Emerging Social Media: Impossible.com

Have you heard about impossible.com yet? If not, you will soon. So, here is a brief snapshot of what you need to know about this new and upcoming social networking website:

What is Impossible.com?

Supermodel Lily Cole founded impossible.com and designed it to bring people together to help each other in various ways for free. The site’s home base is London, England; however, it has quickly expanded other cities and countries around the world. The site just launched in the United States in March 2014.

As to how the site works, the impossible.com about page states:

“Impossible.com is a new website and app that encourages people to do things for others for free. People can post wishes of things that they want or need help with and offer what they can give – can be things or skills. Impossible shows these wishes and offers and people can connect with one another. You can also create thank you posts to send people.”

In other words, you have to ways to use the site. You can post a “wish” for something that you want or need (For example, “I wish someone would teach me how to speak Spanish.”) and then wait for someone to respond to the request. Alternatively, you can post a “wish” offering a service or item (for example, “I wish someone would let me teach him or her how to speak Spanish.”) and then wait for someone to respond. The ideas for wishes are endless and only limited to a person’s imagination.

What makes impossible.com unique?

The way I see it, the premise of impossible.com is to allow people to give back without looking for something in return, a way to pay it forward, if you will. There are a lot of commerce websites, such as fiverr.com and etsy.com, or websites where you give something in order to get something in return. Impossible.com is the only website that I know of where people can find services or items without having to reciprocate. People give of their time, talent or services because they want to, not because  they will get something out of it. It’s not just for tangible items or services, either. In perusing the website, I saw a lot of intangible wishes, such as “I wish everyone peace and happiness” or Markwicked’s wish, “I wish for everybody to #smile today and say #thanks for everything good that happens !”

What’s the catch?

At first glance, there isn’t one. But I can see one “catch” hidden beneath the surface. The website offers users to share their services, talents or whatever for free, not asking for anything in return. BUT, I know from experience, whenever I give myself away in service to another, be it volunteering or helping a person in need, I always get something out of it – sometimes I get more out of it than the person I’ve helped. I get the satisfaction and joy of knowing I helped someone out and I usually become filled with gratitude. Therefore, the catch is, if you sign up and start helping others, you too, may get more that you give. Not a bad catch if you ask me. :)

Will it take off?

I hope so! It appears that many people have signed up given the number of wishes already listed. I haven’t signed up yet, but I am seriously considering it. And the potential for a lot of good being done through the site is certainly there. I guess only time will tell if it takes off or not; meanwhile, I encourage you to go take a look!

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Work Cited

"Impossible." Impossible. Web. 23 Apr. 2014. <http://www.impossible.com/>.

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Got impossible.com image using snipping tool 

Image of gift in public domain

Pinterest and Copyright Law: Are You an Infringer?

I am writing my final Writing on the Web paper on Pinterest; therefore, when I came across the Social Media and Fair Use: Pinterest as a Case Study, it naturally caught my attention. In a nutshell, the article is about the legal consequences and possible copyright infringement of content sharing online, using Pinterest as its basis of examination. But first things first.

What is Pinterest?

If you are not familiar with Pinterest, it is an online bulletin board where users can post pictures of things that interest them. There are two ways to "add a pin." The first is to upload a picture from your computer. The second, and most common, is to paste a link from a website and then choose from the images that are offered. I can tell you from personal experience that not only is Pinterest a lot of fun, it is addicting! I have to be very strict with myself otherwise I'd waste way too much time searching and pinning. :)

Pinterest is also a very fast growing social media site. According to the article, written by Mary Ann L. Wymore, "Pinterest is now the third most popular social networking site behind Facebook and Twitter" and "Pinterest now boasts more than 20 million users, of whom 64 percent are aged 35 or older and roughly 80 percent of whom are women."

The issue with copyright law.

Wymore describes it this way, "Although the concept of online sharing seems magnanimous, it is not without legal implications, particularly related to ownership and infringement of intellectual property...A Pinterest user can post or pin his or her own or anyone else's material, including copyrighted or copyrightable material."

This means that when someone shares something on Pinterest, or other social networking site for that matter, he/she can unwittingly be violating copyright law. Why? Because, as Wymore indicates, "If the social media user is not the copyright holder, therefore, he or she infringes the copyright in the work by reproducing, distributing, or publicly displaying the copyrighted material on a social media website."

Fair Use.

Wymore lists a few ways to avoid copyright infringment but most of the article is devoted to fair use. She explains, "'The Fair Use Doctrine permits the use or reproduction of copyrighted materials “for purposes such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching (including multiple copies for classroom use), scholarship, or research.'”

She goes in detail about each of the four factors involved with complying with fair use, which is beyond the scope of this post, so I highly encourage you to read the article for the full breakdown of her points.

Protecting your self.

The best way to protect yourself is to only share material that you own the copyright materal. There are, however, other ways for avoiding infringement.

One thing, as Wymore mentions, is to get permission of the of copyright holder. If that is not possible, "With respect to permission, another avenue to explore for authorization is the terms and conditions of the various sites on which the copyrighted material is found," writes Wymore. Lots of sites, like Flickr, have copywrite holders who are willing to allow use of their material with attribution.

This brings me to another way to protect yourself: atribution, atribution, atribution. In my mind, copywrite infringement is similar to plagarism. I would never do a college term paper, or other writing, without acknowledging and citing the source of another's work, and I trust neither would you. Therefore, when you post an image or link on Pinterest (or other social media site), make sure there is a link back to the source. Pinterest posts a link where the pin comes from automatically when you pin something; however, for extra measure, I almost always mention the owner of the image I pin and link to the source in the description field.

Conclusion

I love how Wymore concludes her article: "Social media has become part of the fabric of our culture and is very likely here to stay. With a bit of careful thought and an ounce of caution, there is no need to shy away from it whether you are pinning, posting, tweeting, or liking for fun or to promote your business."  She is so right. There is no reason to not post or share or pin. Just do so mindfully and wisely.

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Work Cited

Wymore, Mary Ann L. "Social Media and Fair Use: Pinterest as a Case Study." Bloomberg BNA.    Bloomberg BNA, 14 Aug. 2012. Web. 10 Apr. 2014. <http://www.bna.com/social-media-and-fair-use-pinterest-as-a-case-study-by-mary-ann-l-wymore-greensfelder-hemker-gale/>.

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 Copyright Image in public domain

Pinterest home page image grabbed with snipping tool

Clickbait: Good or Bad?

I have to admit, before this assignment, I have never heard of the term clickbait, although now that I know what it is, I can think of many instances of it online. And not surprisingly, there is some debate about it and whether it should be used or not. For those who do not know what chickbait is, according to the MacMillan Dictionary, clickbait is “an eye-catching link on a website which encourages people to read on.” An example of a clickbait link would be, “What I’m doing to make $500 a day will blow your mind!” The purpose is to entice people to click the link, usually in the hope that the reader will share the link and it will go viral.

So what is the debate all about?  Opponents of clickbait feel that the quality of the articles behind the links is under par or nonexistent and often just fraud. Scott Raynovich of cmswire.com explains in his article, Internet Fake Out: The Clickbait and Ad Fraud Explosion  that “Clickbait is … fakery, and distraction. It's diluting the quality of media.” I can understand this opposition. Without knowing the term clickbait, I have often clicked on a catchy link only to be disappointed with the article or annoyed that the article had nothing to do with the headline.

Advocates of clickbait insist that “clickbait,” in other forms, have existed long before the internet ever existed; it works, and is not going away anytime soon.  Steve Hind from theguardian.com believes that “When readers are lured in, and rewarded for their curiosity with good content, everyone wins. So if clickbaiting can be harnessed to drive views (and therefore earnings), we should play along. After all, it's reasonable to conclude that it is here to stay” (In Defense of Clickbait). He has a good point. If the headline is catchy and the article is of good quality, than there’s no reason not to use clickbait.

So is clickbait good or bad? Should I, as a blogger, rely on clickbait to drive traffic to my website/blog posts? I like Stephanie Masood’s perspective on clickbait. Stephanie writes the blog, Words from Y-M, Marketing Matters, and in her article, Clickbait: What Is It and Should You Use It?, offers three lessons that bloggers can learn from clickbait use. These lessons are “Headlines matter, Use numbers in headlines, and sharable content matters.”

Headlines matter because without a good, memorable headline, no one may read your article and that would not be a good thing! Using numbers is a good thing because people like numbers. I know from experience that when I use numbers in my blog title, article clicks go up. Sharable content is important because, as Masood reminds bloggers, writing good content is key. It doesn’t matter how great the headline is if the content is lousy. It won’t be shared, and it certainly won’t go viral.

My opinion?  If used ethically and sparingly, clickbait is fine, as long as it is backed up with good, quality articles.

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Works Cited

"Definition Of click Bait." Click Bait. Macmillan Publishers Limited, n.d. Web. 03 Apr. 2014. <http://www.macmillandictionary.com/open-dictionary/entries/click-bait.htm>.

Hind, Steve. "In Defence of Clickbait." Theguardian.com. Guardian News and Media, 03 Nov. 2013. Web. 04 Apr. 2014. <http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2013/nov/04/in-defence-of-clickbait>.

Masood, Stephanie. "Clickbait: What Is It and Should You Use It?" YearickMillea. N.p., 6 Mar. 2014. Web. 04 Apr. 2014. <http://www.yearick-millea.com/words-from-ym/?p=869>.

Raynovich, Scott. "Internet Fake Out: The Clickbait and Ad Fraud Explosion." CMSWire.com. Simpler Media Group, 12 Feb. 2014. Web. 04 Apr. 2014. <http://www.cmswire.com/cms/customer-experience/internet-fake-out-the-clickbait-and-ad-fraud-explosion-024145.php>.

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Click Me Image in Public Domain

Triangle Number Image in Public Domain 

How to Use Social Media Mindfully

When I was looking for inspiration for this week’s “writer’s choice” assignment, I came across the article, “Ten Mindful Ways to use Social Media” by Lori Deschene (@TinyBuddha). Now, as a practicing Catholic, I don’t know much about the “Buddha” thing, but this article is chock-full of wisdom we can all take into our  own social media strategy.

The first thing that caught my attention in the article, before even reading the ten tips, were Deschene’s words, “I’ve realized, however, that the greatest lesson we can all learn is that less is enough.” She is absolutely right about that. There are so many social media sites vying for our attention (Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, Pinterest, Instagram, among others) that it is tempting to join them all. Yet, we only have so much time in a day and inevitably we will either stretch ourselves too thin trying to participate in them all or we will give up on social media all together. The best strategy, instead, would be to pick two or three of our favorites and stick to those. If we choose wisely, and concentrate on the ones that fit our purposes and goals, we will be less stressed, more focused, and hopefully get the results we seek out of them.

Out of the ten tips, two particularly stood out for me. The first was tip #2, “Be Your Authentic Self.” If you spend any time online, you know it is very easy to spot a phony a mile away – someone who is only out for him/herself. As Deschene alluded to, no one wants to connect with someone with an agenda. People want to connect with people who can (and will be) themselves and who will add value to the conversation.

The second tip that resonated with me was #8, “Use Social Media Sparingly.” This tip struck me because one of my words” for 2014 is “intentional” and that is exactly the point of this tip. You cannot be in two places at once, even if one of those places is online. Strive to be intentional in the use of your time online and off. If you are with friends, be present to your friends. If you are working, focus on your work. If you are having fun, have fun! Then, when it is time to be online, be fully present online. Trust me, if you do that instead of dividing your attention, you (and the people you are with) will get more out of whatever it is you are doing.

Deschene’s offers eight other tips that are just as good so I encourage you to read the full article. I would also like to give you a tip of my own: turn the notification signal off. This is especially important for those who can’t resist the temptation of checking their email or social media accounts every time it dings. I remember suggesting that to someone and he was horrified at the thought. He couldn’t imagine not getting his notifications or looking at them right away. The truth is, you don’t have to be a slave to your phone or computer’s notification system. The world won’t end if you miss an update. :) So, turn it off and choose for yourself when you want to participate in social media.

The article is all about using our time on and off line wisely and mindfully so that we live our lives fully and consciously rather than mindlessly and reactively. Good advice, that!

Now it’s your turn. What’s your tip for using social media mindfully? Do share it in the comments!

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Brain image from public domain

Social media image from public domain

Article Review: "Why London Comes Last in Social Media"

Many of the literature classes that I have taken so far at Georgian Court University have mentioned, either in passing or in depth, about the influence and importance of Britain, particularly during the Victoria Era, when Britain owned a good portion of the known world. Moreover, for a long time, London was the pulse of invention, the creator of trends and wielded a great influence over the arts. Although it is true that Britain (or London itself) does not exert the same impact it once had, it still is a major player in all things “cool” and/or “up and coming.” Therefore, I was very interested in reading the article “Why London Comes Last in Social Media City Rankings.” I was curious to know why a city, which is known for its influence and being ahead of trends, would lag so far behind in the world of social media.

London's Big Ben

The article, examening a  German study, seeks to find out exactly that. Using the “social media services provided by the governing bodies of 31 major cities around the world,”  researchers from Heine University in Düsseldorf, Germany “measured the number of different types of social media account that each city publishes, the amount of activity on these accounts and the number of followers. They also look at the links to and from city social media accounts and their websites.” In all the social media outlets they measured, London came in dead last. Why?

Disappointingly, article leaves the reader wondering. The article title is “Why London Comes Last in Social Media City Ranking?” and yet it does not answer its own question. The article suggests that the researchers could not find enough internet activity, which is unlikely, or that “Perhaps London and its eccentric mayor, Boris Johnson, need to learn a little more about social media,” which is possible but unlikely as well. That is how the article ends, abruptly, with no clear answer or attempt of an answer as to why London is last.

The comments, however, were interesting and enlightening. Several suggest that London is last in social media because it is first in real-person interaction. One commenter, Archie, writes, “Yeah, Londoners are too busy being actually social face to face rather than fake social on junk like Twitter etc.”

One commenter, shattered2016 asserts, “British police will swoop down and interrogate you and if they find that one of their seeping Orwellian "offensive speech laws" has been violated, they can put you in prison and impoverish you. That's why people don't use social media much in the UK!” He goes on to tell the story of a man who was interrogated for eight hours for a cheeky comment made on social media. Now I do not know if what the commenter says is true, but if it is, it would sure put a damper on social media usage! 

Other commenters say that most people in London do not use “London” to describe where they are. ray.thackeray writes in his comment, “It's pretty simple. Most people in London don't say "London" much. They say Chelsea. Or Fulham. Or Wandsworth, Or Kensington. Or Victoria. Or The City. Or any number of tube stations. Or Cromwell Road. Or Piccadilly. Or the Strand. See where I'm going with this?” That would explain why, the researchers did not find much online activity for London. 

Overall, the article was an interesting, if not satisfying. It was interesting to look at the chart over the article and see the different social media usages from cities around the world. I never would have guessed that the inhabitants of Berlin, Germany were such powerhouse Twitter users or that the people of Kuala Lumar had a presence on Flickr! Still, I do wish that the article had fulfilled its intended purpose and  either actually explained why London is dead last in social media or gave a more thoughtful hypothesis as to why the author thought London is last in social media. 

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(Big Ben Image in Public Domain)