Web 2.What?

Back when I was with cardcommunications, we shared an office with bv02. I vaguely remember bv02 owner Andrew Milne talking about this crazy dream of making a fun interactive web site for kids about being active outdoors. OK it wasn’t just a crazy dream, it was already started and he  even had some cool Andy Camper swag made up… but the point is, now that it has *officially* launched, it’s an adorable site, with a great purpose and most of all–a great example of social media and Web 2.0 tools put to good use!

What you’d notice right away is how great it looks. But a few clicks in and it’s obviously chalked full of quality content. From videos, to activities and a huge learning potential I love that it’ll be hours of indoor fun while encouraging kids to go outdoors. Brilliant!

Also a little birdie, who may also be the communications manager for Andy Camper and former cardcommunications intern, told me Andy Camper has been getting some fabulous press, including an appearance on CTV’s  Canada AM. Congrats guys! I think this will go far, but don’t take my word for it, go check it out for yourself…

A simplistic, yet chillingly accurate portrayal of ‘what web 2.0 means…‘

(Hat tip to @prblog on twitter, who re-tweeted @douglaskarr)

If you don’t own your own iPhone, I’m sure you’ve at least played around with one, right?

Well the greatest thing about the iPhone 3G (and iPhone 2.0 update) is the App store. Which allows developers to create applications–either paid or free–for use on the new or updated iPhones as well as iPod Touches.  I’ve had my phone for just about a month and have had lots of time to try out a lot of the free apps (too scared to pay for any yet, even though I do have an iTunes gift card kicking around!)

So, here are my faves, but in my quest for having all the best apps, I want to hear your recommendations too!

1. Shazaam

My dad has this thing he does when a song he likes comes on the radio. Basically it’s a hand signal that means “Name this song.” He used to give us kids money for getting the right answer, but not so much anymore now that we’re all grown up…

However, at the time, I wish I had my iPhone and Shazaam because this app allows you  to hold your iPhone up to music and it will name the tune. Furthermore it allows you to buy the song directly from iTunes if you wanted to. Even though I probably won’t get paid for it, it’s still a very handy tool to have around, especially when your with someone who says “Oh man, I love this song! Wish I knew who sings it!” Total and absolute awesome.

2. Twinkle

Funny that my last post was all about being unsure about Twinkle, but now I LOVE it. It’s a Twitter client that takes it to another level by using the iPhone’s GPS and recording users’ locations with their posts. A great way to meet other tech savvy people in yoru area and building your local Twitter following. Love it!

3. SudokuFree

Ok, so secretly I’ve always hated sudoku because I suck at it. So I’m not even sure why I chose to download this app. However, glad I did, because now I’m a sudoku master. The trick is when you’re playing and you put the wrong number in the wrong box, it turns red. So whereas if I were playing in the newspaper my page would be a big scribbly mess, on the iPhone it’s always slick clean and I *know* I’m right! Now the challenge is to not get any wrong throughout the puzzle and I’m doing well with it.

4. iPint

My absolute favourite! If you’ve met me in person and we’ve chatted about my iPhone then I’ve probably showed you this. It’s the ultimate ‘party favour’ app because who doesn’t love beer? Basically it displays a pint of beer and when you tip the phone it slowly pours out. It’s realistic and simple, and while it may be a little pointless, it’s still awesome.

Ok, those are my top four. I’ve still many, many too play around with so let me know what you like! Also have you paid for any apps? Was it worth it? I’m considering buying Texas Hold’em but I haven’t yet…

When Twitter first started gaining momentum, it was called “permission-based stalking” by some. (I’d credit whoever came up with the term, but I have *no* idea who it was). However that term sort of died down as Twitter popularity went up, especially as people found other uses for it, rather than just stalking.

However, many of us who’ve been obsessing over our iPhone 3G’s have discovered Twinkle. A twitter app that also records your location, so you can find “Tweeple” near you. I thought it was a little creepy at first, but it seems really cool! Not sure I have a solid understanding of why it’s great… but I see some potential…

So have you used Twinkle? What are your thoughts on location-based twittering?

I recently finished reading Groundswell by Forrester’s Josh Bernoff and Charlene Li.  I was particularly excited about it because about a year ago I was interviewed by Josh Bernoff for it as an active participant of Constant Contact’s user community. (The company I worked for was major business partner of CC) At the time I was just starting to get excited about social media as a business function and I was dying to know what these top notch analysts had to say about it. Especially since a big challenge of social media so far is (in my opinion) some excuse a lot of it for noise or time-wasting, and have a hard time seeing business value.

Well what else can I say but “Wow!” Josh and Charlene not only clearly explained theories, strategies and tactics, but also assembled a fantastic mix of real life case studies. I was even happy to see a few Canadian examples in there–Bell Canada and Loblaws.

I also love how they’ve put some easy to remember names for developing strategies, like the POST method. (Stands for People, Objectives, Strategy and Technology and dictates the method & particular order for developing successful social media strategies). Also the book flows in the different stages of interacting with the Groundswell — First you listen, then you engage, then energize. (I think I’m missing some steps, but you’ll have to read the book to fully understand anyway)

One thing that really irked me, however, is that throughout the book they really pump up the social technologies profiling tool, developed by Forrester, and available free on the site. Sounds fantastic? Well it looks like it is, until you realize while it includes data from South Korea, Italy, Australia… There’s no Canada! Almost insulting as we are one of the more connected countries (ahead of the US!) and that I would suspect we have a proportionally higher ‘creator’ population (just my hunch though). Plus, of course, being attached to the US we do have a bit of a complex.

I wasn’t the only one who noticed. Jay Moonah of Toronto actually spoke up in the Groundswell discussion board. Josh replied and said that because of bad timing they were unable to include Canadian data, but it’s coming… Keep your eyes peeled!

Overall, however, a fantastic book I recommend picking up. Have you read it? What do you think? Let me know!

First of all, expect my postings to be light over the next bit, it’s summer and finally beautiful out and I just got my new iPhone so while I’m getting to know it, I don’t foresee myself blogging too much. (Until I learn how to blog FROM the iPhone…)

Anyway, I did want to let you know about the Social Media Breakfast event happening next Tuesday, July 15. This time Overlay.tv’s CEO Rob Lane will be talking all about monetizing video and presenting some case studies from Overlay.tv, which I don’t really know too much about yet, but it sounds very cool!

Check it out and don’t forget to come say hello. Though I have a funny feeling there might be more than a few faces buried in their iPhones…

When I embarked on the exploration of social media monitoring tools, I surveyed my Twitter friends, I posted about it on this blog, I even wrote about it in my LinkedIn and Facebook statuses. Throughout all that, one name that came up again and again was Radian6.

So I was delighted when they offered to give me a demo. One distinct difference between the first tool I looked at, social radar, is that Radian6 is targeted specifically to PR firms (or large multi-unit company). Which is good, because now I don’t feel I have to compare the two.

So if you happen to be a good size PR firm or a large company searching for a social media monitoring tools, than I urge you to check out Radian6. Somehow it’s complex and detailed, yet manages to stay very user friendly. One of its strength lies in the ease and simplicity of managing multiple profiles–something that can be tricky to pull off, but a necessity when you have multiple clients or business units.

Also I love how it’s layout is based on widget style functionality. So essentially you “build” the tool how you’d like to use it. Very Web 2.0 friendly!

I can go on, but a picture says a lot more, so let’s take a look (click for larger):

The middle boxes top and bottom (behind) are examples of a “river of news” which is essentially the search results for whichever terms you’ve chosen, the river also includes media like microblogging (Twitter, etc), video and podcasts. Very cool!

As well, you can build a tag cloud around your search terms, as viewable in the bottom left corner. Aside from the fact that everyone loves a tag cloud, it visually gives you an idea of what else people are talking about along with your search terms. Very handy!

But wait– how do you know how influencial these people talking about you are? Well they’ve got a widget for that too, which is best explained in this shot:

The middle box shows a list of blogs/web sites that mentioned your search terms, and when you click on one, the dashboard below pops up and tells you all about its links.

So essentially, the dashboard is completely customizable via the widget icons (pictured on the left) you can set it all up the way you like it and leave it as is, or you can switch it up at will. It’s clear these guys understand social media and the specific needs of their target audience. Being a PR gal myself I can easily see how well this could work in an agency as well as how it can also help educate users who may not be totally up to speed with all this social media stuff. (hey it is still pretty new!)

And the final kicker why I really love Radian6–they’re Canadian! Yup, based out of New Brunswick, these guys are taking the social media monitoring world by storm. Keep up the great work!

Every used Radian6 before? Or another social media monitoring tools. Please leave a comment!

**UPDATE**

One really cool thing about Radian6 I forgot to mention is its “Twebinars” which obviously is a webinar that’s discussed in tandem on Twitter! Each one features leading experts in social media. Unfortunately I had to miss the first (silly work getting in the way!) but fortunately more are on the way. As far as I know this they are the first to initiate something like this, so major points for that.

It’s no surprise where I sit in this debate. One need not look further than the address bar! We all type it the same, but some say it differently, so please answer this poll and let me know which you say. AND if you’re really passionate about it, please drop a comment and make your case!

My justification is pretty simple… You don’t say “Google[POINT]com do you?? Dot dot dot. It just sounds better.

I’m posing this question not only because it’ll be helpful for my fellow Canadian readers, but also for myself! I’m currently working on a contract that’s coming to an end soon so I’m thinking about landing a job doing what I *really* love, which (surprise, surprise) is all about online PR, digital marketing and social media.

What I’m really looking for is to identify companies that are looking for, and can truly benefit from, avid and enthusiastic social media users from PR and marketing walks-of-life. Whether it’s a social media strategist role, a community manager, or a more traditional PR/marketing role with a heavy focus on the social media stuff, these roles seem to be few and far between up here in the great white north…

What I’m really looking for as well is Canadian companies who absolutely revolve around the “Web 2.0″ (for lack of a better word here, it’s been a long day!) way of business (think Google & its unique corporate culture). Specifically those that treat each employee as an valuable asset, one that takes an open minded approach to trying new things, and one that’s on the cutting edge of technology and marketing techniques –all the good stuff.

By now these types of companies are a dime a dozen in the US. However, though I’ll admit I haven’t looked *too* hard, I haven’t heard much about Canadian companies like this. Sure some are trying to pass off as this new breed of company, but few actually “walk the walk.”

So without future ado, throw out a suggestion or idea about either sites to find these types of jobs, or some hot companies to keep an eye on. I’ll get it started….

Job Posting Sites

• Ok I could taket he time to post a bunch of good ones, but fortunately My Name is Kate has *already* done that for us! However, I will point out again One Degree (which Kate also owns) as definitely one of the best ones, though not a lot of job postings they are often high quality.
• Yansarazin, a fellow Ottawan & Twitter buddy recommends sites like TechCrunch & Mashable, which seem to have some awesome job posts–but not many Canadian. (When I first asked on Twitter, I didn’t specify Canadian)
• StandOutJobs.com is a Canadian site which caters to the market, probably a good one to keep an eye on.
• Jeremiah Owyang has lots of great advice on his site, as well as tips where to find a job, but again it’s very much US-based as well as focused on large enterprises.

Companies to keep an eye on

This is the biggie - and where I’m looking for your help. Drop a comment and tell me about some innovative Canadian companies that fit the bill. (International companies with a strong presence in Canada will do too) I will update this section as I find/hear about them.

• Radian6, who’s social media monitoring software I will be reviewing here very soon seems to be a company to keep an eye on & I was pleasantly surprised to learn they’re based in New Brunswick.
• Canada.zappos.com Zappos CEO Tony Hsieh is definitely a social media mover and shaker, and though the company is based in Las Vegas, I wonder if it’s Canadian branch has some social media leadership potential? Or maybe they need someone like me around? haha

I can probably think of a few more, but it’s bed time, so over to you! Tell me about some great Canadian companies or how you landed your awesome social media job or whatever’s on your mind…

*UPDATE*

Colin suggests starting your own business to do what you really love. I *love* the idea, but scared about losing the consistent monthly income (esp. after working in the public sector) That’s definitely where I’m headed but a while out. PS-If you need any sort of web marketing–Colin is your guy!

Yan chimed in again, this time with Canadian sites like StartUpOttawa.com, Startupnorth.ca, MontrealTechWatch.com, MarkEvansTech.com.

Just a quick post to give you a sneak peek at what I’ve been up to and what you might expect to see coming up here on Web 2.What?

• I’ve been reading Groundswell, perhaps why it’s so quiet around here since I just can’t seem to get my nose out of it! Almost done and a full review will come shortly.
• Been loving Nathania Johnson’s blog Social Media Butterfly, who–I will admit enviously–posts much more than I do. Be sure to check it out.
• Blogging about my first love, email marketing, over at Tamara Gielen’s Be Relevant! Blog. In fact, you might enjoy my latest post, which explains why I believe email should be treated more like a social media tool instead of direct mail.
• I went out to the first Social Media Breakfast in Ottawa, and not only had a fantastic time but was able to meet some twitter friends in real life. Exciting! Also, Adrian of DNA 11 (a company which makes art out of DNA) presented about how his company leveraged social media channels to make it into some impressive mainstream media.
• Have you tried a real social media monitoring tool? I have been testing, demoing and talking to all sorts of folks in this essential area. So far I’ve already reviewed Infegy’s Social Radar. I’m still testing it, but soon I will write about Radian6.
• As always I’m hopelessly addicted to Twitter, so be sure to follow me. I’m also dabbling in Plurk, if you’re a little more adventurous. Also, I’m on FriendFeed but having a hard time really getting into it, please drop a comment and tell me why you love FriendFeed so I can perhaps see the light!

Well, those are my excuses for not blogging more often. I am trying to post at least 3 times per week, but I’m sure you’ll understand I don’t just want to post garbage for the sake of posting!

Also I’d love your suggestions for how I can improve this blog, or what you’d like to hear about that’s not being represented elsewhere. Please drop a comment or email me at kelly(at)web2dotwhat.com!

Photo by emdot on Flickr.