There are tons of blog posts and articles about influencers today. Most are in regard to those on social media who have large audiences. I want to divide this group into two categories. There are those who have a large following, but do little to monetize that audience. Then, there are the other half who do monetize their audience. They may make their money via brand promotions or sales. An example of this type would be a person who posts on Snapchat and is paid by a major brand to incorporate their brand into their story. The former, does not have brand deals, and are generally not receiving any payment or making money with their own products, people like Gary Vaynerchuk fall in this category.
What both groups have in common is the ability to move the needle. An influencer, by definition, "the capacity or power of persons or things to be a compelling force on or produce effects on the actions, behavior, opinions, etc., of others." There are many who argue that the number of followers doesn't matter. To a point they are correct. If you have a million followers and no one cares what you say, there is a problem.
The thing is that real influencers have influence. You may not like that, like the anti-vaxxer doctor that thousands believe is a god, though he is responsible for bringing back diseases which had been eradicated in the United States. On the flip side, people like Taylor Swift influences people to be kind and to buy music instead of stealing it.
Influencers get people to take an action, whether it is to watch a snapchat, read and comment on social media content, and for many that can mean influencing people to buy brand X instead of brand Y.
We have been used to celebrities and politicians have this type of "power," but with the rise of Internet "fame," the playing field has been leveled, so that any average Joe with a good idea can produce content which people want to see or read.

There are many claiming to have influence, but the ROI tells the truth. If people don't act on their suggestions, then odds are they are just noise makers.

The question you have to ask yourself is do you move the needle or just yap into the air?

Citations:
American Psychological Association (APA):

influencer. (n.d.). Dictionary.com Unabridged. Retrieved March 03, 2015, from Dictionary.com website: http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/influencer

Social Media· social media for business· social media influencers

Influencers Move the Needle

There are tons of blog posts and articles about influencers today. Most are in regard to those on social media who have large audiences. I want to divide this group into two categories. There are those who have a large following, but do little to monetize that audience. Then, there are the other half who do monetize their audience. They may make their money via brand promotions or sales. An example of this type would be a person who posts on Snapchat and is paid by a major brand to incorporate their brand into their story. The former, does not have brand deals, and are generally not receiving any payment or making money with their own products, people like Gary Vaynerchuk fall in this category.
What both groups have in common is the ability to move the needle. An influencer, by definition, "the capacity or power of persons or things to be a compelling force on or produce effects on the actions, behavior, opinions, etc., of others." There are many who argue that the number of followers doesn't matter. To a point they are correct. If you have a million followers and no one cares what you say, there is a problem.
The thing is that real influencers have influence. You may not like that, like the anti-vaxxer doctor that thousands believe is a god, though he is responsible for bringing back diseases which had been eradicated in the United States. On the flip side, people like Taylor Swift influences people to be kind and to buy music instead of stealing it.
Influencers get people to take an action, whether it is to watch a snapchat, read and comment on social media content, and for many that can mean influencing people to buy brand X instead of brand Y.
We have been used to celebrities and politicians have this type of "power," but with the rise of Internet "fame," the playing field has been leveled, so that any average Joe with a good idea can produce content which people want to see or read.

There are many claiming to have influence, but the ROI tells the truth. If people don't act on their suggestions, then odds are they are just noise makers.

The question you have to ask yourself is do you move the needle or just yap into the air?

Citations:
American Psychological Association (APA):

influencer. (n.d.). Dictionary.com Unabridged. Retrieved March 03, 2015, from Dictionary.com website: http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/influencer

You ever see those books promising you will that you will have Warren Buffet's riches through social medial on just 15 minutes a day? Yeah, just an FYI, they lied. If you actually were involved on all the social networks and blogging, don't count on less than 3 hours per DAY, and that might be the minimum.

How did I come up with this horrid number? By experience. Let's look at just some typical stuff.

1. Read tech or industry news- Long form articles get saved. (15 minutes)

2. Twitter has multiple parts: A)Look over Twitter Trending topics to find out if there was a disaster, big announcement, or whatever that I might want to tweet about or blog about. B)Look at tweets from list C)RT ones you think followers will enjoy. D) Quick glance at regular stream to see if I can answer a question, thank someone for a RT, or whatever. (15-25 minutes)

3. Facebook- Look over topics being discussed in groups I belong to. Make comments, if appropriate. Look over your personal stream to catch up on babies, marriages, divorces, and food porn. Add a video or blog post to your business page, if necessary. (15 minutes).

4. Pinterest/Instagram- Pinning, liking, commenting, and adding your own pins. (20 minutes)

5. Snapchat Watch the snaps of interest, post your snaps, and comment (15 minutes)
6. LinkedIn/Quora- Look at notices, skim read the new stuff, congratulate, invite some for connections, answer a question, comment (20 minutes)

7. Blog Post- I had not forgotten the post. Actually, you could do this second, but for our purposes we will put it last. Write your content, make or find an accompanying picture, and then distribute if not done automatically. Respond to comments throughout the day. (30 minutes)

8. Youtube- You could forgo the Blog post and use video instead. Either way, you need to also view your subscriptions, comment, respond, and share. (15 minutes)

9. Instagram- Take photos, submit, hashtag, view other photos, comment, and follow (15 minutes).

These are just the top ones. If you belong to special ones, then you have to add those on your schedule. Of course, these times will vary, and if you want to stay sane, I don't recommend doing them all everyday. There are some shortcuts like using Buffer to schedule your posts. The only thing here is that if there has been a major tragedy and you send out an auto tweet, you will get hounded.So, plan your tweets, but also be quick to adjust the posting time or content if something major happens during the day. And please, don't use tragedy to try to sell. That doesn't go over well at all.

Other things that could add to your social media time is doing Google Hangouts or Twitter chats. They generally last an hour. If you want to run your own (hint. hint) set up one on a weekly basis.

A sample Twitter chat #smallbizchat


So, as you can see, it takes time to be social online, just as it does offline.

Social Media· social media for business· Social Networking· social networks

Social Media is Time Consuming But Worth It

You ever see those books promising you will that you will have Warren Buffet's riches through social medial on just 15 minutes a day? Yeah, just an FYI, they lied. If you actually were involved on all the social networks and blogging, don't count on less than 3 hours per DAY, and that might be the minimum.

How did I come up with this horrid number? By experience. Let's look at just some typical stuff.

1. Read tech or industry news- Long form articles get saved. (15 minutes)

2. Twitter has multiple parts: A)Look over Twitter Trending topics to find out if there was a disaster, big announcement, or whatever that I might want to tweet about or blog about. B)Look at tweets from list C)RT ones you think followers will enjoy. D) Quick glance at regular stream to see if I can answer a question, thank someone for a RT, or whatever. (15-25 minutes)

3. Facebook- Look over topics being discussed in groups I belong to. Make comments, if appropriate. Look over your personal stream to catch up on babies, marriages, divorces, and food porn. Add a video or blog post to your business page, if necessary. (15 minutes).

4. Pinterest/Instagram- Pinning, liking, commenting, and adding your own pins. (20 minutes)

5. Snapchat Watch the snaps of interest, post your snaps, and comment (15 minutes)
6. LinkedIn/Quora- Look at notices, skim read the new stuff, congratulate, invite some for connections, answer a question, comment (20 minutes)

7. Blog Post- I had not forgotten the post. Actually, you could do this second, but for our purposes we will put it last. Write your content, make or find an accompanying picture, and then distribute if not done automatically. Respond to comments throughout the day. (30 minutes)

8. Youtube- You could forgo the Blog post and use video instead. Either way, you need to also view your subscriptions, comment, respond, and share. (15 minutes)

9. Instagram- Take photos, submit, hashtag, view other photos, comment, and follow (15 minutes).

These are just the top ones. If you belong to special ones, then you have to add those on your schedule. Of course, these times will vary, and if you want to stay sane, I don't recommend doing them all everyday. There are some shortcuts like using Buffer to schedule your posts. The only thing here is that if there has been a major tragedy and you send out an auto tweet, you will get hounded.So, plan your tweets, but also be quick to adjust the posting time or content if something major happens during the day. And please, don't use tragedy to try to sell. That doesn't go over well at all.

Other things that could add to your social media time is doing Google Hangouts or Twitter chats. They generally last an hour. If you want to run your own (hint. hint) set up one on a weekly basis.

A sample Twitter chat #smallbizchat


So, as you can see, it takes time to be social online, just as it does offline.

Everyone has a platform or the ability to build one with a click of a mouse. We call that social media. Fill in few lines, upload a picture (real or imaginary) and they have a space. Now what they do with that space is rather interesting.
1. Soapbox- It doesn't matter what it is, they think their audience wants to hear it. We are not talking once in a while, but often enough that you tend to unfollow or ignore their posts.
2. Complainers- This is an interesting group because sometimes their complaints are valid, but what is not valid is using their posts as a way to manipulate companies into doing something for them which is not warranted or deserved. The main group are people too lazy to pick up a phone or go to the Website, so they just post their gripe, and then gripe more if a representative from that company does not contact them publicly to air out their issues. It's manipulative at its core, but sadly, it's effective, particularly if the complainer has at large following.
3. You can throw a rock and hit a social media "expert." Most are not one, it's that plain and simple.
4. Tech writers are not that original. As a reader of nearly 15 of them, too often they tend to skim off each others ideas, even down to quoting the same material.
5. There are lots of VALID opportunities but you will have to sift through to find them. I partnered with some major companies on the basis of one tweet and an idea of how to utilize it. It completely changed the direction I was going.
6. You can make some great friends, but by all means keep out of the social media clicks and dramas. Millions of people may be on social sites, but you find the community is actually really small.
7. Handle your business. It can be easy with all the social media websites to get whiplash trying to decide which one(s) to be on. Really, it is a mute point if using for personal reasons. If using for business, go where your audience is, and that doesn't require much for most businesses.
8. Have fun. Way too often you can see one post too many telling you how you are doing it wrong, ignore them and talk to your people the way you like or the way they are used to you talking to them. My tweets are really mixed, because it is really built on my personality. As much as I have tried to change it, I always go back to it. I do that because I don't like games and I handle people online the same as I would if they were in my home. I don't have to try to remember how I am supposed to act.

So, you have a platform, use it but please never take people who have invited you into their virtual world for granted.

What say you?

Social Media· Social Networking

What I Have Learned Through Social Media

Everyone has a platform or the ability to build one with a click of a mouse. We call that social media. Fill in few lines, upload a picture (real or imaginary) and they have a space. Now what they do with that space is rather interesting.
1. Soapbox- It doesn't matter what it is, they think their audience wants to hear it. We are not talking once in a while, but often enough that you tend to unfollow or ignore their posts.
2. Complainers- This is an interesting group because sometimes their complaints are valid, but what is not valid is using their posts as a way to manipulate companies into doing something for them which is not warranted or deserved. The main group are people too lazy to pick up a phone or go to the Website, so they just post their gripe, and then gripe more if a representative from that company does not contact them publicly to air out their issues. It's manipulative at its core, but sadly, it's effective, particularly if the complainer has at large following.
3. You can throw a rock and hit a social media "expert." Most are not one, it's that plain and simple.
4. Tech writers are not that original. As a reader of nearly 15 of them, too often they tend to skim off each others ideas, even down to quoting the same material.
5. There are lots of VALID opportunities but you will have to sift through to find them. I partnered with some major companies on the basis of one tweet and an idea of how to utilize it. It completely changed the direction I was going.
6. You can make some great friends, but by all means keep out of the social media clicks and dramas. Millions of people may be on social sites, but you find the community is actually really small.
7. Handle your business. It can be easy with all the social media websites to get whiplash trying to decide which one(s) to be on. Really, it is a mute point if using for personal reasons. If using for business, go where your audience is, and that doesn't require much for most businesses.
8. Have fun. Way too often you can see one post too many telling you how you are doing it wrong, ignore them and talk to your people the way you like or the way they are used to you talking to them. My tweets are really mixed, because it is really built on my personality. As much as I have tried to change it, I always go back to it. I do that because I don't like games and I handle people online the same as I would if they were in my home. I don't have to try to remember how I am supposed to act.

So, you have a platform, use it but please never take people who have invited you into their virtual world for granted.

What say you?

Everyone knows Twitter.com is a great tool for people that have an online or offline business and there are third-party web services that enhance its usefulness. Twitter is fast, free and very effective - perfect for the online or offline business owner. You can sign up for a free Twitter account and get going in no time and with not too much effort. All of the third-party websites listed below are offered free as well. People of all ages, incomes and locations are signing up for Twitter - and they can easily become your customers.

Here are 7 cool Twitter tools that will make your twittering faster, better and more profitable:

1. Grouptweet.com: Do you have a team of people who are all on Twitter, but you don't want the info you tweet to be sent out for all to see? Grouptweet.com lets you send a tweet to a select group of people and keeps it from prying eyes.

2. Twittermoms.com: This site lets you connect with thousands of moms on Twitter. This is great if you are a mom, but it can also be great if you have a product or service that benefits moms (but just make sure your Tweets aren't spammy, or you will quickly get the boot).

3. Tweetbeep.com: This tool is like having Google Alerts for Twitter. You can have alerts set up for your name, company, product, service, or anything else. If someone tweets about it, you get notified. (Kind of like how your earn burn when someone talks about you, but high-tech and a lot better!)

4. Twitzer (Firefox addon): Normally, Twitter tweets are limited to only 140 characters. This nifty little gizmo lets you post more than that.

5. Twitterfeed.com: This gadget will feed your blog posts to your Twitter account. You can choose the frequency of the tweets.

6. Strawpollnow.com: Create a poll on Twitter with this fun tool. It appears to allow comments, as well. It is great for getting your followers to interact with a tweet of yours.

7. Twitturly.com: This tool lets you keep track of what URL's are talked about on Twitter.

These cool tools can help you bring your business to the next level by keeping you informed, connected and up-to-date. Of course, the key to any Twitter success is to acquire as many quality followers as you can. Without very many Twitter followers, all of your marketing efforts and tweets won't have much impact on your bottom line. Go signup now at Twitter.com.

Daryl Daughtry is the founder and CEO of a marketing membership service for solo independent professionals, entrepreneurs, and small business owners located online at http://www.SoloBusinessProfessional.com

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Daryl_Daughtry

Social Media· Social Networking· Twitter

7 "Must Have" Twitter Tools

Everyone knows Twitter.com is a great tool for people that have an online or offline business and there are third-party web services that enhance its usefulness. Twitter is fast, free and very effective - perfect for the online or offline business owner. You can sign up for a free Twitter account and get going in no time and with not too much effort. All of the third-party websites listed below are offered free as well. People of all ages, incomes and locations are signing up for Twitter - and they can easily become your customers.

Here are 7 cool Twitter tools that will make your twittering faster, better and more profitable:

1. Grouptweet.com: Do you have a team of people who are all on Twitter, but you don't want the info you tweet to be sent out for all to see? Grouptweet.com lets you send a tweet to a select group of people and keeps it from prying eyes.

2. Twittermoms.com: This site lets you connect with thousands of moms on Twitter. This is great if you are a mom, but it can also be great if you have a product or service that benefits moms (but just make sure your Tweets aren't spammy, or you will quickly get the boot).

3. Tweetbeep.com: This tool is like having Google Alerts for Twitter. You can have alerts set up for your name, company, product, service, or anything else. If someone tweets about it, you get notified. (Kind of like how your earn burn when someone talks about you, but high-tech and a lot better!)

4. Twitzer (Firefox addon): Normally, Twitter tweets are limited to only 140 characters. This nifty little gizmo lets you post more than that.

5. Twitterfeed.com: This gadget will feed your blog posts to your Twitter account. You can choose the frequency of the tweets.

6. Strawpollnow.com: Create a poll on Twitter with this fun tool. It appears to allow comments, as well. It is great for getting your followers to interact with a tweet of yours.

7. Twitturly.com: This tool lets you keep track of what URL's are talked about on Twitter.

These cool tools can help you bring your business to the next level by keeping you informed, connected and up-to-date. Of course, the key to any Twitter success is to acquire as many quality followers as you can. Without very many Twitter followers, all of your marketing efforts and tweets won't have much impact on your bottom line. Go signup now at Twitter.com.

Daryl Daughtry is the founder and CEO of a marketing membership service for solo independent professionals, entrepreneurs, and small business owners located online at http://www.SoloBusinessProfessional.com

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Daryl_Daughtry

There are debates about how to use Twitter. Whole books have been written on the subject by actual users like Joel Comm and Warren Whitlockand Deborah Micek.

The debate is whether Twitter is for relationship building or business. Put simply, it is for both. We all know that for the most part we could care less if someone is eating a grilled cheese sandwich, but maybe that is how a conversation gets started. It is sometimes the "little" things that make way for other things. Maybe that person needs to feel heard at that moment. It can be intimidating to see alot of replies to other people, and no one is talking to them. At least, that was my experience in the beginning.


By engaging in the small conversations you do build up a certain credibility. If they need advice on writing articles, joining a mastermind, or whatever. They are going to go to the people they trust. That is the key word. Credibility is built with trust. Trust that concerns are taken seriously, judgment is withheld when a boneheaded thing is done, and that a person is going to send them to someone that is going to help not try to sell to them.

Twitter runs the board on the types of people on it, so it stands to reason that it also runs the board in terms of purpose. For many, it could just be about making friends or networking and for others it could be just to get business. The conversations and expectations will be different.

I tend to have both on Twitter. Though I am not trying to sell a product or service, I still like to have readers for articles or viewers of videos. There is also a virtual mentoring thing for me. I read the tweets, get the newsletters,listen to calls and look at the Websites of people who have done what I want to do. They have something to teach me, and I am willing to learn from them. People like Carrie Wilkerson, barefoot_exec, who I have adopted as a mentor because I like what she contributes to women, her honesty and straight Texas wisdom tempered with compassion. Who would not want to emulate someone like that?

In dealing with people in a business way, I find that it also includes relationship building. People want to know who you are before they put money or time on the table. The tweets that are sent tell people about the type of person that is coming across to them. An example, is one person that I follow, her tweets seemed to be negative all the time. She may be good at what she does, but I don't trust her business sense, because of her personal. That might seem judgmental, but character speaks volumes.

On the friends side, there are people I chat with, argue with, and get giddy with. No sales pitch. There are a couple of reasons for that.
1. They are not my target audience.
2. I just like meeting people.

Here is what I do on Twitter:
1. Retweet wisdom: When someone gives an idea or resource, I send it to my followers.
2. Talk to people: I might respond to a post or just say hello to people that I normally speak to.
3. Inspirational words: I do this because people need to hear that they CAN do something, especially when there are all the negative voices around trying to tell them they can't or shouldn't.
4. Introduce other people on twitter: If I think that two people might be good for each other, are in the same thing, or going through the same thing, then I try to introduce them.
5. Promote articles and videos: I go by the standard that you are not a writer if you keep it hidden in a drawer. My articles tend to run into political opinion or something similar, so I am mindful of that, but it is also a conversation starter.

The key to Twitter is to engage with people. You can't build relationships just reading tweets or sending out sales pitches. Think of it like the real world. You never know who you might meet.

Social Media· Twitter

Is Twitter for Business or Personal Use? Depends

There are debates about how to use Twitter. Whole books have been written on the subject by actual users like Joel Comm and Warren Whitlockand Deborah Micek.

The debate is whether Twitter is for relationship building or business. Put simply, it is for both. We all know that for the most part we could care less if someone is eating a grilled cheese sandwich, but maybe that is how a conversation gets started. It is sometimes the "little" things that make way for other things. Maybe that person needs to feel heard at that moment. It can be intimidating to see alot of replies to other people, and no one is talking to them. At least, that was my experience in the beginning.


By engaging in the small conversations you do build up a certain credibility. If they need advice on writing articles, joining a mastermind, or whatever. They are going to go to the people they trust. That is the key word. Credibility is built with trust. Trust that concerns are taken seriously, judgment is withheld when a boneheaded thing is done, and that a person is going to send them to someone that is going to help not try to sell to them.

Twitter runs the board on the types of people on it, so it stands to reason that it also runs the board in terms of purpose. For many, it could just be about making friends or networking and for others it could be just to get business. The conversations and expectations will be different.

I tend to have both on Twitter. Though I am not trying to sell a product or service, I still like to have readers for articles or viewers of videos. There is also a virtual mentoring thing for me. I read the tweets, get the newsletters,listen to calls and look at the Websites of people who have done what I want to do. They have something to teach me, and I am willing to learn from them. People like Carrie Wilkerson, barefoot_exec, who I have adopted as a mentor because I like what she contributes to women, her honesty and straight Texas wisdom tempered with compassion. Who would not want to emulate someone like that?

In dealing with people in a business way, I find that it also includes relationship building. People want to know who you are before they put money or time on the table. The tweets that are sent tell people about the type of person that is coming across to them. An example, is one person that I follow, her tweets seemed to be negative all the time. She may be good at what she does, but I don't trust her business sense, because of her personal. That might seem judgmental, but character speaks volumes.

On the friends side, there are people I chat with, argue with, and get giddy with. No sales pitch. There are a couple of reasons for that.
1. They are not my target audience.
2. I just like meeting people.

Here is what I do on Twitter:
1. Retweet wisdom: When someone gives an idea or resource, I send it to my followers.
2. Talk to people: I might respond to a post or just say hello to people that I normally speak to.
3. Inspirational words: I do this because people need to hear that they CAN do something, especially when there are all the negative voices around trying to tell them they can't or shouldn't.
4. Introduce other people on twitter: If I think that two people might be good for each other, are in the same thing, or going through the same thing, then I try to introduce them.
5. Promote articles and videos: I go by the standard that you are not a writer if you keep it hidden in a drawer. My articles tend to run into political opinion or something similar, so I am mindful of that, but it is also a conversation starter.

The key to Twitter is to engage with people. You can't build relationships just reading tweets or sending out sales pitches. Think of it like the real world. You never know who you might meet.

Four out of 10 consumers have made a purchase based on advertising they saw on a social media site, and 76 percent welcome advertising on social networks, according to a report published today by Razorfish™, one of the industry's largest digital marketing agencies. FEED: The Razorfish Consumer Experience Report can be found at http://feed.razorfish.com.

FEED documents the results of a 2008 survey that Razorfish conducted of more than 1,000 "connected" consumers (a coveted group who spend money online and have access to broadband). According to the Razorfish Digital Consumer Behavior Study, connected consumers are adopting social media and web 2.0 technologies with startling regularity.

"Connected consumers embrace social media, are actively building and refining their own trusted personal networks and are rapidly dabbling with emerging communication offerings like Twitter," said Garrick Schmitt, Razorfish Group Vice President of Experience Planning and FEED editor. "We find that consumers are more open to advertising as part of their everyday experience than commonly assumed."

The Consumer Behavior Study also contains tips for marketers on the eve of a challenging holiday season, such as the importance of personalization and loyalty programs. Key findings:
• Razorfish reports that 65 percent of connected consumers say that retail loyalty programs highly influence purchasing decisions. According to Razorfish, loyalty services like Amazon's Prime™ or Best Buy's Reward Zone® are essential for retailers to succeed in a competitive digital environment.
• Websites that give personalized recommendations strongly influence connected consumers. Of the total surveyed, 65 percent said that they have made a repeat purchase on a site that issued an automated recommendation based on their previous purchase.

FEED also contains several essays, such as "Mad Widgetry," and "Life After the iPhone," which examine the impact of web 2.0 and social media on consumer behavior across the digital world, as well as implications for marketers. Schmitt noted that 60 percent of consumers use widgets on websites, and nearly half watch videos on their mobile devices.

"The uptake of widgets, mobile devices and social media tells us that marketers need to design experiences for consumers across a world of fragmented digital media," he said.

FEED is the second annual report of its kind. Razorfish publishes FEED to help marketers design better consumer experiences by offering insight into how consumers interact with digital media.

Razorfish™· Social Media

Consumers Increasingly Using Social Media to Make Buying Decisions

Four out of 10 consumers have made a purchase based on advertising they saw on a social media site, and 76 percent welcome advertising on social networks, according to a report published today by Razorfish™, one of the industry's largest digital marketing agencies. FEED: The Razorfish Consumer Experience Report can be found at http://feed.razorfish.com.

FEED documents the results of a 2008 survey that Razorfish conducted of more than 1,000 "connected" consumers (a coveted group who spend money online and have access to broadband). According to the Razorfish Digital Consumer Behavior Study, connected consumers are adopting social media and web 2.0 technologies with startling regularity.

"Connected consumers embrace social media, are actively building and refining their own trusted personal networks and are rapidly dabbling with emerging communication offerings like Twitter," said Garrick Schmitt, Razorfish Group Vice President of Experience Planning and FEED editor. "We find that consumers are more open to advertising as part of their everyday experience than commonly assumed."

The Consumer Behavior Study also contains tips for marketers on the eve of a challenging holiday season, such as the importance of personalization and loyalty programs. Key findings:
• Razorfish reports that 65 percent of connected consumers say that retail loyalty programs highly influence purchasing decisions. According to Razorfish, loyalty services like Amazon's Prime™ or Best Buy's Reward Zone® are essential for retailers to succeed in a competitive digital environment.
• Websites that give personalized recommendations strongly influence connected consumers. Of the total surveyed, 65 percent said that they have made a repeat purchase on a site that issued an automated recommendation based on their previous purchase.

FEED also contains several essays, such as "Mad Widgetry," and "Life After the iPhone," which examine the impact of web 2.0 and social media on consumer behavior across the digital world, as well as implications for marketers. Schmitt noted that 60 percent of consumers use widgets on websites, and nearly half watch videos on their mobile devices.

"The uptake of widgets, mobile devices and social media tells us that marketers need to design experiences for consumers across a world of fragmented digital media," he said.

FEED is the second annual report of its kind. Razorfish publishes FEED to help marketers design better consumer experiences by offering insight into how consumers interact with digital media.