What with all of this Google, Apple and Twitter news this week it seems like it has been an eternity since we’ve heard a peep out of the bombastic yet reliable Facebook publicity machine. Well, fear not. I was able to dig up the latest in Facebook dirt in the suddenly neglected (yeah right!) social media superstar’s life.

For starters, this spiffy, little study showed that Facebook as well as Twitter both experienced a big bump last year in use on more…

That chorus of “I Told You So” heard around the world on Monday came from media watchers and marketers who have been patiently waiting for this day to happen.

A study released this week by OutSell notes that spending on digital advertising will be up 10% this year and will, for the first time ever, surpass, money spent on print advertising. Of the $368 billion to be spent by marketers this more…

HootSuite just launched an exclusive app made just for Android. HootSuite is kind of your all-in-one application for business Tweets. The calendar feature lets users compose messages and place the desired Tweets to pop up on a time and date wheel. HootSuite has been a hit in the original flavor and now the ease of use is at social media marketers fingertips. Scrolling and auto-updates are supposedly easier on the Android version of the app but some reviewers say otherwise.  Nevertheless, the clamoring and buzz around more…

The good folks over at the Pew Center’s Internet and American life project along with the Project for Excellence in Journalism conducted a survey to find out where and how Americans get their news. The results that were released yesterday and  splashed all over any website that would sit still (bravo, Pew, bravo!) won’t cause any of  us online junkies to fall out of our chair. As expected, TV is where most Americans still get their news with the Internet running a close second and more…

Those who have bravely entered and flourished in the vast universe of social media marketing can give themselves a big old pat on the back this week. Dozens of press releases and even a fresh story in the Wall Street Journal  have all dropped in the last two days to confirm what savvy social media marketing pioneers have known for quiet some time- that it works!  The Journal article cites big promotional outlets like Groupon and notes that while more…

The Patient: MTV, the little cable network that changed television and music forever.

The Ailment: MTV suffers from Brand-nesia, a condition in which a well loved brand forgets what and who made them famous to begin with. MTV also suffers from a social media overdose, chronic pointless video abuse, and multiple marketing personalities.

Prognosis: Not so hot. Jersey Shore notwithstanding, MTV’s buzz making machine has nearly run out of steam. If a newer, fresher look and hipper demographic isn’t targeted soon, the network will continue to be a joke.

Recommended Treatment: Once upon a time, MTV set the bar for coolness and told us which artists to love and what music to buy. Even shows like Beavis and Butthead told us when to laugh. Today, however,  more…

It’s been another exciting week in the world of all things Google. The little search engine with the unassuming primary colored logo has generated more headlines recently than American Idol and Obama combined. Let’s take a look at what the world’s most popular website has been up to.

Just yesterday, Google threw their hat back into the social media arena with the launch of Buzz. Google promises that Buzz will be the faster and easier way to share pictures and videos with friends and family who already belong to Gmail. Naturally Buzz is instantly compatible with smart phones and employs the latest in GPS location to gather information from neighboring businesses and hot spots. Its a gutsy move considering that Google has failed to nab the social marketing scene like Facebook has. From a marketing standpoint, Buzz could provide some much needed oomph to the social media marketing game. Buzz’s new features and Google-like accessability are appealing and send the mind reeling into more…

The upkeep of social media marketing can be a tricky thing. A recent article in Ad Week pondered the future of Twitter. With the loss of about a million users last year and the average account updating numbers in a slump, media watchers are quick to bury Twitter in a plot next to Friendster and move on. Digging a little deeper in the article, however, reveals the real truths about all social media, not just Twitter. Those sad numbers are not the entire story as they include only visitors to the traditional website and not mobile users which make up the majority of the Twitterverse. The  general consensus of large and small business alike when it comes to social media marketing is that full-time care is needed otherwise the venue becomes useless. Twitter, like blogs or email marketing or mobile marketing, requires constant care and upkeep. Businesses who stay in contact with their more…

A recent article in the New York Times noted that Americans spent 14.7 billion dollars on Valentine’s Day purchases, down from the 17 billion spent in 2008. Retailers expect this year’s sales to dip even lower. The solution? Create affordable Valentine’s Day options for every budget and use social media marketing to get in on the act.

Below are three companies that are showing their customers love by using social media marketing.

New England Confectionery Company, creator of those chalky yet oddly tasty conversational Sweetheart candies has a special Twitter and iPhone app that allows candy lovers to create virtual candies with custom messages that they can share with the rest of the Twitterverse or keep private. The free app gives Sweethearts a modern makeover while allowing the brand to remain a holiday classic.

Hoping to speak to the bitter single girl crowd; LAB records has launched a Facebook group entitled, Say No To Valentines 2010: Help Portia Conn Hit Top Ten! The concept is simple: take one edgy girl with guitar, add jaded rocky lyrics, and serve to angst ridden teens everywhere. LAB invites Valentines loathers and Portia fans alike to join the group and stream her new single on their Facebook pages.  The small label is wisely utilizing social media and holiday promotion to speak to their core audience.

Department store giant Macy*s is also hopping on the Twitter wagon with their “sweetest tweets” campaign. The retailer is in search of  gushy tweeted love notes posted on Twitter from Feb. 1 through Feb. 13 to be entered in a promotional contest that features diamond  jewelry giveaways. Valentine’s themed tweets are Macy’s modern replacement for traditional fill-out and win postcards and something anyone can do while pretending to work.

When Katie Couric took over as anchor of The CBS Evening News in 2006, media watchers lined up with bats to take a whack at her like she was some sacrificial journalism pinata. The former Today show host was always thought to be too perky, too eager, and not evening news material.  Her arrival at CBS was highly hyped and endlessly promoted while Couric’s salary was rumored to be astronomical. The overwhelming consensus after two months, however, was that CBS had made a big mistake. Her ratings were awful and the reviews were unkind to say the least. So how does a television whipping post like Katie Couric wind up winning the Edward R Murrow Award for best newscast in both 2008 and 2009? Tracking the anchor’s phoenix-like rise from the ashes is valuable seminar in new media marketing, technological innovation, and good old fashioned “never give up” persistence.

Katie Couric’s morning show fan base always admired her happy-go-lucky and friendly demeanor yet this persona simply would not fly in a nightly news format where anchors are expected to be stoic like Walter Cronkite. Instead of abandoning the personality that put her on the map, the newswoman struck gold at the 2008 Democratic National Convention with original web content that featured a relaxed Couric who could be seen clowning with crew members, ribbing politicians, and offering personal insights into the event’s goings on. The popularity of the coverage lead to the creation of @katiecouric, an online news program that allowed her to let her hair down and be the Katie viewers fell in love with. The show features a looser format, frank talk and opinions, and most importantly, original content not to be found anywhere else. This week the show featured a blow by blow of the President’s first State of the Union address.

With @katiecouric, the anchor was reinventing CBS’ longstanding reputation as, ” the old people’s channel” and the makeover didn’t stop there. Couric tapped into the social media craze by supplying more original content on her Facebook and Twitter accounts. Daily updated, her social media sites promote The CBS Evening News as well as her original web content.  Moreover, she communicates directly with her viewers by asking them to send in questions for interviews, suggestions for stories, and photos from news making events.

The most important thing any struggling business can learn from Katie Couric is to never give up. Instead of quitting and opting out of her big bucks contract, Couric rolled up her sleeves and got creative.  When she famously grilled what’s-her-name from Alaska, Katie asked the questions that were on her viewers minds without apology or cynicism. The interview, in turn, has become one of the most famous political train wrecks of all time while the interviewer gained respectability for staying true to who she is.  Producing webcasts, diving into social media marketing, and tapping into your own marketable identity are tasks that virtually everyone can do. So the next time your scratching your head to come up with a new marketing plan ask yourself, “What would Katie Couric do?”