I can see the marketing meeting in Pringles HQ:

Exec 1: Hmm, which is more popular, Facebook or Twitter?

Exec 2: Who cares, you see what these people talk about?  Some of my friends overshare just a little bit too much…

Exec 3:  Eureka!  Why don’t we build a FACEBOOK app that lets people forward their friends’ TWITTER overshares to our site!

Okay, so maybe it didn’t quite go like that, but it is pretty funny.  And goes against the grain of Pringles, which, although has the tagline “One of the few things worth sharing,” no matter how big the package, those damn things don’t get shared with ANY of my friends — in fact, a can of Pringles is lucky to see the light of the next day if they ever make it in my house (overshare! back to the subject).

Here’s the breakdown: Read More…

Read More…

In continuing with clearing out the ol’ Reader and getting back on track with regular posts, here are a couple dozen articles of interest that I accumulated over the past month.  They mainly have to do with strategies and best practices, so check ‘em out and see what works best for you:

Read More…

Slow & steady wins the race, as the Dippin’ Dots Ice Cream team explain how they gained over 1 million fans over the course of 2 1/2 years in this fabulous post by Mirna Bard.  We can talk about gee-whiz big-bang promotions to create a pop, but three key takeaways come from the 5-minute phone interview at the bottom of Mirna’s post: Read More…

This is the first in a series of posts based on the presentations of Monica Hamburg.  I am still going through a ton of responses from very worthy causes, but because Monica’s info was so easily laid out on Slideshare, it was much easier to craft these posts (hint to all:  guest posts welcome).  So please, read on, soak in the key takeaways from each piece, and use these examples to figure out how to best use online platforms in order to get the most out of your offline activities.

This post focuses on how Vancouver’s Union Gospel Mission created an event called Orange Day, to raise awareness for those less fortunate, based on Read More…

In the summer of 2009, DJ SHADOW brought all of his operations under one roof (both physically AND digitally) – the work was a bear to accomplish, but with a smart team and a strong brand that resonates with a dedicated fanbase, Team Shadow has made the interaction via multiple touch points between DJ Shadow and his fans seamless and stronger than ever.  Here are a few examples of what they’ve accomplished: Read More…

If you ever get a chance to see Chicago Dominos franchisee RAMON DE LEON speak at an event, DO IT.  I haven’t seen an energy this unbound since first meeting Gary Vaynerchuk a couple years ago, and like Gary, Ramon is using social media to CRUSH IT for his business – no mean feat, considering the guy operates a chain store in CHICAGO, the heartland of specialty pizza.

So, how does Ramon use Twitter, YouTube, Facebook, and the like to engage his customers and sell more pizzas? Read More…

JOE SORGE is no wallflower.  His Milwaukee-based eatery AJ BOMBERS is a local hub for all things beers & burgers & peanuts.  When hearing on Twitter that social media guru Chris Brogan was coming to town to speak to local marketing professionals, Joe invited Chris to drop by the restaurant.  Not only did Chris drop by for a burger, he also shot a video at AJ Bombers bout how Joe uses Twitter to build his business!  Fast-forward a month later, and Joe’s mug is in the Feb 23 Wall Street Journal, talking about how he uses Foursquare to build his business.

So gaining business press is nice, but how exactly does Joe leverage these social media platforms to build BUSINESS and engage & retain CUSTOMERS? Read More…

How do you raise money for cleft palates in the middle of a recession?  Well, you tap into the local design community and raise the roof with a home tour featuring rooms decorated by your town’s top designers!

That’s exactly what ATLANTA HOLIDAY HOUSE did this past Christmas.  By gathering fans to their Facebook Group page, they were able to Read More…

This post is about one of the greatest beneficiaries of social media marketing – the beloved food truck, which in LA has gone from the domain of the construction worker to date night / upscale mobile destinations for hipsters.

The playbook is pretty much the same across the board (build a Wordpress-based blog, tie in Twitter, Flickr, Facebook, tweet / park / cook, tweet / park / cook, tweet / park / cook), but what’s important to remember is that this inventive new product silo didn’t exist three years ago, and has only grown larger thanks to direct outreach via social media.

Los Angeles just had a MASSIVE STREET FOOD FEST this past weekend, with some of the three dozen food trucks hosting lines that were over two hours long.  Just check out Read More…