The Buzz Bin

Want a recap of the internet marketing and social media news from 2008? Tamar Weinberg put together an impressive list of select posts from 2008 on Techipedia. The list covers a number of topics including SEO, Facebook, strategy, Flickr and more. Tamar worked over a month compiling this list, and the end result is a gift to the community that should not be missed.

Duncan Riley says, “Hyperlocal websites, both existing and those to launch will thrive as they become the only place to find community news; in 2009 community newspapers will fold in record numbers.” Duncan argues that this is because advertisers are now using eBay, Amazon.com to sell their products rather than advertising on community newspapers. Also, larger newspapers are also struggling and therefore are cutting their rates – making it more affordable for local advertisers to reach a larger market. Visit Duncan’s fascinating post on The Inquisitr, and see how blogs and hyperlocal online media is not only filling in the gaps, but actually improving on traditional community news.

How is your personal digital footprint? Mitch Joel of Six Pixels of Separation warns PR professionals to watch what they say online, and to remember Google’s long tail when messaging. He says to ask yourself, “Would you feel if – in the future – your children looked back on these conversations to see what their parent was really all about?” Mitch also suggests finishing your conversations, warning against posting a negative comment and not following up with solutions.

January is a new year and a new opportunity to market your brand. Rohit Bhargava provides the readers of his Influential Marketing blog with three ways to break stride from 2008 and help unleash their brands in 2009. Rohit suggests developing new clients by being aggressive and giving them a “reason to break their old (and therefore outdated) tradition and consider switching to you [from your competitors].” He also suggests breaking up your goals into smaller, more manageable goals. Finally, Rohit smartly encourages readers to create value for the community by using the power of social media tools to educate, not simply advertise.

With the President-Elect Obama’s Inauguration fast approaching, Katya Andresen reminds us of how Obama was able to captivate America. Katya says Obama was able to use two main factors, audience appeal and infrastructure. Other organizations such as Change.org and The Case Foundation are following the Obama Campaign’s example. Visit Katya’s Non-Profit Marketing Blog for more information about these campaigns and also see her 2008 “horrific superlist of social media blunders…”