A Change in Plans: The Power of Social Media

Author:

Amy Honigfeld

January 31, 2011
 
With 2011 upon us, I was determined to follow through with one of my personal resolutions; re-connect with old friends and continue growing the country stamp collection on my Passport. The perfect opportunity presented itself when some college friends and I decided to travel to Egypt Presidents Week. Clearly with current protests and violence we will not be visiting the pyramids anytime soon.
 
While closely watching the news I have been fascinated by the Social Media’s role in the recent events. All top news organizations including the New York Times and NBC continue to site Twitter and Facebook’s role in enabling the protestors to organize.
 
“The fact that protesters used online social media like Twitter and Facebook to organize demonstrations, and were trying to evade government efforts to cut them off from the Internet, he said, showed that people in the region were well-educated and ready to contribute to social and economic stability.” (The New York Times: Liz Alderman, January 28, 2011)
 

As a marketer, I’ve been watching Social Media closely and feel strongly the best means of understanding the channel is through interaction. I; therefore, wanted to share my own Personal Facebook Watch List. The companies and organizations below are ones that are ahead of the curve and worth keeping an eye on.
 
1.     The Cola Wars
Coke vs. Pepsi has moved to Facebook. I personally enjoy Coca Cola’s Video page that includes International Commercials as well as fan’s videos. At the same time, Pepsi has developed an application that enables you to support their Pepsi Refresh Project Online.
 
2.    Duke University/ The Fuqua School of Business/ Duke Club of New York
As a Blue Devil alum, perhaps making me a tad biased, I have not been back to campus for over two years. In the meantime, I love keeping in touch w/ events and alumni activities via Facebook. I am also excited to follow the Duke Start-Up Challenge: Alumni Track, http://www.dukegen.com/alumni-track.
 
3.    Dell
I’ve used Dell Laptops since business school and really like their Tag Team tab which lets you leverage friend’s advice on products while giving you the ability to share your own experiences.
 
4.    Google
Love the Google Doodles. My only recommendation is that Google post their Google Pac Man game.
 
5.    Facebook
No list of this sort could be complete without Facebook itself. The Stories tab with over 35 themes is a clever search tool. And, who can forget all the addictive games.
Let me know if you recommend any groups to add to my "Watch List"
 
Amy