The infamous bookmarking platform Digg was at the top of their game years ago. Then came the redesign and it became less popular. Now the new version has been released and hatred toward it is brewing throughout social media. All of their indexed pages (14 million +) are now 404 errors. The previous rule was that by bookmarking with Digg, your content was indexed at a much quicker rate than even Google indexing, but things have changed, and their links are not even showing up much anymore on the search engines.

So today I went to visit Digg to submit a link and their system has changed again. I was not allowed to sign in under my regular account, and was prompted to sign in with Facebook. Their explanation was: “Using Facebook for account registration is a short-term solution that will seriously cut down on spam.” I tried to find a go-around, so I clicked on the “Submit a Link” button and it gave me a Facebook and Twitter option as you can see in the screenshot above.

Social Sign In is becoming the rule for new sites where users make accounts. It is much easier to sign in with Twitter or Facebook since most of the time we are already logged into these platforms. So all we have to do is grant access on Twitter or FB and we are a part of this new site.  Plus, the social sign in makes it that much easier to share on the networks. Digg is not new to this, but I have never seen a site go from having an account to full social sign in only. Maybe it is the new strategy of Digg to make bookmarking more social and with high hopes of folks being more likely to share. I hope it works for them and I look forward to seeing what else they have in store, hopefully something much better.

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I have been using several URL Shortening services for years now. Several different platforms offer a variety of options and features. Although I had initially gravitated toward Su.pr from StumbleUpon, this has lately become one of my biggest frustrations when trying to smooth sail on the Internet.

I like Su.pr a lot because you could not only shorten the link, but their shortened links also gave us a lot more hits than the others. On top of that, once you shortened a long URL into a short link, it would appear on the screen below and you could quickly and easily Stumble it on StumbleUpon, giving it a larger audience potential.

I got in the habit of setting up Su.pr accounts for all of my clients, so they could easily share links, recycle them, and see a growing statistical number of hits. Lately, I am regretting it. For one, I cannot sign in and out of another account on StumbleUpon and Su.pr without clearing out my cookies and cache. It is ridiculous. I log out of Su.pr, then it asks me if I would like to log out StumbleUpon, I click that button and then I am taken to another screen to click another button to finally log out at last. But it is not over yet. I go to log in with another account and as soon as I hit log in, it logs me into the previous users account. And tonight, I could not even log in to Su.pr with any account, it just kept kicking me back to StumbleUpon. An Abomination!!

I really hope their developers fix Su.pr soon. For now I am going to Bit.ly or one of the others that are on the market today including Goo.gl, Adf.ly, TinyURL, Moourl.com, Fur.ly, 3.ly or actually whatever else that actually works.

I put out 5 tweets on Twitter:

1. “Help Please: I need some experiences and opinions on what you think is the best online Project Management software?”

2. “Also, Please Help: Which do you think is the best CRM (Customer Relationship Management) Software on the market?”

3. “Question: So which tools do you prefer for social media management?”

4. “re: CRM & ProjectMgmt: I have 50 choices in front of me, including ones I have been using, but want to see what my tweeps recommend”

5. “Question: Any last minute recommendations for Project Management, CRM, Social Media Management Tools? Closing responses in 30 minutes”

And I got plenty of answers back! I read something in the Good Book years ago that said “In a multitude of counselors, there is wisdom” … and I am so glad that social media provides a great network of friends and contacts with a wealth of knowledge at my fingertips.

These are the answers I received:

1. Via @matthewrayscott: “@GSocialMedia Per your request: I’d recommend Basecamp for your project management. We’ve tried “everything” and Basecamp seems the best” (In response to my question #1)

*My evaluation and response: Many of my friends and colleagues use Basecamp for Project Management, which also has Highrise for CRM, both owned by 37 Signals. It is a proven program with many satisfied users. But beginners sometimes say that they have a hard time getting used to this system. It is more of an advanced PM tool to many.

2. Via @strexer: “@GSocialMedia Salesforce.com” (In response to my question #4)

*My evaluation and response: Salesforce was one of the 1st programs I tried. I liked it a lot, but the cost for every little thing was a little too high for me back then. One time my secretary forgot to cancel our free trial 2 days late, we were not using it anymore, but they would not let up. Personal experience, we were late on the cancellation, so our fault, but don’t trap me! I have several friends that use this platform and are completely satisfied.

3. Via @carpdata: “@GSocialMedia Salesforce, Basecamp for just project management” (In response to my question #4)

4. Via @manifestdani: “@GSocialMedia We use Paymo. It’s friendly and allows comprehensive reporting. Cool timer (desktop+mobile): Paymo.biz (In response to my question #1)

*My evaluation and response: Paymo is more of a time tracking and billing software with a Project Management system built into it. Looks very easy to use and I liked the interface.

5. Via @postnetnc141: “@GSocialMedia ACT was recomended 2 me for CRM & Zoho for projectmgmt. I need something for task/project mgmt myself!” (In response to my question #4)

*My evaluation and response: I remember buying ACT desktop years ago, and I just realized after this tweet that they were still around. Looks like they are moving forward and have some updated features. Zoho is a great tool to use that has many apps and options. They seem to be improving all of the time and growing steadily.

6. Via @howardlewinter: “@GSocialMedia Definitely check out @Nimble!” (In response to my question #2)

*My evaluation and response: Nimble looks like a great social CRM and was glad that it was recommended to me. They have several key features that I would use and greatly benefit from. They responded to me on Twitter too, so very nice monitoring.

7. Via @yojulito: “@GSocialMedia have then a look at @SocialBro” (In response to my question #3)

*My evaluation and response: SocialBro is a Twitter management tool that really caught my attention. A lot of nice features and great interface.

8. Via @innovograph: “@GSocialMedia Hi Gary, evaluating CRM & PM ICT solutions is hairy. Easy to eliminate Basecamp & SF on $. Contact me via LinkedIn” (In response to my question #2) He later emailed me and recommended Podio.

*My evaluation and response: I was totally like WOW when I saw what Podio had to offer. As far as Project Management and CRM at a great price, this has my attention greatly. They also have an armada of apps to choose from and you can also create your own to make your workflow easier. Seems like the “social” PM and CRM of choice in my opinion.

9. Via @marcpalud: “@GSocialMedia My #CRM recommendation is a self-promoting tool for salespeople AceOfSalesCRM.com” (In response to my question #4)

*My evaluation and response: Ace of Sales is more of a contact manager and newsletter/card service which is not exactly what I am looking for, but they do have a nice thing going on.

10. Via @therobinjames: “@GSocialMedia Hi sir. Here are some good project management software alternatives you could look at: http://blog.timedoctor.com/2011/02/02/43-project-management-software-alternatives” (In response to my question #1)

11. Via @topfloorstudio: “@GSocialMedia Sprout Social, Google Analytics, Raven, WebCEO, Hootsuite, Tweetdeck, Facebook Pages App” (In response to my question #3)

*My evaluation and response: Sprout Social has always been on the forefront to me, as their social media management tools seem extremely superior in the industry. I have used them and have been very satisfied. Plus, they are following me on Twitter and they talk/talk back, which creates the type of sociable influence that I am looking for on the more personal level. I use Hootsuite regularly as well, great platform, but (pet peeve) they need an automatic tweet shortener for retweets, and I have many friends that use Tweetdeck and love it too. Raven and Web CEO are both great SEO tools to use.

12. Via @socialhelptv: “@GSocialMedia I swear by Podio, I love using Hootsuite. Sometimes I lean on Tweetdeck for twitter related management” (In response to my question #3 & #5)

13. Via @cincydrum: “@GSocialMedia have you tried SproutSocial? I dig HootSuite, but SproutSocial had some cool social metrics too– I just can’t justify the price range” (In response to my question #5)

I also took at look at these other platforms on my own:

1. Sendible: A Social Media Management platform that has some really nice features. Definitely on my great list.

2. Landslide: A CRM platform that looks tremendous. I will be keeping an eye on this one.

Actual software companies that answered on Twitter were:

1. Via @sproutsocial: “@GSocialMedia Hey there! Let us know if we can answer any questions for you about Sprout. Happy to help!”

2. Via @nimble: “Thanks G! Looking fwd to your feedback RT @GSocialMedia ..”

My conclusion was WOW! Great answers from everyone. Thank you so much to all of the participants of this CRM, Social Media Management, and Project Management Software tweet conference!!!

When I think about Content Curation, I think about sites like StumbleUpon, ScoopIt, TrapIt, Pinterest and sometimes Digg. Of course there are many sites out there including Curata, CurationSoft, Google+, Storify, PearlTrees, MySyndicaat, Curatedby, Storyful, Evri, Paperli, Pearltrees, Scribit and Magnify that I could use, but I have chosen the sites that have caught my attention, proven value to me, and that I am personally comfortable with. Many of these sites are free to join and use. Content curation is where I can have all of the things that I am interested in delivered to me in a sifted and funneled manner. I do not use search engines much anymore because these sites have already done the research for me. So what do I get? I get a wealth of information on topics I am interested in including Social Media, Technology, Robots, SOPA-PIPA-CISPA, Conferences, Twitter, Facebook, Education and whatever else I want to know. And I love Infographics, they are like an educational cartoon to me, so Pinterest comes into play many times on that end. I also curate a lot of inspirational quotes through their search feature while I am pinning.

But when it comes down to high quality “content curation” – business information that I want to delivered to my screen in moments, I usually go to Trap.It, Scoop.It and StumbleUpon.com. All of them are similar in some ways, but all have unique features that attract me, keep my attention and educate me daily.

StumbleUpon hooks me with the surprise factor. For example, I can search “Technology” and a page that they recommend is delivered to my screen. Sometimes it is not exactly what I was expecting, but I am like “Wow, Nice!” And it is something I would not have normally clicked on, so it opens my horizons and expands my education greatly. I click the “Stumble” button, and another new post of interest appears. There is also a great social sharing bar on the top of the page that shares and instantly adds the links to my su.pr link shortening and tracking page.

Once I set my preferred topics of interest on TrapIt, I can go to my main screen and see the best of all of them. So I get a magazine style digital newspaper in front of me with everything I want to know. I can also click on a specific individual topic and they “Trap” or curate many articles to one page for me, I click on the title or photo of the article I am interested in, it opens the post, and I am ready to study and learn. The ease of use and how much information I am able to cover is amazing. I really enjoy the top  sharing bar which makes it easy for me to grab the link directly, or instantly share it by clicking on the Twitter, Pinterest, Google+, Facebook & Email button.

The public online magazine I create, share and use is ScoopIt. I can set up a page quickly with any themed title and info I wish. These are called “My Curated Topics”. When I click on a topic such as social media, I get brought to a page of about 20 articles that match my exact interest. I am able to scan the list of titles, descriptions and photos; click on them, read and then share them on social platforms such as Facebook, WordPress, Twitter, Tumblr & LinkedIn. I can also share my public Scoop.it page and others can see and explore all of the great stories I have Scooped! Scoopit also has a built in social networking feature which allows me to meet others and follow the online Curated Topic magazines they have created.

The list goes on an on with the features of all of these great Content Curation and Distribution sites. And they continue to evolve as they receive data and learn about the information we want and the ways we want this content delivered. Humans determine the algorithm. Education has become so much easier for everyone, from the newbie to the pro. Thank you.

Listen to this Spark Tech Talk podcast below featuring Oliver Hsiang from StumbleUpon, Guillaume Decugis from ScoopIt, & Gary Griffiths from TrapIt. Content Curation & Distribution is King!

Also see Project Glass on Google+

In addition to that, I can click on any topic and a full page of different articles from many sources around that topic are displayed. I can find out the latest and greatest about Robots, iPhone, Patent Wars, Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Hispanicize & so much more.

There is also the dropdown menu on the top left that takes me to any of the key topics that I have previously “Trapped” allowing me easy access to a wealth of information. And people wonder why I am so smart and up-to-date haha!

When you click on any article to read it in full, it appears with a great sharing bar on the top of the screen that allows you to easily share this content via Email, Twitter, Facebook, Google+ and Pinterest. Check it out…

And from what I have heard, Trap.it is getting ready to grow again, with additional features including a page of everything I have Trapped! Cant wait to add an “!t” button to the top of my website so folks can easily click & see the great articles I am Trapping

Great things are happening in the social media and technology World, and the Latino World is moving forward with leaps and bounds thanks to Hispanicize. From April 10th – 13th people will be coming from all over the globe to be at this incredible event in Miami Florida. On this podcast is Manny Ruiz – the Founder of Hispanicize, Karen Comas – the Social Media Manager at Telemundo, & Lynn Ponder – the Founder of Web City Girls. What is Hispanicize? Think of it as a mini version of SXSW with a Latin twist. WEPA!!!

This year (2012) Asheville North Carolina is going to SXSW to show tech companies and start-ups just how cool it is to be an Ashevillian. The quality of life here is beyond compare when looking for outdoors, diversity, arts, music, entertainment, food, and not to mention… we are BEER CITY USA! We need more jobs in the area. Companies that want to dip into the enormous talent pool of Asheville & Western North Carolina.

In addition to that, a representative of Asheville based Spark Tech Talk will be on the SXSW floor, making connections and gathering media. SparkTT also has a conference call to podcast planned featuring SXSW as the topic.

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