Facebook makes changes!

So, it continues… Compiling all of your thoughts, feelings and opinions into a well-structured 250- 500 word blog is not as easy as it seems. I have been sitting here for the past ten minutes watching the cursor ‘blink’ while trying to decide what to write. Filling a page is easy; creating user interaction is the difficult part.

Before I get started, I should introduce myself. My name is Tim Hendry. I am currently enrolled in my third semester within the Business Marketing Diploma program at Humber College.  This year I am also a participant within the OCMC (Ontario Colleges Marketing Competition) as a Sales Account Management Analyst. Social media is my life; I am connected to nearly every platform available. Over the summer I started both Facebook and Twitter accounts for the company I was working at. I quickly realized the true impact that Social Media can have on a business. In addition, I also create weekly Youtube videos discussing my opinions and views on business news throughout North America. I am extremely pleased to be given such an opportunity. I hope that you will enjoy all of the content that I will post.

Although this is only my first post, I hope to gain and build connections with the readers. I highly encourage everyone to comment and discuss the matters at hand. Feel free to express your thoughts, interests, and concerns. Challenge me wherever you see fit. After all the purpose of a blog is not for me to sit here and write; it is a medium in which we are all able to interact. 

Interaction has seemed to be a key theme over the past week. Recently the Social Media giant Facebook announced that they were yet again changing the profile layout two a split column design which will essentially works as a scrapbook (telling your life story as posted).

Personally I think this is a great idea and a very smart move. The entire point of Facebook is to connect with family and friends. Facebook’s goal is to focus on making content more accessible for every user, as well as allowing for a greater individualized ‘feel’.

Apparently, many people do not share the same thought as me. Users were angry! Some people even threatened to delete their accounts if the changes were not stopped. Although the internet allows for everyone to have an equal voice, sometimes it’s just not worth yelling. With over 800 million users, it is nearly impossible for Facebook to keep everyone happy.

This morning I came across an article written by Christina Warren posted via- Mashable. I can’t say this any better than she can, so I’m going to let Christina do the talking.

“Sure, Facebook has faced user revolts in the past – practically every major overhaul to the platform has been met with user backlash- but this time apparently, it’s just too much.”

Facebook is changing, and there is nothing that any of us can do about it. Love it or hate it, we will all continue to use it (how else you see know that the high school ‘sweethearts’ just broke up?) . Although not all of the changes are improvements, I strongly feel that Facebook knows what they are doing. After all they built the foundations of Social Media. Some people argue that Facebook will loose its ‘zing’ and that it will be replaced by a new platform. However, the facts don’t lie. Facebook has nearly 500 million more users than any other outlet. I don’t think that they plan on stopping anytime soon.

Tim

My Tips To Be Successful at OCMC

In preparation to write this post I’ve been reflecting on my times as an OCMC team member and what a great experience it was. There was a lot of hard work involved but overall an enriching experience. Having had to participate in two events – Sales presentation and Case Study – my preparation process was slightly different for each.

At The Beginning
- Take the time to meet all the people on the team. You’d be surprised how much you can learn from others.

- Try not to miss out on any guest speakers – they were always interesting and had great advice

My Preparation Tips
- Practice, practice, practice. If I could have practiced my presentation 100 more times I would have.

- Try to have the final draft of your presentation weeks before the competition to allow sufficient time to practice (sales presentation)

- Being comfortable with your teammate is very important as having a natural rapport and flow adds value to the presentation.

- It was also beneficial to have had practice with as many cases as possible as during competition were we able to draw some ideas from previous cases that we did.


Don’t Forget Team Love & Spirit
Try to enjoy the experience of being part of the team. Sometimes it’s hard to forget about the competition and the incessant desire to practice but try to step out a couple times and just have fun. Only once it was over I looked back and thought wow, that was a crazy great time and I can’t believe it’s over. It was weird not having to prepare for it anymore and I missed it.

Good luck to everyone, you're going to do great!!

Humber Officially Launches Microsite for OCMC 2011

It’s 30 degrees and sunny all day and while many sit back and bask in the beautiful weather, others are busy working behind the scenes, gearing up for the exciting Fall to come!

Humber College is getting in on the excitement officially launching their OCMC 2011 website that contains all the news and info related to the event coming this November.  As always, the host College takes the responsibility for designing and creating the portal that helps communicate all the needed information to those involved.  This is always an exciting time for OCMC followers as this is when the event-host releases all the juicy details about what they’ve been planning over the past few months.

Here's a quick look at what OCMC 2011 is all about!

This year’s event-theme is be innovative. To play along with the theme, local advertising company Black Cat Advertising, generously created the site to show their support for the OCMC event. The innovative design catches your eye with bright colours and an artistic layout that uses interactivity to reveal information.  A special shout-out goes to Black Cat for their inspiring design, clever layout, creativity, dedication and generosity - THANK YOU!

But that’s not all! The OCMC website is loaded with great content and information about the OCMC event and its celebrated history.  Find out about our event partners and sponsors - you may even find a few things to help you study for your case event.  Some of you may even dive into the archives to see who has won this illustrious event in recent years and who to watch out for this November.  

The OCMC site connects you to everything OCMC, including our new social media pages that help you connect and network with your fellow OCMC colleagues.  So get in on the buzz and find out what you need to know about OCMC 2011 by visiting http://business.humber.ca/ocmc/.

See you in November!   

App Success Makes Apple World's #1 Brand

With technology lying at the center of all the new trends in marketing and advertising, we see devices like the Apple iPad changing the way we reach customers.  A year ago there were few that would have thought that the iPad would eventually launch Apple into the world’s most valuable brand position- myself included!  When the iPad first launched many consumers were skeptical of how the bulky and expensive device would handle- mostly a result of it being sold as a practical item.  Nevertheless, just over a year later the iPad and the success of its user-friendly applications has enhanced Apple’s international brand image by 246% placing them as an uncontested number one.  To see a detailed list of 2011’s top 50 international brands, you can check them out here @ http://www.marketingprofs.com/charts/2011/5018/apple-tops-google-as-worlds-most-valuable-brand.

As Apple continues to develop a reputation in the retail industry we see their stock and brand continue to rise in value.  There are very few companies that have successfully completed a vertical integration like Apple who has virtually total control over their supply chain.  Recently, with talks of the new iPad 3 in development, Apple has looked to Taiwanese LED manufacturer Coretronic to join their short list of suppliers in attempt to solve previous display concerns.  As the population continues to shift towards the use of smart phones such as iPhones, Blackberry’s and Android models, the use of applications also continues to grow more rapidly.  Now with the introduction of the Blackberry Playbook, HP TouchPad and Samsung Galaxypad, we see the market becoming more competitive as marketers and advertisers focus on new ways to reach the consumer through these applications.    

This ultimately begs the question... How do you know if your business needs an app?  According to the experts at Mashable, it depends on who you’re targeting and what you have to offer.  Creating an app can be costly but depending on where your market lies and the overall mobile business climate around that segment, it can be extremely rewarding and in most cases profitable.  To get more information on whether designing apps is worthwhile for your business; check out this infographic @ http://7.mshcdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/mobile-app-business-lg.jpg.  For info on how to design apps for small and mid-sized businesses, check out this post @ http://mashable.com/2010/10/27/build-an-app-for-your-smb/.