Today's Buzz

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Microsoft marries e-mail to networking with Outlook update
Microsoft has announced its Office 2010 suite will include a feature allowing users to interact with their Facebook and MySpace feeds via Outlook. The current version of Outlook is getting an add-on that is compatible with LinkedIn, allowing users to keep track of contact information, view postings and add people to their networks. MediaPost Communications/Online Media Daily (2/17) FastCompany.com (2/17)

Your turn: Will Microsoft's new feature increase social media's acceptance?
 SmartBrief/SmartBlog on Social Media (2/18)

Ideas in Action

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Twitter escalates Toyota recall scandal
Toyota's attempts to downplay problems on some of its models proved to be no match for the power of social media, as irate users helped push the carmaker to launch investigations and recall millions of vehicles, Matthew DeBord writes. Twitter users are posting thousands of Toyota-related messages each day, as consumers vent publicly about the company's products and its bungled public relations strategy. The Big Money (2/17)

Salesforce's Chatter offers internal social-collaboration platform
Salesforce.com says its Chatter collaboration platform will bring social sharing to the enterprise environment. The program, currently in beta testing, offers employees the ability to share data in real time across multiple applications, using a social-media-style interface. It will allow users to update one another on their status, as well as keep tabs on revisions to relevant documents. CNET/Software, Interrupted blog (2/17)

How social media can give authors a boost
Authors can use social networks to cultivate their audience, inspire their work and enhance their ability to promote their books, argued panelists at a recent event. Authors need to be willing to reach out to their audience, however, and have the patience to build a presence over the long haul, as well as the fortitude to deal with critics, the panelists noted. SmartBrief/SmartBlog on Social Media (2/17)

Please Rob Me lets you know if you're giving too much away
Please Rob Me is a Web site that uses humor to raise awareness about the dangers of giving away too much information over the Internet. The site compiles status updates and GPS data from random users at sites such as Twitter and Foursquare and sends out an alert when someone makes their whereabouts too obvious. TechCrunch (2/17)

The Takeaway

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Instead of working harder, be more mindful
Building an effective social-media presence requires a calm, focused mind and the discipline to only attempt one thing at a time, writes Soren Gordhamer. Understanding the difference between effort and attentiveness, as well as being able to set priorities, is also key, he notes. Mashable (2/17)

The case for having multiple Twitter accounts
Organizations and individuals using Twitter for business might benefit from starting secondary accounts, social-media consultant Tamar Weinberg argues. These secondary accounts can serve as laboratories for testing new tactics or they can be targeted in a different way than the main account, attracting a more diverse group of followers, she notes. "Give people the opportunity to learn about the other facets of your business personality," she writes. Techipedia blog (2/16)

The 4 kinds of users in every online community
Visitors to online communities can be separated into four categories, based on their level of engagement, Vanessa DiMauro writes. Each group has different needs and can provide different things to the community, she notes. Marketers need to have a strategy for reaching out to each type of visitor, with the goal always being to get the visitor to move to the next level of engagement, she writes. Social Media Today (2/17)

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