The online phenomenon of the last couple of years has truly been the emergence and development of the social networks. Whilst the casual use of tremendously successful sites such as Twitter and Facebook has allowed users a window into the lives of their favourite celebrities, the most exciting use of these sites in business is to build and maintain customer relationships. One of the biggest bonuses as far as companies are concerned is the fact that these massively popular sites are effectively free communication channels, allowing them unbridled access to their customers.</p> <p>The Circles of Trust</p> <p>Relationship management experts, Convergys, have conducted a study regarding the use of social media in business and have uncovered some interesting trends. The study discovered the importance of social media in the building and maintenance of customer trust. According to the findings, three quarters of the people that found out about a bad customer experience through social media stopped using the company in question. It is therefore vital for companies to be vigilant about what is being said about them online, addressing any problems swiftly and effectively.</p> <p>Dip a Toe In</p> <p>Many companies may initially feel wary of dipping a toe into the waters of social media. ?Corporate Facebooking? is in its infancy at the moment, but anecdotal evidence is overwhelmingly positive. People seem to like to see the human face of companies, and use of social networks can help businesses to cast their net much further than many forms of conventional marketing.<br />

An internet security expert has discovered that bloggers and other internet activists that believe their real identity to be safe could turn out to be mistaken. Research carried out by Andy Baio, using a so-called ?reverse lookup? strategy, managed to uncover the names, addresses and other revealing personal details of seven blog authors in just under half an hour.</p> <p>Traceable Information</p> <p>Even bloggers who have taken steps to cover their tracks by using different IP addresses and hiding their personal information were uncovered by Baio?s low-tech method. Using eWhois, a free service which allows users to look-up users via their Google Analytics ID, Baio was able to identify the blog author in some cases. ?Hundreds of thousands of people can share an IP address, but a shared Google Analytics is solid evidence that both sites are run by the same person.?</p> <p>Remaining Anonymous</p> <p>Baio is clear that bloggers who wish to remain anonymous should avoid using services such as Google Analytics. During his research, he identified the name and the home address of a man speaking out about Mexican drug cartels, who he notified immediately. ?Unmasking an anti-Mac blogger may not be life changing, but if you?re writing about Mexican drug cartels, the consequences could be dire,? commented Baio. Keeping ?domain privacy? settings switched on via your IP registrar, and avoiding sharing IP addresses between different blogs are two other tips yielded by Baio?s research.<br />

Businesses looking to begin or continue using the internet as part of their marketing campaigns in 2012 should keep abreast of certain key trends and changes that will take effect over the next 12 months. These trends cover many aspects of the way the internet is used to market businesses, and will affect the usefulness of any marketing that is undertaken.</p> <p>Quality over Quantity</p> <p>As anyone who has followed news of Google?s Panda algorithm will already know, a major buzzword for internet content writers is quality. This also rings true for the consumers who will come across your sites, people surfing the internet want to be greeted with fresh and relevant content. Readability, quality and overall usefulness are tremendously important to your customers, as well as Google.</p> <p>Social Media</p> <p>Whilst players such as Google+ are yet to make massive inroads into Facebook?s huge share of the social media market, it is wrong to discount any of these smaller sites. Facebook is being deserted by a number of users, and in fact lost 6 million US users in 2011; these people are looking elsewhere for their social media needs. </p> <p>Blogging </p> <p>Over the last 12 months, people have blogged less, but have written longer posts, harking back to the notion of quality over quantity. As Google?s ?freshness? algorithm takes hold, this process may be reversed, with newer content hitting the top spots in the search engine rankings. Many companies are dumping their own blogs in favour of solely marketing on social media. Whilst this cuts out the need to worry about SEO and other such chores, many customers may mistrust companies without their own sites.<br />

Changes to the search algorithm used by Google means that because of its additional focus on freshness, increased importance is now placed on social media activity. This is according to the SEO agency Punch Communication.</p> <p>The change Google has launched to its search algorithm is aimed at improving the freshness of the results returned each time it responds to a search query. There is now a wide-ranging variety of different types of digital content and social media is fast becoming one of the most significant indicators of fresh content, as well as being one of its main providers. Punch says that social media should now, more than ever, be incorporated into any strategy of SEO undertaken by a brand or company.</p> <p>The Managing Director of Punch Communications, Pete Goold, said: "Google's announcement has reinforced the importance of integrating PR and social media within SEO strategies. PR and social networking are two of the best ways of creating fresh content on a regular basis, whether that is through a blog, digital press coverage, or social media outreach.?</p> <p>"Blogs in particular now have an increased effect on results through their RSS feeds, since Google now uses RSS to pull fresh content for each website into its results," continued Mr Goold. He said that an excellent example of this was when someone searched for "BBC news". In this case, annotations would be included within the search results that show the most recent or the most relevant stories.<br />

<br /> Amazon has launched a new iPhone application making it easier for shoppers to search for information about goods available from its store. The Flow app uses augmented reality to enhance the experience of mobile shoppers on the run up to Christmas. </p> <p>The way the Flow app works is that users can point the camera of their iPhone at the universal product code (UPC) now found on millions of products. Flow recognises the product and then shows online information from Amazon along with graphical overlays. Customers can choose to play videos about the product or read content such as customer reviews and ratings.</p> <p>Using the app, customers can share information about the product they are viewing with friends, via Facebook, Twitter or email. The president of A9.com, which powers Amazon product search, Bill Stasior, commented: "This is our first step towards integrating product search technology with augmented reality. The integration of a live camera display, graphical overlays, and visual recognition technology creates a seamless experience for a customer looking to discover information about objects in their physical surroundings."</p> <p>A similar experience is available from Google when its Goggles and Google Shopper apps are combined. Goggles allows users to take pictures of objects for a visual search and Google Shopper enables product searches using text or voice input. Prices can then be compared online and between local retailers.</p> <p>Flow is currently only available on the iPhone and it is anticipated that Google will combine the two apps with some augmented reality overlay to compete directly with Amazon's new app. All of this competition can only mean an increasingly enhanced user experience for shoppers with smartphones.<br />

The general manager of Hearst Magazines, John Loughlin, has questioned the wisdom of offering magazine content for free online to customers who already subscribe to a print version.</p> <p>"We are at a critical juncture for magazine publishers to reassert value of content, and that value needs to be paid for," said Mr Loughlin. He was speaking as part of the Open Mobile Summit at a discussion about the future of publishing.</p> <p>There are two different models that are generally used to promote magazines on tablet devices. Hearst chooses to charge for digital content separately from print copies. Other major publishing houses offer iPad copies of their magazines at no charge to existing print subscribers. </p> <p>The senior vice president of Time Inc, Nate Simmons, disagreed with John Loughlin and commented:<br /> "If you?re a print subscriber, you?ve paid for it once. You shouldn?t have to pay for it again." Gannet Co's Senior Vice President, David Payne, said this model was about keeping circulation revenue strong.</p> <p>Mr Loughlin maintained, however, that consumers would be willing to pay for content if the value was there and he offered examples of similar approaches in other industries. For example, he said the purchase of a movie ticket did not entitle the consumer to free streaming of the movie a few days later.</p> <p>He concluded that the model was working for Hearst and said access to electronic content would not be allowed at this point just because a consumer had paid for print.<br />

According to a poll by online security company Unisys, over two thirds of UK adults would support a temporary shutdown of social networks in periods of mass social unrest. Services such as Twitter, Facebook and BlackBerry Messenger were amongst those used by those who were involved in this summer?s riots to co-ordinate their activities. 75% of those surveyed agreed that the government should be given open access to data from social networks to help prevent co-ordinated crime. Perhaps predictably, the strongest support for these measures came from the over 65s, whilst those least in favour were the 18-24 age group, who are the most active on social networks.</p> <p>Differing Opinions Over Causes</p> <p>Despite the overwhelming support for a blanket ban in times of unrest, there has been debate over the roles played by Twitter and BBM during the rioting. Analysis of the 2.5 million tweets that related to the riots found little evidence that Twitter was a breeding ground of malcontent and organised wrongdoing. It is widely believed that BBM was utilised to play a large role in organising and co-ordinating the disturbances.</p> <p>Censorship Concerns </p> <p>News editor of Index on Censorship, Padraig Reidy, added a note of caution. Reidy suggested that it was very worrying that, ?people would believe shutting down social networks would be in any way desirable.? Going on to explain that the ?vast majority of social network use during the unrest was people spreading information and helping each other to get home safely.?<br />

The Foreign Secretary, William Hague, has hailed the emergence of social media sites such as Facebook and Twitter, and their ability to build bridges between people and their elected politicians. This is recognised and embraced by members across the political parties. At the London Conference on Cyberspace, Hague was quoted as ?relishing how social media had narrowed the gap between government and individual citizens.? In Hague?s role as Foreign Secretary, the global reach of the social networks has been a boon, allowing for the ?exchange of ideas between people who otherwise would never meet, providing direct digital engagement with not just British citizens, but people of many other countries too.?</p> <p>Tweeting in the Commons</p> <p>Whilst it provides a moot point for many people, an overwhelming majority of MPs opposed a proposal that would effectively ban the use of Twitter whilst in the Commons chamber. Hague suggested that this was almost a seal of approval for social media from MPs. ?I think they voted by a very large majority not to ban it, so I think you can see where this country is coming from on this.? The vote saw 206 MPs vote in favour of allowing Twitter to be used, with 63 MPs voting to amend regulations banning its use during debates. Martha Lane Fox, in her role as the government?s digital champion was adamant that those who wanted Twitter to be banned were in need of ?more tech education.?<br />

Nokia is expected to launch its first phone this week based on Microsoft's operating system, Windows Phone. The new phone will need to be able to compete with products such as the Apple iPhone 4S and the Android-based Samsung Galaxy phones.</p> <p>Nokia announced eight months ago that it had decided to go with the Windows Phone system and has since seen its market share of smartphones erode. Sales of Windows Phone have also remained low. </p> <p>An analyst at CCS Insight, Geoff Blaber, said: "Stephen Elop has made it very clear that Nokia World will be the unveiling of the first products and it will set the tone for what Nokia hopes is the beginning of its recovery in the high-end smartphone market." </p> <p>Stephen Elop, Nokia's CEO, is said to have already dealt with some of the company's problems with its low-end mobile phones. However, this week's launch is of great importance to the new strategy Nokia is adopting, as well as to Microsoft and network operators.</p> <p>Geoff Blaber believes operators are in desperate need of a counter to Android. "They need Nokia to come back and be competitive," he said. "Given the fact Nokia hasn't been its most competitive in the last few months, [operators] have become increasingly dependent on Android, and that has certainly not been to their advantage." He added that getting Nokia on board was a major coup for Microsoft and could lead to interest from other licensees as well.</p> <p>Nokia is expected to launch one high-end version and one mid-market version of the phone, using Windows Phone 7.5.<br />

A timely antidote to some of the bad press that came the way of social media in the wake of the UK?s August rioting has emerged across the pond in the USA. Services such as Facebook and Twitter were used by some of the rioters to co-ordinate their activities, and were vilified in some quarters as a result. Gangs are now being tracked using their social media activities, with incriminating comments being used as evidence against them.</p> <p>Social Media Addiction<br /> It seems that some gangs echo the general population?s compulsive use of social media services, with any comments centering on criminal activity being picked up by the police. Given that mobile phones and other internet ready devices are banned in most jails, the inmate who updated his Facebook page saying, ?life sucks right now?, whilst serving a stretch is now likely to spend a little more time than he bargained for inside.</p> <p>The Smoking Gun<br /> Although the police are monitoring the social networking activities of certain people, there is a wider message for the rest of us. The previously mentioned posters are a classic example of people who have got themselves into trouble via social media. Although in these cases, the trouble has been with the law, many people have landed themselves in hot water with employers or other parties with their posts or photographs. Many companies have now employed social media policies, which are not designed to act like Big Brother, but are to protect the interests of their company.<br />