Thunderbolt and Foursquare

Recently I made a purchase of the new Verizon Android, called the Thunderbolt. One of the main reasons that I bought the phone was due to the projected increase of price in the data package. I also decided to get the Thunderbolt because after reading about the success of the phone as well as a number of positive personal testimonies, I thought it was the best droid out right now.

One of my favorite apps that I have is the foursquare application. Foursquare is a fun way of “checking in” to different places and businesses you visit throughout your day. After you check into certain places you can become the mayor, also known as the most frequent visitor and earn badges. I am enjoying using this app and I realize that it could be very beneficial to businesses. If you own a business and are not registered on foursquare go to https://foursquare.com/business. Business can add specials for either individuals who check in or even just solely for the mayor. This can help bring customers in and gives them an incentive to use this app. One promotion I have come across is with the company, Sunoco.  There is a deal that when you buy a king size bag of M&Ms, you save 2 cents a gallon on gas. The only way you can redeem this reward is by mentioning the Aplus reward at the register. The only way that someone can know about this is by using the foursquare application. Another example is at a local restaurant anytime the “mayor” on foursquare visits the store they get a free drink.

By using the Thunderbolt I have been able to use foursquare more. You can also link foursquare to your Facebook and Twitter pages which gives you the opportunity to show your friends where you are at.  I will be able to use my phone more for the business that I am starting very soon… More to come on that in the next blog! For now, I am curious which smart phone you use like an android or iPhone and what are some of the advantages or disadvantages of the phone you have.

Crowdsourcing – Great Opportunities for everyone!

It has been a couple weeks since I have returned from the Socialtech boot camp in Chicago. One of the topics referred to as “crowdsourcing” which I learned previously from the book, Enterprise Social Technology, was discussed in greater length at boot camp. I mentioned this briefly in the other blog, but I feel it is important enough to further emphasize in greater length to portray a more clear understanding of the term. Anyone who is looking to get something accomplished either for a company or business can use crowdsourcing. It is similar to the tactic of outsourcing work to others, but instead of just handing off work, there might be past results to look through and the crowd of individuals to choose from may be larger. One crowdsourcing site that I know professionals have used is www.99designs.com. This is a site where companies can say what they are looking for in designs and get many responses back. If they are satisfied with one of the designs, they pay the creator.

I have participated in two different crowdsourcing contests. The first contest was a competition to come up with a business idea in which you could use only iPads to run a business.  If you could come up with an effective business plan and your idea was chosen, the winner would receive an iPad. My idea was chosen as the best and the review of the contest can be found here. As I discussed in my previous blog I won a bounty to help promote the book, Social Enterprise Technology. The follow up from that bounty can be found at http://enterprisesocialtechnology.com/EST-Price-Winner.html. I have had some success with crowdsourcing and will continue to take advantage of these different opportunities that I have.

In years soon to come I believe that more companies will be using crowdsourcing because it is an effective way to complete work fast and is also a great way to be able to choose the best work for their company. It will be interesting to see the future of crowdsourcing and the impact it will have on businesses.

SocialTech Bootcamp in Chicago

Just getting back from Chicago and had an awesome opportunity to attend a Socialtech bootcamp run by Scott Klososky. Let me just tell you that he is one of the smartest people when it comes to social technology. There were so many new ideas about social technology that I learned during this bootcamp and I want to share about my experience.

My trip started out in Hudson, Ohio where I met up with Mike Wise (another social expert). I drove six hours while Mike was making phone calls for work and I was trying to get prepared for an intense 10 hours of learning.

We arrived at the Aloft Hotel in Chicago and we were able to meet Scott, Miguel, and Sara. After we talked with them for a little bit, the other executives started to arrive. I met some really savvy business people that reminded me of the kind of person I hope to be someday in the future. I sat next to the business owner of BrightStar named JD Sun from Chicago. When talking with him I found out that he was recently on the show Undercover Boss! JD also suggested a book that I should read called Rich Dad, Poor Dad.

During this bootcamp I learned thousands of new concepts, (maybe more like a hundred). There are way too many to discuss all of them for this blog, so I will give you my top two.

1. I learned importance of building a powerful river of information. Scott said, “We are in a knowledge economy and the smartest will win.” From that I realize that I need to take advantage of resources around me and continue to gain knowledge. The hardest challenge that many individuals face is dedicating time to learning these topics and understanding each new issues right when it happens.
2. Scott started his training by telling us he found profile pictures of us on the internet and that we had to introduce ourselves. I was sitting there worried because I was not sure which picture he would show because I have some older, embarrassing photos on Facebook. He later explained the concept of ORM which stands for Online Reputation Management. After the introductions I learned how important it is to have only good information on any of the social network sites. This is also extremely important for companies to have someone in charge of ORM to make sure that the company has a positive online reputation.

Scott Klososky wrote a book called, Enterprise Social Technology, this books content was constructed solely through crowdsourcing. In the back of the book there were a  number of challenges and if somebody were to complete a challenge they would receive a bounty for their work. One of the challenges was to get 250 people together wearing the same shirt and take a picture. To make a long story short, I won the bounty and provided Scott with pictures that he is now using. During the presentation two of my pictures were used as background slides and Scott asked me to explain to the group what I had done to complete this challenge. I was honored and shared how I used social networking to help make the photo shoot a success.

Overall, I was very grateful that I was able to attend this event and learn so much. After the presentation Mike and I had the opportunity to talk with Scott. He said that he thought my generation has a bright future with social technology if it is used in the right way. I am curious as to what you think about that last statement. Do you agree or disagree?

Myself, Scott, and Mike