Facebook Graph Search – A first Glance

January 25, 2013 By 17 Comments

Facebook Graph Search just became available to me about an hour ago.  I want to start by saying I’m generally not impressed with the new shiny toy thing, and I’m not going to say this is a “game changer” but I think there might have been a groan or two from Mountain View, CA (Google Headquarters).

After a quick first glance Facebook Graph Search has given Facebook a nice shot in the arm.  That’s a good thing.  The searches seems endless, and you can get very specific as you’ll see blow.  You can really do a deep dive of what you’re looking for as Facebook has included several filters.  I’m from the camp that online privacy is dead, but even I felt slightly uncomfortable how you could pinpoint an users likes and preferences.  It was all available before Graph Search, but now it’s really at your fingertips and much easier to access.

 

Facebook Graph Search

So as you can below Facebook allows you to search for people, places, and things.  Facebook gives you about a 45 second tour.  You start with a main menu that includes “My Friends” and “Restaurants nearby” -

Facebook Graph Search

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Restaurants nearby

So if you search “Restaurants nearby” you’re going to get local restaurants that have Facebook Business Pages.  While an argument can be made that every local business should have a Facebook Fan Page already, companies that don’t have a page will be at a little disadvantage.  It will be interesting to see how Business Pages over the next year with the arrival of Graph Search.

Restaurants Nearby Facebook Graph Search

 

Refine your Search

I searched Museums in New York, New York.  It will bring up all the museums in New York City that have a page.  You can also see that it shows all my friends that “Liked” each museum.  You can also refine your search to show other places such as bar, hotel, and movie theaters.

You can refine your search by Place Type, Liked By, Name, Places In, and Visited by. This will give the user searching pinpoint results.

Facebook Graph Search NYC Museums

 

Graph Search Web

There will be times when your search will need help from an outside source.  That outside source is Bing. Right now 50K SEO consultants are running to optimize their clients sites for Bing.  Oh no…

The search for “social media consultants new york city” brought me to a Web Search.  Now you don’t leave the Facebook site, but the results are pulled from Bing.  Well you didn’t think they were going to use Google did you?

Graph Search Web Bing

 

My friends who like Bon Jovi

Basically you can search “My friends” who like anything.  In the example below I searched, “My friends who like Bon Jovi”.  Here are some of the results.  Again, you can refine your search results.  The other point of interest on these search results are the month and year that you became friends with someone.

Graph Search - My friends who like Bon Jovi

 

Facebook Graph Search – At first glance I liked what I saw.  This will certainly keep users on Facebook longer.  The Graph Search also allows us to see what friends like and that is very powerful.  For example, we are definitely motivated to try restaurants that our friends like and recommend.  While the detail (a full review of a restaurant) isn’t there yet, I can see this being a resource that people use.  A recommendation from a friend goes a long a way, and makes our buying decisions easier.

Undoubtedly there will be bashers of the new Facebook Graph Search, but that’s to be expected of anything big and new.  This is fresh out of the oven, and while I tested it for about 2 hours, the Graph Search looks very solid.

I hope you found the article valuable.  Please share if you liked it, that would be much appreciated.  I look forward to your comments.

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Going Viral

January 17, 2013 By 17 Comments

Those of us who use the internet on a daily basis hear the term “go viral” all the time. It seems as though everything has the potential to blow up in popularity – blog posts, photos, videos, news stories. Going viral is the internet-using population’s version of a front-page headline. Only in this case, the popularity is instant rather than building slowly.

So how exactly do you get something to go viral, and why would you want to? There are a lot of answers to these questions. I would be willing to say that many businesses would be thrilled to find something related to their company has gone viral. Here are a few reasons that viral content can help your business:

  • Drive traffic to your website – the definition of viral is to get a lot of attention in aGoing Viral short period of time. If viral content is located on your company’s website, expect site traffic to increase wildly. Some videos on YouTube that would be considered viral have hundreds of thousands or even millions of views, like Psy’s Gangnam style. If you are angling to get content seen, it’s important to make sure that your website is set up to handle large quantities of traffic.
  • Paint your business/industry in a positive light – even if a piece of viral content is not directly related to your specific business, it can still be beneficial to your company. Make sure to follow these tips for successful viral videos so your company doesn’t miss out on a great opportunity. Another way to give your business a boost is from content that paints your industry in a positive light. If you find viral content that is related to your industry in a positive manner, then share, share, share.
  • Create a human interest story – most viral content wasn’t created with immense popularity in mind. It just happens that way. In most instances, viral videos and photos gain popularity because they are funny or touching. However, there are some things you don’t want to do if you want something to go viral. By publishing content that has a human interest element, you may be able to generate more traffic.

Of course, going viral is not always a good thing. Many news stories about businesses that have wronged customers (or the customer perceives that they have been wronged) or have produced faulty products or bad business practices have gone viral much to the detriment of the company involved. This is just another instance where it is crucial to be careful what you publish, print, or share. While the ability of news and information to spread quickly on the Internet can be a great thing, it can also cause trouble if you are not cautious about what you post.

While it’s not generally possible to create content and then make it go viral (calling something viral generally indicates that it spread on its own) there are still some things that businesses can do in order to gain the interest of potential customers. Publishing interesting and unique content would be the most simple, yet effective way to get noticed. Utilizing different types of media is another way. And if you don’t want to give up on video, you can make a successful business video. Keeping yourself and your colleagues informed about what is going on as far as what is going on in the online business world and what is going viral will do nothing but help your company.

Megan Totka is the Chief Editor for ChamberofCommerce.com.  ChamberofCommerce.com has a local business directory by state and city.

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Social Media and the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy

November 2, 2012 By 3 Comments

This will be a week that no one will soon forget in the tri-state area. Hurricane Sandy rolled in Monday evening and punched New Jersey and the neighboring states right in the face. The destruction has been widespread, with the New Jersey shoreline taking the brunt of the hit. A total of 67 have died as a result of Hurricane Sandy, 19 in Staten Island alone. A total of 4.5 Million homes in Sandy’s path still remain without power this morning. The recovery continues four days after Hurricane Sandy’s departure.

While the information is primarily specific to New Jersey, this should give you a good idea what to look forHurricane Sandy Damage along the Social Media channels if you ever face a similar situation where you live. As usual, Twitter is providing a wealth of real-time information to assist residents. Look for relevant #hashtags as a good starting point.

Power Information – 1.5 Million NJ residents still remain without power as of Friday morning. PSE&G and JCP&L deliver are the two major providers and they both have actively tweeted answers to customers questions and tweeting as towns regain power. Both have stated it could take up to 7-10 days to get everyone up and running. I’m still waiting, and certainly understand the frustration that many are feeling.

@PSEGdelivers – Providing power restoration updates on Twitter. They have been running 7AM to 11PM the last few days. (800-436-7734)

@JCP_L – Similar to PSE&G and active around 8AM to 11:30PM (888-544-4877)

PSEG Tweet Hurricane Sandy

Gas Shortage – With power still being out in about 50% of NJ, 100+ car gas lines have sprouted not seen since the odd/even days during the energy crisis in 1979. The other issue is that the NJ/NY ports have been closed, so gas deliveries have not been made. Hess has been the savior and winner during the crisis. With a refinery in NJ they’ve had most stations opened and are meeting customers needs. I’ve seen some crazy gas lines the last few days and waits have been 1-6 hours in most cases. This also has created major congestion as cars lay idle in the right lane. In some cases, gas stations are capping the amount of gas you can take at $20. Again, Twitter has been instrumental by providing information on gas stations open throughout the state along with wait times.

#njgas #njopen @njgas – Must searches and follows on Twitter giving specifics on open stations, gas availability, and wait times.

njgas Hurricane Sandy

Hess Express Hurricane Sandy

Hurricane Sandy: Coming Together – NBC will broadcast a one-hour live benefit telethon that will help victims of Hurricane Sandy. Performers include Bruce Springsteen, Jon Bon Jovi, Billy Joel, Aerosmith, Sting, and Christina Aguilera. Matt Lauer will host the benefit concert.

Red Cross – As always, a great place to donate is to the American Red Cross. The Red Cross provides shelter, food, and aid to those affected by the disaster. The Red Cross is always looking for volunteers as well if you’re able to help.

The New York City Marathon will take place on Sunday Mayor Bloomberg announced yesterday. There has been much controversy about the decision as many remain without power and are homeless. It does seem insensitive, while taking the focus off tens of thousands of people in need. Staten Island, where the race starts, had a lot of damage and most are not happy with the Mayor’s decision. What is your opinion on this? Should the race go on, or is the timing not right here?

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