Lijit looked like it could be useful. It’s a search application installed on this site as a Wordpress plug-in. You can see the Lijit search widget about halfway down the sidebar on the right of this screen.

In theory Lijit improves Wordpress search and drags in social network content. I’ve seen no evidence of this.

So far, after a month or so of using the plug-in it’s been used a total of 16 times. Over that period there have been more than 5300 visitors to the site, so the strike rate is incredibly low. No-one has clicked the button in past week.

There was a fancy-looking Lijit widget, but this was the slowest-loading part of my site, so I switched back to the plain text version. This may explain why there’s so little activity.

I’m going to persevere for a few more weeks, but unless I can find a good reason to stick with Lijit, I’m going to drop the application.

Is there something important about Lijit I’m simply not getting here?

Gist is designed to cut through the deluge of incoming email, tweets and other messages. It sorts, highlights and presents your most important material in a simple format.

After one day of using the application I can see it has potential. It may become a lynch-pin. But I’m yet to be convinced I’ll use it over the long term. Here’s why:

Gist works with Gmail, Google Calendar, Outlook inboxes, Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn and Salesforce. The software is a free web-delivered or cloud application. There’s a paid subscription version in the pipeline.  Read the rest of this entry »

Canadian public relations practitioner Dave Fleet believes the Twitter microblogging service has moved through the Gartner Hype Cycle to the point where it will now quickly become unfashionable. In his  Five Potential Effects Of Twitter’s Shift To The Trough Of Disillusionment Fleet charts the technology’s progress and makes some predictions about what will happen next.

Fleet’s analysis is on the money. But there’s something else going on with Twitter. After a period of stability, the service appears to be changing. Earlier this week the company altered the way users propagate messages – a process known as retweeting.

In other words, Twitter is still evolving. It will probably be a different beast by the time it resumes its progress through the later stages of the Garter Hype Cycle. Or maybe it will be replaced by something else.

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Journalist Simon Sharwood aimed this advice at public relations people, but the same basic principles apply to anyone new to Twitter. Basic rules are don’t be selfish, don’t be evil.

Post 7, 2009. Twitter Do’s and Don’ts for PRs « JargonMaster

It was time to act when an email appeared titled “making money w/mlm is now following you on Twitter!”

That’s one follower I certainly won’t be following in return. This particular spammer did little to hide his or her intent, other Twitter spam merchants tend to be slightly, mind you only slightly, more stealthy in their approach. I’ve learnt to weed them out this way:

How to spot a dodgy Twitter account

• Giveaway names
  ‘Making money w/mlm’ is a dead giveaway. Often the names are slightly more obtuse or lyrical and yes, spammers often hide behind real-sounding names
• Glamorous photographs
  Let’s face it, attractive young blond women who look vaguely like supermodels or Playboy pin-ups are unlikely to be interested in following you unless you happen to be rich or famous. Of course there are good-looking people among my genuine followers, but over-glamorous photographs are often used as lure by spammers.
• Number following
  Nobody, but nobody, has 3000 friends. So people who are following large numbers of Twitter accounts are automatically suspect. The exception to this rule are people in roles such as tech support.
• Following follower ratio
  Someone who follows many people but only has a few followers in return is automatically suspect. You can find tools to help automate the process of purging these from your follower list.
• Location
  I’m sorry if this offends anyone, but I simply don’t know anyone located in India or the Philippines. Of course that doesn’t make everyone from those places a spammer.
• Bio
  If the bio includes a phrase like “Entrepreneurial marketing leader – passionate about brands marketing technology” the person behind it is almost certainly a spammer. Incidentally this bio is a real one from someone who followed me yesterday.
• Links
  Web links with terms like erasedebt.com richness.com and so on are dead giveaways.

If a new follower arrives and I can tick the boxes on more than two of these bullet points, I’m going to block them.

Can you think of any warning signs I may have missed?

Update: if you haven’t seen Twitter spam, this explains it: Something’s Going Down @Twitter

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You can Twitter all you like. Poke half the world on Facebook. And polish your Linkedin profile until all those buttons shine. But according to Jason Falls, social media activity on its own isn’t going to find you a new job.

He says if you’re seriously looking for employment, you need to get out and meet people or, at least, get on the phone.

Of course Falls is right. We all know that. But two things make his point of view particularly valuable.

• First, he offers his own personal story as evidence.
• Second, Falls is a director of social media and his view was published on his Social Media Explorer web site.

Why Social Media Won’t Get You Hired In A Recession.

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Image via CrunchBase

Lot’s of knowledge workers like Twitter. I’m not a fan. We’ll leave criticisms for another day. For now let’s just say I don’t find it as useful as other applications in the social networking toolbox. Twitter is probably at the peak of inflated expectations on the Gartner Hype Cycle at this moment. And the potential for spam-style abuse is huge.

However, many of my friends and colleagues swear by Twitter so it can’t be all bad.

While getting started guides to twitter guide are a dime a dozen right now, this tutorial from CIO magazine is one of the best. It’s not gushing and talks about why you might bother and what you can expect to find.

CIO > How to get started on Twitter.

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From the department of every-cloud-has-a-silver-lining:

According to the Economist newspaper, business-oriented social networking websites like Linkedin and Xing are doing a roaring trade despite, or more accurately because of the world’s financial troubles. Apparently the professionals who use these sites have been busily updating their online profiles in recent weeks for when they lose their jobs.

So it looks like some people are heeding the advice handed out by management guru Tom Peters.

See Professional social networking | Facebook for suits | The Economist

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