Digital Marketing and Technological Insight

A couple of weeks ago we wrote about the beta launch of the new CNN.com. Well it now appears that they will be launching their enhanced website as soon as today, maybe tomorrow. The new CNN.com goes the route of what USAToday.com did a few months back in making the website more interactive and increasing the rich-media. Beyond the redesign of the user-interface, there will be more focus on the video content CNN provides as well as other means of communicating stories…podcasts, blogs, etc. In what is becoming the most popular Web 2.0 feature, visitors will be able to rate and bookmark specific articles.

MySpace is planning to allow other companies to develop applications and widgets that can be integrated into its social networking site. This move was announced by MySpace co-founder Chris DeWolfe in an interview with the Financial Times.

The shift in strategy by MySpace is in direct response to the hugely successful move by Facebook to open up its platform to 3rd party developers. Already there are more then 1,000 applications and services available for Facebook members to choose from.

If and when MySpace makes this move it will signal the complete transformation of the social networking model into a more (but not quite) open-source platform. For me it is the logical next step in social media – let the users create the features. Customization of the web is the next big thing and this is one big step in that direction.

So you and your college buddies developed an awesome “Web 2.0” web application. You have the catchy URL and are now just waiting for the hordes of people to arrive at your domain doorstep leading to an eventual buyout from Yahoo. Great, now what? How do these people find your site so they can take advantage and spread the word of your genius idea? Unless you have a web brand that gets the cover of Wired or is the "next big thing" online, the life blood of your website will be organic traffic. However, search engines and applications that create dynamic content - specifically AJAX based – do not mix. Since you should not and can not rely on the “buzz meter” turning your way and paid traffic (PPC, Banners, etc) is a model that can’t sustain itself if you’re a site that isn’t e-commerce based – meaning there is no exact revenue goal tied to each paid visitor. You should be studying SEO, which along with brand familiarity, is the main factor in driving organic traffic.

Do not get me wrong, I love AJAX and the dynamic sites it creates. However, if your site is AJAX based how will people find you? This is why Web 2.0 websites have to focus on more then just their application, they need to build relevant, keyword enhanced content that supports their vision and also feeds search engine spiders. Build a site that takes in to account all of the SEO best practices, but most importantly build a site around your main draw, man can not survive on a half dozen static pages alone! You will end up with much more then just a “cool site” but a useful, engaging destination that will keep people coming back and spreading the word.

iPling, based out of San Francisco, just announced today the launch of its innovative location-based social networking service optimized for the soon to be released Apple iPhone. People who sign up to be part of the iPling community can discover and communicate with other iPling’ers who have similar interests - regardless of where they are and if they know them or not. Basically, iPling is an “open social network” that does not rely on invites and connections to bring people together.

Founder and CEO of iPling Manuel Monroy has this to say, “Community-building has been hindered in the past few years by worries over security and protection. People have become anxious about opening up to new, real-life relationships and experiences. We believe a large number of us are ready for a change, so we created a set of tools that will inspire confidence and encourage folks to open up and get together. iPling is all about openness”

Monroy goes on to say, “You’d be surprised by all the amazing people that you pass by every day that could enrich your life. As the world goes mobile, we feel the time is right to introduce our services. And we couldn’t ask for a better platform than the iPhone.”

Once I get my iPhone I am going to give this service a try, the success of iPling will depend on how quickly the user base grows and takes advantage of all of the applications features. If the cards fall their way iPling has the potential to be huge…

In our latest installment of Q & A’s with the people who matter online, we talked with Brad Hackleman, SVP of Operations at MyLifeBrand. MyLifeBrand is about “offering the next generation of social networking and social media services” and is quickly making a name for itself within the social networking business community.

Kieran: What is MyLifeBrand?

Brad: MyLifeBrand is a global platform for online social communities and services.  For the individual consumer:  A single dashboard for the aggregation, management, creation and messaging of all their communities of membership or affiliation.  For membership communities:  Connectivity to a universe of networked macro to micro communities that grows membership through viral discovery, as well as navigation features that enhance member activity.  For me, MyLifeBrand is my portal for accessing my Facebook, Myspace and Bebo accounts.  It’s a place I go to build community around the organizations I believe in and also a very visually friendly social networking experience.

Kieran: Where did the idea of MyLifeBrand come from?

Brad: The CEO and I have a close business partnership and friendship.  We were actually skiing in Sun Valley, Idaho when he introduced the original idea.  Both of us, being very interested in technology trends were and are always looking for the next big thing that is going to really sink in to the market and be successful.  I personally really like the name MyLifeBrand.  As Jeff and I were contemplating a name for this social platform we both came to the awareness that in this digital world everybody is portraying themselves online as a certain unique individual and in essence, branding themselves to the global world that could view his or her profile.  Basically, creating a brand around themselves.  Thus, My Life Brand is weekends at the beach, playing piano, volleyball pickup games at the beach, business technology solutions, family, faith etc and that’s what I intend to show on my profile.  It’s what make me, ME.

Kieran: Who is your targeted audience?

Brad: We want MyLifeBrand to appeal to 20 year olds to 70 year olds on the consumer side.  This site is very visual and doesn’t have teenage stigma of MySpace or Facebook.  We really try to encourage 30 something’s, 40 something’s, etc to apply and experience life on MyLifeBrand.  Another target audience are organizations, companies and associations that want to enhance their website and membership offerings by providing a platform for their members to meet each other, interact and ultimately create greater stickiness between the organization and its membership.

Kieran: What are some key differentiators that will set MyLifeBrand apart from other "Social Networking" sites?

Brad: We want to embrace and extend MySpace and Facebook.  We are an aggregator of social networks and profiles and adding more every week.  The internet is so fragmented.  I am tired of going to 50 places a day to communicate online and want to simplify my life online.  That makes us unique.  We aren’t another social networking site.  We want to embrace all the others in one place.  Just recently on the site we added a feature that allows a user to store his/her bebo, myspace and linked in credentials and when you click on the tab within MyLifeBrand it will auto login you in to your profile so on one site you are viewing and managing all of your profiles.

The executive team is also a key success factor.  I couldn’t be working with a better group of people.  The knowledge that everybody brings to the team and from different market segments makes us really unique.  We aren’t just programmers.   On our team we have the future entrepreneurs and seasoned veterans in the industry.  We have people from the music industry and wireless experts.  We have an incredible development team and we truly are a web 2.0 team pulled from all over the United States and world converging to create a truly unique product.

As we move in Beta in July we are really looking forward to the possibilities of the company.  We are signing on some great communities from faith based non profits to professional sports teams to Presidential candidates.

To learn more about MyLifeBrand, visit their website – MyLifeBrand.com.