April New Media Breakfast - The new Facebook Timeline Pages explored

MAKING THE MOST OF FACEBOOK TIMELINE PAGES
27th April 2012
29 Members Club, Royal Exchange Square, Glasgow

Facebook Timeline for pages has arrived and as from the 30th March all Facebook Pages will be transferred to the new timeline layout.  The changes are radical and will mean every page user has to adapt to the new layout and, the new functionality.  In some cases, this will mean a fundamental change in the way people operate their pages and for some it may mean they are not able to do some of the things they have done with their page in the past.

The new timeline layout is very different and the new functionality offers many new opportunities for businesses and brands to engage with their communities.  The New Media Breakfast will highlight the changes to the pages and explore the ways that you can take advantage of the new timeline layout and the new functionality.

fatBuzz has been busy over the past month changing the layouts for around 100 pages that we manage for clients; we will use some of these to demonstrate what you can do to engage and reach out to your community.  We will show you live examples of what others are doing on their pages and provide some ideas to help you promote your page and grow your community.

We will look at the following:

• Branding
• Tabs and iFrame Pages
• Using the timeline
• New functionality
• Liking, Commenting, Sharing and Tagging
• Photos and Video
• Syndicating content to your page
• Insights
• Advertising
• SEO

The presentation will also take a look at Facebook Insights and show you how you can use the information available from Facebook to track the effectiveness of your activity and your individual posts.

FACEBOOK AND SEO
We will take a fresh look at the impact and potential impact of Facebook on SEO. These are not specifically as a result of the new Timeline layout but we will take the opportunity to update you about the changes and how to maximise the SEO value of your Facebook activity.

YOUR QUESTIONS
We are also keen to answer any questions you may have about the new Facebook Pages or, Facebook in general so, please feel free to send us any questions in advance to gordon@fatbuzz.com or post them as a comment on the blog or on the New Media Breakfast Facebook page.

THE SPEAKERS
The Facebook Timeline breakfast will be presented by Gordon White, Managing Director, fatBuzz Ltd and Tim Barlow, Managing Director of Attacat.

HOW TO BOOK
Venue: 29 Member's Club, Royal Exchange Square, Glasgow
Date: Friday 27th April 2012
Time: 7.30am for 8am
Cost: £10 +VAT

No.29 Members Go Free – If you are a 29 Member you can attend the breakfast free of charge. Please email malcolm@fatbuzz.com with you membership number and he will add you to the attendance list.

We hope you can make it along to this event. If so, I look forward to seeing you on the day.

BOOK FOR NEW MEDIA BREAKFAST GLASGOW HERE:

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I’m out of the office, but you wouldn’t know it...where will you be this Friday morning?

Stay social – choosing the right tech to stay connected when you’re out of the office

New Media Breakfast presentation by Iain Murray of Principle Consulting

Iain Murray of Principle Consulting is the guest speaker at Friday’s NMB and by his own admission he’s a bit of a geek. However while some call him ‘gadget man’ he maintains that he is only interested in technology that works! He insists that everything he uses from his mobile to his tablet and all the Apps are only there if they improve his connectivity and productivity. He states, “I’m not interested in the latest bit of kit or the fastest trending App od Social network unless it specifically and categorically either makes me more efficient, speeds me up, or eliminates some wasted time”.

Iain will present a blend of technology and applications that are available today to show how they work, and why more importantly they will make you more productive. “Staying connected and being able to engage at any time from any place is the primary reason for choosing the right technology” he says, “and if you want to be relevant and engaged, then sometimes you need to be able to participate in live conversations and post the right content while you are mobile”, the presentation on Friday will empower you to do this.

This breakfast won’t sell you anything, but it will give you the right information to make good decisions about your technology and data today.


ABOUT THE SPEAKER

Iain Murray is the founder of Principle Consulting a Management Consultancy business specialising in Property & Facilities Management as well as all other aspects of business advice from business development to long term strategy. Iain has a career in business spanning over 25 years and has held the Facilities Management industry’s top position as Chair of the British Institute of Facilities Management. He is currently the Deputy Chair of Global FM, the global Association of Associations representing over 50,000 FM’s worldwide.

Iain was an early adopter of Social Media and a pioneer in business on the use of integrated and cloud technology. He has won awards for integrating several technologies to improve the efficiency of service while making significant operational savings.

Our connection with Iain came about when he attended the first New Media Breakfast, opened his laptop and appointed himself as the official ‘tweeter’ for the event. He has now attended and spoken several times at the NMB and is a permanent member of the Social Media Podcast team, recording a podcast a couple of times a month.

Iain is continuing his crusade to introduce Social Media to business and his tweets are reaching a global audience and following. Iain regularly write and presents on the benefits and merits of Social Media for business with a style that is both engaging and witty.

Sponsored by

HOW TO BOOK

Venue: 29 Member’s Club, Royal Exchange Square, Glasgow

Date: Friday 30th March 2012

Time: 7.30am for 8am

Cost: £10 +VAT

We hope you can make it along to this event. If so, I look forward to seeing you on the day.

BOOK FOR NEW MEDIA BREAKFAST GLASGOW HERE:

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Sir Trevor McDonald wont be doing my tax return

I came across two businesses last week both of which claim to "do social media" in fact, both claim to be very active.  Both businesses share links to lots of online news stories via Twitter and Facebook; the stories are mainly to do with the industry within which they operate but, occasionally they share items that appear to be completely irrelevant and random. Both share the links without any comments or supporting information.

I have news for both; you are not “doing social media” or, to be more accurate, neither of you has become social nor are your efforts likely to succeed.

For the avoidance of any doubt let me say at the outset; sharing relevant articles and news stories is generally a good practice in fact, we share content almost every day and we encourage our clients to share relevant content with their communities, and occasionally we will share them without comment. The problem with these two businesses is sharing links is the only thing they do.

Have you ever consider contacting Sir Trevor McDonald to do your tax return just because he delivered the news about tax changes in the Chancellor’s Budget?  Why not?  After all, he shared the news with you.  Of course, you wouldn’t because you understand he only delivers the news.  Sharing content online doesn't project you as an expert and, whilst some people may find your links helpful, it is unlikely to yield great results if done in isolation.

I like the practice of sharing relevant articles and news items but, whenever possible, add your comments or, your opinion on the subject – this is what will separate you from the crowd and let your community know a bit more about you.  Better still, write your own piece from scratch based on a relevant event in your industry, invite comments, and opinions from your community, and, encourage conversation about the topic.

If a taxation specialist writes a good blog post immediately after the Budget about the impact of the taxation changes you may consider contacting them about your financial affairs; at the very least you will find it credible and it may prompt you to contact your own accountant.  An informed article written by a taxation specialist highlights their expertise in tax matters. If the article also uses phrases like; “this will affect many of our clients” or, “we advised on a similar situation last month”, this will endorse their experience as well as their expertise.

After you’ve written and published the blog, consider recording it as a podcast or a video and publish it on different platforms to accommodate the fact that people have a choice and a preference about how they receive information – this will make you truly social.

If you have an opinion on how and when to share content or, how sharing is used as part of your overall marketing strategy please use the comment box below to share it with the fatBuzz community.

For now, I’m off to find out if Murray Walker is free to give my daughter some driving lessons!

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Are your events truly social? - Check out our demonstration

On Tuesday this week I'm speaking at eFactor, a one day conference at The Beardmore Hotel and Conference Centre specially for event organisers.  I've been preparing my presentation over the weekend and it's highlighted to me why events are ideal for Web 2.0 and social media tools and how they can really make your event truly social and engaging.

I don't want to spoil it for the audience on Tuesday by saying too much about it ahead of the event but, if you're interested to see a live demonstration of how you can use social media tools at an event please 'Like' the eFactor Facebook page where we will be using some of these tools during the conference.

I hope to show the audience how you can use Web 2.0 technology and social media platforms for:

• Promoting your event ahead of the date
• Interacting with attendees during the event
• Introducing a legacy element by creating a platform for engagement after the event

If you're not attending the event, it is worth 'Liking' the eFactor page to see just how much you can extend the reach of your event both on the day and, long after the event is over.  I will also creating links on the eFactor Page to a copy of my presentation so that you can get a feel for what I have to say on the very interesting and extensive topic of social media for the events industry.

I'm looking forward to the event and hearing from the other speakers and panelists who include:

Bronagh Bell, The Beardmore Hotel and Conference Centre
Shelley Spencer, SECC
Shirley Young, Scottish Prison Service
Eileen Newman, The Breadmore Hotel and Conference Centre
Martin Boyle, Congrex
Del Cotton, Hireaband
Christine Lawson, Eventage
Martin Jack, Think Different Events
Andrew Greenwell, G3 Events

For those of you who are coming along, I look forward to meeting you on the day and, for those not able to attend, please feel free to contact me with any questions on this topic.

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Social Media Podcast 44 now available - the "P" Edition

The latest Social Media Podcast is now available for download with the usual banter and light hearted chat about all things social media. Taking part in Social Media podcast Episode 44 we have Gordon White,  Kyle Murdoch, Kirsty Hunter, and Iain Murray.

One common theme seemed to be the letter "P" on this podcast - Pinterest, Pin-It and, Pages were just some of the topics.  I must confess immediately that I learned something since we recorded this podcast; when discussing Twitter's recent acquisition, Iain talked about "Posterious" which I questioned on the podcast thinking it should be "Posterus", which I've since found out could be from the Latin posterus 'following'.  In fact, we were both wrong; the name is Posterous.  Perhaps our friendly expert Linguist, Sally Goetsch can shed some light on what the name might mean?

We also discuss the launch of the new iPad 3 (the podcast was recorded the same day as the UK launch) and we ask why their didn't seem to be the usual buying frenzy surrounding this release.  In fact, we ask if the Glasgow Apple Store really needed the crowd barriers that were neatly stacked outside the shop which was well stocked with the new iPad even at 3pm on launch day.

The good news is that we managed to keep this podcast under one hour but, we still manage to cram in lots of chat from the world of social media including:

• The iPad3 - Iain and I managed to sneak a look at the latest offering from Apple just before we recorded the podcast.  We also discuss the fact that there didn't appear to be the same buying frenzy this time around.
• Unfortunately, Tesco don't honour online errors in the same way that Zappos did last year
• ClikThis App
• Still no natve Android Apps for DIGG or Pinterest
• Posterous - we discuss the sale to Twitter, even if we do get the name wrong!
• Facebook's IPO - Is it already reshaping Facebook.  We also mention how the disclosures are starting to filter through with recent acknowledgements that the number of unique users could have been overstated by 40 million and, the large number of pending law suits against them.
• Facebook Timeline for Pages - the new Page layout and how that will affect the way some organisations operate their business pages
• fatBuzz's new "Infographic" page on Facebook
• Steve Jobs doll, we get a comprehensive answer courtesy of the Morton Fraser Podcast on Image Rights
• Pinterest - Is it a 'girly' tool and what's making it so popular at the moment.  We also discuss the various copyright issues that are emerging around Pinterest
• Influence measurements platforms like Klout - how accurate are they?  We look at various platforms such as: TweetReach, PeerIndex, Klout, Tweetstats, Crowd Booster, Twenty Feet and, My Web Career
• Social Media Monitoring tools - are they overpriced?
• ROI - will it become less of an issue for organisations?
• Scheduled Tweets - good or bad practice?  Also, see Jennifer Holloways guest blog on this topic
• Kony2012 - Is it all it appears to be?  Most of our team didn't really trust the video.
• Consumption - How often do you watch 100% of a video or, read 100% of an article or blog post?
• Tim Barlow from Attacat asks, "Are bloggers who charge contributors for guest posts right to do so? Is there better way to monitise a blog?"   We would like to discuss this in greater detail on Podcast 45 so, if you have an opinion please get in touch via the comments below. Or, perhaps you would be willing to come on the podcast and discuss it. Thank you to Tim for the suggestion.

We hope you enjoy the podcast, if you have any comments to make or topics you would like us to discuss please leave them here on the blog or on our Facebook Page.

Play the podcast here:

Subscribe/Download Social Media Podcast on iTunes

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Why do you Tweet?

It occurred to me today that social media is a bit like football. The teams we support are the media we favour using and we can get quite ‘tribal’ about that (how often have you expressed disbelief that someone isn’t using the same channel as you?) And just like football, we can all behave like fantasy-league managers when it comes to discussing ‘team tactics’ ie how you should use your media of choice.

Take Twitter for instance. fatBuzz’s Gordon White and I both tweet but, as I found out during a natter following a recent New Media Breakfast, the ‘birth’ of our 140 character ramblings is very different.

Gordon’s belief is that your tweets should be entirely ad hoc and done at a time when you’re free to respond should anyone pick up on them. For example, when he tweets about an upcoming fatBuzz event and someone replies, “Looking forward to it,” he tweets a comment back there and then. For Gordon, Twitter is primarily about interaction.

For me, Twitter is more about keeping on people’s radars, with the odd bit of interaction leading from that, and using it as a channel to give people clues to who you are and what you have to offer ie your personal brand. So I approach my tweets differently (what can I say…doing things ‘my way’ is a theme of my brand!)

I’m a big fan of schedulers – in my case Hootsuite and Buffer – as they allow me to take part in the Twittersphere despite my mare of a diary meaning I’m seldom free to tweet when I need/want to. So I sit for half an hour on a Sunday and set up a mix of messages for the coming week – some sharing information from others, some sharing my own knowledge eg blogs and some giving a ‘shout out’ to other Tweeters I’m due to meet or who have retweeted me recently. Schedulers also allow me to consider the wording of my messages so they give people the right impression of my personal brand through my language and links – well, I’ve got to walk the talk, haven’t I?

I then add to those with other (infrequent) messages on the hoof, when I have time to reply, to get a bit more of that ‘in the moment’ banter Gordon rates (which I agree, is a real bonus of Twitter). A case in point was a question I posed the evening I was off to a football match, asking what people recommended I do to stay warm (I started the ball rolling with a suggestion that I just eat pies). I got a few replies - most of them sensible, though one wit told me having a fondue was the way to go - and I tweeted back, strengthening my online relationships with those people.

Unlike football though, there’s no offside rule to give guidance on the state of play; no-one decrees how you should use Twitter. It’s more important to have a clear idea what you want it to achieve and how you’ll go about doing that…and then do it your way.

So how do you use it?


About Me

I have presented at the Glasgow and Edinburgh New Media Breakfasts on the subject of personal branding. It's a pleasure to be guest blogging on the fatBuzz Blog, hopefully I can bring you some useful information in the future. Meantime, you can read more from me on my own Spark Branding blog here.

Alternatively you can contact me via Linked-In or Twitter at the links below or via Fiona MacDonald fiona@fatbuzz.com

Follow me on Twitter
View my Linked-In profile

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The Steve Jobs Doll and Image Rights questions answered...

In Social Media Podcast No.42 we raised the question of how the Apple Corporation managed to get a Chinese manufactured doll removed from the market. As is the case with lots of things we discuss on the Social Media Podcast, the question was left unanswered - until now that is!

Those of you who listened to the podcast will recall that we were going to seek some answers to this from our friends at Morton Fraser and they've done us proud by making it the subject of a whole podcast; and what a great podcast it is.

Morton Fraser Partner and Head of Services for Business Team, Austin Flynn is joined by Sam Price - Information Technology and Intellectual Property Lawyer and, Richard McMeeken - Senior Associate and Solicitor Advocate in Morton Fraser's Commercial Litigation team dealing with contentious intellectual property disputes. Austin, Sam and Richard take part in a fascinating discussion around the issue of Image Rights which starts with the case of the Steve Jobs doll but includes references to a number of other celebrities including: David Beckham, Elvis Presley, Diana Princess of Wales, Tiger Woods, Russell Brand, the Spice Girls, Eddie Irvine, John Terry, Max Mosley, Catherine Zeta-Jones, Michael Douglas and Alex Salmond.

During the discussion the team discuss the differences between US and UK Law and, the conflict between the European Court of Human Rights "Rights to Privacy" and "Rights to Freedom of Expression".

It is a truly fascinating look at the whole issue of Image Rights and well worth a listen. Rarely will a question raised on the Social Media Podcast be so well answered than it has been here by the Morton Fraser to to whom we are very grateful.

Please take some time to listen to the podcast and, if you enjoy this one, we are sure you will other podcasts released by Morton Fraser - You can subscribe to their podcast here.

You can listen to the Steve Jobs and Image Rights podcast here:

Subscribe/Download Morton Fraser Podcast on iTunes

Subscribe/Download Social Media Podcast on iTunes

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One or Two profiles? Make an informed choice...

I'm two-thirds way through a busy week of speaking engagements; yesterday I addressed a staff conference and today I was presenting to a Special Interest Group from the Institute of Fundraising. These presentations appear to have gone well with some great discussion during the Q&A sessions.

One topic came up at both events and, it is something that social media participants are asking at almost every event I attend; should you have a personal and a business profile if you're using social media platforms for business purposes?

There are mixed views on this, some believe two profiles are necessary to keep your business and personal/family posts relevant to audience you're addressing, others believe in a single profile. There are pros and cons to both approaches and I would encourage everyone to explore the options before making a choice.

A great starting point is the next New Media Breakfast in Edinburgh on the 15th March when Jennifer Holloway will explore this very topic in some detail. I was lucky enough to be present at her presentation in Glasgow a couple of weeks ago and I strongly recommend it to anyone who wants to make a more informed choice about how they manage their personal profile online.

FOR INDIVIDUALS AND BUSINESS OWNERS ALIKE
This presentation is perfect for anyone using social media whether in a personal or a business context. It's also an extremely useful presentation for business owners who are struggling with this particular part of their social media policy.

Jennifer is an expert in personal branding and a highly entertaining presenter, attending her presentation will certainly leave you better informed about the choices and the best way forward for your particular set of circumstances.

If you would like to read more about Jennifer's presentation, please use the following link.

Personal Branding and your Online Persona Read More...

If you would like to book for the breakfast you can do so using the button below:

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March New Media Breakfast, Glasgow - TOP GEAR - A guide to making good technology buying decisions today.

TOP GEAR - A guide to making good technology buying decisions today.

New Media Breakfast presentation by Iain Murray of Principle Consulting

Wikipedia’s entry on Moore’s law describes “a long-term trend in the history of computing hardware whereby the number of transistors that can be placed inexpensively on an integrated circuit doubles approximately every two years. The period often quoted as “18 months” is due to David House, an Intel executive, who predicted that period for a doubling in chip performance (being a combination of the effect of more transistors and them being faster).

The capabilities of many digital electronic devices are strongly linked to Moore’s law: processing speed, memory capacity, sensors and even the number and size of pixels in digital cameras. All of these are improving at (roughly) exponential rates as well (see Other formulations and similar laws). This exponential improvement has dramatically enhanced the impact of digital electronics in nearly every segment of the world economy. Moore’s law describes a driving force of technological and social change in the late 20th and early 21st centuries.”

What this means to the rest of us is that it is almost impossible to keep up with the latest technology and the things that it can do. The danger is that we make a bad procurement decision and end up with Betamax (beaten by VHS) or HD DVD (beaten by Blu-ray), and we have wasted our money.

Coupled with this is the significant trend towards web based software, cloud computing and Apps. These too can be baffling and the cause for consternation about what to buy, and when will it become obsolete.

Iain Murray has been delivering a version of this presentation since 2005, when there was no iphone and no Apps and he has been updating it regularly ever since. The ethos of the presentation remains the same, show how today’s ‘available’ technology can make an impact on your personal productivity, your business and your staff.

This year fatBuzz and Iain have teamed up with CommsWorld to bring the presentation to life. Commsworld are a leading voice and data solutions provider and mobile and fixed communications technology. Iain will merge the presentation on what technology and applications to consider with some live hands on demonstrations of everything from mobile phones to tablets. He will look at the do’s and don’ts of data management, looking at cloud computing applications as well as mobile data costs.

Iain will also look at the plethora of mobile applications out there today, picking and demonstrating some of the best Apps for business and personal productivity. He has been an avid user or Social Media and will also cover the applications and technology needed to make the best use of Social Media on the move.

Iain’s talks have proved very popular and this year’s new and enhanced presentation promises to be the most dynamic and informative yet. If you want to know how to maximise the technology and the applications available today then this is a talk not to be missed. Places will go fast for this so please book early.

ABOUT THE SPEAKER

Iain Murray is the founder of Principle Consulting a Management Consultancy business specialising in Property & Facilities Management as well as all other aspects of business advice from business development to long term strategy. Iain has a career in business spanning over 25 years and has held the Facilities Management industry’s top position as Chair of the British Institute of Facilities Management. He is currently the Deputy Chair of Global FM, the global Association of Associations representing over 50,000 FM’s worldwide.

Iain was an early adopter of Social Media and a pioneer in business on the use of integrated and cloud technology. He has won awards for integrating several technologies to improve the efficiency of service while making significant operational savings.

Our connection with Iain came about when he attended the first New Media Breakfast, opened his laptop and appointed himself as the official ‘tweeter’ for the event. He has now attended and spoken several times at the NMB and is a permanent member of the Social Media Podcast team, recording a podcast a couple of times a month.

Iain is continuing his crusade to introduce Social Media to business and his tweets are reaching a global audience and following. Iain regularly write and presents on the benefits and merits of Social Media for business with a style that is both engaging and witty.

Sponsored by

HOW TO BOOK

Venue: 29 Member’s Club, Royal Exchange Square, Glasgow

Date: Friday 30th March 2012

Time: 7.30am for 8am

We hope you can make it along to this event. If so, I look forward to seeing you on the day.

BOOK FOR NEW MEDIA BREAKFAST GLASGOW HERE:

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The new Facebook Timeline layout for Pages explained on video

No doubt lots of people will be throwing their hands in the air this week when they see the impending changes to Facebook business pages; we'll probably see the usual complaints, predictions of their demise and, threats to leave the platform all together.  It'll be no different from every other time they've made significant changes and everyone will eventually embrace them.

The changes to Pages are certainly significant and, they will have a real impact on some businesses, particularly those using fangates or, the "refresh page" operation on a default Welcome page to issues some kind of promotion or discount code when the page reloads.  Why?  Because there are no default landing pages anymore and, the page no longer refreshes when you "Like" it so it can't redirect to a "Special Offer" or promotion page.

I think Facebook has used these changes to try and increase their own advertising revenue; the restrictions about what you can and can't put in the new header are a clear indication of this.  Who can blame them?  It's the cost we have to pay for using a "free" platform and, with an IPO round the corner,Facebook are under pressure to prove its ability to generate revenue.

The restrictions on advertising may achieve higher sales for Facebook but, there is another outcome to consider; when blatant advertising is not allowed, businesses will rely on better content and greater engagement to make their pages work for them and that's no bad thing.

We have put together a short video highlighting the main changes to the Pages, it is important that you watch this and be aware of how these changes will affect the way you currently use Facebook.  Every page will be switched to the new timeline layout by the 30th March so, you should start to think about it now.

Here are the main changes and some of the new functionality:

If fatBuzz can help you with the changes or, your Facebook/social media strategy please don't hesitate to call us, we're happy to have a coffee and a chat.

PLEASE SHARE THIS
I hope you have found this video useful.  If so, please use the share buttons below to tell others in your online community about it, you'll be helping them to understand this very important change to Facebook.  Thank you.

We have lots more video tips, and advice on Social Media, Design, Marketing, PR and Events at fatBuzz.TV