Week #8 Staying on top of trends

So the 1^st article I choose for this was BECOMING A SOCIAL BUSINESS ISN’T JUST FOR SOCIAL MEDIA written by ILANA RABINOWITZ  http://www.socialmediaexplorer.com/social-media-marketing/6-social-media-principles-that-can-change-your-corporate-culture/

It talks about how Facebook has made most of us become more open with our lives to just about anyone with access to the internet.  Ilana went to hear Michael Zeisser, CEO of Liberty Media, speak on how he thinks a business is worth investing in, as I watch the video, (http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=bXmDaykZobc)It kind of blew my mind away how this man makes he’s decision on what companies he should invest in, and it was quiet touching, this man is inspiring to listen to. He speaks about a couple, Tony and Mary Miller who own a janitorial company in Cincinnati Ohio. They where doing well, but lack of people to work. They were coming out short about 30 people a day so they thought to themselves that it was transportation some people just could get there to work, so they bought a shuttle bus. The first day they went out to pick up their employees and saw the some of the neighborhoods their employees lived in  and the loss of hope in these communities.  This couple saw that these people had lost their dreams, and so they made a management team that is call the Dream Management and their job is to find each employee every day and make that worker identify their dream and no matter how big or small the dream is to go after it, like returning to school! No one  wants to grow up to be a janitor but this company has become known as where you go to make your dreams come true. This company has grown so much since they started this and now have 300 employees and  hey do about 12 million dollars in business year, they also had a 46% increase in productivity,  This dream management program have been use and copied but other companies around the world.So it’s not all about internet and getting your business out there and using social media, we are still all people and need to remember to behaves like a community.

The 2^nd article is Hurricane Sandy Propels YouTube, Red Cross, And Flashlight Apps To Top Spots In App Store, by JORDAN CROOK http://techcrunch.com/2012/10/30/hurricane-sandy-propels-youtube-red-cross-and-flashlight-apps-to-top-spots-in-app-store/

So this article is about the 3 tops apps at the Apple store this week and only due to Hurricane Sandy these 3 apps up there. So first one is that, YouTube hooked up with The Weather Channel to stream live coverage of the storm 24 hours a day, second Hurricane app by the Red Cross helps you stay up to date with developments in your specific area, also providing a way to keep connect with friends and family, and the best one I think is the Flashlight app , using the screen of your phone using  and LED flash, I think that one is pretty cool because I know I use the  screen of my phone to guide me in the dark many times, but once Hurricane Sandy passes and is no longer, gaming and other  social media apps will regain the top spots in the rankings for new apps.

So my last article is Incredible Viral Soldier Pic Debunked by Military by, Sam Laird http://mashable.com/2012/10/29/viral-soldier-pic-debunked/#98465Flooding-in-New-Jersey

I choose this article because of the incredible photo of three infantrymen in full-dress uniforms standing guard at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at Arlington National Cemetery in Virginia, in the pouring rain. October 29, 2012 this picture went viral on the twitter community, but in all reality the picture was taken in September of this year. The Old Guard (is a regiment and their mission is to oversee memorial affairs to honor fallen soldiers and to conduct ceremonies and special events to represent the U.S. Army) quickly replied to these twits correcting the post of the picture, The photographer that took this picture in September is Karin Markert, also took to the social media community to correct the postings and also to say “What’s most important, and please remember this, is that no matter how the photo ended up on everyone’s computer, I am just so very proud of these soldiers and the mission that they fulfill every day,” she wrote.

So these three articles show how sometimes grief, loss of hope or a natural disaster can increase business sales and  popularity  among companies and to me that’s pretty sad if we as people gain on other peoples sufferings, but then again that flashlight app could save someone one day!