Here's an update on one of my previous posts.  Since joining Facebook about two weeks ago, Washington Post media critic Howard Kurtz has friended me.  In fact, according to today's Media Notes column, Howie has friended over 300 people on the social network. 

In his continued exploration of Facebook, he quotes Kelley Sayler (I dunno who she is) concerning the site's newsfeed as she mocks the feature:

because the world really needs to know that they had macaroni and cheese for lunch at 12:32 p.m. The newsfeed doesn't feed news; it feeds exhibitionism and egotism. . . . The cult of celebrity has trickled down to the masses and made us all alternately nosy and self-important.

While most of my news appetite is defined by a thirst for hard news, the newsfeed is why I consider Facebook one of the most relevant news sites. 

This feature updates me about how and what people who are important and close to me are doing; it even shows me pictures.  The exploits of a friend from high school, college, or work are so much more important to me than that of Paris Hilton. 

Through the notes feature, Facebook allows my friends to write about whatever they want — even news commentary or a detailed description of an event important to me like one of my friend's birthday parties.

As I see my friends join highly targeted groups or write comments on others' profiles, I can get a sense of how they feel about movies, politics, sports, etc.   With the new API offerings, there are applications that enable those on Facebook to spread information about entertainment, important causes, and other important stuff like which Disney film villain they are most like.

Oh yeah, Facebook also reminds me of birthdays.  The Marketplace feature is its classified section.  People can also post YouTube videos for audio/visual content.

The newsfeed also makes a great marketing tool; doesn't most news come with advertising?

Facebook provides news about people whom I care about in a much better way than a mainstream media news site does.  Thus, with all due respect to Sayler, I like the newsfeed; it makes Facebook a Washington Post and Entertainment Weekly about, for, and by my friends and me.

When Facebook Platform launched at the end of May , the move was met with surprise and delight from online marketers and software developers who have been hoping for a way to access the social network's huge audience of college-aged users.  The Platform allows software developers to design custom applications people can install for their profiles.  These applications have a wide range of uses, including advertising, fundraising, and apps that are just for fun.

I've seen the popularity of some of these applications first-hand, with many people in my circle of friends using the Graffiti App, which allows users to scribble on their friends' walls, and photo slideshow applications.  The popularity of Facebook platform has been formally documented: CNET reports that some 1,500 applications have been created since the launch of the Platform.  Installation of some of these applications has expanded incredibly quickly, with "some of the most popular [going] from zero to 850,000 users in three days".  Dave Morin, director of Facebook Platform told CNET that "This is unprecedented in the history of the Internet".

However, will this popularity be long-lived or short-term?  One Facebook app developer, Amit Gupta, argues that Facebook users may run into "application fatigue", causing the popularity of Facebook Platform to be more of a fad than anything else.  I tend to agree with Gupta.  Whereas MySpace users have shown constant interest in using widgets and other creative options on their profiles since the network's inception, Facebookers have relied on the system for its communication features rather than for the system's flexibility, which up until the last couple of weeks, has been non-existent.

The tendency for people to join groups on Facebook for various causes has been proven in the past through politics, with people grouping together for candidates or issues.  But just as it's a question whether Facebook Apps will be a long-term tool, it's also a question whether people are ready to give money and/or be sold to through the social network.  Thus far, it hasn't been proven whether Facebook membership translates into fundraising dollars.

To judge how well some applications are doing at raising money, we did a little experiment. We checked out one of the fundraising applications, called Causes.  The app is by Project Agape and can be found by doing a simple search in the applications directory.  The way it works is that the application offers a directory of non-profit causes to which Facebook users can start a membership and donate money online.  Causes are grouped into categories, making them easier to browse through.  The directory was too large for us to research all of the causes, but to get a general idea of how fundraising through this app was progressing, we took a sample of some of the causes and compared their membership to fundraising history.  Currently, there are 9 categories of Causes.  We examined the first 25 causes (alphabetically) for each category, a total of 225 causes.

What we found is that membership for these causes is through the roof.  For the 225 causes we researched, there are a total of 615,415 members, an average of 2,735 members per group.  The "international" category, which includes groups like "Save Darfur" and "Fight Aids" has the most members, 206,277 (that's an average of 8,251 members per group.  The "religion" category, which includes groups like "Share the Gospel" and "Stop Islam Hijacking" had the fewest members, a total of 4,959 (an average of 198 members per group).

Despite the huge membership stats, fundraising stats are lagging far behind.  In total, $30,752 were raised by all the groups we checked out.  This may seem like a lot, but this averages to just $0.05 per member or $138 per group.  I think the key here is that becoming a member of a group or cause on Facebook is really easy and requires limited to no action.  This membership is, in most cases, merely a stamp on someone's profile that helps connect users to other like-minded people.  Beyond that, group membership on Facebook doesn't really mean much.  Making donations, on the other hand, actually requires college- and high school-aged people to contribute funds.  In most cases, this age group doesn't have a lot of spare cash on hand, especially for causes on a network which people have gotten used to using for free.

While I think Facebook applications like the work by Project Agape is a great idea and helps people to get a voice for their political/social concerns.  However, I don't expect these groups to have a lot of success raising funds on Facebook.

What do you think?  How will the new Facebook Platform affect online fundraising for non-profits? 

Take a look at our research data here.

ObamaGirl supposedly has a crush on — wait for it — Barack Obama, and she has created a music video professing her love for him with lyrics like, "You're into border security…let's break this border between you and me…Universal health care reform…it makes me warm" (Hat tip: TechPresident).

I'm sure that Obama is blushing since ObamaGirl is hot and as part of the Barely Political website, she's one of "America's New Poll Dancers."  Catch the pun?

Of course, he might also blush since it is rather satirical, but at the same time I think he should thank her for her choice of men — whether her crush is true or not — since the music video is unsurprisingly popular on YouTube.  Further, it is getting some major mainstream media coverage like ABC News; journalists seem hungry for interesting stories from the Internet. 

Since we work with public relations professionals here at The Bivings Group we understand that a mention in the press can help a company better than an advertisement since organizations have to pay for them.  In this case, the Obama camp should appreciate how this clever person is getting Obama's name in the press a lot.  It's great exposure.

Granted, not every piece of potential voter generated content will yield positive results for a candidate, but we'll see if the positive will outweigh the negative effects in 08.

You know you’re busy when you are a week late breaking your own news. The Bivings Group is part of the team working on the Fred Thompson website.

Last night, the team rolled out a new version of the I’m With Fred website. This release includes a blog and tools that allow supporters to draft letters to the editor and call talk radio. Profiles have also been launched on MySpace, Facebook, YouTube and Twitter.

Stay tuned and share your thoughts in the comments.

When it comes to digital strategy, it seems like The Politico is and will throw spaghetti on the wall to see what sticks.

I attended an event yesterday evening hosted by the public-private business organization Rosslyn Renaissance with The Politico's executive editor Jim VandeHei and chief political correspondent Mike Allen (hat tip: FishbowlDC).  (more…)

Mark Glaser over at PBS Mediashift has pointed out a couple of interesting articles from the San Francisco Chronicle.  Published just a week apart, these articles take opposing sides in the controversy over the value of new media and its affect on newspapers and traditional outlets.  Neil Henry 's article, "The Decline of News ", pines whines over the damage the Internet has caused the "old" media, while Dan Gillmor, in "Journalism isn't dying, it's Reviving ", extols the role the new media is playing in creating a diverse news atmosphere. Both articles are worth reading, as both authors make some good points.  I'd like to take some time here to respond to this articles, taking a closer look at the opinions of both authors.

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When I was in high school during the late 90s, educators and other experts told me that I would probably have a job that no one had even thought of back then (forget positions like accountant, pilot, programmer, etc.) since the Internet and computer technology were accelerating at such a brisk pace during the Dot-com Boom.  While a very few people knew the publishing technique that is now known as blogging then, it wasn't until about 2003 or 2004 that blogging gained more exposure.

On Sunday The New York Times had an article by Barbara Whitaker titled "Can Blogs Become a Big Source of Jobs?"  It discusses how there are now thousands of blogging jobs, and while most paid bloggers only earn a few hundred dollars per month, some earn upwards of $50,000 a year — that's a regular full-time job. 

Whitaker touched upon the fact that blogging or understanding the practice is now part of many traditional jobs.  For instance, how many journalists blog now?  They still do what they have traditionally done, but blogging is just a new duty.

However, it is no surprise that blogging is part of my job description since I work for an Internet communications firm.  Perhaps the notion that I would have a job that no one had though of was more or less true. 

Blogger Removed from NCAA Baseball Game for Live Blogging (via CNET): Courier-Journal staff blogger Brian Bennett was removed from an NCAA baseball game by officials who told him that "blogging from an NCAA championship event is against NCAA policies". CNET author Daniel Terdiman hit the nail on the head when he said,

"It's understandable if sports organizations like the NCAA want to control access to video of their games, but it's hard to see how they can expect news organizations to keep from reporting the news as it happens.  And when they do, it makes them look like they are stuck very, very far in the past."

Why Real Estate Agents have Good Reason to Fear the Web (via Techdirt):  A study released by two economists from Northwestern University shows that home sellers in Madison, Wisconsin who use real estate agents do not get higher sale prices for their homes than people who sell their homes by themselves.  Apparently, Madison is home to a robust for-sale-by-owner website (FSBOMadison.com ) that allows people to circumvent real estate agents and successfully go it alone.  Authors on TechDirt and in the New York Times conclude that for-sale-by-owner websites legitimize real estate agents' fear of the web.  I think, however, that the success of this website is that real estate agents should expand their use of the web for marketing and outreach rather than shy away from it.  I found this report interesting given the relatively new popularity of real estate websites.

Google Gives Advertisers More Control (via CNET ; also see HULIQ): Google is changing its AdWords program to allow advertisers to see exactly which sites their ads appear on and to run placement performance reports, which will show advertisers performance metrics for each site where their ads appears.  These changes are an effort by Google to give advertisers more control over their ad campaigns and to provide more transparency to advertisers.

Blogging is so much more than about expressing yourself; it can also serve as a learning tool.  I have learned many interesting things through blogging.  Here are some of the ways that use my blog to learn: 

First, writing is mental exercise that, if done carefully, forces one to think about how to clearly present an idea.  What kind of facts or information does one need to defend a stance?  Can that stance stand?  What are the best words to use>?

Second, a post's comment section is a great way to expand one's horizons.  Not only do others provide feedback, but sometimes they include links to either their own site or other relevant sites.  Sometimes following links left in comments is a great way to find other people who have more information or share a common interest.

Third, analytics programs also help point to other sources of information related to a blog.  If another blog or site is linking to a blog, there's a decent chance that at least the post or page in question is related to one's blog.  Like comments, following sources of traffic one can find a whole community of people who share a common interest.

Fourth, linking to other bloggers and sites that you find useful information also helps one learn.  Blogging is about conversation and writing a post in response to another post (while linking to it, of course) is a great way to debate and collaborate.  Comments and analytic programs can aid in this conversation process.

What are some other ways that one can learn through blogging?

Not everyone who reads blogs comments on posts or writes their own blogs.  That should not surprise anyone.  In fact, according to Jackob Nielsen's Participation Inequity: Encouraging More Users to Contribute post from last October, only about 5% of Internet users blog. (Hat tip: Suw Charman)

Nielsen explains that "In most online communities, (more…)

Here at TBG, we firmly believe that our clients, whether they be corporations, non-profits, or political candidates, should use their websites as conduits for relaying narratives that will spur visitors to action.  Amnesty International's new Eyes on Darfur website (screenshot below) is probably the best example of this tactic that I have ever seen.

 A collaboration between Amnesty International and the American Association for the Advancement of Science, Eyes on Darfur makes the atrocities happening in Sudan a reality for people otherwise removed from the situation.  Using satellite imagery, Eyes on Darfur shows the destruction of individual villages in Darfur and Chad, providing pre-crisis imagery of villages and pinpointing structures that have since been destroyed.  The site also uses this technology to identify villages that are still currently at risk. Satellite photos are accompanied by statistics, first-hand accounts, and official reports explaining the events in specific villages.  Visitors to the site can also read background information of the conflict, view photos from villages, and learn about the international response to the situation and what life in Darfur is actually like.

Mona Younis, director of the Science and Human Rights Program at the AAAS told the Washington Post that "The initiative is an example of how science and technology can be applied to expose human rights violations."

Not only is Eyes on Darfur a source of information, but it is also a platform for taking action.  Visitors can sign petitions, send messages to officials, and forward information to friends directly through the website.  The detailed visual information and emotional narrative about the situation in Darfur provide visitors with extremely compelling reasons to get involved, and the site infrastructure makes it really easy to do so.

It's great to see Amnesty harnessing the web for such an important cause.  I really encourage everyone to visit the site and show your support.

Today Cyberjournalist points to a feature on the Washington Post website called Local Explorer. Cyberjournalist summarizes:

You can map information on recent area home sales, crime incidents, schools, fire and police stations, restaurants, bars, hospitals, movie theaters and more. Local Explorer also has facts and figures, local news, classifieds and upcoming events that will help take users further inside area communities.

This is one of the better Google Maps mashups I’ve seen. If you don’t live in the DC area, click here to see the results for zip code 20007 (our office zip).

MSNBC.com has an interesting interactive feature named iPredict in which people can guess future developments in news stories (hat tip: Mathew Ingram).  The program has a digg-like voting system in which participants can the likelihood of a specific event by voting “Very likely,” “Likely,” “Toss up,” “Unlikely,” or “Very unlikely.” Right now there are topics from “Harry Potter will die in the final book” to “Gas prices will hit $4 a gallon by Labor Day.”

Interesting (and kind of morbid when it comes to Harry)…

Let’s see how popular this feature is. I wonder how group predictions will fare.

Breaking news: Washington Post media critic and CNN's Reliable Sources host Howard Kurtz has joined Facebook!

Okay, that isn't breaking news, but he chronicles his first venture into the social networking site in his column in the Post today titled "Searching for Friends." 

First off, he reveals that his college-age daughter "essentially indicated she would rather torch her computer than give me access to her page" by accepting his invitation to "friend."  Yikes!  Tricks are for kids, Howie, and I doubt you would like to see that computer, which you likely paid for, go up in flames.

Further, he states how he has waited and waited (and waited) for others to honor his friending requests with some people he actually knows while receiving random requests from people who simply wanted to see their friend totals burgeon. 

Thanks to Facebook's newsfeed — which I argue is a great marketing tool — he learned a lot about his new "friend" Kelly from Toronto as she joined highly focused groups that typically only comprise of a small set of her friends.  "Maybe this is the 21st-century equivalent of hanging out," Howie wonders.

While Howie is still trying to figure out Facebook along with an outright rejection from his daughter, he has 35 friends — including BuzzMachine's Jeff Jarvis, Portfolio's Matt Cooper, Time's Karen Tumulty, and Slate's Emily Yoffe – as of this posting (make that 36 if he accepts my friending request).  He's catching on. 

In fact, grown ups like Emily Yoffe have proven that Tricks aren't just for kids on sites like Facebook since she has over 1,000 "friends."  Perhaps that since she wrote "Facebook for Fiftysomethings" for Slate and enjoys the honor of a group dedicated to her.  Most importantly, she has played by the rules: join and accept random friend requests.  Granted, Yoffe probably has just a smidgen of what a 2008 Presidential hopeful has, but she's not doing that bad.  We'll see how Howie does.

Now joining a social network in the first place and accepting random friend requests might seem ridiculous for fiftysomethings on Facebook, but it is one way to be hip and cool like teenagers and twentysomethings.  On the other hand, this technique does diminish the social network's ability to aptly maintain your real world friendships. 

However, I wonder what happens when young Facebook friends want to make their social network relationships less trivial and actually meet and interact with their famous "friends."  Does anyone know of any such occurrence, or are high schoolers and twentysomethings simply content with on-line friendships?  If Facebook celebrities like Yoffee and Barack Obama honor such requests, good on em'!

Oh yeah, Howie, if you decide to accept my friend request, I would like to speak with you about one of your books…  Would that make our friending on Facebook more meaningful for you?

This morning, Steve pointed to me to the new beta version of the CNN.com website, which is now available for public testing. You can view it here and take a guided tour of the new site here. Following are a few things that jumped out at me: (more…)