleUpon.  These sites invariably get huge benefit by having these people, as they can themselves become part of the news.  The question is, “What’s in it for them?”

Is it the fame and notoriety?  Few use their real names as their profile name, so that COULD be it, but I tend to think it’s a small part.

Power?  Most have heard of the Digg Effect, while a power Stumbler can have a huge effect on a website with a click of a button.  Do they enjoy knowing that they’ve helped out a blog or website tremendously (or possibly killed their server) by sending thousands of people to their website?  Perhaps.

Is it an earnest desire to spread quality content?  Maybe they’re promoting an opinion, a trend, a product?  Helping a candidate or a cause?

Maybe it’s just fun.  As one top Digger who already answered the question for me noted, “Some people play Xbox 360.”  He, on the other hand, shuts down servers.  Hopefully, we’ll know soon enough.

The story itself will probably be posted here, but it may end up on my new blog (with nothing currently on it) at soshable.com.  Either way, I’ll let you know.  Please post your comments.

Visit some of the sites we recommend.

Filed Under: Digg, Mixx, Propeller, Reddit, Social Internet, Social Media, StumbleUpon Tagged With: , , , , , , ,

Banned at Digg? Talk to the Hand!

January 5, 2008 by 7 Comments

Banned at DiggThe issue has been building up for a few weeks now. It’s taboo, of course, to discuss Digg.com in a negative light, but there have been “closed-door” secret meetings amongst diggers recently. Via GTalk, it’s a hot topic among active diggers.

A couple of weeks ago, Tamar Weinberg posted Why Nobody Should Buy Digg. It details some of the circumstances behind recent bannings and the apparent turnaround in how Digg handles them. In short, they don’t. If you’re banned, Digg won’t talk to you. They won’t talk to anyone else about you. [Read more...]

Filed Under: Digg, Mixx, Social Internet, Social Media Tagged With: , , , , , , ,

Going Social for Marketing, Business, and Fun

January 1, 2008 by 10 Comments

porkfriedsocial.comSocial Media Marketing isn’t new. 2008 is simply the year that it emerges as THE thing to do if you want your business, charity, or blog to be “in” instead of “out”.

With companies that aren’t traditionally forward thinking in their marketing techniques, such as Ford Motor Company and Starbucks, making a push to enter social media marketing, it is clear that both big and small business are starting to take notice. Even local businesses are approaching anyone knowledgeable they can find on the subject to help them.

Below are some of the social media initiatives and trends from 2007 that tell of things to come in 2008. First, there are ways to create a web presence that goes beyond building a website or a blog. Then there are ways to drive traffic through social media to these websites. [Read more...]

Filed Under: Digg, Mixx, Newsvine, Niche Social Networks, Propeller, Reddit, Social Internet, Social Marketing, Social Media, Social Media Marketing, Social Videos-Images-Music, StartUps, StumbleUpon Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Winds of Change in Social Media Promise Improvements

December 28, 2007 by 3 Comments

PenguinsOn the internet, change is part of the definition. In social media, changes are happening literally by the minute. 2008 promises to show humungous growth and an incredible amount of change for major and minor social media websites.

Certain things will be universal as the websites below grow. Some were acquired, some will be acquired in the future, but one thing that we have seen and that we will continue to see is a lack of a shake-up based upon the acquisitions. When a larger company buys a smaller company in the “real world”, there are normally big changes made right from the start. These changes rarely result in mass exodus of employees (unless done by design) nor does it yield a major drop in consumers.

[Read more...]

Filed Under: Digg, Mixx, Newsvine, Niche Social Networks, Propeller, Reddit, Social Internet, Social Media, StumbleUpon Tagged With: , , , , , , , , ,
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