Since some readers have challenged my stance on social networks and their effectiveness in creating friendships, I will repeat here what I have written in my comment to Adi:

“I agree that through blogging I have made many good friends. However, I don’t agree that you cannot make an equal amount of friends on social networks. You simply need to invest more in it. Read people’s profiles, learn about them, get to know them by contacting them, commenting on their posts, etc. I think that perhaps people are just not used to making the same kind of effort on the social networks as they make when reading blogs.”

Kfir writes on his blog:
“I believe that social networks are as good as the way you use them. There are so many of them out there, and every one has its own angle. But I am just one guy, and don’t have a lot of time to spare on maintaining all those profiles (I need to work sometimes). So sometimes I am adding people to my network even if they are far from being friends.”

I believe that one of the reasons that people feel they are not making the same deep connections on social networks as they are through blogging is because they simply don’t invest enough time and effort in getting to know the people in their community. When you enter someone’s blog, you make a conscious effort to sit and read what he has to say, even if it takes a little while. If you spent the same amount of time on social networks, reading people’s posts, getting to know them, writing to them, I can promise you that you’ll make some good connections after all.

I think that a great problem many social networks are facing now is an over saturation of social networks that are very much the same. I have written about this previously in my post I am Thinking of Opening a Startup. Many people feel a constant need to get on every social network out there, not investing enough time and effort on their profiles nor on getting to know others in their community, even if they are listed as their friends. Then all you have is a bunch of online communities filled with people, but no good content or interaction. This is why I believe that those networks that will be the most unique and do the best job in encouraging their users to really get more active and involved, will outlast the others.

The last issue I want to discuss is this: We as humans are not capable of handling the amount of online friendships that we hold. Can you imagine maintaining a good, close level of friendship with all your online friends constantly? It is impossible and I am not telling you to go ahead and do that. However, there are people here and there that will grab your attention, just by skimming through their profile page, you will find bits and pieces that really interest you. You will see that if you invest a little more into those relationships, you may find yourself with a few good new buddies who probably also happen to blog but out of all the millions of blogs out there, never got around to reading yours yet. In the end, making connections is very fulfilling no matter where it takes place. I have met many interesting people through blogging and also through my social networks. I refuse to favor one over the other. I love both. Is that so wrong?

Thanks again to babybluebbw for the pic.

Technorati tags: blogs, social networks, friends, connections, kfir pravda, adi avnit, startups, community, web2.0

My friend Kent just wrote a very interesting post on Blogs VS Social Networks. He discusses Jay Neely’s belief that the difference between social networks and blogs is that one is for your friends and the other is for your audience. Jay also writes:

“The key difference is that one group already knows you (it’s easy to replace “friends” with “coworkers”, “family”, “neighbors”, etc).”

In his post, Kent disagrees with Jay, saying:

“Jay says bloggers write for their audience. Clearly some do, like Guy Kawasaki, the folks at Mashable and other bloggers with one foot remaining in the old media pool. But lots of other bloggers are writing not merely to have a soapbox, but for the multi-way conversations that are a central part of the blogging experience. Robert Scoble is the best example of a popular blogger who, it seems to me, approaches blogging from this perspective. Doc Searls is another.”

He adds:

“…the community that develops via cross-blogging is so much more meaningful than merely adding a few hundred “friends” to the botton of your butt ugly MySpace page. When I visit MySpace I see very little that looks like a real community. Mostly, I see a gallery of bad web design.”

Kent, I agree. Partly.

I agree with you that when I write on my blog, I don’t feel like I am writing for an “audience”. I feel like I am writing for my readers. It’s a personal thing for me and I enjoy talking to and interacting my readers.

Regarding blogging vs social networks, I have made as many good friends from blogging (you, for example) as I have from being on the different social networks. I don’t think my friends on the social networks know me better than those I met through my blog. If anything, those who read my writings probably have a better sense of my beliefs and values. My readers are making much more of an effort to get to know me than simply clicking on a button that says “add as friend”. However some people on the various social networks have made a real effort to get to know me and those are the people that I have made strong connections with. I believe that through both tools I have made close, personal relationships with very interesting people. I think making those connections is more dependent on the individuals themselves than the tool presented.

Thanks to babybluebbw for the pic.

Technorati tags: kent newsome, blog, social network, jay neely, community, guy kawaski, mashable, robert scoble, doc searls, myspace, friends

A law proposal by politician Amnon Cohen, from the ultra-orthodox political party shas, that is supposedly meant to protect kids from the dangers of pornography, violence and gambling sites has passed the primary voting stage in the Israeli Knesset .

The proposed law requires that Internet Service Providers (ISPs) block adult content-based sites (sexual, gambling and violence) from children. As a means to verify one’s age, ISPs will require some biometric means of identification for adults, in addition to a personal password. The current law proposal does not specifically state which sites will be blocked, nor which technology will be used by the ISPs for this sort of identification.

Even though this proposal is utterly ridiculous and almost impossible economically and technologically to enforce, it is still very scary and raises many questions. Will the government now tell me which sites I can visit? Who are these people who will now sit in their high chairs and decide what content is considered violent and what content not? Will ISPs in Israel now hold a white list of every user’s personal information? If a news site covers stories about violent happenings in the world, will it now be censored? And if now these types of sites are censored, what sites will be next? Perhaps anti-religious ones?

Jonathan Klinger writes:

“The real question will be who decides which websites should be blocked. Is NRG (a popular Israeli news website) a site that has sexual content because it hosts the NRG sexy column, where one can possibly spot a nipple or two? Or perhaps it is a site that mainly deals with violence because it contains reportings on war, casualties, knife stabbings, and deaths? No matter how we look at it, our society is violent, and every news website deals with violence.”

Gadi Shimshon adds:

“Nothing in this new law proposal protects the children of Israel. It is a product culminating from technological ignorance, over-righteousness, and political power play.”

Parents everywhere (not just in Israel) should be aware of what their children are doing and educate them about these issues. It is not the government’s job to decide how these issues will be dealt with in every household. I doubt that this law will be able to get the majority of votes in the Knesset in order to pass, however, this proposal should serve as a warning and people should react and take action. The power to protect the freedom of content lies in our hands. In less than two weeks time the government takes the proposal to the next stage.

The above banner was created in protest of the proposed law. It shows the face of Amnon Cohen and reads: “My brother, your big brother has arrived…come meet your new educator”.

Technorati tags: israel, censorship, law, amnon cohen, children, violence, news, jonathan klinger, gadi shimshon, freedom of speech, cyber activism, internet, politics

I must say i have always loved MyBlogLog. When I recommend to startups to create not only a branded widget, but a useful one that site owners would actually want to put it on their site, this is the kind of widget I am talking about. The MyBlogLog widget provides a great way for you to know who’s visited your blog, learn more about them, and read their blogs as well. Often time you find that people who stop by your blog usually have excellent taste and seem to write pretty nice blogs themselves as well. I have met many interesting bloggers and found some excellent readings by clicking on their faces.

Now MyBlogLog has introduced the new tagging feature that allows users to add tags to each of the communities, thereby allowing for better findings of content you’re looking for. So for instance, if you know social media is one of your topics of interest, you can check out all those tagged with social media. It’s a great way to find new readings and also connect with bloggers who have similar interests to yours. MyBlogLog has also asked users to tag spam blogs as “Schmoe” which is also a nice way of filtering the system from spammers.

Once a tag is added to your community, other users can vote it up or down. This determines its size in the cloud. You can also permanently remove any tag you don’t fancy. Currently tags are imported from Del.icio.us and Technorati. Other sources will be added over time.

I applaud Yahoo for finally upgrading MyBlogLog as they have promised. I understand other changes, including a redesign, are also coming up soon. Really looking forward to that.

Technorati tags: mybloglog, startups, widget, blogs, tags, social media, community, web 2.0, delicious, technorati, yahoo

Since Jeff Pulver has started a new “Question of the Day” post, I will also add my own question for today: Which blogs are your favorite to read, and why? I personally enjoy reading the blogs of those people who not only tell you about the latest social network or software and how to use it, but rather actually have something to say about it. Bloggers like Kent Newsome, Jeff Pulver, and Robert Scoble, not only tell you about the latest product or development, but they state their opinions, add some context to all these developments we’re seeing around us, and often talk about the whole web 2.0 culture and its influence on our daily lives. Makes for a much more interesting reading than just hearing about “the latest whatever”.

Who are your favorites?

Thanks to xiaoxia for the pic.

Technorati tags: jeff pulver, kent newsome, robert scoble, blog, web2.0

In the last few months we’ve seen more and more politicians embrace the world of online social media and use it to engage with their voters and gain visibility for themselves. Barack Obama can be found on Twitter and Friendster, while John Edwards is also twittering and on Second Life. Hilary Clinton, who can also be found on many social networks, has followed in the footsteps of Tony Blair and turned to the YouTube community to help her choose her campaign song.

Fox Interactive Media (FIM) recently released a series of research findings from the first comprehensive study examining both the growth and marketing power of online social networks. The study was conducted in partnership with Isobar and Carat USA. It incorporated feedback from approximately 3,000 U.S. Internet users, as well as MySpace clients for in-depth case studies. Results from the study, show the following:

• Social networks have caused a fundamental shift in the way people interact with each other and with media. 70%+ of Americans 15-34 are actively using social networks
• Brands such as adidas and Electronic Arts attributed more than 70% of their marketing ROI to the “Momentum Effect” a new metric coined by Marketing Evolution, quantifying the “pass along” power consumer-to-consumer communication.
• 40%+ of social networkers said they use social networking sites to learn more about brands or products that they like
• 28% said at some point a friend has recommended a brand or product to them.
• U.S. social networkers chose interacting on sites such as MySpace as their favorite activity online or offline, ahead of television viewing and on par with cell phone usage.
• Social networkers spend on average more than seven hours per week on social networking sites. More than 31% of online social networkers claim they spend more time on the Web in general after starting to use a social network. They were also more inclined to engage in other entertainment media and activities including listening to music, playing games and talking on the cell phone.
• Social networkers use the sites not just to improve their online lives, but also to make their offline lives richer and more exciting. 48% said they are having more fun in life in general and 45% said their lives are more exciting as a result of spending time networking online.

So there you have it. The marketing power of social media is growing at an extremely fast rate. Many brands have already figured it out and are using these social channels to talk to and understand their customers. See these examples:

What about your brand? Have you figured it out yet? If you haven’t yet started using these tools to interact with and expose your brand to the world, you’ll soon be left out in the cold. This is an amazing time for marketers to spread their word out there in an original and creative manner. Embrace these new tools and use them. Remember though that each of these channels constitutes a community. Do not just try to “sell” your product. Be unique, offer something different, and listen to what those in the community have to say.

Technorati tags: social media, social network, barack obama, john edwards, hilary clinton, twitter, tony blair, youtube, fim, isobar, carat, myspace, adidas, ea, marketing evolution, brand, web, nintendo, nike, wrike

Between working, blogging, twittering, and IM’ing all day, we tend to forget that there’s a beautiful offline world out there for us to explore. In the last few days I was reminded why we should travel more often.

This week, after finally admitting to myself that I was a webaholic, my boyfriend and I decided to spontaneously organize a trip to the Galilee and the Golan Heights. We slept in wooden cottages in the middle the woods, water rafted in the Jordan River, and visited the Golan Heights wineries (amongst other activities). The sites were simply spectacular and the people so friendly. They live their lives in a completely different rhythm, more relaxed and stress-free. I can also understand why. When you wake up every day to such magnificent views and the sounds of birds chirping, you just can’t help it.

I have posted my pics from the trip on flickr. I invite you all to check ‘em out

The world is a beautiful place, so go, explore it! You don’t need to travel to a far away destination. Sometimes the most beautiful place can be just a few hours drive away.

You’re still there?

Technorati tags: blogging, twitter, im, webaholic, galilee, golan heights, jordan river, flickr

I will be away this week so I won’t be posting. I know it will be hard, but try to survive without my posts for a few days
To all my readers - Have a wonderful week!

See this pic? This is how David Bullard views us, the bloggers. Bullard, one of South Africa’s most reputable print journalists, writes a weekly column for the Sunday Times (which has a readership of well over 1m people). He has recently written an article, insulting all bloggers and portraying them as pathetic human beings who have very little to say and couldn’t ever get a job in journalism, even if they tried.

Bullard writes:

“Most blog sites are….cobbled together by people who wouldn’t stand a hope in hell of getting a job in journalism, mainly because they have very little to say. It’s rather sad how many people think the tedious minutiae of their lives will be of any interest to anyone else. It’s even sadder when someone reads them….

Many bloggers prefer to remain anonymous and with good reason. The content of their sites is so moronic that even their best friends would disown them if they knew they were the authors.”

As if this wasn’t insulting enough, he continues to say:

“I do, however, object to some anonymous, scrofulous nerd pumping meaningless drivel into cyberspace at all hours of the day and night simply because he can’t find a girl to sleep with him. These are the sort of wackos who gun down their fellow students at university.”

This last paragraph just shocked me. How could a renowned journalist make such a ludicrous and hateful statement? And based on what evidence does Bullard decide that “many bloggers prefer to remain anonymous”? I myself don’t blog anonymously and frankly, I think it is safe to say, that the majority of blogs out there are not anonymous. Also, why does Bullard assume that we all want jobs in journalism? The bloggers I know blog because they enjoy it and want to do it. Not because it’s the only thing they can get paid to do.

I completely agree with Vinny Lingham who writes:

“This is exactly the mentality that is leading to the decline of offline print as a source of information, because the people entrenched in the offline world are so resistant to change, they cannot keep up with the times.

If I had to paraphrase what Bullard is saying, then basically Michael Arrington, Om Malik, Robert Scoble, Jeremy Zawodny, Danny Sullivan & Matt Cutts wouldn’t ever get hired by a print publication - (like hell) - but even more to the point, why would they want to write for a bunch of anally retentive middle to late aged complacent publications that are in a declining market. Most of the CEOs and editors of these publications are hoping to retire before they go bust and Web 2.0 becomes and entrenched way of life - and this is probably one of the biggest drivers of their resistance to change - with maybe the exception of Rupert Murdoch.”

It seems that a day after his article was published, Bullard started a blog of his own, continuing the debate regarding his article and posting a response, therefore, I am not quite sure whether his overall strategy was just to degrade us or to create a buzz for his own new blog.

In response to Bullard’s attack, Vincent Maher and Louis-Marc have issued a public challenge to Bullard and four other newspaper columnists of his choice to a public writing contest. Let’s see if Bullard accepts. He may not want to engage with wackos like us who can’t get laid.

Check out this clip showing him arrogantly bragging about the attention that he’s received due to his article:

Thanks to Vincent Maher for the pic.

Technorati tags: david bullard, blog, sunday times, vinny lingham, michael arrington, om malik, robert scoble, jeremy zawodny, danny sullivan, matt cutts, web 2.0, rupert murdoch, vincent maher

Recently I had an interesting conversation with a blogging friend of mine about the gradual obliteration of borders between our personal and professional lives online. Most of us who are active web users (aka geeks) have accounts on Flickr, Twitter, Digg, StumbleUpon, etc. We use these networks as a way to present ourselves & our interests to the world, and to also connect with others, both for personal and professional reasons.

When I upload pics to flickr, I upload pics of myself from different networking parties, but I also upload pics of me, just hanging out, or traveling to exotic locations. When I twitter, I twitter about the last post on my blog or about an interesting article I just read on Mashable, but I also twitter about the last episode of Lost that I just watched or my plans for this weekend. When I stumble, I stumble pages that I think may be interesting for my fellow stumblers, but I also stumble pages that are just interesting to me personally. There is no separation between the professional me and the personal me. Flickr is not only a platform to let other professionals know what networking parties I’ve last been to, but it’s also a way for me to record and share pictures of my life. Twitter is not only a means of exposing people to my blog, but rather, its also a way for me to record important events in my and my contacts personal lives - almost like a public diary.

I know that some of my fellow bloggers try to keep a certain facade online. They try to control their image by only presenting their professional side to the world. They won’t tell you on their profile what their real favorite movies are or show you pictures of where they went on their last vacation. I believe they act like this partly out of fear of what other professionals may think. My friend was telling me a story about someone who didn’t get hired for a job because the company saw that he posted pictures of himself in a bathing suit on flickr. C’mon…is this sad or what? If you’re an excellent marketer who can do your job well, why should the fact that you posted a pic of yourself at the beach make any difference? If anything, it only shows that you are a human being who’s active on social networks and also, apart from working, actually has a life.

I do think that this conservative way of thinking is fading out slowly but surely, and that companies understand these days that people who are involved in all these networks provide a valuable asset to them.

Just to clarify, I am not saying that you should now go and start posting pics of yourself wasted at the last Christmas party, but I am saying, don’t be afraid to show the world who you are. Not just the you during office hours, but the whole you. If a company doesn’t want to hire you based on that, you’re probably better off without them.

Thanks to Darwin Bell for this beautiful pic.

Technorati tags: web, blogging, flickr, twitter, digg, stumbleupon, networking, mashable, lost, social networks, darwin bell