All businesses make communication mistakes, sometimes. But if transactions are impersonal, customer loyalty will evaporate. more »

YouTube has a dark secret, one you may already be familiar with – it attracts ‘trolls’ like moths to a flame. more »

Well-connected customers are worth a lot to your business. Learn how to reward those customers, and watch your business grow. more »

We get such a rush from connecting with others online – via Twitter, Facebook or email – that we’ve started to lose sight of ourselves. more »

What looks like a series of disconnected incidents to a business, feels like a continuing relationship to the customer. more »

Thanks to social media, we potentially each have the advantage of every good idea thought up by every one of us. more »

The next billion seconds in our history will see the concept of being connected online become synonymous with being human. more »

Mark Pesce finds that although customers are crying to be heard, many businesses steadfastly refuse to listen. more »

Losing my iPad could have become a cliché if it wasn’t for the questions about privacy raised by its tracking service. more »

Our public behaviour reflects on ourselves and the organisations we represent. more »

No-one’s perfect. It’s how we react in our moments of failure that sets the tone for our online relationships. A few months ago I received an interesting offer: I would be given a whizzy new mobile – for keeps – if I agreed to do an honest review of the device, sharing my thoughts with the folks in my social network. Being a gadget geek and futurist, I could see two good reasons to accept this offer: I could explore the device while also exploring the potential of social media … more »

Your social network is your most valuable asset. But who will own it? The more we learn about social networks, the more awesome they seem to become. Dr Nicholas Christakis, a sociologist at Harvard University, has compiled a lot of data which demonstrates that behaviours – both good and bad – spread through our social networks. For example, you’re more likely to take up smoking if your friends smoke. Conversely, you’re more likely to give quitting a try if your friends are quitting. The same seems to hold true for … more »

Getting trustworthy information can be a make-or-break affair, but trust needs to take a back seat to honesty. Late in November, I cruised the aisles of my local supermarket, looking for a key ingredient. As an American by birth, I feel the absolute compulsion to celebrate the Thanksgiving holiday wherever I am in the world. For all eight years I’ve lived in Sydney, I have cooked up a turkey and all the trimmings, celebrating with a group of close friends. In preparation for last year, I searched high and low … more »

Should you name and shame someone who has wronged you in the professional world? In September I posed a dilemma for my readers: should I ‘name and shame’ a business person who had unfairly fired a friend? Should I keep quiet? Neither choice was particularly satisfying.
If I remain silent, would I be giving my assent to this person’s actions? Shouldn’t other people be warned? more »

Your social network is your most valuable asset. But who will own it? The more we learn about social networks, the more awesome they seem to become. Dr Nicholas Christakis, a sociologist at Harvard University, has compiled a lot of data which demonstrates that behaviours – both good and bad – spread through our social networks. For example, you’re more likely to take up smoking if your friends smoke. Conversely, you’re more likely to give quitting a try if your friends are quitting. The same seems to hold true for … more »

Social media creates an amplifier that puts our reputations at risk. How can we protect them – and our businesses? A few months ago a Sydney PR firm contacted me. One of its clients wanted a ‘futurist’ to act as spokesperson for a revolutionary media product it was about to release. I expressed interest, and was promised someone would contact me with the various legal agreements, schedules, and so forth. Then, nothing. I followed up with a phone call a few days later – and was informed that a meeting … more »

If you’re in the business of selling products, you should also be sharing the data you’ve collected about those products. With every year that passes, my diet grows more and more particular. Certain foods I once ate with abandon now disagree with me, and the doctor tells me to avoid one thing or to load myself up with something else. This isn’t uncommon: most kids can eat almost anything they like, while those of us in middle age have to be a lot more careful. These days, as I cruise … more »

I don’t drive, except perhaps once a year, when I take a ‘great Australian road trip’. This year an American friend accompanied me to Canberra, Melbourne, along the Great Ocean Road and the Barossa region. While I’ve been to Canberra several times on business, I’ve never been there as a tourist so, after we checked into our hotel, I found myself at a loss. Where to go? What to eat? I had some vague ideas, but nothing specific. Where could I turn to for answers? Twitter. Among my 5700 followers … more »