Magazine or E-Zine?

I love magazines.

I love to read books and I made the transition to an e-reader with ease. I always thought I'd be one of those people who prefer holding a book in my hands and turning the pages. But surprisingly, it turns out I enjoy curling up at night with my e-book and I look forward to perusing the e-Reader Store as much as a trip to Barnes and Noble. (If only my e-Reader made Mochas and Lattes, I'd be in heaven.)

But for me, magazines are a whole different animal. I revel in the glossy pages and the pictures. I love the variety. Perusing an issue of People at the doctor's office keeps me up-to-date on pop culture and I can devour Style at the lake or the pool and not worry about getting the pages wet. I clip recipes and articles on crafts and vacations.

So when I read about Zimbio in Chapter 3 of the Social Media Bible, I was skeptical. Could it possibly give me as much satisfaction as an issue of Oprah?

My first look at the web site didn't really inspire me to look further. By biggest problem with a website like Zimbio is that it is overwhelming. Should I click on this picture of Paris Hilton or search for potato salad recipes? Distractions abound. I'm interested in checking out the Celebrity Shoe Swap story but, wait! Is there really a Jesus Waffle Maker?

There's so much content and so many places to look that it feels like work. Magazines should be easy and require no more effort or thought than turning the page.

After spending about 30 minutes clicking around on Zimbio, I did grow more comfortable with the format and started to understand better where to look for the content that interests me. I found great Bisquick recipes and an exotic vacation e-zine. I perused a few blogs and finally, decided to register as a member. I'm going to give it a try for few weeks. But Zimbio will have to work hard to keep me interested. It's competing for my internet time with Huffington Post and Salon so I remain skeptical about whether the e-zine will continue to peak my interest.

The most interesting part of Zimbio is the user-generated content and that does have the potential of turning me from a lurker to an active participant. We'll see.

But I still prefer to grab my copy of Elle before I head to the pool.

So Many Sites, So Little Time

Social networking is an exciting prospect. But it's also exhausting. Who has time to keep up with all the possibilities? The list of social network providers on pages 36 and 37 of The Social Media Bible is both amazing and overwhelming.
I'm a hit and miss user of social media. I check in on Facebook at least once a day during the week, sometimes more if my work schedule allows it. On the weekend, I may take a peek at FB but I'm just as likely to not look at all.
I opened a Twitter account but it just didn't make much sense to me so I post only rarely. I also joined LinkedIn, but, again, I don't have time to keep up with it. I love to read and try to follow certain blogs and websites but it's extremely difficult to find the time to keep up with everything.
I can see the value of social media, but, at the same time, one of the challenges in trying to build a community for a business or organization is how to break through the noise and clutter that's out there.
It's also a challenge to turn the "lurkers" described in Chapter 2 into "insiders" and "leaders". One way to encourage someone who is makes a tentative first post is to be right there with a response. As with all customer service, being responsive and welcoming is important whether you're face-to-face with the customer or just replying to a blog post or on-line comment.

But is it Worth It?

Yikes. I just looked at my first blog post and it's still an odd feeling to write something and see it in print on the internet. Very different than the almost illegible scrawling I've done in personal journals over the years. (Well, THAT certainly shows my age!)

Okay...on to my comments about Chapter 1 of The Social Media Bible.

I had lunch with a friend recently who provides marketing and communications services for a non-profit agency. We were talking about social media and she made the comment that non-profits really can't use social media tools because they have a small staff and limited budget with which to tackle the endless "to-do list".

The Social Media Bible is directed at the for-profit business sector. But it seems clear that social media will benefit non-profits and small businesses as much or perhaps more than the larger companies. Many of the tools are far less expensive and probably more effective than traditional advertising methods. On page 5, the author writes, "Social media is just a new set of tools, new technology that allows us to more efficiently connect and build relationships with our customers and prospects."

For example, in my job in the UNL Office of University Communications, social media is a vital tool for reaching our students in the places where they congregate, like Facebook and YouTube.

Anyone who works with a non-profit or a small business needs to consider investing time in social media arenas. The investment may require some restructuring of staff time and budget, but the return will be worth it.

Thoughts from a Blogging Newbie

I'm fairly new to the blogging game. I did a "vlog" for a class last semester and I've had two blog entries published on the "Momaha.com" as a guest blogger. I follow a handful of blogs on a regular basis, maintained by reporters and writers I enjoy. I absolutely loved the movie, "Julie and Julia", and I like the concept of blogging about an experience or an issue. But the idea of actually writing a blog and having others read it is a bit daunting. Who would be interested in my opinion about anything?

The chapter on blogging in The Social Media Bible was both interesting and baffling. A lot of the terminology is still Greek to me. (What's a JavaScript widget? What are Feedburner counts?) But part of the reason I'm taking this class is to catch up with the technology and trends and examine how I might effectively use these tools in my work. At the very least, blogging could be way to improve my own writing. Many authors recommend daily blogging as a way to sharpen your skills.

I do have some reservations about the impact of blogging on news reporting. On page 139 of the Social Media Bible, the author says "Blogs create communication, and communication builds trust..." But blogs are now always trustworthy and it concerns me that many readers may substitute blogs for actual news reporting, forgetting that blogs are usually the writer's opinion. Readers need to maintain a healthy skepticism when reading anything in the blogosphere.