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September 1, 2010: Apples new music-focused social network, Ping, ships as part of iTunes 10.Apple says the service will let users discover new music and more easily follow their favorite artists.

Apple previously dabbled in social networking (it was the first significant tech company to advertise on Facebook). But Ping was Apples first attempt at actually launching its own social network.

Aside from following artists, the service let users post thoughts and opinions. Anyone could share details about favorite albums and songs. Plus, they could view concert listings and tell friends about upcoming shows they planned to attend.

iTunes is the number one music community in the world, with over 160 million iTunes users in 23 countries, and now were adding social networking with Ping, Steve Jobs said. With Ping you can follow your favorite artists and friends and join a worldwide conversation with musics most passionate fans.

In some ways, Apple seemed to be perfectly poised to launch a music-focused social network. It had a cool, youthful image, along with brand-loyal customers, wide reach, good standing in the music community and thanks to its success with iTunes and the iPod a history of delivering music-related tech in a way that other companies failed to do.

Early on, Apple experienced significant success with Ping. However, things went downhill after Apple crowed about the 1 million users who signed up in the first 48 hours. Ping lacked Facebook integration due to a (never entirely explained) breakdown in negotiations between the two companies.

Ping wasnt Apple design at its best. It was too fiddly to use, and felt less like a true social network than an attempt to sell music by adding a veneer of interaction on top of the iTunes Music Store.

Ultimately, it became another failed attempt by Apple to enter the internet services space (following its failed MobileMe experiment).

The writing was on the wall for Ping from early 2012, when Tim Cook discussed the services lack of traction at the All Things Digital conference. We tried Ping and the customer voted and said, This isnt something I want to put a lot of energy into,' he said. Some customers love it, but theres not a huge number that do, so will we kill it? I dont know. Ill look at it.

He also noted that Apple didnt need to have a social network. Apple shut down Ping on September 30, 2012.

Today, Apple encourages users to follow their favorite artists on Apple Music. However, much like Ping, these features dont seem to have gained much traction.

Instead, Apple is dabbling in original video content to push Apple Music subscriptions. Efforts range from music documentaries to shows such as Carpool Karaoke: The Series.

Do you remember Ping? Leave your comments below.

Here is the original post:
Today in Apple history: Ping social network fails to strike a chord - Cult of Mac

Ive written several times about how an unprofessional social network profile can harm your career. Citing privacy concerns and other issues, I still have some (mostly baby boomer) acquaintances who proudly declare that they dont participate. No Facebook. No LinkedIn. No Twitter. Turns out, that may not be such a good idea, either.

Recruiters and hiring managers have had a complicated relationship with social networks. On the one hand, they worry that peeking into a candidates online profile is crossing a line. What should matter is how they conduct themselves on the job, not in after-hours activities online. Online profiles can also reveal information its not legal to ask in an interview, like marital status, sexual orientation and political or religious affiliations. On the other hand, if theres something that would make the candidate a bad fit (or an actual liability), shouldnt we try to find out about it sooner than later?

Weve officially reached a tipping point in social networking. According to statista.com, 81 percent of the U.S. population has at least one social network profile, up from 24 percent in 2008. So it might not be surprising to learn that more than half of employers surveyed are less likely to hire someone they cant find online.

A recent article in the Dayton (Ohio) Daily News reports: A national survey conducted on behalf of CareerBuilder found that more than 57 percent of employers are less likely to interview a candidate they cant find online. The majority of companies will dig through social profiles, but find it even more suspect if they see nothing at all.

Reporter Kara Driscoll writes, More than 70 percent of employers will use social media to screen candidates before hiring, a significant increase from the 11 percent of companies who practiced cyber-vetting in 2006. Its become so important to employers that 30 percent of human resource departments have an employee dedicated to check social media profiles.

IT recruiters are most likely to cyber-vet candidates (76 percent) followed by sales recruiters (65 percent), and finance (61 percent.) According to CareerBuilders 2016 survey, 53 percent of these hiring managers want to see if the candidate has a professional online persona, 30 percent want to see what other people are posting about the candidate, and 21 percent admit theyre looking for reasons not to hire the candidate.

Nick Morelli, writing for recruitingblogs.com, says companies take a risk when cyber-vetting, and a company should have clear guidelines about what a recruiter should be looking for. He writes, A company will generally check for three things. The first is to see whether there is anything on a candidates social media profile which contradicts his resume and interview statements. The second is to see whether the candidate has a history of badmouthing his employees. And the third is the candidates character, whether it is a history of discriminatory statements or one of drug or alcohol abuse.

But a recruiter will also have access to all posts and photos that are public, which is problematic. You cant unlearn what you have learned about a candidate, Morelli says, so you could open the door for discrimination lawsuits.

If youre in a job search, my advice is to make sure your privacy settings are tight on more personal and social networks like Facebook. That means your LinkedIn profile will provide most of the information a recruiter sees. But abstention from social networks is no longer an advantage if you want to be competitive in the 21st century labor market.

Candace Moody is vice president of communications for CareerSource Northeast Florida. Her column appears every Wednesday in the Times-Union, and she can be reached at cmoody@careersourcenefl.com.

Continued here:
Work Wanted: Not on social networks - Florida Times-Union

Any business owner will tell you LinkedIn can be an invaluable resource for a company, from recruiting talented employees, and connecting with clients and potential leads to networking with other professionals.

But Im often inundated with so many requests in a day from people who seem like scammers to people trying to sell me useless services and more. Its hard sometimes to cut through the noise to use LinkedIn to its full potential. Luckily Ive found a few tools to help weed out useless sales pitches, scammers or just people who won't help my network or business grow. Here are my favorites:

I use pitch.Me as a supplement to LinkedIn. pitch.Me is a career and social-networking site where users create a customized profile highlighting their professional and personal experience as well as skill sets and talents. Additionally, profiles can spotlight a users past or current employers, education and unique character traits. But the real magic of it lies in how you connect with other users.

You add a list of needs to your profile this can be open positions, services for your business, etc. People who find me and want to connect have to donate a certain amount of money to my charity of choice, and then theyre able to schedule a 15-minute in-app video or audio call.

I put a little note on my LinkedIn saying if youre wanting to set up a phone call or connect, go to my pitch.Me and schedule it there. It really helps weed out blanket requests and ensures that calls I have are only with people who take the time to get to know me and put some effort into the relationship.

A lot of people use LinkedIn ineffectively. Often there is no effort to build a relationship or to network its just heres what you can do to help me, will you do it? I reached out toLinked University founder Josh Turner, who explained, Would you go up to a person you just met at a networking event, and immediately start pitching them on your products and services, features and benefits? No way. And if you did, you wouldn't get far. It's the same on LinkedIn.

In Joshs Linked University, I learned how to better build a relationship with members of my network on LinkedIn and utilize its features to make it a resource and not just a place where I send out cold messages for sales and services.

If youre on LinkedIn for any period of time, youre bound to get a message for a free month of LinkedIn premium. I was always hesitant to pull the trigger on that but when it came time to fill a position at the internet marketing agency I founded, I decided to give it a try.

It took way less time to find candidates than going to Craigslist or working my local network to find talent. With the time left on my trial, I tried out some other features. A really cool feature I have used is statistics for top search terms, peoples visiting my page and their industries and locations. If I can see a lot of search traffic in visitors might be people who are looking for services my company offers, I can then work to tailor my intro and profile content to catch their eyes.

So there are some of my favorite tools for making sure my LinkedIn network works for me. What are yours?

Read more:
3 Tools to Build a LinkedIn Network That Actually Works - HuffPost

Nintendo is saying goodbye to its Miiverse social network.

The gaming giant said Tuesday that it would shut down Miiverse on Nov. 7, after debuting the social network alongside its Wii U video game console in 2012. Owners of the Nintendo 3DS mobile gaming console could also access the service.

Miiverse users could create cartoonish versions of themselves known as avatars that could chat and interact with others in a digital lobby. Part of the social networks appeal was that users could play certain Wii U video games or other online games with one another.

Nintendo closure of Miiverse comes as it heavily pushes its Nintendo Switch gaming console, which debuted earlier this year.

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The Switch is incompatible with Miiverse and instead relies on the Nintendo Switch Online to accommodate gamers who want to play against each other online. Currently, people can play Switch Online for free, but Nintendo plans to debut a paid version in 2018.

Before the Miiverse closes, Nintendo said it would let people could use their personal computers to download their messages to friends or other social postings for a limited time.

As gaming publication Nintendo Life notes, the Miiverse was a divisive social network, with many users appreciating the services playful interface. But others complained about its slowness in loading games and sometimes confusing navigation.

Still, Nintendos decision to close Miiverse caused some users to mourn. On a Nintendo technical support page, several Miiverse users expressed sadness about the planned closure, with one recalling how the service helped him connect with other people.

Miiverse is a place which has helped me to become more socially confident, and enable me to talk to others without having to actually physically talk to them, the person wrote. I've met so many wonderful people here, and I'm trying to get to grips with the fact that I may never see these people again when it ends.

Read more from the original source:
Nintendo Is Killing This Social Networking Service - Fortune

Every year, someone writes an article proclaiming that email marketing is dead -- and every year they are proven wrong.

Mobile data traffic is expected to increase sevenfold by 2021, according to Cisco's Visual Networking Index (VNI).

This smartphone usage expansion is due to improvements in network speeds and increasing availability of mobile applications, and the significant consumption of mobile video will all contribute to this growth.

So, how do marketers deliver the right messages to their customers to deliver the best ROI for their campaigns?

A recent report by technology adviser Analysys Mason shows that entertainment is the dominant activity on our smartphones -- accounting for 57 percent of our data usage and almost a third of overall time spent on the device. It analysed real-world usage from over 8,000 smartphones in Germany, India, UK, and US.

But if you are a marketer this might not be good news. It takes significant time and resources to create world-leading entertainment content to post across social channels. How do marketers connect with their audience and get a good return for their efforts?

A report from email marketing platform Emma shows that marketers are already overwhelmed and unable to meet expectations. Over 64 percent of marketers do not have the time or personnel to carry out the marketing activities that they would like to.

There are too many channels to focus on and not enough return for their efforts. It is easy to get side-tracked by flashier social channels, and marketers feel like they have to master every new thing that comes along

A look at customer data and response metrics will show which what channels are most successful for reaching the target audience so that marketers can focus their efforts there. And it is often email -- not social -- that is overlooked.

Now marketers are turning to email marketing to simplify their activities. Every year, someone writes an article proclaiming that email marketing is dead -- and every year they are proven wrong.

Although 'batch-and-blast email marketing' may be dead, timely email marketing campaigns could become key to successful digital marketing programs.

According to Emma, 47 percent of marketers said that email generates the most ROI for their organisation, and 58 percent of them are planning to increase their spending on email marketing in 2018.

With new channels seemingly popping up every day, marketers often feel like they have to be on all social channels all the time. But with the other half of our mobile data usage, we are very likely looking at -- and responding to -- a well-crafted email campaign.

Publishers say affiliates generate more revenue than other types of marketing

A recent survey points to a bright future for affiliate marketing and social engagement.

Why brands can't thrive without a good influencer marketing campaign

Brands are building deeper relationships with influencers using instant social platforms like Instagram and Snapchat.

New report shows top brands outperform their peers by maximising engagement

Revisit your online-only engagement strategy. Social influence leaders dominate the offline and online word-of-mouth consumer conversation, according to a new report.

Crimson Hexagon stores one trillion social media posts for customer analytics

If you posted one public social media post per second, it would take you 31,000 years to reach one trillion posts. That's the number of posts stored in Crimson Hexagon's data repository.

Link:
Social networking and video dominate smartphone use, but email generates the most ROI - ZDNet