The Buzz Bin

Amanda Denson of PepperDigital shares a new study from the University of Melbourne that correlates social network updates with workplace productivity. According to the study, workers that use ‘Workplace Internet Leisure Browsing’ are “9% more productive than those who don’t.” The head of the study, Dr. Brent Coker, believes not only does social networking increase communication among employees, it also helps an organization recruit potential employees.” He encourages companies who block social networks to “rethink” their social media policy. What type of guidelines does your company have for social media use in the office?

Do you need a refresh on crowdsourcing? Dana Schwartz provides a quick primer and a list of companies that used crowdsourcing to accomplish large tasks. A few of the examples include RYZ, a crowdsourcing footwear company, and NetFlix’s efforts to improve their DVD rating system. Feel free to add another example to the mix at SmartBlog On Social Media.

Great news for nonprofits! Kivi Leroux Miller posts that “Guidestar is now working with GreatNonprofits to share user comments about charities with each other.” Average donors can now learn more about other nonprofit organizations and charities before making decisions on who to donate to. The comments also help current donors engage with nonprofits – especially with feedback. For more information, visit Nonprofit Marketing Guide.com.

Judith of At Your Service…, asks, “Are you viral?” She provides stats from an article she found “discussing top viral marketing tactics used by B2C marketers.” ‘Encouraging E-mail Forwarding’ and ‘Tell-A-Friend Boxes on Sites were the top two with 91% and 80%’, respectively. For more stats on the survey, please visit At Your Service….

The Word of Mouth Marketing Association (WOMMA) is hosting a free webinar this Thursday, April 9^th at noon EST. According to Word-of-Mouth Communications Study, Walter Carl will discuss how to measure the value of consumer conversations. Everyone is invited (you don’t have to be a member of WOMMA) to learn “specific tips and techniques to assess the value of WOM to your brand.”