In the age of the digital revolution, online presence is everything to business. Unfortunately, for many businesses, getting online ends the process. Once you set up that Twitter feed, or Facebook page, the work stops. You may check back, watch your followers grow and leave interesting updates but that covers the interaction with social media.  However, a lack of follow-through when a customer raises a question or issue can quickly undo all the goodwill you created by plugging your brand into the internet.

The Orbitz Omission

Last week, my grandfather suddenly started declining. I took a rush flight to South Carolina to be with him and my family. Two days later, he passed away. My plans to go to a conference the upcoming weekend quickly disappeared. My boyfriend took care to cancel all our plans. The conference refunded our tickets. Southwest put our miles towards another flight. But the hotel… the hotel became a problem. We booked our room through Orbitz. Orbitz refused to give us any kind of break on the hotel, even with proof of a family death. So my boyfriend relieved his outrage on Twitter. With a flurry of negative tweets suddenly on their radar, Orbitz responded to us, wanting to make amends. However, despite a quick Twitter cover-up, they never did anything to fix the situation.

Just Not Enough

Obviously, a large company like Orbitz has a twitter presence, but just responding to a few angry tweets, wasn’t enough. The problem required more effort. While the apologetic tweets were thoughtful, they did nothing to solve the problem, which was having to pay for a trip I could not make, on top of expensive last-minute flights. Sentiment on social media in the end, means very little.

Negativity Can Only Be Overcome with Action

Social Media can be powerfully negative to your brand without you monitoring and reacting to each issue independently. If Orbitz had changed its tune and found a way to work with us, that small action could solve multiple problems. At this point, neither of us will use Orbitz again. And we, both significant influencers among our peers and colleagues, will advise others not to use their services either. We’ve both already written reviews of our service. These negative words are powerful and can impact a brand directly. A small action would overcome the flood of bad press this business received in just one day.

This is a lesson that even small businesses can learn from. Social media is a great way of creating dialogue. But just like real life, not all dialogue is happy chitchat, issues come up and then need to be dealt with. So when it happens, and it will happen, be prepared. Remember, swiftly and purposefully taking action against a problem often creates more goodwill among your followers.

What is LikeJacking?

LikeJacking is a specific kind of spam virus that appears on Facebook. It is malware that hijacks your "likes". This is not new technology, it was previously called Clickjacking, but Likejacking refers exclusively to the malicious technique used on Facebook.

A Likejacking worm shows up as a somewhat innocuous, but sensational piece of online content (a video or a link). It often has an over-the-top headline such as: "Girl gets OWNED by Cop who reads her Facebook" or "BOOBS" or even "Dad walks in on daughter...". When you click to get more information on the enticing phrase, the link takes you to a page outside of Facebook. It will usually look like a blank page that says "CLICK HERE FOR MORE". Once you click, that page downloads the malware into your Facebook.

The virus essentially tricks you into "liking" this page. Why? So more people click and download the virus. Once you've clicked and infected your Facebook, it will show up on your newsfeed and display to your friends the same sensational headline... leading them to click and continue the cycle.

So what happens if you've accidentilly downloaded a LikeJacking virus? Keep reading and I'll tell you how to clean your account. But first, some technical stuff for you nerd-types (or feel free to scroll down to get straight to the un-Jacking techniques).

Where did LikeJacking come from (aka What's the technical stuff)?

Wikipedia says that the original LikeJacking malware was written by a Black Hat World user with the handle: thefish2010. Black Hat World is an forum about SEO practices that are less than acceptable (using techniques such as spamming, keyword abuse, and generally things we do not condone on this blog). Good SEO is called White Hat, bad is Black. Tactics in the blurry area are often referred to as Gray.

This link you click that creates the false "like" is actually using a hidden iFrame or DIV tag to follow your mouse, which in turn reposts the message on your account. This specific kind of malware is a Troj/IFrame-ET meaning a Trojan which uses IFrames. Trojan malware works just like the original concept of the Trojan horse, it looks safe, so you invite it in, only to lead to disaster.

How do you get un-Jacked?

Fortunately, getting un-Jacked isn't particularly difficult.

1. Delete the page from your "Likes and Interests". You can do this by going to "Edit Profile" on your page, then go to "Show Other Pages" and "Remove Page. Or Edit your "Account" in the top right hand corner. Go to "Edit Friends" then "Pages" and then hit the deletion "X" next to the offending page.
2. Delete the update saying you like the page from your recent activity on your own feed.
3. All done!
4. P. S. Easiest way to avoid this in the future? If an outside websites says >>CLICK HERE<< Don't do it.

Note: Most of this information was gathered from Sophos, who you should follow on Facebook for up-to-date warnings on malware. Sophos says that Facebook is the MOST AT RISK social network. Check them out, and stay safe on Facebook.

You probably started to notice it a while back: you started recieving more emails from Facebook. Conversations you never got involved with were suddenly filling your inbox, cluttering your smartphone  and generally obstructing your regularly-scheduled messages. Suddenly, groups you joined years ago are clamoring obnoxiously for your attention and some you never even opted-in for. How did this happen?


In October, Facebook restructured its famous "groups." They added a ton of new features including group-only, as well as an offline email address so members can stay in touch. However, along with these additions came the annoying email messaging and the removal of the opt-in feature. Now, anyone you have as a Facebook friend can add you to their group, with or without your permission. Then, whenever someone posts to this group, you'll get a message. (Read about how this caused Matt Zuckerberg some personal issues he didn't foresee.)


You may not have noticed these changes in October. But now Facebook is only allowing this new style of groups to exist. Old groups are required to make the switch to the new format or be deleted (archived is the word Facebook likes to use). The archiving process started sometime in the last month and group admins are now getting emails alerting them to upgrade. And your inbox might start reflecting those changes.


Many people have complained about the changes to groups (specifically the constant emails). So let's quickly go through the ways to stop the stream-of-consciousness filling your inbox.


There are three options to shut-up your groups. We will go through each one:

1. Silence a particular group (you can still read messages on Facebook, but won't get alerts).
2. Leaving a group.
3. Changing your settings for all groups.

You must, unfortunately, be logged in to Facebook to access any of these changes (aka, no unsubscribing from your email). Log-in and let's begin. We'll start with muting a group.


Look at your home page (the news feed). See the list of groups to your left?





Mouse over the most bothersome of the groups and select it. Then click on the "Edit Settings" link.





Or, for quicker service, just click the x that appears when you mouse over the group.





This will not delete the group, it will bring up the "Edit Settings" box.





The most important section here is "notify me when". You can pick what you are notified for (for the least amount of interruption, select "only posts I am subscribed to"  without emails you are only notified in Facebook). But also make sure to uncheck the email alert box.


From here you can also edit how this group shows up on your page and if you receive group chat messages. (You can also use this to access ALL of your group notifications but we'll get there later.)


Leaving a group permanently is even easier. Select the offending group. On the right sidebar, under the member list and a few other options you'll see "Leave Group" with a cute picture of an open door.





Click it! Facebook will give you a final sales pitch and ask if you aresure, so make sure to verify your escape route.





Note: if someone added you to this group without your permission and you leave the group, they can never add you to another group. The same does not hold true for groups you joined before they upgraded.


Finally, how to change all your settings at once. You can reach you notification settings by editing a single group's settings (see #1) and selecting the "edit your notifications notifications" link in he edit pop-up box,





or select "Account" from the top right corner of any Facebook page.





Click "Account settings".





This will take you to your basic settings. There will be a horizontal navigation bar with different tabs. The third one will be "Notifications".





Be prepared, this page is long.





To the right there is a list of where you can "view settings", click the third section labeled "Groups".

Here you have some limited options to stop unnecessary emails. But notice there is a link "change email settings for individual groups" giving you the option to edit all your groups at once.





This will let you stop postings by checking or unchecking all of the groups you've joined or been added to.





When you're done, make sure to select SAVE at the bottom of your screen!





It should be noted there is not option to stop all group messages. In other words, you will need to update your setting for every group you are added to. (Unfortunately.)


I hope this helps control some of the madness and give you a little hyperspace peace!

Which superhero would each platform be?

This post is inspired by the mobile superhero post from Big in Japan and by a conversation with @Jax989 about what 3 superpowers I'd want (in case you're curious, they are teleportation--to avoid traffic, telekensis--also to avoid traffic and telepathy).

Facebook: Superman

Who can leap building in a single bound? Facebook can. Its the all-performance, all powerful social media platform of choice. If you need to connect with someone Facebook is the first choice. It also offers every app imaginable (for great justice!). It exists in every time and place, it allows you to tweet, blog and show pictures. It is the website of steel. However, like Superman, Facebook has its kryptonite: privacy. Unfortunately all the awesome things that Facebook offers can be instantly over-shadowed by a single brush with its single Achilles heel. Privacy issues have continued to plague Facebook's massive growth, threatening to strip the social media giant of its powerful grasp on the internet. Hopefully Facebook will overcome this evil (or it might be reduced to MySpace's social media superhero persona: Aquaman---in other words, still have followers... they're just fish.)

Twitter: The Flash

Need to connect with others at the speed of sound? Find Twitter and find it fast. Always on the go, always getting the most news and conversation in quick bite-sized servings, Twitter has all the powers of the famous Flash. It also latches on to some of The Flash's best and worse qualities including witty sarcasm and a sense of arrogance (its okay Twitter users, we all know you think you're better than other platforms). Most serious Twitter users converse in real time with a application like Tweetdeck or Seesmic. Or they connect on their phone. Either way they except all their news and conversation right now. The problem is, Twitter as a company might be too caught up in how wicked fast they are to notice their need to catch up with their users.

Linked-In: Professor Xavier

Solid, thoughtful and constantly in your head, Linked-In keeps all your contacts in line so you don't have to. If a social media platform could be psychic, this one would take the cake. Professor Xavier had a much tamer ability than other X-men, but was the leader and the most powerful. Linked-In offers the same, while not offering the same robust social atmosphere, Linked-In calmly offers professionals what they need most, tools and connections. It does this without forcing you to log-in every day, and allows you to download or interact as needed. While often overlooked, Linked-In is an immensely powerful networking tool. It certainly leads the charge for unruly mutants.

What super powers do your social connections give you? Tell me in the comments!

The overall message of this video is find where your audience is and go there. More and more young people, Gen Y, Gen X and rapidly even babyboomers use some kind of social media. So charities need to be on these sites if they want to reach people. The old ways just aren't good enough and its not enough to rely on Word of Mouth to reach the younger generations.

If you already love social media, or technology, help out the causes you are passionate about. They need volunteers to help them utilize new technology and get with the trends!

Finally, if you don't have a cause that speaks to you yet be sure to check out Captain Hope's Kids here in the Dallas area.

Captain Hope's Kids Blog - NEW

Website

Facebook

Twitter

Apparently everyone who doesn't use it.

A good friend of mine who follows me on Twitter and Facebook suddenly says, "I think I'm going to stop following you." So say, "What? Why?" And she says, "I'm so sick of those FourSquare updates. I could care less. They are annoying. No one wants to know you're 'mayor' of your church." And then Edward says, "Tell me about it. Its even more annoying when you're with her and she's checking in every 5 minutes."

Of course I immediately defended myself saying, "I use it to let clients and other tech people know where I am. Or to connect with people in the same place. Or to find out more about a particular area of town."

But they both just rolled their eyes at me. And then it occurred to me, before I started using FourSquare, I hated it too. I would see all these updates from FourSquare on Facebook and I'd be like, "Who care?" Until I got in on the fun. Then I forget about how irritating it was.

Of course the more I thought about this, the more I realized its true of almost all social media. If you don't use it, you HATE it. People who aren't on (or want to be on) Twitter can't stand that other people use it. They say its stupid and pointless. Same with Facebook. Non-facebook users feel that Facebook is a waste of time. Before that it was IMing, or web-surfing.

I'm not saying the FourSquare isn't just a little bit silly. I'm not saying it will last forever. But I will say, to the people who don't use it: don't knock it til you try it.

And to the people who do use it: if someone just doesn't "get it" don't worry. They'll either catch on or just be grumpy and neither effects you. If you lose a follower or two, you might want to re-evaluate, but I say so what? If you know them in real life, connect there. If you know them online and a FourSquare update offends them, forget about 'em. Be yourself online! (Even if that person is a trend-obsessing, constantly-updating, tech nerd, like me.)

I'm doing a series of workshops for the Center for Spanish Language Media at UNT.

Register

Facebook Event
Linked-In Events
CSLM Facebook Page

Contact Denisse Olivas (denisse.olivas@unt.edu) to attend multiple sessions.

I realized after attending the Microsoft SparkStart event that I often repeat the same advice over and over again, just with a new angle. So instead of doing that today, I'm going to point you to posts I wrote over the last year that still make sense right now! Believe it or not, the social media game hasn't changed that much in a year. In fact, marketing as a whole hasn't changed that much, we just use a different medium.

So here are some posts that might be relevant for you today:

Why Social Media is important:

• Social Media: Personal Touch in a Virtual World
• The Business of Social Media

The Facts:

• Facebook: Making the Rest of Us Look Bad
• Tools for your Belt: Demographics & Surveys

The Etiquette:

• Top 5 Ineffective Social Media Accounts
• Social Media Compared to Offline Networking

A lot of the truths of marketing still exist in the digital age. Are there any principles you use over and over again in your own marketing (online or off)?

Twitter should give me a paycheck. Seriously. I might as well be a rep, for how much I talk about them. I've brought them at least a dozen new users in the past month. But even though I feel that the potential of Twitter is limited, they could still stand a lesson or two from Facebook.

Can you Hear me Now?

My last few blog entries have revolved around Facebook and some of its new updates. Facebook has spent a long time listening to its users and then implementing their suggestions. I think its fantastic.

We all know how great it feels when someone takes your suggestion and puts it into action. I remember once suggesting a new approach on a friend's website. I wasn't getting paid, it was just friendly advice. I remember my friend came back ecstatic that she got so many compliments and it just felt good to know I helped.

The opposite is also true. When you try to offer thoughts or suggestions and someone isn't listening, it hurts. Especially if they blatantly ignore you.

Twitter has some growing pains but its important, even during these times, to listen to your customers. Twitter has a single major avenue of communication: email. And right now if you email them a question it takes up to two weeks for a response. Even then, your response may be: "Please check with our other open tickets."

Hopefully Twitter will realize the importance of listening soon. I already know people who had a question or couldn't retrieve their password and stopped using the service because they never received an answer.

Have you contacted Twitter before? Was the experience positive or negative? Did it impact the way you use Twitter?

Image by DuChamp

Disclaimer: If you haven't, read this post first so you know what I'm talking about.

This week comparing the amount of business potential a number of social media services have. While Linked-In has made a fair amount of updates recently, its little overhaul still doesn't compare to Facebook. You can go see their changes here and when you log-in you can read all about the improved search functions. Group recently went through a make-over as well. I willing give kudos to Linked-In, but it's still just not as impressive as the massive amount of work that I can see at Facebook.

To me Linked-In is a bread and butter type of website. You need to be on there. Linked-In is my Rolodex and I tell people as soon as you have an email address you need to go create a profile, even if your website isn't up yet.

Personally, I think the ways to do business on Linked-In is limited. Sure, the questions and groups are great but the versatility just isn't there. At least, not like Facebook. To me, Linked-In is much more like an introduction than an actual relationship. Linked-In says "Harry, have you met Sally?" and then you do the work. Facebook says, "Romeo, this is Juliet, oh and here's her family history before you do something dumb. Oh and, wait a few days before you drink the poison."

I feel like Linked-In is taking stock of their users and listening, but carefully choosing its path based on predetermined goals. On the other hand, Facebook says, "Hey, how do you want to connect with others? How can we make that happen?" And is more than happy to evolve into what its users want, even to an animal they didn't originally intend on being.

Linked-In provides a necessarily and important service. But I think their desire to step beyond that is limited. So, here's your silver star, Linked-In, don't let it go to your head.

What about you? Do you think Linked-In deserves second place? Are they listening and moving with business better than Facebook?

P. S. Veribatim now has a Facebook Page.